I really have to apologize profusely for how lazy I've been with the updates lately. I wish I had some super-cool excuse that would make it okay, but unfortunately I don't. It really is my fault, and I'm really sorry. Thank you so much for being patient with me.

Also, thanks so much to Eridani23, winged-monkey, 54Viruses, Puldoh, Sapphire93, LanceIsHot, hmw95, BigfootSighted, Kyaserin Marii, Michael J Angelo, The Ghost of FF. Net, maryshine, KittyGrl24, and Koriat Cyredanthem for your reviews. I still don't own the turtles or other related characters. Enjoy!

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Raph watched Leo as the older turtle stood in the center of the dojo, facing off against an invisible opponent. Leo circled a few times before attacking his "foe" with a few well-practiced moves. He flowed through the steps with fluid ease, blocking and attacking in turn.

Raph was amazed by how little Leo's fighting skills had been affected by, for all practical purposes, the loss of his right hand. At first it had seemed so weird to only hear one blade slicing through the air, or to see Leo blocking with his arm as if it were a weapon in and of itself. But with time, it had become almost… normal. As much as Raph hated to admit it, Leo could still kick his butt in the dojo any day of the week. It was almost as if the incident had made him stronger instead of taking something away from him.

Ever since their encounter with Karai the month before, things had been very quiet. There was no Foot activity and very little Purple Dragon action. Even Leo was less… intense. Raph assumed that whatever Don had said to him in his lab had actually gotten through to their Fearless Leader for once. Raph himself had been about ready to literally beat some sense into his older brother, but luckily Donny had insisted on talking to him alone. Because it looked like it had worked. Raph hadn't quite hung up his boxing gloves yet, but for now he was content to wait and watch… for once.

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"Dinner's ready!" Mikey's cry carried through the whole lair, practically daring his family to ignore him. That's probably how Saki found the old lair, Don thought wryly, leaving his lab and heading into the kitchen. He met Raph on the way and the two brothers sat down at the table across from each other, sharing a friendly nod. Leo was only thirty seconds behind, wiping a thin layer of sweat from his face with a towel. As soon as Master Splinter joined them, Mikey set the frozen pizzas on the table and took his seat next to Raph, across from Leo.

Don had to admit, he was proud of his oldest brother. He had expected him to take it easy for a day or two at most, but so far Leo had been reasonable in the time he spent training. He was getting plenty of sleep, probably for the first time in years, and he seemed to be growing steadily stronger. Master Splinter had seemed pleased with his progress as well, and Don couldn't help but wonder if that was at least part of the reason Leo was keeping it up. But maybe the blue-banded turtle actually understood what Don had said. Maybe.

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As soon as dinner was done the brothers moved into the living area. Mikey flipped the TV on as if by instinct and flopped down on the couch, flipping through the channels. Raph continued on into the dojo to get a workout, and Don sat down in an armchair with a book. Leo almost followed Raph into the other room but hesitated at the door. He looked back over his shoulder before joining Mikey on the couch.

"Wanna watch a movie or… something?" Leo asked, wincing at how stupid the question sounded. Mikey looked up from the TV and his eyes lit up.

"Sure, bro. Whaddya wanna watch?"

"Um…." Leo was vaguely aware of Don watching him over his book, but chose to ignore this. "I don't know. Whatever you want." Mikey's grin nearly split his face in half as he leaped off the couch and deliberately pulled a DVD case out of their entertainment center.

"Napoleon Dynamite it is, then!" Donny groaned and Leo instantly regretted his choice of words. Mikey, however, ignored his brothers' reactions and inserted the disc into their DVD player. He ran into the kitchen, yelling something about popcorn.

"Remind me to be a little more specific next time, huh Donny?" Leo groaned, turning to face his younger brother.

"I'm surprised you didn't know any better. Never give Mikey free reign to choose any form of entertainment. Especially after Casey brings over a bag of the top ten worst movies ever made."

"I'll remember this time, you can count on it."

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Mikey kept shooting his oldest brother glances as they watched the movie. He wasn't the most observant turtle in the world, but he had noticed a change in his brother ever since their fight with Karai. He seemed… happier. He wasn't as tired or cranky, and he spent less time training. Mikey couldn't be happier; it meant someone to hang out with who didn't over-analyze everything or torment him just for the heck of it.

Leo hadn't been this much fun since before they met the Shredder for the first time. It seemed like forever ago, but in reality it was only a year and a half. So much had happened during that time, and Mikey was glad to finally have his big brother back. Hopefully he stayed this time….

As the movie ended the three turtles in the living area stood up and headed upstairs. Raph followed close behind, and the family dispersed into their rooms for the night. Mikey lingered outside Leo's door for a while before entering his and closing the door. He smiled as he fell asleep, satisfied by what he had seen. Leo had immediately fallen asleep, meaning he wasn't training during the night.

Maybe Leo would stay this time….

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Again, I am so sorry for the wait. I'll try to do better. I hope you enjoyed this chapter. I'll have more out as soon as I can.

Oh, and by the way, I don't like Napoleon Dynamite, but I thought it sounded like something Mikey would like. I hope I didn't offend anyone with Donny's and Leo's comments.