Take My Hand

Chapter 7

Donatello was quick in his steps. A few times Leonardo had to reach back and take her sister by the hand and pull the girl along in a short jaunt in order to catch up. She didn't know what was so important about going to some botanical garden but since Tangshan had to go with Yoshi and Splinter for the final preparations of the tournament they had been left in the care of Donatello. The man had cooked them breakfast with little words besides pleasant talk and cheerful help for Michelangelo with some of her broken English.

After breakfast, he set about doing chores, showing them where the broom closest and linen closets were. Where to find what they needed and where things should go if they ever felt the need to get something or were asked to put something away. Most of that time Michelangelo had been looking to the clock and then peering outside the windows to watch the street for a few minutes. Leonardo didn't understand. All Michelangelo had said was that she had been worried about someone. She had dismissed it and soon as noon hit Donatello had been pulling on a jacket and taking them along with him down the streets of urban New York.

"Do-Donatello, wait up!" Leonardo called out when the man disappeared from her line of sight by turning a corner.

The young man paused for a moment, letting them catch up before grabbing a hold of Leonardo's hand in an interesting way, it was like his grip was backwards with his palm over the back of her hand with his little finger slipping between her two. He pulled her along as she pulled her little sister. Eventually the three of them made it to a large building that could easily hold three houses. Circling around to the back of the building, he finally spoke up after being quiet for so long.

"While we are here, you guys can't touch anything. There will be some serious trouble if any of the plants are 'disturbed' and I can't afford that."

Leonardo nodded. Michelangelo blinking her blue eyes as she tried to translate the words in her mind from English to Japanese. Once she did, she pointed over her shoulder, "Then may me go look?"

Donatello shook his head, "I'd rather you not wander around Michelangelo. Some of the neighborhoods around here are not the friendliest. Just stick close to your sister, this will only take me a few minutes and then I can show you around the city. Okay?"

"If you are worried about us touching things I would rather not have her go in. Mikey has a tendency to touch everything she sees," Leonardo quickly said, not wanting her sister to get into trouble in case she decided that a pretty flower needed to be picked.

The highly intelligent turtle frowned in thought before he started to pull the two girls away from the building. He quickly crossed the street, went several blocks down, turned, went a few more blocks to the point that they were on the edge of the Big City. He stopped at a small strip mall, the quaint shops lined up beckoning people to come in and check out their wares.

"Do the two of you have money?"

Leo looked at Don. That was a random question, "Only yen."

Donatello finally let go of her hand, padded his pockets and then pulled out a black wallet. He opened it, thumbed through and pulled out two cards before closing it and handing Leonardo the wallet, "Try not to spend it all while I'm gone."

"Wait, you're just going to leave us here?"

"You have to understand, I don't have time for this," he said quietly. "Look, Leo, if you and Mikey can just stay on this street and don't leave these shops then I'll find you in a few minutes."

Over head the storm rolling in rumbled deeply. The sound so loud it was hard to hear the traffic that was right next to them. Michelangelo stepped closer to her sister while Donatello looked up at the sky. Golden eyes watched the young man as he gazed at the sky as if daring it to do something... or perhaps judging. Judging what, she did not know.

He quickly turned, "Just don't leave these shops! I'll be back soon." With that, he ran off leaving the sisters by themselves.

Leonardo watched him go. There were a lot of mysteries to this man. He could harden his heart so quickly, yet he could be the gentlest person she had ever known. His smile was always kind, and despite the argument that she had with him yesterday he held no hard feelings. Typically after something like that upon someone's first meeting a dislike is developed but Don...

The thunder rumbled once more, only louder this time. A cold wind picking up causing the exposed skin on her legs to develop goosebumps, a shiver running up and down her spine. Placing Donatello's wallet into the pocket of her jacket she turned to her sister with a reassuring smile, "Come on, let's find a place to wait for him in."

"Where he go?" Mikey swallowed hard. She was feeling very insecure even with her sister with her. Here they were on the edge of one of the largest cities in the world with no one they knew but each other. First Raphael left, then Yoshi and his wife, then their father and now Donatello. They were all gone and she had no idea how to get back to the little house that she was temporarily calling home. What if Donatello forgot about them? What if they couldn't get back home? What if- She stepped closer to her sister, resting her forehead against the slender shoulder for reassurance. She was just worrying. That was all; only worrying, she needed to calm down.

Leo smiled over her shoulder and reached over to rest her hand on her sister's head, "It's okay. He'll be back soon, now let's see what America has to offer, okay?"

"Okay..."

--

He was running out of time. If he didn't hurry then... he growled in the back of his throat as he quickly swiped his key-card allowing him access. He nearly flew past the guard who knew him by name, but by protocol he had to show his ID. As fast as he could he made his way to a back room that was meant for researchers. He grabbed a lab coat and shrugged it on, buttoning it up as he walked with wide steps. In a cabinet he found a large pistol and mortar that he snatched before going to the large glass doors that lead to the main garden. He knew exactly what he needed and he made a beeline to the first plant, picking off a few stems and leaves before going to the next. From plant to plant he added more and more until the bowl of the mortar was brimming with different shades of plant life.

"Now for the last-," Donnie felt something deep inside twist with venomous anger. The last plant he needed... it wasn't there.

--

Despite the fact that she was scared as hell to be alone with only her sister, Mikey was having fun. They found a comic book shop that had some comics that she had been trying to find in Japan for years, now she had a heavy sack of comics that could take up its own backpack. She kicked her legs as she sipped on her drink while reading the latest Silver Sentry comic. Leonardo sat across from her in the small cafe, her older sister was nose deep in a book that yet another translation of "The Art of War". She didn't understand her sister's interest in that book. Heck, Leo had learned Chinese just so she could read the Chinese version, she owned a Korean version that she was slowly starting to learn how to read, and now she had her hands on not only an English version but also a French. Once she asked her blue banded sibling why she did that, and her reply was simply, "I want to see how other countries perceive it."

Leonardo finally looked up from the book she was reading to check the clock on the wall, "He's late."

Why did she care? It wasn't like they were stranded. She had the house address and the phone number so she could easily find her way home.

She went back to her book and in a half hour looked back up only to feel that worry twist in her stomach. "He's really late."

By this time Mikey had finished five more comics and was taking a break from reading and was looking out the window, "Maybe he forgot."

Leo pressed her lips together in thought before she stood up, putting her books on the table, "Mikey you wait here, I'm going to look for him."

"Why not me come withs?"

"Because you have all those books and I don't know how far I'll be going. I don't want you carrying them around and hurting yourself like the last time you got this many. I'll be back soon, I promise."

Leo ventured out into the world that was coloring itself gray with gusting wind. Mikey watched her sister hurry off. She had a bad feeling about all this, but now that her sister was gone she had little more to do than to wait.

She waited, and waited. Eventually another half hour passed by and the sea-green turtle was starting to feel sick to her stomach. This wasn't like Leo, when ever she promised to come back soon she had always returned within fifteen minutes. Maybe... she should go look for her.

Getting up she took her sister's books and held them to her chest while lugging the large plastic sack that held her own belongings. She hesitated by the door for a moment, looking out the big display windows for any signs of someone she knew before taking a deep breath, and then pushing open the door.

--

"You WHAT?!"

The directer of the botanical garden cringed at the voice of the top researcher that came to his garden, "We sold it."

"You do realize that the aloe polyphylla is not to be sold under penalty by law, right?"

The man squirmed under the deadly glare he was receiving. It was so easy for him to loose his position with this man; he maybe young be had connections that would make even the mayor of the city envious. Donatello was not someone to trifle with, especially when one knew the boy had government connections.

"I-... well..."

"I want that plant back in this garden with in the hour," Donnie snarled. "I don't care what you have to do, or how you do it. Steal it for all I care, just get it back here."

The man ran off leaving Donatello in the lab. The turtle growled, brown eyes narrowing on a few test tubes on a small rack. Out of frustration he batted the objects off and to the side as he bit back a yell. The sound of the glass breaking was less than satisfactory; leaning on his hands he squeezed his eyes tight. It would take longer than an hour for the director to get the plant, it may even take a few days. He had to keep in mind that no matter how many connections someone had- time was always a factor to consider. Though... putting some pressure on the lazy good for nothing man who sold one of the rarest aloe plants in the world would help speed things up. But in the mean time...

He sighed and rubbed at his forehead, the sound of the security guard coming in.

"What?"

"You have a visitor."

Donnie opened one eye to peer curiously, "Leo, what are you doing here?"

The young lady shifted her weight from one foot to the other, "I was... getting worried."

The large turtle pulled back his sleeves to look at his watch and groaned. "Ah, shell. I'm sorry. I totally forgot."

She stepped into the room, the security guard leaving the two be, "Why?"

"Because..." he looked to the mortar filled with ingredients. "Because something really bad happened."

"Like what?" her voice was soft and kind. At the moment he would have preferred her to have been upset and yelling. He had been so wrapped up in the safety and whereabouts of a plant that he had forgotten his new friends. He felt so bad.

"The..." he didn't need to tell her, but she had a right to know. "A very rare plant has gone missing and I need it." He squeezed his eyes shut once more, his voice dropping to a whisper, "I really need it."

There was a soft touch to his shoulder. Opening his eyes he saw Leonardo, as she gave a soothing pat. Her hand trailed to his back and she stroked his shell, once, twice and he began to feel better. The stress leaving with every touch from that delicate hand, frightened away by those lovely eyes. He quickly turned his head to the side, a blush coming to his cheeks.

Now that he had calmed down he noticed something, "Where's Mikey?"

"At a cafe. Once you're done here we should go and pick her up before the storm gets any worse."

"Why's that?" Something about how Leo said the word -storm- peeked his curiosity.

Leo closed her eyes, a pained look coming over her face for a moment before she quickly suppressed it, "She... doesn't like thunder."

--

She covered her ears when the thunder got louder. Her body tucking down in a squat as she balled up against the alley wall. Leo's books and her sack clattered to the floor as she kept her eyes shut and she started to count, controlling her breathing. She had gotten lost a few minutes ago and was now in a network of alleyways. Her stomach was coiling with worry and now fear from the building storm. She hated to be alone, she wanted her father, she wanted her sister.

The terrified turtle had been so wrapped up in trying to calm herself down that she did not notice the presence of others coming. That was not until her wrist was grabbed and she was violently pulled up to her feet, arm held up high above her head. Muscles straining as the tall person nearly picked her up off of her feet. A meaty hand grabbed her chin as men leered and chuckled as the stranger holding her spoke in a gravelly voice, "Lookie at what rolled in with the storm boys. A pretty little freak."

To Be Continued...