melodiesofeternity | [Closed] Happy (Belated) Birthday

He was curious as to where they'd be going. The ride gave him a big hint, what with everyone dressed to the nines and talking about what casinos they'd hit and where they'd place their bets, or what shows they'd check out. But he kept himself as in the dark as possible.

But Kanji, big old Kanji, couldn't help practically bouncing when the ship docked and everyone could disembark. He didn't come to Sparks Golsaucia too often, usually for deliveries. Business. But never for pleasure.

Today, he was a country kid in a big bright city. A big bright theme park city. THEME PARK DATE!

H-he could be excited about that, right? Yeah. Hell yeah! 'Course he could!

"The racing chocobos!" He crowed.

"I wanna hug a chocobo. Get my fix. Then we can check out rides n' food n' stuff."

From an outsider's perspective, it must be strange to see a six-foot tall child looking eager for an amusement park, but that's how it was. And anyone that had a problem with it could take it up with the five-foot tall girl beside him - she was ready.

"The chocobos? Sure, we'll start there."

There would be a race soon, but they should be able to reach the stables before they started. Kanji's interest in Chocobos though - she would put a pin in visiting the ones in Nakagawa. Consulting her map, she began to walk - not too fast, but not too slow.

"Man, I thought about buyin' one, but I think all the sharks and stuff would freak 'em out." He jammed his hands in his pockets and followed along, peering at the map. She'd been to plenty of cities before, so it was best to keep close.

"...Thanks for this, by the way." She didn't need to do this, especially when they were hunting up eidolons, but... this was nice already. Heck, they haven't been anywhere yet, but he enjoyed riding the airship with her.

"... Remember when we first arrived here and encountered the Chocobo Eater? I don't think a shark would be the worst for a Chocobo to encounter." Not to mention, where they lived, he would want to look into raising a blue chocobo.

"Hm? Oh... you're welcome. I hope this isn't interrupting anything..." It was meant for his birthday, but so long in that library and they missed it - she hadn't even asked if he might be working on something at the smithy.

"Huh... you're right. They freaked out to a point but then that one appeared that kicked more ass than I ever seen a bird!" He was thinking of horses and how skittish they were, but he'd been wrong... chocobos weren't chicken-hearts. Maybe he ought to look into chocobo ownership.

"Wha? Pfft, no. Told the boss I got a date and he pretty much threw me outta the shop n' told me to go have fun. The guys are great, you should meet 'em!" But he was momentarily distracted. One of the biggest rollercoasters had been built practically all over the park, and just then a string of riders had gone careening, whooping and screaming overhead and past, some 80 feet up.

Kanji paled. He walked faster. "That's a little too nuts for me. No thanks, I like life...!"

If he looked into Chocobo ownership, she hopes he would give her a head's up.

"I see... I wouldn't mind meting them." Even from that brief sentence about them, they sounded decent. However, Kanji stopped talking about them and seemed to freeze. Blinking, Naoto looked from him to the screaming roller coaster passengers going by, and then snapped her head back when he picked up his pace.

"Kanji-kun, are you scared of roller coasters?"

Kanji stiffened, and stopped walking. Ah, shit, how does he put this...?

"H-hell no! I mean, I ride airships n' stuff all the time. So it ain't the roller coasters. It's..."

He gestured a fist sailing before smashing into an open palm.

"It's the whole 'at any time you could dislodge and smash into curry on the pavement' that freaks me out." But he paused, realizing maybe she liked rides like that. Time for a quick recovery. He turned to face her.

"B-but if ya like to ride stuff like that, then...!"

"Ah. Kanji-kun, it's rational to be scared of falling... and of course, mechanical failures which could result in derailment or death. I believe that's part of the enjoyment however."

Looking up at him fully, she sighed.

"I'm not really for roller coasters. I do like heights, but I tend to be... vertically challenged to the point I'm not permitted on most rides."

Height requirements for the safety bars. Right. Yet as he blinked owlishly at her, he seemed to only just realize their height difference. Then he shrugged.

"You pilot airships that don't stick on rails, so you can go anywhere and as high as your ship allows, yeah?" A balled fist.

"So screw 'em!" He paused, released that fist and had a thought. It was clear on his face. B-but he'll wait.

"...Oh yeah, so... that map's got everything on it, right? Where's the best place to eat after we get our chocobo on?"

"Yes, I can." Which was another reason why she didn't need a roller coaster. The only thing that would change was being able to see the ground already as opposed to looking out a window.

She chuckled faintly at Kanji's bluntness, but then cocked her head. It seemed like there was something else he wanted to say...

"... Yes. Hm... I don't know if I'd advice us getting food in the park, but I suppose the prices would still be considerably increased around the area." Event pricing... she looked over the map again. "Anyway, there is a food court in the park... and a few locations marked for vendors."

He rubbed his chin. "If they got crepes or an elephant ear stand, that's totally fine fair-food wise. Otherwise we could just grab sandwiches or a burrito somewhere outside in town."

He grinned. Simple boy. But this was another opportunity to investigate what sort of food she liked. It was a mini stake-out. He would play detective.

"So give that some thought, too. I don't need nothin' fancy." Double negative. But he didn't seem to mind it. Instead he marched on ahead for the chocobo stables around the corner. They had to race all day, but did they ever get a hug and a head-ruffle?

Kanji was gonna change that today.

"Hmmm..." Well, it looked like she could look up what each stand sold on her iMog slate so she would give that a go. He said crepes or elephant ears first. Hopefully, they were called something around that on Vaikuntha.

"If you say so." But one day, she would probably take him out to a five-star restaurant.

Blinking when she heard him march on, they were close to the chocobo stables. Well, she had a few stands nearby marked so she would inform him after he got in his first few greets with the big birds.

It was the smell of hay and bird. Kanji didn't mind either as it seemed the building was abuzz with the upcoming race, handlers racing back and forth to make their final preparations while lines had formed down the street for those who wished to get into their seats. Must've been a major derby of some kind.

Kanji stood tall as a tree among a few kids and some lalafell seeing to it that their investments, their sponsored birds wore the proper logos and were in good shape. The chocobos themselves were passive and a little dopey, so used to being fed damn good food just for running and running.

"Whoa... I didn't know there were black ones. Look at that one, he's like a giant, fluffy crow!" What's his name...?

"Bird o' War. ...Auuugh, he's so cute! I wanna ruffle his little chicken cheeks!"

Naoto stood back and let Kanji have his fun looking at the Chocobos while staying out of the handlers' way.

"From what I understand after several trips to Nakagawa, Chocobos come in a variety of colors which is typically emblematic of their strengths. Black Chocobos like 'Bird o' War' are more well-rounded than the others. White Chocobos have advantages crossing snowy terrain, Brown Chocobos are adept to the Desert, Green Chocobos traverse mountainous terrain, and Blue Chocobos are excellent swimmers - though, they avoid the ocean. There's rumors of a Gold Chocobo, but I couldn't tell you anything on it." In fact, she wondered if they were actually golden or just a brighter shade of yellow. However, now that she brought this up, she thinks Kanji might pick up another career path...

"I heard about that! I should read up more on chocobos... maybe we'll meet a gold someday. Oi, we got any golds in here?" He paused to flag down one of the lalafell sponsors. She shook her head, but it was more in dismay that they didn't have such rare and valuable birds.

Kanji sighed and approached Bird o' War. Slowly, he reached up for that bird face. Bird o' War canted his head at him, then slowly lowered to meet those hands.

The sound that came from Kanji was... joy? Joy. Totally a little squeal.

"Y-you're so soft... do they take good care of you here, buddy? Fat n' happy?"

That answer wasn't a surprise. Though, with such legendary status, would a Gold Chocobo be permitted to race? Sounded like a guarantee victor from the stories.

"Be careful, Kanji-kun. Black Chocobos are known for their trickster nature after their aggressive one."

That might be why it was Bird o' War too...

Naoto must have ESPN or something.

"KWEHH!" Kanji was never known for being terribly gentle. The bird went stiff, then used his chest to bump the human until the latter lost his balance and toppled backward into a heap.

Handlers flew in from all sides, immediately on the case to settle down the heckled bird, paying no mind to the tangled pile of Kanji that had started to right himself. It was about to race and stress wasn't going to help its chances.

"Wh-what the hell...! Why me?"

Edited 2019-01-30 02:48 (UTC)

While the handlers went to the chocobo, Naoto stepped forward to look down at Kanji and hold out a hand.

"It's probably ready to race. You should try seeing if one of the other chocobos are open to being pet... Also, don't pet it like a cat or dog. Birds are different."

"R-right... I went at it like they were horses. So how do people ride 'em?" He hesitated, then took the offered hand. But rather than yank her to the floor, he motored on up and opted for the touch, if anything to soothe his frazzled nerves.

He'd need it, too, as one of the handlers had risen their voice over the din and was asking them to leave. The race was soon going to start and he didn't need to stress out any of the other birds.

Kanji's shoulders had tightened. He wanted to argue, but something held him at bay: Experience. He had a Berserker asterisk. He knew anger. He knew what power it'd give. It had also helped him to learn how to put a damper on his own temper.

But his temper had, unfortunately, reminded him of a recent memory.

"...Tch. Here too, huh?" He glowered.

"Whatever. Let's get outta here."

"Like ostriches..." Though, she wasn't sure if he would understand that anymore. Either way, she watched him stand and gave his hand a squeeze.

... It only took a second for her to snap her head and narrow her eyes at the handler raising their voice because that was a wholly unnecessary tone. They could just ask them politely to go without the volume so she kept her laser focus on them. Kanji might have the Beserker asterisk, but Naoto had her fair share of taking it coolly.

If Kanji was ready to leave though, she would nod.

"... We'll visit Nakagawa next time and see the chocobos there."

He set his jaw and sent a dark look to the handler, but acquiesced and made for the exits. Once outside, he was ruffling his hair under a palm.

"I, uh... got kicked outta the Ka'Pandol one, too. I was watching Futaba's chocobo. Figured in case she came back she'd want her bird. So that ain't my first."

He sighed, shook his head. "I just remembered that, too. Here I was thinkin' maybe I'd look into my own chocobo, especially to cover more ground while hunting for eidolons."

Then, eyes shifting away, searching the sidewalk for an answer.

"Anyway, I'll get over it. This is supposed to be a good time."

"... They kicked you out for looking after a friend's chocobo?" Okay, she was going to need to have a word with someone.

"Having a chocobo would be convenient... Though, we may need a White Chocobo right now to try searching for Hades again." It would help them avoid the monsters in the fields much easier. But... maybe a Black Chocobo would be more ideal since they were versatile.

Still, she eventually sighed. "Very well... Anyway, there is a food stand that sells crepes. Shall we go?"

"Yeah, they said I was loitering, and since the names get greyed out when somebody gets sent back home, I didn't really have proof..." Sorry, Chocojiro. He did what he could, but he'd never met a neglected chocobo. He was in good hands.

"Oh, shit, you're right... gotta think about places like that, too. But I dunno much about these fabled gold ones. I mean, there was the ONE when those monsters attacked but nobody's seen it since."

Hmm. Food for thought. Maybe that gold was out there somewhere, and he could ask it for help. Trick is finding out where it lived.

He perked up, then. Sweets. He'd always feel better after sweets. "I'm down! Ain't had a crepe in a long time!"

"Hmph. If you go to the Curti Center, they should be able to provide documentation on Fubata-san and her being our roommate however on and off." Naoto knew she liked going to Arito to stay at that one house on occasion, but that was it.

"I wouldn't be surprised if it only came around in times of its fellow chocobos being in danger." The chocobos that did assist them in fighting off the Eaters did seem less-inclined to do more after the fighting was over.

Nodding as he brightened up, Naoto began to lead the way. They were heading away from the stables and getting further into the attraction area of the theme park. If Kanji looked, he might spot the stand before they got to it.

He didn't spot it first. He smelled it.

It was toasting sugar and cooking egg, warm fruit, chocolate, caramel, and even a hint of bananas coming through between the distinct smell of another stand's burgers, the fry oil and sugary fat of the funnel cake stand.

The sight itself was something to behold, something small, humble and familiar. But the decor seemed to revolve around teddy bears. The mascot on the sign seemed to enjoy a big slab of honey comb in hers.

"...Holy shit, that girl bear's already my favorite. S'like a Sanrio character!"

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