The first chapter with Jak and Daxter. Some spoilers for the ending of "Jak 3" and "The Lost Frontier" ahead, so beware. And imagine Jak with his "Jak 3" appearance again because I like it better. He needs some facial hair. He looked odd without it in "The Lost Frontier".

Chapter 11: Haven City

A blocky, blue transport swooped down over the bustling port of Haven City. It was a wonder such a thing managed to fly, as its largely rectangular shape didn't seem conducive to actions of that sort, but it did well enough. It stopped at a large, circular walkway, at the center of which stood one of two squat towers, and lowered the back door, which doubled as a walkway for disembarking passengers. Out stepped a most peculiar pair.

A young man, likely in his early 20's, with a pensive look that said he had seen much more in his young life than most ever would, sporting a green goatee and green hair that melted into blonde. Even more peculiar was the creature perched atop his left shoulder, an orange animal reminiscent of a weasel, but not quite, wearing blue pants and goggles, leaning casually against the side of the man's head.

The creature stretched and yawned in an exaggerated fashion. "I'm pooped, Jak. Let's say we stop on by the Naughty Ottsel, then, call it a night."

The man grinned, reminding any who had forgotten that he was still indeed young. "Sure thing, Dax."

Jak and Daxter headed along the walkway built out over the port, the sun reflecting off the water as it started to sink over the western horizon, preparing itself to bring daylight to a whole new section of the world. Jak scanned the city ahead. No signs of trouble. For once. Like Jak, Haven City had encountered more than its fair share of misfortune, but the last battle fought here was now several years in the past, giving people time to recover. And perhaps even forget. But, Jak didn't forget, or Daxter, or any of their other allies that had fought on the frontlines, for that matter.

He still remembered his first span of time spent in the city, the skyline had been overpowered by the most imposing structure, the palace of the tyrant Baron Praxis. When it had been knocked down, it had destroyed half the city, but now that the city was restored to better than what it was before, it was a relief to see that place gone. Like a large omen had been hovering over them and was finally knocked out of the sky. Perhaps there was a chance for peace now. Soldiers in blue armor still patrolled the streets, but for the purpose of just that, patrolling, and nothing more. There was no longer any need for the guns they carried, and Jak hoped there wouldn't be for a long time.

They arrived in front of the Naughty Ottsel, a large (and tacky, but Jak would never say it) statue of the bar's owner standing above the doorway with devil horns, a pitchfork, and a devious grin (even though anyone who had known the ottsel for an extended period of time would have said the extra adornments were redundant).

"Time to see my lady," Daxter said, nearly taking on the look of the statue over the door.

When they walked in, they (well, Daxter, to be more precise) were greeted by a squeal. Tess (who had since gotten used to her new ottsel form after being turned into one by the Precursors themselves several years prior) was standing on the counter, her arms stretched out in front of her, hopping with joy.

"My Daxie-poo, oh, I missed you!"

When they reached the counter, Daxter jumped down to join her. "Missed you, too, my sugar plum."

Tess giggled (doing nothing to dispel the long-held stereotypes of those with blonde hair) and wrapped her arms around Daxter, pulling him close and giving him a big kiss, which he was more than happy to reciprocate.

Sitting at one of the barstools nearby was a gruff looking man with red hair and a large tattoo adorning his face. "Does this still creep you out, too?" Torn asked, in a voice rough enough to match his face.

Jak glanced at the two ottsels only a second more before looking away. "Yeah."

Torn took a large drink from his glass. "So, I hear you two've been out exploring the Brink again? How was it?" The man let out half a laugh, knowing full well how rough a place it was.

"Oh, you know, the usual. Plenty of sky pirates, like before, and we cleaned up more of those Dark Eco monsters and defective robots that were still on the loose. There was no shortage of things trying to kill us, just like you'd expect." Jak leaned his back against the counter, elbows resting on it, as much for comfort as for the purpose of facing away from the giggling, smooching ottsels.

"I see. And you showed 'em what for, I'm guessing."

Jak nodded.

"That's good. No thanks to the fleabag, I bet."

Daxter wasn't as oblivious to their conversation as the two men had believed. He looked back, clearly outraged. "Hey, tattooed-wonder, I don't see you doin' nothin'! While you were busy drinkin' all my liquor and bein' grumpy, I was fighting off all kinds of monsters! Wasn't I, Jak?"

"Well…"

"Ya see! Not that I was keepin' count or nothin', but I think I killed more goons than Jak did."

"Oh, I bet you did!" Tess said. "You must've been so brave!"

"I was, I really was." Daxter gave her a kiss on the nose, throwing her into another fit of giggling, then, continued. "Jak couldn't have done it without me. I had to rescue him more times than I care to say. Poor guy. He's hopeless. But, I forgive him for it."

Jak frowned at the ottsel, who was once again preoccupied with other things, before turning back to Torn.

"Well, I hate to admit it, but he's right," Torn said.

"What?" Jak asked, dumbfounded.

"About me not doing anything, I mean." He drank from his glass and wiped his mouth with the back of one hand. "Not much has been going on here. Not that I'm complaining, but while you two have been off adventuring, about the most excitement we got here was when a couple of Metal Heads snuck in through one of the city gates. Peace is great and everything, but I guess it just takes some getting used to, if you know what I'm sayin'."

Jak did. That's likely why Daxter and he went out to the Brink again, even after dealing with the problem with Skyheed. He would just get too bored living a normal life, he supposed. It wasn't that he enjoyed trouble. He was just drawn to it. Maybe he did enjoy it.

Torn finished his drink and slammed the glass down. "I guess I better be going." He got up. "I'll be seeing you two around."

Jak watched as the man left, then, turned to Daxter. "We should be leaving, too, Dax. Dax?"

"What?" The ottsel looked back, Tess still in his arms. "Can't you see I'm busy?"

"That's fine. Guess I'll just go home alone, then," Jak said, starting to head for the exit.

"Hey, wait up!" Daxter gave Tess one quick kiss on the cheek. "See ya later, sweet cheeks."

Tess kissed him back. "Bye bye, poopsie!"

"I am your poopsie."

"Yes, you are."

Daxter heard the door close. He jumped off the counter and ran for the door, screaming bloody murder. "Jak, come on! Don't make me walk all the way back! I'll get bunions, and I just put moisturizer on my paws!"

Finally, the ottsel caught up with his companion and clambered back up onto the man's shoulder. The sun had already gone down, and the two headed home. Some people still roamed the streets, but there was much more room to move around, while the occasional zoomer sped past above their heads.

People didn't have to fear so much anymore, even at this hour. The Freedom League had greatly reduced the number of muggings, and the random brutality of the Krimzon Guards was no longer an issue. Even the Metal Heads had since largely given up in their attempts to invade the city. Finally, Haven City was living up to its name.

But, for how long?

I find Torn rather difficult to write for. Jak, too, but not as difficult as Torn. Hopefully I did okay. Daxter and Tess are pretty easy, though. Please review.