Chapter 11
Secret Revealed
Entering the lair again, Monalisa and Sephie were at a loss on what to do with what they had just witnessed. Both of them were happy for Michelangelo's sake, especially Monalisa, but they were also worried of what might come of him having a human girlfriend. They had nothing against her being human, since they both used to be human, but they couldn't ignore that this relationship would be difficult for both Michelangelo and the girl. Something like this had never happened before, so they had no clue on how to handle it.
They could just have been supportive of it, welcoming the girl into their lives and getting to know her, but there were two things that would make all of that difficult. The first was Kate, they both knew she liked the goofy turtle, more so than just as a friend, and the fact that he now had met another girl with the same feelings, that he also felt the same for, would not be kind news for the viper, and they worried for how she might react.
The second thing was the Foot. Human friends of the turtles were always at some form of risk because of Arashi and his ilk, if they learned of this girl, they would be on her like a pack of rabid wolfs, and use her to get to Michelangelo and the rest of the mutants. They might even go as far as they did with Jennifer, brainwashing and turning her into a monstrous weapon for them to use.
"Got any bright ideas, Mona? 'Cause I'm only drawing blanks at the moment."
"Only one, and that's to talk with Master Splinter, but I don't want to do that. This is a very private matter, we shouldn't even know about it, so if anyone is to talk with Master Splinter about this, it's Mikey."
"I wonder just how long this has been going on, and when he was planing on telling us, he can't keep something like this a secret forever."
"Yeah, I was thinking the same. But no matter what, we can't tell anyone of what we saw."
"Not even Tyroth?"
"Well, he is in on this too. And he's also the only one that can restrain Kate without fear of her venom, should it come to that. Might be a good idea to tell him, just in case."
"Okay. Maybe he can come up with something. Otherwise, we just have to wait and see what happens."
It was then that the two lizards noticed that the lair seemed empty, with the Tyroth and the turtles nowhere in sight. Splinter was most likely resting in his quarters, he usually did at that time, but where could the others be?
Taking a short while to listen, they soon found sounds coming from the dojo and walked there to see what it was.
Walking into the dojo, they saw the turtles pulling on a rope, with Tyroth holding on to the other end. It seemed like they were having a tug of war, and while it was clear that Tyroth had to work not loose, the three turtles were giving it their all, with little to no effect.
"Nngh! Come on, guys, put your shells into it!" said Raphael.
"We are, Raph, we are!" said Leonardo.
Tyroth smiled at the turtles' attempt to pull him over the middle-line they had drawn, and he could feel that they were trying their hardest, but that wasn't enough. With his strong arms, he started pulling back the rope, and the turtles with it, as they slowly slid over the floor, despite their best efforts.
"I've got a bad feeling about this." said Donatello as they were being pulled closer to the line. Then Tyroth gave the rope a quick and powerful yank, pulling the three brothers off their feet so hard that they landed on their faces as they were now past the line.
"Nice try, guys. You aren't hurt are you?" said Tyroth, walking over to the turtles.
"Only our pride." said Raphael, as they got back up and dusted off themselves. "You're like a tow-truck, you know that?"
"There is a reason that dragons were at the top of the food-chain when they still lived." the dragon replied with a smile.
"So we've noticed." said Donatello. "I really thought we could overpower you by working together, but it seems I was wrong."
"Don't feel bad about it, you guys gave me a good run for my money. Had Mikey been with you, you might just have won."
"Speaking of Mikey, where is he? Do you think he's still out skating?" said Leonardo.
"He must be, it's been calm around here, pleasant even." said Raphael.
"Hey, guys! What are you doing?" Monalisa asked, making her and Sephie's presence known to the guys.
"Hi, girls. We were just trying to beat Big T here." said Raphael.
"Where have you two been by the way, we haven't seen you for a while." said Leonardo.
"We felt like doing some exercises, so we went for a jog in the sewer." Sephie answered.
"So you had some excess energy as well, huh? Why didn't you tell us?" Donatello asked.
"They did, they told both me and Kate just before they left." said Tyroth.
"Speaking of Kate, where is she? We haven't seen her since we came back." said Monalisa.
"I think she's still in her room." said Leonardo. "After training, she came to me for some pointers on her eventual ninja training. Once we were done, she said she would think about it while listening to some music."
"Ninja training? For Kate?" Sephie asked surprised.
"Yeah, I think she has potential, so I offered her advice the other day."
"I'm getting the feeling that Percy will have to be extra careful from here on out." said Sephie. "But how about we grab something to eat, I'm quite hungry."
"That's sounds like a fine idea, I'll see what I can whip up. Who's up for some flambé?" said Tyroth, and the group headed to the kitchen.
Kate was lying in her bed in the guest room, thinking about what Leonardo had told her and listening to 'I Love Rock'n'Roll' on an MP3.
Ninja training didn't sound that bad, but it was a lot of work, that was for sure, yet it might work well with her skills. The main problem with it was that such training would take a long time to fully 'complete', and she and the other Mutopians was only staying for another few days, so unless they could fit all she needed to learn in that short time, she might miss something important. Still, it would give her a reason to come back, and spend more time with Michelangelo, and she was all for that.
She was even thinking about maybe moving in with the turtles, but that was a big thing, and something that was bound to come up one way or another, with either her or Michelangelo moving somewhere. That is, if he warmed up enough to have the same feelings for her, as she had for him, and they had grown since she arrived in New York.
As the song ended, she noticed a faint scent of cooked food, and her stomach made her aware to her hunger. Turning off the music-player, she got up and was just about to open the door, when someone knocked on it, catching her by surprise.
"Kate? Are you there?" she heard Sephie ask.
"Y-yeah, I'm here." Kate answered, still a bit shocked.
"Food's almost ready, I thought that you might want to know."
"Okay, thanks, I'll be right there. And tell the other to save some for me, or they'll be fucking sorry."
"Right, sure thing, Kate."
Back in the kitchen, Tyroth was working his magic, literally, using his mana claws to cut, slice and dice, while his pyrokinesis was used to both barbecue and flambé the various pieces of food he was preparing.
"Louie may be a master chef, but Tyroth is a true magician in the kitchen." said Sephie.
"I see what you mean, this will be an interesting experience." said Donatello.
"Hope you like it well grilled, guys, 'cause that's what you get today." Tyroth said as he started carrying the food on trays. Grilled bell peppers, roasted porkchops, skewers with corn, beef, chicken and potato, toast and homemade chips. It both looked and smelled delicious, and the gang wasn't disappointed. As soon as they had started serving themselves, Kate entered the kitchen and as soon as she felt the smell of the food, she liked her lips in hunger and anticipation, and quickly joined the other at the table.
A few minutes later, Splinter entered the kitchen and joined the youngsters, having rested and meditated beforehand. He was served a plate with food that was more his taste and a cup of tea, rather than what the others were having.
Another few minutes later, they heard the entrance open, and shortly after, Michelangelo walked into the kitchen, and he was almost beaming with some form of happiness, which everyone noticed, but only Monalisa and Sephie knew why, and that worried them.
"Welcome back, Mikey." said Leonardo. "You seem to be in a very good mood."
"Like you wouldn't believe, bro."
"So what's the occasion?" Donatello asked.
"Oh, I'd love to tell you guys, but I'm not sure if I should."
"Come on, spill it already, Mikey." said Raphael.
"You're not gonna believe this, but… I've made a new friend." Michelangelo said smiling widely.
"And who might that be, my son?" Splinter asked with a warm smile.
"Another mutant?" asked Leonardo, half expectantly.
"Her name's Shari, and she's human. I ran into her a few days ago, saved her from a couple of would-be rapists. I've been checking up on her every night since then, just to make sure that she's okay and all, and she's really nice and not at all afraid of me."
"That's a surprise, given your history." said Raphael.
"Well, you haven't heard the best part yet." Michelangelo said with a faint blush as the memory was still fresh in his mind. "She really likes me, and I like her, so tonight, I took her to one of the spots where we use to stargaze. The stars were really beautiful and the moment was almost magical, so… we kissed."
That last part caused most of the mutants to almost choke on their food.
"You what?!" Raphael yelled.
"We kissed. It just happened, but it felt so right. I… I think I'm in love, and that she feels the same."
"I do not know what to say about this." said Donatello, feeling a mix of emotions.
"Excuse me." Kate said, coughing and rose from the table, hurrying out of the kitchen and into the bathroom, locking the door behind her. Sephie and Monalisa watched her leave with pained hearts, knowing the true reason to why she left.
"Michelangelo, I would wish to speak with you in my quarters." the old rat said with a stern but obviously caring voice.
Meanwhile in the bathroom, Kate was holding on to the sink, shaking as tears fell.
"...no… no… Why?" she sobbed. "Why would he choose a human? Why? I thought… I thought that he was… But she… she stole him from me… stole his heart… That bitch… that fucking bitch… I'll… I'll kill her… I'm gonna fucking kill her!"
That's some heavy news right there, figures that Mikey wouldn't be able to keep that a secret for very long. Wonder what Splinter has to say.
And poor Kate, learning that the person she love, loves someone else. I would have been devastated too.
Let's see what happens next, next time.