Oute amia= I love you
Tailaga ne Gaido= Journey for Unity
Tashin ne Sisu= The Dance of the Tashin
Makandi= Shadow Beast
Chapter 3
Don left everybody alone and headed out. As soon as he stepped outside, something felt... off. He couldn't quite put his finger on what. He looked around, but nothing seemed out of the ordinary. He shook off the feeling and continued his way toward his destination. As soon as he walked off, a hooded figure peered around the corner, staring him down as he headed down the busy village path. The figure breathed a sigh of relief, realizing that he could have easily been caught. He hurriedly snuck away from the village as he had gotten some important information.
Don walked over to a home where he knew Nati was. He slid the door open and stepped inside. "Nati, I'm here." he called out.
Nati stepped out of her room and ran into his waiting arms. Wrapping her arms around his neck and her tail wrapped around his leg. She was always so happy when he came by. She didn't really like being alone. When they pulled apart, and he looked into her eyes, he saw that they were brimming with unshed tears. He immediately became concerned. "What's wrong? What happened?"
She quickly wiped away the remainder of her tears and smiled up at him. "It is nothing, Donatello."
"Come on, Nati. You should know by now that you can't lie to me." he said as he tucked a strand of hair behind her ear.
She looked away, embarrassed. "I suppose you are right. It is just that I am constantly reminded that I am alone in here."
He looked around Nati's home. It was reasonably large, which made the emptiness even more noticeable. After her parents were killed, she couldn't bring herself to leave. So she stayed alone, sometimes scared, and she would cry herself to sleep. Don stayed with her as often as possible so she wouldn't be alone, so she could cling to someone as she cried. He hated seeing her like this.
He sighed and took her hand. "Come on."
"Where are we going?" she asked as she let him guide her out of the house.
"To our spot." he said with a wink.
She smiled up at him and gladly followed. Hand in hand, they headed out of the village, toward Kyote Forest, following a trail that led them to Gyma cliff with Luna following behind them. It was a long trek which was why not too many people came this way. This time was a bit different, though. As they made their way through the forest, Don felt like they were being followed. Don stopped in his tracks and turned around, but there was no one there. His feeling was proven correct as Luna also reacted seconds later, turning and growling at the unknown entity while standing protectively in front of Don and Nati. Even though he couldn't see anyone, he still felt like someone was there, so using his sight, he saw an aura emanate from behind a tree. It was definitely that of a person, not an animal. It was an angry red color. "Is something wrong, Donatello?" Nati asked.
Don stopped Luna from approaching their stalker and smiled down at Nati. "It's nothing. Don't worry." he had an idea of who it might be, so he didn't worry. If they wanted to watch then, he was going to let them. "Come on."
Walking a bit longer until there was an incline, they made their way upwards. Continuing until they reached the very top. They looked out over the land that they called home. They could see almost everything from there. The villages, the plains, the mountains behind the palace even Tandaya as she stood above everything else. They both sat down with their legs dangling over the edge, and Luna lay down next to Don, just enjoying the light breeze and the sunlight. "Tailaga ne Gaido." Don said suddenly.
Nati froze. "W-what?" she asked. "R-really?"
"Yeah, Beloose let me know that I could go."
Nati's face turned darker pink as she blushed.
"I know we've been talking about it for a while, but I think that now is as good a time as any for me to do this."
"Are you sure, Donatello?"
"I haven't been more sure about anything in my life. Oute amia." he said to her and pressed a kiss to the back of her hand.
"Oute amia." she said back to him and leaned her head down on his shoulder. "When do you leave?"
"I was thinking the day after the festival."
Nati took a deep breath. "Okay."
He didn't need Tandaya to tell that she was nervous. He slid an arm around her waist and held her close. "I'll be okay."
"I know, but I still worry." she said as she leaned up against him. "I do not wish to be alone again."
He knew what she meant. The road he was most likely going to be taking was the fastest, but it could get dangerous if he didn't know where he was going. Luckily for him, with his vao training he probably wouldn't run into any danger. He didn't want to waste any time, so taking the longer, safer route was out of the question. "I'll be extra careful. Mikey is going to map out the best route for me, and if there is any danger, I'll have Luna with me." he stroked Luna's fur, and she responded with a purr.
"She is quite protective of you."
"Yeah, so don't worry. It'll be okay."
"...I trust you." she nodded and stayed silent for a while. "You are not planning to cross through Lakra Summit are you?"
Don looked over to the palace. Behind it stood the ominous black mountains called the Lakra Summit. A mountain range that connects the four territories together. Anyone brave enough to cross through those peaks usually met their end. It's a very difficult mountain range to get through, which is why Dax and Beloose actively discouraged him and his brothers from ever climbing it. Whether it was to climb to its peak or just to get through it to get to another territory didn't matter. They did not want anyone near that mountain unless absolutely necessary and only if you had a lakra with you. Only they can maneuver through it with little to no difficulty, but it was still risky even then. Many found that out the hard way.
"No, I don't think that's necessary. I would only cross that mountain range if I absolutely needed to."
Nati was able to breathe a little easier knowing that, but she was still nervous about it. She had to change the subject. If she didn't, she would just get herself more worked up. "So, I suppose I will be singing at the festival tomorrow."
"Really? That's great!" he said.
"Yes, but it has been a long time since I have done something like this. I am worried that my voice will not be up to par. I may not be ready for this."
"Hey, I've heard you sing. You sound amazing. You are ready for this."
Nati blushed, her already pink skin turning an even darker pink. "Thank you, Donatello."
"And if you get nervous, just look right at me, okay."
Nati nodded and leaned back on his shoulder, enjoying the peaceful silence that fell between them. Don couldn't really get entirely comfortable knowing that they were still being watched. Neither could Luna as her tail aggressively lashed back and forth. Don sighed and stood up. "Sorry Nati, I'll be right back. Wait here."
Nati nodded, slightly confused. Don tapped Luna on the top of her head. "Come on." she stood up. "You know where they're hiding, right?" he whispered to her.
Luna responded with a huff. "You come up on one side, and I'll cut them off on the other side." she responded with another huff.
Luna stalked up to the tree where she knew someone was hiding. Peeking around the corner, she spotted Don's red-headed friend. She growled low and startled April, who instinctively backed away from the gray beast. She backed up right into Don's plastron. She turned around to see her purple banded friend casually leaning against the tree. "How long were you planning on spying on us, April?"
"Donnie! I'm... I'm sorry. I just-"
"...Just what?" he asked, crossing his arms as he patiently waited for an answer.
April couldn't quite find the words to say as she had just been caught essentially stalking. "I just wanted to make sure that you're okay."
Don raised a curious eye ridge at her. "Well, I am. Thanks for worrying. Now, can you head back to the village? I'm trying to have some alone time." he pointed back to Nati, who was still waiting for him, completely unaware of what was happening.
She looked back down the trail where she had come from, and he knew that she didn't exactly know her way back. He sighed. "Luna, take her back to the village, please." Luna looked to Don and gave off an annoyed sounding groan. "I know, but please." giving in, she huffed, annoyed, and began nudging April to move back down the path that they had come from.
Don watched them leave and sighed before returning to Nati. "What was that?"
"April was following us."
"Why?"
"I'm not entirely sure, to be honest." he shrugged and held her hand in his. "I'm not gonna worry about it now. Let's just enjoy this time together."
And so they did, with no one else to distract them from their alone time, Don could focus more on Nati like he wanted.
Luna turned up back at Ithri with April in tow. "Yo, April!" she heard Raph call out. "Where were you?"
The three turtle brothers and her husband ran up to her. "Babe, where'd you run off to? I was getting worried."
"I was... with Don."
Her friends looked at her suspiciously. "But Don is spending time with Nati. Why would he bring you along too?"
April looked embarrassed and shrugged. She really wanted to see if she could talk to her smart friend alone. That was really why she followed him. She figured that if she spoke to him, it would be easier to convince him to come back home with her, making it easier to convince the others to go back as well. Somewhere in the back of her mind, she thought that she would get that chance despite him being with his girlfriend. I guess it was stupid to think that way. I'll just have to wait for a better time to talk to him. She thought.
"I was just making sure that Don was okay." April shrugged, giving them the same excuse she gave Don.
Another suspicious look from the turtles as they looked to Luna, who responded with an annoyed groan sound and what looked to be an eye roll before wandering off.
Leo saw the brown and red auras surrounding her friend that Mikey had told him about. "Right well, why wouldn't he be okay? He knows how to navigate through the forest. You don't. We know you can take care of yourself, but that was really dangerous." Leo said.
"Maybe just stick around here from now on. Let Don be with his girl. He'll be fine." Mikey said. "You can't just go wandering off like that."
"If you want to take a walk, then at least take one of us with you." Raph added.
"Alright, I'm sorry." she held her hands up in surrender. "I won't do it again."
Once Luna returned to Don and Nati, they headed back down the cliff to take a walk. Just surrounding themselves with nature was something that they both loved doing. "Hey Nati, I've been thinking. Why don't you stay with me?"
"Huh?"
"Yeah, I figured we've got to talk about living arrangements soon, right."
"Oh, right, well, I do not know."
Don thought for a second. He knew why she was hesitating. She didn't want to leave her family's home. He really only suggested it as a way for her to not be alone. He wanted to be able to protect her, not just physically, but emotionally as well. He felt like he couldn't do that if she stayed in her family's home. "A change of scenery could be good for you. It worked out well for me." he said, knowingly.
She sighed heavily. "I know, but... I do not know if I can bring myself to do something like that."
They continued to walk until they came up to a stream. "Listen, I know it must be tough to leave your family's home, but I hate seeing you cry, and that's all you do while you're there. It's heartbreaking." as he explained this, he noticed a stemless flower floating downstream. He scooped it out of the water and examined it. Its blue and purple translucent petals were cradled by heart-shaped green leaves. It was an esreet flower, and it just happened to be one of Nati's favorites. "You don't have to give me an answer now, but just think about it, okay. I'll accept whatever you decide." he handed the delicate flower to her.
She graciously took it from him. "...Okay, I will."
The hooded figure ran to the outskirts of the forest, constantly looking over his shoulder to make sure he wasn't being followed. Once he made it to the designated spot, he stopped to take a breather. Although, the rustling of bushes and sudden movement from wild animals did nothing to calm his already racing heart. He just about jumped out of his skin when Watamu appeared. "Were you followed?"
"No, I do not think so." the hooded figure answered.
"Good, what have you found out?"
"The false king and his vao are fully aware of what is happening in the other village of Ezdic Territory." the hooded figure said.
Watamu shook his head. "I expected that to happen. We could not continue testing the potency of the poison without them noticing eventually. What else?"
"The Makandi, Donatello. He is planning a visit to the Azbani territory for Tailaga ne Gaido." the hooded figure said.
Watamu thought for a moment before a sinister smirk formed on his face. "This could be the perfect opportunity for me and I didn't even have to do anything to separate them. When does he depart?"
"The day after Tashin ne sisu."
"Perfect, that is all I need to know." Watamu said
"Whatever you have planned, please be careful. He seemed to notice something was wrong as soon as he walked out of his home."
"Did he use his sight?" he asked, almost concerned.
"No, if he did I am sure he would have noticed me. If you intend to stalk him, then keep your distance."
"Your advice is noted. Now, go to Myazima Swamp. The more people they have there the better."
The hooded figure headed off, leaving Watamu alone. He looked out at the palace on the hill. "Do not worry, Katu Kai. You will be freed soon. Just wait."
Hope you enjoy
