{With everyone safely in the vehicle, Titan lifts off.}

Jack: "Wow. I've never flown by...Dead Air before. Eh? Eh?"

Dianne: "..."

Grace fell into a doze in the back of the truck, conserving her energy. Duke was gazing out of the back window. Everyone ignored Jack.

//Andisville's friendly to non-humans, right?// said Armin to Dianne. //Just checking.//

Dianne: "I guess so. If they're civilized enough to get their law enforcement involved, sure...."

{Although, she was silently nervous that the police of that town would recognize her. Grace couldn't walk, so she knew she'd have to help her get there.}

Armin didn't speak up again, although similar thoughts were running through his mind. //At least we're close to home now. Even if someone in Andisville recognises us, it's only a day or two's flight between us and safety... I just hope we can drop these guys off and leave without being recognised at all.//

Christie: "Um...I've been to Andisville before...they're pretty nice over there..."

Jack: "Yeah, I mean, after what happened to us, they'll be more concerned with that than anything else."

'I've never been there... but I'm sure they're fine...' murmured Grace sleepily.

Armin stayed quiet, trying not to show his concern. //Do these guys even know about the whole Agamidae thing? It doesn't seem like they recognise us. Maybe they don't know how dangerous being recognised could be for us.//

{Dianne stays silent, nervously stroking Esme.}

Jack: "...Hey, is that a radio? Let's get some tunes going."

//Help yourself,// Armin replied to Jack. //Just don't fight over it if you disagree on each others' music tastes...//

'Keep the volume down... and I'm fine with anything...' Grace murmured.

{Jack put the radio on low, settling for some country music.}

Christie: "...So...how long before we get there?"

Dianne: "An hour tops. It won't be long."

'Wake me up when we get there...' Grace muttered as she started to doze off. Duke just sat there alertly, his foot moving in time with the music.

Armin eyed Dianne for a moment, picking up on a hint of nervousness from her. However, he said nothing. All he could do was hope they wouldn't get recognised.

(Should we just skip the hour, and should we have them recognized?)

(We'll skip. And I think they should get recognised, just to cause them more stress. XD)

(Lol, k, I'll start.)

...

{After about an hour, Titan puts the truck down a little ways from the city.}

Dianne: "I'll fly you all to the city from here."

Duke, being closest to the doors, opened them and hopped out first. He nudged Grace awake as he did so.

'...Hrmm?' the sleepy dragon mumbled.

Armin jumped into the back of the truck and shifted back. 'C'mon, we're getting out. Nearly there.' He stood beside Grace and waited for Dianne to help him lift her outside.

{Dianne hands Esme to Barnabas, then proceeds to help Armin with Grace. Jack and Christie hop out before bnoticing the ghoul.}

Jack: "Woah! What is that?"

Christie: "Ah!"

Armin kept supporting Grace so she wouldn't keel over onto the grass. 'Don't worry about the ghoul,' he said. 'He's just an annoying nuisance, he won't hurt you.' He then muttered 'probably' too low for Jack or Christie to hear.

Dianne: "It's alright, he works for me."

Jack: "Woah. That's metal, lady..."

{After getting Grace off the truck, Dianne shifts.}

Dianne: "Ok, Grace, I'm going to carry you to the city. The rest of you can ride on my back."

Duke gazed up at Dianne with wide eyes. 'Wow, I've never flown on a dragon before,' he muttered as he climbed on. 'A few hours ago, I thought I might die, now I'm free and doing all these cool things...'

Armin shifted to hawk form, preparing to follow Dianne through the air. Grace just waited, slumped tiredly.

{Once Jack and Christie get on, she scoops up Grace and takes flight towards the city. As they approached, they could see police cars gathered on the outskirts, waiting for them to arrive.}

Dianne: //I hope this doesn't go sideways...//

Armin leapt into the air, flying slightly above Dianne so he wouldn't get knocked aside by her wings or tail. He kept his gaze on the approaching city, seeing lights, cars and moving figures in the semi-darkness.

{Dianne sets down in full view of the officers and shift back once everyone gets off. An officer with a megaphone calls out to them.}

Officer: "Step towards the vehicle with your hands up!"

Dianne: "Here we go..."

Duke hurriedly stepped forwards. 'H-hey, Officer, everything's good! Look, Jack's with us, you were looking for him, right?'

Armin shifted back as well, keeping beside Dianne, his posture tense.

{Dianne puts her hands up and slowly advances. Jack and Christie do the same.}

Dianne: "We have wounded. We need a doctor."

Jack: "It's ok, officer, they rescued us."

{A few officers holster their weapons and gently lead Jack, Christie, and Duke towards an ambulance.}

Armin glanced at the others, then cautiously put his hands up as well. Duke accompanied the officers, but glanced back nervously at his rescuers as he went.

Grace took a step forwards, then swayed and gently sunk down to the ground. 'Urgh...'

{The officers came to Grace, checking her over.}

Officer: "We need a paramedic over here!"

{A few others approach Dianne and armin with their guns drawn.}

Officer: "Put your hands behind your back."

Armin's gaze flickered between the policemen and their weapons. A familiar adrenaline was building up in his chest in preparation for a fight. He slowly put his hands behind his back. 'Mind telling us what we've done?'

Officer: "Quiet. We'll ask the questions."

{The officers advance to put them in handcuffs. Dianne looks around at them slowly, sizing up their odds.}

Dianne: //I could easily escape handcuffs, but can I get away without being shot?//

Before the officers got close enough to handcuff them, Armin sent Dianne a telepathic message. //Do we risk getting taken, or risk a fight? I'll follow your lead.//

{Dianne nods slightly to indicate that she understood. However, as one officer was putting the cuffs on her, another approaches, squinting. He reaches up and removes her helmet.}

Dianne: "Wha-Hey!"

{Once the officer looks at her face, he makes a horrified expression, darts back and goes for his radio.}

Officer: "Ah! Uh, c-chief, we got a code 10-29m! It's that necromancer from Agamidae!"

Dianne: "Oh screw this..."

{Breaking the handcuffs, Dianne punches the nearest officer and throws him into the ones with their weapons drawn.}
Dianne: "Run!"

Armin waited for Dianne to run first. He then took off in pursuit, deliberately keeping himself behind her so that the officers would have a harder time getting a clear shot at her. //Well, that went well...//

{Dianne scoops up her helmet then bolts. It doesn't take long for the rest of them to catch on and start shooting at them. Dianne then shifts and starts flying, trying to get out of range as quickly as possible.}

After Dianne took off, Armin shifted to hawk form. However, instead of immediately following her, he decided to circle round and dive at the nearest few gunmen from behind, screeching loudly and raking at them with his talons, trying to distract them from firing on Dianne until she got out of range.

{The policemen fired at Armin, but he was a small target, and therefore, hard to hit. However, he was successful in distracting them and Dianne got out of range, thinking Armin was behind her.}

//Ha! You call yourselves trained officers, but you can't even hit a bird?// Armin recklessly taunted the policemen with telepathy as he flew around them. He eventually noticed that Dianne was far enough away, and began to fly after her.

{The police officers began firing at Armin a he flew away. Dianne got to the truck, shifted back, and dove through the doors.}

Dianne: "Armin, let's go! Armin?"

{She looks back at the scene of him getting shot at.}

Dianne: "Damn it, Armin! Barnabas, make sure he gets back here in one piece!"

Armin veered sideways as a couple of bullets flew past, close enough to ruffle his feathers. The policemen behind him were still shooting, and there were a lot of them. He continued flying, hoping to get out of their range.

(Up to you whether he actually gets hit or not. XD)

(Not today, vampire boyo. XD)

{Suddenly, the police stopped shooting at Armin and were shooting at something else. Barnabas had appeared in their midst, lashing, slashing, and hacking at everyone. He was trying to buy Armin time to retreat.}

Armin took advantage of the distraction and flew the rest of the way back to the truck, swiftly darting inside and shifting back to human form. He leaned over, putting his hands on his knees as he regained his breath.
//Either those policemen are blind, or I have some kind of superhuman luck...//

{Dianne hurriedly closes up the back.}

Dianne: "Titan, get us out of here! Armin, come here."

{Not waiting for him to move, she grabs him and starts checking hi for wounds.}

'I'm fine,' Armin wheezed, out of breath both from the adrenaline and from dodging shots. 'No bullet holes that I'm aware of.'

{Letting him go, Dianne breathes a sigh of relief, then starts to berate him.}

Dianne: "What the hell was that? You could have gotten killed! Why didn't you stay behind me?"

Armin raised his eyebrows slightly. 'They could've shot you out of the sky. I wasn't planning to wait and see whether that would happen, so I distracted them to give you time to get out of range,' he said reasonably.

{Dianne takes off her helmet and rubs her face.}

Dianne: "Armin, those small caliber weapons could never have stopped me. I get it, but.....I felt like an unnecessary risk."

'The type of weapons they had wasn't on my mind,' said Armin shortly. 'I didn't have time to stop and /think/ about whether to act or not; it was instinctual.'

Dianne: "I know. You know what, there's no point in dwelling on it..."

{She proceeds to remove her armor and sit in the corner, on her bedding.}

Dianne: "Getting those people to safety was the only thing that mattered."

After a few moments, Armin sat down as well. He said nothing, but just leaned against the wall and closed his eyes, mulling over what had happened. It was late, and now that the excitement was over, he felt tired.

{Dianne sits quietly for a moment before beckoning Esme over.}

Dianne: "Well...on the bright side...We'll be home in about two days time."

'That's good...' Armin murmured. 'Will be nice to get somewhere safe. Or, /safer,/ at least...'

Esme considered Dianne for a moment before padding over, nudging at her like a cat.

{Dianne takes Esme into her arms and begins to settle down in her bedding.}

Dianne: "Safer is better. And, all our friends are there."

Armin lay back with a yawn, pulling the blanket over himself and very quickly getting settled. 'I'm glad we saved those people too. The blood traffickers had it coming to them.'

Dianne: "They did. Now, they are nameless fiends, rotting away in a dismembered pile. Unworthy cretans...."

{Pulling a blanket over herself, she hugs Esme closer and lie on her side.}

Armin briefly put up a hand to pet Esme. Then, lying comfortably beside the pair, he almost immediately slipped off to sleep.

...........

{The next morning, Dianne was asleep on her back, still holding Esme. Waking, she opens her eyes and looks around the back of the truck, remembering the events at the previous night.}

Esme was stirring. Finding herself a little too warm, she squirmed out of Dianne's hold and moved to lie on top of the blankets beside her instead.

Armin was lying on his front, his head resting on his arms. He seemed to still be fast asleep.

{Smiling, Dianne scratches under her chin. She then settles in and closes her eyes again.}

Dianne: //Not much longer before this trip is over. Guess we'll just make the most of it.//

After a while, Armin moved. Still half-asleep, he rolled onto his side, facing Dianne and Esme. He observed them for a moment, then yawned and briefly scratched Esme's head. //Nothing like rescuing some people from blood traffickers and then dodging police bullets to give you a good night's sleep...//

{Dianne opens her eyes sleepily upon hearing Armin move.}

Dianne: "Good morning...."

'Morning...' Armin murmured, drowsily closing his eyes again. Esme lay between them, on top of the blanket, dozing. '...You sleep well after the little adventure yesterday?...'

Dianne: "Yes, I did, knowing that we all made it out ok..."

{She yawns a bit before continuing.}

Dianne: "I've slept better this trip than I have for the past century."

'That's good, you definitely needed it,' said Armin drowsily, eyes still closed. 'Hopefully you'll continue to sleep well once we're home. And same. It's nice to actually sleep restfully for the whole night.'

Dianne: "Here's hoping..."

{She closes her eyes and settles in again.}

Dianne: "No point in getting up when we don't need to..."

Armin gave a low chuckle. 'That's something I can agree with...' He shifted a bit closer, careful not to roll on top of Esme. 'Does having Esme nearby really make this much difference to your sleep? That's pretty amazing.'

{Dianne replies sleepily, on the verge of dozing off.}

Dianne: "She does...I'm not entirely sure why though."

'Well, it's fortunate.'

Seeing that Dianne was dozing off, he fell silent. With a slight, fond smile at the pair, he settled down to sleep as well, snuggling down under the blanket.

.......

{A few hours later, Dianne awoke once again. This time, it was mid afternoon.}

Dianne: //Heh, slept in. Well, there's nothing to do so, it doesn't really matter...I am hungry though...//

Esme had wandered off a few minutes ago, and was now playing with her rock - clattering it noisily across the floor, then chasing after it. She seemed very well entertained by the simple activity.

Armin was still sleeping comfortably. Shortly after Dianne woke up, he rolled over in his sleep and ended up resting his head on her shoulder, with one arm lazily draped across her.

{Dianne raises her brows in surprise, then chuckles.}

Dianne: "Awfully familiar...."

{She decides to just lie there until he wakes up on his own.}

A few minutes later, Armin stirred slightly, then opened his eyes a crack.

'Huh... good morning... again. Or rather...' He squinted at the sky outside the truck window. 'Afternoon...'

Dianne: "Good afternoon."

{She grabs his arm, keeping him from moving it.}

Dianne: "You want to explain this...choice of positioning?"

Armin blinked when she touched his arm, looked down at it, then raised his eyebrows slightly. 'I was asleep. It's not like I did that consciously.'

{Dianne holds a serious face, but then starts laughing, letting go of his arm.}

Dianne: "Ahahaha. I'm just messing with you, I don't care."

Armin gave her a half-amused, half-exasperated look and stayed there, not moving his arm. He blinked drowsily, trying to wake himself up.

'Good... I was about to remind you of that time you grabbed me in your sleep.'

{Dianne just smiles at him, pulling him slightly closer.}

Dianne: "Enjoy the close proximity while you can. We'll be home soon."

'Oh, yeah... we won't be doing this once we're home...' he muttered, closing his eyes as he got more comfortable. 'I almost forgot.'

Dianne: "Yeah. You got your own bed back home. And I'd rather Ivy not use this as ammo against us...But, if you have trouble sleeping...You can join us..."

Armin sighed a bit. 'I guess I'll take you up on that offer. On bad nights. You know Ivy's going to assume things about us anyway, because we'll be living in the same house, right?'

Dianne: "I know. It's annoying though."

{She looks at the crate before continuing.}

Dianne: "I'm hungry now, so, I'm getting up."

Armin gave a quiet groan of protest, but reluctantly shifted away from her. He sat up, rubbing his eyes.

'So... how long did you say it'll be before we get home? Do you think we'll see Vallis by tomorrow?'

{Dianne stands and begins rummaging through the crate.}

Dianne: "We'll arrive tomorrow evening."

{With food in hand, and a pair of apples, she sits next to Armin.}

'Tomorrow evening, huh?' Armin yawned. 'It's kind of bittersweet. I'm definitely looking forward to getting back and seeing everyone again, but it also means this journey's over.'

Esme came over to get some food, leaving her rock in the corner.

Dianne: "Well, I'm glad you had fun, despite all the attempts on our lives. At some point, when everyone isn't trying to kill me, I'm going back to Alexandria to buy myself a new winter coat. You're welcome to join me on that if you wish."

{Dianne hands Esme one of the apples as she sat there, eating.}

(Posting new rooooom)