A/N: Here we are, at the start of yet another book. I won't bother complaining about the trouble it gave me; if you care, you probably already know from the Cause and Effect facebook page. Anyways, like "Sunrise" and "Cause Worth Celebrating" this book is character-driven as opposed to plot-driven (with the primary couple being Leo/Coyo.) And I wanna thank DuckiePray and Sciencegal for letting me vent to them to get this thing complete. Love you! Now on with the show.


CHAPTER 01: SAISEI

Cleaning day sparked as much competition amongst the Hamatos in their mid-twenties as it had back when they were children. The only difference over the years was that they had additional players. Oh, and the Lair had been replaced by Saisei.

"Being in the jungle has put you out of practice, Bro!"

Leonardo glanced up in time to see a blur of orange and blue-green flip over his head, from the stairs into the living room where the Jonin cleaned ash from the wood stove.

"For the last time, it was a rainforest, Mike!" Donatello screamed somewhere unseen.

Michelangelo chuckled then brought his attention to the lithe cyborg in a poncho. "Still on chore one, Mel?"

Melody kept focused on her feather duster, which flicked curt sweeps over one of the multiple seats around the wood stove.

"You know you're supposed to wash cloth seats, right?" Mike added.

The cyborg made a face with a subtle draw-down of her eyebrow and lips. "I have literally grown up in dirt. So have you. I fail to see the importance."

"This coming from the doctor? Come on, we got the little dudettes to consider!"

"Dust builds resilience to allergies."

"Uh-huh. You're just sore you drew the dusting card from the hat. Again."

Melody huffed yet dropped the subject along with her robotic hand. Her mismatched gaze fell on Leo for all of a second before she shied away, pushing back her ear-length hair and retreating to the dining room.

"Still can't keep eye contact, can she?" asked Mikey lowly.

"We..."

"It's okay, Leo. There's no rush. For either of you."

True. Still, the Jonin felt a pang of regret every time Donny watched his wife and brother part ways without a word.

"Yo, Figo! You're slacking!" Leo braced himself for the petite blonde that swung over the second-story balcony to her boyfriend's side. Her upturned nose pointed towards the ceiling, a smirk crossing her freckled face. "I've already done the bathrooms."

The jokester gapped. "What?"

"You heard me. I'm about to steal work from Defi, too. At this rate, the prize will be all mine."

"Bathrooms were Coyo's job, Hoshi."

"We switched."

"Hold it"—Leo's shovel crunched in the ash pail—"you left Coyo with the vacuum?"

Sophia shrugged. "Can't be any worse than the dishwasher, right?"

"Or toaster?" Mikey added. "Dryer? Stove? My poor, poor Gameboy?"

"That was your fault," Leo told the orange-masked Chunin.

"How was I supposed to know she'd be scared of zombies?"

"She hasn't be desensitized to half the stuff we are."

"Please; she grew up protecting aliens, but the moment a guy with his eye falling out comes up on a small screen, she chucks it out a window. A window, Leo! It was vintage, too."

"That's what you get for taking a jungle girl out of the jungle," Sophia said with another shrug.

"Rainforest!" Don's voice screamed. The trio glanced around, although with the new intercom system the genius had installed left no clue of his true location.

"Stalker," the blonde grumbled.

Mounted speakers clicked. "Not stalking. Testing."

"You better not have one of these things set up in the bedrooms, you kinky—"

"Easy, Hoshi." Mike patted his girlfriend, grinning at her growl. "Don ain't that weird."

"I'm not—"

Leo stood and waved a hand he knew Donny saw over the security monitors. "Get back to your chores. I'm going to check on Coyo."

Sophia needed less encouragement than Michelangelo; the tip of her pale ponytail disappeared beyond the dining room archway before he realized her advantage. The jokester mentioned something about how only he could steal from Raphy, but any other complaints fell on deaf ears as Leonardo mounted the stairs to the second floor. He passed Mia and Nia in the nursery, and thankfully, the twins were awake because the commotion down the hallway would've been a rude awakening.

"Coyo!" Leo dashed towards an overturned shop vac whose hose sucked in over half of his wife's curls. The native rocked on her tailbone, feet, and hands attempting to free her while Yolotli squawked. "Wait, you're hooked!"

The Jonin kneeled to unwrap layers of hair pinched in the hose's accordion bend then fumbled for the power switch. By the time the machine whined down, Coyo had scrambled against the wall and protectively combed fingers through her tangles.

"You're supposed to be watching her," Leo told Yo. The Blue-throated Macaw puffed his neck feathers then shook his head. "Yeah, you were," Leo added.

"Awk! Coyo hate! Coyo hate!"

Leo fought a laugh when Coyo glared at the vacuum—her overactions at times matched a cat's—yet the frustration through Mozallo kept him silent as Yo hopped towards his owner on his good talon.

"Stupid monstrosity," she said in Nahuatl. "How does Leo's family stand this life? So many strange noises. Water inside home. Warmth without fire. No link to nature. A contraption for any basic need. And unnatural entertainment."

"It's called TV."

"How can one enjoy watching people trapped in a box?"

"We've been over this. They aren't miniaturized people or trapped."

"Look wrong. Feel wrong. Is wrong. Like one-eyed monster."

Leo watched his wife shake her head and Yo rubbed his beak against the bubbled skin along her near-mutilated feet. "Put on some warmer clothes," he said. Coyo looked up with inquisitive, orange eyes. "That romper won't do you much good outside."

"Outside?"

"I know it's frigid by your standards, but you like the river, right? We can wash things the old-fashioned way. Or beat rugs. Like back in Ecuador. Sound good?" The Jonin pulled his wife up by the hand when she nodded. Yo hitched a ride by climbing her back to her shoulder, though Leo plucked him off. "It's too cold for you," he said. "Stay in our room, alright?"

The McCaw squawked in displeasure. Still, he didn't fight to return to Coyo when the native headed downstairs.


It was a warm April day, compared to the bitter snap that had covered New York City in deep snow a week prior. Fifty degrees, perhaps? High enough to warrant a light jacket, although Coyolxauhqui's teeth chattered no matter how many layers she buried herself under.

'Shame Mike's Christmas Story comment went over her head,' thought Leo with a smile. 'She does look like Ralphie.'

The native pulled at her mittens then snorted before swinging a broom against a rug hung over a clothesline between two trees by the semi-frozen river. She beat dust from it over and over, each time harder than the last until a brown cloud flowed with the breeze and she began to pant.

"Woah, woah!" Leo stole the broom when his eyes stung. "Easy, Notlanextli!"

Coyo made a mixed noise between a huff and a groan, despite the tender address as Leo's 'light.' She averted her gaze, occupied herself by crunching through the foot of leftover snowfall along the riverbank.

"I'm not even going to ask if you're okay," the mutant continued.

"Noyollo..."

"It's fine. I expected this." Leo reached for Coyo with the broom held in his other hand. He brushed aside the curly hairs splayed outwards from static, which added a distressed element to her contorted expression. "How many times do I gotta tell you not to worry or rush?"

"But," she croaked, "Coyo no help, make worse."

"What are you talking about? This rug has never been so thoroughly cleansed. I think."

The attempt at humor fell short; Coyo's stare grew glossy, and her Texohuitztli scrunched as she grimaced. "How Coyo belong?" she whispered. "Leo's tribe like alien planet."

"No one said you had to live like us."

"Is Leo's city, home."

"So?"

"Coyo should—"

"Adjust how she feels comfortable. No one expects you to become a modernized woman, let alone in such a short time. All we ask is that everyone here is themselves."

"How Coyo be Coyo when she no knows her role again?"

Leo's voice lowered as his arm slipped behind his wife to pull her against his plastron. "Your role hasn't changed," he said just above a whisper. "You're co-leader, my support, my other half. The others respect you for that. Trust they'll accept the ways you prefer to do things."

"Th—they like modern."

"I've come to realize a break from city chaos is healthy. You can find common grounds. Don't be afraid to look for them."

"What ground?" Coyo asked with furrowed brows. "All share ground. It stony and wooden."

"Not literal ground. I mean you can find things to bond over."

"What about Ayannite woman?"

The mutant stiffened. Mozallo let him know how unnerving Coyo considered Melody to be, although the opinion could've been tainted by Leo's past experiences, not the native's dislike for machinery.

Coyo sighed, saying, "Leo struggle, too."

"She probably struggles with me more than I do her, but..." Leo also sighed. "We live in Saisei."

"What Saisei mean?"

"Rebirth. New Beginnings. This place has lived up to its name in so many ways. It won't stop, either. Melody and I will work things out. Like you will work with the others."

"Why confident?"

"Because if you could bring me back from the brink of suicide, you can befriend anyone." Leo used his wrapped arm to draw up his wife, who he kissed, soft and fleeting like the snow that began to drift down from gray skies.