Armin grunted, still half-asleep, and turned his head away from her.

'...Go'way...'

{Dianne seems to find this amusing. Lying back down next to him, she nuzzles the back of his neck.}

Dianne: "Wake uuuup, little vampire. Time to go."

{She says in a sing song voice.}

He tensed slightly, refusing to open his eyes.

'...'M not little, I'm bigger th'n you... Go away...'

Esme yawned, seeming to be awake rather more quickly. She stepped on Armin's feet and looked down at him.

{Laughing, she then nips the back of his neck playfully, squeezing hi9m tightly.}

Dianne: "Come now, don't make me pick you up and carry you downstairs."

'You're mad,' he complained, waking up a little more and cracking his eyes open. 'It's 6AM, it's dark, and it's freezing. And I don't even have a jacket anymore. You at least have Jerry's coat...'

Dianne: "Armin, you agreed to this. Look, I'll wear a blanket, and you can wear Jerry's coat until we get flying, ok? But we need to go now."

Armin grumbled unhappily. 'I never wanted to get up at the ungodly hours for this.' He grudgingly pulled himself up, grabbed his clothes from across the room, and trudged into the bathroom to change. Esme jumped off the bed and ran downstairs, seeming excited to be up during darkness.

{Shaking her head goodnaturedly, Dianne gets dressed and heads downstairs to wait for Armin, wrapped in a blanket and holding Jerry's coat.}

Rex was sitting on the couch, drinking coffee. He stood up when Dianne appeared.

'I got up to see you off,' he said gruffly. He then looked Dianne over, as if sizing her up. 'Please, for the love of the gods, don't let him die. I know you're going on vacation, but I do not trust that man when it comes to his own safety.'

{Dianne looked surprised to see Rex. That surprise then turned to a look of understanding.}

Dianne: "Don't worry, Rex. I'll keep him safe, for all of our sakes. I'll keep his reckless behavior in check."

Rex nodded, sipping his coffee as if to settle his nerves.

'I suppose, at least, you're not going so far this time.'

Armin then came into the room, looking marginally more awake, dressed in his blue sweater and jeans, and carrying his shortsword.

'You can keep the coat, actually. I think I'll be fine in this. Did we already put all the stuff we need in the car, or do we have to gather it up now?'

Dianne: "We prepacked all of our clothes, food, and supplies and have them out at my house. Once we get there, we'll load it up and be on our way. However, if there are any last minute additions, and you haven't forgotten Fred's gifts, now is the time to get them."

Armin scratched his jaw. 'I left the things Fred gave us in the car when we came home yesterday, so it'll still be in there... Let's go, then.'

He turned to Rex, waiting until the younger man put his coffee down before pulling him into a hug.

'Be careful,' said Rex. 'And have fun. Honestly, I'd come with you, but since I just got this job...'

'You can arrange to come next time. For now, just focus on your job and look after yourself. We won't be gone long, and we'll be in contact.'

He briefly pressed his face into Rex's hair before slowly letting go. With their goodbyes done, he started to walk for the exit, followed by a curious Esme.

Dianne: "Goodbye, Rex. We'll see you in a week or so." {Putting her coat on, she follows Armin and Esme outside.}

Stepping out into the cold early morning, Armin shivered slightly as his body adjusted to the temperature. A faint glow was appearing on the horizon, showing the encroaching sunrise.

Unlocking the truck, he climbed into the driver's seat and put his sword on the floor by his feet. Fred's gifts had been left in the back of the truck.

{Dianne scoops up Esme and hops into the passenger's seat.}

Dianne: "Ok, let's get going."

Armin headed off to the edge of the city, glancing back at his house once as they left. He said nothing for the entire drive, seeming a little drowsy still. When they got to Dianne's house, he stopped the truck.

'Shall I come in and help you get everything?'

Dianne: "Sure. I'd appreciate the help."

{Hopping out, she whistles to Titan, who emerges from the barn. Heading inside, all their luggage was sitting in the foyer.}

Eyeing the collection of luggage, Armin grabbed a few things at random and started to carry them back to the car, not caring what they were. He just wanted to hurry up and get moving so he could catch up on sleep.

{Dianne followed him out with as much as she could carry. Once there, she started to lay down sleeping pads and blankets, before going back inside to get the last of the luggage.}

Armin left her to retrieve the remaining supplies while he waited in the truck, drowsily eyeing everything over. A rush of odd nostalgia hit him. //Well, this certainly brings back memories...//

{Dianne returned momentarily, closing up the back, patting Esme on the head, then sitting in the passenger's seat.}

Dianne: "Ready, Armin?"

Armin looked over at her in the passenger seat, yawning.

'So... aren't we taking flight now?'

Dianne: "Yes. Titan?"

{With that, Titan picks up the truck, along with their crate of supplies, and starts flying north. After they were on their way, Dianne gets up, takes off her coat and shoes, and lies on the sleeping pads in the back.}

Dianne: "Here, Armin."

{She says, patting the space beside her.}

Esme had hopped up onto the vacated passenger seat, excitedly watching the dark scenery rush by as they took off. It seemed unlikely that she was going to fall asleep again for a while.

Armin all but collapsed onto the sleeping pad, letting out a long breath. 'Now I'm just gonna sleep for like, seven more hours... don't mind me.'

{Pulling the blankets over them both, Dianne snuggled up to him, sighing contently.}

Dianne: "Here, I'll join you. We've a long way to go.."

Armin moved just enough to snuggle into her, enjoying the extra warmth even if the cold wasn't so acute to him.

'Eh, it's two days... that's nothing compared to last time...'

Dianne: "That's true. We'll be having a good time in no time at all..."

{After that, she settles in to sleep, being quite tired this early as well.}

(Who was that weirdo that commented earlier?)

Armin almost immediately dozed off, not being alert enough to reply or anything else.

(So, where now? Do you want to skip straight to the day of arrival, or should we do anything else first?)

(I have no idea, but they're blocked now
I either delete or block all the randos who comment on these)

(I have nothing planned. They will arrive the evening of the next day. I can skip to that if you'd like.)

(Alright, go ahead.)

---------------------------------------

{After an uneventful day and a half, the sun was setting as Alexandria came into view on the horizon. Dianne was settled into the passenger's seat, listening to the radio and enjoying the view.}

Dianne: "There it is. Jewel of the Northern Valley. Alexandria."

Armin had been sitting on the floor in the back, playing with Esme. The rubber ball from Luxia's shop was aimlessly rolling around on its own, followed by the intrigued dragon. At Dianne's voice, Armin got up to look out the window.

'Oh, yeah... there it is... Looks quite beautiful in the sunset, doesn't it?'

Dianne: "Yeah, it does. Ok, here's how this is going to work. Titan is going to land a good distance from the city, out of sight. You will then drive us in, to a hotel called The Canopy. That's where I made the reservations. Once we check in, we'll find a nice restaurant to get food from. Sound good?"

Armin nodded, moving to clamber into the driver's seat in preparation. 'Alright. You'll have to direct me to exactly where the hotel is.'

Dianne: "Of course. I brought this map of the city with me, from last time we came here."

{After a few minutes of flying, Titan landed and set the car down.}

Titan: "Ok, have fun, you three. See you here in a week's time."

Esme squeaked when she heard Titan's voice, gazing at the ceiling.

Armin started the engine. 'Alright, let's head off. Food and a comfortable hotel room awaits.'

The truck began to roll towards the city, basked in sunset glow. When they reached the outskirts of the city itself, Armin slowed down a little to wait for directions.

Dianne: "Ok, keep going. The street you're looking for is called Tannis..."

{Dianne continued to guide Armin through the streets until they reached a large hotel with big red letters: The Canopy.}

Armin slowly drove around the hotel until he found a parking space big enough for the truck, gazing around alertly as he did so.

//Huh, it's still weird how diverse this place is... I think there's a werewolf over there... And there's a vampire couple with a kid... adopted, I guess...//

{Dianne scoops up Esme, then hops out and heads to the back to get their luggage.}

Dianne: "Ok, let's get our stuff and check in."

Armin helped pull out the luggage, carrying most of it, since Dianne had Esme. Once they had everything they needed (keeping the explosives safely hidden in the glove compartment), he started to head up to the hotel entrance.

{Once they entered, they were greeted by a saytr, smiling pleasantly.}

Clerk: "Hello, welcome to The Canopy. Do you have a reservation?"

{Dianne proceeds to check them in, getting the keys.}

Armin glanced at the satyr clerk, then proceeded to gaze around the area while Dianne checked in. //Hm. That must be a dragonshifter family over there... They have a baby dragon who's too young to shift, like Esme...//

He shook himself out of his musings and turned to Dianne. 'Got the keys?'

Dianne: "Yes. Our room is on the fifth floor."

{She then walks for the elevator. Once they get to the room, Dianne unlocks it and steps inside.}

Armin followed her into the room, eager to see what it looked like. Esme was sniffing the air everywhere they went, utterly intrigued by this strange city full of new sights and smells.

{The room was quite large, with two beds, a night stand, a spacious bathroom, and a giant, hd tv.}

Dianne: "Hmm, luxurious."

'Aah, this is nice,' said Armin appreciatively, dropping the luggage he'd been carrying onto the floor. 'Cosy, but quite luxurious... Good thing there's two beds; I wouldn't want to be sleeping on the floor,' he added, as a joking reference to their previous hotel stays.

{Dianne chuckles at the notion.}

Dianne: "Yeah, that floor looks pretty uncomfortable. Good thing we're on good terms."

Armin gave the room a final look-over.

'Well, I guess we'd better go find a restaurant. Did you already pick a place out, or are we going to drive around until we find a good one?'

Dianne: "Let's just have a look around. I feel like having burgers."

'Burgers... Alright, let's go and look around. There must be plenty of eating places within a few minutes' drive from here.'

Armin led the way out of the room, taking the elevator back down, then stepping outside and getting into the truck. It was getting quite dark by then, and the air was chilly.

{With Esme in hand, Dianne followed him to the truck. As they passed, the street was abuzz with people and species of all kinds. Unlike everywhere else they went, no one looked at them twice, or gave them harsh looks. Here, they were just like everyone else.}

Armin slowly drove off while scanning the streets, both to search for a food place and to admire their surroundings.

'It's strange,' he remarked. 'I'd expect people to be getting into fights, or just... not be walking around so confidently in the open. It's not like Sovereign, or even Shacklestone. Nice, though.'

Dianne: "You do know why though, right? Very few humans. Consider that nice Satyr boy who greeted us. His race and my race have no beef. In fact, do any of the non human races have any long standing grudges? Other than the vampires and werewolves, of course. The point is, humanity has had bad blood with just about all non-humans for as long as the world has existed. Their fear and hate is why we are made to suffer in their societies."

'That's true. Humans seem to have a tendency to ruin things. I'm sure the world would be much more peaceful if they didn't exist.'

He shrugged slightly.

'But, then maybe things would be too easy...'

Dianne: "Vampires were once human. If they didn't exist, neither would you. They can be an unpleasant people, but they're not all bad. Jerry, and a few other of his family just to name a few."

'Yeah. But I guess what I meant is, maybe we need humans for other reasons. Look how arrogant some non-humans are. Always bragging about their powers, and strength. Maybe we need humans to remind us that we can lose, too. Maybe our struggle to adapt and survive among them has made us better as people.'

He dropped his philosophical tone and continued to search for food joints.

Dianne: "That's a good point. I think you're right. We are better for it, having to complete against them."

{Looking up, she sees a restaurant in the distance called Ham Slam. Judging by the number of people eating there, it was quite popular.}

Dianne: "How about that one? Looks like a burger joint."

'Yeah, this looks nice enough.'

Armin made a beeline for the burger restaurant. It took a while to find a parking spot, what with the number of people going in. Once parked, he jumped out and headed for the doors.

{Hoisting Esme onto her shoulder, Dianne follows him in. As they stood in line, she takes a moment to look at the menu.}

Dianne: "Hmmm...I'll get Esme and I some burgers, and fries...Want anything?"

Esme eagerly sniffed the air, standing on Dianne's shoulder. Besides the delicious smell of food, she could also smell other dragons. And lots of other people. It was much more diverse than she was used to.

'I wouldn't mind a cheeseburger,' Armin mused. 'And some fries... and Coke... and if they've got any desserts, we should get dessert too.'

Dianne: "Only dessert they seem to have are chocolate shakes...Eh, I could go for one of those..."

'Chocolate shakes? Get me one. I'll have it with dinner,' said Armin, looking intrigued. 'I haven't had one of those in a while.'

As they entered the busy restaurant, he looked around for an empty table. Spotting one near the corner, he elbowed Dianne and nodded towards it.

{Dianne looks over at the table.}

Dianne: "Here, take Esme and sit there. I'll order our food and come over."

Armin carefully took Esme off Dianne's shoulder and strolled over to the table, passing several people along the way.

//Damn, it's almost overwhelming... All the different species, the scents...//

He sat down, placing Esme in the seat beside him. 'Stay there,' he warned, and the dragonet settled down obediently to wait.

{Dianne was in line for a few minutes before she was able to order their food. She comes over to the table with a little number standee and sits.}

Dianne: "It will be a few minutes."

Esme squeaked in greeting when Dianne came back. Armin was still gazing around the crowded restaurant.

'I still can't get over how many /different people/ are in here. I'm just not used to seeing... vampires, and elves, and things... all together in one place.'

{Dianne pats Esme on the head as she sits down.}

Dianne: "I don't understand why it's so hard for you to fathom? This is a much more civilized city than Soveriegn. No one has any reason to bicker amongst themselves."

'I know that. It's not that I don't understand it. It's just that this level of tolerance is a new sight to me - as someone who grew up in Vallis. It's all very nice; it just feels a little bit surreal to me.'

{Dianne just chuckles.}

Dianne: "No wonder you jumped at the chance to travel with me. You've been staring at the same old human cities for two hundred years. Yeah, I think it will do you good to see the world."

'You don't know how boring Shacklestone is when you're spent 260 years living there and seen everything there is to see. Yeah, I'm glad for the opportunity to travel around. And you've probably been to a lot of places, so you know where's best to go.'

Dianne: "Yeah, I've been all over this continent. And a few others. Lots to see out there, that's for sure."

(Posting new room)