Rainie's tenth birthday

A week later, Rainie was taken to spend the whole day at April's- and getting on Casey's nerves. Rainie and Casey could get on like a house on fire, as long as Casey was in a good mood. Any other time, Rainie would enjoy booby-trapping the apartment, her timing so spot on, only Casey would fall right into her pranks.

"RAINIE!" Casey thundered. Rainie looked up from the kitchen table, half-eaten pizza slice in hand. April, who sat opposite, swivelled in her seat as Casey stumbled in. He was covered in blue, sticky goo. Rainie had managed to smuggle out some goo supplies before the guys bought her here. A bucket full perched carefully on top of the bathroom door was enough.

"Casey..." April smiled slightly, getting to her feet to help Casey clean up. Rainie was trying not to laugh. Where was her camera when she needed it? "Rainie, I'll be back in a minute. Stay at the table, OK?" Rainie nodded, cramming the last of her ham, cheese and tomato pizza into her mouth.

April and Casey were taking ages. The goo could easily be dissolved with warm water. Rainie was itching to leave the table, her plate empty except for a few crumbs.

Rainie's eyes fell on April's ShellCell. Making sure that April was no-where near returning, Rainie jumped up and noiselessly moved to the cell. Prank call time- who to call? She hadn't prank called Donnie in a while, maybe she could do that.

She loved speed dial.

"Hey April, what's up?" Rainie stayed quiet. "April? You there? April?" Rainie thought quickly, trying to remember the last TV show she had made Donnie watch with her.

"Cuckoo cree!" She exclaimed and hung up.

"Rainie? What was that?" April poked her head out of the bathroom door, a puzzled look on her face. Rainie hid the ShellCell behind her shell.

"TV." Thankfully the TV was still on. But it was the news.

"So... the news reporter made that funny sound?" Rainie nodded.

"He was... err... impersonating one of the most awesome TV shows, saying that it's a big hit with kids." Rainie smiled innocently. "Especially mutant turtles."

"Yeah, OK, Rainie. I won't be too long. The goo's not washing out of his hair."

"Just use warm water. No shampoo or anything." April nodded gratefully and disappeared again. Rainie scanned the apartment quickly, trying to think of more pranks. She knew a trick that Donnie had taught her- one that would stop the remote from working properly. She fixed that up, so that it'll have a five minute delay on any demand. Another one was to hide Casey's hockey mask and the next to have the sink's water flow redirect to the plug-hole, so when the tap was turned on, water would shoot up from the drain.

Rainie sat at the table, reading a comic she had bought along. April and Casey were back, Casey now free from blue goo. He wasn't too happy with Rainie, and his bad mood was to last if he was the victim of her next few pranks.

Rainie hid her ShellCell under the table and dialled Casey's number, withheld. Casey answered on the third ring. When no-one talked back, he shouted into the phone before slamming it down.

"Casey! Don't break that one too! That's the third one this month!" Rainie slipped her ShellCell into her belt and turned the page of her comic, to see Silver Sentry punching Dr. Malignus in the face.

Casey didn't answer April and tried to change the news channel. The remote didn't work. He glared at it before pressing the flicker button several times. After a while he gave up. Five minutes later, he was confused when the channels flicked rapidly.

"Something's up with the TV's reception." Rainie said, keeping a straight face. Her mind was firing up new pranks.

"Great, just great." Casey grumbled. "I'll ask Donnie ta check it out later." He mumbled, more to himself than anyone in particular.

Rainie was bored of picking on Casey and decided to start on April. April wasn't too keen on spiders. Rainie hunted around, looking for Blu-tack. Rainie had packed a couple of toy spiders that were so life like, she had fooled Raph. Rainie moved around April as she cleaned. She had to tack the spiders somewhere where April could clearly see them.

Back at the lair, the Turtles were tidying up and hanging decorations for Rainie's tenth birthday. Anything that had been shoved in boxes had been stacked in a corner in Rainie's room. Donatello was the one who spotted it.

(Private message me for link to picture Donnie found)

It was in the trash. Why would Rainie throw away a really good and really cool picture?

Donatello's curiosity piqued. Did Rainie have other pictures like this?

"Donnie, wut are ya doin'?" Raph's voice called out. Donatello did not answer straight away, studying the picture. "Don?" Raphael appeared in the doorway. "What cha got there?" Donatello showed him.

"Found it in Rainie's trash."

"I'm keepin' it, 'cos that's brilliant. Why would she just throw it away?" Donatello shrugged as their brothers entered.

"What are you two doing?" Their eldest sibling asked. Donatello handed him the picture. Leonardo examined it, Michelangelo peering over his shoulder. "Wow." Leonardo said quietly. Michelangelo took it quickly, darting away to the doorway. He was looking at the picture from various angles. "Mikey, what are you doing?" Leonardo chuckled, walking over to his younger brother.

"Rainie draws upside down. I'm trying to-"

"Rainie draws upside down?" Donatello interrupted. His younger brother nodded, his eyes glued to the picture. "Then, what are you doing?"

"Trying to figure out how she does it." Michelangelo replied quietly. He frowned at the drawing for another minute.

"Ain't we got, like, an hour before Rainie gets home?" Raph asked, sounding slightly irritated.

"Oh yeah." Michelangelo handed the picture back to Leonardo. "I still gotta do the cake." Donatello stepped forward.

"Oh no you're not. The first one-"

"Makes an excellent Frisbee." Mikey smiled at his brother before dashing off to the kitchen.

Don chased after him, but his heart wasn't in it. Rainie drew upside-down? He'd have to look into that.

After Donatello had successfully saved the birthday cake, he had fifteen minutes to spare. He sat at his computer, typed in his password to unlock it and went straight on Google. He wasn't sure what to type in, so he guessed 'upside down drawing in children'. All that came up were things about how fun it was to draw upside down and how it helps to express art skills. Not really what he wanted.

Donnie sat back in his chair and thought for a long while. He bit his lip uncertainly, before closing his eyes and letting his memories take over his mind. Rainie's first word had been 'Turtle', although not very clear. She'd been about... twelve and a half months? Something like that. She used to be a bit unresponsive when called. She had to be shaken by the shoulders and even then she had poor eye contact. She didn't like anything new or her routine changing, but eventually she got out of that when her brothers set an example of changing their routines. She was very quiet and had a habit of lining her toys up, never smiled (which was unlike her), until she was around six months. Don would often find her putting her things, such as drawing books in the order of when she got them. Mikey was prone to mucking them up, just to be annoying, but Rainie never got mad.

Don sat up straight, smiling slightly. He had an idea.

He Googled a habit of Rainie's. And then a few more.

"Donatello, what are you doing?" Donnie looked over his shoulder. Master Splinter had come over to visit. Master Splinter read a few lines on the page Donnie had up and his eyebrows knitted. "My son, what is that?" Don bit his lip before explaining about Rainie drawing upside down and a few of her babyhood habits. "But... it can't just be a Rainie thing, can it, Sensei?"

"No, my son. You do not mind researching into it further, do you? I have my suspicions, but I am not entirely sure..." Master Splinter trailed off.

"Yes Master." Donatello smiled innocently. Master Splinter inclined his head, a kind twinkle in his eyes, before walking off. Donnie checked the time. Eight minutes... hopefully. He searched up Rainie's 'habits' thoroughly, when Mikey called out to him saying they needed help with the birthday decorations. "And where'd ya put her pressie?"

"Where we normally put it, Mike." Donnie sighed, his eyes glued to the screen. A few seconds later, he felt someone lean on the back of his chair.

"Wut cha doin', Brainiac?"

"Researching."

"Researchin' wut?" Donnie sighed and explained again. Raph took that in silence. A gut feeling told Don he was thinking back on Rainie's childhood. "Please tell me you remember that, 'cos I don't want it to be something I've come up with."

"Nah, I remember it." Don almost breathed a sigh of relief.

"I'm hhhoooommmmeeee!" Rainie shouted cheerfully bounding through the main door, April and Casey behind her. "Ya'll miss me?" She grinned at her brothers, throwing her rucksack so that it landed on the couch. Don quickly flicked the computer screen off.

"Course we did, sis. Ya behaved right?" Raph walked up to Rainie, grinning. When he asked if she had been good, he was looking at their human friends for answers.

"Not really. She's got some new practical jokes." April glared at Rainie. "I will get you for those spiders." Rainie smiled sweetly, swinging on Raph's lower arm. Raph couldn't help but chuckle heartedly. "Please don't encourage her, guys. She's bad enough."

"Yeah, OK. Hey, Rainie; Don turned slightly trash-picker and found this." Mikey held up Rainie's picture. The smile slid of Rainie's face. "You OK, sis?" Rainie was shaking and leaning on Raph. "Rainie?" Mikey tucked the picture in his belt and dashed to his sister's side.

"Bad picture..." She mumbled. Don and Leo frowned in unison as Raph helped Rainie to the settee. Leonardo caught his intelligent brother's eye.

"Rainie, what do you mean by 'bad picture'?" Leo asked slowly. Rainie was shaking chronically, tears in her eyes. None of them had seen her like this. Ever. "Rainie?" Master Splinter strolled out of his room.

"What is going on?" His eyes fell on Rainie and concern racked his expression. "What is the matter, my sukoshi arashi?" Rainie smiled weakly. That was her father's pet name for her- 'sukoshi arashi' was Japanese for 'little storm'.

"I'll be... OK... in a minute..."

"How'd yu know?" Raph countered. Rainie rolled her eyes up at him.

"This isn't the first time... shellforbrains." Raph blinked blankly. His family were as silent as he was.

"Rainie? When you say 'isn't the first time'... do you mean-?"

"It happens... every time I draw a pic like that one." Rainie waved her hand in the direction of her drawing in Mikey's belt, but she was still shaking.

"How many have you drawn?" Leonardo asked. Master Splinter studied his daughter for a while before wandering into her bedroom. He came back a few minutes later with three of Rainie's sketch books under his arm. All of them were black 'fabric' books.

"How'd you-?" Rainie started, her eyes wide.

"Do not panic, my sukoshi arashi. Black is your least favourite colour, therefore you will draw your least favourite drawings in these." Rainie looked gob-smacked, as did Mikey.

"I- I don't wanna..." Rainie took a deep breath and pulled herself together. "Sensei, I don't want to look at them." Master Splinter smiled kindly and told his daughter to get some rest.