Chapter

4

Kiri woke early the next morning and had to clamp her muzzle shut to keep from screaming. Had she really slept with her head on the fire demon's lap all night?

Kiri knew he was a fire demon but she still didn't know his name or that of many of the other boys in the household. All she remembered was Raph, the red mask turtle, and Mikey, the orange mask turtle. Other than that, she just knew them by their descriptions. Fox Demon (Kurama), Fire Demon (Hiei), Blue and Purple (Leo and Donny), the Hothead (Yusuke), the Shrew Man (Kuwabara, cuz' he reminds me of a shrew,^_^), Wise Rat (Splinter) and Old Master (Genkai.)

Kiri was intent on learning their names though, but she would have to listen around. It wasn't like she could just go up to each one of them and ask them their names. Kiri got up and was very careful not to wake the sleeping fire demon beside her. She slid off the couch and padded to the kitchen where she could detect the wafting smell of cooking bacon. Someone was making breakfast. When she poked her head around the corner of the kitchen, she saw the Fox and Purple cooking eggs, bacon, sausage, pancakes, waffles, bagles and french toast. (Cuz they are really the only ones who care enough to do it. And there are a lot of boys to be fed.)

Kiri loved french toast. It was her favorite, next to apples. Which was like, the equal of vodka to an alchoholic, for her. The wolf girl was madly addicted to apples, french toast, and mountain dew.

She walked up quietly behind them and yipped once. They both jumped and turned around, a panicked look in their eyes. Of course, when they saw her they relaxed. Kurama looked to Donny and nodded, a signal for the mutant teen to continue with breakfast. Kurama knelt down until he was level with Kiri. "Breakfast is almost ready, and I need you to go wake everyone up, can you do that?" He asked. Kiri wagged her tail once to tell him yes but then cocked her head as if to say, 'what's in it for me?'

As if he understood her, Kurama smiled and stood up straight again, "Just show me what you want and by the time you get back here with everyone it'll be done. Just name it and you have it." Kiri wagged her tail and padded carfully to the cooking french toast. Kurama gabbed a pen and paper to write it down. She could see he had scribbled french toast on the pad in neat writing. Then she leaned over to the eggs. "Bark once for scrambled, twice for sunny-side." he said not looking up from the pad. Kiri barked once. Then she went over to the bacon and he wrote it down as well. "The minimum amount is six, do you agree?" Again Bieily wagged her tail so Kurama figured that would do.

Then the wolf padded off to carry out her assignment. First she woke everyone in the living room by howling. The boys woke with a start, leaping out of bed, and the shrew man, Kiri noticed, had landed flat on his face. She waggged her tail and made sure all the boys were watching before she dashed off a few feet in the direction of the kitchen, then did a play bow for them all, to signal she wanted them to go that way.

They might not have been very educated in wolf body laguage, but they knew that much, and so Mikey, Raph, Yusuke and Kuwabara chased after Bieily in her mad dash for the kitchen, while Hiei and Leo followed more slowly. She brought all the boys to the kitchen, now she had to go and fetch the elders from their beds upstairs. Kiri spun out of the kitchen and ran up the stairs to the elders' dens. First she went to the Old Master's room a.k.a. Genkai. Might as well get her out of the way first. Kiri thought remembering how tempermental the psychic woman had been before. Kiri would be very careful with this one.

The wolf slipped into the room and trotted over to the side of the bed. Her claws making clicking sounds on the hard wood floor. She went up to the head of the bed and stood on her back legs, placing her front paws on the bed. Kiri leaned over and lightly grasped Genkai's sleeve in her teeth. Then she tugged gently on it so as not to rip the fabric. The old woman stirred then opened her eyes to big yellow animal eyes staring at her. Genkai recognized them immidietly. "What do you want dog?" She asked grumpily, and the wolf gave the most innocent smile she could muster. She wagged her tail and whined softly.

"All right I'll get up."She said loudly to no one really. Then to Bieily she said, "Those lazy bums probably won't get up to feed you huh?" She asked staring at the furry white canine before her. Tounge lolling out and tail wagging. Genkai got up, got dressed and walked down the hall to the stairs. Kiri had followed fairly close behind the old woman, but once Genkai got to the bottom of the stairs and Kiri made sure she was headed to the kitchen she dashed back to the Wise Rat's bedroom.

Kiri was suprised to see that he was already awake. The rat was sitting cross-legged on a small pillow, meditating. Kiri trotted up to the base of the three stairs that led up to where Splinter was sitting. She stood before him, stiff legged, shifty eyed; ears pricked high. Kiri got a strange feeling in her gut that he knew something. Something she was trying to keep hidden. She whined and he opened his eyes, "Time fore breakfast I presume?" he said with a smile, and Kiri let out the breath she was holding. And here I thought he was gonna call me out. She barked excitedly and beckoned for him to follow. The old rat grabbed his walking stick and followed the canine, who waited patiently for him outside the door.

The two reached the kitchen and every chair at the table, as well as every chair from anywhere else, was filled by someone. Splinter walked over to a chair that had been saved for him, and Kiri walked over to Kurama. She barked a demand for her reward, and he turned to look at her, then at all those assembled. "You did get everyone, and just in time." He said to her. Then he turned around and got a plate from the counter. He placed it down in front of her and it was everything she had "asked" for. Two pieces fo french toast with syrup, scrambled eggs, and six peices of bacon. This is so great! She thought, any pet to come into this house would be one lucky sucker. And with that she started to eat her breakfast. "How come the dog gets people food?" Yusuke asked, mouth full of sausage. Donatello answered him, "Because she earned it. Kurama asked her to wake you guys up and get you here for breakfast, and we promised she'd get her pick of food when she got everyone here. Ain't that right Bieliy?" He called.

Kiri lifted her head from her plate and yuffed around a mouthful of bacon. Everyone giggled and chukled at her but she didn't mind. She just went back to happily munching and crunching her bacon. After breakfast, everyone put their plates in the sink to be washed. Kiri licked her pate clean of syrup and carefully carried it over to the counter. Then she sauntered over to the table and settled herself of the cool tile floor underneath it. Raph and Yusuke were doing the dishes while Kuwabara dried them, and Leo put them away. Mikey came over and asked nonchalontly if he could help. "Michaelangelo, you get your shell ass out of the kitchen and away from the dishes!" Genkai yelled from the living room. Mikey smiled, "If you insist." He said and then ran off to watch tv. Kiri chuffed in amusement. I wonder how much stuff he broke for him to be banned from the kitchen when there are dishes out. She thought, grinning. The wolf-girl yawned and decided that she was still a bit sleepy. She layed down in her spot under the table, and took a nap.

When she woke up about a half hour later, the sounds of light argument was drinfing into the kitchen. Kiri sat herself up, drowsily and yawned. Her long pink tounge curled and a whine escaped her parted jaws. She blinked and shook to wake herself. Then she stood up, stretched forward and padded to the training area. Turned out it was nothing more than a sparring argument in which Kiri was able to learn several more names, Blue was now Leo, thanks to Raph yelling at him for something. She was standing next to Fox and Purple when Purple called him Kurama and somewhere in the conversation they had, while watching Raph and Leo argueing, he'd said Donatello. And Mikey off in the corner had called out the names "Yusuke" and "Kuwabara". Beckoning them over to see his comic book collection. Shrew and Hothead had responded so she figured those were their names.

It took another half hour for her to figure out the old ones' names, Genkai and Splinter, but she still did not know the fire demon's name. It frustrated her that the one who had saved her, was the one she did not know. I'll just have to hang around him until someone calls his name. She figured. And she was about to go look for him when she was destracted by the argument between Leo and Raph escalating to more than just words. Raph threw a punch and Leo dodged, knocking his brother back with a kick. Raph then took out his sais, "I am so sick o' yor high and mighty attitude!" He yelled lunging at Leo who unsheathed his two katana. They charged eachother and went at it. Sparks were flying and the rage was building between them. This is insane! I know about sibling rivalry but they're trying to kill eachother! She thought feverently.

Kiri got to her paws and took a few steps froward. They went at eachother again and neither was hit, but that only made the two angrier. They lunged again, weopons aimed dangerously. I can't take this anymore! Kiri yelled in her mind and she leaped foward, with a howl. The two turtles stopped just before they impaled eachother, and turned just before Bieliy tackled Leo, grabbing the strap that held his swords in place and flinging him to the side sending the swordsman barreling into Raph. The force of her throw caused them to both go down. Landing side by side, flat on their shells. She waisted no time, leaping over and on top of them, pinning the stunned brothers down. She growled dangerously. Snarling and baring her sharp fangs in their faces.

Her intention was not to harm, but to warn. And it was this knowledge that led Splinter and Genkai to keeping the others from interfering. That Leo and Raph needed to be taught a lesson. They needed to be put in their place.

They sqirmed under her, and the anger in their eyes was replaced by suprise and mild fear. Good, she thought, I have them now. She was keeping an eye on Leo when she noticed Raph try and reach the sai that had been knocked out of his hand. He wanted to knock her away, but she wouldn't have it. Don't. You. Dare! She growled, though he couldn't understand her, and she stretched her neck and nipped his wrist. Not hard enough to draw blood, but hard enough to get him to retract it. She barked and snarled in their faces, making sure they were both paying attention to her. And she waited until they were staring at her and shaking under her with fright. The turtles stared into her burning yellow eyes, and she saw terror. She had stopped snarling now but a toothy scowl showed on her face again, her black lips pulled back to reveal sharp bonecrushing teeth, and a venomous snarl erupted from her throat. Suddenly she lunged at them, and they screamed, holding eachother. They closed their eyes so not to see the vicious fangs tear into them.

The pain never came. And they opened their eyes to see a stilled wolf, a sharp toothed snarl still showed, inches from their own terrified faces. Bieliy's lips curled back around her teeth and the menacing look dissapeared. She licked her lips and backed off the boys. Stepping off them and moving to the side where she looked at them sternly, chuffed once, then turned and padded away. She heared the others quickly make their way over to the two fallen turtles, and she heard them help the two up. But she didn't turn around. Nor did she stop padding away, and over to the fire demon, who had a blank expression on, and who she guessed, had seen the entire thing. Under his expressionless stare she felt pressured and ashamed. She had attacked and threated two of his friends. What was he thinking? Was he angry with her? Frightened?

No. Kiri thought, determined, I did what I had to. They were reckless and foolish pups who needed an adult to put them in their place. I did what needed to be done, what no one else had the guts to do. She told herself. Feeling empowerd by her words. And believing in her justification. She held her head high. Her white tail waved up in the air proudly, and she stared at the fired demon definantly. He read the message loud and clear, and it made him smirk. 'I dare you to tell me I was wrong', was the message written in the golden eyes of the wolf before him.

Hiei chuckled earnestly. Then he turned, a smirk still on his face. "Come, Wolf." He called and then he began to walk away. Kiri followed after him, a triumphant, wolfly grin on her face.

Three weeks had passed. Since that day, and Kiri, or rather, Bieliy had bonded uniquely with each person. To Mikey she was a pillow and a playmate, the same was true for Yusuke and Kuwabara. To Donny she was his workshop helper and she monitored his work hours, making sure he drank less coffee and got more sleep. To Raph and the later introduced Casey, she was a buddy to them both. Though she wan't supposed to, she went topside with them and got into trouble. In the lair they rough-housed and batted eachother around, though Kiri was careful not to hurt them. To Kurama she was company when he was reading a book, and a friend when he wasn't. To Genkai and April, introduced around the same time as Casey, she was silent company to one, and wardrobe consultant to the other. Hiei was her partner though, they were together a lot, and she really got to know him well. (She finally figured out his name) They often went topside and had long walks in central park at night. Lots of the time they would sit at the edge of one of the small lakes and look at the moon, that grew smaller and smaller as nights passed. There were times when he would tell her things from his past, or about himself. Like how he had a sister, and how she didn't know about him and why he didn't tell her. He told Bieliy of his mother, what little he knew, and how he'd been raised. She wished she could tell him about her, to make it an even trade, but she could not. All she could do was comfort him. And chase away the demons that resurfaced in his mind as he relived his past nighmares. To others she had very different relationships. She was Splinter's meditaion partner and Leo's sparring partner. And the only reason she did either was because Splinter didn't talk when he was meditaing (she still felt like he knew something) and because she knew Leo could improve his fighting if he could learn to be on his toes and keep his witts about him, no matter what an enemy was doing. She accomplished this by acting innocent and playful when they sparred. He had been trusting, but wary of her, ever since the incident with him and Raph. Like he was hesitant to let his gaurd down around her, and was always on alert. Luckily, though, it wasn't as bad when they weren't sparring. But Kiri shuddered to think of how he'd respond if he knew what she was.

Thoughts of being exposed had plauged her mind a lot over the weeks, and she was conflicted with herself of what to do. Should I tell them and risk their rejection? They might accept me. She often wondered. If I don't and i'm exposed accidentally, they'll probably hate me, and think I betrayed them. Was another thought that continually crossed her mind. Maybe I should stay one more day, and then leave. They'll never have to know about me. Was her most frequent thought, she contemplated leaving over and over. For days saying to herself, This is my last day here, I'll leave tonight. But she couldn't bring herself to leave them. These people, were the closest thing she'd had to friends and family, in a very long time. She couldn't bear to let them go, she loved them all too dearly. And that was why it pained her to feel she was betraying them.

But the conflict reached a spike one day, when she woke early, and went to fecth Master Splinter for breakfast. She padded in, more distraught and she saught momentary comfort from the wise old rat. But what she got as she slowly walked in suprised her.

"Please, sit fire priestess." He said. Kiri's eyes widened. He knows, she thought. He's known this whole time. He knew her secret. What she really was. And she bet, he knew what she was there for.

Kiri sat down and Splinter opened his eyes breathing deeply. Then he looked at Kiri. "You are wondering how it is I know." He stated plainly. Kiri decided to speak, seeing as there was no point in pretending to be a wolf. "Yes. When was it that you found out?" She asked. The old rat simply smiled an then began his explanation. "When you first came here. I was given a very helpful hint. When Donatello and Michelangelo told me of your swift act of violence towards them, and then your dissapearence into the bathroom, I saw that as more of human girl type behavior." He looked at her knowingly. He knew her reasons for why she had done that too. "Still," Kiri continued, "that doesn't explain how you knew about everything else." Kiri was dying to know.

This wise old rat knew almost everything from what she could tell. Maybe more that he wasn't telling her. Why do old animals have to know so much? Kiri wondered. Dreading what the rat would say next. "My suspicions," Splinter continued, "were more or less confirmed when you shifted into your human form, that first time, as well as others. You sent out small bursts of energy when you dispelled your form. The type of energy signature that goes out when a creature shifts from the body it is in, back to its original form. Also, I picked up on the fire majic you used. Most likely to dry your clothes am I correct?" Splinter looked into Kiri's yellow eyes. Making it impossible for her to lie to this wise old man. She simply nodded.

Splinter chuckled lightly, "Your intelligence and un-wolf-like behavior over the last few weeks, have also suppoted my suspicions. My colegue, Genkai, is not aware, so don't worry." He said. "I noticed because it is my job to notice unusual happenings within my home." He assured her that no one else knew and she was releived, at least, for that.

"So what is your real name, if I may ask?" Splinter stared expectantly at her. He could see right through the wolf before him, to the young girl beneath. He understood her. She used the wolf as a sanctuary. With it she could hide away her heart and feelings. Never have to show anyone who she really was. What she was really like. It reminded him much of Hiei. So that is why they took to eachother, Splinter thought, the two of them can see themselves in the eyes of the other. Splinter stared at the girl and she answered. "Kiri. My name is Kiri." she said.

"Kiri-san, a beautiful name" He replied. He was about to talk further when the wolf suddenly jumped up and swiftly shot from a wolf to human girl. She came right up to the bottom of the steps, then Kiri dropped to her knees in a bow of sheer respect and pleading. "Please!" She begged, "Don't tell them, this place is so wonderful and everyone here is so kind, if the others were to find out the truth about me I would have to returen to Shredder!" Splinter stared at Kiri wide eyed as she begged for him to keep her secret, and he could see sparkling tears falling onto the carpet. Kiri's body was shaking slightly. "I beg of you master Splinter," she whispered voice shaky, "I can't bear to return to that monster again, please don't tell the others."

Kiri was now seriously crying. Whatever Shredder had done to this girl it was bad enough to send her to tears just by talking about it.(And for those of you out there who have dirty minds, just to set the record straight, he DID NOT rape her. That would be gross and creepy and I'm not that evil. Got it?...good.)This girl was truly remarkable. She did not lash out at others because of the inner termoils she faced, nor did she blame those around her. She tried to face her problems with high spirits and strong will. He respected her for that. Her inner strength was indeed immence. But seeing her in this much pain and fear, seeing this usually proud young girl reduced to a pathetic blubbering mess before his feet built anger in his heart. Anger that the old rat was not aware he had.

Splinter calmed himself and began to speak to Kiri calmly and wisely. "You ask I swear to secrecy because you are afraid that my sons and Genkai's students will reject you if they discover who you really are and what your purpose for coming here is. Correct?" The wise man looked at her and she nodded, then answered, "If they knew the truth of what I've done and what I am supposed to help Shredder do... they would despise me." She wispered.

"I think you are wrong." She heard the rat say and she looked op at him, more tears forming in her eyes. "My sons as you are well aware, are not what many humans on the surface would call 'normal', and niether are Genkai's students. They are hated and feared by those on the surface who know of their existance. I am sure they would understand if you told them who you really are." Splinter explained very carefully. It wan't his place to mentor this girl but to let anyone in his home as a guest live under the impression that her secrets revealed would bring others to hate her, he would not tolereate.

"But it's not just the fact of them knowing that I lied to them about what I am!" She retorted, hints of the old proudness creeping back into her tone, "It's telling them all what I have to do!" Splinter knew very well what the fire priestess had to do, but did not see how she thought herself of not having a choice. "I can garuntee that the the young men downstairs will not reject you just because you are not a normal wolf. They are not quite normal themselves, they will understand." Splinter repeated. But his words were falling on deaf ears. Kiri had shifted into her wolf form again and had bolted out the door. The last words Splinter heard from her were, "You'll never get it!" before she rounded the corner and dissapeared.

Kiri sped dow the hall and jumped over the railing instead of taking the stairs. Then she shot off towards the exit to the sewer tunnels and was out of sight. Of course everyone in the kitchen saw her and she knew it, but Kiri was far too hurt, too distressed to care. All she wanted was to be alone. And about twenty minutes after the shining white coat could no longer be seen by the bystanders in the lair, a long sorrowful and mournful howl echoed from further down the tunnels and it broke their hearts to hear.

They didn't see Bieliy for the rest of the day...