Disclaimer: Don't own TMNT, obviously.
April mentions in Fungus Humongous that she spent weeks living with the Turtles; I thought it would be cool to explore some of the little moments she might have had with them. This is a lil bit introductory, with some Apriltello if you wanna read it like that ;)
Her first night with them, April slept on the couch, despite offers of four different beds. She had insisted, and nobody wanted to push her any more than strictly necessary in her turbulent state. So after she was bandaged and sufficiently hopped up on pain medication, the brothers had repurposed as many cushions and blankets as possible then left her be.
Donnie knew she wasn't asleep, though. He had known it already just from the look in her eyes, let alone the multitude of bruises and welts Karai had left behind, but he couldn't help lingering just in case. Maybe if he saw her at rest, he could put his mind to rest, too. Of course, seeing her wincing and hissing with every toss and turn was doing nothing at all to ease him, and that was before she started to cry.
Deciding he couldn't just leave her, he peeked out of the shadows with a cautious, "April?"
The sniffling ceased immediately. He heard her swallow down a shaky breath before she answered. "Don? Why are you still up?"
"It's..." He blushed, feeling awkward. "It's only like nine. We still have to go on our evening patrol."
"...Oh." April cleared her throat. "I... thought it was later. That's probably why I can't sleep, then."
"I mean, I'd say it's probably not the only reason." He moved closer then, stepping fully into the light of the pit. "Are you okay?"
She raised one support-clad arm over the back of the couch with a grunt, displaying a rather half-hearted thumbs up, before letting it flop back down. He chuckled despite himself. Maybe it was wishful thinking, but he thought he heard her giggle too. At least she still had some spirit.
After a long pause, she declared, "I probably shouldn't have kicked you guys out of here."
Donnie shrugged, approaching from behind to lean over the back of the couch. She smiled up at him. "It's okay to want peace and quiet; trust me, I've had fifteen years wishing for it to be this calm."
A genuine laugh this time, one he couldn't possibly have imagined. "Yeah... Not sure I want to be left alone with my thoughts, though."
"That'll wear off," he assured her, but he moved to sit on the nearby armchair anyway.
She gave him a grin, shifting around in the ridiculous blanket cocoon to face him. Perhaps they had gone slightly overboard, but he had to admit she looked adorable buried beneath the mound of tattered blankets. They had much less spare pillows, but she still had three propping her up into almost a sitting position. Noticing his stare, she raised an eyebrow.
He scratched the back of his neck sheepishly. "Uh, we can get you a proper bed soon. With less blankets."
April nodded. "I'd appreciate it." Then her face softened, fell slightly. "I'm… I'm sorry I took it so badly. I'm glad I'm going to get to stay with you guys, it's just…"
"I get it," he murmured. "It's a big change."
"Yeah." She drew her knees up to her chest, then seemed to rethink the action and straightened herself out again. "The pain isn't helping."
"Don't worry, if we see Karai tonight, I'll give her a good smack in the face from you," he promised.
April laughed. "Make sure you break her big, stupid nose."
Donnie laughed along with her, pleased to see her genuinely okay. Her eyes looked tired and her body was painted black and blue, with the occasional burst of red beneath crisp bandages, but at least her soft lips were stretched into a broad smile. He stayed with her for what felt like an eternity, before a very cautious Leo poked his head around the corner. His older brother assessed the scene for a moment and seemingly found it stable, because he cleared his throat and entered the room.
"Uh, Donnie?" Leo cast his eyes over April briefly, tracking her reaction. "We should get going."
"Yeah, okay." He stood up slowly, patting April's shoulder as he did so. "I'll just go grab my gear."
He made his way to the dojo as quickly as possible without outright running, barely paying attention to the equipment he hastily gathered. After whacking himself across the head with his own bo, furiously refusing to rub the affliction, he stumbled back into the pit at record speed. The rest of his brothers were already assembled, Raph and Leo trying to keep their distance while Mikey knelt as close to April as he could. She was rubbing his shoulder gently, a little smile on her face.
"It's okay, Mikey. I'll be fine," she was saying.
Donnie crossed the room with ease, subtly nudging Mikey as he approached. The younger turtle understood the message and begrudgingly stepped aside. He ran a hand over April's head, insisting he was checking for a fever and pretending not to notice her soft, freshly-washed hair beneath his fingers. April seemed to be growing sleepy, but she gave his hand a quick squeeze before he pulled it away. Leo ordered them to move out, and they all did so with a hint of reluctance. It felt like there was going to be some blood spilt tonight.
As his brothers leapt smoothly over the turnstiles, eyes narrowing into white slits in their concentration, Donnie glanced back at the couch. He couldn't see April over the top anymore, but he also couldn't hear any crying. Hoping his attempts at comforting had been successful, he raced to catch up with his team, still imagining red locks flowing through his fingers like water. Maybe it wouldn't be so easy to live with April after all.
