Forest Mutation (Book Two)

Prologue

Captain's Log, month three since the fall of New York,

I can honestly say that my life has gone down a much crazier path than I expected. I mean...I'm already a mutant, but I never expected to be involved in trying to stop an alien invasion. Key word, trying.

We failed. The turtles have told me not to put any blame on myself, even though I'd like to believe that if I had been in New York, I could've changed something. I highly doubt it, but a girl can dream and with what's happened, I think it's important to dream.

Leo got hurt, the lair was abandoned, Diaval never found Karai, and Master Splinter...I was told that Shredder wounded him before throwing him down a drain pipe. I'm still holding on to the hope that he's still alive. There's so much I still want to tell him, it wouldn't be right if he was gone.

But, that's how we ended up in a farmhouse in Massachusetts. Four turtles, a mutant wolf girl, and three humans living in the woods sounds like the opening to a really bad joke. Unfortunately, that's my life.

The house is peaceful, but the people within it aren't so much. Diaval being here has really caused some tension, what with him being an ex-Foot Clan member. The turtles seem to tolerate his presence, Casey ignores him...at least April is polite, he needs someone to be a little caring. She's started trying to teach him how to read and write when she has time, but Diaval's a difficult student and she often loses patience with him. I think he still appreciates it.

Our group still does training together, plus we all help around the house with chores. Raph and I stay near Leo every moment we can. It's stupid, but we're both so stubborn that we hardly ever end up sleeping in our bedrooms. We fall asleep in the bathroom, slumped against one another. I get to bed only when Diaval reminds me. I listen to his advice and separate myself from Leo for the night. Raphael ignores Diaval and doesn't leave his brother's side.

Three months have passed and I haven't seen Leonardo's beautiful sapphire eyes, heard his voice, seen him awake...I'm constantly plagued by what I could say when he wakes. I hope he can understand why I did it now that he's had time to think.

Speaking of Leonardo, his injuries have gradually healed, or at least those on the surface. The rest of us get fixed up too, like the "wicked awesome battle scar" on my torso, as Mikey has named it. It turned black again thanks to the use of Donnie's old medicine, but I'm just glad that I can hide the marks with clothing easily.

So, here's the rundown of what everyone is occupying their time with. Donnie has made use of the barn and set up a new laboratory, Mikey does a lot of chores and feeds the chickens, Raph trains all of us and watches over Leo, Casey does whatever he feels like from day to day, and April does journaling. I bet she's doing better than me at keeping it consistent though. Diaval, on the other hand, spends time working with his magic and trying to avoid conflict. I train, cook, clean...whatever needs doing, whatever can take my mind off things.

I still think about New York.

Destiny stops writing, letting out a heavy sigh and leaning her head back against a tree. She looks up through the foliage, taking in the dancing sunlight through the leaves and the symphony of wind and nature surrounding her. She looks out to the farmhouse as the front door opens. Raphael leaves, followed by Donatello and Michelangelo. April and Casey show up a second or so later with Diaval bringing up the back.

They start doing warmup stretches and stuff of that ilk, with Diaval sitting down next to the house and crossing his legs. Raphael looks out at the forest, eye-ridges furrowed.

"Des? Training time!" he calls, cupping his hand around his mouth to help the sound carry.

The wolf mutant stands, brushing the leaves and dirt from her clothing. She breaks into a sprint through the trees, her hair whipping behind her as her feet fly over the branches and leaves. She emerges, smiling as brightly as she can manage as she waves.

"Hey guys," she greets.

"Hey!" Michelangelo chirps, doing a quick backflip. "Enjoying the forest, dudette?"

"As always," she returns.

Raphael moves to her side, his head tilting. "You spent more time out there today than normal," he comments.

She sighs and adjusts her grip on the journal in her hand. "I just needed time to think."

He smiles and nudges her arm with his fist. "As long as you're alright. Come on, let's get some training done."

She nods in agreement as he turns back to his family, starting to bark out orders for how training is going to work for the day. Destiny's eyes travel to the bathroom window, where she knows that Leonardo is still unconscious in a tub of water.

She unsheathes her uchigatana and flicks her tail, diverting her attention into her training.