Since I'm transcribing this pretty much word for word from when I wrote it 6 years ago, I'm also leaving chapter length as it is. Which means... get ready for a lot of incredibly short chapters!

Enjoy.

Splinter let out a sharp cry as he lunged. The figure on the couch awoke to a giant mutant rat about to kill him.

"Oh, SHELL!" Raph swore, ducking and letting Splinter crash into the couch cushions. He rolled back, and in less than a moment he had his Sai in his hands, backed up into a defensive position. "Whoa! What's going on?"

"You!" Splinter hissed, ears flattened against his head. "What are you doing in my home? What have you done to my sons? You wear Raphael's bandana. I suppose you took it for a token of war; Raphael would never have allowed it!" Splinter circled Raph, eyes narrowed into slits. He pointed his cane at Raph's chest. Suddenly, he leaped forward again.

Raph flipped over him, reflecting the cane away with a sharp clang, and his irritation was growing. He was no stranger to being woken abruptly for training, but this was different. What the shell was going on? Splinter barked something at him in Japanese, and Raph gritted his teeth.

"Look," he said, trying his best to not let his temper boil over in front of Splinter. "Is this a test? This was totally a test. Can we be done with this now?" He glanced at the cracked clock on the wall and sighed. "It's too early for this crap," he muttered under his breath, low enough for Splinter not to hear him.

Splinter's chest was heaving, and he narrowed his eyes again. He lowered his cane slightly, looking more confused than angry at this point. Something was too familiar about this stranger. "Look at me," he commanded, and Raph, clenching his jaw tightly, lowered his Sai and stared at him straight on.

Splinter's eyes widened, and his ears twitched. He would recognize that frustrated green gaze anywhere. "Raphael," he gasped, immediately lowering his cane all the way. Relieved, Raph shoved his Sai in his belt. "What happened?"

"What do you mean, 'What happened?'" Raph rolled his eyes. "I woke up this morning to you trying to kill me. I totally passed the test though, right? Did Leo?" When he growled, his red bandana slipped into his eyes. Funny, he thought. It's never been loose before. He pushed it back up and finished rubbing sleep from his eyes. Splinter was still watching him, eyes wide in shock.

He lowered his hand, but instead of seeing his familiar green, a deep, tan color winked back. "Holy sh-!" He cut himself off before Splinter could chastise him and ran to the bathroom, heart in his throat. He could hear Splinter running behind him, and his gaze blurred as he looked in the mirror.

R&R. (Also, pray for me... :( I got finals next week!)