It had taken Leonardo far longer at the Utrom's ship that he had anticipated. First he had ended up having to give his report to several different individuals and then he had run into Karai and the two of them had a discussion about security from the day before. With everything that had happened with Lea right after the explosion Leo had lost Karai in the crowd and this had been his first chance to speak to her.
She hadn't been pleased with his assessment of her men and he frankly hadn't cared. If he and his brothers could do a better job when there was only four of them compared to the majority of Foot members Karai had, there was something wrong with that picture. Stepping back out in the fresh air, Leo took a deep breath.
He felt poorly because he had promised Lea he would stop by that evening. Now it was just past midnight, and her shop had closed a few hours before. She was more then likely sleeping. He had wanted to have a conversation with her about their relationship, because he would prefer to just know where he stood versus continuously guessing. Now he supposed that would have to wait until the next morning.
Leo had been stationary most of the day and it felt really good when he broke into a steady jog. Even knowing she was asleep Leo felt his feet start to carry him towards Lea's apartment. He would sleep better that night having looked in on her shop one last time before retreating to the lair. The evening air was brisk, he felt even more alert because of it.
The way to Lea's shop was second nature to him now. He landed perched on one of the apartment buildings across the street, the area seemed silent. Distant vehicle noise and a few barking dogs were all he heard. The whole building in front of him was dark and he figured he had assumed right and Lea was sleeping. She had seemed more tired then usual that morning so he was glad she was getting some rest.
Feeling fairly secure Leonardo took a few steps ready to leap onto the roof top of the next building over when something caught his attention out of the corner of his eye. He froze, below him; angled down the alleyway Leo could just see the fact that the backdoor to Lea's store was wide open. His first though was that Lea might have left it that way. He had scolded her on more then one occasion about the fact she propped it ajar so much, and he felt like it was just asking for trouble.
Knowing he couldn't simply leave with something so completely unsafe in view below him, he leapt down to the neighboring building's fire escape and climbed down to ground level. Listening, watching, Leonardo crossed the street and as silent as a shadow slipped into the alleyway and down towards the open door. Getting closer he heard voices, both male; coming from inside the shop. Leonardo felt his blood run cold for a moment as fear seized him.
Melting into the darkness around him he was at the door in seconds. Looking at the structure of it Leo could plainly see it had been pried open from the outside. A warning growl left his throat. If someone had hurt Lea, they would be incredibly sorry. Slipping inside, Leo's whole body was tense, ready to spring into action at any moment. Knowing he was visiting the Utrom's most of the day he hadn't bothered to bring his katana with him when he left the lair that morning; but he didn't feel hindered. He would defend what was important to him with his bare hands if he needed to.
He didn't even leave a whisper of noise as he traveled through the shop, in the general direction he had heard the voices in earlier. Pausing in the doorway between the kitchen and the dining room he could see two men in alien masks both working on something by one of the tables. There attire was obvious to him. It was one of the hate groups that worked against the Utroms, he had brought this danger here. Pushing the fury rising inside him down to a manageable level, Leonardo stepped fully into the room.
"Both of you will stop what you are doing and leave, before I kill you." The authority in Leonardo's voice left no room for question. Currently he was less concerned about what they were doing and more focused on getting them away from what was precious to him. Once the woman upstairs was safe he could reason through the rest of the puzzle currently being laid out in front of him.
Both men froze, looking up. "Fuck you!" The larger of the two yelled at him. It appeared quickly to Leo that either he wasn't as intimidating as he had hoped or these two were too stupid to realize the danger they were currently in. The Turtle's eyes narrowed as he felt a louder, deeper warning growl leave his throat.
"I won't give you another chance." While watching for the slightest hint of movement from the two idiots across from him Leo was also studying the area around him looking for any possible item he could use as a weapon if need be.
"Yeah well I told you to fuck off!" The same loud mouth bellowed his words out at him, but Leo froze seeing along with the cursing this time the asshole had also pulled out a hand gun and it was now pointed directly at his chest. Silently hoping the ingrate was as unskilled at combat as he looked, Leo dove towards his right.
The guy barely has time to register Leonardo had moved at all before a large plate Leo had thrown at him crashed into his hand knocking the gun away from him and onto the floor. Both men cursed now and even though they were closer Leonardo reached the weapon first. Guns had never had much appeal to Leonardo on top of the fact they had not been designed to be used by his much larger three fingered hands. He threw the weapon hard back into the darkness of the shop hoping that was the only one the two idiots in front of him had.
"Let's get out of here!" The smaller of the two goons took off running for the front door, stopping to pick up a chair and smash his way out. The larger man glared at Leonardo openly for a few seconds seething in his obvious hatred.
"You stupid fucking alien freaks! Think you can come here and take whatever you want from us. Well that's going to change real fast. So you and your bitch better learn your fucking lesson." The goon now ran after his cohort swiftly kicking out some glass before exiting. Leonardo paced to the open doorway watching the two running down the street, until he was certain they were not coming back and didn't seem to be getting re-enforcements.
A cold lump sat in his stomach. What if those two idiots had hurt Lea, how could he ever forgive himself for it? Turning swiftly Leonardo now ran back across the room, hitting the stairs at the same quick pace and once reaching Lea's door was mildly relieved to find it closed. Testing it, it was still locked from the inside. The feeling of dread he was carrying melted away a little. Even so, he could not leave without actually seeing Lea and knowing she was alright. He knocked on the door solidly.
He heard shuffling and suddenly the door was thrown open. Lea looked disheveled and sleepy. A bathrobe tied lightly around her form. She looked up at the Turtle confused. "Leo how did you get in here?" He didn't answer right away, this time he was the one who was rushing to her because he was worried. Grabbing Lea into an embrace, Leo just stood for a moment, happy she was safe.
"Leonardo?" She didn't try to pull away but Lea was obviously baffled about what was going on. Leonardo was about to start to recount the entire tale to her when a thought struck him. He had been so concerned for Lea's safety he hadn't completely registered what the smaller of the two goons had been working at on the table while the larger one had faced off with him. Turning his face back towards the ground floor for a moment, his mind now clear to actually categorize the events, panic seized him.
"Lea we need to get inside now." He scooped the smaller woman up in his arms, running and leaping over her couch landing on his shell cushioning their landing then turning Lea onto the floor covering her form with his. He just made it before an almost perfect copy of the day before literally exploded behind him. The guys downstairs had been setting another bomb, and Leonardo felt like a fool because he had allowed himself to get so preoccupied he almost hadn't realized in time.
Lea screamed below him and he couldn't blame her. She certainly wasn't used to getting woken in the middle of the night to chaos. Still this wasn't over and it was no longer safe for either of them in the building. Pulling Lea up with him Leonardo quickly thought threw his options. He could already see the blaze of the fire below, so a ground floor escape was out of the question which only left going above.
"Dean?" Lea was pulling away from him and it took Leonardo a moment to realize that she was looking for her dog.
"Lea we need to go!" His tone was urgent, he had no idea what kind of explosive the guys had used, how much structure damage was below them or how fast the fire was spreading.
"I can't leave him Leo, Dean needs me! The sound would have scared him." He allowed her to pull away from him hoping maybe she would quickly find the dog and then they could leave. She ran across the room skidding to a halt and dashing into her bed room. Leonardo followed viewing her progress as she fell to the floor looking under her bed, waiting a moment watching Lea pushing aside a few items seeing if she saw her dog. Leo shifted, not certain how much time he felt comfortable giving her. Suddenly Lea cried out.
"He's under here Leo, but I can't get him." Lea had flatted herself to the floor and was attempting to elongate her grasp.
"We don't have time for this." Leonardo reached down and lifted the smaller woman, Lea looking at him in surprise. He placed her next to him on her feet and grabbing the side of the box spring, hefted its weight quickly and tossed both it and the mattress over to the side of the bed. Leaning down he could see Dean curled into a tiny ball up towards the top of the wooden frame the bed had been on. Usually the dog was not overly fond of the Turtle but tonight Dean ran to him; tail tucked between his legs, ears drooping looking to be rescued himself.
Leonardo scooped the tiny animal up and turning looked at Lea again. "I want you to focus on one thing; you need to keep him safe alright?" Lea nodded soundlessly as Leo placed Dean in her arms. "I'll make certain you're safe." Without further instruction Leonardo lifted Lea again, cradling her tightly against him. "Try to not breathe in too much smoke."
Leonardo ran back out in the living room, and towards the front door of Lea's apartment. He could already see the flames of the fire licking at the bottom of the stairs; farther up the hallway from her place was the door to the roof. Leo barely looked down as he instead turned left and spinning around kicked against the roof top door hard. He heard the wood splinter and the door flew open.
He still didn't pause to think, he just kept moving, running up another flight of stairs and threw his shoulder into the door to the roof. He burst outside into fresher air, still they were not safe. Running across the expanse Leonardo leapt. Thankfully the buildings were close enough together that he easily cleared the roof of the building next to Lea's. Dashing towards the opposite side and the fire escape, he had to place Lea down in order to lower it. He helped her and Dean climb down, on solid ground now he finally allowed himself a few deep breaths.
"Are you alright?" He was surprised by Lea's question. That at a moment like this she could think of him. Lifting his eyes he met hers, she looked so small and helpless in her bathrobe with no shoes on, standing in pretty much the middle of garbage. Guilt wracked his frame and without a word he pulled Lea tightly to him in an embrace. Siren's sounded, getting closer with each passing second. The night, the sounds, the smell of the burning building, it all awoke a half remembered memory. A night much like this one, his body beaten to near death and the first important woman in his life, April's world getting destroyed because of him; Could he not be with someone in any capacity without it ruining everything?
"Leonardo?" He pulled back a little realizing just how tightly he was gripping Lea and was afraid he might have hurt her.
"I'm sorry. Yeah I'm alright, I just… it was one of those hate groups that did this; because of me. I'm sorry I brought all this down on you." He tired to look away from her, not wishing to see her expression but one of her hands gripped his cheek and drew him back to her face.
"None of this is your fault Leo. Ignorance, stupidity, these things caused all of this to happen. Perhaps even some of my own complacency. Some guys, I am assuming in the same group threw a rock through my window this morning. They might be just as pissed at me for calling the Police as for anything else." Lea sighed. "The important thing right now is all three of us are alright. I don't know what I would do if I lost Dean…" Smiling fondly she kissed the small dogs shoulder as he just burrowed farther into the crook of her arm. "Or you Leonardo." Her dark eyes glanced back up at him; he swallowed hard as she pressed her lips to his beak.
Stopping and leaning against him for a moment the two stood and just tried to gather their wits. The sirens were obviously in front of her building now and Lea took a deep breath. "I should get out there I don't want them to think I'm dead." He watched her walk, picking her way through the alley trying not to step on glass or anything else dangerous. Her words were so brave, but he could see the way her shoulder's sagged. She might not be showing it at this moment but this was going to hit her really hard later.
"Here." Stepping up behind her he lifted her again. "At least let me get you out into the street where you can walk slightly more easily." Lea nodded, her mouth set in a line. Leo could tell needing help like this didn't set well with her. Much like himself she was used to taking care of whatever needed to be done. Still the fact she allowed him to assist her like this really spoke volumes to him. Leo stepped out of the alley and gently placed the woman in his arms back on the ground. It was time for them both to really face what they had just been through.
Lea had talked to police and fireman and by now her head was just spinning. Finally having a spare moment to herself she found she was just standing off quietly to the side, Dean still curled up in her arms, just looking at the burned out remains of what used to be her home. She felt heaviness in her heart that she had been fighting all night. Keeping at the edges of her being, trying to focus on all the important tasks that needed to be done first; still so much of her life had happened here.
Roughly ten years ago she had come to the city. Working in a tea shop had been neither her reason for coming, nor her dream, yet it was where she had ended up out of necessity.
The owners at the time had been a very kind, elderly Asian couple. Lea found herself taking care of them almost as much as the shop, as they had never had children. A couple of years went by and they had sat Lea down. The couple wanted to move back to Japan and they were willing to sell Lea their shop at an extremely reasonable price.
Lea had worked out everything with the bank and the shop and apartment above had become hers. She had extra money and used it to convert the shop from a traditional Asian atmosphere to a fusion of Asian and European. Her gambled worked and Lea found herself more profitable then she would have imaged.
It had become her life and her staff her family and now all of it was gone. Sure she had insurance and could rebuild, but right at this moment it just all seemed so over whelming. She wasn't even certain where she was going to sleep for the rest of the night. Leonardo had been nothing but heroic and supportive, but he had also allowed her to handle her business on her own which she had appreciated. Still at this moment it was almost like he could sense her distress. His arm wrapped around her waist as he kissed the side of her head.
"How are you holding up?" His voice, his presence; like a drug calming her rattled nerves. Lea sighed deeply before shaking her head.
"It's just struck me what actually happened." Her face rose looking forlornly up at the burnt shell of her home again.
"Your adrenaline high is coming down; everything is going to start hitting you hard now." She looked at the Turtle listening to his sage advice, his eyes knowing.
"I just wish I knew…" Lea froze, her eyes drawn to the crowd that had gathered outside the police line, curious bystanders all except one face Lea recognized. "Son of a bitch!" Lea's form went ridge as she saw the man that had been spying on her at the Utrom rally the day before. It clicked to her now how this hate group must have found her.
"What is it?" Leo's calm tone shook her from her over spilling rage, her mouth drawn into a thin line as she tired to decide what to do.
"A guy, he was watching us kiss yesterday at Rockefeller Center. He must have followed me here and he must be checking on his handy work now." She attempted to hand Dean over to Leo, "I wonder how easy it will be for him to go tell all his friend's how they did if I break his jaw?"
Leonardo pulled Lea tightly against him, surprised she looked up at his face. "Do you trust me?" His tone was hard, she could see the news she had just shared hadn't pleased him either.
"Yes?" Lea did, but she wasn't certain what the Turtle was getting at.
"I think you have figured out enough about the types of actives myself and my brothers get involved in. I'll take care of this. Out of the public eye, where you won't get in trouble for going after the idiot; but trust I will make him and his entire organization pay. Just tell me who he is?" Leo kept her drawn to him and Lea realized he was using the pretense of them embracing as an easy means for him to survey the area around them why they communicated.
"Ten o'clock, red trucker hat with a black and white hoodie. It has some band name on it." The way Leo had pulled her from her building, the stories she had heard both him and Donatello tell her. As much as beating the crap out of the guy would feel good, she knew she was making the more calculating choice by allowing Leonardo to do it his way.
"I see him. Stay here for a few moments, I'm going to go recon a little and see what he does." Leo kissed the side of her head again and melted away in the span of a breath. Lea looked around herself surprised. He was obviously much more talented then she had even hazarded to guess. Dean made a sleepy noise and she shushed him.
"Lea!" She turned at the frantic sound of her name to see Mairead pushing through the crowd stopping to yell at a cop that tried to detain her. Lea crossed to her friend and pulled her away from the argument before she got arrested. The police officer waved them both off telling them to stay away from the building for now.
"I'm so glad you're alright." Mairead hugged her friend and Lea had to admit she was very grateful to see the other woman.
"It's okay Mairead, Leonardo saved me. It was actually pretty amazing." Lea tried to keep her tone strong and assured so as not to rattle her friend who already looked shaken. Mairead stepped back assessing Lea's appearance her eyes narrowing slightly as Lea mentioned the Turtles name.
"Do the police have any clue what happened?" The shorter woman made no comment about Lea's remark and instead went right back to making her own inquires.
"Leo saw the guys that planted the bomb; he chased them out of the shop before coming to help me. We're certain it's the same guys from this morning." Lea could hear the aggravation in her tone and tried not to let it run away with her again like earlier.
"That's what I was afraid of." Lea looked at Mairead quizzically at her remark. Mairead just smiled, obviously putting on a brave face for her friend. "Well I came down here because I figured you would need a place to stay and you know my apartment's door is always open for you." Lea watched as Mairead side glanced at the wreckage of their work place as she made her offer.
"Thank you, but I'm taking Lea home with me." As quickly as he had disappeared Leonardo was suddenly next to the two conversing women, a cool neutral expression on his face. Lea blinked at the Turtle surprised as the two of them hadn't discussed anything about this. Mairead on the other hand just frowned.
"I think you have done enough tonight and it would be a better choice for Lea to stay with me." Her tone was chilly, her jaw set.
"I don't know enough about this organization currently for me to be able to guarantee either of your safety if they continue to stalk Lea around. The more secure place for her right now is with myself and my family. I would die before I would allow anyone to touch her." A hint of conviction crept into Leonardo's tone betrayed his stoic exterior. Lea bit her lip, admitting to herself that as horrible as everything had been tonight, what Leonardo just said had been one of the most beautiful declarations a man had even made for her.
"No." Mairead's tone was growing louder and Lea reached for her arm to stop her but Mairead just squeezed her hand asking for a moment. "Can't you see this is all your fault. If it weren't for you none of this would have happened in the first place and now you want to spirit her away to god knows where. I won't let you!" Mairead's words were ringing clear through the night air. Leonardo's forehead bunched and Lea could easily see the guilt that flashed through his eyes. She remembered his words from earlier blaming himself for all of this; she was about to say something to make him realize how wrong that assumption was when suddenly the crowd behind them burst into life.
It was like Mairead's words set off a chain reaction. People began yelling about aliens and how they were destroying everything. How they had no right to be here to affect the lives of the humans who belonged on this world. Rational arguments started to degrade down to name calling and foul language; it was when a woman threw a can at Leonardo that something just snapped inside of Lea.
"All of you shut up!" Dean whimpered awake as Lea thrust him into Leonardo's hands. "It was my shop, mine! That buried down here tonight. Ten years of my life, my hard work gone. What right do any of you have to put words into my mouth? To tell me who is to blame? You want to know whose to blame, do you?" Lea was livid, pacing now glaring at the people across from her. Her reaction had caused the crowd to grow quiet, uncertain what she was getting at and why she was so angry at them.
Leonardo didn't say a word just stood, awkwardly holding the tiny dog that had been entrusted to him. He watched Lea, he had seen her like this before the first time they had met, and it seemed so long ago now. He glanced up at movement but realized it was just a cameraman for a local news station that had been reporting about the fire. He had seen them arrive when he had been following the punk before. Now they were focused on the scene Lea was creating.
"We all are!" Lea's tone came out as a growl and a twitter of protest went through the crowd at her words, she just stared down as many people as she could, pulling herself up to her full height. "Ignorance burned down my shop! Some asshole that thought he could tell me how I could live my life. Last time I checked we lived in America a country that was completely built on freedom of choice. Well I choose Leonardo and if any of you have a problem with that I don't care! I don't come to your houses and tell you how to live your lives and I would certainly never blow anything of yours up because I don't agree with you. If you want to side with some prejudicial jerk, I can't stop you; but don't try to use my tragedy as your fodder! It's not allowed!"
Lea was shaking. Leonardo wasn't even certain what to do. Lea had pretty much just proclaimed her feelings for him in front of the entire city without hesitation. He never considered a human woman could feel this way about him and he never realized he could feel so deeply for someone he had known for such a short time.
"Lea I'm sorry." Mairead's tone was soft now and Leo could see the other girl genuinely was regretful of her previous words. It had been an insane night and somehow Leo couldn't blame Mairead for her reaction, she was only trying to protect her friend.
The crowd now seemed confused and Leo hazarded almost ashamed. Lea was still standing fists clenched breathing hard, but he could see this new adrenaline rush was also starting to wear thin and she would need to get out of here. Her emotions were getting too raw and he didn't like the way the reporter with the cameraman was hovering closer.
"Mairead, I need to take her now. I will bring Lea to you tomorrow after she gets some rest. She is going to need a lot of help now rebuilding things in her life and she is going to need you." Leonardo kept his tone calm and he watched as Mairead nodded in understanding.
"I know you'll keep her safe Leo." This was a rough night all around, bowing slightly to Lea's friend. Leo made his way back over to Lea who seemed a little deflated now. He leaned in close to her, handing her back Dean who gratefully snuggled once again into his owners arms. Leo nuzzled her hair whispering.
"Come home with me." Lea weakly nodded and taking her by the arm, he looked back one more time at Mairead and smiled. The reporter seeing Lea was thinking of leaving was trying to get over to ask questions. Mairead intervened much to Leo's gratitude and while she was keeping the attention on her, Leonardo scooped Lea up for the fourth time in his arms that night and disappeared with her into the darkness, heading for his home.