I let out a moan. My foot where the cut was throbbed and my whole body burned. I tried to open my eyes, but they burned badly. I felt fuzzy too…almost as if I were still asleep.
"Raph?" The voice was distorted, but it sounded like Cally. Where was I?
"Cally?" I mumbled, "What are you doing here? I thought you hated me."
A good number of seconds pulsed by before I heard her respond. "What do you mean?" Her askew voice was echoing in my head. Why couldn't I hear her voice right?
"I'm the reason your parents died, if I had been there…" my voice faded off into misery.
"What if it wasn't your fault? What if they died if you had been there?"
"At least I would have tried," I felt my throat strain with frustration. "And you wouldn't be with Shredder right now…" I gritted my teeth as pain flew up my leg.
"What's wrong?" Cally inquired sounding a bit like Donnie.
"N-nothing, it's nothing, really," I muttered, "Just a little cut s'all."
"Where?"
"On the back of my foot." I flinched as she picked up my foot to look at it.
"It's inflamed, which means infection," Cally muttered, her voice still not coming out right. "How'd you cut it?"
"A rusty spring that stuck out from under the couch. My bro, Don, he's been meaning ta fix it," I gritted my teeth at prodding around the cut.
Cally just grunted, obviously dissatisfied. I groaned as the stinging intensified. "Disinfectant," Was all she had to say to my pain. I felt the rough texture of gauze wrapping around my foot.
"I went and poked around your apartment," I mumbled, still bearing the sting.
"What did you find?" She sounded oddly familiar, unlike herself as well.
"The Purple Dragons, they trashed the place," I felt a pang of remorse, perhaps she didn't want to talk about home.
"Hm," her voice was farther off, and I heard running water. "Why did you go there? It could have been dangerous," she came back, and laid something wet on my forehead, a washcloth for my fever.
"I had to know if you were still alive," I grumbled, I didn't want to sound like a suck-up, so I added, "I felt guilty."
"Does it hurt to talk?"
I knew she meant that if it hurt she would tell me to stop talking. But then it would mean she would go away, and I wanted to talk to her. "No," it only hurt a little, so it wasn't a true lie. The burning was somewhat better, thanks to the cloth.
"Why didn't you come to get me from Shredder?" Cally sounded a little taken back, making guilt cause the burning to return and twist my stomach.
"I tried…but Karai, she told me you hated me…" I choked.
"What told you that you could trust her?"
"It would have made sense that you would hate me after what happened," Guilt really started taking toll on my stomach. She was right. Why had I believed Karai? The fever continued to burn my face, especially my eyes. "Did Karai tell you I came?" I mumbled.
"You've been mumbling this whole time; it does hurt you to talk."
I shook my head, and then regretted it as it fuzzed my head over with pain. "It really doesn't," I could only whisper, it was a lie that time. It really hurt.
"Hmph," she sounded doubtful. "Do you know why Shredder wants h-me?"
"No," I murmured, it was I wanted to know more than anything.
"You need to sleep," She said it more as instruction than a suggestion.
"No, I don't," I frowned. I wanted to talk to Cally more. Tell her I was sorry.
"Yes, you do," Her voice was sounding less and less like her. Why? "If you don't you'll never be able to come get me."
I couldn't deny that. "Cally?" I had one last question. "Why don't you hate me?"
I could have sworn five minutes passed by before her distorted echoing reply sounded, "Because I love you. Now, sleep."
"Fine, whatever," I muttered, my face burning even more. I didn't like her, but I didn't know that she loved me.
Slowly, left to my thoughts, I slipped into temporal, relaxing darkness. I only had one thing on my mind. I needed to rescue Cally.
I looked back at Raph from the table. He was already asleep. Who would have thought that he would have been the first of us? Now wonder he had been acting so strangely. I wondered how long they had been together. I wondered when and how they met.
But…what really worried me was the fact that he thought I was this girl. Cally, was her name. I didn't even have to disguise my voice. Maybe….that cut was more infected than I thought.
I couldn't tell the others about this. I felt bad for Raph. Maybe, I could do something on my own. Cally did need to be rescued…possibly, perhaps, without a fight, or without anyone knowing I went except Cally herself.
Tomorrow night. Tomorrow night would be perfect. Master Splinter was usually watching his nine o' clock soap opera, Mikey would be putting Clunk to bed, and Leo would be practicing in the dojo. Raph was no bother. He needed to stay down to rest with that fever anyway.
Why didn't he put disinfectant on the cut? I frowned. Raph had been doing a lot better since his episode the other night. He even got up to eat dinner with us. But now that cut. Had I not warned him about the rust on the spring? I fingered at the condensation on my glass of tea, of course with caffeine, I needed it.
Another thought hit me. If I did get Cally where would I take her? Leo or Mikey might find out if I took her to April's if they went over. Besides, April didn't have much room. She might have another renter in her basement. My thoughts momentarily flicked to Kirby, one of her former renters I met. We had quite an adventure, and he was left, stuck in the world he drew all on his own. But I needed to focus on this problem. Could I hide Cally in my room? It would be hard, and rather odd, but possible. It would be better to leave her with April. Then, I almost slapped myself in the forehead. April was out of town, visiting family. So I would have to hide her in my room. It wouldn't be worth the dispute to let anyone else know Raph's sneaky little secret.
I silently prayed it would work. Slipping over to my desk across the large room, I grabbed the duffle bag I had made habit of keeping with me. I slipped my glass cutter and other gadgets I thought would help inside.
"Don?" I flinched. It was Leo.
He glanced at my desk, then my duffle bag. "What are you doing?" He inquired, raising an eyebrow ridge.
"Uhm, cleaning," I answered, not meeting his eyes.
"Why aren't you in bed, sleeping?"
"I couldn't." It was true.
"Mm."
"Besides, Raph is sick."
"Since when?" He snapped.
I flinched momentarily before his face softened, he looked regretful so I went on not saying anything. "Tonight, obviously, he cut his foot on the rusty old spring I've not got around to fixing, and didn't put any disinfectant on it," I shrugged helplessly and sighed.
"Hmph," He sounded displeased.
"What's wrong with you?" It was common for Leo to be a slight grouch, never been quite the extremely tolerable person or a morning person, but he was grouchier than usual.
"Something's up with Raph, I don't know what, yet, but something's up with him." You can say that again, I thought bitterly, my thoughts flickering to Cally. "You know anything?" Leo asked me.
I awoke from my thoughts. "Oh, uh, no," I said quickly. I regretted instantly. I never lied to Leo…ever.
"Tell me if you do find out anything, okay?"
"O-okay," it was another lie. I hoped this Cally character was worth it.
Leo stalked off, glanced at Raph, and went back to his room.
I sighed relieved, yet scared to death of the next night.
