Hooray! An update! This only took forever. I hope it's worth the wait. I know I had a fun time writing it. And also, have another quote. I told you I was going to keep doing it. ;) Also it's important to note that the tenses change at one point. I'll explain why at the end. In the meantime - read on!

~Don't judge me by what I do when the world is watching, judge me only by who you know I am deep down.~

Leo had thought seriously on Raph's words of advice. Actually, he still thought about it a lot. Still, he never could work himself up enough to just do it. Every time he got close some awful image popped into his head. Either Donnie blew up, Splinter forbid him to see her again, or, worst of all, Karai burst in and betrayed them all. It made him shudder every time he thought about it.

He didn't realize the luxury of choosing a time was slowly slipping through his fingers. In but a few hours the decision would be made for him. But even knowing wouldn't have changed anything. It was too late now. All he could do was inch closer to the moment.

"Hey," Leo heard Raph say to him. He stood just outside Leo's room, his hand gripping the frame of the door. "Getting any closer?" They both knew what he meant.

Leo scowled in the opposite direction. "Do you have to keep asking me that?" He grumbled. "You're just chiding me, and you know it."

Raph gave a hard look. "No, I'm not." He entered the room, feeling permission was as good as given. "I want to know, Leo. This is important. You can't keep hiding her. It's going to end up biting you in the butt, and you know that."

Leo huffed. He tossed the toy he'd been fiddling with to the side. It was dumb anyway. "Raph, I just can't do it." He shook his head slowly. "They're going to hate me. Honestly I don't know how you don't." He finally looked at his brother, eyes shining with misery. "And Splinter he'll…he won't let me see her again."

Raph couldn't help but smirk. "I did hate you at first." He sat down by Leo on his bed. "But then I looked at it like we do Donnie's crush. Even if she was evil, he would have fallen head over heels for April. You can't help who you fall for." He shrugged. "Besides, what you have going on is pretty serious now. How can I really tell you not to try?"

Leo watched Raph intently all the while. He was constantly amazed by the different faces of his brother's. The sides they usually hid were coming out more and more because of his secrecy with Karai. "You…you mean it." Leo's eyes widened in anticipation.

"But don't think that means I like her." His eyes narrowed. "She's still bad news no matter what you or anyone says. Just because she'd never hurt you doesn't mean anything for us. You have to understand that."

Leo frowned slightly. "I understand where you're coming from." He said carefully. "But you're wrong." He looked to the side, his mind floating to her. "If she won't hurt me, she won't hurt you either because that would hurt me, even if just indirectly."

Raph thought about this for a minute, but he inevitably shook his head in the negative. "Sorry, Leo. I can't agree." His gaze hardened as he thought back to the last battle they had with her. "And when it comes down to it, you know she'll listen to Shredder before she'll heed to you."

Pssh," Leo rolled his eyes. "Don't be too sure. She's got some major daddy issues you don't even want to know about."

Raph started. "Woah, what was that?" His eyes widened and his intrigue skyrocketed.

Leo looked up. "Huh? Oh, you mean the daddy bit? Yeah, she's Shredder's daughter." He waved his hand dismissively. "But it doesn't matter."

"Leo," Raph said with urgency. "Don't you see? This makes it worse!" His head was swirling just imagining all that this could lead to. "He's family Leo, not just evil team family either, but blood family. No kid could ever betray their father." He saw the denial in Leo's eyes and quickly added, "Would you ever betray Splinter?"

Leo looked absolutely offended. "What!? No! Of course not! What are you-"

Raph smiled sadly. "Exactly. No matter how much she loves you…this can only end in pain."

Leo scowled over at him. "It doesn't matter what you say." He stood quickly. He already felt a little better standing over his younger brother. "I know she won't hurt me, or us." He started to stomp off.

"Leo." Raph said sharply. "Just promise me one thing."

Leo stopped at the door. He looked stiffly back over his shoulder.

"If it comes down to it…you won't choose her over us." Raph's eyes were strangely pleading. There was almost a desperation about them, as if he really thought Leo could betray his family. "Turtles first…"

Leo's expression softened. His eyes shined with sadness. "Don't be an idiot." He tried to be playful, but it just sounded strained. "Turtles forever."

"Guys! Hey guys!" They heard Donnie's excited voice coming from the central area. "I-" He broke off as he reached the living area and all he found was Mikey. "Hey, where are the others?" He cocked his head as he looked to Mikey.

Mikey was engrossed in a new comic. He barely heard Donnie. "I dunno." He shrugged. He burst out laughing at one of the images, holding a hand to his head. "Great joke!" There was a beat of silence. "Raph said he was going to check on him though." More laughter.

"Check on him?" Donnie frowned deeply. His expression was quite suspicious. "What does that mean?" Besides the obvious of Leo being an emotional wreck.

Mikey sighed heavily. He laid the comic on his lap and looked up. "Look, dude, I don't know." Then he grew much more animated. "All I know is that this dude," He pointed down at the comic. "Is in an epic brawl and if I don't finish he might never get out alive!"

Donnie looked almost stupefied. "That doesn't make any…" He quickly came to his senses. He shook his head and held up a hand. "You know what, never mind. I'll go find them." He turned to leave.

As Donnie turned Leo and Raph appeared from around the corner. "What's up Donnie?" Leo cocked his head to the side.

Donnie's face lit up all over again. A smile stretched clear across his face. "Check it out!" He shoved his hands forward and let his fingers unfurl. "Isn't it amazing!?"

Raph and Leo looked intently at the small object in Donnie's hands, but the longer they looked the more confused they became. They frowned deeply and turned their gazes up toward the other to exchange puzzled expressions. "Uh…?"

Donnie sighed in exasperation. "Alright, so you know the power cell was stolen and we haven't been able to get it back." He waited for nods. "Well," He was nearly shaking from excitement. "This is a copy of one!"

Leo and Raph's expressions transformed in an instant. Their eyes were wide and mouths turned upward in utter amazement. "Really?" They gasped. They moved forward in sync to get a closer look.

Donnie calmed noticeably. "Well, not exactly." He admitted a bit forlornly. "I used what I could find and what I remember from studying the power cell." He shook his head fiercely to shake the disappointment away. "But I'm pretty sure I've mimicked it quite well!" He asserted.

Mikey was not far behind. "I wanna see!" He hopped the couch and ran to join them. "Coolio," He reached up and slowly moved his hand toward it. He aimed to poke it.

Donnie jerked the precious item away. "Don't even think about it!" He shot Mikey a warning look. "It's not the most stable power source, so you have to be careful with it."

Leo frowned deeply. "Uh, Donnie," He scratched his head. "If it's that dangerous do you really think we should be using such a thing?" He didn't mean to stifle his brother's creativity, Donnie's creations aided them tremendously, but their safety always came first.

Donnie 's expression was confident. "Don't worry Leo." He waved his hand dismissively. "I'm taking the proper precautions. When we actually use it, it will definitely be safe."

Leo still looked uncertain. It worried him because that was exactly what he said about the power cell, and that had at least been a stable power source. "Well, alright."

"Hey," Raph was quickly getting bored with just being told it was great. "It's getting late." So he hoped to get them all to forget about it too. "Don't you think it's time we go on patrol." He gave Leo a meaningful look.

Leo ignored it. "You're right Raph." He agreed with a smile. They wouldn't see her. She only came late, and to their secret spot. She didn't prance around all day. Did she? "We should see if the Shredder has his lackey's out making mischief."

Raph rolled his eyes at Leo's calm demeanor. Then of course he had to make fun, "Making mischief?" He scoffed, smirking. "You make it sound like they're stealing other kids' candy. Or did you learn that from Space Heroes?" He chuckled.

Leo made a pout. "No." He snorted. He crossed his arms over his chest and looked away. "I don't get everything from there you know."

Raph grinned. "Sure ya don't."

"Alright," Don had just returned from putting up his invention. "Enough arguing. If we're gonna go, let's go." He pulled out his bo staff and spun it around, striking a pose. "I'm ready to kick some shell." As therapeutic as inventing was, he still needed to fight to blow off the steam necessary to handle Leo. He still hadn't forgotten.

Everyone looked at him strangely. Only Leo understood the words beneath the words – that look in his eyes – it's all your fault. The truth curls Leo's insides. And as much as he wants to look away, he just can't. In the end only Mikey can break the tension.

Mikey hops a little. He swings his weapons out and twirls them a bit. "Alright! Let's stomp some Foot!" His eyes gleam with excitement, but it isn't so much for the possibility of battle. Mostly he's holding his breath in hope that the others will smile again.

Don smiles and then everything is all right again. He rolls his eyes too, but the smile is still there.

Raph sighs under his breath. He's glad it that it won't turn out like the day Don and Leo fought over the sword, her sword. Then he smirks. He's just as ready to fight as well.

"Come on guys," Leo orders, but it lacks a lot of authority. On these runs he's not so much their leader as he is their brother, that is unless they run into trouble. Trouble like Karai. The thought smacks him in the face and he has to shake his head to clear his mind. In cases like that, he wouldn't know what he was. Mostly he would be a failure.

As thought s continue to pound Leo they all set out. They make sure to travel far from the lair before they finally surface. They don't want anyone who might be watching knowing where they live. They run through alley for a little while longer, another precaution. Then they scale a building and finally get to business.

They don't have a particular pattern in mind. They just sort of run from building to building until they've covered a large amount of the city. The one place they don't go though is the Wolf building. Leo doesn't know if they notice it, but they certainly don't mention it. For a while even Leo didn't realize he was doing it, but he literally planned millions of routes, all of them skipping that building. Even if it was quicker to hit it, he wouldn't do it. Ever since that night they faced Shredder they all developed an almost irrational feat of the building itself, as if it were what nearly killed them. Leo honestly doesn't know if they'll ever step foot there again, even if the Shredder is destroyed.

Leo doesn't know what time it is when they've travelled this far. He makes a mental note that he needs a watch, something he knows will never happen. Any one they would ever find wouldn't work, that's for sure. It would be broken before it was tossed or break as it hit the ground. And God knows he doesn't have it in him to steal one. Still, he notes it anyway.

"It's getting late." He hears himself say. Really it's not. But Karai is probably waiting for him. He wants to see her again, needs to.

Raph normally would have called him on it, but he is too invested in Leo's problems to make things harder on the poor guy. So he simply averts his eyes and waits for the explosion he feels brewing at his side.

"No it's not!" Don cries in exasperation – right on cue. "It's barely dark!" He throws his hand to the side and points at the horizon. "You just want to go sneak off to see your girlfriend!"

There is a collective intake of breath.

Donnie smirks. "Yeah, I know." He beams with a certain cruelness. "I knew it couldn't be a guy. You're way too secretive for that."

Leo hurries to hide his shock. He scowls heatedly at Donnie instead. "Good for you." Leo mocks. "You want a medal or what? It can say 'Donnie, the guy who didn't listen to Splinter when he told him not to meddle in Leo's business'."

A frown tugged at Mikey's lips. "Guys," He steps forward. He never figured he'd have to separate these two of all of them. "Come on, don't fight."

"Stay out of it Mikey." Leo warns. He says it gently, but there is still an edge to it that's sharp enough to cut.

A fire flares in Donnie's eyes. "Don't talk to him like that!" He doesn't care how gently Leo put it. He's worked up enough from the lack of Foot fighting or even Kraang fighting that he is willing to turn anything into something to argue about, especially when it involves Leo.

"Do you even listen to yourself!?" Leo snaps back. He shoves his arm forward and pushes Donnie. "I'm talking to him just the same as always. But you, you are having some serious issues where you need to make things into a fight even when there's no fight to begin with!"

Mikey whines softly. "Guys," His mouth is a deep grimace. "Stop fighting."

"Shut up!" Both Donnie and Leo round on Mikey.

"Hey!" Raph barks. "Stop it!" He goes to where Mikey is and pulls him back out of the way. He keeps his hand on his little brother's shoulder even as prepares to enter the fight himself. "You're both being ridiculous! Just look," He waves a hand at Mikey. "You've nearly reduced him to tears!"

Mikey quickly wiped at his face. He stuck out his lip in childish defiance. "Am not." He voice made it more obvious than it already was that he was lying.

Donnie and Leo avert their eyes. Guilt washes over them in a wave with the power of a tsunami. "Sorry Mikey." They mumble in unison. To be so at odds with each other they have surprising synchronization.

Mikey smiles. It's never hard to make him feel better. "It's nothing." He waves it off. Still, his smile is a little too big, a little too bright. They all know their snapping still stings.

"So are we going home or what?" Donnie begrudgingly asks. He refuses to look Leo in the eye all the while. Deferring to his leadership has become so much harder than he ever imagined it would be, for him at least. He always thought Raph would be in his shoes.

Leo opens his mouth to answer, but no words come out. He swears he hears something in the distance. He moves his head to the left a little. Was it from the docks?

Donnie grumbles beneath his breath. "Leo." He grits out with all the impatience in the world.

"Hush." Leo snaps. He holds up his hand. "I thought I heard something."

Suddenly they're all on high alert. Donnie is no longer thinking about how he can't stand Leo lately. Only one thought enters all their minds – danger.

Then there is a new sound, an unmistakable sound. It reaches them with such intensity that they all jump a little. It is an earsplitting roar. "Leatherhead!" Mikey gasps.

"It's coming from the docks!" Donnie points with his bo staff. "Come on!"

Just like that they're off. It's not far. They make it there within five minutes. What they find is no surprise, yet it still manages to make both Leo and Raph's stomach's drop. On the docks fighting is a mash-up of epic proportions. Snakeweed, Spider-bytes, Rat King, and Spyroach were all there. But the only thing they saw was Karai, there with her league of foot ninja. They both thought the same thing – Leo was going to have to fight her.

"Leatherhead!" Mikey foolishly calls out. Fear is plastered across his face just as much as determination. Without another thought he charges into the mess. He'd fight to the death to save his friend.

Leatherhead's eyes are glazed over, but he hears Mikey clearly. "Michelangelo." He growls to himself. He swings his tail viciously, smacking three of his enemies to the side. Knowing help is here gives him renewed strength.

The other three aren't far behind. They each take on an enemy of their own. Raph takes Spider-bytes, Donnie takes Spyroach, Mikey takes Snakeweed, and Leo inevitably takes Karai. Leatherhead is left with one to focus on – Rat King.

As they fight none of them understand what it is exactly they are fighting over. Perhaps nothing at all. Maybe just a combination of bad timing and even worse luck. All they know is they have to fight now. Whether it is logical is irrelevant.

Leo is surrounded by foot ninja, but they mean nothing to him. Through the crowd he sees only one person – one girl – Karai. His vision goes red with fury and he wipes out her foot ninja swiftly and mercilessly in order to reach her. He doesn't know why he does it, it only means he'll have to fight her sooner. But he is elated nonetheless as he rushes to her.

"Leo," His name slides off her tongue like silk. It's hard even for her to keep her distance after so many months of nothing but close contact.

Leo shudders as she says his name. He draws a sword despite his urges and stands no more than a foot in front of her. His eyes narrow and his grip tightens. "Karai," He tries to sound threatening, but it only comes off as needy.

Karai draws her blade. She moves left, in a sort of circle.

Leo matches her steps. They are like two lions, only there is no prey, just each other. Their instincts scream to attack – now! The fire is there, dancing in their eyes and souls, but the intent to harm is scarcely visible. The only way their wish to cause any sort of pain is through playful bites or claws digging into skin from ecstasy.

On the other sides of the fight, the others are doing far better. Raph digs his sais deep into Spider-bytes flesh. He twists, relishing in the creature's screams.

Donnie wedges his staff between Spyroach's body and mechanical parts. He jerks forward, ripping the two conjoined parts apart.

Spyroach gives an ungodly scream. It flails, swinging its modified arms around wildly.

Donnie dodges fluidly. He bats at the roach again and again. But it doesn't do much beyond infuriate the bug.

Mikey slices his blades across Snakeweed. His goo splatters across the docks and Mikey, but for once he barely reacts. He is completely focused. These scum hurt his friend. There is no mercy for those.

Snakeweed screeches. He whips his vine hands out, smacking them across Mikey's skin.

Mikey hisses in pain, but he is not deterred. He will chop Snakeweed up into bite size pieces if he has to.

Leatherhead snaps out at the Rat King. His eyes burn dangerously. He lets out another roar as he lungs again, getting a mouthful of the Rat King.

The Rat King is no fighter. He is no match against Leatherhead. And he does not regenerate. He only has one arm now.

Leatherhead makes another go. He gets another mouthful. This time he bites into the shoulder.

Rat King knows when he is beat. He quickly flees before he has no limbs left to lose.

Leatherhead breathes heavily. He watches the coward go, roaring after him. Then he turns his crazed eyes onto his next target. They are the closest.

Karai finally moves. She darts forward with amazing speed.

Leo jumps back. He draws his sword up defensively.

Karai swerves, at his back in an instant.

Leo draws in a sharp breath. He hurries to spin around, but it's already too late.

Karai shoves her blade around him, in front of his blade. She pulls back hard, holding his blade behind hers and threatening to slit his throat with his own weapon. "What's the matter?" She whispers in his ear. "Gone soft?"

Leo grunts and groans as he tries to free himself. "You're not so swift yourself." He strains to say. "What was with that little dance?"

Karai makes a soft sound of annoyance. "I like playing with my food."

"Is that so?" Leo smirks despite his circumstances. "Are you sure you weren't just biding time? Or perhaps you were thinking of last night?" There was an edge to his tone he hadn't expected to put there.

Karai flinched.

This was his chance. Leo shoved hard against her blade. He spun around just as quickly, pointing his katana inches from her throat. It was so much like their first meeting that he nearly faltered.

Karai knew what he was thinking, she was too. Still, she smirked. "Go on then." She urged. "Stab me, right through the throat." He eyes gleamed dangerously. "Kill me Leonardo."

Leo grimaced. She hadn't called him that, his full name, in a long time. It didn't help that there was a carefully placed edge there. Turtles first. Raph's voice echoed in his head.

Karai used his hesitation. She slammed her blade into his, knocking it from his hand. "Fool." She practically flew forward, driving her blade down in a beautiful arc.

Leo gasped. He could scarcely believe it as he felt metal meet skin – his skin – and immense pain hit him. His eyes widen and he is completely stunned as fresh blood trickles from his shoulder.

Karai doesn't stop there. She runs full force into him. She throws him across the docks.

"LEO!" Raph screams. His heart cracks a little. He feels once well controlled anger flare up into a wildfire. His body shakes terribly and his attacks suddenly become so much more vicious. He has to get to Leo – now!

Leo hits the wood of the docks hard. He skids across the floor, barely stopping at the edge. He groans softly, reaching a trembling hand up to his bleeding shoulder. His body slowly curls inward.

Karai scoffs at him. She walks slowly over to him, towering over him more so than ever before. "I told you before – in battle we are out to kill each other." Even as she said it she barely believed it. It stung terribly. Watching him lying there in pain only made it worse.

Leo forced himself up to his knees. His body shook all the while. His eyes narrow, sharp as daggers. He glowers, but there is only hurt where anger should be. He still grips at the wound regardless of how unprotected he is in that moment because of it.

Karai wants to check on him. The blood dripping from his shoulder makes her sick. But her father is watching. She can feel it. So instead she raises her blade. High above him. "Die." Her eyes scream for him to move out of the way. Come on!

In the blink of an eye everything changes. Leo can barely handle it, so he knows Karai must be in total shock. Suddenly a shadow is looming over Karai, and in the next instant it's all black.

Karai is thrown from the dock with such force that she hits the concrete at the edge of the docks that support it. There is a loud cringe-worthy smack and her head snaps back then forward. Then her body plummets, into the watery depths below.

The shadow was Leatherhead. He had hit her with her lethal tail. The blow was so hard in fact that there were faint traces of blood on his tail.

For a moment Leo can only stare. His eyes are wide in disbelief. He doesn't even know if he's still breathing anymore. Then the panic sets in and, "KARAI!" He screams. His eyes are wild and his muscles tense.

She doesn't surface. Her eyes remain shut as she sinks farther and farther. She doesn't hear him either. She is out cold, water filling her lungs at an amazing rate.

Leo's heart clenches. He knows she isn't coming back. And he knows there is only one option for him. Despite the pain and despite the fact she did this to him he leaps to his feet and mindlessly dives in after her.

Raph catches his breath as he sees Leo disappear over the edge. "No-" He stabs Spider-bytes through one of his legs, yanks his sai back quickly, then sprints away. He can't think about anything but Leo in that moment. "Idiot!" He snarls.

Leatherhead is more than a little confused. Wasn't she apart of those they were fighting? Why did Leo go in after her? She hurt him. But Leatherhead was never one to think, so instead he takes Raph's place. He goes after Spider-bytes.

Raph stops suddenly at the edge. He watches the waters with heavy apprehension. "Come on, come on…" He doesn't go in after them because he knows it won't help.

Donnie and Mikey say the commotion and are wholly distracted, but they can not break away. They keep on fighting as their fear and confusion rise with crippling speeds.

Leo can barely see through the dark waters. He can't go very fast either because of his arm. Still, he forces himself to swim farther and farther down. He looks for the patch of blonde in her hair.

For a heart stopping second he thinks she is already too far down, but then he sees it. He almost lets his air out in relief. He swims faster then. He reaches out with his injured arm. His hand clenches around her wrist and he pulls hard, hard enough to make him clench his teeth in agony.

He brings her close enough to get his arm around her body then he shoots upward. He swims for his life, only it's not him who is about to die. He swims for her. It gets lighter as they go. Then in a large splash they break the surface. The loud sound is added to by his sharp intake of breath. For some reason he feels out of breath, even though he should be able to last so much longer underwater.

Relief washes over Raph at the same time that hate does. He hates her. He almost hopes the blow along with water intake killed her. Then they won't ever have to worry about Leo being so foolish.

Leo struggles to the side. The dock is too high in his condition and with her added weight, so he goes for the thin strip of concrete at the edges. He pushes Karai up and pulls himself after her. "Karai…" He says breathily, his chest heaving. "Karai…"

Raph sprints down the dock. He leaps over the edge and lands with a grunt on the concrete a few feet from them. "Leo! Leo, you idiot!" He towers over him, his arms crossed firmly over his chest. Still the concern shines through in his eyes despite his efforts at looking intimidating.

Leo ignores him. He pulls Karai close. He cradles her with care. He feels desperately for a pulse. Her body is so cold that it makes a sudden shiver race down his spine. It's so different from all their shared nights. It's scary.

"Leo!" Raph demands his attention. "Are you listening!?"

"Shut up!" Leo snarls. He jerks his head up to glare furiously at his brother. "Just shut up! I can't find a pulse! I can't find-I can't…" His lip trembles terribly. His hand shakes just as badly.

Raph can't help but feel bad. His brows knit together and he crouches down next to his brother. "Calm down." He whispers. He gently takes Leo's fumbling hand away from her neck and tries himself. It takes a moment, a terrifying moment, but he feels one. He also notices the faint movement of her chest. "It's there."

Leo wants to calm down, but he just can't. The relief this brings is tempered by the horrendous sight of her head gushing blood. At first washed away by water it is becoming obvious again. It runs down her head and even beneath his fingers.

It makes him shake harder. The slick substance, never before something he was bothered by, is now sickening. Just looking at it makes his heart seize up in terror. "What do I do…?" He says to himself, too soft for Raph to hear. Then he suddenly jerks his frantic gaze upward, yelling, "What do I do!?"

Raph is taken aback by the pure desperation in Leo's blue eyes. He's never seen his big brother this way – terrified, hopeless, lost, all of it so much worse than depressed. He would do anything to get rid of that look. He'd kill anyone, he'd save anyone, even if that someone was Karai. In that moment he only cares about this one thing – banishing that craziness from Leo's stare.

"Raph!" Leo screams, his voice cracking at the edges. "P-Please…" He reaches out and grabs Raph's plastron. "Help me…"

Raph jerks his head around to see if he can find the others up on the dock. They're not within eyeshot. "Alright, first, you've gotta calm down. We have to find Donnie and Mikey before we do anything."

Leo is so blinded by desperation that for once he doesn't think about revealing his secret to them. On some level he realizes he is going to be doing so within the next few minutes, but it doesn't matter. Karai needs him. No matter what she did just minutes before, he will help her. So he nods firmly.

Raph knows he understands the implications. He knows he is not tricking Leo into this and it somehow makes him feel better. "You get her up to the docks and get ready to run. I'll get them." Leo won't leave Karai's side. So he has to get them both.

Leo nods again. It's too hard to speak.

Raph watches him carefully. He doesn't really want to leave Leo. Still, if there is one thing he's learned through his mishap with leadership it's that there is no time for what you want. As leader you have to act fast and in the best interest of the team. "Don't worry Leo," Right now this was all for Leo. He pats Leo's shoulder. "It'll be alright."

Raph shoots up and in the blink of an eye is gone from Leo's sights. Leo only stares after him briefly, then his full attention is on Karai. He forces himself to breathe slowly, deeply. It's going to be alright. Raph said it is going to be ok. So it will be!

Raph runs down the docks. His eyes dart over the many figures, most newly appeared foot ninja. Through the mess of bodies he sees flashes of green. He picks one and heads for it, plowing through the foot ninja along the way.

Raph springs forward, soaring over a number of foot ninja. He comes down behind one of the creatures his brothers' are facing. He doesn't think. He drives his sai through the center, through Snakeweed's chest.

Snakeweed screams. It flails angrily as the horrible pain spreads out from its heart.

A jolt rushes up Mikey's spine. His heart jumps into his throat as Snakeweed screeches from something that's not him. For a second he thinks it could be the Shredder – someone with no allies. But as a head pops around, a smile lights on his face. "Raph!"

Raph doesn't smile. He only lets a brief sigh of relief to pass his lips before he barks orders. "Come on! We're out of here!" He grabs Mikey's arm and drags him as he runs.

"Hey!" Mikey stumbles along. "Wait! What do you mean?" Chaos is still ensuing all around them. This looks far from over. Did something happen? Terror suddenly grips him as he remembers, "Where's Leo!?"

Raph glances back to give his little brother a reassuring look. "He's alright." Of course that was relatively speaking. His shoulder was split and he was an emotional wreck, but he was still alive and well.

Mikey stared blankly a Raph. "Then why-"

"Donnie!" Raph yells as he knocks another bunch of foot ninja out of the way. "Leave the bug and let's move it!"

Donnie jerks his head around at the sound of his brother's voice. Still it's not the one he's expecting to be giving orders. Raph already learned the hard way that he is not meant for such a thing. "Raph? What are you doing? If you haven't noticed we're in the middle of a brawl!"

"Yeah, a brawl no longer important to us." Raph says a bit snidely. "Now let's go!"

"Wait!" Mikey intervenes. "What about Leatherhead!? We can't just leave him!"

"And the diamond!" Donnie protests vehemently.

Raph looks stunned. He blinks twice.

Donnie sighs irritably. He thrusts his staff back into the bug then around in a semicircle, knocking over some foot ninja. "It's what this is all about. They're all after it. I don't know why, but it's important. We can't leave without it!"

Raph hesitates, but it is only a fleeting reaction. His eyes quickly narrow and his lips turn down. "We can. And we are." He puts his sai in his belt in order to grab Donnie as well. "Now!"

Donnie nearly yanks back. Within an inch of it he sees it – that furious desperation in Raph's eyes. Don has seen it many times over the last few months, and in an instant he knows that it's Leo. He glares heatedly at Raph and his teeth grind together as he forces himself to remain calm. "Fine."

Raph releases them both and charges ahead. He has to find Leo. Now that the others know to follow, that's all that matters. "Leo!" His heart skips a beat in the silence.

It took Leo the entire time to get them both up on the docks. Karai is actually pretty heavy when she is dead weight. The fact his shoulder was killing him didn't help. What normally would have been a little bit of a strain now hurt like hell.

Now he was lying flat on his back. His chest heaved with each breath. She was beside him, motionless. He briefly thought he should try and do some sort of cpr, but Raph had said she was breathing, has said she had a pulse. Still, he had to have contact. He clutched desperately onto her small hand. It was cold, so cold. So much colder than ever before.

Leo swallows hard. He clenches his eyes shut tight. A few tears are pushed out and trickle down his face. "Don't die…" He whispers in a gasp. His hand trembles around hers. He looks tentatively over at her. She is as silent as ever. "Please be ok."

"Leo." Raph sighs as he catches sight of her brother on the ground. His heart isn't beating so harshly against his chest now. He even smiles, although it's tempered with pity and even a little bit of fear. Donnie and Mikey are hot on his heels. They'll see her any minute and-

"Leo!" Mikey is the first to see them. He however doesn't see her. He races past Raph and slides down next to Leo. "Are you alright!?" He says with all due urgency. His eyes are wide as his eyes skirt over Leo's body, landing on the deep slash on his shoulder.

Leo sits up slowly. His heart is doing double-time as he holds Karai's hand with even more intensity. He forces himself to look at Mikey. His little brother needs answer. "It's just a light wound." Leo gives an unconvincing smile. "We can fix it at the lair."

Raph is next by his side. He crouches almost directly in front of Leo to better see the wound. "You ready?" he says beneath his breath. His eyes are wild with intensity.

It's clear to both of them that Raph doesn't just mean ready to run. He means ready to deal with the inevitable backlash once Donnie gets there.

Donnie is just as worried as the other two, but once he reaches Leo he is too stunned to feel anything. His mouth falls open, his eyes widen, and his hands unclench, his staff clattering to the ground. All he can do is stare, his gaze flitting from Leo's face to Karai's and then his hand curled so tightly around hers. No way…

Mikey sees the flash of fear in Leo's face and twists around. He is surprised to see Donnie standing at the other end of the exchange. His brows knit together and he frowns slightly. Only as he turns around again does he understand.

What he missed in his worry was the motionless girl at Leo's side. It was the one who had torn up Leo's shoulder. It was Karai. Even the most good-natured brother couldn't hide the anger that flared within him at the sight of her relatively unharmed. Why wasn't she drowning in the water?

Donnie was the only one willing to speak what was on their minds. What the hell!?" He snarls. His eyes narrow and his lips curve into a snarl. "How'd she get out!? Leatherhead knocked her senseless! And why are you just sitting there, touching her!? Kill the witch!" He already knew all the answers anyway.

Raph flinches in anticipation of Leo's reaction.

As exhausted as Leo is he can't help but fight back. "Don't talk about her like she's some heartless monster!" He reaches out for her and picks her up off the ground. He clutches her close. "Because she's not!" He stands with much effort, his shoulder crying out against her weight.

"Are you insane!?" Donnie pushes his finger harshly against his own head. "She's the Foot! No," He holds up a hand. "She's the leader of the Foot! Do you realize how dangerous that is!?"

Leo stands his ground. "Thanks. Cause I haven't heard everyone say that about a million times already. Yeah, just thanks." He glowers menacingly. "And it doesn't matter!" He leans forward as he shouts this. "Because she's important to me. And I know there's good in her."

"I knew you were endangering us." Donnie hissed.

"Good for you." Leo sneers. "You win another medal." If he could have he would have threatened Donnie with a punch, but he holds back if only for Karai.

"Stop it!" Raph breaks through their bickering. They've already been arguing to long. The attention of the enemies will be on them any second now. "Donnie! Fight with him all you want later, but right now we need to get down to the sewers."

Donnie is posed to lash out with words, but the look in Raph's eyes tells him to think better of it. Instead he snorts angrily, kicking at the ground in a fit. "This isn't over." He promises Leo as he walks past him, purposefully hitting his shoulder against Leo's as well.

Leo hisses after him. It was his bad arm. He wonders if Donnie did it by accident or if he meant for it to be the injured shoulder. Leo decides he doesn't want to know for sure. So he turns back to the other two.

Mikey hasn't stopped looking at Leo the whole time. He's watching him as if he is a bomb set to explode. Or as if Leo is some foreign disease. In short Mikey is wary.

Leo grimaces. "Mikey, look, I-"

"No time." Raph knows this can wait. "Mikey, go grab Leo's sword." He points back across the docks a little ways.

Mikey shakes his head to shake away his daze. He nods shortly. "Sure thing, Raph." He turns and runs to get it.

Raph sighs heavily as Mikey leaves earshot. "Then we have to go after Mr. Personality." He can't say he really blames Donnie though. After all, he hasn't had as much time to come to terms with it as Raph has. "And then we have to have a serious talk about…this." There's no other word for it.

Leo averts his eyes. "I know."

"Got it!" Mikey cries as he pops back up at their sides. He grins from ear to ear, easily the happiest of the bunch. Or at the very least the best at pretending to be.

Leo smiles appreciatively. "Thanks." He bows his head slightly.

Mikey dims noticeably, but he has it in him to return the sentiment. "No problem bro." As he walks around Leo to sheath his sword for him his eyes never leave the girl in his arms. He remembers their conversation so long ago. So this was the one.

Mikey supposes he should have known from their battles before. But he didn't. Now all he can think is Karai is actually for real and truly Leo's secret. She had stolen Leo's heart and made him a shell of his former self when he was away from her. Love was some powerful stuff. Then again with a situation like this, Mikey isn't surprised. They're Romeo and Juliet. He can only hope it doesn't end the same.

"Come on." Raph nods toward the city. "Let's find brainiac."

Leo doesn't even contemplate arguing. One look at Karai is all it takes. He brushes his fingers gently across her face, her bangs fluttering with the movement. He grazes some blood along the way, solidifying his need to get out of here. "We have to help her as fast as possible." She was losing blood fast.

Everyone knows he means himself, not them. But they don't correct him. They simply run. They run until they reach a manhole and then they disappear into the darkness. "Karai…" Leo whispers so only he hears. "They won't change my mind." He smiles fondly. "I believe in you, no matter what you do."

Did you notice the change? I've started a novel where I'm using a more 'in the moment' voice. Before now I've always written like 'yelled' or 'looked' instead of 'yells' and 'looks'. I hope the shift didn't throw anyone off too badly. It's probably the style I'll be using from here on out. As I get better at it I'll slip up less and less too. (I'm pretty sure I went back into the 'ed' form a few times in this chapter.) Sorry for that too.

I also hope the mash-up of villains plus Leatherhead wasn't unbelievable. It's what I think of when I see the title of the one episode 'Enemy of My Enemy'. (#20 I think). Not to say that's where this takes place. This probably takes place anywhere between episode 16 where they lost the power cell, hence Donnie making a new one, and episode 18 where they magically have the Shellraiser working again. (Seriously what was up with that?)

Anyway, I hope you enjoyed it. If so or even if not, tell me why. I love constructive criticism! Please review!