A/N: Ah, the last chapter. It kinda makes me sad. I am beginning to fall in love with these characters. I guess that's why I added the epilogue ;) XD


Katherine stepped onto the bottom stoop of her apartment building, so she could almost be at Don's height. She was still short by a few inches though. She smiled at him. "Thank you for walking me home."

He smiled as well, squeezing her hand. "It was my pleasure. I enjoyed dinner, particularly the company."

Katherine blushed a bit, offering a gentle smile. "I did too."

"It was nice to have a pleasant conversation with someone." His brow furrowed. "I'm not sure I've ever had that pleasant of a conversation with anyone."

Katherine's eyes shimmered even in the dim street light. "I'm glad you had at least one first as well."

He gave a small chuckle. "I'm hoping to share a lot more first with you."

"Me too." She leaned forward, wrapping her arms around his neck.

Donnie shuddered as her warm body pressed tightly against his and her warm breath danced across the sensitive skin near the rim of his shell. Katherine turned her head to nuzzle against his neck and draw in his scent. It was a very pleasant mixture of earth and leather. He let out a small gasp as his body began to heat with the sensation. For a long moment they stood, wrapped tightly in each other's arms. Finally, she reluctantly stepped back to meet his eyes. She was surprised to see the same amount of longing in his gaze as there was in hers.

Stroking her cheek with his large fingers, he held her gaze. "I'd like to do this again – soon."

Laying her hand on his, she squeezed it. "Very soon." She let out a soft sigh. "I hate for this night to end."

He gave a small sad nod. "I know. But it has to."

Lifting a hand, she touched his cheek as well, making sure to meet his eyes. "Goodnight, Donatello."

"Goodnight, Katherine."

She squeezed his hand once more before stepping away and climbing the steps to her small studio apartment. He watched her go with a mixture of joy and sadness. Yes, it will definitely have to be very soon.


Leo looked up from the movie when Don entered the lair. "I'll be right back." He told Sams softly before getting up and following his brother to the area they kept their disguises and other clothes. "Well?"

Donnie glanced at him over his shoulder as he hung up his hat. "Well what?"

Leo gave him a slightly annoyed look. His brother knew exactly what he was asking. "Well, how'd it go? What happened?"

"We had dinner."

"So, she said yes. And then what?"

"I walked her home."

Leo was getting a bit tired of Donnie's elusiveness. He sighed. "Donatello…"

Don smirked as he finally turned around. "Alright. It went very well actually."

Leo smiled. "Did anything else happen?"

"Not yet." Donnie didn't seem to be deterred by that fact though. "But I'd say Katherine is a bit shyer than Sams. I think she prefers to take things slow. And I understand that." He paused, his smile growing. "But I don't think it will be long before we take that next step."

Leo grinned. "Well, you know, you could always make the first move."

Don gave a small chuckle. "We'll see."


Leo held open the glass door for Sams as they stepped into the little grocery store. The older woman behind the cash register smiled politely. "Can I help you?"

Sams gave a small nod. "Yes, I was looking for someone."

"Cupcake?"

Leo and Sams turned to see Bebop. She grinned and hugged him. "Thanks for calling me, Arny?"

He patted her on the head. "It's the least I could do." He stepped back and gave her a sad smile. "He's been wantin' ta talk to ya, but he ain't worked up the nerve."

Both Sams and Leo frowned. He rubbed her back gently. "We need to settle things."

Bebop gave a small nod, eyeing the turtle. "Yeah, I know. But, uh, he ain't too happy with you."

"I didn't expect him to be." Leo said flatly.

"Where is he?" Sams felt a little nervous having her brother and her spouse in the same room. She just hoped Joey could hold his temper long enough for them to talk.

Arny thrust a thumb over his shoulder at a door. "He's in the back." This time he glared at Leo. "And don't break nothin'."

Leo gave him an irritated look from behind Sams. "If anything gets broken, it won't be my doing."

She sighed. "Don't worry, I'll make sure they behave."

Arny let out a snorted laugh as she and Leo headed for the back of the shop. They weaved their way through stacks of boxes, until they found Joey. He was unloading a pallet and sorting the contents into piles. Samantha glanced up at Leo and he could see the uncertainty in her eyes. Rocksteady would be far more receptive, if he thought Sams was here alone – at least at first. Sighing, he squeezed her shoulder and placed a warm kiss on her cheek. "Go on. I'll wait here for now." He said softly in her ear.

Love reflected in her blue eyes a moment before she turned and walked towards her brother. She knew Leo was still uncomfortable with the idea of her and Joey being alone. So, he was compromising by letting her speak with him first alone, but where he could still see her. Rubbing her sweaty palms together, she stopped several paces behind her brother. "Joey."

Rocksteady stopped mid-lift of a box. Very slowly he turned to look at her. Somehow joy and hurt crossed his face at the same time. "Sams…" He set the box in his hands on a nearby stack. "How did ya find me?"

She allowed a small smile. "Well, I had a little help."

His gaze shot in the direction of the storefront. "Looks like me and Arny's got some talkin' to do."

"Don't be mad at him. I'm glad he called. I'm also glad he's letting you stay with him and work here too."

Joey's expression dropped and he let out a heavy sigh. "Yeah, me and him's been through a lot together. He's been a good friend. Even when was kids, back before we was…," he stared down at his human hands, "mutated."

Sams looked away, remembering just how much her brother had done for her. Even when he'd been missing for all those years, he was doing it for her. "Joey, I'm sorry I hurt you. It was never my intention."

Joey frowned at her. "I ain't gonna lie, what ya did - it hurt and it still hurts. You've never lied ta me before. It hurt ta think ya didn't trust me no more. And worse ya didn't need me no more." Sams lifted damp eyes to look at him and he took the few steps between them to put a hand on her shoulder.

She opened her mouth to protest. "But I do-."

But he continued. "I'm your big brother. I'm supposed ta protect ya. And I feel like I didn't." He let out another heavy sigh. "But ya know what I've been thinkin', none of that really matters. You're my baby sister. You're my Cupcake. And no matter what I'm always gonna love ya."

Sams threw her arms around his neck. "I love you too." She murmured between sobs.

After a long moment, she stepped back rubbing her eyes. Rocksteady gave a small grunt and rolled his eyes. "And I guess, Leonardo ain't such a bad guy. Or, at least, I know ya could've done a lot worse." Sams looked up at him in surprise and a small smile glowed through her own heartache.

"Did you just give me a compliment?" It was Rocksteady's turn to look surprised as he watched Leo step out of the shadows from behind Sams. Leo met his gaze with a guarded one. "Does this mean you've accepted our relationship?" He stopped behind his wife, laying his hands gently on her shoulders.

Joey glared hard. "Were you back there spyin' on us!"

"He wasn't spying, he was giving us some privacy, so you'd actually talk to me." She placed one of her hands on Leo's.

Joey calmed, looking at the pair he gave another grunt. "Yeah, I guess so. It ain't like I got a choice." He met his little sister's eyes. "It's Sams choice. And if it's what she wants… Well, I ain't never been good at tellin' 'er no." He shot Leo a look. "But this don't mean me and you are buddy-buddy."

Leo smiled. "I didn't expect to fix everything between us in one night." He offered his hand to his ex-enemy, now brother-in-law. "But this is a large leap forward." Slowly Joey took his hand, accepting a truce between them. Samantha smiled brightly. They might not be best friends, but they were willing to try to make it work for the future.


One Week Later

"Are you coming back next time, Donatello?" Devin had been awestruck to see one of the ninja turtles in his classroom. He was also surprised to find out how much he knew – about everything!

Donnie smiled at the youth. "Yes, I will be here from now on."

Crisa grinned up at him. "It was really nice to meet you!"

His smile grew a bit. "It was nice meeting you two as well. I hope we will be friends."

"Yes!" The two children chimed at once.

Behind Donnie, Katherine covered her mouth to muffle her small giggle. She couldn't help it. This tutoring session had been the best one by far. Both the children and Donnie seemed happy he was there. And she had been overjoyed that he was there as well. Not just for the fact that it was much easier to split their few precious hours between two teacher, but also for the fact that she simply wanted him there. "Alright you two, it's getting dark. You'd better head on home. And remember not to tell anyone that Donatello was here."

"We won't! Bye!"

"See you next Saturday!"

Don gave a small chuckle as the children disappeared around the corner. A moment later the door chimed, declaring their exit. Katherine stepped up next to Donnie. "Well?"

He smiled down at her. "I enjoyed it. It was as fulfilling as you said it would be. And I feel that I'm able to pass on some of my knowledge to them." He turned fully towards her, cupping her cheek. "Thank you, Katherine. These past few weeks that we've known each other have been the best of my life. You've given me a new purpose, and for that I will always be grateful." For a long moment he became lost in her beautiful dichromatic eyes.

"Donatello…" Katherine said softly. He hummed in response, running his large fingers through her soft hair. She blushed a little, causing him to wonder if he was doing something wrong. "Donatello, are you ever going to kiss me?"

He blinked in surprise, then smirked. "I've been dying to."

She blushed again, but not as much this time. "Then why haven't you?"

His gaze softened a bit. "Because I thought-." Her lips were suddenly on his. His surprise lasted a mere millisecond, before his arms wrapped tightly around her. The feel of her body pressed firmly to his caused fire to race through his veins. Her tongue ran along his bottom lip causing him to shiver through and through. Eagerly he opened up to her. The moment their tongues touched was like nothing he'd ever experienced in his entire life. It sent shockwaves of electricity from his head to his toes. The kiss was gentle as they explored one another. She tasted like heaven!

Katherine slipped her arms around his neck. It was bliss as his large tongue caressed hers. It was a dream. It had to be a dream. Never before had she felt such peace and hunger at the same time. She wanted more of it. His skin burned beneath her fingers. She could easily lose herself in him, it almost felt like their souls were touching. Their kiss became hungrier. A soft moan left her and his chest vibrated with a low growl, which only seemed to intensify the kiss.

Neither wanted to pull away. But at last she did, panting heavily. "That was incredible."

Don panted as well, while trying to control his body's reaction to the kiss. He nuzzled her cheek and kissed her shoulder softly. "Absolutely amazing." He lifted his head to meet her eyes. "You are amazing, Katherine."

Smiling, she wrapped her arms around him as far as she could reach while he continued to hold her tightly. She rested her head against his chest, closing her eyes and listening to the thundering of his heart. "That goes double for you."


Epilogue

Don smiled as he watched Katherine set his coffee on the desk they now shared in her tiny office. It had been three months since their first kiss and things had only gotten better from there. "Want me to take over?"

He shook his head. "No, I've got it." Working as a team on Katherine's projects meant they were done faster, which meant more contracts, which meant more money, and that meant they could purchase more equipment for their classroom. It also meant she had more time, which Don was glad to occupy.

She smiled back at him. "Alright, I'll go help Sams put up the new books." Leaning forward, she pecked his lips lightly, before leaving the room.

In the storefront, Sams was pulling books from one of the several boxes lined along a wall. She smiled at Katherine as she approached. "Donatello still working?"

"Yes. I thought I'd come help you for a while." Katherine picked up three books, placing them in the proper spots. Sams looked at the half dozen unopened boxes. "I could sure use it. You guys went a little crazy with the books this time."

Katherine chuckled. "With Donatello helping with my contracts we've finally got a steady income. Which means more books for the store and a few extras for the students." She picked up a large volume related to physics. "They would never be able to afford these types of resource materials on their own."

Sams' smile widened. "They are very lucky to have you and Donatello working with them. Speaking of which, how are things going? You two look pretty happy and he obviously loves coming here on Saturdays with you."

Katherine closed her eyes with a soft sigh and a warm smile. "It's been wonderful."

"You should come down to the lair and meet Master Splinter. He's been waiting to meet you. I'm surprised Donatello hasn't already asked you."

"Oh, he did a while ago, but we've both been so busy we haven't found the time yet. We were planning to-." She broke off as the door chimed and a man entered.

He was dressed rather oddly with a long gray coat, a black shirt and pants could be seen peeking out from beneath it. He seemed like he was in a hurry as he took in the small bookstore quickly.

Katherine frowned. "Can I help you? Are you looking for something specific?"

The man's head snapped in her direction. As soon as he saw her bicolored eyes he started across the room. He pointed a finger at her. "You have to come with me."

Katherine took a step back, her eyes wide. "What!"

"You have to come with me now." He glanced towards the door nervously.

Katherine shook her head firmly. "No."

The man's eyes narrowed, obviously not liking her response. "I'm afraid you don't have a choice."

The front door opened again and another man stormed in dressed in similar clothing. He shot Katherine a look, but his gaze went quickly to the first man. "Chresal, that is enough. Leave her be." The man ordered in a firm tone.

The first man shook his head. "But she's the only one that can open the door!"

"We've discussed this. That is not a certainty. Now come on."

"No! I won't! The line may be thin, but she's the last one!"

This time the older man narrowed his eyes. "No! We have no proof of that!"

The raised voices had drawn Don from the office. Seeing the rather frightened looks both Katherine and Sams wore, he glared at the two men. "Exactly what is going on here?"

Katherine started to take a step towards him, but the man named Chresal grabbed her wrist. She gave a gasp as she was yanked around. "See!" He pointed at her neckless. "She has all the proof we need! She wears the amulet!"

"Get your hands off her!" Don shot across the room so fast the man gasped as Katherine was torn from his hands and he was thrust to the ground. Don clutched Katherine to his plastron. He growled, his glare much darker now. "Who are you!"

The older man near the door frowned, his gaze fixed on Katherine. "We are the Tijodyn. And apparently we have come to ask for your help in saving our world."

TO BE CONTINUED….


A/N: Yes, yes, I know. I am terribly cruel! Looks like there is going to be a sequel. :D