"Johnny." Meri gently shook him. "Johnny. It's time to wake up. We're here." He groaned sleepily and rolled away from her. He was having a very nice dream. Liris had just baked cookies and he had just been about to take a bite. Her cookies had always been so yummy and he loved them.
A soaking wake-up call destroyed any chance of him getting back to sleep. It surprised Johnny enough that it made him sit up suddenly, making him hit his head on the bunk above him. That's right, they were on a boat. After they had left the temple near the town Meri had said was called Zantaric, the two had left the mountains. They had gone lower and lower, back into Adela, until they reached the river where they got on a boat. Johnny had asked repeatedly about where they were going but the only response he ever got was a smile and an assurance that it wouldn't be much longer until they got there. He had lost count of the number of days it had been since the Temple.
He sat up groggily. "Here? Where are we?" Meri smiled at him. She would probably give an unhelpful answer again, he could feel it. "Suna." Was all she said before she left the cabin. Like that told him anything. He groaned. Where was this 'Suna' that they needed to take a boat to get to? It was the first time the boy had been on a boat but he could tell already that he didn't like riding on them. Too much movement for his taste.
He rolled to the side of the bed, swung his legs over to hang above the floor - somebody told him it was called a deck but it was still a floor to him - and hung his head. He was only in his small clothes, which he would have to change out of since Meri hadn't taken 'no' for an answer, and he was content to just sit there for a minute so the water could run off a little bit.
Drip.
Drip.
Drip.
The sound of the water hitting the deck was rhythmic and predictable. It was soothing, in a way. By concentrating on the water drops, he was able to take his mind off the boat ride and how the ship had liked to not stay still. It had been the worst when they had gone through a storm and it was a memory Johnny didn't want to relive right now.
He used his blanket as a towel to dry himself off before slipping into his breeches and putting on his shirt. He probably looked a mess but he was fine with it. If Meri took offense, well, she shouldn't have thrown water on him.
After making his way outside, Johnny saw that Meri was talking with one of the people who worked on the ship so he took the time to look around. One side was nothing but water and was useless to him. Looking over the other side of the ship, the boy was greeted with land.
Johnny blinked a few times to get his eyes used to the sunlight again. It was definitely land, there was no doubt about it, but something seemed...wrong. That was the only way he could describe it. If asked, he wouldn't be able to say what was wrong, just that something didn't seem right to him.
There was a road leading from where the ship was staying up to a city. Once again, something struck Johnny as wrong about it, though he couldn't say what. "That's Suna in the distance." Meri said, coming up behind him. Johnny frowned. He didn't much like this 'Suna' place that him and Meri had come to.
A carriage was waiting at the end of the piece of wood the ship-people had set out to connect the ship to land. Meri went up to it and opened the door, motioning Johnny inside. This turn of events excited him a little. He'd never ridden in a carriage before! This place can't be all bad if he can ride in carriages, right?
Sadly, the ride wasn't as thrilling as he thought it would be. Where the ship had been a slow roll, back and forth, the carriage bumped and jostled him for most of the ride. Walking was fast becoming Johnny's wanted means of traveling, though it would have taken a much longer time to get to Suna.
As it was, he did like how quickly the carriage had gotten them to where they were going - wherever it was. Johnny peaked out of one of the windows to find that they had stopped in front of a large building. It was scary looking and he really didn't want to get out in front of this place. He felt a little shove from Meri, prompting him to step out. He cast an uneasy glance back at her.
"It's okay, Johnny." She said. "I've been here several times before. I know that some of the buildings may make you a little uneasy but that's just the way they were built. Nobody here should harm you." So maybe it was a slight stretch of the truth but Meri didn't need Johnny to be jittery for their stay here. In fact, if she could do what she needed without having to watch over him, that would make things a lot easier for her.
"You don't really want to go in there right now, do you?" Johnny shook his head. She smiled. "Alright then. Why don't you explore the city, hmm?" Johnny's eyes went wide. "Don't worry, you won't be hurt here. I promise." The child smiled, a little more at ease. "Okay, Meri." He said with a smile. His spirits visibly lifted. "Do you think I'll make any friends." She nodded, his innocence making her smile. "Of course you will. Now run along and meet me back here when the sun sets, okay?" She handed him a bag of coins. He took the coins and jumped out of the carriage and practically ran off to see the city. Meri shook her head, smiling. Now on to important matters.
Johnny quickly got tired from running and slowed to a walk, trying to look at all the buildings and people and things and everything all at once. It was all so different from what he was used to. The boy hadn't even been to a city this size, though he'd been near them. Meri hadn't really liked the idea of venturing any closer to the cities they pasted than they had to. Johnny shook his head. He needed to think about the city around him. He also wanted to find a friend too. Wandering around would get boring and lonely quick without one.
