Salamanca was not far, but Pilar was content to keep it that way.
Only a few days had passed since she decided her fate and luckily for her, Pilar, Junkrat, and Roadhog had been able to slip from her mother's home without being detected by either Maria, or any sort of police force. Of course, for once neither of the Junkers had caused any problems, aside from a few shattered plates and glasses, but hell, she'd also been guilty of that, after walking into a nearly-naked, still-dripping-from-his-shower Junkrat as he towel dried his hair. Not only had it made a mess of Pilar's meal on the ground, shards of glass everywhere, but she'd also run away, face as red as a ripe tomato, mumbling something about seeing more than she ever intended to see.
However, she'd gotten over it relatively quickly as she began preparing for her journey to Portugal, mapping out the best path to get to their destination. Deciding against her brightly-colored vigilante uniform, she'd taken her worn clothing-which would better match her cohorts-and made a makeshift outfit of her own. Still, as she had laid across her bed, chewing on her lip as she penciled over a paper map, Pilar couldn't help but wonder if she was doing the right thing.
Well, it was more problematic than it was right, but she couldn't ignore the feeling in her gut, telling her to tag along with her unconventional allies. Really, for all she'd seen in the news, on the reports her mother was still fed, though Overwatch was long gone, and articles in the paper, they had seemed to grossly misunderstand exactly who the junkers were. Well, maybe not exactly; even from this side of the coin, she could see they were men not to be underestimated and dangerous arsonists, but at the same time, she saw how human they really were.
She might not have been a part of the omnic crisis, but remnants of the war was still scattered across Spain, in various locations, one of which was kilometers outside of Salamenca, a sizable omnic graveyard of sorts, littered with piles and piles of scrapped, metal bodies. It was alone, abandoned in the middle of the grassy countryside, unguarded and not maintained. Knowing well that they might have needed some spare parts for repairs, she'd led the junkers, on their way to Portugal, to the scrapyard of the decommissioned units, some in relatively good condition, others rusted to the point of being unrecognizable. Still, it had not been difficult to pick out good parts from the bad.
Struggling a bit with what seemed like a very stubborn omnic arm, Pilar jumped as an explosion suddenly went off, not far behind her, and turning with a hiss, her nose wrinkled, she saw a cloud of black smoke, followed by a smoldering man laying on his back between her pile and the next, a stupid grin spread happily across his features, a part clutched tightly in his fist.
"Got it!" Junkrat exclaimed, before erupting into a coughing fit, causing Pilar to roll her eyes and abandon the arm she was working on and see if he was alright.
"Que estas haciendo?!" she sighed, coming to a halt at his head, her gaze fixing on his face, which seemed brighter than usual. "You're going to get yourself hurt-" She paused, glancing at his right arm. "More than usual."
"Just gettin' this part free, Caterpillar. Havin' a bit of trouble with it." He made no motion to get up, merely waving, what appeared to be, an omnic weapon of sorts above his head so that Pilar could see. Running a hand down her face, she merely raised her brows, noting his smug grin and almost relaxed posture, before reaching to tug on his arm to help him up.
"But a bomb? Really?" she growled, heaving his weight with all her might, until he rolled and bounded upward, stretching his arms above his head with a groan, cracking his neck as though he landed on it wrong. "We're not trying to draw attention to ourselves."
"Speak fer yerself, sheila, but I wasn't about t' get it out of that heap over there without a fight, and a fight is what I gave it."
Pilar sighed, rolling her eyes before turning on her heel, back to her own pile of scrap metal she was working on. A distance away, Trueno pushed and shoved at another pile, trying to get loose another few parts that he thought beneficial for his own use. Roadhog, was on the opposite side, fixing up his motorcycle as best he could with what he had. He didn't seem to be bothered by the explosion that had just gone off; then again, he was used to it by now.
With a growl, Pilar tugged at the arm she'd been working on before the interruption, her nose curling as the piece did not seem to want to move. Even with the strength of her mech arm, it was not about to move.
"Oi, Pilar!" She turned, just in time to feel herself being dragged away from where she worked, a bomb, small yet powerful, lobbed over to the omnic scraps, the hissing of the fuse filling the air between them. "C'mere!"
She didn't have time to react, and suddenly, she felt herself being pushing into the ground by the impact of the explosion, sliding several feet before coming to a halt on the dusty ground. Rolling onto her left side, she shook her head, running her hand over her brow, the impact having jostled her a bit more than she liked. Though the smoke did not billow in her direction as it did to Junkrat previously, she still waved her hand about, clearing dust from the air, before gazing back over her shoulder.
Junkrat laid beside her, on his back once again, giggling happily to himself, the tips of his hair smoldering from the bomb. Pilar, raising a brow, sighed, shaking her head as she aimed a backwards kick at his leg, and his eyes flashed lazily to hers, grin still plastered across his face.
"Everything's comin' up explody, eh?" he chuckled, quirking his brows, and Pilar sighed, shaking her head.
"I had everything perfectly under control, thank you," she replied, turning her gaze before her, seeing Trueno gazing as she and Junkrat, shaking his massive head before returning to his work. Pilar's cheeks seemed to blaze a bright red, her metal hand running along her nose, and she could feel the blush spread as Junkrat, too, rolled onto his shoulder, hovering just behind her, hand resting on her shoulder as he rustled her a bit.
"Sure ya did, Caterpillar," he snorted, and she could feel his body shake in stifled laughter as her gaze flashed back to his again. "But hey, I got yer piece out! Ya should be thankin' me!"
"I'm not goi-" Suddenly, cutting her short, Pilar's arm seemed to vibrate, and though it was not unusual, she was still surprised at the call. No doubt, someone was trying to get a hold of her, and before Junkrat could say a word, she shoved him down into the ground again, holding her arm before her as the image of the caller materialized before her.
"Pilar? Hija, where are you?" A woman, in her forties or fifties, with dark, brown hair streaked with white, appeared in a figure before Pilar, the light of the hologram casting a glow on her face in the darkness. Glancing to her side, seeing the confusion on Junkrat's face, she covered his mouth before he could speak, throwing herself across his chest so he wouldn't move into her mother's sight.
"Mamá?" she exclaimed, struggling to keep Junkrat from squirming beneath her. "Is someone wrong? You never just call me."
"Hija, I think someone has been in our house..." Her eyes, the exact shape of Pilar's, were concerned as she gazed upon her daughter, and the holographic form of her mother rested a hand on her cheek, fingers tapping against her skin anxiously.
Pilar's eyes flickered to Junkrat momentarily before fixing on her mother once again, and the woman named Maria seemed to be turning about, gazing at the interior of her house while speaking with her daughter.
"I've found several shattered dishes, and a, ah, un par de ropa interior hanging on the towel rack in the bathroom...underwear far bigger than what you or I would ever wear."
Pilar cleared her throat, a bead of sweat running down her brow as she realized who they could have belonged to. Her eyes flashing to Roadhog, who seemed busy enough with whatever it was he was doing, did not seem to notice the call, nor the hologram of a small, Spanish woman glowing in the darkness. Junkrat, however, did not feel the need to continue the charade of hiding beneath Pilar, and with a mighty wriggle, he had managed to get her off of him, positioning them both in such a way where he sat behind her, legs spread wide, his chin resting on her shoulder, features scrunched up as the brightness of the hologram seemed to irritate his eyes. Pilar, though panicked, remained calm as her mother's attention came back to her daughter and the man sitting behind her, her features going from worried, to surprised, to downright angered.
"Pilar, dios, what are you doing?!"
Pilar was only able to manage a nervous laugh, and Junkrat-from behind her-saluted Maria in the most professional manner he could, a crooked grin spread across his face at the obvious anger Pilar's mother felt.
"G'day!" he exclaimed brightly, and the figure of Maria seemed to shake as Pilar's entire body vibrated in anxiety. "Mrs Fierro, roight? Heard a lot about ya from Caterpillar, here." Her anger did not seem to peturb him, and his hands rested on Pilar's upper arms as she continued to shake, her own laughter continuing as her panic grew. "Ya don't 'ave t' worry, we've got her all safe an' sound with us!"
"Us? Pilar, what is going on? Who's 'us'?"
As though Pilar wasn't in enough trouble, Roadhog had sensed something happening, and had heaved himself up off the ground, making his way to where Pilar and Junkrat sat. She could visibly see the color drain out of her mother's face, though the redness that replaced it a moment later was not unfound. And yet, through the anger, she could see the fear in Maria's eyes at her daughter's company, the glimmer of tears within them had Pilar's heart nearly breaking.
"Those men..."
"Mamá, you have to trust me," Pilar said, her voice shaking, her free hand running through her dark hair. "You have to trust me."
"Pilar, I-" Clearly distraught, Maria could not just hand her daughter over to whichever authorities the junkers were wanted by, and yet the fear in her eyes told Pilar that there was no way they'd be able to continue on without getting caught one of these days. Still, as she bit her lip, looking from Pilar, to the junkers, and back to her daughter, they could see the war rage on in her eyes.
"I have to go to Gibraltar. I will be contacting you when I get there...there's been a breach in security and..." She trailed off, her voice audibly shaking, whether in sadness or disappointment, Pilar could not say. Still, she met her mother's gaze firmly, though her body shook, and Maria sighed, shaking her head.
"Don't get yourself killed."
As suddenly as it came, the transmission had ended, and suddenly, she was flooded in darkness, only the light of the moon overhead illuminating the graveyard before them.
"Well shit," she murmured, running her hands over her head, bowing it in frustration. Whatever breach at Gibraltar was happening, Pilar was not about to rush in, weapons blazing, to help her mother, especially with her present company. With a heavy sigh, she flopped backward against Junkrat's chest, feeling him stiffen, yet otherwise unmoved.
Without anything to say, Roadhog began to shuffle away, casting a backward look at Junkrat, who seemed to mumble 'shut up' at his cohort as the other walked off, a deep chuckle escaping his mask.
Pilar's gaze flickered up to the sky, watching the shining stars twinkle about in the inky blackness, reminding her of her time with her father as a child. The thoughts were bitter, filled with betrayal, and she shook her head, a deep sigh escaping her as she leaned her head back, fitting it perfectly in the crook of Junkrat's neck. She could feel him stiffen further, behind her, and a grin curved her lips, shifting so she could better see him.
"We should probably start heading west soon," she murmured, lips pursing in thought. "I've mapped out the best possible way in, I'll have to show you."
He nodded quickly, clearing his throat, and with a small laugh, Pilar lifted herself from the ground, stretching before him before pinching his chin between her thumb and index finger, giving it a small wiggle. He was still stiff, even as she laughed again, and yet her smile was warm, even in the darkness, comforting him from the awkwardness he presented. After a moment, he sprung up, suddenly grabbing her by the hand, and Junkrat had them both bounding off toward Roadhog, their mixed cackles filling the night air.
"C'mon, you."