2136/No, Seriously, Tiger!

No, Seriously, Tiger!
Date of Scene:	24 August 2017
Location:	Woods outside Xavier Mansion
Synopsis:	Lexi decides to go find Tigger Momma, and ends up involving Tabitha and Dani. They conclude the tigger may well be a shapeshifter of some variety.
Cast of Characters:	Boom-Boom, Tendril, Okhotnik, Moonstar

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Boom-Boom has posed:
    Today is an exercise day on Tabitha Smith's schedule. She had played a good game of tennis with a student, they had a few pointers from a coach and then she was free for the rest of the day.

    So, here she is, wandering along the back patio, having just sat down on a chaise, to rest. She's wearing a pair of short athletic shorts in white and pink stripes and a tennis tank top that matches. She has a pink terry headband and a white towel wround her shoulders.

Tendril has posed:
    Thus, she's in a perfectly good position to observe a familiar mauve form come sliding over the outer wall separating the woods outside from the main grounds, as she lands easily, retracting her tendrils as she starts walking towards the back door, frowning to herself as she tries to tug a small twig out of her hair carefully. She looks...well, mussed. Not horribly so, but certainly she is not her normally more neat self. She's dressed in her cutoffs and a dark t-shirt that shows a kitten dressed with fedora and whip holding a golden fish under one arm while the whip fends off the surrounding facist looking dogs. They have little crossed bones on their uniforms.

Boom-Boom has posed:
    Sports-Barbie rises as she spies Lexi cresting the wall. "Foxy!" she calls, trotting in the other girl's direction. "What..." and she realizes she was going to admonish Lexi and thinks better of it. "... out for a walk?" Tabby asks instead. She wrinkles her nose, though. "Did somethin' happen?"

Tendril has posed:
    Lexi scowls a bit. "...apparently I'm not allowed ta leave th' school by myself anymore." she grumbles, finally working the little twig free as the strands of her hair unwind from it. As she lifts her hair, the back of her neck looks...wet. Other than that, it looks pretty much like she faceplanted into the ground, from the stuff sticking to the front of her shirt and shirts.

Boom-Boom has posed:
    Tabby tries to help, brushing at the clinging debris on Lexi's front. "Did you fall somewhere?" she asks, a litle amused. "You're alright, though?" she leans down and brushes pff the other girl's knees. "At least you didn't fall on concrete or somethin'"

Tendril has posed:
    Lexi sighs. "No, I was pinned." she grumbles, a little reluctantly, letting herself be cleaned off a bit, before she promptly glomps onto Tabitha, snuggling against her as she rubs her cheek against her shoulder. "I'm fine though."

Boom-Boom has posed:
Tabby wraps her arms around Lexi in return, pressing a kiss into the silvery hair. "Good! I'm glad... and I'm glad I got to see you. What're you doin' now? Goin' to the art room to pose as a nature spirit or somethin'?"

Tendril has posed:
    Lexi mms, then peers back at the wall. "...okay, there's, like, something I kinda need ta tell someone, cuz it might be a thing otherwise." She frowns. "I really should find Dani too, cuz she can probably deal with this better than us an' stuff." She takes Tabitha's hand, tugging her off the paved area to behind a tree nearby. TOTALLY so they can be super secret. And not because it might be a good smooching spot too.

Tendril has posed:
    Lexi's eyes go wide as she gently pushes the other girl so she's backed up the tree and moves in close to her. "Nonono! That's what I want NOT ta happen!" she says, then mmmphs. "...so, uh..." She's obviously thinking about how to tell this, then just gives up and goes for it. "So there's, like, a gigantic tiger in th' woods. But, like friendly!" she hastily adds.

Boom-Boom has posed:
    Tabby doesn't protest the pushing against the tree. She grins, even. She puts her hands on Lexi's upper arms, expecting to hug her. "A... a tiger?" and her eyes widen too. "I wanna see!" then she puts two and two together. "Did it chase you? You're alright?" and she checks Lex over again. "It didn't hurt... friendly?" she wonders.

Tendril has posed:
    Lexi ums. "Well...it didn't like, attack attack me." she hedges. "I mean, th' first time it kinda just pounced me then held me down and, um..." She gets a faint flush. "...like, groomed me for a while. Then it just kinda laid down and, um, kept me pinned with a paw. But not like, mean, just...comfy.

Boom-Boom has posed:
    A giggle escapes Tabitha's mouth-hole with the thought. "It's held you down and _groomed_ you?" Poor you." and she laughs again. "DO you smell like tiger spit?" She rubs at the other girl's arms gently. "I need a big fluffy paw to pin you down with." but she shakes her head. "I guess she likes you, then. But yeah..." Tabby thinks. "You might be right, good idea to get Dani involved. Be nice if we deal with this before like... Badger finds the tiger."

Tendril has posed:
    Lexi blushes deeply. "Yeah, well...I like it too. It's a nice fuzzbutt." She nods at the mention of Logan. "That's what I was kinda thinkin'! I mean...she doesn't seem ta come into th' grounds." She frowns thoughfully. "Well, other than th' once, cuz I fell asleep an' it must have carried me inside, cuz I woke up in the campsite area an' stuff." She huffs, then puts her hands on her hips. "But now it's not lettin' me leave th' school! It totally just got all pushy when I tried ta walk into town by myself."

Boom-Boom has posed:
    "You probably should't have anywyay." Tab gently chides. "I know you're better, but still... it might be a good idea for people to stick with a buddy when they're in town for a while. Jus' in case?" and she looks back towards the wall. "I guess I should thank the tiger for lookin' out for you."

Tendril has posed:
    Lexi folds her arms under her chest, frowning a little grumpily that Tabby is -also- agreeing she shouldn't be wandering off by herself. It's a conspiracy!

    "I took care of myself for years without gettin' in too much trouble, I can walk inta town without gettin' shot or kidnapped or somethin'..." she protests, then sighs, pouting, before she leans in to hug the other girl, snuggling into her as she gently pins her back against the tree.

    "Now yer soundin' like Yana and Hottie." she mutters, then sighs. It's frustrating, but...she can't really be mad for long.

    Doesn't mean she's not going to try and sneak out anyway, of course. But she won't get mad for people trying to stop her.

Boom-Boom has posed:
    Tab wraps her arms around the pinky-purple shoulders, returning the embrace. "I know, I know... I'm jus' worried that Spiral or Mojo will try to pick us off one at a time. An' you got those other people lookin' for you now, huh? The mutants?" and she sighs. "I got some payback for them too."

Tendril has posed:
    Lexi mmms, then rests her chin on Tabby's shoulder. "...I know, I know. I just...I hate bein' useless..." she sighs. "I don't know anythin' about these weirdos, or why they wanna get at you, or...anythin'." She sighs. "...an' I suck at fightin' anyway, mostly." She molds herself up the other girl quietly, rubbing her cheek against her shoulder. Because mixed scents. Mmmmmmm. It does make her feel nice. And she smells like tiger right now, so she wants some Tabby in that.

Boom-Boom has posed:
    "You're not useless, honey." Tabby says softly. "Nowhere near it." She strokes Lexi's silvery hair. "We can practice, now that you're better. See... I think you and me are a good team. Can be, for sure. If you keep 'em off me, I can blow stuff up at range." she thinks a moment more. "I wonder if we can get someone... maybe Dr McCoy... to make you some stretchy fabric armor that will keep you from gettin' abrasions or somethin'?"

    "Dunno, but hey... hey... look at me. " and she tries to life Lexi's chin with a gentle cupped hand. "You were great durin' that fight. You got dumped in the deep end and you swam out like a champ. I jus' wish stupid Cyclops had done _his_ stupid job half as well as our chief did. Gambit might have made it out alive."

Tendril has posed:
    Those golden eyes flick up to Tabby's at the fingers against her chin. "...th' only reason I didn't panic was cuz ya were there. An' Dani an' Yana an'..." She sighs out soft, reaching up to rest her fingers against Tabby's hand under her chin, squeezing it with hers. "I couldn't let somethin' happen to ya."

    She mmms. "We might be a good team, but I'm holdin' ya back right now." she says, brutally honest with herself at least. "If I mess up like I did in th' practice room for real, I'd put ya all in danger tryin' ta help me." She tilts her head. "I'm not, like, a team like you an' Dani an' the others are. Yet."

    Lexi catches Tabitha's hand with her other hand as well, clasping it. "But I'm gonna do better!" she insists.

Boom-Boom has posed:
    Tabitha nods, pride in her voice and her eyes. "I know you will, Foxy. I know you will. You'll be kickin' butt like the best of 'em soon." she considers a moment. "Team stuff's not so hard. It's jus' a matter of knowin' what the others are gonna do in certain situations and havin' plans for what to do in certain sitches... like when we were fightin' in Paris or wherever it was... and I stood behind Dani and shot the flyers outta the air so they didn't get behind us. Or like where to go if we get seperated in a battle, where to fall back to to rally... junk like that."

    She squeezes Lexi's hand. "I hope Dani and maybe Sam can squeeze you into the sim schedule so we can all practice together. Lookin' forward to it, anyway." If she has qualms about the practice section, she doesn't show it.

Tendril has posed:
    "Yana's been givin' me exercises ta do too, on my own stuff, so I get better just at usin' what I can do. That shield thing I did ta catch the spikes, that was a new trick!" Lexi says, smiling a bit as she gets almost shy at the amount of pride being thrown her way.

    "Maybe...maybe if I watch stuff that happened in th' training room before? Like recordin', so I know what people can do?" she says thoughfully, then shakes her head to clear it. "But, um, I can work on that stuff." She frowns a bit. "...I mean, I can't help ya this time though." She sighs, then mmphs. "But, um, stuff I can do somethin' about with you! So...um, we get Dani and take her to see th' tiger? So she can, like, talk to her?" She pauses. "Would that, um, wolfy girl be good? I dunno if the tigger likes wolves." And she did actually just call it a tigger now.

Boom-Boom has posed:
    "It saved me, but it got you real hurt, too. So you used your powers great, but..." Tabby begins. "I don't want you to hurt yourself. Maybe you need a metal shield or something to carry around and tendril or somethin'?" she wonders.

    Tabitha considers the mention of Rahne. "Wolfbae? I... well, they might have a faceoff, if they didn't fight right off. Rahney might feel protective towards Dani if they... but we can see what Chiefy thanks."

    A laugh. "Does your tigger bounce on her tail?" she reaches up to scratch her own chin, of course having let Lexi go some time ago. "We could take a peace offering, like some raw steak or chicken or somethin'?"

Tendril has posed:
    Lexi grins a bit at 'Wolfbae'. "Ya don't really call her Wolfbae, do ya?" she says, looking like she finds that adorable. "I mean, it's true, but still..."

    She smiles a bit at Boomer. "...and it only hurt for a while. I'm almost all better now. I can take a little pain if it protects ya or the others. 'Especially if I'm healin' quicker now.

    She pouts a bit. "The tiger does not, but I like tigger.' she notes, sticking her tongue out briefly, then hmms. "Somethin' big? Steak would probably be good, or a couple chickens, as long as it isn't all cold, maybe?"

Boom-Boom has posed:
    Tabitha laughs. "_I_ do, but then I have nicknames for everyone. 'cause their codenames are booooooring." She nods, though. "Yeah, well... there're better ways, we need to find ways so you don't need to have any pain protectin' me or the others, huh?"

    She pauses to think. "I guess we could nuke the meat for like thirty seconds, to take the chill off? I'm pretty sure I remember seein' some Cornish game hens in the kitchen somewhere. Probably supposed to be for McCoy, but he'll jus' buy more. So! When do we go back to the Hundred-Acre Wood?"

Tendril has posed:
    Lexi lets out a little laugh as she smiles at Tabitha, leaning in to nuzzle. "Mm, I like yer nicknames, mousie." she admits cheerfully. She tilts her head. "Well, prob'ly should definitely get ourselves a Dani before we go in. I mean, I could probably find tigger an' introduce ya an' I don't think tigger would hurt ya any." And now she's named it apparently in her head.

Boom-Boom has posed:
    She nods. "Thanks for warnin' me. I don't go out there much, but yeah... I might have bombed first and called animal control later if I had seen a tiger in the woods. Hey, are the res of the gang out there too? Is there a talking owl and rabbit and stuff? BEars with jars of honey?"

Tendril has posed:
    Lexi's nose wrinkles as she grins. "Nope. Well, there was a pig...but tigger kinda ate it, sooooo...gonna hope that doesn't scar childhood memories an' stuff. But no bears anymore...I think I heard there was one a while back, but I think Badger guy scared it off or somethin'. Or wressled it or stuff."

Boom-Boom has posed:
Tabby laughs. "Or jus' called it 'bub' until it ran away. I guess they could've gone back to his cabin and had some crappy beers." She puts an arm around Lex's shoulder. "I love that little fireplug. He's an ass, but he's our ass."

Tendril has posed:
    Lexi mmms. "He seems kinda scary...always so growly." She wrinkles her nose. "An' he always smells of beer an' cigars." She tilts her head, looking thoughful. "Are...are all th' teachers here like..on a team like you are? And th' graduates an' stuff, like that Jubilee girl?"

Boom-Boom has posed:
    Tabitha leans to try and brush her lips against the other girl's mauce forehead. "Gotta be, or at least in on things and very friendly. You know what's goin' on here, so someone who's jus' gettin' paid to teach might spill the beans to the press or have a blog expose and make a lot of trouble. Prob'ly parents would be here with pitchforks and torches."

    She shrugs. "They don't try to make anyone stay, but where else're we gonna go? Go join the Brotherhood? I guess people could start their own team, but think about all the stuff we have here - like the simulators and all the food we have and equipment and stuff.. and you haven't seen the half of it." her voice picks up in speed as she gets excited about this. "Thry have a big black plane that can't be seen on radar, and it can turn invisible and it goes really, really fast... and..." but she laughs. "All that stuff costs. It's really 'spensive."

Tendril has posed:
    "An'...they really train everyone here ta fight?" Lexi says uncertainly. "And they got MAGNETO here! Isn't he, like, th' founder of th' Brotherhood and stuff?" And a plane too? The mauve girl just has one of those 'unsure if leg is being pulled now' look. "Well, um, yeah, I'd guess so." She looks a bit more worried. "So they got like...super radar stuff or such? Cuz if they do...we should go find tigger now. Cuz they might have tiger hunting stuff or something!"

Boom-Boom has posed:
    "They don't need super tiger huntin' stuff. They got Badger." Tab replies. "Well, I guess not _everyone_. Jus' people who have useful powers for defendin' themselves or fightin'. Like a guy that makes solid light sculputures real slow prob'ly isn't gonna be too helpful. Same guy that makes 'em real fast, like instantly... that might be different."

Tendril has posed:
    Lexi frowns more at that. "Yeah...Badger guy could find 'em too." she says, getting a bit more concerned now. She's a little intimidated by Logan. Well, okay, a lot intimidated by Logan. He's kinda scary, really.

    She backs up, taking Tabby's hands again as she tugs her away from the tree as she starts drifting towards the wall out. "Well..I guess makes sense...I mean, at least you an' Dani an' Yana got powers that can do that. An' Nega an' stuff."

    The silver-haired mutant looks unsure. "Maybe we should go look for th' tigger now, just ta make sure she's okay...she was kinda close to th' wall before."

    

Boom-Boom has posed:
    "Alright." Tabitha agrees and comes along. "What is the tigger eatin' out there? Deer or somethin'?" she wonders. "I hope she doesn't have worms or anythin' like that. Poor thing."

Tendril has posed:
    "Well, she ate a pig. I guess there's deer an' stuff around, so she's...eatin' Bambi?" Lexi says curiously, then extends her arm tendrils to wrap gently around Tabby's waist to lift her up and over the wall as she follows her over, landing lightly on the other side. "She seemed real clean an' healthy?" she says thoughfully. "I dunno, how do ya check for worms an' stuff?" She wrinkles her nose. "...this is why we need Dani ta come with next time. Or maybe she'll be back from class soon, maybe I can text her..."

Boom-Boom has posed:
    Boomer laughs as she's picked up. "Hey, careful! You're ticklin'!" and she giggles. "Hmm." she says as she sobers. "I dunno. Might need a vet or somethin'. I think they just give the deworming medicine and the worms come out eventually. I wonder what the dose for a big tigger is, though?"

Tendril has posed:
    Lexi hmms. "Am I?" she says, then more deliberately tickles against the blonde's sides playfully with her fingers as the tendrils vanish again, before she leans in to give her a little brush of a kiss on Tabby's lips. "Mmm...long as it's not a suppository or somethin'..." she says with a thoughful frown, then takes Tabby's hand, squeezing as she starts to move a bit deeper into the dark, spooky woods. Normally this would call for a masked killer...but they're away from the campsites, so they're probably safe!

Boom-Boom has posed:
Tabby squeaks at the tickling. "Hey! Hey! You're gonna make me pee." she giggles, then she returns the kiss. "It's prob'ly like a syringe on a pole so the vet doesn't have to get too close." she comes along, her hand taken. "Oh, I have a light on my phone, or I can make a little light with a bomb, but it's way too flickery to be useful, really."

Okhotnik has posed:
Having not actually gone hunting for a tigress in the woods before, Lexi and Tabitha will have a ways to go, as they explore around and try to figure out how to hunt down a creature that is literally //created// for hunting things down, and catch it before it catches them. Probably their most interesting moment will be when they get about four hundred feet out from the wall, and find a sparse and tiny campsite. There's actually a small tarp - forest camouflage - propped up on twigs, a shallow dugout beneath, and a ratty olive drab blanket. There's evidence of a fire circle that has been cleared away.

The weird part is that with this clearly disguised, hidden campsite ... there's a scattered distribution of desert camouflage army surplus clothing and an olive drab coat about fifteen feet away, scattered out in the open. And a huge handgun in a belt holster with two spare clips, and a matte black bladed tactical knife.

Odd how familiar that stuff looks.

Tendril has posed:
    Lexi blinks, grinning a bit at that. "Sure? I can see pretty well still.." Her gold eyes are a bit reflective in the available light. "Um, wait, let me just.." She tugs out her phone, then starts typing on it, sending a text off to Dani: BUSY? GOT SOMETHING 2 SHOW U. IN WOODS. TABBY HERE TOO." She then flips on one of those neat apps where you can find people in the area so Dani can find them, before following Tabby's flashlight deeper into the woods.

    As the light falls over the campsite, Lexi looks around curiously. "...was someone campin' out here?" she says curiously, then slows as she sees the gun. That looks....kinda familiar...

    She stops and starts sniffing the air, nostrils flaring slightly as she tries to get a recent scent.

Boom-Boom has posed:
    Tab watches Lexi's nose work. "You're adorable." But she sobers and freezes as they come upon the campsite. "Huh." the clothes seem to concern her. "If this is you tigger's camp, than that means that she might be..." and Tabby spins around, flashing her light around the space. She's still holding Lex's mauve hand in hers. "Maybe this wasn't such a good idea?"

Moonstar has posed:
    Dani texts back: WTF LEXI YOU'RE IN THE MIDDLE OF THE WOODS AT NIGHT BRT!

    And then Dani is getting back into her New Mutants outfit, grumbling to herself as after she gets re-dressed she makes her way into the woods, homing in on Lexi's position.

Okhotnik has posed:
Given how very, very close Lexi got to the tigress last night, it's not hard to find her scent. And her scent is //everywhere// right here.

Including on the clothes.

Inside the clothes.

Not being a tracker, though, Lexi can't quite make out where the scent went from here. Her senses are totally flooded, so she'll need a chance to step away and then carefully check the perimeter if she wants this to work.

And then there's a sound in the darkness. A low, thrumming, rumbling sound, almost more felt than heard. And in the distance, perhaps another three hundred feet away, a pair of green-tinted amber eyes stare intently towards the campsite ... and the bipeds wandering around it.

Tendril has posed:
    Lexi snorts. "This isn't the tigger's camp, what would a tiger need with a camp? But this might be, um, someone else's camp I know was around here..." She extends a tendril to snag some of the clothes, sniffing, then looks slightly worried. "...but it smells like tiger, like..all over here."

    Lexi looks a bit more worried now. "...I think this might be Hottie's camp...maybe th' tiger chased her off?"

    She really, REALLY hopes that is what happened...though the tiger has been pretty peaceful, then again. Doesn't mean she's not worrying.

    Or that she doesn't freeze a bit at the sudden rumble. "...okay...Tabby? Stand...like really still..." she whispers urgently at the other girl. "An', um, don't look right at her eyes. Cuz that's like a challenge. I think." Yeah, they really need the vet type student here. Lexi sort of edges a bit in front of Tabby, just in case. "Um, hi tigger..." Yes, she's still talking to the tiger. She can't help it.

Boom-Boom has posed:
    Tabbycat doesn't so much hear the rumbling as feel it. She drops her phone, her luck being that it lands face (and light) down, so the camp is plungled into darkness.

    "What was _that_?" she gasps. Suddenly there's a ball of plasma in her now-free hand, her other hand squeezing Lexi's tight.

"Stay back!" Boomer warns. "I mean it!"

    Tabitha shrugs. "Maybe she's a were-tiger, like she changes back and forth 'tween a person and a tigger?" She frowns a bit. "Who's 'Hottie', and how hot is she?"

Moonstar has posed:
    Dani stops as the lights go out, and concentrates on her connection with the tigress, trying to communicate again with her through the link as she tries to convey a feeling of being non-threatening. Slowly she makes her way towards the campsite, calling out softly, "Lexi? Tabby? Don't make any sudden moves!" It doesn't take her long to get close, thanks to the miracle of GPS, though once she gets near she slows her pace.

Okhotnik has posed:
Shouted, angry words bring a snarling growl from the darkness. The plasma ball's light flickers in its reflections in those giant, deadly eyes that are coming ever closer. Closer. Closer.

Did Lexi mention the tigress is ginormous? Like almost horse sized? A body length of twelve feet. Shoulders six feet off the ground. A muzzle big enough to swallow a misbehaving teen's entire head and more.

Stalking so painfully silently closer that the only hint of her approach are those eyes. The eyes, and that growl that seems to burrow into the mind and paralyze the hindbrain as instincts buried for millennia of evolution suddenly can't stop screaming 'PREDATOR! HIDE!'

Dani's connection causes the tigress to slow her approach, glancing towards the Amerindian woman, tail now lashing about behind her. After a delay, she continues to slink closer, and then at the last moment she LEAPS!

    And lands right on top of Lexi. This should be a somewhat familiar experience for the mauve mutant girl, as she has been pounced by the tigress twice before. All thousand-plus pounds of her, those huge soft furry paws, claws retracted safely out of the way.

Assuming Lexi really does go down as intended, the tigress then nuzzles at the back of Lexi's neck, and then starts slowly, insistently grooming her, that huge, broad, flat sandpaper-rough tongue starting at her silvery tendril hair and working down.

Tendril has posed:
    Lexi watches the tiger, but takes her eyes off the huge cat to look at at Dani. "Dani!" she says, sounding pleased. "No, it's fine, she won't hurt me, she's just pounced on me a little and..." She stops, then quickly looks at the tiger, who's already in motion. "Oh no waitwaitwaitAUGH!"

    There's a squeal as Lexi goes down under the pile of furry, pinned to the ground under the massive paws, then squirms and starts to let out little squeaks at the rough tongue running up her hair and neck, a bit muffledly since her face is currently sort of buried in the grass right now. "TiiiiIIIger!" is all the protest she really gets, in the same tone most teens would whine "MooooooOOOOooom!"

    Then it just dissolves into vaguely embarrassing mewing sounds as her sensitive hair gets a thorough cleaning.

Boom-Boom has posed:
    Tabitha's eyes get wider as the eyes in the dark get larger and closer... the time-bomb in her hand get larger too. Sure, part of her wants her to run, but Lexi is still there, stepping in front - between Tabby and the danger. "Get..."

    "No!" she cries as the tiger leaps and her physical contact is broken with the mauve girl and Lexi goes down in a heap with the huge creature. "Get offa her!" and she looks about ready to set off a whopper.

Moonstar has posed:
    Dani shouts, "Tabitha, STOP!" as she bursts into the camp, having figured what was probably going to happen, and Tabitha's reaction. The Cheyenne girl moves between Tabby and the tiger, saying quickly, "She's not hurting Lexi! Relax and put that away." She points towards the ticking time bomb, looking a bit unnerved.

Okhotnik has posed:
Once the tigress has pounced on Lexi, the sound and timbre of her rumbling changes completely. She goes from angry, or at least testy, to almost blissfully happy. The growl becomes a purr. A purr as big as a mountain, but still a purr. And the tigress just keeps grooming Lexi, who quite obviously is unhurt, still able to breathe.

The tigress does pause, after a few good long moments, to look up at the blonde girl nearby, those huge amber eyes narrowing slightly. She inhales, wuffling, and pushes her muzzle out to try to touch the girl, dragging in her scent, getting to know her, labeling her, making her a complete scent picture. This is the one. The one she smelled on kitten and did not know. This is one kitten likes. Kitten cares for her.

The tigress turns her head the other direction, glancing at Dani, and then back to Tabitha, wonderingly. Yes, flickering light is a bit entrancing, or at least distracting, to the tigress. She does not seem angry, or defensive, or at all afraid of Tabitha - hey, light can't hurt! - so she just waits, patiently.

Boom-Boom has posed:
    "Wha'?" Boomer says, glancing quickly at Dani and then back at the tiger. "But... but..." she sighs. "Alright. If you say so." and she does - the plasma bomb winks out.

    Tabby crouches to collect her phone and she mutters under her breath as she stands again, watching the beast bathe Lexi. "I jus' got her cleaned off from the last time!" and she wrinkles her nose. "She's gonna smell like tiger spit and stuff."

Moonstar has posed:
    Dani chuckles softly, "Well, she's a pretty patient tiger. I'm honestly surprised she didn't try to attack you." She looks at the tigress, and says, "It isn't the... same connection that I have with Rahne. This is more, I guess the word is primal. She's not a person being a tiger, she's a //tiger//." She crouches down and looks curiously at the tigress. "Still wondering what you're doing here."

Okhotnik has posed:
Dani would be able to tell the biggest reason the tigress did not attack Tabitha is that Tabby is very clearly and distinctly marked by Lexi, and so she has chosen not to hurt one that Lexi cares for, unless she must.

The tigress considers Tabitha, her grumbling and grousing and posturing. She shows no recognition of the woman's words, anymore than she has shown understanding of anyone else's words. The tone leaves her non-plussed, aware that Tabitha seems to dislike her and is angry with her, but feeling unthreatened by the girl.

After a long consideration, the tigress flirts her tail to the side, and goes back to grooming Lexi quite thoroughly, her purring resuming once more.

Boom-Boom has posed:
    Boomer crosses her arms in front of her, tapping her foot. "Well, I..." she rolls her eyes and turns to find a place to sit. A log will do. "I thought about tryin' to bring some steak or some chickens or somethin', but we were jus' gonna check and see where the tigger was..." she's calling the beat 'Tigger' like Lexi does. "...before Badger came out and found her, so we didn't have time."

    She looks dubiously at the scene again. "Foxy? You're sure you're alright?" she wonders, still a little concerned. Not that anyone might really notice, but Tabby is minus all her usual rings.

Moonstar has posed:
    Dani smiles, "Well, she's pretty good natured... I think she's caught Lexi's scent on both of us, so we're 'good' as far as she's concerned." The girl tilts her head towards the tigress, then looks back to Tabby, "Claws aren't out, it's probably a bit embarrassing but nothing more than that."

Okhotnik has posed:
The tigress continues grooming Lexi for a bit longer, and then finally she decides she has done enough. She nuzzles at the back of the girl's neck, and then pads off of her, putting Lexi between herself and the crankily upset Tabitha, apparently assuming the blonde girl will want to approach, and won't want to cross her path to do so.

Instead, the tigress twines around and strops herself against Dani's leg, then headbutts her gently in the chest.

Tendril has posed:
    Lexi says muffledly. "'m fine!" She finally gets an arm under her as the big tiger lets her up, enough that she can at least push herself up a little bit to get her head off the ground, spitting out a leaf absently. She's flushed with embarrassement, but seems to be actually relaxing, her eyes slitting, the mews of protest gradually having become sort of contented sounds. She rolls up to a sitting position. "She just really likes doing that..." she grumbles a little, but without any heat. Some instinctual part of Lexi, that one they saw in the sewers, actually really enjoys it. "She's just a big momma cat..." She smiles at Boomer to show she's okay, then absently pats her chest where a leather strap has slide out, on which are the missing rings, then after she's sure it's still there she tucks it back in her t-shirt.

Boom-Boom has posed:
    Tab nods. "I mean like getting her face mashed into the dirt and bugs crawlin' all over..." and she wrinkles her nose. "An' like the fleas and stuff. I mean... are there worms in the dirt? Those hookworm things that dogs and cats get? Ugh." she grumps.

    She looks to the tiger, smiling without teeth. "s that your stuff back there?" and Boomski jerks a thumb back towards the camp and the clothes. "If you change or somethin', this'd be a good time, so we can talk to you."

    The tiger relents in the bathing, though, so Tabitha rises from her place with a little grunt and moves to Lexi, throwing herself down next to the other girl. "Sorry, honey." and she fussily tries to help the other girl by brushing dirt and such off her front.

Moonstar has posed:
    Dani gives Tabitha a wry look, "Geez, you really don't get outdoors much, do you." She makes little 'booga booga' fingers at Tabby, then grins, "You're breathing in billions of microbes RIGHT NOW TABBY!" She then laughs, teasing the city girl as she shakes her head, and sits down on a convenient rock, looking curiously at the tigress, "Happy now that you bathed your kitten, huh?"

Okhotnik has posed:
The tigress nuzzles Dani once or twice more, and then lays down and curls around to watch Lexi and Tabitha. She definitely seems happy, although Dani would also be aware that with her other imperatives handled, the tigress is once more reminded of how hungry she is; she was out hunting for food when she noticed the girls here and returned.

Tendril has posed:
    Lexi lets herself be fussed over a bit...luckily she mostly hit grass, though there's still some minor debris stuck to her t-shirt. "It's okay Tabby, I'm fine..." she says, leaning over to give her a soft kiss on the cheek, then hmms, looking thoughful now as she looks around at the camp, then back to the big tiger. "...do ya really think she's, like...a werecat? Do they even exist? Is she a mutant, do ya think?"

    The girl hmmss, then says slowly. "I..guess it could be...but..." She furrows her brow. "...but...I'm pretty sure Hottie wouldn't...um...." She looks a bit confused now, but then shifts over on all fours and moves the short distance again to sit down by the tigress, then looks to Tabby, smiling at her a bit, as she waves her closer. "C'mon, ya should meet her anyway....I mean." She sighs. "Wow, this is kinda weird now. Hmm."

Boom-Boom has posed:
    Tabitha sticks her tongue out at Dani. "If it doesn't have AyCee it's not civilization, baby."

    Tab manages a smile at the peck on her cheek. Lex moves towards the tiger and Boomer rises with a sigh. "Alright..." she crosses over and holds out her hand, palm up, so the tiger can sniff. It might be a greeting better suited for a dog, but ZOMG... a giant tigger.

Moonstar has posed:
    Dani laughs a little, "It'll be alright." She then looks over at Lexi, "She might be. I mean, I saw some human clothes piled up with human tracks, and then they become tiger tracks... so she's both. Not sure if it's magical or mutant or which, but it's definitely interesting."

Okhotnik has posed:
The tigress sniffs at Tabitha curiously, then nuzzles the hand offered. Even gives it a little lick with that huge sandpapery tongue. Then she places her huge head in Lexi's lap and closes her eyes. Just ignore the huge rumbling tummy, OK? So undignified! But she shows no recognition of the conversation or discussion of human clothes or the campsite.

Tendril has posed:
    Lexi mmphs as the tiger lays her head in her lap, then gently starts to scritch the big cat behind the ears, as she says softly. "I...I might know who it is." she admits, that that expression that Dani and Tabby will both recognize as the 'Lexi has something she probably should have mentioned but was keeping to herself for some reason'. "I mean...I think it coudl be her. I know she was here sometimes, cuz I bumped into her." She frowns. "...and she sent me back to th' school usually."

Boom-Boom has posed:
    "Yeah? Who?" Tabitha asks. "Who is 'Hottie'?" she asks again, idly. "I'll bring some fod the next time, or I guess I could run back to the mansion and grab those game hens I saw. Might take a couple of minutes to thaw them, though. I could jus' nuke 'em."

Moonstar has posed:
    Dani grins, "I was wondering that myself. Though you shouldn't microwave the frozen meat Tabby, just stick in the fridge to thaw overnight." She shakes her head a bit, and looks curiously at Lexi.

Tendril has posed:
    Lexi continues to gently pet the big cat as the tiger's eyes slit closed. "Well...she's hungry, so it would be a good idea. Maybe when we're ready to go back, if ya don't mind?" she offers thoughfully, frowning down at the big cat. "...Hottie is...ah.." She shrugs. "She's a woman I met on th street in Mutant Town. Homeless. She looked hungry so I gave her my bag of kolaches. Then, ah." She makes a little hand wave. "...stuff happened, an' she ended up helpin' me out of some trouble, so I kinda kept watch, and then she, ah, thought I should stay here because of th' trouble - " She's being very careful to use that neutral word.

    So, I guess she was sleepin' out here sometimes. She knows lots of survival stuff, but..." She looks down at the big cat quietly, if a bit affectionately. "...she had a really rough time. She's not good with people. But I didn't think..I mean, why WOULD I think she was a tiger?" she says with a frustrated sound. "But it might explain some things. She might not even know she is."

Boom-Boom has posed:
"Yeah, but then she can't eat it tonight." Tabitha replies. "Well, hopefully she'll find somethin' to eat before Badger finds her." A look to Dani. "What're we gonna do? Logan'll rip her to shreds!"

    Tab looks at Lexi. "Oh! Her. She was the one you didn't want to out about somethin'?" She rubs the tip of her nose. "Maybe she's a tiger that becomes a person, so like a 'tiger-were' or somethin'?" and she shrugs.

Moonstar has posed:
    Dani shakes her head, "No reason why you wouldn't... I mean, she's definitely not a normal tiger compared to other animals I've linked with. But she's very different than Rahne or even Akula." She smiles, "Maybe we can ask her when she's human, if she'd want to come to the school? I tried asking when I found her before, but she didn't seem to understand. Or else I just wasn't getting through."

Tendril has posed:
    "I'm not sure she would." Lexi says after a moment of thought. "She's...she's older, for one. And she doesn't..." The girl pauses, huffing as she tries to explain this without violating promises made. "She is a veteran." she says slowly. "And she...has problems cuz of that, I think. I tried to get her to go somewhere better, but she doesn't feel safe?"

    Her fingers gently run down the back of the snoozing feline now, a soft expression crossing her face. "Um, and I call her Hottie, cuz she goes by Oh Hot Nick, or something. But Hottie sounded better." she says, shrugging. "I mean....we could ask? I might be wrong.." she admits, scritching down the tiger's upper spine. "I just want her to be safer."

Boom-Boom has posed:
"Who's 'Akula'?" Tabby asks. She looks around the woods again. "Are there like a lot of were-things running around the woods here?" and she shines her phone's flashlight into the dark around the camp. "Whazzat?" and she looks back at the others. "Did you hear somethin'?"

Moonstar has posed:
    Dani says, "Akula is a... well, she's a mutant that lives in the lake. She turns into a shark." She grins a bit, and looks over at Lexi, "I think you're right. We should talk about her to someone." She frowns, "Ms. Grey, or Havok, they'd be the ones to talk to." And then Tabby makes her exclamation, causing Dani to perk up, "I didn't, but that doesn't mean you didn't..."

Tendril has posed:
    Lexi blinks. "Wait, we have a mutant living in th' lake?" she says uncertainly, then nods to Dani. "I don't know who to take it too, I don't want someone to try and tranq her and put her in a cage." she says firmly, a bit protectively now.

    Though she hesistates at Tabby's concern, tilting her head a bit as she listens. Her free hand reaches out to find the blonde's, squeezing comfortingly. "...?"

Boom-Boom has posed:
    "A _shark_?!" Tabitha exclaims. "There's an f'n SHARK in the lake? I'm glad I only swim in the pool!" and she shudders. "What does _she_ eat? Are there giant mutant goldfish in there?"

Moonstar has posed:
    Dani chuckles, "Maybe. I dunno. She seemed nice though, but I only saw her the one time. She's Russian too." She smiles over at Tabitha, then hrms at Lexi, "Well, we should talk to some of the teachers, they'd know what to do. I mean, we could always ask Logan. He'd never put her in a cage, for sure."

Tendril has posed:
    Lexi looks a bit torn, then nods slightly. "Okay...if ya trust 'em." she says, a little uncertainly. She trusts Dani and Tabby...they trust Ms. Grey and Mr. Logan. So she'll try to trust them too. "Well then. I think we need ta find her some food for tonight, an' maybe thaw hens for tomorrow? Cuz that's still a good idea. She's gotta be eatin' a -lot- out here." she says thoughfulyl. "I mean, she doesn't get a lot to eat probably when she's not a tiger."

Boom-Boom has posed:
    "I guess there's deer and stuff out here." Tabby says. She smiles at bit as Lexi squeezes her hand. "I could go find her somethin'. I'll bring you back a milkshake. I'll add a couple of scoops of protein powder, too.

Moonstar has posed:
    Dani nods to Lexi, "Yeah, she did catch a wild pig the other day when I first met her. She's pretty resourceful. And hopefully no longer spooking the horses."

Tendril has posed:
    Lexi sighs, then gently pats the now snoozing tigress as she carefully wiggle sher way out from under the big head, the feline yawning as the head comes to rest on her paws instead. "Well...alright. I think we tell one person, an' I really, really think, until we can ask Hottie 'bout it, that we just worry 'bout makin' sure people know she's not a threat? Cuz that way she can stay nearby, and if she decides she can trust us enough to wanna move in closer, well, she's right there. But also we can protect her from here if she's close, right?" She dusts off the back of her cutoffs, then offers Tabby a hand up. "Let's head back and find her some food, she's prob'ly starvin. Maybe there's some leftovers from th' cafeteria she'd like, it was tuna casserole day..." she murmurs, as the three starts to head back to the mansion proper.

    The tiger snoozes peacefully, if fitfully...