Michelangelo and Leonardo did their best to stay occupied as they waited for whatever was going to happen with Raphael. Donatello stayed true to his word and has yet to leave the room. Mona Lisa had come out once to shower, but was back by Raph's side in less than an hour.

Each time Mikey went in to check on Raph, there was not much change. Donatello told him that there was a time that the white had engulfed the black, but it was not long before broke free again.

On the first day they were visited by Usagi. He had stayed behind to celebrate Donnie's victory, but continued to stay to give moral support to the Turtles. He had even gone in a few times to just sit and meditate.

Splinter was scarcely seen. He had decided to stay in the extra room provided by the Daimyo. When Mikey did see him he looked distraught and exhausted with worry. He too would occasionally sit in the room and just watch Raph's soul.

The Turtle's human friends had also decided to stay and given the fact that they had unused rooms, they remained with Leo and Mikey and provided a much needed distraction. They would often spar with one another to work off nervous energy. Joi and Adam soon confessed their engagement. Leo and Mikey were happy for them and wished them well.

"We have considered moving to New York," Joi stated. "Adam and I could open a dojo there."

"That would be great," Leo said. "It would be nice to be the sensei. We have the experience."

Adam laughed, "Yes we do."

"If you do decide to move to New York, you are welcome to visit." Mikey said.

"What about Raphael?" Joi asked.

"You let us worry about that," Leo said. He then turned to Faraji, "What about you?"

"They have been working on convincing me to join them, but I'm not sure that my new wife has any desire to move to New York." Faraji said.

"New wife!" Leo smiled, "Congratulations."

"Thank you, my friend." Faraji smiled back, "We are expecting our first child in about four months."

"That's wonderful," Leo exclaimed. Mikey could hear the twinge of envy in Leo's voice. There were times Mikey secretly wished he could make Leo a father. He would make such a great dad.

"What about you Tora?" Mikey asked turning to his human friend. "Any plans to move to New York?"

"No Mikey-san," Tora placed a hand on Mikey's shoulder. "I already have a dojo in Japan that has been passed down to me from my father."

"Oh," Mikey tried not to sound too disappointed.

The days continued to pass and Mikey started to fall into sadness. He slept in and didn't do his morning katas with Leo. Leo gave up trying to motivate Mikey after the fifth day.

On the morning of the seventh day Mikey's need outweighed his sadness. Leonardo was already up and in the dojo doing his morning katas so Mikey got up and went to find him. He hesitated for a moment before heading in, shutting the door behind him. He watched Leo for a little while as he moved through the various forms. Leo's muscles were lean and strong, he liked to stay quick so he never added on too much bulk and Mikey really liked it. It was like he was dancing as he performed each deadly move with grace and balance.

Mikey walked over to him and Leo's eyes flicked to him, but he didn't stop moving. Grabbing Leo's arm, Mikey forced him to stop then leaned in for a soft kiss. Leo didn't protest, instead he opened his mouth so Mikey could deepen the kiss.

It was apparent that Leo's need matched Mikey's and he ripped his hand free from Mikey's grasp then reached back to thumb over Mikey's cloaca causing Mikey to churr. Pushing Leo up against the wall, Mikey grabbed him behind the knees and lifted him up. Leo helped to support his weight by wrapping his arms and legs around Mikey and holding tight.

Mikey removed Leo's guard and threw it to the ground. The moisture dripping from Mikey's tip would have to do because they were too lost in the moment to care otherwise. Mikey pumped himself a few times, using his pre-cum as a lubricant before pushing up into Leo's tail. Leo let out a slight hiss as Mikey entered his anus. Mikey pushed in deeper, "Am I hurting you?"

Leo shook his head, "I like it," he admitted. "Just the right amount of pain."

Mikey continued to work against the tight friction, trying to build up some more moisture. After a few shallow thrusts he had provided enough natural lubrication on his own that he was able to slide in and out with ease.

Leo churred as his carapace scraped against the wall and Mikey licked over his exposed pulse point. It felt right being inside his favored, dominating him. Leo was his. He always felt guilty for thinking that, but he couldn't help it. He felt the same about Don and Raph, just not as strongly. He longed to be inside Raph's tail and was a little jealous that he was the only one who hasn't yet. He swore to himself that that would change, and soon. For now though, his focus was Leo.

Tired of holding Leo up, Mikey slid them down to the floor and leaned back, never breaking from each other. Leo took over the work, straddling Mikey and moving his hips back and forth. Mikey churred loudly as Leo sucked on his neck and collarbone. Propping himself up with one arm, Mikey leaned in to rub the front of Leo's tail, increasing the pressure and was rewarded with a deep churr.

"Deeper," Leo pleaded. "Just a little."

Mikey let go of Leo's tail and extended himself further, going deeper. Leo sat up, taking more of Mikey in and his body shook. Mikey reached up and cupped Leo's face, "Don't hurt yourself."

"I'm okay," Leo panted. His nails scrapped down Mikey's plastron as he slid himself along Mikey's erection. "Oh, Mikey," he breathed. They stayed focused on each other and their uninhibited churrs sounded. Sex was so much more pleasurable now that they didn't have to concern themselves with being quiet.

Leo's staggered movements told Mikey that his favored was nearing completion. So he grabbed hold of Leo's supple backside and started to thrust upwards eliciting a grunting churr from Leo.

Leo finished but Mikey kept going, riding Leo fast and hard. The hypersensitivity from his orgasm had Leo throwing his head back. His body tensed as his toes curled and another orgasm hit. His cry of pleasure was cut off by a deep churr. He ended up clenching around Mikey so tight that it was hard to move, but Mikey managed. He finished, emptying himself deep in his favored then he pulled Leo down to suck on his neck. "I am glad that I'm your favored, Mikey," Leo panted. "I love you."

"My beautiful Leo," Mikey breathed. "I love you too."

Leo lied down on Mikey's plastron and openly cried. "I needed that," he said through a sob. "That is such a good stress release."

"Me too," Mikey panted. "I was afraid you weren't gonna be in the mood."

Leo kissed Mikey, "I'm always in the mood for you." His eyes drifted up then narrowed, "Did you leave the door open?"

"No I closed it," Mikey said turning to see that the door was cracked. Then it hit Mikey, "We have house guests."

"We were loud," Leo continued the train of thought with a groan.

"Someone must have checked," Mikey concluded. "Sorry."

Getting up Leo sighed, "Let's go do damage control." He reached out a hand to help Mikey up.

They exited the dojo together and headed to the common room where their four human friends were having breakfast along with Usagi. Their rabbit friend ended up being fast friends with the humans, especially with Tora. They loved to talk about the similarities of their homes.

"Hey… guys," Leo said as they entered the room. He sat down between Usagi and Faraji grabbed a bowl and started serving himself breakfast.

"Good morning, Leonardo," Usagi said with a smile.

Mikey hesitated for a moment. Joi looked over her shoulder at him and patted the seat next to her, "Come sit, Mikey. Eat something."

Mikey took the seat between Joi and Tora across from Leo. Joi grabbed a bowl and filled it with rice and two fried eggs. "Thank you," Mikey mumbled taking the bowl. He took a few bites before the discomfort got to him, "Sorry," he shifted a little, "to whoever saw that. I forgot you guys were here."

"It's okay Mikey," Adam said reaching past Joi to pat him on the shoulder. "How long have the two of you been together like that?"

Leo sighed, "A few years now."

"Are the two of you exclusive?" Usagi casually asked sipping his tea.

Leo looked at him in shock.

Usagi looked back, "What?" He smiled, "The Kame males on my planet are not monogamous. They outnumber the females by at least three to one. There are at least two males per household, an alpha and an omega. Some have up to three omegas depending on the wealth of the family."

"So the girl turtles get a lot of action on your planet." Mikey observed.

"On the contrary, Michelangelo, the alpha is the only male permitted to mate with the female. The omegas are to occupy the male between matings." Usagi explained. "The males have an almost insatiable sex drive whereas the females only mate when the mood strikes them or they want children. I assumed the four of you were like the males of my world and took pleasure in each other."

Leo blushed, "You wouldn't be wrong in that assumption."

"Aren't you guys brothers?" Joi asked.

"Not by blood," Leo answered.

Before there could be any more questions asked, Mona burst through the door. "There's been a change," she said panting.

Without needing further explanation they all got up and ran through the corridors to the healer's area. Leo was the first through the door with Mikey and Usagi close behind. Mona was the last to get there completely out of breath.

Mona was right, there was a change. The orb above Raph had turned grey. Streaks of gold still shot across the surface, but the chaos had subsided. Various shades of grey and white swirled around in a perfect circle.

"What does that mean," Leo asked.

"I don't know," The healer replied, "this has never happened before."

...

Raphael looked up ready to begin, "Okay, I'm ready." He felt Mikey move away and the healer take his place at his head. The healer placed his hands over Raph's eyes and he felt himself slip away.

He was thrust into a torrent of darkness that he could only assume was his soul. A rainless storm surged around him as he tried to figure out what to do next. He did the only thing he could think of. He called out to the darkness, "You know I'm here! Show yourself!" Then he added silently, "You, fucker."

Raph turned intending to journey through the darkness, only to end up face to face with Shredder. He did his best to hide his surprise. "Hey," he said trying to sound nonchalant.

"We meet again," the darkness said as it removed the helmet to reveal that it had Raph's face with but glowing red eyes.

"Yeah, I remember." Raph retorted stepping back.

"I know why you're here, I'm you remember."

"I know," Raph said. "You wouldn't happen to be willing to point me in the direction of your source, would you?"

The darkness laughed, "What and make it easier on you. No." He gestured behind him, "But, by all means search."

"I will," Raph said walking away. It wasn't long before he realized that it was a pointless endeavor.

"Give up yet?" The darkness asked.

"Hardly," Raph replied over his shoulder. He could feel the other presence there with him they just chose not to show themselves. "Why am I hiding from myself?" He muttered then looked back at the darkness, "Maybe it's you. Are you keeping them away?"

The darkness shrugged.

Raph sat to think.

"Just let me take over already," the darkness stated. Raph only glared at it. "I promise not to kill Donnie," it continued. "I know I'll need that sexual release every so often."

"If you win we die." Raph stated flatly.

"At least I'll win."

Raph snorted then went back to thinking.

"I'm bored," the darkness stated. It looked down at Raph, "Can we just get this over with?" Before Raph could act the darkness struck. Raph managed to recover from its attack and they stood grappling. The storm erupted, the wind whipping around them with a defining howl.

They fought for what seemed like forever before Raph managed to throw the darkness and put up a barrier containing it. It smiled at him as the storm settled, "This won't hold me for long."

"I know I just need a moment." He could feel himself getting weaker and he was getting frustrated. "Come out here. I know you're there!" he yelled into the surrounding nothingness. The presence pulled back. "Okay that didn't work."

The darkness laughed from his temporary holdings. "You don't even know yourself. How do you expect to win?"

Raph tried to ignore the darkness and focus on the other part of himself. He knew he needed to find it though he didn't really understand why. He calmed himself and the storm settled more.

"You can come out," he found himself saying, "I won't hurt you."

"You promise?" A small voice replied.

"Yeah."

"Okay," it replied. Raph didn't see anything but felt it near. Then he looked down to see his seven year old self looking back up at him.

Raph knelt down to look it in the eyes and it shied away. It looked uneasily up at him, "You hate me."

"What?"

"I'm sorry," it said, "It's all my fault."

Raph sighed, "I get it."

Before Raph could do anything more, the darkness broke free and attacked causing the child to flee. The storm surged again as they fought. As time passed Raph felt himself weaken more, but so did the darkness.

"We're dying," Raph grumbled.

"Then we die. I will not be locked away."

Raph managed to throw the darkness down and erect another barrier. He immediately searched for the child. "Come back, please." Again the winds calmed.

The child came up behind him and tugged his hand.

Turning Raph knelt again, "I get it. I do." He reached out, but the child backed away. "I blame myself and I'm ashamed of… so much." He continued to stretch out his hand, but the child stayed out of reach. "I'm sorry."

The child cried, bringing its hands up to rub its eyes. "You hate me."

"I don't hate you."

"You pushed me away and buried me in this darkness," it continued to cry. "You hate me for being weak, for being stupid and most of all… for loving him."

Raph felt ill, "I was confused. I was too young to understand. I thought…. He was good to me in the beginning and he made me feel good." He was finding it hard to breathe and he knew he had to face this demon. "I did," he confessed. "I thought it was love, but I know now that it wasn't real. I have real love now." He fought back the tears that threatened to fall, "I'm sorry that I did this to you."

"Do you forgive me?" The child sobbed.

"There's nothing to forgive," Raph reached out a hand again. This time the child took it, a weak smile spreading across his face. Raph drew it close, "It will be hard, but I won't push you away any more. We'll work through it."

Its little arms wrapped around Raphael's neck, "Thank you."

Raph hugged it back and the child dissipated. He felt the pain of guilt and the sadness of self-loathing. Emotions he will finally have to come to terms with. Maybe he will take Bishop up on the offer of a shrink. He looked up at the darkness, "He was feeding you."

The darkness clapped form inside its prison, "You figured it out." Raphael walked over to it and it glared at him. "I will not be contained," It slammed its fists at the invisible barrier. "I saved us," it hissed.

"I know," Raph admitted. "Thank you for that. He was going to kill me."

"I make you a better fighter."

"I agree." Raph stood staring at the darkness, "But, you have had me do some horrible things."

"That dog bit you," it said following Raph's thoughts.

"It was hurt and scared. It didn't deserve what I did."

"But, it felt good for a while, watching something else suffer."

Raph looked away, "It wasn't worth it in the end."

"You cannot keep me in here," it growled.

"I know," Raph sighed.

"So you give up," it sounded hopeful. "I win?"

Raph's eyes shot up and the barrier came down, "No." His hand came up grabbing the darkness by the throat. "I will not lose to you again. You almost killed two of my brothers."

"What?" Panic filled the darkness as it clawed at Raph's arm. "You cannot contain me and you cannot be rid of me."

"That is true," Raph rumbled, "so I'm going to control you." The storm surged again. "Submit!"

The darkness tried to fight, but could not break Raph's unrelenting grip. After a while it stopped struggling, "Fine," It said, "I yield," and it dissipated.

The winds stopped and everything changed to a light shade of grey. Raphael could feel the rage inside, but was able to keep in under control. He liked it.

A loud roar sounded from the distance. Raphael looked up to see his dragon avatar approaching. It landed before him laying itself on the ground tucking everything close.

"Huh," Raph snorted, "you couldn't have come sooner?"

The dragon shook its head.

"The darkness kept you away."

The dragon nodded.

"Everything's okay now thought right?"

The dragon nodded.

Raphael reached up and the dragon leaned in so that its nose touched his hand. "Now I can protect my brothers by any means necessary." With that the dragon was gone. He was filled with the sense of loyalty to his family and the need to keep them safe. That was it, Raph was alone and finally whole.

It was like he was thrown back into his body. His eyes snapped open and he was filled with pain. He drew a rasping breath and his whole body felt heavy. It felt as if Leo had run him through with his katana. A brief moment of fear filled Raph. Did the Daimyo not approve?

Raph looked at his chest, he was whole, but his soul was still outside his body. He moaned.

The Daimyo came into his line of sight, "What did you do?" He demanded.

"I defeated the darkness," Raph's voice was weak.

"I told you to contain it."

"I couldn't," Raph argued. "So I made it my bitch." Raph managed a weak laugh before erupting into a coughing fit. "I need it."

"Please, Daimyo" Splinter pleaded, "he's dying."

Raph looked over to see his family and friends. They were behind a line of guards, two of which were restraining Donatello who was crying, "Please, put it back."

The Daimyo looked to his healer, "What do you make of this?"

The healer shrugged, "There is still true love, but the soul is not pure."

Raph chuckled, "My soul ain't been pure for years." He looked up to see one of the tendrils holding his soul let go and he felt himself get weaker. "Oh, fuck."

"As far as I can tell," the healer continued, "he is neither evil nor good." The healer shrugged again, "The best way I can explain is, he is neutral."

The Daimyo knelt down and looked at Raphael, "What do you desire?"

Raphael struggled to find his voice, "To protect my family."

That seemed to be enough. The Daimyo looked over his shoulder and nodded to the healer.

Raphael couldn't breathe as his soul was pushed back into his body. His heart seamed to forget how to beat for a few agonizing moments before it began slamming against his chest. Another gesture from the Daimyo and the guards released Donnie. His favored rushed to his side as he lost consciousness.