I got a lot of nice reviews from you- I am really thankful and terrible ashamed that I didn't update any time sooner. Thanks to all the people who still read this story!

And special thanks to Cynlee for beta reading and corrections.

TMNT are owned by Mirage.

Chapter 15: The Price for Survival- Part b

It's hard for me to say I'm sorry
I just want you to stay
And after all that you've been through
I will make it up to you
I promise you

Chicago: Hard to say I'm sorry

She was floating in the calm, warm darkness. Her body felt weightless, the murkiness embraced her and swallowed her completely. She didn't care where she was. There had been an outside life, and pain, and shock. Right now she felt comfortable, she didn't want to leave. She wanted to enjoy this experience forever, she wanted to sink into this darkness to never wake up again. But slowly, something infiltrated her chosen solitude- a soft voice, talking to her, filled with so much pain and regret.

She shied away. No. She refused to hear this, refused to go back, but the voice went on and on. Memories flashed through the soothing atmosphere and confused her even further. But slowly, so slowly she remembered the happenings, the cave-in, the pain and she recognized the voice. She smiled softly, feeling relief. He was alive. They both survived.

"Master Splinter."

The pointed ears twitched, but Splinter showed no other reaction when he heard Donatello's irritated voice. He sat next to Tally's bed again, holding her hand and was talking to her. Don stepped over and grabbed for his fathers shoulder.

"What do I have to do to keep you in bed? You don't help her, you just worsen your own condition."

Splinter didn't answer, but he allowed his son to help him back into his own bed. Donatello had hoped that his infected ankle would keep him there, but far from it! He sighed deeply. Splinter stared at the next bed.

"She has been sleeping for three full days now".

"I'm working on it, honestly. But I cannot examine the ooze and keep an eye on you at the same time!"

The situation was really going on his nerves. His brothers and he took turns in watching over the two, but they had the same problems as himself. Splinter just ignored it. In his own way, he was just such a horrible patient as Don's brothers. No matter what, Donatello just hadn't the authority to keep anyone in bed. Normally Splinter would order them to lay down if one of the others was seriously hurt, but in this case…

"I'm sorry, my son."

Startled, Don looked up.

"It's just…"

When he saw the pain in his fathers eyes, Donatello felt pity. He had seen this expression before, every time when one of them was hurt or sick. He knew that Splinter would had taken every illness, every single wound on himself if that would have spared his sons. And then he sat day and night beside the bed, cared for them or was just there, always. It was obvious that he felt guilty because of what happened to Tally. Again and again they had assured him that it wasn't his fault, that he couldn't had prevented it. It was effortless. So Don just took Splinter's hand and did what his father had done for him so many times before: he comforted him by just being there. Splinter understood. He smiled gently and after a while, he felt asleep. Nevertheless, Don stayed at his bed and listened to his breathing, watched the steady up-and-down-movement of the blanket the whole afternoon.

The voice had disappeared. It was quiet now, except for the sound of her own breathing she couldn't hear anything else. She felt awkward. She was lying in a bed, but something just wasn't right. Her body was… wrong. The feeling of the blanket on her skin…

No. Was she feverish? She moved under the blanket and felt how it shifted, how the fabric rubbed over her skin. But the feeling was somehow different.

She could hardly open her eyes. When she tried first, the light hurt her so much that her eyes watered. She closed them, but it didn't seem to make a difference. It was so bright. She felt that someone bent over her. The brightness behind her closed eyelids was dimmed and she dared the open them again. One of the Turtles, she couldn't say who. A humming, blurred voice said something she couldn't understand. The Turtle grabbed for her hand and she pressed it weakly. Something cold touched her forehead, then she fell back into merciful darkness.

Donatello sighed and carefully ran a cold washcloth over Tally's forehead. She whimpered and muttered something incomprehensible, but wouldn't wake up again. Splinter was sleeping peacefully. He just wanted to leave when April entered the room.

"How are they doing?"

She carried fresh sheets and blankets and changed Tally's sweat-soaked ones.

"She woke up, just a few minutes ago."

"Did she understand what has happened?"

"She was barely awake… she fell asleep again after a minute. Luckily Master Splinter didn't notice."

April gently stroke Tally's now fur-covered arm.

"Any progress with the ooze?"

Don snorted.

"I suspect a certain lysogenic virus to trigger the mutation. But how should I test my working hypothesis? I can hardly go out and inoculate a random human. And even if I think I found a cure- I will certainly have only one single try. If I make a mistake…"

April pressed his hand.

"If anyone is able to solve this, then it is you. You even cured the mutants in the underground city, remember? Maybe you could-"

"I thought of that. There are no crystals left, nowhere. I already sent Raph and Leo down there and they came back empty-handed."

While discussing ways to reverse the mutation, the two left the room. Splinter perked his ears up. He had overheard the last sentences. He didn't know what "lysogenic virus" meant, but it didn't sound too good. Unfortunately he also knew that all of the magic crystals were destroyed when the original inhabitants of the underground city claimed their property back- from their point of view not just the city, but also the rest of the world.

He stood up and hobbled to the other bed, where he sat down and pressed Tally's hand, repeating the same words over and over: Don't give up, Donatello will find a way, come back, come back to me…

Again, she became self-aware. The pain had slightly diminished, but something different had changed, too. I am dreaming, she thought with eyes still closed. A cacophony of sounds washed over her- her own steady heartbeat and the one of someone close to her, steps and voices a little bit further away, water rushing through sewer pipes, subways and cars. Someone was speaking- Leonardo?

The sound was strange, but not as disturbing as the smells. Donatello had been here just some time ago, she was sure- and Splinter was still here. Was she dreaming? She slowly opened her eyes. Her vision was blurring, but the first thing she saw was a furry brown head. Splinter had fallen asleep in his chair, his head had sunken at the sheet . Somebody had wrapped a blanket around his shoulders. She gently smiled and noticed that he still held her hand, as he had surely done the whole time before.

Her hand…

Splinter almost fell backwards from the chair. Being waked by a bloodcurdling scream directly beside his ears would have even shocked him without a concussion, but now he was so startled that it took him a few minutes to understand what had happened. Tally sat in her bed, eyes wide with shock and terror, and stared at her shivering hands- now paws. Then she raised her head and looked into his eyes. Splinter couldn't stand the lack of understanding in it, the incredulity. He carefully stretched his hand out and longed for her shoulder.

"Tally, I-"

She flinched back as if he had attacked her. He laid his hands on the sheet.

"Tally, I am sorry. The green liquid in the canister-, well… Donatello is working on a cure. We-, we don't know exactly what happened, but I'm sure he will-"

She stared at him big-eyed. He wasn't sure if she had understood a single word of what he tried to say. Her expression hadn't changed.

"Tally, what I'm trying to say is-"

"You knew."

"What?" he asked, irritated. Her voice was flat and almost emotionless.

"You knew about the ooze."

When he realized this iniquitous accusation, it hit him like a bolt of lightning.

"I swear I would never-"

"Stay AWAY from me!"

She tried to spring out of the bed, stumbled and fell to the floor. On all fours she retreated to the wall and pressed her back against it, glaring angrily and with fear at Splinter who stood on the other side of the bed.

"I am sorry," he said again, unsure how to deal with this awkward situation. He knew better than to try to explain right now. Maybe April would get through to her, later, when she had calmed down. He slowly limped out of the room, hoping to find her. When he closed the door, Tally crouched crying to the ground.