The stone hopped along the water's surface several feet before it at last sank. Splish. Splish. Splish. Splosh. The act only added to Leonardo's frustration. I could have made it clear across to the opposite bank, he thought to himself bitterly. His gaze drew up to the night sky, his brother's words still echoing clearly as if Raphael were right beside him, yelling. The scene repeated in his head.

"You expect us to believe that load of crap?! I've heard this whole "poor little victim fox" sob story from you before."

"She's telling the truth. I… I know she is."

Even he could admit he had not sounded as confident as he should have been about it. What else could he have done? He had to stop his brother. He was going to kill her. Part of him mistrusted the fox, and with good reason, given their history together. Whereas he had been brainwashed to serving the Shredder, she had joined them of her own volition as far as he knew. Still, though…

"That why you're so hot to protect her then?

His anger rose again, thick fingers clenching at the cool, moist earth beneath him into clumps against his palms.

"What aren't you tellin' us, Leo?"

"Don't even-"

He could hear his teeth grinding menacingly as his fists came up to the temples of his head, whether they still held dirt or not. He wanted to scream, to curse everyone: the Shredder, Alopex, his brothers, even his sensei.

"Stop!"

Leonardo blinked, remembering Splinter's voice commanding the two brothers to cease. Bits of mud and bark clung to his fist as he realized he had been assaulting a tree beside him, to the point of shattering apart the bark to get to the softer wood beneath. Shame filled him. The anger he been forced to release, to relish in as one of Shredder's enforcers had once more surfaced, almost blinding him in rage. Hesitantly, he turned around; expecting to see the old rat's wizened face looking upon him, judging him. Instead, he saw her.

"Stop…," Alopex repeated, more meekly this time around as she stood several feet away from him. Given the sorry state of the artic fox, she must have immediately followed after him. Her bandages were almost in tatters; her usually pristine white fur covered in patches of dirt, grime, and dried blood. She had watched him from afar for a while after he had finally stopped running, hidden in the tree line, wondering how to approach him, to thank him.

The Foot Clan did nothing if not instill personal responsibility for accomplishments and failures, and failures were always paid for. She had failed, willingly. She attacked her master, believing to have finally had her chance for vengeance. She had failed at that too. With nowhere else to go, she fled with the turtles, unbeknownst to them. What had she expected them to do when her presence was revealed? Raphael did as she had unfortunately predicted him to do. All she could do was plea as he overpowered her immediately. In another time, another place, she would have held her own against the red-clad turtle, perhaps fought him to a stand-still, or to one of their deaths. She had not come to fight, however, and if they would not accept that, then she had resigned herself to death. With so many dishonors in her life, it was only fitting that she at least be put out of her misery honorably. Then, he intervened. Leonardo, who had the most reason to kill her, for being a party to his forced subjugation, saved her. Without hesitation, he defended her refusal to fight, at the risk of fighting his own brother.

"Please…," she added, taking the first step towards him, while he remained deathly still by the tree he had so viciously been pounding.

"What do you want?" Leonardo asked quietly, but the bitterness was heavy on his words like thick tar. Slowly he brought his right hand to be cradled by his left. He could not remember just how many times he had struck at the tree, but all three fingers were beginning to throb painfully. The black wraps around his hand were frayed and shredded, evidence of just how much force had been behind each blow. In the faint moonlight piercing through the canopy, there was telltale crimson glistening along his fingers.

She did not answer. Her golden eyes glanced aside with uncertainty, her ears drooping back against her skull. There had not been nearly enough time to compose a proper apology for the earlier incident or how to express her gratitude meaningfully. His explosive anger had caused her to immediately leap to his aid just as he had done for her. Eyes closed briefly and she drew in a calming breath, slowly releasing it afterward.

"I wanted to thank you," Alopex replied, feigning the cold confident air she always exuded when she was Foot, "For stopping Raphael."

"You're welcome," Leonardo curtly replied even if he was genuinely surprised, before adding, "Now leave."

That surprised her, though not as much as she was surprised to be surprised. She shouldn't have been. There had been no camaraderie when they had fought together. Shredder's will was done, and nothing more. They were not friends. If anything, they were rivals, competing for their master's favor. However, it was not nearly as tense as his relationship with Kirai had been. The woman despised Shredder's supposed protégé. She frowned at him subtly for a moment, the silence building between them. She had said her piece, and he his. Their business concluded, and they would go their separate ways for the night. Perhaps it had been a mistake to follow him.

"Why did you come here?" he asked as the fox began to withdraw, prompting her to stop and look back towards him.

"I came to thank you," she answered back, in the same curt manner he had spoken with as she turned to fully face him once more. Her arms crossed over her bandaged chest, continuing her façade of a Foot assassin that was without emotion.

"That's not what I meant." He moved away from her, taking a few steps back towards the bank.

Both were skilled ninja, both accustomed to the deadly game of subterfuge, of misinformation. Both gave the impression of caring little for what the other had to say, but each gave in to their own curiosity about the other. Both played to the others game.

Watching him like prey that could easily turn hunter, Alopex warily followed in a parallel path towards the stream, keeping the distance between them constant. Her eyes followed the steady flow of water, and him out of the corner of her eye. Two warriors stood ready, each waiting with the patience of a cornered serpent, prepared to strike at an unwary hand that dared to come within reach.

"The Foot does not forgive," were the words that attacked first.

"Nor do we," he parried back expertly with his own words.

"Is that why Raphael would not believe me?"

"Why should he?"

"Why should you?"

She suddenly had him at a disadvantage, but the leader of the four brothers regained his footing quickly enough.

"You wouldn't have gone down so easily if you were lying. You were willing to let him kill you," he countered, leaving her stunned enough for him to push on the attack. "I've seen you fight, Alopex. As good as Raphael is, he shouldn't have been able to pin you so easily. You weren't even trying to defend yourself."

Her eyes were wide, a frantic look to them not unlike when Raphael's sai was poised to pierce her face and end her life. It was one thing for her to know he was right, it was another to have him point it out himself. However, just as before, Leonard displayed the sense of mercy that Shredder could not so easily extinguish.

"I… I know what it's like. I feel like betrayed everyone, and for nothing in the end," Leonardo continued with a softer voice, casting his gaze down to the ground between them. "I betrayed Splinter, my brothers. I even betrayed Shredder, and I hate myself for even feeling sorry about betraying him. I betrayed everyone. How can anyone trust me?" He lowered himself slowly to the ground, sitting and drawing his knees close to his chest.

"You were forced to work for him!" Alopex said suddenly, glaring at him for his self-pity. "There is no betrayal if it was never your choice to begin with!" Dropping to her haunches, she crawled over closer to him. Her voice fell then, as she continued. "I had a choice…"

His head lifted to turn to her with a deep confusion in his brown eyes. It immediately donned on him that he knew nothing about the artic fox he had fought alongside with for weeks. Though he did not speak, he inclined his head to her enough to signal his willingness to listen.

She sighed, shifting to sit more comfortably beside him. While she focused her attention on the water, he focused upon her as she began her tale. She spoke of fractured memories, being a small white fox in the wilderness. She spoke of her friends. It was the first time him hearing about her having friends at all. She spoke of the bear, of the mutagen experiments, of running away. With mixed emotion, she spoke of the Foot. It was not the killing that she reveled in, but the sense of belonging she gained through them. It would not last, however. The Shredder took her to where she had come from, and burned the entire forest to the ground, to initiate her fully. Without her past, she would have nothing left, but her undying loyalty the Foot. She swore she would kill the bear, someday. The thin lips of her muzzle quivered in fury, threatening to explode, and exposing her sharp fangs beneath. Suddenly, she felt a hand on hers. She stopped shaking.

"It's… It's okay. I heard enough," Leonardo interjected, pulling her away from her anger much as she had done for him.

Alopex snapped her head in his direction, her golden eyes molten pools before they instantly cooled at the realization of reassuring contact. Slowly, she looked down to her hand held in his. A heartbeat later, she snatched her paw away. Fresh blood was on her white fur, having transferred over from Leonardo's injured hand.

"You're bleeding," she alerted him with evident concern in her voice.

"I know," the black clad turtle answered back with a gentle dismissal. While he had not actually noticed the blood earlier, he had expected to have broken skin from the way his hand was throbbing. It was a dull ache now that pulsed through each thick green digit, but nothing to worry about as far as he was concerned. "Its fine, I don't-"

Without care for his wishes, she took his hand back in both of hers. Leaning her head down to inspect the injury, she looked over the raw and bloody portions of his green skin. The fox immediately set about to remove some of the torn wraps from her left hand, choosing the best strips for makeshift bandages. He did not attempt to stop her as she began to dressing each finger individually, first cleaning them off by dabbing some of her wraps in the stream water then bandaging them. She could have denied any genuine concern for his well-being, stating that she learned that all clan members must always be at their peak in order for the mission to succeed. Fortunately, he did not ask, and she did not have to explain.

"Thanks…" Leonardo stated as he began to investigate her handiwork. The three fingers on his right hand flexed to assess what damage he had inflicted upon himself. They still ached, but at least he would not be making a mess. "Sorry," he added, looking over to her left paw, where his blood had stained her fur.

She shook her head, absently rubbing at the spots of blood until they faded away. This would leave stains, but far less noticeable than blood. She did not need to give Raphael greater excuse to mistrust her if he saw her again. Her tail was carefully drawn over her lap as she settled into a position similar to Leonardo's, both with their knees drawn up close to their chests.

"You're not the enemy," he said, brown eyed gaze resting on the water. Halfheartedly, he was much trying to console her as remind himself of it as well. "You attacked Shredder, saving Splinter, and that helped us all escape, Alopex. As far as I'm concerned, you've as much right to be here as much as any of us."

"The others-"

"-won't bother you."

Alopex frowned at him in disbelief. It would not be so simple. Even if he believed her, defended her, it would not so easily change the opinions of the others. She hugged her tail closer to herself. The chill of the autumn evening was settling further. The silence grew comfortably between them, for once, she noted. It was not to last, however.

"Thanks."

She blinked, momentarily confused as to what Leonard was suddenly referring to. Her quick predatory mind, however, assessed what he had meant. He was grateful for her following him after his abrupt departure from his brothers, for rescuing him from his own thoughts by providing companionship. It was not something she was accustomed to either. She kept to herself even among the clan members that were like a foster family to her. As a mutant, theirs was a world she could never truly be part of. Perhaps that is why she did not feel any apprehension in following the black clad turtle. Like her, he too felt isolated from everyone, even his own family. A sad sympathy shone in her golden eyes as she gazed upon him his own broken soul. Her thin lips curved into a weak smile as she leaned over to speak.

"Do not put too much thought into it," Alopex gently murmured before leaning in to peck his cheek, "Or this."

"Or-", Leonardo began as he turned abruptly with a confused frown on his face, only to find that their mouths had found each other halfway. This?!

Perhaps it was the stress of battles, of betrayals, finally catching up to the two weary warriors. Perhaps they were both in need of a comfort that they were unable to find with those they had called family. Whatever the case might have been, she found herself slowly lifting her blood stained paw to hold his cheek as she felt him tenderly lean into her. For a moment, Alopex and Leonardo found a sense of wholeness as they surrendered their broken souls to each other.