Chapter 36: Fun at the Fair

California State Fair

July 12, 2025

1247

Mako stared at the crowds as they approached the entrance of the fairgrounds. "I knew the economy was turning around, but I didn't think this many people would come to the fair."

Raleigh smiled at his copilot. "It's the State Fair, Mako. Jaz said that they haven't had one for two years, so it's a cause for celebration." They reached the ticket booths. "Two adults, please."

The attendant didn't even look up. "Are you active duty?"

"Does the PPDC count?"

"Only if you have I.D."

Raleigh shrugged and handed their badges over.

The attendant still didn't react, instead briefly checking to make sure that the badges were genuine before handing them back. "That'll be $50 total."

Raleigh smiled as he handed over the money. "Thank you much."

"Have a nice day, sir."

Mako looked at Raleigh, curious. "What is a State Fair about, anyways?"

"It's been a while since I was at one, and that was the Alaska State Fair. But if this one is similar, it's about showing off the foods, farms, and attractions of your state, enjoying artery-clogging and/or tooth-rotting culinary creations, and going for rides on the midway until you hurl."

"Seriously? We're Rangers. We don't get motion sick easily."

"Most of the food here is deep-fried."

Mako stared at Raleigh. "Deep-fried."

"Yep. Name a food, and someone, somewhere, at some state fair in the last quarter century has deep fried it." Raleigh stopped dead in his tracks as a familiar scent wafted past. "And some foods are ONLY found in their deep fried form, because it doesn't work otherwise." He grabbed Mako's hands and took off in search of the source of the scent. "For example…"

Mako let the memories from Raleigh wash past her. The fair in Alaska. His family would go out for the whole day, and there was a small trailer that sold only… "Funnel cake?"

Raleigh's face lit up as he spotted a vendor. "Yep. Right there. Come on!"

The two Rangers got into line for the deep fried pastry. Mako killed time by looking around the food court. "Raleigh… is that…?"

Raleigh followed Mako's sightline to see a small kiosk selling chocolate covered bacon. "Sadly, yes. Many people think that's an awesome food."

"I love chocolate, and I… not love, but… respect? Accept?... bacon. But the thought of putting those together makes my stomach flip."

"Agreed. We'll skip that. I tried it once." Raleigh whipped off his sunglasses in a respectable imitation of David's explanation for having his own private Kaiju shelter. "Once."

Mako burst out laughing as they got up to the vendor.

Raleigh slipped his glasses back on and turned to the cashier. "One large funnel cake, please."

"Seven bucks."

Raleigh happily shelled out the cash for the deep-fried confection, then promptly broke off a piece and handed it to Mako. "Here, just try this first."

Mako shrugged, then accepted the morsel. Her eyes widened as she tasted it. "Mmm! That's… Wow."

Raleigh chuckled. "See, that's why I got a large."

Mako's only response was to reach over and tear off a large chunk.

-.-.-

1352

Raleigh and Mako were walking though the animal barns when a familiar voice they had last heard in Hong Kong reached their ears. "I still don't understand why you want to bring Anna here, Vanessa."

"Relax, Hermann. It'll help make sure that she has a strong immune system. Besides, it's…"

Mako and Raleigh came around the corner, grinning. "Didn't expect to find you here, Dr. Gottlieb."

"No, I suspect not, as I only arrived yesterday. I have to admit, making the run from Hong Kong to Germany and then to the U.S. was easier than going across the Pacific. I don't know how you two did that so often."

Vanessa Gottlieb came over to stand beside her husband. "Probably because they're used to odd hours and random awakenings. After all, Kaiju don't keep business hours."

Raleigh bowed his head slightly in respect to Vanessa. "Pleasure to meet you, ma'am."

"The pleasure is mine, Mr. Becket. After all, you did save my husband's life in Hong Kong." The older woman turned to face Mako. "Mori-san wa, soreha kojin-teki ni o ai dekite kōeidesu." Ms. Mori, it is an honor to meet you in person.

Mako blushed. "Thank you, Mrs. Gottlieb."

Hermann beamed with pride as he pushed the stroller over. "And this is my daughter, Anna."

Mako, grateful for the distraction, crouched down to greet the baby. "Hello, Anna."

Anna simply gurgled in delight.

Raleigh smiled as Mako's face lit up and she turned to Vanessa. "She's adorable."

"Thank you."

Mako looked at her watch, then the schedule. "Raleigh, we're going to miss that demo!"

Raleigh nodded to Hermann and Vanessa. "Pleasure to meet you, ma'am. Good seeing you again, Doctor."

-.-.-

1426

Mako gaped as she and Raleigh walked into the building, which was packed with vendors. "What the…"

Raleigh chuckled at Mako's awe. "Yeah, this is part of the fair too. Lots of products and services being pitched. Not much of what you'd enjoy, though."

"And you would know that because?"

"Do you want things like truck bed liners, microfiber mops, whole house fans, or a half dozen portable speaker designs?"

Mako grinned. "No, but I'm sure there's something interesting lurking out there."

Raleigh shrugged and wrapped an arm around Mako's shoulders. "Then let's go see what kind of trouble we can cause."

They browsed through the kiosks and stalls, filled with kitchen gadgets, wallets and purses, artwork, and dozens of others, before Mako stopped with a gasp.

Raleigh followed her focus to see a booth full of DVDs. Sitting in the center of the front display was a boxed set of Studio Ghibli DVDs. "Ah… Studio Ghibli. I was rather fond of "The Wind Rises" and "Porco Rosso" myself."

Mako's smile went from ear to ear. "Well, I'm going to get that, and we'll have a few movie nights so you can watch the rest." She grabbed the box and walked over to the booth owner. "How much for the Miyazaki Collection?"

The owner looked up. "$75 cash." He paused, clearly trying to place her face. "Wait… Miss Mori, isn't it?"

Mako nodded.

"For you, I have something very special. Only seventeen copies of this DVD exist, and they were never marketed. They were intended to be gifts to the cast of the film… but seeing as it never went to theaters, it's become a collector's item."

Mako's eyebrow quirked. "Oh? What movie?"

"Godzilla. The Gareth Edwards version that was supposed to be released in 2014, but was canned just before release due to the Kaiju. It… hit a little too close to reality for Legendary's tastes."

Mako and Raleigh gasped in unison as they looked at each other. "Newt."

"Pardon me?"

Raleigh smiled. "Someone we know is a huge fan of the genre."

"But he worked at the PPDC?"

Mako nodded. "Kaiju Sciences."

"Well, I suspect he would very much enjoy it. I heard it was an awesome movie, and that Gojira was bigger than he'd ever been. I wish I had been able to see it. But, the packaging seal is a part of the proof that this is indeed what the box proclaims, so I haven't watched it."

Mako pulled out her wallet. "How much for both?"

"I won't charge you for "Godzilla". Consider it a gift."

Mako bowed deeply and pulled a quartet of $20 bills from her wallet. "Dōmo arigatō sensei ni kansha shimasu." Thank you very much, sir.

The owner of the booth handed Mako back a $5, and the two Rangers carried on with their loot.

-.-.-

1644

Raleigh looked at Mako, concerned. She's been awfully quiet and subdued since we ran into the Gottliebs. "Hey, you okay?"

Mako sighed. "Yes. It's just that… My mind's elsewhere."

"Want to talk about it?"

Mako took a deep breath before slowly nodding.

Raleigh spotted an empty bench not far away and guided her to it. "What's wrong?"

Mako leaned against her copilot, savoring the physical contact. "I… I don't know how to say this aloud without it coming across really weirdly."

Raleigh waited patiently, knowing well that Mako would continue when she was ready.

Mako finally swallowed hard and spoke her mind. "I want to have a family with you, Raleigh. I really do. But part of me says to wait until after the war so that I can focus on being a Ranger again, another says to start now so that I'd be ready to jockey when the Kaiju return, and the rest wonders if I'm just envious of Miranda and Vanessa and just overreacting." Mako rubbed her face with her hands. "I just don't know what the right answer is."

Raleigh sat there, thunderstruck and totally unsure how to respond. "Mako… you're 22, and I'm 26. We've got plenty of time to think this through calmly and clearly."

Mako nodded, her gaze unfocused. "It's just that my mind's been wandering a lot lately. The Mark VIs are almost ready to contract out, the Shatterdome in San Francisco broke ground yesterday, the katana's still being polished…" Mako turned to her boyfriend. "I'm bored, Raleigh. For the first time in over seven years, I'm bored." A wry grin graced her face. "I don't do bored. Stuff tends to get disassembled."

"Then I guess we need to take some of your vacation time and go do something."

Mako became pensive for a moment. "Go where, though? We got a pretty decent chance to play tourist during the Victory Tour. Our 'family' is split between here and Hong Kong. Hawaii holds nothing but sad memories and tombstones for us… Where could we go?"

Raleigh simply pointed towards the mountains to the east. "Up there. Spend a few nights camping, away from everything and everyone."

Mako slowly nodded. "I've always wanted to go camping. Sensei was always too busy, though. And survival training at the Academy doesn't count."

Raleigh laughed. "True. That's more of torture than relaxation. Maybe we should visit the county exhibits and ask them about good spots to go camping."

Mako nodded and stood up. "What are we waiting for, then?"

Raleigh bounced to his feet, glad to see Mako's usual spunk and energy had returned.

-.-.-

1941

Mako and Raleigh browsed through the food courts again, looking for something to eat. Suddenly, Raleigh stopped dead in his tracks. "Mako… I have to try this."

Mako looked at the object of Raleigh's attention. "Okay, I can see why. After all, you Americans do love your bacon."

Raleigh grinned and walked up to the cart. "One bacon corndog, please."

The vendor took Raleigh's cash and handed Raleigh what appeared to be a regular corndog. However, as soon as the Ranger bit into it, its secret was revealed. Instead of the usual hot dog core, the corndog was built around a wound rod of bacon. Raleigh closed his eyes and savored the delightful creation. "Mmmmm… Maple syrup in the bacon. Best stuff out there."

Mako giggled at Raleigh's blissful face and snapped a photo on her phone. That is SO going on Facebook.

-.-.-

2027

"No. No, absolutely not."

"Mako, you're a Ranger. You've ridden into battle inside something much larger and far more complicated."

"Yes, but I didn't oversee the assembly of this ride."

Raleigh buried his face in his palm. "Mako, it's a Ferris Wheel."

"One that gets disassembled and moved every three weeks."

"So? Wouldn't that allow it to be inspected in more depth than a permanently installed one?"

"Not necessarily."

"What about roller coasters?"

Mako's face drained of color, telling Raleigh all he needed to know. He literally bit his tongue to keep himself from laughing, which earned him a gentle slap to the back of his head.

"Watashi ga sonoyōni yuenchi no norimono o osorete iru riyū, watashi ga setsumei suru koto wa dekimasen... Watashi wa chōdo watashi." I can't explain why I'm so terrified of amusement park rides... I just am.

Raleigh nodded. "Will it help if I tell you my phobia?"

"I know what it is. You're claustrophobic. I saw it in the Drift."

"Just like I saw your fear of roller coasters. I thought that this little ride wouldn't be so bad."

Mako groaned. "Okay, I'll make you a deal. I go on the rides tonight, you go caving with me in September when we go up to that park in Modoc County."

Raleigh paled, but he stuck out his hand. "Deal."

Mako took Raleigh's hand, and the two Ranger shook on it. "Alright, Raleigh. Let's get this over with, shall we?"

-.-.-

2214

Gipsy's pilots flopped into the seats of their car. "Ugh. That was a hell of a day."

Mako simply nodded her assent.

Raleigh programmed the route home into the car's navigation computer, then also relaxed into his seat. "God I'm glad they allow these cars here in California. Otherwise, we'd need to hire a taxi every time we needed to go somewhere."

Mako looked at Raleigh. "Then maybe you should do something about that. After all, you have more experience driving than I do."

"True."

As the car began the drive back to their apartment complex, Mako closed her eyes. "Ohhh… Probably shouldn't have done that."

"Why?"

"I'm so tired, I don't think I'll be able to reopen my eyes to walk to the apartment."

"Then let me be your eyes."

"Or my legs. I really like it when you carry me." Mako yawned.

"You do? I always assumed you were just being tolerant of it."

"I just enjoy physical contact. It's… Soothing. Especially from you."

"That's the Ghost Drift. Yance and I were like that after combat."

"No, I've always enjoyed the contact. It's just part of who I am. I'll sometimes wind myself up in my blankets."

"You haven't done it since we started to share a bed."

Mako chuckled. "That's because I have you to cuddle with."

"True."

They fell silent for a while, Mako resting and Raleigh watching the road go by. Finally, they arrived at their apartment complex. Mako stirred as she felt the familiar bump of the car driving straight over the pothole next to the storm drain, despite their best efforts to convince the car's AI to avoid it.

Mako groaned as she stretched. "I swear, one of these days I'm going to take that computer apart and reprogram it to avoid that one pothole." She unbuckled and got out of the car, DVD cases in hand.

"You'll probably find that it's covered in stickers saying 'WARNING: NO USER SERVICEABLE PARTS INSIDE.'"

"Only one way to find out." She leaned on Raleigh tiredly.

Raleigh scooped up his copilot. "Alright, alright, I can take a hint."

Mako giggled. "So you can. There's hope for you yet."

Raleigh chuckled as he walked up to their door. "Mind unlocking the door? Otherwise I'll have to put you down."

Mako nodded slowly and retrieved her keys. "I wonder how Munchkin's doctor's appointment went today. She was going in for a check on the baby."

Click. Mako unlocked the door and turned the doorknob. Raleigh turned around and nudged it open with his shoulder, then stepped through.

Mako shifted slightly, and Raleigh set her down. "Good thing you're so light, Mako. That's not so hard to do."

Mako opened her mouth to respond, but the sound of Miranda's door caused her to change her plans. "Miranda? How was it today?" Mako turned around to face the diminutive Australian woman.

Miranda nodded. "Yeah. I told them to not tell me anything other than if the baby's doing fine, which it is."

Raleigh squirmed, clearly uncomfortable about the situation. "I'm gonna go get cleaned up." He slipped down the hall towards the bathroom.

Mako turned to Miranda. "So, when's the baby shower?"

"Wednesday, after work." Miranda pointer her thumb in the direction of Raleigh. "He's invited, by the way."

"Oh, I doubt he'll come on his own. So I'll make sure to drag him out here."

Miranda grinned. "I think it'll be easier than you think, Mako. Herc's going to be here."

Mako smiled. "Okay, yeah. He'll come willingly, then."

Raleigh reappeared from the bathroom and headed into the bedroom that the Rangers shared. That's my cue. "I think I'm going to call it a night. I'm really tired after today."

The short redhead gave Mako an evil grin. "So early?"

"No, not like that. Get that thought out of your head, Munchkin."

Miranda laughed. "Alrighty. See you in the morning."

Mako followed Raleigh into the bedroom, stripping off her shirt and shorts and changing into a tank top and some lightweight gym shorts before hopping into bed and snuggling up to her copilot. "Thank you for today, Raleigh."

Raleigh nodded tiredly, already half asleep. "You're welcome."

-.-.-

Author's notes: Phew! Finally got past that block. And it feels so good to be back to writing.