HOME | DD

Description
Raph pushed open his door and absentmindedly put his sai down on the table by the door, thinking over the training session he’d just had with Leo. He only looked up when he heard a light groan and that was when he noticed Lani screwed up into a ball on the end of his bed, fast asleep. He quickly – but quietly – stormed out of his room, in search of Donatello.

“What the shell, Donnie?” he asked when he found him in his lab.

The genius turtle gave him an expectant ‘go on’ look.

“Why the shell is Lani in my bed?” the older turtle went on.

“Because she couldn’t just stay here,” Donnie explained, going back to wiring something, as if already bored of the conversation.

“But why my room?”

“Because Mikey and Leo were in their rooms, mine is still an absolute health hazard at this point and you weren’t around to ask. Besides, you did say she could crash in your bed if she really needed to,” he said, lifting his eyes to give his older brother a pointed look.

“Oh… right,” Raph said, embarrassed at having forgotten that promise he’d made. “Well, OK then.” He turned around to leave, but suddenly Donnie sat up straight and smirked slightly.

“So what’s the real reason why you’re so upset at having her in your bed?” he asked Raph, enjoying the sight of the hot-head’s shoulder muscles tensing far too much.

“What you talking about?” Raph growled at Donnie, giving him exactly the answer he’d been looking for.

“Please, Raph, it’s obvious you really like her,” Donnie said, going back to his work to take some of the pressure off his poor, inarticulate brother.

There was silence for a long time, and Donnie had started to wonder if he’d missed Raph leaving when next his brother spoke.

“It’s that obvious?” Raph asked quietly.

Donnie, though he didn’t look up again, was surprised at his brother’s blatant admission.

“Not really, unless you know what to look for,” he responded, shrugging.

“An’ you do?” Raph asked, and Donnie could just imagine him raising an eyebrow sceptically. He sighed and looked up at his brother.

“Don’t forget, I happen to be throwing the exact same looks at April, no matter what I try to do,” he told him.

“Oh… right,” Raph looked down at the floor and shuffled his feet. “Lani seems to like you a lot, though,” he said after a while, looking a little pained.

“That’s only because none of you bother to spend time with her in here,” the younger of the two said. “Even Mikey got bored of the lab too quickly. So I ended up being the only one she got to know.”

“Has it been bad for her?” Raph asked quietly. “Being left out like that, I mean.”

“She’s handled it quite well, but she’s quick to get bored,” Donnie said nonchalantly. “She’s expressed her longing to join you guys around the lair more than once, especially when she can hear the training sessions and your workouts.”

“Do… do you think that means anything?” Raph asked, lighting up slightly despite himself.

“It might. I don’t know. The only way to find out is to ask.”

“Oh, shell no,” Raph said, holding his hands up in apparent defeat. “Ain’t no way that’s happening.”

“Then you’ll be living with the suspense and uncertainty for a long and painful time,” Donnie said, moving over to another project. “Trust me.”

Raph digested that for a while before leaving, all the while staying quiet. Donnie looked up from his project to see his conflicted brother leave, feeling sorry for him because he knew exactly what Raph was going through. He knew for a fact that Lani wasn’t attracted to himself in any way – that would just have made the medical exams he’d had to do on her far too awkward – but he didn’t know if that made it easier for Raphael. For all any of them knew, Lani might like Leo or Mikey instead of Raph.

Returning to his room, Raph paused when he realised Lani had shifted. She’d moved from the very edge of the bed to where it met the walls of the room. He couldn’t help but take note of how small and lost she looked in the huge bed, scrunched up in the very corner.

He threw a blanket over her slim figure and then lay down in his hammock, glad of the alternate bed space. He certainly didn’t want to seem like he was making a move on her this early on in their… acquaintanceship.

When Lani awoke, she was surprised to find herself tangled up in a mixture of blankets and still undisturbed in Raph’s bed. She sat up, a little disorientated. She’d only meant to take a short nap, but it seemed she’d slept all through the night, judging by her hunger and need of the bathroom.

She’d half expected Raph to wake her up to tell her to move someplace else when he came to bed last night, but apparently he’d made another plan for himself. Looking around, she noticed his leg dangling out of the giant hammock she’d noticed earlier and felt a little better knowing that she hadn’t completely robbed him of a resting place.

Untangling herself quietly was a mission, and one that she didn’t quite achieve. She had to bite her tongue when she accidentally pulled on a piece of blanket that was wrapped around her tail, which caused it to twist in a way that didn’t feel natural. Finally, after much mental cursing and rolling about, she managed to stumble free of the mess.

She made as if to leave, but stopped just short of the door and looked back. Feeling bad for the state she’d left the kind turtle’s bed in, she retraced her steps and quickly spread the blanket a little better, at least until it looked like she’d tried. She never had been one to make her bed in the morning.

Once finished, she made straight for the bathroom and shower. Stepping in, she sighed happily as the hot water ran down her body through her fur. It served well to wake her up and clear the cobwebs from her head.

When she was more or less dry, she managed to catch sight of herself in the mirror and sighed. The shower had done nothing to take care of her bed-head. Or bed-body, as was the case. Looked like another bad hair day was to be expected. Which, for a person with hair everywhere, could be completely disastrous.

She decided to wrap a huge towel around her body and grab her brush and go in search of Donnie, who was sure to be awake and working away in his lab.

Sure enough, she found him rewiring some of the circuits in the Shellraiser.

“Hey, Donnie?” she called quietly, knocking gently on the door frame.

“Oh, good morning, Lani,” Donnie said, turning around. “You’re up early. Did you sleep well last night?”

“Yeah, it was fine,” she said. “Remind me to thank your brother for letting me use his bed if I forget.”

“I’ll be sure to,” he said, still focused on the circuits in front of him. “So, can I be of any assistance this morning?”

“Actually… I was going to ask if you could brush my back for me again,” she said shyly.

“I’m quite busy right now, Lani,” the turtle said. “Could you maybe ask someone else to help you with that?”

She blushed furiously at the idea. “B-but who else can I ask? Mikey will laugh and be annoying about it, Leo’s probably meditating or something, and Raphael’s still sleeping. Besides, what would they think of me?”

“They’d think you were just politely asking them for a favour,” Donnie said, turning slightly to give her a reassuring sidelong glance.

She sighed in defeat. “OK, I’ll see.”

“They’re really not as scary as they sound when they’re shouting at each other,” Donnie called after her gently for encouragement.

“Could have fooled me,” Lani muttered to herself, and decided to ditch the idea of being brushed altogether. There was no way she was asking either Leo or Raphael – especially the latter – to brush her like some housecat.

“Whoa,” was the first thing she heard from two of the other turtles that morning as they came into the kitchen for breakfast.

“Dudette, what happened to you?” Mikey asked her, laughing.

“I slept funny, OK?” she grumbled, glaring at her plate.

“Didn’t Raph’s bed agree with you?” Leo asked, smirking.

“No, that’s not it,” Lani said, escaping the kitchen quickly. She had the desperate feeling like that conversation had the potential to go in a very unwanted direction.

“You sleep OK?” she heard Raph’s voice from his bedroom door.

“Y-yeah, I did,” she stuttered, feeling suddenly shy under the tall turtle’s gaze. “Th-thanks for letting me use your bed.”

“No problem,” he said, brushing past her on his way to the kitchen. Lani couldn’t help but feel a little disappointed at his immediate dismissal of her, but daren’t call out to him for fear of making the conversation awkward.

Later that evening, Lani was playing video games with Mikey, for want of a better thing to do, when Leo announced a surprise patrol.

“We have to keep the bad guys guessing,” he explained, before glaring at his brothers until they groaned and followed him out of the lair.

After a while, once evening had fallen, Lani started feeling tired. She spent a while deliberating on where she was going to sleep. In the end, remembering his soft pillows and warm blankets, she opted to just crash in Raphael’s bed again. She just hoped that the fact that he hadn’t raised a fuss about her using his bed last night meant that he didn’t mind her using it again. Still, she felt it a better idea to wait for the turtles’ return, so that she could ask his permission.

However, the patrol seemed to be a very long one, so when Lani just couldn’t keep her eyes open any more, she finally decided to just go for it.

Crawling into the huge bed, she once again chose the smallest corner, hoping that it might show him that she didn’t mean to intrude on his privacy. She wrapped herself in a blanket and proceeded to drift off to sleep.

When the turtles got back, it was already very late, so everyone made straight for their own rooms. When Raph got to his, he was hardly surprised but quite pleased to see Lani snuggled into the corner of his bed again.

Scrutinizing her position, he could see that, given that she had slept like this as well the previous night, it was hardly surprising that her fur had looked so haywire that morning. He watched her even breathing for a while longer, before finally shaking his head at his thoughts and making for the hammock, but not before he’d reached over to readjust the blanket covering her, so that it might keep her warmer. Lani shifted slightly when he pulled the blanket up to her chin, gently moving her head down so that it rested against his hand. Raph held his breath and didn’t dare move his hand for fear of disturbing her further and having her wake up.

When he was sure she was still asleep, he gently withdrew his hand and collapsed into his hammock, his mind reeling from the gentle pressure she’d applied to his hand. Such a simple gesture, and in sleep too, and yet it had set his hand on fire and his heart racing…

When Raph woke up the next morning, he realised that Lani was also just waking up. He watched her stretch for a split second before deciding against taking the chance of being discovered staring at her like some pervert.

“Good morning,” he said, yawning and doing his own stretching.

Lani jumped slightly at the sound of his voice. Despite being slightly slurred due to sleepiness, she couldn’t help but feel kind of warm and fuzzy when she heard it.

“Morning,” was all she said though, trying not to show any emotion.

“Sleep well?” Raph asked her.

“Yeah. You?”

“Yup.”

“If you’d rather sleep in your bed, just say so,” Lani said. “I’ll take the hammock. I can even go sleep someplace else if you want.”

“N-no, I’m good with how it is,” he said.

“Oh, OK. Good,” she trailed off, unsure of what to say to carry on with the conversation.

“So, I guess we’d better get up and get some breakfast before it’s all gone,” Raph said in an attempt to avoid an overly long awkward silence.

“Good thinking.”

While Raph hopped out of the hammock, Lani started untangling herself from the sheets and blankets again. He wondered why she was always so tangled up. Yesterday had been the same when he’d briefly woken close to dawn. He wondered if she had nightmares that were the reason for her tossing and turning and getting tangled up like that.

He averted his eyes before she could catch him staring, reminding himself that just because they shared a room did not mean that she was in any way actually comfortable with sharing a room with him, or with him being there while she got ready for the day.

He grabbed his things from his nightstand and then made for the door. Lani looked up from where she was straightening up the bed.

“Where are you going?” she asked him.

He turned, a little surprised at her question. “To go get ready someplace else, so you can get ready in private.”

“But… it’s your room,” she said. “You stay here, I’ll go find that someplace else.”

“No, it’s fine, really,” he tried to insist.

She shook her head. “All of your stuff is in here, Raphael. Let me go to the bathroom. My things are there anyway.”

“Oh… OK then,” he said.

Just as she was walking out of the door, though, something occurred to him.

“Hey, Lani?” he called out to her.

Lani stopped and turned back to him with a hand on the door frame, looking at him questioningly.

“It’s Raph,” he said, losing his nerve and dropping his gaze. “Not Raphael. Just Raph.”

A small smile tugged the corners of her lips up a little.

“OK, Raph,” she said. “See you ’round.”

After her shower, Lani stood in the bathroom and pulled a face at her reflection. Her fur was, if anything, even worse than the previous day. She really hoped Donnie had enough time to help her today.

“Hey, Donnie,” she said, knocking gently on the doorframe of his lab as she always did.

This morning, Donnie was working at his desk, mixing chemicals together to form some sort of sludge that was black as pitch.

“Good morning, Lani,” he said, not daring to take his eyes off of his experiment while his almost unnaturally steady hand dropped exactly 2 drops of something into the sludge using his pipette.

“Do you never sleep in?” Lani asked the genius, rubbing her eyes.

“Not if I have work to do,” Donnie said, pushing the sludge away from him and grabbing another beaker. “I can’t. I can’t get over the feeling of guilt that I feel not doing things that I know I should be doing.”

“Oh, well I guess that makes sense,” she said. “Um, Donnie, could I ask you to—”

“I’m afraid not, Lani,” Donnie said, cutting her off.

“But… you don’t even know—”

“What you’re going to ask? By the state of your fur, I can only assume you want to ask if I’ll help you brush yourself.”

Her bashful silence must have confirmed his suspicions, because he glanced at her with a ‘See? I know all’ look.

“B-but why won’t you do it today?” she asked him.

“Because to tell you the truth, this has just become a matter of principle,” he told her. “You need to get over your shyness of my brothers, and I won’t always be around and free to help you, so you might as well do it now.”

“But…”

“Nope. No chance. You go ask someone else, or you go another day without being brushed.”

She huffed in annoyance, more at defeat than his reasons – because she knew he only spoke the truth in this – and strutted off.

Lani deliberated for a long time on whether she actually felt up to asking one of the others to help her, and who she’d even ask if she did. In the end, she decided to opt for Raph. Most likely, his huffy attitude would allow him to just blow off the weirdness and get it over and done with. Chivalrous as Leo was, it would make the rest of their time around each other awkward as hell, and Mikey would probably make a mess of it and then tease her about it, even if it was in good nature.

So Lani found herself outside the room she was sharing with the turtle, hoping he had come back after getting breakfast for himself.

She knocked gently on the closed door, and heard shuffling and footsteps from inside.

“Mikey, I swear if you’ve—” he looked down and blinked at her in surprise. “Oh hey, Lani,” he said. “Sorry, I thought Mikey was being an idiot again. Anyways, can I help you?”

Lani opened her mouth to ask the question she’d come to ask, but at the last second she chickened out completely. She sagged inwardly.

“Could I… could I just put some stuff in your room?” she asked him, holding up her arms which carried her brush and some other things. Seeing his expression, she rushed on. “It’s OK if I can’t, it’s just I’m worried that I’ll lose them or that Mikey will do something with them if I leave them out in the bathroom and—”

“It’s fine, Lani,” Raph said, recovering himself slightly. “Go ahead.”

“Really? Th-thanks, Raph,” she said. He stood aside so that she could slip into the room. She quickly deposited her things and then made to leave quickly to give him his privacy again.

“Oh, um, by the way, Lani,” he said, calling her attention back to him, “I don’t mind you getting comfortable in here,” he said, then blushed. “I mean, if you’re OK with that.”

“You… you don’t?”

“No. If you want me to clean up some space for you to bring the rest of your stuff in, then… just say so, OK?” He looked at her slightly hopefully.

“I… thank you, Raph,” she said, smiling at him. “I’ll check out the situation in the bathroom today, although most of what’s there should be fine no matter what Mikey tries to do with it.”

When his chuckle reached her ears as she was leaving, she was struck by how her smile wouldn’t leave her face, no matter what she tried.

For the next few days Lani managed to grit her teeth every time her clothing – though sparse because of the small need for it – rubbed her un-brushed fur the wrong way. In the end though, her defiance helped nothing, because she had to give in anyway and ask Raph to help her.

The two had been growing steadily more comfortable around each other, a situation which was only helped along by the fact that they both liked quiet privacy in the times when they weren’t busy with other things, and without regular patrols and large Foot activity, those times were in abundance.

The first time Lani had been looking for a quiet place to read a newly-acquired book, she’d immediately thought of Raph’s snug bed, and the fact that he’d probably be training with Leo. So she made her way to his room, already engrossed in the first chapter.

She was so intent on reading that she only just avoided walking into the door of Raph’s room, which happened to be closed – a rare occurrence at this time of day. Taking a deep breath and hoping that he wasn’t inside, she knocked softly.

“Come in,” his gruff voice called from inside.

She cursed silently and opened the door, deciding she’d just apologize for bothering him and leave.

“Oh, I’m sorry, Raph,” she said, sticking her head through the opening of the door to see him relaxing in his hammock. “I thought you’d be training with Leo.”

“Oh, well, Master Splinter wanted to do some personal training with Leo, so I decided I’d come read some.” He held up the biker’s magazine in his hands. “Why?”

“Well, I thought I’d come in here and get away from Mikey’s yelling for a while,” she said, holding up her own book for him to see, “but if you’re in here then…” She trailed off and backed up. “Sorry for bothering you.”

“Hey,” he called, stopping her from closing the door. He hopped out of the hammock and came over to the door to open it up again. “I wouldn’t mind… I mean, you can come in here,” he said awkwardly.

“But if you’re in here then surely you want privacy,” she said, slightly nonplussed.

“Nah, I also just want some quiet. If you’re gonna be reading, then I expect you won’t be making much noise of your own.”

“Oh, well… OK. Thanks, Raph,” she said, smiling up at him.

“No problem.”

He went back to his hammock while she closed the door and settled herself on the bed with her back resting on the pillows. Without another word, the two of them allowed themselves to become engrossed in their respective reads.

What was probably several hours later, Raph groaned and stretched. Lani echoed his actions, hearing several joints groan and pop in retaliation.

“How’s your book?” he asked her. She took a moment to finish a yawn before answering.

“It’s really good,” she told him, fingering the corner of a page.

“Oh yeah? What is it?”

She held it up for him to see the cover. “It’s called ‘Eldest’. It’s in a series called ‘Inheritance’.”

“That’s a mighty big book,” he said.

“Is it? I guess so,” she said. “It’s really good, though. You should really give it a try.”

“I think I’ll just stick to my ol’ magazines,” Raph said, chuckling.

“You like reading about bikes in magazines?”

“Yeah, sure. Don’t you like to read magazines?”

“Well… not really. I like bikes and stuff well enough, but I don’t really get the point of just looking at pictures of them.”

“Well, if I don’t look at pictures of them in magazines, am I ever gonna see them?” Raph said.

Lani blushed so darkly that it showed around her nostrils, where there was only thin fur, which Raph found strangely endearing. “I-I’m sorry, I didn’t—”

“Oh, I didn’t mean to make you feel bad. That’s just my reason for looking at them…” Raph said hurriedly, trailing off slightly.

“Oh… well, that’s nice that you can get the magazines then,” Lani murmured quietly, looking down at her hands. Raph cursed himself for his tactlessness.

“So… what’s your book about?” he asked tentatively.

“It’s about dragons and magic in a fantasy world that’s still in the middle ages, kinda,” she told him, perking up. He made a mental note of how much he loved it when she got passionate when she talked about something she liked. “The story is mainly about a boy who thought he was just a normal farm boy in a rural village, but then finds a dragon’s egg even though they were supposed to be extinct except one dragon that belonged to the evil king…”

Raph listened, enraptured, as she carried on explaining the plot and the characters. After she’d finished, they started talking about a host of other things, sharing stories and interests and the like.

He couldn’t take his eyes off hers, the way they sparkled was just so magical to him, and he couldn’t stop his heart from skipping a beat whenever she giggled or laughed at something he said. He couldn’t stop himself from falling for her even more.

And she could barely keep her eyes off of him for fear of being caught staring. She wished she could always see him this relaxed and happy to talk, and wished that he would always be so open to her. She wished she could impress him in any way and show him what she thought of him, but she was far too shy to do something like that, and she knew it. The feeling of defeat by her own emotions didn’t stop her from becoming more and more animated as they talked and she relaxed and enjoyed herself.

They talked well into the evening, and in fact only stopped because they were called to supper. Both of them wished that they’d never been called, but neither said anything as they filed out of the room and into the kitchen.

The next morning when Raph woke, his bed was already smoothed and Lani had left. He felt a flash of disappointment at not being able to see her first thing in the morning, but brushed it off and started getting ready.

He had just finished putting his sai into his belt at either hip when there was a gentle knock on his door.

“Come on in,” he called, knowing from the quietness of the knock that it was Lani. No one, not even Leo, could knock on a door as gently and respectfully as she did.

“Hey, um…” he turned away from his nightstand to see that Lani had stopped in the doorway. She had nothing on but a towel wrapped around her, and Raph felt his heart speed up at the thought. She looked incredibly embarrassed though, and was rubbing her right arm with her left hand repeatedly. It looked sort of uncomfortable, given that whenever she rubbed up her fur was lifted the wrong way.

“Yeah, Lani?” he asked her, encouraging her to go on, but studiously avoiding looking at her body.

“Will you, um… could I ask a favour?” she asked, barely above a whisper.

“S-sure,” he said, cursing his unsteady voice.

“I… um, I need…” she trailed off and hid her face in hands, and Raph noticed she had a hairbrush in one. At the sight, he began to suspect what she might be asking, and he hoped that that was the case. Oh, how he hoped.

“It’s OK, Lani,” he said as gently as he could manage in his gruff early-morning voice. “Why don’t you come in and we can close the door so that the others don’t have to hear.”

“Oh, um… thanks,” she said, hopping into the room and hurriedly closing the door behind her. “It’s just… well… oh god… I need you to help me brush my fur,” she said all in a rush, blushing so hard that despite her face being in her hands he could see her nose reddening.

Raph blinked and didn’t say anything for a moment. Lani glanced at him morosely from between her fingers and seemed to think his silence meant rejection of the idea.

“I-I’m sorry, if you don’t want to then I’m sure I could ask—”

“No, that’s not it,” he said hurriedly, hoping he could convince her that she had the wrong idea. “It’s just… why me?”

“Oh, um… well, Donnie’s busy, and Leo and Mikey would be all weird about it… plus, I guess seeing as we’re sharing your room…” she trailed off again. “If you’d rather not though, I understand.”

“It’s fine, I’ll help you, really,” Raph insisted, stepping away from the bed. “Come on. Sit down and tell me what to do.”

Lani took a deep breath to steel her nerves and hormones – because despite the awkwardness of the situation she was still floating at the idea of Raph touching her in any way – and went over to sit on the edge of the bed.

“C-could you turn around real quick?” she asked Raph once she was seated.

“Sure,” he said, and took her hairbrush before turning away.

She quickly undid the towel covering her and arranged it so that her front and lower areas were covered, leaving her back exposed for brushing.

“O-OK,” she stuttered, letting him know he could turn back to her.

Raph turned and felt his breath hitch at the sight of Lani’s bare, silky back in front of him. He had to try hard not to let any sign of his attraction to the sight reach her. She gestured for him to sit behind her on the edge of the bed and he did, within reach but far away enough to allow for her personal space.

“So… I’ve never brushed anything before, you’re gonna have to tell me how,” he told her.

“Well, um, just start at the top and run the bristles down through the fur,” she said, unsure of how to explain brushing hair.

“Like this?” he asked, gently running the brush from her left shoulder down her back. She shivered lightly and the hair raised up slightly at the contact.

“Whoa, its poofin’ up. Is that good or bad?” Raph asked, worried that he’d done something wrong.

“No, its fine. You did it right. You don’t have to be so gentle though, it doesn’t hurt,” she said, trying to reassure him.

“OK then.”

Raph almost didn’t dare touch Lani’s back besides with the brush, but when she didn’t protest or raise any complaints, he lightly put his hand on her shoulder to better keep her still while he applied a little more pressure to the fur to get rid of some tangles in the thicker mane between her shoulder blades. For a moment, her fur twitched upwards, making her look poofy instead of silky again, but it lay flat again as soon as he started brushing again.

Lani was glad she was facing away from Raph, mainly because she could safely enjoy the brushing without having to worry about making it awkward for him. She didn’t want to startle him by showing him how much she actually enjoyed being brushed, and more importantly being brushed by him.

Raph couldn’t help but notice Lani’s ears relax against her head as he continued brushing her. He was glad she was comfortable, and glad that she had trusted him enough to ask him to do this for her, even if it was only because Don was busy. In truth, he had been wondering about her suddenly unkempt appearance since a few days prior, but now he realised that it was only because she’d been too shy to ask for help from him.

Raph lost count of the number of times he lifted and lowered the brush, but in time he became aware of the increasing amount of pressure Lani was applying to his steadying hand, and he realised that she was leaning back into his touch. He tentatively, almost subconsciously, started rubbing small circles in her fur with his thumb, and was slightly surprised when she didn’t say anything. In fact, she seemed to be pressing up closer against his hand.

The brushing continued on for much longer than what was actually necessary, but Lani couldn’t help but wish it would never end. However, she had to call an end to it at some point, or poor Raph would get tired of it and think it too much bother to do it for her every time she needed him, so she gently leaned away from him and told him it was enough.

When Lani sat up and thanked him, Raph couldn’t help but feel sad. He hadn’t really expected to, but he almost thought he’d enjoyed the brushing more than Lani had, just because of the steady physical contact.

“Thanks again, Raph,” Lani said before she left.

“No problem, Lani. Anytime,” he called after her, not daring to get up before she had left.

Once she was gone, Raph leapt up and grabbed his toiletries. He needed a quick refreshing shower before the day could properly begin.

Over the next few days, Lani and Raph spent a lot of time together, mostly in Raph’s room while they relaxed and read or talked, but also when they ate breakfast and even while Raph was training. Lani had been told she couldn’t do anything involving any sort of stress to her legs and spine for at least another month, but it didn’t stop her from admiring the boys’ training and Raph’s extra workouts.

Even though their friendship was developing quickly, and so was their level of comfort around each other, Lani didn’t ask Raph for help brushing herself again for several days, and Raph found it oddly sad. He had only done it once, but already he felt as if it would be an amazing addition to his daily routine.

Coming back from patrol one evening, Raphael was about ready to fall face first on the floor and have a nice nap right there. He managed to make it to his room, but upon arriving, he realised with dismay that he still hadn’t hung his hammock back up again after Lani had washed it for him. Glancing at the large open space on the bed, he decided that he would just take this one chance, and then rehang the hammock tomorrow.

So he lay down carefully on the other side of the bed from where Lani lay, making sure there was enough space between them so that she didn’t wake up alarmed at his closeness. He had barely looked up to make sure she was covered and snug when his eyelids slid shut and he fell into a deep sleep.

Lani woke up in a slight daze, unsure of where she was at first. For one, when she opened her eyes, the hammock was nowhere to be seen, despite being one of the first things she saw every day, and for another thing, she felt an undeniable presence close to her.

Looking up and around, she realised that the presence just happened to be the red-banded turtle, who seemed to have collapsed onto the bed next to her. Taking in more of her surroundings, she realised that she must have moved away from the corner in her sleep to tuck herself into the hollow between his neck and shoulder as best she could. Hopefully he hadn’t woken during the night and taken offence.

Raph woke up when something moved next to him and tickled his ear. His first instinct was to jump up and crush whatever bug it was. But then he remembered that he’d fallen asleep in the bed containing Lani the previous night, and just thought that she might have moved slightly in her sleep. Opening his eyes just slightly, he realised with a slight lurch of his stomach that she must have moved over during the night and settled herself directly next to his head, still curled up into her tight ball. She was currently surveying her surroundings with a sleepy, slightly confused expression. Oh shell, what was she gonna think of him? That he’d just gone and thrown himself at her while she was sleeping?

Deciding to let her know that he was awake, he stretched lightly and yawned. Lani looked down at his face and immediately jumped up on the bed and away from his head.

“Good morning,” he said casually, trying to stop the blush from discolouring his cheeks.

“G-good morning,” she responded as she was taken over by a yawn that exposed her seriously sharp teeth.

“Sleep well?” he asked sleepily.

“Yeah, surprisingly well,” she said happily. “You?”

“Slept like a rock,” he said.

“That’s good.”

She glanced at the clock.

“Well, I guess I’d better go get ready.”

“Sure thing.”

“Oh, um, Raph? Could I ask you to help me brush my back again today?” she asked him quickly before leaving.

“Oh, sure, Lani,” he said. “Like I said, anytime.”

“Awesome, thanks!” she called before bounding out of the room.

When she got back, she found Raph already sitting on the edge of the bed, ready to start.

“Turn around again?” she asked timidly as she handed him the brush. He covered his eyes and allowed her time to seat herself.

This time when he started brushing her he immediately put out a steadying hand. The only response she gave him was a flick of her left ear, which Raph took to mean as good, seeing as she hadn’t stopped him.

They also talked a little while he brushed her, instead of being silent like the previous time. They talked about bikes and music, and about the latest book that Lani was reading. Raph enjoyed it immensely, and before he knew it, they were back to the normal chatter that happened between them.

After a while though they fell silent and just sat in companionable silence while Raph carried on brushing Lani’s back. After a thought, Raph removed his steadying hand and instead used it to follow the brush, smoothing the fur he’d just brushed. Lani felt her hair raised by the goosebumps forming everywhere, and Raph saw it, but neither did anything to stop the action.

Lani couldn’t believe it. She wasn’t even sure if there was anything to believe. But why else would he do something like that? Did he actually want to touch her? Was he actually attracted to her?

Raph’s mind was swirling with much the same thoughts when Lani didn’t object to him running his hand up and down her back. He couldn’t really believe how soft the fur was, and how smooth it was once he’d brushed it a few times. He found himself leaning forward, and Lani found herself leaning back, until her shoulders were touching his plastron, and his head hovered over her neck.

All brushing had ceased by then, but Raph hadn’t dropped his left hand, and continued to run in up and down Lani’s back and sides. Lani’s hands, which gripped the towel around her front, relaxed, lessening their grip on the towel as Raph dipped his head to her neck.

He held his head just too high, just stopping his lips from meeting her neck, but so that his warm, whooshing breaths warmed the skin there. Lani tilted her head slightly to rub her cheek against his, and purred lightly right into his ear.

Raph’s head almost shot up away from her. He had had no idea that Lani could purr, and also had no idea that she would be enjoying this to any extent. But here she was, relaxed and happy enough to show it, and pressed up against his front enough to leave no doubt. She wanted his touch, and shell, did he want to give it to her.

Raph let the brush fall from his right hand to the floor, and instead used his hands to lift Lani closer to himself and more securely into his lap, where he continued to touch and gently massage her back and sides. She stiffened a little initially, but quickly relaxed and went back to gently nuzzling and nosing at his neck. He lowered his head again as if to press a kiss to her brow, but paused.

And then her lips were on his.

It was like nothing he’d ever felt before.

It was nothing she’d ever felt before.

Raph’s heart almost stopped. Her lips were soft and silky and warm, gentle and slow against his. She seemed so timid and sure of herself at the same time.

Lani couldn’t believe what she’d just done. She’d just kissed Raph! Kissed him! Sure, they’d been having a very close moment, but what did that matter? She couldn’t believe her own nerve. What if this wasn’t what he wanted? What if he’d just been looking for a quiet time alone? What if this was too fast for him? What if?

The questions wouldn’t stop circling her mind. They were an endless flow of doubts and uncertainties, sad hopes and broken dreams risen up to drag her down with them.

That is, until he kissed her back. Then the whole world stopped, and suddenly it was only him. Only the feeling of his chafed, cool lips against hers that mattered anything at all, and only the feeling of his shell pressed to her back and left side.

Their kiss lasted less than thirty seconds, but Raph could have sworn it had been a lifetime. When they both gently pulled away, they were breathless and shaken.

Lani shifted slightly in Raph’s lap so that she could more or less face him. She looked up at his face, searching for any sign of regret or a rebuff, but she only saw what she felt: uncertainty, happiness and perhaps a light dusting of lust.

Raph gritted his teeth when Lani moved, hoping that she wasn’t going to get up and run off, but she stayed put and instead looked up at him, allowing him a moment to see that there was no regret or fear or anger in her face before he dipped his head again to nuzzle at her neck. She mirrored the gesture.

This time, when his head dipped, Lani felt Raph’s lips at her ear and neck, gently brushing against the fur and mouthing at the base of her ear. She purred deeply despite herself, and tilted her head to allow him more access.

Raph leaned back across the bed so that they were stretched out on it, then rolled himself over so that Lani was lying partially underneath him. He looked down at her perfect face and into her perfect eyes, and silently asked for permission to go on.

Lani gave it to him in the form of another gentle kiss, sitting up slightly to press her lips to his.

In that moment, Raph felt so in love that it almost hurt to feel it, and he only hoped Lani might feel the same way. And so he tried to show her in the only way he thought appropriate at this time.

Lani’s breath hitched as she felt Raph’s lips wander from hers and across her jaw. He followed a path all the way to her ear, where his mouth was joined by his fingers gently rubbing and massaging the base of it, making her erupt into purrs and mewls of delight.

Hearing her happiness, Raph returned his lips to hers for just a second, encouraging her, before he returned to his original path.

As his fingers left her ear and his mouth travelled down to her perfect collarbone, Lani felt Raph’s hand which wasn’t propping him up gently grip her own, encasing almost both of her hands in his larger one. Abandoning her embarrassment, she left gripping the towel protecting her front from his eyes and instead gripped his hand, trying to show him how much she loved him and this treatment by gently rubbing it and massaging it with hers. When he moved it to gently slip it underneath her towel, she let it, and transferred her hands to his plastron, rubbing her fingers along the edges of the plates and up to his shoulders, around to his sides, down to his stomach, everywhere she could touch. All the while his hand roamed her own body, taking in her angles and curves, her softnesses and hardnesses, and never once overstepping a boundary.

Raph had to bite back a groan when Lani’s hands reached for his plastron, but couldn’t stop the next one when she ran a hand up to his shoulder. He left off nipping her collarbone to return to her lips and concentrating on rubbing the side of her ribcage, allowing his thumb to rub gentle circles on the side of her breast. He wanted so desperately to make sure that she was enjoying this, and felt greatly rewarded when his ministrations coaxed a gentle moan out of her that he thought he might lose it there and then.

Lani mewled lightly when Raph pulled his lips away from her. His hand continued its gentle massage, but he looked down at her with worried eyes.

“I-I’m sorry…” he said hesitantly when he saw her worried eyes. “It’s just—”

“It’s OK, Raph,” she whispered, lifting her hands to touch the top edge of his plastron and trace the scars and cracks there. “I understand.”

“You don’t mind?”

“Not at all.” She pushed herself off the bed ever so slightly so she could kiss him fleetingly again. “At your own pace,” she told him gently.

When she retreated back down, he followed her, giving her another gentle kiss, this time longer. When they broke apart, he lay down on his side and pulled her slim frame to his and a pillow underneath his head. He let her cushion over own head on his arm, while his other hand continued to gently touch and rub her underneath the towel, which he’d quickly readjusted to give her some semblance of privacy just in case she was uncomfortable without it.

“Raph?” she asked, looking up at him in the way that made him love being so much taller than her.

“Yeah, Lani?”

“What… you really wanted that with me?” she asked timidly.

“Of course I did. I still do. Lani, you’re the most perfect girl I’ve ever met and more perfect than any girl I ever heard of. Whenever you’re around I feel like that shouldn’t ever stop, and when you’re not the room I’m in feels empty, no matter who else is in it. I don’t know for sure, Lani, but for now I can at least tell you: I think I’m in love with you.”

She listened, enraptured as he described his love for her in the most sincere way he knew. She didn’t say anything for a while as she digested what he’d just told her, but before he could worry, she looked back up at him and said, “I think I’m in love, too, Raph. With you. I’ve never been in love, so I don’t know, but I think.”

“That’s good enough for me,” he said, and hugged her tightly to him.

Description
Raph pushed open his door and absentmindedly put his sai down on the table by the door, thinking over the training session he’d just had with Leo. He only looked up when he heard a light groan and that was when he noticed Lani screwed up into a ball on the end of his bed, fast asleep. He quickly – but quietly – stormed out of his room, in search of Donatello.

“What the shell, Donnie?” he asked when he found him in his lab.

The genius turtle gave him an expectant ‘go on’ look.

“Why the shell is Lani in my bed?” the older turtle went on.

“Because she couldn’t just stay here,” Donnie explained, going back to wiring something, as if already bored of the conversation.

“But why my room?”

“Because Mikey and Leo were in their rooms, mine is still an absolute health hazard at this point and you weren’t around to ask. Besides, you did say she could crash in your bed if she really needed to,” he said, lifting his eyes to give his older brother a pointed look.

“Oh… right,” Raph said, embarrassed at having forgotten that promise he’d made. “Well, OK then.” He turned around to leave, but suddenly Donnie sat up straight and smirked slightly.

“So what’s the real reason why you’re so upset at having her in your bed?” he asked Raph, enjoying the sight of the hot-head’s shoulder muscles tensing far too much.

“What you talking about?” Raph growled at Donnie, giving him exactly the answer he’d been looking for.

“Please, Raph, it’s obvious you really like her,” Donnie said, going back to his work to take some of the pressure off his poor, inarticulate brother.

There was silence for a long time, and Donnie had started to wonder if he’d missed Raph leaving when next his brother spoke.

“It’s that obvious?” Raph asked quietly.

Donnie, though he didn’t look up again, was surprised at his brother’s blatant admission.

“Not really, unless you know what to look for,” he responded, shrugging.

“An’ you do?” Raph asked, and Donnie could just imagine him raising an eyebrow sceptically. He sighed and looked up at his brother.

“Don’t forget, I happen to be throwing the exact same looks at April, no matter what I try to do,” he told him.

“Oh… right,” Raph looked down at the floor and shuffled his feet. “Lani seems to like you a lot, though,” he said after a while, looking a little pained.

“That’s only because none of you bother to spend time with her in here,” the younger of the two said. “Even Mikey got bored of the lab too quickly. So I ended up being the only one she got to know.”

“Has it been bad for her?” Raph asked quietly. “Being left out like that, I mean.”

“She’s handled it quite well, but she’s quick to get bored,” Donnie said nonchalantly. “She’s expressed her longing to join you guys around the lair more than once, especially when she can hear the training sessions and your workouts.”

“Do… do you think that means anything?” Raph asked, lighting up slightly despite himself.

“It might. I don’t know. The only way to find out is to ask.”

“Oh, shell no,” Raph said, holding his hands up in apparent defeat. “Ain’t no way that’s happening.”

“Then you’ll be living with the suspense and uncertainty for a long and painful time,” Donnie said, moving over to another project. “Trust me.”

Raph digested that for a while before leaving, all the while staying quiet. Donnie looked up from his project to see his conflicted brother leave, feeling sorry for him because he knew exactly what Raph was going through. He knew for a fact that Lani wasn’t attracted to himself in any way – that would just have made the medical exams he’d had to do on her far too awkward – but he didn’t know if that made it easier for Raphael. For all any of them knew, Lani might like Leo or Mikey instead of Raph.

Returning to his room, Raph paused when he realised Lani had shifted. She’d moved from the very edge of the bed to where it met the walls of the room. He couldn’t help but take note of how small and lost she looked in the huge bed, scrunched up in the very corner.

He threw a blanket over her slim figure and then lay down in his hammock, glad of the alternate bed space. He certainly didn’t want to seem like he was making a move on her this early on in their… acquaintanceship.

When Lani awoke, she was surprised to find herself tangled up in a mixture of blankets and still undisturbed in Raph’s bed. She sat up, a little disorientated. She’d only meant to take a short nap, but it seemed she’d slept all through the night, judging by her hunger and need of the bathroom.

She’d half expected Raph to wake her up to tell her to move someplace else when he came to bed last night, but apparently he’d made another plan for himself. Looking around, she noticed his leg dangling out of the giant hammock she’d noticed earlier and felt a little better knowing that she hadn’t completely robbed him of a resting place.

Untangling herself quietly was a mission, and one that she didn’t quite achieve. She had to bite her tongue when she accidentally pulled on a piece of blanket that was wrapped around her tail, which caused it to twist in a way that didn’t feel natural. Finally, after much mental cursing and rolling about, she managed to stumble free of the mess.

She made as if to leave, but stopped just short of the door and looked back. Feeling bad for the state she’d left the kind turtle’s bed in, she retraced her steps and quickly spread the blanket a little better, at least until it looked like she’d tried. She never had been one to make her bed in the morning.

Once finished, she made straight for the bathroom and shower. Stepping in, she sighed happily as the hot water ran down her body through her fur. It served well to wake her up and clear the cobwebs from her head.

When she was more or less dry, she managed to catch sight of herself in the mirror and sighed. The shower had done nothing to take care of her bed-head. Or bed-body, as was the case. Looked like another bad hair day was to be expected. Which, for a person with hair everywhere, could be completely disastrous.

She decided to wrap a huge towel around her body and grab her brush and go in search of Donnie, who was sure to be awake and working away in his lab.

Sure enough, she found him rewiring some of the circuits in the Shellraiser.

“Hey, Donnie?” she called quietly, knocking gently on the door frame.

“Oh, good morning, Lani,” Donnie said, turning around. “You’re up early. Did you sleep well last night?”

“Yeah, it was fine,” she said. “Remind me to thank your brother for letting me use his bed if I forget.”

“I’ll be sure to,” he said, still focused on the circuits in front of him. “So, can I be of any assistance this morning?”

“Actually… I was going to ask if you could brush my back for me again,” she said shyly.

“I’m quite busy right now, Lani,” the turtle said. “Could you maybe ask someone else to help you with that?”

She blushed furiously at the idea. “B-but who else can I ask? Mikey will laugh and be annoying about it, Leo’s probably meditating or something, and Raphael’s still sleeping. Besides, what would they think of me?”

“They’d think you were just politely asking them for a favour,” Donnie said, turning slightly to give her a reassuring sidelong glance.

She sighed in defeat. “OK, I’ll see.”

“They’re really not as scary as they sound when they’re shouting at each other,” Donnie called after her gently for encouragement.

“Could have fooled me,” Lani muttered to herself, and decided to ditch the idea of being brushed altogether. There was no way she was asking either Leo or Raphael – especially the latter – to brush her like some housecat.

“Whoa,” was the first thing she heard from two of the other turtles that morning as they came into the kitchen for breakfast.

“Dudette, what happened to you?” Mikey asked her, laughing.

“I slept funny, OK?” she grumbled, glaring at her plate.

“Didn’t Raph’s bed agree with you?” Leo asked, smirking.

“No, that’s not it,” Lani said, escaping the kitchen quickly. She had the desperate feeling like that conversation had the potential to go in a very unwanted direction.

“You sleep OK?” she heard Raph’s voice from his bedroom door.

“Y-yeah, I did,” she stuttered, feeling suddenly shy under the tall turtle’s gaze. “Th-thanks for letting me use your bed.”

“No problem,” he said, brushing past her on his way to the kitchen. Lani couldn’t help but feel a little disappointed at his immediate dismissal of her, but daren’t call out to him for fear of making the conversation awkward.

Later that evening, Lani was playing video games with Mikey, for want of a better thing to do, when Leo announced a surprise patrol.

“We have to keep the bad guys guessing,” he explained, before glaring at his brothers until they groaned and followed him out of the lair.

After a while, once evening had fallen, Lani started feeling tired. She spent a while deliberating on where she was going to sleep. In the end, remembering his soft pillows and warm blankets, she opted to just crash in Raphael’s bed again. She just hoped that the fact that he hadn’t raised a fuss about her using his bed last night meant that he didn’t mind her using it again. Still, she felt it a better idea to wait for the turtles’ return, so that she could ask his permission.

However, the patrol seemed to be a very long one, so when Lani just couldn’t keep her eyes open any more, she finally decided to just go for it.

Crawling into the huge bed, she once again chose the smallest corner, hoping that it might show him that she didn’t mean to intrude on his privacy. She wrapped herself in a blanket and proceeded to drift off to sleep.

When the turtles got back, it was already very late, so everyone made straight for their own rooms. When Raph got to his, he was hardly surprised but quite pleased to see Lani snuggled into the corner of his bed again.

Scrutinizing her position, he could see that, given that she had slept like this as well the previous night, it was hardly surprising that her fur had looked so haywire that morning. He watched her even breathing for a while longer, before finally shaking his head at his thoughts and making for the hammock, but not before he’d reached over to readjust the blanket covering her, so that it might keep her warmer. Lani shifted slightly when he pulled the blanket up to her chin, gently moving her head down so that it rested against his hand. Raph held his breath and didn’t dare move his hand for fear of disturbing her further and having her wake up.

When he was sure she was still asleep, he gently withdrew his hand and collapsed into his hammock, his mind reeling from the gentle pressure she’d applied to his hand. Such a simple gesture, and in sleep too, and yet it had set his hand on fire and his heart racing…

When Raph woke up the next morning, he realised that Lani was also just waking up. He watched her stretch for a split second before deciding against taking the chance of being discovered staring at her like some pervert.

“Good morning,” he said, yawning and doing his own stretching.

Lani jumped slightly at the sound of his voice. Despite being slightly slurred due to sleepiness, she couldn’t help but feel kind of warm and fuzzy when she heard it.

“Morning,” was all she said though, trying not to show any emotion.

“Sleep well?” Raph asked her.

“Yeah. You?”

“Yup.”

“If you’d rather sleep in your bed, just say so,” Lani said. “I’ll take the hammock. I can even go sleep someplace else if you want.”

“N-no, I’m good with how it is,” he said.

“Oh, OK. Good,” she trailed off, unsure of what to say to carry on with the conversation.

“So, I guess we’d better get up and get some breakfast before it’s all gone,” Raph said in an attempt to avoid an overly long awkward silence.

“Good thinking.”

While Raph hopped out of the hammock, Lani started untangling herself from the sheets and blankets again. He wondered why she was always so tangled up. Yesterday had been the same when he’d briefly woken close to dawn. He wondered if she had nightmares that were the reason for her tossing and turning and getting tangled up like that.

He averted his eyes before she could catch him staring, reminding himself that just because they shared a room did not mean that she was in any way actually comfortable with sharing a room with him, or with him being there while she got ready for the day.

He grabbed his things from his nightstand and then made for the door. Lani looked up from where she was straightening up the bed.

“Where are you going?” she asked him.

He turned, a little surprised at her question. “To go get ready someplace else, so you can get ready in private.”

“But… it’s your room,” she said. “You stay here, I’ll go find that someplace else.”

“No, it’s fine, really,” he tried to insist.

She shook her head. “All of your stuff is in here, Raphael. Let me go to the bathroom. My things are there anyway.”

“Oh… OK then,” he said.

Just as she was walking out of the door, though, something occurred to him.

“Hey, Lani?” he called out to her.

Lani stopped and turned back to him with a hand on the door frame, looking at him questioningly.

“It’s Raph,” he said, losing his nerve and dropping his gaze. “Not Raphael. Just Raph.”

A small smile tugged the corners of her lips up a little.

“OK, Raph,” she said. “See you ’round.”

After her shower, Lani stood in the bathroom and pulled a face at her reflection. Her fur was, if anything, even worse than the previous day. She really hoped Donnie had enough time to help her today.

“Hey, Donnie,” she said, knocking gently on the doorframe of his lab as she always did.

This morning, Donnie was working at his desk, mixing chemicals together to form some sort of sludge that was black as pitch.

“Good morning, Lani,” he said, not daring to take his eyes off of his experiment while his almost unnaturally steady hand dropped exactly 2 drops of something into the sludge using his pipette.

“Do you never sleep in?” Lani asked the genius, rubbing her eyes.

“Not if I have work to do,” Donnie said, pushing the sludge away from him and grabbing another beaker. “I can’t. I can’t get over the feeling of guilt that I feel not doing things that I know I should be doing.”

“Oh, well I guess that makes sense,” she said. “Um, Donnie, could I ask you to—”

“I’m afraid not, Lani,” Donnie said, cutting her off.

“But… you don’t even know—”

“What you’re going to ask? By the state of your fur, I can only assume you want to ask if I’ll help you brush yourself.”

Her bashful silence must have confirmed his suspicions, because he glanced at her with a ‘See? I know all’ look.

“B-but why won’t you do it today?” she asked him.

“Because to tell you the truth, this has just become a matter of principle,” he told her. “You need to get over your shyness of my brothers, and I won’t always be around and free to help you, so you might as well do it now.”

“But…”

“Nope. No chance. You go ask someone else, or you go another day without being brushed.”

She huffed in annoyance, more at defeat than his reasons – because she knew he only spoke the truth in this – and strutted off.

Lani deliberated for a long time on whether she actually felt up to asking one of the others to help her, and who she’d even ask if she did. In the end, she decided to opt for Raph. Most likely, his huffy attitude would allow him to just blow off the weirdness and get it over and done with. Chivalrous as Leo was, it would make the rest of their time around each other awkward as hell, and Mikey would probably make a mess of it and then tease her about it, even if it was in good nature.

So Lani found herself outside the room she was sharing with the turtle, hoping he had come back after getting breakfast for himself.

She knocked gently on the closed door, and heard shuffling and footsteps from inside.

“Mikey, I swear if you’ve—” he looked down and blinked at her in surprise. “Oh hey, Lani,” he said. “Sorry, I thought Mikey was being an idiot again. Anyways, can I help you?”

Lani opened her mouth to ask the question she’d come to ask, but at the last second she chickened out completely. She sagged inwardly.

“Could I… could I just put some stuff in your room?” she asked him, holding up her arms which carried her brush and some other things. Seeing his expression, she rushed on. “It’s OK if I can’t, it’s just I’m worried that I’ll lose them or that Mikey will do something with them if I leave them out in the bathroom and—”

“It’s fine, Lani,” Raph said, recovering himself slightly. “Go ahead.”

“Really? Th-thanks, Raph,” she said. He stood aside so that she could slip into the room. She quickly deposited her things and then made to leave quickly to give him his privacy again.

“Oh, um, by the way, Lani,” he said, calling her attention back to him, “I don’t mind you getting comfortable in here,” he said, then blushed. “I mean, if you’re OK with that.”

“You… you don’t?”

“No. If you want me to clean up some space for you to bring the rest of your stuff in, then… just say so, OK?” He looked at her slightly hopefully.

“I… thank you, Raph,” she said, smiling at him. “I’ll check out the situation in the bathroom today, although most of what’s there should be fine no matter what Mikey tries to do with it.”

When his chuckle reached her ears as she was leaving, she was struck by how her smile wouldn’t leave her face, no matter what she tried.

For the next few days Lani managed to grit her teeth every time her clothing – though sparse because of the small need for it – rubbed her un-brushed fur the wrong way. In the end though, her defiance helped nothing, because she had to give in anyway and ask Raph to help her.

The two had been growing steadily more comfortable around each other, a situation which was only helped along by the fact that they both liked quiet privacy in the times when they weren’t busy with other things, and without regular patrols and large Foot activity, those times were in abundance.

The first time Lani had been looking for a quiet place to read a newly-acquired book, she’d immediately thought of Raph’s snug bed, and the fact that he’d probably be training with Leo. So she made her way to his room, already engrossed in the first chapter.

She was so intent on reading that she only just avoided walking into the door of Raph’s room, which happened to be closed – a rare occurrence at this time of day. Taking a deep breath and hoping that he wasn’t inside, she knocked softly.

“Come in,” his gruff voice called from inside.

She cursed silently and opened the door, deciding she’d just apologize for bothering him and leave.

“Oh, I’m sorry, Raph,” she said, sticking her head through the opening of the door to see him relaxing in his hammock. “I thought you’d be training with Leo.”

“Oh, well, Master Splinter wanted to do some personal training with Leo, so I decided I’d come read some.” He held up the biker’s magazine in his hands. “Why?”

“Well, I thought I’d come in here and get away from Mikey’s yelling for a while,” she said, holding up her own book for him to see, “but if you’re in here then…” She trailed off and backed up. “Sorry for bothering you.”

“Hey,” he called, stopping her from closing the door. He hopped out of the hammock and came over to the door to open it up again. “I wouldn’t mind… I mean, you can come in here,” he said awkwardly.

“But if you’re in here then surely you want privacy,” she said, slightly nonplussed.

“Nah, I also just want some quiet. If you’re gonna be reading, then I expect you won’t be making much noise of your own.”

“Oh, well… OK. Thanks, Raph,” she said, smiling up at him.

“No problem.”

He went back to his hammock while she closed the door and settled herself on the bed with her back resting on the pillows. Without another word, the two of them allowed themselves to become engrossed in their respective reads.

What was probably several hours later, Raph groaned and stretched. Lani echoed his actions, hearing several joints groan and pop in retaliation.

“How’s your book?” he asked her. She took a moment to finish a yawn before answering.

“It’s really good,” she told him, fingering the corner of a page.

“Oh yeah? What is it?”

She held it up for him to see the cover. “It’s called ‘Eldest’. It’s in a series called ‘Inheritance’.”

“That’s a mighty big book,” he said.

“Is it? I guess so,” she said. “It’s really good, though. You should really give it a try.”

“I think I’ll just stick to my ol’ magazines,” Raph said, chuckling.

“You like reading about bikes in magazines?”

“Yeah, sure. Don’t you like to read magazines?”

“Well… not really. I like bikes and stuff well enough, but I don’t really get the point of just looking at pictures of them.”

“Well, if I don’t look at pictures of them in magazines, am I ever gonna see them?” Raph said.

Lani blushed so darkly that it showed around her nostrils, where there was only thin fur, which Raph found strangely endearing. “I-I’m sorry, I didn’t—”

“Oh, I didn’t mean to make you feel bad. That’s just my reason for looking at them…” Raph said hurriedly, trailing off slightly.

“Oh… well, that’s nice that you can get the magazines then,” Lani murmured quietly, looking down at her hands. Raph cursed himself for his tactlessness.

“So… what’s your book about?” he asked tentatively.

“It’s about dragons and magic in a fantasy world that’s still in the middle ages, kinda,” she told him, perking up. He made a mental note of how much he loved it when she got passionate when she talked about something she liked. “The story is mainly about a boy who thought he was just a normal farm boy in a rural village, but then finds a dragon’s egg even though they were supposed to be extinct except one dragon that belonged to the evil king…”

Raph listened, enraptured, as she carried on explaining the plot and the characters. After she’d finished, they started talking about a host of other things, sharing stories and interests and the like.

He couldn’t take his eyes off hers, the way they sparkled was just so magical to him, and he couldn’t stop his heart from skipping a beat whenever she giggled or laughed at something he said. He couldn’t stop himself from falling for her even more.

And she could barely keep her eyes off of him for fear of being caught staring. She wished she could always see him this relaxed and happy to talk, and wished that he would always be so open to her. She wished she could impress him in any way and show him what she thought of him, but she was far too shy to do something like that, and she knew it. The feeling of defeat by her own emotions didn’t stop her from becoming more and more animated as they talked and she relaxed and enjoyed herself.

They talked well into the evening, and in fact only stopped because they were called to supper. Both of them wished that they’d never been called, but neither said anything as they filed out of the room and into the kitchen.

The next morning when Raph woke, his bed was already smoothed and Lani had left. He felt a flash of disappointment at not being able to see her first thing in the morning, but brushed it off and started getting ready.

He had just finished putting his sai into his belt at either hip when there was a gentle knock on his door.

“Come on in,” he called, knowing from the quietness of the knock that it was Lani. No one, not even Leo, could knock on a door as gently and respectfully as she did.

“Hey, um…” he turned away from his nightstand to see that Lani had stopped in the doorway. She had nothing on but a towel wrapped around her, and Raph felt his heart speed up at the thought. She looked incredibly embarrassed though, and was rubbing her right arm with her left hand repeatedly. It looked sort of uncomfortable, given that whenever she rubbed up her fur was lifted the wrong way.

“Yeah, Lani?” he asked her, encouraging her to go on, but studiously avoiding looking at her body.

“Will you, um… could I ask a favour?” she asked, barely above a whisper.

“S-sure,” he said, cursing his unsteady voice.

“I… um, I need…” she trailed off and hid her face in hands, and Raph noticed she had a hairbrush in one. At the sight, he began to suspect what she might be asking, and he hoped that that was the case. Oh, how he hoped.

“It’s OK, Lani,” he said as gently as he could manage in his gruff early-morning voice. “Why don’t you come in and we can close the door so that the others don’t have to hear.”

“Oh, um… thanks,” she said, hopping into the room and hurriedly closing the door behind her. “It’s just… well… oh god… I need you to help me brush my fur,” she said all in a rush, blushing so hard that despite her face being in her hands he could see her nose reddening.

Raph blinked and didn’t say anything for a moment. Lani glanced at him morosely from between her fingers and seemed to think his silence meant rejection of the idea.

“I-I’m sorry, if you don’t want to then I’m sure I could ask—”

“No, that’s not it,” he said hurriedly, hoping he could convince her that she had the wrong idea. “It’s just… why me?”

“Oh, um… well, Donnie’s busy, and Leo and Mikey would be all weird about it… plus, I guess seeing as we’re sharing your room…” she trailed off again. “If you’d rather not though, I understand.”

“It’s fine, I’ll help you, really,” Raph insisted, stepping away from the bed. “Come on. Sit down and tell me what to do.”

Lani took a deep breath to steel her nerves and hormones – because despite the awkwardness of the situation she was still floating at the idea of Raph touching her in any way – and went over to sit on the edge of the bed.

“C-could you turn around real quick?” she asked Raph once she was seated.

“Sure,” he said, and took her hairbrush before turning away.

She quickly undid the towel covering her and arranged it so that her front and lower areas were covered, leaving her back exposed for brushing.

“O-OK,” she stuttered, letting him know he could turn back to her.

Raph turned and felt his breath hitch at the sight of Lani’s bare, silky back in front of him. He had to try hard not to let any sign of his attraction to the sight reach her. She gestured for him to sit behind her on the edge of the bed and he did, within reach but far away enough to allow for her personal space.

“So… I’ve never brushed anything before, you’re gonna have to tell me how,” he told her.

“Well, um, just start at the top and run the bristles down through the fur,” she said, unsure of how to explain brushing hair.

“Like this?” he asked, gently running the brush from her left shoulder down her back. She shivered lightly and the hair raised up slightly at the contact.

“Whoa, its poofin’ up. Is that good or bad?” Raph asked, worried that he’d done something wrong.

“No, its fine. You did it right. You don’t have to be so gentle though, it doesn’t hurt,” she said, trying to reassure him.

“OK then.”

Raph almost didn’t dare touch Lani’s back besides with the brush, but when she didn’t protest or raise any complaints, he lightly put his hand on her shoulder to better keep her still while he applied a little more pressure to the fur to get rid of some tangles in the thicker mane between her shoulder blades. For a moment, her fur twitched upwards, making her look poofy instead of silky again, but it lay flat again as soon as he started brushing again.

Lani was glad she was facing away from Raph, mainly because she could safely enjoy the brushing without having to worry about making it awkward for him. She didn’t want to startle him by showing him how much she actually enjoyed being brushed, and more importantly being brushed by him.

Raph couldn’t help but notice Lani’s ears relax against her head as he continued brushing her. He was glad she was comfortable, and glad that she had trusted him enough to ask him to do this for her, even if it was only because Don was busy. In truth, he had been wondering about her suddenly unkempt appearance since a few days prior, but now he realised that it was only because she’d been too shy to ask for help from him.

Raph lost count of the number of times he lifted and lowered the brush, but in time he became aware of the increasing amount of pressure Lani was applying to his steadying hand, and he realised that she was leaning back into his touch. He tentatively, almost subconsciously, started rubbing small circles in her fur with his thumb, and was slightly surprised when she didn’t say anything. In fact, she seemed to be pressing up closer against his hand.

The brushing continued on for much longer than what was actually necessary, but Lani couldn’t help but wish it would never end. However, she had to call an end to it at some point, or poor Raph would get tired of it and think it too much bother to do it for her every time she needed him, so she gently leaned away from him and told him it was enough.

When Lani sat up and thanked him, Raph couldn’t help but feel sad. He hadn’t really expected to, but he almost thought he’d enjoyed the brushing more than Lani had, just because of the steady physical contact.

“Thanks again, Raph,” Lani said before she left.

“No problem, Lani. Anytime,” he called after her, not daring to get up before she had left.

Once she was gone, Raph leapt up and grabbed his toiletries. He needed a quick refreshing shower before the day could properly begin.

Over the next few days, Lani and Raph spent a lot of time together, mostly in Raph’s room while they relaxed and read or talked, but also when they ate breakfast and even while Raph was training. Lani had been told she couldn’t do anything involving any sort of stress to her legs and spine for at least another month, but it didn’t stop her from admiring the boys’ training and Raph’s extra workouts.

Even though their friendship was developing quickly, and so was their level of comfort around each other, Lani didn’t ask Raph for help brushing herself again for several days, and Raph found it oddly sad. He had only done it once, but already he felt as if it would be an amazing addition to his daily routine.

Coming back from patrol one evening, Raphael was about ready to fall face first on the floor and have a nice nap right there. He managed to make it to his room, but upon arriving, he realised with dismay that he still hadn’t hung his hammock back up again after Lani had washed it for him. Glancing at the large open space on the bed, he decided that he would just take this one chance, and then rehang the hammock tomorrow.

So he lay down carefully on the other side of the bed from where Lani lay, making sure there was enough space between them so that she didn’t wake up alarmed at his closeness. He had barely looked up to make sure she was covered and snug when his eyelids slid shut and he fell into a deep sleep.

Lani woke up in a slight daze, unsure of where she was at first. For one, when she opened her eyes, the hammock was nowhere to be seen, despite being one of the first things she saw every day, and for another thing, she felt an undeniable presence close to her.

Looking up and around, she realised that the presence just happened to be the red-banded turtle, who seemed to have collapsed onto the bed next to her. Taking in more of her surroundings, she realised that she must have moved away from the corner in her sleep to tuck herself into the hollow between his neck and shoulder as best she could. Hopefully he hadn’t woken during the night and taken offence.

Raph woke up when something moved next to him and tickled his ear. His first instinct was to jump up and crush whatever bug it was. But then he remembered that he’d fallen asleep in the bed containing Lani the previous night, and just thought that she might have moved slightly in her sleep. Opening his eyes just slightly, he realised with a slight lurch of his stomach that she must have moved over during the night and settled herself directly next to his head, still curled up into her tight ball. She was currently surveying her surroundings with a sleepy, slightly confused expression. Oh shell, what was she gonna think of him? That he’d just gone and thrown himself at her while she was sleeping?

Deciding to let her know that he was awake, he stretched lightly and yawned. Lani looked down at his face and immediately jumped up on the bed and away from his head.

“Good morning,” he said casually, trying to stop the blush from discolouring his cheeks.

“G-good morning,” she responded as she was taken over by a yawn that exposed her seriously sharp teeth.

“Sleep well?” he asked sleepily.

“Yeah, surprisingly well,” she said happily. “You?”

“Slept like a rock,” he said.

“That’s good.”

She glanced at the clock.

“Well, I guess I’d better go get ready.”

“Sure thing.”

“Oh, um, Raph? Could I ask you to help me brush my back again today?” she asked him quickly before leaving.

“Oh, sure, Lani,” he said. “Like I said, anytime.”

“Awesome, thanks!” she called before bounding out of the room.

When she got back, she found Raph already sitting on the edge of the bed, ready to start.

“Turn around again?” she asked timidly as she handed him the brush. He covered his eyes and allowed her time to seat herself.

This time when he started brushing her he immediately put out a steadying hand. The only response she gave him was a flick of her left ear, which Raph took to mean as good, seeing as she hadn’t stopped him.

They also talked a little while he brushed her, instead of being silent like the previous time. They talked about bikes and music, and about the latest book that Lani was reading. Raph enjoyed it immensely, and before he knew it, they were back to the normal chatter that happened between them.

After a while though they fell silent and just sat in companionable silence while Raph carried on brushing Lani’s back. After a thought, Raph removed his steadying hand and instead used it to follow the brush, smoothing the fur he’d just brushed. Lani felt her hair raised by the goosebumps forming everywhere, and Raph saw it, but neither did anything to stop the action.

Lani couldn’t believe it. She wasn’t even sure if there was anything to believe. But why else would he do something like that? Did he actually want to touch her? Was he actually attracted to her?

Raph’s mind was swirling with much the same thoughts when Lani didn’t object to him running his hand up and down her back. He couldn’t really believe how soft the fur was, and how smooth it was once he’d brushed it a few times. He found himself leaning forward, and Lani found herself leaning back, until her shoulders were touching his plastron, and his head hovered over her neck.

All brushing had ceased by then, but Raph hadn’t dropped his left hand, and continued to run in up and down Lani’s back and sides. Lani’s hands, which gripped the towel around her front, relaxed, lessening their grip on the towel as Raph dipped his head to her neck.

He held his head just too high, just stopping his lips from meeting her neck, but so that his warm, whooshing breaths warmed the skin there. Lani tilted her head slightly to rub her cheek against his, and purred lightly right into his ear.

Raph’s head almost shot up away from her. He had had no idea that Lani could purr, and also had no idea that she would be enjoying this to any extent. But here she was, relaxed and happy enough to show it, and pressed up against his front enough to leave no doubt. She wanted his touch, and shell, did he want to give it to her.

Raph let the brush fall from his right hand to the floor, and instead used his hands to lift Lani closer to himself and more securely into his lap, where he continued to touch and gently massage her back and sides. She stiffened a little initially, but quickly relaxed and went back to gently nuzzling and nosing at his neck. He lowered his head again as if to press a kiss to her brow, but paused.

And then her lips were on his.

It was like nothing he’d ever felt before.

It was nothing she’d ever felt before.

Raph’s heart almost stopped. Her lips were soft and silky and warm, gentle and slow against his. She seemed so timid and sure of herself at the same time.

Lani couldn’t believe what she’d just done. She’d just kissed Raph! Kissed him! Sure, they’d been having a very close moment, but what did that matter? She couldn’t believe her own nerve. What if this wasn’t what he wanted? What if he’d just been looking for a quiet time alone? What if this was too fast for him? What if?

The questions wouldn’t stop circling her mind. They were an endless flow of doubts and uncertainties, sad hopes and broken dreams risen up to drag her down with them.

That is, until he kissed her back. Then the whole world stopped, and suddenly it was only him. Only the feeling of his chafed, cool lips against hers that mattered anything at all, and only the feeling of his shell pressed to her back and left side.

Their kiss lasted less than thirty seconds, but Raph could have sworn it had been a lifetime. When they both gently pulled away, they were breathless and shaken.

Lani shifted slightly in Raph’s lap so that she could more or less face him. She looked up at his face, searching for any sign of regret or a rebuff, but she only saw what she felt: uncertainty, happiness and perhaps a light dusting of lust.

Raph gritted his teeth when Lani moved, hoping that she wasn’t going to get up and run off, but she stayed put and instead looked up at him, allowing him a moment to see that there was no regret or fear or anger in her face before he dipped his head again to nuzzle at her neck. She mirrored the gesture.

This time, when his head dipped, Lani felt Raph’s lips at her ear and neck, gently brushing against the fur and mouthing at the base of her ear. She purred deeply despite herself, and tilted her head to allow him more access.

Raph leaned back across the bed so that they were stretched out on it, then rolled himself over so that Lani was lying partially underneath him. He looked down at her perfect face and into her perfect eyes, and silently asked for permission to go on.

Lani gave it to him in the form of another gentle kiss, sitting up slightly to press her lips to his.

In that moment, Raph felt so in love that it almost hurt to feel it, and he only hoped Lani might feel the same way. And so he tried to show her in the only way he thought appropriate at this time.

Lani’s breath hitched as she felt Raph’s lips wander from hers and across her jaw. He followed a path all the way to her ear, where his mouth was joined by his fingers gently rubbing and massaging the base of it, making her erupt into purrs and mewls of delight.

Hearing her happiness, Raph returned his lips to hers for just a second, encouraging her, before he returned to his original path.

As his fingers left her ear and his mouth travelled down to her perfect collarbone, Lani felt Raph’s hand which wasn’t propping him up gently grip her own, encasing almost both of her hands in his larger one. Abandoning her embarrassment, she left gripping the towel protecting her front from his eyes and instead gripped his hand, trying to show him how much she loved him and this treatment by gently rubbing it and massaging it with hers. When he moved it to gently slip it underneath her towel, she let it, and transferred her hands to his plastron, rubbing her fingers along the edges of the plates and up to his shoulders, around to his sides, down to his stomach, everywhere she could touch. All the while his hand roamed her own body, taking in her angles and curves, her softnesses and hardnesses, and never once overstepping a boundary.

Raph had to bite back a groan when Lani’s hands reached for his plastron, but couldn’t stop the next one when she ran a hand up to his shoulder. He left off nipping her collarbone to return to her lips and concentrating on rubbing the side of her ribcage, allowing his thumb to rub gentle circles on the side of her breast. He wanted so desperately to make sure that she was enjoying this, and felt greatly rewarded when his ministrations coaxed a gentle moan out of her that he thought he might lose it there and then.

Lani mewled lightly when Raph pulled his lips away from her. His hand continued its gentle massage, but he looked down at her with worried eyes.

“I-I’m sorry…” he said hesitantly when he saw her worried eyes. “It’s just—”

“It’s OK, Raph,” she whispered, lifting her hands to touch the top edge of his plastron and trace the scars and cracks there. “I understand.”

“You don’t mind?”

“Not at all.” She pushed herself off the bed ever so slightly so she could kiss him fleetingly again. “At your own pace,” she told him gently.

When she retreated back down, he followed her, giving her another gentle kiss, this time longer. When they broke apart, he lay down on his side and pulled her slim frame to his and a pillow underneath his head. He let her cushion over own head on his arm, while his other hand continued to gently touch and rub her underneath the towel, which he’d quickly readjusted to give her some semblance of privacy just in case she was uncomfortable without it.

“Raph?” she asked, looking up at him in the way that made him love being so much taller than her.

“Yeah, Lani?”

“What… you really wanted that with me?” she asked timidly.

“Of course I did. I still do. Lani, you’re the most perfect girl I’ve ever met and more perfect than any girl I ever heard of. Whenever you’re around I feel like that shouldn’t ever stop, and when you’re not the room I’m in feels empty, no matter who else is in it. I don’t know for sure, Lani, but for now I can at least tell you: I think I’m in love with you.”

She listened, enraptured as he described his love for her in the most sincere way he knew. She didn’t say anything for a while as she digested what he’d just told her, but before he could worry, she looked back up at him and said, “I think I’m in love, too, Raph. With you. I’ve never been in love, so I don’t know, but I think.”

“That’s good enough for me,” he said, and hugged her tightly to him.