Oops! I just remembered that I forgot to do the disclaimer in the first chapter XD so I'd better do it here.
*Clears throat and opens up scroll* A-HEM! XxoxLightningxxoX does not own Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles. As far as she is concerned, all rights belong to Nickelodeon. If she owned TMNT, she would demand that Donatello was the main character in every 2k12 episode and that he had more screentime in the 2k14 film. And any other films to come.
:3 *hugs Donnie plush*
So, um, now that that's over... *cough* let's continue onto the chapter, shall we? I'm super excited to introduce the male turtles to the story. It probably won't be until the fourth chapter... but they'll appear, don't worry! I promise :D
Enjoy! This is a long chapter, so... hopefully you make it through :)
Oh, and here's some song lyrics that I thought kinda related to the chapter. I'll probably get told to take them down eventually.
In a moment everything can change
Feel the wind on your shoulder
For a minute all the world can wait
Let go of your yesterday
Can you hear it calling? Can you feel it in your soul?
Can you trust it's longing, and take control?
Fly- Hilary Duff
Yeah, I don't own that song. So... please don't kill me.
Xx3xX
12 years later...
"Declan!"
Exasperated, Cheyenne Scott picked up the stray sock on the landing of the stairs, and continued on to Declan's study. Once she was there she knocked on the door, threw it open without waiting for a reply, dropped her bag and held up the sock with a raised eyebrow.
"Well?" She asked, looking from the sock back to him.
Declan looked up from his work, glanced at the sock for a moment, then gave Cheyenne a bewildered look. "That's not mine."
Cheyenne raised an eyebrow. "Oh really? Because I specifically remember you kicking your shoes off the other day, and you were wearing this and whatever else stupid sock it goes with."
Declan knew how to calm his wife down- make her coffee with her favorite hazelnut coffee creamer. He put his work down and got up. "Coffee?"
Cheyenne glared at him, her eyebrows knitted together in confusion. "What?"
"I'll take that as a yes." Her husband said cheerfully. "Do we have any of that hazelnut crap left?"
Cheyenne lightly hit him with the sock. "It's not crap!"
"Tastes like crap to me." Declan shrugged, making his way to the kitchen. He paused, realising he'd forgotten to do something Cheyenne had entrusted him with. He'd been so carried away with his work that it slipped his mind. Hopefully she forgot about it aswell.
Cheyenne took one step into the kitchen, looked around, and her expression hardened. "Declan?"
Shit. "Hmm?"
"Don't 'hmm' me. You haven't made dinner."
He stopped in his tracks and turned around, grinning sheepishly. "Ah. Right. You know, I was just about to get started on that but when you distracted me with the sock, it slipped my mind."
Cheyenne closed her eyes, and inhaled deeply. "Declan. It's quarter to seven. We have dinner at six. You haven't even started preparing it. The girls are probably hungry."
"Okay, okay. I'll start making it now." Declan sighed. "What am I supposed to be making?"
Cheyenne glanced over at the kitchen counter, then back to her husband. "Does the stuff on the counter ring any bells?"
"CHEYENNE!"
She turned to the source of the childlike voice, to see Anna running towards her. She held up an empty tube, sniffling. "Cecilia poured all of my bubble mixture out the window!"
"Oh, honey." Cheyenne said sympathetically, taking the tube. "Why did she do that?"
"B-because she said I was being too loud." Anna spluttered, wiping her eyes. "She got really mad and snatched my bubble mixture, and poured out all of it!"
"That wasn't a nice thing to do.' Cheyenne said firmly. She reached out and gently wiped away Anna's tears. "Don't worry, honey, I can make some more bubble mixture for you. It's an easy thing to replace."
"Really?" Anna asked, her eyes widening. "How?"
"Dish soap and water." Cheyenne replied, smiling. "I used to make my own bubble mixture all the time. But before I make some for you, I need to have a word with your sister. CECILIA!"
The eldest of the sisters entered the kitchen minutes later, saw Anna there, and instantly put her guard up. "It was Anna's fault! She was singing so loudly I couldn't hear myself think. I told her to stop but she didn't listen."
"So you poured her bubble mixture out the window?" Cheyenne raised an eyebrow and crossed her arms. "Cecilia, that wasn't fair. You should have moved to another room if she was bothering you so much."
Cecilia frowned. "I still would have heard her. Her voice was exceeding the optimum volume of which you call an 'inside voice.' In fact, the sound of her voice is incredibly obnoxious."
"Alright, that's enough from you." Declan said quickly, figuring he should save Cecilia from Cheyenne's wrath. "Cecilia, are you up for helping me with another invention?"
Cecilia instantly lit up. "Definitely."
Declan grinned. "Awesome. We'll get to work after dinner. Sound good?"
"Yep." Was all the excited mutant could say before she took off down the hallway, with Anna not far behind her.
"I'm not finished with you!" Cheyenne called. She looked at Declan, frustrated. "One day you'll regret not reprimanding her."
Declan shrugged. "She's a brilliant inventor, Chey, and she's the reason we're able to pay off our student loans. Cecilia needs encouragement to continue what she's so talented at doing."
"That doesn't excuse the fact that she needs to learn to respect others." Cheyenne said firmly.
Just then Sonia entered the room, and put a few letters on the table. "The mail arrived this morning, but I had to wait until it was dark to get it. I'm sorry about that."
"See, this is respect." Cheyenne told her husband. She turned to back to Sonia. "Thank you, Sonia, that was a generous thing of you to do. Just wondering, where's Emilie?"
Sonia rolled her eyes. "Listening to music somewhere."
"Of course." Declan said, picking up one of the letters and tearing it open. "Why don't you go and get ready for your training thing? I'm sure Cheyenne can fit in a session before dinner..."
He turned his attention to the letter to avoid Cheyenne's challenging gaze. As he continued reading, his face fell. He stood still for a moment, then held the letter out to Cheyenne, who read it in a matter of seconds.
"Outstanding balance... student loan... $60,000!? Declan, it's increased by $4000! You can't keep holding off the payment! 'If this is not paid in 30 days, we will take action to ensure the debt is collected." Cheyenne stared at the letter, her fingers trembling. "How the hell are we going to pay this off?"
"I don't know." Declan sighed, rubbing his forehead. "Keep inventing things?"
Cheyenne gaped at him. "You can't be serious. What's that going to do?"
How the hell was he going to tell her? Declan knew Cheyenne would be furious when she found out who he was selling the machinery to. But he'd vowed to never keep secrets from her. "Chey... a few months ago a friend of mine told me about a company that needed machinery because they had lost a lot of funding over..."
Cheyenne raised an eyebrow. "Over...?"
Declan glanced at the ground. "A project."
She figured it out right away. "Declan..."
"I offered to provide them with the machinery that Cecilia and I invented. They offered me a lot of money for the inventions."
"You're kidding me." Cheyenne laughed, unable to believe it. "Declan, you said yourself that Sachs was an 'evil' man who wanted nothing but power over the city, and now you're helping him? You know what extent that guy will go to- he practically poisoned the girls!"
"You talk as if what they're like now is some kind of burden on you!" Declan snapped. "And I'm not helping him with his stupid dream. It's not like he'll make some device to blow up the city."
"He's a scientist, right?" Cheyenne asked. "I'm sure he'll figure something out. And the girls are not a burden on me- what's a burden is that they'll have to grow up hidden from humanity, who have become so judgemental that they'd never be accepted. It's heart-breaking, Declan. They've become daughters to me, and the last thing I want is for them to get hurt. And what you're doing is practically stabbing them in the back."
"Cheyenne, this company is paying huge money for my inventions, and there could be a career prospect ahead of me. It also means that we could find some sort of education for Cecilia."
"What, by sending her back to the lab and teaching her that all she'll ever be in life is a test subject?" Cheyenne hissed. "I don't think so. I want the girls to have a proper upbringing, and I don't want there to be any secrets in this family. So you'd better do some serious thinking about who you're really working for."
She gave him one last critical look, before leaving to train with Sonia.
It was unusually quiet at the dinner table that night, which made Declan feel uneasy.
They often all talked enthusiastically during dinner, but everyone ate in silence. Even Anna, who was the loudest and the most excitable. Sonia finished at a quicker pace than normal, quietly thanked Declan, and left. She'd heard him talking with Cheyenne- it was evident in her behaviour. Declan felt Cheyenne glaring holes in the side of his head.
When everyone was almost finished, there was a knock at the door. Cheyenne gave the three girls a quick glance, and they quickly got up and left the room. They'd managed to conceal themselves for twelve years, and they certainly weren't about to reveal themselves now.
Cheyenne gave Declan the 'you get the door' glance, so he reluctantly did. When he opened the door, a man who he recognized as his neighbour was standing there, looking confused.
"Hello." Declan said stiffly.
"Good evening." The man replied, forcing himself to smile. "I'm sorry to bother you, but I just wanted to ask... is, uh... is everything alright?"
Declan stared at him, confused. "I'm sorry?"
The man cleared his throat. "See, we've been a little concerned. My wife and I have been living next door to you for twelve years now, and we noticed that for most of that time, you've seemed quite... reclusive. Forgive me for saying so, but you often have the curtains closed during the day. In such a lively and close community like this, it's a little odd that you don't often make appearances. Is everything alright?"
Other than the fact that we've technically adopted four mutant turtles? "Y-yes, everything's fine. I appreciate your concern though. We just... don't like people."
The man stared at him as if he was an alien who'd just crash-landed in the middle of the neighbourhood. "You don't like people?"
"Yeah." Nice save, Declan. "Look, no offence, you seem like a nice guy and everything, but we just don't get along with other people. I've been socially awkward all my life, so..."
Well, that was mostly true.
"Ah." The man seemed satisfied. "I see. Well... if you need anything, we're right next door."
Declan nodded awkwardly. "Thanks."
"Have a good night."
As soon as his neighbour had left, Declan closed the door and retreated to his study. On his way up the stairs he passed Emilie, who gave him a hostile glare. Emilie was shy and usually kept to herself, but she was never hostile. Not like this, anyway. Perhaps she'd overheard him speaking with Cheyenne aswell.
He sat down at his computer, and opened up his email inbox. Hopefully there wasn't another email about outstanding student loans or messages from his friend, who was holidaying in Australia. Sometimes he really wished he could just get out of New Jersey and travel.
But that wasn't going to happen. At least not for a long time. Ever since he'd dropped out of college to raise the girls, he'd been rendered unable to do alot of the things he wanted to do. He clearly remembered the night when Cheyenne called out to him, concerned because their pet turtles were somehow growing. Declan instantly knew it had to be the mutagen, but waved it off. The turtles continued to mutate to that of an almost humanoid state, and grew in the same ways as humans did. They started out as infants, and Cheyenne immedietely chose to raise them instead of getting rid of them. Getting rid of them wasn't even an option to her, though Declan had to think about it for a while.
Melanie, their flatmate, moved out as soon as she knew what was going on. Cheyenne was pretty hurt, but she understood that it would have been a lot for Melanie to take in. While Cheyenne continued studying to be a drama teacher, Declan dropped out of university to raise the girls. Cecilia adopted Declan's love for tinkering and designing, and so he taught her everything he knew which she absorbed with pure fascination. She was incredibly intelligent, however science wasn't her forte- unless it was physics. Cecilia was the kindest out of her sisters, but when pushed too far, she did become quite nasty.
Emilie was one of eldest, though she was more insecure than the others. Cheyenne had tried to make her come out of her shell, but she prefered to be reclusive. As she grew up she developed a passion for cooking, and often helped Cheyenne in the kitchen. It was one of those rare occasions where she actually openly communicated with anyone. She seemed to have trust issues, since really the only person she ever confided in was of course Cheyenne, but she was never actually hostile towards anyone. She was just incredibly shy, but obviously something had happened that made her despise Declan.
Sonia was younger than Cecilia and Emilie, but she was cognitively advanced in her years. She lacked the intellectual skills that Cecilia had, but her state of mind was far more developed than that of her sisters. Cheyenne had taught her jujitsu since she could walk, and she dedicated all of her time and energy to training. Emilie and Cecilia began training several years later, however Sonia was the only one who actually practiced outside of the sessions. She did hold a low tolerance for her sisters' behaviours at times, especially Anna's- Sonia often berated her younger sister for her tendency to be excitable and obnoxious. While Sonia needed to learn about empathy and channelling her temper, she was resourceful, moral, and a natural born leader. Still, Declan often expressed to Cheyenne that Sonia needed to lighten up.
Anna was the most upbeat and enthusiastic of her sisters, though she easily became annoying after some time in her presence. She had been a vegetarian for as long as Declan could remember due to her respect for sentient life, and she was the most daring compared to the other girls. Anna could be quite absent-minded and unfocused- she joined training with Emilie and Cecilia, but would often sneak away during the sessions to the basement. She taught herself gymnastics through watching videos on Cheyenne's old laptop, and nobody actually knew until Emilie caught her practicing. Sonia had disapproved, but Cheyenne encouraged her individuality. Anna adored Cheyenne, but she had never really taken the time to talk with Declan. He supposed it was because he was focused on his inventions, and she prefered to be around those who were enthusiastic.
Despite their differences, the girls cared about each other immensely. Cheyenne encouraged them to bond since she had a sister growing up, whereas Declan was an only child. Of course Cheyenne was the perfect person to raise four mutant turtles, for God's sake. She was talented in far too many things for Declan to comprehend, and she had the patience and dedication that he only had when it came to inventing. Cheyenne taught the girls everything she knew- the only thing Declan had really contributed to was Cecilia's skills in mathematics and physics. There were times were Declan felt upstaged by his wife, but at the moment, he was too deep in debt to really care.
He was about to close his inbox when the subject of one email caught his eye. His heart pounding, he opened it up, and read the message over.
Then he read it again. And again- but this time he only focused on the most important words.
Eric Sachs. Sachs Industries. Machinery. Job. New York. $400,000 salary. His eyes darted over those words again, but his posture was still and his face was white.
Declan would have been convinced that the email was fake, if it didn't have document attachments, including a contract preview. It was also clearly stated in the email that Sachs expected a reply... shit! I was supposed to contact him tonight!
Declan searched desperately for his phone, sighed in relief when he found it, and entered the number given on the email. He paused for a moment, thinking about what Cheyenne had said... but he desperately needed the money. And though the girls weren't a burden on Cheyenne's life, they were becoming a burden on his.
He took a deep breath, and pressed dial.
One dial tone passed. Two passed. Four. "Good evening, you're speaking with Eric Sachs, CEO of Sachs Industries."
"Mr Sachs. M-my name is Declan Scott. I've been providing you with machinery for the past three months, and you emailed me with a job offer."
"Indeed I did, Mr Scott. Your inventions are quite brilliant, and they're just what my company needs. Though you have read the email, I'd just like to reiterate the details. I am offering for you to work for my company in New York by providing me with machinery, and your starting salary will be sitting at four hundred thousand a year. I could possibly even arrange for temporary accomodation for you. So... are you interested?"
There was a pause, then- "yes, sir. Yes, I am."
Cheyenne left for work at six in the morning, and entrusted Declan with taking care of the girls. Anna and Cecilia often slept in, while Emilie was an early riser and Sonia awoke early to practice. Declan worried for a while that those two in particular would catch him out while he was getting ready to leave, but since Sachs had already arranged for a fully furnished apartment, Declan figured he didn't need to take many possessions. Just items of sentimental value, really.
He kissed Cheyenne goodbye before she headed off to work, and she questioned his out-of-characterness. He just smiled and offered to pick her up during her break to go out for brunch, and she let him off for that.
Thank God. He thought, relieved. Getting Cheyenne to come with me won't be a problem. I just have to avoid the mutant-turtle-girls... whatever they are.
He packed his clothes and most of Cheyenne's, Cheyenne's jewellery and perfume, and any other possessions of serious value to them. Cheyenne's most prized possessions was her wedding ring and a bracelet that Anna had made her years ago, both of which she was already wearing, so Declan assumed he'd packed enough. Assuring that no one was watching, he snuck outside and threw the bags in the car.
Feeling almost guilty, he went back to his study, and opened up the safe where he kept the money that Sachs gave him for the machinery. He took enough to see him and Cheyenne through for about a week, and left the rest to the girls. He didn't know how the hell they were going to use it, but they would figure it out. Maybe.
Declan locked himself in his study until about 10:15 in the morning. Cheyenne's break was at 10:30, so that gave him enough time to get to the school where she taught. Once he picked her up, he would drive straight onto New York City. As soon as it hit 10:15, he put the keys to the house on his desk, and went downstairs.
His heart rate picked up again as he headed for the front door. Maybe it was a stupid, careless thing to do. Maybe he should forget about it and stay for Cheyenne.
But he was tired of living with his mother's lie. He'd tossed away his life because of her dishonesty, and here was an opportunity to take it back. An opportunity to actually have the life that was owed to him. There was no point in obsessing over the failures from the past when he had a new chance for success.
Declan Scott walked out the front door, the prosperity of a new life blocking all rational thought, and he never looked back.
Emilie watched through the kitchen window as Declan pulled his car out of the driveway and drove away, completely ignoring the fact that he'd neglected to tell the girls where he was going. She may have been only thirteen years old, but she knew who was fit to be deemed trustworthy, and she'd never trusted Declan from the start.
Cheyenne had accepted them regardless of who they were, whereas Declan was always reserved and quiet around them, except Cecilia. But that was just because she'd helped him earn more money than he could have ever earned on his own. Cecilia was the reason that Declan had been offered the job in the first place, and now he no longer needed her.
Emilie had overheard the phone conversation, since she was on her way upstairs to have a shower. The idiot forgot to turn loudspeaker off of his phone, so Emilie heard everything that was said. She instantly latched onto Declan's plans to drop everything and leave her and her sisters, but Cecilia refused to believe her. She was too attached to the guy.
He was careless. Selfish. A liar. And though it didn't surprise Emilie, she didn't exactly believe that he'd go to the extent of abandoning them. But he was like the rest of society- afflicted with hostility and apathy. At least that's how it was in her eyes. Her sisters were blind to the truth.
Emilie left the kitchen to find Sonia. She would be the only one who would actually listen.
She found her in the basement, training, and cleared her throat. "Sonia."
Sonia paused, and turned to face her sister. "I'm busy, Emilie. Can't you leave it for later?"
"Declan's gone." Emilie explained. "I just thought you'd want to know."
"And?" Sonia asked, giving her sister a critical look. "He'll be home soon. Since when did you care about this kind of thing?"
"He's not coming back." Emilie snapped. "I heard him talking to someone last night. He's getting a job in New York, and he's going to live there."
"Oh, grow up-"
"Don't tell me to grow up!" Emilie retorted. "You know what? Fine. Maybe you won't believe me now, but you will later."
"What's that supposed to mean?"
"Find out for yourself."
"He will come back." Sonia said firmly. "I'm sure of it."
Hours passed and there was no sign of Declan- nor Cheyenne. She usually got home at 5pm, and the hour passed rapidly. Anna became quite frightened when she realised Cheyenne wasn't returning, and this concerned Sonia. Maybe Emilie was right after all.
"Where's Cheyenne?" Anna asked for what was probably the sixteenth time. "She always comes home at this time. Sonia... I'm scared."
"She's not coming home." Emilie said, getting up off of the couch. "Who wants toast?"
Anna looked horrified. "What!?"
"Emilie, stop it." Cecilia snapped. "You're scaring Anna."
Emilie shrugged. "I'm just telling the truth. So do you guys want toast or not?"
"No." Anna said, and burst into tears. "I want Cheyenne to come home."
"And she will." Cecilia said gently, pulling her sister into a comforting hug. "Don't worry, Anna. Everything's going to be fine."
Sonia couldn't really comfort Anna, since she'd be telling her a lie. She had a gut feeling that Emilie was actually right, but she didn't expect that Cheyenne would desert them. The one thing that terrified her was the fact that they were going to have to fend for themselves.
If that was the case, Sonia knew she and her sisters had a lot of growing up to do. They would have to look after each other and stay hidden from the rest of the neighbourhood. Who knew what would happen if someone saw them?
Sonia mentally counted the factors that would contribute to their survival. Emilie could cook. Cecilia was resourceful, and a brilliant inventor. Anna could... well, she couldn't really do anything of importance.
Sonia herself was mature for her age, resourceful, and she could fight. Her mental awareness would prove crucial for keeping her sisters in tow. So if someone was going to take charge, it had to be her. Cheyenne had taught her that teamwork and family were some of the most important things in life. She was confident in her own abilities, but she had concerns about her sisters.
If they were going to have to fend for themselves, her sisters would have to prepare themselves mentally and physically. Sonia would have to teach them everything she knew in the art of jujitsu. Maybe then they would actually have a chance at surviving.
But she couldn't help but resent Declan and Cheyenne for deserting them. So they were mutants, but Sonia had grown to trust and confide in them as parental figures.
She learnt her first lesson in growing up then and there, when she finally understood the situation- trust was fragile, and it took seconds to break and forever to repair.
There was still a sense of hope that Declan and Cheyenne would return. But morning came and another night passed, and they hadn't returned.
All they had was each other- but it was all they ever needed.
Nooo :'( Declan is such a jerk. What's more is that he actually stopped talking to his mum because she was working for the evil Sachs. He's a total hypocrite.
So, did you guys enjoy this chapter? It had a pretty sad twist in my opinion :( but don't worry, it gets better! :D by the way, in relation to the girls ages, Anna and Sonia are 12 while the other two are 13, because before they mutated, Cecilia and Emilie were already 1.
From what I understand, it's Christmas day in the United States and Canada, right? It was Christmas yesterday in New Zealand, so for anyone reading this on Christmas day, merry Christmas! If you've already had Christmas, I hope you had a good one :) I ate so much food that I couldn't move for two hours. Now I have to work it all off -_-
Reviews (*cough* and follows and favorites *cough*) are of course still welcome. Hopefully you enjoyed the chapter! There's more where that came from... *evil laugh*
Stay posted for the next chapter! =^-^=
Xx3xX