Disclaimer - Ah, yes, such pipedreams have I, to own the turtles and all rights therein. But, it's only a dream, a dream, a dream…

Okay, thanks to all who read and reviewed. Those who left comments, my thanks and a plate of cookies. These wonderful and thoughtful people are – Thalpomene (for ch 1, but – wow – reading two of my fics at the same time? Crazy girl!), BubblyShell22, Fantacy, Leo Oneal, Ramica, Lunar-Ninja, Tewi, Mikaela's Spade, Mewfem, Katana-Babe, and Jessiy Landroz,

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Chapter 32 – Spelunking

Beth had been more than just surprised about leaving the lair; she was terrified. It was only too bad that she hadn't felt this way long before she had climbed out of her friends' home, otherwise the girl could have simply dismissed the thought and gone back to sleep.

Instead, she now found her self lost within the maze of tunnels that made up New York City's sewer system.

"What was I thinking," she kept berating herself, having all she could do to keep from moaning aloud.

As she continued walking through the sewers in her attempt to find an exit, she found that sometimes the tunnel would descend, leading her further down into the depths of the underworld. She was hesitant at first to continue, but the hopeful thought of maybe finding a way out kept her going.

However, there were other times where her path would seem to rise up, as if heading towards the surface. She was always elated whenever that happened, of course. Yet, no matter how far Beth walked, the tunnel never seemed get her to where she wanted to be. It would only begin another series of descents or lead her to a central hub where she would encounter more tunnels, but which led off in different directions. Then, she had to decide whether to stay on her chosen path, or take a new one.

Slowly, and as her confidence waned, she began to second-guess her decision of sneaking out of the mutant's home. The full weight of what she had done nearly caused her to panic every time she thought about it. If it weren't for Splinter's teaching on self-control, though, she would have, too.

Still, Beth knew she wasn't at all brave, or even bold, at least…not as bold as she ought to be, considering where she was, now. Where she couldn't even enjoy going outside of her own apartment, to now find herself in a maze of tunnels – and underground, no less, was just foolhardiness, that's all there was to it.

And it seemed that hindsight mocked her with every step she took, as well.

Yet, here she was, traipsing through the sporadically lit tunnels of the sewer system like a complete idiot.

Again, 'what was she thinking' came to mind.

Other thoughts came to her as well, such as, "What was that sound?"

Given the fact that the underbelly of New York City had occasional lighting at best, with more shadows than what she was comfortable with, Beth scuttled quickly between the soft glowing ceiling lights. Where not all seemed to be working, it took great determination and desperation on her part to make any progress at all. There were just enough lights, though, to urge her onward, yet the numerous shadows and darkened areas made her nervous, giving Beth the distinct feeling that someone, or something, was watching her. It nearly unnerved the girl. Then, at one point, when rats scampered across the tunnel floor in front of her, she finally realized the source.

Regardless of species, it was easy to sense when someone stared at you.

Still, other than the really big one back in the lair, Splinter to be exact, rats were her least favorite animal, and the ones in the sewers did nothing to calm Beth's nervousness. She just didn't dislike them, she hated them, which was why she had screamed out the first time she had seen Splinter.

Nevertheless, for the moment, she had bigger issues to consider than a few rats...such as how to find her way out of the sewers.

With her growing trepidation, she finally discovered a recessed niche in the wall. Beth stopped to allow herself to rest within its sheltering embrace. She wasn't sure what it was used for, other than it was deep enough for her to ease inside. As she hid there within the wall's confines, shrouded in its inky darkness, she realized that her fear of spiders came into play about then. Earlier, she had found a stick lying along the side of the center culvert, where the water flowed. The branch, devoid of its leaves and two-fingers thick, was long enough to act like one of Don's staffs, so she retrieved it, just in case. At the very least, if she encountered any of the mythical sewer-gators, she would be able to defend herself. Of course, the more rational Beth knew that they did not really exist, but after spending several hours of wandering the labyrinth of tunnels, ones inner demons could dismiss any form of common sense.

In other words, by this time, the girl's imagination was going full tilt.

Just the same, Beth kept wondering why she had decided to leave the safety of the lair in the first place. Of all people, she would have thought herself incapable of such assertive actions. The more she thought about it, the more she realized that she might have made a mistake. Just thinking about dying in such a god-forsaken place caused her to panic once again. Still, she concentrated keeping her emotions in check, using what Splinter had taught her. As it was, the girl did a valiant job of avoiding another catatonic episode. To do otherwise would have probably pitched her into the murky and dirty waters of the sewer, and it was that thought alone which helped to keep her focused.

She was smelly enough as it was.

Just the same, she raised her stick up and waved it above her head, allowing it to scrape along the brickwork sides of her niche, in an attempt to chase away her imagined spiders. Once she was satisfied that no arachnid worthy of self-preservation remained, Beth relaxed a little more.

After a while, she lost track of time. She didn't know how long she had been standing there, but Beth was certain that she hadn't gone catatonic yet. At least, with her current awareness she hadn't, where she didn't feel any strain along her back and legs.

Nonetheless, time in an environment without sunlight seemed to stand still for her. It was something that she found rather intriguing and just a little bit disconcerting. Although she much preferred the night, where she could go outside when the desire beckoned her, even then she had the moon and stars for company.

But here, for anyone to live within the bowels of the city and never, if rarely, feel the wind on their face, seemed unnatural. The fact that her five new friends lived in these tunnels, when they were originally creatures of the great outdoors, seemed a contradiction in terms.

In either case, her momentary rest allowed Beth to rethink her decision once again, quickly recalling the events in the lair that prompted her to leave.

Earlier, after everyone had retired to their respective rooms and after coming to her decision about her relationship with Leo, Beth had slept for only a short while before waking up. This time it was because of a dream.

The dream wasn't anything bad. In the dream itself, Leonardo had rediscovered his feelings for her and, in her dream state, he had proposed. Her dream-self was elated, with Donnie and Mike joining in with their own happy reaction. Raphael, however, was not pleased at all; in fact, in her dream, he was livid. Once more, she heard his words, 'of all the dumb luck'. She replayed his angry outburst again, completely forgetting about his apology that followed later. She saw in her mind how he had stormed back into his room, as he had done after witnessing the infamous 'kiss'. She next saw a very disgruntled Splinter glaring at her and not at all pleased, either. In fact, the master's disappointment was what woke her up in the first place.

As she laid there in her bed and pondered the dream and all that had happened between Leo and herself, Beth finally concluded that she had to leave. As soon as possible, in fact, where she didn't care to wait until her friends took her home. She was afraid that if she stayed until the evening, when it was safest for the others to be out, there might be enough time for Leo to rediscover his feelings for her. Where she had already decided to try and let him go and forget about him, Beth knew that her rebuff would hurt him. Truth was, she didn't want to do that. To follow through with her decision would ultimately crush Leonardo, his feelings for her forever tarnished by rejection. What would she do, then? Stay against her will? To do so just wouldn't be fair to her or to Leo.

No, she decided, leaving before everyone woke up was her best option. The problem was she hadn't followed through with that thought, such as how to find her way out of the sewers. All she knew was, she had to leave and as soon as possible.

Nevertheless, in planning her 'escape', she remembered the sensitive nature of her new friends. Consequently, the girl went out of her way to leave as inconspicuously as she could. She knew their hearing was quite keen, but she was counting on the fact that they were all more tired than usual. In any event, it took her nearly five minutes to slide her bedroom door open, just to make sure that it didn't sound out and alarm the others.

Once she had the door opened, as quietly as she could, Beth worked her way over to where her clothes were. They had planned on washing them, but with all that had gone on, it was a forgotten task. Still, even over the course of a couple of days, the garments still smelled badly, even to her. But, Beth couldn't very well go back to the surface wearing only the over-sized shirt Splinter had loaned her. So, the girl quickly and quietly returned to her bedroom with the clothes, exchanging the oversized shirt for her soiled slacks and top. After shrugging into her hooded coat, she decided to wait in slipping her shoes on until she was out of the lair. That way, by walking in her bare feet, she would avoid making any unnecessary sounds as she made her way to the exit.

Using the same caution as when she slipped out of the bedroom, Beth soundlessly eased across the lair to the ladder. Fortunately, unlike the wooden stairs in her apartment complex, the metal hand rungs didn't make any noise, such as squeaks and groans. Consequently, she noiselessly scaled the ladder, as she ascended to the opening above.

Once she was out of the lair, Beth slipped on her shoes and then debated with herself as to which way to go. She stood there above the entrance to the mutant's home for the longest time. She was more anxious that one of them might discover her missing, before she had even taken a single step. Even then, she wondered if she was doing the right thing.

Still, if there was one fact that was true about Beth, once she had her mind made up, she followed through with it.

Once again, imagining the hurt and disappointment on Leonardo's face is what spurred her. She just couldn't bear to see him that way. It was better if he and his family woke up and found her gone. By that time, Beth hoped that she would have found herself already home and within the comfort of her more familiar surroundings.

With that in mind and her goal firmly decided, she began the task of finding her way to the surface. As she trudged through the tunnels, she wondered how, exactly, she would do that, where she had been unconscious when her friends had brought her back to their lair. Not ever having been in the sewers before, she was clueless as to how to get out. Beth could only hope that her travels would eventually lead her to an opening.

After wandering what seemed like hours through the maze of tunnels, the girl found herself standing in the little niche in the sewer wall. As she stood there and thought about her predicament, Beth knew without a doubt, that she was now lost and clueless as to where to go next.

"Fine mess I've gotten myself into!" she grumped irritably to herself. She continued to stand there, in indecision, hoping desperately, now, that the rats she had seen were the only life forms indigenous to the sewers.

………………….

Raph had grouched along as Leo led the way. Mike and Don followed from behind, each observant of their environment and watchful for any sounds or signs of the Foot.

All of them were expert trackers, so it didn't take long to discover which way Beth had gone. Once they headed off in her direction, Leonardo automatically took up the lead. As he jogged through the sewers, with his brothers trailing behind him, the blue-banded turtle watched the trash-strewn floor of the tunnel, following along the girl's telltale path.

However, his brother in red was thoroughly disgruntled. Even though there was a time, not too long ago, where he was anxious to give the position of leadership back to Leo, to have it taken from him without even a cursory word was something else all together. His brother didn't even ask if he could, he just assumed his position and took over.

After being the acting chunin of the clan for several months, now, to Raphael it would have been nice and even respectful if his older brother had just given a kind word of consideration. But he hadn't.

Consequently, his lack of courtesy had ticked Raph off.

Now, he continued to mumble irritably under his breath as he and his three brothers hurried through the sewers.

Finally, at one point, Leonardo stopped and spun around, deliberately forcing himself into Raphael's face. His actions caused his brother to stop suddenly. For a moment, both glared at the other. Then…

"What in shell is going on with you, Raph? All you've done is gripe and complain since we started this hunt," he hissed. Leo might have suffered from a bout of amnesia and maybe his memories were slow in returning, but remembering to keep his voice whisper soft wasn't lost on the ninja. The need to be quiet was far too ingrained in him to do otherwise.

Raph finally sneered back at his brother and narrowed his eyes, countering the challenge in hushed discontent, "Seems someone's memory is still lacking. Guess ya fergot that someone else led for a while, when ya decided yer personal quest for self discovery took precedence over clan duties!"

Mike and Don looked furtively around, hoping that they were indeed alone in the tunnels and not on the cusp of encountering someone from the Foot. They stepped closer to their siblings, though, just in case the current mood between Leo and Raph turned uglier than it seemed to be.

In reply, Leo stared hard at Raphael for a moment. His brother's words rang far too true, and he couldn't rightly refute them. Finally, he relaxed a little as he replied defensively, shrugging as he did, "I…couldn't help that, Raph."

"Oh, I see; it's all right for you to go tiptoein' through th'tulips through New York City, but when I do it…" Raphael raised his arms in frustration, "it's not allowed." Standing straighter, the red-banded turtle declared, "In case you've fergotten, Leo-san, I was chunin for a while, a long while, an' I don't mind givin' the position back t'ya, believe me. But ya could at least ask first, know what I mean, outta consideration and respect?"

Leonardo had worked hard on his 'look', the one that he had honed to perfection and the one he always gave to his brother whenever Raphael challenged him. Yet, in that moment, it completely fell away. He hadn't even considered the fact that his brother might actually have had such expectations or had such responsibilities.

"Raph, I'm…sorry," he said as the weight of his actions pressed against him, "Honestly, I…was just doing what came naturally."

"Since when? Since before or after your amnesia?" Raph asked. "Leo, I've had to lead for the past several months, now. Have ya fergotten that?"

Scratching his head, the turtle in blue replied as he gave a soft chuckle, "Actually, I…ah…don't quite remember giving up my leadership. I…remember other things, but that's not one of them." Sighing, Leo nodded as he realized the gravity of the situation, "Well, considering what you just told me, maybe I should ask if you're ready to let me lead again."

Raph slightly pursed his lips as he considered his brother's words. He studied him, somewhat surprised by Leo's willingness to meet him halfway. Usually, his brother was far too headstrong and arrogant to admit being wrong about anything. But if his new way of looking at things was a by-product of his recovery, then Raph would accept it, "Okay, yeah, ya can have the mantel of leadah back." He grinned then as he added, "An' if this is a samplin' of your recovery, I think…I can live with that, too." Then, pushing past Leonardo, Raphael declared, "Well, what're we waitin' for, let's go find that girl!" and charged ahead of his brothers through the partially darkened tunnel.

"Hey!" Leo complained in mock irritation, "I thought I was the leader," as he gave chase after his brother.

He could hear Raphael laugh maniacally in the shadows, "Only if ya can catch me, Leo-san!"

Then, it became an all out race as Leo took off after his brother, with Don and Mike taking up the rear, all worries about crossing paths with the Foot gone from their concerns.

After a while, and when they had expended their frivolity, the four brothers went back to lurking cautiously through the sewers once again. Causing him great concern, Leo soon discovered that Beth had taken a less traveled tunnel system, diverting away from the mutants usual route. The tunnel the girl took wasn't as explored, but it wasn't unknown territory either. One of the main reasons why the brothers had never ventured that way too often was because it led to downtown Manhattan. Mostly, the four turtles stuck to the less traffic-oriented sewer openings, having memorized the sewer system as one would the streets of a neighborhood. In short, they knew where each sewer opening led in those areas. Since they used the cover of darkness for most of their above ground foraging and patroling, their exits were always behind little used buildings or alleyways.

However, the tunnel that Beth had taken did not have such advantages and any one of the sewer shafts leading to the surface could exit her right in the middle of such well-populated environments as Park Avenue.

Leonardo wasn't the least bit happy about that, either, and neither were his three brothers, who trailed behind him.

"Good God, Leo..." Raph muttered in concern, "...if she tries to exit in the middle of rush hour traffic…"

"Yes, I'm fully aware of the dangers, Raphael," Leo grounded out.

"Hey, dudes, at the very least, we might get lucky," Mike cheered good-naturedly.

"How's that?" Don asked as he looked over at his brother, while the two of them followed Raph and Leo.

"Park Avenue Dumpster, man! I can just imagine the kind of stuff people living there throw out!"

Donnie's eyes perked up a bit at that thought, prompting him to call out, "Hey, Leo, maybe Mikey's right?"

"NO! We're not going dumpster digging, not until we find Beth and certainly not until after it gets dark!"

"Ah, man," Mike grouched, "an' I was so hoping we could get some good pizza, too, while we're here."

……………

Beth remained in her little niche for quite a while. She was seriously re-thinking trying to find her way back to the lair; only she was far too lost, completely and irrevocably unsure of which way to go.

"Stupidstupidstupid!" she grumbled softly to herself.

Still, she couldn't just stay where she was forever; she had to at least try and find an opening. So, taking a deep breath, Beth eased her way out from the recessed area in the wall. She stood there for a moment and listened, looking left and then right, hoping that something would alert her as to where she was in the sewers. One end of the tunnel seemed brighter, where the ceiling lights appeared to be working better. The other end was dark and foreboding, easily discouraging any thought of going in that direction in the girl.

Then, she heard it. It was soft, like the distant sound of surf. Yet, she recognized it almost immediately.

Traffic!

Emboldened by the noise of civilization, she realized that it came from further along in the tunnel, where it was brighter. She then began walking towards the muted sound of rushing cars. Soon, she found that she was once again ascending, as if towards an access point. It was obvious to Beth, now, that there was an exit somewhere nearby; maybe even a manhole that she could crawl out of.

"It might even be opened," she thought to herself hopefully, considering how loud the rush of cars seemed to her.

As she walked, she soon heard a horn above her head, as if just beyond the ceiling of brick. It wasn't loud, but muffled, as if its sound had to filter through layers of dirt and the sewer tunnel. Still, it was loud enough for her to know that, wherever she was, she seemed to be right below a street. Now, she was excited! The farther along she walked, the closer the sound of rushing cars seemed to be. Her heart beat in expectation until she found herself near another niche in the wall; only this one had a light.

Beth looked up and saw that the manhole cover was firmly entrenched over the opening. It was then when she realized that the previous niche she been in, had also been a sewer shaft. Why she didn't hear anything, though, puzzled her. Still, she groaned. She knew that the lids were made of metal and were quite large. How she was going to lift it up was a problem, but maybe, just maybe if she called out, someone might help her. Then, Beth quickly dismissed that idea when she realized she would have to give an account as to why she was even in the sewers in the first place.

The last thing she would want to do would be to tell anyone about the turtles. For one thing, the whole idea sounded crazy and that alone could have her in a sanitarium before nightfall. The fact that she reeked as badly as any homeless person right now would only aggravate the situation. Moreover, she knew that there were laws about even being in the sewers. City-owned property didn't allow for trespassers, plain and simple.

Just the same, she had to get out; there wasn't any other choice for her.

"Maybe, I can lift it," she thought to herself, "maybe I can slip out without anyone seeing me?" she hoped.

Taking a deep breath, she reached up and grabbed the first rung. She tried to pull herself up, but it was obvious she lacked the strength. Still, she was far too determined to stop trying. Once again, she tried to pull herself up, but found her own weight too difficult to lift.

She stood there, now, somewhat frustrated. Looking back up at the beckoning disk of metal, she knew that this was her only viable option. Ever since leaving the lair, this had been the first and only exit that she had found. It made her wonder how her friends had even managed to get her into the sewers in the first place.

"Maybe there's another way, an easier way?" she thought, but then realized that, without knowing where it was, she would only become lost again, and there wasn't any way she wanted to continue wandering the endless labyrinth of sewer tunnels.

Consequently, she was not going to give up, not yet, anyway. Just as she grabbed onto the rungs for the third time and as she finally managed to pull herself up, a hand quickly wrapped around her mouth, securing her silence, while an arm grabbed her around her waist.

As whoever had a hold of her pulled her back down into the sewers, Beth tried to scream out, but found her voice as muffled as the cars above her were. She then began kicking and lashing out with her hands in desperation and fear, trying to free herself.

However, the hand around her mouth and the arm around her waist were far too strong for her to fight.

Then, despite Splinter's tutoring about having self-control, Beth soon found herself falling into the familiar abyss of unconsciousness.

Once again, she had gone catatonic.