It's funny how reflections change

Things continue to deteriorate at a rapid pace. The lion is now speaking inside your head. Honestly, today still not the weirdest or most terrifying one you’ve lived, but it sure is rising in the ranks. Your new lion friend doesn’t seem to be responding well to your placations, and the levels of regret you feel are quickly dwarfing the levels of foolhardy courage. This is not a friendly kitty. I’m going to hurt you, the shapeshifter says, and “I’d rather you didn’t,” you reply. Not that bald-faced honesty seems any more likely to work than anything else you’ve tried, but really, at this point, it couldn’t hurt. The beast advances, unphased by your appeal, and you swallow hard, trembling, your hand slick with sweat. “Now really isn’t great for me-“ but your attempt at humor is abruptly defused by the fact that a lion is flying at you, and you are freaking the fuck out, and before you know it you’ve let out a very undignified shriek and panic shifted into a corgi but the lion has shifted into a man but it’s too late to backtrack because you’ve flung your damn arm back at him and it’s in a clear trajectory to hit the potential murderer poor fellow square in the jaw but you really don’t notice because someone else is here now and yeah, please help, because you do not have things in hand and desperately need an adult, please and thanks. “Oof!” Remi clips your shoulder on his way to the wall, sending you sprawling onto the floor, dazed, and against better wisdom you decide to chill there for a second while gathering your thoughts. Not a great situation, Zero. What’s the plan? You’ve lost your arm, which, while broken, is still one arm more than you have without it. You’ve once again deeply worsened a situation by attempting to help where you are not wanted. You’ve panicked and become a very small dog, which is probably a pleasant bite-sized morsel for a lion who has threatened to murder you multiple times in the past ten minutes or so. Might as well just leave at this point, let this situation sort itself out. What do you think you’re possibly going to accomplish? What do you ever think you’re going to accomplish? It is the arrival of a newcomer that snaps you out of your funk; from your position on the floor you blink, pleasantly surprised, at the tall man who suddenly looms above. Involuntarily your tail wags - Yes! Hello! Please help! you whine, scrambling to flip back onto your legs as the stranger begins to calmly take charge. We’ll stay over here - yes, you are all about that, and as you scramble toward the stranger you glance around, an idea forming in your very small brain. Part of you still wants to gtfo of this whole situation, but oh man, Remi’s just a kid, and you’re a sucker for everyone children. So you come up with a kind of terrible plan. Scuttling behind Ronin, you quickly shift back into human form. “Hey,“ you say, as much to Remi as the new stranger, “What if we, uh, say, barricaded the door? And stay out here and talk to him? Just until he calms down, y’know, so he doesn’t get loose and hurt himself.” Or anyone else, you opt not to add. Z E R O don't care what it cost - no ray of sunlight's ever lost!