With the added aid from the Mutanimals, Leonardo had a bit more confidence as they continued their long winded search for Donnie and Casey. Some sliver of hope that they would be alright, and Nova hadn't been involved at all. They had split up to cover more ground, and Leo was trailing behind on the very same rooftop. It seemed where all the action appeared to be anyway. And where he could hear her.

"I know you're here," The young ninja whispered, as he heard the rustling of noise from behind him. A familiar noise, but still one that left a shiver up his spine.

"I wasn't exactly hiding." She purred, crawling forward from the shadows. "I missed you."

He didn't bother replying to the last comment. "My brother and friend are missing. Do you know where they are?

Silence.

"You do, don't you?"

"Perhaps."

"Where are they, Nova? Tell me now." He demanded. "I'm done playing games with you."

She slivered past him, her tail brushing against his shoulder. "I've thought long about your offer, and I'm willing to consider it. And I will tell you where your kin are. But first, I need you to listen to me."

Realizing this might be a clue to finding the truth, he nodded.

"I wasn't always this way, you know..." Nova said, voice soft and almost gentle. "I was a human girl once. A girl with a certain talent. One could call it a gift."

Her voice was enchanting, and though she was rejected and tormented by her peers, she remained prideful in her singing. Performing for anyone who would listen. At first, her crowds were small, uneventful. Then as time went on, they grew and grew.

Fame, fortune, success drew her in and before she knew it, the girl was known by the entire world. It didn't matter that she was different in more than just appearance. For once in her life, she was happy. Despite the secret she held inside, she grew to be as beautiful as her voice. Wispy dark brown curls tied in ribbons, sparkling, revealing dresses that made her fans whoop and catcall as she sang her heart out. Her music was aggressive and loud, but that's what they loved most about her. She loved her fans. Her band. Her music.

"Everyone will know your name, dear. You're my shining star. Don't forget that, matahariku."

"I won't, mama."

But that brief moment of joy did not last. All good things must come to an end. The girl was desperate for someone to listen to her. To truly, listen beyond her singing voice and listen to her words.

"I'm tired. I don't want to do this anymore!"

"You have no choice in the matter. This is who you are now. You don't want to go back to being a pathetic nobody, do you?"

"I...no."

No one listened. They only cared for her abilities, not her heart. Except for one.

"You don't have to push yourself so hard, Nova." The soothing voice reminded her.

"If I don't, they'll toss me aside." She said bitterly. "James, what do I do?"

"Keep fighting."

"I can't do this anymore."

So she ran. From her home, her fame and glory. Everything she had ever known. It wasn't worth it. Not even her mother, not even James was worth being exploited.

Far away, she could hear a voice calling her. A man, tall and thin. He led her to a mysterious land, promising her that her fame would return without the horrible consequences.

"Come with us to the place that you will soon find at this place." The robotic voice commanded.

Something didn't feel right. This fantasy world, with bright colors and comforting words. It didn't exist. She thought this time would be different. Why did she ever think it would be different?

"No, stop!"

It was too late. They had drowned her in the strange concoction shortly after her imprisonment.

She only remembered the pain, the burning bones contorting from her body. And staring at her reflection. The monster she had become. The monster that had stayed within had returned.

She blinked once.

The hideous beast blinked back.

The realization dawned on him. "You were tortured by the Kraang."

"Yes. And, by the time I had escaped from that horrible place..." She murmured, bitterness in her rough voice. "I was seen as a freak. A monster. To make matters worse, I had discovered they replaced me with someone else. The man I thought was someone I could trust. Loved, even. Rejected me. And replaced me."

"James, it's me. It's still me!" She begged hysterically, trying to crawl towards the boy who looked at her in pure horror. "It's me, Nova, the same I've always been! Please, you've got to..."

"S- Stay away from me!" He screamed. "Get away from me, you- you freak!"

"I still remember the hatred in his eyes." She whispered. "Hate and disgust. I can't exactly blame him."

"Nova, I'm so sorry." He said, his voice soft but genuine. He had never seen her look so dejected. She resembled a shell of the mutant he had encountered before. And he couldn't help but feel pity. Pity and sorrow for what had become of her.

"The months after I transformed I stayed in hiding. Where else could I have gone?" She closed her eyes. "Just like that...the world forgot Nova Kun. Once leader of a band, now a monster. But not anymore. I may have lost my career, my beauty, my passions. My..." She clenched her claws. "my humanity."

Nova Kun. That name sounded so distant, so unfamiliar, yet he recognized it.

"You didn't lose your beauty." He said quietly, this time, letting her nuzzle him.

A ghost of a smile etched across her features. She continued. "I felt worthless for the longest time. Some nights, I still do. But then, I met you and things started to make sense."

"Me?"

"You helped me feel loved, those short times we shared."

Leo's eyes went wide, touched but wary. Though she didn't kiss him this time, his heart rate increased as her muzzle drew closer.

"I know where your kin are, Leonardo. And if you trust me, as you once said, I will bring them out of harm's way. On one condition." Nova lifted a claw to his cheek, not waiting for a response. "Stay with me forever."

"Stay with you...forever?" He repeated. "And then you'll bring them back?"

"Correct."

"If I go with you, I wouldn't be able to see them again." He murmured. "I can't do that. No way."

"Then they will perish." Nova threatened. "Either way, you will never see them again. Why don't you choose the better option? Stay with me, and they will be unharmed. I'd even let you see them one last time."

"As a leader, you must be prepared to make sacrifices for the sake of completing your mission. No matter the cost."

"How much longer are you going to keep avoiding us all, Leonardo?"

"I was trying to protect you!" Leo snapped, temper rising, though his voice still felt oddly robotic. "It wasn't done out of a whim. I didn't try to find her for fun. I was protecting you and the others."

"By lying to us? Your family?"

"Fighting her was not an option. I wanted to persuade her to join our side. She wasn't too dangerous, just scared. And I didn't lie, I did go to bed. Just not when you did."

"How can you be so sure? How can you be so confident he's even alive? How can you stand there, without a care in the world when our brother is missing?"

"I value my family's life over my own." He said in a choked whisper. Glaring up at Nova, he made his final decision. "I'll go with you. Just tell me where they are. Please."

"I knew you'd see it my way, Leonardo."

A cluster of stars scattered across the sky as the night extended farther than any of them imagined. Hours had passed, though it felt like days. Deep in the heart of the city, past the abandoned Broadway theatres and restaurants long forgotten, lay a factory boarded with molding wood plastered together. Windows were broken, shattered into tiny pieces, dried paint and mildew stains decorated the walls. Rats and cockroaches scattered around, but even they kept their distance. It was so disheveled and run down that no one passed a second glance at it, keeping their heads down to avoid drug dealers and the like who most likely resided there for quick cash. No one would expect anyone else staying there for long.

And especially not two teenagers trapped inside by giant mutant komodo dragons.

Casey's eyelids snapped open abruptly. He looked around groggy and disoriented, as if he was waking up from a killer hangover. His head felt like it was filled with cobwebs, too exhausted to think, let alone figure out where the hell he was. And his legs and lower body felt numb, like they too had passed out with him.

'At least I'm still alive though.' That fall he had was pretty rough, but hey, he was still standing strong. Well, sitting strong.

He winced from a stabbing pain in his side the second he tried to stretch his limbs a little bit. Ah, yeah, he had landed pretty hard on his ribs earlier. Or...how early was it? From a musty old window he could tell it was night still. But how did he even know it was the same night?

Jeez, how long had he been asleep?

'Too long.' He thought bitterly. 'I gotta get out of here.'

Until he realized he was tied up like a freakin' birthday present up to his ankles. Which would explain why he didn't feel half of his body. And while he wanted to make a joke about how kinky that sounded, he wasn't really in the mood.

No problem. He dealt with stickier situations than this. He could handle-

Behind him, soft snores whistled in his ear. He nearly jumped out of his skin, jolting fully awake at the sudden noise.

Followed by a groan.

Oh.

"D?" He croaked, hoping it was who he thought it was. Otherwise that would be a little awkward.

"...Casey?"

"Yeah, it's me." He wriggled around a bit, realizing the two appeared to be tied back to back.

"Where are we?" Donnie murmured through a squeaky yawn.

"Hell if I know. All I remember is that freaky lizard beating the shit outta me. Can you figure out where we are?"

"Seems to be some kind of warehouse." Donnie deduced. "Are you hurt?" He didn't hide the concern in his voice. It was strangely endearing despite the circumstances.

His body shifted, and the excruciating pain returned to torture him yet again. "Peachy. My ribs are a little sore. And you?"

"My ankle." Donnie glanced down, keeping his leg firmly still to avoid any further pain. "Nothing broken though. Just twisted it."

"That's good. It'll make our escape easier on us. That is, if the guys don't find us."

"I sent Raph a call before I was knocked out. They'll find us. But I'm counting on us getting out of these ropes first." He grunted. "If only I had my staff...I could cut them easily with my naginata."

"She took all my weapons too." Casey said glumly. "Now what?"

"We wait. What else can we do?"

"We wait? Seriously? Dude, that's not gonna fly with me."

"Do you have any better ideas?"

Casey looked smug and a glint in his eye that immediately gave Donatello a wave of anxiety. "You bet I do!" Using the last of his strength, he started swinging back and forth. "We'll flip over and then the ropes should snap open."

"That's your idea?"

"Do you have any better ideas?" He said, pitching his voice to mock Donnie's earlier statement.

"Once my head stops spinning? Yes! Technically speaking, the rope is too tight to even loosen. We're quite literally stuck."

"Says you."

Donnie didn't seem amused. "Might as well give it a shot though. We don't have anything else to lose."

"Let's go. One?"

"Two." Donnie nodded.

"Three!" They shouted together.

The bound duo did manage to flip over, but, in an ironic state of events, the ropes stayed firmly in place. Now they lay flat on their sides, more disgruntled than ever.

"I'm not going to say I told you so..." Donnie sang.

"Donnie?" Casey lifted his head weakly. "Shut the fuck up."

There was an awkward silence as both struggled to sit back up.

"Okay, okay it wasn't a terrible idea." Don eventually said sheepishly, as if it took energy to even say that.

"Mm thanks." He scrunched his nose. "Say, wait a sec- did you call me Casey?"

"Huh? No I didn't."

"You called me Casey like, ten minutes ago."

"I did? I mean...yeah, and?"

"And you've always called me Jones. Always!"

Donnie was grateful Casey's back was to him. Otherwise he would have seen his cheeks redden. "I was very tired when I woke up, I wasn't thinking-"

"You also said it before I passed out. I heard you." Looking sly, he added: "Are you startin' to warm up to me?"

"I was already warming up to you, meathead." Donnie rolled his eyes. "I came to visit you. Remember?" He sighed. "Then we got attacked. It's my own fault we're stuck in this mess in the first place."

"Aw, don't say that." He lightly patted Donnie's fingertips with his own. "Besides, you saved me! Without you, I'd probably be y'know dead. Not that I totally couldn't handle it but..."

Donatello chuckled. "I'd do it again. Because we're a team, aren't we? That's what you said. We look out for each other."

"I care 'bout you too." Casey admitted. "I mean I care about all of you guys. But this is the same way I care about Red. It's weird, but I've always felt that way. But you always seemed to hate me."

"You know I don't anymore. It was just...with April." He trailed off.

"We were both acting like kids over her." Casey admitted. "I feel really stupid looking back. But it'll work out once we get out. Maybe have a whole conversation, just the three of us. Actually that's what I wanted to tell you. Earlier, I mean. That I-"

Donnie cut him off. "Please don't say it."

"Why not?"

"Because I'm in a lot of pain right now, so are you and I don't have the mental capacity to deal with this conversation right now. Or the emotional ability."

"You don't even know what I'm gonna..."

"I do." He frowned, taking his hand away from the other boy.

"Oh, so you're a mind reader now? C'mon just let me tell you."

"No."

"If I don't say it, I'm gonna scream it." Casey shot back.

"Casey..." He didn't want to have this talk now. Not when they were about to be tortured by an insane mutant.

Feelings could wait. Or be put off forever because they were both utterly hopeless.

He understood books, inventions, and problem solving. Casey could handle vigilante nonsense and babble on for hours about hockey. But sharing emotions was a complicated ordeal that required the utmost sensitivity. Which they both lacked. What surprised Donnie, was how the boy immediately continued, ignoring his protests.

"I like you, D. And I...think Red does too. I mean, that's kinda obvious. She kisses you all the time. But the truth is, I always was jealous."

"Of me?"

Casey grinned. "Of you, and well..." There was a long, uncomfortable pause.

"Well?"

"April."

"You...what?" His expression softened for a brief second. Though he was unable to see Casey's own face, he could tell his voice was sincere.

"I was. Still kinda am. The more time I spent with you both, the more I realized I wasn't, well, straight as a pole."

Donnie scowled. "Is this some kind of joke? To mock me?"

"What are you- No! No way, dude, this isn't a joke. D, I'm serious." He tried to face Donnie to no avail, but that didn't stop him from trying. "Donnie?"

Donnie stubbornly stayed silent, gears whirling inside his head as he tried to comprehend what Casey had said. He didn't want to rise to the bait. All hope was false hope, at least to a giant talking mutant turtle.

"So that's it? You're not even going to let me explain?"

"What else is there to say? Humans shouldn't date freaks. Mutant freaks like me." He spat the words, regretting them as soon as they left his lips.

"You're not a freak! You're my friend."

Donnie smiled sadly, ignoring the last comment Casey made. "I wish all the best for you and April though. I know she likes you a lot. I shouldn't have got my hopes up, after all."

"Don-"

"We should find a way out of here. Quickly. Before she finds us."

"Too late, little ones." growled a voice hidden in the darkness.

Donnie felt his stomach drop. "Aw, sewer apples."

She chuckled darkly. The mutant komodo dragon crawled towards them, her venom filled tongue sticking forward to sniff the air and intimidate them. It worked.

"What do you want with us?" Casey demanded. "You've got some serious issues, lady. Also ...we were kind of having an emotional conversation."

"Uh, please don't antagonize the man eating reptile." Donnie stammered.

"All shall be revealed." Nova smirked "Of course, that's where you two lover boys come in."

"L- L- Lover boys?" The teens stammered together. "We aren't- he's not-"

"We are not a couple!" Donnie shrieked.

"What he said!"

"Do you honestly think I care what you are?" Nova hissed. "You are here for luring my dear Leonardo in. That is all. Once that's done, you both will make delicious meals."

Feeling a sense of defiance and defence for his brother, Donnie glared at her. "Leo isn't foolish enough to fall for your tricks."

"Did you seriously gloss over the part where she said she's gonna EAT US?" Casey squeaked.

Nova raised Donatello's chin with her claw, tsking. "He already has. But you needn't worry about that."

"Now that you said it, I'm totally worrying about it." Donnie grumbled, sarcasm dripping from his voice.

Raphael collapsed at the meeting spot dramatically, exhausted and drained from his adventure. Turns out, babysitting was a lot harder than it looked. He managed to drag Riley like a mother cat with her kitten home, but it took way too much time and effort.

"I can't do this. I can't."

"Yo Raph!" Mikey exclaimed, trotting over. "We brought some extra help!" He twirled his nunchucks excitedly. "Um, bro? You good?"

"Mikey, I apologize for every time I've called you annoying. " His electric green eyes widened. "Nothing- and I mean nothing compares to Riley Jones. I feel like I've aged ten years." He stood up, cracked his neck. "Ah...maybe twenty."

"Raphael!" called the familiar booming voice of his girlfriend.

"Mona!" He changed his entire composure, embracing his tall girlfriend and nuzzling her nose. Which took some effort as he had to stay on his tiptoes. "So happy to see you."

"I missed when our noses embraced." She said fondly, kissing his cheek. He melted at the touch.

Leonardo followed shortly after, looking grim. Only Mikey caught the brief flicker of anxiety in his older brother's eyes. He grimaced, breaking the couple apart awkwardly. "Yes yes, this is all very um...touching. But we have a mission here!"

The remaining Mutanimals joined the ninjas on the rooftop, watching with interest as he explained the plan. "Nova took them. And I know where they are."

"You do?" April brightened. "Where?"

"That abandoned fortune cookie factory." He explained. "We sneak in, break them out, and avoid hurting her."

"Did I hear that last part right?" Mondo looked confused. "Avoid harming her?"

"That's ridiculous!" Pete squawked.

"If we aren't hurting her, I wasted my time coming here!" Slash agreed.

Leo's expression darkened. "I have a reason for everything."

"Oh yeah? Why don't you share with the class that reason?" Raph said. His lips curled into an arrogant grin, enjoying every second of his brother's discomfort, thinking he was only simply embarrassing him. "He thinks she's hot. That's the only reason why."

"Enough!" April shouted, her voice thundering and catching everyone, even the giant mutants off guard. She was frustrated, stressed and terrified for Casey and Donnie's sake. "Nobody cares if Leo thinks this mutant is hot. I certainly don't! But our friends are trapped inside here so if we could finish this little chit chat later when they're safe? That would be really, really ideal!"

They all stared at the redhead in amazement. She smirked, proud of herself for stopping their quarreling for once.

Mikey sighed in relief. "I love when she does that. Let's move gang!"

Leonardo chewed at his lip, swallowing his pride and fear as he followed them.

Nova left them briefly to who knows where, leaving them tied to the floor. A situation Casey was not keen on. Not only was it uncomfortable but it was painfully (literally) boring.

"Don? Say, Donnie? Donnie...Dontron." He tried to poke him with his shoe. "Donatello!"

Exasperated, the genius looked up wearily. "What?"

"Can we talk now? Instead of you avoiding me."

"I can't avoid you if I'm tied to you." Donnie hissed. "As much as I'd like to."

"You know what I meant. We have to talk this out. Together. In case we...y'know, don't make it."

"Way to be dramatic." He said flatly. "But we can. Talk, I mean." He added, as if it wasn't obvious.

"Good."

"Sorry I'm not really good with the whole feelings thing." Donnie admitted.

"Me neither." They both laughed together.

"So...can I say it?"

"I guess so."

"I like you Don." Casey said softly, once the silence had returned. He didn't want any more awkwardness. He wanted to cut to the chase.

"No, no you don't." He miserably shook his head.

"Huh?"

"You don't like me. Listen to me Casey, so you better zip it. What you're feeling? It's pity. Pity for a mutant.

and April, as much as I like her, even I know it wouldn't work with me included. I'm not what she wants or what you really want and I've learned to accept that. You both deserve normal humans. Not...well, me."

Casey scowled, frustration growing. "I don't pity anyone. And I certainly don't pity you. But I do know you're hurting inside. Deep, deep down. But you're just too prideful or stubborn or whatever the fuck-"

"I'm scared." The sound came out as a whimper, barely audible.

"You're-" Casey blinked, stunned by that response. "You're scared of, what? Nova?"

"No, bonehead!" Donnie snapped. "I'm scared of..." He chewed on his lip, analyzing each word carefully in his head. "loving you both. Caring for you and April. Together. And figuring out these feelings. It's difficult to understand. I'm not really sure when or where they came from. They snuck up on me."

"Same here."

"You don't understand. I'll never be normal, I'll never be the...one that you'd want. I'm a mutant turtle for Darwin's sake. Same goes for April. She may not be human, but she's human enough."

"What if you are? What we want, exactly." Casey gave a crooked grin. "We've known you forever, and being a mutant never stopped us from being friends, right? We're special that way. So, can you hear me out? That's all I need."

Donnie looked away, silent. Casey took it as a response, even with the turtle's hardened expression.

"I don't understand a lot of things. Heck, I barely understand myself. But I know how I feel. I would never, ever leave you like that guy left Nova. Even if April doesn't feel the same way for us both, I'm still willing to give this whole...thing a shot. If you are.

"And for the record..." His voice was in its falsetto, a playful tone that made the terrapin's heart swell with unexplained joy.

"Hm?"

"I think you're perfect just the way you are. As cheesy as that sounds."

He waited for Casey to say something moronic like 'just kidding!' and leave it at that. But...there was nothing. As if he truly meant it.

"You...do?" He couldn't believe what he was hearing, and the added adrenaline made his heartbeat race and his mind go blank. As if he was in a clouded, dreamlike state. Despite the situation, he couldn't hold back a delighted, and slightly timid grin.

"I do." He let his finger fall into Donnie's larger green palm, and this time, he didn't flinch away, and instead took it gratefully. Their shared body heat made both hands feel warm and comfortable. Safe, even. "Don, you're so much more than a mutant turtle. You're...well, you. You..." Their eyes met, and Casey's words disappeared in his throat. "You're my everything. I just wish I realized that sooner." His gaze flickered to the ground guiltily.

"Instead of our petty feud?" Donnie remarked.

"Yeah..."

"Thanks though. You're um...well, I care about you too."

He squeezed his hand. "And ...when we get out of this whole mess- we'll tell her too. April, I mean. I can't imagine this whole thing without her. Right? I mean- obviously no rush."

"Let's just get out of here first, Jones."

Dark, cold, and damp were the first words that swarmed April's mind as she entered the mysterious building. Clearly it hadn't been used in years, maybe before she was alive. Or before her dad was alive anyway.

She had crawled through one of the windows, squeezing past the nearby banister and edging across the catwalk above. All while avoiding looking down or, heck, slipping and falling splat on the concrete. She was a kunoichi, she couldn't risk making clumsy decisions.

Not when her friends' lives were at stake.

April had a tendency to overthink. Everyone she knew said this. Mikey had even joked once it was because of her psychic powers that made her brain act this way. Maybe it was, maybe it wasn't, but either way, her mind was stuck in a constant state of worry. Wondering if they were too late.

If she was going to see them again.

'There you go again O' Neil. Way to stay positive.' The nagging voice in her head said. 'Clearly Raph's cynicism is rubbing off on you.'

Gripping her tessen, she let Leo lead the way into the next room.

"Slash, Pete and Leatherhead are coming from above," He whispered behind him. "Stay close. Don't go running off."

But then she saw their outlines and lost the rest of Leo's words, all of it coming as muffled nonsense. And when they saw her, any command he rang through was unheard completely.

There they were. Her boys.

"April!"

"Red!"

"Casey!" She cried out, beyond relieved that they appeared mostly unharmed. She raced towards them and crouched by their sides. "Donnie!" Her two best friends looked at her weakly, but they looked happy to see her too. "Are you guys alright?" She knew it was a stupid question, but she couldn't help it.

"We're fine." Donnie assured her.

"Can you untie us? I'm gettin' some serious rope burn, yo. Plus this is kind of humiliating."

"Sure thing." With a little help from Raph's sais and Mikey's kusarigama blade, the ropes were sliced in half. "Talk about a total role reversal." She joked, kissing both of their cheeks in relief. Both boys blushed profusely, both enjoying the shared attention.

"Can you walk Don?" Raph asked, noting his swollen ankle. The lean turtle took one step, stumbled backwards, and was caught by both April and Casey. "I'm taking that as a no. Come on, little brother, I gotcha. April, can you take his other side?" The redhead nodded, while Mikey assisted Casey- who also seemed pretty out of it. "Little help would be great Leo!"

"Take them to safety." He commanded. "Far away from here." The Mutanimals all made a begrudging retreat but the remaining turtles and April stayed back.

"What about you?"

"I've got to- just trust me."

Everyone looked at him, puzzled, waiting for the leader in blue to elaborate further.

"Leo, what do you-" Donnie started, trying to step forward despite April and Raph pulling him back.

"I can explain, just get out of here." His voice cracked, echoing through the factory walls. "Trust me. Please. Before she gets here."

"Not so fast, little ones." the distorted voice said, amber eyes glowing in the darkness. "Leonardo, I hope you haven't forgotten our deal."

"Deal? What deal?" Raphael demanded, locking accusatory eyes at Leonardo who was overwhelmed with shame.

"What's this about?" Mikey added.

"Why don't you tell them, sweetheart?" Nova crawled towards the blue clad turtle.

"Sweetheart?" April echoed, revolted.

"I...made a promise with Nova. Before we came here." Leo said, looking down to avoid each of their hurt and confused looks. "She would show me where Casey and Donnie were. And she did. That's how I knew where to go." He gazed back at Nova with a defiant frown. "On one condition,"

"That he would stay with me." Nova said smugly. "Forever."

"WHAT!" Everyone sans Leo and Nova yelled, more stunned than outraged from this new information. Raph looked at his older brother for guidance, perhaps thinking this was a joke or a trick. But his brother's silence said more words than he could have, and Raphael felt his temper rise with every guilty look Leonardo had on his face.

"Are you out of your shell?"
"Leo, you can't do this dude!"

Memories flooded through the red clad turtle's eyes, fury growing by the second.

"Too late." She chuckled. "The decision is final. Now all of you better leave this place, before I lose my temper again."

"Never!" Raph growled, holding his sais tightly. "He ain't going with you, princess. All of us are leaving."

"On the contrary, Leonardo promised he would stay with me forever. Isn't that right?"

"No, Leo!" Donnie tried to stand on his feet, only to collapse into Casey's arms.

"You're seriously gonna go with her?" Casey demanded. "After everything she's done?"

"Of course he is. He already did."

Raph made a noise that sounded like a mix of a growl and a roar, ready to properly give Leo a beating for once again, breaking his promise.

The worst part, Leo had noted, was watching April and Mikey's shared horrified expressions. As if they were too heartbroken to speak.

"That's right, I did say that Nova." Leo's pupils switched to pure white. "It's a good thing I didn't say I would stay with you forever then. I only said I would go with you. Didn't actually specify how long I'd stay." And lifted his shin to her jaw with a mighty roar. Pleased with himself for thinking of such a quick loophole, he backed up, reached for a smoke bomb provided by Mikey and threw it to the ground. "Now let's go!"

The last thing they all saw was a furious Nova disappearing with a puff of smoke and light.

"As a leader, you must be prepared to make sacrifices for the sake of completing your mission. No matter the cost."

Sometimes the best sacrifices were simply a hasty retreat.