Chapter 20

Leonardo walked from the kitchen into the living room. He was restless. He had managed to get a few hours of sleep as both Miriam and Hunter continued to sleep soundly. He had begun pacing the small apartment, circling through the kitchen, living room and back again.

He heard a click a moment before the crack of a gun went off.

He closed his eyes.

He felt cold. Goosebumps formed along his skin.

He was dead. Miriam had shot him dead in her living room and he hadn't felt a thing. Hadn't even been able to spare a moment's refection on his life.

"I don't know whether I should be impressed, or irritated. I think I am both." Nightmare's voice drifted to his ears. "I suppose she does have a backbone after all, though her inability to rationalize the situation is rather unfortunate."

He opened his eyes and looked at the bullet stopped an inch from his chest. Even his hard shell would not stop a bullet. He breathed out a breath, the condensation crystallizing in the air.

Miriam was frozen, emerging from her bedroom door, bathed in a soft blue light, gun in hand, aimed at his heart. Terror and determination warring on her tear streaked face.

"She's pretty." Nightmare said with a nod.

He finally glanced over at Nightmare. "Yes she is." He acknowledged. "I tried to love her. I did love her, but..."

"I can make you human Leonardo." Nightmare said softly, cutting him off.

His eyes widened in shock. "If this is the life you wish, I could give it to you. If you love her, you can stay here with her, you will be human, and have no memory of what you once were."

"Do you want to get rid of me so badly?" He asked, his voice breaking.

"No. But I want you to be happy Leonardo. And if your happiness is reliant on walking away from me, I understand that."

"I want to be loved for who I am, and I am a mutant turtle." He said as he looked her in the eye. "You always loved me, just as I was."

"Always Leonardo. " Nightmare acknowledged with a loving smile.

"What did you do to her?" He asked.

"We are just in a place where no time exists, the 13th Hour." Nightmare said as she reached out and plucked the bullet from the air.

The cold retreated and the faint overlay of blue shadow vanished.

"I don't think the soundproofing in this apartment is very good. Are you trying to wake your neighbours?" Nightmare questioned as Miriam paled. "Luckily you are in a nice sound proof magic circle." She waved her hand and the golden circle that had surrounded them both vanished. "Don't mind me." Nightmare said with a wave of her hand.

Miriam brought out a cross and showed it to Nightmare. "Stay back." She whispered in a shaky voice.

Nightmare yawned. "You are not a very religious person Miriam Belle Parker. But even if you did have enough Faith to push into that cross, it still wouldn't work on me."

Miriam's hand began to shake.

Nightmare flopped down on the couch. "I'm just going to take a nap. Wake me up when you're done." She said as she curled up on the worn couch. "They don't make these things for wings." She grumbled as her form shifted to her 'human' appearance.

Miriam looked at her couch with horrified shock. She took two steps back and stumbled to the floor. He took a helping step towards her, but she scrambled across the hardwood until her back hit the living room wall.

"Stay away from me you demon." She said in a strained whisper.

"I'm not..." He closed his eyes and sat cross legged on the floor. "I'm not a demon Miriam." He said opening his eyes.

"He's not." Nightmare grumbled from the couch.

"I thought you were staying out of this." Leonardo growled.

"If I was really staying out of this, I wouldn't be here, now would I?" She grumbled.

"I can handle this." He growled at her.

"If I thought you could handle this I wouldn't be here." She said opening an eye and looking at him with an upraised eyebrow.

"Then why did you say I had to fix this when you were going to show up anyway?" He asked in frustration.

She yawned again. "Well I didn't think that she'd actually have the balls to shoot first, and ask questions later."

"Then if you didn't think I was in danger why did you show up?" He asked in irritation. This conversation was going to be awkward enough without Nightmare listening in.

"Let us just say, it is a long story." She said with a shrug.

"You know, I really hated it when Darkness was all mysterious, I don't need that from you. You don't have to trip and run your words around in circles. Can you not just give a straight answer?" He asked angrily.

Nightmare sighed. "No."

He rubbed his temples in frustration. "Why did I ever miss you again?" Leonardo asked softly.

Nightmare threw back her head and laughed. "Who but me can get you this stirred up Leonardo?" She asked with a bright smile.

He sighed because she was right. She got his blood boiling and that stirred up all sort of needs within him.

"Miriam..." He began softly.

Miriam was looking at him wide-eyed. She looked back and forth between himself and Nightmare.

"It's her." She whispered.

He looked at Miriam and nodded. He looked to Nightmare. "Are we free to talk?" He whispered.

Nightmare waved her hand and a magic circle carved itself into the floor forming a dome around them.

"Her who?" Nightmare asked curiously.

"You...you said she was dead." Miriam stammered.

"Who is dead?" Nightmare asked in a completely serious voice, but her eyes gave her away, she was laughing at him.

"Nightmare..." He growled.

"Raph's girlfriend." Miriam replied.

"Oh, Raphael's girlfriend?" Nightmare asked. "Is that all I was to you Leonardo, just your brother's girlfriend?"

Leonardo sighed. "Of course not, but..." He began.

Nightmare sat up, her eyes flicking to Miriam. "What did Leonardo tell you about...Her?" She asked.

Miriam looked back and forth between them. "He...he said Raph's girlfriend was kidnapped and that they tried to save her but she was killed."

"Hmmm. Okay. I suppose it is easier to explain it that way." She said with a nod. "But why Raph?"

"Because he is...whatever he is to you." He said, hurt leaking into his voice.

"I see, are you feeling left out Leonardo?" Nightmare asked. He glared at her. "Leonardo..." She began as she slid to the floor, kneeling in front of him. She touched his cheek and he revelled in it. He clutched her to him because he could never resist her.

"I love you, no matter what your brothers are to me, I have always loved you." She whispered to him.

"I know." He whispered back.

She pulled away from him and sat back up on the couch.

"What are you? Who are you?" Miriam asked in a whisper.

"That is a very complicated question." Nightmare said to her.

"Nightmare." He growled.

"Well see if you can explain it any better." She said as she lay back down on the couch and closed her eyes. She opened one eye. "You aren't going to shoot him again, are you?"

"N..No?" She said in a confused voice.

Nightmare closed her eye and he had the impression that this time, Nightmare was sleeping.

"Nightmare?" He asked her.

She remained silent.

He sighed. "She is Nightmare, goddess of magic and the Devil." He said to Miriam.

"She's the Devil, like actually the Devil?" Miriam asked in shock. She clutched her cross more tightly.

"She isn't Lucifer. She killed Lucifer. But you're right she used to be...Her. It really is a long and complicated story." He said as he truthfully thought about it. "But I'm sorry that I got you involved in this. The only reason that you and Hunter were taken was because of me. Hunter will not remember any of this, but Nightmare thought that you should have the choice. You can choose to know, or forget everything that happened.

"So there really is such thing as the Devil." She swallowed. "And demons?"

"Miriam there is a whole world of things out there that you don't even realize exists. I feel overwhelmed, and I'm a mutant turtle." He said seriously.

"You love her?" She questioned.

"With all my heart." He said earnestly.

Miriam ran a hand through her hair. "If I forget...?"

"You won't remember anything, this night, this conversation, possibly even me."

Miriam thought it over for a minute. "I can't." She said shaking her head. "Last night was the most horrifying night of my life. I have never been so scared." She began to cry then. She brushed away the tears. "I can't, I'm sorry I can't. I shot you. I didn't even think about it, I just shot you. I can't live my life constantly living in fear. It would be bad enough looking over my shoulder everyday looking for some huge goon out to get me." She shook her head. "And now you are telling me that demons are real, that the Devil is real, that there are such things as gods and goddesses." Her voice hitched. "I can't. If I can forget everything that happened, if I can forget even meeting you." She looked at him, her eyes pleading for him to understand. Her eyes went blank. He caught her as she fell.

He scooped her up off the floor and walked with her to her room. He lay her down gently. He felt Nightmare behind him. "She really did love you." Nightmare said softly.

"I know." He said with a nod.

"And you loved her." Nightmare said softly.

"I did." He acknowledged.

"Shall we go home?" She asked.

He turned and clutched her close burying his face in her neck. "I'm so jealous right now. Raph's soul rings for you, Donny, gods poor Donny." He said with a shake of his head. 'How do we...?"

"Donatello is at one with his demon Leonardo. He will be fine."

Leonardo nodded.

The air shifted around him as they appeared in the kitchen of Katherine's house.

He looked at April's beaming face. Donatello was holding Shadow, a look of awe and extreme discomfort on his face. He smiled. It felt as if he hadn't done a lot of that lately. Probably for nearly 5 years.

Nightmare smiled at the scene in front of her. Shadow was beautiful. She was truly happy for her friends.

Ice began to ride along her arms. The thin blue veil of the 13th hour hovered over everyone.

"Hello my love." Death's voice whispered in her ear.

"Hello Death, can I help you?" She asked as he stalked around her. Each movement fluid and graceful.

He was wearing black jeans, a black hoodie and black biker boots.

He walked closer and traced the line of her jaw. "Now what have you done?" He asked curiously, a hint of anger and menace rolling off him. "I felt you in the 13th Hour, where none but I and Reapers can travel. I can pull you in, but I did not, so you slid in by yourself." He said his face close to her own. "And I know you managed to pull a Life Glass from The Long Gallery, the room where every mortal's Life Glass is stored. But you did not enter my Realm, you just pulled it out of thin air. So my question to you is, what have you done?"

Her eyes widened in surprise. This was not the Death that she had known. This Death was much more human. What had she done? Had some of what made Death, death, somehow transferred to her, and what made her human transferred to him?

He looked at her seriously. "You are mine." He said possessively as he claimed her lips in a searing kiss. He pulled back and looked at her. He smiled. "What are you becoming I wonder?" He asked as he vanished along with the 13th Hour.

"Do you want to hold her?" Donatello asked her.

She blinked at him as her brain tried to catch up to her surroundings. "Sure." She said as she reached out and stopped.

"Is something wrong?" April asked in worry.

"No." She said shaking her head. As she held Shadow. She looked at her and smiled. Nightmare had taken every step she could to protect Shadow for the next 16 years. She pulled up the sleeve of Shadow's shirt exposing her leaf shaped light pink birthmark. She only hoped that everything she had done would fall into place, and what she needed to happen, would.

She handed Shadow off to Leonardo and took April gently by the arm, pulling her towards the library. Nightmare closed the door gently behind her and studied the younger woman.

April looked at her with trepidation.

"I have done all I can to protect her for those who would seek to harm her, and those who would wish to use her. She will be powerful, and power always attracts those seeking power. Her powers will be very weak until she is sixteen, and then, her powers will manifest. But I will provide her with a guardian who will protect her." Nightmare paused.

April swallowed and nodded. "I can't thank you enough." April said, tears brimming in her eyes.

Nightmare sighed. "I want to show you something." She said as she began pulling three Life Glasses from within the folds of her robes and placing them on the desk.

"I don't understand." She said looking at the hour glasses in confusion as she read each name.

"You can only outrun your Fate for so long." She said pointing to the names engraved on the brass plates of each glass. "As a mortal, you are never to know how long you have on this world. As a god, even I cannot predict the outcome of a mortal's life."

"Then...?" She asked in question.

"I am something different, or I suppose one day, I will be." She said with a shake of her head.

"How much time is this?" She questioned as she picked up Raphael's Life Glass, since it was nearly empty. She compared it to Leonardo's glass which was a little more full, but not by much.

"Raphael has 12 days, 4 hours, 3 minutes, 10 seconds left; Leonardo: 20 days 3 hours, 7 minutes and 14 seconds; Michelangelo: 4 years, 3 months, 12 hours, 9 minutes, and 17 seconds.

April slumped in the chair in front of the desk. She had gone pale. "Why are you telling me this?" She whispered.

"Because I love them too much to lose them. So I am going to stop time for them. Right now. Every minute than passes is one minute too long." She said softly.

"How? I don't understand." She whispered in confusion.

"They will sleep for the next 16 years, and when they wake, it will be to a world on the brink of Chaos. And I tell you this because I do not wish for you to hate me or question why I did this to them. They will not be around to help you with Shadow. Donatello and I will help you as best we can, but the less attention we give to her, the better."

April looked at her in agony.

"Nightmare!" Donatello burst into the library, a look of horror and panic on his face.

"I know Donatello." She said softly.

"Where are they?" He asked in dread.

They are in the Sacred Circle of the Primeval Forest." Nightmare said softly.

"But...Why? What are they doing..." Donatello looked at the three now frozen Life Glasses on the table. "Raph and Leo's are almost empty." He said softly with a thread of misery.

"Time for them has stopped. They are sleeping." She said softly a hint of melancholy in her voice.

"So their bodies are in...stasis?" He asked in confusion.

Nightmare nodded her head. "They will remain that way for the next 16 years." She said sadly.

Casey walked into the room with Shadow. "What's going on?" Casey questioned, fear lacing his words.

"April, Casey, I would suggest a move to anywhere outside of New York. The further the better. On her 15th birthday bring her back here, enrol her in this school." She said as a business card appeared in her fingers. She handed over the card which April took with shaking hands.

"I know your life is here. But you can't stay." Nightmare handed over a bag that appeared from thin air. "Everything you will need is in this bag. Money, a list of contacts of people who will help you if needed, as well as a tarot card to get in touch with me, as well as a phone number that will reach Donatello."

"You'll keep them safe?" April asked, voice shaking with grief and fear.

"Always." Nightmare promised as she smiled and gave the younger woman a hug. "Until we meet again April, Casey." She gently took Shadow from Casey. "And I shall see you in 16 years." She gave the baby to Donatello who said a few words and gave her back to April.

Donatello hugged both April and Casey Goodbye. "All of your things are back at your apartment. Good luck." She said with a wave as they vanished.

Donatello looked at her grimly. "Why?" Donatello asked.

"Because I love them too much to lose them to death. I am changing and warping their Fate." She said softly.

"You can't change your Fate Nightmare, you know that as well as I do." He said with a hint of anger.

"I know. But I will try." She said as she walked into his arms pulling him close and revelling in the comfort of his touch.

A/N: A little bit of a shorter chapter than usual, but I think the chapter after this one will be the end.=) (if it isn't too long, we will see!)