A large wolf sat in a van, waiting
His partner, a Lioness, was sitting in the passenger's seat, casually eating a donut
Alright, eating it wasn't really right
She was practically inhaling it
Of course, that came with being absolutely massive
She was easily eight feet tall, maybe even nine, when she stood up properly
Of course, he was no slouch, coming in at a more than respectable seven
Do you really need to be doing that while we're waiting?
"Aw come on, you really think I'm going to get distracted from my job by a donut?"
She teased, taking another bite
Whatever, I just want to catch this Human once and for all.
"Remind me why we haven't just gotten the police involved if he's really all people are saying he is?"
She asked, picking up a piece of donut that had broken free
Alright, you try telling a cop that there's a 'talking' Human out here who's been running circles around us for weeks now.
She popped the last piece of her latest victim into her mouth, tongue slipping out and over her muzzle to keep any crumbs from leaping for freedom
"Okay, you've got me there, that's not too easy a sell."
Damn straight it isn't, so-
He was cut off as they got a call, one she managed to snatch up despite her previous occupation with her snack
She listened for a few seconds before bringing the phone down and looking at him
"It's him."
Let's go!
Putting paw to pedal, they tore from their spot, heading downtown and to the source of the call
This Human could only avoid them for so long
This place was amazing!
Anon laughed as he sprang up from a wall to the ladder of a fire escape, easily climbing higher before claws and paws could snag him and drag him back down
He hadn't known what to expect when he was first brought over here, whether to be afraid or angry or excited or what
All he knew was that from the moment a large Wolf-man thing had tried to snag him with a hoop on a stick, he'd been on the run
And boy did it feel good!
He'd never had a chance to really move back home on Earth, and in this place, the punishment for a person running a muck didn't seem so bad
He'd come to terms pretty quickly with the fact that Humans here seemed to be like the pets people back home had
Mute, dumb, and happy-go-lucky more often than not
He leaped from his perch, snagging hold of an awning, managing to swing himself down and into an alleyway
Dashing through it before anyone could get too close, he stepped into the crowd on the other side, blending in with ease
He'd found a collar weeks ago and it had let him move around without too much worry
Most of the animal people here only seemed to wonder why he wasn't on a leash and allowed to wander
Of course, no one was tying him down any time soon
He also had his voice, which had come in handy a surprising number of times
Going off the 'Humans are dumb and can't speak' ways of this world, a Human who could speak tended to throw many Furs off
Well, he was pretty sure that was what they called themselves
He snagged an apple from a stand, happily eating it while eyeing his surroundings
There were quite a few ways for him to get out of this area and back to his little 'safehouse' of sorts
Considering that fact, why not enjoy himself here for a while?
Walking along behind a tall Horse woman, he ducked into a corner store
They had arrived a little too late, it seemed
The Human was already long gone
And, apparently, he'd put on quite a show too, vaulting up a wall, to a fire escape, and then swinging down into an alley way
"What is he, some kind of test subject or something?"
Well, considering there haven't been any people in suits showing up, I can't really imagine that. My guess? Circus Human that either wandered off or got abandoned for being too much work to handle.
"I don't know, a talking Human? Sure sounds like one hell of an exhibit."
The sound of a commotion down the block drew their attention, and they hurried towards the source
They arrived to see a small crowd gathered, pointing and staring up above a convenience store
Down on the ground was a very angry-looking Hare, bouncing and yelling
They, much like everyone else, found their attention drawn skyward, eyes soon landing on the sight of a Human lounging in an open window sill, one leg dangling
He was casually drinking an orange juice with one hand, while the other held what looked a bit like a cookie
He looked down, his eyes seemed to lock with theirs and, with one of the most cocky grins either of them had ever seen
He waved at them
Are you kidding me?
Said the wolf, gritting his teeth and looking up at the mysterious human
The latter had gone back to eating and drinking, not a care in the world
He was smart enough to pick the two of them out of the crowd, but he wasn't worried at all about them seeing him?
Just how cocky was he?
"Hey Warren, isn't that a collar?"
Eliza said, pointing a claw-tipped digit up at their quarry who was currently in the process of finishing off his drink
Looking a bit closer, it definitely was
"Doesn't that mean we could identify who he belongs to if we grab him?"
The trouble is in the 'catching' aspect of things, though we're damn well going to! He's got to come down eventually, and when he does-
"We grab him!"
Man, these pound people were persistant!
Persistant Pound People, not a terrible tongue-twister
Eating the last of the cookie, he shifted in place, looking back down at the crowd
Some of the Furs had left, though quite a few were still there, the two from the pound included
From the way they were standing under him, he supposed they figured he'd climb down or something
Oh well, their loss
Using his hand, he slid down the wall to the lip overlooking the store below him, and with a quick push-off, he dove through the air, caught a lamp post, and swung around, landing on his feet on the ground
Keeping his momentum up, he started to run away, turning around to look back at the speechless duo
The Wolf shook off his surprise fast, turning around and running after him
The Lioness wasn't too far behind and, with their sizes, it meant he didn't have a great chance of escaping if he just ran
Still, thanks to the crowd, he didn't have to worry
Running towards a large cluster, he could hear the slapping of his pursuers' shoes behind him, getting closer by the second but, right before they snagged him, he leaped into the crowd, turning sideways to slip through a small gap
While the Furs scattered, as a 'stray' had just charged through them, it left the duo quite gummed up, trying to push and squeeze past others
With them slowed, it gave him plenty of time to throw a quick taunt their way, sticking his tongue out and waving at them
Then, he slipped around a corner, and climbed out of sight
Time to relax. They could continue this again tomorrow
Damn it!
Growled Warren as the two of them searched the alleyway the Human had disappeared into
"Jeez, what's wrong with you? It's just one Human, and it's not like he can keep this up forever."
Eliza replied, looking over at her quite-clearly frustrated partner
He'd been trying to catch this Human for a while now, so she didn't entirely blame him for being upset
Still, it wasn't like he'd let a whole family slip through their paws
I just...I really want to catch him. It's been weeks and he's managed to get around every thing we've tried!
"We've?"
A bunch of us, yeah. This Human is driving me nuts.
"Well, he's not exactly commonplace. When we do catch him, though, what do you think's going to happen to him?"
Well it's not like he's really hurt anyone...He dodges just about anything you throw at him, but he never retaliates.
"Really? I'd think a stray would have gotten scared when they got cornered before."
Cornered? Oh, that happened once. Frank said he did a flip off the wall and over him when he tried to grab him.
"Whoa, seriously? You sure Frank's not just trying to screw with you?"
Warren laughed at that, shifting his weight onto one foot, looking up
Nah, he's not the kind of guy who'd lie about something not going his way. I'm mostly surprised he even told anyone about that.
They talked for a while longer as they looked for any clues that might lead them to where their mysterious Human had run off to, but it seemed no one had seen him after he turned in here.
With not much else to do, they headed back to the pound, imagining they'd get another earful from the boss about letting the Human escape again
They'd get him tomorrow
Anon yawned, stretching and shifting about in the large bed
He'd found a house when he'd first arrived here, one that was empty for the moment
From what he'd heard, the owner was away on vacation
So Anon watered the plants and got rid of any food that had gone bad, while helping himself to the facilities
Speaking of which
He'd get cleaned up first, and then it was breakfast time
Warren and Eliza came in early, and it was good they did, too
Apparently the Human had been seen again
Grabbing their things, they got in their van and headed out
Apparently he'd snuck in through the backdoor of some cafe and managed to make his way out with an entire breakfast
"Well, if there's some good to be had about this, it's that he'll probably be feeling pretty full."
You know, that's not a bad idea.
Warren replied, speeding along, quickly pulling them up near the last place the Human had been sighted
The park
No buildings in there, just trees, and I don't think he'll want to stick around in them for too long.
"You really think we've got him trapped?"
Well, just in case, I'm going to get the boss to send someone else over here to guard the other entrance
He said, quickly heading back to the van to make the call while Eliza stood guard at the main entrance
There were only so many ways out of here, after all. Hopefully he'd choose the easier way out
For a chef with fur-covered arms, the food was surprisingly clean AND surprisingly good!
Anon happily ate his fill while leaning against a large tree at the top of a hill
It gave him a decent vantage point across the park, one of the benefits being that he could see the van from the pound pull up at the entrance
Man, they were persistant!
Well, this should be interesting either way
Hopefully, if all went well, he'd be getting some things for dinner soon!
Maybe spaghetti?
Well, for now, he'd let them come to him
It wasn't like he needed to be any where
Warren returned to Eliza's side, looking out into the park, and then back to her
Has he done anything yet?
"No, I haven't seen hide nor fur of him."
...You don't think he's sleeping, do you?
"I mean...it's definitely possible. He did potentially eat a pretty big breakfast and, as far as we've heard, no one's bothered him."
They both looked back into the park before coming to a wordless conclusion
They headed in
From his spot, he saw the duo at the gate enter the park and he grinned and slowly got up, brushing himself off
He started stretching while the two of them searched, making their way through the grounds, people pulling their Humans closer to keep them out of the way
Anon noticed that when they saw a lone Human running around they'd pause for a second, making sure it wasn't him, before moving on
Glancing down at himself, he figured that Humans were seen in the same way that dogs were seen back home, where lots of people had trouble telling apart different dogs of the same breed
Still a bit weird to think of himself as a kind of breed, but such was the way of this world
That was one way to bring people together
Though, he could only imagine people had different preferences
Hmm, were little people in this world the result of breeding, like Dachsunds?
Ah, he was getting distracted, he was pretty sure they'd seen him now
Still, he had time, so he continued stretching, working out any kinks in his body while they got closer
After all, it'd be bad if he got a cramp or something while avoiding these two
"Is he...stretching?"
I guess he was trained to do that or something. Honestly, I'd have a hard time being surprised by anything he does now.
"Even speaking?"
I've never heard it, and even if he can, it's probably just some weird case of mimicry. Either way, lets just look as friendly as we can, okay?
"Might be a bit hard when we're carrying all this stuff, you know."
Shut it, we're almost there and he hasn't bolted yet. Let's just get close enough to bag him.
They quietened down, steadily approaching their quarry, the Human just crouching there, one leg extended, working his thighs, before shifting to the other side, still watching them
They were so close! Come on you son of a Human, come to Warren
He shifted, and Warren froze up, not wanting to lose him again, though he nearly had a heart attack when Eliza started cooing
"Here, little Human~ Come here, boy, we just want to help~ Heeeere Humie Humie, heeere boy~"
Holy hell, she nearly had him!
Come on Eliza just a few more feet and you can grab him!
Warren didn't care how damnably agile the Human was, he wasn't squirming out of either his, nor Eliza's, grasp
Speaking of which, she reached her hand out tentatively, as if she was letting him smell her to know she was safe
Grabhimgrabhimgrabhim
Her hand opened up, ready to snag him by the shirt and drag him in close but, right before she did, the rolled backwards, and out of sight
WHAT?!
"Shit, he went down the hill!"
Warren ran to the top, Eliza already running down the other side, and despite Warren's frustration, he couldn't help but chuckle a little
There was something bizarrely funny about watching the Human he'd been after for weeks, rolling down a hill while Warren's partner chased after him on-paw
After everything the Human had done before, the acrobatics, the narrow leaps and dextrous dodges
He chose to roll down a hill to get away
Alright, enough of the sappy stuff, time to get him!
Anon hit the bottom of the hill first, keeping his momentum going, rolling up and onto his feet, though he was definitely feeling the effects from all that rolling
It might not have been the smartest choice, and especially not when there's a massive Lioness chasing you down
He ducked under a swipe, continuing along his shaky path
Of course, whatever momentum she lost was quickly made back up due to their sheer size difference alone
He took a moment to glance back, eyeing the Wolf who had joined in the chase
While he knew they were just trying to catch him, those claws and fangs certainly didn't make him feel any more comfortable
He side-stepped another swipe, shoes finding path, the solid ground letting him go just a little faster
He looked back again, just in time to notice the hoop-tipped stick coming down
He brought his arms up, keeping the Wolf from slipping it over his head, though it wasn't his biggest problem at the moment
Was that a goddamn Elephant?
He'd planned on slipping through this other entrance, but he had not been expecting that
They'd really called for back-up on him? Anon supposed he WAS making a name for himself, but even so, this seemed like overkill!
He took a sharp left, making his way towards the large fence ringing the park
Whatever, he could climb it fast enough
He'd feel pretty dumb getting caught like this
He'd turned!
Well, he wasn't going to slip past her so easily again!
pulling out her hoop stick, she swung it around towards him
He caught the hoop before it could snag him, but the swing had slowed him down and thrown him off-balance for a moment, letting her get closer to him
He kept running, bouncing off a tree to grab hold of the bars, pulling himself upwards
Not this time!
She wasn't about to risk pulling the same stunt he had, but thankfully he, like so many other Humans, seemed to have forgotten one simple thing
They were smaller than her
She slammed against the bars, squashing him between her and the bars, giving her just long enough to grab him and pull him downwards, her arms wrapped around him
"Warren, come on, I got him!"
Her partner was quick to respond, rushing over and hooking the hoop on his stick around the Human's neck, tightening it so he couldn't slip free
It was odd, though, the moment that Warren was getting close, and she had the Human pinned, the latter stopped moving completely
He has still breathing, but he wasn't struggling or anything
She carefully got up, still holding him in her arms while Warren kept his hoop tight, but the Human wasn't fighting
No, he was calm as could be, letting her carry him
He didn't even look scared, like she thought he might be
She didn't get long to examine him though, as Warren stepped in close, putting his face in front of the Human's, a huge grin on display
Gotcha you little monster! Didn't think you could get away forever, did you? Huh? Huh? Come on, smile at me again.
"Geez Warren, you get it all out? Weird or not, he's just a Human."
Listen, you got lucky or whatever, but trust me, if you had to chase a Human around for weeks, you'd want to gloat afterwards too.
She rolled her eyes before pinning the Human down and snapping some restraints on his wrists
Warren insisted they bring him in in their van, so he hopped in with David to go get the van they'd left on the other side of the park
While she waited for them, she looked down at the Human they'd been after for all this time
Well, Warren had been after. She'd really only just started hunting him down
"You really gave us a run for our money, huh, little guy? Though, if you're so smart, I wonder why you came here and let us get so close to you."
She couldn't help but be surprised when he looked at her, smiled, and shrugged
Still, no speaking
How mysterious
Things went by pretty quickly after that
Warren brought the van around and helped get their runaway Human settled inside
The two of them drove back to the pound, Warren acting like the triumphant hero as he got inside, pulling the Human over to a cage and locking him in
It felt somewhat anticlimactic that this was the last of their trouble with the runaway, but it WAS good to get him off the street
The way he smiled and relaxed back when they set him in there was a little off-putting though
Runaways didn't tend to take to cages when they were first put in them, and he was no ordinary runaway
Maybe there really was something to how smart he was supposed to be
For now though, she had paperwork to do with Warren, so she walked off, pausing just once to look back at their strange Human
He was still smiling, and he waved at her as she left, eyes staying on him for a little longer until she smiled and waved back
Then she turned, opened the door, and left the room