"Good night, Kirby," Mei said. "Thank you for everything."

Kirby smiled widely. "Of course, Mei. If you need me to get something from the drugstore or anything tonight, don't hesitate to call me."

"Thank you, Kirby," Splinter said, with a wry smile. "I might have a difficult time performing that type of task for her."

Kirby laughed. "Well, once we get everything figured out with Donatello, you might not anymore."

"Mm. I suppose."

"Well, you two behave yourselves. Have a good night."

After Kirby left, Splinter turned to Mei. "You should get some rest, sister."

Mei tilted her head. This was the first time she had been alone with Splinter in days, and she was burning with questions. Questions about Karai, about what would happen to the Foot.

About what she thought she had heard Splinter say as she lost consciousness in Shredder's lair. For now, however, she found herself intrigued by Splinter's response to Kirby's proposal. "What did you mean, you 'suppose?'"

"Hmm?"

"You don't seem very sold on the idea of the retro-mutagen."

Splinter sighed and sat back down at the table, opposite Mei. He looked at her for several moments. "I am content with what I have become. Acceptance is the true key to inner peace."

"Yes, true. But if we're able to work this out, why not accept that?"

Splinter stroked his beard thoughtfully. "My sons know me as I am. They are very much alone in the world in their identities. For sixteen years now, we have been a family of mutants. I might now have the option to become human again, but they do not. Even if I wanted nothing more than to regain my human form, I would not, simply for their sake."

"Are you saying that you don't want to be human again?"

"At this point, it would only be a convenience—a tenuous one at that. I have adapted my ninjutsu to my current form, and in many ways, it has proven to be superior to my previous one."

Mei laughed. "How, exactly?"

"Better balance, hearing, and night vision, to name a few benefits."

"But you're a rat. And I am having a hard time making sense of having a rat telling me that he loves me, let alone my brother-in-law."

Splinter jumped. "What?"

"Did you think I was already unconscious?"

Splinter stared at the table. "I did not think you would hear me."

Mei's stomach grew tight. "Did you mean it?"

"Of course I did," Splinter said. "You are my family; why would I not?"

"So, not in the way I thought you meant it," Mei said, her heart sinking.

"What way is that?"

Mei silently cursed. "I thought—it's simply that things have been so confusing between us, Yoshi. At first, they weren't. We were just brother- and sister-in-law, mourning over our shared losses. And then—it just seemed—like our relationship was becoming less...filial. Don't pretend it's not."

With a deep sigh, Splinter closed his eyes. "It is. I do not deny it. But you speak of confusion—I am confused. I feel as though it is wrong for me to feel this way. You are Tang Shen's sister. I stopped having feelings for you years before I married her. For them to return now—you must understand how difficult this is for me."

Mei thought of Kenshin; when Splinter had held her, she felt as though it was Kenshin doing it. "I understand. I will never love anyone the way I loved Kenshin. No one, Yoshi."

Splinter opened his eyes. "It is the same for me with Shen." He reached across the table and took her hand. "All I can offer you is my second-best, Mei."

Mei felt tears welling up in her eyes. "It's all I have room to accept."

Splinter smiled sadly. "Even if it's from a rat?"

Mei laughed softly. "You are who you are. Besides, even if you were human, you still wouldn't be as attractive as Kenshin."

With a smile, Splinter brought her hand to his mouth and kissed it. "I would not know." As he lowered her hand back to the table, he shook his head. "We will make sense of this someday. For now, you must rest. Let me help you ready yourself for bed."

"Moving a bit fast, aren't you?" Mei teased.

Splinter's expression suggested that he was blushing beneath his fur. "I did not mean—"

"I know," Mei said, laughing. "I know, Yoshi."

"I do love you."

"I love you, too."

As April finished rinsing toothpaste out of her mouth, she found herself amazed at Karai's bravery. Karai was willing to go back to the people she hated, just to protect the people who had been her enemies until earlier this week. She was willing to risk all of this, just so that she could help Donnie.

When April walked out of the bathroom, she was surprised to see Karai waiting in the hall for her. "Oh, hey, Karai."

"Hey," Karai said. "Before I go, I wanted to talk to you."

"Sure," April said. She was still a little on edge around Karai, but she had relaxed somewhat. "What's up?"

"I want to thank you," Karai said. "For giving me a chance. I didn't deserve it."

"Nobody deserves anything." April said, with a shrug. "That's something that Mei taught me."

Karai smiled a little. "I wish I had more time to get to know her before I leave again. She seems like a wonderful person."

"She is." April pushed a stray lock of hair behind her ear. "I know she'd be proud of you for doing this."

Karai sighed. "Honestly? It's the least I can do. I've done so much damage. I'd like to undo some of it. Besides, it sounds like we're going to need all the help we can get to cure Donatello."

"That reminds me," April said. "Donnie. He's probably still out in the living room with Raph. I've got to lock him up for the night, or he gets himself into trouble. Even as a regular turtle he's too smart for his own good. Come with me."

Karai followed April into the den. Donnie was sitting on the back of the couch next to Raph; it sounded like Leo and Mikey were rummaging in the kitchen for a midnight snack.

"Hey, Raph, I'm going to lock Donnie up for the night, okay?"

Raph scowled. "He doesn't need to be locked up, April. Yeah, he wanders around, but he hasn't gotten himself hurt or anything. Stop treating him like he's your pet or something."

"I don't treat him like he's my pet," April said.

"Yeah, you do."

"Um, isn't it best if he stays safe, so that when I get in touch with the Kraang, we have a Donatello to cure?" Karai asked.

Raph's scowl deepened. "Whatever," he growled.

April scooped up Donnie, and she and Karai went into the lab where they had set up Donnie's terrarium.

Karai watched as April locked Donnie up. "What if the Kraang can't help, April? What if we can't find a cure?"

April sighed. "Then I guess I will have lost two boyfriends in under a year."

"Wait, what?" Karai said. "Two?"

"Yeah, first Casey, and then Donnie. I'm thinking that Casey wasn't much of a loss, though."

"So, you and Donatello were—a thing? He's a mutant turtle!"

April folded her arms across her chest. "So? He was still a person. Just not a human person."

"I hope you realize how completely bizarre that is."

April snorted. "Well, I'm the center of an alien conspiracy. Me being with Donnie is not the weirdest thing that's happened to me in my life. I was hooked up to a giant Kraang who absorbed my mental energy. Dating a guy who happens to be a mutant turtle seems pretty tame after that."

"Fair point." Suddenly, her pale skin grew tinted with pink. "That actually makes me feel a little less weird. I thought I was crazy. Before the turtles tried to kill my father—I mean, Shredder, I actually sort of, well, liked Leonardo."

April was nonplussed. "We thought you were just manipulating the fact that he liked you, to get to Splinter."

"He liked me?"

"Up until your stunt at TCRI, yeah. It was ridiculously obvious, at least to us."

"Well, I was manipulating him. Honest people are easy to manipulate."

April chuckled uncomfortably. "Not doing much to boost my confidence in you there, Karai."

"Sorry." Karai hung her head.

"Hey—it's in the past."

"You're right. It doesn't matter if we liked each other, now that it turns out we're siblings."

Siblings. Something clicked in April's head. What was it that Leo had asked her about all those weeks ago? A book where an adopted brother and sister, who'd never met, and whether their relationship was ethical...

She couldn't keep a huge grin from creeping onto her face. Leo totally still likes her, she thought. "Well, you guys aren't related by blood or anything. If you'd been raised together, it would be totally weird. I mean, it's a little weird now, but I don't think any of us would judge."

Karai deadpanned. "Seriously?"

"Well, the main reason incest is outlawed is because of genetic concerns. And there's no way that would be a concern for you guys, ever."

"Gross!"

"Leo's not gross," April said defensively. "He's my best friend, after Donnie. And considering how messed up this whole situation is, the fact that he's your adopted brother, who you never met before this decade, seems pretty inconsequential.

"Look. I'm not pushing it. But don't rule it out, either."

Karai shook her head. "It doesn't matter. He can't possibly still like me after everything I've done."

April grinned. "I wouldn't be so sure about that."

Karai's expression softened for a moment, then she frowned. "None of this is important while the Foot is still at large and Donatello is...not Donatello. I need to go. I just wanted to thank you for everything."

"Sure, Karai," April said. She extended her arms, and Karai gave her a quick, awkward hug.

"I'll be in touch. Keep practicing with that tessen. You've gotten really good."

With that, Karai spun on her heels and left the lab. April hurried after her, to help the turtles see her off.