Doing something a little different once again with making a oneshot on another iteration of RaMona. This time, it's the original 1987 cartoon series!!

Note: This story is an epilogue to the ongoing TMNT 1987 comic book series TMNT: Saturday Morning Adventures, where in issues #17 and #18 Raphael and Mona Lisa team up to solve a museum mystery. I highly recommend checking these comics out, not only to get a little bit more context for this fanfic, but because they are a super fun read!

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"I still appreciate you coming out to help me tonight. Owe you a pizza?"

Those words from Mona Lisa stuck with Raphael for days on end. With a gentle touch on his shoulder and arm, her soft kind smile, to how close and intimate she was to him when she said it made Raphael all flustered. His green face blushing red as a nervous grin grew on him. That's all he really wanted. Sure, who wouldn't love free pizza, but all Raphael ever desired was to spend time with Mona Lisa with no crazy pirates with a sea monster army or ancient Egyptian mutants to fight. Just the two of them, hanging out, enjoying each other's company. And tonight was finally the night.

Raphael couldn't hold in his excitement, humming an upbeat song as he spent the evening sprucing himself up; taking a shower, brushing his teeth, polishing his shell, etc. The red turtle practically skipped out of his bedroom and into the living area of his home in the sewers where he found his brothers all hanging out. Donatello sat on the floor, tinkering with his latest invention that laid on the wooden coffee table. Michelangelo sat on the couch watching TV, gorging himself with a hot and fresh pizza pie while Leonardo sat next to him reading a book. Immediately the three took notice of their brother's optimistic attitude. Confusion but curiosity struck them as they stared.

"Where are you going, dude?" Mikey asked, before shoving another slice of pizza into his mouth.

"To meet up with Mona Lisa." Raph stops at the door, turning to look at his brothers with a wide prideful grin, "She offered to take me out for some pizza tonight as a way to thank me for helping her with that museum fiasco a few days ago."

The Turtles all recall the event Raphael is referring to. Just last week, when the three boys were out enjoying the annual Brooklyn Food Festival, Raphael was stuck at home, grounded for destroying Donatello's latest inventions. While the brothers all thought Raph would obey Splinter's order and remain home for the rest of the day, they discovered once they returned that he snuck out to help their old friend Mona Lisa. Apparently she asked Raphael personally to assist her in solving a mystery going on at the museum's new Egyptian exhibit. Though the mystery turned out to be more than what they expected, the turtle and lizard duo stopped the ancient evil threat and saved the city.

Leonardo, Michelangelo and Donatello knew how special Mona Lisa is to their cool but rude brother. Whenever she would come back to the Big Apple, Raphael would drop everything to help her. Though he would claim it was only to help out a friend, in reality they all know it was his excuse to spend time with her. Mikey always claims that when Mona Lisa visits, he sometimes catches Raph staring at her like a love struck puppy. It made it even more obvious when the brother would tag along and Raph would give them a glare, seeing his brothers as pestering third wheels when he just wanted to be alone with her.

"So, it's just gonna be you and Mona Lisa... having dinner?" Leo's eyes widened with suspicion, "Alone??"

"Yeah." Raph crosses his arms, unsure where Leo was going with that statement, "So what?"

"So what!?" Leo repeats, slamming his book closed and getting up from his seat, baffled, "Raphael, do you not understand what's happening?!"

"I'm getting free pizza?"

"No dude!" Mikey jumps on the couch with excitement, "You're going on a date!"

"What?" Raph scoffs, his face starting to blush, "It-It's not a date! We're just hanging out as friends! And besides, she offered me dinner. I didn't ask her out!"

"A girl can ask a guy out on a date too, you know." Donnie informs his brother, looking up from his work, "According to recent studies, 40% of women are more likely to ask men out on dates before men do."

Mikey nods in agreement, "Not to mention that she only offered YOU dinner. We were in that fight too-"

"We showed up at the last minute and beat up a defenseless mummy mutant." Donnie corrected.

Mikey ignored him, returning back to his statement, "-We were in that fight too and I don't remember her offering to buy us some delicious pizza pies!" He then smirks at Raphael, "And it's obvious she's into you just as much as you are into her. This is totally her excuse to spend more time with you."

"That's not... Uhh..."

Raph's face began to feel hot. Was this a date? No. It can't be! Him and Mona Lisa aren't like that with each other. Not like how Leonardo is with Lotus Blossom or Michelangelo is with Kala where the chemistry and romantic attraction is obviously there. No! He and Mona Lisa are just friends, nothing romantic between them.

Raphael remained quiet, thinking it all over. He wasn't against the idea of them becoming something more. He's always admired Mona Lisa for many of her attributes. From her skills in combat, her intelligence, how much she cares about others, and especially her witty humor and clever comebacks that match perfectly with his own. He also can not forget how pretty she is, from her long warm brown hair and dark as night black eyes, to her bright caring smile. Even her little characteristics that he finds endearing, like how cute she is when her tail wags whenever she gets excited. And sure, she did kiss him on the cheek that one time, but that was just showing gratitude for helping her. Like she wishes to do tonight by buying him dinner. Just him. No one else. Just him and her alone. Nothing romantic there, right??

Raph shook his head frantically, stopping his train of thought. Could this be? Mona Lisa asked him out?! Raphael looked at his brothers, his face burning bright red, and based on the knowing smirk from his three brothers, they knew they got him. His flustered face was enough to prove their point.

"Holy mackerel!" Raph exclaimed in realization, "This is a date! What should I do?!"

Leo laughed, approaching his brother to pat him on the back, calming him down, "Don't worry, Raphael. We'll help you out!"

"Yeah, dude!" Mikey cheered, "Just follow our advice, and Mona Lisa will be head over heels for you by the end of the evening."

"But first," Donnie jumps in, "Let's make you more presentable for your date."

• ━━━━━ ••●•• ━━━━━ ••

Mona Lisa is usually known to have excellent patience, but tonight she couldn't hold in her excitement. Pacing around the rooftop, she occasionally looked at her Turtle-Com to check the time. It was nearing 7 o'clock. Her and Raphael agreed to meet up on the roof of the Channel Six building where she would then escort him to the pizzeria down the road and treat him to a meal. He deserved something nice, a way to show her gratitude after he's done so much for her. Even learning after their museum adventure that Raphael was actually grounded that evening she asked for his help, and yet he still came out to assist her speaks volumes of his character to Mona. Raphael has always been so kind to her. It made her wish she could do more than just buy him a pizza.

She looked at the Turtle-Com again, ten minutes past 7 o'clock. She sighed, "I hope he didn't forget about tonight..."

He should be here soon. She couldn't wait. It's been a long time since Mona Lisa got to truly hang out with Raphael. Every other time she has it was to stop a villainous threat, but this time was different. Mona Lisa always felt bad to drag Raphael into her battles but he always was happy to help. That's what makes him such a great guy. It's one of the reasons Mona Lisa finds him so-

Mona Lisa perked her head up, hearing the faint sound of a thud behind her. Her heart beat began to increase with excitement. He was here.

"I was starting to think you forgot about tonight." Mona smiles, turning around to face him, "Leave it to the Ninja Turtles to- Woah!"

Her eyes widened from the sight of the red turtle. To Mona's surprise, Raphael wore a formal outfit, consisting of black pants, a long sleeved white collared shirt, and a little bright red bow tie to complete the look.

"Looking snazzy!" She says, approaching the turtle to examine his outfit more closely, "What's the occasion?"

"I... I just wanted to look nice for a change," Raph said awkwardly, sweating. He couldn't tell if it was from nervousness of tonight or the tightness of the bow tie choking his neck.

The suit was Donatello's idea, "Gentleman should always look nice on a date with a lady. Let's look through your closet and see what we can put together!"

Searching through all their clothes, Donnie and the others were able to put together something, using articles of clothing from previous outfits that the Ninja Turtles wore for missions (or just for fun) in the past.

"And remember..." Raph then hears Leo's advice echoing through his head, "Always compliment her!"

"You look really nice too." Raph says faintly, slightly embarrassed. However, it wasn't a lie. Raphael always thought Mona Lisa looked lovely. From the moment he first met her at the costume yacht party, he always thought she was cute.

Mona Lisa chuckled at his compliment, "I wear the same thing all the time, but..." She brushed a bit of her hair out of her face, showing her shiny black eyes, "Thank you."

Raphael could swear he saw sparkles in her eyes again. It made his heart begin to beat. It almost made him forget...

"Uh, here!" He hands a single red rose towards her, "This is for you!"

The rose was Mikey's suggestion, "Dudettes love flowers, so you should totally get her some!"

Raphael was already worried about running late, so he sadly didn't have time to buy her a grand bouquet. He didn't want to make her wait longer than she already did. So, all Raph could do was pick a single red rose growing in a flower pot on a fire escape he passed when on his way to see her. Raphael felt she deserved more than just one little rose, but Mona's smile was enough assurance.

"Aww! Raphael, you're so sweet!" She takes the flower and tucks it into the ties that held up her hair in a ponytail, complimenting her already beautiful complexion, "How does it look?"

"You- uh..." he blushed from the sight of her with the rose in her hair, unable to say anything.

"Speechless? I'm flattered!" Mona giggles, getting close to Raph to take hold of his hand, "Come on, the night's still young. Let's get something to eat. My treat!"

Hand in hand, Mona Lisa and Raphael ran off into the city to begin their night of fun together. Leaving the roof of the Channel Six building, Mona escorted Raph to the location of where they would be having dinner. Raphael examines the building before him, quickly recognizing it.

"Wait! Pick-A-Peck-A-Pizza?! This is-"

"The place where you won the yacht party invitation and met the one and only me!" Mona Lisa gives a cheeky smile, "I figure since we know the owner we can get a good deal."

How could Raphael forget Pick-A-Peck-A-Pizza? An underwhelming pizzeria with even more underwhelming pizza sizes. Though he and his brothers found the place to be a disappointment, the restaurant did have its highlight, such as the prizes that came with each purchase. While his brothers only won cheap coupons for more of these disappointments the owner had the gall to call pizzas, Raphael won a real prize. An invitation to the pizzeria's owner, McDonald Crump's costume yacht party! Attending the party in the brilliant costume of "himself", as soon as Raphael arrived he was snatched up by a mysterious girl in a mutant lizard costume who used him to get into the party. He couldn't deny that she was pretty, making him stumble over his words when her arms were tenderly locked in his as they boarded the ship. Before he could even process all that had happened, the girl kissed him on the cheek and then vanished into the crowd, but it would not be the last time their paths would cross.

Intrigued by her, Raphael searched the yacht for the mysterious girl. His search wasn't long, finding her in the helm of the yacht in a situation that did not make her look good; tying up the ship's crew and steering the ship to a different location. Raphael confronted the mysterious girl, and during the mist of their battle, she revealed her name to be Mona Lisa, a fellow mutant just like him.

Explaining her dire situation and clearing up a big misunderstanding, Raphael agreed to help Mona Lisa to stop the evil Captain Filch who was attacking the yacht and kidnapping its party goers. Together, he and Mona Lisa saved the day and too soon they parted ways, but the lizard girl remained stuck in the red turtle's mind long after he returned home. So funny how a disappointing pizza from this place eventually led Raphael to having his first date. He just wished it was anywhere else but here.

"No offense Mona, but aren't the portion sizes here very small?" Raphael asked her once they were inside and sat down at their table.

"Not anymore!" Mona tells him, playfully booping his nose with her finger, "Mr. Crump agreed to change the recipe as a reward for saving him and his guests! You can thank Michelangelo for that one. And now business is booming!"

He smiles, "Well, I'll just have to be the judge of that."

"Ah! Good evening my friends!" a voice suddenly greets the two mutants. Raphael and Mona Lisa look over to see a middle aged man with brown hair wearing a pink collared shirt and a red bow tie. It was the owner of the establishment himself, McDonald Crump.

"A strange couple you are, always wearing those silly reptile costumes." he says with an assumed smile.

"Wait. He still thinks these are costumes??" Raph thought to himself before blushing, "And did he just call us a couple?!!"

Technically they are, right? This is a date so that means they are now a couple! The thought made Raphael's heart begin to beat faster and faster.

Mona giggles, "It's been a while, Mr Crump. Raphael and I thought we'd stop by for a bite!"

"Excellent, what would you like?"

Without having to think over their options, Raphael and Mona Lisa told the owner in perfect sync, "Can I get three pies; one meat lover's with ice cream, one with jelly beans and mushrooms and another with jalapenos and peanut butter?"

The two then look at one another, shocked at their similar order before sharing a chuckle. After collecting herself from a good laugh, Mona tells the owner, "We'll share the pies."

Mr. Crump nods, taking the orders down on his notepad and heading off to the kitchen to give the cook the insane pizza order.

Waiting for the meal, Raphael and Mona Lisa grew silent. Fidgeting with his hands nervously, Raphael tried to think of something to say to her. He remembers his brother's advice, "Small talk is important! Get to know her more!"

"So, uh... Mona Lisa, what have you been up to these last few weeks."

"Well, besides the mummy fiasco over at the museum a few nights ago, not really anything else. I've mostly been running around between New York and New Jersey trying to find anything to keep me entertained. Occasionally running into crooks and I serve them some justice. I got inspired by you and your brothers that I wanted to help out those in need."

"Jersey, huh?" Raph smiles. He remembers his brothers told him that if there's an opening to keep the conversation going, take it. "You've traveled there a lot lately. Any particular reason?"

She nods, "I'm from New Jersey! I grew up right in Jersey City, across the Hudson River. I moved to New York when I started college."

"Yeah, that I still don't get."

"What?"

"You're my age!" Raph points out the obvious, "How were you attending college when you're my age!"

Mona laughs from his confusion, "I got an early scholarship! When I was still human and attending school, my academic achievements allowed me to skip a couple of grades. By the time I was 11, I started high school, and when I was 15 I graduated and was offered hundreds of scholarships to many colleges in the area. The perks of being a science prodigy." she winks playfully.

"Wow, that's amazing!"

Raphael shouldn't have been as surprised as he was. He knew just how intelligent Mona Lisa was. Having a gift in physics and chemical science, there was a reason Captain Filch captured her in the first place. To use her genius for his evil plans to rule the world. Despicable.

"How about you, dollface?" Mona asked, her chin resting on her hands.

He blushed, "What about me?"

"What have you've been up to? Don't tell me the famous Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles have just been lounging around in the comfort of their home these last few months. You must have been on some crazy adventures!"

Raph laughs from her words, "'Crazy' is an understatement."

As a waiter returned to the table to give the duo their orders, Raphael and Mona Lisa spent the rest of their time at Pick-A-Peck-A-Pizza chatting and laughing together. Raph would tell her stories of all the recent adventures he and his brothers embarked on while Mona would do the same with her own adventures. Hours passed and the two found themselves stuffed from eating all the pizza as Mona Lisa wrapped up a story from her childhood.

"So then, I added the chemicals into the volcano, but apparently I miscalculated the dose and the volcano blew up! The lava got everywhere in the gymnasium, so I was suspended for the rest of the semester."

Raph chuckles from her story, "Suspension just for making a mess with some baking soda and vinegar?"

"Oh, I didn't use baking soda and vinegar, silly." she says cheerfully, booping Raphael's nose again with her finger in a playful manner, "I used real lava!"

"Wait, how did you get real-"

"Here you go!" Mr. Crump interrupts, placing down the check along with two small cards onto their table, "I hope you two enjoyed your meal. Please come again any time!"

"Hey!" Raph says, grabbing one of the tiny cards the owner placed on the table, "These are the pizzeria scratch off tickets! You can win cool prizes!"

"Ooh! Fun!" Mona takes the other ticket as the two begin to scratch, "I won a free soda at the movie theater!"

"And I got a free popcorn!" Raph says reading his ticket, "Wait, this isn't for Pick-A-Peck-A-Pizza..."

"Central Park is doing an outdoor movie night this evening." the owner explains, "How about you two love birds go enjoy yourself with some refreshments on me! No refills though. I'm not made of money."

Raph blushed, "Lo-Love birds?"

"That sounds like fun!" Mona cheers, sitting up from her seat, "Come on, Raphael. We don't wanna miss it!"

Grabbing the Turtle's arm, Mona Lisa races out of the restaurant, leaving cash on the table to pay for their meal. The perfect opportunity. Mona didn't want this night to end so soon and dinner wasn't enough to show her gratitude toward Raph. He deserved more, so a free movie is the best way to end their night.

Making their way through the city, Raph and Mona arrived at Central Park. There they found a crowd of people sitting on picnic blankets scattered across the field, all getting comfortable and munching on theater snacks. Standing before the crowd was a large white projector screen and camera where the movie will be shown. The sky was dark, but the valley was lit up with warm golden lights hanging from tree to tree over the crowd.

Using their prizes from the pizzeria the two were able to get a small soda and a small bucket of popcorn. Slight disappointment on how a cheap owner gave them coupons to purchase the cheapest sizes. Once they got their drinks and snacks, Raphael and Mona Lisa wondered where they would sit. With the area already packed, they did want to be anywhere that would draw too much attention for themselves. Mutants may be somewhat of a common sight around the city, but it is still annoying when people stare. Thinking over their options, Raphael suggested the sit up in the trees, away from the crowd but also obtaining the best view for the film.

Climbing up the tallest tree they could find, Raphael and Mona Lisa sat side by side on a sturdy branch. A perfect view to watch the movie.

"What kind of movie do you think they'll be showing tonight?" Mona asked.

"Don't know, but I hope it's an action flick!" He looks at her, "How about you?"

"I'm in the mood for something scary."

"Horror fan, huh?"

"I enjoy a good fright," she then scoots closer to Raphael, "Plus if I do get scared, I have a strong Ninja Turtle to protect me."

Raph blushed from Mona's comment as the area went silent. The projector screen began to glow as the movie played. Raph and Mona began munching on their popcorn, watching the film, a romantic comedy of all things. Raphael couldn't help but find this all too coincidental. He then examined the areas, looking at all the other movie watchers at this event. All of them seemingly in groups of two. Some cuddling, some holding hands and a few others even kissing during the movie! That's when Raphael realized it. It was a couples night!

He felt his body begin to tense up. Are he and Mona Lisa expected to do what the other couples are doing? Should he hold her in his arms? Take her hand?! KISS HER?! Raphael's mind started to scatter, making him unable to focus on anything else.

Suddenly he felt it. Mona Lisa's head gently leaning on Raphael's shoulder. This action made him tense up even more. He wasn't told what to do in a situation like this! Does he let it happen or does he say something to her? Raph blushed, feeling his heart begin to race again. Sweat dripped down his face as his body shook from nerves.

His demeanor was quickly noticed by Mona Lisa. Lifting her head off of him, she looked at Raph worriedly, "Are you alright?"

"You have to be chill when with her. Don't get anxious! Stay calm." he remembers Mikey advised.

Slowly Raphael took a deep breath before letting out a gentle exhale, calming himself. He gives her an over confident smile, "Why yes, of course I am! Never been better!"

Mona stares at him intensely, studying his face, "You're sweating and turning red. More red than your mask. Do you have a fever?" she gently places her palm over his forehead, checking his temperature.

"Nope!" he chuckles nervously from her touch, "No fever. Everything is fine and dandy!"

She glares, not buying it, "Raphael, you can't hide this from me. I know you well enough. What's wrong? Are you not having fun?" a hurtful thought then came to her, "Do you not want to spend time with me?"

"No!" Raph quickly assures her, panicking, "I do want to spend time with you! I've been looking forward to this date all week!"

Mona Lisa froze, blushing from what she just heard, "You... thought this was a date?"

Raphael's eyes widened. Feeling his heart being seconds away from breaking, "It... it wasn't?"

Mona said nothing, staring at Raph with surprise as her face grew more flustered. Was this a date? She never planned for this to be a date, just a night out with her friend as a way to show her appreciation for helping her. Of course, it's just the two of them alone when she could have easily invited his brothers along too, but Mona Lisa wanted it to be just her and Raphael. Why is that? Because he means so much to her and wants to show him kindness just like how he did for her when they first met! Raphael is the first mutant she came across after her mutation, first to ever show her kindness and assure that her she is beautiful. Believing she was "grotesque", Mona Lisa could never have the courage to look at herself in the mirror, but then came Raphael telling her that what she was believing is not true. He called her cute and it gave Mona a sense of new found confidence that shines through her now. She always appreciated him for his kind words and he continued to show her kindness. Always making her laugh with his jokes (whether they were good or bad, she still couldn't help but chuckle), ready to listen whenever she has something to say, and always being there to help and protect her during battles. He has a good heart, impressive strength and has a charming smile to boot. But he's just a friend, right?

Mona Lisa thought it over some more. If they were just friends they wouldn't be acting like the way they are with each other now. From booping him on the nose, to him complimenting and giving her a rose, and her resting her head on his shoulder tonight, every action was in "more than friends" territory. She did these things instinctively. Mona Lisa wanted to flirt with him, get closer to him, be alone with him, because she...

Her eyes widening realization, Mona Lisa's face burned bright red as she cried out, "OH MY GOSH! THIS IS A DATE!!"

"SHHH!!" Raph panics, not wanting her screams to disturb the other movie watchers, "Mona, I'm sorry! I didn't mean to freak you out!"

"I feel so stupid!" Mona tells him as she pulls her hair in frustration. From the chaos, the rose resting in her ponytail that Raphael gave her earlier that evening fell out, landing on the turtle's lap.

Raph watched on, surprised by Mona Lisa's confliction, "I could've taken you to a fancier restaurant! Or did something more romantic for the both of us!" she turns to Raph, grabbing his shoulders, "You even dressed up all nice for me when I didn't even bother!!"

"But you always look nice." Raph told her, his face blushing nervously.

"Raphael, I'm sorry. I completely ruined the mood..." she said, anxiously playing with her hair, "I was so focused on just spending time with you that I didn't even realize we were on a date."

"Well, if it makes you feel any better, I didn't realize this was a date at first either."

She looks at him curiously, "Really?"

"Yeah, my brothers kinda had to make me realize it. They even gave me dating advice which is ironic since-" Raphael stopped himself, "Wait a minute..."

Now that he thinks about it, he doesn't recall any of his brothers mentioning if they've been on a date before. Michelangelo hangs out with Kala and her two other Neutrino friends when they visit from Dimension X and Leonardo and Lotus Blossom exchange letters every so often, what is in those letters Raphael doesn't want to know, and Donatello... Well, he's just Donatello. But no, none of his brother's have ever been on an actual date!

"Those numbskulls..." Raph grumbled, planting his hand on his face in annoyance, "I blindly took their stupid advice when they didn't even know what they were talking about! When I get back home, I'm gonna-"

Suddenly he heard an adorable sound. Mona Lisa's laughter. He looks at her, seeing a bright smile on her face hiding behind her hand as she blushes, "I guess we were both kind of foolish tonight, huh?"

Raph lets out a chuckle, "Yeah, but to tell you the truth. Date or not, I am having a great time with you."

"I am too."

"And it is not because of the movie or the dinner," Raph confesses, picking up the rose that fell from Mona's hair, "But because I enjoy spending time with you, no matter what we do together. From dinner and movies to stopping crazy pirate scientists, I always have fun when I'm with you. Anytime there's a reason to be with you, I always take it without a second thought. You're amazing, intelligent, pretty, and I..."

Raph blushes, taking the rose and carefully placing it back in Mona's hair. Caressing her cheek, he looks at Mona with a loving gaze as he tells her softly, "I like you."

Mona smiles, placing her hand on Raph's that rested on her cheek, "I like you too."

"So... This is a date?"

Scooting closer to Raph, Mona batted her. Carefully she leans in and kisses him on his cheek. She then whispered, "Definitely."

Raphael couldn't help but give a wide dopey grin as Mona Lisa returned to resting her head on his shoulder. Wrapping his arm around her, along with her tail around him, the couple held one another in an intimate embrace. They watched the rest of the film, happy and content with finally knowing what tonight truly is for them. Certainly not what Raphael and Mona Lisa expected from their first official date, but one they will look back on and laugh at together in the future. Remembering it as the humorous beginning of a new chapter for their relationship. What started as a simple evening hanging out as just friends, ended with them becoming something more.