Page 30 of Fight (Kitsune #2)

T he next morning, Devon and I got up early and after loading all our luggage into the back of my car, made the drive to the airport in Phoenix. We snaked our way through the line at security and waited patiently in the seating area to board our flight.

I'd never flown before and, though I wasn't exactly scared, I was a little nervous.

It's not like there's any mystery to how it works, it's all over screen and film, but until you've flown yourself, you never know if you're going to get sick or have a panic attack or what have you.

So my nervousness was understandable, at least in my mind.

I turned and looked at Devon. He was sitting next to me, calmly waiting for our flight to board.

"You've flown before right?"

"Yeah." He responded without looking up from the game he was playing on his PCD. "We flew a lot with the Army. You get used to it quick."

"I just hope I don't get sick on the plane."

"Do you get sick at the county fair?" The county fair is a big deal in Safford, everyone goes.

"Not since I was a kid, and learned not to gorge myself on sugar, and then get on the rides."

"Then you'll be fine, as long as you don't gorge yourself on sugar then get on the plane." He never looked up from the game.

"You're sure?"

"Positive." He looked at me. "Look, take off is like the Gravitron, you get pushed back into your seat as we speed up and gain altitude. Landing's like the end of a good roller coaster, a little swift on the slowdown, but nothing to upset your stomach."

"What about turbulence?" I asked.

"You ever ride those spaceship rides they would sometimes bring to the fair? The ones where they load a bunch of people into a compartment and you watch a movie while it bounces around like a truck over a rough road? That's what turbulence is like."

"Why not just the truck. Why is it like the ride?"

"Because with a truck, you can see what's coming, whereas with the ride you're distracted. You're so busy watching the screen, you have no clue what's coming. It's more the surprise of the movement, than how much you're really moving, that gets you."

"I guess I can see that." I sat back in my seat and kept waiting, still a little nervous, but somehow comforted. I was surprised when Devon reached over and laid one hand over mine where it rested on my leg.

He leaned over and whispered in my ear. "You'll be fine, I promise."

"I know." I replied. "It’s just that I've never been on a plane when it left the ground before."

"But you've been on a plane?"

"Yeah. Years ago my folks took us all to Tucson to the Air and Space Museum we got to see a lot of planes. They even have an old Air Force One plane that you can climb up into and tour. We all loved it."

"My parents took us over there as kids too. To a little boy obsessed with flying, it was the neatest thing in the world."

"You were obsessed with flying as a kid?" I was intrigued.

"For a little while. It was in between my obsession with being superman and the month I was determined I was going to be an archaeologist. My parents were glad to see the archaeologist phase pass. They were tired of me digging holes all over the yard looking for fossils." He chuckled.

"How are things with your family now?" I was thankful for the distraction that talking about his family gave me.

"Good, I still don't talk to my brother or sister much, but at least I don't feel like the skeleton in the closet anymore."

"I still don’t think that wasn't them, it was how you were afraid they felt."

"Looking back on things now, I can see that you might be right. But at the time, that was a hard delineation to make."

"I know. It's always harder to see things objectively when you're in the middle of them." I turned my hand over and laced my fingers with his. "I'm glad you feel better about your parents though, I'm glad you've got the chance to rebuild that relationship."

"We're working on it. We'll probably never have the relationship that you and your folks have, but at least we can have something more than we've had for the last ten years."

I let the subject drop, not sure what else to say. I wish he could have the kind of relationship with his parents that I have with mine, but I knew I couldn't give it to him. All I could do was be there for him.

We sat in silence for a few more minutes before they announced boarding for our flight.

Since it was assigned seating, we still had to wait until they seated our section to load, but we gathered up our things so when they did, we would be ready.

When our section was announced we joined the line and slowly made our way onto the plane, shuffling along, until we found our seats.

I stepped into the row, letting Devon store our larger carry-on bags in the overhead compartment, while I stashed the smaller bags under the seats in front of us.

Once all our bags were put away, we both took our seats.

I had the window and Devon was beside me, with an empty seat between him and the aisle.

Looking around, I tried to get familiar with my surroundings, while we waited for the rest of the plane to board.

Looking out the small, oval window, I found that I was seated right in front of the wing.

The opening provided me with a clear view of the terminal we'd just left, as well as the tarmac around the plane.

There were several people moving around beneath us, getting the plane fueled, the luggage loaded, and the galley restocked so we could take off.

"How long's our flight again?" I turned back to Devon, and asked.

Devon pulled the ticket stubs out of his shirt pocket and checked them. "Phoenix to Seattle, 3 hrs 15 minutes."

"All right. We should be setting down just before lunch time, right?"

"Yeah, are you hungry? We could have picked up something in the gift shop."

"No. I'm fine for now, but I'll be ready to eat when we get there." He nodded and started playing his game again, while I went back to watching out the window until the plane was ready to go.

Before long, the flight attendant asked that all electronics be turned off and secured for take-off and the plane backed away from the terminal.

I watched out the small window as the building moved away from us and we moved out onto the runway.

After a few minutes of waiting our turn, it was time for take-off.

I watched the world outside speed by, faster than it ever had in a car or on a motorcycle, and I gripped my armrest tightly as the plane started to tilt, the front wheels lifting off the ground.

I felt Devon's hand cover mine, and looked over at him with a tight smile. He smiled back and I released the arm rest to hold his hand. It was a few minutes before the pressure that held me to the seat started to relax, and a few minutes later the plane leveled off as it reached altitude.

I released Devon's hand for a moment, flexing some of the tension from my hands and neck before laying my hand back in his.

"See." He smiled at me. "That wasn't so bad."

"No, it wasn't." I smiled back. "Now we just have to make it back down safely."

He leaned over and placed a soft kiss on the top of my nose. "Don't think about it."

"All right, then let's talk about something else."

"Like what?"

"When do we meet with the Anikitos?" I wanted to know. I wasn't worried about being overheard, the titles would mean nothing to most humans. Devon had collected all the details from Bill, and I had been so concerned with other things I hadn't worried about them.

"Tomorrow morning. We have an appointment at his office."

"So we don't have any plans this afternoon?"

"Just getting our car, checking into our hotel and settling in."

"And food." I reminded him.

"And food." He agreed, his eyes glittering with amusement.

"Do you want to find something to do? Something to see?"

"We could go to the Space Needle, if you like.

" He suggested. "You ride an elevator to the top and there's a scenic outlook, there's a three hundred and sixty-five degree view of Seattle.

I think there's a restaurant there, too.

I'll have to check but we could go up there and eat, maybe enjoy the view during the day and then get to see all the city's lights too. "

"That sounds nice." I leaned over and laid my head against his shoulder, wishing I could snuggle a little closer to him but the armrest was in the way.

"Here." Devon pulled away a moment, indicating I should lean away too.

He lifted the armrest and wrapped his arm around me, pulling me up against him.

I leaned against him, breathing in his scent and letting the sense of peace he brought, wash over me.

"We woke up early and didn't get a lot of sleep last night.

Why don't you see if you can catch a nap before we land. " He suggested.

"What about you?" I asked.

"I may doze a little but I won't sleep, not hard enough that anyone could sneak up on us." He said softly. "Not that I expect anything on the plane, but better safe than sorry." He rubbed his hand up and down my back for a moment before hugging me against him again.

"Nickie." I heard a voice whisper. "Nickie, wake up, Babe." The voice was a little louder. I drug myself awake reluctantly.

"Mrumpfh." I muttered moving slightly from my warm spot.

"You've got to wake up, Nick." Devon's voice was soft. "We're about to land."

That pulled me back. I remembered we were on the plane to Seattle, and why we were there. I sat up, reluctant to leave Devon's warm, comfortable embrace. I stretched as much as the small space would allow, flexing muscles that were stiff from sitting still for too long.

"How close are we to landing?" I asked.

"A few minutes. They haven't turned on the seatbelt light yet, but they will soon."

"Good, I need to use the restroom."

"I thought you might, that's why I woke you a little early."