As the two figures cut through the black of night, they reach the
dark, urban area of Pine Valley no one ever discusses. Bianca easily
takes to the darkened rooftops crossing alleys from above instead of
through. UP here, almost flying, as she skirts perilous heights, she
comes close to forgetting her pain, but the vision of `The Hole’
slams her harshly back into reality. It hits her mind so fast she
almost falls from the edge she stops on. It isn’t that the three
story fall would kill her, but old habits die hard.

"He’s in there." The crow offers.

"You promise?" Bianca chuckles darkly.

"Yes." No sense of humor in its answer.

"Hmm…" Bianca looks over the ledge past her feet down to the alley
below.

She ***** her head to where the crow has landed next to her. It
becomes a game of mimicry as each creature copies the turns and poses
of the other’s head. Finally, the crow takes graceful flight from
the ledge.

"Wasting…"

"Time. Yes, I know." She finishes as she watches the dark bird
glide to the ground, "What the *****?"

Bianca shrugs throwing her arms wide, tilts her head back, closes her
eyes, and dives off the ledge mocking the bird’s earlier flight. As
the crow watches her fall, Bianca’s mind sees her `flight’. She
watches as she falls gracefully as an angel from heaven. Yes, a
fallen angel. Something that simply takes seconds to do feels like
forever as she opens her eyes in time to twist her body and land in a
heap on the ground.

"It should have hurt. It would have felt more real." Bianca pouts as
she stands.

"Real enough. You have pain enough." The crow states coldly.

Bianca shrugs, but walks out of the alley as the blood in her hair
retreats sealing the wound in the back of her head. Around the
corner, she sees the industrial metal and lights sign for `The
Hole’. It appears form the outside alone to be a fitting name for
the establishment. She stands looking in the window.

"This could be fun." She grins sadistically while watching the
patrons.

"As you like." The bird echoes in her head.

Bianca pushes open the door walking purposefully through it and
looking at every male in it. All eyes are on her from the moment she
crosses the threshold. As soon as her eyes scan the actual bar, she
spots him. She walks up to the bar, looks the culprit up and down,
and then smacks him across the face.