A night out bar hopping is a common venture Casey Jones partakes in with his two closest friends, Raphael and Slash. A tradition they have done nearly every night since Casey first started working at The Dojo, especially on their days off. Once again, a night of drinking and partying throughout the city was planned. Unfortunately the plans were on a slight delay.

"It's midnight, where the hell is Raph?!" Casey grumbles aloud.   

Watching The Dojo's bartender pace up and down the city sidewalk, mumble continuously under his breath for the past hour was Slash. His arms crossed, leaning on a nearby street light pole as their only source of light. The two stood outside the entrance to Casey's apartment. The fancy black car from Casey's father's shop parked on the street, planned to be used as their transportation for the evening.

"Are you sure you told him bar hopping was tonight?" Slash asked, watching his friend continue his endless pacing.

    Casey was insulted by Slash's question. He remembered the discussion with Raph very clearly. Running into Raph on his way to work yesterday morning, Casey offered him a ride. During the drive the two friends agreed for a fun night on the town using Casey's brand new car he had "borrowed" from his father's car repair shop. Raph was on board and Casey told him he'd inform Slash. The plan was made and the bartender and bouncer arrived, but Raphael was nowhere in sight.

"Yes I did! How could he forget?!" Casey practically screamed to the night sky.

"Well, he's officially over an hour late." Slash says, looking at his wrist watch, "Why don't we just call it a night and head home?"

Casey stops in his tracks, thinking over Slash's suggestion. Call it a night? Go home? Slash truly must be off his rocker. They planned for a night of drinking and having fun, to see the sights of the city. Casey could hear the excitement and parties from the clubs just down the road, mocking him. He was missing out on everything, all because Raphael is a no show. That won't stop Casey Jones. He will have his night of fun, with or without Raph.

    "No!" Casey declares, throwing his fist in the air, "If Raph isn't going to show, then screw him! Come on, Slash! Let's go!!"

    Storming up to the car, Casey violently swings open the driver side door and hops inside. Grabbing the wheel he gestures for Slash to get in the car with him, his face desperately trying to hide his anger with a forced smile.

Slash looks at Casey, seeing his friend's face desperately trying to hide his anger of their outcome with a forced smile. He can already tell it's going to be a long night. Letting out an exhausted sigh, Slash joins Casey in the car. Once seated, the two friends drive off, looking for the best place to start their night of fun.

"So what's the plan, Jones?"

"Drink till we see double, have a wild fun night and then rub it in Raph's stupid face the next morning." He gives an evil grin, "Punishment for ditching us!"

Slash chuckles, "Him not showing up really got under your skin, huh?"

"He's my best friend, what do you think?" Casey grumbles, eyes locked on the road, "You should know this is out of character for him."

Slash had to agree. He has known Raphael longer than Casey, so he knows when something is out of character. Especially when he's seen Raph transform into the young man he is now. Being hired as a bouncer for The Dojo years ago when the Hamato children were all still teenagers. Mr Hamato offered Slash a job thanks to Leatherhead's recommendation. His alligator friend told him The Dojo is a sanctuary for someone in his predicament, one that Mr Hamato himself took pity on. Becoming the new bouncer of the club, The Dojo became a place where Slash can stay far away from his past. That was his only desire, but before he knew it, Slash grew close with the Hamato children, especially Raphael.

Ever since he was a teenager, Raphael has always been rebellious, but enjoyed the spotlight and singing on stage. Over the years however, Slash saw that spark in his friend slowly die. Mr Hamato would call it "a phase" but soon turned into the norm for Raphael. When Casey Jones was hired to be a bartender at The Dojo little over a year ago, that was when Raphael had more of a fire in him again. Mr Hamato always said Casey was a bad influence on his son, and while Slash can agree, he couldn't deny Casey gave Raph a sense of freedom. The two quickly became best friends and that was when their well known hangouts every night would begin, going out each night to drink, dance, flirt with girls and party till the sun would rise. A routine going on for so long now that Slash can't even recall when the two started dragging him along to their little outings, but he always enjoyed them. A bonus too so Slash can still keep an eye on and protect Raphael when he's out, since Casey is not a reliable bodyguard. This became Raphael's new norm, until tonight.

Not showing up was strangely odd for Raphael. For as long as he's known him, Raph was always up for nights of partying and drinking. Were there any signs that he missed? Signals to show his friend was changing his routine once more? Him singing the other night was abnormal but even then it was not his choice. It was by demand from his father. Did him returning to the stage reignite his dying spark?

"Maybe he-" before he could share his thoughts, Slash's eyes gazed outside the window, something catching his attention, "W-Wait! Stop the car!"

Panicked, Casey hits the breaks, stopping the car dead in its tracks, "What?! What's wrong?!"

"Look over there." Slash says, pointing outside, "Is that Michelangelo?"

Leaning over to Slash's side of the car, Casey looks out the window. His eyes widened from the surprising sight. Walking down the street was the youngest Hamato brother, Michelangelo. Hands deep in his coat with a brown newsboy cap up top his head, the turtle happily walked down the street with a chipper look on his face.

"It is!" Casey exclaimed, "What the hell is he doing out here all by himself? I thought he'd be out with Renet on his day off."

"We could follow him and find out." Slash suggested.

"We shouldn't do that." Casey sits back in his chair, "It's a complete disrespect to his privacy. It is not our business to- JUST KIDDING! LET'S FOLLOW HIM!!"

Quickly parking the car, the two friends rush out of the vehicle to begin their pursuit of the Hamato family's youngest son. Keeping their distance so he wouldn't notice them but close enough for Slash and Casey to not lose sight of the Turtle, he made his way down the busy sidewalk. Blending into the crowd, the two wonder where Mikey was heading, and soon their answer was given. Surprised, Slash and Casey stop in their tracks, witnessing Michelangelo enter inside one of The Dojo's biggest competitions, the popular comedy club known as The Holy Chuckle-upa.

"What is Mikey doing here?" Casey asked, looking at the club's entrance door, "His old man hates this place, just as much as that burlesque club."

"Only one way to find out..." Grabbing the bartender's arm, Slash heads towards the comedy club's doors, making their way inside.

Slash and Casey have never been to The Holy Chuckle-upa Comedy Club before, with Mr Hamato being very open about his dislike for his competition. The two never wanted to take the risk of going inside and their boss finding out, leading to them losing their jobs (with Galactic Gals being a risk they were willing to take). Tonight was the exception in order to feed their curiosity. The comedy club was surprisingly much like The Dojo with its layout of a stage at the end of the room and bar to the side. The lighting was more bright and warm, giving it a welcoming feeling when you step inside. Instead of music, laughter filled the air. A neon sign representing the theater's comedy and tragedy symbol hung above the stage. Posters of previous comedians who have performed at the club hung around on the clean red brick walls. The tables were small and each offered seats of two to four, the usual for an entertainment club. The place was nearly filled, some Casey could recognise as regulars at The Dojo. Looks like the competition was stealing their clientele.

Casey and Slash snatch a booth in the back of the club, far off so no one notices them, but also a good angle to spot everything in the establishment as they search for the young turtle.

"Any sight of him?" Casey asked, inspecting the area.

"Nope." Slash sighs, sitting back in his seat, "This place isn't that big, how could we lose him so quickly?!"

"Are you two waiting for one more?"

The duo look up, taking notice of a mutant frog man standing in front of their table. He was tall, with a sluggish posture and lean build. His two front teeth sticking out of his mouth as his dark eyes stared at them with a bored expression. From the notepad in hand along with the name tag reading "Napoleon" on his clean collared shirt, Slash immediately knew this mutant was their waiter

"Uh, in a way, yeah." Slash says, "We're looking for our friend who just walked in here. A short turtle with blue eyes and freckles. His name's Michelangelo. Have you seen him?"

The waiter thinks for a moment, "Yeah, I've seen a mutant who fits that description, but I don't know our performers names, they all go under aliases when they perform."

"Performers?" Slash repeats, confused, "What do you mean?"

The frog man slowly blinked at them, uninterested in answering his question, "Do you guys want anything or can I go?"

Slash sighs, "Just get us two shots on whiskey..."

The waiter nods and heads off to the bar to get their orders.

"That guy has to be messing with us, right?" Casey leans over to Slash, whispering, "Mikey isn't a performer here."

The lights in the club suddenly begin to dim, a single spotlight shining on the stage. Their waiter quickly returns to their table, offering them four clean shot glasses filled with fresh whiskey from the bar. The audience grew quiet while others quickly took their seats.

"Ladies and Gentlemen!" a voice echoes from the speakers around the club, "Welcome to The Holy Chuckle-upa! A place where we guarantee our performers will make you laugh so hard, your sides will hurt! We have an exceptional list of comedians with us tonight, so let's get this night of laughter started with our newest addition! Give it up for the amazing Turflytle!"

The audience roars with applause as the comedian makes his way onto the stage. A young turtle man dressed in a peculiar costume, he wore an average looking beige and white suit, extra fake arms hanging just above his hips, with the added detail of long antennas hanging from the headband on his head. Fake cardboard wings on his back along with goggles to cover his eyes. A ridiculous looking costume, but the audience was eating it up.

"Hello New York, buzz buzz!" Turflytle called out to the crowd, "What a great audience we have here tonight! Buzz"

"No way..." Slash and Casey both gasp in disbelief, jaws dropping to the ground. The two couldn't believe it. Though he was hidden behind a costume, there was no doubt. Turflytle is Michelangelo!

"You know, New York is a beautiful city, but from the locals, the biggest complaint I've heard is that the traffic is terrible! Luckily for me, I don't have to worry about that..." He shakes his wings towards the crowd. "I flew here!"

Da Dum Tss!

The audience burst into laughter followed by a roar of applause. Slash and Casey however, were silent. Their jaws wide open, unable to process what they were witnessing. Michelangelo was a comedian at his father's greatest competitor. They watched on as Mikey performed his routine under the aliases the audience knew as Turflytle. Joke after joke, he made the crowd burst into laughter, a smile never once leaving their faces.

"Wow, they really seem to like Mik- erm, I mean Turflytle." Casey whispers to Slash.

"He's always been a live wire so this is really no surprise, but I never thought he'd be working here behind his own father's back."

The routine went on for some time. With Turflytle making jokes, performing skits and even doing crowd work. Each audience member adored him, eager to hear his next joke. After about 15 minutes, Turtflytle took a sip from his glass of water that stool on a wooden stool by his microphone, preparing for his next joke.

"You know, this reminds me of this one time when some friends and I- Uhhh..."

At that moment the comedian freezes on stage, looking out to the crowd before him. He goes silent, staring off in the distance. Some audience members assume it's a part of his comedy routine while others grow concerned and suspicious the longer he stays silent. His face turned pale as his eyes were locked on them, his two friends from his father's club in the crowd.

"Shit! He sees us!" Casey panics.

Mikey snaps out of it, holding tightly onto the microphone, he tells the crowd, "Umm, reminds me of this one time when some of my friends and I forgot we left the oven on and now I must fly home to take care of that! Have a good night everyone! Buzz buzz!"

Dropping the microphone to the floor, Mikey makes a break for it, rapidly running off the stage and disappearing behind the curtain. Leaving the crowd hopelessly confused.

"He's leaving!" Slash states, quickly getting out of the booth, "Come on!"

"Hold up!" Casey stops, grabbing the last remaining shot of whiskey from their table, quickly chugging it, "Okay! Let's go!"

Leaving the comedy club, Slash and Casey find themselves back outside. Michelangelo was nowhere in sight. They knew that to avoid them finding him, Mikey must've snuck out through the back exit where only the performers can go, so finding him behind the club's building was their best bet. Pushing through the busy crowd, the two escaped into the nearby alleyway that led to behind the comedy club. Luckily for them, Michelangelo did not go far. Turning the corner, the youngest Hamato son was caught, jumping from surprise at the sight of his friends.

"Oh! Slash and Casey! What a totally random coincidence to have run into you both here!" he chuckles awkwardly.

"Baloney!" Casey cries out, his finger getting in the young turtle's face, "We saw you on that comedy club's stage, Mikey! Or should we call you Turflytle?"

"What are you doing here?" Slash asked, his tone more calm so as to not freak Mikey out more.

He rubs his arm nervously, "I just thought I'd go out alone tonight, clear my head, you know? Try performing somewhere else for a change."

Casey gasps in an over dramatic tone, "You're been seeing other entertainment clubs?! So scandals!"

"How long have you been performing here?" Slash asked.

"Just started yesterday," Mikey explains, "I was... out on a walk and thought I'd check it out. I originally went in just to have a laugh and check out the competition, but one thing led to another and I found myself on the stage performing a comedy routine on the spot! It was surprisingly fun and the owner asked me to come by again to do another routine, and lucky for me, The Holy Chuckle-upa insists that their performers wear costumes and use aliases, it's all a part of their gimmick. So, it gave me a chance to perform here without anyone recognizing me, but I guess it was too obvious..."

"Not entirely. We actually saw you go inside the comedy club. I think if we didn't see you beforehand, we probably wouldn't have recognised you on stage." Slash then looks at him, curiously, "But what I don't understand is why are you performing tonight? I thought Wednesday nights were your date nights with Renet. Did she cancel or something?"

Just hearing her name made Mikey's shoulders tense up, "They used to be..."

"What do you mean 'they used to be'?"

"Mikey..." Casey says, looking at him with concern, "Did you and Renet break up?"

He remains quiet, only responding with a slow single head nod.

"Oh, Mikey... I'm so sorry. You two were so good together. What happened?"

"It... was a mutual break up. Let's just leave it at that."

Slash crossed his arms, "Does your father know?"

"No!" Mikey panicked, scared of the mere idea, "And we don't want him or Renet's boss to know! We agreed to break up but pretend to still be in a relationship for publicity reasons! It's like acting!"

"So since you and Renet aren't together anymore, you've turned to comedy clubs to occupy your days?" Casey questioned.

Mikey shrugs, "I guess. In truth, I've always been interested in checking out The Holy Chuckle-upa, so no longer being in a relationship and only pretending to be in one is giving me an opportunity to explore new passions. I strangely feel at home there." He looks up at his two friends, giving a puppy dog stare, "Please, don't tell my dad I was here."

    Slash and Casey look at one another, processing all that Mikey has said. They were surprised to learn Mikey craved something more than what he had at The Dojo, but in truth they should've seen this coming. With Karai gone and Raphael losing interest in the family business, it wasn't going to be long before the other three Hamato children caved in as well.

Approaching the little turtle, Slash places his hand on his shoulder, "Alright, Michelangelo, we won't tell your father about the comedy club, but you should at least be honest with him about what happened between you and Renet."

"But if he knows we broke up he'll-"

"I know, but the longer he doesn't know, the worse the outcome will be when he does learn the truth. It would be better for him to hear it from you before some nosey reporter unknowingly finds out and tells the whole city."

Mikey thinks it over. As much as he would like to not tell his father, Slash is right. He is only delaying the inevitable. His father will only be more furious the longer he is lied to. Somewhere down the line, the truth will be out, and the longer it is hidden from his father, the bigger the catastrophe will be. Might as well pull the bandage off as soon as possible before things truly get ugly.

    Mikey slowly nods, "Okay, I'll tell him..."

    Slash smiles, patting the turtle's head to comfort him, "Come on, Michelangelo. Let us take you home."

    "You don't have to do that. I don't want to get in the way of your night off. You guys already do so much for my family when you're working at The Dojo."

    "Yeah, but you're also our friend." Casey assures him with a smile, "Screw bar hopping, we can do that any other night. Let us give you a ride home."

    Mikey looks at his friends, giving a slight smile, grateful for their kindness. Walking out of the back alleyway, Slash and Casey escort Mikey to their car down the street. Once everyone was inside, Casey drove off, their night of fun coming to an end.

The drive to take Mikey home was peaceful. The car radio played some gentle tones at a low volume while the human and two mutant turtles all remained silent. Sitting in the back seat of the car, Mikey stared out the window. Casey and Slash didn't know what the turtle was thinking, but they could assume his mind was occupied by his eventual conversation with his father, telling him about him and Renet ending their relationship. Though the plan was never spoken to one another, Slash and Casey both agreed that if Mikey needs back up when talking to his father, they'll be there for him.

Among the silence, Slash pulls out a cigar from his jacket and proceeds to search his pockets. He then lets out a groan as he leaned back in the car seat, feeling defeated.

"Something wrong?" Casey asked, eyes locked on the road.

"I left my damn lighter back at the comedy club."

"You shouldn't smoke, Slash." Mikey's voice spoke from the back seat, "It's not good for you."

"I know, but it helps me relax."

"Check the glove compartment." Casey tells his friend, "I'm sure there's one in there."

Slash nods, opening the car's glove compartment and beginning his search. As he rummaged through all the items inside, Mikey asked Casey, "Who's car is this?"

"A client of my father's."

"Figures. She is way too nice. No way you could afford her." Mikey snickers, his comment resulted in a chuckle out of Slash as well.

Casey rolls his eyes, smiling at Mikey's jab. Good to see he's feeling better, even if it means picking on him. As long as the young turtle is smiling again, it's worth it. Casey then took notice of Slash, his rummaging through the glove compartment had stopped.

"Found a lighter?" Casey asked.

"No..." Slash's voice shook, "But I did find something else..."

From the glove compartment, Slash pulls out his finding; a revolver with a steel barrel and a wooden handle. He holds it up high for the others to see.

"Woah! What the hell?!" Casey cries out.

    Mikey panics, "A gun?! "

    Slash carefully opens the cylinder to inspect it, "It's fine. It's not loaded."

    "Loaded or not, Casey, WHY is there a GUN in the car?!" Mikey asked, scared.

    "It's not mine!" the bartender quickly defends himself, trying his best to focus on driving, "It-It probably belongs to my dad's client! The guy must have left it there when dropping it off at the shop the other day."

    "Jones..." Slash's voice grew more rough, "Who exactly is your father's client?"

    "I-I don't know! Some business guy, I think?" he glances over at his friend, "Why?"

    "Look at this," Slash shows the weapon in his palms, directing their attention to its wooded grip, "See the engraving?"

    Casey and Mikey inspect the revolver, noticing a small carving in the wood of the gun's grip. A circle with what appeared to be the shape of a foot with five squared toes within the circle. Casey's eyes widened as Mikey sat back in his seat in disbelief, the haunting realization coming to them all.

    "It can't be..." Mikey's voice trembles.

    "Casey..." Slash looks at his friend with horror, "This car belongs to a member of The Foot Mafia."