Beyond the Rift: It was a preface to motion, rolling down the Oklahoma highway...

[thatsortofaman]

A bus from the Conrad hotel is currently rolling south down I-55, toward Oklahoma. Which is the most logical place for a bus from a hotel in Chicago, right? Loaded onto the bus are a couple ancient and forever boys, a Time Lady, a couple doctors, and a couple guardian angels who really didn't have any choice in the matter (one of those people was

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[nothingsodivine]

Des is under the firm impression that he could have driven. No. Really. He could have totally driven. After all, he used to drive cross country all the time in his own world, but somehow no one really felt that 'tiny sports car' translates the same as 'giant bus' on the road (also Des might take shortcuts that do not actually exist in this world and that would be bad) and so Des is currently sleeping away his own Ancient-and-Forever-I-Could-Have-Drove sulk in a seat somewhere in the middle of the bus... Actually, he's sprawled across two seats, because his legs are resting in the seat across from him so anyone who wants to get from one section of the bus to the other is going to have to step over his legs.

Why Des chose seats in the middle of the bus is beyond anyone. This is just what Des does- be completely illogical and slightly annoying.

[smithnjones]

Martha is allowed to drive, of course, but she's not going to drive the entire way there on her own. So she's on one of her breaks from driving and trying to get from the front of the bus to the back of the bus, but Des' legs prove quite the obstacle.

She has to decide if she wants to go over or under them, because she is tiny and going over things is difficult. Martha doesn't want to wake him up, because he needs his sleep and she's trying to be a good girlfriend after telling both of her boys that they weren't allowed to drive and making them sulk.

However, this attempt is not going well. Martha tries to stretch her leg up over Des' legs and trips over them, twisting around and landing sideways in the aisle way with a squeaky yelp.

"Ow," she says, making a face on the floor of the bus, her legs still twisted up with Des' a bit. "...that was dumb."

[nothingsodivine]

And Des, being the light sleeper than he is grunts and wakes. He attempts to pull his legs off the other seat and finds this to be a rather difficult endeavor and rather than sitting up and seeing what's happening here, he pokes his head under the seat so he can see Martha's head in the aisle.

"You know, Martha Jones, you could have told me to move," he grins, teasingly.

[smithnjones]

"I was trying to be nice and not interrupt your beauty sleep, Des," Martha says, eyebrows raised for emphasis at him from under the seat as she starts to smile despite her very valiant attempt at acting as if this is a serious issue (it is hard to have serious issue conversations when talking under bus seats). "But don't worry. I'll never be nice, again. Not even a little bit."

She rests her head against the aisle and she stares up at the ceiling of the bus.

"Y'know, it's really not so uncomfortable down here. Not nearly as much as you'd think, and you're trapped this way," (yes, trapped by her legs of tangled doom, right) she says. "It's a bonus. Somehow."

[nothingsodivine]

Des looks affronted and appalled at the mere suggestion of Martha not being nice, which is an amusing expression to make under a bus seat. "But Martha, if you're not nice, um.... The Terrorists win."

Des very delicately pulls one of his legs free of the tangle and braces his foot against the seat in a pathetic attempt to disentangle himself. "I can get out of this any time I want... Oh God, I hope Donna doesn't hit the breaks. I like my tailbone where it is."

Because at the rate he's going, he's going to wind up in the floor, honestly.

[smithnjones]

Martha snorts laughter.

"Really?" She raises her eyebrows, again, smirking and calling out, "Quick, Des! Call the White House! If the President knew that my being nice is what actually keeps the terrorists from winning maybe America wouldn't be at war with them right now."

She is just going to watch his attempt to disentangle himself while the bus is in motion and he's lying down.

"I was going to let you go, but this is kind of hilarious to watch. At least from this end, which would be the down here on the floor end of things. I was wrong before apparently. It does hurt a bit. The floor."

[nothingsodivine]

Des rotates himself so that he's on his back and scooches back, finally freeing his legs without falling on his ass or causing injury to Martha. "Hah! Success!" He cheers, pumping a fist victoriously.

He adjusts himself and then leans over the seat to offer the poor Martha on the floor a hand, "Well, we don't want you to be in pain and the floor is no place for Marthas."

[smithnjones]

"You're really far too pleased with yourself," Martha says, with a little grin at his fist pump of victory. She can't help it. It's adorable.

She takes his hand, still grinning a little, and uses his leverage and strength to help her get up off the floor. Martha leans over and kisses him for being such a gentleman and helping her off the painful floor where Marthas don't belong, apparently.

"And how are we enjoying the trip to Oklahoma so far?" Martha smiles, cause y'know 12 trips in a bus to Oklahoma are so very entertaining.

[2ndchanceacharm]

Grace starts down the aisle - she was curled up in a seat near the front, all the coolers and snacks are in the back, it's kind of a problem - and stops upon seeing Des' legs stretched across her path. That's not necessary at all, and she's really pretty certain he did it just to annoy anyone who tried to walk back there.

She pauses for a second, and then kicks his legs. Lightly. Really more a nudge than anything. "I'm not climbing over you."

[nothingsodivine]

Des snorts in a way that suggests that perhaps he was not really sleeping so much as just being an ass. "If Donna or Martha or whoever's driving crashes the bus, I think you should be happy that my legs are here to stop you from flying through the windshield... Or splattering against the back of the bus."

Des has the logic. Des has all the logic ever.

He does, however, rather graciously move them and scoots up so that he's not taking up two seats and rests his back against the window. "Are you fetching snacks? How much do you love me?"

[2ndchanceacharm]

Grace glances down at Des' legs, and then back up at his face, rather skeptically. "I don't think your legs function as a safety device, Desmond. ...Also, I'm not going to splat into the back, because momentum doesn't work that way. Didn't you ever take a science class?" She loves him. She just expresses her love with mockery.

She steps past him, down toward the back, and then pauses, glancing back over her shoulder. "I am, and since you moved your legs... a little more than I loved you when you were in my way. What do you want?"

[nothingsodivine]

Des pouts, although it's half-hearted and teasing, because Des hasn't known a person yet who doesn't express their love with mockery when it comes to him. "You could. You're tiny and momentum could be lying to you." This is Des not admitting that the closest he's gotten to a general education is street smarts and not a lot of common sense. You pick up a few things when you get to be his age... General physics is not one of those things.

He rests his shin on the back of the seat in front of him and gives her an adorable puppy dog look. "Something with chocolate or caffeine. You know, when I couldn't die, sleeping was something that happened to other people unless I felt like sleeping. This being mortal thing has a lot tougher than it looks."

And yet, after a year, he's almost gotten used to it. Sorta.

[2ndchanceacharm]

Grace rolls her eyes and heads to the back of the bus to dig through the snacks. She's not even going to comment on the basic laws of physics. That's just going to lead to a lecture, and it would probably give her a headache more than it would get anything through Des' head. Whatever, let him believe the laws of physics don't apply to tiny people.

She returns with chips and Fresca for herself, chocolate chip cookies and a Coke for Des, and drops into the seat across the aisle from Des, handing over his goodies with a smile. "Never let it be said that I never did anything nice for you," she says, settling down and getting comfortable. She has books at the front of the bus, but she's been reading for a while, and she's ready to take a break to chat with her ward. "So do we actually have a plan, or are we just... showing up and seeing what happens? Because that plan didn't work so well for Napoleon."