#mossa

probably not the response you wanted, but we got some.... mixed reactions

kinda long, beware; also the stuttering is on purpose, not meant to be out of character

@mother0fwyrms

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Donnie's head listed off to the side, eyes sliding closed. He jolted back up when his head hit the table. A plate was slid in front of him, but he didn't make any move to take the fork.

"So… today's not a good day then?"

He lifts his head a little, to at least show them he heard. Then his gaze returns to staring at the eggs and toast. He hears a disappointed sigh and flinches. Leo curses under his breath.

"I'll take that as a yes."

Leo stopped talking after that, knowing his twin needed space. Donnie eventually managed the strength to grab the fork. A large hand landed on Donnie's back at the same time.

"You don't have to eat if you're not hungry, Don," Raph whispered.

The utensil dropped from his hand with a hard clatter.

"I'm h-hungry," Donnie weakly protested.

Raph glanced off somewhere else. In a blink, the plate was replaced by a juicebox and applesauce. Donnie wished he had the motivation to smile. He couldn't remember the last time he did that.

He grasped the juice box and made himself swallow down the liquid inside. He felt the stares of his brothers on him as he finished the started on the applesauce. It made him squirm.

"W-where's Mi… Mikey?" he asked quietly.

Raph stammered a bit. "He's, er, sleepin' in! Yeah!"

Another thing Donnie wished he could do was tell what Raph's stinks meant again. Ever since he reunited with his brothers, they had just become, well, smells. And that's all they were now.

"O-okay."

The snapper's face fell. Clearly he wished the same thing.

"Uh, he actually has a surprise for ya," Raph explained. "A big one."

Donnie looked up from the empty cup. "A s-surprise?"

Raph laughed nervously. "Yeah. Told Raph and Leo not to say anything, but I didn't want to lie."

Donnie went quiet. Mikey… got him something. Something he… probably didn't deserve.

"T-thank you for telling m-me," Donnie offered.

Raph smiled softly at him. "Raph'll leave you alone. Yell if ya need anythin'."

Donnie gave a half-hearted nod, listening to Raph's footfalls until they eventually stopped. He started periodically tapping his spoon against the table, zeroing on the noises it made. Like ticks of a clock.

"You're running out of time, Donnie!" Koi shouted, straining against the force of Kitsune's mystic blast. "Just finish the circle!"

"NO!" Kitsune screamed. "Donatello, you listen to me!"

"Finish it! Or we all die!"

Donnie couldn't. He couldn't. The tapping distantly got louder.

The piece of chalk connected the two lines and— a warm body rubbed against his hand.

He jerked, spoon leaving his hand and skittering across the table. He sat panting for a second, blinking to get his bearings back. A green face entered his vision, staring up at him. The body behind it sat down.

W-what…?

"Surprise!" Mikey exclaimed as loud as he knew Donnie was comfortable with.

Donnie's head snapped toward him anyway. "W-what—"

"She's for you!" his brother interrupted. "Draxum helped me find her."

"W-why…?" Donnie trailed off.

Mikey frowned. "I just thought she would be able to help you. Kind of like a service animal."

Donnie turned back to the small creature. "B-but what about K-Klunk?"

"He's with April right now. You'll get to see him again soon," Mikey promised.

"Y-you say that e-every time," Donnie reminded.

Mikey grew nervous for a second, then brightened. "You remember that?!"

"I-is that a g-good thing?" Donnie asked.

Mikey excitedly bounced. "Yes, it's a good thing! What else can you remember?!"

Donnie paused, digging. Nothing came out of it. He shook his head. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Mikey deflate slightly.

"That's okay. Progress is progress," Mikey smiled.

It didn't take a genius (how ironic) to tell Mikey was not actually happy. Regardless, Mikey hadn't answered his question. For real this time, at least.

"S-seriously," he stammered. "W-what about K-Klunk?"

Mikey sighed. "We all just… don't think it's good for you to be around him. Not while you're still recovering from everything that happened."

Donnie could… agree with that. Iskabe Klunk had been Kitsune's pet, after all. Even if Donnie didn't like being without the cat he had grown so fond of, he had to admit having anyone or thing directly tied to the events around would be bad. He guessed that was also why he hadn't seen Mona, Alopex, Mondo, or any of those guys in months.

The lengthy creature rubbed against his hand again. It nosed under his fingers and all he could do was watch. Mikey rounded the table's corner and leaned over from the other side.

"The person Draxum got her from said they named her Mossa," the orange-spotted turtle explained.

"M-Mossa…" Donnie whispered. "C-cute… and thank y-you."

The Oceanian (Sea Nymph)

Kotta (+designs) - @the-amazeeng-idiot

Sushi - @schizzz

and Mossa's mine of course!

wyrms originally adopted from @mother0fwyrms

Daiquiri will be in the next chapter as a standalone with Val. then the ones after will introduce the new wyrms that people submitted to become humans! (Rorona and my other two!)

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"Heck yeah, are you kidding?" Kotta's smile practically reached ear to ear.

The two girls took their seats right as the door opened to reveal Ms. Sushi. She looked exhausted.

"I got called in to be your substitute. Again," Ms. Sushi explained. "Your teacher is out with their spouse. Again."

Mossa and Kotta exchanged a glance. Ms. Sushi sank into her much more comfortable seat with a sigh.

"You know what you're doing tomorrow, from what I was told. There's a list of expectations your posted on your online classroom so be sure to read and remember them."

Mossa leaned over her desk to unzip her backpack and grab her computer. She has the list up quickly and the rest of the class rushes by, along with the last three. She had left the school before she even realized.

Her friends all rode the bus, not that she minded walking alone. It gave her time to be with her thoughts. Well, five minutes with them. Her house was right across the street.

She got her key from the very front pocket of her bag to unlock the front door. Her parents were always working whenever she got home, so she had it to herself for now.

-=-=-=-=-

"Thank you guys again for sitting with me."

Cory grinned. "No problem! It's what friends do!"

Val scoffed. "Don't get used to it. We're not friends."

"Ignore him," Cory waved her hand dismissively in his face. "So, how has your day been going?"

Mossa finished a bite of her food. "It's been okay. What about yours?"

"I always have a good day!" Cory exclaimed. "No matter what happens!"

Mossa laughed. Their cheerful chatter continued until lunch ended. Val ditched the second he could. Cory made sure to wave goodbye to Mossa before she left.

"Bye!" Mossa headed down the opposite hallway.

She had biology next with Kotta and Carp. They should be preparing to dissect an animal tomorrow, which was super exciting! She stopped by her locker to collect her backpack before entering the classroom with a bright smile.

"Hey, over here!" Kotta appeared beside her and grabbed her arm. "The teacher is letting Carp, you, and I be a group of three!"

"Really?!" Mossa let herself be pulled toward a desk.

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Cory and Val - @animixedarts

Kotta (+designs) - @the-amazeeng-idiot

Carp - @solarc0r3

and Mossa's mine!

wyrms originally adopted from @mother0fwyrms

I'm trying to find some way to add Daiquiri in, but I haven't found how to do that yet without it not making sense. what I do know is that I want Val to be his tutor for something 😋