Hey, guys. I decided to revise this one too.
Once Upon a Time, heroes stood on a dock in New York City, and neither knew they were heroes.
This is where we start, of course, this is where all good hero stories start, and the heroes are unknown or nonexistent at the very beginning. So, no cape, no mask, no lair for these two women, attempting to interview a dock worker about a recent crime wave by the criminal organization known as the Foot Clan, a skilled group of terrorists.
Technically, the only one talking and interviewing is the woman in the yellow jacket, named April O'Neil, a news reporter for Channel 6. With her wavy brown hair, light blue eyes, and youthful appearance, sadly she has never generated much respect among her co-workers, despite the fact that she's not their worst reporter.
The woman not interviewing the co-worker is April O'Neil's bodyguard, heavy, muscle, whatever you want to term her. Perhaps a more accurate term would be friend, but strangely enough, that doesn't dawn on people until April clears it up.
So, April's companion is called Spike. That's what she's called, but her real name is Sarah Sanchez. No one has called her Sarah in the last twelve years. At six foot, Spike is tall and muscular for a woman. She cuts an intimidating figure, with the ability to strike terror into just about any mere mortal with just one flash of her gray-blue eyes. Her originally fair skin has tanned little over the years; she is still very pale, with a firm jawline.
The odd thing is that she is April's friend, a very close and dear friend who April has known her entire life. Neither can imagine their lives without the other's presence, and there is a good reason for that.
~Shell-Shocked~
April has known Sarah Sanchez since kindergarten after Sarah helped her up after April had fallen on the playground. Sarah had taken a shine to April, and taken the girl under her wing. Sarah was six, and seemed very wise to the five year old April, who was absolutely thrilled as a result of Sarah's attention. April was an only child, but Sarah was no stranger to being an older sister. She had two younger sisters, one barely sixteen months old, and one of age four.
By first grade they were inseparable. It was always Sarah and April to the teachers, even to their parents at times. April's father, a scientist, often let the two into his laboratory to play with the lab rat, and four little lab turtles.
There was no shadow on their lives until the car accident.
Sarah was seven years old, and down with the flu. April had been cautioned against visits, and Sarah's parents, Ian and Christina Sanchez, decided to make their weekly grocery stop early to pick up medicine for their eldest daughter. They left, kissing her forehead and promising they'd be back soon, and she'd feel better.
They never came back, her parents and her sisters.
An intoxicated driver had caused the accident, and Molly and Lily, her two younger sisters, were gone. Her parents were gone.
And though no one would suspect it, it broke her heart.
After that, she didn't laugh anymore, not like she used to. She never cried. Ever since the car accident, she never shed a tear. Not even at the funeral, when April had wrapped her arms around her in a comforting hug. Sarah had been stone faced.
April had understood. April always understood. And Spike understood too, when a laboratory fire claimed April's father's life merely months after. April sat and sobbed after that, and Spike had sat there with a box of tissues, ready for whatever April had needed.
"I'll protect you," she had vowed. "I promise. I'll keep you safe as long as I live."
She did, too. Throughout school, when April took the drama club and cheerleading, Sarah took up almost every other sport, from basketball and martial arts in school, to wrestling, boxing and football teams that were outside of school territory. She built muscle, a lot of it, and used her impressive size and personality to make sure people thought twice before they picked on April. In seventh grade, kids began calling her 'Spike'. What started as a nickname whispered in hallways while the girl well on her way to six foot stalked past became what everyone, even herself, knew her by.
April O'Neil was Spike's only friend, and they both knew it. After they graduated, April became a news reporter, and Spike was right behind her. Despite Spike's take-charge attitude, April always led, and Spike always followed.
Thanks for reading, guys. Please let me know what you think in a review, it really helps. As always, I'll see you in the next chapter!