Authoress' Notes: Okay, okay, I know I promised to have this up three months ago, but there's been some huge changes in my Life; the main one being my promotion at work, meaning more hours. I could make excuses galore, but I'm not going to; I just hope that you all enjoy reading this chapter, 'cause it took forever to write. I kept finding little things wrong with it, and even now I'm not entirely happy with it, but I figured that you all waited long enough, so here it is.
A huge thanks goes out to my two awesome reviewers, who've been ever faithful to my stories: randomlass and AshK. Your support is what keeps the stories strong!
Story Dedication: To my fellow TMNT fan and close E-Pal, Kat a.k.a. randomlass. Girl, I'm glad you like it so far!
Disclaimer: Nope, I don't own Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles or any familiar characters. Mirage Studios, along with Kevin Eastman and Peter Laird are the original owners of our favourite Turtles. I do own Kathy Jones, any unfamiliar characters (well, a few… just read to see), this plot, and this fic. R&R and enjoy!
Chapter Four: New Bonds and Revelations
"We don't want you to get hurt, Caprice!"
"Then… let… me… fight," Kathy replied, emphasising each word with a kick or punch to a Ninja that snuck up on her; on "fight" she stiffed her arm and slashed at "him" hard enough that "he" flew into a wall and exploded.
"Fine, Caprice," Leonardo agreed reluctantly.
"Just be careful," Leo emphasised "careful" with a knowing tone.
"Careful's my not-so-middle name," she retorted, groaning when both gave her "yeah, right; since when?" looks.
Note to self, two Leos equals a headache, Kathy thought to herself, even as she joined the fray; she knew two sets of watchful brown eyes were keeping her in their sight.
Somehow, she became back-to-back with Splinter and the two fought together. She found that, unlike Her Splinter, he used much more power behind his attacks. Unfortunately for Kathy, she became so focused on who she was fighting in front of her that, when she separated from Splinter, she left her back unguarded. One of the few Human Foot Soldiers took full advantage of this and easily knocked her to the ground before straddling her waist with his Sai at her throat. "Make a single sound, and I will not show you mercy, Higurashi," he breathed into her ear and she shivered in disgust, unable to move as she saw Leonardo and Leo come up behind him.
She stiffened as Leo growled, "Touch what is my brother's and I'll kill you myself, Foot Ninja." This said, he tackled him off of his genius brother's presently black-haired girlfriend.
Kathy gasped as the Foot's Sai nicked her throat; it wasn't deep, but it still drew blood. She didn't protest as Raphael swooped down on her prone form and easily picked her up in his strong arms; while neither Raph nor Raphael were the tallest in their families, they were the strongest and the short Kunoichi-In-Training weighed next to nothing to the two red bandanad Turtles. "My Students, I believe it is time for us to make our exit," Splinter knocked several Ninja away easily.
"Of course, Master Splinter," Leonardo agreed. "Lee, we have to leave!"
"Come near her, and I will not hesitate to kill you," Leo growled so lowly only the pummelled Ninja under him was able to hear him, before he back-flipped expertly to land beside the Young Turtles.
Three flying convertibles entered through a hole in the wall that had been created by the numerous robot-Foot that had been thrown at it. "Come on, Hip Cats!" One of the drivers, pink haired Zak, called as he honked his horn.
"Yeah, let's blow this joint!" Purple haired Dask exclaimed.
"Cowabunga, dudes and dudettes!" Michelangelo agreed as he hopped into the front seat beside the pretty orange haired Neutrino, Kala, much to his brother's amusement.
Kathy allowed herself to be carried and placed onto an unfamiliar lap. She blinked blearily, seeing Leo's concerned face swim into view even as she felt pressure applied to her neck. She struggled to fight against the unconsciousness that attempted to reel her in until she felt the cool feel of his reptilian hand on her forehead and his surprisingly soothing voice wash over her, "Sleep, Imouto (A/N: "Imouto" is Japanese for "Little Sister"; I was just too lazy to add the "-chan" to the end… lol.); we'll be back to the Lair before you know it…" The last thing she saw was the sparkle of pride in his dark brown irises before she allowed her consciousness to slip away.
When she next opened her eyes, she found herself tucked securely into what she figured to be Leonardo's bed by the tidiness of the room. She was about to sit up when she felt a gentle hand laid on her shoulder and looked up into Leonardo's relieved, yet strangely saddened, brown eyes. "Le-Leo?" As she was not quite lucid, she was unable to tell the difference between her boyfriend's brother and his look-a-like; the headache that was pounding behind her eyelids didn't help matters much, either.
He frowned, "No, I'm Leonardo. Caprice, you've been unconscious with a fever for the last twenty-eight hours." Her hazel eyes widened in surprise and her heart nearly stopped at his next question, "Caprice, who are you and Lee and why have you been lying to us?"
"I- Leonardo," her voice became pleading. "Please, I- I don't know if I can-"
He cut her off, "I've heard Lee calling you Kathy and you calling him Leo when you two think no one's around. What is it you are hiding from us?"
When Kathy's eyes reluctantly met his, she saw heartbreak and broken trust. If Leo and I are to ever get Home, we're going to need all the help we can get, she silently reasoned with herself. Taking a deep, steadying breath, she took a small drink of the water he handed her and began her story, "You're right; Lee and I have been lying. It was because we weren't sure if we could trust you or the others." She was grateful when he allowed her to continue without interruption and she continued quietly, wondering why she felt… wrong. "To start with, my name isn't really Caprice Speedle; it's Katherine Caprice Jones, but I prefer to be called Kathy. Lee's real name is Leonardo Hamato, or just Leo to his friends and family."
This time, Leonardo did interrupt her, "That is impossible! Leonardo Hamato is my name!"
She gave a small smile and nodded, "I know, Leonardo; but it's not as impossible as one would think. Leo and I… we're not even from this World. We're from an Alternate Reality to your own; when we landed here, we weren't sure where we even were until we ran across you, Raphael, Donatello, and Michelangelo and then everything clicked into place like a puzzle."
He was quiet for a moment, "Is… is that why you've acted odd around me? Because you're dating Lee, er, Leo?" He hastened, "Because, Capr- ah, Katherine, I really like you."
Kathy choked a little bit on her water, having taken the moment to take a drink; on one hand, she was surprised as anything, but on the other she'd suspected that the Young Leader hoped for more than just a friendship with her. "Leonardo, that's not it at all," she fumbled with her answer, never being one who ever wanted to hurt, however inadvertently, the feelings of someone she knew. "Leo and I… we just started being friends after the first day here; before that, we were always fighting." She saw hope spark to life in his eyes and knew that she had to hurry, or else he might do something they would both regret, "Leonardo, I'm dating someone right now."
"Oh," Leonardo murmured, feeling utterly ridiculous. "Is it anyone I would know?"
She winced, hearing the hidden steel in his voice, "More or less, yes."
"Who is it?" Now, he was curious, although he tried to ignore the hurt that rejection caused.
"My World's version of Donatello," she replied, sighing longingly as she thought of her genius boyfriend, even as she attempted to ignore her headache.
"I have one question," Leonardo said quietly. "If I may, that is."
"I owe you that much, Leonardo."
"Do you love him?"
Kathy knew she couldn't lie and told him gently, "I do; I never knew what I was missing in my life before I met him and it was intrigue at first sight and then love after only several days of meeting him and his brothers. You actually remind me of Donnie, which is what we call him; he's soft-spoken, smart, and someone who will defend those close to him until the very end, no matter what it takes."
"So, he's not like my Donatello?" He was amazed at this revelation.
She thought for a moment on how to phrase her answer, her brain struggling to come up with the answer, "Yes and no; Donnie is the genius in his family and loves tinkering with his machines and various inventions, but he's also very personable and embraces new people and challenges with warmth, as opposed to being a little aloof and cool when dealing with a non-Mutant."
"What about my brothers? Who do they remind you of?"
"Raphael reminds me of Mikey, which is my Michelangelo, with just a bit of Raph's attitude thrown in. Michelangelo reminds me of a sugar-high Mikey… and, believe it or not, Donatello reminds me of Leo with the exception being that Donatello isn't as into Ninjitsu." She paused when she moved her headache and it felt like it exploded.
Leonardo noticed her wince a bit and place her hand to her forehead, "Are you alright, Ca- Katherine?"
"I have the hugest headache," Kathy replied, not objecting as he gently took her hand and moved it so he could feel her forehead himself.
Almost immediately, he pulled his hand back, "You're burning up! I'll be right back," he took off for the kitchen and came back with a bowl of cold water with some ice in it and a washcloth. "Did your headache just start, Katherine?"
She would have shook her head, but it was now pounding too much for any form of movement. "No, it's been there since I woke up; I'm just so used to headaches that it takes a lot for me to react to them. Why?"
"I am not sure, but I think there might have been poison on that sword that cut your throat," Leonardo answered as he busied himself with bathing her face and throat with the chilled water, with her having laid back down.
"Ooh, crap," she groaned, using the mildest curse word that came to mind; and she knew quite a few considering her best "guy" friend and her Guardian swore at each other quite a lot. "Why do these things happen to me?" She wondered, not expecting an answer.
"Because you're stubborn to a fault and always end up in trouble?" Leo supplied, stepping out from the shadows and revealing himself to his Alternate and friend.
"Leo, I'm not feeling up to a fight right now," Kathy told him, wincing as her neck began to go numb from the coldness of the cloth that Leonardo kept there as he stared at Leo.
"You really are an older me, aren't you, Lee?" He asked, noticing for the first time that Leo looked almost exactly like him with the exception of several scars and things identified with being a few years older (A/N: Remember, Leo's nineteen in this, since Kathy's eighteen, going on nineteen in a few months.).
"Yes, I am; and, as Kathy already told you, you can call me Leo, Leonardo." Leo's features seemed to furrow for a moment as he looked at Kathy, "Katherine, you're as white as a ghost… you're going to the Hospital."
Kathy mustered up a glare, "No, I'm not, Leonardo; you're not Casey, so you can't order me around like you do the guys."
"I am your Sensei, Katherine… and you're friend. Please; if Donnie finds out that you got hurt and I didn't take proper care of it, he'll use me in his next experiment."
"I'm afraid that taking young Ms. Jones to the Hospital is going to be the least of your worries, Turtles," a somewhat familiar voice cackled and the two Leonardos turned around to see someone who looked strikingly similar to Karai.
"K-Karai?" Leo stared.
Even though her mind wasn't working quite as swift as it normally did, Kathy noticed one subtle difference, "Leo, her eyes are black; didn't you once say that Karai's were a dark brown?"
"Hm, you may turn out to be a worthy Ally, Ms. Jones," the woman smiled; her smile was cold and chilled Kathy to the bone.
Leonardo took a protective stance in front of Kathy, "What do you want with Katherine, Lotus Blossom?"
"The girl travelled through several Dimensions to get to this one; she will, as you Americans say, lead the way back to my Home," Lotus Blossom, as Leonardo called her, sneered. "Now, move Leonardo; I shall detest having to harm you or your Double."
"Ta get ta any of 'em, yer goin' ta have ta go through us, first, Lotus," Raphael's heavy Brooklyn accent came from behind her and she whirled just in time to have Donatello's Bo staff trip her.
"An' through us, too," everyone looked to the side and saw four sights for sore eyes, as they say.
"D-Donnie?" Kathy whispered, seeing her boyfriend and his two other brothers, along with her cousin and Guardian, Casey Jones. This turn of events proved to be too much for her mind to handle and it shut down; Kathy slumped back onto the mattress in a dead faint.
To be continued…
Authoress' Notes: So, there it is; I'm starting work on chapter five, but I make no promises about when I'll next update with the exception being a cute Donnie/Kathy one-shot based around their first Christmas Eve together. I hope everyone enjoyed!
Please Read and Review; the more reviews an Author/ess receives on a story, the more and quicker s/he is spurred to write. I accept all reviews: Comment, Compliment, and Criticism (preferably Constructive Criticism); I accept Flames, but nothing with swearing in it, since the Default Profanity Filter is on my reviews.
Cowabunga,
Laura a.k.a. uncutetomboy
