Chapter Text
The sewer tunnels were chill and breezy as wind from above swept through, creating a low whistling, the sound reverberating against the curved walls. Water dripped from the leaky pipes that hung above, falling into the cracks on the floor and pooling in the divots in the concrete. It was a crisp summer day, just a week before school was said to start and the weather was getting colder. A gray hand followed the patterns etched into the wall, all the fissures making interesting stories to the hand that traced them.
Two long pink ribbons flowed behind her, tied neatly into a bow as she walked deftly along the wall, making sure to keep her steps light, being as silent as she could manage. Head in the clouds, she tiptoed around each corner, hopping along the edge of the wall to avoid the puddles merging into the middle of the tunnel. Sliding her fingers across the damp stone, she peeked around the next corner, body going rigid as a loud clattering noise echoed through the tunnel. She turned around, body in fighting position, weapon ready. It didn't take long for her to cover her mouth, a smile making her eyes crinkle. A brown turtle stood behind her, one leg lifted and both hands at his hips making T-Rex arms, his face pulled into one of shock.
“Macy, don't you dare-” She broke out into a fit of laughter, giggling abruptly as her weapon fell from her hands. She couldn't help but snort as the brown turtle sighed, slapping a hand across his snout and pulling it down as he slouched.
“I'm so sorry Mars-” Eventually, her giggles subsided, making her exasperated as she spoke. “I really didn't mean to, it was just a little funny that you managed to make the loudest noise possible!” Mars, the brown turtle adorned in a mask of purple with little stars hanging off the tips of his tied bow, shook his head and rolled his eyes.
“Like you could do any better miss-head-in-the-clouds.” Her smile never wavered as she shrugged, continuing to walk around the corner, not waiting for her brother.
“Yeah, well, I was able to avoid the very obvious tin can laying on the floor that you kicked like it owed you lunch money.” A snort was accompanied by lazy stomping as her brother fumed next to her.
“Oh cool it Marzipan, I was just teasing you. We can train more tomorrow if we need to hone in your skills some more. I know you've never been good at being one with the shadows.” She waved her hands, fingers wiggling as she lifted them in front of Mars and giggling lightly. The other turtle, on the other hand, was unamused.
“We don't need more training, in fact, we need to relax. I'm sure Mac will agree.” They reached the end of the tunnel, Mars tapping away at a metal band on his arm, allowing the hidden passageway of their lair to open right before them.
“Well, let's see what he has to say then-” A larger turtle bounded up to them, picking the two up into his arms, spikes slightly poking at the smaller turtles as they spun in a circle off the floor. They were promptly set down as Mars gagged, sick from being spun like a ragdoll.
“Sorry buddy, I forgot.. again..” Mars put a hand up in the air, shaking his head as he hunched over.
“Stop spinning me- I beg of you-” Macy put a hand on the larger turtle’s arm, looking up at him, her whole face practically glowing.
“Mac, Mars says you want to take a break from training tomorrow. Is that true?” He was sweating profusely now, his red, tattered hoodie only getting more holes as he shrugged nervously.
“I mean.. it would be nice not having to train for a day- not saying that the bad guys are getting easy, but it's just.. we're getting burnt out.” Mars finally got out of his funk, chiming in with a curt nod. Macy, the turtle with a pink mask tied into a prim bow with two ribbons trailing down her back nodded along with them, a hand to her chin as her smile faded, looking more serious now.
“Okay, I suppose I could chill with the training tomorrow… but only if you two clean the dishes tonight after dinner.” Mac grinned, nodding enthusiastically while Mars sighed, pretending to be nonchalant.
“Great, it's settled then. But if there's any arguing from you two-” The two brothers stared at each other, giving two thumbs up and smiling wide.
“We would never! We'll clean those dishes and be all friendly, right Mars?” Mars’s smile faltered as he nodded along to Mac's every word.
“Yep, what he said.” Macy couldn't argue with that, so she let the two go to do whatever it is they do as she began to make dinner. She took off her mask, slid of her gloves, and replaced it all for an apron that said: “Kiss the chef” but kiss was crossed out in red, and instead the word was replaced with “hug” and it made Macy's heart swell whenever she saw the silly piece of fabric every time she cooked. Her siblings made it for her around her 13th birthday.
Making something simple to finish the night off, she slid the pizza with a variety of toppings into the oven, a soft smile lifting the corners of her mouth. She loved cooking and baking, it was one of the many joys she had aside from painting and sketching, though Mac was the real artist.
The smell of the pizza cooking filled the room, the clock's gentle ticking and Mac's soft snores from the other room made the whole scene comforting. That was, before a loud bang was heard down the hall, startling Macy out of her daze. She looked at the little timer that sat next to the oven and huffed out a sigh, tossing her apron aside and running down the hall towards Mars’s lab. She hurriedly pushed the buttons to get into the Lab, metal doors sliding open and she rushed in, fists held up high and ready to fight.
“Um, Macy, Hi, nice to see you too-” The brown turtle was tied upside down from a rope connecting to the pipes in the ceiling. His goggles were knocked to the floor beneath him and a small robot was running around manically, destroying his inventions and ripping up papers and blueprints.
“Mars, what in the world is going on?” Mars was slowly spinning in a circle as the rope dangled him a few feet from the air, his arms bound.
“I've got this handled, I can-” Macy popped out her hip, brow raised.
“Mhm, I can see that. What is that thing?” Mars cleared his throat.
“Ignoring the sarcasm. Ahem, yes well I was upgrading a security bot that was already in the middle of an upgrade and it decided it wanted to revolt against me and changed its own code. All I need to do is get out of this rope and get into it's brain to turn it off and-” Macy cracked her knuckles, hearing the timer ding in the kitchen, letting it be known that the pizza was finished.
“Or I can just do this!” She grabbed a wrench off of Mars’s workbench and stared the bot down, chasing it until she got close enough and bashed the wrench down into the metal can, wires gushing out as she hit it a few times. All she could hear was Mars yelling at her before a loud thud sounded behind her, a rough hand taking her wrist and ripping the tool from her, throwing it to the side. His face was scrunched into one of scorn and rage, paired with disbelief.
“I can't believe you just destroyed my invention IN FRONT OF ME.” Shivers were sent down her spine and her usual sunny demeanor chilled over. She wasn't thinking, just like she had done in the battle with her younger brother just an hour earlier. She got them in a mess and ruined it, just for Mars to clean it up with his inventions.
“Wait, Mars, I'm sorry I didn't mean- I don't know what happened I-” He pressed a finger into her plastron, snarling at her, his snaggletooth turned up in a sneer.
“No, you listen to me! You can't just barge in here and destroy my things when they make a little mess! You did this earlier today at the junkyard, you did this the last time all three of us were on a mission, and you'll keep doing it because you rush into things and you're arrogant!” His shoulders were nearly pressed into his head as he leaned over her. Mars took a step back, panting as he looked at the destroyed bot sitting on the floor in a heap of metal and wires.
“How can you call yourself our leader when you can't even think over a simple solution that won't cause harm to others? Just..” He sighed, looking up at Macy. She was uncharacteristically quiet as tears stained her face. She was staring at the robot she destroyed, her face curled into one of sorrow and self hatred.
“Just go. Get out.” Macy flinched at his words, nodding solemnly as she walked out, wiping her eyes before smelling something horrid. She ran to the kitchen and saw smoke coming from the oven. Cursing herself, Macy turned it off and took the discarded apron and fanned the smoke after opening the oven door.
The burnt pizza was another thing she ruined that day. Discarding it, she decided she wasn't in the mood to hand make something tonight so she made sandwiches for her brothers before retreating to her room.
How was she so bad at being a leader? She was the oldest and it was her duty to keep everyone safe. So why did she suck at it? Her appetite was no longer there and she turned the lights off, looking up at her ceiling and the old glow in the dark stars she placed there when they first arrived at the sewers.
They were mutants, and they were different. They weren't human and they got too big to live with their sister and their mother up above, so they decided to just live in the tunnels and sewers. It was easy to hide there since it was abandoned and nobody checked down there, and if they did? Mars's security system would stop them from coming any closer. She really needed to apologize to Mars..
Turning on her side, appetite abandoned, she closed her eyes, remembering their first night in the tunnels away from home. The same night Mac had scraped his shell against the wall of the apartment. That was the deciding factor that they were getting too big and needed to move out. So at the ripe age of 13, the three turtles hid in the shadows, eventually settling for the sewers and finding a large connection room, and that's where they've made their home ever since. It was bittersweet looking back at it now. They were young and confused, unsure of themselves. It was that same night that Macy declared herself the leader and decided she would protect her siblings no matter the cost. But how could she ever live up to that promise if she kept hurting them? She needed to stop rushing into things head first. Why was she so bad at being the leader? It's the only thing she's supposed to be good at.
Trying her best to ignore her own thoughts, she tossed and turned until she could feel her internal monologue turn into static and she melted away into the darkness, not paying attention to the yelling down the hall as she slipped away from all her stresses. She could deal with her mess later.