AUTHOR'S NOTE:

Hi everyone! Just a few words before I begin this new short story…

Back when I was writing "Mall-A-Palooza", I received a message from jloew1993 who put forth the suggestion that it would be a nice idea to write a story about Riley's first time on an airplane. I liked the idea immediately and I've been thinking of possible scenarios for such a story for a little while now…

There are still two more chapters left to go in "Pieces of an Emotional Puzzle" and since I haven't been writing as much lately, I initially put the idea for this story on hold. But after giving it some thought, I feel like NOW is the right time to try writing this new story! I guess you could say that I need a bit of a distraction from "Pieces of an Emotional Puzzle" and try writing something a little lighter because at the moment, my own reality is pretty dark and tragic too…

Some of you may know that I have been stuck in a bit of a sadness spiral lately. One of my friends is currently battling cancer. He is only 28 years old and his prognosis is not looking very good :( On top of this, two of the biggest drama queens in my family (my horrible aunt and selfish grandmother) have been causing a lot of unnecessary…well dramas.

Since I am not in a happy place right now, I need to try writing a more cheerful story than "Pieces of an Emotional Puzzle" for a change of pace! This will be a short 2-chapter story and afterwards I promise I will finish the other story too. I also have some ideas for a few other short stories that I will try putting together whenever I get the chance.

Just one more thing before I start. I want to make it clear that this story is NOT an outright request. Some of you have probably seen on my profile that I cannot commit myself to requests at the moment and that will remain so for quite some time. This was just an idea that jloew1993 offered to share with me a while back and I wanted to express my thanks. If you're reading this jloew1993, I hope you don't mind me taking on your suggestion :)

I am writing this story as my way of saying thank you to jloew1993 for all his support and encouragement! It may not be the greatest masterpiece, but I have written it from my heart all the same :)

I hope the rest of you wonderful readers and dear friends also enjoy this little story! Please feel free to read on and come on this journey through the sky with Riley and her Emotions :)

Svinorita.

Chapter 1 – Rocket to the Stars.

It was a warm summer afternoon in San Francisco and the Andersen household was a beehive of activity. Riley and her Mom were both buzzing from room to room, each busily packing and making final preparations for the exciting journey that lay ahead of them.

Bill meanwhile, was lounging around on the sofa in his white t-shirt and red shorts, watching TV as though he had all the time in the world. Then again, he wouldn't be joining his girls on their little trip tonight, so he could afford to take it easy and relax. He still had a couple of hours to unwind before he needed to chauffeur them to the airport.

Besides, both Riley and Jill seemed perfectly content to pack their own luggage without his help. Or rather hindrance as Jill would have phrased it…

Up in her room, Riley felt a rush of excitement as she went about packing an open suitcase that was sitting on her bed. She had been feeling pumped about this trip for days now and tonight it was finally going to happen! She was going back to Minnesota to visit her best friend Meg and as if that wasn't exciting enough, she was also going on a plane for the very first time in her life!

Riley smiled to herself as she remembered how her mother had received a birthday invitation last week from Julie; one of her closest friends who lived back in Minnesota. Julie was about to celebrate her 40th birthday this Saturday and she wanted Jill to fly out and come to her party so they could catch up with one another.

Jill agreed to go at once. It had been over two years since the Andersen family had moved to San Francisco and she was very eager to see her old friend again!

As soon as Riley found out that her Mom was going back to Minnesota for a few days, she had begged to come along too. She was dying to see her best friend Meg and her old neighborhood. I mean come on! Riley and Meg haven't seen each other in person for two years and there was so much to talk about!

At first, Riley was worried that her Mom wouldn't let her come along. After all, Julie had specifically invited Jill to her birthday party and she would only be staying for three days.

But thankfully, her Dad made things easier for her when he turned to his wife and suggested casually, "Hon? Why don't you take Riley to Minnesota with you? I bet she's dying to see Meg…"

Riley had given her Mom her most irresistible puppy-dog eyes, her voice filled with longing as she'd asked, "Oh please Mom! Can I come? I'd do anything to see Meg again!"

"Why of course you can come with me Sweetheart!" Jill had said with a chuckle and scooped Riley into a hug. "I am going to visit my best friend, so it's only fair that you can see yours too!"

Now the big day had finally arrived! Upstairs, Riley and Jill were both finishing up with their packing and in less than four hours, they would be sitting on a plane bound for Minnesota…

XXX

Meanwhile, Riley's Headquarters resembled a beehive of activity as well. Joy was acting like a happy little Queen Bee as she pressed buttons and pushed levers on the console, all the while humming a catchy Boney-M tune under her breath enthusiastically.

"Hooray! Hooray! It's a holi-holiday!"

Joy burst out laughing exuberantly as she pushed a few more buttons before whirling around to face her fellow Emotions. "Oh, isn't this exciting guys?! We're going back to Minnesota to see Meg and visit all our favorite places! And best of all, we're going on an actual airplane!"

Joy laughed again and leapt into the air, a dreamy expression on her radiant yellow face as she added happily, "We'll be up there with all those fluffy white clouds and maybe we'll even get to see some stars up close!"

Disgust rolled her eyes impatiently at her leader's antics. She stepped up to the console and took charge, commenting dryly as she focused on the monitor intently. "Oh please Joy! Tone down your excitement for a minute! I need to make sure Riley is packing all the right shoes, dresses and accessories…"

Suddenly, a loud growl from Anger interrupted Disgust and she shot an irritated glare at her red co-worker.

"BEANPOLE! WILL YOU STOP CHATTERING YOUR TEETH?!" Anger snapped from the couch, his head beginning to smolder and his stubby hands crumpling the newspaper he had been reading only moments earlier.

"I CAN'T CONCENTRATE ON READING MY PAPER WITH YOUR INSESSANT WHIMPERING AND TEETH CLACKING!" Anger roared, the fury in his voice becoming almost palpable.

Slowly, the other Emotions turned to look at Fear one by one. The nervous Emotion was huddled in a corner beside the Mind Manual shelves. He stared back at the others with wide-eyed panic, his slender chest rising and falling rapidly as he began hyperventilating which also made his whole body to shake uncontrollably.

It took Fear several moments to find the courage to speak and when he finally did, he ended up stuttering pretty badly. "A-are a-a-all of you cra-crazy? W-why are y-you so ex-excited ab-out t-this?!"

Fear made a desperate sound in the back of his throat that sounded like a strangled sob and gestured at the monitor with a trembling arm. "We are going to be shot into the sky like a rocket to the stars! Where do I even begin about what could possibly go wrong?!"

The other Emotions exchanged weary looks as though they were thinking: Great! Here we go again…

Fear waved his arms over his head in exasperation. "I mean if humans were meant to fly, they would be born with wings!" He pointed out shrilly.

"Give me a break Beanpole!" Anger thundered from the sofa furiously. "It's not a rocket you moron! It's a plane!"

Disgust folded her arms over her chest and added sassily, "People also don't have gills and mermaid tails, but they still travel through the sea…"

Before anyone else could comment, Sadness spoke up tearfully. "Stop it you guys! Can't you see you're only making Fear even more upset?"

The blue Emotion pointed to her purple colleague, who looked on the verge of passing out from fright.

Sadness took a deep breath and stated gloomily, "If anyone is upset around here, it makes me feel ten times sadder than usual!"

Disgust and Anger looked down guiltily as Sadness collapsed to the floor in a heap and started crying helplessly. Joy gave her a sympathetic look before stepping up to Fear and offering a hand to her shivering co-worker.

"Come with me to the kitchen Fear. I think we could all use a nice relaxing cup of tea and nobody knows how to make it better than you!" Joy said with a little smile of encouragement.

Fear gave a weak smile in return and took his yellow co-worker's hand hesitantly as he allowed her to lead him towards the kitchen.

XXX

"Bill honey? Do you know where I left Julie's birthday card? I can't seem to find it anywhere." Jill called from the bedroom. She paused her packing and glanced around the room, tapping her chin with a finger as she tried to remember where she placed Julie's card last night after she had finished writing her a birthday message.

"You've probably already packed it Jilly." Bill offered helpfully from the lounge room.

Suddenly his voice took on a slightly nervous tone and he added half-jokingly, "You girls sure have been packing for a long time now. I hope you're not planning on leaving me behind permanently or something…?"

Despite fretting about Julie's missing birthday card, Jill couldn't help cracking a smile at Bill's worried observation.

"Don't be silly! How could we possibly leave you? You're so handsome, charming and caring…" Jill assured him before suppressing a snort of amusement and adding more quietly, "…in addition to being annoying, lazy and a royal pain in the butt…"

"Hey! I heard that and it sure stings Jilly-Bee!" Bill yelled from downstairs, his voice full of mock-hurt. Then he deliberately turned up the volume on the TV remote just to annoy his wife and daughter.

Up in her room, Riley froze in the middle of folding her favorite purple shirt. She could hear the man's voice from the TV clearly and she found herself chilled to the core at what he was saying:

"Flight 618 from Honolulu to Sydney lost contact with air traffic control less than 40 minutes after takeoff. The air controllers in charge of monitoring the flight say that it's almost as if the aircraft has vanished into thin air or disappeared into the depths of the Pacific Ocean. There are grave fears for all 266 passengers and crew on board…"

Riley dropped the clothes she had been in the process of packing and dashed out of her room. She ran down the stairs and headed for the lounge room where her Dad was watching TV.

"Dad! What on earth are you watching?!" She demanded with an anxious look on her face.

"Oh, it's just Air Crash Investigation Sweetie." Bill replied innocently.

He shrugged casually and turned down the volume slightly so he didn't have to shout to be heard. "Why do you ask?"

"Seriously Dad?!" Riley said with exasperation. She pointed to the TV then to herself and reminded him nervously, "That's just what Mom and I want to hear right now! Have you forgotten that we're about to go on a plane today?!"

Riley turned towards the door, her voice sounding shaky as she inquired hesitantly, "Mom! We're going to be alright aren't we?! I'm starting to feel a little freaked out…"

There was a growl of frustration from upstairs and moments later, Jill marched into the lounge room looking decidedly flustered.

"Nice going Mister!" She snapped, yanking the remote out of Bill's hand and switching off the TV crossly.

"Hey! I was watching that!" Bill protested, his eyes narrowed at Jill challengingly.

Jill put her hands on her hips and challenged back adamantly. "Can't you see that you're scaring Riley? This is her first trip on a plane and that's not the sort of information we want stuck in our minds right now!"

Bill's expression softened at once as he realized his mistake. Chuckling to himself sheepishly, he got up and gave Riley an apologetic smile before pulling her into a warm fatherly hug.

"Aw, I promise nothing like that is going to happen to you and Mom Monkey!" Bill whispered, ruffling Riley's hair playfully as he spoke. "First of all, you'll be going on a smaller plane. You won't be flying over the Pacific, it's just a short domestic flight!"

Riley smiled and hugged her Dad back thankfully. She felt all her former apprehension melting away as she allowed herself to draw comfort from him and listen to his reassuring words.

Bill seemed rather pleased with himself and his smile grew broader as he thought of the perfect way to conclude this touching father/daughter bonding moment…

"Just remember Sweetheart that if you start feeling scared at any point during your flight, remind yourself that your first time on a plane is really not much different than your first time on a bike. You may fall now and then, but you just pick yourself up and keep going…"

"DAD!" Riley screamed and pulled back out of Bill's embrace. Her expression was mortified as she stared at him in disbelief.

Jill groaned and kicked her husband not-so-gently in the shin.

"Ow! What was that for Jilly?!" Bill protested, his eyes full of shock as he stared at his wife like a wounded animal.

Jill folded her arms and spoke in a dangerously level voice. "If you carry on like this Mister, we may not come back from Minnesota after all! We'll stay there and you can send the rest of our stuff over later!"

Bill went pale. A nervous smile spread across his face as he ventured hesitantly, "You're joking right, Honey…?"

Jill's only response was a sly smirk. Then she turned to Riley and gave her a knowing wink before both went upstairs to finish their packing.

XXX

Once they arrived at the airport two hours later, Riley was mesmerized by all the hustle and bustle around her. There were long queues of people waiting to check in their luggage as well as many jetlagged travelers who shuffled through the Arrivals Terminal looking like they just wanted a hot shower and a decent night's sleep. Everywhere she looked, Riley saw billboards and screens advertising flights and destinations all over the world and when she looked outside, she saw planes with different colors and logos on their tails taking-off and landing every few minutes.

As soon as Riley and her Mom checked in their luggage, they headed to the Departures Lounge to wait to board their flight. Throughout the whole time they were waiting, Bill put on quite a show of self-pity, his body language and expression seeming to say: "Poor me! What am I supposed to do without my girls for 3 whole days…?"

Just as the announcer called for all passengers to start boarding the plane, Bill made one last desperate plea to his wife and daughter as they joined the line and prepared to show the lady at the boarding gate their tickets and passports.

"Promise that you'll come back home to me girls!" Bill begged while wrapping his arms around Riley and Jill in a huge farewell hug.

"We'll see…" Jill mumbled under her breath irritably. But she returned her husband's hug with equal passion all the same.

Then she and Riley said their goodbyes and boarded the plane.

XXX

When they were finally in their seats aboard the plane, Riley started feeling really nervous. She kept thinking about what her Dad had said about her first time on a plane being like the first time on a bike and honestly, she didn't find that piece of fatherly wisdom very soothing to her nerves right now!

Riley felt her heart beating fast with anticipation as she gazed out the window at the runway outside. Her hands were starting to sweat like crazy and she was gasping for air without even realizing it…

From beside her, Jill noticed her daughter's unease and leaned over, enveloping her in a reassuring hug. "We'll be okay Sweetie. I know it can scary flying for the first time, but I promise you that everything will turn out fine."

Riley took a few deep breaths and tried to swallow back her nerves.

"Yeah…okay…" She replied quietly.

Jill smiled and whispered in a soothing voice, "Atta girl! Now put on your seatbelt and have some gum. It will help unblock your ears during takeoff."

Jill handed Riley a piece of gum and she took it with trembling fingers. Just as she unwrapped the gum and popped it into her mouth, she felt the plane move forward as it began taxiing down the runway.

As the plane gradually built up speed and prepared to takeoff, Riley closed her eyes and clasped her Mom's hand tightly. Her heart was pounding so fast that she could hear it echoing in her ears and just before the landing gears left the ground and the plane lifted into the sky, a single thought flashed through her mind:

Here we go…

XXX

Up in Headquarters, Joy was skipping around the console in a state of glee. "Wheee! Here we go guys! I'm so excited!"

"Personally, I can't wait until we land." Disgust commented with a bored expression on her pretty green face. "Then we can check out some shops at the airport while we're waiting to collect our luggage."

Anger yawned loudly from the couch and tossed his newspaper aside in disinterest. "They'll probably sleep through the whole flight. In fact, I might do the same thing!"

Sadness took out a handkerchief from her pocket and dabbed at the tears that were welling up in the corners of her eyes. "I feel like I'm going to slip into another sadness spiral! We're going back to Minnesota where everything began…"

A loud sob escaped from Sadness' throat and she added tearfully, "It's going to be so sad when we visit all those familiar places from Riley's childhood only to have to leave it all again in a few days…"

Suddenly the sound of a ceramic mug shattering somewhere behind them made the other Emotions flinch from surprise. Deep down everyone knew that Fear must have dropped his tea mug and one by one, they all turned to look at their purple co-worker with varying expressions of irritation of their faces.

Fear was standing near the Core Memory Holder, pieces of broken ceramic strewn around his feet all that remained of his favorite tea mug. He was staring at the monitor as though frozen in a trance of terror, his complexion almost white as he shivered like a sapling caught in a gale.

Ignoring the looks he was receiving from the other Emotions, Fear started ranting in a small panicky voice, "Oh no! W-we are actually do-doing it! We're flying and it's just like I've said all along! We've been shot into the sky like a rocket to the stars…"

"IT'S A PLANE BEANPOLE!" Anger yelled irately as flames erupted from the top of his head, causing the others to take an instinctive step back from their fiery colleague.

But Fear didn't seem to hear him. He felt a familiar weakness spread throughout his body as his eyes rolled back into his head. Moments later, he crumpled to the floor and fainted beside his shattered tea mug.