"Papá? It's Taylor. Can we talk?"

Taylor waits outside Jack's bedroom door for some kind of sound. She knocks again, calling out to him softly, and she hears an affirmative grunt from within. She pushes the door open.

Jack lays on his bed, staring at the ceiling, but he sighs and sits up as Taylor shuffles in and shuts the door behind her. For a second, they stare at each other.

"I need to ask you something about mamá," she says. Jack's jaw clenches. "She said when you separated, you bought her out of her half of custody so that she could leave without being tied down."

He looks away from her, letting out a long sigh. "That's part of it."

"Why? She said she wanted to keep me around."

"Sure, she said that, but I knew her. I knew who she was. I..." Another sigh as he presses his hand to his face, only to run it back over his hair. "I was already losing her and the thought of...of having to share you when she only liked the novelty of being a mother; I couldn't do that to you."

She stares at him, biting her lip against the foolish tremble building in it. She pictures what it would've been like if she had gone to Spain every summer, but all that comes to mind is Isabel's expression from the beach, downtrodden in the face of her mother's disinterest. Taylor must have worn that expression a thousand times over before her mamá left.

Jack stares at the floor, his hands forming fists intermittently. "I wanted to give you the world," he breathes.

"I didn't need the world, papá."

He shakes his head. "I wanted to give you everything your heart desired and...and she only wanted what made her happy. She was always chasing her own happiness, Taylor, even when I begged her to think of our family. She..." He gazes at her with dewy, pained eyes. "I was falling apart and you were the only thing that kept me going. I couldn't let her take you away when she had taken everything else from me."

Taylor thinks of the night she packed up Bindo and her guitar, disappearing into the dark with little more than the backpack on her shoulders. "I needed my parents," she says. "I...I was a kid, papá."

"I know, I know, and I never should've been so selfish. I should've called Carmela sooner but I had too much pride. I thought I could handle it."

He drops his head into his hands and Taylor comes closer, hesitating before sitting next to him. The bed creaks, the mattress squeaking softly.

"The night I was arrested..." he says. "I was drunk and scared and...I called Bianca. I was going to ask her to help you, but she didn't pick up. Maybe, if she had..."

Taylor hugs his arm, tucking her head against his shoulder, feeling him quiver with emotion. If her mamá had come and gotten her, spirited her away...she would have never gotten mixed up with the Purple Dragons.

She would have never met Raphael.

"We can't change what happened," Taylor whispers. "All you can do is try to be better because of it and work for forgiveness."

He raises his head, reddened hazel eyes locking on hers. "Do you think you'll be able to forgive your old papá someday, selfish as he is?"

She nods. "I think so."

He brings her into a somewhat awkward hug, tucking her head under his chin and squeezing tight as he takes a big, deep breath. She returns it, far too aware of the second elephant waiting for its turn in the corner of the room.

"And..." She pulls away. "About Raphael." His lips purse tightly and she exhales. "I was going to tell you."

He runs his hand through his hair again. "So...the turtle thing wasn't sunstroke?"

"No, papá. He's a mutant."

He still seems pale, maybe nauseous. "And you...couldn't find a normal guy, or...?"

She frowns, crossing her arms over her chest. "No, and I don't want a normal guy. Raph...he's strong and thoughtful and...forgiving. He pulled me from a very dark place and..."

Her words clog in her throat. And she wants to spend the rest of her life by his side, if he'll let her.

"I..." Jack sighs, clearing his throat. "I'll admit, it's...it's gonna take me a bit to wrap my head around all this." He looks at her. "But, the most important thing is...does he treat you right?"

"Of course."

"And does he love you?"

She nods.

He holds his hands up. "Then I guess...I'm gonna have to find a way to be okay with it."

It's better than nothing. She gets to her feet, extending her hand to him. "Come downstairs. I'd like you to meet him, for real."

----------

Jack looks like he's going to be sick. Héctor's mouth hangs open in silent shock. Carmela clutches the necklace at her throat.

Raphael? Well, Raphael is wondering whether this was really the best idea.

"Papá, tío, tía, meet...the real Raphael," Taylor says, gesturing to him.

Raphael keeps his arms crossed over his plastron. He arrived here in the human patch, waiting in the living room with Carmela and Héctor while Taylor spoke to her dad. They made small talk, Carmela translating what Héctor signed, and Raphael tried to embrace what he was sure would be the last normal conversation they would ever have.

When Taylor returned with Jack, Raphael took the patch off at her command. Now, here they are.

"Dios mio," Carmela mumbles, fanning herself. "Ay, ay, ay..."

"Lo siento, tía, but...mamá and papá found out at the beach the other day. It's...why I haven't been here. We talked and..." She looks at Raphael for a second before reaching up and tugging his arm from his chest, threading her hand with his. "And I don't want to hide who he is anymore."

Héctor nudges Carmela, signing rapidly to her, and she shakes her head. "No, Héctor, you're not hallucinating," she says aloud as she signs it back.

Héctor looks back at Raphael, does a once over, and nods. He gives Raphael a thumbs up.

"Okay, one out of three is better than I expected," Raphael mumbles to Taylor.

Taylor releases his hand long enough to sign her gratitude back to her uncle. He makes a "no worries" gesture, patting the air with one hand.

"You've been dating a giant turtle?" Carmela finally asks, fingers spread wide as she frames her face with her hands. "Raphael is a giant turtle?"

"A mutant, yes," Taylor says. "Everything he's told you about himself is true: his hobbies, his favourite foods. He never lied, he just wasn't showing what he really looked like. You can understand why."

"I just...I...hooo, you, I can't—"

Carmela starts pacing, muttering in Spanish and flapping her hands around. Héctor and Jack share a look and Héctor shrugs as he gets to his feet, moving to his wife and grasping her shoulders as she turns back around to keep pacing, stopping her in her tracks. He strokes her arms, shaking his head.

"He's a nice boy," he says, his voice hollow and a little clumsy. He keeps stroking her, calming her down. "We liked him then. Why can't we like him now?"

Carmela's face softens at the sound of his words. She raises her hands between them, signing as she speaks. "Oh...you're right, I guess."

Héctor grins. Taylor laughs as he signs out, "That's a first."

Raphael smirks when she relays the meaning to him. Jack keeps sitting on the couch, staring at his daughter, at her choice of partner, and he lets out a long sigh as he tugs his hands through his hair again.

"So...so strange," he mumbles. "Dios mio..."

"We'll just have to get used to it, then," Carmela says. She smiles, although it's strained. "It's good to meet the real you, Raphael."

"Thanks for not screaming too much," Raphael says. Admittedly, Carmela did shriek a little when he first took the patch off.

Taylor squeezes his hand. It isn't perfect, but it's a start, and the weight on her heart has already lifted a little.

----------

Annalise walks in silence next to Michelangelo. Ahead, Splinter walks with Leanne, her holding tightly to his arm. The cemetery is quiet, a garden of marble stones planted in meticulously trimmed grass, dotted with stars and stripes. Some graves have fresh flowers on them, others are weathered and bare or the flowers last left behind have long wilted.

She grips her bundle of roses tighter and squeezes Michelangelo's hand. Their footsteps are too loud in the deadened air.

Her mother stops ahead, facing one of the thousands of identical stones as she drops to her knees. She reaches out and presses her hand to its smooth surface, a tiny sob hitting the air. Splinter reaches out and holds her shoulder as she weeps softly.

Annalise blinks away the tears in her eyes. Father's day is always the hardest day of the year in her tiny family.

She stops next to her mother, waiting for a moment before stepping forward and resting the roses in front of the grave. His stone doesn't have a picture, but she imagines the one hanging on the wall at home, the face of a proud soldier gone too soon.

She wishes she had more than just faint memories of him.

She steps back into Michelangelo's arms, letting him hug her close as she sniffles. Her mother wipes her eyes, leaning forward to press a kiss to the top of the stone.

"We'll be back for your birthday, Thomas," she whispers.

She turns to start the long walk back to the car, Splinter at her side, but Annalise lingers. She returns to the stone, resting her hand on it, reading the inscription of her father's name again. Her heart squeezes.

"Happy father's day, daddy," she murmurs. "Mom and I still miss you, but we're doing better now. Things are good. I hope you're okay too." She purses her lips, hesitates for another second, and adds, "I love you lots."

She returns to Michelangelo's side. He doesn't say a word, just spares her a kind smile and a strong, sure hand to hold.

----------

Sarina hasn't thought of Bishop in a long while, but he crosses her mind today. She glances up at the white sphere resting on Donatello's shelf of conquests. She has no way of contacting him, no way of reaching out to say hello.

She decides to let the universe convey her message and perhaps it will reach him in spirit.

"Happy father's day," she murmurs. "Wherever you are, I hope things are well."

----------

Destiny peeks in the window of Murakami's restaurant, watching as he fries vegetables on his large, flat grill. A middle-aged woman stands at his side, rolling dough with a smile on her kind round face.

Destiny hesitates, tucking her hands into the pockets of her leather jacket and brushing the envelope tucked inside. Maybe she should just go home. If he's busy...

She shakes her head and steels her nerve. The bell over the door dings as she enters, making Murakami and the woman look up. Her eyes widen at the sight of Destiny, but more in surprise than in fear, and Destiny sucks in a breath.

"Destiny-chan," Murakami greets. "To what do I owe the pleasure?"

Destiny hurries to the countertop, sliding onto one of the stools. "I wanted to stop by to give you something. If you're busy, though—"

Murakami laughs. "Oh, hardly!" He snaps his fingers. "I don't believe you've met Meeko, have you? Meeko, this is my dear friend, Destiny. Destiny, my daughter Meeko, my pride and joy."

He gestures to the woman and she bows her head. "It is an honour to meet you, Destiny-chan. I have heard much about you."

Destiny flushes. "I...yeah, same. Mr. Murakami gave me a cookbook that he said he originally made for you. The recipes are great!"

Meeko giggles. "I love that cookbook too."

"What do you have for me?" Murakami asks. "I'm very curious."

Destiny pulls out the envelope, pushing it closer. "I...hope it's okay."

"Meeko, do you mind?"

Meeko opens the envelope, pulling out the card inside. A 3D paper sailboat decorates the front and Murakami reaches out to feel it, nodding. Meeko smiles as she reads it.

"It's wishing you a happy father's day," she says.

Murakami touches his chest and Destiny's ears flatten against her hair. "I guess I wanted to thank you for how much you did for me when I was little," she admits. "You taught me how to brush my hair and teeth, washed my clothes, fed me..."

He did a lot for her in those first years after Mrs. Winchester died. He even taught her how to deal with her period the first time it came. She showed up at his backdoor in near hysterics, convinced she was dying. He brought her inside and taught her all about puberty, birds, and bees over a warm cup of soup. He didn't have to, but he went above and beyond for a child in need.

"I know I don't visit as much anymore," Destiny adds, "but I wanted to give you this anyway."

"Destiny-chan, nothing brings me greater joy than to see you happy," he says. "You found family, a home, and that is all I could have hoped for you." He takes the card, feeling the design on the front again as she smiles. "Would you like some gyoza for the road?"

Destiny's tail wags. "Yes, please."