This episode was actually more fun to write than I thought it was going to be. Hope everyone enjoys!
Despite his reluctance before, Raphael ended up proving to be a very capable training partner. He just needed to be in the right mood for it, apparently. His version of training, however, was much more about strength building and less about any actual technique. Although Katerina was willing to take what she could get, after about an hour in, she felt like her limbs were about to come off! This was definitely going to take some getting used to.
She was currently slumped over a chair and panting heavily when Leonardo walked in to see what they were up to.
"I can't – go anymore. Think I'm gonna – pass out," she wheezed, trying to keep the world from turning purple.
"Aw! You're pooped already? But we just got started!" Raphael protested.
"Started with what?" their blue visitor wondered.
"Training! Care to join us?" he asked merrily.
"No thanks, bro. Your version of training grinds us into the ground!" he reminded him, Katerina groaning and sliding to the floor as if to emphasize his point. "Besides, looks like the kitty-cat's had enough for one day!" he pointed out.
"I'm not used to exercise," she mumbled in response.
"Well, in that case, if you think you feel bad now, just wait until tomorrow," Leo teased, which elicited a pained groan from the cat girl.
He chuckled.
"You don't have to do this, ya know? It's not like learning martial arts is a requirement for living here," he told her.
"That's true. If you're worried about Draxum or somethin', you don't have to be with us around to protect you," Raphael added, smugly thumbing at himself.
"My man!" Leo acknowledged, offering a fist bump to the red turtle which he gladly reciprocated.
Katerina pouted up at them from her prostrate position.
"Great! Cuz that's exactly what I wanna be – a useless liability!" she huffed.
"Oh, come on. No one thinks you're useless," Raph encouraged, lifting her up and setting her on her feet.
She wobbled a bit before gaining her footing.
"Donnie thinks I am," she muttered under her breath with a scowl, except they heard her anyway.
They both glanced at each other and grinned, scoffing at the comment before waving her off.
"Don't sweat it. Nobody cares what Donnie thinks," Leo offered casually.
"Well, I do!" she told them firmly before thinking better of it.
Both boys stared at her like she'd just said something crazy.
"I – I mean – you were all gracious enough to let me stay here with you. S-so, of course I care what you think, and it's just as much Donnie's home as everyone else's. . ." she rambled in an attempt to justify her statement to them.
"Whoa, whoa – calm down cat girl, it's cool," Leo interjected to stop her, slinging a reassuring arm around her shoulders.
"Leo's right. You can care what he thinks if you want," Raph told her. "Even if we don't get it," he added in a mumble as an afterthought.
"Speaking of which, weren't you gonna try beating his high score on the dance machine today?" Leonardo reminded his brother.
"That's right!" Raphael brightened at the thought. "And after that warm up with Katy, I'm all raring to go! It's on!" he challenged, before marching out of the room.
"Oh-ho, yeah! We're not gonna wanna miss the show!" he said to the girl in his arm, leading her out towards the arcade room.
. . .
"I don't think he's got this," Leonardo commented as the four other mutant teens gathered around to watch Raphael attempt to out dance all competition.
"Hey! Leave him alone!" Mikey snapped back.
"Well, I'm just saying, he doesn't have this," Leo argued defensively.
"You're just tryin' to get in my head," Raph huffed, not sounding phased.
"Oh my peaches and cream! He just doubled," Donatello pointed out.
"Rag! Now!" Raph suddenly demanded.
Mikey immediately responded to his call, dabbing at the red turtle's perspiring forehead.
"Have I ever told you how big and beautiful you are?" Mikey asked with an enamored look at his oldest brother.
"No, but thank you," he said, graciously accepting the complement.
"Uh, he is about to set a new high score. I can't watch! But I can't not watch!" Donatello exclaimed, sounding more excited than Katerina would have guessed since it was his score Raphael was replacing.
A strange sound coming from the room behind them suddenly pulled Katerina's attention away from the prancing turtle and his brothers. She flipped around to see what it was, only to find Master Splinter shambling towards them as though he'd been possessed! The sight caused her fur to stand on end before she started backing away.
At the same time, Leo had leapt on top of Donnie to shove him out of the way, getting right up in Raph's face.
"You know what they say about big time moments?" he asked rhetorically.
"Yes, I do. They say that in big time moments, leaders make –" he didn't get the chance to finish, before a horrible growling coming from the rat man startled Katerina enough that she leapt backwards, knocking into the turtles behind her and causing them all to crash onto the floor!
They all sat up a second later to try and get a look at what was happening. The console displaying the 'Game Over' screen in response to the lack of input.
"Ow! My brain!" Splinter cried, holding his head as though he were in massive pain.
Suddenly the others were all yelling too and cringing away from him. Mikey even squealing and Donnie questioning with a, 'No, why?'.
Splinter then reared back with a deep breath before – letting out the most microscopic sneeze Katerina had ever heard. He sniffed and swiped at his nose as the group of teens pulled themselves to their feet. Leo assisting Katerina.
"Gesundheit," he offered casually.
"Ohmigosh, Ohmigosh, OhMiGOSH! Splinter's a zombie!" Mikey exclaimed with dismay.
"Mikey! Zombies are interested in other people's brains," Donnie reminded him.
"Rat Flu!" Raphael announced dramatically.
"Rat – Flu?" Katerina questioned skeptically.
"That's right! This is not a drill. I repeat, this is not a drill, guys!" Raph continued to proclaim.
"What is happening?" Katerina asked, hoping to get some clarification.
"Splinter is sick," Donatello explained with a sigh.
Katerina took another close look at him. It was true he did seem rather unsteady on his feet. Not to mention a bit – green.
"Come on. Let's get him into the other room," Raph instructed.
A minute later, and the turtles were all gathered around their ailing father in his room, fixing him with somber looks as he groaned on his back below them. Leo lightly fanned him with a handkerchief.
"I feel terrible," he managed to croak out. "Do I look terrible?" he asked. "Be honest."
He sat up, and Katerina had to look away, because he – indeed – looked quite terrible. She was happy to find that she was not alone though, as the guys also recoiled in horror at the sight of their diseased master. Raphael managed to shake it off, however.
"You look great! Not horribly sick at all," he attempted to tell him encouragingly, before pulling a curtain closed behind them as they all stepped out of the room.
"He's horribly sick," he then confessed in a whisper.
"Oh really? Ya don't say?" Katerina said with mock surprise. "So, what do you guys normally do in this kind of situation?" she wondered.
"Usually, a flu this intense is going to affect all areas of his brain. I'm talking the full seven stages! You know, before his body naturally heals itself," Donatello explained, sort of.
"You guys know what the full seven stages mean. . ." Raph trailed, holding his brothers as their expressions fell.
Katerina couldn't help the sensation of concern creeping across her chest at the current tone.
"He's – not gonna die, is he?" she asked with distress.
"No," Raph shook his head. "It means – another chance to get whatever we want!" he shouted with glee, the rest of them joining in his celebrating.
"Huh?" Katerina questioned, cocking her head. This sudden shift in atmosphere leaving her feeling very confused.
"When Splinter gets the flu so bad it affects his brain, he get to the point where he'll literally say 'yes' to anything we ask him. It's an opportunity that doesn't come around very often," Leonardo elaborated for her.
Katerina's expression twisted into skeptical disappointment at this news.
"Are you guys telling me that instead of caring for your father when he's sick, you take advantage of him?" she double-checked with a raised brow.
"Listen, Katy," Raphael began, slinging an arm around her and drawing her in as if he were going to give her a serious heart to heart. "You gotta understand that Master Splinter isn't usually the most gracious parent," he explained.
"Yeah, practically every time we ask him for things, he tells us no without even letting us explain. It is kinda sad when he's feeling so terrible," Mikey seemed to lament. It did not last long, however. "But, that's why we gotta make the most of it while we can!" he determined.
"Only, if we make it all the way to the end of the flu. The elusive – stage sev-on! And we never get there!" Donnie whined with a pout.
"Why not?" Katerina was almost afraid to ask.
"Because we always end up catching it before we do," Donnie said.
"So, it's really contagious?" she surmised.
"Extremely," he confirmed.
"This year's gonna be different! Nobody's getting bit. Nobody's getting infected," Raphael ordered, as if it were something that they could control.
Of course, Katerina could understand not wanting to be exposed, but – what was that part about getting bit?
"When we do make it to the end, which I am now calling the 'Must Say Yes' stage, what are we gonna ask for?" Leo chimed in, all four turtles donning pensive stances.
"Wait, you guys are making such a huge deal over this, but you don't even know what you want?" Katerina inquired.
"We only get one shot, so it's gotta be somethin' good," Mikey reasoned, all eyes then sliding towards the red turtle.
"Well, this year I was thinking, we could ask for, uh – um, er, uh. . ." he trailed off, the others groaning in disappointment.
"Ugh! He's got nothing! We're dead!" Leo wailed dramatically.
"Hey! I've got something, alright?" Raph defended hastily. "Like, a, um–"
"Uranium!" Donnie suddenly interjected, cutting him off. "Oh! We should absolutely ask for uranium! I mean, if I could finally get my hands on a little of that, we would be virtually unstopa–" he went on a tirade, until finally getting interrupted himself.
"What about a brick oven for pizza?!" Mikey suggested enthusiastically.
"Who's gonna clean that?" Leo scoffed, shoving the other two aside. "What we should ask for is matching, unicorn onesies. Those are sick! Pun intended – and I nailed it," he boasted, striking a pose.
Katerina giggled at the antics as the others flashed him dirty looks, before diving on him in your standard, sibling squabble.
"Enough!" Raph barked, effectively halting the tussle. "I got this! Alright? I'm gonna ask Splinter for something that benefits all of us," he decided.
"This is so exciting!" Mikey yelled. "But terrible for dad," he added in a more somber tone.
However, the strange thing was, as he sighed out the words, his breath appeared to be visible as an odd, white fog. Noticing this himself, Mikey took a deep breath, and released it with intended force, successfully creating a clearly obvious cloud. The others stared at it with growing concern before casting similar looks towards Raph. He experimented with his own breath, blowing a puff into this hand. That was when it hit Katerina that the temperature in the lair was drastically falling.
"Buckle up, boys. It's about to get weird," he confirmed with determination.
"Weird? What exactly are these, 'seven stages'?" the cat girl now thought to wonder.
"Don't worry. You'll see soon enough," Leo assured her.
Stage 1: Fever
Several hours later, and the teens found themselves all huddled under a rather large heat lamp placed in the center of the main room. Raph, Donnie, and Mikey were all pressed up next to each other, violently shivering, while Leo and Katy were both off to the side a bit, sipping at drinks clutched in their hands. Leo was also adequately bundled, sporting a coat with a hood, gloves, pants, and boots.
"I hate stage one!" Mikey moaned through chattering teeth. "Think warm thoughts! Pizza ovens, bricks from Italy, wood chips roasting," he dreamed, rubbing at his arms.
"We're four hours in. His fever's gotta break soon," Raph reasoned.
"I told you guys to plan ahead," Leo reminded them. "Now I'm sitting here all toasty," he boasted, taking a sip of his cocoa while the others glared at him.
He had, in fact, warned them this was going to happen, but they had argued with him on the grounds that they didn't think his fever was going to last this long. Katerina, on the other hand, hadn't done much prepping, but still appeared to be perfectly fine. This didn't escape the other's notice.
"How come – you aren't cold – Katy?" Mikey whined at her.
"Because I'm wearing clothes. Plus I'm covered with fur, remember?" she said, gesturing at herself.
"Oh yeah!" he seemed to realize.
Without waiting for an invitation, Mikey scooted over towards her, lifting the edge of her hoodie and pushing his way inside. Before she knew what was happening, she suddenly found herself sharing the jacket with him, his little face poking out next to hers.
"Ah!" he signed in contentment, wrapping his arms around her torso. "So soft and warm," he cooed, snuggling into her.
"Glad to be of service," she stated with mock-annoyance.
She couldn't hold it for long, however. Her face cracking into a smile as she gave the orange turtle a head pat, the others looking on enviously.
"Can I have some of your –" Mikey began, but then stopped short when he realized the liquid in her mug didn't match his expectations. "That's some weird looking cocoa," he observed, his expression twisting questioningly.
"That's because it's orange juice," she clarified.
"Why are you drinking orange juice?" he wondered.
"Vitamin C, to boost my immune system. I don't wanna get sick!" she offered, taking a swig.
A sudden shadow looming over them made them all glance up in surprise! Katy going so far as to spit out her drink in shock at what they saw.
"Wha-what?! Why!?" Leonardo demanded.
Standing before them was none other than Master Splinter. However, it appeared that he had taken the liberty to shave himself completely bald! To his credit, he was at least still wearing his underwear, however, he now looked very reminiscent of a giant, sweaty, naked mole rat! Not his finest moment, to be sure.
"Had to – air myself out," he explained wearily, collapsing to the ground, face first. Steam rising off of his bare, pink skin.
However, this subdued, nearly comatose form did not last long. For a second later, and Katerina nearly leapt out of her skin when he suddenly reared up and unleashed a spine chilling, animalistic scream at them! He viciously dove towards the group. They in turn, all rapidly backing away from him in terror!
Stage 2: Wild Rat Man
Separating himself from his heating source so he could run more effectively, Michelangelo dashed after the others around the lair as they attempted to put as much space between themselves and the now psychotic rat master! Katerina, meanwhile, remained parked in the middle of the room, observing the spectacle.
"Don't eat me! Raph's tastier!" Mikey attempted to persuade him as they all fled, shouting in fear.
"Suits on! Suits on! Donnie, get the device ready!" Raphael ordered, as the boys were indeed attempting to force themselves into what appeared to be color coordinated hazmat suits.
Donatello rejoined the cat girl down on the bottom level a moment later, pulling a controller out of the suit's pocket.
"But, what about Katy? She doesn't have one!" Mikey realized with dismay.
"Don't worry about me. I'm not the one he's interested in," she pointed out, her head spinning as she continued to watch them circle the ledge above.
"Uh, the device is ready," Donnie then informed the red leader, pulling the zipper up to fully seal the suit. "You know, my inspiration for this device was, simplicity," he began to voluntarily describe as he pulled the head cover on, making Katy wonder if he was intending this exposition for her.
"Why dress something up with lots of bells and whistles, when you can just let it speak for its–" he didn't get a chance to finish before being cut off by his still frantically fleeing brothers.
"No one has time for this!" Leo wailed in annoyance.
Donatello slumped with an irritable glare as he watched his brothers dash by. His eyes eventually landing on the cat girl in front of him, who simply cocked her head. He blew out a sigh before clicking a button on his omni-tool, causing what appeared to be a massive hamster ball to come rolling out of one of the tubes that opened up into the room. It took out Leo on it's way down as it landed in the center of the half pipe.
"Nice!" Raph cheered, Leo groaning as he pulled himself up off the floor. "Alright, let's get him inside," he instructed.
Pulling out a box of pizza, Leo began cautiously backing away as the naked rat man slowly stalked after the food. Right before he was about to pounce, the blue turtle chucked the pizza, box and all, towards the small opening in the side of the giant ball. Luckily, Splinter took the bait, diving after it and squeezing himself through the hole, which Donnie promptly plugged.
"Okay, this should hold him for a while," he assured the others.
"And you're sure this isn't cruel?" Leo asked.
"He loves pizza in confined spaces you can barely breathe in," Raph attempted to justify.
"What I don't get is why this is even necessary!? I thought he had the flu, not rabies!" Katerina snapped.
"We told you. Rat Flu affects the brain – whoa!" It was everything Donnie could do to hang on as Splinter began forcefully scrambling around in the ball beneath him.
"Donnie, is it gonna hold up?" Mikey asked with concern.
"Hypothetically!" he managed to reply right as he lost control of the ball, the poor guy getting repeatedly steamrolled as Splinter frantically dashed in place, the pizza inside tumbling in all directions!
That is, until Splinter managed to generate enough momentum to actually launch himself into the air, ball and all, taking Donnie with him. They bounced around several times like a giant game of ping pong, until the container finally cracked in half, releasing the mutant rat! He didn't waste any time in scrambling away through a pipe, Donnie hitting the ground hard before anyone else had chance to react.
Snapping out of the initial shock, Katerina gasped and darted over to him.
"Oh my gosh! Donnie, are you okay?" she asked with concern.
He let out a groan and rubbed the back of his head before glancing up at her with a fair amount of surprise.
"Uh, yeah. I'm fine," he assured her.
She offered a hand to help him up, which he subconsciously accepted, and she hoisted him to his feet. She smiled at him, but commotion from his brothers pulled her attention away, long enough for him to fix her with a curious stare.
"Mikey, follow me, and be careful. We can't afford to lose anyone before – stage seven," Raph was telling him dramatically, none of them paying any attention to what had just transpired on the other side of the room.
"I thought we all agreed it was now called the 'Must Say Yes' stage," Leo scoffed.
"It would be easier for me to be careful if I knew you were gonna ask for a pizza oven," the orange turtle hinted slyly.
"I'm still thinking!" Raph growled irritably.
"Quick question. Is uranium still on the table?" Donnie chimed in, and Raph let out an exasperated groan.
"Donnie, even if he says 'yes' to that, where exactly are you guys gonna get uranium? It's not like you can just pick some up at your local hardware store," Katy reasoned skeptically.
"Don't ruin my dreams!" he snapped at her.
Feeling a little taken aback, the cat girl simply sighed before wandering off a bit.
Stage 3: Captain Cuddle Cakes
While Raph and Mikey ventured deeper into the lair to try and locate their rat master, Katerina remained in the main room with Leo and Donnie. Now that things had calmed for a moment, they decided to partially pull off the restrictive suits, taking a break from the sensation of claustrophobia.
"Ugh! These things do not breathe!" Leo complained, halfway out of his.
"I know, right?" Donnie agreed, popping off the headpiece. "Much better," he sighed.
"So, what exactly happens if you guys catch this? Will you go through all these weird stages too?" Katy wondered.
"It – kinda depends. We don't usually go through all the stages, and it's never this intense," Donatello explained.
"Plus, as far as we know, you could catch it too. So, you gotta make sure to be careful," Leo warned.
"Speaking of which, are we sure we're safe?" Donnie asked, sounding a touch unnerved.
"Calm down, we're fine," Leo offered, waving off the concern. "Raph and Mikey have it under contro-oh no!" his reassurance transforming into surprise as the others suddenly bolted past.
"Stage three! Stage three!" Raph was hollering out the warning as they ran for all they were worth.
"Oh, little baby blue, come to papa," Splinter was cooing creepily as he spotted Leo while giving chase, his eyes bright and oddly heart-shaped.
"Suits on! Suits on!" Raph barked at the others, as they were simultaneously attempting to redress themselves while they ran. "Why weren't you in your suit?!" he lectured.
"Because Leo!" Donnie immediately blamed.
"No one forced you to, Donnie," he argued back, tripping and stumbling before managing to get his suit back on.
"Ugh, what's that smell?" he complained, just as Master Splinter, almost predictably, suddenly popped up inside his suit with him!
"I love you, this much!" they could hear the rat man say affectionately, as he plastered his son's face with kisses.
The display almost being sweet, if you forgot about the fact that his brain was currently addled by a virus!
"No, no-no! I'm your least favorite!" Leo attempted to dissuade him, but it was already too late.
"Uh, Leo's infected. Quarantine him!" Donatello determined.
The others procedurally stripped Leo of his now superfluous suit and placed him inside his room before sealing up the entrance with a plastic cover. He pouted and lightly tapped his fists against it.
"Hey! You need me to get to the 'Must Say Yes' stage. We need to ask for the onesies," he was complaining, his words starting to slur as he did so. "Woo! It is really hot!" he exclaimed, his legs going wobbly as he started profusely sweating. "Is there a fire? There's a fire here, right? The floor is made of lava?" he rambled.
That is, until Raphael clicked a button on a console right next to the door that released a mass of some sort of blue foam that effectively coated the afflicted turtle. Katerina could only assume it was meant to cool him off.
"Down to four," Raph noted ominously, glancing over at the others.
"Wow, you guys have really thought of everything." She cocked her head at the panting turtle on the other side of the plastic. "Is, he gonna be okay?" she asked.
"As long as he drinks his fluids and gets plenty of rest, he'll be fine," Raph assured her. "As for the rest of us, let's be careful so we can make sure we get what we want. Who's got eyes on the package?" he asked, everyone now glancing around nervously.
"Ah! I lost him," Mikey admitted, noting that the dummy they had distracted him with was now sitting alone.
Too bad it wasn't for long, because a second later, and a purple smoke bomb suddenly went off in the middle of the room. Now revealing that Splinter had dressed himself in full ninja gear and was brandishing a katana!
Stage 4: Ninja Supreme
He greeted them by lobbing several shuriken in their direction, Raphael succeeding in blocking them with his tonfa as the rest of them cringed away.
"Hot Soup!" the rat yelled, going on the offensive straight into the middle of them.
The sounds of blades slicing through the air could be heard, and when the rat man landed on the other side, the guy's suits fell to the ground around their feet in shreds.
"What the what?!" Katerina exclaimed as the rat vanished. "Now he's just straight up trying to murder us? These so called 'stages' aren't making any sense!" She pointed out with irritation.
"Never mind!" Raph snapped waving her off. "Where'd Splinter go?" he demanded, right before the room went dark.
The turtles, now having been blinded, nervously fumbled around in the darkness. Donnie backed up against Mikey, who in turn flipped around to try and reach out and grab him.
"Guys! I think I felt some–" he tried to tell them, but was cut off by Donnie whacking him across the head!
"Hey! That is my butt!" the purple turtle protested indignantly.
Raphael ran towards the sounds of their voices, tackling Donnie in the process. After hearing that, Mikey then jumped on top of Raph. And before she was able to react, the remaining turtles were all suddenly locked in a wrestling match. Her eyes having quickly adjusted, Katy backed away to avoid getting involved.
"Guys! You're fighting each other!" she shouted in an attempt to get them to stop.
Luckily they did, blinking in the darkness.
"Katy, you can see?" Raph asked in wonder.
"Of course I can. I have cat eyes!" she reminded him.
"Ah yes, good call!" Donnie cheered, pulling his goggles down and engaging night vision.
Katerina noticed some movement on the upper level.
"There he goes!" she called, gesturing in the scrambling rat's direction, guiding Donnie's attention.
"No! Not my lab!" he whined at seeing what room he was headed into.
"Do you –" Katy began, her body language hinting at helping as she stepped in that direction.
"No, just – stay here," he ordered, the cat girl's shoulders falling a bit as he left her behind.
He returned shortly after the others managed to turn on some of the emergency lights. Hopping down into the center of the group while clutching his arm suspiciously.
"Donnie, you hit?" Raph asked him with concern.
"No, no I'm fine. I just cut myself on that janky, old door. Everything's okay," he rambled out in reply. "Raph, did you decide what we're gonna ask for?!" he suddenly wondered as though he were trying to change the subject.
Katy narrowed her eyes at him dubiously, but the others didn't seem to be phased.
"Yeah, I got it! I'm gonna ask for –" he stopped, once against being interrupted by the sound of a battle cry coming from above them.
"What?!" Raph exclaimed as they all glanced up to find Splinter diving towards the ground.
However, instead of the attack they all anticipated, the light from a disco ball suddenly burst on, revealing Splinter back in his normal robe with a microphone in his hand. Music began to play and the rat man proceeded to belt out an aria!
Stage 5: Karaoke Love Songs
The sound was like nails on a chalk board! Katerina didn't think she'd ever heard anyone this tone deaf in her entire life! Maybe being a cat wasn't such a great thing after all?!
"I can't feel my ears! Nothing is worth this!" Mikey wailed.
"You think you've got it bad? You don't even have ears! I'm about ready to pull a piccolo and rip mine off!" Katerina hollered back painfully, as she desperately tried, and failed, to block out the horrifying noise!
"But we're so close! Only two stages left!" Raph tried to encourage them.
"Either way, we should probably quarantine Donnie before he infects the rest of us," Katy pointed out to them.
"What do you mean? I am – perfectly healthy!" he argued in slurred speech, trying to hide the snot now falling from his nose. "Man, why is it so hot in here?!" he complained, collapsing to the ground.
A moment later, and he too had been confined to his room on the other side of a plastic seal, the blue foam jetting out to cool his burning body. He pounded the shield weakly with his fists.
"Oh, you're gonna get squat from Splinter without Donnie! Not without ol' Donnie," he threatened like a maniac! "I'm the brains behind this operation!" he yelled, following it up with a pathetic sneeze.
"Thanks for the heads up, Katy," Raph told her now that Donnie was secured.
"No problem," she replied.
"Uh, what stage are we on now?" Mikey wondered hesitantly.
"Well, they can't possibly get any weirder, right?" the cat girl asked hopefully.
Stage 6: Fan Fiction
"And – I stand corrected," she acknowledged, watching the rat master placing various action figures down on a table as he began narrating.
"Okay, okay. Listen, listen, listen. Okay – We open on noodle shop. It's raining," he explained dramatically, waving his hands and making rain noises. "Lou Jitsu 'Hot Soups' two assassins," he punched and kicked the air, making his own sound effects. "Then wham! Interdimensional doorway opens and out walks – Dun! Dun! Dun! Jupiter Jim!" he announced, throwing on a space helmet. "And we smash two titles!"
"This is amazing! Keep going!" Mikey encouraged, frantically taking notes.
"We're almost to stage seven," Raph said excitedly. "This is the closest I've been to success, uh, ever!" he realized, making a motion to slap palms with his orange brother.
Only, he backed off at the last second when Mikey suddenly sneezed, face planting into the floor. Glancing over his shoulder, he also noticed Katy propping her back against the wall, not looking too hot herself. Wary of taking any chances due to being right at the finish line, he decided to toss both of the remaining teens into Mikey's room, sealing the entrance.
"We're done! Raph is totally gonna blow this! He has no idea, what to ask for! Which means –" Mikey let out a exasperated sigh. "Gettin' hot! It's like I'm on the sun here!" he moaned, fanning at himself.
Raph implemented a dose of blue foam in response, Mikey sinking to the floor.
On the other hand, Katerina didn't mind being done, now feeling pretty lousy despite her earlier attempts at prevention. But unlike the turtles, the onset of the fever was making her feel very cold and achy. Backing away from the foam, she grabbed a blanket from her bed to wrap around her shoulders as she sat hunched over, just behind where the orange turtle lay so she could still see what was happening outside.
"I'm not gonna blow this," Raph was saying with a chuckle and a look of determination.
"Raphael," he heard from the corner of the room in a croaky whisper. He turned to find Leo leaning up against the plastic shielding.
"I love you, my brother. But you do tend to fail in big moments, pish posh. But that's what makes you, you! Now bring it in, buddy! I'm gonna hug you till a smile comes out!" the blue turtle slurred with affection, holding himself as he rocked back and forth.
He sounded like he was at the cuddle stage.
"Enough!" the red turtle snapped. "Raph's got this! Cuz in big time moments, leaders, make big time shots!" he declared, finally getting to finish his statement from earlier that evening. "And I'm big time!"
"Raph! He must say yes!" Donatello started hissing from inside his own room, completely pressing himself flush up against his plastic seal with a crazy grin. "Make him say yes, ah!" he added, dragging out the words.
Seemed like Donnie was still in the feral stage.
"Enough!" he ordered again. "Don't mess this up, Raph. Don't mess this up," he chanted.
"Don't forget, we only get to ask for one thing my little Raph-a-doodle," Leo cooed.
"I know exactly what I'm askin' for," he determined, rubbing his palms together.
Stage 7: Must Say Yes
This was it, the moment of truth! Raphael stood his ground before the only halfway conscious rat man, taking a deep breath.
"Master Splinter," he began. "I know you'll say yes to whatever I ask for. I want you, to give –"
"Raph-a-doodle a hug!" Leo suddenly screamed, before slicing open is quarantine barrier and dashing out into the room. "Everybody loves hugs!" he cried, collapsing onto the floor in between them, leaving poor Raph looking horrified!
"What?! No! Anything but that!" the red turtle begged, attempting to back away.
But the rat man was too fast for him, giggling like a school girl as he dove right on top of the red turtle, locking his arms around his neck and pelting his cheek with kisses. A moment later, and Raph's body convulsed with a sneeze. Master Splinter sat up on top of him, now looking rather eager.
"Ooo! Flu! Papa wants a new bike!" he requested excitedly, clapping his greedy, little paws together.
"What? But you got all your son's sick. Aren't you gonna take care of them?" he heard Katerina wonder from the entrance to Mikey's room.
She was standing with the blanket still wrapped around her shoulders, fixing him with a worried look. The rat man was unphased, however, scoffing as he hopped off his eldest.
"You mean, like how they just took care of me? They will be fine," he callously brushed off her concern, moseying out of the room.
Katerina glanced around at the group of miserable looking turtles, all coughing, sneezing, covered in sweat and mucus, and sighed.
"I suppose that's fair. Guess I'll make us some soup," she offered, dropping the blanket before stumbling towards the kitchen.
"Wait, Katy. You don't have. . ." Michelangelo tried telling her from his spot on the ground, before going into a coughing fit.
She smiled as she turned back towards him.
"I know, but I don't think I'm as sick as you guys are, and besides, it wouldn't be the first time," she mumbled the last part. "But, I should probably make sure to get you all into bed before I start," she realized, bending down to help the orange turtle up and into his hammock.
Raph was still well enough that he could make it on his own. She swung one of Leo's arms around her shoulders, so he could lean on her while stumbling back to his room, and Donnie still had enough feral energy left for her to heard him back up to his bed.
After that was done, she pushed her way into the kitchen. Katerina filled a pot and put it on the stove to boil before searching the cupboards for the first aid kit she remembered seeing the last time she'd gone through everything.
She was about to pop a tablet of Acetaminophen when another thought occurred to her. She remembered learning somewhere that most over-the-counter drugs were actually toxic to animals. The only one she knew that was relatively safe was Aspirin. Still not the greatest solution, but she hoped she'd be able to get away with it. She wanted this fever to break as soon as possible, after all.
Once that was done, she pulled out some packets of chicken noodle and set to work.
It didn't take too long before the soup was ready to serve. She slowly brought a bowl to each respective turtle, taking care not to spill any despite still feeling kind of shaky. They all graciously accepted, Donatello a little less so than the others, but really, what did she expect at this point? At least he only complained that the soup was just a bit too hot.
On her way back from delivering the purple pain an ice cube, she heard Leonardo calling her name from is room. She poked her head in to see what he needed.
"Could you hand me my phone?" he whined, motioning towards where it sat across the room.
Rolling her eyes at his laziness, she padded over to do what he asked, placing the device into his outstretched hand. He checked something real quick on it before glancing back at her.
"Why you doing all this for us? Don't you feel bad too?" he wondered, rotating onto his side so he could get a better look at her.
She flashed him a soft smile before plopping down on the edge of his bed.
"Yeah, but I took some medicine and I'm feeling a bit better. Besides, no offense, but guys tend to be big babies when they get sick – even if they are mutant turtles," she teased.
"Oh yeah? Could a baby do this?" he challenged, leaping forward and catching her in his arms.
Katerina responded by squeaking in surprise and giggling at the antics, until she noticed his eyes roll back a bit and start to droop.
"Leo?" she questioned with concern.
"Ugh. Got up too fast," he moaned, falling back to the bed, and taking the cat girl with him. Although, he didn't let go.
She was about to question him again, when he seemed to recover, pulling her even closer and rubbing his face against her. She froze in surprise, but didn't attempt to push him away.
"Mikey's right, you are real soft an warm," he mumbled, and proceeded to completely pass out!
Katerina felt the blush blossom across her face so strongly that it blurred her vision! Logically, she knew that all this was coming from his virus, addled brain, but that didn't stop the electricity arcing up and down her spine! She wasn't sure if she'd be able to wiggle out of his death grip, at least not without waking him. But at the same time, she wasn't completely sure she even wanted to.
Maybe. . . it wouldn't hurt anything if she stayed for a little while, right? She reasoned with herself, biting down on her lip. Well, just until he decided to let her go. After all, she'd feel bad if she woke him up now.
Too bad, 'a little while' ended up being all night!
Katerina realized this with dismay when she woke up early the next morning to discover that she was still lying in Leo's bed! At least he'd let go of her in the night, so she was able to get up without disturbing him.
On the bright side, it was still pretty early. So, when she poked her head out of his room to glance around, it didn't appear as though anyone else was up yet.
Lucky break! She thought with a sigh of relief. Despite the situation being perfectly innocent, not to mention kind of an accident, she still didn't want to deal with any kind of backlash because of this! As she snuck back into Mikey's room, her final hope was that Leo had been too out of it last night to remember.
What she hadn't realized, however, was that she actually wasn't the only one who'd been up at that hour. And unfortunately, hadn't noticed the dark, purple shadow, watching as she'd crept her way across the lair and out of sight.
. . .
Over the next several days, Donatello noticed a drastic shift in how his brothers were treating their cat girl guest since their ordeal with the flu. Leo seemed to be constantly hanging all over her, Raph was giving her continual head pets – mostly as if it were a reward for good behavior, but sometimes just because he wanted to. Finally, Mikey enjoyed sitting so close to her that he would almost be in her lap! This when they would do things together, like playing games or watching cartoons.
She was even taking time to train with Master Splinter on a regular basis. So much so, that he'd actually praised her progress at one point! Praise? From Splinter?! That was completely unheard of! Donatello didn't understand what the big deal was.
In fact, it appeared as though she was getting rather close with everyone in the family. That is – except for him. Despite not fully understanding how this was occurring, what confused him even more, was why he even cared? Her getting along with his family should be a good thing, right? So, why did it leave him feeling so – hollow?