Alana and Janet had moved their things inside the turtles lair and Alana was still in disbelief that they would be living in a sewer, but then again the whole idea of them living with humanoid turtles was a little un-settling too. Alana only admitted to herself that it was a right choice that her sister made, because it would hide them from who ever the men were who killed her parents. The vehicles were parked and set as Janet and Leonardo stayed in the van and backed out of the lair. They were going to leave the van at April's apartment and walk back, since it wasn't far from the lair anyway.
Everything was already unloaded from the hitch and it was left parked in the corner of the room. Alana walked around her Javelin and remembered how much she had wanted it, but she didn't feel that same desire now. She hadn't wanted it in her fathers death, she wanted him to give it to her and watch her take care of it and now that wasn't going to happen. She decided to leave it covered along with the motorcycle. She didn't really want to drive it so she decided that her motorcycle would do for now. Alana turned away from the vehicles and looked at the box carts that were called the turtles "rooms." It was an old subway train and even though it was in a sewer, Alana had to admit that it was cozy looking. It was a station that had been fixed up nicely. Janet was staying with Leonardo and Alana was given a choice if she wanted to share a room or pick a spot in the lair to make herself a room. Alana chose to make herself a room. There was no way that she would be staying with a turtle, not to mention a male one at that. She walked across the lair to a somewhat inclosed side, where a wooden wall was. She came around the corner and peeked in to see a few boxes and other junk, but she thought she could make a room out of that one. All she needed was a curtain to cover the open side and it was fairly large so it would be good enough for her.
" You wanna stay all the way over here?" Mike came up and asked. Alana looked at him and then shrugged.
" I don't see why not." She said. Mike shrugged and looked in.
" Do you want some help?" He asked, gesturing to the boxes and other junk. Alana didn't feel too comfortable around them so she shook her head.
" No....I think I can manage, but I do need to know where to put all of this." She said, not looking at him.
" Well you can move it over there." He said and pointed to a bunch of boxes already stacked neatly against the back wall outside the little room. Alana nodded and then walked inside. Mike walked back over to the couch where his two brothers were sitting quietly and sat himself down. Alana knew it was going to be a lot of work, and although it was a little chilly, she needed to change into something more breezy. She opened her suitcase and pulled out a pair of black sweat pants and a short red halter tank top. She didn't want to change in there yet, because one of the guys might accidently walk over and see her so she walked out and looked at Mike, who was actually the only one she had really spoken to.
" Do you guys have a bathroom I can change in?" She asked. Don and Mike looked at her, but Raph didn't.
" Yeah it's over there in the corner." Mike said, pointing to what looked like a wooden wall built around a toilet and a bathtub. At least it had some privacy. She walked over to it and closed the door behind her.
" I really don't like her." Raph stated.
" Raph, it's not her fault that she doesn't trust anyone." Mike said in her defense.
" I do have to agree with some of the things that were said at the house though. Janet should really be more supportive of Alana at this time, but instead of going to her, she goes to Leo. I just think it's a little wrong." Donatello said softly. Raphael only shrugged.
" I told you she was a bitch."
" Raph!" Mike said. Don just shook his head, when then bathroom door opened. Alana walked out with her hair tied back into a ponytail and her dirty clothes in hand. The turtles looked at her in surprise.
" How old are you again?" Mike asked. She looked up and saw that everyone was staring at her.
" I'm sixteen." She answered.
" You are one built sixteen year old." Mike said.
" Why the hell do you work out so much anyway?" Raph asked, looking at the six-pack she had on her stomach.
" For ballet." She stated flatly to the rude turtle. He gave her a strange look of "yeah right" and watched her walk past them.
" I thought ballet dancers were supposed to be feminine and pretty." Raph stated, as he cleaned underneath his nails. Alana turned to look at him, but found herself speechless. Was he saying that she was ugly? Don and Mike gave him a dirty look, but it didn't seem to have any effect.
" And you think that you're so hot? Now if I had to pick between who I thought was the best looking out of all of you turtles, you'd be the last on my list." She said calmly and walked away. Raphael huffed and continued to mess with his finger nails.
" Raph, you shouldn't have said that. I think you actually hurt her feelings." Mike said sourly. Raphael looked up at his brother and then at Don who was sitting back in his chair and wasn't looking very happy with him either.
" What? It's not like she's a super-model. Besides, I didn't say she was completely ugly, I just thought that ballerinas were supposed to be really pretty and all."
" Raph, I'm sure if she had makeup like they do, she would really stand out, but she depressed and hasn't eaten in days, how the hell do you expect her to look great if she's in that condition?" Mike added.
" That isn't my problem." He said and relaxed his head. They all turned to see Janet and Leo climbing down the ladder and into the lair. They walked over and sat down on the two seat couch across from Raphael.
" What's wrong?" Leo asked, noticing Mike and Don's expression. Mike pointed to Raph and that was all that needed to be said.
" Oh." He said and relaxed. It had been a hectic day.
" Where's Alana?" Janet asked.
" She's over there cleaning out a little room for herself. She didn't want any help though." Mike said.
" She never does. She likes to do things on her own." Janet stated.
Alana started to lift boxes from the room and carry them out to the wall where there were already some lined up. She began to stack them and clean out the room as fast as possible, so that she could relax and not have to worry about being out with everyone.
Splinter had arrived home after the turtles and Janet had gone out to look for Alana and he was relaxing in his room. Although, she wasn't getting the treatment of kindness, Splinter would not think to turn his back on her. They hadn't formally met, but he didn't think that she would show any disrespect for him like she might for the others. He opened his little window and looked in the direction of the little room she was cleaning and could only see her when she came out carry something to stack against the wall. She was already breaking into a sweat and pushing herself a little hard, but it was her decision to do so. He could hear her breathing hard as she passed by with another box. He sat back and shook his head.
" Youth." He whispered.
Alana stood, looking at her now empty room and sighed. She had finally finished taking all the boxes out and it was ready to be cleaned. She looked around and saw a broom in the corner and began to sweep everything out of there until she had a clear floor. Then she walked out and looked at her sister.
" Janet, where is the bed?" She asked, referring to the bed that was already brought down for her from the house. Everyone looked at her, covered in sweat and heaving for breaths.
" Don't you think you should take a break?" Janet asked.
" No. It'll never get done if I stop now." She stated.
" Where is it?" She insisted. Janet pointed to her left and Alana looked to see the bed covered with a brown paper and tape to cushion it when it was being shipped on the hitch. She walked over to it and noticed the two front wheels were missing, but the back ones were there.
" Dammit." She grumbled. She didn't even want to think of asking anyone for help after Raphael had insulted her earlier, so she walked over and turned her back to the headboard and then went down, grabbed it from behind her and lifted the heavy front end.
" Alana! That's heavy! You could hurt yourself." Janet said. The turtles looked at her and doubted that she could moved the huge bed, even with the wheels, but she began to drag it across the room. Sweat covered her face and body and her muscles tightened with having to lift the heavy weight, but she was managing.
" Alana, are you sure you don't want any help?" Mike asked worriedly.
" No....I...got it..." She said with gritted teeth as her arms became strained, but she pulled it over to the room and set it where she wanted it. She was beginning to hurt now and she still had a long way to go. She walked back out to where she saw her dresser and tried to lift it, but couldn't get it that far off the ground. No one was paying attention to her anymore, so she was thankful that they didn't see her having a hard time, especially since this one didn't have wheels to drag it on.
Splinter walked out of his room and looked at Mike who was on the phone making a pizza order. Donatello walked up beside him and when he was finished, he said he was going to go wait for the delivery man. Leonardo and Janet made their way to his room to get some rest until dinner arrived. Splinter looked at Alana trying to drag the cherry wood dresser to the room, but he could tell that she was hurting and not willing to ask for any help. Splinter walked over to Raphael and looked down at him.
" Raphael, you will assist her." He said calmly. Raphael looked up at Splinter and then at her.
" Do I have to?" He asked with a tone of distaste. Splinter gave him a warning look that answered his question and he got up gruffly and walked over to her, shaking his head. She looked up at him and frowned.
" What do you want?" She asked breathlessly.
" I have to help you."
" I don't want your help."
" Too bad. I have to. I don't want to help you either, but I was told to." He growled and walked over to the end of the dresser and lifted the heavy thing off the ground. Alana was surprised at how quickly he lifted it and assumed he must be extremely strong, even for a turtle. They walked it over toward the room and she walked over to where she wanted it and they set it down. Alana walked back out to get some of the other boxes and bring them in, but Raphael waited where he was and looked at her bedroom set. It was all cherry wood. A very expensive wood. He recognized the fact that his bed was just a metal frame with a dented mattress on it. He raised an eye ridge and looked around and then looked at Alana bringing in a large box. Splinter was watching from his little box room so Raphael walked over and took it from her and brought it over to the other side of the room. Alana looked at him strangely and then went to go get the other boxes. The entire time, Raphael would not speak to her about anything. She began to unpack her boxes, but still kept an eye on him. He was helping her put some things away, since Splinter had made it clear that he be nice to her. He didn't look to happy about it though. Alana lifted some things wrapped in newspaper and started to unwrap them. She took out a few picture frames and walked over to the dresser and began to set them up.
Raphael pulled out a somewhat large wooden box and opened it to reveal paints and paint brushes. He looked at Alana and held it up.
" Where do you want this?" He asked, annoyed with having to help her anymore than he already had. She looked at them and then at the wall.
" Would anyone get mad if I used them?" She asked curiously, coming up with paintings that could give her room a more lively look to it. Raphael knew what she was thinking and shrugged.
" Personally, I don't give a shit what you do as long as it isn't near me." He stated. Alana walked over and took the paints.
" You know what, why don't you just stop helping me right about now." She growled. Raphael looked up into her bright green eyes and shrugged.
" Fine, I'll do that. I got better things to do than help a spoiled brat with her junk." He said.
" Oh yeah, like what? Sit your ugly ass down on the couch and watch t.v. or find someone to pick on? Sounds like you have lots of better things to do." She stated sarcastically. Raphael narrowed his eyes and looked at her.
" I'm warning you, girl! You better watch yourself around me. I'm getting tired of you already and you haven't even been here a whole day yet!" He growled and stomped out of the room. Alana rolled her eyes and looked at the walls. The beige paint was chipped and ugly, but she could fix that. She still had a large bucket of white paint from when she was repainting her room. She went and unpacked it from her "art" box and started to just paint the walls. She wanted to do everything in one day and she had a plan for the wall decoration she would use to make things more like home.
Janet had changed into some shorts and a tee shirt to be more comfortable and then came to sit next to Leonardo.
" What are we going to do about Alana?" She asked, more to herself than to Leonardo. He shrugged.
" I don't know what to tell you. I mean, she's your sister, even though she's a brat. Maybe she'll adjust to this, I don't know." He said. Janet nodded her head and sighed.
Donatello and Mike walked in holding three large pizzas in their hands. They came and set them on the table in front of the couches. Raphael was over by his punching, doing nothing in particular and when he saw the pizzas and began to make his way over, but suddenly stopped dead in his tracks.
" AWE SHIT!" Everyone turned to look at Raphael who was standing over a little brown pile on the ground.
" That damn dog!" He growled.
" I almost stepped in that shit!" He added. Don tried to stifle a laugh and shook his head.
" I think we need to put some newspaper down for the dog." He said.
" Why don't we just get her a goddamn litter box?" Raphael grumbled as Janet walked over with a newspaper and cleaned up the mess.
" Mainly because litter boxes are made for cats, not for dogs." Don said smartly only to get an evil look from his angry brother. Raphael turned and looked at Azul who watched him, but kept her distance.
" And you! You hairy mutt! You better learn where to wipe your ass cause I don't want to see this again!" He hissed, pointing a finger at the dog who barked and then let loose a low growl. He sneered and walked over to his punching bag and punched it for a while. Janet looked up at him while she was cleaning and shook her head.
" Are you just naturally pissed off? The only thing you do is punch that bag." She stated.
" Well be thankful it's the bag and not you or that bitch of a sister you got." He growled and then walked away from it to avoid Janet. She just mocked him and went to clean her hands before going to eat. She walked over to the couch and sat down next to Leo who leaned over and kissed her gently.
" Don't do that shit in front of me." Raph growled in disgust.
" It's nasty." He added. Janet narrowed her brown eyes and stared at Raph in disbelief.
" I can't believe how much of an asshole you are!" She growled bitterly. Raphael stopped hitting the bag and looked at her.
" Look you little bitch! I don't like you or your little sister and I want nothing to do with either of you. Now if you want to make kids with my brother then be my guest, but don't come in here trying to dictate how I should be living my life!" He yelled.
Alana heard the yelling and came out of the room to look at what all the commotion was. Janet may have hurt her, but she was still her sister and she wouldn't allow a man to hit her. She glanced and saw Mike walk out and stand fairly close to her, but his attention was on his brothers.
" Don't start again!" Donatello said sternly, standing next to Leo.
" You stay the fuck out of it! I still got my own score to settle with you! I don't like the fact that this little bitch is invited to live here and decides that she wants to tell me how to act! It ain't my fault that I don't live the rich life that she did or that I don't act like the rich stuck up jerks that she's used to being around! I'm gonna be the way I am whether you like it or not!" He yelled angrily.
" Perhaps if you were a little more civilized, there would be no reason for her to dislike you." Alana cut in calmly. Raphael turned sharply to her.
" You shouldn't even be talking, because you're more of a bitch than your sister." He growled.
" Well I obviously have my reasons for being a bitch and I will continue to be a bitch, however, it will be more pronounced to you because you're an asshole and I just don't like you." She stated, crossing her arms in front of her. Raphael stared at her like he wanted to hit her and she knew that he must be trying real hard not to.
" It's rich bitches like you that really piss me off!" He growled.
" Oh really? What's so rich about my life now?!" She yelled angrily.
" I'd say that you have more than I do right about now! You have a home! It may not be some big ass house, but it is still your home! We don't! You also have your family and we don't! So don't come about telling me that my life is rich, cause not all the money in the world will give me back what I lost and that's all the matters to me!" She screamed. Raphael was going to say something, but couldn't find anything to say. She had a point, but he didn't want to give into that.
" You and your sister should stay the fuck out of my business!" He growled.
" Well than if you want that, then maybe you should do the same! If you hadn't said anything to her, then she wouldn't have said anything to you. If you would have just shut your fucking mouth, you wouldn't have to be here listening to any of us! But no! You choose to fight with every damn body!"
" She's got a point." Mike said matter of fact. Raphael turned sharply to him and growled.
" You shut the hell up Mikey!" Then he turned and pointed the sai at Alana.
" As for you! I'm going to kick your ass!" He growled and came at her, but Donatello stepped in the way.
" You've cause enough trouble!" Don yelled, but it set Raphael off. He didn't care that he was at home with Splinter there to watch, he was going to get Donny. He lunged at his brother and tackled him to the ground.
" I still owe you for that hit you got off me a few months back!" He sneered with an evil smile.
" Boy does he hold a grudge!" Janet whispered. Raphael punched Donatello hard in the face, but he pushed his angry brother off and jumped to his feet. They watched and waited to see what was going to happen. They never interfered in a fight between brothers unless one got out of hand, namely Raphael. Alana watched in surprise at their fighting ability and accuracy. It was actually a quite intriguing sight. The muscles of both turtles rippled as they hit each other and their skill in weaponry was most impressive.
Donatello twirled his bo and swung at Raphael, but he ducked, avoiding a blow and sent a hard kick to Don's stomach causing him to fall over onto his knees. Alana looked at the sais Raphael had in his hand and suddenly saw a flash of shiny metal in her mind.
Catherine fell backwards against the kitchen wall.....
Alana shook her head of the thought and took a step backwards and watched the fight go on, but every time Raphael raised his sais, Alana could see that night all over again.
The killer raised his knife and then thrust it into Catherine's chest and thrust it upwards, slicing her neck....
Alana flinched and remembered all the blood, the pain, and the screaming she had heard. She couldn't bear to think of seeing that again. She opened her eyes to see Raphael kick Donatello and send him to the floor. Raphael's lip was bleeding from getting hit by Donatello and it seemed to really fuel the anger. He held his sais tight and charged at his brother. Before she realized what she was doing, Alana turned quickly and grabbed one of Mike's nunchucks from his belt and then threw it at Raphael, hitting his hand and causing him to drop on of his sai. Alana ran over and kicked him in the stomach and then right between the legs as hard as she could. Leo and Mike were dumbstruck and Donatello quickly got to his feet and grabbed his bo. Alana grabbed the sai from the ground and then the other from his hand and then ran out of sight behind the box carts.
" You are not getting these back until you learn to behave!" They heard her yell. Raphael was holding his groin in pain and cursing under his breath.
" You bitch! I'm gonna fuckin kill you!" He screamed, but the pain was evident in his voice. Mike walked over and picked up the nunchuck and then looked at his fallen brother. As much as he felt sorry for Raphael, he was glad that Alana kicked him, because it just might have saved both brothers. Mike backed away and went back to the couch to sit, avoiding any eye contact with his brother. Leonardo on the other hand started to yell at Raph.
" Your sister has some guts. I owe her one." Don stated, trying to catch his breath, but he got an angry glare from Raph who had tears of pain in his eyes.
" I don't know what made her do that. She might have been reminded of something from that night that just made her snap. Janet said. Leo backed away when Raphael staggered to his feet and started to limp away when Splinter came out and stopped him. Splinter had the look of anger and disappointment in his eyes.
" Come with me now, Raphael!" Splinter growled at the angry turtle, who didn't bother to argue. Donatello watched his brother go with Splinter to his room and knew know that things were going to be a problem. Raphael didn't have the vengeance for him anymore, but more for Alana. Although, he didn't believe that Raphael would really physically hurt her, he knew that he would do it emotionally. Raphael had more of an advantage over her in that way.
" Master, she took my sais!" Raphael cried and was yelled at by Splinter's thundering voice.
Mike opened the boxes of pizza and looked at everyone.
" I know this is the best of times, but I think we need to eat." He stated. Donatello didn't object to it and Leo finally reached for a slice and gave some to Janet. Donatello swallowed a bite and then looked around to see that Alana wasn't anywhere in sight. He set his pizza down and got to his feet, but stopped when he heard Splinter yelling at Raphael.
" You attack you brothers and say cruel things to them! Your hatred is more than can be handled and the attack upon Donatello today was uncalled for! I know of the incident the day you saved Alana from that man, but that is no excuse for what happened today. You could have seriously hurt or even killed your brother." Splinter growled, but it was evident that he was weary of the fighting already. Splinter waved his hand to dismiss him and walked out of the room. Raphael followed and Donatello decided that he didn't want to see his brother or talk to him for a while so he walked in the direction of Alana's room. He didn't go in, for fear that she might be changing or something, so he knocked on the side of the wall and called out to her.
" Alana, don't you want to come out and eat?" He asked.
" No thank you." She said, but something in her voice made him stay there. Was she crying? He slowly peeked around the corner and looked in on her, but his eyes were drawn to the white walls and he almost dropped his mouth in surprise.
" My god...." He said in awe and came to stand right in front of the room. Mike and the other wonder3ed what he was so fascinated with and walked over to look in. Splinter moved Raphael in the direction of the room to make him apologize to her, but when he saw the wall, even he was captivated by it's beauty. Janet looked at the wall and felt the tears warm up in her eyes.
Alana dipped the paint brush in the green paint mixed with a little bit of brown to make it slightly darker and brought it up to the wall and painted in her mothers eye. Alana put the brush back down and looked at the wall and began to feel the hurt for her loss all over again. It hadn't taken her long to paint a portrait of her mother and father on the wall, together.
The turtles stared at it and then looked down at Alana, who was putting some finishing touches into her painting. They couldn't believe how good of an artist she was. Janet looked into the green eyes of her mother and the brown eyes of her father and wished with all her heart that they were still alive, but the painting was all that was there. Janet walked back to the couch and sat down in silence. It was just too painful to look at what she would never have again. The turtles walked back over to the couch and sat themselves down. Raphael on the other hand, managed to walk away from Splinter, far enough for him to get away and leave the lair. He didn't want to be around his brothers or Alana and Janet. He just wanted to get away and cool off, if that was even possible for him. He felt the cold drain water splash under each step he made as he made his way down the dark tunnels.
Three hours past and it was already starting to get dark. Alana walked out of her little room to check on Azul who was on the other side of the lair relaxing on a little pillow that Don had given her. The other turtles and Janet were sitting in the living room, talking to each other, but paused to look at Alana, thinking that maybe she would come and eat, but she just walked over to Azul.
" Boy, that girl can draw." Mike stated, remembering the portrait of her parents that she had painted on her bedroom wall.
" Yeah I know. She could be one hell of an artist if she tries to." Don commented, sitting back against his chair.
Alana was sitting next to Azul who's eyes were closed and her head was resting on Alana's lap. Alana looked at the group, but soon turned her attention back to Azul who's head jolted up and she looked anxiously at the box carts.
" What is it girl?" She asked softly, but Azul's attention was somewhere else. The merle dog stood up and barked suddenly. Everyone turned to look at her and then questioningly at Alana who didn't know what to think. Alana got up as well and then Azul started to make her way toward the box carts and stopped at one of the doors. Alana looked down at the dog and then at the door and knocked.
" Splinter?" There was no answer. She didn't want to intrude, but Azul had proved her instincts were not to be ignored. Alana reached out and turned the knob, opening the door slowly, she peered in.
" Oh god!" She gasped. She pushed the door all the way open and went in.
" Donny! Mikey!" She cried. The turtles didn't need to be called again. They jumped to their feet and ran over to the room. Leonardo was the first in the room and Alana backed away from the scene quickly.
" Master Splinter? Master, please......can you hear me?" Leo was near breakdown no matter how hard he tired to control himself. Splinter's fur was damp from sweat and his breathing was ragged. Splinter was sick and no one knew with what because he had never bothered to say. Leo had to think of something fast, but the only thing that came to mind was getting him out of there and there was only one place they could go. He had to talk to April first about it to make sure that it wouldn't be too much of a problem. Alana stayed away from the scene.
" Not again......." She whispered, not wanting to deal with another death.