A/N: Hey there everyone! Long delay, sorry!

This chapter is kinda sad, so get ready for some feels. I OWN NOTHING!

Enjoy!

Chapter 3

"Family means no one gets left behind…or forgotten."

–David Ogden Stiers

3 Years Later…

"Raphael, you must not hit your brother like that!"

Looking up from where he sat on top of his younger brother as they both wrestled on the grass, the three-year-old Raphael pouted, his non-existent brows knitting together crossly. "But daddy," he whined, "he was annoying me! And how come I get to hit him when were practice, daddy?" he argued.

His father held up a finger, "That is for practice only. We never hit each other out of anger, understand?" he warned, his tone daring for his son to disagree.

Raphael sighed in defeat and agitation. "Hai Sensei," he grumbled, getting off of Michelangelo and storming back into the house, probably in search for something else to take his new frustration on instead of his baby brother. Sprawled out on the grass, Michelangelo took in a dramatic deep breath, as though he had been released after being suffocated. The old ninja master sighed as he shook his head.

Sat down beside him, his eldest son, Leonardo, looked up at him. "Why is Raphie always so moody, Sensei?" he asked innocently.

The old rat looked down at him and smiled. He had been teaching the boys how to speak English as well as their native Japanese, and though it was very difficult for them, they soon adapted to it, speaking both languages fluently. The first thing they decided to do was to give each other nicknames; their full names were too long for them to pronounce, so they simply called each other Leo, Raph (or Raphie) Donnie and Mikey, which he found to be cute. "Your English is improving, Leonardo. I am impressed," he said, laying a hand on his head and patting it, "and I do not know why your brother is acting this way."

Leonardo frowned in thought and then his face lit up. "Maybe he needs 'nother bath!" he laughed.

His father chuckled. "That is true. Go on now, my son. Go play with your brothers." Leo nodded with a little grin, and then leapt up to go and chase Mikey, who screamed with delight as they ran through the garden, effectively getting Donatello, who had been occupied with a butterfly, to join in as well as they played a game of ninja tag.

Hamato Yoshi, now going by the name he had acquired in the army with Oroku Saki, Splinter, had been living with his adopted turtle sons within the shelter of the forests for three years. During that time, he had managed to fix the old place up as best as he could, using whatever resources he could find within the forests alone to do the job. And he had to admit, with the help of the young Donatello, he was quite proud of what they had done to the place; it looked as good as new.

It was also during that time that he had decided that he would pass on his family tradition to his sons; the art of ninjitsu. They were still young, so he started off by showing them the simple basics, and then they would eventually work their way into becoming full-fledged warriors. This world was dangerous, and there would be no kindness shown to them by humans, so Splinter would make sure that they would be ready to defend themselves, and then face those dangers, should there ever come a fateful day where they would be separated from one another.

But Splinter would ensure that never happened; he knew he would always be there for his four precious sons.

They had shown great skills during the course of their training; Leonardo had shown the most skill, Raphael the most power, Donatello the most focus, and Michelangelo, though he lacked the focus his older brothers had, he had far more speed and flexibility. In fact, they were all very skilled for turtles their age. Whether it was to do with the ooze that had given them enhanced abilities, or they were simply that advanced, he didn't know, but it didn't matter. They were growing, and he was so proud of them. That was all that mattered.

He had also given them their very own masks, made out of Miwa's old multi-coloured blanket, which the boys were all too happy to receive from their father. He had told them that it was a way to show their enemies (god forbid they ever made any) that they were going to be powerful ninjas, but really, it was a way for splinter to tell them apart properly, much to his own shame; he had mixed them up far too many times in the past, even with their different features.

He had given them each a colour according to their personality; Leonardo donned a blue mask, which symbolized loyalty, wisdom and faith. Raphael donned red, meaning anger, passion, determination and love. Donatello wore a purple mask, meaning ambition, creativity, independence and wisdom. And Michelangelo wore orange, meaning joy, creativity and happiness. His mask tails were cut the shortest, for he was always moving about with great enthusiasm wherever he went; having long tails would only hinder him.

Today, the sun was out during the hot summer afternoon, and Splinter was content in watching his three-year-old boys play in the front garden. However, it was during this peaceful moment in which he had begun to ponder over his options. Though they had all become quite attached to this home in the forest, Splinter knew that they could only stay here for so long until someone discovered them. In fact, that had almost happened several times in the past few months; Michelangelo had wanted to go out and explore beyond the bushes and trees that had hidden them, and it was only due to Splinter's quick thinking and reflexes that had saved his sons from being spotted by a human passing by. It would only be a short time until they were found. And he prayed that wouldn't happen. He knew the cruelty of humanity to creatures they did not understand…

They had to leave. The forest was just too open for them to stay in any longer. But where could they possibly go? Tokyo wasn't an option; there were far too many people in that city alone…

Wait a moment. There was one city that they could possibly escape to. It was still filled with humans, yes, but with a far less population, and better still, there were plenty of places that they could hide…though some were less pleasant than others, but they would make do.

The city of New York. It was far less open than Japan, and the people were known to never really notice anything but themselves.

And besides, what other options did he have left?

He nodded to himself once. That is what they would do. But first, he would have to tell his sons. Standing up and folding his hands behind his back, Splinter called, "My sons, hiyaku."

The three turtles playing on the grass looked up in confusion, but they immediately obeyed as they scrambled to their feet and followed their father inside the house. On their way to Splinter's room, Splinter bent down and scooped up a pouting Raphael into his arms, nuzzling his cheek with his nose to make the boy finally smile as he wrapped his arms around his father's neck. They all gathered around Splinter as he sat down before them on his futon with Raph sat on his lap. He regarded each of them, gazing down at their confused large eyes as they waited for him to speak, which after clearing his throat (and stopping Raph from messing with his beard) he did so. "My sons," he began, "I have decided…that we can no longer live here in the forest."

The reaction he was met with was what he had expected; wide eyes, open mouths and gasps of confusion. "But why daddy?" Donnie asked, "I thought you liked it here." His brothers nodded in agreement as they looked back at the rat.

"That is true, Donatello," Splinter explained, shifting Raph more comfortably in his lap, "but after much thought, I realize that this forest is far to open for us to stay here for much longer. We could be discovered very soon and I do not wish to lose any of you. So when the time is right, we shall all be going on a journey to another land, where we can live without the fear of being spotted."

The boys looked at each other for a moment, both in confusion and in slight wonder as they processed what their father was telling them. Finally they turned back to him and grinned, jumping up to their feet and gathering around their teacher and speaking all at once.

"That sounds cool, sensei!"

"So are we goin' on an adventure?!"

"So awesome!"

"When are we gonna go, are we gonna go now?!"

Splinter chuckled at their sudden burst of enthusiasm. "Calm yourselves, my sons. We will be going soon," he said, standing up and setting Raph back on his feet as he folded his hands behind him. "First, I must find a way to get us there without being spotted." He put a claw to his chin as he hummed to himself in thought. The forest they lived in was not very far away from the docks…maybe they could find a cargo ship to sneak aboard to get to New York without being seen. But then again, how on earth were they going to be able to do that? Splinter knew that it would take nearly all of the skills he possessed as a ninja too keep them from detection, but he was sure that they could make it. It would take time and a lot of effort, but he had gone through worse…and would have continued to do so if not for the love of his little treasures.

He nodded to himself once before he turned back to his sons. "Prepare yourselves, my sons. We will be leaving tonight."

The boys gasped in excitement, bouncing up and down as they began to cheer. Splinter smiled down at them warmly. They thought that they were going on an adventure. But to be honest, he couldn't help but agree with them.

Tonight would surely become an adventure for them all.

The moon was full that night as it hung over the silent forests of Japan, and he was once again on the move, using the thick bushes that surrounded the area for cover. He was never the one to actually hunt for prey, since he got his payment through whoever needed his services, and his body appeared human enough to walk in the city to buy whatever he needed to survive. Of course, he would have to conceal his face, arms and paws, but he had clothing for that. Tonight however, was different; he had been out of work for about a month now, and money was limited, so for now he would have to result in giving into his animalistic urges. Wild animals for him to prey on were actually scarce in these parts of the forest, either being hunted by the humans for food, medicine or clothing, or captured to be displayed in Zoos. The thought made him want to slit someone's throat. But he had to remain focused. There was a crane sitting there by the river, totally unaware of his presence in the bushes as he waited for the opportune time to strike.

He lowered his body to the ground, flexing his shoulder blades and his claws as he prepared to move in for a killing blow…

Something loud startled them both as it echoed into the night, causing the crane to fly off, but the tiger didn't care for a change.

That sound…it sounded like laser fire. But from where? And who was firing? And if was who he thought, then what were they shooting at?

Should he ignore it? After all, if it was those alien creatures again, it was in his best interests that he stayed well away from them. Unless he wanted to become a fur coat, that is. It was probably one of their escaped test subjects or something of the sort; it would be taken care of in due time. With a huff, he stood up and began to walk away in search for new prey.

Then he heard something else. Something that had stopped him in his tracks completely, and caused his eyes to widen as he turned around sharply, his eyes going wide.

A child crying.

There was a child out there. And wherever it was, it was alone and crying…

…and from the scent of it, they were bleeding as well.

He felt another feral growl rise from his throat. His head told him to ignore it. It was the rule of forest, and the rule of the cruel world they lived in; every creature for itself. But his animal instincts, the need to go out there and find that child and protect it…and his own inner child that had suffered as well so long ago, was even stronger than his mind.

With another huff of annoyance, the giant tiger mutant started off in the direction of the child's cries. Something told him in the back of his mind that he was going to regret this.

He just knew it.

Everything was blurry. Everything hurt; even his shell hurt. It was like his head was going to explode, and he wanted it to stop.

Make it stop, sensei…make it stop…

Something prodded his side, not hard enough to hurt, but enough for him to weakly open his eyes at last as he blinked the stars out of his vision. He let out a groan as he lifted a shaking hand to his head, feeling something warm trickle between his fingers, and he pulled back only to find them coated in blood. He let out a cry of alarm at the sight of the red liquid, before his gaze shifted to something standing next to him. His eyes travelled upwards, and he screamed as he scrambled backwards on his shell, hitting it against a thick tree as he stared up in wide eyed horror at the pale, emotionless faces of three dark clothed men that he had never seen before. In fact, Leonardo had never seen a man before in his entire life.

The three of them stared down at the young turtle, drawing closer to him. "Kraang, the mutant that is known as turtle is a mutant that Kraang has not created," one of them said in a strange voice. Why were they speaking like that?

"Yes, Kraang, I am knowledge of that," another replied, "this turtle shall prove to a perfect test subject for Kraang to do that which is known as testing. Kraang, we must be taking this turtle to the place that is known as the secret base that is situated in the place known as Tokyo to do that which is known as testing."

The third one nodded, and he reached out to grab Leo, and his dark blue eyes widened in horror and fear as he scooted away, whimpering as tears spilled over his eyes and rolled down his cheeks. Where was he? What was going on? Where were his Sensei, Raph, Donnie and Mikey? They had been walking through the forest to go to the place Splinter called New York, when suddenly purple blasts of light were shooting everywhere, and in the next moment, Leo found himself surrounded by these scary men that wanted to hurt him again.

He shut his eyes and threw his arms over his head. He was so scared.

Help me daddy…help me daddy!

Suddenly, a loud roar ripped through the night, scaring the wits out of Leo as he looked up. The three strange men whirled around to find a large, muscular, armed and very angry tiger mutant standing behind them, pointing two very strange guns at them as he let out a growl through his fangs. "If I were you," he said slowly, his voice low and threatening, "I would step away from the child and leave. Now."

The three men did nothing of the sort, and instead, they pulled out their own guns. "Kraang, it is the one known as the tiger mutant. The one who calls himself, Tiger Claw."

And without warning, they opened fire on him. Leo screamed and covered his ears with his hands as the fight ensued, with the tiger gaining the upper hand very quickly as he fired his own laser guns at them and used his razor sharp claws to tear them in half from the waist. Within seconds, the fight was over, and right before his eyes, the young turtle saw three slimy brain looking creatures emerge from their chests, squeaking and scrambling away into the forest and away from the tiger mutant. Tiger Claw sheathed his weapons and cracked his neck from side to side, before turning to the turtle sat against the tree. Leo let out a little gasp as he looked at him and he flinched, tears still rolling down his cheeks as he sniffed.

They stared into each other's eyes for the longest time, almost as if they were trying to read each other. Then the connection was broken as Tiger Claw turned and let out a breath that sounded like growl and a sigh at the same time. "My work here is done. Go back to your home, little one," he said, and he turned and walked away from the turtle, no looking back as he entered the trees. He didn't know why he had saved him. Well, he did know why, but he refused to acknowledge that. He had not gone soft. He had simply offered him a single act of mercy that he would not be getting again…actually, this was the second act of mercy he had shown this particular turtle. He had met him before, back when he was just an infant.

"…Boo. Boo…!"

He shrugged the memory off as he continued forwards. The child meant nothing to him. The bleeding from his head injury had already stopped, so he would be fine.

He would let the boy return to his family on his own, and that would be that.

His ear twitched.

He turned around to find that the turtle was standing a few feet away from him, staring up at him through his blue mask with big blue eyes as he fiddled with his fingers nervously. Tiger Claw raised a brow at him. "…why are you following me?" he asked, his tone suggesting it was more of a warning to tell him to stop and leave him alone. Whether or not the child heeded it, he didn't bother to find out. "Go. Return to your home."

The boy didn't move, but he looked down at his feet, shifting slightly. After a moment, he looked back up, and in a quiet voice he said, "…boo?"

Tiger Claw blinked in surprise. He remembered him. How strange. A child's memory never lasted very long, and as they grew older, memories of their infancy faded away, being clouded by new memories they would make day by day. But somehow, after three years, he remembered the night he had seen the tiger and had tried to scare him off.

That touched him a little. A little.

He huffed again. "Yes. But that is not my name. My name is Tiger Claw."

The child tilted his head to the side, and his mouth twisted into a thoughtful pout. "T…Ti…" he began, as though he was trying to pronounce the name. "…Tigger?"

Oh lord please no.

Tiger Claw slapped a paw over his face as he shook his head and sighed. No. He would not let this child parade around the forest calling him the name of a children's book character. He would rather just kill him now and spare him the humiliation. He let out a long sigh as he turned back to the child. "No. That is not my name either. Go back to your home. Now." He said with a little more force that made the child flinch backwards slightly, before turning on his heel and walking back into the forest, his tail flicking behind him as he left the child standing there alone.

Leo stared at his retreating back, not moving from his spot. He glanced behind him, where the scary things had attacked him. There was no way he was going back there again. He needed to find his family, and that big cat was the only one that could help him.

Turning back, he shuffled once again after the tiger.

His ear twitched again.

His expression turned flat as his mouth formed a thin line. Not again.

He didn't have the time or patience for this any longer. This was the tenth time he had sensed that turtle child following him, and it had been going on for the last three hours. Why was he still following him like a lost puppy? He wasn't going to take him back home, nor was he going to find the rat for him; any contact with the rat would surely result in an unnecessary confrontation, and he only fought when he needed to.

But dear god was this getting annoying.

Rolling his eyes, he finally stopped and sharply turned around again for the last time, his patience wearing thin and his frown deepening as he stared down at the little turtle, who had been itching closer and closer to him as they walked, but stopped dead in his tracks as soon as the tiger's angry eyes were on him again. Letting out a breath through his nose, he folded his stripped arms across his chest. "Why are you still following me, child?" he growled lowly, "It has been hours now. Why don't you return to your family?"

The fiddle with his mask tails, before in a timid little voice, he finally said, "…I…I lost 'em…"

Tiger Claw started at that, and turned around fully to look down at the child. "What was that?" he asked, using a less irritated tone than before.

The boy's shoulders shook slightly with effort as he fought for control over his tears. "…um…w-we were goin' on a trip to someplace else, a-and then those mean things came and tried to hurt us. I must've fell asleep 'cus when I woke up…daddy and my brothers wasn't there any more…"

Despite his effort, the thick tears began to roll down his cheeks as he hugged himself, squeezing his eyes shut. "…I'm scared…" he whimpered as he looked back up at the tiger. "…d-do you know where daddy is?" he asked.

The giant tiger looked off to the side. For the first time in a long time, Tiger Claw felt his heart ache for the child, but he refused to show it, keeping his face calm as he stared down at the crying turtle before him. He was just as he had been all those years ago, back when he had first been captured by those alien creatures as a boy. He had been so afraid, wanting his mother and father to come and find him, reassure him that all of it was a bad dream. But of course, life was never that kind, and so he was left to wander the lands alone, cold and so afraid, not knowing if he would survive. That was until he got involved with the criminal underworld. And he made himself become stronger. He forged himself into a warrior with nerves of steel, and a heart of stone. But now, looking at the mutant child that quivered before him, lost and alone and so afraid…it tore his inner child.

He knew he shouldn't. It should've been none of his concern. He should've left him to learn how to fend for himself, just as he himself had done. But he had been much older than him when the aliens had taken him. He knew more than the three-year-old did. He had no chance, no chance at all in surviving by himself. He knew that his heart had turned cold over the years, but even he couldn't abandon one so young to a fate like that. With a resigned sigh, Tiger Claw made his decision. He bent down on one knee to the child, who flinched back slightly.

Tiger Claw looked him in the eye. "…what is your name, little one?" he asked.

The boy sniffled. "…daddy calls me…Le…Leonardo. But my brothers call me Leo, 'cus it's easier."

Leonardo. That meant 'brave lion'. What a long and strange name for a child like him. But concerning the circumstances, would that be ironic or coincidental? Shaking the thought off, he got himself back on track as he faced the boy again. "Leonardo…can you remember where you live?" he asked.

He saw the boy's eyes fill with slight hope at his question, but then his expression fell as he shook his head.

Tiger Claw huffed; that figures. "…In that case, I will sniff them out. We will find them together."

His little green face broke out into a tearful grin as he nodded his head rapidly, sniffling as he wiped away his tears with the back of his hand. Tiger Claw nodded once, and then raised his head and closed his eyes as he sniffed the air. His nose was better than the average dog's, which came very handy when looking for prey or sensing a threat of any kind. And it took only seconds for him to catch onto the rat's scent. It was old, but it lead back into the direction of the hut they were living in. He opened his eyes again as he stood up, and he began to walk on ahead in the direction of the house. He realized a minute later that the turtle wasn't following him this time, and he rolled his eyes.

When he didn't want him to follow, he followed. When he wanted him to follow, he didn't. He cocked his head forwards, motioning for him to follow him, and he quickly obeyed, shuffling behind him timidly. Tiger Claw huffed; whatever happened to that brave little one that he had met three years ago?

Well, in all honesty, he was brave for following him for as long as he did. Either that or he was simply suicidal.

They walked in silence through the forest as they trekked their way back to the hut. Tiger Claw glanced behind him periodically, making sure that he was still following him, which he was…until he stumbled over a branch sticking out of the mud, and he fell flat onto his face. Tiger Claw stopped walking, and prepared himself for the child to start crying. But to his surprise, the boy barely reacted at all as he only stood up again, wiping the mud off his face and knees and sniffing before looking expectantly back up at the tiger, waiting for him to continue walking. Tiger Claw blinked once in mild surprise; normally a child his age and size would have started to cry from a fall like that. Children were weak and fragile things, always crying and whining at the slightest thing. Not this child though. He simply brushed it off like it was nothing but a scratch.

Leonardo tilted his head as the tiger stared at him. "…Tigger?" he asked.

Tiger Claw narrowed his eyes. "Do not call me that," he warned.

Leo shrunk back slightly as he nodded, and Tiger Claw turned back to the path with Leo close behind him. He looked at his large paw at his side. He wanted to hold his hand, for it made him feel safer, but something told him that if he did, he would get scolded, so he kept his hands to himself. He would feel better once he was back home with Master Splinter and his brothers. They had to be waiting back at the hut for him to come back, right? They wouldn't leave him behind after those creepy men attacked them, would they? Of course not! They were family, and family never leaves family behind. That's what Splinter always said, and he was always right.

The sky had turned lighter as the sun finally began to rise by the time they had reached the hut. Whilst Leonardo had gone running down the path and into the darkened house, Tiger Claw stayed behind, his brow creasing in confusion. He sniffed the air once more. Something wasn't right here.

The scents he could smell were old. They weren't here. They hadn't come back yet…and from how old these scents were, and by who he had found surrounding the boy when he had arrived on the scene, he doubted that they would be any time soon...

It appeared that he had been in time to save Leonardo, but far too late for his family…

He was pulled from his thoughts when he heard Leonardo calling out, "I'm back, daddy! Raphie, Donnie, Mikey? Where are you? Are you hiding?" and he let out a long breath through his nose. He had no idea, did he? Of course he didn't. The death of loved ones was foreign to him. In fact, did he even know what had happened to them? Hadn't he seen anything? Or had he been knocked out before he could see what had become of his family…that now, he was all alone? He closed his eyes and lowered his head. He didn't want to be the one to tell him. It would shatter him to pieces. But he knew that it needed to be done. Taking in a deep breath, Tiger Claw walked down the path and stepped into the house. It was dark, but with his heightened eyesight, he could see as clearly as if the lights were on. The house was old, and there were areas that had been patched up, albeit clumsily, but it had been good enough for the time being.

He was about to go looking for the boy in the other rooms, but he found him nearly running into him from the main area. Leonardo gazed up at him with eyes full of confusion as he asked him, "Where is daddy? Where are Raph, Donnie and Mikey?"

Tiger Claw looked down into his big blue orbs full of innocence, and he found himself torn. Should he tell him the truth? How could he? The truth would be far too unbearable for him…

He decided he would stretch the truth, turn the horrid twist of fate into something more bittersweet. He sighed as he knelt down on one knee, and this time, Leo didn't flinch. "…your family…has gone somewhere else," he began, "somewhere they will be safe."

Creasing his brow, Leo tilted his head. "…they did? Did they go to that place already…without me?" His face fell as tears began to start in his eyes. Why did they leave him behind? He thought they were going to stick together forever. Did Sensei lie to him? Did they leave him behind on purpose…because they didn't want him anymore?

Tiger Claw realized his mistake, and quickly tried to think of something else to say. "No, they did not leave you…they…they have simply gone away for a little while. They will come back and get you very soon."

Leo looked up at that. They were coming back for him? They didn't forget about him? "…when?"

"Hm?"

"…when are they coming back to get me?"

The tiger scratched the back of his head uncomfortably as he tried to think of a suitable answer for him, one that he would believe, but not one that would give him too much hope. To his annoyance and shame, he could only think of one:

"…soon."

Leonardo blinked. "Oh," he said simply, twiddling his fingers as he looked down thoughtfully at his feet, as if processing what the tiger had told him. After a moment of silence, he looked back at Tiger Claw, and to the cat's surprise, he smiled at him and nodded. "Okay then!" he piped up, "Is Tigger gonna stay with me until daddy comes back?"

Tiger Claws' eyes widened and his heart sank in his chest. What? Was he actually asking him to stay with him? That was the last thing he wanted to do! There was no way he could possibly take care of a child, not with the life he lived. His life was that of a lone warrior, not the life of a single parent to an orphaned three-year-old mutant turtle. But then again, what else did he expect to happen once he learned that the rat was never going to come back? Had he thought he could just leave the boy here to cling onto false hope for the rest of his days? But he had said so himself, that leaving the boy to a cruel fate was cruel, even for him. But…he just couldn't. It was something he wouldn't be able to handle, not with being an assassin always on the hunt…

…but he couldn't leave him here to die alone. It would make him no better than the ones who had taken his humanity from him all those years ago.

He looked back at Leonardo, who continued to wait patiently for his reply. And it was in that moment that the tiger made his decision. He didn't know how he was going to do it, but somehow, he would protect and raise this child as his own. It would be one of his greatest challenges yet, but it was now his responsibility, and on his last ounce of the honor that he had left in him, to make sure that this child lived and grew. He also knew about the training that the rat had begun to put them all through in order for them to protect themselves from danger should they ever become separated. Though he was no ninja, he too would train him to the best of his abilities, until he became just a fierce and strong a warrior like he was.

He put a paw on his shoulder. "…yes, Leonardo," he said at last, "I will stay with you until your time comes as well. We will live here together until then."

Leonardo smiled happily, and he nodded his head. "Thank you Tigger!"

His eye twitched. "…please, do not call me that anymore."

Leonardo's smile turned into a bashful pout. "Sorry…"

Tiger Claw shook his head, and for the first time in a long time, he allowed himself to give the child a smile, a real one filled with reassurance, patience…and love. "My name is Tiger Claw…" he said, placing his paw upon his head and rubbing it softly as the young boy – his young cub – smiled up at him.

"…but you may call me…father."