Carrying the woman into our home brought us all no small sense of discomfort and anxiety. What were we thinking?! We should have just brought her to the surface, but she could wake up at any moment and besides, now that she's seen us, we need to talk to her, make sure she understands that we are not to be talked about freely. Or at all.
Dad is so gonna kill us...when he finds her. On the couch. In plain sight. Oh, man...
But, nerves and reflexive desire to run as fast and far as possible aside...it's kinda cool, being this close to a human...I've never really seen one that I remember. I mean, sure I'd seen them in movies and television, but...not in person. Dad wouldn't allow it. And we all agreed; humans wouldn't understand what we were, labeling us as freaks, as monsters. They'd fear and hunt us, killing us before we had a chance to show them that we weren't monsters. Having one asleep on your couch,looking peaceful and content...it was kinda nice. It helped settle my nerves slightly.
That is, until she started to stir. We all took a reflexive step back as her green eyes slipped open.
"Oh, man." She whispered sleepily. "What a dream. Turtles and...wolves, I think, fighting robots?" Maybe if we backed away before she fully woke up..? "Did I fall asleep watching TV again?" I backed away and went to break the news to Splinter before the human saw me. Splinter came out of his room right as I got to the door.
"Why do I smell something...human in the lair?" He asked tersely. "The perfume had better be from a dumpster, Asami Yoshida." I blanched, chuckled nervously, and scratched the back of my head, fumbling for an excuse.
"Sewers, actually...uh, you know...maybe you should...just come see? If you want to. If you do, just know we didn't really have a choice. We needed-" I stopped myself, but it was too late. I'd said too much. Splinter's eyes flashed.
"This better not mean what—what did you do?" I paled even further, if it were possible, under Splinter's stern admonishment. I chased after Splinter, stuttering to explain before Splinter halted, frozen. "There had better be a good explanation for this!" He growled, as the human curled into herself, pulling the pillow over her head and chanting to herself that she was asleep, over and over, thankfully not noticing me and dad yet.
"Man, she's making me sleepy." Mikey groaned, yawning.
"Tell me about it." Lupa yawned beside her brother. Dad and I came over and stood behind everyone, trying to remain concealed. Raph poked her shoulder.
"Hey, you." He barked.
"Raph..be gentle." I warned.
"What?" She asked, fear in her eyes and voice.
"Whatd'ya know about those MOUSER robot things?" He asked tersely, expecting an answer.
"Well, first I thought they were for cleaning up the city's rat problem." We all stiffened slightly. We'd seen that in action, and it nearly got our Sensei killed. And this woman had something to do with them? Just what kinda human did we grab here?! "But then I got suspicious when Dr. Stockman said-" She cut herself off, staring at us as if seeing us for the first time.
"What? What'd Doc Creepy say?" Lupa pressed. The woman gazed around, eyes glazed in fear.
"Oh, no. I'm talking to it." she squeaked, biting on her fingernail in her fear.
"We're 'them', lady, not 'it', if yeh please." Lupa replied, arms crossed.
"Wait..what're you talking to?" Leo asked the woman, bringing us back to the matter at hand.
"I'm talking to it—to you!" She whimpered. "Okay, April, you're talking to a giant, three-fingered turtle. The only logical explanation is that you're dreaming, so everything's fine." She went on. So her name is 'April', huh? It's a nice name, I suppose... "Okay..." She said, as if gearing up her courage. "Hello." She greeted, waving and grinning goofily at us.
"Sure she didn't hit her head?" Lupa asked. I smacked her upside the head.
"Shuttit! Leo's handling it." I reply.
"...Hello...April...how're you...doing?" He asked awkwardly, completely helpless as it what to do in this kinda situation.
"Oh, I'm fine!" She replied, voice squeaky with she thought was a happy, normal tone. In reality, is it just me, or does it sound just plain creepy? "Everything's absolutely great!" She went on, chuckling insanely. Lupa leaned over toward me.
"I think we broke her." I scowl at her.
"Lupa, she is a human, not a toy!" she shrugs.
"Jes' sayin'..." I roll my eyes. Splinter stepped forward, and the turtles parted to let him through, revealing Lupa and I in the background. April gave a cry of shock, curling further into the pillow.
"Then, perhaps, you are ready to answer some questions." Dad suggested, in a tone we knew as the 'do as I say' tone. April might have took it as a mere suggestion, however. Her eyes snapped wide, and she went deathly pale. I took a step forward, waving in greeting.
"You're a...you're a..." She gave a small sigh, then promptly fainted. I rolled my eyes.
"He's not that bad." Lupa growled defensively.
"She probably has a fear of rats." I suggested, hands up helplessly.
"Either way, you certainly have a way with the ladies, Master Splinter." Don muses wryly. I smacked his shoulder.
"Be nice." I growled.
"Now what do we do?" Don asks, shrugging helplessly.
"...Let's nudge her?" Leo suggested.
"That might work, but she'd probably just faint again." I reply, scratching my head.
"I'll snap her out of it." Raph growls as he moves as if to slap her.
"Raphael, no!" Dad snaps in panic as he grabs his son's arm.
"That would be the worst way to wake her up!" I add.
"Yeah? It'd be the quickest."
"Patience is a ninja trait, and a virtue, Raph." I deadpan. He merely scowls, but drops his arm. "So, we wait until she wakes up normally, got it?" I growl. Raph merely shoulders me out of his way and goes to...do whatever he does to pass the time. I try to back away, too, but a stick suddenly at the junction of my collarbones dissuades me of that idea.
"Explain." Dad snaps. I gulp, hands up in surrender. I suddenly find myself the only one in the vicinity.
"Traitors..." I growl under my breath. "Uh...well...Don finally got a MOUSER working and we followed it through the sewers, and then we found tons of MOUSERs, fought them off, heard a scream and intervened before April could get eaten." I babbled in a rush, eager to avoid—OW! Aannndd, there's the stick smack on the head. "Oowww..." I groaned as I rubbed my head ruefully.
"And you assumed bringing her into our secret home was the best course of action?" I swallowed again.
"Well, we knew we had to make sure she knew not to tell anyone, and...and I guess we were a bit too curious as to what a human is like. And besides, Sensei, she has no idea where she is right now. She was unconscious the whole way here. Our home's location is still a secret. She was about to get eaten by the MOUSERs. We want to know why." He growls, but finds the explanation sufficient and stalks away. There was nothing to do now but pass the time, so I go and put a few eggs in a pan, listening to them sizzle as I put a few pieces of bread into a toaster. Soon enough, I sit in a chair near April, who is still without sign of waking anytime soon, eating as I watch a bit of TV.
=#=#=#=#=
I smell increased emotions before April's eyes twitch and slowly open. I turn off the TV.
"Ohhh..." She groans. Then takes the sight of me in. She gulps, but doesn't move to scream or faint, thank goodness. "Y-you...I'm still dreaming, aren't I?" She whimpers, holding the pillow to her chest again.
"No, I'm afraid, but if it helps, you can think you are." She nods.
"Okay. So...you aren't going to...I dunno...eat me or something?" I pull a face, taken aback.
"No! Why would you think that?"
"I don't know!" She squeaks, eyes focused only at the pointed teeth I'd accidentally bared at her. I gulp. Oops... She takes a deep breath. "I guess I just wa-watch too many late-night horror movies." I nod.
"Sorry. I shouldn't have overreacted."
"It-it's okay..." She replies. "So...where's the...rat-thing?" I hold in a growl at the disrespect April showed Dad, but remember she couldn't know who and what we are yet, so I let out a breath.
"His name is Splinter, and he's our...Sensei and father."
"I-I'm sorry...I didn't know." I let out another breath. I really need to work on my social skills, with humans in particular.
"I know. Again, I overreacted. Anyway, if you're ready, I can call dad in and we can begin." She nods. Leo, standing nearby all of a sudden, steps forward.
"While we're waiting, would you like something to drink? Water? Tea?" April blinks.
"I-I...guess? Tea sounds great right about now." Leo nods and leaves.
"Excuse me." I mumble, getting up to put my lunch dishes in the sink and find To-san. He's in the dojo, meditating. "Sensei? She's awake and Leo's getting her some tea. She's calm and ready to talk." He doesn't say a word as he gets up and retrieves his cane.
"I apologize for my actions earlier, Asami." I smile at him.
"I'd probably do the same, if not something similar, in your position, Dad. It's okay." He smiles back, relieved that our relationship was not damaged. I lead him out just as Leo enters with a pot of tea and enough cups for all of us. Mikey, Lupa, and the rest of the guys enter the TV area.
"Soo, are you...okay now?" Mikey asks, fearful of another scream. April smiles slightly sheepishly.
"Yes, thanks. I've decided that this is either a very long dream I keep not waking up from, or it's the weirdest thing that ever happened to me." She replies. I nod.
"This is pretty weird for us, too. We haven't interacted with a human before." April cocks a brow at that, but decides not to comment.
"Young woman." Master Splinter calls, earning her attention. She flinches slightly, but gets over it almost instantaneously. "We have something most important to discuss with you."
"What?" She asked.
"We have never revealed ourselves to the upper world." Splinter begins.
"For obvious reasons." I add.
"Indeed. You have placed us all in great danger." Splinter admonished, glaring at all of us in turn, apparently still bitter about April's presence in the Lair. I gulp.
"But, Master Splinter..." Leo protests. "She was in trouble, and we helped her."
"Yeah," Raph agrees. "aren't you always teachin' us tah to try'n do the right thing?" Splinter looks conflicted as he gazes at us.
"As you grow older, you will learn that there are many ways to 'do the right thing'." Dad replies tersely.
"I believe we made the right call." Lupa whispers. I nod.
"Right call or not," Splinter interjects, his face softening and voice lowering, "there is no going back. I'm afraid we find ourselves...at your mercy." He all but whispers, sweeping a paw toward the guest in our home. April leans back in shock, eyes looking to each of us as if to ask 'what am I supposed to do?'.
"Oh, I would never tell anybody." April replies hurriedly, seeing the dejected, almost desperate look on Dad's face, picking up what Master Splinter was saying; we wouldn't do anything to her, even if she revealed our secret, so she was free to do with the knowledge of our existence as she wished. "I mean, wh-who would believe me?" April adds consolingly. I shrug.
"We don't know. Which is why we're so worried."
"But she's got a point." Don replies.
"Yeah, we're un-bel-ieveable!" Mikey boasts, striking several ridiculous poses. Raph scowls at him.
"Geez, where's yer off-switch?" He snaps. I frown as I think of just how right Sensei is. Our code of honor prohibits killing, but if she were to reveal our secret...it would devastate our family, and most likely result in our destruction.
"There are many conspiracy theorists and nutcases out there that would not rest until we were eradicated, if you want to take a pessimistic view." I muse sourly, wishing I didn't have this pessimism, but it is how I am. Everyone needs to know the darker end to this tale. Don rolls his eyes.
"Hardly likely, if you ask me." He replies haughtily, and I can't tell if he's just saying that because he doesn't want to worry April, who gulps thickly, or if he actually believes himself.
"Seriously, I promise." She says, as if pleading with us to believe her. And I find that I do. I can't smell any deceit on her, and my nose hasn't led me wrong before. Splinter gets up from his recliner and steps up to April, his face mere inches from hers as he stares deep into her eyes for a long minute or two.
"I believe you." He finally says. Leo is suddenly leaning over Sensei's shoulder, looking eagerly for whatever it was that Dad saw in April's eyes.
"Is this another lesson, Sensei?" Leo asks. "How to sense the truth?"
"No." Splinter replies, a touch of humor in his voice. "This is called, 'trusting your gut'." I chuckle.
"Besides, I can smell pheromones, and there's nothing in your scent to indicate a lie." April gapes at me, bewildered.
"What?"
"I'm a wolf." I explain. "Wolves can smell pheromones." April blinks at me.
"Okay. I think I read or heard that somewhere..." She replies, smiling slightly. "So...if I'm keeping your secret, what exactly is it? Who are you people—wolves—turtles—whatever?" She asked. I nod. Fair question. Dad is the first to speak up.
"I have memories, memories of a time when I used to be what you might call 'normal'." We all leaned in a little, eager to hear the story again. We'd only heard it on rare occasions previously, and as such was not tired of hearing it. "I remember, a day that started like any other, but ended changing the course of many lives. First, I dodged an odd young girl, eager to catch up to a young wolf pup, which thankfully didn't notice me. The pair ended up in the sewers. Something felt odd about the situation, so I peeked onto the street they had come from. There, I witnessed an accident. A young boy carried a glass jar with four pet infant turtles. An old blind man was crossing the street, when he was almost run down by a large truck." I frowned. Something about that truck...always unsettled me. Why was it careening down the road like that? Why did it have that ooze in the first place? "The turtles were lost to the sewers, washed away from their new owner as another young man intervened, saving the elder's life. As the truck swerved, a metal canister bounced out of the back, it smashed open, releasing an ooze, which covered their bodies. The girl from minutes before was there, as well, and we took pity on the small creatures, gathering them into a coffee can."
"I was the little girl, Lupa was the wolf, and you know how the turtles were." I add, seeing April's slightly confused expression. Dad nods.
"Not knowing what else to do, the girl carried the can and the wolf followed her lead as I took them to my burrow. The next morning, I awoke to find several things had changed. The young woman was now more lupine, the wolf was more human, and the pets had doubled in size! It changed me, also, making me larger, more intelligent. The turtles and wolf followed Asami and I everywhere, except above ground. We knew the people on the surface would not understand. We are so...different. Asami and I were amazed at their dexterity, but nothing quite prepared us for what came next." Dad said, pausing for a moment to let his words sink in and catch his breath slightly.
"It was about four months after the mutation, I think." I muse fondly, smiling at the memory, so vivid, even after all these years. "Splinter and I were wandering the sewers with you all, wondering where we were going to live, cus the burrow was obviously too small. Then...little Leo spoke."
"Yes," Dad took over, looking with pride at his eldest son. "They actually spoke...my name! And Asami's as well. She had taught me English, and I picked it up quickly, having heard it all my previous life. However, it was quite the shock. Soon, they were all speaking and walking and eating as young humans do."
"And man, could you five eat!" I add, laughing. "An entire pizza, in seconds, and you guys were only about five months old!"
"Intelligence followed soon after." Splinter continues, smiling fondly. "Realizing that, sometimes, the world above is a dangerous place, I began teaching them ninjitsu, the secret arts of stealth and power, and all that I knew of this world. Asami was a great aid, as well, assisting me and bolstering my knowledge with her own. She had been highly intelligent for her young age, and we gathered as many books as we could find from dumpsters and back alleys, challenging our knowledge and increasing it. From a battered book on the Italian Renaissance I had fished out of the storm drain shortly after the mutation, I chose names for each of them, Asami aside. Leonardo, Donatello, Raphael, Michelangelo and Lupa. Together, they are-"
"Hamatos forever!" We all interject wildly, clapping our hands in a circle. I felt slightly foolish and childish, but it was fun all the same.
"Or something like that we all yell at once." Mikey adds cheekily.
"First rule; ignore Mikey. And Lupa. Yer life will be much easier." I sigh.
"Oh, come on. You know you get unbearable sometimes, as well. We all do." I reply.
"And so we have remained in secret, and that is our story." Dad concludes, standing up. April frowned.
"But, why was Asami chasing Lupa into the sewers? And how did you know martial arts?" She asked. In sync, we all shrugged.
"We...don't know why I was chasing Lupa, really. Dad only saw me running after Lu-lu, who went into the sewers, and when we ask your second question, he always says..." I start.
"That is a story for another time." Dad finishes. Before April can ask anything else, or anyone say anything, Mikey pipes up, looking at the only screen currently active.
"Guys, look at this." He calls. The screen shows a bank, with thin tendrils of smoke pouring out of the doors.
"Police are completely baffled by this daring bank robbery, boldly executed in broad daylight. If anyone has any information, police urge you to call the Crime Stoppers Hotline." Lupa scoffs. We all knew who-or rather, what-was behind that robbery, if those all too familiar tracks were anything to go by.
"Oh, yeah. Can you imagine? 'Hello? Yes, I happen to know that the bank was robbed by those MOUSER things Stocktronics just came out with. No, I'm not crazy'." She mocks, fingers forming a telephone.
"Sooo...anyone wanna take a wild guess as who's behind this?" Mikey asked rhetorically.
"I can't imagine who." Lupa growls sarcastically. April takes a step forward.
"This must be what I heard Dr. Stockman talking about." She muses. I blink.
"You were that lab assistant." I realize aloud. "I thought you looked kinda familiar, but I couldn't remember exactly why...til now." I confess.
"You recognized her at first, too, sis?" Lupa asks cheerily. I nod.
"He's got the MOUSERs robbing banks!" April went on. Raph leans forward, eyes narrowing slightly in suspicion.
"Whad'ya know 'bout dis Stockman guy?" He asks, expecting an answer. April frowns.
"Oh, he's a genius." She states. Don nods in agreement. I roll my eyes. "He's also nuts."
"You're just now picking up on that?" Lupa snarks, sitting on the arm of the couch, knees up to either side of her chest in a somewhat lupine stance. April nods, arm crossing her chest and gripping the other one.
"I used to work for him, but when I got suspicious he turned the MOUSERs on me. Luckily, I ran into you guys." She went on. I smile.
"No problem. It's been great meeting you." I reply.
"He destroyed our old Lair." Leo notes, voice low in a growl.
"Must have been one of his MOUSER test runs." Aprils muses.
"But that was our home." Mikey complains.
"It wasn't much compared to this place, but still." Lupa adds.
"And now he's graduated to banks." Don growls fiercely.
"Then what're we waitin' for?" Raph asks rhetorically. "I say we shut down MOUSER Central permanently." I slap my forehead.
"Raph, you know what Sensei said. It's too big a risk." Mikey chuckles to relieve the slight tension as April takes in the aggressive side she hadn't seen before.
"I just love those action movie lines." He notes happily. "You write those yerself?" April taps her chin in thought, frowning in concentration.
"It won't be easy. Stocktronics is rigged with the latest, up-to-the-minute security tech." She explains grimly. Mikey scoffs, standing right beside Don.
"Bring it on." He challenges. "Allow me to introduce our very own secret weapon; the tech-turtle himself, Donatello!"He chirps, as is hosting a TV talk show and Don was the guest. "Take a bow, Don." He adds, and I swear Don blushes even as he waves his brother off.
"Heh. Cut it out." He stammers, cheeks slightly red.
"Can...we...go...please?" Raph growls, literally shaking with the effort it took not to rush for the entrance. I see April stand resolutely and am shocked at the determination in her eyes and pheromones as she nods to Raph.
=#=#=#=#=
In the tunnels near Stocktronics, I turn to April.
"You're sure you want to do this with us?" I ask for what feels like the fifth time. She scoffs good-naturedly, literally waving my question away.
"Bit too late to turn back now, isn't it?" I shrug. She's said something similar each time I'd asked her before.
"Touche." Lupa chuckles.
"I'm really liking this girl." I roll my eyes, but can't help a chuckle. April shakes her head in amusement, then hold her hand up for us to halt. We stop and she points to a alarm sensor halfway up the wall. slipping to the other side, April takes the cover carefully off. Don crouches beside her and I motion for everyone to give them a little space to do their techno-thing.
"Alarms in the sewers? Is this guy paranoid or what?" Mikey groans.
"Well...you never know what comes from these sewers nowadays." Lupa quips back, not missing a beat. Mikey grins.
"I hear that!" He replies, high-fiving his sister.
"Will you two shut it?" Raph growls.
"Jes' sayin'." Mikey replies.
"Can April and I have some quiet?" Don snaps. "This is delicate work." Mikey and Lupa roll their eyes.
"'April and I'." Mikey repeats mockingly, hands clasped in front of him.
"'This is delicate work'." Lupa adds.
"Give me a break." Mikey scoffs. I sigh.
"Can it, guys." Soon enough, however, we are in the ventilation system with the alarms the pair of geniuses had deactivated. Once two guards passed, Raph opened the hatch and peered out.
"Dis dah place?" He asked.
"No, Raph. We went to all this trouble for a supermarket." I snark back, face deadpanned.
"No need to yank yer tail outta socket, sis. Jes' double checkin'." He grumbles back. April nods.
"Not a bad idea. There's a computer terminal in that lab." She says, pointing to the door across the hall. "Get me in, and I can create blank spots in the security system to get you through to Dr. Stockman's main lab." Once again, there was not a trace of falsehood on the young woman. I nod and we all prepare to slip out and across the hall.
"Don't look now, but we already gotta 'blank spot' right 'ere." Raph quips, cocking a thumb at Mikey, who scowls at him sourly.
"Hey!" He whines. I roll my eyes and swing out with Raph, who (after making sure the coast was clear) helped April down from the vent. He then tries the lab's door handle. Locked, naturally. Raph pulls a sai automatically, then grins at April in a 'watch this' way. I face-palm, but in seconds the door opens and we're in. April is instantly in a chair, looking quite familiar with the computer as she hurriedly types away.
"Okay, I'm in." She informs us moments later. "I'm blanking the cameras along that corridor at ten second intervals, so you've got to keep moving." She goes on, typing even as we fade into the shadows.
"We'll be right back." Leo says from the doorway and we sprint down the hall. Soon enough, the hall ends at the main lab and we catch our breath for a second before entering. First impression; horror movie set creepy. Second impression; dark, large and definitely not somewhere I'd normally want to enter. But enter we did, weapons in hand and hearts hammering. "This is too quiet." Leo whispered tensely.
"Uh, guys...my turtle-sense is tingling..." Mikey whimpered. I gulped. This was the part of the horror game where the people stupid enough to investigate the unknown dark room got shu-EEK! The doors slammed shut suddenly behind us. Lupa and I screamed, but Lupa was the only one to jump into her brother's arms; Mikey's to be specific. He stumbled back a step as she landed, and she then took stock of where she was, jumped back out of her brother's arms, and cleared her throat.
"No one saw that." She growled, cheeks red. Mikey just stood there like 'what the cuss just happened?', arms still in the position to hold Lupa. I laughed, but stopped as the PA system crackled to life. I grimace at the white noise, but it was over instantaneously.
"Intruders? Here to steal my secrets?" The voice was clearly male, maybe in his 40s, maybe 35 or so. It was hard to tell. Wait...is that...Dr. Stockman?!
"Wait...what?" I asked, the words sinking in. "Why would-nevermind." I said with a roll of my eyes. If this guy wanted to pick a fight, fine. We'd give him one.
"You'll leave here with nothing!" Stockman barked. "Not even your lives." He promised. I suddenly felt not a trace of my former fear. There were a lot of unknowns here, but that was not one of them.
"Over my dead body, creep." I swore, hands white-knuckled on my handles.
"What on earth are you?" He asks curiously, voice devoid of the menace it once held. "Well, I suppose I'll just have to dissect you to find out." I gulp, but am already dodging the lasers suddenly firing at us from some kind of MOUSER construction equipment. Hidden behind a pillar, I chew my lip as I think of what to do. The decision is made for me, and all of us, as we have to haul shell to avoid lasers fired from the equipment used to make those evil MOUSERs. We crouch behind different pillars, and I get an irrational urge to somehow get everyone together, where I could reach out and touch them, move them away from danger if necessary. But I know it's irrational, so I swallow and bite the impulse back into the farthest corners of my mind. Now was not the time for these maternal instincts and foolish over-protectiveness. I shake my head subtly and grimace as Raph runs by me, and Leo and I leap out, sending a laser meant for Raph's retreating carapace back to it's sender.
"Raph, heads up!" Leo calls, even as we slip out of the shadows to protect him. Don then gets an 'I have an idea' look and uses his staff to catapult himself up to a laser-firing-thing (shell, what are their names?!), using his momentum to swing it around, resulting in another thing destroyed. Don then pulls a fistful of wires of the thing he's clinging to, flipping off before it explodes. I just shrug.
"Show offs." I muse, throwing shuriken into another one. We race toward the control room-or, we assume it's the control room-but more lasers greet us, forcing us to hide again. Raph and I keep going, narrowly avoiding more lasers, until our backs (or shell for Raph) are against the wall that makes up a side of the control room.
"Hey, Mike! Slingshot!" Raph calls. Mikey obliges, and it sent flying up to the window of our destination, using his nunchuck to smash the window open. Lupa grins.
"Good idea, bro!" I deadpan when she then meets my eyes.
"Don't even think about it." She rushes toward me anyway. I calmly step aside. She lands lightly on her feet, pouting at me.
"Aw, come on!" Beside me, Don snickers as he shuko-spikes the wall and begins his climb.
"I warned you." I reply, leaping up and using my claws to make climbing easy. Raph snorts.
"It's what I woulda done, sis." He muses.
"So?" Lu-lu grumbles as she climbs up after us.
"You like it?" I hear Leo ask, smirking at Mikey. I cock a brow, but drop it and draw my weapons.
"What are you?" Stockman asks again.
"Like we'd tell you." I growl, not noticing the door behind me opening.
"They're with me." April seethes, coming suddenly into the room, posture strong, confident, and not at all scared of the man that tried to kill her earlier.
"April?!" Stockman asks incredulously. "You're alive?!"
"And kicking." April snaps waspishly, stalking toward him.
"Not thanks to you." I growl.
"I've got enough evidence to put you away for years, Dr. Stockman." She goes on. I pale slightly. That's never a good thing to do. You do not ever broadcast the fact that you have something against someone like Stockman. It never ends well. Sure enough, I see Stockman press a button on the control board in front of him. Raph spots it, too, and drags him away.
"Dat's enough!" He growls. Stockman recovers and smirks menacingly at Raph.
"Ha!" He sneers. "Too late! I've recalled the MOUSERs from their latest mission." He leans a little toward Raph's face defiantly. "They'll be here any second. They'll tear you to pieces." I refrain from swallowing. We turn to our friend. She gulps.
"April?" Don asks.
"I'll have to shut the whole system down!" She squeaks, even as she sits down and begins the process.
"I'll help!" Don adds, sitting beside her.
"You're doomed!" Strockman barks.
"Shut up!" I snap back.
"Listen." Stockman replies. I do, only to hear the sound of a returning army of MOURSERs. Even as I turn to ask April and Don to speed things up, the doors open and the metal demons clang their way over. We watch them creep up the ladder, annoyingly slow.
"April...now's the time." Leo whimpers. April groans.
"The system isn't responding!" April replies exasperatedly. The pair then frown and try something else. I take a step back, positioning my siblings behind me, heedless of the grunts of protests they give off.
"You never should have matched wits with me." Stockman muses devilishly, safe in the elevator April rode down here.
"He's getting away!" Mikey calls, running forward even as the doors slide closed.
"Not for long he isn't!" Lupa growls, but I grab her arm.
"Let him go." Raph barks, backing up, facing the MOUSERs still stalking toward us. "We got bigger problems." I gulp, readying my weapons. "At least we'll go out fighting." Raph muses. I roll my eyes.
"Only you would say that."
"Yeah." Mikey agrees. "I'd rather not go out at all." I sigh.
"At least we're all together." Lupa nods, her eyes full of fear.
"It's not working!" April cries, voice higher in her panic.
"Keep trying!" Don replies.
"This is it." Raph notes grimly.
"No point denying it." I add, taking a breath to calm myself.
"It's been fun." Raph goes on. I smile.
"Oh, yeah." Just wish Sensei won't have to wake up to an empty Lair, I add inwardly, deciding against voicing that thought.
"Even me, Raph?" Mikey asks. "Well, me and Lupa?" Raph sighs.
"Even you, Mikey." Raph replies. "Especially you." Mikey and Raph smile.
"Yeah, even though you could be a bit much at times." I add.
"Hey! We resemble that remark!" Lupa protests, sticking her tongue at me.
"Of course you do." I reply wryly. However, just before the robots close in for the kill...they just...stop. We congratulate our luck, giddy with relief taht we weren't dead.
"Good job, April!" Don praises. "I've never seen anything like that."
"Loosserr~!" Mikey taunts the still robots.
"Uh...guys?" April squeaks.
"That was far too close for comfort." Lupa whimpers, letting out a shaky breath as she sheaths her double scythe.
"Guys, I wasn't able to shut them down!" April explains, eyes wide with fear.
"They look pretty shut down to me." Mikey replies, smiling. I note that the lights on the tops of the MOUSERs are suddenly red. April pales even further.
"The only way I could stop them was to initiate an overload sequence." She adds. I gulp. Oh, crap! No one needs any more explanation.
"In other words..." Mikey starts.
"Let's get outta here!" Lupa finishes, already practically gone. We follow her lead in an instant, Don grabbing April bridal style and leaping off the control room window we'd entered through.
"Don't stop, don't stop!" I yell as we sprint out of the facility just in time. The ground shakes beneath us as we race along the sewers toward home. That had been too close...
We'd nearly been chomped to pieces by MOUSERs then blown sky-high when those same MOUSERs exploded. Geez, how are we going to explain this to To-San?
=#=#=#=#=
Turns out, he was actually fairly okay with us sneaking out, more relieved we'd made it home safely then angry we'd gone against his wishes, though it was clear we'd disappointed him by our disobedience as he listened to our report.
"And authorities are completely perplexed by the destruction of the Stocktronics building and the sudden disappearance of Dr. Baxter Stockman." Came the news report as we finished the story. Splinter listens and watches before turning to April.
"What will you do now, Mrs. O'Neil?" He asks. "You are most definitely out of a job." He muses, a touch of wry humor to his voice.
"I'm...not exactly sure." April replies, looking highly uncertain. Don and I come over.
"We'll help you get back on your feet." Don offers.
"Seeing as we're the reason you're now unemployed in the first place." I add.
"You guys." April breaths, genuinely touched. "You've all been...well, great." She then smirks. "And by guys, I guess I mean four big, talking turtles, two massive female wolves, and a giant talking rat." She muses. I smile.
"You know it." Lupa replies sarcastically.
"Here's to the new team!" Leo chirps excitedly. I roll my eyes, but clink the cup I'm holding with the others' and we all give a hearty cheer. April laughs, sipping the tea as we settle down again.
"So...is there a phone number I could call if I need you guys, or what?" April asks after a while. I deliberate only a moment. I have come to trust April after she agreed to storm Stocktronics with us, though we'd only met, because she knew she could help us. She could have turned us in, but she saw that we weren't monsters, that we were sentient, and willing to do the right thing, no matter what. I bring out my shell-cell and hand it to her so she could copy our numbers into her contacts. She flinches away when our hands brush each other. "Wow..." She breaths. "Your fur..." I flush, taking a reflexive step back. "I'd never really thought about it before..."
"Sorry. I, uh..." I fumble for something to say.
"No, no!" She's quick to protest. "It's actually...really nice. Kinda like normal hair..." I cock a brow.
"Have you never pet a dog before?" I mumble awkwardly. She smiles just as awkwardly.
"Of course I have. It's just...your fur feels a little bit different. That's all." I nod, still feeling highly uncomfortable.
"Sorry. I haven't had much experience being...petted." I blush, but hold my arm out, rolling my catsuit up to reveal my upper arm. Or, most of it. She'll want to feel it again, but she won't want to ask, so...may as well... "Here. May as well get it over with, right?" She hesitated only for a second, then her hand slides up and down my arm a few times before she slides it away.
"Sorry. I just...it's so soft. I really am sorry." I smile, chuckling with a shrug as I slide the catsuit back down my arm, smoothing down the ruffled fur as I did..
"Anyway...uh...I should probably get dinner going." I scratch the back of my head.
"Wanna help? I am usually by myself, although Mikey likes to help every now and again." April nods and we prepare canned soup, as it's the thing we (somewhat shockingly) have the least trouble finding. Adding salt and pepper is done while Aprils gathers the guys.
It feels different, having a human seated at our table, eating and chatting with us, but it also feels...right. Like this is how it should be, not just how we'd always wanted it to be.
I REALLY NEED TO WORK ON MY ENDINGS. THEY'RE ALWAYS SO CORNY. ANYWAY, THIS LAST LITTLE SCENE WAS KINDA RANDOM, BUT I WANTED TO DO IT EVER SINCE I READ THIS STORY WHERE APRIL IS REALLY HESITANT TO ASK USAGI IF SHE COULD PET HIM, AND THEN THE GUYS EXPLAINED THAT SHE HAD GONE THROUGH THE SAME PHASE WITH SPLINTER, AND...I THOUGHT 'WHY NOT ASAMI, AS WELL?' SO THAT'S WHY THAT CAME TO BE.
