Someone whose good looks excite romantic feelings.

♥️

Raphael told the others that she got away. She slipped through his fingers and disappeared before he could tie her up, it's simple as that. Although slightly disappointed, Leonardo dropped the issue and ordered everyone home.

Back at the lair, it seems as if Destiny hasn't left the dojo since they went out for patrol. She sits next to Master Splinter with a mug of tea in her hand, the two of them chatting softly to one another, although she carries most of the conversation and he opts to nod and offer agreeable hums.

"...right at the end of the video, he showed me the sunset and said that he thought it was pretty and he wanted to show me. It made me happy," Destiny says. Splinter smiles a little and she takes a sip of tea. She pulls out her phone and pulls something up. "I added Melanie on Snapchat too. I'm still getting used to it, but...hey, uh...this was on her story-thing? Story."

Splinter smirks a little. "So there is an effect that makes her face look like a dog?"

"Yeah, and Diaval's the Dalmatian." She taps something on the screen. "See? Now I have a rainbow coming out of my mouth. Blehhhhh—"

"That is funny."

"Mmhmm."

"Hey...Sensei, Des?" Leonardo asks, clearing his throat as they finally notice that he's standing at the entrance. Raphael lingers behind him, arms crossed and lips in a pout. "We stopped the Dragons, but our plan fell through."

Both Splinter and Destiny let out small breaths, shoulders slumping. Splinter murmurs something, nods, and takes another deep breath. Destiny stands up, gathering their mugs, and hurries out of the dojo.

"Des—" Leonardo starts.

"I got Splinter to eat some more," Destiny interrupts, keeping her chin tilted down. "Your plan really stressed him out. He worries that you're gonna go down a bad path."

Leonardo purses his lips. "Oh...well, thank you...for telling me."

She nods, then glances at Raphael. "Want to help me out? The dishes aren't done yet."

He grunts. "Sure."

She gives another nod to Leonardo before continuing to the kitchen, Raphael trailing behind her. At their backs, Leonardo's voice reenters the quiet as he updates Donatello, Sarina, and Michelangelo about what went on while they were gone.

In the kitchen, Destiny sets the mugs down and starts running some water in the sink. Raphael lingers behind her, shifting in place, mind racing as he taps his fingers against his crossed arms. Destiny isn't looking at him, in fact, she seems completely focused on the few dishes and cups left by the sink, and yet he feels uneasy, like she could turn around and see right through him in a second.

He's itching to get back out there, desperate to find Taylor and demand to know her true intentions. His common sense screams at him to just drop it, ditch her and move on, but his heart has different plans. His heart is a smitten, stubborn schoolboy that can't help but long for her to be truthful in her desire to see him.

After all, he wants to see her whether she's a Purple Dragon or not. It's stupid, it's thinking with his hormones and not his head, but it's a force that he can't and won't fight. He likes her smooth, Spanish-sprinkled words, her teasing smile, her voice with the rolling R's and the sarcasm, her touch. What's more, now he knows that she hits like she means it, that she's a fighter.

He likes that too.

For a fleeting second, he wishes that Diaval were around. He could use a desire reading right about now. A moment later, the idea of Diaval seeing everything going on in his head makes him cringe and he abandons the thought. He wouldn't be able to look the guy in the eye ever again.

"I'm glad she got away," Destiny says, making him let out a small noise as he jumps back to reality. She gives him a strange look as she glances over her shoulder, scrubbing a plate with a dishcloth. "I don't care if you're angry, but you need to know that that's where I draw the line. Nobody in this house tortures—questions..." She sucks in a quick breath, flutters her eyelids for a moment, then exhales. "...anyone. Here, dry this."

He takes the plate and the nearest dish towel, starting to dry as if his arms are on autopilot. "Okay," he says. "Thanks for letting me know."

She gives him another long look. "Thanks? No 'Mind your own business, Destiny' or 'But I hate her so much, Destiny'?" she asks.

He shakes his head and puts away the plate in its cabinet. "No."

She pauses. "She must've hit you hard today." She tries to laugh, but it ends up more akin to a wheeze from a broken squeaky toy.

He shuts his eyes, reaching his hand out for the next clean item. As she sets the cup in his hand, he sighs. "Yeah...she got me bad," he mumbles. There's a soft splash as she sets more dishes in the water and he keeps drying. "Des...you know we're all sorry, right? We...I didn't think that would upset you, so...let me be the first to say sorry, okay?"

She sniffs. "Thanks," she whispers. "I appreciate that."

"No hard feelings?"

"Like you said, she got away. No harm done."

He wishes that that statement was true for him too.

As he keeps drying the dishes that she hands him, he spares a glance out at the living room. Leonardo sits on the couch with his eyes shut, stress emanating from him like a space heater. Raphael's gut sinks even further. This stupid Purple Dragon conspiracy is making Leonardo poke and prod at his brain more than he ever has before, his mood changing with the constant exertion. He's focused and intense, hardly leaving time to loosen up and relax like he normally would. The idea of Leonardo no longer being calm and calculated infuriates Raphael.

Donatello and Sarina are no better off. They're becoming visibly stressed as time wears on and Raphael has no doubt that they think it's their job to put the puzzle together and solve the mystery. After all, they're the intelligent team members, what else can they do? They try and try to solve the puzzle, but they don't have any edge pieces, some are missing, and some of the pieces aren't even from the right puzzle.

Michelangelo is the only person still clinging to his sanity. If he isn't, then he's amazing at putting up a cheerful front. So long as Michelangelo is smiling, it'll be okay. If he starts giving in to the stress, that's when it's gone too far and the solution needs to be found soon.

In Raphael's head, Destiny, Donatello, and Splinter are allowed to be stressed at any point in time. Splinter is the caregiver of them all and he often takes on the weight of their battles as his own, giving them the wisdom they need at the expense of his own sanity. Stress is an unfortunate side effect, but he meditates and he knows how to care for himself.

Destiny is traumatized and while she does her best to act normal and smile when she can, her mind is a battlefield and working through that isn't easy, so stress is expected and understood by everyone. She needs time? Give it to her. She needs a deep breath? Alright. Hugs and some soothing wolf ear stroking? Sign anyone in the lair up and they've got her, arms open. When things are well cared for, Destiny thrives and can be her best person, stepping up to hold up the ceiling when the regularly well-collected pillars of strength crack and falter.

Donatello...well, Raphael believes that Donatello couldn't exist without stress. In a weird, twisted way, stress is the thing that Donatello uses to motivate himself. If there's something to cause stress, like a bomb, Donatello will use it to get his brain working and come out victorious. The downside is that his sleep schedule can deteriorate more than it already has and, if running on it too much, he could burn out. Nobody wants that, but it's manageable. He's a smart turtle and he's learned how to recover back to tip-top shape after a fall.

Leonardo and Sarina are the cool, calm, and collected duo. They deal with everything with a level head and a view that keeps them as the voice of reason when Splinter isn't present. Sarina is good at quick thinking so long as she has confidence in the situation, but as soon as that confidence starts to fall away, she'll start to lose her bravado and burn out just like Donatello. For Leonardo, that confidence shattering comes with waves of emotion that he struggles to compartmentalize and he acts out against everyone else because of it. Fear is the main contender against him.

Sarina needs peace and quiet to let herself recharge when she breaks down. She needs to turn off her brain and shut down, to not think for a while, and then she's good to go. Leonardo needs support, encouraging words, maybe a quote or two from Captain Ryan and if all else fails, a good slap across the face can jar him back to his senses in a pinch. In a worst-case scenario, he needs sleep, a hand to hold, and the tiniest shred of hope for a good outcome.

Raphael doesn't know where he fits in. He can guess that he's somewhere between Destiny and Leonardo in that he deals with heavy emotion so often that he lashes out, but he's ready to become the support when all else fails.

Right now, that means that this Purple Dragon scheme needs to be solved and Raphael is the only one with a direct pipeline to possible answers. He has to talk to Taylor and get the truth, no matter how cute she is, no matter how much she's playing the mouse to his cat.

When tomorrow night comes, he's going after that mouse. This time, he's going to win.

------------

When the time comes, Raphael sneaks from his bedroom and heads for the exit, sais secured in his belt and his fists clenched at his sides. He's going to get some answers.

"Where are you going?"

He cusses under his breath as he freezes mid-step. Behind him, soft footsteps come to a halt and he turns around to see Destiny standing at a distance from him. She smiles sleepily and a fleeting laugh shakes her shoulders, making her feathers rustle. Her hair is mussed with sleep.

"You know what I've—" She yawns. "—noticed?"

"What?"

"This whole...confrontations in the middle of the night thing? This family does a lot of them," she says, flashing a fanged grin. "Or, maybe that's just me."

He snorts. "Just go back to sleep, Des. I've got business to attend to."

She flicks her tail and her perked ears swivel forward. "What sort of business?"

"It's nothing. Just go to sleep," he mutters. He can't hide the concern laced in his tone when he adds, "You need it."

She arches an eyebrow at him and the back of his neck prickles. Her intuitive eyes pierce straight through him, her expression neutral yet marred with insight that makes him feel transparent. He can't hide anything from her; she'll uncover it, one way or another.

"I'm going out to see Taylor," he explains. "That girl..."

Her eyes light up as her eyebrows wiggle and all at once, she's back to being a seventeen-year-old kid. "Secret rendezvous? That's romantic."

He grunts and crosses his arms, glad that the darkness of the room hides his blush. "She's just my friend...right now."

"A friend? That mark on your neck a few nights ago says otherwise."

He claps his hand over his neck, eyes wide. "Wha...what? How did you—"

"Come on, Raph, do you even know me?" She flashes a teasing smile. "I've got eyes like a hawk...raven...thing." She pouts, shaking her head. "Okay, fail, but my point is, I noticed."

He doesn't pull his hand away from his neck. "It's not like that. I don't know what we are. We...she, er...I—"

"I'm surprised. When you like someone, you move fast."

"I—"

"I mean, that's, like, light speed! Supersonic speed! Supersonic racing—"

"For the love of pizza, Des, let me be serious for a moment!" he snaps.

She drops the smile. "Okay...sorry, sorry," she says, voice getting softer. She tugs at a wonky, bedhead curl and lowers her gaze. "Really, Raph, I think it's great that you've got a girl that you look forward to seeing. It's sweet."

He raises an eye-ridge. "You are?"

Destiny shrugs. "Why not? I don't know a lot about her other than she is...really...into you." She eyes his neck. "Really—"

"Des..." he whines.

"Calm down. You seem to really like her and that's great, that's all I'm saying." She stifles a yawn and tugs her claws through her curls, wincing as she rips through a knot. "Have fun on your date, Raph. Stay safe."

As she turns away, he huffs and calls out, "Not my girlfriend!"

"Not for long!" she returns effortlessly.

He rolls his eyes and shakes his head. "Sisters," he mutters.