The Joker and the Thief
Chapter 2
***TRANSLATIONS***
nayto= ready
oayr= yeah
Enjoy!
I'm doing it. I'm going to Luca, or at least that's where I'm starting. I'm packed and ready to go. I've finally had enough of watching time go by without any sense of purpose, and I'm starting to get really damn bored. I talked it all over with Vydran and he gave me the go ahead pretty enthusiastically because I think he could tell something wasn't quite right. I'm a terrible liar, and I guess it showed.
I give my room a final lookover to make sure I'm not forgetting anything I'll need.
"You 'bout ready, darlin'?" Pops asks me from the doorway.
"Yeah, yeah. Just about," I say. I've planned to travel light. I've got some clothes, a few toiletries and a CommSphere packed nice and neat into one bag. I don't need much. I sling it over my shoulder as I give Pops a hug. He pats my back.
"Buy me somethin' nice in Luca," is obviously his way of saying "I love you, I'll miss you, stay safe and in touch." He's not one for goodbyes, and I can't fault him for it because I'm not either. I have no idea how long I'll be gone. It could be anywhere from a month or two to a year or two. I'm so scared, but I'm so excited. I have to find myself out there. Oh man, that sounds so silly doesn't it? Yeah, it does, don't answer that. I know how cliché it sounds, but it's the truth. Last year, I did everything I could to make sure Yuna found herself, and I'm so happy that she did. Does it sound like I'm rationalizing things? Maybe I just feel guilty about leaving Home, but it's not like there's anything to do here that requires me. Gosh, I really gotta get over this. Traveling the world's going to be a drag if I don't lighten up!
Brother is the one flying me to Luca, so I'm really [not] pumped about facing the puppy-dog eyes he's going to give me when I leave, or rather when he leaves. He and I are going to watch the Psyches play when we get there. He's staying the night in my hotel room tonight and then flying back in the morning. It's not long, but it's a rough trip to make twice in a day, especially with the winds as rough as they are this time of year.
I step aboard the Alpha for the first time since a crew dug it up out west a couple of months ago. It's a small four-seater, and now that it's part of our "fleet", it makes trips to the rest of Spira a lot more convenient and tons more efficient. We've been calling it the Alpha because there's been talk of other small airships like these and the possibility of even building them. It's been Brother's baby for weeks. Since it was deemed air-ready, he's been itching to get it airborne. It's a win-win situation for the both of us, I guess. He's already in the pilot's seat. I stuff my bag in to an overhead compartment of sorts and sit next to him. He's practically buzzing with excitement.
"Nayto?" He exclaims.
"Oayr!" I shout back with a smile. He then proceeds to make weird growling noise as he starts the engine. Typical. As we take to the air and I begin to see less sand below me and more sky above me, I feel like a weight has lifted off me. Everything is possible and the world is my oyster. Come to think of it, I never really understood what that meant. Why have the oyster when you could just have the pearl? Whatever. It doesn't matter because they're both mine now.
We are silent for a good half hour before Brother asks me why I'm leaving in the first place, and it's just the best I can do to tell him that I need a vacation. He doesn't understand because we've been home from saving the world for about six months now. This time at Home has been a vacation for him. Vacation is the best I can come up with though, but since he needs further explanation, I elaborate. I tell him that I finally want to see Spira and explore the world on my own time totally stress free, and that's enough to sate his curiosity for now.
Another half hour later, and the stadium is a glint in the distance, and it won't be long now until we're back on solid ground.
"You think the Psyches are gonna win? Things haven't been looking to great this season," I ask. As the glint gets bigger, I am surprisingly excited about watching the game. Brother makes a face between worry and a bad smell.
"They will be CREAMED!" he sobs, and although I agree, I become concerned with his lack of attention to the sky in front of him.
"I know," I say. "It's going to be a super easy win for the Fangs." Brother's eyes are now back on target as he grumbles in agreement.
I can't wait to stretch my legs once we land. It's not like we've been in the air for too long, but being cooped up is being cooped up, whether it's in your own home or in a vehicle, and I have had plenty of that lately.
"We are here!" Brother announces. It's not like I'd dozed off. We were just talking like, two minutes ago. I nod my head dramatically.
As he prepares to land the ship in the harbor, bystanders look on, totally mesmerized. Brother deploys the floats and we make a soft landing. You don't see something like this ship every day. It is a neat little thing and Brother will be the first one to defend it.
Once we're sure the ship's stable, I grab my bag out of the overhead compartment. I step out first, and brother comes out behind me so that he can lock the thing up properly. He may seem crazy, but I know he knows what he's doing. My feet touch the ground and it's instantly humming with potential and adventure.
"Where to first?" Brother slings his arm around my shoulders and I throw mine around his waist.
"Rin's!" I say with satisfaction. I dropped Rin a line about week ago and told him what I was up to: self-exploration and all of that. He's really the only one I've been so open with about my "confinement" issues. I told Pops I was leaving to do some exploring and sightseeing, but he didn't ask questions and I didn't offer up motives. He can be so brash sometimes; I just didn't feel like going through the trouble of defending my decisions.
I sure told Rin though. He knows that I'm trying to forge my own path and grow as a person. He's always been like an uncle, but more importantly, a friend, especially in the past month or so. Maybe it was easy enough to tell him because he's done what I'm going to do. He's been everywhere and turned his passion for travel into a lucrative business. Maybe it's because he'd seen me numerous times through the past few years with Yunie and saw how much I liked to see new things.
Anyway, after I spoke with him, he told me I could stay for free at his new agency in Luca. He really fell in love with the city after he got into Sphere Break, so he left his mark on the place. I'm not one to turn down anything free, so I happily accepted the offer.
"Riiiiiin!" Brother screeched. He startled at least two people.
I flag down a hover and direct the pilot to Rin's, and we speed off. Brother is hanging off the side with his tongue out like a dog. I'm just trying to keep from eating all my hair. You think hovers are fast when they almost run you down, and then you realize you don't know speed until you've actually ridden one. We get to Rin's in about five minutes. I thank the pilot and pay him, and he speeds off. I don't expect Rin to be here so I give the clerk my name and she gives me the key to my room, and I thank her. Brother follows me to the room, and I'm surprised at how large it is. I put my bag down and toss brother a pillow from the bed to use. He puts it on the couch that's in the room. He looks around while I regroup. I make sure to pick up our tickets for the game and some extra gil. I grab my room key and ask him if he's ready to go out to lunch. He assures me that he is with a look that says he hasn't eaten in a week, which is obviously a lie. I laugh as I close the door behind us. We walk the streets of Luca in search of all things yummy. We decide on a café called The Nautilus, and as this is a seafood restaurant, the experience is not complete without an octopus mime from Brother as we are seated. He orders calamari (octopus on the brain, I suppose) and I order sashimi. It's really good and so I make a mental note to come back here at some point during my stay. I give Brother a stern look every time he starts to get a little too playful with the tentacles on his plate. I guess some things will never change, but I'm okay with that, because I know I have a lot of change coming my way as it is, and whether it's on a plate or not, I just hope I haven't bitten off more than I can chew out here on my own.
Thoughts? This one wasn't that dialogue-heavy, but I wanted to build up some plot and backstory. What do you guys think of this in present tense? Does it work? Rate and review, please and thanks.