A/N: Okay dear readers. Here is the first chapter ! First of all, I would love to dedicate this fiction to Raphfreak. Betrayed Secrets is the creation from one of her MANY plot bunnies! Thanks girl for allowing me to take the idea and run with it ! I hope I done you proud.:D
I will also love to start off with a big thank you to Mikell and Harmony. Thank you so much ladies for standing behind me. The encouragment, ideas and suggestions from you all has been and always will be greatly appreciated!
Please read and enjoy! Remember, reviews are always welcomed :D
Hope you all had a great holiday!
Disclaimer:I do not own tmnt.
Betrayed Secrets
2 Years Later
Sixteen year old Ava was rushing from school. She had become good at dodging people on the street in the two years she lived in New York City. In fact, you could say she was great at it, even. She had her mother Karen's agility. Ava inherited a lot from her : a slight physique, a warm shy smile, intelligence and agility. Ava was glad she was so much like her mother. It made Karen all the more understanding of her. She was Ava's best friend in addition to being her Mom.
"I can't wait to show this to Donny!" she thought happily, as she clutched her final report card of the year in her hand. "He will be proud."
Quickly, she slipped around an aging building. She walked up to the steel garage door, and when she was positive no one was watching, she opened it high enough to crawl under. She quietly shut it behind her before she continued inside.
The battle shell and Raphael's motorbike were parked neatly against the back of the garage.
"They're home," she thought happily, as she slipped down the make shift entrance to the sewers and made her way to the lair of her five special friends.
"Hey guys," she sang, as she stepped in through the door way.
Mikey was the first to greet her."Hey, dudette!"he cried as he jumped out of seemingly nowhere and landed right in her path. Startled, she stopped short and clasped her hand to her chest.
"Heh, sorry,"he told her sheepishly.
"Mikey. Honestly. Do you always have to be in Ninja stealth mode?"she asked, shaking her head.
"You never know when trouble may linger in the darkness,"Mikey told her, dropping his voice into an eerie whisper.
Ava rolled her eyes. "Please, Mike. Trying to find this place would be like trying to find Atlantis. Impossible."
"True,"Mikey agreed with a nod. He then issued her a smirk. "So? Got any news?"
Ava couldn't contain her excitement any longer. "I passed!"she squealed shamelessly as she bounced up and down on the balls of her feet.
"Awesome!" he chorused as he joined her in a mini happy dance. He then walked over to stand behind her. He covered her eyes with his large green hands.
"Hey!" she objected. "Mikey. What are you doing?"
"Just walk forward," he encouraged.
"Why?"
"Just do it," he pressed. Then in a hurt tone, he added," Don't you trust me?"
"Of course I do, Michaelangelo. Just that…"
"Well, walk then," he cut her off.
Ava gave in and played his little game. Her steps were slow and stiff as she walked blindly to wherever Mikey was herding her. She knew the lair well enough to figure out it was the kitchen.
"Okay. There you go," he said, finally stopping. He withdrew his hands from her eyes. "Ta da!"
She opened her eyes and looked up. They were indeed in the kitchen. A banner was draped across the brick wall.
CONGRATULATIONS, AVA! was scrawled across it in a hand written manner.
"You guys," she gushed modestly, feeling her cheeks automatically burn a slight shade of red. Leonardo, Raphael, Donatello and Master Splinter were standing in the center of the room, waiting for her. "How did you even know?"
"It's all you have been talking about for the last two months," Leo replied with a smile.
"Yeah, you were almost having a nervous breakdown," Raph added, as he walked by. He playfully yanked on the end of her ponytail. "Gee…with all the studying you and Don did...you were sure to ace, egg head."
Ava frowned. "Don't call me that." However, she didn't take his comments to heart. She had been around him long enough that his bark was worse than his bite. It was just his strange way of saying 'I like you.' She turned to Don and threw her arms around his neck in a hug.
"What is that for?" he chuckled as his cheeks colored slightly.
"You helped. If you hadn't explained all that physics stuff. "
"Ava, you just have to have a little bit of confidence, " he told her gently.
"Well... I have to make sure I get high marks," she replied. Her dreams of attending the veterinary college when she finished high school depended on it. With her mother's modest income as a dance teacher, there was no way she could save up. She would have to rely on scholarships. Thus, she needed higher than average marks.
"Yeah, well. At least I am now officially off for the summer!" She couldn't help contain her excitement.
"When do you start your job?" Leo asked.
She turned to him, her smile wide. "Today actually. I start at two o'clock! I can't wait!"
Ava had managed to land a summer job at the city zoo. It was going to be an exciting adventure for her. A job at the zoo would look very good on her resume.
"Hey, guys. Did you all forget the grub?"
Ava looked over to the counter where Casey was standing, a cake in his hand. His girlfriend, April was standing close to his side. She slapped his arm playfully.
"Casey Jones," she scolded teasingly. "Can't your stomach wait a few minutes?"
"Sorry, Babe," he apologized. "But I'm starved."
"You're always starved," Raphael quipped, as he took the homemade marble cake with boiled icing.
He set it on the table and April fetched a knife from the drawer.
"A cake too?" Ava gushed, a little embarrassed from all the attention. "Thanks guys."
"Your welcome, "April told her.
Leo cut eight perfect slices of the cake and passed them around.
"Oh, no," Ava sighed when she noticed the time. "It's one thirty. I got to get to the zoo. I don't want to be late on the first day."
"I can take you on my motor bike," Casey offered. "I can get you there in a jiffy."
"Your bike?" Ava echoed, unsure.
"I can take you," April piped up. "We can go in the van."
"That old thing," Casey criticized. " My bike is faster."
"With the way you drive, the van is safer," the red head said, standing her ground.
"But she has to get there in half an hour."
From beside her, Ava heard Mikey groan. "There they go again," he whispered to her. "They fight like they are married."
Ava snickered. She was accustomed to April and Casey's harmless bickering. In a way it was kind of cute. Sort of.
"April, you can take me, " Ava butted in. Time was ticking. Casey fell into silence, and looked hurt. "Casey, can you pick me up at eight o'clock?"
He seemed to like the idea. "Sure, kid. I can pick you up."
Ava sighed. That was easy, she thought. She set her dishes into the sink as April retrieved her keys.
"Good luck," Splinter blessed, as she headed for the door.
"Thank you," she replied with a nervous tone. "I will let you all know how my first day goes."
She took one last look at her special friends before she left.
I am such a lucky girl, she thought to herself. Great friends and an awesome job. Things couldn't be any better.
With happiness in her heart, she left with April.
***
Victor Lombardi sat behind his wooden desk, a death grip clasped around the phone he had shoved against his ear.
"I am serious. Dead serious," he spoke stiffly to the member of the board on the other end. "It is not going well here. Our figures are down considerably. And if something doesn't change soon, I will be forced to close this place."
He rubbed his temples with his free tanned right hand. "I don't know how I propose to change things, Roger. I am just filling you in on the details." Another sigh. "Well, what is the possibility to get a new exhibit? That may lure more visitors in."
He ended the phone call by slamming the receiver down against the desk top.
"Stubborn man," he snarled. "No spare money to fund a new exhibit my ass."
He pushed himself out of his chair and paced his office floor as he thought. He paused and stared out the window to the empty parking lot beneath him.
Something has to change, he thought. I am not about to lose everything I worked for!
Victor had worked in his current position for the past 15 years. He had developed the zoo from its tiny start to a full blown attraction. He had wheeled and dealed, bought and sold animals in order to create his handsome display. But just recently, they had suffered the loss of Remus, the beautiful and gentle Bengal tiger. Victor had yet to replace one of the crowd's favorite.
The soft knock that rattled on the door snapped him out of his reverie.
"Come in," he invited, his voice gruff. He tried to compose himself and look friendly as Maggie, the receptionist poked her head inside.
"Your two o'clock is here," she informed him, as she pushed a lock of her brown frizzy hair behind her ear.
He nodded. "Tell her to come in." He took his position behind his desk and waited. Shortly after, Ava entered the room.
"Hello, Sir," she greeted shyly. "I'm Ava Frost."
"Come and have a seat," he invited, gesturing towards the chair that was across from him. He turned and leafed through his files for her paper work. He went through the formalities with her.
"And your uniform." He rummaged through a box of the beige uniforms until he came to her size. He gave her the directions to the ladies washroom that was down the corridor and to her right. "After you change, you can go back and meet Maggie. My senior employee, Tristan Langford, will give you a quick tour. You are assigned to work with him in his area." Ava rose out of her seat. "Have a good day."
"Thank you, " Ava replied as she left to get changed. "Well, this isn't very flattering," she thought as she looked at herself in the bathroom mirror. The tan color was all wrong for her pale complexion. The blouse bagged on her and her pants were a mile too long. She stuffed her street clothes into her purple backpack and tossed it over her shoulders. She retraced her steps to the main lobby where Maggie was waiting.
"Tristan should be here any minute," she explained in a bored tone. "He was helping Dr. Rizzo, the Veterinarian, with one of the pandas."
How exciting! she thought. Working along side the vets! Yup. I defiantly picked the right job for myself.
To pass the time, she studied the pamphlets, a story on the history of the zoo itself and Victor Lombardi's brief biography.
"Sorry I took so long," a male's voice panted. Ava glanced over her shoulder.
"This is Ava Frost," Maggie introduced, pointing in Ava's direction. "Ava, Tristan."
"Hi," Ava said quickly. She had pictured an older, balding man to be the 'senior employee'. Tristan was no senior. He couldn't have been to much older than herself. He was taller than her, which was an easy feat. His jaw was squarely shaped, and when he smiled he flashed brilliant white teeth. He was tanned, clearly used to spending most of his time outdoors. But what caught her attention was his golden brown hair that hung in a layered shag. Hazel eyes peered out from underneath his bangs.
Tristan glided over to her and stuck out his hand. "So I have the pleasure of working with you this summer?" he asked.
Ava was annoyed to feel her cheeks flush. She quickly snapped his arm up and down in a clumsy handshake.
"I guess, " she spoke.
"Hey, don't look so worried. We are going to have a blast." He smiled at her easily.
"Good," she mumbled. Good! Is that the best I can think of?
"Well, how about I give you a tour?" Tristan suggested.
"That would be a good start," Ava agreed. She followed him as he headed out of the main office. He led her around the park. She nodded as the announced each display. She smiled to herself as he announced that Millie and Henry, the tortoises were the biggest turtle species in captivity. I guess what he doesn't know....
He showed her the behind the scenes areas such as the feeding and medical rooms, the bathing areas.
"And here we are," he announced as he took the EMPLOYEES ONLY entrance to the elephant exhibit. "This is my area."
Ava's eyes widened. "Seriously? I love elephants!"
Tristan smiled at her enthusiasm. "Then I guess you are happy with your post." His eyes danced as he looked at her.
"Yes! I am," she gushed as she peered out the window. She watched a mother and her calf slowly walked through their pen.
"That's Jenny and her baby Tusk," he explained to her. "You will love them both. She is awesome with people, even with her baby."
Ava momentarily lost herself in her thoughts as she dreamed of touching and feeding the pachyderms. Again, she thanked the higher power for allowing her to have this wonderful experience.
"So... what do I do first?" she asked, eager to get going.
Well... your first duties are muck duty." He tuned and gave her an apologetic bat of his long eyelashes.
Ava snapped backwards. "Muck duty?" she repeated, crinkling her freckled nose.
"Sorry. It's the newbie's job until they learn the ropes."
"Lucky I am a quick learner," Ava commented to herself bitterly. Nonetheless, she was determined to do her best.
"Then after that, I will show you where to get their water. You are probably overwhelmed already."
She shook her head. "Nope, not at all."
"Good. Then follow me and we will get this show on the road."
Ava spent the rest of her shift trying to keep up without making too many mistakes. The time flew by and before she knew it, eight o'clock had arrived. She thanked Tristan for his help and promised to be back the next day. After she collected her backpack from her locker, she skipped to the front where Casey was already waiting.
"How was your first day, Kid?" he asked as he tossed her a spare helmet.
"Awesome!" she exclaimed as she cinched the chin strap. "I can't wait to tell the guys all about it."
"Well, they are waiting." Casey chuckled. "Hope you have room for a late supper."
"They waited for me?" she asked humbly.
"Of course. They figured you would be hungry."
"Aw," she blushed.
"Hey, that's what friends are for, right?"
Ava nodded as she hopped on behind Casey. He pulled out onto the highway and headed for the lair.
Friends. The turtles and their Sensei possessed pure hearts. They were the best.
And she was honored to know them.