Hooray for finally being able to update! Sorry I took so long, but, as suspected, my laptop is fried and it shall take some time to acquire a new one. Also, I have been busy working on my original full-length novel...

Anyway, I want to give a thank you to chloemcg for her review on Chapter One. Check out her profile!

I would also like to thank my readers for motivating me to continue this. I had originally just written the prologue as a one shot out of boredom on my way to the hospital for surgery on my ear, but then I realized there was more to Robbie's story. So, again, a BIG thanks!

One last thing before my disclaimer: Towards the end of what has become a LONG chapter—Huzzah!—there is a term, "spanging". For those who don't know what it means, it is short for spare changing and is what a homeless person is doing when they ask random people for spare change. Just another term for panhandling.

DISCLAIMER: All rights belong to Nickelodeon and its parent company Viacom, and is based on characters created by Kevin Eastman and Peter Laird.

Chapter Three – Robbie

"Get in here!" called Robbie's father.

"Whatever it is," said Robbie as he nervously entered the living room of their crummy Alphabet City apartment, "I didn't do it."

"Just get over here." His dad was sitting in his usual spot on the recliner in front of the TV. He was a short and overweight man in his forties with a slightly balding head. All that remained were a few wisps of graying brown hair combed over to one side. His beer gut stuck out of his shirt awkwardly.

Robbie's mother, a petit woman in her late thirties with black hair, stood behind the couch, waiting.

Robbie stood in front of the television, blocking his father's view of the screen. "Yeah?" he asked.

"Get out-of-the-way! I'm trying to watch the game—go sit on the couch!" Robbie rolled his green eyes, but didn't say anything. He sat down where he was supposed to, his mother's thin form looming over him from behind ominously…

His father's eyes never left the screen while he was talking. "I have a question for you," he said slowly. "Do you have any idea what happened to the six-pack I bought yesterday?"

"Maybe you drank it already," Robbie answered. It was a possibility. His father drank beer almost as fast and as often as he bought it. He very well could have drunk it already. But Robbie knew that wasn't the case. He'd dumped the foul drink down the drain in the bathtub the night before, when his parents were asleep.

Amazingly, his father tore his face away from the game long enough to glare at him and scowl. "Don't get smart," he growled.

"And my poker chips? What happened to those, Robbie?" asked his mother. She lit another cigarette and took a puff.

Robbie didn't have an excuse for that. "I threw them out," he answered simply. "Just like I dumped the beer last night."

"What?!" screamed his mother as she hurried to her husband's side.

"Yeah. I got rid of that junk." He stood up, turned the TV off, and faced his parents. "Ma, Dad, we can't afford all that. Between Ma's cigarettes and poker games and your beer guzzling, Dad, we're barely getting by. We're three months behind on rent. We have no heat. More than half the time, the fridge is filled with nothing but booze and I have to go to a neighbor's and beg dinner off them!" Robbie's voice was rising with each word. "I'm eleven-years-old and I shouldn't have to deal with this! How much longer do you guys think I'm going to be able to keep Protective Services from coming here?"

Robbie finished. The only sound in the room was his heavy breathing. No one said a word. The three just stared at each other, and Robbie was beginning to think that he may have finally started to get through to them.

But suddenly, faster than should have been possible for a man of his size, Robbie's father rushed to his son and smacked him violently across the face with the back of his hand, sending him sprawling across the floor. Neither of them said anything to each other. Enough had been said.

That small bit of violence had said it all.

Voices broke through the hazy, dreamlike memory. They were far off and they echoed at first, but they gradually became more intelligible.

"Do you think he's going to be all right?"

"I don't know. I think so. The cuts weren't that deep, and he didn't seem to have punctured a lung." Cuts? What cuts?

"So… what was that about him being a spy, Raph?" Robbie was finally able to tell who was speaking, though he kept his eyes closed. The turtles. He wondered what were they doing in his apartment…

The one who had just spoken was the one he remembered had been called Leo. In response to Leo's question came a rough, but quiet, voice.

"I was wrong."

"What was that? I didn't quite catch it."

"I was WRONG!" yelled Raph.

"Ssh!" hissed Donnie. "Do you guys want to wake him?"

Robbie's hearing dropped again as he slipped back into unconsciousness.

It must have been hours later when Robbie finally came around and opened his eyes. He was flat on his back, with his head only slightly propped up, and a light shining down on his face.

"Ugh, where am I?" he groaned weakly. The light was too bright to be the one in the apartment. Robbie's head was pounding and his body felt incredibly stiff. His mouth and throat were parched.

"Well, heh-heh, someone's finally decided to wake up," came a cheerful voice to his right. Robbie turned his head and saw one of the turtles. He was wearing a purple mask and smiling; there was a gap in his teeth.

Robbie said nothing. He just stared silently at the turtle, a suspicious eyebrow raised.

"Don't you talk anymore?" asked the turtle.

"Yeah," answered Robbie hoarsely.

"How ya feelin'?"

In response, Robbie groaned and grabbed his head and stomach as a wave of nausea hit him harder than Hurricane Katrina hit New Orleans. The turtle immediately brought a bucket over to him and held it as he vomited into it. When he was done… "Does that answer your question?"

When Robbie attempted sit up, the turtle set the bucket down and helped him. For the first time, Robbie noticed that he didn't have a shirt on and a swath of reddened bandages was wrapped tightly around his torso. "What the—?"

"Hold that thought for a second, will you? Someone wanted to know when you finally regained consciousness," the turtle said. He shouted behind him, "Raph! He's up." The turtle looked back at Robbie. "My name's Donatello, by the way. But you can call me Donnie."

"Robbie… I'm Robbie." He was confused. He didn't recognize his surroundings at first. He was on a type of couch in what he realized was the abandoned subway terminal in the sewers, he was wrapped in bandages, and a humanoid turtle was taking care of him. Had he missed something?

Someone came running into the room, only to slow down when he caught sight of Robbie sitting up. Raphael, the tail-like ends of his red mask hanging over his shoulder like a ponytail, slowly approached the couch.

Robbie tried to back up, as he'd remembered that the guy didn't seem too fond of him. He took a deep breath and was forced to let out a panged gasp. Tears formed in his eyes.

Instead of saying something spiteful and vindictive, Raph looked at him in concern. "You all right?" he asked.

"That… depends," groaned Robbie between breaths. "I don't even know what happened…"

Raph looked at Donnie, an eyebrow raised questioningly. "He's still recovering from the shock," Donnie said. "He should remember everything soon."

"Remember what?" Robbie asked, still confused.

"Well," began Raph. He paused, apparently not knowing whether to go on or not. He decided to go on. "When you left the sewers, I followed you. I wanted to make sure you weren't a spy. I trailed you to Feldman Place where the Purple Dragons got the drop on you."

It was all starting to come back to him. "Yeah, I remember that," said Robbie. "They dropped a net on me. And then, after that, the guy with armor and claws…"

"The Shredder," said Raph and Donnie under their breath.

"… showed up, demanding that I tell him where you and some guy named Splinter was. I told them I didn't know." Robbie made sure to give Raph a pointed look at that time. "He got real mad and kicked me. That's all I remember."

Raph finished for him. "The Shredder took his claws and sliced you across the chest. Just about killed you." Raph looked slightly guilty for his harsh judgment. "I brought you back here," he added, in hopes that this would cancel it out.

"So that's why I have bloody bandages wrapped around me?"

"That, and you have three broken ribs," said Donnie. "In fact, it's about time I cleaned your cuts and gave you new bandages." He walked over to a table and brought back a clear plastic bottle, another swath of gauze bandages, and a wad of cotton. "Raph, I'm going to need you to hold him tightly by the shoulders while I do this."

Raph nodded and did so. "Why?" asked Robbie.

Donnie grimaced. "This is going to sting."

He began to cut the first strip of gauze gingerly off of the teenager's body, unwrapping the strands every so often. It took Donnie ten minutes to completely remove the bandages, which he discarded in the bucket that Robbie had thrown up in. There, across Robbie's chest, were three red slashes that had been neatly stitched up.

Taking the cap off the bottle, Donnie pressed the cotton to the spout and overturned the bottle in his hand. The liquid inside began to seep into the cotton. When it was thoroughly soaked through, Donnie set the bottle down and looked at Robbie. "Are you ready?" he asked.

Robbie nodded and clenched his teeth. As soon as Donnie touched the cotton to the stitches, Robbie hissed in pain and struggled against Raph, who only tightened his grip. Donnie concentrated on cleaning the stitches with the alcohol, doing his best to make it as easy for the kid as possible.

Robbie knew that the pain was what could be considered a minor casualty compared to what could happen if the wounds became infected. Finally, it was over and Donnie had wrapped another set of clean bandages around him.

Robbie started to breathe more regularly and calmed down as the prickling pain the alcohol had caused ebbed away.

"Well," he said, "that was fun." Even though it had been anything but, Robbie still wanted to appear as cool as he could. He could have sworn that the corners of Raph's mouth had twitched slightly, as if he were fighting a smile.

"How long have I been out?" asked Robbie.

Raph and Donnie looked at each other. Robbie thought they were deciding which of them was going to answer. In the end, it was Donnie.

"Uh, three days."

"Three days! I've been out for—?"

The trio could hear footsteps approaching. All three looked to the entrance of the lair and watched as a short turtle with a childlike face and an orange mask entered with a couple of boxes of Chinese takeout. "I brought Murakami's," Mikey said in a singsong voice.

"All right!" said Raph. He walked over and took a carton and sat on the floor, wasting no time in eating.

Mikey took one look at Robbie and beamed, his smile stretching to both sides of his face. "Awesome, dude! You're awake!"

He dropped the food and ran at full speed toward Robbie, arms outstretched and open wide.

At the last possible second, Donnie stepped in front of him.

"Mikey," warned Donnie. "Remember what I told you..."

"Aaaaaw," drawled Mikey, a disappointed frown on his face. "Sorry. I forgot." He paused. "Hey! Does Leo know he's awake?"

"Yeah," answered Raph, "but he's busy meditating with sensei." His mouth was full of chow mein.

"I'll fix that," Mikey said, a mischievous grin on his face. His voice took on an overly dramatic tone. "Oh man! Not Space Heroes again!"

Robbie watched in confusion as Raph joined his brother in the charade. "Yeah, this show is so lame. That Captain Ryan is a total moron."

"And it's a new episode, too," added Donnie.

There was shuffling from another room, and Leo ran in, sweat already running down his blue-masked face. Color-coded turtles. Kind of elementary school. At least I'll be able to tell them apart though, thought Robbie.

Leo took one look at the TV. "The news? Seriously, guys? I was in the middle of meditating," he said, voice wavering with annoyance.

"You're always meditating," said Raph.

"A leader must maintain inner peace and focus so that he may have a clear mind to make the right decisions." Leo sounded very authoritative to Robbie, definitely leadership material.

"Cut the crap. The kid's awake," snapped Raphael.

"Uh, the name's Robbie," said Robbie.

Leo turned to look at him. Robbie regarded him with a nod. "How you doing?" asked Leo.

Robbie shrugged, but that aggravated his broken ribs and he cried out. "Aah! … Okay, I guess," he said through clenched teeth. His face was red and his eyes watered.

"Man, he's almost as stubborn as you," he heard Mikey whisper to Raph.

"Yeah, he's tough, I guess," Raph whispered back.

"He is very fortunate to be alive," returned a stern voice from behind the couch. Robbie didn't turn for fear of more pain and for fear of what he might see.

"Master Splinter," said the turtles reverently, all bowing slightly.

Splinter! thought Robbie. That's the guy that "Mr. Claws" was asking for.

Whoever this Splinter was, Robbie could hear him step around to where he could be seen. Robbie slowly looked up and found himself confronted with a giant humanoid rat that had dark brown fur and was dressed in a dark robe. Of course. First mutant turtles, then a guy wearing spiky armor, and now a giant rat. What doesn't this city have?

Splinter looked hard upon the boy, giving Robbie the impression that he was being studied. He suddenly felt very exposed and was forced to look away from the rat's ancient-looking eyes.

The room fell into a deathly silence, and when Robbie looked up again, Splinter was smiling. The rat bowed his head briefly.

"We thank you for not revealing our whereabouts," he said. "Especially when you did not have to shield us."

"No problem," was all Robbie said. It was all he could say. He couldn't think of anything else. He was just too in awe of the being he was faced with at that moment.

"It is indeed a problem when such actions can cause an unnecessary loss of life," Splinter replied sternly. "And I am sorry that you have been drawn into this."

"Drawn into what?" asked Robbie, his voice steadily rising. "I have no idea what is going on here! This all started almost a month ago when you guys…" He pointed at the turtles. "… beat up the Purple Dragons!"

"Hey, we saved your skin that night!" Raph shouted.

Robbie continued, completely ignoring him. "And ever since then, the Dragons won't leave me alone! Constantly cornering and pounding me. Now, after a second time around you guys, some dude in armor tries to kill me because I didn't tell him where you were. WHAT is going on?"

He aimed his anger-filled question at the rat, but Splinter didn't even flinch. He only appeared to be deep in thought. Then, sitting down next to Robbie, he let out a soft and weary sigh. "Perhaps it is best if I explain it to you. Starting from the beginning. I—."

"Wait, this isn't going to be your entire life story, is it? You're not going to start at when you were born and everything, are you?" asked Robbie.

"Yes… and no," answered Splinter. "I am going to start a little before my rebirth, as it were. You see, my name was once Hamato Yoshi, and I was not always a rat…"

For the next hour, Robbie listened to the former Hamato Yoshi tell him of what happened those many years ago in Japan. Of how he had lost his precious wife, Tang Shen, and his daughter, Miwa, to the one he formerly called his friend, Oroku Saki, or, as Robbie learned, the Shredder. He was told of how Splinter had fled to New York for a new beginning and his and the turtles' encounter with the mysterious Kraang and their mutagen.

"Kraang? What are the Kraang?" Robbie asked.

"Oh, they're a race of alien brains from another dimension," explained Donatello. "As far as we can tell, they want to destroy the city with the mutagen."

"Oh," said Robbie, as if that was an entirely logical explanation. Given his current company, he didn't really have the right to question the validity of it all. He looked at Splinter. "Go on."

And Splinter finished his story with the Shredder's most recent attempt to destroy him, prior to their meeting Robbie.

"Wow. That's just messed up," said Robbie softly. "I mean, the guy already killed your wife and kid. And he still wants to kill you?"

Splinter nodded stiffly. He seemed far away. Robbie supposed he was thinking of Tang Shen and Miwa.

The teacher returned.

"But I still have my sons," said Splinter. "Though they can never replace what I've lost, I am grateful that they are here to fill the void." He looked at his sons with nothing but love in his eyes, and Robbie felt as if he should not be there. He felt like he was intruding on a personal moment. Not to mention, he began to feel something painful in his heart and soul.

"So what's your story?" asked Leonardo.

"Yeah, Robbie, what's a decent kid like you doing on the streets and everything?" asked Donnie. "Where are your parents?"

"Well," began Robbie. He hesitated. Robbie never liked to discuss his personal life and everything, but these guys had saved his life, not once but, possibly, twice. He guessed he owed them that. "Well, they… they died."

"What?" asked Mikey. Once again, the room fell silent. Everyone suddenly felt uncomfortable, but Splinter broke the tension.

"What happened to them, Robbie?" he asked.

Once again, Robbie hesitated. He'd always done his best to not think about his past life. Needless to say, it was not a good experience for him. Taking a deep breath, he answered the question. "Well, uh, we were all in bed, sleeping," he said. "And some guy broke into our apartment and into my parents' room. He shot them. I was hiding in a closet. That was four years ago."

It wasn't the complete truth, but it wasn't a complete lie either. Robbie had wanted to tell them what had actually happened, but he didn't want to face it. In fact, he wasn't sure he would ever be able to.

Every eye was on him. Mikey's eyes were wide and it looked like he was about to cry. Donnie's were wide, too, but from the shock of what he'd just heard. Raph looked as if he wanted to punch his fist through the TV, and Leo looked to be thinking, formulating a plan. Splinter merely gazed down at him in sympathy. Robbie began to feel very hot behind the ears.

It was several minutes before anyone spoke.

"Well, why aren't you living with a relative? Like an aunt or a grandparent or somethin'?" asked Raph.

Robbie shrugged, but only slightly—He didn't want to aggravate his ribs again. "All of my grandparents are dead, too. And my dad's brother lives in Arizona. They were never that close, so I doubt he even knows they're gone."

"Then what about an orphanage?"

"Are you kidding? This is New York. There are hundreds of orphanages, and, if you were me, would you want to live in one?" Robbie snapped. He checked himself and immediately regretted the way he had just spoken. "Sorry," he said, "it's just I don't think I would have coped well living in an orphanage."

"Why are the Purple Dragons messing with you?" asked Michelangelo.

"They're not the only ones. Gangs all over the East Side have been trying to recruit me to join," said Robbie.

"Why?" asked Leo.

Again, Robbie shrugged. "Because I've been able to break into places without setting off alarms. That's a valuable skill when it comes to burglary." The turtles stared at him coldly, causing Robbie to explain himself. "When you live on the street with no cash and nothing but the clothes on your back, then you really have no choice. I'm not much good at spanging, so burglary is what I do. But I only take things like bread, apples, and water. That sort of stuff." He paused to see whether their reaction had changed or not. They still weren't buying it. He added, "I pay the people back by keeping an eye on their places. If I get wind of someone planning to do something, I call the cops and place an anonymous tip."

The guys neither moved nor changed their expressions. Robbie felt like disappearing, but Splinter gently placed a hand on his shoulder.

"I understand," Splinter said softly. His voice was full of kindness. "You did what you needed to survive." Robbie watched him cast a disapproving glance at his sons, making him feel slightly better about himself and what he did.

"So, that's why the Purple Dragons bother me," finished Robbie. "It's also why I'm leaving the city."

"Why do you intend to leave the city, Robbie?" asked Splinter.

Robbie sighed and he realized how old he sounded, and felt, by doing so. "I'm just tired," he said wearily. "Tired of being tormented. I'm tired of feeling like a hunted animal." He stopped to take a few uneasy breaths. "I plan to hop a train and go to Chicago. Tonight."

"I hate to break it to ya, but you're not really going anywhere for a while," said Donnie.

"What?" cried Robbie. He didn't like the sound of where this was headed. "What're you talkin' about? I need to go. I've had this planned for the past week. You can't keep me prisoner down here!"

Robbie tried to move to his feet, but Leo had already grabbed him by the shoulders and forced him onto his back. Robbie suddenly found himself looking up into the faces of four mutant turtles and a mutated humanoid rat.

"We're not holding you hostage, Robbie," said Leo.

"Then why can't I go?" Robbie tried to struggle free, but Raph now had a firm grip on his feet and Mikey and Leo both held his arms down.

"Robbie," began Donnie, surprisingly firm, "you have three broken ribs. If you strain yourself too much, you could end up hurting yourself even more. You could puncture one of your lungs. I - we just want you to stay down here until you're all healed up."

"But—" Splinter interrupted him.

"Surely you understand the reason," he said. "You have done us a service by keeping our location a secret; and, now, we wish to do you one in return by seeing to your recovery. After that, you shall be free to leave if you still wish to do so."

Robbie thought this over, knowing deep down that the rat was right. "Okay," he said minutes later as Raph, Mikey, and Leo released him. "So, how long will I be down here?"

They all looked at Donnie, waiting for his response.

"Oh, it shouldn't take more than a few weeks if you don't move around much," he answered.

"A few weeks?" It was more of an aggravated statement than a question. Raph and his brothers prepared to restrain him again, but there was no need. Robbie calmed down. "All right," he said with a sigh. "But what am I supposed to do the entire time I'm here? Lie on my back all day?" He sarcastically gestured to himself.

"Don't worry," said Leo.

"Yeah, we'll find something to keep your brain from turning to mush," said Mikey, who was grinning again.

"Well, that rules out Space Heroes," retorted Raph.

Everyone, except for Leo, laughed—even Robbie. He'd seen a couple of episodes before and thought about as highly of it as the others.

This was the happiest Robbie had felt in years.

Please be patient for the next chapter. I hope for it to be up by Sunday night, but I make no guarantees. I want it to be as well written and looked over as this chapter, compared to the other two.

Also, the next chapter is set to be written from Leo's point-of-view!