Hey everyone! I'm coming back at you with a LONG CHAPTER! HORRAY
WARNING!
WARNING!
WARNING!
READ THIS!
I got a little intense in this chapter 0.0 I feel really bad about it. I cried writing this chapter.

I still say this chapter is Kplus but who knows. 0.0 I don't really feel it was overly bad, rating wise.

Here we go!

NICOLE'S POV

Every now and again, a day comes around that you stick into your "Worse day ever" list. This was one of those days. Especially for the Hamato family.

To be honest… I don't know what to do. I've never had to suffer from this before. I've gotten into fights, lost some friends, argued with my parents… sure, everyone does that eventually. I've never fully lost a person though.

The closest I've got to having that feeling was when my dog died a few years back. I mean, I lost my grandparents, but I was too young to remember them. So the pain of losing them wasn't that bad.

So I've never had to feel that pain.

…What am I saying, that's a lie. I've felt the pain of losing someone. I lost Vincent. He was Arinna's older brother, I know that… but he was family to me too. It hurt so much when he left our lives. I cried for so long… but I had no right to cry in front of Arinna. I had no right at all.

He was her family. He was the only family she had left and he was stolen from her. That is why I held in my tears. I can't even remember the last time I cried. I've been holding it in for so long that… I'm not even sure I can cry anymore.

At least that is what I thought till today.

Too much happened today. So much stress and anger and… just plain hate built up in the last 24 hours that I wasn't able to just shake it off. No on was.

I guess that is what happens when you grow close to a person. When you start to care about others, you tend to start feeling the same way they do about things. If they are mad, you get mad too. If they're sad, you get sad. If they're happy, you're happy. You see where I am going with this?

So…If someone hurts them… you get so angry that you feel like you are going to explode.

I have that feeling going for me right now.

It makes me wish I could have done something to ease the tension this family was feeling, but there was nothing I could do. In fact, the longer I thought about it, the more I felt the same tension myself.

I'm not a Hamato… I know that. But… to shell with all that! I don't care if I'm not blood related or whatever. If someone messes with this family they are messing with me too! This is Arinna and my adoptive nephews we are talking about!

Oh and Splinter. Splinter is like one of those cute old men you see walking around. He is small, has the thickest accent I've ever heard, and is super nice. So he is like a Grandpa to me. Family.

They are all family.

They are MY family.

And I know it has been hard on them recently with Leo leaving. I'm worried about him too, and I would gladly fly to Central America right now and drag his sorry butt home but I wouldn't even know where to look. So I'm stuck here, trying to help Arinna, Splinter, and their boys stay together as best as I possibly can.

It hasn't been easy, but we've managed so far. Even if they are forced smiles, the boys and Arinna are still smiling. It is better when they smile.

So… When I suddenly see them so bitter to the world… especially Arinna, who was always so cheerful and optimistic… it was hard to bare.

I can't help but grit my teeth and glare at the floor board angrily.

The day's events kept repeating over and over in my brain like a never ending movie. And each time it would end with the dead silence of the Hamato family, before each and every one of them rushed off somewhere to be alone.

I'm currently in the middle of the lair's living room, sitting on the couch surrounded by broken glass, a flipped table, and the shattered remains of any chance this family had of pulling themselves together.

I should explain and start at the very beginning.

The day honestly didn't start off that bad. For me, the day started around 7A.M. By 7;30 though that day was a living nightmare.

I normally hate waking up early, but I just couldn't seem to fall back asleep, so I forced myself up. Almost hissing at the sun when I opened the blinds, I sauntered into the bathroom to get ready for the day.

I was not a morning person. Heck, I wasn't even a day person. My parents and Arinna have often told me I'm similar to an owl. I'm basically nocturnal. I love staying up late into the night, and I hate going through the day. I like the Moon more than the Sun. I'm weird like that.

So you can sort of see how difficult it is for me to actually get up in the morning. I have to force myself to stay awake sometimes as I take a shower. I've actually fallen asleep while in the shower. It was kind of weird.

I went into the shower at 8Am and got out at 12. I don't know how I managed to stand up straight through all that time. The only reason I woke up in the first place is because I ran out of hot water and it turned to freezing cold water.

I can't understand how people can stand Ice baths, but whatever.

Speaking of cold showers, my worse day began when nothing but cold water came out of my shower.

"AHHH!" I shrieked as the cold water hit my back. "Cold! Cold!" I scrambled for the dial, turning it as far as it could go towards the hot side of the dial. No hot water came out though.

My neighbors or whatever already used all the hot water. At least, that was my guess. I'm not sure why I didn't have hot water, I would have to call the water guys later to ask.

So guess who had to force their way through a freezing cold shower? "C-Cold. Cold." I murmured the whole time through, struggling to clean my hair. "Come on Nicole. Bare through it! You got this- Eck! Colddddd!' I whined.

Once I was done, I stepped out only to find I had no towels anywhere in sight. "Oh come on!" I said, shifting my weight from side to side, shivering in the cold. Was my bathroom out to get me. I bet it was thinking, "Hey, hey… Lets mess with Nicole today. It should be fun!"

Leaving my bathroom I shuffled through my house till I was able to find a towel. "Towel. Here towel, towel." I whistled a bit as if the towel would come to me if called.

And then, something happened. Something that is so horrible, it is hard to speak of it!

…I'm hesitant to let you all know what happened during this.

…Nah, I'll tell you. Just keep it on the down low, okay? You all know how Baxter Stockman is my neighbor. Yeah well… he can't stand me, so instead of living in the room right next to mine, he instead moved to the rooms across from mine on the south section of the building while I live on the North side. Meaning there is a little pool dividing our rooms this time. The only time I would ever see him would be if I looked out my window and he so happened to have his window open as well.

That is about it.

Well… as I was looking for a towel, I forgot I had opened my window when I woke up.

Sniff. Sniff. I'm not proud of this.

He saw.

He saw me! I'm mortified people!

I had just spotted a towel lying near my closet and went to grab it when I looked to my right and realized my window was open, and there he was. He was watering those little flowers he keeps on his window sill. We both kind of just stood there for a second, gawking at each other. And he was just staring at me!

And then that guy had the nerve to blush and cover his mouth!

"AAHHHHHH!" I screamed for the second time that day, hitting the floor to get out of sight, my face a disturbing color of red. I was gonna kill him! I was gonna rip off his head! "Y-Y…. YOU'RE DEAD STOCKMAN!" I screamed, lifting my head just enough to peek over the window.

Still standing their like a dumbstruck teenager, Stockman stammered a few times, before snapping out of his daze. "S-SORRY!" he squeaked, slamming his window close and closing the blinds.

Reaching up, I quickly closed the window and blinds and rushed for a towel. Placing it around myself, I sat at the end of my bed, sniffing a few times.

It was then that I realized this was going to be a terrible day. First the shower, then the towel… and then Stockman…

Oh my gosh I can't believe he saw me. That was humiliating. It was just plain Gross. Grossgrossgross.

Why did these sort of things always happen to me?

Oddly enough though, this reminds me of my younger days. This actually hasn't been the first time someone has seen me nude. When I was a senior in Highschool and a complete idiot, a group of friends dared me to run down a street naked. Me being…. Well, me; I accepted it.

They all gave me 500 dollars to do it and I did it. That was a point in my life were I kind of just did anything if someone dared me. I would stick a knife in my mouth if someone dared me too. Thankfully no one did.

Anyway, yeah, that night I went nude through the streets. The only people who saw me was this old couple, who gave me horrified looks, and a few young kids. They all got embarrassed and ran away, but hey, it wasn't all bad. If it was a giant crowd I would have felt embarrassed, but it was getting close to sunset, so not too many people were out thankfully. The only down side is I also arrested that night for Indecent exposure.

I did a lot of wacky stuff as a kid. It is better I don't speak about it.

Do not attempt what I did.

Shaking the thought out of my head, I got to my feet and got dressed. I refused to open my window anytime soon after what just happened and instead moved into the kitchen to make some breakfast.

I honestly just wanted some toast after all of that. So I placed some bread into the toaster, and I swear I was feeling like Leo. Out of nowhere, the Toaster suddenly broke. Seriously, it just started to smoke for no reason! It was ridiculous! It made me wonder if this is how Leo felt every time he broke the toaster.

Unplugging the toaster and placing it to the side, I instead had some cereal. It wasn't very good cereal though. It was that weird Fiber One cereal. It was messed up.

Barely chewing and swallowing my cereal to avoid actually having to taste it as much as possible, I contemplated on where to get a new Toaster. Perhaps I should just fix my own toaster by myself and save myself the trouble of going out and looking at a billion new ones?

It sounded easier.

Shrugging at the thought, I gagged at the cardboard taste my cereal sent up my taste buds.

Unable to eat all of it, I threw the bowl into the sink and went to put up my hair.

"Note to self, never by Fiber One cereal ever again." I grumbled grabbing a couple handfuls of my hair.

Putting it up in a messy bun, I grabbed my shoes, adjusted my cloths, then headed out the door.

Alright, so I've had a bad day so far. No biggie. Just push through Nicole. Smile and everything should be fine. Just do what Arinna does. She is always able to smile on the worse days and things get better for her. So follow her example!

Deciding I should grab my mail before I go, I went to the little boxes that all of my neighbors had to use to get their mail. Skidding over to it, I used my key to open my mail box and grabbed my mail.

Junk mail. Junk mail. Letter. Bill. Bill. Bill. Magazine. Bill. Another Letter.

To my right, someone suddenly appeared from the stairs, moving towards me.

…Guess who also went out to get their mail that day?

Baxter fricken Stockman!

Seriously?! Are you kidding me?!

Flinching when he came into sight, both of us froze, staring at one another with wide eyes. A blush was already creeping on his cheeks as he struggled to say something. Instead though he turned and scrambled to open his mail box.

Feeling my throat go dry, I slowly looked over my mail, trying my best not to glance over at Stockman.

I wanted to clobber the guy. However, Arinna says I shouldn't just punch Stockman unnecessarily. I have to give my anger a logical look before I act on the impulse.

So to be fair, Stockman most likely didn't intend to see… my birthday suit. He was just watering his plants. I was the one who came strutting into the picture, so I can't blame him. I shouldn't have had my window open.

Deciding to be mature about the whole thing, I cleared my throat and nodded. "So… N-Nice day out." I managed to sputter out.

"….Y-Yeah." Stockman nodded, shakily pulling out his mail. "It is a perfect day."

"Yup." I nodded, placing my junk mail back into the box. This had to be the most awkward conversation in my life. That or it was a close tie to that one time my father attempted to give me The Talk and ended up just showing me this video on dogs in heat.

Thanks for scarring me for life Dad. Mind you all, that I was 9 when this happened.

That aside though, I suppose this wasn't so bad. I should just pretend like it never happened. Yeah that sounds like a plan.

Visibly feeling my day growing brighter with that idea, I lifted my head up high. I could have gotten away with it too, if Stockman hadn't opened his big, afro headed, mouth!

"I didn't know you had a tattoo on your lower back." He glanced at me shyly.

"AHHHH!" I screamed, my face exploding in a crimson red. Forget thinking logically about all what happened, Stockman is a dead man!

Screeching like a wild banshee I lunged at Stockman, who barely had time to let out a pitiful little girl scream before I punched him in the nose. "Pervert!' I yelped as he hit the floor. Groaning in pain, I left him there and instead booked it the other direction.

I'm setting his house on fire when I get back! No exceptions!

Sprinting down the road, I spun to the left, making a straight line to my store. I didn't stop until I was all the way there and safely inside.

Slamming the door behind me, I pressed my back to it, breathing heavily. Standing there for a few minutes, letting myself calm down, I slowly sunk to the floor. "Devil… thy name is Stockman." I breathed out in a dark grumble.

Pulling my knees close to my chest, I rested my chin on them.

Stupid Stockman. I can't believe that jerk.

Being all… Stockman like. I don't even know how to describe him. He's a dork. That is all I can say. Well, he's a genius, but that doesn't count.

Sighing, I closed my eyes. I'm just going to lock myself in here for forever and die. That is my plan. I never want to see Stockman again.

Cause I mean seriously, out of EVERYONE who could have seen me…. Why did it have to be him? Why~?

I admit I wouldn't have minded if it was that super hunk that leaves in the room above Stockman's. Now that would have been okay. I might have even struck a pose. But no, it had to be that nimrod.

Knock Knock

Jumping when someone suddenly knocked on the Bakery's door I jumped to my feet. Was it Stockman?! Go away Stockman!

Slowly reaching for the blinds along the door, I lifted them up carefully. Peeking out, I let out a sigh of relief to find it wasn't Stockman, but my cute little Nephew; Michelangelo.

"Mikey." I smiled, swinging open the door.

"Hi Nicole!" he waved, his Cowabunga Carol suit already on. "Ready to go?"

I blinked a few times unsure of what he was talking about. Then it hit me, it was Sunday. "Oh right… we have a party planned today." I rubbed my chin.

"Did you forget?" he titled his head.

"Kind of." I sighed, turning to get my outfit.

"That's alright." He called to me as I went to get ready. "I almost forgot too. Mom had to wake me up to remind me to go. And then I tripped down the stairs."

"You tripped down the stairs?' I asked ask, grabbing my outfit from the closet, and moving to put it on.

Watching quietly, Mikey snuck a doughnut from the stand, lifting up his giant turtle head, and plopped it into his mouth. "Yeah. I dunno what happened. I guess I was tired." He shrugged.

"Oh jeez, Sorry buddy. You didn't get hurt right?" I asked as I zipped the costume up.

"I'm fine. Mom accidentally burned her fingers making breakfast this morning too." He announced.

Arinna never normally burned herself while cooking. "I guess it is just an off day for all of us." I whistled.

"Off day?" Mikey asked. "Why do you say that? Have you had a bad morning too?"

"…Sort of.' I turned away, shuddering at the memory.

Seeing me shiver, Mikey frowned. "Hey, you okay?" he asked, looking worried.

"Fine." I sighed, pulled up my Little Sparrow attire. "Just a long morning."

"But the day just started. It will probably get better. At least, that is what Mom says. Then again though, she also dropped the milk today and got it all over the floor." Mikey rubbed his chin, frowning.
"Really?" I placed my Sparrow head on and glanced at him. "Makes you wonder what the rest of the day will be like."
"Probably the same it has always been. Go to the party, get beat up, go home, watch TV, sleep." Mikey sighed, turning to open the door.

At his lonely sigh, I frowned. "I'm sure it wont be exactly like that. I mean, you could come hang out with me after the party. We can go have some fun." I suggested, hoping to get the kid to smile a bit. Running up to him, I wrapped my arm around his shoulders. "What do ya say?"

Staring at his feet, he slowly looked up at me, smiling slyly. "Sounds cool." He grinned.

"That a boy. Come on." Together we moved to the Party Van and jumped inside. Deciding to put the whole Stockman thing behind me for now, I distracted myself by talking with Mikey about Bioshock. We had yet to finish the game, but we were both pumped to finish it.

"Hey, so when we finish the game, do you want to go back and be Evil?" I asked with a laugh.

"Evil?" Mikey glanced at me as he drove.
"Yeah, you know how you can either save the little sisters or not? Next time we can play it and not save them. We could be evil and see what the bad ending looks like." I announced.

Mikey frowned a little bit at that. "But that would be mean. I don't want to 'not save' little girls." He pouted.

"Mikey, it is just a game." I chuckled at him. The little sweet heart.

"I like being the Hero, thank you very much." He stuck his nose into the air, ending the subject at that. Rolling my eyes I nodded.

"Very well- Ah!" Our happy conversation was short lived at the sound of squealing tires before something rammed straight into the side of the party bus. Feeling myself flung back and forth in my chair, I snapped my attention outside to see a dark black van scratching the side of our van.

It was moving at such a fast speed that it completely took out the side view mirror.

"HEY!" I screamed in shock.

Furious, Mikey turned the car the other way into the lane next to avoid any more the damage. Honking his horn, Mikey glared at the van as it speed around the corner.

What the shell was that?! That dude came out of nowhere!

"What a jerk!" I growled.

"Donnie is gonna kill me!" Mikey wailed as we came to a stop by the light. He was indeed, and we hadn't even been able to stop that guy so he could pay for the damages. Now that I thought back to it, he didn't have a license plate either. Odd

"You okay Nicole?" Mikey reached over to place a hand on my shoulder.

"Yeah I'm fine." I smiled at him. "Just a little shaken up is all. I didn't see that coming."

"Me neither." Mikey sighed. "…Think Donnie will understand that it wasn't my fault?'
"We can explain what happened together. He's got to understand that another guy hitting us isn't our fault. It was that idiot's fault." I glared the way the black van disappeared. "I'll even help fix up the van."
"Really?" he beamed at me.
"Sure thing." I gave him a thumbs up. I guess I'll just have to add the van getting hit to the list of bad things that happened today. At least it wasn't too bad though and neither of us got hurt.

"Should we still go to the Party?" Mikey asked.

'I don't see why not." I shrugged. "None of us are hurt, and we can't really do anything about the car till later."
"Yeah… but that guy." Mikey glared towards the street the van disappeared down as if he intended in going after him.

"At his speed he is probably long gone by now. Just let him go. Things like this happen all the time in New York." I sighed. Mikey didn't seem to pleased in that and reluctantly nodded.

"Okay Aunt Nicole."

Smiling I reached over patted Mikey's head. "Come, lets get going."

Smiling, Mikey stepped on the gas and moved down the street. It only took a few minutes after that to get to the party.

I should have said "NO" when Mikey asked if we should continue to the party. That party was a nightmare!

As soon as we got there we were instantly pelted with young children grabbing and climbing on top of us. They pulled at my hair, punched at Mikey's stomach, threw cake at us. It was terrible.

And the worst of it? Well…

Mikey got pepper sprayed by an old lady who was at the birthday party. She had poor eye sight and she thought Mikey was a giant Grass hopper.

The poor, poor kid. He didn't even see it coming.

While usually I might laugh when something like this happened, I wasn't laughing this time. When I was little my younger brother pepper sprayed me as a joke.

…It wasn't a joke to me.

Being pepper sprayed hurt! It really hurt! There was no way I could laugh when I knew the pain that dreaded spray brought to people.

"Granny no!" one of the mother's yelled, running up to the old lady and grabbing her hand. "That is the entertainer!" she yelped.

Blinking a few times, the granny tilted her head. "Entertainer?" she blinked, giving Mikey a second look. Rolling on the floor screaming, Mikey struggled to reach under his mask and rub at his eyes.

"Hang on Mikey, I'm coming!" I called, pushing through the kids that had started to crowd around Michelangelo. They were all grabbing at him and laughing, thinking it was all some sort of joke.

"Hey!" I snapped at them, making them jump. "Back off!" That seemed to do that trick because they all went running away, or screaming to their parents, saying how I was being mean.

At this point, I cared very little if I hurt those little kids feelings. I was too worried about Mikey.

'Mikey? Buddy?" I asked, reaching forward and helping him sit up. Mikey hissed under his breath, trying to fit his fingers under his mask to whip away the Pepper spray. From the looks of it, the mask had blocked a lot of it, but some had snuck through the eyes holes.

"Here, come on." I grabbed his hand and helped him up. "Don't itch it. You might get dirt in your eyes and that will make it worse." I said gently.

As we began to move towards the house, the women who had stopped the Granny from attacking Mikey ran forward, "Here let me help-" the women attempted to say.
"No. It is okay." I said quickly, knowing I would have to take off Mikey's mask to wash his eyes. "I'll take care of it." I smiled, quickly moving Mikey into the house and into the Bathroom. When we were in I closed the door, locked it, and seated Mikey down on the edge of the bathtub. Once he knew we were alone, he threw off the mask, and rubbed at his eyes violently.

"Mikey-" I grabbed his wrists. "I said don't rub at it, you'll make it worse." I said softly.

"I hate this job!' he whispered angrily, shutting his eyes tightly. He was trying his very best not to get angry but I could tell his nerves were at their peak.

Sighing sadly, I nodded.

"I know." Grabbing a wash cloth from the side, I got it wet with water and moved to sit next to him. "Here, let me see." Grabbing his chin I turned his head to me. Dabbing it at his eyes, I removed any dirt or oil that might be surrounding his face. "Okay, here." Turning on the bathtub, I allowed Mikey to grab handfuls of water and splash it against his face.

"I hate it…" Mikey said after a few minutes of washing his eyes. "…I… hate this." He suddenly sniffled, crying out in pain.
"Mikey?" I leaned towards him, placing a hand on his back.

"I hate this job!" I yelled, tears streaming down his face, causing his eyes to burn even more.

"…Mikey." I whispered. Wrapping my arm around his shoulder, I hugged him tightly. "Hey. It is okay." I said softly, reaching up with the washcloth to rub away his tears. "It is okay. Everything will get better."
"No it won't." he whispered. "Nothing is getting better." He turned to me, his eyes red and puffy. Frowning, I gently reached up to cup his face. At the action, he looked ready to cry even more. "…I want Leo back." He said quietly.

At his heart broken words I moved forward and wrapped my arms around his neck, holding him close. "I know." I held him tightly. "I know."

Saying nothing else, Mikey hugged me back, hiding his face in my shoulder. "…Can… can we go home?" he asked in a quiet voice.

"Yeah." I patted his shell. "Yeah we can." Helping him to his feet, we left. We didn't bother letting any of the hosts know that we were leaving, we basically just left.

I was never coming back to this house again, that was for sure. I didn't care how much they paid me.

Placing Mikey in the passenger seat, I moved towards the driver seat. Just before I was about to get in, I looked over my shoulder and cupped my hands around my mouth. "Worse party ever!" I screamed before ducking my head in and driving away.

I tried to keep it at a leisurely pace, hoping to keep Michelangelo as comfortable as possible. "You okay over there buddy?" I asked in a gentle voice.
He nodded his head numbly. "Fine."

That Pepper Spray probably hurt like shell right now. He took a full blow of it too. Hopefully his mask though kind of blocked some of it so it didn't hit him too directly, but who knows. Either way, just having it around your eyes can sting.

"…You know-" I opened my mouth, hoping to some how bring up the mood. "I got pepper sprayed once too."
"By an old lady?" Mikey asked dully.

"No, my brother. He thought it was funny… until I started screaming." I sighed. Mikey glanced at me, looking a little curious. Alright, the bait is set, now reel him in!

"Yeah, he had found it in my Mom's purse. He was little at the time so he didn't know how bad it was to spray it in people's eyes. So he came up to me while I was playing a video game and just sprayed it without even a warning." I glanced at Mikey.

"What did you do?"
"I kicked his butt, that is what I did." I snorted. "But I was also in a lot of pain, so when he realized that Pepper Spray hurts he got all freaked out and started screaming too. I got mad at him and told him to shut up and get me something to whip it off." I slouched a bit. "But you know, I was just a dumb as my baby bro."

"What do you mean?" Mikey titled his head, looking less focused on his eyes and more focused on my story. Just the way I want it.

"Well, I started washing my eyes out like you're suppose to, but then I went and got a Lemon. For the life of me I can't remember where I heard this from, but I remember someone telling me that lemons are great for Pepper Spray."

"Are they?"

"No, not at all. And don't go home and use lemons either because it burns." I gave him a warning look.

"You stuck them to your eyes?" Mikey gasped.
"Yeah I did. And you know what I said as soon as I put them on my eyes?" I inquired, raising an eye brow.

"What?" he looked at me innocently.

"….AHHH! AHHH! AHHHH!" I started to scream, pretending that I was back in that day so many years ago and sticking lemons to my eyes.

Jumping back, Mikey began to laugh, pointing at me. "Hahaha! W-What happened then?!" he cackled.
"My dad comes running in screaming at us!" I was starting to get into the story now. "But of course, we had to get our stupidity from somewhere, right? So my Dad grabs me, and says "You dumb kids. There is only one way to stop the pepper spray sting' and then he grabbed some salt and threw a couple sprinkles of it in my eyes."

"OHH!" Mikey covered his mouth, kicking his legs out and laughing.

"Here I go again. AHHH! AHHHH! AHHHH! THAT DIDN"T WORK DAD! IT DIDN"T WORK!" I screamed. "Then… Then my Mom comes in. Bless her heart. She smacks my brother on the head, then me on the head, and finally my Father on the head saying that we would be the death of her. Then she took me by the arm, dragged me upstairs, and cleaned out my eyes. Then she brought me back down stairs and put some whole milk on my eyes."

"Milk?" Mikey gawked. "Didn't that burn too?!"

"On the contrary. It is actually suggested that you put a few drops of milk on your eyes when pepper sprayed. It stops your eyes from stinging. It stopped stinging when I put some in my eyes."

"Really? Can I put some milk on my eyes too?" he asked.

"Of course buddy." I grinned. "We'll get some as soon as we get back to the lair. Beaming at me, Mikey nodded.

I had at least gotten the kid in a better mood. That was a score for me.

Anyway, after adding that event to the list of bad things that happened that day, we quickly returned to the lair. We would normally race back to the lair, but Mikey wasn't in any mood to go skateboarding, so we walked back. He said his vision was kind of blurry, but that would pass with time.

He might have to wash his eyes again just to be safe though.

Running ahead a bit, I opened the lair doors for Mikey to go in.

"Hey, Ari! We're back!" I called inside as Mikey stepped in. Sticking her head out, Arinna titled her head.

"You're back? I thought you wouldn't be back for another hour-' she trailed off at the sight of Mikey. "Michelangelo!" she gasped. "What happened to your eyes?" she dropped the spoon she had in her hands and rushed for her youngest son.

Looking ready to cry when she got close, Mikey tried his best to shrug it off. "I'm fine Mom… Really." He mumbled. Not buying it for even a second, Arinna lifted his chin to get a good look at his face.

"Were… were you pepper sprayed?" she asked in shock.

Hesitant, Mikey shrugged his shoulders. "A bit. There was an old lady at the party… she thought I was a grasshopper."
"Who pepper sprays a grass hopper?" I mumbled quietly behind the two of them. That is just weird.

Narrowing her eyes, looking angry, Arinna lead Mikey into the Kitchen. "Donatello! Get out here!" she called.

"Mom. I'm working-" Donnie started to say from the Lab.

"Get out here now!" Arinna snapped.

Wow. Sudden Arinna snapidge there. That is never good.

There was a shuffling sound before Donnie stumbled out of the lair, looking a little panicked. It was never a good idea to anger his Mother, and apparently she was already at the angry level. "Y-Yes?" he asked timidly.

"Come look at Michelangelo's eyes." Arinna instructed, sitting Mikey down at the nearest chair. Confused, Donnie didn't understand what his Mother was talking about until he got close enough to see for himself.
"Wow, Mikey." He gawked at the sight of his Baby brother's red and puffy eyes. "What happened?"

"Got Pepper sprayed." Mikey sighed, lowering his gaze. Kneeling next to the chair, Donnie cupped Mikey's face, examining his eyes.

"Well, it doesn't look to bad." He leaned a little closer, turning Mikey's head back and forth. "Did you already wash most of it out?"
"Yeah. Aunt Nicole helped." Mikey nodded meekly.

Behind all of them, I leaned against the wall and let Donatello get to work. He knew more about this then I did after all, so I didn't want to get in the way.

I did, however, go into the kitchen and get some milk like I told Mikey I would. Warming it up a bit, I brought a cup to Mikey and placed it on the table next to him. "Here ya go Kid." I smiled. "Place a few drops of that in your eyes."
Both Donnie and Mikey turned to the cup, nodding. "Thanks Nicole. This is just what I needed." Don took the cup and helped drop a few droplets of it into Mikey's eyes. Then, when Mikey got a little use to use, Don splashed the whole thing on his face.

Gagging a bit, not expecting it, Mikey shook his head. "Don!" he yelped.

"What?" he asked innocently. "You got to make sure you get it everywhere."

Sputtering a bit, Mikey rubbed off most of the milk, pouting at his older brother.

The dorks.

Chuckling, I leaned back against the wall, staring at the two.

Poor kid. Mikey definitely didn't deserve that. Especially since all he wanted to do was help that Birthday girl laugh a little bit.

Sighing, I shook my head. Could this day get any worse?

…I really regret saying those words. I really do.

Because literally a few seconds after saying that, Raphael, who had woken up from all the noise, came striding into the room. "Hey, what's goin' on?" he grumbled.

Looking to him, Mikey frowned. "I got Pepper sprayed."

Blinking a few times, Raphael's eyes widened. "…Hahah!" he suddenly burst into a fit of laughter, pointing at his younger brother. "You serious? That is so lame!" he cackled.

Dude, not cool Raph. Not cool.

"Raphael." Arinna turned to give her son a disapproving look.

"That isn't funny Raphael." Donnie rose to his feet, narrowing his eyes.

"It is hilarious!" his older brother disagreed.

"It is not!" Donnie snapped angrily.

The whole room went quiet at Donnie's raise in voice. He didn't do that often. He was like Arinna in that way. They were both soft spoken and usually so mellow, but when they raised their voice, you knew they were serious.

Narrowing his eyes, Raphael scowled. "Picking a fight braniack?"
"Maybe I am." Donnie grumbled.

Oh boy. This escalated way too fast! I mean, even Leo and Raph's fights didn't start this fast. It usually took a few minutes for it to get to this level. I guess everyone's emotions are a little high strung lately.

"Boys-" Arinna stepped forward to stop the confrontation before it began.

"Not this time Mom." Donnie growled. "I'm sick of Raphael's behavior."
"My behavior?" Raphael snarled. "What is your problem with it? You've been acting real high and mighty lately Don."

"And you've been acting like a complete jerk. You act all tough in front of us when you don't even do anything. You're never here any more and when you are, all you do is laugh at us and pick on us!" Don growled. "This family needs you Raph, and all you do is sleep all day."

"Don't start lecturing me like you know everything Donnie-boy, because you don't." Raphael held up a finger of warning. "So back off."

"I'm not afraid of you Raphael." Donnie rolled his hand into a fist, ready for a fight.

"Don't push me Donnie." Raphael let out a final growl of warning.

Freaking out, my eyes widened at the sight. Were they really going at it this time?! Seriously? No way!

Seeing Donnie's movement, Raphael mimicked him, getting into a boxing position.

"Boys!" Arinna called before the two lunged for each other. Tackling each other to the ground, the two rolled around, punching and kicking at each other like a bunch of wild animals.

"Ah!' I shrieked when they flung themselves at me. Ducking seconds before they got to me, I winced when they slammed into the wall, knocking down one of the book shelves.
"Donatello! Raphael!" Arinna threw off her apron to stop the two.

'Dudes! Calm down!" Mikey called as well, unsure if he could stop his two brothers at this point.

This was crazy. Really crazy. I had never seen the boys like this… especially Donatello.

Crawling a bit to the side, not wanting get into the fight of two ninjas, I paused when my hand came into contact with cloth. Realizing I had run into a robe, I looked up to find none other than Splinter had come into the room.

"What is going on here?" he demanded, his voice booming.

"Raph and Don." I said, dumbly pointed to them. Following my finger, Splinter's eyes widened at the sight of his Son's rolling around on the ground.

It was like watching two lions fighting over territory. You could obviously see Raphael had the advantage of muscle on his side, but Donnie also had his brains. He was using Raphael's anger to tire him out, making it easy for him to win the overall battle.

…Then again though, Raphael is pretty stubborn, like his Mom.

Back to Splinter though.

Looking like a very angry Papa Splinter, he moved towards the two. "Boys." As he got closer, he reached out to stop them, hoping to stop their fighting threw words over violence. He was just about to place a hand on Raphael's shoulder before Raphael flung his fist back, slamming it straight into Splinter's face.

OH SUGAR HONEY ICED TEA!

Hearing Arinna gasp, I could see her cover her mouth in shock. Mikey and her both looked horrified.

Shell, I felt horrified!

Raphael… even if he hadn't meant to… just punched Splinter in the face. IN THE FACE!

He was a dead man/turtle walking!

Realizing he had hit something other than Donatello, Raphael slowly turned to look over his shoulder. When he had realized what he had done, he grew pale. Donnie's expression mimicked Raph's, neither of them knowing what to say.
"M-Master Splinter." Raphael stammered, lowering his fist.

Splinter's eyes were closed, and his nose looked a little purple from bruising. "My sons." His voice was livid. He reached up, grabbing the end of his nose and putting it back into place with a sickening crack.

Yup… they were dead.

Snapping his eyes opened, Splinter moved faster than my eyes could follow. Grabbing Raphael's arm he flipped his son over his shoulder. Hitting the ground, Raphael gagged as the air was knocked out of him.

'OH!

Not giving Raphael a chance to breath, Splinter twisted Raphael's body around before chucking him into Donatello, who squeaked. With a large thump the two hit the ground in a pile, each groaning in pain, only to yelp again when Splinter hit both of them on the head with his walking stick.

"I've had enough of all of this." Splinter's voice boomed over everything. "WE are family. All of us. We are each other's strengths and weakness, if none of you can come to realize this, we might as well as admit our family is already doomed!"

Staring at the Sensei, the Hamato family lowered their gazes to the floor. What he said was true, and they all knew it.

In a way, none of them wanted to admit that this family was falling apart without Leo here, but it was true. Well, I guess it also isn't true. The family didn't just stop working when Leo left, it was a slow process.

So many things happened that no one knew how to deal with it. With the boys no longer patrolling the city, they had no way of getting out their anger, and their sense of team work had plummeted.

No offense to Raphael, but he wasn't exactly the best guy to turn to for advise either. Which is what Donatello and Michelangelo often did with Leo. With him gone, and Raphael being basically the only big brother they had left, both of them had been at a lost on what to do to fix the family.

It was actually one of the main reasons Mikey often went to Donatello for comfort after Leo left. Donnie was the only big brother Mikey had left that he felt would actually help him with his problems and give him logical advise. It helped him for a while, but then Donnie turned most of his attention to work, leaving Mikey in the dark.

Which, I guess in a way, is why Mikey turns to Arinna and me now for advise. Mikey loves his Mom, but I think even he doesn't want to always be relying on his parents for help. He wants to grow up just as everyone else does.

So I guess that is why he hangs around me so much. I might be his Aunt, yeah, but I'm much more of a friend to him than an Aunt any day. I'm that Fun Aunt that lets him go things that he would never tell Arinna that he has done.

Don't tell her that either, or she might just start asking what dangerous things Mikey and me do. Example, skateboarding at top speed down the sewer lines.

Don't ever tell her we do that. She will end my life. I'm not kidding, she will.

That aside, back to family problems. After Donnie and Raphael hit the floor, Splinter moved to the kitchen. You almost forget how old he is when you see him flip people so easily. And then you see how slow he walks and you remember that Splinter isn't as young as he use to be.

"Splinter." Arinna stared at him.

"I'm sorry about that Arinna." Splinter bowed to her. "I know you were hoping to gather the family for Dinner tonight."

Lowering her gaze, Arinna nodded.

All hopes of that happening left as soon as Raphael got up from the ground.

Baam!

Slamming his fist into the ground, Raphael jumped to his feet. Stepping over his younger brother, Raphael stormed towards the door.

I sighed as I watched him. Raphael's being a hot head again. Just man up and admit you were in the wrong Raphael, jeez. Is it really that hard?

"I'm leaving." Raphael grumbled.
"Raphael, please." Arinna begged, running after him. He paused at the door, slowly looking over his shoulder at her. Standing in the middle of the room, Arinna looked desperately at her second oldest. "…I made your favorite." She said softly. "…Pizza."

Eyes widening, Raphael turned to gawk at her. It seemed like so long ago since their Mother had last made Pizza. I think the last time was the day right before Leo left.

At her stare, Raphael's anger visibly disappeared and he sighed.

Don't ever tell him I told you this… but I think Raphael is completely a Mama's boy.

Rubbing the back of his head awkwardly he nodded. "Okay… just a few slices."

In this family a few slices translates to 40 pieces. Just so you know.

Moving back into the room, Raphael paused at where Donatello was still on the floor and who had just began to sit up. Staring down at him, the two glared at each other for a few seconds.

Don't start again please.

Then Raphael shocked us all by extending a hand down to his little brother. Gawking at the hand, Donnie frowned suspiciously.

"Just take it dork before I change my mind." Raphael scowled. Looking annoyed at the comment, Donnie reluctantly took his older brother's hand and let him help him to his feet.

I think I saw Arinna smile at this, but I wasn't sure. At least the two of them weren't fighting anymore.

"Dinner will be ready soon!" Arinna called, moving back into the kitchen. Nodding their heads, the boys all moved to the table. Sitting around their sensei, the atmosphere was a little dull. It wasn't intense or anything, it was kind of just awkward.

Moving to join them, I sat next to Mikey, who was sipping on some water.

"Your eyes feel better?" I asked with a tilt of my head.
"Yeah." He nodded, placing his cup down. Smiling at me, he jumped to his feet and moved to the couch.

"Mikey." Arinna called over her shoulder. "Dinner is almost ready." She repeated.

"I'm just checking the news." He explained, grabbing the TV and turning it on. Knowing Mikey he was probably hoping to hear something on the Nightwatcher or Hunter. Those two oddly enough always seemed to brighten Mikey's mood. I think because they reminded him of a better time when his brothers and him would go off and fight bad guys.

Watching him a smile, I shook my head and got up to make myself something to drink. "Stealing your mug Arinna." I announced, grabbing a large white mug from the counter.

"That is my favorite mug." She glanced at me.

"I know, I'm borrowing it." I grinned, placing some water and ice in it.

With a sigh she nodded. "Just don't break it."

I felt almost tempted to place the mug back after that. With my luck today I might just break it. Regardless of the thought though, I used the Mug anyway.

Bad Idea. This is what happened right after I grabbed the mug.

"Breaking News." The News reporter suddenly spoke across the room. "We come to you live with some shocking news."

Lifting his head, Mikey stared at the TV with wide eyes, hoping it had something to do with either the Night Watcher or the Hunter.

"Earlier today a suspect around his 50's entered a local bank down in Lower Manhattan. What appeared to be a simple robbery quickly escalated to full on murder when this criminal pulled out a gun little under an hour ago, shooting two people. One of the two have been pronounced dead as of now while the other is in critical condition. News on their condition is unknown. Well get back to you on their care in a few hours."

Listening quietly to the report, I shook my head. Criminals now a days. They were brutal.

"Hey Mikey, turn that off and come eat." Donnie called next to me.

"But Donnie-" the younger turtle whined.
"Come on." Donnie grumbled. "You've watched too much TV lately anyway."

Mikey slouched a bit, looking back to the TV. As he reached for the remote, he paused when a mug shot of the criminal appeared on the screen. I could barely see it from where I was at, but who ever it was… they seemed kind of familiar for some reason.

"This man is extremely dangerous and armed. He was last seen moving towards Brooklyn. All citizens are asked to remain in doors and lock all entrances.

"Mikey, I said come on." Donnie said again, moving to the TV to turn it off himself. At Mikey's intense gaze at the screen he sighed and shook his head.

"You know, TV affects your brain-" he trailed off at the sight of the mug shot. "Jeez. Crazy criminals." He shook his head.

Rising to my feet, feeling a dark chill run up my spin, I slowly moved to the TV screen. That man… He looked so familiar. As I got closer and closer to the TV, a sick realization hit me.

CRASH

I didn't even realize it, but the mug in my hands slipped from my grasp. I didn't even react when it hit the floor. I was too horrified at the sight before me.

"Nicole!" Donnie jumped in surprise. "Mom just cleaned the floor this morning." He scolded. "Why did you-?!"

"…Are you serious?" I mumbled. I felt sick. I probably looked the way I felt too. "This guy again? Can't he just… he…" I felt flustered as I struggled to cope with the information just thrown at me.

I knew that Man. I had known him for a very long time. I hadn't seen him in forever though. In all honestly, I was glad I didn't have to see him often.

But… why?! Why did you have to show his face now after all these years?! Especially now? Especially today!?

"Aunt Nicole?" Mikey titled his head.

"Hey-" Donnie reached out to place a hand on my shoulder, "You okay?" I almost didn't even notice Donnie's touch.

Slowly looking to my concerned Nephews, I shook my head. "No… No I-"

"Hey, are you all coming to eat or what?" Arinna stuck her head out of the kitchen. I jumped at the sound of her voice, turning around wildly, as if I had just been caught with my hand in the cookie jar.

"Arinna." I felt myself gasp.

No. Oh no no no no. Arinna stay away. Don't come over here. Don't look at the News. You can't see this. You can't see…. Him.

"…What?" she frowned, moving towards us. "You okay Nicole? You look a little pale." She noted. She trailed her eyes down at my feet. "Wha- Nicole! I said don't drop my favorite Mug!" She gawked at the shattered mug. "And you purposively went and broke it?"

"She didn't mean to." Donnie said quickly. 'Nicole just… Nicole?" he asked when I began to shake my head.

"Arinna, don't come over here." I said, holding out my hand for her to stay back.

"What?" Arinna frowned as she reached for a pan and broom. "I'm not worried about some shattered glass."

"No, really. Don't." I practically begged as she approached.
"Nicole-"

"Arinna! Don't!" I yelped. The room went quiet at my outburst, and everyone, including Raphael and Splinter, looked at me in surprise.

"Jeez Nic, chill out." Raphael mumbled.

"….Nicole?" Arinna asked quietly, lowering her hands. She was starting to looked really worried about me now. "What is it?"

"I…" I lowered my head. I couldn't say it. I just couldn't.

Behind me, the TV flickered slightly, the MUG shot seemingly growing bigger and bigger.

"All news should be reported to the police immediately. If spotted, call the nearest authorities. Eye witnesses say that the man was last seen wearing a large hoodie, jeans, and beanie, and had a black beard."

"Yes, though we are unsure if the gun is still in his possession, the suspect has had several charges placed on him throughout the years."

"That is right. Through several eye witnesses and surveillance cameras, we have determined the Suspect in Crime to be 58 year old Joseph Kentin."

That is when any chances of us getting through the day with a smile completely plummeted to the ground. You didn't even have to ask to know. You could see it in everyone's faces.

Kentin. Arinna's last name she had gotten from her Father… Joseph Kentin. He was back and starting up trouble again. And what's worse; he had just killed a person and injured another.

The room was dead quiet. No one said anything… they were afraid to.

It all had to be some sort of sick joke. Why was all of this happening now? The Hamato family was already having enough trouble and yet… and yet this comes up.

"…Arinna." Splinter rose to his feet. "That man…"
Arinna's eyes were the size of dinner plates. Sluggishly she moved forward. As if caught in a trance, she moved around us and towards the TV.

Behind her, the rest of us were quiet. No one knew what to say. What could we say?

Behind me, Raphael and Splinter moved closer, their eyes shielding whatever emotions they were feeling on the subject.

Arinna knelt in front of the TV, looking over the words and listening quietly to News reporters.

Joseph Kentin… murder… shoot 2… One announced dead… on the run…

All the different sentences seemed to be mixing together suddenly. It was hard to keep track.

"Dad." Arinna suddenly spoke, reaching her hand up to run her finger over the Mug shot of her Father.

Her voice was so small, so broken, that I could feel tears prickling in the corner of my eyes.

"You stupid man." She whispered. "You just can't... You... You're a murderer..." she shook her head.

The News had just begun to move onto other news when seconds later the glass that surrounded the TV erupted into fragments around the room.

"Arinna!" Splinter yelled as she slammed her fist into the TV. In a mad dash to stop their Mother from ramming her fist into shattered glass, the boys lunged for her.

"MOM!" the grabbed at her arms and shoulders tugging and yanking her back.

"Can't you just leave me alone!" Arinna screamed, kicking her feet out, flipping the coffee table over on its side. "Why did you come back!? WHY!?"

Oh shell.

"Arinna stop!" I called pleadingly, moving to help the boys.

I was scared. I was angry. I was crying. It was a mess.

The next couple minutes were was like a giant blurr. I faintly remember screaming, crashing sounds, and the blinding heat of tears.

I remember it took all of our strengths to contain Arinna after she exploded. And it wasn't an easy battle. Arinna went nuts. She was throwing and breaking stuff all over the place. Flipping the tables, breaking the chairs, breaking the lights. I thought Raphael and Donatello's fight was bad.

This was like a battle ground.

Like every person though, all of Arinna's rage and anger eventually drained away and she wore herself out.

Pulling away from us in one last burst of energy, Arinna took off, locking herself in her room. We tried to talk her into coming out, but she wouldn't hear it.

Mikey soon followed his Mother's example, rushing off to his room. The others soon followed. Donnie secluded himself to his lab, Splinter to the training room, and Raphael took off on his bike.

Leaving me in the exact same spot I was when I started this messed up little tale.

On the couch, surrounded by a broken home.

Lifting my knees up to my chest, I placed my hands around my ears and squeezed. Rocking back and forth a bit, I listened quietly to dark silence that filled this once lively lair.

Now all I hear is nothing.

Accept maybe the soft sounds of Arinna's sobs.

Leo… seriously.

Come home.

Please Leo. We need you.

I don't know how much we can bare all of this.

So come home! Now!

LEO!
-000-

A lean shadow slunk through the darkness of the Central America airport.

Keeping low to the ground and out of sight of all civilians, the shadow quietly crept along the fence towards the nearest plane headed straight for America.

Straight for his home.

New York City.

Using the shadows as his cover the being sprinted through the grass, ducking under a near by truck as it moved closer to the plane.

LEO!

The being flinched, looking around wildly. Had someone just called his name? No, it couldn't be possible.

But... at the same time, the young Ninja Turtle, Leonardo Hamato, felt a tight pain surrounding his heart. Something wasn't right, and it was about time he went home and found out what it is.

Heads up New York. He's coming back.

ABOUT FRICKEN TIME LEO! Jeez!

Hey everyone, so there is the chapter. It was around 10,000 words, so I hope that makes up for how long it has been taking me to update. And it was all in Nicole's POV. I kind of felt like this whole chapter would fit better if it was Nicole's perspective :D

Anyway... yeah. I'm a terrible Author. I have all the sad things happen to Arinna. And I'm always picking on Mikey :( Poor Mikey. I literally once got Pepper Sprayed. It was horrible! It was like I was suddenly blind, and my nose got all stuffed up- ugh it was a mess. :( Never want to do that again.

Milk does help people. It really does. Just splash it on your face. Seriously.

16: They do. And it really just gets worse in this chapter. As for when he comes back, you just got your answer now up above ^_^

Grapejuice101: Thanks for the review!

Animesan: Thanks for the review! And Donnie really shouldn't blame himself. I'll definitely add some Mikey and Arinna interactions!

Tentenbaby: Update is here!

Momobear9898: A Leo returns!

Konannagatoyahikolover10: Thanks for all the reviews!

The Potatoe one: She definitely will give him a big bear hug! The biggest bear hug ever!

Angelchamp3: Thank you so much!

Tmntfan4ever: It is okay. I wont lose the narrating because I like to write that style, and other readers seem to read it fine, but I will try to make it understandable in the future :)

CatGirlFireFlare: I was crying just writing this chapter. :(

IloveRaphael: I would die of joy if Raphael let me ride on his bike!

Treeni: Haha, I know. Hopefully though I'll be able to finish this story before all the others one :D