Don't Get Caught Up (Wizard & Heart)

[ᴄʀʏsᴛᴀʟғʀᴏsᴛ]

The sun had just peeked over the horizon, casting faint light over Fairfield. The morning was almost silent. No one dared set foot outside at night these days, not unless they absolutely had to, and few had to in this part of town. At first, the new war between the Golden Fist and the other two gangs had distracted the Easts and the Wests, making most of the citizens feel safer. Then the real battle started, and the streets were no longer safe for anyone.

Marko jogged along on his morning run, in his usual jeans and hoodie. Not typical jogging attire, but then again Marko wasn't a typical man. His forehead, and his whole body really, was covered in sweat. His breath came in steady increments in time with his pounding feet. One, two, in. One, two, out. He'd already gone at least three miles, and has five more before he got home. He'd done this run so many times that he hardly noticed the distance. One, two, in. One, two, out. Step after step, ignoring his aching muscles. He thought about the war and what it meant for the gangs, what it meant for the city. For the first time ever, the Easts and Wests had a common enemy. They weren't working together by any means, but they weren't fighting anymore. One, two, in. One, two, out.

He slowed down a bit to stare at a passing person. He hadn't seen anyone else out while on his jog, hadn't for days. So what was this person doing out here, and alone no less?

[Needmorefood]

(Should I reply first, or Heartz? I don't want to mess up an order, if we're going in one)

[нαℓƒ~мσση]

[ You should, since he doesn't know your charrie yet :3 ]

[Needmorefood]

(Alright then. Well, here goes!)

Nonie had gotten up earthly to go claim a good stop on the street to start her day out begging. The other homeless were still fast asleep, so now was the time to move. The early bird gets the work, right? She decided to take a shortcut through the park, since it would be faster from where she was coming. She clutched her now-empty money can in one gloved hand as she gazed around the park. It was really pretty early in the morning. Definitely worth waking up for. She smiled slightly before she heard a noise from in front of her. She turned her head to take in this new comer, and immediately froze. All the color drained from her face as her eyes widened, unconsciously lifting up he empty can to hold it to her chest protectively. A gang member! It was so easy to tell. She had to leave! With a smooth and swift turn of the heel, she went back the way she came at a mad sprint, tearing over the grass. Why was a gang member out here so early?!

[нαℓƒ~мσση]

There was another who watched. Keisarra had been on the way to Marko's apartment early because she hadn't spent the night and wanted to see him. But when she found him, he'd been watching this other girl, this little beggar. One of her finely plucked eyebrows arched and Keisarra pursed her pretty pink lips.

She twirled a small pocket-knife in her hand as she followed the girl, her grey Converse quiet against the grass. She was dressed in skin-tight skinny jeans and a long sleeve black shirt that left her midriff bare. She didn't look like a gang member, but that was the point. It was too risky to flaunt her status out in the open.

[ᴄʀʏsᴛᴀʟғʀᴏsᴛ]

Marko came to a full stop when he saw Sarra following the girl. He started up again, running after the homeless girl. He wanted to know who she was and what she was out so early. She had to have some guts to be roaming around on her own this early. "Stop!" he shouted. Just because he could, he added, "By the power invested in me by the great gang of West, I command you to halt!"

[Needmorefood]

That statement only confirmed he girl's worst fears. It was a gang member! And now it sounded like two were after her! Time for evasive maneuvers. With a short burst of speed, Nonie returned to the city and sprinted her way into the alleys, traveling the many twists and turns expertly before she reached an area occupied by her fellow homeless. Dodging around them flawlessly and clearing over a number of shopping carts, boxes, and sometimes people lying/sitting on the ground, Nonie tried to shake her pursuers off her tail. She branched off into another alley where a metal fence blocked off the exit. Without missing a beat, she tossed her empty can over the obstruction and climbed up and over the fence in five seconds flat, stooping to pick up the can as she resumed her run, adrenaline coursing through her like a storm

[нαℓƒ~мσση]

[ Sorry, I had to shower lol ]

Keisarra rolled her eyes and took off into a sprint, "Seriously, Marko? Did you really think screaming that was going to accomplish anything?"

[ᴄʀʏsᴛᴀʟғʀᴏsᴛ]

Despite the fact that he was running practically full-out, Marko managed a pout. "I couldn't resist. It was too good to pass up." He managed to keep up with the girl, dodging around the obstacles nearly as well. He scaled the fence like a monkey on Mountain Dew and landed in a crouch. He used his momentum to get started again, springing into motion and sprinting down the alley.

[Needmorefood]

Nonie could still hear them behind her, and she was starting to get tired. Alright, time for a last resort. Once again, she put on a burst of speed as she turned down an alleyway. A few more turns, and she saw a fire escape right over a dumpster. Tucking her can into the pocket of her dirty jacket, she leapt up onto the dumpster without breaking her stride, and jumped onto the fire escape, clammed ing up the stairs as quickly as possible to reach the roof. When she did reach it, she put on her last burst of speed, dashing across the rooftop towards one of the abandoned building, leaping out over the void. She knew exactly were to jump, and curled up as she zoomed through the broken window and hit the floor in a roll, relatively unhurt, but panting from the exertion. She made her way out of the room and down the stairs with what energy she had left, fear keeping her moving.

[нαℓƒ~мσση]

"What is she, a f**king squirrel?" Keisarra grunted, swinging herself up on the fire escape with little problem. She moved quite well in her tight clothes, a talent she'd picked up over the years. No clothing was going to get in her way when it came to fighting and moving around.

[ᴄʀʏsᴛᴀʟғʀᴏsᴛ]

Marko grinned and followed her. His eyes were bright with excitement, and the fact that he was breathing hard made it all that much more fun. The adrenaline coursed through him, giving him the extra push he needed to keep up. He scaled the fire escape and ran across the rooftop, only to see her do her funky dive through the broken window. "What the...?" He stopped at the edge of the roof shaking his head in disbelief. "Not a squirrel," he said. "A flying squirrel."

[Needmorefood]

Nonie stumbled her way down the stairs and turned into one of the rooms on the ground floor. She didn't want to exit out of the main entrance, for fear that her two pursuers would spot her easily. Instead she headed to a window, jerking the old thing open and squeezing through the hole in the wood boarding the opening up. She shut the window behind her, to make it seem untouched, before she hurried down the new alleyway, heading for the underside of the bridge. She could hide there, amongst her homeless brethren. At least until she though the two would give up and head home, which would hopefully be soon.

[нαℓƒ~мσση]

"You follow her, I'll cut her off," Keisarra turned and climbed back down the fire escape.

[ᴄʀʏsᴛᴀʟғʀᴏsᴛ]

"Are you sh**ing me?" Marko called. "I'm not doing that!" No way he was launching himself from the roof of one building through the window of another. No way in hell.

As Nonie turned a corner, she ran into someone. He grabbed her arms to steady her and smiled, a smile that could be interpreted a million different ways. It all depended on what you were looking for. "Are you okay?" he asked. This guy definitely looked like a gang member; muscular and tall, with short hair and golden skin, along with an ever-present dangerous look in his brown eyes. There was no gang tattoo visible, but Nonie probably didn't need to see one. He was clearly Filipino, and in fact he looked quite a bit like the guy who was chasing after Nonie.

[Needmorefood]

Nonie stumbled into his arms and looked up in shock, which quickly turned into fear as she tore herself away from him, her silver eyes wide. There was MORE of them?! She quickly fled around him and sprinted down the street, heading for the bridge underpass. She finally reached it after dodging through some traffic, and quickly hide herself amongst the numerous homeless, hiding in one of the vacant boxes with her knees pulled up to her chest and her can held tightly. She was breathing heavily, sweat lining the inside of her jeans and jacket, but she dared not take them off now. Instead she pulled her hood lower and tried to hide

[нαℓƒ~мσση]

"Damn girl's just a like a street rat," Sarra snarled as she skirted around the other guy and followed Nonie, "Maybe we ought to cut her feet off when we catch her just to make sure she doesn't run away again."

[ᴄʀʏsᴛᴀʟғʀᴏsᴛ]

Marko dropped from the fire escape beside. "I'll second that," he said. He gave a wicked grin. "No one should be better than me at anything." He was about to take off again when he recognized the guy standing at the mouth of the alley. "Shit," he said. "Sarra, look out!"

But the guy had already grabbed her and pushed her up against the building. "What do we have here?" he said gleefully. He looked over Marko and chuckled. "You two should know better than to wander into East territory."

[Needmorefood]

Meanwhile, Nonie was recovering her breath amidst her homeless brethren. Luckily, Nonie was well known and well liked by the poor, unfortunate community, so no one really bothered her. One man walked up to her, crouching down to her eye level. "Ya alright there, Nonie?" He questioned. Her breath had lessened from a ragged intake to panting, and she nodded.

"Gang members. That's all." She replied. Were they still chasing her? She was too frightened to check. She looked up at the man, biting her bottom lip in hesitation before speaking. "Could you... Could you go check and see if they're still following me? There was one boy and a girl, and I saw another boy too. The one boy was in the alley over that way." She said, pointing. The man looked off to where she pointing, frowning slightly, before looking back to the red-head. After a few seconds of silence, he sighed and stood.

"Only because it's you, Nonie." He muttered, turning and heading off in that direction. Nonie smiled and yelled a "thank you!" after the man before she laid down, her back facing the opening of the box, and curled into a ball. Waiting.

[нαℓƒ~мσση]

Sarra grunted in pain and glared at the guy, "Get off of me," she spat.