Ivy and Thorn - Part 2

Thorn Finger hitch hiked his way out of London and soon found him self walking along side a quiet road from there on.
An occasional car passed and the sun would peek out from behind the grey clouds now and then, though it did not not rain.
Absentmindedly, Thorn Finger took a match from his pocket, lit it and popped it into his mouth.
A van rolled up beside him. The window rolled down.
"Need a lift, Fire Eater?" Asked a gruff, mocking voice.
Thorn Finger calmly spat out the match--unharmed--before turning to the driver. He had no doubt that this giant of a man could rip him limb from limb.
His hands were as large as melons, his shoulders broad and muscular.
"Hallo, Bubba." Thorn Finger said, though his heart beat faster and his legs screamed at him to run. It was not that he was especially afraid of the man, he just wasn't overly fond of what followed.
"The boss wants you to pay up." Bubba rubbed the back of his prickly shaved head and sneered.
Thorn Finger sighed. "I have told you many times before. I do not have it yet."
Bubba took out a knife and began to clean under his finger nails with it. "Well you had better get it soon or I may be tempted to carve a couple more designs in that pretty face of yours."
"Give me more time, Bubba." Thorn Finger pleaded. "I just need more time."
Lifting his knife, Bubba seemed to cut imaginary lines through the air, pondering.
"Fine." He said finally. "But the boss will not be happy. I do not know how much longer I can cut you so much slack, though. You are running out of time, Fire Eater."
With that, Bubba rolled up the window and the van roared away.
"You will not be sorry!" Thorn Finger called after it.
He is going to be so sorry, he thought to him self.

The sun was beginning to set when Thorn Finger ducked in to the wood that ran along side the road.
After starting a fire, he sat down to a dinner of canned soup.
Waif ran off into the night to find a meal of her own.
"Everything I eat is canned." Thorn Finger complained to him self. "Canned soup, canned beans, canned fish, canned fruit."
A twig snapped. He was not alone. Waif could not have made so much noise, and there was no way some on as large as Bubba could have snuck up on him like that.
"Who is there?" He called in to the darkness of the trees.
A shadow came in to view. A small shadow.
Thorn Finger sighed. He had almost managed to forget about her.
Almost.

Ivy stepped into the fire light.
The man with the scars looked at her with something like respective annoyance. "How did you managed to follow me?" He asked.
Ivy shrugged and dug at the ground with her leather boot. "It was not hard really, to get away from the ticket lady. Then I just took a taxi north." She held up a leather wallet. "Thorn Finger." She mused. "What kind of name is that?"
Thorn Finger patted his pockets in surprise.
Tossing him his wallet, Ivy sat down across the fire from the strange man.
Thorn Finger counted the money then slid it safely--or not--in to his pocket. "You owe me." He said, shooting her a meaningful glare.
Ivy simply shrugged. Her stomach complained loudly. She tried oh-so-hard not to stare a Thorn Finger's can of soup, but in the end she could not help her self and he handed her the can.
Then he sat ignoring her, hypnotized by the flames as she ate.
Once she had finished, she began to repeat something Thorn Finger had said only minutes earlier, only changed it a little and added a tune.
"Canned beans, canned soup;
Canned fish, canned fruit.
That's all he ever gets to eat;
Canned beans, canned fruit."
Thorn Finger smiled for the first time. She could not tell if it was amused, forced, or just awkward.
"You really must come with me?" He asked.
Ivy nodded. "Yes."
Thorn Finger sighed. "If you get hurt, do not blame me."
"I will not." Ivy said, though she wondered what kind of trouble the strange man could be in.

Ivy awoke the next morning to a leathery tongue on her face. "Hallo, Waif."
Placing the furry, white animal beside her, Ivy sat up, stretched her sore muscles and looked around.
Thorn Finger was not there.
But he could not have left her, she decided, because he had left his things and Waif.
Sure enough, Thorn Finger soon returned.
"You are awake."
"Yes."
"There's some breakfast for you by my pack."
It was canned fruit.
At this Ivy began to sing.
"Canned beans, canned soup;
canned fish, canned fruit;
That's all we ever get to eat;
Canned fish, canned fruit."
Thorn Finger did not say any thing, only threw some dirt over the remains of the fire.
"Are we leaving now?" Ivy asked, watching him.
"Yes."
"May I carry Waif?"
"If she does not mind."
"Do you think she will?"
"I do not know. Now shut up and eat your pears."
"I do not think she will." Ivy mumbled, finishing off the can. Handing Thorn Finger the tin, she picked up Waif and placed the ferret in her leather ruck sack. The little critter did not protest.
Thorn Finger watched her with shielded jealousy and respect.
Waif must not do this for him, Ivy thought.
Thorn Finger turned away and headed in to the trees.
"Wait!" Ivy hurried after him. "Where are you going? The road is that way." She pointed.
"Yes, but we are not using the road."
"Why ever not?"
"It is too dangerous."
"Oh?"
"Yes."
"Oh."
She did not say any thing after that for quite some time.
"Does that frighten you?" Thorn Finger asked, some what hopefully.
Ivy shook her head. "Not 'specially." She paused. "What kind of trouble are you in mister?"
Thorn Finger did not answer, only said after some time: "Do not call me that."

"Thorn Finger." Ivy said suddenly. "I need to use the toilet."
"What?" Thorn Finger asked, having not really been paying attention.
"I need to go PEE." Ivy said.
"Go then." He said. "In a bush some where." He could tell that she was reluctant, but she put on a brave face and went.
Thorn Finger waited.
"What do I use to um, wipe?" The little girl called.
"Use a leaf or some thing." Thorn Finger called back, some what red in the face.
So this is what if feels like to be a parent or guardian, he thought to him self.
Ivy finished up and the unlikely pair was off again.

It was not yet lunch time when they arrived at a little town. There seemed to be a market set up along the main strip and Ivy insisted on stopping at every thing he saw.
She smelled the flowers, she tasted the food samples and she played with the noise makers.
"Please stop." Thorn Finger begged finally. "It is so hard to do any thing when you are whizzing about."
"Can not we buy some food though?" Ivy pleaded.
"No."
"Why not?" She whined.
"It is much too expensive and it does not last long."
"But it looks so GOOD." The little girl pleaded and pouted, but Thorn Finger would not give in.
"All right." Ivy said finally, wiping away tears. They had only just moved on when Ivy went on. "But I would like know. Why DO you only eat canned beans, canned soup, canned--"
"I get it."
"--if you hate it so much?"
"I did not say I hated it."
"All right then, dislike it."
"Because it last long, and it is cheep. Why do you ask?" Thorn Finger asked impatiently.
"Because there is a pancake house over there advertising free kids meals." Ivy counted on her fingers. "That is nothing for me, and plus I owe you for the taxi and train."
Thorn Finger did not have to smell the syrup and bacon twice. "Come on now, we haven't got all day."
"Only lunch." Ivy agreed, skipping after him.
Only later did her realize she had gotten him to do exactly as she had wanted.

Total word count: 2,276

Goal: 40,000