A/N: For Maple. Sorry it took so long honey. Hope you like it.
Riegue para México
I hate them! I hate them! the brown haired, brown eyed 14-year old thought as she ran down the dark alley.
It was after midnight and she had snuck out her bedroom window, climbing down the trellis on the wall of the house and running away. She had kept her gasps of pain soundless, whilst cursing her mother for planting Sweet William against the wall. Once she had jumped down from the trellis she noticed the deep etches in her palms from where the thorns had dug into her skin. Wiping the blood on her jeans she had started off in a sprint, trying to get as far away from her parents home as possible.
She stopped running after turning on to another alley and stopped to gasp for breath. She would be safe now. They wouldn't find her again. She wouldn't go back!
And what, you may ask, caused this young girl to run away? She blamed her parents. They were too strict and untrusting. She had come home from school, needing the solace her sisters could provide her, and what had her parents done? They had taken her computer away. An inevitable argument erupted and she was sent to her room along with being grounded for the next two weeks for her attitude.
But now she was free of them. She could do whatever she wanted. Go wherever the wind blew her. She was smiling at the idea of finally being able to meet her sisters, her mind picturing the various scenarios. London. Scotland. Northern Ireland. America. She could see in her head how it would be, visiting them all and having a great time.
Maybe that is why she didn't hear or see him until he was on top of her with his knife at her throat.
"You're a pretty little thing, ain't ya!" he said leaning closer to her.
On automatic reflex her leg went up, her knee making contact with his 'family jewels'. She turned and sprinted into the main street and then down another alleyway. She crept down low behind a black Pontiac Firebird Trans Am. The man thundered into the alley calling out to her as if she were a lost pet.
She held her breath as her heart thumped in her chest. The cloud cover disappeared and the moon shone brightly on the alley. Her hiding place was illuminated as if a spot light were trained on her. The man stepped further into the alley. Soon he would see her. Soon he would get her.
But suddenly the backseat door of the Trans Am popped open soundlessly. Without further thought she jumped in and hid.
"He's gone," said a robotic-like male voice.
The girl searched around for the source and then saw the flashing red LED lights on the dash. They moved up as the voice spoke, just like the scope visualisation on Windows Media Player.
"Hello," the voice said.
The girl could almost hear the smile in his voice.
"The car is talking to me," blinked the girl.
"So you should talk back," quoted the car.
"And its quoting Pocahontas. Nothing weird at all about that now(!) Um, hello?" the girl said nervously, addressing the dash.
"I am KITT - Knight Industries Two Thousand. What's your name?"
"Maple."
"Why are you out on the streets on your own?" KITT's cool voice asked.
"I ran away and I won't go back," replied Maple.
"Well in that case…" KITT trailed off as an odourless gas was pushed into the backseat through the speakers.
Maple's eyes shut closed and she slumped down on to the backseat, falling sound asleep. The gas dispersed just as a brown haired man got into the driver's seat.
"Ready now Michael?"
"You bet KITT. Got all the information I needed."
Michael started up KITT and began the long journey to Rio de Medina, Mexico. As they passed through El Casco Maple stirred. She rose, blinked at the desert scenery surrounding her and was suddenly fully awake when Michael turned round to yell at her, almost wrapping them around a cactus.
"What the heck! Who are you?" Michael screamed once he had brought KITT to a stop.
"Maple," she answered rubbing her head.
"Well what the heck you doing in my car?"
Maple blinked blankly, then realisation dawned.
"KITT, you drugged me?"
"Apologies Maple, but it was the only way to stop Michael returning you home. We are near Rio de Medina, Mexico making it too late to turn back."
"Well then I suppose I can forgive you. Hold up…did you say Mexico?"
"Yes Michael and I are on a mission -"
"Want to tell her everything KITT?"
"Who's she going to tell that will believe her. She's only 14-years, 1-month and 29-days old."
"Okay now that is a tad freaky," commented Maple as she clambered into the front passenger seat. "So why are we heading to Mexico?"
"That information is Top Secret," said Michael, cutting KITT off from telling her.
"Fine don't tell me, but I'm gonna need to know once we get there. And if I plan on setting up there I kinda need some time to make up my background story without letting slip too much about you and KITT."
"You will not be staying in Mexico," raged Michael.
"Well I'm not going back there!" yelled Maple. "So make your choice: a) I stay in Mexico or b) I stay with you," she smirked.
Michael exhaled and fell silent. KITT began explaining to Maple about how they worked for Knight Foundation-funded public justice organization, the Foundation for Law and Government, also known as FLAG. Their current mission was to rid a small Mexican town of the dictator who had turned of the townspeople's water supply.
"Do you guys help every little town or is this one special?"
"A friend of Wilton's was shot trying to rebel against the injustice three days ago," answered Michael.
Everyone fell silent as Michael slowed and entered the sandy town. Maple's eyes widened as she saw the bodies being wrapped in white cloth and carried into the trench-like holes being dug in an expanse of land that looked as dead as the bodies being laid in it. Michael stopped KITT and got out of the car. Michael bent down to a woman wailing on her knees at the side of the road. Maple tried to follow but KITT locked her door.
"You don't want to see this Maple," he said quietly as he scanned the area.
A few moments later and Michael got back into the car and put KITT on Auto Cruise.
"What are we doing?"
"We are doing nothing," stressed Michael. "KITT and I are going to pay a visit to Collito while Consuela looks after you."
"I want to help."
"You'd only get in the way," muttered Michael as KITT stopped outside a small hut where a young Latino woman stood.
Michael and KITT left Maple in the arms of Consuela, who had three long scars across her face.
"What happened?" Maple asked hesitantly as Consuela led her into her small home.
"I tried to be a Mexi-can," she said in fluent English. "I went with my father to fight against the injustice Collito reigns here and this is what he gave me to stop the others before dragging me and my father into the middle of town and slitting my father's throat in front of everyone. He has made us all Mexi-can'ts now."
Maple felt sorry for Consuela, but she was somewhat disturbed at her own insensitive thoughts. isn't the whole enchilada with 'Mexi-can' and 'Mexi-can't' from Once Upon a Time in Mexico? She kept her thoughts silent and instead tried to look sympathetic, whilst anger at Collito boiled in her veins. Luckily, before she could have an outburst and upset Consuela, the pager that Michael had given her before leaving beeped in her hand.
1 new message: KITT flashed across the screen.
Maple, Michael requires urgent assistance and I cannot help him. Please get help.
"Only one thing for me to do: help him," sighed Maple.
"Do not. It's too dangerous!"
"I'll be fine," called Maple as she raced away from the house and up the hill to the gigantic mansion sitting looking down on the dilapidated homes below it.
Maple found a small gap in part of the chain link fence that surrounded the perimeter. Creeping through it she found herself at a building which, upon entering, she found it was a garage. KITT's Anamorphic Equalizer lit the dark, gloomy garage in an eerie light. Keeping low she crept forward until she was at the door of KITT.
"Aw c'mon KITT, its me, now open up!" exclaimed Maple in hushed tones as she found the doors locked tight.
An almost silent click had her rushing inside the car.
"What do you need?"
"Maple I asked you to get help," complained KITT.
"And here I am. Now tell me what needs doing."
A few minutes later and they had a plan. Maple opened the garage doors, while KITT reversed and went round to the front of the house in order to create a diversion. Maple went through the door closest to the Computer Room so as she could turn the water back on. KITT's scanners had told her there were two armed men in there so she approached with caution. Both were scientists but must have been trained as Special Ops with the speed they stood and fired their weapons at Maple. Not two seconds had passed with her opening the door before she had to drop to the floor to avoid being hit by the bullets of the AK-47 that the nearest scientist was shooting. The other scientist was throwing knives at her as she crawled around the desks, stealthily making her way towards the scientist with the AK. She managed to get right beside the gunner and zapped him with the taser KITT had given her.
He fell to the ground with a dull thud. His colleague paused in throwing the next knife and surveyed around him. Maple grabbed the handgun the gunner had in his shoulder holster and then crept up behind 'knife boy'. Thrusting the barrel of the gun into the man's aorta and cocking it caused him to drop his knives in a flash.
"Now…you're gonna do exactly what I say…yes?"
"Yes!" he agreed immediately when Maple pressed the muzzle of the gun further into his neck.
"Now take a seat and turn the water supply back on."
"But Senor Collito -"
"Don't worry about him. He'll be dispatched soon enough," she interrupted.
The scientist's fingers floated across the keyboard with amazing speed and within five minutes the water supply was back on. She knew this because, looking at the screen that filled the wall in front of her, she was able to see the entire town from cameras positioned in it.
"Good man! Now, while I get the rest of this fixed you're gonna sit tight and not move a muscle," she said as she handcuffed his left wrist to his right ankle and vice versa before leaving him lying on the floor beside his tasered and unconscious friend. Blowing a kiss bye bye to them she fled the room and hurried to the far end of the house where the Living Room was situated and where the others were gathered for Michael's interrogation.
Pressed against the doorway she waited. She watched as the missile crashed through the window and landed in the beautiful suede sofa. Michael punched the guy holding him and ran to the nearest door, which was where Maple stood. She pulled him down to the floor just in time for the bullets of Collito's men to miss their target. To which Maple unloaded a clip into each man. All three went down just as KITT's voice called from outside.
Michael grabbed Maple and dashed through the window, landing on KITT's bonnet. Michael let go of Maple and rolled over the bonnet before jumping into the driver's seat. The tyres squealed as Michael pushed down hard on the accelerator and they took off, barely giving Maple enough time to put her seatbelt on. She looked behind her as they crashed through the gates and saw the entire front of the house explode and begin to be consumed in bright orange flames before she collapsed in her seat from exhaustion.
When she woke up she found herself in an extremely comfy bed. She padded out of the strange room and down a hall, completely confused. She entered the first room she came to and dived on the computer chair making it spin. That was how Michael and Devon found her when they gave Maple her credentials, making her a part of the FLAG team: spinning around on a computer chair with a brilliant and happy grin on her face.
"You wouldn't believe she'd just killed three men and saved your butt," noted Devon to Michael, smiling as they left Maple to her fun.