Lucy knew he detested the outside world. The silence of the Mystery Room was a complete contrast to this place. The carnival. The clowns, the booths, the screaming children, the sugary nightmares, and the worst part, the rides. How Alfendi despised roller coasters, or any other stomach-wrenching attractions of the like. But, of course, Lucy had to drag him out here, and have the gall to tell him he was going to get on one of those monstrosities. As if.

Rather than do that, Alfendi would want to argue with Hilda, or listen to his father rant on and on about puzzles and being a gentleman. God, how he hated that man. Anything, he would do, and enjoy more than being outside, around others, especially children.

Immature little-

His assistant yanked him into the line, quite literally pulling him out of his thoughts. "Wake up, Prof! We're almost on!"

It took a moment of staring into those charming rubies for him to process reality and realize what she just said. Here they were, near the end of the line to the intensely popular, loop-crazy, Mach-5 simulating roller coaster. Alfendi already felt his stomach lurch. He hated this. For Lucy's entertainment his arse; no way was Placid getting on! He tugged his arm away from Lucy's powerful grip. "What if… I don't exactly feel like getting on?"

Her smile dropped into a frown. He was going to be difficult and this was Placid. She could probably win this argument. "Ya don't need to be afraid of t'ride! It'll be fun! Trust me, Prof! Ya won't feel a thing!" She dragged him to the front of the line, her fingers intertwined with his so he couldn't get away.

His defeated breath released and he couldn't help looking up. A couple feet above him was a large net, covered with coins and other loose articles the riders dared to take with them. A watch dropped into the mix as the screaming vehicle shot right by, upside down, no less. Thankfully he wasn't wearing his white coat, pockets stuffed with newspapers, change and the like.

No, on this day off, he wore a simple red shirt with a black stripe and shorts, worn shoes he always had on the only thing from his usual outfit. The new clothing was a gift from Lucy, mostly a suggestion to not just wear the same constant clothes.

As for his assistant, she opted for an outfit without her hat; a sky blue shirt and light grey pants, and a clean pair of red orange sneakers as well.

Alfendi tried to free his fingers, but to no avail. She was already leading them to one of the back seats of the vehicle, pushing him in first. Now he really had no way to escape.

As instructed, the duo strapped in, Alfendi a little stubbornly and slowly. A male voice came on an intercom to explain to keep all hands and feet inside the ride and Lucy could feel her partner's slim fingers become clammy and tense as the cart shook forward.

As it creeped up the steep slope, Lucy put her head on her mentor's shoulder. "It's nowt to be scared of, Prof." Before she could reassure him any more, she could hear the front row start to scream. She laughed and grabbed the handle bar as they began zooming across the rail.

The speed and constant turning and looping hurt his head. A lump in his throat was the only thing keeping his lunch in. His stomach tossed and turned and his heart sped rapidly. He clenched his teeth, closed his eyes and in his mind, begged for this torture to end and if he to die, to die when he got off this metal murderer.

"Sir, I'm goin' tah need ya tah get off t'ride."

Obediently, he opened his eyes and got off, weak legs shaking and the world spinning around him. He felt steady hands on his shoulders push him in a strange direction. What was forward? Where was he going? Where was she?

Ugh. That smarts.

A one voice whispered through the ringing in his ears to sit and beneath him he felt a cold bench. Alfendi's stomach growled as vomit touched the edge of his throat. Where was Lucy? He couldn't figure where anything was. His brain was pounding against his skull. He could taste the stomach acid on his tongue.

A finger guided his chin up and something metallic clattered onto his lap. "If ya need to upchuck, do it in t'bucket."

And that's exactly what he did.

Lucy giggled and placed a water bottle next to her mentor. Yes, she knew he disliked fast rides. Just one time though, Lucy decided that maybe he needed to get out of his comfort zone. She sat down next to him and put a hand on his back. "There, there, Prof. It's okay."

She heard his echoed whimper and held back a snicker, to reply, "You're welcome, Prof."