A/N: This is my first LeoxKarai piece, please be gentle. I'm normally not one for this pairing, but this one-shot just hit me out of the blue and I had to write it down. Hope you enjoy it.

Disclaimer: I own nothing


Leonardo stormed across the rooftops, not really paying much attention to where he was going. He just needed to get out; away from his family, especially Raphael and Splinter. Once again, Raphael had stuck his nose where it didn't belong. He saw the way Leonardo looked at Karai during an encounter while out on patrol earlier that night, and saw how she looked at Leonardo. When they got back to the lair, Raphael called Leonardo on it. Leonardo denied looking at Karai as anything other than an enemy. Raphael had called Leonardo an idiot for not seeing that Karai was just pulling him along in her little mind games. It made Raphael's stomach churn in anger that his brother was so blinded to the obvious.

Leonardo fired back that Raphael was the idiot, saying that he was so closed minded that he couldn't see the good in Karai and that, given time, she would come to see reason and turn to their side. That was when Splinter had walked in and asked what the fighting was all about. Both brothers told their father their side of the story and Leonardo was confident that he had won the fight. However, his spirit was crushed when Splinter sided with Raphael. Splinter said that Leonardo's heart was in the right place, but his hope that Karai would leave Shredder and join them was just that; hope. Karai was too loyal to Shredder to leave his side and that Leonardo had to be careful to not fall for the allure of what he called forbidden fruit. What seemed good and inviting would eventually lead to downfall and despair.

Leonardo stalked up to an air conditioning unit and leaned up against it. After a couple of seconds, he turned around and started kicking at the unit, taking all of his anger and frustration out on the metal fixture.

"They just don't get it!" Leonardo yelled, kicking the unit with each word. He backed away and ran a hand over his face. "Why can't they see the good in her? She's smart; fun; cool...beautiful..." He trailed off as his anger began to subside. "Deadly," Leonardo muttered under his breath.

"Sounds like my type of girl," came a familiar female voice.

Leonardo's heart dropped into the pit of his stomach as Karai stepped around the other side of the air conditioning unit. She put her hands on her hips and cocked an eyebrow in a quizzing manner, a smirk painted on her lips.

"How-how long have you been there?" Leonardo asked.

"Longer than you would like," Karai answered. She walked over to where Leonardo was standing. "So, this smart, fun, cool, beautiful and, most importantly, deadly girl. Do I know her?" Karai asked.

"Um...well...uh..." Leonardo stammered.

Karai's smirk widened. "Why, Leo. You wouldn't be talking about little ol' me, would you?"

Leonardo looked anywhere but at Karai, giving her all the answer she needed. Karai's smile faltered and she looked away; a strange sadness filling her eyes.

"Be careful, Leo," she whispered, making Leonardo turn towards her.

"Of?" he asked.

Karai started to walk away. "That which you can't have," she replied. "I'm sure you know what forbidden fruit is?"

Again with the fruit reference, Leonardo thought. "Yeah," he answered. "Something that looks inviting but only causes misery."

Karai nodded. "I struggle with it everyday," she confessed.

Leonardo frowned. "What's your forbidden fruit?" he asked.

Karai turned back towards Leonardo. "You can't tell anyone."

"Okay," Leonardo promised.

Karai leaned forward. At first, Leonardo thought she was going to whisper something in his ear, but then he was pleasantly surprised when Karai locked lips with his. He closed his eyes and leaned into the kiss. Karai's lips were so soft, like silk; and they tasted like strawberries. After what seemed like minutes, but were only mere seconds, Karai pulled away, much to Leonardo's dismay.

"No one can know about this," Karai said.

All Leonardo could do was nod. With one final kiss, Karai turned and left; leaving Leonardo standing alone on the rooftop. He knew what forbidden fruit was, but man, did it ever taste good.


Reviews are welcome, flames are not