Disclaimer: I do not own TMNT. I do own Lilly and her parents.
A/N: Welcome to the FOURTH chapter of Teenage Human Ninja Girl where our heroes will encounter the Foot clan as Mikey strives to make a new friend. So, without further ado, I turn it over to Lilly. Enjoy!
"Yo guys, what's up?" I greeted the turtle brothers as I entered the lair one night after my mom had gone to work.
"You're just in time to go out on patrol," remarked Leo, his usual way of greeting me.
"I missed you too, fearless leader," I replied while Donnie and Mikey said hi. "Where's Raph?"
"Why don't you try looking behind you?" he suggested, making me smile as I turned around to face him. "Took you long enough to get here."
"Yeah, well, my mom had to appear perfect for the segment they're filming this evening, so I had to wait awhile for her to leave," I explained, sighing exasperatedly. "Honestly, I was wondering if she would ever go."
Raph chuckled. "Not everyone's as naturally good-looking as you, Lil."
I blushed slightly as he leaned in closer to me. "I knew there was a reason I chose you to be my boyfriend."
"You mean besides my ruggedness and awesome personality," he replied before kissing me.
I closed my eyes and kissed him back.
~ Teenage Human Ninja Girl ~
"Hey guys, check this out," I called after we had been jumping from building to building with the turtles trying to outdo each other. I had spotted a small, lone figure on a nearby rooftop and went to see what it was.
"Aww! It's a little kitty," noted Mikey as he joined me and scooped up the black kitten. "And its name is…"
"Mittens!" called a man's voice.
"Good guess," commended Mikey. "Wait, who said that?"
"I bet it's the cat's owner," I figured, peering over the edge of the roof. "There's a man looking out a window next door. That's got to be him."
Mikey glanced at the kitten, smiled, and started heading over to the man.
"What are you doing?" demanded Donnie.
"I'm returning Mittens to her owner," the younger brother replied.
"Are you an idiot?" exclaimed Raph. "Wait, let me rephrase that. You're an idiot!"
"You can't show yourself to a human," Donnie reminded him.
"Why not?" asked Mikey. "We showed ourselves to Lilly and April."
"Because not everyone's going to react to a mutant ninja turtle like we did," I told him. "Let me return Mittens."
"Look, this guy's gonna see that I'm just a regular, cat-loving dude like him," Mikey assured us. "Next thing you know we'll be best buds. This is gonna be awesome!"
"Mikey, no! Wait!" We urged but he ignored us and went over to the guy's window.
"Hi," said Mikey, holding out the kitten. "Here's your…"
"Ugly, green mutant freak!" the man screamed.
"But I got your cat!" Mikey told him.
"Help!" the guy shrieked. "He's got my cat!"
"Dude, chill! I'm just…," began Mikey as Mittens spazzed and jumped out of his hands onto his shell. The ninja turtle stared at us imploringly. "Someone want to help me with this?"
"No," we responded while the cat continued to attack Mikey, causing him to fall down the fire escape and land in the alley.
"Face it. Humans will never understand you," Raph informed Mikey after we had joined him. "Heck, we don't understand you."
Mikey sighed then glanced up at a billboard about some martial arts star I had never heard of and gasped, leaping to his feet. "But I bet that guy would!"
"Chris Bradford," said Leo. "The martial arts superstar with a chain of dojos across the country. He's your soulmate?"
Mikey grinned and posed like Bradford in the ad. "We've got so much in common."
"What if you stop standing like that?" inquired Donnie.
"We'll have a little less in common," admitted Mikey. "But still a lot and look he's in town for a Martial Arts Expo. Maybe he'll show me his secret kata, 'the Death Dragon' and I'll show him my secret kata, 'the Secret Kata'."
"Is this Bradford guy really that big of a deal?" I asked doubtfully, crossing my arms over my chest. "He doesn't look it."
"You've never heard of him?" breathed Mikey. "He's only one of the greatest martial artists in the country and I'm going to be his new best friend!"
"Face it, Mikey. Chris Bradford is the last person on Earth who would be friends with you," Raph told him. "Well, tied for last, with everyone else on Earth."
"He's probably not that amazing anyway," I added as a swarm of ninja suddenly materialized. "Who the heck are these guys?"
"They're ninjas," murmured Donnie unnecessarily.
"Yeah, I got that much," I muttered as the other ninjas attacked us and they weren't half-bad either. Their numbers helped them too as I found myself back to back with Raph and Leo. "How many of these guys are there?"
"I don't know," grunted Raph, glancing at Leo who was smiling. "Why are you so happy?"
"It's just nice to be finally fighting people instead of robots or aliens or weed-monsters," responded Leo.
"Something about these guys feels familiar," I remarked but was unable to ponder further as a tall, muscular ninja wearing a mask appeared and knocked the three of us down before punching Donnie and grabbing Mikey.
"What are you?" the ninja demanded as we joined Mikey and sirens sounded in the distance. The weirdo ninjas disappeared while we retreated to the sewers and the police arrived.
Seriously, who were those guys and why did they seem so familiar?
~ Teenage Human Ninja Girl ~
"Did you have to make fun of our teacher in front of the entire class again?" inquired April as we left school the next day. "I swear you like going to detention."
"It's not my fault her questions are so simple I don't need to pay attention to solve them," I shot back while we headed to the sewers. "Besides, I had something more important on my mind."
"You mean, other than Raph?" my cousin teased as we reached the lair. The turtle brothers were hanging out in the living room. "Hey, guys."
"April!" yelped Donnie like the lovesick puppy he was. He hurried over to her with a goofy grin on his face.
"Geez, could he be anymore obvious?" muttered Raph, striding over to me. "So, what's your excuse for being late this time?"
"I made my math teacher mad," I replied remorselessly. "I wasn't really listening to her but still gave the correct answer to her question and she sent me to detention."
Raph laughed and wrapped his arms around my waist. "You're trouble, you know that?"
"Look who's talking," I responded, scooching closer to him.
"Ahem!" coughed Splinter, causing us to jump apart and stare at the ninja master. "Lillian, do you not have homework to do?"
"Hai, sensei," I confirmed.
"Then I suggest you complete it before the two of you spend time together," he replied.
"What if I could do both at the same time?" I suggested. "Raph can do his pushups while I sit on his back and do my homework."
Splinter stroked his beard thoughtfully. "Very well."
I grinned and bowed. "Arigato, sensei."
~ Teenage Human Ninja Girl ~
"You know, somehow it feels as if you got the better part of the deal," noted my boyfriend as I perched on his shell with my books and assignments.
"Oh, don't be such a baby," I said, getting to work. "I won't take very long and then we'll get to spar in the dojo."
"Fine," he conceded, making me smile.
"Whoa, that's rad!" declared Mikey who was reading a Chris Bradford magazine. "I wish me and Chris Bradford were friends!"
"Mikey, you already have a human friend," April reminded him. "Me!"
"April, you don't count," argued Mikey. "We saved your life; you have to like us."
"What about me?" I inquired.
"You don't count either," answered Mikey. "You're Raph's girlfriend."
"That's one way to look at it," I mused.
Raph snorted. "Too bad there's no place for freaks to meet people where no one can see how hideous they are."
"Wait, there is, the internet!" exclaimed April. "Donnie, can I see your laptop?"
"Um, yeah, sure. Just a sec," Donnie replied, a little nervously as he pushed a couple buttons before handing April his computer.
"How much you want to bet Donnie was looking at pictures of April again?" whispered Raph, glancing back at me with a smirk.
I smirked back. "He definitely was."
"Check it out," April was saying. "It's a site where you can make friends with anybody online."
"Sweet!" yelled Mikey, grabbing the laptop and searching for a certain name. The ninja turtle gasped. "Chris Bradford's on here! He'll be my first friend!"
Mikey sent his friend request and waited.
"Mikey, people don't always respond immed-," began April as the computer beeped. "But sometimes they do."
"No way! Chris Bradford has accepted my friendship!" declared Mikey, rising to his feet. "I have a friend! Thanks, April!"
"Where are you going?" inquired Donnie as Mikey made to leave the lair.
"To hang out with my friend, Chris Bradford," responded Mikey.
"The guy's famous," April reminded him. "He probably has thousands of 'friends'."
"And guess whose number 5,286?" said Mikey.
"You?" figured April.
"Daniel Ramirez," Mikey revealed. "And I'm right next to him. Later!"
"Well, this ought to be interesting," remarked April.
"Should we go after him?" asked Donnie.
"Eh, he's gotta learn somehow," responded Raph.
"He'll be alright," I reassured Donnie before tugging on my boyfriend's bandana. "I'm finished, by the way. Unless you want to keep doing pushups?"
"Nah, I think I'm good," Raph replied and we went into the dojo to spar until it was time to head topside.
"They must have been watching us from here," surmised Leo as we stood on a rooftop of a building overlooking the alley where the ninjas had jumped us the night before. "The perfect place to stage an ambush."
"It wasn't very fair, was it?" noted Donnie.
"It's not about fairness, it's about victory," snapped Leo.
"Okay, I'm sorry," murmured Donnie while Mikey continued to talk about his new buddy.
"Oh, enough!" shouted Raph. "You've been going on about this for three hours."
"Ooh, someone's jealous," teased Mikey. "You just can't admit you were the 'R' word. 'Rong'?"
Raph scoffed. "I'm not wrong."
Mikey huffed. "Oh yeah? If you don't want to talk about my friend, I've got two other brothers who do."
"Actually, I'd rather talk about anything else," said Leo.
"Like the concept of the silent 'W', perhaps?" offered Donnie.
Mikey stared imploringly at me. "Lilly?"
I sighed. "Sorry, Mikey, but all I want to know is who those guys were."
"Fine," muttered Mikey. "I'll go talk to a guy who likes to talk about Chris Bradford more than anyone else. Chris Bradford."
~ Teenage Human Ninja Girl ~
"And then he kicks, twists, and sweeps the leg. Ha! The Death Dragon!" Mikey showed us later.
"That was amazing!" breathed Leo.
"Yeah, it's devastatingly effective and complex," praised Donnie.
"And yet even Mikey could learn it," said Raph.
"Thank you. Hey!" yelled Mikey as Donnie's laptop beeped, and he ran over to see what it said. "It's Rad-Brad! That's my little name for him. He wants to get together for a little B-ball! Can't wait to find out what the 'B' stands for!"
I frowned as Mikey rushed out of the room.
"What's wrong?" asked Raph, staring at me.
"Not sure," I admitted. "It's just, I have a bad feeling."
~ Teenage Human Ninja Girl ~
"Wait, I think I've got it," proclaimed Leo as he attempted to do the Death Dragon on Raph and finally succeeded.
"Where did you learn that?" demanded Splinter from the doorway of the dojo. There was a strange look in his eyes.
"Mikey learned it from his new friend," answered Raph.
"The man who taught him that kata is no friend!" The ninja master declared. "It comes from the Shredder."
"Wait, you know the Shredder?" I inquired.
"He was once my friend long ago back when I was human and lived in Japan," Splinter divulged. "Then he was known as Oroku Saki. We trained in the same dojo and were raised as brothers but became romantic rivals after falling in love with the same woman. One night he killed my beloved Tang Shen and burned our home."
"Then you came to America, found the turtles, and were mutated," I finished with wide brown eyes. "It all makes sense. Bradford is one of Shredder's pupils and is using Mikey to get to you which means those ninjas we fought were part of the Foot clan."
"How do you know so much?" asked Leo.
"It took me a while to remember but I knew who those guys were," I revealed. "It wasn't until Master Splinter said Shredder that I remembered a conversation my dad had with a man when I was a little girl. They mentioned the Shredder and the Foot clan which must be part of what my father has been doing in Japan all these years and why he sent me here to America. He was trying to keep me safe."
"Except now Shredder is here in New York," murmured Splinter. "Hunting me through all of you, my family."
"Mikey's in trouble!" exclaimed Raph.
Leo nodded. "Let's go."
~ Teenage Human Ninja Girl ~
We hurried over to Bradford's dojo and snuck through the skylight to rescue Mikey. We knocked out the Foot ninjas guarding him.
"Dudes! That was sporadic!" cheered Mikey from where he was tied up on the floor.
We shushed him while Leo cut him free.
"That's not what that means!" Donnie corrected Mikey as we fell back to the sewers where this time, we would have the advantage.
We hid as Bradford, a skinny Afro-Brazilian man, and a bunch of Foot ninjas followed us. We silently picked off each Foot ninja without either guy noticing. Bradford and his new friend reached a wide, open space of the sewers and paused after finally realizing their party had dwindled to two.
The Brazilian guy lit a flare, illuminating our artwork composed of Foot above their heads. "Show your faces!"
Leo, Raph, and I emerged from the water while Mikey and Donnie stepped out of the shadows.
"They've trapped us!" declared Bradford. "Take 'em down!"
Bradford went after Leo, Raph, and I. The skinny guy went for Mikey and Donnie. Bradford was a better fighter than I surmised as was his friend, so we decided to switch dance partners which elicited more favorable results.
We pushed the two jerks until they were standing back to back.
"They knew we were coming!" realized Bradford.
"That's right," Mikey confirmed as he used Bradford's kata on him and knocked him into his buddy. "Hit it!"
Leo and Donnie turned the wheel, opening a valve, and releasing a torrent of sewage which sent our opponents down the drain.
"Well, that didn't seem very fair," remarked Raph.
"No, it wasn't," agreed Leo, causing us all to laugh as we headed back to the lair for pizza.
"Um, sensei, aren't you hungry?" Donnie asked Splinter who was stroking his beard thoughtfully as he had before.
"I fear we are celebrating too soon," he murmured.
"'Too soon'?" repeated Raph from where he sat next to me. "The bad guys were swept away in a river of raw sewage. By my watch, that makes it the perfect time."
"Shredder knows I'm alive," Splinter reminded us. "And worse, he knows about all of you. It's my worst nightmare come true."
"So, it's not over?" inquired Leo.
"Oh, no," said Splinter. "It's just the beginning."
"I'm worried about my dad too," I said, making them stare at me. "I haven't heard from him since I arrived in New York and now Shredder's here. I hope he's okay."
"Seeing how incredible of a daughter he raised, I'm sure he's fine," Raph replied, wrapping his arm around my shoulders.
I smiled and leaned into him. "Thanks, Raph."
Wherever you are, Dad, I pray you're safe and that we'll see each other soon so I can tell you how grateful I am you sent me to this dirty, noisy city.
A/N: And there you have it! Until next time, read review and show the love!