Annndd... she's back! First off, all hail the threshold of the winter season. Good will towards men indeed fuse these next few months are my fav out of the whole twelve-month rotation! And with that, moving our beloved green characters right along. After all, they had an entire alien invasion to deal with when last we left them. Not to mention the newest addition to the team- the long-haired Casey Jones (yes Michael Bay, I'm still harping about that among OTHER things!).

As much as the brothers love New York City, they needed some serious R & R; and where better then Casey's grandmother's abandoned farmhouse! Fast forward several months post-invasion, and we'll see how they- and others- are getting along.

}{}{Disclaimer}{}{ Much of this plot and some dialogue are borrowed from the 2k3 episode 'HATE', which got the idea from the original 1985 comic anyway. Property of Eastman and Laird and whatever TV network made the series.

-May, 2015-

The rooster crowed over the faint rays of sunlight. Very faint, for it was barely six-o-clock! But it was Friday, so Master Splinter had allowed his sons a couple extra hours of sleep.

"Ahhhh." Splinter breathed in, swinging open the upstairs hall window. Fresh country air! He had grown fond of its rejuvenating power these past months. He grabbed his walking stick- a generous carving on Casey Jones' behalf- off of the wall and stepped lively down the hallway. The hallway of closed doors. His sons were deep in slumber behind them. So, the only reasonable thing to do was to arouse them!

"Morning, Master Splinter."

Splinter's brow rose as Emma Dewitter emerged from the room that had become her and April O'Neil's. As always, she was smiling as big and bright as her auburn hair. It had been braided over the shoulder of her navy sweatshirt. He smiled back. "Good morning, Emma."

"I'm ready for this morning's exercises." Emma stated brightly. "Shall I ready the mats while you wake the boys?"

Her enthusiasm and dedication rivaled that of Leonardo. Now, if only Raphael and his younger sons would adapt to it. Splinter nodded at his newest, eager pupil. "A most thoughtful action. You shall hear my sons groaning momentarily."

Groaning was the right word. Donatello and Leonardo were fair listeners when it came to starting up. And Raphael only needed a few whacks to the head. Michelangelo however, required prying from the sheets with the jaws of life.

"Seeennnsseeii…" the sleepy-eyed turtle whined in the several minutes it took Splinter to get him and his brothers moving down the stairs. "Why can't we at least wait for eight? I'm sure that all of the cool ninjas do it."

"How 'bout no noise from Mikey before eight." Raphael suggested, leading the bunch into the kitchen. "All those in favor?"

"Aye!" Leonardo and Donatello raised their hands. Michelangelo pouted through their quick grab of cereal. But upon sitting down, he glanced through the kitchen window, then grinned, milk dripping down his chin. He had spotted Emma in the back with the mats. "At least I've got one friend in this frenzy, suckers."

He leapt over the table, rattling everybody else's bowls. Ignoring his siblings complaints, Mikey threw open the window, leaning his head out, until his shell stopped him. "The sunrise doesn't get much better then that, Gorgeous!"

Emma laughed. "I live to brighten people's days." She gave her butt cheek a hearty smack. "Ya know it!"

"Cow-a-bunga." Mikey grinned back in at his brothers. "Mock that, suckers!"

"You realize she was laughing at you, not with you." Raph rolled his eyes.

Emma surprised them with her head coming through the window. "Aw c'mon Raph, what's a morning without a good 'Cowabunga'?"

"A morning in bed." Raph told her.

Splinter clapped his hands together before the conversation could consume them. "Finish up, my sons. Today, we will be beginning with our stealth training, followed by meditation…"

}{}{}{}{}{

April O'Neil scanned the sidewalks and the buildings that rose above them. There was a construction crew covering every one, repairing the sporatic damage that had been done only a month ago. The people of New York hadn't hesitated to push itself up on its feet.

"Count it, O'Neil." Vern called her attention, fingers ticking down. "Four, three…"

April breathed out and put on her calmest, most encouraging smile. "Good morning to you all in New York City, from Staten Island to Times Square. This is April O'Neil coming to you for the first Channel 6 broadcast since the terrifying attack from the skies only a month ago. Re-establishing our electricity proved a challenge, but we hope that the daily and dedicated updates through a website kept you well-informed and well-grounded.'

'In the days since the extra-terrestrial attack, our city has focused on one goal; to restore our walls and liberty. Much speculation was left in the wake of several arrests within the United States government. However, the President and many seats of the Supreme Court assure the people they had no knowledge…"

She went over what details Channel 6 hadn't covered in the slight social media connections they had managed to get out to the city. All of Channel 6 had been working around the clock in the week since April and Casey had returned. Casey had had plenty of commission work out of his garage; in short, they'd been busy. April couldn't wait to wrap this up… then they'd head back out to the farmhouse for some much needed rest.

}{}{}{}{}{

The air was good this morning… fresh, American air; human air! No room for alien scum here!

And I'll fight the rest of my life to keep it that way! Skunk swore up to the sun, like he'd been doing every morning for weeks. It was a silent demo of his resolve, now that the path was set for him and his men. The first loud statement to the aliens… and the wasted government who dared to play nice with them!... that Humans Against The Extraterrestrials would fight. Even if the government wouldn't!

"Skunk!" Axel called out. Skunk pivoted to see Axel and another man tracing out to the rusty 60s van. It was the only non-conspicuous vehicle that they had at the moment. Skunk walked toward them, more suspicious then curious. "Where're you headed?"

"It's Friday," Axel reminded him with a twirl of the keys. "Donuts for all! Any requests."

"Make sure you buy from a couple different stores." Skunk said, not answering the question. "We don't need anybody raising eyebrows."

"They're donuts, Skunk…" the other- Mole- laughed. Until Skunk closed his hand around his throat. "And we've only been hiding out for weeks, getting ready for the biggest day of our free world lives! You remember that, don't you, Mole? The oath we took, that YOU took!?"

Mole's eyes rolled at Axel for help. Axel cleared his throat in discomfort. "Don't worry 'bout it Skunk. I'll do all of the talkin', alright."

Skunk released Mole. "You better. We've planned and scrapped too hard for this."