It had been hours since the girls returned and showered and were fed. They hadn't said many words, only stared off into space or snuggled close to their loved ones. Z/G/N had already called her mother who was extremely worried and she clarified that she would return tomorrow but would spend the night with Zane so he could make sure she was safe. Cole had talked to his dad and Aunt for L/G/N since she was in no place to be talking at the moment. Everyone was curious and worried. They wanted to know what happened but knew the girls would need time to process what happened. 

Currently, the ninja and the two girls were sitting in the game room. L/G/N was curled in to the corner, sitting next to her brother who had his feet kicked onto the coffee table. Lloyd was in a beanbag next to the couch, trying to stay close to his girlfriend in case she needed anything. Zane was next to his girlfriend on the opposite side of the couch and Kai and Jay were sitting next to the television. Everyone's focus shifted constantly around the room, focusing on the two girls for long moments. It wasn't until Z/G/N put her phone down that anyone said a word. "Is your mother still texting you?" Zane asked his girlfriend, to which she slowly nodded. "Question after question. She's worried."

"That's pretty understandable," Kai told her. She nodded, staring at the phone that she placed on the coffee table. She looked at L/G/N who was staring at the ground with a lost look in her eyes. She constantly replayed the scenes in her head. What he did to her. What he said. What he wanted. 

"What happened in there?" Jay asked, Z/G/N's eyes meeting his with a certain hopelessness in them. "You don't have to," Zane assured her, his hand laying on hers. "It's alright. You all deserve to know," she said softly with a slight smile. Zane nodded to her, to which she took a deep breath. "He shoved me in this room and for a day I was alone. He didn't give me any food or water, he didn't say a word. But then L/G/N was thrown in." 

The girl next to her brother flinched. She heard every word. Everything inside of her begged to scream, to cry out and make Z/G/N stop. She wanted to take something and throw it as far as she could, she wanted to close her eyes and wake up in a different world. She wanted to be in her bed, curled into a ball, and escape. She wanted it to stop. The voices in her head. The images. The memories.

"We sat there for a while. He didn't do anything. I was taken by a girl, m-maybe a man, I don't know. But she was taken by a man. Did you get them?"

Cole shook his head, "Unfortunately not," he said lowly. "We will, but we haven't."

Z/G/N nodded. "Well, it went on like that for a day. I remember falling asleep, L/G/N said she would wake me if anything changed. She was so angry and determined. I didn't want to go to sleep because she bruised her ribs and had a cut on her hand but she told me to rest, so I did. The next thing I know, there was this awful noise. It was so loud. It was like a siren blasting in the room." She paused and stared at L/G/N who remained silent. She was more tense now, her arms wrapped completely around her knees and her chin resting upon them. Cole looked at his sister and took the blanket from behind him and laid it upon her shoulders. She flinched, but then welcomed the warmth and he patted it down, making sure she was warm so her trembling could falter.

"It was worse than a siren. We covered our ears and clenched our teeth, begging for it to stop. We screamed for so long," she whimpered, wiping a tear from her eye as she continued on. Zane's hand tightened around hers and she welcomed the comfort. "When it stopped, he came on this intercom and asked us questions. But when we didn't answer, he moved on to greater measures."

"What kind of... measures?" Kai asked carefully, trying to test the water before he jumped right in. "He dropped the temperature of the room so we were freezing. Our blankets didn't do anything to help. It was so cold," she answered. She looked down, "Like ice," she whispered.

"When our eyes got heavy and we were so sure we would get hypothermia, he increased the temperature. Surely it was over 100 degrees fahrenheit . It got so hot that we passed out," she explained, watching L/G/N clench her blanket tighter. "When we woke up," she sniffled, "It was freezing cold again and he was asking more questions. Our throats would be dry and our lips would be chapped, and all we wanted was water."

A sob left her throat and Zane pulled her close to him, trying to comfort her in times of despair. "You should have answered him," he told his girlfriend, snuggling into her side. The girl shook her head. "L/G/N said he would kill us if we gave him the answers he wanted. She was right, if we told him anything he wouldn't need us anymore. He didn't want to play games, he just wanted answers."

Jay raised an eyebrow, "What kind of answers?"

Z/G/N's lip quivered as more tears fell down her cheeks. She closed her eyes and took a deep breath, "Who you've been looking into, your research. Your strengths and weaknesses. Everything. He wanted to know what makes you tick," she added, wiping more tears before they could fall down her cheeks. "Do you know the answers," Kai asked.

She nodded. "We all do," she added, eluding to the other girlfriends of the ninja. "We are your weaknesses. He pulled a string and everything unravelled. But L/G/N got the brunt of all the torture and hardship since her brother and boyfriend are ninja. Even when I begged for something to happen to me and let her have a break, she insisted against it. She protected me and - "

"Stop," someone said, making everyone look at the girl curled in a ball staring at the floor. A tear fell onto her cheek and she began shaking, trying to contain everything. "L/G/N - " Z/G/N began before being interrupted once more. "Stop," L/G/N said once more, this time more demanding and determined. Anger laced her voice and fear coated her eyes. "Stop talking about it. Stop thinking about it," she added, her warnings more for herself than for Z/G/N. Lloyd reached out to his girlfriend but she flinched away and he frowned, only wanting to comfort her. "What did he do to you?" Lloyd whispered quietly, everyone also wanting to know the answers but not wanting to ask. L/G/N dropped her head and wiped her tears away, trying to silence the sobs leaving her mouth. No one said a word.

Suddenly the game room door abruptly closed and L/G/N gasped and stood up quickly, the blanket falling to the couch as she stared at the door. Kai stood up as all the ninja tried to assure her that it was only a breeze and he walked toward the door, "I'll get it. It's just the breeze from outside," he told her, then opening the door wide. L/G/N noticeably relaxed, but still stared ahead at the now open door. She half expected someone to pass in front of it with a navy blue hoodie and black cap, but no one did. "L/G/N, no one is there. It's alright," Cole told her. She turned around and faced him, "Cole," she whimpered. "I want to go to dad's tomorrow," she announced, him sighing. "I want you to stay here where I can protect you," he told her honestly, not liking the idea of her being without his or any of the ninja's protection. "I don't feel safe here," she told him, him frowning in return. All he wanted for his sister was for her to feel safe with him, and now she couldn't. "I don't want to go back there, Cole," she said while shaking her head and more tears escaping from her eyes. She choked on a sob and he took a step forward. "I can't," she repeated. "Please," she begged, wanting nothing more than to forget everything. "Okay," he nodded while giving in slightly, "Let's just sit back down and try to get some rest. You haven't slept in a long time."

She hesitantly sat back down and Cole motioned for him and Lloyd to switch places. L/G/N watched the interaction nervously and when Cole plopped down on the beanbag chair, she sat up straighter. He looked at his sister and saw her anxious and he sighed, grabbing the blanket from the ground and laying it over her as she curled into a ball again and rested her head on the pillow on the armrest. "Lloyd is right here, and you have four other strong ninja in this room. No one is getting in here without facing us, alright?" Cole asked her, leaning close to her and making sure she was comfortable. She nodded, snuggling into Lloyd's side carefully and trying to ease her fears of that man whenever she cuddled her boyfriend. Cole sighed in relief and kissed his sister on the forehead before sitting on the beanbag chair and grabbing a remote. 

With her eyes closed, L/G/N breathed softly, trying to relax enough to fall asleep. She gripped the hem of Lloyd's shirt with her fist and listened to his heartbeat to try and will herself into a deep sleep. Cole took notice and smiled, watching Lloyd smile and lay his head back against the cushions. The others joined the game, tossing remotes to each other, but Lloyd simply watched the game, focusing more on his traumatized girlfriend than the game itself. Zane left the room and returned with a tray of tea for the ninja, leaving L/G/N's on the table before her incase she grew thirsty. "Do you promise?" a soft voice came from the girl cuddled into Lloyd. Jay and Kai glanced at Cole and everyone nodded to each other. "We promise," everyone said in unison, knowing it needed to be the whole team vowing to protect their girls in order for them to be assured. L/G/N smiled, her grip on Lloyd's shirt loosening, and her hesitantly wrapped an arm around her shoulder. She only flinched a little, but upon realizing it was Lloyd and not him, she relaxed again. 

Z/G/N sipped her tea carefully, leaning against Zane as he played a video game with his brothers.  She knew what happened to her friend, she knew what was playing in her mind every second, but she couldn't say anything to the boys for it was not her secret to share. But she knew this event would bring the two girls closer to one another. This was their fate, their destiny. And they would be okay. Maybe not for a while. But one day, they would be okay.