This journal entry comes after I had jumped from my transporters moving car to escape, rather than return to base and continue doing The Boards wet work. I ran. After a while I began to take notice of my surroundings. It was a suburb, an older one, composed of cookie cutter tract homes. I was passing row after row, of the same house. It was quiet, only the distant puttering of a lawnmower somewhere. Which, I thought made no frickin sense, as the lawns of the little identical homes, were all brown as dirt. I slowed my pace, as I jogged through this bizarre landscape. I had no idea where I was now, or how far I’d come. I didn’t care. I could breathe, my lungs gulping in the hot air. I would run till I came to the end of the world, or till my heart gave out, whichever came first. I listened to the rhythms of my body, the pounding of my heart, the familiar, thump of my book bag against my hip, my feet slapping the pavement. That was weird. I looked down, to see that my feet were bare. I had lost my shoes, and hadn’t even realized it. I started cutting through the yards, between the houses. I hadn’t seen one single man woman or child yet. I was beginning to think it was deserted, when as I loped through a fenced in back yard, I saw an elderly lady, watering her dry roasted grass. Her hair was a kind of sky blue, piled on top of her head, like an ice cream cone. She was wearing, sort of like baggy, neon rainbow pajamas. She looked as if she had come from a senior citizens rave, or a circus. We met each others gaze, as I moved toward the chain link fence at the back of her yard. “Get off my grass you little heathen!” she yipped at me, in her scratchy voice. I chuckled at her, and she squirted me in the back with her hose, as I passed. I reached her fence, and vaulted over it, leaving her screaming obscenities behind me. I had run out of backyards. Just beyond the fence was a small cluster of woods that sprung up from a shallow ravine. This small patch of nature, had somehow avoided being gobbled up, by the surrounding rubber stamp neighborhoods. Its overgrown bank sloped downward in front of me, at a ninety degree angle. It was green, and dark down there. I started down, the rocks, roots, and brambles, gouging, and snagging, my bare calves, and feet. I almost didn’t feel it, concentrating on keeping my balance, staying in motion. As I reached the bottom, I paused. I looked back up, the way I came, and then turned, to examine the way I would go. It was equally as steep, equally overgrown. I looked around me. The hot sun barely filtered down to this place. The air was cooler, and I could smell the moisture of the plants, and the earth beneath me. I heard birds singing, above me in the trees, and the rustle of the brush, as small animals scurried. It was peaceful, an oasis. It was like I was the only person who had ever set foot here, seen its sights, heard its sounds. There were no orders to follow, or lives to save or take. There was no clock ticking, no destination, nowhere to return to. It was just me, here now, with no thoughts of anything or anyone, but me. It was the most wonderful, totally selfish, moment of my life. I had never felt anything like it. My body told me it was time to move on. I hesitated, not wanting to leave here, to let this pass. Finally, I turned, and began sprinting up the other side. As I neared the top, excitement built in me. It was my first, and probably my last adventure, at least in this world, and I was going to make the most of it. It wouldn’t be long, before the Sergeant, and company would find me, and then, snap, goodnight Gracie. I guess it was like finding out you had terminal something, and only had X long. You want to squeeze as much life in, as possible. At the top of the ravine, was another stand of trees, and brush. They were denser, and stretched out before me, as far as I could see. I wondered what lay on the other side. I started trotting again, trying to be a little more careful, about what I stepped on. My legs from the knees down were pretty fragged, and even though they were already healing, a serious wound, could end, my foray into the great, unknown, real quick. Like the coolant “idiot” light, on a cars instrument panel, my body announced, “you need water.” No, really? As if I didn’t know I had no more saliva, and was barely, sweating anymore. Thanks for pointing out the frickin obvious. In point of fact, I had already begun to smell water, a few minutes before, and it was getting stronger, as I headed this direction. There was something up ahead. It looked like the trees just ended in a red wall. My jacked brain postulated that maybe; I actually had run to the end of the world. No you ditz, its some kind of barricade. As I got closer, I realized it was a privacy fence, eight feet high, and made of redwood. I stood looking at it. The trees grew right up to it, some of their boughs, extended over its top. I couldn’t see either end of it, because of thick foliage. On any other day, before today, I would have turned left, or right, followed its perimeter to its end, and gone around it, but not today. Today I wanted to go forward, and it was in my way. Besides, the water I needed was on the other side. Its top was a flat rail, I estimated to be, about four inches wide. Plenty for me to stand on. I strapped on my book bag, bent my knees, and jumped. I grabbed hold of the top rail, and drew my body, knees to chin, under me. My feet came to rest on the rail, my toes curling over its edge, for stability. I crouched there, on my perch, and surveyed what lay below. It was another backyard, only this one was ten times the size of the others, I’d seen. The grass, here was a deep, rich green. It was cut short, looking like the felt top of a pool table. Directly below me, running along the fence line, and extending three feet inward, was a mulched flower bed. It was full of brightly colored blooms, reds, oranges violets, and blues, and neatly edged with flat rocks. The trees that hid my presence here also blocked my view of the house, and most of the yard. Then my eyes focused on the source of the water, I’d smelled. It was a large concrete bird bath, shaped like an upside down clam shell. It was held aloft, by a thick cherub, with a vacant stone smile. Out of the center of the bath, a small geyser of water rose about six inches. I could hear the electric recirculation pump, now. Oh, well, water is water, clean or not. My thirst swollen tongue wouldn’t care. Out of the corner of my right eye, I caught a flicker of movement on the rail, near me, my head snapping around, prepared to defend myself. I blinked. There, five feet away, observing me, with its emerald eyes, was the biggest frickin cat I had ever seen. At first, I thought he was a hallucination, brought on by, my impending heat exhaustion. He looked like some kind of jungle cat, with short brown fur, and black stripped markings. His body, not including his, tail, was at least three feet long. His ears were pointy, ending in little tufts of darker fur. He wasn’t aggressive, just curious about, the intruder to his observation post. It was some new kind of domesticated breed, a designer species, like me. We studied each other for a moment or two, then I slowly, held my hand out to him, palm down. He cautiously crept closer, his nostrils flaring, as he analyzed my scent. Finally, he decided I wasn’t a threat, and rubbed his large head, upward against my palm. I stroked his warm, soft fur, and a purr started in his chest, sounding like a small, outboard motor. The sensation sent a pleasant tingle through me. I turned my attention back to the bird bath. I let go of the rail, and dropped silently into the flowerbed, careful not to land on the flowers, squatting low to the ground. The yard was huge. I was on a lower level of it. About one hundred feet from me, was a three foot high retaining wall, made from the same rocks that surrounded the flower beds. Along its edge was a line of manicured hedges, which obstructed my view of the upper yard, and the ground floor of the house. The house was gigantic as well, newer, with three stories, and roof dormers. Whoever lived here had money. I scanned for security cameras, but saw none, which was good, because it meant no one saw me. I stepped out onto the grass, its cool life, felt good, against the soles of my feet. I moved quickly, to the bird bath. I stood up just enough to reach the trickling fountain. I lowered my face over it, opening my mouth to let it flow in. I almost gagged. It was hot, and tasted like old bird crap. It was crawling with bacteria, but my immune system would take care of that. It was wet, and at the moment, that’s all my body cared about. I drank, the level of the tiny pond, dropping as I did. When I had stomached, all of the nasty stuff I could, I Lifted my head and looked around me again. It was a beautiful place, like a fortress, with its high fence. I wondered what kind of people lived here. There was a piercing high pitched scream. It was a kid’s voice, and had come from the upper level of the yard. My instinct was to hit the fence, climb over, and go. But I didn’t. Someone was hurting a child, running wasn’t an option. I shot to the retaining wall, and climbed up behind its hedges. I crept quickly to the last bush, and peeked around it. There were two kids, a girl, ten, or eleven, and a boy, a couple of years younger. They were wearing swim suits, and standing on a large flagstone patio. The boy held a green garden hose, with no nozzle, in his hands. As I watched, he pressed his thumb over the arc of water coming from the hose, creating a jet, which he sprayed the girl in the back with. She shrieked again, and then giggled, spinning around to him saying “My turn”. The boy handed her the hose, and she returned fire, the boy to, turning his back, gasping and arching away, as the blast hit him. I tried to reconcile, what I had thought, with what I was seeing. There was no danger here. They weren’t being tortured, or abused. They were… playing. I had seen plenty of kids before, but not usually like this. Most of the time it was like animals you see at the Zoo, in captivity. I watched from my hiding spot, mesmerized. It was like a nature documentary to me, the narration in my head. “Here we see two young human cubs, male and female in their natural habitat, frolicking, in the morning heat.” I felt a sudden twinge. I had never “frolicked,” and never would. I sat watching them. Their skin was tan, and their brown hair, had streaks of blonde from the sun. There was a loud sound, right next to me. I jumped, partially exposing myself from my cover. It was my buddy from the fence. I had been so involved with watching the kids; I hadn’t noticed that he had followed me, and now sat by me meowing loudly, demanding my attention. He caught sight of something fluttering in the lower yard, and bounded off to peruse it, leaving me to face the music alone. The girls head whipped around, at the noise, her caramel colored eyes, falling first on the cat, and then growing larger as they saw me. I was caught. I slowly stood up, glancing at my hand to be sure my skin still looked human. It was a nice healthy pink. The girl starred at me. The boy seeing her expression looked at me to. I just stood there. I could always make for the fence, but... “Hey kid! What are you doing in our yard?” the boy demanded, his blue eyes narrowing. The girl stepped in front of the boy, as if shielding him, in case I was a hostile. The boy continued to run his mouth, safe behind her. “You heard me! Get out of our yard!” “Hush Tyler.” the girl said softly to him. She gave me an uncertain smile, and a butterfly of a wave, saying “Hi.” “Hi.” I returned, imitating her wave. She took a couple of small steps towards me, and I did likewise. “Are you from the neighborhood?” she asked. I pointed my thumb over my shoulder at the Xeroxed, suburbs I had come from. “Yeah, back there.” I said. The boy stepped forward now, trying to be a bad ass. “Yeah, well go back where you came from. You can’t come in our yard without permission.” “God Tyler, how rude! Just shut up!” she said, wrinkling her freckled nose. “She’s not allowed to be here Sandy!” he growled at her. We were about three feet apart now. She was a couple of inches shorter than me. “My names Sandy and this is my brother Tyler.” “Zoe.” I lied. Tyler kept glaring at me, as if sensing something was off. He had good instincts. “We were just cooling off with the hose. Are you off school today too?” asked Sandy. “School? Yeah, school. I’m… off today.” I stumbled. “What happened to your legs?” Tyler asked, as if he’d caught me in a lie. Sandy looked down at my shredded calves and feet, her eyes getting big again and gasped. “Oh my gosh, are you okay! You’re bleeding!” “Yeah, I’m fine; they’re just scratches, from the woods.” I shrugged. “Why didn’t you wear shoes? Pretty stupid thing to do.” Tyler said smugly. He had seriously gotten on my nerves now. I wanted to pop him in his smart mouth “Because I didn’t want to, okay?” I said nastily. Sandy pushed his shoulder. “Tyler! Stop it! She’s our guest!” He yelled back at her. “No she’s not! She’s weird, and I’m telling!” I tensed to run, as he turned to go to the house. Sandy grabbed his arm, and got in his face. “You do, and I’ll tell Mom what I caught you doing in the bathroom.” His mouth dropped open, his face went red, and he slumped, dropping his eyes to the ground. It seemed, blackmail wasn’t just for grown ups. Sandy looked at me, jutting her head forward, nodding furiously. “Forgive him; he’s acting like a dork.” I did the same, again, imitating her. She accepted my response. “Well, you’re a fatty!” he lashed out at her. She recoiled, as if he’d hit her. I saw the pain in her eyes, and she wrapped her arms around her stomach, as if hiding it. But she wasn’t heavy. She had long, strong limbs, and a thin torso. There was just a small pocket of baby fat on her abdomen, which her body had stored, to grow with. Something else I would never do. He had done it simply to be cruel. I had had a lifetime of cruel, and I wasn’t going to put up with it today. He wore a nasty little smirk on his lips. I stepped into him. He stumbled backward, scared. “That was just mean. So far you’ve called me stupid and her fat. So, what should I do? What would you do if somebody called you names?” His eyes were huge, as he stammered. “H… hit them, I guess.” “So, should I hit you?” “No.” “Before, when you two saw me, she stood in front of you to protect you. I don’t have a big sister, or a big brother, to look out for me. You’re lucky to have her. You should treat her better.” He suddenly looked ashamed. That was good. Sandy looked at him with her big wounded eyes, and he met them. “I’m sorry Sissy. You’re not fat. I didn’t mean it.” She gave a forgiving smile, and patted his arm. “That’s okay Ty. I know.” I gave Tyler an Atta boy thumbs up. I was proud of the little guy. “A real man apologizes when he’s wrong. You’re cool in my book Tyler.” He beamed at me. His smile was blinding. It lit up his whole face. “So, Zoe, do you want to stay for lunch? I can ask our babysitter?” Sandy said. She seemed happy just to have another girl here. They had a good, safe life behind their high walls, but lonely. I knew lonely. It would be so much fun to stay, and spray each other with the hose. To run around, and laugh like we were goofy, and just talk, about nothing at all.; just to... play. I knew it was time to leave. My being here could get them and their family hurt, or disappeared completely. “No thanks. I’ve got to go, but I could sure use a drink from your hose.” “Sure!” said Tyler picking it up and handing it to me. I held the cold clear stream to my mouth. It was like heaven. I drank, until I felt it slosh in my belly. I bent forward and let the water run over my head, cooling my body, as it dripped down. “Thanks.” I handed the hose back to him. “I wish you could stay.” said Sandy. “Me to, but I can’t. Hey you want to see what I learned in gymnastics?” They nodded eagerly. I turned my back to them, facing the side wall of the privacy fence. I was going to show off a little for my new acquaintances. I made sure my book bag was secure, and started to run, full tilt. I tucked, and my hands hit the grass. I did handsprings to within four feet of the fence, landed on my feet, and leapt, pulling myself up to straddle the top rail. I looked back at them. They were suitably, impressed. “Wow!” said Tyler. “You’ve got, like, mad skills!” Sandy said, applauding. I smiled. To them, I was the cool, new kid, not a runaway freak. “Maybe you can come back tomorrow?” Sandy said a note of desperation in her voice. “Maybe.” I lied again. “See ya!” I waved at them. “Bye Zoe!” they waved back. It made something inside hurt I turned, and dropped back into the woods, moving on. “Miles to go before I sleep.” I thought. “Miles to go….”