Here's a long chapter for you. Enjoy!

Chapter 13

(Casey POV)

After Don injected Lena with the mutagen, everyone got quiet and watched her. We waited and waited for something, anything to happen, but she just laid still. I cradled her in my arms as the others stood around us. Nothing was happening!

"Why won't she wake up?" I growled.

"Either it's…..…it's healing her." Don stopped abruptly and stood up. "We should get her back and in bed. I'm not sure how long this will take."

With a new black cloud over our heads, we packed up and left to head back to the house. The whole walk back no one spoke, which gave me plenty of time notice how limp Lena was and the scars she had on her. Where'd she get them from? Her arm was swinging loosely back and forth until Raph gently folded it up close to her. I notice a change in Raph, he was calmer. He barely ran off to 'get air' or lash out at his brothers, well up until this happened he didn't snap.

When we got to the house, I brought her upstairs and put her in bed. No one wanted to leave so we all brought chairs in or sat on the floor to start our watch. Raph and I sat in chairs on both sides of her, his arms were crossed over his plastron glaring a hole into the floor. I just watched her waiting for her to wake up. April rose.

"I know no one will be in the mood, but I'm going to bring up the sandwiches from before." Then she turned and left the room, I took Lena's hand.

"Come on, kiddo, wake up." I begged her. When she didn't respond I swore. "She would've been better off with Lee."

"Casey, you have done the best for her. She was with the Foot before her parents passed, there was no escaping this." Splinter told me.

"Yeah and your brother wouldn't have been able to help her as well as you have." Mikey offered a smile.

"Lena wouldn't have been able to fight the Shredder back. He would've consumed her spirit completely." Leo added.

I shrugged. "But…..she's still fighting for her life."

"She ain't fighting alone." Raph finally spoke. "Lena knows that, she knows that she can count on me….us to help her when shit goes wrong. That's what keeps her going."

April returned with the sandwiches and passed them out, the guys forced a few bites down and I put mine to the side. Then I heard Lena take a quick and ragged breath.

"Casey." Her hand squeezed mine.

"Lena," Raph and I stood up and hovered over her.

"Casey, it burns." Her voice cracked as tears streamed down her face.

"What burns?" I tried to comfort my niece.

"Everything, Casey make it stop. Please make it stop." Her voice rose as she cried harder.

"Don." I heard Raph growl.

"Raphael?" Lena called.

"Hey, I'm right here." His hand caressed her cheek.

Don came over, and lifted her arm.

"Ow, ow, ow, ow, ow." Her breathing was labored.

Lena's skin was turning a greenish color and her skin was becoming scaly looking. No, she was turning.

"Dammit, it's changing her." Don swore. "Everyone has to leave except for April."

"Why the hell you'd you think I'd leave her?" I yelled at Don.

"Casey, the less people in here the better."

My attention was turned back to Lena when she screamed. Mikey was trying to pull me back while Leo led Raph to the door. April shut the door behind us as Lena's screams echoed into the hallway. Donnie and April's voices also trailed out, but we couldn't hear what they were saying. I turned and punch the wall.

"I suggest we all go wait in the living room." Splinter started for the stairs and motioned Leo, Mikey, Raph, and I to follow.

I tore myself away from Lena's door and went down the stairs. Mikey sat on the floor, Leo sat on the couch, Splinter sat on the recliner, and Raph was standing by the window with his shell to us. I started pacing as Lena cried again.

"Why does she have to be so loud?" I covered my ears.

"I understand it is not a comforting sound, but Ms. O'Neil and Donatello are trying to help her through this." Splinter had his eyes closed.

"I'd be more use up there." I argued.

"Get in line, buddy." Raph shifted at the window. "I know how you feel."

I sighed. "You'd be more use than me. She'd feel safe with you up there."

Raph turned to look at Splinter, who nodded to him. Raph returned the nod and headed upstairs, but I put my hand on his shoulder as his went to pass me.

"Get her through this."

"I will."

(Lena POV)

"Lena, try to calm down, okay?" I heard April.

"I….can't." I hiccupped and cried. The pain in my body was excruciating, like someone lit me on fire, I wanted it to stop. Donnie said before everyone left that it was the mutagen changing me. I was so scared that I was going to die, but at the same time I wanted to be.

"I'm going to try a stronger dose this time." Donnie told April.

"Alright." April was brushing my hair out of my face and held my hand, which was trembling.

"Donnie, let me help."

"Raphael?" I choked out. "Don't go!"

"Fine, but no one else." Don snapped, which was every unusual for the level-headed turtle.

"I'm not going anywhere." His face came into view and it was filled with worry and fear. I found his hand and held onto it as if it was my life. "You're okay, Don's giving you something that'll help."

"When's it going to start working?" I squeezed my eyes shut.

"Soon." He didn't hesitate, but I know he wasn't sure.

After a few moments, I felt something start growing from my tailbone. I bit into my pillow to keep from screaming again, but my mouth and face were getting worse too.

"Let go, Lena." Raphael whispered to me. "Don't fight anymore."

I was confused at first, but Raphael knew me. Never did I want to quit or stand down to anything or anyone, like back at the Foot, I wasn't going back to that state. If I let go I would lose consciousness for sure, but I might be out for a while. I didn't want to go back to that space of darkness and mystery.

"Let go." He begged. "It'll make everything better."

Raphael wouldn't leave me, he'll pull me out of here. He won't let me go back to where I started. I took a breath and let the darkness take me. I was terrified as I waited for the real fear to come. It confused me, however, when it never came. I felt Raphael's warmth next me and his smell surround me. I held onto him with my mind and refused to let him go. Staying focused on his presence, the worry vanished and was replaced with peace. Then I could actually feel his arm around me and my arms tucked closely to my chest, but there was something else, I felt Raphael's ankles? I shifted and put my head on his plastron.

"How are you feeling?" He whispered into my hair.

I lifted the sheet and saw that there was a long green tail wrapped around Raphael's ankle.

"What the hell did I change into?" I asked sleepily.

"Don says a chameleon."

"That explains the tail." I let go of his ankle and curled it up towards myself.

"I gotta go tell Don you're up." He started moving away, but I grabbed him with my tail again.

"No, can you stay for a little longer?" I whined.

"Fine." He chuckled.

"Did Casey see me yet?" I was nervous about how he was going to react to my appearance.

"Nope, only April, Don, and me." He paused. "You know, everyone's excited to see you."

"Really?" I wasn't too convinced.

"Really. Do you want to just come with me to get Don?" He asked smiling.

"Meh, fine." I slowly sat up and got off the bed with Raphael helping me, but I almost tripped when my tail got tangled on my legs. I pouted at it and moved it. "I hate this thing already."

"You'll get used to it." Raph walked me out of the door.

Going down the stairs was the biggest challenge, since I was a little wobbly, but finally made it down near the kitchen where silverware was clinging on plates. I listened closely.

"You think she's gonna be okay?" I heard Mikey ask.

"It'll definitely be weird for her, but she'll figure it out." Don answered.

"So you're not going to tell us what she turned into?" Mikey was slapped by someone. "Ow! What I'm curious."

I looked up at Raphael and nodded. As we walked through the doorway, I held my breath. Everyone turned towards us with a look of surprise. I squeezed Raphael's hand.

"Whoa, she's hot." Mikey grinned at me goofily and was hit by and equally shocked Casey. "Ow!"

Donnie stood up and came over to me. "When did you wake up? How are you feeling?"

"A few minutes ago, and clumsy." I motioned at my tail. Yeah, I know I seem obsessed with this thing, but it keeps getting in the way.

"It'll get some getting used to." Don smiled encouragingly.

Leo stood up next and came over. "Why don't you sit and eat something?"

"Okay." I sat down and made my tail kind of hang on the side of the chair. Mikey made me a plate of food and set it in front of me, Casey was still staring. "Take a picture, it lasts longer." I ate some of Mikey's scrambled eggs he made.

"A lizard." Casey said.

"No, a chameleon." I corrected then stopped eating. "Donnie, do you think I'd be able to camouflage like an actual chameleon?"

"Most likely. It seems weird for a human to do, but now you are part chameleon, so I don't see why not." Donnie shrugged.

"Sweet." I jumped when my tail did this weird twitchy thing. I glared down at it. "What the hell is your problem?" Then I glanced up at everyone else. "I swear this thing's got a mind of its own."

The guys laughed. "You just don't know how to control it yet." Leo told me.

"How am I going to do that?"

"Experiment." Donnie answered through his mouthful of eggs.

"I'm like a baby learning how to walk."

"Right now it's just doing what you're unconsciously telling it to do." Don clarified.

"It can actually help you with balance." Leo added.

"Hooray for me." I stated sarcastically.

After breakfast, I put some clothes on and went outside to lay in the grass and listen to music. Raphael joined me and I took this time to check myself out, not to be narcissistic, but I was curious. My skin was definitely rougher and green, then there were dull spikes that lined my back and down my tail. I have four finger on each hand and three toes on each foot. With all of these changes no wonder why I was feeling discombobulated. I noticed that the bottom side of my tail, my stomach, and chest were a lighter green under my short grey t-shirt and jean shorts with a whole in the back for my long tail. I kind of had a small beak like the turtles, but my top lip was slightly pointed.

While outside I also did some practice with my tail, like curling it, uncurling it, moving it to help with balance, and most importantly how to get it out of the way.

Casey wasn't talking to me for some reason. Splinter said he needs time to figure out some things. I was hurt by this at first, but then I remembered I had the guys, April, and Splinter. They've been my mission at first, but now their family. I wouldn't have been able to get through what I did without them. Walking towards the house, I smiled at myself and went to go talk with April. She was sitting on the living room couch, and greeted me when I walked inside.

"Hey, Lena." She smiled at me.

"Hey April, can we talk?" I asked her while playing with the ends of my hair.

"Yeah." She got up and followed me to my room. We both sat on my bed. "What do you need to talk about, honey?"

"Do you think Casey is grossed out by me?"

April gave me this shocked face. "No, why would you think that?"

"Cause he's been ignoring me all day." I folded my hands in front of me.

"Lena, you know Casey's new at this hole parenting thing, and he's trying to figure it out. You both have had a lot thrown at you in the past year. It's going to take a little for everything to settle down." She put her hand on my folded ones.

"Is it weird that I don't mind being like this?"

"Like what?"

"Like this." I pulled my hands away and motioned at myself.

April just smiled. "No, it's not. You're uncle just has to know it's not the end of the world." She laughed.

"Ya, but what about Uncle Lee?"

"We'll figure that out another time."

I hugged her. "Thanks, April."

She returned the gesture. "No problem."

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