Chapter 8
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Rachel
I glared at my husband, who was wearing a hole in the carpet of the living room with his pacing.
He saw me watching and stopped, glaring back.
"What?"
"Cut it out"
Raph just growled, continuing to pace.
I shook my head, instead deciding to go into the kitchen and get Jake's lunch ready. I knew he was worried about our little guy, but... geez, so was I!
I had tried to calm him down before, but I found he was too riled up, which was getting me riled up.
It was going to be the kids first day at an actual school, and I think we were all feeling about the same. It had been a tough decision for all of us, wondering if they would be accepted. Or if they would be attacked and ridiculed...
The world still remembered what we did... how much was sacrificed, but now... well, the world was smaller than when the war first started.
Even five years ahead, the world was still suffering. It had gone from over six billion people, to barely three billion. Which still seems like a lot but...
Well, alot of people died in that war... for no reason either, thanks to the Yeerks.
The thought of them made my blood boil, knowing they were the reason that my best friend and cousin were gone. There wasn't a day I didn't think of them...
But... anyway, we had reached out to a smaller school near all of us, one who was happy to take our children, and would watch them all carefully. Ithiell and Donnie had done their research into the school as well, making sure there were not little hidden secrets that might be dangerous to our children.
It was a big step, letting them go out into the world, and I could understand Raph's worry, but...
Well, he wasn't doing me any favors, pacing like that.
"Jake sweetheart, are you ready?" I called out finally, knowing the only thing that would stop us from ripping one anothers heads off is if we got moving.
"Yeah!" Came the little reply from what sounded like the living room now, turning to go into the room, his school bag in hand.
I stopped to see Raph kneeling in front of Jake, fixing the small hat we'd managed to find for him a little while back. Jake's smile was...
Well, he was happy, and it was so innocent and genuine.
I started to worry about him going out into the world, and loosing that sweet innocence of his...
Like their fathers, our children really couldn't wear many pieces of clothing. The boys always had shorts on though, and the girls... well, we had to be inventive with tops lets just say.
Right now Jake was in little pants, which belonged to the school, and specially made socks and shoes.
Raph was returning his smile, then picked Jake up and put him on his shoulder. Jake giggled as Raph had a firm hold on him, walking over to me and smiling suddenly.
"I think he'll do good"
I just stared at him.
"What?"
"Oh... now you're okay with it" I shook my head, trying to curb my anger as I moved towards the door. This was an important day for my son... in fact all the kids... and I didn't want to ruin it.
We got into the car, strapping our son in and heading towards the school. Thankfully it was only a short drive, and when we got there we saw the others in the parking lot, all of them looking about the same as I felt.
I parked the car, both of us getting out and Raph going to pull our son out, surprised when he escaped Raph's grasp and latched onto my leg instead.
"Mum, can you carry me?" He asked, looking up at me with those big eyes of his. I couldn't help but smile, picking him up and handing the school bag over to Raph, who almost took it gingerly, rolling his eyes.
"Hey guys!" Serah called, waving at us as we came up to their little group just a few feet from the cars.
"Hey, what's happening?" I asked as I moved over, realising how heavy Jake was once again. His shell made him feel alot heavier than he should have been at his age.
But... I wouldn't have changed him for the world.
"Oh, not much, just... hanging around" Amanda sighed a little, pointing at the tree near us. I blinked a little, seeing both Ithiell and Eoran were up in the tree, Eoran giggling like he was the happiest kid in the world.
"Do you think they'll be all right? I mean... this is a human school" Mikey cringed a little, holding Cassie closer to him. Cassie herself was smiling happily, her hair now up in little pigtails. Her cheeks looked almost flushed as she cuddled into her dad, kicking her legs and looking around at us.
She was always such a happy baby...
"They'll be fine Mikey. They can... well, maybe they can go out into the world now, and do what we couldn't when we were their age" Leo said, patting his son on the head, who was half talking to Miah. I noticed Miah had her hair in pig tails too, but she just looked... well, older than five years old.
I noticed those two were close as cousins, and they had an odd connection the rest of us couldn't quite figure out. I mean, they were all close, but...
"I hope you're right" Jade frowned a little "I just... I'm so worried something is going to happen"
"I have hacked into their security networks and with Ithiell's help, I will place a drone to survey the school" Donnie was doing something on his blue screen, and I just sighed.
"Anyone hurts my boy... or his cousins... I'm gonna-"
"Raph, please settle"I asked, looking up at him with pleading eyes "It's bad enough I'm scared for him, but you being scared for him is just..."
"Sorry" He said softly, moving to put an arm around me, kissing my hair.
"Guys, it's just a school" Kristiana spoke up, watching as Ithiell and Eoran now jumped down, Eoran heading straight for Amanda "They'll be okay"
"And if they're not?"
"Well" She frowned, half pointing to one of the cars, all of us following her gaze as it started to lift into the air.
"If they're not, I think the school will quickly regret it"
"Ah, there you all are" We heard, all of us turning to see the principal of the school walking up to us.
She was tall and almost too thin, her grey hair held back in a tight bun. Dark eyes flashed from one family to the next, smiling as she walked up to us.
"Oh, good morning Mrs Klepchek" Kristiana said, and we all greeted her similarly as she finally reached us. I set Jake down next to his cousins, surprised when the three of them now huddled together, Eoran soon joining them. They all looked almost... shy.
"Good morning, I see we have five new students" She smiled, kneeling down to the four kids.
Mikey however, held a little tighter to Cassie.
"Babe.." I heard Kristiana whisper in his ear, hearing him sigh and finally let Cassie down, where she joined the others. I saw her take Jake's hand, all of them looking up at the principal.
"They are sure tall for their age, aren't they" She grinned again, standing up and looking to each of us.
"Well... they are... mu-" I stopped Raph from saying the word by covering his lips with my hand.
"They aren't normal children" Amanda continued for him, looking from the turtles to Ithiell "Their fathers-"
Mrs Klepchek held up a hand, smiling a little, and we all just looked at her.
"What you have all done for the earth... for my family, and the people left here, it's inspiring. So please, don't feel like you need to explain who you or your children are. I can't thank you enough for saving us... my husband and son..."
Tears were now brimming her eyes as she smiled at us, wiping them away. We waited until she composed herself, smiling again at each of us.
"I'm sorry, but... please, don't worry about them. I'll make sure they're seen as equals and treated the same way"
"That's all we ask. We don't want them treated special because... of how they look" I nodded at her, then looked at Jake, who was patting Cassie's shell a little.
"I'll give you a moment to say goodbye, then I'll take them into their first class" She smiled again, and we all nodded at her.
"Jake, c'mere a minute" Raph called to him, both of us kneeling down as he came to us, a smile on his face. I half noticed the other kids going to each of their parents as well.
"Now you be good, okay?" I told him, giving him the biggest hug I could manage. He returned it, humming in agreement.
"Okay mama, I'll be good"
"We mean it kiddo" Raph grunted as he pulled away to look at his father "Don't... don't do anything your dad would do, okay?"
He nodded, grinning madly, and Raph pulled him in for a hug as well, the look on Raph's face...
I couldn't help but put a hand on his shoulder, making him look at me over his son's smaller form, smiling at me in reassurance.
He let go of Jake, moving to stand up and patting his head "Now get going you little rascal"
Jake nodded excitedly, joining his cousins and Eoran in the little group they'd formed in front of Mrs Klepchek. I saw Cassie lean close to him, and he took her hand again.
He was so protective of Cassie, it made me smile.
Jake would have liked little Jacob, no matter what he was...
"All right kids... we all ready to go?" Mrs Klepchek asked, looking at each of them in turn and smiling, all of them returning with an enthusiastic yes.
"All right... come on then" She turned to walk away, with the five now walking excitedly behind her-
"Stop!"
We all looked to Donnie, who seemed angry to say the least. I saw Raph's fist curl into-
"What's wrong?" Jade asked, looking up at him, but he was staring at Miah. Miah herself was looking up at him with wide eyes, almost confused it seemed.
I watched him walk over, kneeling in front of her and holding out his hand.
"Give"
She shook her head "Nuh-uh"
"Miah Rose Harper, if I have to-"
"Nooo" Miah whined, bouncing up and down a little and giving Donnie an almost pleading look.
Donnie however, wasn't impressed.
"Miah..." Now Jade, moved over "What do you have?"
Miah pouted, looking from one parent to the other, before slowly reaching into her bag and pulling out some kind of gadget that obviously belonged to Donnie.
She handed it to him, and his features relaxed a little, still not looking happy with her.
"You know that wasn't a nice thing to do, stealing daddy's things" Jade told her, and she pouted again.
"Now you go to school, and be good" He told her, grabbing the sides of her shell and spinning her around "And no tinkering with things"
She grudgingly moved along, joining her cousins and Eoran as they now finally walked towards and into the school.
Raph suddenly burst into laughter beside me, making everyone look at him. He just grinned.
"And here I thought our lives would be boring. Having kids just makes it that much more interesting!"
I had to agree with him there.
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I looked around our bedroom, seeing it was almost sparkling. I think I'd just spent about two hours just cleaning it...
I wasn't one to clean often, but today I think I was just very restless.
Without Jake around to take care of, or the dojo to run, there really wasn't much to do. Raph had gone out to train with Leo for a bit, but as far as I knew he wouldn't be too long.
So... it was just me. Alone... in the house.
Doing housework of all things.
I went to move into the living room, seeing it wasn't too bad and giving up for the time being. It was almost two, and I wanted to be ready for when it came time to pick Jake up. I just hoped Raph wouldn't be too much longer...
I got into the shower, turning the taps on and just enjoying the warmth of the water.
The water itself seemed to take the edge off my restlessness, and I stood in there for probably longer than I should, soon finding I wasn't exactly alone in the house.
"Hey" I jumped, spinning around and seeing the shower curtain move, already starting to morph before I realised who the voice belonged to.
"Oh, you scared the shit outta me. What are you doing sneaking up on me like that?" I snapped at Raph as he joined me in the shower, his hands resting on my waist as he smiled down at me. I could tell he was sweaty from training...
"Just keeping you on your toes" He grinned, his hands starting to wander, and I slapped them away.
"Urgh, you reek... get your butt under that water and clean yourself" I told him, pushing him towards the water spray, then moving to grab my towel from beside the shower.
I yelped when he slapped my bare butt, turning to glare at him.
"You..." I growled a little, grabbing my towel and getting out of the shower, hearing him laugh as I moved into our bedroom to get dressed.
My phone started to ring, going over to the beside table to pick it up, freezing as I looked at the number.
"Rach?" I heard the call from the shower, but I ignored him, answering my phone.
"Mrs Berenson?"
"Uh, yes?"
"It's Mrs Klepchek, would you be able to come to the school? There's been an... incident"
"Is Jake okay?" I blurted, moving to head into the bathroom, indicating Raph hurry up. He looked confused, but caught the towel I threw at him.
"Oh, he's all right, everyone is fine. Are you able to come to the school now?"
"We'll be right there" I hung up with the principal, indicating Raph get his gear on and come with me right now.
"What's wrong?"
"I don't know, let's just get to the school"
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Jake was looking at the floor, his hands behind his back and drawing circles with his foot. On the other side of the room, stood a very angry looking kid. I didn't like him, the look of him...
"So, what's all this about?" I asked, wanting to go to my son, instead sitting on the seats provided for us, next to two other people who I could only guess were the parents of the young boy. Raph however, opted to stand behind the chair that was set out for him.
"Well, as I said on the phone, there has been an... incident"
"As long as no one is hurt" I said, looking at the other couple and feeling a little... well, intimidated. They looked to be in their mid thirties, both in business attire, and neither of them looking impressed as they almost glared at me and Raph.
"Well... Steven here has uh..." She looked at the boy, and that's when I saw he was holding his arm a little. It was bandaged slightly...
"All right, what's happened?" Raph asked, and I put my hand on his arm, trying to calm him even though I felt the same way.
What did Jake do?
Maybe he didn't realise that-
"Well, the teacher witnessed your son Jake, pushing Steven quite hard into a table just before lunch ended" Mrs Klepchek said, indicating to both the boys as she spoke "He hit the corner of the table and sprained his arm"
"Jake" I scolded, although lightly, watching as he looked up at me finally. There were tears in his eyes...
"Now, Jake hasn't spoken since, or given reason as to why-"
"He's a monster! He didn't like me so he pushed me!" Steven cried out, interrupting the principal and pointing wildly with his other hand at Jake.
"I... I am not..." Jake bit his lip, looking at me. The tears in his eyes became too much for me to bear, and I moved to kneel in front of him, wrapping him in my arms and holding him close.
"Don't you dare call him a monster!" Raph stood up, pointing at the boy, who now cowered a little. I saw his father go over and do what I was doing with Jake, before Raph came over to us.
"Now, we will not be calling anyone a monster. Everyone has the right to be here" Mrs Klepchek responded in a level voice, and I watched as Raph started to pat Jake's hair gently. Jake sniffled a little.
"I... I apologise for my outburst" Raph was tight lipped.
"Well.. you are a-"
"Enough!" The Principal snapped, slamming her hands on the desk and stopping the boys mother from finishing that sentence. When none of us spoke, she sat down, and continued.
"Now... Mrs Berenson, I brought you here in hopes you would be able to help with this matter. I get the feeling that your son is not one to do something... aggressive... without reason behind it"
"Well, he pushes his cousins around a bit, but he knows when to stop, and he never hurts them" I told her, looking at the boys mother. She was looking down at me... probably because I was still fairly young. Also probably because I was married to my big protective turtle.
"All right... now, Jake. Would you like to tell us why you pushed Steven?" She asked, getting up from behind her desk and walking over to kneel in front of Jake. To my sons credit, he wiped his tears, moving away from me to look at her.
"I... didn't mean to... he... he was..."
"Stupid monster!" Came the boys cry, and I glared at him "He did it on purpose! He wanted to hurt me!"
"I did not!" Jake responded, new tears brimming his eyes "You were hurting my cousins!"
"Jake" I got him to look at me, surprised at the anger now in his eyes.
"Mom, he was hurtin Cassie. Pulling at her hair. Miah tried to stop him, but he pulled her hair too!"
"What?!" The boys father wasn't impressed "My son would never-"
"He hurt Miah and Cass! I... I just wanted to stop him from... from hurtin them"
"Oh... Donnie and Mikey are gonna be ticked..." Raph grumbled from beside me, stepping back a little.
"They're gonna be ticked? Oh... Jade and Kristiana will be absolutely fuming..." I added, watching as Mrs Klepchek got up, moving to sit back behind her desk. I saw her start to scribble something on her notepad.
"This is an outrage! These... freaks... need to be taken out and-"
"Don't you dare talk about us like that, we are not freaks" Raph spat, squaring up with Steven's father. He looked about ready to pound the guy into the ground. I just hoped he would curb his anger just long enough for us to get out of there.
"All right, that's it" Mrs Klepchek stood up again, looking from one angry father to another "Mister Greaves, if you forget, you are looking at one of the turtles who saved this world, so I suggest you give him... perhaps... a little respect"
"I don't care! His son hurt mine, I want him-"
"No" Her voice was calm, which surprised me.
"What did you say? Do you know who I am? I could-"
"Don't threaten me Mister Greaves, your son brought this on himself, and I believe Jake when he said he defended his cousins. And because of this, and other reasons now brought to light, I am now expelling your son. Please leave"
My jaw dropped, and I looked from Raph to the Principal, then down to my son. He looked equally shocked, even for a five year old.
"Uh... did I hear you right?" The woman stood up, coming towards me and my son. I quickly got to my feet, pushing Jake behind me. She stopped, now just pointing at me.
"You're expelling me but not this... this... abomination?!"
"For the last time, the names are unnecessary! He is a five year old boy that made a mistake, by trying to protect his family. And I am sick to death of you and people like you coming into my school and assuming the worst of people, even those who look a little different! No other student in this school has been as discriminating towards these five children besides you! I want you out of this school, and now"
Again, I was shocked. I half expected us to be taking Jake home permanently, and here... this principal was telling us that this boy who had hurt our family was going to be expelled.
"Fine, but we will be reporting you!" The woman grabbed her son and stormed out of the office, her husband in tow.
"Good luck!" Came the principals response as the door slammed, and we turned to look at her.
"Wow... that was..." Raph shook his head, turning back to her "I never... have had a... normal... human, stand up for us like that"
Mrs Klepchek just smiled at us "Not all humans think of differences as 'freaky'. Plus, I believe Jake. He's a good kid. Just... has a little bit of an anger issue"
Raph chuckled a little "Well, he gets that from me"
"Both of us" I added, looking down at Jake as he hugged me tightly. Poor kid had just had a horrible experience...
"Don't worry, I'll make sure you and your family aren't treated like that again. Although... I will treat them like all the other kids here"
"That's fine by us" Raph answered and I looked up at him.
I don't think I'd ever seen him look so happy and relieved.
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Sorry this is so long guys... I just wanted to do all this stuff in the chapter so I packed it all in!
Hope you enjoyed! Let me know if you do!
Constructive Criticism appreciated!