Angel: Hey guys! I can't believe I've gotten this far in my series in just three months…next thing you know, I'll be on the fourth season…my other two stories are kinda continuous…I love how much I've done in just three months. *smiles* I've done a one-shot, the past two seasons, a Songfics story, and a Q&A…And I have found trivia facts! I will say them at the end of every chapter. By the way, if you haven't read the other two stories, go ahead and read! And I put up the first chapter of my Disney/TMNT crossover, so go check that out, please. Anyways…Casey. Disclaimer. Now.

Casey: *groans* Angel doesn't own anything but her OCs.

Within the Woods

April's POV (Never thought I would do this one)

I sit on the swing outside as I write and draw in my journal. It was a gift from Amy.

I'll never forget the night we left New York City. The Kraang defeated us. Leo and Amy got badly hurt. I was glad to see her awake when we left. Master Splinter is…gone. We lost. We had nowhere to go. So we came to the old farmhouse I grew up in, miles away from the city a place we could all be safe in. The first thing we did was take care of poor Leonardo. Amy didn't need much medical attention, she's a fast healer. She's fully healed now. Raphael keeps a constant vigil over Leo, with Amy, waiting for him to wake up. Michelangelo goofs around a lot, but he does a ton of chores around the house, with Lily helping him. But mostly, he goofs around a lot. At least Lily keeps him in check. Donatello built a lab in the barn, trying to create a mutagenic medicine to heal Leo.

But I'm starting to really worry about Amy. Why wouldn't I, she's my best friend. She never leaves the bathroom. She barely eats, sleeps, nothing. She doesn't even talk to anyone except Raph anymore. All she does is watch Leo. Day and night. Ann and Jamie try to get her out of the bathroom, but they've never succeeded. They gave up about a week ago. I think she blames herself for what happened to Leo. Every time I walk past the bathroom, she's saying something like 'All my fault,' or 'I should have done something.' I know how much she cares for Leo…and how much this is affecting her. I don't know what to do, she doesn't listen to me anymore. I wish I could help, but she doesn't seem like she wants my help, or anyone else's. Not even the turtles, and they're her adoptive brothers. She's been through so much…I hope Raph can knock some sense into her or I don't know what I'll do...

And then there's me, April O'Neil. I spend most of my time training with the Turtles and writing in my ever-expanding journal. I miss New York, my Sensei, my dad. I miss the old Amy mostly. Hopefully Leo will recover, and we can all go home soon, if there's ever a home to go back to. But life, as Master Splinter would say, must continue on.

I shut my journal and look at the bathroom window. "Oh Amy…"

Amy's POV

I look at Leo, who had his mask off, emotionlessly. I would cry, but I'm out of tears right now. Raph pats my back. "I miss him too, sis," he tells me. I nod slowly. "You know, at first, I didn't like you," he starts. I snort as I remember the time I met them. "That's saying something," I mutter. Raph rolls his eyes. "Ha ha, real funny. But I'm serious. I thought you would steal away all the attention…I guess you could say I was jealous. But as time went by, you fit into our lives like…like a peanut butter and jelly sandwich," he says. He was jealous of me?! I raise an eyebrow. "That's what I'm being compared to? A sandwich?" I ask. "I'll find something better…you know how I'm the handsome one?" he replies. I roll my eyes. "Donnie's the smart one, Mikey's the goofball, Leo's the leader, and you? You're the angel," he finishes. I smile sadly. "Thanks Raph," I whisper. "No problem…but if you tell anyone, I'll kick your butt ice princess," he tells me. I smirk. "Don't count on it," I answer. I hear a groan and we turn to see Leo moving. "A-Ames? Raph?" he asks. I gasp and blink back tears. "L-Leo?" I ask. He smiles softly. "I'm here," he whispers. "Oh my god…" I whisper. "Guys! Guys! Get up here!" Raph shouts. The others immediately run upstairs and see Leo waking up. "Hey guys," he says in a raspy voice. "Leo!" Mikey shouts as he hugs him. "Okay, that hurts, take it easy," Leo replies. "Let us get you out of here," Donnie says and he and Raph pick him up. "Wait. I wanna talk to Ames alone," he explains and they sit him down on the chair. The others look at me and I nod slowly.

They leave and I look at Leo. "O-Oh my gosh…" I whisper as I let the tears flow down my face. Leo hugs me gently. "Hey, hey, it's alright. Shh…shh…" he whispers, stroking my hair. I sniff and hiccup. "I-I thought I lost you…" I whisper. "I thought I would never wake up, but here I am," he answers. I chuckle a bit before letting go of him. "We should get you patched up," I tell him. I stand up, but he stops me by grabbing my hand. "Ames, wait," he tells me. I turn to him. "Please, can it wait? You just woke up," I answer softly. He looks into my eyes, wanting to say something, but he sighs. "Okay," he answers before I gesture to the others to help him up.

Donnie looks Leo over and analyzes his physical condition. "So we've been here for three months? I've been out that long?" Leo asks. "You had us worried sick, Leo. Well, so did Amy, but she woke up as soon as we left. Raph and Amy barely slept. Heck, I don't even know if she did sleep," April answers. "That was nothing," Raph replies. "And I have slept," I retort. "Oh really? When?" Ann asks. "I've slept once every month," I answer and she gives me a wide-eyed look. "So, like, why does he sound different?" Casey wonders. That's true…he has a deeper voice now… "He sustained damage to his throat, and pretty much everywhere else for that matter," Donnie explains. Leo groans and Donnie holds up a small flask filled with medicine. "Here. Take some more of my special patented mutagen medicine. You'll be healed in no time," Donnie explains. Leo swallows the medicine. "Oh, that tastes like it's supposed to come out of me, not go into me," he replies in distaste. Jamie snorts. "Trust me, I've tasted way worse medicine," she mutters.

Raph gives Leo a pat on the back. "First thing tomorrow, we're gonna start training again, you, me, and Amy. We'll have you on your feet in no time, bro," Raph explains. My eyes widen. "Me?" I ask in disbelief. "I need all the help I can get. Please?" he whispers to me. "Fine," I murmur.

I yawn and rub my eyes. Why did it have to be the crack of dawn? "Come on, Leo, you gotta build up on those muscles. You've gotten super weak," Raph says to Leo, who was walking behind us with a walking stick. "Maybe this isn't such a good idea," I whisper to him. "Relax. Watch," he whispers as he sees a creek up ahead. "Don't rub it in," Leo replies weakly. Even with a walking stick, he has trouble finding balance. I walk over to him. "Let me help you," I tell him. He waves a hand away. "I don't think I'm- I don't think I'm ever gonna be the same again," he says. I glance at Raph. "Don't talk like that. That's not the Leo we know. Now come on, let's cross this creek," he answers. "I really don't think you should make him do this," I whisper to Raph. He huffs, ignoring me. Leo stands up and takes a swig of Donnie's medicine, then gags. I almost giggled until Leo drops the flask of Donnie's medicine. "Leo?" I ask in concern.

"Oh, I'm gonna-" he drops to his knees. "Leo!" I shout, running over to him. "A-Ames, I'm sorry," he tells me. I raise an eyebrow. "For what?" I ask. He then vomits into the dirt all the medicine he's swallowed, a few drops landing on me. "You okay, Leo?" Raph asks. "I'm not," I mutter, looking at the vomit on my skirt. Raph rolls his eyes. "Nice job, Romeo," he murmurs. "I think it's that medicine Donnie gave me. I'm not feeling too good," Leo answers. Raph and I help him up. "Come on. Let's get to the farmhouse," Raph says. "You need some rest," I finish as we walk back to April's farmhouse.

We all sit in chairs, except Mikey and April. Mikey was on the floor, his head in his hands, and April was standing near me. "I just can't stop thinking about Master Splinter. Maybe he's not really gone," Leo vents to us. I was told about Master Splinter a week after we arrived. I close my eyes painfully. Shredder…I can't believe all he's done to us. I shake my head. "I refuse to believe he's gone," I explain, making everyone turn to me. "We saw it happen, guys. Shredder threw him down a drain pipe," Donnie explains. "He could have survived! Someone could have saved him!" I retort. "Maybe Amy and Leo are right. I mean, Splinter was a great ninja master. The greatest in a century," April replies. "Thank you!" I reply. Then I hear exciting music from the tv. "Hey, dudes, the show's starting," Mikey tells us. He found some new show called Crognard the Barbarian. But all the electricity in the farmhouse goes out all of a sudden. "Aw, man. You gotta be kidding me," Casey replies, not pleased at all. I roll my eyes. "TV isn't everything," Jamie says. Mikey and Casey gasp in surprise.

"You shouldn't tell them that," I whisper to her. "It's just a blown fuse. I'll fix it in two shakes of a turtle's tail," Donnie tells us as he stands up. "At least we still have a fire," Lily says before the fire in the fireplace goes out as well. I slap my forehead. "Are you kidding me right now?!" Lily exclaims. "Wonder what's going on," Ann replies in thought. Is everything messing up today? "Looks like we need more firewood," Raph says as he looks at the fireplace. "I'll be back," Raph explains, starting to go outside. "I'll go with you," Ann tells him. Mikey makes kissy faces and Raph hits him in the head. Ann and Raph head outside. "Hurry back," I reply. "Yeah, yeah," Ann answers.

We're outside now. Raph and Ann never returned, I hope nothing happened…I look around with a flashlight. "Raph! Ann! They've been gone for hours now," I reply in worry. "Maybe they're having some alone time," Casey says in a teasing voice. I glare. "They wouldn't do that, they know better," I answer. "Raph! Ann! Can you hear us?!" Mikey exclaims. "Don't you think they'd answer?" Donnie asks. "All right, we split up. April and Casey, you guys take that way. Mikey and Donnie, you take that way. Jamie and Lily, you go in that direction," Leo orders. I smile softly. He maintains his leadership role enough he's feeble right now. "Split up? Are you loco, homey?" Mikey asks in disbelief. "April and Casey go off alone? Together?" Donnie asks in disappointment. Jamie, Lily, and I roll our eyes. "Mikey and Donnie, you take that way," Leo repeats sternly, turning around to the farmhouse. "What about you?" April asks Leo. "I'll wait at the farmhouse in case Raph and Ann come back. I won't be much help out there, anyway," Leo answers. "Come on, Amy," Lily tells me, starting to walk away. I look at Leo sadly. "I think I'll stay with Leo," I reply before I run up to Leo, putting his arm on my shoulder.

"Ames, what are you doing? Shouldn't you be helping them?" Leo asks. I smile. "You need just as much help as they do. I'll make you some tea," I answer. Leo shakes his head. "Don't worry about me. Go, they might need your help," he orders. "Leo, I'm not leaving you at the farmhouse alone. Take it or leave it," I retort. He sighs in defeat. "Thank you," he whispers, kissing my forehead. I lead him into the farmhouse and set him on the couch. "Stay," I order, pointing to him. He chuckles weakly. "Yes, ma'am," he answers before I head into the kitchen.

I walk into the living room and place a cup of tea in front of him. He winces in pain. "I think your wounds need to be changed," I explain as I grab some bandages. I kneel in front of him and wrap a bandage on his arm gently. "Ames?" he asks me. "Hmm?" I reply as I look over his wounds. "Remember when I was trying to tell you something before Shredder attacked me?" he asks softly. I close my eyes painfully at the memory. "What? What's wrong?" he asks. I blink back tears. "Why? W-Why did you do that? You wouldn't be in this state if you hadn't saved me. I still got hurt, regardless. You know what Shredder wants from me, so why did you save me?" I explain. He blinks slowly. I rub my arms sadly. "I-I kept having nightmares. That memory replays over and over again in my head. That's why I barely slept. And even if I did, it was only for an hour. This is all my fault…if I hadn't gone to look for you, Shredder wouldn't have attacked me, and you wouldn't be like this," I finish, tears flowing down my eyes. Leo reaches out and wipes them away. "Ames…I don't blame you for what happened to me. What I did was my choice. It's my fault. I couldn't bear to see him hurt you. If he did, it would have been you sitting here, and not me. I saved you because…I love you," he whispers. I gasp.

"Y-You love me?" I ask softly. He smiles. "For a while now. I've been trying to say that forever, but I was either interrupted or I was too scared. You're funny, caring, smart, and beautiful. Of course I love you. Who wouldn't?" Leo answers. I say nothing. "Ames?" he asks. "I-I love you too," I hiccup. Leo smiles at me and pushes my head. My lips fall on his and I smile. A few minutes later, I pull away. "I wanna try something," he tells me, sitting up with a wince. "Leo?" I ask. "I need some help. Can you take me outside?" he replies. I place his arm around my shoulder and lead him outside. "What are you doing?" I ask in confusion. He falls to the floor. "Leo!" I shout in worry. "No, don't help me," he answers. I press my lips together in worry before he tries to balance himself with his katanas. "I really don't think you should do this," I tell him. He groans in response. "Get on your feet, Leo. Stop whining and get up," he whispers. I then see April walking slowly out of the wilderness. I raise an eyebrow and give Leo an uncertain look. "April?" I ask. She quickly falls over. "Leo! Amy!" she shouts. I start to run over to her, but I trip.

April is grabbed by something. I didn't know what it was, it was too dark to see an exact person. "Help!" she yells. I was about to get up when a moving vine ties my arms up. "Let me go!" I shout. The vines then start to move, dragging me along with them. "April! Ames!" Leo shouts, trying to reach us. "Leo!" I yell, and then he fades away. The vines drag me into darkness, along with April. We scream and I look up to see trees. "What the heck is going on?" I ask April. "I-I don't know exactly. This thing started stalking Casey and I and he-" I look up and gasp to see a mutant. He had Casey's mask on and blue overalls. I scream as he grabs me.

I'm thrown to the floor, covered in vines. I see the girls, except April, in the same situation, except Donnie and Mikey were hung to the ceiling. They were the only ones awake. "Amy!" Mikey shouts. I see a plant-like version of someone. But he did have a red mask. "What is that?" I ask. "Raph," Donnie simply answers. My eyes widen. "What?!" I exclaim. What is going on? Raph, or at least his plant-like appearance, sees me and growls. "Easy, Raph. Try to remember. We're your brothers and sister," Donnie explains, trying to calm him down. "Yeah. You can come home with us and live in the attic. I'll give you growsticks and swamp water every single day. I promise," Mikey replies. Raph whimpers and then smiles, kinda like a dog. He licks my face, covering me in drool. "Ew…" I say in disgust. Ann laughs and Raph nuzzles her. She blushes. "Aww," I whisper. The mutant comes in, carrying April and Casey under his arms. "Aah! It's the Creep! That's what I named him," Mikey exclaims, whispering the last part to me, Donnie, and Ann. She rolls her eyes. "April! My poor, sweet chinchilla," Donnie says as soon as he sees April.

"Sweet chinchilla?" Jamie asks. The 'Creep' sets down April and Casey, who groan. The Creep then approaches Raph, who whimpers like a dog. He grabs Raph by the head, and blue mist appears. "Leave him alone!" Mikey shouts. Casey starts to wake up. "What's going-April, wake up!" Casey says, kicking April awake. We all painfully watch. "Raph!" Ann shouts. "It's-it's feeding off of him, like mutagenic fertilizer," Donnie explains. Once all the mutagen has been drained out of Raph, the Creep opens up his hand and only Raph's bandana and the remnants of his physical form drop to the ground. I gasp in horror. H-He's… "You turned my brother into a plant! You turned him into a plant!" Mikey says in an outrage. "You-you monster!" Ann screams. The Creep grabs Mikey. "Let me go, Creep! I'll bash that mutagen straight out of you!" Mikey shouts. "Help. Help!" we hear from outside the cabin. The Creep lets go of Mikey and walks outside. Who was shouting? I gasp in realization. There's only one person who wasn't captured. "Leo," Donnie and I say.

We hear panting, muffled screams, and snarling. I blink back tears as I try to imagine what was happening out there. We then hear a wail, and Leo limps inside. "Leo!" I shout happily. He sees the plant version of Raph. "What the heck is that?" he asks. "It's Raph," Ann answers. "Long story. Quick, get us out of here," Donnie tells him. He cuts us free. I brush dirt off my skirt and sigh in relief. We pull out our weapons and stare at the door, waiting for the Creep to show off. Ann, Jamie, and Lily grab tools from the cabin. We wait in anticipation. Then, something bursts from the side of the cabin. We all scream. Despite attacking the beast with all the tools in the cabin, the Creep reforms itself and stalks towards Leo. Leo backs up towards a shrine and the Creep stops in advance. I raise an eyebrow at this before I see the medicine Donnie made. Of course! The Creep is made out of Leo's vomit, which had mutagen! Waving the medicine at the Creep, Leo tosses the flask to me. I look at the flask and then at the Creep, who inches towards me. He lunges towards me, but I jump away from him.

"You want it? Come and get it!" I say to the mutant. He walks towards me and I jump up to the roof of the cabin. "Amy!" Donnie shouts, waving his arms. I toss the mutagen to him and he catches it. I see the Creep walking out of the cabin. I narrow my eyes and grab the edge of the top of the door. I swing my leg down, kicking the Creep back into the cabin. "Yeah, go Amy!" Mikey and Lily shout. I see chains and grab them before running outside. The others were tossing around the medicine in a dangerous game of 'keep away.' Leo pounces on the Creep from behind, shattering the flask of medicine with a pitchfork. "Amy! The chains!" April shouts. Ann, Jamie, and Lily help me tie the Creep to a tree. "That's what you get for messing with my mask, freak," Casey says, reclaiming his mask. I place a finger on my chin as the Creep growls at me. I take a deep breath and let it out, ice coming out of my mouth. "Whoa! You have ice breath?" Mikey exclaims. "Cool," Casey replies in awe as the Creep is now frozen. "There, now he can't escape," I tell the others. "That should hold him. Now come on. We gotta get him back to the lab," Donnie tells us. Leo looks over to Donnie. "Do you really think you can save Raph?" Leo asks. "Honestly, I don't know, Leo. I just don't know," Donnie answers, leaving us all depressed.

The next morning, Raph wakes up, fully restored in the barn. "Yes!" Donnie exclaims. "Oh no. Raph. Look at him. It's terrible," Mikey says. I roll my eyes. It's just Raph without his mask. "What do you mean? He's perfectly normal," Donnie answers and April puts Raph's mask back on him. "How about now, Mikey?" she asks. "Phew, yeah. Way better," Mikey answers in relief. "Oy vey," I mutter. "What the heck is going on?" Raph asks. "A crazy swamp monster sucked out your mutagen and turned you into a plant, dude. It was awesome!" Casey answers. "Too many mutants," Lily murmurs. "But I used this I.V. tube to drain all the mutagen out of the Creep and back into your body. Cool, right? Killed off the infection like a bad case of shell-acne," Donnie explains. "Ugh. Cool. Thanks, Don. So what happened to the monster?" Raph replies weakly. We look at the jar of what's left of the Creep. "It got turned back into swamp goo. Pretty wicked, right?" Casey answers. "How-never mind," Jamie says. "Donnie worked all night to save you. Leo and Amy never left your side," April tells Raph. Raph turns to Leo and I, and we were sitting on hay. We smile at him. "That's what family is for," I explain. Leo and I stand up. "We gotta heal up, Raph. We have a city to take back," Leo finishes and we give him a high-three. "I give that a big, fat, sloppy, wet booyakasha!" Mikey cheers.

It was nighttime now. I look up at the stars as I sit on the roof. I sigh. I miss my dad, Master Splinter, and all my other friends. I wonder what happened to them? I hope they're okay…The Kraang must have made everything into Dimension X by now… I hear a clatter and I turn to see Leo attempting to climb the window I came from. I giggle and help him sit down. "What are you doing out here, Ames?" he asks me. I look up at the sky again. "Just losing myself in my thoughts," I answer. "…You're thinking about your dad and Master Splinter again?" he asks. I nod slowly as a shooting star passes by. "The one time my father shows up and I missed him," I reply. He places an arm on my waist and pulls me closer. I place my head on his shoulder. "We'll rescue them, Ames. I promise," he whispers. I sigh and close my eyes. "I know," I whisper back. "I love you," I hear. I smile softly.

"I love you, too."

Angel: Yay! I'm so happy with how this came out…even though they were stalked by the Creep and Leo is still healing…I'm such a TROLL. XD Anyways, trivia facts!

This episode makes several references to the movie 'Friday the 13th':

The Creep's overall brands read 'Vorhees', much like 'Voorhees' the last name of Friday the 13th's killer.

This episode features piano-type music throughout.

(Note: This fact is a spoiler, since it reveals the name of the killer from the movie. If you are planning on watching, DON'T READ THIS ONE!) The Creep wears a hockey mask just like Jason Voorhees from the movie.

Jason wore a sack over his head once.

When Mikey gets tangled in vines and Creep shows up with a bag over his head, if you listen very carefully, a sample of the theme song from Friday the 13th is played. This is the last reference from the movie, BTW.

Ironically, there is a film called Within the Woods that has to deal with four teens staying in a cabin, in woods that are supposedly cursed.

An eight minute preview of this episode was shown at selected Wal-Mart stores at 2 pm on September 27th, 2014.

That was all! Bye!