Hello everyone!

Hope you all had a good holiday break! With the New Year coming up, I wanted to fit in one last chapter before we leave 2022!

So here's the second and final part of the Leatherhead storyline! I hope you all like it!

Leatherhead - Part Two

Bebop POV:

As soon as we left the club, I realized just how crazy my friend was.

"I think we oughta take the subway," Rocky said, walking down the alley behind the building. "It's the fastest way to get to Central Park, and-"

"Woah, hold on," I said, stepping in front of him. "Aren't ya forgettin' what we look like?" I tapped one of my tusks. "Wanna cause a panic and make the 10 o'clock news?"

"But it's faster than drivin', and we gotta get to Roberto before he gets hurt," my friend protested. "Besides, we've done some crazy stuff in public when we used ta work for Shredder and Krang! Ridin' a subway ain't nuthin' compared ta that!"

That's true, I thought. Rocksteady started to walk away again, but I put a hand on his shoulder to stop him.

"We also gotta think this through," I said.

"What's there ta think through," my friend asked, frowning at me. "Roberto's been kidnapped by a mutant, and if Mikey says they need help fightin' him, then that means he's dangerous. Meanin' that Roberto's gonna get really hurt or killed if we don't hurry!"

I scoffed at him. "So we're supposed to believe that there's this big, bad mutant, someone we've never heard of, and he shows up right before we gotta work? And then the Turtles, who we've fought more times than we can count, suddenly need OUR help?"

"They ain't lyin'," Rocky argued, though he looked unsure of himself. "We... We can't risk Roberto bein' hurt! Why don't ya wanna rescue him?"

"I'll rescue him when he's actually been kidnapped," I retorted. "Get it through your thick skull that the Turtles are just tryin' to get us to skip out on work so they have an excuse to keep us as the bad guys! They ain't serious about givin' us a chance to do stuff right!"

My friend hesitated, thinking over what I had said. Though part of me was starting to wonder if Roberto really was in trouble; if he was in trouble, and if this Leatherhead mutant was dangerous enough that the Turtles needed help...

"But..." Rocky looked uneasy. "The Turtles... they wouldn't lie. Not about somethin' like this."

I opened my mouth, but then closed it. I couldn't really remember a time any of those mutant teenagers had lied to us. Especially Red, since he was always brutally honest when insulting us.

"And what if... what if you're wrong," my friend continued, looking almost scared to tell me that. "What if Roberto gets really hurt, or even killed, because we don't go help?" He shook his head. "I know ya don't really like Roberto, but I know ya care about his opinion enough to try out his plan to be good. What's more good than rescuin' someone?"

I couldn't remember the last time that Rocksteady had not only argued back with me, but had made a good point that blew my view out of the water. Ever since we became friends, I had been the brains of this duo, coming up with ideas and taking the lead in dangerous situations. And Rocksteady had always been happy to go with whatever I said. But now...

For a bizarre moment, I got angry at Roberto. We wouldn't be in this whole situation if he hadn't complained about how 'evil' we are and insist that we become good. And somehow, he had gotten into my friend's head, and he wanted to go along with it.

But then I pushed the thought aside. Roberto was just a kid, and even though he could be whiny and annoying, Rocksteady was right that I liked him enough to go along with this insane plan of his. And it's not like I want the kid dead. And if the kid WAS in danger and he ended up dead, I don't wanna think what that would do to Rocky, not after getting so attached to Roberto.

"Okay," I said, nodding at my friend. "We'll go get him."

Rocky looked up at me with surprise, mouth dropping open with shock. I snickered.

"Tryin' to catch some flies there," I asked, lightly punching him in the chest. "C'mon; stop mopin' around and let's crash this Turtle party!"

My friend grinned at me. "Yeah!" He paused. "But... Mikey invited us, so we wouldn't really be crashin' it..."

I sighed exasperatedly. "I thought we were in a hurry?"

"Oh, yeah! Let's go!"

[]

The subway wasn't our favorite way to travel, since everyone and their mother was staring at us, but one of the perks of being a mutant is that regular people were too scared to mess with you. So at least we didn't get jumped.

Getting off at the 86th Street Station, we made our way over to Central Park, Rocky taking the lead. He was in such a rush, he nearly got hit by a taxi while crossing the street.

"Hey," the driver snapped, rolling down the window. "Watch it, freak!"

My friend didn't reply, walking towards the nearest pathway leading into the park. However, I wasn't gonna let the driver get off that easy, so I slammed a fist on the hood of his cab, denting it and causing the engine to smoke. The guy started cussing me out, but I followed Rocky into Central Park, heading towards Belvedere Castle.

I had no idea why someone had even built a castle in the middle of a city, but it was a pretty popular tourist trap. It was closed, and Rocky and I stopped outside the entrance, not sure where to go next.

"Maybe we can call Mikey," Rocky suggested, looking at the Shell device in his hands. "Just gotta figure out howta work this thing..."

"Psst! Guys!"

Looking to our right, we saw nothing but the shadowy side of the castle. A green, three-fingered hand appeared from the shadows, waving us over.

Real subtle for a ninja, I thought, following Rocksteady along the edge of the wall.

"Thanks for coming," Orange said, popping up between us. "My bros aren't too happy with me, but I convinced them that you guys can help!"

"Do ya know where Roberto is," Rocky asked.

"Leatherhead's got him in an abandoned subway station just outside the park," the young turtle explained, leading us towards the lake sitting next to the castle. I could see three other figures waiting for us on the shore, weapons drawn.

"So why're we inside the park," I asked.

"Because the quickest way to where they are is through the sewers," Orange replied. "And the most direct route is through the sewer entrance at the bottom of the lake!"

"Uh... we gotta SWIM to the bottom of a lake," I asked.

"Aw," Red spoke up, walking over to us. "Don't tell me the piggy's scared of water! What? Can't swim?"

"I can swim," I said angrily. "But how're we supposed to breathe, bein' underwater that long?"

"Well, if you were mutant turtles, you wouldn't have to worry about that," Red said. "But because SOMEONE invited ya here without askin' us-"

"They can hold their breath no problem," Orange insisted.

"Why, 'cause they're full of hot air?"

"Yes," Rocky replied. He paused. "Wait..."

"We don't have time for this," Leader interrupted, clipping a flashlight to his wrist. "We need to get going."

"Wait," Brainy spoke up, grabbing something from his pouch. "I have some breathing apparatuses from that time we got stuck in that other dimension with April and Casey." He took out two items that looked like mouth guards, but with pipes and other metal stuff.

"Appa-" The mutant rhino shook his head. "It'll help us breathe?"

"Yep!" He tossed one to each of us. "Just breathe through your mouth while you swim."

I groaned, regretting being here. Swimming to the bottom of a lake? A whole lot of trouble just to rescue a kid. I was expecting to show up, fight the bad guy, and get out of there. But I didn't sign up to swim through the sewers to some abandoned subway station, and-

"Okay," Rocky said, taking off his shirt. "Let's get goin'! C'mon, Beeps!"

I gaped at my friend for a moment, shook my head, and then took off my shirt. Whether I wanted to go through all this trouble or not, it wasn't up to me. Rocky was my best friend, and I didn't want him to get upset again. All I could do now was suck it up and jump into the lake.

But Roberto better be kidnapped, I thought, taking a deep breath before diving in after Rocky and the Turtles.

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Roberto POV:

"Gonna makes me a STEW-W-W-EW," Leatherhead sang to himself, taking a package of carrots out of his bag, tearing it open, and dumping its contents in his pot. "Gonna taste so GOO-O-O-OOD!"

Make it stop, I thought, lightly banging my head against the pole behind me. Of course my captor had to start singing, and of course he had to have the most grating, tone-deaf singing voice I had ever heard. Part of me wished he would just beat me up so I wouldn't have to hear that awful noise anymore. But at least his 'singing,' if you could call it that, made me forget my itchy nose.

"And when I kill dem Turtles DEA-EA-EAD!"

I'm gonna kill those Turtles if they don't show up soon, I thought annoyedly. Then the worry returned. They should be here by now; it's been, what, half an hour since Leatherhead called them? Where could they be?

"I'm gonna boil their HEA-A-A-ADS!" The mutant alligator finished his song on a particularly bad note, dumping an entire case of Cajun seasoning into his stew. Grinning, he turned back to me.

"Pot's all ready," he said. "Wonder where dem Turtles are..." He sniffed the air. "I can'ts smell dem."

"Maybe they got caught in traffic," I joked, trying not to show how scared I was; I hadn't forgotten the mutant's promise of who he would eat if my friends didn't show up. "It can get pretty crazy here in the city. I'd give them some more time. A lot more time."

Leatherhead shook his head. "Can't do that; gotta start cookin' the protein soon, so all those seasonings I added soak in." He shook his head. "Damn! I was sure they'd come rescue yah, since yah looked like a pretty close bud of theirs!"

"We are," I assured him, nodding exaggeratedly. "So much so, they're probably thinking of the best way to rescue me!"

And taking their sweet time doing it, I thought.

"That does makes sense," the mutant agreed, scratching his chin. "Though it ain't gon' do dem any good; I put up enough traps in here so that they can't walk in without me knowin'!" He looked back at the pot. "Hmm... Meybe I could hold off on the cookin' for a little bit..."

I let out a sigh of relief. I had no idea how much time I had left until the Turtles got here, but hopefully, with him postponing dinner, it would give them enough time to rescue me-

"But I don't think I will," Leatherhead continued, turning back to me, a frown on his face. "I skipped lunch today, so I gotta eat somethin' soon." He walked over to me, kneeling down to untie my rope bonds. "I ain't ever tried a human before, but there's a first time for everythin'!"

"WAIT," I yelped, trying to wriggle away from the villain with no success. "Wh-Why don't we just wait a little b-bit longer-"

"I just said I ain't gon' wait no more," the mutant said impatiently, untying the last of the rope.

"I r-really think you should," I protested. "Just be patient, and-"

The mutant alligator suddenly slammed his fist right over my head, denting the pipe. And if that hadn't shut me up, the murderous glare he gave me sure did.

"Yah know," he said, "I'm gettin' really tired of hearin' yer voice. It's annoyin'." He suddenly grabbed me by the neck, starting to choke me. "You're just as annoyin' as dem Turtles, but at least they ain't pathetic and weak! Ya ain't even worth my time!"

No no no no no, I thought, using my now free hands to try and pry the mutant's fingers from my throat. But it was like trying to pry metal apart. The villain stood up, pulling me to my feet while continuing to choke me.

"Yah may be their friend," Leatherhead continued, "but I don't think yah understand just how much I wanna beat dem." His fingers tightened a little. "They made me the laughingstock of my own swamp! Dem and dose stupid frog friends'a theirs! And I came all dis way, to their home, to make them pay!" He growled. "But then, even after takin' yah, they don't even SHOW UP!"

The mutant threw me aside, and I landed hard on the floor. I gasped for breath, coughing and sputtering as I felt my neck for any damage. Before I could even think of trying to escape, Leatherhead stomped over and grabbed my face, his claws digging into my skin. I screamed in pain, feeling more scared than I had ever been in my life. This mutant was actually going to kill me.

Where are the Turtles, I thought desperately.

"But meybe," the villain said. "Meybe... if I kill yah, and all of their friends, they'll see that they shouldn'ta messed with ol' Leatherhead!" His claws dug deeper into my skin, and I felt something trickling down my face. "Yeah... I think that'll work." He chuckled. "Shame they ain't here to see me crush your skull like a bug!"

I suddenly heard footsteps quickly approaching from somewhere to my right. Leatherhead let me go and we both turned towards the noise, surprised to see someone running towards us.

About twenty yards away, there were a set of stairs leading up and out of the underground space. By the time I had turned to look, Rocksteady had reached the bottom of these steps, jumping forward and landing on all fours, breaking into a run. It was bizarre, seeing him run on his hands and feet like an actual animal, until I saw him bow his head, an enraged expression on his face. He was like a tank, rushing straight towards the mutant gator.

Leatherhead quickly dropped me, bracing himself.

"AAAUURGH!"

Leatherhead had dropped me, probably to brace himself. But my friend slammed head-first into the large reptile, throwing him back several yards. The mutant rhino stood up straight, fists clenched and breathing heavily. He yelled again, stomping one foot on the ground and cracking the concrete.

...Woah, I thought. I was impressed, but I was also taken aback by my friend's expression. I had seen him get angry before, but not to this extent; if looks could kill, Leatherhead would be six feet under.

"Roberto!" I turned to find the Turtles and Bebop running down the stairs. It looked like they had come to rescue me after all.

Wait, Rocksteady and Bebop are here, I noticed. What are they- And where are their shirts?

There was another loud roar, and I turned in time to find Leatherhead back on his feet, glaring at Rocksteady.

"Yah gon' regret that," the mutant gator spat. "I gah-rown-tee!"

"Funny," my friend growled, cracking his knuckles. "I was gonna say the same to ya! Ya hurt Roberto, so you're DEAD!"

The two mutants ran at each other, colliding with such force, it was a miracle that they were both standing afterwards. Leatherhead swung at Rocksteady, but my friend ducked out of the way, aiming a punch of his own. He ended up hitting the gator's snout, making the villain stagger back. However, Leatherhead quickly regained his stance, opening his mouth wide and biting down on the rhino's arm.

I swore, letting out a word that would've earned me a soul-melting gaze from my Abue. I felt someone grab my arms and pull me to my feet, and I turned back around to find Mikey helping me to my feet.

"You're bleeding, dude," the mutant teen exclaimed, looking at my face. "C'mon; Donnie's got first aid!"

Leo and Raph ran by, weapons drawn as they headed for the two fighting mutants. However, they stopped a few yards away, watching Rocksteady and Leatherhead duke it out; they were probably waiting for an opening to get at Leatherhead. Rocksteady had freed his arm, and was now holding the reptile in a chokehold with one arm while punching him in the chest with the other. Both mutants were snarling and growling, more animal than man.

"Come on, Mikey," Donnie said, appearing to my left. "Let's get him out of here! Leo and Raph'll find an opening!"

The two turtles quickly half-led, half-carried me away from the dueling mutants, leading me back towards the stairs. Bebop was standing by them, an uncharacteristic look of shock on his face.

"Ya... actually got kidnapped," he asked, looking surprised.

"I told you," Mikey said happily, wincing as he remembered the situation that we were in. "But we gotta get Roberto out of here-"

There was a yell, and Raph slammed into a nearby wall, his shell absorbing most of the hit. Looking back towards the fight, we saw Leo laying unconscious nearby, and Leatherhead repeatedly punching Rocksteady in the mouth. I was shocked by how quickly the mutant gator had taken them out, given how quick and skilled the Turtles were, and how strong Rocksteady was. But then again, the reptile was ginormous, towering over Rocksteady as he punched him again and again.

Bebop seemed to snap out of his surprise, growling a little as he cracked his knuckles. Before Mikey or Donnie could react, he ran towards the mutant alligator, pulling something from his pocket. I saw a flash of silver, and I gasped, thinking it was a knife. However, it wasn't until after the mutant warthog slid the item over his fingers and pulled back his fist that I realized what it was.

Brass knuckles, I thought, wincing as Bebop hit Leatherhead with an uppercut.

The mutant reptile's roar almost drowned out the crunching sound that came from my friend's hit. The gator staggered back, and Bebop caught Rocksteady as he stumbled away from the villain. The mutant rhino's face was all bloodied, but he appeared to still be conscious.

"I'll go get Leo," Mikey yelled, letting go of me and running towards his brother.

Leatherhead straightened up, roaring and swiping at Bebop, who pulled Rocksteady out of the way while the villain's claws cut into the mutant warthog's side. Mikey reached Leo, quickly picking him up. The mutant gator noticed this.

"NO YAH DON'T," he yelled, diving towards the mutant turtle, mouth open and teeth gleaming. Donnie let go of me (which was fine; I was able to stand on my own), grabbing his bo staff as he ran to defend his brother. But someone else got there first.

KRACK!

Rocksteady's foot connected with Leatherhead's snout before he could reach Leo and Mikey, knocking the mutant gator off course. The villain rolled several feet before stopping, groaning and holding his snout. All of the Turtles looked shocked, probably not expecting a former enemy of theirs to save one of their own.

"Get back, Mikey," Rocksteady ordered, walking over to the mutant gator and stomping down on his back. The reptile mutant cried out in pain, but before he could react, my friend stomped on his back again. And again. And again.

"He's gonna kill 'im," a voice spoke up, and I turned to find Raph slowly climbing to his feet, holding his stomach. The mutant turtle raised his voice. "Hey, rocks for brains! You're gonna kill him!"

"That's the point," the mutant rhino replied, stomping down on the villain's back for the fifth time.

"Rocky, ENOUGH!" Bebop ran over to his friend, pulling him back. Rocksteady swiped at the mutant warthog, but missed. He tried to go back to Leatherhead, who was barely stirring, but Bebop held him back. "Calm down, man! Ya beat him!"

"He ain't beat until he's broken," Rocksteady yelled. "He was gonna kill Roberto, so I'm gonna kill him!"

"Rocksteady, STOP," I yelled, staggering over to him. I had never seen such a murderous look in his eyes. Between that and how he was acting, as grateful as I was for him saving me, Mikey and Leo, my friend was really scaring me. If Bebop hadn't intervened, he probably would've torn Leatherhead apart. "I'm okay! You beat him! Don't kill him!"

The mutant rhino stopped struggling, turning to me. His expression seemed to soften, going from rage-filled to confused. After a few seconds, he seemed to relax, his shoulders slumping and his fists unclenching.

"Roberto..." He shook his head. "I... I didn't mean to do all that." He looked down at his feet. "I'm sor-"

"ROBERTO," Donnie suddenly yelled.

Something grabbed my ankle, and I realized too late that by running over to Rocksteady, I had put myself within Leatherhead's reach. I also realized that there was a moat of sewer water nearby.

"Rock-" I started to say, but that was as far as I got before being dragged underwater.

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Bebop POV:

It was almost like the world was moving in slow motion.

I saw the gator mutant, Leatherhead, rolling into the sewer water, pulling Roberto with him. I saw the surprise and fear in the kid's eyes, his mouth opening to call for help. I heard Rocky start to yell, moving to jump in after his friend.

But, for whatever reason, maybe because he was hurt so bad, I held Rocksteady back and stopped him from jumping. Roberto and the mutant vanished underwater, leaving nothing but bubbles on the surface.

"ROBERTO," Rocky and Motormouth screamed.

Now, what happened next surprised everyone, especially myself.

I stepped forward, giving my friend one last push back, pushing him away from the water. Using that momentum, I took a few more steps forward before jumping, aiming for where the bubbles were. Closing my eyes, I tried not to think about how nasty the water was as I jumped in.

I didn't feel anything at first. Then, my hands grabbed onto something flailing around. An arm. Given its size, I knew it belonged to Roberto. At first, he tried to push me away, but then he stopped, probably realizing that I wasn't the bad guy.

I felt my feet hit the bottom. Feeling around for the kid's ankle, I felt something large and scaly covering it. I considered using one of my pocket knives to stab him, but most weapons barely fazed Rocky and me. With the hide on this guy, there was no way I'd make a dent in his scales.

Feeling around, I quickly found the mutants face and jabbed a finger in his eye. A loud roar cut through the water, and I felt Roberto kick away from the mutant. Kicking the mutant alligator back, I grabbed the kid and pulled him up towards the surface.

We gotta get out of the water, fast, I thought. Leatherhead's got the advantage, bein' able to swim.

As soon as my head broke the surface, I took a large breath, opening my eyes. All I could see was a wall, and I quickly turned to find Rocky and the Turtles standing by the ledge, anxious expressions on their faces.

"BEEPS," Rocksteady yelled. "ROBERTO!"

Roberto had also broken the surface, coughing and sputtering. Smarty and Motormouth dove into the water, grabbing him and pulling him towards the others.

"BEBOP," Leader yelled, and I didn't hesitate. I ducked back underwater, feeling something large and powerful sail over where my head had been. There was a splash right in front of me, and something heavy whacked me in the face, making me stumble back.

Opening my eyes, I looked in time to see Leatherhead stand up, holding his head and wincing. I noticed that the concrete ledge in front of him was cracked; it was clear that he had slammed head-first into it and stunned himself. Now was my chance.

I really had to push myself to move quickly, since the water was slowing me down. But I bent my legs, jumped up and out of the water as high as I could, and brought my fist (the one without the brass knuckles) down on the back of the mutant's head. I doubted a blow like this would kill the gator, but I tried to avoid hitting his neck, just to be safe.

THMMP!

Leatherhead slumped forward against the ledge, his eyes rolling into his head. He lay slumped there, still breathing, but out like a light.

A tense silence filled the space, broken by my and everyone else's heavy breathing. All of us seemed antsy, waiting to see if the mutant reptile was only pretending to be knocked out. But, after some time had passed with no movement from the gator, everyone sighed a little.

Woah, I thought, the adrenaline rush wearing off as my whole body started to ache. I haven't fought that hard in a long time. I spotted my shades floating nearby, and I grabbed them, noticing a crack in one of the lenses. Better than the whole thing bein' busted. I noticed my sides were bleeding. Gotta get out before these get infected.

"Beeps!"

Rocky was kneeling by the ledge, holding out a hand to help me up. I walked over to him and accepted the help, glad to be climbing out of that water. Then, under Leader's suggestion, my friend and I dragged the unconscious mutant out of the water so he and Mikey could tie him up. Nearby, Smarty was looking over Roberto, who had several cuts on the sides of his head.

"Are you hurt anywhere else," the purple-masked turtle was asking him. "Did you hit your head?"

"I... I-I'm fine," Roberto replied shakily, shivering in his wet clothes.

"We'll take you over to April's; she doesn't live far."

Smarty reached for a small pack on his belt, taking out a silver square. He unfolded it and I saw that it was one of those blankets firefighters give to people they rescued. and then he put it around the kid's shoulders.

"That'll keep you warm until we get there." He looked between, Roberto, Rocky and me. We'll need to clean those cuts out before we bandage them so they don't get infected. Especially since these open cuts were in water, and the amount of bacteria could damage-"

"I r-really don't need that image, Donnie," Roberto interrupted, hugging the blanket around his shoulders.

"Well, that went a lot better than last time," Red commented, still holding his stomach from where he had been kicked. "Took us over ten minutes to stop that Walkin' Handbag back in February." He turned to me and Rocksteady, seeming to force himself to get his next words out. "Thanks... for your help with him."

First Smarty showed concern for me, but even more surprising, Red thanked me. After getting over the shock of it, I couldn't help but smirk.

"What was that," I asked. "I couldn't hear ya."

The turtle glared at me. "I ain't gonna say it again, Pig Man!"

"Ya okay, Roberto," Rocky asked. "He didn't hurt ya too bad?"

"I-I'm okay," the human replied, still shivering and hugging his blanket around his shoulders. "But... H-How're you and Bebop here? Shouldn't you guys be w-working?"

"I asked them to come," Mikey spoke up, finishing tying the villain's hands together and walking over to us. "I figured they'd be good help against LH, and I was right!" He turned to Rocksteady and I. "That whole 'charging in like an actual rhino' thing was SO COOL! I mean, it was scary, but cool!"

The mutant rhino brightened up a little. "Thanks!" His expression then faltered, and he looked down at the floor. "Sorry for gettin' all mad before. I... kinda lose control when I get pissed off."

The orange-masked turtle smiled, patting him on the arm. "It's okay, dude! It happens to us sometimes! I mean, Raph snaps at least once a week and we still put up with him!"

"HEY!" Red lunged at his brother, who nimbly stepped out of reach.

"Roberto," Leader asked, tying the final knot around Leatherhead's snout, forcing it shut. "Are you doing okay?"

I turned back to Roberto, who was still shaking, despite being out of the water. His face seemed to be struggling to make up it's mind on what expression it wanted to show, shifting between sorrow, relief, anger, and fear. After a few seconds, it settled on anger.

"Th-Thanks for taking your sweet time getting here," he said sarcastically, glaring at the floor in front of him.

I looked at the others, wondering if they had heard the same thing I had just heard. Given their shocked expressions, they had. I turned back to the teenager.

"I... I know ya didn't just complain," I said, shaking my head. "After we risked our lives savin' ya? I KNOW I didn't just hear ya complain about us rescuin' ya!"

Roberto looked at me with that angry look still on his face, but didn't say anything. Now me though, because now I was angry and on a roll.

"Out of all the people here that should be complainin', it's ME," I continued. "Look at me! I had ta jump into SEWER WATER to save ya, after havin' to clean up for that stupid job ya made us go to, and ya wanna sit there and COMPLAIN?! After we just saved ya from becomin' ALLIGATOR FOOD?!" I shook my head, brushing Rocky's hand aside as he tried to grab my shoulder. "The only thing I wanna hear from ya right now is 'Thanks for savin' me, guys,' and if ya can't say it, then keep your mouth shut before I shut it for ya!"

"BEBOP," my friend snapped, pulling me back. "Calm down, man!"

Roberto glared at me, still shivering and hugging the blanket around himself. He opened his mouth to yell at me, but then he closed his mouth. He opened and shut his mouth again, his angry expression becoming uneasy. His lip started trembling, and suddenly, he was crying.

I've seen people in TV shows cry after being rescued. They would shed a few tears, crying into the chest of their rescuer at a volume to not overshadow the main character's dialogue, all while being careful not to smudge their makeup. But that just goes to show how different real life is from TV.

The kid was practically bawling, the noise echoing through the abandoned station. Tears streamed down his now red face, and his nose started to do that sniffling thing as his nose became stuffy. Frankly, he looked and sounded pathetic. Not surprising, Motormouth moved to presumably comfort him. But so did someone else.

Rocky and Motormouth exchanged an awkward look, both of them having moved at the same time. However, the young turtle nodded, motioning for him to step towards Roberto. My friend obliged, though he now looked uneasy, like he was almost scared to approach Roberto. Kneeling down in front of the teenager, the mutant rhino awkwardly cleared his throat.

"It's... It's okay, Roberto," he said, reaching out a tentative hand and setting it on the boy's shoulder. After some silent encouragement from Motormouth, he pat the teen's shoulder a few times. "You're... You're safe now."

Still crying, Roberto leaned towards the mutant, starting to cry into his chest. Rocksteady froze, looking like a deer in the headlights, and he looked over at Motormouth with fear. It was clear he wasn't bargaining for this to happen, and part of me wanted to tell him how stupid he was being, trying to comfort the kid. Especially after being chewed out for not rescuing him fast enough.

But there was something else gnawing at me. Some dark feeling in my chest... a painful feeling. One that I hadn't felt in years.

"Don't worry, Beeps. We're gonna survive this... I promise."

I blinked my eyes, pushing the old memory back down. Turning away, I started heading for the exit, just wanting to get away from this whole situation.

"Bebop!" Leader called after me. "We've still got to deal with Leatherhead!"

But I didn't listen. I just kept on walking as Roberto's crying continued to echo through the empty station.

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Leatherhead opened his eyes, his whole body twinging with pain.

"Urgh," the mutant muttered, feeling his snout, which was bruised and bloodied. He blinked his eyes, trying to make sense of his surroundings. "What's-"

"Finally up, huh?"

Leatherhead slowly sat up, taking his time, as his whole body was aching. He was surprised to see that he was no longer in the sewers. He sniffed a little, wincing at the pain in his snout, confirming his suspicions.

"I'm... home?" he muttered, blinking his eyes again as a large figure appeared over him.

"Ya got that right," the mutant rhino replied, glaring down at him. "The Turtles have some alien buds with some sorta tele-device or somethin' that brought us here. We figure the Punk Frogs can keep an eye on ya." The mutant tilted his head. "And by the way..."

WHACK!

The mutant alligator's found his face being shoved into the dirt, aggravating his already sore snout. He roared, but he felt too weak and in pain to fight back.

"If ya EVER come back to New York," the rhino whispered in his ear. "Or if ya EVER try'ta hurt Roberto or any of our friends... I'll strip all your scales off your back and hang 'em on my wall! Understand?"!

"... Y... Y-Y-Yep-p..." Leatherhead managed to gasp, tasting blood and dirt in his mouth.

"That's enough, Rocksteady," another voice said; it sounded like one of the Turtles. "We've gotta get going; Professor Honeycutt's gotta leave for another galaxy."

The mutant gator felt the hand on the back of his head lift up, and he heard footsteps walking away. Slowly looking up, he saw the mutant rhino and the Purple turtle standing nearby, the latter talking into some sort of hand-held device. The air shimmered around them, almost like a mirage, and then, incredibly, they vanished.

I... I hate dem guys, the villain thought, his head falling back down as he fell unconscious.

So this chapter got a bit more serious, with Leatherhead nearly killing Roberto, and a brutal fight between the mutants taking place. The end bit was to show how Leatherhead gets back to Florida after losing the fight. I actually had an idea for a Leatherhead spin-off story that takes place in this story universe, but I don't think I'll write it. At least not anytime soon.

But yeah, Bebop and Rocksteady's first day on the job is cut short, and Bebop's kind of fed up with everything that's happened since Roberto showed up, namely the strain on his friendship with Rocksteady. And as for Roberto... it's going to take a while for him to recover after what he's just been through.

Thank you everyone for reading this chapter and this story! Please R&R, and I hope you all have a great New Year! Keep an eye out for the next chapter!

-aggiefrogger