“Yeah.” Penelope affirmed. She tightens her grip on the pink bicycles handlebars.

“ If you’re going to go talk to him, be careful. He’s just a little kid, but in this neighborhood, nothing is really what it looks like. I’m not saying Ralph isn’t a little kid. Because he is. It’s just like, like...Like you can’t really trust things. Even things that you see sometimes. So like with Ralph because he was involved in all of this, you should just be careful.”

Pesky nodded at Penelope's warning.  He hadn't realized Ralph was just a little kid.  That changed the way they were going to have to approach him.  How old was he anyway?  What could he know at such a young age?

He climbed off his bike, grabbing his notebook and pen, holding them behind his back.  He nodded at Kevin with a gesture to move up the stairs.

"You ready?"

Once again, Kevin pulls out his notebook and pen, before giving a serious but excited nod. "I'm ready."

And that’s when Kevin, Pesky and Corey made their way down Ralphs driveway. At this distance up close, the driveway was cracked and pitted with small holes. Tiny brown weeds grew through the crevices, as if the whole state of the driveway was in Decay. Ralph’s house didn’t look much better. The roof was slightly dilapidated, bent to one side. Falling leaves stuffed the gutters. There was a wet musky smell that seem to come from everywhere the closer that they got to the house.

And soon, just like that, the boys were  at the door just off of the front porch. All they had to do was step onto the porch and knock on the front door but for some reason, Cory Kevin and Pesky, Just stood there. It was as if everyone was waiting for someone to make the first move.

Kevin's curiosity, and complete lack of patience, soon wins out over his fear induced hesitation. Still holding his notebook and pen in one hand, he steps forward and knocks on the door with the other.

OOC: Kevin Rolls Resolve + Composure -2 with the following results

0 Successes: Something happens and Kevin screams, his face grimaces and his arms flail about

1 Success: Something happens and Kevin's face grimaces, his arms flail about

2+ Successes: Something happens and Kevin's face grimaces

13:34, Today: Kevin rolled 1 success using 2d10 with the World of Darkness nWoD system with a target of 8, rerolling 10s.  Resolve + Composure -2.

Kevin stepped onto the porch, and just then, there was a loud 'creeeeeeaaaaak!' sound. Within a half a second, the rotten, wooden board beneath his feet cracked. Suddenly, he dropped down into the porch up to his waist.

Kevin's face grimaced, his arms flailing about.

He was waist deep inside of Ralph's porch, his feet having landed on the rough earth below.

As if disturbed by this sudden movement, Kevin felt something clawing at his legs and arms. It was as if something with little hands and feet was climbing up his body.

"A rat!!!!" Corey yelled, pointing at the ugly creature.

And that's what it was. A big fat rat had climbed so quickly up Kevin's body and jumped onto the porch. It started to run, as if to escape the disturbance Kevin had caused and it was running straight toward Pesky.

"Holy crap!," Pesky yelled before he even knew what had happened.

One second they were standing there, then Kevin was through the floor and a giant rat had climbed out of the hole and was heading his way.

He tried to dodge the rat, which mainly involved just getting out of the rat's way.  He wanted to make his way to Kevin and help pull him up, but dodging the rat came first.

OOC: Pesky Rolls Dexterity + Wits with the following results

0 Successes: The Rat Touches Pesky's foot...GROSS!

1+ Successes: Pesky dodges the rat and it runs into the bushes.

11:31, Today: Peter 'Pesky' Eskind rolled 2 successes using 6d10 with the World of Darkness nWoD system with a target of 8, rerolling 10s.

Though he doesn't scream at the fall through the boards, Kevin loses his composure as the rat starts crawling up his leg. "Ahh, get it off, get it off!" Soon enough it's off of him and running past Pesky, and he quickly turns his attention to trying to scramble out of the hole so no other rats try to use him as a ladder.

"Here" Corey said to Kevin, giving him a helping hand as he got out of the hole that was now in Ralph's porch.

Then suddenly, just like that Ralph's door was open. No one noticed it opening. But there it was. And there stood a small boy, probably a few years younger than all of the boys.

He was wearing a cheap costume mask, perhaps getting ready for Halloween which was just a few days away.

"Hhhhh...huh...huh.....hi" He stammered, or stuttered.

"Uh, hi," Pesky said, feeling like he'd been caught doing something bad.

"We were just..."
"We wanted to..."
"Hi.  I'm Peter.  This," he said motioning to Kevin, "is Kevin."

"Are you Ralph?"

Kevin smiles to Corey after he's out of the hole, and says, "Thanks."

He jumps just a little as Ralph comes out, and spins around to look back to him. "Hi." After pesky has done the introductions, he adds, since Pesky seems to have forgotten him, "And this is Corey."

Only then does he say, "Sorry about the hole, I just fell through."

"I..I'm Ralph y..y..y..y..y..y..yeah." Ralph said to Pesky or rather, stuttered.

"It'..it..it..it..it..it's not that..that.that..that..that big of a d..d.d..d..d..d.d..deal." Ralph managed to say to Kevin. He looked over at Pesky, as if he was about to say something.

But then, the walkie-talkie began to sound off in loud static. It happened like that to Pesky. They hadn't responded to his last message and now were probably just picking up the walkie-talkie again.

"Pesky...*static*...you there?...*static*...what's the status of the investigation? *static*..any lead on that strange little kid?"

Pesky stared Kevin and Ralph as they spoke, then jumped, startled by the walkie-talkie.

He swore gently under his breath and looked at Ralph, red-faced at the mention of the "strange little kid".

He reached back, grabbing the radio as quickly as he could, and turned it off.  Shoving it back into his pack, he looked at Ralph, embarrassed, and said defensively, "That wasn't about you."
Pointing at Penelope, he added, "They were talking about her."

Penelope, for good or for bad, was too far away to hear what pesky had said. Even so, the chill breeze cut through the distance between the porch and the end of the driveway, and so Penelope couldn’t Hear anything that was being spoken about. “ wh..wha...what do you guys....wh..wh...wAnt?”

Kevin rolls his eyes at the kids on the radio as if he wouldn't be just as impatient in their position. He looks back to Ralph, and says, "We wanted to meet you. We heard you might've seen or heard something about the kids going missing."

Ralph twitched on the side of his face at Kevins mentioning of the topic “missing kids”. “M… Am… Missing kids?” Ralph said, and he started when he said it. Then he leaned his neck forward, craning it so that the chubby rolls under his chin flexed a little bit.

“I… I… Don...d..did..don’t..n..n...n..,know...w....w...w...where...y....y..y....y.....you.” He stammered before continuing.

Then, as if realizing what he was saying was too loud he started to whisper:

“Shhhhhh...If you He said in a low voice. “Sssssay s....s...s....s....something, then ... you....m...m...make it....m....m...ore ...more r...real j...just by speaking about it.”


Then Ralph open the door as if to let Pesky, Corey and Kevin inside.

Pesky leaned forward to hear Ralph's last whispers and wondered what he was talking about.  He eyed Kevin and Corey, trying to gauge their reactions, then Ralph opened the door, seemingly inviting them in.

He looked once again at Kevin and Corey, then out toward Penelope by the street.  Realizing this is exactly the reason he came to Main Street, he cleared his throat gently, said, "Thank you," and headed into Ralph's house.

Kevin's eyes widen a little, but he nods and follows Ralph inside as well.

OOC: Kevin and Pesky Join Thread

Kevin, Pesky: What Ralph Knows....