It's early when the Hamato family gathers in the living room to discuss the events of last night. Michelangelo lingers at a distance, nervous energy making him jitter in place while Sarina explains what happened to her. Leonardo seems to be deep in thought, Destiny's ears are perked, her brow furrowed, and Raphael fumes, looking like a powder keg about to blow, his teeth grinding and his arms firmly crossed over his plastron. Donatello stays by Sarina's side, hand running lightly up and down her back. He's worn the same troubled expression since last night, and Michelangelo doubts it'll go away soon. He understands his brother's worry in a deeper way than ever before.

"Michelangelo, you seem troubled," Master Splinter says, snapping Michelangelo from his thoughts.

He blows out a breath. For once, he can't get himself to speak right away. He usually rambles easily, letting out every thought that zips through him, but the weight of those same thoughts seems to pin his tongue down. Where does he start? His worry for Annalise? His concern for Sarina? How he could barely sleep because he kept reading her email over and over again?

"I'm scared," he says, finally.

"Fear is natural, especially in the face of a new enemy."

"I know, Sensei, but...what if the freaky rainbow chick hurts Annalise? She already attacked Sarina and we have no idea what she is or—"

"My son," Splinter interrupts, the calming weight of his gentle hand falling on Michelangelo's shoulder. "We will face this threat together. Remain calm, so that your thoughts may become clear."

Michelangelo remembers the stillness that enveloped him during his spirit quest, how his awareness of the world sharpened, and tries to tap into that inner peace. The steady, minuscule sounds of the lair fade into the background as Michelangelo shuts his eyes and takes a long, deep breath.

"The world will fall."

Michelangelo shudders, the peace popping like a bubble above his head, all those stupid, anxious thoughts racing back like water released from a dam. Leonardo strokes his chin, brow furrowed as he repeats the threatening message half to himself, unaware of his brother's reaction.

"Whatever this thing is, she's hostile," Leonardo says.

Donatello nods. "We can assume that much. The question is, how do we find out more about her?" he asks. "We aren't even sure what she is."

"I have my theories," Sarina says. "So far, I suspect she may be either an advanced AI, a sentient virus, or a mutant with the ability to travel through electronics."

"Whatever she is, I'm gonna pound her face in," Raphael growls, fist meeting palm.

"Right, Raph, because you can just punch incorporeal beings," Destiny retorts with an eye roll.

Raphael lifts his fist, unclenching and clenching it a few times. "I can try."

"We will not be punching anything until we find out more about our enemy," Sarina states. "Which brings me to the other half of our problem." She gestures to Michelangelo. "It seems our help has been requested."

Michelangelo blinks as his brothers and Destiny turn their attention to him, their expressions falling on a range between confusion and curiosity. He swallows as he pulls out his t-phone, pulling up the email he received yesterday.

"Annalise needs us," he says. "She says she needs help, but she can't talk about it online. I bet it's because of the rainbow lady."

"Like the Annalise?" Destiny asks, eyebrows lifting in genuine surprise.

"I know, I didn't believe it until I saw the email," Donatello says, shaking his head.

Michelangelo nods, handing his phone to Leonardo. He bounces back and forth on his feet while Leonardo reads the email, expression softening, then hardening again.

"She wants to meet you in person," he says, hesitant.

"That's not gonna happen," Raphael snaps.

Michelangelo frowns, crossing his arms over his chest. "Uh, it totally is. I'm not about to ignore someone in trouble, especially if it's her!"

"No, it's not, because you're a mutant! And that's not even going into why she's deciding to trust a random stranger from the Internet, of all people. She has no idea what she's getting into, and clearly she's way too naïve to handle all this."

"Well, uh...I...might have said my YouTube username when I was dropping her off the other night?" Michelangelo says, his voice slowly getting tinier and tinier. "So that's...probably why she messaged me, because when she woke up, sort of, I panicked and—"

"Mikey, are you kidding me?"

"I said I panicked!"

"You're a ninja! Just leave! Silently!"

"I didn't want her to be scared!"

"Guys, quiet!" Leonardo shouts, making them both shut up. He stares at them, brow furrowed in a hard line. He lets out a breath through his nose. "Thank you. If we can refocus here..." He fixes his stare on Michelangelo. "So, you said you were PizzaNunchucker, and she clearly remembers seeing us in the park—"

"I should've hit her harder," Destiny mumbles.

"Des, no," Leonardo sighs. Her ears pull back as she gives him a sheepish smile.

"The rainbow lady was in her phone," Michelangelo says. "She must have seen it, and she knows something weird is going on, and she's asking for help. I can't just ignore her." He puts on the biggest puppy eyes he can, pouring on the cuteness as he clasps his hands together. "Please?"

Leonardo's lips purse, resolve crumbling. Raphael groans and drops his head into his hands, muttering under his breath, "Unbelievable..."

"We need any leads we can get," Donatello says. He looks at Sarina as she takes his hand in hers, squeezing. "We can't leave this alone. There's nothing wrong with meeting her, at least."

"But, maybe it should just be Mikey first. He can test the waters while we keep a distance," Destiny suggests. "He's adorable. Non-threatening."

Michelangelo's heart leaps. They're actually listening to him? What's more, with every word spoken, he gets closer and closer to meeting Annalise in the flesh. He isn't even sure what he'll say, and yet he has so many ideas that he can hardly keep calm.

One last obstacle, though. Michelangelo looks back at Master Splinter, who remained silent and watchful while they talked everything out. His ears lay flat against his head as he strokes his beard.

"I am wary," he admits, "but I trust Michelangelo's judgment in this regard. I also trust all of you to handle this sensitively. Revealing ourselves to humans is always a risk."

Michelangelo blows out a breath.

"Then it's settled," Leonardo says. "Mikey, contact her. Set up a meeting, maybe tonight if she can." Michelangelo already has an email draft ready, but he starts editing it while Leonardo is still talking. "I like Des's plan. We'll hide near wherever we meet and let Mikey handle first contact."

Destiny's tail flicks, but she nods slowly. "And...I should apologize for knocking her out."

"That, too," Leonardo agrees. "Mikey—"

"Already sent!" Michelangelo says with a grin. "I'll let you know when she replies!"

"Perfect. Let's hope this goes well."

----------

Michelangelo hums a happy tune as he skates ahead of his family. Annalise was quick to respond to his email, and they agreed to meet at a skatepark that very same evening. Michelangelo was grateful that she was alright with meeting after dark and even more grateful that the sun sets so early during this time of year.

With every push, he rides his skateboard closer to the girl of his dreams. His pulse hasn't rested since this morning, nervous jitters making him bouncier and more unfocused than ever. He's surprised Raphael only snapped at him twice for his inability to sit still.

Yeah, it's been a pretty awesome day, and it's about to get even awesome-r, Michelangelo thinks.

The skatepark looms ahead, and Michelangelo's breath hitches. He can see her, perched atop the half-pipe on the edge of the park, decked out in pink and white gear, foot braced against her board as she prepares for the drop.

He has to stop himself from calling out to her, eyes sparkling with excitement. While Annalise is known for being a gamer, a true member of the Donut Box knows that she's dabbled in skateboarding since she was younger, and that some of the earliest videos on her channel were attempts at those fish-eye lens skating videos. Although those quickly fell to the wayside, it's one of those videos that confirmed for Michelangelo that she was someone whose content he wanted to keep consuming.

Michelangelo can't express how perfect she is in words, even to himself. She's got this tomboy streak that somehow balances with her "women in STEM" positive energy that he just adores. She's the perfect woman.

The perfect woman who tips onto the half-pipe with a stance that Michelangelo can already tell isn't going to end well. He squeaks and picks up the pace, heart pounding again. She put her foot down and committed to the drop in, bending her knees, but her centre of gravity is all off. She's leaning too far back.

She sails down the concrete slope, but the momentum tilts her backwards even more as she hits flat ground. The board slips out from under her and sails into the air without its rider, up the other side of the pipe.

Michelangelo launches himself forward, breaking her fall with his body just in the nick of time, and he hears her grunt in surprise as he lands on his face. For a moment, he lies there, beak a little scratched from the concrete, Annalise's weight half resting against him.

He forgets how to breathe while hers come out in tiny, shocked bursts. Slowly, he pushes himself up, looking back, but she isn't looking at him. She stays seated on the concrete, limbs sprawled, her back to him. Her skateboard rolls by them like an ignorant passerby.

"PizzaNunchucker?" she whispers.

Is she...afraid to turn around? Did she notice that his shell felt inhuman, or is there something else going on?

He sits up and scoots back a few inches, giving her ample space, his body poised to run or duck or defend himself from whatever way she reacts. Whatever she's feeling, he's ready. He tries to speak, but his throat feels full, like his heart has lodged itself there.

It's stupid, but he thinks of Chris Bradford, the first time they met. That was the first time Michelangelo got caught up in befriending a human, someone he felt a connection with. Annalise is the furthest a person can be from someone like Bradford, and yet Michelangelo is far more nervous. When she turns around, she might reject him, too.

"Hi," he squeaks out.

She swivels her body towards him, her lovely, sweet face alight with joy, and then she finally sees him, in all his green, freckled turtle-ness, and her jaw drops.

He flinches, instinctively, putting his hands up as if to shield himself from her screams. "It's okay, dudette," he pleads. "I'm not a monster. I'm not going to hurt you."

But, she doesn't scream. He doesn't hear anything.

He dares to peek at her. She's still staring at him, wide-eyed, mouth open, but she isn't screaming. She hasn't even tried to get up and run. Stunned, he unfurls from his protective stance and gets up. She blinks rapidly, her mouth twitching as if to smile.

"You...you have the same voice as him," she mumbles. She pushes herself to her feet and takes a hesitant step closer to him. "Oh my gosh, I'm not crazy. You're real."

"Huh?"

She exhales heavily, hiccuping out a relieved laugh as she unclips her helmet and tucks it under her arm. She smiles at him, a small one, but a real smile nonetheless, and warmth floods him from head to toe.

"Sorry, I just...I thought I imagined you in the park a few nights ago. I've been...I've been questioning if there was any way you were real, and...and here you are!" Her smile falls, painted over with shock. "Are...are you really PizzaNunchucker?"

He smiles sheepishly and waves. "Name's Michelangelo, but my friends call me Mikey." He feels his shoulders relax. "Angelo is my middle name."

That makes her giggle. "Well, uh...you know me. I'm Annalise."

"Adorably amazing YouTuber," he blurts, bouncing on his heels in excitement.

Her cheeks flush pink, and she scuffs her skate shoe on the ground. "Oh...heh, thank you."

He forces himself to stop bouncing. Now is not the time to act like a crazy fan. She may be smiling at him, but there's still a nervous tension to her that he refuses to make worse. His family is trusting him to be the buffer, the adorable, non-threatening ambassador for the Hamato clan.

"So," he says. "You need help?"

She frowns, confused, only to gasp. "Oh! Yes, sorry. I got a little caught up in how I bombed that half-pipe, then you catching me—thank you, by the way." He waves his hand at her in a "no worries" gesture as she fixes her hair, blowing out another nervous breath. "It's...actually kind of awesome that you're a...creature?"

"Mutant."

"Mutant, got it. Sorry."

She apologizes a lot more in person than she does in her videos, and about the same amount as she does on her livestreams. Michelangelo resists the urge to coo out loud at her cuteness.

"Either way, it makes me feel more confident that you'll believe me about what's going on," she admits.

"That's what I'm here for, dudette," he says with a nod. "Quick question, though, can my fam join me? They're nearby, somewhere. Didn't want to scare you."

She looks around, brow furrowed, but she nods. "I'm guessing they're the others I saw?"

"Exactamundo."

With one more confirming nod from her, he spins around and puts his fingers to his mouth, letting out a sharp wolf whistle. There's a pause before the others emerge from various hiding spots, converging by the half-pipe.

"Um...hi," Annalise greets, looking between them. She still looks freaked out, but there's awe beneath it that softens her fear. She exhales and mumbles, "Weirdest night ever..."

"So you're the infamous Annalise that Mikey hasn't shut up about in years," Raphael says.

Michelangelo glares at him, cheeks red, and Annalise casts a quick look between the two of them before she lets out a soft laugh. "Uh...yeah, I guess so? Haha..." she says.

"Annalise," Michelangelo says, trying to distract her. The last thing he needs is Raphael embarrassing him. "This is my family! Leonardo, the leader in blue and master of swords. Donatello, the creative genius who is technically a genius. Destiny, who hears and smells all. Sarina, Donnie's partner in crime and also a technical genius, and..." He frowns at Raphael. "That's Raphael. He's a jerk."

Raphael sticks up his middle finger at Michelangelo, although Destiny is quick to shove his hand down and shoot him a scolding look. Annalise laughs.

"Nice to meet all of you," Annalise says.

Raphael yanks his hand away from Destiny, swatting at her, and she swats right back. She sticks her tongue out at him before looking back at Annalise, bowing her head a little, hair falling into her face.

"I'm the one who knocked you out the other night," she says. "Sorry about that."

She straightens and flashes a fanged grin that makes Annalise back up a step, but she nods, swallows hard, and squeaks out, "No problem."

Leonardo steps forward. "It's come to our attention that you need our help," he says, donning a deeper, professional "leadership turtle on business" voice.

Annalise nods. She retreats to where she left her backpack at the base of the half-pipe, stows her helmet, and retrieves her phone from the side pocket. She returns to the group as she finds the screenshot in her photo album, holding it out for everyone to see.

Sarina's eyes flash and Annalise startles. "Uh—"

"Her eyes do that sometimes," Michelangelo explains. "She's not taking a picture or anything. She's just a cyborg."

Her lips form a tiny "o" shape. "Okay, cool," she says. She clears her throat. "Anyway, I found this picture on my phone the day after the whole Washington Square Park incident," she says. "A few days before that, my YouTube was acting really weird. Some videos got uploaded without my input and whatnot." She purses her lips. "I did an antivirus scan that detected one threat, but when I tried to actually get rid of it, my screen glitched and wouldn't let me. I had to force shut down my computer. Honestly, I thought I was just sleep-deprived."

She continues. "When I saw this picture on my phone, I realized that the antivirus wasn't enough. Whatever this thing is, she's something within the Internet, or the cyberverse, or whatever we want to call it, and she's angry. I'm thinking that she might be a sentient computer virus."

Michelangelo gazes at her in complete adoration, a dopey smile stuck on his face. Man, he loves it when she rambles all smart-like. Raphael smirks and nudges him.

"She's too smart for you, little brother," he teases under his breath.

Michelangelo elbows him in the plastron.

Sarina approaches and inspects the picture closer, nodding. "Yes, that's her," she says, then looks up at Annalise. "I received a rather haunting message only yesterday. This woman appeared on my computer screen surrounded by code, declaring that the world will fall." Her expression turns grim as her eyes flash. "This is not something we can simply debug."

"So what do we do?" Raphael asks.

Donatello steps forward, one finger held up. "Sarina and I have already been brainstorming."

"Indeed, we have," she agrees. "However, we cannot explain out here. It's far too unprotected and vulnerable to listening ears." Her bright gaze focuses on Annalise yet again. "Are you good at programming?"

Annalise shrugs, suddenly bashful. "Uh, I guess? I'm alright."

"Alright? Dude, she's been developing game betas on top of pumping out consistent content! She's a total whiz at computers and technology!" Michelangelo gushes.

She blushes again and rubs her arm. "I didn't think anyone noticed...or cared..." she whispers.

Sarina smiles softly. "Then, if you're willing, I believe you could be of assistance to us in this endeavour."

"I'll...I'll help however I can," she says with a vehement nod.