Mostly here for my MJ AU - ROTTMNT Comic on YouTube! Tag me w/any fan art!! 🙏❤️🐢 Masterpost pinned below! 😉❤️👇 Plz feel free to DM me with any questions or comments!
Since I have many broader projects on the horizon, this Masterpost will link to other, more specific masterposts for individual projects, thereby organizing the floodgates in a less overloading way. And so, we begin! 😁👍✨
My AO3 Account! (Rottmnt/MJ-related stuff!)
My Patreon! (Get exclusive access to early releases, private community channels, live Q+As, etc!)
MJ AU MASTERPOST (Rottmnt)
- This is the story of how our favorite ninja turtle boys find a little girl mutant turtle just like them… and basically immediately adopt her! There will be fluff… there will be goof… there will be heart… and there may even be… a deeper plot on the horizon… Stick around to watch the story unfold! 😁❤️🐢
Elijah Foraker Masterpost
Everything you need to know about MJ's boyfriend leading up to the events of the Snow Leopard Quest!
The Snow Leopard Quest Masterpost
About a year after meeting the Hamatos, Elijah began to question why he’s never seen another snow leopard yokai of his kind before… Buckle up folks - in this long-awaited sequel, Elijah and the gang embark on a daring quest to find his people! Will they succeed? Or are they venturing into troubled waters too deep to turn back..? Stay tuned to watch the story unfold! 🩶
Forsythia Masterpost
- My LeafWing/SilkWing "Wings of Fire" dragon OC and my sona! Also, my very first OC! (she's old) 😂🧡🍁
OTHER PROJECTS:
Strong Enough - Rise Raph Tribute Animatic
Lesson Learned - Rottmnt Movie Aftermath Animatic
Alternate 2012 TMNT Nightmare Scene
My Swapped OC, the mossy salamander species: Sodlings!
**NOTE ABOUT REQUESTS**
I don’t take any. 😜 Ok, but fr I need pple to stop demanding whatever they want from me. I’m happy to share my story online for those who want to see my art, but it is and always will be my art. My character. I’m done responding nicely to ppl commenting in all caps to ‘make the next part now,’ ‘let me help you write it,’ ‘do it in this style,’ or ‘add my character too!’ I reserve the right to REMOVE ANY DEMANDS from any/all of my content as I see fit. (Thank you to the sane ppl who understand what I’m trying to do here 🙏❤️)
Fanart rules:
1) TAG ME!! My OCs are my characters and I want your fanart to link people to my work so they can see the full story!! Also, I WANNA SEE!!
2) Please keep fanart content appropriate for what my comic is portraying. (Ex, no weapons I haven’t introduced yet, but drawing MJ meeting your own OC is fine)
3) If you think your fanart idea is somewhat out there, just shoot me a DM and ask me abt it! I really appreciate honesty!!
I’ll continue adding more content as I make it, but yeah... there’s my Masterpost! 😁👍❤️
So-- to put it briefly-- I have been struggling for months trying to get my drive back for my story. Don't get me wrong, I've still drawn my little guys from SIW many times-- but as for taking any steps in writing or sketching comic panels-- it's been slow going ever since I lost my cat, Mittens. I knew the loss would effect me emotionally and mentally, but I didn't think it would hurt me creatively.
Anyways, yesterday I decided to challenge myself. I would draw my SIW characters, (Donnie and Mikey) with the same expressions as other animated characters, just to practice. :) Sooo~ Here's what I ended up with!
To all my artist friends who are struggling to keep their ideas and imaginations afloat, I highly recommend this little challenge! :) It was good practice to draw my oc's again, and it was quite fun to have them mimic my favorite tv show characters that inspired them. You don't even have to do a finished illustration; just sketches are more than welcome! :) The point of this challenge is to draw your precious blorbos again, to remember WHY you love to draw them, and to try different expressions on them that you've never explored before. :)
If you want, you can share this post to challenge struggling artists that you know; ones who may have temporarily lost their drive and passion to draw or write. Because-- trust me-- every artist in existence will always have a sliver of time when they've lost their inspiration for their work. It is NOTHING to be ashamed of, it just comes with the territory of being a creator. :)
I hope this post inspires my friends and followers! And... I hope that because of this challenge, they'll see that it's totally normal and okay to sometimes lose your drive. Hopefully this will help you take some steps to earn it back. <3
Ohhhh ya, I feel this. I’ve been a little slower lately as well due to many personal reasons, but that doesn’t mean I have to feel guilty or rushed to get back into it. ❤️🩹👍
Very wise words, my friend. And super satisfying art!! 😁✨
An MJ AU sequel story by How To Train Your Dragon Prince
A lioness sat reading a book on a bench in the Hidden Haven Park of New York’s hidden city. Though, she wasn’t actually reading the book. In fact, she didn’t even know the title of the book lying in her hands. All she cared about was listening as intently as she could to the family nearby. Trying to look casual, she craned her ears towards the two huskies running around in the grass with their little one.
He was not a husky, however, but a young snow leopard, maybe three years old. Laughing loudly, he chased the two huskies around the nearby trees, trying to tag them. The mother husky, her reddish-brown fur glowing in the warm light, slowed her pace enough to let the little cub catch her and then fell to the ground dramatically.
“Ohh nooo, you got me!” She made a pretend dead face, and the boy giggled.
“I gotchu, Mommy!” He pounced on her belly, and she tickled his neck, making him squirm and squeal in laughter.
“Bet you can’t catch me!” The black and white father husky ran around a nearby tree as the boy gave chase. They circled it a few times before he cleverly jumped up onto the nearest branch and hid there. Still circling the tree, the snow leopard kept running faster and faster until he stopped and looked around, confused. The lioness couldn’t help but snicker quietly along with the two dogs as he continued to look around.
“Daddy..?”
“Where did Daddy go?” The mother asked, trying and failing to hide her laughter. Before the boy could answer, his father ambushed him from above, gently tackling him to the ground and attacking him with tickles. The genuine laughter of the three was so wholesome and contagious… if only it didn’t leave such a hollow sadness in the lioness’s heart.
“Alright,” The father patted his little one’s back, “Go on and run around the playground for a bit.” He helped the mother up, and they both moved to sit at the bench next to the lioness’s.
“Ok!” The cub ran over to the nearby playground where other yokai children were playing. He shouted loud enough for everyone nearby to hear, “HII, FRIENDSSS!”
The huskies snickered, settling in next to each other on the bench. The red one gazed fondly at the cub, “Look at him go.”
The black and white one smiled in tandem, “He’s quite the keeper, isn’t he?”
“We’re so lucky…”
“I’m the most lucky-” Grinning, he nuzzled her neck with his pointed snout, making her laugh.
“Ah, Toh!” She swatted playfully at him.
The lioness was having a hard time keeping her eyes on her book as she watched the two so obviously in love with each other. It made her feel so sweet for them… but so sour at the same time… She couldn’t blame them, though- it wasn’t their fault…
“Oh, look!” The father’s pointed ears shot up, “He’s going to try the monkey bars!”
The mother looked nervous, “Oh dear- should we stop him? What if he falls?”
“It’s not that far of a fall, he’ll be fine. He’s tough.” Two huskies and one lioness watched as the snow leopard cub reached up as high as he could, just barely grasping the first bar. He lifted his legs and swung back and forth a couple times, gripping the bar tight with his little paws. Then, he let go with one hand and stretched it all the way to the second, kicking his legs to help him swing. After securing the second bar, the three watched with bated breath as he attempted to do the same with the third. Unfortunately, his hand slipped as he swung too far - and he fell to the ground on his back with a little squeal.
“Oh!” His mother called, “Eli, are you ok, honey?” The lioness froze at her words… Did they..?
The cub shook himself off with a wide grin and ran over to his parents, “Mommy! Daddy! Did you see what I did!” He kept running, straight into their arms, “I got the second one! I got it!”
“Yes you did, my boy!” His father gave him a high-five.
“You did so good, Elijah!” The red husky said it again… They really did… They kept the name… Something twisted in the lioness’s heart, again both sweet and sour as she tried to take it all in.
Meanwhile, the cub- Elijah- was running back to the monkey bars, calling behind him, “I’m gonna try again! Watch me, watch me!”
His mother called after him, beaming, “We’re watching!”
“See?” His father looked on in pride, “What’d I tell ya? Tough little kid.”
“He’s our little kid, Tozer…” She looked at him with shining eyes, so full of affection that it made the lioness’s heart twist even more.
He put his arm around her, pulling her in close and meeting her loving gaze with his own, “He’s our son, Bona…” She sniffed and wiped her eyes, and the lioness could feel her body begin to tremble at the weight of it all. It was taking everything she had not to start crying.
Elijah ran back to their bench, smiling even wider, “Daddy! Mommy! I got the third one!”
“Great job, honey!” Bona praised as she picked a few stray wood chips out of his fur.
“Attaboy, son! Don’t give up!” Tozer ruffled his little head affectionately.
“Imma gonna be the bestest monkey bars climber ever!”
His mother stroked his face with her paw, “I’m sure you will. But just remember, even if you can’t get all the bars today, it’s ok.”
“Yeah, just do your best out there, Eli.”
“No matter what, we love you so so much!” The red husky rubbed her pointed brown nose back and forth against his little pink one and the two giggled in unison.
Elijah wrapped his little arms around her and hugged as tight as he could manage, “I love you so so much too, Mommy.” The tip of his little spotted tail wagged just like the two huskies’ tails, and the lioness could even hear his purring from where she sat.
She couldn’t bear it any longer. Her book dropped to the ground as she quickly but quietly fled the scene. She clamped her hand over her mouth as a barricade to hold back her shuddering breath and oncoming sobs. The lioness barely made it far enough away before she could no longer hold back the tears that had been fighting their way out ever since she first saw the cub with his parents just a few hours before.
Behind a large oak tree waited a lion whose eyes met hers, overflowing with empathy and compassion. She stumbled into his arms, tears streaming down her face as he supported her trembling form. A strangled gasp escaped her hand’s tight grip, and she pleaded that no one nearby heard it and came asking questions. While maintaining his hold on her, the lion selected a symbol from his beaded bracelet and turned it three times over, murmuring something she could not hear. Instantly, they were transported to an underground place filled with voices and people.
They had made it to safety. The lioness finally freed her hand from her mouth, allowing it to release its pent up agony as she cried out. She ripped off the pendant from her neck, and the illusion dropped with it, returning her fur from pale tan to its natural grey and black spots. Not bothering to take in her surroundings, she shut her eyes tight as her shaking legs gave out. Strong arms caught her again, for they had never left, and lowered themselves down with her as they pulled her in close, surrounding her in comfort.
While she clung to him, she felt no true comfort penetrate the vast, gaping hole that was her love. She could not stop the tears flooding down her face, nor the sobs that racked her lungs as she wept. He was speaking words to her, words she could not hear through her grief. Nothing would quell the bottomless ache in her soul. Nothing could face the wrath of her sorrow.
After a time, some voices began to break through the fog in her ears. Lifting her head, she pried her eyes back open and saw the friend standing beside them through the blurred veil of her tears. She heard the voice of the gray wolf.
“It’s go-time, my friend. Now or never.”
Her protector nodded to him, “Thank you, Nathan. I am coming.” With another turn of a bead, his illusion dropped just as hers had, and he was a lion no more. Fear gripped her heart as she realized his strong arms were needed elsewhere - that he needed to let her go.
Their savior looked deep into her eyes, and she could see the very depths of his soul through them; incredibly and undoubtedly full of love and grief for her within the dark, ocean blue.
“I must go and assist in the spells. I will be right back for you, alright?”
“Yuri…” She barely choked out his name.
“Ashla…” He tenderly grasped her head and made their foreheads meet, “I will be right back for you.” And then he was gone. And she had no one to hold her but herself.
Her body folded in on itself, her hands covered her face, and her long tail curled tightly around her as she sunk into the ground as far as she could go. She may have felt a soft hand or two on her back, but they could not feel her. Her protector's voice echoed loud throughout the underground place, some words getting muffled by the sheer number of bodies present, yet his final words rang true.
“My family! It is time to go home!”
Ashla could not move, she could not cheer like the others, only remain paralyzed in her grief. Her tears streamed while voices cheered. Her sobs racked her chest as the others’ hope rose.
Suddenly, there was a great, white flash of light that shone between her fingers and through her closed eyelids. A silence fell over the crowd and her soul alike as a warm breeze filled the air. Ashla heard birds, felt grass beneath her, and a warm light spread across her back.
They had made it- they were finally safe forever… And she’d never see him again.
The realization tore through her very being like a white-hot blade cutting fatally deep. As the voices surrounding her cheered and wept with joy, she let out a deep cry of agony, letting her pain and despair pour itself out onto the grass. She finally felt those strong arms return, carefully prying her hands from her head and gathering her into himself. Like a puddle, she melted, burying herself as deep as she could into his all-encompassing embrace.
“Y-Yuri… h-he’s gone…” Ashla trembled uncontrollably as she cried into his pure, white shirt.
He placed his warm, loving paw behind her neck and rubbed the base of her head ever so comfortingly with his thumb. “He is gone from you, yes. And you have every right to grieve for as long as you need. I will be here for you, dear one.” Yuri lifted her chin, raising her eyes to meet the warm light behind his brave and tender gaze. “But never forget, Ashla… Your son is safe.”
She let his grounding voice echo through her mind over and over.
He is safe.
Elijah is safe.
His new parents love him, and he loves them.
Both she and Elijah were home now, even if they were worlds apart for the rest of their lives.
Goodbye, my baby boy… and may you find all that you need in those around you.
Proverbs 3:5-6, 8 > Trust in the Lord with all your heart; do not depend on your own understanding. Seek His will in all you do, and He will show you which path to take. Then you will have healing for your body and strength for your bones.
And Eli will never know, because the only two yokai that do are bound by strict silencing magic... (makes ya want to read the end of Ch: 'Only The Game' once more, huh?)
Oh, and the inspo for this epilogue was spurred by this gem of a song, "Even When I'm Not" from The Wild Robot. I may have shed multiple tears while writing it, and I'm not afraid to say it's one of my favorite parts of the book.
Thank you all again for following along with my story. ❤️🩹
An MJ AU sequel story by How To Train Your Dragon Prince
Five Hamatos, a snow leopard, and an April O’Neil were gathered atop a tall apartment building in New York City. The spotted turtle had called for the rest to come at the snow leopard’s request. The two were standing side by side, Elijah looking a lot stronger than he had upon leaving the lair a few hours before.
April gently approached him, looking especially sorrowful, “Heya, big guy. The guys got me all caught up on… well, everything… Can I give you a hug, man?” She opened her arms in question, and Elijah gave her a small, grateful smile.
“Yeah, April.” He accepted the hug, letting her give him a big, grounding squeeze.
“I’m so sorry, man… That just sucks.”
“Thanks…” They let go, and April stepped back to join MJ’s brothers who all looked both somber and cautiously optimistic about being called over.
Very tenderly, Mikey voiced what they all must’ve been thinking, “How are you feeling…?”
“I, uh…” Elijah started off slowly, “I think it’s gonna take a bit for me to really accept it all, honestly… Um- I’m really sorry for blowing up at you though. You guys didn’t deserve that…”
“Hey, don’t sweat it, brother.” Raph rumbled low and kind.
His blue brother spoke just as forgivingly, “There was a lot on you at once, it was completely understandable.”
Donnie cocked his head a little, “I’m actually a little surprised at how quickly you’ve processed this.”
“Heh, yeah, well… I had a little help.” The snow leopard glanced fondly at MJ, and she returned it with her most meaningful smile, her heart nearly bursting from the profound thankfulness in his eyes. She caught a quick proud look from a couple of her older brothers, and it made her so glad to know that they didn’t still disapprove of her going to find Elijah.
He continued, “I wanted to say something to you all.” and they returned their attention solely onto their friend. “I want to say thank you for everything you did for me, for this. I was so caught up in feeling guilty for it all that I forgot to acknowledge your help. Because of you, we tracked down a bunch of leads, found answers, and actually figured out what really happened to the snow leopards.” Elijah’s face became more remorseful, “Even if the answer was a lot darker than we thought it would be… I’d still rather know. And that’s all because of your help. So, thank you. Really.” Even with the weight of his race on his shoulders, the cat still smiled as he thanked them for all their efforts. MJ couldn’t help but smile back at his side as the others answered him with kind, acknowledging nods, quiet ‘no prob’s, and the like.
“But more importantly, thank you for everything else.” They all looked at each other a little confused, and Elijah’s voice became more emotional as he continued, “The whole reason why I was trying so hard to find the snow leopards was because I wanted to find somewhere I belong… Find who I’m supposed to be… If there’s something bigger I’m supposed to be a part of… And most of all, find somewhere I finally fit in- where I’m not alone…” He looked down at his arms - the same ones he used to glare at on the night they first met him - yet this time his gaze held no malice for his leopard spots, “I thought I could only find that in people that were my kind… my skin…” Filled with teary gratitude, he looked back at the group, “But it was right beside me the whole time…” Realizing what he was saying, the four brothers and April began to mirror Elijah’s emotional state, their eyes shining in admiration.
The cat chuckled, his voice still wobbling a little in deep appreciation, “Heh, I was just too blind to see it, but you’ve been where I belong ever since you saved me from Big Mama. You, my parents, Hueso and the restaurant…” His shimmering eyes met MJ’s, making her breath catch, “You’re where I fit in… and I’ve never felt less alone.” The spotted turtle didn’t think she’d ever felt more seen in her whole life. Unashamed and not bothering to hide his falling tears at all, Elijah addressed the whole group once more, “I’m already home, and there’s nowhere else I’d rather be.”
For a moment, there was only awed silence. Not a single one of them wasn’t beaming with tears forming in their eyes - let alone herself and Mikey practically bawling. MJ was positively overflowing with love and pride for her boyfriend as she wrapped her arms around him, hugging tightly at his side. She felt his paw rest warmly on her shell as he opened the other out to the rest of them, a few tears still tracing his beaming face. “Get in here already, guys!”
Right on cue, Mikey burst into happy-tears and he ran over to them, crashing into their hug, “Th-that was s-so beautifuulll!”
“I- I don’t even know what to say…” Raph joined in behind him, leaking a few tears.
Even Leo’s eyes were shimmering as he followed, “You’re amazing, Kitty Boy. We’re happy to be your people.”
Donnie swiped his wrist across his face before joining the hug as well, “Whew, normally I’m not that emotional, but you have somehow managed to unlock this response…”
April added herself in last, “Just shut up and hug him, Dee.” and they all chuckled together in their turtle-human-snow leopard pile of a hug. Surrounded by loving bodies, MJ cherished the moment as much as she could, feeling immensely proud and glad. She did it. She’d been there for him. She had made sure that Elijah wasn’t alone during his hour of darkness, and she’d even helped him understand his emotions and accept himself in a better way than before. This was why she couldn’t just sit in the lair while he was out here hurting all by himself. This was why she would always be there to love her people when they needed it.
This was her real strength.
Even if MJ wasn’t the strongest physically- even if she fell down from the sky sometimes, she would never fail to be the love her family needs.
As if right on cue, Elijah sniffled and mumbled into the embrace, “I love you guys…” And he was met with many ‘We love you too’s from all around.
“Heheh,” The snapper chuckled, making the whole group jiggle a little, “You’re really stuck with us now, bud.” The rest laughed along, then they all began peeling off from the hug and forming a close circle, though MJ stayed leaning on Elijah’s side.
With eyes still shining, he looked down at her and spoke ever so affectionately, “You know, I think I’m really ok with that…” The spotted turtle couldn’t help it as more tears continued to collect on her face from all of the wonderful emotions colliding together in this moment. Even through her blurred vision, she could see how Elijah’s beautiful face was so genuinely happy… Even after everything he’d been through, all it took was a little ‘I love you’ to bring that smile back that she loved so much… There was no reason in her mind to hold back now.
MJ used her arm to wipe her face for a moment before grabbing Elijah’s shoulders and pulling him down to her level for a quick peck on his lips. The snow leopard blinked back at her, wide-eyed and stunned. She heard a few ‘oooo!’s from her brothers and she giggled, her gaze never leaving his. Then he smiled that wonderful, hopeful smile she loved so much, his tail tip wagging and looking as if he thought it was all too good to be true. His arms wrapped around the base of her shell as he picked her up off the ground and into a slightly longer kiss. As far as first kisses go, MJ knew she’d never forget this one. The triumph of the moment was so incredibly tangible, she felt practically weightless. Gently, she was placed back down, and the two settled into a front facing hug with her forehead leaning onto his chin.
There was a simultaneous “Awweee…” from Mikey, April, and Raph while at the same time Donnie and Leo called out, “Eww.” Everyone’s laughter resonated around the roof of the building, and MJ nuzzled closer into the fur of Elijah’s neck as she turned her head to see her brothers’ grinning faces.
“Finally,” Raph smiled wide, showing off his snaggletooth, “Saw that one comin’ a mile away!” More laughter followed, and Leo leaned on their biggest brother’s side, crossing his arms.
“Well, I suppose this was pretty inevitable…” The slider grinned at the couple, and MJ felt a rush of warm gratitude as the co-leaders expressed their joint approval of her relationship. Mikey too seemed ecstatic at everything that was going on around him, clutching his hands to his heart. MJ glanced at Donnie and noticed that he wasn’t watching the rest of the excitement. The softshell was seemingly lost in thought, and she could see his hands trembling a little. She was about to ask if he was alright before he took a deep breath, straightened up, and spoke to the group.
“While we’re confessing feelings…” Donnie trailed off, still shaking a little, and took another deep breath. “A-April…” He turned to face her, and her expression flashed in a moment of recognition before breaking into the biggest smile. Donnie continued a little nervously, looking down and stuttering, “Y-You’re the funniest, most brilliant, a-and most beautiful girl I’ve ever met… A-And I know that selection is short, and we’re p-practically family already… and this m-might be weird t-to ask… but…” Pausing for a moment, Donnie almost looked as though he was second-guessing himself, but then he chanced a look at April and saw that she was grinning ear to ear. He took one more grounding breath. “April O’Neil, will you go out with me?”
The whole group held their breath as they waited alongside the trembling softshell for what April would say. She took a few steps forward, closing the distance between them, “Hamato Donatello…” She grabbed his shoulder close to his neck and he froze, looking beyond nervous. After a deadly moment of silence, April’s scrutinizing stare finally broke into that wide, mischievous grin again, “Took you long enough!” With her firm grip on his shoulder, she pulled him down to her level and smacked a kiss on his cheek before cackling and hugging him tight.
Cheers and whoops resounded from his siblings as they laughed and clapped their brother’s back in congratulations. Mikey and MJ shared an ‘I knew it’ look and high fived each other while Leo made a joke about Donnie ‘really coming out of his shell there’. Donnie himself was still shaking like a leaf and taking very deep breaths, but he was also beaming bright in happy relief as he reciprocated April’s embrace. The spotted turtle was glad to see him be so brave with his feelings like that…
She was glad for a whole lot of things that night… Everyone was safe, the quest was over… Even though the story had a horrible ending, Elijah still made it out somehow… And he was here with them… with her… and that’s where he wanted to be.
He didn’t lose himself in the chase, he found himself… After everything, after all the obstacles they faced, Elijah found his people anyways… And MJ would make absolutely sure that he’d never feel alone ever again.
This snow leopard was home.
…
The following day proceeded like this: After the emotional night before, everyone agreed to a day of rest so that they could all have a chance to process everything on their own. The plan was to meet back on April’s roof the next night for pizza and a low-key evening hang out. Before that, a few important things were taken care of.
Elijah finally went home to his parents and told them the whole story of his journey. Leo stopped by Hueso’s restaurant to do the same, that way Elijah wouldn’t have to discuss the tragedy of his race twice - which he greatly appreciated. MJ and Donnie paid a visit to Thorn at the HCPD to inform her of what really happened to the snow leopards and why she couldn’t find anything about them in her formal records. They made sure to leave Balister out of the story out of respect for his honest information. Finally, Raph and Mikey filled Splinter in on everything as well. At the end of the day, all seven were once again assembled atop the apartment building with lighter hearts and pizza slices in hand.
It felt good to Elijah to just have a normal night after it all. It wasn’t as though everything was going to go back to the way it was before, obviously he still needed plenty of time to truly find peace in everything that happened to his people… and everything he still didn’t know about his own story… His soul felt both heavy and light at the same time. Looking around at his friends’ smiling faces… Elijah had a good feeling that he knew he’d be alright.
“Here’s to the newly improved Mad Dogs!” Raph raised his slice high in the middle of their circle, “Welcome aboard, Elijah!” They all cheered as they toasted their respective pizza slices and took triumphant bites.
The snow leopard smiled shyly, “Well gee, thanks guys. I didn’t know you were gonna make it official.”
“Of course!” Leo grinned knowingly, “Why else would we be doing a ceremonial roof run after this?”
“Wait… a ceremonial what..?” Elijah asked cautiously… Maybe this night wouldn’t be so normal…
Leo just smirked, taking another bite of pizza, “You heard me…”
His orange brother followed excitedly, “Ya gotta come on a roof run with us tonight! The weather’s perfect! No clouds, starry sky, and a little bit of wind to pick you up when you jump!”
“Heh…” Elijah sounded skeptical, “That sounds nice and all, but don’t you remember what happened last time I tried to roof run with you guys..?” He sure remembered. He’d missed a big jump, falling off a roof and bruising his hand badly trying to grab at the railing of a fire escape. Luckily, MJ had caught him with her wings just in time, absorbing the brunt of the fall with her shell and saving him from any further injury.
Donnie raised a pointer finger, “Of course we remember. However, I plan to amend the shortcomings made prevalent from that last excursion.” Elijah just looked at him confused, unable to follow exactly what his friend was trying to say.
“English, nerd-brain.” The blue slider retorted.
“Wha- I-I…” Looking flustered, Donnie sighed, “I said I know how to prevent what went wrong last time. Two of us will be jetpack assisted-” He gestured to himself and April, “-and MJ has her own power of flight. With three of us in the air, Leo’s portals, and Raph’s duplicates, you have an extremely low chance of getting injured from falling this time.”
Mikey perked up indignantly, “Hey, I could help too! My chains could catch him!”
Donnie grimaced, “Perhaps as a last resort, but that’s not necessarily as safe or as gentle as the others. Try to let someone else intervene first, Mikey.” The box turtle pouted, and though Elijah felt a little bad for him, he also felt very relieved that he didn’t have to worry about the idea of chains grabbing him tightly while falling. The purple turtle continued, “Furthermore, we previously neglected to teach you how to properly maximize your body’s abilities when roof running, which is something we can rectify here.”
The cat cocked his head, trying to understand, “Um, ok…”
His girlfriend smiled and began rephasing her brother’s words, “He’s talking about how you run. Last time, you ran like you were on the ground going in a straight line, but it’s a little different up here. Momentum can be built up from lots of different 3D surfaces; walls, angled roofs, building edges, etc. Sometimes you have to use all of your limbs, not just your legs.”
“Exactly.” Donnie added, “Logically, your body is especially designed for this kind of movement, given your natural history.” He gestured to all of Elijah, and the cat began to understand.
“Um, you mean because I’m a snow leopard..?”
“Yeah!” MJ grinned enthusiastically, “Your tail, claws, and sleek build are designed to make snow leopards one of the most athletic big cats in the wild when they’re running and jumping on snowy cliffs!” Elijah had been observing his paws with a new appreciation until a specific word from his girlfriend’s mouth caught him off guard.
“Did you just call me sleek?” The cat blushed a little, smirking at the spotted turtle who was now also caught off guard.
“Well- I- I just meant physically-” She stuttered, and the others chuckled loudly behind her, making Elijah grin.
Clutching at his chest, Mikey was practically cackling, “You totally did!”
“Anyways.” The softshell pulled them back to the focus of the conversation, “The point is, we may have years of training-” He pointed at the snow leopard optimistically, “-but you are literally made for this kind of thing.”
“Doesn’t hurt that you work out a lot, too.” Raph added, grinning encouragingly.
“Right?” Leo swatted a hand, “C’mon, man! You’ve got this, let’s just get out there and have fun!”
Taking another bite of pizza, April cocked an eyebrow, “Hey, ya can’t be worse than me, and I have a jetpack.”
MJ winked at her, “Ah, don’t sell yourself short, you’re pretty impressive up there, April!” The two girls shared a sly look of comradery before MJ turned back to Elijah. “So? Whad’ya say? I’ll stay right by your side in case you slip.” Her eyes were so hopeful, so inspiring… the cat’s apprehension practically dissolved under their light.
Smiling wide, Elijah shrugged, “I couldn’t possibly say no even if I wanted to.” Collective cheers and sounds of celebration resonated from the rest, and they got to work finishing the last few pizza slices.
Once they were all ready, Leo lined them up and started a countdown. “Alright, Mad Dogs! On your marks- Get set-”
Suddenly, he was cut off as April whooshed past with her jet pack, “Too sloowww!!” She cackled with her classic April O’Niel cocky smirk.
“Heeyyy!” Leo called after her indignantly.
Donnie jumped up, “No fair!” and grinned, taking off after her.
“HEEYYYY!”
“Go time, baby!” Mikey raced after the two.
Chortling, Raph gave his blue brother a dry smile, “Ya can’t win ‘em all. Whoo-HOOO!” And then he was off with the rest.
Elijah giggled along with MJ, raising his ears high in mock affirmation, “Well, I waited for you.”
Leo grinned back, laughing, “Thanks, man. Let’s see what you’ve got! And, GO!” As the last three leapt into the action, Elijah remembered why he was skeptical about doing this in the first place. The next roof was slanted, and he had no idea what he was supposed to do! Glancing up at MJ, he saw that she’d summoned her wings and was gliding close by, watching him encouragingly as he ran.
“All fours!” She called, “Use your tail for balance!”
“Ok!” Taking a deep breath, he tried to trust his limbs and leapt off the familiar roof of April’s apartment complex and onto the unknown of the slanted surface with all four of his paws. The landing was a little tough, his feet skidded across the bumpy shingles for a few steps, but he felt the sting from the impact fade from his finger pads as each of his limbs began sharing and trading his weight. As Elijah ran on all fours, he felt something unlock deep in his consciousness - like an unborn instinct had awakened within his very muscles. “Ha!” The snow leopard barked out a half-nervous laugh, relieved that he hadn’t fallen.
The flying turtle above him grinned back, “See? That was awesome! Try using 3D surfaces!”
“Ok…” Raising his eyes forward, he saw a few short, tower-like structures on the next roof forming a zig-zagging line. Elijah jumped across to them, landing only for a moment before jumping again and positioning himself sideways on the first tower, pushing off against it like MJ said. That same instinct returned in full force as he felt his tail automatically flick to his left to balance the shifting weight on his right. His claws extended, gripping the second tower as he pushed off again, letting his body lengthen and spin through the air. Reaching the third and final tower, he had more than enough momentum from his combined jumping efforts to easily leap across the gap between buildings and land on the next roof moving faster than he ever had running upright. Soon, he was even passing by a few of the brothers, still gaining speed.
MJ cheered loudly overhead, “Yeah! That’s my Snowstorm!”
“Wo-hoah!” Leo laughed as the cat passed him, “Look out, here he comes!”
Raph looked over his shoulder to see his weight training buddy synchronize his jump between buildings, “Well, hey there, Eli!”
“THIS IS AWESOME!!!” The snow leopard felt his heart drop a little in the most energizing way as he looked down the tall alleyway they were leaping over.
Mikey cackled, swinging by on his glowing, golden chain, “Haha, we told you!”
“You’re a natural!” MJ had backed a bit further off from him now, catching a higher wind current. Laughing out loud in pure euphoria, the snow leopard leapt over the next roof gap, ending in a quick somersault and switching back to two feet now and keeping pace with Raph. His limbs and tail were in complete control now, subconsciously improvising to the diverse terrain, balancing his movements, and awakening a whole new level of confidence in himself. He wondered for a brief moment if this was how his ancestors had run long ago in those snowy mountains.
“You know,” Elijah grinned wide at the turtles, feeling the wind rushing through his fur, “I’m not really a cardio guy, but I could totally get used to this!” They shared a laugh with him, and he tested out a double-spin through the air on his next jump, twisting and stretching out his body as far as it could go. As he landed on all fours again, Elijah heard another whoop from above.
“That’s what I’m talkin’ about! Whoo!” A purple light flew by as April’s jetpack aided in her own double-flip jump across the next roof gap.
Donnie’s same purple glow soon followed, “Like I said, he is made for this.”
The snow leopard grinned ear to ear. Got that right, he absolutely was!
As the four brothers began competing alongside him with their own trick-jumps, MJ flapped her wings harder and rose higher, her bright maroon glow ascending into the stars. Elijah watched her the most while he ran as she flipped and spun through all kinds of shifting wind currents he couldn’t see. MJ then folded her wings and dove downwards, falling faster and faster. He was becoming worried that she’d crash and hurt herself, but her wings flared wide open at the last second. Both her hands and feet hit the edge of the roof as she landed for only a millisecond before shoving off and launching back into the air again, spinning with her wings tucked in close.
The snow leopard was paying so much attention to her that he almost lost his footing a few times. Flaring her wings again, MJ slowed her pace to let him catch up, getting low enough that he could almost touch her. The two grinned at each other, and Elijah jumped high, reaching his hand up and high fiving her as he passed. She gave him that sweet laugh he adored so much, and all the warmth he’d ever lost returned to his heart all at once.
Why had he ever been unsure?
Even if he’ll never find his real parents, even if he really was the last snow leopard yokai left… Elijah would never doubt where he belonged again. For so long, he had hated the fact that he was a snow leopard - that he was so different from everyone else… but that was just his skin. The truth was that he wasn’t so different from those around him after all. He had found his family. Running with the Hamatos, he felt brave, strong, almost invincible. As crazy as that sounded considering everything he’d been through in the last two days alone, it was the truth.
He looked up again in admiration of the shining blue and gold soul soaring above him - the one who stood by him through horrors and highlights, who refused to leave his side even in his worst moment.
Yeah, as long as that girl was beside him, Elijah could take on anything the world had to throw at him.
Proverbs 2:9-11 > Then you will understand what is right, just, and fair, and you will find the right way to go. For wisdom will enter your heart and knowledge will fill you with joy. Wise choices will watch over you. Understanding will keep you safe.
I can’t believe it’s over… I’ve been looking forward to the full story being out for so long, it’s been over a year since I started scripting it… I’m both immensely pleased with how it all turned out and a little melancholy that the journey of its creation is over. 🥹
Anyways, thank you all so much for reading along! I’m really proud of this story, and I hope you all enjoyed! 🙏❤️
This OC belongs to the creator @truths33k3r4 . I DO NOT OWN THE CHARACTER!
So… I just finished The Strength in Weakness by this creator….
OHMIGOSH I LOVED IT SM!!!! The characters, the slice of life, the humor, the angst, the fluff? So friggin’ perfect! She’s an amazing artist and storyteller!
I first heard about C2G from my favorite creator (you know who) and decided to check out her page. I found out the tons of voice acting she does for other creators and really enjoyed it! The, I found out about Lotus and her original story, and that really peaked my interest!
(Also, fun fact, me and Lotus share the same first name. Iykyk Hint: it’s not Lotus.)
Anyways, I drew Lotus, and it was fun! She’s a very pretty lady, I think my rise ocs would like her.
(Okay, time for a long break. Been drawing so much and now my back hurts lol)
OH MY WORD DUDE THANK YOU!!! You did a great job with drawing Lotus! 😁 I’ve been happily reading your comments on AO3 as you’ve been plowing through my story, and I’m so glad you enjoyed it thus far! :) Your fanart and kind comments have been so appreciated, and I can’t thank you enough for taking the time and energy to make them. 😁 There’s still so much left to tell for my story and I hope and pray that it will impact you as much as my first two books have so far. (Once I get the time to begin working on it again which will hopefully be soon!)
The new Swapped movie is absolutely fantastic; gorgeous art/world-building, genius writing/character development, and a killer score to bring it all together.
Y’all know I’m an animal nut (and a herp girlie especially), so this was what I had way too much fun drawing last night:
I give you, the valley’s prominent amphibian, the sodling! 😁💚🦎
Sodlings blend in perfectly with the wet, mossy ground that surrounds the rivers and lakes of their wetland habitats. When they feel threatened, they tuck in their heads and their flowery ruff and many buds burst open, making the sodling indistinguishable from their surroundings.
As mentioned in the design, sodlings eat a variety of flower buds and watery greens, though they would not mind munching on a piplet seed or two if some happened to fall into the water.
These colorful salamanders mate for life, and it’s not uncommon to find a pair engaging in ritualistic mating dances on the riverbanks on a warm, summer evening. The brighter and fuller a sodling’s ruff, the healthier and more attractive they appear.
As for noises, for any valley creature that hasn’t yet come into contact with a glowing pod, sodlings’ calls would closely resemble a high pitched, squeaky churr with repetitiveness altering in a fashion not unlike Morse code.
Finally, the species’s culture is more solitary than social, with the exception of mated pairs living together. They establish distinct territories, though they don’t fight over them as much as they perform display battles where they flare their flower-ruffs, and the larger one wins. An arbitrary group is both necessary and customary for these displays, so sodlings’ territories are never too far apart from one another in case a group of witnesses needs to be gathered in haste. Sodling couples love to decorate their homes with little things like shells, pebbles, and leaves. It is a common cultural aspect that the more decorative a sodling home, the longer they have lived there; thereby calling that territory their own without any challenge.
(can you tell I had way too much fun with this? Ok, bye 🤣)
An MJ AU sequel story by How To Train Your Dragon Prince
(from where we left off)
“Yeah? Well, too bad. I get girlfriend privileges.” She let her tone soften a little, “Besides… The last thing I want him feeling right now is that he’s alone.” Before any of them could stop her, MJ summoned her wings and took off at full speed down the sewer tunnels. Though she moved fast, she didn’t hear any further objections as she left. A warm fondness for her brothers filled her heart as she popped off the nearest sewer hatch and emerged into the quiet nighttime streets of New York.
Hold on, Elijah. Whether you like it or not, MJ’s coming for you.
—
As she rose into the dark night sky, MJ let her wings change from her usual bright maroon glow to a softer, stealthier grey-blue that matched her skin color. The last thing they needed was a late night sighting of a giant, glowing, winged turtle. With a couple flaps of her wings and a quick push off from a nearby roof, she let the wind carry her up above the buildings, giving her a dragon’s eye-view of the area. She hovered for a moment, keeping her body steady as she scanned the rooftops for a familiar figure.
There was no way Elijah was ready to go home to his parents just yet. He didn’t like getting upset in front of them because he didn’t want them worrying about him. It was how he’d hidden his experiences at Big Mama’s hotel from them for so long… He was always trying to bear his whole world on his shoulders alone…
MJ shook herself back into the present. Not this time.
If he hadn’t gone home, then where was the first place he’d run to in a moment like this? Hidden Haven park? Probably not, that’s a long distance away, and MJ didn’t think he’d gotten that far in such a short amount of time. Hueso’s? Definitely not, there’s no way he’d let his stern boss catch him in such a vulnerable state. Nowhere else in the Hidden City came to mind… Where else would he-
Wait-
The spotted turtle’s spectral wings folded in as she dived down into a different wind current- one that traveled west, straight towards April’s apartment building.
It was the same roof where they celebrated his escape from Big Mama, and one of the tallest buildings that rose above the others nearby, making it a safe place for the mutants to hang out in the open without getting spotted by humans - as well as a safe place for yokai. MJ’s wind current was leading slightly away from her destination now, so she tilted her left wing and fell out of it, flapping a little harder to keep herself from losing altitude now without the wind’s assistance. It didn’t matter- in less than a minute, she would be there. Normally, MJ would be enjoying the thrill and joy of flying in an open sky on a clear night, but her focus was on something much more important.
Sure enough, as she neared the roof of April’s building, she saw a soft, grey figure sitting by the edge. Elijah. MJ’s wings folded in and tipped down towards him before flaring open at the last second, flapping twice to balance her landing. Letting them dissolve, she barely caught a glimpse of him stashing something small and pale blue as he noticed her arrival.
Taking slow, careful steps, MJ made her way across the roof to the snow leopard, pausing once she got a few feet away. He wasn’t actively upset, reverting back to the numbness she’d seen in his face before. She kept her voice ever so delicate, respecting his space, “Can… I sit?”
Elijah’s eyes flicked up to her for a moment before he responded, his voice heavy with guilt, “Yeah, of course.” She did, and they sat together in silence for a moment as she tried to feel him out. He finally spoke again, his voice breaking a little, “Sorry I left like that…”
“It’s ok.” The spotted turtle tried to study her boyfriend’s face, analyzing for any signs of shed tears he might be hiding from her. It was impossible to tell, his fur could’ve easily absorbed any stains - that and he could’ve wiped them off upon seeing her coming. MJ let out a small sigh, “It’s hard to tell if you’ve been crying, your fur hides it so well…” Elijah turned his head slightly in the opposite direction, and MJ looked out at the distant, glowing lights of downtown New York. “That’s definitely not the same for me. My brothers always catch on right away, there’s never any way to hide from them…” Pausing with a rueful smile, she reached out her hand and tenderly squeezed his. “Eli… None of us think any of this was on you… I don’t want you to feel like you have to hide anything from us… from me…” He turned his gaze back to her in slight surprise, and she met it with all the warmth and affection she’d ever felt for him, “If you’re feeling feelings, I want to know. And I want to be here for you, I-” MJ’s breath caught for a millisecond as she remembered… “I know what it’s like to feel alone… and I really don’t want you to feel that way…” Her voice had begun to wobble a little as she hoped with all her heart that she was getting through to him. All she wanted was to be there with him while his world fell apart- but she’d never force him, he had to let her…
For a moment, nothing happened. Elijah just stared a little in awe at MJ, registering what she’d said… And then his head slowly turned downwards, his face scrunched up, and his eyes shut. MJ watched as his breathing steadily became more and more hitched and uneven, his chest and shoulders trembling. Then, for the first time since MJ had known him, Elijah cried. She’d seen him tear up only a couple times before, but these were real sobs and real, full tears rolling down his white face markings. He was so quiet, and his ears were practically plastered down onto his head as his body curled inwards, making him look small.
Before MJ could even begin to move closer to him, Elijah’s arms opened shakily towards her, inviting her in… And she was there in an instant. With not a second to spare, MJ’s arms wrapped securely around his quaking shoulders and she placed a hand behind his head supportively. His paws grasped her spotted shell and he buried his face into her shoulder, leaning his weight on her. She took it more than gladly, lightly stroking the back of his head and relishing the moment of trust and vulnerability he was granting her.
As Elijah shook like a leaf in her arms, MJ never stopped holding him up, “It’s ok… you’re ok… just feel what you’re feeling, don’t hold it in…” He sobbed hard, clinging so tightly to her as another fresh wave of tears streamed down his nose. Even though MJ was beyond grateful that he’d finally opened up to her, it hurt so much to see him so utterly heartbroken. She felt some of her own tears join his as she closed her eyes and nuzzled him closer, “You are not alone.” The spotted turtle thought about how she’d never gotten to see him cry like this before, she’d never seen him break down in front of anyone else. Elijah had always cared about everyone else’s burdens, but never dreamed of ‘burdening them’ with his own troubles. MJ may be the turtle between the two of them, but through all this time she had been the one trying to coax him out of his shell.
The cat began to breathe a little easier, taking in big gulps of air and loosening his grip on her back. MJ sniffled, making no moves to end their embrace. Her boyfriend paused at the sound, and to her great reluctance, he pulled back to look at her face. She met his gaze as reassuringly as she could, knowing he could see that she had been crying a little with him. Elijah’s soft hand cupped the side of her face and his voice cracked, thick with guilt, “Oh no… I d-didn’t wanna make you cry...” Leaning into his touch, MJ could almost laugh. Even now, in his darkest hour, Elijah worried for how he made her feel.
“No, Eli…” She locked onto his eyes with a sad smile as she spoke earnestly, straight from her heart, “You never made me do anything. I want to help you. I’m sad for you. I’m sad with you, I love you…” The snow leopard’s eyes widened in shock, and it took MJ a second to register what she just said. I love you. It was the first time either of them had said the words out loud. Blinking in surprise at herself, her own eyes widened and she held her breath, waiting to see what Elijah would do.
He whispered so quietly, she could barely hear it, “I… you… love me...?”
The more she replayed that line in her mind, the more wonderfully real and honest it felt. “... Yeah...” Beaming up at him, MJ let her eyes shine with every bit of ‘I love you’ she felt for him in her soul. She had a sense that she’d known for a while, but just hadn’t put it into words for herself - let alone for her boyfriend. This probably wasn’t the best moment to say it to him for the very first time, yet it seemed like fate had made that decision for her.
Elijah’s tears returned, but this time they were accompanied by the most lovely, hopeful smile that MJ had missed so much ever since the quest began. He wasted no time in scooping his girlfriend back into his arms again, and this time they both buried their wet, smiling faces into each other’s shoulders. The snow leopard’s voice trembled, though his tone was undeniably certain, “I love you too, MJ… I love you… so much…”
As the spotted turtle nuzzled deeper into the fur of his neck, she realized that he had probably been wanting to tell her for a while now. He must’ve been holding back for her sake… “Sorry it took me so long to say it…”
“Don’t you say sorry for anything…” Elijah pulled her even closer.
MJ laughed softly, “Ok, only if you don’t.” and he laughed along with her, neither letting the other go from their arms. After a moment, she noticed a small shift in his laugh as it became thicker, deeper, and began to sound more like crying than laughing. With one last squeeze, she leaned back out of their hug to examine his tearstained face. He was definitely crying; his eyes were scrunched shut and leaking tears, though his mouth seemed to be fighting between a smile and a grimace. Grasping his shoulders supportively, MJ gave him her fondest concerned smile, “Hey… talk to me.”
That sweet laugh returned, and Elijah used his arm to quickly wipe his face before smiling emotionally back at her. “Heh, this… This is what I was trying to find…” He sniffled, composing himself, “The whole reason I wanted to find the snow leopards was because I wanted to know who I’m supposed to be… to find somewhere I belong…” Shaking his head and laughing to himself, Elijah placed one hand on her shoulder and the other against the side of her face again. Though his voice wobbled a little, his eyes and smile shone with the clearest conviction, “And it was right here… the whole time. In you and your family… I’m already where I belong… And I don’t wanna go anywhere else.”
His words hit MJ like the happiest ton of bricks, overwhelming her with surprise and pride for him. She couldn't help it as tears spilled down her smiling face again in tandem with Elijah’s. Sniffling, she struggled to form a response, “Oh, wow… gosh, Eli… I… I don’t know what to say…”
“That’s ok.” He sniffled, “This is the part where I say thank you…” The snow leopard gently pulled her head towards him, making their foreheads meet. “Thank you, MJ… I love you.” Lifting her hand to mirror his, MJ thumbed the fluffy, white fur along his jawline affectionately.
Proverbs 3:13-15 > Joyful is the person who finds wisdom, the one who gains understanding. For wisdom is more profitable than silver, and her wages are better than gold. Wisdom is more precious than rubies; nothing you desire can compare with her.
YAAAAAY FLUFF!!! Fun fact: this conversation was actually my very first concept script for this whole book. I had no idea what I wanted to do abt the snow leopards before I knew that Eli wouldn’t find them. I just knew that this scene would be the big, heartwarming resolution to the quote end quote, ‘failed quest’. 😊❤️🩹
Sry I’m a little late to the party, but congrats @mkthedingus for winning the TMNT AU Comp!! Your art is so styled and refreshing, let alone the awesome writing behind it. You definitely earned this honor! 👏❤️🏅
I don’t do this too often, but I felt the urge to make some fanart for the occasion. 😁✨
I give you: Dinosaur Suit Mikey 🦖🧡
The scene hopefully speaks for itself (like your art) but just in case ppl want a little context:
Big Mikey: Thought it would be an awesome surprise
Lil Raph: Absolutely loves it
Lil Leo: Absolutely terrified
Lil: Donnie: Can’t decide if he’s afraid, interested, or indifferent
(and yes, my little MJ is there bc I thought it would be hilarious if she also got de-aged bc she’s 5 years younger than the bros and would be an actual fetus 🤣🐢)
MJ is an OC created by @howtotrainyourdragonprince !!! I DO NOT OWN THE CHARACTER!
I folded.
This creator has inspired me so so so much to post and create my own art and story, and when I saw her most recent piece of art, I knew I had to make this! MJ’s ninpo/mystic is so incredibly unique, so I added her dragon spirit because it represents her!
Yall need to know how proud I am of this fanart rendition of my dragon spirit, SHE DID SO GOOD!! 🤩💛✨
This follower has been pretty much the only commenter on my Snow Leopard Quest story across all platforms who gives more than just one phrase/sentence of feedback. I’ve looked forward to seeing her react the most every time I post a new chapter, and I’m so grateful for her thoughtful responses!
You may be an introvert, Bookworm, but you’ve made a wonderful presence on my art, and I’m so flattered to see that my work inspired you so much! 🥰🙏❤️
An MJ AU sequel story by How To Train Your Dragon Prince
“W-Wait-” The youngest turtle stumbled after him for only a second before she felt a hand on her shoulder, holding her back. Looking behind, she saw the downcast face of her big blue brother, and she tried to push back against his restraint. “But-”
“I know, sis.” Leo’s voice was ever so soft and understanding, “He just needs a little time.” His hand traveled across her back, pulling her into a close side-hug and rubbing her opposite shoulder, and MJ caved. A few tears traced the gold spots on her face as she closed her eyes and tucked her head into her brother’s plastron, mourning her friend’s horrifying loss.
With a heavy sigh, their biggest brother moved in close on her other side, shaking his head slowly, “Anyone would need time to process somethin’ like this… His entire race… It’s just- horrible…” Raph’s voice wobbled a little, and MJ let out a tiny whimper at the thought of not only what Elijah had lost, but every snow leopard that suffered at the hands of those cruel traders… What kinds of terrors had they lived through..? Having their loved ones threatened left and right, the threat of death if they even mentioned their captivity to an outsider, and- the end of the slave trade itself… Were they really all- dead..? MJ let a few more tears fall for the abused and forgotten people that the world never truly got to know…
Her orange brother’s eyes beaded up with grief as well, “I don’t want to believe it…”
Donnie spoke gently, yet matter-of-factly, “As undesirable as it is, it does line up with everything else we learned. The possibility that Balister made it all up is highly unlikely. Even Big Mama warned us that it wasn’t going to be pretty.”
“Big Man was a big clue…” The slider nodded solemnly, “We thought he could’ve been sheltered somehow, but it was so much bigger. ‘Too many questions…’ Jessie got out lucky, with how serious Balister made it sound- it could’ve ended really badly for him…”
“Him and Silvermane.” Raph looked uneasy at the thought.
“And anyone else he worked with…” Mikey added fearfully.
Wiping her eyes, MJ sniffed, “Despite his awful condition, he kept everyone else around him safe.” What a terrible and brave way to live… always keeping your suffering silent, never letting anyone see your pain, all for the sake of saving their very lives at your own life’s expense…
“What a true hero.” Raph’s mouth was a thin line of sorrow and respect.
Leo grimaced, his eyebrows pinching together and scrunching his red stripes, “I can’t get Sanders out of my head either. The way he acted in that video, back when he was sane- he just reeked of bad news.” MJ remembered him too. To think that he was so invested in his work as a slave trader that he’d lose his mind on purpose- just so that the authorities could never find and save the snow leopards… It made her blood boil in rage and heartache. How could anyone be so vile- so utterly immoral..?
Donnie tapped his chin with his thumb thoughtfully, “I wonder how many other traders were actually caught. If Balister’s theory of an underground rival being the culprit of the slave trade’s demise is true, then authorities may not have seen much of anything.” The authorities… Thorn…
“The records!” MJ blurted out.
“What?” The softshell asked.
“The reason Thorn couldn’t find snow leopards in any police records! What if the slave trade erased them all?!”
Raph gasped, “Woah…”
Donnie pointed to her in acknowledgement, “You might be onto something there, MJ. Either the traders or their unidentified rival would‘ve had good reason to attempt to erase their existence from formal documentation.”
“Coverup.” Leo whispered.
“Dang.” Raph shook his head.
Mikey looked curious, “I wonder if any of their old warehouses are still around…”
Cocking a skeptical eyebrow, Donnie looked at him, “You assume they used warehouses as their bases?”
He shrugged, “I don’t know, doesn’t most shady stuff happen in warehouses?”
“These guys seemed a bit more complicated than your average villain.” The purple turtle crossed his arms.
“Who knows?” Leo intervened, changing the subject, “Whatever it was, it must’ve been really hard for the snow leopards to escape from… Otherwise, maybe their operation would’ve been found out sooner.”
MJ hadn’t thought about that. If it had been so hard to escape, then how was Elijah here and alive? She voiced her thoughts to her brothers, “Hard, but not impossible? Because Elijah’s parents had to have escaped somehow?”
“They could’ve had trackers on them.” Donnie commented.
The box turtle followed, “Maybe they only got out for a little while when they had Elijah, but then they got caught again- like if they were on the run or something.”
“That would explain why they left him at an orphanage so young. They knew they couldn’t protect him.” The big snapper looked down sadly.
Leo contemplated further, “My question then is how did the traders not realize there was a kid missing? If they kept such good track of all the others, how was Elijah the only one they missed?”
MJ had a thought, “Well, he’s 20, and they fell apart 20 years ago. They might not have been organized enough to notice him anymore.”
Mikey gasped again, “Oh yeah, that’s right…”
“Still,” Their blue brother didn’t look fully convinced, “There have to be some others out there that survived. Elijah just can’t be the only one…”
“I hate to say it, but he’s right. Elijah, I mean.” Showing a rare moment of genuine remorse, Donnie met his siblings’ eyes, “We’ve exhausted our resources, tracked down every lead possible with our connections, and there’s just nothing left to try… Even if there are a few other rare survivors out there, they could be anywhere and are likely in hiding. As we’ve been told many times, the snow leopards have simply vanished.”
As the somber conversation continued between her brothers, MJ began to tune out, her thoughts retreating inwards to the one snow leopard she cared the most about. Her eyes drifted subconsciously to the place where he left… where his heart had shattered, taking hers with him. Something in her broke at the thought that he was out there dealing with everything alone- having no one there to comfort him as his world fell apart. Maybe that’s what some people needed, maybe Elijah was different, but this turtle knew the dangerous pain of trying to handle heartbreak by herself - just as well as she knew the immeasurable solace of being held and loved by her closest people in the hours of her deepest hurt.
MJ’s tears nearly returned in full force as she remembered how terribly guilty Elijah’s face looked before he left. One line replayed over and over in her mind; her dear friend’s broken voice saying, ‘I’m done hurting you.’ She closed her eyes shut and grimaced, rethinking it again and again. He didn’t want to hurt her… But this hurts. This hurts so much… knowing he’s in pain and alone… letting him push them away… push her away…
The spotted turtle looked back up at the doorway, and her distress transformed into firm determination. Not looking back, she marched towards the door, her decision set in stone.
She heard Leo’s voice call out behind her, “MJ, let him be.”
Her oldest brother followed, speaking tenderly, “I know ya feel bad, but he probably just wants to be alone right now.” MJ paused, glancing back at them.
“Yeah? Well, too bad. I get girlfriend privileges.” She let her tone soften a little, “Besides… The last thing I want him feeling right now is that he’s alone.” Before any of them could stop her, MJ summoned her wings and took off at full speed down the sewer tunnels. Though she moved fast, she didn’t hear any further objections as she left. A warm fondness for her brothers filled her heart as she popped off the nearest sewer hatch and emerged into the quiet nighttime streets of New York.
Hold on, Elijah. Whether you like it or not, MJ’s coming for you.
Proverbs 16:21, 24 > The wise are known for their understanding, and pleasant words are persuasive. Kind words are like honey- sweet to the soul and healthy for the body.
An MJ AU sequel story by How To Train Your Dragon Prince
The entire world seemed to hold its breath along with the spotted turtle as she waited for someone to speak into the heartbroken silence surrounding them all. It was a rare moment to see all of the Hamatos quiet like this, especially when all together. Even rarer was the fact that MJ couldn’t think of a single comforting word to say to her grief-stricken boyfriend. Time and time again, she’d reminded him to appreciate himself, open himself to others, and find the bright sides in the midst of difficult situations. MJ usually knew what to say when he was feeling down, thanks to how her wonderful brothers were always there for her in the same way. But, now… No comfort she could give seemed enough for what Elijah must be feeling… What bright side could possibly combat the darkness of what they’d learned..? MJ could only stand feeling helpless as the quiet weighed heavier and heavier on them all.
A little unexpectedly, her purple brother was the first to finally speak a few soft words, “... Elijah… I’m sorry. I know that wasn’t the answer any of us wanted to hear…” His siblings looked at each other in mild surprise that Donnie talked first out of all of them.
Elijah’s stone faced expression didn’t waver, “... That’s one way to put it.”
“I still can’t believe… that’s what really…” Mikey trailed off with a pained grimace. Leo put a hand on his shoulder, his own face mirroring the same expression.
“Certainly far darker than I ever expected.” Donnie shook his head, and Raph lightly smacked his elbow with a warning look, urging him to speak more thoughtfully. Before the softshell could retort to his oldest brother’s scolding, Elijah spoke up.
“No, he’s right… This ended up being way over our heads…” The snow leopard almost looked… numb… As though this last, giant piece of the mystery was the final straw on his heart, and he just didn’t have any feelings left to invest.
MJ wasn’t having the best time taking it all in either. How could they have ever been prepared for an answer like this..? How could Elijah be ok knowing what happened to the rest of his kind..? Her voice came out small and delicate, “I mean, we finally found out what happened to them- but at what cost..?”
“Yeah… what cost?” Elijah’s eyes locked on her brothers in particular, and MJ had a dreadful sinking feeling that she knew where this was going.
Raph glanced at Leo confused before looking back at Elijah, “Whad’ya mean…?”
He answered, “When exactly were you planning on telling me that you got that lead from Big Mama?” That question hit each one of the turtles like a brick to the face as they were forced to contend with the consequences of their last resort.
“That information wasn’t relevant.” Donnie stated.
“Wasn’t relevant?!” The snow leopard’s face lost all numbness from before, trading it for wounded disbelief, “This is Big Mama we’re talking about! She’s dangerous, she’ll take what she wants from you and leave you high and dry- I don’t even need to tell you that!”
Their blue brother rubbed the back of his neck, clearly regretful, “I’m sorry, we should’ve told you. I didn’t think it would come out like that.”
Elijah slashed his paw through the air in front of him, his whole body animating his despair, “Forget that you didn’t tell me! Why did you even consider going to her?! Why would you do that?!”
“Because she had answers!” Leo continued, “If anyone would’ve known anywhere else to look, it was her.”
Donnie backed him up, “And we were right. Balister had the answers we were missing.”
“But at what cost?” The cat’s ears were flat against his head, “I know how she works, I know you had to give something up to get that good of a lead. What was it? What did you sacrifice so you could put yourself in danger again just for me?!” He sounded so guilty, as though it was all his own fault. MJ’s heart ached to tell him how much he meant to her, how much he meant to all of them… How he was such a good friend, and that in itself was worth everything they’d done for his quest and more…
Their biggest brother spoke in a low, grounding voice, “Elijah, you have to believe me when I tell ya we gave up something basically worthless.”
“Really?” Elijah looked back at him skeptically.
Leo mumbled, “Well, worthless to us…”
Donnie finished for him, “Definitely worth a lot to her…” and the two shuddered in tandem. The snow leopard looked confused and exasperated for a moment longer before his shoulders sagged and he closed his eyes shut, rubbing his temple.
Thinking fast, MJ tried to divert the conversation away from their deal with Big Mama. She was not about to drop the bomb on him that she and Splinter were once a thing, especially not right now. “So… what do you want to do now..?”
“What do I-?” Elijah cut himself off, letting out a huff of air, “There’s nothing left to do, they’re all gone.”
“But, what about your parents?” Mikey asked gently, “You survived, which means they must have escaped to have you! They could still be out there!”
“I don’t think so, Mikey. Even if they are, they never cared enough to come find me. They left me and never came back.”
“But what if they did?!” The box turtle didn’t give up, “What if they came back and you’d already been adopted? You were less than a year old, right? That’s not long at all-”
Elijah cut him off, “Then the orphanage would’ve told them who adopted me! I never left New York! It wouldn’t have been hard to find me!” He took a shaky step back, his eyes shimmering, “No, they’re gone. They’re all gone.”
Raph reached out a hand tentatively, “We could still keep lookin’, there might be other survivors-”
“No- Please, you guys have done ENOUGH!!!” His shout froze each of the turtles in their tracks as they dawned shocked and hurt expressions. Almost immediately, Elijah’s angered face flipped a switch and became painfully guilty. He stepped back again, beginning to tremble, “No, that’s- I didn’t mean it like that…” Gesturing with shaky arms, his face bore a twisted, guilty grimace, “You’ve all been wasting your time, your resources, your money, your energy-” He looked at Leo in particular, “-and jeopardizing your safety - all just so I could go on some wild goose chase of a quest… And come up short. I used you… for nothing...” Closing his eyes tight, the snow leopard’s form seemed to shrink in on itself, as if the air around him was pressing in, squeezing the breath from his lungs.
“Literally everything you just said was wrong!” Leo threw his arms up in protest.
“We did not come up short, we gained answers!” His purple brother added.
MJ’s voice trembled almost as much as her boyfriend, “We chose to help you, Eli. You didn’t use us.” It hurt so much that he couldn’t see how much they cared, that he felt responsible for the outcome of his quest… his people…
Their words didn’t seem to convince him as he started up again, “It was because of me that you all were almost thrown out of Cincinnati!” Leo tried to intervene, “Well, actually-” but he was overpowered by Elijah, “It was because of me you made a deal with Big Mama! It was because of me that you all went down into a dangerous, underground, criminal black market! And it was because of me you all almost froze, including you!” His paw pointed to MJ, and her heart dropped into her stomach. She hated the fact that her failed flying stunt in the snow gave him more ammunition to blame himself for all that had happened.
“Hey,” Raph stepped in calmly and confidently, “We had everything under control. We weren’t in any kind of danger we couldn’t handle.”
Elijah faced him, “You wouldn’t have been in any if I hadn’t been so bent on chasing this!”
“It’s not your fault you didn’t know how hard it would be, you just wanted answers…” Mikey’s hands were open in front of him, as though he could hand the truth to their friend as easily as that, but the cat only shook his head.
“Oh, and I got them all right. I’m no better off than I was, I’m still the only snow leopard I’ll ever see- because I’m the last… Why couldn’t I have just been content with what I had..?” His voice finally broke, and MJ’s heart nearly broke with it. With her hands reaching out, she tried to move closer to him, attempting to bring some comfort to him somehow. To her despair, he saw her coming and backed a few steps away, his poor face looking as though he wasn’t deserving of her love. Elijah’s sad eyes met hers, “You wanna know the worst part..? I almost stayed…”
The spotted turtle froze in confusion, “What..?”
“We never would’ve let that happen, Eli.” Her blue brother’s tone was both gentle and stern. It unfortunately didn’t stop the snow leopard, his voice shaking more and more as he continued.
“Your brothers didn’t tell you this, I’m sure- but I wanted to keep going in those mountains… I was so lost in the search, so desperate to find something- that I was willing to let your brothers portal back without me. It was them who talked some sense into me and made sure I didn’t freeze to death out there searching for what I knew deep down wasn’t there.” Elijah paused for breath, and MJ couldn’t do a single thing to hide her shocked and heartbroken expression from him. She didn’t even get a chance to explain that she was only sad for him, not angry at him, before his despair morphed into a terrible guilty resignation. “I know. Horrible, right? … I’ve been a bad friend. I’ve been a bad boyfriend… And I’m done hurting you.” That shine in his eyes looked dangerously close to spilling over as he began to turn his trembling form away from them, heading for the door.
MJ’s vision blurred, and her hands were shaking. In a final, desperate attempt to reach her boyfriend, she stepped forward and stretched her hand out to him. “No… Eli, please…”
He only shut his eyes in response, barricading the shimmering sorrow before it could fall, “I’m done. They’re gone. The quest is over.” And then he left.
Proverbs 4:23, 25 > Guard your heart above all else, for it determines the course of your life. Look straight ahead and fix your eyes on what lies before you.
An MJ AU sequel story by How To Train Your Dragon Prince
Balister paused, seemingly coming to a standstill in his story. Donnie finally got a moment to process all that he’d said, trying to plug everything into his little formula that was looking so much larger now than anything he could possibly compute. There were too many answers that only became more questions and more variables to weigh together all at once… though one thing pressed to the front of Donnie’s mind. How did it end?
“Sir,” He caught Balister’s attention, “You keep speaking about them in past tense… Do they not still exist?”
“Perceptive, Donatello. No, they do not exist any longer.” The softshell was too lost in the information to recognize the praise from the black wolf. His blue brother continued his question, looking as confused as Donnie felt.
“But if the police never caught them, and no one down here was strong enough… Then how...?”
Rising up a little in his seat, Balister’s yellow eyes circled them all once more, “It’s one of the best kept secrets of the criminal undercity… Even I could not tell you exactly what happened. All that’s known is that 20 years ago, like you mentioned earlier, the enterprise became… compromised. Wherever their bases were hidden, they lost them somehow. Their resources and leadership became scattered, broken, and all the snow leopards themselves vanished. Like they say; The bigger the pride, the harder the fall.” The black wolf’s chair creaked once more as he leaned forward, capturing their attention. Even his soft whisper vibrated deeply in their ears, “Some say the authorities finally found them out for good, and the traders destroyed everything themselves before they could be fully condemned. Others think there was a secret underground rival who hid their full power in order to take them down by surprise. I personally see the latter as more likely, given that the undercity has yet to be flooded with police. In the end, no one ever heard from the traders again… And the snow leopards? A tragic ending to a story of a race who was dealt the lowest hand in a terrible game.” Balister’s ears fell back again, though his grim gaze remained fixed on the six, watching their reactions closely.
The silence that followed was deafening in the mind of the purple turtle. Rarely was his constantly racing brain so still, so… unoccupied by thought. Normally, he’d be processing the new data faster than Raph could swallow a whole slice of pizza in one bite… But this… this was so much heavier than Donnie had ever expected. He’d been so lost in fixing the problem and solving the mystery that he hadn’t slowed down in time before getting slammed with the heart-wrenching morality and emotions tied to it all. Donnie had always sought out the answers to everything, always wanting to learn all he could… But just this once… he almost wished he knew less.
The weighted quiet continued, broken only a little by Leo as he leaned forward, running his hands over his head and slowly blowing out a long exhale through his lips. Mikey and MJ’s eyes were shimmering, and Raph gently rested a hand on each of their backs from where he sat in between them, looking both sad and angry himself. Donnie glanced beside him at his sister and saw that she was watching the snow leopard sitting on his other side at the edge of their line. His whole form was both tense and sunken, and his face wore a completely lost and dazed expression, like he was unaware of where- or even when he was.
When the softshell turned back to MJ, she was looking at him with a painful expression that held a clear message; ‘Help him’. Donnie realized that he was the only one able to do so since only he could reach Elijah at the end of their string of seats, so he nodded quietly back to her and turned again towards their friend. Slowly, his hand landed on the cat’s nearest shoulder, squeezing gently as he tried to meet his distant eyes. Elijah blinked out of whatever thoughts had been holding him, and he steadily shifted his gaze to Donnie’s hand, then his eyes.
If eyes were truly windows to the soul, then what Donnie saw inside the snow leopard was a terribly heartbroken, disoriented, and grieving soul. Elijah’s irises shone with unshed tears, but with one quick look at the girl sitting behind the softshell, he shut his eyes tight and began breathing shakily in an out, seemingly trying to collect himself. Normally, Donnie pushed such raw and emotional moments to the back of his mind because they made him uncomfortable… Yet given the circumstances, he didn’t think he would ever forget that split-second glance into that window. For once, he didn’t feel one bit awkward as he let his hand remain securely on Elijah’s trembling shoulder.
With both his hands still on the backs of his youngest siblings, Raph broke the thick quiet at long last, “I… Never could’ve imagined that this was the answer…”
MJ closed her shining eyes tight and whispered, “No…”
“I mean…” Mikey shook his head in sorrowful disbelief, “We’ve dealt with criminals, but… I-I never thought that people could be so evil...”
“Hmm.” Balister’s deep voice rumbled once more, “People have always been able to employ the full spectrum of morality… And those on the far ends always make for unique players in the game.”
“It’s not a game.” Elijah’s eyes remained shut as he spoke.
Balister looked at him, “I beg your pardon?”
“It’s not a game,” He repeated shakily, “They were people. Not players that lost, people that died.” The snow leopard’s eyes never opened, and Donnie gave his shoulder another comforting squeeze to acknowledge the validity of his words.
The wolf only shrugged, “Believe what you will, it is simply how most down here choose to view the world. Games have high stakes…”
Leo's voice was low, “We met one. A trader. I know it now.”
“Really…?” Their host positioned his ears towards the slider, looking genuinely intrigued.
“He’s insane now,” He continued, “But he was part of a large criminal enterprise before he got taken in by the authorities. He freaked out when he saw Elijah. They said he used some fail-safe method called ‘Pirate’s Code’, and they never got any truth from him.” It was clear even to Donnie that their blue brother was still reliving the horrible moments spent in the company of the one so called, ‘Colonel Sanders’.
“Ah, yes- Pirate’s Code…” Balister sat back in his chair, pondering the information with a fascinated grin, “What an ingenious strategy…” Donnie was just starting to run out of patience for their ‘pleasurable’ host when they all heard a knock at the door. It opened only a few inches before thunking to a stop, getting blocked by Raph’s chair. A voice spoke from behind the door, “Ope, sorry, Bal-”
Smiling wide, the black wolf gestured for the snapper to stand up, “Ah, Raphael, would you please lift your chair so that my brother may enter?”
“Oh, yeah- of course!” He quickly did so, picking up his chair and lifting it out of the door’s path, allowing it to open. “Sorry there, sir.” As the figure stepped inside, they could all see that he was another wolf yokai, nearly identical in height and build to Balister except that he had silvery grey fur and wore a dark sky-blue suit. His tie, however, was the very same blood red as Balister’s, though his yellow eyes immediately betrayed what seemed to be a kind soul.
“Oh, no problem at all.” The grey wolf smiled at Raph and looked around at the rest of them in slight surprise. “Oh, my… Quite a colorful bunch…” With that, Donnie’s suspicions were once again confirmed; they were likely twin brothers if he had to guess. When the grey wolf’s eyes landed on Elijah, they widened dramatically and he gasped quietly to himself.
Balister stood from his chair, matching the other wolf’s tall height and holding out a claw towards him, “Friends, this is my brother, Nathaniel. He is much further along the ‘lawful good’ scale than I.” He grinned mischievously, and the grey wolf, Nathaniel, regained his composure and grinned back.
“Ha, you’ve always underestimated the good in you, Bal.” Nathaniel walked across the room and leaned against the front of the desk beside his brother.
“Nathan.” Balister spoke through his sharp teeth, “Do not embarrass me in front of my guests…” The black wolf’s tone almost reminded Donnie of his own when he and Leo often bantered in the same way.
The grey wolf chuckled, “Fine then, won’t you introduce them?”
Before Balister could do so, Leo stood up alongside Raph, finally recovering his charming faceman tone, “Actually, I think we have to go. Thank you for telling us… everything.”
The black wolf’s ears flattened in mock sadness, “Aw, leaving so soon?”
“It’s actually been quite a while, sir.” Donnie wasn’t really keeping track of the time, but they’d likely been there for almost a couple of hours.
Raph followed, trying to sound more polite than his purple brother, “We’re very grateful for your time, Balister.”
“Ah, there it is!” He pointed a black claw at Raph and laughed excitedly, “I was waiting to see if any of you would call me by my name, haha!” The snapper chuckled back a little nervously.
Nathaniel looked over them all with a kind smile, “Well, it was nice to meet all of you for a few seconds here. And…” His gaze landed on Elijah in particular, and his expression shifted ever so slightly into something incredibly sincere and meaningful. “Good luck in your endeavors.” The snow leopard just nodded humbly in response as he moved towards the exit.
“Good luck to you too!” Mikey waved at the wolves with a friendly smile in thanks.
Their sister followed, “Thanks again.”
Leo made a little bow as he swished his katana behind him, “And, farewell, Nathaniel and Balister the Black...” With a final smile, he and the others entered the swirling blue, leaving the two brothers alone together in Balister’s lush office.
The moment of silence that followed was very telling. The black wolf slowly turned his head to meet his brother’s gaze and saw that Nathaniel’s eyes were filled with deeply rueful sorrow. He grinned, attempting to lighten his dark mood, “They missed one…”
His brother’s ears fell back as he sighed heavily, “Not funny, Bal. … What did you tell him?” He looked back with a warning expression, as if Balister could’ve just forgotten his oath.
“Please, you saw his face, he doesn’t know. None of them do. You know I’m as bound as you.” Balister could still remember the scraping feeling of the air getting completely stripped from his lungs. Extremely painful though it was, it had only been for a moment; a necessary component of the Silencing Spell all those years ago.
Nathaniel’s warning look softened, “You told them everything else?”
“They were desperate, it’s not like it matters anymore, the issue died 20 years ago.” Sitting back down in his chair, the black wolf studied his twin brother’s face, picking up every little shift in his expressions. He’d known how to read Nathaniel for their whole lives, and it came in handy in times like this when it was obvious that he was hiding something behind that big, mushy brain of his. As he examined him, Balister finally gleaned some small recognition from his guilty looking snout, “You know who he is…”
The grey wolf slowly nodded, his mouth a thin, grim line, “One stray. Separated from it all.”
“Incredible how you can still keep secrets from me.” Balister shook his head slightly in playful disbelief. He was actually surprised and impressed that his brother had managed to hide this boy’s existence from him for so long.
“For his own safety.”
“Hmm.” The black wolf mused, “I imagine you feel for him now that he knows his race’s true history… The only one left behind…” As much as he would like to go on acting as though he had no ties to the cats, he truly did feel sorry for the boy. It is a dark burden to bear the name of ‘sole survivor’…
His grey brother closed his eyes, looking deeply thoughtful, “... He is still better off this way. That history is best left buried.”
“Like the rest of his kind.”
“Ugh, enough, Bal.”
“Sorry, you know I’m the dark twin.”
Nathaniel finally opened his eyes and met Balister’s gaze fondly, “I know you think you are.” His good-hearted brother always did think the best of him.
“Hmmf.” Balister gave him the smallest smile, “I suppose, in the end, we are all different shades of grey. Wouldn’t you say, Nathan?”
He just nodded solemnly, “Grey wolves… grey cats…”
Proverbs 2:12-15 > Wisdom will save you from the evil people, from those whose words are twisted. These people turn from the right way to walk down dark paths. They take pleasure in doing wrong, and they enjoy the twisted ways of evil. Their actions are crooked, and their ways are wrong.
What did y'all think of Balister and Nathaniel? I think I had the most fun writing them of all my little side-OCs in this story. We've been building up to this chapter all the way from part 1, now comes the fallout of the climax... and Elijah's shattered hopes...
