*shocked gasp* Wait, CeCe's updating early instead of late? Are we in Dimension X?! No, I'm just going away this weekend so I'm posting this now instead. This is gonna throw my sort-of-schedule way out of whack, though.
Disclaimer: I don't own TMNT.
"Don, you've gotta take a break on that retro-mutagen."
"I can't, April. As soon as we find Karai, we have to be able to cure her; we don't know how sentient she'll be."
"Like you'll accomplish anything sleep-deprived and ill-minded."
"Well, I have to try."
"… No, you don't."
"April, I already explained-"
"Karai's already cured, Don. She doesn't need the retro-mutagen any more."
"How do you know? Have you seen her?"
"… Yeah. She's human again."
"She can shapeshift, like we told you guys."
"No, it wasn't shape-shifting; she didn't look serpentine at all. Donnie, trust me on this, you can stop. She's human, and she's safe."
"… I don't know."
"I do."
That was the last time April had visited the lair. Casey hadn't been since before he found Karai. Neither had been patrolling either, and Karai was the only one who didn't notice, as the next two weeks of her life flew by. She didn't even stop to think about why her new friends were spending so much time with her, thoroughly distracted by how different her new life was becoming, the main events were explaining to Casey's father - and later April's, which was much more difficult - who she was and why she was staying with them. Of course, not everybody was living as peacefully as she was.
"Are they bugging you?" Angel had asked Casey one night, after catching him sighing at his phone in frustration.
He had nodded, combing a hand through his hair. "Yeah... I can't even explain why I can't go, Ang'. I might just stop replying."
And he had, as had April eventually. They both knew their actions would come back to bite them, but they didn't quite know how.
"April? Are you okay?"
Karai's voice snapped the redhead back to the present. "Wha- Oh, yeah, I'm fine. Thanks, though."
For the last few days, Karai had been staying with the O'Neils, since they'd all decided Casey's dad needed a break from putting up with a strange Japanese girl in his house. Kirby had been hard to convince, but the knowledge that Karai was Master Splinter's daughter definitely helped win him over, as did her willingness to help around the house. When April questioned her on it, she had mentioned a code of honour, and repaying him - and her - for the kindness of letting her stay. April had hugged her spontaneously, then gasped in shock when Karai hugged her back.
Currently, the two girls were huddled together in their sleepwear on April's double-bed. April had been thinking to herself, and completely ignoring whatever Karai had been saying. "Sorry, Rai. I was just… thinking about something. What did you say?"
She shook her head dismissively. "Nothing. What were you thinking about?"
The redhead forced a smile. "Nothing. Do you know what time it is?"
After a quick glance at the alarm clock on April's bedside table, Karai answered, "Almost eleven. Should we go to sleep?"
"Most normal people would," April chuckled.
Karai nodded, then clambered over to the far side of the bed, sliding under the duvet. April turned off the lights and curled up on her side of the bed, bidding Karai goodnight. The situation was still incredibly weird to think about, but after two weeks hanging out together, she was pretty sure the other kunoichi wouldn't attack her.
That was probably why she managed to fall asleep beside her quite comfortably… Either that, or the fact that Casey had informed the redhead about Karai's frequent nightmares, and all in all she felt bad for what the girl must have endured. Whatever the reason, April was clearly relaxed enough around her fellow kunoichi to fall asleep, and that was the important thing.
In fact, she slept for over an hour quite contentedly before a tapping at her window woke her up just after midnight.
Fixing her haphazard ponytail, April cautiously rose and peeped through her curtains. Seeing the silhouette of a giant turtle outside her window elicited first relief, then fear. Though by this time he had already seen her, so she had to acknowledge him.
She climbed out onto the fire escape, hoping that she wasn't making enough noise to wake Karai up. Upon seeing Leonardo sat there, her heart caught in her throat. If he saw Karai, there was no way he would leave. "Hey, Leo…"
"Hi, April." He was leaning casually against the railing, as though he had always been a fixture there.
The girl folded her arms across her chest, uncomfortable. "Uhm… How've you been?"
"I've been doing okay," Leo said, with a deceptive smile. "And don't worry; I wouldn't expect you to know, since we haven't seen you in almost two weeks." He didn't even bother with the smile any more.
She sighed. "Okay, totally asked for that."
He placed a hand on her shoulder. "Why have you been avoiding us? Is it your dad again?"
"I…" April's eyes shifted subconsciously into her bedroom, and widened when she spotted Karai kneeling on the window seat, concealed behind the curtain but obviously listening. She blinked softly, hoping the other girl understood her question. Apparently she did, because Karai nodded timidly. "No, it isn't my dad this time. It's my new friend."
"New friend?"
"Yeah. I met her ages ago, but we've only recently become friends." April walked nonchalantly to the other side of the fire escape; Leo stayed in place but turned to face her.
"Oh." He seemed surprised. "Well, that's… awesome?"
The redhead nodded, trying to hide her smile as she noticed Karai stepping soundlessly out of the window behind Leo. "It really is. She's changed so much; I'm really proud of her."
He inclined his head, smiling at her. "Okay… So, who's this new friend?"
As if on cue, Karai flung herself at him, wrapping her arms around him from behind. He tensed immediately, before he glanced down at the pale arms holding him. His blue eyes met April's, and he swallowed thickly. "April… Is it…?"
She grinned at him. "It's her, Leo."
Six green fingers gently stroked the perfectly human ones on his plastron. "K-Karai…?"
A strangled little cry sounded from behind him, and he twisted around to see her. She couldn't meet his eyes, burying her face against his plastron and struggling to keep her eyes dry. He accepted that for the time being, locking her in an embrace and taking deep, steady breaths of her scent. They stood together, clasping each-other securely, until Karai finally worked up the nerve to lift her head.
"Hello," she whispered at him.
He smirked at her. "Hello." Leo examined her face without make-up, her hair without the blonde dye, and her eyes gleaming gold instead of green. "You're human."
"I am." She bared her teeth, showing off that she no longer had fangs.
Leo's lips formed a smile. "Good. You look happier."
Aware that she was third-wheeling in the situation, April attempted to squeeze past them subtly to return to her bedroom. They both noticed her, but neither reacted, too focused on cradling each-other. Karai knew she was taller than him, but somehow she was glancing up into his blue eyes.
"I really did miss you, you know."
She raised an eyebrow. "Really?"
"Really." He rested his head against hers. "It's amazing to see you like this."
"Like what?"
"… Happy."
Karai smirked. "You already said I looked happy."
The turtle shrugged. "Well, it's true. Also… I don't think my brain's really working at full capacity right now."
Her arms rose to around his neck, and Leo's heart faltered as her warm breathing collected against his throat. "I missed you, too," she disclosed quietly.
He crushed her to his plastron, greedily inhaling the smell of her hair and her skin, desiring to kiss every inch of her skin but knowing he shouldn't. She had no such inhibitions, however, and repeatedly pecked his neck, letting her breath tickle his skin. The sensation made him chuckle, which in turn made her laugh. Peering around Karai's head, he made eye contact with April, who was leaving the room holding her phone. She grinned knowingly at him and shut the door, dialling Casey's number.
"Leo?" she asked almost inaudibly. "Can we go inside please?" She glanced around fearfully, as though expecting somebody to attack.
The turtle bobbed his head eagerly. "Sure, let's go in. Someone might see me, anyway."
"Or me," Karai added, ducking out of his grasp and leaping back through April's window.
Leo joined her quickly, taking her hand the second he was near enough and allowing her to lead him to April's bed. The turtle seated himself on the bed, his carapace touching the wall and his legs out in front of him. Karai gladly took her place on his lap, permitting him to clutch both of her hands in his own and play with her fingers.
"Leonardo, you really are weird," she commented with a grin.
"We've been over this, Karai," the leader in blue informed her. "I told you ages ago; it's a mutant turtle thing."
And suddenly Karai's mouth was on his, open and sucking and sexy. It took him a little longer to work up the courage to part his lips, but the second he did, her tongue was slipping inside. She licked everything she could find, including his tongue, which clumsily tried to fight past hers into her own mouth. It was a very passionate first kiss, mostly since Karai had more experience than she liked to remember with kissing, and Leo was more than happy to let her take the reins.
When Karai finally broke the kiss, tilting away slightly but leaving their heads resting together, she was panting much heavier than he was. Leo put this down to turtle biology, but didn't give her a chance to catch her breath before he began stroking little shapes onto her back. She giggled at the sensation, and relaxed against him. Stretching his muscles, Leo reclined casually along April's bed, with Karai curled into the foetal position on his plastron. It was quite possibly the most adorable thing he had ever seen - even cuter than the alien creature in Dimension X, but possibly even more dangerous.
After a short while of contented silence, Leo heard, "Mni nmeem ammovrr."
Chuckling, he glanced down at her. "What was that?"
She lifted her head. "I... I said... I need another."
"Another what?"
"Another-"
Then their mouths were together again.
Though this time, Karai seemed more frantic, mashing their lips together forcibly. Leo let his mouth fall open just to relieve the pressure, and Karai's tongue was darting inside again. Only this time, it wasn't exploring; it was searching. Ransacking the inside of his mouth, as though desperately trying to find something.
He tried to say her name, to ask her to stop, to ask what was wrong, but he couldn't say anything when his mouth was filled with her tongue.
Quickly, Karai's breathing began to shorten, and it wasn't long before Leo could feel her sobbing into their kiss. Tears trickled down her cheeks and leaked into their mouths. He grimaced at the taste of salt and its origin.
Eventually, her breathing couldn't keep up with her rough ministrations, and Karai had to break it off, though she stayed so close that she was still weeping onto his lips.
He tucked a finger under her chin, tilting her head up. "Karai?"
She licked her lips, and tried to steady her breathing. Another lip-lick, this one clearly more sensual. "Make me happy, Leo." Her tone didn't match the expression she tried to wear. "Make me happy."
"Okay," he agreed calmly.
She gave him a watery smile that he couldn't decipher, and leaned in, placing her hands either side of his head. But Leo had other ideas, seizing her waist and dragging her down to his plastron again.
"What are you-" He cut her off by pressing her against him, wrapping his arms around her.
"Shh... Just relax..."
So she did. Karai lay her head against his plastron, then blushed at the happy little noise it provoked in him. She folded in on herself, and Leo drew his knees up to squash her even closer. A feeling of affection and protection encircled her, and for more than a fleeting moment, she wished she could have that feeling all the time.
The comfort and the time were making her drowsy, but she still heard Leo ask, "Are you happy, Karai?"
She didn't trust her voice to keep her pride, so she angled her face up to him and hoped he could read it well enough. He seemed to, because he smiled brightly and somehow managed to hold her even tighter.
Their faces were so close now that if Karai just inclined her head a little bit, their lips would brush. Barely even thinking about it, she did.
But this kiss was soft and caring. Mouths opened, but tongues refrained from any more adventures. Emotions drove this kiss, and it was as tender and fragile as them. It faded out naturally, though as Karai retreated back down his plastron, Leo theorised that it could've gone on for eternity and felt just as wonderful. He then immediately thought of his brothers slapping him for such a sappy train of thought, and smirked sleepily.
When April finally returned to her bedroom, she found the duo peacefully snoozing. She giggled silently to herself at the sight, watching Leo curve himself around the usually abrasive kunoichi.
Regretfully, she shook Leo by the shoulder, careful not to wake Karai. "Leo, wake up."
He moaned unhappily, eyes still closed. "Why...?"
"You've gotta get back to the lair; Splinter and the guys'll be worried."
"... Yeah, you're right." Leo slowly sat up, glancing down at the girl in his arms. "Can I take her with me?"
April bit her lip. "I don't know... It's up to her, I guess. She didn't mention wanting to go back earlier though, so I wouldn't take her down there fast asleep."
"I'm not asleep," Karai sighed into Leo's chest.
The turtle smiled at her, rubbing her back. "Hey," he said softly. "So, did you hear what we were saying?"
She nodded hesitantly, and when her eyes met his, they were glossing with tears. "I can't go back, Leo."
His face fell, but he held her closer. "Why not? We all want you back, Karai. I... We love you. You're part of the clan, we want you home."
"You do?"
"Uh-huh." A large, three-fingered hand combed through her short hair. "Are you coming?"
He felt rather than saw her head shaking. "I..." Karai's throat choked, and she became all too conscious of April in the room. As if sensing this, the redhead excused herself and slipped out onto the fire escape awkwardly. Karai grinned fondly at her actions, before Leo reminded her of her decision by clearing his throat above her. "I'm scared, Leo," she admitted quietly. "What if you're wrong? What if they're mad at me?"
She felt him stiffen, and pressed against him. "I'm not, Karai, honest. But… if you're not ready to come home, that's okay too." He lowered his voice to add, "Even if I really, really want you to be one day." He kissed her temple. "I don't want to lose you, Karai."
The kunoichi raised her head, then knelt up to whisper in his ear tenderly, "You won't."
I realise things escalated quite quickly there, but a) Karai's part will be explained later, and b) I think anyone would act quickly if Fate had screwed them over as much as these guys. Also, I'm sorry if you didn't like this chapter (I know there are some CaseyxKarai shippers reading), but this always has been and still is a Leorai fic, even if there's been like no interaction until now :P
Anyway, thank you for reading this chapter, and please review xD I'm not one of those fantastic authors that replies to every review because I'm a horrible human being, but I really do appreciate them and they inspire me to keep writing, so thank you guys :)
