Chapter 02: New Home

A loud cat-ish shriek echoed through the sewers' tunnel and seconds later Mittens, the cat-mutant darted out of the lair on all fours. She stopped for a second, looking around in fear as if to make sure if she has been followed, and then she literally went up the wall.

Just moments later Mikey ran out of the lair as well.

"That was very good, Mittens," he said encouragingly. "That was 30 seconds. Big improvement to yesterday when it was only 28 seconds. If you keep up this pace you can move in with us in March next year." He grinned at Mittens who was still clinging to that wall and breathing heavily, her tail swinging from one side to the other.

That moment his brothers joined Mikey in the tunnel.

"Seriously, Mikey," Leo stated, "you want give sensei a heart attack? That was the fifth time this week you brought Mittens here. When are you finally gonna learn that she and sensei don't get along?"

"But they can be in the same room now without freaking out!" Mikey countered.

"Yeah, for about 15 seconds!" Leo said.

"30 seconds," his youngest brother corrected him. "And counting. Besides, sensei already stays calm. And Mittens will learn that too."

"He stays calm on the outside, yes," Donnie stated. "But I'm pretty sure being in the same room with a giant cat will always give him the creeps."

Mikey lowered his eyes.

"Yeah, so stop bringing that flea bag here!" Raph said and pointed at Mittens with his thumb. Mittens hissed at his insult.

"Mittens has no fleas!" Mikey gave back. "And she needs a new home. I promised to take care of her and she can't sleep in the garage forever. That was only meant to be temporary. She doesn't like it there. She's intimidated by the Shellraiser."

Leo placed a hand on Mikey's shoulder. "I'm sorry, Mikey, but Mittens can't stay with us."

"But…"

"I'm afraid you have to find her a new place to stay."

"Why can't I stay with you?" Mittens asked as Mikey and she were wandering through the sewers.

"For the hundredth time, Mittens, because you and my sensei will never get along." He sighed. "I am so sorry."

"But I could sneak in at night and sneak out in the morning before your sensei gets up. I'm a cat. I'm good at sneaking."

"And my sensei is a ninja master," Mikey replied. "He's good at finding out."

Mittens lowered her eyes. "But you've already brought me to the lair and it was no problem for your sensei. You know, back at the night you found me."

Mikey took a deep breath. "Sensei wasn't at home that night. He went topside with April for some training exercise."

"I see." Mittens lowered her eyes even further.

Mikey looked at the cat-mutant with a concerned look in his eyes, but then in an attempt to cheer her up he smiled at her.

"So, you want to stay nearby?" he asked gleefully. "That tunnel down there seems promising. Maybe we can find some abandoned subway-station or so."

Mittens slackened her pace. When Mikey realized that he stopped. The cat-mutant stopped as well.

"Mittens, what's wrong?"

"I…I…" Mittens fumbled for words, but failed, and so a feeble meow was all that escaped her mouth.

Mikey watched shocked as she teared up.

"Oh, Mittens!" he cried out, ran over to her and wrapped his arms around her, hugging her tightly. Mittens hugged him back, the tears now running down her face, but all she could pronounce was another meow.

"It's okay, Mittens, it's okay," Mikey said as he gently patted her back. "Let it out. We can talk later."

Mittens sniveled loudly, even more tears were running down her cheeks now. She clung to Mikey now, and all Mikey could hear from her for the next few minutes where sobs and silent meows. Then finally, he could feel her grip on him loosen a bit, and after a few more moments she let go of him, taking a step back. Mikey let go of her as well, looking at Mittens who, again, had lowered her eyes.

"Better?" he asked.

Mittens nodded silently.

"Okay, then tell what's wrong."

The moment he said that Mittens was about to tear up again, but she managed to fight back the tears.

"I…hate the sewers," she finally managed to say. "It is so dark down here, there's no sunlight, no fresh air, and the smell is an insult for my sensitive nose. But you live here, and I want to stay close to you. You're my only friend. I don't want to leave you. But staying close to you means I have to live in the sewers. I would bear it if I could live with you but that's impossible. And now I don't know what to do."

Mikey blinked a few times after this monologue. "Ooooookay," he drawled, still taking in what she had just said. Then he thought about it with a frown while tapping his lip with his finger.

But after a few moments he smiled again.

"Easy!" he said. "All we have to do is find a nice place for you topside where you have sunlight and fresh air."

"But such a place isn't nearby your lair," Mittens pointed out. "We won't see each other then!"

Mikey could hear the panic in her voice in that last sentence.

"Of course we will see each other, Mittens!" he assured her. "I will visit you after our evening patrols."

"Yeah, you will do that for the first weeks, then less and then no more." Mittens said in a sad voice. "I know how it is. It was the same when my owner's best friend moved to another city. They promised to meet each other every weekend. It worked for one month, then they only met once a month, then a few times a year, and now they don't see each other any longer."

"In case you didn't notice I'm not your owner's best friend," Mikey said as he placed a hand on Mittens' shoulder. "I am Michelangelo, and I can be your best friend if you let me."

The cat-mutant looked at him for a second, then nodded.

"Okay, now let's find you a new home," Mikey said with a big smile.

Later that night, the two of them went topside and now were looking for a hideway for Mittens, but that was easier said than done. Mikey had thought of an abandoned building, but all the buildings they could find were about to collapse, and Mittens understandably refused to live in a building that could bury her any second.

Mittens was frustrated about this whole situation and had put on an angry face. When Mikey noticed that he – despite being just as frustrated – decided to cheer her up. So he smiled at her.

"You know what, Mittens?" he said. "I think it's time for a break. Follow me!"

And with that he jumped to the next rooftop. Mittens frowned at that, but followed him nonetheless.

Fifteen minutes later they stopped on a rooftop nearby Murakami's. Mikey peeked down, and when he realized that Mr. Murakami was alone, he smiled.

"Well, you can't find a new home on an empty stomach, right?" he said to Mittens. "And that's why I'll treat you to dinner tonight."

What he didn't say was that he and his brothers never had to pay at Murakami's. After helping him when he had had trouble with the Purple Dragons some time ago, Mr. Murakami insisted on making them their meals free of charge. But Mittens didn't need to know that. Plus, Mikey really liked the idea of being some sort of a gentleman who invited his female friend to dinner.

"Dinner?" Mittens asked.

"Yes, at Murakami's," Mikey confirmed and pointed to the restaurant.

"We can't go in there!" Mittens burst out. "There are humans!"

"No, Murakami-san is alone, and he is our friend. He doesn't mind if you are a mutant or not. Come!"

And with that he climbed down the fire escape.

Mittens hesitated for a moment, but then followed him.

"Good evening, Murakami-san!" Mikey greeted his human friend cheerfully as he entered the restaurant. He flipped the sign at the door over so that it said "Closed" – just in case.

"Mikey-kun!" Murakami answered happily. "Pizza gyooza as usual?"

"Of course," Mikey answered. "Two portions, please. I brought a friend."

Mittens peeked inside before she entered the restaurant hesitantly. She looked around the room once more before she closed the door and had a seat next to Mikey at the bar.

"Hello, Mikey's friend," Murakami said. "I am Murakami."

"Mittens," the cat-mutant replied.

"Oh, a girl. "Murakami grinned. "Is that a date, Mikey?"

Mikey uttered a brief laugh. "No, Murakami-san, no date. We're just friends."

Murakami nodded, but Mikey noticed the small smile on the man's face. Then he turned around to prepare the meals for his guests.

Mittens looked at Mikey with a questioning look on her face. "He didn't freak out," she whispered.

"No, that's because he is blind," Mikey whispered back. "I told you he doesn't mind if you are a mutant or not."

"So, your friend is a mutant?" Murakami asked as he brought them their meals.

"How do you…?" Mikey burst out.

Murakami grinned. "What I lack in seeing I compensate in hearing."

"Cat-mutant," Mittens said.

"Now I know four turtle- and one cat-mutant," Murakami said. "I'd say I have a very interesting circle of friends."

Mittens smiled at him, but when she looked at her meal the smile suddenly disappeared. She looked over to Mikey who was already eating his portion of pizza gyooza. She watched closely how he held his chopsticks and imitated him. Very slowly she tried to pick up one piece of pizza gyooza with her chopsticks, but failed. She tried it one more time, but somehow she couldn't manage to get the food in her mouth.

"No, Mittens, like that," Mikey explained when he realized that, took her hand and showed how she had to hold the chopsticks, and after he did that, Mittens finally managed to get one piece of pizza gyooza in her mouth.

"Delicious!" she burst out and scoffed the rest of her meal in no time.

"So, Mikey-kun," Murakami asked. "How are you doing? Are your brothers alright?"

"I am fine, Murakami-san, my brothers are fine, too," Mikey answered.

"How come they didn't accompany you tonight? You never come here alone, and you said that this is no date, so I was wondering what is going on. You didn't have a fight, did you?"

"No," Mikey answered and sighed.

"Then what's wrong?"

Mikey took a deep breath and then he told Murakami the whole story of how he came to know Mittens and that they had to find a new place to live for her.

"I see," Murakami said when Mikey had finished his story. "Complicated."

"Yeah," Mikey sighed. "But we will find a solution."

"Of course you will!" Murakami smiled at Mikey encouragingly.

Mikey smiled back. He knew Murakami couldn't see but he bet the old man could somehow sense it.

"Come, Mittens," the youngest turtle brother said to his friend. "We still have to find you a new home."

And with that he stood up.

"Bye, Murakami-san," he said to the old man, went over to the door, flipped the sign back to open and left.

Mittens followed him, but stopped in the doorway and waved at Murakami. But then she remembered that he couldn't see it.

"I…I'm…waving at you," she stuttered.

Murakami chuckled and raised his hand to wave back. "And I'm waving back at you."

Mittens gave a small smile before she left the restaurant.

Mikey and Mittens reached a dark side street. Mikey was still thinking about where they should continue their search, so he didn't notice the three men that were following them.

"Look, what have we here?" said one of them. He was the tallest brawniest of the three. "Isn't that one of these meddling turtles?"

"I told you the turtles come into this neighborhood often," the second man, who was quite thin compared to the others, replied.

The third man was the smallest of the three, but he seemed chunky. "The boss will be very pleased if we bring this turtle-boy to him. He and his brothers have messed with the Purple Dragons way too often!"

"Purple Dragons, huh?" Mikey said as he turned around and drew his nunchucks. "Well, I can't wait to mess with you guys once more."

The three men just laughed at his comment.

Without letting the three out of his sight Mikey turned to Mittens.

"Mittens, get away from here," he said.

"But…" the cat-mutant stammered.

"You heard me, Mittens. Leave!"

"Awwww, isn't that cute? He tries to protect his flea bag of a girlfriend!"

"She is not my girlfriend and no-one calls Mittens a flea bag!" Mikey burst out. "Well, okay, my brother does that but that doesn't count: Take that back, you jerk!"

"Look at this, he really likes her!" the brawniest of the three said. "I can imagine it's quite nice to delouse her fur every night."

"Mittens, go!"

Mikey's voice was so angry Mittens didn't dare to disobey and so she ran away. But she stopped after a few moments and looked back over her shoulder to check if Mikey was okay.

The three Purple Dragons had all kissed the dust. Mikey was standing in front of the one who had called Mittens a flea bag.

"I said you should take that back!" the mutant said.

In that moment one of the other men drew a knife and got back on his feet. Mikey didn't seem to notice.

Mittens gasped. She had to do something! And the next thing she remembered was that she had jumped on the man's back and dug her claws into his cheeks.

She hissed and shrieked while doing so and that finally made Mikey turn around.

"Mittens!" he cried out when he saw that the man slashed at Mittens with his knife. He then managed to grab one of Mittens' paws and flung her to the ground. But then he was kicked in the back by Mikey and he slumped to his knees. Mikey ran over to Mittens who was still lying on the ground.

"Get away from here!" he cried out to the men. "This is my last warning!"

The three men looked at each other, then got up and ran away. This turtle wasn't as easy a target as they had thought, so they decided to run away as fast as they could.

When they were gone Mikey bent down to check on Mittens.

"You okay, Mittens?"

The cat-mutant gave a silent meow as she sat up. Mikey reached for her paw, but when he touched it Mittens pulled away with a hiss. It was then that Mikey saw the cut on her left forearm.

"Come, Mittens," he said in a calm voice. "Let's get you back to the lair."

Later that night Donnie was taking care of Mittens' wound. The cut wasn't as deep as it had looked at the beginning so all he needed to do was disinfecting it and bandaging her arm but that was more difficult than he had thought. As most cats Mittens hated medical treatments, and so she fought with tooth and nail. Mikey had hugged her from behind to first calm her down and second hold her in place, Raph held her paws in a tight grip so Donnie could take of the cut, and Leo made sure she couldn't get up from her seat.

When Donnie was finally done, Leo and Raph let immediately go of Mittens, but Mikey didn't let go.

"See, Mittens?" he said in a calming voice. "That wasn't so bad."

"Yeah? Tell that the scratches on my hands," Raph mumbled.

At that moment Splinter entered Donnie's lab.

"Could you please leave me and Mittens alone for a moment?" he asked.

"Are you sure, sensei?" Leo asked.

"Absolutely sure," Splinter confirmed.

Leo, Donnie and Raph looked for each other for a moment, but then left the lab.

"Michelangelo," Splinter said to his youngest son. "This applies to you as well."

Mikey looked from his sensei to Mittens, back to his sensei, and then to Mittens again.

"Think you can handle this?" he asked his friend.

Mittens just nodded. She was too exhausted to run away from this giant rat again which Splinter must have noticed.

"Okay," Mikey said, let go of Mittens and left the lab.

Splinter waited till Mikey was outside and then turned to Mittens.

"Mittens, I heard you had risked your own life to help Michelangelo," he said. "And I want to thank you for that. And I want to let you know that you that as a sign of my thankfulness you can stay here as long as you want to."

Mittens blinked a few times.

"I…I don't know what to say," she stammered. "Thank you!" She thought of what he had said. "But you know I can't live down here with you forever."

"I do. But you can stay here as long as you want to. You are my guest, Mittens," Splinter confirmed. "But please at least try not to kill me, okay?"

Mittens gave him a small smile. "Okay."

A few days had passed. Mittens had spent nearly the whole time in Mikey's room or in the living room when Splinter was in the dojo. She was very happy that she didn't have to sleep in the garage any longer, and she knew now that she was welcome here, but she didn't want to push her luck and be in the same room with Splinter too long. Her instincts might get the best of her and she could attack him.

She was in Mikey's room listening to the radio when Mikey entered the room that evening.

"Come, Mittens!" he said cheerfully. "I need to show you something!"

It was already dark, when they reached the rooftop of the building where Murakami's restaurant was.

"Pizza gyooza again?" Mittens asked happily.

"Not quite," Mikey answered. He guided Mittens to a tool shed on that rooftop. He opened the door and led Mittens inside.

"Murakami called me two days ago. This tool shed always was part of the restaurant's property, but he doesn't really need it," Mikey said. "So he asked me if maybe we can make this your new home." And with these words he turned on the lights.

Mittens gasped. There was a small sofa in the tool shed, a hammock she could use as a bed, a fluffy carpet, a radio and even a small TV-set.

"My brothers and I made it up for you," Mikey explained. "We even built a skylight. I know how much you like the sun, but it is difficult for us mutants to go out at daytime. But now you can at least open the skylight when the sun is shining. Do you like it?"

"It is gorgeous!" Mittens called out. And then a very drawn out meow escaped her lips.

Mikey chuckled when he heard that.

"And I have this for you," he said and handed Mittens a T-phone. "If you want some company, just give me a call. And if you feel so alone that you can't wait the thirty seconds it will take me to get here, you can go and see Murakami-san in the meantime. He said he really likes you and you can always spend time with him, even come to the restaurant when there are no guests there. So, what do you say?"

But Mittens didn't say anything. She just hugged Mikey tightly, and before Mikey knew what was going on, Mittens started to rub her cheeks against his and purred loudly. The young turtle blushed. This felt so…strange. But after a while he closed his eyes and wrapped his arms around Mittens, hugging her back just as tightly. And then he started to return her caresses, rubbing his cheeks against hers.

He knew this was no kiss. But it felt just as intimate.