I do not own Dr. Elder, nor any characters from the TMNT universe. Dr. Elders belongs to Cheshire Dreaming... pity her.

Don't forget to check out CheshireDreaming's account at; CheshireDreaming dot deviantart dot com -She's the co-author and the person who really deserves the credit for this story ever getting started

Chapter twenty-five; Quinn

When Tammy called us for dinner, there was a mad dash for the table. We were all still so hyped up from the video game and hungry from lack of food that the way to the table was a race, too, and we all violently pushed and shoved each other on the way there. I found I was at an extreme disadvantage, being surrounded by very well-muscled ninjas with rock-hard shells, but I managed to get to the table mostly unharmed, though I knew the bruises I'd acquired would be visible soon. Most of the soreness could be attributed to the training session, and my rivalry with Raph when it came to video games.

As it turned out, we were having stir fry, a dish that ironically enough reminded me of my mom, who'd loved the stuff and had occasionally made it herself. The bowls full of stir fry were passed around the table along with forks, and when I went to dig into the dish I was eternally embarrassed to see my hand shaking as it held the fork. Stupid muscles, getting strained. Still, I'd go through shaky hands a thousand times if it meant more training. The tekko may have been heavy (and felt even heavier after an hour or so of use), but they felt good in my hands.

My hand refused to stop shaking no matter how hard I tried to make it stop, but thankfully the guys were too preoccupied with eating to notice. Or at least I hoped they were. I decided to just ignore the shaking and hope everyone else would do the same.

The stir fry was really good, and I voiced my opinion in between bites with an extremely articulate, "Really good, Tammy," which thankfully seemed to be received well by the chef. Splinter and Leo also complimented Tammy on the meal, after which the turtles rushed to follow suit. I almost laughed, but then it turned into a choked cough. I took a huge gulp of water and crisis was averted.

The rest of the meal was pleasant, and the guys slowed their eating pace aft a few minutes of wolfing the stir fry down. Tammy was prepared for their appetites this time, and they each had seconds, then thirds. I finished my own second helping and sat back to relax the rest of the meal.

"So, Miss—" Splinter caught himself and started again. "Tammy and Quinn, what did you think of your first lesson?"

I felt Raph and Leo's eyes burning into the back of my head. I glanced over at Tammy, who was chewing thoughtfully on a mouthful of stir fry. I'd go first, then.

"It was amazing. I mean…I'm really sore, but I like learning to fight. It was hard, but…yeah. I liked it." That was apparently where my articulate-ness ended. I glanced over my shoulder to see Raph giving Leo a smug grin.

Tammy swallowed and spoke up. "It was great, I can't remember the last time I had so much fun and learned so much at the same time." Donatello was practically beaming afterwards.

Splinter smiled at Tammy and me. "I am glad. My sons have been pupils for so long, it is good for them to be able to teach others what they have learned."

"Hey, sensei! Can I teach them next time?" Mikey asked, looking a lot like an overeager puppy…er, turtle.

"I'd also like to teach Tammy or Quinn," Leo offered, earning a glare from Raphael.

"We shall see," Splinter said calmly, and that was the end of it.

Tammy took advantage of the moment to get dessert, which turned out to be a decadent chocolate cake. Dear lord. That girl is my hero.

I think she must've noticed my worshipful expression, because she gave me one of the bigger slices. I snuck a look at Splinter, and he looked just as grateful for the cake as I was. Mikey looked like he'd forgotten all about the lack of pizza.

The cake was pure bliss. I completely forgot about my aches and pains and just focused on the delicious taste of chocolate. You know what they say about chocolate making you feel happy? This was definite proof.

"Thank you so much, Tammy." I think Splinter would've thanked her, too, but he seemed lost in the cake.

"You're welcome." She seemed to be quite enjoying the cake herself. The guys seemed amused by our reaction to the cake's deliciousity (is that a word? It should be). Whatever. I had my cake. I was happy.

Dessert was over all too soon. I volunteered for clean-up duty (hey, if Tammy cooks, I figure that as the other guest I have the responsibility to clean), and Leo, being the gentleman he is, offered to help. I tried to tell him that I was fine by myself, but he insisted.

Thus Leo and I found ourselves teaming up to do dishes; he washed, I dried, and ultimately I was glad for his help. It meant the work would get done that much faster. Also, I had forgotten about my still-slightly-shaky hands, which would no doubt have worsened if I'd had to do all the washing and drying myself. As it was, I used the countertop to steady the plate and keep most of the weight off my hands.

"Your hands are shaking," Leo pointed out. Crap. He'd noticed.

"Yup." No point in denying it. Hopefully I could just downplay it and everything would be cool.

"You know, if Raph's training was too hard—"

"I'm fine." Bad word choice, Leo. If you suggest I can't rise to the challenge, I'll go out of my way to kick its ass. Raph's lessons aren't hard; they're the easiest thing in the world. Or so I will tell you if you ever ask.

"Sorry, I'm just concerned."

"Well, thanks, but like I said, I'm fine. No concern necessary." I dried the last of the dishes and started putting them away, with Leo's help.

"Thanks for the French toast, by the way."

"No problem. It's the least I can do, after dragging you guys into all this craziness. I feel really bad for Tammy, too. I mean, it's…" Uh oh. Simple dishwashing had turned into a confessional. Stop, mouth. Cease thy blathering.

"It's nothing we can't handle," Leo said.

Of course not. "You seem awfully confident about that."

"Trust me when I say, we've dealt with much worse."

Oh, I know. "Really?"

Leo nodded. Keep the conversation going, Quinn. It'll turn into an awkward silence if you don't. And remember to watch what you say.

"Like those ninja from before?" I asked, barely keeping myself from calling them the Foot.

"Yeah, the Foot are always a problem for us." He seemed slightly relieved that I wasn't going to pry any further. I didn't need to.

Let's see, what else was there to talk about? Oh, right, meditation! Now was as good a time as any for that, I guess.

"Hey, Leo, I, uh…meditated with Splinter earlier. He said maybe we should meditate together sometime…?" Ugh. Way to use awkward wording, Quinn.

"Sure." Trust Leo to do whatever had Splinter's backing. "Now?"

"Sure." We put away the stir fry leftovers (that there were actually any leftovers at all was a miracle in and of itself), and I followed him to the dojo. He sat down and motioned for me to sit across from him.

"By the way, Splinter wanted us to try each other's meditation method."

Leo looked skeptical, but curious. Apparently it was possible to express both at the same time. "What do you mean?"

"Well, when Splinter and I meditated…Uh…" How to put this? "My mind is pretty nuts, so I couldn't really clear it and be emotionless and Zen. So I, um, did something else?" It came out as a question. Great.

"What did you do?"

"I went to my happy place." The look on Leo's face was priceless, but I was too embarrassed to appreciate it at the time.

"And Splinter wants me to try this?"

"Yes."

"…Okay."

"Okay." Right. Now I had to get Leo to 'find his happy place'. "So, um, do you have a happy place?"

Hey, it was a start! The question was really important. If he didn't, I'd have to get him to make one. From scratch.

"…No." His face suggested that he was holding in laughter. Thanks, Leo. Good to know you're enjoying yourself.

"Then you're going to have to make one." He gave me a look that clearly asked, Are you serious? "Yes, Leo. We're going to build your happy place."

Again, priceless expression. One that I could actually enjoy now that I wasn't feeling like a total idiot. I was in my own, and Leo would just have to deal with it. No matter how utterly ridiculous the situation was.

"Close your eyes." He gave me that look again and I countered it with my own. Yeah, really. Once his eyes were shut, I continued with the process. "I want you to picture the most peaceful, happy place you can think of. A forest, or the beach, or the top of a skyscraper, or on top of a cloud… Anywhere." The middle of his mask furrowed, like he was deep in concentration, but then he nodded. Time for step two.

"Now pick something or someone to surround yourself with. Flowers, characters from movies you really like, trees, statues." It was longer this time before he nodded.

"Next is sound. A song you really like, or just the sounds of birds chirping, or the wind." Again, he nodded.

"Last, bring it to life. Put yourself in the midst of it. Relax. If you have people there, talk to them. Pick some flowers, or watch the clouds, or climb a tree." It was a really long wait this time, but finally I got the nod of success.

"And that's it."

He opened his eyes, looking amazed. "That's…really weird."

I grinned. "Thanks. It's also loads of fun once you get the hang of it. You can change it however you want, too, to fit your mood or whatever. It gets easier with practice."

He just nodded again. I realized I had rendered Leo speechless. A priceless, once-in-a-lifetime occurrence. Not only that, but Leo could now say that he had a happy place. And that he'd actually been there. I savored the moment.

"Do you mind if I…?" he still seemed a little shocked.

Now I really had to grin. "Sure." He closed his eyes and I could actually physically see him relax. The muscles in his face smoothed, and he…smiled?

Woah. I stared at this for a moment before catching myself and getting into a comfortable position. Once settled, I was off to my own happy place. After a moment's consideration, I chose to cloud watch while lying in a flowery meadow. It was so peaceful, so relaxing.

So relaxing that I unintentionally screwed myself over and fell asleep.

Finally! Review please! Remind Quinn to sleep.