APRIL

September 1, 1995

3 Days, 11 Hours

MICHAELANGELO:

"Mikey! Get back here before I beat the crap outta your cute, comedic ass!"

I turned and Raphael came to a screeching halt a few feet away from me. "You really think my ass is cute, Raphy?" I cooed. "Aw, that's so sweet."

He glared at me. "Give me. The magazine."

I held it up between my fingers. "Come get it."

He lowered his head like a dog ready to attack. "When I catch you, Michaelangelo, I'm going to pound you into oblivion."

"If you catch me," I corrected.

He lunged at me and I danced back. I jumped up and grabbed one of the pipelines above us, pulling myself up easily.

I crawled across the pipe, over the stream of sewage, and dropped to the ground on the other side. Raphael crossed his arms over his chest. "You gotta come home sometime," he reminded me.

I smiled. "Yeah. Let's hope you see me before Master Splinter does, huh?" I joked. "Last time I checked, dirty magazines were against the rules."

"You won't show him," he dared me.

I laughed. "That a challenge?"

"That's a fact."

"What makes you so sure?" I questioned.

"'Cause then I'd really kick your ass."

That was a legitimate threat, and I knew it. But I also knew that he wasn't the type to turn around and wait until I came home. Though if he did, I could think of some fun things to do with this magazine. I used to draw comic strips, with little bubbles full of dialogue. I was sure I could think up some very interesting things for these naked chics to say.

"Mikey, you got three seconds to get over here," he warned.

"Uh huh," I grinned. "And then what're you gonna do?"

"One."

I flipped the magazine open and laughed. "Bondage, huh?" I chuckled. "Damn. Never knew you were into S&M."

"Two."

I held up the magazine, open to the centerfold. "You really get off on this stuff, Raphy?"

"Dammit, that's it!"

His grappling hook shot up and around the center of the sewage pipe. I bolted. When he caught me, I was gonna get it. I was a good fifty feet away by the time he landed. I spun back to face him. "Uh uh..." I taunted, wagging my finger back and forth. My other hand held the magazine out over the water. "Wouldn't want me to accidently drop it, now would you?"

"'Cept by now I'm more interested in beating the crap out of you than saving the magazine," he growled, head lowered again.

I was a good distance away, and I knew I was faster than him, so I flipped the magazine open again and glanced at it. "Damn. She's hot." I glanced up over the top of the worn pages. "You oughtta call this 1-900 number." One of the names caught my eye. Next to it was a woman, her long, brunett hair draped over her shoulder and one of her breasts. She had nothing on but a dog collar on, and held a leash. "Hey, you could talk to Exotic April," I grinned. "Look, she's even got a doggy collar on."

"You're gonna die."

He sprinted and I judged the distance carefully, not moving until I had to. It might be dangerous, but it drove him nuts. When we were five feet apart, it was easy to notice the growing distance, and it irritated the life out of him that I was so much faster. As long as he didn't start throwing things at me, I was safe.

I pulled ahead and spun around the corner, almost slipping on the slick tunnel. I grabbed the wall as I turned... and almost ran straight into April.

"Ah!" I screeched to a halt and hid the magazine behind my back instinctively. "What's going on?" she cried. "Is everything alright?"

I chuckled. "Oh, yeah, everything's fine. Just... getting some exercise."

She eyed me suspiciously. Just then, Raphael rounded the corner. He froze when he saw April. I smiled, keeping my back to the wall. "Gee, Raph," I smiled. "Lookit who I found. It's April." I turned to her. "I like your necklace."

Raph blushed furiously as April glanced down at the simple gold chain. I tried not to laugh. "Uh, thanks. I think." She looked up at me. "Did I miss something here?"

"No," Raph assured her, speaking before I had a chance to. "Nothing. Just... an inside joke."

He inched toward me. I knew it, but I didn't have anywhere to go. Besides, with April here, I was safe. "A joke about my necklace?" she questioned, raising an eyebrow.

"No," Raphael tried to recover. "It's not about your necklace. It's... something else."

He was standing beside me now. He reached behind my back and grabbed the top of the magazine, but I didn't let go. He tugged on it, still smiling at her. "But the necklace is very nice," he continued. "Is it new?"

She shook her head. "Uh, no."

He jerked once more on the magazine, then dug his fingers into a pressure point on the inside of my wrist. "Yah!" I cried, instinctively letting go of the magazine. It dropped into his hand and I pulled my wrist in front of me, rubbing the soreness. I glared at my brother.

April sighed and shook her head as she continued past us. As soon as her back was turned, Raph lashed out and hit me on the back of the head with the magazine. It made a loud smack, even though it didn't really hurt. "You are so lucky," he growled as he shoved me forward, tucking the magazine out of sight.

ANNA:

The interview went well, and took nearly two hours to complete. April was very careful about the questions she asked. Long after she left, we all watched the ten o'clock news. By the time it was over, everyone was exhausted, and I'd decided to stay here rather than to ask Leo to walk me home.

But I couldn't sleep. The unfamiliar surroundings taunted me as I watched the clock. It was almost midnight. This time, four days ago, we had been racing to get children out of a doomed building. The memories were still fresh in my mind, and even moreso after Clarisse's narrative.

I leaned forward and rested my head in my hands. Everyone had gone to bed, Clarisse into the spare bedroom they had, and I was alone on the living room sofa. I wondered why they had a spare bedroom when they weren't supposed to have guests in the lair. Not that they hadn't made me feel welcome.

Light flickered from an oil lamp on the coffee table. Without it, the room would be pitch black. It was turned down low enough for me to sleep, but the shadows dancing on the walls kept me awake. My mind was reeling. I was searching for memories, specifically for those related to the map that had led me here. I had been searching ever since I'd first walked into this room. I must have found it somewhere, but I didn't remember where. Right now, I wanted nothing more than to know where I'd gotten it.

"Why are you not asleep, child?"

The voice startled me, and I nearly fell off the sofa. "Splinter," I greeted, running my fingers through my hair nervously. "I... didn't know you were still awake."

A hint of a smile crossed his lips. "Nor I you, Anna. What troubles you?"

I sighed deeply and relaxed. "It's just... I don't know. I'm just trying to remember something. And I can't."

"Something from your past?"

I nodded slowly. "Yeah it's..." I briefly considered how much I should tell him. Then I realized that it probably didn't matter. "I can't remember... where I got that map from. And I don't know why but it's driving me insane."

He smiled. "Perhaps it was given to you."

I sighed. "Perhaps."

He was quiet for a moment. "Do you remember your mother?"

"Yes," I answered quietly.

"Do you remember how she died?"

I glanced at him. That was a strange question. After all, I worked at the orphanage now, I didn't live there. He couldn't possibly know for sure that my mother was dead. "Yes," I answered hesitantly. "Well, sort of."

I looked away and sighed deeply. "She was murdered," I sighed. "I don't remember it, but I woke up in the hospital and they told me. There's so much I don't remember."

"Perhaps it is better that you do not remember," he suggested.

"What do you mean?"

"To block a memory out is the body's way of dealing with events too intense to handle."

I forced a smile. "I've heard that said," I sighed. "But that doesn't make it easier to deal with the loss."

"No," he agreed quietly. "It does not."

For a long time, it was quiet. It was not a tense silence, and I did not mind it. "I really miss her sometimes," I admitted. "And I feel like I hardly knew her."

"What do you mean?"
I sighed. "When I awoke in the hospital, I didn't remember anything. The doctors said I had amnesia. They told me some things but other things... the real memories." I shook my head slightly. "I don't even remember... so much of what she was like. She's just... like a ghost."

"From another life," he mumbled.

I sighed. "It would be so nice to know," I whispered. "Just to hear her voice again. To know what she thinks of me now, thirteen years after she died."

He looked up, and I thought I saw him smile. "I am sure your mother would be very proud of you, Anna."

I smiled back and hung my head. "Thank you," she whispered. "I would like to think so."