Complete Turtle Overload (TMNT Book 5)

Necklaces

With another mutant in the lair, it started feeling squished. Sensei offered to let Julie, she introduced herself after everything calmed down, who agreed. Donnie went to another room and got a sleeping bag and a few more blankets, more of them thick than thin, probably to let her sleep more comfortable.

Mikey and I left for our room and snuggled in with one another for the night, smiling. I let sleep overcome me as soon as I curled up. Worrying about everyone as they left the lair to look for Donnie wore me out more than I expected.

The next morning seemed like a normal day. Mikey cooked for us and then we stretched for training. Donnie retreated to his lab and Leo, Sophie, and I retreated into Space Heroes for an hour. April, Kyoto and Natasha were with Sensei for extra training. Naomi, Raph, Melanie, and Julie all seemed to disappear for a few minutes.

Until I got a tap on the shoulder and I looked over from watching Space Heroes. Julie was smiling down at me, a yellow bandana tied around her neck. It really stood out against her green fur that seemed to grow around it. I blinked and her tail wagged.

"Do you like it?" she asked happily.

I nodded and smiled, "It suits you."

Naomi came up beside her and smiled, "I thought so too. We didn't want it around her eyes like the rest of us. She wanted it different."

"Cool!" I smiled, wanting to turn back to the show.

"I want to ask you something... Mikoro?" Julie guessed, still trying to learn my name.

Giggling, I shook my head, "Mikito. But close enough. What would you like to ask?"

"Wanna make friendship necklaces?" her big brown eyes blinked in a begging way. Shocked, I looked at her and Naomi. Naomi only smirked, like to see if I'd say yes or not. It would be fun! I nodded and Julie jumped in the air and turned around, "She said yes!"

Melanie and Natasha came into view and smiled. Sophie turned around to us and stated, "If the rest of the girls are making necklaces, I wanna do it too!"

Julie nodded and hopped away toward the dojo. Naomi shook her head and chuckled, following. Sophie and I got up and followed, curious. The guys watched us go from their various points of the lair and rooms.

When I entered the dojo, Julie was sitting in front of the tree on the rugs. She had folded some of the blankets Donnie given her, mostly thin ones, and had them spread out with a clear case of multi-colored beads inside laying in the middle. I sat down near Julie while Naomi sat near me. Melanie sat by her mother and smiled when Julie looked at her. Sophie sat between Melanie and Julie.

"So... A girl came in with this case and it was filled with beads and some elastic string. She was red headed..." Julie muttered, opening the case with care as if not to spill all the beads out everywhere.

"Her name is April," Sophie said. "Her father is the one we saved from the Kraang lab with you."

"Oh," Julie said, blinking and looking down, starting to mess with the beads and the stretchy wire. "Well, she was nice enough to give me this set... I probably won't use it again, though."

"Then would it be possible to have it after today?" I asked.

Julie looked at me and nodded, her fur going everywhere, "Sure! it would help with space in the corner since I don't have a room yet..."

"You will," Naomi answered her. "Soon enough, that is."

We all looked at her, but she had already grabbed up a piece of the string and slipping beads in one by one, her concentration on that rather than our stares. She picked through some layers of beads and found a black string, picking it up. We all watched as she got up and left the room with it.

"What was that about?" I asked.

"No idea," Melanie answered, sifting through the beads to find some velvet colored ones. "She's my mom and sometimes even I don't know what's wrong with her."

"Does anyone truly understand her?" Julie questioned, tying one end of her slip of string to make sure no beads would come off. She picked up a deep purple one and slipped it on.

I did the same with the end tying and decided to make Mikey one first, so I gathered up some orange and plastic sea shells. Without looking at Julie, I answered, "I once did. She was my sister growing up. We told each other everything, but then we met the boys one day and that changed... I spent more time with Mikey and her Raph. Then we were so worked up and worried about what mission came next and if we would return that night. And when we do, we're usually tired and want to sleep."

Everyone was quiet as I finished, and I didn't mind because I was actually working faster in the silence than what I was before I started talking. Nobody said a word as we finished our necklaces either. I looked at Mikey's, the one I finished first and tied the two ends together and set it aside.

So I started working on my own. I picked out really bright colors such as clear, pink, yellow, light blue, orange, and a lot of others. Melanie had stolen all the light velvet ones, so I didn't have any of those. But I got a much longer strand of clear elastic strand and tied one end, slipping the beds in at random. When there were beads about three-fourths of the way to the second end, I starting tying and twisting the thread with the beads on. I hoped that it wouldn't break.

As I continued, I noticed that Sophie and Melanie were watching me, Julie was done and was working on a second necklace like I was. When I was done, I held it up for the others to see and they "awwed" and "oooed". What I had learned from a video one day was to twist a necklace into a butterfly. I did that now and with the beads in a random order, it was rather colorful.

"Can you make me one?" Melanie asked. "It's really pretty."

"Sure," I answered. "But I can see it as a small pin on you mask or belt. Like a bedazzled butterfly."

"That sounds amazing!" Melanie gasped. "Please!"

I giggled, "Later, okay?"

That's when Naomi came in with her new necklace on. It was the black string she found in the box with a metal design hanging from it. It looked like a messy flame with a yin-yang design. I looked at her and smiled. Julie clapped softly.

"Sorry," she said as she sat down. "I just thought that Donnie could improve it a little before I made it a necklace."

"It fits you," Sophie smiled.

"Thanks," Naomi grinned. Then she paused and frowned slightly. "Something's off..."

"Like what?" Melanie asked.

Naomi got up suddenly and left the dojo as Julie was picking up our mess. I helped to get this done quicker. When we were done, I took the case and left for my room. I passed the lab and I saw April and Naomi looking at Donnie's computer. Along with the Kraang communication orb, we figured that was what it was since nothing came through except Kraang stuff, going off.

Now what were those stupid aliens doing?