5: action

[after_march]

[Since arriving in Luceti, April has developed a sleepwalking problem. It wasn't too bad at first: she'd wake up halfway to the living room, sitting in a kitchen chair, or lying on the floor next to her bed. Unfortunately, as Halloween nears her problem is getting worse. She found herself in the forest two days earlier with no knowledge of how she

Comments

[Action]

[meanandgreen]

[Raph knows that scream, and the sound of it jolts him awake with a bolt of panic. The next thing he knows he's crashing through Don's door, sai in hand.]

Don! You hear that?

[Action]

[i_speak_softly]

[As Raph barges in, Don is already on his way out of the room, bo in hand. Only their combined ninja reflexes save them from a messy collision.]

Raph, go!

[Action]

[meanandgreen]

[Raph nods once then bolts for the front door, booking it through the damp grass toward the screams echoing from the mist-choked moonlit woods.]

April!

[Action]

[i_speak_softly]

[Don follows, holstering his bo as he hurries through the living room and matching Raph stride for stride as they race into the trees.]

[i_speak_softly]

[Late in the evening, after April has calmed down and been patched up, Don quietly leaves her room, goes to the other side of the house, and knocks on Raph's door. They need to talk.]

[meanandgreen]

[There's no answer. Not even the slightest sound of movement coming from the room, not even light coming in from under the door. By all accounts, there's a good chance Raph's not even in there.

From where he sits on the floor of the dark room, Raph hears the knock, but ignores it, burying his face in his arms again. The door's locked. Maybe he'll just give up and go away if he stays silent.]

[i_speak_softly]

[There's no answer, but the trail of destruction leads directly here. Don knocks again.]

Raph?

[meanandgreen]

[No, he's going to be stubborn. He winds his hands into fists, nails digging into his palms, eyes closed tight and biting down on his tongue. He has to resist the urge to just start screaming at Don to leave him alone. He has to be quiet. He has to stay completely still, then he'll go away. Then maybe everything will just go away.]