It had been a close to a week since New York had been free from the Kraang Invasion and the city was beginning to pick itself back up.

The police were working around the clock helping in repairs, working traffic, providing food and shelter for those whose homes were destroyed, as well as their normal paying jobs.

The Mighty Mutanimals left with Mr. Kirtsman to find a new place to call home now that all the people were free but they said they'd still keep in touch once things were back to normal.

Dragan had left a day ago to keep the promise she made them once the invasion was over with.

The guys and Master Splinter left the hideout and went back to their home to start cleaning up and making livable once more.

That just left one thing.

Kara stood in the middle of her home staring at the damage that had been done. Her hair was pulled back with a tied bandana, she wore a black tank top with blue jean shorts and slip on sneakers.

Closing her eyes and taking a deep breath to calm herself she bent down and picked up a broom and dust pan. "It's clean up time. Haaaa!" She yelled to pump herself up as she turned on her music player and immediately began to clean.

An hour and a half later she had finished with the living room and walkway to the front door. Wiping the sweat off her forehead she figured a break was to be had. Dropping down on the couch she closed her eyes to relax but blinked when she heard the door open.

Poking her head up she smiled in relief seeing Dragan had returned. "How did it go? Did you find everyone?"

Dragan looked just as tired as she was but she gave her a grin and nod. "It didn't help that thay were scattered everywhere but yeah, I did um...here." Dragan walked over to her and gave her a small paper slip. "This is from Jessica. She said when ye are ready tae talk ye can meet her here. It's her temporary address until the city gets back on it's feet."

Kara took the slip from her and pocketed it. "Thanks, Dre.."

Dragan sat down next to her. "Do ya want tae talk aboot it?"

Kara leaned forward rubbing the bridge of her nose with a sigh. "What can I say to her? She has every right to be angry with me. Out of everyone my family had picked to take care of me she and I were the closest. She should of been the first one to know but of course...things got out of hand." She hung her head low with her hands around the back of her neck, having a sudden bad feeling as she spoke about it.

"Aw ye can dae is tell her the truth. I'm sure she'll understand. I mean, your family an Mrs. Christine have been very understanding an seem tae hae grown a liking for them. Just be honest an I'm sure she'll come around too." Dragan placed her hand on her shoulder giving her a soft smile.

Kara lifted her head up to glance at her, a small smile on her face, and let out another sigh. "I suppose you're right. I'll have to take care of that later but for now we clean." She stood up a grin now on her face as she handed Dragan a bucket and cloth.

"...Ring-Ring. Oh, that must be Leo calling! I shuid go see what he wants. Tah-tah!" Dragan turned to head out the door but froze when she felt Kara's arm grab her shoulder, gripping it tightly to keep her in place.

"You live here. You help clean."

Dragan could feel Kara's crazed smile on her and she began to silently weep.

It was a couple hours later that they had successfully cleaned their home.

"Can we...tak a break now?" Dragan asked sprawled out on the floor in the living room, coughing up some dust.

"Only if it doesn't involve moving..at all." Kara muttered into the couch cushion, laying flat with her right side dangling off the side of the couch.

"Ooch, I'm so hungry..sorry for taking aw your food, by the wye...an your blankets..an some o' your clothes. Wow, we took a lot.."

"It's fine. It's not like those things can't be bought again..plus I've been noticing something..I've been wearing the same outfit for..a very long while..I feel the urge to shower now.." Kara groaned as she rolled herself off the couch. "I'm stuck." She said with a mouthful of couch.

"Help is on the wye..in aboot five minutes."

~~Later~~

Scrounging up an outfit from the clothes that weren't taken Kara looked at herself in her dresser mirror and sighed.

Wearing a white tank top, purple sweatshirt with hoodie and skull designs around the chest and stomach area, sleeves rolled up to her elbows, blue jean shorts, and brown hiking boots.

She couldn't help but chuckle at herself. "Odd..can't believe this wasn't taken.."

"What wasn't?" Dragan asked curiously holding a medium sized box to her stomach in one hand, her other on the door from when she knocked, accidentally opening the door.

Kara turned around and held her arms out to show the outfit. "This. It was the outfit I wore when I first came here. Feels like forever ago. All it's missing is my cap..guess that was taken too." Kara turned around to give herself one more look but blink when Dragan walked up beside her holding out the box.

"Nope. When we came here I made sure no one grabbed anything that thay didnae need. Just in case I uh..hid it for safe keeping. Here."

Kara took the box and set it down to open seeing her cap that was given to her on her birthday with the ring Donnie gave her on Valentine's Day. "You..you kept these safe for me?"

Dragan nodded and pulled out a chain from the bottom of the box. "I know these are your treasures an ya want to keep them safe but after the invasion ya never know when you'll see them again." Dragan didn't want to tell her what to do with her belongings but hoped she'd figure out what she meant. Giving her a small pat on the shoulder, she got up and left.

Kara watched her leave then stared down at her belongings for a moment as Dragan's words echoed in her brain. Giving herself a firm nod she picked up the cap and placed it right on her head, adjusting it comfortably as she felt her bangs press down against her face in a familiar, nostalgic feeling.

She stared down at the ring knowing she wouldn't be able to wear it due to her gloves but grinned when she saw the chain dangling off the side of the box. "Sneaky lil' devil." She chuckled before slipping the chain through the finger hole of the ring and placed it securely around her neck.

Walking out of her room to meet Dragan she gave her a hug a bright, beaming smile on her face. "Come on, let's go check up on the guys. "

Dragan noticing the changes in her nodded in agreement. "O' course."

When they arrived at the lair they were both surprised at how clean it was looking.

"Wow, not too shabby." Kara looked over at the large pile of garbage bags and Kraang parts.

"Ohhh maan. Need a break." Raph groaned sitting down on the couch.

"No doubt. Cleaning up is way harder than training." Leo stopped what he was doing to lean against the couch besides Raph.

"Hey guys. The place is looking good as new." Dragan smiled sitting down next to Leo.

"Yeah, makes me wonder if I should have you guys clean my place as well." Kara grinned jokingly but when Mikey started zooming from one place to the other as if searching for something she became confused.

Mikey let out a very dramatic, "Noooo!" that is, until Donnie smacked his face with the end of the broom to shut him up.

"What're you looking for, Mikey?" Donnie stared down at Mikey.

"The TV remote, duh! Where are youuuuu!" Mikey crawled on his hands and knees while weeping still searching for it.

Seeing Donnie gathering a large pile of dirt and bits of gravel Kara grabbed a dustpan and set it down for him.

"Oh thanks, Kara." He smiled her way but blinked when he noticed something different about her. "Woah, Kara, you're..."

"Wearing the cap? Yeah." Kara grabbed the sides of it while blushing softly.

"You look just as beautiful as when we first met. I mean, when you woke up after being knocked out by the Kraang and all..heh." Donnie smiled leaning against the broom trying to act cool and smooth only made her giggle.

"Got a text from Casey." Raph held up his phone reading the message. "Oh no, he's on some kind of crazy mission. I gotta go handle this." Raph got up and left for the entrance.

"Want some help?" Leo asked watching him leave.

"Nah. I'm sure it's nothing to worry about."

"No. It's gone forever. Farewell sweet TV controlling device. You made our lives so much better."

While Mikey was having some sort of funeral session for the remote Dragan looked up at the TV noticing a familiar item. "Uh..Mikey? I think the remote is on the-"

"Wait, here it is!" Mikey snatched it from the top of the TV and turned it on just in time for Crognar to air.

"Happy tae help." Dragan muttered while rolling her eyes.

Kara was leaning against the couch playing with the ring coming up with different scenarios of how it'll go speaking with Jessica. Half of them weren't so good but she couldn't postpone this forever.

With a sigh she stood up and made her way for the exit without speaking a word. Luckily, the guys were distracted by the show to even notice her leaving all except Dragan, of course.

Staring down in confusion at the piece of paper given to her by Dragan she slowly lifted her head up at a rundown motel with a neon sign that half was out and the other half blinking constantly.

"This can't be right..." She glanced between the paper and the address itself. She, indeed, was at the right address. Searching for the right room number she stood right in front of the door. "It's now or never.." Taking in a deep breath she pocketed the paper and knocked on the door.

~~At the Lair~~

Dragan stared up at the ceiling in boredom as they watched their show. Having enough of it she got up and wandered around seeing if there was anything else that needed cleaning, anything to get her mind off the boredom.

It wasn't til she almost passed Leo's room that her boredom grew to curiosity. She glanced towards the guys way making sure they were still occupied before entering.

She was surprised at how well kept his room was. It was more clean and organized than she expected. "Huh, guess I shuid o' expected this.." She moved further inside to get a better look when she noticed a single frame on the opposite side of the room and made her way towards it.

"You've got tae be kidding me.." She laughed to herself as she pulled the frame off the wall to see a comic book still in it's original packaging inside the frame.

"You might want to be careful with that." A voice said from behind her making her freeze, holding the frame to her chest.

Leo walked over and gently took it from her. "It's uh a collector's item. One of my prized possessions." He cleared his throat some before putting it back on the wall.

"It's that special, huh?" Dragan leaned against the wall with her arms crossed.

"Not only is it the very first issue but it was signed by Captain Ryan himself! It's amazing what people would throw away!"

Dragan watched him talk about it and couldn't help but smile before surprising him with a hug. "Oh, I've missed ya, Leo." She said with a giggle then a soft sigh.

He blinked down at her, cheeks turning red, but wrapped his arms around her with a gentle squeeze "I missed you too, Dragan."

She looked up at him feeling his arm move to her face, his hand gently stroking her cheek, their faces inching closer together til their lips greeted one another in a kiss. Closing her eyes she moved her arms from his waist to around his neck and pulled him close to deepen the kiss.

Feeling Leo tense up she stopped what she was doing and stared at him making sure she wasn't putting him on the spot but only giggled when she saw his face red as a tomato. She leaned forward and gave him a peck on the cheek but looked at him in confusion as he gently grabbed her face and tilted it slightly to the side and locked lips with her once more.

Dragan almost melted right on the spot as she put her arms around his neck to keep her legs from falling under her while they kissed. Feeling Leo begin to move she followed his lead not paying attention to where he was taking her til she felt her back hit the wall. She felt this moment could last forever just being with Leo like this, but of course, good things must come to an end.

Hearing Raph shouting to himself they both knew he was back.

Leo pulled away and stared at him, holding her face in his hands. "Let's go see what he's yelling about."

Dragan pouted having her hands over his. "Dae we hae tae?"

Leo chuckled and gave her a peck on the lips. "Come on."

Dragan grumbled the whole way seeing Raph entering Donnie's lab.

"Whatcha got there, Raph?" Leo asked as Raph dropped the heavy case on Donnie's table.

Dragan opened the case while Raph explained what had happened to see three containers of some sort of chemical. She took one out and handed it to Donnie so he could inspect it.

"Are you crazy? You let Casey go out on his own?!" Leo shouted to Raph.

"Let him? What was I suppose to do? Chain him to a wall? I told him not to go!" Raph said to Leo slamming his hand down on the table hard enough to cause the opened chemical Donnie was working on the shake.

"Ah! For real?!" Donnie said to them, the chemical safe and secure between his hands.

"My bad."

"Sorry, Donnie." Leo and Raph apologized to him as he held it up.

"Well, I'm stumped. I have no idea what this chemical is. It's not mutagen based. Maybe it is an explosive. The thing is we've seen Stockman's lab but he doesn't have the equipment to synthesize these chemicals, only mutagen."

"What kind of place would have equipment like that?" Mikey walked into view shoving his face with a cheesy snack, the area around his mouth completely covered in cheese powder.

"Don't talk with your mouthful! And eating Chee-Z Balls? Do you know what's in that?" Leo looked down at his little brother in disgusted at not only what he was eating; but how messy he was eating it.

"You're NOW questioning what he eats? He's like a garbage disposal."

"It's all natural, brah!" Mikey shouted while spitting crumbs of food out while he listed the ingredients.

"Hate tae break it tae ya, sweetie, but thae does nae sound natural at all." Dragan crossed her arms while Donnie took the container from Mikey as he looked over the ingredients.

"It's not all natural, Mikey. In fact, it's probably slightly radioactive.."

Mikey was downing two containers of Chee-Z Balls while Donnie spoke.

Dragan leaned over to Donnie just as Leo took one from Mikey. "I don't think he heard ya." She giggled standing back up.

"Hmm..manufactured by Auman Chemicals, New York. Wait a second, that place is in Chinatown, right?"

Donnie turned to his computer and typed in the name. "It is. It's the biggest chemical manufacturer in the city."

"If it's in Chinatown that means it's controlled by the Purple Dragons, right?" Raph questioned t Donnie.

"Chee-Z Balls for the win! Hah-hah!" Mikey shouted throwing what was left of his snack everywhere, most of it getting in Dragan's hair.

"Really?" She asked as she began pulling them out before they were to get entangled and lost forever.

"Let's get going then." Leo ordered.

"Wait, where's Kara? I hadn't seen her since Raph returned." Donnie got up grabbing his weapon while looking around.

"She...she had something important tae tak care o'. I'll let her know where we're going so she can meet us thare once she's finished." Dragan brought the T-Phone Donnie made her til she were to buy herself a new one and began texting Kara.

"What could she be doing that's so important?" Raph asked crossing his arms over his plastron.

"It's nae my business tae tell. Thare, it's sent. Let's hurry up before Casey gets in worse trouble." She put away the T-Phone and they all left the lair.

~~At the Factory~~

"Everything you need, Master Shredder, from mixing vents, extrusion machines, bottling facilities, you name it." Hun showed Shredder, TigerClaw, Rahzaar, and Fishface around the factory.

"You've done well to bring this factory to my attention, Hun. It will be..adequate for my plans."

"I have one request." Hun turned to face Shredder. "Since this factory is on Dragon territory perhaps I should be in charge."

"So be it. Success is to be rewarded; as failure is to be punished." Shredder almost spat the last words out as his minions.

A sudden noise caught everyone's attention.

Rahzaar looked around, sniffing the air for the intruder until he felt something tap his toes. He looked down in time to see two hockey pucks with small firecrackers attached to them in time for them to explode, but luckily jumped out of the way before he could receive any damage.

Once the smoke cleared up Casey Jones stood before them. "Looking for me?" He taunted pointing at himself.

Shredder narrowed his eyes and stared him down. "I will make your end swift, boy." He announced as he brought out his blades.

Casey pulled out two baseball bats and got ready to attack, smirking under his mask.

"I ain't afraid of you!" Casey shouted but before he could make a move Shredder sliced the two baseball bats to pieces and grabbed him by the collar of his shirt. "Eh-heh, ok, I might be a little afraid of you."

Shredder pulled Casey to him and lifted his mask up to see who he was. "You! Now I will end this game and this insignificant-Ahhh!" Shredder yelled in pain; Casey using his handmade taser on him. Shredder tossed him away as he was brought to his knees.

Once the effect had worn off Shredder immediately stood to his feet and kicked Casey towards the wall. "You have spirit, boy but I tire of this game!" Shredder brought his blades out once more and went to finish him off.

"Casey!" Kara yelled out of nowhere, falling down towards them and planted her feet right smack in Shredder's face before pushing herself off him and doing a somersault, landing on her feet between them.

"Kara..that was so cool!" Casey yelled.

Kara was glaring at Shredder as he stumbled backwards a bit to get adjust his sight and turned around to Casey grinning from ear to ear. "I know, right? I should do that more often!"

"You! You insolent girl! I will make you pay for that!" He shouted charging for her.

She turned back around to face him but blinked when she saw the guys intervene, surrounding him on all sides. "Heh, took you guys long enough."

"What?! Destroy them! Do not let them near that vat!" Shredder commanded to his henchmen.

"I don't need you guys! I had this!" Casey yelled at them.

"I think otherwise." Kara said as she and Raph pulled him out of Tigerclaw's line of fire.

Dragan stood back to back with Kara, her sword out and ready for a fight only to notice something. "Hey, Kara."

"Yeah, Dre?"

"I think the guys have this one covered."

Kara looked around realizing that she was right. "Yeah..I suppose you're right." She lowered her arms and went straight for the exit though when Hun tried to get in her way she swung her leg under him then kicked him right in the butt towards Casey's direction leaving them behind.

Dragan watched her movements noting something was wrong and decided to follow her, sheathing her sword.

When she found her Kara was sitting on the bus bench with her head hung low. She let out a soft sigh and sat down next to her. "How did it go?"

Kara didn't say a word making Dragan wonder if she even heard her; moving her arm to touch her shoulder but froze when she spoke.

"She doesn't trust them. Despite what they've done; protected and saved the people, the city..none of that matters to her. We're no longer friends." Her voice grew soft with every word til her voice was barely above a whisper.

All Dragan could do was stare at her. She didn't know Jessica well enough to know what she was like, only having met her once when Kara was sick, but she knew one thing: Kara needed her.

She put her arm around Kara and pulled her close so that she was leaning on her and began to rub her arm gently. She closed her eyes feeling Kara tremble and knew she was trying so hard not to cry but when she felt movement she glanced down to see her pulling the cap over her eyes; guessing she wasn't successful.

With another sigh she stood and moved in front of her, picking her up and giving her a piggyback ride back home. Never saying a word just the sound of Kara's muffled sobs were heard between them.

Arriving back to their home Dragan slowly laid the now sleeping Kara in her bed and made sure to cover her up before heading to her own room while texting Leo that they went home during the battle since they weren't needed.

Taking off her belt she changed into her nightclothes then slowly climbed into bed, still not use to the comfortableness after so long and placed her hand over her eyes to help her sleep but when she closed them she could hear the sounds of gunfire, police sirens blaring, screams of people being mutated. She bit her lip while pressing the palms of her hands into her eyes to try and make the sounds and images go away but it wasn't working.

She sat up and climbed out of bed, moving to her desk where Leo's old mask lay in the center and she picked it up, putting it on before climbing back into bed. The feeling of the cloth around her eyes filled her mind with ease as she began to close her eyes, the sounds and images fading til she was deep in slumber.

Hope you enjoyed this chapter! You know the routine! Rate/comment cause all feedback is mucho appreciated! See you when I see you :D