The next day Leo barely sat through the last few minutes of his lessons. When the clock hit 11 he jumped out of his seat, running at full speed out the door, scaring the servants in the hall. He took off down the long hall towards his wing of the castle, weaving through the servants, his robes billowing behind him. He made an impressive figure, scaring servants into pressing themselves against the wall or dropping whatever they were holding. As Leo ran a grin was spread across his face, lighting up his features. he felt so excited that he ran up the wall and flipped over a group of passing servants just so that he could keep up his speed. He skidded around the corner at full speed and disappeared from view.
Raphael had been walking past the hall where Leo had his lessons when his oldest brother burst from the room. He had jumped back to avoid being hit with the door and watched in astonishment as his usually calm and reserved brother ran through the halls like a child. He frowned when the tails of Leo's robes disappeared around the corner and the servants breathed a sigh of relief. Raph growled and hurried after him, knocking over a servant in his anger. he ripped his communicator out called Mikey and Donny.
"Fearless is up to something, ad we are gonna find out what. Meet me in the courtyards." he growled and then hung up, starting to run after his oldest brother, something that was easy to do. He just had to follow the trail of frazzled servants.
When Leonardo burst through the heavy double doors that led to his room, he was still smiling, but barely even breathing hard. Sakura was nowhere to be seen. He frowned and walked down the few steps that led to the common area of his quarters. "Sakura?" he called and smiled in relief when he heard her voice respond.
"In the bedroom Leo." he hurried to his bedroom, and was surprised to find her sifting through his closet. it wasn't what she was doing that surprised him, but rather what she was wearing. he was wearing a tight black top that covered her chest but left her stomach bare. The fabric looped around her neck in a choker like fashion. She was wearing tight black pants and a belt that slanted over her hips. She was also wearing tall black boots that clicked with her every movement. Leo gulped and rubbed the back of his neck nervously.
"S-sakura what are you wearing?" he forced out and she smiled, turning to him.
"This is the fashion out in the city. Only people in the palace still wear traditional clothes." she giggled and walked over to him, her hips swaying tantalizingly. Leo ripped his eyes away from her hips as she began undoing his robe and taking it off of him to reveal his black bodysuit.
"Now how am I going to work around this?" she murmured to herself as she looked Leo over, making him shift uncomfortably. She suddenly turned and pulled out a black trench coat that leo had never seen before. She helped him put it on and then stepped back to examine him. "That will have to do." she sighed and pulled him forward by the lapels of the jacket for a short kiss. Leo closed his eyes and wrapped his arms around her contentedly. She pulled back and looked at him seriously. "Keep this hidden." She grasped his hand and brought it between them, showing him the gold ornament on his arm. "No one can know who you are." Leo nodded and she led him out of the room by his hand. They snuck through the halls, treading carefully so as not to alert anyone.
Unfortunately for them, three shadowed figures were in the rafters, watching them from above. Normally, Leo would have sensed them, but his senses were overwhelmed by his excitement about going to the city and Sakura. When the couple emerged from the room and took off down the hallway, the trio silently followed from above, keeping to the shadows so as to not be detected.
Sakura and Leonardo made it to the grounds and ran silently across the grounds towards the servant's secret exit. Sakura put her hand on the handle of the little door and paused, looking back at Leo. "Are you sure?" she whispered and after a second, Leo nodded and she turned the handle, pushing the door open to a whole new world.
Behind them, observing from a tree, Mikey's eyes widened and he looked back at his older brothers. This couldn't be real. Leo was the perfect son. He would never disobey their father's strictest rule, right? His brother's faces displayed the same shock and as Leo disappeared through the doorway to the outside world they slowly approached the door.
Mikey and Donny nervously looked at each other and then simultaneously at Raph. Donny felt his stomach sink to his feet when he saw the determination and anger in those chocolate brown eyes.
"We're going outside to get him aren't we?" he groaned, pleading with Raph to come to his senses with his eyes.
"Ya bet yer green ass we are." Raph took off his red and black robes and let them fall to the ground. He cracked his neck and growled. Mikey whooped happily and pulled off his orange and white robes, cartwheeling around in excitement. Donny shifted uncomfortably as Raph glared at him, and fiddled nervously with his purple and silver robes.
"C'mon brainiac." he growled and turned to the door, corralling Mikey. Donny grew more nervous as they opened the door and let in the sounds of passing cars and the voices of the people. When his brother's began to walk through the door he quickly pulled off his robes and ran after them.
"Wait for me!"
Leonardo gazed in wonder at the tall buildings and flashing lights that suddenly surrounded him. The buildings seemed to reach for the sky, each one trying to trump the one next to it. The buildings glinted as the sunlight reflected off of the sleek glass exteriors. Leo made sure to keep a firm grasp on Sakura's hands as they weaved through the crowds of citizens. Leo knew that it was rude to stare, but he was seeing species that he had only read about walking around in front of him in fantastical, tight clothing.
As they got deeper into the city, Leo suddenly found the street crowded with vendors selling a variety of products that ranged from alien delicacies to clothing. Leo stopped dead when he found a stand that smelled like heaven. The six-armed alien was wearing a tall white hat and a white apron as he spun a circle of dough. Behind the glass was the finished product. The circle was baked, covered in a red sauce and cheese, and the smell was making Leo see stars.
Sakura gave him a fond smile and greeted the alien like an old friend. "Antonio! Can we get two slices please?" she giggled when the alien gave her a smile and put two slices on some plates.
"Anything for you little flower." he exclaimed and eyed Leo. As he handed him his pizza slice, he leaned in and gave him a serious look. "Take care of this girl. She is special."
"Yessir." Leo nodded seriously and then followed Sakura as they began walking down the street again. He was watching her as he took a bite of his pizza, but as soon as the taste hit his tongue his attention zeroed in on the confection in his hands. He stopped dead in the middle of the crowd, ignoring the people that walked around him and gave him odd looks. He gaped at Sakura when she looked back to see what was wrong.
"Leo?" she furrowed her brows and looked up at him, putting a hand on his chest comfortingly.
"This is... AMAZING!" He yelled and quickly gobbled up the rest of the pizza, a look of bliss on his face.
Sakura threw her head back and laughed, handing him her pizza. "You are too adorable." she laughed and pulled him along as he devoured her slice.
The rest of the boys were having difficulty with the crowds as they tried to follow their brother's progress through the city. Raph just pushed people aside roughly, through with being polite as his anger at Leo festered. Donny was apologizing for Raph's behavior left and right while trying to keep track of their wayward youngest brother. Mikey was the one who spotted Leo at the pizza stall. They were hurrying past it when Mikey suddenly stopped. In the blink of an eye he was in front of the stand picking out five slices. Donny sighed, but his annoyance wavered when he too caught a sniff of the scent of pizza.
Raph turned when his brothers stopped following him and growled when he found them at some meager stall. He stomped over, ready to remind them, quite vehemently, of their mission but the scent beat him to it. He took a deep breath and pulled out his credit chip. "We'll take a pizza each." he said eagerly as Antonio laughed and began packing up their pizzas.
They explored the city for the rest of the day, but when the sun went down, Leo began to see exactly what made the city such an amazing place. Music boomed from brightly lit buildings that they strolled past. Leo was holding her hand, keeping her close to his side as the crowds thinned.
"Would you like to dance?" she suddenly asked as they moved past a club with a strong beat. Leo nodded nervously. He had a feeling that his ballroom dancing skills would not come in handy in a place like this. Sakura led him up the steps and past the bouncer.
"Prepare yourself." she said loudly so that he could hear her over the music. He nodded and when the door opened he was assaulted by loud music, flashing lights, and heat that could only be created by many bodies in one place. The club was decorated to look like a palace or a castle. Sakura pulled Leo over to a semi-secluded area and put his hands on her hips. She began to sway with the beat while Leo stood there in shock.
"What am I going to do with you?" she smiled at him and wrapped her arms around his neck, stepping on her tippy toes so that he could hear her. "Relax and move with me." she smiled and nodded at him as she once again began moving with the beat. Slowly, awkwardly, Loe began to move as well. He was still stiff as a board though. Sakura ran her hands up over his shoulders and squeezed gently until he let out a little laugh and relaxed.
They continued to move slowly, pressed against each other intimately. Leo felt like a new person. He felt so free. This woman made him forget all of his responsibilities while still keeping him on track. She was a blessing. He was overcome with a strong urge to kiss her and hold her close to him forever. Leo leaned down and softly captured her lips, barely applying any pressure.
They were jolted from their moment by yelling near the entrance to the club. The music screeched to a stop and the crowd looked around, murmuring in confusion. Leo gave Sakura a confused look before moving towards the entrance to investigate.
He pushed through the crowds of people trying to crane their necks and catch a glimpse of the disturbance. As Leo neared the entrance he heard a familiar rough voice yelling loudly. His blood turned to ice in his veins. He prayed to whatever god that could hear him that the voice didn't belong to Raph. When he finally burst through the crowd and was met by an officer holding back the crowd. He peered over the man's outstretched arm and groaned inwardly.
Raphael was punching the daylights out of some barfly. His blue skin was covered in bruises an his black eyes were glassed over. One of the officers pulled the men apart and two officers held Raphael back. He struggled and the officer in charge socked him in the jaw. Out of nowhere, Michelangelo and Donny burst, forward yelling in protest. They struggled to reach their brother and protect him, but were shoved to the ground and cuffed.
Leo's rage had boiled over and he shoved past the cop holding back the crowd. "Let them go!" he roared and the club seemed to go silent as the sheer authority in his voice sent fear through the onlookers.
"Oh really? And who do you think you are to interfere?" The cop who punched Raph sneered.
"I am Crown Prince Leonardo Hamato and these are my brothers. Now let them go." Leo growled at the man's insolence. The officer just laughed and turned to the other officers around him.
"You hear that boys? We got royalty in the house!" The laughed loudly and Leo's eye twitched. Raph snapped his mouth shut when he saw the look on Leo's face and immediately looked away from him. "Now why don't you just run along ya lunatic. Everybody knows that the princes never leave the castle." he pushed Leo and was about to cuff him when Leo snapped. He spun the head officer and shoved him into another one of his officers. He ripped off his trench coat and revealed his golden armor on his arm. It seemed to glow with his fury and the officers gasped as well as the crowd. They moved back as Leo clenched his fist and growled.
"I said… Let. My. Brothers. Go!" he roared and the officers quickly released Raph, Mikey and Donnie. They looked to Leo and he pointed at the door forcefully.
"Home. Now." he growled at them and Mikey and Donnie hurried outside.
Sakura finally burst through the crowd and stood on the edge, staring at the scene with large eyes that were filled with confusion and a little bit of fear. Leo took a step towards her, his hand held out when Raph grabbed his arm.
"What are ya doin' ? She is responsible fer dis!" Raph squeezed his arm really hard and narrowed his eyes. Leo ripped his arm out of his grip and got in his face.
"We are on the move Raphael." Raph snorted and stormed out, sneering at the officers when they bowed to him. Leo sighed and his shoulders slumped. He walked over to Sakura and took both of her hands. He leaned in and kissed her cheek.
"I'll see you back at the palace." he whispered in her ear and then walked out of the club with the air of a dignified ruler.
Sakura stood there, frozen and alone as doubt began to seep deep into her heart.
It seemed Raphael had succeeded in convincing her of her worthlessness.
