Brimming with excitement, April stood near the terminal exit at LaGuardia. Her eyes searched the crowd, waiting for that one familiar face to emerge from the hundreds of people who poured out of the terminal.
She bounced on the balls of her feet. Today was going to be the best day ever.
"Red?"
April turned her head toward the sound. There was Casey, emerging from the crowd with a huge grin on his face.
"Casey!" April extended her arms and ran to him, drawing him into a huge hug. "Oh my gosh! I'm so excited to see you!"
"Me too," Casey said. He pulled away from the hug and adjusted his backpack. "Today's gonna be awesome. Sorry you had to drive to LaGuardia to pick me up."
"Well come on, let's go. Your flight delay means we only have two hours to get there in time."
"Oh, like they'll start without us."
"Do you want them mad at you?"
Together, they got on the lightrails that took them to the parking lot where April had left her car.
"Sweet ride," Casey commented, as April popped open the trunk. "This the new one you were telling me about? Somehow, it suits you."
April grinned. The bright yellow car was about ten years old and kind of worn, but she'd scrimped and saved to be able to buy it. "Thanks." She climbed in and started the car, waiting until Casey was in and buckled up before she started the slow trip to merge back onto the main freeway.
"I can't believe you're actually here," April said, unable to stop smiling. "It's been what—two years?"
"Just about. How's community college treating you?"
"Not too bad. Being a commuter student is really nice, too. Even if it's an hour on the subway to get there, it's nice to actually live with my Dad still. And what about you? How's the license coming?"
"Well, I've still got a few hoops to jump through before I actually get to be a bail enforcer." He grinned. "That sounds so lame. I mean…bounty hunter! Yeah!"
April laughed. "And what do Sean and Jen think about your career choice?"
"Eh, they'll get over it. Melanie thinks it's hot, so, you know."
"How is Melanie?"
"Great, great! I wish she could've come for this, but…well, what with the turtles and all…plus we've only actually been together for a few weeks."
"Yeah, it's probably best to wait at least a few more months before spilling the fact that some of your best friends are mutants."
"She's pretty chill, though. I think she'll be cool with it."
April grinned again and turned her focus back to traffic. She was so happy for Casey. He and Melanie looked so adorable in all of the photos he'd sent, and she had to admit, she couldn't have picked a better match for one of her best friends in the whole world.
Since that night two years ago, when April had broken up with Donnie and learned that Casey was moving to South Dakota, April decided to refocus her life on family, friendships, ninjutsu, and her studies. And she had to admit—staying focused on those things had helped her finally get her head back in the right place. So when Casey had told April that he liked this other girl, April hadn't been jealous at all. Just happy for her good friend.
Yes, life was pretty good without the complications of romance and dating to muck it up. Friendships were simple and sweet—and her friendships with Casey, Mei, Karai, and the turtles were stronger now than ever before. And she could say without hesitation that her two best friends were Casey Jones and Hamato Donatello.
But something was missing. April usually tried not to think about what it was.
Yet, as she listened to Casey gush on about how happy he was with Melanie and she thought about what the day ahead of them held, it was harder than ever not to think about what had been missing in her life.
"Enough about me, though," Casey said. "What's going on with you?"
"Oh, well, you know it's been schoolwork, Kraang-fighting, and wedding planning."
"Heh. Only one of those things sounds like it's any fun. How much planning does a wedding like this need? It's not like you need to book a preacher or anything."
"Well, you know Leo. He wants as much traditional stuff as possible—American and Japanese. Plus, they're throwing in a few twists of their own. It's funny. I think Karai would be happy to have a five minute ceremony and then just go on with life. But Leo wants the whole nine yards."
"So he's a groomzilla?"
April giggled. "Yeah…pretty much."
After an hour or so of navigating New York traffic, April pulled her car into her designated parking spot in front of her apartment building. "I have to grab my dress, and then we'll head down into the sewers."
The two of them climbed the stairs to the O'Neil's apartment. Casey waited in the living room while April went to her room to get the pretty maroon bridesmaid's dress that Leo had picked out. Since the whole thing was sort of an East-meets-West affair, Leo and Karai had chosen traditional Japanese dress for themselves, whereas April and Casey were instructed to dress in American formal wear.
As April grabbed the garment bag, she felt a sudden sinking feeling. Sure, being single was easier and less complicated, but she saw the joy that Leo and Karai took in each other. Of course, April had watched their relationship develop over the last two years, and it had not been an easy road for them. But gradually, Leo had drawn Karai out of the harsh, abrasive shell she had inhabited for so long. Certainly, her quick biting wit and her fierce spirit remained, but she had become kinder, more open…
Happy.
Truly happy.
April tried to remember the last time that she herself had been truly happy—because despite how good these two years had been for her, the sense of something missing plagued her as much as Donnie's lack of emotions plagued him.
And like Donnie, April would never be able to shake that sense of something missing. Not because it had been taken from her, but because she had given it up willingly.
She had been given one of the best gifts in the world, and she had tossed it away.
Surely, after so long, there was no chance that she could regain it, no chance that she could find that same happiness that Leo and Karai had found in each other.
Through her own foolishness, April had closed that door forever. There was no way that she would be able to open it again, not after all this time…
April sighed. She headed back out into the living room, where Casey sat, playing a game on his phone.
"You ready to go, Red?"
"Yeah. I'm ready."
Splinter sat under the tree in the dojo in a light trance.
The whole room had been decorated with painstakingly made paper lanterns in preparations for the wedding ceremony. While there would be no true legality to the wedding—no marriage licenses, no judge or ordained minister to pronounce the marriage—Leonardo and Miwa's marriage would be as strong and true as their promises to each other, made before the whole family.
At the sound of footsteps, Splinter opened his eyes. Miwa stood before him, dressed in a beautiful wedding kimono. It was pale pink—almost white—with deeper pink stitching in the rinzu. The obi was a deep maroon, embroidered with the Hamato crest in the same pale pink color as the kimono. Her hair was done elaborately, studded with cherry blossoms.
Simply put, she was perfect. The very picture of her mother.
Smiling, Splinter climbed to his feet. "Ah, daughter. You look beautiful. Are you ready?"
"I hope so," Miwa said, rolling her eyes. "If Mei and April fuss around with my hair one more time, I'm going to scream. I keep telling Leo that none of this is necessary." She paused. "But he's going to love seeing me in this getup, isn't he?"
Splinter chuckled. "He will indeed. But it was not the readiness of your apparel that I inquired after. Is your heart ready?"
Miwa's expression softened. "I admit, this whole day has felt…well, strange. I've come to realize that I'm a completely different person from when I first met Leo."
"No. You are the same person. You have changed, and grown, but you remain true to yourself. You have always been true to yourself, my daughter, and so you must remain."
Smiling, Miwa bowed. "I will, Father."
Splinter chuckled as he reached up and touched one of the cherry blossoms in Miwa's hair. "Sakura. Your mother loved them."
"I know. It was the one true thing that—that he ever told me."
Splinter's ears drooped slightly. He did not need to ask of whom she spoke. While she had grown in her capacity for love and trust, dark remnants of the past still lurked in the corners of her outlook on life. While they had all moved forward, the Shredder would haunt them forever. All they could do was focus on what they had now. And what they had now was a life overflowing with love and joy—even admidst everyday difficulties and an ever-growing Kraang threat looming over their heads.
Secretly, however, Splinter was grateful for the Kraang's existence. Without them, he never would have met his sons.
April stepped into the dojo, wearing an American-style bridesmaid dress that matched the maroon of Miwa's obi perfectly. "Hey, Karai, it's just about time. Are you ready?"
Miwa snorted. "Ready for this to be over with."
"It will be soon enough," April said, grinning broadly. "Try to enjoy it. For Leo's sake."
"If I'd known marrying him was going to be such a chore, I wouldn't have agreed."
Mei poked her head around the corner. "Are we all set in here?"
"Looks like," April said. "Oh, hey, Karai—come with me. We still need to set you up with the stuff."
Rolling her eyes, Karai followed April out of the dojo.
Laughing, Mei walked in and started fiddling with some of the decorations. Splinter paused for a moment to admire her. She had purchased a new formal kimono for the occasion, one that maroon with a pale pink obi, to offset Miwa's. A single cherry blossom was tucked into the hair behind one ear.
And with a sudden twist in his stomach, Splinter realized that this was it. He had been planning on waiting until some other time, but he now knew beyond a shadow of a doubt that the time was now.
"Mei, a moment?"
Smiling radiantly, Mei turned around. "Is this about you thinking that nineteen is too young to be married again? You know I will never take your side on that."
Splinter could not help but reflect the glow of her smile. "No, I know full well how old you were when you married Kenshin. That is not what I want to talk to you about. Come with me."
Mei followed Splinter into his room. He slid the screen partition shut so that they would not be interrupted before he had a chance to say his piece.
"Mei. I do not know how to say this. Things for us have always been—difficult."
The smile faded from Mei's countenance. "Yes. They have."
"When we met once again, we were both people broken by our pasts. You hated the very sound of my name. You blamed me for your sister's death."
"Yoshi, I—"
Splinter held up a hand. "And I—I too was unable to let go of the past. I blamed myself for Shen's death. And as you and I grew closer, it was a never ending struggle not to see her when I looked at you."
"I know."
"Mei, that struggle will never go away for me. For though I see you, and care for you, and know who you are, I cannot ever forget the first true love of my life. I will carry her in my heart forever. And as such, I cannot give my heart fully to you."
"We have spoken of this before. I understand, Yoshi. And as you know, that first part of my heart will always belong to Kenshin. We said it a long time ago—we can only give each other our second-best."
"Yes." Splinter put his hands on Mei's shoulders. "We are two broken people. We can only give each other half of our hearts." He turned away and found the small wooden box he had been keeping beside his bed for weeks now. Picking it up, he handed it to Mei. "But between the two of us, we have enough for one full heart."
Mei opened the box and gasped softly. "It's beautiful." She held it up the box's contents: a misshapen ring, half silver, half gold, with empty settings that did not match each other, strung on a white gold chain. The twisting of the metal gave it an attractive asymmetry, and the metals sparkled except for where they had been fused together. "Strange, but beautiful. What kind of necklace is it?"
"Outside a jewelry store, I found two broken rings. They were different sizes and different metals, and both of them had lost the gems from their settings. They were bent and misshapen. There is no way that they would ever be a seamless whole. It would take the trial of a smith's fire to fit them together. Neither of them would be as beautiful as they once were. But together, they have a chance to be one ring again, beautiful in their own way, beautiful in a way neither could have been on its own." Splinter took the chain and fastened it around Mei's neck. "Mei—"
The words caught in his throat. For a moment, they did nothing but stare at each other, wide-eyed and trembling.
"Mei. My love. Will you marry me?"
Mei still stood frozen, her lips parted slightly. She held the ring in her hands, staring at it. "Yoshi…"
"Will you?"
Mei raised her eyes to his as her face turned radiant with joy. "Yes. A thousand times yes."
They embraced each other for a few moments. Splinter wiped away the tears that stung his eyes. "We should go. The others are doubtless ready for the wedding. We shall tell them some other time. After all, today is for Leonardo and Karai."
Taking each other by the hand, they walked back out into the dojo, made whole by each other.
