Almost a week had passed since the "incident", what they decided to call the mystical event, and routine returned to the lair.

Of course, if the routine includes cleaning up the mess and repairing the walls and ceiling cracked by the earthquakes. And Lou actively teaching Mikey how to growl at Raphael.

It is not the only thing that Lou is teaching him, Splinter agreed that Lou will accompany them in their meditation sessions to support the little one in his new relationship with the mystical. Lou was able to take them both to a spiritual plane where they can delve into Mikey's abilities which, until now, involved being able to see auras and read others' intentions in a surprisingly accurate way. When talking to Mikey, the elders assumed that the youngest's natural gift only intensified with the unlocking of the mystical center of the world and that it was easy for him to learn why he could already handle it, to a lesser extent, for a long time.

After the meditation and training, the children with Lou spent the rest of the day covering the cracks with fresh cement; Everyone was surprised the day April told them that she got them four bags of cement but that she needed help to put it in the sewers, her father could barely carry them in a wheelbarrow to the alley.

They went up with Lou accompanying them and the oldest just grabbed the bags one by one, lowering them and then balancing them on his shoulders and carrying them, as if they weighed nothing, to the den. All without even breaking a sweat.

Well, it also had to be super strong, right? —Raphael complained and gave his older brother a cold look of jealousy. Leo was already starting to get tired of his siblings hating him for the things the supposed older version of him did.

April was still as enchanted as the first day, not only with how attractive Lou seemed to her but also with everything he could teach her about her own psychic powers. She joined Splinter and Mikey in their meditation sessions and took the opportunity to ask him. to the eldest everything he could think of regarding his mystical abilities and how he could use that knowledge in his own abilities. It turns out that Lou was a great teacher and the girl felt more and more confident in her own powers.

Now the girl was walking towards the den accompanied by her friend Casey; The boy had to be away for a few days due to a pretty bad injury and no one remembered to tell him about the strange visitor who suddenly entered their lives.

I assure you it's very cool - the girl talks enthusiastically about the mutant - and God Cas, I never thought a turtle could be, I don't know, attractive - just like Donatello, April's statement touched his heart and he was completely determined that You won't like this Lou guy no matter how great he is.

Upon entering the lair, the young man encountered several changes. Not only was it more organized than ever, but some new furniture was distinguishable in various areas of the room. It was obvious that they were used and arranged but they gave a new air of warmth and comfort to the cold room.

A very animated Mikey threw himself at the human boy, greeting him.

Casey, Hello, how are you feeling about your injury? —She asks with a kind smile.

Pretty good — the young man flexes his arm to make his point — I see I missed a lot of things... — he adds, looking around.

"A lot," exclaims the little turtle, opening his arms and moving them in a fan, covering the entire room. "Lou has helped us bring new things from the landfill and fix them, he's very skilled." The proud tone in which he said things did not go unnoticed by the boy. Although he only dismissed it when he realized that Mikey was just as enchanted by the intruder as April was.

Master Splinter appears from the dojo followed by a figure as tall as him. The stranger was wearing an oriental-style suit, the name of which he did not remember, torn in some places. The first thing that caught Casey's attention was his height, none of his friends, including Donnie who was the tallest of the group, even reached his shoulder, thin but firmly marked in his muscles, with a skin color darker than the of his turtles and hair? Long dark hair that reached a little below the stranger's shoulders.

Definitely a strange creature.

The stranger looked at them and said something to his friends' mentor and then separated from him and walked towards them.

Hello April - he greeted him with a smile in which Casey could glimpse a separation of teeth like Donnie's - and Hello young man - he greeted him with the same warmth and for a second the youngest could understand the reason for the enchantment that Red had for the mutant. . Objectively it was much more Cute? Than any other mutant they've encountered before.

Although he was the incredible Casey Jones, he was not going to let himself be conquered by a possible enemy.

"Casey, my name is Casey Jones," he said in a low and, he hoped, threatening tone. The mutant's eyes opened slightly and a shadow of sadness and nostalgia appeared in them although he quickly disappeared.

Nice to meet you Casey Jones - the stranger responded - you can call him Lou - the charming smile returned to his lips although the air of sadness did not completely disappear from his posture.

Lou — April spoke next to him, drawing the older man's attention — I brought you something... it's a pair of pants and a T-shirt — he opened a plastic bag that he was carrying and took out two clothes of a beautiful light blue color — Dad bought them on a trip to India why she wanted to start doing yoga but she regretted it in the first class - the girl giggled and Casey rolled her eyes - I thought they might fit - the mutant, Lou, took the clothes and smiled broadly at the girl.

Thank you very much April — I hug the clothes against my chest — I'll try them on when we finish setting up the room.

From one of the hallways appeared a Raphael splashed with cement and carrying a bucket.

Jones, until you showed up - he greets his friend - come here and help me, there are still cracks in the bathroom to cover and this idiot wants us to put ceramics like we're rich or something - he walks past Lou and Mikey handing him the bucket empty to Casey, when he points to the older man to indicate that it was the idiot he was referring to, Lou growls low, making the sound rumble in his chest and raising his upper lip slightly, revealing a small fang there. Casey almost drops the bucket from his hands when she hears him, it's threatening, dangerous and she feels her blood run cold, frozen as he is. He almost let out an unseemly squeal when he heard his best friend respond with his own growl, not as deep or threatening as the older mutant's but it was the wildest and most animalistic thing he had ever heard from the turtle. red.

I see you've learned - the so-called Lou pats Raphael's shoulder with a proud smile - I knew there was a beast hidden in you - Mikey giggles and looks at his brother with a raised eyebrow; Raph looks at both mutants first confused and then annoyed and grabs the bucket from the human boy's hands starting to walk stomping.

Let's go, Jones — the black-haired man just nods and walks behind Raphael without fully understanding what happened.

April — Lou catches the girl's attention — do you want to help me and Mikey finish painting some furniture we sanded? — The girl looks towards the living room where there are a few nightstands and chairs scattered on the floor on newspaper waiting for her coat of paint that will bring them back to life.

I see that they have made a lot of arrangements - says the girl, taking off her jacket so as not to dirty it - and it has only been a few days - she kneels next to a jar of paint - How did they get so many things? "She," she asks, seeing the brushes and some other tools scattered on the floor, "some of these are expensive.

Lou laughed softly.

My brother taught me some things... that you better not worry about - he says enigmatically and puts an open can of white paint next to the girl - for now let's leave these chairs like new.

They spent the afternoon painting, at some point Donatello joined them, more like an observer in reality with his attention focused on April. In the end, noticing that the girl was feeling uncomfortable, Lou put a sander in Don's hands and had him clean a thick wooden counter that was going directly to the laboratory.

Grumbling, the one in purple got to work, although the moment Leonardo appeared in the room, carrying a bucket of cement and as splashed as Raphael, he gave him a long look with a frown.

Michelangelo — Leo decided, for mental health, not to take into account the dirty looks that Donnie gave him every time he didn't agree with something Lou did or said — I finished my room so I'll leave the rest of the cement for you to work on on your walls — the youngest of the brothers stood up and wiped his hands on an old rag that was next to him before trotting towards his leader and saluting him in a military manner.

Yes sir - he grabbed the bucket and disappeared behind the door of his room.

April stopped her work and stared at Lou, due to her closeness to him, she noticed the small start he gave when Leonardo called Mikey and that aroused suspicion in her. If he had been listening to Donnie when he explained all his reasons why this turtle was an adult variant of Leo, but now he doubted, some features could be confused with those of a leader like the one in blue, but many other things were more in line with the Mikey's personality, and, perhaps, that reaction to the name was just more evidence that reaffirmed his suspicions. She would save that information for now; When she connected with him during meditation sessions, she couldn't find any loopholes through which she could access any of his memories or glimpse any personal information. The guy did know how to protect herself from a psychic attack. Maybe if she used her suspicion that he was, in fact, an alternate Michelangelo she could lower his defenses a little and get some information. Curiosity gnawed at her, the guy was not only incredibly powerful but he seemed to carry a horrible weight on his shoulders and an enormous sadness that can be seen in his eyes from time to time. Mikey and Splinter mentioned something about a terrifying future in a quick team meeting, but they didn't want to delve further despite the sea of questions each had on the tip of their tongues. The teacher said it wasn't his story to tell and Mikey became incredibly protective of the oldest.

If he wasn't going to get information from any of them he would use dirty tricks and then apologize.

Friend, what was that? — Casey waves his arms effusively to get his friend's attention. The growling trick was great, in the human's eyes, and he wanted to know everything - I had no idea they could growl, I thought turtles didn't make noise - Raphael was stirring the cement with rage, his body was shaking but at the same time he felt euphoric, he never let that part of him emerge that was wild and instinctive, he never listened to that animal side, he found it useless, his teacher always guided them through the human side, repressing his instincts and his reptilian side but now, after growling in That way, letting his hindbrain take control, he was ecstatic.

And terrified.

We don't use that instinct... - the turtle in red answers - we were always raised as human children so I didn't know we could growl like that either... - he applied cement to some cracks and let his mind wander for a moment, we really didn't. He knew what to feel, he supposed that his sensei never let them explore that animal side for good reasons but now, after letting the turtle in him take control for a moment, he couldn't find the bad. Shit, Lou just turned their worlds upside down.

Well, what happened here? Are these cracks made with last week's tremor or something? - the human asked to change the subject - I didn't think it was that strong...

Actually - Raphael examines his work with a critical eye and nods in agreement with what he sees - it was Lou's fault - he says, leaving the palette in the bucket - his mystical powers, or some shit like that, went crazy for a moment and we all ended up floating in the air as in space... - he tells his friend, wiping his hands - everything has been super strange since he arrived and Donnie assures that Lou is not his name but that he is an alternative Leonardo that he doesn't want to tell us. The truth is - he unconsciously lets out a small growl which makes Jones look at him in surprise - shit, I still can't get used to the fact that I growl every time something bothers me, the instinct is unpleasant...

Guy! It's great, really, when you did it back there I almost wet my pants - Casey puts an arm around the ninja's thick shoulders - imagine if you approached an enemy in the shadows growling like that, they would get their underwear dirty, I assure you.

A smile is drawn on the rough features of the teenage turtle, he could imagine the scenario perfectly, that his enemies knew that he was a threat even before seeing him, attacking them when they trembled with fear, creating nightmares in those who try to harm his family. Maybe learning to go with his first instincts wasn't so bad after all but that was something he would never admit in front of the intruder, it wouldn't give him that satisfaction.

"Let's get back to work," he says, pushing the human away from him, "I'm hungry."

Jones lets out a mocking laugh and takes another bit of cement with his shovel, returning to touch up the thin cracks that were visible in the wall.

Between the three of them, Leonardo joined them at some point, they managed to finish painting the chairs and nightstands that were now slowly drying on the sea of newspaper they had spread on the floor, Lou stood up and wiped his hands. sweat from his forehead in a very dramatic gesture that caused the human girl to giggle. Across the room Donnie huffed in annoyance and set the sander down on the table he was working on. In fact the counter would be a very useful addition to his laboratory and could replace the table he currently used and which he had seen better days. Lou's incredible strength was a big help when carrying things from the dump and deep down he was grateful but that didn't mean he wasn't bothered by the way his sweet April seemed so hooked on him.

I finished sanding the table — he says out loud, drawing the attention of the others in the room — now what do I do?

Lou walks up to him and applauds his work.

I didn't expect anything less from a genius - he takes a can and hands it to him - put a layer of this liquid on it and let it dry, then it will be ready to paint it - he smiles at him and Donnie bites his lower lip. Lou was really nice but he couldn't let himself be charmed by her kindness, they were sworn enemies — after lunch she will be dry enough to put the paint on it.

The oldest raises his arms above his head, stretching.

"I'll go take a shower first," he winks at the one in purple and goes to the bathroom, taking the clothes that the girl gave him before disappearing.

I can help you with that - April stands up and walks towards Donnie with a paintbrush in her hand - between the two of us we will finish sooner - Don, who was still looking towards where Lou had disappeared before nodded.

Thank you April — responds. They both begin to work in silence, although after a few minutes the girl manages to start an animated conversation by telling him about her studies and the long list of subjects for which she must study for the exams at the end of the month.

Leonardo also stands up and looks around, many things had changed in the week that his supposed older version had been here, the lair looked more welcoming, with more lights and colors; He has no idea how the guest managed to convince his teacher to let him intervene in his home in that way but she liked him, he assumed it was a way to eliminate the terrible memories of the hell the eldest came from.

He walked towards the dojo asking for permission before entering, his sensei gave it to him and he entered, closing the door behind him.

The older man was sitting in the middle of the training room with his legs crossed in a clearly meditative pose and Leo felt bad about interrupting.

Leonardo, I can feel your troubled spirit from here — his teacher spoke, opening his eyes and looking at him — Is there anything you want to talk about?

The ninja in blue knelt in front of his father figure, sighing.

I am worried about everything that surrounds Lou and what it means that he is here with us now, we have never been lucky, all these situations have brought enemies to our doors and, from the looks of it, Lou's enemy is worse than anything that we have faced - the young man let out his fears suddenly and almost without breathing, he felt that all those fears were accumulating in his chest, he needs to be able to express them but the only person with whom he felt safe to do so was his teacher . The others would have different reactions, but in the end they would all think that he was exaggerating.

I understand your concerns, my son - Yoshi places a hand on the shoulder of his oldest boy - and I share them, I do not have complete freedom to talk about what our guest has experienced, but I can tell you that I deeply wish that our family never has to facing something like that — his teacher's statement did not bring peace to the leader's heart but instead installed an even deeper fear, wishes are not fulfilled, there is always something worse waiting for them. All that remained was to hope that they had the necessary strength to not suffer a defeat like the one hidden behind Lou's unknown history.

April and Donnie were relaxing on the couch after finishing the inn, although the genius of the family had to admit that the lair had never looked better before, the excess of work in the last few days had them tired... and the enthusiasm Angelo's endless supply of ideas combined with Mikey's inexhaustible source of ideas were an exhausting combination against which they had nothing to do, the two together could do the impossible: make them accept their ideas without complaining.

— I'm sure Mikey did something with those new skills of his to convince us to do all this work — he makes a theatrical movement that encompasses the entire room, April, next to him, just laughs.

— Well, I think they all wanted a reason to change their home — she answers with a smile — I guess Lou gave them one and Mikey gave them the motivation — the girl looks straight ahead — part of growing up is changing, looking for your own colors . They have lived their entire lives in the same place without any change, I think it was time before they got bored - he looks at Donnie again before standing up - I'm glad to see that they are improving their home.

Donatello looks at the girl and then looks at the room again, it is true, there is a personal touch of each brother in it, proof that teenagers with their own tastes live there. Smile.

— It's exhausting but you're right, although I think it's missing some purple — he jokes and stands up — but I'm not going to do anything else until I've eaten something.

They hear a scream and see Lou return with an obvious cement stain on his face.

— Well, Raphael made it clear to me that no one goes into the bathroom until he has finished covering the cracks — the oldest wipes the cement off his shoulders — so I better prepare lunch — both Don and April laugh and