In The Eye of The Tigress (T.1)

Chap 13

~JANE~ 
Underground Dojo,Manhattan, New York

April and I left the dojo, and I felt the tension rise once again, as if the air outside had become heavier. April walked beside me, and an awkward silence hung between us. It was strange. April, usually so chatty and full of life, now seemed withdrawn, almost defensive around me.

Well, when you have to face something, you just do it!

I took a deep breath, ready to break the silence before it became unbearable.

-“So… what’s the deal with you and the mutant turtles?” I asked, trying to keep a light tone, but my curiosity was getting the better of me. I sat down in what seemed to be the lounge area in the middle of their hideout. “And don’t tell me you planned on hiding this from me forever. Even though I think I know why you did it.”

April lowered her eyes for a moment, visibly uncomfortable, before looking up at me with a slight apologetic smile as she sat down next to me.

-“I’m sorry, Jane. Everything happened so fast,” she said. “I wanted to tell you, really. But… I didn’t even know how to explain all of this. This world is so… different.”

You don’t say!

I could understand that. I was still in shock myself after meeting Splinter and the turtles. Part of me wanted to say it was all nonsense: that mutant ninja turtles couldn’t possibly exist. But after everything I’d seen recently… I couldn’t deny it anymore.

And then, there was the fact that we might have thought she was crazy or something.

-“Different, yeah, that’s putting it mildly,” I said with a nervous laugh. “But tell me, why are the Kraang so interested in you? I mean, you almost got kidnapped. That’s not something to take lightly.”

April hesitated for a moment, biting her lower lip as if debating how much to share. Finally, she sighed.

-“I don’t even know myself,” she admitted. “The Kraang seem to want something I have, but I don’t know what. And on top of that, my father was kidnapped, and I don’t know what they’ve done to him. Ever since then, I’ve been a target for them.”

Her gaze drifted into the distance, and I could tell all of this was overwhelming her. She was trying to understand it all, just like I was. Her revelation made me feel sad for her, but at the same time, it echoed my own questions.

-“Wow… this goes deeper than I thought,” I said, trying to process everything.

-“Yeah… And you, those dreams you’ve been having… Are they about the Kraang? You seemed to have seen them before? And why are you searching for mutants in the city?” she asked me all at once, quick and direct.

April looked at me, surprised.

-“Do you think you have a connection to them?” she asked, her voice tinged with concern.

I shrugged, unsure.

-“I don’t know either. These nightmares… they’re too real to be just dreams. And then, that strange feeling when I saw those robots, like I’d encountered them before. But I’m not even sure if they’re the ones in my dreams…” I frowned, trying to find the right words to explain this feeling I couldn’t quite put into words.

April placed a hand on my arm, a simple but comforting gesture.

-“And as for my search, my uncle and I know there are others like me out there, but we wanted to confirm it. So, I went on my first night mission, and that’s when I met your friends and the Kraang… and it all connected with my dreams,” I explained to her.