Based off of a Tumblr prompt by princessebee. The Turtles leave April for what they feel like is her own safety, and she gets captured by the Foot Clan. Rated for violence and swearing for now. Might add a smutty chapter later if I work up the nerve to write it out.
Disclaimer- I don't own the turtles, but oh the things I would do if I did…..
It had been five years since he last saw her. Since anyone last saw her, to be truthful. She had disappeared that night they left, gone without a trace. News Channel 6 had put her face out, hoping to find their up-and-coming investigative reporter, but soon moved on to other news. With no family left to speak of she was quickly forgotten by many, but he still remembered her. They all did. The woman who they owed their very existence too, who had excepted them as family when they discovered each over, had loved and cherished everyone in their own way. She had given them so much, and then they left her to be captured.
Raph felt like he had deserted her. He swore he heard her heart break when he told her he was leaving over the phone. In his dreams, he heard those same shattered cries she emitted when the memories of the fire got too much for her, echoing through the empty lair. Images of her collapsing to her knees, sobbing and begging them not to leave her alone again, she was so tired of being alone, made him nauseous. He could see the shadowy figure walk up behind and, in her grief, her not notice them until it was too late. She fought against it until finally they hit her across the temple and she collapsed. The dreams would leave him in a cold sweat and tears, guilt consuming him, knowing that if he had been there for her, she would still be there.
Raphael pulled himself out of bed after another long night of dreams revolving around April. Her small body curled against his own, her moaning his name as he moved with her, then they turned to nightmares. Hearing her scream in pain as someone hit her, cut her soft, pale skin with knife, and so much worse. Shaking his head, he went through his morning routine and moved into the training room. Leonardo was already warming up in the room, but he gave his brother only a courtesy nod as he moved towards him. He fully blamed Leo for April's disappearance, it being his decision that things were too dangerous for her. He had decided for them all what was for the best without even consulting the rest of them.
It didn't help that soon after the move Master Splinter had gotten ill and, despite everything that Donatello tried to do, was unable to recover. The three younger turtles knew that if they still had that connection with April, he would have had a better chance. She was always helping them get ahold of things that they couldn't normally get, like medication. The confidence they had in their leader diminished slowly over the last few years, Leo only holding the title of Leader because Raph didn't have the heart to take his place.
Not that he really wanted to do anything these days. Get up, train, eat, train more, go on patrols, and then do his own patrols was what his life had come to. Pounding low-life thugs had become his outlet for his mourning, it helped that he was also doing some good in the city. More than once he had pulled a "Scared Straight' tactic on some stupid teenager who thought that he needed 'Street Cred' to get by in this world. Even that was getting old. He missed the long talks he would have with her about whatever came to their minds, the Netflix marathons (he still refused to acknowledge she got him into Doctor Who) , and just curling up together on the couch while they watched the rain fall outside her window.
"You going out tonight?" Raph turned to look at the turtle in blue.
"Yah" he grunted in reply, moving to the punching bag to begin his workout.
"When are you coming back?" Leonardo moved into Raphael's sightline, arms crossed as he glared at him.
"Whenever I damn well please." Raph growled, focusing on the bag in front of him, trying to keep the images of him hitting his brother out of his mind.
"That's not the answer I wanted Raph, I want to know when you're coming back. You can't keep roaming the streets until whenever you feel like coming home. You're going to put us all in danger." The red turtle paused his workout to look at Leo.
"Because you're so damn good at keeping people safe, huh Leo?" The conversation was fast turning into a fight, but Raph didn't really care anymore. He was sick of his older brother acting so high and mighty, Mr. Perfect who never did anything wrong and it if what he did hurt any one of the brothers, it was for the good of them collectively. "Just like us leavin' kept April safe?"
"I didn't mean for that to happen." Leo had the decency to at least look like he regretted leaving her. "She was our Hogosha, our guardian. If I had known it would have happened I would have done it differently."
"So you woulda still have left her." Raphael snarled, tensing his body up. "Screw what she meant to the rest of us, only what YOU thought mattered. Forget that she was always willin' to try whatever crazy new thing Mikey cooked in the kitchen even if she ended up sick 'cause of it, forget she was always interested in the stuff Donnie was doin', and hookin' him up with old bits of her Father's stuff, forget that Master Splinter saw himself as a surrogate father, because she sure as HELL didn't have anyone who gave a flyin' fuck about her after her father died- tryin' to keep us from fallin' into Shredder's hands," he stopped his tirade as his heart clenched painfully in his chest. He looked Leo straight in the eyes as he tried to get control of his breathing, and his next words were softer. "Forget what she meant to me. Everything that she did for me. She loved me even for all my issues, my flaws. She loved me, without even wantin' a damn thing in return."
He turned back to the bag, shutting his eyes, and taking deep breaths. She wouldn't want him losing his temper like that. He could see her face, quiet and firm, telling him that he needed to back off. It was funny that even with her gone, he still hated disappointing her. While she accepted him for the brutish monster that he was, he still wanted to be better, to prove, to himself at least, that he deserved her warmth and love. He resumed his workout, beating at the battered bag with a steady efficiency, shutting out his brother's hurt look. He could care less about hurting him right now. All Raph wanted to do was focus on getting through another day.
Later that night it was time for their daily patrol. Raphael came up the door right as Michelangelo had just hooked the last nunchaku to his belt. The youngest of the turtles looked at his older brother.
"You okay Raph?" he asked, worry in his blue eyes. After Raph, Mikey was the most affected by April's disappearance. As much as he flirted with her in the beginning, he loved her as a sister and he mourned her as family when she was gone. He had become serious about protecting those who couldn't help themselves, whether it was kids, the elderly, or even animals. One particular bad night involved young girls being sold into the sex slave industry, and that was when the older turtles found out that even the baby brother had a dark side. It took all three of them to get Michelangelo out of there before all the men there died horrible, painful deaths.
"I'm good Mikey, let's just get on with this- heard there's gonna be a big drug deal down at the docks, and I wanna break it up before any of it hits the streets." The orange turtle nodded and followed his older brother out of the lair.
After the group patrol, Raph stood on the roof as a cold, bitter January wind blew around him. He closed his eyes and focused on the city around him. It seemed to be a quiet night, the normal sounds of the city filling the air. Sirens blared in the distance, cars passed by, and taxis honking their horns. Few pedestrians were out, it being in the middle of a bad cold snap. Not that Raph could blame them. If it wasn't for his need to go out and do something, the void that she left, he'd wouldn't be out ether. A bad snow storm was being predicted in the next few days, not something any of the turtles looked forward to.
He was so lost in his thoughts he just barely dodged something that flew right past him. He turned, drawing his Sais and moving into a fighting stance. A woman wearing the garb and mask of a Foot Solider stood in front of him, her body tense and ready to act on his every move. A Kusarigama gleamed between her hands, a heavy-looking chain attaching the sharp blade to an even heavier looking ball at the end.
"Raphael Hamato," the woman moved into her own fighting stance, "I finally found you."
The large turtle jerked back, his eyes going wide in shock- that voice was familiar, but it couldn't be…, he train of thoughts was abruptly ended when she moved towards him, poised to attack. He just barely was able to block the blade of her weapon, and moved to strike her. She backed away out of his reach and swung her chain, striking him in the side with the ball. The pain made him to stumble backwards, off balance. He growled under his breath. The strange Kunoichi was stronger than she looked. To his surprise, however, she did not take advantage of his lost momentum and continue to strike.
"Come on, you bitch, "he snarled, his entire body tense, ready for his next move. "Was that all you got?"
He retook his footing onto the roof, ready for her next attack. She charged at him, and he moved to meet her in the middle. Blocking her next attack of the ball with his sais, he pulled on the chain in an attempt to disarm her. The other Ninja proceeded to suddenly whip behind him, tangling him in the chain. He felt he pull the chain down and then he felt a sharp pain coming from his hamstring. The pain did not slow him down though, as he whirled around to try to stab her but all he saw was her jumping over his hand and hitting him in the face with spinning kick. The blade of her weapon dripped with his blood, and he grit his teeth at the fact that she had been able to get a hit on him. This was no normal Foot Soldier that was for sure. She collected up the chain of her weapon and rushed forward, putting Raph on the defensive by having him attempt to parry her overhand slice . . . which turned into a feint as she took advantage of Raph's parrying stance to slide underneath him. As she slid past, Raph felt a unique pain- that of the butt of her sickle hitting him between the legs and in the area where even the turtles were sensitive. As he was doubling over in pain, the kunoichi kicked him and caused him to hit ledge head first. The Foot Soldier walked slowly forward, her body moving like a cat stalking her prey. Using the butt of the scythe to tilt his head up to face her, she laughed darkly, but again, it was strangely familiar.
"So this is the one that Karai warned me about." She purred, a sound that caused Raph's blood to pulse through his body. Why was this woman- the enemy- making him feel like she did? Shifting her weapon to one hand, she lifted the other to pull off her mask. What Raphael saw next left him stunned and speechless. The Kunoichi smirked at the look on his face. "What's wrong Raphael?" her voice mocked "You look like you've seen a ghost." He swallowed hard to fight back the tears that threatened to form in eyes as he looked back at an all-to familiar face, and her name came out in a choked whisper.
"April."