Ch. 4
New Friend, Old Enemy

Man, I got to say, after spending the past few nights doing nothing but busting some bots, I was glad to be doing something fun tonight. Good, old fashion ninja fun for me and my bros. And fun for us consisted of us racing and doing tricks across the rooftops at night.

"Check it out!" Donnie shouted.

He lunged forward, running past all of us. He jumped off the rooftop and flipped, letting out a loud and happy "yee-hee!" He landed neatly on the opposite rooftop, sliding to a stop.

"Nice one, Don!" I yelled.

"Watch this, Nia!" said Mikey.

He jumped and bounced of the side of a rooftop water tower. He flipped in midair before rolling onto the opposite rooftop, landing right next to Donnie. Mikey laughed as he punched his fist into the air, and Donnie clapped. We all skidded to a stop at the end of the roof. We looked down to see the drop was pretty far down.

"Top that, chumps!" Mikey shouted as Donnie smirked at us, making challenging gestures with his hands.

"Uh-uh, them's fightin' words, Mikey!" I taunted, grinning at the younger turtle.

"Alright, guys…" Leo grinned. "Check this out!"

Leo took several steps back, then darted forward. He did a couple of front flips before jumping off of the roof. He did a few more flips in the air before landing on his feet on the opposite roof, finishing off with a midair cartwheel.

"Whoa!" Mikey gasped.

Leo nodded, then turned to smirk at me and Raph. Me and Raph looked at each other.

"Ladies first?" he said teasingly.

I rolled my eyes. "Oh, aren't you a gentlemen?"

"C'mon, Nia!" Mikey yelled. "Whatcha got up your sleeve, girl?"

I chuckled. "Alright," I shook my arms a little to loosen myself up. "Let's see how you boys like this!"

I crouched down for a second before sprinting forward. I stepped up on the ledge and leaped off, holding my arms out. I curled up and did several summersaults in the air. I landed on the roof with my three other bros, spinning in a circle and sliding back, almost like a figure-skater sliding on the ice. I grinned at them as I stood up straight, walking up to them with my hands in my pockets.

"Sweet moves!" Donnie jeered.

Leo stared in amazement, and Mikey wolf whistled. I smiled at them as I walked forward, looking across the building at the fourth, remaining turtle.

"Your turn, Raph!" I called to him. "Show us what yah got, bro!"

Raph looked at me, grinning with mischief. He cracked his neck as he took a step back. Then he ran to the ledge, jumped, and shot forward. I had one glance at my bro's smirking face before he crashed into us. I let out a yelp as me and my bros were all knocked down to the ground. I heard Raph laugh as he got off of us. He sat on the ground and smirked at us as the other boys all stood up.

"Not cool, dude," I groaned as I sat up.

"Hey, what was that?" asked Donnie. "You didn't even do any flips."

Raph grinned. "Oops."

Mikey was helping me to my feet when there was a distant noise from somewhere on the roof. We all turned, but didn't see anything. Leo went forward, leaning against the wall. We followed close behind, waiting for him to give us the signal. He held his hand up, telling us to wait. Then he reached back and slowly unsheathed his sword. At once I reached down and took out my tessen as the others took out their weapons. We waited a couple of seconds before jumping out from behind the wall…

And came face-to-face with a little black and white kitten.

The little thing meowed, blinking its large eyes at us. I blinked at the creature as I glanced over at Leo, who looked shocked, surprised, and a little embarrassed.

"Don't give up, Leo," Raph said, mocking encouragement. "You might win this fight."

I rolled my eyes as I sheathed my tessen. I walked over to the kitten, kneeled down, and reached my hand out.

"Hey little buddy. Whatcha doing out here?"

The kitten sniffed my hand for a second before rubbing it head against it. I grinned as I scratched a spot behind its ear.

"Aww! It's a kitty!" I heard Mikey cooing happily.

He lunged forward and picked the little kitty up. He scratched the animal's little chest as he checked the collar.

"And it's name is…"

I rolled my eyes. "Let me guess…"

"Mittens!"

"Good guess, Nia!"

"Uh, that wasn't me."

Mikey looked up. "Then who said that?"

I turned and looked around before I saw a human poking his head out of the window of the opposite building.

"Mittens?" he called out.

"I think that's the owner," said Donnie.

At once Mikey quickly stood up and started to walk forward. But I ran forward and stopped him.

"Whoa! Hold it, dude," I warned.

"What?" he asked. "I'm returning Mittens to her owner!"

"Are you an idiot?" Raph snapped, then paused. "Wait, let me rephrase that; You're an idiot!"

"You can't show yourself to a human!" said Donnie.

"Why not?"

"Because they'll freak the heck out!" Donnie snapped at his younger brother. "That's why not!"

"No they won't," Mikey said simply. "I'm not so scary."

"You're an ugly, green mutant armed with ninja weapons!" Raph said harshly.

"Raph!" I snapped, then I turned to Mikey. "Mikey, while I don't entirely agree with Raph, and I personally think you're adorable, the others are right. If you reveal yourself to that human, who knows what could happen."

"Look," Mikey said confidently. "The guy's gonna see that I'm a regular, cat-loving dude like him! Next thing you know, we'll be best buds! This is gonna be awesome!"

Holding Mittens close to his chest, Mikey turned to leave. But just as he was about to jump, I grabbed his shell.

"Mikey, don't," I said firmly.

"Nia, I just wanna get Mittens-"

"I'll take her back, bro. Okay?"

"What?" all the guys, including Mikey, said in unison.

"Yeah," I said simply. "I'll bring Mittens back to her owner. Piece of cake."

"Are you crazy?" asked Raph.

"Have you boys really forgotten?" I placed my hands on my hips. "Guys, I'm human! Out of the five of us, I'm the only one who can afford to be seen by other humans. Look, I'll take Mittens, return her to the owner, and I'll come back. Alright?"

The three older turtles exchanged looks, as though debating their decision. Then Leo sighed, and nodded.

"Go ahead," he said. "But be right back. Understood?"

I giggled and gave a low bow. "Yes, oh great and mighty leader," I teased.

The others chuckled as Leo frowned. I straightened out and turned to Mikey, who was clutching the cat like it was one of his precious comic books.

"C'mon Mikey," I said gently. "Hand her over."

Mikey looked down at Mittens, who leaned up and licked his chin. He smiled and patted the kitten's head. Then he held her forward and I grabbed her.

"I'll be right back," I promised.

I held the kitten close to my chest as I jumped off the ledge and over to the fire escape on the opposite building. I looked up and saw the owner still poking his head out the window, calling for his cat. Not wanting to look like a ninja in front of him, I pulled my mask down under my chin and rolled it up so that it looked like a normal bandanna around my neck or something. I climbed up the stairs of the fire escape, coming closer and closer to the window.

"Excuse me, sir?" I called up to him. "Is this your cat?"

The man turned to look at me, and gasped. "Mittens!"

The cat meowed at her owner. I walked over to the window, holding the cat out to him.

"I found her on the street when you started calling for her," I explained as I handed Mitten to the man. "I figured I might as well return her to you."

"Oh, thank you!" the man said happily. "My daughter will be so pleased that you found her cat!"

"Your daughter?"

"Yes!" the man turned his head. "Vanessa! Get in here!"

After a few seconds I heard footsteps, and a young girl appeared in the doorway. She was tall, about my height. She had short, curly black hair, and small, bright hazel eyes. The second she stepped foot into the room she looked at her father, saw the kitten, and gasped.

"Mittens!"

She squealed happily as she ran forward and took Mitten from her father. She patted her kittens head, kissing her lovingly.

"Oh, daddy! Where did you find her?"

"This young woman found her in the street!"

The girl turned to face me, and instantly jumped forward, pushing her father out of the way.

"Oh, thank you so much!" she said. "I was so worried about my little baby!"

"You're welcome," I said, smiling. "It was no trouble at all."

"I'll go tell your mother we found Mittens," said the father.

The man turned and walked out of the room. Me and the girl watched him until he shut the door. The girl turned to face me, her face beaming. Now that she was close up I could she that she was much older. In fact, she appeared to be about my age, a year older at the most.

"Again, thank you so much!"

"It was nothing, really."

The girl smiled at me, then extended her free hand out to me.

"I'm Vanessa. And you are?"

I blinked, staring down at her hand. Then I grinned and grasped her hand to shake it.

"Lavinia," I told her. "But please, call me Nia."

We shook hands for a second before letting go. The girl started petting her cat as she continued to speak.

"Um… how old are you exactly?" she asked. "If it's not a problem…"

"I'm fifteen," I answered. "And you?"

"Sixteen," she examined me. "Funny… I don't recognize you. Are you new to New York?"

I paused for a moment, choosing my words wisely.

"Well… sort of," I said. "You could say I just moved in."

"Alone?"

"Nah. I'm with my brothers and my dad."

"Brothers?" she asked. "As in, more than one?"

"Yep," I nodded. "Four, actually."

"Four?! Geez, I can barley handle having one!"

Vanessa stared at me as I chuckled.

"It's not that hard," I said honestly. "Not really. You get used to it after a while."

She stiffened. "I think I'll just take your word for it."

I chuckled a bit, and she giggled. There was a pause.

"Listen, I really appreciate you finding my cat," she said. "And I'd really like to make it up to you."

"Oh, you don't have to," I said quickly.

"Yes I do!" Vanessa grinned. "In fact, I think I know how. You know where Central Park is, right?"

"Yes."

"Good. Well, I'm meeting up with my best friend tomorrow night. We meet up there every other night to hang out and have fun. And, as a token of my gratitude, I'd love it if you could come."

I blinked, staring at Vanessa in shock. Was this really happening? Please, pinch me if I'm dreaming!

"S-sure…" I said slowly. "I mean, I'd have to ask my dad first…"

"No problem!" Vanessa said sweetly. "You could call me tonight after you ask him.

I scratched my neck. "I would, but… I don't have a phone…"

Vanessa's jaw fell as she stared at me. I gulped. So much for that… Then she reached into one of her pockets and took out a large quarter.

"Here!" she held it out to me, and I took it. "After you ask him, you can use a payphone. Sound good?"

I gazed down at the quarter, then at Vanessa, and a grin spread across my face.

"Sure thing."

Vanessa grinned. Then she reached over to a nearby desk and picked up a small pen. I had a feeling on what she was doing. I lifted my hand to her as she brought the pen over. She then began writing a small group of numbers on my palm.

"Just call me whenever you can!" she said.

I nodded. "Got it."

"Bye Nia!"

"See yah."

I backed away as Vanessa reached up and closed the window. She waved at me before turning to walk out of the room. Still smiling, I turned and jumped off the fire escape, landing neatly on the alley floor.

"You took you're time," Raph's voice said.

I whipped my head around and saw all of my bros standing there. Donnie and Mikey looked normal, Raph was smirking at me, and Leo had his arms folded, looking like an impatient father.

"What?" I asked. "I said I'd be back, didn't I?"

"You didn't say anything about making plans with other humans," said Leo. "What's Splinter gonna say?"

I shrugged. "I dunno. Hopefully he'll say yes."

"And you'll get to go have fun with her," Mikey said, now sounding disappointed, and looked at his brothers. "See? Nia gets to go and have fun with a human friend."

"That's because Nia's a human, Mikey," Raph pointed out. "Face it. Humans will never understand you. Heck! We don't even understand you!"

I frowned at Raph as Mikey hung his head.

"Yeah," Mikey glanced up, then gasped, grinning. "But I bet that guy would!"

Me and the others turned our heads and looked up. There was a giant billboard that had a pictured of well-known martial artist, Chris Bradford.

"Chris Bradford?" Leo asked. "The martial arts superstar? With a chain of dojos across the country? He's your soulmate?"

Mikey didn't respond immediately. He drew out his nunchuck, whirling it as he struck a pose, the same one that Bradford was doing on the billboard.

"We have so much in common!" said Mikey.

"What if you stop standing like that?" Donnie asked, nodding up at the billboard.

"We'll have a little less in common," Mikey slumped for a second, then brightened up. "But still a lot! And look…!" He pointed back up at the billboard. "He's in town for a martial arts expo! Maybe he'll show me his secret kata! The Death Dragon! And I'll show him my secret kata! The Secret Kata!"

"Catchy," Donnie said dully.

"Check it out!" Mikey said.

He punched, kicked, and did a couple of similar moves a couple of times. He did a couple of odd movements before doing what looked like a windshield wiper movement. He punched his fist one last time, and placed his hands on his hips.

"Now don't tell anyone you say that," he whispered seriously.

"No problem," said Leo.

"Won't tell a soul," I said bluntly.

"Face it, Mikey. Chris Bradford is the last person on earth who would be friends with you," said Raph. "Well… tied for last with everyone else on earth."

I frowned at him as I shoved his shoulder.

"What?"

"Knock it off!" I snapped. "You're not making it any better!"

"Guys," Leo cut us off. "We got company."

I looked in the direction Leo was looking, directly behind Mikey. There were several people dressed in black wearing masks, and they appeared to be armed. Suddenly, several more masked people dropped down and landed all around us.

"Ninjas? In New York?" Donnie asked. "Other than us?"

"And carrying large, lethal weapons?" I added. "This night just took a pretty bad turn."

At once me and my bros took out our weapons. I unsheathed my tessen, opening it. Be ready for anything, I told myself. We all stood there, standing in defensive stances, waiting for something. One of the ninjas threw a throwing star at Donnie, who blocked it with his Bo staff. The star embedded itself into the wood, and Donnie let out a growl.

The ninjas then started to charge at us. Two of them headed for me, and I ran at them too. They both swung their weapons(one swung a katana, the other swung a kama), but I kneeled down and ducked before they could hit me. I kicked my foot out and tripped the one with the katana, and blocked the blow the one with the kama tried to deliver. I pushed the weapon away and went to strike the ninja's chest, but he blocked that blow. I quickly kneed him in the gut, punched him in the jaw, and snap kicked him in his chest, sending him back.

But then, out of nowhere, another ninja appeared, landing right in front of us. Only, he was much bigger, and looked way more fierce. He was dressed in armor of red and silver, and wore a helmet that covered his face. Me and my bros froze, staring at the newcomer. The ninja lunged forward, his fist raised, and punched Leo. The turtle flew backwards and his shell hit the wall hard. I gasped as Raph stood, dumbfounded. The huge ninja swung around and kicked Raph hard, sending him flying.

"Raph!" I yelled.

I ran forward as I swung my tessen out. The guy ducked his head to avoid the weapon. I jumped up and tried to kick him, but he grabbed my ankle and threw me. I landed on the concrete and tumbled away. I groaned in pain, holding myself. I heard Donnie yell as he got thrown beside me. After a few moments I looked up, and the ninja was holding Mikey by his shell.

"What are you?" he asked, his voice muffled by the mask.

Mikey pressed his feet to the ninja's chest and back flipped out of his grasp. The guy held onto Mikey's kuasriagama chain, trying to pull him back. Then Leo jumped up and cut the chain with his katana. The large ninja stumbled back. At once I stood up, grabbed my tessen as the boys got into defensive stances once more. I glared at the ninja as I opened my tessen, ready to continue the fight.

At that moment the wailing of police sirens met our ears, and at once, the large ninja and his buddies turned and ran off.

"Come on!" I said quickly. "We better go, too!"

Without any hesitations, we turned and disappeared just as a couple of cop cars pulled up.


It was the next night, and we were still feeling pretty sore from our fight with the ninjas. I had a bad bruise from where I landed on the concrete after I was thrown, but other than that I was fine. Now, we were all taking the advantage of our day off. Donnie was playing around on his laptop, Mikey was reading a magazine, and Raph was doing pushups using the handles of his sais. Me and April were sitting on the couch, and I had been discussing my plans for that evening.

"So, you're really gonna meet up with this Vanessa girl and her friend tonight?" April asked as she looked up from her magazine.

"Yep," I said. "I asked Master Splinter last night. He had to think about it for a while, but he said yes."

"Cool."

I nodded.

"Wow, that's rad!" I heard Mikey say.

I looked over at him, and saw was sitting in a beanbag chair, reading his own magazine.

"Whatcha reading, Mikey?" I asked.

I leaned over to look at what Mikey was reading, and saw it was an issue of Martial Pain. And it had Chris Bradford's picture on the cover.

"Oh, I wish me and Chris Bradford were friends!" he squealed, sounding like an excited little fanboy.

He chomped on the magazine, making noises that sounded like, "Nom, nom, nom!" He fell back on his shell and started kicking his feet like he was having a fanboy heart attack. It was kind of adorable, actually.

"Mikey, you already have a human friend," April smiled, and when Mikey stared blankly at her she added, "Me!"

"April, you don't count," Mikey looked back at his magazine. "We saved your life. You have to like us."

I grinned. "He's got a point, April."

April raised her eyebrow. "Well… what about Nia?" she asked Mikey.

"She's our sister. That doesn't count either."

"Geez, thanks," I said bluntly. "Really feeling the love."

"Too bad there's no place for freaks to meet people where no one can see how hideous they are," Raph grunted as he continued doing his pushups.

"Wait… there is! The internet!" said April. "Donnie, can I see your laptop?"

"S-sure! Just a sec!" he said nervously.

Donnie quickly pressed something on his laptop before walking over to us. He gave April his laptop as he sat down next to her, looking nervous.

"Check it out. It's a site where you can make friends with anybody online," April said as she tapped away at the keyboard.

"Sweet!"

Suddenly Mikey shot forward, pushed April out of the way, and grabbed the laptop. He clicked on the tiny search box and tapped away at the keys. He sat there, waiting for a few moments. Then he gasped.

"Ooh! Chris Bradford's on here! He'll be my first friend!"

Mikey moved the mouse to the little button that said 'Friend,' and pressed it. He then leaned in close, gazing at the computer screen. I cleared my throat.

"Uh, Mikey…?"

"Shh! I'm waiting for his response!" he whispered to me, still looking at the screen.

April smiled at him. "Mikey, people don't always respond immedi-"

But she was cut off as a loud bleep sounded from the laptop. April blinked.

"But, sometimes they do," she finished simply.

Mikey sat up, looking like he was going to have a heart attack and a seizer at the same time.

"No way! Chris Bradford has accepted my friendship! I have a friend!" he reached over and hugged April tightly. "Thanks April!"

I glanced over at Donnie, and saw he was gapping at his little brother. I giggled. Then Mikey threw the laptop into the air and started to walk off.

"Where are you goin- Hey!"

Donnie yelped as he jumped forward and caught his laptop, landing on his stomach.

"To hang out with my friend, Chris Bradford," Mikey said confidently.

"Ah… I don't think that's how it works, Mikey," I told him.

April nodded. "Yeah. Besides, this guy's famous. He probably has thousands of 'friends,'" she said, putting quotes on the last word.

"And guess who's number five thousand, two hundred and eighty-six!"

Me and April looked at each other, then back at Mikey.

"You?" she guessed.

"Lady Gaga?" I asked.

"Daniel Remirez! And I'm right next to him!" Mikey gave a wink and a salute. "Later!"

And without another word, Mikey left.

"Well… this oughta be interesting," said April.

"Should we go after him?" Donnie asked.

"Nah," said Raph, who had paused his pushups. "He's gotta learn somehow."

I sighed, hopping Mikey would be alright. Then, wondering what time it was, I reached down and glanced at the watch I had around my neck. A few days ago I was wondering the sewers, and I found a small watch without a leather wristband. Surprisingly, it was still working. I had taken it home, tied a string around it, and had worn it around my neck since. The time read 6:35. I was suppose to meet Vanessa and her friend in and hour.

"Well, Mikey's left, now I have to go as well," I said as I stood up. "I'll see you guys later, okay?"

"Bye."

"See yah."

I turned and started to walk out of the pit that consisted of our living room.

"Lavinia."

I stopped and turned. Master Splinter was there, walking towards me.

"Hey, Sensei," I said. "I was just about to leave to meet up with Vanessa."

"Yes, I am aware," he looked down at me. "You should know that I'm not fully convinced you should go up there."

I frowned, feeling worried. "But, Sensei, you said I could go."

"I know, Lavinia. And I have no intention of going back on my word. I am simply warning you that anything could happen, and you must be prepared."

"Don't worry, Sensei," I said, and I reached inside the pocket of my hoodie to reveal my tessen. "I've got my tessen with me just in case something does happen. I'll be fine, I promise."

Splinter nodded his head, and smiled at me.

"Very well," he said. "Be safe, my daughter, and have fun."

I beamed. "Thanks, Sensei!"

And without another word I turned and left the lair.


Man, this park is beautiful, I thought to myself. I was currently on my way to where Vanessa told me to go. She said that I should meet her at a monument known as "Rat Rock." I looked it up on Donnie's laptop, and found that it wasn't that hard to find. I was just taking my time because the park was so beautiful, even as the sun started to set.

After a while I finally managed to find "Rat Rock." I glanced at the huge rock for a moment before I noticed two figures standing in front of it. One of them was very familiar.

"Vanessa?" I called out.

One of the figures turned, and I heard a girlish squeal.

"Nia!"

Vanessa turned and sprinted over to me as I continued walking forward. I made sure that my mask was still down as she ran up to me and stopped right in front of me.

"Oh, I'm so glad you could come!" she said happily. "We just got here a couple minutes ago."

"Glad I caught you," I said. "So, who's this friend of yours then?"

"Come on!"

Vanessa grabbed my wrist and started dragging forward toward the rock, where her friend was still standing. Now, I had expected to see young girl, one who was as bright and bubbly as Vanessa was. What I didn't expect to see was a tall, slightly bulky young boy with brown hair and bright green eyes. He also appeared to be a little older than me.

"Nia," Vanessa stopped walking and gestured to the boy. "This is my best friend, Angus Carnell. Angus, this is the girl from last night that I told you about. The one who found my cat."

I grinned as I held out my hand. The boy smiled at me, showing off his very white, even teeth. He took a few steps forward and held out his hand.

"Nice to meet yah," he said.

I blinked, surprised at how… country his voice was. No way he was a true New Yorker!

"Nice meeting you too," I said as I lowered my hand.

"We brought some pizza from Antonio's," said Vanessa. "Let's eat, shall we?"

We all walked over to where they had left the pizza and sat down around the box. Angus took out a piece and handed it to me.

"Thanks," I told him.

"Nessy says that you're new 'round 'ere," he said as he grabbed his own slice. "Said yah just moved in with your family."

I guess 'Nessy' is short for Vanessa, I thought.

"Yep. Moved in a couple of weeks ago," I said.

That's it, Nia, stick to your story. I took a bit of my pizza slice as the other two started to eat. After a few seconds I decided to speak.

"Um, if you don't mind me asking, are new here too?" I asked Angus.

"Not really. Why?"

"Well," I shrugged. "You don't exactly sound like you're from Brooklyn."

Angus snorted. "It's the accent, ain't it?"

I shrugged sheepishly.

"Well, you're right. I wasn't born here. I was born and raised in Montana."

"He moved into the city two years ago," said Vanessa.

"Why'd you move here?" I asked.

"My mama's a lawyer," he said. "Two years ago, when I was 15, she got a job offer she couldn't refuse. Caused us to move to New York. Been livin' here since."

I nodded. "So, you know what it's like to be new here then?"

"Yeah, but it ain't so bad. 'Specially if yah make a friend in the first week."

Angus smiled at Vanessa, who had just taken another bite of her pizza.

"Mhm!" she quickly swallowed her piece. "Me and Angus met at school about a week after he moved in. It was lunch time, and he was just wondering around the cafeteria with nowhere to sit. Looked like a lost little boy."

I giggled as Angus rolled his eyes. "Yeah, well, I guess you could say Nessy was my savin' grace. She called me over to her table, and like the sweetheart she is, she let me sit with her and her friends."

"We've known each other ever since," said Vanessa.

"Cool."

We all stopped talking for a bit as we ate more of our pizza. I munched on my slice, feeling happy that I was having a surprisingly good time.

"So, what about you?" Angus asked. "What's your story?"

I shrugged. "Not much to say. I guess my family just felt like moving."

"Didn't you say you had four brothers?" Vanessa asked.

"Yep," I grinned. "Four overly excited, very protective brothers. Do you guys have any?"

"I have one little brother," said Vanessa. "His name's Colton. He's only five, but he can still be a pain in the butt."

I chuckled. "What about you, Angus?"

He shook his head. "Nah. None yet. I think my folks are tryin' to have another, though. I see the way my mama looks at kids in the park, and I can tell she wants another one."

I smiled. "That sounds lovely."

"Yeah. Yah know, if they have one, I'd like to have a lil' sister," Angus smiled. "I could even teach her how to play."

I raised my eyebrow. "Play?"

"Oh, yeah!" Vanessa piped up. "Didn't I tell you? Angus plays guitar!"

I blinked. "R-really?"

"Yeah," he nodded. "Been playing since I was nine."

I stared at him, hardly able to believe it. Not only did I just make two new friends, but one of them actually played guitar, like me!

"What is it, Nia?" asked Vanessa.

"Nothing," I said. "It's just… I play guitar, too!"

Angus and Vanessa stared at me, looking just as surprised as I was.

"Really?" Vanessa grinned. "That's awesome!"

"You're a player?" Angus asked.

"Yep. I've been playing since I was eleven," I said. "My dad taught me how to play."

Angus rubbed his chin. "Yah know… I play my guitar in this spot just about everyday. If yah wanna come by and play with me, yah can."

I paused on my way to take another bite of pizza, and stared at him. Was he really inviting me to come play with him? Was he really?

"Yeah," I said. "Yeah, I'd like that."


The next night me and the guys we went back to the place where we were ambushed by the ninjas. Leo figured it was best to scope the place out and find out how the dudes were able to ambush us.

"They must've been watching us from here," said Leo he observed the alley below. "The perfect place to stage an ambush."

"That wasn't very fair, was it?" said Donnie.

I shook my head. "Not at all."

"It's not about fairness," Leo said firmly. "It's about victory."

I stared at him as Donnie held his hands up defensively.

"Okay, I'm sorry."

I rolled my eyes as I turned to look at Raph and Mikey. The younger one was still going on about how much fun he had with Chris Bradford. How Mikey even managed to meet that guy, I'll never know.

"And then, Chris Bradford put on his hakama!" Mikey said excitedly. "Man, that guy can rock a hakama!"

Raph groaned irritably. "Yeah, maybe he'll wear it again when he takes you to prom," he turned his head and smirked at me. "Then maybe you two can double-date with Nia and Angus."

I groaned. "Raph, please don't start…"

That's another thing that's been going on. See, after I got home last night the guys all asked me how it went. Like me, they thought that Vanessa's friend was a girl, and they were all shocked to find out that it was a boy. They were surprised even more when I told them that he played guitar just like me. When I told them how Angus invited me to play in the park with him however, their expressions all changed. I swear, they all had on the biggest smirks I had ever seen them have, and they have been teasing me nonstop since.

"Anyways! Where was I?" Mikey continued, oblivious to me and Raph. "And then, after that, he-!"

"Aw, enough!" Raph finally snapped. "You've been going on about his for three hours!"

Mikey smirked as he got into his older brother's face. "Ooh, someone sounds jealous… You just can't admit that you were the R word!"

Me and Raph stared at him. Even Leo and Donnie turned to look at the younger sibling.

"The R word…?" I asked unsurely.

"Wrong!" Mikey said simply.

I sighed as all of the boys groaned with irritation. Raph huffed.

"I'm not wrong!"

"Oh yeah? If you don't wanna talk about my friend…" Mikey jumped over to me and the others. "I've got two other brothers and one sis who do."

"Actually, I'd rather talk about anything else," said Leo.

"Like the concept of the silent W, perhaps?" Donnie suggested.

Mikey looked over at me, waiting for a response. I bit my lip as I shuffled my feet.

"Well… no offense Mikey," I started. "But you've been talking about Bradford since you got home last night. I think I've heard enough."

Mikey's face fell. "Fine. Heh… I'll go talk to a guy who likes to talk about Chris Bradford more than anyone else. Chris Bradford."

"Mikey…"

But he ignored me, and jumped off the building and left.

"He ditched us," I said skeptically.

"Eh, let him leave," said Raph. "More peace and quiet for us."

"Yeah, I suppose."

I sighed as I walked over and sat next to Raph. He nudged my shoulder.

"So, when are yah gonna introduce us to your boyfriend?"

"Enough, Raphael!"


I had no idea what to expect when Mikey got home that night. But him bursting in saying that Chris Bradford had shown him The Death Dragon kata wasn't on the list. Nevertheless, it was pretty awesome seeing Mikey show it to us.

"And then he kicks…! He twists…! And…sweeps the leg…! Ha!"

Mikey spun, kicked, and did everything that he said. Me and the boys stared at him, very much impressed. Well, except for Raph.

"The Death Dragon!" Mikey said excitedly.

"Mikey…that is so wicked!" I exclaimed.

"That was amazing!" said Leo.

"Yeah," Donnie said thoughtfully. "It's devastatingly effective and… complex."

"And yet, even Mikey can learn it," Raph pointed out.

Mikey bowed. "Thank you," but then he seemed to get what Raph was saying, and frowned. "Hey!"

But at that moment, Donnie's laptop made a loud bleep, gathering Mikey's attention. He looked over his shoulder.

"It's Rad-Brad!" he said as he knelt in front of the laptop. "That's my little name for him."

"What did he say?" I asked as I looked over Mikey's shoulder to look at the screen.

"He wants to get to together for a little B-ball," Mikey looked excited. "I can't wait to find out what the B stands for!"

I raised my brow. "Last I checked, it meant basketball."

Mikey didn't answer me. Instead he typed in a reply, hit send, and stood up.

"You're going now?" Leo asked.

"Sorry dudes! Human friend stuff," Mikey shrugged. "You know how it is. Oh, wait… No, yah don't."

Mikey smirked at us before turning around and walking out.

"Snobbish much?" I grumbled.

"Tell me about it," Raph said, and he stood up straight. "Well, I'm wanting to try that kata. Who's in?"

"Me!" said Leo.

"You guys have fun," I said. "I'll be right back."

I left the boys in the lair and headed for the kitchen. Once there I grabbed a cup and filled it with water.

"Lavinia."

I paused my drinking and looked around. Splinter was standing by the table, looking as though he were observing.

"Oh, hey Sensei," I said. "Are you looking for Mikey? He just left to go meet Bradford."

"Yes, he told me just before he left," said Sensei. "It seems that he is not the only one having fun with new friends. Your brothers tell me that you had fun the other night with your new friend. Vanessa, wasn't it?"

"Yep. She's so nice, and totally cool, Sensei. Her friend was, too."

"Who was her friend?"

"A really awesome dude," I took a sip from my glass. "His name's Angus. Oh, and guess what? He plays guitar too!"

"Does he?" Sensei asked, sounding interested.

"Yeah. He plays in Central Park almost every other day. He even invited me to come and play with him sometime," I bit my lip and shuffled my feet. "Would…would that be alright, Sensei?"

Sensei closed his eyes, stroking his long beard slowly. I swallowed as I waited for his answer. C'mon, please say yes…

"Very well," he said finally.

I released the small breath I didn't realize I had been holding.

"Thank you, Sensei."

Splinter smiled at me, apparently pleased. Then he looked over his shoulder.

"Where are your other brothers, Lavinia?"

"Oh, they're in the dojo," I said. "Mikey's new friend showed him this awesome kata, and the boys are trying it out right now. You wanna see?"

"Hm…Why not?"

I smiled and put my glass on the counter. I walked out of the kitchen and Sensei followed me to the dojo.

"Just you wait, Sensei," I told him. "This kata is the most wicked thing I've ever seen. You might even be impressed."

Splinter chuckled. "We shall see, Lavinia."

Curious to know if the boys had managed to get the kata right yet, I went ahead and entered the dojo.

"Wait! I think I got it!" I heard Leo say.

Leo and Raph faced each other. They went at each other just as Sensei entered the dojo, and Leo succeeded the kata. I glanced over at Splinter, but I was surprised. Sensei looked as though he had seen a ghost. A second later his face fell, and it was full of anger.

"Where did you learn that?" he snapped.

I cringed. The boys froze and turned to look at Splinter.

"Mikey learned it from his new friend," Leo explained.

"The man who taught him that kata is no friend," Splinter said firmly. "It comes from the Shredder."

I gasped. What?!

"Shredder?" Donnie breathed.

"You mean… Bradford is one of his students?" Leo asked.

Splinter nodded. "He must be."

"So, Bradford is just pretending to be Mikey's friend to get to you," Leo said slowly.

"Oh, what a relief," Raph sighed. "Everything makes sense again."

I turned to stare at him. Raph paused for a moment, then his eyes widened.

"Mikey's in trouble!"


It wasn't that hard to find Bradford's dojo. Me and my bros were in full stealth mood the whole time we where there. I went to the roof first, landing neatly by the dojo skylight. I quickly walked up to it and looked inside. Mikey was in there all right, and he was tied up with his hands in feet behind his back.

"Mikey…"

I turned around, cupped my hands around my mouth, and did a quiet, but decent bird call. A second later I saw Raph swing around the water tower, slide down the latter, and run up to the end of the skylight that I was on. He leaned against the glass and folded his arms. I looked up to see Leo sliding down the glass and landing on the roof. He ran over to where me and Raph where, and folded his arms too. They bumped fists, and wiggled their fingers together. Donnie slide down the glass and landed next to us, too.

"You got the gum, right?" I asked him.

He grinned at me as he continuously chewed on a piece of gum. I guess that's a yes. Donnie blew a bubble, popped it, and took it out. He placed the sticky wad on the end of a pencil that was attached to a compass. He placed the gum-covered pencil on the glass, turned the compass, and lightly punched the glass. A perfect circle popped out and Donnie moved it out of the way. He reached inside for a moment before he finally unlocked the skylight.

Me and Leo slowly opened the skylight door. We all took out the ropes we brought, slide them inside, and one by one, we each went down a rope. The second we hit the floor we sprinted towards the ninjas that were guarding Mikey. I ran up to the nearest ninja, and slide forward with my leg out the trip him. He fell to the floor and punched him to make sure he was unconscious. When he didn't move I stood up and saw that my bros had taken care of the other three ninjas.

"Dudes!" Mikey exclaimed. "That was sporadic!"

"Shh!" me, Leo and Raph hissed.

"That's not what that means," Donnie whispered.

Leo kneeled in front of Mikey, took out a tanto blade, and used it to cut Mikey's binds. Mikey sat up, and Leo patted his head.

"You okay, bro?" I asked him, putting a hand on his shoulder.

"Yeah, I'm good."

"Good," I said. "Then let's get out of here."

With that said and done, we finally left the dojo. Leo was taking the manhole cover off when I froze.

"Guys," I whispered. "I think… someone's watching us."

They all froze as well. Then Leo continued to move the cover.

"Stay in stealth," he whispered. "Don't go straight to the lair. As soon as we're in, find somewhere to hide and wait. You'll know what to do."

We nodded. One by one, we all jumped through the hole and into the sewers. We all quickly found a place to hide in the shadows, and waited.

Sure enough, after a few minutes, Bradford and a large group of ninjas showed up. With them was a man I had never seen before. It was a tall, thin black guy with and afro. I had no idea who he was, but he was obviously working with Bradford.

I crouched lower into the shadows as Bradford and his friend passed by. When the ninjas passed by however, I would reach out and snatch them, then I would knock them out. I watched silently as I saw my bros do the same thing, taking the ninjas one by one. Oblivious to the disappearing ninjas, Bradford and his friend continued to head for the sewer clearing. Slowly and stealthily, me and my bros followed.

Finally, the last ninja was snatched, and Bradford and the afro dude finally turned. Judging by the looks on their faces, they seemed to have just realized that something was up. The afro dude took out a flare and lit it up. It lit the room up enough for them to see their party of ninjas hanging from ropes on the ceiling.

"Show your faces!" the afro dude said in a thick, Brazilian accent.

There was a pause. From here I could see Leo and Raph's shells poke out of the water. They swam up to the center of the pool before standing up, glaring at Bradford and the afro dude. Me, Mikey and Donnie emerged from the darkness and walked towards them from behind.

"They've trapped us!" the afro dude exclaimed.

"Take 'em down!" Bradford ordered.

And the fight started. Bradford went for Leo and Raph while the afro dude headed for me and the other two. Donnie tried to fight him first, swinging his Bo staff at him. The dude did a hand stand and lifted his legs up, blocking all of Donnie's blows with his feet. Donnie tried to swing again, but the dude pushed himself up into the air. His feet landed around Donnie's neck, and he used his legs to flip Donnie over. Donnie was tossed to the side, landing on top of Mikey. I stood in front of Mikey and Donnie, holding my tessen out in defense. The afro dude smirked at me.

"Interesting," he growled. "Bradford mentioned the four freaks, but he never said they had a friend who was so… pretty."

The look on his face made me want to puke. I let out a noise of annoyance. From behind me I heard Donnie snap his fingers. Time for the plan. Without hesitation, I ran at the afro man for my attack. I made an effort to his him with the end of my tessen, but he managed to grab my wrist. He tried to punch my gut, but I shifted aside, and kneed him in his chest. He let go of my wrist and I retreated back towards my younger bros. The afro dude ran at us, but me and the boys ran at the wall, climbed up, and flipped so that we were now behind the dude. We ran backwards into the water, our opponents following us, we switched up with Leo and Raph. They now had the afro dude, and me and the others had Bradford.

Me and the other two continued to back up, and slid under a large sewer pipe, causing the punch Bradford tried to deliver to hit the said pipe. Mikey jumped onto the pipe, and Bradford tried to punch him in the chest. But Mikey wrapped the chain of his nunchuck around Bradford's wrist and jumped down behind the pipe, leaving the fist useless. Donnie stuck his staff underneath the pipe and hit Bradford's legs, causing the man to fall to his knees. Before he could really do anything much I reached forward and punched him in the face.

Bradford slipped out of Mikey's hold and started to back up. Mikey walked towards him, whirling his nunchuck. They continued until he was back to back with the afro dude, and they were both standing in front of the large sewer tunnel.

"They knew we were following them!" said Bradford.

"That's right," Mikey said smugly.

Bradford growled, then yelled as he went to throw a punch at Mikey. Mikey blocked it, then blocked another. I stared openmouthed as I watched the fight continued. Mikey was beating Bradford, and was using the dude's own kata! Awesome!

"And sweep the leg!" Mikey said as he finished the kata, and knocked Bradford over.

The man yelled as he fell back and landed on top of the afro dude.

"Hit it!" Mikey yelled.

I looked over at the opposite edge of the sewer clearing, and saw Donnie and Leo standing there. They turned the wheel, and there was a loud rumble from the large sewer pipe. Bradford and the afro guy screamed as a wave of raw sewage came rushing out of the large pipe, flushing them away.

"Well," Raph smirked. "That didn't seem very fair."

"It wasn't," said Leo.

We looked at each other, and we all started laughing.

"High-three!" cried Mikey.

We all raised our hands and they met in a high-three.


At long last, we were home. And, as expected, we were celebrating with a large order of delicious pizza. I was sitting on the floor eating one of my two slices, when I noticed something odd. Sensei wasn't eating. Donnie seemed to have noticed this, too.

"Um… Sensei? Aren't you hungry?" he asked.

Splinter didn't say anything at first. He sat there, stroking his beard.

"I fear we are celebrating too soon," he said lowly.

"Too soon?" asked Raph. "The bad guys were swept away in a river of raw sewage. By my watch, that's the perfect time."

I had a feeling that that wasn't going to convince Splinter. Sensei stood up, walking towards us.

"Shredder knows I'm alive. And worse, he knows about all of you," he turned his head. "It's my worse nightmare come true."

"So, it's not over?" Leo asked.

Sensei shook his head. "Oh, no… It's just beginning."

We all stared at our sensei, then we hung our heads.

"Well, this is just great," I grumbled, and when I glanced up I saw we were missing and orange-banded turtle. "Hey, where's Mikey?"

"He's over there," Donnie said, pointing in a direction.

I turned my head, and I saw Mikey on the other side of the pit. He was sitting on the floor, looking at the laptop that was sitting on the couch. I looked at him sadly. Poor boy… Making my decision, I picked a piece of pizza, stood up, and walked over to where Mikey was sitting.

"Mikey…" I spoke gently. "You're missing out on some totally awesome pizza…"

Mikey turned his head to look up at me, and he had a sad look on his face.

"No thanks," he said lowly.

I frowned. I glanced at the computer, and saw it was the site where he sent his friend request to Bradford. I heard footsteps, and I saw Raph walk up and sit on the couch next to the laptop.

"How yah doin', Mikey?"

Mikey turned to face his older brother. "This is all my fault. I should've never thought I could be friends with a human."

"Aw, Mikey, don't say that," I said, patting his shell.

"Yeah, don't be so hard on yourself," said Raph.

"So, it's not my fault?"

Raph stared. "Of course it's your fault!"

Mikey sighed. Raph looked at Mikey, then at me, and leaned in towards his brother.

"If you tell the others, I'll beat the green off you," he threatened, but his face softened as he put a hand on Mikey's shell. "But… you're an awesome guy."

"Bradford didn't think so."

Raph shrugged. "Eh… he's a psychotic, killing machine."

"Who kidnapped you, and tried to kill us," I added. "You're better off without him."

"Nia's right," Raph folded his arms. "You deserve way better friends than him."

Mikey glanced at the floor. "You know what… you're right!" he looked up at us. "Thanks, guys."

"Anytime," Raph said, patting Mikey's head.

Raph stood up on his feet and started to leave, but stopped. He turned to look at me, and smirked.

"That bit about not telling the others what I said," he told me. "That goes for you, too."

I giggled. "Scout's Honor, Raphie," I vowed mockingly, lifting my hand up.

Raph chuckled as he rolled his eyes, and then walked away. I smiled after him as I turned to look down at Mikey.

"You good, bro?"

"Just a sec!"

Mikey turned to look at the computer screen. Then he lifted his hand up, brought it down, and pressed a button on the keyboard.

"Unfriend!" he declared. "Ha ha! Revenge!"

I rolled my eyes. Well, at least he's happy again.

"Here you go, Mikey," I handed him the pizza slice. "A good ol' slice of revenge pizze, specially made."

"Awesome!"

Mikey grabbed the pizza, and shoved have of it into his mouth.

"Thanks, Nia!" he said through his full mouth.

I laughed. "No problem, bro."