At a rapid pace set close to the ground and dancing in the shadows a skeleton of a dog took the back alleys across the rougher patch of town. The sun had set long ago, leaving behind fear and a sense of hopelessness. Mats created from dried blood and wet mud covered the dog's fur. Whether its low stance to the ground was on purpose or from pain was unclear but did allow the dog to duck into hidden niches. There was no set destination in mind, only the path that kept it the most secluded from the prying eye.
A stumble of the paws that should have been easy to recover from took the dog down to the ground with a protesting yelp. After glancing around to ensure that its failure had not gone noticed, the dog took its time placing its paws back on to the muddy ground and pushing itself back on to all fours. The dog limped to the nearest dumpster and gave a half-hearted sniff at its base. Crawling under the dumpster proved to be a challenge that the dog could not conquer. After several attempts proved unrewarding, the dog settled for curling up in the corner where the dumpster met the alley wall. It laid with its back against the cold bricks, and tucked its head underneath its tail.
"I told you I smelled blood!" a triumphant Beast Boy whispered. The dynamic team huddled around the dumpster where the dog had taken shelter earlier. A light green glow had settled over the group as Starfire illuminated the dark night with her powers. "Quiet," the team's leader reprimanded as quiet as he could. Which wasn't quiet enough for the dog.
The dog's icy eyes snapped open at Robin's voice. After a momentary second of stillness from confusion the dog came to life, jumping to its feet and howling in pain as it did so. The green glow had skewered its eyesight, and it rushed towards the dumpster in a panic-induced state that ensured chaos. The team was well prepared for chaotic instances and together, they acted in sync. Raven encased the dog in her black magic before it could ram itself into the dumpster. Beast Boy shifted into his green dog form and began whimpering soft nothings to the dog to calm it. Cyborg stepped back to give more room for the two to work as Starfire lowered her power's brightness. Robin crouched down to level with the dog and waited for Beast Boy to work his magic and calm it down.
Whatever Beast Boy said to the dog did work, as its ears perked back up out of curiosity and its legs stopped their desperate attempt at freeing themselves. Warily tilting its head, the dog looked over to the teen who was holding it captive. Raven set the mutt back on the ground and withdrew her magic once it had regained stability. The dog looked over to Beast Boy with apprehension and whimpered. Once finished with its whimpering, the dog fixed its eyes on the clear leader of the group and sat down, placing itself with care on the dirtied ground.
The changeling shifted back to human and grinned like a Cheshire Cat. "Her name is Alia. She wouldn't say what happened, or where she came from." He explained to the team with exhilaration. "Buttttttt she did say that she was grateful for us waking her in the manner that we did." Beast Boy finished chuckling.
There was an immediate uproar from the Tamaranean. "Oh let us take her to the Tower and make her well again!" Starfire exclaimed peering down in eagerness at the dog.
Alia looked less than amused at what she perceived was an overexcited reaction and attempted to stand back up, but yelped in pain as a deep gash on her rib cage brushed up against the rusty dumpster.
All eyes snapped back to her. She pinned her ears and whined low, as if she was protesting her display of pain.
Robin looked over the team. "Any protests?"
When no one replied, Robin smiled. "Then let's go," he answered as he stooped down to Alia's level. She eyed him with wary and when he scooped her up, she let out a snappy growl. "Easy girl. We're gonna get you fixed up." He whispered in a soothing voice to her. Alia struggled for a few seconds more before she shifted as little as possible to become more comfortable in his grip.
Taking the lead, Robin led the way out of the alley and onto the street, with the rest of the team falling in behind him. All but Raven that is. She trailed behind, stopping to stoop down where Alia had been laying moments before. Raven frowned at the spot before rubbing the crinkles on her forehead and standing back up and closing the growing distance between her and the rest of the team.
Cyborg had parked the T-Car on the adjacent alleyway alongside Robin's motorcycle. An eager Starfire floated down from her elevated position above the ground to open the back door to the car. "I want my baby de-doggified as soon as she's out" Cyborg warned good-naturally as he walked over to the driver's side.
Ignoring him, Robin motioned to Beast Boy best he could to not disturb Alia. "Undo my cape and lay it down in the seat" he told Beast Boy. Once the green teen had finished what was requested, Robin laid Alia down on the seat. Alia sniffed the fabric once before huffing and settling down, laying her head on her paws. Robin smiled satisfied with her reaction and motioned for Beast Boy to follow in behind her. He shifted to his dog form and crawled over the floorboard to hop in the seat beside Alia. She cut her eyes at him and pinned her ears and his proximity, but let him be.
Robin shut the car door and tapped on the side before stepping back out of the way as the car was put into reverse and backed out of the alley and headed down the road. "I will head to the Tower and prepare a place for her!" Starfire exclaimed before taking to the darkened sky.
Looking back to Raven, Robin moved to close the few feet that distanced him from his motorcycle. "You haven't said much about this" he commented in a casual tone as he picked up his helmet and slipped it onto his head. Raven used her powers to move her hood on to her head, her go to when things began to become frustrating.
"Something is off. There's more to her than the usual dog thought process. It's almost like she's filtering" Raven explained with a hint of agitation. It was clear the half-demon didn't like to being befuddled.
"Like Beast Boy's aura?" The masked teen asked as he straddled the bike. Raven gave no reply as she faded through a black portal back to the tower.
"I'll take that as a yes" the remaining titan muttered as he revved his engine and sped out of the alley.