Malia wouldn’t lie, being around the Striders did made her slightly nervous. Not because of who they were, but the pressure for them to believe her was starting to dawn on her—they may not appreciate her claims. She needed them to understand. Carson’s embrace, however, eased some of the worry. She stayed in his arms until the other Striders began to fill the space, her fingers running through his hair a couple times as she exchanged warm smiles.<br/><br/>Unfortunately, her light mood was sucked from her when she was referred to as a ‘strumpet.’ She was always proud of the fact she wasn’t bothered by what other people thought of her, but she had to admit: that stung. She wasn’t someone’s property, Carson valued her..right? But her point was proven as he stood up for her, a small smile making its way across her lips. She simply shot a signature glare in Sunny’s direction before turning her attention to Carson as he spoke.<br/><br/>Carson’s kiss on the cheek made her blush lightly, but she avoided Sunny’s glare just for the moment. She gave him a smile before clearing her throat, crossing her arms over her chest. “I’m Malia, and I’m the lead of the Land Runners down in Little Lake.” She pulled back thehair from behind her ear, showing them her raven tattoo. “The Land Runners are a secret organization, and each town has their own chapter. Each chapter has a lead. We are all interconnected, and we go on runs outside of our towns to other towns, make maps of surrounding territory, patterns, things such as that.” She glanced at Carson before continuing.<br/><br/>“The Land Runners used to be partnered with the Striders, until one day a Strider with a skull tattoo wiped out three chapters. We broke connections, the Striders who knew carried our secret to their graves, hence why you guys aren’t aware of us. Things were nice for awhile but recently, a band of Striders with the skull tattoos have been targeting chapters. They’ve wiped out four so far and we have reason to believe they’re planning to take us all out, right up to the council.” She looked up, scanning the three for their reactions. She chewed her lips, sighing softly. “And now...it would be a really good time for Runners and Striders to join forces again.”