Chapter 3: A New Family
A/N: Happy birthday to me! I'm 23! Happy birthday to me! Happy birthday to me! Yep, it's my birthday and I decided to post my third chapter. I have to because next week I'll be working on a paper that's due on the fourteenth. I also want to mention that my story "A Warrior's Pain" was chosen as a Story of the Year Honorable Mention. Thanks to all who nominated me and who reviewed that story. If you haven't done so, you should check it out. And finally, I want to congratulate Rey Mysterio for winning the 2006 WWE Royal Rumble! Yeah, I know I'm a wrestling freak. And now, to thank my reviewers. Thanks to: Cynlee, misterfooch, Mac, LEO'SGIRL80, Jumper Prime, Mikey's Kunoichi, and Shellsboy24. You guys rock! And now we must get back to the story.
Disclaimer: Well, it's my birthday and I don't see four talking Turtles anywhere. I guess my wish didn't come true. Bummer! Turtles are owned by Eastman and Laird. All flames will be cut up by Leo's swords. I own only the characters not in the TMNT universe. Enjoy!
"Leo!" Kaia cried with glee. She ran to Leo and gave him a hug. Leo bent down and returned it.
"What are you guys doing here?" Lisa asked them.
"This is where we live," Leo answered.
"In a warehouse?" Kaylee asked.
"No, we live below it," Don said. "That elevator over there will take you down to our Lair."
"Speaking of which, we'd better get down there," Leo said. "Master Splinter will be worried."
"We'll change our clothes and leave," Lisa said. "Sorry to have bothered you."
"No, don't go!" Leo protested. "We'd love for you to meet Master Splinter."
"Yeah, we told him all about you," Mikey said with an impish grin.
"Please, Lisa?" Kaia begged. "It's the least we can do to repay them for saving our lives."
Lisa sighed in frustration. "Okay," she said. "As long as the others agree, too."
"I do!" Kaylee squealed excitedly.
"Yeah, I guess it's okay," Destiny added. Mariel nodded.
"Lead the way," Lisa said to Leo. He and the other Turtles led the girls into the elevator. As they descended, the girls were amazed at the inside of it. When the doors opened, the girls' mouths dropped. They couldn't believe how big the Turtles home was.
"How much does it cost to live here?" Destiny asked.
Raphael laughed at her question. "Not a dime," he answered.
"Welcome home, my sons," a voice said. The girls turned to see an old rat with a walking stick enter. "Who are these young ladies?" he asked the Turtles.
"These are the girls we rescued last night, Master Splinter," Leo replied. "Girls, this is Master Splinter, our sensei and father."
Lisa was a little taken aback. Splinter was their dad? She had expected him to be another turtle, not a rat. "Nice to meet you," she said. "I'm Lisa."
"Pleased to meet you, Lisa," Splinter said, bowing to her. "And who are these other young ladies?"
"These are my sisters, Destiny, Kaia, Kaylee, and Mariel," Lisa said, pointing to each of them. Splinter bowed to each girl. Mariel, Destiny, and Kaylee didn't know what to do, but Kaia walked up to Splinter and bowed back.
Leonardo was amazed. "How did you learn that, Kaia?" he asked.
"I saw someone do it on TV," Kaia replied.
"Very impressive," Splinter commented. "Now, if I may, I would like to know what has happened to you." The girls exchanged confused looks, not knowing what he meant.
"What Master Splinter means is, what happened at the orphanage that caused you to leave?" Donatello explained.
"How do you know we ran away?" Lisa countered.
"Well, by the looks of your bags, I'd say you weren't going to a sleepover," Don answered. "Plus, young girls like you should be in bed by now."
"We ran away because Kaia was going to be adopted by an evil lady," Kaylee explained.
Raphael smirked. "Oh, that's cute," he said sarcastically. "No, really, why'd you run away? Did you hate the lady who ran it?"
"We're not lying!" Kaia said defensively. "I was going to be adopted by a lady named Karai Saki."
Leonardo's eyes darkened in anger. "What did she want?" he demanded angrily.
"Leonardo, calm yourself!" Splinter chastised. "You will frighten the girls with your anger!"
Leo did as he was told. "What did she say to you?" he asked Kaia in a softer voice.
"She told me she wanted a Japanese girl to inherit the business," Kaia replied. "I could tell just by looking at her that she was evil. She had a dark presence about her. I know that sounds foolish."
"No, it does not, my child," Splinter said. "You have been blessed with a gift. There are those who possess this gift and there are those who do not. This has proven useful to you."
"What sort of business was Karai talking about?" asked Mariel.
"It's not a business," explained Leo. "That's just her act. Karai is head of the Foot, an organization that specializes in crime."
"You mean that they steal stuff?" asked Kaylee.
"Yeah, they do," said Mikey. "They've even stolen Utrom technology."
At the puzzled look on the girls' faces, Splinter said, "We will discuss this later. For now, it is time for bed."
"Where are we gonna sleep?" inquired Destiny.
"You can use my room," offered Leo. "It's big enough for the five of you."
"Oh, we can't do that to you, Leo," protested Lisa. "Where will you sleep?"
"I'll sleep on the couch," answered Leo. "I've done it before."
"I've got a better idea," suggested Mikey. "We've got those sleeping bags from that time we went camping. The girls can use those to sleep on."
"You know, I never thought I'd say this, but that's a good idea, Mikey," commented Raphael.
So the Turtles went upstairs and got the sleeping bags. The girls stared at them as though they had never seen sleeping bags before.
"What's wrong?" asked Donnie.
"There are only four of them," pointed out Mariel. "That means one of us is going to have to sleep on the floor without one."
"No, you won't," contradicted Leo. "One of you can have the couch."
"Lisa can sleep there," said Mariel. "She's the oldest."
"I don't wanna sleep on the floor!" complained Kaylee. "It hurts my back!"
Leonardo watched the girls arguing with a smile. "There's only one solution," he said. "You'll have to draw straws." He went into the kitchen and got five straws, making sure that one of them was short. The girls drew, and Kaia got the short one. That meant that she would sleep on the couch. Kaylee muttered that it wasn't fair, but shut up when Lisa glared at her. Then the girls settled down to sleep. The Turtles and Splinter wished them good-night, and the girls said the same to them. Then they closed their eyes.
Dream sequence
Kaia was running on the rooftops with Leo, having a good time. Suddenly, some men in black suits leapt in front of them. Who were these men? Kaia wondered. She saw Leo draw his katanas and get in a battle stance.
"Get the girl," ordered one of the men.
"Kaia, run!" cried Leo.
Kaia didn't want to run. She didn't want to leave Leo. The men were advancing on her. What was she to do?
"Keep away from me!" she cried. She tried to kick one of them, but it didn't work. One of the men grabbed her, and she screamed.
'Mistress Karai will be very pleased," one of them said.
"What about the Turtle?" a second man asked.
"Dispose of him," the first man ordered.
"No!" Kaia cried. The last thing she saw was the one of the men raising their swords to Leo. Then she saw no more.
End of dream sequence
Kaia sat bold upright with a cry. What a horrible dream! Kaia thought. When she was at the orphanage and had bad dreams, she would look out the window at the night sky. However, there were no windows here. In fact, it was pitch dark, something that Kaia hated. She hugged the blanked to her and whimpered softly. If only someone would come and comfort her.
Suddenly, she heard footsteps on the stairs. She tensed up; was someone coming to take her away? Then she remembered that she was safe with the Turtles. The room was flooded with light and Kaia saw Leo standing there. Had he heard her?
"Leo, I'm sorry if I woke you," Kaia apologized. "Just go back to sleep. It was just a dream."
"Was it bad?" Leo asked her.
"Well, kinda," replied Kaia. "But I'll be fine now."
Leo smiled gently. He remembered the times when he would tell Splinter the same thing. "You don't look fine," he commented. "I can see in your eyes that it scared you. Maybe if you talk about it, you'll feel better. That usually helps me when I have a bad dream."
"Okay," said Kaia. She told him all about what she had dreamed about. When she was done, she asked," Will it come true, Leo?"
Leo thought for a moment. He didn't want to frighten her, but he felt that this dream probably was some sort of warning. "No, I don't," he answered her. "Dreams are just the mind's way of toying with you. Bad dreams just bring out your fears. That's all they are."
"But I've never seen those guys before," pointed out Kaia. "How could I be afraid of them?"
"Well, you told me that they mentioned Karai," explained Leo. "And we all know you're afraid of her. The dream was just emphasizing your fear. You're afraid something might happen to you, but you shouldn't be. We'll be there for you if you need us."
"But, Leo, we may not be staying," protested Kaia. "We planned on going to Florida."
"We'll see about that," teased Leo. "Once you guys taste Mikey's cooking, you'll be begging to stay."
"I'd love to stay here," confessed Kaia. "Everybody's so nice."
"We'd love for you to stay, too," declared Leo. "I don't think you'd be able to survive out there. You'd be better off here where it's safe."
"I don't think so either," said Kaia. "I'm too scared we'd get attacked."
"Well, I'm sure Master Splinter will make sure you guys stay," Leo reassured her. "Now, I think it's time you went back to sleep."
"I can't," whimpered Kaia. "I'm afraid I'll have the dream again."
"I'll stay with you till you fall asleep," said Leo reassuringly. "You won't have the dream again. Just think of something happy."
"Okay," said Kaia. She closed her eyes and imagined that she and her sisters were with the Turtles as a family. She pictured them all having a picnic and having fun. In no time at all, she was asleep.
Leo tucked her in and kissed her cheek. Then he went upstairs and thought about what Kaia had told him. He couldn't understand why Lisa and the others wanted to put Kaia in danger. Did they realize that they'd never make it to Florida? Couldn't they see that Kaia was fragile? And what about that dream? Leo decided to talk to Master Splinter about it in the morning. Maybe he'd have a solution. With that last thought, the Turtle in blue fell asleep.
The next morning, Leo woke and went downstairs. He saw that the girls were still asleep, which was a good thing. He headed to the dojo to do some early morning training. He knew his brothers wouldn't be up for a little while, which was fine with him. Sometimes it was hard to practice with Mikey's joking and Raph's anger when Mikey provoked him.
He unsheathed his swords and began to do some katas. He was so into it, he didn't notice Kaia until he heard her clapping after he finished a move. He turned to her and smiled.
"Hey, Kaia, did you sleep better?" he asked her.
"Yes, I did," she replied. "Thanks for staying up with me."
"No problem," said Leo. "Well, we should see if the others are up yet." He took her hand and led her out of the dojo. As it turned out, the others were just starting to rise. Then, Mikey came downstairs, ready to make breakfast. A little while later, Donatello came into the room, rubbing the sleep from his eyes.
"So, Leo, are you going to wake Raph up?" asked the brainy Turtle.
"No way!" said Leo, holding up his hands in protest. "Last time I did that, I almost got hit by the alarm clock."
"I'll wake him for you," Destiny offered.
"I wouldn't try it if I were you," Leo warned her. "Raph can be very stubborn. He might just hit you."
"We'll see about that," Destiny said boldly. She went upstairs and Leo pointed out Raph's room. Destiny poked her head inside and spotted the Turtle in bed with the covers half off.
"Yo, Raph, time to wake up," she sang. "Breakfast will be ready soon, honey."
"What the shell?" mumbled Raph groggily. "Mikey, go away before I get out of this bed and punch you!"
"I'm not Mikey, silly," Destiny giggled. "It's me, Destiny."
"Destiny?" Raph repeated. "I thought you guys would split on us."
"Why? Has it happened before?" Destiny asked him.
"Nah, I've just seen it on TV," Raph said. He got up and followed Destiny downstairs.
"Wow!" Mikey said in an awed voice. "I guess Raph didn't murder you! That's a first. Let's mark it on the calendar!"
"Shut it, Mikey!" Raph growled. Mikey grinned and went to the kitchen to finish making breakfast. After Master Splinter woke up, the whole family, plus the girls settled in to eat.
"These are good eggs, Mikey," Kaylee commented. "You're a good cook."
"Thanks," Mikey said, blushing a little. "I'm glad someone appreciates my cooking." He looked at his brothers when he said that.
"Mikey, we appreciate your cooking," Donnie protested.
"Yeah, we just hate it when we have scrambled eggs three days in a row," Raph added.
Mikey stuck his tongue out at his red-clad brother. "Well, next time I won't cook at all," he said. "I'll just let Donnie do it."
"Hey, I'm a scientist, not a cook," Donnie explained.
"What do you girls plan to do today?" Splinter asked them, changing the subject.
"Well, we were thinking of heading to Florida," said Lisa. "We're grateful for your hospitality, but we need to leave."
"Well, Miss Lisa, I was going to suggest that the five of you remain here with us," suggested Splinter.
"Really?" Kaylee squealed.
"Yes," said Splinter. "I feel that you would be in danger running off to Florida, especially if Karai is looking for you."
"So, what you're sayin' is that you're gonna adopt us?" asked Destiny.
"That is correct," answered Splinter with a smile.
"But what about school?" inquired Mariel.
"I e-mailed April last night," said Donnie. "She's gonna come over and set things up."
Kaia got up and bowed to Splinter. "Thank you for letting us stay," she said.
"Wait a minute," interjected Lisa. "We didn't agree on it. All in favor of staying, raise your hands." All of them did. "Motion carried," said Lisa with a smile.
As breakfast progressed, the girls learned more about the Turtles and their enemies. After breakfast was over, the girls watched the Turtles practice. They were amazed at what the Turtles could do, but Kaia got a little scared when Raph and Leo were sparring and Raph performed a move with his sai raised. Kaia thought he was going to hurt Leo, but the Turtle in blue reassured her that Raph wouldn't hurt him on purpose.
Suddenly a voice called out, "Hello? Is anyone home?" A woman with groceries in her arms entered the Lair.
"Hey, April!" said Mikey cheerfully. "How you doin'?"
"I'm fine," said April. "These must be the girls you were talking about."
"Yes, we are," said Lisa. She introduced herself and so did the others.
"What are you gonna do, April?" asked Kaia.
"Well, I'm gonna call Mrs. Jenner and let her know that you're safe," replied April. "Then, I'm gonna ask her if I can adopt you."
"But I thought Master Splinter was going to adopt us," protested Mariel.
"He is," April laughed. "But Master Splinter can't go to school when you have conferences. That's why I'm gonna be your legal guardian."
"There's still Karai though," protested Lisa.
"Oh, I'll take care of that," said April. "I'm going to have Mrs. Jenner do a background check on Karai. With any luck, she'll discover Karai's ties to the Foot."
Kaia giggled. "You're sneaky, April," she said.
"Yes, I am," April said with a smile.
"We are in your debt, Miss O'Neil," Splinter said graciously. "I do not know how to thank you."
"Oh, don't mention it," April said modestly. "I also got you guys some groceries. Once I get everything set up for the girls, I'll take them shopping for some new clothes."
"Are you gonna stay for awhile?" Donnie asked.
"I wish I could, but I can't," April replied. "I want to get this done ASAP. That way, I'll know that everything's all right. I'll see you guys later."
"'Bye April," everybody chorused.
Leo saw Kaia smiling happily. "What are you thinking about, Kaia?" he asked her.
"I just thought this was all a dream," Kaia said. "I wished on a star yesterday that I'd see you guys again and that we'd all be a family, but I didn't think it'd come true. I'm happy it has, though."
"So are we, Kaia," Leo said. "So are we."
A/N: Well, that's the end of that chapter. I know it might be kind of lame, but I'm kind of sick right now. Anyway, for my birthday present, I want you guys to review. I also have two questions for you. 1. What do you think will happen in this Saturday's episode? 2. If you review this after the episode has aired, what did you think of it? You can answer both or just one if you want. Please review!
Additional A/N: I tried to post this on my birthday but the site was having difficulties so I'm posting it today, and hopefully this will work. Also, since we've already seen the new TMNT episode you can just tell me what your predictions were for it and answer the second question. Also, that's why my birthday is mentioned because I typed this up on my birthday. You can still send me reviews as a late present though. I'm kinda ticked right now because of what Karai did to the Lair and because of what happened on WWE SmackDown when Randy Orton said that the late Eddie Guerrero was in hell instead of heaven. Let's just say I'm ready to kick some serious butt right now on Mr. McMahon and Karai. I hope Leo delivers some serious butt kicking ninja action to that witch! Please read, review, and respond.