Chapter 31: A Dose of Difficulties

I open my eyes; it's dark here. I shift slightly and spot the light from the outer room; I'm in my nest again. I don't remember coming back in here, but I sigh in relief.

I slowly crawl out, finding Mikey still in bed, snoring softly. I smirk and sit next to him, stroking his head gently.

He shifts position slightly and opens his eyes. "Violet?" he asks sleepily.

"Oops…I'm sorry I woke you" I sigh, leaning down and laying a kiss on his forehead.

"It's okay hun" he yawns before sitting up. "I'm probably late for training anyway" he winks as he ties on his bandana.

I glance at the clock…ten thirty. "Oh…today I have Keiko" I smirk, "Finally…some physical training!"

"Please be careful" Mikey comes, wrapping his arms round my stomach, rubbing my plastron tenderly. "Hima needs a lot of protection"

He turns me round in his arms and makes eye contact. "You know…you're cute when you're protective" I blush.

He rolls his eyes, coming in closer and kissing me quickly yet softly. He then rushes off, moaning about Splinter's punishment for his tardiness.

I pull on my own pink mask and head down to the study, finding Keiko waiting calmly.

We proceed to do some very slow training…almost like yoga. After about an hour, Keiko asks me to meditate with her, to help me relax more.

After our session, I go out of the study and crash into Ciara.

"What are you doing?" I ask her slowly.

"Sorry…I was just…seeing what was happening" she mutters. "All of you went off"

"We were just training" I sigh. "Come on…I wanted to talk to you" I smirk.

We go up to my room where I sit in my nest to relax, while Ciara sits in the entrance.

"So spill…what happened between you and Don?" I ask eagerly.

She blushes, smiling slightly. "Well…he took me into his lab after you'd finished with the nest building. He began saying he felt almost guilty for the way he'd been acting around me, and then he confessed. I said I wasn't sure about relationships, but he said he'd take it my pace, and so we began" she giggles.

"Nice" I smirk. "I remember when Mikey asked me, we were fighting for our lives" I laugh more, "But that's why I love him" I sigh.

I begin to rub my plastron, feeling how swollen I now am. I still can't believe how close I am to having the egg…and I know Mikey can't either!

"Begin" Splinter commands.

I empty my mind and focus on my avatar again, knowing I won't get it…again. He seems determined to prove I can tap into my avatar, but I did it in my sleep…once! It's not like I've done it all the time.

"You're not trying to your full potential" he sighs. "Okay, that's enough for today. If you're not going to try, I won't bother teaching you"

I frown, "But I am trying sensei! What am I not doing right?"

"You are giving up before you've even begun, which ultimately leads to your failure. You must forget your own limitations, and allow your spirit to soar" he closes his eyes, beginning his own meditation.

I sigh myself, bowing as I leave the room. "How the heck does he do that?" I ask myself.

"BABE!" someone grabs me from behind.

"Hey Mikey"

"Do you know what tomorrow is?" he teases me, running his hands down my sides gently.

I mock frown, "Tuesday?"

"NO!" he moans. "It's…"

I cut him off. "…our anniversary" I stick my tongue out at him, "DUH!"

He grins and pulls me into a kiss. "Exactly" he then thinks over something to himself. "Speaking of which…" he mutters, "I've got to go sort out something" he winks cheekily at me.

"Fine" I sigh, "Just be careful…please!" I look at him with concerned eyes, "I've been getting bad vibes for a while now"

"Hey! You know me! I'll be fine" He kisses me again before running to the exit.

I wander off to the kitchen for some food, finding some cereal in the cupboard. I begin nibbling on it dry while thinking about everything again. After a while, I decide to go upstairs, but find myself nearly bumping into Raph.

"Yo Vi, what's up?" he nods to me.

"Nothing much" I lick my lips slowly.

He raises an eyebrow, "Where is everyone? I've only seen you and fearless today"

"Mikey went out" I sigh, "But I don't know about Don and Ciara"

He shrugs, "How are you feeling?" he kind of gestures downwards.

I smirk, "Well, I know I look a bit of a state" he grins in response. "I feel okay…a bit bloated I guess"

He nods slowly, unsure what to say, but eventually he shrugs again. "Well…I'll see ya" he mumbles, going round me carefully and heads the direction I came from.

I run up the stairs, heading for my nest. I curl up in there, hugging my knees once more. "Please be safe" I whisper to myself.

I pull out my small wrapped present for Mikey, smiling briefly at it.

"Violet?"

I jump suddenly, flinging the present back where I found it.

Leo is stood in my doorway and looks kind of worried about something.

"Yes?" I ask slowly.

"Violet…I just got a call from Don" he grits his teeth.

"What is it?" I ask, feeling his worry more clearly now that I'm focused on him. He's full of fear too.

He looks down, "He lost Ciara"

I quickly come out of my nest, standing in front of him and grabbing his shoulders roughly. "What do you mean?" I demand, forcing him to look at me.

He sighs, "She was captured by the foot"

I freeze. "The…foot…"

"Violet?" he seems more worried now.

I pull out my shellcell rapidly, dialing Mikey's number as quick as I can. Each ring brings more fear into my body.

"Yes babe?" Mikey gasps, I can hear he's running.

"Mikey? Are you okay?" I demand quickly.

He curses about something before responding. "Well, now isn't exactly the best time…"

"Wait!" I inhale quickly, trying to hold back tears. "Mikey…is the foot after you?"

"How'd you-"

"Listen to me…Ciara was caught by the foot, and I think Khan is trying to capture you too…" I feel a droplet finally escape, "It's something to do with me…it's my fault"

"Don't worry Babe…I'll-" he cuts off suddenly, his phone hitting the ground.

I gasp, "Mikey? MIKEY?"

There's finally a chuckle, "Your boyfriend may have thwarted our plans by taking the crystal, but we have all the bargaining chips we need now. Return the phoenix crystal, or I'll slay both of them tonight. You have until midnight"

The phone is then hung up, leaving me speechless. Leo keeps asking me what's being said, but I'm totally frozen to the spot. I drop the phone to the floor, making Leo worried.

"Violet? What's wrong?" he demands.

"Mikey…" I mutter. "They got him too" I shudder as I begin to cry. "It is my fault" I bury my face in my hands.

Leo pulls me into his arms, trying to calm me down. "Violet, we've got to stay level headed. None of us knew this was going to happen"

"I did" I whisper, "I saw it coming…I dreamt it…it's my fault"

"Stop saying that!" I sense the frown, "You'd never be the cause of anything bad" he promises. "What do we need to do Violet?"

"Khan…wants a crystal" I shake my head quickly. "I think I know where it is, Mikey stole it from them apparently, and there's only one place I think he'd put it"

"Okay, let's get the crystal and re-group, then we can go save them both"

I nod slowly, trying to keep it together. But even now, I fear for both Mikey and Ciara…maybe I'll be able to take their place, like I demanded in that dream…