I think we were all getting a little road weary, bots and organics alike. It was one thing driving for hours, have a nice fight, then go back home. But this just seemed like a never ending drive, and tempers were starting to flare from the mundaneness of it. And the boredom level was also rising, and that's never a good thing around this bunch.

"God damn it Mikey!" Raph bellowed across the camp site at a rapidly fleeing Mikey and Ari, who were laughing. "When I get my hands on you two you won't be green anymore either!" Then Raph ran past me and I had to blink a second, not sure if I was seeing what I was seeing. Why was his shell a neon pink? And where in the hell did they have time to get neon pink paint? Cris was apparently just as exasperated with it. I could tell that by the way she was shaking her head over her crossed arms.

Thane thought it was hilariously funny himself, even let out a few good chuckles...until he noticed he had a shell that matched. "ARIIIIIIII!"

The last I saw of the two laughing culprits, they high fived each other before they disappeared into the woods with Raph and Thane closing in. A few moments later we heard a pair of loud splashes and Dennis grinned while Amy was openly laughing at the scene. "Someone found the creek."

I shook my head and walked away, I didn't even want to know. Casey did though, he was actually dumb enough to go over and look, and by the way the forest erupted with yelling again, and another splash, I pretty much figured out which pair of turtles got dunked as Mikey and Ari's laughter sounded out again. More than likely Casey ended up with a bath too.

The tent I shared with Leo is where I took refuge from the ensuing chaos and I eventually just laid there on top of my sleeping bag because there really wasn't anything else to do. And I sure wasn't going to go back out there anytime soon. Not until those three calmed down anyway.

I didn't stay alone long though. "Mom?" Lavi's voice came tentatively from the other side of the flap. "Can I come in?"

"Of course hun." I sat up as she made her way inside. "Whats up?"

She didn't say anything right away, but her face took on an embarrassed tone. "I was wanting to ask you something. I suppose Dad would be the better one to ask, since he is a turtle, but it's so...weird..."

I gave her a slight smile. "Don't you mean embarrassing?"

"Both." She smiled back.

That caused a shared laugh between both of us before she grew serious again. "Mom, how...how were you able to accept Dad for what he is?"

I looked at her a long while. "You know the answer to that Lavi, it's never been about what he is, but who."

"That's not what I meant..." She took a deep breath to get her embarrassment under control. Apparently me being the one she was talking too didn't free her from it after all. She scooted over to where she was sitting next to me, then quietly tried to put her thoughts into words. "I really like Kyle."

"We noticed that."

"But I'm also scared of him."

"Scared? Why?"

"Because he's human. Mom, I'm scared that because I wear modified clothes to cover up that he may think things are...normal under there."

"They are normal hun, for you. It's part of who you are."

"But it's not for him. And I don't know how he'll react to certain features being...off. Ty has it easy really compared to me. His stuff still works the same way, it's just housed different."

"Lavi, I am not going to sit here and talk about your brother's privates." I informed her flatley. That actually made us both blush a bit.

"Sorry." She mumbled.

I shook my head. "I wonder about you two sometimes... Seriously now. Lavi, I never shied away from your father because those differences didn't bother me. They never did, because I love him."

My daughter sighed a bit as she brought her knees to her chest and dropped her head on them. "I'm just not sure how much he'll take. First these, instincts Dad calls them, and now the more obvious differences."

"Lavi, do you think he's that shallow?"

"Well, no."

"Does he make you feel uncomfortable for being you?"

"No."

"Then what makes you think that what's under the clothes should make any difference to him? He knows you're different, he accepts it. Don't pull a me now and go ruining something because you think too much into it. When it does come time to go under the clothes, I'm sure you'll be surprised by how tolerant he actually is. And I'm sure a few soft, guiding words from you on what to look for would be appreciated. Just do me a favor turtle dove."

"What?"

"Don't tell your father you plan on getting intimate with Kyle. Not just yet anyway. I had a hard enough time beating him with a stick to keep him from chewing Kyle's leg off."

Lavi laughed as she reached over and gave me a hug. "Thanks Mom. This wasn't nearly as embarrassing as the talk I had with Dad."

"I know hun. But your Dad did have a point in doing what he did. I was totally unprepared for the first time he lost control with me, and I couldn't walk the rest of the day."

"Mo-om! Come on! Did I really need to hear that! You have no idea of the images I have in my head now!"

I couldn't help it, I laughed as I hugged her again. "Oh Lavi, I do love you. You come in here to obviously talk with me about you being scared of how Kyle will see you with your clothes off, but when I bring something up..."

"It's not the same and you know it!"

I laughed harder. "It will be fine Lavi." I kissed her forehead. "If he cares about you, you have nothing to worry about."

The tent flap opened just then and Leo came in, his eyeridge raised. "That was a very interesting conversation." He looked at me. "So, should I chew the left leg off, or his right one?"

"Leo! Do you have to do that shit?"

"How many times are you two going to ask me that before it sinks in to your heads that the answer will always be yes?"

Lavi and I both threw a pillow at him.

"I guess I deserved that." He said with a smile as he caught them on the way to the ground.

"Yes, you did." My eyebrow came up at him. "She is twenty. You can't keep treating her like a little baby."

"No, but I can try, because she'll always be my little baby."

In spite of herself, Lavi laughed as she got back up. She even stopped to give the nosy bastard a hug on the way out. "I love you Daddy."

"I know. I love you too." He added a kiss to the top of her head with his reply and she slipped out again.

He looked a long while at the tent flap, and I could tell his feet were itching to follow her. "Oh no you don't." I firmly told him, getting up and placing myself between him and the exit.

"What? I wasn't going to follow her."

"Damn right you're not." I crossed my arms.

That eyeridge came up again as he looked from the flap to me. "Oh? And how exactly do you intend to keep me from doing that?"

I gave him a sly smile as I reached out and grabbed his harness and pulled him down to my lips for a long kiss. "I have my ways." Then I kissed him again, my arms wrapping around his neck. He didn't follow her, he was too busy after that.

.

.

Ty was battling with a completely different set of nerves as he sat next to Cindy by one of the few campfires spread out around their camp. One hand was poking the fire with a stick and the other was firmly wrapped into hers. His mind however was wandering.

"Ty?" Came her voice as her head shifted from where it was leaning against his shoulder to look up at him.

"Hmm?" He replied absently, still pestering the fire.

"Are you trying to think a hole through your head? You've been quiet all evening."

He sighed as he tossed his stick into the fire. "Sorry. Just getting used to things still I guess." He smiled down at her, his eyes lost in her green ones. They were still just as pretty to him as when he first saw them. "Not used to having a girlfriend."

She raised a teasing brow at him. "When was that decided?"

"The moment the first time I did this." He turned to face her fully and placed a gentle kiss on her lips.

"Get a room you two!" Thane grumbled as he walked by.

Ty looked at his cousin with a grin. "What's the matter? Still to chicken shit to go talk to the blonde who caught your eye?"

Thane froze and turned to glare at him. "Her name is Jessica, and no I'm not a chicken shit. It's not time yet."

"Uh huh."

"I'm not!"

"Whatever you say Thane."

He got glared at a moment longer before Thane went grumbling on his way.

Cindy was laughing against his shoulder. "You are so mean to him."

Ty snorted. "He starts it half the time."

"And the other half?"

"Someone else does." Ty grinned impishly at her.

She laughed. "You are impossible."

"I try." He wrapped an arm around her and pulled her against his side. Her arms wrapped around his waist and they both just stared into the fire for awhile.

"You never did really answer my question." She said after a few moments. "What's on your mind."

"Just thinking of all the changes going on I guess." He rested his chin on top of her head as he wrapped his other arm around her. Cindy always felt so small in his arms, so vulnerable. He very well knew she was capable, and not exactly tiny since she was easily as tall as his mother. But to him she was something very fragile and breakable. He wondered if Father felt this way when he held Mother. "You exploded into my life like a little comet, and it's got me wondering about things."

"Like what?" Her smooth voice vibrated across his chest and into his heart.

"What things would be like when everything calms back down again. Where we would be."

"Ty, we've only been together a few days, and met only a few weeks ago. We're just getting started. Give it some time and things will fall into place if it's meant to be."

He held her a bit tighter. "I already know it's meant to be."

She looked up at him, with an amused half smile on her face. "And what makes you so sure of that?"

"It runs in the family, so there."

"Can't argue with that logic I suppose."

"Good, because I'm not ready for our first argument yet." He smiled at her.

Will came out of the communications tent then catching everyone's attention along with a few vehicles approaching. "Heads up! Got the replacements coming in for the guys we had to send back. Let's get them unloaded and settled in for the night."

Cindy sighed as she stood up and brushed her pants off. "I suppose it's time to go back to work."

Ty, not really wanting to sit there by himself got up and joined her and her comrades as the vehicles pulled to a stop and everyone began to unload. He didn't know these as well as the ones he had been traveling with, but he did know that they were from the base they had departed from. He also noticed one was giving them a hard stare as Ty helped Cindy carry some gear across the camp. "What's his problem?" Ty muttered under his breath.

Cindy rolled her eyes when she noticed who Ty was talking about. "One of the good things about the way you were raised is that you don't have to deal with exes. That is Jeff, and he was real unhappy with me when I called our fling off a few months ago. Think he still is honestly."

"One of those huh..."

"Oh yeah. He likes to keep trying to convince me that I made a mistake and to go back to him. Epps even had to step in and dress him down for it a couple of times."

Ty didn't say anything else on the matter, but he made his opinion very much known as he stood near Cindy. His facial expression was all that was needed to convey the message as he now stared back just as hard. She didn't catch it as she was storing things away, but Ty was making it very clear to Jeff to back off. If the man was smart, he would. If he wasn't Ty was going to rectify the situation himself.