Kayla rolled over in her bed and stretched, arching her back a little. Her eyes blinked open and she looked around her room, the grayish brown brick walls with no windows making her room dark even though the small digital clock on her desk said it was 10:27. She sat up and glanced around her room.

She was still wearing the same loose jeans and black sweatshirt she wore the day before. Her jeans were a faded bluish-gray with holes over both knees and one over her upper left thigh. The sweatshirt was a large, black, pullover hoodie with a white New York Yankees logo in the center across her chest. She looked over and down at her pillow and saw a large tear stain on the center. As soon as she came home last night after saying goodbye to Leo she cried herself to sleep.

She got up and went over to her mirror. She could clearly see the tear stains down her cheeks. She wiped her face as hard as possible with her hands. When they were mostly gone she left her room, she really didn't care if she looked like crap, because that's how she felt.

Don was sitting at the kitchen table reading the newspaper and drinking his daily coffee, and Mike was sitting across from him eating cereal.

"Well, look who woke up." Don smiled as Kayla passed him in the kitchen and headed toward the fridge. She ignored him since she wasn't in a joking mood. She grabbed a box of cereal out of the cupboard and poured some into a bowl. Then she opened the fridge and took out the gallon carton of milk. She looked at it for a moment. Then she shook it. No sound. It was empty. She turned around and slammed it onto the kitchen table, making Don and Mike jump slightly.

"Alright, who took the last of the milk and put the empty carton back in the fridge?" she demanded, her jaw set in anger. Don looked over at Mikey, who was looking down at his bowl nervously. Kayla saw that it was almost filled to the brim with milk, there was almost twice as much milk as there was cereal. She slammed the carton on the table again, "Mikey!" she yelled.

"I'm sorry I'm sorry I'm sorry!" Mikey yelled, getting off the chair and hiding behind the table. He nudged his bowl toward her, "Here! You can have mine! Just please don't kill me!"

Kayla rolled her eyes gritting her teeth as she turned away from Mikey. She chucked the carton into the trash and stormed over to the couch and slipped her shoes on.

"Where are you going?" Don asked nervously.

"Well, we need milk. I'll go to the grocery store." she answered, her voice tight with anger.

Don knew it was more than that. She was just using it as an excuse to get out and clear her head. He sighed, getting up from his chair and walking to the couch. When Kayla stood up he took her hand and pushed twenty dollars into her palm.

"Here. You shouldn't have to pay for it with your own money." Don smiled gently at her. Kayla looked at the money for a moment. She looked up at him. Her expression wasn't angry anymore, just…unhappy.

"Thanks." she whispered as she stuffed the money in her jean pocket and grabbed her skateboard. Don watched as she skated out of the lair.

Kayla breathed in the air as she skated home, a plastic bag with a gallon of milk in her left hand. She felt a little better from getting some fresh air out of the lair. She knew Don suspected that's what she wanted and she felt a little better knowing at least one of her brothers understood what she was going through and wasn't going to call her out on it. She came to a small, concrete staircase and, in her laziness, just jumped the four steps to the bottom instead of sliding down the railing and flipping off like usual.

After skating through the sewers she dropped down when she reached a giant fan. She landed and picked up her board in her free hand and moved the bag to her free hand as well. She pulled a pipe with her left hand and the bricks opened into a doorway. She entered and threw her board onto the couch.

"Look who's finally home." Raph panted from where he was attacking his punching bag. "What took ya so long? Go all the way ta Wisconsin ta milk a cow?"

"I took my time. Ya got a problem with that?" Kayla glared at him as she set the bag on the counter and poured some milk into the bowl that was still on the counter. Raph put his hands up in an 'I surrender' sign. Kayla sat on the couch to eat, watching some program on Animal Planet about pandas. She set the bowl on the table when she was done.

Don watched her from the kitchen table where he was fixing Raph's shell cell. Raph walked in and took a can of soda from the fridge. Leaning on the counter as he opened it and took a swig.

"What's wit' her?" he asked Don quietly, nodding to Kayla.

"Isn't it obvious?" Don asked him, looking back down at the cell.

"She still poutin' cuz Leo's gone? He's comin' back in six months. An' he's writin' to her every week. It could be a lot worse." Raph took another chug of pop.

"She's going through a lot right now Raph. It's going to take some time for her to get used to not having Leo around. Just be patient with her and, please, please don't say anything about Leo that's going to upset her." Don looked back at his brother pleadingly. Raph glanced at the ground before he grunted with a small nod.

Don looked back at Kayla and saw her flipping through the channels. He thought for a moment. Don got up from the table, leaving his work there for the time being. He grabbed his bow staff and her bow and quiver from the wall. He walked up to the side of the couch and tossed her bow and quiver at her. They landed partially on her lap and she looked up at him, her expression surprised and a little confused.

Don held up his bow staff. "Wanna do some training?" he offered.

Kayla looked a little confused for a moment but thought about it for a moment. Don sighed in relief when she smiled at him and got up, slipping her quiver over her shoulder.

Kayla took a deep breath as she turned off the shower and stepped out, wrapping a towel around herself. Her and Don had trained alone for a good three hours and she was grateful that he offered to do that. She knew he mostly did it to help get her mind off Leo. Her and Leo always trained alone together. Thinking about Leo Kayla felt her mind flash through memories of when she was little. Leo had always been there when she needed him, and even when she didn't. She felt her eyes sting and her breathing get shaky. She bit her lip to stop it from quivering.

(Wherever You Will Go: The Calling (I recommend listening to this song while reading this part))

So lately, been wonderingWho will be there to take my placeWhen I'm gone you'll need loveTo light the shadows on your face

Kayla slid down the wall of the bathroom to the floor and rested her forehead on her knees, her back and shoulders shaking as she cried. Though her instincts told her not to she couldn't help but wonder what Leo was doing.

If a greater wave shall fallAnd fall upon us allThen between the sand and stoneCould you make it on your own?

Leo leaned back on the tree he was perched in, resting on the branch. He arrived in Central America around noon and had been lurking through the jungle trying to stay hidden. He decided to rest in a tree until night so he could look for a good place to live. If I could, then I wouldI'll go wherever you will goWay up high or down lowI'll go wherever you will go

"Write every week…promise?" "I promise." More tears streamed down Kayla's face as she remembered her last conversation with Leo. Leo never made a single promise that he didn't keep, even Raph had to admit that Leo never broke a promise.

And maybe, I'll find outA way to make it back somedayTo watch you, to guide youThrough the darkest of your days

Leo sighed as he leaned his head back against the trunk. He could just see the stars through the treetops. They could never see the stars back in New York unless there was a blackout. Leo smiled as he remembered that whenever there WAS a blackout he'd go topside with Kayla and they'd sit on the roof and stare at the stars.

If a great wave shall fallAnd fall upon us allWell then I hope there's someone out thereWho can bring me back to you

Kayla wiped her face and put her clothes on. She decided to sleep in one of her old T-shirts that Casey had gotten her for Christmas one year as a joke. It was black and said in white lettering 'I'm A Ninja (you can't see me)'. Then she pulled on her gray sweatpants and headed to her room.

If I could, then I wouldI'll go wherever you will goWay up high or down lowI'll go wherever you will go

"Did you see that?" a thirteen-year-old Kayla asked her brother excitedly. Leo smirked. "Yeah." he answered. It was the first shooting star she'd ever seen. The city below dark from the blackout. "Make a wish." Leo urged her. Kayla thought for a moment, then she closed her eyes and murmured something. "What did you wish for?" Leo asked her after she opened her eyes. She smiled as she looked back up at the night sky. "I wished tonight would last forever." she whispered. Leo smiled at the memory.Run away with my heartRun away with my hopeRun away with my love

Kayla closed her bedroom door and turned on her computer. She opened her music software and put her list on shuffle. She sat on her desk chair and pulled her knees to her chest. She rested her chin on her knees as the first song played. It was Wherever You Will Go by The Calling.I know now, just quite howMy life and love might still go onIn your heart, in your mindI'll stay with you for all of time

Leo breathed in the fresh air. The air here was way fresher than back home, but in a way he missed the smells back home. And he definitely missed the sounds. He didn't know how he was going to get to sleep without the subway rumbling over his head.If I could, then I wouldI'll go wherever you will goWay, way up high or down lowI'll go wherever you will go

When the song ended and moved onto the next one Kayla stared at the far wall of her room, at a framed picture hanging on the wall. It was a picture of her and her brothers from about a year ago. She was standing in the middle with Mikey and Leo on either side of her. Raph was next to Mikey, giving him a noogie, and Don was on the other side of Leo, smiling shyly. Leo had his arm around Kayla's shoulder and she had her arm around him, putting up a peace sign with her first two fingers. Kayla sighed. "Six months." she murmured.

If I could turn back timeI'll go wherever you will goIf I could make you mineI'll go wherever you will goI'll go wherever you will go Leo sighed as he looked through the trees toward the horizon. Somewhere, about two thousand miles in that direction, was home. Leo sighed again as he felt his eye lids get heavy. "Six more months." he murmured before he drifted off to sleep.

"Kayla. It's time to wake up. You ignored your alarm clock." a gentle hand shook her shoulder.

Kayla squinted her eyes to try and force them open. 'It can't be…' she thought as she forced her eyes open. She looked up and saw Don looking down at her. She sighed a little in disappointment. Leo had always been the one to wake her up when she slept in.

"Yeah, yeah, I'm up." she groaned as she sat up and rubbed her eyes.

"Mikey's making pancakes, with chocolate chips." Don stood up and headed for the door. "If you want some you better hurry." he teased as he left the room. Kayla rolled her eyes but couldn't help grinning a little. They all knew how much she loved Mikey's chocolate chip pancakes. She looked down at herself and realized she was too lazy to change.

Kayla grabbed her black New York hoodie and pulled it on over the clothes she slept in. Checking the mirror she brushed through her hair, not really caring what her hair looked like. It looked fine anyway; black with a slight wave, her bangs hanging over her forehead. She slipped on her blue and black DC skate shoes and left her room.

"Hey, Kay. How many?" Mikey asked from where he was flipping pancakes at the stove.

"Um, three." Kayla shrugged as she sat at the table between Raph and Don.

"Ya takin' the K-Cycle today or your board?" Raph asked, digging into his own pancakes. The K-Cycle was the name they'd given her motorcycle since the Shell Cycle was taken.

"I think I'm in the mood to take my board today." Kayla said as Mike placed a plate with three pancakes in front of her with a fork. She immediately started eating them.

"If you're gonna take your board you better leave pretty soon." Don said as he glanced at the clock. It was going on seven fifteen and school started at eight.

"Yeah, yeah." Kayla grumbled as she ate her breakfast. It only took her about fifteen minutes to get from home to school on her board.

"Do you have practice before or after school today?" Don asked as he went back to reading the paper as he ate his pancake.

Kayla thought for a moment. "We have practice after school on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays; and before school on Tuesdays and Thursdays. So today it's after school." Kayla was on the swim team. She was one of only three sophomores who made it on the varsity team this year out of about ten sophomores.

Don glanced at her a moment. "Didn't you wear that yesterday?"

"No." Kayla answered simply. "Yesterday I wore jeans and a different T-shirt."

"What shirt are you wearing right now?" Don asked suspiciously.

Kayla sighed as she pulled her sweatshirt up to show her T-shirt. Raph chuckled when he saw which shirt it was; he always thought that shirt was funny. Don quirked an eye ridge at her.

"You slept in that." he said.

"Yeah, so? No one at school's gonna know that." Kayla hated feeling like she was being interrogated. "Well, I gotta go." she sighed as she stood and grabbed her school bag and board. "I'll probably be home around five thirty or six cause of practice. See ya." she called as she left the lair.

Kayla flipped her board up into her hand. She took a deep breath before entering through the big doors of the high school. She turned right down the first hallway and headed toward her locker.

"Hey, Kayla!" a voice shouted from behind her. Kayla turned and looked back. She smiled.

"Hi, Alana." she greeted. When her best friend caught up they started walking. They stopped at Kayla's locker first. "So, how was your weekend?" Kayla asked.

"Pretty good. I only had math homework so that was nice." Alana shrugged as she leaned against the locker next to Kayla's. "What about you? How was your weekend?" she asked back.

Kayla stopped, still holding one of her textbooks that she'd been getting out of her locker. She took a deep breath as she put it on the ground with the other books she needed for her classes.

"Pretty good." she answered simply. She could feel Alana staring at her as she gathered her books and stood up.

"I've said it before and I'll say it again; you're a really bad liar." Alana pointed out, crossing her arms.

Kayla sighed and rolled her eyes. "I'm not lying."

"Then how come I don't believe you?" Alana asked, leaning a little closer to her friend. Kayla shrugged and raised her eye brows sarcastically.

"How should I know? It's not my fault you think you know everything." Kayla grinned sarcastically.

"Kayla, you can tell me. We're best friends. Please?" she pleaded, her green and brown-tinted eyes full of concern. Kayla looked into her open locker to avoid her eyes. After a few moments she sighed in defeat.

Her throat tightened, "He's gone." she answered, not really knowing how else to say it.

Alana looked at her in confusion. "Who's gone?" she asked worriedly.

Kayla looked over at her, feeling her chest ache at the thought of saying it out loud. "Leo." she whispered before closing her locker door.

Alana's face dropped and Kayla could've sworn her face went white. Alana and her cousin Katie were the only people from her school who knew about her family. Alana and Katie had actually been on dozens of sleepovers at her house before, so they knew her family pretty well.

"You mean…Leo's…"

Realizing what she came off sounding like Kayla shook her head quickly. "No, no. He's alive it's just…he's not here. Our father thought he should go training somewhere to become a better leader."

"Where'd he go?" Alana asked, clearly concerned about how her friend was taking this.

Kayla looked at the ground. "Central America. He'll be there for six months."

"Well, six months isn't so bad, right?" Alana asked, trying to help her friend look on the bright side. "I mean, my brother's gonna graduate this year, then he's gonna go off to college within the next two years."

"Yeah, but you'll have a couple years to get used to the idea of him leaving. Master Splinter told us Friday night and made Leo leave Saturday night. I had little more than twenty-four hours to get used to the idea."

"Ok, yeah. That would tick me off." Alana admitted.

"But he promised to write to me every week and I can write back. That way he can still help me with…ya know." Kayla shrugged and Alana knew what she was talking about. "And I've counted out six months on the calendar. He'll actually come home the first day of spring break." Kayla smiled in excitement.

"Cool. So you'll have a whole week to catch up. Oh, and when you first write to Leo you should tell him I said hi." Alana smiled, happy her friend was at least a little happy about the whole thing.

"Yep. And I plan on making him do anything I want. We're gonna go out for ice cream, go to a movie, patrol, stuff like that." Kayla grinned in anticipation.

"What about your other brothers? They'll probably want to hang out with Leo, too." Alana pointed out.

Kayla thought for a moment. "MAYBE I'll try to fit in a group activity." she smiled before the two friends started laughing. Then they headed down the hallway to Alana's locker.

Kayla sighed as she opened her locker and put her books on the ground, pulling her long shoulder bag out of the locker. She didn't have any homework to take home thanks to her study hall. She put her books into her locker. She caught movement out of the corner of her eye. She could tell he was looking at her, but she focused on putting her things into her locker. As she grabbed her board out of her locker she heard him speak.

"Hey, Kayla. Didn't see you at lunch. Off having a smoke?" Alex asked with a mean smirk. Alex was one of the guys who always bullied her, basically the leader, and because of alphabetical order their lockers were only a couple lockers away from each other.

Kayla ignored him.

"That's what I thought." he responded to her silence, "Did ya enjoy it? I thought your eyes looked a little dilated."

"I don't smoke." Kayla retorted, "And anyway we have different lunches." she pointed out as she pulled her bag onto her shoulder, grabbed her board, and slammed her locker shut. She turned and left and heard him yell after her.

"Yeah, that's right! You're nothing but a skater girl on meth!" Kayla saw several other people in the hallway turn and look at her. She sped walked through the hall feeling her vision get blurry. She didn't realize she bumped into Alana, who was heading toward Kayla's locker like she always did after she got her stuff. Kayla rushed into the bathroom and leaned against the wall, hanging her head. Her shoulders slouched and she sniffed as tears spilled over her eyes. She heard the bathroom door open and tried to compose herself.

She felt someone take her board out of her hand and slip her bag off her shoulder. She was pulled into a hug and she hugged back.

"Alex is just a jerk." she heard Alana's voice whisper, "Don't let him get to you. He's just trying to make himself feel good by tearing you down." Alana pulled back and tried to look into Kayla's face, but Kayla hung her head and wiped her face with her hands. "I know Leo probably gave you some awesome, amazing advice; something way smarter than I could tell you." Kayla couldn't help but smile at the ground. "So, I'm just gonna tell you to keep Leo's advice in the front of you mind, at all times. And the next time someone says crap to you just remember what Leo told you."

Kayla looked up at her friend and smiled. "Who are you and what have you done with my goofball of a friend Alana?"

Alana shrugged. "Eh, I have my moments." Kayla laughed gently as she wiped her face again. Alana picked up Kayla's bag and board off the ground and handed them to her. "Come on. You have to get to practice and if I'm not out there pretty soon my brother's gonna yell at me."