(AN: Another Rise of the TMNT story I'm reposting from my AO3 account. Enjoy!3)
It started as a regular, boring day. Raphael was hunched over a bowl of cereal dubbed 'Bland Oats' (a truly disgusting brand that tasted of cardboard mixed with wheat, but Donnie insisted it had good fiber), chewing each nauseating bite with slow distaste. There was something on the side of the box stating about a prize inside, but Raph was no fool. He may not look it, but as a self proclaimed cereal connoisseur and as a frequent buyer of sugary snacks, he was well aware that this so-called prize had to be a cheap toy or some puzzle game. Nothing worthwhile, and explaining that to Mikey every time was not fun either. Cereal companies in particular were sneaky in a sense that they could lure naïve fools into buying their products. So he kept munching on his cereal.
That is, until a flyer floated out of the box and landed directly on his bowl. Frowning, he lifted the page to get a closer look. It was in such small print, the snapper had to press his beak against the paper, nearly smudging it with ink as he skimmed it. Then he reread it again. Then again. Then it finally sunk in.
His eyes went wide and he spat out his milk. "Holy Mother of Lou Jitsu." He whispered in awe. "This is too good to be true!" He had to tell everyone. And by everyone, of course that only meant the four people he knew.
He practically ripped the doors off as he sprinted to the living room, holding the flyer in one massive fist as he waved it in front of his siblings' faces. "Guys, guys, guys! You're never gonna believe this!"
Leo, Mikey and April were all intently staring at the T.V screen, each with a controller in their hands as they furiously punched buttons in an attempt to win some video game.
"Aw come on," He grumbled. "Turn that off, I've gotta say something important!"
"Hang on a sec Raph, I'm about to beat these suckers in Larry-io Kart!" Leo sneered, purposely shoving Mikey aside, kicking the box turtle's own controller aside.
"Hey, cheater!" Mikey whined as he picked it up. The batteries had fallen out and rolled under the sofa. "You sabotaged me!" He crawled on his hands and knees as he searched for the lost batteries.
Leo smirked, tongue sticking out with determination. "Almost...there...I can see the finish line, yo! Come to papa!" His little blue car picked up speed, while Mikey's car rolled off the road.
"Oh no you don't!" Mikey tackled his older brother to the floor. "You're a big cheater!" He snatched the controller from his hands and threw it behind him. Leo squawked in horror, scrambling to reach for it, but the orange clad turtle had blocked his path.
"Get outta the way!" Leo demanded, still furiously trying to push Mikey away, but his brother refused to budge.
"Not until you admit you cheated!" The normally sweet and easygoing teen had his own mischievous grin plastered on his face.
"Never!" He snarled. "I'm the true winner, hermano! And a true winner never admits when he's wrong!" He swept his leg underneath and knocked him flat on his carapace. "Ha!"
"You're the true cheater!"
"Uhh...guys?" April peered over them, chuckling, pointing at the TV.
The two turtles glanced at the screen. A yellow pixelated car drove past the finish line. In big letters presented over a swirling ribbon: Princess Plum wins!
"Wha-huh?" Leo sat up, affronted.
"Booya!" She pumped her fist in the air. "Y'all just got April'd! Time for a victory dance!" She stumbled around clumsily, spinning and twirling and finishing with a dramatic pose.
"Aw phooey! We both lost..." Mikey grumbled in disappointment.
"I don't believe it. I don't want to believe it."
"You all would have lost if I had joined the game." Donnie scoffed, sitting on the sofa with crossed legs and a white fluff ball on their lap. "Bootyyyshaker9000 is the superior gamer, after all."
"But you didn't play with us!" Leo argued at his twin, sticking his tongue out immaturely. "So that statement means nothing. Zip. Zero. Zilch. Nada."
"I would have, but as you can clearly see 'nardo, I have a cat on my lap." Donnie gestured to the sleeping, purring Pepper. "I'm not allowed to move—it's the law." Their thick eyebrows furrowed.
Leo looked ready to retort, but April shook her head. "Who cares?" She put a hand to her hip. "What matters is I won this round using my own mad skills."
Raph, who had been standing there like a fool the entire time, decided to speak up; "No, what really matters is I have news!"
The others blinked at him.
"So?"
"Big news," Raph emphasized slowly.
"Oh, well that changes things!" Leo sprung up eagerly. "What is it?"
"Check it out," Raph practically shoved the flyer in all of their faces. "I won a prize from my cereal box! An actual, legit prize!"
Donnie squinted at the paper, lifting Pepper in their arms as they strolled over. "An all expense paid cruise ship?" Pepper licked their cheek. "Where to?"
"The Bahamas!" Mikey squealed, grabbing the paper to read for himself. His eyes nearly popped out of his head. "Look at all these awesome activities: snorkeling, bungee jumping, water slides, paragliding! Ooh! This looks like tons of fun!"
"I could use a vacation," Leo stretched his arms dramatically, his joints cracking. "Crime fighting and saving humanity really takes a toll on a turtle. I need a break. We all do. And, as the new leader," He ignored Donnie's annoyed grunt; "I say we should go!"
"I don't know guys," April hummed. "Doesn't it seem convenient that there are just enough tickets for all five of us?"
"Nope, it says right here," Raph pointed his stubby finger at the bottom of the page. "This is completely legitimate and not at all suspicious. Right there in black and white." He ripped off the set of five tickets hanging on the edge. "Here are the tickets!"
"That's good enough for me!" Mikey chimed.
"Besides, if we ever get washed up in some hot water, we all have our weapons," said Leo.
"Did you really just do two dad jokes in one sentence?" Donnie pinched their nonexistent nose.
"Like a turtle do!" Leo sang, then frowned. "Say, how are we supposed to even attend the cruise if we have this whole situation going on." He gestured at his plastron, patted Mikey's shell, and bonked the markings on Donnie's arms.
"I know!" Mikey perked up. "We could dress up in trenchcoats and wear fake mustaches! No one will suspect a thing."
"Well whatever we do, I'm not dressing up as an old lady again." Leo huffed under his breath.
"That's the best part," Raph beamed. "There's a costume party on the cruise. When we show up, people will just think we're a bunch of dudes dressed up! We'll fit right in as the terrifying turtle aliens that Jupiter Jim fights!"
"So long as I get to be Atomic Lass!" April said, her eyes sparkling with delight.
"Duh," Leo rolled his eyes. "We can't partay without April O' Neil!"
"Ah, it's pronounced 'party' not...partay." Donnie corrected flatly.
"It's official then? We're actually doing this?" Mikey asked, looking hopeful.
Raph nodded firmly. "All we need now is to ask Pops..."
"You want to go where?" Splinter lay back on his recliner, mindlessly crunching on cheesy balls.
"A cruise ship, padre." Leo explained. "We'll be totally safe, and it's just for a few days."
"And what is this for?"
Leo fidgeted uncomfortably as he tried to think of a response. "Um. It's for uh, a special..."
"It's for a mission." Raph said quickly. "Mutant pirate frogs have taken over this ship, and we're thinking of posing as vacationers so we can ambush them. Oh and everything's been paid for. Plane tickets, cruise tickets, all the food...the whole shebang."
"And I'll take care of them, Splints." April assured the old rat.
Splinter grunted. "Sounds reasonable. Alright, you may go, as long as April and Red chaperone—since they are the oldest. Can you bring the cat along though?" He pointed at Pepper, who hissed at him. "I don't think she likes me. The feeling is mutual but still."
"No way, José!" Mikey shook his head. "Pepper's too fragile and cute for this kind of mission. It'll be better if she stays with you! If...that's okay with you, Dad." He pouted his lip.
"Eugh, very well." Splinter relented, watching as Pepper proceeded to trot away with her fluffy tail in the air.
"We truly appreciate your noble sacrifice for her safety." Donnie said, casually dabbing sunscreen on their cheeks. "It's a super dangerous mission." They replaced their regular goggles with upgraded sunglasses . "Super dangerous."
Splinter did not look convinced, but shrugged. "Have fun, kids." He paused, his pink nose twitching. "I mean...good luck!"
"Vacation time, fellas!" They whooped and cheered as they did a group hug.
The cruise ship floated in the distance, a large bulky, cream colored boat that thankfully wasn't too tall, but instead rather large in size. After a long, exhausting flight, they were ready to relax at last.
"Vacation's all I ever wanted!" Donnie sang, hovering a few inches off the ground.
"Vacation had to get away!" Mikey bounced up and down the boardwalk.
"Vacation meant to be spent alone!" April and Leo belted together, the latter being intentionally pitchy.
"Everyone got your tickets?" Raph asked, and the group nodded. "Donnie, stop flying, we're in public!" He hissed.
"My bad."
"And keep your tech in check." Raph sighed. "Everyone present your tickets to that guy, and we'll be able to enter the—"
"Race you to the ship!" Mikey challenged April. "Three-two-oneGO!"
"Hey, you started early!" She hollered, running after him as fast as she could.
Raph turned to Leo, who was in his own little world as he hummed the Go-Gos to himself. "Alright," He looked at Donnie instead. "We'll catch up with them later, as long as they have their tickets they'll be fine."
The twins bounded ahead of him with ease, while Raph staggered behind, since he was the one that offered to carry all of the luggage—being the strongest. He immediately regretted being the nice brother for once, since he was pouring with sweat and his arms were starting to ache.
"I should have told Donnie to carry their tech themselves." He grumbled. "Sometimes, being nice really sucks."
There was some shuffling behind him, which made Raph stop his struggling. "Need some help?" A feminine voice piped up, already lifting some of his bags helpfully.
Speaking of nice...
Raph was too exhausted to properly reply to whoever was talking to him. "Yeah, that'd be..." His voice trailed off as he looked up at the girl in front of him.
She was in cosplay, about his age, maybe a year older. She wore a sea green lizard costume with darker green stripes, comically large amber eyes, tiny freckles dotting her cheeks and was dressed in a blue metallic romper.
"...that'd be great." He gulped, the back of his neck burning from the heat. "Thanks."
She reached for Mikey and Donnie's suitcases respectively, while Raph took the rest, their hands accidentally brushing together. "No problem."
He couldn't help but notice she didn't have any bags of her own. Weird.
"That's a lot of bags." She commented as they walked along. "Are you traveling alone?"
"Me? No, no, I'm with some friends." He explained politely. Small talk was never his strong suit, but he hated being rude. "What about yourself?"
"Oh I-"
"Ahem!" The ticket man interrupted them with a rude scowl. "Your tickets?"
"Right here!" Lizard girl presented Raph's ticket with a wink. "We're together, don't worry about it, hon!" Grabbing Raph's hand, she attempted to drag the massive turtle up to the deck.
Flabbergasted and startled, he backed up, now fully aware of what had just happened. "Hey, wait a second. You used me to catch a ride here. You don't actually have a ticket!"
She batted her eyelashes innocently, placing the suitcases by his side. "I'm not sure what you mean." She started to turn away, but then grinned. "Thanks for helping me out there, sugar. Oh, and I absolutely adore your costume."
Raph felt his cheeks warm, forgetting that he technically wasn't in costume and accepted the compliment. "Thanks!" He smiled goofily, hoping his voice didn't crack too much. "Hey, wait! I didn't even get your name!"
He tried to follow the mysterious girl but she had disappeared in a sea of cosplayers.
"There you are," Mikey trotted towards him, hands on his hips sassily. "You took forever!"
"Yeah, you were gone like...an entire page." Donnie quipped, close behind.
"We thought we lost you, Raph!" Leo added.
"Sorry I took so long, but I was busy carrying all of your bags like a pack mule!" He said sarcastically.
"And we appreciate your gallant efforts!"
"Let's just put our stuff away in our rooms, and then we can look at the list of activities." April said.
After their bags had been dropped off (Mikey and Raph shared a room, Leo and Donnie shared, and April had her own), they wandered around the front deck looking for things to do. The ship was about to leave the port, and now they had the freedom to explore every single activity.
"Before we do anything we need to commemorate this moment so we can look back with fondness at this delightful memory." Donnie proclaimed.
"Comm...com...memor..." Leo stared blankly. "What?"
"Is that gonna hurt?" Mikey wondered.
"Nay, Michael, we're simply taking a selfie." They pressed a back button on their battle shell. "Activating selfie stick mode!" The robotic arms attached to the shell connected to Donnie's phone, holding it up at a perfect angle. "Everyone get into position! Mikey, you're too close to the camera!"
"Oops, sorry!"
Raph was grinning in the back with Mikey perched on his shell for a piggy back ride. Leo's arms were crossed in a sassy pose on the left side, with Raph's hand resting on his shoulder, and Donnie and April were hugging tightly in the middle.
"Everyone say: Pneumonoultramicroscopicsilicovolcanoconiosis!" Donnie said, preparing to take the photo.
"Como?"
"Wait, huh?"
"That's not a word!'
"Donnie!"
The camera flashed. Donnie grabbed their phone, examining the photo. Everyone had confused or annoyed expressions, save for Donnie who looked extremely smug. "Wow, I look fantastic! The rest of you, ehhh not so much. But still, that one's a keeper."
"You caught us off guard, Dee." April huffed. "How 'bout one more?"
"Fiiiiine. Let's do a silly one!"
The first day was mainly an exploring day. Everything went surprisingly well, and the Mad Dogz happily indulged in all of the various cruise shenanigans available. Mostly food related. By the time nightfall came, they decided to settle for the evening.
"I still can't believe we were kicked out of the spa!" Leo complained as he aggressively brushed his teeth. They were all chilling out in April's room after dinner. Or, trying to chill at least.
"Are you really surprised?" Donnie said, helping Mikey button his fuzzy orange pajamas. "You totally blew up on the poor masseuse."
"He asked me to take my costume off!" Leo snapped, flinging toothpaste at Donnie—who promptly ducked inside their shell before it could hit them. "That pervert!"
"Yeah, well, how is he supposed to massage you when you're 'dressed' as a turtle?" April asked, flopping on her bed.
"But I'm not dressed as a turtle! This is my authentic self!"
"Excepth for the sake of thish entire trip, you are." Raph's voice was slightly muffled from his retainer. "Costumth party, remember?"
"That's not fair," Leo pouted. "My neck's all tense and sore because Brandon the massage guy refused to do what he's paid to do!" He spat into the sink.
"Give it a rest, Leo," Mikey adjusted his night cap, yawning. "April, can you put on Jupiter Jim: A New Destiny please?"
"You got it Mike!"
With the first day of vacation complete, the teens snuggled in a cuddle pile to watch the first film of their favorite saga.