Chapter Five

Arella led him through back alleys and through narrow gaps between rundown buildings. They headed farther and farther from the main part of the streets, until traffic sounded distant. She let go of his hand and knelt to move a board that was pressed against a hole in an old wooden fence. "In here," she instructed.

The petite girl easily crawled through the small space, but Leo had to struggle a moment before he squeezed his shell through.

He found himself on a small square of grass tucked between the worn fence and a brick wall. There were no lights around, leaving them with a view of the sky above. When Arella placed the board back over the hole, it felt like they were closed off in a world all to themselves.

With a smile, Arella leaned back against him; Leo drew his arms around her and pulled her to him, settling his shell comfortably against the wall. It was a little chilly here, but her skin still felt warm. He entwined his fingers with hers; she smiled again and rested her head on his shoulder.

It was strangely peaceful here, a little spot of nowhere tucked under the stars that were peeking out from the murky clouds above them. It felt like all his troubles were fading away, like a dream.

That's what it felt like, to be lying here with Arella; a dream. A beautiful dream.

They stayed wrapped in each other's arms, talking softly at times, shyly kissing at others. When he was with Arella, he felt like he could forget everything. His brothers, his frustration - everything. Even the time.

Especially the time.

Arella was kissing a line down his throat when Leo heard a hissing and clunking sound in the distance. "What's that?" he wondered distantly.

Arella drew her tongue across a particularly sensitive spot on his throat. "Midnight street sweeper," she murmured, lips pressed to his skin.

Leo felt an unpleasant jolt; midnight? He jerked to sit up; Arella made a sound of protest.

"I have to get home," he said weakly. "I have to..."

Oh, was he ever in trouble. He didn't get into this kind of trouble. He just...didn't.

"I'm sorry," he said as he scrambled to his feet, "but I have to go home."

He should have gone home hours ago - before his brothers got back. But it felt like he and Arella had been here for only a little while - a half hour at the most.

Arella's disappointment was plain as she stood. "All right," she agreed. "But come back and see me tomorrow."

"I will," he promised, squeezing her hand.

No matter what he had to do, no matter who had to defy...he would find some way back to her.

He rested his hands on her slender waist, kissed her one last time, then squeezed back out into the alley and raced home.

When he got there, the den was almost completely dark. The only light was the faint glow coming from Don's computer screen as he quietly tapped away at the keyboard. The subway car was dark, indicating that Raph and Mikey had gone to bed already.

A warm, golden glow was coming from Splinter's room, but it didn't give Leo any comfort to see it. In fact, he was filled with a sense of dread as he started down the stairs.

As he crept by as quietly as he could, there was movement inside. Cringing, he looked to see Splinter standing in the doorway.

"Leonardo," he said quietly, "come here, please."

The sense of dread growing, Leo forced himself forward; Splinter closed the door behind him. He took a moment to draw each shade closed before turning to face him. Leo knelt and looked down at his hands, though he knew no amount of decorum was going to help. Splinter watched him in silence for a while, one hand resting behind his back as he leaned on his walking stick. Leo kept his eyes on his hands and didn't look at him.

"Your brothers tell me that they did not see you all evening. They were quite surprised when I suggested that you had joined them."

Leo tightened his fists. "I stopped a mugging on the way," he mumbled. "After that I lost interest in playing around."

He could scarcely believe what he was saying. He didn't do this. Not to Splinter - especially not to Splinter. But the words came so easily it barely felt like he was saying them. He just focused his mind on Arella and the lies seemed to come on their own.

Splinter breathed a sigh. "Something deeply troubles you. I wish you would tell me what it is."

"I'm not a child anymore," Leo heard himself mutter. "I don't have time to play games and screw around with the others. If they want to keep acting like infants, fine. I've got more important things to do, like train and patrol and do what we're supposed to be doing."

It was close to the truth. It was what he used to want to do. He almost believed it himself.

He glanced at Splinter; his eyes were dark and worried. Leo couldn't tell if he believed him or not. "If you are going through a confusing, conflicted time," he said quietly, "I understand. I know this life we live is not an easy one. I know sometimes you must long for something else."

"This isn't about that," Leo said distractedly.

He wanted this conversation to be over. He wanted to go to bed; the sooner he went to sleep, the sooner he could wake up and go see Arella.

Splinter sighed again. "I worry about you, my son. This is not like you."

"I told you, I'm fine. I'm just...trying to sort some things out."

"Very well. But in the meantime, I must insist that you sort them out where I can keep an eye on you."

Leo jerked his head up. "What?"

Splinter moved around him and eased into a nearby chair; he looked worn out. "I must insist," he repeated. "You are not to go to the surface for the time being. Not until I better understand what is happening to you. Is that clear?"

"Perfectly," said Leo, through clenched teeth.

He rose and all but stomped out of the room, without bothering to excuse himself first. Don pretended to be absorbed in his computer as he passed; Leo ignored him, went into the car and threw himself onto his bed. In the bed next to him, Mikey was snoring; Leo grimaced and kicked at the foot dangling off the mattress. Mikey snorted, rolled over and resumed snoring.

In the next bed over, someone snickered. "Funny, I thought I was the only one who still got grounded these days."

Leo clenched his fists as a tremor of rage rippled through him. "Raph, shut the hell up."

"Or what?"

Leo rolled so he was facing the wall and ignored the bait. He lay awake and listened as Don continued to tinker, then finally got up, yawned, and came to bed. Leo continued to listen as the hours ticked by, his brothers alternating snoring and shifting around. Finally, Leo slid out of bed and crept across the living room.

He peered cautiously through Splinter's window; he was lying on his traditional futon bed, a lone candle flickering dimly nearby. He was sound asleep, so Leo crept on and climbed up to the corridor above.

He made it to Arella's apartment in record time, where he clung, panting, with his fingers curled around the edge of one of her windows and his toes propped on the edge of the window below.

He was half-afraid she would be asleep and wouldn't answer as he knocked on the window glass, but a moment later the blinds raised, followed by the window sash.

"It's awfully early," she noted, before stepping back and letting him inside.

It was almost dawn, with first light just starting to reach across the sky. Leo dropped inside the apartment and crouched below the window, taking a moment to catch his breath.

The painting Arella had been working on earlier was finished and had been set aside to dry, the easel folded up and placed in a corner. As Leo rose to his feet, Arella turned and knelt to scrub at a dark stain on the floor. More candles were burning this morning, along with several sticks of incense, but even that didn't quite mask the odd smell in the air. Probably a mixture of paint and turpentine. Not that Leo cared right now.

"I've been grounded," he said, though admitting it made his face burn.

Arella straightened, eyebrows arched. "Oh? How come?"

"Long story. Point is I can't go out right now. I'll probably catch it for coming here."

Arella pursed her lips. She looked so pretty in that moment, lit by the early dawn light like that. She was still dressed in the same blouse and jeans she'd worn yesterday. Her feet were bare; like her hands, they were small and delicate. Everything about her was delicate. Angelic and ethereal.

Leo let out his breath slowly as he gazed at her, her hair glowing like a crown of fire. This burning ache inside him could only be love.

"I could come see you, if you want," said Arella.

He had been hoping she would suggest that. "Do you have any paper? I'll give you directions to our place."

She handed him a small notepad, and he hastily scrawled out the address and a map. "And here's our phone number," he added.

"I don't have a phone," said Arella. "But write it down anyway," she went on, as he looked up in surprise. "You never know."

He finished writing and handed the notepad back to her. "I better go."

She gave a small nod, looking like she didn't want him to leave. Neither did he.

"It shouldn't be for long," he said, reaching to take her slender hand in his. "I'm the good one," he joked. "I doubt he'll keep me inside for longer than a few days."

Arella nodded again; Leo let out a sigh and tightened his grip on her hand. Her finger bones felt so small, so fragile to him, no more substantial than a bird's. He wanted to run his hands up the creamy skin of her arms, pull her close and kiss her - but he couldn't. If he did, he would never leave.

He forced himself to let go, climbed back out the window and rushed home.

Miraculously, Splinter was still asleep. Leo almost collapsed in relief - and he suddenly realized that he was exhausted. His sleep the night before had been restless, and last night he didn't sleep at all. He sat cross-legged at the top of the steps and closed his eyes, pretending to meditate as he half-dozed, half-fantasized about Arella.

He stayed there for most of the morning. He felt Splinter watching him from time to time, though he didn't say anything. Neither did his brothers, but he heard them snickering and whispering to each other. Leo ignored them all and continued to rest, anxiously awaiting nightfall.

When the sun started to set and his brothers parked themselves in front of the TV, Leo forced himself up and ran through his nightly exercises. When he finished he was so worn out he had no choice but to lay down and sleep, which was what he wanted; he wanted to make sure he was alert and rested when he saw Arella.

He awoke with a jerk sometime in the night. The den was silent and dark; his brothers slumbered quietly in the other beds. Leo pushed the covers off and tiptoed out of the car. The remains of a jumbo taco pizza were on the table; he hadn't eaten much today and had slept through dinner, so he grabbed a slice and munched as he headed to the upper tunnel.

He wasn't sure what he was doing or where he was going - he didn't want to risk going all the way to Arella's again. He might get caught this time, and then he would really be in trouble.

But as he stepped quietly along the dank tunnel, his way lit by streetlamps peeking through the grates and cracks, he heard movement around the corner ahead of him. He didn't know how he knew, but every fiber in his body said she's here.

Leo hurried around the corner. He thought he saw a glint of something in the shadows - like the flash of light reflecting off a cat's eyes - and then Arella was hurrying forward. A moment later she was in his arms and all of his thoughts and worries melted away.

"I'm sorry I didn't come up sooner," he murmured, lips pressed to her hair. "I'm hoping that if I pretend to behave I'll be unpunished soon."

Arella lifted her head and smiled. Leo felt that ache again, that intense longing, as he let himself sink into the pools of her luminous eyes. "It's all right. I had things I needed to do today anyway."

Leo took her hand and led her farther down the tunnel. There was a place up ahead where they could sit and talk - but he didn't plan to hang around with her tonight. It was too easy for him to lose all track of time when he was with her, and he couldn't risk talking the hours away and coming home after Splinter woke up.

It wasn't nearly as nice as the spot of grass she had taken him to, out under the stars. But it was dry, and there were clean boards places over the cracks in the cement that were comfortable to sit on. He sat and rested his shell against the wall, and Arella sat beside him, knees curled up to her chest.

"I can't stay," Leo forced himself to say. "Splinter won't like it if he wakes up and finds me gone."

Arella nodded and rested her chin on her knees, as if she had been expecting him to say that. There was a small puddle on the floor in front of her; the image reflected back to them from its rippled surface, the two of them so close and together...it seemed so right. "I can come back tomorrow."

"Come back a little earlier than this," Leo said. "We should be safe until dawn."

It was too close to dawn now for him to linger much longer. Splinter woke up extremely early.

Arella nodded again. "I will."

"Someday you can come over anytime you want. Just not yet."

"Your brothers won't mind?"

"Not at all. I'm sure they'd love to get to know you."

Which was exactly why he wasn't ready to introduce her just yet. Maybe later, after his punishment was over and he felt they had spent sufficient time alone together.

Arella turned her head and smiled at him. "So, I'm welcome to stop by whenever I want?"

"Of course. You have my open invitation."

Her smile deepened, her eyes glowing like green fire. "Thank you."