A/N: So happy to see you all again! I've got a new job but the hours are turning out to be longer than I thought they would be so I'm sorry that updates will be a little slow. I am writing every night though! Here's the next chapter. Remember an authors' air, water, and food are combined into reviews for easy consumption! Leave one to keep me fueled up and coming back to the key board every night!
I give the movie credit at the bottom, just an FYI because I had to use more of the movie than I wanted, so it's not the Easter egg I promised.
*)O(*
He stretched. His arm hit the wall like it did every morning and he pushed away from it, rolling himself out of bed. Twisting and bending, he cleared the fog away from his mind. He smiled to himself. Last night had been great; this morning looked to be just as good.
He'd walked above ground with Becca. She'd walked close, depending on him to make sure she was safe and found her way back home. The deeply ingrained male part of him smirked. He had a little bit before training started and he would usually make breakfast or get a jumpstart on some gaming. Before Becca he would have even went into the dojo early and got in a warm up. Now he looked around, unsure of what to do next.
Mikey it was an odd feeling to walk through your home and not know what you wanted to do in it. There were a thousand things to occupy his time. The only thing he wanted to do was go to Becca. See her smile, hear her laugh, feel her warmth as she sat next to him on the couch. They were simple things but the way he craved them was surprising. It was like he hadn't had pizza in years and a slice was dangling in front of him. But he couldn't grab it.
Actually, it was more like he wouldn't. Not yet at least. This was something that he had to wait and be patient for. Things that he neither liked, nor was good at doing. Still, he had to do them. He couldn't risk pushing, or worse yet, scarring Becca away. Then he remembered the last time he trained. If there was anything he could do to make sure she never looked at him like that again, Mikey would do it.
He found himself wilting onto the couch. What could he do to stop from seeing that again? His eyes roamed over the DVD collection they had amassed throughout the years. Most were burned copies from Donnie. Some had been shipped to April's once they had money. Others were from before, worn out with no cases on half of them.
There was one in the scratched up pile that he could pull out from memory, one that he secretly loved. He'd even gotten a new copy of it since the older one wouldn't play anymore. He realized the solution to his problem as he though it over. That one movie could give him a second chance.
*)O(*
It was early, she was sore, and her eyes didn't want to stay open. Snagging an orange crush out of the fridge, she trudging made her way to the dojo where everyone else was. Mik had tried to wake her up three times before Sara came in, screaming. No wonder they all called her Banshee. If Becca had been dead, Sara could have probably woken her up and no one would have ever been the wiser.
Inside of the dojo, Mik raised an eyebrow at her, but Becca ignored it. Sara was standing with the guys, going through a set of movements. Everyone was smiling. By Becca's standards, they were enjoying being up this early way too much. "Alright, Michelangelo and Sara," Splinter motioned to the sparring area they had used a few days ago. "You two are up first." Becca could feel her eyes bulge. If Mikey went all… primal on Sara, he could really hurt her! Hopefully he knew not to injure her. Maybe he had learned something since the last time he had sparred.
They both bowed to each other then took their stances. Sara yelled, rushing forward. Mikey eyed Splinter and Leo before setting a look of apology on Donnie. Carefully, Mikey sidestepped Sara. Chewing her lip, Becca watched their dance. Then Mikey started to talk. "Aw, what's wrong? Can't catch me? Don't worry, Raph can't lay a finger on me either." Sara let out a noise that sounded like a growl. Catching Mikey by his shell, Sara jumped over the top of him, her legs smashing into his face, taking him down to the ground at her own expense. She rolled away, as if the hard fall hadn't fazed her. Sara was up, her fist speeding towards Mikey's face. Her healing lip reopened as she tried not to bite it off. The taste of blood filled her mouth as Sara's fist stopped an inch away from Mikey's face.
"Very good, Sara, just remember not to let your enemy rally you so." Like it was completely normal for one of them to nearly kill the other, Splinter continued on. "Leonardo, Raphael." Not far away from her, Donnie groaned. Mikey and Sara were up and joking around now. Mikey sat down next to her and gave her a smile. "Are you okay?" She rushed to ask. He chuckled. Was he out of his mind? How could he just be okay like that, for God's sake, the fall had to have hurt him at least. "I'm fine, my shell's thick."
"So is your head," Sara threw in with a laugh. She sucked on her lip, removing the blood before anyone can worry over it. She hadn't been paying attention to the fight going on, taking her eyes away for a moment. When she looked, Leo had Raph pinned but was having obvious trouble keeping him there. Splinter called the match after a few moments and Becca breathed a sigh of relief.
"We're used to this, Becca. Most of this doesn't even hurt anymore. We just leave the mat a little bit sorer than when we came in."
"Leonardo, Donatello."
"Wax his shell, Donnie!" Sara whooped, fist pumping the air. It was fascinating to watch them, both of them extremely reserved as they fought against each other. They were both planning, thinking things out as they traded glancing blows with each other. Neither seemed fazed. Their stares were like a cold shower after a sauna. Something that happened too fast for her untrained eyes to catch turned the match. Donnie was knocked back, losing his balance. Leo seized the moment and crouched, knocking the intellectual turtle's feet out from under him.
Mikey let out a harsh laugh at the look on Donnie's face. "Michelangelo and Raphael." Mikey's laugh was short lived. He looked like he'd been betrayed. Becca patted his knee and smiled to him. She knew, as much as it confused her, that this was part of who he was. He nodded and stood, walking to his position as Raph took his. Sara was comforting Donnie, who was frowning, nearly moping.
Becca watched the match. Mikey seemed resolute, determined. She was worried about him going crazy again. Seeing him last night and exactly what 'animalistic' meant when it came to her, Becca wasn't too scared. She still didn't want him to hurt his brothers, or to get hurt, but she knew it was part of him like her hair would always be blond.
Raph charged, it seemed like his favorite fighting move. This time though, he did it with care. Easily grabbing hold of Mikey and throwing him to the mat, Mikey's head hit the mat first. She noticed something. Usually Mikey would be back on his feet by now, or at least moving away from the massive turtle that was getting ready to land a solid elbow into his chest.
The force of the hit made a sound that resounded throughout the silent dojo. Becca scrambled, trying to get up and make sure he was okay. She barely beat Donnie, who was followed by Sara. Mikey was gasping, holding his shell where Raph had landed the hit. "Are you okay?" All three of the people gathered asked at the same time.
"Whoa, I thought I just heard the choir calling for me," Mikey tried to grin but grimaced instead.
"Damn it, Mikey, why didn't you move?" Raph's voice was rough. Becca looked up, ready to yell at him when she noticed the look of worry he wore. Blinking, she looked back down to Mikey. "You okay, bro?" Donnie asked.
"My head hurts a little; I think I hit it too hard when I came down. Hey, Raph, don't worry about it dude." He gave a weak thumbs up then sat up slowly. Becca didn't realize she was helping him until he gave her a warm smile. "I'm okay. I don't think Raph's strong enough to do any real damage yet." Typically, she would laugh or smile to acknowledge that he was okay but something wasn't setting right in her stomach. "Let's get you some ice."
Mikey let her help him out of the dojo. On her part, all she really did was walk next to him while the others brought weapons into the mix. He kept cracking small jokes. They weren't intended for her to laugh. He seemed to want to draw a smile out of her worried face. He finally succeeded when he took the bag of vegetables they used as an ice pack. "Look, it's the pea's knees." Placing the bag on his legs. Grinning and shaking her head, she got him aspirin.
The next morning was almost the same. This time Donnie beat Mikey before Leo also handed him his shell. Now he was getting ready to face Sara. This time they were going to use weapons. When she pulled out her sickles, Becca gulped. She'd slice his shell open with those things. 'Shell is the whole thing,' she reminded herself. She'd asked Sara the night before what the different parts were. Now she at least knew that that back part was a carapace and the front was a plastron. The difference didn't matter it seemed. Twice in a row, Mikey lost the matches. It was a stark comparison to how she'd seen him the first time he'd sparred with his brothers.
She watched as Sara landed a few hits on him, luckily only nicking his skin. The final to the match was when Sara had jabbed the blunt end of the handle to her sickles into Mikey's jaw. His head snapped back and blood came out of his mouth. Sara had made good on her threat to shut him up. Note to self, don't piss Sara off, she reminded herself.
Again, she went to get him some ice, the kick that Leo had landed on Mikey's chin, and the last one from Sara was bothering her; she didn't want him to bruise. "I'm okay, really," Mikey tried to complain but then winced when she stuck the ice pack on his face. "Sure you are." She smiled. "I bet that your face doesn't hurt one bit, does it?" Instead of saying something, Mikey looked away from her. There was still some blood on the corner of his mouth. She frowned. Was this how it always was? Blood and fighting mixed with a fun going, loving personality?
"Let's watch a movie." She suggested. A break from the world for an hour or two couldn't hurt. "I'll even make something soft for you so you can chew it," she teased. He tried to hide it but she could see him blushing a little. He looked rather cute like that. Almost like a little kid who'd lost a schoolyard fight and was trying to save face… Just a lot older and stronger.
She'd learned a little about the kitchen and grabbed two bowels and some instant ramen. While she was at it, she also grabbed some aspirin and a washcloth. Setting up the ramen in the microwave, she grabbed each of them a drink and wet down the cloth. She went back to him, sitting down next to him. The clash of steel against steel started up in the dojo, floating through the air to them and Mikey looked ruefully towards it.
He jumped when she patted at his mouth with the cloth. He turned to look at her. 'The hell are you doing?' Look on his face was priceless. She showed him the bit of blood on the cloth. He looked between it and her for a moment. "It's okay to say that you're hurt, you know," she almost scolded. She tried not to blush as she removed the blood from his face. He was staring at her. His big blue eyes glued on her, as if he saw something she didn't when she looked in the mirror. The ramen dinged.
They moved to the living room. She scanned the movies. Mikey sat on the couch, watching her. She had to admit, his ability to zero in on her was impressive. She didn't think that there was anything special about her, but the way that he tracked her movements proved that he found something. Her eyes roamed that large expanse of the collection. There was something from every genre here. What the collection lacked was some kind of organization. Finally, something jumped out at her.
"Oh my god, I haven't seen this in forever!" Snatching the movie from the shelves, she proudly showed it to Mikey. "We're watching this one." As if she'd said she thought he might taste good in a soup, his face went pale. "Um, uh, o-okay," his smile was forced. Suspiciously, she put the movie in. She bit her lip as she worked the DVD player. Maybe it was actually porn or something. She stopped herself from laughing at the thought.
"I actually got to go to a real joust once. It was at a renaissance fair a few years back. I have to say, the sound of the lances breaking is pretty cool." She informed him as she sat down next to him the couch.
"I bet, I like seeing them get thrown off their horses." Mikey chuckled. "You never know what will happen, but seeing them being flung around is awesome." At that, Becca did laugh a little.
As the movie started, Becca settled down, grabbing her bowl and enjoying the experience. Not long into the movie she started to laugh. Mikey would laugh as well. They would both groan, hold their injured body part, look at each other then laugh again. It was nice. They shared the same sense of humor, and they were in synch. She found herself almost leaning on him. A few inches separated them, helping her save some face. She was so drawn to him though. She reminded herself that she was only going to be here until she found a job, and then she would have to leave. She'd probably never see him again.
Sad, she focused back on the movie. 'A Knight's Tale' was a classic. Romance with a clear villain, and an underdog hero who trumped all odds thrown his way. Although his hardest battle is with the woman that he tries to win over and not in the jousting matches. 'If you would prove your love, you should do your worst.' Jocelyn asked. Becca had always thought that Jocelyn was a bit conceded to ask Will to do so. Yes, it was a test and more than enough proof, but still, taking all those hits for her was absurd. Mikey started to squirm around.
Taking her eyes away from the movie, she looked at him. He was a little flushed and seemed to be uncomfortable. It was odd. A little while longer, he got even worse. Will was in the middle of telling his friends that he was proving his love to Jocelyn. 'But he legs haven't been uncrossed,' Will explained.
'Then why are you doing this?'
'Because I love her,' Will nearly sighed. Now Mikey used the bag of peas to cover his face. He looked ridiculous. "Why are you doing that?" She laughed. "Uh, I was trying to get my cheek," Mikey lied. An obvious lie, he wasn't very good at it. He couldn't even look at her. She shook her head. He was being weird. He'd lost two days in a row to every one he'd fought. Now he was acting like he was embarrassed. Lying and not able to look at her. This was the first time she'd seen him like this.
Slowly, it dawned on her. This movie, this was the explanation. This was why he was acting like he was. This was why he was holding a bag of peas against his face. He was Will. She was Jocelyn.
*)O(*
The movie yesterday had almost shattered everything. He tried to avoid Becca for the rest of the day. Which was hard because she seemed to be seeking him out. She purposefully sat down next to him when dinner came. She wanted him to play more Borderlands that night. What he wouldn't have given for a new party to pop up. If something, anything could have drawn him away and given him reason to put a distance between them.
It wasn't that he didn't want to be near her. It was what he wanted most, out of nearly everything. He couldn't lie to himself though, he was embarrassed, ashamed. Not just because the movie had almost given away his plan, but because he finally realized what Donnie went through every time they all watched an R-rated movie together.
'A Knights Tale' had a small, almost modest, sex scene in it. Normally Mikey wouldn't even pay them any attention. The scenes weren't the same since he'd gotten past puberty, he tried to laugh to himself. What happened though, when that scene came on, was something he hadn't ever experienced before. Becca had started to squirm, her eyes locked to the screen. Her crossed legs uncrossed, crossing again, and Mikey nearly lost himself.
The scent was almost familiar. He'd smelled it on women throughout the city. He knew what it meant. He'd smelled it on April and Sara before. Sometimes they stank because of it, the smell so strong he was glad that they were usually going to take a shower. He would never admit out loud but sometimes the smell, when faint enough, was arousing. He knew it was from the animal part of him, so normally he dismissed the thoughts and went on with what he'd been doing. No second thoughts, or worry over the subject.
The smell on Becca… The aroma that she gave off as she bit her lip, re-crossed her legs again, licked her full bottom lip… This was a different thing entirely. He could have lived in her smell. Heavy and slightly bitter with the faint smell of something sweet. Dark chocolate, he'd realized. A fine dark chocolate that was smooth and rich.
His mouth watered. His eyes could only see her. He'd forgotten the icepack entirely. His hands clenched again and again on his thighs. He'd left bruises where his hands had been. He didn't know how long he'd been staring at her. He knew as he stared that he pleaded with himself not to touch her. If he touched her, he didn't know that he would have been able to stop. He scared himself. The only thing keeping him in check had been a lifetime of discipline.
Slowly the smell faded. He hadn't noticed it at first, his brain only continued to focus on that one thing. His nostrils flared trying to grab the tail end of any of the intoxicating scent. When everything the smell brought faded, his eyes seemed to open up again. He'd had his eyes open the whole time. The world had come back to him with a blink. Finally he had been himself again, just extremely uncomfortable in his shell.
The rest of the day every time he'd seen her, he'd remember the smell. Her smell. Something he had no control over that drew him even closer to her. No other woman's scent had ever done that to him. Not even when he'd been a hormonal teenager. He didn't trust himself around her. He could hurt her.
He shook himself as Splinter announced that today would be more sparring. Here lately everything came in weeks. Weapons, stealth, sparring, kata, meditation, all of it crammed into its own week. Of course, a little was sampled every day but the focuses shifted. They were masters of their crafts now, except Sara. They could only progress so much farther in any direction. The solid drilling seemed to help reconnect them when they became out of balance.
His first opponent was Donnie. The genius was smirking. No doubt that his brother had figured out that it would be an easy match. Donnie was too smart for his own good. Mikey silently hoped that he'd take it easy on him at least. Compounding his injuries on the daily wasn't a good idea to start with. When said injuries came from his brothers, it was even worse. His eyes flickered over to the sidelines. Becca hadn't showed yet. Sighing, Mikey took his stance.
The door to the dojo thrust open. Becca ran in, running at him. "Sorry," she threw to Splinter. Donnie looked taken aback as Mikey checked to make sure he wasn't preparing a move. Becca skidded to a stop before him. She huffed a few times, bent over, hands on her knees. Her blond hair fell over her shoulders, swaying. She stood up, smiling. The bruising on her face was starting to clear a little and her grin was wide.
He'd noticed that her blushes started at her neck, not her cheeks. Becca cleared her throat, her blush rising up her neck, stepping close enough to whisper to him. "You will not lose another match…" She paused, the flush carrying over to the unaffected spots of her face now as her hands cupped her mouth. "You will win this tournament." Her rushed words pour over him while she ran to the sidelines. He filled in the missing lines by memory.
She'd omitted those lines on purpose, yet she knew what he'd been doing. His own flush started. "Begin," Splinter's voice interrupted him. He dragged his eyes away from the blond. His jaw protested from the yesterday's punishment as he grinned wildly. It might have been embarrassing to get caught, but it would be even more of an embarrassment not to give the lady what she asked for.
He could see it on Donnie's face. His brother knew that Mikey's mental state had changed. Now it wasn't about minimizing the force of blows or slowly down his reaction time. Now, finally, after two days, Mikey could fight again. Deep inside some distant part of himself called out. It begged to take over, to eliminate the other male in front of him. Mikey had never needed that part before, so he tucked it back into its isolated spot. He could mop the floor with Donnie any day.
All three of his brothers lost to him before Splinter swapped him out for Sara. From the sidelines, Becca cheered him on. He walked to her, the smile on her face reserved. "And Oh, how I hate you," he tossed out with a laugh. Becca laughed back, patting the empty space beside her. "Alright, enough with the movie." She teased. "I knew kids got themselves hurt trying to reenact the things, I didn't think a grown man would though."
"Eh, it's part of being the youngest."
"I'm not scared of you," Becca's tone changed. "So fight like you normally would. Don't do anything special for me anymore, got it?"
Mikey's chest hurt. Yes, the main reason had been to show that she didn't need to be scared of him, but there had been something deeper in what he'd done. He couldn't say, even to himself, that he loved her. Not yet, at least. Still, he'd hoped that she would have understood that he'd been trying to prove something… more than that.
Crushed, all he could do was nod.
*)O(*
'A Knight's Tale' is not mine and I do not own it. I only borrowed small pieces of the movie, a total of five lines from the whole movie, all with quotes around them. There, I hope that helps with any stupid legal stuff later down the road. Considering that fan fiction is wrote about said movie, I don't think I should have any problems though.
HAPPY MOTHER'S DAY TO ALL THE MOMMIES OUT THERE!
