AN: Oh my goodness. Guys. You are wonderful. The most wonderful reviewers of all times. Thank you all so much for your support. More's the pity that from now on I'll be "live-posting" my stuff. Therefore I won't be able to keep up two updates a week. To sum it all up: Moving this weekend, possibility of no internet (though I'll hope for the best), university starts next week, still have a throat infection... yadda yadda. In short, I will update every Friday until further notice. Thanks for your understanding.

Currently un-beta-d.

Elphaba- I almost cried. Tears of joy. Yay me. NJ7009 and binditheskunk- I will try and clear things up here. *SPOILERS* This will be a Leo/Usagi romance. It will not contain anything more graphic or explicit. It will not contain any "yaoi". It might contain the usual couple-crap later on, which is basically holding hands, midnight talks and snogging each other senseless on the sofa. Let us please not forget that Leo is still a teenager who (attention, my headcanon coming your way here) has no experience with love whatsoever. So there. Sorry if that disappoints anyone, but them being a couple is not the main plot of the story (though it is the second-biggest plot point, cough, cough). *END SPOILERS*

Warning: We're going to take a dive into the... more supernatural here. Hopefully it will keep things interesting. Also, bits of brotherly fluff.

SETTLING IN

He had been walking along the riverside for a day now and still hadn't found a way to cross it. The water rushed past in an endless, brown stream, far too wide to even consider jumping and with a current that would turn swimming into a deadly trap.

Still, he needed to get to the other side.

There was a village nearby, he knew. It was possible that they had a way to cross the stream, by means of a bridge or stepping stones or even a boat. But it was dangerous to go there. The locals were observant. They knew about the dangers of the jungle and kept an eye on it.

There didn't seem to be a choice. He needed to get across, and he needed to do it now.

There had been paths, openings between the trees, places where the water ran shallow or past small islands of drift wood and stone. They had all been blocked. Small bombs, smoke pellets and bear traps had only been a fraction of a bigger mousetrap. It seemed like the village was the only way.

Someone did not want him to get past the river.

At least now he knew for certain that he had found the place he had been looking for.

*T*M*N*T*

"I need food," Mikey announced and flopped down heavily on the sofa.

"We've just eaten, Mikey." Leo sighed and cast another glance at the upstairs bathroom. The water had stopped running through the pipes along the walls some time ago. He mentally debated whether it was a good idea to go and check up on Usagi, or just plain creepy.

"Creepy," Raph muttered almost inaudibly in response to his thoughts. Leo flinched guiltily before his expression became carefully guarded again. He knew it wouldn't fool his brother. Raphael had had the last seventeen years of their lives to get to know his face, and he'd done a damn good job, too. They had always been inseparable. Sometimes Leo thought that he probably knew the hothead's battered head better than his own, and he was perfectly aware that it worked both ways.

"No, we haven't," Mikey groaned. He seemed completely oblivious to what was taking place around him. "Breakfast was, like, two hours ago, dude." He batted his eyes at Leo who scoffed at him in return. "Food, Leo! You know you want food! Food…"

"Cut the crap, Mike." Raph got up and cleared the coffee table in one jump. "I'm gonna check up on Donnie."

"Yeah, sure," Leo muttered and managed what he hoped was another sneaky sideways glance at the bathroom door.

"Still creepy!" Raph shouted and laughed when Leo flipped a finger at him before he entered the infirmary. The room was the usual mess of tubes and pipes and beeping machines. Raph never quite understood what kept Donatello in the semidarkness for days. He thought it was creepy. It reminded him of Bishop's government labs. All that was missing were a couple of glass apparatuses with a colorful bubbling liquid in it, and the stage was set for Frankenstein.

Of course, Donnie probably didn't just know how the mad doctor F had done it, but he'd already figured out a way to do it better as well.

"Knock, knock," he said when Don didn't move from his chair.

"Who's there." Don's voice was flat. He kept his eyes fixed on a couple of glass dishes in front of him. They seemed to hold rust stains. Raph's stomach did a flip when he realized it was dried blood.

"'S just me. Never mind. What are you up to? Anything interesting?"

"I don't know." Don slumped forwards and rested his head on his arms. "Do you ever feel like you could do anything, if only the environment was different?" His voice was muffled by his arms. Raph stepped closer to where his brother was sitting while he tried to figure out what he meant.

"You need better equipment?" He finally guessed. Don nodded glumly, not taking his eyes off the petri dishes. "Yeah. I have all the brains to figure this one out, you know? But I don't have the means." He sounded incredibly frustrated. Raph suddenly felt sorry for him. "I just want to make sure, really sure, that Usagi will not just suddenly drop dead because I shot him up with poisonous mutagen."

"It's a bit late ta worry about that now." It was the wrong thing to say. Don's face fell, and he turned his head away from Raph. The oldest turtle stepped closer quickly, awkwardly shifting his weight. "So, do you wanna, I dunno, go to the junkyard to look for anything?"

It was amazing how easy it was to cheer Donatello up when science was involved. "Could we, though?" He asked, his eyes suddenly bright with a new kind of emotion: anticipation. "I actually do need a few parts for the new camera system, this thing with the rats can't go on any longer, it's not safe… But I'd need to go to the store for a few more things…" His shoulders slumped. "Or not, because this month's budget is almost up and we need some more food. Maybe we could do all the shopping while we're out, so Leo agrees to let us go." He looked around wildly, trying to find a clock that actually properly worked. "Is it still daylight?"

Raph chuckled. "Yeah, but we'll be fine. It's a working day. C'mon, let's talk fearless into this so we can get outta here."

*T*M*N*T*

Usagi toweled himself off with quick efficiency. He'd tried to keep his wound out of the water and to not stretch his arms too much. It still hurt, though, and the aftereffects of the drug Donatello had given him were starting to make him feel slightly nauseous. Or maybe that was just the hunger, coming back in a new disguise.

Once he was reasonably dry, he eyed the stack of clothes on the wash basin. As Leonardo had feared, the rabbit needed to tie the wide jogging bottoms tightly around his much thinner frame, and the Shirt hung off him like a dress. He found himself longing for his familiar kimono, but he vaguely remembered shredding his own clothes to use as a makeshift bandage. Still, these were clothes, and they were better than nothing. He supposed.

He still felt uncomfortable when he limped out to the gallery. His side started to hurt in earnest now, and the stitches were already itching. His mind was halfway through a list of the appropriate herbs he could use before he realized that he had no knowledge of the local biology whatsoever. For all he knew, the plants he was used to might not even exist in dimension Third Earth.

He would have to get through the pain on his own, then. Well, that wasn't exactly new in any case.

He was halfway down the stairs when he heard voices coming from the sofa area. They were hushed but angry, like someone tried very hard not to shout. Automatically, Usagi tried to pick up the topic of the discussion. It was muscle memory as much as anything else; he never quite realized how much he relied on his keen sense of hearing to spot danger until it was somehow taken from him.

"…not going topside at this hour! Sensei would have a fit!"

"Oh yeah? An' who died and made you my boss?"

Unlike Leonardo, Raphael did not even try to be quiet. His tone was sharp and angry. For the second time that day, Usagi felt like he had just walked in on a very personal family thing. He was acutely aware of the fact that he had intruded the turtles' home without any explanation whatsoever, accident or not.

"…Never listened to you before, and I won't start now. Dis is stupid," Raphael spat and turned towards the doorway at the end of the room. "You comin' or what, Don?"

Donatello stood up from where he'd been sitting on the sofa. He cast an apologetic glance at his eldest brother. "Sorry, Leo, but I need those parts. It's about the cameras. And… some other things." He was holding himself back from saying more. Even Usagi could tell that much. Still the samurai saw Leonardo's shoulders slump in defeat when he succumbed to his brothers' wishes.

"All right. But remember, keep an eye out for danger and don't stay in one spot for-"

"Whatever," Raphael interrupted him. "We don't need a babysitter, Leo. You go and sharpen your swords or whatever it is you do all day."

From his current angle, Usagi could not see the two brothers leave, but he heard the soft hiss as a door opened and closed. Suddenly, he felt very exposed and terribly awkward. He really should not be here. His feet made almost no sound on the floor when he finally moved, but Leo immediately shook himself out of it and turned to face him.

"Usagi," he said. His eyes were tired, and it was not from lack of sleep. Then the young ninja blinked, and the strange look was gone. The ronin chose not to mention it. "You heard that?"

The samurai bowed his head slightly by means of an apology. "I'm afraid so. I apologize. I did not mean to intrude."

Leonardo rubbed a hand down his face and over his neck and looked away. "No, it's fine. Better now than later. That's just Raph for you. He wasn't really trying to get to me, he was just accompanying Donnie…" His voice trailed off and they stood in silence for a moment. Finally, Leo reached out with one hand as if to touch Usagi's face before he thought better of it and let it sink again. "You got some. Uh. Your fur." He waved his hand over the left area of his own face to show what he meant. Usagi found himself mirroring the gesture. Some of his towel-dry fur was sticking out in places and he smoothed it hastily. "Yes. Thank you."

The silence continued. Usagi wasn't sure what the appropriate thing to do was anymore. In his own world, things were much easier to deal with. There were warriors, and there were peasants. End of story. Whenever you met someone you knew and were personally fond of, you thanked the Gods they were still alive, spent a night with drinks and food and story-telling in each other's company, and the next morning, everyone went their separate ways again. That's just how things were.

He was a master of the spiritual plane and nobody could best him with the katana blades, but he had to accept that nobody had ever prepared him for the emotional downsides that came with living with the same person for a longer amount of time. And somehow, he got the impression that Leonardo felt similar. The ninja actually shuffled his feet when the quiet went on for too long. That's when it hit Usagi that Leonardo, despite his remarkably calm demeanor, was still very young and bound to be easily overwhelmed.

Thinking about it, so was he.

That broke the spell. Usagi tried a small smile and lifted his head to get Leonardo's attention. Just as he was about to say something, however, he was interrupted.

"Dude! You totally look like, I dunno, a gangster rapper rabbit!"

Michelangelo leaned out of the kitchen doorway and grinned at him. There was something weird about that particular turtle, Usagi decided. He was cheerful all the time. Most people who saw it as their job to make others smile were tired very quickly, and at the end of the day their heart wasn't really in it anymore. Not so with the youngest ninja. He gave it his best shot every single time he tried. His heart was in everything, all over the place. He should be a mess, but somehow he wasn't. It was almost unfair. Usagi had no idea how Michelangelo managed, but it must be a tightrope act to keep his balance between the emotional and the physical part of his life.

It was incredibly fascinating.

"Gangster… rapper… rabbit?" He asked, slowly turning the unfamiliar words over in his mouth. "I'm afraid I don't quite follow you."

Mikey's grin didn't even waver. "Like, a hip-hopper or something!"

"Hip-hopper." Unbidden, the image of a grasshopper crossed his mind. He heard Leonardo sigh behind him when the older ninja stepped closer. "Don't worry too much about it," he suggested. "It's just Mikey's way of telling you that you're cool."

Usagi's brow knitted in utter confusion. "Yes," he replied cautiously. "Cool."

Apparently completely oblivious of the ronin's predicament, Mikey's grin grew an impossible bit wider before his eyes grew huge with shock. "Oh! But what I really wanted to say! You must be starving! You should eat something!"

Leonardo actually cursed at that, just low enough for Usagi's keen hearing to catch it. There was no use in denying it, either. His stomach rumbled, as if on cue, and he literally stumbled through his reassuring smile when a new wave of dizziness hit him. "Thank you," he said quickly. "If it's not too much trouble, that would be marvelous."

"No need to be shy about it! Mi casa est su casa!"

"Casa, yes," Usagi repeated and followed Michelangelo into the kitchen. He pretended not to hear the chuckle Leonardo gave behind him, but found that his own mirroring smile was impossible to hide.

*T*M*N*T*

"Maybe we'll find a clue."

Raphael lowered his voice and ducked into the nearest alleyway. With a sigh, but not much protest, Don followed suit. "All right," he reluctantly agreed. "But you better make it quick. Leo will go nuts if we stay topside for too long." He pulled at the hood of his sweater and grimaced when he found it sweat-soaked. "Besides, it's awfully hot. People are already staring at us."

"Keep it down, will you?" Raph muttered and leaned down to find the manhole underneath the rubble and trash that littered the alley. He knew it was there. He'd used it before. "We'll be underground in no time. And it wasn't my idea to go to the shops at this time of day."

Don barely kept himself from pointing out that yes, it was. He owed Raph, and not just figuratively speaking. When they had passed a computer- and electronics- shop, Raph had ushered him inside and actually proceeded to pay for the things Don needed for the security system. With actual money. Don had no idea what his brother had done to get his hands on cash, and he'd found it best not to inquire further.

"Fine. We'll have one look at the area and then we'll go home." He slipped deeper into the shadows when a couple walked past the mouth of the alley, but they were too absorbed in their chit-chat to notice him. "Are you looking for anything specific?"

Raphael's idea was, basically, to go back to where he and Mikey had found Usagi in the sewers and try to figure out where he came from. They both shared the dark though unspoken suspicion that the Foot Clan was somehow involved. Don wouldn't put it past them, even though they were sparsely seen these days that the Shredder seemed to be gone for good. Don was of the opinion that they could just ask the samurai about it, but Raph argued that since they were here already, they might as well have a look. Don was not sure what his brother was trying to find. It wasn't like the Foot to leave a clan crest or graffiti somewhere to show that they'd been there.

Then again, he found that very little their varying enemies did surprised him anymore.

"Got it," Raph said and lifted the metal cover out of the ground. They both slipped through the semi-darkness without a sound until the cover was back in place. Don immediately got rid of the hoodie and proceeded to scratch at his itching neck and arms.

"Let's not do that again anytime soon, okay?"

"Mh." The reply was muffled by Raph's own clothes. He carelessly stuffed them into the backpack he was carrying once he'd gotten rid of them. "It was around here somewhere. Up north." He moved forwards with determination. Of the four of them, Raphael had the keenest sense of direction. Mikey had once said that with the hot-headed brother around, you didn't need a compass. It was meant to be a joke but actually hit a little too close to home.

Don followed his red-masked brother until they reached a corner where the mold had obviously been disturbed. The tang of copper was still heavy in the air, though the small stream that flowed next to the path had washed away most of the remains of Usagi's presence. Without a word, they headed further down the tunnels until they reached the nearest manhole. The further they walked, the more quiet their steps became, until they were tip-toeing around the corners. Maybe it was paranoid, but Donatello reflected that it was always better to expect the worst than to wake up dead.

Figuratively speaking.

Raphael pointed at the metal rings that formed a makeshift ladder beneath the manhole. Donatello spotted the brown stains on them almost instantly. He nodded and looked around for a moment to find out where they were.

Central Park, Raph mouthed silently, and the genius brother's eyes widened. Of course. It would make sense.

No, stop thinking along those tracks. Ask questions instead. Why would it make sense? And more importantly: To whom?

Raphael grabbed the lowest iron ring, but Don held him back and pointed at his wrist. They didn't wear watches, but the meaning was not lost on Raphael. He nodded and backed away. Then he indicated by a quick jerk of the head that they'd better head home now. For once, Don agreed with him whole- heartedly.

They didn't speak until they had reached the Lair entrance. They didn't need to. A whole conversation was flying back and forth between them, an entire tale told by the tension of their shoulders and the speed of their feet and the way they stepped over and through the everlasting puddles on the floor. It was there in the soft snorts that emerged from Raph on every other exhale and in Don's nervous fidgeting with his bandana tails. They didn't need to talk.

It would've been nice, though, Don thought.

*T*M*N*T*

"Tell me again what these cereals are made of?" Usagi inquired and cautiously raised the spoon to his face to sniff at it. The bowl in front of him was filled with milk and strange, colorful things that floated in it. They smelled like paper, and the artificial flavoring burned on his tongue and brought tears to his eyes.

"They're fruit loops! Surely you know fruit loops!" Mikey grinned at him happily and Usagi showed his teeth in return. He hoped it'd pass as a smile. "I have never heard of them before, but they are certainly… interesting," he offered.

Mikey let out a contented sigh and slid lower into his chair. "Yeah. I know. They are amazing."

Leo rolled his eyes and set another package down on the table. It was plain, yellow and most importantly, it didn't smell like the most blatant poison attempt of eternity.

"You don't have to eat Mikey's food if you don't want to," Leo said. Michelangelo struck out his tongue at him. "You don't have to eat cereals at all. We have loads of fruit, and bread…" He got up again and opened what seemed to be a metal closet until a cool breeze rolled out of it, followed by bright light. The shelves were lined with all kinds of food. It appeared to be a cooler of sorts, and it rattled quietly. Usagi's eyes widened at the sight.

"Honey, butter, marmalade, cheese, bacon… Do you eat meat?" Usagi shook his head, still stunned by the technology he was seeing. "Okay then, two types of cheese, more marmalade, and another jar… Mikey, why do we have three open jars of marmalade?"

"Becwawse I dunn like scherry," the easygoing turtle replied around a mouth full of cereal. "An' Raph dunn like orreyge."

"Orange?" Leonardo frowned and turned back. "Okay, four open jars. Great." He sighed and closed the door again. "Or I can always heat up soup," he offered helplessly. Mikey gagged. "No!" He swallowed his spoonful of milk and coughed. "No, don't let him cook you anything. Don't let him touch anything! The guy is a mess in the kitchen! He puts water in the microwave, he burns it!"

Usagi tried his best not to smile, but it was hard. Everything was so new and different that Mikey actually seemed like a constant in the vortex. "Right. And everyone knows that it is really supposed to be…" He had to guess. "Microwaving the water?"

"Exactly." Mikey waved his spoon in the ronin's direction and splattered the tabletop with milk.

"Right," Usagi repeated and looked up at a Leonardo who didn't seem to know whether he was supposed to be crestfallen, insulted, or smiling. Somehow, his face managed to do all three at once.

"I'll settle for some bread then, if you wouldn't mind." Usagi pushed the cereal bowl away from him as casually as possible. "Thank you."

*T*M*N*T*

The door opened with the kind of hiss that must cost evil people a lot of money on a daily basis. It led into darkness so profound that it seemed to swallow the light from the hallway. A tall figure stepped through the doorway, for a moment cut out almost comically against the white background. Then the door slid closed again.

Even the footsteps were muffled by the dark. There was something sinister about it, something deadly, like it was watching. The main cause for that being that the darkness, indeed, watched.

"Status report," a female voice said. Her words cut through the void with sharp precision. The shadows backed away from her instantly, like she was burning them with her tongue and her fearlessness.

We managed to open a portal, a voice said. It was bodiless, floating, picked up by the air around the woman in the center of the room until it echoed back from the walls. But something happened. Something came through and disrupted the energy flow.

"Something?" The woman's tone did not change nor waver. "Or someone, perhaps?"

We do not know the difference.

She nodded, almost to herself, before she straightened up. "So you are telling me that so far this experiment has been nothing but a waste of time, money, and resources. Duly noted."

Well. We do have the creature's blood.

"Ah," she breathed. "Excellent. Have a sample delivered to my office by tonight. As for the experiment…" She made a vague noise that could mean anything. "You know what to do."

Yes, mistress.

Even in the eternal darkness of the black chamber, her teeth gleamed white before she left.