(Dawn before the Relay)

*July 2nd, 1941*

*7:15pm*

*Alamo Square, San Francisco*

The evening was warm and beautiful as Anya and Linda were doing laps around the park in preparation for the event that was just in two days.

"You're pretty good. I have a feeling that we can truly win this race if we put all of our effort into it" Anya had spoken to her cousin while she and Linda stopped running so they could walk instead.

"Thanks, Same for you. I'm still kinda nervous about the race that's coming up but I have this feeling that we could win since I have you and Alexander as my partners so I guess I shouldn't worry too much" Linda had responded back as she and Anya continued to walk around the beautiful alamo square park.

"I agree with you. We gotta focus on preparing ourselves for the big day that's in two days so I was wondering. Do you wanna take turns doing two laps around the park? I wanted to test our stamina and speed since we'll all need that '' Anya had asked her cousin as she was met with Linda nodding her head in agreement.

"Sure, that doesn't sound too bad so let's get this practice started" Linda had spoken back to her cousin as she got ready for another practice session by doing stretches while Anya did the same thing.

"Nice! I'll go first and you track my time using this stopwatch, okay? Be sure to tell me the time as well" Anya had advised Linda as she handed her the stopwatch before getting ready to begin her run.

"Got it and It's two laps, right? I'll be sure to track everything for you" Linda had spoken back as she was met with Anya nodding her head in confirmation as the girls were ready to begin their short session.

"Ready, Set, GO!" Linda cried out once more as she started the timer which was Anya's signal to run as the young girl began to run across the park.

"I can't let Linda and Alexander down so I gotta put all of my effort into this practice session as if I'm doing the actual event!" Anya had thought to herself as she continued to run across the beautiful square park for a few more seconds as she eventually made her first lap which only took roughly one minute and fifty seconds.

"Niccce, Your first lap's time is one minute and fifty seconds. Keep up the good work!" Linda had called out as she looked over to see her cousin continuing to run across the park until she completed her second lap which took two minutes.

"Whew, all of this running sure has me beat but what's my total time, Linda? I have a feeling that I did pretty good for a practice run" Anya had asked her cousin as she carefully sat down to catch a breather while Linda sat next to her.

"You did pretty good and your total time was three minutes and fifty minutes which isn't bad honestly but still very good nonetheless" Linda had spoken back as her comments made Anya smile.

"Thanks! I didn't do too bad honestly but I'm still happy regardless but let's see how well you can do compared to me, How does that sound?" Anya had spoken back as she let out a smile while Linda nodded her head in agreement.

"Sure but before we do, I just wanna apologize to you for my little outburst on our first day here. I was honestly in a bad mood and I know that shouldn't be an excuse but I hope you can accept my apology…" Linda had spoken out to her cousin in a tone of remorse as she looked over to see Anya giving a reassuring smile.

"I accept your apology. We all have our bad days and stuff but we shouldn't allow that to dictate how we feel or perceive things but that's how I feel so don't beat yourself over it, okay?" Anya had spoken back as her comments made Linda smile back in relief as she stood up in the process.

"Thanks! I'm glad that you accepted my apology but wanna finish our practice session before it gets too dark" Linda had asked her cousin in a tone of relief as she was met with Anya nodding her head in agreement.

"You're welcome and of course, I was just gonna bring that up as well but let's not waste anymore time and get things rolling" Anya had answered back as both girls prepared themselves for the practice session while Linda was ready to begin her two laps.

"Alright, I'm ready whenever you are." Linda had spoken to Anya as her cousin.

"Ready, Set, GO!" Anya had cried out as she started the stopwatch which was the signal for Linda to begin her two laps.

"I'm so damn nervous but I can't allow those fears to win. All it's gonna do is prevent me from doing what I need to do to win this race!" Linda had thought to herself as she continued to run her first lap which took roughly one minute and forty nine seconds as seen by Anya.

"Good job, Linda! You're doing great. Just don't give up and keep pushing!" Anya had thought to herself as she watched Linda running her final lap with great joy.

"Don't let my fear dictate everything. I gotta be more to myself and to those I care about!" Linda had thought to herself continuously as she continued to run the final stretches of the lap as she eventually completed her final lap which was followed by Anya reading out the time.

"Two minutes and forty nine seconds. You did wonderful, Linda! I'm sure we can win this relay race without a doubt" Anya had congulated Linda as she smiled and gave her a thumbs up which was followed with Linda doing the same thing.

"Thanks, It was your words of encouragement that truly helped me tonight so I should be thanking you, Anya…" Linda had spoken back to her cousin as both girls shared a warm smile together with they had motivation but more importantly, loved ones that they could count on.