A/N: Here's the next chapter. I couldn't wait to get it uploaded. After this, I'll have to really work on the chapters coming up next. Both future chapters are halfway complete, but I'm playing with the scene placement, so it'll take some fiddling before I'm confident on the look. For now, enjoy chapter 2!
April O'Neil cursed her luck. Nothing was going her way today. To top it all off, she thought she might be coming down with the flu. She pulled the blanket firmly around her shivering form. She hated winter. Or, more accurately, she hated broken heaters and ignorant boyfriends. She flipped channels on the TV before her, hoping something would catch her eye. No such luck. Not even the news had anything interesting to talk about. Just the same old gang fights and something about an outage on the edge of the city. She could care less if it didn't concern her or her boys.
She didn't know how long she's been reclined on the couch. Time was another thing she wasn't so keen on. It only reminded her how long she had left to endure the ever increasing chill air. It wasn't even snowing! Just bitter cold January winds rattling her windows. Like she really needed reminding how cold it was. Damn it, Casey! It was his entire fault she was suffering. He just had to go practice a new hockey move in her basement. Sometimes, she seriously wondered just how she put up with him.
She jumped at a loud screech behind her. She peeked over the back of her couch with wide eyes just in time to catch the turtles' entry. Michelangelo was the first to set foot inside, bursting with energy. He ran around to her with a grin much too happy for her mood.
"Hey, April!" He exclaimed as he plopped down next to her. His arms quickly encircled her.
April quickly pushed him away with a groan, her fingers pinching the bridge of her nose. "Not so loud. I have headache and I'm out of aspirin. Go away."
"It's fuckin' cold in here!"
Raphael's voice redirected her line of sight back to the window. There he was, already in an irritable mood. April frowned at him. At least he didn't look too cranky. Just cold, then. She figured he'd be right as rain as soon as he warmed up. They are mostly cold-blooded. It was worse for him. Still, I shouldn't be freezing my butt off in my own home.
Donatello was the nest to appear through the open window. Perfect. "Casey broke my heater." She turned imploring eyes to Donatello.
"I'll get to that in a minute." Donatello sighed. "I hope it's nothing like last time."
April shrugged. "I didn't really look."
The last turtle was silent as he slipped inside. He didn't look her way for even a second. He turned back to the window to close it and peered into the night beyond. Strange…
"I almost beat the Necromancer!" Michelangelo's voice pierced April's ears, sending her already aching head into a tizzy.
She turned back to her companion, momentarily forgetting about Leonardo's odd behavior. "Hmm?"
"The Necromancer! He's a level Fifty-five Wizard. One of the toughest bosses in SuperQuest!" Michelangelo glanced over at Leonardo with a scowl. "But killjoy over there made me turn the game off."
"You needed sleep." Leonardo's response was flat. April spared him another glance, but was once again distracted.
"It wouldn't have been that long. Not with my team!" Michelangelo grinned. "I hand-picked them myself! We're the best of the best in the world of Malgeria. As soon as the new girl gets used to the team, we'll be unstoppable!"
"Where's Casey?" Raphael asked, just clipping off the end of Michelangelo's words before he could go on. It was a welcome relief for April.
April shrugged in response. Oh, how she wished she knew where he was. Then she could kill him for breaking her heater.
"I thought he was gunna help move shit t'day."
"He was." April nearly pouted her displeasure. "I chewed him out this morning over the phone. He's probably sulking through the streets right now." Her expression turned hard as her eyes found Donatello disappearing down to the basement. "Good riddance."
Raphael threw his arms up, almost defensively. "I don't blame tha bonehead. 'Least he knows when ta pull out. I can drag 'im back for ya."
"Don't bother. He's more trouble than he's worth right now." April sighed.
"I said I'm fine!" Leonardo's voice rose, catching Raphael and April's attention in an instant.
April peeked over the edge of the couch to evaluate the situation. Sometime, during her conversation with Raphael, Michelangelo had moved to Leonardo's side. She hadn't paid attention to their conversation, but she could guess by the looks on their faces.
"Whoa, chill, bro! I was just asking." Michelangelo frowned as he backpedaled away from his brother with palms raised. "You don't have to bite my head off."
"Just go." Leonardo's clenched fists relaxed only marginally.
Of course, when Leonardo's in a mood, Raphael just had to join in. April was not surprised when she lost her last companion. They'll handle whatever that's about. And if they don't…well, I don't really want to be here for that. She turned back to the stairs. I guess I could see how Don's doing... She stood and adjusted the blanket around her for better warmth before she walked at a brisk pace towards the stairs. She hoped it would be warmer down there…
Sweet relief came in the form of the rumbling piping that just blocked out the noises from above. She sighed in relief as she leaned against the brick, her blanket barely keeping the chilled stones at bay. She caught Donatello's amused chuckle and quickly gave him a piercing look. "It's not funny."
"Yeah, maybe from your perspective." Donatello knelt down in front of the smoking heater with a wave of his hand. "Gosh, that's rank. What died in your furnace?"
"Casey's hockey puck." She pointed to the shredded, charred remains of something that might have been solid at one point. She shivered and quickly retracted her hand into the safety of the blanket's folds. "Maybe the rat that he chased down here a few days ago, too. I don't know. Will it live?"
"I'll see what I can do." He looked down at the arrangement of tools scattered before him, his thick fingers shifting through them.
"What's with Leo? Do you know?"
"Hmm?" Donatello spared her a glance before returning to his mission. "He's been like that all day. He hasn't come to me about it, yet. He's probably just missing Sensei."
"Yeah…that could it."
"What about you? You look terrible." He picked up one of the tools and went to work on the old furnace.
"What?" April brushed her fingers through her hair, subconsciously. "I don't look that bad."
"I wasn't talking about your physical appearance, really." Donatello paused what he was doing to look at her. "Did you get any sleep? You look exhausted."
"Oh, yeah. Don't get me started." She quickly waved him off under her blanket. "It's just been one bad thing after another. I swear something hates me out there. First the heater goes out and then I forgot to go to the bank today before closing hours. I might even be coming down with something on top of all this. Not to mention I banged my knee on my nightstand. It still stings a little bit." Donatello coughed suspiciously like a chuckle, which earned him a whip from her trailing blanket. "You listen here, Don: don't laugh at me."
"Laugh? I didn't laugh." Donatello grinned.
"Fine! I'll just leave you alone, then. I don't have to take this!" April huffed and started back up the stairs. She didn't get very far, before her path was obstructed by Leonardo. She very nearly toppled backwards in her surprise. "Whoa, warn someone before you just appear like that!"
"Sorry." Leonardo steadied her with an apologetic look. "…Can we talk?"
"Ah, sure. Okay." April raised her brow in curiosity.
"Not here." He took her arm and led her into the back storage of the shop.
"What's this about, Leo?" April demanded as soon as he shut the door behind them.
"Have you received anything from Sensei?" He didn't look at her as he spoke, his eyes scanning the boxes littering the room.
"No." April watched him move, silently, between the obstacle course of excess stock.
"Nothing?" He peered over at her.
"That's not unnatural. Mail doesn't travel very fast overseas." She frowned, worry over her friend growing.
"I know, it's just…" He slowly made his way back over as he produced a folded paper from a pouch on his belt. "Can you send this to him for me? I don't want my brothers to know yet. It's probably nothing, anyway."
April took the small paper as concern crossed her face. "What's going on, Leonardo?" Her voice took on a sharp note as her free hand settled on her hip.
Leonardo looked up at her, his expression distant. "It's nothing. I just want to check up on him."
"He'll be back in less than two weeks."
His expression hardened. "Just make sure he gets it."
"I'll do my best. Is there an address?"
Leonardo dug in the pouch for another paper and handed it over. "As soon as you get a response, call me directly."
This time, the rat was awake when she arrived. He watched the door open, careful to note the hallway beyond it. He didn't move as the woman moved closer. She was wearing those same pink scrubs from before. It reminded him of something he's seen before. Intern? Yes, that sounds right. An intern. But for what?
"Hi, again." The woman smiled. "You're awake! Did you sleep well?"
He watched her set the bowl down, carefully. She wasn't going to spill this time. She seemed calmer, too. Only her wide eyes portrayed the little fear she still carried. He didn't respond to her question as he scanned her.
Her smile faltered for a second. "Are you hungry again? I saw that you ate what I gave you yesterday. Did you like it?"
He frowned in response before turning his gaze to the camera. How could he escape with that keeping an eye on his every movement? He didn't know much about technology, but he knew enough to recognize an obstacle.
Movement alerted him that she had followed his gaze. "Yeah, there are cameras everywhere… Doctor Cartwright's very security conscious. She says it's to keep the animals safe."
He turned to her, his interest peeked. She could make an excellent source of information. He would need that to plan his escape.
"You like it when I talk to you, don't you?" She smiled. "At least I can't bore you. I could talk about anything and you wouldn't care."
He frowned. How do I learn more about this place? Speaking does not feel like the right thing to do…
"Oh! I haven't told you my name yet, have I? I'm Kimberly. You…" She looked at every square inch of the glass before continuing. "…Don't seem to have a name yet. That's a shame. Most of the animals here do. They must still be making your name plate…"
He sat back against the wall of his cage as she spoke; a small smile briefly crossed his face in slight amusement. She sure knew how to talk. If only she could get back to talking about the security precautions… He looked towards the door with a frown.
"Do you want me to go?" Kimberly glanced back to the door with her own frown.
He shook his head, slowly, as she returned her gaze to him. Talk about the security. I need to return home.
"Uh," She stared at him for longer than she needed to, as if stuck on a thought. Slowly, she moved closer to the glass until she was right up against it. "You do understand me. Don't you?" Her voice was a whisper, barely audible. Only the rat's sensitive ears could pick it up. "It's okay. I…I'm not scared anymore. You were speaking before. I know you were. I was thinking about it all night. Something in an Asian language. That's what it was, wasn't it? Are you from Asia?"
The rat stared at her as he thought about her words. Slowly, he picked himself up and moved towards the glass, his aching joints protesting every movement. Pain was something he could easily ignore. He didn't let that slow him down. As soon as he reached the glass, he sat back against it. "Hai, yes." He faced away from the camera as he spoke.
Kimberly went silent behind him, but it didn't last long. "You can talk. Wow. That makes more sense. The security of this room's the highest they come. I always wondered why. I mean, it can't just be because you're dangerous. You're not that bad. There are worse dangers here."
"You believe they know I can speak?" He looked sideways at her.
"Maybe. I'm only an intern. Doctor Cartwright thought you would be more comfortable with someone like me. You really must have given her a fright when they brought you in. Though it's hard to imagine her showing any expression, let alone fear." She made a weird face at that, almost introspective. "Anyway, do you have a name? If you can talk, you must have a name, right?"
He took his time answering her. His memories were still tied up in a fog, but he forced through it. "Splinter. I am called Splinter." He looked towards the ground with a heavy sigh. "You talk of my arrival. What do you know of it? The memory escapes me."
"You don't…remember?" Kimberly shifted behind him. "On your chart, it says you were poisoned and heavily sedated. Maybe that's why you don't remember. You must have been way out of it. You're getting better, though. You look better then you did yesterday, at any rate. Do you feel better?"
"I do." Splinter looked up towards the opposite wall of his cell. I'm getting stronger every day. Soon, I will be physically ready to make my escape.
"That's great! I wish I knew more so I could help you."
"You can." He turned to examine her. His gaze took in her fully engrossed expression. No longer was there fear in her eyes. But that wasn't necessarily a good thing either… He turned back to the ground before him. "I wish to know specifics about this security system."
"Uh, I don't know." She fidgeted behind him. "They don't advertise things like that. I can't even carry my own keycard. Why…? You want to leave? But you can't be completely healthy yet after what was done to you before."
Splinter glanced back at her in time to catch her nervously rubbing her hands together. "I am not meant to be a prisoner. Surely, you can see that."
"Yeah, yeah, I do. It's just…" Kimberly breathed out a sigh. "I need this job for the credit hours. I don't want to ruin my chances. It's my dream to be a veterinarian. If I fail this…"
"Kimberly-san," Splinter's voice was firm as he stared down the opposing wall. "I have a home outside of this place. …A family. I will wait until I have the strength, but I will be leaving. I cannot do so alone. Will you help me?"
There was a brief silence before Kimberly sighed. "I'll do my best, Splinter." The sound of the small glass door sliding open caught Splinter's attention. He looked down as Kimberly slid the food dish inside. "There's your meal. I really should be going. Sorry. I…just need to think."
Splinter watched the young woman dart to the door and give it two sharp knocks. Again, the door popped open for her. I hope I made the right decision to trust her. I can tell she has a good heart, but will it be enough to overcome her fear? He pulled the dish in front of him. All I can do is wait and hope she won't make trouble for me. She may be the only chance I have.
A/N: Now you know the name of the woman speaking with Splinter. Kimi! I love writing Kimi. She's so fun. I learned a lot about her writing this chapter. I hope you'll like her too! Feed that little review box and I'll get to working on the next chapters. :D
