Again, I would like to thank all of you for following me so far. This has been an interesting experience for me. When I first came up with this idea, I had no intentions of having it be this long. In fact, I had no idea that I was going to be creating two stories off of it. There is still much to tell, as the turtles finally have their family whole. I hope you all continue to enjoy reading and please rate/review. The reviews help me to know what I'm doing wrong or right. Happy reading! :)

Once everyone was cleaned up and dried off, they sat in the Dojo, waiting for Master Splinter. Karai sat towards the back of the group and eyed everyone with caution. The room filled with an awkward silence as Splinter entered from his room and stood before the young ones. Each turtle looked up towards their sensei from their knelt down positions, eyes brimming with happiness.

Today had been a changing point for Donatello. It felt like the weights he had lugged around on his shell had been lifted from him and he was happy to have his father back. He was eager to hear their father's story. Shifting his head forward, he made eye contact with Leo, who dipped his head in response.

"So Master Splinter, how did you survive in the sewers all this time?" With a peaked interest, Leo looked up towards his father.

Stroking his beard, Master Splinter let out a soft hum and contemplated on where to start. It was indeed a long story, one that his sons deserved to hear.

"Well, as I already stated before, Miwa fished me out of the water. I was badly injured, but I was able to nurse my wounds with her help. We tried to make it to the surface after a month or so, after what had happened…only to be chased back down here. There were some parts of the sewers that had remained untouched by the Kraang, however lately those areas are growing smaller in numbers. We eventually met up with Leatherhead, who was used to the Kraang pollution. Though, we haven't seen him in a little over a week. He went out on a food scavenge run, but never returned. " Looking down at his students, the large rat gave a heavy sigh.

Out of all of them, Michelangelo took the news the hardest, since he was the closest to Leatherhead. "I'm sure he's out there somewhere." He muttered as he looked down at the ground. Twisting his face in grief, something clicked in Mikey's head.

"Actually, he has to be out there! What if the Kraang are holding him prisoner? What if they are experimenting on him? We have to go find him!" In desperation for his friend, Mikey started panicking, while pacing all over the Dojo.

Leo quickly stood up and grabbed a hold of Mikey by the wrist. "Calm down." In a stern voice, Leo directed him. He knew how his brother felt, but it was too dangerous.

"We can't risk that right now. How would we be able to break him out, undetected? Think about it Mikey, we aren't up to par and we can't fight hundreds of Kraang bots at one once." Trying not to be harsh on his little brother, he gave him a softer look.

Taking his free hand, he grasped onto Mikey's shoulder, as he looked him straight in the eyes "He's our friend, but we will put him in more harm by going out there and risking our cover. We will get him in time, he's a survivor."

"He's right, Michelangelo. It's far too risky and from what I can tell, you are not ready to fight the Kraang. Leatherhead will be okay; his spirit is strong." Master Splinter chimed in, while beckoning for his sons to sit back down.

Mikey turned away as he sat down. He was eager to go find his friend, but he knew his brother and father were right. Settling, he folded his arms across his plastron and grunted. Moments passed as he didn't know what else to say, so he looked back up at his father, trying to keep himself from fidgeting.

After watching Mikey's episode, a hard lump had formed in Donnie's aching throat, as he feared the worst for their friend. He wanted to believe like Mikey; after all, his logical side was already disproved once today. "There's always hope." Donnie thought to himself.

"In fact, I even agree with the statement that we are not up to par. I can tell by looking at all of you that these last few months took a toll on you. It's now your turn to explain how you survived." Motioning his hand towards his students, Master Splinter waited for an explanation.

As each of them explained what had happened, Master Splinter stayed silent and would nod at each detail. Once they were finished, he scratched his head while stared down at them. "Well, I will let you all rest tonight. Tomorrow we start training; however, I want to speak to Leonardo alone right now."

With the last few words he uttered, he waved everyone away and signaled for them to leave. Donnie slowly eased himself up from where he had sat. "By the way Donatello, make sure you rest and not tinker around in your laboratory." Master Splinter said with a soft look accompanied by a voice that held authority.

"Hai, Sensei." Donnie replied weakly as he walked wearily out of the room. Heading towards the bathroom, he rubbed his head and made his way past his other brothers. Karai stayed close to the Dojo and hissed when anyone approached her. "It'll take some time for her to get used to us. I can't believe all her memories are gone." Contemplating to himself, Donnie opened the bathroom door and stepped inside.

The door clicked softly as he shut it behind him. Taking a few steps towards the mirror, Donnie's stomach turned when he saw his reflection. "I do look awful." He thought to himself bitterly. Rubbing his cheek, he noticed that dark bruises were forming around his throat. Not only was there a black ring around his neck, but his whole body looked beaten and frail. Reaching for a container of water, his mind registered they were missing.

"Ugh, I forgot to bring the water back!" Throwing his arms up in the air, he learned back and huffed out his frustration. Glancing back in his reflection, he realized his face held a sullen look to it. "I need to shape up… I can't let the others see me this way."

Shrugging off his appearance, he turned his back to the mirror. A groan escaped his throat as he leaned forward towards the door. "I ache all over. The water will have to wait." Whispering to himself, he exited the bathroom and headed off towards his room. Mikey tried to talk to him, but he just shrugged him off. "Not now, Mikey."

Looking dejected, Mikey stopped in his tracks and watched the taller turtle walk away. Donatello didn't have the patience to keep his younger brother company at the moment. Lately, he's kept to himself unintentionally; regretting it, he decided he would apologize to him later.

Inside his room, Donnie felt at ease. Even though he wanted to be back in his lab, his room was a place where his mind could flow freely. He had to resist the urge to work on his ideas and on the list of things that needed to be done. Each of his soft footsteps echoed throughout the room, accompanied by his breathing. Avoiding the books in his path, he made it to his bed without collapsing. Lowering himself, he let out a sigh of relief as he could finally relax. The bed creaked under his weight as he shifted himself to a comfortable position, which was easier this time, since he didn't have the respirator clinging to him. From there, he had drifted off to sleep with a slight grin on his face.