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Disclaimer: RahXephon and its characters are the rightful property of their respective owners. This piece is not for profitable purposes.
Chapter 2: At the Zoo
Reika and I walk hand in hand to the zoo, Reika humming quietly as we go. When we arrive, I look at the sign to see the admission prices.
Reika stands by as I say to the person selling tickets, "2 adults and 1 child under 3."
"That will be ¥1200, sir."
I take my wallet out of my pocket, open it, and take out the bills, which I give to him.
"Thank you, sir."
He hands me the tickets and I give one to Reika.
After we walk through the turnstile, I take a map from a display and motion to Reika to follow me. We sit down on a bench and I open the map.
"Did Quon say what animal she'd like to see first?" I say to her with a smile.
She laughs and then says with a determined look, "I clearly recall her saying she wanted to see elephants first."
I look back at Quon, who has been pulling on my shirt since we sat down, "Elephants it is, then?"
She smiles and drools.
"You should take that as a yes," Reika answers.
"Speaking from experience?" I reply.
She smiles and says in an innocent sounding voice, "I wouldn't know what you're talking about."
I grin and say, "Here, let's look at the map together."
"Sure!"
With Ayato, I inspect the map, searching for the location where the elephants are. I'd said that because I know that you can ride the elephant, and I thought that would make a great picture. I, of course, also think that Quon will enjoy seeing them.
I find them and point, "Look, Ayato, there they are."
He looks where I am pointing and responds, "Ok, shall we go then?"
I jump up and say, "Yep!"
Quon laughs and Ayato grins as he gets up and stands beside me. I grab hold of his hand and start walking quickly as I look back at him and smile.
As we make our way, Quon starts moving and making noise as we approach the horses' area. Ayato notices and slows his pace and stops at the fence. Quon's mouth opens wide as she watches them.
I look at Quon and point at one and say, "That's a horse, Quon-chan. Can you say horse?"
She looks at me, still with the same expression, and then looks back at the horses, but remains silent.
"Ayato, why don't I take a picture of the two of you near the horses?"
He nods his head in agreement and moves closer to them and turns sideways.
I take out the camera, focus the lens on them, and say, "Ok, 1, 2, 3!" before taking the picture.
Ayato walks over to where I am and looks at it on the viewer and says, "Looks good."
I smile and say, "Thanks!"
We remain standing there for a little longer, but I notice Quon's attention must be waning since she has started looking in other directions.
I say to Ayato, "Why don't we keep going?"
He nods his head and we go back on the trail.
"Look, Quon, look!" Reika shouts as she points at the elephants' area.
Quon immediately turns her head to see and gasps when she sees the elephants roaming around. I move closer and turn so that she can have a better view. While Reika and Quon watch the elephants, I look over at Reika and smile, she seems even more thrilled than Quon.
A caretaker starts feeding one of the elephants, and Reika looks on as she says, "See Quon, they're feeding the elephant so he can stay big and strong."
I walk over to Reika and point out a sign before I say, "Reika, I think it would make a nice picture if the two of you took the elephant ride they mention on this sign."
She shakes her head yes and looks at Quon as she says, "How does that sound to you, Quon-chan?"
Quon laughs and waves her arms in response.
"I'll wait in line with you until it's your turn, and then you can take Quon, ok?"
"Sure! Here, let me give you the camera."
She takes it out of the bag and hands it to me.
"Thanks."
"No problem."
Fortunately, the line is not long and Quon and Reika start their ride soon afterwards. I prepare the camera, and, when they get close, Reika waves and I take a few pictures.
After the ride finishes, Reika walks with Quon over to where I'm standing, both looking like they had fun.
Reika places Quon back in the carrier and, after she views and comments on the pictures, takes hold of my hand as she says, "Let's follow the trail and see what we find."
"Ok, sounds good."
We progress along the pathway and come upon a variety of animals. I notice that Quon seems especially impressed with the prairie dogs, popping up from and diving into the ground, and the giraffes, silently eating leaves from the trees.
As time passes, I notice that she seems to becoming more and more lethargic.
I glance at my watch and notice that it's past noon, so I say, "Ayato, why don't we stop for lunch soon."
He turns around and says, "Sure. Here, let's look at the map again to see where we can get food."
We go over to a nearby bench, sit down and start looking.
"How about there?" I say as I point.
"Ok."
We walk there, and, as we look at the menu, he says, "What would you like?"
I inspect it carefully and say, "Hmm, I'll have a salad and a vanilla shake."
He shakes his head yes and walks over to the counter while I prepare Quon's meal.
We choose a table and gather there when we finish our tasks. I place Quon in a high chair and alternate between feeding Quon and eating my own meal.
After we finish, he says, "Let's decide where to go next."
"Sure!"
We look at the map again and I say, "Let's go to the bird section, Quon-chan loves birds."
"Ok, let's go there then."
I pick Quon up again and place her back in the carrier before we start off.
Soon after eating, we arrive at the room where the birds are kept and step inside. The three of us look up and I notice a bluebird, Quon's favorite bird, in a tree nearby.
I walk over and point to the bird as I say to Quon, "Look, Quon, it's a bluebird."
She looks up but I think she can't find it because she responds in a confused tone, "Bu?"
I move closer and point as I say, "Look carefully at the branch right there on this tree."
She scans the area again, and stops suddenly when she does see it.
"Bu!"
Noticing our conversation, Reika walks over and sees the bird herself.
Reika responds, "That's right, Quon-chan, a bluebird!"
The three of us watch the bluebird a little longer, and then walk through the rest of the path in the room.
We visit more indoor exhibits and see nocturnal animals, including bats, and a variety of fish in another area.
We then visit the remainder of the outdoor exhibits, Reika and I taking pictures as we go. In a few places, we ask people to take pictures of the three of us, including in front of a fenced in flower garden and near a pond. When we finish touring the exhibits, I look at my watch and realize that it's close to 4.
I turn to Reika and say, "It's getting a little late, we should probably head home."
She nods her head in agreement and we walk towards the exit.
As we pass through the exit, Reika asks, "Quon, did you have fun?"
Quon looks over at her and grins.
Final ChapterThe Remainder of the Day
