Chapter V: Night Walking

Terra rousted her companion from a dead sleep. Raven looked up momentarily unsure where she was.

"Come on," Terra said softly. "This is our stop. We need to get off quickly so the driver can keep his schedule."

Raven stood up wearily, grabbed her backpack and shuffled down the aisle behind Terra. The bus lights were out as were most of the passengers; the only illumination in the cabin came from the dim floor lights. Both girls exited the bus onto the well lit concrete pad of Max's truck stop. The bus doors quickly closed behind them as the bus revved up and pulled away from them kicking up a cloud of dust and diesel fumes.

Terra adjusted her backpack and headed for the main building. Raven rubbed her eyes; the bright fluorescent lights burned uncomfortably. She staggered behind Terra; her legs stiff from the long drive.

"What time is it?" Raven called out behind Terra.

"It's about one in the morning," Terra replied. "We need to get a few things inside then hit the road for a couple of hours until we make camp."

Raven followed Terra across the concrete gas station pad. There were only a few rigs parked near the main building. She looked to either side but could not make out any scenery that would tell her where she was.

Terra pushed the main door open and walked into what appeared to be a convenience area. Further to their right they could make out a small dinning area with a few patrons getting a late-night snack.

"I need to get a few things before we get started," Terra explained to her. "If I were you I'd use the restroom. There won't be any where we're going."

Raven nodded then headed for the women's room as soft country music filled the air. She pushed the door open and wearily headed for one of the stalls. This was the one time she didn't appreciate her outfit. She finished up and headed for the sink to scrub up and splash her face in an attempt to revive herself. The cold water felt good on her face. She looked up at the mirror and into her own eyes wondering what she had gotten herself into.

Raven exited the restroom and stood panicked for a moment when she couldn't find Terra. The panic quickly subsided when she spied her waiting outside under the fluorescent lights. Raven walked out of the store as Terra looked at her nervously.

"Come on, let's get going."

Terra quickly turned and headed across the parking lot towards the main highway. Raven could hear the faint rumble of cars passing along the interstate well ahead of them. She had to break into a light run to catch up with her partner.

"What's the hurry?"

Terra remained silent and walked swiftly out of the fading light of the truck stop and into the darkness of a moonless night. When they were completely out of the light Terra stopped then crossed the road and doubled back away from the interstate.

"Wait a minute," Raven protested. "What's going on?"

"I'm trying to throw off the guy in the convenience store." Terra halted and looked at the road in front of her. The truck stop lights unfortunately illuminated the other side of the road.

"Why are you doing that?"

Terra turned and faced her reluctant companion. "The fewer questions you ask the better this will go." A short silence ensued as the two girls exchanged icy stares.

Terra sighed, "Look, the guy in the store was asking a lot of questions."

"Yea," Raven replied dully.

Terra frowned, "Two girls coming into the store off a bus at one in the morning, carrying backpacks, buying water and food." She waited expecting Raven to understand her point. Raven was unsure what she was getting at. "He thinks we're runaways. He's probably calling the cops right now."

Raven glanced over towards the truck stop, "So what?"

"Listen, I'm not going back. You can sit here if you want and wait for the cops to pick you up; I'll go the rest of the way on my own. I have to do this whether you come with me or not."

Raven didn't like the sound of Terra's last statement. She felt a dark wave wash over her companion's heart. For now she would continue on with her.

"OK, what do we need to do?"

Terra turned and looked at the road ahead of them. "If we can get around the truck stop without them seeing us it will look like we headed back up towards the interstate. That should put them off long enough so we get to where we need to turn off the main road."

"I could fly us to where we need to go," Raven suggested.

"No, I need to do this trip under my own power," Terra quickly countered. "The journey is just as important to me as the destination."

Raven stood in the darkness puzzled by Terra's statement. "Well, how about if I just get us over to the other side. We can walk the rest of the way like you want."

Terra took a deep breath and thought about Raven's offer. "OK, but the rest of the trip is done my way."

Raven nodded then grasped Terra's hand and lifted both of them above the ground and over to the other side of the truck stop where its lights faded into darkness. The pair landed softly on the macadam surface. Terra turned and recrossed the road to walk on the side facing oncoming traffic. Raven followed as her eyes slowly began to adjust to the darkness.

Terra stopped once she was a safe distance from the truck stop and turned to Raven. She pulled out a glow stick, broke its seal and shook it vigorously. A faint green glow gently illuminated the pair.

"We'll stay on this road for a couple of hours. If we hurry we can catch a short nap where we get off the road." She put down her pack and pulled out a walking stick then attached the glow stick to the end. "Traffic's pretty light this time of night. If you see a car coming get off the road; I don't want anyone to see us."

"What's the light for?" Raven asked curiously.

"Snakes," Terra replied as she slung the pack back up on her shoulders and started walking briskly down the darkened road. "They like to curl up on the road at night to keep themselves warm."

Raven shuddered as she quickly looked down at her feet. She then reluctantly pressed forward to catch up with her briskly walking companion. "Where are we?" she asked.

"You don't know?"

"I don't have a clue," Raven replied in frustration.

"Good, then you can't tell anyone where you are," Terra replied as she waved the glow stick in front of her to assure herself their path was clear.

Raven sighed and fell in behind Terra. The two kept up a good pace as the moon slowly rose in front of them. After awhile Raven noticed she could see much further than before. She could make out scrub brush and the outlines of large cacti. By the look of things they were trekking across the desert.

Only one car passed them on their jaunt. Terra took the pair well to the side of the road and hid her light then waited for it to pass by before continuing. Raven was becoming weary with the pace Terra was keeping. She was not used to this much physical activity.

The moon was rising high into the star-lit sky when Terra suddenly paused and looked to the side of the road. She swung her glow stick looking for something.

"What's up?" Raven asked wearily. She was thankful for the break; it seemed like hours since they had left the truck stop.

"I think this is where we get off," she said as she continued to swing her glow stick around using its feeble light to find a familiar land mark. "There it is. We'll wait here until morning then follow this road to the wash."

Terra took several steps off the main road onto what looked like a small path leading into the darkness. She found a small clearing and waved her glow stick around inspecting the ground. "OK, this looks good. I'll break out the sleeping bag and we can grab a couple of hours sleep before the sun comes up."

Raven watched as Terra hoisted her pack off her back and laid it on the ground. She handed the glow stick to Raven then unstrapped a large sleeping bag and rolled it out over the ground.

A faint sound of a zipper filled the quiet night air as Terra opened the sleeping bag. Terra removed her shoes and socks and placed them to the side. She slid into the bag and looked up at Raven.

"You coming in or what?"

Raven looked down at her uncomfortably. "You mean both of us, in one sleeping bag?"

"It's a double sleeping bag, but if you want you're more than welcome to lie on the ground with the scorpions."

Raven groaned, put her backpack down, took off her boots and cape then slowly slid into the bag next to Terra. Her heart began to race; she had never shared a bed with anyone. She lay on her back and stared straight up into the sky.

"You OK Raven?" Terra asked.

"Not really," she replied uncomfortably.

"What, you've never been to a sleep over?"

"Never."

Terra giggled to herself. "That's too bad. Make sure you zip the bag up so we don't have any guests with us in the morning."

Raven reached down and zipped the sleeping bag up then lay on her back staring uncomfortably into the starry desert sky above her. Terra rolled onto her side and soon fell into a deep slumber; her slow breaths provided the only noise in the darkness. Raven's eyes became heavy as she slowly drifted off into a restless sleep.