tello-oneil

[tello-oneil]

"Okay. Do you think you can introduce me to Yi?"

She watches Raphie lead Blue away, waving slightly to them as they go.

They hesitantly nod, letting go of the hem of Carol's shirt. They grab mom's hand instead, pulling her towards Yi's lair.

[A human is standing in the lairs, looking around. She seems lost]

( @gl-carol-oneil )

*She stared at the human in the lair before running off to tello (trouble went eep)*

"Stranger in lair"

@tello-oneil

[tello-oneil]

Mini Masterpost 1: Arrival & Reunions

Arrival

Raphie!

Eyes in the dark

A misunderstanding

Mama Carol (Text to Raphie)

Mama & Yi

(main/pinned)

(next)

[tello-oneil]

She coos softly under her breath as Blue perks up at the idea of drawing something. She smiles, letting Raphie take care of Blue for a moment. She turns to Tello.

"You mentioned there are other adults here. Can you introduce me to any of them? I'd like to talk with them."

They hum a little, absently grabbing onto the hem of Carol's shirt and hovering there.

"Um, Raphie and Blue have been here longer than me. I only really know Yi. She's been taking care of us, letting us stay with her."

They twist the fabric slightly between their fingers, fidgeting with it.

@raphie-hamato-oneil

[A human is standing in the lairs, looking around. She seems lost]

( @gl-carol-oneil )

*She stared at the human in the lair before running off to tello (trouble went eep)*

"Stranger in lair"

@tello-oneil

[tello-oneil]

They nod, chirping slightly. That... sounds like a good plan.

She lets Raphie pull away, looking between him and Tello, smiling softly. She's still not sure what's going on, but she absolutely isn't going to just give up on getting home. She still has two kids at home, and two here counting on her.

@raphie-hamato-oneil

[A human is standing in the lairs, looking around. She seems lost]

( @gl-carol-oneil )

*She stared at the human in the lair before running off to tello (trouble went eep)*

"Stranger in lair"

@tello-oneil

[tello-oneil]

"Oh... sweetheart...."

She places her hand gently on Raphie's shoulder before pulling her into a side hug, so as not to separate her from Blue. She kisses him softly on the head.

"You're so smart, baby. And so, so brave."

They sink in on themself a bit as Raphie does, whining slightly under their breath. They didn't mean to make Raphie sad.

She hums a little, not sure how to respond. Honestly, she has absolutely no idea how to get home. Are they really in a different dimension? She glances at Donnie over Raphie's head, thinking.

"Tell you what. We'll do our best to find the way back together. Okay?"

@raphie-hamato-oneil

[omg I forgot to tag again I am so sorry- ;c; ]

[A human is standing in the lairs, looking around. She seems lost]

( @gl-carol-oneil )

*She stared at the human in the lair before running off to tello (trouble went eep)*

"Stranger in lair"

@tello-oneil

[tello-oneil]

They falter a bit at Raphie's reaction, guilt pitting in their chest. They hadn't meant to make Raphie sad. They chirp a little, reaching for his hand. How can they fix it? They don't want Raphie to be sad.

She turns back to her kids after Blue takes the pen.

"Why wouldn't we be able to get home, Tell?"

They chirp softly in response to Blue, nodding a little and giving her a small smile. It drops at the question from mom, though.

Their tail flicks nervously, and they glance between Raphie and mom for a moment. They hum slightly.

"Well, Raphie says that home wasn't there when she went to go home, and Yi says there's all sorts of turtles from different dimensions and universes stuck here."

[A human is standing in the lairs, looking around. She seems lost]

( @gl-carol-oneil )

*She stared at the human in the lair before running off to tello (trouble went eep)*

"Stranger in lair"

@tello-oneil

[tello-oneil]

[Inside is a little blue weighted plush, a little octopus]

[You wake up to a small blue gift bag]

( @tello-oneil )

*She examined the gift back slightly before opening it, curious on what's inside, gift for her!*

[tello-oneil]

They look at their older sibling with an expression somewhere between exasperated, concerned, and mildly hurt. They click a little.

"But you couldn't get back, and I couldn't get back, and Blue couldn't get back... Why would mom showing up change that pattern? Because she's an adult? There's plenty of adults here, and none of them are able to get home!"

They stamp a little. They're not sure why they're frustrated, or why their words sound so angry. They're not angry. They're just... they don't know... confused? Wary? They're not entirely sure.

They just don't want to get their hopes up. The statistics say that they're just not going home.

She frowns a little, confused. Why wouldn't they be able to get home? She goes to ask, but stops as little Blue grabs her hand. She looks to Blue instead, giving the little turtle her full attention.

She tilts her head a bit in confusion, mouth forming a little 'oh' as she sees what Blue points to. She smiles a little, crouching down and picking up the pen.

"It's a pen. You write with it. But this one has a red light on it, see?"

She clicks the button, showing Blue the red dot. She then hands the pen to her.

"Here. You can have it, if you want."

@raphie-hamato-oneil

[I forgot to tag sorry- xd ]

[A human is standing in the lairs, looking around. She seems lost]

( @gl-carol-oneil )

*She stared at the human in the lair before running off to tello (trouble went eep)*

"Stranger in lair"

@tello-oneil

[tello-oneil]

They sigh a little in relief that Blue accepted that explanation for now, and that she isn't trying to hide in the sewage water anymore. They both still desperately need a bath, though.

Not the point. They gently squeeze Blue's hand, chirping in reassurance.

Her expression melts at Raph's plea and his big puppy dog eyes. She hugs his head close, kissing her on the head.

"Of course we can baby. Of course."

Their brow furrows a bit in confusion. They click a little, tilting their head and tugging gently on Raphie's arm. They frown a little.

"I thought you said we couldn't get back, though..?"

@raphie-hamato-oneil

[A human is standing in the lairs, looking around. She seems lost]

( @gl-carol-oneil )

*She stared at the human in the lair before running off to tello (trouble went eep)*

"Stranger in lair"

@tello-oneil

[tello-oneil]

She leans back slightly from the hug, cradling Raphie's face in her hand and brushing her tears with her thumb, looking into her baby's face for a moment. She shushes the turtle gently, pressing their foreheads together.

"It's okay baby, it's okay. I'm so sorry that happened to you, but it's not your fault."

She squeezes Raphie tightly back.

"I missed you too, sweetheart... I missed you so much."

They chitter softly back to Blue, focusing on her rather than the emotions of the situation. They frown slightly, trying to think of how to explain the concept of a mom, if she doesn't know what it is already.

They chirp to Blue, waving at her before beginning to sign.

*M-O-M, or mom, is someone who takes care of you. Someone who keeps you safe, and loves you. Um... Like older siblings, but different.*

They look slightly confused, chirping slightly. They're not entirely sure how to explain it, but they're trying.

*Family. Mom is family.*

@raphie-hamato-oneil

[A human is standing in the lairs, looking around. She seems lost]

( @gl-carol-oneil )

*She stared at the human in the lair before running off to tello (trouble went eep)*

"Stranger in lair"

@tello-oneil

[tello-oneil]

She looks nervously to the source of the noise. Seeing Raphael, she makes a noise somewhere between utter relief and pure confusion. She drops the pen, catching Raphie in her arms.

"Oh, darling... Raphael..."

She squeezes her child close, shaking a little. Raphie has been missing for months. Wet, warm tears of relief roll down her cheeks as she cuddles the turtle close.

"Oh, baby... I thought we lost you..."

She continues to hold tightly onto Raphie, sweet, choking relief filling her every pore. She's okay. Her sweet baby is okay, and she's here.

They watch as Raphie runs up, smiling slightly as she reunites with Carol. Mom's been so worried about Raphie. It'll be good for both of them to have each other back, they think.

They watch Blue run up to Raphie, chirping slightly. They move closer to her, reaching out and tapping Blue's shell lightly, chirping for Blue's attention.

@raphie-hamato-oneil

[A human is standing in the lairs, looking around. She seems lost]

( @gl-carol-oneil )

*She stared at the human in the lair before running off to tello (trouble went eep)*

"Stranger in lair"

@tello-oneil

[tello-oneil]

[Raphie receives a text from Tello]

'Hey Raphie, whenever you're up would you come to the lair entrance? Mama's here, but Blue is super wary of her. Mom's got her distracted chasing the laser pointer rn.'

@raphie-hamato-oneil

[tello-oneil]

She chuckles softly, fondly watching Blue chase the dot around.

They awkwardly shift in place for a moment. Blue doesn't seem scared anymore, at least, but only because she's distracted. They wonder how long it'll be until Raphie wakes up.

They pull out their phone, pulling up Raphie's contact and shooting her a quick message. That way she'll know, whenever she wakes up.

[A human is standing in the lairs, looking around. She seems lost]

( @gl-carol-oneil )

*She stared at the human in the lair before running off to tello (trouble went eep)*

"Stranger in lair"

@tello-oneil

[tello-oneil]

She smiles, moving the pointer around for the turtle to chase. Works like a charm.

They watch Blue chase the laser dot for a moment, blinking in mild surprise. They then look to mom, if only to keep themself from wanting to chase the dot as well. They're glad to not have to make the decision on what to do right now.

*Thanks. That's blue.*

They think for a second.

*Name is B-L-U-E.*

They add to clarify.

She nods a little, still playing with the turtle, who she now knows is Blue.

[A human is standing in the lairs, looking around. She seems lost]

( @gl-carol-oneil )

*She stared at the human in the lair before running off to tello (trouble went eep)*

"Stranger in lair"

@tello-oneil

[tello-oneil]

They squirm a little, uncomfortable. They chirp quietly, glancing between Blue and mom. Blue tugs again at their hand, trying to pull them back to the lairs. Their tail twitches a bit. They hum uneasily, unsure what to do.

She watches Tello for a moment. She can't quite make out what the other turtle is signing from this angle. She tries to think how she got Donnie to interact with her before they trusted her.

She feels in her pockets, finding a pen and her phone. The phone isn't exactly helpful at the moment, but the pen... well, her kids- April included, honestly- seemed to enjoy chasing the laser pointer dot around. She's found that turtles are surprisingly similar to cats. Maybe this turtle will enjoy it, too?

It's worth a shot. She pulls out the pen, clicking the laser pointer on and pointing it by the feet of the two turtles.

They huff slightly, shifting. They glance back at mom again. She's digging in her pockets, for some reason. They turn back to Blue, flapping their free hand uneasily.

"... um... mm..."

They trail off, eyes zeroing in on a familiar red dot on the ground between them and Blue.

[A human is standing in the lairs, looking around. She seems lost]

( @gl-carol-oneil )

*She stared at the human in the lair before running off to tello (trouble went eep)*

"Stranger in lair"

@tello-oneil

[tello-oneil]

They frown a little, humming slightly as Blue hides behind them again. She grabs their hand and tugs at it, whining softly. They look back to her.

They huff a little, not sure what to do about that. They glance back to Carol, clicking slightly. How would mom handle this? Or Raphie? Or Mikey? Or even Yi?

They sigh a little, gently squeezing Blue's hand. They hope it's reassuring.

"Okay. Um... why don't you go and find Raphie?"

She winces a bit as the turtle hides behind Donnie. She hums, holding her hands up placatingly. Glancing to her child, she notices them glancing to her, unsure. She wants so badly to just go over and show the new turtle that she's not a threat, but she knows that going closer at the moment would probably signal the opposite to them. She continues watching, concerned, making herself stay put.

[A human is standing in the lairs, looking around. She seems lost]

( @gl-carol-oneil )

*She stared at the human in the lair before running off to tello (trouble went eep)*

"Stranger in lair"

@tello-oneil

[tello-oneil]

They smile a little, relieved Blue at least came out of the water. Their tail wags a little. They stand up, glad to get off the dirty sewer floor. They click a little. They're going to need a shower, too. They watch Blue.

She watches as the turtle emerges from the water. The poor thing looks awful, dirty and covered in scars. They're smaller than Donatello is. And is the poor thing branded? What kind of monster does that to a child? She feels her chest heat up in boiling hot anger. That brand proves that those scars were made on purpose. Mutant or not, a child deserves to be loved. She'd love to give whatever sick, twisted sadists are behind this child's scars a piece of her mind. Probably in the form of a fist. Or a chair.

She grits her teeth a little, careful not to let her anger show. She doesn't want to scare the poor turtle. She takes a deep breath, doing her best to push aside her rage. Whoever they are, they're not here right now. There's nothing she can do about them. However, she can do her best to be there for Tello's new friend.

She smiles softly, waving slightly to the new turtle.

"Hello sweetheart. I promise, I won't hurt you."

[A human is standing in the lairs, looking around. She seems lost]

( @gl-carol-oneil )

*She stared at the human in the lair before running off to tello (trouble went eep)*

"Stranger in lair"

@tello-oneil