As before, the Stone beckons.

His feet smacked the ground where he walked, and Dai sighed softly. They had the same problem as before, and for some reason, it seemed like Dejavu to him. A new second-in-command, and a problem with the stone... Where had he heard that before? The redhead closed his eyes slightly, knowing that hiding it was a necessity yet again. But this time was also very different, as the redhead carried a basket in his right hand, with a whole host of food and the like within. He smiled softly when he reached the pink door, noting a couple of dents in it, and reached up to the wood, knocking in a pattern that he'd told Reila earlier. As soon as he'd knocked, he quietly opened the door into the girl's office, and held the picnic basket with a smile.

"We have a problem that needs fixing. And I'll assume you know what I mean." He nodded seriously, his smile turning somber. He didn't want the Stone inside of Briggs anymore, he was ready to get rid of the bloody thing. He leaned back against the door and smiled again, looking over the girl. She was still injured, of course, but she should've been well enough to come on a picnic with him, at least. That was, at least, he hoped.

"I said we should go up for a picnic last time, so I'm keeping that promise. Alright?" He poked out his tongue coyly.

She was seeing a lot of him recently. No doubt it had everything to do with...with..that kiss. She pushed herself up from her desk with two hands, a dark look in her dulled eyes. Today just wasn't a good day to start. "So you intend to fix that problem with a picnic?" She asked smartly with a sarcastic laugh. That amused her to no end, and of course, held out a candle to her otherwise pitch black morning. Not only had she woken up with the worst cramps ever, but she had felt achy through out her entire body. After a reluctant trip to the doctor, she was shot full of painkillers and told to stop working or she'd die. It was beginning to feel that way, but... there just was no way she was about to turn down this adventure.

"Hellz yeah we're going!" She darted happily over to Dai and threw her arms around his neck. "But only if you stop acting so dank. When asking me out on a date, you should sound less like you're keeping a promise and more like you want to keep a promise ne? Or am I wrong?" She kicked the abused door to her office shut behind them as they entered into the hallway.

As Reila threw her arms around his neck, Dai grinned at the girl, before walking down the hallway with her... Wait, not yet. He nodded at her quickly, and moved off into the office, grabbing a set of keys for a snowmobile. He smiled softly, and hurried back to the girl.

"Oh, fine. Reila, I want to go on a romantic picnic with you out in the mountains. Will you come with me?" He grinned again, and leaned forwards, kissing her softly on the cheek. He stood back up straight, and put his hands into his pockets, whistling as he went.

"We'd better get changed for the ride, something warmer." He nodded sincerely, and the two of them made it to the changing rooms. He turned into the men's one, grabbed his stuff and began to change, before leaving the room and standing outside the woman's one, waiting for Reila.

"Remember, light dies quickly in these mountains. It's a good idea to be nice and warm, and to bring a torch." His smile was sly and coy, he hadn't had any properly private time with Reila since the last time they went into the Briggs Ranges.

"Maybe," Reila chimed after Dai's whistling back as she followed him, swinging her bag with each step. She wasn't blushing or running in the opposite direction, instead, she was smiling. Things had changed...in the time that had past, Reila no longer felt shy around Dai. Hiding her face and ducking behind corners had become something new entirely. Now, when she saw Dai, she would run towards him full speed. Was this what love felt like? Real love. To be close to another person...she had only ever felt that with Danny and it wasn't the same, but... Since he was gone, she had forgotten that warmth--the safety and reckless abandon.

"うん," Reila murmured with a nod at she slipped into the girl's dressing room. She stared blankly at her locker for a moment before opening it and throwing on a pair of black skinny jeans and a turtle neck of the same color. It was annoying trying to yank her necklace over the thick fabric, but she manged it somehow. After she got her puffy white fur coat on with matching boots that reached her knees, she exited to find Dai waiting for her.

"I know-I know. See?" She turned around like a fashion model. "I'm not wearing a skirt this time. Or my military uniform at all for that matter." She grinned and threw him a huge flashlight. "And remember, this isn't the Stone Age!"

Dai poked his tongue out at her again, making sure that his own clothing was good enough for this. He'd donned a dark trenchcoat, far from Reila's beauty, but definitely something that would work in the weather that they were about to face. He was wearing... Well, he was wearing cargo pants and a light shirt underneath, but he'd decided to also put a singlet on, so, y'know, it wasn't as cold. He grinned at her, and tilted his head to the side, carrying the basket down the hall with Reila behind and a smile on his face.

So what if we're going to do this to hide the Stone? We can't enjoy ourselves at the same time? I'm going to make this enjoyable, for the both of us.

He thrust his arms forwards, and the double doors of Briggs opened out into the cold of the outside. Ah, what lovely weather it was. Absolutely wonderful, and the sun was still pretty high in the sky. Hell, they might make it back before nightfall, if they were lucky. He smiled and stared into the sky, standing at the top of the stairs. He pulled a couple of pairs of goggles out of his pocket, and chucked a pair to Reila.

"You might want those, this time." He yawned, and waited for the girl to reach the stairs next to him. She'd know which one the key went for, but Dai would have to drive anyway... He knew exactly where they were going... unless Reila [i]wanted[i/] to drive them there? He decided to pose the question to the girl.

"So, are you driving, or am I? I'm happy either way..."

"I don't care," Reila shrugged, throwing the goggles back at him. "I've got my own and I don't want to carry around those bug-eyed ones. Stick 'em in the side holder," She laughed, sticking out her tongue playfully as she whipped out her shiny white snow goggles. The glass was silver like a mirror and fit her face perfectly. "Hah! there~"

Dai ended up driving and they soon reached their destination, less pelted with snow than before. Today was a clear day and the air was so fresh. Even in the North the fact that it was spring in Amestris was obvious. Reila smiled brightly to herself as she got off after her red-headed boy and followed his slanted shadow with childlike innocence. After a time, they reached the more mountainous area. Reila was watching her every step warily because since it was sunny, the snow was melting and refreezing. This she knew from experience. Smirk. But just then, she felt the grip on the bottom of her right boot slip. All of her weight was on that foot and it sent her sliding forward, and before she knew it, she was falling. Letting out a yelp in vain, she tried to grip at the edge of the cliff, but her fingers slipped off the jagged edges. Reila plummeted down and hit ice about twenty-five feet below, breaking the surface and falling through that. Reila landed on the hard, rocky surface of one of the many caves in the region. Though this one hadn't had an entrance since she made one.

The yelp was the key. The redhead shouted out, and hurriedly turned straight for the source of the sound, just in time to see Reila go off the cliff.

Shit, shit, shit! He didn't wait to think, he didn't hesitate. He just jumped, right after Reila, leaving the picnic basket behind him. Falling the 25 feet that she had, he landed on the icy roof, posing himself so that it didn't break. Breathing a sigh of relief, he lowered himself off the roof, and landed on the ground next to her. He moved closer to the girl, and sat down right by her with a worried smile on his face.

"Hey, you... alright?" He hoped nothing was broken, but if something was, manipulating calcium should be simple enough for him to heal something like that. It's not like he wasn't capable of basic Alchemy... But he'd need something else.

The Stone.

He suddenly blinked, realising that he was, in fact, soaked, and looking at Reila, noticed that she was the same. He sighed softly, and held out his right arm to her, and clicked the heater button on his palm.

"Hold this - it'll help keep us warm." The charge that was in the arm would last them 20 presses, no more.

Reila raised her head, cranking open her eyes. Where the hell--oh right. She had fallen off the side of the cliff. Damn. No damn. She stared at the gloves on her hands and shook her head. She really should have brought those fingerless ones she had... That probably would have prevented the scrapes she could feel burning on her skin from beneath her clothes. A thud resounded from above and she looked up quickly. Shit, she should probably move save the roof cave in and impale her. RIP Reila Tsukino impaled by ice in a random cave along the Briggs range. Not happening! She forcefully leaped to her feet and jumped to the side to avoid where she heard the sound, but her leg gave out half way through and she tripped over a stalagmite. How ridic-- Dai? With a shower of long, strawberry blond hair, she jolted her head to face him where he now sat right next to her.

"I'm okay," She replied slowly, blinking at him in utter confusion. How..did..he..get there? No...he didn't seriously jump off the cliff? She continued to stare at him. Then, well, he held out his right hand to her. What was that going to do? No way in hell she was going to venture standing up again just yet. He mentioned it being a heater, and the whole idea threw her off even more. Was she hallucinating or something? She was leaning on her hands behind her, and reached over with one hand to secretly pinch herself under the sleeve of her coat. She was entirely conscious, so... Reila moved her now free hand tentatively towards it, running her glove along the warming mental. Ah! It was true. She could feel the heat through he glove even. Weird... what the hell was technology going to come up with next, TV arms?!

She checked herself a bit as she pulled the arm close with a shy smile. The only thing was her leg refused to obey her, and her ribs were giving her hell just sitting there. Ugh. She rested her cheek against his arm and sighed. "Dai, there's something up with my leg. I can get us back up, but..." She frowned. "Hey, why don't we hide it in here? And we can have the picnic just outside?" Reila beheld him with inquiring gold eyes.

Dai moved tentatively closer when Reila pulled his arm to her. He slid across the icy rock, and put his left hand onto her shoulder, before leaning his head on it softly. As much as he hated to show it, the ground-shock he'd gotten was still bloody painful right now. He could use with a few seconds recuperation.

"I... should be able to fix your leg. But I'm going to need the Stone..." He was regreting saying those words - but he'd studied enough about the human body to know how the leg looked, and the Philosopher's Stone would likely help him with that too. But it all depended if Reila trusted him on that or not. Because whether or not that was the case, the Stone would be kept in here, and the roof covered over with ice.

He nodded a couple of times, and finally picked his head up again, and off her shoulder. They might not be able to get back before nightfall, after all. He sighed softly, and held the girl close to him.

"Wh-what?!" Reila stuttered, raising her head in shock. She didn't even know what to think, and thoughtlessly clutched the stone in her coat pocket. "No way. It's not that bad at all." She felt stunted and the rejection was seen clearly through the gold sheen of her furious eyes. That was definitely not happening. Over her dead body! Reila abruptly charged to her feet and stalked to a far corner, pulling out the red item from where she held it. Shoving it into the wall, she erected an ice chamber for it to sit, and then covered it with a thin sliver of ice. Once that was done, she shivered realizing how cold it was away from Dai.

"K, Let's go," She commanded, still a bit flustered by the mere idea of using the stone for something so trivial. Maybe if the world was ending, but... not for her sake. "Come on." Reila's ungloved hand was about to freeze itself if she didn't quickly get them out of there.

All at once, the floor raised them up to the roof and then yet further to the edge of cliff where she had taken her dive. Never again. Fingerless gloves were going to be an essential rule for her now. Once she insured that Dai was off her nicely-made platform, she shut her eyes and touched it. The roof reconstructed below in a thicker layer of ice. Satisfied, she jumped off it to the edge of the cliff and then touched the platform again. It turned into water and fell to the ground below. Reila beamed with accomplishment and slipped her glove back onto her frost-bit hand. Colllddd!

Her stomach growled. "Eh..."

He wasn't surprised by her reply. In fact, he had been pretty tentative about using the Stone for Reila's leg in the first place - but all he wanted to do was help. He sighed softly, and suddenly found himself rising out of the cave and up into the air. He blinked, and suddenly pushed himself off the platform and over to the path, where he found the basket absolutely fine. He smiled at the girl, and help her across back to where he was, arm finally starting to cool down once more. Alright, back up the path? He looked inquiringly at Reila, before stopping and staring. Maybe... not... He put his hands onto her arms, and moved to turn her around. Where they were sitting... The sun was slowly beginning to go down, and they had a front row seat to the sunset.

"I think... we should stay here and eat." He smiled briefly, and sat down by the ice wall, after placing down the heavy-duty picnic mat. With a couple of nods, he held out his left hand, offering it to Reila, with a small laugh at her expense... She seemed to be pretty hungry right now...

"Hungry?"


{Thread FINISHED}