Okay all, not going to lie, this was a tough chapter to write. There were some paragraphs I stared at and re-worked several times over, but I think it all worked out, guess that's for you all to decide;)

As always thank you to my lovely beta Amonraphoenix who is super awesome! Thank you soooooo much! (any mistakes are my own because I've read it over too many times)

Also a giant thank you to Name goes here, Bring it, SleepingSeeker, Kimmie98 and Flamedragon242 for your awesome reviews!

p.s Name goes here. When Leo was asking Donny if he was sure Raph wouldn't do anything to Kitten, Leo saw in Donny's eyes that his brother wasn't completely sure, even though Donny wanted to think the best of Raphael, they both knew that you can't really predict how anyone will act in a given situation, eg. Donny trying to have sex with Katherine. As for Leo, he feels guilty and is very worried about Raph, but is trying to block all of that out and concentrate on finding Raph instead and worrying about the self flagellation later.:D But I am thankful for your very passionate input:)

Chapter 20

Donatello pulled up to a red light and sat in the middle of traffic, his mind spinning tumultuously as Michelangelo's words echoed harshly in his ears.

He had been scouring the city for what could only have been fifteen minutes at the most, but he wasn't able to concentrate. His heart was too heavy and riddled with guilt and shame over his actions regarding Katherine.

Part of him wanted to find Raphael so he could let him know that Leo's accusations were false and he hadn't had sex with Katherine; the other part of him secretly hoped he would never find his red banded brother, because even though he and Katherine hadn't had sex, Donatello had tried, which meant that he had almost betrayed his brother. No. He thought to himself grimly. He had betrayed his brother; in the worst possible way.

He had almost seduced his brother's fiancé which resulted in him destroying Raphael's relationship with Katherine, Leonardo and himself. He knew that he deserved every bit of loathing and abhorrence that Raphael felt towards him, but this thought didn't give him any comfort. He had ruined everything and knew that there was no way he could ever make any of this right. Leonardo could apologize, but Donatello knew Raphael well enough to know that his hot-headed brother would never forgive Leonardo for what he had done, and what he had said. He also understood that Raphael would never be able to forgive Donatello or Katherine, and he was okay with that; it was what he deserved. After all, he had managed to singlehandedly destroy his entire family because he had experienced a moment of selfishness.

He revved the bike in agitation, his eyes darting around as he made a quick decision. He eased off the clutch and hit the gas turning the bike around as it leapt forward, doing an illegal U-turn in the process and heading out of the city.

Raphael painfully made his way to the front door of Katherine's house, leaving a trail of bloody boot prints behind him. He pounded upon the hard wooden surface and prayed that he wouldn't collapse on the ground right there and then from blood loss and exhaustion. His leg, arm, side and cheek burned, and his legs felt a little shakier than they should be. He briefly wondered how much blood he had lost, but pushed the thought away, because that thought inevitably led him to think of the one who had inflicted the injuries in the first place; which just pissed him off even more.

He leaned his forehead against the cool wood of the door and closed his eyes. If he had been thinking straight he would have at least tried to beat Leonardo to a bloody, messy pulp, but there was some sick and twisted part of him that had wanted to have the crap beat out of him; because at least now he felt as if he had been punished for his role in stealing Katherine away from Donatello.

He and Donatello were still not okay, not by a long shot, but at least he felt a little less guilty about stealing away the woman his brother loved.

Raphael smiled bitterly. Of course he knew that both Leonardo and Donatello would be tripping over themselves to give him heartfelt apologies filled with deep regret, but he didn't want them. He was sick and tired of his family always thinking that he was some sort of monster. And even though he knew that there were parts of his personality that could be frightening, violent and even hateful, there was only one person who ever believed in him and who had defended him; even when she had seen the monster and suffered his wrath, and that was Katherine.

She was all he needed; all he ever needed.

The door opened and he stumbled inside. He let out a gasp of pain as he was suddenly held by two surprisingly strong hands and slowly righted.

He looked down into beautiful, wide, moss green eyes. "I'll go with you," he whispered hoarsely as he pulled her against his blood stained plastron. "I don't care where you go; I will always follow you." He leaned down and kissed her, at least...he thought he might have before he slid to the floor and tumbled into oblivion

Leonardo pulled his bike up in front of Casey and April's apartment and turned the key, killing the engine. He sat there for a few moments, utterly and completely at a loss at what to do. He had driven around the city for almost two hours searching for Raphael and had found no sign of him.

April and Casey were searching the West side in their own vehicle, while Michelangelo searched the docks on the East side in the truck. Donatello was…

His thoughts ground to a halt. He hadn't heard from Donatello in… as long as they had been searching.

Leonardo resisted the urge to palm slap his helmet covered forehead as an idea struck him. He pulled his phone from his pocket and checked the settings. Bringing up the GPS he checked to see where his hot-headed and genius brother's were. If he had have been thinking straight -if any of them had- they would have just checked the GPS to see where Raphael's phone was.

He paled slightly, suddenly light headed. His heart filled with horrified dread when he saw that both Raphael and Donatello were in the same location; at Katherine's uncle's house.

Donatello drove up the driveway of Katherine's uncle's house and cut the engine as soon as he pulled up beside Raphael's bike.

He should have been surprised that Raphael had sought out Katherine over April and Casey, but somehow, he wasn't.

He swallowed nervously. He knew Raphael' wouldn't hurt Katherine, but he was worried that he may threaten her, rail and rant at her and possibly shove her around a little; not enough to hurt her, but possibly enough to frighten her.

He didn't like that he was thinking the worst of his older brother, but he had seen Raphael in one of his berserker rages, and between Leonardo's accusation of Katherine's infidelity, the thrashing Leonardo had given him, and the brutal scathing words of contempt that Leonardo had leveled upon Raphael, Donatello knew that his hot-headed brother would not be in the most reasonable or understanding mood.

He slowly slid off his bike, pulling off his helmet and setting it on the seat. He pulled out the spare bo he kept lashed to his bike in case of emergencies and strapped it to his carapace. He told himself that he was just going to protect himself and Katherine if need be. He had no intentions of raising a violent hand against his brother, Leonardo had already done that.

Donatello's gaze slid to his brother's bike. He reached out and brushed his fingers across the drying blood that had made it onto the black seat and across the red gas tank; rust upon crimson.

He felt a spike of fear run through him like a bolt of electricity. He needed to find out how badly Leonardo had injured Raphael, and pray it wasn't as bad as the amount of blood on the seat indicated.

Looking up at the house an ominous feeling drifted through him as the sun began to set, filling the sky with brilliant oranges, scarlets, vermilions and ochres, which painted the house before him a dark crimson.

Donatello took a deep, steadying breath, worried now for both Raphael and Katherine. His heart skipped a beat as he saw the bloody footprints leading up to the door. He ran up the steps of the house, striding across the wooden planks that made up the front porch. He knocked, letting both Katherine and Raphael know he was there. He didn't wait for the door to be answered; instead he opened it with an ominous creak. The first thing he noticed were the drops of blood and more bloody boot prints on the entryway mat which then trailed through the foyer towards the kitchen.

"Hey, Donny, come to apologize?" Raphael's voice dripped with angry sarcasm.

Donatello looked to his right, Raphael exiting the half bath on the main floor. His brother was only wearing his underwear and had a small towel clenched tightly in his fists, his steps a little unsteady.

Donatello's eyes flicked over the lacerations and wounds that had been closed with neat if slightly irregular stitches.

Looking over Raphael's injuries he was only thankful that Leonardo hadn't killed Raphael. It was obvious that he had lost a lot of blood, but the laceration on Raphael's thigh was dangerously close to the femoral artery. If Leonardo had cut just a bit deeper to the right…Donatello shuddered at the thought of his brother bleeding out on the dojo floor

"Or were you just coming to see if I hurt Kitten; rushing to protect the fair maiden from the big bad monster." Raphael said nodding towards Donatello's carapace. Donatello glanced over his shoulder at his bo and turned his attention back to Raphael.

Indecision rode over him. He wasn't sure what to do. His eyes flicked around, looking for Katherine, needing to make sure she was okay. He knew Raphael would never hurt her, but he needed to see the evidence for himself; because there was a sliver of doubt that he was unable to completely banish from his mind.

At hearing the clattering sounds of cleaning coming from the kitchen, Donatello felt his shoulders relax slightly in relief. He then studied his brother, opting to tell him the absolute truth as to why he was there. "I didn't think that you would be here," he stated bluntly.

Raphael's eyes widened in surprise, before narrowing with suspicious anger. "So why are you here?"

Donatello blew out a pent up breath. "Because I wanted to make sure Katherine was okay, and I figured that you would probably show up here eventually."

Raphael snorted. "So you did think I'd come here to hurt her, " Raphael growled dangerously.

Donatello shook his head. "Raph, I've known you my entire life and I never know what you are going to do and how you're going to react to any given situation. But after what Leo said and did to you...I had no idea what you were going to do. I know you'd never intentionally hurt Katherine, but after what I had done, I needed to talk to her, and I needed to tell you what had happened. I Leo was wrong, I didn't have sex with Katherine, but I tried and didn't want you to blame her for what I did." Donatello said truthfully.

"I know exactly who to blame, Donny." Raphael bit out angrily. "And it ain't her."

Donatello forced himself to meet Raphael's furious golden gaze. "I'm sorry," he told his brother earnestly.

"You're sorry?" Raphael asked his voice incredulous. "You think that saying 'I'm sorry' makes up for what you did?" Raphael snarled as he took a threatening step forward.

"No," Donatello shouted, shaking his head back and forth in denial, "Of course it doesn't! There is nothing I can do or say to...to make up for what I did, or repair what I broke. I know I wronged you, I wronged Katherine and I messed up our family; and I can't fix it or make it better!"

"You're right, you did and you can't." Raphael sneered, dropping the towel to the ground and cracking his knuckles threateningly. "There ain't nothin' you can do or say that will make me ever forgive you."

Donatello flinched at the harsh statement. He knew this was going so much better than he could have ever hoped. The fact that Raphael was even talking with him rather than tearing him apart like some rabid animal was something of a minor miracle, but it still didn't help to ease the guilt or the pain of having betrayed his brother, and irreparably destroying whatever familial bond they had shared.

"I know." Donatello answered as he hung his head in disgrace.

The blow caught him by surprise. Raphael's fist connected with his jaw sending him stumbling back. The part of his brain that was analysing his situation dully noted that Michelangelo's punch had been much harder and more precise than Raphael's.

Donatello closed his eyes and waited for the next blow which would no doubt be much more brutal and punishing, but the next blow never came. Donatello cautiously cracked open his eyes, worry filling him at what could only be a medical induced crisis that had hampered Raphael's continued rage fueled attack.

Raphael was standing a few feet away, rubbing his scraped knuckles.

"Raph?" he ventured softly as he pushed himself off the wall he had fallen into.

"Just be glad that a punch to the face is all you're gettin'," Raphael snarled.

Donatello opened and closed his mouth a few times in shock, unable to form a coherent sentence.

"Don't think that I ain't still pissed at you," Raphael began. "Or that I forgive you 'cause I don't. But at least you had a pretty good damn reason for doin' what you did."

"Good reason?" he whispered in shock. "There was no-"

Raphael cut him off. "Shut it, Donny. I get it, okay? You love her, she loves you. So just leave it at that."

Donatello opened his mouth in protest, his cheeks burning in shame. "Raph-" he began but his brother cut him off again.

"Kitten's goin' home." Raphael stated bluntly.

"W-what?" he stammered in shock at the sudden shift in the conversation.

"We went through hell on that island, Katherine most of all. She ain't as strong as she pretends to be. No matter that she acts as if she's fine and okay with everything that happened, she's not. That's why she's goin' home. Not for some job, but because it's home, and she needs home to feel safe again. So I'm gonna go with her. There ain't nothin' here for me but a city that thinks I'm a freak and a bunch of former brothers who always think the worst of me." Raphael ground out bitterly.

Donatello stared at Raphael completely dumbfounded at his words. He didn't know what had happened between Katherine and Raphael, but obviously they had worked something out if Raphael was determined to go with her back to Canada.

"You don't have to leave, Raph." Donatello began, taking a cautious step towards his older brother.

"The hell I don't." Raphael snapped. "Leo kicked me out and disowned me. My younger brother tried to have sex with my fiancé. You think I wanna to stay here?!"

"Leo didn't mean anything he said, and he didn't mean to hurt-"

"Bullshit!" Raphael roared. "Leo wanted to hurt me," Raphael continued smoothly. "Me an' Leo, we've had our fights, our brawls, and our disagreements, but I've never seen him the way he was today. I know he coulda killed me. Hell, I saw my life flash before my eyes a few times, but I know that if Leo wanted me dead, I'd be dead. And you know what? If I had done what Leo thought I did, then I don't think I would have deserved anything less than what he did to me. But he didn't let me explain, just figured that I'm a selfish bastard who tried to hurt you in the worst possible way imaginable. He had no way of knowing that the selfish bastard was really you, did he, Donny?"

Donatello flinched and swallowed the thick lump of guilt that was lodged in his throat. He couldn't look into his brother's accusing eyes anymore and lowered his head. He took a moment before looking back up at his brother. "You're right," he affirmed. "Hate me, estrange me, beat me to a pulp, kill me if you have to, but don't blame Leo." Raphael wouldn't ever forgive him, and he knew he deserved that, but if he could get Raphael to forgive Leonardo, then maybe their family wouldn't be completely shattered, only badly broken. "Leo feels-" he began.

Raphael stepped closer to him; robbing him of speech with the depth of hurt that rolled around in Raphael's eyes. "I know exactly how he feels." Raphael's voice contained a hint of bitterness and anger as he continued. "He's probably thinking of fallin' on his sword right now just to appease his damn sense of honour," Raphael sneered. "Thing is, I don't want an apology because I don't give a shit about him or you or anyone else."

"Raphael," Katherine's voice cut through the room like the crack of a whip.

Donatello's eyes shot up and over to Katherine who had emerged from the kitchen. Her face was full of concern, arms crossed lightly over her chest. Donatello raked her body up and down for any signs of injury, either physical or emotional and found none.

Katherine met Donatello's worried gaze and she gave him a quick nod before refocusing her attention on Raphael. "You don't mean that."

Raphael looked over his shoulder at her. "Katherine…"he ground out.

"I'm not going to Canada," she told Raphael softly, her voice containing s thread of steel that surprised them both.

Raphael's attention was completely diverted, anger melting away as he looked at her in confusion before growling. "You're goin' home, Kitten. You need to go home cause I know that you're puttin' on one hellava show show; pretending you're fine, but you ain't fine. You're havin' nightmares and I know that the only way you're gonna feel safe again is bein' home. "

Katherine shook her head. "I haven't had a nightmare in over a month. I dealt with everything that happened while I was in the hospital."

"Katherine..." Raphael ground out.

"Raphael," she cut his brother off. "As cheezy as it sounds, home is where the heart is, and my heart is here, with you..."

"And Donatello." Raphael stiffened at her last words. "And Leonardo and Michelangelo." Katherine uncrossed her arms and took several steps down the hallway stopping as she reached the archway that led into the foyer. "I was going to go because it was my dream job, but I was never going to leave without you, Raphael. If you didn't come with me, I was staying. But...everything's changed now. You can't come with me because if you do, your relationship with your brothers will end."

"You think I care about that?" Raphael snarled rounding on her.

"What about Michelangelo?" she asked tipping her head to the side in question.

Raphael opened his mouth, snapped it shut and looked away in irritation. "Mikey's the only one I don't hate right now." He grumbled softly.

Donatello repressed the need to cringe at his brother's words, even though he knew he deserved the hatred and animosity his brother felt towards him

Katherine sighed. "You don't hate Donatello or Leonardo, it just feels like you do. You love them and care deeply for them because they are your brothers; no matter their faults or mistakes, because they are your family."

"Kitten-" Raphael ground out as Katherine stepped up to his brother, looking at Raphael searchingly. Raphael blew out a frustrated breath, meeting her searching gaze with a steely look of his own. "I ain't lettin' you give up everythin' you've been workin' for so that I can play nice with my brothers."

"Yes, you are. Some things are important; more important than jobs or money or things, and family is one of them." Katherine told Raphael sternly.

"I thought you needed to get away," Raphael rumbled his eyes boring into the side of Donatello's skull.

Katherine's eyes strayed to Donatello's. "We will work things out," she answered softly.

"Katherine-" Raphael began again, his voice angry.

She reached out and touched Raphael's cheek, his brother's face softening in response.

A strange thought popped into Donatello's head. A vague recollection of the saying 'Beauty taming the Beast'.

Raphael blinked and shook his head, giving Katherine a searching glance. "You don't understand, Kitten." Raphael growled. "I need to leave...I need to get the hell outta here."

Katherine tipped her head to the side again and nodded. "It's true, I don't understand," she agreed. "But you and Donatello will get better in time, and as for you and Leonardo, you can't really blame him for what he did. You were the one who wanted to keep up the pretence of me and Donatello dating, and I did warn you that someone could see us in the garage," she coaxed. "And although I will admit that Leonardo's reaction was a bit extreme, he probably feels horrible about what he did to you."

"I ain't forgiving him, Kitten." Raphael snarled defiantly. "I asked him if he thought I was capable of doing what he accused me of, and he said yes, and that I probably liked it! He hates me and has always thought the absolute worst of me!" Raphael was shouting now, his anger swirling around him like some dark thundering cloud. "Leo's so damn perfect. Even when he messes up, he's still not wrong!"

Raphael began to pace in agitation. "He's just so...arrgghhhh! When he and Karai broke up, they were probably all 'Karai I don't think we should be together anymore. I know we had our disagreements, but I would like this to be as amicable as possible, and hope that we can still be friends'," he mimicked Leonardo's voice and then switched to an imitation of what was no doubt supposed to be Karai. 'Leonardo, I agree with you and I accept. It has been a pleasure.' And then they probably both shook hands and went their separate ways." Raphael bit out as he continued to pace, even as his leg began to bleed slightly, the stitches straining against Raphael's hasty movements. "He's such a damn cold, formal...I would like for once to see him mess up. Actually screw up and see if that manages to pry the stick out of his ass and realize that no one's perfect, not even him!"

Katherine snorted. "Leonardo knows he isn't perfect, that is why he tries so hard to be perfect. And Leonardo and Karai did not have a very...passionate or affectionate relationship, so their parting was rather mutual as far as I can tell."

"Yeah, two dried up old sticks." Raphael grumbled. "They were perfect for each other. I mean...Wait, what do ya mean not affectionate?"

"Well..." Katherine made a slight movement with her hand and then shrugged.

"Are you tellin' me that there was no sex?" Raphael asked incredulously.

"I didn't say that..." her voice trailed off causing Raphael's eyes to narrow with speculation.

"You've got to be shitting me. Leo and Karai went out for over a year. There is no way..." Raphael stopped. "Leo's still a virgin?" he speculated with shock. "I'm right, tell me I'm totally right."

Katherine didn't answer and they both took her silence as confirmation of Raphael's observation.

"Tell me the guy at least got to third base," Raphael said with a lift of an eye ridge.

Katherine frowned in thought for a moment. "If third base is what I believe it to be, then I would say that Leonardo did not make it much past first."

Raphael opened his mouth a few times, but no words came out. Donatello felt his own eye ridges rise in surprise.

"No wonder the guy is so uptight; he seriously needs to get laid." Raphael stated bluntly. "I mean, I know Karai was a cold fish, but...not even third? Hell, not even second!?"

"They didn't have that kind of relationship," Katherine explained with another shrug.

"How the hell do you know this?" Raphael asked in question as if doubting Katherine's information.

"Just by judging by some of the things Karai said. It wasn't as if Karai and I were besties or anything. She wasn't sharing her deepest darkest secrets, but I gathered that Karai and Leonardo shared more of a platonic relationship that imploded when Leonardo attempted to make it more...physical," She answered. "The thing is..." Katherine walked over to the steps that led to the upper floor, Raphael automatically following to sit next to her.

Donatello gave Katherine a grateful nod, knowing that she had decided to sit so that Raphael could rest; his brother's legs were becoming a little shaky. Whether Raphael knew Katherine had made this move on purpose Donatello wasn't sure, but the fact was that Katherine had known that Raphael needed to sit down and had taken the opportunity to let him do this without drawing attention to the fact that her movement was purposeful.

"Leonardo is jealous of you," Katherine continued, surprising both Raphael and himself.

Raphael snorted. "I call bullshit. That guy hates everythin' about me," Raphael groused.

Katherine gave a half smile. "No, Leonardo wants what you have, but can't bring himself to pursue it."

Raphael narrowed his eyes. "Whatchya mean by that."

"You live life to the fullest, Raphael. You don't worry about rules or structure, you just run with any and everything that is thrown your way. You are passionate and display your passion for everything openly and without restraint. Leonardo is just as passionate as you are, but he sees that passion as a dangerous weakness. Leonardo has just as much of a temper as you do, he just controls his much better. This means that when he reaches the limit of his endurance, his temper explodes in truly magnificent and destructive ways," Katherine paused for a moment before she continued. "He wants to love how you love; how Donatello loves. But the thought of being that open and vulnerable to heartbreak scares him. That's why he was interested in Karai in the first place. She was safe. Her knew he could never love her because he could never fully allow himself to trust her." Katherine's gaze slid to Donatello, her meaning clear. Trust was something they had both broken with Raphael.

Raphael seemed to catch the undercurrent, but chose to ignore it, focusing again on Leonardo.

"How the hell do you know that?"

"I ran into Leonardo when I entered the lair. I gave him a hug and told him I was sorry about what happened between him and Karai, but Karai was the furthest thing from his mind. I could see in his eyes that he was thankful he had never allowed himself to love her, but at the same time there was a vulnerability in his demeanour. For just a split second he wanted to know what it was like to love as deeply and as passionately as his brothers loved. He touched my cheek, and then he shut himself down. Closed himself off and stepped away."

"You got all that from Leo lookin' at you?" Raphael asked in disbelief.

Katherine shrugged.

"Damn it! I'm not even pissed off at Leo anymore! I just feel...sorry for him," Raphael griped as he glared at Katherine who gave an innocent smile.

Raphael narrowed his eyes again. "So why me?" Raphael asked.

"Why you what?" Katherine asked in confusion.

"Why did you choose me, back when we all just met? Why not Leo or Donny, hell, why not Mikey?" Raphael asked, something of a desperate edge in his voice. "What the hell made me so special?"

Donatello suddenly felt like a third wheel; an intruder into a private conversation.

Katherine's eyes crinkled up at the corners as she smiled. "I think it was because you never needed anybody or anything. Out of all of your brothers you were the most likely -the most able- to just leave without any thought of their feelings or having any reservations of your own," She mused thoughtfully. "Except for some reason that I couldn't quite understand, you felt as if you needed me. You chose me to be the one that anchored you to the world." Katherine's words were said in a hushed tone, as if the thought still had the ability to overwhelm her.

Raphael blinked a few times, obviously much struck by her words, and if Donatello were honest, he was struck by them as well. Katherine made it sound as if it were an honour for Raphael to have fallen in love with her, rather than Raphael being the lucky bastard who managed to win her heart.

"Oh." Raphael said softly, his voice a little shaky and choked, obviously a little surprised and touched by Katherine's heartfelt words. Raphael cleared his throat. "So then why Donny?" he asked.

Donatello blinked in shock, not knowing what Katherine was going to say.

Katherine shifted her focus and stared at Donatello, her mind searching for words, face serious. "Because he's my other half."

Donatello looked at her in surprise, mouth falling open in shock. Raphael on the other hand flinched, his face falling into angry and hurt lines.

"Other half aren't quite the right words. More like we are two sides of the same coin. We aren't opposites; we just have more in common with each other than we have with other people," she explained as if this made any sense to either of them. Raphael's face began to darken with wounded rage and fear. She attempted to clarify her words again. "Both of us are dreamers. We drift off into worlds no one else seems to understand; different places, different times. We tag along for the ride as the other delves into whatever it is that springs to mind at that moment because each world that we experience is beautiful in its own way, even if we don't fully understand it."

Donatello looked at Katherine and he had to blink back tears, because that was the most beautifully eloquent thing he had ever heard. He swallowed down the lump in his throat and cleared it. Raphael was looking at him, eyes narrowed into golden slits of fury. Donatello wondered if Raphael was going to attack him before his brother straitened, letting out a loud huff of irritation.

"Fine, I get it." Raphael crossed his arms over his chest and grimaced slightly, the movement obviously pulling at his stitches. "I hate it, and I don't wanna do it, but I know you won't get off my back 'till I do," Raphael growled as Donatello looked at his hot-headed brother in stunned confusion. "I'll mostly forgive him, kay? I can't totally forgive him for trying to have sex with my girl, but I'll try," he grumbled. "And I still blame him," Raphael said peevishly. "And don't expect me to like the fact that you still expect to be friends with him," Raphael said almost ignoring the fact that Donatello was standing right there in front of him.

Katherine smiled softly. "Thank you, Raphael," she said leaning over and kissing Raphael who returned her kiss passionately and only wincing slightly as the stiches on his cheek were pulled by the movement.

Donatello looked at Raphael as his brother reluctantly pulled away from his kiss. "Raph...I don't...thank you, I-"

"Yeah, yeah." Raphael waved away his thanks. "Whatever. And I'll even forgive Leo for being a total and complete asshole, but I'm still gonna mess with him. I need a little bit of payback, especially after the whole 'sloppy seconds' disowning me shit that he spouted off," Raphael said cracking his knuckles in anticipation.

"He said what?" Katherine asked, voice low and dangerous.

"I think I've changed my mind." Donatello interrupted softly, realizing what Katherine had just done. She had laid bare all of their feelings, weaknesses, flaws and mistakes, and somehow managed to tentatively repair all of their bonds, accomplishing the impossible; Raphael forgave him, and Leonardo. Couple this with the fact that Donatello was still allowed to see Katherine and remain friends with her -which after what had happened, was something he never would have even dreamed of happening. Katherine hadn't accomplished the impossible, she had performed a miracle. Donatello felt another round of tears fill his eyes as relief and gratefulness filled him. "People smarts are way better than street or academic smarts," he whispered, giving Katherine a thankful glance.

Raphael frowned, nodded and stood, turning his attention fully upon Donatello and standing. "I forgive ya because I would have done the same damn thing if I was in your shoes, okay?" Raphael rumbled. "Only difference would be I wouldn't have regretted it." Raphael strode towards Donatello and poked him in the chest. "Kitten's right. I woulda burnt all my bridges and not given a damn because a friendly hug just wouldn't have cut it." Raphael poked Donatello's plastron again, this time a little harder. "And just be glad Kitten told me about what happened before Leo did, or else there would have been no way I would have even bothered to listen to any of you, or forgiven either you or Leo," Raphael snarled. "Now give me your bo," he demanded, holding out his hand as he pulled his sai from his belt. "And your clothes."

Bum bum bummmmm. Okay don't know if it was really dramatic, but whatever. Hope everyone enjoyed:)