Disclaimer: I own Austin, and Terri, and lots of other characters... but sadly, still not the turtles. I think y'all know which ones are mine by now.

Author Notes: I know Mona Lisa Smile isn't completed yet, but I've been itching to work on Misadventures some more. This is proving to be a lot more difficult, though. I have very little time to
write. Uhg.

Further Misadventures (of the Mentally Unstable)

Prologue

"I wish you didn't have to leave so soon." Terri said softly and smiled at her daughter. She and Austin sat cross-legged in front of a crackling fire, the flashes of flame illuminating the stone hearth. The smell of freshly baked cinnamon bread still hung in the air, even though the bread itself was long gone. Mother and daughter had forsaken the image of dietary restraint and downed the whole loaf in one sitting. Some of it they'd toasted in the fire, and some they'd just eaten plain. …And more than a little had been had by Terri's German Shepherd, Arturo. Arturo had been more than happy to gobble down every piece that was offered and he was now laying next to Austin, his tummy full, and his tongue hanging out of his mouth in obvious contentedness.

Austin gently scratched the dog's head as she sighed and looked at her mom. "You know I'd love to stay… but I really need to get back. It's been a month and I told Doris I'd only be gone for a couple weeks." Seeing the disappointed look that Terri was desperately trying to hide, Austin continued quickly. "I'll be back for New Year's though, don't worry."

Terri nodded in understanding. "I know, honey. It just feels like you only got here a short time ago."

Austin abandoned the stroking of Arturo's head and leaned forward unexpectedly, wrapping her arms around Terri. There was a pop from the fire as they embraced, and Austin had to wipe a tear from her eye behind her mother's back. The last month had been good, but there was still so much that they wanted to share with each other. But Austin knew she'd been away from New York City too long. Her business (she still hadn't gotten over that… her business) needed tending to, and she had to see if there was anything left between her and Raphael that was worth salvaging.

Raphael. She hadn't called him. After the first week, she'd meant to… just to tell him everything was alright. But every time she went to the phone, little excuses popped up that made her put the phone back down without dialing. It's too late there; I should wait til the morning to call. Or, I really should talk to him in person… this isn't a 'phone' issue. Or, He's probably still mad at me, and it will only piss him off more if I call. Or, I miss him so much and if I call and hear his voice I'll burst out crying and begging him to forgive me and look like a complete fool and he'll hang up on me because I'm loony as hell and he should have known better than to get involved with someone like me. The last excuse was the one that won out most of the time.

After a week of picking up the phone and putting it back down, Terri's voice had finally startled her from the doorway. "Honey, just call him. I'm sure whatever it is, you two can work it out." Austin's startled, yet somewhat blank look had made her mother smile. "I was young once too. I remember what it was like."

Austin had managed to get out a confused "Uhhh…" and then Terri broke in again.

"Or… is it a 'her'?" Her voice had been cautious but not accusing, and Austin hadn't been quite sure how to respond to that. Did her mother think she was gay?

"I… no. No, it's a guy…" Kind of…, she'd thought to herself. "But… I… I sorta left town without saying goodbye… I mean, I left him a letter, but…"

After hearing the bare basics of Austin's relationship with Raph, Terri had been gently hinting that she needed to call and get it over with, but Austin never had. So the trip back to New York was a mixture of hope and fear. If Raphael had moved on and didn't want her anymore, then it was no one's fault but her own.

Finally pulling away from each other, Terri clasped Austin's hand and squeezed it gently. "You've got an early flight tomorrow, hon. We should probably get to sleep soon."

Nodding her agreement, Austin stood and stretched out her stiff muscles. She was definitely going to miss this house. The house she'd thought she never wanted to sit foot in again, and now she didn't want to leave; all those ugly childhood memories she'd thought would haunt her hadn't even showed the slighted interest. There was nothing but good memories here with Terri, and Austin hoped it would always be that way.

The next morning, Austin was up bright and early. In a manner of speaking. She herself was not a morning person, and the term 'bright' could hardly be used in accordance with her morning mood. As her mother fixed breakfast, Austin hugged a mug of coffee and only answered in grunts when asked what she wanted in her omelet, what kind of toast, how many strawberries on her waffles, and did she want Cheerios or Lucky Charms?

"Christ, the flight's only a couple hours, I'm not going to starve, Mom." She finally managed to get out after her second cup of hot fresh liquid caffeine.

"Don't take the Lord's name in vain, Austin. And I don't trust that airline food. You're going to eat a good, hot meal now; and I've packed some leftovers from last night's dinner in your bag for on the plane."

"M-o-o-o-o-o-m." Austin whined mockingly. "But all the other kids eat hot airline lunch, why can't I?"

Terri waved a spoon covered in waffle batter at her daughter, who was still sitting at the kitchen table in a faded Eeyore nightshirt and fuzzy pink pig slippers. Tangled brown curls escaped messily from the braid she'd put her hair in the night before, and there was a fixed pout on her face that Terri remembered well from many many years ago.

"You're not even dressed yet, Austin! We need to be out the door in an hour and you're still in your pajamas?"

"I left my clothes out. Don't worry, I'll be ready."

With a sigh of frustration, Terri turned back to the stove and wondered what side of the family Austin had inherited her laziness from. "Well, it's a good thing I already packed your carry-on last night. I swear I don't know how you've lived on your own all this time." There was a sizzle from the waffle iron as Terri poured the batter in and the smell of butter and vanilla filled the air.

"Eh, I get by. I just hire hookers once a week to do dishes and laundry." Austin stretched out and gave a little yawn. "It's cheaper than a maid service."

Terri made a disgusted sound but didn't turn around. "Sometimes I don't know if you're joking or serious, Austin. It makes me wonder just what the hell you're doing in New York."

"Don't say 'hell' Mom; it's not ladylike."

"I'll say 'hell' if I damn well please." A fake gasp from the table made Terri roll her eyes.

"Language, Mother! Language!" Austin snickered as she poured herself a third cup of coffee from the carafe that had been conveniently placed within reach so she wouldn't have to get up over and over. Hearing the steady stream of coffee into the oversized mug, Terri finally turned to look at Austin. That was just one more thing that wasn't familiar to her. Neither her nor Bill had ever drank coffee, so where Austin picked it up she'd never know.

Feeling eyes on her, Austin glanced up to see the thoughtful, yet somewhat sad, expression on her mother's face. "Mom?"

A melancholy smile met Austin's query. "It's nothing, dear. I was just thinking…" Her voice trailed off in that way that bugged the hell out of Austin and almost everyone else in the known world.

"Thinking about what?"

"Just… how different you are from Susan." A small blush of color swept Terri's cheeks at the mention of her biological daughter.

"Ah…" Austin went silent for a moment.

The subject of Susan wasn't quite comfortable territory yet. They'd talked briefly about her, but both knew that she wasn't really a part of their lives anymore. She wasn't Terri's daughter, and she wasn't Austin's mother. She was just Susan. Someone who had been, but no longer was. Still, this was the first time Terri had actually made any comparison between her and Austin.

"Oh sweetie, it's not a bad thing." Terri was quick to reassure when she saw the tight look on her daughter's face. "It's not a bad thing at all, trust me. You're just… two completely different people. In fact… it's almost like…" Her voice trailed off again, but this time it was a thoughtful silence, and she picked up again almost right away. "You know who you're like, Austin? Grandma Bridger… Bill's mother. Do you remember her?"

Setting her cup down, the younger woman looked into its depths pensively. There was a vague memory of Grandma Bridger, but nothing solid. Of course, she hadn't seen her grandmother since she was four years old, so that would explain the fuzziness around her memory. Shortly after Austin was taken to California, Rosemary Bridger had died in a car crash. Her obituary had been in one of the memory albums that Terri kept in the den, and Austin had found it one night as she sat trying to distract her thoughts from Raphael.

Yet there was something… odd about the memories she did have of her grandma. Something… important. All Austin could think was that she was missing something significant and as soon as she figured out what that something was, everything would make sense. …But that in itself didn't make sense, so it had been driving her crazy ever since she'd come across the headlines and been reminded of someone she'd forgotten long ago.

Shaking her head slowly, Austin said "No… no, I don't really remember her."

"Pity… she really loved you, you know. In fact…" For the third time in less then as many minutes, Terri trailed off. "Oh dear… Oh, I'd forgotten!" Apparently she'd forgotten that she was making waffles as well, because without another word Terri rushed out of the kitchen, the mixing spoon still in her hand dripping batter on the linoleum, and then on hard wood as she crossed into the living room. Arturo didn't forget. He'd been quietly sitting at Austin's side waiting for handouts, but now he trailed happily after his 'mommy' licking up the spilled batter as best he could. A dog's life was so tough sometimes.

Austin however, just watched her mother with a blank stare then shrugged and took another sip of coffee. It was becoming fairly obvious which side of the family her scatterbrained-ness came from.

When Terri finally returned to the kitchen ten minutes later, there was a happy little satisfied look on her face that made Austin raise an eyebrow and a fork in her direction. "It's a good thing I was here," she said casually, "otherwise this waffle would have died. I saved it though, don't worry." Stuffing a bite in her mouth, Austin pointed her fork in her mother's direction. "What were you doing that was so important, that this poor waffle was almost left to perish because of your irresponsibility?"

After a month of her daughter's dry and sometimes weird sense of humor, Terri thought she was finally getting used to it. Rolling her eyes and giving an exasperated, slightly exaggerated sigh, Terri set to work in the kitchen again. "There was something I had to find really quickly. I can't believe I forgot it! Well, yes I suppose I can. I mean, it has been almost ten years now hasn't it? Time sure flies, doesn't it Austin? It seems like just yesterday-"

Austin groaned slightly to her self and half tuned her mother out while she polished off the waffle and took another large sip of coffee. It was still a bit too early in the morning to be taking strolls down memory lane and to be honest, she really didn't care what her mother had been up to. All she really wanted was to crawl back in bed and not think about going home. Home. Raphael. One more thing she didn't want to think about. Well, actually she did, and that was the problem. How could she find the courage to call him once she got home if she didn't have the courage to do it from half a continent away?

If he was still interested in her, he'd come back to her place surely. And that was even worse! For him to come back and find her there, knowing that she hadn't called him to tell him she was coming back. He'd think she didn't want to see him… and that was the farthest thing from the truth. It was all so confusing.

Had he even come back to her loft after he found the letter? God, I hope so, Austin thought idly. And if he did, I hope he cleaned out the fridge… I forgot to do it before I left. With another small groan, she thought of the carton of milk that was probably still sitting in the door of the fridge. And the remnants from that last lunch she'd shared with Raphael on the couch; half of a ham sandwich and a bowl of cheesy broccoli soup. Add to that the leftover Chinese take-out that had been sitting in the bottom of the fridge since before she'd even met Raph… It would take an exorcist to banish that smell from her refrigerator once she got home. Austin shuddered to think of it.

"Well?" The voice ripped Austin out of her thoughts and she had to shake her head to clear the images of Raphael in an apron cleaning out her refrigerator with a clothespin over his beak.

"Uh…" She blinked up at her mother. "…what?"

"Austin, didn't you hear anything I just said?" Terri was sitting down at the table finally, a plate of food in front of her. She was neatly cutting her waffle into little squares and giving Austin an exasperated look.

"Um…"

The older woman sighed heavily and shook her head. "I said, 'shouldn't you be thinking of getting dressed soon'?"

"Oh. Right. Yah… yah, I suppose I should do that."

Austin finished off her coffee and stood slowly, tucking a stray wisp of hair behind her ear as she did so. Despite having drunk three large cups of imported European Roast, she found her self stumbling out of the kitchen and up the mahogany staircase to her bedroom, still not yet fully awake. I'm definitely not a morning person, she thought as she struggled to put on her clothes and double check the room to make sure nothing had been forgotten in her hasty packing the night before.

Leaving everything to the last minute seemed to be a specialty of Austin's, and she looked at the phone on her dresser with a twinge of guilt. She still had time to call Raph. Yah, it was even earlier in New York right now, but he wouldn't mind, right? It wasn't too late to tell him that she really was coming back to him. She hesitantly picked up the phone and punched in a few digits, but her finger slowed and started to shake as it got closer to the last number. She finally set the receiver down, the call unfinished, and mentally cursed herself.

I'm pathetic, she told herself and sighed heavily. I'm weak and pathetic and Raphael is never gonna forgive me. How can he, when I can't even forgive myself…?

The goodbye at the airport was emotional for both women. Despite the fact that it would only be a few months before Austin returned to Iowa, it seemed like it would be so much longer until they met again; and in the long tradition of parents having trouble letting go, Terri made Austin promise to call as soon as she got home. She didn't, however, yell out loud and ask if Austin had remembered to put on clean underwear before leaving the house, to which Austin was grateful.

As she walked through the gate, she turned and gave her mother one last wave goodbye, and one last smile. Then she boarded the plane.

Terri stood and watched out the large window until the plane had taxied onto the runway, then she turned and slowly walked through the terminal, her mind in mix of emotions and thoughts. With a small sniffle she wiped a tear from her cheek with one hand, while the other reached into her coat paper and retrieved a small piece of paper. Looking up she spotted a sign that told her down the hall and to the left were a set of payphones.

Making her way to the closest one with a slight flutter in her chest, Terri pulled some change out of her purse and deposited it in the coin slot. She slowly dialed the number on the paper and waited until a voice finally picked up on the other end.

"It's me." She said softly. "Terri Bridger."

She listened to the voice ask a question then nodded and answered with a slight quaver in her voice. "Yes… her plane just left. Flight 246…"

The voice asked another question and she bit her lip. "No… no, she doesn't suspect a thing. I didn't tell her." The voice started to speak, but Terri continued as if he hadn't spoken. "Look, Austin still has some issues to work out, and I know you'll help her. I just… I want to make sure she's going to be okay. You won't… you won't be too harsh with her, will you?"

There was a slight pause, and then a soft reassuring tone came through his voice. Terri nodded at his words, relaxing slightly before responding. "I know… I know. I just… there's so much she didn't tell me. It's a 'mother' thing, I could just tell. She held a lot back. I just want to make sure she gets the help she needs… before she slips away again."

The voice spoke again for a few moments and Terri finally smiled softly. "Good… that's good. And you'll call me and let me know how she's doing?" She nodded again as the voice reassured her. "Thank you." Terri replied and then they both politely said goodbye and hung up.

She let out a breath she didn't know she'd been holding and leaned back against the whitewashed wall next to the payphone. Austin would be in good hands when she returned to New York, she was sure. Her daughter might be upset with her for making these arrangements without her permission, or even her knowledge, but in the end Austin would see that Terri only wanted the best for her daughter. And this man would help her. There was something in his voice that Terri trusted, and she knew that Austin would eventually come to trust him as well.

Satisfied, Terri Bridger tugged her coat a bit tighter around her, and made her way out of the airport terminal and back out into the bright autumn sunshine.

After the fic Author's Notes: Muahaha. Who did Terri call? You'll just have to wait and find out! Cause I'm evil that way. And expect much more turtle-y action in the next chapter. I hope this little Prologue met with your expectations. And if it didn't… then... uh... sorry? Anyway, things just get even more complex and confusing from here! And hopefully I'll be able to put out about a chapter a week. (That's my goal, but we'll see how it goes)

With this new work schedule of mine, my writing time is almost nonexistent. Odd, since I'm actually working less hours… Oh well. I'll make time.