Two Months Ago

Artemis left the sewers after having just woke up and fighting with Raphael. He lied to her! About so many things! Not only that but she still fought for him! Why was she so attached to him? So attached that she risked her life fighting some ninjas and one of them even threw a knife at her. She was lucky though as it only pierced her side stomach and hit nothing vital. She passed out from the pain of all the movement it took to get her into their home. When she woke up, she saw a giant rat staring at her from a kneeled position. He didn't move as she sat up and looked around at her surroundings. It was a nice room to be honest and it was well insulated. She could barely smell the sewers from where she was and was grateful when he passed her along some tea. She stared at it and noticed her face staring back and how dead she looked. She drank the cup quickly so as not to stare at that false reflection she saw. She was attacked with a knife and could have died. She looked up at the rat and opened her mouth only to close it again. What was she going to say? Was she supposed to just trust this unknown mutant? She already drank the tea and so far she wasn't poisoned so who knows what to believe anymore.

"You were lucky child. The knife only hit flesh and you just weren't used to such a thing and passed out before long. Physically you are well but emotionally..." The rat just shook his head and drank his tea and held up the kettle as if offering her another drink. She held out her own cup and he filled it without question. She had so many things to ask but apparently this mutant has the ability to read your mind. "My name is Splinter. I am the turtles father and Sensei. I'm sure you know my son Raphael."

So many emotions crossed her features. Shocked that he knew so fast, then confused on what that could mean, and then anger for remembering what he did to her. Splinter seemed to notice and hoped to calm her down. "My son has made many mistakes in the past but in some way he always fixes them. He cares about you, you know. I know he lied but for good reason. I hope you will come to understand that later."

Later? She didn't even want to be near him now. He lied. He betrayed her. Just like her mother and father, he would be ready to throw her away. She couldn't trust him and that was enough reasoning for her, right? She was always sure to never let any liar near her again and to never get close to them either. So why was it that she was there and accepted being in his home like they were still friends? She looked down into her second cup blankly and wondered if maybe she couldn't forgive him. She was so focused on what to do that she didn't even hear footsteps running closer to the training room. She didn't even feel the presence of a certain turtle sitting next to her until he placed a hand on her shoulder and asked how she was. She turned to look and it took awhile before all her anger towards him came back. That in turn lead to the fight which lead her to run off out of the sewers and onto the street still not fully healed. She held onto her side and hoped that the bandaging they did would hold until she got home. She crossed a display window and just now noticed her clothes were not the same as the ones she had earlier. She had no clue where Raph was getting these teenage girl clothes but at least it was warm. She now had a yellow hoodie with "California Love" arched over a sunset beach scene. The sweats were a little baggy and swished every time she took a step in brand new sneakers or what looked like barely used sneakers at least. She would've thanked whoever gave her this stuff but she couldn't be near Raph at the moment.

She picked up her pace and hoped that no one would notice her in a flashy neon yellow. Her hair was coming out of the ponytail and was whipping into her face from the strong winds. She was glad she recognized the area and could easily navigate without needing much sight. She felt if she raised her arms to fix her hair it would hurt like no other and didn't want to risk more blood coming out of the semi-fresh wound. Hopefully Logan could keep her patched up as he was good with wounds. She only knew that from all the scars she's seen on him. She was finally getting closer to home and there was less people in that area. It was mostly empty since it was dark out and people tend to stay off the streets in New York when it got dark. She noticed a fire in an alleyway and recognized some other homeless people she traded with before. One of them was Bobby and he was a sweet guy. He just hit it hard when bills kept coming and the jobs kept leaving but he still kept a smile. She liked him best and so did everyone else which is why he was a great informant and friend. She couldn't remember the name of his partner but it didn't matter. If she needed to know him she would've. Bobby seemed to notice her and gave a wave. She nodded at him and continued on her way. She blew into her hands a few times whenever the wind picked up. She hoped that her family already had their own fire going and she could just relax and keep warm. She was about to turn the corner when she heard rustling paper start to get louder. It was getting louder since it was aiming straight for her face! She didn't even think about dodging and it landed right on target. She flailed a little and was thankful when it was taken off of her. She looked up at her tall savior and gave a small smile.

"Thanks Bobby. It just came out of nowhere."

"No problem little darling." Bobby was like an old jazz musician from the '60s by the way he talked. She found it amusing and was glad he was around her area and not some other unsavory type. Bobby effectively threw the offensive paper away since littering was a major no-no for him. He was just a good civilian really and she knew he would never change. "I'll tell you what girly these things popped up from nowhere. A whole bunch of macho men posted them up a few nights ago." He gestured with his dark skinned hand out to the rest of the neighborhood and she saw what he meant. Every pole and window had a orange paper and they were all the same just like the one that attacked her.

"Jeez, is there a new election for a councilman or something? The next one to promise to drop the rate of the homeless?"

"Nah! Nothing like that, more like a community service program. I didn't read it and don't care too but I'll say this, they make good kindling." They both chuckled but she felt a shiver run through her before she could stop it. He gave a worried glance at her and smiled in his usual kindly way. "Now go on and get home. They've been worried about you, you know."

"I know Bobby. I just got tied up into some things."

"Well no more tying! Get on home and get a hobby." He turned to leave and patted one of the orange papers on a nearby light pole. "Maybe even join a community service program."

She rolled her eyes, "Hardy har har." She watched Bobby return to his partner and was about to leave as well when something about that flyer caught her eye. Not wanting to risk it she grabbed one of the many flyers and stuffed it in her pocket to look over later.

When she made it home everyone doted on her like never before. Apparently Raph was there earlier today and explained what happened; at least it saved her the trouble of doing it. They offered her soup but she was exhausted and just wanted to curl up. She was glad that they in fact did start a fire and knew that the tent would keep some of the warmth that was next to it. Cecile insisted she eat but even she couldn't stop Artemis from opening up the tent and finding her blanket folded and ready. She heard her family talking in worried tones about what to do with her being injured and how to care for her. She never wanted to be a burden on them and she couldn't believe what a mess she was in. Who knew ninjas existed and still fought against each other? She laid her blanket over herself and was thankful the fire was strong enough that it lit up the tent. She took out the flyer and read it over.

Wanted: Strong warriors Up For Any Challenge And Not Afraid Of Anything. No Questions Asked.

Benefits: Live In And Good Pay.

Join Us Now And Forever Be A Proud Member Of The Foot Clan

She sat up quickly and regretted it soon after as her wound stung her. She ignored it for the most part and reread the flyer at least two more times. Under the bold writing was a small script of further details. The live in job was at some company dojo and they needed people for manual labor. They would pay well as long as secrecy was admitted and promised. It was beyond sketchy to say the least but for such a deal she could at least check it out. She memorized the address and tucked herself in and waited patiently for her family to fall asleep as well.

It was the middle of the night when they finally were all in a deep sleep. She slipped out quietly and left trying to find the address. It was in the nicer part of town and she was thankful that her clothes were fairly clean. She found the tall tower and looked at it from afar. She saw some people that looked like guards but for some reason they looked familiar. She couldn't guess why but they did. She took out the paper and made sure it was the right place and it was. She walked over to the door and was stopped by two men wearing what looked like black pajamas.

"State your business."

She held up the flyer and hoped that would be enough. Apparently it was good enough for her to wait in the lobby as they grabbed some higher up for her to talk to. Eventually a woman came down and offered her hand. Artemis shook it and the woman began to introduce herself. "My name is Naomi. I'm the recruitment officer. How may I help you?"

She looked like a business woman alright. She wore a pencil skirt and had a gray blazer with a black undershirt. The clothes looked like they were tailored to her perfectly. Artemis gave her best smile and tugged at her hoodie. "I'm just curious about the place. I saw your guy's flyers and thought I would check it out. I'm sorry if it's so late."

"Yes, well don't worry we are a twenty-four hour facility as the owner likes to keep it that way for personal reasons."

"Uh right, of course."

"Well, let me show you around."

Naomi showed her the first three floors saying that only those were open to lower tier individuals. The first floor held mostly business offices but the second and third had a dojo training area and some gyms. She noticed quite a few late night owls practicing and going at it very intensely. They all wore the same type of pajamas as the guards from before and she figured that was some training garb. "These facilities are open around the clock for our trainees and trainers. You can practice day or night; we prefer you do both. Nothing is too much for us. Next door are apartment buildings and everyone has one or two roommates; no exceptions. We give out scheduled training days with our own professionals and if you were to join you must sign a release form and confidentiality form for legal reasons. We require absolute secrecy and if you're lucky and do well you can move up in rank and see some very amazing things in our upper floors."

"So it really is live in but what about the pay?"

"Ah yes." She went into her pocket and grabbed a scrap piece of paper and wrote something down. She handed it to Artemis and the homeless girl almost fainted at the sight of the numbers. "This would be the starting wage but I must warn you, not a lot people make it past the trial."

"Trial?"

"Yes, every new recruitment period must go through the trial to see if you're fit enough to stay here. But after that you get paid."

Naomi smiled and showed her the main restrooms and told her some nice restaurants that most new recruits visit. They eventually made it back to the first floor and Artemis felt excitement run through her. "Alright sounds amazing! I'm in!"

"Well that would be great but unfortunately our lastest recruitment period ended two nights ago. I would tell you to wait for the next one but the head honcho who created all this might be looking for a new direction so I can't say for sure. Thanks for your interest in TCRI and please have a nice night."

Artemis could barely keep up with how scripted she sounded. "Now wait a second! It's only been two days, I can catch up in no time! It's just like bodyguard training right? I've actually had some training." It wasn't a lie. The last couple weeks Raph had taught her some really good self defense moves and they practiced whenever they hung out. Weapons she would need more practice on but hand to hand was no problem.

Naomi sighed and pushed her glasses up. "I'm sorry Miss but like I said, the recruitment period is over and I can't make exceptions for one person. Now please leave or..." Naomi seemed to press a button on her desk. "...we can force you to leave."

The two guards from outside came back in and went on either side of her. Artemis could've just left and that would be the end of it but she was stubborn and this was too good of an opportunity. "I guess I'll have to be forced."

Naomi just gave a flick of her wrist and the two guards grabbed onto Artemis on each arm. They lifted her off the ground but this just made it easier for her to have better access to their knees. She kicked them both and they went down very fast. She decided to get the one on her left first and grabbed his dagger. She heard the other one come up off the floor and charged at her with his own dagger. He didn't get far when she threw her weapon and hit the bridge of his foot. He stumbled but kept upright and then threw his knife at her but he was too clumsy and missed her entirely. She didn't even flinch when it brushed by her cheek. She was sick of being pushed around and people thinking they knew her. She was ready whether they thought she was or not. He went into a defensive stance with his hands raised in fists. She mirrored him but easily deflected his first punch. She moved that hand to the side but kept a firm grip and used his arm as leverage to lift herself up around his shoulders and forcing him onto the ground. He effectively hit his head and passed out. She stood and brushed off some dirt from her pants and smiled at Naomi. Naomi was about to scream for backup when her inner line rang. Naomi saw the caller ID and swallowed hard. She picked it up and whoever was on the other line spoke fast and with purpose. Naomi hung up and gave a fake realtor smile to Artemis. "Well you sure put up a good show. Good enough that our boss decided to put you in." Naomi typed up some things on a computer and printed out a sheet. "Here are your forms, fill them out and come back tomorrow. Welcome to the Foot Clan."

Artemis has really done it now. She just wanted to check it out, not actually join. Why was she so impulsive? She had a long walk ahead of her but it was just what she needed. She completely spaced the whole way and before she knew it she was back in her neighborhood. She sighed and looked at the forms that were given to her. Could she really leave them? Live somewhere else and train to be some bodyguard? She heard laughter coming from nearby and recognized it well. If she needed advice now would be best. She went over to the alley and saw Bobby with his boyfriend. "Hey Bobby, mind if you share the fire?"

"Come on over baby girl, plenty of room."

Artemis smiled and went over to the fire and put her hands up to warm them. Winter would be arriving soon and she just knew that meant possibly finding some shelters to scout out. They couldn't be out if it snowed especially not Cecile and how frail she was. They were already running low on supplies too and her injury was still hurting. Bobby noticed the stress on her face. "Hey Victor, you okay if I talk a second with my girl?" Victor looked to Artemis and nodded in pity. He went further down the alley and started another fire for himself. She really hated the pity look even from someone on her level. Bobby nudged her, "Penny for your thoughts?"

"If you had to leave Victor but only so you could help him, would you do it?"

"Where you plannin' to go?"

"It's complicated."

Bobby nodded. "Well I guess it would depend on how severe he needed help."

"It's not like you wouldn't be able to see him but you couldn't say where you were or what you're doing. He would need complete trust in you."

"Is it safe?"

She opened her mouth but she couldn't say for sure. Bobby took in a deep breath. "Sometimes there are things more important than one's self. If it really is that extreme you do what you must for those you love." He stared at Victor. "Just remember that the ones you love don't want you hurt either. If your roles were switched would you let them do it?"

Artemis thought it over in her mind. "Thanks Bobby, that helps a lot. I'll see you around."

"I hope so. Victor and I also care about you so you better remember that as well."

Artemis was able to snuggle back into the tent without waking anyone up. Bobby was right. She wouldn't want her family to risk their very lives for her which is why she had to. She was the only one that could handle this and still help them. She was the last to join the group and the youngest, she could easily survive whatever they threw at her long enough to keep her family alive through this winter. She found some papers around the tent and started writing out a goodbye note. She would see them again and hopefully they would forgive her once they saw her first check.

In the early morning Artemis left her note next to the boys' tent and packed her stuff in an old backpack she used to wear when she was in school. She couldn't take a lot since supplies were low enough for them already so she decided on her blanket, a couple cans of soup, and some of her extra clothes. She knew that they would feed her at TCRI but without that payment coming in until she passed the trial, she wanted to be ready for anything in case they changed up some rules. She found Naomi waiting for her and passed along her forms. Naomi escorted her to the apartment buildings and showed her where she would be staying. Naomi explained she would have a roommate and that she was lucky they had any space available. Naomi left Artemis in the room to get ready for her first day and Artemis used that time to fully take in the thought that she had actually gone and left. She examined her room and noted how small it was. They weren't really apartments but more like dorm rooms. A metal cot was on each side of the room with a trunk placed at the foot of the bed. A window was across from the door and under that was a dresser with two lamps placed on it. Artemis checked the dresser and saw it was full of the uniforms she had been seeing around the building. Artemis found her size and quickly changed. Naomi told her training day had already started and she better get there quickly. She left her stuff on her bed and ran out next door to the tower.

She only knew where the training room was but nothing of what she would be doing and no matter how much she stared she couldn't figure out why these people seemed familiar. Once she made it in they were already going through the warm-ups and she had to sneak into the back and tried to keep up. After several warm ups and the instructor teaching a few moves to practice on each other, another instructor came in carrying what looked like masks. "This is your head gear, every one of the Foot Clan wears this when on duty." All trainees went up and grabbed one, even Artemis. When they all put on the headgear it suddenly clicked why they were so familiar. They were the ones who attacked her and the turtles a few days ago. They were the ones who stabbed her! She instinctively touched her stomach and started to back away but she ended up bumping into one of the trainees. The trainee scowled at her and turned her around. "You're that new kid aren't you?"

Artemis looked at the woman and took in her appearance. She had the uniform on and held the mask in one hand. Her brown hair was short and bobbed and framed her oval face. She scrutinized Artemis with her hazel eyes before giving a small smile. "Welcome! I'm your roommate Vivianne."

"O-Oh uh nice to meet you." Artemis held out her hand to Vivianne and she shook it rather roughly.

"So you're the pipsqueak who fought against two trained guards?"

Artemis glared at her. "I'm not a pipsqueak and how do you know about that?"

"Everyone is talking about the girl who the Master Shredder let in late. He seemed to think you were worth testing so everyone wants a piece of you."

Artemis moved into a defensive stance. "And what about you?"

"Relax kid! I'm your roommate, not your enemy."

"Sorry, just on edge I guess." How could she not be?! These people were crazy for joining a clan that fought mutant teenagers. She only wanted to join to get some money but maybe this wasn't the right place. She would train for today then escape tonight and go back home. Her and Vivianne put on their masks and were paired to fight each other. It was just play fighting just so their bodies could get used to the flow of the moves they were taught. Artemis already knew the basics from Raph and that gave her a chance to look around. So many of these people were young and so...slow. No wonder they were so easy to fight when she helped Raph. The company was desperate for bodies! If the mutant turtles were always defeating the clan she wouldn't be surprised if people left and decided it wasn't worth the honor and prestige.

It was a good few hours before they stopped their training and were let go for the day. Vivianne approached some other masked friends of hers and soon Artemis was ogled at by at least six people. Vivianne apparently had a big mouth. Artemis took off her mask and walked away while they were bombarding her with questions. She needed to escape but how could she with everyone crowding her. Vivianne seemed to notice her discomfort. "Alright you vultures! Leave the poor girl alone. There's plenty of her to try and defeat later."

Artemis whirled on her, "Vivianne!"

"I'm kidding! Man, you really don't chill do you? Hey I know! Some trainees are going nearby to an underground gamble den. Want to come?"

"Aren't I a little young?"

Vivianne waved off her concern. "It's a criminal gamble den, you would be the least of their worries. Besides it's hosted by the purple dragons! It'll be fun!"

This would be perfect. If they all left to go then she could slip out without any trouble. "I'm actually pretty tired so you guys should go on ahead. Maybe another time."

It didn't take them much convincing and they left her behind to go have their fun. Once they were out of sight Artemis ran up three flights of stairs to get to her room. Her stuff was still just thrown on the cot and still packed. She could just grab it and go. She picked up her bag and turned to leave when she heard something fall to the floor. She looked down and saw what looked like a fox mask. It was black with red and light blue marks over it, the colors outlined the eyes and ears and made a red colored nose and whiskers. She picked it up carefully and turned it around to see a note attached to it.

Hey roomie! Hope you don't mind if I give you a little gift. My family makes these back in Japan and they always send me some practice ones to remember how to decorate them in case this doesn't work out. Family, am I right? So this one is one of a kind like you, the late-comer! Let's pass that trial together and make the Foot Clan proud!

-Vivianne

Artemis remembered earlier when Vivianne left during their lunch break and wondered what was taking her so long. She must've been here giving her this mask and writing the note. Artemis looked at the mask again and noted how well painted it was. Vivianne really did have some skill. Artemis sighed and groaned at her ability to attract weirdos. Artemis thought back to the note and when it mentioned family her own came up in her mind. She was going to leave without getting anything out of it? They needed money and with her injuries it would help to get some type of pain meds. She needed to pass that trial and quickly. She would make some money for a couple weeks or so and leave then. She didn't want to fight the turtles; sure she was beyond pissed at Raph but she didn't want to hurt his family or even him. She just couldn't be near him at the moment. Artemis looked at the mask one last time and set her bag back on the bed. She opened the trunk at the end of the cot and stuffed her supplies into it and laid the mask gently on top of the clothes. She would stay, but only for a little while. She wasn't really going to be apart of this clan and she would be gone before she knew it. She was sure of that.

Over the next week, she and her enthusiastic roommate trained on their own time and grew to be the top two of the class. Unfortunately, Artemis learned the trial wouldn't take place until after the class went through a month of training. She didn't understand why they weren't going through these moves faster. Her and her partner had already read through all the available books about the Foot Clan's history and thanks to that, Artemis found out she could take that trial early and be payed by next week! She had brought this up to Vivianne who was making her bed.

"Maybe we can convince them to take it now and be done with it. We could do it, you and me, and be officially payed."

Vivianne tucked in the corners neatly. "I don't know Arty, shouldn't we wait with everyone else? If we show them up and when they eventually pass they'll try to cut us down."

"It's their own fault if they don't want to train like us, we told them to join us but they went to that gamble den instead."

"Yeah I guess." Vivianne still looked unsure and avoided eye contact with her. "I'll think about it but for now let's just finish cleaning up."

By the next day Artemis was asked by the instructor to come up to him. He took her to the side and gave a stern glare. "Care to explain why I've been told you're a thief?"

Well that was random. Was he talking about all the times she stole from stores for food and supplies to survive? How would he know about that? She never told anyone. "I'm sorry, but what are you talking about?"

He stared at her in silence for a few moments then turned to the class. "Everyone halt! We're going on a little field trip."

He made everyone go to the appartment building next door and made her take the class to her shared room. She opened the door and he went in by pushing her to the side. The class all crowded by the door and were as nosy as ever. She saw Vivianne push her way through and they made eye contact. Artemis went over to her and whispered, "Do you know what's going on?"

Vivianne swallowed a big lump in her throat. "I-I uh well, you see..."

The instructor turned to them and looked at Vivianne. "Where is the stolen item you reported?"

Artemis felt her eyes widen and stood frozen when Vivianne went over to the trunk of her cot and opened it. Vivianne picked up the mask she gave her and held it out. "This is mine and it was given to me from my family! It's very important to me!" Artemis felt like the wind made a fist and punched her right in the gut. The instructor glared at Artemis.

"Explain yourself!"

Artemis scoffed. "You can't be serious! She's lying! She gave that to me the first day I arrived!"

"Any proof of that?"

Artemis clamped her mouth shut. What proof did she have? She threw away that note long ago and if you looked at Vivanne's side of the room, you'll see masks lined along the wall above her bed. It looked like Artemis could easily steal any one of them off the wall and hide it here. She could only shake her head at the instructor. "Alright then I have no choice. We steal from others but not each other, especially family heirlooms! You're kicked out. Get your stuff and get out of here."

The instructor walked out and took the class with him leaving only Vivianne and Artemis. Artemis had put on her famous icy glare. "How dare you?!"

"I had no choice! You were talking about us leaving the group and just going straight to the clan! I've helped you because you were my roommate but because of you I lost my friends! They were all afraid of you and how fast you were studying! They never invited me to the den anymore. And when you asked me to take the trial, I had to talk it out with them and they told me what you were really up to!"

"What I was really up to? Are you insane?! I just needed money!"

"And you were planning to defeat me to get what you wanted! The trial has you battle whoever is ready and whoever wins that fight moves on and the loser gets disgraced and kicked out!"

Artemis shook her head. "What are you talking about? How was I supposed to know that?!"

Vivianne went up to her and scowled. "You were reading the same book that had all the trial rules on it! How did you not see it?"

"I swear I didn't. That was a coincidence! I never planned to undercut you!"

Vivianne shook her head. "I'm sure you didn't. I'm just glad I did it before you could. Goodbye Artemis." Vivianne walked away with not one piece of regret. Artemis couldn't believe this! She was so close! So close! How many times was she going to be betrayed by people she thought were her friends?! She angrily grabbed her bag and packed all her stuff into it. She shouldered the bag and turned to go when she saw the fox mask laying on Vivianne's bed. All this because of some stupid mask and because they believed Vivianne over their top student. Artemis picked it up and felt her hands start to tremble. Her body grew hot and she wanted to tear this building apart. Since she couldn't do that she would at least destroy the room. Artemis opened Vivanne's trunk and dumped it around the room and threw the trunk at the dresser breaking a drawer handle and denting the front. She turned both beds over and threw the sheets at the masks on the wall and making some of them fall to the ground. Her next plan was to grab the rest of the masks and throw them out the window like frisbees but she couldn't help but notice something shine in the corner of the room. She walked closer to it and noticed a small hole. In that hole was where the shine was and she touched it to discover it was glass. Artemis felt herself smirk and then start to laugh. Of course, such a fancy place, they would need cameras to keep track of their subordinates and see what they could offer. Artemis felt her luck start to change and was ready to take action. She looked around until she found the very same fox mask that started the whole mess and picked it up. If Vivianne was going to use this as a way to kick her out then why couldn't she use it to get her back in? Artemis wasn't going down without a fight and she would make sure the others knew not to mess with her ever again. She placed the mask over her face and left to go sneak into the TCRI building.