All three turtles looked at April wide eyed, their expressions horrified before Leo stuttered, "B-But April, we aren't baby sitters! What do we know about taking care of human kids?"

"Nothing-" April said as she crossed her arms over her chest and stared them down with a sly smirk. "So it's a good thing that you're fast learners. Besides... I've heard all of you say at one time or another that you wanted a kid sister."

"What? No we didn't! You're making that up!" Raph snapped at her and was silenced when April said,

"Gah that Mikey- I might not hurt him for his pranks if he was a girl. Yeah, I could definitely go for a kid sister." In an perfect immitation of him and his voice. Raph flushed with embarassment as Mikey and Leo slowly turned to look at him. Their eyes accusing as Raph quickly averted his eyes thought, Well...that was the definite nail in their collective coffin right there.

There was simply no way to argue away what he had been thinking at the time he had said those words. Sure he had sort of meant them, but at the same time exposing a little girl to their way of life would be difficult. She would have to be protected twenty four/seven from their enemies whom would seek to use her as a means to destroy them.

"Raph..." Mikey said in a hurt tone that drew his older brothers eyes to his face. Did Raph really want a sister that badly? And then there was Splinter- What would he think of April's plan for them to adopt the little girl into their family? He wasn't as young as he used to be. Would he even feel up to raising another child? And a human one at that.

One with different needs for food, clothing, affection... Her education and social needs alone would cause them endless problems. After all, once she got older she would want to seek out the company of other humans. Which would leave them with a gaping hole in their hearts.

Sighing Leo pulled out his shellcell and laid it on April's table and looked her dead in the eye. "I'll make a deal with you April, I'll tell Splinter about our failure tonight to save the girl's parents and then if he says to bring her home..." He looked at both of his brothers, feeling more than a little bit nervous since Splinter might actually have them bring the kid home so that they could take responsibility for their failure. But he gritted his teeth and said the final sentance almost as if it were a death sentance. "Then she'll be our kid sister from now on."

Reaching over to where the shellcell lay, April picked it up, flicked it open and quickly dialed Splinter's number and handed it to the almost gaping blue banded turtle. Geez! What was it with April's inablility to read empty gestures? Leo wondered as his father's groggy voice sounded in his ear...

(***********************************)

"See. That's better right? It's nice and clean and will heal without leaving much of a scar. That'd be nice, wouldn't it?" Don said gently as he grabbed up a towel and started to dab at the water running down the girl's face and neck from her hair. He'd been talking to her almost non stop since Leo had left the room and still didn't get any reaction from her. Nor had she spoken up to give him a name to call her by.

She was simply 'the kid' or 'the girl' to him. But it was such an impersonal way to think that he felt that he absolutely had to get her to say something. Give him a sign perhaps that she was still in that small body of hers somewhere.

Setting the towel aside for a moment he framed her face with his large hands and tipped her little head back so that her vacant stare was fixed on him and said, "You're going to be okay. No matter what happens from here on out- my brothers and I won't let anyone hurt you like this again." He held his breath and waited for a second, and for a moment, a very brief moment he could have sworn that he saw a small spark of life come back into her eyes.

But it was gone as quickly as it appeared. Still...that was a good sign.

It meant that on some level she believed him. Or at the very least wanted too.

Releasing her, he draped the towel over her shoulders, letting part of it rest on top of her head and started to rub so that he could dry her off some more. Finally after several moments he paused to check his work and then picked up the shirt that April had pulled out for her to change in. "Okay kiddo- If I turn my back for a minute do you think you can pull this one by yourself?" Don asked as he pressed the shirt into one of her little hands.

The girl looked down at it for a moment then back up at him and made an aggrieved sound that had his lips curving up into a small smile. "I know. I know. This is irritating stuff for someone who already has frayed emotions but you can't run around in that sopping wet dress. You'll get sick." Don said as he turned his back to her.

He could hear her moving down off of the counter, and peeling the wet dress from her skin and letting it hit the floor when he suddenly felt slender fingers dancing across his lower shell, dangerously close to his tail. Jerking slightly, he turned his head and looked down, just barely able to see the top of her dark head as she ran her little fingers along the grooves in his shell almost in a petting manner that made him wonder if she was curious about him and his appearance.

Clearing his throat to keep from churring- after all, that'd be a weird reaction to have to a little kid- he asked in a rough tone, "You decent?" When he still got no reply from her he turned around and almost laughed at the adorable site he beheld.

The shirt that April had gotten for her to change into practically swallowed her whole. The sleeves were so long that she had to struggle with them just to use her hands and the little black cat and witch on the front of the dark purple fabric was just- just so cute!

(********************************************)

Leo hung up the phone with a look of almost absolute dread on his face as he slowly turned his head to glance at his brothers. Oh crap. How could Splinter decide to raise the kid as one of their own without even seeing her? Wouldn't that place their family in danger? Her parents had been killed for a reason after all.

And the joy he had heard in his father's voice upon the prospect of having a girl to raise... He had made Leo feel like he and his brothers were savages or something. They weren't savages, they just needed to polish their people skills a bit.

Still... One problem at a time. And right now they had a whole mountain of them.

"Well?" April asked smugly, probaly noticing how all of the color had leeched from his face as his talk with Splinter had gone on. Sighing he slipped the phone back into the pouch on his belt and said,

"Splinter wants to raise her."

The second the words left his mouth both Mikey and Raph paled, the full ramifications of Splinter's decision hitting them hard. "Okay April, you win-" Leo said in a slightly angry tone. "We'll raise her."