Disclaimer: I have no ownership of TMNT nor do I profit from this in any way.

Drabble set between 'Serpent Hunt' and 'The Pig And The Rhino'. AU by default because there's no way there was enough time between those episodes for this to happen, but oh well.

She didn't know who he was, or where he came from. He said "Leo" to her a lot, but she didn't know what the word meant. His other favourite was "Karai" - whatever that was. She almost wished he would explain it, but she was aware she wouldn't remember the next time they met.

In fact, she barely remembered meeting him at first. It had started when it was dark; she had been curled up on top of something tall and stony - a building, she thought - and she was alone. And then she wasn't. He materialised beside her silently. She had lunged originally, fangs bared, serpent-hands hissing. But he had stayed put, allowing her to encase him in her coils. Then he said it.

"Karai," he'd whispered, sounding sad. He looked sad, too. "You remember me, don't you?" She really didn't, though part of her felt she should. "I'm Leo."

She had wondered what "Leo" meant even back then. She knew she had asked him many times. "Leo...?" Every time he had merely smiled at her, never answering her question. Though it was hard to voice her whole query, as speaking was such a struggle. She wondered why. She wondered a lot of things.

She often wondered why he did it. The serpent had been about to bite him, kill him with her venom, or just squeeze the life out of him. Yet he remained calm. He managed to work one arm free of her coils, and gently began to stroke her head. It felt nice. She relaxed her coils, allowing him to breathe but still holding him.

"That's my girl," he murmured approvingly, placing his other arm around her back. She had set her head on his shoulder, hissing quietly in pleasure as he caressed her. They had spent a long time up there, sitting on the building and cuddling until it started getting light again.

Though he seemed sad to go, she assumed she wouldn't see him again. But then, as she returned to the building in the growing darkness, he was sat there waiting for her. It became a routine, a constant; when it was dark, he was there. She liked it. Probably because she liked him. Sometimes, though, she forgot to go back to the building for a few nights. He was never mad at her, just amusingly frustrated, and often worried.

He worried a lot, especially the times that she forgot to clean off the blood after a hunt. He'd check it wasn't hers, tut at her, then wipe it away with the bandages he tied around his hands.

"Stop turning up with blood all over your face," he would chide, "it scares me."

It became so regular for her, that on the rare occasion he didn't arrive in the darkness, she grew scared. She slipped into the mindset she usually reserved for hunting or when she felt threatened; a cold, calculating and stealthy thought process. Though whenever he missed a night, he made it up to her the next time.

"I'm so sorry," he'd murmur, stroking her head as he unveiled his offering.

He would often explain why, but it was too complicated for her to follow, and she was typically distracted by whatever he had brought her. He seemed to realise this, because it wasn't long before he stopped explaining and just gave her the treat. Once it was a small portion of little white grains, once neat pastries filled with tomato and cheese, and once a greasy triangle that tasted just like the pastry. The presents were all delicious, but her favourite thing about them was the warm look in his eyes when he gave them to her, and his chuckles as she gobbled them up.

The best nights were when they just sat together - well, he sat, she coiled around him - and he talked to her. "I can't believe you picked this building to sleep on," he said to her. "Do you remember it, Karai?"

She shook her head. Something about the building felt familiar, and she felt safe, but she didn't remember anything about it. "No..."

He sighed. He did that a lot, too. "Well, I do. You asked me to meet you up here. You wanted to steal a sword." He smirked fondly. "You've always been a risk-taker. Anyway, that was the first time we ever met up on purpose. We were kneeling up here, looking into that window. It's called the Byerly building. Can you say that? By-er-ly."

"By... Byer... ly..." she attempted. He smiled at her and squeezed her shoulder. He understood that she struggled with speaking, and took the time to try and teach her new words, even if she knew it frustrated him.

His eyes met hers, and she tried to smile at him. She didn't know why he seemed to like her so much, but she was definitely grateful; roaming the streets alone was scary, especially in the dark. She knew instinctively that she had to avoid the people on the streets, and the shapes she saw leaping on the roofs at night, though she had no idea why. It was nice to be able to fall asleep with him watching over her, and to wake up knowing that he had protected her into the light hours.

"Wh... Why...?" she tried to ask, as he tucked her up in a ragged blanket and concealed her from view.

He smirked down at her. "Because I care about you, Karai. Even if I'm not sure you know who I am..." He but his lip, and asked, "Do you know who I am?"

She closed her eyes. "... No..." she admitted quietly.

He lay his forehead against hers and groaned sadly. "Oh, Karai... I'm so sorry this happened to you."

"Wha... What...?"

"You don't remember, sorry. I forgot." He laughed bitterly. "How ironic."

"I... Iro..." She couldn't get the word out.

He shook his head at her, placing a hand over her mouth. "No, no, don't try. It's not important enough to stress over." He swallowed nervously. "Do you... Do you know who you are?"

She didn't reply, but she didn't need to. One glance into his eyes made it clear that he already knew the answer.

His eyes watered. "You... You are Karai."

"Ka... rai..."

"Yes. And I'm Leo."

"Leo..."

"That's right. If nothing else, you have to remember those two things, okay?"

She didn't quite believe she could, but she promised anyway, and that seemed to make him - Leo - happier, so she vowed internally to at least make an effort. Thankfully, she discovered that trying to keep three words - Leo, Karai, Byerly - in her head wasn't too hard, and it was more than worth it to see how proud it made Leo when he asked her and she could answer correctly.

Karai wasn't sure what to call the emotions Leo made her feel, but she knew she enjoyed the warm, bubbly feeling in her chest when he cuddled her on the edge of the roof. One night, as he knelt over her and wrapped her in the blanket, she leaned up. She supposed the notion came from how he frequently smacked his lips at her, making silly little sounds that made him laugh when she mimicked them (he said they were from something-X, but that didn't make sense to her). His lips just looked so appealing, she couldn't help wondering what they felt like. But to her dismay, once he realised her intentions, he gently took her face in his hands and shook his head.

"No, Karai," he instructed her. "You... You can't do that."

She frowned. "Why...?"

"Because - Karai, you're a snake, aren't you?" She nodded; he said the word to her a lot, normally in conjunction with "sorry". He ran a hand over her head, then tugged at her main jaw. "And snakes have venom in their teeth. The venom is harmful to people - and turtles, like me. That means your mouth - any of your mouths - can't touch me... Do you understand?"

Karai thought so. She hadn't understood all of it, but she knew that venom was the burning taste she sometimes got in her mouth, and she heard Leo say it would hurt him, so she sullenly started to retreat.

"Hey, hey, where are you going?" Leo was still holding her face. "I'm not mad, it's okay."

He pulled her closer, tucked her head under his chin. They remained that way for a while, his breath ghosting over her scales and his chest shaking slightly beside her. Something wet dripped onto her head and trickled down her cheek. Curiously, she peered up at Leo. His eyes were watering worse than ever. When he saw her staring, he quickly scrubbed them dry. Then, he leaned down, brushing his lips against her head. He moved to her cheek as she shifted, trying to close the little remaining distance.

Eventually, he seemed to steel himself, before pulling away. He dragged the blankets around her again and lay her down, stroking her head. "Goodnight, Karai." He hesitated, then whispered something she had never heard before. She didn't get a chance to ask; he was gone by the time she formed the question.

She knew the word "you", and she had heard "I" a lot. But what in the world did "love" mean?