Gabby awoke to hearing voices in her room. She was still in the closet and appeared to be under a pile of her blouses and pants! Once she allowed the cobwebs of sleep to dissipate, she realized she must have pulled some of her clothes off their hangers to cover her self up. Back in Connecticut, whenever she was too mad or upset to come out, she would often stay in her closet until morning. How silly it now seemed, she thought to herself.

But, she heard the voices in her room again, bringing her back to the present time.

She first heard Raph. He seemed to be talking to someone. Then, that someone replied back and, though she couldn't discern what he said, she new it was Leo. LEO?

" Oh no", she said to herself in panic, " what time is it?" Gabby sat up quickly. But, then she remembered what the doctor in New York had advised. He told Don that she shouldn't be on her injured foot too much for the first week. Don even said to Gabby that it would delay her training. Still, the fact that her father and uncle were in her room told her that she was in trouble.

The closet door was closed. Would either of them think to see if she was in there? It was obvious they were wondering where she was; otherwise why would they be in her room?

Gabby could hear confusion in Leo's voice. He was wondering out loud where she could have gone. Raph said something in reply, but his voice was too soft for her to make out the words. Then, the closet door handle started to turn! Gabby panicked, not wanting to be accused of hiding, but wanting to hide just the same! She decided to feign being asleep! Lying back down swiftly, Gabby slowed her breathing and piled the clothes a bit more onto her. Then, just as the door opened, she shut her eyes.

" There, thought so! Hey, Gabby - know what time it is?" Raph inquired. No response. "Hmmm....asleep, eh?" He sniggered a little.

Gabby could sense that he was walking over to her. He nudged her with his foot; she stirred, "Wha...?" and looked up at her father. " What time 's it?" she asked, rubbing her eyes. She sniffed, as if trying to clear her sinuses, too. Her eyes went wide, " OH! What time IS it?" and jumped up to a stand, the clothes that were piled on top of her falling off to the floor.

Raph smiled, "Only seven! You're late for training by one hour!" He smirked and then walked out, revealing Leo, who was standing just outside the closet door.

"But I thought I wasn't suppose to start until later on in the week because of my foot?" she asked. She was hoping that Leo was more interested in the physical aspects of her training.

" Yes, that is correct! However, there are things you can learn that do not require jumping around!" Leo explained impatiently. He then threw a doji uniform at her and told her to make it quick and then left. He did not look one bit happy with her!

Gabby remembered what Don had said when they were heading back to the Penthouse after her visit to the hospital emergency room. Martial arts and learning ninjitsu were more than doing physical stunts. A lot of it was knowledge and mental discipline. She groaned inwardly when she realized that Leo was probably going to be training her on those two points. His obvious displeasure with her just a moment ago did nothing to encourage Gabby to look forward to it!

However, she felt some relief that her false pretense to be sleeping went unnoticed. Bad enough she had training anyway and that she was late. But to be found awake in the closet would have been impossible to explain to them that she hadn't been trying to hide!

Then, the memory of the previous night came back to her. She cringed. Gabby felt that familiar knot of apprehension start growing again in the pit of her stomach. Would Devon be downstairs? She really did not want to cross paths with him just yet. Actually, all she really wanted to do was to stay in her closet for the remainder of her life! At least until the professor was better and they could return to Connecticut!

But, Gabby suddenly thought of Seth. If she did go back home with her father, she would be leaving behind her love for Leo's son. In that moment, she felt as if she were between a rock and a hard place. She decided to follow through with what they expected of her. Maybe it wouldn't be as bad as she feared.

The dogi was loose fitting and that was fine, as far as she was concerned. Gabby freshened up in the bathroom, putting her hair up and out of her face. She decided not to wear any make-up, believing that maybe Leo would disapprove of that, as well. Then she made her way down the stairs, favoring her right foot a little, though it did seem better.

Devon was out on the patio, getting ready for a swim. He turned towards the house as Gabriella stepped onto the foyer floor inside. They locked eyes momentarily, but Gabby quickly turned away. She trembled a little from the look he had given her, but she forced herself to dismiss it. There wasn't time to evaluate Devon's mood. She was more concerned about Leo's. Grabbing a banana from the kitchen, she made sure she had it eaten and the peel tossed into the trash before heading down the stairwell. Halfway down the steps, it hit her. There was a penalty for her being late. Would Leo actually implement it on her first day?



When Gabby stepped off the last step of the stairs, she saw that he was standing in the middle of the gym, waiting! His expression was expectant and just a little annoyed. She hesitated, a bit intimidated by such an obvious sign of his displeasure towards her. But when he narrowed his eyes sternly, she quickly approached him. The last thing she wanted to do was to rile him the way she had Don and her brother!

The first thing Leo taught her was that before and after each training session, she was to bow before him out of respect. He followed suit with a slight bow of his own, but not as deep as he had instructed her. "This sets up the sensei/student relationship and I will not tolerate you forgetting it! " he told Gabby. "Remember that!"

She caught the look of warning in his eyes and realized that this was important to him. She committed his instruction to memory.

Then, the next lesson caught her by complete surprise!

Gabby couldn't believe what Leo was instructing her to do. With a toothbrush, no less, she had to clean and scrub the entire gymnasium floor! The room was huge! But, remembering what Devon had told her the previous night, Gabby bit her tongue and was silent.

Leo half expected a verbal complaint from her, but was pleased when she didn't. However, he remained stoic and serious.

Gabby started to reach for the implements that Leo was holding, but he pulled them back and out of her reach. He then told her, " You will always address me as Sensei, Gabriella. When you are complying with what I have asked of you, whether to answer a question or to perform a task, you are to acknowledge that obedience with either 'Yes, Sensei or 'No, Sensei'. To neglect this form of response is to show disrespect for me!"

Gabby gulped and softly repeated the phrase that Leo wanted to here, "Yes – Sensei'."

He then handed her the pail and brush, smiling just a little to let her know he had approved.

Gabriella felt manipulated. Inwardly, she seethed; only because it had always been the way she had responded when the professor managed to get her to do things against her will. But, here with Leo, she knew that any complaint would have been met with an immediate rebuttal. Gabby did not want to find out the hard way with how severe her uncle could be with such matters! She held back her resentment, despite feeling angry and subjugated.

It was not lost on Leo that his niece did not enjoy being so cowed. He saw a brief flash of resentment in her eyes, reminding him for a moment of Raphael. Yet, Gabby managed to take control of it before letting it control her. He could have challenged her on it, but Leo decided that if she could choose to not react in the wrong way, then his letting it go was it's own reward.

Gabby made for the far side of the room with pail and brush in hand. She knew enough about not painting oneself into a corner. However, Leo called her back and told her she would start at the opposite end - where the exit was! He instructed her that the floor had to be clean according to his expectations. If there were just a speck of dirt, she would have to do it all over again!

Gabby just looked at him, not offensively, but with an expression of disbelief. Still, she decided that if that's the worse he would do to her today she'd take it. She gave him the "Yes, Sensei" response as he had prescribed earlier.

As he was leaving to go up to the family room, Leo advised her, barely holding back a snigger, " And, the next time you want to pretend being asleep, make sure you don't disturb the clothes hanging above your head! " and then he trudged up the stairs.

Gabby squeezed her eyes shut, mortified that she hadn't thought of that.

Sighing, she threw herself into scrubbing the floor, wondering if the toothbrush would even hold out long enough. Probably longer than she would, Gabby surmised!

An hour later, Leo came back down to the gym. His student was nearly done. She was in the far corner on her hands and knees, scrubbing away. He stood there and stared. " You've done all of this already? " he asked.

She looked up suddenly, startled to see him. However, she didn't reply right away nor did she stand up. She wasn't sure if he wanted an answer or if it was just a rhetorical question. Gabby stopped what she was doing and waited.

" I asked you a question!" Leo stated intently.

"Oh, sorry. Wasn't sure if I was allowed to...." Gabby started to say, but Leo cut her off.

" A simple 'Yes Sensei' or 'No Sensei' will do!" he advised.

" Ah, yes." she replied softly. Then, quickly, "Sensei!" Leo held back a smirk at her quick correction.

" Hmmm..... well, then when you're done, you can take a break!" Leo waited, watching her.

Gabby wondered why he would just stand there off the gym floor with his arms folded across his plastron. He watched her watch him. She looked at the floor and even though there was just a little bit left to do, she was stuck. So, realizing that she couldn't finish the rest of the floor without stepping on the area that was wet, she waited. Once it was dry, she would resume cleaning.

"What's the problem, Gabby? Why aren't you finishing the floor?" Leo asked.

Gabby answered, " I'm waiting for the floor around me to dry so I can scrub what I'm kneeling on … Sensei."

" That may take a while." he stated.

Gabby nodded her head, saying, "I can wait."

" I can't." Leo shot back.

" But, Sensei, the floor is wet around me. I can't walk on it until it's dry." she was starting to get annoyed.

" You need to finish the rest of it, though. " Leo instructed softly.

" When the area around me is dry, SENSEI, then I can!" Gabby insisted irritably. She was tired and sore. She remembered Leo stating that the floor had to be clean and that was how it was going to be! She had even taken her shoes off to make sure that it would stay that way.

He glared at her for mouthing off and started across the floor towards her!

Gabby went wide-eyed and tried to stand up - but she couldn't. She had been in a kneeling position for so long, her back had gone out. "OW!" she cried. " Hey, stop, I can't move - ah...ah...OW...!" she moaned, falling over onto her side. She saw her uncle advance upon her and all she could do was squeeze her eyes shut against the punishment that was to come.

However, Leo noticed right away that Gabby was in pain. He rushed over and felt her back. "Did you ever stand up at all and stretch?" he asked in surprise.

" No. I wanted to get t'done" was all she could say. Gabby braced herself for whatever Leo had planned on doing to her.

But, all he did was kneel down next to her. She heard him say, " Gabby, you can't be bent over for that long." He then felt her back and asked where it hurt.

"Where doesn't it hurt!" was all she could mutter.

"Stay here!" he instructed and ran back to the staircase.

"As if I could do anything else!" Gabby groaned.

A while later, Leo brought down a mug and some of his tea in a pot. He propped Gabby's head up to allow her to drink, but she refused.

"Drink it!" Leo commanded sharply.

"It'll put me to sleep!" Gabby complained. " Already had enough as it is!"

" No, this tea won't do that. It's different! Now, DRINK!" he said earnestly.

Gabby drank and then once that cup was done, Leo filled it again and made her drink the second cup. Finally, after the third cup, she waved off any more. " I'll be floating out of here unless you stop giving me that tea!" she complained.

" Now, rest! It'll take a moment or two. " Leo said. He stayed with her and while he waited, he closed his eyes and meditated.

Gabby watched him. She remembered Don doing as much, the shallow breathing, the closed eyes, being fully aware of everything around him. No doubt, Leo was, too! Why did they do that? She let it go and just lay there on the cool floor. The coolness certainly wasn't going to help. What she needed was heat and lots of it! She was just dozing off, convinced that Leo did indeed give her that sleeping tea, when intense heat hit her back. " OH WOW!! What is that?" She nearly sat straight up. Leo had his hands on her back and was pressing hard. The heat from his hands was almost amazing. "How are you doing that?" she asked, startled.

" Just remain still." Leo instructed as he took one of his hands to steady her.

"But, it's HOT!" and Gabby tried to pull away.

Leo grabbed her shoulders and sat her back down, saying severely, " Be still, Gabby. Unless you want to have this sore back for a few more days!"

She remained still; although it was difficult with the discomfort of whatever Leo was using for heat. Finally, after about ten minutes, the muscles in Gabby's back loosened up and she didn't have the pain anymore. She could actually move her back quite a bit and, with Leo assisting her, was able to stand up.

"What did you use?" she asked as she turned around to face him. He had a funny expression on his face and then he shrugged. All he had with him was the mug and the nearly empty teapot. Gabby narrowed her eyes suspiciously. Leo then told her to finish the rest of the floor and proceeded to walk back to the other end of the room.

Because the memory of her back going out was still fresh in her mind, she squatted down carefully. With her back straight she did her best to scrub the remaining floor that hadn't been washed yet. She did not want to bend over, afraid that she would have a reoccurrence with her back. Once she was finished, she noticed the rest of the floor had dried.

Walking back over to where Leo was, she put the pail and the toothbrush down. Leo looked at the floor and then told her she had to do it all over again.

"WHAT?" Gabby exclaimed, but she knew that was not the right response. "Sorry, Sensei." she apologized softly.

Leo glared at her and restated his command, " DO the floor over again, Gabriella!"

She asked quietly, "But, Sensei, I just did it and my back went out because of it!"

" Your back is not that bad and there are dirt marks on the floor!" he answered, clearly irritated that she would question him.

"Where?" and she turned around, wondering what marks he was talking about.

In one swift moment, Leo had her on the floor, her face up-close and personal with one of his footprints that he had made when he walked on the wet floor. "Because of that!" he explained softly.

Gabby thought of telling him to clean up his own footprints, but she thought better of it and nodded.

Bringing her up onto her feet in one swift motion, Leo instructed her to start at the other end so she would finish near the exit. " And this time, take a standing break every ten minutes!" and then he left.

Gabby was surprised her back stood up to Leo banging her around. Still, she worked angrily. She thought it hugely unfair that she had to clean up his mess. She had, after all, put her back out doing the entire floor herself the first time. What's with cleaning the floor, anyway? What did that have to do with learning martial arts? What's with this guy? In her opinion, her uncle was absolutely nuts! Must have lost some of his marbles up in the mountains of Nepal, that's for certain, she mussed to herself! Gabby was fuming and as she let her emotions vent, she worked harder. She did take a break now and then, standing and stretching so as not to put her back out like before. But, she wanted that gymnasium floor done! She had no intentions of spending the entire day cleaning a floor that was going to get dirty anyway!

An hour later, Leo came back down to check on her progress, but found, to his amazement, that she was resting on the bottom step of the staircase. " Done already?" he asked suspiciously as he walked pass her. He went over to the floor. It was dry. But, the way he was looking at it, Gabby had a sickening feeling. What was he looking for? Excuses to have her do it again? She was tired; the angry energy she expended more exhausting that when she did the floor the first time.

Leo nodded his head in what appeared to be an approving gesture. " Good job!"

She felt relief. Finally, she did something that merited his approval. However, what she heard him say next nearly caused her to faint.

" Do it again!" and he smiled, taking the stairs and leaving her with the toothbrush, the bucket, the floor, and the resignation that she was indeed going to be cleaning the floor the entire day!

Gabby ate her lunch in the gym, by herself, with the thrice-cleaned floor. Rahab had brought her a sandwich, some fruit, chips, and a bottle of water earlier. She said she wasn't allowed to visit with her. So Gabby thanked her and then Rahab left to go back upstairs.

Gabby ate numbly, tired and sore, her frustration and emotions spent, wondering if Leo's intention was to break her down. She went over the morning events - or event, as it were - of her 'training'. About halfway through her third cleaning, it had occurred to her then that Leo was just getting her to obey. It finally made sense. "What a waste of time to clean a floor that many times unless a point was trying to be made" she lamented to herself, " But, if that's the way it is, then I can certainly put up with that compared to what Devon did last night!"

From that moment, her perspective on life with her new family slowly started to change. However she wasn't sure if cleaning the floor multiple times would be the worse it could get. She had experienced several attitude changes over the course of one week, only to have something hit her broadside, bringing her back to square one again. When would it finally become permanent, she asked herself silently. She was smart enough to know that her father and uncles weren't going to change; that was certain! She could only sigh in frustration.

Certainly, Gabby knew herself well and more than that, the five 'senseis' upstairs had conferred together to determine her future training. Probably they had talked with the professor as well! She had observed that nothing seemed to be done in this family without a well-orchestrated plan! The four turtles worked efficiently together and probably had done so for their entire life. Gabby realized then that to attempt to best them in cunning and perseverance was like trying bail out the Titanic with a spoon. It just wasn't going to happen!

As Gabby ate, she evaluated Leo from that morning. He was certainly insistent on obedience. But, he was definitely concerned when she was in pain after her back went out. It was a welcomed bit of knowledge. He had compassion - and some ability to produce heat through his hands! That was weird, but maybe he learned something mystical up there in the mountains of Nepal!

However, Leo also seemed to delight in torturing her! The task of cleaning the floor repeatedly was evidence of that! Again, the idea that he was training her to be obedient seemed the most likely reason for it. Figuring things out when not emotionally involved was one of Gabby's strong suits. She was currently empty of all emotion for the moment, her exhaustion taking up the slack. Yet, when she was emotionally involved, her mind would get all cluttered! It was a major irritant to her and one of the reasons she would find herself in the attic when she lived back in Connecticut. The solitude allowed her to regroup her thoughts. Here, though, there wasn't an attic available for such things. But, being alone in the gym did seem to help in that endeavor.

Gabby had been finished with her lunch for a while, walking along the side of the gym - where she didn't have to clean - looking at the equipment box. There was little else to do until Leo returned. Gabby hadn't had a chance to look at what was stored there. They still made her shudder, especially the three-pronged fork. It looked hideous to Gabby!

As she scanned the rest of the box, she noticed that the redwood staff she found in the forest was there in the box with all the others! She was mildly amused that Don would put it among the more sophisticated items. Shaking her head, she turned to go sit back down on the step - and saw that Leo was there already. "Oh." she said, startled. "Sorry, Sensei. Maybe I should have just stayed put, huh?" she stated, not knowing what to say.

Leo walked over and asked her, "Do you know what these are called?" as he swept his arm through the air to indicate the entire box. He watched her visually scan the collection of weaponry, his hands clutched together in front of him at his midsection.

Gabby looked at the equipment display box and shook her head, "No, Sensei, not really. Well, the nunchuks, but Mike told me about them."

" Explain." Leo asked.

" Um... well, he ...basically demonstrated what they can do." Gabby answered. She was getting a little uncomfortable as she thought about what happened that day.

" How?" her uncle asked, a slight smile barely noticeable on his face. He watched her intently, his eyes narrowing as he observed her reaction to his question.

Gabby saw it and wondered why he would be so amused. "He killed a mountain lion with it!" she replied simply. Gabby tried not to look at him or to blush. She was genuinely getting very uncomfortable at his one-word questions.

Leo saw her react and then asked, " Why?"

Gabby was slightly amused that Leo wanted her to do most of the talking. She was pretty sure he knew the answer, but - again - it was more than likely an exercise in obedience ...and honesty.

" Basically, it was stalking me. I had decided to explore the woods the first morning I was here and spent more time there than I should have. I rarely have had the opportunity to run and do things like that back in Connecticut and the forest looked inviting. I didn't realize the dangers there. Mike and Don were looking for me and then..."

Leo interrupted her, almost scolding her, " They didn't know you were out there?" His expression told Gabby he seemed displeased with that fact.

Gabby sheepishly replied, " No, Sensei, not really."

" Why?" again, a one word question from the turtle. He had one of his eyes cocked open a bit more than the other, as if evaluating her response.

" Because I chose not to tell them!" Gabby paused after her answer. She noted the look of displeasure on Leo's face. Gaining courage in telling him the truth, she continued hastily, " I had been raised my entire life by a human! And, as I told your son, this...household, this family was just too different for me! I was afraid and felt 'surrounded'. The woods sounded like a nice place for solitude!" Gabby wondered what Leo would think about that.

" I see." he said slowly. He studied her, making Gabby feel even more uncomfortable than before.

It was almost a judgmental look that he gave her, as if she had offended him deeply. Gabby inwardly regretted the energy that she had placed upon her words, but it was how she felt and Leo wanted the truth, so...

He then asked her, " How do you feel, now?" He had one finger on his chin, as if in thought, his eyes piercing hers.

She was a bit troubled, not wanting to further Leo's obvious displeasure with her. But, Gabby decided to go for broke. He wanted honesty and that was what he was going to get. If he had a problem with how she felt towards them, then that was his problem! She began, " I went from one environment that I had lived in for twenty-five years to one that was, for all practical purposes, alien and strange - all in a single day. I've since been harassed, told what to do, yelled at, beaten up, chased, cornered and all by people who claim to be my family and all within less than a week! I've learned some things about me that only a nightmare could produce! And now I'm expected to understand this Clan idea in short order that have taken these same people their entire lives to master!" Gabby paused for breath and then asked Leo, "How do you think I should feel - Sensei?" Her voice had an intensity that spilled out in frustration.

Leo's eyes told her she had impressed him. He nodded his head and replied, " I think you would feel - overwhelmed!"

Gabby sighed. She was finally being understood. She actually felt a relief of sorts.

" But, that doesn't mean we are going to indulge you! You have a lot of lost time to make up and we are adamant that you will do this! Regardless of how long it will take! As you said, you have learned things about yourself that would be the stuff of nightmares! I know about nightmares, my dear Gabby! So, I understand where you are coming from. However, these same nightmares could become a reality if you are not trained in the ways of my Clan! That is something we just cannot let happen. You are too important to us! " And Leo smiled; one showing deep wisdom and determination. Gabby realized, then, that she was indeed spooning out a sinking ship by not cooperating.

Then, Leo changed the topic back to the equipment box.

Leo began an object lesson with each weapon. He took out one of the simpler swords and told her it was called a katana sword. It had a blade that was nearly three feet long and a hilt that allowed for an easy, firm grip. He stepped back from her to work it. His movements were fluid and precise, showing strength and skill that impressed Gabby a lot! The tool seemed to be apart of him as he moved it up and over, then around as he turned swiftly. Finally, he finished and replaced the sword in its holder. He momentarily saw his niece's wide-eyed expression and commented, "The katana is my choice of weapon, by the way. Much like the nunchucks is Michelangelo's."

"I could tell!" and Gabby smiled a little.

Then, he went to another that was more ornate. "This is a ceremonial sword called a gitou. It's used in formal ceremonies and promotions."

Leo went on through the display, showing Gabby the nunchucks and explaining their use. Then, he picked up the three-pronged fork weapon and told her that it was called a Sais. He saw Gabby recoil just a bit. He asked for her to hold it. She initially refused, but he reached out and took her hand anyway, making her take the weapon.

" I don't like this one, sorry, Sensei!" she apologized, trying to give it back. He refused it, forcing her to hold it.

"Actually, Gabby, you don't like any of them! " Leo stated, looking at her hard.

She nodded, lowering her eyes, saying, " That's correct, Sensei. I don't!"

"Why?" Leo asked. This time, his expression was unreadable!

Gabby looked up at him with a subtle fear in her eyes. She was able to read his moods with the other questions, but now he was like a blank slate to her! She replied cautiously," Violence seems like an overstated response when discourse would prove to be more - civilized." She swallowed, remembering someone else who had ventured along that same subject with her.

Leo studied her. He recognized her intelligence, but he was also aware of how sheltered she had been. Finally, he imparted to her, " In a controlled environment where every waking moment is prescribed, planned out, and executed and you can sleep at night without worry, then - yes - items of this nature are not necessary." He smiled as he waved his hand again at the weapons. Then, bringing up from behind him, he produced her metal hair pick, saying as he looked at it, "However, for those times when your safety is not certain, when there are those who would threaten your very existence, when you aren't sure if you could sleep at night without worry - then these same articles of violence are a necessity, at the very least a measure of security!" and he handed her the pick. " Don told me how you improvised in New York! He also told me about the strength of your kick when you thought he was the attacker!" Leo paused, then asked, " What words would you have used, then, if Don was not who he was but instead was someone who had a knife - or worse - and wanted to harm you?"

Seth! He had said as much the first night they met, the night Raph had been beaten up. Gabby felt the pangs of longing for him and she fought to control the emotions that it conjured up in that moment. She felt her throat constrict and couldn't answer Leo immediately.

He asked her again, "What words would you use, Gabby?" He noted her inner struggle and waited for her to answer him.

All she could do was shake her head. Leo saw the emotional turmoil she was enduring and it puzzled him. "Did the incident at the garage bother you more than you've let on?" he asked her, somewhat concerned.

Gabby did not want to tell him how much she missed his son. It would have been a moot point and he probably would have talked about a lot of things she just didn't feel like hearing at the moment. She mustered, "No, Sensei. Don talked with me about it already. I'm fine - well, almost, but I don't have nightmares, so.... I guess I'm okay."

"Good!" Leo studied her for a moment. Then, he asked Gabby, "How do you feel about... Seth?"

Gabby did not think that question was quite fair! She was just getting the lump in her throat under control when he asked her the million-dollar question. "How do you feel about Seth?" was probably the worse question to ask her at that moment. All she could do in response was to ask Leo, "Why do you want to know, Sensei?" Gabby cringed; her voice sounded thin and raspy. Just like it did whenever her emotions were ready to spill out.

He answered, " Well, considering how he feels about you.... I can only surmise that you feel the same way!"

" Sensei, how do you know this?" Gabby asked defensively. " And what does that have to do with my training?"

"First," Leo explained, " He's my son! Fathers and sons have a way of sharing things like that! Second, how you feel about him might hamper your training - or help it. Depending on how you apply what you feel!" He looked at her and knew, but he wanted her to tell him, "So, I will ask you again - how do you feel about Seth?"

Gabby was not at all comfortable in answering her uncle. How she felt about his son was between his son and her! But, here she was, down in the gym, being trained by Seth's father. So, she answered simply, " I like him, Sensei!"

Leo smiled, "Really? You just like him? Would that be news to him if I were to tell him that?"

Gabby's eyes narrowed, suspicious and not certain what Leo was getting at. " Sensei, why would you do that?"

" Well," Leo explained," considering that he told me that he loves you, I think as a responsible father I need to let him know that you only like him!"

He was baiting her and she knew it. Still, would he really pass that half-truth on to Seth and treat it as a whole truth. Finally, she replied, "Regardless of how I feel about your son, Sensei, I see no point in going any further with this! No disrespect, but what is between Seth and I should remain that way. If he chooses to impart to you how he feels towards me, that is his choice. However, Sensei, I am not that comfortable at present in sharing with you my innermost feelings - regardless of who they are for!" Gabby would not be baited. Then again, she hoped she was not sounding disrespectful. Don had already implied that Leo would not tolerant that!

Leo studied her some more and then said simply, " You are right! You barely know me; why should you share those feelings." and with that he welcomed her onto the training floor.

" I just cleaned that!" she said, mildly exasperated. Then, remembering, " Sensei."

Leo smiled, " Yes! Three times, in fact! Now, come onto the floor!" he implored.

Gabby still had the Sais in her hand and went to go put it away. She turned to replace it back in the case, but Leo gently took her arm and pulled her onto the floor. " You are going to need that!"

His words were an echo of Don's when she wanted to put the redwood staff down as he angrily took her to the gym just a week ago! Gabby found out the hard way how strong and effective Don was with his Bo! What was Leo going to do with regards to the Sais? Gabby was not at all happy looking at the weapon in her hand and wondering if Leo would grab one as well.

" Now, the Sais happens to be your father's tool! He's quite good at it. We are all masters of everything in that display case, but we all have our favorites. Since you cannot do much jumping around, we will work on this discipline first!" Leo explained. "First, you will need to learn the correct posture in order to execute the proper movement and fluidity."

Over the next few hours, Leo had Gabby work the proper positioning of the Sais. It was almost ballet like in quality with the slow, even motions he instructed her to do. She was getting a little more comfortable with him and tried her best to accommodate the different positions he showed her with the Sais. She still did not like the weapon, but had to admit to herself that it held a beauty of it's own when worked properly. Leo showed her how it was to be done correctly at one point. He moved seamlessly through the different stages of the Sais discipline, explaining that when mastered, it proved to be a formidable weapon of defense - as well as offense!

"I would think, Sensei, just looking at it would be enough to discourage anyone from tangling with you!" Gabby commented sheepishly.

Leo laughed and said, " Yes, Gabby, especially when your father is wielding it!" He studied his niece and was starting to appreciate her wit. However, there was much to discover about her and over the next few days, Leo planned on pushing Gabby until she fought back. Though he would have to discipline her for insubordination, knowing her limits would help him train her to be the best she could become. It would also educate Gabby, as well, since she had been sheltered for far too long a time. Knowing herself and her own limits, as well as strengths, would greatly enhance her training in ninjitsu overall.