[Date: Friday, Ramuh 27th, 1360.] [It's well into night, now, as the feast for the new caravan degenerated into a free for all food fight. Nikki pulled out her secret weapon (Charlie) and bombarded the entire crowd with fruit. Unfortunately, some people didn't take this so well. Some people like... Leran.] [And so she is fleeing! Fleeing for her life! The town's streets are silent and dark, the only noise coming from the fading screams and cheers of the crowd back a ways.] [Mini Start!] * Nikki runs like mad and tries to decide if not having people around is a good or a bad thing. Probably bad. Nobody to hide behind. * Leran is running pell mell (woo!) after Nikki, and man he moves fast for a huge kid. I'm so gonna get you! * Nikki gasps for breath and wheels around a corner, breaking across a field. "You are not!" Run, Nikki! Run! * Leran jumps over a few crates, gaining perhaps a whole second on Nikki. He doesn't seem too bothered by the field. * Nikki glances back, decides that was a mistake, and tries to run faster! She doesn't really succeed. * Leran gains on her a little more. "Stupid flaming pears! You and your grapes got me bombarded with soup!" It wasn't the grapes! It was the pie! The grapes came first! You wanted the grapes! * Nikki reaches a fence and takes half a moment to climb over it, then is on the other side and running. * Leran hits the fence running, tossing himself up and over it in quite a bit less than half a moment. He's so athletic! "Not in my eye!" * Nikki seems to be slowing down. She's not quite so athletic, though she's put up a merry chase. "That was *your* fault!" * Leran crouches slightly and POUNCES, aiming to tackle Nikki at the knees. "GOT you!" * Nikki is tackled, and she falls to the ground with an oof. She probably gets mud on her face. "Ow!" That's for dropping flaming pears on me! * Nikki grabs a handful of mud and twists in Leran's grip, shoving it in his hair. "That's for the FISH!" * Leran lets go and flops over onto his back, panting. "Which time?" * Nikki tries to catch her breath. She doesn't press the advantage. "The time... under the table." I'm sure I ... had a reason then. Can't remember it now, though. * Nikki sticks her tongue out at Leran, then makes a face. "Eew, mud." She wipes at it with her sleeve, which makes for less mud and more syrup. Aww, my duster's ruined. Your mom can probably clean it. My mom's gonna be pissed. Was she at the celebration? Maybe at the beginning. She probably went home to calm down dad. * Nikki blinks. "Oh." Pause. "Yeah, that'd make sense. Um... hey! We can clean up your stuff at my place." Oh, cool. Yeah! And... oh, I can be all pissed 'cause this big food fight happened, and you weren't around to be on my side. He's not gonna buy it. Oh. I guess I shouldn't bother, then. He's gonna be pissed no matter what. Part of why I can't wait to get out of here. * Leran stares up at the night sky. How dramatic. Like *anyone* can wait to get out of here. I know. This whole place feels like ... Cid. * Nikki nods, flopping back to look at the stars above. The sky is filled with them. "Same old thing, over and over again." Yeah. * Nikki looks up at the stars a while longer before she says, "Well, it'll all be different tomorrow." We'll be out of here and on our own for six months. Yeah. I almost can't believe we're going. * Nikki laughs. I wonder what it's like. You hear stories, but I've really got no idea. Yeah. Could be anything. Kind of exciting, huh? * Nikki grins. "Yeah, it's exciting." Scary, too. But I think it's more exciting than scary. Yeah. You know we're getting mud all over us by lying here, right? Yeah. Just checking. Your parents okay? With what? Me going? Yeah. * Nikki thinks. They told me they're proud of me. I think they're worried. But I guess they should be. Dad keeps saying "damn fool quest like his grandfather". Mom says he's just too worried but I dunno. * Nikki rubs at her nose. "Do you think he's right?" I think he's mad at Granddad for some reason. Maybe he thinks your grandpa made you do it. Well, he kinda did. But now I want to go. Maybe I would have wanted to anyway. Yeah. Guess there's no point in wondering about it much if you can't change it. Nope. * Leran twitches a little. "We ought to go get clean. We need sleep for tomorrow." What, do you don't fall off the wagon? My horse. * Nikki climbs to her feet, though. Now there's mud in her hair, along with pastry and meat and syrup and bits of cheese. Oh, that's right! Lucky. * Nikki holds her hand out for Leran. * Leran grabs Nikki's hand and pulls himself to his feet, probably nearly unsettling Nikki as he does so. He looks, quite seriously, like a golem made of foodstuffs and mud. "Well, you've got the chocobo. Whatever its name is." * Nikki slips a little, but she regains her balance. She looks about as bad, also complete with watermelon. "Ioanna. You've got to at least know *that*." Well, I got hit in the head a few times tonight. Blame Layla, not me. * Nikki looks around, getting her bearings, then starts heading to her place. * Leran starts walking back with her, since his isn't so far away. "You've totally got to work on that arm, if we're gonna get this grape thing down, you know." I thought you didn't wanna get hit in the eye. Well, I have two. Okay. I'll work on my arm if we can get Cid to give us the dunktank. Good luck with that. [And so, Nikki and Leran head off to the Diodorus household to get cleaned off and lectured to. But this doesn't matter, because they can't say anything to them in a day, anyway!] [End.]