"So this is an automobile. Fascinating. I've only ever read about them and heard them in the distance."

Donatello glances at Subject sideways as he drives, mixed feelings swirling in his chest like a hurricane or a whirlpool or both. Destiny keeps her arms crossed over her chest, her ears perked and her body rigid.

"Although, this vehicle is quite different from the ones I am familiar with. This one is very makeshift...DIY, as I've heard it called. Is that not true, Donatello?" she continues, poking at the radio and the seats intermittently.

"Um...yeah, our family built this before we got back to New York after—" Donatello starts.

"The invasion? Ah yes, I saw the whole thing happening from TCRI. The Kraang were a lot more lenient with letting me walk around once they ruled the city." Her eyes flash as she gazes out at the road. "Are you saying that you are the ones who saved New York? I find that impressive."

"Talkative, huh?" Destiny mumbles.

Subject's head swivels to the wolf mutant. "Is talkative a bad thing? I can close my mouth and remain silent if you wish it."

Donatello smiles a tiny bit. "Actually," he says, halting a response from Destiny, "I find it thought-provoking."

"Oh, that is surprising," Subject says. "No one has ever said that to me before." Her eyes flash and she blinks once. "No one has ever truly had a conversation with me before, if you look at the great scheme of things. That is all the Kraang's doing, of course, something that further fuels my hatred for those dastardly creatures. I'm glad that you destroyed most of their work here on Earth."

Nobody has anything to say to that. Destiny pulls out her t-phone and Donatello tries to focus on the road. Subject falls silent and folds her hands in her lap. She doesn't utter another word, unfazed by the reactions of her rescuers as she looks around at the world passing by in the window. Her gaze holds what the other mutants imagine is amazement, since her facial expression is just as blank as it's always been.

"I'm calling Leo," Destiny mutters.

She dials and holds the phone up a little ways past her human ear, focusing her wolf ears in on the device as it rings. It takes a few seconds before Leonardo picks up.

"Des, is everything alright?" he asks.

"Yeah, sort of. One problem..." she starts.

There's silence on the other line for a moment before there's a tentative, skeptical, "What?"

"We've got a possible, uh...ally." She glances at the mutants beside her. "Meet us in the tunnels with the others?"

"Okay," Leonardo agrees, although his tone is still hesitant. "See you soon."

"South entrance?"

"Yeah, that works."

She hangs up just as the Party Wagon descends into the old subway tunnels. They drive along with only the rattling of the rails to soothe them until Destiny suddenly straightens, her hand flying out to rest on the door at her right as she stares at the tunnel curve ahead.

"Donnie, stop," she says. "This is close enough."

Donatello presses the brakes and stops the vehicle. As soon as it's still, Destiny leaps out the side and heads off, allowing Donatello and Subject to climb out themselves. Donatello reaches for Subject's arm with the intent of leading her to the correct spot, but jerks it back before he's fully grasped her forearm. She's warm and surprisingly soft, nothing like the metallic, hard exterior that Donatello had imagined before.

"Donatello, did I shock you?" Subject asks. "That wouldn't be surprising, since it has happened before. Loose circuits—"

"No!" he says, shaking his head and hands rapidly. "I was just...uh..." She stares at him and he trails off, turning and thumping his head against the steering wheel. "Nothing," he mutters in defeat.

Subject tilts her head at him before Destiny's calling voice sounds from the tunnels. Her bright eyes flicker to the front of the windshield and she easily makes out Destiny waving to three approaching turtles. Donatello takes a deep breath, straightens up, and reaches his hand out to Subject.

"Come on, time to meet my brothers," he says.

She stares at his hand. "What exactly are you trying to accomplish? I have nothing to give you."

"I'm...I'm not asking for something." His hand clenches slightly as he shuts his eyes. "I was just going to lead you to the right place and, uh—"

"Oh. Interesting."

Donatello starts to wonder whether she actually finds him interesting or if everything she sees is interesting to her, but he doesn't dwell on it for long. She drops her hand into his palm limply and when she does nothing more, he wraps his large fingers around hers and hops from the car, bringing her along after him.

Leonardo, Raphael, and Michelangelo instantly go on alert when they see Subject, and their sudden stiffness prompts Destiny to look over her shoulder at the approaching teens. Leonardo's hand travels to the hilt of one of his katanas and Donatello instantly brings Subject just a little closer to him.

"Don, Des...who is that?" Leonardo asks.

"This," Destiny says, lips pursed, "is Subject 60184. Sub, this is Hamato Leonardo, Hamato Raphael, and Hamato Michelangelo."

"Charmed. I am what you may call pleased. I have been trapped by the Kraang for a substantial period of time, about sixteen years to be exact, and now I have escaped," Subject says. Her head jerks up to the ceiling and her eyes flash. "I have never been in these tunnels. They are fascinating."

Raphael arches an eye-ridge. "Right...we needed to know that."

Michelangelo leans closer to the turtles near him as he keeps staring at Subject. "Dudes, she talks weird," he whispers. "I like her."

"You don't know her," Leonardo mutters.

"Destiny was weird too. I liked her when we first met." Michelangelo winks at the wolf mutant and she smiles lightly at him.

Leonardo exhales heavily, squares his shoulders, then dons a winning smile as he strides towards Subject and Donatello. "Well, Subject, considering that you've...escaped the Kraang and have nowhere to go, the least we can do is offer you shelter for the night. We will talk to our Sensei about a more permanent solution." His shoulders and chest lift with pride. "Oh, and you can't let anyone know of our existence."

"Teacher's pet," Raphael coughs. Leonardo shoots him a glare.

"Understood," Subject says with a brief, rather jerky nod. "Thank you for your hospitality."

Leonardo keeps watching her and she stares right back at him without even the briefest inkling of awkwardness. If she's fazed at all, she does well in hiding it.

"Alright, let's get home," Donatello suggests, shattering the silence.

He places one hand on the small of Subject's back and leads her back to the van wordlessly. As he walks along, her moving next to him in a scarily perfect amount of synchronization, he finds that all he wants to do is help this girl in any way possible. He finds her quirky and endearing despite how off-putting she is to the eye. His gut is telling him that she's meant to be here with them, that she'll be something important. She could be the one Renet spoke of only a little while ago.

He opens the passenger door, Subject climbs inside, and he closes it behind her. As he wanders back to the driver's side, he looks up at the rest of his family members. They're gathered in a small huddle, locked in conversation.

"Guys? Are you coming?" he calls.

Destiny looks over her shoulder and the other turtles peer out from behind her, not a single smile between the four of them.

"Yeah, be right there!" Leonardo calls.

Donatello climbs into the van and once the rest of his family is in the back, he drives off for the lair with Subject's gaze on the road, eyes flashing occasionally as her pupils swivel to and fro.

----------

The group reenters the lair in awkward silence, Subject still sticking to Donatello's side. The purple-masked turtle casts an anxious, longing look towards his lab. Despite the presence of a newcomer and the obvious responsibilities that come with her arrival, he wants nothing more than to retreat into the sanctity of his laboratory and stay there.

Leonardo comes back from the dojo, lips pursed. "Splinter's meditating," he announces. "It's best to just leave him be until he's done."

"Now, later; it doesn't matter. Just make sure that she," Raphael says, looking pointedly at Subject, "isn't bugged."

Donatello rolls his eyes. "Honestly, this is why you have a hard time making friends."

Raphael growls and starts towards Donatello, but Destiny's stern glare snaps to him and he stops in his tracks, his fists unclenching although his fury doesn't fade away. Destiny looks away, her lip curving upwards at the corner just a bit, and Raphael takes that cue to walk away. His eyes follow Subject until it's impossible for him to keep watching.

Once he disappears, Michelangelo is quick to go and immerse himself in pinball. Destiny and Leonardo look around the lair as if searching for something to do. Donatello rocks back and forth on his heels, then turns to Subject with a half-smile gracing his features.

"Um, I hate to ask this, but do you mind if I do a few tests on you?" he asks. She stares at him and his gaze darts to the lab for a split second, nervous sweat appearing on his brow. "Just a security measure."

"I don't mind at all. It would be rude to refuse such a simple offer," she replies. Her irises spin the same way a camera lens adjusts as she notices Destiny wandering towards the kitchen. "Destiny?" The wolf mutant stops and turns as Subject keeps talking. "Are you sure that this so-called Splinter will be unperturbed by my presence here? I would hate to be an unwelcome intrusion."

Destiny opens her mouth, then closes it again as her ears flatten and a pondering expression replaces the shock at being called by name by Subject. Leonardo steps into Subject's line of sight and waves his hand once.

"It's fine," he says. "We'll talk to him soon. Until then, Donnie will look after you." Destiny nods and the turtle's attention reverts to her. "Des, there's that Space Heroes rerun marathon today. Want to watch with me?"

Destiny's chin tilts towards her feet and her tail starts to wag. "Oh...aren't you busy with plans for the—" she starts.

"Nah, I'm...uh, taking a break. If I think about it too much, it makes me anxious," he admits, rubbing the back of his neck.

"You? Anxious?" She smirks and her tail wags a little faster. "I never thought I'd see the day."

"Oh, shush. I'm only human...ish." He laughs and she finds her smile getting wider. "So, join me?"

"Sure, sounds fun. I'll cancel my endless array of plans, just for you."

"You flatter me, my lady."

"Shut up."

Leonardo's face softens with a smile and Destiny's cheeks gain a flush of colour as they let out similar, gentle chuckles. Subject eyes the pair, going back and forth between the two for a few seconds. Interesting, she thinks to herself.

She stops observing only once Donatello's hand falls against the small of her back. "Come on," he says with a polite, welcoming simper. "I think you'll like my set up."

She goes with him to his home within a home in mute obedience, sparing a second or two to watch Leonardo and Destiny settle down in front of the TV before she enters the lab and the doors close behind her.