Check out was scheduled for noon, however Ari was up five hours before then. She spent the remainder of her time in the lounge area reading a newspaper. After having flipped all but a page, already Ari spotted her name printed as a header. Her father was looking for her. As were the police. General information had been given out to the media – her name, age, height, weight, and a picture of her from several months ago in the center of the article. 

She cursed under her breath and pushed herself from the chair. Ari bolted for her room, hoisting a newly acquired backpack onto her shoulder, now equipped with a bit of nonperishable foods, two water bottles, and a printed out copy of directions to where Charles had advised her to go. The only thing she lacked was transportation, and with what little options she had, she was forced to steal an automobile. Something she wasn't even slightly comfortable with doing. 

Not to mention Ari didn't even have a license or a permit. She'd never needed one on base being that everything was walking distance. She'd driven a few times of course, but it'd been years since her father had last taken her. 

[i]It doesn't matter[/i], she hissed at herself, [i]I have no other way of getting there[/i]. 

Just as Ari had begun contemplating which car to take, a man emerged from the motel. He glanced over at her, but only for a brief moment, immediately dismissing her as his attention veered elsewhere. Fiddling with the pockets of her jeans, Ari paused, thinking back to the event that'd gotten her here in the first place. The alteration of her eye color wasn't the only thing that had occurred in that moment, for everything she'd been asking of the man, he'd been doing. Rather promptly, she might add. 

What if she'd done something to him? Manipulated his mind? 

It seemed unlikely, but as she pondered the thought, all such coincidences began to link. She'd controlled their minds somehow. No man in his right mind would have ceased moaning the way she'd made a patient do in such pain. His leg had been twisted that it was in no way natural. It'd been arched upward, and the color of his skin had taken on a crimson shade. She'd stopped him from wailing because she'd willed it so. He wouldn't have stopped otherwise. 

Would he? 

Her eyes darted across the parking lot, locating the man just as he was settling into his car. Ari was not at all convinced that this little trick of hers was to work, but she knew damn well that if she didn't at least try it, there was a good chance that she'd end up stranded here. She needed this to work. 

Flailing her arms, Ari bellowed, “Excuse me, sir?” 

[i]Power. Show power[/i], she advised. 

At first, he hadn't so much as noticed her presence, but as he raised his keys to the ignition, his eyes locked on hers. She dashed toward his car, up to where he sat. He was an older man of fifty, disheveled hair, and raggedy clothes to match. He didn't appear trustworthy, nor friendly towards strangers, but as she'd gone hauling her ass across the street, he hadn't bothered to look elsewhere. It was almost as if he were caught in a trance. 

“Hi,” she said hastily. [i]Goddammit, Adriana, power![/i] Her lip curled. “I was wondering if you could give me a ride?” 

She tilted her head. The man gawked at her, his mouth agape. He didn't blink, much less breathe, and Ari worried that she'd done something to him that she hadn't intended on doing. Several seconds later, a smile crept on the man's face as he nodded eagerly. 

“Not a problem,” he told her cheerfully. “Any particular place?” 

She handed him the map. He trapped it between two fingers and studied it intently, his eyebrows furrowing as his icy blue eyes flicked across the page. “Hm, yes, I know where this is. Well, let's get going. We've got a long ride ahead of us.” 

[center]_[/center]

The two had not spoken since they'd left the motel. 

She found herself peering over her shoulder at the man as he drove, paranoia running through her veins like acid. She'd begun falling asleep a mere half an hour ago, but hadn't allowed herself to drift off completely. She was entrusting this man with her very life, and for all she knew, he could be taking her elsewhere. 

Ari had a feeling that they were headed in the right direction though, but she supposed that could just be her persuading herself that she would make it out of this mess alive. Ari hadn't even acknowledged the fact that this man could be taking her to a deserted area, planning how he was to kill her as he cruised along. The very idea of this caused Ari to sigh deeply. If they were not anywhere near the destination as the map suggested in the next hour, she'd order that he pull to the side of the road. 

On the off chance that he did not oblige, she'd throw herself out of the vehicle and hope for the best. 

A little less than an hour passed by, and the car rolled to a stop. Ari scanned what was ahead of her – hobbling ongoers, lights gleaming, buildings low, high, in between. 

“Where are we?” she asked the man, easing her hand over to the door, preparing herself to escape by any means necessary. Luckily for her, there were witnesses. 

The man indicated the map on the dashboard and pointed to the address Charles had given her. “Here,” he responded. “You told me to take you here and I did.” 

Ari pursed her lips. After scrutinizing the reasoning behind Charles sending her here, where bustling people resided, she decided it was better to vacate the vehicle while she was still breathing than figure out if he was right. Nodding her head curtly, Ari mumbled a thank you, and thrust herself out of the car. The man waved farewell before turning into the other direction, heading to where he'd originally planned on going. 

“Huh.” Referring back to the industry portion of New York, Ari trudged on. She'd forgotten to grab the map on the way out, but somehow, she knew the general area. She was to continue going straight until a familiar building came into view. Ari was welcome to enter whenever she so pleased, and leave accordingly. 

She spotted the shade of a desolate place ahead, but did not proceed any further. There were voices. A man spoke, mentioning a cab of some sort. She did not have the opportunity to hide for she was already very visible. The young man, noticeably taller than the woman before him, smiled at the girl, a smile Ari had suddenly felt fortunate to have seen. 

“I might have the wrong address,” she admitted to the two, intertwining her fingers directly below her waist. “Are either of you familiar with the name Charles Xavier?”