Leonardo felt alive once more, or at least, far more than he had been hours before. His brown eyes darted towards any movement in the shadows as he leapt from tree to tree. She was fast, faster than he had ever given her credit for when they were in the Foot Clan. Perhaps that had always been her intention, given her betrayal of Shredder. By making herself seem a bit slower, perhaps a bit weaker too, she was lulling her prey into a false sense of security. It was a good plan in theory, but one that ultimately failed for her.

"Alopex!" he called out again, only to hear the same reply: nothing.

He stopped move, leaping off his tree and landing in a clearing. Running around and yelling was getting him nowhere. While part of him blamed Raphael for forcing Alopex to flee, part of him blamed himself for asking her to stay when she supposedly did not want to. With the damage done, the least he could do is find her again to properly say goodbye, and thank you. Slowly he began to walk into the center of the clear, pausing once he arrived. His eyes scanned the starry sky, looking on in quiet awe at how different the sky was out here compared to the New York City's. It looked like one of Mikey's art projects with glitter gone wrong. Here, however, it looked right.

A rustling sound nearby tore his attention from the natural beauty before him. Something white could be made out in the distant brush. Alopex. He did not bother calling after her, instead bolting immediately in that direction. The white form disappeared from view, but it was much shorter than Alopex when she stood upright. Perhaps she had been crouching. Had she been watching him the entire time?

The brush easily gave way to his charging form, the sounds of snapping twigs flooding his hearing as they slapped at his body before being sheared off their respective bushes. Ahead, the white form seemed no closer and no farther, almost as if he were being lead. To where, he did not know. All sense of direction was lost as he could not remember how many times he had to abruptly turn past trees, vault over fallen logs, or quickly roll under them. With a final push forward a dense thicket, he made his way into a small moonlit grove. The white form stood before him, but it was not Alopex.

A small white fox greeted him, an actual four legged fox. He could not help but frown at himself. There would have been no way for him to confuse something so diminutive with someone as tall as Alopex, no matter how low she crouched. He would have turned to leave, to continue to his hunt, but no sooner had he turned that the small white fox was blocking his path. Looking back over his shoulder, the fox was no longer where it had been. Somehow it had managed to run the hundred feet or so between without his noticing. Slowly, he approached the fox. It gave no discernible expression as the two sets of eyes stared at each other. Like Alopex, this fox had golden eyes, but lacking the markings around those eyes. The fox took a few steps forward, moving completely around him to begin moving back towards the grove. It stopped alongside him, to confirm that he was going to follow. Once satisfied, the fox continued to move. Intrigued, Leonardo followed. Around them, luminescent specks began to drift in from the surrounding trees.

As he followed the fox, the grove seemed to grow brighter even if the moon was not capable of providing so much light through the thick canopy. There was almost a celestial glow to everything around the pair. The specks grew larger, brighter, gradually flowing towards a common point. At first, the collection of sprites made no recognizable form, clustering together in an ever increasing column. Soon, masses begun to bud on either side, the bottom flair out in a bell shape to make the base of a gown. The extensions began to take shape as well, the ends widening to make sleeves. A kimono…? The top of the column grew more slender, willowy strands extending out in flowing waves to resemble hair.

"Mother…"

He knew her, before ever seeing her face.

Michelangelo sat atop the roof of the O'Neil homestead, looking out to the seemingly endless woods in all direction. A haven of civilization in a sea of wilderness, but he did not feel any safer here than he did anywhere else.

"He'll be back," Donatello voiced out as he too climbed onto the roof, settling in beside the youngest of the four brothers.

"I know," he replied, those words not making any meaningful dent on his mood. Instead, Mikey huddled himself in closer, tucking his head as much as he could into his shell. His eyes still peered over the edge, not wanting to stop looking for Leonardo's figure finally coming home. "We shouldn't have left him behind!" he shouted, slamming his fist down beside him.

"We didn't know…, and he, more than any of us, knows how to take care of himself," Donatello answered, reaching over to hold his brother's forearm. "We got him back."

"But, it's not-"

"It's not the same…," Donatello finished his brother's concern, who would only nod sadly after. "It will be. You'll see. Leo's been through a lot, and it's only been a day. He's been through a traumatic experience. Twice even. Who knows what Shredder did to brainwash him, to make him think everything he knew before was a lie, and then realizing that lie was all a lie too." He exhaled, shoulder to shoulder against his brother. Mikey leaned back in kind, and together they continued their vigil.

"Do you trust her?" Michelangelo asked.

"Alopex?"

"Mhm."

"No. But I believe she was telling the truth about not being part of the Foot anymore. She attacked Shredder, when they would have easily killed us all. If she's faking it, then it doesn't make any sense," Donatello explained, "Now, there's no way to tell if she'll sell us out to Shredder when it's convenient, like some tribute for forgiveness, or use us for whatever schemes she might be plotting. But…, we owe her some benefit of the doubt for helping us escape."

"Yea…, I don't trust her either," Michelangelo agreed solemnly, if only to agree with the brother they all trusted to always be right. Because, Donatello. "I think Leo trusts her though."

"I noticed," the older brother remarked dryly to Mikey pointing out the obvious, pursing his lips tightly together in thought. Though it was much closer to heart that he would ever like, this was nevertheless yet another challenge to solve.

"Splinter…?"

"He's doing better, as much as could hope for, considering…," Donatello said with a smile beginning to form, grateful to his brother for changing the topic. At least that was one problem he could actively work on. Several feet below, two young humans listened in on the brothers' conversation as they leaned together upon the windowsill.

"My child…"

Her voice was one that could banish any nightmares, bathing him in mesmerizing comfort. Slowly, he began to walk towards the specter. The grove became shrouded with fog, the trees seeming to melt away in favor of a brighter background. Cherry blossoms began to drift around him.

"I know of your struggles, but you need not burden yourself alone, for I am here for you."

She approached him, and he could only look on in awe as he craned his head up. He was but a child again. Her hand rested upon his smooth green head, and all fear washed away from him. Both arms desperately wrapped around her waist.

"I'm afraid…" the young turtle said in a soft shudder.

"You are home once more, with family."

"They… I fought against them," Leonardo mumbled against her majestic garments, his thoughts racing between broken memories in New York and his most recent fight with Raphael, "I still fight against them. I know they are family… My brothers…" He paused, feeling Shredder's poison in his soul, Oroku Saki's projected hatred for Hamato Yoshi. "…my father. I…"

"They love you still. This sadness, my child, should not be."

Despite her incorporeal nature, he could feel her hands upon his shoulders before she moved to hold him at arm's length. He looked up at her in confusion.

"In truth, the responsibility for all this sadness belongs to another."

"Who, mother? Please, tell me…"

Slowly she began to withdraw from him, fading away from him. Panic filled Leonardo's eyes. To his horror, however, he could not move. He could only watch as his mother ceased to be. Her voice carried on as the fog grew thicker.

"When you find that which you have lost…, you will also find the answer to that question."

His arms swept forward, trying to push aside the fog that was making it hard enough to not even see his own hands.

"Mother! Where are you? I need you now…" he called out, hearing his own voice tremble and waver, "Please… I'm so confused."

"You have found what you have lost, child. You need only proceed slowly and not allow yourself to be overwhelmed…"

"How…?" he begged, blindly walking through the fog as it began to grow bright around him.

"Trust… It was not she who led you to me, my child, but your trust in her…"

His mind raced back to chasing down the small creature, believing it to have been the arctic fox he pursued.

"Alopex?"

The dense fog grew bright around him, bright enough to blind. He raised his hands to shield his eyes, but it was too late. Darkness greeted him.

Raphael led the way back towards the farm, but neither seemed to be a hurry as both he and Alopex were consumed with their own thoughts. He still did not trust her, nor would he ever believe himself capable of it, but if she would be able to actually help his brother, then he had no choice but to at least tolerate her, for Leo's sake. That she was willing to stay and help softened the blow of having her around them at all, especially considering that she could have refused and left, as she may have been planning to do originally.

Alopex trailed behind, close enough that the other did not believe her to be at risk of slipping away and escaping, but far enough that she was not inviting conversation. While the circumstances were not something she would have accepted otherwise, the fox knew that she was needed. She had purpose once more. Perhaps in helping Leonardo overcome his demons, she would learn how to deal with hers. Her claws raked through her fur, brushing out the various pieces of debris she had picked up. It served two purposes. One, she was absolutely filthy. Two, it provided a productive distraction as she walked through the woods.

"So, how much of its true?" Raphael asked without looking over his shoulder to her.

"Of what?" she replied.

"All of it. There's no fakin' being a mutant, but everything else. You said you didn't remember anythin' before you were experimented on, then you said the Foot killed your family."

Her eyes narrowed, the topic not something that she enjoyed repeating, and certainly not with someone she did not talk want to speak with at length. She quietly hissed her irritation, but began speaking, regardless.

"I found out about my family after the fact… Shredder sent me off on a mission to scout a forested area above the snow line. While there, I… remembered things: hunting, scavenging, along with the other animals. I remembered a large white bear…, terrorizing us. I was small, but I swore one day to have my vengeance," she voiced out grimly, slowly catching up to Raphael and keeping pace with him.

"The smell of smoke pulled me away from my recall. I ran, ran as fast I could to find out what happened. And then… I saw it all. The clan was setting fire to the entire forest. Everything, every tree, every animal, burned to the ground..." Alopex looked down at her claws, "I overstepped my bounds as a member of the Foot." It was an understatement.

"He had my loyalty already, my undying loyalty. I would have gladly laid down my life for him, gladly have taken your lives for him. But it was not enough. He wanted to make sure I had nothing, nothing but the Foot. Absolute control." Her claws clenched, but readily relaxed and returned to her sides. It was much easier confessing things a second time around, maybe because Leonardo had more of an effect on her than she would realize, or admit.

"I attacked him, called him a monster. I wanted vengeance for my family. Blood for blood…" And I did draw blood. The scene replayed in her mind's eyes. The smell of smoke was stifling, the blood on her claws warm. She tasted iron in her mouth as an armored knee slammed into her abdomen. She knew she was going to die. "I was not strong enough. I was prepared to die. With my family gone, my loyalty thrown away, what did I have left?" She frowned angrily, turning her head towards Raphael with her fangs bared when he dared to look at her. "And that is when I realized how sick of a bastard the Shredder was... He did not explain. He simply stated. His ruling was fact. By destroying my past, I had only my future, in the clan. I accepted and he had a rein on me that could not be severed. Or so he thought…"

Me and my big mouth. Raphael kept his eyes ahead, but he listened to every word. Jeez… No wonder Leo believed her, and she knows how Leo feels. They're both seriously messed up. While she had not been brainwashed in the same manner as his brother had, she had certainly been manipulated to the N-th degree, probably worse because she had to willingly play along for as long as she did, consciously doing things against her will. Leonardo, on the other hand, had the mercy of at least thinking he was doing the right thing. However, that probably made things worse in the end when the world came crashing down around him. Raphael's hazel eyes narrowed pensively. This was way over his head.

"Raphael!" Alopex yelled.

Before he could even react, the artic fox was rushing forward towards a fallen figure ahead of them. The shell was a dead-giveaway. Leo… Despite his shorter strides, he was at the fox's heels as they both raced to where Leonardo lay.

No. No. No. No… Her mind was frenzied as she came to a sliding halt alongside his body, clumps of grass and dirt being uplifted by the force of her stop. Golden eyes darted everywhere along his prone body for any signs of injury or trauma along his shell and the back of his limbs. Finding none, she quickly slid her paws underneath him to attempt rolling him over. For being slightly taller than the turtle, he was far heavier than the fox. Straining and grunting, she tried in vain to roll him onto his back, succeeding in only jostling him slightly. It took the combined efforts of both her and Raphael to eventually lay him on his back. Leonardo remained unresponsive. Her head practically slammed against his chest, pinning her ear against the smooth cold surface. A heartbeat. Slow. Strong. Relief washed over her eyes as she looked back up to Raphael.

"He's alive," she confirmed, "He is simply asleep…" While she was confused over the fact, it was Raphael that voiced it aloud.

"Asleep?! He picked here to catch forty-winks?!"

"We should get him back to the farm," Alopex shifted over to begin reaching for his shoulders, only for the other turtle to place a hand on her shoulder.

"Don't bother," he remarked casually.

"What…?" she asked tersely. She strained to keep that defensive tone from being too obvious for her own comfort.

"I can carry 'im," Raphael explained, not picking up on change in her voice when she incorrectly believed they were going to abandon him. He crouched over by Leonardo, motioning for Alopex to pull the latter's arms to his awaiting hands. Inhaling a breath to brace himself against the sudden weight on his shell, he grunted out, "All right, when I start pulling, you push him over so I can lift him. One…Two…. Three!" With a might heave that had Raphael teetering over a few steps, he wriggled his shoulders slightly to adjust his load. I feel like a mule. Mikey would have been danglin' a carrot in front of me. Better not say a damn thing when he sees me.

Alopex walked alongside him, keeping an eye on the sleeping turtle on Raphael's back. A hand rested on Leonardo's shell, though she would say it was only to keep him steady and prevent his brother from losing his grip. Every so often, Raphael needed to pause and shift slightly. Their plastron was a bit more flexible than that of a natural turtle, but it would still not conform perfectly over the roundness of a shell.

Leonardo felt light, as if he were floating even. Maybe he was dead. Maybe he finally joined his mother. He had seen her. The darkness was slowly giving away. Blurred vision was gifted to him. Was I dreaming? His body bounced in a gentle rhythm. Carried… Who? His eyes opened a bit more, catching a glimpse of a white furred figure beside him. She was not looking at him, but her arm reached across. He felt her palm on him.

"Alopex?"

She did not respond. He had only a moment to realize that he had only imagined speaking her name before the darkness overtook him again.