She dreamed of the woods; the trees, the bushes, the animals that scurried by. The sun beaming on her, the leaves dancing around her, and the wind was gently blowing. She felt the palm of her hand getting warm, seeing what was possibly making it so. She saw a turtle hand, but it was a different shade. The skin was a bit darker than usual. She tilted her head up and saw blue ends instead of purple ones. Leonardo turned his head down slowly and gave her a warm smile. He whispered, "See you in a few, sis."
April jolted awake, sitting up and examining her surroundings. It was nothing like her dream. She was in the living room of the farm house. It was a bit chilly, but she was warm. She didn't know if her dream was something that actually happened or if it just felt real enough to seem like it. Either way, she was glad she dreamed it. She heard noises outside, so she climbed out from the couch and trudged her way out the door. She saw Leonardo, who was doing leg exercises. He had his katanas out and was swinging them around as he made several battle stances as he lunged. He was struggling but he kept going, getting a bit better each time. She yawned a little and climbed down the stairs, making her way over to him.
Leonardo's eyes fell on April, who was walking towards him. She waved a little and gave him a tired smile. He giggled and waved back, continuing his lunges. She reached him, looking around. She was trying to decide if it was just a dream or if it really happened. She scrunched her face into a conflicted look, getting Leo's attention.
"What's up?" Leo asked, stopping mid-lunge.
"Wha? Oh, I'm just trying to figure something out," she said, a bit dazed.
"What are you trying to figure out?"
"I don't know if it was a dream or if it really happened- I dreamed that we were in the woods and we were just sitting there in silence. Did that really happen or did I just dream it?"
"Oh! Well, Ms. O'Neil, if you really can't recall, it really happened. I ranted to you and you helped me out and we just started talking and then we sat in silence, but," Leo laughed a bit at the memory that formed just a while ago. "Well, we fell asleep."
"Really?" April asked, surprised. "Oh my gosh!"
"Yeah," Leo laughed, standing up straight. "You were still asleep so I carried you to the couch."
"Thanks, Leo," April smiled, yawning. "It was a really great nap."
"I know. I've never felt so relaxed before. Thanks for being there for me. I hope that I can be there for you some day."
"Awh, Leo," April cooed, hugging him. He hugged her back and pulled away, letting his little smile transpire to a full smile.
"The guys are just getting up," Leo announced, seeing his brothers and Casey moving around Donnie's room from the window. "Bet they slept well."
"Finally, I can spar with Raph!" April exclaimed, bouncing a bit in excitement.
Raphael, Donatello, Michelangelo and Casey all made their way downstairs. Raph saw that the door was open and stepped out, seeing his big brother and April having a laugh. Donnie peeked out from behind Raph and nudged Raph aside, going over to April and Leo. Mikey was playing around with Ice Cream Kitty and was sharing a laugh with Casey. After a while, Mikey went and joined Donnie outside. Raph looked at Casey, who was trying to scrounge some food from the fridge. Raph walked over to him and waited for him to get up.
"Hey, Casey," Raph said, his voice a bit raspy. "You okay?"
"Yeah, dude," Casey chuckled. "It's totally okay. I deserved it, dude."
"Listen," Raph started, trying to find the words. "I'm sorry. I know I got carried away, but I just get so eaten up if someone messes with my brothers."
"Raph, I get it. He's your family. That's how I was with my sister. I don't even know if she and my dad are alive, if they're safe or if they got Kraang-atized. You guys, Splinter and April- you're my second family. I know how you're feelin', and I woulda acted the same way. Don't sweat it. I learned my lesson. I'm really sorry. Still best buds?" Casey asked, raising his hand and clenching it into a fist.
"Still best buds," Raph repeated, smiling as he fist-bumped Casey. They walked out together and pushed each other around playfully, approaching the rest of them.
"Hey, guys, what's up?" Casey greeted, fist bumping them. He looked at April and gave her a smile.
"You feeling okay, Casey?" Leo asked, the guilt coming back. "I'm really sorry. I feel like I went too far-"
"It's chill, dude. I would've done the same, Leo. I don't blame ya, and I deserved it. I hope we're cool; I don't wanna lose ya, bro."
"We're cool," Leo said happily, giving Casey a light punch on the arm. "All right then. So, April, go ahead."
"Raph," April said, walking toward him. "Are you up for sparring?"
"Uh," Raph started, darting his eyes around. He grabbed Leo's wrist and pulled him along with him, separating from the group.
"Whoa, Raph," Leo said, his legs tangling a bit from the sudden movement. They stopped at the front of the shack. "What is it?"
"Dude, I'm worried. What if I really hurt her? I don't know if I should do this."
"Raph, April asked for this. She wants to better herself so she can become a kunoichi. She knows the risks- otherwise, she wouldn't be doing this. I know you're worried- I am too- but she really wants to train to become better. We owe her that- she lost Kirby again and her Master. We should help her out."
Raphael sighed, looking down. His brain started to relive the memory of the invasion- Leo being thrown in from the window, escaping to the Party Wagon, Kirby being turned into a mutant again, witnessing his father being thrown into a whirlpool of doom by Shredder, Donnie's invention, barely escaping with their lives- it just hit him. He closed his eyes and looked up, nodding to Leo. He would spar with April.
Together they walked back to the others. Leo gave Raph a pat on the shell and flashed a supporting smile, grabbing his seat. Mikey sat down next to Leo, Donnie next to him, and Casey on the other side of Leo. April looked at Raph, waiting for an answer of some kind. Raph nodded, making April beam. She ran inside to grab her tessen. Raph left his sais in his belt, deciding to just start natural. April raced back outside, waving her hand over to her for Raph to follow. He walked over to her, giving them some distance to spar without the risk of hurting the guys.
They were about to spar, when there was a sudden noise. It was coming from the shack- it sounded like a bubbling and fizzing sound. Then there was a clink, the sound of something rolling, and the loud noise of a glass breaking. Donnie shot up, panicked.
"Oh no! I think the chickens are messing around with my lab! Mikey, I told you to keep them out!" Donnie shouted, running towards the shack. "Sorry, I gotta raincheck on watching you spar, April! Good luck," Donnie yelled, entering the shack. "Get out, chickens, before you ruin something!"
The guys and April all shared glances, then shrugged it off, focusing again on the sparring session. April and Raph positioned themselves, narrowing their eyes at each other.
'Okay, this is Raphael; the most strongest, hot-headed and tempered of the turtles. Just charge and do the best you can; as long as you learn something, it'll be worth it, O'Neil', April thought to herself. She knew when it came to battling Raph, there was a big risk of getting hurt, but she didn't care. She needed to improve in any way possible. She huffed out a breath, preparing to charge. She ran as fast as she could, landing a kick on Raph's arm. He stumbled back a bit, caught by surprise she came at him so quickly. 'Oh my god- I-I got him!' April thought excitedly, living in the moment for too long, giving Raph a chance to strike back. He bent down and spun around, kicking her legs out from under her. She landed on her back, groaning. She quickly got up, her and Raph circling each other.
Her back didn't hurt as much as she thought it had, giving her a little confidence boost. She ran, leaped up, and struck her leg out, kicking Raph back. He charged at her, his fists striking out for her torso. She moved aside just as Mikey did, making Raph miss. He gritted his teeth a bit, reminding himself to calm down and to not get so heated so quick. He jumped up and landed on her feet, making her hiss as she felt her toes under extreme pressure. She pulled out her tessen, striking Raph on the cheek, leaving a cut. He hissed a bit, feeling his cheek sting and felt some blood ooze out. It wasn't much. Raph grabbed the handles of his sais, pulling them out and twirling them around. He curled his fingers in the gaps of the sais, ready to use his weapons.
The tessen and sais collided, but some slips occurred. Raph tore April's shirt collar and the white number 5 on her yellow shirt along with some cuts on her forehead and her chin. April managed to hit Raph's torso, cut his belt a bit, cut his lower lip and the top of his head. After April kneed him in the gut, Raph's anger sparked. He came at her full speed, striking multiple times very quickly. He kicked her legs, he elbowed her sharply in the ribs, and he managed to pull her down to the ground. She struggled, managing to slip out from under him and kick his arm hard. Raph shot up and charged again and again. She used Mikey's technique as he did this, making Raph irritated. He ran behind her and tripped her only to be kicked down from behind. They were both pretty beat already; already had cuts and there were many bruises and tender spots. April jumped on Raph's shell and pulled the tails of his red mask. Raph growled and reached behind him and grabbed her by the sides, pulling her off of him and threw her on the ground hard. She shrieked, raising her hand up as to tell him to stop.
His breathing was hard and heavy. He hovered over her and saw that he she was gritting her teeth, hissing in pain as she curled her bruised, cut and battered body up. Raph's eyes widened, and he backed away slowly. 'Oh my god, I-I went too far. What have I done? I knew I shouldn't have done this! His lip shook and tears of anger threatened to escape his eyes. He dropped his sais and ran off into the woods, the guilt starting to consume him. He just had to get out of there- he couldn't bare the realization that he hurt April. He kept running and running, panting and not looking back. He tripped over a rock and fell hard. He climbed onto his elbows and knees, breathing hard and punching the ground. He let out a loud scream and just sat there, shaking.
"Raphael, stop! Come back!" Leo yelled as his brother ran deep into the woods. "Raph!"
Leonardo's cries or urgency reached Raphael, despite being so deep in the woods. Raph clenched the sides of his head tightly, letting out hisses and groans. He didn't know what to do. All he knew is that he couldn't look at the damage he'd done. He hurt April.