Chapter 48: Man Behind the Bureau

It had been a while since Ash was kidnapped by Burne and Vernon for a surprise interrogation by Clayton Kellerman, only to be saved by Channel 6's cameraman who turned out to have been working for two bureaus. Not only were Burne and Vernon terminated by the National Newscasters Bureau, but the Federal Bureau of Investigations who arrested them on various charges. In the Lair, April and Irma joined the Turtles, Trainers and Splinter in their debriefing. "I can't believe we let it happen," Brock mulled. "If you had stayed down here, you wouldn't have been kidnapped by those two."

"Yeah, dude…" agreed Michelangelo. "From all we knew, they may have wanted you to reveal where you're from and ask how to get there."

"Yeah… no, Michelangelo," Donatello doubted. "You heard what Kellerman wanted: our names defiled for his own personal gain." April and Brock nodded, believing Donatello's guess over Michelangelo's.

"I'm more surprised that our friend works for the FBI," Leonardo pointed out. "Pete never seemed like someone who'd be working for the big wigs. He had us all fooled."

"Now I know what a wolf in sheep's wool looks like," April gulped. Irma irked to April's explanation.

"Don't you mean, 'clothing'?" she corrected.

"Irma, have you seen a sheep all dressed up?" questioned Raphael before he lofted a sigh. "But, we should all be thankful that the wolf was there to save Ash." Pikachu squeaked in agreement.

"I do believe that he was brought in without a careful look into his background," Splinter guessed. "His ability to hide his true identity in plain sight is a skill in deception."

"Master, you don't need to delve too deeply," Raphael eased. "We're just happy that Ash is okay."

"That makes all of us," Peter voiced. All turned to see Peter walking into the Lair wearing a black business suit and sunglasses.

"Pete!" they called back.

"Or should we say, Peter," Irma teased. "Or do you prefer Mr. Rockman?" Peter sighed to the different names.

"Just Pete's fine," Peter assured. "Anyway, what are you two doing down here? I know I told April to remain at home…"

"Well, excuse me if I'm still worried about Ash," April scoffed. Irma shrugged her shoulders.

"What we want to know is how you got yourself involved with the National Newscasters Bureau and the FBI," Leonardo addressed.

"Not to mention that involvement with Channel 6," Michelangelo added. Pete sighed, expecting this from the Turtles.

"I guess I should explain," he addressed as he dug into his pocket. "But first, as compensation from the FBI,,, Ash, here is your reward." Ash was given a stack of money with a band around it. ML awed the sight of money.

"That looks like $5,000!" she awed. "Nice payday!"

"I mean, thanks…" gulped Ash. "But I don't know why I need this much."

"It's protocol, Ash," Pete briefed. "Anyway, I did say that all I've done was true. What I didn't explain is how the two bureaus came into contact. You see, aside from studying in Madison in Computer Science, I had been a computer repairman as a side job to afford my tuition. One day, I was fixing a computer that someone brought from nearby Janesville when I deciphered an encryption on his device. It was a bug that linked onto all of the banks within the Midwest. That meant that banks in Wisconsin, Michigan, Minnesota, Illinois and Indiana were targets of the mastermind to wipe everyone's savings clean. I called the police, but they gave me a number to call. Little did I know, it was to the FBI. Not only did they trace the unit back to the customer, they informed me that I could face punishment as well since I held serious equipment. They gave me two choices: federal confinement or join the bureau. Somehow, the latter helped both of us." The story of the origin began to astound the others.

"It's possible that since you had the bug, the feds would believe that you were in cahoots with this hi-tech bank robber," Donatello assumed.

"Correct," Pete confirmed. "I became an informant before they saw my work. I was soon recruited to their bureau and worked for them when I got an assignment involving the other bureau, the National Newscasters Bureau."

"And that has to be regarding Channel 6," Leonardo guessed.

"Right," Pete confirmed again. "There seemed to be some tax fraud and money laundering from the report." Irma sensed something amiss.

"Wouldn't that be a case for the IRS, not the FBI or the National Newscasters Bureau?" she pointed out.

"It would, but before they could get to the station, Shredder attacks began and they pulled out of fear," Pete added. "I saw that they needed a cameraman for the job, so I instinctively took it since my background in videotaping came to mind. The heads offered me an apartment and vehicle to help with the business and keep tabs. The National Newscasters Bureau contacted me and helped introduce those inside. During which, I got to know the situation and even tagged Burne's phone line as to help find out about contacts. I did get to see, but not meet the Turtles. I also learned that Vernon had his degrees purchased and that he got hired through Nepotism." Ash blinked to the word mentioned.

"Nepotism?" he repeated.

"Basically, Vernon was hired through a member of family that worked at the station," Brock informed. "Most likely from his own mother if she did work there." Raphael giggled to Brock's point.

"No wonder he's a Mama's Boy," he teased.

"But when you came undercover," April brought up. "Did that mean that Irma and I fell into suspicion as well?" Pete nodded to the claim.

"I was taught not to let anyone slip out of my eyes," he informed. "It wasn't that I didn't trust anyone, I wanted to make sure I gather necessary information." Splinter realized the ordeal.

"Supposedly, your task was to verify that everything in Channel 6 was in order before you reported back to Washington,"

"Not just to my fellow agents, but the other bureaus," Pete added. "I found several violations and some fraudulent claims that I reported back to Washington about. Suddenly, I caught Burne shooting that tranquilizer dart at Ash that I called the colleagues and proper authorities to come." Ash and Pikachu gawked to how quick the rescue was.

"I mean, thanks," Ash gulped. "I did kinda wish that it was Casey Jones or maybe Zach to come to my rescue, but that might've been too quick." Irma came to Pete with a question.

"Pete, what's going to happen to Channel 6?" she asked.

"Right now, April's and your jobs are safe," Pete replied. "The National Newscasters Bureau are looking into a new CEO." April and Irma sighed in relief.

"Thank goodness," April smiled. "I wasn't ready to lose my job again in such a short time."

"Who would?" agreed Donatello. "So, what are you gonna do now that you've gotten Mr. Thompson and Vernon on a one-way trip to jail?" Pete seemed taken aback by the question.

"Right now, I'm remaining here until the higher-ups call me back to Washington," he briefed. "They also have photos of Dimension X and the Neutrinos… as well as the Technodrome's condition."

"Don't sweat it, Pete!" eased Michelangelo. "Anyone who helps us out is welcomed to our Lair." Pete nodded to the invitation.

"I'll keep it in mind," Pete acknowledged before he headed out. "And Pikachu, make sure Ash isn't getting himself in over his head."

("No problem!") accepted Pikachu. After he left, Pete returned to the surface and found Vinnie's opened. He entered where Diego saw him at the front.

"Welcome to Vinnie's!" he greeted as Pete sat down. "Let me guess: rough day at the office?"

"Which one?" shrugged Pete. "I happened to save someone after being kidnapped and sent a TV station into damage control." Diego blinked at Pete's topic.

"That might be a bit much for me to take. I'm just a pizza maker."

"Yeah, and I brought up my tale back in Madison." The name of the city irked Diego.

"Madison, as in Madison, Wisconsin?"

"Yeah, I'm a graduate at UW-Madison." This detail made Diego ponder.

"I'll get to work. Trust me." He left as Pete pulled out the engagement ring.

"Now what?" As he pondered about what to do with the ring, back at the Lair, Ash still held the $5,000 Pete gave him.

"Don't get me wrong, but I don't know what to do with $5,000," he admitted. April decided to have a little fun.

"Mind if I help?" she asked as she took the money from Ash's hands. He gasped, making April giggle. "Just kidding!" She handed the money back. "I mean, I could afford to stay at my apartment for a couple of years with that kind of money."

"Yeah, I guess," Ash shrugged. "If I had that kind of money, I'd buy Misty a new bike if it wasn't already repaired." Brock and Pikachu overheard Ash and giggled.

"Still thinking about the early days in your career?" teased Brock.

"There are days I still feel like I need to fulfill that promise, even though Nurse Joy fixed it," Ash tried to explain. "It's not that I value money, but I feel that $5,000 is a bit much."

"Especially when you're so young," Irma agreed as Michelangelo heard the detail.

"I might have an idea, dude," he spoke up. Everyone became curious to Michelangelo's ploy.

"What would that be?" asked Brock.

"Have you heard of Coney Island?" wondered Michelangelo. The women awed the idea.

"Yeah, Coney Island is a theme park southwest of Manhattan!" pointed out April. "There's carnival rides, roller coasters, games… Heck, Nathan's Famous has a restaurant there."

"Nathan's?" repeated Ash.

"They're best known for their hot dogs," April briefed. "Heck, if you stay by nightfall, you'll even see a firework show." Ash pondered to the idea.

("Maybe I can go with,") Pikachu offered. Ash thought more to the idea.

"I've got an idea," he smiled. The others seemed perplexed.

"About Coney Island?" guessed Brock. Back at Vinnie's, Diego presented a pizza with sliced bratwurst, caramelized onions and chives.

"Found this pizza recipe," he presented to Pete. "Wisconsin Bratwurst Pizza." Pete took a sniff at it.

"Oh, this smells like my old home!" he smiled. "Thanks!" Diego noticed the box.

"Oh, who's the lucky girl? A co-worker?"

"Well, yes and no. I had her boss and a fellow co-worker fired and arrested."

"Oh, that kind of big deal."

"Well, I see that you think you ruined your chances."

"I mean… I wanted to do it right, but after what happened, I don't know if I still have a chance." Using his chance, Diego snagged the box.

"You want to make sure everything's right, right? Listen, never doubt it. Make it something she'll be thinking about." He flicked the box back at Pete who caught it.

"I'm usually good at that. Thanks…"

"Don't mention it. Don't forget the bill. It's $10.50." Pete paid the bill before walking out. A few days later, Ash and Pikachu reached the Shellhammer Estate. They managed to spot and circle around security cameras and bodyguards.

"After what happened with Shredder's mutants and Team Rocket, the extra protection is understanding," Ash believed. They continued to circle before they found Buffy in her room looking frustrated. "There she is!" At a desk, Buffy billowed a sigh.

"I know I have to attend a lame board meeting tomorrow, but I don't see why I have to go sleep now at 5:00 PM!" she complained. "This… is… DULLSVILLE!" Suddenly, there were tappings at her window. "Huh?" She turned to see Ash and Pikachu in a tree from her window. The sight brightened a smile from her. "Ash!" She opened the window to see the two.

"Hey there, Buffy," Ash greeted. "How's it goin'?"

("Hi, Buffy!") squeaked Pikachu. A glee appeared on Buffy's face.

"Ash!" she greeted. "Pikachu!" Ash and Pikachu reached the windowsill where the trainer and young business owner shared a lip-lock where they tied tongues. After a minute, Buffy gave Pikachu a kiss, causing him to squeal in bliss. "Babe, what are you and Pikachu doing here? And how did you get pass all the guards? Security's been beefed up like crazy after those creeps of that lame loser, Shredder, kidnapped me!"

"Hey, I had been getting training by ninjas, remember?" reminded Ash. "We specialize in stealth and moving in the shadows." Buffy realized the ordeal with the help from the Turtles.

"Oh yeah… By the way, I saw what happened on TV the other day with that Clayton Kellerman jerk. You poor thing… Are you alright?"

"I'm fine… but believe me, it wasn't easy dealing with him and his crazy fans. Those people were absolute maniacs."

"I'll say…"

"And to answer your first question, we came here to see if you'd like to go to Coney Island with us." The offer of the theme park made Buffy awe the invite.

"Coney Island!? Really!? I've always wanted to go there!"

"Yeah, us too after hearing what the place is like. So, how about it? Wanna have a fun date night there?"

"You bet! I've been dying of boredom here!"

"Then, let's go!" As she reached for Ash and Pikachu to climb out, Buffy paused.

"Hold on… I can't go out like this! I'm famous, remember? People might recognize me and rat us out." The thought made Pikachu believe the occasion.

("She's got a point,") he warned.

"Yeah, you could get in big trouble for sneaking out," Ash assumed.

"Or worse, you'll be accused of kidnapping me," Buffy added. "After all, you did infiltrate into my property to find me."

"No arguing here." Suddenly, an idea. "In that case, think you can disguise yourself?" The idea made Buffy plot.

"Actually, yeah! I've got plenty of spare clothes! Nobody will recognize me in a different outfit. Gimme 5-10 minutes, I'll have some new duds."

"Sure thing… and I promise not to peek." Buffy lifted an eyebrow, amused at what Ash had in mind. A few minutes later, the window was reopened.

"Okay, I'm ready!" She appeared wearing a blue spring jacket over a black t-shirt with denim trousers on and a red baseball cap. "So… what do you think?" Ash and Pikachu smiled to the new look.

"You look awesome, dear."

("And how!") agreed Pikachu. The outfit made Ash chuckle.

"You know, seeing you in that brings back a funny memory," he brought up. Buffy raised an eyebrow.

"What memory?" she questioned.

"Brock and I met and befriended a girl named Duplica who likes to dress up and imitate people," Ash recalled. "She even dressed up and impersonated me." The memory got to Pikachu as well.

("I remember her!") he squeaked. ("She was fun! We haven't seen her and her two Dittos since Johto.")

"Really?" giggled Buffy.

"True story," Ash confirmed. "Anyways, now that you're ready, let's go!"

"Right!" she accepted as she climbed out and embraced Ash around the neck, her legs wrapping his torso. Pikachu perched himself on Buffy's shoulder. "Oh, this feels like something straight out of a little kid's fairy tale."

("Really?") wondered Pikachu.

"What do you mean?" pondered Ash.

"You know, where the knight in shining armor climbs to the top of a tall tower to rescue his princess that's locked up," she simplified. "He sweeps her off her feet and whisks her away to a happily ever after. You know, that kind of fairy tale." Pikachu enjoyed the thought.

("That sure sounds romantic," he squealed. Ash had a chuckle.

"I get it now," he realized. "And yeah, I guess it does kinda feel that way. Anyways, hold on tight!" He leaped off and out of the estate.

"Coney Island, here we come!" cheered Buffy. Pikachu had a cheer if his own as they flew through the Manhattan skies onto the street level where they entered the subway system underground. The three were in for a fun time.

TO BE CONTINUED...