Disclaimer: Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles is the property of Viacom, Nickelodeon, Kevin Eastman, Peter Laird and all organizations associated with said names. This is non-profit.
Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Exile
by BrownEyedBirdie
Author's Note: Happy Easter/Passover everyone! Welcome to chapter 20. And no, that's not a misspelling in the title. A selkie is a creature from Scottish and Irish folklore. It's supposed to live like a seal in the sea, but on land, it takes on a human form. This is also my St. Patrick's Day story, so enjoy! Weiterlesen!
Chapter 20 – Selkie
"Are you sure about this Donnie?" Raph asked. He sat in the back of the party wagon, cradling Leo's head in his lap. Leo lay still, wrapped in blankets, his chest rising peacefully.
"If April is sure, so am I," Donnie said. He and April smiled warmly at each other. Raph bit back a sarcastic remark, privately grateful for the healing of their friendship. And the warmth in April's smile made Raph wonder, perhaps if Donnie didn't push, he could build to something with the human girl.
"The vet office in town was small," April said, "But it should have everything we need for Leo."
"I just don't like the idea of going back, Red," Casey said, "We don't know if the Kraang still have their goons sneaking around."
"That's why we'll have to be stealthy," Donnie said, "And going at night decreases the risk of being seen by the humans in town too."
"Yo, D," Mikey said, "I just realized. This is your first real mission as the leader."
Donnie looked at them all; he clearly had not thought much of his role as leader since they had first asked it of him. There hadn't been much to do as a leader.
"I-I guess so," he stuttered. Instantly, he began to think of how Leo would handle this
"Calm down," April whispered, "We don't need you having a panic attack."
Donnie tried to slow his breathing, but April's hand on his did little to help.
"Let me think for a moment," Donnie said, "Start driving, Casey."
Casey put the party wagon in gear and drove. Donnie sat on the floor next to Leo as Mikey occasionally popped his head up to look around. April rode up front with Casey, fiddling with the radio.
Donnie was unsure how to approach the mission. He had no doubt he could come up with a strategy, but this wasn't the same as fighting without thinking. This would require careful thought and an idea of what he would be facing. But he hadn't been to this town and, although Mikey had gone, he'd been out of sight most of the way. As they drew closer, Donnie's anxiety deepened.
"What the?" Casey said. Donnie peeked out the window. Raph and Mikey did likewise.
"Everything is green!" Mikey said.
"It's a St. Patrick's Day celebration," April said, "See the shamrocks and Ireland flags?"
"Cool!" Casey said, "I'll scrounge us up some corned beef and potatoes for dinner. Maybe I can even sneak off with a little refreshment."
"Don't even try it Jones," Donnie said, "The last thing we need is a minor attracting attention. But I think we might be in better shape than if it was a regular night."
The wheels in Donnie's mind had begun to turn as he took in the sight of the town. Most of the businesses had closed early that day for the celebration. Most of the stores were still open and it looked like restaurants and a few of the bars were in full swing.
"How is a huge town party supposed to work to be good, Donnie," Casey said, "What happened to stealth?"
"I have to agree with Jones, Donnie," Raph said, "There are too many people out. We should do this another time."
"No," Donnie said, smiling, "We are in the perfect place at almost the perfect time. Keep going to the vet's office."
The vet office was located at the far end of the main street. Donnie instructed Casey to drive around to the back of the buildings.
"Okay, here's the plan," Donnie said, "April and Casey can go in the front way and distract the techs. Mikey, you're going to keep watch out here for people walking past. Raph and I will get Leo inside and then Raph can keep a watch on the door."
"I'm planning to use the x-ray machine," Donnie continued, "I'll have a better idea just how much longer Leo will be down and how exactly to treat him."
As the sounds of people faded up the streets, Donnie gave a nod and everyone sprang into action. April and Casey hurried around front and strolled into the office.
"I'm sorry," the tech said, "But we're just about to close for the night. Do you need something?"
"Actually, we just had a quick question," April said. Casey nodded in agreement. Through the window of the door to the back, he could see Donnie and Raph carry Leo as April questioned the tech about types of food to give recovering amphibians and reptiles. As the tech pulled up some information, Raph peeked through the door and gave a nod.
Donnie gently moved Leo's arms to his sides and positioned him as Raph kept watch at the outside door to the front office space. He would have to make this fast, but he also had to be as accurate as possible. A sound of a door shutting caused him to duck down irrationally.
"Sorry Donnie," April said, "She wouldn't let us stay any longer." Casey joined Raph on the watch at the front door.
"It's okay," Donnie said, "You can help me with this."
Donnie and April worked together to shift Leo into position on the x-ray. They were so focused on the machine that they didn't hear a second door open and shut.
"How's it going?" Raph asked, "The lights are off in the front office. Casey's watching the people on the street."
"We're just about set," Donnie replied, "A few quick pictures and…"
"Cé tú féin!"
Everyone turned around in a panic. An older woman was standing outside another door clearly leading to an inner office and file room. She had red hair streaked with gray and wide green eyes that were even wider as she took in the sight of two large turtles and a human girl.
"Selkies," she whispered. Her knees sank underneath her, "Oh, Saint Francis, preserve me."
"What now, leader?" Raph hissed. Donnie's eyes looked around wildly for an escape or some way to explain their presence.
"We're not here to hurt you," April said, "We're just trying to help our friend."
"Are you a selkie too then?" the woman asked. The Irish accent was unmistakable.
"A selkie?" April asked.
"A water creature," Donnie said, "From Irish folklore. On land, they look human and are supposed to be very beautiful men and women." Donnie blushed at these words.
"No, I'm human," April said, "And these guys…"
"Yes, we're selkies," Donnie said quickly, "But we're not here to hurt you. Like she said, we just want to help our brother."
The woman blinked her eyes and looked at Leo lying on the x-ray table.
"What's wrong with the lad?" she asked softly.
"He was beaten up pretty badly," Donnie said, "We thought we could get him checked out after everyone was gone."
"I have the night shift," the woman said, "I'm here until midnight to take any emergency calls for the vet on call. Apparently everyone else gets to celebrate Saint Patrick but Bridget O'Brien, the only one in this town who actually cares about it. But I can help you, if you promise you'll not try to seduce me."
At this, everyone blushed, including Raph, who had stepped to the door again to watch for others that might come in.
"Um, no," Donnie sputtered, "We won't try to seduce you. If you can, please help us."
"You three wait outside," Bridget said, "I'll do an x-ray and be able to tell you what to do next."
"I'm staying," Donnie said quickly, "I'm the medical expert, sort of."
"Fine then," Bridget said, "Then the rest of you can wait outside."
"You two get Casey and go wait in the van," Donnie said, "We'll be out in a few minutes."
April nodded and Raph tapped the glass to get Casey's attention. Casey joined them and, once he was sure Bridget wasn't going to do anything to hurt Leo, he followed Raph and April to the party wagon.
"Step behind the panel there," Bridget said, "We'll get this done as fast as we can."
Donnie went behind the panel and Bridget joined him. There was a human in the air as the x-ray took the pictures and Bridget stepped out to retrieve them. A few moments later, Donnie was examining the results. He gave a soft whistle through the gap in his teeth.
"It's better than I was expecting," he said, "But still pretty bad."
Bridget looked over the x-rays as well.
"It looks like mostly internal damage," she said, "But nothing that won't heal if given proper care."
"So I still need to create that medicine after all," Donnie said. Bridget slipped the x-rays into an envelope.
"I'm afraid that's all I can do for you," she said, "Any medicine unaccounted for wouldn't reflect well on me."
"No, it's okay," Donnie said, "Thank you Bridget for your help."
"Not at all, me boy," she said, "And thank you."
"For what?"
"For giving this old Irish lass a pleasanter St. Patrick's Day I've had in all me life," she said with a smile. Donnie returned the smile. He slipped out the door and returned with Raph to carry Leo back out to the party wagon. Bridget followed them out and then locked the door behind them.
"We're all set," Donnie said, "Guess this counts as a mission fail for me as leader."
"Nah, bro," Mikey said, "It was totally rad the way you managed to convince that lady we were weird water monsters." Donnie smiled. Then he looked into the wagon. Leo lay in the blankets.
"When we get back to the house," Donnie said, "We can put Leo into the tub with water. The hydration will help to bring him around. But it could still take another few weeks."
"Hey, where's Casey?" Raph asked. Everyone glanced around.
"Oh great," Donnie grumbled, "Where's that kid?"
"Right here, boss," Casey said. He came up from the other end of the walk, carrying a large bag and a six pack of ginger ale.
"Top of the evening," Casey said with a grin, "Corned beef sandwiches, roasted potatoes, cabbage and Irish soda bread for dinner."
"Way to go Casey!" April said. Casey's grin went wider still as he held up the drinks. In the carrier was a small brown bottle.
"You didn't," Donnie said. Casey waggled his brows.
"Don't even think about it, Casey," April said.
"Relax," Casey said, "It's just a tiny bit. What's the harm?"
Casey took a sip and promptly spit it back out, coughing and pounding his chest. Everyone laughed as Casey grabbed one of the bottles of ginger ale and promptly began to guzzle it down.
*()()()*
I like this chapter because it's really simple. Most of the chapters ahead are going to get a bit simpler in the story line. For those who've been asking about Leo waking up…this story is designed to fill in the gap between the escape from New York until when Leo wakes up in the season 3 premiere, so it's not going to feature a whole lot of Leo interacting physically with the others; he's more of a motivation. That being said, I do have some ideas for a follow up story about Leo's recovery, but since that's the focus of the first 8 episodes of season 3, I'd rather not detract from those stories. If you want a bit more, I recommend the story by JTH called "April O'Neil: Journal of our Journey. s/10776381/1/April-O-Neil-Journal-of-our-Journey
Next weekend I'll be at Midwest Media Expo in Detroit, Michigan. It shouldn't affect the chapter release, but if there's a delay, that's why. See you in the next chapter!