Disclaimer – Ah, gee, it's obvious, isn't it? I don't own nada. Just read and enjoy, review if you want to. A glimmer of hope for some of you obsessive Leo-fans. :0) A glimmer, though, and not a floodlight full. Gotta be thankful for even a little bit at this point, eh? LOL

My thanks and appreciation for everyone who read and especially for those of you who took the time to leave a comment or two – Dierdre (who left so many chapter reviews, she almost wrote a chapter - and whom I totally forgot to include here with the original upload because she included her review of ch 25 with chapter 18 and I didn't see it until - she e-mailed me about 'not getting any love' with this review shout-out. Rein hangs head in shame), BubblyShelly22, Kaya Lizzie, Pacphys (especially for your very long, complex review! Wow), Chibi Rose Angel, Empress Caroline of Tamaran, Lunar Ninja, Mewfem, Sassyblondxoxo (sure have missed you, gal!), Shadowflame611, Reluctant Dragon, Katana Babe, Ramica, and Jessiy Landroz.

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Chapter 26 – Cats and Bags

Raph frantically glanced over at the subway car that was Leo's bedroom, and where his father and brothers were. He then looked back at Beth and saw her eyes glaze over, her mouth relax, and her head droop just a bit. She was going catatonic again!

"God, what am I t'do?" Raph said in a hushed panic, his eyes wide as he reached across the table to touch Beth's hand. As he caressed the top of it lightly, he begged between clenched teeth, trying to keep his voice low, "Com'on, Beth, snap out of it." Her eyes flicked just for a second, but then degenerated back to its fixed gaze once again. When he didn't get much of a response after that, Raphael quickly moved out of his chair and around to where Beth sat.

Grabbing her shoulders with as light a touch as he could and giving her a little shake, he whispered, "Beth, Beth," his voice strained as he tried to keep the volume down, "Ya gotta snap out of it, girl…" He stroked her face with one finger and sighed. Then he had a thought, declaring in as excited a tone as he could, yet still keeping to the hushed tones, "Hey, Leo's callin' for ya. Yeah…" he looked up towards his brother's room. Raph hoped that his father hadn't sensed the desperation he was feeling. Just the same, he was willing to do whatever it took. Looking back at Beth again, "Splinter just gave me the high sign that Leo's been asking for ya."

Raph hated lying, but desperate times meant desperate measures.

Just then, Splinter's concerned voice called out from Leonardo's room, "Raphael, is everything all right?"

"As rain," Raph grumbled to himself, and then more directly, so that his father could hear him, "Well, I…ah…sort of have a…situation here, Sensei."

Immediately, the rat came to the bedroom door and peered out into the lair. He quickly noticed Raphael standing next to a seated Beth. In that same moment and with the way the girl seemed slumped in her chair, he also instinctively knew that something was wrong. However, he quickly turned back towards the room's interior, as if something or someone had distracted him.

"Leonardo, I insist that you remain in bed. No, stay there…please, do as I ask…"

Despite Splinter's stern request, though, his son soon appeared at the doorway, looking out into the lair to evaluate what was happening.

It didn't take the turtle long to notice the girl, for in the next instant he asked inquisitively, "Who is that, Sensei?" He saw a girl sitting placidly at the table and apparently immobile, with Raphael hovering by her side, his hand on her shoulder as he gently talked to her.

Splinter sighed and resigned himself to the situation, looking at his son with a sad expression, "That, my son, is the 'friend' who found you."

"Really?" Leo asked, pursing his mouth a bit and looking at his father incredulously. He then glanced back at the scene playing out in the kitchen, "She…found me?" He frowned a little and furrowed his eye ridges to look back at Splinter again, "Why did you bring her here, though. I thought we all agreed that we wouldn't bring humans to our lair anymore?"

Nodding reluctantly, Master Splinter replied, "This is true, Leonardo, but – in helping you, she – injured herself. Her wound bled too much to just leave her where she was."

"Yeah, Dude, she would'a bled out if we'd left her in her apartment," Mike replied, walking up next to his father. Almost in the next instant, however, he felt a firm, quick thwack from Splinter's walking stick, as the rat struck him along the front of his plastron, "Ow, what was that for, Sensei?" Mike complained, bringing his hand up in reflex to protect the offended area.

"It is not important where we found her, Michelangelo," Splinter replied sternly, "and I would kindly appreciate it if you would allow me to handle this," he remarked. He glared reprovingly at his son as the rat flattened his ears just a little, a sure sign that he was not at all pleased.

"Sorry, Sensei, I didn't think it mattered where we found her," Mike replied, rubbing the front of his chest. He then stepped back and away from his father.

Startled and concerned at Mike's mention that he and his brothers were in her apartment, Leonardo asked, "What were you guys doing in her apartment?"

Splinter rolled his eyes as he shook his head, resigned to the inevitable questions from his son. However, it was obvious to him that Raphael was not having much luck with the girl, "Leonardo, allow me to first tend to our guest. She suffers from a sort of malady and it seems as if Raphael is having problems because of it." Then, Splinter left his bewildered son standing by the subway cars, as Mike and Don eased in beside their brother.

Leo looked out across the lair and watched as his father approached the girl at the table. He saw Raphael bow his head slightly and then utter an apology in Japanese. Leonardo could tell that his father was not pleased with Raph, not with the way the rat's tail snaked impatiently along the ground. Knowing his brother the way that he did, he half expected to see him sent to his room. It was obvious that Splinter was not very happy with him. Still, Leo was surprised when all Raph did was to move away from the girl, allowing Splinter to ease in beside her.

As he watched, he knew that his other brothers next to him were probably more aware of things, especially Michelangelo. He asked him, "What's her name?"

"Beth," Mikey quickly said, as he stood next to him, "and she's had the hots for…" but then he found himself dragged back inside the room, his arms flailing around in protest, as he complained, "Hey, Donnie, watch it, I wasn't gonna say anything that wasn't tru…Ow, STOP with the shoulder pinch, 'kay?"

"Just keep a lock on it, Mikey…let Splinter handle this." Don remarked as he released his brother.

Taking a few steps away from him and rubbing the top of his shoulder where Don had pinched him, Mike shot a baleful glare at his genius brother, "Sheesh, between you and Raph." He then shrugged as he sighed, "Okay, I'll lock it up," Mike then made as if he were locking his lips and then throwing the key away.

"That'll be the day. Personally, I think you truly do need to be locked up," Don shook his head and smiled.

"Hey, I resent that!" Michelangelo grumped.

"See, not even ten seconds," Donatello could only shake his head in mild amusement.

"Hey, I gotta say what I gotta day. Besides, you could have been nicer, Don…it's not like you to…" Mike continued to nag, but when Donnie gave a pointed glance at his brother's shoulder, the orange-banded turtle suddenly found that lock again for his mouth and went mute.

Leo glanced back at the two and asked, "So, why were you guys in her apartment?"

Mike grabbed Donnie's arm and begged, totally forgetting about the 'lock' once again, "Com'on Donnie, that 'cat's so far out of the bag, he's a mile away, I think we can answer this question without getting into trouble with Master Splinter."

Sighing, Donnie nodded, "Okay, yeah, it's obvious why we were there, I guess." He turned to Leo, "Beth evidently brought you to her apartment, which is where we found you. When we went in to extract you, that's when…" he looked to Mike again and rolled his eyes at his brothers widening grin, "Beth hurt herself."

Leonardo pondered that thought for a moment, then, with one raised eye ridge, he asked with great concern, "You guys…didn't hurt her, did you?"

Shaking his head in earnest, Mike replied, quickly backing up to avoid Donnie pinching him again, "No, dude, she was trying to defend you, got kinda scared when she saw us, and then she fell on your sword."

Leo's eyes widened considerably, "What in shell was she doing with my sword?"

Donnie growled a bit under his breath as he glared at his little brother, "You just couldn't leave it there, could you, Mikey?"

"Have I ever, Donnie?" Mike grinned as he spread his hands out in supplication. He then said to Leo, "She found it in the alley next to her apartment, where she found you. We watched her pick it up."

Donatello realized that, despite all the warnings, it was perfectly obvious that Mike was not going to keep silent. He did make sure, however, to keep his voice low, so that his father would not overhear him, "Okay, here's what happened. We saw her take the sword and because we didn't see you in the alley at the time, Raph assumed she had already found you. That's when he followed Beth, to find out where she had you. Once your location was determined, we came back later, when we thought she would be asleep. However, we didn't expect her to be in the living room, which is where you were. You were unconscious and she was asleep, but…" Donnie glanced at Mike, whose eyes were now growing wide with worry. Donnie grinned mischievously, but reconsidered, much to Mikey's relief. Turning back to Leo again, Don said, "then she woke up. That's when she took the sword to defend you – or, more than likely, herself."

Mike breathed an audible breath and mumbled a weak, "Thanks, bro," to Donnie, and then added quickly to Leonardo, "Yeah, then she sort of passed out, an' that's when she fell on the hilt, it sort of cut her a bit…and she bled a LOT!"

Nodding, Leo remarked, "Then it made sense for you to bring her here. I'd hate for anything to happen to someone who tried to help me." He then turned back to face the lair, watching as Splinter now sat next to Beth at the table. His sensei had taken up one of her hands in his paw, while his other rubbed her back. He could hear his father speaking softly to her, trying to bring the girl out of her malady.

"What's wrong with her, though? Why isn't she responding?" Leo asked worriedly.

"Ah, yes…" Donnie replied quietly, "Beth suffers from PTSD, or post traumatic stress disorder. She's had some difficult experiences and going catatonic is what she does when her stress levels overload."

Leonardo glanced over at Donnie and asked, "What…happened to cause her to do this now, though?"

Shrugging, Donnie started to reply, but Mike commented instead, "She hasn't been too fond of Raph; you know how he can get sometimes, and she has this reaction whenever he's around her."

Leo furrowed his eyeridges a bit, "How…long has she been here?"

Donnie sighed again, offering Mike a withering look before telling Leonardo, "About two days, but – well – you know Raph as well as any of us. Doesn't take much to get him going."

Nodding, Leo grinned, "Yeah, that's Raphael for you. Still…" Leo pondered, "why would he affect her in such a way as to cause her to do this?"

Mike looked at Donnie, his eyes pleading and his smile widening, "Should we tell him about the rest?"

Leo turned, now, towards his brothers. He realized, in that moment, that there was more to the story than just a simple rescue. As he thought about it, he knew there was something else that Mike had said just before Splinter admonished him. "Say, Mike, you mentioned 'hot', as if she had the 'hots' for someone." Straightening himself to stand a little taller and taking on the attitude of the leader he was, Leonardo stepped aggressively towards Mike as he asked, "What or who does she have the 'hots' for?"

Mike gulped and looked imploringly at Donnie. Yes, he wanted to tell Leo the whole story, where all his brother had known up until a moment ago was that a 'friend' had rescued him. In fact, at the time, Leo had asked if the rescuer had been Casey. The disappointment on Leonardo's face seemed crestfallen when Splinter said that it wasn't him, but then the rat had abruptly changed the topic to one centering on Leo's health.

Now, and as usual, it seemed as if Michelangelo had said more than he should have.

Donnie could only roll his eyes at Mike in response, expelling a frustrated breath, as he told Leonardo, "You, Leo, she has the hots for you."

Leo stood there in shock, "For…me? You have to be kidding, right?"

Mike, overjoyed, now that the proverbial cat was definitely out of the bag, grinned as he nodded enthusiastically, "Yep, bro, you're her number one!" Then, he sobered a bit, "And, we think Raph likes her, too."

"Too?" Leo nearly shouted, "You mean I liked her?" He looked back through the doorway and saw that the girl seemed to be coming out of her stupor. He watched as Raph relaxed a little, a noticeable smile creasing his snout as Splinter managed to get the girl to stand up. The rat gently moved her away from the table and gradually over to the couch, while Raph stayed where he was and watched. Splinter then sat Beth down and joined her on the sofa. He still seemed to be talking with her, and she appeared to say something in reply, but Leonardo's mind was still reeling with the fact that he had liked this girl. "How…much did I like her?" he asked Mike as he turned towards his brother with a pained expression.

"Hmm…kinda a lot." Mike replied sheepishly. He was still a good distance away from Donnie's reach, but by this time, Don had resigned himself to the fact that nothing was sacred anymore. He could only lean up against the wall closest to the door of the bedroom, his arms crossed in front of him, as he studied the ceiling in exasperation.

"You are so dead when Splinter finds out that you told him," Don remarked ruefully.

Leonardo looked back out through the door to the living area and watched as his father ministered to the girl. He saw Beth smile at one point, then shrug, but in the next moment, she began to cry a little. For a moment, Leo felt a twinge of compassion for her. Was she crying because of Raph or was she crying because of something else? These questions came to Leonardo's mind as he watched the scene in the other room.

Just the same, he knew that if he had truly liked this girl when he was not himself, and liked her a lot based on what Mike just said, then it was apparent to Leonardo that there was something about her which appealed to him subconsciously. Still, Leonardo had convinced himself years earlier that what he was and because of where he lived, it prohibited any kind of friendship with anyone from topside, especially someone of the opposite gender. He knew that anyone befriending him and his family would put that person in the gravest of dangers if the Foot ever found out about them. It was the main reason why, as a clan, Splinter insisted that they never again enlist the help or the befriending of any human. After losing April and the torture that she had gone through by the Foot in their attempt to gain the location of turtles' lair, it proved to all of them that their life had to remain a mystery until they passed from this world. Splinter did not want anyone else to suffer the way that the reporter did. Her last words to them, when they finally found her, proved her loyalty. She had refused to say anything at all, despite the horrors she went through.

Nevertheless, they had all recognized the rarity of such determination, where most humans would have rather given them over to the enemy than to suffer the way that April did.

In any event and despite his apprehensions, Leonardo could not help but be fascinated with the girl. The fact that she had brought him to her apartment, had obviously cared for him until his family arrived, told him that she was not a threat. She could have done any number of things that would have put him in danger. Calling the police was one and, of course, the zoo was yet another.

Yes, her efforts did give the girl points in the 'trust' factor. Just the same, the way that Mike explained to Leo how Beth had tried to use his katana to defend herself – or even him – impressed the turtle more. That took courage, despite the girl's affliction.

Leo then looked determinedly over at Donatello and asked, "How much is 'a lot', Donnie?"

Don's eyes widened a bit and then he gulped, saying, "Ah, well…a lot is a lot, Leo."

"How much?" Leonardo's eyes narrowed, giving Don the 'look' that said he had better answer straight.

Sighing and shaking his head, Don replied in resignation, "You loved her, kissed her even."

"I…kissed her? Really?" Leo chuckled, "Me?" He glanced back out the door again and saw Splinter heading slowly for him, the rat's progress towards the bedroom area determined and sure.

Meanwhile, Raphael stayed in the living room, seated next to Beth as he talked with her. "And what about Raph?" Leo asked inquisitively.

"Jealous as shell, dude! He likes her, too." Mike chortled gleefully.

"Ah, man…not another one." Leo groaned. "How bad is it for him?"

"Well…" Don replied hesitantly, "you can actually thank him for bringing you back to your senses."

"Why's that?" Leo asked, as he looked back at his brother.

Mike replied, "Seems Raph's been kind of pissy about you kissin' Beth and, well, from what she told us, he tried to apologize to her tonight…"

"Only you heard him from my room where you were staying, since Beth was using yours. That was when you and Raph got into a fight." Donnie added, "He…sort of kicked you in the head."

Leonardo stood there in shock and asked haltingly, "He-sort-of-did-what?"

"Well, dude," Mike explained, "you did it first, an ol' fashioned roundhouse kick, in fact."

Leonardo shook his head, "I must have truly been out of my mind to do that." He glanced back to where Raph was, just as Splinter came into the room. Everyone grew suspiciously silent then.

Splinter did not miss a thing; the look of shock and surprise on Leonardo's face said much to the wise ninja master. One look at his other sons and seeing their guilty expressions also told the master that the cat was indeed well beyond the reach of any bag.

"I assume there is not much left for me to say?" he asked them dryly.

As guilty as two foxes in a hen house, the brothers stood there and swallowed anxiously.

Mike finally commented nervously, "Not much, Sensei."

Shaking his head and sighing in defeat, all that Splinter said in reply was, "Figures."

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