A/N: - Here is the next chapter – the long-sought after apology from Raph to Leo! The shout-outs are at the end, and now I leave you to read and review.
"Leo?" Donnie approached his brother shortly after Raph left the room, "You…you ok?"
"Yeah, I'm fine – come on, me and Raph are always fighting."
"He went really out of line this time though," Mikey piped up, "what he said was really unfair!"
"Maybe…maybe not…" Leo replied absent-mindedly, "I should go after him."
"Not this time, Leo," Don stepped in front.
"Yeah, dude, this time he can come back here." Mikey agreed.
"You have to let him apologise to you for once."
"How can we be sure he'll come?" Leo sighed.
"Uh, guys…?" Raph peered round the door and then strode into the room and stopped in front of Leo.
"You're back sooner than usual." Leo remarked icily.
"I met Master Splinter and he pointed a few things out for me…and I'm here to…uh…apologise to…you…" he stuttered over the words.
"Because he told you to,"
"No, because he made me realise that what I said was wrong and I shouldn't have taken it that far."
"Really?" Leo finally made eye contact with his brother, his gaze penetrating Raph's soul and searching it for any signs of a lie.
"I'm sorry, bro…I was wrong to say what I did," Raph scuffed at the floor; Leonardo was going to milk this out for all it was worth.
"Catch me; I think I'm gonna faint!" Mikey joked to Donnie under his breath, "Raph actually admitted that he was wrong – whoa, what alternate reality are we living in?"
"Next thing you know, Leo's going to tell Raph that he had realised how bossy and paranoid he can be at times!" Donnie laughed in return. Mikey's face went deadly serious, although a sparkle in his eyes said he was joking,
"Nah, I wouldn't take it that far…" he made tutting noises and shook his head solemnly.
"So, we're ok?" Raph asked, worried at what Splinter would say if he had to tell him that Leo had not accepted the apology – and, more to the point, he was beginning to wonder if he could keep his temper if his brother answered negatively to this question. There was a long pause and all eyes were fixed on Leo; even Mikey and Don stopped their joking around.
"Yeah, we're ok," Leo answered eventually. Donnie and Mikey let out a long sigh of relief and exchanged small smiles with each other. Raph nodded silently and walked off, leaving Leo staring after him.
"What are you doing out here?" Leo asked as he joined his hot-headed brother on the rooftop.
"Nothing – getting some time to myself," Raph paused, "you do it too!"
"I never said I didn't. I just asked what you were doing, that's all."
"If you must know, I was trying to think of a way to trick the Shredder's brothers into thinking they've killed us when actually they haven't…do you see what I mean?"
"Bro…" Leo started, almost smiling.
"What?"
"Leave the fancy plans to me. We tried that trick with the Shredder, remember, and it won't keep us safe for ever. We'll talk to them tomorrow and see if we can come to an agreement."
"Fine; but I just wanted to buy us some time." Raph scowled.
"I know – but buying time isn't enough any more. We can't run forever. Look where running got us last time! We were too tired to continue; our bodies and minds were weary and we couldn't muster the strength to effectively defeat Shredder without…consequences…" Leo sighed.
"You sound like Master Splinter," Raph muttered.
"That's not always a bad thing, bro. It has to be better than taking on Marcie's type of attitude!"
"Hey," a voice said behind the two turtles, "Donnie and I were wondering if we could join you…"
"Sure," Leo replied, as Donnie sat down next to him while Mikey walked over and sat the other side of Raph.
"Hey, goofball," Raph greeted his youngest brother.
"I'm not a goofball!" Mikey protested but, seeing the look on his three brothers' faces, shrugged, "oh well, better than acting like a bad-tempered old woman," he grinned smugly.
"Ooh, you're asking for it now!" Raph grabbed his brother in a headlock and gave him a bap round the head.
"Ow! What was that for? I wasn't just talking about you!"
"Yeah, well I was included!" Raph released his brother and looked out across New York City, lit up as it always was at night time.
"Do you think we'll ever be able to just enjoy life for what it is?" Donnie suddenly piped up.
"I don't know," Leo chose to reply, "I guess if we get rid of Marcie and the Shredder's brothers then maybe. But we never seem to get a break, so we're permanently running the risk of something else coming up and wreaking havoc."
"Yeah, dudes, I mean, we haven't exactly had a normal life, have we?"
"Come on, Mikey – when you're a mutant turtle then you know life ain't never gonna be simple. We're always going to be hunted – the Shredder was too widely known and supported."
"Raph's right," Donnie cut his red-clad brother off, "we'll never truly escape from the Shredder's evil clutches: he's played far too big a part in our lives. If it weren't for him and Baxter Stockman then we would never have met April. If it wasn't for Hun and the Purple Dragons then we wouldn't have met Casey. Sensei would never have avenged his Master Yoshi's death – the list goes on,"
"And he's killed so many innocent people – and changed them too," Mikey grimaced.
"Yeah," Donnie continued once more, "Look at Baxter Stockman. He was a genius, an incredibly talented scientist, until the Shredder manipulated him and bribed him with rewards he was never going to hand out."
"Not to mention all the Foot ninjas – some of them can't have been that much older than us, can they? I mean, if their fathers were Foot before them so they were trained early or something – dude, does that make sense?"
"Perfect sense, Mikey, although I don't really like to think of how many people's lives he's had an impact on, and barely any of it good. The only person who ever benefited from him was Karai." Donnie scratched his head, bewildered by how many examples of the Shredder's handiwork and influence he could think of.
"And don't forget Master Splinter. Master Yoshi was killed by the Shredder and our Sensei was left scavenging for leftovers. And Master Yoshi was killed for being honourable and daring to stand against the Shredder when very few others did, and he died for it. That was almost our fate…" Raph trailed off.
"Gives me the shivers," Leo shuddered involuntarily, "I'm never going to forget him. Every moment we spent suffering by his hands is etched so deeply into my memory that I don't think it will ever erase itself."
"But he is a part of your history, my sons," Splinter was standing directly behind Mikey, having arrived in the true stealthy fashion of the ninja, "You cannot simple change the past – that is impossible. However, you can learn from the mistakes and wounds of the past. You cannot remove the scars, but you can use them to serve as reminders of what has been and gone and what you have survived. This is one of the most important, and one of the hardest, lessons you will ever have to learn," Splinter put a hand on Mikey's head and looked fondly at his four sons, who were all staring back at him, wide-eyed as the carefree children they once were, before experiencing situations meant only for those far older, "and I think you have finally learnt it."
The next morning arrived; the rain was falling, spattering noisily on the ground. Wind howled and whistled through the trees and the clouds were leaden, heavy with the rain that heralded the doom of at least one of the three groups who would be involved in the day's fight. The sky was blackened, and every second seemed to last a lifetime – an eternity longer than it should have lasted. Standing alone on the rooftop, watching for signs of Marcie and whatever forces would accompany her, was Ramakha.
"We shall be ready," he whispered as he caught sight of Marcie's glinting armour, an exact replica of what Shredder had worn into battle, "you will face us in combat, and we will be ready…"
"Ramakha," Roshiri's voice was harsh, the rain masking it out for the most part so it was barely more than a muffled whisper that reached Ramakha's ears. Whirling round to face him, hair whipping his face as it was blown about by the wind; he smiled wanly at his brother, who continued, "What have you seen?"
"Our enemy is fast approaching."
"What forces does she have?"
"Hun, her family – the men of it, at least – and other warriors who I do not recognise. I do not think we have had dealings with them before."
"Then it starts now." Roshiri lowered his gaze to the floor, "today we shall have our fate, and that of our allies, decided."
"You guys ready?" Raph asked the human brothers.
"As ready as we are ever going to be," Ronald replied solemnly, receiving a small smile from the red-clad turtle.
"Where's Casey?" Mikey suddenly piped up as he followed his brothers to stand just outside the entrance to the Foot Headquarters.
"Still trying to convince April that she should stay out of this: he's telling her that we'll need her to patch up any of us that are wounded."
"You think she'll stay?"
"Well, it took a while, but yeah, I have convinced her," Casey arrived at the scene, already looking exhausted.
"She has been shown where the medicines and supplies are, I presume?" Reginald inquired, as Marcie and her forces were spotted at the base of the Foot HQ.
"She knows where everything is…so I guess this is it," Casey took a long, slow breath and exhaled deeply, trying to calm himself a little.
"They must first get past our traps. If they do so, then we shall fight them---"
"I shall claim the life of Hun," snarled Ramakha, his face worn, the lines on it seemed to be deeply etched in as a reminder of the torment and the memories, "none other shall have that honour."
"Of course, my brother," Roshiri placed a hand on his brother's shoulder and nodded to the watching Leonardo, who bowed in return before stepping forward to him.
"After this battle is over, we once more shall become bitter enemies. But I would have you know, that should you need our alliance, our aid in future battles – then you should perhaps reconsider our bargain. If not, then it has been an honour, truly, to fight alongside you. And we can only ask one favour…"
"And what is that?" Ronald raised an eyebrow suspicious.
"That should I or one of my family members die in this battle, you will allow sufficient mourning time before you pursue the remains of the family. For surely that is the honourable thing to do," Leo was keeping direct eye-contact with Roshiri, who stared directly back at him.
"We shall allow mourning time – the amount of time will be determined on how many are killed," Roshiri paused as Ramakha stepped forward until he was only inches from Leonardo.
"Should more than one of you die then our vendetta will be lifted…you shall go free. For I too know the pain of losing a family; I would not wish that torture on anyone. Do we have an agreement?" he held out his hand.
"We have an agreement." Leo took Ramakha's hand and their eyes met, both determined and with their honour burning deeply within them; and there was a brief moment of true understanding. They broke the handshake and turned back to face where Marcie's forces had encountered the first of the traps. She made it past the spikes, nets and pits with no problem; their last defence was the boulder. Pushing with all their might, Ronald, Donnie, Casey and Raph rolled it down the path. Hun stood in front of Marcie and the other fighters and braced himself. Marcie and the others fled back down the path as the boulder rammed into Hun. He skidded back down the path, slowing the boulder as it tried to continue its destructive rampage. But Hun managed to turn it and it was flung off the edge of the wall. The enemy began running up the hill again, and the turtles, humans and rat readied themselves for battle. The last Marcie would ever fight in, if they achieved the victory they so sorely desired.
A/N: - Ok, here are the shout-outs!
Lioness-Goddess: - Low being an understatement – and you will find out what the brothers do…eventually! Oh, and you will hate the end of the next chappie!
Spootycup: - Raph apologising – there ya go…it happened! I'm glad you like this!
Chibi Rose Angel: - Thank you so much for more kind words – I really appreciate the boost! The boys will be through shell and back and the next chapter will be the worst cliffy so far – but I'll say no more.
BubblyShell22: - Thanks for your review, and there will be a lot more episode references – when they've finished showing the latest series here in England!
Donny's Girl: - I'm so glad you luv the ficcy! And I don't think Raph will slit Leo's throat yet – but who knows what the future holds?
BlueRaven: - Lol, that's a good image – heh heh, I wouldn't kill them…this early…
