Okay, so here's the sitch. I've got my episodes all mixed up! I thought this was the secrets episode, about April, but it isn't it's a Casey Jones episode. And Casey isn't all that bad, I've come to see the good in him. He's kinda like the brother I've always wanted but never had, and in my eyes, he's a lovable jerk! Now, I'm sick and my brain is too fried to actually make something creative, so here we go! And why don't i just skip this episode and move on to the more important episodes? Well, as much as I hate to say it, this IS an important episode!
...
"I'll never stop dreaming that one day we can be a real family, together, all of us laughing and talking, loving and understanding, not looking in the past but only to the future."
-LaToya Jackson
...
In the darkness of his room, Casey Jones lit a lamp.
He'd seen enough. He knew he had to take action.
He pushed all the things off of his desk, making himself space and poured an assortment of supplies there.
Spray Paint, Hockey supplies, and a few journals. He opened a journal up.
Grabbing a pencil, he started to scribble down in his best cursive.
'Mutant monsters and robot ninjas are taking over my city.' He wrote, saying the words aloud. 'How long until those freaks hurt somebody close to me? Like my dad, my little sister...April. Well I'm not waiting around to find out. All my life, I knew I was meant for something. This is my call. My destiny. A true warrior has got to be prepared.'
Casey stopped writing and looked at himself in the mirror. All his gear was on.
"Who do you-" He paused, he needed to sound tougher. "Who do you think you are? A ninja? Bring it, Punk!"
Casey gave out a punch, revealing a small taser hidden in his hockey glove.
"Scum sucking mutated freaks of the world," Casey said, and he pulled down a hockey mask over his face. "Prepare to meet, Casey Jones."
...
It was a sunny afternoon, the light coming through the open window.
A fresh summer breeze came along too, bringing the smell of pizza into the room.
"Mmm. Freshly baked." Scarlett mumbled.
In her dreams, she was walking through a field of beautiful flowers.
They were sunflowers, millions of them spreading far as the eye can see.
Scarlett lay down on her back, staring at the clouds.
Everything was so perfect.
"Scarlett..." Zoey called.
And the perfect dream melted away.
...
"Scarlett!" Zoey said, and she poked at my cheek.
"Huh?" I asked, groggily. I rubbed my eyes.
I stretched out and yawned. "You fell asleep during class." Zoey explained. "But luckily, like the great friend I am, I came to pick you up and I got your bag!"
Zoey raised up a bag, old and worn, but still usable.
I grabbed the bag, still yawning. "Thanks Zoey."
Soon, we were off, the two of us were in the hallway.
And something seemed different.
Light was everywhere and the normally dully colored lockers and old paint looked new and fresh.
"They didn't paint the school, did they?" I asked Zoey.
"Mmmm, nope." Zoey said. "Not that I know of."
I looked around, in awe. It seemed like nothing could ruin the good mood I was in...
But you have to admit things were going too well.
Crash!
"Scarlett!" Zoey yelled, she walked up to me, but instead of helping me up, she pointed at some other guy.
I looked around in confusion, still in a daze, but it seemed I had tripped over a...hockey puck?
"You! Jones!" Zoey said. "Why don't you help my friend here up, I believe you owe her an apology!"
When it came to friends, Zoey was very defensive and protective.
She had always been that way, and I enjoyed that about her, but...wait, did she say, 'Jones?'
I looked up, a teenage boy, roughly a year older than me dressed in all black stood in front of me. He wore a bandana around his forehead.
Giving me a wink, he extended a hand. "Here, lemme help you, Doll Face."
Both Zoey and I had our faces turn from normal to a bright red.
It was just...the mood. I'm sure both our hearts were rapidly beating at the same time.
"H-hey!" Zoey said, she started yelling. "D-don't think you can flirt your way out of this-!"
"Hey, you look cute when you're mad." Jones said to Zoey.
Zoey's face went an even brighter, yet dark red.
"I like you more when you're silent." Casey said.
Zoey opened her mouth to say something, but then closed it again.
Casey still had his hand out to me. I looked at him.
Casey Jones, this wasn't the first time I met him. He was basically a jock who was girl-crazy and liked dark things. I had seen him practicing before around the school, but I never got to personally talk to or meet him. And also...there was that whole thing with April that crushed Donnie's heart.
I looked up. I barely knew Casey, but I knew from the way he talked and acted, I disliked him.
"What's the matter, doll face?" Casey asked. "Cat got your tongue?"
I looked at him, now I was just mad.
I slapped away his hand. "My name's not 'doll face'."
"Right..." Casey said.
"Scarlett!" Elliot yelled, he had apparently seen us down the hall.
He ran up to me and helped me up, although I hardly needed help. I shoved Elliot away. "I can help myself, you know, Elliot, I don't need someone to treat me like some princess."
Elliot ignored me though, not taking the rather harsh comment to heart.
Inside, I hadn't really meant it though, I was just upset.
"Who's your friend here?" Asked Casey.
Elliot opened his mouth to speak, but Casey interrupted. "Oh wait, I know you, you're the brainy chick magnet!"
"Chick magnet?" Asked Zoey, crossing her arms and glaring at Elliot. "Please, he's so not."
"No, I remember." Casey said. "Didn't you use to be in band or something? It made all the girls go gaga for you."
"Piano." Elliot said, he blushed a little. "I've been playing twelve years."
"Huh!?" Zoey and I were both shocked.
"So, Elliot's actually smart?!" Asked Zoey.
"Hey." Elliot said, "Why does that surprise you?" Elliot asked, sounding almost as shocked as us.
"Right, I remember." Casey said.
I looked at him. Casey was far taller than me, his smile was crooked and he was missing a tooth...maybe two.
There was a beat, something seemed to change, like a flicker that I couldn't quite see. I was feeling anxious.
"Well, I really hate to interrupt this conversation," I said. "but I need to go."
"Hey, wait!" Casey called after me. "Doll face!"
I turned I was about to say something in protest when Casey shoved a paper into my hand.
"Gimme a call sometime." He said.
"Ew, no!" I said, tossing aside the paper. "I thought you had a crush on April."
I immediately wished I could have taken back those words. Just great, now Casey knew who I was related to.
I would've liked it better if Casey and I had never crossed paths in the beginning, but it was too late for that now.
Casey was silent, acting almost as if he'd been found out.
Suddenly, a smile broke out on his lips. "I know you."
I was silent.
"Scarlett." Casey said. "April told me about you." He shrugged and looked at me. "You did seem familiar." He said.
Although I knew that I had seen Casey far more than he had seen me. I remembered seeing him on a "date" with April.
A small flame on anger flickered inside me. Casey was a huge flirt.
"Okay, my offer stands firm though." Casey said, leaning against the wall.
I stared at him angrily.
"Please." I said. "I'd never be interested in a guy like you."
Silence. It was one of those, "Oh no she didn't" moments.
Casey looked at me, apparently insulted. "What kind of doll are you anyway?" He asked.
"A smart one." I said, and Zoey followed me as we turned to leave.
"Women." Casey said.
"Tell me about it." Elliot added.
...
Everyone was in the dojo.
"My sons," Splinter said. "And honorary daughters." He smiled, nodding to Zoey and I. "You are truly becoming impressive warriors, but to grow as a team, you must know each other's strengths and weaknesses."
Everyone prepared their weapons and got into battle positions.
Mikey let out a number of ongoing battle cries, and then leaned forward and belched.
Everyone groaned.
"Nice of you to ruin the moment." Zoey said, covering her nose.
"Aw! Right in my face!" Donnie said, rubbing his red eyes. "Really?!"
"Garlic and clam pizza!" Mikey said, talking breathily.
"This competition is a free-for-all." Splinter said, regaining our attention. "Last turtle, or human, standing wins!"
With a 'Hajime!' we were in action.
We haven't trained much lately, and this was a great way to blow off some steam.
I had my Yumi Bow, which I felt I hadn't trained enough with. I wanted to really grow a bond with my weapon, like Leo with his Katanas or Raph with his Sai.
I gripped the bow, Zoey ran at me and I totally dodged her.
She kind of bounced off the wall, coming at me again. Zoey was one of those people who could really use every weapon but preferred not to. She liked using her fists and legs to kick and punch.
"You can't beat me!" Zoey smiled, knocking away my bow.
"Whatcha gonna do?" She asked, smiling mischievously.
I looked around, nervously.
Zoey charged at me, I thought fast, doing a sort of fast roll on the ground and grabbing my bow, standing up again, and with no time to aim, shooting at Zoey.
Of course, for training, the arrowhead was replaced with a suction cup, that bounced off of Zoey's shirt.
Zoey fell to the ground and moaned. "Aw, that actually hurt!"
"Sorry." I said.
"Remind me to get a shield next time." Zoey said, slowly crawling to the wall to sit. Tokei was already there, watching us closely and learning our ways.
Zoey wasn't too upset though, this I knew because I knew she would get her revenge sooner or later. Normally when I didn't expect it.
Meanwhile, Donnie muttered, "I'm still seeing spots." Raph headbutt Donnie and Donnie hit the tree, falling out of the game.
"Sorry, Donnie!" Raph said. "It's a ninja eat ninja world."
I knew I had to be extra careful now.
Mikey was laughing, when Raph charged him too.
Mikey successfully dodged, and Leo jumped in.
Mikey and I, Leo and Raph.
Our two sparring matches began, none of us wanting to leave the game.
From the sidelines, Zoey, Donnie, and Tokei cheered for their ninja (or kunoichi) of choice.
"What are you doing, Leo?" Asked Raph in battle. "I was going for Mikey!"
"What part of last turtle standing do you not understand?" Asked Leo, shoving Raph away into Mikey.
Mikey stepped back and was tripped by Leo.
I gripped my weapon, holding it up.
Now I was against Leo.
I gulped.
Leo and I circled each other, staring at each other intently.
Then, Leo ran at me.
I twirled around him, dodging him.
I pulled out an arrow, preparing to shoot.
Our fighting levels and skills were similar. I could not allow myself to lose, I wanted to prove I could be strong.
I shot at Leo, who dodged the arrow.
He did a forward roll, meeting me.
My bow against his katanas, he tried pushing me to my knees.
It was hard because in a way, Leo seemed to be stronger.
Before my arms gave in, I gave Leo a kick in the stomach and pushed him away, grabbing for another arrow, but Leo was coming at me.
I moved to the side, and realized, there were no more arrows on me.
I looked around frantically for something else to use.
Leo ran around and came at me, I ran in the opposite direction, passing him.
While Leo was confused, I tossed my bow at him, knowing I'd regret it later when I broke it.
Leo dodged and before I knew it, I fell.
Leo tripped me.
So I was out too.
I looked up at Leo. Something about him looked more mature, more like a leader. You could see he had really grown in these past months. Learning from all our misadventures.
He seemed to be from a higher level. Better than the rest.
He was really a leader.
Leo smiled at me.
At least his personality hadn't changed. He was still the same Leo inside.
"Distraction, misdirection, powerful weapons in a ninja's-" Splinter stopped, he saw Mikey imitating him.
Raph smiled, he was still standing along with Leo.
"Looks like you've leveled up to the boss fight." Raph said.
"I'm gonna wipe that smirk off your face." Leo said. "Permanently."
"So intense!" Zoey said, she pulled out a bag of popcorn and started snacking away.
The battle began.
Raph and Leo clashed. Raph was successful in slinging one of Leo's katana's to the side. It stuck to the wall.
As payback, Leo did the same to Raph's Sai which stuck to the tree.
Raph ran to the tree to retrieve his weapon, Leo was on his tail.
He grabbed the weapon, but then Leo jumped up and gave Raph a huge kick in the face.
And Raph fell to the ground.
Everyone gasped.
"Well, Leo won it this time!" Donnie said.
Leo picked up his katanas.
"So cool." Tokei smiled. "Like a superhero!"
"Wow, great job, Leo!" I said.
Everyone smiled and murmured in agreement, crowding around Leo, but then.
Raph panted heavily, growling.
"Uh oh..." Mikey said, but then Raph sprang into action.
Smiles faded away as Raph was running towards us.
"Get away!" Leo cried, pushing us to the sides.
Raph grabbed Leo by the arm, Leo's katana fell out of his hand.
Leo dangled by one arm, Raph holding him.
Raph gave Leo a harsh kick in the stomach.
"Hey!" I yelled. I ran into their fight.
"Scarlett! Walking into a ninja fight is practically suicide!" Zoey warned.
Tokei hugged Zoey's arm and hid her face. "I don't wanna see how this ends!" She wailed.
I grabbed Raph by the arm, pulling him away from Leo.
Of course, this was easier said than done.
"Raph!" I screamed. "Cool it!"
But trying to hold him back was useless, he was stronger when he was angrier.
Raph punched me against the wall, and my world went black.
Leo was kicked five feet into the air, and he landed on his stomach, groaning and also blacking out.
...
The others rushed to their sides. Checking the two for any serious injuries.
There were a few bruises, and places which were really sore, but for the most part, they were still in one piece.
"Raph!" Yelled Donnie,"What are you doing!?"
"I-I..." Raph looked at the damage he had done. He had really hurt the two. "I didn't mean to hurt them, it was an accident. Seriously."
Scarlett groaned and opened her eyes.
"You okay?" Asked Zoey, who, like a loyal friend, was by her side.
"Yeah, fine." Scarlett said, finding it hard to say the words.
A few seconds later, Leo also groaned into life. "Did you guys get the number of that bus?" Leo asked, obviously hallucinating a little.
"We have spoken about this time and again, Raphael." Splinter said, an angry tone in his voice. "Anger is a dangerous ally, it clouds your judgement. You need to control it, less it controls you."
"But Sensei." Raph said. "I wasn't angry, I was just.." He paused. "Determined to win."
The others helped the victims to their feet. "Uh huh." They muttered. "Right."
Raph stared at them, "WHAT!? I SAID I WASN'T ANGRY!" He yelled.
From the shocked, unforgiving looks on their faces, he knew they still doubted him. He groaned and left the room.
And that was the end of training for the day.
...
"Ow!" I winced, as Zoey started to bandage my arm.
"Sorry!" Zoey said. "I'm just not used to bandaging other people!"
I calmed. "It's okay." I said.
"Now, stay still." Zoey said.
I sat down.
Leo was getting bandaged by Donnie, but as a distraction, Tokei and Mikey were playing video games together.
"I can't believe it." Zoey said. "Raph has an insanely bad temper!"
I was silent. "It's not entirely his fault." I said.
"Not entirely his fault!?" Asked Zoey, "Look at Leo! Look at you!"
I did look at myself, my arm bandaged from the wrist up.
And my stomach wasn't doing so hot either. "Well, in Raph's defense." I said. "He's still suffering from losing Spike."
"Right." Zoey said. "Riiiiiight."
"It's true!" I said.
"This always happens." Donnie said. "It's routine, you should know this by now Scarlett."
"I know!" I said, getting a little choked up. I sat down. "I know..."
The truth was that I knew how Raph felt right now.
He just lost someone he cared about. That one person he could talk to freely, to whom he depended on for comfort and support.
Now that Spike was gone, he was angry at the world. The smiles of other people mocking his unhappiness.
He tried to act normal, he tried keeping it in. In the end, though, you surrender yourself to your feelings.
I sighed. "I know how Raph feels." I said.
"How?" Asked Donnie.
"I lost my parents." I muttered softly.
I rarely talked about my parents to the turtles. It just seemed so unimportant.
"Tell us again..." Mikey said.
"...About your parents..." Leo finished.
All eyes were on me. I got flustered.
"Well..." I sighed. "When I was about eight was when I first noticed it. Mom and dad always came home late, they used work as an excuse to not be with each other."
I gulped. Not looking at anyone. My hands gripped each other.
"Even so, they tried to make me happy." I continued. "Encouraging me on tests, letting me participate in events, the same old jazz every parent should do." I paused again.
I wanted to cry just remembering, but I held it back. "When I was about eleven, they started to get me to do even more things that involved me to be out of the house. They didn't seem to be getting any closer either. There were late night fights. I remember hearing them from my room, then crying for hours. I always cried myself to sleep..."
My lips quivered. "One day, my dad left the house after an argument. He said he had work." Pause. "I...I asked him if I could go with him, I had a feeling this would happen. He said no, and then goodbye. And..." I took a breath. "That was the last time he ever said goodbye to me."
Zoey pat me on the back.
I continued. "Then, mom got super worried when he didn't come home. She kept saying things like 'I knew I should've gone when I had the chance! He's gonna kill himself! It's all my fault!' And, I asked her what she meant..." I paused again. "She just packed a small bag with various strange things, a crowbar, a bat, a change of clothing. Then, she walked to the door. I was supposed to be asleep, and I caught her at the door. She said sorry, but that she 'couldn't do this anymore.' And then-" I paused.
"And then?" Mikey pressed on.
"I never saw her again." I breathed. I sniffed. "Some part of me thinks they're overseas at their jobs, divorced or something. But another part, ever since I figured out about the Kraang and the Foot, thinks that they might be held captive."
"You think the Kraang took them?" Asked Leo.
I nodded.
"Before I met you guys..." I started. "I could care less about my parents. After they left, things changed and I was alone in the world. No matter what I accomplished, I never got that one thing I wanted more than anything else in the world...Love. I wanted a friend, someone, anyone who cared. When I met Zoey, it was like the perfect timing. We became friends right off the bat."
Zoey smiled.
"Then, my life changed. I met all you guys." I smiled. "I felt needed for once, even wanted. You were like a family to me. And I swore to protect you guys with my life if I ever had to. I still swear upon that." I paused. "And then...there was Zac..."
The silence grew.
"He gave me hope that, somewhere, my parents are out there." I said. "I can't sit around anymore. I can't just waste my life and give up on them! I want to see them again. I want to be a family again...You have no idea how painful it is knowing that your parents are out there, in danger, just out of your reach...and you don't know where."
I sighed. "I need to protect the friends and family I have now." I said. "One wrong move, and I'm going to lose you all."
"Don't say that." Said Tokei. "We'll always be here for you."
"No." I shook my head. "I know that we're gonna be separated, I can feel it!" I said. My hand in my head, I said. "And if anything ever happens, I'm going to hold myself responsible! I got so many new friends that I don't deserve! If I lose them, I'll be all alone again! I-!"
I started to cry.
Leo sat next to me, giving me a pat on the back. "Don't worry." He said.
I looked at Leo.
"Worrying about this team is my job." Leo said.
...
Raph was out on a rampage. He was kicking anything he could see.
"This always happens!" Raph growled. "I'm fine until those guys push my buttons!" He said, through clenched teeth.
He threw a shuruken at a nearby satellite, and it fell off.
"It's not like I was trying to hurt them..." He muttered, and took a seat.
What he wanted to say, but couldn't quite explain was that when he became mad, there was this other person. Another Raph who had full control over his emotions. Or maybe, Raph was just so frustrated and lonely...
"I just don't get it!" Raph said.
...
Elsewhere:
'My city is infested.' Casey wrote in his journal. 'Full on, a blistering sore. It stinks with evil! Pure evil that Casey Jones can fix!'
Casey looked up and at the city.
He sighed. "Actually..." He said, to no one in particular. "Crime fighting is pretty boring..."
He heard a small squeak and jumped to his feet.
He grabbed a hockey stick for protection, pointing it at...
a...rat...
But, even so, Casey was terrified. He panted.
"I hate those furry little freaks!" He said, again talking to himself.
In the rat's mind, it thought. 'Sheesh! This kid is weird!' And it walked away.
The two would be reunited again in the distant future, but all was well for now...
Who am I kidding?
This is Casey for pete's sake!
Casey sighed, another job well done.
He put away his hockey stick.
From somewhere in the alley, he could hear the sound of struggling.
"W-ha! What do you want from me!?" Cried a poor young man, thin and his skin almost pure white, although in the shadows it looked gray.
"Check it out, walking ATM." Said the man mugging him, who was accompanied by two bulky men.
He pulled out a knife.
"Let me make a withdraw." He said, pointing the knife at his neck.
The man panted and handed them money.
"Attaboy." Said the man.
One of his sidekicks said, "The watch too!"
The three had started chuckling, and laughing, but then one of the henchmen was kicked over to the side, the others stared in terror.
"What the-?" The man asked, and a hockey puck was their only answer.
"You slime balls picked the wrong night!" Said a voice in the shadows, first they saw his hockey puck and then the figure itself.
His face was hidden behind a hockey mask, sprayed on to look like a skull.
"Nice outfit." The leader of the gang laughed. "Who's this clown."
Casey wasn't offended, instead he responded. "I'm the last guy you see before you wake up in the hospital!"
And Casey jumped into the fight.
He didn't know he was secretly being watched.
...
Raph happened to be strolling by when he noticed a fight in the alley, and he had stuck around to see how it ended.
"That guy is out of control!" Raph laughed, enjoying the moment.
He stood up. "Time for a little intervention."
Raph jumped down into the shadows, first observing.
Casey laughed as he threw a puck to the ground, one of the three men, the skinny leader was running away.
"...He shoots..." Casey said, and hit the puck with all his strength. He hit the man right in the middle of his back, the man fell down with a painful moan.
"He scores!" Casey cheered.
Now Raph was convinced that this guy was some sort of psycho killing machine.
Not too different from Slash...
Casey turned around at the other two men.
"Hey man, enough." One of them begged.
"We give up!" The other chimed in.
"Oh, I'm not finished with you two lowlives yet!" Casey said, swinging up his hockey stick.
Okay, that was far enough.
Raph jumped out of the shadows, and stole the stick, hiding into the shadows once again.
"Huh?" Casey said, grabbing his bat and turning around.
"Wh-who's back there?" Casey asked, now afraid. "Show yourself!"
Raph was in the shadows, wondering whether or not to come out, but he did.
Raph slowly stepped into the light, showing himself to a human, which he knew was against Master Splinter's rules.
Casey was shocked. "A-another...Mutant?" He asked.
Raph didn't like the way Casey was saying it.
"You got a problem with that?" He asked back, rudely.
"What are you?" Asked Casey, he looked Raph up and down. "Some kinda turtle ninja?" He laughed, the idea was silly.
Raph growled.
Afraid of the sight of the Turtle, the other two men started to make a run for it.
"Hey you two filthy scum!" Casey yelled after them. "I'm not finished with you!"
Raph grabbed Casey by the shoulder, "Let me handle this." He said.
Casey punched him. "Out of my way!"
"You know, anger is a dangerous ally!" Raph said. "Why don't you cool off for a little?"
Casey panted. "I'm done with you, lizard!" He said.
And letting out a battle cry, he jumped into the fight.
...
I'm so sorry! But I need to end it there! I went for a while, (My new goal is to make even longer chapters, so that way we can get to the fun stuff sooner) but, if I don't post it now, I may never be able to post it! You see, next week is Spring break and while you might think that this would mean I have MORE time to write, I actually have LESS time to write, because I'm headed for NYC! The whole reason I began this whole fic! (I know I said the trip was somewhere around winter, but my dates were messed up) So, I'm gonna relax and hang out, maybe squeezing in another chapter (Maybe) and then I'll report back to you on how the trip went! I still haven't packed! And so, I'm signing off for now! Please don't let that stop you from reviewing, because even though I have no time to actually write the story, I have all the time in the world to be able to answer some fan questions! Yes! You can PM me, or if you're a guest on , then you can ask me through review and I'll answer it in my next A.N. My favorite questions will be posted along with my next chapter! So, ask me anything you want all week and I'll report back to you guys as soon as I can! Bye!