Ch3 Splinter's Mail Leo was walking up Broadway in the open daylight. For some reason this was Ok. He walked on for no reason that he could think of. Just to get some air, maybe. Yeah. That was it. Northwest of the midtown area, Leo noticed that Broadway had changed into a dirt road out in the middle of nowhere. OK……He didn’t remember it usually being like that. Maybe they were doing some construction up here…. He noticed a man sitting underneath a tree, biting into an apple. “Are they doing some construction up here or something?” “Up where?” The man seemed amused by the question. “The upper-wes—errrr…. Am I still in the city?” “No young man you’re in West Virginia.” Leo pondered that for a moment. “Hmm.. West Virginia… Upper West Side. I guess they should be right next to each other. I mean they both have West in their names and stuff.” He began to ramble on about the likenesses (which trust me aren’t many) between the two until the old man stopped him. “Don’t use US geography too much, huh son? Anyway what are you doing over here in West Virginia?” “I don’t know….I just followed this road until it became a path and..—“ The man offered Leo an apple. He accepted and took a big bite. “ So apparently this path didn’t take you exactly where you wanted to go, huh?” “Yep.” Chew. Chew. “I see. But it’s not too bad out here, is it?” Leo looked around at the rolling hills. “No, its actually kinda …” Not wanting to say ‘pretty’ Leo chose “nice.” “Sometimes that odd path surprises you. You actually get something out of it. Something you didn’t even know you wanted.” “I guess your right.” Leo sat down next to the man. “So what do you people do around here with so many…trees?” The man pondered the question and opened his mouth to speak. “Turnofffyourfrigginalarm!” “Excuse me?” “Leo!! Turn of your Alarm Already.” Leo jumped. He was in his own bed. Yeah, that dream was normal. Leo looked at his clock just as Raphael pounded the wall and managed some more half-asleep obscenities. Turning the alarm off, Leo sat up in bed. Ugh. Just as he began to pull himself out of bed, a though occurred to him. That girl was going to help Chu this morning! He forgot all about that. Leo flopped his head down on the pillow. Another four hours to sleep……. April fished through the mail. “It’s around here….somewhere.” Mike pulled on a coat and grabbed his hat. “Splinter got something in the mail?” “Yeah. He had me mail something out. Wouldn’t tell me what.” She pulled out a letter from the pile. “Here it is. Straight from Japan. That’s where he had the other one sent to….” “He’d probably be pretty mad if I snooped, huh?” Mike held the envelope up to the light. April through him a dirty look. Mike shrugged. “I was only kidding…” “Take it straight to him Mike….unopened. He considered it important.” “’Kay.” Mike left the apartment. Hmph. Even Splinter has a secret life. Raph didn’t want to wake up. The bed was warm. The pillow soft. Not to mention the fact that he had lost practically an hour of sleep to Leo’s alarm. And then he didn’t even decide to go on his “run”. That was stupid that was so stupid. Four hour run. What a moron… Speaking of which….. “Hey, Raph you up yet?” He always had perfect timing…. Leo heard some incoherent mumbling from the other signs of the door and took that as a “yes” Leo went to the kitchen for some breakfast. He wasn’t used to it being so quiet down there. Mike had run over to April’s. Don, although now he had a reason, had his nose stuck in a book. Raph was in bed. Splinter was off meditating—something he had been doing a lot of lately. Leo felt bad because he had a feeling something was bothering his sensei and he did not know what it was, and lately he hadn’t been around to ask. Raph stumbled in and poured himself a bowl of cereal. He sat down quietly concentrating on the food. Obviously still half-asleep. He sniffled a little and looked up at Leo. “Howabout you be square with me. What are you up to.” Raph thought that was right to the point. “Hmn?” Too bad Raph could easily tell when his brother was playing dumb. “I don’t buy your story Leo. Sorry, I’m just not that gullible.” Leo looked a bit more distraught by this point. “What are yo—“ Leo had never been more relieved to see Mike barge into the lair. “Guess what?! Splinter got mail…from Japan!” Raph temporarily forgot about Leo and turned to his other brother. “What are you talking about?” Mike looked down at Raph, who was sitting there with his face all wrinkled up in confusion. “Seriously! It was sent via April…Check it out ‘Hamato Yoshi—Care of April O ‘ Neil. What do you think of that.?!” Leo got up and grabbed the parcel from Mike and examined it closely “Hmp.” “I know! We should open it!” “Mike!!” “Geez Leo, I was just kidding.” “You were not.” “Was too.” “Enough!” That came from Raph. “Why don’t you deliver the mail to its owner and then maybe you will find out just what it is about.” Leo didn’t like it too much when Raph could catch him being the one in the wrong. So he picked the letter up. “That’s what I was going to do.” Besides he could elude Raph for a little longer. Don walked in just as Leo left. Raph was giving him a dirty look behind his back. “Did I hear that Splinter got mail?” “Yeah. April had me bring it down.” Mike looked out of the cupboard he was digging through. “Wow. And Mike’s here too.” Don gave a rare sly smile. “Didn’t bring O to practice today Mike. That was….well pretty funny. At least she tried.” he broke into a grin. “You could have been nicer—“ Mike started. But Leo walked into the room, briskly with a worried look on his face. “Splinter wants us in his room.” “What’s up?” Raph tried to hide his nervousness through the casual wording, but his face told otherwise. “He just said to come in. He read that letter. I think whatever it was shook him up.” Don didn’t like the sound of that. He exchanged a worried glance with Mike and followed Leo out the door; the other two right in tow. “Sensei?” Leo rapped softly on the door. “Come in.” Splinter’s voice was even more quiet than usual. They shuffled in and fidgeted slightly as they watched Splinter, sitting down, go over the letter again carefully. Finally Splinter looked up and made eye contact with his sons and there were tears in his eyes.
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