Radical Transformation
~
Having reached 'home' they were met by April as soon as they walked in the door. There was only Mikey who explained their night in excited detail, the others were a little too tired to talk. April was a little surprised when Mikey told her that Prida had figured out who they really were. But Mike reassured her that they could count on their friend to keep their secret safe, and that they had told her she could come round to April's and Ape would take her to them, once this whole thing was sorted out.
"Yes, I'd do that if she came around," April told them as she hurried around for some reason trying to find something. She had her hair wrapped up on top of her head in a towel.
"Why are you rushing around?" Leo asked, flopping down on the couch next to Donny.
April picked up her wallet. "Oh, I'm going out with Casey for the night." She smiled and walked upstairs to change as the guys all smirked.
"Hey, where's Master Splinter?" Donny asked, looking at the empty armchair that was usually occupied by their Sensei.
"He's on the roof, meditating," April's voice called from upstairs.
//
"So, I'll see ya tomorrow, Pri," Mai said as she opened the apartment door to her friend's apartment, preparing to leave. "Don't go mental, remember that they're only playing even if they do pelt you with ice cubes," she added in a quieter tone.
Prida was stood in Laurence's doorway (Mai's very good friend), watching her sister leave her with the little brats that were about to make her night a living hell. Laurence's two kids were little demons, but perfect angels in the company of adults. Prida had baby-sat them before, because Laurence usually goes out all night and stays at a friend's house, letting Prida sleep in the guest room; then she could make the 'little angels' breakfast in the morning and keep them company until Laurence returned about two in the afternoon. It's not that Jessica and Jerry (the little darlings) totally beat Prida up, it's just that when they play they scream, shout, screech and growl and usually bring Prida into their fun. But all she's rather do is watch TV. That was the good thing about baby-sitting Jessica and Jerry: Laurence had tons of great horror flicks, and if the kids came running into the room at the right time when something gory or horrible is on screen they shut up, hug themselves and jump onto the couch next to Prida. But this time Laurence had allowed one of the other baby- sitters, and a friend to Prida, to stay with her. Her name was Danielle, and she would be arriving a bit later than Prida because she was busy. But the twins weren't that hard on her as they were the others. So then Danielle gets paid to help Prida, and she would go home in the morning, sharing the guest room with Prida.
So now, Mai had disappeared around the hallway, and Laurence was just pulling his shirt straight, moving to the doorway and Danielle was yet to arrive.
"Thanks again Prida, I'll be back about two tomorrow, okay? Great! Thanks, you're a star," he said hurriedly, and disappeared after Mai.
Prida sighed and shut the door. Turning around she had an image in her head of two little twins, devil horns sticking out of their heads, with evil grins and holding full ice cube trays. But Jessica and Jerry were 'shooting' each other with imaginary guns when she turned around, running around the couch. Prida made her way to the window seat, and looked out at the twinkling lights far down the street. She was hoping, that since she was only two blocks away, she might have seen April's apartment or even the street that leads to her apartment. But no, it was way too dark to see street signs, and the yellow, glowing street lamps were dull, and three of them were not lit at all. She was only two blocks away . . .
"Pwida, you look pwurty," Jessica said as she jumped onto the window ledge next to Prida, with Jerry following. Prida still had her dress on. It had only been twenty-five minutes since she had left the school Hall, and she hadn't changed yet. Luckily Mai had shoved some of her clothes in a bag before she picked Prida up, so then Prida had something comfortable to wear while baby-sitting the five year olds.
"Thanks," Prida muttered, still looking outside. She got up and walked over to where the bag of her clothes was next to the couch. The twins followed her. They were identical twins, so if Jessica got rid of her long, auburn hair she would look exactly like Jerry.
"What we gunna do tonight Pwida?" Jerry asked, rolling around on the floor and pulling his sister down with him. They giggled.
"Hide and Seek?" Prida asked hopefully, walking to the guest room door, and putting her hand on the handle, ready to open it. She waited for a response.
"Oh but we pwayed that lass time," Jessica moaned, running up to Prida. Jessica and Jerry seemed to really like Prida. And since they were little devils with all the other baby-sitters, Laurence had begged Prida to be their main baby-sitter and she could have Danielle as company (Danielle had been the baby-sitter for a while, and the kids had gotten along with her more than the others); that was a year ago. Prida never liked baby-sitting, unless the kids were quiet - the opposite of the twins. So she was glad for some company her own age.
"Okay . . ." Prida thought, hand still on the door handle. "Why don't you two think of something while I'm getting changed?"
"Okay!" Came the two high voices. They dashed off for their shared room while Prida sighed and walked into the guest room, shutting the door behind her, and locking it for good measures. She changed into a simple pair of jeans and a loose, buttoned blue shirt, and folded her dress neatly into the bag. She walked to her window, four certain guys on her mind. They were all she could think about. She sighed, unlocked her door and walked out.
"GUESS!" Came two identical voices.
Prida jumped and looked down at the twins. They were both dressed in the same baggy shorts that were their dad's, and their dad's checkered shirts. Around their heads one of them wore a purple scarf, the other wore a white scarf, showing only their faces. Prida caught on.
"Jerry," she said, pointing to the white scarf kid. "Jessica," she said, pointing to the purple scarf kid. She smiled and walked over to the couch, seeing the slight disappointment in the twins' faces. Then as Prida turned her back they shed their scarves and jumped after she, screeching 'you just guessed lucky!"
"No, I just know you two," Prida smiled and sat down on the couch, only to be jumped on by Jessica and Jerry, who then started to shoot each other with their hands clasped together like guns.
"Whatcha gunna watch?" Jerry asked, turning to look at Prida and then getting pounced on by Jessica.
"I thought I'd watch End Of Days," Prida smiled, leaning forward and studying the video collection that Laurence owned. He was a big collector of movies, and had every movie with Arnold Schwarzenegger.
The twins stopped their battle and slowly turned their eyes to Prida.
"That movie is scary . . ." Jessica said quietly.
"Why is it?" Prida asked, getting up and walking to the kitchen. She searched the cupboards for a box of popcorn, then she shoved it in the microwave.
"Because da man on dere is blown in half in da subway," Jerry answered, his big eyes on the pillow that he was picking at, and then they looked at Prida.
Prida smiled. "It's meant to be funny," she tried. She knew she shouldn't scare them, so when she did she should at least try and make them take it lightly or laugh about it. She made her way from the humming microwave to the two twins. "Because we both know that it never happens," she said warmly, putting her arms around the two of them. They broke into smiles and giggles. "Okay then what shall we all watch?" Prida asked, hoping tonight maybe they would sit down and be quiet.
"The Labyrinth!" They both shouted together.
"Okay then, we can watch that; Jerry go get the video," Prida smiled. Maybe they would be peaceful tonight. She really didn't feel like telling them to shush when they screamed, because her thoughts were on her four friends. She really wanted to talk to them, so badly that she was thinking maybe she could just . . . walk around there. She rolled her eyes to herself. How strange would that be? Walking around to someone's place at - she looked at the clock - nearly eleven at night. Well, maybe she could at least have a walk and maybe catch them walking out, going to meet this guy who was going to change them back, the kids would be fine with Danielle here . . . She HAD to see them, for some reason, she just wanted to . . .
()()()()
"Hey Donny, wanna play a bored game?" A bored Mikey asked, sighing and walking over to where Donny sat on the floor in front of the couch. With April gone, and Splinter meditating (which was all he seemed to be doing) there wasn't much to do.
"Sure, but let's play outside, I'm boiling," Donny said, meaning that they would set up the game outside April's window on the fire exit stairs that lead to the roof.
"Kay," Mike said and dashed off to choose a game, while Donny picked up his bowl of popcorn and carried it over to the window. He could here Mikey's feet thudding upstairs as he climbed onto the counter and out the open window. He climbed the dark, rusty steps to the roof, and sat, leaning against the wall between two brick building blocks that were part of the roof. He could hear voices up here that belonged to Raph and Leo, who were probably hanging around the edge of the roof, watching activity below. Leo had wanted to stay up here and check out the dark streets below. He had objected to going out and looking for this man because he didn't want to leave Splinter again, and had said maybe if they searched for the man, and the man searched for them, they might miss each other, so one of them must stay in their place for the other to find them.
Don picked up a handful of popcorn and crunched on it, listening. He couldn't really hear, but from the tones he guessed Raph didn't want to talk, and Leo was really muttering to himself.
"I got this one," Mikey suddenly said, breaking Donny's thoughtful stupor. Don looked down at the board game, it was Scrabble. Mikey started to set it up, while Donny watched, listening to the silence, now that his other two brothers seemed to have fallen silent.
"Hey, you okay?" Mikey asked, watching his brother.
"Yeah, I'm good," Don replied quietly.
Mikey continues to study Donny's face. He knew what was on his mind. They were all nervous and, he admitted, scared about what this dude has to do to get them back to normal. Mikey chuckled in his head, 'normal' seemed like the wrong word.
Leo appeared around the brick block Donny was sat against and looked at his two brothers sat on the floor with a board game in front of them. They both looked up at him.
"Wanna drink?" Leo asked. "I'm gunna fetch one."
"Cola," Mikey smiled, and handed Donny some game pieces.
Leo stepped over the board and jumped down the entire set of steps to April's window. He disappeared for a few seconds and then reappeared with a cola can and a carton of orange juice. He tossed the can to Mikey and sat down on the steps, opening his carton.
"Hey Mike," Leo said. "I'm sorry for being so overprotective about you sending off letters and stuff, and, I know it's a bit late, but I should have allowed you . . . I know it's . . . hard to lose friends." He smiled warmly.
"No problem bro," Mikey said. "You were probably right about them wanting phone numbers and addresses. I don't wanna put our family in any danger, even if I can't see it yet, it'll always be there, threatening us . . .it's just who we are." He cast his eyes down to the game while he spoke, sorting out the pieces. His two brothers watched him. They knew Mikey was right, there would always be some sort of danger lurking ahead of them, and it was because of who they were.
Leo watched his brother for another second before motioning with his carton the game, "You gunna start that?"
So a few minutes and the game was well started, the moonlight and Mikey's flashlight allowed them to see the game, since it was a very dark night.
()()()()
The apartment was now dark and quiet. The twins were tucked into bed and Danielle had arrived an hour ago and was now on her way to sleep as well. Prida should have been, but she wasn't. She was in the dark front room, dressed in black jeans and a navy, turtleneck top. She knew she shouldn't be doing this, but she couldn't sleep if she wanted to. She wasn't tired; she was too restless to lay down. So she had decided to sneak out and go to April's apartment, she REALLY had to see, or speak, to the guys. And if that couldn't work, she just wanted to go round there anyway and probably stare at the building. Yeah, she sounded crazy, but she still was getting over the little shock she had got when she found out her friends were turtles. Donny had said he and his brothers would be there for her always, so if they were in, maybe she could get to talk to them. All those apartment buildings had fire exit stairs leading to the roof, and April's place WAS one of the highest; maybe she could reach it from the roof. If she knew her friends, they would probably be either out looking for this man, or awake in the apartment waiting for him. She had a strong feeling they were still there, and the feeling was all the encouragement she needed to unlock the door she was now in front of and walk out into the hallway, shutting the door quietly behind her . . .
//
The streets were dark and nothing moved, from the view on the rooftop. Not even an old newspaper rustled or flapped; but then, there was no wind either. Nothing to look at, no man to spot. Raph's shoulders dropped slightly. He was leaning on the edge of the roof, the wall that acts as a barrier from the drop on the other side. There had been no activity down in the streets for ages. Leo was the one who was watching out; Raph was just up there to think. His gaze was down on the dark, deserted street below, but his eyes were not searching the streets. He was deep in thought, and didn't even hear the soft footfall of Leo, as his brother walked up behind him slowly.
"Thinking about what we're gunna lose?" Leo asked in a quiet tone.
He watched his brother's back. Raph didn't jump, but his head turned slightly to his left shoulder.
"No," he said curtly. "I'm thinking what kinda loony old man would be wandering the streets at this time just to change a couple of teenagers back to their original form."
Leo said nothing for a few long seconds. Then a small smile flickered across his face and disappeared, and he moved over to the edge of the roof, a few feet from his brother.
"I'm gunna miss 'em," he said bluntly. "Miss everything we did, everything we saw, everywhere we went," he said it in the same tone as before. "Nothing will be like that again."
Raph remained silent. Leo glanced at him quickly before Raph could snap at him for staring. His gaze was focused on the old, dark building across the street, and he didn't move. Leo looked down at the streets and looked up to the moon as a breeze swirled around the rooftop, lifting his bandana tails. He exhaled and then turned his back to the edge and walked away, heading to the brick wall and walking around it to find Donny and Mikey still playing their game, even though Donny had won twice already. Mikey was determined to beat the guy before they change back. At least he was now taking it lightly.
"Dude, just lemme win before we have to change back," Mikey whined.
"I tried to let you win last time!" Donny said. "I thought you'd get it before me."
Mikey rolled his eyes. "It's pretty hard when you're playing against a walking dictionary."
"You'll win sometime in the future," Leo said, smiling as he crossed his arms and leant against the wall Donny was also sharing.
"I intend to win a few minutes in the future," Mikey said, and placed some board pieces down, looking at them hard and then watching Donny.
Donny and Leo chuckled at their brother's expression.
Donny and Mikey's game continued for another few minutes, in which time Donny managed to win again. Leo wanted to talk to someone about what was going to happen tonight, if anything at all, and almost got up to go talk to Splinter in the guest room, but instead he got up off the floor next to Donny and walked back around to Raph at the edge of the building. Leo leant on the brick wall (of which Donny was sat on the opposite side), crossed his arms and looked past his brother to the moon and the few stars that were twinkling. He kept thinking about their sewer home that was now under watch by the cops, and when they turned back, where they would live. It would have to be far away from their old home, and that meant it would be far away from April's and everything else he had come to know above the ground. His gaze started to far from the sky, and he found his head had drooped and he was staring, eyes half open, at the roof floor.
"I wish we'd never turned human," Leo spoke out, more to himself than to Raph. "I wish Mikey hadn't made that wish, and I wish that we were in our home right now, sparring - or watching TV - or at least trying a first of Mikey's cooking . . ." His shoulders dropped and his eyes closed. "Then we wouldn't have to give up things we don't want to . . ."
Raph listened in silence, his eyes looking to his right as Leo spoke. Leo had just voiced out what Raph was thinking. And now Leo was mumbling softly to himself, but loud enough to hear.
Leo sighed and stopped talking. He picked up his katana, which were laid on the floor at the side of him, where he had put them when they had first come up onto the roof. He started to polish them with his blue shirt, which he had changed when he got home. They had all changed into their gray nightshirts, so it was pretty difficult to tell them apart again. They had kept their jeans on though.
"Hey guys, I won!" Came Mikey's voice.
"About time," came Donny's voice.
Leo chuckled and held his sword up, admiring the reflection of the blade.
//
It was a warm night, Prida thought as she lifted her head and looked up at the dark, deserted building she was walking past on the sidewalk. She knew she must be crazy to be walking out here in the dead of night. But she was almost there now, and she wasn't about to turn back. Why was she doing this? She really did want the fresh air since she couldn't sleep, and she wanted to talk.
Prida stopped and looked behind her shoulder to the shadows behind her in the alleyway she had just passed. She heard something very quiet. Must be a cat. With a last look, she turned and continued to walk.
//
Raph was now listening to his brother sing quietly to himself, probably forgetting the fact that Raph could hear it. It wasn't bad, in fact it was really good gentle singing, but why was he singing to himself and his katana? Shaking his head Raph directed his eyes around the streets below again - and locked them onto a figure moving in the shadows two buildings down the street. Raph squinted trying to make out the person. They were a small build, that much he could tell . . . and something was flowing at their neck; long hair. Long hair? It was obviously a girl, but what girl would be out here in the middle of the night? Just then the broken street lamp down the road flicked and died again - but it was enough to throw enough light on the figure to let Raph see who it was - and at the same time see countless stealthy shadows that were creeping up behind her - shadows that looked way too familiar.
"Prida," Raph breathed, pushed himself away from the roof edge and ran full speed, heading towards the other side of the roof where there were side exit stairs from the roof leading down to the ground.
Leo immediately stopped singing and looked up as Raph shot past him.
"Raph?" He shouted as his brother ran ahead. Leo took a split second to look over the side of the building to where there was a struggle on the streets, before taking off after his brother, sliding his katana into his sheath on his back.
"Okay Don, prepare to be - hey wasn't that Raph?" Mikey asked, looking up from his game as something with a red strip shot past them both.
"Yeah - and there goes Leo," Donny pointed out as something with a blur strip shot past them. They looked at each other for a split second before jumping up.
"Follow?" Mikey said excitedly already moving off.
"Follow!" Donny shouted, and they both ran after their brothers.
Leo, who was a few meters in front of them both was quite a few meters behind Raph, who was already down the rusty exit stairs, with Leo in pursuit. Donny and Mikey got to the stairs two seconds after Leo.
"Leo! What is it?" Donny yelled, grabbing the stairs and swinging himself around to the next set without tumbling over.
"The Foot!" Leo yelled, not turning to look. He hadn't quite seen the other figure that was at this minute kicking and punching the Foot in the groin.
"Oh man - just on our night when things should be returning to normal!" Mikey moaned, jumping five steps.
"What are ya talking about?" Donny yelled. "Fighting the Foot IS normal!"
Raph had reached the bottom now and took off in the direction on the struggle and the scream; and the familiar voice that was shouting "Lemme go! Get off!" Leo knew that voice; it was Prida!
Donny and Mikey had dared to jump down a whole level and now they were a step behind Leo, reaching the bottom four seconds after Raph, and taking off after him as soon as their feet hit the floor.
An oncoming noise made them look to their right as they ran after Raph. Bright lights washed over them and a horn blared out. Leo, Donny and Mikey stopped just in time, and Raph only just managed to reach the other side without being hit by the large truck, and carry on without looking back to the fight in front of him, which had now been moved around the corner, since the Foot had Prida and were taking her away.
It seemed to take the truck forever to pass, and the guys didn't even look at the driver as he glared at the three brothers. When it had passed they started to run again, but only took two steps forward, finding themselves face to face with the black-pajama guys, and somehow they got the feeling that these guys were like those they had last fought with . . . the really good, expert Foot.
Leo guessed about fifteen in front of him and his brothers, and he only had time to realize that these were the proper Ninja Foot before six of them jumped clear over the guys and landed behind them.
Leo, Don and Mikey immediately sprung into action. Leo ducked and rolled as one from behind took a swipe at him with a metal Bo Staff. He took on five of those that jumped behind them, while Mikey and Donny rushed at the rest. Leo didn't know where Raph was, but he could hear another angry scream from Prida, and the sounds of someone being beaten up. He just hoped it was the Foot, because these dudes were good. Leo had already been grazed for not moving out of the way quick enough, and he once saw Mikey thrown on the floor, only just rolling out the way on a katana that struck the floor where he had been. How many of these was Raph and Prida against?
"Whoa!" Leo let out as he ducked, hearing the air being sliced right next to his ear by a katana. A few strands of his hair were actually cut off. Leo brought his own sword up to meet this dude's, and while he was blocking the attack, he lashed out with his foot to the stomach on the metal Bo wielding Foot.
"Was that Prida I heard screaming?!" Mikey yelled to his brothers as he blocked o Bo with the metal chain links of his Nunchuck.
"I have a horrible feeling it was!" Donny called, and then took a punch to the gut. "It was so much easier to take a punch to the stomach when I had a plastron," he muttered to himself, trying to keep the humor in this kind of situation when even the Leader of the group was taking punches because there were too many opponents.
"Ya!" Leo growled as he kicked out behind him and caught a Foot soldier in the face. He hit the pavement and stayed there. But he was the first one down out the fifteen.
"Ow! Ow - ow - ow - ow!" Mikey yelped as he was hit over the back of the head and kicked in the stomach, then a second later thumped to the ground, all because his hands were busy blocking someone else, and his feet were busy stepping out the way as two tried to trip him up.
"Mike!" Leo yelled, and received a punch to the cheek. He kicked the lights out of the dude who did it, and then tried to rush over and help his brother, but was blocked by a wall of three, mean, ugly looking Foot members.
"I'm okay! I'm OKAY!" Mikey shouted as he rolled out from the oncoming blow of a katana and the end of a Bo. He jumped up, wiped the blood from his lip, and rushed at the backs of the two who had just tried to kill him. He managed to knock them out, and they stayed down.
Donny had just downed three in one blow with his Bo Staff, and turned to another who had no weapon. He soon met the concrete a few seconds later, and Donny wiped the grime off the end of his Bo onto the clothing on the Foot.
Two of these guys ran off around the corner obviously to help out the others. Prida seemed to be a bigger trouble than they had thought, and with Raph it obviously needed a lot of manpower. That left Leo, Don and Mike with seven Foot soldiers to deal with. But the guys were now aching, bleeding and tired from the intense battle.
Before Leo moved on to kick another butt, he noticed out the corner of his eye a light switched on in the building they were fighting next to. An old face appeared at the window, and then disappeared. Don't call the cops, Leo thought desperately. The last thing they wanted was being caught again for messing around with these guys.
Without realizing it, the Foot had been pushed back slightly, so now they could hear the other Foot members around the corner, and Prida struggling to free herself. Why had they got Prida? And if the three of them could only JUST hold off fifteen Foot soldiers while getting beaten up, how many could Raph hold off?
Then, the noise of the fighting from around the corner of the building stopped, and Prida's panicked voice screamed. It was a scream that sent chills running down Leo and his brothers' backs. She had screamed Raph's name out, and then it sounded as if she had been gagged because it became muffled. There was the sudden, shrill sounds of the police cars somewhere in the background, and then there was a quick, deep shout from one of the Foot. The dude Leo had been fighting suddenly managed to grab the teenager by the shirt and hold him there.
"If you want to see her again, be at the old factory at the end of Laird Street before dawn," the Foot growled, and flung Leo to the ground. Leo's head hit the sidewalk curb and he blacked out, in semi consciousness, unable to move but aware of the sirens getting louder. There was more than one. He could just see through his barely-open eyes many pairs of black covered feet growing smaller and smaller, and he saw someone else hit the floor. Someone in an orange shirt.
"Leo! Leo -" Donny was calling, rushing over to his brother. Mikey got up shakily, feeling nauseous. His lip was still bleeding, along with many other injuries. Donny looked the same, if not slightly worse, but he didn't look sick.
Leo was lifted quickly, but gently off the curb by Donny. "Leo, c'mon dude speak to me!"
Now that he was elevated, Leo felt more awake than dead, and he closed his eyes, took a deep breath and said, "I'm . . . livin'."
Mikey rushed over to them, and helped Donny stand Leo up. Leo held his head.
"The Foot took off," he said, words slurring a bit. "They have Prida . . . God where's Raph?"
They all looked at each other and then turned and ran to the corner of the building, rounding it and finding their brother on the floor, bloodied up badly and unconscious.
"Raph," Mikey murmured, and dropped down at his brother's side.
Leo suddenly collapsed, and Donny rushed over to him as he was trying to stand back up. Leo waved Donny off.
"Raph - go see Raph - is he gunna be okay?" Leo stared at Donny, who moved over to his unconscious brother. He knelt down and checked his pulse.
"He's okay, but he won't be for long, his pulse is weak but not as bad as it could be," Donny said, suddenly feeling exhausted. Before he knew it he had leaned to one side and only just put his hand out to stop himself falling over.
"We gotta get Raph some help," Leo said, stumbling over to them and dropping to his hands and knees. Mikey held his shoulders as Leo rocked unstably.
Just then red and blue lights illuminated the dark alleyway, and two police cars and an ambulance pulled up behind them all. Leo rolled his eyes exhaustedly. Not only had the old lady called the cops, she had fetched the ambulance out again. That means they would want to take them all in, and Leo couldn't afford to waste time at a hospital when he had to save Prida.
The police got out the car, and as soon as the paramedics saw Raph on the floor, they started to get out the stretcher while two of them went over to check them out.
"What happened here," the cop asked sternly, crossing his arms.
"No time for questions Sir, these kids need medical attention," a female paramedic said, as Raph was laid and tied to a stretcher, and the other three were given blankets because they were shaky.
"No - look, I can't go," Leo tried to say, but he was being ushered into the back of the Ambulance with his other brothers. Leo didn't want to sit down, but he did. He knew if he sat down he'd probably fall asleep, and he couldn't let that happened when Prida was captured by the Foot.
The ambulance doors were slammed shut, and Leo's vision became blurred. He could see Donny and Mikey next to him, watching the paramedics work on Raph. Leo turned to look, too, at what they were doing to his brother. Raph was hooked up to an IV now, and they were swatting his wounds with something Leo couldn't make out. Before he knew it, he had drooped onto Donny's shoulder, and sleep tried to settle in, but he pushed it back with the little strength he had left. He realized just what a beating they had taken, and it made him shudder to think that if the Foot hadn't pulled back, they would have finished Leo and his brothers. Leo forced his eyes open, and sat back up, ignoring his body screaming for him to close his eyes and just sleep.
It seemed they were in the Ambulance for a few second and then the doors were being opened, Raph was taken out, and Leo felt a tug on his arm. He looked at Donny, who was motioning him to get out.
The bright lights of the hospital against the blackness of the night made Leo squint when he got out. His eyes soon adjusted, and he was being led into the hospital, once again, and past the front desk to a corridor to the left of the waiting room, which was joined on to the entrance room. They went through some double doors, and then a single door into a medium sized room where they were pushed down gently onto three beds. But Leo sat back up again, along with Don and Mikey, who had taken their blankets off, showing their injured arms, hands and necks. They even had tears in their clothes. Leo didn't like to see his brothers like that. He wondered what Raph looked like, since he hadn't been able to look at him properly, and that Raph was taken somewhere else.
"Not the nicest way to meet again is this?" A familiar voice spoke to their left.
Dr. Hera stood there with her hands on her hips, looking at them and shaking her head. Dr. Bruine was with her.
Leo, Don and Mikey just looked at her tiredly, and followed her with their heads as she moved across the room, sighing, and took out hospital equipment. She started to tend to Leo first, while her friend, Bruine, helped out Donny. Mikey laid down, wanting nothing but rest.
"I'm not going to ask what happened," Hera said. "But whatever it was, it sure beat the hell outta you."
Donny looked over at Leo and saw how awful he looked: he looked paler, and the graze on his cheek stood out red. The light seemed too bright for him because he was constantly squinting and blinking. That whack on the head must have given him some headache. Actually, Donny was worried about something more than a headache. He was worried about Leo having a concussion. But that was for the doctor to find out. And a while later, when Mikey had been cleaned up while he was asleep by Bruine who had then left, and Hera had checked Leo over thoroughly and had done some small tests, she told Leo that he did have concussion, but it was minor, and that he would stay in the hospital for however long they needed to treat his head injury until they were satisfied it was clear. Leo did not like the idea of staying there for her suggested number of days, and planned to leave as soon as he could, but he didn't say anything.
"Right, now I want you two resting," Hera said, moving the IV drip that was attached to Leo's hand. He now had a large gauze bandage taped to the side of his forehead, and a smaller one on his check. He had another on his arm, and another graze on his shoulder. He had kept his own clothes on; he refused to wear the hospital garments, even if they thought he would be staying there for a few days. Donny looked a little better than him because he didn't have anything on his head. But the scar on his arm had been ripped open again, and he had had to go through the pain of having it re- stitched again. Also he had a nasty bruise on his stomach. Apart from that he was just tired. Mikey had a few more bruises than Donny, but nothing that needed stitches. He did have a broken finger, which was taped to his other finger to support it, but it was a clean break so there shouldn't be a lot of pain when he wakes.
"Where's Raph?" Donny asked, sitting up when he was just laying down. "How is he?"
"He's doing fine now," Hera sighed. "He was much worse than the rest of you. Lucky his leg wasn't ripped open, but he has a whole load of injuries to make up for that. He has a head injury, but no concussion. He's in room 113, first floor, where someone can keep an eye on him. Now get some rest, and take it easy." She added, before turning the lights off and leaving with a yawn.
"We have to get Prida back," Donny said as soon as silence had settled for a second after the door had closed. "We can't stay here."
Leo didn't say anything for a few seconds. "We're gunna have to sneak out . . . leave Raph here, he won't be able to walk anyway if he's worse than me."
"How will we find Prida?" Donnie asked in a quiet voice, laying down with his injured arm laid in a safe position where he won't roll onto it.
"At the old factory on Lair Street," Leo said, still sat up, even though he was having a hard job trying to stay awake. "One of them told me; we have to be there before dawn."
Donny's eyes were now closed and he yawned, and nodded to show he had heard.
"I can't go to sleep," Leo said softly. "We don't have much time 'til dawn, and it doesn't leave us long to rest."
"Which is why YOU should be resting and not me," Donny said, opening his eyes and sitting up. "You need rest more than I do, and I can wake you when we have to go."
Leo wanted to argue and say that Don should have his rest, because as Leader Leo puts his brothers before himself. But his mouth wouldn't cooperate, and he couldn't say no. Instead he gave a half nod and laid down. As soon as his head hit the pillow, his eyes closed and he was fast asleep.
Donny watched his chest rise and fall, then he looked back at Mikey. That's why they beat them up and didn't kill them, so that whoever is leading the Foot can have the pleasure of destroying them when they were still weak from the fight. That's why Prida was kidnapped: as bait. Then why did they almost kill Raph? To show how serious they were? These guys were taken serious first time Don and his brothers fought them. Donny sighed, wondering how this has affected their chance to become turtle. Would that man continue looking if he couldn't find them at the apartment or out on the streets? Trust the Foot to choose the worst possible time, Don thought bitterly.
~
Okay, I really wanted to keep this one short, but hehe, I couldn't help it, it all had to go in this chapter. I am really ashamed of the mistakes I made about the schools and stuff, as some of you pointed out, but there's no more school from now on, thank god, hehe, I'm really sorry about it. Hope ya enjoyed this chapter, I think it's much better than the rest because it's something I'm easy at, action and stuff, hehe. SFAM - the next chapters SHUD be shorter, because I have so many exams and stuff I won't have time to write long chapters - oh please wish me luck in my exams! I have two exams that clash! And a 10-hour Art exam! I HATE Art! So maybe with the loads of wishing lucks from TMNT Authors and fans it might, ya know, kinda get me through them - I swear I die in these art exams - at least we're allowed to take in CD players and walkmans ( hehe. Cya, peace!
~
Having reached 'home' they were met by April as soon as they walked in the door. There was only Mikey who explained their night in excited detail, the others were a little too tired to talk. April was a little surprised when Mikey told her that Prida had figured out who they really were. But Mike reassured her that they could count on their friend to keep their secret safe, and that they had told her she could come round to April's and Ape would take her to them, once this whole thing was sorted out.
"Yes, I'd do that if she came around," April told them as she hurried around for some reason trying to find something. She had her hair wrapped up on top of her head in a towel.
"Why are you rushing around?" Leo asked, flopping down on the couch next to Donny.
April picked up her wallet. "Oh, I'm going out with Casey for the night." She smiled and walked upstairs to change as the guys all smirked.
"Hey, where's Master Splinter?" Donny asked, looking at the empty armchair that was usually occupied by their Sensei.
"He's on the roof, meditating," April's voice called from upstairs.
//
"So, I'll see ya tomorrow, Pri," Mai said as she opened the apartment door to her friend's apartment, preparing to leave. "Don't go mental, remember that they're only playing even if they do pelt you with ice cubes," she added in a quieter tone.
Prida was stood in Laurence's doorway (Mai's very good friend), watching her sister leave her with the little brats that were about to make her night a living hell. Laurence's two kids were little demons, but perfect angels in the company of adults. Prida had baby-sat them before, because Laurence usually goes out all night and stays at a friend's house, letting Prida sleep in the guest room; then she could make the 'little angels' breakfast in the morning and keep them company until Laurence returned about two in the afternoon. It's not that Jessica and Jerry (the little darlings) totally beat Prida up, it's just that when they play they scream, shout, screech and growl and usually bring Prida into their fun. But all she's rather do is watch TV. That was the good thing about baby-sitting Jessica and Jerry: Laurence had tons of great horror flicks, and if the kids came running into the room at the right time when something gory or horrible is on screen they shut up, hug themselves and jump onto the couch next to Prida. But this time Laurence had allowed one of the other baby- sitters, and a friend to Prida, to stay with her. Her name was Danielle, and she would be arriving a bit later than Prida because she was busy. But the twins weren't that hard on her as they were the others. So then Danielle gets paid to help Prida, and she would go home in the morning, sharing the guest room with Prida.
So now, Mai had disappeared around the hallway, and Laurence was just pulling his shirt straight, moving to the doorway and Danielle was yet to arrive.
"Thanks again Prida, I'll be back about two tomorrow, okay? Great! Thanks, you're a star," he said hurriedly, and disappeared after Mai.
Prida sighed and shut the door. Turning around she had an image in her head of two little twins, devil horns sticking out of their heads, with evil grins and holding full ice cube trays. But Jessica and Jerry were 'shooting' each other with imaginary guns when she turned around, running around the couch. Prida made her way to the window seat, and looked out at the twinkling lights far down the street. She was hoping, that since she was only two blocks away, she might have seen April's apartment or even the street that leads to her apartment. But no, it was way too dark to see street signs, and the yellow, glowing street lamps were dull, and three of them were not lit at all. She was only two blocks away . . .
"Pwida, you look pwurty," Jessica said as she jumped onto the window ledge next to Prida, with Jerry following. Prida still had her dress on. It had only been twenty-five minutes since she had left the school Hall, and she hadn't changed yet. Luckily Mai had shoved some of her clothes in a bag before she picked Prida up, so then Prida had something comfortable to wear while baby-sitting the five year olds.
"Thanks," Prida muttered, still looking outside. She got up and walked over to where the bag of her clothes was next to the couch. The twins followed her. They were identical twins, so if Jessica got rid of her long, auburn hair she would look exactly like Jerry.
"What we gunna do tonight Pwida?" Jerry asked, rolling around on the floor and pulling his sister down with him. They giggled.
"Hide and Seek?" Prida asked hopefully, walking to the guest room door, and putting her hand on the handle, ready to open it. She waited for a response.
"Oh but we pwayed that lass time," Jessica moaned, running up to Prida. Jessica and Jerry seemed to really like Prida. And since they were little devils with all the other baby-sitters, Laurence had begged Prida to be their main baby-sitter and she could have Danielle as company (Danielle had been the baby-sitter for a while, and the kids had gotten along with her more than the others); that was a year ago. Prida never liked baby-sitting, unless the kids were quiet - the opposite of the twins. So she was glad for some company her own age.
"Okay . . ." Prida thought, hand still on the door handle. "Why don't you two think of something while I'm getting changed?"
"Okay!" Came the two high voices. They dashed off for their shared room while Prida sighed and walked into the guest room, shutting the door behind her, and locking it for good measures. She changed into a simple pair of jeans and a loose, buttoned blue shirt, and folded her dress neatly into the bag. She walked to her window, four certain guys on her mind. They were all she could think about. She sighed, unlocked her door and walked out.
"GUESS!" Came two identical voices.
Prida jumped and looked down at the twins. They were both dressed in the same baggy shorts that were their dad's, and their dad's checkered shirts. Around their heads one of them wore a purple scarf, the other wore a white scarf, showing only their faces. Prida caught on.
"Jerry," she said, pointing to the white scarf kid. "Jessica," she said, pointing to the purple scarf kid. She smiled and walked over to the couch, seeing the slight disappointment in the twins' faces. Then as Prida turned her back they shed their scarves and jumped after she, screeching 'you just guessed lucky!"
"No, I just know you two," Prida smiled and sat down on the couch, only to be jumped on by Jessica and Jerry, who then started to shoot each other with their hands clasped together like guns.
"Whatcha gunna watch?" Jerry asked, turning to look at Prida and then getting pounced on by Jessica.
"I thought I'd watch End Of Days," Prida smiled, leaning forward and studying the video collection that Laurence owned. He was a big collector of movies, and had every movie with Arnold Schwarzenegger.
The twins stopped their battle and slowly turned their eyes to Prida.
"That movie is scary . . ." Jessica said quietly.
"Why is it?" Prida asked, getting up and walking to the kitchen. She searched the cupboards for a box of popcorn, then she shoved it in the microwave.
"Because da man on dere is blown in half in da subway," Jerry answered, his big eyes on the pillow that he was picking at, and then they looked at Prida.
Prida smiled. "It's meant to be funny," she tried. She knew she shouldn't scare them, so when she did she should at least try and make them take it lightly or laugh about it. She made her way from the humming microwave to the two twins. "Because we both know that it never happens," she said warmly, putting her arms around the two of them. They broke into smiles and giggles. "Okay then what shall we all watch?" Prida asked, hoping tonight maybe they would sit down and be quiet.
"The Labyrinth!" They both shouted together.
"Okay then, we can watch that; Jerry go get the video," Prida smiled. Maybe they would be peaceful tonight. She really didn't feel like telling them to shush when they screamed, because her thoughts were on her four friends. She really wanted to talk to them, so badly that she was thinking maybe she could just . . . walk around there. She rolled her eyes to herself. How strange would that be? Walking around to someone's place at - she looked at the clock - nearly eleven at night. Well, maybe she could at least have a walk and maybe catch them walking out, going to meet this guy who was going to change them back, the kids would be fine with Danielle here . . . She HAD to see them, for some reason, she just wanted to . . .
()()()()
"Hey Donny, wanna play a bored game?" A bored Mikey asked, sighing and walking over to where Donny sat on the floor in front of the couch. With April gone, and Splinter meditating (which was all he seemed to be doing) there wasn't much to do.
"Sure, but let's play outside, I'm boiling," Donny said, meaning that they would set up the game outside April's window on the fire exit stairs that lead to the roof.
"Kay," Mike said and dashed off to choose a game, while Donny picked up his bowl of popcorn and carried it over to the window. He could here Mikey's feet thudding upstairs as he climbed onto the counter and out the open window. He climbed the dark, rusty steps to the roof, and sat, leaning against the wall between two brick building blocks that were part of the roof. He could hear voices up here that belonged to Raph and Leo, who were probably hanging around the edge of the roof, watching activity below. Leo had wanted to stay up here and check out the dark streets below. He had objected to going out and looking for this man because he didn't want to leave Splinter again, and had said maybe if they searched for the man, and the man searched for them, they might miss each other, so one of them must stay in their place for the other to find them.
Don picked up a handful of popcorn and crunched on it, listening. He couldn't really hear, but from the tones he guessed Raph didn't want to talk, and Leo was really muttering to himself.
"I got this one," Mikey suddenly said, breaking Donny's thoughtful stupor. Don looked down at the board game, it was Scrabble. Mikey started to set it up, while Donny watched, listening to the silence, now that his other two brothers seemed to have fallen silent.
"Hey, you okay?" Mikey asked, watching his brother.
"Yeah, I'm good," Don replied quietly.
Mikey continues to study Donny's face. He knew what was on his mind. They were all nervous and, he admitted, scared about what this dude has to do to get them back to normal. Mikey chuckled in his head, 'normal' seemed like the wrong word.
Leo appeared around the brick block Donny was sat against and looked at his two brothers sat on the floor with a board game in front of them. They both looked up at him.
"Wanna drink?" Leo asked. "I'm gunna fetch one."
"Cola," Mikey smiled, and handed Donny some game pieces.
Leo stepped over the board and jumped down the entire set of steps to April's window. He disappeared for a few seconds and then reappeared with a cola can and a carton of orange juice. He tossed the can to Mikey and sat down on the steps, opening his carton.
"Hey Mike," Leo said. "I'm sorry for being so overprotective about you sending off letters and stuff, and, I know it's a bit late, but I should have allowed you . . . I know it's . . . hard to lose friends." He smiled warmly.
"No problem bro," Mikey said. "You were probably right about them wanting phone numbers and addresses. I don't wanna put our family in any danger, even if I can't see it yet, it'll always be there, threatening us . . .it's just who we are." He cast his eyes down to the game while he spoke, sorting out the pieces. His two brothers watched him. They knew Mikey was right, there would always be some sort of danger lurking ahead of them, and it was because of who they were.
Leo watched his brother for another second before motioning with his carton the game, "You gunna start that?"
So a few minutes and the game was well started, the moonlight and Mikey's flashlight allowed them to see the game, since it was a very dark night.
()()()()
The apartment was now dark and quiet. The twins were tucked into bed and Danielle had arrived an hour ago and was now on her way to sleep as well. Prida should have been, but she wasn't. She was in the dark front room, dressed in black jeans and a navy, turtleneck top. She knew she shouldn't be doing this, but she couldn't sleep if she wanted to. She wasn't tired; she was too restless to lay down. So she had decided to sneak out and go to April's apartment, she REALLY had to see, or speak, to the guys. And if that couldn't work, she just wanted to go round there anyway and probably stare at the building. Yeah, she sounded crazy, but she still was getting over the little shock she had got when she found out her friends were turtles. Donny had said he and his brothers would be there for her always, so if they were in, maybe she could get to talk to them. All those apartment buildings had fire exit stairs leading to the roof, and April's place WAS one of the highest; maybe she could reach it from the roof. If she knew her friends, they would probably be either out looking for this man, or awake in the apartment waiting for him. She had a strong feeling they were still there, and the feeling was all the encouragement she needed to unlock the door she was now in front of and walk out into the hallway, shutting the door quietly behind her . . .
//
The streets were dark and nothing moved, from the view on the rooftop. Not even an old newspaper rustled or flapped; but then, there was no wind either. Nothing to look at, no man to spot. Raph's shoulders dropped slightly. He was leaning on the edge of the roof, the wall that acts as a barrier from the drop on the other side. There had been no activity down in the streets for ages. Leo was the one who was watching out; Raph was just up there to think. His gaze was down on the dark, deserted street below, but his eyes were not searching the streets. He was deep in thought, and didn't even hear the soft footfall of Leo, as his brother walked up behind him slowly.
"Thinking about what we're gunna lose?" Leo asked in a quiet tone.
He watched his brother's back. Raph didn't jump, but his head turned slightly to his left shoulder.
"No," he said curtly. "I'm thinking what kinda loony old man would be wandering the streets at this time just to change a couple of teenagers back to their original form."
Leo said nothing for a few long seconds. Then a small smile flickered across his face and disappeared, and he moved over to the edge of the roof, a few feet from his brother.
"I'm gunna miss 'em," he said bluntly. "Miss everything we did, everything we saw, everywhere we went," he said it in the same tone as before. "Nothing will be like that again."
Raph remained silent. Leo glanced at him quickly before Raph could snap at him for staring. His gaze was focused on the old, dark building across the street, and he didn't move. Leo looked down at the streets and looked up to the moon as a breeze swirled around the rooftop, lifting his bandana tails. He exhaled and then turned his back to the edge and walked away, heading to the brick wall and walking around it to find Donny and Mikey still playing their game, even though Donny had won twice already. Mikey was determined to beat the guy before they change back. At least he was now taking it lightly.
"Dude, just lemme win before we have to change back," Mikey whined.
"I tried to let you win last time!" Donny said. "I thought you'd get it before me."
Mikey rolled his eyes. "It's pretty hard when you're playing against a walking dictionary."
"You'll win sometime in the future," Leo said, smiling as he crossed his arms and leant against the wall Donny was also sharing.
"I intend to win a few minutes in the future," Mikey said, and placed some board pieces down, looking at them hard and then watching Donny.
Donny and Leo chuckled at their brother's expression.
Donny and Mikey's game continued for another few minutes, in which time Donny managed to win again. Leo wanted to talk to someone about what was going to happen tonight, if anything at all, and almost got up to go talk to Splinter in the guest room, but instead he got up off the floor next to Donny and walked back around to Raph at the edge of the building. Leo leant on the brick wall (of which Donny was sat on the opposite side), crossed his arms and looked past his brother to the moon and the few stars that were twinkling. He kept thinking about their sewer home that was now under watch by the cops, and when they turned back, where they would live. It would have to be far away from their old home, and that meant it would be far away from April's and everything else he had come to know above the ground. His gaze started to far from the sky, and he found his head had drooped and he was staring, eyes half open, at the roof floor.
"I wish we'd never turned human," Leo spoke out, more to himself than to Raph. "I wish Mikey hadn't made that wish, and I wish that we were in our home right now, sparring - or watching TV - or at least trying a first of Mikey's cooking . . ." His shoulders dropped and his eyes closed. "Then we wouldn't have to give up things we don't want to . . ."
Raph listened in silence, his eyes looking to his right as Leo spoke. Leo had just voiced out what Raph was thinking. And now Leo was mumbling softly to himself, but loud enough to hear.
Leo sighed and stopped talking. He picked up his katana, which were laid on the floor at the side of him, where he had put them when they had first come up onto the roof. He started to polish them with his blue shirt, which he had changed when he got home. They had all changed into their gray nightshirts, so it was pretty difficult to tell them apart again. They had kept their jeans on though.
"Hey guys, I won!" Came Mikey's voice.
"About time," came Donny's voice.
Leo chuckled and held his sword up, admiring the reflection of the blade.
//
It was a warm night, Prida thought as she lifted her head and looked up at the dark, deserted building she was walking past on the sidewalk. She knew she must be crazy to be walking out here in the dead of night. But she was almost there now, and she wasn't about to turn back. Why was she doing this? She really did want the fresh air since she couldn't sleep, and she wanted to talk.
Prida stopped and looked behind her shoulder to the shadows behind her in the alleyway she had just passed. She heard something very quiet. Must be a cat. With a last look, she turned and continued to walk.
//
Raph was now listening to his brother sing quietly to himself, probably forgetting the fact that Raph could hear it. It wasn't bad, in fact it was really good gentle singing, but why was he singing to himself and his katana? Shaking his head Raph directed his eyes around the streets below again - and locked them onto a figure moving in the shadows two buildings down the street. Raph squinted trying to make out the person. They were a small build, that much he could tell . . . and something was flowing at their neck; long hair. Long hair? It was obviously a girl, but what girl would be out here in the middle of the night? Just then the broken street lamp down the road flicked and died again - but it was enough to throw enough light on the figure to let Raph see who it was - and at the same time see countless stealthy shadows that were creeping up behind her - shadows that looked way too familiar.
"Prida," Raph breathed, pushed himself away from the roof edge and ran full speed, heading towards the other side of the roof where there were side exit stairs from the roof leading down to the ground.
Leo immediately stopped singing and looked up as Raph shot past him.
"Raph?" He shouted as his brother ran ahead. Leo took a split second to look over the side of the building to where there was a struggle on the streets, before taking off after his brother, sliding his katana into his sheath on his back.
"Okay Don, prepare to be - hey wasn't that Raph?" Mikey asked, looking up from his game as something with a red strip shot past them both.
"Yeah - and there goes Leo," Donny pointed out as something with a blur strip shot past them. They looked at each other for a split second before jumping up.
"Follow?" Mikey said excitedly already moving off.
"Follow!" Donny shouted, and they both ran after their brothers.
Leo, who was a few meters in front of them both was quite a few meters behind Raph, who was already down the rusty exit stairs, with Leo in pursuit. Donny and Mikey got to the stairs two seconds after Leo.
"Leo! What is it?" Donny yelled, grabbing the stairs and swinging himself around to the next set without tumbling over.
"The Foot!" Leo yelled, not turning to look. He hadn't quite seen the other figure that was at this minute kicking and punching the Foot in the groin.
"Oh man - just on our night when things should be returning to normal!" Mikey moaned, jumping five steps.
"What are ya talking about?" Donny yelled. "Fighting the Foot IS normal!"
Raph had reached the bottom now and took off in the direction on the struggle and the scream; and the familiar voice that was shouting "Lemme go! Get off!" Leo knew that voice; it was Prida!
Donny and Mikey had dared to jump down a whole level and now they were a step behind Leo, reaching the bottom four seconds after Raph, and taking off after him as soon as their feet hit the floor.
An oncoming noise made them look to their right as they ran after Raph. Bright lights washed over them and a horn blared out. Leo, Donny and Mikey stopped just in time, and Raph only just managed to reach the other side without being hit by the large truck, and carry on without looking back to the fight in front of him, which had now been moved around the corner, since the Foot had Prida and were taking her away.
It seemed to take the truck forever to pass, and the guys didn't even look at the driver as he glared at the three brothers. When it had passed they started to run again, but only took two steps forward, finding themselves face to face with the black-pajama guys, and somehow they got the feeling that these guys were like those they had last fought with . . . the really good, expert Foot.
Leo guessed about fifteen in front of him and his brothers, and he only had time to realize that these were the proper Ninja Foot before six of them jumped clear over the guys and landed behind them.
Leo, Don and Mikey immediately sprung into action. Leo ducked and rolled as one from behind took a swipe at him with a metal Bo Staff. He took on five of those that jumped behind them, while Mikey and Donny rushed at the rest. Leo didn't know where Raph was, but he could hear another angry scream from Prida, and the sounds of someone being beaten up. He just hoped it was the Foot, because these dudes were good. Leo had already been grazed for not moving out of the way quick enough, and he once saw Mikey thrown on the floor, only just rolling out the way on a katana that struck the floor where he had been. How many of these was Raph and Prida against?
"Whoa!" Leo let out as he ducked, hearing the air being sliced right next to his ear by a katana. A few strands of his hair were actually cut off. Leo brought his own sword up to meet this dude's, and while he was blocking the attack, he lashed out with his foot to the stomach on the metal Bo wielding Foot.
"Was that Prida I heard screaming?!" Mikey yelled to his brothers as he blocked o Bo with the metal chain links of his Nunchuck.
"I have a horrible feeling it was!" Donny called, and then took a punch to the gut. "It was so much easier to take a punch to the stomach when I had a plastron," he muttered to himself, trying to keep the humor in this kind of situation when even the Leader of the group was taking punches because there were too many opponents.
"Ya!" Leo growled as he kicked out behind him and caught a Foot soldier in the face. He hit the pavement and stayed there. But he was the first one down out the fifteen.
"Ow! Ow - ow - ow - ow!" Mikey yelped as he was hit over the back of the head and kicked in the stomach, then a second later thumped to the ground, all because his hands were busy blocking someone else, and his feet were busy stepping out the way as two tried to trip him up.
"Mike!" Leo yelled, and received a punch to the cheek. He kicked the lights out of the dude who did it, and then tried to rush over and help his brother, but was blocked by a wall of three, mean, ugly looking Foot members.
"I'm okay! I'm OKAY!" Mikey shouted as he rolled out from the oncoming blow of a katana and the end of a Bo. He jumped up, wiped the blood from his lip, and rushed at the backs of the two who had just tried to kill him. He managed to knock them out, and they stayed down.
Donny had just downed three in one blow with his Bo Staff, and turned to another who had no weapon. He soon met the concrete a few seconds later, and Donny wiped the grime off the end of his Bo onto the clothing on the Foot.
Two of these guys ran off around the corner obviously to help out the others. Prida seemed to be a bigger trouble than they had thought, and with Raph it obviously needed a lot of manpower. That left Leo, Don and Mike with seven Foot soldiers to deal with. But the guys were now aching, bleeding and tired from the intense battle.
Before Leo moved on to kick another butt, he noticed out the corner of his eye a light switched on in the building they were fighting next to. An old face appeared at the window, and then disappeared. Don't call the cops, Leo thought desperately. The last thing they wanted was being caught again for messing around with these guys.
Without realizing it, the Foot had been pushed back slightly, so now they could hear the other Foot members around the corner, and Prida struggling to free herself. Why had they got Prida? And if the three of them could only JUST hold off fifteen Foot soldiers while getting beaten up, how many could Raph hold off?
Then, the noise of the fighting from around the corner of the building stopped, and Prida's panicked voice screamed. It was a scream that sent chills running down Leo and his brothers' backs. She had screamed Raph's name out, and then it sounded as if she had been gagged because it became muffled. There was the sudden, shrill sounds of the police cars somewhere in the background, and then there was a quick, deep shout from one of the Foot. The dude Leo had been fighting suddenly managed to grab the teenager by the shirt and hold him there.
"If you want to see her again, be at the old factory at the end of Laird Street before dawn," the Foot growled, and flung Leo to the ground. Leo's head hit the sidewalk curb and he blacked out, in semi consciousness, unable to move but aware of the sirens getting louder. There was more than one. He could just see through his barely-open eyes many pairs of black covered feet growing smaller and smaller, and he saw someone else hit the floor. Someone in an orange shirt.
"Leo! Leo -" Donny was calling, rushing over to his brother. Mikey got up shakily, feeling nauseous. His lip was still bleeding, along with many other injuries. Donny looked the same, if not slightly worse, but he didn't look sick.
Leo was lifted quickly, but gently off the curb by Donny. "Leo, c'mon dude speak to me!"
Now that he was elevated, Leo felt more awake than dead, and he closed his eyes, took a deep breath and said, "I'm . . . livin'."
Mikey rushed over to them, and helped Donny stand Leo up. Leo held his head.
"The Foot took off," he said, words slurring a bit. "They have Prida . . . God where's Raph?"
They all looked at each other and then turned and ran to the corner of the building, rounding it and finding their brother on the floor, bloodied up badly and unconscious.
"Raph," Mikey murmured, and dropped down at his brother's side.
Leo suddenly collapsed, and Donny rushed over to him as he was trying to stand back up. Leo waved Donny off.
"Raph - go see Raph - is he gunna be okay?" Leo stared at Donny, who moved over to his unconscious brother. He knelt down and checked his pulse.
"He's okay, but he won't be for long, his pulse is weak but not as bad as it could be," Donny said, suddenly feeling exhausted. Before he knew it he had leaned to one side and only just put his hand out to stop himself falling over.
"We gotta get Raph some help," Leo said, stumbling over to them and dropping to his hands and knees. Mikey held his shoulders as Leo rocked unstably.
Just then red and blue lights illuminated the dark alleyway, and two police cars and an ambulance pulled up behind them all. Leo rolled his eyes exhaustedly. Not only had the old lady called the cops, she had fetched the ambulance out again. That means they would want to take them all in, and Leo couldn't afford to waste time at a hospital when he had to save Prida.
The police got out the car, and as soon as the paramedics saw Raph on the floor, they started to get out the stretcher while two of them went over to check them out.
"What happened here," the cop asked sternly, crossing his arms.
"No time for questions Sir, these kids need medical attention," a female paramedic said, as Raph was laid and tied to a stretcher, and the other three were given blankets because they were shaky.
"No - look, I can't go," Leo tried to say, but he was being ushered into the back of the Ambulance with his other brothers. Leo didn't want to sit down, but he did. He knew if he sat down he'd probably fall asleep, and he couldn't let that happened when Prida was captured by the Foot.
The ambulance doors were slammed shut, and Leo's vision became blurred. He could see Donny and Mikey next to him, watching the paramedics work on Raph. Leo turned to look, too, at what they were doing to his brother. Raph was hooked up to an IV now, and they were swatting his wounds with something Leo couldn't make out. Before he knew it, he had drooped onto Donny's shoulder, and sleep tried to settle in, but he pushed it back with the little strength he had left. He realized just what a beating they had taken, and it made him shudder to think that if the Foot hadn't pulled back, they would have finished Leo and his brothers. Leo forced his eyes open, and sat back up, ignoring his body screaming for him to close his eyes and just sleep.
It seemed they were in the Ambulance for a few second and then the doors were being opened, Raph was taken out, and Leo felt a tug on his arm. He looked at Donny, who was motioning him to get out.
The bright lights of the hospital against the blackness of the night made Leo squint when he got out. His eyes soon adjusted, and he was being led into the hospital, once again, and past the front desk to a corridor to the left of the waiting room, which was joined on to the entrance room. They went through some double doors, and then a single door into a medium sized room where they were pushed down gently onto three beds. But Leo sat back up again, along with Don and Mikey, who had taken their blankets off, showing their injured arms, hands and necks. They even had tears in their clothes. Leo didn't like to see his brothers like that. He wondered what Raph looked like, since he hadn't been able to look at him properly, and that Raph was taken somewhere else.
"Not the nicest way to meet again is this?" A familiar voice spoke to their left.
Dr. Hera stood there with her hands on her hips, looking at them and shaking her head. Dr. Bruine was with her.
Leo, Don and Mikey just looked at her tiredly, and followed her with their heads as she moved across the room, sighing, and took out hospital equipment. She started to tend to Leo first, while her friend, Bruine, helped out Donny. Mikey laid down, wanting nothing but rest.
"I'm not going to ask what happened," Hera said. "But whatever it was, it sure beat the hell outta you."
Donny looked over at Leo and saw how awful he looked: he looked paler, and the graze on his cheek stood out red. The light seemed too bright for him because he was constantly squinting and blinking. That whack on the head must have given him some headache. Actually, Donny was worried about something more than a headache. He was worried about Leo having a concussion. But that was for the doctor to find out. And a while later, when Mikey had been cleaned up while he was asleep by Bruine who had then left, and Hera had checked Leo over thoroughly and had done some small tests, she told Leo that he did have concussion, but it was minor, and that he would stay in the hospital for however long they needed to treat his head injury until they were satisfied it was clear. Leo did not like the idea of staying there for her suggested number of days, and planned to leave as soon as he could, but he didn't say anything.
"Right, now I want you two resting," Hera said, moving the IV drip that was attached to Leo's hand. He now had a large gauze bandage taped to the side of his forehead, and a smaller one on his check. He had another on his arm, and another graze on his shoulder. He had kept his own clothes on; he refused to wear the hospital garments, even if they thought he would be staying there for a few days. Donny looked a little better than him because he didn't have anything on his head. But the scar on his arm had been ripped open again, and he had had to go through the pain of having it re- stitched again. Also he had a nasty bruise on his stomach. Apart from that he was just tired. Mikey had a few more bruises than Donny, but nothing that needed stitches. He did have a broken finger, which was taped to his other finger to support it, but it was a clean break so there shouldn't be a lot of pain when he wakes.
"Where's Raph?" Donny asked, sitting up when he was just laying down. "How is he?"
"He's doing fine now," Hera sighed. "He was much worse than the rest of you. Lucky his leg wasn't ripped open, but he has a whole load of injuries to make up for that. He has a head injury, but no concussion. He's in room 113, first floor, where someone can keep an eye on him. Now get some rest, and take it easy." She added, before turning the lights off and leaving with a yawn.
"We have to get Prida back," Donny said as soon as silence had settled for a second after the door had closed. "We can't stay here."
Leo didn't say anything for a few seconds. "We're gunna have to sneak out . . . leave Raph here, he won't be able to walk anyway if he's worse than me."
"How will we find Prida?" Donnie asked in a quiet voice, laying down with his injured arm laid in a safe position where he won't roll onto it.
"At the old factory on Lair Street," Leo said, still sat up, even though he was having a hard job trying to stay awake. "One of them told me; we have to be there before dawn."
Donny's eyes were now closed and he yawned, and nodded to show he had heard.
"I can't go to sleep," Leo said softly. "We don't have much time 'til dawn, and it doesn't leave us long to rest."
"Which is why YOU should be resting and not me," Donny said, opening his eyes and sitting up. "You need rest more than I do, and I can wake you when we have to go."
Leo wanted to argue and say that Don should have his rest, because as Leader Leo puts his brothers before himself. But his mouth wouldn't cooperate, and he couldn't say no. Instead he gave a half nod and laid down. As soon as his head hit the pillow, his eyes closed and he was fast asleep.
Donny watched his chest rise and fall, then he looked back at Mikey. That's why they beat them up and didn't kill them, so that whoever is leading the Foot can have the pleasure of destroying them when they were still weak from the fight. That's why Prida was kidnapped: as bait. Then why did they almost kill Raph? To show how serious they were? These guys were taken serious first time Don and his brothers fought them. Donny sighed, wondering how this has affected their chance to become turtle. Would that man continue looking if he couldn't find them at the apartment or out on the streets? Trust the Foot to choose the worst possible time, Don thought bitterly.
~
Okay, I really wanted to keep this one short, but hehe, I couldn't help it, it all had to go in this chapter. I am really ashamed of the mistakes I made about the schools and stuff, as some of you pointed out, but there's no more school from now on, thank god, hehe, I'm really sorry about it. Hope ya enjoyed this chapter, I think it's much better than the rest because it's something I'm easy at, action and stuff, hehe. SFAM - the next chapters SHUD be shorter, because I have so many exams and stuff I won't have time to write long chapters - oh please wish me luck in my exams! I have two exams that clash! And a 10-hour Art exam! I HATE Art! So maybe with the loads of wishing lucks from TMNT Authors and fans it might, ya know, kinda get me through them - I swear I die in these art exams - at least we're allowed to take in CD players and walkmans ( hehe. Cya, peace!