Author's Note: Thank you Pilyarquitect,Firefly Kisses, and Juanita27 for reviewing! I will always remember you guys as the ones who took time to comment when only a scant thousand words had been posted on this story! :)

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Chapter Two: Hey Sis


Word didn't take long to spread that the Foot held one of the turtles captive. At least, not in the circles Karai frequented. They held the brainy turtle prisoner; the one whose real fighting skill only surfaced when that girl, April O'Neil, had been Karai's target.

Really, Karai wished she knew what was so special about her.

At least it wasn't Leonardo they had captive. True, normally he'd be the most fun to visit, to point and laugh at, as he rightly deserved after betraying her. But the thought of being pestered about her "real father"; any mention of that at all, actually, would've been enough to keep her from visiting the katana wielding turtle. Karai didn't think Donatello would try that with her though; it seemed to be Leo's thing.

It had taken a little effort, getting his exact location out of Fishface earlier. He didn't like Karai, didn't trust her not to get in the way somehow. Donatello was his ticket back to humanity, after all. But Karai was Oroku Saki's daughter, and failure to answer a direct question from her could mean consequences.

Two Footbots stepped aside to let her pass through the double doors behind which their captive was being held. Two ninja, from the more elite of Shredder's ranks, awaited her inside the room. She nodded to them briefly, as they fell back into their guard posts by the entrance.

Arms crossed, Karai glanced around, taking in the bright overhead lights, the faint smell of rubbing alcohol lingering in the room. It was an efficient, clean space. To the left was a set of storage cabinets, also stainless steel, six feet tall, and spanning the length of that wall. To the right, the room opened up to include three long, rectangular lab tables, parallel to one another. The two closest to Karai were covered with what looked like a chemistry project. The third table, from where she stood, appeared empty.

Donatello was there too, of course, standing behind the second table. He was completely still, staring at her, hands raised in the middle of pouring something from one glass container to another.

Karai stared right back, and after a moment his shocked expression faltered. He looked back down, and returned to what he was doing.

Karai was vaguely disappointed. Leonardo, at least, would've had something to say.

She made her way over. As she got closer she kept her eyes trained on Donatello's face. He held himself stiffly, only getting more tense as she drew near. Stubbornly, he continued working, even as she circled the second table to join him where he stood, stopping only a few feet away. She looked down at his work, but only a small set of samples in one section looked familiar; it was mutagen, the green glowing goop that created nightmare people.

Karai raised an eyebrow. "Quite a science experiment you have here, Donatello."

He didn't bother to pause in what he was doing. "Hey sis."

She bristled, caught by surprise, and reached out to grab his bicep. "I am not your sister, mutant."

He finally paused, and turned to face her. Karai was unusually tall, and although Donatello was the tallest of his brothers, he only bested her by an inch or two. His eyes locked onto hers. "What do you want?"

Karai stared right back, caught by the intensity there. It wasn't annoyance or aggravation. His eyes were burning with some inner struggle. Not that she blamed him. His situation wasn't good. Her gaze flitted back and forth between his brown eyes, trying to read him for a few seconds, but when nothing changed, she frowned, and glanced down, losing interest in the staring contest.

Then she spotted his leg, very nearly doing a double take. That might explain things. Starting below the knee, his left leg was wrapped in medical gauze, and dots of red had penetrated through in many places, indicating a laceration. She wondered if he was being given any kind of pain meds for it, and doubted it. Bradford would consider it motivation to work faster. Donatello was strongly favoring the leg, practically balancing his entire weight on the good one. The wound surely made maneuvering around the lab laborious, but then Bradford wasn't going to give a ninja highly skilled in the bo staff something like a pair of crutches to play with.

"That looks painful. What happened?"

Donatello sighed, resting one hand on the table next to him. His voice came out soft. "Bradford happened."

Her eyes snapped up again, to his face. His eyes were narrowed, scanning the door, checking to see how far away the other nin were. She tensed slightly, but didn't sense any aggressive intent from him. Just weariness.

"Karai..." His eyes flicked over to meet hers, and for the first time she saw the desperation there. "Help me. Please."

She held his gaze for a long moment, as if considering seriously, then snorted gently. As she turned to check out the third lab table, she could see him slump slightly in her peripheral vision, wilting.

Manacles. Someone had welded them to the table. There were two sets, and a fifth manacle, without a partner, centered most of the way up the table. Ankles, wrists...neck?

She caught a quick gesture from Donatello and glanced back his way. His face was dark, something bitter there as he considered the table with her. He leaned back, using his elbows to prop up his weight against the work table now behind him. Fatigue radiated from his figure.

"Bedroom, lab...Bradford's very efficient. Can't say my sleep's improved, though."

Karai glanced back to the table. "They manacle your neck. Paranoid much?"

As she stared at the table, imagining him prone on it, someone snapping that hard metal in place around his neck, her stomach twisted uncomfortably. The thought that she had come here to gloat drifted by, taunting her.

Donatello didn't respond to her question, and after a moment she glanced back again, his eyes catching her gaze for a moment. He looked lost, head half bowed. "Have you seen them?"

Karai cocked here head sideways, frowning. "Who?" Challenging.

His gaze flicked to the side, nervous, and his voice dropped low. "My brothers." He stared at her, and Karai felt her stomach clench uncomfortably. He hesitated, but she could tell he meant to continue.

He did, in a hint of a whisper, desperation lacing his words. "...our brothers."

She reacted without thinking, briefly furious. Her fist lashed out, cuffing him hard on the cheek. His head twisted to the side, but nothing else moved. As if he'd expected it. That only made her more angry, and she stepped close, getting in his face.

Karai hissed at him, keeping her voice low, but harsh with anger. "I am an only child." After a few moment, she backed up again, shaking her head. She snorted derisively, never dropping her eyes from his face, wanting to make clear where she stood on this topic.

Donatello was slow to meet her eyes, but when he did, it was with that same pitiable expression of desperate pleading.

That was it. She was done here. Karai turned abruptly away, heading back toward the double doors. She called out as she went.

"You should step it up, turtle! Bradford's got a short fuse."

Karai glanced back just once more, before heading out of the lab, and caught a glimpse of Donatello. He was hunched over the table, head down, face in the artificial shade created by the harsh overhead lights.

Emotions suddenly roiling, Karai kept up a brisk pace until she was entirely out of the building, and back in the sunlight of midday.

Visiting him hadn't been fun. It had been a mistake.

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AN: I would love your feedback on this!