Artemis wasn't the most graceful person she knew and when she had been sitting with the rest of her family by a barrel fire she didn't know why but what came out of her mouth shocked them all. "I think I'm friends with a mutant turtle who happens to be a ninja."

Logan, a young man only five years older than her, had choked on his soup and Cecile, a blind elderly woman, started to pat his back to help dislodge the remaining liquid. Manny, who had been sitting next to her, just looked at her with wide eyes. After Logan had calmed down and gained his bearings, silence grew around them. Every once in awhile the fire would crackle and send ash up into the chilly air.

"Well uh...that's nice?"

Artemis just chuckled at Manny. He was middle aged but still kept a nice set of brown hair, despite being on the streets for most of his life. His accent was thick enough that you could tell he spoke more than one language; also the fact that if you spent enough time with him he'll spout out phrases in Spanish. Logan stood holding his half full bowl out to Manny to share their portion of their food that night. He wasn't a bean pole but he held little weight which didn't match his tall frame. Logan took off his red beanie and shook out what dust he could get off and placed it back over his dirty blonde hair. It was a habit he did when he was nervous or shocked and after her statement she wasn't surprised to see him do that. Cecile cleared her throat and tried to wrap her shawl closer around her. Artemis couldn't help herself and got up just to get near to the old woman to share some of her body heat. Cecile hated to admit needing help but considering their circumstances she let it go as long as you didn't ask her if she needed anything. It took Artemis a long time to find that out but she was closer to Cecile than the others so the older woman gave her some slack.

"So what makes you think it was a mutant turtle," Cecile asked with her croaky voice. "It's not that I don't believe you sweetheart but that's a little out there, even for you."

Artemis patted her arm and smiled. "I'm not crazy and I know he was because I saw him and because he told me."

Logan rolled his eyes, "Oh yeah. If it walks like a duck and quacks like one..."

"Okay, okay I get it. I know it sounds like I'm insane but I swear by it! He's the reason I didn't have all the cans a few days again and why I was late getting home today. He's real. End of story."

Manny slurped the last of the soup and placed the bowl in their dirty dishes bin. "So, mija, we should just believe you because you say so?" She looked at them all in turn and nodded. Manny shrugged and clapped his hands before standing up alongside Logan; trying to get warmer by the fire. "Well if she says so then I believe it."

"I believe it too," Cecile smiled and stood with some difficulty. She faced the fire and Artemis admired her cloud filled eyes and her stubborn wrinkled face; like no one could shake away her loyalty away from her favorite girl. Logan shook his head and turned around to head to his tent. "Great, I live with easily manipulated old people." Artemis smirked at the lovely gesture Cecile gave him right before he closed the tent flap.

It wasn't perfect but for Artemis this was her family. A couple crotchety old people and an older brother figure who threw tantrums. Their little community was surrounded by four buildings, giving them a little rhombus shaped field to stay hidden in. It wasn't a big space but they made it work. Three tents in a row on one side and a clothesline adjacent to it. Right behind her was their makeshift bathroom that they all agreed whoever used it last for the day must clean it up for tomorrow. Smack dab in the middle was the fire pit they created with an old oil drum and used wooden planks and logs to create a sitting space for eating and talking. Two baskets filled with either clean or dirty dishes and a wash basin used for occasional cleaning of said dishes or cleaning of themselves. It wasn't easy for Artemis to adjust to such a life but then again she was sure it wasn't easy for the rest of them too. She was the latest of their little group and it was all thanks to Cecile. She was the one to find her and to convince the others to let her stay. You never said no to Cecile and that was the first rule she learned.

Artemis stayed with the other two for awhile longer but as soon as Cecile started to wobble, Manny gave a loud yawn and asked Cecile if she was ready to sleep as well. Without much protest Cecile waited for Manny to offer her an arm and he helped tuck her into a sleeping bag. Artemis smiles warmly at them and thought it was almost time for her to join Cecile in their shared tent. It was so inviting when she heard the old lady start to snore but she shook her head and gazed back at the flames.

It was quite the long day she had. She shared some secrets to a total stranger but knew he wasn't going to talk with anyone. Well, not any one human for that matter. She felt comfortable with him after they started some serious discussions about her life. Who would've thought that a mutant would be so curious about the homeless? She knew he probably had a lot more questions but she was careful and made sure to deviate the talk to a more simple one. To be honest she liked the way he was curious like a little boy. It was better than pitiful looks of those who didn't understand. Don't get her wrong, it's not like she didn't play up her stories to make sure those pitiful looks turned into giving hands. Was she proud of it? No. Did it help her survive? Absolutely. She was the last one still awake so she doused the fire and made sure the embers were cool enough to not reignite before heading over to the tent and rolling in her old blankets. She planned another long day for tomorrow.

Once she got up she heard Cecile humming her usual lullaby of some old opera. She opened the tent flap and watched as Cecile used memorized movements to fill their wash basin with warm water. "Is that for me?" Artemis smiled knowing full well that it was for her but she had to say something to let Cecile know she was up. Cecile lightly touched the water and smiled. Artemis came over and took her hair out of her ponytail, letting the long locks reach down to her lower back. "I'm assuming the boys already left for the day?"

"Of course or else I would've smacked them with a stick. It's time for our clean up after all." Cecile grabbed two sponges and a towel and set it between them. She handed Artemis the smaller of the two and put her own sponge in the water along with a bar of soap. Cecile frowned as she scrubbed to make suds appear. "Hopefully they collect enough money for some more soap today. This bar is almost gone."

"Well maybe if you didn't leave it in the water for so long every time we bathe, it would last longer."

Cecile flicked some suds at Artemis and smirked when she squealed in surprise. "You're such a petty old lady, you know that?" Artemis snatched the soap from in the water and rubbed it along the rounded out sponge. They cleaned themselves in silence trying to be as quick as they can before more people got up for the day. After they finished each other's backs they wrung out the sponges and set them out to dry. Cecile dumped the basin over and started to clean it out.

Cecile sighed and spoke, "You're not going out to steal again are you?"

"You and I both know Logan and Manny won't make much today and we'll need them to buy food with it. I'll just grab some absolute necessities."

"You will get caught one of these days and then your life will really be ruined."

Artemis frowned and had a hint of snark in her voice when she responded. "It's already ruined but at least I'm trying to help make yours a little better."

Cecile turned quickly, "That's not-!"

"Save it. I'll be back by dark so just wait for Manny for lunch." Artemis quickly left after that and moved over towards the wooden fence on the right side of their home base. She lifted herself over it with ease and started walking down the shadowed alley way. She moved her hands up to put her hair up in its usual style until she realized she forgot her scrunchie back at the site. She groaned and contemplated whether or not she could handle a deep conversation with Cecile. When she decided against going back she lifted her hood up and stuffed her hair into her shirt. She could easily blend into the crowd with it being the start of fall and she looked just like any other kid roaming around the streets keeping warm. She had a different target in mind knowing her list wasn't food but body soap and possibly some clothes if she could get lucky enough. She would need a chain store that supplied everything and would need to pick the time so it was busy enough that she wouldn't be considered suspicious.

Artemis walked until she felt her legs start to get sore. She didn't want to rob a place too close to where she lived but she also needed to be able to get back. She found the super store she needed but decided to sit around and view the area around her. She would need a place to run to and hide long enough that they wouldn't look in her direction and she could run all the way back home. It didn't take long to notice a cluster of buildings that only a young woman would be able to fit through the gaps. She found herself inspecting them and noticed they led to the other side of those very buildings that would take a car forever to get to or people too long to run all the way on the other side. By the time they would get there she would be already another person in the masses of tired New Yorkers who do not have the time to be bothered to notice her haste. She had a plan and that meant it was time to go.

It was busy, just as she predicted, and it wasn't hard to keep a low profile with her hood still up. She could care less about the couple of stares she had because they would eventually forget and it's not like they could really see her face well in the store lighting. She moved about acting like a curious shopper until she got to the clothing and found her first stop. A woman had a large brown purse in her cart left wide open as she was looking at the wall of hung up clothes. Artemis made sure no one was around as she easily grabbed a small pack of socks and stashed it in the woman's purse. Artemis quickly went to find an employee and she eventually stumbled upon one who looked too old to even be working. He was perfect. She relayed the information of a woman attempting to steal and described her fully in detail. The old man nodded gravely and went to his walkie talkie asking for security.

Artemis ducked away as soon as he was finished talking and waited until she noticed security watching the woman and seeing if she would attempt to take anything else. Artemis hustled a little bit and went over to the toiletries area. She made sure there were blind spots and was glad that security was too busy with the woman to even look in her direction from a few aisles away. Artemis has to be quick though and she scanned the shelves quickly before landing on Cecile's favorite soap. It would make the old woman happy despite the methods she used to get it so she thought it best to grab that first. However, just as she went out to reach for it, Raphael flashed through her mind and so did his first words to her.

"Didn't anyone ever teach you that stealing is illegal?"

She gasped and recoiled her hand in shock. She couldn't believe that she was starting to develop a conscious now of all times! And to be advised from a ninja turtle no less. Artemis growled and decided to put those issues on the back burner of her mind for now. She quickly snuck two soap bars into her hoodie pocket and made sure it wasn't noticeable. She moved over to the next aisle and grabbed some travel sized toothpaste and put those in her regular pockets along with some generic pain pills that were on sale in a nearby kiosk. This was the best she could do for now and she wanted to be able to get back without them being on the lookout for her. She was casual and calmed her breathing as she slipped past the door without it going off. She had scratched at the security tags earlier as she was calmly walking to the doors and was glad she hadn't cut her nails recently. She was practically home free and could see her escape route in view. Artemis smiled and was happy for the little haul she made. This would help them last for awhile longer until they could figure out some good ways to make money. Artemis knew she should be afraid of herself and not because she was good at stealing, but because she liked that she could steal and get away with it. At first it was all about survival but at this point she couldn't stop the little thrill that went through her whenever she snuck some food or items from stores and people.

It wasn't long before she rounded the corner and was booking it out of sight and into that tiny space between office buildings. She eventually made it to the other side and went into the crowd blending in with her hood still up. She took out her items and inspected them. Everything was fine and intact. She cursed herself for not risking it to get more but she knew better. If she got caught then her family wouldn't make it past winter without her abilities. She repocketed everything and took in her surroundings to see if she could get another score somewhere nearby. She started to notice how familiar things were getting. She couldn't put her finger on why but if it was familiar that meant she'd been around the area too much. She looked for any clear openings to get onto another street. The side she was walking on lead into a corner by a convience store. She could turn there and hustle past people and maybe pickpocket a few on the way. She found a small opening between the clerk of the corner store and an older woman who seemed to be flirting with each other. That wasn't her main concern of course. Her main concern was the open bag the woman was dangling by the crook of her elbow. Most people leave their wallets close to the top for easy access but unfortunately that was easy access to others as well. Artemis took a deep breath and started speed walking between the couple.

"Sorry," she exclaimed over her shoulder as she hid a smirk while putting the woman's wallet into her hoodie. She was practically home free and couldn't wait to see what else she could manage to get.

A hand suddenly grabbed her shoulder and turned her around to be faced with the clerk she tried to run past. She almost gasped because it just flashed into her mind why the place was so familiar. This was the same store she robbed just about a week ago for food and also the day she met a mutant turtle.

"I knew it! You little thief, did you really think I wouldn't notice you?!"

She slapped his hand away and kicked his shin. He bent over in pain as she rounded the corner and pushed people out of her way. She was so stupid! How could she not remember the same exact place from a few days past and the same clerk! She would never make a mistake like this so how did it happen? She knew that he was following her as best as he could since he didn't want to lose the same perp twice. There was too much traffic and all it would take was one good samaritan to grab her and-.

She suddenly felt two cold mitts grab and pull her towards the side. One mitt covered her mouth as the other forced her down crouched against something hard and...moving? She glanced up and made out in the shadows Raphael leaning against a brick wall and listening for any followers. They waited...and waited...and waited...until she couldn't anymore and forced his hand off her face.

"I need to breathe stupid!" She hissed at him lowly. She took in a few breaths and looked out onto the street to see regular city folks just going about their day. She sighed in relief and put her hood down to cool herself off a bit. She fanned herself until she heard the turtle clear his throat.

"You can get off me now."

She jumped up and realized the hard and breathing thing was his plastron and she had been lying right on it. She knew very little about turtles but she could only hope she didn't hurt him. "Oh my gosh! Are you okay? Did I hit anything...uh I don't know...vital?" He blinked at her like she was nuts before simply standing up as if to show that he was completely unharmed. "Oh good you're not hurt." She punched his arm and only got a glare in response. "That's for scaring the daylights outta me! Who just grabs people out of nowhere?"

"Uh didn't I just save you?"

She wanted to scoff but he wasn't wrong and she was thankful, however it was easier to be angry than admit needing help. "You still scared me! And what are you doing out when its barely dusk? I thought you needed the cover of night."

He shrugged and gestured around him. "Obviously people barely notice you when you're in trash."

"Well you're not far off."

Now that it was lighter outside than the last time she saw him, she finally got a good look at him. There was no doubt he was a mutant turtle with his scaly green skin and giant shell adorning his back. His mask frayed a little at the knot but other than that and his belt, he was technically naked. Although maybe the shell counted as clothes and the mask and belt were accessories? She still knew nothing of reptiles, let alone mutant turtle ones. "How did you find me anyways? I swear if you're stalking me again..."

"For the last time I wasn't stalking you! In fact I was going to the abandoned warehouse you escape through often and was going to wait for you there but on the way I guess I got lucky when I heard the commotion. When I heard the old man calling out 'thief,' I thought I would check it out and there you were."

He leaned in close and furrowed his eyes in irritation so much even his mask moved with him. "You were stealing again weren't you?"

"Oh cut the crap Raph, like you care if I steal. You only wanted the thrill of a possible fight."

"Hey I care!" She gave him the most dubious look known to man. "Fine! I care to an extent but still it's not like I want ya in jail."

"Look I know it's not the best trait but I have no choice. I do this for the people I love and I'm sorry you can't understand since you're alone but I won't stop even if you begged me."

His face grew a little dark at her words and it almost scared her. He sighed before rubbing his face in frustration. "Trust me I understand the feeling."

"Oh, s-so then you weren't always alone?"

He looked away from her and crossed his arms tightly against him; a sure sign of him creating a wall. "Something like that."

She reached out to him but decided against actually touching him. She didn't know him well enough to cross any lines and it was the same with him. They both jerked at the sound of a rock hitting the trash can they were by. She heard the voices of young boys laughing at each other coming from above them. "Idiot! You can't just grab rocks and throw them at windows we'll get so grounded!" She looked to Raph only to find him long gone. She could only assume he left the second the noise rang out. What was she doing? She had more important things to do and now that the coast was clear she could make it home. She placed up her hood and high tailed it out of there.

Once in the warehouse she felt safe enough to let her hair go free. She loved her long hair but she thought how much of an upkeep it was considering she had nothing but soap to clean it with. She couldn't bring herself to cut it like Cecile does or wear an old beanie like Logan, it just wasn't her. Then again neither is her being homeless. She longed to have warm showers and refrigerators; literally anything basic in a home. She shook her head and growled at herself. She shouldn't be thinking of her old life especially after what her father had done to it. If anything she's been happier with her community more than ever being alone with her dad. Artemis wasn't one for sentimentality but she had her moments and if she could she would love to reward her family with whatever they wanted but for now all she could do was get soap, toothpaste for Logan, and pain pills for poor aging Manny and his bad back. She ran her fingers through her hair and made a note to brush it tonight. She headed for the door but froze, her eyes going wide. She quickly looked up and noticed Raph looking at her from the rafters.

"How many times are you planning to scare me Raph?"

"Until it stops being amusing," he smirked at her as he landed next to her with grace. It always shocked her that he was in fact like a ninja; so quiet despite his size and always watching his target while never tiring.

"Listen as much fun as my day has been I really don't feel like talking or doing whatever it is you want to do. I really just want to go home and figure out my new plan."

Raph quirked up his eye ridge. "New plan?"

"Yes, thanks to today's events I need a new ground for my stealing without being noticed so fast. I don't like making mistakes but I know how to learn from them."

"You could, Oh I don't know, stop stealing. I heard that's one hundred percent effective against getting caught."

"Ugh! You really don't listen do you?"

Raph shrugs nonchalantly. "I've been told it's a talent of mine."

She didn't think much about his sentence but at the time she should've asked who said such a thing. "I won't stop until my family is settled and that's not happening anytime soon. You would know if you saw our conditions and then maybe you wouldn't be so-!" She stopped and almost laughed at her delayed genius. "That's it! If you see it then maybe you'll stop bugging me about it!" She grabbed his wrist and started tugging him towards her destination.

"Wait a second Artemis! What part about me being a hidden ninja is so hard to get?"

"You don't actually need to show your face, you just need to see what goes on. I mean isn't one of your main skills being in the shadows?" She turned her head to smile at him knowing she got his interest. "Besides I prefer you didn't show yourself to them. I'm pretty certain Manny would have a heart attack and Logan would finally believe he has gone bonkers."

"Fine, I'll play along but if I still don't think you need to steal then you stop and figure something else out. Deal?"

She stopped short and frowned. "This isn't a bargain! I'm just trying to make a point!"

"And so am I! If ya don't agree then I'm not going." He shook his wrist free and glowered at her with his usual stance of crossed arms. She couldn't believe it but at the same time she knew how stubborn he was and it was best for her to pick her battles if only so she could win the war.

"Did that friend of yours also tell you that you're so annoying it's another talent of yours?"

"Do we have a deal Artemis?"

She rolled her eyes and continued walking. "Fine, fine, we have a deal now let's get going before they go to sleep." She could practically hear his victory against her going through his brain. She giggled at him but he was so busy with his win to even notice. She was glad to have met Raph and even though they've only really known each other for two days he still risked being caught to save her. She grabbed the doorknob but before opening the door she looked over at him.

"Hey Raph?"

"Hm?"

"Thanks for saving me today and please call me Art or Arty." She smiled at his shocked face and opened the door before walking through with him in tow.