Hi everyone! I came up another Lily story from her childhood, and this is a story Lily would gladly tell. Now, Lily is still not aware that she has psychic powers (not for another four years in this story), but we do have a discussion about it between Donnie and April. Enjoy!
DISCLAIMER: I do not own anything related to "TMNT." I only own Lily. Song is listed below.
P.S. Look out for the next story that will be a very special one for me.
Song: "Jesus Wants Me For a Sunbeam" by Cedarmont Kids
Family: Lilianna, April, and Donatello
Timeline: May 29, 2034
Setting: North Hampton, New York, USA
POV: Donatello
My T-Phone went off and I woke up. The sun was just about to rise. I smiled and got out of bed, excited to celebrate another year of my daughter's life.
I glanced over at my wife and smiled. I had known her for over 20 years now and she was still very much the love of my life. April gave me the two best gifts in my entire life: our marriage and our baby girl, born ten years ago.
I kissed April on her cheek before I put on my lab coat and walked out of the bedroom. I walked over to our daughter's room, and then my smile disappeared.
"April!" I yelled. "April!"
I ran back into our bedroom to see April slowly sitting up.
"Donnie?" she moaned sleepily. "What is it? Can't I have just one day to sleep in?"
"Lily's not in her room! Her bed is made, her room is clean, everything!"
"Donnie, will you relax? Maybe, she's downstairs."
I took some deep breaths, trying to calm down.
"Maybe, you're right. I'll look downstairs."
"And back to sleep, I go."
I sharply glanced back at my wife and frowned. I couldn't blame her for wanting to go back to sleep. She, too, had been waking up early to make the long drive to New York City every morning for her job at Channel 6 News. She decided to take today, a Monday, off to celebrate Lily's birthday.
I went downstairs and glanced all around for Lily. But she was nowhere to be found. I decided to take April's advice and tried to remain calm.
"Please don't tell me you've run off into the woods again, Lilianna Mae," I said out loud.
I went into the kitchen to start a pot of coffee. Just when I got my favorite cup out of the cabinet...
"Is that... music?"
I glanced out of the window and could not see anything out of the ordinary. I went outside. The music got louder until I heard singing.
"Jesus wants me for a sunbeam to shine for him each day; in every way try to please him, at home, at school, at play."
I crept closer and found Lily at the edge of the woods, performing some kind of routine with her jo staff.
"A sunbeam, a sunbeam, Jesus wants me for a sunbeam! A sunbeam, a sunbeam, I'll be a sunbeam for him."
My eyes widened. Lily performed numerous tricks with both her body and her staff, twirling the staff all around her body. When she herself twirled around, she had a huge grin on her face. I decided to stay and watch, taking a seat on the grass.
"Jesus wants me to be loving and kind to all I see," Lily sang, slowly showing off her moves with her jo staff. "Showing how pleasant and happy his little one can be. A sunbeam, a sunbeam, Jesus wants me for a sunbeam! A sunbeam, a sunbeam, I'll be a sunbeam for him."
Lily then hastened her speed. Now she was not just twirling her staff around, but she was also performing acrobatics. Her moves were fluid and graceful as she twirled with the staff. I smiled, feeling proud of her in that moment.
"I'll be a sunbeam for Jesus," Lily continued to sing with her sweet voice. "I can if but I try; serving him moment by moment, then live with him on high."
Lily then twirled her jo staff over her head, performing her moves to precisely match the beat.
"A sunbeam, a sunbeam, Jesus wants me for a sunbeam! A sunbeam, a sunbeam, I'll be a sunbeam for him."
Lily then twirled her staff and herself again, but this time, these moves came with a twist: she threw her staff up in the air! I gasped with worry, but to my amazement, she caught the staff right on the beat. She repeated her moves and threw her staff in the air again. When she caught it again, the song ended. She posed, slamming her staff into the ground and standing with pride, her free hand on her hip.
I clapped my hands together. Lily gasped and turned around with surprise. At this point, the sun had fully risen above the horizon.
"Daddy!" Lily yelled with shock and surprise. "Hi! Umm... you're probably wondering why I'm out here so early."
I stood up and walked towards her, still smiling.
"You don't have to explain anything. Except, perhaps you can explain how you came up with that magnificent routine. I've never seen anything like it!"
Lily grinned, showing the beautiful gap in her teeth.
"Thanks, Daddy! I worked for months on it!"
Months?!
"How many months, Lily Mae?"
She shrugged.
"Like two or three. I lost track. I've been practicing since Mommy's birthday."
"Okay, Lily. So Mommy's birthday was March 17th. What is the month after that?"
"April."
"And then the next month?"
"May! When my birthday is, and today's my birthday!"
"So how many months is that, Lily?"
"Two!"
"That is still an impressive amount of time to practice that."
"Well, I had to memorize the song first," Lily explained, playing with her long red ponytail. "Then I came up with the routine. And then, I had to practice singing snd swinging my staff at the same time. That was hard!"
I chuckled.
"You did very well and I am very proud of you, Lily Mae."
"I did it for you, Daddy," she replied, walking up to me and giving me a hug. "I wanted to show you how much I've learned. I was hoping to have Mommy see it too, but you saw it too early."
I knelt down to her eye level and smiled, putting a hand on her shoulder.
"Hey, I'm sure Mommy would love to see your routine. She's staying home today to celebrate you."
"Yay! I love it when she stays home."
"Me too, kiddo. Me too."
We smiled at each other.
"Well, I have a pot of coffee going," I explained. "So I need to get back inside. You should join me and have some breakfast. I'm sure your routine will be even better after a good meal."
"May I have little peaches on my pancakes, please?"
"You certainly may!"
We laughed together as we walked inside.
"A sunbeam, a sunbeam, Jesus wants me for a sunbeam! A sunbeam, a sunbeam, I'll be a sunbeam for him."
I watched Lily perform her routine again, this time with April present. April gasped with delight when Lily threw her staff in the air and caught it with ease. We clapped when she finished the routine.
"Bravo!" April exclaimed excitedly as Lily put on a proud smile. "That was amazing! How did you learn to toss your staff like that?"
"From your training, Mommy," Lily answered with a simple smile. "Tossing your tessen like a boomerang was easy. I wanted to challenge myself with the jo staff."
April and I glanced at each other, knowing exactly what we were thinking: that Lily may have telepathic powers. But right now, we suggested something different.
"Lily, why don't you perform your routine in front of your cousins?" April asked. "They'd love it. And who knows? You may motivate them to come up with their own routines."
Lily frowned.
"I can't, Mom. This routine was just meant for you two."
"May we ask why?"
"Because not everyone believes in Jesus," Lily explained sadly. "No one would understand."
April and I glanced at each other again, but this time, we frowned. I put my hand on our daughter's shoulder.
"You are absolutely right. But believing in Jesus or not is their choice. We cannot force them to believe. But Lily, the best advice I can give you here, is to be yourself. Be that sunbeam! And if anyone asks you why you are so happy, be honest. They can either accept your answer or walk away. I do not believe Uncle Leo would judge you because you chose to believe in Jesus."
"Really?" Lily asked, the spark coming back to her blue eyes.
"Really. Uncle Leo would want you to be happy. We all want that for you. And if he or anyone else says otherwise, then Mom and I will back you up. That's a promise."
Lily smiled.
"Now, isn't it someone's birthday today?" April asked with a confident smile.
"Yeah!" Lily answered. "Mine!"
"What do you want to do? Open presents first or go to the lair?"
"Can we take the presents with us and open them in the lair?"
"We can do that!" I answered.
"Good! Because I want Ryan, Venus, and Athena to see what I got."
April and I laughed.
"Good," April said. "Then let's get ready to go."
"Yes, ma'am!"
Lily giddily ran back inside the house. April and I held each other as we followed her.
"Lily's gotta have telepathic powers," I spoke. "It took me eight years to master that twirl! It only took Lily two years."
"You know, Lily is your daughter too, D. That genius, plus whatever powers I passed down to her, can work together to create the strongest power possible. Lily is certainly gifted."
"But the question is, does Lily know she has psychic powers?"
"I don't believe so," April answered. "She sees this as lots of hard practice. Let her have that feeling of accomplishment."
We stopped where we were and kissed each other, feeling confident in each other.
"Whatever powers Lily will have, let's be supportive of her no matter what," April suggested.
"I agree."
"Moom!" Lily whined. "Daaad! Are we leaving or what?"
We turned to glance at her. She wore a white blouse with blue jeans and white sneakers. Her red hair was now in two braids.
"You look amazing, Lily," April complimented her. "I suppose I should go get changed. I'll meet you two in the hall in ten minutes."
We all went inside. April went up the stairs while Lily and I sat in the hall together.
"Mommy's going to take more than ten minutes, isn't she?" Lily asked.
"Nah. She doesn't ever wear makeup when we go to the lair."
"Daddy?"
"Hmm?"
"I love you."
I smiled fondly and then we hugged.
"I love you too, Lily Mae, my little beam of sunshine."