Well, here it is folks. After a year of not touching this story, though plenty of sideways glances at some of its more painfully awkward bits, I've gone through the first chapter and did some well needed editing. I'm probably going to do this with the other chapters as well. Seeing as how this was my first contribution, it's in serious need of an upgrade.

In this chapter, I've gotten rid of that randomly awkward and slightly annoying scene of extreme emotions and such within the diner. Hopefully this makes it less searingly painful for some of you to read, it certainly made it more bearable for me. Enjoy!

It was late in the evening, the sun already deep under the horizon and the chill of night was holding its grip on the rocky earth below it. The clear sky resting just above the red rocked span of land was clear and brightly light with the littering of bright stars that winked in the sky.

A pair of deep blue eyes looked up towards them. A pair of chapped lips curled upwards into a smile as the blond head began to work out shapes in the constellations. Libra, Virgo, and even Hydra. It seemed they were her only friends most of the time, the stars.

Allowing her sight to drag along the sky towards the horizon, she noted a very faint light in the distance. For a moment, she stopped in her tracks, her eyes looking at the light as she bit her bottom lip. Every thought in her head told her to turn around, but her body wouldn't respond.

How long had it been? Nearly four months since she'd been anywhere near a real building, much less a person. Maybe it was time she head back into a town. She was running low on toothpaste, desperately longed for a hot bath, and just wanted some company. The book and industrial strength radio in her bag were her only sources of entertainment and she hadn't held a conversation in months with anyone besides, herself (which worried her from time to time).

Her thick, ankle booted feet began their walk forward. Smells of grilled food, sopping with copious amounts of lard wafted about her causing her stomach to let out a long growl, her gloved hand gripping the thin shirt covering her stomach. "So hungry." She practically drooled. Yeah, she ate, but only the occasional egg when she could find a bird's nest or maybe a few roots with some roasted scorpions. Sniffing the air again like a ravenous beast, her mind questioned it. 'Why do I eat so terribly?' Driven by gnawing hunger, Terra quickened her pace considerably.

The smell of the cooking food grew stronger and stronger as she neared the light in the distance. The warm orange-ish yellow light from several street lamps revealed a small diner on the side of a long stretch of highway. Its outer walls gave way to the fact that this place was rather aged. Its wooden paneling's sky blue paint had darkened and began to chip off. Ancient pieces of metal which resembled furniture sat on a tiny deck built for three or four people, though the rust on it showed that it was rarely used.

Large eighteen-wheelers were parked in a cramped lot beside the building, all different companies and colors, their chrome accessories casting strange, luminous shapes against each other. She could see their owners inside the large front windows. Some were aged and kind looking, others... oddly shaped and a little on the untrustworthy looking side.

Little of that mattered though. Terra was hungry.

Stepping inside, the light, dull jingling of a weathered bell above her made nearly every head turn her way. The stares from half a dozen eyes made her grin a bit shyly. Terra gave a nervous nod of her head to a few of the lumpy truckers that she passed as she approached a booth and slipped into it; quickly ducking behind the available menu.

"What cannah git y'hun?" Came the twanged voice. Jumping a bit, Terra looked up to a woman dressed in a terribly plain dress, a dirty apron over it.

Looking back to the menu, she stuck her tongue out in thought. "Oh geeze, I dunno." Looking back up, she grinned. "A big stack of pancakes, five strips of bacon and five slices of sausage, four scrambled eggs, four pieces of toast, and a roast beef sandwich. Oh! Also, a tall glass of milk." In the back of her mind, the blond noted several things. Her voice was terribly hoarse sounding. Second, the gaze of every trucker was turned to her even more so than previously noticed, a look of awe on their faces. "Hey, I'm hungry." She shrugged towards the men on the stools at the counter. They all gave a small chuckle and went back to their mugs of coffee. 'Maybe these truck-jockeys aren't too bad.'

Terra smiled happily as the glass of milk was set before her. "Cook said give'm a few. Nev'r had an order that big from one girl." The woman mumbled with a wrinkled cigarette in her mouth. Tired looking brown eyes focused on Terra for what seemed to be the first time, a shocked look to them. "Jesus is Lord girl! What happened?" The waitress suddenly looked quite concerned.

Raising an eyebrow, the blue eyed girl turned to the napkin holder beside her. She looked at the warped reflection in the cheap metal and offered herself a look of disgust. Her face was covered in dirt (not to mention the rest of her) and sweat. Her hair was disheveled from the winds whipping it around and it clumped together slightly with the lack of brushing or washing. Her skin was darkly tanned, not to mention rather sunburned, even with the sunscreen she applied ritualistically. It looked like she was simply thrown into a desert and left for dead. "O-Oh, heh... Just a bit of backpacking, y'know?" Setting the metal box down, she looked up at the woman. "Would ya happen to have a bathroom?"

"Nah, not in here, but c'mon, you can use the one in the house." The woman motioned. Leaving her backpack under the table, Terra began to follow the woman through the kitchen. The dirt covered girl spotted a terribly large man hunched over a flat grill. His massive hand wrapped around the spatula as she would a toothpick. At any moment, she expected him to grunt and begin hitting things with the metal utensil. "Gordon! This girl is washin' up in the house!" The woman called loudly, her bright red hair bouncing around a bit with her head's movements.

Turning his bald head, the man raised a thick black eyebrow. "What girl?" He grunted in a deep, gravelly voice. Spotting Terra with his gray colored eyes, the man walked over. "You the young'n who order up the big'n meal?" He snorted leaning down.

"Yessir, please don't eat me." The blond whimpered. Seeing the confused look for a few moments on the man's caveman like features, she scooted back a little. Suddenly, the wall of a man threw his head back letting out a bellow of a laugh. The sound of thunder – no, a mountain falling over, had nothing on this man.

"He's harmless darlin." The waitress chuckled.

'Gordon' leaned back down. "Ya look like you've been trou hell and back young'n. How 'bout a'slice a' chocolate pie added onta that?" He smirked.

"I will love you forever then sir." Terra grinned widely. Hearing the thunderous laugh again, the blond gave a small laugh as well.

Making a motion to go into the house, Gordon turned back to the grill. "Get on; it'll be done in a bit."

Nodding, the two walked into the separate part of the building. It smelled aged, slightly musty, but a comforting smell. The two entered in a short hallway, a door to their left and right and two further down on the right, a large room to the left. "Bathroom's the second door darlin'." The woman muttered pushing on Terra's shoulder gently. "Food'll be ready in ten minutes." With that, the woman turned back around.

The dirt covered girl all but floored it into the tiled bathroom. It was surprisingly clean. A large tub sat within a concave wall in the corner of the far wall, further to the left on the same wall, a sink and mirror. To her right, a simple toilet sat. Towels of different colors hung upon old rods screwed into the wall beside the tub while several thick carpets covered the cold floor under the sink and toilet. Terra's eye began to water at the beauty of it all.

Standing at the sink, she opened a fresh bar of soap sitting on the counter and began to wash off her face, hands and arms. She made a slight face at the color of the water, its brownish black color evidence to how dirty she actually was. She ran some water through her hair, the same color water falling from it. It wasn't much, but it made her a little bit more presentable.

Drying off herself, she stepped out and back through the kitchen. Gordon raised his spatula towards the blond and grinned. "Good timen', food's done."

"Score!" Terra cheered and zipped around the separating wall and back into her booth. Before her, was everything she ordered, still steaming hot, to the left, a large slice of freshly made chocolate pie. Nearly drooling, Terra dug in, her hands working the fork and knife as fast as she could.

As she did, she noted that most of the truckers had left, two still sitting and talking with their mugs of coffee. Eying a clock, she read the time realizing it was nearly one in the morning.

"And what cannah git you?" Merna (as it read on her name tag) asked a figure at the booth right in front of the blond.

"Coffee," The soft, raspy voice mumbled.

"Come'n right up." The redhead noted and walked behind the counter filling up and old, slightly cracked mug; one of those ones that had a crack, but didn't actually leak. After setting it back on the petite figure's table, she reminded them of how hot it was and went off cleaning up dishes left by the truckers.

Stopping in mid-chew, Terra raised an eyebrow at the figure in front of her. They were covered in a simple slate blue hoodie, the hood up and over their head causing a shadow to obscure their features. Her blue eyes noted a bit of ashen gray skin on the figure's neck, purple locks falling out of the shadows. Curves on the chest identified them as a female of some sort.

Flicking her eyes to the floor, she noted a small bag sitting on the floor. It wasn't very dirty, but it was packed full. 'Wonder where she's going.' Terra thought as she finished the egg in her mouth. Looking about, she picked up the two plates she had left, one covered with a few pieces of bacon and eggs, the other holding the untouched piece of pie. Slipping over to the bench across from the girl, Terra offered a grin. "Mind if I join ya?" The girl's head snapped up quickly, a pair of rather beautiful amethyst eyes widening; most likely at her appearance. A hesitantly slow shake of the head made the long haired girl grin more and sit down. "Hope I'm not bothering ya. It's just I haven't had a decent conversation with anyone in a few months." Seeing the curious look in the girl's ashen features, the blue eyed girl snickered. "Been traveling about on my own for a few years. Haven't really stopped anywhere with people for about four months."

"I see..." Mumbled the girl sipping her coffee. Her voice was very reserved, her head bowing a little bit so that the shadows would obscure her features a bit more. Noting a gloved hand extended to her, the purple haired girl looked up curiously.

"Name's Terra." The sunburned girl smiled happily.

"..." Taking the hand silently, the gray skinned girl shook it lightly. "Raven."

Widening her smile a bit, the blond tilted her head. "That's a pretty name." Seeing a slight blush light up the girl's cheek, she withdrew a hand and worked a bit more on her eggs. "So," Spoke Terra with a cheek full of egg. "Where'ya heading?" Noting the surprised look, the blond pointed towards the bag on the tiled floor with her work. "That, and I don't think many would be out here this far just to get some coffee." Terra snickered a bit.

"I... Don't know." Mumbled Raven lightly as she held the mug of coffee with both hands looking into it.

Tilting her head curiously, Terra leaned forward a bit. "Well…" Looking down at a piece of bacon, the blond haired girl began to spin it around with her pronged eating implement. "Where are you not going?" Another curious glance made her shrug innocently. "Direction wise I mean."

"West," Raven croaked in her soft voice before sipping her hot beverage. Terra simply nodded as she finished off the rest of the food on her plate, once more focused on her original reason for being in the diner.

Finally with a reprieve from the questions, the purple haired teen began to covertly inspect her impromptu dining companion.

While Raven considered herself on the thin side, this grim encrusted girl before her beat her easily. Bean pole might have been a bit on the meaty side for the girl. She was sickly or starving looking… though you would think so from the sheer food into mouth by time ratio she was showing. Sinewy looking would have probably been on the more accurate side. Her face was a relatively dark tan color, close to the coloring of a roasted turkey for Thanksgiving, maybe a little lighter. Red colored her cheeks where an apparent sunburn rested, a little on her forehead as well. The bit of neck and collarbones that she could see from the collar of her shift give a hint of her correctness of the lack of fat on the girl.

Now, Raven wasn't one to waste emotions on people she didn't know, and even if you did know her, even well, you'd probably spot only the shadow of a smirk once in a blue moon. But seeing this teen covered in dust and sweat, she imagined that she might have felt the faint pang of pity for her in the lowest pit of her stomach. It was similar to the feeling she believed that one would have if they found a lost puppy on the side of the road in the rain.

And for a moment, she actually considered she might have. Thankfully, a mouthful of the still rather hot coffee washed the thought away in a pleasantly burning sensation along the back of her throat.

On the edges of her vision, the blue eyed teen noted the silent girl shake her head slightly after setting her mug of still half-full coffee onto the table, Terra hummed a bit in thought. "I heard there was a city a few miles down the highway. I was thinking about going there for a little." She mused a bit as she sliced a piece of the pie off and brought it to her lips. Raven offered a small nod and sipped her coffee.

Raven looked up slightly and eyed Terra for a moment. The blond smiled to her with a bite of pie and turned to look out the window inconspicuously.

"'Ey! You two!" Gordon called through the small cook window. Terra and Raven quickly looked to the man. The blond offered a smile while Raven looked ready to charge out the door. "It's get'n late, yer welcome to stay here. We gotta pullout bed." He bellowed.

"Thanks Mr. Gordon!" Terra called. Turning to look at the very worried looking ashen skinned girl, Terra snickered a bit. "Yeah, kinda scary isn't he? Don't worry though, they're a nice couple." Gulping a bit, Raven nodded hesitantly and looked at the small duffel bag she had.

"Are you going to stay?" She asked in a slightly hopeful voice.

Raven looked at the slightly smudged clock on the wall behind the bar and noted the early hour, then looked to the still, pitch black night waiting outside the diner to drink up anything brave enough to walk into it. Looking down to her backpack, she considered her options for a moment before making a mistake she personally regretted. Her amethyst eyes flicked briefly to Terra who held a horribly pitiful, big eyed puppy dog look. That strange sense of flickering pity for the teen flared up again and the ashen skinned girl dropped her head in defeat to her weaker side, letting out a soft, "…Sure." The bold blond grinned brightly and reached down and picked up her heavy hiking bag. The slightly shorter girl stood up as well and followed along behind the girl in the heavy cargo shorts. Terra placed a bit of money on the counter and entered the small living room. An aged TV sat in the far left corner of the room, a pair of windows in each side of it covered in blinds and curtains. To their immediate left, pressed against the wall was an old couch, it's cushions moved and a large, queen sized mattress pulled out. Fresh sheets lay atop of it as well as a pair of pillows. The hardwood floor creaked under the steps as the two made their way over to the bed. They passed a pair of worn in reclining chairs, their olive green color matching the color of the curtains over the windows.

"You guys are the best." Terra sighed as she set her things down on the side of the bed closest to the hallway. "I hope I'm not asking too much if I request the use of your tub?" The blond asked Merna as she walked through the small living room.

"Why you go right ahead dear. Yer little friend can use it too if she wants." The redheaded woman smiled kindly.

Raven bowed her head a bit from the far side of the bed, near one of the large windows as she began to get herself accomidated.

Terra looked back to the ashen skinned girl and gave her a crooked grin. "You better bathe first; I plan on taking my sweet time in there." She snickered thumbing to the bathroom door. Seeing the purple haired girl nod and reach into her bag, the longer haired girl smiled and stepped back into the diner's kitchen. She had to at least thank them by helping with the dishes right?

It was a while before the two were cleaned up. Terra, having spent nearly two hours in the tub caused Raven to worry a bit, thinking she might have fallen asleep or hurt herself. But after carefully knocking on the door and asking if everything was okay and hearing a loud "Just enjoying my first hot bath in four months!", the purple haired girl shook her head and crawled into the rather comfortable bed and curled up in the sheet. She was dressed in a long shirt that reached down to her thighs, its dark blue color contrasting her skin well.

Terra stepped out of the bathroom dressed in a simple pair of boxers as well as an old green military tank top, her long blond hair still dripping a bit. She grinned as best as she could with her toothbrush in her mouth as she held up her now very damp clothing she was just wearing and set them on top of the Air Conditioning system in the wall to dry. "Had ta clen dem." She spoke with toothbrush in motion. Raven simply nodded silently as she watched the teen adjust the well worn clothing.

As Terra step back into the bathroom to finish brushing her teeth, Raven smirked a bit. While she wouldn't admit to anyone, she enjoyed the company of the energetic girl. It was refreshing when compared to her past company… Or herself for that matter.

"Hey, y'know, you look nice without that hood covering you up." Terra commented as she drew back the sheet, gaining a faint blush from Raven, and slipped into the bed. "Oh yeah..." She groaned. "No rocks under me tonight... No sir..." She mumbled, drifting off into sleep immediately.

Turning her head, the short haired girl looked at the content face of the tanned girl and offered a smile to the silent, pitch black night. She noted that she was smiling more than she ever did in a week back home in a single night with this girl around. Yawning, the ashen skinned girl shifted a little closer until she was about a foot and a half away from the girl and closed her eyes, her mind clouding over with sleep.