Thanks for all the hearts, guys. I'm really glad you're all enjoying it!
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The two large mutants, a skeletal dog and a fish with legs, harshly shoved you in front to make you walk and you followed their orders for now, despite your fear. Your eyes looked up and around, inspecting the dark room. It was a large hall with windows for walls, under the left part of the floor was an aquarium and then on the right was some kind of sandbox with rocks. Right in the back stood tall and throne where a man in spiky armour sat. That was the Shredder.
"Karai, you brought me the new ally." He said, getting up from his seat and walking to you. The mutants pushed you on your knees and you looked down on the floor, your hair hiding your face.
"She's quite impressive. She's loved by everyone in school, she gets all the attention and she performs well." Karai asserted as if she knew everything about you.
"Where are the turtles, girl?" His deep voice addressed you but you said nothing, you kept your head low which he didn't like. The blade from his wrist came out, making a sound that echoed in the hall. He pointed it at you. "Answer me!"
"Don't make me frosty." You growled. "You wouldn't like me when I'm frosty."
Karai attempted to move however she couldn't and she looked down to see feet literally frozen in place. Shredder swung his blade at you but you caught it with your palm that had a thick layer of ice protecting it. Slowly lifting your head up, your now glowing eyes glared at him as the ice from your palm began wrapping itself around the blade and with your other hand, you created an ice fist and pounded his stomach so hard, the ice around his feet broke and he fell back from the punch. You got up and did one swift motion that made white mist shoot out of your skin and spread around the room, blinding everyone as you made your escape. The mist was like a smoke bomb and it gave you the perfect opportunity to run away. Due to Karai and the mutant's feet being frozen to the ground, they couldn't run after you however the footbots did.
You blasted the ground with ice and you were suddenly in the air. You created an ice platform right below your feet and landed on it before using your other hand to shoot out mist in order to push yourself forward on the ice. You surfed on the ice you created as you were trying to escape from the bots that were jumping high to catch you. All whilst surfing, you threw ice spikes at them and you were able to hit a few. However one had somehow gotten ahead of you and jumped towards you, grabbing your waist and tackling you down to the roof. Your body hit the ground and rolled around before your back hit the ledge of the other side. Groaning and heavily bruised, you propped yourself up with your elbow and looked at the group of Footbots that were in front of you. With very few of your energy left, you put your palm in front of you and shot a large ice blast that froze them all in their place. Relieved, you lay back down on the ground, catching your breath as you let your body heal on its own.
"Y/N!" A voice called out in worry and you looked up to see Donnie.
"Donnie? What are you doing here alone?" You asked as he helped you up, swinging your arm around his shoulders.
"I just finished checking on April and was making my way back home until I saw your ice blast." He answered. "What happened to you?"
"Karai pretended to be a new student in school just to get to me and I fell right into her trap." You explained with a groan.
"I don't blame you. It's not like you knew what she looked like."
You scoffed at that. "Fair point. She brought me to Shredder and boy is he a nasty dude."
"You met him? And you're still alive?"
"I know. I'm surprised myself, heh. He wasn't able to do anything to me 'cause I froze his blades off." Donnie looked at you in awe when you said that and you chuckled at his wide eyes staring down at you. "Just get me back home." You flicked his nose which made him snap out of it. He rubbed his nose before crouching down with his back facing you and you climbed on his shell. He used his bo staff as a seat for your butt to rest on as your arms were wrapped around his shoulders. The scientist turtle jumped across rooftops until he stopped at the fire escape of your apartment. April noticed Donnie and opened your window to see him carrying you on his back.
"Y/N? What happened?" She asked.
"She had her first encounter with Karai. Must be a family thing." Donnie answered before entering your room and bending down so you could climb off and you did, purposely falling back on your bed, your arms spread out. April came through your door and sat on the side of your bed, moving the strands of hair away from your face. "I'll be off now, girls."
"Thanks Don." You thanked him with a smile which he returned before disappearing. You turned to April. "How're you feeling?"
"Better. Casey surprisingly makes a good nurse, even with Donnie telling him exactly what to do through his phone." The red head replied, chuckling a bit.
"Look at you, two boys pinning on you." You commented, lightly punching her shoulder and she blushed.
"It's... confusing, really." April sighed.
"How so?"
"Well, both are really good friends and I like them both." She replied.
"Are you sure there isn't one you're particularly into?"
"I don't know. I haven't really liked someone that way before."
"Let me break it down for you; there has to be one you just want to be with all the time. He just makes you feel warm inside, he makes you smile, he's there for you and he makes your heart flutter. Being by their side brings you happiness and you feel safe in his arms."
April paused for a moment, deep in thought, reflecting on what you had just said.
"...I don't know, Y/N."
"I think I know." You smiled at her.
"Really? Who do you think?" She asked, leaning closer to you, hoping you could help her open her eyes.
"I'm not telling you. If I do, you won't be able to figure it out on your own. Feelings take time, Apes."
"Aw c'mon, help me out here!" She whined, shaking you a bit but you chuckled and shook your head.
"My lips are sealed."
April pouted and you ruffled her hair. "Get some sleep, we both need it." she nodded at you before getting up and exiting your room, telling you goodnight as she closed the door. You smiled and sighed in relief, feeling happy that your relationship with April was improving and you were both behaving like actual siblings. Tiredness got the better of you as you closed your eyes, not even changed out of your clothes, you just fell asleep like that in an instant.
The next morning, you woke up rather late, 11 am precisely. You heard the door knock and you hummed, signalling the person that they could come in. April's soft smile came from the open door and you smiled back, rubbing your eyes. She sat down on your bed and suggested that the two of you should eat at Mr. Murakami's restaurant which happens to be your favourite japanese restaurant and you happily agreed.
"Y/N... I uh." She stuttered, trying to find her words while you waited patiently. "I just wanted to say I'm sorry for ignoring you. I was just mad that you didn't tell me such a big thing. But I get it, you were trying to protect me, as I did when dad got kidnapped. Will you forgive me?"
You pulled her in a hug. "Of course. You're like my sister, April. I could never stay mad at you, I'll always forgive you." You replied as she returned the hug. You both stayed in that position for a few minutes, no words, just embracing each other after so long. She pulled away from you and smiled.
"How's Jeremy holding up?" She asked.
As if on cue, your phone rang and you looked at the ID to see Jeremy's name. "Speak of the devil." You picked up and answered. "Hey-"
"Y/N! I need your help!" his voice cracked as he panicked.
"Woah woah calm down, Jer. What's wrong?"
"Something's happening to me, I-I don't know what it is or why it's happening but there's something wrong!"
"What happened?"
"I-I was heading to Michael's place to play Apocalypse of the Damned until the Purple Dragons stopped me and tried to mug me. Then-Then out of nowhere, my body had a mind of its own and I kicked their butts!"
"Isn't that a good thing?"
"Yes? Maybe? I don't know!" You could hear him frantically moving around the room and waving his hands around.
"Donnie might be able to help. Meet me at my place in 1 hour, we'll see him."
"Are you sure the turtles can help me?"
"Trust me, Jer. Donnie's a life saver. See you." You finished and ended the call.
"What's going on?" April asked.
"Jeremy knocked the Purple Dragons out when they attempted to mug him but he says he couldn't control his body." You explained, getting up from your bed and stretching your limbs out.
"Think it's the SQUIP?"
"Most likely. Donnie will be able to tell us exactly. C'mon, let's head to Murakami's."
After the two of you ate at Murakami's, you headed back home and stayed in front of your door. You had ordered pizza gyoza and so did April and they were absolutely fantastic. April bought extra for the boys too. Jeremy arrived a few minutes later and you three headed for the manhole cover. The boy was hesitant to go down but you told him there was no other way and so he complied. Whilst you three walked down the dark tunnels of the sewers, Jeremy continued to talk about the incident he had and all the other times it had happened. It was definitely the SQUIP doing something but you didn't know what. Once you had arrived at the lair, Mikey greeted you with a grin and he snatched the frozen gyozas from your hands, running to the kitchen after screaming thanks. Leo heard him from the dojo and came outside to see what happened and he saw you, April and Jeremy.
"Is Donnie in his lab?" April asked.
"Where else would he be?" Raph sassed as his eyes were still on his comic.
"Is something wrong? Is it your PTSD?" Leo inquired, walking over to you three.
"My PTSD is doing okay... but that's not the issue." Jeremy replied which gained Leo's attention completely. "I-It's weird really."
"What is?" A new voice asked and you four looked back to see Donnie in front of his lab door with his goggles on his head.
"Well..."
Everyone went inside Donnie lab and Jeremy began explaining everything he had told you and April on the way to the lair. The purple masked turtle took notes until he finished explaining. Donnie hummed, thinking before he looked at the curly haired boy in the striped shirt.
"Sounds to me the SQUIP is responding to outside threats." He concluded, making Jeremy cock his head to the side. "The SQUIP is in your brain, it's part of it and you know how it responds to threats right? Your body goes into flight or fight mode where adrenaline and cortisol are secreted to respond to said threat. In your case, the SQUIP's effect might have altered those hormones and made them twice stronger. That's why it felt like you couldn't control yourself, your body reacts faster than what you're used to." Jeremy's jaw dropped at the genius turtle's analysis which made a lot of sense. He looked at his hands in awe. "It's scary at first but you'll be fine, Jeremy. Don't worry." Donnie smiled, placing a hand on the human boy's shoulder, who nodded and smiled back.
"Woahh... That's awesome!" Mikey beamed.
"Does anyone else know about this?" Leo asked and Jeremy shook his head. "I think it's best to lay low with this. For all we know the Kraang could be looking for you to finish what they started."
"Turn him into a weapon? That was their plan?" Raph inquired.
"It's more than that, Raph. They wanted to replicate the SQUIP and use it on their fiercest mutants." Donnie corrected, making Jeremy gulp.
"Guys." April interrupted from behind Jeremy's shaking form. "Can we talk about how we're gonna stop the Kraang instead?"
"Heck yeah! We'll send those aliens back to where they came from and make sure they never bother anyone again!" Mikey said with a grin. "Don't worry Jer, we got this!"
Jeremy looked at Mikey, then at the other brothers who all nodded at him, reassuring him that he wouldn't get kidnapped again. He thanked them with a hopeful smile and Mikey hugged him which he returned. Leo looked over at you and you both caught each other's eyes. You flashed him a kind smile which he returned. You all left the room but Donnie stopped Leo and whispered in his ear and the leader's eyes widened before rushing out. He looked around for you and then he noticed you enter the dojo. He went inside and saw you admire the room. Your eyes gleamed as the moonlight reflected itself in your E/C eyes. He approached you and you turned around, your eyes meeting his blue ones.
"What's up?" You asked with a smile.
"You were captured by the Shredder?" Leo questioned which made your smile drop.
"Ah, yeah I did. His sneaky daughter pretended to be a student and we were going to her place to do some work and that's when she revealed her true identity. There were these two freaky mutants dragging me inside. A dog that's been on a strict diet and a walking fish."
He chuckled at your description of Rahzar and Fishface. "Yeah that's Rahzar and Fishface."
"Seriously?"
"Mikey named them."
"Oh, make sense." You giggled. "Shredder was about to slice and dice me but I managed to stop him."
"You beat him down?!" Leo almost shrieked.
"No no God no! I'm not that skilled!" You interrupted yourself, laughing slightly at his dramatic reaction. "I only punched him and froze his feet in place before making my escape."
"And you're back with no scratch on you whatsoever."
"Fast healing, remember?" You reminded him and his mouth made an "o" shape as he remembered. "Gotta admit, it was pretty scary. He has that name for a reason."
"Yeah, he's pretty intimidating. We barely made it out alive the first time we fought him."
"You'll get him next time."
With that, Leo smiled, blushing a bit. He cleared his throat before taking a step away from you and had his first out in front of him with a playful smirk.
"Better start getting ready then. C'mon, let's spar."
You nodded and also got into position. He decided to strike first by swinging his arm at you. You dodged and got behind him, kicking his shell however he front rolled on the ground and turned around. You threw a punch but he caught it with his larger hand. A grunt of frustration escaped your lips as the blue-masked turtle smirked. Before you could do anything else, he twisted your arm behind your back and locked his other arm around your throat from behind you. You could hear his breathing right next to your ear, his breath tickling your skin.
"What's your strategy now, hmm?" He taunted, his voice lower than usual.
You blushed at the sudden closeness and at his deep voice. He was taunting you, teasing you hard. You moved and attempted to set yourself free however you kept holding you in place. Using all your strength, you used your free hand to pull his arm away from your throat and twisted your body around before kicking him on his stomach. He fell back on his knees and looked up at you as you rubbed your arm that was previously twisted. Leo smirked again before letting out a battle cry and charged at you. You ran around the dojo, laughing as he chased you around, trying to take you down. However he used his ninja skills to suddenly disappear out of your site. You stopped running and looked around for Leo. Your eyes scanned the room but he was nowhere. Out of thin air, he appeared in front of you and tackled you down, pinning both your hands above your head with one of his large hands and used his other hand to tickle your sides. You laughed hysterically, squirming under him as he pressed his fingers on your ticklish sides.
"L-Leo! S-S-Stop!" You panted as you continued laughing, tears pricking your eyes.
He laughed too and then stopped, leaving room for you to finally breathe. You were both giggling like two children who had just finished playing a game of tag. After catching your breaths, you both looked at each other's eyes. Leo could see his reflection on your E/C eyes and you could see yours in his sapphire ones. None of you spoke, you were both just staring at each other. Slowly, the leader started leaning in, it was a force beyond his control that pulled him to you. It had been merely a few months since you'd known each other and he really liked you. He didn't quite understand whether it was the kind of like where you were his best friend or whether it was something deeper, stronger than that. That didn't stop his body from leaning down to you whilst you were internally freaking out. Was he actually going to kiss you? Like in fanfictions? Your eyes began closing as his face was getting closer and closer to yours. Just as your noses touched, Mikey burst through the dojo doors, startling Leo off of you and landing next to you.
"Dude the latest episode of Super Robo Mecha Force Five is gonna play in 5 minutes! Get your shell in front of the TV before it starts!" He chimed in. He paused for a few seconds, seeing you and Leo's red faces and then shrugged before exiting the dojo to sit back down with Jeremy, Raph, Donnie and April to watch the show.
"Latest episode huh? I'd like to watch that." You said with a shy smile.
"Y-yeah me too!" Leo added, his voice slightly cracking which made you giggle and him blush even more.
"Come on." You said before getting up and extended your hand out for him to grab. He took it and you both walked out to sit with the others.
Once you rejoined the team, you sat next to each other on the couch with Donnie and April on your other side. Raph was on the bean bag and Mikey was laying on his belly on the floor, his legs folding upwards like a child. He was the youngest of the brothers after all.
And with that, you all watched a new episode of the anime and after that was over, one of Studio Ghibli's movies started playing and surprisingly, everyone still stayed. Guess everyone liked Studio Ghibli's work. You knew you did. They were a piece of art. During the movie, you moved closer to Leo's side, snuggling into him as you tried to get comfortable. Leo smiled at you and then wrapped his strong arms around you, helping you get comfortable as your eyes were glued to the screen.