Each and every one of them stood in silent shock. Donnie had to lower his goggles at least twice to scan her and make sure she was even really there. Even master Splinter was extremely surprised and upset over this intruder's presence. Mikey had his weapons at the ready, but was obviously prepared to follow Leo's lead on the matter. Leonardo stood as his gaze was transfixed on Karai. He couldn't understand how she was standing before him when he was sure he had killed her. Even now he recalled the feeling of his blade as it pierced her, spilling her blood on the pavement and watching her die. Raphael was breathing hard, sai ready and inching towards her.
"What the fuck are you doin' here Karai?" Raph's tone was little more than a growl. Karai was standing defensively with her hand poised near the hilt of the sword Leo had gotten from her. She had not only been in his room, but had also gone through his personal things. Leo was more than pissed off. How dare she? After all that had happened, all the lies, the deceit, forcing him to kill her or at least believe he had, all because she didn't have the sense or the guts to do then what she was doing right now; come home with him. She had some nerve indeed.
"I had nowhere else to go," she said looking intently at Leonardo, as though through telepathy she could get him to see just how true it was this time. Knowing that she had spoken those very words untruthfully before, she could only hope for mercy from him now. "My father is dead…." She didn't know how to finish that sentence without begging.
"Good," Raph said not caring if it hurt her or not, but hoping that it did. "Now you can join him!"
Raph lunged at her. Karai dodged, blocking his sai with her sheathed sword and then rolled backwards avoiding a kick aimed for her head, and got back into a crouching defensive position.
"Enough!" Splinter yelled stopping Raph in his tracks. Splinter wrapped Karai securely in his tail, binding her arms to her sides, and brought her close to him. He prided himself on being able to detect when one was telling the truth or lying. He didn't understand how she was alive, but she was desperate beyond measure to have come to the house of her enemies.
"But sensei!" Raph yelled, coming for her again but was held back by Donnie. "Raph, just wait a sec." Donnie said struggling to contain an angered Raphael. Raphael did not try to attack again, but it was only because Splinter had Karai in his protective grip. He thought he saw where this was going, and if it was gonna be that way, Raph wasn't gonna stick around to witness it.
"No Raphael. We will hear her out, and then we will decide as a family what to do about this situation," Splinter said. He then looked at Karai who was clearly shaken by not only being close to the mutant rat, but in the grip of the very tail she tried to cut off. The smallest particle of shame inched its way into her heart. This was the beginning. She had a great many things to atone for.
"Now, tell us Karai. How are you still alive, and why is it that you have come here?"
Asha was drained. They had dropped her off first and she couldn't have been more relieved. She put the key in the lock and opened the door of her darkened apartment and stopped short, her hackles raised. Something was in here waiting for her. She only had her bags with her. She had purposely left her staff at the turtle's home and was now cursing herself for being without it. Whoever this was had simply picked the wrong apartment for breaking and entering, and not just because there wasn't anything to steal.
Slowly and silently, she closed the door and set her bags down. She crept close to the wall, thankful that she had a small place. The first door she came to was the bathroom, but it was open and empty. The bedroom was right off from the small living room so she could sweep it in one go. When she got to the threshold of the living room she stopped and inhaled sharply. There was something very large and dangerous in the corner. With her human eyes she couldn't make out what it was. A car passed on the street outside and its headlights shone briefly into the apartment, and all Asha could see was animal eye shine. For a split second she thought it was Rahzar and she immediately shifted. She was about to pounce, ready to kill whoever or whatever this was, but when she shifted her vision was clear. In the corner of her living room standing almost with its head touching the ceiling, was a werewolf. All black fur covered it from head to toe with nothing to separate it from the shadows it stood in but the yellow-green of its eyes. It growled low in its throat but did not move. Asha ran towards it, and suddenly she was in its arms, and human again.
"Mighty Max!" Asha buried her face in its chest, inhaling deeply the scent of her very best friend. The werewolf was making a high-pitched whining sound from its throat, obviously pleased with seeing Asha. The werewolf held her for a while before gently pulling Asha away and putting her on the floor. It then shifted to reveal a tall at almost six feet, pretty, and very naked girl. Her long black hair hung well past her waist, some of it in her face. She had to smooth it back away from her face with her hand, green eyes sparkling even in the gloom of the apartment.
"Asha BoBasha!" Max exclaimed, both of them hugging and jumping up and down together. Their laughter dissolved into tears as they cried on each other's shoulders. They finally let go of each other when Max slapped Asha not all that lightly across the face. Asha rubbed the spot but held her head down low.
"Do you know how worried sick I was about you? You have any idea what kind of worry and stress I was under?!" Max screamed as the tears rolled freely down her face. Asha said nothing. This was a long time coming and she deserved whatever Max said to her.
"The night your uncle was killed, that was the last night I heard your voice Asha. It's been almost a full year. I thought I would never see you again. You just left me, no word, no goodbye, nothing. How could you? How could you do that to me Asha? To me." Max was crying and shaking. She hadn't meant to be so mean, but dammit Asha deserved that. Max had to have answers after having nothing for so long.
Asha found her old recliner and plopped heavily into it, crying into her hands. The tears were for everything. She was so hurt after breaking up with Leo, happy to see her friend, and miserable that she was now face to face with the pain she had caused that very friend. The past never stopped haunting you. She was realizing that more and more. Asha gathered herself enough to talk. Max was sitting on the floor in front of her, cross-legged and rubbing both Asha's knees soothingly, waiting on her to speak.
"Where do I even start Maxine? So much has happened. I've done…some pretty fucked up things since I left. That's why I left you behind," Asha looked into her friend's eyes and saw acceptance. Maxine Lupita Gutierrez had always accepted her and tonight would be no different. Asha knew that whatever she told her, and she would tell it all, Mighty Max would love her regardless.
"Start from the beginning."
The turtles waited for Splinter's reaction and his opinion on what Karai had told them. The old rat stroked his beard, brows furrowed in deep concentration as they all sat in a semi-circle with Karai facing them, the odd ninja out. She felt sick baring all to the very mutants she had tried to kill. The very fact that they had not killed her outright, proved how wrong she'd been. How wrong Shredder had been. They weren't just freaks and animals. They had shown her mercy so far, at least they had not killed her. At the very least they had listened to her tale without interrupting, and even now seemed to be considering an outcome other than death for her. She was grateful for even that. For now she sat, back rigid with twenty years of discipline, eyes respectfully cast on the floor before her, daring to look any of them in their faces. She didn't know if she could handle the pity in the orange one's eyes, the appraisal of the one in purple, or the faraway yet penetrating glare of Leonardo. The only one she could accept and understand was the unbridled hatred in the eyes of the one in red. She knew hatred very well, and so on a weird level connected with the red one more than the others at this time.
"What you have told us is very interesting indeed. I have not learned the technique myself but I have heard of it. It is only now that I believe it to be true. You have used the Immortal Technique. It explains why Shredder did not die from such a fall despite his armor." Splinter rose slowly, and not without a noticeable stiffness in his legs, from his place on the floor. His sons looked up at him expectantly.
"So what will we do sensei? She has asked if she can stay with us. Surely we cannot allow her into our home while she has not proven herself trustworthy," Leo said looking up at his father and then setting his eyes once more on Karai. She still had not looked up. Splinter paused, hands behind his back and not looking at Leonardo or any of his other sons.
"Is that truly how you feel my son?" The question was obviously loaded. Mikey, Donnie, and Raph could feel that there was some as yet unspoken details hanging in between sensei's words, but none of them could figure out what. Leo looked pensive momentarily but it passed quickly. He did not respond.
"I will allow you to decide what to do. Leonardo, you are the leader of the group, but listen to the concerns of your brothers. Whatever you all decide will be fine with me," Splinter said as he made his way to his room leaving his sons shocked. They couldn't believe he was leaving such an important decision up to them alone.
"But, sensei how am I supposed to…?" Leo had gotten up trailing after his master. Splinter stopped and turned to face his oldest.
"I am confident in your instincts, in all four of your instincts. I believe you will make the right decision. Now go, do as I have asked." Without giving Leo a chance to respond, Splinter went to his room and shut the door. Leonardo returned to the dojo and sat with his brothers. Karai was still waiting on their decision. He felt his heart strings tugged. He had listened to her, looking for any sign of lies or deceit and found none. Leo had been sitting there the whole time trying to be angry and not being able to. The truth was, killing her had been completely cathartic. All the hatred and anger he'd felt before about the whole water tower and infiltration thing, dissolved the moment his blade went through her. He had allowed himself to romanticize what could have been had she been truthful. He imagined what it would be like had she still been alive. Now she was here, and he couldn't allow his personal feelings to get in the way of doing the right thing for his family. He looked at all his brothers and sighed heavily. This was going to be a long night.