Rocket 88

[Yuki]

"How the hell did you tie with me?!"

Yuki gave Aiden an equally, if not more outraged glare as he stood stupefied by the outcome of the ride. "How the hell, indeed!" She pointed accusingly at their faction leader. "Clearly, I was the one in possession of the victory! This stupid, good-for-nothing ride of yours was nothing but a failure. The designers of this thing need to reprogram its accuracy!" If she was going to be forced to go on such a childish thing, the score should have been measured correctly! She crossed her arms, and looked over to the side as Teagan got off the ride.

New record?!

She glowered in disbelief. For once that day, she agreed with Aiden. But she was too angry to admit it. The prize for her "feat" consisted of three tickets to a show at the park. Yuki said nothing as the girl bounded towards them, and then proceeded to suggest that they go on more rides before the next show started. Anger boiled inside her, and she snapped at Teagan.

"No, I do not want to "check" anything out! This whole excursion is a waste of time!" ...Damn Aiden and his car keys! She then turned to him, and her tone became demanding. "We should be training. We should be hunting. We should be doing something productive, not wasting our time out in this...this dump!"

[Aiden]

Aiden glowered at Teagan, who was obviously amused that she had won out of the three of them. No doubt she had somehow pranked them, paid someone, rigged something, because they were moving through fast for the tunnels for her handicap to actually allow her to win the game, especially when Aiden knew where all of the targets were. This was not cool, nor was the fact that he tied with Yuki.

Sulking, he shrugged. "I don't really care about the shows here, they're stupid and the fighting in them is completely ridiculous--their punches are three feet away from the guy, and somehow he gets hit," he grumbled, taking a step away from the ride and towards the river of people that headed towards another area of the park.

When he turned around to get the group consensus on where to go next, Yuki blew up on him. He felt something inside of him snap, and he faced her dead on. "And if we were training, you'd just complain about how I was doing something wrong, or I didn't know what I was talking about, or how reading is a waste of time because you're Yuki, and you know everything," he challenged, a little miffed at her. "Tell you what, if training will get a thank you, or a smile, or something that isn't cold and hard as steel, then yeah, we'll go home and train.

"In the meantime, though, we're going on The Oregonian," he said, pointing to the largest roller coaster in the park, full of loops, spins, rotating carts, the works. It would be the perfect way to get rid of his anger by pumping adrenaline through his system. "Let's go," he said, knowing the line would be outrageously long.

[Teagan]

Teagan's excitement dwindled quickly as she stared in disbelief at her raging factionmates. They could go see a show! It would be exciting! A magic show where it was all just a trick and she could try to figure out how they were pulled! That was the teen's favorite part about magic shows; as a fellow trickster, she'd know what cues to spot and what hand gestures to keep an eye out for. Only twice in her lifetime had she failed to pick up on the secrets of the tricks. Somehow, her father managed to catch the slip she had missed and filled her in later, but the second time still confounded Teagan.

The best part about it was that the issue wouldn't be with a supernatural creature and the group could relax and enjoy the show. Didn't they see that? "This is a magic show-not a boxing match!" Teagan muttered after Aiden stormed off. Jeez, someone needed a chill pill. Scratch that- both Yuki and Aiden needed one. Couldn't they take one freakin' night off from training?

....at least Aiden still wanted to go on rides, she shook her head as he made his way to the line, waiting to see if Yuki followed before trailing behind as well. Teagan sent a silent prayer upward that there weren't many people in line; otherwise she envisioned the wait tripling in perceived time, and that would suck.

[Yuki]

Feeling a twinge of triumph as Aiden agreed with her on not going to the show, her moment of subtle glory was trampled by her faction leader as he (once again) opposed her demand to go train. But instead of just rejecting this demand, he flat out berated her. Insulted, Yuki snapped back in return, "I do not correct your actions because I 'know everything,' I correct them because they are wrong. We are engaged in a war with the supernatural," she said in harsh whisper, lowering her voice at the mention of the supernatural, "and yet you insist on ignoring that and squandering time in a useless manner when it could be used usefully!" Her voice began to raise as she approached him challengingly. "If you want a smile or a thank you, then you are looking at the wrong person. It is your duty to instruct, and therefore it need not be returned with a display of gratitude."

She backed away from him, turning her nose the other way in indignation. The fool! A smile and a thank you?! What kind of fairytale had he deluded himself into?! This was a battlefield, not Disneyland. She figured Aiden of all people would know this. She let out a scoff as he declared they would go on another ride, and trudged along grumpily as they started heading over to it, not because she wanted to, but because she had no where else to go. Walking back to the tavern was clearly out of the question, or else she would have done so ages ago. And what would she do if she wandered around the dreary amusement park? At least if she remained with her faction, there was a chance that Casey would send them on a real mission, instead of flaking again.

Once they arrived at the line, Yuki stood as angry and gloom-ridden as ever. The radius of do-not-come-near-me that had been in place earlier was once again prominent. Children even clung tighter to their mother's hands as Yuki walked past them, and one particular girl kept staring at her, but would then avert her gaze. She had closed her eyes in an attempt to ignore the child, but in her frustration, Yuki gave the child a glare that brought her to tears, likely from fright. She paid no regards to the scene, and instead continued in line. If she wasn't going to have things her way, she was going to make everyone else's day as miserable as hers.

[Aiden]

The line progressed rather quickly, even if the ride was longer than the typical thrity second adrenaline rush that other parks offered. The whole time screams of terror and excitement could be heard in the line below. People were amping up for the ride, even though Yuki was a ball of black wavy anguish straight out of one of her animes. Aiden completely disregarded the fact that she was miserable, because he was determined to make sure that at least he and Teagan were having fun for a change.

Finally the line broke, and it was as if light was blasting from behind the roller coaster to glorify its awesomeness. The people getting off were in the adrenaline daze, pumping with excitement and fun after their trip on the magnificent beast of a ride. With a grin on his face, Aiden pulled Yuki behind him and shoved her into the cart, and then sat in the middle, making room for Teagan next to him.

To be honest, it wasn't really a cart, but rather a apparatus that you pulled over your shoulders--he never told them there was no floor beneath them, but that their feet dangled in the air. That, and it rotated nearly any way you could imagine on the ride. Fire. Drops. Twists. Turns. X amount of miles per hour. Quite possibly the best ride in the country aside from one in California he'd been to a few years ago.

The ride let out a loud hiss as the hydraulics prepared to launch them on their way. The line of carts chugged forward, and began its epic ascent. It slowly rose on the mountain of a track, making its way to the inevitable drop. The tension rose, and someone behind them screamed loudly. Then, after what felt like an eternity, it started.

They dropped. They twisted. Upside down. Sideways. Upside down. Fire. Darkness. Sunlight. Amazing experiences that only lasted for split seconds, all the while the adrenaline in his system pumping out at a exponential rate. He clutched the handles as they whipped around a turn, and enjoyed the rest of the ride, even if it only lasted a couple of minutes.

When the ride ended, his stumbled off after pushing Yuki onto the platform, a grin plastered to his windswept face. "So, what did you guys think?" he breathed, moving them along and out of the crowd of exiting passengers.

[Teagan]

Teagan's eyes were wide as the ride slowly came to a complete stop back at the station. Her laughter rang throughout the open air, fueled by an adrenaline rush only brought on by terrifically terrifying situations. "That was so cool!"she said quickly. "Think the lines is still long? We should totally do that again!" She looked back to Aiden for a response, ignoring Yuki, who had taken the lone seat behind them. Like anyone had wanted to take the seat next to the elder girl. Her looks could melt the entire North Pole. "I haven't seen many rides incorporate pyrotechnics onto the track!"

Yeah, the ride had been amazing, completely blowing away her expectations for the night. She needed to pull this 'text-from-Casey' stunt more often to get a day off. This would do wonders for their stress levels...well, everyone's but Yuki's. That girl really needed to take a freakin' break. Perhaps if they bought refreshments later in the evening, she could try to slip an extra ingrediant to...lighten up the excursion out.

[Yuki]

The ride had been as annoying and unamusing as the rest of the park had been thus far. She had sat through the ride expressionless and silent, and when they got off, her countenance was opposite that of Teagan and Aiden's excitement. Fun? She didn't think so. Om fact, it was quite the contrary. When Aiden turned to them, asking them what they thought, she sent him another death glare. She was giving out a lot those today, but it could not be helped--a lot of people were deserving of death for this punishment-like day.

So when the girl suggested they go on again, Yuki sent her a death glare as well. They were not going on again. Why was it so hard for them to understand the necessity to train? At any moment, at any given time, anything could attack. So WHY were they wasting their time here?!

"If we 'go' anywhere, it should be home," she hissed under her breath.

[Aiden]

A wide grin was spread across Aiden's face, the adrenaline in his system working to release endorphins and altogether make him a happy person. Teagan was the same way, and as his gaze passed to Yuki, Aiden rolled his eyes. He reached over and hit her on the arm, getting her attention and playfully messing with her at the same time. "Come on, lighten up. Jeez. Does nothing in this world make you happy?" Aiden had this secret mental challenge for himself to get Yuki to smile and have fun, and so far that challenge hadn't been met.

He looked over to Teagan and shook his head when she suggested going again. "Nah, there's too much to do to waste time in line again." He stopped, surveying the park and trying to figure out where to take them next. He pointed to a tall tower, which at the moment released people waiting at the top, and sent them shooting downward at high speeds, only to bounce them back up and repeat the process.

"We're going on that," he said, leading the group. Unfortunately, the line was somewhat long, but Aiden knew how to pass the time. "Let's play twenty questions while we wait," he said, not leaving room for discussion. "Yuki, you can go first. So, what is your favorite thing about Portland?" If they were going to stand there, he might as well get to know if teammates better, right?

[Yuki]

As Aiden hit her, Yuki took her own hand and brushed away at the spot where his hand had made contact with her skin, making it seem as if he had left dirt residue on her arm, and she was whisking it away. A scowl quickly plastered itself on her face at his question. "Training would make me happy," she muttered under breath as Aiden dispatched the idea of going on the ride once again. Instead, he led them to yet another ride, this one consisting of a tall tower that dropped its riders. As Yuki trudged along with the rest of her faction, gloom infected her immediate atmosphere, and this persisted (and continued to persist) until and after they had reached the line.

The wait for the stupid ride was infernally long, and Yuki let out a groan, which practically turned into a growl as Aiden suggested they play twenty-questions. What was it with Aiden and games?! She wasn't even as enthusiastic over such things in her own childhood as he was now. Hell, even Teagan never suggested games as much as he did.

...Fine. He wanted her to play along? She would.

"You want to know what my favorite thing about Portland is?" she said, feigning a tone of calmness, which immediately became stern. "Training." She folded her arms, and cleared her throat. "Now for my question, and this one is for both of you: Why are we still wasting time here?"

[Teagan]

At some point along the way, Teagan had managed to snag a bag of popcorn. She playfully popped a few pieces in her mouth. "What makes you think this is a waste of time?" she asked before swallowing.

That answer probably wouldn't go over well with Yuki, if she knew the girl at all. "Look," Teagan absentmindedly rolled a piece of popcorn between her fingers. "Think of this as a form of training. A trust building exercise, if you will. We're going to spend awhile together, hunting demons, killing things, and in that time, I've got to know that I can trust you both to have my back. Yeah, sitting at the tavern watching you hit the target over and over again with your damned contraption might assure me that you might be qualified, but it ain't good enough if we get in a situation way over our heads. At that point I'd want to know I could trust you to get me out of it. But right now?" Teagan gave the girl a once over, noting the continued radiation of displeasure contaminating the environment.

"Right now I'm not sure I could count on you to be stable in certain situations. I mean, if Casey hadn't called off the assignment, do you really call this acting undercover?" She shook her head, disapprovingly. "A demon could spot you a mile away with that sour face."

Teagan lightly tapped Yuki on the face twice and winked. "So cheer up, friend. You're a college girl having a night out with friends. Act like it."

[Aiden]

A scoff escaped Aiden, but he couldn't help it when he heard Yuki's answer. He sighed himself and chewed on a few pieces of popcorn, ready to answer her when Teagan did. A trust building exercise? Well, they had been together for four months now, he would hope that she trusted them. And she probably did, but that would defeat the point of her argument, so he kept that small concern to himself. Instead, he listened to Teagan give her small, controlled rant, and when she finished, Aiden picked up where she left off.

"Look, I don't know about you, but Teagan and I like our small grasp on normal life, alright? Being happy keeps people sane. You wonder why I like spending so much time maintaining my car, or talking to Lori, or blasting music; you complain about it. Those things bind us to the real world. And if you want to spend all your time shoved up in a book you've already memorized or wasting ammunition on a target you know you can hit, then fine. Just don't think you'll tag along with us when we go to do something," Aiden said.

"We're wasting time here because we need a break. Since you joined me, we've had demons and ghosts and shtrigas and cursed hands, more demons, time travel, future Art, werewolves and whatever else we've fought. Do you really want to be back out there, or wind up in a hospital, or have to deal with a werewolf alone? Just give it a rest and enjoy the adrenaline, will you? And don't give me the 'I can have adrenaline on a hunt' speech, either, because we're here and we're not leaving until I at least get some funnel cake," Aiden finished, shuffling forward in line.

"Question number two: why must you go out of your way to spoil anything potentially fun?" he hissed, his mood starting to be ruined.

[Yuki]

As the two responded to her question, she held a steady gaze with Teagan and Aiden as they spoke, respectively. She bit her tongue during both of their counterattacks. Teagan didn't realize that trust wouldn't matter no the field if their necessary groundwork wasn't established. How could they hope to trust someone else with their life when they could hardly protect their own?! And a demon would not be able to spot her, and even if it did, she was positive that she'd spot it before that happened. And if it didn't happen, well, that just went to show how important training was.

With Aiden, his argument was different. He talked about this little excursion as a bind to real life. It was what he called "fun." Because they needed a "break." To him, this was necessary because it was relaxation for the mind, an escape from the reality of the world around them. But for Yuki, there was no escape. This was normal. Ever since she was a child, she had done nothing but train and study. For her, everything else was a waste of time. If it wasn't productive, then it wasn't worth doing.

"I'm not 'spoiling' anything fun," she snapped. "I don't think you two understand, but in case you haven't noticed, this is my life. Even before I became aware of the supernatural...no, I was always aware of it. My mother would always tell me, but it wasn't until I met you," she said, looking at Aiden for emphasis, "that I finally believed it. My life has consisted of me struggling to the top, always seeking my mother's approval, listening to the teachings of the masters above me, learning, training, studying, climbing to the top. This has always been my life; I know of nothing else," she concluded, a hardened look now set upon her face.

[Teagan]

She kept her gaze level as Yuki rambled off a response to the accusations and complaints. Suddenly, everything about Yuki's personality made sense. If the girl's entire life resembled a strict classroom, no wonder she didn't know how to complete the basic requirements of a fun night (i.e. attitude). A wave of sympathy passed over her.

"That sucks to hear, because you shouldn't feel like being serious is your permanent career," Teagan shook her head. "And if you don't know how to enjoy yourself, then let us teach you. Starting with that funnel cake Aiden mentioned that I now can't get off of my mind." Ditching the line, Teagan turned around and headed to an area that was brightly lit with an abundance of tables meant for a large crowd. To one of the side of the area stood a small trailer, advertising food in various flavors.

"Pick your flavor Aiden." The dirt cruncched beneath her shoes as she twisted to look up at him. "Just nothing with banana."

[Aiden]

While her lack of social skills were certainly explained (though he would never use the rational explanation and would stick to his and Teagan's theories of aliens, androids, cyborgs, and other such ideas) Yuki still didn't see their side, not that she could right now. Hunting was easier for Yuki because it was work, but for Aiden and Teagan, who knew a life before hunting, a life with parents that were now lost, friends, mentors, yeah, hunting was tiresome.

"Actually, you are spoiling it because you're so determined to be bitter," Aiden said, trying to come up with a way to spin it for him and Teagan. "Look, I'm your 'master' now, right? I taught you about the supernatural, how to kill them, how to tend to the tavern and serve customers, all that, right? Alright then, next lesson in the ways of the United States of Aiden Wood; funnel cake. After that it'll be social interaction, and then we'll give you a quiz," he said.

He followed Teagan out of line, and before long they were before the window at the funnel cake trailer. "I'll take one regular, a strawberry, and the chocolate," Aiden said, handing cash to the woman. The plates with the funnel cake slid to the edge of the window, and Aiden practically jumped on an empty table to save it.

He placed the three plates between them, and looked at Yuki and Teagan. "Alright, we're sharing these, and Yuki, you don't pass unless you try it and tell us what you think. Trust me, once you have some, you'll wish it was common in Japan," Aiden bragged, pulling off a piece of the regular and savoring the mix of cake and powdered sugar.

[Yuki]

Aiden and Teagan rebuttled her statements, calling her "serious" and "bitter." She didn't think she was being either. They were the ones who were slacking off. She was merely following the creed of hard work that she had followed her entire life, or a least, was attempting to follow it. When situations such as these in which two uncooperative teammates refused to train, it made things difficult for her.

Reluctantly, she followed the two out of line. Funnel cake, social interaction and a quiz? True, Aiden was her sensei, in a sense. But that didn't mean she wanted to be subjected to this so-called American culture either. Besides, the United States had nothing on Japan. There was nothing in the States that could possibly outmatch anything Japan had to offer.

Though...there was this sweet smell in the air. And she was a bit hungry. If that smell was coming from this 'funnel cake,' she wouldn't mind trying some. Her stomach let out a light grumble, and she put her hand over it as they sat down at a table. I don't know about this...

The plates were passed, and Yuki stared at hers as if it were an alien object. The one in front of her hosted strawberries on top, as opposed to one with no topping and the other with chocolate. Why were these things called funnel cakes? They neither resembled a funnel nor a cake. How stupid of a name. In fact, they looked like a plethora of fries made of flour, coated with powdery sugar.

"Alright, we're sharing these, and Yuki, you don't pass unless you try it and tell us what you think. Trust me, once you have some, you'll wish it was common in Japan."

Right. Of course she would.

Aiden grabbed a piece of his own funnel cake with his bare hands and shoved it in his mouth. Yuki's face scrunched up in disgust. And you didn't even eat it with silverware?! How barbaric. Delicately, she tore apart a piece of the dessert before her and scrutinized it. It did smell good, but the least they could offer were chopsticks, instead of forcing people to get their hands filthy with sticky substances. Cautiously, she placed the piece in her mouth and chewed.

.....

A bit of silence followed right after she swallowed. She was debating how to state her thoughts. Or rather, if she should.

"......It's okay," she stifled, picking apart another piece of the sugary meal. The truth of what she thought of it? She wouldn't dare say.