Cobra made no sudden movements, instead closing his remaining eye while keeping his head tilted upwards towards the sign. He listened and felt the beast getting closer. Curiously, he heard only one foot moving at a time, but there was no denying the animalistic presence he gathered from it. A few more steps, a few more steps…
Taking great care to check one last time that no one was in the vicinity, the next step that it took, Cobra whirled around with a snarl, ready to fight if need be. Instead, he froze, as did the other creature.
The other, human.
Startled that he'd been wrong, he backed away a step, his own hackles raised. The human did the same. The two stared at each other for an agonizingly long moment.
Cobra now understood why he'd only heard one foot, obviously because there were only two legs. Standing before him was a human woman, her tall body and muscular frame implying a fierce strength. Her blocky face held narrow eyes with a sharp gray tint, dirty blond hair just reaching her wide shoulders. She had on a top that covered her chest, leaving her stomach exposed, one that bore strength and scars alike. Her skirt went down almost to her feet and fanned out into points, like a bush's leaves. Both clothes were dark in appearance and smelled like rawhide. Her hands were at her side, not balled into fists, but out and fingers arched, like a claw. Cobra almost shivered when he realized he must be in the same position. The woman's lips were drawn back in an almost sneer, but the longer she looked at him the harder the line on her mouth became. Her narrow eyes were much the same, staring at him less as a person, and more as a predator does on a piece of prey they hadn't quite decided what to do with. Still, she made no move, so neither did he. The two stood tense and unyielding. Cobra wasn't particularly nervous about losing a supposed fight, but the amount of attention it'd draw would no doubt be harmful, whether to him or the shop, either were bad.
After a few tense heartbeats of silence, the woman finally spoke, "You thinking about going in there?"