Lee was pissed. No, that was a complete and utter understatement. Lee was livid. How in the world could Tarin possibly say what he had, no, how could he even possibly think it. In fact, Lee was so angry that she had actually left the shop in the middle of the argument similar to how Tarin had left her apartment after that first fight they had had. That fight that had almost, all by itself, ended their entire relationship less than 24 hours after it had started.

When she had gone to talk to Tarin a few days after that first fight, she had told him that while walking out as he had was not the best way to have fights (at least not if you wanted a good chance to reconcile), in that case it had probably been for the best; they had both been so upset that they hadn't even really cared about the fact that they had been saying extremely hurtful things to the other person. Nor had they cared at that time why what they were saying was so hurtful and cutting.

And while what had been said hadn't been able to disappear, that time apart because of the fact that Tarin had walked away had let both of them calm down. And time to realize just how much they missed each other despite the incredibly short time they had known each other.

Lee really wasn't thinking about that as she stalked angrily down the streets of New York. She wasn't overly concerned about how her leaving would give both of them a chance to calm down so they could sort things out.

In fact, Lee really wasn't thinking at all beyond how she kept replaying the fight with Tarin over and over in her head. If she had been thinking, she would have realized how potentially dangerous it was for her to have left Tarin alone like she had when he was so angry; the spirits seemed to be exceptionally drawn to him, seemed to want more from him, when he was mad and had more trouble holding them off.

If she had been thinking, Lee would have also noticed that the three inch heels of her knee-high boots were clicking on the sidewalk quite a bit faster than they probably should have been, the hem of her skirt fluttering around her thighs, a good four inches above her knee, as she marched down the street. Whether she wanted it to happen or not, fighting always caused Lee to siphon more energy than normal. That, combined with how her mind was more focused on the past argument than her current movements, meant that she was easily moving faster than a normal human. Not fast enough to cause everyone to know she was a mutant, but definitely fast enough to cause the curious to wonder, or at least wonder what would cause a young woman wearing boots like that to be in such hurry yet not take a cab.

Or at least there had been wonder, plausible deniability, until that point. The problem with not thinking about or paying attention to your movements is that you don't tend to really pay much attention to where you're going, either. And Lee really wasn't paying much attention to anything until she heard a loud honking.

Next thing Lee knew, she was standing on the opposite sidewalk, having moved faster than the truck that was bearing down on her after stepping into the street on a red light.

It only took about a second and a half after that for her mind to catch up and fear to grip Lee. The argument that had consumed her mind previously was now virtually forgotten as her eyes darted around. She had been terrified that Tarin would show his powers to someone in the shop, or otherwise reveal himself to the wrong person, and that would end up getting the two of them thrown into the camps with collars slapped around their throats, yet here it was, it had been her who openly revealed her powers, not simply to someone in the confines of the shop, but out on a crowded New York street.

There was no question about whether people had seen or noticed; there were dozens of eyes staring at her in varying combinations of fear and shock. The question was whether any cops or those Stalker Bot things had seen her too.

Maybe, if she were lucky, she'd be able to blend back in to the crowd after she got a few blocks away. Using more effort than she could ever remember using to control her speed, Lee ignored the people around her as she turned and started walking away. But where could she go? She couldn't lead them back to Tarin.

Only to come to a dead stop after a couple meters as she came face to face (or at least as close as she could at their contrasting heights) with a Stalker Bot.

That fear she had felt as soon as she had realized what exactly she had done returned, magnified a million fold.

It was a typical day for David, as he started it about mid afternoon drinking at the Hamster Tune bar. This was one of the few days he didn't tie on a buzz this early in the day, but the few drinks he did have, released the stress off his mind. David wasn't one to call for a cab ever, he enjoyed the world as his muse and liked the fresh air as much as he could. He exited the bar and started slowly making his way back to his hotel only a few blocks away.

The atmosphere was the usual New York setting, loud noises and traffic. The people were either wearing suits or asking for change. Sometimes both. David then remembered he needed to grab a newspaper. Switching directions slightly he approached the stand and grabbed the New York Times, he also grabbed a pack of cigarettes and matches, a new habit for David.

He stood for a moment and scanned the headlines of the newspaper before folding it and placing it under his arm. David then proceeded to smack the top half of is cigarettes against his palm to pack them. After unwrapping the pack he pulled a cigarette out and lit it with a match. Inhaling his 'anti anxiety medicine'. The cigarettes went into David's coat pocket as he turned around to proceed back to his hotel.

Suddenly all time seemed to stop as he noticed Lee walking down the same side of the street. She was more beautiful then ever, David's heart started to race. He needed to talk to her, their was so much to say. Ever since the incident at the shop she would pop up into David's mind every now and then. She seemed a bit focused and was walking pretty fast. As David took a few steps forward attempting to catch up he realized that Lee was wondering aimlessly and wasn't paying much attention to the speeding truck hauling ass down the street. David may have blinked, for the next thing he knew was that Lee was standing opposite of where she was a moment ago.

He grabbed his collar remembering how she once overpowered him in strength, now realizing she has incredible speed as well. The thought of her with these powers ran through David's head in an anything but classy way.

People started to crowed her as they witnessed her using her powers. David tried to think quick as to what he could do. He blended in as he crossed the street over to where the crowd was drawn to , trying to get close to Lee before anyone started casting stones. David couldn't get her attention with the roar of the crowd beating down on Lee, if only he could get to her, he could turn her invisible and get her far away from this place.

Just as David was just gonna go for it, (turn invisible and make a hard push through the crowd) he saw Lee making her way opposite direction... in the beaten path of a stalker bot.

His eyes closed as he knew that her fate now lies with them. It would have been pure suicide to attempt anything at this point. The news paper dropped from under his arm and the cigarette fell from his mouth. This poor girl who never wants to be noticed, who minds her own business and keeps to her self just found her self exposed to the world.

David backed up from the crowd just a few feet, still in visual with Lee. Many thoughts were running through his mind, not many of them sane. Their was only one thing he knew for sure, he needed to find Tarin.

What in the world was Lee supposed to do now? She had seen pictures of the Stalkers before, in papers and on the news, and even then hadn't known how she was supposed to be able to defend herself against one. But now to actually be standing in front of one of them, to have it towering over her, Lee knew there was nothing she could do to fight. At least not if she wanted to survive this encounter. And if what Rupert had said about the collars being able to be adjusted for people like her was true, it didn't appear to be quite the death sentence it had once seemed, so Lee most certainly did not want to die here. Glancing at the blades attached to the thing in front of her, Lee wasn't sure if it would be any less painful an end than the collar.

Best to just go quietly, Lee decided, a defeated look joining the one of fear in her eyes as she stared at the Stalker in front of her. Best not to give them any more reason to hate her, to be angry with her, than they already had simply because of how she was born. If she didn't anger them too much, maybe they'd adjust the collar like Rupert had said they could, adjust it enough that she'd at least be able to function in the camp.

This was it. She was never going to see Tarin again. She was going to die, whether from the collar, the camp, or some other as yet unknown reason, before she could see him again. And he wasn't even going to know what happened. He'd likely think that she had left of her own free will. Would Tarin try looking for her like she had when he had run to Maine?

Maybe that was the best thing, she realized, her gaze dropping to the ground in defeat. At least if he thought she had voluntarily left him, Tarin wouldn't end up coming looking at the camps when he went looking for her. He wouldn't end up getting killed when he did something stupid like trying to rescue her. That was the only good thing about this: at least Tarin would stay safe.

All of that, from the fear, to the feeling of helplessness, to the slight relief she was actually able to feel in the face of the end of everything, couldn't have taken 30 seconds. She was still in front of the Stalker, and the crowd of humans still gathered around.

"I'll go quietly," Lee told the thing in front of her, her voice sounding defeated too, almost dead sounding but for the hint of fear evident in the tone. "Tell me where, and I'll go peacefully."

Despite her words, despite the fact that she was being completely honest and truthful with what she said, the Stalker didn't tell her where they were going. Instead, it picked her up in its incredibly uncomfortable mechanical grip, her purse dropping to the ground as she was dragged away from the scene of the 'crime'.

Don't fight! she silently shouted at herself, her eyes now clenched shut against the tears of fear, pain, and loss that had sprung up. Don't struggle, don't fight. She needed to still be conscious when they got where they were now going so she could tell about her powers, and if she struggled, consciousness probably wouldn't last long. All she could hope for was that the person who ended up putting the collar around her neck would have some small shred of conscience in them.

Over...Over...Over...Over...The word kept ringing in Tarin's ears as he sat in the shop. In his experienced the word "over" didn't necessarily mean "over"...unless of course he had been the one saying it to one of his one night stands, in those cases "over" had always meant "over". Lee had said over though...surely after everything else they'd been to she didn't mean over that quickly, especially since all of this was over a complete misunderstanding.

The woman had been coming to the shop for weeks now, she was a lovely young woman and someone Tarin wouldn't have hesitated to persue before he'd met Lee. She didn't have a real spirit with her, but she'd seemed genuinely upset about the brother she said she couldn't fine. Business hadn't really been slow lately, but her continued visits were a nice addition to the cash box under the couter in the front of the shop.

The woman had sayed longer and longer each visit and it seemed as though they were close to the emotional breakthrough that some people seemed to need. Tarin hadn't noticed her scooting her chair closer and closer, occasionally reaching out a hand and placing it on his arm. Tarin didn't know how much the woman knew about his relationship with Lee, but he assumed that most people would infer the relationship. That's why it had really caught him off guard when the woman had kissed him...kissed him thoroughly.

Tarin hadn't known how to react, and in all honesty...hadn't reacted he'd just stayed where he was, not moving a whole lot. It was still flattering that a woman would find him that irresistable and he was actually enjoying the attention...until Lee's shreik had broken the silence that had fallen over the room.

Tarin wasn't sure what had really followed, there was a lot of yelling...mostly on Lee's part...at some point the other chick had ran. Tarin couldn't blame her there. In fact, Tarin had wanted to run, hadn't really argued back. Lee was definitely formidable and if he hadn't been slightly worried for his well being, Tarin might have thought she was hot when she was screaming at him. That wasn't the case though, and Tarin was still standing stunned in the shop in the wake of her storming out.

She'd come back...she was just angry...at least Tarin hoped she was just angry and that she would come back. Knowing that she was long gone by this point and that following her would be simply foolish, he sank down in his arm chair and sighed as he ran his hands through his hair.