Author's Notes: Here's the next chapter. I think I'm going to try and wrap this up soon. It's just I keep coming up with stuff to add in :P Ah well. Enjoy!

Disclaimer: Apart from the plot, I own Violet, Ciara and Akamai. TMNT and it's characters are not mine and I believe Nick own them now.

Chapter 26: Home Again

"Who?" Mikey demands as he runs to my side, grabbing my uninjured shoulder to stop me.

"I can't leave her" I shake my head, becoming a little woozy. "Mikey…" I sigh, taking a deep breath. "Remember what Shredhead put me through?"

He nods slowly, "How could I?"

"Well, my friend Ciara goes through it everyday of her life!" I shrug him off as best I can and try to continue past him.

"But…but…" he grasps at my hand again, "You need to get Don to look at your shoulder! It's in a bad state"

I don't mention to him I can feel a throbbing pain in both my shoulder and my head.

"Look, the sooner we get Ciara, the sooner we can leave"

"Fine" he huffs, following me closely as I stumble towards the cell I've been kept in for the majority of my stay.

I gesture at the locked door and he attacks it, forcing it down within seconds.

"I knew YOU were coming" Akamai's voice answers our entrance.

I step forward, "Release Ciara! She's coming with us, NOW!"

"Violet!" Mikey comes up next to me, supporting me carefully as I wobble.

"How sweet…lovers", Akamai sneers. "I always knew Bishop couldn't hold mutants…too bad, I can!" She pulls out a gun and takes aim.

I take another wobbly step forward. "Let Ciara go!"

Akamai cocks the gun towards me. "Fool! You're losing blood…you must be delusional…"

I shake my head, "I'd never leave friends!"

Mikey dives forward, disarming her rapidly and breaking the gun easily. He then attacks Akamai, hitting the pressure points on her neck before she can react, rendering her unconscious "It's over" he grins at me.

I rush over to Ciara who's still strapped to a table.

She's crying… "Violet…I…I…never knew such kindness…"

I undo the fastenings as quick as I can, until finally, she stands up carefully.

"You…you…your shoulder…" she pales as she sees the state I'm in.

I merely nod. "It's…" I yawn slightly, nearly falling over again, "…nothing"

Mikey rushes over, grabbing my hand as well as Ciara's, "Come on!" he yells as he pulls us forward so we're all running.

"Violet…" Ciara sounds kind of scared. "Who is this?"

I smirk, my head swimming by this point, making me overly euphoric. "My knight in shining armor…Michelangelo"

"The father?"

I nod happily in response. Mikey blushes slightly, hiding the fact by continuing on looking forward.

"I…like…" I mutter as everything around me begins to spin, the whole world becoming one big blur.

"Violet, please…" Ciara raises her voice slightly, still nervous, "…don't go!"

I smile awkwardly at her, "Go?"

My eyes feel heavy as we come to the exit.

Mikey notices me dropping behind, so stops. "Come here Babe" he soothes as he picks me up onto his back. "Quick" he gestures forward to Ciara, "Head for the van"

She nods and starts running ahead of us.

"DONNY!" Mikey yells, stirring me back into reality a little bit more. I watch with interest as Don jumps out of the van, only to come face-to-face with Ciara. He blushes and turns away slightly; she backs off a little, scared of all the strangers. Mikey rushes them though. "Intros later! Violet…"

Don snaps out of his daze and rushes to help me down from Mikey's back and into the back of the van. Ciara stays fairly close to me all through this.

I look over groggily at her, "This…is Donny" I half point at him as he works on my shoulder. "And she's Ciara" I add as I look at Don.

"Nice to meet you" he mutters quickly, avoiding eye contact.

"Violet…" Mikey grips my hand tightly. "You're safe, you…"

I fall asleep before I can hear the rest.

I open my eyes as someone tries to move me.

"Wha? Where am I?" I groan, sitting up a little straighter and rubbing my eyes slowly.

"Home" Leo comes from the front of the Battle shell with Raph closely following.

I find Ciara hiding behind me as I stand, everyone else's presence intimidating her. "Guys…this is Ciara" I edge sideways slightly, enough for them to be able to see her. "Ciara, this is Leo, Don, Raph and Mikey" I point down the line of brothers as I speak.

"Hello" she squeaks quietly, still terrified. She holds onto my shell just as tightly as before.

I explain to the others her story, but still find I'm still the only one willing to be that close to her by the end.

"Perhaps some rest would be good for you" Don comments timidly, trying to change the subject.

I stifle a yawn, "I guess…"

Ciara still clutches to my shell, "I don't wanna be on my own" she whimpers, refusing to let me go.

"Well…there's a guest room…" Don points in the vague direction of it, "But it only has one bed"

I shake my head, "Don't worry, we'll sort it out" I turn to Mikey, "Catch you later?"

"Definitely!" He kisses me before letting Ciara and I leave for the room.

Ciara is still very timid, but tries to talk to me. "So…what's it like?"

"What?" I give her a confused look, honestly unsure what she's talking about.

"True love"

I spot a slight glimmer of hope in her eyes. "Ciara…" I sigh, "…you'll find it eventually, just don't worry about it"

She stands nervously in the doorway as we reach the room. I offer her the bed, and after a lot (And I mean A LOT) of persuasion, she sits on it, curling up into a ball quickly.

"Ciara…just relax" I sigh as I take up a cross-legged position on the chair next to the bed.

Pretty soon, Ciara is soundly asleep, so I slip out and go back to see my brothers only to find them doing the usual thing: Arguing.

"You ain't the boss of me fearless, I'm just sayin' maybe Bishops pet wasn't the best thing to bring home!" Raph spits viciously. I fold my arms angrily as he slowly turns to face me. "Oh…" he quickly falls silent.

"Maybe we should just-" Don tries to stop them unsuccessfully.

"Raph, you never listen to me! When are you going to get it into your head that we must stick to the plan!"

"Yeah trust fearless to only think about his plans!"

I cringe slightly, feeling my breathing begin to speed up. "Um…guys…" I mutter, unfolding my arms as I try to control myself.

"…Then why don't you just-"

I close my eyes, covering my face as I try to contain the rush of emotions. I catch a glimpse of Don shaking his head as if trying to tell me not to do it.

"Well fearless-"

"STOP IT!" I yell as I begin to cry uncontrollably, "It's just too stressful!" I bury my face further into my hands, feeling Mikey lead me into his gentle grasp, shushing me in his warm embrace. "It's just too much" I murmur.

"Vi…I'm sorry…it's just" Raph is trying, but it's a little late.

"Also" I come out of Mikey's arms, "Don't blame Leo…I brought Ciara here" I sniff, "If anything goes wrong, blame me"

I then mutter thank you to Mikey and head back to the guestroom, slipping quietly into the chair again and dozing off into a steady sleep. I swore I heard someone check in on us soon after, but they were gone before I could even check.