Wow, more people have taken an interest in this thing. Ok. I'll keep working on it till it's finished.

In the meantime, here's chapter... 3? Idk.

Marinette, Adrian, Nino, and Alya followed Casey and April through the streets of New York. April could tell that they were a bit nervous, and rightly so. April would be, too, if the situation were reversed. It probably didn't help that the redhead was on edge, casting glances into every darkened alley and staring longingly at the sewer lids. She had grown rather paranoid, lately. She felt safest in the sewers, with the turtles. It didn't help her at all, knowing that these four felt very strange. She especially felt it in Marinette and Adrian...

She shook her head. Now wasn't the time for those kinds of thoughts. Casey was only just catching up with his cousin. They explained that the two hadn't seen each other for years. April didn't want to screw that up with superstition.

She forced herself to focus on their destination: Mr. Murikami's Restaurant. Home of the pizza gyoza. April smiled to herself. Mr. Murikami was just another human, though one that April and Casey could talk to about the turtles whenever they needed to. April was glad that he was able to accept the turtles for who they were, rather than what they were. Then again, it probably helped that he was blind.

April entered the empty building. Mr. Murikami was behind the counter, sweeping.

"Hello, April," he greeted her. April smiled at him despite him not being able to see it.

"Good afternoon, Mr. Murikami," she said. She led everyone over to a table in the corner of the restaurant.

"Will it be the usual?" he asked. April laughed.

"Well, you know us, Mr. Murikami," she responded. The old man simply chuckled and nodded, disappearing behind the counter. He returned moments later with five white bags and handed them to April.

"Now, what would your friends enjoy?" he asked, turning his head in Marinette's direction. She was staring at the bags that had been handed to April.

"I guess I'll just have what April's getting," she said. The other Parisians, understanding at least a little bit of English, agreed with their friend.

They were handed bags that matched April's and headed back out into the streets of New York. It was getting late, and they needed to head to the hotel the Parisians were all staying at. April felt a lot of emotions coming from both Casey and Marinette; hesitation being the biggest one. If she had to guess, she would say that the two wanted to spend more time together, maybe alone.

"Hey, Casey," April called to him. Said boy looked at her curiously.

"Yeah, Red?"

"Why don't you and Marinette head off somewhere else and catch up," April said. Marinette looked confused, maybe even a little scared, but April could feel her excitement and joy spring to the top, threatening to overcome her outward mask.

"Are you sure? What if we get in trouble?"

"Don't worry, Marinette," April told her. "Your cousin has had a lot of practice getting back out of trouble."

"Hey!" Casey protested, but the Parisians were all laughing.

"Go ahead, there really isn't much to worry about here," April told her. The two cousins looked at each other and smiled, heading off in a different direction.

Casey led Marinette along the rooftops, keeping his eyes on her so she wouldn't fall. Now that it was just the two of them, things were a bit awkward. He wanted to make small talk with her but didn't know where to start.

Thankfully, Marinette thought of something to say.

"So, what have you been up to?"

"Nothing much," Casey told her. He debated whether to tell her about the stuff that has happened in New York recently.

"What did you mean earlier, at the airport?" Marinette asked. Casey stopped in his tracks.

"What do you mean?"

"About knowing a giant rat," Marinette told him. Casey pursed his lips. Now he had to tell her. He sighed and sat down, gesturing for Marinette to do the same. She sat beside him, crossing her legs and watching the sun set.

"New York hasn't exactly been the most normal place to live," he told her. Marinette giggled.

"I can relate," she told him. Casey smiled warmly at her. He turned to the sunset in the distance, thinking. He trusted Marinette. She was trustworthy.

"Can you keep a secret?" he asked her. She was a bit confused at first, but she nodded agreement. "Alright. There are... mutants living here in New York."

Marinette just stared at him, waiting for him to continue. Casey sighed.

"There are good mutants and bad mutants. April and I are friends with some of them," Casey explained. "You see, they've saved our lives and countless others more times than I can even think of."

"Like superheroes?" Marinette found herself asking. Casey smirked slightly.

"Yeah, sort of...they're actually ninjas, who save the world in the shadows," he told her. Marinette was fascinated.

"Ok, so a recap: you're friends with a bunch of mutant ninjas who are rats?" Marinette asked. Casey thought for a moment and smiled again.

"Well, they're turtles. Their father was a rat."

"Was?"

Casey was silent for a moment, remembering that day. He didn't usually like rats, but Master Splinter... he was more man than rat. Heck, he was more humane than humanity. Most mutants were.

Marinette took Casey's silence as a message. She looked down in thought.

"Was he nice?" she asked. Casey was silent for a moment longer, leading her to believe that she had said the wrong thing.

"Nicest being I've ever met," Casey said softly. "His sons are awesome, too… even Donnie. Just don't tell him I said that. He'll never let me live it down."

Marinette laughed at that. The sun was below the horizon now. She imagined that the moon was right behind them.

"Could I meet them?" she asked. Casey looked at her, shocked.

"You really want to?" he asked. Marinette stood up, a determined glint in her eye.

"Yes, I really do. They sound super awesome! And I bet my friends would love them, too."

"Well, if you want to, sure. But I wouldn't be so sure about your friends."

"I trust them with every fiber of my being," Marinette said. "They can keep secrets, too. Trust me, with all the secrets I've forced them to keep, they'll be fine."

Casey smirked cheekily at her.

"Ok, but how to stop them from freaking out when they see the guys?"

"Simple," Marinette said. "I tell them ahead of time what we're going to be doing. The Fashion Showcase isn't for another three days, anyway. We have nothing to worry about!"

Casey thought for a moment before giving her an affectionate smile. He gave her his number and told her to text him if she went through with this. If she did, he wanted her to meet him in the hotel's lobby at eleven in the morning. She agreed.

Casey brought her to the hotel and kissed the top of her head.

"Night, little cousin," he told her.

"Good night, Casey," she said. The two hugged before Marinette walked into the building. When she turned around, Casey was gone.