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The scent of fresh coffee pulled her out of a sound sleep, her nose twitching as steam brushed up against her face. A low, male, chuckle from somewhere to her left made her growl as she cracked a golden eye open, blearily eyeing the cup of coffee that was being waved under her nose.

Zoe grinned. "Wakey wakey."

"Ngh." Still half asleep, Jaz reached for the mug, frowning when it was pulled out of her reach. With a disgruntled grumble, she grabbed the pillow she had been lying on - how did she get onto the bed? - and pulled it over her head, figuring that if Zoe was going to be annoying, then there was no real reason to stay awake.

That particular conclusion, however, wasn't shared by the youngest person in the room. Which was why Cat took a running leap and bounced onto the bed, grinning when Jaz whined pitifully and rolled onto her stomach so she could bury her head under the pillow.

-Up, up, up!- Cat signed, poking Jasmine in the head before moving to sit on the woman's back, straddling her hips. When she didn't get anything except an annoyed growl, Cat snickered and started braiding the mutant's dark hair.

"She got into the sugary cereal, didn't she?" Angel mused as she padded out of the bathroom, smiling when Eddie ushered her over to the small table. "I can navigate my way around, you know."

He returned her smile and guided her over to an empty chair. "Humor us."

"You're lucky I like you," she teased as she sank down into the chair, letting him lift her legs so her feet were propped up on the second chair.

"You're also lucky you missed her first trimester," Zoe snickered. "It was mood swing central. We'd offer to help her, and we'd get something chucked at our heads."

Angel groaned. "You're never going to let that go, are you?"

"Nope." Zoe said cheerfully. "And boy, the stories I will tell your kid!"

A low grumble and a gasp drew everyone's attention to where Jasmine was standing on the bed, holding a wriggling Cat by her left ankle. The teen was dangling upside down a good foot off the floor, trying in vain to hit the mutant with a pillow.

Jasmine, meanwhile, was eyeing the french braid that Cat had made, fingers poking at the intricate weave with an expression that one usually reserved for something completely distasteful. "Pup, I keep telling you not to do this to my hair. ...it feels weird." The last was said in a petulant tone that made Zoe and Angel snicker.

Cat, meanwhile, was sending pleading looks towards an amused Eddie. It was an age old tactic. When you got yourself in trouble, and couldn't get out of it, get backup. So, she gave Eddie her best 'puppy-dog' eyed look and made her lower lip wibble. It was pathetic, sure. But it worked.

Chuckling at the pitiful display, Eddie shook his head and walked over to pluck Cat from Jasmine's grip, tucking her under his right arm as he carried her over to a smiling Angel. "We're never letting you have sugary cereal ever again."

"Y'sure you can't just web her to the ceiling?" Jaz muttered as she hopped down and went to take possession of the mug of coffee that Zoe had been tormenting her with, a soft rumble leaving her as she sipped at the dark liquid. "Mn. Coffee."

"Caffeine addict," Angel taunted, giggling at the disgruntled look the mutant gave her. "How ever did you manage to survive before you started drinking coffee?"

Zoe smirked. "Stubbornness," she quipped, rolling her eyes when Jaz let out a feral snarl. "Yeah, yeah, yeah. You're a big bad wolf. I'm a quiverin'. M'all afeared."

Seeing that Eddie was distracted, Cat jabbed him in the ribs and wiggled free, gasping in surprise when a dark tendril curled around her waist and gently sat her down on the edge of the table. Curious, she lightly touched the inky blackness, smiling when it gave her fingers a slight squeeze before flowing back onto Eddie's forearm. -That's so cool!-

Angel, seeing that Eddie was eyeing Cat in mixed apprehension and curiosity, quickly translated her sign language, smiling when he relaxed and reached out to ruffle the young teens hair. "You worry too much, Eddie."

"We... we don't want to frighten you," he admitted, smiling a little when Jasmine shot him a warning look. Remembering the conversation from the night before, Eddie chuckled and moved to lean against the closest wall, folding his arms across his chest. "We've... become accustomed to hiding ourselves from those around us. We're not used to being accepted."

Zoe, who had caught the look between Jaz and Eddie, snickered. "Jaz yelled at you already, huh?"

He gave the mutant a smile. "In a sense."

"Opinionated little thing, ain't she?"

"Oh, that's it!" Growling, Jasmine set her coffee mug onto the night table and advanced on Zoe. "C'mere!"

"Ack! No!" Zoe vaulted over one of the beds and darted into the bathroom, barely managing to slam and lock the door before Jaz could reach her. "Haha! Missed me!"

"You do realize that I can just rip this door off it's hinges, right?"

"Uh... yes?"

Jaz rolled her eyes, grabbed the doorknob and yanked, jamming the door into the frame. "Stay in there then. I'm gonna eat your breakfast." Grinning at the curses from the bathroom as Zoe tried, unsuccessfully, to pry the stuck door open, the mutant padded over to the small bar fridge and snatched up three apples.

"You touch my food and I'll beat you with the toilet plunger!"

Angel sighed and rose a hand to her forehead in an exasperated smack. "I live with idiots," she muttered, groaning as she sent a pleading look to a snickering Eddie. "Could you please free the moron in the bathroom?"

He pretended to think about it. "Maybe later."

There was a muted thumping from the bathroom. "I heard that!"

Snickering, Jaz grabbed her coffee, then went to sit on the edge of the bed closest to Angel and Cat. "Nah. Leave 'er in there. It's the first quiet breakfast I've had in weeks."

Zoe growled and kicked at the door. "You're really funny, y'know that, Benji?!"

-Benji?- Cat signed curiously, glancing from Angel to Jaz. -What's a Benji?-

"Benji was a small dog that starred in some weak Disney movies back in the eighties," Angel explained, quirking an eyebrow when Jaz snorted.

"I've eaten things that were bigger than that stupid dog."

"Oh, that's attractive."

"What? I'm a wolf! I used to hunt deer!" Jaz gave the apple she was holding a rather disgusted look, then set it aside. "Actually, a deer sounds really good right about now. I am not meant to be a vegetarian."

-So go hunting tonight.- Smiling, Cat hopped up onto the bed and knelt behind Jaz, undoing the tight braid in the mutant's hair.

Eddie glanced at the mutant curiously after Angel had translated Cat's sign language. "Hunting?"

Jaz laughed. "You think I've been living off of fruit and bread the entire time I've lived here? Gods, I'd have starved to death years ago!"

"She goes hunting for rabbits and ducks every few weeks," Angel told him, catching the apple that Jaz tossed to her. "If she didn't, she really would have starved by now."

"And if I go too long without a decent meal, my wolf takes over, and I go feral." Jasmine frowned and glanced down at her taloned hands. "The last time... I don't really remember everything that happened. All I know is that I woke up in my Wolfen form in the Zebra exhibit at the Zoo five hours later."

Angel hid a smile. "Minus half a Zebra and one of those weird fruity-looking Cranes."

"We remember that! It was in the newspapers. The police thought it had something to do with a cult sacrifice." Eddie paused and looked over at an embarrassed Jasmine, a smile tugging at the corner of his mouth when she did a fantastic job of avoiding his gaze. "We searched for that stupid cult for a week!"

"Well, y'found her!" Angel giggled, folding her hands across her belly as she watched redness stain Jasmine's face. "Wow. Are you ever blushing!"

Jaz grimaced and snarled at her. "Shut up. It wasn't my fault! Well, okay, it was, but... dammit..."

Cat, who had just finished rebraiding Jasmine's hair into a looser braid, snickered and wisely retreated to the second bed, narrowly avoiding the playful swipe Jaz aimed at her. -Out of everything you've done, you're embarrassed by this?-

"You're. Not. Helping."

-I'm supposed to be helping?-

Jasmine groaned and buried her face in her hands.

Taking pity on her, Eddie went and refilled her coffee mug, smiling at her as he walked over to her and held the drink out to her. "You're forgiven. This time," he teased, chuckling when she gave him a rather dirty look.

"Y'know, next time, we could always buy you some dog kibble," Angel offered with a grin.

The mutant leaned around Eddie's bulk to glare at her friend. "I'd sooner lick a subway rat."

Cat gagged. -Gross!-

"Yeah, well, you've never tasted that dog kibble. Bleh."

"We won't let it get to that point," Eddie assured her, gently pressing the mug of coffee into Jasmine's hands before sitting next to her and leaning back against the bed's headboard. "Hopefully, we should know by this evening whether the Council will allow you to stay at the Sanctuary. Once you're safe, we'll continue hunting for the ones who put the bounty on you."

"You're right," Jasmine muttered around the lip of her coffee mug. "We will."

He frowned at her. "You're not coming."

"Oh, yeah?" Her eyes flashed gold as she gave Eddie a smirk. "Then you've memorized the scents of some of the suspects? You can track them through the city and tunnels by scent alone? You know about the other dozen hiding spots in the city where they trade their drugs and hold their fights?"

The symbiote shifted across Eddie's back, sending a wave of amusement into his thoughts as it regarded Jasmine. [We like her.]

Cat snickered. -Totally owned,- she signed, grinning when Eddie winced at Angel's translation.

He fought the urge to roll his eyes. Instead, Eddie met Jasmine's gaze and tried to glare her down, blinking in surprise when she grinned ferally in response, her eyes betraying her amusement. "You find us amusing?"

"You're trying to intimidate a wolf. So, yeah, a little. Besides, I'm not asking for permission. I'm letting you know what I'm going to do. Those bastards are a massive threat to my Pack, and that's unacceptable." Jasmine paused and finished off her coffee before continuing, shooting a curious glance in his direction. "So, the question is, how long do you want to spend trying to track them? A few days with me? Or a few weeks by your lonesome?"

Eddie stared at her for a moment, weighing the risks and studiously ignoring his Other's snickers in the back of his mind. "You... can track them that quickly?"

A soft chuckle left her. "I'm a wolf, Eddie. If she'd let me, I could tell Angel the sex of her pup-"

"Don't!" Angel slapped her hands over her ears. "I don't want to know! Lalalalala!"

"-and I'll know at least a day in advance before she goes into labor." Jasmine finished, looking over at the redhead and raising her voice. "Angel! I wasn't going to actually tell him. I bloody well know that you want it kept secret."

The teen smiled sheepishly and lowered her hands. "Oh. Sorry."

"Crazy freakin' teenagers."

There was a thump and a pitiful whimper from the bathroom. "Can I come out now?"

Seeing that Eddie was still mulling over what she had told him, Jasmine rose and padded over to the bathroom door. "Step back, you fool," she called out, waiting until she heard Zoe back away before she turned the knob and gave the door a shove. The door swung open, and she was promptly greeted with a soaking wet, cold, towel to the face. "Gah! Zoe!"

Eddie quirked an eyebrow as Jasmine threw the wet towel back into the bathroom seconds before she launched herself after it.

"Nyah-nya-!" There was a yelp and a shriek. "ACK! Jaz! No! Nooo-! ACK! PUT ME DOWN!"

Worried at the thuds, screams and growls from the bathroom, Eddie rolled off the bed and headed for the doorway, pausing when Angel shook her head.

"You really don't want to go in there," she warned him, sighing when Zoe let out another cry that was soon followed by an annoyed snarl, a wall-shaking crash, and the sound of water filling the small tub. "You'll just get in the way. Either that, or you'll end up another victim of the stupidity."

"Not the water! Not the water!" There was a tremendous splash. "ARGH! I HATE YOU!"

Half a minute later, a smug - and surprisingly dry - Jasmine strolled out of the bathroom and threw herself down next to a snickering Cat. Smiling cheerfully, the mutant laced her hands behind her head and propped herself up on some pillows, closing her eyes as she stretched out across the bed.

A string of curses started floating out of the bathroom, and Eddie smirked when Jasmine's smile grew into a feral grin at the sound. "What did you do?"

"Me?" It should have been impossible to be the picture of innocence when one was grinning like a madwoman, but somehow, Jaz managed. "I did nothing. She tripped."

Zoe, who now resembled something akin to a wet mop, poked her head out of the bathroom, brown eyes narrowed into angry slits. "Oh, yeah, I 'tripped' and was unable to get up as someone partially filled the tub with cold water, and then threw me in! Yeah, sure! You suck! You'd better sleep with one eye open, mutt! Cuz the second you turn your back - wham! - pink, sparkly, hair! With pigtails! And bows!"

Jaz merely settled herself more comfortably on the pillows and closed her eyes. "I fear you not."

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