It's Impossible

by ellarieotaku

Leo Karai Oneshot set in 2k12 AU future Karai has to make a decision about her unexpected pregnancy. Two Parts, I will post part two soon

This is a LeoKarai oneshot from 2k12 and it is M for Mature audiences it contains violence, sensitive topics, and sex. I do not own any of TMNT it belongs to Nickelodeon. Enjoy!

Karai sat on a toilet in her New York apartment thumping her heels nervously on the linoleum, staring at the pregnancy test in her hands.

Wait five to ten minutes for an accurate result.

Two other tests already used and showing positive results were lined up perfectly parallel to each other on the sink counter across from her.She had been feeling off but not quite ill for the past week so she had gone to her physician that afternoon. The doctor was female and had been selected for her discretion by the Foot Clan apon Karai's arrival to the United States, but she was unaware of Karai's current health. In fact this is the first time Karai had ever met the woman as she was used to suturing her own wounds since she was 13. The doctor was standing in her office as Karai walked through the doorway.

"Hello Karai"

"Hello Doctor Hajak"

They shook hands, Karai sat down in a chair across from the doctor's desk, and the doctor went around the desk to sit as well.

She clapped her hands together as she began, "Well it is wonderful to finally meet you, after all you have technically been in my care for almost seven years without a single visit"

Karai shifted in her seat as she replied, "My father was very particular about my medical care, he would go to great lengths to bring doctors from Japan to look after me, no offence to you or your practice. You are a brilliant doctor."

"Thank you, and I take no offense. I am curious though as to what brings you here after all this time."

"My father is dead and this means I must take responsibility for my own wellbeing."

"You have my condolences to you and your family, but still the question remains, respectfully, what has brought you here today?"

"I haven't been feeling very well for the past week."

"What are your symptoms?"

"I have been getting headaches frequently, nausea in the early hours of the morning, but strangely I seem to have put on weight."

"Could it be perhaps that you are pregnant?"

"What?"

"Pregnant, with child."

Kari scoffed, "That's impossible I-I can't be pregnant"

"I see," replied the doctor narrowing her eyes, "well if you will please just provide us with a urine and blood sample we can take a closer look and see what else could be the cause of your symptoms."

The doctor pressed a button on her desk phone and two nurses came through the door to usher Karai. She stood up, but her mind was shook from the presumption of a pregnancy. It was impossible, she could not get pregnant. Oroku Saki saw to that, he had no use for a woman who could be burdened with carrying a child. He went to great lengths to have clan affiliated physicians remove Karai's ovaries, ensuring that there was no possibility of her becoming pregnant. He would make it clear that if her period, what remained of it, ever became a hindrance to him that he would have everything removed. When it did come, she would keep it a secret and did everything she could to conceal it from her father. It was only now in the present day that she knew the truth, why he took away her ability to have children. He wanted to eradicate Hamato Yoshi's bloodline without losing his prized kunoichi. He was willing to take everything away from her, particularly her womanhood, just for the sake of his revenge she thought as she was guided through the facility to a bathroom.

Calm down, you'll pee in a cup, get stuck with a needle and be done before you know it, then they'll tell you what's actually wrong.

Karai had just been seated in a waiting area, her blood was drawn, her right elbow was wrapped carefully in green constricting bandages. She waited nervously for the results, still toiling over the concept of pregnancy. She had never allowed herself to fantasize about it before, but here she attempted it for the first time. Imagine Leo's shock at such news but also his joy, of course as he would make an excellent father. He was patient and gentle and such a stickler for the rules, he would love having a little version of himself to train and be a sensei to. Karai on the other hand thought of the discomfort of child bearing and rearing. All the sleepless nights, the toll it would take on her body, dirty diapers,screaming sticky babies. She hardly had a patient or gentle bone in her body after Shedder had beat it out of her after all those years. Leo would make an excellent father but not Karai, she would probably discover some new way to traumatize her child and ruin their life. One thought that did linger, that was not all self depreciation, was the image of her holding her baby in her arms in bed and Leo coming to join them, enfolding her in his strong arms as they sat enraptured by the new life they had created. This thought was enough for Karai to weigh it against all the drawbacks, because she was certain that whatever happened, Leo was here now and he would not abandon her. If she ever did have a child, he would be there every step of the way, and now that she thought about it so would the rest of his family. With all this in mind the concept did not seem so daunting but it was still only a dream. She resigned to keeping this fantasy close to her heart, precious, as it would probably be the closest she'll ever get to being a mother.

The door to the waiting room opened to a nurse who asked Karai to follow her back to the doctor's office for her results. They reached the office and the doctor welcomed Karai back in, and to have a seat.

"All right Miss Saki, according to the results you are perfectly healthy, and fully functional."

Karai was dumbfounded. "What do you mean?" She asked.

"Well I'm not sure what or who gave you the impression that you could not have children, but they were wrong because you very much are with child"

"What" Karai's eyes widened.

"Yes you are about two months along by the looks of it," the doctor continued on.

"You must be joking," Karai scoffed.

"Oh no I am a doctor and we are in my office. I would not tell a joke at a time like this, especially about the arrival of a baby."

"No, there must be some mistake, the tests, do them again!" Karai demanded.

"I would advise against this as we have already done everything we can to be precise with these results, but if you would like further proof we can venture into the ultrasound room to get a better look."

"No!" Karai's fist slammed into the arm of her chair.

The doctor shuddered and Karai eased with shame.

"Excuse me I-I'm sorry," said Karai weakly.

"It is alright, I am sorry this is so upsetting for you. If you would like to, we can make plans to abort your pregnancy. It is still soon enough that I am able to either prescribe you a treatment plan or perform an operation here while you are still present. These are the choices you can make if that is what you wish."

Karai started, "I-I would like a moment alone please."

"Of course I will be just across the hall if you need anything."

The doctor shut the door behind her as Karai tried to steady her breathing. Karai couldn't think of an answer, she could not think at all, her mind was still trying to grab hold of the floor that had fallen through underneath her. Was what this doctor saying the truth? All the fantasies she had earlier would not just be fantasies, that this was reality and that it was not a dream she could just wake herself up from. The doctor had given her the option of abortion, she could do it now even before anyone knew. No one would be any the wiser if she went along with a quick operation, then it would be just like waking up from a bad dream. Leo could live in blissful ignorance until she could tell him her fantasies are possible. Still, were they, as her doubt thrashed around in her skull that this could not be, it's impossible. She got up in a huff and rifled through the doctor's files that lay on the desk. They all had her name on them but she could not make sense of the reports or the names of tests. These results could still be wrong or fake she thought, nothing was certain while she was sure that she was a mutant.

It had been exactly fifteen minutes and the doctor had her hand on the handle of her office door as she softly knocked with the other hand.

There was no response so she opened the door and began to speak, "Karai I just wanted t-"

She blinked at the sight of her office, it was just as she had left it but void of her patient.

She swings around calling down the hall, "Maria? Jolene?"

"Yes doctor?" From around a corner a nurse came into view.

"Did either of you catch our patient leaving my office?" The doctor questioned.

"No doctor, she's not in your office?" replied the nurse with a puzzled expression.

"No it's as if she vanished," answered the doctor.

She had not vanished so much as gone through the window, closed it behind her and jumped down to a lower roof to head home. Karai knew she was in no shape to run rooftops but she needed it to move her thoughts. The setting sun was flooding the city with red and orange as her mind tried to clear away the fog of confusion with reason. She thought about how she would have to explain the situation to Leo, and that if it was all true, abortion was the only option. It was all she could fathom if she really was pregnant. The conditioning from her "father" was strong enough to drive Karai to what she thought could be the only way. Eliminate the weakness, she could hear his words echo in the darkest parts of her mind. This child was half of herself and Leonardo. Karai stopped to catch her breath rubbing her belly as she panted and thought about what part of her or Leo was weak. Leo is a big softie and a massive geek for Space Heroes, but he is also the strongest ninja she's ever known. He was the one to defeat Shredder and not her. Leo's strengths outweigh any so-called weakness that Shredder saw. On the other hand, was she strong enough to defy the conditioning, rise above the subjection, and choose her own path, or was she weak, bending to the savage and cruel will of a dead master. At least she could give Leo the "good" news.

Back home and in the bathroom, Karai was sweating, foot tapping, and staring down the pregnancy tests she had picked up along her way back home. All three were all showing a positive result well past the minimum time period. The doubt in her mind cautiously shifted to belief from the sight of the three tests. Her focus was so intense that she almost didn't hear Leo call out to her as he came through their window that faced the alley.

"Karai? Are you home?" He called out.

She got up from the porcelain throne and opened the door to see Leo, his hands full of bags from the supermarket.

"Oh you were in the bathroom, were you feeling sick again?" He asked looking concerned.

Karai shook her head listlessly, unable to conceal her shock from today's events.

"Did something happen at the doctor's today?"

She looked down, unable to answer him, trying to push her emotions to the bottom of her stomach. What came up first despite her attempts to hold it down was anger. She looked up at him feeling a fire growing inside that had begun earlier at the doctor's office.

"How?" Narrowing her eyes at him.

There was a pause as Leo stared at her like a deer in headlights, placing the bags gently on the kitchen counter.

"How? How what?" Leo asked as he deciphered.

"How did you do it?" Karai's jaw clenched and her fists balled up tightly.

"How did I do what?" Leo's confusion had peaked.

The annoying oblivious tone in his voice is what set her off. She lunged at him with full force bringing him to the ground. She had pinned one arm down and had a kunai to his throat before he could open his eyes from the impact. Leo looked up at her, her eyes furious and swimming with unshed tears, her breath ragard. He took hold of her gripping the blade with his free hand and could feel her trembling. He stared back at her intense watery glare with serene and soft eyes. The hand holding the kunai relaxed ever so slightly as a tear dropped down and hit his cheek. She turned her head away to hide the tears, faltering her hold and giving Leo an opening. He wrecked his other arm from under her and used it with the rest of his body to reverse their position. Now Karai lay pinned tightly underneath him, unable to hold back the fresh tears now streaming down her face. Her grip on the kunai failed in Leo's hold and she let it fall away along with her pride. She cried in his arms feeling a release in her heart and mind from all the turmoil. Leo's grapple turned into a gentle embrace as she sobbed lightly into his pasteron.

"Shh It's going be alright," he cooed now sitting up holding her to him and stroking her head.

She calmed herself in his green muscled arms and looked up at him defeated. He held her face wiping the tear lines away from her cheek with his large green thumb.

"Karai please you need to tell me what's going on," said Leo, almost begging.

She closed her eyes and sighed heavily into his shoulder knowing she could not let her emotions get in the way anymore. She got up from his embrace on the floor and strode over to the bathroom to grab the tests from the sink. She came back to Leo standing up now and handed him all three tests. He looked at the tests in his hand and back at Karai.

"Karai is this- is this what I think it is?"

"If you think it's three positive pregnancy tests then you're right Leo."

"But-but h-how?"

"I asked you the same thing so how am I supposed to know."

"But you went to the doctor today-"

"I did and she took one look at me and said perhaps you're pregnant. I said that was impossible, so she did her tests and said not only am I in perfect health but also that I am in fact pregnant. I didn't believe her, I couldn't just believe this woman, she knows nothing about me, and that I can't get pregnant. It's impossible."

"Wait why would it be impossible? I-I understand that with me it could be, but not completely? Why?"

"I just know Leo."

"How can you just know Karai? You're already pregnant without knowing. What makes you know?"

"Because Oroku Saki saw to it that's how I know! He went inside of me with all his doctors and took it away from me, he took away my ovaries Leo! And now after all this time, after everything I've been through, after everything he took from me and told me it was for my own good, it's just impossible Leo, it can't be real, it just can't."

"Karai", Leo looked back down at the positive pregnancy test s nd back at Karai crying across from him. He saw her there as he felt over the smooth plastic of the tests, grounding himself reassuring him that this was most definitely reality.

Leo swallowed back tears and spoke softly, "Karai listened to me. We've been through things, things that no one can explain, even Donnie, but we faced it together. This may seem impossible but it's happening, it really is happening."

He reached out to hold her but she was stiff and unyielding, still crying. He held her gently and felt as she gradually relaxed in his arms. It was then that she wrapped her arms around him desperately begging for more comfort than she had in her whole life. He gave it to her, kissing her head and holding her tenderly.

At last she said, "Leo, I don't think I can do this."

He pulled away from her to see her eyes. She was terrified, he could see it and feel it as she trembled in his arms. Karai, who trained to be a konoichi since infancy, taught to hide all emotion and withstand extreme pain, was shivering in absolute terror. It broke Leo's heart to see her in such a way.

"Karai it's okay, you don't have to be afraid, you still have a choice you can make right? I mean, how far along are you?

"Almost two months and your right, the doctor said that if I wanted to I could get an abortion."

Leo flinched at the word but then he sighed, "In that case you can go back tomorrow and have it done"

"Are you sure you're okay with that?"

"Karai until you handed these tests to me I didn't think any of this could be possible. I thought fathering my own children was a daydream let alone a child of our own making. I would be lying if I said that losing this child didn't make me feel sad, after all half of them is me and the other half is you. However knowing that it is possible for us now, knowing that when we are ready that we can start a family, it is the greatest blessing of my life. The choice is yours though as it is your body, and if you choose to wait I will be here for you.

"What if I'm never ready? What if I never want to be a mother?" Karai whispered breathless.

"And that is your choice to make, and whatever choice you make my feelings for you will never change. I will always love you Karai"

He kissed her softly but gave into her desperation half way through as she sought more comfort from him. He held her firmly in his arms as she broke the kiss to whimper in his ear.

"I love you"

She nuzzle into his neck and kissed along his jaw line finding his mouth again. This time their tongues came to embrace each other, luring a moan from each of them. Their desire to comfort one another was becoming passionate love making .

Leo through the smacking and gasping tried to be a voice of reason, "Karai mm are you-are you sure mmm that you want this, I mean heh this is what got us into this whole situation in the first place."

"True but considering that you already got me pregnant I wouldn't worry too much"

"Haah you little minx well if that's how you want see it, fine by me"

He swept her up off her feet and began to carry her to their bedroom still kissing fervently. He put her down on the bed gently and helped her undress. Now that he knew he could see the changes in her body more clearly. Her belly and breasts had swelled making him more aroused then he could have expected. He kissed her belly and worked each beast over greedily with his tongue.

She arched her back, moaning, "L-Leo I want you!"

"Hmmm you want me? Want me for what?" he slid one finger inside her making her gasp.

"Leo p-please give it to me"

"Mmmmm tell me Karai, tell me what you want." His finger swirling inside of her feeling each delicious clench became slick and moved with ease.

"I w-want you inside m-me."

Leo took his finger out of her gently getting one more gasp from her before positioning himself. He rubbed her entrance with his flowering tip as he lifted her leg to his mouth. He licked and sucked her, teasing devilishly as Karai squirmed.

"L-Leo what are y-you waiting for!"

Leo gave her a grin, "You never said please."

"I hate you!" Karai whined in torment writhing weakly in his wake.

He giggled in response delighted that the torture was working.

Karai looked him the eyes, "Please."

He smiled, beaming down on her, "Good girl."

He gripped her hips and pushed through her hot wet insides, filling her, his breath hitched in his throat. Karai moaned loudly and gasped as he hit her womb, arching her back as electric pulses of ecstasy shot from her toes to the top of the head. Leo was a little more than half way inside but Karai was completely filled. He began to thrust slowly and gently making sure to savor every twitch and expression she made. The gentle love making drove Karai insane, not only was it pleasuring her and making her feel amazing but it was making her crave more. She scratched at Leo's rough shoulders and shell, begging for more with her eyes and body. But the hungry impish look in his blue eyes was enough, she knew he was going to make her say it. His patience was unparalleled and he would keep this slow bewitching rhythm until she gave in. A strong slow push that pressed at her womb again made her insides tremble and broke Karai's resolve.

Before she could stop herself she pleaded,"L-leo please m-more."

Leo replied with a crooked smirk, bent down and kissed his poor lover in her time of blissful agony. He breathed deep, inhaling her scent, sending shivers down his spine. Still holding her mouth with his, he picks up his pace making Karai moan gratuitously. Every pound in her body made the perfect sensation, it was exactly what she was craving. Leo grunted and watched his love in rapture feeling their bodies tighten around each other. He could tell she was close but he knew that she needed more to send her over the edge.

"L-Leo more!"

He scoffed as he thrusted, bending down again to her ear tracing his tongue on her skin along the way, "More what?"

"Fuck you!" She hissed through her teeth.

"Tsk tsk tsk, so rude but you know the magic word my love."

His teasing was heart wrenching and it brought Karai's pride to its knees as she could not deny her body any longer.

Her eyes stung with frustration as she gave in, "P-please Leo please m-more."

She could feel him rumble as he chuckled in her ear, "Good girl."

He went full force now, not holding back as his grip on her thighs and waist tightened. The pounding made the bed jump around violently and cry out for mercy. Karai's own crys were much louder and far more enticing. They both panted and moaned in each other's mouths, now hanging on to one another desperately. The moment of climax hit them like lightning causing their bodies to go rigid for a brief ogasmic moment. The rigidness eased away as they melted into each other, panting and satisfied. Leo lay beside Karai and in turn she nuzzled into his pasteron bringing a hand to his face. She looked up into his prestine blue eyes, like the ocean after a hurricane. He held her chin tenderly and looked into her own hazel eyes, the eyes of her true father.

"If Master Splinter was still here he would be over the moon to know that he could be a grandfather," said Leo still panting

"Hmmm you're right he would, but what about the rest of your family?"

"Oh yeah I can only imagine Mikey as an uncle. He'd be insufferable but he would love it. He'd want to be there for everything, but they all would."

Karai's eyebrow crooked up, "Even Raph?"

"Haha even Raph, but he'd never admit it"

They both chuckled as they held each other sighing dreamily. There was a moment of silence though that set reality back into place

"So you'll go back tomorrow?" asked Leo.

"Yes," Karai replied quietly.

He nodded as he held her close but Karai could feel his sadness through his cool green skin from deep in his heart. She could not deny that a painge of sadness trickled through her as well. She thought back to her fantasy, Leo was holding her just like this in their bed but something was missing. The baby in her fantasy would fit perfectly between them, filling their lives with joy and pride. It was at that moment Karai felt the scales in her mind teeter. She thought about the child she carried and there was a real chance that because of their collective mutations the child could be born deformed and live a life in pain, lacking organs, limbs, or perhaps too many. The possibilities were endless, but so were the child's choices, and what they could become. This burned in Karai's heart as so many of her own choices had been taken away. She could not deny that however their child would come into this world, she would love them as they would be half or herself and half of the man she loved. It would be a risk but one she would have the last word on, Leo reassured her of this. He must know the risks too, and had calculated them. He never liked to take risks but sometimes Karai did, sometimes the risks she took lead to something better. Much like the risk she took loving Leonardo, putting her heart in his hands and entrusting him with it. Perhaps that is what she could do, take a risk so that their dream could come true.

The next day at about the same time she had arrived yesterday Karai entered the doctor's office. Dr. Hajak was sitting at her desk watching Karai warily as she sat down across from her.

She begain,"Welcome back Karai, I must admit you gave us all quite the scare with your disappearing act yesterday afternoon. Is everything alright?"

"Yes I'm sorry I had to leave so abruptly with no word. I needed to discuss my pregnancy with my family immediately."

"I hope this discussion went well."

"It did and they will support whatever decision I make today."

"I see, and how are you feeling about your pregnancy today?"

"I was quite shocked at first but after some time thinking clearly I came to a decision. But before I make it I have a request."

"By all means please tell me."

"Could you perform an ultrasound to see the baby?"

"Certainly, I will call my staff to prepare the ultrasound room and then we will make our way there."

The doctor picked up the phone and gave the order. The doctor then lead Karai through the halls and down a flight of stairs.

The doctor stopped at a door near the stairs, opened it and motioned to Karai, "Please come in."

Karai walked in and saw the room prepped with a tray full of tools next to a stool. The doctor motioned to the large cushioned metal chair bolted to the floor leaning back facing a large monitor.

"Please take a seat as I further prep the instruments."

Karai sat in the chair, trying to get comfortable in the leaned back position.

She settled as the doctor began to speak, "Now please lift your shirt and unbutton a bit to expose the area. I will use this material to cover you from the gel."

She held up a blue sheet with a square hole ready to be placed so Karai did as she was told. The sheet covered her showing only the exposed skin. A whirring sound began to ring out from a machine positioned right behind Karai.

"Now I have the ultrasound on, and I will be placing the gel on you, I do warn you though it can be a bit cold at first."

The gel was clear and definitely cold making Karai nearly jump but she was determined to remain calm considering her behavior yesterday.

"Alright now I will use this nozzle to take a look inside, and at this time we can watch from the monitor."

The doctor pressed the nozzle into the gel on Karai's belly and the monitor lit up with activity.

Karais mind jumped with a question that has been on her mind since yesterday, "Doctor, is it also possible to see my ovaries?"

"Your ovaries? Yes we can see them from here, let me just see, ah yes here is one, and over here is the other. Had they been injured in the past?"

"Y-yes I had an accident when I was young, they told me they would never function again. I thought it was impossible."

"Well from the look of them they both appear to be healthy and I see no physical damage to either of them."

There they were as if they had never left, despite the old memory of Shredder showing her a bag of what remained of her ovaries before throwing it into a bin. It was to be a lesson of how to treat weakness from within, that it was to be amputated and discarded. Whatever he tried to cut out of her all those years ago had grown back and shown its true strength.

The doctor continuedas she searched, "Now let's see where you are-oh there you are little one."

Karai's eyes widened as she saw the little being pointed out by the doctor. They were shaped like a bean or peanut but there was a pulse coming from the machine resembling a heartbeat. Karai could see her baby, a tiny forming being that in about seven months, if she so chooses, could be in her arms.

"The baby is developing right on schedule and their pulse is strong as well."

Karai turned to face the doctor, not feeling the tears rolling down or the smile plastered on her face.

"Oh my dear, why are you crying?"

Karai brought a hand to her face and felt the wetness on her cheeks.

She began to wipe her face, "Excuse me I-I was just-"

"It's alright Karai here have a tissue"

Karai sniffled as the doctor held out a box of tissues, "Thank you."

The doctor smiled in response and continued, "I did take some stills of your baby and if you'd like I can have some pictures developed for you to take with you, depending on what you decide."

Right, my decision she thought, after all that she's seen she had a choice to make. She was so sure of what she chose yesterday after discovering the truth. However, now that she could see her child growing inside her, she felt something, like pride mixed with desperation, wanting to protect this small growing thing at all costs. The joy from seeing them there was more than she had ever felt before, much like seeing a loved one after a battle, unsure if they had survived all the odds that had been stacked against them. Now that they were here she would not part from them. There was still risk involved but when has bearing a child ever not held some danger? When has Karai's life as a ninja ever not been dangerous? She thrived in danger so this could be no different from being dangled by her neck at the top of a building or blades being thrown at her from every angle. She could face it as she had all the danger of the past, fearlessly. She faced the doctor, took a deep breath, and stepped into danger once more.

Leo was in the living room trying to meditate but failing. He was a mix of uncertainty, sadness, and humility. He had become a father but based on what Karai told him she was not ready to be a mother. This was her body so this would be her choice but he could feel the lump in his throat form from the thought of losing something he had never thought he could have. Still there was something that would ricochet back and forth through his mind. Perhaps he would be a father, maybe not now but someday. Still he would catch that thought and place it in the back of his mind as he had to consider Karai's words from last night. If she never wanted to be a mother he would respect her wishes. He remembered the fear in her eyes, and he thought about all the potential tragedy it could cause. He too considered how their baby could develop being the spawn of an anthropomorphic turtle and a human mutated with snake DNA. In his mind Karai must have thought of this as well and concluded it was irresponsible to bring such a life into the world. To Leo it didn't matter though, whatever the child would look like, he knew that he would love them and do everything in his power to give them a life full of love, just as he had received. If ever there was a chance he could be the father of his own flesh and blood, he would take it. However this was not his decision to make and he must accept the outcome, no matter how much it hurt. Just as the last of this thought crossed his mind the door to the apartment clicked and opened. Karai stepped in and Leo sprang up from his lotus form on the floor to meet her eyes.

He started awkwardly, "H-Hey how did it go?"

"Everything was fine", Karai smiled at him weakly, Leo tried to smile back but it looked more like a grimace.

He tried to swallow his emotions down as he replied, "Good."

Karai reached for her pocket and pulled out a photograph.

"I have something for you", she said as she offered it to Leo.

"What is it?" He asked as he took it and tried to make sense of what he saw. It looked like a bunch of black and white static swirling around each other.

"It's a picture of the baby, from the ultrasound."

Leo's eyes shot back up at Karai and back to the photo. There in the center of the picture was this strange bean shape.

His breath caught in his throat as he tried to speak, "W-why would you keep this?"

"I wanted you to see them as I had for the first time. Because at that moment, I made my decision."

"You made it but do we really need a photo to remind us of what we lost."

"No Leo, not of what we lost" she closed the gap between them, touching his hands as he clutched the photo, "Instead, it's what we've been given."

"What do you mean?" Leo breathless

"I've decided to keep the baby."

The strength seemed to leave Leonardo's well trained body after hearing these words, making his muscles quake. Their eyes searched one another, Leo's wide as saucers and Karai's watching him lovingly.

"Karai, are you sure about this? You said you weren't ready to be a mother. You said you might never be."

"I'm still not ready. I don't know if I'll ever be but when I think about being a mother I'm scared but I'm also the happiest I've ever imagined. Not just because I'm a mother but that you're there too, being a father."

"And what about the baby, what if they grow into something-"

"I know I-I'm willing to take a chance to ensure they have a choice. I do not want to be the Shredder, discarding life as if it were a weakness. However this child develops, I am determined to love them no matter what they look like. Just like you."

She held one hand to her belly and one hand to Leo's cheek. His eyes swimming in tears could no longer contain themselves. In a sudden motion he had her in his strong embrace kissing her as he nuzzled into the crook of her neck. His knees failed him as he shook to the ground, landing with a thud on the carpet. He tried to stifle his sobs in her thigh as he held her close, him kneeling, her still standing gripping his shell and caressing his head. He looked up and his eyes met her belly. An indescribable wave of happiness and pride washed over him knowing his child was alive and that one day he was going to meet them. He kissed her belly and placed a hand there as he held her in place.

"I think this the happiest I've ever been in my whole life"

"That's how I felt when I saw them, '' Karai replied smiling, still stroking his head, feeling the emotions radiating off of Leo making her own eyes water. Together as they were holding her belly it was as if her dream had already come true, but it was just the beginning of an unknown and exciting future that promised new life.