Chapter 23:

Around three in the morning, Deidra finally trudged through the door heading out to the garage. She made sure to put the keys back under their hiding place and had to make sure to tell Raphael to hide them again if he wanted them safe from Casey. Whenever Raphael got his tail back to the lair. Her feet paused a little at the thought. She looked back to the Ducati and thought back to the time that she had helped him. They laughed and talked about bikes and hockey. She really did miss him. A growl escaped from between her lips and she walked quickly into the lair.

Her hand ran through her helmet hair and her ears perked up when she heard the shower running. As she turned the corner, she saw that someone was still up at the kitchen counter. Splinter sipped at his tea and looked up at her as she walked toward him. She tried to decide on whether he just woke up or just never went to bed for the night.

"Morning, sensei," she greeted and he poured her a cup without her even asking.

"Good morning, Deidra," he nodded his head to her, "How did it go with your unit tonight?"

"Not as well as I would have hoped, but we won't know all the facts until after the autopsy," she conceded and heard a couple of sounds from upstairs, one she recognized as Analise's laughter. She furrowed her brows and stood up to look up at the railing of the second floor.

"Something wrong, Deidra?" Splinter smiled as if he held a secret.

"What's going on?" she asked, a little too weary to let the hope that they guys were home build up, "Who's upstairs with Analise? What is she doing upstairs anyway?"

"She felt that she needed to be close to Michelangelo," he said and looked up in time to see Analise come out from the bedroom with a tall, but strong built guy run after her. He caught up to her half way down the stairs and swept her up in a hug against him.

"Gotcha, babe!" he smiled and she laughed.

"What the hell?" Deidra blinked a couple of times at the two of them.

"So much for sleep, my son?" Splinter asked with a smile from beside Deidra.

"She kept me up," he pointed accusingly at Analise as he took a step away. He looked down at Deidra and then leaned against the railing they had put up around the stairs, "Hey Deidra. Looks like you had a majorly long night, dudette- er, make that morning."

"Wait… son?" Deidra pointed from Splinter to Michelangelo, "Mikey?!"

"Here we go again," Michelangelo rolled his eyes.

Analise climbed down the rest of the stairs to stand next to her best friend, "So sorry, I forgot to text you, but I was a bit distracted."

"What the fuck?!" Deidra threw her hands up in the air as Donatello poked his head over the railing with a yawn. His mousey brown hair swept over his eyes and he pushed it back in a little annoyance before he looked down at the small group below.

"Would the volume control be turned down an octave or two?" he asked and then walked back into his room, "Just fell asleep five minutes ago…"

Another form jumped from the top floor to a side wall before they settled on the ground. His longer black hair was tied back at the base of his neck and his dark eyes looked into hers as if that would calm her down. His muscles were covered by a loose tank top that looked like second hand and a pair of old gym shorts. He smiled a little at her and pushed her hands down.

"It's us, Deidra," Leonardo tried to calm her down, "I guess some explaining needs to be done."

"Just a little," she said a little distracted by the very cute man with Leonardo's voice. She looked back at Analise who was being hugged from behind by who she assumed was Michelangelo. From the way she was smiling, she was right.

From behind the two smiling dorks she saw a tall, muscular man walk from the direction of the shower with a towel draped around his waist and a hand running through his naturally spiky auburn hair. He held on to a couple pieces of clothing in his other hand with a frown on his face as he looked down at them.

Deidra didn't feel it, but her feet began to walk toward him without her permission. As she passed by Analise and Michelangelo she thought she heard Analise mutter and 'uhoh', but didn't know for sure. Or really didn't care. She made it to face the guy who looked down at her confused. Suddenly her hand and her eyes were scanning him from head to toe.

Her mouth started to utter, "Hot man, hot man, HOT man, Mmm!"

When she made it up to his face he had a very large smirk on his face.

"My bad," she took her hand away and placed them in her back pockets of her jeans, "Did I say that out loud?"

"At least loud enough for this egomaniac to hear," Raphael shifted his weight to one leg and crossed his arms over his chest with one hand still holding his clothes, "How is it going, Deidra?"

"Raph?" she asked with wide eyes.

"Surprising, I know," he turned her back to the group, "How do you think I felt when I found a naked human Mikey over me?"

"Hey!" Mikey pouted and felt a slight patting reassurance from Analise over his arms.

"Wait…" Deidra put up a hand and turned back to him, "When were you naked?"

He smiled and turned her toward the living room area where they could all sit and talk. As he passed he gave Leonardo smuggest smirk he could make with his new human face. Leonardo rolled his eyes and helped Splinter bring the tea over to the living room where they could all talk. Raphael tossed the clothes to hang over his shoulder as he pushed at Deidra gently behind her in a shooing motion.

"Wait a minute," she said right before they arrived by their seats. She turned around and pointed at Raphael in the face, "Are you shooing me?"

He paused for a minute and then pushed at her again toward an empty seat, "Yes, now go."

"Do we need to get Donnie?" Mikey asked excitedly and tried to ignore his half naked brother, "I can go get him if we do."

"Let him sleep, Mike," Raphael stopped him, "He wants his sleep so he could start on that anti-anti mutagen."

"But-"

"And you want to keep your woman comfortable, right?" he pointed to Analise.

Michelangelo then wrapped her in another hug and put her on his lap.

"When exactly did I become your woman?" she laughed a little at his antics, but soaked up the feeling of being held in his arms.

"Could have fooled me," Deidra chuckled as Analise's cheek took on a deep blush.

"We will have a talk later," he answered, but kept her on his lap.

"Raphael?" Splinter looked to him, "Would you mind putting on the clothing I found?"

"He doesn't have to," Deidra shook her head, "It doesn't bother me."

"I think he should," Leonardo narrowed his eyes at his brother who still had a gloating smile.

"Do I really have to wear this shirt, though?" he asked and unwadded the shirt that said 'chick magnet' on it, "Really?"

"It's only until the morning, Raphael," Splinter said and nodded his head toward the bathroom for him to change. Raphael went willingly and Deidra finally looked around at the other players in the discussion. Both Michelangelo and Analise looked at her with a knowing, silly smile on their faces.

"What?" she asked.

"Nothing," Analise said as Michelangelo chuckled.

"So what happened?" Deidra asked with her distraction out of the picture and putting actual clothes on, "We went to kick some ass and get you guys out, but you already made your escape."

"Doesn't feel all that great when you go in for the rescue and realize you aren't really needed, does it?" Michelangelo raised an eyebrow and looked at Deidra.

"I think we could have used the back up earlier," Raphael said as he came back into the room and lounged in a bean bag, "Could have done more."

"Like get the girls in danger," Leonardo offered.

"Ah, we were coming either way, Leo," Analise said with a shrug and grinned proudly, "With weapons even."

"You gave them weapons?" Leonardo asked and looked at Splinter.

"I was not going to let them go unprepared for everything," Splinter said calmly and sipped on his tea.

"They weren't ready for weapons!" Leonardo said a little surprised at Splinter's attitude.

"Way to show trust and backing," Deidra grumbled.

"Seriously. Ouch," Analise added, "You want your knife back?"

"You girls can handle yourself against thugs," Leonardo explained and looked at the glares that he was receiving from Deidra, Analise and even Raphael, "But we got caught by this guy. I could only imagine what he would want to do with you girls."

"We were going either way," Analise said and looked at Splinter, "Splinter knew that and wanted us prepared the best we could be. He knew he couldn't stop us and couldn't keep us here. Might as well help where he could. He even went with us with Casey."

"Casey?" Raphael chuckled a little despite the conversation, "No wonder you gave them weapons."

Deidra and Analise chuckled a little.

"So which one did you choose?" Michelangelo asked Analise.

"The kasurigama," she suddenly turned to Splinter, "Is that right?"

"Correct," he nodded.

"So you like chains?" Michelangelo asked in a low voice.

Analise looked up at him as he looked like he was planning something. She frowned and bopped him on the head, "Don't even go there, Turtle Titan."

He rubbed his head with the arm not holding on to her, "Ow… I was just wondering how you like the feel of it. I like chain weapons as you could tell with my nunchakus."

"Right, other implications of chain was not where your guy mind was going at all," she rolled her eyes.

"Well, if your mind goes there first…"

"Mikey, do ya mind?" Raphael asked from the beanbag, "I got to sleep tonight. And it's going to be hard enough without your fetishes running through my mind."

"That is something that none of us need going through our minds," Deidra agreed.

"I think what we all need is some sleep," Leonardo stood up and began to walk toward the stairs, "We've all be through a lot."

"You could say that again," Raphael groaned as he stood up. He popped his neck and began to follow his brother.

"Sleep…" Michelangelo stretched the word out and got up with an arm still around Analise. Suddenly a hand shot out and grabbed her out from his arm, "Wha-?"

Deidra stood with her friend at her side and looked Michelangelo up and down as if sizing him up, "You think that I'm going to let you take my best friend up to your room with all that talk you were going on about chains?"

"That's not what I was talking about," he pouted and looked at Analise.

"I will see you in the morning," Analise answered his pout, "We will go out and get some clothes for you guys. It looks like you need them."

"It's a date," he smiled and began to jog up the stairs to his room.

As the two girls walked back toward their rooms Deidra turned to her friend with a smile, "So… how exactly how were you too distracted to give me a text?"

"You shouldn't be talking about being distracted," Analise said back and walked into her bedroom, "Goodnight."

"Another whore, another day," the mutant growled in a bored tone. He laid out on the top ledge in the Purple Dragon headquarters. Hun looked up at him with his arms crossed while most of the other dragons eyed him wearily.

"Now that she's out of the picture, do you need another subject?" Hun asked.

"Of course," he shrugged awkwardly and sighed, "A scientist must continue his work."

"Where?"

"That is a question I hope to answer on my next hunt later tonight," he stretched and then shook as if trying to dry himself off.

"You can't do it in your home?"

"My home has no floor space," he growled, "You should know that. That's why grandmother's was so vital. And so much more comfortable."

"Uh, boss?" one of the lower ranked dragons approached Hun. Both Hun and the mutant looked at him, "Um, we got a place that can work. We got to do some cleanin', but it's gotta fit all the equipment we got from the house."

"How far from here?" the monster growled over the young man.

"A couple of miles," he shrugged, "About a mile from your old joint."

"Hm," he growled and began to pace. He suddenly stopped and looked at Hun and the man, "I like the sound of it. Get started on it. I need it up and running by tomorrow night. I think a new subject is in order before I am ready to get my prize."

"It's done," Hun said as the mutant jogged out of the building and toward the college district.

"How much longer we gotta listen to this thing, boss?" the dragon asked.

"Until he's done," Hun said back and began to walk to the van that held most of the equipment they were able to get from the townhouse, "Hopefully this prize will come much sooner than later."

"Okay, so checklist," Analise said as she walked down the mall with a small notebook in her hand. She held the pen over the piece of paper and began to mark the different items as she went, "Jeans, two pair each-check. T-shirts, three each- check. Jackets, one each- check. Shoes, two pairs each- check. We are doing great, just have to pick up some formal clothes for you guys and we're done."

She looked behind her to see a struggling Michelangelo with six different bags on his arms and in his hands. She grinned at him and shook her head, "You still stubborn enough not to let me carry anything?"

"Fine," Michelangelo stopped by a bench and handed over two of the lighter bags filled with shirts. She picked them up before he had time to change his mind and looked over at him with a smile.

"Better?"

"Better," he nodded and picked up the other bags. He spotted the list under her arm, "Why do we need formal clothes for?"

"Now that you guys have, um…" Analise paused and looked around at the other people in the mall. She tried to find a way to say turned human without sounding like a loony, "…a new image, you might want to find work. You need some nice clothes to go to interviews in."

"Oh, good call, dudette," he smiled and pecked her on the cheek.

"Thanks, Mikey," she smiled and walked toward a mall map to find the closest department store.

Michelangelo looked at their surroundings and the people around him. They were perfectly unaware of him and Analise. They were average, normal people walking in the mall and shopping. He wasn't a spectacle hidden in a large trench coat and large brimmed hat. He looked at his hand and flexed the four fingers around the handle of the bag he carried. Still was trying to get used to seeing them as his own.

He sighed and looked up to see a couple of girls coming out of a jewelry shop and stop when they saw him. They both smiled at him and began to play with their hair. Michelangelo smirked, but shook his head as he turned away from them. It's a boost to the ego, but he wasn't in the market for a girl. He had a great one right next to him. He then saw a guy giving Analise the eye and subtlety stood closer to her and covering her from the other guy's view. He had dark hair and pretty decent arm muscles and only seemed to change position to get another view of Analise. Michelangelo looked for another store to shop and noticed a banner for the Halloween shop just a store over.

"Ana?" he asked.

"Yeah, hun?" she said back in a distracted tone. Her finger snaked along the paths on the map to try and find her way.

"It's Halloween in a few weeks," he said matter-of-factly and looked from the shop back to her, "None of us have a costume and this is the first year that I can kind of show myself in public. Can we at least look at what they got?"

She smirked and finally looked away from the map, "Sounds good. I haven't dressed up the last couple of years. I think it's time to have some fun with it."

"Yes!" he punched the air in celebration and they both walked into the shop.

The two of them walked around the displays and the different costumes that ranged from the most gruesome to the scandalous. They found a few for the others back home, and Analise already knew that Deidra had a few costumes at home she still hadn't worn. At one point Michelangelo held out a sexy maid outfit and Analise only rolled her eyes. In return she pulled out a male stripper costume and lifted her eyebrows in question. He put the maid outfit back and walked over to her to put the stripper costume back as well. They turned into another aisle for superhero costumes and Analise smiled when she got an idea for her own costume.

"So when do you go back to work at the museum?" Michelangelo asked and picked up a costume for Albert Einstein. He pointed to it real quick, "Donnie?"

"Donnie," she nodded and then went back to his original question, "I will be starting at the museum again in a couple of days. Henry said that the renovations look great. I can't wait to see them with the new exhibits."

"Can I come with?" he asked with an excited sparkle in his eyes.

"If you aren't too big of a distraction," she smiled with a nod.

"I will try to contain myself," he put up his hand as if he was swearing to it, "Do you think Donnie and Leo will like our costume choices for them?"

"Doesn't really matter," she shook her head, "They will probably be worn in the lair in our own costume party. What should we get Raph?"

"He will figure his own thing out," he rolled his eyes, "I think he would probably just burn whatever we got him."

"Party pooper," Analise pouted.

"You have no idea," he chuckled and looked into another aisle where he saw a great costume piece, "I think I may have found mine. I'll be right back."

"Okay," she nodded and was looking over some fabric paint and a long, yellow cape. She thought to herself and tried to figure out how she would pull it off. She felt someone stand next to her and knew in the back of her mind that it wasn't Michelangelo, "I'm sorry, could you back up a little bit. You are closing in on my personal space."

"Never really bothered you before," the male voice rang behind her.

Her eyes widened as she recognized the voice. She turned around slowly and backed against the aisle as the guy moved in closer, nearly pushing her into the costumes behind her.

"Hello, Analise."

"Hi…" she took a deep breath, "Joshua."

"You never return my texts anymore," he frowned with a flip of his short hair, "I was thinking you were ignoring me."

"I kind of was," she nodded and looked between him and her, "I repeat: Do you mind backing up?"

"But I thought that-"

He was roughly pulled from her and into the other side of the aisle. Analise took a breath of relief as she saw Michelangelo let go of the collar of Joshua's shirt once he had pulled him from her. Michelangelo then took his place near her and looked her over a little.

"You okay?"

"I'm okay," she nodded and gave him a smile as a thank you.

"Dude, you really are forward trying to hit on another guy's girl," Michelangelo said as he turned back to Joshua who was straightening out his jacket and shirt.

"Another guy's girl?" he asked and looked at Analise who put her hand on Michelangelo's arm. He chuckled a little to himself, "I guess love isn't really what I thought it was."

"Don't even go there, Joshua," Analise frowned.

"So you're Joshua," Michelangelo pointed to him and then looked back at Analise, "You want me to beat him up now or later?"

"Just don't," Analise shook her head, "Not worth the energy."

"Not worth it?" Joshua said in a surprised tone, "This describing the guy you once told you were in love with?"

"I was in love with you," she qualified with a nod, "But when you get another girlfriend and tell me multiple times that you will never love me the way I want or need… Did you think that I would just keep waiting for the impossible to happen?"

"I just thought that love was forever," he shrugged.

"It is," she sighed and took a tighter grip on Michelangelo's arm, "I still love you. I just can't and won't be in love with you anymore."

"So you get another boyfriend?" he looked coldly at Michelangelo.

"Another nothing, he's my only boyfriend at the moment," Analise said confidently as Michelangelo only smiled.

"How many girlfriends you got, dude?" Michelangelo asked and looped his arm around Analise, "I don't see how you can do something like what you did to any girl. And especially to Ana. She's one of a kind."

"Yeah, definitely one of a kind," Joshua scoffed, "Tells you that she loves you, but won't put out. That's the ultimate way of showing your love to someone."

"Sex does not equal love," Analise frowned, "I wanted and needed you to understand that."

"You just wanted it from another source," Joshua looked at Michelangelo again.

"You should be one to talk," Michelangelo took a step toward him, but Analise put a hand against his chest.

"Let's just get these costumes and go," she whispered, "I'm done and over it. Can we just go home?"

"And you live together?" Joshua asked in a loud voice. He began to laugh coldly, "Now who's the hypocrite?"

"She has her own room apart from mine," Michelangelo qualified.

"Has she given you a bj?" he asked in a serious tone, "Because I think that is only something that she would do with an actual boyfriend. Isn't that what you told me, Analise?"

"One, none of your business," she said and flipped him off, "And two, I told you the truth about that. Friends don't ask one another for stuff like that when they are already in another relationship."

"Be careful of this one, she says one thing and does another," he smirked and shook his head at her. He turned from them and began to walk away, "No wonder you tried to hold on to the impossible. You can't face the truth."

Michelangelo looked down to see the crushed and confused look on Analise's face and couldn't believe that she was thinking it over.

"Mikey!" Analise yelled as Michelangelo lunged forward and turned Joshua around to face him.

"Listen up, because I am only going to say this once," he growled, "Analise is one of the most amazing women I have ever known. She's passionate, talented and very loving. To take her heart and bash it the way you did was not only uncalled for, but dishonorable. I have no idea how she has forgiven you, but rest assured I never will."

"You going to bash my face in now or something?" Joshua asked with a little fear behind his eyes.

"Nah," he shook his head and pushed Joshua away from him, "She's right. You aren't worth it. Stop calling her and stop texting her. It's not going to do any good and she's no booty call which seems to be all you're interested in."

"I loved you too," Joshua said quickly to Analise, "Just not the way you wanted."

"I agree," she nodded and watched him walk away.

"You going to be okay?" he asked.

"Perfectly okay," she smiled up at him and gave him a huge kiss, "Coming to the rescue at just the right time."

"Let's get these and go home," he kissed her forehead.

A/N: So, I know Halloween has already come and gone, but I couldn't get the chapters out in time. They are going to be uploaded anyway because there is no way that I am waiting until next year to upload them. So enjoy some late Halloween Shenanigans! Happy reading all!