The next day, Destiny is awoken by an excited voice and her shoulders being shaken rather rapidly.
"Wakey wakey! I get to help you become a kunoichi today!"
She groans and opens her eyes, instantly meeting the baby blue eyes of Michelangelo above her, their noses almost touching. She barks in surprise, jerking the blanket over her face and disappearing from view.
"Oops! Sorry, didn't mean to scare you," he apologizes. "Hurry up and get ready! Lots to learn!"
Destiny slowly sits up, rubbing her eyes and completely aware of the horrid state of her bed-head. "Wait...patrol or whatever went well?" she asks, a yawn stretching her face a second later.
The excitable terrapin nods rapidly, his bright smile still lifting his freckled cheeks. "Murakami loves you, dudette! He told us all about how nice you are and how you've helped him over the years and that you can turn into a giant wolf! Splinter and the guys were totally convinced. Now come on! Training time!"
In her groggy state of mind, she doesn't notice the comment about her wolf form. "Don't I get breakfast?" she mumbles, still trying to blink sleep from her eyes.
"Of course, silly." He laughs, bouncing up and down a few times. "I made toast, eggs, and bacon, and we'll eat it before we start training. Meet you out there!"
With that, he skips out of the room humming to himself. Destiny smiles a tiny bit, crawling out of bed and reaching for the crutches next to her bed. Donatello already gave her a scolding for not using them the other day. She'd rather avoid another confrontation.
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"Alright dudette, you ready to be the best?" Michelangelo asks, spinning his nunchucks.
Destiny nods, leaning awkwardly on the tree in the centre of the dojo with her bad foot lifted slightly to alleviate some of the pressure. She feels all warm and well-fed from the amazing breakfast that the family just indulged in. Plus, she had no idea that Michelangelo was such a good cook.
"Why else would I be here?" she inquires.
He shrugs. "I don't know, maybe you just like dojos." He turns to face her, his eyes locking on hers. "Hey, I know that you barely know us, but I'm glad that you're sticking around. Stuff like this can happen every day!"
Guilt bubbles up in Destiny's chest. She hasn't decided whether she's staying for good or not, but it doesn't look like he's remembering that tidbit of information.
Still, she forces a smile at the kind words. "Thanks Mikey."
He grins. "That's what I do, Desti-bear."
She arches an eyebrow as her tail flicks. "Desti-bear?"
He laughs, the sound musical and contagious. "That's your nickname! We've all got one, so it's only fair that you have one too." He furrows his brow slightly. "And besides, Desti-wolf didn't seem quite right, but Desti-bear does!"
She scratches at the back of her neck, her pointed teeth snagging on her lip lightly. "Do you think I've earned that title?"
"Totes!" he exclaims. He spins his nunchucks, flashing a cheeky grin. "Hey, wanna know a secret?"
"Sure."
He urges her to lean closer and she obeys. He looks around for a moment before donning a serious expression. Her breath hitches in anticipation.
"I'm the best at naming stuff. If you ever need to name anything, talk to me."
He steps back as a coy look flickers across his face. Destiny blinks a few times, then cracks a smile as a giggle leaves her.
"I will," she promises.
He poses with his nunchucks, wiggling his non-existent eyebrows. "Alright, time to learn!"
----------
"Like this?" Destiny asks.
She spins the nunchucks in her hand, almost getting it...or at least until the end smacks her in the face and she yelps in pain.
"Almost! You're so close!" Michelangelo urges, adjusting her grip on the handles.
She tries again, but the ends hits the shoulder with her arrow wound in it this time. She winces, a growl of annoyance rising in her throat as she drops the weapon and clamps her hand over the bandage. Michelangelo frowns and moves towards her.
"You okay there?" he asks.
"Fine," she answers, lowering herself to the ground and carefully maneuvering her ankle out from under her and stretching it out. She eyes the discarded nunchucks forlornly. "I suck at this. I'm gonna have one thousand black eyes before I get the hang of these," she groans.
He smirks, getting a pensive look on his freckled face. "I'm not Donnie, but I do know that it's impossible for you to get that many black eyes...unless you become some sort of spider mutant."
The girl smiles a little at his logic, but it soon disappears. She moves her sprained ankle back and forth—trying to stretch it despite the brace on it—with one hand braced against her thigh. Michelangelo extends his three-fingered hand to her, his smile softer and more welcoming than usual. She takes it and he pulls her back to her feet, releasing her as soon as she's steady.
"You won't learn it if you give up, dudette," he comments, shrugging his freckled shoulders. He stoops to grabs the nunchucks, holding them out to her. "Get back on the saddle, right?" he asks, blue eyes sparkling.
She evades them, shaking her head. "I don't think they're my type," she says, rubbing her arm sheepishly. "No offence."
He blinks a few times, then shrugs. "Well, okay, no offence taken. We can find something else for you to try," he says. "Just..." He laughs weakly. "I'm not sure what that'll be, considering your foot."
"Anything that doesn't involve a whole ton of walking?" she suggests.
"I could try a couple katas. They're individual training exercises and maybe some can help you perfect your form," he says. "Leo's amazing at them," he adds as his happy demeanour disappears for a moment. "Maybe I shouldn't teach you them..."
"No no," Destiny says, shaking her head. "Splinter asked you to train me for the first week, so...you should show me some kadas or whatever. I think you can do it."
"Kata, with a t," he corrects, making her nod but bite her lip in embarrassment. His smile returns. "You really think I can?"
"Well, you're already a better ninja than I'll ever be," she responds, crossing her arms over her chest. "It's probably your first time teaching too, so you're allowed to make mistakes, right?"
He puckers his lips, his head tilting as he raises a finger to his "ear" and scratches. "Yeah, I guess so!" He points at her as his expression becomes uncharacteristically stern. "But you need to believe in yourself more, girly! Leo said you have potential, and I do too, so believe! Stop beating yourself up!" he proclaims as his resolve crumbles and he cracks his old grin. "Go Des! Team Desti-bear!"
Her entire face goes red. "Oh geez, Mikey..."
"Show me your game face! Roar! Wolf howl!" he urges. "Show me your wolf! Be powerful!" he keeps going as his eagerness grows, his hands clasping together and his eyes going big and dewy.
Destiny purses her lips as the colour in her face struggles to disappear, yet she's unable to disappoint him after seeing the excitement in his baby blue eyes. She glances around the dojo once, preparing herself and taking a deep breath. Once calm, she transforms, dropping onto her four giant black paws while lowering herself onto her haunches.
"Roar?" she asks. "Is this the game face you wanted?"
Michelangelo's mouth drops open and he throws his arms out to the sides, a high-pitched squeal leaving him. "Oh my shell, you're actually a giant dog! Amazing, dudette!" he shrieks, lunging forwards and wrapping his arms around her furry neck.
Her green eyes widen as she makes a surprised wolf sound that's halfway between a bark and a whimper. The turtle buries his face against her black fur, a low hum resonating from his chest and his breath warming the spot.
"So fluffy," he whispers. He steps back and looks up at her, thrusting his arms out towards her. "The only mutant I've seen who's bigger than you is Leatherhead!" he says, his freckled cheeks remaining perked in his never-ending smile.
"Leatherhead?" Destiny rumbles, tilting her head.
His gaze grows sad for a moment. "He's my best friend. He's a giant alligator mutant, but he's honestly such a teddy bear. Maybe one day you could meet him! I'm sure you'd like each other!"
Again, he speaks like she's going to stay around. She hides the guilty frown that tries to work its way onto her doggish lips. As fun as the orange-masked turtle is, she doesn't want him getting attached to her, nor she to him.
She flicks her tail lightly before returning to her normal form, shifting again as she lifts her foot off the ground.
"So...katas?" she asks.
The goofy terrapin spins his nunchucks, slipping them into his belt. "Oh yeah," he says. His eyes narrow, his lips puckering as he points to a spot in the distance and poses. "We shall perform the kata of awesomeness."
She blinks a few times. "Is that real?"
He laughs. "I made it up."
She shakes her head back and forth, a smile weaving its way onto her face. "Of course you did."