A.N.: I apologize for the delay in updating. I have been dealing with serious health issues. Every since my cancer surgery I've been having difficulty now and then. Some days are better than others. There was a time when the medication was too strong and it affected not only my work but my general health. I'm doing better now so it's easier to focus on the story once again. Thank you for your patience.

Chapter 20

He couldn't believe how beautiful they were. He wondered how he hadn't noticed it before. A pensive Raphael knelt next to the cozy nesting area one fine autumn evening. Two large, leathery spheres rested in the rich, moist soil. The humid environment had allowed some fungus and moss to crop up here and there, which had let Donatello know that the system he set up was working properly. The nest was safe and secure, yet that didn't keep Raphael from constantly checking on his unhatched offspring. He chuckled inwardly at the memory of him teasing Mikey and Don about doting over their little ones before they hatched. Now that he had sired a couple of kumquats, as the ancient One would say, he identified with his brothers.

As he gazed down at the pair of eggs he wondered what they would look like. He imagined that he would try not to spoil them rotten or baby them. Then they might turn out like Mikey. He definitely didn't want his kids to be lazy goofs. On the other hand, Raph did notice how much his youngest sibling had matured since Gidget and Milan came into the world. He gave Venus most of the credit for that because when it came to the children she didn't take any shit from anybody.

Raphael was jostled out of his thoughts by movement he noticed out of the corner of his eye. He saw Don pacing around the room writing in a notebook and muttering to himself.

"Uh, Don, what gives?" Don snapped to attention looking as if he was just noticing his brother was in the room.

"You say something, Raph?"

"Yeah. What the hell are you doing?" Donatello pulled out a measuring tape and tiny surveyor's flags from his utility pouch then knelt on the ground.

"I'm trying to determine where the tunnels will begin and end before I start on my next project."

"I hate to sound stupid, but what tunnels?" Raph frowned when he caught a glimpse of Donatello rolling his eyes in the dim light.

"The tunnels we talked about when we first got this house. We need a means of escape in case, God forbid, that someone discovers us living out here. Besides, Tokio is about to turn one, and you know what that means..." Now it was Raph's turn to roll his eyes.

"Oh yeah. Betcha Leo's gonna start the kid's ninja training, especially now that he's walkin' an' talkin' real good. But what does that have to do with tha tunnels?"

"Well, I figure it'll take a good six to eight months to construct the tunnels. By then Toki will be ready for basic stealth training." Raph looked a little shocked at hearing that.

"Did Leo put you up to this?" Don chuckled as he looked up from his notes.

"Not really, but he has been urging me to get started. The whole tunnel thing was my idea. And don't worry about safety. LH and Casey will be providing assistance."

"Wait a minute! Casey's going to be in on this? You sure about this, Don? I love the guy, but he can be kind of..."

"Clumsy, I know. Casey's going to act mostly as a supplier of materials that I don't have access to since I'm...well, a mutant turtle. Can't just walk into a lumberyard and ask for supplies."

"Yeah, I'm sure that would go over well," Raph interjected with a sarcastic smirk.

"The engineering will be planned out by me and L.H. I hope we can get started soon, though. You know before the ground gets too hard for digging." Donatello noticed his brother's frown at that last statement. "Don't worry. We'll start digging under the barn then end the tunnels under the nesting area. I wouldn't dare disturb your precious eggs."

"Damn right," Raph muttered as he turned his attention back to his silent offspring. "So, how's Lovie?"

"Her name's Aphrodite. And she's growing fast. Seems that all of the children are developing at an accelerated rate. Not as quickly as we grew, according to what Master Splinter had told us, but surely faster than the average human. Tokio isn't even a year old yet and he seems to be ahead of June, who's almost two..."

Don paused when he noticed his brother had grown unusually quiet. Raph's countenance had fallen, his fists were clenched, and his eyes shimmered with moisture. Donatello knelt next next to his brother and rested a comforting hand on his shoulder.

"We all miss him very much, Raph. I know he would have enjoyed being around the kids..."

Raph rested his hand on Don's then slowly removed his brother's hand from his shoulder.

"I know you're trying to make me feel better, Donnie, but talking about things that'll never happen is just makin' me feel worse."

Crestfallen, Donatello slumped his shoulders in defeat. The presence of their children had brought so much joy, but it was tainted with much loss and sorrow. The purple clad terrapin was determined to find a way to change all that somehow.

In contrast to the quiet conversation in the subbasement, things were bustling with activity upstairs. Venus and Michelangelo were dealing with boisterous little ones fueled by excitement and anticipation. No one could blame the little Hamatos for being so wound up. This would be their first time being out of the house since their clan moved out of the sewers. Mikey was very excited himself for this was his most favorite day of the year. It was Halloween, the only time the mutants could go out in public without causing a stir. The humans always assumed they were in costume.

Mikey actually was in full costume this year though. He once again donned his Turtle Titan duds complete with shield and grappling hook. However he truly outdid himself by adding a couple sidekicks to the mix. He and Venus spent weeks fashioning costumes for Gidget and Milan successfully transforming them into the Titan Twins. Their costumes weren't as complex as their father's but they did consist of the same basic colors of green, orange, and yellow. Gidget's cuteness factor went into overload when Venus tied her yellow mask into a tidy bow. The little turtle girl was all smiles when she saw herself in the mirror. Milan was having a ball flinging around his little toy nunchaku. That is until he accidentally hit his twin sister on the head. Mikey comforted and kissed his bawling little girl while Venus took the toy weapon and replaced it with a trick-or-treat bag.

The young mother decided to keep her and Tokio's costumes simple and fun by going as a mother kappa and her baby. Using a bit of make-up she enhanced their natural markings with streaks of red and bluish green on their faces and arms. She also fashioned large umbrella plant leaves out of craft wire and rice paper for them to carry over their heads. At first she considered dressing him as a samurai but soon discovered that her eldest child is not a fan of clothing. Who could blame him. All day long he was surrounded by family that went unclothed for the most part. Venus thought that unfortunate that Tokio refused to were the dark blue hakama and matching yukata. She thought he looked adorable in them. She even tried to tempt him into wearing it with a toy katana, but that bribe failed miserably. So the kappa costume won in the end. The young mother couldn't complain since he still looked adorable.

The two parents were just about finished getting ready to head out when there was a knock at the front door. Mikey opened the door to a sight to behold. It was the Joneses dressed head to toe in khaki with floppy brown leather hats. Casey was grinning from ear to ear holding a huge blow-up toy crocodile while April and little June each held smaller, plushie versions. For a moment a perplexed Michelangelo scratched his head until his face lit up with an 'ah-ha!' moment.

"Let me guess. You guys are the Irwins! Casey's Steve, April is Terri, and Junebug is Bindi!" Cheering and laughter was Mikey's indication that he was correct. "One person is missing though. Where's baby Bob?" The human couple's laughter went from playful to nervous. The turtle noted the sudden change in mood as he let the family in.

"Uh, Mikey...'Bob' isn't born yet." Mike accepted April's explanation, but didn't quite get the nervous behavior.

"You guys ok?" That's when April and Casey gave each other the 'should we tell him?' look. "All right guys, what's goin' on? Are you keeping secrets?"

"Naw, Mikey," came Casey's quick protest. "We'll tell you as soon as you get everybody in here."

Venus offered to gather the rest of the Hamatos while wondering what could be so important for the Joneses to announce. As she went into the subbasement to get Raph and Don she paused on the steps a moment realizing what Casey and April was about to tell them. She didn't dare spoil the surprise for the others though. Then again she could be wrong. Once all of the clan was gathered in the living room April made her announcement.

"I'm only going to say this once, that's why we gathered you all in here." The redhead took a deep breath then let out a joyous squeal. "You guys...I'm pregnant! Again!" Now it was Mikey's turn to squeal with joy. All of the Turtles were genuinely happy for their human friends. This Halloween evening was off to a good start. It wasn't long before the Hamatos (Mike and Venus, that is) and the Joneses had the kids out on the New York City streets for a little trick-or-treating. Their journey ended at the home of a close friend of Michelangelo, who lifted his son up to the doorbell and let him ring it. The children were quite startled when a very tall, dark skinned man dress in white, silver, and blue answered the door. The man's imposing presence had the youngsters in such a state of shock they forgot to say 'trick-or-treat', so Mike said it for them. The man responded with a good natured chuckle.

"Why if it isn't the Turtle Titan! It's so good to see you! Now who might these little heroes be?" he inquired with a nod towards the twins.

"Silver Sentry, these are my Titan Twins, Milan and Gidget. Kids, say hi to my good buddy the Silver Sentry!" Milan's intimidated silence and Gidget's run for cover behind her daddy got a chuckle out of all the grown-ups. "They're just a little shy of strangers. They'll come around. Especially once they see all that good food we smell!"

After the Silver Sentry invited them all into his home to enjoy the festivities, Turtle children did eventually warm up to him, though they were still wary of the other Justice Force members present. However they got along just fine with the other children there. There were a number of children from various local neighborhoods there in the strapping superhero's spacious home. A couple of them were dressed as Justice Force members but most were in either pirate costumes or dressed as 'sparkling vampires'. Mikey assumed their mothers or older sisters must have put those kids in those particular costumes.

Venus was enjoying the festivities while introducing her son to the other members of the Justice Force. She was so proud that Tokio was so well behaved and polite. He waited patiently for his 'haunted' cupcake and even thanked Tsunami for the treat in Japanese.

"Doitashimashite, okosan! I'm glad you're enjoying the party, little kappa."

Right then Toki lit up the room with a cuteness overload with a broad smile and frosting on the tip of his beak. In the meantime Gidget and Milan had toddled back to their mother looking a bit peeved. Gidget patted Venus on the thigh then pointed to her left.

"What is it, my sweet? Why do you look so troubled?" Venus could tell by the look on her daughter's face she was none too pleased.

"Daddy! Looka Daddy!" Venus did just that she see Michelangelo obviously bragging about his exploits as the Turtle Titan to one of the single mothers attending the party. Since he was caught up in impressing the ladies he hadn't noticed that his Titan Tots had wandered from his side. Gidget looked pretty upset about her father's lack of focus on her, however Milan seemed more interested in focusing on a bowl of candy on the coffee table. He stuffed a handful of sweets in his mouth with a gleeful 'yum!'. Venus picked him up before he could shovel any more into his already stuffed jowls, took Gidget by the hand and marched over to the twins' father.

Having finished his delicious cupcake, Tokio was now bouncing balloons around with June and a couple other children. In his excitement he accidentally stepped on a balloon and slipped. Fortunately the Silver Sentry was right there to catch him.

"Careful little guy. You don't want to hurt yourself. Where's your mommy?"

"Ovah dere." The turtle toddler pointed at his mother standing with Mikey, who was cowering under Venus' glower of disapproval.

"Oh, yeah. There she is. I see she's with your daddy."

"He not my daddy." The superhero glanced at the child in his arms not understanding. "My daddy at home." Silver Sentry stared at the child for a moment then looked back at Michelangelo.

"So, you, Milan, and Gidget have the same mommy...but not the same daddy?"

"Uh-huh," came Toki's matter-of-fact response. He then began to squirm in the man's arms so he could get back to playing with the balloons. Sentry took the cue and set the little mutant turtle down. Toki immediately ran over to June to join in the fun leaving the heroic host scratching his head. He thought for sure when Mikey RSVPed to his Halloween party invitation the Turtle Titan stated that he would be bringing his spouse and children. Several possible explanations for what the child had said swirled around in his head.

He considered asking Michelangelo to explain, but he could tell his friend was preoccupied once again with flirting with Jasper's mother, Ms. Handy. When he glanced over at Venus to observe her reaction he concluded that she didn't seem to care. Silver Sentry decided to set his ponderings aside and usher the party guests to his home theater. He had prepared a treat for the families that evening. He hoped they all would enjoy 'It's the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown!' Ananda had told him that was a family favorite this time of year. As he handed out popcorn for the movie feature he decided he would relax and enjoy the show with everyone else and question his odd green friend later.

Venus turned down the offer of popcorn for her children. She was concerned that they might choke on the un-popped kernels. She gave them some of what Mikey called 'bug juice.' It was a protein rich drink Michelangelo had formulated about a month prior. It consisted of whole milk, a bit of honey, and a handful of crickets mixed in a blender. The kids loved it, which their mother couldn't understand at all. Since they drank it and loved it and it provided the children with much needed nutrients, their mother didn't complain. She just regretted asking Mikey what the ingredients were and also vowed never to divulge that to anyone else.

About half way into the movie Venus' Shell Cell vibrated. She signaled for Mike to keep an eye on Tokio as she excused herself to take the call. She was a little alarmed to hear an agitated Donatello on the line with Lovie bawling in the background.

"What's wrong, Donnie? What's got my baby so upset?" Venus could feel anxiety gripping at her heart and she did her best to remain calm.

"I'm not sure, V! I tried everything! I tried feeding her but she spit the bottle right out. I checked her diaper and she doesn't need to be changed. I tried entertaining her with toys and she just started screaming even more! I even tried to lay her down for a nap but that only pissed her off. You should have seen the expression on her face! It was like she would have punched me in the face if she could! Anyway, I'm at wits end, so could you please come home?" Donnie let out a sigh of frustration as his daughter balled up her tiny fists and managed to holler even louder.

"Hmmm...I think my little sweetie needs her mama. Put the Shell Cell up to her ear, Don." Hearing her mother's voice over the phone seemed to calm the baby a little, but not enough in her father's opinion. "Ok, looks like mama needs to come home to give her baby some TLC. I'm on my way, Don. Just hold on, ok?"

Within minutes Venus and Michelangelo had a carload of disappointed and crying turtle toddlers in the van. She tried to apologize to the costumed trio for cutting their enjoyable evening short, but their baby sister-cousin needed mama to come home. Unfortunately none of the children wanted any friggin' apology. They wanted more Great Pumpkin and more candy. Venus placated the children with a few pieces of Halloween candy while Mike drove them home as quickly and safely as possible.

Poor perturbed Silver Sentry was left with unanswered questions about the Turtle Titan and his female companion. After overhearing Venus' conversation while he replenished the popcorn he wondered just how many kids the lady had. He decided to file his musings away and get back to entertaining the rest of his guests.

By the time Venus and Mike made it back home they had a van full of sleeping turtle tots. The three hour drive lulled them to sleep. Once they parents carried the sleeping children inside they were greeted by a most adorable sight. Donatello and Raphael were sleeping soundly on the sectional. Don was sitting on the end slumped over with a teething ring dangling from his hand. Raphael was lying on his back, mouth wide open and sounding like a hibernating bear. All the while a now quiet and content looking Aphrodite was cradled in Raph's left arm. She smiled at the sight of her mother, who was carrying Tokio.

"I warned them not to drink my special blend of herbal tea." A bit startled, Venus turned to see Leonardo emerging from the kitchen. "I had brewed some for Lovie, but it looks like they needed to relieve some stress," Leo explained as he gently took his son from his mother's arms. "I'll put Toki-chan to bed while you get the baby."

"That's fine and good, but who's going to put these two lunkheads to bed?" Mikey whispered jokingly with a nod towards his sleeping brothers.

"Eh, I think it's best not to disturb them," Venus whispered back as she carried her youngest upstairs to the nursery. Within minutes all was quiet in the Hamato household except for the occasional muttering of an exhausted daddy and daddy-to-be.

"Please don't cry, Lovie. Why isn't Daddy good enough for you?" Don mumbled as she slumped further on the couch.

Once again the busy holiday season was well underway and stress levels were high among the Hamato clan. Between Christmas and Tokio's first birthday (which were the same day) Venus found herself a bit overwhelmed with the plans. The guys helped any way they could but being the doting mother she was, Venus wanted everything to be perfect. Never mind that little Toki may never remember his first birthday party. Don volunteered to provide music and lighting and a short video presentation for the family to enjoy. Mikey promised to make his nephew his first pizza, which he swore would be most epic. Venus didn't know if that was a good thing or a bad thing. April was even kind enough to help a bit with the birthday party set-up on Christmas Eve, of all nights. April and Casey even passed up a visit with June's paternal grandmother in order to celebrate Leo's son's first birthday. Venus was very touched by the gesture.

"Oh, it's no problem, V. You all celebrated Junie's first so we definitely wanted to return the favor. Besides, I wouldn't miss this for the world! Tokio is June's best pal. She's always asking when their next play date will be. They have so much fun together."

"Yes, I noticed. Toki asks about June, too." As the two mothers finished putting up the basic decorations in the sun room the birthday boy to be toddled into the room with his playmate. Leonardo was close behind. The turtle tot scooted right up to his mother and patted her thigh.

"Kaa-san, am I one yet?"

"Not yet. That's tomorrow, Toki-chan."

"Morrow?"

"Yes, that's right." With a thoughtful pause he looked up at his father.

"When morrow?" Leo chuckled as he patted his son's bald little head. He saw the humor in him trying to explain the concept of time to an 11 month old.

"Tomorrow is very, very soon. If you go to bed and get some sleep it'll be here before you know it." Toki stood slack-jawed for a moment before his cherubic face bore a serious expression. He walked over to his father with arms upraised.

"Go bed now." The little mutant flinched at the outburst of laughter from the adults. June even joined in the laughter just for laughing's sake. Toki just looked confused because apparently he wasn't in on the joke. Eventually Leo fulfilled his son's request while smiling at the knowledge that he had convince his energetic son to go to bed on time for a change. So Leonardo carried his child off to bed with a raven haired 22 month old close behind. April quickly caught up with June and took her to the guest room. Soon on this night before Christmas all through the house not a creature was stirring...except for Klunk, who was sniffing at the cookie jar on the kitchen counter. No one heard when the cat finally managed to knock the lid off and make off with a single gingerbread cookie.

Early Christmas morning everyone in house (everyone that had a baby monitor in their room that is) was awakened by the musical genius of a now one year old mutant turtle. He was singing very loudly and proudly his version of 'Happy Birthday' for all who would listen.

"Happy to me! Happy to me! Happy Toki, happy to me!" came blasting from the monitors. The first several rounds of this were pretty cute, but it didn't take long for the adults to desire a toned down version. Even during bath time for the little ones Toki saw fit to announce that today was his 'birfday' with a big toothy grin. Since everyone in the house was wide awake by nine a.m. Leo and Raph went ahead and blew up balloons, Don tested the lights one last time, and Mikey put Tokio's epic personal birthday pizza in the oven. There was a few moments of cursing and yelling once he discovered the overturned cookie jar.

"Oh well. Nothing I can do except get to cooking and get to cleaning. I'll figure out who the culprit is later," Mike grumbled as he slid the small pizza into the top oven. He had also prepared Christmas dinner (which would now be Christmas brunch) the night before. He set that in the bottom over to warm up.

It didn't take much to keep the older children entertained. They had a ball playing with the candy cane and snowflake shaped balloons. Milan's favorite game was to bop anyone that walked by with his balloon. Gidget liked to press hers to the floor then crawl on top until it slipped from underneath her. Unfortunately the helium filled object would float away from her, so she would pout and point until one of the adults would retrieve it for her. June straddle hers and bounced on it like it was a hobby horse. Tokio enjoyed yanking on the string causing the balloon to bump against the garland and LED lights on the walls.

Soon it was time to honor the birthday boy. After all the older kids were settled in high chairs Mike brought in the birthday cake while Leo followed with a cupcake with a single candle on it. Everyone who could sang their birthday blessings, including most of the children, even though they got most of the words wrong. The sentiment was still there. When Leo set the cupcake in front of Toki all the adults gasped when the one year old reached for the flame. His father stopped his hand as his mother told him to blow out the candle, pursed her mouth and made a puffing sound to show him how it's done. It took Tokio a moment to catch on, but several puffs later the candle was out and there were cheers all around.

It was now time for Michelangelo to present his nephew with his epic birthday pizza. It was a small 'dirt pizza' with a chocolate ginger crust , chocolate pudding 'sauce', crushed Oreo cookies, topped with gummy worms, and real grasshoppers. Raphael stayed as far away from that concoction as he could. Venus cut a small piece for her eldest and saved the rest for later.

The birthday celebration was very enjoyable for all. The Hamato's wished their dear friend, Leatherhead, could have come but a snowstorm had made the roads back to New York quite treacherous. Even Dr. Okonkwo couldn't make it out for the same reason. They had sent birthday wishes and gifts in advance once they heard the storm was forecast. Donatello was kind and resourceful enough to set up a video chat so their missing friends could offer birthday and Christmas greetings live.

It didn't take long for the family room to become a sea of wrapping paper after everyone opened all their gifts. That didn't last long after Leo's inner neat freak kicked in. Raph, Mike, and Casey were too busy playing with Tokio and his brand new little soccer ball to care about the mess. Don and Venus took pity on Leo and helped him clean up all the wrapping paper. Even April pitched in after shooting her husband a dirty look. That was enough to get him to put down the toys and help too.

All the festivities soon had all the little ones worn out. Mike couldn't resist taking a picture of the sleeping youngsters. They were snoozing on blankets in the portable play area. Klunk was curled up next to the twins. Mike snickered as he snapped another photo after sticking shiny bows to the slumbering children's heads.

A couple months later June's second birthday and the twins' first birthday arrived. Casey went all out with a princess themed party for his little princess, complete with a white miniature pony and a ridiculously huge castle shaped moon bounce. This was all held indoors at a magnificent hall he had rented for the day. He even used a celebrity party planner to put the event together. It was a truly ostentatious event. April thought it was way too much for a two-year-old's birthday party. If she has a party like this now what the hell is she going to expect for her sweet sixteen? A blowout bash aboard Air Force One? All June seemed to care about was the moon bounce and the pony. She could care less about fancy shmancy pink and silver petit fours and a cake shaped like a unicorn.

Michelangelo took a different approach with his twins. He ordered them auto-tuning microphones and a Kid Karaoke machine. No one besides Mikey and his kids were thrilled with those gifts. Fortunately the Hamato clan didn't have any nearby neighbors to complain about the noise. The proud papa also constructed a custom made comic book featuring his Titan Tots based on photos of their adventures in mischief. Venus thought that was cute and reminded Mike to store the comic for sentiment. Being an avid comic book collector he knew exactly how to keep the precious keepsake in mint condition. He had thought ahead and made an extra copy to read to his kids.

Things calmed down for the next couple months in the transition from winter to spring. Aphrodite was now eight months and quite mobile and vocal. She was quiet and reserved like her father and head strong like her mother. Being female she was already almost as big as Milan, though nowhere near as agile. Venus noticed how protective Milan was towards Lovie compared to the other children. He was often by her side playing with her and talking to her in his gentle way. Milan seemed to have a zen like mellowness when he was around her. Their mother could see that they were developing quite a bond.

Although things had quieted in the Hamato household there was still tension amongst the adults. It was spring time and the adult hormone levels were elevated. Venus was trying her best to avoid the Turtle brothers but somehow each of them managed to find an opportunity to get her alone now and then. She didn't know how much longer she could curb her own urges let alone resist the Hamato brothers' individual charms. She did not want to get pregnant again any time soon, if ever again. As time passed and the Turtles reached the height of their mating season it became unbearable for all the adults. Venus could see that the guys were doing the best they could to hide their misery. She was feeling pretty miserable herself so she decided to call for a clan meeting in the dojo. Leonardo approved so after all the children were put to bed the adults met in the dojo. Venus started out with an apology to the four brothers.

"I know it's been a difficult season for all of us. There's a lot of pent up frustration amongst us and I know I'm the center of it all."

"That's not true, V," Raph protested. Venus put up a hand to silence his objection.

"But it is true, and I sincerely apologize. I want to relieve the tension as much as you do, but I'm also concerned about getting pregnant again. Our clan is growing at a fast rate and I doubt I can handle any more little ones. I know you all help out as much as you can but I think if we add any more at this time we'll all be overwhelmed."

"I see your point," Leonardo interjected. "But there's still that tension we have to deal with somehow. I am personally on the brink of insanity."

"You, Leo? You sure do hide it well," Donatello scoffed. Venus blushed knowing that he didn't hide it at all when he was alone with her. "As for myself, I've been focusing on my daughter, my research, and engineering the tunnels to cope. I have to admit all that can only go so far."

"So what are we gonna do about?" Michelangelo wondered aloud. The close knit clan bounced a meaningful glance among themas they tried to come up with a solution. Venus wasn't quite sure how it happened, but after about thirty minutes of discussion she found herself surrounded by four sexually frustrated males standing at attention, so to speak. With a timid smile and a nervous giggle she came to an obvious conclusion. She was going to have a very sore jaw in the morning, but she was sure her beloved baby daddies were going to make it worth her while.

Their temporary solution worked out pretty well since the tension among them was resolved. They were getting tired of the weekly deep cleaning of the tatami mat so they kept machine washable work-out mats handy in the dojo. In late April The whole clan celebrated the hatching of Raphael's offspring. It was one male and one female. Both had their father's dark colorings and pronounced red ear markings. The girl was the largest of all of the children at hatching. Mikey teased Raph by suggesting he name her Bruiser or China. Raphael was not amused. The red masked warrior surprised everyone with the names he chose for his children. Veronica for the girl and Rowan for the boy.

"Funny, I thought you might go with Snooki and Vinnie," Mikey teased once again. Raph was holding his babies so Leo and Don did the honors and slapped Mike on the back of the head. The new father couldn't contain his pride, so he called up his best friend Casey Jones who didn't waste any time bringing his family over to meet Veronica and Rowan. Venus' heart melted at the sight of Raph leaning over the hatchlings' bassinets to give them each a kiss. She could tell he was going to be a great father to them. He was already a fabulous uncle to the others. In fact all of the Hamato men were turning out to be great fathers, each in their own way. The proud mother was grateful for all of her children and loved them unconditionally. She had to admit she adored their father's too, unique quirks, personalities and all. She thought back on how unsure she was about making a pact of love and responsibility with the four brothers. She couldn't figure out why she had been so worried. She certainly had nothing to worry about now.

Jiendo

**Hope you enjoyed this story, dear readers. Gotta work on the outline for the next one. Until then, ja ne!