"Sun sets on the third day, got it." Lindsay replied.

"Yep. Got it." Ashley confirmed.

"We'll head out and do that research!" Lindsay then exclaimed happily.

"We'll get all we can." Ashley promised.

"By the way, did you know there's a small cave near here?" he then asked Anya.

The boys were then silent for a moment as they heard that, and looked at each other briefly.

"...okay then." Lindsay replied.

"I... yeah, we'll... remember that." Ashley told her.

"Very useful information." Lindsay then added, as the two finalised everything, said they'd be back soon enough, and then started to excitedly head back into the woods again.

And she saw they were VERY happy.

A couple of months passed, and Ashley and Lindsay had just prepared for another outing into the woods, with 3 nights staying out there. They'd found out a lot about what was edible and what was dangerous, and Anya seemed to be very proud of them.

Lindsay also seemed to be a lot less shy and more open, while Ashley became QUITE attached to her as a mother figure.

They just finished with their packs, and looked at her.

"We're off again." Lindsay said.

"You seem really happy, too." Ashley commented to her.

"We're prepared for 4 nights." Ashley responded. "But, as usual, the 4th is emergency, so we plan for 3 nights." he told her. "So after three moons, we'll be back." he continued.

"And you know we've gotten good at planning that." Lindsay then added.

"Yep." Ashley agreed.

"So we'll be back in the morning after the 3rd moon." he stated.

"And with that... we should be good to go." Lindsay finished.

"5 new things! Got it!" Lindsay said back.

"We won't let you down!" Ashley declared.

And apparently that was a burst of encouragement for them, because their picked up their pace to the point of running towards the forest.

"See you later!" they both called to her in unison.

"Bye for now!" they added, turning slightly and waving to her as they slowly left her sight, and disappeared into the woods.

No sooner had she muttered that phrase, did she feel a very strong, almost oppressive... but VERY familiar presence... right beside her. As in, literally, right beside her, not even a few inches.

She just smirked and looked over slightly, seeing a man in a simple cloth shirt and pants, wearing simple footwear as well, akin to sandals. His face was absolutely stunning, though, and his hair was short and jet-black, almost as though it were a portal, or a hole in time and space.

And he was fit, as well. His muscles didn't bulge out, not were they even quite noticeable, but she knew that if one were to look closer, they'd see the outlines of tight, packed, cord-like muscle wrapped around his bones.

He smiled at her when she looked at him.

"Is that even a question." he responded flatly. "Takes more than heaven and earth to stop me when it comes to THIS." he commented further.

"Hmph." the male spat, draping an arm over her shoulders when she leaned against him.

"Gabe can mind his own damn business." he told her. "Nothing is stopping ME from seeing you. Least of all HIM." he stated, before smirking.

"Besides, Sari has him distracted with errands. So there you go." he then said further.

"Here I am." he stated.

"And you are a sight for sore eyes."

The next thing Anya knew, Raph had shifted himself, and she felt herself falling back. However, she was caught a second later, and found herself laying in his lap, with him smiling down at her.

"We'll start slow." he said.

"And let it ramp up from there." he told her.

"I have a bottle of the good stuff." he then revealed, knowing she knew what he meant. "Managed to smuggle it down. So we should do the right thing and make the evidence disappear."

Raph flicked his wrist, and it seemed like two fancy tall glasses appeared, held by their stems, between his fingers. His smirk grew, as his other hand produced the bottle he'd told her about.

"I just stumble." he told her.

--

The sun had set a bit ago, and Ashley and Lindsay were safe in their cave, the 'glow' not being a problem that night. They were getting ready to test the specimens they gathered, when Lindsay paused.

"...I can't find any pencils." he told his brother.

"Hm." Ashley responded. "I'll rush back home, sneak in, and grab one. Wait here." he said.

With that, he slipped out of the cave and quietly weaved his way back home, approaching the back door and seeing it was slightly ajar.

"...what...?" he mumbled, slowly opening it and quietly stepping inside.

Ashly froze when he heard all that... but only for a brief second. He then shook his head and quickly followed the sounds... and when he arrived at the source, he peered into the room, and his heart sank a little.

He saw Anya... laying down... with someone else on top of her. And they looked to be getting very violent with her. He saw some hits, he was sure of it, and slaps as well.

Then, his body seemed to move on its own, as he dashes forward, leaped into the air, and landed on the man's back.

"What the hell!?" Raph exclaimed, as he felt a painful burning sensation on his back.

"Stop hurting her!" Ashley exclaimed tearfully.