[Acting on some distant impulse from another lifetime, she very nearly reaches out to him, to hold and soothe him—but when he demands that she stay back, she does, startled into stillness a small distance away. Was she expecting a different reaction?]

Ah... [As she looks him over, she understands: proud, is he?] Why, no. Of course you weren't. I only...

[As he continues, she tilts her head and narrow her eyes, her mouth a thin, white grimace. Something about his tone, though she dislikes it, helps to clear her head and root her back in the present.]

Now, that's awfully rude... There's nothing weird about helping someone in need. [Her grimace turns into a smile—still full of sharp teeth.] But I understand. In a place like this, it can be difficult to know who to trust. In any case, I was looking for you and you only. [No other lost kids... Or so she thinks, though the thought that she has lost someone else does nag briefly at the back of her mind—only to slip away from her again, lost to the fog.] You were calling out for help. Did you expect no one would answer?

[She doesn't expect an answer from him on that question, and she won't wait for one. Once he's demanded that she show him the way out and promised to watch her back, she nods her head and starts to move.]

I'll be counting on you, then. Do stay close. [She won't ask if he can walk in his new form, instead keeping her steps slow so she can see the answer for herself.] May I have your name?