The Newest Addition: Irrilia

...So Splinter Knows Now...

"C'mon...C'mon! She's gotta be around here somewhere!!" Raphael grumbled to himself as he searched throughout the lair for Irrilia. "Raph, take it easy! We'll find her any second now!" Mikey tried to reassure his panicked brother.
"Mikey's right, Raphael." Leo added. Donnie nodded in agreement as he and Leo searched through the living room once again. Suddenly, they heard a loud "AHEM" behind them.
All four turtles swung around to see their adoptive father, Master Splinter...holding Irrilia.
Mikey squeaked out an 'eep!' and Leo gulped. Donnie glanced at Raphael, who looked like he was about to have a heart attack. "My sons...would either of you care to explain to me concerning this infant girl I found?" Splinter calmly requested. Everyone looked at Raphael.
Leo stepped up to Splinter and cleared his throat. "Master Splinter...we can explain but...it's kind of a long story." he responded. Splinter stroked the goatee-like fur at his chin. "Ahh, I see. Fortunately, I have time to hear this." he said.
Leo rubbed the back of his neck as he began: "Well, uh, Sensei...you see...as it turns out, Raphael...he's uhm..."
"A father?"
Leo stopped. He nodded. "Yes, Sensei. And, uh...well, that's--she's your granddaughter." he added. Splinter looked at Irrilia then at Raphael. Mikey, Leo, and Donnie were seriously nervous, but not quite as nervous as Raphael. Splinter spoke up once more. "Donatello, Leonardo, Michelangelo. May I have a word with Raphael for a moment?" he said.
Leo, Donnie, and Mikey then left as they were told to. Now it was just Raphael and Splinter with Irrilia. Splinter went up to Raphael. "Raphael, shall we sit to discuss this matter?" he told him. Raphael nodded. The two sat facing each other on the couch. Splinter gave Irrilia to Raphael. He cradled her in his arms he and Splinter began to converse.
"Raphael...is she your daughter?"
Raphael swallowed. "Yes, Sensei. She is."
"I see..."
There was silence for a moment. Raphael huffed and blurted out, "Master Splinter, I am so sorry. I didn't mean for this to happen. I mean it! I am very, very, very sorry!"
Splinter was not startled by Raphael's sudden apology. He still sat in his spot in a calm manner. "I believe you, my son. There is no need to apologize." he said. Raphael couldn't believe what he was hearing. Before he could begin talking again, Splinter continued.
"But let me ask you this: how did this happen?"
For a moment, Raphael was at a loss for words. But he managed to muster up a more proper composure and began his explanation. "Uhm, well...it was months ago and I was visiting Mona Lisa, you know, my girlfriend? Anyway, so I met up with her at her home-planet...."

**Flashback**
Raphael felt like he was in Heaven.
He and Mona Lisa were sitting on a cliff together with his arm around her waist and hers around his shoulder. Her long tail was wrapped around him, pushing the two closer to each other. The vast sky was now purple, pink, and orange as the evening began to set in. Over the horizon you could see a blazing, red sun slowly lowering itself behind mountains with a smaller, cerulean twin of it right next to it. It was a truly beautiful setting for the two lovebirds. Or love amphibians.
"This is great." Raphael sighed. "I couldn't agree more." Mona Lisa said. He looked up at her. She was too busy staring at the sun set to notice. Raphael took the chance to take in Mona's appearance. Instead of her usual space uniform, she was currently wearing a black belly top with a tall collar and no sleeves and blue shorts with light blue stripes on the sides. She was also wearing the same gloves she would wear with her uniform.
Mona turned her eyes to Raph. "What is it, Raphael?" she asked. "You look....really nice, Mona." he said. Mona smiled. "Thank you. You look quite well, too." she replied.
Raphael desperately hoped he wasn't blushing. For a little while, it was quiet between the couple. "You know, I just remembered something." Mona stated. "What's that?" Raphael said. "Some of the younger Salamandrians have a name for this exact cliff. I believe they call it...The Peak of Lovers." she revealed. Raphael's face turned a bright crimson at that. "Wh-Why?" he stuttered.
Mona slyly smiled. "Because sometimes, Salamandrian couples like to come here and kiss...sometimes do a little more than that." she explained. "Wow." Raph mumbled. God, he felt so embarrassed. Mona Lisa found this amusing and chuckled. They went back to being quiet for a while.
This time, Raphael was the one to break the silence: "...I love you, Mona Lisa."
Mona's eyes met Raphael's and she smiled. "And I love you, Raphael." she said. The two leaned in to each other and kissed. The kiss lasted for the longest time. And then, their arms wrapped around each other and Mona leaned back until her back met the ground with Raphael going with her.
**End of flashback**

Raphael finished his story. Splinter sat patiently as he listened. "And...that's how she got here." Raph said.
Splinter took a deep breath before he talked. "Raphael my son. Love is a very powerful feeling. Sometimes, love will lead us to commit actions that many would disagree with. There are times where our actions may be questionable. They may be mistakes. But not all mistakes are bad. There will be times where our mistakes could lead to something special, perhaps even beautiful." Splinter paused. He stared intently at Raphael in his eyes. He leaned over and placed a hand on his shoulder.
"Raphael...in your case, your mistake had lead to something beautiful. I believe your daughter is a gift to you and Mona Lisa. Do you think so?" he said.
Raphael looked at Irrilia. She had her head on his plastron and her fingers in her mouth. "Yes." he whispered. Splinter smiled.
"And I trust you. I believe you are capable of caring for your daughter, raising her. I am more than happy to assist you in doing so. And I am sure that your brothers will too. We are here for you...and your daughter." he continued. Raph smiled at his father. He wrapped a free arm around him in a hug. Splinter gladly hugged his son back. "I have one final question." he said.
"What is it, Sensei?"
"What is my granddaughters name?"
"Irrilia."
"I've never heard such a name. It's a very good name."
"Thank you, Sensei."
The other turtles re-appeared. "Is everything cool now?" Mikey asked. Splinter and Raph exchanged glances, then looked at the threesome. "Yeah, everything's great, Mikey." Raphael said. And it really was.