RENET MADE A VISIT TO SENSEI THE NEXT DAY. She came back with supplies and a letter addressed to Miwa. Leo was curious about the Splinter of her world. He tried to ask her questions, but Miwa kept their discussions short and to the point. She preferred not to talk about Sensei; he'd been aging quickly since his children were murdered and Miwa was afraid he would follow them soon.

She opened the envelope in the privacy of the front porch. It was getting so cold now that she couldn't go outside without a coat on to spar with Raph. "Dear Miwa," Splinter wrote, "I have appointed a new leader of the Foot Clan in your absence. They will continue to be a force for good and follow your example. I must encourage you to be wary of your existence in the other universe. The scientists have reports that detail some kind of universal disturbance beyond the Kraang's interference. We always knew there was something else out there and I fear it is worse than what we have ever planned for. Remain alert. I will meditate on these visions."

Miwa crumpled up the note. Her back tingled. Splinter was never wrong. Miwa needed more information about the Triceratons from Renet. Miwa would bet her life that the disturbance Splinter had seen involved them somehow.

"Love note?"

She didn't move from her casual stance against the porch railing. Casey walked towards her and mimicked the position. "Just seeing to my affairs," Miwa muttered.

"You look troubled. Something wrong?"

"I'm just. . ." Miwa shrugged, "worried about Sensei. He's all alone now. We all left him."

Casey focused on her. Her fingers were wrapped around the crinkled envelope and letter, her mouth was downturned, and her eyes sad. Casey patted her shoulder, unsure of how to comfort someone like Miwa. She wasn't really "one of the guys," but she wasn't really the hugging type either. "If your Splinter is anything like ours, he's tough. He can handle anything. Made of steel and all that."

Miwa had to chuckle. It was a weird attempt of comfort, but she'd take it. "Thanks, Casey."

"No problem, M. That's what I'm here for."

The front door burst open suddenly. They jerked around to see an excited April leap out of the opening. "Hey, Casey—come check this out." He obediently followed April and let her practice a new bushido technique on him.

"You're afraid." Leo had followed April out onto the porch and hobbled over to Miwa slowly. His knee didn't hurt as much as it used to, but he still needed a crutch to move around sometimes. Miwa raised her eye in question. "Of losing Splinter," Leo elaborated, "I can tell." Miwa wondered if she and Leo were more alike than she originally thought. She could tell that he feared the same things as her—failure, loss, anger. Neither could stand the reality that they had weaknesses that put the team in danger. Not only that, but they held themselves responsible for every misstep.

"How do you know?"

Leo shrugged nonchalantly. "I fear it too. Eventually, he'll be gone and it'll just be me leading the team. Hopefully, that's a long way off."

"Yeah," Miwa whispered, "Hopefully." For some reason, she thought of her baby who died. Her heart twinged; she never wanted to feel that stabbing pain again. "My Splinter is older than yours. The loss of his children hit him hard, yet he still holds strong. I guess I admire that."

"He was strong when you were weak." Leo smirked slightly, "It's a tough balance, but it's something I've had to accept recently. I watch out for my team, but there are some instances where they are better than me."

Miwa fake-gasped. "Leo, did you just admit that you're not perfect at everything?"

He gave her an unimpressed look. "At least I can admit it."

She couldn't help it. Her mouth dropped open. Leo had just dissed her.

Before Miwa could think of a witty reply, Leo tried to change the subject, "Do you feel like training?"

Miwa shook her head. "Not right now. Maybe later." She wanted to talk to Donnie, but she didn't want to leave Leo while they were both in such a weird contemplative mood. "Leo. . . I know it doesn't always seem this way, but the guys will always be there for you. You may be their leader, but you're also their brother. Just remember that family comes first."

He tilted his head. Leo couldn't tell if she was trying to allude to something from her past. "What are you thinking about?"

She sighed. She didn't want to be untruthful, but she couldn't avoid the lie any more. It was time for Donnie to know everything about the night everyone she loved died. "I have to tell Donnie something."

"What is it?"

"I, uh," Leo watched her struggle before finally shaking his head and smiling smile encouragingly. "You know what? It's cool. If I need to know, you'll tell me." She breathed a sigh of relief in his understanding attitude. Leo could be arrogant sometimes, but that didn't stop him from paying attention to other people's needs. That was something he usually exceeded at more than his brothers.

After she left Leo on the porch, Miwa might have stood in front of the barn for at least ten minutes trying to sort out all the possible conversations in her head. Finally, the cold drove her inside for Donnie's space heater. He greeted her with gap-toothed grin and almost immediately turned back to the engine of his toy. She warmed her fingers next to the space heater. "What are you working on?" It was reassuring to listen to Donnie's technical babble about valves and oil and liters. Just spit it out already. Miwa internally struggled with herself. She just couldn't find the right words. Get it over with. Come on. It'll be nice to finally talk to someone about it.

"Are you okay?" Donnie asked midsentence, letting his thoughts trail off. Miwa had a weird expression on her face like she wanted to throw up or was in physical pain over some internal debate.

"Yes—well, no, sort of."

Donnie sighed, "Is Casey still teasing you? He's only being his normal, uneducated self. It's not uncharacteristic."

Miwa snorted, "No, he's fine now." Their rivalry could be so amusing some times. Miwa finally settled down. "It's just. . . I need to tell you something. It's hard to talk about. It hurts." She rubbed her eyes and walked over to his workbench. Miwa scooted some tools over and pulled herself on the table, hugging her knees to her chest. Donnie sat down on the chair nearby and gave her his best listening face. "After a came through the portal and we went back to the lair. . ." It all seemed like ages ago. "Renet and I left out a few, uh, minor details in our story. Well, I did, anyway."

His brows creased. "What 'minor details?'" His voice was pitched low, concerned.

Suddenly, Miwa's chest tightened even further. "Donnie, I was pregnant." She watched his transformation. Slight twitch of the head, message received, not quite understood. Narrowing eyes, information being processed. His lips were slightly pursed, then open as if about to question.

His brain was working a mile a minute, but he was still confused. "You. . . were. . . pregnant." He said it slowly, as if unsure that the words were even right.

"Yes." Miwa whispered, "I lost the baby when I fought Shredder. I was in the hospital for a while after that to recover."

"That. . . explains some things." He was beginning to make connections. "Oh, Miwa, I'm so sorry. All this time, we thought you were just obsessed with killing Shredder because you wanted to help us. It really was revenge. He took everything from you. Everything." He blinked a couple of times and then rested his three-fingered hand on her thigh softly. "Thank you for telling me."

"I had to," Miwa said, "I just wanted to talk about it to someone."

"I don't blame you. I think I finally understand everything now. Was the baby planned?"

She didn't know what she was expecting, but that wasn't it. "No, but it wasn't unwanted. After the initial shock, we were all happy." Miwa laughed as if recalling some distant memory. "Things had been settling down. Crime rates had decreased, so we weren't patrolling as much as before. Everything was good until. . . well, you know." Her eyes darkened even further as she recalled the descent into the horror. Their high had descended into a more-than-abysmal low. She rubbed the scar on her face absentmindedly. "I wanted to die." She told him. "I felt like that was the last part of you I had and it was just gone. I remember aching all over and feeling so empty. When I was pregnant, I was so full and happy. Life was great. And it all came crashing down eventually."

"Achiness is a symptom of depression." Donnie said technically, "But you're overcoming it more every day. Talking about it helps."

He'd stood up so that they were face-to-face. He held her close for a few moments. "I don't want it to happen again." Miwa told him.

"It won't. Not again." He didn't promise because he couldn't, but he'd sure as damn well try to make sure Miwa was never alone like that again. "You know this explains why you bought protection. I guess procreation between human and ooze-filled reptile is possible after all." Donnie's attempt at humor did the trick; Miwa snorted a little bit against his plastron.

"You're such a dork." She did feel better after telling him, though. Her chest wasn't tight; in fact, she felt like she'd lifted a huge burden and was instantly lighter.

He stroked her cheek, pushing her midnight-black hair behind her ears. "I mean it, though. I can see you getting better. You may think being at the farmhouse is necessary for Leo to heal, but I think it's been more beneficial to you more than anyone. Crazy forest retreats aside."

"Thanks," Miwa answered sarcastically, "Your encouragement is so inspirational." Their faces were close, but she dropped her head against his plastron with a groan.

"Any other minor details you have to reveal?"

Sitting up, Miwa tapped her chin and pretended to consider. "No, I think that's it for today."

"In that case, want to check out the car?" Miwa rolled her eyes at his obvious excitement, but followed him over to the rundown vehicle. Donnie gripped the door handle. "M'lady," he said, but the affect was totally ruined when the door screeched loudly as he opened it. Miwa laughed, but climbed into the backseat anyway. He followed suit, slamming the rusty door once again. Miwa settled under his arm, enjoying his nearness. Things were going to work out. She could feel it.

I've been so bad at updating! It's kind of ridiculous! This is a bit of a short chapter, but I'm happy to announce that there is only 1 more chapter in Part II! They had a nice recuperation period at the farmhouse, but it's time to stir up the action again. And this time it's in space!

As always, let me know what you think so far!