Anywhere But Here (Open)

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Kane glared out his window at the snow that was beginning to fall softly past. He hated winter and he hated the cold. As a matter of fact... what didn't he hate anymore? The though passed briefly through his thoughts before Kane shoved it violently aside, shaking his head and growling as the hint of another migraine threatened to pierce his skull with it's unbearable pain. Pulling his gloves onto his already cold hands, Kane blew out a breath, watching as it misted in the air before him. Normally during the winter, he wasn't home enough to have the shack of a home he lived in heated all the time, so it was only at night that he lighted a fire in the tiny fireplace. Opening the door, Kane stepped out into the icy wind before slamming it shut behind him, pulling the hood of his jacket up over his ears and baling his fists as he began trudging down the road. Around him, snowflakes danced almost playfully, though Kane ignored the flurries completely. His face set in it's normal deep frown, he lost his focus on the world as he began to recall the lovely morning he'd had, the migraine he was so desperately trying to ignore in the hopes that it would go away beginning to throb painfully in his skull.

This morning had been the first in a long while that he hadn't gone into the forest to hunt. Kane winced, remembering the blinding pain of the migraine he'd awoken to that morning. Finally it had lifted, and he had stumbled out of bed only to fall to the floor, his damaged brain causing him to pass out for a good three hours. He'd awoken around noon to blurry, fading vision and vertigo. Yeah, today had really started out promising...

Still, Kane hadn't eaten in two days, if you'd didn't count the small piece of bread he'd managed to sneak from the bakery, and his stomach had been growling since last night. Turning down another road, even more dusted with snow than the last, Kane sighed, his eyes on the forest that loomed ahead. Every time he went in there, he remembered. It was torture for him, each day, to have to reenter the terrible place, so full of memories... but how else was he going to survive. Kane felt his jaw twitch, clearing his throat uncomfortably as his heart accelerated.

Please not now, not here...

The threat of him loosing control so close to the town scared him. He'd only ever lost it around other people once. Kane shivered at the memory, clenching his teeth and screwing his eyes shut in an attempt to forget. And that's when he heard them: kids. Several of them, screaming and shouting, running around and trying to catch snowflakes on their tongues. Kane groaned loudly.

Shit. How am I supposed to get into the forest with them running around right in front of it?!

Going into the forest was illegal, Kane was highly aware of this. Maybe a little too aware... If one of those kids were to see him, then he was as good as dead. Kids could never keep their mouths shut; they were always blabbing to one another, so annoying... Putting a hand to his already tingling temple in frustration, Kane breathed out slowly, trying to relax. He would just have to make sure he wasn't seen. With that resolved, Kane began to slowly creep by the kids.

Well, here goes nothing.[/color]

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The forest was straight ahead-- Kane could see it as he walked, head down, trying as best he could to go unnoticed past the group of kids. Frowning, he watched them out of the corner of his eye as he slowed, trying to seem inconspicuous. A group of girls were clustering together, laughing, whispering, giggling. God I hate when they do that. He grumbled to himself, watching as the boldest of the group scooped up a handful of snow, packed it together into a perfect snowball, and hurled it...

The icy white snow crashed right into a boys face as he was walking by. Kane bit his lip, a crooked smirk finally gracing his lips. Making sure his hood was shielding his face, Kane picked up his speed, walking quickly by the group who were giggling and calling out their "Sorry's". Yeah right.

"Bull,"[/color] Kane mumbled, "They meant to do that and they know it-- he knows it..."[/color] Glancing behind him, Kane almost froze when he saw the boy who'd been assaulted by the snowball staring at him. Ah shit, way to be sneaky, Kane. Great freakin' job! The woods were right before him now, there was no way he could slip under the fence without the boy seeing. Hesitating for a moment, Kane blew out a breath and watched as it misted in the cold. Well, what were chances if you never took one? At least the kids had moved on... Slipping under the hidden hole in the fence, Kane picked himself up quickly and jogged into the woods, out of sight of any prying eyes. [/size]

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Kane had been watching the other boy from behind a tree, his hunting instincts having kicked in as soon as he noticed he was being followed. He watched intently as the kid hesitantly slipped up beside the high fence, pausing for a moment, before scrambling underneath and into the forest. Luckily for both him and Kane, the boy had made it to the other side undetected. Suddenly, the boy took off running, his feet-- unaccustomed to the rough terrain-- crashing heavily as he made his way deeper into the woods. Practically growling in annoyance as he heard a loud snap as a branch cracked under the boy's weight, Kane followed behind stealthy, jogging to keep up with the kid. Kane was well aware of the fact that he could have just walked-- the kid was so loud! and there was the fact that he was snapping twigs from bushed and branches on the ground left and right... He winced as another crack came up ahead as a branch was broken...

Curiously enough, the sounds of crashing were abruptly cut off. Head cocking in confusion, Kane picked up his pace a bit, careful to remain silent. What had happened now...?

The boy was lying flat on his back, staring up at the bare branches of the leafless trees. Skirting the sliver of ice he'd inevitably slipped on, Kane let his presence be known, walking over and coming to stand beside the boy. Staring down at him, Kane frowned, folding his arms.
"What... the hell... were you thinking?"[/color][/size]

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Kane took a step back, giving the kid some room to stand as he picked himself up off the forest floor. He didn't seem like the type of kid that would rat him out or get him in trouble with the Peacekeepers, Kane noted, letting himself relax slightly. His eyes, which had been cold and calculated only a moment before, filled with humor as the boy tried to cover up his laugh by coughing. Nice. He reminded Kane of Stephon, one of his close friends when he was younger.

Kane paused, still a little unsure if he should reveal what he was truly out here for. But the kid seemed harmless, and even though looks could be deciding-- the Games proved as much-- Kane felt a strong urge to trust him. Sighing, he unfolded his arms. "I... live on the poorer side of town. By myself. There's no way I'm spending my entire day holed up in a factory, so I come out here to hunt..."[/color] Kane took a deep breath, trying to calm any remaining doubts in his heart. Something kept telling him to trust the kid, but Kane had never been one for trusting people ever since--

"You still haven't answered my question though, what are you doing out here?"[/color] Kane pushed the bad memories away with question in an attempt to distract himself.[/size]