Another Corner of the Park, Saturday Afternoon

[unborn_renegade]

Dude. Dax was here. This meant that they had to do so much stuff while they still could! Like... looking at the castle! Eating! Talking to other people! Or, you know, less boring things like racing through the park, which was exactly what Jak was doing, Daxter on his shoulder. Closer and closer to the pond, they ran! This was fu

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[slacks_issues]

"Jaaaak! They're gonna eat me!"

Why yes, that was the horrified cry of an Ottsel who had bitten off far more than he could chew. Where he was actually located was anyone's best guess, because the birds-who-should-have-flown were now the birds-who-were-angry, and yes, they were, in fact, trying to swarm him.

[unborn_renegade]

Yeah. He'd have to find Dax first. Dodging and weaving like the best of them... with his head, at least... Jak tried to make heads or tails of the whole-- well, heads or feathers. Or... something.

Dax? Dax?

Eyebrows were going up. Um... forwards, then!

One of the birds lunged at Dax unexpectedly. It was just an intimidation technique. Really.

[slacks_issues]

Well, it was working! Daxter let out what was possibly the most undignified screech he'd made in at least... well... how long had Jak been gone, now? Weeks?

... No, it probably hadn't even been that long.

And a moment later, Daxter had found the strength he needed to actually bowl one of the birds over, fleeing for his life with the one who had lunged at him hot on his floppy orange tail.

"It pecked me! It pecked me, Jak!" And it was chasing him, pink and black wings flapping overtime to help it keep up. Oh, there was no way that Dax here was going to make an escape on its watch.

[unborn_renegade]

Right. Right. Uh. Jak was kind of torn between two extremes, one of which being finding this kind of ridiculously funny (which found its way into Jak's expression) and the other being kind of worried that Dax would, you know. Get an ulcer or a heart attack or somehow be swallowed whole by a large pink seagull.

Which found its way into Jak's feet, as he sprinted off after the bird in question and... gained on it, easily, because his strides were still larger.

Keeping up with it to the point he could do something about it without accidentally turning the bird back into its component ecos? Slightly more of a problem. He kicked off a little more speed, reaching sideways and grabbing.

It was not the most elegant or fool-proof solution. Maybe if he patted his shoulder enough, Dax would materialise on it?

[slacks_issues]

Dax would love nothing more than to be on Jak's shoulder right now, yelling angry something-or-others at the pink balls of feathery rage. Alas, that was not the way of the world at all, and the seagull-that-was-not was most certainly gaining on him.

And so, Daxter, in a moment of sheer brilliant desperation, zigged when he ought to have zagged.

The splash as he went tumbling head over tail right on into the duck pond was astounding.

[unborn_renegade]

It was astounding enough that it splashed both Jak and the pink not-a-seagull in the face, leaving both standing there in stunned silence for all of two seconds - which was when the not-a-seagull remembered its quest and ran, dripping wet and angry, back into the pond.

...Dax?

Jak was just going to stand here and... hope Dax surfaced.

[slacks_issues]

Well, bubbles surfaced. Now and again. Here and there.

...

Hey! A few more bubb--

"GAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH IT'S GONNA EAT ME!"

Have you ever seen an Ottsel run on water? Apparently all it took to cause that particular sort of miracle was to let it run face-to-face with whatever horrible creature lurked underneath the water's surface.

Which, knowing Daxter, could be anything from a giant man-eating squid right on up to a minnow.

[unborn_renegade]

This? Was Jak, wincing, ducking instinctively, the siren cry of-- well, the warthog's cry that was Daxter in any kind of vague danger elicting a response that was pretty much programmed in at this point.

At least it startled him into action?

The flamingo was very perturbed to find that there was a very tall elfboy suddenly running alongside it again, then past, driving more water into its face.

Dax, just calm down, Jak is on his way--

...He kind of hoped this wasn't a Lurker shark--

--and gaining on him, despite Dax's miraculous and sudden turn of the messianic.

[slacks_issues]

Daxter, in another fit of brilliance, was now actually running in circles on the water's surface, screaming and flailing his wee little arms in his air, and using words which were somewhat unbecoming of a wee little guy like him.

Words like, "AUUUUGH GAAAH HURRRGH SAVE ME SAVE ME SAVE ME."

Such language!

... He'd probably be very easy to grab, now, yes. For pink seagulls, Jaks, and mystery underwater beasts of unknown origin alike.

[unborn_renegade]

Luckily for Daxter, it was the middle one who snagged him in the end. Plucked him right off the surface of the water by his midsection, and kept on going. Going. Goooing to the edge.

Jak was having such trouble not bursting out laughing. The being in the water helped, but then his feet touched ground again, and yeah, it was pretty much a bust.

[slacks_issues]

One he was finished kissing the ground a few times for good measure, Daxter was significantly less impressed, as Daxters tend to go.

He also smelled quite pungently of 'wet weasel.'

"Yeah, yeah, laugh it up." He grumped as he picked some pond weeds from his fur. "It's hiiiilarious, after all. I mean, I was only in life-threatening danger and all. I'd be laughing, too. Oh, wait, I'M NOT!"

Dax was grumpy. And not dead. He'd appreciate that more in a moment.

[unborn_renegade]

Jak's laughter? Not going anywhere, but at least his hand dropped down to pat Daxter on the head once. There there, buddy. Everything was fine! He leaned his other hand on his hip and gave him a grin.

Sensitive, Jak.

[slacks_issues]

Daxter was going to demonstrate his extreme displeasure by throwing his handful of weeds onto the ground, and then stomping on them angrily. Stomp. Stomp. That'd show them!

"Okay. I'm good."

See? He was totally fine. And scrambling up onto Jak's shoulder plate, a nice, safe place to perch atop. He could blow a 'neener neener' raspberry at the freakish pink seagulls from there!

[unborn_renegade]

And all was right again with the world! Well, beyond whatever damage Dax took from the seagulls, but he didn't seem to be bleeding or anything. Jak's shoulder gave the obligatory slight wobble as Dax perched, then rose back up again.

Jak crossed his arms, and looked confident and smug at no one in particular. Alright! They were ready to rock on!

... Hold on tight, Dax.