TURN AROUND
Sequel to 'Heroes, Jane Does and Me'; please read first to know the characters
Disclaimer: I do not own Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles nor any characters associated with them. I do own the creative licence for Katie and what happens to her in this fic. This was written for pleasure and no money was gained.
Protection, to some people it means safety a feeling that is highly desired. To others it means threats, theft and eventually payments to your self proclaimed protectors. I fall into the latter group, not completely on my own choice you know. People like me still crave the feeling of being safe from all harm and pain but usually it comes with a price, sometimes that price is too high to pay.
In a city like New York people are use to seeing the unusual, there are the typical bar raisers like the hippies from the sixties, the Goths of the nineties and now there are the gangs. The all powerful one is run by a guy that goes by the name of Oroku Saki. He offers girls like me protection from those that would do us harm. Everything is all good and cheerful on the out side but when you step into his modern castle you learn you've made a deal with the devil. This high and mighty man of money goes by another name, one of a more sinister nature, the Shredder. It is under that title that he rules the shadows of the city. No one in their right mind would stand up to him; he's got resources coming from every thinkable direction. This guy has his hands into everything.
Believe it or not he even has his hands dirty with dealing in my business. The selling of innocent skin or at least it used to be innocent. I thought when I first started in this business that it would be some what glamorous, far from the truth. The only glamour in this is coming home to a dark apartment and knowing that you survived another day in your own personal hell.
Most girls in my kind of life don't last long. They are usually runaways, or tripped up high as a kite on some sort of drug or just plain desperate. I was the latter again. But I have something that none of the others have. I have a hero. Sure he may be green and a foot shorter then I am and wear a shell, but hey he'll sit and listen to me wail about how I miss my dad or help fix my face after a brute got a little too rough. He's been though hell and back more times then I have even faced it. He and his three brothers are involved in a war of the underground and they are the city's only hope to having a good future.
I threw the keys to my apartment on to the scratched surface of my kitchen table and leaned against the closed door. Today had been rough, in a few hours I would be sporting the very newest blue tones my body could create and in the form of a meaty hand print on the cheek. Taking a few deep breaths I worked up enough energy to walk to my bedroom at the end of the short hallway. I passed the bathroom and grabbed the bottle of aspirin. Downing two I sat on my bed.
"Katie you home?" the Brooklyn accent was his give away. But no matter how many times he entered my home without my knowledge he would still startle me.
"Yeah Raph I'm in here."
His dark green body appeared slowly out of the shadows of the hall. "Rough night?" he chuckled slightly, and then frowned at my glare. "You don't look so hot."
"Don't feel too hot either hero. I just want to sleep for a week and then some." I said as I flopped back on to the pillows. "You were just in the neighbourhood right? Or was there something you wanted?"
Raph cleared his throat. He was on edge for some reason. "I heard things were getting rougher out there." He was interrupted by a police siren. "Just wanted to check on ya, make sure you were okay."
I smiled slightly. "That's sweet Raph but a phone call can do that too." I looked up at him, "I appreciate your concern but I am pretty sure that your family may be wondering where you are…and anyways I have to get some sleep. Tomorrow I have a meeting with Saki."
Raph growled at the mention of his enemy. Saki, or really the Shredder was the turtles' foulest enemy who refused to die. "I dunno why you still work for him Katie. Hell I don't know why you are still selling yourself out there. You could do so much better then that." He crossed his arms, "Or was that just a line of you being a University grad."
"Wasn't no line Raph, I did graduate from a University, one in Canada. But then things with my dad went sour and…" I could feel tears coming on. "And things just got worse."
Raph looked at me again, arms relaxing and hanging by his side. "I know Katie, I know. Look I think I'll be heading home. I'll see you round okay?" I sniffed a good-bye and he was gone; as silent as a shadow.
That night was a rough one. Not only could I not sleep on my one side because of the new bruise but nightmares came back of losing everything. Raph had told me a few stories of what Saki did to his brothers and him. It's nothing I would wish on my worst enemy. Nightmares of his stories coupled with my inventive imagination wasn't pretty. Found myself awake at three in the morning sitting at my kitchen table with a pad of paper and a pen. Scribbling down the nightmares and everything I saw when I closed my eyes. Sounds weird but it makes them less believable and not as scary to me.
I had until midday to get ready for my session with Saki. I was told to buy a new outfit, dress to kill I think were the actual orders in the note. I went to the high end boutiques and chose a killer black dress. It hugged my like a second skin but wasn't without taste. Saki would be pleased.
I don't really know when things went bad. I showed up at the designated pick up point and these thugs escorted me to the car. I expected to see Saki but no who was there to meet and greet but his stuck up adopted daughter. "Plans have changed." She said with a slight smirk.
"What's going on?" I hugged my purse tighter.
"My master has been pleased with your work and wishes you to become an honorary member of his group. It is up to myself and Hun to see that you meet all desired limits." Again she gave me a knowing smirk, she was enjoying this a little too much for my liking.
"Where are we going?" I asked looking out the heavily tinted window. The buildings were getting older and darker the further we drove.
"It is a surprise for you."
I never saw the fist coming. Pain exploded in my jaw as my teeth clacked together. The follow up elbow to the stomach stole my breath. Through my gasped I asked, "What...I…do?"
She pulled my head up right with my hair. "You must answer a few questions. How do you know the turtles?"
"The what?" Wrong answer, she hit me again in the face. "I don't know what you are talking about!"
Reaching over me she opened the door and kicked me out. The car had just rolled to a stop. I pulled myself to my knees only to look up at the legs of Hun. One of the worst brutes a girl could face. He picked me up by my hair. "The freaks have learned new info and we think you are the link." He growled into my face.
"I know you know them. The red one in particular has been seen in your area. Care to tell us why?" she asked.
"You mean hero?" she nodded slowly. "He- he saved me from a brute. Gave him a free ride. He still hangs around waiting for more I guess." It was the best line I could come up with. There was too much pounding in my head to think of anything else.
"Liar." That was the last thing I heard.
I woke with a pounding headache in a dark and very gross place. I could feel that I was sitting in something that I didn't want to know the name of. I could hear water running and the sound of my breathing echoing. I sat there for a few minutes trying to put the pounding to the back of my mind and stand.
I was half way up when I heard foot steps. Not knowing where they were coming from I froze. I didn't know if they were going to be friend or foe.
"Dude I so call the last nights pizza. Nothing like a night run to work up a turtle's appetite." A voice said. The work turtle perked my interest but still decided to remain quiet.
"Mikey you'd do anything for pizza." Another voice said. This one sounded some what familiar.
"Donnie, we ain't that different, you'd do anything if Splinter would let you stay in yer lad all day." The first voice replied. They were getting closer.
"There is a difference Mikey. I work for the greater good of the world; you work to fill your stomach." Donnie replied.
I was stretching up slowly trying to press myself against the wall. The problem was I was in what I hoped was water and it was dripping. While I was concentrating on moving the something I was standing on moved and I tumbled back into the muck.
The voices stopped. The footfalls stopped. I tried to hold my breath and remain calm. A few minutes passed I started to relax until I felt a cold piece of metal press it's self against my throat. "Get up." A disembodied voice ordered. I tried to do as asked but my legs wouldn't work. The metal pressed harder. "Get up!"
I whimpered when a rough hand grabbed my arm and went to force me to stand. "Hold it Leo." A fourth voice said. It was thick with a Brooklyn accent. So comforting, yet chilling at the same time.
"Hero?" I whispered. Praying it was really him and not someone else. The metal was removed from my throat and the hand gone. Without its strength my legs gave out. The pounding increased and everything went quiet.
"Who is this woman and what is she doing in our home?" a voice demanded. I was slowly becoming awake, there was something soft under me, and something cool across my forehead. The voice was loud and commanding.
"Mast' a it ain't what it looks like. She ain't gunna hurt us." My hero pleaded.
"We shall see."
I opened my eyes slowly. Things were fuzzy at first; a green blob with a strip of red across it was in my vision. "Hero?"
"Hey girly, you feeling better?" He helped me sit up.
"I guess. Where am I?" I looked around. It was weird. It looked like a home but there were no windows, the ceiling was very high and decorated in stain glass. The furniture was well worn and mismatching. But it was still warm.
"Welcome to my home." Raph backed away letting more enter my view point. An elderly rat was looking at me with ancient eyes. "Katie this is Master Splinter." The old rat nodded.
"Hello." I said my voice was barely above a whisper.
"My child… I do not wish to harm but what are you doing here?" He walked with his cane as a support to an old recliner across from me and sat.
I turned to look at Raph. The images from the last few hours limited as they were came flooding back. Tears built up and tumbled down my swollen cheeks. "Raph it was awful. They were worse then any brute out there. I didn't tell. I swear I didn't tell them anything. But they know. They know that I know you. And with what I know of him they don't want to risk it."
"Slow down Katie. What cha talking about?"
I curled my legs up in front of me, hugged them tight. "Saki's daughter and Hun, they know something's going on. I was supposed to meet him tonight. But they picked me up instead. They worked me over. They wanted to know about you, and if I had told you anything. But I swear I didn't tell them anything. I swear it."
"Shredder's guys did this to you?" I only nodded and wiped at my tears. Raph gave a low growl.
"Master?" a voice asked from behind me. I jumped and turned. There standing behind the couch was another turtle. He carried a stick on his shell and wore a purple mask like Raph wore red.
"What is it Donetello?"
"When I was examining Katie is it?" I nodded, "I found something that is of concern." He turned to me again. "If I may?" he asked pointing at my hair. I shrugged and turned. He came around to the other side of the couch and brushed my long hair off my back. His tough although gentle, hurt as it brushed my skin. "This is the concern."
"Those bastards." Raph growled. Splinter merely made a steeple from his bony hands and sighed.
"Katie you're not part of them are you?"
I was confused. "Part of what? What did they do?"
Donetello looked down at the floor and wouldn't meet her gaze. Another voice answered. "They marked you." This time there were two turtles. The one that spoke wore blue and was casually carrying a large sword. The other work orange and had pity in his eyes.
Slowly I felt my back. There in between my shoulder blade was a mark I traced it out. It was the three pointed symbol both Hun and Saki's daughter wore. "That bitch did this. This was her revenge."
"What cha talking about girl?" the one in orange asked.
"Karai. She planned this whole thing. She just wants me gone. This is all her fault." I shook my head. "I should have known."
"Start at the beginning child." The old rat said.
"Fine. It was about two weeks ago, I had a meeting with Saki for a business party or something. When I arrived I was told that some other business came up and I wouldn't be needed. Karai told me. We never got along. I think she was jealous that I was closer to Saki then she could ever be. When I leaving I could hear form the main chambers what sounded like a fight."
"Two weeks…that would have been us. A little bust gone haywire." Donetello said.
"So what? That still doesn't explain how we found you down here." Leo said with an angry glare.
"I think they may have been following me and seen me and Raph. Karai thought I knew something about you guys that they didn't."
"Katie was gathering info for me, simple stuff like locations of busts going down and stuff." Raph said.
"What did you tell them?" Leo demanded as he unsheathed his other sword.
"N-nothing. I dunno nothing."
"Cool it Leo. She's cool." Raph said unsheathing his own weapons.
"If Karia wanted information she would have killed you to get it. But you're not dead so it must have been something else."
"Karai may be brainless around you but no one is stupid enough to knock off Saki's play toy with out his okay. It'd be suicide." I replied. I was getting a little steamed at this questioning period. "Look I just want to go home. If you want I won't see Raph anymore. I don't want to be a risk to you guys."
"I think you returning home would be a good idea. Raphael will take you. We will discuss your involvement with my son at a later date." Splinter said as he rose and left.
I did as Splinter wished. Raph and I stopped seeing each other. I cleaned myself up, got a real job that was legal and started to turn my life around. I wish I could have thanked Raph and his brothers in person for what they did for me, saving my life, getting me off the streets and keeping Saki in his place. I couldn't contact them in any way Raph stopped coming by a long time ago. I decided to do something that he suggested after my dad died and the nightmares started. Write.
Two years after I sit at a small table in the middle of a busy book store, I have a line of people waiting. Before me now are two people a man with long blue-black hair and a red headed woman. They have a copy of my book in hand.
"Who can I make this out to?" I asked uncapping a marker.
The woman smiled, "Make it out to Raph."
I gawked at her. I couldn't be who I thought it was. "Sure. That's an unusual name." I said baiting her.
"You should meet his brother's." the man said with a smile.
"I think I have."
"Happy birthday Raph." The red head called.
"Aww Ape, Case you didn't have to do this." He grumbled at the sight of a brightly wrapped package.
"I know but when I saw this I knew you had to have it." She replied handing it to him. "Her open it."
Slowly he tore the paper away revealing the book entitled 'My Hero'. "My god she did it." He said to no one but himself. Turning to his friends he said,"Thanks Ape. I owe you one."
Author's notes: a few of you asked for a sequel, I hope I didn't muck it up too bad. The first was a lot easier to write. As always read and review. Flames welcomed.