Splinter seemed quite relieved once Leo had Beth safely inside the lair. As his son stepped off the last rung of the ladder, the rat approached them and took up the girl's hand in his, "My daughter, I'm thankful that you are well and in one piece." He then glanced over at Leonardo, "as I am for you, my son." Master Splinter then smiled hugely at first, with Leo bowing low before his father. As he did, the turtle flattened both hands together under his chin in traditional supplication.
As the rat's head bowed in reply and as both he and his son looked back up again, Splinter remarked pointedly to the girl, "Raphael has told me about your unfortunate meeting with our enemy. I wish to apologize," but then his expression fell away to one that seemed more serious. "However, considering our hospitality to you and helping you recover from your injury, I am at a loss as to why you would leave when you did."
Beth swallowed nervously from the rat's pointed question and cowed just a bit under his stern gaze. Unable to answer him, she remained mute and submissive. She thought that Leonardo had been strict with her, but feeling the disapproval from Splinter seemed worse.
"Nevertheless, as you found out, it was very dangerous for you to leave without an escort." Splinter then studied the girl for a long, pregnant moment. "In either event," the rat entreated, allowing a small smile, "Let me make you some tea and then we can talk." With his hand still grasping hers, he gently guided her towards the kitchen. Beth didn't have any choice but to follow, since Splinter's firm grip around her hand told her there would be no arguments to the contrary.
As Splinter led her towards the room in question, Beth wondered if the rat was going to lecture her, as Leo had earlier. She certainly deserved it, she thought sullenly. At any rate, Beth was beginning not to like lectures, especially about matters concerning her heart. She could only hope the rat would question her actions rather than her feelings.
As she looked back at Leonardo, expecting him to follow along, she found to her dismay that her friend wasn't following. Instead, he went over to join his brothers on the couch. It was then Beth realized that she would be on her own with the aged rat.
Once more, she swallowed nervously. "Yes," she thought sorely, "I'm definitely getting another lecture."
As for Leonardo, he knew that 'tea' and 'talk' meant confronting issues. Regardless of Beth's guest status, he was certain his father wouldn't waste a cup of tea on just idle chat. He did feel a bit sorry for the girl, though. Leo knew that chats with his father were oftentimes very revealing. Considering what Beth had done, and then what she tried to hide from him, Leo was well aware the talk might become a defining moment for her.
Thirty minutes later, as they sat around the kitchen table and after a few pertinent questions from the master, Beth finally confessed her reasons for leaving. She apologized for doing so and admitted that it was a careless act. This seemed to placate the rat a bit, but she was still careful to repeat only what she said to Leo. As she finished, Beth hoped she had convinced the wizened master as easily as she had her friend, yet there seemed to be a lingering doubt etched upon the rat's face.
Consequently, the girl waited for the anticipated challenge.
However, instead, Splinter just sat there silently for a moment as he casually studied the girl. Sipping from his cup of tea, the rat hummed a little, as if in thought. Then, while holding his cup between two paws, he smiled faintly and quietly commented, "I suspect there are other reasons why you left when you did, my dear, and what prompted you to do so without our assistance." He noted a sudden blush glow along her cheeks. "But for now," he carefully sat his cup back onto its saucer, "your explanation and apology will suffice."
Splinter then leaned back in his chair and, once more, looked at the girl.
Beth inwardly cowed, and then grumped to herself. The affect the rat had on her unnerved the girl, and it seemed to be happening all too frequently for her liking. She tried not to shy away from his observations, yet Beth found that she couldn't quite help herself. In the next moment, she dropped her gaze and looked down at her hands - and then cringed. She knew Splinter knew she wasn't telling the whole truth. Had she looked up in that moment, she would have seen small knowing smile gracing the rat's muzzle, confirming her suspicions.
Splinter then changed the topic, "It is still a few hours before nightfall, child, and I would not feel right having you return home in unclean clothes." He stood up, pushing his chair back and causing it to scrape softly along the concrete floor of the kitchen, "Perhaps you would like to take advantage of our laundry facility."
Beth almost sighed aloud; quite thankful he wasn't going to push the issue. She suddenly realized, though, her clothes were still quite smelly, and even more so from her trek through the sewers. "Yes, I think…I will. Thank you."
Splinter bowed his head once again, "My pleasure, Miss Beth,"
A few moments later, she found herself back in Leonardo's room. Once she had the door closed, she changed back into the over-sized t-shirt Splinter had loaned her, and then gathered up her soiled clothing.
After Beth came back out from the bedroom, Don showed her to the laundry area, which was nothing more than a little niche in the wall just beyond Master Splinter's own sleeping quarters. Much to Beth's delight, she discovered the washing machine and dryer were not as antiquated as she had feared, but were rather modern in design and function. "They seem so new; how…ah…did you get them?"
Don smiled a little and said quietly, "We had a friend who…wasn't using them anymore. She let us have them," and then he went about showing Beth how to operate the machines. When he was done, Don left her to her task.
Of course, Beth knew very little if anything about their friendship with April O'Neal. After the woman's untimely death, many of her possessions came into the mutants' care and, as a result, greatly improved their lifestyle. Besides the washer and dryer, they had inherited the refrigerator, too. Initially and before he disappeared, Casey had assisted in getting various conveniences down to the turtle's subterranean home. It was soon after that, though, when he had vanished and seemingly without a trace, too.
As Beth sprinkled the laundry powder into the washer and over her clothes, she thought a little bit more about the events in the sewers. The more she did, the more she realized just how dangerous her act had been, and the more foolish she began to feel. It wasn't that Splinter hadn't impressed this fact upon her, but she had been so mortified by his confrontation, she had tried to shield herself from the guilt it created.
By the time she had the washer started and as she thought about Leonardo and Splinter's lectures, the last place Beth wanted to be was in the living room with them. Consequently, she had a great need to hurry back into Leo's bedroom and out of sight. It had become a sanctuary for her, much the way her apartment had become.
Of course, considering what Leo said to her before climbing down into the lair, there was another equally good reason for not joining him in the living room. In short, she didn't want to change her mind about not staying. Being so close to Leo might very well entice her to stay - and Beth just didn't want to take that chance. She had made up her mind and she was determined to follow through with her plans, no matter what.
In contrast, although he was disappointed with her absence, Leo understood Beth's need for privacy. While his father had talked with her, Leonardo could sense how embarrassed the girl felt and her mood only intensified later on when she went about getting her clothes in the washer. The way she hurried to return to the safety and comfort of his room seemed all too obvious to him. Consequently, Leo tried to focus on the television program he and his family was watching. He did do his best to ignore her, but Leo still found it most difficult.
When the show concluded, Mike suggested a game of Scrabble to pass the time away until they could take Beth home. As they set up the board, Leonardo once more found his attention drawn back to his bedroom where Beth was.
"Maybe Beth would like to play?" he softly wondered aloud.
"Let her be, my son," Splinter suggested evenly, "I believe she has much to think about."
"Yeah, I…guess she does." Leo agreed, sighing, and then tried to focus on the game.
With each participant picking an over-turned letter-tile, Mike whooped when he discovered he had picked an 'A'. He would go first. Splinter's blind pick found him second in playing order, followed by Raphael and then Donatello.
Raph sniggered when Leo found himself last in the line-up. Usually, the blue-banded turtle would have complained a bit about being the 'tail' in the game, if only in fun. Still, his mind was elsewhere, and so he just sat there complacent.
"Hey, fearless," Raph teased, "you seem rather 'distracted'."
Leo looked up, almost startled, "Ah, no, just…thinking."
"Ah huh, sure, bro…" Raph winked slyly at his other two brothers, offering a subtle nod towards the subway cars. They smiled in return, but caught a warning glance from Splinter, effectively squelching any snide comments from them.
After all of them had picked their seven tiles, the game began.
Mike immediately set about placing his first word on the board, lining his tiles up horizontally from the free spot in the middle. When he slapped the last letter down, he announced, "Speech."
Master Splinter added three of his tiles under the 'S', and said, "Sell". Raph grumped, however, aligning his tiles horizontally into one of the E's in Splinter's word, "See," and then muttered, "...hate this game."
"You don't have t'play, bro, if it's too complicated for you." Don chided gently as he smirked, with Mike chuckling softly across from him.
Raph leveled a glare, "You challenging me, Don-san?"
Placing a delicate hand to plastron, Don replied as he grinned, "Me, challenge you to an intellectual game of words?"
Narrowing his eyes, Raph growled, "You're on!" and snatched up two new tiles to add to his remaining five.
Much to Raphael's dismay, Don quickly added all seven of his letters to the 'H' in Mike's original word, announcing triumphantly, "Epiphany!"
"EPIPhany?" Raph growled out.
"It means…" Don began to explain.
"I KNOW what it mean, pinhead."
Ignoring the insult, Don then gloated, "And I get fifty extra…"
"And we all know the extra point system, Donatello, so just shut the shell up!" Raph grumped and then slouched into the sofa. He tried to ignore Don's smirk, Splinter's disapproving glance, and Mike's giggles, preferring to study his tiles in the hopes of coming up with a good, high point word. He sighed dejectedly, though, when he realized once again, his chance at beating his smarter brother would have to rely on luck. By the looks of it – and as far as his tiles were concerned – he had very little going for him.
When it was Leo's turn, he studied his tiles for a moment and compared them to the words already in play. Then, he made his decision. Placing four letter tiles on the board, he positioned them horizontally, bridging the letters 'L' at the end of his sensei's word to the 'Y' in Don's. Leo then sighed impassively as he declared his contribution, "Lonely," and went to grab up four more overturned tiles to replace the ones he had just used. As he sat the new ones in his holder, he sighed – again - and glanced once more at his bedroom.
The moment he heard his brother's word, though, Mike slapped a hand over his mouth to suppress his giggles. Don's eyes went slightly wide and Raph smirked. Splinter furrowed his brow as he studied his son's contribution and then looked up at him and twitched his whiskers in mile amusement.
Just the same, there wasn't even a hint of expression on Leo's face to say he understood his Freudian slip. It was obvious to everyone the blue-banded turtle was on remote, where his mind definitely was not on the game. Although he had used only those letters available from the seven he blindly picked from the initial pile, the subliminal message behind his word seemed positively hilarious.
Michelangelo smiled and glanced mischievously at his other two brothers. He wiggled his eye-ridges and then took his second turn. He then placed just two tiles from his seven to Leo's word, adding to the one available 'L'. With his tiles working vertically down the board, Mike kept a finger on the last one, but then looked up as if half-expecting a comment or two.
Although he couldn't help but smile, Don had to challenge, "Can't use pronouns, Mike."
"Michelangelo!" Splinter corrected sternly.
"Sorry, Master," Mike shrugged and giggled, but tried to feign innocence, "kinda forgot about the – ah – not using pronouns."
Raph rolled his eyes and chuckled lightly, "Yeah, like we believe that one, Mikey."
Leonardo suddenly woke up from his thoughts and then glanced back at the board. He squinted at the word for a second, trying to figure out what it was that had caused such commotion. Then, like the rising dawn, he understood.
Shooting a warning look at Mike, Leo hotly declared, "Am not!" and which resulted in more light chuckles from his brothers, with another 'cease and desist snort' from the rat.
Mike, his task now complete, went about removing his letters and replacing them on the board under the 'N', once again in Leo's word.
Raph protested this time, "Hey, Mike, you lost your chance, no seconds."
"As long as I keep a finger on one of the tiles, bro, it's not a done deal yet." Mike replied defensively.
"He's right, Raph, the rules say…" Don began, but found himself rudely interrupted - again.
"I KNOW the rules, brainiac."
"Raphael, I do not like it when you insult your brother," Splinter admonished sternly.
"Sorry, Sensei," and then Raph went back to his brooding again.
Mike then straightened up proudly as he announced, "NEO!"
"Hey, we said no PRONOUNS!" Raph hollered.
"It's not NEO as in Matrix, Raphie, it's neo, as in 'new'!" Mike grinned wide.
Raph eyed the word, "Isn't 'neo' then supposed to be hyphenated?"
Don remarked, "Not always and in Scrabble, it's allowed."
Grumping some more, Raph muttered, "Figures," and sat deeper into the back of the couch.
However, Leo – once again distracted by 'other things' - sighed quietly and wondered if maybe he had let the issue go too soon between Beth and himself. He was surprised with how his feelings had shifted, where only hours earlier, he was so adamant about not getting involved in relationships. As he recalled his father's words about the natural need for finding a mate, and how unwise it was to assume that they would not have such concerns, the turtle wondered where everything had changed.
He thought back to protecting Beth in the sewers, fighting for her and protecting her, then, carrying her to safety through the tunnels. In the end, it seemed as if these experiences had pried open the locked door of his heart. He suddenly realized in that moment his growing need for her affections - and now he couldn't help but think about her.
"Maybe…" he thought to himself, "I should have reasoned with her, begged her to give me a chance, even challenge her excuse for leaving."
It was obvious to him that Beth felt the same way as he now felt for her. Yet Leonardo also knew, despite his lack of experience with such matters, forcing anyone into a relationship was unwise. It was like chasing mice, you would never get one.
In any event, Leo chose to remain where he was and seemed to care little about the fact that he was losing the game.
As for Raphael, he knew that, once again, he would lose to his genius brother, as would everyone else. During one interval, the red-banded turtle snorted in disgust. As he looked at his remaining three tiles, he wondered just how in the world he could make words using Z, Q, and J. He took one last look at the board for any sign of hope, and then leaned hard into the back of the couch, huffing as he did. It was then when he chanced a quick look at the car where Beth was.
It was also when Leo glanced up and caught him looking
Raph caught Leo's gaze, giving his 'fearless leader' a scowl.
Leo flinched a bit, yet decided to ignore the challenge. Still, Leonardo could sense Raphael's irritation and maybe, considering what he had said to him the day before about Beth, it wasn't too surprising.
"What does he expect me to do, anyway? It's not as if Beth wants to stay. And with the way Raph postures himself, scaring her to death, he's just as much out of luck as I am!" Leo grumped silently.
Yet, with Beth returning to her apartment, Leonardo knew her absence from the lair would weaken any hope for either of them to gain her affection. Still, if it was what she wanted – even though Leo was sure he knew differently – then he would do everything in his power to make it happen.
When Beth's clothes were ready for wearing, she quickly gathered them from the dryer and hurried back to Leo's room. Closing the door, she quickly changed out of the t-shirt and robe and into her now-clean pants and blouse. As she stood there and contemplated what next to do, the girl realized that staying in seclusion until it was time to leave was probably rude and ungrateful. She had already caused enough problems as it was.
Plus, she was bored. With nothing to do but sit on the bed, she was getting a mite restless. Although she was still embarrassed about the problems she had caused by leaving the lair, she had rediscovered her need to socialize. Her association with Leo and his family had shown her just how lonely she truly was. "Of all people to make me understand the kind of life I've been living." she thought ruefully.
Her mind now made up, Beth knew what she wanted to do. Staying in Leonardo's room alone just wasn't working for her anymore. So, she took a deep breath for courage, squared her shoulders, and – after sliding the bedroom door open – walked out into the lair. She glanced once at the living area and saw Leonardo – his attention keen on her entrance. She blushed and smiled shyly, but then headed towards the kitchen first to make her cup of teaNoticing that they were playing a game of some sort, Beth thought maybe she would join them. At least, she knew she might avoid any uncomfortable lulls and situations.
As the girl slipped into the kitchen, Leonardo stood in attempt to join her there. However, Splinter's raised paw effectively instructed his son to sit back down. Reluctantly, the turtle complied, yet his eyes never left the girl in question as she took up the teakettle in the kitchen and filled the container with tap water.
With the game completed – and Don declared the winner – Mike collected all the letter-tiles and plopped them into their velvet bag. As he began shaking them for the next round, he smiled as he noticed Leonardo watching Beth. The orange-banded turtle subtly nudged Don and nodded towards Leonardo. Donatello smiled knowingly when he caught the expectant expression on Leo's face. However, before either of the two brothers could continue with their silent communiqué, they heard subtle clearing of someone's throat – and turned to see Splinter staring at them.
Don smiled innocently and straightened the board a bit on the coffee table. As for Mike, he continued shaking the tiles, with just a little more enthusiasm, and trying to act nonchalant.
Raphael, however and despite Splinter's request for Leo to remain seated, stood up and headed over to the kitchen. The rat's ears flattened slightly and he tried to say something to divert his son, but changed his mind. He knew that saying anything to Raphael would be a waste of time.
Leonardo, however, did try to say something, but – once again – his father gracefully intervened.
"Let him go, Leonardo," the rat said quietly to his son.
"But, Sensei, what if he…frightens her again?"
"He will not and she has learned something about self-control. Sometimes, Leonardo," Splinter advised gently, "you cannot always rush in and save the day." The rat glanced once towards the kitchen and the girl, "Beth will soon return home and she will need to learn how to adjust to her life once again."
As Beth waited in the kitchen for the water in the teakettle to boil, a noise from behind caught her attention. Startled, she turned quickly around only to see that it was Raphael.
Turning halfway back towards the kettle, Beth managed to keep one eye on the turtle. She watched curiously, as Raph retrieved a can of soda from the refrigerator. Closing the door and quickly popping the can's tab, Raph hesitated when he noticed Beth looking at him. He gave her a quick wink before taking a long pull of the chilled beverage. Closing his eyes as the soda coursed down his throat, he almost seemed to sigh in contentment.
When he finished swallowing and after wiping his mouth dry with the back of his hand, he looked at her again. Then, almost as if in answer to an imagined question from her, "Trying to cut back on th' beer."
Beth smiled, but before she could say anything, the whistle from the kettle called her back to her tea. Ignoring Raphael, she poured the steaming water into her cup, fished a teabag out from its storage container, and plopped it in. Beth watched as the vaporous tendrils of steam rose from the hot liquid. She closed her eyes, picking up her cup, and allowed the fragrant aroma of spices to envelope her senses. As the light mist warmed her face, she easily noted a distinct flavor of licorice. She sighed and smiled, thenrealizing she had never cared much for tea – until now. "I'm definitely going to have to add it to my shopping list," she quietly mused to herself.
After a moment, Beth sensed that Raph was still in the kitchen. Realizing she probably owed him an apology and a word of appreciation for his part in her rescue, she turned back around. Simply, she offered, "Thank you."
Quirking an eye ridge and looking her over, Raph grumped and finally questioningly, "Ah, fer…what?"
Shrugging one shoulder, Beth replied softly, "For…rescuing me."
Chuckling, Raph deadpanned as he swaggered and rolled his eyes, "Yeah, like it had noth'n t'do about keeping the shell on my back, it's all about you, isn't it?"
"What?" Beth straightened up defensively, surprised with his outburst, "It's not like that, but – well…" she trailed off, saying with some uncertainty, "I…I don't know what would have happened to me if…if you and your brothers hadn't been there."
"If ya hadn't left the lair like ya did, Beth, we wouldn't have had to rescue ya from the Foot!" he quietly growled, leveling his eyes at her, his thoughts raging - "The nerve of her, to take off the way she did, endangering herself and us, and then act as if she were some damsel in distress!" Her impulsiveness grated on Raphael and he glanced once towards the living room. Seeing Splinter currently talking with Leo, with his brother's attention distracted from Beth, and with Mike and Don setting up the board for another game of Scrabble, the turtle in red glared at Beth again. He then stated softly, "It's just a good thing th'Foot don't know what ya look like," he then sighed, "Otherwise, you'd never be allowed back home…I, fer one, wouldn't let ya go." The turtle straightened up, now, indignant to the girl's attitude, his brow furrowed in anger, yet still mindful to keep his voice low, "Sheesh, Beth, all ya had to do was wait until mornin', or even get one of us up when ya wanted t'leave, that's all ya had t'do." He took another swig of his cola, swallowed hard, and then chided, "But, no, you couldn't wait, ya had to go out and nearly get us all killed in the process – as if our lives hasn't had enough of that already."
Huffing a bit and leaving a rather stunned Beth in his wake, Raphael swaggered out of the kitchen. With can in hand, the turtle headed for his room, grumbling as he swaggered along.
Beth could only sigh, realizing in that moment how right Raphael was. She had acted impulsively. Realizing she owed more than Raphael an apology, Beth quickly took her cup of tea and headed for the living room. She soon found herself standing before the other three turtles and Splinter.
Gaining their attention, Beth straightened and then declared, "I'd like to apologize for my…actions."
Don and Mike smiled, with Don muttering, "S'alright, everyone's fine" and Mike shrugged and gave her a disarming smile.
The girl continued, "I never thought your enemies would be in the sewers." Her hands began to tremble just a little, now, as she briefly remembered the encounter. Still, she pushed on, "Had…I any idea of the dangers, I wouldn't have…left. I'm…sorry." Her eyes filled with tears as she swallowed back a sob, trying her hardest to control even something as simple as crying. "I just panicked, I guess; I wanted to go home, and…" Beth suddenly glanced down at her teacup and realized that she was shaking even more, now. If only I can control my physical as well as my mental reactions, she moaned inwardly
Despite his father's earlier request to stay seated, Leo stood up and attempted to comfort the girl. As he tried to walk around the coffee table, Splinter also stood up to bar his way.
"Please, Leonardo," the rat implored, giving one stern look that had his son reluctantly sitting back down again.
However, Leo couldn't help the disapproving glare he gave his father and half-expected correction.
To his surprise, his father chose to ignore it, with the master turned towards Beth. She looked up at him, then, and appeared ready to apologize even more, but Splinter quickly raised a paw to stop her, "It is more our fault for not being completely honest with you, Miss Beth. I believe that had we told you how volatile our existence was you would not have left the lair. Yet – to be honest, child…" the master smiled compassionately, "I was concerned our way of life would have traumatized you even more…considering your obvious affliction."
Smiling, Beth nodded, "It probably would have, Master Splinter. However…" she smiled shyly, "I would like to thank you."
The rat's ears perked just a bit, "For what, child?""For teaching me about self-control. I would have surely suffered another attack, more than I did, had you not taught me about focusing my mind." Beth licked her lips, chuckling lightly, "I feel as if I've just learned how to drive, the kind of feeling one gets with that kind of freedom."
"Where I know nothing about driving a car, Miss Beth," the rat said dryly, a small smile playing along his snout, "I will have to take your word for it."
Beth chuckled, as the rat's smile grew wider. Despite his serious and sublime demeanor, it was obvious to Beth the master had a wicked sense of humor.
Suddenly, Mike spoke up, changing the topic entirely. "So, Beth," he asked, grinning like the proverbial Cheshire cat, "you up for a rousing game of Scrabble?"
………………….