Disclaimer: - Yes, I want to own the Turtles…but unfortunately wanting to own them isn't enough 'cause I don't own them; they belong to the dudes who created them (Kev and Pete!).

A/N: -   This chapter was difficult to do because although I already had it typed I couldn't decide whereabouts to finish it…I'm hoping that you enjoy it. There may be a couple of moments where you feel certain Turtles may be a little OOC but I promise that, if there are any moments like that, it is because of the extreme pressure they're going through.

    They nearly lost a brother and so Raph, being the violent one, wants revenge and is over-protective of Leo…takes you back to Shredder Strikes Back (1 2) and Tales of Leo…which, by the way, I have never seen…crazy, huh? So, if someone knows where to find the scripts for it or knows a place where I can get it on DVD slightly cheaper than normal then it would be greatly appreciated! Thank you, now read, enjoy and review!

    Raph moved towards him slowly, a mad glint in his eyes. Casey scrambled up from where he had fallen over the back of the sofa and decided to only get involved if it looked like there was going to be a full-scale fight between the two turtles in his living room.

"What are you doing here, Leo?"

"I volunteered to come after you and stop you ripping Casey apart. You got a problem with that, Raph?"

"Yes."

"Oh dear, that's a shame, but I couldn't let you come and take your anger out on Casey when he has done nothing wrong…and Mikey and Donnie agree."

"I'm gonna kill them!" Raph snarled.

"Why?"

"Because they were supposed to stop you leaving the lair…"

"What's the point, Raph?"

"The point is that you haven't fully recovered…you nearly died, Leo!"

"I know, but you can't keep me locked up forever…eventually the final battle with Shredder will fall upon us and we'll all have to fight!"

"But why? What can't we just stop this stupid fighting?"

"Raph…" Leo pleaded.

"No, I'm serious, Leo. I wouldn't be able to risk losing you again."

"It could have been any one of us on that platform, Raph, and next time one of us could die…any one of us…it doesn't mean it will be me just because it was me this time." Leo tried to explain to his brother that it wasn't planned by the ninjas to knock him off the platform as they would have done the same if one of the others had been on the platform instead of Leo.

"I should go…" Raph said, "you coming, Leo?"

"Yeah…thanks for letting us talk things over in here, Casey!"

"Hey, its fine, guys…just promise me you'll take it easy…both of you…" he looked meaningfully at Raphael. The two turtles waved at him as they left.

    The two brothers were getting close to the lair when they were sprung upon by about twenty-five foot ninjas, accompanied by none other than Shredder himself.

"Shredder!" Leo gasped, choking slightly on the words as fear gripped him. Raphael moved closer to his trembling brother and drew his Sais.

"We'll get him,"

"Don't, Raph, we need to concentrate on getting away." Leo put himself into 'fearless leader' mode.

"Now, you both die!" Shredder stepped forward.

"I don't think so, Shred-head! You're gonna pay for what you and you're stupid army did to my brother and for the effect it has had on our family!"

"Really…foot ninjas…CAPTURE HIM! AND KILL THE OTHER ONE!"

"LEO! RUN! GET THE OTHERS!"

"Raph! Don't be an idiot! I can fight!"

"Just go for help…the lair isn't far!" Raph began to fight off the ninjas attempting to get at Leonardo. Leo ran for the lair and was metres from the entrance when the foot caught up with him.

"DONNIE! MIKEY! MASTER SPLINTER!" he shrieked at the top of his voice.

"Heads up, Leo!" Mikey hurtled towards him on a skateboard.

"Go and find Raph! He's not far from here…I'll catch up as soon as I can."

"Ok, Donnie and Master Splinter are on their way." Mikey sped off. Leo defeated the foot ninjas after him and headed back to where Mikey, Raph, Donnie and Splinter were fighting as hard as they could. He joined them and helped in the fight, in spite of Raph's protest. Suddenly, Shredder leapt into the middle of the turtles, leaving Mikey and Leo one side with Donnie and Raph the other. Master Splinter was nowhere to be seen. Raph took the first lunge at Shredder but was thrown off almost instantly. Leo went next but he, too, was thrown off and flew through the air and into Raph. Mikey and Donnie attacked together but were thrown in completely different directions. Shredder made his way towards a fallen Mikey and raised a long sword.

"Now you can die," Shredder whispered, bringing his sword down, only to find it intercepted by a large, furry rat.

"You shall not touch any of my sons, least of all those you have set out to kill."

"I want them all dead."

"Exactly…you have no right to attack them when they have done nothing."

"They refused to join my army."

"Why are you so surprised?" Splinter asked. Shredder growled and pulled out a short dagger. He turned and hurled it in the direction of Leonardo with a surprising accuracy. Mikey, who had crept away from his Master and Shredder, cried out and threw himself at Leo. He knocked the stunned turtle out of the line of the dagger and the two of them tumbled along and Donnie and Raph caught their arms as they were about to fall into a massive roadwork hole. Pulling their brothers up, they hugged them fiercely.

    Meanwhile, Splinter was in a heated battle with Shredder and he eventually landed in front of them.

"We must leave. The battle is over, for tonight. Shredder left and we must return home. Come," he walked off. The five of them reached the lair and Mikey and Leo remained outside.

"You ok, bro?" Leo asked his brother.

"Yeah, what about you, dude?"

"I'm fine…but I wouldn't have been if it weren't for you…you saved my life, Mike." Leo smiled at his brother in orange and Mikey looked slightly embarrassed.

"It was nothing; least I could do…I let ya down last time…"

"No, you didn't…it wasn't your fault, no matter what you might think."

"Really? So you're not mad at me?"

"I was never mad at you! What gave you that idea?"

"I dunno…I guess I just got a bit paranoid after the incident at the warehouse."

"You got that right…come on…let's go inside."

"Yeah," Mikey and Leo headed inside.

  "You guys ok?" Donnie questioned.

"Yeah…"

"Never been better, dudes!" Mikey laughed, more relaxed than he had been in a long time. Leo was glad everything was sorted…now all they had to do was beat their enemy.

That alone would prove to be easier said than done, but they had to try…for the sake of so many people that Shredder would not hesitate to destroy. This included April and Casey, both of whom had reluctantly agreed to stay away from the turtles' lair until things were sorted; however long it may take.

"So then, dudes, what are we gonna do about the Shred-head?" Mikey asked, falling onto the sofa and crushing Donnie's feet in the process, causing him to yelp in pain.

"Well," Raph started, looking round at the three turtles around him, "we could always fake our own deaths…"

"Say what?" Mikey pretended to clean out his ears.

"Think about it; that way Shredder wouldn't come after us. Then we'd have time to form a real plan of action that could stop him once and for all."

"Why don't we make that plan now?" Mikey mumbled.

"Because it's only a matter of time before Shredder finds us anyway! We may as well try this plan; we have nothing to lose. What do you guys think?" he turned to Leo and Donnie as if pleading for some back-up on the matter.

"I think it's a good idea," Donnie whispered.

"Yeah, me too," nodded Leo.

"It is indeed a clever plan, Raphael. It might work but, if it does not, then you will be forced to fight Shredder in a larger battle than any of you could ever imagine." Splinter emerged from the shadows, "but we should give it a try. A warrior's greatest defence lies in his ability to think under extreme pressure. Never forget that, my sons."

"No, master Splinter," chorused all four turtles.

"So, how shall we do it?" Donnie asked after a moment's silence.

"That needs to be discussed in greater detail than we have time to do right now, Donatello. It will have to wait until tomorrow; you have had a very trying day. That is why…"

"Oh no," Mikey whispered to Donnie, who had to stifle laughter, "that means meditation!"

"Not necessarily, Michelangelo. It means that you should go and sleep now. But, as you and Donatello seemed to find something humorous about what I have said, you may take first watch. In two hours you must wake Raphael and Leonardo; we must always be alert." And, with that he disappeared back into the shadows and headed off towards his room. The four turtles looked at each other. Donnie and Mikey were looking hurt and fed-up while Leo and Raph grinned smugly at them.

"See ya in two hours, bro," Raph laughed.

"Yeah, but first we can go and sleep," Leo continued the joke.

"We're gonna throw a bucket of iced water on each of your heads to wake you up!" Mikey retorted while Donatello just laughed.

"Michelangelo! Donatello! Your watch has been extended to four hours! After that, the watches are changed every two hours!" Splinter's voice echoed through the lair.

"See you two in four!" Raph and Leo laughed as they left to sleep, leaving their two brothers fuming in the living room. Leo was exhausted and slept soundly. When it came to switch time, Splinter saw that they were all so tired that he would take the rest of the watches until their wake-up time of 7am. Leonardo, especially, needed the rest.

    The next morning, the turtles began to formulate a plan.

"We should jump off a cliff or something!" Mikey suggested.

"Yeah, that's a great idea!" Raph rolled his eyes sarcastically, "but how the shell are we supposed to save ourselves and not actually die?"

"Ummm…"

"Exactly, we need a plan that means we don't actually get hurt!" Raph snarled, getting agitated with the whole situation.

"What about a van crash? We could get April to crash the news-van and fake our deaths for us. We would be safe then and April and Casey would no longer be at risk because, if we're 'dead', then they can't be accused of hiding our secrets if we're no longer around to tell them our secrets!" Donnie pointed out to them.

"You know what, Don? I think that might just work!" Leo exclaimed, looking to Raph for his agreement.

"Yeah…good work, brainiac," he waved a hand dismissively. Donatello gave a knowing smile to Michelangelo, as they both knew that a compliment from Raph wasn't a regular thing without an insult attached to it at some point!

"We need to carry out the plan today, guys, or we will be putting Casey and April in even more danger. The Foot could attack us or them at any time," Leo looked round the room solemnly, knowing that what they were about to attempt would be dangerous and one of them may even get hurt…or worse.

    They met April and Casey at an organised location, rumoured to be the next striking place of Shredder and the Foot. Sure enough, less than five minutes after they arrived at the large, power station, Shredder and the Foot turned up, creeping through the alleys next to it. The turtles gave one last look at each other.

"This is it," Leo breathed, "good luck everyone…you know what to do!"

    The turtles landed in front of the Foot and a heated battle began. Raphael and Leonardo were fighting back to back, circling round and making sure no-one got past them. If anyone looked like they would get past, Mikey and Donnie would launch a surprise attack on them before springing back into their hiding place. Donnie looked towards the news-van and saw that April, Casey and Splinter were all safely inside. That was their signal. He called down to Leo and Raph.

"Guys, we're getting whipped…let's make a break for it!"

"You got it, Don!" Raph yelled back at him before tapping Leo on the shoulder and following him as he ran in completely the wrong direction (part of the plan) and let Shredder land centimetres from him. He and the others turned and ran towards the van, leaping in as it hurtled past. Donnie and Leo leapt into it first, followed closely by Raph and Mikey. The van began to swerve 'out of control' as the next stage of the plan was put into action.

    The van was heading straight for a building that had been abandoned for many years. The Foot observed the scene with growing interest and almost excitement. Shredder could see the van heading for disaster and decided to help it along the road to ruin. He grabbed a sword from one of the Foot soldiers and threw it with more precision than ever before. It pierced a tyre of the van, sending it careering off in a different direction. It was flung upside down and a large fire erupted from the front engine. April screamed and Casey bundled her out of the side facing away from Shredder and the Foot. Casey and Splinter were close behind April and they could see the fire spreading. They watched in horror, the fire reflecting in their eyes. They began to wonder where the turtles were and why they hadn't emerged from the burning vehicle yet. Just as they began to fear the worst, a voice came from behind them.

"Dudes, we can't just stay here…we need to leave and go into hiding before we're discovered."

"Where can we go?"

"What d'ya mean?" Mikey scoffed, as if it was some sort of game.

"What about my Grandmother's farm-house? We stayed there last time and no-one found us so I'm sure it would work again," Casey suggested brightly.

"Yeah, why not?!" Raph grinned at his brothers, all of whom seemed to like the idea…all except Leo, that is. The last time Leo was there, he had been unconscious and had spent Christmas badly wounded and close to death…not really much Christmas cheer in that!

"Why are you looking so glum, Leo?" Raph lightly punched his brother on the arm as they looked at the decrepit appearance of the farmhouse that stood before them

"Raph…" Leo's voice cracked.

"It's about that Christmas last year, ain't it?" Raph sighed, feeling only a fraction of the pain he knew Leo must be going through. Leo just nodded in answer to him.

"C'mon, Leo, we gotta stay here…we have no other choice. Anyway, you may not have heard me, but I promised back then that I would never let anything like that happen to you ever again."

"I never heard that."

"Nah…you were out cold, bro," Raph managed a shaky laugh.

"I don't think I can do this, Raph…not after last time…it brings back too many memories…"

"You'll be fine; if anyone tries to lay a single finger on you, intending to harm you, then they'll have me to answer to…and I won't be happy!" Raph put an arm round his brother and the walked up to the house.

"Thanks, Raph. I wouldn't be able to do this without you…" Leo shivered with the cold but felt warmer inside than he had in a long time.

"It's ok, bro…just don't get all soppy on me…'k?"

"Yeah, sure Raph," Leo gave him a light punch, "But you gotta promise the same thing!"

"Sure, whatever."

"Guys, are you coming?" Mikey called down to them from the door of the farmhouse. Raph and Leo walked up to the farmhouse, taking in all the details of its appearance.

   That evening, the turtles, Casey and April sat in a circle with Splinter in the middle. He was telling them of their next move. They would need to get hold of a television and Casey would need to be the one to do it as he knew where the old one his Grandmother had owned was. It needed repairing but Donatello agreed to do it. The report would be on first thing in the morning and they would need the T.V. up and running by then.

"Casey," Splinter turned to the man, "you must find the television now. We will need to get it sorted before we sleep tonight so we can all be up bright and early for the report."

"I'll go get it," Casey waved a hand and walked out of the room with Donatello close behind him.

"So, this is the T.V."

"Yeah, I can see that…"

"Can you fix it?"

"I'll have a look," Donnie examined the machine thoroughly and began work on it with Casey watching over his shoulder and offering help where he could.

   Three hours later, they were finished. It was nine o'clock when the re-joined the others in the sitting room. Switching on the telly, they gathered round to check it worked. It worked perfectly and Mikey clapped Donnie on the back, claiming that he wouldn't have lasted without the T.V. Raph and Leo were arguing over what to watch when Splinter sent them to separate rooms.

"Raphael, you will be sharing a room with Casey and Donatello. April is in a room of her own, as am I. Michelangelo will share with Leonardo as I fear you will irritate Raphael and it would be disastrous to make Leonardo and Raphael share!"

"No problem, Master Splinter. I'm gonna go and add some…homely touches to the room. And don't worry; I won't destroy the rooms!"

"Good."

"I feel sorry for Leo!" Casey whispered to Donnie, who snorted with laughter.

"You should feel more sorry for us…we're with Raph!" Donnie replied.

"Nah…I can fight him…"

"And Leo can't?" Donnie raised an eyebrow.

"I never said that! But I don't get sent to my room for fighting him…Raph will get in trouble; not me!" Casey winked.

"Good point."

    "Hey, Leo, I've just come to make this room my own."

"Really?"

"Yeah, that ok with you?"

"Fine…just don't make it too messy or Master Splinter will be onto us and we'll be in so much trouble…and I'm in trouble already!"

"Your own stupid fault; you didn't have to argue with him!"

"I know, but we just argue for no reason and can't stop. It's not like I want to argue with him, but I just can't help it." Leo put his head in his hands and Mikey sat down on the bed next to Leo's so he was facing his brother. He put on his thinking face, sticking his tongue out of the side of his mouth and scratching his head. Leo looked up at his brother in amusement. Mikey didn't mean to be funny; he just was. Leo smiled, despite the situation with Raph. Leo needed to sort things out before the plan moved any further.

A/N: -Thanks for reading…now I'm going to do the pleading author thing and say PLEASE REVIEW! I'm hoping to start up my own home page soon so I'll let you know when I've done it…thanks again. Love ya all; Dory's Human Replica, signing out…phew!