Dani found it easier to follow 'Mister' than she'd expected. Well, not at first. He ran for the first mile or so, he was really fast and she lost him quickly. Of course, that didn't stop her. When she did finally catch up to him, he seemed to be just taking a leisurely stroll through the wilderness. Her own pace slowed to one she could keep for a while, though since he hadn't stopped all day, neither had she; her stamina wasn't as high as she would have liked.

Though she had more stamina than most kids her age, a fact she was very proud of.

Judging by direction, she tried to figure out where he was going. This was mostly to give herself something to think about, she'd never been far from Cidra, so she really didn't know what towns they might run into. In fact, she realized with a jolt, every step she took was taking her farther they walked, the less sure she was about how to handle herself. Especially when the terrain began to change. The trees started to thin, giving way to long grass and rocks. They were nearing plains. Less trees, less places to hide.

...Crap.

For now, the grass and rocks were sufficient cover, but life never stayed on her side for long. Eventually, she'd run out of luck, and out of hiding spots.

Her luck held until night. She expected him to stop and camp.

But he didn't.

The longer she stayed out in the dark, the more she realized just how vulnerable and small she was. And the later it became, she realized just how hungry she was, not to mention tired. Mister might have inhuman amounts of stamina, but she didn't. As much as she was happy to possess, she was still a little girl - a fact that she despised - she could only be so strong.

She'd managed to put out the fire in her calves several hours ago, but it was slowly building up again. Not much more than embers, however, those could flare any minute. Her eyelids were getting heavy, wanting to cover her tired green eyes like a blanket. Though for the rest of her body, her jacket worked just fine. She had to stop soon, but she didn't want to lose him. Something about this guy made her want to figure out what he was up to.

At this point, it was too late to turn back.

Someone was looking out for her, because just before she was about to drop, he stopped. He looked around, and then settled against a large boulder. Within a few minutes, he appeared to be asleep.

Appeared was the important word. She wasn't stupid. He hadn't slept in jail, and she had no reason to believe that he was sleeping now. She curled up behind a boulder of her own, much smaller than his. She pulled her jacket tighter around her, wishing the wind wasn't so cold. She decided that she missed the trees. Her eyes forced themselves closed, against her will. She'd allow it, for... for only a few...

"Dani?"

She blinked her eyes open at the voice calling her name, then shut them again as sunlight assaulter her pupils. It hurt, so she rubbed then out of habit.

"Dani, what are you doing here?"

She yawned. Sleep hadn't done her any good, she was still tired. "Did you really think you'd get rid of me that easily?"

"Dani..." He sighed, exasperated.

She frowned. "This is the part where you send me home, right?"

"It's not safe out here."

"It's not safe, baby."

Anger burned in her chest and behind her eyes. She stood and tried to appear as scary as a four-foot-something nine-year-old can be. "Well guess what, Mister, I don't got a home! I got nothing to go back to!"

Something fell over his eyes. She thought it was sadness, but it could've been something else. He spoke calmly. "Believe me, you're much better off back in Cidra than with me. I'm a murderer, remember?"

"And I'm a thief, but you still freed me." She crossed her arms and huffed. "You can't make me go back. You still owe me an answer."

"Listen, there are some things that people just don't need to know. One of those things is my story. Please, just go back."

"But I can't go back." She said, voice small. "If I do, they'll throw me right back in jail, 'to teach me a lesson.' Nobody wants me, Mister. They don't know what to do with me, so they lock me up. I'm nothing."

She fell silent, hoping she struck his sympathy chords. She didn't lie, but she might have exaggerated a little. Now that she was free, it would take months for them to catch her again. She wasn't afraid of jail.

She struck something. His expression left his face, leaving him with the not-quite-blank look of someone making a decision. Hopefully the decision to let her tag along, or at least answer her questions. That would be brilliant.

It took a few minutes. After the first two, Dani sat down. No use standing if she wasn't doing anything. She watched as he stood like a statue, thinking. Then she began picking at and playing with the grass.

Finally, he sat down with her, a sigh escaping him. He looked her in the eye and said, "I won't be able to get rid of you, will I?"

She shook her head vigorously. "Nope."

"Figured." He sighed again. "I can't stop you from following me, so I'm going to warn you; I wasn't joking when I said it's not safe. I've wandered Pulse more times than you can count. I've seen everything out there. But the most dangerous thing, is me." His expression reached an extreme level of seriousness. "If I tell you to run, run. This isn't a game. If something happens, you're the one coming out of it, not me. Understand?"

"Yes." She said, suddenly a little scared. Again, it hit her just how far from home she was. Her sense of safety left her hours ago, but she hadn't left the sting of it until now.

Some of her fear must have leaked into her voice, because his expression softened. "You can always go back if you want to, Dani."

"Go back? No thanks." She crossed her arms and gave him her best pouty face. "Everyone back home is mean."

He chuckled slightly. "You're a strange one."

"And proud of it."

"So, where're we going?" Dani asked.

It was a few hours since she'd been caught, and a few minutes since they'd begun moving again. Mister - now properly identified as Hope - shook his head.

"Honestly? I don't know."

"I thought you said you've been everywhere?"

"I didn't say I didn't know where we are, I said I don't know where we're going. There's a difference."

Dani folded her hands behind her back and bounced for a few seconds. "Well, where do you want to go?"

Where does he want to go...?