~~A/N:: Okay, a response to all. Yes, the angst is pretty bad at the
moment. But I'm trying to stay true to the characters. They don't
typically like it when one of them tries to take control anyway "We both
want to be on top", but with Paraguay in their past and all the aftermath,
I didn't see this race being easy for them. Besides, that would be a
crappy story lol. So yes, there will be romance, but right now they're
having problems....okay..and now for HELP...I need 1. a roadblock for
Anchorage, Alaska ~ 2. A detour and a roadblock for Paraguay ~ 3. A
detour and a roadblock for Russia and 4. a detour and a roadblock for Las
Vegas. I already have plot points for these places but don't know anything
about them so doing the race aspect of them is hard. Any help would be
great~~
ROBERTS RESIDENCE TWO WEEKS EARLIER
The group gathered anxiously for the forth episode of the race to start. They all took what had become their normal spots. "I don't know if I can watch this anymore." Jen said shaking her head. "Things were going so well there for awhile in Disney World. And now they're just...how do they know how to hurt each other so badly?"
"They've known each other for a long time." Sturgis answered. "They known each other better than they know themselves, so pushing those buttons isn't hard to do."
"If they know each other so well, then why can't they put that knowledge into *good* use and get together already?"
"When you can answer that, I'll give you my job." AJ chuckled as the episode began.
MEXICO CITY, MEXICO EPISODE 4
Once again, Andy and Bev approached the mat first and ripped open the next clue. "Drive 133 miles to the ancient city of Teotihuacan and climb the 248 steps to the top of the Pyramid of the Sun where you will find your next route marker." Andy read aloud. "Well, nothing like some exercise first thing in the morning." He smiled and lead his mother to the cars.
Bev got into the driver's seat and whistled as she drove, following Andy's directions.
An hour and three minutes later, Gerry ripped open their clue. "I'm too old for this." He joked as they ran towards their car and Melissa took the map.
As they pulled off, Pete and David opened their clue. Followed a minute later by Donna and Katie. "I've been there." David announced to the group standing on the mat. "Why don't you guys just follow us?"
"Sounds great, thanks." Katie smiled as she got into the driver's seat and the two SUVs pulled off. They soon caught up with Gerry and Melissa.
Thirty-four minutes later, Don and Graham were hot on the trail, followed by Bernie and Anne.
MEANWHILE, TEOTIHUACAN
Andy and Bev made their way to the top of the pyramid and ripped open the clue. "Take a bus to Cancun and find San Marino Marina where you'll get your next route marker." They found the bus station on the map and headed back down the stairs to the waiting SUV. When they arrived at the station, they found out their led was basically useless since the bus didn't leave for three hours yet and all the teams should be able to catch up easily. (The crowd at the Roberts' began to cheer)
BACK IN MEXICO CITY, MEXICO
Mac and Harm slowly approached one another. "Mac, I'm-..."
"Harm, don't do this. We agreed to talk about the race and that's it. So let's concentrate on not losing, okay?"
"That's just it, Mac. I *am* concentrating on not losing. I don't want to lose *you*."
Mac swallowed hard, her eyes slowly lifting to meet his. "I don't want to lose you either. Let's get this race over and then we can sit down and...untable the discussion?"
Harm smiled faintly. "I like the sound of that. Now...what do you say we go after the fast forward so we don't get eliminated?"
"Sounds good." She returned the faint smile and ripped open the envelope that she was handed. "Travel to the Museum of Anthropology in Mexico City. Find the Voladores, a group of daredevil performers. You must climb a 100 foot pool and hang by your feet while flying around the pole until you reach the ground."
"Well...flying sounds fun." Harm smiled a little more. He took her hand and they took off for the SUV together. "No getting sick on me though." He teased very gently as they searched for the museum in one of the tourist books.
Mac smiled faintly. "I only get sick around you, Flyboy." She pointed to a spot on the map. "There's the museum."
"You want to drive?" Harm offered.
Mac's eyes widened. "Sure." She took the keys and got in, following the directions that Harm gave her until they reached the museum.
"Over there." Harm pointed to the Voladores before getting out and opening Mac's door. "You ready to fly?"
/I'm already flying./ Mac thought to herself, smiling softly as she got out of the car and followed Harm over. They were lead to the pole and got ready for the 'stunt'. Mac headed up first and tried to ignore the fact that Harm was staring up at her six as he followed her. /I'm glad I put in all that time on the stair master./
/This isn't a bad view at all./ Harm grinned, almost pouting when they got to the top and were prepared for their descent back to the ground. He gave Mac a reassuring smile before they began their 'flight' to the ground. Her laughter brought a bright smile to his face. When they reached the bottom, Harm helped Mac get undone.
"That was...wow.' Mac grinned. "I wanna do it again." She joked.
"Maybe on our honeymoon." Harm said nonchalantly as he turned back,leaving a stunned Mac as he got back into the car.
Her jaw hung open just slightly as she followed him. "Our...what?"
"You heard me." He tried to cover his smirk. "So...where is our next stop?"
"You said our honeymoon."
"Yeah...I did. Hey, Mac...what do you say we make things interesting?"
"Interesting? What do you mean by interesting?"
"Well, if we win this race...we get married and put the winnings into buying a house and furnishings and whatever's left goes into a college fund for our kids." He had to chuckle at the look on her face. "My Mac..what big eyes you have.." He teased.
"I...was that supposed to be a proposal?" She stuttered.
"Not a proposal as much as a wager...we win...we get married...we don't win...then we still have the talk. What to you say?" He watched her intently before smiling mischievously. "What's the matter, jarhead? Are you afraid of a little friendly wager? You're giving the Corps a bad name, Mac." Seeing the fire that ignited in her eyes, he knew he had her.
"Deal." She held out her hand and shook his. "Don't make a promise you can't keep."
"I haven't yet." He grinned and got in the back seat, ripping open the envelope. "We need to get to the airport and fly to Rio de Janero, honey buns."
"Honey buns?"
"Just trying it on for size, babe...now let's get moving."
Mac smiled and shook her head before getting into the driver's seat. Soon they pulled in at the airport and ran inside, getting on the next flight to Rio de Janiero. They used the flight to find out how to get to the pit stop on a yacht at Urca Beach.
WATCHING THE SHOW AT THE ROBERTS
Harriet hit pause on the TIVO and rewound, "They didn't just...no way."
The rest of the group was in shock as well. They all were silent as they watched the scene a second time. "They have to win." The all said together and started to laugh and take bets.
MEANWHILE ON THE BUS HEADED TO CANCUN
Pete/David, Bernie/Anne, and Don/Graham sat talking about their lives and their children while the rest of the teams had a sing along, getting 24 hours away from the stress and competitivness of the game. They got to know each other a bit better. Gerry/Melissa because known as Ricky and Lucy along the way.
Melissa and Katie started talking about Melissa's job.
"So...what was your goal when you started working?" Katie asked.
"Well...I wanted to be able to have just one person say that life was made easier because I crossed their path." She smiled softly. "And my job has helped me to realize that goal over and over again."
Katie smiled as well. "Do you feel like you're a better person now because of your job?"
"I've learned a lot in the seventeen years as a social worker. I've learned how to make decisions, how to lead groups of people, how to deal with ALL kinds of personalities, how to see the best in people even in the midst of terrible circumstances. I've seen firsthand the resiliency of the human spirit, especially in children. I think my work has allowed me the incredible opportunity to experience the 'wonder of children', even before I had my own. I love my job, it gives me satisfaction, challenge, and an opportunity to do things that I've never done before. It stretches me."
"What made you want to do it?" Asked Andy who had begun to listen in.
"Well,my mother was a social worker and she worked with troubled teens when I was a child. I saw the pain that these kids faced and how she helped them and decided that I wanted to do that too. I count myself lucky that I knew what I wanted to be since I was sixteen. Not everyone get to have that level of clarity at such a young age."
"Do you ever regret it?" Bev asked.
"No, not really. The only 'regret' I have ever even remotely had was when I had Brandon, my son, and had to leave him at daycare instead of staying home or having a babysitter or something because the pay was so low. But I've had a remarkable career so far. I've had unbelievable opportunities that would NEVER have come my way in the business world. I have always considered it a privilege to be able to do a job that connects with my faith, even though there are challenges sometimes between my professional ethics and my personal ethics. But when the day is done, it has been a great fit for me."
"How hard it is emotionally?" Donna asked.
"Well, right now I'm the CASA program coordinator for the Department of Criminal Justice services for the state of Virginia. It's probably the 'easiest' job for me emotionally on a day to day basis. I've had other jobs when I worked directly with children and families and found that to be VERY hard emotionally because you have to see the problems up close and personal. The job I have now is administrative and allows me to make a difference from afar. The stress of this job comes from the magnitude of the responsibilities. It's a HUGE job and sometimes it feels WAY bigger than me."
They continued to talk about their jobs and families and catch up on sleep for the rest of the trip.
When they arrived in Cancun, they sprinted to the SUVs and drove to San Marino Marina, which they had located during the bus ride.
Bev/Andy arrived first and ripped open their clue. "Detour."
~~In this Detour, the teams will have to choose between "Manpower" and "horsepower." In "Manpower", teams use a kayak to search an area of the lagoon for the next route marker. The paddling can be tiring, but the area that they have to search is smaller. In "Horsepower", teams use a wave runner to search for the route marker. It requires no physical strength, but the area is much larger.~~
"Manpower?" Andy suggested and Bev agreed. They ran over to the kayaks and got in, beginning their search for the route marker.
Gerry/Melissa were right behind them, followed by Pete/Dave and Don/Graham.
Bernie/Anne and Donna/Katie chose "horsepower".
MEANWHILE RIO DE JANEIRO
Harm and Mac arrived at the airport and sprinted out to the waiting SUVs. They drove quickly to the docks and used the spotted the yellow flags on the yacht. They sprinted up and onto the mat.
"Harm and Sarah, you're the first team to arrive."
Harm gave her his flyboy grin. "Only eight more legs to go and..dun duh duh duh...At this rate, you'll be Mrs. Harmon Rabb Jr. in no time."
Mac laughed softly. "Yeah yeah." She headed over to the rest area, Harm right behind her.
BACK IN CANCUN SANTA MARINO MARINA
Gerry/Melissa came across the clue first and headed back to shore. "Drive to and take the ferry to Cozumel and find the next route marker at Chankanaab Park." They pulled out the map and found the route to the ferry station and took off, Andy/Bev and Katie/Donna right behind them.
Soon the rest of the teams were following along as well. The teams boarded the ferry to the Park and took a moment to enjoy the sun. When the ferry pulled into the station the teams ran to the box of clues.
Gerry/Melissa ripped theirs open first. "Roadblock...be ready to take a swim. I'll do it." Melissa said.
~~In this roadblock, the team member will swim with a family of dolphins, using them to get the clue at the bottom of the lagoon.~~
Melissa got the wet suit on and got into the pool. After being shown the signals she'd need, she swam into the lagoon and used the dolphin's fin to go down to the bottom and get the clue. When she got out, Andy went in followed by Katie, then Pete, Don and finally Bernie.
They ripped open the next clue. "Fly to Rio de Janeiro and find the marked yacht at Urca Beach.." The teams sped to the airport. Gerry/Melissa, Andy/Bev, and Donna/Katie were on the first flight while Pete/David, Don/Graham, and Bernie/Anne got on a flight that left thirty minutes later.
URCA BEACH RIO DE JANEIRO
The teams raced to the pit stop. Gerry/Melissa arrived first. Two minutes later, Andy/Bev arrived. One minute after that, Donna/Katie arrived.
Thirty one minutes later, Pete/David arrived. Five minutes after that, Bernie/Anne arrived. And a minute after that, Don/Graham arrived. "Don and Graham. You're the last team to arrive. Fortunately, this is the first of four non-elimination rounds, so you're safe. Congratulations."
They sighed in relief and joined the rest of the teams in the rest area where it was almost time for Harm and Mac to take off on the next leg of the race.
TBC
ROBERTS RESIDENCE TWO WEEKS EARLIER
The group gathered anxiously for the forth episode of the race to start. They all took what had become their normal spots. "I don't know if I can watch this anymore." Jen said shaking her head. "Things were going so well there for awhile in Disney World. And now they're just...how do they know how to hurt each other so badly?"
"They've known each other for a long time." Sturgis answered. "They known each other better than they know themselves, so pushing those buttons isn't hard to do."
"If they know each other so well, then why can't they put that knowledge into *good* use and get together already?"
"When you can answer that, I'll give you my job." AJ chuckled as the episode began.
MEXICO CITY, MEXICO EPISODE 4
Once again, Andy and Bev approached the mat first and ripped open the next clue. "Drive 133 miles to the ancient city of Teotihuacan and climb the 248 steps to the top of the Pyramid of the Sun where you will find your next route marker." Andy read aloud. "Well, nothing like some exercise first thing in the morning." He smiled and lead his mother to the cars.
Bev got into the driver's seat and whistled as she drove, following Andy's directions.
An hour and three minutes later, Gerry ripped open their clue. "I'm too old for this." He joked as they ran towards their car and Melissa took the map.
As they pulled off, Pete and David opened their clue. Followed a minute later by Donna and Katie. "I've been there." David announced to the group standing on the mat. "Why don't you guys just follow us?"
"Sounds great, thanks." Katie smiled as she got into the driver's seat and the two SUVs pulled off. They soon caught up with Gerry and Melissa.
Thirty-four minutes later, Don and Graham were hot on the trail, followed by Bernie and Anne.
MEANWHILE, TEOTIHUACAN
Andy and Bev made their way to the top of the pyramid and ripped open the clue. "Take a bus to Cancun and find San Marino Marina where you'll get your next route marker." They found the bus station on the map and headed back down the stairs to the waiting SUV. When they arrived at the station, they found out their led was basically useless since the bus didn't leave for three hours yet and all the teams should be able to catch up easily. (The crowd at the Roberts' began to cheer)
BACK IN MEXICO CITY, MEXICO
Mac and Harm slowly approached one another. "Mac, I'm-..."
"Harm, don't do this. We agreed to talk about the race and that's it. So let's concentrate on not losing, okay?"
"That's just it, Mac. I *am* concentrating on not losing. I don't want to lose *you*."
Mac swallowed hard, her eyes slowly lifting to meet his. "I don't want to lose you either. Let's get this race over and then we can sit down and...untable the discussion?"
Harm smiled faintly. "I like the sound of that. Now...what do you say we go after the fast forward so we don't get eliminated?"
"Sounds good." She returned the faint smile and ripped open the envelope that she was handed. "Travel to the Museum of Anthropology in Mexico City. Find the Voladores, a group of daredevil performers. You must climb a 100 foot pool and hang by your feet while flying around the pole until you reach the ground."
"Well...flying sounds fun." Harm smiled a little more. He took her hand and they took off for the SUV together. "No getting sick on me though." He teased very gently as they searched for the museum in one of the tourist books.
Mac smiled faintly. "I only get sick around you, Flyboy." She pointed to a spot on the map. "There's the museum."
"You want to drive?" Harm offered.
Mac's eyes widened. "Sure." She took the keys and got in, following the directions that Harm gave her until they reached the museum.
"Over there." Harm pointed to the Voladores before getting out and opening Mac's door. "You ready to fly?"
/I'm already flying./ Mac thought to herself, smiling softly as she got out of the car and followed Harm over. They were lead to the pole and got ready for the 'stunt'. Mac headed up first and tried to ignore the fact that Harm was staring up at her six as he followed her. /I'm glad I put in all that time on the stair master./
/This isn't a bad view at all./ Harm grinned, almost pouting when they got to the top and were prepared for their descent back to the ground. He gave Mac a reassuring smile before they began their 'flight' to the ground. Her laughter brought a bright smile to his face. When they reached the bottom, Harm helped Mac get undone.
"That was...wow.' Mac grinned. "I wanna do it again." She joked.
"Maybe on our honeymoon." Harm said nonchalantly as he turned back,leaving a stunned Mac as he got back into the car.
Her jaw hung open just slightly as she followed him. "Our...what?"
"You heard me." He tried to cover his smirk. "So...where is our next stop?"
"You said our honeymoon."
"Yeah...I did. Hey, Mac...what do you say we make things interesting?"
"Interesting? What do you mean by interesting?"
"Well, if we win this race...we get married and put the winnings into buying a house and furnishings and whatever's left goes into a college fund for our kids." He had to chuckle at the look on her face. "My Mac..what big eyes you have.." He teased.
"I...was that supposed to be a proposal?" She stuttered.
"Not a proposal as much as a wager...we win...we get married...we don't win...then we still have the talk. What to you say?" He watched her intently before smiling mischievously. "What's the matter, jarhead? Are you afraid of a little friendly wager? You're giving the Corps a bad name, Mac." Seeing the fire that ignited in her eyes, he knew he had her.
"Deal." She held out her hand and shook his. "Don't make a promise you can't keep."
"I haven't yet." He grinned and got in the back seat, ripping open the envelope. "We need to get to the airport and fly to Rio de Janero, honey buns."
"Honey buns?"
"Just trying it on for size, babe...now let's get moving."
Mac smiled and shook her head before getting into the driver's seat. Soon they pulled in at the airport and ran inside, getting on the next flight to Rio de Janiero. They used the flight to find out how to get to the pit stop on a yacht at Urca Beach.
WATCHING THE SHOW AT THE ROBERTS
Harriet hit pause on the TIVO and rewound, "They didn't just...no way."
The rest of the group was in shock as well. They all were silent as they watched the scene a second time. "They have to win." The all said together and started to laugh and take bets.
MEANWHILE ON THE BUS HEADED TO CANCUN
Pete/David, Bernie/Anne, and Don/Graham sat talking about their lives and their children while the rest of the teams had a sing along, getting 24 hours away from the stress and competitivness of the game. They got to know each other a bit better. Gerry/Melissa because known as Ricky and Lucy along the way.
Melissa and Katie started talking about Melissa's job.
"So...what was your goal when you started working?" Katie asked.
"Well...I wanted to be able to have just one person say that life was made easier because I crossed their path." She smiled softly. "And my job has helped me to realize that goal over and over again."
Katie smiled as well. "Do you feel like you're a better person now because of your job?"
"I've learned a lot in the seventeen years as a social worker. I've learned how to make decisions, how to lead groups of people, how to deal with ALL kinds of personalities, how to see the best in people even in the midst of terrible circumstances. I've seen firsthand the resiliency of the human spirit, especially in children. I think my work has allowed me the incredible opportunity to experience the 'wonder of children', even before I had my own. I love my job, it gives me satisfaction, challenge, and an opportunity to do things that I've never done before. It stretches me."
"What made you want to do it?" Asked Andy who had begun to listen in.
"Well,my mother was a social worker and she worked with troubled teens when I was a child. I saw the pain that these kids faced and how she helped them and decided that I wanted to do that too. I count myself lucky that I knew what I wanted to be since I was sixteen. Not everyone get to have that level of clarity at such a young age."
"Do you ever regret it?" Bev asked.
"No, not really. The only 'regret' I have ever even remotely had was when I had Brandon, my son, and had to leave him at daycare instead of staying home or having a babysitter or something because the pay was so low. But I've had a remarkable career so far. I've had unbelievable opportunities that would NEVER have come my way in the business world. I have always considered it a privilege to be able to do a job that connects with my faith, even though there are challenges sometimes between my professional ethics and my personal ethics. But when the day is done, it has been a great fit for me."
"How hard it is emotionally?" Donna asked.
"Well, right now I'm the CASA program coordinator for the Department of Criminal Justice services for the state of Virginia. It's probably the 'easiest' job for me emotionally on a day to day basis. I've had other jobs when I worked directly with children and families and found that to be VERY hard emotionally because you have to see the problems up close and personal. The job I have now is administrative and allows me to make a difference from afar. The stress of this job comes from the magnitude of the responsibilities. It's a HUGE job and sometimes it feels WAY bigger than me."
They continued to talk about their jobs and families and catch up on sleep for the rest of the trip.
When they arrived in Cancun, they sprinted to the SUVs and drove to San Marino Marina, which they had located during the bus ride.
Bev/Andy arrived first and ripped open their clue. "Detour."
~~In this Detour, the teams will have to choose between "Manpower" and "horsepower." In "Manpower", teams use a kayak to search an area of the lagoon for the next route marker. The paddling can be tiring, but the area that they have to search is smaller. In "Horsepower", teams use a wave runner to search for the route marker. It requires no physical strength, but the area is much larger.~~
"Manpower?" Andy suggested and Bev agreed. They ran over to the kayaks and got in, beginning their search for the route marker.
Gerry/Melissa were right behind them, followed by Pete/Dave and Don/Graham.
Bernie/Anne and Donna/Katie chose "horsepower".
MEANWHILE RIO DE JANEIRO
Harm and Mac arrived at the airport and sprinted out to the waiting SUVs. They drove quickly to the docks and used the spotted the yellow flags on the yacht. They sprinted up and onto the mat.
"Harm and Sarah, you're the first team to arrive."
Harm gave her his flyboy grin. "Only eight more legs to go and..dun duh duh duh...At this rate, you'll be Mrs. Harmon Rabb Jr. in no time."
Mac laughed softly. "Yeah yeah." She headed over to the rest area, Harm right behind her.
BACK IN CANCUN SANTA MARINO MARINA
Gerry/Melissa came across the clue first and headed back to shore. "Drive to and take the ferry to Cozumel and find the next route marker at Chankanaab Park." They pulled out the map and found the route to the ferry station and took off, Andy/Bev and Katie/Donna right behind them.
Soon the rest of the teams were following along as well. The teams boarded the ferry to the Park and took a moment to enjoy the sun. When the ferry pulled into the station the teams ran to the box of clues.
Gerry/Melissa ripped theirs open first. "Roadblock...be ready to take a swim. I'll do it." Melissa said.
~~In this roadblock, the team member will swim with a family of dolphins, using them to get the clue at the bottom of the lagoon.~~
Melissa got the wet suit on and got into the pool. After being shown the signals she'd need, she swam into the lagoon and used the dolphin's fin to go down to the bottom and get the clue. When she got out, Andy went in followed by Katie, then Pete, Don and finally Bernie.
They ripped open the next clue. "Fly to Rio de Janeiro and find the marked yacht at Urca Beach.." The teams sped to the airport. Gerry/Melissa, Andy/Bev, and Donna/Katie were on the first flight while Pete/David, Don/Graham, and Bernie/Anne got on a flight that left thirty minutes later.
URCA BEACH RIO DE JANEIRO
The teams raced to the pit stop. Gerry/Melissa arrived first. Two minutes later, Andy/Bev arrived. One minute after that, Donna/Katie arrived.
Thirty one minutes later, Pete/David arrived. Five minutes after that, Bernie/Anne arrived. And a minute after that, Don/Graham arrived. "Don and Graham. You're the last team to arrive. Fortunately, this is the first of four non-elimination rounds, so you're safe. Congratulations."
They sighed in relief and joined the rest of the teams in the rest area where it was almost time for Harm and Mac to take off on the next leg of the race.
TBC