"Okay guys, I'm gonna head to bed", the red banded turtle announced, and rubbed his eye soon afterwards. He felt like a child to rub his eye sleepily, but there was nothing he could do about it. It was a natural habit, and luckily, none of his brothers had noticed. They all just sat still in their spots on the couch, orbs glued to the TV.
Okay then, ignore me, Raph said mentally. He expected Leo to respond, but he made no movement. It was odd as to why the blue banded turtle didn't respond though, as he would almost always say a simple "goodnight" to everyone.
Seeing that no one was paying attention to him, the red banded turtle jumped from the couch and trudged to the bedroom area, but he couldn't resist the urge to turn around. He had to have one last glance at his robot-like brothers. But the turtle shook his head, and continued forward, seeing they were the same as before.
Spinning around, his green orbs settled on his bedroom door. However, the door was slightly agape. He tensed where he stood, scenarios filling his mind. A footbot about to slice his neck once he was inside with the door shut. The Shredder pointing his gauntlets at him, ready to de-shell.
Raph shakes his head like he did before. Nothing of that sort would happen, and he knew that. Shredder didn't have their location, and he would have no idea which room was his…if that was the most important thing.
Nevertheless, the red banded turtle pulled out his weapons from his belt, slowly, and dramatically, without seeming like some kind of drama turtle. He calmed himself by breathing in and out, and focused his eyes on the door. Deciding he shouldn't wait any longer, he kicks the door hard, not hard enough to break it down, but enough to push it wide open.
The door flew open, allowing faded bursts of light to enter the dark room. His weapons were pointed at what was present in his room, but he corrected himself–who was present in his room.
Raph's eyes widen at the sight, yet he felt so calm about it. His mind and expression were very contradicting.
The person sitting on his bed gazed at him with soft, caring eyes. She sat there still, and silent as if she had been waiting for him for a while. Spike was seated on her lap, his head rubbing against her stomach, and her brown curls were swaying a little, like they were leaves of a willow tree. She wore her old, green hooded sweater, and it relaxed Raph when his eyes were laid on it. "Jaylene", He said, his voice as soft as the eyes she had settled on him.
The turtle moves and sits next to her on his bed, the mattress sinking a little from his weight. He turns and gazes at his pet turtle, who seemed perfectly happy and comfortable. Jaylene was the only other person, besides himself, which Spike rubbed his head to, and showed affection in his eyes; it filled him with happiness that two of the individuals that he loved most, also loved each other.
"Y'know you haven't changed a bit", the turtle states, and she chuckles in response. Warmth consumed his heart and she smiles at him. "I saw you last night Raph", the brunette says, and chuckles some more. And all the red banded turtle could do was grin. She was right however, to the fact that he had seen her the night before. But he paid attention to her words. She said, she was the one who saw him, and reading between the lines, he understood that she was visiting him. He didn't cause her to make an appearance. She visited him.
He lifts his orbs up and down, scanning his girlfriend's appearance, when he thought about his earlier statement. She didn't change a bit since last night, but he still realized that she did change from two years ago in one of his, almost-realistic dreams. She's taller, her hair's longer, and her face is paler. Hopefully she's not sick or anything.
When he drops his eyes from her, no one says a word for a long while. The two just sit in comfortable silence, one where they could just not speak for a while without trying to come up with anything to say, and they don't feel awkward about it. But after the time stretches out, Jaylene stands up at one point and places Spike on Raph's lap. She pats the pet's head gently and lovingly, indicating she was going to leave.
The small turtle pressed the top of his head against the palm of her hand as she patted him. He loved the affection. She then raises her hand, and turns; walking to the door with ease, and no rush. Jaylene grabs the handle and twists it, before pulling the door open and letting in an immense amount of bright light to touch every dark corner of the room despite the time of night. The light was almost supernatural. It was unreal, and angelic.
"Will see you again tonight", she says and it rips the red banded turtle's attention from gazing at the light. He lifts his arm in an effort to stop her from leaving just yet, but it was too late. The door was pulled to a close, and darkness enveloped the room once again.
Raph opens his eyes, and blinks a few times, still dazed from his dream. He had known the whole rime that it was a dream, but he never bothered to point it out to himself. There were signs as to how it was a dream though, because Jaylene was obviously not present nowadays, and the most recent time he had seen her was in this latest dream. The only upside to this, was that he didn't have heartache anymore after she visited him multiple times, recreating the feeling that she was still with him.
His eyes trailed down to him hand, and saw that he was tightly clutching onto something of Jaylene's. Her green sweater. His grip around it tightened, because a piece of her was in the palm of his hand. I don't remember going to sleep holding this, the turtle thought. He stared at the sweater, turning it around in his palm as if he were searching for holes or worn out spots to fix up, and tears were sucked in to prevent the sweater from getting covered in them if he let them fall. If he ruined it more than it was already worn out, he swore it would be the end of his days.
He grabs his mask lying on the headboard of his bed, and ties it around his eyes. He looks to Spike's bed, and sees that his pet had woken up before him, and when he turns to the opposite direction, the door was slightly open, just like in his dream. Somebody probably went to check up on me, and Spike went out with them…
Raph didn't mind that his pet left his room. Probably because he did that before. And along with that, his brothers were also quite trustworthy when it came to taking care of Spike. Spike had lived with them for more than eight years, and they would be crazy not knowing something simple, like Spike's favourite snack. So he trusted Spike would be fine without Raph watching him.
The red banded turtle sat up on the edge of his bed and began to put his knee pads and gear on. If Spike had been fed already, he had no need to worry about getting him food, so he got ready in a moderate pace. Soon he was up on his feet and deserted his bedroom; pulling the door shut tight behind him.
There was no specific reason as to why he shut the door tightly, but he didn't want any surprises waiting for him in his room. Like Jaylene's presence–even though it was a dream–. He wanted nothing more than for his girlfriend to appear unexpectedly in his bedroom, saying that everything happening in the last two years was the dream.
Raph wandered into the kitchen, but saw his pet was nowhere to be seen. The kitchen was always the first place he went to; obviously for the first important meal of the day. He took Spike here when he first wakes up, so he assumed that Spike would be here. But he wasn't.
"Goood morning Raph!" Mikey exclaimed. He beamed at his brother, smitten, and as usual, for no reason. It brought life into the spacious, and half-gloomy lair, which Raph was happy about, although it was annoying at times.
"Morning Mikey…where's everyone?" He asked. Only now had he realized that Mikey was the one present in the empty kitchen. No one else was around. "They're all in the lab. Splinter let us off the hook from training this morning so Leo and Donnie could help Astraea research", the orange banded turtle said as he peanut-buttered his toast in a thick layer. Raph shuddered at the amount of peanut butter covering the toast. It was as if the toast were drowning in peanut butter.
He shook his head once at thee thoughts. What was he thinking? He needed to find Spike, and not think about Mikey's peanut butter with toast; not the other way around.
"Uh thanks Mikey", he mumbled and exited the kitchen.
When he got to the bottom of the stairs he heard the sound of something smashing. And it came from the lab. His heart was pounding madly ever since the sound rang in the atmosphere, and loudly in his ears. He ran to the lab, and pushed the door open swiftly with one big heave.
He found Donnie picking up glass from what used to be a beaker, and assuring Leo he didn't require any help. Astraea was sitting at the desk, her hands still on the keyboard, staring at Donnie clean. Leo had his hand gripping the backrest of the wheelie chair Astraea was sitting on. "What happened?" Raph came in, asking. The three turned their attention to him. "Spike pushed the beaker off the desk. Luckily there were no substances in there", the purple banded turtle explained and went back to picking up the glass.
"Why would he be in here anyway? Next to the chemicals?" Raph asked back angrily as he went to pick up his pet, who wore an expressionless face.
Astraea lifted her hand up sheepishly, and shyly. "Apologies Raphael, but Spike entered the lab a few hours before you were awake, and while I was doing some research. He came up to me, and rubbed against my leg, like he likes me. So I placed him on the table while I worked."
She turned her attention back to the computer screen, and he heard the clicking sounds of the computer mouse shortly afterwards. Leo shrugged at his brother, and also fixed his eyes on the screen.
Raph glares at the blonde teen, and her reply. He didn't know what to think. Could Spike even leave his room and open the heavy door himself? It was possible that he did eventually learn how to do that, but the turtle was in denial. He was only furious at the fact that Spike liked the person he hated most in the lair.
And in the dream he had recently, Jaylene was present, in his room, holding Spike. It seemed that the red banded turtle didn't want anyone else touching Spike besides Jaylene and himself. If Astraea laid a finger on Spike, Jaylene's presence on Spike was gone. And now it was because Astraea had picked his pet up.
The blonde teen lifted her eyes and tried to read Raph's seemingly blank expression. He did not respond to her explanation, and she wondered if she had said something wrong. To end the lingering conversation, Astraea said, "I guess animals love me."
When she fixed her eyes on the screen once again, she didn't realize that the turtle still had his eyes focused on her, but with a mix of shock, confusion and fury on his face, no longer having the blank expression. But this time, his orbs were staring at what she was wearing.
He couldn't take his eyes off the green hooded sweater Astraea was wearing, and the anger in him began to bubble a bit, and he cringed. He felt sure that it was the same sweater, but he was sleeping with it earlier, so it couldn't possibly be Jaylene's. It was like she was purposefully trying to haunt him of the person he lost. Plus, she's sitting there like she owns the computer and the desk. It's only been two weeks since she came back, and she acts like she's been here for years.
"Are you alright Raphael?" Astraea asks, when the turtle was still frozen in his spot; holding Spike protectively in his arms.
"I'm fine", he grumbled.
Raph had steam clearly coming out of his ears, which Astraea didn't notice. He was feeling quite furious at her, for the fact that one, she was wearing the green-hooded sweater similar to Jaylene's, and two, Spike seeming to like the person he hated in the lair the most. Her actions and clothing continued to mock him.
Raph grumbled, and opened his mouth, but Astraea jumped up from her seat and declared, "I will get some food for your sweet pet Raphael. I just realized he probably has not had breakfast yet." She stands up, and lifted her hand, gently patted Spike's head, much like Jaylene did in his dream. And then she dashes out the door.
Once he felt certain that he and his brothers alone, Raph snaps his head to face his two brothers, and words tumble out of his mouth rapidly, angrily. "I can't describe how angry I am you shellheads! Have you forgotten that Astraea had Jaylene's kunai?! Everything we suspected?! How else would she get her hands on it?! Oh, I know! Shredder!" the turtle blurted out, half yelling. His sudden tone of voice stunned his brothers, and he could visibly see them jump back for one second. There were very few times when his brothers flinched at his angry tone as he used it often, so this situation was very rare.
"And why would she have the green sweater, huh?! It's like she took the things that made Jaylene, Jaylene. Her sweater, and her favorite weapon", the red banded turtle stated. The green sweater held importance to him as they first met her wearing the sweater, and her kunai was the weapon she always used in battle and training. In terms of objects, they defined his girlfriend. "She's also gained too much trust from all of you, and you can't hand it to her like she received a gift! Our trust is a reward, which she'd have to earn, not have given to her."
"Are you sure this isn't about something else?" Donnie asks, in between Raph's ramble. Raph growls and yells, "No!"
He then continues and says, "Especially that she leaves the lair when she wants, not telling us where she goes, and thinks she could get away with it. We can't trust her Leo! She still has too many secrets", Raph says, but pauses, and his eyes widen a little. Halfway through his brother's ramble, Leo was able to stand in front of him, the brothers meeting eye to eye.
But standing so close was a slight disadvantage. He couldn't see what his brother's eyes widened at; he stares at him, pondering on the thought of why he stopped. The blue banded turtle then turns around to see what his brother's eyes are fixed on to end his cluelessness.
And standing at the doorway, was Astraea, looking hurt and shocked as ever. A small frown appears on her face. She didn't need to say anything for him to know that she heard more than half the conversation…or more of, the argument. Oh no. No no no no no.
As the six pairs of eyes, including Donnie, kept their gaze on Astraea, Leo hoped that the longer they did, the longer it would take for her to turn her back on them. But he was wrong. The second those thoughts slipped into his mind, the blonde teen spins on her heel and walks out of their sight. Seconds later they hear a clatter of a plate outside the lab, and the sound of rapid footsteps follows the clattering plate soon after. The three turtles didn't need to think for a split second to know that was Astraea. Mikey was in the kitchen, and those sounds were too close to them.
Leo glares at his brother and sourly says, "Nice going Raph."
He runs out the door swiftly, trying to catch a glimpse of the blonde hair before he couldn't follow her and where she was dashing off to. His determined blue eyes darted to the Lair entrance, and spotted a blonde streak of hair on the far left side.
Astraea stop running from us, Leo thought, and it was also what he wanted to say aloud as he ran after her. The turtle somersaulted over the turnstiles and landed on his feet without stumbling. That was easy to do, but pursuing Astraea was something else. A skilled kunoichi with only two years of training is surreal. She could disappear in the blink of an eye, and there would be no trace of her. She had escaped from them once, and she is doing it again, but this time, Leo is certain he'll find her.
The turtle stopped to take a breath, and he leaned forward, with his hands resting on his knee pads. He had been searching for the sixteen year old for two hours nonstop, and he wouldn't have grown tired if he paused from his sprinting at least one time before. And that decision lead him to breathing raggedly, and wanting to collapse on the surface of a rooftop very badly.
He grabbed his t-phone from the pocket of his belt, and held it up in front of himself. "Five texts, three calls, and nothing", the turtle said with slight exasperation. Leo had followed her to the main road where he had to be a little stealthier while running across the rooftops-and as she was running on the sidewalk-, but when he reached a corner and glanced down, Astraea had disappeared. And he was mad that he was correct about Astraea being a skilled kunoichi. It made his job in finding her a thousand times harder than it was catching up to her. He wondered why it was so difficult chasing her when he was on the rooftops, and while she was on the streets below. He should have been able to see everything from above, but missing out on one second of her location as she ran, messed it all up.
As the seventeen year old slumped onto the cold surface of the empty rooftop, he felt a sudden vibration and heard a familiar ringtone from his belt. A surge of excitement ran through his veins at the thought of Astraea being on the other end of that phone call. He reached for his phone and pulled it out before placing it to his ear.
"Leonardo", the blue banded turtle stated.
"Leo, its Donnie", the voice from the other end said. And in the instant he heard the name and voice, his heart felt heavy again. He didn't have anything against his younger brother-and only Raph-so he didn't understand why he was more disappointed than he should be. Just be thankful it's not Raph calling to yell at you, the turtle thought.
"Oh, hey Donnie", Leo said half-heartedly. "What's up?"
"I know you're not in the mood to talk to any of us because you're looking for Astraea, so instead of telling you to come back home…here's the coordinates", the purple banded turtle said.
Leo heard a distant yell at the other end, and he shook his head knowing it was the second to eldest brother. He guessed Raph was protesting against Donnie's choice to help him. Seconds later, the phone buzzed against his ear, and he lowered it so he could see the screen. A red dot was blinking on a bird's eye view of New York City. It was Astraea's location.
The turtle mentally thanked his brother, and placed the phone against his ear again. "I know you don't approve of me planting a bug on her phone, but in my defence, I never actually checked to see her whereabouts when she goes off without us knowing where", Donnie spoke firmly. The same voice yelling previously in the back said, "What?!" and Leo fought the urge to laugh at Raph's anger against Donnie's kindness.
"Thanks Donnie…" Leo said gratefully, but he trailed off at not knowing what else to say. Luckily, the purple banded turtle didn't realize his loss for words, and just ended their conversation with a, "Good luck."
The blue banded turtle smiled and lowered his phone down much like before, as he sprinted in the direction of the red blinking dot.
The docks? Why would she be here?, Leo asked himself. He crouched down on top of a red cargo container, and stared blankly at the sky as thoughts poured into his mind. He didn't recall Astraea saying she had something to pick up from here, but then again, she didn't share a lot of things with them. He thought, that maybe she was having a rendezvous with someone at this place. And the first person that appeared in his mind, was the Shredder.
No. no. You're thinking too much like Raph. Astraea wouldn't meet up with Shredder after what she said about him…right?
He thought long and hard for reasons as to why Astraea would still have connections with Shredder as he jumped down from the cargo and landed on the concrete. But nothing answering the question, came up. Though it hadn't been too long since she had joined them against her former master, he wondered if his younger, short-tempered brother was right. Just a second ago he thought his brother would never be right, but his new thoughts contradicted the previous ones.
However, before he made a final decision, his neck strained and he found it difficult to breath. Something was choking him. And before he was able to lift his hands up in an attempt to free himself, he was yanked forward. He soared just above the ground because it flew from under his feet, and seconds after, his abdomen skimmed in contact with the concrete from landing back on the ground.
Leo didn't have enough strength to get back on his feet, but there was no need to. Everything happened so quickly, but he soon found soft, gentle hands touching his face. And in the moment, he couldn't hear anything, and it was like he had lost his hearing.
The turtle was puzzled about whose hands were holding onto his face, because despite him rolling on the floor in struggle and panic, the hands firmly remained on his cheeks. Until he held still, the soft, yet firm, hands moved down from his cheeks and stopped at his neck.
The blue banded turtle didn't even have time to react, and found himself breathing fresh air once again. It hurt when he gulped it in too quickly, but he didn't care. All that mattered was that he was breathing.
"Ugh, what happened?" the turtle said aloud. He rubbed his sore neck and prayed that there wouldn't be a bruise or in the least, a big bruise after this. Leo blinked his eyes slowly and his vision cleared in no time.
The first thing clearing up in front of him was a long rope. No wait…that's a whip…, the turtle corrected himself. And on the other end of the whip was a person. Her hand was gripping tightly onto the handle of the whip, like it was dear to her. And he felt pretty sure that it was.
"Astraea?" Leo said. The blonde girl as stood over him, her figure towering over him. It wasn't usually like that as he was the taller one, but in this case, he was vulnerably sitting on the concrete, still taking it in. He glanced up at her, but couldn't decide whether to smile, frown or keep a straight face. But coming to realize that his mouth was not going to move a muscle, he went with the third option without a choice.
As he stared up at her, and she at him, he suddenly asked himself if the person she was rendezvousing with was around. His orbs turned left and right for any sign, until Astraea spoke. "I am here alone. I am not meeting with anyone, Leonardo."
The blue banded turtle breathed a sigh of relief at the assurance. He could trust her a little more right now when she cleared that up. "But even though I am not meeting with anyone, we should get inside before someone unwanted here, shows up", the teen states. She outstretched her hand, and grasped his, the familiar feeling always making the hairs on his neck stand. She pulled him up to his feet and nodded at him. He wasn't quite sure what that was for, but he followed her as she dragged him-by his hand-in the direction of an old wooden shed. Astraea reached for the door knob, and pushed the door open wide. Leo gasped inaudibly, and Astraea briskly pulled him inside the shed prior to shutting the door tight behind her.
He had stumbled when he was hurriedly dragged into the shed, and then left in the darkness for around twenty seconds. She released her hand from grasping his, and he panicked from the movement. Here he was, in a dark room with the only light source from the natural sunlight seeping through the cracks, and he couldn't see anything. He hush-whispered her name in between the long seconds, and as if on cue, the lights above his head flickered on.
"Apologies Leonardo if I scared you, but I was promptly trying to fix the lights", Astraea informed the startled turtle. She turned around and began to move some boxes and equipment. Probably hasn't had guests in…ever, Leo thought as he grinned at her efforts. She flipped her head around in sharp movements as she looked around the shed, deciding where to place things that were laying around.
Once she was glad with her arrangements, she faced him and said, "And also, I am sorry I choked you with my whip…I thought you were-never mind." The blonde teen stopped short on her sentence, and took her gaze away from his face to the floor.
Leo's eyebrow was gradually raised at her sudden halt on words. He was curious as to why she stopped herself from going further, and what she was about to say. Ignoring his burning curiosity, his eyes also drifted from hers to the equipment, and overall room he was in, to distract his mind. A new question sparked in him, and he wanted to inquire on what this place was.
And at the same time he was going to ask that question, Astraea answered it as if she knew what it was already. "I know I have not shared a lot about my whereabouts with you, so I shall do it now", she said, and paused, allowing him to realize this was quite a big moment. "This is my shed. The place I spend most of my times at."
She grabbed both of his hands and slowly pulled him around the shed, like she was spinning him in a dance.
"But what do you do here?" the turtle asked. The fact that she shared this was the place she spent most of her time at, wasn't exactly enough information. However, he recalled of a special place Raph and Jaylene had, and though it looked like nothing, their presence there made it extraordinary. This could be a similar situation, but Astraea tried too hard to protect this place, and it must have some significance to it that was more than a sentimental attachment.
Astraea was reluctant to answer his question when Leo snatched a glance. She had the look of worry, and he questioned why she would, when she had already shared the place with him. There was probably something big about it that she didn't want other people knowing.
"Well you see Leonardo, this is not just an ordinary shed…it is also my laboratory." The tension in the room increased from that statement, but it still didn't mean that much to him. Maybe she was a scientist like Donnie, and had a talent with chemicals, but that seemed too simple of an answer for her to be hiding it from everyone.
"I am in the process of creating a "retro-mutagen" as Donnie named it. And I have actually been working on it for nearly two years."
Fin
Well that's finally up after over three months! Sorry it's been a while, and I would've updated a whole lot sooner, but things happen and if I try to explain, it'll just seem like I'm making excuses XD but this is a nice long chapter, and the next one will come very soon as I'm in the process of writing it! Please review as well!
Thank you to the Guest review on the 24th of Feb for the encouragement to keep writing, and I promise that I won't stop writing this story! And thank you blueeyedinnocene3 for checking up on me!
Disclaimer: I do not own TMNT 2012
04/04/15