Shinta frowned. He could hear his father and step-mother arguing across the hall from his room. Their arguments weren't usually loud like Raph and Cat's, but they made him uncomfortable. He set aside the book he'd been trying to read and stepped into the hall. He needed something to keep him occupied and not in his room. He didn't feel like going back downstairs either, not in the mood to watch Yoshi and Star make out again if they happened to be down there. Glancing down the hall at the room April now occupied, he realized the TV was on in there. He moved down the hall and knocked. "Aunt April, are you awake?"

"You can come in, honey."

He entered, finding her sitting on the side of the bed. She smiled and gestured for him to come over. He sat next to her on the bed. "How are feeling?"

She patted his hand. "Oh, I'll be okay. I'm just not used to being cooped up like this. It'll take some getting used to."

He smiled reassuringly. "Mira, K-three and I are going to put in an elevator, so you don't have to climb the stairs. That way when you're all healed up, you can go anywhere you want." His expression fell slightly. "But I don't know if it'll get done very soon."

"Why not? Does it have something to do with the family meeting you had earlier?"

Shinta gave a small sad nod. "Yeah, things are going to be a little crazy around here for a while."

April chuckled. "When is it not crazy around here?"

He grinned. "You have a point."

"So, what's going on, anyways? I feel like I'm out of the loop, stuck up here by myself."

He looked down at his hands. "Well, Aunt Kala is sick. She's real sick by the way Uncle Donnie talked. They're going to take her to Neutrino in the morning."

April's eyes widened. Her heart ached for Mikey, Kala, and Kaz, and the rest of the family. It was always hard knowing one of them was sick. "That's terrible."

"Then dad said something about Ona having a step-father and that he was in town. Apparently, he's a really bad guy." He shook his head. "I don't know what he did, but it sure made everyone angry." He sighed. "That's what he and Jamie are arguing about right now."

"Oh." April slipped an arm around his shoulders, pulling him close and kissing the top of his head. She understood. Shinta was a lot like Amaya in that he was very sensitive to those around him. She rubbed his arms in a soothing motion she'd learned long ago when dealing with the children. "Hey, do you think you could do me a favor?"

Shinta brightened, eager to be useful. "Sure!"

"Could you take my dinner plate back downstairs and if you spot some of Sarah's chocolate chip cookies, could you grab a few?" She winked conspiratorially. "We could share."

Shinta let out a hearty laugh. "Will do. I'll be right back." He gathered her plate from the bedside and headed off for the kitchen.

Mira sat on the bedside, her mind full to the brim. K-three paced across the floor. She knew he was frustrated. "Leo shouldn't have kept something like that a secret! It put everyone in danger!"

"My father kept it a secret too." Mira said softly. "Even from my mother." She'd felt her mother's shock at finding out about Ona's step-father. But the fact that they'd been lied to bothered her less than the other things that were happening. "I feel so bad for Kaz. I hope Kala will be alright. Ona seemed pretty upset too. I hope they'll be okay."

"Well, she has a right to be mad at him! If he's known about this guy all this time, he should have said something – at least to her!" K-three ground his teeth and dragged both hands down his face. It wasn't like him to get this worked up about something. But he hated being lied to! And he hated the fact that Kaz, who was basically his second in command, was being torn in so many directions. Looking down at his petite mate, he sighed. He could feel her turmoil and the hurt from being lied to as well. But most of all, he could feel her intense worry. "What is it?"

Slowly she lifted her head and her dark brown eyes were filled with the same apprehension. "Kane, my aunt is probably dying and my parents want to go to a warzone in another dimension to try to save her. Which if that wasn't enough to worry about, it leaves me to deal with Aunt April's therapy and meds. Plus, we still have to install the elevator. And let's not forget we still have a toddler to take care of."

K-three frowned as he settled on the bed beside her. "Calm down, my flower. I'm here to help you. We will all help you. You know that."

She sighed. "I know. I guess I'm just nervous about Aunt Kala, Uncle Mikey and my parents going off on their own."

"I'm sure they'll be fine." He squeezed her hand. "Doesn't Kala have friends there?"

Mira nodded. "I don't think I've ever met them, but Aunt Kala talks about them sometimes."

"See? They'll have someone to help them out once they are there. And it's probably for the best that Kala's own people look after her."

She nodded. "Yeah, I guess you're right." Though that fact did little to settle her nerves.

He smirked. "Of course, I am. Now come on, let's get some sleep. I have a feeling tomorrow is going to be a trying day."

Yoshi stood on the roof, looking out over the dark city. His mind was a jumble of information. Kala was sick. Ona had a past. Kaz had known about it and never told her. Worst, he'd never told him.

And then there was Star. She had told him she wanted him, but he wasn't sure if it was the way he wanted her to want him. Was it simple lust, or did she want all of him – the good and the bad? He could feel her now, standing a few feet behind him, watching and waiting. When he'd left the meeting, he'd come straight here and she had quietly followed behind him. He sighed inwardly, remembering the look she'd given him in the living room earlier and the way she'd held his hand. He knew she cared for him, but was it enough to keep them together? Was it enough that she could tolerate his temper? Was it enough that she could handle their lifestyle? And did he have a right to ask those things of her?

There was the soft sound of her booted feet as she approached him. "Yoshi… I'm sorry. I understand how you must feel."

He didn't look at her, even as she touched his arm lightly. "How could you understand? My mother nearly died two years ago, and now I have to watch my cousin go through the same thing. My father and his brothers have been lying to us – all of us. Lies are dangerous." He clenched his eyes shut. "I learned that the hard way."

Star could see the level of pain that crossed his face and she sighed wanting nothing more than to take it away. "Okay, so maybe I've never had a big family and I don't know how all this works yet. I'm still learning what it's like to have so many people to care about. But what I do know is that I care about you." She stepped around in front of him, her expression sad. "And I care that you're hurting."

She reached out for him again, but he stepped out of her reach. "Star…I…" He shook his head at a loss for words. Growling, he turned and sprinted across the roof, leaping to an adjoining building and just kept running. He ran hoping to forget the confusion inside him and the pain from the old wound that had been ripped open. He ran until his legs ached and his lungs burned. At last, he stopped on a rooftop. He panted, allowing the physical discomfort to wash away the emotional.

Action. That's what he was built for and it was the only thing that had ever been able to clear his head. And right now, he needed some badly. As luck would have it, a group of purple dragons were trying to break into a jewelry store.

With a huff, he leapt down into the midst of them. "It's a little late for shoppin', ain't it?"

"It's one of those freaks!" One pointed a crowbar at him.

Yoshi snorted. "I ain't the one with neon pink hair, punk."

"Get 'im!" Another shouted and the group converged on him.

At first count, Yoshi had only seen six but more men seemed to come from thin air. Now, he was surrounded by at least ten. He smirked. It had been a while since he'd been able to really take out his frustrations on someone. This is gonna be fun!

Ten minutes later, he climbed the fire escape to half collapse on the roof. The street below was littered with unconscious bleeding bodies and sirens wailed in the distance. He laid there listening as they got closer, trying to catch his breath. His body was covered in shallow cuts and scrapes, and one particularly large bruise on his shoulder where he'd been tagged with a pipe. But he felt better than he had in days. The adrenaline slowly drained from his system as he watched the sky begin to lighten with the coming sunrise.

He knew he'd better be getting home soon. He didn't have a holo with him and they'd start looking for him too. Climbing to his feet, he dusted the gravel off his hands and began to sprint home. As he landed on the roof, he spotted the small form leaning against the wall beside the access door. Yoshi pressed his thumb to the security panel beside the door to prevent the alarm from sounding before squatting down in front of Star and pushing her long bangs from her face. He felt his heart twist with guilt. "Star?"

She opened her eyes and nearly threw herself at him. "Yoshi!" The force was enough to knock him off balance and he landed on his bottom. She clutched at him, barely seeming to register the small fall. "When you took off, I didn't know what to do! I was so scared something had happened to you!"

His arms came up to pull her closer still. "I didn't mean to worry you. I just…" He sighed heavily. "I just needed to blow off some steam."

She sat back to frown at him and grab his mask tails. "Yeah, well, don't do that again!" She swatted him lightly on the arm and blinked when her hand came back sticky. She looked down and gasped. "What happened to you!"

He gave her a small reassuring smile. "I'm fine, they're just some small scrapes. I got in a little tussle with some purple dragons." He smirked, trying to make light of the situation. "If you think I look bad, you should see how I left them."

Star's frown only seemed to deepen and her bottom lip started to tremble. "You can't do that, Yoshi! You can't take off like that!" Tears began to trickle down her cheeks and it was like all the air was sucked out of his lungs. "If I lost you, I'd be all alone again! I don't know what I'd do!"

"No, no! Don't do that! Don't cry over me!" He grabbed her, pulling her against him. "I'm sorry. It was stupid! Okay?" He sighed as she took several deep calming breaths. "I can't promise it won't happen again. It's just part of who I am. But I can promise to try not to take off without telling you."

She gave a slow nod against his plastron. "Okay." She couldn't ask him to change, she knew that. His spirit was one of the things she loved so much about him.

He pushed her back to look at her again. "Did you stay out here all night waiting for me?" Averting her eyes, she gave a small nod. Yoshi realized in that moment he'd been wrong for doubting her intentions, been wrong for doubting her true feelings for him. "Marry me."

Her head shot up and she blinked several times to make certain she was awake. "Wh…"

"Marry me." He rested his forehead against hers. "I want you beside me. I need you beside me. You make me stronger and smarter. But most of all, you make me want to be a better me. I love you, Star."

Her breath danced across his skin, warm and soft. "I love you too, big guy. Yes, I'll marry you."

"Are you sure? Do you really think you can handle me forever?"

Her chuckle was soft, choked with new tears. "Yeah, of course I can. The question is, can you handle me?"

"I'd like to try." He dipped his head, capturing her mouth in a crushing kiss that took her breath away. The world stood still for a moment, the sun casting them in a shade of orange-red, the wind whipping around them, the distant sounds of people and traffic floated by. It all fell away. There was only Star and there was only him. In those moments, wrapped in her warm slender arms, there were no other worries – no sick aunts or distraught cousins, no painful memories, no threat of enemies past or present. Only their two hearts beating in rhythm with one another.

When he at last released her, she snuggled in against him. "I'll always be here waiting for you, Yoshi."

Don adjusted the duffel bag on his shoulder, so it lay a little flatter across Sarah's pack on his back. He was lucky his wife was a light packer. She'd only opted for three changes of clothes and an extra sweater in case the weather turned cold. His duffel was slightly heavier, containing the trans-dimensional communicator and his own medical supplies. He wasn't sure what they'd have available on Neutrino. It also held his research and what he'd learned about Neutrino body chemistry over the years. He knew they metabolized medication at a faster rate than humans did. In fact, Kala seemed to process everything faster. Which explained her continued slim form despite her age.

Nearby, Kala sat on the edge of the cot and watched Mikey dig through their bag again. He looked up at her. "Are you sure we got everything you might need?"

"Yes, Mikey. I'm sure." She replied in as tolerant a tone as she could manage. He'd asked her that at least ten times this morning. She knew it was only his nerves. He was feeling helpless and insecure. If it was a physical battle, he'd know exactly what to do and would charge in with his confident grin and nunchakus twirling. But this wasn't that kind of fight. He didn't have a physical opponent. He was having to rely on people he'd never met to help her. Yes, he had his brother, but even Don seemed to be a bit out of his element here.

Mikey fiddled with the zipper and Kala covered his hand with hers, and for the first time he realized his were shaking. He took her slender hand and raised it to his mouth, kissing the knuckle of each delicate thin finger.

Footsteps behind them alerted them to Kaz and Ona stepping into the lab. The younger turtle looked haggard with dark rings around his eyes and face drawn tight. He'd tried to talk them into letting him go, but everyone had refused. His father had said he'd feel better if Kaz was here safe and that the rest of the family would need him while they were gone. Don, Raph, and Leo had outright said no, all for different reasons. Kala stepped away from Mikey to wrap her arms around her son. Kaz nearly sagged against her, burying his face in her neck. "Mom, you'll be okay, right?" His words were soft and uncertain buried against her neck.

"Yes." She promised the lie she had no idea if she could keep once more.

Ona moved past them to hug Mikey. "Please be careful."

"We will."

"We love you."

He kissed her brow. "We love you too."

Even as the lab began to fill with the family, saying their goodbyes, Kaz clung to Kala like he had when he was small. He was scared. And the truth was he had a lot be afraid of right now – Kala, Ona, Dimension X, sickness, death, and Ona's stepfather. His future held dark rain clouds on the horizon and he shuddered at them. Kala squeezed his hand when she felt him tremble.

Don turned away from setting the portal and flipping the switch, making the doorway glow. "We'll call you tonight about eight." He told Leo, who nodded in agreement.

"Alright, you guys be careful. It's been a long time since we went to Dimension X and we could still have enemies there." Leo patted Mikey's shoulder. "You just focus on getting Kala better, we'll deal with Ona's stepfather if the need arises."

Mikey gave a small nod, stepping over to his son. "Kaz…"

Kaz shook his head. "I know, you wouldn't go right now unless you thought it was absolutely necessary." He gave his father a weak smile. "We'll be okay."

Mikey pulled Kaz into a fatherly embrace. "Take care of her, son. You never know what tomorrow might bring." He said it low in Kaz's ear and felt him nod against his shoulder. Then Mikey stepped away taking Kala's hand and moving towards the open portal.

Sarah handed Katsu back to Mira and kissed her on the cheek. "Try not worry. We'll come back as soon as we can." Patting K-three on the cheek, she stepped back to Donnie, who took her hand. The two couples disappeared into the portal and Leo flipped the switch, closing the doorway behind them.

I hope everyone is enjoying getting to see our lovely family again! Review please!