Authors Notes: Well, I'm going to make these quick because I'm the babysitter tonight and its my sisters 21st birthday. Yes, I'm babysitting her. Should be a lot of fun. Those who know what this is like…wish me luck. So this is the second to the last chapter. After this there's one more and an epilogue. I'm going to be sad to see this finished but hopefully you guys will appreciate it for what it is, even if the whole Prophecy thing is a bit muddled, and trust me, I know it is. Anyway, read on and enjoy!
Disclaimer: I do now own TMNT in any way shape or form!
Chapter 11
Relaxation wasn't an emotion that came all too easily for Raphael. Even when it did it was in small doses that lasted ten minutes at the most. And as he lay there in the dark, Alex's hand draped over his chest, her head nestled in the crook of his arm he realized how much of a shame it really was. This relaxation thing was great! Never in his life had he felt so at peace with himself, so content to just be.
Beside him Alex stirred, scooting closer to him and draping one sinfully long leg over his. Her lips found his neck and an indulgent smile curved his mouth as he lifted a hand, resting it over the one on his chest. "Hey, thought you were sleepin'."
"I was," she purred, rubbing her naked body against his. "Now…aren't you glad you didn't stay out on that couch?"
Glad was an understatement. Now that he thought about it, he would have to consider himself half insane for even allowing the idea of spending the night on the couch to enter his mind.
"What are you thinking about Raph?" Alex asked in a throaty whisper, gazing at him with dark blue eyes that shone with sated happiness.
That look not only dramatically boosted his confidence, but also made him want her again with an almost lethal intensity. He forced his desire back though and gave her a tired smile. "I think I get why people make such a big deal outta this."
She chuckled softly. "Not bad, huh?"
"You wont hear any complaints from me."
Smiling, Alex sat up and stretched her arms over her head, fully aware that she was giving Raph a very enticing view. "God…I'm starving. Want to come to the kitchen with me and find something to snack on?" She turned back in time to see his hungry gaze rake over her body and laughed. "Not what I meant sweetie."
"Damn."
After Alex found something to wear, a pair of navy blue sweat shorts and a dark gray sweatshirt, they crept to the kitchen. As always their destination was the only room with the lights still on, spilling a meager yellow glow into the darkness that filled the rest of the lair.
"Oh, I should have put socks on," she muttered as they stepped onto the cold linoleum. She danced her way over to the cupboard above the sink and pulled down a box of chips she'd stashed there while Raph went to the fridge and grabbed them each a pop.
"Does Mikey know about those?" he asked, sitting down at the table.
Alex sat on his lap, legs straddling his waist and shook her head. "They'd be gone by now if he did."
"Good point." Raph wrapped an arm around her waist and pulled her closer, watching her as she dug through the box of bite sized chips. For the millionth time since things had officially started happening between them, he wondered what he'd done to deserve such a wonderful woman. He hadn't exactly been all that nice to her in the beginning, then there was that incident in the dojo where he'd lost it and hurt her…yet here she was. And she was his in every sense of the word. And the kicker was…he loved her.
He'd been uncertain before due to the fact that he really had no idea what love was, what it meant, but now…now he was sure. The pleasant way his stomach jumped when she kissed him, the way his heart raced when she smiled at him…hell, the woman could keep him calm, now that was saying something.
"Raph? Honey…are you okay?"
"Huh?" He looked up into a pair of azure eyes dark with worry.
"I lost you for a minute there. What were you thinking about?" Alex asked. Eyes never leaving his, she set aside the box of chips and waited patiently for a response.
But Raph didn't know what to tell her. It was on the tip of his tongue to say what he felt, put his love for her right out in the open where everyone could see it, but a nagging fear of rejection held him back, made him speak in only half-truths. "I was just thinkin' about you."
The worry vanished from her face, a warm smile quickly taking its place. "What about me?"
He shrugged. "I don't know. I guess…I guess I just don't really get it. I'm a mutant, I was an ass to you the first time we met and a few times after that, I don't even belong in your world…but you're still with me."
Her features softened. "What's so hard to believe about that?" The only answer she received was a brief flash of doubt in his dark brown eyes and, with a patient smile, Alex shook her head. "Just because two people don't belong in the same worlds doesn't mean they can't belong with each other. Raphael…here." She took his hand and laid it against the center of her chest where her heart beat steadily beneath his palm. She was going to drive her point home hard so there would never again be any doubt or uncertainty between them. "Do you feel that?" she asked softly, resting her forehead against his.
He closed his eyes and nodded slowly. "Yeah. It's your heart."
"Look at me." He did as she asked with no hesitation. Laying one hand over his, she placed the other against his cheek. She could feel tears gather in her eyes, feel her body tingling with a mixture of anticipation and awareness and she hid none of it from him. "This," she murmured, pressing his hand lightly against her chest, "belongs to you. I love you Raph."
There…the one thing he'd been terrified to admit and she'd done it without batting an eye. He counted out four steady heartbeats before a smile stole over his face, then he pulled her close with the one arm wrapped around her wait and buried his face in the sweet scented curve of her neck. "Alex."
"Raph," she mimicked him, running her hand softly over the back of his head and neck.
"If I would have known it was that easy." He pulled back and gazed up at her smiling face. "I love you too Alex."
"I know."
Of course she knew. She probably had all along and that only made him lover her more. He rubbed her back slowly, up and down, feeling the silken strands of her blond hair brush the back of his hand. When she made a small purring noise he knew her well enough to know what it meant.
"Someone ready for round two?" he asked, lazily kissing her neck as he slipped a hand under her shirt and sought out the soft tender flesh of her breast.
Her breath caught in her throat, the sound quite audible in the small, silent kitchen. "More than ready," she whispered back, arching against his hand.
Chips and pop forgotten, they stood and quickly made their way back to the bedroom where they could lock themselves away fro the rest of the night and well into the next morning. Unfortunately someone had other plans.
Come Prophecy. Come to me now. Do not resist they fate, thy destiny. Bend to my will. Hear my command and obey.
Alex gasped but caught herself
before she fell to her knees in the middle of the living room. God, the words
had been so close, so clear…as if he had been standing right next to her! Go
away, damn it…go away, she thought, resisting the urge to cover her ears.
"Alex?"
Hands were on her shoulder, gripping, steadying, hands that she knew and trusted. "I'm fine…I'm fine," she murmured thickly. She wasn't fine though. Her mind felt numb. In fact, her entire body felt numb. "Must be some lingering effects from the drug." In the darkness she could lie and get away with it. He couldn't see her eyes in the dark, but that didn't make her feel any less guilty.
"You sure?" Raph asked. His hands were now moving down her arms, to her waist.
She nodded and leaned into his embrace. "Yes, I'm sure." Mimicking his movements, running her hands down his sides, she nuzzled his neck as the pull became stronger, made her feel a desperate want to obey. She needed him now to make her forget, to make it better, to force away the voices with his passionate kisses and gentle touch. "Weren't we going somewhere?"
Without a word, he picked her up, cradling her weight in his strong arms. Alex snuggled close to him and a relieved smile flickered across her face. Already the dreadful feeling that had invaded her was starting to fade. Then he kissed her and the whole world with all of its problems quickly followed.
Years of conditioning had him up before ten despite the fact that he and Alex had fallen into an exhausted sleep at five in the morning. They had made love four hours and when they hadn't been doing that they'd been talking about anything that came to mind, everything they could think of until finally, they had fallen asleep wrapped in each others arms and knowing nothing but a deep feeling of peace and contentment.
Those feelings lingered like the last remaining stars in a cloudless morning sky as Raphael awoke, unconsciously tightening his arm around Alex's waist. She made a small mewling noise, wiggled closer to him and went still once more.
"Hey kitten," Raph whispered, propping himself up on his elbow and reaching over to tuck pale strands of hair behind her ear. "You gonna keep sleeping?"
Her brow furrowed in concentration for a moment and then she nodded, a small movement that was almost imperceptible.
With a smile, he leaned down, placing a soft kiss against her temple. "Love you Alex."
"Love you Raph," she replied sleepily. Then, without opening her eyes, she flipped over and wrapped her arms around his neck. "What'd you call me kitten for?"
"Cuz you're actin' like one."
"Oh," she said while yawning, elongating the simple syllable.
Raph chuckled and hugged her tightly, putting off getting out of bed for a few more minutes. He couldn't put it off forever though. Sooner or later someone, more than likely Leo, was going to get suspicious and that was going to lead to a whole lot of questions he really didn't want to answer right now. "Alright babe, you stay here and sleep. I'm going to get up before someone comes lookin' for us."
"Mmkay." Already she was lost to him, drifting back into what looked to be a very pleasant slumber.
Moving out of the warm bed he'd just spent one of the most enjoyable nights of his life in, Raph tucked the blankets around Alex, then grabbed his belt and pads from the floor beside the bed, putting them on as he quietly left the room.
He wasn't surprised to see all of brothers already up when he sauntered into the living room. He was, however, surprised to see them all sitting on the couch crowded around Donny's laptop. "Hey guys, what's goin' on?" he asked, walking to the couch and leaning against a battered arm.
Mike glanced up, a knowing grin spreading slowly across his face. "Maybe someone should be asking you that question Raph."
"Only if you really want to know the answer Mikey," the red masked turtle replied with an indulgent smirk. "So what are you searchin' for?"
He leaned over to look at the dark screen and his heart lurched painfully. On the screen, mocking him in burning orange colors was the symbol that Alex had been branded with when she was a child. "Why are you lookin' at that?" he asked, feigning disinterest even as a cold, foreboding feeling crept through him.
"Well, after Danny's little stunt last night I decided maybe its time we quit turning the other way and start finding out a few things. I don't mean to harm Alex at all but maybe if we knew what we were really dealing with we could help her more," Donatello answered without looking away from the computer. "Man…this web site has everything. Look at this."
Everyone moved closer except for Raph. He had a bad feeling about this. A very bad feeling. "Probably a bunch of fabricated shit made up by some psycho," he muttered, his words falling on deaf ears.
"They've got information dating back to the early 1800's. Amazing." Don scrolled down until a large picture of a striking, pale haired woman and child came up. The picture was black and white, obviously part of a newspaper clipping dated 1981. "Last picture taken of Marissa Tulsan and daughter Alexandria before their mysterious disappearance. Officials searched for a month but due to the speculation that Marissa may have been responsible for the murder of her husband, Orlando Tulsan and several occult related rumors involving the young woman, the case was closed a mere month and a half after the disappearance."
"Man, she looks just like her mom," Mike murmured somewhat absently.
"The guy who created the site goes on to say that the accusations of murder were more than likely accurate. He thinks Orlando discovered what Marissa was and before he could use that knowledge against her…she killed him."
"That's a load of shit!" Raph exclaimed, more harshly than intended.
Don glanced up at his brother, his expression calm. "Chill out Raph. None of us actually believe any of this murder stuff. The guy sure sounds convinced though. He's even got an archive of articles linking Marissa to several mysterious deaths in the are."
He clicked on a link and the screen filled with a short list of articles boasting such headlines as "Town Cloaked in Tragedy", "Death Count Rises as Unknown Killer Strikes Again," and "Local Woman Suspected of Murders." Some papers went as far as to suggest that Marissa carried the devils child.
"Where the hell does he get this crap? From a fuckin' tabloid? Come on guys, lets just forget about it huh? The guy's obviously full of shit." Again, Raph spoke to harshly and this time they all noticed. Mike, Don and Leo each raised questioning eyes to their brother.
Leo was the first to speak, his eyes narrowing in suspicion as he stared at Raph. "You know something," he accused.
The younger turtle inwardly balked but managed to keep his expression impassive. "I know what you know Leo, that's it."
"No. You know something. She told you what she's not telling us."
"Jesus Leo…you're bein' paranoid."
"I don't think I am Raph. She trusts you more than she trusts us. You two are together so naturally she'd confide in you. What do you know?"
"That you're about ten seconds away from getting your ass kicked," Raph snarled, curling his hands into fists at his sides. "Back the fuck down Leo. I told you, I didn't-."
"Hey! Look at this!" Don yelped, putting an abrupt stop to the escalating fight.
Leo gave Raph one last hard look before turning his attention to the computer. "What does it say Donny?"
"The legend of the Prophecy made flesh," the purple masked turtle read, eyes scanning the screen avidly. "Born of the mother and bathed in her blood, the curse, as some have deemed it, was passed onto the child upon its second birthday and upon her eighth year she was branded and the full powers were hers to posses. She was given flesh to pass her judgment on those worthy of her powers and-."
"And when she bore a child of her own, a girl, the cycle would begin anew. Life born from death, a cycle that would continue until the end of time."
The four turtles jerked around at the sound of Alex's voice, surprised to see her standing in the opening of the hallway. The white sweater she wore and light blue jeans made her look more pale that she already was and her deep blue eyes appeared haunted, dull and devoid of any of her natural light.
"Hey Alex…though you were sleeping," Mike said with false cheerfulness.
She didn't answer him. She didn't even spare him a brief glance. Her tearful gaze remained fixed on Raphael and the uncomfortable silence grew, becoming thick and unbearable.
"Alex," he started, not sure of what he was going to say but knowing he had to explain, "its not what-."
"I thought you didn't care about what I was?" she cut him off in a voice filled with unfathomable pain. "You said it didn't matter."
"It doesn't." Raph walked towards her. His heart was hammering away mercilessly and deep fear was the only emotion he knew at that moment. He couldn't loose her, not now…not like this. "Alex, just listen for a sec."
"Why? Let me guess…got what you wanted but it wasn't enough?" She shook her head, taking a step away from him. "Well you can save your breath. I've heard it all before."
"Come on babe, give me a chance here." He reached for her and she jerked away, tears streaming down her ghostly pale cheeks.
"I thought…that I could trust you," she whispered, her voice wavering.
You can! His mind screamed but for some reason his mouth couldn't form the words. It refused to cooperate even when she turned and left he lair, grabbing her shoes but in her haste, not bothering to put them on.
Do something idiot, that inner voice ranted, banging against the boundaries of his mind as a wild animal would throw itself against the restraints of its cage. Go after her! Tell her what really happened!
Part of him wanted to, god…part of him was desperate to run after her, but another part of him, the part that overpowered his need, made him stay where he was although panic was clawing away at his insides. He had a feeling that pursuing her now might be disastrous. He'd give her some time and then go looking for her. He knew where to find her and besides, he had a little anger to work off himself and the last person he wanted to take it out on was Alex.
Turning slowly, he faced his brothers, noticing with grim satisfaction that they each looked confused and slightly scared. "Maybe next time you'll listen when I tell you to let somethin' go."
"Raph…what the hell just happened?" the oldest of the four asked, slowly coming out of his stunned daze.
"Why did you have to know Leo? Answer that first. Why couldn't you just let her forget what she was for once in her life and by happy, huh? Why did you have to know?"
"You knew." Leonardo's expression turned stony, anger simmering just below the surface. "You've known for a while now, haven't you?"
Raph squared his shoulders in a show if rebelliousness and the tinniest smirk curled hils lips. "Yeah…I did. So what?"
"Why didn't you say anything? Why didn't' you tell us?"
"Cuz it's none of your damn business, that's why."
Their voices were steadily rising, reverberating off the cavernous confines of the lair.
"She's staying with all of us Raph…in our home. If what you know could, in any way, harm us all-."
"Damn it Leo, would you just shut up? It's always the same shit with you, isn't it? If it endangers the family…what one of us does effects us all. Well, not this time! It's Alex's deal and it was her decision to trust me so just leave it alone. It's our problem, not yours."
Leo shook his head slowly. "No…that's where you're wrong. It is my problem," he stated evenly, his voice controlled.
His composure only made Raph that much angrier and he knew the rope he had around his self control was seriously fraying. "No its not! Jesus Leo…you're not the one dating her, you're not the one sleepin' with her and you sure as hell ain't the one in love with her! I am! So butt the hell out for once in your life!"
"You're sleeping with her?" Mike yelped, eyes wide.
Raph didn't bother answering him. His silence, he figured, would be answer enough. He stared at Leonardo, waiting for a reaction, waiting for the look of disapproval. But the eldest turtle surprised him when, instead of getting angry, a small smile graced his face and he said in a slightly awed voice, "you love her?"
The mood shift was so quick and so unexpected that it sucked the blazing red anger right out of him, leaving him drained and his mind grappling for something more stable to hold on to then his panic. Anger had been all he had, the one thing that could keep him from feeling fear, but now he had nothing. "Yeah…" he murmured, shoulders drooping, "yeah Leo, I love her."
The blue masked turtle crossed the floor to his younger, hotheaded brother and pulled him into a brotherly, one armed hug. "Raph…hear me out on this before you get all angry okay? I…I understand that this is between you and Alex…I get that now. But we're all to blame."
Raph's only reply was a shuddering sigh as he leaned tiredly against his brother, for once taking his support without hesitation. Michelangelo and Donatello watched on in silence, each of them feeling more than just a little frightened by the vulnerability they saw in their usually unshakable brother.
"This isn't just your fault," Leonardo continued, "and we'll help you fix this. Just let us okay? We're family…we need to be there for each other and…Alex is part of this family so we need to be there for her. Will you let us do that?"
The younger turtle hesitated a moment, hating the helplessness, hating the void that had started to grow in his heart and then, taking a deep breath, he nodded.
"Good. Do you know where we can find her?"
"Yeah." Raph straightened and ran a hand over his face. "Yeah, I know where we can find her."
"Then you had best be quick my sons. I fear time is not on your side."
Again the four were caught off guard that the intrusion of a new voice. The aged rat stood several yards away, leaning heavily on his old cane and looking much older than he actually was, weariness showing in his strained features, the sag of his shoulders, the lifeless droop of his one ear.
"Sensei, what's wrong?" Donatello asked, his worry for his Master causing him to forget all about the computer before him.
Splinter lifted his tired gaze to his second oldest son and felt a sudden pang of guilt laced with sympathy. He'd give anything to spare his son from feeling such a tangle of hurtful emotions. "My son…I hope you can understand and forgive me for what I am about to tell you," he said in his soft, raspy voice.
"What are you talking about Sensei?" Raph asked, sounding more exhausted than anything.
"I fear Alex is in much more danger than we think. She came to me a while back and said Danny was troubling her, that he was somehow trying to manipulate her through use of a spell. She claimed it was nothing to be concerned about because Danny was not translating it correctly. But now…something was here last night and there is no doubt in my mind that Danny was trying to reach Alex again. I feel she is slipping and it's only a matter of time before he weakens her and she gives in."
The anger, ever so familiar to Raphael, tried to surface but only managed to flicker for a brief second before sputtering out completely. And the thing that had managed to force it into a quiet submission? A scene from last night that replayed itself adamantly over and over again. Alex stumbling to a stop in the living room, the gasp that tore from her throat, the waver in her voice as she told him that she was fine.
He'd known she was lying, he'd known she wasn't really fine but he'd let it go. "Damn," he muttered, sinking down onto the couch. "I should have-." Should have what? Said something? Tried to make her talk? Fat chance of that happening after her suggesting that they get back to the bedroom.
"Hey Raph…no worries dude. We'll find Alex and get this mess worked out," Mike said, taking a seat beside him and wrapping an arm around his shoulders. "But, you know…I can't help but think that we're kinda out of our league here."
Raph had to agree with his youngest sibling. Spells, mystical powers…a Prophecy. Yeah, they were way out of their league on this one.
Alex stood unmoving, gazing out the large picture window with sorrow filled eyes that watched as the sun slowly sank into the horizon, beams of its vibrant gold light peaking out from between the buildings. The view was magnificent but it did nothing to lift Alex's spirits. Her heart ached and her face was streaked with tears she had not stopped crying since she had left the lair and came…here.
She turned away from the windows and cast a mournful gaze around the shattered remains of her once tidy apartment. Almost nothing had changed since the night she'd come here with the guys. The table was still overturned and splintered, the glass coffee table was still smashed into tiny, glistening shards, and blood still tainted the wall, though it was obvious someone had made an attempt to remove at least some of it. Probably for testing, Alex thought. The one thing missing, and she thanked God for this, was the body of her landlady. There was still a large stain on the floor from her blood though.
The orange light from the sun fell upon that stain as it dipped lower and Alex moaned, quickly looking away. She shouldn't have come here, she shouldn't have even ran but she couldn't stay with them, especially since now they all knew what she was.
That thought brought on a whole new wave of agonizing sorrow and Alex moaned her despair, sinking to her knees. She buried her face in her hands as her shoulders shook almost violently from her sobs. She had trusted him to keep her secret, she thought that finally she could be free of her curse if only for a moment. She'd been a fool. A love sick, blind as a damn bat fool. And now she was paying for it dearly. She had thought Danny's betrayal was bad but it was nothing…nothing when compared to Raph's. And the worst thing about it all…was that she still loved him. Her heart refused to stop even though at the same time it was breaking.
"Stupid Raphael," she muttered for lack of anything better to say.
"Aw, come on babe. You don't mean that," a voice murmured from the growing darkness behind her.
She had to give herself credit for not turning to face him, for not crumbling when his rough, accented voice washed over her. Her heart however, had leapt into her throat form the sudden shock and then continued its cadence beneath her ribs where she could only hope he wouldn't hear it.
"Come on Alex."
He was right behind her now and when his hands came down on her shoulders she had to bite down hard on her bottom lip to keep from calling out to him.
"Don't be like this babe. Lets just get out of here, go home and talk…okay? You're not safe here."
"I'm not safe anywhere," she whispered miserably.
She knew her words had hurt him when his hands slipped away, leaving her feeling cold and alone and he said in a hollow voice, "Fine. I'll tell ya what…if you change your mind I'll be out in the hall waiting for ya. If you're not out in five minutes…I guess that's it."
He stood slowly, crossed the room and paused with his hand on the doorknob. "I never broke my promise to you Alex."
She whirled around just in time to see the door close and what she was about to say, words that were from her heart, came out as a strangled sob of denial.
Raph closed the door behind him and prayed feverishly for a miracle. He wanted her to trust him without having to convince her of his innocence…if only he would have known it was going to hurt this damn much. Lifting a hand to rub at the spot where it hurt most, as if it would ease the pain of his broken heart, he noticed the abnormal darkness in the hallway the second before he felt the prick of a needle at his arm. Then oblivion came…quick and painless, and helpless, he fell into it.