Author's Note: I'm back, and I finally managed to finish this chapter! Boy, is it a long one, but let me explain why. I felt like "A Foot Too Big" needed to be redone, because I wasn't totally satisfied with the outcome. But here we'll have Donnie truly reflecting on his feelings for April and whether or not they've been beneficial or harmful to himself and April. I also wanted Donnie to react differently to how pushy Bigfoot was with him. Another thing...I didn't like the Finger as a villain. So I decided to add a different villain, one you may recognize if you've watched the 2003 series. What'll happen next? Well, read and find out! Please review!

Chapter 25: Broken Triangles

"Just a few more screws…oh, I hope I got the tune just right…"

Donatello narrowly avoided dropping a screw on the floor while he worked with his latest project. Everyone else was inside while he remained in the barn so he could keep his inventive mind at work. It wasn't the lab back at the lair, but it was close enough; at least Mikey didn't bother him much anymore. Just the other day, he made a new crutch for Leo and made repairs to Mr. O'Neil's 'Party Wagon', and now he simply worked on anything that came to mind. Today's invention came after he went through his laptop and found some music files.

A few months before the invasion, he remembered wanting to update his music library and brought it up while sharing coffee with Cheyloe. After much insistence on her part, he ended up going home with a few borrowed CDs. At first, he found it weird that she liked electronic and some rock/pop ballads, because he expected her to be a country-music person…but after going through the CDs, he found himself addicted to the genres. Heck, he even liked some of the music on those alternative CDs Casey let him listen to one time. So, with that on his mind…why not make a music box?

There was another reason he wanted to make one, though…he wanted to make a thank-you present for April. During the months they stayed at the farmhouse, he started thinking long and hard about his feelings towards her. There were a few times when he tried to flirt with her, just for the sake of trying to lighten the mood, unsurprisingly to no avail. It was the same-old game of April at one moment acting like it was cute and then ignoring him the next; the same could be said for Casey. As a result, he blew up at her and called her a flip-flop, even if he originally said it just to lash out at her over everything. But after they made amends, and she started helping him with Leo's medicine, he figured a gift was in order.

"And…there! Perfect!" Donnie declared, tightening the last screw. "Now, time to open it and see if it works."

The genius turtle opened the music box, relieved to hear a soothing melody emanate from it. To make it even more presentable, he carved elegant patterns on the inside of the lid, and the Hamato clan crest lay in the middle. April would be crazy not to love it; she's part of the family, after all.

"Hey D, what's that?"

Donnie quickly closed the music box when he saw Michelangelo approaching him. He spoke too soon…if Mikey came in here, he either came to tell him a meal was ready or he wanted something. It had to be the latter, and the thing he wanted was to find out what he made and, in Donnie's mind, how to break it. Before Donnie could tell Mikey it wasn't any of his business what it was, the freckled turtle snatched the music box from his hands and gave it an inspection.

"Hey…is this, like, a musical jewelry box? No offense, but ninja turtles don't wear jewelry, bro." The orange-masked turtle asked before his blue eyes brightened. "Wait, this is something a girl would like! Donnie, are you gonna give this to April and confess your love to her!?"

"N-No Mikey, I'm not-"

"Dude, that's so awesome! But if you're too nervous to do it, I'll do it for you, okay?" He suddenly leaned forward and pinched Donnie's cheek like a smothering grandma. "Don't you worry, D! You're baby bro's got your back all the way! Lemme take care of this for you, dude!"

"Wait, Mikey, no!"

Donnie reached out for his brother, but couldn't stop him from rushing to the farmhouse. If Mikey presented the gift to April with the wrong idea in mind, who knew what would happen! Jumping from his seat, the genius turtle sprinted out of the barn after Mikey. He almost tripped over some chickens and brushed past a sweat-drenched Casey on the way until he reached the front door. Maybe he could beat Mikey and get the music box from him before any damage occurred. April wouldn't get the wrong idea and think he was weird, then! As he flew through the front door and entered the living room…all hopes of damage control went out the window.

"…and he made it just for you! It's totally a gift to confess his undying love! Actually, he may be using it to propose to you, April!"

The purple-masked turtle's jaw dropped open when he saw his brother beaming like an idiot in front of April and showing her the music box. The redhead caught sight of him and, just as he feared, stared at him with an uncomfortable gaze. He watched her hold the music box like it was a soiled diaper, giving him the indication that she clearly didn't like it. Yet Mikey just kept grinning like he just won the role of Cupid. Before Donnie could go up and sock his brother in the shoulder, April smiled nervously and sat the box down on the end table.

"A-April, I…"

"Wow, uh…t-thanks, Donnie. That's…really nice of you." She maneuvered herself around the turtles before adding in a rushed voice, "I gotta go chop wood, see you later!"

The orange-masked turtle's grin melted at April's reaction before he looked at his brother. Needless to say, Donnie looked like a cross between a kicked dog and an angry hornet. How come April reacted that way? "Dude, I thought she'd like your love gift."

"…Only it WASN'T a love gift, you moron!" Donnie spat ferociously. "That was a THANK-YOU gift! I was trying to tell you that in the barn, but NO, you just assume that I was making her a gift because of a stupid crush! Why didn't you stop and listen to me, Mikey!?"

"…I was just tryin' to help…I thought that you were-"

"See, that's the problem! You don't stop and THINK! If you did, you wouldn't have made April think of me as a total CREEP!" Donnie turned to head out the door before adding, "…Why do you have to ruin everything, Michelangelo?"

The door slammed shut, leaving Mikey staring a gaping his mouth open like a suffocating fish. Just when he thought it couldn't get any worse, Leo and Raph appeared from upstairs and glared down at the turtle. Great, he was in for it now…what else was he going to ruin? Maybe Donnie wouldn't stay mad at him…maybe.

"Stupid Mikey…always has to mess up every good thing I try to do…"

Donnie gave a nearby bush a solid whack with his staff, grumbling under his breath all the way. Here he was, in the deeper part of the forest, trying to clear his head. The moment he exited the front door of the farmhouse, he bolted, ignoring everyone else calling for him. Of all the things Mikey could do, this was the stupidest stunt he pulled yet besides giving himself shellacne. Now April would look at him as some obsessive freak over a stupid music box, maybe giving her the incentive to flock to Casey's greasy arms once and for all. Lately, however, he struggled with those fears and his overall feelings concerning the redheaded teenager.

It all seemed to start after having conversations with Cheyloe and the incident with April's dad mutating. Granted, the brunette didn't try to suggest not crushing on April…she just gave him a new perspective on what constituted love. So really…was the music box actually a thank-you gift? Or…was it just another way to garner April's attention? He thought his feelings towards her would strengthen after Cheyloe's fall and basically being alone with her at the farmhouse…but whenever they showed affection, it wasn't the 'I want to go out with you' kind…it was the 'we're family no matter what' kind. In other words, the 'crush' seemed to weaken.

"Propose to her, is he crazy? Why would I do that? Never even had a date…" Donnie kept mumbling, not paying attention to his path in the forest. "Couldn't even get legally married to her; she'd have that chance with Casey. That idiot…"

Once he whacked a random tree branch, it finally registered to him that he got lost in the forest. Of all the things that could top being embarrassed by his brother, it was getting lost in a godforsaken forest. He groaned in frustration before pulling out his T-Phone and pressing a few buttons. While he button-mashed in order to call for backup, he failed to realize eyes were upon him from the surrounding foliage. Whatever those eyes belonged to slowly crept out of their hiding place and approached Donnie with a low growl.

"Can't get signal…can things get any worse!?"

As Donnie prepared to throw his phone to the ground, he froze when he felt a hot, foul breath on his neck. He swallowed hard before slowly turning his head and seeing where the stench came from. To his amazement and terror, there stood a giant, ape-like humanoid glowering down at him, teeth bared and a growl from its throat. The turtle's eyes widened as his mouth slowly opened and he let out a terrified scream.

He was staring right into the face of the legendary Bigfoot.

He scrambled to unsheathe his Bo staff before he managed to take a swing at the creature, but the cryptid grabbed the staff and used it to slam Donnie to the ground. The turtle spat dirt and grass and glared up at the creature; there was no way he would allow himself to be killed by Bigfoot, of all things. In retaliation, he used his Bo to slam the creature in the arm, right onto a patch of exposed, scratched skin. The ferocity left the cryptid's face and was replaced with pain as it cried out and clutched its arm.

Donnie took that as a cue to bolt…but something stopped him. He saw the creature in pain, and it tugged at his heartstrings. That wound was there before he hit it, and whatever caused it got Bigfoot good. Sighing, he asked himself, "Why am I such a nice person?" He sheathed his staff as he slowly approached the pained creature. "Hey…are you hurt? I'm sorry I hit you…I didn't know that was on your arm. May I take a look?"

The cryptid flinched when the turtle came closer, but as it sensed the lack of hostility from him it relented and slowly extended its injured arm. The turtle took hold of the arm and examined the wound. The cuts were like something from a weapon, maybe an arrow or buckshot, but the burn on it suggested the latter. Nothing a little gauze and wrap couldn't fix. "Hey, uh…come back with me, okay? I have the stuff needed to fix you up. Don't be scared…I promise I won't hurt you."

"…No…hurt me?" The creature spoke, its voice rattled.

"You can speak!" Donnie gasped in surprise, nodding his head at the question. "Yeah, I won't hurt you. Let's get you better…just follow me."

"So ya didn't even bother ta stop and listen ta him tell ya what it was!? Of all the stupid things ya did…"

Michelangelo fidgeted his thumbs at the volume of Raphael's scolding voice. April sat on the couch rubbing the back of her neck and holding the music box from earlier, while Leonardo leaned on his crutch glaring and Casey sat in the nearby chair holding back a snicker. When Donatello stormed out, Leo and Raph cornered Mikey and demanded an explanation. Knowing he couldn't hide anything from them, he fessed up that he mistook the thank-you present for April as a courtship gift, even when Donnie tried to explain what it was.

"I-I didn't mean to embarrass him like that!" Mikey defended hurriedly. "I just thought he still liked April and made the music box for that! Then he told me what it was for and he's probably gonna be mad at me forever!"

"…Now I feel horrible." The redhead spoke up. "I treated the music box like it had Ebola or something. If I knew what it was for, I wouldn't have acted like such a jerk. When Donnie gets back, I think we both owe him an apology."

The hockey player snorted. "Dude, even if he was makin' a 'love gift'…a music box? Really? How lame is that? I would've went fer an actual piece 'a jewelry!" He stopped when he got elbowed by Raph. "Ow! What was that for!?"

"You know what it's for." Raph retorted before addressing Mikey again. "When Donnie gets back, yer gonna have ta do a lot of stuff ta get on his good side again! And if I find out yer tryin' ta dodge the blame for it, I'll…"

Everyone paused when the door opened, revealing none-other than Donatello, who seemed calm and collected now. The genius turtle noticed the others and stared at them in silence, though he soon gave an awkward wave. "Uh…I'm back, guys. And I brought company…"

"DONNIE!" Mikey sprung from the sofa and wrapped his brother in a bear hug. "Dude, I'm so sorry about what I did! Please don't run away like that again!"

"M-Mikey, please, let me go, I-I can't breathe!" Donnie sputtered, feeling his plastron and shell groaning from the force of the hug. "M-Mikey…!"

The freckled turtle suddenly let go after much protest from his brother. Grinning sheepishly at his behavior, his face suddenly curled in disgust when he caught a whiff of something worse than the smell of the sewers. "Dude…what smells like a pile of roadkill? And what's with that giant wad of hair behind you?"

The genius turtle opened his mouth to explain said wad of hair, but the wad of hair suddenly tripped on the edge of the porch and fell backwards through the doorway, right on top of Donatello. The others stared in awe at the groaning creature and the squished turtle, until Casey grabbed Leo by the shoulder and screamed, "It's BIGFOOT!"

"Big…foot?" The cryptid repeated, glancing at its foot and wiggling its toes before laughing. "I Bigfoot!"

"Donnie, you brought BIGFOOT home!?" Leo spat. "What were you thinking!?"

"Leo, look!" April pointed to Bigfoot's arm at the obvious wound. "He's hurt! Here, let me get the first-aid kit!"

When the redhead disappeared, Raph and Mikey were the first who dared to get closer to the legendary cryptid. Despite the skunky smell coming from the creature and the unkempt appearance, it didn't seem intent on causing harm to anyone; probably because of Donnie's kindness. Still, what caused that wound on its arm? There were people who often hunted for Bigfoot to prove it was real, but hardly anyone managed to wound it and tell the world about it. There was a television report about some big-game hunter around town claiming to have seen Bigfoot, but who would've taken that seriously?

"Hey Bigfoot, who did that to your arm?" Mikey questioned, pointing to the wound.

Bigfoot visibly flinched at the question and glanced away, looking at Donnie for protection. "Big, mean lady with guns…name Abi…Abigail Finn…"

"Wait." Donnie suddenly interrupted. "Do you mean you were hurt by Dr. Abigail Finn!? THE Abigail Finn!?" He put his hands to his face to collect himself of his horror and excitement. "She's one of the top biologists AND technologists out there! I've seen her achievements, like the SORTIES she invented herself! She's also the host of a creature hunter show…but it seems creature-hunting's made her go a little on the…nutso side."

The temperamental turtle snorted. "Guess tryin' ta prove monsters exist ta cynics drove 'er crazy. Now she's goin' after Bigfoot ta clear 'er reputation."

"But if that Abigail Finn lady is going after Bigfoot, then she might come after us, too!" Mikey realized, biting on his nails.

The genius turtle shook his head. "She's not getting Bigfoot OR us. As much as I respect her ingenuity, I wouldn't want her to put any of us in captivity or make us lab experiments. We'll be safe…"

"There you go…just as long as you don't use it too much, it'll heal nicely." April directed while tying the last of the bandages on Bigfoot's arm.

The cryptid eyed the bandages in curiosity, forgetting how much the antiseptic stung a few minutes ago, before it turned to Donatello and smiled. "Bigfoot thank Donnie and April."

The genius turtle chuckled sheepishly and waved his hand. "It's no problem, Bigfoot. We're glad to help."

"So Bigfoot, is it true that Dr. Abigail Finn is chasing after you for her monster show?" The redhead questioned in concern. "I figured she's be the type to humanely hunt for creatures…that wound proved me wrong about her."

Bigfoot cringed at the mention of the hunter. "Mm-hmm…Finn very bad lady. April good lady!" It suddenly turned to Donnie and gave him a peculiar look. "…And Donnie VERY good man. Very good…"

Donnie swallowed, now feeling uncomfortable at the way the cryptid stared at him all of a sudden. He looked random things up on the Internet, and he could've sworn those were what everyone called 'bedroom eyes'. Why was Bigfoot suddenly leaning closer? Why was he puckering his lips like that? Before the turtle could even get up, the cryptid swiftly leaned forward and planted a big, wet kiss on his cheek, leaving a trail of drool between the two while April stared in awe.

"Looove Donnie!" The cryptid cooed, picking up the mutant turtle and wrapping him in a hug. Before the turtle could fully ask what was going on, the creature added, "Bigfoot a lady!"

All the color drained from Donnie's face and he cringed at the revelation that Bigfoot was a SHE. "T-That's…great?"

His worst fears were confirmed when he heard not-so-discrete snickers coming from behind the sofa. Auburn eyes darted to the back of the room and witnessed his brothers and Casey, of all people, erupting into roars of laughter at his predicament. He would never hear the end of this…and then he saw how April reacted. April just stood there, staring at them like the whole thing was cute; how could anyone think this was CUTE!? Of all the people to fall in love with him, it had to be Bigfoot…how flattering.

Everyone stopped in place when a knock on the door permeated the room. Who knew where the house was? All except April and Casey went into the kitchen and surrounding rooms to hide while the redhead went to the door to see who it was. She sat the first-aid kit down on a table next to the door and opened it. To her shock, there stood a tall, burly woman in hunting gear wearing glasses and having what looked like a rifle strapped to her back. The frightening woman wore a stone-cold expression as she stared down at the teenage girl.

"Hello there." She greeted. "Are your parents home? Shouldn't you be in school?"

"U-Uh…" April glanced around in desperation before replying, "Th-They're at work, a-and I'm home sick today!" She faked a cough before asking, "C-Can I help you, Miss…"

"Doctor." The woman corrected sharply. "Dr. Abigail Finn. I've come here because I've followed a trail of unknown tracks to this property...cryptid tracks. You haven't seen anything…suspicious lurking around this farm, have you, little girl?"

Little girl? I'm practically eighteen, lady! April quickly shook her head. "No, of course not! Nothing suspicious here! Just me and my, uh, cousin watching over the house while Mom and Dad are away!"

Abigail Finn narrowed her eyes and pushed up her glasses, glancing around the house and looking for signs of anything suspicious. Of course, it looked like some teenagers occupied the residence, but it could be summed up to kids having parties while their parents were away. Still, the hunter wasn't fully convinced of the story…she'd let it slide for now, though. Giving a sniff, she finally replied, "…Very well. Just let me know if you see anything at all. I'll be camping out in the deeper part of the woods…so just give me a shout. Have a nice day."

The hunter departed and April closed the door with a deep sigh, noticing the others peeking their heads into the foyer. She noticed Bigfoot obsessively clinging onto Donnie, much to his chagrin, and figured there were some things that needed to be done to ensure Abigail Finn didn't discover them. Casey came out of the living room and offered a wry smile.

"Cousin, huh?" He asked cheekily.

"Oh, shut up, it was all I could think of." April grumbled.

Donatello sighed while he sat on the edge of the bed and stared blankly at the screen of his T-Phone. Finally, he managed to get a break and get some time to himself…no Bigfoot in sight. All day, wherever he went, she was right there breathing down his neck like a lovesick puppy. Everything from staring over him while he worked in the barn, force-feeding him popcorn when he tried to watch TV, and even trying to cook soup made from decomposing animals. All of it made him uncomfortable and desperately desiring to be all by himself. He still got snickers and smirks from his brothers and Casey, but that was the least of his worries.

He skimmed through his phone and pulled up some pictures. Blueprints, Kraang and Foot intel, family pictures…and then he found a selfie of himself and Cheyloe, both holding iced coffees she purchased from a nearby coffee stand. It was about a month before the invasion, back when they didn't have a care in the world. Now she was gone, and the turtle would be the first to admit he still cried over her during the night. He could forgive himself for what happened in New York and what happened to Leo…but he still couldn't forgive himself for what happened to HER. Now he had Bigfoot disrupting his ongoing grief; a love-struck Bigfoot, worst of all.

"Huh…is this how April felt in the past?"

He didn't realize until after he muttered that to himself how powerful it was. When he first met April, he thought love at first sight existed. Thanks to that stupid crush, he often found himself acting in a way that many others would automatically assume to be creepy. The flowchart could be forgiven; it wasn't done out of creepiness, but that was how his brain functioned. That time he used Metalhead's video feed to watch her, however, was a grievous mistake he never wanted to make again. He even called her 'his sweet Princess' several times, had pictures of her on the wall of his lab, or that time he went and broke Mr. O'Neil out of that Kraang facility. Donnie would be the first to admit that he didn't do it just to rescue an innocent man…he did it to earn brownie points from April.

Now Bigfoot displayed the same behavior, albeit less sophisticated, right in his face. The creature obviously had the idea that if she persisted enough, Donnie would like her back…just like how he believed in April's case. Granted, it wasn't remotely okay that Bigfoot was that pushy and vice-versa, but it still threw an eye-opening realization in the turtle's face. Question was, how would he proceed with this? Maybe going outside and getting some fresh air would help him contemplate what to do.

Donnie quietly stepped out of the room and rushed for the stairs, hopping down several thanks to his years of ninjitsu. Everything was clear towards the front door, so he hopped to it and exited the house with determination. Raph was playing video games, Mikey was putting the chickens up, and he could hear Leo and Casey in the barn. April was probably in the kitchen, so he would go towards the creek and gaze into the night for a while. And then…right as he headed for the creek, a certain someone stopped him. Who was it? Bigfoot, of course, and presenting him with an entire, uprooted rose bush.

"B-Bigfoot, w-what're you doing!?" Donnie sputtered, jumping back.

The cryptid grinned and held out the flowers until they brushed against Donnie's beak. "Give Donnie present! Donnie like?"

Fighting the urge to sneeze, the genius turtle murmured, "T-They're, uh, very nice, Bigfoot, but I don't think giving me an entire bush is necessary. I just want some alone time, okay?"

Bigfoot's grin melted away instantly. "B-But…why Donnie want alone time? Bigfoot want be with Donnie…"

"Bigfoot, look, you're being nice and you have good intentions, but sometimes people just need time to themselves. Trying to force yourself into that won't work." Donnie sighed, turning to leave. "Look, I REALLY want to be alone right now."

Unfortunately, Bigfoot wouldn't take no for an answer. In desperation, she reached out and roughly grabbed Donnie by the arm in an attempt to pull him back to her. "Donnie no leave! What Bigfoot need to do-"

"Bigfoot, you're CREEPING ME OUT!" The purple-masked turtle shouted, yanking himself free of the cryptid's grasp. "I know you're crushing on me, but take a hint that I DON'T have the same FEELINGS towards you! I've tried to be nice about it, but this is going too far! You can't force me to like you! I don't like you that way, and I NEVER will, okay!? Just leave me alone!"

Donnie took a moment to steady his breathing after getting his pent-up frustration out. Bigfoot, both absorbing his words and frightened by his shouting, became panicked before running towards the deep forest in quiet sobs. The turtle's expression softened and he sighed, burying his face in his hands. He didn't mean to lose his temper, but enough was enough. Yet now he felt like the biggest jerk in the world. After the cryptid bolted for the woods, Mikey ran from the porch while Leo and Casey came out of the barn to investigate.

"Dude, why'd Bigfoot run off?" The freckled turtle asked.

"I-I yelled at her because she wouldn't leave me alone." The genius turtle admitted. "She was just getting in my space and shoving soup and flowers in my face that I just snapped. I know you guys found the whole thing funny and all, but…"

"Donnie, we didn't realize she made you THAT uncomfortable." Leo acknowledged. "You shouldn't have yelled at her, but I get why you did. You should go find her and apologize, though…"

Donnie gave a nod and opened his mouth to reply when the sound of a shot echoed through the trees. The shot followed with a roar of agony, prompting Donnie and Mikey to unsheathe their weapons. "That sounded like Bigfoot!" Mikey noted. "C'mon, we gotta go help her!"

Donatello and Michelangelo bolted for the forest, with Leo's approving nod. He and Casey decided they would go inside and alert Raph and April to what happened. Unbeknownst to them, though, the entire exchange between the genius turtle and the cryptid went seen and heard by a certain redhead at the kitchen window.

"Bigfoot!" Donatello shouted into the forest. "Bigfoot, where are you!?"

"Bigfoot, don't be scared! It's us!" Michelangelo shouted. "Come out, Bigfoot!"

The two turtles kept up their frantic search for the cryptid, but so far that search bore no fruit. That made Donnie worry the most, especially since Bigfoot could be hurt because she ran off crying. He still stood by how he felt, but he would apologize for the harshness of his tone. He would feel even worse if Bigfoot actually got shot. Come to think of it, the shot didn't sound like a standard hunting rifle…it sounded more like…

"Mikey, we shouldn't let our guard down." Donnie warned quietly. "I think Abigail Finn is still in the area."

"You think she shot at Bigfoot, D?" Mikey wondered. "We gotta stop her before she goes after us next!"

"We'll do that AND make sure she doesn't have a video camera on her so she won't broadcast our entire existence to the world!" Donnie noted. "If the Kraang or Foot saw that we're alive and in Northampton, they'll come track us down! That is, if Finn doesn't experiment on us first!" He suddenly stopped when he heard another cry of pain. "C'mon, let's move!"

The two of them picked up the pace, heading for the deepest part of the woods in order to find what they were looking for. After a few moments, they finally came across a small clearing, and happened upon a large, armored truck. Right next to the truck stood Abigail Finn herself, pointing her rifle to something on the ground. That something turned out to be a frightened and injured Bigfoot. Donnie's heart lurched and he tightened the grip on his Bo staff before he and Mikey charged out of the thicket and right behind Finn.

"Let Bigfoot go!"

Abigail Finn turned away from Bigfoot in time to see the mutant turtles. Her stone-cold eyes widened behind her glasses at the sight of the armed creatures; she HAD to record this. "What the…reptilian humanoids? Wielding weapons!? What on Earth are you creatures!?"

"That's none of your business!" The freckled turtle spat. "Just let Bigfoot go and we won't fight you!"

Finn stared at them in awe still, but she suddenly smirked and turned her high-tech rifle on the turtles. "You're even better than Bigfoot! It can run off for all I care…the both of you are much more valuable! The scientific community will serve me with grant after grant for a discovery like this, and I'll have my reputation restored for sure!" The rifle sparked to life as she added, "Now hold still and the tagging process won't hurt so much…"

Donnie and Mikey wasted no time in dodging a blast from the weapon. The genius turtle went for the first blow, but the burly woman dodged it and punched him right in the middle of the plastron. Seeing his brother fall to ground crumpled over, Mikey let out a battle cry and tried to knock the rifle away from Finn. Unfortunately for him, the woman managed to grab his arm, twist it behind him, and slam her boot onto his shell. Bigfoot watched in horror as the burly woman beat up on the mutants, the latter managing to get a few hits on her. The cryptid glanced around and saw a piece of a rotted log lying on the ground before staring at Finn's back. Bigfoot wasted no time in picking it up with her good arm and chucking it at the hunter.

When Abigail yelped at the degraded wood hitting her from behind, Donnie stared in shock at the now-angry Bigfoot. "Bigfoot, get out of here! You've got to run! Get as far away as you can! Go!"

Despite being hurt, the cryptid stood up and towered over a still-stunned Abigail. "No…Bigfoot no run. Finn hurt Bigfoot and friends…now Bigfoot hurt Finn."

The burly woman cringed and took a step back, holding up her rifle and readying to shoot Bigfoot. However, a kurisagama chain shot out and wrapped itself around the weapon, yanking it out of her grasp. Did that deter the hunter? No…she used that opportunity to push a button on her belt and open up a hatch on her truck. The turtles and Bigfoot watched as several metallic ball-shaped objects spilled out of the hatch and surrounded their feet.

"Look out! Those are SORTIES!" Donnie exclaimed. "Don't let them hit you! They can shoot lasers and liquid nitrogen!"

Once Donnie completed his sentence, the robots opened up and began shooting out clouds of liquid nitrogen. With their cold-blooded nature still prevalent even with their mutation, the turtles would freeze in an instant, indicated by their bodies stiffening and the grass crackling beneath them. Bigfoot, however, wouldn't allow that. She managed to pull a slender tree out from the ground and use it to smash some of the robots into pieces before throwing the tree right into the truck. Donnie and Mikey took care of the rest of the robots once their bodies could move again, and now they all set their sights on Abigail Finn. Finn still wouldn't give up, though, as she fetched her rifle and pointed it at the turtles and cryptid.

"I won't let any of you ruin my chances of redemption!" She shouted, sweating and gritting her teeth. "You can't stop me from getting what I want! I'll have my fame back even if I have to bring you in DEAD!"

That was the last straw for a certain cryptid. With a loud roar, Bigfoot charged the burly woman and slammed her fist right into her face, shattering her glasses and sending her flying into her now-damaged truck. Finn collapsed to the ground and fell unconscious as a result. Bigfoot panted and attempted to cool her anger as the turtles approached her.

"…Bigfoot?" Donnie addressed quietly.

The cryptid turned to the genius turtle and her face softened. Donnie braced himself for her to lash out, but instead, he watched as she sighed and stared at him with a saddened expression. "Bigfoot…understand. Donnie no like Bigfoot…Bigfoot still want be friends with Donnie."

"Bigfoot…I shouldn't have yelled at you like that, okay?" The genius turtle admitted. "I mean, I'm not straying away from how I feel…and let's be honest here, I'm not the best person for you. You're not the best person for me, but that doesn't mean there's not someone out there for you. It'll take time, but you'll find someone…maybe even someone you never expected to fall for."

That caused a smile to appear on Bigfoot's face. "Donnie think so? Then Bigfoot wait for right person…and right person find Donnie." Her attention turned to the fallen hunter. "What do about Finn?"

"She'll be out cold for a while, but you should still go and get as far away as you can." Donnie replied. "I'll go into what's left of her truck and put a virus in her systems, just in case she recorded us. It'll fry the rest of her SORTIES, too. Now she won't have proof of us."

"So she won't report us to the world, D?" Mikey asked with caution.

Donnie chuckled and pulled out some tools. "No one'll believe her without proof. She'll just be seen as a nut." He turned to Bigfoot and offered a sad smile. "Well…goodbye, Bigfoot. I do hope you find your special someone."

"Bye-bye Donnie and Mikey." Bigfoot waved, also giving a sad smile. "Bigfoot hope Donnie find special someone too."

The cryptid gave another wave before walking deeper into the woods, parting ways with the turtles. Mikey quietly observed his older brother staring at Bigfoot before saying, "We'd better hurry, Donnie. Don't wanna worry the others, right?"

After Donatello and Michelangelo returned that night, they had a ball explaining exactly what happened to Bigfoot and their encounter with Abigail Finn. Despite Leonardo lecturing them on walking into danger like that, they all agreed that the important thing was they were back alive. It was obvious to Donnie that the others seemed relieved of Bigfoot's absence; she did cause some trouble with the bathroom and her roadkill soup. Nevertheless, the genius turtle had trouble sleeping that night, both from pure exhaustion and mulling over his exchange with Bigfoot. He and Bigfoot were in no way compatible, that was obvious…and now he wondered if he was truly compatible with April.

He thought about that even during the next day, when he found himself standing outside and watching as the redheaded girl fiercely chopped firewood. Ninjitsu certainly improved her upper body strength, enough so that the turtle visibly flinched when she brought the axe down on an unsuspecting log. But that would now have to wait…he needed to talk to her now. Taking a deep breath, Donnie cleared his throat and called out, "April?"

April sat down her axe, turning around and wiping her forehead. "Hey, what's up, Donnie?"

Donnie watched the girl tuck a strand of hair behind her ear, like she always did. It was a cute habit, and it made a small smile come to his face. Enough admiration, though…time to be serious. "Well…I just wanted to talk to you about something. I just…" He swallowed a lump in his throat and let out a shaky breath. "I've honestly been thinking about this for a while, but the incident with Bigfoot really opened my eyes. I just wanted to tell you that…I've had a crush on you since we first met. When I first saw you that night you and your dad first got kidnapped, I truthfully thought it was love at first sight…but all this crush has done is bring trouble to everyone…especially you."

Seeing that he had April's full attention by her shocked expression, he continued. "I've went about it all the wrong way. I got up in your space when you didn't want me to, made a flow chart on how to hang out with you, observed you with Metalhead, called you a princess…all that time, I thought that if I persisted, you'd start to feel affection towards me, too. And what's that done? It's just pushed you further away. I can see now why you've been hanging out with Casey much more lately…"

"Donnie…" April watched when Donnie yelled at Bigfoot, and it made her realize something about him. Compared to her, he actually had the guts to say what he felt that night. He actually had the guts to say no. He wanted to set the record straight, so it was time she did too. "Donnie, it was never my intention to lead you on or give you false hope. I had suspicions that you crushed on me, and with what's going on, starting a relationship wouldn't have worked. But I was so afraid of hurting your feelings that I didn't have the courage to tell you the truth, so I just beat around the bush and just gave you false hope when I shouldn't have. Casey and I are just friends, too, so don't think I'm hopping into the romance boat with him."

The genius turtle chuckled at that statement. "I believe you on that, April. Back to the point…I just wanted to say that the crush is just that…a stupid crush. I don't want something so misguided to threaten what we already have…a relationship as best friends. That's something I already treasure so much…and I don't want to complicate things by trying to woo you. Besides, a wise person once told me that love at first sight is a total crock."

"I never thought of it like that." The redhead confessed. "But I can see truth in that statement. I think you've figured out that by us getting to know each other…we have better chemistry as best friends than boyfriend and girlfriend. Still…are you going to be okay with this decision, Donnie?"

Donnie offered a firm nod, now finding his confidence. "Yeah…I mean, I will be okay. It was hard for me to finally come out and say it, but I don't want you trying to make me happy when it makes you miserable, and vice-versa. I want to focus on what's most important right now…getting our home back. So…" He offered his hand and gave a warm smile. "Best friends forever?"

April smiled greatly in return and clasped the turtle's hand, giving it a firm shake. "Best friends forever."

With the two in agreement, they decided to head in the farmhouse for something to drink. Over at the barn, the doors slowly opened all the way to reveal Leonardo, who wore a small grin and stared at his brother and friend walking together. Raphael stepped out from behind him, wearing a similar expression, before clasping his brother's shoulder.

"I'm proud of him." Leo commented. "Looks like they'll hold to that promise."

"I'll admit…I was secretly rootin' for 'im ta hook up with April." Raph stated quietly. "But he did the right thing…they both did. So, wonder how Casey'll react if he finds out April sees him as 'just friends', too?"

"I'm sure April'll break it to him if he starts getting too pushy. At least this whole lover's quarrel thing is over with now…not just for us, but for them as well." The blue-masked turtle leaned on his crutch and headed out. "Come on, let's see if Mikey's done with that lemonade."

The red-masked turtle snorted and followed his brother. "Just hope he didn't sneak pepperoni in it."

Author's Note: Sorry to all the hardcore Apritello shippers, but I think these two work better as just being best friends. Does that mean I don't want Apritello to happen in the show? Of course not. While canon Apritello isn't my favorite, I'll be happy if it happens in the show. I like fanon Apritello more, but I'm still going to have these two as just being friends in this story. Well, the next chapter will have the Vision Quest in it, along with hints of a new character that'll appear later on. Stay tuned!