Disclaimer: The Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles belong to Mirage Studios, Peter A. Laird, and Kevin B. Eastman. I use them without permission, and without monetary profit.

Chapter Fourteen:

Chassidy tried to hold her head up as she walked along the street on her way to the phone booth. She felt like she should be slinking. Her fear of being attacked by people was stronger than normal. Her friends' enemies were ninja too, so how would she know if they were hiding like her friends were?

However, Splinter impressed upon her the need to look casual and normal. If she ran to the phone booth like she wanted to, not only would the Foot notice, but everyone else. They'd know something was happening.

So she concentrated on putting on foot in front of the other instead, that and keep her face from showing the abject fear that was boiling in her chest.

Of course her fingers were shaking so it took her a few tries to get the quarters into the pay phone. Frustrated with how long everything was taking and how vulnerable it made her feel she quickly dialed the police station.

"Um, h-hello. There is a large group of people at the old abandoned NAMR building outside of town. I don't know what they're doing, exactly, but they're on government property, and I don't think they're paying rent."

Chassidy hung up on the officer who was trying to get her to identify herself. Shivering so hard it took two hands to put the phone back into it's cradle, she turned around and made her way back to the safety of the shadow-ridden alleyway she'd come from.

Just as she slipped into the cool sanctuary of the shadows Splinter appeared before her and she flinched.

"I do not know if they will believe us, so we will continue to monitor and call them until they go."

Chassidy nodded silently. Splinter's whiskers twitched in what she was learning was his version of amusement.

"It is wise to know human's rules. Not only does it allow us to live undisturbed, but also it provides us a silent weapon. Come, let us return to our den and wait."

Silently the turtles emerged from the deeper shadows and crowded behind Chassidy as Splinter led the way back to their den.

It took a week before the police decided to send someone out to investigate the NAMR building. They figured it was a wronged person trying to get even with the group of people who were in the building but compared to guns, drugs, and gangs, a bunch of squatters wasn't a top-of-the-list matter.

When they realized the group of squatters was The Foot – who, though much diluted, was still a crime ring – they called for back up and shooed them off of the premises with lots of pomp and circumstance.

Which then left the newly vacant building free for the turtles to investigate without the need of a fight.

Of course Raphael didn't like this turn of events. So he begged off research-duty by disappearing completely. He was around, he just didn't let his brothers or master Splinter see him and therefore demand his extra pair of hands and eyes.

Chassidy saw him, though only in glimpses. Either it was from the fact that he just didn't care if she saw him or his knowledge that she wouldn't tattle on him anyway. It gave her a feeling of holding an important secret and she kept it to herself guardedly, hoping the angry turtle would like her more for it. Or at least not think of her as a burden to him and his family.

Each morning as Chassidy got ready to spend the day looking for work the turtles had a meeting in the 'dojo' to discuss everything Donatello and Leonardo had discovered while she was sleeping. Michaelangelo stayed behind with her so he could escort her to and from her job search and make sure she didn't get lost.

She still got lost in the sewers, but she was starting to recognize the way. Every now and again Mikey would ask her to lead, but it didn't last long and she always ended up going in the wrong direction, knowing he was watching her, expectant.

So far the only thing Don and Leo had found out was there were definitely some experiments of biological nature performed in that building. However, before abandoning the building the scientists had destroyed all of the damaging information. Either that or they took it with them. All the stuff they left behind were suspicious enough to hint, but never said anything concrete.

It was driving Donatello insane. So insane he started to think Raphael's idea of going to Canada wasn't that bad an idea.

"Nothing!" Donatello screamed. He threw the reams of paper they'd collected as far away from him as he could. However, as paper normally does it only went a foot before flying apart and wafting lazily to the ground.

"How could something so monumental just disappear? How come there are no lose ends? Where is the smoking gun? The spend bullet rounds? The body? The bloody clothes? There's only that tiny speck of blood on the ceiling that screams something happened."

Donatello flopped down on his cot with an explosive creak. The metal was rusted horribly and he half expected it to give under his weight any day now. Pressing the heels of his palms into his eye sockets until the pain made him stop, Donatello tried to keep himself from actually crying in frustration.

"I know there are other mutants out there. I just… need to find their trail. There's no way they stayed put after the government disbanded them. But there are no bodies that say they were destroyed along with the information. No ashes, no bone fragments, no nothing. It's like… they were never created in the first place."

Donatello's throat worked out a nervous giggle. "What if it's all in my head? What if this is just me wanting to find out we are more than a mistake? What if we are a mistake?. What if the whole reason why we exist is a fluke? Whoops! Four mutant turtles and a mutant rat! Sorry! We weren't the only animals that were crawling around in the sewers at the time were we? What happened to the ooze that was there? Did the sewer water wash it away? And if it was washed away, did it dilute it enough to not mutate anything else? And were the filters that clean that sewage enough to break down the mutagen so nothing else mutated when it came in contact with it – or no human mutated when they drank the water, or bathed in it?"

Sighing heavily Donny flopped onto his side, suddenly horribly tired. "Nevermind. Forget it, Don. Wild goose chase."

As Donatello slept, he dreamed of a quest – a quest to gather up as many geese as he possibly could, but they kept biting his fingers and hissing at him with evil red eyes.

Raphael dusted his hands off and surveyed his new domain. It wasn't stylish, but he wasn't one to care about the drapes complimenting the carpet that complimented the furniture. He had enough to get by. Plenty of surfaces to put candles, a new sound system – it was amazing that it got thrown away at all since it was in such good condition – a new bed, and a whole new wardrobe. He'd changed his style even, since the old clothing style reminded him of Jackie.

Other than that the room was pretty bare. But if he continued to browse the dump over the next year or so he'd be able to add more stuff: maybe another recliner, a second mattress for comfort, and maybe even a table and a chair or two.

He hadn't been that successful in staying away from her, though. Because his home was no longer a sanctuary away from her, roaming the streets was a sanctuary away from his family. And his feet still knew the route to her apartment when he wasn't careful. If he didn't pay attention to where he was he'd always come out of his fog right in front of her complex. And once there, curiosity had him peeking in her windows like a creepy stalker.

But he was too curious to care. He just wanted to know if she was okay, how she was getting on. Make sure she wasn't getting her pretty little nose into trouble.

Sometimes she was there, sometimes she wasn't. But the handful of times he'd caught her there, he'd watched her for at least three hours or until she left. He'd gaze at her like the love sick puppy he still was, no matter how much he hated himself for it afterwards. He was weak. He was pitiful. But he couldn't help his obsession.

And he knew it was an obsession. And unhealthy one, no matter how much he kept it under control. He should just sever all ties with her and be done with it, but his heart wasn't something he'd ever been able to control and it wanted to see her. To just look at her. She wasn't his anymore, but it was enough to see that she was okay, happy.

The last time he'd gone there, he'd seen a guy with her. They didn't do anything, but that was mainly because he left before he saw anything more than just talking. His heart couldn't take it. Plus he had no right to protect her. She didn't want him, she wanted freedom, and he'd give her that. Even though he went back to his room to mope about it.

Chassidy had spotted him a couple of times when he wasn't that careful about sneaking around in the lair.

She must have seen he was as lost and lonely as she was, because despite the fact that she'd seen him and she had plenty of opportunity, she hadn't tattled. It made him like her a lot more. Not that he was going to say it to her face. Hah.

Love sucked. It never made any sense and for all the goodness you experienced, you got badness ten fold afterwards.

He needed to get out of this town – away from her for a while. Whether Leo or Splinter liked it or not, the teasing possibility of Canada was something he considered more and more seriously as the days passed. If they told him no, he'd sneak off and do it anyway.

Besides, they'd have to eat their words and kiss up to him when he came back if he found out all the answers to the questions NAMR had been to them. Raph was looking forward to that.

If things worked out that way. But until he went up there, they'd never know. And he wasn't going to let his master and brother stamp out a possibility. You never really live life if you hide away from all the threats.

And if Raph was anything he was a temperamental bastard who really lived life.

"Find a job yet?" Mikey asked as he slid down onto the sofa to sit beside Chassidy who was reading a book on ninjas she'd gotten from the library.

"Yeah, sorta. There's a secretary job I might get. If not, the nearby grocery store is hiring and, hey, I might get free groceries or something like that."

Michaelangelo nodded.

Chassidy put her finger in the book to mark her page and glanced up at the mutant turtle that had given her so much attention this past month. He said he liked her, but that meant that there was something about her to like. Right now she didn't like herself, so she couldn't understand why.

"You moving in with your friend soon?"

Chassidy bobbed her head a couple of times. "Yeah, Stephanie and Lizzie are getting their apartment ready. As soon as I know whether I'm going to be a secretary or a grocer, I'll move in."

Mikey's hand shifted in his lap, and then after tapping a finger on his thigh a couple of times, it slowly trekked its way to Chassidy's hand.

Chassidy closed her eyes at the feel of his callused palm skimming over the back of her hand. His thick fingers were so foreign, but they were soft and gentle; as if he was afraid she'd flinch away from him.

"Am I ever going to see you again?"

Silence ruled the den for a long time while Chassidy considered his question, her future, her plans.

"I don't know. Do you want to see me again?"

"Yes!" Mikey exploded, turning his head to stare at her. She opened her eyes and turned her face towards him.

"Why?"

Mikey's hand fidgeted against hers. "I like you. I don't want you to just disappear. I want to be your friend. Forever."

Chassidy blinked several times. "People don't stay friends forever. They lose contact; they change so much they're not the same people anymore, they lose interest."

"I'm different. I keep my friends. Forever. Or, I will. Keep my friends, that is. Forever." Mikey's hand was trembling now, against hers. She marveled that he was so nervous.

Chassidy had been keeping her hand limp in his grip. Because it was so obvious he needed some reassuring she squeezed his hand, and a warm smile lit up his face. She smiled back, cautiously.

"I don't believe you, but you can try to prove me wrong." She whispered and Mikey nodded eagerly.

"I will. Just watch me."