xp_logs | Nathan and Angelo, Friday

Nathan and Angelo head to Oman. It's a markedly different trip than their last on Elpis business, right from the start.

So very, very much preferable to commercial air, Nathan thought, leaning back into the cushioned seat and sipping at his bottle of water. And all he'd had to do to borrow 'Cupcake' was to promise Moira that he was taking her to a nice, sedate country and not a war zone. Although she gave me a hard time about that just for fun, I swear...

He looked across at Angelo, who had his nose pressed to the window, and smiled. "What's so interesting about the Eastern Mediterranean?" he teased lightly.

"It's just a place I've never been before", Angelo answered absently, not looking away from the view. "Like... pretty much everywhere except where we've been."

"I swear you love the travel as much as the job, don't you? That's not actually a bad thing." Nathan shifted in his seat, stretching his feet out to take ample advantage of the inexhaustible amount of legroom. "I love this plane," he murmured contentedly.

"It's a very nice plane", Angelo agreed with a smile in his voice. "Must've cost Moira a bit."

"Oh, quite." Nathan smiled back at Angelo. "We've only got two afternoons of meetings, tops," he said, "so we should have some time to see the city. I've never been to Oman before myself, so I'm intrigued."

"How long are we stayin'? Just the two days?" he asked. "But I guess that gives us the mornin' to look round."

"Mornings and evenings," Nathan agreed. "Apparently you don't want to be doing much roaming around in the middle of the day anyway, even at this time of year. We should be able to hit the high points." He laughed a bit wryly. "We should go to the souk. I promise not to buy any children this time."

"Even if they're mutant kids that need rescuin' from slavery?" Angelo needled lightly. "Sure, that sounds like fun."

Nathan was very grateful that they wouldn't be facing any situations like that here. Oman's record on cracking down on human trafficking was solid. "I'm not sure where we're staying yet - shouldn't be too hard to find a place, though, there are a number of options." Nathan took another sip of his water. "It's a pity we're not here longer. I'd like to see the rest of the country, too."

"Maybe we can come back sometime", Angelo suggested hopefully. "You know, to check on this thing when it's up an' runnin'. It won't just be in the city, right?"

"Oh, most of the work will get done in the south and the interior - entirely different part of the country from where we're going." Nathan tilted his head, considering it. "But yeah... once it is, we should come back."

Angelo nodded eagerly. "So then we can see the rest of it."

He liked traveling with Angelo. The enthusiasm was refreshing, and occasionally inspiring. Nathan raised his water glass in a half-salute. "Then we can see the rest," he agreed.

--

Nathan had seen many fine hotels in his time. Muscat's Grand Hyatt, however, was in a class of its own. "Holy shit," he murmured under his breath, eyes slightly wide as he and Angelo moved into the lobby. "Did we just... fall into the Arabian Nights or something?"

Their passports had been flagged at the airport, and a very congenial customs agent had informed them that Ambassador al-Sistani had made arrangements for their accomodations. There'd even been a car waiting for them.

If Nathan the seasoned traveller's eyes were slightly wide, Angelo's were saucers. And he kept turning in place, trying to take everything in as they moved on. "...I think maybe we did", he managed distractedly.

"So... want to guess how much gold we'd have if we melted down all the gilding?" Nathan laughed a bit breathlessly. It really did look like something out of the Arabian Nights - there was something very... traditional-looking about the layout of the place, with the square columns and the elaborately tiled floors. The air was cool and refreshing, the scene of the potted plants and trees everywhere noticeable but not overpowering. "Whoops, I think they're waiting for us to check in..."

"Probably", Angelo said with a broad grin, hefting his bags. "But they can wait long enough for us to get a good look."

"Do you get the sense that the government perhaps approves of our little errand here?" Nathan asked merrily as they moved - slowly - towards the front desk. "I mean, if we take this as a gesture... unless this is typical hospitality, in which case that's a little frightening."

"Well, they are very, very rich people. But I'd say if they disapproved, we wouldn't get typical hospitality, so yeah, they probably do." Angelo was having some difficulty believing he wasn't dreaming right now. From LA gang kid to this in three years?

"Mmm. Let's see what the room's like."

The room, unsurprisingly, was a suite. Two bedrooms, a view of the Gulf of Oman, and a not-particular-restrained sort of elegance to the decor and furnishings. Nathan was still shaking his head. "Okay, so we're definitely on someone's good list," he said as he set his briefcase on the desk, opening it to remove his laptop.

"I've never been anywhere like this", Angelo said from the doorway, awed and gaping around the room.

"They do say Oman is trying to outdo Dubai when it comes to the tourist facilities. Of course, I've not been to Dubai, either." Nathan opened his laptop, connecting immediately to the hotel's wireless, and fired off a quick message to Muir. Here safely, sent the plane back, you wouldn't believe the hotel. Love, N.

"What's Dubai's record on mutant relations like?" was the instant question.