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[ Probably just as well, for Bear's sake. The car is parked beside K's home, and a palm scan unlocks the scissor doors — that open vertically rather than outward. Before K gets in, he drapes the beach towels over his seat so his skin won't stick unpleasantly to it and gives Bear a last pat (and the last bit of his apple cake slice). They'll be back soon, buddy.

There's an assortment of screens and dials across the dash that are quietly powering on, providing various readouts and navigational help and confirming K's identity as an officer of the LAPD. He swivels a couple of the screens on the passenger side out of the way to make room for Alfie. ]

Don't worry about the door, it'll close on its own. Put on the safety belt. [ It's more of a padded harness than a standard seat belt, and K demonstrates by pulling his on. Notably, there's no steering wheel; only flight sticks and throttle levers, like in traditional aircraft. ]

[The door is definitely unexpected, and unless K helps him it'll take a minute or so for him to figure it out. The prompt about the seatbelt, too, is a good thing; they didn't exist in Alfie's day, and so the thought hadn't even occurred to him.

Right. Safety belt.

[He sets his towel and suit on the seat next to him, then buckles up. Bear stands watch next to the car, still wagging his tail hopefully.]

I don't suppose I could have a turn at the wheel, after?

[ With both safety belts locked in, the doors begin automatically closing. There's a hiss as the seals engage, followed by a faint judder as the drone attached to the outer roof of the car releases. Because of course K plans to document Alfie's first ride in a spinner. The drone's visual feed pops up on the center screen on the dash: an overhead view of the car. ]

That's a risky proposition. Anything happens to you, I'm the one who'll meet the business end of Royce's knife. [ His tone is dry.

True to his word, he flies well even when inebriated — he initiates takeoff and the ground smoothly falls away, slow and steady, so the g-force is barely felt (and more importantly, so no tea will be spilled). The mark of an experienced pilot. ]

[Outside the car, Bear goes nuts as they take off, spinning around in circles and barking his head off. Poor boy. Alfie taps on the window, giving him a little wave as they go. The ride is a lot smoother than he'd expected, but even so, he's hanging on to his seat with one hand and the door with the other.]

How is that being done?

[Alfie asks, nodding to the view on the center screen. Get ready for a lot of questions, K.]

There's a drone with a camera out there. [ Which K brings closer to the passenger side window using the controls along the side of the screen. The pilotfish drone remains hovering there, rising in sync with the car, and if Alfie checks the visual feed now he'll see himself displayed on the screen. ]

Useful for navigation and forensics. [ Toggling a few switches changes what's displayed on the screen; from the standard view to infrared, to a type of sonographic imaging (has Alfie ever wanted to see his insides?), to several other modes on the fly. ] I've been using it for aerial photography here. Sort of mapping the world for the museum.

Is a drone a type of robot or a type of camera?

[Or maybe it's both; it sounds like it might be both. After giving the viewscreen another quick glance, Alfie leans his forehead against his window, looking down at the village below them.]

It really is beautiful, isn't it.

A type of robot. [ And it's probably worth clarifying: ] Not sentient. [ Though the way it can understand a wide array of voice commands and gestures might lead someone to wonder, if they didn't know better.

Once they're well above any potential obstacles, K slows the car's ascent and eases it forward, heading toward the islands first. They're quite a sight seen from above, he thinks. As are the mountains. And the jungle, the ocean... ]

It's incredible. [ He agrees. ] More greenery than I've ever seen in one place before. Life everywhere. A good world to call home. [ But he isn't trying to sell Alfie on the idea — he just sounds grateful to have been allowed to live in such a world. ]

[As they pass over the beach, they fly over Royce (who, Alfie can see, Bear is running to. Wishing he could roll the window down, he taps on the glass and waves as Royce looks up at the car. Royce, for his part, throws up his hands in exasperation and calls out something inaudible. Oops.]

Do you?

[He asks, eyes darting to K for a moment before he turns back to the window.]

Call it home?

[ Oh hi Royce.

They're going slow enough that there's no real harm in it (unless the wind picks up, anyway), so K lowers the passenger side window. Even if it means Royce is going to yell about the "flying death trap." ]

I do. [ Well. ] Sort of.

I think home's always been a person, more than a place. For me. [ And maybe not just for him, he thinks, eyebrows raised as he glances sidelong at Alfie. ]

Yeah? Any person in particular?

[Alfie leans out and waves at Royce as they go past, and Royce yells out at him again. Alfie isn't positive, as it's still hard to hear, but he thinks it might be something about putting his arm back in the vehicle before it gets cut off.]

You've met him. [ They haven't exactly been subtle, him and Connor. ] And I think he'd like to remain here. [ And so, too, will K. With the possibility of visiting their friends in their homeworld or even bringing them to the Meadous one day, making it a permanent home is increasingly appealing.

He's trying (and failing) to suppress a smile at Royce's yelling. ] Royce will be surprised when I deliver you home unharmed. Maybe that'll be enough to convince him to come along one day. [ A big maybe, because he isn't really sure what the root of Royce's fear is. The speed? Heights? Technology he doesn't understand? Alfie putting in a good word surely couldn't hurt, either. ]

Ah.

[He'd been wondering if that would be the answer, though from the phrasing of it (it's always been a person, he'd also wondered if there was someone at home, too.

Royce gets one last wave, and then he pulls his arm in, turning back to K.]

It would take more coaxing than that to get Royce into this thing. He doesn't much like the sound of cars when they're on the ground, much less flying through the air. It's a shame, though, innit; I like this.

Maybe if he's a bit drunk beforehand. [ K suggests lightly. Liquid courage. ] It is too bad, I think he'd like the view.

[ Which Royce will still be able to see in photos, but it isn't quite the same. It's not long before Meulin's tropical islands are below them; the dormant volcano surrounded by springs, the lagoons, the blue crystals glittering in the sunlight. Their vantage point also makes it easy to see the red, orange, and yellow crystals mixed in with the blue within the crater. ]

He likes this view enough to brave boats for it.

[Alfie says, raising his voice to be heard as he leans out the window again.]

And look at that - I can't blame him for it. I've never seen inside the mountain before.

It's one of the most interesting places to see from above. [ In K's opinion, anyway; the crystals and winding lagoons have made for some striking aerial photos. He carefully steers closer to the volcano, with the little pilotfish drone drifting even closer to the crater, its visual feed offering a colourful view of the crystals within. ]

The jungle's too dense to really see much from up here, other than the oasis. The flower forest and mountains are nice, though. Anywhere in particular you're curious to see?

Well, you've got more experience.

[He says, settling back comfortably in his seat.]

Why don't you show me the other places that are most interesting to see from above? The mountains are an idea.

[Especially because he doesn't have much experience with them period, even from ground level. He's never been a big hiker.]

The mountains it is. Then across to see the giant flowers.

[ With the way the major biomes are arranged, they'll be able to see all of them regardless if they take the longer, scenic route from the mountains to the giant flower forest. Which is exactly what K intends to do.

Between the islands and the mainland there's only the wide expanse of the ocean, and this time he intentionally flies at a low enough altitude that the cold sea spray can be felt through the open windows. Technically an inadvisable and borderline dangerous move — or it would be for an inexperienced pilot, but K's done it so often he knows how to compensate to keep everything steady. ]

[He'll need that skill with compensation, because Alfie won't make it easy for him. He keeps fidgeting around - sometimes sitting back and relaxing, other times leaning forward to see better, and still other times leaning to the side to let his arm dangle out the window. Any concerns about potential destabilization don't really occur to him.]

This is fantastic.

[He reaches over, clapping K on the shoulder.]

You must do this every day, eh?

[ Alfie pls.

But it's fine, really. Even if K were completely sober, it isn't something he'd even take issue with. It's nice just having someone along for the ride who's able to enjoy themself without being (or without seeming, anyway) afraid whatsoever. ]

Some days are busier than others, but I do try to take it up pretty often. And I've offered a couple people rides. Aside from Connor, you're the first to actually take me up on it. [ Finally some appreciation.

Once they're nearing the dunes he steadily pulls up — and up, and up, and up, and they pass a couple eagles in flight along the way to the summit of the mountains, which he does a slow loop around. Thankfully no one seems to have informed Zephyr about how thin the air should be at high altitudes, though it is frigid; enough for K to put the windows up. ]

[And enough for Alfie to cross his arms over his chest, shivering a little. His thin cotton shirt is long-sleeved, but that doesn't mean it cuts the wind.]

Offer John a go; he'll go up with you.

[Or so Alfie assumes, anyway. They haven't actually talked about the merits of flying cars, but he can't imagine John turning something down just because it might be dangerous.]

[ Noting the shivering, K offers a slightly apologetic (and amused): ] Sorry. [ He'd also offer Alfie something warmer, but all he has is swim trunks at the moment, so.

But it doesn't take too long to circle the mountains and begin moving past them, down toward the heart of the jungle and its hidden oasis. The temperature change is pretty abrupt — from frigid to balmy and very humid, so he puts the windows back down. ]

If he isn't still mad about the rain. [ Unsure whether Alfie ever heard about it, he elaborates. ] I saw one of his Norfinbury memories, of him getting Royce murdered. Or I would have, but John interfered and the memory Ecks stabbed him. I think he just didn't want me to see it. Royce told me how the memory should've played out.

[K gets extra points for that phrasing - him getting Royce murdered - and Alfie shoots him a quick, approving look.]

He told you that John tied him up, I expect? Left him defenseless?

He did. [ K frowns. ] I think I was more upset than Royce was when he explained it. Made me wonder how he's able to trust John now, but I guess a lot must have happened since then.

[ Norfinbury refugees do all seem to share a certain bond or — understanding — that, at least in K's outsider view, never really extends to anyone else in the Meadous. Presumably because of their shared experiences. Maybe that has something to do with Royce apparently not holding a grudge against John.

K's kind of holding a grudge against John, though. ]

Well, Royce has had time to move on from it, and seeing John torture himself with guilt over it was a help.

[Even though, as far as Alfie is concerned, he feels guilty about the wrong aspect of that whole ordeal. He's pretty sure that John has never actually apologized for tying Royce up - only for not watching Ecks closely enough afterwards.]

But a lot has happened, yeah. Life goes on and all.

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