Three days had passed since Christmas, and along with the coming new year, the family had yet another occasion to look forward to, which would be kicking off that very evening. The last batch of holiday visitors was due to arrive, and they'd definitely been forced to travel the furthest.
Donatello had rarely seen Greg look as antsy as the man currently did. He had tried to get his friend to sit down, but the man was too anxious to stay still.
"It's been months since I saw her, Donny. What if it isn't the same? What if Sayuri feels differently now? We were in a stressful situation in Okinawa, and that can make people do and say things that they wouldn't otherwise," Greg worried out loud.
Donatello tried hard to repress a smile for the sake of his flummoxed friend as the man rambled on.
"I should have gone to the airport. Why didn't I meet them down there?"
"Because then you'd probably be sitting at some lounge bar, telling a perfect stranger all of this." Donatello grinned.
"I'm not going to go off drinking just because I'm nervous," Greg said heatedly.
"Donny didn't mean it that way, Heff, now chill," Raphael ordered. "They weren't even supposed to be here tonight. How is it your fault that they caught an earlier connecting flight? I'm sure Sayuri can handle driving up here."
"That's not the point, Raph," Greg complained. "I mean, how does this make me look? She shouldn't be finding her own way up the mountain in a country that's foreign to her."
Donatello forced a serious look. "Heff, I honestly understand how you feel," he reminded him. "The first few years Jen and I were together, we were separated a lot. She was here for school, but she was also living in Australia as the daughter of United States Diplomats. Jenna traveled with them to different regions of the country, and met so many people.
"There were plenty of opportunities for her to fall for someone else, and I thought she would eventually. I tried to push her away several times, hoping that she could have a normal life, but Jen wouldn't give up on me. I know you're worried that Sayuri won't feel the same way about you, but she's coming here, isn't she? Sayuri flew all the way to the States, and she didn't have to. If she just wanted to break up with you, she could have done it over an e-mail, or in one of your Skype chats. You have still been talking, haven't you?"
Greg dragged his fingers through his sandy blond hair self-consciously. "I should have had Karina cut my hair," he muttered.
"Would you listen to yourself?" Raphael interjected. "Stop freaking out. Everything's going to be fine. You've been dying to see her; you ought to be excited right now."
"I am excited, Raph. I wanted to see her before this, but it's been a hectic year of work for the both of us, and there was the kids getting settled in on her side," Greg said wistfully.
Donatello was almost as eager for Sayuri to arrive as Greg was, for the chance to see Hisui and Shunshi for the first time since they'd left them behind on Iriomote. Despite the brevity of their relationship, the younger boy, Shunshi, had latched onto the turtle fiercely.
I owe that kid a lot, Donatello mused. He and his friend are the ones who found me on that beach. I could have died out there all alone if he hadn't talked Hisui into helping me. Instead I made a couple more unlikely friends. He and Hisui have been through such a rough year themselves. I hope they adjusted well to living with Sayuri. Shunshi still talks about wanting to move to New York, but he hasn't been saying that as frequently. Hopefully that means he's doing better. I think he's finally learning to trust Sayuri, which seems like a real feat.
The Japanese brother and sister had been paired with Sayuri earlier that year, without any of them having prior knowledge of her, except for the woman's connection with Donatello. In a moment of desperation after a dangerous attack was mounted against the two children, Donny had turned to Sayuri to help keep them safe.
It made sense to ask her. From her position with the Prefectural Police, she knew enough to be able to watch over them, and give them an edge over their version of Social Services. I never expected what came next.
After their troubled mother responded violently to Hisui and Shunshi's attacker, she'd been arrested and subsequently charged with the man's murder.
I never imagined Sayuri would go to the length that she did, taking them into her own home to prevent them from being separated. I still can't figure out how she got their mother to sign her rights away.
Donatello broke away from the thought regretfully as he pictured Hisui's green eyes in his mind. Even today, he wanted to hit someone when he considered the hellish experiences that she and her brother had endured at the hands of their mother's various boyfriends. It was nothing to Hisui to offer herself up time and time again, just to keep her younger brother untouched for the most part.
The girl was technically much closer to being a woman than a child, which meant that she wouldn't have been forced to live under Social Services for long. What she couldn't do was find legal means to take Shunshi with her, being only sixteen at the time.
Finding a way to keep them protected and together was the only task for which Donatello had requested Sayuri's help, and he'd been shocked by her rapid response. It was still amazing to him that the wounded semi-obsessive woman had taken the children in on a second's notice. Yet after months of communication, he'd come to realize that the relationships with Hisui and Shunshi were dearly needed on Sayuri's part, as much as the children needed a place to go.
Greg had originally been planning a visit to Okinawa around Thanksgiving, before everything had gone to pieces in their lives. When the trip had been postponed, Sayuri made her own plans to come to the United States and visit everyone in North Carolina.
Donatello glanced at Greg and saw the man staring longingly out the window. The poor guy. I really do know how he feels. But at the same time, Jen and I had more time together at the front end of our relationship than he and Sayuri did. I don't blame him for being nervous. I used to have to run laps in the sewer when I was waiting around for Jenna to arrive in the old days.
Donatello turned his head as Michelangelo ambled into the room, and he studied his younger brother judiciously. He was encouraged by what he'd seen of Mike's physical condition in the last few days.
If how Mike looks is any proof, I would have to say that Caleb's theory about the Wnt pathway is correct. Now I just have to get him to use the inhibitor on me, to find out what happens with the mutated cells before the condition is acute.
Donatello was eager to jump into the next phase of experimentation, but Caleb was taking it more slowly, still examining Mikey's case.
"So they're not here yet?" The orange-masked turtle grinned in Greg's direction.
"Would I be staring out the window like some kind of stalker if they'd already arrived?" Greg answered.
Mike chuckled softly as he settled onto the couch beside Donatello. "Somebody's nervous. Did you tell Heff he should take a jog, Don?" He dug an elbow into Donatello's side.
"No, and I probably should have," Don said ruefully.
Greg sighed from the window. "I ought to just leave, because I swear the minute I step away, they're going to be here."
"That's usually how it works." Raphael snickered. "Seriously, man, could you try and relax? She won't get here any faster because you're looking for her."
Greg didn't look at the red-masked turtle, and his shoulders suddenly stiffened. "I think I saw headlights," he announced.
Don got to his feet to join him, and saw the same flash of light incoming through the darkened tree line. He tugged on Greg's arm to direct him toward the door, but the man was fussing with the collar of his shirt.
"I wonder if I should have changed," Greg fretted.
"Heff, you look fine. Don't go thinking about changing now that they're this close," Don urged him.
Donatello felt a jump in his heart rate as the rental car pulled up beside the van that they'd continued using since coming to North Carolina. Michelangelo came up to grip Greg by his left arm, while the purple-masked turtle had him captured on the right. They herded the man out onto the porch, and heard car doors already opening.
Donatello bounded down the stairs to meet the small body that was flying toward the house. He hugged the ten-year-old Shunshi fiercely, and felt the boy tremble in his grasp.
"You are still real," Shunshi proclaimed, making Donatello laugh.
"I will be every time you see me," Don told him, and he opened an arm to welcome Hisui. Her black hair had grown out a little since he'd last seen her, now reaching past her chin. She was unchanged otherwise, with the exception of the joy reflected in her eyes at seeing him.
"It is good to see you," she said carefully in English, not even hesitating on pronunciation. "I am learning to speak English, and Shunshi is too. Sayuri has been helping us."
"Hey, that's great." Donatello embraced the teenager fondly. "I will try to use English a little here and there with you guys."
Shunshi nodded solemnly, with an expression that seemed far too serious for a little boy.
He's not a normal little boy, Donny told himself. With one hand on each of their backs, Donatello guided them into the house ahead of him. He glanced over his shoulder before walking inside, and saw the Asian woman and Greg hovering near the cars. Don could read the awkwardness in each of their poses as they exchanged words he couldn't hear.
For an instant, he was struck with concern by their subdued greeting. Maybe she only came on behalf of Shunshi and Hisui. They've told me how much they wanted to visit America, and Sayuri may have been trying to make them happy.
His concern abated somewhat when he saw the pair embrace, in a fashion that seemed a little more than "friendly." Donny smiled secretively and hurried into the house before they could see him watching. When he entered the Great Room, the two kids were still standing in awe of the space, and had yet to move two feet away from the door.
Donatello laughed. "It does leave an impression," he said to them.
Hisui nodded slowly. "It is one of the most beautiful things I have ever seen."
"You'll have to tell Luke that," Donatello replied. He was puzzled to find Mike out of sight, and Raphael must have noticed his confusion.
"The Chucklehead went to round everyone up," Raphael offered as he worked his way to his feet with the crutches. "Hey, guys. Nice to see you again," he directed at Hisui and Shunshi.
"You remember my brother, Raphael," Don told them.
Their smiles seemed genuine, if a little nervous. The kids had only met his older brother briefly on Iriomote, but the red-masked turtle was hard to forget. As the rest of the family filtered into the room, Don offered the pair a reassuring smile when they appeared a bit overwhelmed. He was quick to call Leonardo when he saw his oldest brother.
"Leo, c'mere. It's about time all of you were introduced properly."
Leonardo approached Hisui and Shunshi, smiling broadly. "I have heard much about the two of you," he said. "It is an honor to finally meet in person."
"We are honored," Hisui said timidly in English.
"Thank you for saving my brother," Leonardo said to her, and glanced at Shunshi questioningly. "Thank you."
"I am glad to know they were able to save you," Hisui went on. "It was a very sad thing to me when Donatello-san told me of the danger."
The blue-masked turtle nodded. "They took some huge risks, and we all lived to tell about it. We can have a Happy New Year on that note alone."
Shunshi was looking at Leonardo more boldly now. "Donatello says that all of you are fighters."
"When we need to be, yes," Leonardo answered.
"That is what I want to do," the boy said importantly. "I have had three years of karate."
Leonardo took pains to look appropriately impressed. "You should work out with us at some point while you are here. Don and I would love to see what you can do."
Shunshi flushed with pride, as if Leonardo had just bestowed him with a black belt. "I cannot wait."
Donatello ruffled the boy's shaggy dark hair from behind. "Then we will not keep you waiting long. Come morning you can join us for our regular routine, okay?"
Shunshi nodded eagerly, but Don's eyes went straight to Hisui as he heard her gasp. He beamed when he saw how taken the teenage girl was with Olivia.
"She is beautiful, Raphael-san," Hisui told the red-masked turtle.
"Isn't she?" Raphael grinned. "You can have a closer look at her if you want."
Hisui took a couple more steps, stretching a hand out toward the baby turtle. Olivia stared at the newcomer for a long moment before deciding Hisui wasn't a killer beast, and she grabbed the teenager's outstretched fingers.
"She is so strong!" Hisui exclaimed.
"Yep, she's my kid after all," Raph said proudly. "Her name is Olivia, and this is my wife, Karina."
The Asian girl nodded. "I am pleased to meet you, Karina. You have a very pretty baby."
Karina smiled. "Thank you. Welcome to the United States. I'm glad you got here safely." The woman looked at Raphael uncertainly, probably wondering how much Hisui understood.
"It was good, little faster than we expect." Hisui noticeably searched for words that time. "I am still learning this, but I will do my best."
Donatello patted her shoulder encouragingly. "You are doing great, Hisui, and you look good too. Everything is going okay at home?"
"Better than ever, Donatello-san. I had forgotten what it felt like to live without fear. It has been an adjustment for all of us, but even Shunshi…" Hisui trailed off as she watched the young boy talking to Leonardo at a mile a minute. "I am trying to relegate myself to just being his sister and not his mother. It has been a long road this year…but we are in a good place. We are also very grateful to see you again."
"I told you I would not forget you, Hisui…and I never will," Don said firmly.