The ninjas had her overpowered, outmatched, and definitely outclassed. May gave in to the fight, hardly able to stand on her feet any longer.
All of a sudden...
"Back off, Rin!" A deep, gruff voice broke out over the chaos. The lead ninja dropped May. She crawled away, or tried to, but when she moved her right leg, a horrible pain shot up her thigh. May cried out.
Somebody, or something, picked May up and carried her away. Her eyes were watering and her vision was obstructed from the pain. She couldn't see what was happening, and she could only guess who her mysterious savior was.
"Are you okay, May?" The gruff voice asked her after a couple of minutes, setting her down on something hard.
"I think my leg is broken, but otherwise, I'm fine, and I did NOT need your help!" Stubborn May growled. Her eyes slowly opened again, the tears clearing. May looked around.
She was on the roof of her apartment building, sitting on a crate. Somebody sat next to her. She turned, unalarmed to the big man who was wearing, for some odd reason, a turtle costume, with a red mask and two sai.
"Okay, fine. I'll just put you back in an alley surrounded by ninjas. In this city, it's not hard to find them." The guy growled. May glared at him.
"I'm calling your bluff." She sneered. The big guy shrugged.
"Okay, which apartment is yours?" He asked. May suddenly realized what this was.
"You're working for my dad, aren't you?" She asked suspiciously. The costumed man shook his head.
"I don't work for anybody, May Rose Jones." The large man replied. May stared at him, startled to hear her full name said out loud.
"Then... Then how do you know my name?" May asked, stunned.
"I don't work for your dad, but I do know your parents." He replied.
"Prove it."
The man gazed at May for a moment, before asking a question of his own. "How are you talking to me so calmly? Why aren't you afraid of me?"
"Of a thug in a costume? You think you're the only one?" May rolled her eyes. What was this guy's deal, anyway?
"Ah." The big man smiled to himself. "Well, believe it or not, it's not a costume."
May narrowed her eyes. She didn't trust this guy. The way he talked to her like she was a little girl put her on edge.
"Prove it." May said again. "Prove that you know my parents. Prove that you aren't wearing a costume. Prove it."
"You want proof, huh? Okay, let's see... Your dad is a cop and has a hobby for hockey. His name is Casey Jones. Your mother is a reporter, has reddish-brown hair, and quite the attitude at times. Her name is April O'Neil-Jones. My little brother used to have a crush on her." The man replied.
"Anybody could tell me that from watching the news. And what about your costume?" May asked, suspicious.
"Well, I would tell you to pinch me and show you the bruise, but I don't bruise, so I'm not sure how to prove that to you."
May thought a moment. "What's your name?" She asked.
"Raphael." The man replied.
"Last name?" May persisted.
"You're going to try and search me up on a police sight, aren't you?" The large man replied. May nodded.
"What's your last name?"
The man was silent for a while. May just sat there staring at him.
"I'm a bit large to be a human being, aren't I?" He asked.
May considered this. Yes, he was rather big for a person, but there were may body builders and boss thugs that were much bigger than everybody else. And yet, May thought, Raphael is quite a bit bigger than even Top Dog. Top Dog was the leader of a gang May used to belong to, until they learned her dad was a cop and her mom was a reporter. She had been kicked from the group.
"Do you have a last name?" May asked, a bit more sensitive this time. Raphael shook his head.
"O'Neil was the closest thing I've ever had to a last name." He admitted. May gasped.
"But... But that's my mom's last name!" She said. How could that work?
"I know. Your mom was a good friend of ours, almost like family." Raphael replied.
"What about your parents? Don't you have any?" May was now curious about this guy.
"My... Father. He's missing, though. We have no clue where he is."
May peered closely at the stranger. He appeared to be close to tears, but trying to hide it as best he could. She understood. She'd been there. Hurting, but not wanting to show your pain or appear weak.
Raphael took a deep breath. "Okay, kid, which apartment is yours?" He asked.
"I'm not telling." May stubbornly replied.
"Look, I'm not hanging out here all night! What apartment do you live in?" Raphael growled persistently.
To match his persistence, though, May was extremely stubborn and hard-headed. "Then go home. I'm not going to say where I live. I don't give out that data to strangers." May got into a lot of trouble, but she wasn't an idiot.
"I just saved your life! I think you owe me that much so I can get you home to your parents." Raphael growled. May crossed her arms.
"Forget it. I'm not going home." She said.
Raphael sighed. "Fine. You don't have to go home. Just tell me where you live so I can at least let your parents know you're alright, and then we'll discuss what to do with you, okay?"
"Promise you won't make me go home, or tell my parents exactly where I am, or where I'm going to be? Because the last thing I need right now is another lecture from my dad about getting into fights, or stealing, or something, and I definitely don't want to listen to another talk from my mom about how my head works, or how I need more 'support' from them. I'm better off calling my own shots." May raised an eyebrow.
"Okay, I promise." Raphael held out a hand. May shook it.
"My apartment is C11." May sighed. Raphael nodded, and disappeared down the side of the building, only to pop back up again.
"Which fire escape-"
May cut him off. "In the middle column, the second last one from the ground." She instructed. Raphael disappeared again. A shriek exploded in the still night air. May peered over the edge of the building.
"The window on the left!" She called down. Raphael moved over to the next window and opened it.
"My bedroom door is locked!" May yelled the last piece of advice, and dragged herself back to the crate.
About 5 or 6 minutes later, Raphael reappeared. "Okay, your parents know that you're okay. Apparently, I have to stay with you until you decide to go home, so I guess you're stuck with me, now." He reported.
May rolled her eyes. Of course her parents made her stay with a babysitter. What else could she expect?
"Fine. Whatever." May sighed.
"Maybe we should get somebody to take care of your leg first." Raphael said thoughtfully.
"Fine. Whatever." May shrugged.
Raphael moved closer to May so fast and unexpectedly that she instinctively punched his face.
Rubbing his cheek, Raphael glared at May. "What the heck did you do that for?" He demanded angrily.
"Sorry. That was instinct." May admitted. Raphael scoffed.
"Right. Anyway, I'm going to take you to get your leg patched up. No more hitting me, okay?"
"Yeah." May replied. She hadn't really meant to hit him. It was an accident.
Raphael sighed, picked May up, and carried her across the rooftops. May wondered where they were going. Lots of thing crossed her mind, but she wasn't prepared for when Raphael suddenly changed directions from forward to straight down. Landing in a darkened alleyway, Raphael put May on the ground long enough to move the manhole cover. He then carried her down into the sewers.
"Shouldn't you put the manhole cover back on?" May asked as they continued down a long tunnel.
"Nah, somebody else'll find it and put it back." Raphael said, turning the corner.
May thought that he'd slipped, but Raphael had jumped down onto his shell, and they were now sliding down the pipes at an incredibly nauseating speed.
May groaned when they finally stopped. She wanted to throw up, but at the same time, something told her it was a bad idea.
"You okay?" Raphael asked, seeing her suddenly pail face. May nodded.
"I never liked roller-coasters that much." She admitted. Raphael laughed.
"Welcome to my place." He said, setting May down on a huge chair.
May gasped. The place was enormous. Her jaw dropped, as her eyes tried to take it all in. Anything that would make this a teenage warrior's paradise was here, and then some.
"What do you think?" Raphael asked, raising an eyebrow and smiling slyly.
May wanted to express what she really thought, but the only thing that could escape her lips was a breathless "Wow."