It was just another day in the year 2105. A massive mechanical mishap had earlier threatened the futuristic city of New York, just before Donatello could figure out the last bit of the puzzle in fixing the time machine to go home. Unfortunately, Cody's home was hit hard, and the machine fell to pieces, setting everyone back once again.

Strange, thought Venus... Not to mention somewhat coincidental.

It took a few days, but Donny had managed to place the pieces back together, along with Cody's help. Venus, ever so eager to return home, stood closely, watching as the scientific duo worked hard to get the time machine to work.

"Hand me that 2.0 Allen wrench, Cody," Donny said, holding his hand out while keeping his eye on the prize.

Cody handed over the wrench of the future. "Here you go, 'Allen'," he chuckled. Donny smiled in response. Venus only scoffed. The red-headed boy couldn't help but notice the female turtle standing nearby, arms crossed. "Hey Venus, if you've got nothing better to do, why not come in and help?"

"No thank you," she responded coldly, "Not my forte. I would not want to ruin anything... like you do."

Donatello glanced up. "Ouch," he said, "Harsh, Venus. I know you're anxious to go home, but Cody's trying his best."

"I do not know, Donatello," said Venus, "You would think that the boy who invented this machine could fix it."

"I told you, Venus!" said Cody, "This was a prototype! I only wanted to glance into the past, and the whole thing went haywire and sent you guys here! I really want to help, trust me!"

"It's okay, Cody," Donny assured, "You're a smart kid. If you can get this thing to work to begin with, I know you can fix it up." The turtle gestured around himself, at Cody's fancy home and inheritance, courtesy of the O'Neil-Jones business empire. "How else would all this happen if you didn't manage to get us home?"

Cody smiled. "Thank you, Donny. Here, let me tighten that screw up..." He grabbed a wrench and made an adjustment to a bolt inside the machine...

KER-ASH.

Once again, all in pieces. Venus sighed and shook her head. "Typical..."

Cody threw the wrench in the wreckage in despair. "Oh, who am I kidding? I'll never get you back home! I'm a total klutz. I'll never get anything right!" He jumped to his feet and stormed out of the room.

"Cody, wait! We can just start over!" Donny cried, but the boy was long gone.

Venus strolled into the room. "Maybe you can fix this without his interruptions?" she said.

"Cody designed this thing to begin with," said Donny, "I would need his help to set everything up."

"I do not know," said Venus, "It appears he seems to wreck it more than build it. You would think he is TRYING to keep us here?"

Donny sighed. Here she goes again. "Can't you just give Cody a break?" he said, "He didn't mean to bring us to the future, and I can tell he's sincerely trying to make things right. And I doubt you breathing down his neck helps him any."

"I am not sure..." Venus crossed her arms, "There is something about him that I do not trust..."

"He's just a boy, Venus," said Donny, "And even if he was keeping us here... He's been alone most of his life, without his parents, and only his shady uncle and a smart-ass robot. Maybe we're the only friends he has."

"Ohh, how it breaks my heart," Venus faked grabbing her chest in anguish.

"Venus... Just go talk to him and apologize. Maybe for once you can see that he's a good kid."

Venus gave a low sigh. "Oh, all right. For you, Donatello, I will speak with him."

Venus figured that Cody was most likely crying in his room like a whimpering baby, so she headed straight over. She approached his door and knocked. No answer.

"Cody? It is Venus. I wish to speak with you."

The automatic door swung open, but instead of the red-headed boy, a large robot stood in his place. "Miss Venus," Serling snorted, "Haven't you caused enough trouble for Master Cody?"

"I would like to talk to Cody."

"He is busy."

"With what?" Venus tried to peer over the robot's shoulder, but Serling blocked her view.

"With trying to get an ungrateful little brat back to the 21st century. Now please leave!"

"If I may, I would like to have a look, see for myself his efforts on getting us home."

"The last thing Master Cody needs is to have you disrupt him! You're enough of a bother to him as it is! Now go!"

"Serling... please do not make me hurt you."

"I'd like to see you try..."

Venus leaped into the air and stuck her leg out, ready to knock Serling to the side... only she was caught last minute by robotic vines that appeared from the ceiling, and tossed her across the hall into the wall. Serling sighed with relief. "Ah, the wonders of technology today," he said as he disappeared back into Cody's room.

Venus rubbed the back of her aching head, grumbling to herself as she entered one of the many large living rooms. Michelangelo was at the game system, playing a new fighting game, Raphael was on the couch with giant headphones, listening to the latest popular music, and Leonardo was sitting in the center, legs crossed, in deep meditation.

"I just do not know what to do!" she cried, exasperated. "I am told that Cody is doing his best to send us home, but I am not given any proof. I find it hard to believe that he is honestly trying his best. I am sick of the future! I want to return to the present!"

No answer. Mikey kept playing, Raph kept rocking out, and Leo kept meditating. Venus groaned. "What is it to you, however? You all seem to be enjoying yourselves. You could care less if we returned home. You would rather stay here, wouldn't you?"

"Venus..." Leo opened his eyes and glanced up at the female turtle. "We all want to return home. But you've got to understand that complications happen, and things don't go our way overnight. The only thing we can do is deal with the situation as it is now. We can't force things to go right. There's a reason for everything that happens."

Venus sighed and lowered her head. "But what reason are we here for, Leonardo?"

"I don't know," Leo closed his eyes, "But perhaps we'll know soon enough."

Master Splinter was in his room, also in deep meditation. Candles and reed diffusers filled the dark room as he maintained his inner peace.

"Enter," he spoke, before Venus even had the chance to knock on the door. She quietly slid it open and slipped inside. "Master Splinter."

"What may I do for you, my child?"

Venus sat across from the elderly rat. "The others... they just do not seem to understand how I feel. They do not take this situation seriously."

"As in our being trapped in the future?"

Venus blinked. Splinter was amazing at knowing everything. "Yes, sensei..."

"What is it about our little predicament that troubles you, my dear?"

"Sir... Please forgive me. I know that I sound impatient and somewhat cold, especially to the young Cody Jones... But there is something about him that I do not trust. It seems that whenever we come close to finding a way back to the past, he finds a way to block it. I do not earnestly see how he is helping us, but rather hurting us. Perhaps... on purpose?"

Splinter took a deep breath, taking in her view. "That is a strong accusation, my child. Do you truly believe in this theory of yours?"

"I..." Venus looked away, "... do not know. The others trust him, but I cannot bring myself to do so as blindly as they do. Master... What is your opinion? Am I in the wrong? Do you believe Cody is truly our ally? Or am I just... being childish?"

Splinter was silent. Venus became a bit unnerved at this.

"... My opinion... Must not matter."

"Master...?"

"Although I am your master and your current guardian, and will do my best to lead you the right way... I am not a God. I do not know everything. Even Karai doubted the Shredder when she looked into her own heart. If you have your doubts about Cody, you must make certain that your views are not blinded."

"In other words..."

"Investigate if you must. Right or wrong, you must prove it to yourself."

Venus bowed her head. "Thank you, sensei."

"Is the coast clear, Serling?" Cody asked as his robot bodyguard opened the door.

"I wouldn't recklessly waltz out without making sure, Master Cody," Serling assured.

"You know how important it is. Double check. Humor me."

The robot sighed. "Very well," he responded as he activated his infrared sensors. He looked left and right. Nothing out of the ordinary. "Clear."

"Thanks," said Cody as he slipped out of the room, the door sliding shut behind him. He pressed a few buttons on a keypad on the wall, next to the door. "Locked and secure. C'mon, let's go find the others."

"Wonderful..." Serling groaned as the two headed off down the hall.

Once they were gone, Venus, perched on the top door frame, nimbly flipped off and landed quietly on her toes. She turned around and approached the keypad, pulling out a small, stick-like device that she had earlier "borrowed" from Donatello (when he wasn't looking, of course). She placed the device into the side of the keypad and pressed a small green button. The device scanned on its small screen various numbers and letters, while on the keypad, a password slowly began decrypting, until finally, it beeped and unlocked. The door slid open and Venus quickly leaped through.

Cody's bedroom basically served as his lab as well. Many tools and mechanical devices were strewn around. On the other side of the room was his computer, mounted on the wall, the screens replaced with holographs, showing an image of a password bar. Venus inserted the device inside a small slot in the computer and went through the same process again. The password was decrypted and the files were accessible.

Lucky for Venus this was the future, and computers have become much easier to use, that even Michelangelo could pass as a computer genius...

...Okay, maybe not.

Serling's head jolted up as he sensed his master's main computer being accessed... while his master was still walking next to him.

Cody glanced up. "What is it?"

"Master Cody," Serling lowered his voice, "I apologize, but it seems that your mainframe has been infiltrated just now."

Cody furrowed his eyebrows. "Better check it out. Quick!"

Venus skimmed through various files, feeling somewhat guilty going through Cody's personal stuff rather than finding anything about any plans. She didn't need to be reminded he was still a young man with average young man "desires".

After a while, she was ready to call it quits and admit she was in the wrong... when a file stood out. "TMNT" Suspicious, she pressed her finger on the folder icon in the hologram, and another password bar came up. She activated the device once more and managed to open the file.

This folder was much more interesting than all those naked space-girls. One file that stood out was entitled "OBIT: April." Venus tapped the icon, and a newspaper clipping appeared. The top header read, in large black font, "PURPLE DRAGONS ARRESTED; MURDERED SHOP OWNER." Venus blinked in shocked. They couldn't possibly mean...? She forced herself to read on.

"June 15th, 2006... Police have arrested 3 men on charges of ruthlessly beheading a woman in an underground sewer hideout. They believe the three men have links to the mysterious "Foot" clan that has been terrorizing New York for the past couple of years. Police investigated strange behaviors below in the sewer level, after seeing many men come and leave an abandoned warehouse on 33rd St, and came across a clan of Purple Dragon Members hiding out in a secret base. The gang fought back, but back-up was called, and the gang members were eventually subdued. Police eventually came across the body of a woman, whose head was sliced off by what police speculate was a sword. The body has been identified as that of April O'Neil-Jones, the owner of an antique shop 'Second Time Around' on 30th St..."

Venus stopped reading there. April... Murdered? She had to take a step back as she reeled in the information. How could this be possible? Then again, according to the date, it was weeks after they were transported to the future. April had left town earlier that month, distraught after learning she was a cartoon design rather than a real human being. There was no way she could have known they were no longer at base. And without them at base, all their defense systems were left unguarded, possibly leaving ShellQuarters wide open to be found by The Foot. April must have returned and come to their home for a visit, only to stumble upon the infiltration. There was no way she could ever take on a group of Foot Soldiers by herself...

Venus looked back up at the screen and spotted another file: "OBIT: Casey." No...

She tapped the file, and up came another newspaper clipping. "MAN FOUND HUNG IN BASEMENT OF ANTIQUE SHOP"

"June 22nd, 2006... Police discovered a death by suicide in the basement of the antique shop 'Second Time Around' on 30th St. They believe it to be the body of Casey Jones, husband of the recently deceased April O'Neil-Jones, who was owner of the antique shop and murdered a week ago by Purple Dragon gang members."

Venus nearly fell backwards. Casey had killed himself, shortly after April's death. He most likely felt guilty not being able to save her...

April... Casey... Their friends... Gone.

But wait... If Casey and April died before pro-creating, how in the world can Cody exist?

An attack by Baxter Stockman had left April sterile, causing trouble with conceiving. This question was raised before, but Cody could only pass it off as his grandfather being simply a "miracle child". But without any miracles to begin with, how could he possibly be here?

Venus closed out the files and dug around some more, eventually coming across a file titled "PROJECT: FAST FORWARD". Venus opened the file, and a large word document appeared.

"May 28th, 2006... Turtles and rat are brought into future. Destroy time machine... Turtles' technology brought to Purple Dragons. June 15, April O'Neil killed. June 22nd, Casey Jones killed. 2020, Marty Jones of Purple Dragons sells technology. Claims to be long-lost relative of Jones-O'Neil line. Inherits antiques, years go on, descendants claim to be direct blood-line of Casey and April."

Instructions...

Venus opened one more file, titled "TIME WINDOW". Blue prints popped up. Exact step-by-step directions how to set together the time machine. Every specific nook and cranny. Donatello could set this together under five minutes.

Cody was definitely keeping them here!

Venus grabbed a nearby disk and inserted it into the computer, downloading all the information she could. Before she could finish-

Everything went dark. A power outage? No, not in 2105. A back-up system would have immediately kicked in.

Someone knows she's here.

Metal whips shot down from the ceiling, surrounding Venus. She tried to fight them off, but they were too fast and too strong and she was captured within a minute. She struggled but couldn't get out.

The door opened, letting in a certain amount of light. Venus looked up to barely see the silhouette of a boy and a large robot. "Don't you know it's rude to go snooping through other people's belongings?"

Venus seethed. "You...!"

The computer monitors flickered back on, being the only source of light as the door closed behind Cody and Serling. "Venus, Venus, Venus..." said Cody, shaking his head in disappointment. "I knew I had to keep an eye on you, but who'd thought one of you idiot turtles would take it this far?"

"I knew it all along!" Venus growled as she struggled against the wires to break free, "All those 'failed attempts' to get us home were really to keep us here purposely! You have planned it all along!"

Cody smirked. "Guess you're not as dumb as I thought. You certainly stand out from your brothers."

"But why?"

"Why?" Cody laughed, and raised his arms up to show around, "Hellooo! Look at all I've got! The 'missing link' of the O'Neil-Jones bloodline inherits all the world's treasures and money galore! How could I NOT do all this?"

"So the poor, innocent boy reveals his true colors," said Venus.

"And the poor, investigative turtle is turned to soup for digging too deep."

"You will not get away with this," the female turtle threatened, much to Cody's delight.

"I think I will," Cody showed everything around him once more. "See all this? It's not here because I eventually send you all back home. It's here because YOU'RE here. See Venus, everything happens for a reason. Every action has a reaction. My action of being you turtles to the future causes the reaction of the Foot infiltrating your lair and killing your friend April, which causes Casey to off himself. The turtles' technology is stolen by a techno-geek with the same last name Jones, and passes himself off as a long-lost son, builds himself on all this, keeping all the records of what happens up to now, where I take over. And as long as you turtles are here, I get to keep this rich, fabulous life."

"Why string us along then?" asked Venus, "Why not just bring us here and kill us?"

Cody looked away. "Well… I have to admit," he said, "You guys are pretty fun. Serling's not much for company, and I haven't had any real friends."

"I wonder why?" Venus grumbled.

Cody glared back up. "You see, you're more like pets to me. Fun to play with, but when you go bad, you've got to be taken care of. Know what I mean?"

"You can't do that," said Venus, "The others will surely notice that I am missing. What will you do then?"

Cody cleared his throat, and put on an innocent face. "Guys! I don't know what happened to Venus!" he sobbed, "We got into an argument, and she kept getting on my case, 'Why aren't you getting us back? Why aren't you getting us back?' and I just... lost it! I yelled at her, told her to leave me alone! And she just got so MAD, she stormed off and I haven't seen her since! We've just gotta find her! Oh, if something happens to her, I'll never forgive myself!"

Venus bared her teeth. "You son of a bitch! They will never buy that!"

Cody went back to his devilish smirk. "Oh I don't know about that," he said, "They've stupidly believed my stories up to now."

Venus pulled at the wires some more. "You!" she screamed, "You won't get away with this! You just wait until I escape!"

"We can't have that now, can we?" Cody turned to exit, snapping his fingers. "Kill her."

Venus gasped as Serling stepped in front of her, aiming his arm, which transformed into a gun. "With pleasure, sir."

Cody stepped out of the room, smiling to himself as the door closed and he heard a blood-curling scream.

A/N: Okay, okay, hold your flames. This isn't a serious fic. This is just your typical A/U "What-If" story, as in what if Venus was part of the group when the turtles were brought to the future? And what if Cody was a bad-ass mofo? Personally, I don't like either character, but instead of writing hate-stories or drawing hate-art, it's more fun to be imaginative and turn Cody evil and make Venus the martyr.

Either way, AU. What-If. Don't take it too seriously and enjoy Venus' death.

Okay… NOW you can hurl the flames. XD