Disclaimer: HAHAHA!! You think I own the ninja turtles. Well I don't.
Now that's over...
SHOUT OUTS:
Pacphys: There will be a Star Wars cameo somewhere in this story, though not necessarily in this chapter. Keep an eye out for it! As for Mikey's pizza toppings...well, I eat peanut butter on mine, so I can't say anything.
Sulwen Undomiel: Here is the next update! And, some people say Lona is a Mary-Sue, some say she's not...I'll just let you guys fight it out.
Aliveinthedarkness: Yea, I admit Lona has Mary-Sue-ish qualities. Can't help it, that's how I write. Thanks for reviewing, nonetheless.
Crazylittlekiwifruit: Sorry, it always takes me a while to get warmed up for romance stories, but this chapter has a little more fluff for ya. Thanks, I try to portray Mikey as perfectly as I can.
Author's Note: Michelangelo might be just a teeny bit out of character in this chapter, but that is what fanfiction is for. So if ya don't like it, don't read it. Now, enjoy chapter three of Ships in the Night.
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Michelangelo stood on the roof of a convenient building looking out over the water, the wind whipping his orange bandanna tails around his head. He could hear the sounds of his brothers fighting. He wanted to help, but his feet refused to move. Mike heard the clanging of metal on metal, and then Donatello's shout.
"Raph!"
Mikey immediately snapped out of his reverie. "Oh no..." he flipped off of the roof and into the midst of the battle, swinging his 'chucks and beating back the two enemy ninjas away from his unconscious brother in red.
"Nice of you to join us Mikey," Leo commented dryly as he fought his way towards Mike and Raph. Mikey just grinned.
"Where's Donnie?" He asked.
Right on cue, the Battle Shell roared through the wall of Foot. The door slid open, revealing Don at the wheel. "Get Raph and let's go!" he said urgently. Together Leo and Mike hoisted Raph into the van, then climbed in after him, sliding the door shut behind them.
"Where were you, Mikey?" Don asked, as he guided the Battle Shell into the alley with the most convenient manhole.
"I was...uh....I took Lona home." Mikey answered. "Sorry."
"Who's Lona?" Don asked curiously. Mikey realized that Don hadn't been there when he'd brought Lona to the lair.
"She's Mikey's new human friend," Leo provided.
"Human...?" Don shook his head. "You can give me details later. We have to get Raph back to the lair."
"What happened?" Mike wanted to know, as Leo climbed out of the van and slid the manhole cover off.
Don sighed. "One of the Foot got a direct hit on him with a dart."
Mikey paled. "Poisoned...?"
"Help me with him." Don ordered.
Mikey slid out of the van and grabbed Raph's legs, Don supporting his top half.
"We don't know yet," Don admitted, answering Mikey's previous question. "Hopefully not, but if it wasn't poisoned, why would he be unconscious?" Mikey was silent, not wanting to know the answer.
"Hurry up guys!" Leo shouted from the sewer, his voice echoing in the alley.
Together Mikey and Don lowered Raph feet first into Leo's waiting arms at the bottom of the opening. Once in the sewer, Leo took Mikey's job of supporting Raph's legs, and he and Don took off down the tunnel as fast as they could. Mikey trailed behind them, the feeling of guilt washing over him.
Inside the makeshift sick room Donnie had insisted on, Leo and Donnie carefully put Raphael on the bed for Don to look him over.
"Mikey, can you get me a syringe from the cabinet?" Don asked his baby brother, who had quietly appeared in the doorway.
Mikey got the syringe for Don, and gave him a quizzical look as he handed it to him.
"I need a blood sample to check for poison," Don explained, answering Mikey's unasked question.
As soon as Leo made sure Raph was safe for the moment, he glanced to Mikey. His orange-wearing brother was sitting on the floor, staring into space. "Mikey..." he started.
"I shoulda been there, Leo." Mikey said. "Then maybe..."
"Maybe this wouldn't have happened?" Leo finished for him. Mikey nodded mutely. Leo sighed and crouched down next to his brother. "As much as you'd like to think that, Mikey, you're wrong. Even if you had been there, it would've happened anyway. There's nothing you could have done. Raph let his temper get in front of his brain, as usual."
"Yeah, but-"
"Mikey. Quit. Raph will be fine."
Mikey sighed and leaned his head back against the wall. He didn't feel any better.
Mikey woke with a start and looked around. The hissing of a pipe had woken him up, which meant-
"I fell asleep." He told himself. He got up and realized he was still in the sick room. He wondered briefly why Don or Leo hadn't woken him up, and made a mental note to ask them later. Mikey wandered over to where Raph lay, and immediately the familiar feeling of guilt washed over him again.
Suddenly Mikey felt like he needed to get out for a while. He crept quietly into the living room where Leo, Don and Master Splinter were watching the news together. He had almost made it to the front door when Splinter's ears twitched and he turned around. "Michelangelo. Where are you going, my son?"
"Topside, sensei."
Usually Splinter would have stopped Mikey, saying it was dangerous, inviting him to watch television with his family, but Splinter could see the need to be alone in the normally hyper turtle's eyes. He waved a paw. "Do not be too long, Michelangelo." Mikey bowed and left.
Don turned to Leo. "Since when did Mikey turn into Raph?" Leo just shrugged.
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Mikey ambled along a rarely used path in Central Park, his hands stuffed in his trenchcoat pockets, thinking about what Leo said. It really wasn't his fault, but he couldn't help thinking that it was. Mikey sighed and sat down on a bench shielded by a circle of trees. There was a small pool in front of the bench, with a waterfall flowing into it. Mikey closed his eyes. It sounded so...peaceful.
Mikey was awakened by a curious duck who had landed in his lap. He gave a start, and shooed the duck away. Mikey felt a sinking feeling in his stomach, when he realized the sun had risen. He glanced at a small wristwatch in the pocket of his trenchcoat, and the sinking feeling got deeper. It was eleven in the morning. Shit. Mikey climbed off the bench, and pulled his fedora lower before walking out into the middle of New York City morning traffic.
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Lona sighed and clicked her pen against the heavily graffitied desk as she listened to a teacher drone on and on about triangles. Lona could have banged her head against the desk, she was so bored. I hate math! She thought to herself.
Deciding staring out the window would make the time go faster, Lona twisted her head to look at the quickly changing foliage of New York City-
Suddenly Lona saw a flash of green, and then a flash of orange. She blinked and shook her head. No way...the leaves had to be playing tricks on her-
She saw the flash of green and orange one more time. Lona sat bolt upright and put up her hand.
"Yes Lona? You know what a midpoint theory is?"
"Uh...something about the middle of something, can I go to the bathroom?"
The elderly teacher raised an eyebrow, but nodded slowly at her as he handed her a pink slip. "Do not take too long," he wheezed.
Lona ran down the puke-green tiled hallway as fast as she possibly could, silently thanking her perfect behavior record, which would come in handy if she got caught.
Lona spotted the door to the courtyard and burst through it, looking around wildly. The courtyard was absolutely empty. Suddenly a barrage of differently colored leaves rained down on her dark hair. She looked up.
Mikey was sitting in the fork of an oak tree, high enough so that the kids sitting on the first floor couldn't see him, but low enough so the kids on the second floor couldn't see him either. Lona thanked both their lucky stars for crappy building plans.
"Mikey! What are you doing here?!"
Mike gave her a goofy grin. "I didn't know this was your school, Lona. I fell asleep in the park, and I almost got hit by a bus, so I had to find a place to catch my breath before I went home.The door to the courtyard was open, so..." He shrugged. "Sorry."
Lona sighed. "Well, come on, I'll show you where you can hide for a while."
Back inside the oddly colored school hallway, Mikey hunched down and pulled his fedora lower. "Are you sure nobody will notice?" he asked.
Lona scoffed. "In this school, everybody's so wrapped up in themselves they wouldn't notice the Apocalypse if it hit them in the face. Now come on."
She took his arm and pulled him up many flights of stairs, until they just stopped at a little doorway. "This used to be a greenhouse," she said, indicating the door, "but our school is cheap, and the greenhouse was pretty much disbanded. They use it as storage now." Lona pulled a paper clip from her pocket, and twisted it so it resembled a metal rod. She shoved it into the keyhole and twisted it around until there was a small click, and the door swung open. She motioned Mikey inside. "You can hang there for a while, ok?" she said. "I have to get back to class."
Lona turned and made to leave, when a green hand on her shoulder stopped her. "Lona..."
Lona turned back around. "Yeah?"
"When I was looking for someplace to crash, I wandered around in Chinatown for a while...and I found this..." Mikey reached into his trenchcoat pocket and produced a necklace. It was a silver circle with a turtle made out of jade set into it.
Lona took it and studied it for a long time. "It's beautiful..." she said finally.
Mikey grinned. "It's for you."
Lona smiled at him and slipped the chain around her neck. "Thanks Mikey. Now I really need to get to class. I'll come back after school if you're still here, ok?" Mikey nodded.
After Lona had disappeared off to class, Mikey leaned back against a folded up table and began to search around the discarded school materials for something interesting.
Suddenly there was a loud thump, and the door swung open, with Mikey standing in the middle of the room like a deer in the headlights.
A/N: And there is L.G.'s famous cliffhanger. Aren't I nice? OK, well, until next time, dudes and dudettes.