So, not the most exciting chapter, but it does get a lot of the exposition out of the way. There's also a lot of feels, so be prepared for that. Hope you enjoy!
Sometime later, the two boys landed in the park. Thankfully without getting noticed or arousing suspicion. Despite the fact that it was still technically open, there were no humans nearby that they could see. Leonardo glanced around, presumably trying to decide where to look first.
"So, if you were a mutant cat girl, where would you go?" he questioned towards Donatello.
"Oh yes, because one of my many skills is being able to put myself into the mind of someone of opposite species and gender," Donatello droned, his tone thick with sarcasm.
"I was just asking. What is with you tonight?" Leonardo couldn't help wondering at his extra crabby brother.
"We were supposed to be having movie night with April, but you guys insisted on getting involved with this mess, and now look where we are. This cat girl didn't seem all that special to me," Donatello reasoned with a pout. Leonardo hesitated for a moment before a mischievous grin grew on his features.
"Are you mad that she was able to use your tech?" he guessed in a babying tone.
"Don't be ridiculous! She was only able to work it because of my expert explanation skills," he attempted to justify. "Although it is a little surprising that she didn't struggle or fumble with it at all, even though I literally had to explain it in the middle of a fight," he mumbled under his breath through gritted teeth.
"Sorry, what was that?" Leonardo asked, with an exaggerated motion of putting his hand up to his ear.
"Nothing. Let's just find this girl and get out of here," Donatello snapped.
"Okay, but, this park is huge. Where do we even start?" Leonardo wondered.
"We look for body heat," he answered flatly, pulling his goggles over his eyes.
It didn't end up taking them too long to find her. Especially since it was obvious she wasn't actually attempting to hide. The girl in question was currently slumped over in a bench with that same spacey look Michelangelo had described earlier. It was a wonder nothing had happened to her yet!
The boys trotted up to her, causing her to start and jump back on the bench, subconsciously clinging to it. She peered up at them with bewilderment, quickly shifting her eyes back and forth between them.
"What the heck do you think you're doing out here?!" Donatello demanded, glaring down at the girl. She could only stare back with wide eyes. "The least you could do is try hiding in a tree or something! Are you just wanting to get caught now, or what? I mean, how stupid can you –"
The eyes of the girl before him rapidly started filling with tears, immediately cutting off the angry rant. Donatello's expression softened, and he could only watch in helpless confusion as the cat girl suddenly burst into hysterical sobbing!
"Why are you yelling at me?" she asked dejectedly, before burying her head in her hands. "I don't – know! I don't know what I'm doing! I don't know what's going on, or what's happening to me, or why monsters are chasing me! I don't understand any of this! What am I supposed to do?! Where am I supposed to. . .?" she didn't have the heart to continue, doubling over and choking on her intense crying.
"Nice work, genius," Leonardo commented, side-eyeing the now stymied turtle.
"H-how was I supposed to know she was gonna freak out like this?" Donatello tried to argue.
"You could try showing a little sensitivity. I mean, she's obviously just scared and confused," Leonardo reasoned.
"Well, it's obvious now!" Donatello shot back. Leonardo gave him a sly look. "Fine then! You talk to her if you're such an expert," he huffed, stubbornly crossing his arms and taking a step away. Leonardo turned back to the girl as she took a deep, shuttering breath.
"Whoa! Hey! It's okay," he told her, taking a seat next to her on the bench. "What my very inconsiderate brother was trying to say is, why are you just sitting out here in the dark all alone? Don't you have somewhere safe you can go?" he attempted to ask.
It took her a moment, but eventually the girl lifted her head and lowered her hands. She glanced skeptically back and forth between them again before answering.
"What do – you care?" she asked, her voice catching, but at least sounding a bit calmer now.
"Fair question," Donatello admitted. Leonardo just levied a glare at him before turning back to her.
"Well, you just seemed pretty lost and confused before, and it was – brought to our attention by a friend that it might mean you don't have any place to go," Leonardo attempted to explain. "We can try to help you get home if you need us to?" he offered when she didn't immediately respond.
"I – already tried that," she confessed, wrapping her arms around herself and adverting her gaze. "My mom just screamed and – threw things at me until I left. There's no way I'll – ever be able to find a place to live – looking like this," she stated, staring down at herself in despair.
"O-kay. Hmm, is there anything we can do to help?" Leonardo tried, not feeling real sure on what they were supposed to do in this situation.
"Why are you – asking now? I thought you wanted me to – leave," she mumbled dejectedly, purposefully avoiding eye contact. Leonardo turned and fixed his brother with a knowing look.
"I – well, that was before we realized that you didn't have anywhere to go," Donatello muttered back.
"So? What's it – to you? Might as well've, just – let those monsters – take me," she decided.
"But see, that's what we're trying to avoid. Those 'monsters' who were trying to take you before, they work for another really bad, uh, monster guy, and he, kinda, wants to destroy all the humans. But first, he's trying to create some kind of mutant army to help him with that, and we'd really prefer if you, say – didn't," Leonardo sort of explained. Then waited to see how she would react.
She turned to fix him with an incredibly skeptical gaze. Did he really expect her to believe all that? However, it only took her a moment to let it sink in just who, or what, she was sitting here talking to right now. Not to mention, everything that had happened to her that day, in the end really helped to sell his story.
But, so what if all that were actually true? Her, in some kind of mutant army? Yeah right! As if she'd be cut out for anything like that! If history was any indicator, even if this super bad guy captured her and tried to recruit her, it wouldn't take long for him to realize how useless she was and throw her away, or worse. So, what on earth were these guys even worried about?
"That's great," she replied, her tone contrary to the words. "Still doesn't magically give me a place to live," she pointed out, hunkering down.
She figured that now they'd probably give up and leave again. No one had ever cared about helping her before. Why would that start now?
However, Donatello blew out a long, reluctant sigh before directing his attention back to the pathetic form on the bench in front of him.
"Would you, maybe, like to – come stay with us?" he offered, surprising everyone, including himself.
"Aw, Dee! You sure?" Leonardo responded first with an amused look.
"Not like we have a whole lot of options here," he reasoned. They waited while she hesitated to come up with an answer.
"I – I'm not supposed to go anywhere with strangers," she said, the irony clear in her tone.
"Cute," Donatello quipped with obvious sarcasm. "In that case, I'm Donatello, and this is Leonardo, and you are?" he asked expectantly. She stared at him for a moment, deliberating on how cooperative she really wanted to be with these guys.
"Katerina Kelly," she told them flatly.
"Well, Katerina. Just so you know, you're not gonna find a better offer," Leonardo informed her, rising from the bench. "So, whadaya say?" he asked expectantly.
The situation being so ridiculous, Katerina couldn't help but let out a humorless chuckle. It was hard to believe any of this was actually happening. But the blue one did have a point, what did she have to lose?
"Sure, why not?" she agreed with a shrug, before rising to awkwardly brush herself off. "What better way to culminate the most insane day of my life, than to go home with – whatever you guys are," she gestured at them.
"We're mutants too," Leonardo told her.
"More specifically, we're turtles," Donatello added, wanting to make sure there was no confusion on that front.
"We're also ninjas. Try not to be too intimidated by our awesome skills," Leonardo boasted as they began making their way out of the park, Katerina now tagging right along.
"So, you're ninja mutant turtles?" she questioned dubiously.
"Yeah. We're still working on a good team name," Leonardo informed her casually.
"Ninjas like, Ryu, or Nayruto?" she asked without really thinking.
"Ninjas like Lou Jutsu," Donatello answered.
"Oh. . . who's that?" she had to wonder.
"Hoo boy! Looks like we got our work cut out for us with this one," Leonardo teased with a grin.
"Let's just focus on getting home for now," Donatello suggested, rounding a corner into an alley.
"You want me to make a portal? I'll get us there in no time!" Leonardo offered, not actually waiting for a reply. He held out his impossibly long sword as it began to glow with an eerie, blue energy.
Katerina suddenly felt a need to ask questions, however, didn't get a chance before Donatello nipped the whole situation in the bud.
"No!" he commanded, forcefully lowering the sword and putting a stop to the glowing. "I don't wanna end up on another continent because you can't control that thing! Let's just take the safe, old fashioned way," he insisted, using his fancy staff to remove the manhole cover from off the top of the tunnel below them. He then gestured towards Katerina as if to say, after you. She couldn't help but cringe at the implications.
"We're going, into the sewer?" she wondered, starting to develop some second thoughts on this decision.
"Beggars can't be choosers, sweetheart," Donatello snapped back. She pondered this for a moment.
"Well, it certainly doesn't stop them from trying. In fact, there's a whole subreddit about it," she pointed out matter-of-factly. The purple clad turtle didn't appear amused.
"Fine, do what you want. I'm going home," he informed her, hopping down the hole and out of sight. The cat girl hesitated for a moment, staring at the spot where Donatello had just been standing.
"This is off to a great start," she mumbled, shuffling uncomfortably.
"Don't mind Donnie," Leonardo told her, waving him off. "He's just in a mood. He'll snap out of it," he assured her, gesturing towards the hole again to encourage her to go down it.
This time she complied without complaint, and remained pretty quiet as they led her down a complicated series of tunnels. To where? She could only guess.
. . .
Arriving at the lair, Katerina could only gawk in awe at the sophisticated dwelling that somehow existed within the New York City sewer system. Individual bedrooms, a kitchen/dining area, and even a central chamber that managed to contain an entire half-pipe, among other equipment. It didn't take long before Leonardo noticed the amazed staring.
"Pretty impressive, huh? There's no place like home," he quoted, before they brought her into what seemed to be the living room.
There was a reclining chair and several bean bags all surrounding a projector set up to display on a large screen against the far wall. The other two turtles that Katerina remembered from before were here, as well as a pair of new figures. There was a nice-looking girl, possibly around her age, maybe a little older, who perked up and smiled at them when they stepped into the room. Meanwhile, in the chair, sat what Katerina could only describe as some kind of rat man. He was short, round, and looked even grumpier than the Donatello turtle when he turned to fixed his gaze on them.
"Hey everyone!" Leonardo greeted cheerily. "So, turns out April was right, and the girl we rescued actually doesn't have anywhere safe to go now that she's mutated, which is why we brought her home with us. Guys, meet Katerina," he announced, motioning towards her.
She offered an awkward wave to the room. The other girl was the first to react to the news, hopping up and moving over to greet her.
"Hey, girl! My name's April O'Neil," she introduced, shaking her hand. "So, you really are a cat girl. It's so nice to meet another mutant who doesn't immediately wanna kill us," she mentioned, the words not matching her casual tone. Katerina stared at her with a bit of alarm, but she didn't seem to notice as she continued. "Sorry these guys were such bone-heads before, but I'm happy to see you all safe and sound," she told her merrily.
"I think the jury's still out on the 'sound' part," Katerina found herself commenting in a mumble.
"Don't worry, you get used to it," April assured her. "So, seems like you're already acquainted with Leo and Donnie. This is Raphael," she gestured towards the big, red accented turtle.
"Hey," he acknowledged, lifting his hand up for a moment from the sports magazine he'd been reading.
"The orange one over there is Michelangelo," she thumbed behind her.
"Sup," he greeted with a grin.
"And this," April paused as the rat man rose from his chair and moved closer, brushing food particles off of his ragged robes. "Is Master Splinter, their dad," she finished with a flourish. Katerina gazed around the room at all the expectant faces with obvious confusion.
"I have several questions," she admitted, raising a finger in the air.
"I'm sure you do, child, but first, we have some for you. Please, sit," Splinter instructed her, motioning to an empty bean bag chair. She complied, hesitantly kneeling onto it as the others took seats as well, except for Splinter, who began pacing.
"Now, how much do you know of what is currently happening in the city?" he inquired of her.
"Um, the blue guy, uh – Leonardo?" she guessed at his name, trying to remember all the introductions.
"You can just call me Leo," he offered with a smile.
"Right, so, Leo – told me about a bad guy trying to make some kind of, mutant army?" she answered him, but then found herself continuing when he didn't immediately make any comments. "But, to be honest, I'm not really sure if that's the right term," she told them, turning around to peer behind her, watching as her twin tails slowly waved opposite of each other.
"Yeah, I was wondering about that. How did you end up with two tails? You get bit by a defective Oozesquito, or what?" Donatello wondered nonchalantly. Katerina opened her mouth to reply, but was immediately cut off.
"Wait, did you say, two tails?" Splinter asked, double checking that he hadn't misheard.
"What?! Two tails! I wanna see!" April suddenly declared, sounding very interested.
Not feeling any need to object, Katerina rose and turned around, displaying the waving, multiple tails for the group. "They keep, kinda doing that on their own. I'm not really sure why," she confessed.
"What is this. . .?" Splinter slowly trailed. Katerina spun back around to face him.
"Well, those guys who were trying to kidnap us, kept referring to us as, Yokai. And two-tailed cats are one of the more common Yokai that I've heard of, right up there with Kappa, and – Kitsu-ne?" Katerina felt compelled to slow her speech at the scary, angry expression that was contorting the rat man's face.
"What do you know of Yokai?!" he suddenly demanded in a roar.
"I – I watch anime. . ." she trailed, now looking really uncomfortable. Last time she checked, that wasn't a crime!
"Oh, so, you are just a nerd," he sighed out callously, calming and waving for her to sit back down. Katerina obeyed, now feeling embarrassed.
"What's so wrong with her knowin' about Yokai?" Raphael had to wonder, not the only one feeling confused by the sudden outburst.
"Our enemy are Yokai, and the feline variety are known to be one of the trickiest. One can never be too careful," Splinter informed them. "But I digress," he continued, segueing into another topic. "So, what's your living situation, nerd girl? Why are you not able to return home? Do you think your family will not accept you in your new form?" he questioned.
"Are you gonna keep callin' her that?" April tried to ask, however Katerina just answered the question, not appearing to be phased.
"No," she stated flatly. "Going home was one of the first things I thought to do after, well, this happened. "I tried talking to my mom and explaining it to her, but she wouldn't listen. She just kept screaming and throwing things at me. She threatened to call the cops, and tried hosing me down with mace – so, not really an option," she told him.
"Have you no other family?" he asked.
"Technically," she admitted with a shrug. "My mom and dad split when I was four. Haven't really seen much of him sense then. I think he lives somewhere in Maine, but I'm not a hundred percent sure."
"No aunts or uncles? Grandparents?" he tried. She shook her head.
"As far as I know, I don't have any other extended family," she replied.
"What if –" he began, but then paused for a moment to think. "Perhaps, if you tried meeting with your mother again? Calmly explain the situation? Then –" He was suddenly cut off by Katerina letting out a loud, defeated sigh.
"No! There's no way my mother is ever going to," she stared down at herself. "Accept this! She'll never agree to share her home with a – freak of nature!" she snapped, now feeling upset at the line of questioning, and unfortunately, not considering how her words would affect the others around her.
She glanced up to see the awkward expressions, everyone in the room adverting their gazes from her. She rose in a determined manner.
"Look, I can go if you really don't want me here," she stated a bit harshly, completely misinterpreting the current atmosphere. She was about to turn to leave, when Donatello suddenly sprang up from his bean bag, surprising her.
"No. You should definitely stay! After all, you'll fit right in with all the other freaks around here," he reasoned snidely with a hard glare.
Katerina felt her stomach twist painfully, realization dawning on her as he threw the hurtful words right back in her face. She considered apologizing for a moment, but he didn't really give her a chance, storming out of the room a second later. She turned back to the others, only to finally see that those uncomfortable expressions were actually looks of hurt. Instantly feeling absolutely terrible, she attempted to leave again.
"I – I should go," she mumbled, and turned to make a hasty retreat. However, the others in the room all seemed to jump up at once, halting her movement.
"Wait! That – it wasn't my intention to –" Splinter quickly tried to explain. Katerina responded by throwing her arms up over her chest, looking really nervous.
"Okay, so. . ." Raphael trailed, since it seemed like no one else really knew where to go from here. "It's gettin' real late. We're all tired and cranky. Why don't we just, call it a day, and we can talk more tomorrow? How's that sound?" he suggested in a humoring tone.
"Yeah, I'm good with that," Leonardo stretched, casting Katerina one last glance before exiting the room.
"Uh, sure. Night everyone," Michelangelo added, keeping his eyes straight ahead as he left.
Splinter seemed to study Katerina for a moment, but then ended up waddling out without a word. Raphael gestured towards the remaining human girl.
"Come on, April. I'll take you home," Raphael offered, stepping away.
Before leaving, the April girl moved over and stopped right in front of Katerina, fixing her with a mix of emotions that she had a hard time reading.
"Look," she began with a sigh. "I know you've just been through a whole lotta crazy, and you're probably still feeling pretty scared and confused, but –" she paused for a moment. "I for one, would really appreciate it, if you could try to give these guys a chance. They just went through a lot, tryin' ta keep you safe, and I know they can be a bit, overwhelming, at first, but they really are great, once you get to know them," she did her best to explain delicately.
Katerina felt her gaze fall to the floor. If this girl was trying to make her feel worse, she was doing an extraordinary job of it!
"I know it's probably hard for you to believe," she continued after a moment, "but I'm sure they'll feel even worse, if they wake up tomorrow morning and find that you're not here," she eluded, not really attempting to hide her meaning. "Just, promise me you'll consider that, whatever you decide to do, okay?" she requested quietly.
Katerina nodded her reply, not trusting herself to speak. Seemingly satisfied with that, April then finally took her leave, leaving the cat girl completely alone. The lights then suddenly shut off, as if to further punctuate her shame.
Unfortunately, no one had given her any instructions on where she was supposed to sleep. So, not knowing what else to do, Katerina curled up on a bean bag chair with the mixed sensations of getting her stomach kicked in by a horse, and that feeling you get when you're having a sleepover at a friend's house, and they go to bed without giving you a blanket.
"I'm such a screw up!" Was the last thing she lamented to herself before her exhaustion finally overtook her.
. . .
A dark, cold feeling greeted her when she awoke to nature's call the next morning. It felt early, so she pulled out her phone to check the time. She found to her dismay that the screen was so cracked that the image was barely recognizable. Probably happened at some point during all the chaos yesterday.
She rose, stretching her cramping limbs. While she felt sore from being curled up on the bean bag all night, it was still better than sleeping on the hard concrete. Noiselessly padding from the room, Katerina began poking around the sizable dwelling, looking for where she was supposed to relieve herself. She ended up circling around to where they'd first brought her in, when the sound of footsteps behind her startled her into flipping around.
What she found was the big, red-accented turtle, studying her with a curious expression. What had his name been again? Raphael? Either way, she subconsciously felt herself cringing away from his imposing form. She wondered if her exploring had woken him up.
"Where are you going?" The question was hushed, but Katerina could still pick up the accusatory undertones.
"I – need to use the bathroom," she informed him shyly.
"Oh, is that all? Come with me. I'll show you where it is," he offered, gesturing for her to follow.
They padded up to an unassuming door that Katerina has mistaken for a closet on her first pass. Raphael turned the knob and motioned her inside. She thanked him, closing the door behind her.
After making use of the facilities, Katerina moved to wash her hands, but started as soon as she caught a glimpse of her reflection in the mirror hanging over the sink. With all the insanity from the day before, she hadn't actually had a chance to really take a good look at herself. And now that she did, she couldn't help but notice, that practically everything about her physical appearance had now completely changed!
Instead of pale, freckled skin, she was now coated in a lilac, gray layer of fur. Her nose had flattened and broadened a bit to resemble that of a typical cat's. It was also now very dark, almost black in hue, and one of the few places left on her that wasn't furry. Her eyes and hair color had changed as well. The eyes being much more almond shaped and glowing an unnatural chartreuse. Unnatural at least, for a human eye. No longer the boring, stringy brown that her hair had been before, it now shone a dark, slate gray, giving it an almost metallic look, her new, freshly morphed cat ears poking out of the top of it. She reached up to rub them between her fingers. So weird to no longer have them on either side of her head!
Now that she was thinking about it, there had been other features besides her appearance that had been affected by the mutation. Not only did her eyes look different, but they were also working better. Better than they ever had before, in fact! Her vision was perfect despite losing her glasses in all the scuffle yesterday, and once night had set, the world around her had been almost as bright as it was during the day! Her hearing and sense of smell had improved dramatically, as well. For example, she could tell that Raphael was still standing right outside the door, the sound of his heavy breathing coming through the otherwise completely still silence of the morning. A second later, and she heard him knock.
"Uh – you alright in there?" he wondered. She reached over and pulled open the door. He cocked his head at her.
"Sorry. Didn't realize you were waiting on me," she told him, being only partially honest.
"I – just wanted to make sure you were okay," he repeated sheepishly.
"Yeah, I just," Katerina paused as she turned back to the mirror, watching as the strange creature turned with her. "Got a little distracted. I hadn't really had a chance to see myself since, well, you know," she eluded, rubbing a hand over her ears.
"Does it, bother you?" he asked tentatively.
"Honestly? The longer I look at it, the more I'm thinking that maybe, it's – not so bad," she confessed, leaning in closer to the reflection. "In fact, I don't think I've ever looked better," she added, with a weirded-out laugh that lacked any real humor.
"Whatdaya mean?" he wondered with confusion.
"Well, my acne and psoriasis are gone, and I'm pretty sure my allergies too. My teeth are nice and straight now, I don't need my glasses anymore, and my hair is, actually thick," she realized after running her fingers though it. "It's like, this transformation didn't just change me into a mutant cat, it also fixed my genetic defects. So, for the most part, I don't mind the changes. It's just weird, to look in the mirror and not be able to recognize myself, but like, in a good way? Does that make sense?" she asked, turning to see him fixing her with a rather puzzled look. Guess that was a no.
"Sorry, I'm rambling," she mumbled, shuffling uncomfortably. Raphael just smiled and put his hands up.
"That's okay. I'm just happy to hear you're not upset," he assured her. The cat girl glanced back at the mirror for a moment, thinking.
"What about you guys? Was it hard for you to adjust when you first got mutated? I mean, do you like the way you look now, or, do you miss being human?" she couldn't help but wonder at him. He didn't respond right away, mostly just appeared unsure on how to answer.
"Um, well, me and my brothers – we were never human. We used to just be turtles," he admitted, rubbing the back of his head with his palm. Katerina stared at him for a long moment, letting the information sink in and simultaneously realizing the implications.
"O-oh. Oh, wow! I, um – I hadn't even considered. . ." she trailed off, feeling a fresh wave of despair wash over her as she recalled last night's events. "Well, that's just – fricken fantastic!" she lamented, sliding past him to shamble out of the bathroom.
"Hang on! Where are you going now?" he wondered with a bit of alarm.
"To jump off a bridge!" she declared, her tone sounding determined.
"Wait! What?!" he exclaimed, rushing around in front of her to stop her. "Why would you even suggest something like that?!" he demanded with concern. Katerina just shrugged.
"You gotta admit, it would be the prefect way to fix this. You won't have to worry about that bad guy 'recruiting' me or whatever, and you won't have to deal with me ruining your lives. It's a win-win!" she cheered morbidly.
"But, what about you?" he couldn't help asking. She considered that for a moment before placing an arm over her stomach.
"Well, this sensation of continually feeling like I wanna throw up will finally be gone," she confessed quietly. When he didn't respond, she glanced back up at him to see what he was doing. He looked rather unsure. "I mean, can you honestly say you want me to stick around? After everything that happened last night?" she questioned dubiously.
"I can honestly say that I don't like the idea of you running off and –" he hesitated on the wording. "Throwing your life away," he decided, giving her a sad look. She humped in response.
"What life?" she snapped. "Let's face it. I've never had a life worth living, and I probably never will," she admitted to him. "I'm – a screw up, and, a complete loser! You guys are wasting your time, trying to help someone like me," she explained dejectedly. "I'm not worth it."
Raphael just stared down at the gloomy, little cat girl in front of him. He had no idea what he was supposed to say to that! He felt compelled to try and do something to help her feel better, but he'd never been all that good with words. Thankfully for him, the voice of another suddenly broke the uncomfortable silence.
"Why? Because of one cringey conversation after what was arguably the worst day of your life?" Leonardo asked, mysteriously dropping down next to them from somewhere. "I mean, it's nice to hear that you feel bad, but don't you think you're being just a tad dramatic?" he asked in a light tone, smiling at her.
Katerina didn't have the heart to answer him. After the way everyone had reacted yesterday, she really didn't feel like she was being dramatic. In fact, she felt more like she shouldn't have listened to April last night, after all. If she had just done this from the get go, then there wouldn't have been anyone around to argue with her. It probably would have turned out for the best, especially for. . .
"I doubt Donatello would agree with that," she finally decided to answer.
"Donnie's just overreacting! He'll never admit it, but he's actually pretty sensitive about things," Leonardo informed her with a sly look. She just blinked back at him.
"Hey, Leo's right. Everybody makes mistakes, and you weren't the only one to make some yesterday," Raphael added encouragingly. "Plus you've been having a pretty rough time. Cut yourself a little slack."
Katerina considered their words for a long moment, before glancing up to see them watching her expectantly. She was about to comment, but was suddenly interrupted by the other two boys making their way into the room. Both seemed surprised to see her.
"You're still here?" they commented simultaneously. Although while Michelangelo sounded pleased at the news, Donatello's tone was much more irritable. She was getting the impression that none of them had actually expected her to stay.
"Where else would I go?" she reasoned with a shrug, hoping that at least these two hadn't heard the earlier conversation.
"Oh, I guess you have a point," Michelangelo realized sheepishly. There was a long, uncomfortable pause – until Katerina finally spoke up, breaking the silence.
"So, um, I – a-about last night," she began in a clumsy manner, shuffling and avoiding eye contact. The boys all stared down at her, patiently waiting for her to continue. "I just, wanted to say that I'm – I'm sorry, about what I said. I didn't mean to. . ." she trailed off, fixing her gaze on her feet as a blush spread across her cheeks and nose. She wasn't sure if these guys would put any stock in her apology, but she still felt like it was the right thing to do.
Leonardo responded first, his face breaking out into a grin. "Hey, don't worry about it! We forgive you," he assured her.
"Yeah, it wasn't that big a' deal," Michelangelo agreed. "So, who's ready for some breakfast?" he offered merrily, a moment later.
"Sounds like a great idea!" Leonardo nodded his approval. "Come on, kitten," he quipped, slinging an arm around her shoulders to guide her deeper into their home. "You'll feel better when you get some food in ya," he assured her. Katerina went rigid at the sudden, unexpected touch, but allowed him to pull her along nonetheless.
One of the big things I really like about this version of the turtles is the whole Yokai angle, if you couldn't already tell! Lol. That's what inspired me to create this character in the first place, because I felt like we didn't actually get enough traditional Yokai getting showcased. That being said, I haven't decided how deeply I wanted to explore the concept with giving her Nekomata powers or anything like that. I am open to suggestions on this. If I were to give her powers, it wouldn't be until later, because it's not like she's going to have any idea on how to use or tap into them without instruction. Also, I'm not entirely sure what all abilities would make sense, or what would be balanced and not too OP. Let me know what you guys think, and what kinds of ideas you'd like to see! ;)