Disclaimer: Nothing belongs to me except for the plot. None of the characters mentioned are mine. I own no rights to the soap opera references made, 'Felix the Cat, and definitely not to Bored Panda's post on '14 Untranslatable Words Turned Into Charming Illustrations' by Christopher Appelgren. Give credit where credit is due.


He was most content when he was catching up on one of his favorite soaps; 'Days of Our Lives', and today he would have been more than pleased to sit in his usual spot on their weathered sofa, taking in the day's excitement without distractions.

Abigail was relaying her troubles with Ben's past to Melanie while they stood in the Square.

Except today he was distracted by his not-so-unusual companion for daily soaps. The young turtle sat at his side, fully engrossed in the tale unfolding before them. Luckily for him, he was not as distracted as the Master was.

Splinter glanced at the unnerving Felix-the-Cat wall-clock to his left and counted thirty seconds before deciding whether or not to ask Michelangelo his question, since he was curious to know. He also realized that he should probably talk to Donatello about replacing the ridiculous clock with its massive, roaming cat eyes. But for now this terrapin was his main focus.

"Michelangelo?"

"Hmm?" Mikey murmured. He shifted his head slightly as if to look at Splinter, but then his head returned to its original position where his eyes remained fixed on the television screen.

Melanie reacts wildly to Abigail's 'kiss and tell' story about her visit to Chad.

Splinter pressed on, annoyed a bit by Michelangelo's lackluster response. "Is there something bothering you, my son?"

The orange-masked ninja hesitated to tear his attention away from the show, but he did anyway. He met Splinter's eyes with a confused expression. "What? No...why?"

The wizened rodent sucked in his breath to hold back from answering the terrapin directly. He did not want to make his youngest ward feel awkward or uncomfortable, so he said, "Never mind, Musuko. My old mind thinks too much."

Mikey's bright eyes narrowed behind his mask as a small frown formed on his face. "Ohh-kay then..." His head slowly turned away from Splinter and back towards the television screen.

Rafe catches Ben filling out a W-2 form using his new surname 'Weston'.

Splinter tried to continue watching his story as well, but found it too difficult to concentrate on what was happening. "Are you sure?" He asked.

This time Michelangelo turned bodily to face his Sensei and tipped his head to one side. "Yeah. I'm as sure as Abigail and Chad."

The Master made a noncommittal sound through his nose and shifted in his seat. He then directed a glare at the nunchaku-carrying mutant. "Then why are you petting me as though I am one of your pets?" He demanded.

The orange-masked turtle recoiled and bared his teeth, chagrined. "Oops, sorry!" He instinctively pulled his hand out of Splinter's tan fur and brought his arm back down to his side from the top of the backrest. "Force of habit, I guess?" He shrugged, flashing a cheeky grin and bolted from his spot, casting one final look at the playing soap episode.

Splinter shook his head, amused mildly. "Orokana kame!"


Musuko - Japanese for 'son'.

Orokana kame - Japanese for 'silly turtle'. I think.

Cafuné - Brazilian Portuguese which means tenderly running fingers through hair.


Reviews are welcome. XD