i_speak_softly | Twentieth Theory [Voice]

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Twentieth Theory [Voice]

To all of you from post-1776 America, happy Fourth of July. [Thoughtful pause.] Well, I suppose it's the fourth of July for everyone else too... I hope you're all having a nice day.

Um. [A throat-clearing, a clanking of metal.] If anyone is interested in current events from - October 9, 2006... I found a newspaper.

[Long pause.] I'm not the only one - seeing things, am I? I thought I was just hallucinating, but the newspaper seems pretty real...

Filtered to the Genius Pirate || Not Really Sure This Is Going To Work

Captain - Might I have a word with you?

Filtered to Winry || Unhackable

Winry, do you have a minute?

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I don't know.

[Translation: If you're going out, can I come too?]

Whaddya mean you don't know?

I don't know, Raph. You've been where I'm going, but I haven't been where you're going, and you haven't told me anything. So tell me now - am I the same person where you come from?

Uh...[He shifts uncomfortably from foot to foot.] You never said nothing about gettin' kidnapped an' gettin' wings stuck to your shell, but I dunno. You're supposed to forget that stuff, ain'tcha?

Edited 2010-07-06 01:44 (UTC)

That's what they say.

Yeah. Good. [He's not even gonna try to figure out what he feels about that. All he wants to do is go for a run. He heads out the door and into the hallway without a second glance.] I'm goin' out.

[Okay, Raph. Go enjoy your last night of freedom.]

[After you're gone, Don will move through the apartment, turning off lights, putting away misplaced objects. He ends in his own room, slides into bed, and tries to sleep.]

[After the long heat, it's a really nice night, and he enjoys the run immensely. A few hours later, he returns home, takes a cold shower, and feels much of his pent-up frustration wash down the drain.

Afterward, he doesn't bother with his gear. But instead of going straight to bed, he finds himself migrating back to the lab, relieved to find it empty, then to his brothers' room to peek in the door, satisfied to see them both in bed. He lingers there a moment, unsure of what to do next. He won't be able to sleep yet with the vestiges of adrenaline still buzzing through his veins.]

[Don lies in bed, thinking about tomorrow and listening to Leo breathe. Later, he's still lying in bed, thinking about tomorrow and listening to the shower run. When the door eases open, he props himself up on his elbow, blinking at Raph in the dim light. The unspoken message should be clear: I can't sleep.]

[Raph pads into the room, arms folded over his chest. When he approaches the bed, he speaks in barely a whisper.]

Go to sleep. You been up too long already.

[He sits up, drawing the sheet around him.]

I know. [Gestures to his head.] It won't shut up.

[He sighs heavily.] Need some company?

It couldn't hurt.

[Raph scoots into the narrow space the small bed allows and tries to make himself comfortable. When he finds the right spot, he exhales contently, staring at Don's blackened ceiling. Go ahead and talk if you want, bro. He's listening.]

[He'll make room for you, and lie down in what space is left.]

How was your run?

Nice. Quiet night. Lotsa stars.

Who the heck do ya think that "Great One" bozo is anyways?

Mm... who knows?

[If he wasn't lying down, he'd shrug.]

[Raph lapses into silence, so Don does too. He just shifts against the pillow and lies quietly, listening to himself and his brothers breathe. Counting breaths, three separate tracks of numbers, to fill up his head so thoughts of tomorrow get squeezed out and maybe, maybe, he can get some peace.

The next thing he knows, one of the tracks has stalled out. Leo's. He listens more carefully, trying to pick up the soft sound from the other side of the room over Raph's almost-snores.

Not there.

I must have fallen asleep. It must be morning.

... I don't feel like I slept.

Something else doesn't feel right either. Don rolls onto his elbow and reaches over Raph to turn on the lamp.

The first thing he notices is that Leo has abandoned his bed. The second thing he notices is that all of Leo's stuff is gone too.

Everything.

Before he can even process the thought - I know we're leaving today, but he can't pack it all - he's scrambling over Raph, trying to get up. He nosedives onto the floor, rolls over his shoulder, and all but pounces on Leo's empty bed.

No.]

No!

[He bolts awake as Don scrambles over him, disoriented, vision blurred, mind hazed with sleep, and terrified. He bolts out of bed, somehow managing not to stumble, all too aware he left his sai in the other room.]

Don! [He searches around the room, posed for a fight, his heart pounding in his ears, but finding nothing.] What the hell!?

Shit.

[He turns abruptly from the bed, and almost pushes Raph bodily from the room.] Get your bag. Go. We're out of here.

[He shakes his head clear by the time Don tries to move him. But he stands solid for a moment, staring at his brother's empty bed. Then his mind numbs again.

He pushes Donnie out of the way, hard, his eyes trained to something under the bed. He stoops down, drawing Leo's katana from the shadows. The katana he made.]

...Bastards.

[He doesn't look at Don again, only turns and stalks out of the room. He'll get his gear as quickly as he can, then they're getting the fuck out of here.]

[Don will be waiting by the door. He has his gear, his duffel bag, the equipment he'll need at the barrier, and a few provisions for the trip.]

Ready?

[All Raph has is his own gear, sai, and Leo's katana strapped to his back. His expression is dark, eyes not quite focused and trained straight ahead. He grunts at Don's question, marches past him and stalks out the door. Keep up the place. He's waiting for no one.]

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Twentieth Theory [Voice]

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