A/n: As always, a big, big thank you to Amonrapheonix and DarkUnderworld for their patience and continued support for beta-ing this story. This chapter is for you guys :)

~Leonardo's POV~

I couldn't stop thinking about what Raphael had said during training. Not even now, four hours later. How could he think that what happened to him was none of my-none of our business? Two months. Two whole months of little to no sleep, of hardly eating or training; being trapped in a zombie-like state because every night I went to sleep on a wet pillow, unable to think of anything else other than wondering, hoping and praying that Raphael would manage to make it through the night.

I knew my brother was stubborn; he protected his pride like a bee protects its honey. He didn't like to show pain or weakness, even if he was about to pass out from his injuries. He didn't like accepting any help offered to him. He always shouldered any burden on his own. The only one he really ever opened up to was Casey.

Master Splinter invited April and Casey over for dinner tonight, as a way of saying thank you for everything they've done for us. We all know that Raphael wouldn't have made it if it weren't for them since they were the ones who had managed to find him.

Mikey set the food out on the table with a flourish and a wide grin. It had been awhile since he had last cooked, and I could tell that he was glad he was finally able to again. It was no secret that Mikey was a great cook, the best cook out of our family anyway.

"Ladies and gentlemen, dinner is served," Mikey said with a terrible Italian accent, pretending to kiss the air whilst making strange hand gestures.

"Looks good, Mikey." April smiled, looking down at the plate of food in front of her appreciatively.

"Eat up, there's plenty more where that came from," Mikey said with a wink.

"Oh, I plan to; don't worry about that, my Man," Casey said, rubbing his hands together in anticipation.

"Casey, you'd eat anything that ya' got fer' free, an' lots of it," Raphael drawled from his seat across from me, his crutches leaning against his chair and his splinted leg sprawled awkwardly out in front of him.

"Hey, I'm a man who knows fine dining when he sees it," Casey defended himself, picking up his fork and stabbing it into his pasta.

"Oh yeah, you are the epitome of the fine dining connoisseur," April commented dryly, trying to hide her smirk behind her glass.

"What?" Casey asked in confusion, oblivious to the sauce that had dribbled down his chin.

Grinning, I reached for my glass of water, but stopped when I saw Raphael doing the same. He was reaching out for his glass with his right hand, his bad arm, whether he was doing this unconsciously or not, I didn't know.

With a small grunt he grasped the glass and brought it up to his lips, his hands shaking slightly.

And then, just as he was bringing the glass to his lips, the trembling in his hand grew more intense, sending large spasms through his arm. Raphael cursed, and the glass slipped from his hand, spilling cold water on his face and down the front of his plastron, the glass shattering on the table.

April gasped and jumped back in shock, a decent sized piece of glass landing in her pasta.

Raphael blushed furiously, strings of violent curses leaving his lips as he angrily wiped the water from his face.

"Here, Raph, let me help," Don said, trying to clean Raph off with his napkin.

"I'm fine," Raphael grumbled, trying to scoot away from Don's helping hands.

"Just hold still, Raph, I've nearly got it-"

"I said I'm fine!" Raphael barked sharply, slapping Don's offending hands away.

"Raph, it's okay, Donnie was just trying to help," Casey said, looking at his friend with obvious concern.

"Well I don't need his help," Raphael snarled, pulling himself awkwardly to his feet. "I don't need any of your help!"

I quickly got to my feet to stop Raphael, but one look at his furious expression and I remained rooted to the spot.

Grabbing his crutches, we all watched in shocked silence as Raphael hobbled out of the room as fast as he could. It wasn't until we heard the deafening slamof his bedroom door that anyone moved.

"I guess I'll get this cleaned up," Mikey muttered, his food left untouched and forgotten as he went to find a dustpan to clean up the shards of glass.

"Poor Raph," April murmured, staring down at the patterned table cloth. "I hope he gets better soon."

Catching Master Splinter's concerned gaze, I could tell he was thinking the same thing.

~Normal POV~

Casey cautiously headed out into the living room. They had finished cleaning up the mess at the kitchen table, but had all lost their appetites. Raphael was still shut up in his room, and everyone was happy to give him space until he calmed down. Though how he had managed to hobble up the stairs, to his room in the first place, Casey had no idea.

"Hey, Master Splinter, where is everyone?" Casey asked the aged rat.

Master Splinter looked up from his tea cup that lay untouched in his lap, blinking a few times as if he had just woken from a dream.

"Leonardo is meditating in the dojo, and I believe Michelangelo and Donatello went out on patrol an hour ago."

"Oh, cool," Casey said, rubbing the back of his neck as he tried to think of something to say.

"I apologize for what happened tonight, Mr. Jones," Splinter spoke up, and Casey could see the sorrow in his kind eyes. "Raphael is not adjusting well to these...changes."

"I understand. I mean, if that was me, I'd probably lose it a couple of times too."

Master Splinter sighed and bowed his head. "Raphael is strong, in many ways; it is only ironic that his strength is what is holding him back from recovering."

The sound of the lair door closing ended the conversation. Don and Mikey entered the room, their faces scrunched up with worry.

"What is it?" Leo asked, appearing from the dojo, looking exhausted. "Did you run into the Foot, or any Purple Dragons?"

Don shook his head. "That's what's weird Leo, we haven't seen or heard anything from the Foot or the Purple Dragons for a while now. It's like they just disappeared."

"That is strange," Leo said after a moment, "but there is nothing we can do about it."

"Do you think they're planning an attack?" Casey asked.

"I don't know," Leo said, "but maybe we should count their absence as a blessing. We already have enough things to worry about."

~Purple Dragon Headquarters~

Hun paced around the small room in agitation, his curses echoing around the small space.

"Where is he? Good for nothing piece of-"

"Hey now, why all the name calling?" A voice asked out of the darkness.

Hun whirled around to face the figure, a snarl on his lips. "We have given you all the supplies you've needed, and still you make us wait!" Hun pointed a meaty finger at the man.

"Now, now Hun, no need for that," the man laughed. "I admit I may have gone a little over schedule, but everything is finally ready. We shall attack tomorrow night."

A/n: Reviews are greatly appreciated; I'd love to know what you all thought. More to come soon!
~Cat