Luceti Appointments

[i_speak_softly]

Need a thread with Don, but don't have a post for it and don't feel like starting one? Stick it here. Please note date, time of day, location, and any relevant circumstances.

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[i_speak_softly]

[He looks up, alarmed. The cup somehow remains stuck to the bottom of the tub.] And who else? [He means of their family, of course.]

[meanandgreen.livejournal.com]

[He shrugs, still feigning apathy.]

No one. Just you.

[i_speak_softly]

[Your tone and your words don’t match. He must be misunderstanding something.]

Just -- Huh?

[meanandgreen.livejournal.com]

[Then Raph goes to leave, because another second longer and he'll crack his facade. Then he'll get angry. Then he'll start caring. And in his mind, Don doesn't deserve that much.

You didn't back him up with Derek. He tells himself it's only fair. Maybe now they're even, at least in that respect, but it doesn't make Raph feel any better.]

[i_speak_softly]

Raph, wait - [As Don scrambles out of the tub, the plastic cup rockets into the air, ricocheting off the ceiling before falling back with a wet smack.] Give me that...

[meanandgreen.livejournal.com]

[Raph stops and lets Don catch up to him, handing him his journal without even glancing up.]

[i_speak_softly]

[Don takes the journal and scans down the list of names, his jaw dropping further and further as he reads.]

No...

[meanandgreen.livejournal.com]

[Then Raph tries to walk away again, leaving his journal behind. He heads for the porch, planning to collapse there, sulk, and stare off into nothing for the rest of the day.

Useless. Helpless. Still angry. All these things play through his mind. Fester, as Splinter has accused. And maybe he is. Maybe he's rotting from the inside-out. Don may have changed, but he's never felt so numb.]

Pretend this is a quietly worried face. /iconfail

[ninjacane]

[Splinter sometimes overhears at the worst of times... when he needs to overhear the most. He knows about the draft and what it means, and there are a million emotions going through his mind as it tugs painfully at his chest.

But for now, he is needed by his son. He does not go after Raphael, not yet, instead reaching out to put a hand on Donatello's shoulder.

Splinter can have a heart attack later.]

[i_speak_softly]

[Don half-turns, tilting the book so Splinter can see the list of names.]

All my friends... none of my family.

[ninjacane]

[Splinter reads the list quietly. He doesn't speak immediately.]

... Tell me what this means.

[Your father can read just fine, but he has to hear it from you.]

[i_speak_softly]

Everyone on the list has to fight in the Malnosso's war. Whether they want to or not.

[ninjacane]

You cannot refuse?

[i_speak_softly]

[He shakes his head.] You can go to the teleporters on your own, or you can resist and get dragged there by robots.

[ninjacane]

Then you have no choice.

[It's not a question.]

[i_speak_softly]

Not much of one.

[He presses the button to play the Commandant's message again.]

[ninjacane]

[Splinter frowns more as he listens, and by the time its finished, his body is stiff and angry.]

They play with our lives as if we are their pawns.

[i_speak_softly]

At least they bring us back if they kill us. [Bitterly. It's not really a consolation - not to mention this "True Death" thing makes him nervous.]

[ninjacane]

[That comment alarms Splinter in such a way that it remains with him, and does not get expressed on his face.]

Under no circumstances are you to put yourself in such danger while you are away.

[i_speak_softly]

Believe me, Sensei, I'm not going out of my way for the Malnosso.

[ninjacane]

[Splinter seems satisfied by that, although he is definitely not happy about the situation.]

Good. Then I will do all that is possible to help you prepare yourself.

[They can't change what's going to happen, but he can make sure you are at your best.]

[i_speak_softly]

[Don nods. He will definitely want Splinter's help - as soon as he takes care of something else that is suddenly very much on his mind.]