It wasn’t long after she joined Blank on the high bluff above the meeting point that Nikki spotted a distinctive glider.  Eli, flubbing the landing as usual.  “C’mon, we should get down there,” she told Blank, but the young man outright refused.  The cliff was a perfectly good launching place, and it didn’t have all those people.  She pouted but to no avail.  “Well, fine, you stay up here if you really want to.  I don’t want to miss it if there’s an announcement or something.  But you better not go too far without me, got it?”

With that, the excitable woman pulled out her glider and opened it, plunging off the edge of the bluff and sweeping downwards toward where the crowd waited.  She aimed for Eli -- the younger boy would doubtless gravitate toward Blin and Rahna, if she’d missed their arrival.  A grin spread across her face as she noted where her shadow lay -- approaching her friend, it trailed behind.  Perfect if she wanted to give him a scare -- and why not?  Nikki chuckled to herself and changed her angle, dropping down a few yards earlier than her initial intention.  The rest of the distance she covered in a quiet dash, until she was /right/ behind Eli.  “Yaaah!”  With a shout, she jumped him, completely disregarding the backpack in the way.  It’d mean finding purchase for an impromptu piggyback ride would be difficult, but knocking him over would work just as well.