I don't own the majority of the characters mentioned. I imagine you know which ones. Please don't sue anyway, and just enjoy. I make no money from this.

She covered them most of the time. Her sensei had taught her how. Even when she had to attract men to their deaths, she'd covered them. Dark tights contrasted nicely with the bright colors of whatever fluffy costume hid the doom of those attracted to her in it (usually a knife). Those days, she is sure, are behind her now, but the scars remain. She hides them still.

When the little ones would be in kindergarten, if they were human, the sewers were hotter and more humid than they ever were before. They were suitably motivated to make sure they all had a pool day. She donned a dark swimsuit that covered her from shoulder to mid-thigh due to a skirt it had. During a break, having tuckered himself out due to too great enthusiasm earlier, Mikey sat beside her and began tracing the raised lines on her legs. She didn't have the heart to stop him and explain. Splinter noticed and encouraged his son to jump back in and swim to him. Mikey obliged. Mayu smiled at him doing so, and at Raph doggedly dog-paddling refusing be helped, Donnie experimenting with different strokes, and Leo spinning and darting about like a dolphin enjoying the pure freedom of movement water allowed. Once he reached his sensei, Mikey splashed Splinter in the face causing his father to scowl, his brothers' mouths to drop open, and her to laugh.

A year later, Leo got sick. They lived near sewer lines. They anticipated this. It didn't happen as often as they expected it to actually, but it still hurt hearing him struggle to draw air into partially blocked and sore sinuses. She pulled up her sleeves since they were getting wet from her wringing the water-logged cloths, she was using to cool his scaled. As she paused in her efforts, he began, like Mikey the year before to mindlessly trace her scars above her wrist. He was seeking distraction. He couldn't train. He couldn't even follow the plot of a TV show. She'd sing to him in a moment. Right then though, she'd watched him trace her scars in his own misery trying not to move or mind.

Four years later, they came in all four of her sons.' Their eyes seemed enlarged, mouths sagged, and limbs hung as they took slow heavy steps. She and Splinter turned from looking and speaking to each other over the kitchen island, to watch them enter together. Their four turtles now stared back with miserable faces.

Mikey's eyes filled with tears. "Mommy!" He threw his arms out, wailed, and rushed to embrace her around the waist. She and Splinter looked to the others for an explanation.

Leo croaked. "Mom …"

Donnie added in his softest voice, "We watched a movie …"

Raph added in his softest voice, "It was a horror one …"

Mayu scowled at the three not clinging to her and getting her sweater wet with his sobs. Splinter moved to stand beside her. Donatello spoke before either of them could though.

"Somebody had scars in it from being hurt by someone years before … they reminded me of … yours …" Donnie was looking directly into her eyes.

Now her eyes looked from his face, to Leo's face, to Raph's face, and then down to the top of Mikey's head. She squatted to embrace him back. Donnie adds. "I researched online to be sure. Yours were likely caused by the breaking or burning of the skin to an extreme degree …"

Mikey began to wail louder in her arms. So she shouted, "Stop!" She demands.

Raph clenched his fists and ground his teeth.

"Who hurt you?"

Splinter decided to answer for her in his warm calming, but very firm tone. "Somebody, who is already dead."

Their eyes widened including Raph's who looked from his father back to her. Now and then, when they do something and later realize it was bad, she'd tell them she did bad things once too. Then she'd add God her and their Father in Heaven, and their father on earth, Splinter, forgave her. She also adds she has learned and is still learning to do good things and no longer do bad and they can do the same. She and Splinter had tried to keep things vague, but it was hard to do with curious kiddoes. Perhaps believing she can't or shouldn't have to explain, Splinter continued. "Her sensei taught her to fight but did not teach her in the proper manner as we do with all of you. She used pain to teach."

Mayu turned a scowl up at him, but he continued. "I never wish to injure you let alone leave scars in your skin from our training. That is why we are so careful together. Why I tell you to be careful."

The wide eyes of their sons have remained wide, but their once slightly open mouths and now screwed down into deep frowns again. The three without their faces pressed to one of her shoulders swallow and nod solemnly up at Splinter before looking to her again. Leo asks, "Your sensei didn't love you mom?"

She sighs and swallows herself. "No, she did not." Mikey whimpers against her, so she amends. "My last one that is, the one I had from the time I was fourteen to when she died. I had teachers at your age, who cared much more about me."

Raph re-clenched his fists. His scowl returned as he growled "Did you kill that last sensei?!"

Mayu shakes her head. "No. Shredder did."

Even Mikey stopped crying and pulled away to stare into her face. His mouth was shut, but all three of the others had theirs hanging open. Only Leo asked, "Isn't he a bad guy."

Yoshi intoned. "Yes."

Mayu tried to elaborate. "He had gotten into a long and deep habit of doing bad things when I left, and I helped him do them …"

Splinter interrupted her. "He had already done many bad things."

Mayu sighed, "But I taught him how to do them more effectively." She took a moment to look at all her sons still staring at her wide-eyed. Then she continued. "I hadn't met you or Splinter or the Winters and decided to become good, or work at being so, so hard, or let God help and guide me back in those days." She stood back up and with Mikey clinging to her, moved closer to her three other sons. She took Leo's face in both her hands. Donnie and Raph stared up at and seemed to study her as Leo met her gaze. She continued. "I am better. I am healing partially because of you. I will and continue to be better. I am a new person now."

"But you still have the scars," Donnie interjected. And she nodded.

"I do, but now I have so much more."

What do you think?

God bless you

ScribeofHeroes