Chapter 14:

Cherise moaned as she felt herself slip back into consciousness. She had hoped that the pain she experienced the night before would have kept her knocked out forever. Being in her captor's care the past week has told her a few things. His work in the real world kept him away for most of the day, but the night he seemed aggressive and possessive. She had never felt so violated or soiled. Above all else, despite police efforts, they still have not found her. She hadn't given up hope, but she also was very down to earth. She didn't want to die, but some days she has found herself in the revelation that she more than likely will in the Hell he brought her into.

"My love is finally awake. Some night you had last night," he walked into the room. He came over to the bed where she knew not to move from while he was in the room. He waved some of her short hair from her eyes and looked over her face. She cringed a little away from him scared to think what he wanted her to do this morning. He chuckled warmly, "Don't worry yourself. You have gone through some major changes last night. I will wait until tomorrow to intimately woo you some more."

She looked confused. Barely able to move her upper body she settled on her right arm. She shifted it and looked at what looked like a thick patch of fur that coated her forearm and the dull claws that protruded from her fingertips, "Wh- what did you do to me?"

"Made you better, my dear," he kissed her on the forehead, "No need to thank me. Thank yourself. You're the first one to make it through the first tests and survive. Shows me that I picked right in choosing you."

She began to feel the tears prick at her eyes and carefully felt her face where a different shape of nose sat.

"I know I told you I needed another subject before we started, but a week is just too long for you to reach your potential," he explained and sat on the bed next to her, "Now we just need one more adjustment, but you will be perfection soon enough. For that one I will need a test subject to make sure it isn't too much for you. Just think, you'll finally have some company other than Hun."

"You haven't brought anyone back yet," she said and dropped her hand.

"True," he tapped her on the tip of her new nose, "But this time I thought that we would bring the next victim to us."

Stephanie Witers, a twenty- two year old Biology major looked down at the paper in her hand. She had the right address, but the place seemed so off for a Chemistry tutor to teach in. She looked at the large town house and shrugged. She needed the tutoring. She was a genius when it came to Biology, but was flunking when it came to chemical makeup.

She knocked on the door and waited as she heard a set of footsteps approach the door. A face peeked through the window next to the door and she waved. The man smiled and disappeared from view. Stephanie frowned once he was out of sight. She was hoping for a cute guy, but this guy just seemed a bit- for lack of better word- furry.

The door opened and he held out a hand for her, "You must be Stephanie."

"Hello," she nodded and shook his hand before she stepped in the house.

The man popped his head out and then looked up and down the street before he closed and locked the door behind them, "So did any of your friends drop you off? This can be a dangerous neighborhood."

"Ah, no," she shook her head with a smile and took off her backpack, "I'm a big girl. I can handle nearly everything."

"Good to hear," he nodded. She stood in front of him and dug in her bag for her Chemistry book to avoid looking at him. He was starting to get a bit creepy. He motioned for one of the rooms toward the back of the townhouse, "What exactly are you having problems with?"

"Everything, I'm just not gripping the subject," she said and hugged the now found book against her chest. He let her walk in front of him toward a room that looked like a kitchen, but no one seemed to have used it in a while.

"Then I think maybe we should start with some hand on experience."

"What?" she asked and as she turned saw a large wolf like creature behind her. Before she could scream the thing hit her across the face and she fell to the floor completely knocked out.

"I hate it when they scream," it growled and picked the young girl down the side stairs from the kitchen down to his real living quarters.

Cherise watched from the bed as her captor changed back into human form and tossed a young woman into a glass cage at the side of the room. He patted his hands off and tossed on his bigger jacket for work, "There you go. Now you have company. She'll wake up sooner than you think. See you tonight, love."

Cherise waited a few minutes until she began to call out to the young woman in the cage, with no success. The young girl was out cold. Cherise looked at the ceiling and felt her tears fall down her face.

"A week!" Deidra whispered a bit loudly at the pages in front of her. She was sitting on Raphael's Ducati in the garage again as she looked over the pages once again on the case, "No movement, no bodies, no abductions… no nothing. Did he have a major heart attack or something?"

They didn't find that much from the sedan and it seemed like one of the lab assistants diluted the chemical tests on Miss Delone so much so that they didn't know what was a skin sample or blood. She didn't think that it was an accident and some people at the lab said that they saw a group of punks outside of the lab building. More than likely Purple Dragons yet again. She was going to have a field day on their skulls when she got the next chance.

Black Death seemed to be at a standstill. If he was just waiting for another car to come into his possession or if he was hunting out a new victim, Deidra didn't know. She even asked Donatello and Analise on some ideas, but they couldn't come up with anything different that what she already had. She was definitely going to go over some of the new inmate files and see if any of them coincide with his profile. Maybe he was picked up for something minor.

"Dammit, you smug bastard, what are you up to?" she whispered at the pages in front of her.

"I was hoping to work on my bike, but it seems preoccupied," Raphael said from the doorway leading to the lair.

"Not you, egomaniac. I meant the un-sub," Deidra looked up at him and looked him over quickly, "You're supposed to be healing up still."

"Can't keep a good turtle down," he shrugged and decided to do a flip down to her and the Ducati, "Despite that, I feel a lot better. Soon enough I will be able to take off the last wrap on my leg."

"I bet you'll miss my leg rubs, huh?" she teased and he only smirked.

Since the day she began to take care of him, they had grown closer. He showed her more of the Raphael she had never seen before then. They talked about bikes, family and the pains they could be, and life in general. He learned that she also had three siblings, all sisters. They were all grown and spread across the states, but he now knew she had a place of understanding when it came to multiple siblings.

"Where's Leo?" he asked and began to rummage through his tools.

"He said he was going to head to the dojo early to work on some of his bigger moves," Deidra shrugged, "I didn't want to distract him."

"He still taking you to dinner?"

"Every once in a while, but we mostly just train and talk," Deidra swung her leg over so she was side sitting on the bike, "Can I ask you something?"

"Depends on what it is," he stood up with a dirty cloth in his hands.

"Why do you think he's so interested in me?"

Raphael paused, rolled the dirty cloth into a ball and then tossed it in a smaller box that she guessed was for his dirty shop cloths, "Why don't you ask him?"

"Because he gives me this cheesy answer about my skills and how beautiful it could be. That isn't really an answer," she looked at him as he turned toward her, "You are the closest to him. I would think that you would know better than anyone else- other than Splinter. And I am not going to talk about a relationship with one of his sons with him."

"Are you in a relationship?"

"Not really," she shook her head, "He hasn't asked to be official. Until that point and I say yes, it's just casual dating."

"What makes you think that Leo and I are so close?" Raphael looked at the clock on the wall and waved at her to follow him. He walked out of the garage and she followed him closely. He put his hands behind his head to stretch out some muscles, "I mean, we fight all the time."

"Doesn't mean that you don't love one another," Deidra rolled her eyes, "That just means that you are difficult. We all know that. If he didn't care he wouldn't fight with you."

"I'll save you some time," Raphael stopped before they walked through the dojo doors, "Leo hasn't talked all that much about you to me."

"Okay then. Just wanted to get your opinion is all."

He grabbed her arms gently before they walked into the dojo, "I will tell you this much though. He's one lucky guy. I hope he realizes that. If he hasn't asked you steady by now, he's a freaking moron."

She was a bit surprised to say the least. She never heard Raphael speak in words that even he would consider sappy. He walked into the dojo before she could say anything back and noticed that everyone was there. Everyone sat in their regular seats and Leonardo seemed to eyeing Raphael closely. He had noticed how much time she was spending with him. She didn't know how to feel about the jealousy. She thought it would have been cute, but it kind of irked her since he had no claim to her from her side of the equation.

"Let us begin with deep meditation," Splinter said and put his hands on top of his knees. After a brief meditation Splinter had the girls team up with their tutors and let Raphael and Donatello spar. He too was surprised to see his son back to the dojo in such a short time. But he knew better than to try and tell him differently.

Splinter started with Michelangelo and Analise as he called out specific moves. Analise would execute the moves against Michelangelo and then would have to defend against them. There seemed to be only a couple that she found herself on her back and Michelangelo standing above her.

As Splinter concentrated on Analise development, Leonardo and Deidra went through more difficult moves. Leonardo shifted her arms and legs from where they landed to a better position. She rolled her eyes a few times in a little annoyance since it seemed to be every time. She looked over at Raphael and he gave her a look that seemed to scream 'I told you so.'

Leonardo caught the expression, "You and Raph seem to be on a better page."

"He just needed some more insight to who I was and vice versa," she said back.

"Give me two jabs and a swing kick," he told her and she executed them nearly perfectly. Nearly.

"Got to bring your foot higher and bring it to the floor more controlled instead of it falling," he told her.

"But you said that to make the most effective connection to the opponent you need to concentrate on the power behind it and not so much on the landing of the foot."

"And what if your foot comes down on another opponent that can flip you over? If you aren't paying attention, you could be under them," he shifted her foot by grabbing her ankle and shifting it back. She gritted her teeth against her temper and also his grip on the old scars from the attack.

"Hey Leo, back up a little bit," Raphael said and came over to them, "She's got control. Don't worry about the inches that's she's off by and worry more about where you're holding her injury from a week ago."

Leonardo let go of the leg quickly and then turned to Deidra, "I'm sorry."

"It's okay, Leo, it doesn't hurt anymore," she shook her head and looked at Raphael, "And I can handle this. Go back to sparring. I'll be good."

"Just worry about getting it in your muscles," he patted her arm, "Then you will know how to take them down out there. You're not worrying about form when you're taking down Hun."

"I've got it, Raph, thanks," Leonardo pushed his brother gently out of the way.

"Don't push me, Leo," Raphael warned.

"If you encroach on my lessons, I will push you all I need to," Leonardo pushed him again.

"Leo! Knock it off!" Deidra yelled at them as they began to exchange blows.

As Analise began to demonstrate a front kick, Michelangelo was distracted by the fight that was brewing between his two brothers. Donatello walked toward them and then away again as both Leonardo and Raphael told him to back up.

"Ya!" Analise yelled and pushed her foot into Michelangelo's stomach.

"Oomf," he grunted and fell backward.

"I got him!" Analise yelled in victory and the hurried forward, "You okay, Mikey?"

"Yeah, distracted, but okay," he nodded and then looked at Splinter who already noticed his two quarreling sons.

"Excuse me," Splinter nodded to them as Analise helped Michelangelo off the floor.

Analise and Michelangelo hurried over next to Deidra who was yelling at both of the guys duking it out, "What happened?"

"They're trying to be macho," she growled and then yelled toward them, "And idiots!"

"Wow, you got two of them fighting over you."

"They are not," she narrowed her eyes at her friend.

"Ah, yeah they are, they just don't know it yet," Analise giggled and then cringed at the punch that Raphael delivered to Leonardo.

Splinter jumped in between his two sons and his paws flew out on either side of him, sending the two turtles to separate sides of the dojo, "Enough!"

Both Raphael and Leonardo rubbed their heads and looked at their father.

"Leonardo, Raphael, follow me. Now."

"Oooo…" Mikey snickered a little bit, "Somebody's in trouble."

"Why aren't you fighting for me?" Analise asked suddenly.

Michelangelo blushed, "Because Donnie knows that I will kick his shell?"

"I am not all that interested in a relationship anyway," Donatello added and looked at Analise, "No offense, Ana."

"None taken," she shook her head and held up a hand to stop him, "I'm not all into the scientist thing either."

"When do you think they'll be back?" Deidra watched Splinter lead the still fuming guys out of the dojo.

"Don't know," Michelangelo shrugged and thought back to what happened after he last saw Splinter that angry, "Depends on how fast they can do a hundred back flips."

Splinter sat quietly behind the small table that Raphael and Leonardo now sat behind. He took a deep breath while his two sons waited for the inevitable.

"What is all this discontentment about?" he asked and stared both of his sons down, "I have known you two to fight, but not this viciously."

"Leo was pushing her too much," Raphael spoke first.

"She can take it," Leonardo argued back, "I can't help it if you don't believe in her."

"I believe in her more than you know!" Raphael yelled, "You need to stop being such a damn perfectionist and let her grow into her own ninja. She isn't you."

"I know she isn't, but she has the skill to be a great kunoichi."

"Then let her be it. I-"

"So this is over a woman," Splinter said quietly and both boys became frozen. Suddenly they both fell over in surprise. Splinter chuckled a little and then sighed deeply, "I will not allow this to interfere with her and your study. Leonardo, can you be professional toward her though you are courting?"

"Of course, master."

"Raphael?"

"Master?"

"What are your feelings toward Miss Jenson?"

Raphael's eye ridges shot up. He stuttered a little and could feel Leonardo's eyes on him, "I- I, uh… I don't know."

"She feels for you both," Splinter disclosed information from his own observations, "How and in what way is still to be seen."

"How do we find out?" Leonardo asked.

"It seems there is only one way," Splinter stood up and his sons followed his example.

"How?" Raphael asked.

"Talk to her."

"I was afraid that you were going to say that…" Raphael sighed and both he and Leonardo looked at one another confused on what exactly to do next.