Disclaimer: Don't own it, sorry.


Cold armour. Scarred skin. An intimidating figure looming over her. A splatter of blood. Her own scream of terror.

"Karai, my daughter, why do you pain me this way?"

"I am NOT your daughter!"

Karai woke sharply with a gasp, shivering despite the duvet covering her. It hasn't even been a coherent nightmare this time, but she was left no less afraid. Even worse, she didn't appear to have accidentally awoken Leonardo this time, so she would either have to sacrifice her pride and ask for his help or deal with it herself.

You've dealt with your own problems your whole life, you idiot, she thought to herself. There is no way in hell you are waking Leo up for this.

So she lay down again, closing her eyes and stubbornly turning on her side. When her eyes inevitably snapped open again, at least she was facing a wall and not a turtle. She scowled to herself. It was just a stupid dream. You know they've only started again because that loser attacked you earlier. Get it together and rest; they'll notice if you don't get any sleep.

Despite the pep-talk, Karai found that she still couldn't drift off. Reluctantly, she shuffled backwards until she could feel the edge of Leo's shell against her spine, hoping that would help.

Apparently she had managed to disturb him by doing so, because Leo stirred slightly, though thankfully he merely wrapped an arm around her to bring her close and went back to sleep. Feeling almost ashamed at the comfort his small action brought her, Karai laced her fingers through his and set her head down on the pillow once more. This time, sleep came much easier.


"LEO! KARAI! WAKE UP ALREADY!"

Mikey's voice startled them both awake. Leo grinned at her sleepily, kissing her on the cheek as he murmured, "Good morning, my beautiful Kiba."

"Good morning, Leader Boy," she replied with a chuckle.

"GET UP NOW OR I'M COMIN' IN TO GET YOU TWO!"

"Not a good idea, man; they're probably sucking face in there, or worse," they heard Raph say outside.

Leo blushed awkwardly, but Karai just smiled at him. "Wouldn't you like to know, Raphael?" she called teasingly.

The excitable turtle outside began banging on the door impatiently, and they both laughed. Leo climbed out of bed and opened the door, only to be rapped on the head by Mikey's fist as the turtle continued knocking. The little turtle smirked sheepishly. "Heh heh, sorry, bro."

He shook his head fondly. "What do you want, Mikey?"

"Breakfast's ready!" he announced with a beaming smile.

"Thanks, we'll be ready in a few minutes."

"You better not have made me algae and worms, Michelangelo," Karai warned from the bed.

He stuck his tongue out at her playfully. "I made you an omelette, actually. And the eggs weren't even expired this time!"

She rolled her eyes. "Gee, aren't I lucky?" When Mikey's smile faltered, she added, "I'll just get ready, see you in a minute."

Once they were alone, Leo squeezed her hand. "So, see you soon, yeah?"

She played with his fingers. "Actually, I was hoping you would come with me…" Leo's hand clenched around hers. She bit her lip. "Well, you can't just leave me alone, Leo."

It dawned on him quickly: Karai was indirectly requesting company because she was scared. Apparently Hun's attempted abduction had bothered her more than she let on. "Okay," he conceded, "but I'm not gonna watch you, don't worry."

"Why not?" the girl inquired.

"Because it's not fair to watch you if you don't want me to."

All of a sudden she was far too close to his face. "And what if I do want you to?"

His eyes darted from side to side nervously, his quick breaths brushing her skin. "I-I… uh…"

With a sensual smile on her face, Karai led Leo by the hand to her bedroom. The turtle sat on her bed, shifting uncomfortably as he waited. He wasn't sure whether or not her casual attitude actually helped, but at least Karai wasn't teasing him anymore. She would, however, lift his chin and make him look at her if he tried to avert his eyes.

"Leonardo, I asked you to watch," she reminded him.

"Sorry," he said quietly. "It just feels too… personal."

"That's the idea. We are partners, aren't we?"

He nodded. "Yeah, but I don't want you to feel obliged to do anythi-"

"Leo, this is a choice. I want you to see me like this." Karai sat on the bed beside him. "So, what do you think?"

The turtle allowed himself to give her a quick once-over. "You're beautiful."

She pecked him on the lips. "Good answer, Leader Boy." The girl stood up and finished getting dressed, then dragged Leo to the kitchen by the hand.

He smiled as he followed her, that split-second glimpse of her etched into his brain. It had been incredibly awkward, but he was glad she had pushed him to move that step forward. Their partnership was developing and, while he didn't know how Karai felt, Leo was quite excited.


"Master Splinter?"

The day had passed rather uneventfully, with the exception of how annoyingly attentive everybody had been to her, but now Karai's brothers had all gone out on patrol (Raph had promised to punch Hun in the face if they saw him) and the girl was craving some kind of excitement.

Her father looked up from his meditative pose with a warm smile on his face. "Yes, my daughter?"

"Can we go for a walk somewhere?" she asked.

He hesitated, and Karai already knew he was going to refuse. "Miwa, I do not think it is safe to-"

She sighed heavily. "Fine. Worth a shot, I guess."

"In a few days, perhaps?" he offered. "The search should have calmed down by then."

"… Okay," Karai begrudgingly agreed, folding her arms across her chest.

Splinter rose and beckoned her closer. "Would a sparring match suffice for now?"

Her lips twisted into a grin. "I'll go get my armour."

She returned in record time, and Splinter couldn't deny how pleased he was to see her enthusiasm. He calmly handed over her tantõ as he bared his cane at her.

Karai chuckled. "You know, I've just realised that I can't trash-talk you."

The man chuckled softly. "I would prefer if you did not."

They bowed respectfully to each-other, before dropping into fighting stances. He let her begin the fight, waiting until she launched herself towards him. He blocked her punches but made no offensive moves himself.

She laughed. "Come on, Master Splinter. You can do better than that, right?" When she garnered no response, she continued with, "Maybe you should start calling me Sensei."

Grinning confidently, she swung her sword in a wide arc at him. Splinter deflected the blow easily with his cane, then slammed the end of it into her chest-plate to knock her backwards. Once she had regained her footing, she kicked him in the stomach, but he seized her leg and dragged her closer. He struck three pressure points in rapid succession, and as soon as he released her, she found herself slumping onto the dojo floor.

Splinter caught her before she could land, of course, smirking at her. "Not quite yet, my daughter."

He gave her a moment to recover before standing her on her feet again. Karai pouted playfully. "So you win this round. Up for a rematch?"

Several rematches later, an exhausted Karai was forced to admit defeat. Splinter smiled warmly at her. "Do you still have too much energy, Miwa?"

She shook her head with a laugh. "Iie, Sensei."

Her father ruffled her hair teasingly before taking her tantõ and setting it on the weapons rack. "Good."

Karai stretched her arms out, releasing the tension in her muscles. Despite having seen his skills with her own eyes, Splinter's kind nature had almost made her underestimate him. Although, as she stretched, Karai released that the only pain she felt was the stiffness in her limbs. She checked herself over briefly, then recalled the memories of their fights. She gasped when she realised: Splinter hadn't hit anywhere her armour didn't protect.

"Miwa?"

The kunoichi blinked. "Sorry, I was just…" Karai rubbed her arm self-consciously. "You didn't leave any marks."

"It was a recreational spar, Miwa, of course I did not." He looked confused for a moment, before concern clouded his features. Splinter walked forward and set a hand on her shoulder. "I am not Oroku Saki; I will not hurt you outside of training."

Her mouth twisted. "But you hit the guys sometimes. I don't want to be treated any differently."

"We have been over this, my daughter," the man said firmly. "You are not as naturally robust as your brothers, so we have to be more careful with you, much like we do with April and Casey. It is not supposed to offend you."

"Hai, Master Splinter," she sighed reluctantly.

Admittedly, Karai was quite surprised to suddenly find herself pressed against her father's robe in a tight embrace. "You are not hurt, are you?" Splinter asked tentatively.

Karai rolled her eyes. "What is it with you all and fussing over me? I'm fine, Master Splinter."

He hugged her once more before letting go, squeezing her shoulder. "Would you like to freshen up before the boys return?"

"Probably a good idea," she agreed. "Knowing Mikey and Leo, they'll be knocking on the bathroom door if I'm gone for more than ten minutes."

Splinter chuckled, then bowed at her. "It was a pleasure to face you, Miwa."

"A pleasure to face you too, Yoshi," she responded, smiling teasingly.

His smile faltered momentarily as he registered what she had said. She felt her face grow paler, hoping that she hadn't offended him too badly. The Shredder had never permitted her to call him Saki even in jest, unsurprisingly, but she had assumed Master Splinter would be more liberal in regards to it. Especially since he insists on calling me Miwa, she noted mentally.

"Did I offend you, Master Splinter?" she questioned.

Thankfully, his face softened. "Not at all, my child. It has just been so long since somebody has called me Yoshi without using it as an insult." His eyes drifted to his photograph of Shen. "For a moment, I was reminded strongly of your mother."

Silence hovered over them for a moment, broken only by Karai's footsteps as she approached him again. "You really loved her." A statement, not a question.

"I always will," Splinter answered honestly, before turning to his daughter, "but I have made peace with the pain. At least we are reunited at last, and you are safe from Oroku Saki."

She peered around him at the photograph. "Do you think she knows we're together now?"

"I believe so, and I am sure she is as proud as I am to see who you have become," he replied.

Feeling her throat choke up, Karai quickly changed the subject. "I'm gonna go clean up."

Splinter nodded. "Care to join me for some tea afterwards?"

"Arigato," she called over her shoulder as she exited.


When her brothers returned, Karai was sitting with her father in the kitchen drinking camomile tea. She found herself scanning them for injuries without thinking, luckily finding none other than a few additional scrapes and bruises here and there.

"Welcome back, my sons," Splinter greeted them warmly.

"How was patrol?" inquired Karai, hoping her longing wasn't too obvious.

"We saw your new friend," remarked Raph. A sadistic grin spread across his face. "He won't be seeing us for a while, though."

Mikey laughed. "Raphie gave him two black eyes!"

"Aww, Raph," cooed Karai. "How sweet of you."

Thinking of no retorts that were worded politely enough to say in front of Splinter, Raph stomped away as he grumbled to himself. Karai laughed lightly to herself.

"Has he always been like that?" she asked Splinter.

He shook his head in amusement. "I wish we had recovered you sooner, Miwa; I could have used the moral support from someone other than Leonardo."


Okay, so this was short, and really not that great (I wasn't planning on writing feels but then the Tang Shen bit happened), but for those of you who have seen Annihilation Earth... You'll understand why this was all I could write. OMG THE FEELS FROM THAT EPISODE!

Anyway, I hope you enjoyed reading this nonetheless, and see you sometime next week :)