"You know you have to actually make contact to earn points, right? You don't get points handed to you just for being a special snowflake from another dimension."

Machi's face gave no reaction as she finished bowing to her opponent. She knew he was going to have to try harder than that if he was trying to agitate her before their spar. Thanks to Akito, as well as a few bunnies who thought of themselves as additional older brothers, she was well-versed in the art of competitive teasing.

"I'm touched that you think I'm a special snowflake," she said in her sweetest voice. She smiled back at him with her most innocent expression.

His own eyes narrowed slightly as he studied her face and tried to judge if she was teasing him. "I just don't want to hear any crying when we're finished."

Machi straightened fully and switched to a smirk as she spun her sais expertly in both palms. "Back at ya."

"What the hell is he sayin to her?" Raphael muttered in Leo's direction.

Leo shook his head. "They're both barely moving their lips."

"He's not supposed to talk to her beforehand," Akito added in a near growl.

The two stood on either side of him and Leo's eyes shifted one way and then the other to take in their matching glares.

"Machi seems fine," Leo said, doing his best to soothe them both. The spar hadn't even begun yet and they were both riled. Although Machi and her opponent were clearly talking to each other, Leo remained calm since he could tell by his daughter's expression that she was letting whatever the other said roll off her shoulders. He'd had a few discussions with her prior to this competition, as she had been moved up to the next-more-competitive-age group, because he had been slightly worried about the aggressiveness of the others she would face.

"Yeah," Raphael said. He took in Leo's easy stance and let his mate's words sink in as he pushed his shoulders back as he crossed his arms over his plastron. "She can handle the little punk."

"He's probably just trying to intimidate her with smack talk," Leo said.

Raphael snorted. "Did you just say smack talk?"

Leo turned Akito. "What's the current lingo? What am I supposed to call it now?"

Raphael snorted again at the word lingo while Akito's shoulders shook from the laugh he was trying to contain so as to not disrespect his father.

"I think smack talk is fine, dad," Akito managed, although his voice was a higher pitch than normal. "Perfectly acceptable." His eyes drifted to his pop's eyes, which was a mistake because they both released loud chuckles as soon as they made eye contact.

"So glad I could get you two to lighten up," Leo said, dryly. He lifted his eyes from where they stood on the sidelines up to the stands where the rest of their family all sat together, relaxed and happily chatting with each other. Shadow's red hair stood out among the crowd and he knew Machi was excited that Shadow was able to come watch her compete this time. Red fur of their newest fox family members stood out as well and Leo exchanged a quick nod of greeting with Machi and Akito's fox uncles, who had traveled to this dimension to watch the events they were involved in over the next few days as well.

They weren't back in this dimension for a mission, nor were they currently in any danger. They were here for Akito and Machi, as well as the bunnies. Still, for the first time ever, Leo had to be talked into this dimension jump. Leo knew Akito and Machi had desperately wanted to make the trip, which is probably why Raphael, of all clan members, had eventually talked him into it.

He took in a deep breath where he stood and felt Raphael's hand land on his shoulder in a comforting, protective squeeze before his eyes quickly shifted back to Machi as her spar began. She practically danced around her opponent, which Leo always found amusing when he watched her in their own dojo, but especially in this setting since her weapon required close contact in order to earn points. But she did earn points, and she earned them fast.

Her opponent, a fox as well, did finally manage to get one of his nunchucks twisted around one of Machi's sais. He looked slightly triumphant until he caught Machi's smirk and then narrowed his eyes in confusion. She responded by twisting her wrist before yanking her hand down, not only freeing her weapon but also tossing his to the floor.

Leo kept his face neutral and let Raphael, who got to be just her father and not a combination of father and sensei, cheer next to him as Machi quickly defeated the fox she had been paired against.

Machi bowed again at the end of the spar, but looked up at her opponent when she heard him clear his throat to get her attention.

"What's your name?" he asked, still mid-bow himself.

Half her mouth moved up in a smirk. "They announced it before we began," she said in a low voice before straightening herself fully. She turned on her heel and moved quickly back to where her fathers and brother stood.

"He's just a friend," Machi said, doing her best not to smile.

"I don't care who he is. Yer not goin to a dance with a boy."

"I'm going with a group," Machi said. "And not just any group, but my team, which includes my older brother."

"You're only fourteen years old."

"I patrol our city all the time!"

"That's different. Yer not datin,"

"It's a group. Not a date."

"So why'd you say ya were goin with Midori?"

"I didn't say I was going with Midori," she said, waving her hand towards the rabbit who stood next to her. "He's just the one who bought me a ticket so I can go with them."

Midori did his best not to fidget where he stood. He had stopped by the hotel where the Hamatos were staying just to drop off Machi's ticket. Now, however, he was quickly trying to determine how to get away from the angry Raphael without being noticed.

"So he asked ya on a date?" Raph turned his glare towards Midori who quickly took a step backwards.

"Can I just point out that you've known Midori longer than you've known me?"

"That ain't true," Raph said, crossing his arms over his plastron as he turned his attention back to Machi. "We couldn't tell any of them apart for years."

Machi crossed her own arms and raised her eyebrow back at him as Leo tried to hide a grin from where he sat watching in silence.

"Total group event," Midori added, raising his hands in the air. "We just wanted the whole team together to celebrate."

Raphael glared over at Midori again who wisely took another step back which landed him out of Raph and Leo's temporary bedroom and into the hotel suite's main room.

"He's much older than you."

"I'm not going with just him."

"Boys that age only want one thing, Mach."

Machi turned on her best innocent expression. "And what's that, papa?"

Raphael narrowed his eyes at her falsely innocent face and then turned abruptly when he heard Leo snort from his seat behind him. "Yer not helpin."

"I'm not trying to help," Leo teased, settling his shell further back in the bedroom's armchair. Watching protective papa Raph had quickly become one of his favorite hobbies since Machi had become a teenager. Leo was protective as well, but Raphael did such a good job at it that it allowed Leo the chance to sit back and admire Raphael in the lead position.

Leo caught Machi's eyes and tilted his head towards the bedroom's exit. She quickly took the hint and pulled the door shut behind her as she escaped into the main room while Raph's back was turned.

Raphael continued to glare at Leo as he heard Machi leave. "How long have you known she was going to the dance?"

Leo smiled as he stood and moved in close to Raphael. "We're going as well," he murmured. "I volunteered us as chaperones. So don't ruin this for me."

Raph watched Leo's eyes roam provocatively over him and almost missed what Leo had just said.

"Huh? Ruin what?"

"I want to go to the dance," Leo said, his tone still low. He let his fingers trail down one of Raphael's arms. "There's going to be this really hot turtle there and I'm hoping to dance with him."

Raph narrowed his eyes at Leo. "I ain't-,"

"And then after the dance," Leo continued in a voice Raphael thought was much huskier than it had been a moment before, "I'm gonna nail him on that bed over there."

Raphael swallowed hard as he watched Leo's slightly unfocused eyes move to eye the bed.

"Well -," Leo said before pausing deliberately to refocus on Raphael's face, "- maybe over the side of that bed."

A churr rolled up Raphael's throat so quickly he could only be grateful that no one else was in the room with them.

Leo's face lit up in a broad smile before he suddenly asked Raph if he was ready for dinner.

"Huh?" Raph blinked, trying to understand Leo's question about eating, as if he hadn't just been torturing Raphael with dirty images of what he was going to do to him later that night.

Leo's grin grew wider. "The kids all want to eat an early dinner so we're not late to the dance. You ready to go?"

Raphael stared at him harder. "Yer teasin me," he said in his own low rumble.

Leo stepped in even closer to him and Raph immediately heard the husky tone of voice again when Leo opened his mouth.

"No I'm not. A tease is someone who says they're going to do something and then doesn't follow through. And trust me," he said, letting his eyes wander over Raphael again. "I am going to follow through."

"Fuck," Raph whispered, suddenly exasperated that he had to leave the very room he desperately wanted to remain in.

Leo's eyes lit up. "Yes. Exactly."

Raphael growled and pushed on Leo's shoulder, directly him out to the main room where the others were waiting.

Machi admired the room from where she stood at the dance. Her very first dance ever. A high school dance. And while the decorations were mainly streamers, balloons and strings of small white lights, she didn't think they could have been any prettier.

She smiled as she watched Akito dance with Violet out on the dance floor while their fathers stood off on the opposite side of the room. The fact that they had come along as chaperones hadn't surprised either her or Akito. Although she did notice that they spent more time staring at each other than watching over the teenagers in the room.

"Get over here, Machi!" Violet's sister called out from her group of friends.

Machi laughed and shook her head at them before she moved across the room towards the punch bowl. She was surprised when a red fox suddenly stepped in her path.

"Dance with me, Machi."

Machi stopped in her tracks, actually shocked to see the fox from her earlier competition spar standing in front of her.

"I learned your name," he said with a smile and shrug.

"Well I am a special snowflake. It's the least you could do," she deadpanned.

He huffed out a small laugh but then tilted his head at her. "I'm sorry I called you that. Come dance with me." He watched as she only frowned at him. "Didja come with a date?"

Machi glanced over to where Akito and their friends were grouped. Akito's eyes were now zeroed in on her and the fox in front of her. She looked away from him quickly, and didn't dare look over to where their fathers stood, lest they all thought she was silently requesting help.

"I came with friends. And family," she moved to step around him but he quickly side-stepped and blocked her.

"Look, I know you probably think I'm a jerk-,"

"No," Machi said with a head shake.

"No?" he asked with a raised eyebrow, not quite trusting the look on her face.

"No," Machi repeated, "I don't think about you at all." She watched as his eyes sparked at her and suddenly felt warmer than she'd been a moment before.

Half his mouth quirked up in a grin as he recognized her tease. "We should fix that," he murmured. "Please dance with me."

A slow song began playing and Machi offered up a half shrug. It was enough for the other fox who quickly took her hand and led her out on the dance floor.

"So you go to school here?" she asked, doing her best to ignore the feeling of his hands on her waist.

He nodded back at her.

"Do you know Violet and her siblings?" she asked, nodding her head towards where the bunnies were.

"Yes. They're a grade above me, though. But I know that Violet has always talked about her fox boyfriend from another dimension." He grinned down at the pretty little fox. "To be honest, I'm pretty sure a few people at our school were convinced your brother didn't really exist."

He paused and she caught him grinning over at her brother and Violet before looking back to her.

"You know, historically, rabbits and foxes are not supposed to be friends," he said with a grin.

"Well, Akito and I weren't raised by foxes. So I guess we didn't get the memo."

"Right," he said, tilting his head at her with a thoughtful expression. He glanced across the room where he saw the two turtles who had been on the sidelines of their earlier spar. "Were your raised by those two?"

Machi looked as well and found that her fathers had moved away from the wall and were now slow dancing with each other. She released a sigh of embarrassment. She may be completely used to the expressions her dads consistently shared with each other, but she found herself forcing the other fox to move so that he could no longer see the dancing turtles.

He laughed as he recognized what she was doing. "So that's a yes then?"

She nodded.

"Alright, new topic. How long have you been training?"

She scrunched up her face a little as she thought about it. "About ten years I think? I don't really have any memories from before I began training to be honest. And with the exception of one aunt and one uncle who both married into the family, its just something my entire family does." She thought about that for a moment. Because if she and Akito had been raised by any members of their biological family, they still would've been trained to fight, although perhaps for very different purposes.

"And did I hear right that you and the others actually go on patrols in the city you live in? You take out criminals?"

Her attention snapped back to the other fox. "Well we don't take them out-,"

"But you go up against real criminals?"

She took in his wide eyes and could feel actual worry coming off of him. She sensed this wasn't the time to tell him about her special abilities, which were really the only reason her dad let her go on patrols at her age. But she had to admit, the sincerity of his concern was touching. She liked it.

"What's your name?" she asked.

Her conversation switch had him forgetting the visual he had of her in danger and he quickly mock scowled at her. "They announced it before our spar," he teased.

"Well I didn't care before the spar."

"And you care now?"

She rolled her eyes at him and he laughed outright as the song ended.

"It's Hiro."

"Well, our dance is over, Hiro," she said, dropping her hands from his shoulders.

"Wait, how long are you here?"

"We go home tomorrow night after the ceremony."

"Are you coming back any time soon?" He watched her shake her head before he glanced over at her brother. The taller fox was still keeping his eyes on the two of them, a fact that hadn't gone unnoticed during his dance with Machi.

"Well, Violet and your brother had to have had a way to keep in touch right?"

Machi tilted her head at him and grinned. She made him wait a moment before she nodded at him.

He sighed at her. "Well?"

"One of my uncles built a phone that could contact phones in this dimension."

"So, if I give you my phone number, you could call me?"

"Well I could."

Hiro frowned at her but grabbed her hand anyway and led her to the table with the punch bowls. He swiped a pen and jotted his number down on a napkin, which he then handed to her.

He waited till she took it before grinning at her again. "Talk to ya later, Snowflake."

Leo sat in his seat and looked through the program while Raphael fidgeted in the seat next to him. The seats were small, their entire family easily took up two full rows, and Leo knew Raph was feeling a little claustrophobic. He was as well, but he was doing his best to ignore it. At least at Machi's competition they were allowed to just stand on the sidelines. But here they were pure spectators. Proud spectators. He flinched as Mikey tested out his air horn. Proud, loud spectators.

He found what he was looking for in the program as someone droned out a speech at the stage's podium. He leaned over to Raphael to show him, before leaning the other way to show their father.

Hamato Akito

Right there in the middle of the graduation ceremony program was their son's name. It was strange how two little words could spark such pride and pain at the same time.

Raphael leaned over a few moments later and nudged Leo when he caught him just staring at the program. Although they were still grappling with the fact that Akito had been accepted into a college here in this dimension, and would be moving here in three very short months, today was supposed to be celebratory. He watched as Leo looked up at him and offered a shaky smile.

Akito and Machi's tutor, who worked for this school system, had offered Akito the chance to actually walk across the stage with the current graduating class, which included Violet and her siblings. This was an opportunity for which Akito was extremely grateful. He was also grateful that his pops had managed to convince his dad to return to this world in order for him to have this opportunity. He was hoping that this had been a good trip for his dad, which would hopefully make it easier for his family to come visit him while he was at college. He leaned forward and smiled as he admired Violet in her graduation cap. They were headed off to college together in the fall. They'd be in separate dorms of course but anything would be better than separate dimensions.

Akito adjusted his own graduation cap from his seat among the other students and glanced up to where his family sat in the stadium. He thought about how he was going to miss them. Each and every one of them.

But then he met his dad's eyes and felt an actual twinge of homesickness, even though he was actually going home with them that very night. He had a sudden image of his dad staring into his empty room once he was gone and was hit with an incredible urge to race up the stands and reassure his dad that he'd always know where his home was. That he'd always know where he belonged. And that he'd be back. Four years of college and he'd be back.

But he couldn't rush the stands and say all of that right now. So instead he offered his dad a smile, which Leo returned with an understanding nod, and then he stood with his row to head towards the stage.

He smiled again as his name was announced. And his smile only grew as he heard his family's loud cheers. Well, cheers and the air horn his uncle had snuck in.