Hey guys, sorry this is so short, I didn't have a lot of time to write this one. Guest asked my to write a story where the turtles go up to the surface and get spotted by humans. Originally, I had this going in a different direction, but after I started writing it morphed into this. Hope you like it!

- On their Trail -

Today was the day Splinter had finally let them play in the sewers without supervision, as long as they used the buddy system. All four brothers were excited about this turn of events and left immediately to explore their newfound freedom. They started out with races and slowly progressed to tag. Each brother laughed and yipped as they were tagged and chased by their brothers. All in all, it was a rather fun and productive day, in their eyes. However, life as a mutant turtle is not all sunshine and rainbows, and the other shoe was just waiting to drop.

There was a lull in the turtles' merrymaking as they all tried to catch their breath. Each one smiling with such pure innocence that only a child could contain. While waiting for their second wind, they heard the slosh of disturbed sewer water up ahead. They all froze before diving into hiding spots, and waited for the sound to fade. But instead of fading, it grew. The sloshing became louder and louder, and with it the sound of voices accompanied it.

"I can't believe we have to do this! Everything smells down here."

"I know, right. I mean, I know the sewers smell bad, but I didn't think they would smell this bad."

"Let's just get this over with and get out of here. I heard there were alligators living in the sewers, and I don't want to get eaten."

Three voices total, that meant three times the danger for the turtles. They stood stock still as they waited for the voices to go away, yet they still came closer.

"Yeah, I heard about that too. It's supposed to be albino, right? With razor sharp teeth. Big, ugly thing."

"Yep, that's it. I heard it bit a guy's arm off."

"No way! I heard that it ripped a guy in half with its bare hands!"

"That's just a rumor. There's no way an alligator could use its hands. They walk on those."

"Well that's what Janette said! You can ask her about it."

By this point, the three intruders were almost next to the turtles' hiding spots. Each brother grew nervous as they held their breath and hoped the voices would turn around before they spotted the brothers.

The voices were right next to Raphael's hiding spot when one of them decided that was as far as they needed to go. After they turned around and left, the four brothers let out the breath that they were holding. The four slowly crept out of their hiding spots before convening. They were about to go home when Raph piped up.

"Let's go after them! We need to learn them not to come back!"

Donnie sighed before adding his two-cents, "Its 'teach them,' not 'learn them.'"

"Whatever. We still need to let them now this is our place, not theirs."

Mickey looked at his big brothers before saying, "I don't know. What if they're mean?"

"Then we beat them!" Raph was becoming more and more passionate about this, and each brother knew there was nothing they could do once Raph got like that. They all nodded and went after the voices.

They followed the voices' trail until it led them to a ladder, which connected the surface to the sewer. They all hesitated and looked to each other before Donnie had asked Raph if he really wanted to do this. Raph stayed adamant about his decision, and they all climbed up the ladder and popped up on the world above. They were greeted by the sounds of cars rushing by, horns honking, sirens wailing, and six collective gasps from behind them. The four turtles turned around and met a group slightly larger than the one they encountered in the sewers.

Raph and Leo stepped forward as they felt their younger brothers trembling behind them. None of them expected there to be this many humans, but the two oldest would put on a brave face for the younger two. Both turtles gave the humans their most menacing glare before Raph spoke.

"I'm only gonna say this once. Stay out of the sewers, that's our territory." Raph grinned as he thought of something else he could add, "Or else we'll eat you!"

The humans nodded their heads a little too much to show that they understood.

"Good, now get out of here before I change my mind."

The humans didn't need to be told twice. They ran away from the turtles in a mad dash. Raph watched them leave, and couldn't help the smile that was crawling across his face. Today he had defended his brothers without any assistance. He was very proud of himself, and apparently, so was his older brother. While they were walking back home, Leo pulled Raph aside and gave him a warm smile before saying, "I'm proud of you bro."

So, how was it? Please send a prompt if you have an idea for what you want to see next. Also, I am going to recommend a fan-made manga for y'all. It's called MNT Gaiden and its about our favorite turtles. If you haven't read this, then I highly recommend doing so. It is fantastic, and has great character development! See y'all next time!