Chapter 10: Good Night, Sleep Tight Part 1

(Alternative Title: Cabin Fever, Not Really A Fever)


"You seem really happy."

Rachel chuckled. "And why wouldn't I be? I just got that cast off my foot. I don't have to keep bugging you now to drive me around." She tapped her chin. "Speaking of which, we'll need to start coming up with how we're gonna total you. Any thoughts?"

"Not like, actually total me, right?" Hot Shot sounded nervous, but Rachel was quick to reassure him.

"Don't worry. We just need to make it look bad. It'd probably be best to stick to either early morning or late at night. Just enough people need to see it before we get you to disappear." She explained.

"Huh, and how am I going to do that without moving on my own?" Hot Shot retorted.

Rachel blinked. She hadn't thought that far honesty. "Hey, it's Saturday-give me a break. My brain takes a vacation on the weekends. Let's hear you come up with something better."

"Oh, I can't. Why? Because I'm finally back on duty!" Hot Shot crowed, his rear tires bouncing on its absorbers.

"Hey, you're not supposed to be alive!" Rachel hissed. She checked around the street to make sure no one saw the yellow bot had been doing an impromptu dance. People were out and about, but the thing about Saturday mornings was that not many were out. Had she not needed to get her cast taken off, she'd still be in bed too. "I'm happy for you too, but you can shake your tailpipe back in your base."

"I did." Hot Shot said dryly. "Red Alert told me to quit fooling around, and Optimus agreed with him. Only the mini-cons wanted to join in."

"Sounds like you really need another friend." Rachel observed. "Isn't there a way to contact your planet-Cybertron, wasn't it?-and call in reinforcements? The Decepticons outnumber you; they did even before you got hurt."

Hot Shot vented in annoyance. "Even if we could, we shouldn't have to call in the cavalry. Those Decepticreeps should be running scared of us, not the other way around."

Rachel couldn't weigh in on what it was like to fight in a war, but she could understand his frustration well enough. "Believe me, you're not the only who wishes the Decepticons would go running. The fact is they aren't though, and I think the best way to deal with your frustration is channel it into something constructive, then wail on the 'Cons if it'll make you feel better."

"Hmm, would it count if I wailed on Red Alert instead? He kept hounding me to take it easy and last night sent me to my quarters after my drills." Hot Shot groused. "He thinks I'm nothing but a sparkling; he always has. And I get the feeling Optimus agrees with him on that too."

Rachel patted the dashboard. It was all she could do, because she certainly wasn't the one to speak to about this. Had it been her taking care of Hot Shot, she'd definitely do her best to keep him safe, and agreeing with Red Alert likely wasn't going to get him in a better mood.

Her eyes flickered to a shop just ahead, and she nodded at it. "Stop here. I had to skip breakfast to make the appointment and I am starving right now."

Hot Shot slowly halted at the curb. "What's eating like? I see people do it on that television in my room, but I don't know what the big deal is."

Rachel laughed quietly. "Well, first things first-we need food to survive. It'd take too long to explain, but just know that it's our fuel and helps keep us going."

"Ah." Hot Shot sounded bored, and Rachel shook her head. He said he wasn't a kid, but he had about as much of an attention span as one.

The blonde ducked into Rhona's Bakery and bought herself a brownie and a cupcake for Rad. She checked the street for cars as she crossed over, but the sudden screeching had her snapping her head up. She gasped as a yellow and purple motorbike came barrelling towards her, and Rachel lunged forward, bumping into Hot Shot's door as the cyclist zoomed past. "Watch the road, jackass!" she snarled after him.

The cyclist just kept on going. Rachel furrowed her brow though, adrenaline pumping through her as she took in every detail. When it clicked where she'd seen it before, Rachel screamed after the rider again. "Jerk!" she stopped herself from hitting the yellow vehicle in front of her, and ran her hand over her hair. "Sorry you had to see me freak out, but that guy almost ran me down yesterday."

"What? Want me to teach him a lesson?" Hot Shot asked.

Rachel exhaled heavily. She tentatively wriggled her ankle, but was relieved when she felt no discomfort. "I'll survive. If I was scared of being run down I certainly wouldn't be helping you alien cars." She tried to joke, but Hot Shot sank on his wheels.

"Are you sure? I'm supposed to keep you safe."

"And you are." Rachel assured him. "Now let's get going. I wanna surprise Rad with this cupcake before he wakes up."

"Would he really still be asleep?" Hot Shot asked. "It's almost ten!"

"Trust me; kids tend to sleep a lot more on the weekends." Rachel blinked as her phone rang. She heard the car door close as she held it up to her ear. "Hello?"

"Rachel, it's Alexis."

The blonde raised a brow. "Hi, Alexis. Not that it's not great to talk to you, but why are you calling me?"

Alexis stuttered on the other end. "Well, you see, uh, um. I was helping my parents carry my mom's things to the garage, and Carlos went by. I asked him if he was going to see our 'friends.' He tried to deny it and say he was going to library, but if he actually went to the library he'd know it was closed on the weekends!"

Rachel tilted her head. "Alexis, please get to the point."

"Oh-oh, I didn't mean to ramble like that!" Alexis said flustered. "I don't think he should go up to the Autobot base alone. And I don't think Grindor is going to be much help to keep Carlos out of trouble."

"You know, for someone who claims she can't stand Carlos, you sound awfully worried about him." Rachel said teasingly.

Alexis sputtered. "Of course I worry! He's a reckless risk-taking slacker who only puts effort into thing that will get him in trouble."

"I was only kidding. I actually think it's pretty cute you care so much. Makes me glad Rad has a friend like you." Rachel said.

Alexis sucked in a sharp breath, her voice soft and dreamy. "You really think I'm cute?" she coughed suddenly. "I mean, can I go with you? My parents say it's alright."

Rachel leaned back as she thought it over. Alexis hadn't been too interested in the Autobots before; was it concern over Carlos or was she starting to thaw towards the aliens? In either case, it really was sweet. "Alright. We'll come and get you."

"Thank you!"

Rachel closed her phone. "We'll make a quick stop at the apartment, and then go pick up Alexis, sound good?"

"Sure."


"So, you're saying that if someone gets suspicious enough, they could find out about the cards?" Rad asked. He'd just wrung from Kero the explanation for Carlos being able to see Wood. Sure, he'd gotten an explanation that the cards had a type of cloaking power, but now he wished he'd tried to get more out of him on it. 'Better late than never.'

"And that would be bad, really bad." Kero said as his glow died down. He floated onto the Sakura Book and sighed. "I'm sure I don't have to tell you that there would be people out there who would jump at the chance to use magic for their own ends."

"Just like the Decepticons would use us for theirs." High Wire said grimly.

Rad frowned, and noticed Kero give High Wire a suspicious glare. "He just agreed with you."

Kero puffed up. "Well of course he did, even the tin can knows I'm right."

High Wire shook his fist at Kero, but Rad kept him from trying to attack the plushy. "One of these days…"

Rad rolled his eyes before getting back to the issue at hand. "We're screwed if people see the cards, but we're also in trouble if the cards don't give a damn about being seen."

"And, you still need to get Create before that mecha finds out what he really has." Kero added.

Rad grimaced as he sank lower into his bed. "Yeah, really needed you to remind me I got that hanging over my head." He muttered. "I've tried reasoning and getting Windy to talk to Create, but nothing's worked so far."

"You'll think of something. You did manage to trick Rain after all." Kero said.

Rad leaned onto his hand. "That's true." He said thoughtfully. 'Create already thinks I'm a liar, so I don't know if tricking it will help me. I just gotta keep at it.' He looked up when he heard the landline phone ringing, and shushed both Kero and High Wire as he went to answer it. "Hello?"

"Hi, Rad."

"Kelly?" Rad furrowed his brow. "How did you get this number?"

"I asked Alexis. I wanted to go to the movies with her, but she said she was going up to Black Hills with Rachel and Carlos. So, um, I thought if you weren't doing anything you'd maybe wanna go with me instead!"

Rad blinked. The last part had been said so quickly he had to take a moment to decipher it. When he did, he was torn between being a second choice, but on the other hand… 'It's been a while since I've seen a movie.' He thought excitedly. "Sure, just let me call Rachel and ask her."

"But don't the mountains interfere with cell range?" Kelly asked in confusion.

"They do, but not if she's still on her way there." Rad replied, but left out the part even if his cousin was out of range there was still a Plan B. He quickly dialed up Rachel, but to his frustration he got the 'out of service' signal, so he switched to his other plan. It was embarrassing to be honest, knowing that this was going to be broadcasted to everyone.

"Hello?"

Rad flushed. Just his luck it would be Optimus who answered the command center's terminal. "Hi, Optimus. Uh, is Rachel there? I wouldn't normally call, but she's out of range. I know this is kind of a bother, but she doesn't like it when I go off without telling her."

"She worries about you, it's very understandable. You're a sparkling in her eyes." Optimus did sound understanding, so Rad crossed his fingers that this was okay. "She just walked in. Rachel, your cousin wishes to speak with you."

"What is it, Rad?"

Rad cleared his throat. "You see, Kelly called and wanted me to go to the movies with her. And I wanted to run it by you first, since you tend to freak if I don't."

"You're learning." Rachel said approvingly. Rad's bashful grin was stricken from his face when abruptly he was reminded that Rachel wasn't the only one who heard him.

"What?" Carlos sounded outraged and horrified. "You can't go anywhere with Kelly, she's a total weirdo! Nowhere will be a fun place with her around."

"Stop insulting my cousin!" Alexis snapped.

"Settle down." Rachel said sternly, and the squabbling was shut down before they could really get at it. It was something Rad envied and admired about Rachel, that she could always do what he couldn't. Even if she'd freak out, Rad was sure Rachel could do a better job at being a Cardcaptor than him too.

'Don't go down that road. Ray would never go for it; she's logic and science all the way. She wants to dig up dinosaur bones for a living!' Rad scolded himself. "I'm just gonna hang up now before I embarrass myself anymore." Rad said quietly, but Rachel got one last word in.

"Be sure to take High Wire with you and don't be surprised if Kelly's dad is mad a boy is taking her on a date."

"Gross! Girls have cooties, why would I want to date one?" Rad grumbled, his face flushing brighter. Honestly, why would Rachel assume this was a date of all things?

He glanced up and saw both Kero and High Wire peering around the door at him, and rolled his eyes when he saw Kero's sly grin. "Rad~ What's this about a date? You sure are growing up fast, aren't you?"

"It's not a date." Rad insisted. "Kelly offered the movies, the movies- who would turn that down? Speaking of which; since Rachel's going to be out with Carlos and Alexis at the Autobots' base, you can watch TV if you want, Kero." He stared at the guardian sternly. "I don't wanna come back though to find all the ice cream gone. Rachel will think I did it."

"Oh that was one time." Kero said dismissively.

Rad rolled his eyes. "Come on, High Wire, let's go meet Kelly." The mini-con beeped excitedly as he followed Rad out of the apartment.

They stopped abruptly, and Rad looked flatly at him. High Wire rubbed the back of his neck sheepishly, and transformed into his bike mode. When they reached the elevator, Rad groaned and raced back to retrieve his key, his cell phone and the Sakura Cards.

It never hurt to keep them on hand.


Rachel rubbed her brow; she could feel a headache coming on just from the way Alexis and Carlos were glaring at each other. "Don't make me give you both a time out, you know I will."

Carlos jerked his chin up defiantly at the blonde. "You're not in charge of us."

Alexis clenched her fists. "Don't talk to Rachel that way!"

Rachel shook her head, glancing down at both Sureshock and Grindor, both of who were sedately standing beside her. "At least you two are behaving." Sureshock beeped something, to which Alexis abruptly looked at the orange mini-con mortified.

"I am not overreacting. Carlos has always made fun of Kelly and I'm sick of it." Sureshock beeped something else, and Rachel knew it must have been rude given the way Alexis' cheeks burned red.

Carlos snickered. "You just got burned by your mini-con." His laughter was cut off as he squawked, staring at Grindor in disbelief. "I do so take things seriously."

"Be-have." Rachel stressed, her tone severe and leaving no room for argument. It was a voice she reserved for when she got pushed to the edge of her patience. Both kids, having experienced the 'voice' one time or another when she babysat them piped down immediately, though they kept glaring at each other. 'As long as they aren't arguing anymore.' She looked up at the Autobots. "Sorry about that."

Hot Shot looked highly amused by the antics of the children. "It's funny watching them yell. Really breaks up the boredom."

Red Alert made a disgusted sound. "Given your own childishness, such squabbling would be something which you could only understand."

Hot Shot scowled at the medic. "You're just mad that I'm back on duty. Can't boss me around anymore."

"Does your definition of me being bossy include 'you whine like a sparkling until Optimus makes you listen to me because otherwise you won't?' Because if so, then we'd be in agreement." Red Alert said coolly.

Hot Shot's optic twitched. "What do you know?" he snapped petulantly.

"I know that you've managed to get the children on board with your delusion about a flying lizard." Red Alert retorted.

"I'm not making it up, fra-"

"Enough." Optimus said sternly. He glanced down at Rachel, who stared back empathetically with a glance at the two kids.

Overhead, the alarm began blaring. Hot Shot crossed his arms as Red Alert walked toward the command terminal, bringing up the mini-con signal.

"It's…strange, sir." He said, his tone hesitant.

"How so?" Optimus walked up beside the medic to peer at the screen. Rachel craned her neck up, and saw a world view map of a city with faint waves emitting from an area in the southern part.

"The signal is weak, and as such it's harder to pinpoint. It could be anywhere in this city."

Alexis peered up at the map, her expression torn between reluctance and genuine excitement. "I know that city. My cousin, Kelly," she sent Carlos a smug look, "went there with her parents for a trip. It's got a huge underground shopping center and a bunch of old subway tunnels." She clenched her fists. "Why, if I were President, I would use those old tunnels for something more constructive than gathering dirt, and then I would work on ending world-hunger and-"

"Chill out, Alexis, you ain't President yet." Carlos pointed out.

"It will help us though, now that we know what we're getting into. Do you happen to know anything else about these tunnels?" Optimus questioned.

Alexis blinked, her expression contorting in surprise before she nodded tentatively. "They have a working subway system, so you should be on the look-out for the trains."

"Thank you." Optimus said. "Alright troops, let's move out-"

"Optimus?" Carlos interrupted. Hot Shot jerked back in surprise, and Red Alert's mouth tightened in disapproval. Optimus though only gazed at Carlos stoically. "Since you gotta use tunnels, and it's connected to a shopping center, do you think we could go with you this time?" Alexis groaned and slapped her forehead, and Rachel's expression hardened.

"You have Laserbeak; he'll show you the inside." Optimus replied.

"I know that, it's just…well, what if the mini-con is in the mall? You can't exactly go there without gaining major suspicion." Carlos explained. "You're gonna need someone who can duck in, and your mini-cons would stand out too." He then gestured to Rachel. "Plus, it's not like Rachel couldn't come along and keep an eye on us."

Optimus vented heavily. "Team? What do you think?"

"It's alright with me." Hot Shot said.

"There is…some merit to what Carlos says." Red Alert added reluctantly. "And Rachel would provide responsible adult supervision."

"Rachel?" Optimus prompted.

The blonde frowned. Rad was going to be at the movies, and he did have High Wire with him. She wouldn't have to worry about him for at least two hours. She glanced down at Carlos and Alexis; the former stared at her pleadingly, while the latter kept her expression blank. Alexis' face though did start to turn an interesting shade of pink and scrunch with nervousness the longer Rachel stared at her though.

Eventually, Rachel slumped her shoulders with resignation. "It's fine with me." Carlos whooped, but quieted down when the blonde gave him a withering stare. "Ground rules first; we stick together, and you'd better keep in sight." She gave the mini-cons a significant stare. "And be sure to keep them in your sight, understood?"

Sureshock nodded and Grindor saluted her.

"If that's all," Optimus said weightily, "then team, let's roll out."


When Rad had gotten Kelly's address, he'd had no idea that this was where she'd lived. He stared at the two-story house that sat on the edge of town, just on the way to Black Hills. 'At least it explains why Alexis looked at it when we passed by.' He thought, but found something else familiar about the house, with its soft blue walls, and the tiny gate that fenced off the front of the property.

Rad shook his head and leaned High Wire against the fence. "It's nice." He heard High Wire beep in agreement, and made his way up the patio walk-way. He'd barely knocked on the door when abruptly it was pulled open. He stared in nervous confusion, his hand still raised, up at the hard-faced man giving him the stink eye. "Um, are you Kelly's dad?"

The man narrowed his eyes. "Yes, and you're that boy she's going to the movies with."

Rad dropped his hand to his side, trying not to shrink back from the cold tone. "Yeah, my name's Rad."

"Then listen closely, Rad, for I will only say this once." Mr. Li said quietly, but his tone was no less severe. "You will treat Kelly well, and bring her home when the movie is over. If Kelly says anything about you being mean or nasty to her, I will find you. Understood?"

Rad was immensely confused about why he was being threatened. "Of course, Mr. Li." He said cowed. "But this isn't a date." He wasn't surprised when the man's expression didn't change, and knew any further protests wouldn't be believed either.

And so for one uncomfortable minute after the next, Rad was stuck awkwardly fidgeting on the porch, avoiding eye contact with an overprotective father. When Kelly finally came into the room, skating around the hall to slid to a stop at the door, did Rad resist the urge to yell at her. 'I can't believe you took so long!'

"Sorry I got held up, but Mom wouldn't let me go unless I decided to wear the helmet." Kelly knocked her gloved hand against the helmet on her head with a pout.

Rad slumped in relief when Mr. Li looked down at Kelly, his expression softening immediately. "You're safety is important to us." He said softly. "Have a nice time and watch the streets."

Kelly sighed and nodded, giving her father a one-armed hug before skating past Rad. She turned and waved at him. "See ya!"

"Bye!" Mr. Li called back. Any warmth that had been on his face was gone when he glared back down at Rad, who stiffened. "Remember what I said."

The blond nodded rapidly. "I will, sir!" he said before flee-uh, rapidly walking, back to High Wire. He climbed onto the mini-con's seat, and peddled away as fast as his legs could take him.

"Hey, wait up!" Kelly shouted as she tried to catch up, and skated alongside Rad when he slowed his pace. She rubbed the back of her neck, her expression sheepish. "Sorry about my dad. He's been a bit…paranoid since Mom's brother moved to town."

"You mean he's not always like that?" Rad asked. Quite honestly, he really didn't believe her. That man was scary.

Kelly tapped her chin, but shrugged after a moment. It really didn't do much to settle Rad's nerves. "He's always been good to me and Mom. He's just mean to people he doesn't like." She blinked, and flushed when Rad grimaced. "Sorry, I guess that means you."

The blond slumped, and could feel High Wire's amusement through their connection. His own suspicion overrode High Wire's feelings. "Wait, why does your dad think this is a date? I thought you said this was because Alexis wasn't going with you?"

Kelly hunched her shoulders defensively. "It is. Dad just jumped to conclusions," she blushed and looked down at the ground, "not that Mom helped by teasing me about it."

"Parents can sometimes be the worst, can't they?" Rad asked. Kelly chuckled and nodded. "So, what movie did you wanna see?"

Kelly blinked. "What's out?"

"Are you telling me you wanted to go to the movies and don't even know what you want to see?" Rad asked flatly. Kelly blushed again, smiling in embarrassment and Rad sighed. "Maybe there's something with talking animals."

Rad felt High Wire's amusement come back, and he was not amused by it.


Rachel was self-aware enough to know that not only was she beginning to even irritate herself, but that Red Alert was probably regretting letting her ride in his cabin. She couldn't help herself though; when they stepped on those panels in the base, and these orange jumpsuits appeared on them, she'd immediately gone into curious scientist mode.

The bulk of their conversation in the tunnels so far had consisted of this:

"Where did you find the materials to make these suits? What kind of fabric is this?"

"It's not fabric. It's a soft mesh I'd modified in case you managed to convince Optimus to come along with us. Hot Shot is the reckless one."

"Hey!"

Ignoring that, Rachel had continued with her Q&A. "So it's meant to keep us safe, huh? How much weight can it withstand? What about breathing? And why is it orange?"

"It can withstand enough to save you from a fall, it's bright so we can find you easier should you get lost, and…" Red Alert faltered, his tone stumbling. "Breathing?"

"You gave us suits without any kind of oxygen system? What if we were trapped somewhere with limited air? How about a communications system for when simply seeing us isn't an option? I'm putting my trust in you that you'll keep the kids alive."

"You're asking a lot of questions."

"I take the safety of these kids seriously. I know the mini-cons at least have some protection by virtue of being valuable to the 'Cons."

"Right. I'll take into account your concerns. It would not due for me to call myself an Autobot could I not keep the inhabitants on this planet safe. You're trust will not be misplaced."

Rachel had let up after that as she fiddled around with Laserbeak's camera mode, but still inquired about the durability once more. Red Alert remained patient through it all, but she still felt the need to apologize. "Sorry about all this though."

"There is nothing wrong with being concerned for your charges. Nor is there anything wrong with receiving feedback." Red Alert explained.

Hot Shot huffed, driving in closer to Red Alert. "Then why do you get so growly when I say something?"

"Because," Red Alert's tone became strained, "what you say is not feedback. It's whining."

"Don't start, you two." Optimus slowed at a fork in the tunnels. Both the yellow bot and the ambulance also halted. "Hot Shot, you will go with the children and mini-cons. Keep vigilant."

Hot Shot backed up suddenly, causing the mini-cons and kids inside to let out a short, startled yell. "What? Are you serious? I thought I was done with playing guardian?"

"Hot Shot…" Optimus trailed off warningly, and the yellow vehicle sank on his wheels.

"Alright." He muttered. "Rachel, get in and let's go."

The blonde sighed as she scooted into the cramped back seat as she was pressed into the window side door. "It's been a while since I've been in a back seat."

Alexis turned in her seat to look at Rachel. "Do you want my seat? I'd switch with you if you want."

Rachel blinked. "Uh, no, that's alright. Hot Shot can just tint his windows if we come across the shopping center so people don't see you." She didn't know why Alexis slumped in disappointment, but had little time to dwell on it when Carlos made a crack about Kelly having cooties.

"What are 'cooties?' Any should we be worried if Rad gets infected?" Hot Shot questioned.

Rachel rubbed her brow, and began regretting not switching seats as Hot Shot went down the right tunnel. "Rad will be fine. Cooties are just…well, I don't think you'd have an equivalent. Heck, it's hard to explain in earth words."

Alexis crossed her arms, and glowered at Carlos. "But most definitely, Kelly does not have them."

"Oh look," Rachel said suddenly, "there's a light up ahead. We can get out and look around."

Carlos pumped his fist into the air. "Time to finally get in on the mini-con hunt! I've been dying to do some exploring."

"Yeah, around a shopping mall." Alexis said snidely, but one look from Rachel had her quietly apologizing.

The blonde hoped Rad was having a better time than she was. Well, at the least Grindor and Sureshock were behaving.


'Wow, it's pretty busy for a Saturday morning.' Rad thought, but wasn't quite sure 'morning' cut it with how close to noon it was now. He'd spent several minutes going back and forth with Kelly over which movie to see, and when they'd got in line she frowned as she noticed an overflowing garbage can. Rad saw it too, and he wondered if the cleaning crew hadn't yet gotten around to it.

"So, what kind of popcorn size do you want?"

"Just one?" Kelly asked quietly.

Rad blinked. "Well, yeah. If we get one large, then you'll save on money."

Kelly blushed. "Right, you just wanna share to save money." She laughed nervously. "Why else would you suggest one bag, right?"

"Are you okay? You've been getting red a lot since we've been here." Rad's expression turned to concern. "Are you scared of the dark? It can get pretty loud in a theatre too."

"Together…in the dark." Kelly mumbled, giggling as she blushed redder.

Rad just grew more concerned. "Seriously, do you need to step outside?"

"No! I'm fine, honest." Kelly assured him.

As Rad was still keeping the warning Mr. Li gave him in mind, he nodded along with Kelly, but kept one eye on her as he looked around, and behind him he could hear a couple muttering about the other overflowed trash can.

"They've been really letting this place go."

"You'd think they'd try harder for business."

"What do you expect? The only other competition is the drive-in, and that's owned by this cinema too."

Rad felt a nudge in his side, and saw Kelly jerk her head to the moving line. After the group in front of them left, they got their tickets, and he saw how the cashier was barely able to stay away. "Are you okay?"

The cashier blinked awake, and nodded tersely. "Yes, the staff has just been having a rough couple of days." She didn't elaborate, and Rad didn't ask as he and Kelly went over to the concession line.

The blond froze in line, feeling for a moment as though there was nothing more he wanted to do than just fall asleep. He could hear his name being called, and found Kelly staring at him with worry this time. "Hmm? I just spaced, sorry."

Kelly furrowed her brow. "Right, well, while you were out, I got our popcorn." She rolled her eyes in his direction, and Rad snickered. He ignored the way her face flushed red again as they walked into the theatre for the show. "Wanna sit in the back? Those are the best seats."

"Really? I thought it was the middle. Not too high, but you don't have to crane your neck to see the screen." Rad replied, but Kelly scowled at him.

"We're going to the top row." She said firmly.

Rad leaned back. She'd been so subdued during their time together that it was a bit alarming to see her more aggressive side. "Uh, sure, whatever you want."

"Funny, that's what Dad says whenever Mom wants something too." Kelly said thoughtfully.

Rad shrugged helplessly, but kept his mouth shut as they climbed the steps. When they reached the top, he was disappointed to find that the aisle seats were taken, but frowned when he saw that on both ends of the aisles that the people sitting there were sound asleep. He looked further down the row, seeing that more people had taken an inexplicable cat nap. "Strange place to snooze."

"Their loss." Kelly said and nestled into a free aisle seat.

Rad knew that not everything could be a Sakura Card, and was willing to have chalked up a few people in the back row who were dozing as being tired, but almost the entire row? All along the back, there were dozens of people who were napping. 'This is really weird.' He clutched his cell phone in his pocket. "I gotta go to the bathroom."

Kelly grimaced. "TMI, I don't wanna know about your boy germs." She huffed.

Rad rolled his eyes and hurried out of the theatre. He ducked into the bathroom and called home. He got the answering machine. "Kero, I know you're there. Now pick up the phone, I think we have a problem."

There was a click on the other end. "What? Your date not going well?"

"It's not a date." Rad snapped. "And no, it's not that. I think there's a Sakura Card here."

Any teasing Kero may have done was replaced with grim seriousness. "What happened?"

"Kelly and I got to the theatre, and almost everyone in the back row of the movie we were gonna watch was asleep. Like, really asleep. I'm surprised they didn't bring covers with them." Rad explained.

Kero made a humming sound. "Anything else? There was no other presence?"

"No, I think it might just be one this time, but I'll be careful." Rad said. "Now, which one does this?" he heard a crash, and the blond jumped.

"What was that?" Kero asked suddenly.

"I think something just fell." Rad whispered. He looked around the corner of the doorway out into the lobby, and his eyes widened as he found the lines of people waiting to order tickets and food had all collapsed onto the ground.

Behind the counter, he could see one of the workers had dropped a bag of popcorn kernels as they had fallen and it spilled across the floor. "Everyone in the lobby is asleep now." he recited. "Wait, I think there's something else."

Rad walked up to the shiny blue powder that sparkled on the floor. He knelt in front of it and furrowed his brow. "There's this weird stuff on the ground. It's blue, shiny and-"

"Don't touch it!" Rad jerked his hand back, having extended it to do just that.

"What is this stuff?"

"It's her way to make people fall asleep. That stuff gets on you, and you'll be in dreamland too."

"Which her?"

"Sleep."