Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

April O’Neil had been born with eight soulmarks. They covered her arm in a little circle by her wrist. Altogether they kinda looked like toppings on a pizza because the skin under them was discolored in some kind of symbol. 

Soulmarks were common.  Everyone had at least one, but it was up to them what it meant. They led you to some of the most important people in your life, a way to make you sit up and pay attention because this person was going to be important to you.

It was an O’Neil family tradition that soulmarks were family- one way or another.  Carol O’Neil had her husband’s camera drawn on the back of her hand and Kirby had a baseball bat (his wife’ favorite sport & weapon) on his.  They had met at a baseball game and hit it off after Kirby got hit in the head with the ball and Carol had grabbed his hand and given him a concussion check. When you saw your soulmark on your soulmate, you just knew they said, you knew that this person was someone who would make an impact in your life. 

The O’Neils never seemed to have blood-related siblings or parents marked on them. Grammi liked to say it was because the O’Neils already knew those people were important and needed reminders for others. 

Carol- Mom liked to say it was because soulmarks were just a way of saying that people belonged together and between their last name and the family resemblance that everyone knew they belonged together.

Kirby- Dad claimed it was because the O’Neils were curious and what better way to help you find more people than to give the family a mystery to work on together to bring the rest of the O’Neils home. 

April had been born with eight soulmarks, but they were weird. They were all stuck on top of a yellow pizza shaped seal. It was like a connecting link between them all. Sometimes, when she rubbed it, it felt warm. She liked to imagine her soulmates were trying to send her love through their marks and remind her that they were out there. 

Popcorn was her first one. It was a bunch of popcorn with what looked like a little mouse peeking out from behind it.

Brownie was a deep red-brown brownie on top of a hockey mask. It kinda looked like it was scowling.

Goldfish was a splotched goldfish that kinda looked like the shark poster from Jaws. It seemed to be grinning in glee.  

Red was a big red stuffed dinosaur. It was covered in plush spikes and seemed to guard over the others.

Purple was some kind of gear. It was a pentagon with a circle cut out in the middle. It looked like a logo, but the last time that April had looked into it she hadn’t found anything.

Blue was a set of cards, on the top was a blue winking jack face card. The cards were elegantly spun about in a pattern like a magic trick seeming to disappear and reappear when you looked away. 

Orange was a sunny burst of gold-yellow-orange that looked like a spray-painted heart that seemed to glow. There were a few splatters of paint around it too like it just couldn’t be contained by the heart. 

Turtle was a dusty little turtle peeping out of his shell and clutching a hockey stick in his mouth. His eyes practically seemed to glow. 

They all seemed to fit together so well and April was so so curious about what they could mean.  What was her mark? How did she fit in? She had tried going to hockey matches, grabbed popcorn everytime she went to the store or movie, kept an eye out for new kinds of graffiti, Grammy even taught her how to gamble- even though April thought Blue looked more like a card-trick- just in case Blue knew how to play. 

She knew New York was huge and that it was likely that she wouldn’t meet them all right away. Mom reminded her that she hadn’t met Dad until she was old but April had seven!! Surely she could meet just one soon. Don’t tell anyone, but she was kinda lonely. Of course, she had Grammi and Dad and Mom but they were always so busy and couldn’t run around and play with her. Dad and Mom worked crazy hours ‘cause Dad was a journalist and Mom worked as a paramedic so she was always on call at different times to race to the rescue. April was proud of them and she liked getting to go on adventures with Grammi when she could, but New York was in her blood. She wanted to go go go now! 

When April was 8, her parents let her join THE Jupiter Jim Space Adventure Game. She had to promise to be super careful and follow all the internet rules but she gets to play. It’s a huge group of people that moderate it and look out for the players and there’s all kinds of mini games, quests, and battles. It’s here where she meets her first friend. 

Bootyyyshaker9000: Greetings! I see you are high-ranked among those of the Battle Royale. I challenge you to a battle!

Sherlock_Corn: You’re on!

Enter the Stadium? yes/no

Sherlock_Corn: [sent a friend request]

Bootyyyshaker9000: ???

Sherlock_Corn: ? Everything good Shaker?

Bootyyyshaker9000: You sent me a friend request?

Sherlock_Corn: …yeah

Sherlock_Corn: you dont have to accept it

Sherlock_Corn: I just thought since you kept coming back that this would be easier

Bootyyyshaker9000: I thought you said I was weird.

Sherlock_Corn: yeah, but its a good weird people call me weird all the time

…

[Bootyyyshaker9000 accepted your friend request.]

Sherlock_Corn: :))

Bootyyyshaker9000: :)) 

Sherlock_Corn: good job Shaker but better luck next time! ;p

Bootyyyshaker9000: I will defeat you one day

Sherlock_Corn: Good luck with that! 

Bootyyyshaker900: Are you aware of the Tag Team Tournament happening this weekend?

Sherlock_Corn: triple t? Uh yeah

Sherlock_Corn: why?

Bootyyyshaker9000: Sign-ups for the tournament are happening, and anyone can join in

Bootyyyshaker9000: I know someone of your caliber likely already has a partner for the event but my brother suggested I ask.

Sherlock_Corn: u have a brother?

Bootyyyshaker9000: Nevermind. Forget I said anything

Sherlock_Corn: wait! 

Sherlock_Corn: r you asking me to team up for triple t?

Sherlock_Corn: cause i dont have anyone im teaming up with 

Sherlock_Corn: Shaker?

Sherlock_Corn: im sorry for asking about your brother

Bootyyyshaker9000: It is alright. I am just protective of my brothers. I did not realize I had mentioned them before I sent that. You have proven to be trusted so far.

Sherlock_Corn: aw shaker <3 thanks dude 

Sherlock_Corn: so do u want to team up for triple t? 

Bootyyyshaker9000: Sweet Galileo would I! 

Sherlock_Corn: Let’s do it! 

Sherlock_Corn: aw yeah we crushed it

Bootyyyshaker9000: Precious Victory and Validation! 

Sherlock_Corn: I cant believe we won! Oh wait we did! Boo ya!

Sherlock_Corn: I guess all that practice against each other payed off

Bootyyyshaker9000: Of course. Our teamwork was unparalleled. 

Bootyyyshaker9000: Thank you for the battle, Corn

Sherlock_Corn: Anytime shaker ;) 

Sherlock_Corn: ugh!

Bootyyyshaker9000: What is it? 

Sherlock_Corn: just some means kids at school 

Bootyyyshaker9000: ah

Sherlock_Corn: right! Argh! They were teasing me about not finding any of my soulmates 

Sherlock_Corn: like i know not everyone finds them fast but so many of my classmates have found at least one! 

Sherlock_Corn: and i have so many i should be able to find one 

Sherlock_Corn: i feel like ive looked everywhere and its not right to tease someone about not finding them right away just 

Sherlock_Corn: aargh

Bootyyyshaker9000: I am sorry to hear that. 

Sherlock_Corn: sorry for dumping on u it was a rough day

Bootyyyshaker9000: I do not mind. 

Bootyyyshaker9000: I do not go to school. I have not had to deal with bullies like that.

Sherlock_Corn: lucky 

Bootyyyshaker9000: Perhaps. I think it could be fun though? 

Sherlock_Corn: maybe one day you’ll get to try it out 

Bootyyyshaker9000: noncommittal shrug

Sherlock_Corn: lol you make me smile shaker, thanks

Bootyyyshaker9000: You are welcome. 

Sherlock_Corn: sorry if this is private but have you met any of your soulmates? 

Bootyyyshaker9000: yes, my brothers and our dad, we share marks

Sherlock_Corn: oh, cool

Bootyyyshaker9000: Yes, they are … important to me. 

Sherlock_Corn: im glad you have them shaker my family doesnt tend to share marks with each other

Sherlock_Corn: my grammi says its cause we need the reminder to go find our missing family

Bootyyyshaker9000: I like that idea. We have a few marks that we haven’t met yet. 

Sherlock_Corn: good luck

Bootyyyshaker9000: To you as well 

Bootyyyshaker9000: How do you go about finding your soulmates? 

Sherlock_Corn: oh i always try to look out for stuff that reminds me of their marks. Ive picked up a lot of weird hobbies

Sherlock_Corn: why do u ask

Bootyyyshaker9000: I liked what you said about it being clues to our family. We don’t know a lot of people. We’re pretty sheltered. 

Sherlock_Corn: i figured how many marks are you still missing

Bootyyyshaker9000: 4 

Sherlock_Corn: any leads? My family and i work together to find mine

Sherlock_Corn: like we haven’t had any luck but its more fun together

Sherlock_Corn: u dont have to tell me though i know some people are pretty private about theirs

Bootyyyshaker9000: maybe later

Sherlock_Corn: * thumbs up *

Bootyyyshaker9000: Would you want any help? 

Sherlock_Corn: maybe later. Ive got a lead right now

Chapter Text

April O’Neil was 10 and she had a plan. Last week she had finally seen some graffiti that looked like Orange’s heart. It had popped up two streets down from her apartment and it wasn’t done yet. If this was a normal weekend then April would have gotten her parents or Grammi to take her and watch. But Dad was gone for a conference and Mom was on call and might need to leave at any moment and Grammi was Grammi. So she was going to sneak out and watch. There was a dumpster in the alley by the flower Orange was working on and she would hide behind that. 

She grabbed her flashlight and baseball bat because she might be ambitious but she knew better than to go out unarmed. She stuffed some snacks into her bag with her phone and waited until Grammi was really sleeping like she meant it before sneaking out her window. The sun was just going down but, the shadows cast by the buildings meant there were plenty of places for a kid to hide in. 

April knew this wasn’t her best plan, or her smartest but it felt important. She couldn’t explain it but it was like there was something inside her that was pushing her forward and bouncing after her footsteps as she scurried down the streets to the alley. 

It looked like a typical New York alley. Bags of trash around the dumpsters, with rusty fire escapes along the sides and a manhole cover in the middle. Luckily her little spot behind the dumpster was dry and she crouched down to wait. Thank goodness she wasn’t scared of the dark. She sat there for a few hours, rolling her flashlight between her hands and making sure her bat was in reach. It practically felt like she was vibrating. The something inside her was giddy with excitement and yes yes yes. Finally something happened. There was a scraping noise and she looked over to see that the manhole cover was moving. 

Slowly, carefully, it was pushed aside. April held her breath as a figure in an orange hoodie climbed out of the sewers and pulled the lid back over the hole. It looked like it was a kid, or at least a really small adult. He was smaller than her anyway. He had a really bulky backpack on that seemed to be almost as big as him. The kid hurried over to Orange’s flower before pulling out a can of spray paint from his backpack and started adding to it. 

He was actually really cute, April thought. The kid kept humming and hopping to reach the top parts of the flower- a dandelion she realized as he added more. Oh she hoped this was Orange. He added a bit extra to one of the petals and nodded at it before stepping back. April squinted at it in the poor light. It kinda looked like Orange’s heart. She looked down at the flashlight in her hand before coming to a decision. 

Her heart was in her throat as she creeped out from behind the trash can and lit up her flashlight, shining it over the mural. 

“HEY!” she shouted. The kid yelped and jumped before turning around to stare at her. She stared back. 

He was green! He was covered in bright green scales and looked more like a “Turtle?” she whispered. The kid looked at her with wide eyes through his orange bandana before sprinting for the manhole. 

“Wait!” April shouted as he pulled up the cover.

“No!” the kid shouted back “You didn’t see anything!” He squirmed under and started to pull it closed as April reached him.

“I totally did!” April argued, “Are you Turtle?” She grabbed him at the wrist and held out her own to show him. Her soulmarks boldly smiled up at him and the kid sucked in another gasp of air as he looked down at them. He looked up at her face before down at her wrist again. 

“Are you Flashlight?” he whispered.

“Flashlight?” April’s nose screwed up. She let him go seeing that he wasn’t going to run away. Turtle-kid climbed back out and slipped down his knee pad. There on his knee was the same pizza wheel symbol- this time in orange with eight marks around it. There, right next to Brownie and Red was a flashlight. It was green with a bright yellow beam shining out of it. 

“Oh my goodness that’s me!” she exclaimed, poking at the flashlight. She felt a rush of sunny warmth rush through her and she shivered. It felt like the small bubbly warmth that had pushed her out here. 

“I knew it!” the kid yelled, “and that’s me!!” He poked Orange’s mark and it seemed to glow as the kid shivered too. “I can’t believe we found you!” He grabbed her into a hug and pulled her tight.

She smiled and hugged him back. She could feel his hard shell under the hoodie before she let go. 

“I’ve been looking for you everywhere!” April exclaimed

“Us too!” turtle-kid said 

“Us?” April asked with wide eyes.

“Me and my brothers!” the kid told her, bouncing on his toes, “Pops is looking around too, but he hasn’t found anyone yet either!” 

“You mean, you’ve got some of the others?” she whispered, rubbing her wrist. The kid nodded eagerly. “Raph, and Donnie, and Leo, and me and Pops!! We finally found you!” 

“Wait, what’s your name?” April asked, nearly jumping in excitement at the thought of finding 5 of her soulmarks at once. 

“I’m Michelangelo! You can call me Mikey!” Mikey told her. 

“I’m April O’Neil,” she said with a grin. They were still holding onto each other. 

“Wait? Why are you a turtle?” she asked after a moment of them just looking at each other.

“I’ve always been a turtle,” Mikey shrugged, “Pops said something about us being mutants but I dunno what that means.” He looked at her nervously, “You’re not gonna tell anyone are you?” 

“No!” April said, “but- my family-” she gasped as she realized the time. “Oh I am so late. Grammi’s gonna catch me if I stay out too late. 

“Raph too,” Mikey said with a paling face.

“We’ll meet back here tomorrow!” April said, “First thing in the morning. I can say I’m meeting up with a friend or something.” 

“Alright,” Mikey nodded, turning back to the manhole before rushing and grabbing her in a hug. “I’m so glad we found you,” he mumbled into her sweater before leaving. 

“I found one of my marks,” April grinned, “I found Orange. … Orange is a turtle. What am I going to tell my parents?!” 

Luckily, April had been able to sneak back home before she got caught, but she was tapping her foot impatiently all morning waiting for the chance to go meet up with Mikey. Mom had come home late too, and was stumbling around the kitchen for breakfast. 

“Hey Mom,” April said hesitantly, “What would you do if my soulmates were different?” 

“Hmm?” Mom asked, pushing back her bushy hair, “What do you mean sweetie?” 

“Like, if they just looked different?” April hedged 

“Well, we would love them anyway,” Mom said, pulling April into a hug, “Soulmates are just missing family members, no matter what.” 

“No matter what,” April repeated, “Could I go hang out at the library today?” I promise to come back for lunch and watch out for traffic and text Grammi when I get there and-” 

“Alright, alright,” her Mom said, “Hurricane April is on the move.” She kissed the top of April’s head before smiling, “Stay safe.” 

“I will!” 

Mikey wasn’t there when she made it to the alley so she wedged the manhole cover open and slipped inside.

“Mikey?” she whispered, clicking the flashlight on. 

“April!” Mikey yelled, turning the corner and running into her. April was starting to realize that Mikey was a hugger. 

“Hey!” April laughed as he squished her. “I could barely sleep last night, I was so excited!” 

“Me too!” 

“Alright, you need to tell me more about yourself,” April said, “I have so many questions.” Mikey nodded. “How old are you?” 

“I’m 8, Leo and Donnie are twins and they’re 9 and Raph is 10.” 

“I’m 10 too,” April exclaimed, “Is everyone a turtle?” Mikey nodded.

“Except Dad, and we’re all different kinds,” Mikey said, “Come on, you gotta meet them.” 

“Yes,” April hissed excitedly. Mikey chirped in excitement and pulled at her arm. “What kind of turtle are you?” 

“Donnie says I’m an ornate box turtle,” he answered, “My turn. What do you like to do for fun?” 

“I like mysteries, and baseball, and Jupiter Jim,” April said.

“We love Jupiter Jim!” Mikey squealed. “What’s your favorite movie?” 

“Jupiter Jim Pluto Vacation 4,” she answered promptly. 

“No!” Mikey cried, “Not you too! Jupiter Jim Sails the Seven Galaxies is so much better!” 

“No way!” April argued. 

The two continued to chat as they hurried through the sewers before they could hear someone.

“Mikey! Hey, Mikey!” 

“Ah! That’s Raph!” Mikey bounced, “C’mon! Raph! We’re over here!” There was a sound of heavy footsteps before they turned the corner and came face to face with a giant turtle. 

“Raph!” Mikey exclaimed, jumping onto the turtle. Raph was much taller than April, and covered in spikes. He had a worried look on his face that was not at all hidden by the red bandana around his head. 

“Mikey! Where were you? You dashed off so quickly this morning. Raph was worried.” Mikey opened his mouth to explain when Raph jumped and shoved Mikey behind them.

“Human!” Raph yelped, “Mikey! There’s a human!” He pushed Mikey behind him and started scooching away.

“Wait, no Raph!” April heard as she watched the giant turtle back away as if scared of her, like she was the threat. There was a gulp of air before Mikey bellowed “LISTEN UP!” Raph jumped again and looked back at Mikey who explained, “She’s Flashlight!” Raph stopped and looked back at her and she smiled, holding out her wrist for him to see. 

“Hi, I’m April O’Neil.” Raph looked down at her in awe before gently poking the red dinosaur with a spiky claw. There was a rush of solid energy. It was a steely shield wrapping around her and supporting her up. She smiled breathlessly at him. 

“Raphael, but Raph goes by Raph,” he said, “Do you want to see…” She nodded eagerly and Raph bent down and pulled off the little bits of tape on his plastron above his heart so she could see it. His little pizza symbol was red like his mask and April’s flashlight took the spot of Raph’s red dinosaur on it. She gently tapped it and Raph stood up a little straighter, giving her a beaming grin with his snaggletooth. 

“Happy to meet you Big Red,” she said. Raph rubbed the back of his neck shyly before Mikey brought them back to the present moment. 

“C’mon Raph, we gotta take her to the Lair! She’s gotta meet the others!” 

“Right!” Raph said, “Let’s get moving.” Mikey grinned and climbed on top of his brother’s shell as the kid started to lumber away. April hurried after them, her grin not fading. 

Raph was a sweet brother and offered to carry April so they could go a bit faster. The walk between the Lair and her apartment wasn’t very long, but April kept slipping and getting distracted by the boys. It didn’t take much to convince her- how often did someone actually get the chance to ride a giant alligator snapping turtle? Mikey scooted over to make room for her and show her how to hold onto Raph’s spikes before Raph took off. 

It had been ages since she had gotten a piggyback ride or as Mikey called it a turtle-shell ride but it was so much fun. Raph was a lot faster than she and Mikey had been so it was barely a second before they were bounding into a giant junction. It was tall and had several floors with fairy lights hanging around. There was a halfpipe built on the floor of the middle point. April hopped off Raph and clicked off her flashlight as she looked around. It seemed almost magical. 

“Did you find Mikey?” someone called. She turned to see a lanky turtle about her height walk through one of the other tunnels and stop to stare at her with wide eyes. He had a blue mask and red crescent marks under it that curved around his eyes. There were yellow stripes on his arms and legs too. 

“Alright nobody panic,” he said, “But I think we’re being invaded.” He said it calmly but April could see the worry in his eyes. 

“Hi!” she said, deciding to cut this off before he took drastic measures, “April O’Neil, Flashlight.” His expression shuttered as he took in the new information like the cards shuffling on her wrist before a smile broke over his face. 

“No way!” he exclaimed before dashing forward and grabbing her arms. He tilted his head and looked all over before grinning again, “Finally met a human and it’s our soulmate! What are the chances of that?” Mikey and April looked at each other briefly and grinned.

“You’re Leo?” she guessed. 

“The one and only,” he grinned, tossing back the strips of his mask as if they were hair. “I guess my brilliant brothers told you about me.” 

She snorted before offering her hand and wrist, “It’s nice to meet you Blue.” His cocky grin widened and she could see the genuine excitement in his eyes as he tugged off the blue glove on his left arm. His blue symbol was rimmed in yellow and her mark was wedged neatly between Brownie’s and Raph’s. This time she tapped hers first and Leo seemed to settle into himself before brushing his thumb? over the blue cards on her wrist. It was a rushing flow of blue. It zoomed through her veins like wind, sparking with new ideas, new paths, and new potential and twisting around obstacles at every turn.

“Does this mean that I got to meet you before Donnie?” Leo asked, his eyes sparkling. Feeling like she might regret this she nodded and Leo shouted in victory. “Dontron! Scoot out of your mad science lab! It’s important!! I’ve got a leg up on you!!”  

She looked over at Raph who sighed, “Donnie and Leo are twins and Pops isn’t sure who’s older. They’re always competing to see who’s older.”  

“What is it this time Leo?” a turtle called from one of the higher tunnels. He had a purple mask with thick eyebrows drawn on it and a metal shell on his back. A pair of goggles sat over his eyes that zoomed in on April.

“Oh Sweet Galileo! We’re allowing kidnapping now!” The turtle quickly hurried down to their level and April snorted as Raph panicked.

“No, no we are not!” 

“Fooie, you never let me shine,” the turtle said looking between them all

“Guess who met our new soulmate before you!” Leo crooned, leaning on his twin, “Uh, this guy.” 

“Au contraire, my brother,” Donnie said 

“Twin!” Leo corrected. 

“Unless I am mistaken, April and I have met before?” The other turtles blinked at her in surprise as she squinted at the person she thought she had recognized.

“Bootyyyshaker9000?” she guessed. 

“Sweet validation!” the purple turtle cried, “I knew you were sensible Sherlock Corn.” 

“What?” Mikey asked confused, “When did you two meet?” 

“We’re teammates on the JJ Space Adventure Game,” April explained, “but I never told you my name before.” 

“The security on the JJSA game was easy enough to crack and find your name,” Donnie explained. 

“Donnie!” Raph scolded, “No hacking!” 

“I mean- of course I didn’t do that, he said convincingly.” Donatello said. April snorted at the horrible lie. It was a little weird and wrong that he had hacked her but-

“Did ya fix it?” she asked.

“Of course I did, your security was much better after I went through it,” Donnie said. Raph face-palmed. 

“Then I forgive you,” April said primly before grabbing him and pulling him close, “This time.” 

“Excellent.” Donnie said. 

“You’re Purple then?” April double-checked as she showed her latest new brother her wrist. “Of course,” Donnie scoffed, “It’s my logo: Genius Built.” He motioned to his shell and she saw that he had stamped that little pentagon on the strap over his shoulder. He peeled the strap up and off to show that same pizza symbol, this time in purple with her flashlight gathered with the others’ soulmarks.

“Same time then?” April offered, seeing Donnie look slightly nervous. The turtle nodded and tapped his mark. Donnie’s felt like the perfect bridge between Raph and Leo’s. It was solid and energetic like the pixels of a video game, making up and conforming to the rules as needed. It burst into curiosity: ready to ask and answer questions. 

“Curious,” Donnie mumbled, “Now that you’re in the know as they say, I have questions.” April grinned.

“You better believe I got some too!” The five looked between each other and pulled each other into the beanbags and pillows nearby as they began to catch up and get to know their missing member. 

April felt like she could’ve sat there with the boys forever just getting to know them and telling them about her world topside. They were fans of pizza and Jupiter Jim just like she was and Lou Jitsu which they promised to show her. They had lived their whole lives here only a few blocks from her this whole time. Raph loved stuffed animals and was a true teddy bear himself. He had pulled everyone in close and they were all sprawled across each other on their seats. Donnie was the tech genius she had wondered about and the dramatic kid she had become friends with online. (She was going to be thinking about that for a while). Leo was funny like that winking face card always seemed to say and was constantly shuffling about, asking new questions and offering new angles. She didn’t know how to ask if he actually did know how to gamble like Grammi thought but believed he would definitely try to learn if she offered. Sweet little Mikey had that heart of gold that was on her arm and a core of steel. He had told her on the way back that he had planned to leave the little gold heart around New York until their soulmates could reach out to them so that they knew they were there. Oh! And they were all practically ninjas!

April got to tell them about the O’Neil belief, that the marks were a way to claim missing family members and that she called dibs on eldest sister. Raph was very quickly teased and she was very quickly accepted as their very first sister. It was brilliant and April was bouncing off the walls inside as she grinned at these people that she had been looking for for so long. They were so involved in the conversation that they didn’t hear the small taps of someone walking towards them.

“What in the name of-?” someone shouted. The kids all squeaked in surprise as April looked up to see a rat. He was shorter than any of them but clearly much larger than a normal rat. “Human! Get away from my sons!” There was a sudden shuffle as the turtles all tried to dodge the rat and April tried to escape his tail whipping towards her.

“Wait Dad-!”
“No- no look out!” 

“Pops!” 

“Hold on!” 

“What the heck?” 

“She’s Flashlight! Our soulmate!” Mikey suddenly screeched right as the rat was about to grab her. He stopped very quickly after that. 

“Oh!” the rat squinted and focused on her, “My apologies, little one.” 

“It’s cool,” April swallowed, before looking down at the rat’s hand. It was pink and tipped with sharp claws but a green circle laid on top of it, matching their markings exactly. “You never said your dad was a rat,” she hissed at the turtles. They just shrugged at her as the rat’s ears twitched. “Are you Popcorn?” she asked. The rat smiled. “I am,” he said, tapping the little snout peeking through the popcorn before offering his hand again. “You can call me Splinter.” She tapped the little flashlight on the back of his hand. 

Splinter felt like, well, a thousand splinters of love and protectiveness. She couldn’t see them but she could always feel it, like it was something that would be impossible to get rid of. Sharp and protective but trying oh so hard not to hurt but to hold. 

“April O’Neil,” she offered. He grinned a sharp smile and opened his mouth to say more when her phone suddenly went off. “Shoot!” April yelled as she shot up and the turtle pile fell apart again. “It’s my mom! She’s probably wondering where I am.” 

Quicker than she could blink, Splinter had snatched the phone out of her hand and answered the call.
“Hello? Is this April’s mother?” The kids all stared at him in shock. “Yes, sorry for the surprise, I thought I should offer an explanation. …. Yes, of course … Well, it seems that Miss April here is the soulmate of my kids and I … yes, no I understand … of course I can send you a picture for proof” he snapped a photo of his hand, carefully curled to hide the rat features “yes, she called me Popcorn I believe … no we simply ran into each other. Hamato Yoshi, but I go by Splinter mostly now … of course … no she’s welcome to come over anytime. You wouldn’t mind too terribly if she stayed for lunch would you?  Yes of course, I’ll send her home right after that… yes, yes we’ll have to meet up sometime … I’ll make sure to send April home with our numbers. Wonderful, goodbye!” He tossed the phone back to April who blinked at him in shock. 

“She wants you home after lunch. I would come up with an explanation that doesn’t involve this,” he motions to himself and the turtles “for now.  So, would you like to stay for lunch?” 

“Would you like to stay forever!” Leo adds from the floor. 

“LEO!” the others yell as April finally snorts and smiles. Guess she’s part of this now. 

“I wouldn’t have it any other way!” she said.

Chapter Text

Somehow, the Hamatos and April made it through the next six years without her parents figuring out that her soulmates were 4 mutant turtles and their rat-dad. April wasn’t too worried about how her parents would react, but there was always that niggling doubt of what if and worry. The Hamatos were hers and she was theirs and she needed to help protect them. Splints was always so worried about something, and she didn’t want to risk them. 

That didn’t mean that the O’Neils didn’t get close in their own way. Dad and Grammi were always sending over home-cooked meals and chatting with Splinter about the kids over the phone. The boys were always getting advice from the O’Neils who seemed to fit in and fill the gaps that the little Hamato clan hadn’t realized were missing. Raph seemed less worried, Donnie was getting compliments for his work, Leo had more people to teach him, and Mikey was always getting sent love and new recipes to try, and Splinter seemed to be a little more present in their lives. The world just seemed a little brighter for it.

April just really did not know how to explain to her parents that the people that they had gotten so close were not exactly normal. Even discounting the mutant thing, and the ‘hiding from something’ thing, there was also the ninja thing. Splints couldn’t deny it, April was onto him. 

The guy clearly knew more about ninjutsu than it looked like. He had given the turtle tots weapons! She and the turtles kept at it, trying to pull any kind of information out of him that they could, but the best they had was his name: Hamato Yoshi, that he had moved to the States as a young adult from Japan, and considered the turtles his kids. Whether adopted or not, no one knew and Splints wasn’t given anything up. 

Donnie seemed the most frustrated about the lack of information about where they came from and tended to be her partner in their sleuthing, though Leo was often a welcome addition. Eventually they managed to get Splinter to explain that the ‘pizza’ symbol behind all their markings was the ancestral mark of the Hamato Clan, but what that meant no one knew. 

And then they found the Hidden City, and stuff started falling into place piece by piece. Draxum, the new mutants, the Oozequitos, mystic powers, the Dark Armour … where the turtles actually came from even. 

Donnie had been forced to admit that genetic experiments created from the DNA of Lou Jitsu a.k.a Hamato Yoshi a.k.a Splinter had not been on his bingo card. April had won 20 bucks off Splinter having another identity though. She didn’t admit that she thought it would’ve been something more discrete but honestly it did make sense. Leo got 40 bucks off everyone for hiding from an ex, having been a warrior, and having been human before everything. She made a mental note to let Mikey know that he had won 10 for “Hamato Clan having a mystic connection” as she and Splinter looked at the remains of the ancient Hamato scroll. Those ghosts had had the gall to tell them to leave their teenage soulmates locked up by the Foot Clan to be martyrs. 

“No offense Splints, but I think those Hamato ghosts kind of stunk,” April said looking down at her uncle-sensei.

“None taken,” he waved away her concern, before looking down at the tea-pot in his hands, “I never did like our traditions anyway.” April thought about what she had seen of the boys before they got caught and had to agree. 

“Guess we’ll have to make our own ones,” she said, hefting her baseball bat over her shoulder.

“Any take some O’Neil ones too,” Splinter said with that same sharp smile he had given her when they met. She grinned. “Now, we are not giving them the evil teapot. We’re going to rescue my beloved sons. We will need to assemble a team of well-oiled commandos!” 

“I have just the guys,” April said, though she wished that their missing were the ones she could turn to. 

“Let’s get our boys! Hot Soup!” 

“Hot Soup!”

“We’re never telling the boys about this right?” 

“Agreed.” 

After the Dark Armour had been destroyed, by April smashing a Jupiter Jim action figure into what had been a teapot, it just got to where April didn’t know how to explain it to her parents. What did I do this week? Oh, just hung out with the Hamatos, defeated an ancestral evil with my baseball bat and saved the world. You know, the usual. 

And then they met Piebald. April had never really known what had happened to her that led to a rock with googly-eyes being put in her tank instead, but Splinter either didn’t notice or didn’t mind and the boys freaked out everytime she tried to ask about it. 

Actually meeting the former pet, now sister and soulmate was crazy. Apparently the boy had lost her after a hockey game and flushed her down the toilet where she had ended up mutated before finding her way back home. Piebald was pretty cool. She hadn’t stuck around after she had finished terrifying the turtles, but she had exchanged numbers.  Piebald kept up her travelling and became that cool cousin that you saw a few times a year but always looked forward to hanging out with. The things she got up to could have been an entire series.

Her ninpo felt like her scales, smooth and slippery, keeping you on your toes but ready to cover for you if you needed it. She was a great buddy for watching horror movies with too, even if they had to sneak through the back to watch them together. She wasn’t around New York and the O’Neils as much, but April had done her rightful duty and informed her family of her newest soulmate. Grammi and Piebald seemed to get along like a house on fire but April wasn’t touching that with a 10 foot pole. As long as Grammi didn’t think there was anything too fishy happening, then Piebald and Grammi could mess around as much as they wanted. She had enough to worry about with her turtles. Those two were old enough to know how to be responsible.

Oddly enough, Piebald loved hockey. She kept going to as many games as she could as she travelled keeping an eye out for their last two members. Everyone had agreed that Brownie’s mask looked like a hockey mask, and the hockey stick that turtle had was pretty self explanatory. They still hadn’t had any luck though, not until April and Splinter were kidnapped by the Brownie Clan. 

It had been a weird day, ‘average teen Randall’ * cough *Splinter* cough * had come along to help her sell cookies before they both ended up getting kidnapped by a troop of little girls. Then she had escaped with a walnut! A walnut! Before paying ransom for Splinter to Foot Recruit because they sold more cookies! 

“She seriously said she was trying to take over the world with brownies?” April asked Splinter as they headed back to the Lair.

“She seemed quite convinced. I have faith in her that she will find a path to her goals. One only hopes that she will choose the right one,” Splinter nodded. 

“I only hope she stops stealing from us,” April grumbled, crossing her arms before looking at her soulmark. “I couldn’t stop thinking about Brownie. You think maybe they’re one of Grandma CJ’s scouts?” Splinter thought about it before shrugging.

“No clue,” he said. 

“Ugh,” April groaned, “I don’t know how you can be so chill with not knowing.” Splinter patted her knee.

“It took me years before I met my sons and saw their marks. I would never have been able to find them before then; I was there for what was practically their birth. Sometimes we have to wait for them to come to us.” There was a moment of peace before Splinter added “And sometimes we find them and have to grab them and run for it when we do.” There was a moment of silence before Splinter continued.

“You know, you and Foot Recruit really were pretty similar,” Splinter says slowly.

“No, ew Splints, she’s our enemy,” April said, “Besides, surely she’s seen our marks by now. If she was Brownie wouldn’t she have said something?” Splinter shrugged again and the topic was dropped but that little seed of doubt was stuck. What if …? 

Chapter Text

Karai was amazing. Sure, her parents and all of New York were stuck in a glass ball until they could defeat the Shredder, and he was more powerful than ever, but hopefully Karai could help them. She smoothed the duct tape covering the orb and looked over at Draxum who was admiring the tape as if it was the greatest thing since sliced bread. Had he really never seen duct tape before? 

“Do you really think it's going to work out?” April whispered. Draxum looked at her in surprise. They weren’t particularly close -despite being neighbors- but he was slowly starting to become part of their clan. 

“If there is one thing I have learned from you humans, it is that you always seem to find a way,” Draxum said slowly before giving her an awkward headpat. “You are annoyingly hard to destroy.” 

“Thanks Sheep-man,” April said, “Knew you had it in you.” 

“Hi friends! I squeezed out and you didn’t notice. Isn’t that a funny story?” Todd suddenly said. They whirled around to see him just standing there watching them. April opened her mouth to say something when there was a large crash. They ran to see what it was. Draxum’s vines smacked away Foot Recruit and the scene came into focus. 

The Foot Clan and Shredder were attacking. The Lair’s atrium was littered with cracked concrete, a hole stretched out to the street and a few fires were smoldering in the corners. The turtles and Splinter were holding them off, but she could see that this wasn’t going very well. 

“We are under siege!” Splinter shouted to them before getting pulled back into the fight. 

“O’Neil, get the orb to safety,” Draxum ordered before jumping after Splinter. 

April nodded, “I got you New York.” It was one of the hardest things she had to do, but she turned and sprinted away from the fight. She had to keep New York safe, the others could handle this. 

April hurried back to the Lair. She had waited long enough. She burst through the tunnel she had escaped through to see the Lair totally wrecked. She looked around in despair at the remains of her second home. A weak groan echoed through the junction. 

“Guys! I’m coming!” April called. She clambered over the rumble and pushed aside one of the bigger chunks to see Gram-Gram. “Karai!” 

“Stop, we don’t have much time,” Karai said, grabbing April’s arm. 

“No, no- I gotta help you- take you to a hospital,” April tried to say. But the hospitals were empty. What had Mom told her about triage? Karai gave her a weak smile.

“I will not be able to finish this journey. Now you must teach the family,” Karai said, sounding so much like Master Splinter that April nearly cried.

“How can I? I’m not… I’m not like you!” April cried. She was just the human that had burst into this- tackled Mikey by the shell and not let go. 

“Oh my child… You have always been one of us…” Karai told her. Her hand slipped up her wrist to press gently against her soulmark. 

The yellow symbol behind the other marks lit up with a green-yellow light. She felt a sharp cutting edge, finely tuned and expertly crafted sliding against her. It danced around Mikey’s sunny hope, Raph’s red shield, Leo’s swirling wind, and Donnie's curious zaps. It brushed against Piebald’s smooth scales, ruffling through Splinter’s thousand pieces of love. It cradled Brownie and Turtle, who felt like unhatched eggs just waiting for the right moment. They all leaned together and April felt Karai’s Ninpo settle against hers. It was bright and unwavering. It spilled into everything and pointed forwards, offering no retreat. Karai tapped it and it burned with love. 

“Find them. Find our Family…” Karai whispered in her ear. Karai’s body was gone when she opened her eyes but she could feel her spirit - her ninpo hovering around her. 

“Right,” April said, “Time for the Hamato-O’Neil’s to show those guys what we’re really made of.” Karai smiled and April grinned before running off. “APRIL OOOOO’NEILLLLL!” she shouted. 

April felt it the moment her brothers truly tapped into their Ninpo. Her marks flared with light and she could feel them pressing close against each other. It was like when Raph and Leo did that ninja mind meld thing. She just knew. Now they just had to take out the Shredder. Karai leaned in close. It’s going to be okay , she whispered. 

The battle was a rush of adrenaline and power. The shifting of ninpos under her skin was like a dance. It mirrored their battle, each of them covering for another as they slammed hit after hit against the Shredder’s armour. Karai’s spirit danced around hers, pushing her up to hit him again. And then Foot Recruit- Cassandra- Brownie freed Splints. 

“No way,” she whispered to herself, feeling Brownie’s Ninpo peep up. Karai laughed at her amazement and they were caught back up into battle. 

As they pushed the spear into Shredder’s armour and the Hamato Clan rallied together, April imagined she felt Turtle pressing against his mark, leaning and adding what he could right next to Piebald. Seeing Karai finally get to hug her father, she felt the love they all shared as they gathered together in a hug. 

“Thank you my young Hamatos,” Karai said, giving April a wink as she added -O’Neils silently. “We will always be with you.” The spirits of the Hamato clan faded along with the adrenaline and the clan all slumped against each other. 

“Hoo boy,” Leo said, drooping over Cassandra, “So did I hear wrong, or did Pops call you Brownie?” 

“You heard right, Blue Turtle!” Casey exclaimed, pushing him off, “I believe I am one of your soulmarks.” Leo grinned at her and pulled off his glove to offer his hand. She studied it before tapping against the mask. Casey’s mark was on her shoulder blade, and the edge of the Hamato clan circle just peeked out. 

“How did you figure it out?” Donnie asked as he revealed his mark to Casey. 

Splinter laughed, “After watching her bend over for hours and staring at it, I finally recognized it!” 

“From that little sliver?” Draxum questioned. Splinter laughed a little more uncomfortably.

 “I’ve had these marks tattooed on my hand for almost 50 years; I know them well.” He brushed his thumb against Casey’s mark and offered his hand to her. “Welcome to the Hamato Clan, Brownie. As well as the Food Mark group!” 

April took the chance to offer her wrist to Casey who gave it a light squeeze. Casey’s fledgling ninpo felt a blazing fire of passion. It was like the New York traffic constantly pushing to go go go and do do do. She grinned. 

“Always glad to add another girl to the group,” she said, “We’ll have to introduce you to Piebald.” 

“Oh gosh, Piebald!” Mikey yelled, “She’s gonna terrorize us again! I can’t believe we forgot to call her!” 

“I’ll prepare the doomsday bunker,” Donnie said, tapping away at his keypad. 

“What doomsday bunker?” Raph asked. “We have a doomsday bunker?” 

“Don’t worry about it,” Donnie mumbled. 

Casey looked over the turtles in confusion and April took the chance to gently punch her shoulder. 

“Don’t worry about it,” she said, “You’ll get used to us eventually.” 

“I think I can live with that,” Casey said. The Hamato-O’Neil-Jones Clan was bruised, and battered, and they definitely deserved a break after this but they were still standing. Their family was a little bigger and all the better for it. Mikey grabbed them all into a hug as they continued, and April let out a little breath. It was all going to be okay.

Chapter Text

Things suddenly were very much not okay. Raph had been butting heads with Leo since Splinter had suddenly decided that Leo should lead the Mad Dogz. He had gotten better and worse at the same time- he didn’t seem to be taking any of it seriously but was still frighteningly competent. April had a feeling that Leo was just scared but Raph was too. Those boys were gonna be the death of her. 

She wanted to knock some sense into their thick skulls but Leo kept insisting that nothing was wrong and Raph wasn’t talking and college was hitting her harder than the Shredder. Not to mention that uber-nasty herbicide that the college was making, she had finally got her big break and snagged a sample only for some guy to creep up on her in the dark. 

The guy was weird. He was nasty too- covered in dirt and sweat and pink gunk and was that blood-?! What was he? He had a hockey mask like Casey’s mark but it was way higher tech. Not to mention the photo he had of them. It was their whole soulmate group except for Turtle. Piebald and Casey had stopped by at the Lair to celebrate her acceptance into East Laird University - she remembered Draxum taking this photo for them, but it was old. 

“Nothing to it, I guess,” April said, shifting her backpack around to grab the boy. She lugged him up and over her back and started walking. Luckily, living with Mikey meant she was no slouch to carrying people larger and heavier than her. 

“I guess we were probably due for something to happen,” April muttered to herself. “I mean, we haven’t even found Turtle yet and with our record that means at least one person either fearing for their life or a life-changing situation.” 

“And then I saw that picture and I brought him here,” April told the turtles. 

“Waha” Leo yelped, jumping backwards. She looked up to see the boy waking up.

“It’s you! It’s all of you! Together! I never thought I’d see you again!” the boy cried, “I’m so happy I could hug you!” The chair tilted forward and the guy ate floor again. 

“Who are you? And why do you have a picture of us?” Raph questions, pushing the guy back up.

“Yeah, who took this because I look great in it?” Leo added, leaning against Raph 

“What’s your favorite pizza? ‘Cause I’m ordering right now,” Mikey chipped in. April face-palmed. 

“And why are you wearing Genius Built apparel?! That’s trademarked!” Donnie growled before slamming his fist down on that grappling-hook thingy from earlier. It rapidly deployed and the guy started swinging from the rafters. 

“Grappling hook!” Donnie yelped before getting knocked out.

“What’s going on?”
“He’s trying to escape!” Mikey cried before getting knocked down.

“Want me to knock him out again!” April asked, readying her trusty bat. 

“Let me,” Raph replied gruffly.

“Donnie! Donnie!” Mikey shook his possibly-concussed brother.

“Oh, okay,” April said. Punk had snuck up on them and was kinda creeping her out. She’s never seen the guy in her life. What’s he going on about? 

“w-WAIT! STOP! I’m a friend!” the guy shouted. They all paused and watched him swing back and forth. “Let’s start over,” he said evenly, “My name is Casey Jones, and the reason I have this photo and your tech is because you gave it to me. But not yet because I’m from … the future!” 

Seriously? A 2nd Casey Jones, from the future?? They all started laughing. Seriously? Time-travel? That’s the best he’s got? 

“Oh please! If time travel is possible, Future Donnie would have come back and already given me the lottery numbers like we planned,” Donnie explained as he cut the guy down. 

“It’s true! I need you to believe me! Humanity depends on it! In the future, an alien race decimated the planet. We were hunted. We lived in caves. We ate leaves and rats - no offense,” the guy sounded desperate 

“None taken, we are delicious,” Splinter said, taking another bite of his popcorn. 

“I know how this sounds, but Master Leonardo gave me a mission,” Casey Jones 2 said. At least he was a little self aware.

“I do like how he calls me Master,” Leo smugged. Raph huffed. 

“Of course I do! You’re the greatest ninja master the world has ever seen. You told me to ‘Find the Key and Stop the Krang.” 

“Aliens,” April said, “Pft. Sure this story just keeps getting better.” She cut herself as Splinter turned off the projector they had been using as a spotlight. He looked scared. “Splints?” 

“The Krang? I have heard that name. Powerful, barbaric creatures worshipped by the Foot Clan. Legend says they came from the stars,” Splinter told them, “Ruthless, unmerciful with one desire: to enslave our world like so many before us. All seemed lost, until great mystic warriors forged a mighty weapon. A key that was used to lock them in a prison dimension beyond this realm. Over the centuries, the Mystic Key remained hidden to protect humankind and prevent the return of the Krang,” Splinter recounted. April could feel her dormant connection with Karai stirring in recognition. This wasn’t good.

“So..” Leo started

“Future boy is really from the future?” April asked.

“Mind pfooof!” Mikey mimed an explosion. 

“Someone finds the Key! Today! They steal it and use it to open a doorway and free the Krang! That's why I came back, to find it first,” Casey said, “Master Leonardo drew a picture on the back of that photo. So, to stop the Krang, all we have to do is find the Key before it's stolen.” They all peered at the drawing only to stop and glare at Leo. April put the clues together pretty fast. He didn’t-

“What?” Casey asked, looking between them all. 

“Yeah, um,” Leo worried, “Did future handsome amazing me tell you what to do in case that already happened? …’cause that already happened…” 

And here April thought Donnie was the turtle most likely to help bring about the apocalypse. Alien invasion was so not on her bingo card. 

The Krang were so creepy! Squishy evil alien brain creatures that possessed her brother. That sealed away their ninpo. That constant presence she had felt of Karai and the others was gone. It felt wrong. She didn’t really regret melting that hole in Sister Krang’s face. Just like she didn’t regret this-!

“April O’NEIL!” She screamed. The crane’s wrecking ball slammed into the alien, knocking her away from her family. The invasion was well and truly under-way and everything was on fire. She hoped Grammi and her parents were safe. She hoped the Lair was still standing after those Krang had broken through. 

“That’s payback!” Splinter spat. April saw the building cracking.

“Keep her under that building until I bring it down!” April ordered. The two hurried to obey as April put that crane license to good use yet again. I better make sure I keep it valid. She thought absently. “Yeah!” The building cracked and buckled. “Casey, get out of there!” she shouted. 

Future Boy dragged Splinter out just as the building collapsed onto the alien. The Krang crawled out from the rebar, screeching and reaching for Casey. Not on her watch. She smacked it into the ground, pinning it beneath the wrecking ball. 

“Commander O’Neil!” Casey cheered.

“Nice shot,” Splinter praised. They all look at Metro Tower and the Technodrome hovering over the destruction. 

“Donnie’s almost got the ship to the other side. I have to get the key,” Casey said April felt something burst inside of her. It was like meeting her soulmates all over again. Their ninpo! Karai’s presence rushed back and she grinned before grabbing Casey’s arm and firing his grapple. 

“See ya!” she saluted Future Boy as he hurtled off towards the Key. She looked down at Splinter. “You felt that right?” 

Splinter gave her that familiar sharp smile before holding up a glowing fist. “After you Commander.” She grinned right back at her Sensei before snagging her bat. “Let’s make sure these guys know what happens when you mess with the Hamatos.” They dashed off to hold off the rest of the Invasion with hope beating in their chest. Hope may be a ninja’s greatest weapon, but a baseball bat was pretty good too. 

April could feel her heart breaking as Leo said goodbye over the comms. No. No. Not her cocky little brother. Her bat clattered to the floor as she stared at Splinter’s heartbroken expression. 

“Casey PLEASE,” Her little brother begged. There was a boom and the portal sealed shut. Splinter fell to his knees as that bright blue wind in her heart seemed to blow far away. No no no no no. She couldn’t do anything- - She grabbed onto her Sensei-uncle-pops-family-soulmate and held him. Sister Krang laughed behind her and she glared. She picked up her mystic bat and slammed it into the alien, cold-cocking her. The slimy monster slumped to the floor and she whirled around to grab Splinter again. 

“Come on, let’s go find the others,” April whispered. She needed the others right now. Slowly they walked in the direction of Metro Tower. 

The fires were still burning but she could hear the wails of fire-trucks and ambulances. There were people starting to come out of hiding, people shaking off the Krang’s possession and the pink goo left behind was wilting. 

“Commander,” a broken voice whispered as they continued their solemn march. Casey looked up at them with tear-filled eyes and held out a single katana to Master Splinter. “I’m so sorry,” he choked out. April looked at Future Boy, the one who locked Leo away and sighed. Splinter cradled the katana to his chest and April pulled the time-traveler into a hug. 

“It wasn’t your fault,” she whispered. The boy hitched and started to cry. April, Splinter, and Casey sat in the shadow of the ruins of Metro Tower and the End. Her chest was burning with her remaining brother’s ninpo. Pleading. She pushed into it. Pushing her grief and pain and longing. It burned brighter searing into her soul and the mark on her wrist before winking out.

Her comm beeped. 

“Hey, April,” Donnie’s voice came over the comms, “Um, do you think you could pick us up?” Oh thank goodness, they’re still alive.

“Where are you?!” April shouted. She needed her turtles back and she needed them now. She needed Piebald and Cass too, but who knew where those two were in the middle of this. 

“Staten Island,” Donnie reported, “We ended up here after the Krang Prime tossed Mikey and I off the ship and Raph jumped after us.” 

“Staten Island?” April questioned, “Ew.” 

“I know right?” Leo added. They all gasped and screamed in shock.

“LEO?!” April and Casey screeched together
“BABY BLUE!” Splinter cried

“Ack! My ears! My ears!” Donnie complained.

“Donnie!” Raph said

“Aww, the hug’s over,” Mikey lamented.

“Hey, if anyone has the right to complain it’s me with all my broken bones,” Leo ( LEO !!) quipped back.

“LEO? Is that YOU?!” April yelled, “I swear to Pizza Supreme-!” 

There was a small laugh before Leo’s voice came through again, “Yeah, it’s me Flashlight. It’s me.” 

“Blue,” Splinter sobbed, “My sons, you’re alright.” 

“We’re all here Dad,” Raph promised, “And we’re not going anywhere.” 

“You better not!” April bossed, “I’ll grab a van.”

“I got the timer!” Mikey chirped, “And go!” April let out a half sob and a half laugh at Mikey trying to see if she could beat their carjacking record now of all times before patting the two with her and running off. Luckily, nobody -Raph- complained about her ‘finding’ a ride for them. ‘Sides, she ain’t going to wait for a bus or nothing. They just stopped the Apocalypse for crying out loud. The rules can stuff it, she’s got a baby brother to get to. 

“By the way, someone should probably grab a medical kit,” Leo pipes up, “It feels like all my bones feel broken.” This time everybody screeched “LEO!” 

Chapter Text

Things were starting to be okay again. The city was coming back together, Grammi and her parents were fine, if not shell-shocked at the realization that aliens were real, Leo and the others were healing up and Draxum predicted that they would make a full recovery. 

The O’Neil apartment had been spared from a lot of the destruction that had spread across New York and they had mobilized. Mom was working overtime caring for people who had been hurt in the attack, Dad was out documenting and helping with any volunteer crews he passed and Grammi had commandeered the kitchen to start pumping out food to pass out. Grammi sent her with a full tupperware of hearty home-cooked meals every time she went to the Lair. 

Her parents -her wonderful loving amazing parents- had nearly had her stay home with Grammi before she nearly had a panic attack and blurted out how Leo had nearly died and he was okay now but for a minute they really thought he had been gone and they all needed to be nearby so they could help because Mikey and Raph and Donnie had all gotten hurt and Splinter did too and just- it was an easy sell after that. Donnie helped her tape her phone back together enough so they could keep in contact and the O’Neils made sure the Hamatos were being taken care of. The fact that her phone had broken was probably the only reason she wasn’t grounded after how long it had taken to call them.

Piebald had shown up barely a day later freaking out about how she had felt all their Ninpos be sealed and “Great Goblins, were they all okay!?” Casey had taken one look at her and given her a salute calling her “Scout Leader Piebald” and looking like he had seen a ghost. Piebald had considered that an oath of allegiance and roped him into taking care of the turtles and scaring the heebeegeebees out of people as ‘sewer cryptids’ as they scavenged extra supplies and tried to help with the clean-up. She had a suspicion they were utterly destroying anything left by the Kraang too. 

Cassandra ‘Casey’ Jones stopped by while they were out, punched everyone in the arm except for Splinter and Leo who got an out for being injured. She had warned them all not to scare her like that again before apologizing and explaining that her Brownie Scouts needed her help. They had all quickly shooed her out the door, loading her up with some of Grammi’s soup and a spare comm to keep in contact while the phone lines were overloaded.

Before they knew it a week had gone by and Casey nervously mentioned to April that Master Leonardo had asked him “to do him a favor and grab a slice” even though he wasn’t sure what that meant? April had promptly rounded up her turtles, Leo still stuck with his arm in a cast and hobbling around on crutches, grabbed Splinter by the tail and hauled them to Senor Hueso’s to grab a slice. The look on the skeleton Yokai’s face when he saw them was pure relief and he loaded them up on pizza to take with them as long as they promised to call him next time. 

All of it had led to this moment, where Casey was about to take his very first slice of pizza on the rooftop of Run of the Mill. 

“So this is grabbing a slice?” Casey asked, holding up a slice, “I don’t get it...” 

“Wait for it…” Mikey promised. Casey took a bite before groaning in delight.

“SO much better than rats,” he mumbled. They all nodded as Splinter gasped in mock?-outrage.

“Hey,” Leo said, draping himself over Casey’s shoulder, “the rest of the world we saved is pretty great too.” April grinned before dragging Splinter’s tail over and pushing her phone into it.

“Alright everybody, look up here!” Snap! A new picture for a new chapter. She showed it to Casey who smiled softly. 

“April, you just got a message from someone named Cassandra,” Casey told her, passing back the phone. She slid it open to see her demanding they tell her how the pizza run went and Casey’s reaction, along with several pictures of her beating up Krang and leading the Brownie Scouts. 

“Whoa! Looks like our soulmate Cassandra has been busy,” April said, showing off the photos. 

“That’s my mom!” Casey exclaimed. They all froze and stared at Future Boy.

“There goes the same time continuum,” Donny mentioned. 

“I think we left that behind a while ago,” Raph comforted, patting him on the back. 

“Wait, does that mean you know who Turtle is?” Mikey asked suddenly. They all turned to stare at him. In some ways April wasn’t nearly as frantic to find her soulmates as she had been when she was 10, but in other ways she was worse. Casey looked even more caught out now before rubbing the back of his neck. 

“Uh yeah,” Casey said sheepishly, before bending down and pulling up his pant leg to show - their soulmarks. “Uh, I’m Turtle.” There was another moment of shocked silence before the rooftop erupted in noise again. 

“WHAT?!” Their voices all layered over each other before Splinter waddled over to Casey and patted his soulmark. 

“I think I speak for all of us when I say, we are happy you’re here to stay. Officially,” Splinter said. Casey teared up. 

“Welcome to the Hamato-O’Neil-Jones soul group,” Raph said as he grabbed the kid and tossed him into the air to cradle him above the rooftops. 

“I can’t believe Turtle wasn’t a turtle!” Donnie said, “Four turtles in the mostly mutant group, and one of the three humans is Turtle?” 

“I can’t believe you didn’t say anything before now!” Mikey shouted, climbing up to sit on Raph’s shell, “Dude!” 

“Shame, Casey Hamato-O’Neil-Jones Junior,” Leo teased, “For shame.” 

April laughed at his guilty expression and tapped Casey’s mark before offering her wrist as she climbed up to sit next to him. Casey’s ninpo felt like a comforting sense of darkness. It was the anonymity of having done hard-work and the assurance that you could be proud. She could imagine it lit up with all the colors of their family and smiled. Here was that last missing piece. 

“I forgive you for creeping up on me,” she told him. Just to mess with her newest brother. “You’ve gotta tell Cass by yourself though.” The guy paled at the idea of facing his mom. 

“I’m gonna be so grounded,” he whispered. April snorted and leaned back against her biggest little bro.

She had done it. All 8 of her soulmates had been found and she could reach them anytime she wanted. She had found her missing family and expanded beyond even that. She couldn’t have imagined this before now, but it was all she could see when she looked to the future. This was it, and nothing was gonna tear them apart. If the Apocalypse had failed to separate their family -she carefully squeezed Leo’s shoulder as he passed by- then maybe she could be brave and finally introduce her two families to each other. Grammi had been hinting about having them over for dinner instead of sending off tupperware. 

April O’Neil had 8 soulmates. They were strange and different and some of the most important people in her life. They were family in all the ways that mattered and had led to her adding to her extended family tree as well. The universe had left her clues to the world and April O’Neil was going to make the most of it. 

“Hey Mom, Dad, I was wondering if we could have the Hamatos over for dinner…”