Hello! Welcome to this fic. I do not own Tenna, Devi, her lil' friend Sickness, or Spooky. Those belong to the Almighty You Know What.
This be chapter one of four. Enjoy!

Out.

That was the only word in Devi's head. It was all she could think, sense.

Out.

She felt it thudding in her veins, not an urge, but a command. A dull headache permeated her brain, and she rubbed her temples.

Its origins weren't a mystery.

Tenna shrieked, banging on her front door. You have to talk to me sometime! Tell me what you've been doing!

Devi groaned. The unmistakable squeaking of a certain hated toy droned on incessantly. The noise at the door stopped, then a new sort of thud' followed immediately thereafter by a squeak.

Thud-squeak! Thud-squeak!

The headache wasn't going away.

C'mon! Spooky wants to see you! He cares about you, too!

So, Tenna was smacking Spooky against the door. Heh. Devi couldn't resist a slight smile. She turned the TV louder, even though she wasn't watching it.

This isn't fair, Devi! You can't leave your only friends out here in this hallway! The neighbor children have that hungry look, and there's drool seeping out from under the door

Out.

Out.

OUT!

Devi's eyes snapped open. It wasn't Sickness, screaming from the back of her head. (Though the dolly was, in fact, screaming to get away. It found Tenna extremely annoying.) Her own sense of self-preservation had clawed its way to the top of her internal voices and was drowning everything else out.

For the past week she'd been hiding, again. Sickness hadn't regrouped, Tenna hadn't bothered her, she had been hiding and painting. Thinking, too. Trying to stretch her thoughts out on canvas and put color to them. She had ended up with a portrait of a grotesquely fat woman. Different sections of her fat melted into small story boards, telling the horrible adventures that comprised Devi's social life. Epic Fats, Devi entitled it.

You're being stupid! Tenna screamed, at last sounding angry. We just had a breakthrough, and now you're hiding away again! It's not fair, Devi! There are other people who care about you, you know, and you just-

Devi grabbed her coat and wallet. She snatched the remote, punching at buttons until the TV went blissfully silent. She shut the lights off one at a time, checking each room to make sure nothing was out of place.
A window at the back of her apartment opened out to a fire escape. She pulled the window open. Loud screeching ensued as ancient metal scraped against glass. Devi heard Tenna gasp.

I know that sound! You're using the fire escape! With a final squeak, Tenna turned and fled down the hall. I'm gonna catch you, Deviiiiiii her voice faded.

Not much time, Devi thought. Got to get out! She pulled herself through the window and out onto the rickety staircase. Rising adrenaline pumped through her as she flew down the stairs. The thrill of the chase got to her, and she grinned despite herself. There! A looming shadow; she could see the outline of Tenna's hair, and Spooky in her outstretched hand. Devi skidded around in a full circle and scrambled down an alley, laughing aloud.

Ooo! I hear you! Tenna shrieked. Devi's eyes popped. The alley ended in a chain link fence.

The squeaking! Devi whispered, horrified. The sqeeeeeaking

Get up the fence! Sickness pleaded. Devi felt the dolly peering back behind her, fearing the ever-nearing cheerfulness.

She took a deep breath, than flung herself at the fence. She clawed her way to the top, fingers digging into the twisted metal. Around, jump, and down! Devi scrambled behind a wall, flattening herself against the brick.
Squeaking, nearer and nearer She saw Tenna's shadow standing by the fence.

Tenna stood still for a moment. What's that?

Squeak squeak.

Yeah, me too. We don't need that anti-social recluse to have fun. Let's go to that little pond we found and feed the ducks!

No mind it's almost midnight, Devi thought, shaking her head.

Well, Devi, you know where we'll be, said Tenna, and she blew a raspberry across the fence. Not like we want you, anyway. She stomped away like an angry little third grader.

Devi waited a full minute before she relaxed away from the wall. Tenna didn't come back.

Wee! Sickness giggled in the back of her head. That was fun. Do it again!

Shut up. Devi shoved her hands in her pockets and walked. She passed several stores, windows dark, before Sickness spoke again.

Where are we going?

I don't know, Devi hissed. A homeless man peered at her from beneath his wool cap. She didn't look at him. Shut up, she whispered, I don't need any more people staring at me.

She walked for a while, always checking the street names against the map in her head. She knew her city fairly well. Still, it wouldn't be the smartest thing to get lost late at night.

Devi until she came to a subway station. MAG LEV shone in bright letters above the small plastic enclosure set away from the street. The seats inside were faded white. Devi strolled in, rubbing her hands together softly. Only one other person was there, waiting for the subway. He briefly glanced at her when she came in, than returned to the book in his hands. Devi arched a brow. It wasn't often a spiky-haired, metal encrusted Goth was caught reading a book. She sat at the opposite end of the small shelter, and read the poster hastily stuck up on the ceiling.

MAG LEV: Magnetic Levitation. A diagram of the subway beneath outlined the all the stops as well as the tracks. Devi squinted. It wasn't quite a subway, as she had first thought, but a train that floated over the tracks. Oh well. It didn't concern her much.

Where are we going? Sickness asked again, sounding vaguely bored.

Somewhere, Devi thought back. I dunno. Maybe I can find someplace open this late. Someplace without jerks and bland people.

Sickness laughed. Maybe she said cruelly. And maybe Spooky will get sucked into a garbage disposal and actually get torn up.

Devi smiled a little. Yes, she had tried it once. While Tenna was in the bathroom, Devi snatched up the chubby little squeak toy and shoved it down the garbage disposal. The sounds of its little squeaker thing brought Tenna running. Devi had pulled it out immediately.

I was just, uh, washing him off, she had said weakly.

Tenna grabbed him. Did she hurt you? she cooed, patting the plastic doll. Did the scary lady try to cut you up into little pieces and eat you for dinner?

Sickness cut into the amusing memory. Woah, she said. Look at that guy.
Devi glanced up. The guy on the other side of the enclosure was now holding a knife. It flashed around his hands as he twirled it, studying the motion of the blade.

I like him. Let's go talk to him, Sickness said.

Shut up! Devi hissed, gripping her seat. The guy looked over at her, and the blade vanished. In its place was the book. He arched a pierced eyebrow, and she looked away.

Blinding lights flashed in the enclosure, indicating that the Mag Lev had arrived. Devi cautiously followed the guy through a door in the floor of the enclosure and down some steps. She jumped into the first door of the train that slid open.

Fifteen minutes later she stepped out of the Mag Lev and walked up the stairs. They led to another plastic enclosure. She forced the name of the stop into a corner of her brain for recall later. Devi hugged her coat closer and left the enclosure.

She peered down the road. A couple of street lamps and traffic lights, frozen green due to a lack of traffic, lit up the area. It seemed to be the edge of the city; the buildings were shorter and much further apart. Gravel and grass lined the ground on either side of the street. Devi crossed the road and headed down a short gravel drive that ran along side a large building. She saw neon red lights from the behind the building and heard a mixture of sounds: people talking, yelling, laughing, and music with a heavy bass beat.

Please review! :) Anyone who has read my stuff knows that I always give thank yous to reviewers. I appreciate it, damnit! Haha. Okay, I'm done.