*What did it say its name was? Jarvis? Guess it wouldn’t be too hard to get along with the little bot. I mean—it is Tiffany’s friend… even if it does look like a Roomba.*

  Nick pulled up to the pair as Tiffany stood, strolling toward him with Jarvis in her hands.

  "So, are you still up to go check out the area… even with the weird circumstances?" Tiff asked, tracing small circles on the ground with the toe of her boot, her eyes cast downward.

  "Um... that's totally up to you. Do you feel up to it? I'm not the one who got blown across the street out of the top of a five-story building…" Nick scratched the back of his head, watching her.

  "Also, on that note… we're kinda homeless... could we stay at your place for the time being… please?" Tiffany squeaked out, still drawing circles in the dirt with the toe of her boot.

  Nick sat back on his bike, looking at the short redhead in her crazy-looking speedsuit jumper. He tapped a finger on his chin as if contemplating some incredibly difficult riddle. After a moment of silence, Tiffany—still facing the ground—stole glances at Nick, waiting for an answer.

  "Hmm... I'm not sure. I mean, you do attract a lot of unwanted attention, and I don't think I'd like my house blown up…" Nick tried his hardest to keep a straight face, just to see how she'd react. It wasn’t exactly what he expected.

  "Oh… okay, that's fine. We can try to find somewhere else to stay in the meantime. Thank you anyway… I know it was a big request." She bowed slightly to show her gratitude.

  Nick just rolled his eyes. "Fine. You can stay…"

  Her face immediately brightened at his words.

  "But you and the flying Roomba have to sleep in the barn."

  Nick couldn’t help himself—there was a reason his friends would call him "Dick" instead of Nick at times. At this, Tiffany’s excitement dropped just as quickly as it had flared, her mouth hanging open in slight shock. *But he was supposed to be a nice man...* she thought to herself, on the verge of tears.

  Apparently, neither of them understood his sense of humor, because Jarvis sped over—stopping just inches from Nick’s face. The bottom of his housing snapped open. *Kathack!* A two-pronged rod dropped down, crackling at the tip.

  "Now see here, sir! The flying Roomba insult, I'll endure—but not the disrespect of Lady Tiffany! Have at thee!"

  "Jarvis!" Tiffany yelped at the sight of her friend pulling a weapon on someone who wasn’t even threatening her.

  Nick put his hands up in defense, but not before getting a light jolt to the forearm.

  "Brrzz!"

  "Yeeooow! Calm down, you flying dust buster! I was just joking! Geez, I'm starting to think sarcasm is not universal with you two!"

  "Jarvis! Put that away, or I swear by my claws, I'll have Alice disassemble you!" Tiffany’s high-pitched, growling yelp must've hit Jarvis in a more personal way, because he froze instantly. His expression went blank, his crackling taser fell silent, and the rod folded back into its casing. *Kathunk.* He hovered slightly sideways before turning to Tiffany.

  "I'm sorry, mum... No disassemble—please?"

  Tiffany straightened up and reached over toward Jarvis.

  *Bonk!* She took a balled fist and thumped him on his lid in a playful manner, trying to keep a straight face in the process.

  "Bad Roomba! You know better than this!"

  Jarvis's pixelated display dropped to the bottom of his screen like a pile of blocks—frustrated, lost for words. He just hovered there, confused, as the scattered pixels slowly formed a ghostly, shocked expression. He had expected the insult from the new uncultured creature, but not from *her.*

  "Phff!—ahaha—c-can’t—breathe!," Nick choked out, about to fall off his bike in a fit of laughter, holding his numb arm.

  Then Tiffany broke into the contagious laughter.

  "Pffft—snort! It's okay, Jarvis, calm down!" Tiff managed to say after finally getting her giggle fit under control. She then plucked him out of the air, cradling the sad, confused bot in her arms.

  "Now, you stop that. We're all friends," she cooed, glancing at Nick with a playful wink. "So, please endure the crude humor of our gracious host—and no shocks… unless absolutely necessary." She finished with a grin at Nick, who raised his hands halfway in mock surrender, his face twisting into a teasing smile.

  "And you," she continued, lazily pointing a finger at Nick, "please don’t antagonize my friend Jarvis. Looks like he’s been through enough today." She cradled the bot gently, inspecting the damage, then tried to buff out some of the blast marks with her elbow.

  As the atmosphere settled, they gathered their thoughts on what to do next.

  She let Jarvis hover off, and the bot slowly turned to Nick, scrunching his pixelated facial features before sticking his digital tongue out. Nick reciprocated the gesture, earning a few chuckles and easing the tension—even Jarvis seemed in better spirits despite the day's events.

  "Alright—do you know where the old bike trail is on the edge of town?" Tiff asked, tapping the side of her suit's collar. Small plates cascaded outward, forming a sleek helmet around her head.

  "Wow, you never cease to amaze me, Miss Stark, and to answer your question....vaguely." Nick said, turning toward her through his flipped-up visor.

  "Who? No, my last name is Raforus..." she corrected, looking at him quizzically. She tapped the side of her helmet, causing the visor to slide up into the headgear with a *click-thack!* "Hey, do you have a communications device in your helmet?" she asked, tapping hers again.

  "Unlike yours, that's the only fancy thing mine has," he said, pointing to the small box on the side of his helmet. A blinking blue light pulsed on the device. "Is Bluetooth okay?" he asked, tapping the button.

  "Yes, that'll work. Just put it in... I think you'd call it open-source mode?" Nick chuckled at that but understood her meaning.

  "It's called pairing, but okay," he said, setting his device into pairing mode.

  She blew into her mic. "Testing, testing—do you read me, Nick?"

  "Yeah, I'm picking you up fine," Nick replied, adjusting his volume. They situated and checked everything before leaving, planning and making small talk as they made their way to the back of the city. Nick cruised the bike at a slow pace so Jarvis could keep up, while Tiff gave him directions to the old bike rail.

  They rode a few blocks, chatting as they moved through the small city, until Nick took an alley street that ran behind the businesses on the outskirts of the city leading to the forest. Ahead, the bike trail began beneath a natural archway of live oaks. As he pulled up and parked, Tiffany tapped her helmet to open the visor, looking at Nick as he turned to check with her.

  "Will your bike make it up the trail?" she asked, glancing briefly at the *No Motorized Vehicles* sign.

  Nick studied the trail as it entered the archway, transitioning from grass to hard-packed dirt, then gravel. "I don’t think that’d be a good idea on street tires," he replied, eyeing the fat, slick rubber.

  "I guess we go on foot from here. Any idea how far it is?" he asked as they both got off the bike. Nick removed his helmet and jacket, laying them on the seat, while Tiffany took off her boots and tapped her collar, retracting her helmet back into her suit.

  "It’s a few clicks northeast."

  Nick frowned at her, puzzled, as she stretched her small feet, bending and curling her toes to loosen up.

  "Why are you taking off your boots…?"

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  *Foomp!*

  In mere seconds, she towered over him, stretching and popping her joints. Squatting, she flexed her legs, preparing for a long gant.

  "Hop on, it'll be quicker this way," she said, tilting her head in a "come here" gesture.

  Nick hesitated, then climbed onto her shoulders as she squatted down low, gripping two handfuls of her fiery-red mane. "This isn't going to hurt you, is it?" he asked, uncertain.

  "It’ll be fine," she assured him as she straightened up. "Just make sure you hold on tight… and whatever you do, *do not* pull on my ears. Please."

  Nick noticed her crimson-furred face briefly flush a pinkish white before returning to red. His mind drifted—back to that night, when he'd unintentionally rubbed her ear while pinning her in a chokehold. Her back had locked up, legs twitching. As realization hit him, his own face warmed at the thought of what she had experienced.

  "Okay… ready? Please hold tight—it’s a long way down if you fall," she warned as she crouched, preparing to leap.

  "Wait! Long way down?!? Aaaaaaaaaaahhhhhh!"

  She launched into the treetops, leaving the bike—and a waving Jarvis—behind. Mid-flight, Tiffany winced, flattening her ears against the relentless screaming of her passenger. With a quick tap to her collar, her helmet snapped into place, muffling the noise as she springboarded from treetop to treetop.

  She kept to the outskirts of the trail, bracing as she landed atop a tall pine. Gripping its crown branch lightly, she swung to slow her momentum. As her helmet retracted with a crisp *thack*, she called back to her terrified passenger, barely holding back a smug grin.

  "You still back there?"

  "I fuckin' hate heights!"

  Tiffany snorted in a hearty growl of a chuckle at his outburst through her helmet.

  "I thought you were in the Air Force?" she asked, still chuckling as she surveyed the area.

  "I was! But that doesn’t mean I don’t prefer to keep my feet on the ground!"

  "Okay, okay—I get it. You're a frightened child with no backbone; you don’t have to yell," she lightly barked.

  "How about I rub *both* of your ears and see how much of a backbone you have?" Nick spat back in an unamused fashion, causing her eyes to grow comically wide.

  "Just keep in mind, I'll survive the fall—but you won't, new partner. So if you want to stay in that position, I suggest not."

  Her eyes shrank back to normal as she spotted the clearing she was looking for.

  "Okay, hold on for a second."

  She stepped off the branch, dropping straight down.

  "Wait, what? Oh, shiiiiiiiiiiiiii—!"

  Before he could finish, they plummeted like a rock toward the ground. Tiffany braced for impact, landing gently on the pine-straw-covered earth. The only sound was the light, crisp *crunch* beneath her pads.

  She looked around, closed her eyes, and let her ears twitch this way and that.

  "What is it?" Nick asked.

  She didn’t say anything. With eyes still closed, she put her index claw to the tip of her muzzle—a silent request for quiet. He got the hint and kept still.

  Nothing. Just some singing birds and argumentative squirrels fighting over which tree hole to store their nuts in.

  She opened her eyes and walked cautiously to the bike trail, picking up a few rocks and handing them to Nick.

  "Put those in your pockets."

  He did before asking, "Why am I putting rocks in my pockets?"

  She craned her head toward him, giving a mix of a warm and smug smile.

  "Rock-connaissance."

  "Wait, what?"

  "Okay, hold on again."

  "Aw, dammit—okay, holding..." he replied, bracing for takeoff.

  She squatted down and launched them back into the treetops, continuing their flight toward the clearing. Besides the sickening pull of the g-force and the occasional sudden drop, it really wasn’t so bad. In a way, Nick was somewhat enjoying the furry carpet ride. Despite the things making him uneasy, she was careful—gentle even—and handled the landings beautifully.

  As they reached the clearing, she paused on a tree limb, scanning the area before hopping across to one of the taller trees, backpack-Nick still clinging to her. From the treetop, they took in the sea of orange, brown, red, and yellow foliage stretching endlessly beneath them.

  She glanced over at Nick, who had perched himself on one of her shoulders, taking in the view alongside her.

  "I bet you’ve never had a view like this before, have you?" she asked with a smile.

  He smiled back, running his fingers through her fiery red mane, soaking in the different sensations—softness, coarseness, warmth. The texture surprised him—a curious blend of silk-like smoothness with a rugged touch, a hint of wildness woven into the strands. As he rubbed, heat seeped through her fur, touching his skin, filling him with a soothing comfort. But to his surprise, her fur bristled at times, setting off subtle muscle spasms deep beneath. He held on for grip, but also something more. For the first time, in this moment, he felt connected to her. He met her bright green eyes and returned her smile.

  "No, I can't say that I have. Not to kill the mood, but why are we at the top of the tallest tree in the forest?" he asked quizzically.

  At this, she tapped her collar, ejecting her helmet with the visor closed. Then, tapping a few more times on something Nick couldn’t see, she gazed off into the distance.

  Even with her helmet sealed, Nick could still hear her speak.

  "Ah, there you are."

  "What do you see?" Nick asked, squinting. All he could make out were treetops and an endless, darkening sky as evening approached.

  "Hand me a rock?" she asked, holding an open palm in front of him.

  He dug into his pocket, pulling out a large one and placing it in her hand. She balled her fist and chucked it straight ahead. Nick watched as the rock flew through the air—then vanished, as if it had disappeared into nothing.

  "Duck."

  Nick barely had time to register the word.

  "Wha—?"

  Before he could finish, the same rock, on the exact same trajectory, came beaming back at full speed—straight toward his head. He threw his arms up to shield his face, squinching his eyes closed, bracing for the impact.

  *Thock!*

  Nick snapped his eyes open to see Tiffany’s fist hovering close to his face, so near he could smell the faint scent of singed fur. She lowered her hand and showed him the rock resting in her palm.

  "I told you to duck," she said nonchalantly.

  "What in the world? Is that a cloaking device or something?" he asked, wondering what the heck had just happened.

  "Something like that. Unless you're emitting an entrance code, if you walk through the barrier, it forces you back out."

  At that moment, a hawk happened to be flying by. It disappeared—just like the rock—only to reappear in the same spot, now flying in the opposite direction, the hawk looked around in every direction, confused, then circled deciding to try a different direction.

  Nick’s eyes grew large at the sight. Tiffany glanced at him, catching the expression on his face. A deep, gruff giggle escaped her. "Case in point," she said, gesturing toward the bird.

  "So how do we get in? I’m assuming we do want to go in, right?"

  "That, my dear Nick, is the fun part," she said with a beaming smile. "Also, yes. If you want to find the Earthers, we need to figure out a way inside. All right—hang on! Down we go."

  "Dammit, I hate this paaaaaaaaar—!" Nick screamed as she hopped off the branch she was standing on, dropping to ground level.