Splinter headed down the path that led to his farm. It was a long road to travel from the local town back home but it was worth it to sell his goods at the market. He and his wife, Shen were from a land different from most other settlers so his wife's way of making things would sell well in the market. He was returning with a cart empty of his own product and full of the few new items he had bought. He even had money left over to put in savings.

Life was good for the rat and the year had been bountiful. He and his wife would be set for the winter and had more than enough seed to plant in the spring. There was even a possibility that they would be able to sell a few to farmers whose land didn't fare as well.

He whistled a lively tune from his homeland as he guided the mule along the path marked with the occasional tree along the mostly open field. There wasn't much more that Splinter could have asked for in that moment. He had almost everything he had wanted in life.

His song ended abruptly and he pulled his mule to a halt when he saw the devastation on the side of the road. An entire clan of turtles was strewn over the land in what looked like the aftermath of a raid. The scent of death was heavy in the air and a few vultures were already picking at the corpses.

Splinter's heart pounded in his chest as he looked around for the attackers but from the look of things, they were long gone. It must have happened early morning, sometime after he had already passed. He could tell that anything of value that they might have had with them was already picked through.

The mule, being spooked by the smell of blood, hesitated to go past the bodies. Splinter urged it on, wanting to be away from the area as soon as possible. He feared for the safety of his wife and his home.

As he made his way past the wind carried over the gentle sounds of a baby crying. He stopped the mule then got down from his cart and tied it to a nearby tree to keep the beast from bolting. Stepping around the bodies, he made his way towards the sound.

The carnage was almost too much to bear and he wanted nothing more than to run but he pushed forward. If there was a life to be saved, he wasn't going to abandon it to die. He saw an overturned cart surrounded by dead children and broken eggs and his heart broke. Who would be capable of killing innocent children?

He heard the cry again and moved around the cart to find it. The sounds were muffled and were coming from under the body of an adult turtle. Splinter didn't know if it was a male or female, it was hard to tell with the androgyny of those people.

Kneeling down, Splinter pushed the body over to reveal an infant turtle. As he reached down to pick it up, the adult's hand shot out to grab him. Splinter let out a startled yelp. He had assumed that the adult was dead since it had a spear sticking from its back.

It mumbled something and Splinter had to lean in to hear what was said. The adult turtle placed a hand on the baby and repeated the word.

Splinter looked at the turtle then down at the baby then tried his best to repeat what the turtle had said. The turtle simply continued to repeat the word, over and over again.

"Alright," Splinter nodded. "I will call the baby Leonardo. I swear to you that I will take care of him."

He wasn't sure if the turtle had even heard him but he knew that the turtle did not understand him due to the language barrier. The turtle gasped as its eyes rolled back and it started to convulse. Watching someone die was harder than seeing the dead bodies. Splinter grabbed the baby and hurried back to his cart, unable to handle anymore.

He gently placed the baby in the cart among the new fabric he had bought for his wife. "She is going to love you," Splinter whispered to Leonardo.

Given that Splinter was a different species than his wife they were unable to have a child of their own. It was one the reasons they had traveled to the 'New World', their relationship was too taboo in their country. The other reason was that his wife was being courted by another when they had met. The man was furious over their union and he was not the kind of man they wanted to trifle with.

Shen had longed for a child and prayed every night for a miracle to happen. If finding a baby among a sea of dead wasn't a miracle, Splinter didn't know what was.

After they passed the dead bodies, the mule picked up its pace and Splinter encouraged it to continue. By the time they reached the small cottage that Splinter called home, the sun was on the horizon. He could see his Shen standing in the doorway, waiting for him to return. Her hand shot up and she waved to him when she saw him.

She heaved a sigh of relief and ran out to meet him. "I was so worried," she said when she got within earshot. "You're normally home by now."

"I got delayed," Splinter said pulling the cart to a stop.

"What on Earth could have delayed you?" she asked raising a delicate eyebrow.

Splinter couldn't help but smile, "Check the back."

An excited smile parted her lips, "Did you get me that fabric?" She ran around the back of the cart and climbed up. With a gasp, she froze when she saw the baby. "How?" The baby had fallen asleep, lulled by the gentle rocking of the cart.

"It is a sad story that you don't need to hear, my love," Splinter replied with a sad smile. "I cannot tell if it is a boy or a girl but its name is Leonardo." He watched as Shen picked the baby up and waited for her to settle herself in the back before flicking the reins to get the mule walking again.

When they got back to the cottage, Splinter walked around the cart to assist Shen down. "He is probably hungry."

"I have some goat's milk that I can try to give him," Shen replied, not taking her eyes from the baby. A tear streamed down her cheek as her smile widened, "God has answered my prayers, after so long."

"He just wanted to make sure you had the right child," Splinter said as he removed the harness from the mule. "I still need to get Rose here back in the barn. You take Leonardo and get some food in… him and clean him off."

Shen walked up to her husband and planted a kiss on his furry cheek. "I love you."

"I love you too," he reached up and kissed her lips.

Leonardo was up before the sun every day to get his chores done. Life on the farm was demanding work and his parents weren't as young as they used to be so he had to work extra hard for them. He collected eggs and set them on the table so his mother could make breakfast then headed to the barn to milk the goats.

By the time he was done with his morning chores, his mother was calling him to breakfast. She made the best soft boiled eggs and had them already peeled and waiting for him along with thick cuts of bacon. After sprinkling some coarse salt over the eggs, Leonardo picked one up and popped it in his mouth.

Like always, the creamy yolk burst in his mouth as he bit into the egg. As he popped the second egg into his mouth, Shen ran her hand over the back of his head and kissed the top of his head. He finished the bacon in three bites then washed it down with a glass of fresh milk.

As far as farms went, theirs was one of the most successful, so much so that his father was able to afford to hire an extra farm hand to help out. Old Hob showed up on their door one day, looking for work. Splinter, being a kind hearted man, offered him a job, three meals and the loft over the barn. That was three years ago and Old Hob earned himself the title of trusted friend.

Leonardo admired the old cat and loved to listen to his stories about the wars of his home land. He had even taught Leo to shoot in their spare time. After a few tries Leo had proven that he had a natural talent for hitting the targets. Hob then tested him by throwing bottles into the air for Leo to hit. It took a few practice shots but Leo quickly learned how to adjust.

Splinter was so impressed by Leo's abilities that he had bought Leo his own pair of revolvers. They had a longer barrel than Hob's and weighed a little more but Leo learned to compensate. Leo kept them on his hip all the time, just like Old Hob.

After breakfast, Leo headed off to do the rest of his chores before the day got too hot. All of the heavy lifting that his chores required put lean muscle on his young body and taught him discipline. If the work didn't get done then there would be no food to eat or to sell. By the time the sun reached its zenith, Leonardo was done, at least until it was time for his evening chores.

He headed to the well and found Hob having a drink. Hob handed Leo the ladle over to Leo as he approached and Leo dipped it into the bucket to get his drink. Even on hot days the water from the well was cool and sweet.

"You think your ma will have some of those pickled vegetables out for lunch today?" Hob asked as Leo handed him back the ladle.

"You know ma likes to save those for the winter," Leo answered.

"Yeah but she was teaching you how to do it so she made extra," Hob said after a long drink.

Leo shrugged, "I think pa took some to be sold at market."

"What a pity," Hob shook his head. "I love your ma's pickled vegetables."

"Ma also taught me how to preserve fruit," Leo said with a grin. "We used the berries you like so much and I talked her into keeping the extra jars."

"That's my boy," Hob smiled patting Leo on the back and handing the ladle back to him. "I knew you would look after me."

"Of course," Leo's smile widened. "This is supposed to be a surprise, so don't let pa know that I told ya, but I talked him and ma into adding a room to the house for you."

"You did?" Hob smiled and his eyes sparkled.

"Yeah," Leo nodded. "You've earned it."

"You're a good kid, boy," Hob patted the top of Leo's head.

The pair had sent the bucked down another time before their thirst was satisfied then collected some to take back to the house for lunch. Rounding the barn, they could see that a large carriage was parked in front.

"That's a strange looking cart," Leo said.

"That's not a cart, boy, it's a carriage," Hob replied, his tone a bit dark.

"What would my dad want with a carriage?" Leo asked, looking up at his mentor.

"That ain't your pa's carriage," Hob corrected, placing his bucket of water on the ground. "Looks like someone's come a calling. You stay back and I'll check to make sure everything's alright."

"Why would anything be wrong?" Leo asked jogging to keep up with Hob, who had suddenly picked up his pace. Leo had never seen the old cat move so fast.

"Could be fine," Hob said. "I just wanna make sure. Stay back, boy."

"Why?" Leo protested.

Hob rounded on him and looked him dead in the eye, "There's men out there that don't like your kind, so it would be best if you stay back." With that Hob turned and ran for the house.

Not wanting to be left out, Leo ran up to the house anyway with the plans of squatting down under a window to listen in. He marveled at the black carriage as he passed by it and was impressed by the size of the beast that pulled it. He had heard of horses before but had never actually seen one.

The horse was all black, to match the carriage, with a gold painted bridle to match the accents on the carriage. It was at least twice the size of his father's mule and a creature of beauty by comparison.

He walked around the horse with his eyes on the house. The next thing he knew, he was being lifted off his feet by the carapace. "Native filth," the man holding him grunted then tossed him to the ground.

The man was the most frightening thing Leo had ever seen, standing at least a foot taller than Hob and so broad that it looked like he had to step sideways to fit through a door. Leo scrambled to his feet and called out to his mother as he made a mad dash for the house. He pulled open the door only to stand face to face with another man.

The man was much smaller than the one by the carriage with dark hair and eyes. The man looked Leo over and his lip curled up in disgust.

"Boy, I told you to stay back," Hob reprimanded Leo, pushing past the dark eyed man to get to him.

Shen was behind the dark eyed man, urging him out the door. "I thank you for your offer Mr. Oroku but as my husband told you before, we are not looking to sell the land."

The man turned to face Shen, "So it's Mr. Oroku now? What happened to you calling me Saki?"

"I do not feel it would be appropriate to be informal with you at this point."

The man's face went red, "I am being so generous for you, Shen. I am offering more than what this land is worth. I thought you would listen to reason. I should have known better given the fact that you married that rat."

"I thank you for that generous offer," Shen bowed, "but the answer is still no. My husband and I plan on leaving the land to our son."

"Your son?" the man turned to look at Leonardo and Hob stepped between them. Saki pointed to Leo, "This filth? You can't leave your land to one of them. The law won't allow it."

Shen shook her head, "Splinter has already spoken to a lawyer and has had a will drawn up. Leonardo will get the land, the county has already declared it so."

"We'll see about that," Saki sneered then turned to his coachman. "Take me in to town, Hun, I want to get this matter settled."

"Yes, Master," Hun bowed then opened the door to the carriage. As soon as Saki was settled in, Hun closed the door and got up in the driver's seat. With a flick of the reins, Hun urged the horse forward.

"This land will be mine," Saki said through the window as he passed.

"Good day, Sir," Shen said, keeping her temper in check. She stood and watched until the carriage was out of sight before stomping her foot on the ground and screamed, "That son of a bitch. How dare he? We came here to get away from him."

"Mother?" Leo looked up at her in surprise. He had never heard her use such language before and had often reproached Hob and Splinter for saying such words around Leo.

"Get in the house," she ordered and Leo knew better than to disobey his mother.

That night, after his father had gotten home, Leo sat at the top of the stairs and listened as Old Hob argued with his parents. "You should sell the land to Mr. Oroku. It would be for the best. That man does not stop until he gets what he wants."

"No," Shen insisted. "This is our land. We will not give into someone like him. He's just out to satisfy a personal vendetta."

"You should at least tell the boy the truth about what he is. He was confused over the way Saki treated him."

"He is our son," Shen insisted. "He has every right to this land. That is all he needs to know."

"That's horse shit and you know it," Hob argued. "Some will only see him as a native and nothing more. He won't even understand why he's being discriminated against. You've kept the boy ignorant."

"I have taught him everything I know," Splinter said.

"About farming," Hob countered. "You never told him anything about his people or how you came to find him."

"The natives, particularly the turtles, are starting to integrate in with the settlers," Splinter said, keeping his voice level. "Within the next few years they will be common place and accepted members of society. By the time Leonardo has to take over the land there will be no issues."

Hob scoffed, "You're daft, old man. They may be allowed to sell their goods in town but they will never be seen as equals. Look at the history of other countries. The defeated and the conquered are never welcomed into society. It's too much of a reminder of the evils the people have done to claim the land."

"I have hope," Splinter said with a hint of defiance. "This land will be different."

Hob sighed, "Then you are going to be disappointed and that poor kid is going to be the one who suffers."

"You are a guest in this family, Hob." Shen's voice was cold. "It would be best that you remember that."

"I won't forget. Good night," Hob said then left the house for the night.

As winter neared Splinter, Hob, and Leonardo worked on adding the additional room to the house. It wasn't much but at least Hob wouldn't have to sleep in the barn during the cold winter nights. At the rate they were going, they would have the room built long before the snow started to fall.

They hadn't heard any more from Oroku Saki since his last visit and they all assumed it was because the county officials ruled in Splinter's favor. Any time Leo tried to bring him up, the others would change the subject.

"When this is my farm, will you still be willing to work for me, Hob?" Leo asked. He and Hob were lifting the frame of the final wall up in to place. "I don't think I would want to live on this big farm all alone."

"I will stay on this farm as long as you'll let me," Hob answered with a smile. As soon as the frame was up, Splinter got to work securing it into place. "But I am old and won't be around much longer you're your parents. Your pa needs to take you into town one day so you can find yourself a good wife. There is a festival every year to celebrate the solstice maybe we can all go to that."

Leo turned to his father, "Can we?"

"I will talk about it with your mother," was the answer he was given. Which meant that it wasn't a 'no' but that it wasn't a 'yes' either and that it would be a while before he was given an answer. He also knew not to ask again or the answer would be 'no'.

In the following weeks they managed to get the room built and Leo helped Hob move his things. Though he wasn't allowed to enter Hob's room, Leo loved the idea of having Hob in the house. It meant that he would be able to spend more time with his older friend.

One night, Leo looked in on Hob to find him pacing the room. "Is something the matter, Hob?"

The old cat looked up and Leo could see that he was troubled but that he was trying to hide it behind a forced smile. "I'm fine, boy." He walked up to the door and looked out, "Your parents gone to bed?"

"Yes, sir," Leo nodded. "I was heading up myself I just wanted to wish you a good night."

"Goodnight, boy," Hob smiled but there was sadness in his eyes. When Leo turned to go, Hob grabbed him. "You wanna go to the river with me?"

Leo looked up at Hob in shock, "You know I can't go out."

"Your parents are in bed, they're not gonna know. You don't have to tell them anything."

"But if I get caught, they might not let me go to the town festival."

"You ain't going to that festival, boy. Your parents won't let you."

"But pa said…," Leo tried to argue.

"I heard your ma and pa talking. They ain't letting you go." Hob interrupted. "You ain't got nothing to lose. Come with me."

Leo thought for a moment the nodded, "Okay."

"You still have your guns on. Good. We can't go through the house." Hob pulled Leo into his room. The next thing Leo knew was that he was being pushed through the window and out into the cold night air.

Leo landed on his shoulder with enough force that he knew he would have a bruise in the morning. Old Hob jumped from the window with ease and pulled Leo up on his feel. Without another word the two ran from the house and towards the river.

They had to pass through a sparse collection of trees and down a slope to get to the water's edge. It was hard to navigate at night but the moon was full, giving them a little light to see by.

The river was different at night. Leo was amazed by the creatures that came out and the sound of their songs. He watched a small frog climb up a reed. It perched itself under a leaf and waited for an insect to fly by then its tongue shot out to nab its prey.

A rustling sound drew his attention to a small rodent that rushed from his hiding spot to get at a nut that was on the ground. Before the little creature could grab it a large owl swooped down and grabbed the rodent. "Nature's harsh," Leo said, watching the owl disappear among the trees.

"Life's harsh, kid."

The excitement and the wonderment quickly faded and guilt started to set in. Leonardo knew that his parents were going to be mad and he wanted to go back home but Hob kept Leo down by the river. The more Leo protested the more Hob insisted that they stayed.

"I don't know what's gotten into you, Hob." Leo's voice trembled, though he tried to sound sure of himself. "But I'm going home." He turned away but Old Hob grabbed him.

"Just stay put, boy. Do what I tell you for once."

"Why are you doing this?" Leo cried, trying to pull out of Hob's grip. That was when the wind carried over the scent of smoke. Leo turned to the direction of the house and could see the glow of a fire. His heart sank in his chest. "Ma? Pa?"

Pulling away from Hob, Leo rushed up the incline and Hob was hot on his heels. "Come back here, boy. It's not safe." He didn't let Leo get far. He pounced on the young turtle and held him back, covering his mouth to keep him quiet. "I'm sorry."

Hob pulled Leo back into the surrounding tree line, keeping his hand over Leo's mouth. "I'm sorry, kid but your ma and pa shouldn't've crossed Oroku Saki."

Leo sobbed as Hob held him back. The old cat kissed the top of Leo's heed. "I'm sorry kid. I tried to get your parents to sell the land, they were just too thickheaded. You don't cross Saki and get away with it, and your parents did it twice. You can't go back to the house. If they see you, they will kill you. I just couldn't let that happen to you. Come with me and I'll take care of you."

After a while, Leo stopped fighting and Hob moved his hand away from his mouth. He turned his head to look at Hob. "You knew that was gonna happen and you did nothing to stop it?"

"I tried, damn it. Saki sent me here to check the land for him. He paid me good money," Hob confessed. "He's making a land grab in this area, going after lots of places. All your parents had to do was sell to him. It was a generous offer."

"I'll tell the county officials," Leo wiped the tears from his eyes. "He's not gonna get away with killing my parents."

Hob shook his head, "He's covered his ass. There ain't no way you will be able to prove it was him. It'd be our word against his and we'd be dead before we got the chance to speak."

Hopelessness washed over Leonardo as he watched his house burn down in the distance. He stayed with Hob, hidden among the trees. After a while, Hob told Leo to stay put and headed back to the house to get what he could.

There was nothing to worry about if the men Saki hired to burn the house were still there. They knew Hob and were expecting him. Part of his payment from Saki was to be able to take whatever he wanted from the farm. It had to look like a raid after all.

Leo did as he was told and remained sitting by the old tree. He thought back to moments before when Hob told him that life was harsh. His parents had kept him protected on that farm but that was over. From that moment on nothing else mattered but his own survival. He didn't want to trust Hob but he had no choice. He was too young and all he knew of the world was confined to that small farm. He needed him.

Hob returned atop the cart, pulled by the mule. One of the goats was tethered to the back and the cart had supplies. "Good thing your ma kept the preserved food in the barn," Hob said as he hopped down. "We'll have food to last us a while, until we can find work."

He pulled Leo to his feet and guided him into the cart to sit among the supplies. Hob hopped back up in the driver's seat then flicked the reins. The cart lurched forward, headed in the opposite direction of the town.

"No more lies, Hob."

"No more lies," Hob agreed. "It's the cold hard truth from here on out."