3Title: Road Trip ? Chapter 3 Author: Alicia Blade E-mail: Kammi22@sprintmail.com Here?s part 3? I really don?t think I have much else to say, other than, enjoy!!! ?All of these turns are making me nauseous,? mumbled Serena, holding onto her stomach. ?We?re almost out of the Rockies, Serena, I think you can survive,? said Ami, annoyance obvious in her voice. ?Why is she always complaining?? Serena sighed. ?If you say so. I just hope we get there before I lose my lunch.? ?You did eat an awful lot today Serena. Maybe you should lay off the junk food for a few days.? ?Ha! No junk food?! For a few days?! I don?t think so!? ?Fine. But at this rate, my analysis says that by the age of 30 you will have gained?? ?I don?t care! I?m not quitting and that?s that!? Ami sighed. ?It?s so dry around here. I?d almost rather be in the mountains.? ?Texas is a very dry state in places.? ?I see. Hey, Ami, I?m a bit tired. Do you think we can find a place to camp out for the night pretty soon?? ?I was just thinking the same thing. The map says that there is a town just a few miles ahead. We should be there pretty soon.? ?Thank goodness! I can?t wait to get curled up all nice and warm underneath a big fluffy feather down comforter?? Serena sighed dreamily. Ami smiled herself at the thought. ?Ooh, I think I see something up there!? ~ 20 minutes later ~ ?We hope ya?ll enjoy your stay, now. There?s a small convenience store just right on down the street a bit if ya need anythin?. And if there?s anythin? I can do for ya?ll just holler!? said a young woman with red hair behind the counter. She had on a pair of high boots and her outfit consisted of mostly denim, fringe, and cheep plastic beads. ?Oh, we sure will!? said Serena in a fake imitation accent. The lady handed them a pair of keys and they carried their bags up to their room in the small, worn-down motel. ?Serena, I?m going to go get some pencils and a new battery for my laptop computer. Do you need anything?? Serena looked up from the comic book she was reading for the hundredth time. ?Oh, yeah! Could you pick up some snack food?? Ami rolled her eyes. ?I suppose I could bring you back some yogurt or something?? ?What?! Yogurt?! No way! I want some?? Serena let her sentence fade off as she had second thoughts. ?Actually, I?ll come with you. No way am I leaving you up to choosing our meals for the next week!? ?Well, then, hurry up and get your shoes on! I would really like to get on the Internet and look up the news forecast tonight!? Serena rolled her eyes. ?Why don?t you just watch the news?? ?The Internet is more precise, giving information from various meteorologists and it is more up-to-date, as well as the fact that?? ?Alright, let?s just go already!? Serena threw on a pair of tennis shoes and they walked out into the warm twilight air. The small bell hanging from the door chimed at the new arrivals. The clerk looked up from the week old paper in front of her to greet the young blonde and blue haired girls. ?Good eve?n! How can I help ya?ll today?? she asked. ?Hello there,? said Ami, walking up to the clerk. She wore a dark green dress with a black denim jacket and leather boots. Dark green eyes smiled friendly and she had dark wavy hair, half pulled into a bun, the rest streaming down her back. ?Do you have any candy?? asked Serena, jumping straight to the point. ?The best!? said a small voice from behind them. Ami and Serena turned to see a young girl, about 11 or 12 years old with shoulder length black hair and dark violet eyes. ?Oh hello, and what is your name?? asked Ami to the little girl. ?This is Hotaru, my best customer,? said the clerk. ?And my name is Setsuna. Hotaru, could you show this young lady where our candy is and help her find the best?? ?Oh yes, please, I might need a little help deciding!? said Serena cheerfully. ?But be careful,? Ami warned, ?or else she?ll buy it all!? The small girl laughed and grabbed Serena?s hand, pulling her off to a nearby aisle. ?I wasn?t kidding,? mumbled Ami. ?And what can I get for you, miss?? ?Oh, please call my Ami. I am looking for a battery for my computer. Do you sell any around here?? ?Oh sure! Right this way, Ami!? ~ 10 minutes later ~ ?Hey, Ami, do you think this will last until we get to Louisiana?? asked Serena, interrupting Ami and Setsuna?s conversation on the scientific theories on time. Ami looked up to see her friend with an armful of candy bars and bags of pretzels. ?Oh, goodness Serena, that?s plenty!? ?Oh, no, that?s not all, silly!? She dumped the contents onto the counter. Ami became even more shocked when Hotaru came up from behind her and tossed another armful of chips and candy assortments into the collection of sweets. Ami and Setsuna gaped. ? I think she made very good decisions,? said Hotaru honestly. ?I couldn?t have done it without ya!? said Serena, smiling down at her assistant. ?But, honestly, Ami, do you think we got enough? I could get more if you think we?ll need it?? ?No! No, really, this is plenty enough! Trust me! We have enough to feed an elephant for days!? ?But? you?re not feeding an elephant, you?re feeding me?? Ami sighed and began digging through her purse while Setsuna rang up the amount on her cash machine. ?Hotaru and Setsuna were very sweet, doncha think?? said Serena when they pulled out of the hotel parking lot. ?Yes, and Setsuna was very informative. A nice conversationalist and very bright. It was enjoyable speaking to someone who could understand what uniformitarianism is.? ?Uniformi? what?? ?Never mind, you wouldn?t understand.? Serena shrugged and dug her hand into the bag of potato chips in her lap. ?Wan? thum?? she asked, holding the bag up to Ami?s face. She looked at it a bit disgusted before turning down the offer and pushing the bag away. ?No thank you.? ?So? where to now, All Powerful Genius?? Serena asked with a giggle. ?After we travel east across the Great Plains, we?ll go straight to Louisiana.? ?Ooh, great! Ya know, I hear they have some of the best food there! There?s a show on the discovery channel called Great Chefs or something like that and all the restaurants are in New Orleans. Yum!? ?What? Serena watching the Discovery channel?? ?Just the part about food.? ?Should have figured.? ?So? what are the Great Plains? I?m guessing they?re not some sort of airline service?? ?No, Serena. Plains are large, flat areas of land. A very common land form.? ?I thought plateaus were large, flat areas of land?? ?They are. The difference is that plateaus are raised almost straight up from surrounding land.? ?Oh yeah, now I remember?? ?Oh, look at the water! It is so pretty!? squealed Serena, staring out over the blue waves. ?Don?t you think so, Ami??? ?Yes, the Gulf of Mexico is very gorgeous indeed.? ?Yeah? so, are we still on the Grand Plains?? ?Great Plains. And no, we?re now on the Gulf Coastal Plains. It is similar to the Great Plains, except it isn?t quite as flat.? Serena looked around and took notice of the many small hills surrounding them on all sides. ?Ya know, I guess this geography stuff can be kinda interesting.? Ami looked at her suspiciously. ?Well? yes, it can. Um? the small hills were carved by rivers that have emptied directly into the gulf. Coastal plains also consist of swamps and marshes which are defined as low grasslands generally flooded with water. Another coastal plain is the Atlantic Coastal Plain. This plain?? ?Okay, ya know what, Ami? I just realized I was wrong. This geography stuff isn?t that interesting after all.? Ami sighed and rolled her eyes in defeat. ?I?m starving!? exclaimed Serena in her most pitiful voice. ?Aren?t we to New Orleans yet?? ?Serena, you just downed a package of chocolate chip cookies two hours ago!? ?But Ami?? ?Fine, I get your point! We?ll be in New Orleans in about an hour. We?ll eat then!? ?An hour?! I can?t wait that long! I?ll shrivel up and die! Do you want that to be the fate of your best friend in the whole world?? ?Well?? ?Ami!? ?I?m only joking, Serena. Relax, I?m sure you?ll survive another hour. If you?re really that hungry, why don?t you eat some of those carrot sticks I packed?? ?Yuck! I?d rather starve to death!? Ami laughed. ?Knew that would work. Always does?? ?Food! Food! Yay!? cheered Serena as she skipped happily up to the door of the restaurant, Ami trailing on her heels. The small restaurant rested in between an apartment complex and a fashion boutique, making it virtually impossible to tell where one ended and the next began. Painted on the glass window, in large green letters, read, ?Lita?s Bistro?. Inside, the two travelers were greeted and lead to a small red leather booth in the corner, next to a large window. The small Italian restaurant was very crowded and waiters and hosts bustled back and forth. ?Hello, and welcome to my restaurant!? said a tall woman walking up to greet Ami and Serena. She wore the normal chef?s apron and hat, however, it had small green stripes giving the outfit a fun and charming look. The lady had bright emerald eyes and auburn hair pulled up into the hat, with a tail streaming behind it to the base of her neck. ?Your restaurant?? asked Serena. ?You mean, you?re?? ?Lita Kino at your service!? she said happily. ?Nice to meet you!? said Serena and Ami, each shaking her hand. ?I look forward to serving you. Can I get you any appetizers to start off with? We have toasted garlic bread with a marinara sauce or balsamic vinegar . Or I could bring out a freshly made dinner salad with your choice of homemade dressing. We also have a delectable dish of crab-stuffed mushrooms made with my own secret mix ingredients.? ?I?ll try some of those,? said Ami. ?Bread would be excellent!? added Serena excitedly. Lita smiled and handed them some menus before scampering off to prepare the orders. ?She seems really nice!? said Ami. ?Yeah, I know. I hope she can make good food too. And fast!? ?Well, this place is very busy, so I think they probably have very tasty meals here. I hope their high in protein as well. I haven?t had a healthy dose of vitamins and nutrients today as I should for a well-balanced diet.? Serena groaned. ?Must you make even food scientific?? ~ 1 hour later ~ Serena finally sat the fork down on the pale green dishware, with barely any traces of the previous chocolate fudge ribbon cheesecake left. ?This simply has got to be the best dinner I have ever eaten in my entire life!? she complimented Lita who was there immediately to gather their dishes. ?Why thank you so much! I take a lot of pride in my cooking!? ?I see why. It was very delightful.? ?And life-saving! I was going to pass out there pretty soon!? Lita laughed. ?I am very glad you liked it. I hope you?ll come back soon.? ?If ever we?re in the area again, you can bet we will!? ?I?m glad. I?ll look forward to it.? ?Um? don?t hold your breath.? ?Yes, we live four time zones away,? added Ami. ?Oh, you?re just here visiting then?? ?You could say that. We?re on a road trip! Next is? say, where are we going next, Ami?? ?Um? let me check?? Ami whipped out her trusty continental map and began looking over it carefully. ?It looks like we will head north to Arkansas.? ?Oh, I have a close friends who live up there. If you happen to pass through Pine Bluff, you should stop in and see him. His name is Greg Dawson and he teaches computer engineering over at Arkansas University.* He is very sweet.? ?If we go through there, we?ll stop in and tell him we know you? well, sort of.? ?You go ahead and do that. And tell him I said hi!? ?Sure will. Well, thanks a ton, Lita. It was all delicious!? ?Thank you!? Ami and Serena picked up their purses and slowly made their way back out to the car, ready to continue their journey. Next time: What will happen to our travelers? Will they meet Greg Dawson? Will they meet any other interesting people? What other interesting (debatable) landforms will they come across? And has Ami been taking notes on all of this for her long forgotten Social Studies report? It?s Ami, what do you think? The end, for now? ? If there is such a thing as Arkansas University, I do not know if it is in Pine Bluff. Probably not.