Chapter 23
Thursday, November 25, 1999
Chapter 23
The dawn of a new day. Thanksgiving day to be exact. The time read 7 a.m. on the dot. April rolled out from under Casey's arms and placed her robe on, heading downstairs and hearing the distinct sound of light snoring. Pausing in a yawn, she caught the Turtles and Splinter all sleeping in the living room. Leonardo was halfway on and off the couch, Splinter slept curled up in a ball on the other end, Donatello rested his head on the arm of the couch with his body sprawled out in a painful-looking position, Michaelangelo was curled in the rocking chair with his knees under his chin and head bowed inward and finally, looking for Raphael was a bit of a hide and seek challenge. She detected a soft snore erupting near her potted plants and found him sleeping against the wall.

"Oh, you guys..." April whispered as she tip-toed passed them into the kitchen. Her hands clambered around for a mug and the preparations to get her wake-up juice started. Mr. Coffee began doing it's job of brewing up several cups worth of hazel nut flavor. But, this morning, it wasn't the coffee that woke her up faster. As she was slowly slipping into a bit of a snooze at the small table, the wall phone rang out without notice. April lifted her head and grabbed it on the first ring. "Uhhh....hello?"

"Hello, is Mrs. Jones there?"

"This is she. Who is this?"

"This is Dr. Cassidy. Shadow's primary doctor."

"Oh, yes. I remember you."

"I just arrived at work....um, and, I must speak with you in regards to some news I have on your daughter's current condition."

"Oh." April sat up more fully, wiping the sleep from her eyes. "Will she be all right?" She heard a sigh on the other end. "Please, doctor. How is she doing?"

"Well, ma'am, she seems to be doing fine now. However, during the night, a security guard found her wandering the halls. The only injuries were a fractured wrist and some light bleeding from where the I.V. tube was pulled out. We're still trying to get an explanation on what caused her to leave her room in such a manner."

"Oh, God..." April cupped her mouth.

"We've...uh...also discovered something else." He cleared his throat. "Apparently from the blow to the head, she seems to have a little loss of memory. We pointed out her name on the wristband but she appeared confused by what we told her." April was now gripping the phone, almost ready to hit the floor. "A few more tests, Mrs. Jones....um...will determine if she is indeed suffering from a mild case of...." He said the word she feared. "....amnesia."

"Amnesia..." April repeated with a gasp. The doctor heard silence on the other end. He gave her a few seconds before speaking again.

"Mrs. Jones? Are you there? We need to go over a few things, ah...will you be coming in today?"

"My...my...husband and I..." April mumbled. "We'll be in later to s...see her..."

"I apologize you had to hear this, Mrs. Jones. We'll do what we can."

"Thank you." The phone clicked in her ear but she was already gone, breaking down into muffled cries in her arm. She felt someone standing behind her, then a hand reached out to rub her shoulder. "Oh....you heard....?"

"More than I wanted to." Raphael whispered.

"What'll Casey say about this? God, he'll be so upset! And you guys! She won't recognize you at all!"

"Yeah, I know." Raph rolled his eyes. He knew hours ago!

"Oh, Raph!" April reached over and hugged his waist. He felt sorry for her, and a bit guilty for liking all this affection from her. "I have to tell him, he's going to find out one way or another!" She squeezed his waist, he was melting. "I can't believe this is happening...."

"I can." Raph mumbled, trying to hide his smile.

"Mmm?" April pulled away to look at him with her puffy-red eyes. "What?"

"I can...I mean..." Raphael swallowed, then cupped her chin. "Why don't you go upstairs, wake the animal, take a hot shower and get ready to go see her. I can go tell the others."

"Okay." April stood up with shaky legs and headed out. "But, are you still coming with us so you can see Kate?"

"Absolutely."

"All right. Be ready to leave by nine."

The coffee went quickly forgotten. April returned to the living room, looking to see the rest of them still in La La Land. How could she tell them properly of what she just heard from the hospital? Guess what, guys? Shadow's coming home but you'll all have to hide in the closet till Christmas! Shadow couldn't possibly forget the weirdest bunch of guys she had ever known. Their appearance might scare her more then confuse her. And then there was Splinter, a grandfather to her by choice, but now, a large rat that would give her something to be afraid of. April decided to go get dressed and also alert dear ol' Dad of what she just found out. This should go over easy with him. Not! The two parents would have to start from scratch, reminding her who they are first, then work on the harder parts of saying these five creatures are completely harmless. Sort of. Yes, they would hurt a fly (a pest) but never a child (an innocent).

"Casey?" Casey was spread out like he did one jumping jack lying down with his mouth hung wide open. "Casey...hey..." April tapped him as she passed by over to the closet to pull out a shirt and pair of jeans. She heard life murmuring from the bed. "The hospital called and the doctor told me a little bit of Shadow's current status." The murmur questioned. "Yeah...he sure did." April removed her robe, standing in her wrinkled T-shirt and sweats. "Casey?" The murmur questioned more this time. "Did you hear me?"

"Mmm, hmm." Casey's eyebrows lifted, eyes still closed.

"We'll go see her." April started to gather her clothes. He agreed with a murmur. "And by the way, when we get there, we'll have to remind her of who we are. The doctor said she may have..." On the way to the bathroom, she gave him one last look and word. "...amnesia."

"Mmm....hmm....WHAAAT?!" Casey jumped up and fell out of the bed on the cold wood floor. "Ow, shit! April?" Bones crackling all over, he walked-fast to the bathroom, knocking on it with one knuckle. "April?! What did you say? Hey, yo, I'm talking to ya!"

Casey's yells and the sound of the plumbing being turned on woke up the others of the household. Michaelangelo blinked and looked skyward. He then looked over to see Leonardo unraveling and slipping off the couch onto the floor. Donatello lifted his head next, looking around in a tired manner. Splinter's whiskers twitched as he opened his eyes slowly.

"They're up..." Mike mumbled as he stood up with his back spine cracking loudly in a stretch. He looked to the grandfather clock. "Where's April?"

"In the shower." Raphael entered from the kitchen doorway. "She already got the word about Shadow. The doc called her."

"Oh." Michaelangelo frowned. "How did she handle it?"

"Typical parent to handle it. Depressed as all hell but you can't blame her." The others shook their heads groggily.

"What should I do?" Mike looked to each of them. "I promised to help her this morning with the dinner! The turkey takes a long time to cook in the oven. Then, I needed to make a list of the sides-"

"Mike, wait. Ow...uh...." Don raised a hand which cracked from the movement. "It's been a hell of a week for all of us. We should wait and see what they want to do today."

"Well, we have to eat!"

"Yes, I know that. But, she and Casey will be out most of the day at the hospital and we still have to get Lark out of jail to be home with her family."

"And don't forget that we're quarantined till further notice from the little tyke." Raph pointed to his brother. "So, we can't all sit together at dinner."

"Sheesh. McDonald's is starting to sound better and better." Leonardo moped from the floor.

Michaelangelo crossed his arms with pursed lips. "Well, okay then. Casey, April, and Shadow will still probably eat here while WE have to dine out! The least I can do is get it started FOR them!" He started to grumble as he headed for the kitchen passed Raph, his voice trailing off before he sarcastically yelled, "By the way, Happy Thanksgiving!"

"He's getting as bad as you." Don smirked to Raph. He then bent and straightened his numb arm into the air, cracking it with loud pops. "Owch...grrr..."

April stepped out of the shower with towel around her head and got dressed quickly. There was a tap on the door. "April? You finished in there?" April removed the towel and flung it downward to hide her face as she left the bathroom. Casey gave her a weird look and followed her into the bedroom. "Hey, what did you say about Shadow?" She said nothing. He threw the towel off and glared to her. "Jeez, April! What the hell is wrong?! Will you answer me?!"

"Um....I'm afraid it's bad news..." She started slowly. "About Shadow..."

"Well, shit! Do I hafta pay ya to spit it out?! What the hell is it?!"

An explosion erupted. All five pairs of eyes in various parts of the house looked up to the ceiling at once. Yup, April told him. Next, they heard him bickering about details of how he had to know every word that was exchanged from the phone conversation. How long had she been awake, can she come home, do the others know, and so forth....

"Goddamn place! Stupid bastards! I'm going to sue the whole freakin' hospital for malpractice! No! Forget suing, I'll just beat the crap out of all of them, and that goes for the nurses, too-"

"Casey! Pleeeease!" April pleaded between the appliance of eye liner and glancing to him in the mirror reflection. She watched him stomp off to the bathroom. "We'll get all our answers when we go over there! Just go get ready." The bathroom door slammed shut. "Thank you."

"April?" Michaelangelo was at her opened bedroom doorway, unnecessarily tapping at it. "Is everything okay?"

"God, I hope so!" She sighed while waving a mascara tube in her hand. "Please, Mike. Don't make me cry or I'll ruin my make-up."

Michaelangelo stiffened. "Um, okay...um, how about a joke, then?" April turned to him, letting out a small laugh. "Hey! I didn't even start!"

"No, no." She giggled as she closed her make-up purse. Forget the mascara. "Laughing or crying, my eyes will tear up. But, between the two, I'll take laughing any day."

"Same here." He nodded. "So, Casey took it well, huh?" April groaned and waved a hand as she continued walking around to get ready. "Yeah, we already knew...um! I mean, Raph told us." She glanced to him with a nod, applying her shoes on next. "My main question was what we were doing for Thanksgiving today."

"I'm surprised you remembered with all the crap we've been through these past days. Sorry if this upsets you, but I don't feel like going all out this year."

"No tradition?!" Mike sounded hurt.

"Mike!" April paused half-way to the closet. "We'll be spending the morning and early afternoon outdoors. When will I get the time to start cooking the dinner?"

Michaelangelo thought for a moment. "Let me cook it all, then."

"By yourself?"

"Yeah! I've done it before! It'll be a lot of work but I'd rather do that then eat out."

"Okay. I don't expect you to do it all; maybe one of your brothers can help. If that's what you want to do, then go right ahead. But, first I want to get more news on Shadow from the doctor. We're going to see if she can even come home today." April stepped out into the hall to meet up with Raphael. "You're ready to go?"

He zipped up his jacket. "Yeah."

"Wonderful. We just need to wait for Casey, then."

Donatello hung up the phone, glancing to Leo and Splinter with a look of disapproval.

"Well?" Leonardo watched with crossed arms.

"You're not gonna like it."

"Like what?" Donatello looked up to see April coming down the stairs with Raph and Mike following behind.

"I called police headquarters to find out how much it'll cost to get Lark out of jail."

"Don, I said I would help her regardless of how much the fee is." April sat down next to him, puffing out a sigh with an added frown. "So, how much is it?"

"$800." Don mumbled.

"Damn." Raph whistled, glancing to April for an answer. "Reaction time?"

She shook her head. "Don't look at me." The shower head shut off and thumping was heard around upstairs. "It's Casey that will go through the roof when he hears that price."

"Does this mean you won't be able to do it?"

"It's not that, Don. Knowing Casey, he's not going to make any stops along the way to the hospital. If this whole amnesia thing didn't come up with his daughter, he'd say, yeah, let's go get Lark after screaming about the bail cost."

"I was hoping we could get her out and home, especially for today." Don wasn't making this any easier.

"I know; it's awful what happened to her, but we can't be concerned for other people's problems. I'm afraid we'll have to wait on getting her out. I'm sorry, Don. I would if I could. But, I can't. Not now, anyway."

"I understand, April." Don finally said.

"Is everyone ready?" Casey marched down the stairs, hair still wet and clothes that looked like they were thrown on every which way. "Who's all going with us? Tell me I don't have to make any stops along the way or if I do, it'll be for me to pound your asses into the ground." He passed by them into the kitchen area and returning within minutes with a coffee thermos, eyeing each one. "WELL? Who's ever going better get your butt's out to the van now!" They then watched him stomp off to the front door and slam it shut. Donatello turned back to April with a sigh.

"I...completely understand, April." All she could do was tap his shoulder apologetically before her and Raphael slowly walked out to the mini-van.

Lark awoke to the sound of the cell door banging open. "Don?"

"No, Officer Kranz isn't here today." The officer assumed she meant someone else. "You have a visitor."

"Morning, sunshine." Jesse stepped closer to her with a bright smile.

"Jesse..." Lark walked over to him with a yawn. "Did you come to bail me out?"

"Nope. Came to ask if I could borrow the SUV."

"MY car?"

"Yeah. You didn't forget your parents are still flying in this afternoon?" Lark gasped to him with a hand over her mouth. "Obviously you did. Look, you have a few choices here. It's either your car with all the space for their luggage and leg room, or I could take my squad car with the caged lining between the front and back seat and small trunk space to put their suitcases in..." He watched her frowning. "And the last choice would be getting them a taxi cab which won't be cheap since they're flyin' into Logan. You understand, right?"

"I think I would if you got me out of here before my parents see where I'm rotting! Why are you doing this to me?! You think this is a game?"

"Lark, I don't have the money to get you out! I was serious about that!"

"Bullshit! You work for the damn police; they should let me out just for today to be with my parents. Please, Jesse! Do something!"

He pointed to her. "I thought you said you didn't want my help anymore." Lark pulled back, staring at him with disbelief. "Do you still stand by those words?"

"The only thing I'm standing by is a disgusting toilet and a decrepit, old cot for a bed! If you're not going to help me get out of here, then I want nothing more to do with you. You stay the hell away from my car and everything else that I own. I will get out with or without your help. I've got real friends that are coming in very soon and then I'll take my own self to the airport to pick up MY parents."

"Fine, Lark. You've got all the answers. We'll see when these friends of yours arrive. Last I heard, they were so broke, they couldn't even afford the cost of a bus fare. What makes you think they can cough up eight hundred smackers?"

"I'm not talking about my friends from school. I know these people have that kind of money and they will help me." She sounded so sure of herself but even she had some doubts. Ones that she didn't want Jesse to be aware of. "And don't bother picking up my parents. Once they find out how you've been treating me, they'll want nothing to do with you!"

"Oh, right! And once they find out where you are and why, they'll want nothing to do with you either!"

"GUARD!!" Lark bellowed to the officer at the door. "Remove this man from my sight, now!"

"Let go of me, I'm leaving anyway!" Jesse pulled away from the officer, looking to Lark. "You know what they serve here for Thanksgiving, Lark? Stale sandwiches and tap water! Hope you enjoy it."

Lark glared to the back of him as he walked out, never forgetting to slam that door with a bang. The officer gave her a look of pity but it did no good to help her in anyway. Turning back to the cot, she sat down, crossed her arms over her chest, and without care of who was in the room, broke down into tears.

The hospital was quite empty for today. Families would come and go but many stayed home, cooking up several large meals all over the county. It was a little warmer than it has been but Raphael was still forced to bundle up in heavy garments to hide his mug to the world. He hated it, loathed it, despised it...among other words of 'I don't wanna wear all this crap' so to speak. Raphael decided to take this opportunity to go visit Kate as April and Casey went in to see-

"Shadow!"

She was wide awake when they came in to see her. The doctor paused in his conversation to look up at the two standing in the door way. Casey squinted to the doctor, then turned to his daughter whom stared at him blankly. April looked to Shadow as well.

"Shadow, who are those people?" The doctor pointed to them. Shadow looked over with a finger pulling at her bottom lip. April and Casey stepped closer with a slight frown. "Good morning. Mrs. Jones, it's good to see you again." He then glanced to Casey. "I don't believe I've met you, sir. You must be Mr. Jones?" Sir and Mr. Two names he hated to be referred to as. But, of course, with his background, he's heard much worse than that! Casey nodded and the two exchanged hand-shakes tightly. "I'm Dr. Cassidy, Shadow's primary doctor. It's nice to meet you."

"Nice to meet you too, doc. And you can call me Casey." The doctor nodded to that. "So..." Casey looked to Shadow again. "Does she have amnesia or not?"

"I'm afraid so, Mr. Jones, I mean, Casey. Since, this condition is of a more serious concussion, I decided to perform a computed tomography, or C.T., to base the diagnosis from there. The signs clearly show that she is suffering from what is known as retrograde amnesia, meaning she has no recollection of what she knew before the accident occurred. This deals with the basics such as her own name, birthdays, family members, and so on."

"Will she be able to come home today?" April asked while running her fingers through Shadow's curls.

"I don't see why not, Mrs. Jones, however, I would advise you and your husband to keep a constant vigil on any sudden changes that might occur. Changes include vomiting, loss of function in arms or legs, convulsions, fever above 100.5° F, slurred speech, blood or clear fluid draining from the nose or ears, unusual sleepiness or decreasing alertness."

"Damn, all that for getting hit on the noggin." Casey picked up her hand to examine the ace bandage wrapped around it. "Hey, baby?" Shadow turned to look at his hand in hers, then up to him. "It's me, your Dad. You remember me?" Shadow said nothing as Casey looked to the doctor. "You know, she hasn't said one damn word since we walked in here. Don't tell me this amnesia crap makes her lose her voice!"

The doctor shook his head. "No, she can talk. She just...well, doesn't feel like saying much right now. You'll discover at the young age she is, the child will withdraw from doing much of conversation when feeling this way. She will speak when she wants something or if she's hurting."

April fixed her purse straps with a nod. "Okay. Is there anything more we need to know?"

The doctor turned to the nearby counter. "Yes, well, because she was struck on the head, she may have slight headaches from time to time." He pulled out the container as if he were advertising it. "We gave her some Children's Tylenol, to take away the pain. You don't want to give her anything too strong like sleeping pills or drugs with aspirin in it. She will probably sleep most of the time as it is."

"We only have regular gel caps and she's not swallowing yet." April mumbled to Casey whom nodded. "We'll have to stop at the store and buy some chewables." She turned back to the doctor. "I guess we'll take it from here. I brought her some clean clothes to change in and we'll just take her home to rest."

"All right, Mrs. Jones, whenever you're ready, just head to the front lobby to sign some papers to check her out. As for you..." The doctor tapped Shadow's shoulder. "Get well soon, little miss."

Raphael proceeded in the direction toward Kate's room. Like Shadow, she too was awake and talking quietly to someone he couldn't see in the room. Approaching the door, she and the other person looked up with a smile. "Hi...Nicole?"

"Hi, Raphael." The two girls giggled and Nicole gestured for him to come forward. "Come on in."

"I see you're feelin' better. Huh?" Raph sat down on the other side of Kate whom waved her hand in the air to respond as 'so-so.'

"I feel fiiiine." Kate drawled out.

"Shhh, it's the drugs talking. Don't be fooled." Nicole whispered and Kate giggled to that. "So, anyway! Before you arrived, Raphael, Kate was just telling me something very interesting." The two paused and looked to him closely.

"Oh, yeah?" Raph looked to Kate whom nodded slowly with eyes bright. "What?"

"Well, for one, she told me what a great kisser you are!" Nicole snickered and hollered softly to him as Kate kept smiling to him. "And the second thing was-"

"What? She did? Kate! You told Nicole about-"

"When we kissed at the warehouse?" Kate interrupted with a quick wink. "I couldn't help but hide the fact I had a slight crush on you." Raph looked back to Nicole to see her reaction. She was still smiling.

"I understand, Raphael. I already know the whole thing with you being a turtle and..." She watched his eyes widened and mouth split open in a gawk. "Oh, no, no really! It's okay! I know you're looking at me like you're in shock-"

"Shit, yeah, I'm in shock! Wouldn't you be if you were an alien and a human suddenly accepted you?" Nicole shrugged and glanced to Kate; Raph followed her gaze. "She told you, didn't she? Kate, did you-"

"No, no, Raphael. I didn't hear it from Kate. Tom explained it to me about how you're different...and really, I'm totally okay with that."

"Why?" Raph growled, a little confused. "An average person has been known to run shrieking in terror from just one look. How can you look at me and say it's okay?"

"Because she's related to me." Kate answered for her. "And my family does not believe in prejudgment or discrimination of any kind."

Raphael huffed. "She's only related by marriage. Her parents might have taught her otherwise."

"No, Raphael." Nicole turned to him fully. "My parents were very understanding people when I was growing up and taught me not to judge someone by the color of their skin. They taught me to make friends or fall in love with anyone, regardless of race or sex."

Raph smirked. "Or sex, eh? So, you'd do another woman?"

Nicole went to speak but Kate answered for her again. "She basically mellowed out since the sixties." The two girls looked to each other and bust out laughing. Raphael nodded, liking not just Kate, but now Nicole as well. "So, Raph. Have you seen my brother roaming around?"

"Yeah, he and Jack went to do guy stuff and haven't come back." Nicole said.

"Jack." Raph repeated the name, glancing to Kate. "You've already seen him?"

"Did she ever." Kate nodded but Nicole answered for her. "She almost had a near-heart attack when she did. We came here at around 7 this morning when she saw him for the first time. Talk about a wake-up call."

"You okay?" Raph watched Kate clutch her chest as she quietly rehashed the meeting in her head.

"Yeah." She nodded. "For now. The doctor's gave me something to relax. I couldn't stop staring at him. We had quite a lot of catching up to do, him and I. If I had the strength, I would have gotten up, gave him a big hug and kiss, then kicked his ass all over the hospital!" Kate laughed a bit, then coughed. "Schmuck."

"So, you haven't seen them then?" Nicole asked.

"No." Raph shook his head. "I just got here with April and Casey. They're in seeing Shadow right now."

"Aw, that's right." Kate frowned to him. "I remember your brother telling April about her little accident. Is she all right?"

"I dunno." Raph shrugged. "She hit her head pretty bad and may have amnesia." The two gasped at him.

"Shadow." Nicole pointed to Raph. "Tom said...yeah, I only hear things, missing out on everything, but, was she the little girl that came to our ranch not that long ago?" Raph nodded to her as she tisked. "Ohhh, okay. Wow. That's awful. Poor girl. I hope she gets well soon."

"So do I. And speaking of the beggar, I'd better go see what's the word on her." Raphael stood up and started to leave, turning back once more to them. "By the way, Nicole, what was the second thing you were going to say that Kate said about me?"

"Hmm..." She tapped her cheek and gave an evil grin to him. "Damn, I forgot."

"Bullshit!"

"Oh, it was just something of no importance." More giggles.

Raph approached her slowly, gazing down. "Spill it."

"No!" Nicole smiled like she knew something secretive.

"No?" Raphael charged over, grabbing her hands and throwing them roughly behind her back. "How 'bout now-"

"No!"

"Say it now!" He squeezed her hands tighter around her back. She only yelped with a grin as Kate bit her lip. "Are ya gonna spill it or do I hafta force it out of you?"

"Eeeep, okay, okay! Let go, you crazy turtle! I'll talk!" Nicole squealed like a young teenager as Raph stepped away and placed his hands on his hips. "Then again, maybe not!" She started to run by him but with lightning reflexes, he lashed out at her, both hands once again pulled painfully behind her back. "Aaaaah, hahahaha, quit it!" Nicole quickly stepped on his foot with her pointed heel, causing him to loosen his grip. She then turned to run out of the room, still laughing. "You won't hear it from me!"

"Damnit!" Raph went to go after her but stopped, seeing she was too far away to catch up. Hearing small giggles and coughs, he turned back to Kate still lying on the bed. She couldn't very well get up and leave. He walked back over to her. God, she looks so pale. "Kate. What did you say, huh? I won't get mad."

"Oh, Raph." Kate's face turned a shade of red but still remained slightly pale. "It probably was the drugs talking. You know, just some stupid girl talk."

"When the conversation involves me, it'd better not be called stupid." He placed a hand onto hers. "Come on. Tell me. What was it?"

"Well...." She croaked as she cleared her throat. "All I said was...if I had never met Jack, I would have married you instead." Raphael backed away, eyes widened. "I was right. It was just stupid talk."

"No, it wasn't." He shook his head. "I was thinking the exact same thing. I would have married you if you never met Jack." The two stared at one another for a good long minute.

"Oh, Raph." Kate sighed. "I didn't know...that-"

"Raphael?" Tom returned to the door. What a mood breaker! "Oh, hello...um, I hate to interrupt, but, Kate needs to rest for later."

"Why?" Raph kept staring at Kate. "What happens later?"

"I'm having more surgery later this evening." She said to him. "They told me it was for...you know..."

"No, I don't know. For what?"

"Mrs. Russell?" A nurse walked in. "It's time for your blood sample."

Kate shrugged to Raph. "You'd better go, Raph. Your family's probably waiting for you."

"Let them wait! Why the hell are you going into surgery again?"

"She's right, Raph..." Tom entered and looked to him seriously. "I just saw April and Casey at the front entrance. They're leaving now with their little girl."

"Tom." Raph stared at him. "Why does she need to go into surgery?"

"Talk to April." He said softly. "I already explained it to her and Casey. I'll call you folks later after the surgery, okay?"

"Fine..." Raphael gave Kate one last look before heading out into the hall to meet with April and Casey. What was the big secret? Why couldn't he know right away what the surgery was about? He was so mad for being interrupted like that, he hoped no one would piss him off or they would truly be sorry.

"So, Raphael!" Jack and Nicole passed by him in the hall. "Kate said she would have married you instead of me first! Ha, ha, ha! Is that right?" Like Casey did, Raphael turned and punched him hard in the face; his body sprawling backwards with a thud.

"Wrong, Jack. It was the drugs talking. And since when do you listen to stupid girl talk, anyway?" Of course, he wouldn't tell him the truth. Raphael glared to Nicole as he continued to walk on. "Thanks for keeping your big mouth shut, Nicole." Pausing in his walk, he let out a smile. Casey's right. Hitting someone does make you feel better!

Casey drove the mini-van to town to pick up the requested Children's Tylenol chewables with Raphael sitting in the passenger seat. Occasionally, Casey would glance in the rear-view mirror to catch sight of the two girls. Shadow was asleep at the window seat with her head resting on April's chest.

"Okay, say that again." Raphael turned to her. "A lob...lobo...what did you call it?"

"A lobectomy. The bullet was already taken out the other day but it still ripped some of her lung tissue. They're going to have to go back in and remove the damaged portion from Kate's lung." April looked up to him. "She thought you already knew."

"About the surgery?! Shit, no! No one ever tells me anything anymore."

"I didn't mean the surgery. Kate has a history of throat disease. If the bullet didn't make things worse, she was already in bad shape before that happened."

"Kate told me she was dying, but I sort of shrugged it off and didn't think too much of it." Raph turned to face her again. "Does she have lung cancer?"

"No, not anymore. That was already removed from another surgery years ago." April sighed. "No, Tom told me she's had another throat problem they recently discovered."

"And what's that?"

April looked down to the sleeping child. "Emphysema."

The rest of the car ride was in dead silence after she said that. Whether from shock or sorrow from each of them, it was hard to tell. The time was going on 1:52 p.m. when the mini-van pulled back into the driveway. April carried Shadow into the house as Raphael hung back and decided to take a little walk to clear his head. Casey was too exhausted to do any walking and chose to go inside. He opened the door for April as a waver of something wonderfully cooking from the kitchen entered their nostrils. Michaelangelo emerged from the kitchen with a wave, then stepped back when he saw Shadow.

"Hi! Oh, do you want me to leave?"

"No, it's okay." April whispered. "I'm taking her straight up to bed. Where's the others?"

Michaelangelo shrugged. "Last I heard, they said they were going to hang out in the barn, working out, talking, that sort of thing. I've been cooking the turkey since you guys left for the hospital. It's got about another two and a half hours to go."

"Great." April whispered as she started to climb up the stairs. "Just give me one minute."

Michaelangelo gave her a thumbs up as she disappeared up the stairs. He then looked to Casey whom stared with tired eyes. "You hangin' in there, bro?"

"Mmm..." Casey dragged himself over to the sofa and collapsed face down. "Too much shit going on, can't keep up with it!"

"So, how was Shadow when you saw her?" Mike sat down on the arm of the couch, seeing as he couldn't sit on it with Casey stretched across.

"She was...fine...the same...sort of..." Casey mumbled in the mattress. "A little absent-minded as you know."

"Yeah, I know. Did Raph go in to see her?"

"Nooo." The mumble said. "Might of scared her, shit who knows. He went to see Kate instead."

"Oh! How is Kate doing?"

"She was...fine..." The mumble was a little inaccurate. "Tom was fine. Jack was fine. Nicole was fine. Everyone was fine. Fine fine fine fine." And a little deranged.

"Uh...good talk, Casey. Good talk." Mike cranked a finger around the side of his face as he headed back into the kitchen.

April returned downstairs to see Casey snoring on the couch. He hated getting up early in the morning if he didn't have to go to a place he dreaded, such as work or the hospital to see his Mrs. Forgetful child. The front door slowly opened as Leonardo and Donatello returned. They waved a quiet hello but April still shushed them. Everyone spoke in whispers.

"Hi, guys. Where's Raph? Is he still outside?"

"He went towards the barn." Donatello thumbed backwards. "Is Shadow home?"

"Yes, I put her to bed for now. And well....Casey's taking a nap as you can see..." April crossed the room to raise her voice a little higher to the two. "Don, I have no more plans at the moment. Uh...why don't we go see about helping Lark out of jail." She caught him nodding quietly. "All right. Do you want to come too, Leo?"

"No, it's not necessary, April." He whispered as he headed for the kitchen. "You two go and I'll go see if Mike needs any help."

"Yeah, like getting his head out of the turkey's butt?" Donatello joked. April started to snicker loudly and covered her mouth to prevent any noise. "Sorry, sorry!" *snicker, snort*

"Let's...go Don." April opened the door for him while biting her lip. The two got outside and exploded with laughter as the classic moment was once again brought up. Even after all the hospital affairs and Lark in jail, it seemed everything now became hysterical. "Is the door locked?" April looked to Don whom nodded from the passenger side. They laughed to that. "Then, I'll open it!" Laughed again. They both got in the car and glanced to each other with pitiful smiles. "That was a bad experience for Mike, it really was. We really shouldn't laugh....*snicker*....at him, about it."

"What time is it April?" Donatello asked through a small giggle. She gave him a 'duh!' look and pointed to the dashboard radio. "Oh, right in front of me!" The time read 2:04 p.m. Laughed to that...then Don started to sober up and clear his throat. "Her parents were supposed to be flying in sometime in the afternoon."

"But, Don." April wiped her eyes. "If Lark's in jail, who's going to pick up her parents? Her boyfriend?" Both eyes widened. Not him of all people! "Forget the ATM. I'll pay with my credit card." April quickly revved up the car and spun it out and down the driveway. "I hope we'll get to her in time."

Mild winds blew large clouds in the skies above, causing a patch of gray shadows to form along the grass and snow-covered plains. Splinter shielded his eyes to the glare and bundled up his coat tighter; a borrowed coat mind you that was two sizes too big for the original owner. Leonardo had trekked back to the house, Michaelangelo was already in the house taking the role of bird-sitting and conjuring up wonderful side fixings, and Donatello was seen getting into the mini-van with April. That only left one behind to wander around.

"Raphael."

"Hey..." Raphael threw a quick hand up as a wave, then resumed clicking Kate's lighter with some difficulty. After hearing about her throat illness, Raph wondered why he was lighting up another cigarette. So did Splinter. "Damn winds keep blowing out the flame!"

"Mmm...perhaps the winds know better." Raphael snapped his head to Splinter as he looked away. "My what lovely....dark clouds out here!"

"Ha, ha. You're cute." Raph mumbled from the cigarette dangling up and down to the movement of his lips. "Look, if you came over to give me another damn lecture about my health, I'm not interested."

"I am not here to lecture you, Raphael. You are old enough to make your own decisions, whether they are wise ones or not." Raph nodded to that and started to walk off with Splinter slowly following. "My concerns were of what was learned from the hospital."

"Yeah, well, Shadow's definitely a little loopy in the head. April said she's got something called retrograde amnesia." Raph took a long drag then puffed it out with a sigh. "She'll have trouble remembering things before the accident like her name, birth dates, her parents, certain family members...."

"In other words-"

In other words, she'll probably freak out when she gets a load of us."

"Indeed." Splinter nodded. "Your term of 'freak out' could quite possibly have more than one meaning." Raph turned to him to hear this one clearly. "I do not wish to alarm you, Raphael, but because of this confusion she has towards all of us, I fear she will not only be frightened, but also...violent."

"Violent?" Raph coughed on the smoke. "Shadow? Little, shrimpy Shadow?" Splinter inhaled and looked away. "No, I don't think so! Get serious, Master! She's only six!"

"Raphael, have I not taught you that size does not matter?" Raph huffed and turned from him. "That is, height nor age will not stop her from taking physical action when she is feeling threatened by us. We would not oppose any threat to her, of course. But, she will be without a doubt, afraid of us."

"Hmm...what makes you think she'll be violent, Master? Frightened people don't usually fight. They retract and run away from whatever they feel is endangering them."

"Yes, that it is true." Splinter nodded. "Running away is something she might do more than attack. However, Casey has taught the child to fight back at her tender age. It was not intentional, but poor Michaelangelo almost received a broken toe when she stepped on it."

"Mike tends to exaggerate." Raph sucked in another drag and shook his head. "I wouldn't say she almost broke it. Bruised maybe, but not broken."

"Ah, yes, but I only heard what had happened and missed what all the commotion was about."

"Lucky you." Raph snorted. "It was just some stupid little tantrum. Mike told her she couldn't stay up to watch TV and when he went to put her to bed, she stomped on his foot. To make it worse, she still had on those damn high-top shoes with the thick sole." Raph paused to laugh in disbelief. "She wasn't scared of him; she was just being a brat!"

"Yes." Splinter sighed. "Coming from a father that has had no discipline of his own, the child had to learn to be obedient not only from you, but from your brothers, her mother April, and of course, myself. The one thing Casey did teach her was how to defend herself, something we should all put into consideration of watching out for." Raph finally nodded and rolled his eyes. Some fun they were going to have with her being out of whack and unpredictable. He heard Australia was nice this time of year. "All I am telling you is...do not underestimate what she is capable of doing."

"All right, fine, whatever."

"Good. And now..." Splinter buttoned up the last button, knowing it was going to be a long story. "Tell me more about this Kate person."

The stale sandwich and tap water laid like a rock in her stomach. The turkey meat was dry, the lettuce had a brown tinge to it, and the cheese smelled like it had been outdated for months. She knew the water was as powerful as drinking lead when she watched them fill her cup straight from the rusted sink. If Lark wasn't so disgusted with the toilet in her cell, she would have used it to puke out her wonderful Thanksgiving dinner.

"You okay, ma'am?" The guard at the door asked her.

"I feel like I swallowed a bowling ball." Lark moaned on the cot while holding her stomach. "And I hardly ate it all. What did you have?"

"Oh, I haven't eaten yet, ma'am. My shift doesn't end till nine but I break at five. I'll be going home during my break to eat with my family but then I have to come back later."

"At least you'll get a decent meal." Lark grumbled.

"So, why is Jesse treating a pretty little thing like you like dirt?"

"I don't know. I honestly do not know what goes through his mind at times. I'm never sure if he's on my side, or if he's completely against me."

"So, what are your plans for Thanksgiving?"

"Originally?" He nodded with a smirk. "Well, before Jesse turned on me, or more like turned me in, we were going to have my parents come over to our apartment for dinner. Since this was going to be his and mine first Thanksgiving living together, I wanted to invite my mom and dad and we'd all have a big feast. Some friends of mine were supposed to come bail me out this morning but they never showed up and I can't get to a phone that easily. I'm wondering what's going to happen to my parents if no one can go get them at the airport."

"Which airport?"

"Logan International."

"Daaaamn. That's quite a long ways from here!"

"You're telling me."

"So, how are you gonna get to them if you're in here? No one has come by to get you out yet."

"Mrs. Hanson?" Lark and the officer looked to the door. Another officer walked in. "Came to tell you you've been bailed out."

"See? I knew they'd come for me." She smiled as the cell door was unlocked. Stepping out, her face frowned to another approaching officer. "What the hell do you want?"

"Someone's here to see you." Jesse stepped aside to show two people walking over. "You should thank them for paying your bail."

"Hello, Lark." Lark's eyes widened as the pain quickly returned to her stomach. She tried to smile but felt like crying.

"Mom... Dad...."

Donatello could never imagine how fast a mini-van could go. He also never thought it could turn on two wheels either. April swerved the mini-van into a parking lot behind police headquarters. Don jumped out first and circled around to the front of the building. He looked to see a yellow cab waiting along the curb and had a feeling that couldn't be good news. The two walked in anyway to see business as usual. A few people looked up from what they were doing. The chief was nowhere around but a woman came towards them.

"Can I help you, folks?"

"Yes." April stepped closer. "We're here to get Lark Hanson out." The woman frowned as April dug into her purse. "I can pay by credit-"

"Miss Hanson? I'm sorry, ma'am, but someone has already done that."

April looked to Don, then to the woman. "Uh...who?" Both turned their attention to someone coming up the hallway. "Jesse?"

"Ma'am? Oh, Mrs. Jones. What brings you here?"

"I came to bail out Lark." April gestured to the woman. "But she just said someone already has."

"That's right. Mr. and Mrs. Hanson bailed her out." He glanced to Don whom blinked with disbelief. "Oh, here they come now." Lark walked in silence between her parents; her head bowed down to the ground in a shameful matter.

"Lark!" Lark looked up as Donatello rushed over. He paused half way when he saw the expression on her face. "Lark, hey, I can explain-"

"I don't care what you have to say." She mumbled in a low growl and walked past him. "Just leave me alone-"

"But, Lark." He reached for her but she spun around to smack his hand away. "Wait-"

"Don't touch me! Don't talk to me! I never want to see you ever again, do you hear me?! You ruined my life and I will never forgive you for as long as I live!"

"Come on. This way." The woman gave Don a harsh look and escorted the three to another section of the room. "You folks can go now." Jesse stood back with a small smile on his face as he straightened up to follow behind Lark and her parents. Don and April stood stunned for awhile. They came so close to helping her. If only they arrived at least an hour earlier, Lark wouldn't of have to experience the humiliation of her parent's bailing her out of jail for reasons they were yet to discover. When was the torture going to end for everyone? Donatello was so upset and distraught, he was beyond the help of any consolation from anyone. April got too quiet as she looked up to the woman whom returned to her seat.

"I said you folks can-"

"Reimburse them."

"Excuse me?"

"You heard me. The money that her parents paid out for Lark's bail. Put it back into their account. I still wish to pay."

"Are you insane woman? I can't do that! Mr. Hanson paid cash!"

"Then, go give the cash back to him and put Lark's charges on this!" April slammed her credit card down on the table. The woman, still giving her weird looks, went back into the depository to retrieve the money. It was still warm to the touch. April looked through the glass window in the door to watch them slowly piling into the cab. "And hurry, please."

Donatello was now both upset and greatly confused. What the hell is she doing? he wondered to himself. The two watched the woman walk-fast out of the station and up to the cab. The driver only moved inches before stopping to see her wave him down. She then ducked her head in the passenger side window, exchanging words that no one else heard except for the people sitting in the cab. Lark looked over to the building with a squint. She couldn't see inside but he could see her clearly. The woman shook her head and walked back in.

"I can't wait to get home, I don't need this kind of crap...." The woman looked up to April again. "You sure about this, ma'am?"

"Yes." April told her flatly, glancing to Don. "Yes, I'm sure."

"All right. I never thought I'd meet someone who wanted to PAY for a bail. Very weird...quite strange even-"

"Hey, enough with the comments, all right? Just charge the card so that we can get out of here!" April demanded to her. The woman's eyebrows lifted as Don suddenly disappeared from the desk and was nearing the front entrance, ready to make his own bail out of the room as fast as possible.

Back in the mini-van, April drove hunched over with pursed lips. She didn't know where she wanted to go now but certainly didn't feel like going home right away. "How about we take a little drive." She asked him suddenly. "I can't think straight; I need to get away for awhile."

"Um, sure...." Donatello mumbled from his seat. They drove on for a long time until he got the urge to ask, "Why'd you do it, April?"

"You know why." He heard her say quietly.

"No, I'm not completely sure." He replied. "Enlighten me."

"Because she's a friend and I wanted to help her in any way I could. And this was one way that I could help." April spoke casually. "It also wasn't right that her parents had to come in for a warm welcoming only to end up seeing their daughter behind bars and shelling out $800 to get her out." She paused and groaned. "You think I'm some crazy person to spend that kind of money on a total stranger when we've got problems of our own, right?"

"That was my first guess-"

"Well yes, you're right. I am crazy."

"A crazy...and good person." Donatello smirked, shaking his head. "Seriously, though. You didn't have to do this. It was Lark I wanted to help more than anything. This was not a gain to make her like me anymore. Or if she ever did from the start."

"I think you like her more than just...like, you know?" Don frowned, not catching her drift. "The whole point of it was, you wanted to help her out no matter what. And with that kind of generosity, it could only mean one thing." April glanced over to him.

"What's that?" The van stopped at a red light, allowing her to look at him through her dark shades.

"You're in love with her." April heard him snickering quietly. "And, I think she loves you equally because-" The snickering started to become uncontrollable. "You both have gone through quite a lot these past two days and....what are you snickering at?"

"April...." Donatello sighed and wiped his eyes. "I'm afraid I'll have to disagree with you there. I mean, how could I possibly love someone that had me chained and locked up in a cage? And how can she possibly love a short and boring mutant turtle like myself?"

"Don, you can't help being short, but you are certainly far from being boring!" April hung on the steering wheel. "You're an intelligent, sharp, and very witty...uh, individual."

Don blushed slightly. "Thanks. I appreciate that April, but still, there is nothing between Lark and I. In other words, no chemistry. We were only helping each other out of a difficult situation and that's it. I have not made any plans for a long-time commitment with this girl. Besides, you heard what she said. She wants nothing more to do with me."

"So, you don't think you're not good enough for her; this coming from a guy who thinks he'd make a great husband and father?" She waited for an answer but he couldn't speak up in his own defense. April went on. "Look, you and Lark started off on the wrong foot but she's a good person and you're a good....turtle." She smiled to her words. "I think she should give you another chance. It wasn't your fault that you couldn't get over to the police station and get her out. Something came up that couldn't be avoided. You know, with Casey..."

"And I already said that I completely understand."

"At least she'll be home with her parents as it should be." April glanced to the radio clock again. "And speaking of which, it's going on four o'clock. We should start heading back home and check on the dinner. As for what to do with Lark, don't worry about it. She's mad, but she'll get over it."

"Yeah. Right."

"I'm being serious, Don!"

"So am I."

The cab drove along the streets of town, stopping a few times for Lark's mother to get the desired pies as promised. Pumpkin, and peach cobbler. Luckily, she didn't have to stick a file in one of them. Lark sat in the back with her mother in the middle and Jesse on the other side. After the outbursts of why she was in jail, the ride was quiet for the most part. Until...

"So, Lark, who were those people at the station?"

"They're just friends, Dad. No one you'd know."

"Well, I thought it was very generous of them to help us out, dear." Her mom stated brightly. This woman was always in a cheerful mood, even at a funeral. Lark loved her very much but the incessant optimism could drive a sane man to go insane, a sober man to drink 12 beers, a straight man to go gay, a- "So, is that funny little man your boyfriend, Lark?"

Rolls the eyes. "No, Mom. We're just friends. We were friends."

"That's too bad. We could have invited him over for dinner!"

"Not if I got anything to say about it." Jesse mumbled on the other side. "That April person has a weird family. You don't want to get mixed up with the likes of them."

"Oh, like how I got mixed up with you?" Lark leaned forward to grit his teeth at him. "I think Don has more charisma and charm then you can only dream about!"

"He's a freak, Lark! All of them are not even human!" Lark's mother looked to him questionably. He caught her gaze and went on. "Yeah! In fact, his one brother, Leo, attacked my partner and I in broad daylight! They're a dangerous bunch and shouldn't have been set free from the station."

"Set free?" The mother repeated as the father turned around. Even the driver looked into the rear view mirror with a questionable eyebrow. "Lark, your friends are hoodlums?"

"Mom!" Lark complained. "They got taken away because they were found at the same warehouse where I worked. They thought they were associated with Harris but because there was no such evidence linking to any committed crimes, they were free to go." Lucky guys.

"Oh." Her mother blinked. "You didn't tell us he was a co-worker!"

"He's not." Lark snarled. Dare she tell them he was a lab experiment? "Look, can we not discuss this anymore?"

Jesse was more than happy not to. "Fine with me-"

"Not until I get more answers!" Her father shouted from the front seat. "We're all having dinner. The topic at the table will be of my choice. Any objections?"

"No, father."

"No, dear."

"No, Mr. Hanson."

"Good." Lark's father sighed; the driver rolled his eyes and shook his head.

Lark turned her head to look out the car window as it pulled into their apartment complex. The driver helped unload the back while the four got out to stretch and take a breather. Yes, her father got to choose the dinner topic. It would be no surprise to her what he decides to talk about. While back at home for the first time since she was sent to jail, she wondered if what Don's brother, Leo, said was true. If Jesse had uniforms from her no longer existing job, that was criminating evidence that was bound to put him away for a good 5 to 10 years. He might testify, call for his lawyer and the whole situation would go to court. But that was a risk she was willing to take.

"Ready, dear?" Her mother called as her father and Jesse headed for the front door.

"Yes. Oh, yes." Lark said to her as the two walked together to enjoy (or despise) the traditional Thanksgiving holiday feast.

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