Shit! Shit! Shit! Shit! Shit! The sirens behind her almost drowned out her internal litany as Jaz bolted down the street, trying to do her best to keep ahead of the cruisers that were trying to box her in. Already there was a car behind her and two to either side. With them so close, she couldn't head anywhere except straight ahead, and although she knew of a way to get the upper hand, she knew that it was going to hurt. No pain, no gain, my ass!

Bracing herself, she kept straight for a few more meters, then violently veered right, making sure to shield her broken arm as she hit the front side of the cruiser and rolled across it's hood, barely managing to land on her feet on the other side of it. Snarling at the cops, she backtracked and bolted across an intersection, hearing dozen's of angry motorists screaming at both her and the police as she ducked into an alley, leapt up, and closed her hands on the railing of a set of fire-escape stairs.

Gasping for breath, she shakily headed to the roof. It was one of those times where she was extraordinarily glad to be a mutant. Having the agility, balance and strength of a wolf made sure she had the stamina to out run almost any kind of pursuit.

Shouts from the alley below and the sounds of footsteps on the fire-escape made her hackles rise, her wolf rising in her in warning. Knowing that she was trapped, she sent a brief prayer to any Gods that might be listening, then launched herself forward, building up as much speed as she could before she leapt.

There was a heartbeat where she thought she wouldn't make it to the next roof. That she'd miss the ledge and plundge down to the street below - not a fatal fall for her, but definitely a painful one. But the prayer must have turned things in her favour, for, instead of falling, she merely clipped the edge of the next roof with her right foot and faceplanted herself onto the gritty rooftop.

"Ow."

With a groan, Jasmine slowly forced herself to her feet again, swaying unsteadily as she wobbled over to the rooftop access door and clung to it for a moment. When the world stopped spinning, she manhandled the door open and slid inside, closing the door behind her. Oh my aching everything... Shaking her head at her own stupidity, she dashed down the row of stairs, a sigh of relief leaving her when she reached a floor that had elevator access. My poor nose! I smooshed it.

An off-tone chime announced the arrival of the elevator, and she sighed in relief as the doors slid open, the tinny sound of the 'Bewitched' song filling the odd smelling box as she stepped in and punched the button for the garage. While the elevator made it's way to the bowels of the building, she looked at herself in a cracked mirror, lightly poking at the bridge of her nose and blinking when said part of her face didn't fall off. Obviously, it felt worse than it was, because she never would have been able to prod it if it had been broken.

Hoping that she wouldn't get any bruises on her face, she rolled up the long sleeves of her shirt in the hopes that it would help her cool off, then spent a few more moments tucking odd wild spikes of her hair behind her ears.

A world shaking 'clunk', sounding far too much like the last nail in a coffin, echoed through the elevator as it finally came to a shuddering stop, opening up at the underground garage. The smell of damp air and exhaust fumes was a welcome change from whatever-the-hell that smell had been in the elevator, and she allowed herself a sigh of relief as she cautiously stepped out into the dank parking lot.

The sound of sirens was still too close for comfort, but even below street level, she could tell that the sirens were behind her. Knowing that she had to get out of the area as soon as possible, she jogged up the first ramp that lead up to the streets and moved out into open air. She did her best not to look too paranoid as she checked the street she was on for any police, hoping that the crowd that was gathering because of the sirens would make enough of a distraction that she'd be able to get away. All this for a few thousand dollars!

Wondering what in the world had brought on such an intense response, she made her way towards the park once again, putting as much distance between the epicenter of the ruckus and herself. Something just didn't make sense to her. Why had the police come in such a huge force for a simple robbery of such a small store? And better yet, how had they been able to get there so quickly? She and Zoe had made sure to pull their stunt during a time where the street would be clogged with traffic, making it harder for police cruisers to get through. So how the hell...?

Troubled, she didn't notice the figure that had purposefully stepped into her way, didn't think anything of it as she, in her 'autopilot' mindset, automatically sidestepped around him and then kept going down the street. Granted, she would have enjoyed the rather baffled look the man gave her as she past him, muttering to herself as she tried in vain to reach an itch underneath her cast, completely lost in her thoughts.

It just doesn't make sense. Why would Zoe and I have attracted such an aggressive response? It's not like we robbed him at gun point. Hell, we even did our best not to hurt him! Shaking her head, she stopped at a street corner and waited for the crosswalk sign to change, taking the opportunity to rouse herself from her thoughts in order to take a look around, trying to spot any signs of potential pursuit. Considering how overkill the response had been, she didn't want to take any chances. The last thing she wanted was to turn a corner and come face to face with the barrel of a shotgun.

The signal changed, and she waited as a car ran the red light before crossing the street. Now that she was trying to act 'natural' she wasn't about to go crazy and run through traffic like a maniac. Still, her wolf itched to run and bolt through the city. She was worried about Zoe, and she wanted to rejoin her as soon as possible. She didn't think that the police had gone after her, Jaz doubted that they had even seen her, but she was worried just the same. She felt responsible for her little Pack. After all, the money she had taken the risk of stealing certainly wasn't going to be spent on her.

She let herself go back into her auto-pilot mode as she reached up and ran her hands through her hair, sighing tiredly as she headed for the Park, knowing that once she was off the streets, she'd be free to cut loose. The constant dull roar of traffic started to lessen the closer she got to the Park, and it was a welcome change. While she had been on the streets of San Francisco for over four years, she never really got used to the constant noise of the city.

Almost every week, she and the others went to the Golden Gate Park for some downtime, sitting in the sun in the middle of a small circle of trees by one of the many ponds was the most relaxing thing she knew of. She always found time to visit the Park, needing the scent and tranquility of nature to recharge her.

The Japanese Garden, when she reached it, was as beautiful and as peaceful as ever, and just looking at it eased some of the tension she felt. Sighing, she paused at the entrance and pressed both hands against the small of her back, pushing against her spine to try to relieve the tension there. Everything had gone ot hell, and it had her hackles up, the stress knotting her muscles.

Sighing again, she headed into the Garden, keeping as quiet as she could when she saw a few people meditating. Luckily, she knew where Zoe would be waiting for her, in a small hidden niche of the garden, where they could gather there and spend some quiet time, imagining that they weren't living on the streets, that they didn't have to go back to a cold abandoned building and eat stolen food in order to survive.

Pushing those thoughts from her mind, she moved around a large Japanese Maple and pushed through some bushes, moving over to a large Koi pond, her gaze darting around the small clearing as she looked for her friend. Oh hells, what if the cops got her? "Zee? Zoe?"

A rustle of leaves preceeded the flame-haired head that poked out of he bush, brown eyes filling up with relief as Zoe launched herself out at her. "Jaz! Oh thank God!"

Grinning, Jasmine returned the hug, then held Zoe at arms length. "I'm glad to see you too. I was afraid that those cops had seen you."

"Me?! Hell, last I saw, you were rolling over the hood of a car and kicking a cop in the chest! How'd you get away? Wait... I don't want to know, do I?"

"Not really, no." Grimacing, Jaz slid the backpack off her shoulders, her cast encased arm aching a little and making her gingerly flex her fingers. Zoe took the opportunity to snatch up her backpack, and Jaz arched a black eyebrow at her friend curiously.

"Hey, you carried it this far. It's only fair," Zee smirked as she slid her arms through the straps and adjusted them so they wouldn't cut into her shoulders. "We should get moving. Cat and Angel are probably worried."

Jasmine rolled her eyes. "They always worry."

"Not that you can blame them. Not after last week."

"I know. I know. But I couldn't let those thugs get their hands on Angel." Sighing, she folded her arms over her chest and turned to glare down into the Koi pond, frowning at her reflection. The wolf inside her wanted nothing more than to snatch up one of those fish and fill her empty belly, but Jaz stubbornly shoved it down. "Besides, it's not like I was going to lose."

"Hello? They broke your arm! You have to wear that cast for weeks!"

"I heal fast. If they had gotten their hands on Angel... I don't even want to think about it."

Zoe fell silent at that. "I know. Still. You scared us."

"...sorry."

The shadows in the mutant's eyes made Zoe smile at her in an attempt to calm the moody wolf. "Forgiven. C'mon. Let's go."

"We're afraid we can't let you do that."

Jasmine spun at the voice, shoving Zoe behind her as she did so. Almost instantly, her right hand darted into her jeans pocket, three throwing knives glinting in the sunlight as she pulled them out of their hiding place. Her narrowed eyes were fixed on the man in front of her, a low feral growl leaving her as she studied him. Over six feet tall, piercing blue eyes and unkempt looking reddish blond hair. A rather plain looking outfit of a tee-shirt and jeans did nothing to hide his body-builder's physique, and he certainly looked like he had been in his fair share of fights.

His scent wafted over to her on the breeze, her heartbeat speeding up a little in recognition: he'd been the one who'd stepped into her path back in the city!

Damn. He looks like he could bench-press a Volvo... Ready to throw her meagre weapons at a moment's notice, Jaz started backing away, pushing Zoe behind her as she went. She knew the layout of the Japanese Garden, and she knew that just behind the line of bushes she was ushering Zee towards was a grassy hill that lead to a paved pathway.

Knowing that she had to keep Zoe out of the fight as well as distract whoever-the-hell this guy was so the teen could make a run for it, she continued pushing Zoe back, her eyes never leaving those of the stranger before her. Forgive me, Zee.

With a snarl, she threw the knives, turning with the motion to shove Zoe through the bushes and wincing as she listened to the girl curse as she rolled down the hill. Gritting her fangs, knowing that Zee needed time to get away, Jaz faced the stranger again, another batch of throwing knives already gripped in her hand.

But what she faced now wasn't the stranger she had expected. Now, she was looking at a being that she had only heard tales of before.

Venom.

Blackness now covered the man, tendrils of it writhing as the living alien finished it's transformation. A stylized white spider emblem appearing on his chest as pale 'eyes' fell on her, a tongue that was far too long curling out from a mouth that had rows of wicked fangs. The muscles he had had as a human were even more pronounced now that the alien had moulded itself to his body. This was a predator. A predator on equal footing with her.

Dark tendrils held her throwing knives in the air as a low, inhuman chuckle rumbled out of the massive form. "We believe these belong to you."

The voice, while human-like, was predatory, cool, and hungry. Contrary to his size, he moved with a fluid grace that almost rivalled her own movements, and she found herself taking a step backwards in reaction to his advance.

At the moment, she wanted nothing else than to fling herself down the hill after Zoe.

Instead, knowing that she had to lead this horror away, distract him from Zoe's escape, Jaz threw her next volley of throwing stars, and, in the same movement, spun around and launched herself over a bench. Fantastic balance allowed her to land perfectly, her sneakers seeking and finding traction in the rough dirt walkway, allowing her to dodge the ebony talons that reached for her as Venom bounded into her path.

Adrenaline flooded her as she released her strict control over her wolf. Her senses of sight, sound and smell sharpened, muscles tensing as her strength and agility tripled, her incisors growing until one fang constantly peeked out from between her lips. Her already long talons sharpened even more, lengthening until they were an inch long. Heat spread under her skin as her wolf came close to the surface and stretched, reveling in her partial freedom.

Snarling, she slashed her elongated talons across Venom's face, deliberately aiming for those pale eyes and back-flipping to avoid the left handed punch he blindly aimed at her as his other hand instinctively rose to his face. Able to tell by the low growl that rumbled out of that massive chest that she had managed to piss him off, she spun on her heel and bolted, tearing down the path that lead into the main section of the Golden Gate Park.

Well, I got his attention away from Zoe... Very aware of the annoyed pursuit behind her, she darted around a couple who were holding hands, wincing at the screams that came from them when they saw what was chasing her. Now what do I do with him?

tbc