DISCLAIMER: I only own the plot, the computer, the keyboard, and my cup of coffee. Everything else belongs to the Guys at Mirage.
Chapter 2 – Sojourn to Topside
Michelangelo whistled merrily as he trudged through the sewer. He skipped a little as his good mood brightened even more, giving him a feeling as if a ton of weight had been lifted from him. Mike's arm still stung from where Raph had slugged him, but he didn't mind. It reminded him of Splinter giving him permission to go topside without a chaperone! He checked the pockets of his trench coat once again to make sure the money was still there. It was which only made his whistling that much louder and merrier.
He laughed out loud at one point along the way, thinking back to only moments before.
Mike had done exactly what Splinter had asked of him. He knew his brother would meet him with a pounding the minute he walked back into the living room. However, not before the youngest turtle would apologize! Mike had quickly said his regrets and even told Raph that he would make sure he had the remote for his Wrestlemania program. Complete with popcorn, no less! The look on Raph's face was priceless. If he had been slack jawed when Mike had kicked the television, he was even more so after the apology and snack offer. Still, true to his nature, Raph didn't feel it quite right letting Mike off the hook that easily.
All in all, though, Michelangelo felt he had been meted a light punishment.
"Why're you so apprec'tive for getting whup'd?" Raph had finally asked after he slugged his younger brother.
When Mike announced to everyone that he wouldn't need escorting to topside anymore, even Leo's mouth dropped in surprise.
"It seems, bros, I am now on equal footing with all of you! Topside, here I come!" and with that Mike made his exit, grabbing his coat, the money, and his fedora hat.
Now he was just moments away from climbing up the sewer shaft and to freedom, freedom to choose where to go, when to go and not get hassled about any of it.
Of course, if Leo were with him, he'd want Mikey to keep to the rooftops where it was safe.
Raph would do one better and let him venture down to ground level, but he would insist on staying deep within the shadows.
Don, however, would just drag him off to the junk yard to help haul back whatever treasures he found there. Mike hated that more than anything else. Being Don's mule wasn't at the top of his list for a fun night out on the town; that was certain.
Now, as he reached the bottom of the sewer opening and looked up, he smiled broadly. However, almost at that next moment, a tremor ran through his mind. What if something should happen and he couldn't get back to the lair? How would any of them know?
After Leo had jogged his memory earlier in the kitchen, Mike remembered all too well the first and last time he had gone topside by himself. His brothers had been teasing him about being 'the baby' in the family, how he needed constant monitoring, and how clumsy he was in the dojo. He had only tripped, once in fact, while doing his katas, receiving a swift reprimand from Splinter. In fact, the rat had even said to him that he would never go topside if he didn't pay better attention to his lessons.
Nevertheless,it seemed to be all it took for Mike's brothers to capitalize on his momentary lapse in balance. During the brief teasing Mike endured, Raphael laughed at him and told him that he'd probably never go topside by himself, he'd just get into trouble if he did.
After that, he had been so determined to prove he was ready to venture out alone that he had snuck out of the lair despite the restrictions and warnings. Caught up with the crowds of humans - and, admittedly, a bit frightened, too - it was the sound of a cat that lured him into an alleyway. After searching a few minutes for what he assumed to be a kitten in distress, he had sensed something behind him. Whipping around, he found himself surrounded by thugs, a gang, with each of them holding either a baseball bat or a broken pipe. Fortunately, the coat andhat hid Mike's identity, but he knew that he was also outnumbered. With the alley a dead end and without an outlet,he knew he was cornered. Mike recalled wishing that he had listened to Sensei. If it weren't for Leo discovering that Mike had gone missing and went to look for him, the outcome might have been totally different. That was two years ago. His momentary taste of freedom was all thathe had remembered - until now! Now as he faced his demons, the youngest turtle suddenly had second thoughts.
What if he met up with the same thugs as before? Would they remember him, remember the pounding and injury the 'other' like himself had given to them? Although it had been Leo to do the honors, where all four brothers wore coats and hats, howcould anyone tell them apart?
Still, he had to do this to prove himself - if only to show how wrong Leo and Raph were about him. More importantly, Mike wanted to prove to Splinter that he had been paying attention during practice. He wanted so much to get out from under the watchful eye of his Master and his older brothers. Therefore, Mikey forced himself to climb up the sewer ladder to the heavy metal cover eight feet above him.
Fortunately, Mike knew where he was in the sewers. The particular alley above intersected with a less traveled back street. It was one of several favorite exit points. The alley was a dead end with out any doors from businesses to open suddenly and surprise him. They had all used this particular one as their safe exit, a sure way to getting topside without any people seeing them. No windows were there, as well, since the building surrounding the alley was a warehouse. To make it even better, it was night out, so the chances were slim that anyone would see him.
Mike finally reached the underside of the heavy iron lid. He stared at it for the longest time. This was normally Raph's job. Although Leo was far more skilled in ninjitsu, Raph had more brute upper strength to lift the nearly seventy-pound lid – credit his obsession with lifting weights. As for Mike, he could probably lift that much. Yet, it was a whole different party all the way around to do so while holding onto the ladder rungs with one hand, not to mention that the angle was all wrong in the first place.
"Well," Mike decided, "I'm not going anywhere unless I do this."
Steadying himself on the rungs with one arm wrapped around the steel and leaning into it as far as he could, Mike positioned his one hand against the bottom side of the lid and heaved with all his might. At first, the lid stubbornly refused to budge. Mike tried again, grunting audibly, but with more force. Ever so slowly, the lid finally lifted. Quickly, as soon as he could, Mike shoved it to one side and pushed, the scrape of thick metal grating along asphalt softlybreaking the silence. As he made enough room to allow himself to slip up and out, he grinned broadly, feeling victorious and elated as he breathed in the fresh cool air of the New York City night.
Yet, all was not yet completed. Mike then did as Splinter had taught him. Hugging the ground as he slithered out of the hole, he quickly replaced the lid, and then did a quick three sixty by rolling over to the shadows. He was fast and efficient. He made hardly as Mike tumbled. As expected, there wasn't anyone in the dead-end alley. It was just as deserted as the building that surrounded it. Mike silently slipped the manhole cover back in place and then returned to the shadows once again. Fortunately, the entire area was in darkness. A cloud cover overhead aided that endeavor with the street lights burned out long ago - which suited the young turtle just fine.
The young ninja adjusted his trench coat to make sure he was properly covered. He brought out the fedora hat from a pocket and deftly shoved it down over his head. He was now ready to face the world, hidden beneath his disguise and safely ensconcedin the shadows!
"Life couldn't be any better than this!" Mike cheered to himself, slinking along the side of the building as he carefully approached its corner. Slowly peaking around, he found to his delight that the side street was as it had always been – deserted. Not even a cat disturbed the stillness of the evening. He was good to go!
As Mike walked confidently within the deep shadows of the buildings, unbeknown to him from the other end of the street, a lone figure observed his progress. It crouched, cloaked by the deeper silhouette of the dumpster in which it hid. A reflection gleamed off of what was most definitely a smile, the eyes of its owner narrowed as it watched. The head nodded slightly, if only to its self. Then, the figure proceeded to stalk its prey. Quiet, stealth-like, and invisible within the deep darkness of the night, he stepped noiselessly. He kept his focus sharp on the one far ahead of him and silently chuckled to himself.
His timing couldn't have been any better!
LADY-CHRISTIAN-KNIGHT-88: Ah, my first attempt at storytelling with the TMNT's still in the sewers – FREE, not withstanding. Yeah, I've always wondered about how Mikey really felt about getting pushed around, too. He's still the same fun loving guy, but at some point, he has to get tired of the teasing and patronizing. I know I would! Glad you enjoyed it! I hope that I can make this a short one and finish it before the Philippines – but I won't promise! Thanks for reading and reviewing! Be blessed.
SPLINTER: Golly, you've been gone for so long and I just loved your most recent addition to ! You inspire me so much, ya know! Glad your back:0) Well, thanks so much, too, for reviewing this missive. I hope this will be worthy of your time, as I well know how much effort it takes to raise kids. I love Master Splinter and his caring, if not stern, ways. I'm glad it came through that way here. It was hard to write Mike having a Raph-moment, but I can't believe for one minute he doesn't have a temper or two now and then. A rare thing indeed for him, but we all vent occasionally. Thanks for reading and reviewing. Be blessed.