The good thing about small girls and large jackets...was how easy it was to separate the two.
Elpis didn't think; she slid. Arms in and out, she was pulling free of the leather before Eris had time to finish her greeting. Because Elpis didn't need to see the face to identify the voice, oh no, not this fount of poison.
Run, run, run, whispered all the nerves in her legs. But flight was never a good choice with Eris; it only made her more interested. Instead, Elpis did the bravest thing she could: she turned and faced Eris, eyes bright, teeth clenched.
And, darn darn darn it, the woman smeared blood on the jacket. Legra loved that bomber! She'd won it in a poker game in Rome and she always offered to have Elpis wear it even though Elpis didn't get cold, not like people got cold, but Legra offered even if it was silly because Legra was kind and Legra worried about her and now Eris had stained it with her wicked, nasty, sticky red paws.