Love's Tribulations
Disclaimer: I deny any ownership of any adolescent transformed shadow warrior chelonians.
Author's Note: This story was actually inspired by another piece of fanfic called Ramie by AJ. After reading it one day I thought to myself what if it went a different way and this here is my answer.
Rated- R For drug use, and adult situations.
Part one- Shay.
I was heading home after a night of fooling around with Raph and Casey they had decided to stop for a beer and while I could have joined them it wasn't really my thing. I didn't care much for bars.
I stopped on a rooftop overlooking Central Park. There was a wind blowing and a full moon was overhead not that you could notice it with the glare from the many city lights. It was a really nice night. The sort of night I enjoyed.
Then I heard a sound that alerted me to possible trouble coming from a back alley. I am not like Raph I don't go looking for trouble but then again I don't like seeing someone get hurt and if there was a way to prevent that from happening then I was more than willing to help out.
I followed the noise to the alley and scoped out the scene from a fire escape four guys had a lone female down on the ground they were beating her with their fists and trying to rip off her clothes. She was struggling kicking and flailing with her fist but she was outnumbered and didn't stand a chance. I smiled knowing that I could handle these scum. Such a pity Raph and Casey weren't around to join in they'd appreciate the fun but I didn't really need them.
I leaped silently from the fire escape to the ground keeping to the shadows of the alley. I landed a good hard kick into one of the fellows towering over the girl hit him right into a pile of garbage. Rather fitting I thought.
In no time I had them all away from her. I tossed the last of the four away near his buddies. Far too easy but at least now they had their choice of leaving or coming for me because I now stood between them and the girl. These guys obviously weren't playing with a full deck because they came at ME.
I guess they hadn't had enough from the first time around or figured on rushing me all at once. What ever it was it almost made me laugh. I just love hoods with low mentality levels they are so much fun to play with. I figured if they wanted to play so badly I was still game.
It was a light work out for me didn't even have to use my chucks a few punches and kicks and a couple of easy throws and those guys finally decided they had enough and left. Well at least they weren't too dumb to learn at any rate.
I laughed at their retreating backs before turning to check the girl out. She was lying unconscious and I could see a bump on her head. She had also been cut badly by a knife. Funny I wonder why they hadn't pulled the knife on me. Probably hadn't thought of it. I know I hadn't seen a weapon in any of their hands.
I couldn't see much more in this dark alley and decided to bring her on home. I could have taken her to a hospital but she didn't look like she had any identification on her so getting medical treatment at a hospital could prove difficult. Besides home wasn't too far off.
When I arrived with her still unconscious in my arms Leo gave me this questioning look. Sometimes I swear he acts more like Splinter than Splinter does.
" Mikey what are you doing?" he asked as he watched me.
" Some guys were beating on her and were about to rape her. I couldn't leave her in the alley for someone to find it just wouldn't be right for that white knight in armor image you know?" I teased him as I laid her down on our battered couch.
She was thin long bodied, with dark hair that fell past her waist, her clothes what hadn't been torn at least was a tight fitting shirt and a short black skirt. She was barefoot and I figured she had to have lost or kicked off her shoes before she had entered the alley because I hadn't seen any spare shoes around there.
I glanced up and saw Leo entering the living room together. I guess Leo did have to tell him about her. Splinter came and checked her over and started issuing gentle orders.
None of her cuts were bad enough to require stitching so we just bandaged her up and we managed to get it done before she managed to wake up.
She sat up gazing with large eyes, her pupils were dilated and she mumbled something about a bad trip as she looked at us.
Great a drug user THAT could almost work in our favor. We could return her topside and she would never even know that we were real or even existed that is if she would remember us once she came down.
" Hi I'm Mike what's your name?"
She didn't seem phased by my question in the least as if she was use to seeing something like us every day course with a drug user you can never be too sure WHAT they see.
" Shay" She responded.
" Shay is that like your first or last name?" I wondered.
" It's just Shay" she snapped slightly defensive.
Splinter had disappeared but he returned with a cup of tea probably one of his medicinal herb teas. She sat up taking the mug from him and silently sipping the hot drink. I waited patiently to see what Splinter's and Leo's verdict would be on her.
" How old are you Shay?" Leo asked.
" Fifteen."
She didn't look it but I suppose she could be.
" Do you have a home to go to?" Splinter inquired.
" No I live on the street."
" Do you have a family?" Splinter questioned.
" No."
Or if she did she wasn't going to tell us about them. My bet was she was a runaway trying to lose herself in the crowds of the big apple. Probably getting by in the way most street kids did by stealing, living out of dumpsters, selling and using drugs, or selling her body for money. We'd seen the likes before and we would see it again I'm sure.
Some kids choose that lifestyle because they feel they have no other choice and others feel it is better than the life they have at home and some might do it out of plain rebellion itself. It didn't really matter how they ended up on the streets the hard thing was so many of them died on the streets too and a lot of them wouldn't even look into the resources offered for fear of being taken back to their homes.
Splinter gazed at her for a moment or two before speaking " You are welcome to stay here Shay until you are better but you will not use drugs in our home."
Shay nodded " Sure whatever." She replied simply.
I grinned I was hoping she would stay for a while I really wanted to learn a little more about her. I told Shay she could sleep in my room and I'd sleep on the couch. When I returned from taking her to show her the washroom and my bedroom I heard Leo talking to Splinter I knew he was questioning the idea of having Shay here but I also knew the MASTER had spoken and Leo wouldn't get Splinter to reverse the words of welcome.
Next morning I knocked softly on the door of my bedroom to see if Shay was awake and she told me to come in. She was sitting up on the bed and looking around seeming to be a little more alert and with it then she had been the night before, and the look in her green grey eyes told me she was wondering where the hell she was.
She looked up as I came in and gave a small scream as if I was the last thing she'd been expecting and she backed up against the wall.
" Take it easy Shay. Don't you remember me from last night?"
" Sort of I just thought…I dunno," she shrugged " So you are real?"
" Yeah I am."
" What are you?" her tone was one of fear and uncertainty mingled together.
" Haven't you ever seen a walking talking turtle before Shay?"
" No. I don't know if I want to" she muttered.
" Gee and after I helped you last night. That is what I call gratitude" I teased her gently.
" You… You're the one who helped me from those guys?"
" Well sure. I couldn't let them hurt you."
" Thanks" she whispered. Then I heard her mutter something about quitting and going clean. Poor Shay she was really having a hard time with this.
" Good idea Shay, drugs only mess things up. I find life can be pretty good without them. Only just a warning to you Shay even if you do go clean I'll still be a walking talking turtle. So what were you on?"
" Depends. Whatever I could get I would do. I am not fussy."
" Your life really that bad Shay or are you just trying to feel better?"
She didn't answer that question just stared at me with her cold hard eyes.
" Okay you don't have to answer that do you want something to eat?" I relented.
" Nothing to eat just coffee black if you have it."
" Can do." When I returned with her coffee I told her about us why we were the way we were and told her again that she was welcome to stay just no drug use allowed in our home.
She glanced down at her skimpy outfit and muttered that she'd need a change of clothes soon.
" Leave it to us Shay we'll get you some."
" Same way street people do Shay we raid dumpsters or thrift store bins for clothing. Sometimes when my brothers and I go topside we have to mingle closely with people so we use clothes to disguise ourselves with. Most people don't even notice that we are a little different then most." I didn't tell her that sometimes when I mingle like that I have a strong urge to reveal who I am and I really have to fight it back.
I figured Shay was now as ready as she would ever be to meet the rest of the family so I convinced her to join me out in the lair.
Splinter was relaxing in his favorite armchair and smiled as he saw her " How are you feeling today Shay?" he asked her.
" Fine. Just fine" she mumbled under her breath.
Raph eyed her up and down as usual he wasn't about to say what he was thinking not with Splinter there " How long you been on the streets?"
" Over a year now."
Raph nodded he knew as we all did the longer you were out on the streets the harder it was to get off of them and the more violence you open yourself up to. A person had to learn to get hard and smart fast on the streets or pay the consequences.
Shay seemed awfully jittery that day I don't know if it was because of the residue effects of the drugs in her system, just being around us or a bit of both.
As the next few days passed she seemed to relax a little more around us but still she wouldn't open up much about where she was from or things like that.
We had found some changes of clothes for her and she seemed in no big hurry to head up to the streets and pretty much kept to herself.
She'd watch our practices and I noticed she'd often keep a close eye on Raph during our workouts.
Personally I was hoping she would take an interest in me. I mean hey who wouldn't want ME? But I knew that wasn't the sort of choice to be forced on someone else. Still why couldn't she have gone for Don or Leo instead of with Raph?
I like Raph don't get me wrong there we are close friends after all but his temper could get more than a little out of hand and I was afraid of what Shay might think when she actually saw Raph at his worst and sooner or later I knew it would happen. Just because he hadn't revealed the firecracker part of himself to her yet didn't mean it wasn't there.
Around a week after she came into our lives Raph and Leo got into it over the usual thing Raph being too irresponsible and Leo being the overprotective brother lecturing to Raph about all his many faults and shortcomings. Those two are just too opposite to get along. I didn't pay much attention I was use to it by now but I glanced over at Shay to see what she was making of this. There was an eager intent look on her face as she watched them her eyes locked on Raph and I realized this display of his temper wasn't scaring her off at all. No instead she seemed to like that side of him.
I went over to talk to her and she smiled at me.
" Raph always like this?"
" Sometimes he's worse. Leo just wants him to be more responsible and Raph won't do it they get into a lot of battles over it. Broken a lot of furniture too not that you would notice much with our stuff." I explained.
I could see her eyes sparkling and I knew then by the sinking feeling in the pit of my stomach that somehow someway Raph's temper had just earned him Shay.
I could only hope Raph wouldn't hurt her.
Oh, I knew Raph wouldn't beat her up or anything like that. She was a female and we were all raised to respect females and we never hit them unless they were out to kill us but I also knew there were many ways to be hurt and Shay coming from off the streets had probably had her share of being hurt as it was. Maybe that was it Shay might be use to getting hurt and choose someone who would hurt her.
All I knew was at the moment Raph was who she wanted. She was drawn to him the same way a moth is drawn towards the light.
She started flirting with Raph quite openly and I hated seeing it wanting her to come to me and pay attention to me I had found her, I had helped her but it was Raph she wanted. Raph typically didn't say no to any of her advances and come ons. So it wasn't much of a surprise when she moved into Raph's bedroom at night.
Usually I couldn't hear much between Raph's room and mine but maybe because Shay was in there I listened more carefully to what was going on, on the other side of the wall that separated our rooms.
I heard enough to know what they were doing them calling out each other's names the moans of passion and I hated hearing it wished I could shut it all out. I tried to ignore what I heard and failed miserably wishing even more that Shay were mine instead of Raph's.
I don't know if either of them really loved the other. They hadn't known each other all that long and Shay may be very use to giving her body to whoever whenever not for love but as a means to get money and drugs.
Raph became very possessive of Shay and she didn't seem to mind. Even outside the privacy of his bedroom they would be all over each other about the only time they showed any discretion is when Splinter was in the same room.
It hurt seeing them groping and kissing each other so much wanting Shay's touches and kisses for me. I couldn't lay claim to her just because I had saved her life. She had picked Raph for herself and Raph knew as well as I did that it was Shay's choice on who she was going to be with. So I knew even if I tried I wouldn't gain Shay's love or interest in any way shape or form.
She had been with Raph a little over two weeks when they started fighting with one another. Just little spats at first but it grew from there. The whole lair grew tense not knowing when or where one would lit into the other and yet at night I could still hear them having sex.
One night when Raph was out I had a talk with Shay. I cared about her and I was worried about her even though I knew she felt nothing for me.
" Shay are you happy with Raph?"
" No Mike I'm never happy with any guy."
" You don't have to stay with him you know. You never have to stay with someone you can't see eye to eye with. You don't even have to stay here if you don't want to stay that is."
" I feel safe here Mike. Safer then I've felt in a long time. I'm not sure about going back up above I'm afraid I'll get into situations that I just don't need to be in right now. Down here it's different."
" Yeah I know what you mean." I smiled reached out brushed a lock of hair out of her face " Why aren't you happy with anyone Shay? I mean it is your choice who you want to be with."
" My choice to be happy or who I want to be with?" she asked hesitantly.
" Both Shay."
She flopped down on the couch and pulled her knees to her chest curled her arms around her legs as if shutting herself off from the world " Maybe. And maybe not. See Mike I never seem to go for people who will be nice I always go for Raph types. Something both dark and dangerous in anger. I don't like it and at the same time I do."
" Were your parents abusive to you Shay?"
She laughed at that comment though I hadn't been trying to be funny.
" My parents were very loving and VERY strict. I couldn't stand all their rules about how I should dress and who I could see and a whole bunch of other crap so I left to live my own life."
Ah ha I think I was starting to understand she ran away from rules, authority figures. Her parents probably didn't like her going out with certain angry type fellows and she might of wanted them just out of rebellion alone.
" Shay you can be with anyone YOU want to girl. It is up to you to decide what you want out of life. Do you want to be happy? Then try to do what makes you happy if you are happy with angry fellows okay but if you aren't then maybe you ought to try some other type."
After that night Shay and I talked quite a bit about all kinds of things we were getting to be close friends if nothing else while Raph and her continued to battle and love each other.
She had been with us a month when one night I heard her and Raph battling again and then Raph go storming out in a fit of temper. I could hear Shay crying alone in his room. I layed there for a while listening to her sobs and I finally decided I ought to go and comfort her a little give her a shoulder to cry on at the very least.
I went and knocked on the bedroom door and when Shay opened it and saw me she threw her arms around my neck burying her face in my neck as she cried.
" What is a matter Shay? Raph didn't hurt you did he?"
" No Mike…I just…I'm so tired of all of this and…"
She clung tightly to me and I didn't feel comfortable about going into Raph's room with her though I doubted he'd be back before morning. So I bent and picked her slight body up in my arms and carried her over to the couch and sat her down on my lap " If you don't want to be with him tell him Shay" I pleaded with her. My heart aching for her.
" I …I can't Mike. I'm scared of what he might do" She chocked out between her sobs.
I guess I could understand that with how possessive Raph had become of her. I knew from what I had overheard of their many battles that Raph didn't even want her spending much time with the rest of us. Not that he could really stop it. Besides Shay and I talked often while he was out doing his own thing and we didn't need a chaperone or his permission for it.
" He won't do anything Shay. I won't let him hurt you ever all right? But you have to stand up to him too."
" I want to I just don't know if I can."
" You can trust yourself. Raph will know it is over when you tell him it is and only then." I assured her.
" Oh Mike I think you are the only true friend I ever had in my life."
" Nonsense Shay. You also have Don, Leo and Master Splinter to talk to."
" They aren't here with me now. You are."
Next thing I knew she was kissing me and I felt myself respond to that kiss. I felt her tongue enter my mouth and caress my mouth and tongue. I trembled slightly.
I'd been wanting her in my own way for so long. I didn't realize then, maybe I didn't want to that she was only lonely. I thought she cared for me for her kisses were full of passion and intensity that I couldn't ignore. I found myself returning her kisses and starting to caress her gently with my fingers and things just seemed to go from there.
We ended up in my room and that night it was me she made love with it was my name she cried out in the heat of our passion.
I tried to be gentle with her to prove to her that I did care for her and I wanted her happy. I know she made me very happy that night. I didn't know then that it wasn't love on her part though it was love on mine.
Afterwards we lay side by side talking to each other before she went back to Raph's room before Raph came home and shit hit the fan as it were.
The next morning at breakfast Raph returned and draped an arm around her shoulders bent and whispered something in her ear and she took his hand and went to follow him.
" Shay do you really want to?" I couldn't help calling after her.
Raph turned giving me a dark warning look " What's it to you Mike?"
" I just want to be sure it is what Shay wants Raph."
" Don't get your hopes up Mikey. Shay is MINE!"
" Shay ISN"T a pet Raph she is a human and it is HER choice as much as it is yours," I reminded him firmly.
" It's all right Mike. I don't mind" Shay mumbled.
" That isn't what you…" I started to protest.
Raph glowered and growled at me and I fell silent Shay had made her choice again.
Gods! How could she keep doing this to me? I mean all of these ups and downs and spin arounds reminded me of some wild amusement park ride and somehow on this ride I was always in the back with the brakes slammed on hard enough to cause whiplash.
WOMEN! Go figure! I was really starting to wonder about the opposite sex.
TBC