Mikey crawled up to Splinter's recliner and peaked his head over the arm. With the biggest puppy eyes he could muster, he looked up and pleaded with clasped hands, "Dad? Can we go talk to Maria again? It's been over five hours like you said."
What the rat man couldn't see was the hoard of teens hiding in the doorway behind him with crossed fingers, silently cheering Mikey on.
"Oh, my sweet baby Orange. If they are already awake. It is only 4 o'clock. There is still lots of time for talking." He patted Mikey's head.
There was a bunch of fist pumping and mouthing of 'YES' among the group as Mikey jumped up and ran towards the door. They all practically raced to the med bay, excited to learn more about their mysterious new friend.
Stopping in front of the door, they all looked to Donnie who was checking the screen on his arm.
"Heart rate indicates that she's probably awake. But maybe we shouldn't all pile in right off the bat." He looked up with a raised eyebrow.
Without a word, they all rushed to touch their nose or equivalent spot on their face. This left Casey as the only one not doing it, looking around confused.
April leaned over to him and said, "Last person to touch their nose is it."
"Oooooh... wait..."
"Yep, you're it, kiddo." Leo came up behind him and started pushing Casey towards the door. "See if she's up and ask if we can come hang."
"But-"
"You guys know I can hear you through the door right?" Maria's muffled voice interrupted from the other side. "Just come in."
Sharing some embarrassed looks, they all entered. Maria was sitting up in the bed, teasing her unbroken hand through their hair in an attempt to comb the mess it was. The swelling around her eye had noticeably gone down and the visible bruises were already at the fading purple and yellowing stage of healing.
"Did you sleep at all since we left?" April asked.
"Maybe? I closed my eyes for a while. Could have been a minute, could have been three hours." She shrugged.
"How have the meds been?" Donnie asked, going to the monitor and IV.
"Nice. Things hurt less."
"That is the idea."
Her grey face flushed red, "Sorry. I've been really loose-lipped with the morphine, huh?" She rubbed her cheek to ease the blush with the cool of her skin. "I don't usually talk so much. I guess if there's anything you wanna know, you better ask while I'm doped up." Maria chuckled at the end, returning to de-tangling her hair.
"Ooo!" Mikey shot his hand up.
"Yes?"
"Can I do your hair?"
"Would you?" She let her hand fall, body and face portraying tired relief.
His eyes shone as he said, "I'll be right back!" then darted out of the room.
"Are you cool if we come hang out with you?" Casey asked, rubbing the back of his neck, obviously uncomfortable.
"Yeah. But you don't need to stand around the whole time. Pull up a chair or something." Maria looked up at Raph when she added, "Makin' me feel real small in this bed."
"Right! Raph and Leo will grab some chairs." Raph placed a hand on Leo's shoulder and steered him out of the med bay with him.
The two returned shortly after with multiple beanbags and chairs, and set them up around the bed. They all made claim to the various seats.
Mikey came back with a towel over his shoulder, a small spray bottle of water in one hand, and a couple combs and brushes in the other. There were also a couple hair elastics on his wrist that were not there before. His body practically vibrated with excitement.
They set it up so that Mikey sat behind her on top of the bed's pillows, propped up so that Maria's head aligned with his chest, giving him a good perspective of what he was working with.
Wetting her hair with the spray bottle, Mikey began his grooming by wiping away dried blood with the towel.
He couldn't help but notice how Maria reacted to his actions. While generally relaxed as he dealt with her dark brown hair, she would tense or flinch any time he brushed skin or touched her neck and shoulders. This caused Mikey to furrow his brow and frown unconsciously as he worked. Her responses activated Dr. Feelings, and he couldn't help but analyze each reaction and overall body language.
"How are you feeling?" April asked from a beanbag chair.
"Marginally better. Feels more sore than painful."
"How about mentally? You did just run away from home." Mikey added, having started combing.
"Uuuuuuh... I don't know. I don't think it has really hit me yet that I'm free." Maria was looking at her hands again.
"I'll preface my question by saying that you are more than welcome to stay with us. But did you have a plan for once you successfully left?" Leo asked, legs elegantly crossed and elbows resting behind him on the chair back.
"Well, yeah. I couldn't very well run away from the biggest crime boss around without a plan. But are you sure you wanna hear about it? I'm afraid that I'll just info dump on you guys."
"We are literally here because we wanna know all about you. Plus most of us are neurodivergent, so we get it. Lay it on us." April emphasized her words with her hands, making grabbing motions for the last bit.
"Alright. But let me know if I start to ramble."
YOU ARE READING
The Last Turtle Yokai
FanfictionIt's been a year since the Kraang invasion attempt and our favourite turtle family have recovered their physical wounds. Mental, however? They've been better, but are on the mend. Life has become quiet in the absence of the Foot Clan and they haven'...
