Yes clinging good, what if Julien also did that.  "No..."  Oh, huh, he's totally Julien now, isn't he.  "Sorry.  I think we can go back inside now."

"Okay." Haru wheels around and cruises at a safe level distance above the ground towards home. "It seems - hard to calibrate."

"I mean, I think you did it right.  I think you did it exactly right, and now I'm me, and we can go home and it was very fast, and maybe that makes it worth the several hundred dollars on harnesses, and I'm grateful to you and it worked.  - I've never been, on, like drop rides, or airplanes, or anything like that."

"Never even an airplane? Wow. Airplanes are I think more like elevators than they are like flying this way."

"We've been on vacations but like, to African Lion Safari, Niagara Falls, weekend trips to the city, that sort of thing.  Car distance."

"I guess it is certainly possible to reach adulthood without ever being on an airplane and not everybody's dad is in a different province, it just strikes me as odd because I live in a bubble, I guess."

"I mean, I think it's very normal to planes, and somewhat weird to not ever.  To be fair.  ....I'll take your word that airplanes are mostly more like elevators, but also - there really is something to the flying aspect, like - I've never.  Not been touching the ground through some connection of solids or liquids.  ....I mean, sometimes I jump, or run without a foot touching the - you know what I mean."

"I know what you mean." Zoomity zoom. He corners very smoothly. "I think airplanes are maybe more exciting if you're on them for the first time when you're not tiny. I was too young for long term memories the first time I was on an airplane so I just understand them as one of the things that happens sometimes."

"Presumably that only works if you keep going on them once you can, but yeah.  ...Are your arms getting tired?  How long do you normally carry people for?"

"Sometimes much longer than this and I do lots in a row sometimes. You're not that heavy and I'm strong."

Hhhhhow does he respond to that in a way that isn't terrible.  Aaaa.  "Okay."  Aa.  "...It was really scary.  I think I like, experienced more fear, a lot more fear if you multiply it out, when the paramedics forced me into the ambulance, because it went on for a lot more seconds, but I don't think it was - as sharp a point."

"I wonder if you'll ever need to - want to? - repeat the exercise, given that your backlash won't be as sticky any more as of tomorrow."

"It seems maybe nice to go flying again, assuming you still want to hang out after this which it would be fine if you didn't, and, I don't know, maybe after a lot more gentler elevation changes I might want to try the drop ride style again.  Maybe it would even be fine right away once I'm not backlashed, I don't know."

"I am not planning to never encounter you again as soon as you're all done awakening, Julien. Anyway I took a while to work up to big drops myself. Though I was actually a lot more timid about running all things considered."

"...Did I offend you by making it sound like I thought you're a jerk?  I don't think you're a jerk."

"I'm not offended, you're trying to do a no-pressure thing and that is a legit thing to do and I too have made gestures in that direction, but it is not necessary here."

"Okay."  Sigh.  "I think Bug is just a lot more functional than me.  Except for being able to sleep.  And it would be really convenient if he could have stuck around to finish out my awakening for me, especially given that he likes to exist.  Except I guess it ending might have been really stressful for him."

"He did demonstrate the ability to sleep, but I know what you mean."

"Yeah, overnight."  Howww far away can they possibly be from being back inside where there's GROUND and WARM.  "...Why were you scared to run?"

"I'd very thoroughly trained myself out of it, before I awakened." Here's the house. Haru lands them and sets Julien down and unclips and opens the door. "Used to be if I tried it I would inevitably trip and fall, it happened pretty often at a walking pace too."

Thank fucking christ.  "Oh right, you maybe said that.  About stairs or something."  How well can he deharness while still grasping Haru's arm with one of his - apparently not poorly enough that he wants to try something else.

Haru can help him with the straps if he likes.

"Oh, that is better."  And once his is done he'll help with Haru's?

Yup, unclippity unclip unclip and now it's just topless Haru folding up the quilt they brought. "My mom got it on video the first time I ran after awakening."

Oh no the blanket he is going to FREEZE, AGAIN.  Even though apparently the blankets had lived under the couch the whole time and he could have gotten one for himself even once he was committed to staying there.  Ughhhhh he's losing at awakening.  "That sounds really nice."  Except for how he's really winning at awakening and this could have gone so much worse in so many ways.  "Is it bed time?  Or possibly shower time?"  Soon this will be OVER.