Sammy breathed in a slow, deep breath and held it before pushing it back out. A spasm traveled up her thigh and into her back, making her grunt. How the hell was she supposed to concentrate on meditating if her fucking tremors wouldn't let up?

"Your lack of focus is distracting, child," Splinter murmured from her right.

The corner of her lips turned up in a soft grin. "Sorry, Master Splinter."

The old rat chuckled. "I am most assuredly not that to you, Samantha."

Sammy made a face at the use of her full name. She shouldn't have told him it when he'd asked… "Oh? And I thought you were here, trying to teach me how to meditate."

"Instruction of a single topic does not a teacher make," he told her.

"No?" Her grin widened a bit. "I thought that was the exact definition of a teacher."

Splinter huffed, tapping the bottom of her socked foot with the tip of his tail. "Such cheek. You are much like your cousin in that regard."

Sammy laughed quietly. "Where do you think he got it from?"

"Oh?" he inquired.

"Mmhmm," she told him with a nod. "I am the older of the two of us."

Splinter hummed. "In my experience, the eldest mannerisms do not always rub off on the younger ones."

Sammy was not entirely sure of that. "I'd say that's only true for your youngest. The others… They take after your oldest in more ways than you think." At least, they did in her experience.

When Leo gave a gag order, or any order really in regards to her, the others listened without question. It had made her time here a sort of...painful existence; both emotionally and physically. The turtle's avoidance stressed her out more than she cared to admit which in turn worsened her tremors and spasms. At the very least, Mikey would toss her a wave or mouth a 'hello' to her on the fly but that was it. She'd thought that perhaps after their "okay" first night together they'd be able to get along for the most part. How wrong she'd been, though.

"I cannot apologize enough for my son's behavior these last couple of days," he said in a regretful tone.

Sammy shrugged. "It's alright. I...understand where they're coming from. For the most part anyway." And she did.

Trust was hard to come by and it was even harder to keep. Especially in her world. So, she understood perfectly well where the turtles were coming from. That didn't mean their distrust hurt any less though.

"I appreciate your understanding," Splinter told her gratefully. He got to his feet with a grunt and placed a gentle hand on her shoulder. "The boys will come around. It may just take a little time."

Sammy's eyes fluttered open to look up into his kindly face. "Thanks, Splinter." She reached up to lay her hand over his and give it a soft squeeze. "You're much too kind for this world, you know," she told him. "Much too kind." She was surprised this awful city - this awful world - hadn't chewed him up and spit him back out yet; him or his sons.

"The world needs a little bit of kindness, child." He returned the squeeze to her shoulder before shuffling off to his room.

Sammy watched him go with an unfocused gaze. "Yes," she muttered under her breath. "Yes, it does."

With a sigh, Sammy struggled to her feet. She needed a nap. Meditating was not as relaxing as she had hoped it would be. A nap probably wouldn't be relaxing either but there was nothing else to do really. Unless she wanted to cook more food that would just go uneaten by everyone other than herself and Splinter, and she refused to go through that disappointment again. So, a nap it was.

"So…" Mikey said as he hopped down beside his blue-banded brother. "When are we gonna stop treating Sammy like she doesn't exist?"

Leo didn't bother to look at his brother when he answered. "When I figure out exactly who she is."

Mikey sighed. "So, never then?"

"She'll let something slip eventually," Leo told him as he watched the busy street below.

"And if she doesn't?" Mikey pressed.

Leo sighed, finally turning to face his youngest brother. "Then we continue to pretend she doesn't exist. I'm not taking the risk with our safety, Mikey."

The youngest turtle scuffed his toes against the rooftop, sending a cloud of dirt into the sky. "Sammy ain't a risk to our safety, man."

Brow ridge raised, Leo asked him, "And how do you know that, Mikey?"

"I've got good instincts, brah."

Raph dropped down beside them with a snort. "What instincts?" he asked, shouldering past his brother to stand at the edge of the roof. "You ain't got no instincts, 'specially when it comes to women."

"Nah man!" Mikey scoffed. "I'm a favorite of the ladies! May I remind you," he gestured to the entirety of his chest with one hand. "I had one sitting on my chest just a few weeks ago, and one cuddled up in my arms only a few days ago."

The red-banded turtle scoffed. "It was the same one, Mikey."

That didn't seem to bother their little brother in the slightest. "Which makes it even hotter," he said with a wink.

Raph barked out a dry laugh. "Whateva ya say, little bro."

"And that first interaction was an actual attack," Leo cut in. "Or did you forget that part?"

"And?" Mikey snarked.

"And?" Leo repeated unimpressed. "You're joking, right Mikey?"

Mikey's face was innocently blank. "I never joke, brah."

The eldest brothers scoffed and rolled their eyes. "As if," Raph grumbled.

"Uh, Mikey," Donnie said, glancing at his brother over the rim of his glasses. "Almost every other sentence out of your mouth is a joke…"

Mikey turned to his purple-loving brother with a mock scandalized expression. "Donnie!" He slapped a hand to his chest in offense. "How could you, brah? You're supposed to be on my side!" Donnie just shook his head as he turned back to whatever gadget it was that he was tinkering with. "Anyway," Mikey said, "in all seriousness. And yes," he pointed at Raph. "I can be serious from time to time." Mikey met Leo's eyes head-on. "But, anyway, back on topic." His voice grew soft as he said, "I think Sammy was…scared that first night."

Donnie paused in his tinkering to glance over his shoulder at his brothers. "Mikey has a…point," he trailed off at the hard look Leo gave him.

"Yeah," Raph agreed. "She came runnin' outta her room, screamin', and shit."

Mikey nodded. "Exactly! I think she was havin' a nightmare," he said. "Kinda like the ones I was havin' after being locked up in those cages by Sacks." Both Donnie and Mikey cringed. They'd all four had nightmares after that, but Mikey had been the only one to really admit it.

"What? You mean a nightmare about being trapped in a cage?" Leo asked incredulously.

All three brothers looked at their fearless leader with pinched expressions. "Really, Leo?" Raph growled in a low voice.

"Yeah, come on, Leo," Donnie said as he rose to his feet. "It's obvious she's been previously injured. I'm sure her nightmares probably have something to do with that."

The other three turtles looked at him in confusion. "Um, what?" Mikey asked.

"Injured?" Leo repeated. "What're you talking about, Don?"

Donnie looked at each of his brothers with a disbelieving expression. "Seriously? Have you guys noticed nothing about her?" They all blinked at him. "Alright then…" Donnie shook his head. "Just…watch her walk. She's stiff and has a bit of a limp in her left leg. I would assume her nightmare, or nightmares, have something to do with that."

"Huh," Mikey muttered sadly. "So, that's why Casey was rubbing her leg that day we "officially" met her."

"I still think that was a bit weird," Raph grumbled.

Donnie shrugged. "Not if her hands aren't strong enough. Damaged tissue can be exceptionally hard and tough to massage."

"It still doesn't mean we can trust her," Leo told them after a long moment. "I'm sorry guys."

Mikey threw his hands up into the air, turning away from them sharply to kick angrily at the dirt and dust on the roof. "This is stupid," he mumbled under his breath.

"Perhaps," Donnie said slowly. "We could just ask her about it."

"I already tried that, Don," Leo told him.

Raph snorted. "Ya mean, ya grilled her with accusatory questions."

"What? I did not - Donnie?"

Donnie grimaced and rubbed at the back of his head. "Well… I mean, Raph's kinda right, Leo. You weren't exactly…nice about asking her anything that day."

Leo opened his mouth to argue, finger pointed at them and everything, but something stopped him. Had he really been that…nasty? Leo dropped his hand to his side and frowned. Yeah… He had been, hadn't he? Whether she had something to hide or not (which she did, that was obvious) Leo definitely could've tried a more gentle approach.

Sighing, Leo said, "Alright. Alright!" He yelled over Mikey's whoop. "We'll try…talking to her again. See where it goes. But!" He jabbed a finger in Mikey's direction, interrupting his so-called "happy dance". "Don't get your hopes up, alright? She might not tell us anything."

Mikey waved off his oldest brother's warning. "I've got nothin' to worry about, brah. She'll talk to me!"

"Not if I get to her first!" Raph told him, shoving him out of his way to make it off the roof first.

"Hey! No fair, man!" Mikey chased after him, pulling out his board as he threw himself over the roof's edge. "She likes me more than you!"

Donnie strode past Leo at a more leisurely pace. "Perhaps we should follow them before they bombard the poor woman."

"Yeah," Leo agreed. "Probably a good idea."

As Leo followed his genius brother over the edge of the roof, he thought, 'I gave in to them much too easily…'

Her leg. Oh, God! Her leg! It was on fire! Sammy grit her teeth together tight enough that she thought they might crack. That fire… It was everywhere! It centered in her thigh and poured out to the rest of her body in scorching waves.

Sammy tried to open her eyes but only managed to crack open her right the tiniest bit. Red. All she could see was red… Red fire. She was being eaten alive by crimson flames…

"Samantha!"

Sammy jerked at the sound of her name, the sound of chains rattling above her head.

"Samantha!"

"K-Kayne?" She mumbled, her tongue feeling thick and limp.

"Samantha!"

Sammy shot up with a scream, her arm already swinging on pure reflex. Her fist was caught in a warm, fuzzy hand and held tightly.

"Samantha!" Sammy tried to blink the red haze out of her eyes. "It is alright. You are safe within the Lair." Lair? Safe within the Lair?

The shadows in her eyes finally melted away, and Sammy found herself looking up into the concerned face of a greying rat. Splinter's brows were furrowed and his ears pressed flat against his skull.

"S-Splinter?" She breathed.

"Yes." His nose twitched and he squeezed her hand. "You were caught in the throes of a nightmare."

"Nightmare?" A flash of red clouded her vision for a brief second, making her cringe. "Oh… R-Right." She met his eyes with what she was sure was a rather defeated expression. "I'm sorry."

Splinter clicked his tongue at her. "Ah! There is absolutely nothing to apologize for, child. A nightmare is just that, a nightmare."

"But… I tried to hit you," she said with an apologetic frown.

"Bah!" The old rat waved her off. "It would take much more than a panic-thrown fist to harm this old rat, my dear." He gently placed her hand down on her stomach. "Would you like to talk about it?"

Talk about it? Sammy started to shake her head no but then she stopped. There'd only ever been one person, well two, she'd discussed this particular nightmare with. Her others… She didn't have to discuss those with anyone; her entire team knew what those were like. But… Sammy met Splinter's gentle gaze. Perhaps it wouldn't be so bad to…unload some of this on someone who wouldn't judge her.

"Are you…sure?" she asked in a small voice.

The kindly rat smiled at her, dipping his head low in a nod. "Of course, child. Only…" He held up a finger and glanced around him. "If it is alright, I must sit down as this old rat cannot stand for too long."

"Oh! Here." Sammy held the blanket to her chest and scooted closer to the wall.

"Ah…" Splinter sat down on the edge of the bed with a sigh. "Thank you, my dear. Now." He folded his hands in his lap and met her eyes with an open expression. "Tell me only what you feel comfortable with sharing."

Only what she was comfortable with sharing? Nothing. None of this was comfortable, not at all. But…

"I…I don't know where to start," she muttered, clutching the blanket in a tight fist. "I mean… There's…too many places to start." Splinter did not move nor say a word as she fiddled with the fraying end of her borrowed blanket, trying to decide just where to begin.

"Most of my nightmares," she began slowly, "are…faces. Their faces. My sins. Reminding me of…what I am. A killer." She whispered those two words in the quietest voice, barely above a whisper. Sammy swallowed back the lump in her throat. "All of us have those nightmares though. Part of the job I guess. Not a single one of us could do what we do, or did in my case, and not have nightmares. Well." She tilted her head in thought. "Except Roman." Her leg spasmed painfully. "Roman was a psycho…"

They'd all known it, of course. That man was…not fit to be amongst humans. It was no wonder he had…done what he did.

Sammy shook her head. "But recently… Recently they've all eluded me."

"Your…sins?" Splinter prompted when she'd trailed off and fallen silent.

"Yeah," she answered, nodding in his direction without actually looking at him. She just…couldn't bear to look at him right now. "I've been…drowning in fire for over a year now and I-!" Her voice cut off with a crack. "I just don't want to burn anymore…"

A heavyweight settled across her shins, and Sammy looked down to find Splinter's tail draped over her. "My sons used to find the weight comforting in times of stress," he explained when she glanced up at him questioningly.

"Oh… Thank you," she murmured.

"Of course," he told her. "You see, my sons suffered from terrible nightmares as well after their capture by Shredder. Each of them thought they could deal with it on their own until they found themselves going days without sleep, making mistakes that they would never normally make." Splinter shook his head. "It wasn't until they brought Mikey home injured that they finally admitted to themselves that they needed help. So, one by one, my sons came to me. It seemed all they needed was someone to listen." He pat her foot under the blanket with gentle taps of his palm a few times before getting to his feet. "And when you are ready, I will listen some more," he told her as he shuffled across the floor to the curtain acting as her door.

"Splinter!" The gentle, old rat paused just before stepping through the curtain and glanced back at her. "Thank you. Really."

He smiled as much as a rat could smile. "Of course, child." And then he ducked out of her room, the curtain swinging closed behind him.

Sammy flopped onto her back with a huff. Surprisingly, even though she had said very little, she felt as if a bit of weight had been lifted from her shoulders. Perhaps this…talking thing would be…good for her.

A spasm zig-zagged up her leg and curled around her spine, squeezing the nerves with punishing force before releasing her just as quickly and she was left panting. The aftershocks wracked through her body in short, jerky waves. Groaning, Sammy kicked off her blanket. She felt…sticky. And hot. She needed a shower. And perhaps her nerves would relax a bit in the hot water…

"Dad! Dad! Dad!" Mikey hollered as he came sliding into the Lair, sending a massive wave of water directly over the rat in question.

Splinter heaved out a great sigh as he flicked water from his ears and tail. "Yes, Michaelangelo?"

"Where's Sammy?!" he asked even though he was already at her bedroom, ripping back the curtain with unnecessary force. "Hey, Sammy!-Oh. Where is she?"

"Michaelangelo!" Splinter admonished in a sharp tone. The young turtle cringed, releasing the curtain as if he'd been burned. "Your lack of manners is appalling! You do not just barge into a young woman's room in such a way!" Mikey yelped as his Dad took hold of the tail of his bandana and yanked him backward.

"S-Sorry, Dad," he muttered, rubbing the bridge of his nose where his bandana had dug in. "I just, um, really wanted to talk to her."

Splinter narrowed his eyes on his son. "Why?"

"Well-."

"I told him he could," Leo said as he slid into the Lair with Donnie and Raph right behind him.

Their Father's brows lifted in surprise. "Really?"

Leo gave him a one-shouldered shrug. "The others made a valid point that I couldn't argue."

Splinter hummed his expression one of approval. "Good. That is good." He pressed a hand to his son's bicep and squeezed. "I am proud of you, Leonardo."

The eldest turtle lifted the corner of his lips in a soft grin. "Thanks, Dad." None of the turtles ever tired of hearing praise from their Father.

"Mm. Of course." Splinter gave his other sons similar praises before wandering towards the kitchen for a glass of water.

He paused when Mikey called after him. "Wait! Dad! Where's Sammy?"

"Ah, yes." He turned back to them, holding onto the railing beside their kitchen table for support. "She awoke from a nightmare earlier. After our talk, I believe she decided to take a shower."

"Another nightmare?" Mikey asked in a quiet voice, his lips turned downward in a frown.

Splinter nodded solemnly. "Yes. It seems she has them more often than not, unfortunately. I'm sure some time to relax in the hot water will do her well."

"But we ain't heard her screamin' or nothin' since she's been here," Raph said.

Clucking his tongue, Splinter told them, "One does not have to wake screaming to have had a nightmare, Raphael." He met each of his son's eyes. "You all should know this."

Raphael ducked his head, his expression sheepish. "Yeah, yer right."

"Either way," Splinter continued as he retrieved a glass from the cupboard. "She shall be done soon I would think. Perhaps you boys should find somewhere to wash up in the meantime." He lifted his nose to the air and gave an experimental sniff, grimacing at the stench that assaulted his nose. "None of you smell worthy enough to be in a lady's presence."

The brothers attempted to discreetly take a whiff of themselves only to cringe away from wherever it was they had smelled. "Dad's right," Leo said as he began making his way to his room where he had his own washbasin. "Get as clean as you can. Then, Mikey." The orange-banded turtle froze halfway to the kitchen. "Start on dinner."

"You got it, brah!" he said, rushing to the kitchen sink where he ripped off his bandana and stuck his entire head under the faucet.

Shaking his head, Raph stalked off to his own room to scrub off, mumbling under his breath as he went. "Fuckin' idiot."

"Ah, yes. Well, guess I'll…head to the infirmary," Donnie muttered to himself as no one else was there to hear him."Wash up there."

As he passed by his desk, Donnie shucked off his gear and dropped it into his desk chair. He glanced over the many monitors briefly, checking for anything out of the ordinary. When nothing jumped out at him, he continued on his way, unwrapping the purple tape from his forearms as he went. He hoped Mikey didn't make anything too crazy for dinner tonight; he couldn't handle another mystery meal after the last one. His stomach churned uneasily at the thought.

A sudden crash interrupted his thoughts.

Donnie glanced up and realized he was just passing by the shower room, the doorway to the infirmary just a few yards ahead of him. He turned his ear to the door, listening carefully through the sound of the running water. He heard nothing though and made to step away from the door and chalk it up to his imagination when a muffled cry stopped him. There was another crash and something heavy fell to the floor with a wet thud.

"S-Sammy?" Donnie called through the door. He didn't receive an answer, so he tried knocking. "Sammy?!" he called a little louder this time. Still no answer.

Donnie's chest chilled with panic. Why wasn't she answering him? Surely if she was alright she'd say something. Had she slipped and fallen? Her leg didn't seem all that stable on a good day so it was certainly possible. Moaning, Donnie glanced up and down the hall, shifting anxiously from foot to foot. He couldn't just walk away! What if she was hurt?!

That's it! "I'm coming in, Sammy!" he yelled before shoving open the door.

The air was hot and thick with steam that immediately fogged up his glasses. He swiped his fingers over the lenses of his glasses, trying his hardest to squint through the steam as he took a few steps into the room. Through the running water, Donnie could hear Sammy's erratic heartbeat up ahead of him.

"O-Oh! Oh my god!" Donnie froze.

Lying there facedown on the tile, underneath the only running showerhead, was Sammy, convulsing on the floor as if she were being electrocuted. But that…that wasn't what had Donnie's attention. She was…her back…her leg. The bile in Donnie's stomach rioted and he had to swallow it back down before he puked. Scars… There were so many scars. It looked like someone had taken a cheesegrater to her back thousands of times. Donnie's hands shook as he imagined the pain she must have endured. And her leg… Her leg was just... It looked like someone had carved out a thick column of flesh from the center of the outside of her thigh. The limb twitched and jerked in odd intervals alongside her convulsions.

"Oh god, oh god, oh god…" He whispered as he stumbled back a step. This was… He couldn't… This was beyond what he'd expected. The extent of her injury… Well, injuries.

A whimper cut through his panic and he refocused on Sammy just as her entire body locked up in a full-body spasm. He flinched. That had to be absolutely excruciating. He needed to do something!

Donnie snatched a towel from a peg beside the door and rushed towards her, his boots slapping against the wet tile. "Hang on, Sammy. Hang on!" He shut off the showerhead before dropping to a knee and draping the towel over her naked body.

"D-Donnie-ie?" she asked through clenched teeth.

"Y-Yeah!" he squeaked, lifting her up by her shoulders to wrap the towel more firmly around her. "I've got you - Oh!" Blood trickled down her cheek and neck. "You're bleeding!" He tilted her head carefully to the side and found a cut at the hairline just above her right temple.

"H-Hit…m-my head whe-when…I f-fell," she forced out in between spasms.

Donnie took the ever-present extra bandana he always had in one of his many pants pockets and tied it around her head to stem the bleeding. "You might need stitches," he told her as he tucked his arms behind her shoulders and knees. "Let's get you to the infirmary."

Donnie lifted her shaking form into his arms, clutching her to his chest as tight as he dared as he rushed from the shower room. He chanced a glance down at her face as he carried her into the infirmary only to find her eyes clenched shut.

His assumptions of her injury… He could have never imagined their severity. Just what had happened to this woman? Who could do such a thing to another human being?

As Donnie carefully laid Sammy down on the gurney, he thought, 'No wonder Casey is so protective of you…'

Author's Note:

BrokenUp, thank you so much for following this story so closely! I'm so happy that you enjoy it! Casey certainly is a mother hen in this story, and that has to do with how severely injured his cousin is. It's probably a bit out of character, but I like to think Casey would act such a way for someone who defended and protected him as a child (someone he grew up with) that's now hollow and broken. I hope you, and everyone else, enjoy this chapter!

Again, I just want to warn everyone that updates may take a while as I am working on my own personal stories/novellas. If you're interested in seeing those, search .author on Instagram and give me a follow! The link in my bio will take you to all the links for my work!

Happy reading and/or creating everyone!