Another day, another three hundred and sixty four to go. Toxus sighed, his breath fogging up the window of the cheap, barely running lemon he drove to and from work every day. It wasn't that he couldn't afford a new one. Heck, a Mercedes would fit very nicely in his garage and he could pay it off almost instantly with his accumulated wealth. One didn't survive among the humans for a few centuries without gaining some material comfort. However, it seemed impractical to waste money on that when he could just funnel more cash into his private, extremely important research:
How to detoxify his own hide.
Still smelling like chemicals from the pharmaceutical research facility and wearing his white coat, he didn't dare remove his gloves even for a moment for the comfort it would bring to his sweat covered hands. All he needed to do was make one small slip up, to have even a fraction of the poison latent in his skin to rub off of something that someone else could foolishly brush against. The last time that had happened, the person hadn't woken up for eight years. Thank the gods it was his immortal sibling and time really meant nothing. As it was, the incident made him sleepless and an insomniac for too long.
Lost in his thoughts, he almost didn't notice that the red light had turned to green. Snapping out of it, he went to hit the gas gently when he heard a soft thudding noise against the side of the passenger door. "What the-?" he started, leaning over. Toxus jumped back as two beady eyes suddenly popped up by his window, staring at him blankly. The creature, something he had never seen before, seemed to be clinging to his vehicle with an almost unnatural amount of determination.
Cursing under his breath, Toxus pulled his car over to the side, ignoring the beeping of the angered drivers from behind him as they passed by. Opening the door, he went around the other side to deal with whatever type of monster was trying to assault his property now. "I swear to the gods, if this is one of dad's jokes," he cursed, remembering his father, the mischief diety, and all the trouble he had brought Toxus in his life.
Before he could even finish walking all the way, the small animal jumped at him, landing squarely on his chest and knocking him off balance and on to his backside with a thud. Before Toxus could curse though, the small animal got off of him and pushed its nose into his gloved hand, sniffling loudly.
Toxus stared for a moment before realizing the little mammal was hurt. Or, it looked like he was hurt. Hesitant, he reached a hand out, running it down the strange thing's hide. White edged with blood-like crimson markings lined the beast's back, ears, and nose. It was beautiful, he decided, awed over the stunning and definitely abnormal coloring. "You're unique like me, huh?" he sighed softly, standing to his feet but picking the little animal up in his arms as he did so.
The wallaby tucked its head away from Toxus, its tail squirming behind it uncomfortably. It made a mewling sound and tried to free itself from his grip, a barely visible blush forming on its face. In the light from a car passing by, he caught a glimpse of how dirty it really was. Mud and briers stained its coat, a sure sign of neglect. Scratches marred its skin, not deep enough for serious harm, but present enough to definitely make the small thing uncomfortable. And finally, it definitely hadn't eaten in a while. It was thin and he could practically feel its mental waves of distress and hunger rolling over him like waves.
"Want to go home with me?" Toxus asked finally, knowing full well that somehow the creature was smart enough to understand every word he was saying. He knew the feeling of abandonment all too well, and it was empathy that made him speak up. Well, empathy and an underlying curiosity. "The offer is only up once. I don't know where the heck you came from, but it seems like right now, you have nowhere better to be. Why don't you make a new home for yourself? I will never leave you, but you're free to leave whenever you want."
The wallaby chirped and Toxus smiled. "I'll take that as a yes then," he said, a sincere and gentle grin breaking out over his face. "It will be nice to not have to go home to an empty house again."