(Untitled)

[numbuh_one]

[Yesterday at school, Nigel found Numbuh 3's drone. Heading home that day, he seemed empty, walking slowly. In front of his house, he stared up at the treehouse and shed a single tear.

.... Well, it seemed like that would be the case, until he broke down sobbing on the lawn a minute later. The last of his best friends, gone. No matter how much he

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[noneed_2worry]

...Nigel?

[Oh hey, there's Dawn standing there at the edge of his yard. She looks worried.]

[numbuh_one]

[Well if it wasn't obvious at first, he's facing the treehouse and crying like a baby. And now Dawn's behind him. A bit of a choked noise, then he slides up his shades and rubs his eyes with a fist. He wants to reply, but the words refuse to come.]

[noneed_2worry]

Nigel, what's wrong?

[She moves to give him a hug.]

[numbuh_one]

[he needs a hug, really, so once he notices that, he turns around to accept it. His voice is small now, kind of tired too.]

Kuki's down... droned...

[flysafelyfree]

[She's been watching him for a bit now! Just... watching and trying to figure things out from a way away. She's probably been up in any nearby trees, too. :<]

[numbuh_one]

[Nigel walks home from school. But to be honest, Rue's kind of exacerbating his feeling of anxiousness. He knows he's being watched. Or maybe he's not truly aware of her presence, but might as well be, as much as this feeling is going to vanish. It probably won't.

Finally, he can't take it anymore. He whirls around and yells.]

Who's there!?

[flysafelyfree]

[It takes a few minutes., but with quick, easy persussion the girl is down from the tree she'd hidden in. Christmas had shellshocked her some back into a more distrusting state and it'd taken a bit longer to approach people than it did before. Arms slightly outstretched, eyes curious and the normal slight cock of her head in place.]

[She's not speaking yet, just looking curiously.]

...Why are you doing that?

[numbuh_one]

[oh, a kid. He relaxes a little, but her question confuses him]

Doing what?

[prodigious_mage]

[Palom takes about 10 bathroom breaks a day. Strangely enough, they all last at least 10 minutes. The next class has only just started when he trudges in the bathroom and -- ]

What the --

. . .

Hey. You OK?

[numbuh_one]

[a sharp gasp. But Nigel attempts to calm himself. It's not easy, what with this suddenly strong urge to claw at his head. He scratches it tentatively instead. The hair is on the floor now.]

I....

...No. I'm sorry.

[he has no idea why he's apologizing.]

[prodigious_mage]

What for? I guess ripping out your hair is hard on my eyes, but . . .

[numbuh_one]

[he pauses, then puts his hand over his eyes]

I don't know why I said that. My head may not be very clear right now.

[miss_enma_ai]

[She's been even quieter then normal since Saki left. But she see's the crying boy and a moment later she's standing next to him.]

god I just have no icons for this post

[numbuh_one]

[he senses someone is there, but he can't stop the tears. He stays quiet as they fall, but eventually he feels like he has to say something.]

Ai.

[....that's all he can muster.]

[miss_enma_ai]

What happened.

[numbuh_one]

[deep breaths. He tries to stop crying. He succeeds for the moment, although his voice is wavering.]

Numbuh 3... t-they got all of my best friends. She was the last one!

W-we made it through Christmas, I thought it wouldn't happen this time... I mean, I was still kind of expecting it, but I thought I was w-wrong...

orz

[springtime4me]

[Well... I have no idea what the heck Hitler is doing anywhere near the elementary school, but I couldn't not tag this post, so let's just say this is on his way home or something? orz Seriously, though, concerned brother is concerned.]

Nigel..? What's wrong?

8Dd

[numbuh_one]

[Nigel stares numbly for a moment, but hesitantly answers]

I-

[He definitely still looks worse for wear after the end of the school year. He doesn't have a hat to hide the bald patch, and even though you can't see his eyes being red thanks to the ever-present sunglasses, his demeanor reflects his paranoia. He's jittery, and he looks over his shoulder frequently as he talks. His tone becomes urgent.]

I don't think I have much time, Hitler. Numbuh 3's gone, she was the last one - there's a pattern to this, they're going to come after me, I just don't know when. I need to make accomplishments as fast as I can, and I need to do so without botching it all up, but it could be too late. I should have seen this when they droned Rachel! I-I...

[he gulps, giving a window to the rambling. After all, a kid's gotta breathe.]

[springtime4me]

[He kneels down to Nigel's level and very gently puts a hand on his shoulder.]

Nigel.... Calm down, okay? You're strong. You can make it through this.

[He gives him a sad sort of smile.]

It's really hard loosing your friends from home. Most of the people I knew are gone now too. But the most important thing we can do for the people who were droned is to never give up on them.

This town's greatest weapons are paranoia and despair. The best defense we have against those weapons is hope.

[numbuh_one]

I didn't give up on them!

[he snaps, but ... he kind of did, didn't he? By thinking of them as "gone". Realizing that, he puts a hand over his face, just... not moving. Hitler can leave his hand there if he wants, but calming him down just isn't that simple. It will probably be appreciated later, though.]

....I'm sorry. But I'm the last chance they've got, and the clock is ticking. I'm... scared.