Professor Layton and the Darkest Night (Layton gen)

[storypaint]

Title: Professor Layton and the Darkest Night
Fandom: Professor Layton
Length: 200 words
Prompt: writing_game: Afraid and Underworld +2
Pairing: Layton gen
Other: dark; horror themes
Excerpt: He's scared, sure, but he's a gentleman, isn't he?

He doesn't know how long he's been walking down here, and he doesn't care. He knows there are... we could call them puzzles... etched onto the walls, but they are etched in blood, and he doesn't want to think about whose blood. When he comes to a fork, he raises the candle, deciphers the sigils, and walks on.

The gravel crunches under his feet, giving plenty of warning for anyone he approaches. He could try to walk more stealthily, but he's just a professor. He's no ninja. He just wants to rescue his "family."

Whatever had dragged them from their beds last night, it has light feet and he cannot hear its passage. He is hoping that it's just a person. The scratches high up along the cave walls makes him wonder.

He's scared, sure, but he's a gentleman, isn't he? He mumbles it out loud, surprising himself with the loudness of his words in the quiet.

"The way of an English gentleman," he says, and then, "I can't leave them behind."

He stumbles on a loose rock. His hand brushes the wall, coming away sticky. Without looking, he wipes it on his coat, and keeps going.