[ The motion caught her eye before Kel got a clear view of the thing, but she resisted the urge to turn too quickly towards it. Nice, slow movements would bring her a few steps closer to the crate, and then down into enough of a squat to get them almost eye-level. If... if there were actually eyes in that head. Huh.

Well, she still might not know what exactly what this little creature was, but her usual scared-wild-animal tactics would do for the moment. She rested her hands on her thighs--see how empty and relaxed they were! No one's gonna swipe at you right now buddy. The only weapon she had on her right now was her belt knife, tucked away in its sheath. ]

There you are. Quick little thing, aren't you? [ Could it understand her? In Kel's experience that was kind of a tossup, but a friendly voice was rarely the wrong choice. ] I was afraid you'd get crushed in all the mess back there. Are you hurt?