Cirque du La Terre
Chapter X.
"Hey Bee!" Suki yelled. "We're driving this one!" She laughed as she watched Bee look around for her ride. Her hair was slightly disheveled; brown strands highlighted with copper in the bright sun- the product of getting up too early in the morning without time to properly brush her hair.
It was a beautiful day with a blue sky and bright sunshine, but it was getting hot fast. Suki wiped sweat from her brow as she called out to Bee. Finally, the fair-skinned girl turned her head to see Suki in front of a rather large silver Ford F-150. She quickly jogged over to her.
"Why aren't we hauling your tigers?" she asked. Suki shrugged.
"Iroh wants everyone driving something different for some reason. I think his overly gelled hair is starting to affect his brain. Aang's hauling them this time, but if he does something to my babies then his clown act is going to mysteriously lose one of its men." Bee laughed and walked over to the passenger's side. She hoisted himself up and closed the door. Suki hauled herself up and slammed the door with a tremendous 'thud'. They both buckled their seatbelts simultaneously. Bee observed herself in the rearview mirror, trying to undo the damage that had been done to her already messed up hair. Next time she should not be left alone with scissors. Suddenly she saw something move in the back seat. Bee slowly turned her head to look in the back, only see Longshot curled up in the back seat, fast asleep.
"Um, Suki?" she asked. "Why is Longshot passed out in the back?" Suki turned to look. Longshot was covered by a navy blanket, one arm hanging off the side of the seat. He snored softly, periodically murmuring in his sleep. Bee had to say, it was kind of cute. Suki turned in her seat to look at the motionless teen.
"Oh, I forgot he was there." Bee face-palmed and shook her head. Suki made an annoyed sound.
"He was exhausted after helping take down equipment and checking to make sure everything was ready," Suki snapped, turning back to the front she cranked the truck. It roared to life. Their seats vibrated over the powerful engine. "Iroh told him he could crash here."
"Ah," Bee said, taking one last glance at the slumbering Longshot before returning to the front. Suki got the signal that they were ready to go and trailed behind a large truck that carried the big top. They crept along until they reached the highway, where they boosted up their speed with a sonorous growl from the engine.
"He seems to have so much responsibility," Bee said absentmindedly as they rode along. She observed all the traffic. There were a fair number of cars on the road. Bee tried to find as many license plates from different states as possible. "Longshot, I mean."
"Yeah, well he's been in the Cirque for a while and he's kind of Iroh's right hand man," Suki said. "It just comes with the job I guess." Bee nodded and leaned her forehead against the window. The windowpane was warm because of the summer heat. She watched the trees pass by, too quickly for her eyes to focus on them. Her head bobbed occasionally by a bump in the road, but for the most part the ride was smooth, and the road was hypnotizing. In no time Bee had fallen asleep.
Longshot groaned. He was having the most wonderful dream that consisted of swirling colors of yellow and black and bright brown-grey eyes until the truck had hit a large bump in the road. Slowly he opened his eyes. It took a minute for them to focus. Longshot's body was still tingly from sleep and his limbs felt heavy. He attempted to move the arm he was currently using as a pillow, only to find it numb and immobile. A soft groan escaped his lips. Well, might as well take a moment to just stay still and wake up.
After a few minutes of just lying there, Longshot finally attempted to sit up.
"Morning beautiful," Suki said, peering at his reflection in the rearview mirror. Longshot's hair was stuck up on the right side, and the same side of his face was red and dimpled from the creases in his shirt sleeve. Longshot made a noncommittal sound as he tried to rub his hair back into place.
"Is that any way to greet a lady?" Suki asked with an exaggerated, outraged expression. "I'm shocked Liam Donato!"
"Where's Bee?" Longshot asked, wondering about the girl who had recently occupied his dreams and completely ignoring Suki sarcastic retort. Suki huffed as Longshot peered around the passenger's seat to see Bee slumped against the window, cheek sticking to the windowpane so that it stayed stretched upward while gravity pulled the rest of him down. Suki rolled her eyes as Longshot contemplated the sight before him.
"You two are impossible," she said, turning on the radio. "All you ever do is talk about each other." And with that Suki cranked up the radio to the very loud, pulsating Black Eyed Peas. In a swift moment two things happened: one- Longshot was positive he felt his eardrums pop, and two- Bee went from happily asleep to soaring out of her seat, protected from flying through the windshield solely by her seatbelt. She whipped her head to glare at Suki, who cackled with laughter before turning the radio down to a volume more accepted by society. As Longshot rubbed his ears to check that he indeed still had the sense of hearing, Bee punched Suki in the shoulder and proceeded to yell at her.
"What the hell, Suki?" Bee yelled at the diva, "Were you trying to give me a heart attack?" Suki, who seemed un-phased by the girl, just laughed and changed lanes.
"I just thought that since you two are so keen to talk about each other, that you should have the opportunity to talk to each other before I throw you both out of this car," she said. "Because I am not the Encyclopedia Liam or the Encyclopedia Alice, so ask each other questions and talk to each other about each other, please and thank you." And with that Suki went silent. Bee and Longshot just looked at each other with wounded faces.
"Um," Longshot sputtered. "I'm just gonna go back to sleep now." Bee nodded quickly.
"Yeah, me too."
And with that, both teens assumed their previous positions and fell back into a not-so-comfortable slumber.