A/N: I'm sorry, Raph.

CHAPTER 03: DINNER

Life at the Hamato fortress resembled a circus. Hugh had a hard time believing Splinter could sleep through Kaiya chattering on to Leonardo and the amused babies who watched the pets run around the joint like an old-style cartoon.

"How do you get anything done?" Hugh asked Donatello.

The purple-masked mutant reluctantly tore his attention away from the notebook he studied to glance at the detective across the living room. "Huh?"

"This place. How do you concentrate?"

"By tuning out. A skill I learned long ago."

"It ain't so bad, is it?" added Michelangelo. He sat beside his friend on the couch opposite of the one where Don laid and nudged the man with a padded elbow. "Otherwise, you'd turn down our dinner invitations."

"Maybe I should start."

"If you did that, Tobi would miss out on his dates."

Hugh felt his son wiggle as if to tell his father he disproved of the possibility. The man looked down with a smile when Tobias batted Selene's four-fingered hand, recalling how playful the two had always been since they first met.

"Shit like this makes me feel weird," Raphael spat. The red-masked mutant looked more surly since he lost his eye and even without an eye-patch, Nyx seemed just as displeased in his lap.

'Must be the genes.'

"What do ya mean, Raphy?"

"Dinners? Play dates?"

"Point?"

"House wifey people do this shit. We're men! We should be out there, not—" Raph stopped short when he caught Selene's stare. "N—no, no, no, don't—"

A light sniffle sounded then silent waterworks as Selene's orange-masked uncle tried to bounce her into a better mood. "Raph!"

"What? Ain't my fault the girl cries at everythin'!"

"You're her father! You should be one of the last people to make her cry!"

The sour ninja groaned then offered an arm to his mute daughter. Selene, however, leaned away, ignoring the comfort in favor of Tobi and Mikey. Hugh noticed Raph twitch with the faintest trace of hurt when he leaned back in his loveseat, though pride meant he wouldn't beg for attention.

"The only one 'a us wit'out a kid hangin' off our arms is Brainiac."

Don gave an exaggerated sigh from the second couch. When he lifted his notebook, which he never ceased reading, Hugh could see peeps of pale blonde hair and a little hand laid on the mutant's plastron.

"So that's where Meg disappeared to," Hugh said. "Good; I don't have to play Dingdong Ditch at Blaine's door to avoid explaining I only have half his kids."

"I got tired of urging her to play with her sister," Don explained. "Guess it's not that big a deal. She stalks me but sticks with observing. I kind'a like watching her face as she tries to figure out what I'm doing."

"Another genius in the works, perhaps?" Mikey teased.

Don shrugged, although Hugh had the distinct impression that the technician was keen on the possibility of a protégé.

"Dammit, Pez!"

Hugh turned to Leonardo when he heard squawks and grunts. He wasn't surprised to see Pez circling the mutant's feet nor the agitated parrot perched on the rim of his shell. However, he and Kaiya carried trays of popcorn when the detective never even knew they had left the room.

"Pez-kun, bad boy!" Nia chided. The piranha-monster tucked his thin tail, hooves clicking as he ran to the artist's side. She twisted while they walked to give him that 'I love you but knock it off' look then sent the group a bright smile. "Dessert's here."

"Desserts are usually sweet," Mikey noted.

"It was my turn to pick. If you don't want it, I can always give it to Pez."

"No!" The Jokester reached for the bowl Nia offered. "Come to Papa."

"Actually," added Don, "we haven't had popcorn in a while."

Nia nodded. "Not since before Coyo came."

"Ah," Mikey said with a Cheshire grin. "You wanted to see Coyo's face while it popped, huh?"

The brunette's smile widened. "She was like a little curious cat. It was so cute!"

"How is Coyo?" Hugh asked. He watched Raph take a bowel from Kai and play keep-away with his grabby daughter. "It wasn't brought up at dinner much."

"I think that's because we live with constant updates," Mikey answered. "Sorry."

"Leo!" Coyo screamed from the kitchen. The blue-masked ninja set down his tray of milk cups on one of the two coffee tables then sighed before heeding the call with Yo fixated on his shoulder and Kai fixated on his heels.

"Must've dropped something again," Nia said.

"That happen often?" Hugh asked her.

"Yeah, she can't reach her feet; she's eighteen weeks along and already looks like I did just before the twins were born."

"Which could mean many things," a dull voice added. Melody's robotic figure sent a jolt through the detective, even though he should've been deadened; she materialized from thin air almost as often as the ninjas.

"What do you mean, Mel-neechan?" Nia took a leather seat beside her husband, Pez curling between her waist and the armrest. "The babies will stay small, right?" she continued. "Like mine?"

"Fetuses experience a massive growth in the last trimester of a pregnancy. Coyo could have anywhere from three to five months left. Our only other basis for a hybrid pregnancy is yours, yet that does not mean that will set the average for any others. Gavin and I are prepping plans for a C-Section, should it come to that. Though Coyo insists on giving birth naturally."

Hugh quirked a brow at Melody's odd expression. "What's wrong with that?"

"Complications aside? She wants them delivered in the river."

"Like, submerged?"

"She claims it is how women in her tribe give birth."

"The kids won't...drown?"

Don snort-laughed. "Babies spend months not breathing as we do. It doesn't become an instinct for them until their air passages are cleared and they begin crying."

"My concern is the river's temperature," added Melody. "She is expected to give birth anytime from October to December."

"Why not just build an indoor pool?" Hugh jested. But he was the only one who chuckled. "You guys already considered that?"

Don looked up from his notebook with relaxed features. "We have a few things on our improvements list. We have some leftover leeway with Baker and with three other kids on the way, we need to start planning a better underground network."

"Like your old place?"

The genius nodded. "We can't build up. Nor do we want to. Mine and Mel's bedroom is already down by the Lab, but everyone else is above ground. I've been fortifying the place with disguised security measures. Still..."

"I like being up top," Mikey added, munching on popcorn.

"I don't," Raph grumbled. He noticed Nia's frown then amended, "but I wouldn't leave Ni 'n the girls alone."

"We'll see what happens," Don continued. "We can't change the fact that we don't have near as many bedrooms as we'll need, especially if we have more kids later on."

"More?" Raph gave a laugh that sounded forced as Leonardo returned, Coyo-less, Kaiya-less, and parrot-less.

"There you are," Mikey said. "We were about to send a search party."

The blue-masked ninja looked sick. "I was getting Coyo situated in bed. Kai's helping."

"Was she done with us?"

"Not feeling good. And when she doesn't sleep, I don't sleep."

"Just think," the jokester lit up with mirth, "this is before ya got three infants crying at once."

"They won't be the only ones crying," Leo mumbled. He fell into a seat, arms falling over the sides and legs scraping backward with his sudden weight. "I'm never having sex again."

Raph tossed several pieces of popcorn at the exhausted leader. "Ya won't last, Bro. Trust me. Just gotta take things carefully. Eh, Ni?

Nia ducked her head as she stuffed her mouth with food.

"Ni?"

"Well..."

"Oh, no." The hothead waved his free hand so wildly, Nyx complained. "No, no, no, no, no. No! You're on birth control!"

"Helps if you remember to take it," Melody added behind Donny's couch.

"I remember!" Nia cried. "Mostly. I just...doubted if I took it or not a few times. Didn't want to overdose."

The cyborg nodded. "A founded concern."

"Are ya kiddin' me?"

"No," Melody told Raph. "In high doses, birth control can cause nausea, vomiting, cramps, headaches, and bleeding. It also increases the risk of Ectopic pregnancies."

"What?"

"Fetuses outside the uterus."

"No, not that!" Nyx whined more at her father's booming voice. "I mean, is she really—already? But we just—wait. Does this mean we're havin' anoddah set 'a twins?"

"Unlikely."

"Turtle Luck don't give a shit about statistics, Gray. Is she havin'—"

"It is a single child."

"Oh, thank God." Raph sunk into his loveseat a lot like Leonardo had done, sounding both relieved and dismayed. He wanted to cry, Hugh remembered that feeling well, although Nia's sniffles sobered him up in a heartbeat. "Ni." Too late; by the time Raph lifted his head, Nia had slammed her popcorn bowl on the coffee table then stormed upstairs. "Shit."

"Someone's in trouble," Mikey sang.

The hothead sent him a death glare that only earned a laugh. Silent, he scooped up Selene from Michelangelo, no matter how much Tobias protested, and stalked after his hurt wife.

"Bet you a taco he's gunna beg forgiveness," Mikey whispered at Hugh.

The detective snorted. "That's a fool's bet. And if anyone deserves tacos, it's me."

"You always say that."

"Do not."

"I'm sure you dream of tacos."

"Not really."

"What's your favorite holiday?"

"Cinco de Mayo."

"'Cuz the tacos, right?"

"I don't know what you're talking about."

"You're a taco freak."

"Leave me to my vices, whatever they may be; you have pizza."

The jokester shook his head. "Aw, man. this is crazy, innit? Nia getting pregnant again so soon? He or she will have the same birth year as the twins, even though they aren't triplets. Who'd a thought?"

Silence.

"Oh, come on! Who knew?"

"I performed the pregnancy test," Melody said.

"I reconfirmed it," added Don.

Mike faced Leo, who rubbed his nose bridge, saying, "I overheard her talking with Coyo."

"Am I the only one besides Raphy who didn't know beforehand?"

"Hey, I'm in your boat," Hugh defended.

"You don't count."

"Um, ouch."

"You don't live here, Dude. Like, Mamas A and M don't know either, right? Or Gavin?" Mikey waited for the group to shake their heads before continuing, "And Splinter's asleep, so that leaves...Hoshi?"

"Sophia may have found the test results and not cared," Melody replied. "It was hard to tell what she was doing with the paper scraps by that infernal Hover Board."

Don's eyes found his wife. "What was she doing with my Hover Board?"

The cyborg shrugged.

"Figo!" Everyone in the living room jumped at the shrill voice over the intercom system, and Sophia neither waited for Mikey to reply nor calmed herself before she added, "Where the fuck is Cuddles' food?"

The orange-mask mutant jumped to his feet with a clap. "Duty calls."

"Wolf-wolf," Hugh teased.

"Says the man often used as a kids' chauffeur."

"Touché." The detective shared a final laugh with the jokester before the snapping of a closed notebook brought his attention to Donatello.

"I'm going to check my Hover Board," he said.

"Wait, Don, I'll come too." Hugh handed Tobi off to Leo without much thought. The ninja needed practice anyway, right? Besides, they passed Kaiya on the way to the kitchen; she'd help keep the boy entertained.

"I take it there's something you wanna ask," Don told the detective when he caught up.

Hugh grunted, following the genius down the bookcase's hidden staircase. "You got any hits?"

"A partial match. My program needs more refinement; it's limited to scanning Manhattan, but..." The mutant turned at the bottom landing then headed for the Lab. " Keeping this under wraps has been tricky."

"We both agreed not telling them was best."

"Not telling any of us would've been best."

"But you'd find out anyway from the Times' Blotters you like to read. Besides, I don't know any other...technologically liberated people."

"You sure you're a cop?"

"You offend me, Sir."

"This shouldn't be easy for you to talk about."

"Has my wife said something?"

"Really, Hugh."

"She has!"

"You know I'm a hacker. A hacker with good intentions, but a hacker."

"Hacker?" Hugh glanced around the brick-hall while shrugging. "I don't know of any hackers. All I see is a technologically liberated helper."

"There's no winning with you, is there?"

"Nope."

Don sighed as he entered his Lab. "While Miriam can dye her hair and change her name, she can't fake facial structure. Not easily anyhow. I caught her on surveillance in Hell's Kitchen."

"What was she doing there?"

"See for yourself."

At one of five monitors set up on Donatello's control station, he brought up a video with a few keyboard shortcuts. The image was grainy and gray, but the genius cleaned it up with two keys to reveal Miriam chatting with a young teen before they both disappeared into a back alley beside a rundown Chinese restaurant.

"What's that all about?"

"No idea. This is the only angle and Miriam's face isn't picked up at any other place. If you wanna know more, bring this kid in for questioning."

"Uh, the whole issue has been the fact that I can't track someone."

"Like I wouldn't do a follow-up for you. I already found him at Baker's Hotel. Mel knows him."

"Really?"

"His name is Zeke. He's a local tagger around Harlem."

"What's a tagger and Miriam got in common?"

"That's the next step."

"Alright." Hugh stepped back with a sigh. "Thanks for the help."

The mutant straightened to look the detective in the eyes. "I could do more, you know? It might speed things up."

"I'd rather you not be involved any more than you already have been."

"Dude, I get that the Summers are—"

"I'm just not eager to aggravate old wounds and risk pushing Miriam past the stage of no return. Okay? Seeing one another would be bad for both parties, you can't deny that."

Don glanced down.

"Trust I can do my job. Please."

"Alright, alright. At least let me poke through Manhattan Medical Center records."

"Don."

"I mean for you. It'll be much easier to talk Miriam down if you know what she's been through and talked about over the months. Right?"

"Look at you, turning into a regular profiler."

Don snorted then turned back to the looping footage. "It's amazing how much impact our families have had on each other. And we've only met them once."

"Any meeting can leave a lasting effect, good or bad."

"A shame it's been all about the bad for Miriam."

"I'm trying to fix that."

"I know you'll try. But...this may not be fixable."