#rl splinter

"Who's this little friend?"

Cool eyes blinked and looked up, spotting a particular peachy furred mutant. She smiled at Rook, and he looked back down, studying the tangerine-coloured leg being stitched onto the green body. He pulled the needle through, before prodding the seam with thick fingers and frowning. He doubled back to take care of the too-large holes he left behind with messy stitches.

"Hello again, Master Splinter. I uh… It's a cattywampus..."

"A cattywampus?"

Splinter sat down, a chair's distance between the two as she watched the man pick up the needle back up and immediately poke his thumb. The mother had snuck off this way when she spotted the blue haired human, and…well, while she wasn't using him for his access to tea, she wouldn't deny her appreciation for it. 

Her eyes flicked over towards the two paper cups from the concessions full of hot water. One was already steeping with an oolong, and there were three tea bag sachets laid out for her to choose from. 

…Did he expect her to follow him? Or was this just in case she surprised him with a visit?

(Honestly, she was a bit surprised herself. She hadn't known their group was watching this competition as well!)

"Yeah! It's, um…well, growin' up, it was like…a mish-mash monster. A beast of broken parts. I had one with floppy ears and six legs that my grandmother made for me. Lots are made from old torn up stuffies, instead of throwin' em out." The wonky, unfinished plush was lifted up, and its boxy head flopped to the side. Rook's nose scrunched in thought. "Probably for the best that it's uh…kinda messy. I think the last time I'd sewn something was in my teens…"

"How do you keep finding these breakrooms you aren't likely supposed to be in, hm?" Splinter gave a wry grin as she slid a cup closer and grabbed the cinnamon rooibos chai.

The bulky man gestured vaguely to his faux leg. "I just say I need to remove it and people give me space. Mais…I, uh, do need it off for a bit. It's killing my hip. Are you alright with…?"

Splinter waved the notion off quickly, and the human sighed in relief as he released the prosthetic limb, removing it and setting the leg on the chair opposite of him.

"Thanks. I guess a storm's coming."

"It's no trouble, do whatever makes you feel comfortable."

The two lapsed back into quiet, the fawn-furred lady taking in the moment of quiet as the navy-haired therapist turned the toy this way and that. Tang Shen took a sip of her tea, frowned, and allowed it to steep a while longer. She wished she had a bit of milk to pair with it, but it seemed fine without.

Rook liked that about Master Splinter. Normally he was painfully awkward around other folks his age. Working with kids and teens all day every day did that to you. But she was quite easy to talk to. The silences weren't harsh, and he had no real pressure to talk. She laughed when he said something about rug time instead of sneering.

(It's why he decided to just keep quiet about what he saw in that hall. He hadn't meant to find her, and instead decided space would be what the distressed woman most likely need. So, he kept quiet, and he would keep quiet.)

"So, why a cattywampus?" 

If she were closer to the human, she'd tease him for the red that bloomed on his face. 

"Well…They're sorta like gargoyles."

Her whiskers twitched at that. "Oh? How so?"

"Well, gargoyles are supposed to protect places and ward off evil, no? It's why they're on so many old buildings and stuff. Catawampus are kinda like that. They're supposed to protect their owners by scaring off bad spirits because they're tataille- creepy little monsters."

"He's going to be a pretty poor cattywampus, then. He's adorable."

Rook snickered at that. "Eh, I think he'll do just fine. I also stuffed a satchel of lavender in his belly. Put a silica pouch in it to keep the buds dry."

"Oh my, I thought that was your tea!" She gasped, gingerly taking the little beast. "How cute. He's sure to make one of your sons happy."

The red haired woman heard a choked noise and looked back over, laughing a bit at how Rook seemed to get embarrassed again. "I-T-gh. Th. They are not my sons."

"Aren't they?"

"No. Heaven's sake, miss, I'm just their therapist."

There was a knowing look in the woman's eye, but she opted not to say anything. After all, no therapist she knew of would do something like let their patients take them on an interdimensional trip to watch a bake off or a hockey game. Instead, she acquiesced, and quietly sipped her tea, brushing a strand of ruddy hair from her face.

He'd figure it out eventually.

"Still. Whichever one that's for, he's sure to love it."

The human hummed as he doubled back and reworked another seam of the half-stuffed creature. He still needed to make sure to put the rest of the fillings in later. He'd hide the fill seam with the bat wings he did up. "I hope so. I worry it's a little too childish…"

"Well… I like him," Splinter hummed, the tip of her tail hooking around the strap of Rook's bag and pulling it closer to him when she saw him reach. "I think he's a charming gift! You put a lot of care into him. Besides, I don't think something is childish just because it's a cute toy."

Rook smiled a bit as he fished out the large buttons he found that he thought would make good eyes. "Yeah…I guess you're right."

Days later (Days? had it been days? time moved so strangely in these places...) while she was heading back to the locker room, Tang Shen spotted her sons behaving perfectly normally. Leonardo was reviewing dance moves, Michelangelo was talking about baking and ratios with Donatello, and Raphael was wrapping his knees. Perfectly normal.

Perfectly suspicious.

Narrowing her eyes some, the mother stared for a moment. Leo started bouncing his leg. Mikey smiled wider. Donatello's eyes widened a bit, looking more innocent. Raphael turned his head away and went to wrap his other knee.

Perfectly guilty. They were up to something. Shen would find out what it was after she changed into some clothes she could bake in-

She could smell lavender.

Deft, clawed fingers opened the metal latch of the locker-

…only for her vermillion eyes to lock with large, slightly skewed, butterscotch yellow ones. A smudge of red below each one made her think of the red lines she and her sons were so well known for (apparently), and the tangerine stripes on the thick plush tail matched the mismatched legs.

Delicately, Master Splinter plucked the cattywampus plush up, looking over the stitches that made up the zig-zag mouth on his mint-coloured head. He was much fuller, with a bit of a pleasing heft to him. Her heightened hearing could pick up the soft, rain-like sound of small beads tumbling over one another in part of his belly and legs. The floral smell was much stronger now, but not unbearably so. She opened the velcro hidden under his tiny wings and found where Rook had tucked away the pouch of dried buds.

How utterly sweet.

"I have the perfect name for you," Splinter hummed, lifting the creature up so she could look into those yellow buttons and jaggedy smile. The big eyes gleamed in the fluorescent lights, and her own crinkled from her smile.