Happy December to everyone. I finished up my fall semester on Monday and I'm on winter break now until about mid January. Thanks for being patient with me when it comes to this story. C:

Chapter Seventeen: Realizations

"This plan isn't going to work. It's not going to work at all," the red head breathed, her stomach a knot of unwanted nerves. Everyone that surrounded her seemed confident in the words that Sensei Wu had spoken only a few moments prior. "No one will believe it. H-He's not going to believe it. There's no way we're going to get out of this." Though her anxiety was evident, Laurie tried to breathe and calm herself. Of course the plan would not work if she was sitting here worrying about it.

Kai shot the girl a stern look and she adjusted the mask on her face with shaking fingers before giving him a curt nod. "It's going to work. We just need to stick to it no matter what happens."

Laurie felt the adrenaline already coursing through her body as she took her weapon off of her back and slowly placed it onto a black cloth on the ground. "Stick to the plan. Don't look back. Just keep going," the Ninja of Wind said to herself, the uncomfortable sensation of sweat beginning to bead on her forehead distracting her for the briefest moment. Footsteps resounded, pounding hard against the blackened asphalt and Laurie brought her attention back to the situation at hand, noticing that everyone had already gone their separate ways.

The plan was in motion.

She took off down the street, heart pounding against her chest. There should be enough time to get as far away as possible. That was what they were trying to do anyways: buy some time. Zane had been adamant that the probability of actually being able to pull this off was really low and the red head had taken the numbers to heart. Of course, they had always found ways to beat the odds before. What made today any different? Nothing, that was what. "Stick to the plan," she huffed out between breaths, trying to keep herself focused.

His voice seemed to echo around her, shaking her confidence slightly, but Laurie continued to run. Everyone had to play their part or the entire plan would crumble. She was not going to allow herself to be the one that dragged everyone down with her. The sound of an engine screeching past caused Laurie to whirl around as a streak of red sped past. Now was the most critical part. It would only be a matter of seconds now until he realized what was happening. They had to leave now.

Lights flashed all around Laurie and she shielded her face with her arm as an electric wire nearby snapped, sending a shower of sparks tumbling downward. He knew. "Don't look back," Laurie told herself, keeping her ice blue eyes on the road ahead. "Don't look back. Just don't look back." A car zoomed right past her, the driver locking his hazel eyes on the running girl. Laurie saw this and nodded, scanning the street ahead for the bike she had used earlier to get to the center of town. Orange metal reflected the blinking street lights and caught the girl's eye. There.

The whirring sound of machinery came from an enemy that appeared from behind a building. Laurie immediately stopped in her tracks, feet frozen to the ground as the adversary took a single look at the gleaming, orange bike and brought a large foot down on it. The grinding of metal against metal filled the air and the girl felt her heart stop beating. That had been her way out. The bike had been part of the plan. She was suppose to stick to the plan. "No, no, no..." she stuttered, backing up as the monster set it's sights on her now.

The car. She just had to follow where the car had gone. It was all she had to go with now. There was no way she could actually stick with the plan now that her transportation was gone, but she had to get out. If there was no way out...

"Just keep going," she said, eyes narrowed in concentration.

"I really wish you'd tell me what's going on with you," came a sad voice.

Laurie blinked, taking in the world around her now. She must have been daydreaming or something to just blank out like that. "I-I'm sorry, Kai," she replied shakily, trying to get her bearings. They were in the park on the eastern side of the city, sitting on a bench that was painstakingly familiar to both of them. Laurie shook away the thoughts of the past and tried to ground herself firmly in the present. "Tell you about what now?"

The brunet shook his head back and forth solemnly. "Anything. Everything. Just something that will help me better understand what's going through your mind." He saw the former ninja avert her gaze to the ground and he gave a forced sigh, placing an arm around her shoulders. "I just don't like seeing you so distant. It really hurts. I know that we don't always have time to spend with each other like we used to, but that doesn't mean that you can just shut me out. You can't shut any of us out, especially if you're having problems right now." Laurie looked back up at Kai, her skin seeming paler than usual in the sunlight. "You don't feel faint or anything do you?" Kai suddenly asked, his eyes wide with worry.

"No, I don't," Laurie answered, taking a deep breath. "I've just been feeling really confused lately. There's so much that I'm just missing. It's like chunks of my life are going by and I'm not even there to enjoy them. I'm...somewhere else." She tried to see how Kai was reacting to her words, but his face seemed to be set in permanent concern. "I really don't know how else to explain it. I mean...I don't even remember coming out here with you today, Kai. Something is really wrong with me and I don't think anything is helping. Not even the visits my mother keeps making me go to."

He clenched his teeth, trying not to take Laurie's words hurt him. "I thought the doctor was helping you though. I mean, every time you come back from seeing him you always seem...better."

"Do I?" the girl scoffed, stretching her legs out before bringing them up to her chest, her sneakers nearly slipping off the edge of the wooden bench. "I'm glad I always seem better because I honestly have no memory of seeing you or anyone else after the sessions. I always go somewhere else. I get caught in these vivid daydreams and I can't really figure out how to tear my mind away from them and come back." She wanted to tell Dr. Voler about all of this, but there was still something about him that she just did not like. Yes, from what she could recall, he really did seem focused and genuine about wanting to help her through all of her problems, but there was this vibe about him. The red head could not pinpoint what it was.

"Daydreams?" Kai asked. "Is that what you were doing just a few minutes ago? Daydreaming?"

The girl nodded and stared out across the rippling grass that blew in the steady breeze. "First there's the whole Great Devourer thing. I dream that it never died and that no one remembers me, but then I also dream about the Overlord winning the final battle." She stopped her train of thought and felt a wave of sadness overwhelm her as Kai moved his hand to Laurie's shoulder and gave a reassuring squeeze. "You...you and the others are always chasing me and Lloyd's dead. I hate it. It's an absolute nightmare."

"Is that where you were today?"

"No, I wasn't. I was...you know what? I really can't remember the daydream I had today." Laurie rubbed her head as a small pain around her temples. "If I remember I'll be sure to tell you. I...really appreciate you wanting to listen to what's being going on in my screwed up head."

Kai just leaned back further against the bench and stared up at the blue sky, his mind wandering slightly. "Who's to say this right here isn't all a dream? Maybe this is just another one of your daydreams, Laurie."

Her heart froze in her chest and she pulled away from Kai's protective arm. "W-Why would you say something like that?" It felt like Kai was not taking any of this seriously. She was losing herself and all sense of time when her mind wandered into these other worlds that she despised so much. Why would he think it was right to joke about something like that? He could be right, said a voice in the back of Laurie's mind. She tried to ignore the thought, but it continued to nag at her.

"That's the first step to recovery: realizing that what you're hearing or seeing isn't actually happening."

The doctor's words suddenly permeated Laurie's conscious mind and she felt her hands clench into fists reflexively. "He's not telling me something," she whispered to herself, standing up from the bench and glancing back at Kai who looked uncharacteristically calm. "I'm going to run home for a bit if you don't mind," she apologized, feeling truly sorry for cutting the day with Kai short. There was just something nagging at her and she wanted to see if she could figure out what it was. "Thanks for the talk though. I'll see you soon!"

With that, Laurie turned and ran across the empty and grassy field, Kai's words buzzing in her head like a swarm of evil bees.

Thanks for reading and I'll see everyone on the 27th. Have a great Christmas or whatever holiday you celebrate. :)