7122/Did I Do that

Did I Do that
Date of Scene:	29 July 2021
Location:	Brooklyn
Synopsis:	April does what April's do, and takes in another half animal half dood to feed and water and probably have a whole new type of Neenja attack her or something! Its what she does!
Cast of Characters:	Alderic, April O'Neil

---

Alderic has posed:
    Alderic has been on his own for several weeks now. The city isn't an environment he's used to. It's loud, there's people everywhere, there aren't many wild animals for a beast like him to hunt. Though he's made a friend who introduced him to delicious hot dogs, he can't find them whenever he wants them! Sometimes Alderic has to go scavenging to find what he needs.
    He's found himself in Brooklyn, in an alleyway, just as the sun was going down. The streets had largely cleared out, so he wasn't too worried about someone walking by the alley and seeing him. He stayed hidden most of the time, but with his stomach rumbling Alderic had to venture out of his hiding place and search for food.
    The alleyways between restaurants were the best place to look, and the feline man was not above dumpster diving. He prowled up to one of the large green containers with the lid left open. He climbs up and leans into it, leaving his legs practically sticking out in the air behind him. He rummages around inside it, looking for food that hadn't yet gone bad, or at least not bad enough that it would make him sick.

April O'Neil has posed:
The guilt that April felt about releasing a Cougar man on to the populace was weighing heavily on her. So April put out a call to her reliable sources in the area to keep a look out for a person meeting such a description. It took awhile to get a hit, but she eventually did.

She ended up going to a old junk yard privately owned several blocks over from her own place in Brooklyn. This is where she spent the past hour wandering around, shining her flashlight around in the dark.

Dressed in a white tanktop with a black hoodie around her waist, blue jeans and white and yellow sneakers, April is crawling over a fence and dropping down on to the other side on to the dirt road that goes between the junk yard and the buildings by the main pavement.

She drops on to her feet and crouches down with her light aimed at the dirt, then exhales and moves to stand up again... feeling proud of herself for the killer fence climb moves... its the little things in life!

She sighs though as she wanders down at the far end of the alley that Alderic is in, her flashlight bouncing around the walls of the alley now as the young woman walks past it...

Alderic has posed:
    Thankfully, Alderic hadn't hurt anybody! Not yet anyways. There was always the distinct possibility that someone could make some bad choices and decide to harass him when he doesn't need to be bothered, and end up in the hospital for it - or worse. Instead he kept to the shadows and hid from the majority of the population.
    Hearing someone approaching, Alderic lifted his head from the dumpster. He's got a half-eaten slice of pizza in his mouth. It wasn't from one of April's friends, everyone knows there's never leftover pizza when they're around. Seeing the flashlight, Alderic ducks behind the side of the dumpster, hiding out of sight. He quickly eats the food he managed to get, and then cautiously peeks his head around the corner of the bin.
    Alderic stays hidden until the flashlight leaves the alleyway, just as April's about to move on to the next one. It's then that he gets a better look at her, and catches her scent on the wind. He only met her for a few moments, but Alderic never forgot a scent. He knew who she was immediately, and just as she turns away he ventures out a raspy "Rrrowr!" to get her attention. He doesn't come out yet, but continues to watch her from around the corner of the dumpster.

April O'Neil has posed:
April's hoodie waves around her waist as she walks down the alleyway with her light shining around. She sees a car or two pass by down at the mouth out to the main street but otherwise sees nothing out of the ordinary. By the time she's halfway down the alley she's pulling her phone out of her right jeans pocket and just walking and tapping away at the screen...

Such is the way with people these days, even on a mission she can't keep her eyes off her phone.

It isn't until she reaches the mouth of the alley that Alderic catches her scent and makes that noise which has April suddenly stopping and turning around to shine her light in the direction she thought it came from.

"Hello?" April says back the way she'd come, toward that dumpster.

She turns fully and starts to walk back toward it... her head leaning to the right as she looks around her own light. "Hello? Is that you... uh... Cougarguy?" She asks.

Her feet crunch on the gravel and dirt strewn alleyway as she draws closer with tentative steps.

Alderic has posed:
    As April makes her way back down the alley, Alderic slowly slinks from the shadows. "Rrowr..." He replies to her with another raspy sound, to get her attention again. He doesn't come bounding towards her, instead keeping his distance. He's just letting himself be seen.
    Alderic settles on his hands and feet near the middle of the alleyway, his tail twitching behind him as though he were nervous. He's looking around constantly, as though the alley itself didn't feel safe to him. Finally he looks back to April, head tilting slightly as if with curiosity. "Rrowr?" The sound that comes from Alderic is inquisitive, at least, if not directly understandable. Maybe he's wondering why April is looking for him! Regardless, he's right there in front of her now, and waiting to see how she reacts to him.

April O'Neil has posed:
April stares at the Cougar with wide eyes as he walks closer to her but she can tell he's not doing it in a hostile way. She shiens her light down at his feet as he draws closer, and when he's right up on her she just exhales.

"Wow." She says softly. "Okay, well, Hi. I'm April." She considers offering him her hand, but then realizes... he probably doesn't know what that is or means to do.

"So... you don't talk, right?" She asks waiting for him to reply and when he just doesn't do it with WORDS she bites her bottom lip and nods her head a couple times before looking back the way she'd come from. She flips her light off so as not to draw attention now and she looks back to Alderic.

She spies his collar and tilts her head, but can't read it in the dark...

"So, I mean, I guess this is my life... finding half man, half animal ... people... and I dunno, helping them? Though I dunno if I've helped you much yet..." She exhales and looks back toward the back alley of the street, where there are the backs of the buildings and the junkyard fence. "You wanna come with me?" She asks him. "I can find you a place to..." She glances at the dumpster and sees he's been thrashing around in it...

"Find real food, not garbage...."

Alderic has posed:
    Alderic tilts his head to the other side as April talks to him, but he's clearly listening to her. His eyes and ears are both alert and focused on her, though he keeps himself well out of arm's reach for the moment. He's wary of her still, uncertain what might happen if he goes with her. "Rrowr..." The sound itself is wrought with uncertainty, and he looks around the alleyway again.
    He could use real food, though. And probably a bath, judging from the looks of him. He hasn't exactly been sleeping at the Ritz, after all! Filthy alleyways and under bushes and in trees, places to keep out of sight and away from curious eyes. If it weren't for April's friends also being on the lookout for him, she might never have found him even here in Brooklyn.
    The cougar-man seems to hesitate and consider her offer though. He knew what that meant, and what she was offering him, at least at the moment. He didn't know if he could trust her completely, but she let him out of the cage in the lab, and was offering him real food. What did he have to lose?
    "Raow!" Alderic seems to have made up his mind, and cautiously, he crawls closer to April. He moves on his hands and feet, but he's grown quite accustomed to it. His movements are still fluid and graceful, like one would expect from a feline. As he draws nearer to her, he pauses and leans in closer, straining his neck towards her hand. He sniffs at her fingers curiously, and then gives the back of her hand a little nudge with his nose.

April O'Neil has posed:
The response from the big cat has April showing a faint smirk. "Right. Anotehr mouth to feed." She says with a bit of sarcasm. "But I guess I owe you that, I'm the reason you're out here after all..."

When he nudges her hand she smirks and raises her hand up to pet the top of his furry head. "Affection. Well that's better than Screamy Bitey Clawy Raw Raw...." She pets his head for a moment before she turns then when she hears voices at the street side exit of of the alley. "Come on." April says. "We better take the back alleys." She states then as she motions at him with her flashlight still off, and starts to walk toward the direction she'd originally come from with the tall junkyard fence.

She looks back at him to make sure he's coming. "Can probably set you up at the Mall, maybe, if the Guys take to you well enough." The Turtles live at a Mall now, its a long story. Abandoned Mall at least!

Alderic has posed:
    A low, deep rumbling comes from Alderic when April pats the top of his head, and he nuzzles into her hand. At least it shows that he understands friends - perhaps some of the scientists at the lab weren't treating him so badly, even if he was in a small cage for a creature his size. When April moves towards the other end of the alleyway, Alderic follows, padding along on hand and foot beside her. He keeps up easily, and even bounds ahead a few paces when they reach the corner so he can peek around and make sure he's not going to be spotted by anyone.
    He looks back over his shoulder at April. "Rrowr!" Who knows what that means, but apparently the coast is clear. Alderic's never been to a Mall, abandoned or otherwise, but it's certainly an option. When April catches up to him, the cougar-man nuzzles up against her side, rubbing against her like an overly large housecat. He practically knocks her off her feet with his strength! It really is a good thing he's affectionate, and not aggressive. It's unlikely that even turtle ninjas could save her from those claws if they were turned on her.
    All the while they walk, Alderic is darting around the alleyways. He's sniffing at curious scents, and exploring the area - building a mental map so he knows where he's been and how to get back to where he came from, if he decides he needs to escape suddenly. In his experience, he knows the park he's been sleeping in is safe, at least for now. He couldn't say so much about April's place, or this Mall she's mentioned!

April O'Neil has posed:
April keeps her flashlight off for now as they walk together, she figuring she's more safe with this new companion on her side for the time being at least. The homeless and otherwise are more likely to leave her alone now, right!

She watches him as he bounds around, and stumbles when he bumps in to her which has her laughing softly. "Okay, okay, simmer down now. The food at my place isn't /that/ good." She jokes in that corny sort've way that is her very own style.

She makes sure to peak otu of the alleys to the streets that they need to cross and motions him when the coast is clear to run across the street with her in to another alley... she knows these short cuts like the back of her hand since she grew up here.

Once they're in HER alleyway, she stops and puts her hands on her hips, breathing gently with her lips parted as she looks down to her building. "The Hyenas...." April mutters, panting softly from the running, a bit of sweat on her skin cause its freaking almost August. "This might be tricky..." She mutters as she looks back to Alderic. "I hope you get along good with... others." She's worried, of course, about her roomates pet Hyenas that live in the stairwell leading up to her apartment...

Alderic has posed:
    It isn't long until they're making their way up to the front door of April's apartment building, and his head tilts a little when she mentions hyenas. Alderic has never met hyenas before, so there's no telling how he'll react to them! "Rrowr!" Alderic replies with his usual inquisitiveness, squatting by the door as he waits for April to open it. Perhaps it's a good thing that Alderic hasn't figured out door latches just yet.
    Alderic is already sniffing around the door before April can open it, but when it does and he's faced with two hyenas. Immediately his back arches and his hair stands on end. He bares his teeth and hisses at them, before scampering away a few paces. "Rrraowr!" Alderic's being loud, but it's just a warning to the hyenas.
    They keep their distance from him, at least at first, and when one of them gets in close and nips at the back of Alderic's ankle, the big cat-man suddenly twists around and -smacks- the hyena in the face! "Rrraow!" Alderic hisses again, but the hyenas seem to have gotten the message, as they start to back off again. Maybe they won't be friends right away, but they're not fighting in the street either!

April O'Neil has posed:
April is reluctant to use this door to get inside, but she lives on a busy street and getting Alderic in through the front door would be a bit more risky. She doesn't want people seeing a Cougar Man with her going in to her store which is supposed to be closed up anyway. It raises questions in a small knit community like this!

So she opens the door... and tries to shoo Bud and Lou back as they catch wind of whats coming in with her.

Look what the Cat's drug in! The cat being April this time!

"Stop." She tells the Hyenas in a loud whisper. She isn't wanting to get Harley's attention either, but she can hear thumping music upstiars so that probably won't be a issue. "Come on, quit back up. He's with me!" She tells the two Hyenas who are all over Alderic and ignoring April like they're protecting her almost.

She winces at the swipe Alderic takes but when the two back up she moves to the Antique store doorway and cracks it open. "Come on." She motions to Alderic, reaching out to grab him by the arm and guide him in to the store.

Once they're in the store she slaps the door to the stairwell closed and leans back against it to release a heavy exhale.

"God. Those two..." She says, hearing them yipping in the stairwell now. She sighs heavily and then looks at Alderic before stepping toward the back room of the Store. The Store is... just as her mother left it, but dustier and like a time capsule back to the early 2000s.

Once at the back room, April flips the light on. "My friend Vanessa used this room last, so its all cleaned up and nice..." She tells the Cougar man, not sure if he can even understand her. The room has... everything, in a smallish space. Even a small kitchen with a little fridge. A dresser and office desk and a bed with a lamp beside it, and a tv on the far wall. "It was a show room, originally, my mother had furniture setup here to show people how to ... I dunno... arrange a room?" She grins and looks at the Couga

"You probably don't know what I'm saying, huh?" She smirks.

Alderic has posed:
    Alderic didn't hurt them at least. He didn't even use his claws, it was more just an 'establishing dominance' sort of thing. Making a point, rather than wanting to cause injury. Once they've come to an understanding, the hyenas back off, and let Alderic pass by them. He prowls into the building after April, following her into the back room.
    Like everywhere else, Alderic is sniffing around curiously at the various scents that are in the room. It certainly doesn't seem like he's listening to her, or can understand her, until she actually asks him about it. His ears perk and his head lifts, before he half-twists around to look at her. His head tilts slightly and he nods his head! "Rrowr!" He can understand her, it would seem - even if he can't reply in kind. Likely a side-effect of the not-quite-complete mutagen that was used to make him what he is now.
    The cougar-man returns to April then, nuzzling up against her side as soon as he reaches her again. He purrs warmly, tail swishing behind him as he curls around behind her legs like an enormous housecat. "Rrowr," he intones, much softer now rather than the loud noises he was making with the hyenas. At least they don't seem to have attracted much attention, for the time being!

April O'Neil has posed:
April crosses her arms over her stomach as she watches the Cougar man's reaction to being in this room. "I guess this isn't really what you're used to, huh?" She says to him as he moves to circle around her and show affection or gratitude for the room at least.

"Don't mention it." She says to him with a reach down to pet his head again softly. "So... we'll get you a bath some time too. Maybe in the morning? I dunno... you definitely need one, can kinda smell ya, Big Guy." She states with a smirk.

"Let me go get you some real food too. We got some roast beef left overs from a neighbors house party last night." April walks to the door of the backroom again and pauses near to it. She smiles at him then. "You wait here, okay? I'll be right back."

She'll close the door behind her to make sure he doesn't roam the store quite yet as she doesn't want it getting messe dup!

Alderic has posed:
    "Raow!" Alderic replies cheerfully when April says she's going to get him food and he should wait here. He settles into a crouch and watches her leave the room, but he doesn't stay quite still while she's gone. He takes the time to explore the room more, crawling over the furniture and under and around things, doing his best to get where-ever he can without knocking something over or breaking something else. It's not a cage, though, and it's dry and safe. Well, safe-ish. It's unlikely that masked ninjas are going to risk busting into this particular building after what happens literally every time they have in the past.
    When April comes back, though, Alderic is nowhere to be seen! The door wasn't busted down, and he hasn't broken anything trying to get out. He simply... isn't there! It's something she might be used to, considering her friends are ninjas, and a little bit of looking around reveals Alderic has somehow managed to squeeze himself under the bed, all the way into the back of it against the wall, like his own little hiding spot. He gives her another small "Rrow!" when she finally finds him there.

April O'Neil has posed:
Sure enough, Harley is in her bedroom streaming herself singing along to pop music. Her audience is probably too huge to even say out loud too, so April just bypasses that scene all together and instead slips in to the kitchen to get the food and put it in to some plastic tupper wear. She grabs a few other things like a water bottle... but then subs that out for a large bowl she fills with water.

"Seems more like his speed..." She mutters as she gathers it all up and heads back down stairs.

Boy is it not easy to take roast beef past the Hyenas, and by the time she makes it she's a bit more ruffled and disheveled than she was before!

But once she's back in to the 'furniture show room' April is setting the food down on the small kitchen table in the equally small kitchen space here in. "I made it." She huffs." Then looks around....

She spends the next minute or two looking before she's down on her hands and knees and peering under the bed. "Heya." She says, seeing him back there, her hair laying down on the floor beside the bed on the rug draped over the polished concrete. "Food is here." She says with a smile before vanishing back up to her feet...

Alderic has posed:
    Alderic can hear the music through the walls, of course, but it's not so loud that it bothers him down there in the former-showroom. He can also already smell the food, and when April stands up after finding him, the cougar-man wriggles his way out from underneath the bed. How he managed to fit beneath there is a mystery, but his catlike physique has managed to allow it.
    Alderic goes right for the roast beef when April sets the container down, his loud purring distorted by the process of chomping on the meat in big chunks. He crouches down low to eat, but it really only takes him a few seconds before that whole bowl is emptied out. He must have been pretty hungry after all! Once he's licked the bowl clean, Alderic turns his attention to the bowl of water, sniffing at it a bit before starting to lap up the clear liquid.

April O'Neil has posed:
"Good stuff, yeah." She says as she watches the Cougar eat up the food and drink the water. Her hands move to untie her hoodie and then she unfurls it and slips it on since her apartment and store are well air conditioned now that she's got a bit more money to buy such things.

She pushes the sleeves on the hoodie up and moves over to the bed to gather up the shetes and comforter before laying them on the ground. "I figure you're more used to sleeping down here than up on some bed, so..."

She goes about setting him up a place to sleep too. "Tomorrow we'll introduce you to the shower... That should be fun!" She states with a grunt. "Maybe then we'll get the Van and see if you'll fit in over at the Mall. I think the guys and gals over there will enjoy having you around. There's a Lion Lady, so that's like a cousin almost, right?"

April smirks at herself while setting up a sleeping pit for the Cougar. "Okay, I think I got... I better go check on Harley, she'll maybe wanna peak in here too before it gets much later."

Alderic has posed:
    Alderic licks over his maw when he's done drinking water, though there's still some of it clinging to his chin when he comes up to nuzzle at April again. He purrs loudly, clearly appreciative of all the efforts she's going through for him to be comfortable. He spends a few long moments firmly rubbing his face against her, practically knocking her down again as he showers her with feline affection. Eventually he lets up, though, likely when she makes him. But he seems happy, and that's the important part! At least for now. We'll see how things go when he's introduced to showers!