Chapter 1 - A Little Meeting

Shit. Leonardo groaned as he cradled his arm against his chest while attempting to wrap the large knife wound at the side of his thigh in the dimness of the dark corner of the fire escape. His shoulder throbbed and burned as the bullet was lodged into the tender muscle.

Tonight was a shit show.

It started relatively quiet, well, except for Mikey complaining about how cold it was, Raph grumbling about how there was no action tonight so why don't they go back home and Donnie's nose was stuck in his holodeck and seemed to be oblivious to anything around him.

Same old, same old.

Of course, it was freezing, it was early February in New York City.

That's how it all started. Leonardo had attempted to refocus his team and Mikey took that as his opportunity to fuck around which led everyone to find out.

Usually, with it being colder, crime would slow down, but a new gang had infiltrated the lower east side of Manhatten. Leonardo's strategy didn't work and it ended up with both him and Mikey hurt and the brothers being separated.

Crime spiked right after Christmas and Donnie and Raph had been running spots and setting up surveillance. Everything was going according to plan but Mikey had slipped up and Leo had been so wound tight that both of them ended up blowing their cover. All hell broke loose in the abandoned warehouse on 56th and it ended with the building catching fire and the brothers barely making it out.

Beep, beep, beep.

The familiar purple alert beacon glowed from his belt and he knew that Donnie was safe. A few seconds later, Red and Orange lights flashed signaling that his brothers had made it home and all was well.

Except for him.

As if Donnie could sense Leo's discomfort, his phone vibrated from where it was clipped along his chest, and as he moved to answer, his shoulder screamed in pain, causing him to take a big gulp accompanied by a deep breath before he answered as calmly as he could.

Thud. Thump. Thud.

The next sound was of one of her clay planters breaking and she grumbled, hoping that it wasn't her pansies as they were the only plants she had that could survive the colder temps.

Was that a groan? Y/n froze as something large was heard landing with a groan outside on her fire escape. It was nearly three in the morning and she was beyond frightened. What could—another sudden thump and an agonized moan escaped and she watched a puff of cool air breeze past the glass door. Okay so not what, more like who was out there. She felt her veins run cold as she focused on calming her breathing while slowly creeping closer, praying that her floorboards wouldn't creak and give her position away.

It was late February and unnaturally cold out which caused her to worry further. Who was out there? Were they hurt? Were they trying to break in? Her mind continued its tumultuous spiral as she grabbed for the bat that she kept in the blanket basket by the balcony door. Slowly, she inched closer to the door. Her heart was beating a mile a minute as her grip tensed, rotating the aluminum bat in a tight grip, readying to swing if the opportunity presented itself. What she heard next made her freeze inches from the glass.

"Ugh, Donnie, I'm fine—," a deep voice ground out through gritted teeth. She could see a dark shadow that was cast over her balcony. The voice sounded frustrated and hurt. She leaned further, almost pressing her cheek against the cool class in an attempt to hear the conversation that was happening just a few feet away, separated by thin glass.

"Don— Donnie…Donatello. I said I am fine. It's just a scrape. Are you and the rest home? Good. I'll be headed that way once the coast is clear. Yeah. Bye." Even though she's never met this person, she could blatantly tell he was lying and her questions only doubled with concern. Who was he? Was he a danger? Was he in danger? How did he—

Hiss.

"Shit, Casper!" Y/n yelped. Her damn cat scared the shit out of her after she accidentally stepped on its tail. The shadow outside shifted and everything became eerily silent as if both Y/n and the unknown person outside her window were waiting for the other to make a move.

Leonardo doesn't panic, but right now he needs to leave yet when he shifted his leg spasmed and stopped his movement. He had been outed and by his current state, he was vulnerable. With his past experiences, a vulnerability like this could lead to death, and with his current sour mood, death would just be the icing on the cake. His leg burned and he bet that infection had seeped in and with a silent gasp, he dug his thumb to help stop the loss of blood before he could get help. It wasn't just a scrape like he had told Don. Leo knew that once he got home that Donnie would have his hide for being, in Donnie's words, an idiot.

"Shit, Casper!" The voice of the woman in the apartment broke his reverie and he held his breath as he sensed the woman moving just beyond the balcony door. He couldn't believe that she got under his radar. He surveyed and scanned the entire top three floors before landing on this balcony. He'd have to talk to Don about his scanner and see if it wasn't working properly, he had dropped it earlier in the scuffle at the warehouse.

If Mikey hadn't blown their cover. No. If I had another contingency then we would've been able to get away. Leo should have known and planned for all possibilities. He's been off recently and it was beginning to get to him. He needed to– A sudden click of the glass door and the slide of glass alerted that he'd been caught and he cursed the fact that he used all of his smoke pellets.

"Eh, excuse me?" A hesitant voice called as he watched her breath hit the cool night air.

"I'm armed so don't try anything." He was going to remain silent but he sensed movement from the corner of his eye

"Who are you? Why are you on my balcony?" He had to give her props, her voice was edged in confidence, even if by the subtle shake of her body he knew she was nervous. He decided to click the button on his belt to signal Donnie that he did, indeed, need assistance. It was a hard pill to swallow.

"I know you're out there."

"I'm not going to hurt you, ma'am," Leo groaned in an attempt to remain calm as his head rested back against the brick. His gaze shifted up, looking towards the faintly illuminated clouds in the sky. He heard her subtle gasp and the sound of hands tightening around the bat that he saw the reflection of from the window. She leaned out, a strand of hair falling from her loose side ponytail.

He held his breath, waiting for her to yell, scream and possibly try to hit him with that bat and he was, honestly, not in the mood.

Her voice was hesitant again as she asked what he was doing and the simple reply was that he was hurt and needed to catch his breath; told her he'd be out of her hair in a short while and he had zero intent on inflicting any harm on her, and offered to pay to replace the planter he broke on his fall.

"Are you bleeding?" He watched as she took the final step and was now cast in moonlit shadow while holding the bat in front of her, shoulders wide, feet apart in an attack stance. He had a feeling this wasn't her first rodeo. And he has no idea why he didn't lie to her.

"Yes."

"Okay," with that, she was gone, disappeared back into her apartment and Leo had silently hoped that she was washing her hands of him, Donnie would be here soon and he'd never have to think about this interaction again.

Leo had gone back to looking up towards the sky and hadn't realized he closed his eyes, his body slumped until small, warm hands grabbed for his shoulder, tiny fingers digging into the wound causing him to roar to life with a threatening hiss before vision became spotty.

"Uh, sir? Sir? Hey, c'mon man don't, oof!" Her breath knocked from her body was the last thing he heard before he lost consciousness.

Okay…yeah…what the FUCK! She tried to remain calm as the creature on her balcony collapsed into her body. He felt like ice and she wasn't about to have this, being, die on her overtly small, rusty balcony on a random February night.

She had to think. Think! With a bit of effort, she was able to wiggle out from beneath him while he slumped even further, his breathing even, but shallow. She studied him, his leaf-green face covered in scales, scuffs, and scrapes. She traced the edge of the blue mask before dropping to graze along the valleys between his scales. He was a reptile. A very large reptile with, what seemed to be, a shell strapped to his back. Large oriental-designed hilts wrapped in matching blue fabric that were braided in long tassels. He was incredible.

Focus, this guy just past out on your balcony and you're ogling him? Get. Yourself. Together. Think! Y/n went into overdrive, her brain finally catching up with her actions and she contemplated how she was going to get him inside and out of the cold. He was huge and after a few feeble attempts, she was unable to get him to really budge as she glanced around she caught sight of her curtain blowing in the wind of the open balcony door and she had an idea. Running inside, she grabbed the thickest blanket she could find, the heavy fabric causing her to topple and bump into every sharp surface from the linen closet back to the balcony.

It took a full ten minutes to get him rolled onto his stomach, laying on top of the large comforter, and another five minutes of lifting his arms and putting them in front so they, potentially, wouldn't hit the door frame while she dragged him inside. The man was out cold, she accidentally dropped his arm on his face and he didn't so much as move or groan. Of course, she checked for a pulse, and with a sigh of relief, the steady thrum was evident below the tough skin.

With a strong grip she pulled, his body didn't budge the first, second, or third time as she threw her entire body back. The only evidence of her struggle was the screeching sound of rusty metal flexing beneath the, supposedly, structurally sound balcony. Another grunt slipped past as she let go of the blanket with a huff. She was freezing but she wasn't about to let him lie here and die on her balcony. She needed to get him warm, she didn't know much about reptiles but knew that turtles loved basking and that they didn't hibernate. She stood, thinking and looking at the surroundings, hoping to see anything that could potentially help her get this behemoth of a man out of the cold.

"Mommy?" Y/n's breath hitched as Luna's tired little voice echoed from behind the door.

"Luna-love, shouldn't you be in bed?" She walked back towards the doorway, blocking the little girl's view of what, even she couldn't properly explain right now.

"I had a bad dweam," the adorable six-year-old rubbed at her tired eyes, clutching her favorite stuffed animal, a black cat named Mr. Binx that had a small pink ribbon tied around his neck.

"Aww, I'm sorry sweetie," Y/n took one last glance at the helpless being at her feet before she left to escort her daughter back inside. Today has been one from hell and this was just the icing on the cake. After stepping inside, it had only taken a few minutes to ease her daughter's mind and get her tucked back in and she was dozing before her bedroom door was closed.

Y/n's body slumped against the closed door of her daughter's room, a breath that felt so heavy and uncertain. What was she going to do? She needed to get back and figure something out. After another deep breath, she pushed off the door and headed towards what she truly, did not know. But what she saw had her heart racing as a lump formed in her throat, her hand clutching into her fist as she took in the scene before her.

Through the doorway, the profile view of another, much leaner and seemingly taller creature stood. What looked to be wires and metal boxes and buttons littered the back of his shell and across his chest. A purple bandana tied around his eyes and a pair of glasses glinted in the moonlight.

The sound of a gasp had him turning, his fiery yellow eyes locking onto her and causing something deep within her sizzle. Her hands shook and her tendons ached with a fight or flight sense that enraptured her entire body as breathing became difficult. She knew she was panicking but she wasn't sure what to do, but by the way his mouth began to move, it sounded like he had made the decision for her.

His large form was hunched as his arms went up as if in surrender as her head finally caught up to what he was saying. She was able to piece together that he had no intention of harming her, and that he was there to pick up his brother. His brother. His brother was still out cold on her balcony.

"Can you bring him inside?" Her words broke past her lips before she even recognized that she spoke. It was almost comical how large his eyes widened if it hadn't been for a groan from the fallen brother that pushed each into action. The purple-banded turtle hoisted his brother up and carried him inside and laid him on the couch, that Y/n had removed any items that'd get in the way.

The tall man began to run tests, moving his brother to gain access to his wounds and that was when she noticed the blood. He had lost so much blood and she hadn't realized. He had said he was hurt but by the large wound in his thigh and shoulder, he had to have been in immense pain. Her heart crumpled at the thought of him suffering silently outside in the cold.

"What can I do?"

"Miss, we will be out of your way once I have his vitals stabilized."

"Please, stay and let me help."

"Ma'am–," she cut him off with a tight grip along the wrapped purple fabric along his forearm.

"Y/n, my name is Y/n." He acknowledged with a nod and as a sound beeped from a large device along his bicep, he stated that he went by Donatello and that the injured one was Leonardo.

Once formalities were out of the way, the pair began to work to get Leonardo's vitals stable. Donatello was incredibly intelligent, which was an understatement while he tended to his brother. The holodeck that burst from the device along his wrist showed what looked like a monitor you'd see on a medical television show. Y/n was completely enamored but a part of her wondered if this was all just some crazed fever dream.

Ugh, why does my head hurt? Whe–where am I? Leonardo's vision fluttered, and his mind felt fuzzy as he attempted to move,

"Woah. Relax Leo."

"D-Donnie?"

Leo was so unfocused and his mouth felt bitter and dry, unable to swallow as his throat had transformed into a tunnel of sandpaper. He could hear Donnie explaining something but his brain could only focus on random words and phrases at a time.

"Could you, please, get him a glass of water?"

A woman's voice, the one from earlier answered his brother and Leonardo suddenly sobered enough to open his eyes and was immediately assaulted by bright lights and an unfamiliar ceiling fan hanging above him. Where was he?

"Here," the soft, feminine voice was beside his head in an instant and something small was prodded against his lips, "it's a straw," her tone was smooth, and calm yet held an unvoiced command of 'drink.'

He gulped down the iced liquid, easing his thirst and dulling the ever-fuzziness of his mind, allowing for a slightly clearer view of what was happening.

Donnie was here.

A woman was here.

But where was here?

"I apologize, Y/n. But my brothers and I are eternally grateful for all that you have done for our brother tonight." Donnie's words were careful, concise, yet appreciative.

"Of course, Donatello," her voice was sincere, "please, I am just happy that he has you, I tried to bring him in but he's way too heavy for me." She admitted with a soft giggle and the only thought going through Leo's head was how badly he wanted to hear it again. Donnie must have drugged me.

"I apologize for taking up so much of your time and space but if you'll allow me to clean this up and finish bandaging his shoulder, we will be out of your hair."

"Do you need to? I have the place to myself tonight and I am more than happy to help in any way that I can."

"My brothers are on their way to help bring him home. Your kindness is appreciated but, to ensure your safety, and our own, we need to be on our way."

Leo lost track of their conversation as he began to go in and out of consciousness. The burning of his leg and shoulder was now a dull throbbing sensation that left his fingers and toes tingling. The sound of Donatello bidding farewell paired with the cool breeze signalled that he was being lifted. His body felt weightless as the last thing he heard was the familiar voices of his brothers before everything went black.

Weeks passed and Leonardo was slowly beginning to feel like himself as the pain in his shoulder had become a dull, annoying sensation, especially if he moved it wrong. The bullet that Donatello dug from the muscle now laid in a vial that Master Splinter had placed at the entrance of the lair as a reminder that a, very real, danger lurked outside of their home. His leg was completely healed and Donnie had removed the stitches earlier this week. It was times like these that Leo was thankful for the healing properties that their mutated DNA provided. But, despite the healing process, it hadn't stopped him from being placed in the Hashi for a total of twelve hours in the last three days. He had to accept responsibility for distracting from the mission, separating from his brothers and being exposed, and putting himself and the woman in a vulnerable and dangerous position.

His brothers had come to his aid, and as they entered the lair so early that morning, Master Splinter had been waiting with a rage he hadn't displayed since before when he caught them disobeying orders when they were mere teenagers. But now, they were adults, each well into their twenties, Leonardo being the oldest at twenty-three, and with said adulthood came adult-like responsibilities. Each brother had been asked to recount the night's events and after all was said and done, there were consequences to the actions and decisions that were made that night. Michelangelo and Raphael were given cleaning duty of the restrooms, bathing tubs, and kitchen duty that included cooking and washing dishes. Donatello, despite being a major help as the resident doctor, was given the take of doing the laundry and running surveillance on the woman who had helped them that night along with researching the newly established gang that was running rampant through the city.

After a much-needed soak in the bathing tubs under the warm heat lamps, Leonardo's skin prickled with the need for fresh air. He needed his freedom and after a bout of meditation, he realized that the way he currently felt must be how Raphael expresses how he feels all the time. Locked up. Caged. Needing fresh air. But unlike Raphael, Leonardo didn't have someone he could let loose with, not really, not in the way that Raphael had Casey.

With that realization, he decided to go to the one person he knew could understand.

Leonardo leaned against the brick entrance of the makeshift gym to see both Raphael and Michelangelo on their respective benches, each going for what seemed to be a new PR.

"Yo Leo, what's up dude?" Mikey's baby blues sparkled as he flexed and showed off with another pump off the inclined bench.

"What'd I do now, Fearless?" Raphael gritted as he racked the weight and lifted from the bench, cracking his neck and knuckles in the process. With an eye roll, Leonardo nodded towards the hall just outside the gym and turned, waiting for his brother to follow.

"Just came to see if you guys were up for a little game."

"Psh! Yeah bro, what ya thinkin'?" Mikey cheered, simulating bouncing a basketball before making an imaginary free throw with an audible swoosh.

After a half hour of debate and another thirty minutes trying to get Donnie disconnected from his fortress of technology, the brothers packed and headed towards the rooftops.

They moved until they were exactly twenty blocks from April's apartment. They separated, each given five minutes to plan and map out their strategies on who could reach her rooftop first. Rooftop Run was one of their favorite patrol pastimes. They each would work against each other by setting traps and or obstacles that would hinder their opponents from reaching the designated rooftop first. There were a few guidelines though, Raphael wasn't able to use his motorcycle to ease through the heavy city traffic, Donatello wasn't allowed to use his holodeck and Mikey wasn't allowed to use his hoverboard. Each brother then would click the respective light on their belt to alert the brother they spotted. Whoever was spotted the most throughout the night would get bathroom duty for the following week. The last time they did this, Raph had lost and Mikey had made a Mexican-bean pizza and, well to put it lightly, it was bad.

"Later guys," Donatello tossed before disappearing behind a large billboard. Raphael departed soon after and Mikey, in typical fashion yelled out to the word, "I'm comin' Angelcakes!" Before, he too, disappeared. Leonardo's crutch was that he had to give his brothers an extra two minutes before he'd attempt his way across the city. The rule was established after he was the only winner for thirty-nine rounds in a row. Raphael said he'd be damned if Leo won again a proposed that each brother be given a crutch to even the playing field.

Everything was going smoothly and Leo had caught Raph and Mikey both on more than one occasion and he could sense their frustration from rooftops away. It was a peaceful night, except for the chill that still hung in the air as it was now mid-March. There were eight more blocks to go when Leonardo happened to glance down and a sudden case of deja-vu knocked him off balance. He glanced around, unsure why the area was affecting him so much and why it had looked so familiar. That was when he spotted it, an insignificant detail but one that screamed up at him. It was a rusted circle at the edge of a narrow balcony three stories down.

It was the same balcony where he had taken refuge that night when Donnie said he could have died if it wasn't for the woman who had helped. Donatello had told him everything that had happened that night and Leo was ashamed of how he had not only exposed himself but also his brothers, by not calculating his whereabouts properly. With a quick glance at his watch, he made a rash decision that made him contemplate whether or not he was still suffering from his head injury. He scaled down the building as stealthy as possible, avoiding the potted plants, not wishing to break another as he landed without so much as a groan from the rusted metal below him.

"Luna-love, please, it is time for you to go to bed."

"NO!" A small child cried, her small hiccups broken up by more pleas of 'no's' and 'I don't wanna's.'

"Sweetie, GeeGee is coming early tomorrow while Mommy goes to work." He saw the woman, Donnie had said her name was Y/n, was knelt before the small girl, easing her with calm words and rubbing soothing circles along the girl's palms. Leonardo was not very experienced with children except for those he had helped save in the many years of being, for lack of a better word, a vigilante. He watched silently, analyzing the situation and the woman who had helped save his life. The logical cynic in him was at war with his heart as he contemplated confronting her to gauge whether or not she could be trusted and to thank her. Donatello had already done an extensive search on Y/n L/n. who was a thirty-year-old mother who worked at a local bookstore and was a part-time dispatcher for the New York City Police Department.

"Honey, sweetie, breathe." Y/n's tone shifted, still calm yet there was an underlying sense of command that pulled Leonardo to listen a little closer.

"Remember what I taught you to do when your feelings get to be too much? You need to breathe, c'mon love, breathe with me." The mother began to breathe in calm even breaths, her hands still moving in soft circles along Luna's hands as she was guided through the exercise. Leonardo watched, being reminded of a similar exercise that Master Splinter had taught them when they were younger. Donnie had suffered from panic attacks while Mikey had severe anxiety when they were younger. The exercise would also assist in Raphael's unchecked anger and calm Leo's own, overactive and calculating mind. It had come in handy a great deal until they were all able to accept what they are, what their place in this world would be, and how each one played a distinct role that was to remain hidden.

"I'm sorry Mommy," the little girl wept, small hands rubbing along reddened cheeks, clutching a stuffed cat to her chest.

"No reason to say sorry hun, now let's get your butt to bed, missy," the woman gleamed tickling the small girl before they disappeared down the hallway. Leonardo doesn't know what caused him to do it but he found himself easing the thin glass door open and slipping inside the dimly lit apartment. He looked around, noticing the pictures that littered stocked bookshelves on either side of the large television. A fluffy circular chair and blankets were thrown over every piece of furniture in sight and the dim light of two pink-Himalayan salt lamps cast the room in a warm, welcoming glow.

He was caught up in the scent of warm jasmine when he heard the familiar click of a door and the shuffle of feet and in an instant, he was back on the balcony before disappearing back onto the rooftop.

Y/n entered the living room and knew that something was different, the scent of vanilla mixed with something else entirely caused her heart to flutter. That was when she noticed the curtain. She rushed to throw open the door and glanced all around. Had he been here? A cool breeze caused her to wrap her thick cardigan around her even tighter when she saw a familiar large shadow break over her balcony she watched it jump across the rooftop and disappear from her sight.

He was alive and she couldn't help the way her heart fluttered immediately made her feel warm and fuzzy. Now she just hoped that she'd get the chance to see him again as she turned back into her apartment unaware that a pair of honey-gold eyes followed her every movement.