His dark blue orbs dart from left to right as he watches for any sudden movements. He may be a stealthy ninja, but sneaking out of the kitchen to deliver some food for Astraea was not one of his strengths. Not that it was a common task though.

It was against his brothers' wishes to bring her any food, and he felt the powerful fist of guilt punch him in the lower abdomen when he agreed to the rule…at first. She hadn't really helped them gain any information closer to finding Jaylene, though she seemed to have done her best to try and remember.

He wrestled with his thoughts to decide whether or not he should give her anything to eat. She is their 'prisoner', but he couldn't let her starve. It pained him that she told them everything she knew, and they didn't give her anything in return.

'It's because she's the enemy Leo. Don't you understand that?', his second to eldest brother said with anger dripping in his voice, echoing in Leo's head; the words came from the conversation a few hours earlier that day. They were the ones that rang in his head, giving him a headache at thinking about it so much.

I do understand Raph, and I don't want to show hostility like you do, Leo replied to his brother's voice in his head. There was no point to his reply, but the blue banded turtle wanted to feel some sort of security, confidence, so there would be no regret. But he mentally sighed at his brother's opinion, knowing the real reason for Raph's dislike for Astraea, was because of the times they let their guard down around the enemy, meaning, the time when Jaylene and Leo let their guard down. To Darryl and Karai.

The blue banded turtle was the first to make a mistake, trusting Karai because he believed there was good in her, and because his crush on her blinded him. When she turned on him, his heart broke into a million pieces. Raph never let him live his mistake down. Karai may be Splinter's real daughter, but she was living with the Shredder, and Leo had to forget about the good in her for now.

Jaylene made the second mistake, hoping Darryl would also convert to good, but her mistake had almost cost one of the turtles to never return, from being captured by the enemy. Once Leo explained to the non-listening red banded turtle about the situation, Raph did not want for them to make another similar mistake by letting their guard down around Astraea, because Jaylene had to make up for mistake by her sacrifice, and Raph lost her for two years as she is MIA, or dead, which Raph didn't want to believe.

As these thoughts and suggestions unraveled like a ball of yarn of his mind, he continued to slink steadily towards Donnie's lab; had almost jumped in surprise from the appearance of the youngest brother, only just catching the single slice of pizza from hitting the floor. His hand shot out from the position on his side to swoop the pizza from under its base, and he raised his arm to wipe the bead of sweat that trickled down his temple after his save.

He then shifted his eyes to watch his little brother. Mikey, I thought you were in bed, the blue banded turtle muttered in his head, and then spoke the exact same words after making sure suspicion was the last thing on Mikey's mind. The dark blue eyed turtle felt reluctant to say anything to Mikey, but it was too late when he had been spotted already.

The orange banded turtle rubbed one of his eyes with the back of his hand sleepily, and blinked slowly to focus. "What time is it Leo?" he asked, obvious he was groggy from waking up late at night. The elder brother mentally breathed a sigh of relief, and shakily chuckled. He was glad his brother was oblivious and uncurious at the moment. "Mikey, I think it's around 11.30pm. You should go back to bed", he replied and paused for a second. "What are you doing up anyway?"

The freckled turtle yawned, curling his fingers into a fist and raised his arms high above his head to stretch, before answering Leo's question. He blinked slowly once again, and his sentence exited his mouth in a half-whisper, mono-toned voice.

"Came too get a midnight snack, but since it's not midnight yet, maybe I have to wait maybe half an hour until I could eat and–hey! What are you doing with that pizza slice?" the young turtle answered, then rambled to himself; unfortunately, he turned the table and had taken notice of the pizza Leo had on the plate in his hand. His eyes stared at the pizza slice as if he were in a trance, and he transformed from groggy to hyper at the sight of the pizza.

Hopefully this isn't the pizza slice Mikey was saving for his midnight snack, Leo thought, and squeezed his fingers together with a tight grip. Would his brother disagree to what he was about to do if he told him the truth?

His little brother was not a turtle of justice like he was; however, Mikey had a personality to pity others easily, and may agree to Leo's choice. The blue banded turtle weighed out his options, and he remembered the feeling of his stomach dropping when his little brother asked the question, reminding him that maybe he shouldn't tell the truth, so, the turtle chose against telling his brother. The best thing for him now was to act…natural. Or in the least, try to.

"I was Y'know…doing the same thing as you! Just getting a midnight snack, that's all", Leo said nervously, unable to expel the shakiness in his voice. It was difficult to lie to his little–sort of innocent–brother.

Mikey eyed his older brother for a minute, and narrowed his eyes in the process, while Leo's face burned bright red; unbeknownst to his brother. "Okay, there's still some leftover pizza in the fridge right?" the orange banded turtle asked, convinced by Leo's reply before.

Again, the blue banded turtle mentally breathed a sigh of relief and congratulated himself for persuading his younger brother. But in the moment, he then wondered what the situation would be like if Raph was standing there instead of Mikey. If only Raph were easier to lie to than Mikey, Leo thought and shook his head gratefully that Raph wasn't here, though a small whisper in his head reminded him that the red banded turtle could appear soon by any chance, and things would not be pretty if Raph caught on to Leo's plan. He had to move fast.

"Mikey, I need to go to bed soon and…so do you", the blue banded turtle started, and quickly improvised on the spot, pointing out that his little brother also needed to get to bed. The tables were turned once again. "So, quickly get your pizza, and I'll be heading off to bed right now."

The blue banded turtle nodded in goodnight; stiffly, but hurriedly, walked towards the lab, as Mikey headed in the opposite direction for the kitchen when he accepted Leo's gesture, not taking notice of his brother's nervousness expressed through his body language.

Just when the blue banded turtle reached the two large doors of Donnie's lab, he was reluctant to enter, let alone knock on the door. His head was spinning from thinking about the possibilities that could happen, or more importantly, if someone–meaning Raph–was waiting for him in the lab, waiting for him to enter the room, and Leo could already feel the embarrassment from giving in–

No, stop it, stop it. Keep calm Leonardo. Get ahold of yourself. Raph would be in bed right now, and so would everyone else, so no surprises would be waiting for you, Leo told himself. When he curled his fingers into a soft gripped fist, ready to knock on the door, a feminine voice said from the inside of the lab, "Leonardo, I know you are there." He sucked in a breath and it was caught in his throat at the sound of Astraea's voice, but her tone wasn't mocking, and more, reassuring, encouraging him to enter as if it would give him refuge from being found out by his brothers.

And in one fluid motion, he slid the door open, wide enough for him to squeeze through and balance the pizza on the plate, and slammed the door tight, though silently enough to not disturb any of his family members in their sleep. By the time he was sure no one heard him enter the lab, he was panting because all his anxiety was bundled up in that moment, and luckily, he succeeded in his small mission, so the moment passed. The blue banded turtle straightened himself up and spun around, feeling pride as he walked towards the teenager tied to the chair. He placed the plate holding the pizza onto her lap, and warmth had taken over his stomach at seeing her face showing gratitude, but before she began to munch on her pizza slice, she decided to slip in a comment before the leader leaves.

"Went through all that so I could eat? You really do know how to impress a girl from no experience", the blonde girl said, and winked at the turtle. Leo choked at her statement, heart pounding at the realization that Karai would have said something like that. The teasing, cheeky, flirty expression conveyed in the words was of those similar to Karai's.

The feeling burned in his chest, but nevertheless, Leo concealed his real feelings. How he would have really reacted to Astraea's sentence would not be revealed, so he merely smirked, catching the sixteen year old girl by surprise. "You've been taking lessons from Karai on how to taunt me alone?" he asked. Two could play at this game…

"No, but even though I barely know you Leonardo–someone is approaching", she spoke with a teasing tone, but changed drastically immediately at her abrupt comment. Leo held his breath and froze, his mind blank of the options he would take. Dammit Raph's probably right outside the door, waiting for me to come out and–, though his thoughts were cut off from a sharp push on his shell. He felt lucky he was mostly prepared for that, and sneaked a look at Astraea as he rolled behind Donnie's desk, who he figured was the one that pushed him with both her legs together when he froze up. She had helped him get out of serious trouble, and he wondered why she would do that when he replayed the same scene in his mind, but it was Karai instead of the blonde teen. Karai would have enjoyed watching Leo suffer physically, or from guilt at allowing Raph to catch him in the act, though Astraea was different.

Maybe she's had a change of heart?, but he answered his question at the thought of Astraea only lending him a hand since he had helped her first by giving her a little food. Her act suddenly didn't feel so special anymore, and the blue banded turtle frowned as he silently waited for Raph to open the door and yell at him.

The tension in the room was building as he waits for the door to slide open, and he looks to his left at Astraea. She keeps a straight, though 'don't mess with me' expression, and Leo is half-stunned at her stoic side, but he knows she is a tough nut to crack.

The door slid open wide, smoothly, yet without a sound that wouldn't disturb his sleeping family members, and he is confused since it's not Raph's style to make a gesture or an act without anyone not noticing it. He practically walks with thunder and lightning with him. As Leo cranes his neck to peak out from behind the desk to see who entered the lab, he does a double take at seeing Master Splinter. Out of all people in the Lair, why would his sensei be here, especially at this hour?

The blonde sixteen year old appears to be shocked as well when Splinter makes an appearance, though the shocked expression on her face dies down as the rat strides towards her. Her emerald green orbs drift across the room and settle on Leo, who began to creep slowly towards the door, keeping his head low, and not leaving his eyes from Splinter. Astraea couldn't help but gasp inaudibly when the blue banded turtle tuck and rolled, until he just passed the doorway, and her gasp was replaced with a sigh of relief.

Master Splinter's eyes were locked on the blonde teen; however, he spoke a few words loudly and clearly, not directed at the sixteen year old. "Leonardo, I will see you shortly." A small shuffle from outside the lab was heard, and Astraea didn't need any other indication to know it was Leo; that he obviously stopped and listened to his sensei. Small footsteps occurred shortly afterwards, and Leo seemed to have seated himself quietly on the couch when she saw the blue banded, green head sticking out from behind the backrest of the couch.

The sixteen year old kept her expression emotionless when she turned to face Master Splinter, though she couldn't keep the thoughts from circling inside her head. Yes he is old, a rat as explained by everyone in the clan, and tall, but he looks…tired, and less, dangerous than I thought he would be. She lowered her head and stared at the pizza on her lap.

Okay, this could be an act, so I would not feel so guilty about thinking he is still evil…somewhere.

She felt a finger being placed under her chin, and her face lifting up to meet a pair of soft brown eyes. "I am sorry for what happened to you Astraea, and I could not imagine the pain you have been through", the rat said to her in a kind voice. The blonde teen straightened her back when she heard what he had spoken. She wanted to believe that the things that have been told to her the past two years were true, but including the stories of the evil Master Splinter? Her mind was spinning from the contradictions between her thoughts and facts. But the words from her mouth spoke otherwise. "So you are an eavesdropper now?"

A chuckle erupted from Splinter as he dropped his hand to his side. "No, but rats do have excellent hearing", he returned, and spoke with a fact which he thought would lighten the mood, and was an unpredictable reply from his usual words of wisdom.

"I also know, you are feeling emptiness, Astraea. You have not found happiness and chose to run away from your problems to think. It will not help you to run." The sixteen year old was astonished at the end of sensei's statement. She knew, there was a strange feeling she carried for so long, and when she lived in the streets for four years, it gave her time to think, but in the long run, it wasn't very helpful.

"Will you not be satisfied until you know who you are? Your true identity, and not, 'Astraea'?" Splinter asked, and he could visibly see the teen girl in front of him with shoulders rising from his question. And she literally yelled when she replied, uncaring for who might have heard it in the second she decided to reply.

"Well who wouldn't want to know if your life was exactly like mine, huh?! How could you not want to find out who you really are, when you were a three year old, with bruises and cuts all over, without parents; who may have been the ones that dropped you off at the orphanage?!"

She took deep breaths when she was finished, and flopped back in her seat, the wheels grazing harshly against the floor when she leaned back. Hot tears trickled down her cheeks, and they left a burning trail on her skin from the heartbreak and anger she expressed.

Her only focus now was to escape, since she couldn't stay in this place any longer, with one person who had already broken her, without hearing her story with his own ears. She turned her eyes to spot the blue banded turtle, peaking from behind the backrest of the couch, his eyes wide from surprise at her outburst, and realized what she had done. What am I thinking, yelling in the middle of the night? The last thing I want, is for the rest of them to come running into this scene, Astraea growled at herself.

She averted her eyes from Leo's and looked at Master Splinter, and felt sort of glad that he at least, was not wearing a cocky smile at his accomplishment of revealing her inner thoughts and feelings. "I joined the Foot Clan, not only because I was showing my gratitude for Shredder helping me, but because I needed a fresh start. I needed to recreate a new identity so I could feel like I am actually someone who exists and am not an accident that needed to be ridden of", Astraea said, and smiled inwardly at remembering the moment Shredder gave her a name. A spark, an inspiration lit up inside of her, that she could be a new person, and she felt as if she was born again.

"And do you feel happier now, or are you still searching?" Splinter inquired, and Astraea felt astonished that he would continue to push on. I wish he would just leave me alone, the teen grumbled, and on cue, Master Splinter got up and left her alone in the room to ponder on his question. The dim light from the ceiling was her only company as the door slid shut, and muffled voices were outside, which she guessed was Splinter talking to Leo.

The silence was comforting, and soon, the voices were no longer there as footsteps thumping against the floor grew more distant, until there was no more. Astraea closed her eyes slowly and tilted her head to rest on the top of the backrest as she waited patiently for the right time to come, the perfect time, and hopefully it would arrive, soon.

Three, two, one, Astraea counted in her head, and when she had lost all the numbers to keep counting, her heart almost lurched out of her chest. This is it.

She waited one and a half hours until this moment, and the time had come a lot sooner than she expected. The entire lair was quiet. No sounds of snoring even. And no one entered the lab for the whole time she waited, but they wouldn't have bothered her when she plastered a sleeping expression on her face, and faked soft snores.

The pepperoni pizza on her plate was long gone, settled inside her stomach with only half of the crust uneaten. The plate remained on her lap, and she was grateful for Leo to be so caring when he, in actual fact, was helping with her escape. Before she would put her plan in action, she needed to make sure no one was around, and not guarding the door outside. In order to make sure of it, she lifted her legs rapidly, catapulting the plate into the air. The circular dish came down to the ground as fast as it went up, and caused a loud, slamming sound as it hit the floor.

This was in no doubt, an accident, and if anyone was to come running in to the lab to see what happened, she would know they were waiting for her on the other side of the door. She tapped ten times with her right foot to count ten seconds, and no shuffling occurred in the living room, no footsteps, and no person saying, "Did you guys hear that?"

The blonde teen smirked, feeling the adrenaline rush, and excitement that her plan would take action right now. She wriggled her left arm that was tied behind her back, and a warm sensation coursed through her body at preparing beforehand, and before she knew she would be captured. But it would be irresponsible for her to be unprepared without any backup weapons, since ninjas were always prepared. Even kunoichis came with extra weapons up their sleeves. Literally.

Out her sleeve came a kunai, which she caught in her hand when it slid out completely. It was her second favorite weapon, her first being the whip she missed dearly, and immediately scanned the lab for it. Her gaze stopped on her whip laid on Donnie's desk, and she made a mental note to quickly grab it once she was free, and if anyone was to enter the lab anytime soon.

Astraea swiftly and hurriedly rubbed the sharp blade of her kunai against the ropes tying her arms together, and moved on to free her legs. As the roped tumbled to the floor, she sprang up on her feet, nearly collapsing at the same time, from feeling her legs again. When she felt she was stable and could run in the least, she sprinted towards her whip and snatched her weapon, before dashing out the door, but unfortunately, dropping her kunai in the process. Too caught up in the moment and unable to think clearly from the rush, she didn't realize when it slipped out of her grasp.

Astraea could feel her hands shaking when she looked left and right, looking for the exit, and the blood pumped through her faster than the normal speed. She had been knocked out when she was brought to this place, so she doesn't remember the trip here, or even when she was tied up to the chair, so finding the exit would be a little difficult. Getting out of here was her only goal when she woke up, though there were complications and she got sidetracked.

Her lip quivered at the thought that she had been missing for several days, stuck in the enemy's lair, and she is doing nothing but panicking and desperately attempting to escape. Oh, the exit is right over there, she told herself sheepishly at seeing the odd sight of turnstiles and the breeze of wind coming from the same direction. Do they live in an abandoned train station?

At realizing what the place used to be, she spun around to view the whole living room, fascinated at the years of work paid off, so this place was livable for them. "Welcome to the Lair. Sorry I haven't introduced you properly to the place since you were unconscious and all", a voice said from behind her, and she turned to face Leo, who was confidently leaning against the pinball machine and wearing a friendly smile. However, Astraea grew uncomfortable at how friendly the smile was, despite the fact that he had also shown kindness to her a few hours earlier.

"So you have been waiting for me this whole time Leonardo? Well, apology accepted, though my stay here will have to be cut short", the sixteen year old replied, plastering on a fake, friendly smile. She whirled around and began to hastily stroll towards the exit, but paused at Leo's voice. "Why are you going back Astraea? Don't you remember the truth of the story between Splinter and Shredder?"

Astraea grumbled, and turned to face the blue banded turtle once again. She stared daggers at him because she knew his plan was to slow her down and rethink if she should escape or not. "In Shredder's vendetta, my position is to stand beside him because he helped me when I was lost."

"He may have helped you create a new identity you are satisfied with, but what about your past identity? Aren't you still searching for answers?" Leo inquired. Astraea clenched her fists at his question, when she thought she had won the verbal battle with her comment. He had specifically brought in details that would give her second thoughts. He had made this conversation very personal, and it irritated her.

"So, everyone in the family is an eavesdropper? Hamato Yoshi, then you too? When I return to the clan, my past should not matter to me anymore. As much as I want to find out, I should not care for my need for answers", she snapped at him, took a deep breath, then sighed. The next thing would have to be the hardest part of her escape. The final stage of getting out of here would have to be a battle against Leo, whom she didn't want to hurt very much.

"I did not want to injure anyone in my escape, especially you Leonardo since you had helped me. Nevertheless, you have given me no choice. You are standing between me and my freedom. Are you ready to go?"

Fin

So sorry for the huge gap between this update and the previous update, since I had exams in the past few weeks, and had absolutely no time to work on this. In my spare time, I would finish homework from the other classes. But I have a two weeks holiday off school for now, and will hopefully be updating faster than usual! Thanks to all readers and reviewers continuing with this story! But please review!

Disclaimer: I do not own TMNT 2012