Chapter 8: A Sloppy Lesson

A/N: Hey, I know it's been a little while, but I've had sinus trouble and didn't really feel like typing anything up. I do have a bit of a headache now, but I wanted to get this up anyway since I've left you guys in a lurch. Thanks to all who have read and reviewed thus far. It means a lot to me. And, Historia, thanks to you as well. Here's your update.

Disclaimer: TMNT and all related characters are property of Nickelodeon. I own the plot and any other characters you may not recognize.

"You know, Spike, a lot of crazy stuff's been happenin' to me lately," Raph told his pet turtle. "April's been missin' for three years, and all of a sudden, I get a text from someone named A. I don't know if it's really her or not, but if it's not, someone's gonna pay. But who else besides my brothers and April knows about you, Spike?"

Spike looked up at Raph and then chomped on his leaf.

"Yeah, I thought about that, too," Raph agreed. "Maybe whoever killed her has access to her diary or something like that. Wait, did she even keep a diary? I don't remember seeing one. Then again, she could have kept it hidden from us so we wouldn't peek. That seems like something she'd do." He tried to imagine April writing in a diary. She would have to make sure that it was hidden so no one would find it. What if she had it on her the day that she disappeared? What if her killer had it and was using it to play with the Turtles?

But the thing that hurt Raph the most was that he couldn't do anything about it. He was helpless, and Raph hated being helpless. He just wished there was something he could do about all of this.

"Raphael, may I speak with you?" Splinter asked.

Raph jumped. He hadn't even heard his father stop by, and sometimes that bothered him. "Sure, Sensei," he answered and followed his father to Splinter's room. Once inside, he sat across from Splinter, wondering what his father wanted to know.

"I noticed you were not focused during practice," Splinter began. "Does it have anything to do with what you did with Miss Monroe?" Something in his tone alerted Raph to the fact that Splinter already knew what was going on and that he wanted confirmation that it had taken place.

"Look, it was no big deal," Raph said. "We were just havin' a good time. I didn't have that many beers anyway."

"Yes, but what if you had been attacked on your way home? In your inebriated state you would not have been able to fight. I have stressed to you the importance of being aware of your surroundings at all times. However, this is harder to do if you have consumed too much alcohol."

"Sensei, I only had three beers!" Raph protested.

Splinter leveled him with a stern look. "It does not matter if you had even one drink," he replied. "What matters is that you were impaired and showed poor judgment."

"Oh, come on, Sensei, you can't tell me you never did that, too," Raph insisted. "You probably had a few beers with Shredder once or twice."

"Enough!" Splinter shouted. His eyes were full of anger, and Raph knew he'd crossed the line. "You are grounded for a month except for when you go on patrol with your brothers. Is that understood?"

"Hai, Sensei," Raph replied softly.

Raph bowed to his father and left, feeling worse than before. He hadn't meant to mention Shredder's name like that, but it had slipped out before he could take it back. Furious with himself, Raph thought about working out his frustrations in the dojo and found Leo there right after he left Splinter's room.

"Hey, Raph, you wanna spar?" Leo asked him.

"No thanks," Raph answered. "Don't you have somewhere else you need to be?"

"Yeah, but I still have some time," replied Leo. "I'm going to Madison's in an hour. There's a Space Heroes marathon we both want to watch. I figure it would make up for not being able to see her when I was sick."

Raph chuckled. "Seriously, I wonder what'll happen when that show ends," he mused. "You'll probably go crazy."

"Well, that's not happening any time soon," answered Leo. He clapped Raph on the shoulder. "See you later, bro."

"Have fun, Leo, but don't do anything I wouldn't do."

"That won't be hard," teased Leo.

Raph rolled his green eyes as he watched his brother leave. Then he pulled out his sais and practiced his katas. As he did, he imagined confronting the one who'd made April disappear. It would be so satisfying if he could find that person and make them pay. The thought fueled him to work harder than ever before, and he made a vow that if he ever found out who had taken his friend, he would make sure they didn't live.

When he was done, he took a towel to wipe the sweat from his forehead and took a drink of water. He was thinking about taking a shower when his T-Phone went off. Thinking it was Lucindra, he pulled his phone out and saw that he had another text message. He opened it, and his eyes widened.

Hey, Raph, it sucks to be you right now. I wonder what Splinter would say if he saw this picture?—A.

Raph opened the attachment and gasped. It was a picture of him and Lucindra in her apartment drinking beer and laughing. How had A gotten this picture? Had someone been spying on them? One thing was for sure, this picture couldn't be shown to Splinter. If he found out, he would be furious. But what if A was planning to reveal the picture to Splinter anyway?

He concluded that if it did happen, there was nothing he could do about it. But he did know that A couldn't be April because she would never do this to him. But what if she'd changed since her disappearance? What if she was different and was willing to blackmail them? No, that couldn't be true. It had to be the person who had taken April, and that thought made him angry. He made a decision that the games were going to end soon.

A/N: A pretty short chapter though I thought it would be longer. So, what did you think? Looks like things aren't ending soon. Feel free to leave a review, and have a shelltastic day.