Raph's Little Angel (Book Two Of TMNT Father Series)

Chapter 13: High Tension

Two months had passed since the egg incident and Abby telling me the news. The egg hadn't hatched yet and we were keeping a close eye on it.

We were all nervous. Nervous for the egg, what it held and if Donnie could handle it.

Me? Well I was nervous on those subjects but I was more worried about something else.

Ella starting school.

Yes I trusted Abby. She was a good friend and helped me for almost anything I needed. I just didn't trust anyone else.

"Dad!" Ella yells, shaking me out of my trance. I glance at her and smile as she gestures to the two outfits on her bedroom floor.

Mia had graciously bought Ella a few new outfits for school. And by a few I mean 15.

I study the outfits on the ground, one was a black t-shirt with blue Jean's. The other was shorts with turtles embroidered on the pockets and a white, ruffled tanktop.

Ella huffs and pulls at her brown hair. "Ey! No pulling on your hair!" I yell playfully as I grab her and tickle her. She giggles and squirms before I stop and she sits in my lap staring at the outfit.

"I like them both..." Ella mumbles.

I nod and look at the outfits. "What about pairing one item of one outfit with an item from the other?" I ask shrugging.

Ella parks up and grabs the turtle shorts and black t-shirt. "These two! And then I can wear my sandals with them!" She excitedly puts her chosen outfit at the end of her bed and hops up and down in excitement.

I laugh, "Come on Ella, you need to brush your teeth so you can be ready for your first day of school tomorrow."

She stops and grabs her toothbrush from the top of her dresser, zooming out her bedroom door.

Leo dodges my daughter as she runs and I chuckle. "She's excited.." Leo mutters before walking towards the living room.

Ella quickly runs back into her room, bunny slippers pounding on the concrete floor and white night gown flowing behind her.

She jumps into bed and pulls her covers over her as I laugh some more.

"Tell me a story please??" Ella pleads as I kneel down next to her bed.

"Are you ok with a story grandpa told me when I was younger?" I ask her as she snuggles with Abba. Ella nods and I smile, sitting next to her bed I cross my legs and take a deep breath.

"Once upon a time in old Japan there lived a man, his wife and only daughter.  They loved her dearly. One day the father told his wife Matsuyama that he got a job but would have to travel really far to work. The father was sad to leave his family for so long. Once he left the mother told the child that she would have to help keep the house clean for his return."

"Ewwwwwww cleaning sucks." Ella says making a disgusted face. I laugh and nod continuing my story.

"Finally after weeks of being gone the father returned.  He took off his sandals and sat in the clean living room, taking out a bamboo basket. 'Daughter here is the gift you deserve for taking care of your mother and the house.' He said before pulling out a beautiful ceramic doll. The daughter thanked the father and he pulled out a carefully wrapped box, handing it to his wife. 'This is for you my love.' He says affectionately. The wife opened the box to find a metal circle with a handle, one side like glass and the other had beautiful carvings of bamboo and storks. She had never seen anything like it before. Turning to her husband she asks, 'What is this you have given to me?' The husband explained that it was a mirror and she could use it to see her reflection."

Ella nods, holding Abba close, completely immersed in the story.

"Ella there is an old Japanese saying that a mirror is the heart of the soul. Japanese women, based on how clean their mirrors were, told how pure their hearts were."

"So that's why we clean the bathroom mirror every sunday?" She asks.

I chuckle, "Kinda..."

"As the years went by the girl grew into a beautiful young woman, like a blossom on a cherry tree. But as a new blossom blooms another dies. The mother was deathly I'll and was being cared for by the father and daughter. One day the daughter was alone with her mother 'Dear child, I know that I have loved the but I wish to give you something before I go. Your father gave me this mirror when he came back from that long trip. Take it and whenever your heart aches look into that mirror and you will see my face."

"That's sad.." Ella says, now sitting up in her bed.

I nod and continue. "The daughter watched her mother pass and they mourned for a long while. Over time the father married another woman. However the new stepmother of the daughter hated the young girl and despised everything she did. The daughter kept her promise to stay good and tolerated the stepmothers cruelness. So whenever the daughter felt sad she would go to the mirror and see her mother's face. One day the stepmother caught the daughter looking at something and mumbling to herself. Angry, she went to the father and accused the daughter of being a witch that had cursed her. The father grew angry and went to confront the daughter. He found her in her room shoving a small item up the sleeve of her kimono. He yelled, asking if what the stepmother said was true but the daughter shook her head and showed the mirror. 'I just like to see mothers face when I feel sad or lonely.' The father softened, feeling sorry for misjudging his daughter and hugged her."

I end the story, tucking Ella in bed.

"That's it? That's the whole story?" Ella asks angrily holding Abba as she cuddles her blankets. I nod.

"That's lame..." I hear her mutter and I chuckle.

"The lesson in the story is to not judge a book by its cover." I laugh and Ella's face goes from angry to understanding.  I kiss her forehead. "Go to bed, you have school tomorrow."

She sticks her tongue out at me and I shake my head, going out of her room and shutting the door gently behind me.

Sighing as I walk to the living room I plop on the couch, pulling out my phone and listening to music.

But the peace I seeked for relaxation was short lived as the lab to Donnie's door slams open.

"RAPH! LEO! MIKEY! THE EGGS HATCHING!!"