Chapter 4: Ara

Ara followed Splinter into a small, well-lit room, biting her lip nervously as she did so. The room had a thick, soft carpet and two large cushions with a small mahogany table between them. The cushions' bright, elaborate designs had faded with age and use, but they were clean and in good repair. Ara guessed that the room served as a talking place for Splinter and his sons.

"Please, sit." Splinter gestured to a pillow. Ara knelt on the closest cushion. Splinter seated himself opposite of her. "You saved the lives of my sons. For this, I am greatly indebted to you."

Ara lowered her eyes under his intense gaze, her face turning pink. "Yes, well… that's what friends do for each other, right?"

"Indeed," Splinter replied solemnly, "but do you realize that you could have been killed? The Kraang are nothing to mess with, and you leaped into an area with twenty of them, all with loaded laser guns."

At this, Ara raised her head and looked Splinter squarely in the eye. "Yeah, but death is always a risk when you're a ninja. I've known that from the moment I began my training. We all leave this earth at some time, and I can't think of many better ways to die than trying to save friends, or any innocent person, for that matter."

"Spoken like a true ninja," Splinter said slowly as he stroked his beard.

"Besides," Ara added with a smile, "if the Kraang want to hurt me, they're going to have a very hard time doing it. My father made sure of that."

"I gather your father was a fine man," Splinter said gently.

Ara smiled sadly. "The best. I…I wish you two could've met. I have a feeling that you'd be friends. You remind me of him in a lot of ways."

"I take that as a great compliment," Splinter smiled. "I need to ask you something. It's only a proposal, and you needn't feel any pressure to accept it. I was wondering if you would like to join my sons and be a part of their team. You would train with them, go with them on nightly patrols, and I could train you as your sensei. As you undoubtedly already know, it'll be hard work, but..." Splinter drew a light green mask from the sleeve of his robe and placed it down on the table. "You've already proved yourself more than capable, and I believe you would find it rewarding."

Ara reached forward and took the soft mask into her hand, then experimentally fastened it over eyes. It fit like a glove, almost as if it was a part of her that she'd been missing until that moment.

Ara found that she couldn't hold back as a wave of happy emotions rolled over her. She lunged forward and wrapped Splinter in a huge hug. He chuckled gently. "Is this a yes?"

Ara stood up and backed away, embarrassed. "It's a yes." Her serious face broke into a grin, but she quickly composed herself and bowed to Splinter. "Thank you… sensei," she said, trying out the new name and finding that it sounded right.

Splinter nodded. "It is I who should be thanking you. You are free to go." With that, he closed his eyes and let out a little sigh of contentment.

Ara shifted nervously. "Uh, Master Splinter?"

"Yes?" Splinter opened one eye.

"Err… don't we have to tell the guys?"

Splinters re-shut his eye. "No. In their eyes, you were an official member the second you saved them this morning. Besides, I believe you will discover in a moment that they are already quite aware of our conversation."

Nodding in slight confusion, Ara quietly slipped out of the door. She bumped into Leo as she did so. Leo stumbled back, crashing into Donnie, who bumped into Raph, who knocked over Mikey. Ara's mouth flew open. "Were you guys eavesdropping on us?"

"No!" Mikey cried defensively, standing up and brushing himself off. "Umm, what does eavesdropping mean?"

Donnie groaned, and Leo rubbed his neck sheepishly. "We, uh, didn't hear much."

Raph rolled his eyes. "Did anyone ever tell you that you're horrible at lying?"

Leo brushed off the comment and stuck his hand out to Ara, smiling. "Welcome to the team."

And so it began…