The weather was excellent for being outside, and Devika’s father had the windows down the whole drive. Devika had subtly requested it. Hopefully it would make Roxy more comfortable in the cramped car.

The amusement park venue could be seen from quite a while away. The top of the roller coaster came into view first, and then the Terrible Tower drop ride. The scents came next, popcorn, and sugar drifting through the windows. Wacky World came into view proper within a few minutes.

There was cheery carnival music piped through hidden speakers, and a small crowd already at the ticket line. However, since their tickets had already been bought, the group breezed through the gate.

The park was already busy, despite the early hour. Devika felt the strain against her and Roxy’s bubble. Luckily, most of the emotions were joyous, but even too much of that left Devika hyperactive and almost manic.

“Well, where would you like to head first?” Tim’s eyes were shining behind his glasses.

Roxy pulled her armor around her. She had no experience with this man people. She knew the noise and crowds were going to get to her. She wasn't the most patient person on a good day. She couldn't allow herself get frustrated today. Devika picked up her emotions. She refused to ruin this day. If this was how they wanted to spend their day she would give then the day one way or another.

She scanned the games and rides. No matter where they went there would be a line. "I'm up for whatever you guys want to do. I'm just an accessory today." She didn't have a preference. She saw a couple of rides that looked interesting but she was going to stay in the background as much as she could. This was about them reconnecting. She was only here to make that possible.

Devika's parents exchanged a very brief, unreadable look. "Well, alright then. We hit the heavy stuff first, and then work our way to the food and games!" Tim lead the way through the already decent sized crowds, heading toward the rollercoaster that had been visible since they had arrived.

The Rockin Roller was a massive display of woodwork. The paint looked a little worn, but the main attraction was very much safe and intact. Screams of terror and delight came whooshing around the corner as they joined the line. Luckily not many people had made it that far back. They were getting strapped in within about ten minutes. Tim and Devika tucked their glasses away lest they be lost to the wind. Then the coaster started up. It whooshed. It swerved. It rose and dove. It was pretty damn good for a small-town carnival ride.

Mara was staggering slightly by the time they got off. "I just... need a second. The inner ear... very delicate." She leaned on Tim's shoulder, face a little wan. "The things I do for love. Devika. Never marry a coaster enthusiast. I swear that thing gets faster every year."

"Pretty sure it doesn't, Mom." Devika said with a chuckle.

The rocking roller was selected as the first ride. Roxy studied the ride while they were in line. Doing so kept her mind on the long wait. Luckily the line wasn't very long. She stayed with Devika as they climbed onto the ride. In a way the ride reminded her of her motorcycle. That allowed her to relax and enjoy the ride. She was disappointed that the ride wasn't longer but she was looking forward to the next one.

"Take all the time you need."Roxy responded. She studied Devika trying to get an idea of where the empath was. The emotions here were positive so that should be helpful. While their bubble wasn't perfect it should shield Devika from most of them. She hoped they would be able to stay at least a couple of hours. This clearly meant a lot to them. "Should we alternat?? Maybe do a game between ride?" She suggested.

Devika was fine, so far, and didn’t look out of sorts. She had a natural looking smile on her face, and looked generally amused by her mother.

“That’s a good idea, Roxy. Absolutely brilliant.” Mara said, gently steering her husband from the high-drop Terrible Tower and toward the many carnival games around the bend.

Tim mock-pouted, but wrapped an arm around his wife. “Alright, alright, I get it.”

The first game they came across was a classic. Knock down some bottles, win a stuffed animal.

“Oh, I’ll go first!” Devika stepped up and bought three balls. Her aim was good, but her throwing arm was a little weak. She got a small consolation prize in a stuffed bee that could fit in the palm of her hand. “Man, that’s hard. I never win that one. Roxy, you try.”

Roxy was relieved when they agreed with her idea. She figured a game would give Mara some time to recover between rides. She followed as they headed towards the first game. She was glad she could give them this time together. She wasn't as uncomfortable as she thought she'd be. In fact she was getting more comfortable with them. Which was probably a good thing. It meant it would be easier for them to visit in the future.

She studied the game as Devika played. She knew the game was rigged. Places like this always were. Roxy stepped up to the game she took the balls. She hadn't ever thrown a ball before so she took a minute to get used to the weight and feel of the ball. The first ball missed completely. The second ball was close. The third ball hit where the pins. "Congratulations. Which prize do you want?" The man running the game said as he indicated to the prize.

Roxy shrugged. She had no use for stuffed toys. "You pick Devika."

Devika and her parents cheered as Roxy knocked down the pins on the third try. “That was awesome, Roxy!” She hadn’t expected her friend to be so good at that. When Roxy said she could choose the prize, she beamed. “If you insist, I won’t ask twice. I’ll take… this one!” She pointed at a large plush cat hanging up on the wall at the back of the game booth.

The man running the booth handed it over, and Devika gave it a firm squeeze. Plushies were decent substitutes for the people she couldn’t hug. “Let’s see what other games they have.” She was aware that a lot of them were money traps, but that didn’t mean they weren’t fun. There was a goldfish catching game, a booth with a “certified” tarot reader, and many other games of skill and chance in the rows.

“Where to next?”

Roxy shrugged. Part of her liked that they were impressed by her skill even though that hadn't been her goal. She looked around. She still thought they should alteration between rides and games. That way they could make the most of the day. She didn't want to go through all the games. Most of them were money pits and weren't worth the time. She didn't want them wasting to waste time or energy.

"Let's try a ride before doing another game." She suggested. A Rollercoaster or something with an open would do. She scanned the lines trying to find one that wasn't too long. "What about that boat thing? It doesn't look too intense?" She pointed at the Phoenix Fury that wasn't far from them. The line wasn't too long so they wouldn't waste a lot of time waiting. She didn't want to waste time. Even though they would be able to spend time together in the future.

Devika looked to where Roxy gestured. “Oh yeah! The Phoenix Fury. It’s actually a water ride? No one knows why it’s named that anymore, and I think they’re too lazy to refurbish it.” She started walking in that direction. Having noted that Roxy seemed to be more relaxed, she felt better about the whole excursion. It just wasn’t fun for her if everyone wasn’t enjoying themselves.

After a short wait in line, they were strapped into a red and yellow boat on a fake river. The ride led them around twists and turns and splashes, with a big lift and a drop at the end. There was a bridge overhead where people could watch the ride drop and get wet if they wanted to. Luckily, it wasn’t too cold.

The water ride was perfect. It had a few thrills without being too scary. Roxy thought they all enjoyed it. She didn't mind being a little wet. It was nice enough that it wasn't uncomfortable. She followed the others off than looked around. She saw a game with goldfish. It looked simple and fun.

"Why don't we try that. I think we can do that and a ride before lunch." She looked at Devika to see how she was taking everything. It seemed like since she relaxed the other woman had been doing better. Her negative emotions probably had an impact on the protective bubble. Which was a bad thing. There was no way she would be this calm when they visited her parents.

Both of them would make her mad. They both wanted her to be something she couldn't be. She had given up trying to make them happy to focus on her own happiness. She had no doubt they would take the opportunity to make her feel guilty for that.

Devika noted that Roxy was starting to relax more and more. She was very pleased about that. It was good that her friend was having some fun. She seemed to be taking the lead, and Devika was happy to let her experience everything she never had.

“Goldfish sound fun! Let’s go!”

It seemed that the goldfish scooping game was based on a traditional festival game in Japan. Thanks to the internet, it had crossed the seas and wound up at the park.

They all tried eagerly to catch the elusive orange fish. Devika’s luck was no good, however. Animals tended to avoid empaths, so all the fish swam away even faster than they usually would. Mara didn’t catch anything either. Tim had the best luck – his calm demeanor and steady hands netted them two fish. Since neither of them were interested in pets, they wound up giving them away to nearby children.

"Goldfish it is." Roxy agreed as she followed them to the booth. She hung back as they took their turns. She found it interesting how the fish responded to each of them. She was impressed when Tim caught one. She didn't understand why devika didn't. She had a calm nature like her father. It seemed like animals would be attracted to empathes. She pushed the thought away as she stepped up to take her turn. She wasn't the most patient person unless she had a goal. Since she didn't care if she got a fish or not she wasn't patient enough to win one.

Once the game was done she looked around. She saw another roller coaster she thought Tim might like. The line was relatively short. "Lets try that one. Than maybe we can eat lunch." She hoped that it wouldn't be too much for Mara. The day was going so well she didn't want to ruin it by picking the wrong ride.

They had reached the Devastator roller coaster. It was one that was more modern, with high loops and low dips. Tim looked very excited, as did Devika. Mara looked at the coaster with some trepidation, however.

"Ah...I may have to sit this one out. If I ride this, I don't think I'll eat for days."

Tim gave his wife a concerned look. "You sure?" When Mara nodded firmly, he kissed her temple gently. "Alright. I won't make you hurt yourself. Devika, I know you're game. Roxy, you have the instincts of a coaster fanatic, and I mean that in the best way."

Mara giggled softly. "I'll go get in line for some food. I should still be in it by the time you get done."

"Thanks Mom." Devika handed her mother enough money for she and Roxy's meals, then went to get in line. Fear and happiness were wearing against her bubble, as screams from the Devastator echoed above.

Roxy frowned at Mara. She hadn't thought the ride was that intense but it took a lot to scare her. She felt bad that the older woman would be left out of the ride. But the day was going better then she expected she wasn't willing to let something like this ruin it. The day was too important to Devika.

She glanced empath. She was worried that the bubble wasn't doing its job. Which meant she was failing the other woman. She wished she knew how to make the bubble strong unfortunately the only thing she knew for sure was it had to do with her.

Roxy followed the others onto the ride. She hoped they could at least make it through lunch. Half a day was a good start. Right?

One wild roller coaster ride later, they were on their way to the food area. Devika’s hair was a fluffy mess, having been tossed this way and that from the various turns and loops of the Devastator. Still, she was happy – and hungry. Tim was texting his wife, trying to garner her location. The trio weaved through the crowd, scents of various fried foods mixing in the air.

Although she’d never say it, Devika was starting to feel the strain. There were long lines everywhere, and people were irritable. It was like sandpaper.

Roxy studied Devika as they headed towards the table. The empath looked pale. They had been here a few hours. That was the most they had been in public. It was a lot but it still felt like a failure because the other woman couldn't spend the day with her family. It had been clear all day that this was something they had done more than once. It was a start but it wasn't enough.

She made her way to the table. She hesitated to sit down. She still felt a little out of place. She wasn't family. She didn't belong but she couldn't go far. After a moment she took as seat as far from them as she dared so they could have some family time.

Mara had a carnival feast waiting by the time they found the table. Corn dogs, burgers, funnel cakes. Most of it was fried, actually. Tim kissed his wife's cheek and sat down to eat. Devika took a place at the other side of the table, across from her parents. She still looked frazzled, but started picking away and eating the outer layer of a corn dog. She waited until her parents were distracted before scooting down the bench, just a little closer to Roxy.

"Hey. You good?" She looked concerned, despite clearly being on the unwell side herself.

"I'm fine." Roxy answered. While she wasnt used to places like this she had no problems with the noise or the crowds. It wasn't some place that she would go often but it wasn't some place she minded going occasionally. "I'm not the one who needs shielding." She pointed out as she studied the empath. She was worried that Devika was looking a little pale. Roxy wasn't comfortable saying anything. It wasn't her place. She was suppose to protect the woman from emotions, which she was failing at. "How are you?"

Devika pursed her lips for a split second, before smoothing her expression. In her mind, Roxy absolutely needed shielding, but in a different way. But - she was tired, and probably cranky. Even if she wasn’t, this was not the best place for a deep conversation. She’d save the confrontation for when they weren’t in public, in front of her parents.

“I’ll be fine after I chill out here. And maybe get some of that funnel cake.” With more calm than she felt, she removed her glasses and buffed them on her shirt. The exhaustion in her eyes was obvious. And yet – she just kept on.

“I’ve been through worse.”

"I'm sure you have Devika but that isn't the point." Roxy commented. She had a feeling the other woman was going to ignore the problem just like she had done in the past. She reminded herself that it wasn't her business. It wasn't her job to make sure the woman didn't over do it. It was her job to protect the woman from the emotions of others. So she simply shook her head. She wouldn't ruin the day. This weekend was for the family.

"Enjoy yourself." She told Devika before turning her attention to her own funnel cake. She mostly picked at it. She wasn't hungry. All she could think about was how different the visit to her parents would be.