(Nine Months after the deaths of Hamato-Tang Shen, and the presumed death of Hamato Miwa)

Nobody noticed her, and that's why it was so easy to do what she needed to do. She was still learning, but it turned out she was very very good at what she did. She was small for her age, and she was quick. That helped too. If she stayed away from places where a child would be noticed, it was easy. As long as she hid at night, moved in the shadows and the alleys where most adults wouldn't see her, and mark a little girl far far too young to be out so late, it was really easy. She was far from helpless, and she was far from stupid. She had grown up fast, and she had figured out what she could do, and what she had to run from.

If she could ignore all the things her mother had taught her, it would always be easy. Of course, that was the problem. She knew that she had to take care of one person-herself, but it didn't matter what her head told her. Her heart wouldn't let her turn away when she saw something wrong.

This evening, she had climbed up onto the lower levels of a fire escape to eat the food she had bought at the corner bodega. always put extra in her bag. A lot of adults were too distracted to notice what was in front of their face, but sometimes they could be good. They could be trusted. She just had to be careful who she chose to have faith in.

She had finished the hotdog, when she heard someone below say "Gimme your wallet and this doesn't have to get ugly."

She looked down, already pulling out her slingshot.

This had gotten out of control so quickly.

Yoshi was no fool. He had come to this city only 2 months ago and already knew its rhythms. He had gotten some help from a local charity, finding him a job stocking shelves for a local grocery chain and a tiny low-income apartment. The work was tedious but honest. The fact was he was still grieving, and he needed time to figure things out.

That was likely why he had been targeted. Normally he was extremely aware of his surroundings, but his mind was still heavy with sadness. It weighed on him and tired his senses. The three men had gotten the jump on him in the fading light as he walked home after his shift. They pulled him into the alley and demanded his money.

He was just deciding if it was worth a fight when he heard a strange tight thwack and one of the three men cried out and clasped his hand to his face. Blood seeped through his fingers.

Yoshi half turned and saw the figure at the bottom of a fire escape. Already the cup of the slingshot was pulled back, and reloaded. But..they were so small. Not even quite four feet tall. A child. The figure wore a slightly oversized military surplus jacket, with the hood up, hiding their face. Jeans on skinny legs, and sneakers.

"The brat shot me!" The man roared in pain and anger.

The child fired again, making the men break. Two went for Yoshi, and the wounded one went after the kid.

Yoshi met the two men and laid one out with a quick blow with the heel of his hand to the man's solar plexus. The second man aimed a punch at the same time, and Yoshi dodged it seemingly without effort.

It was only when the child cried out, partly in pain and partly in anger, was he distracted so the man's next blow made contact. Yoshi stumbled back and then delivered his own blow to the man's temple. He crumbled unconscious.

Yoshi turned to see the last man, with the child by the back of the coat, a long knife in his other hand

The child cried out again, and the man jerked the figure back so that the hood fell back exposing the kid's face. It was a little girl, her face framed by a mass of brown hair that fell just below her ears. She was no more than seven, and her dark eyes darted from the man, to Yoshi, and then back to the man. She looked terrified…but more so she looked angry.

"Wallet, and get back or I'll gut her" the man snarled.

Yoshi drew back, relaxing his stance to be as non-threatening as possible "You may have it all" he said softly "Let the child go."

"Throw it down" The man snarled, and that's when the girl kicked backward with all her strength. Her aim was true, a heel at full force into his groin. The man cried out in pain and anger, and threw the girl to his left. Yoshi heard her small body strike the iron stairs of the fire escape. She came to rest at the foot, unmoving.

The man barely had time to react before Yoshi was on him like a storm. He was unconscious in less than three seconds.

Yoshi left them, and in a moment was kneeling by the fallen child. She was breathing slowly, and he gently turned her over.

As he did, the coat pulled up and he saw bruises on her arm. Not fresh from these men….old bruises. The size and shape that matched a man's hand. He looked at it, and then at her, and his mind turned, trying to decide quickly what to do.

Her head hurt. She winced as she opened her eyes, blinking owlishly in the light. Her bed felt weird….not the same. Slowly, she turned her head and her eyes focused. She was looking at an unfamiliar room, a small living space that seemed to be a combined living room and bedroom. There was a chest of drawers in her direct line of vision, next to a window. On the top, was some kind of small shrine with a framed picture at its center that she couldn't quite make out. There was a small ivory statue of a man sitting crossed-legged in robes, and nearby a stick of incense burned smelling sweet. There was a folded piece of cloth to the left, a white colored silk with something painted in it in green.

A man spoke to her left, softly "Child? Are you awake?"

She reacted like a flash, pushing herself off on what proved to be a sofa, and spinning to face the voice. She swayed and her hand went to grab at a pocket that wasn't there. Her shoes and jacket had been placed on a chair across the room.

The man was in the doorway. He was maybe in his late 30's or early 40's, of Asian heritage. His eyes were mild on her, kind, and he didn't move. He was dressed in a soft pair of dark pants and a white button-up shirt.

He held up one hand "I will not harm you, Child. You are safe here."

She watched him with narrowed eyes, and then said "You ... .you're the guy I saved."

Yoshi smiled a little, and gave her a little bow of his head "I am that guy. You are very brave, little one, but reckless."

The girl relaxed slightly "Where am I?"

"My home. You were hurt, and I brought you here because I couldn't ask you where your home was…"

"Can't go home now." The girl said quickly, with something like fear "I can go home later."

Yoshi studied her for a moment. "Then you will go home later," He said gently "Until then, I would offer my thanks for your efforts to rescue me. Would you like dinner, child?"

The girl blinked and then nodded. She smiled slightly "Yeah. Please?"

He returned the smile "My name is Yoshi."

"I'm Jessie." The girl smiled and then sat back down. "My head kind of hurts still."

"You were lucky. There is no concussion. You will feel better soon, Jessica. I promise." He said.

Dinner was miso soup and a bowl of rice with an egg on top. It was a simple meal, but the girl ate like she had never seen food before. She hesitated to ask for more, so Yoshi offered it and she ate three servings to his one.

Yoshi was unnerved by what he was seeing. The bruises, the way she watched everything like she expected something to happen any moment, the fact she was so hungry. None of this was good.

Yet, the girl began to chat with him as she ate, some of the carefulness falling away. She was bright and quick. He found himself chuckling as she talked, and she was full of questions. She was in the end, a little girl that wanted to know everything.

"You talk kinda weird." She said, "Are you from New York?"

"No child. I am from another country, Japan. I come from a city called Wakayama, although I have lived in Tokyo awhile." Yoshi said.

"Oh." She said proudly "I'm from New York."

He smiled gently "And who has taught you to be a marksman with your weapon?"

Jessie looked confused until he mimed pulling back the slingshot cup.

"My slingshot" She beamed "My mom gave it to me. She taught me how, and I practiced. I'm really good. I got that guy, right? Bang!" She grinned. "If I had another shot, he'd have gone down! I don't like bullies. They ganged on you, and that wasn't fair. They were bad men."

"Your mother taught you well" He smiled "When you return home, you must tell her….." He trailed off as her smile vanished. In a moment he understood.

"My mom died." The little girl said "Last year."

He nodded softly, "I am sorry, little one." He said. He paused, "Your father?"

"He's not home," She said quickly. It was the first lie she ever told Yoshi "He's not home, no one's home. So I can't go home."

He considered this. The tone, the quick way she dismissed any talk of her father. He was starting to get a clear picture that he didn't like. Some of the old anger in him sat up at the thought of what this might mean about her. "Do you go to school, child?"

"Sometimes." She said, looking away.

He nodded slowly "Then….you may stay here until you can go home. So you will be safe. When you go home, I will take you." he paused "It is growing later, child. One so young as you should not be on the streets after dark."

"I'm okay." She said "I know what to do. My dad's not home right now, but I can go home a little later. Before it gets really dark. Ok?" She looked around the apartment. There was a small kitchen, half the size of the main room, and a tiny bathroom beyond. That was the only room, the other door leading outside.

"Where do you sleep?" Jessie asked and Yoshi motioned to the sofa she had been lying on.

Jessie got up, and moved to the small chest by the window. She studied the shrine. She could see now the photo was of Yoshi with a woman, who was holding a baby. The three looked happy. She looked back at him, "Who are they?"

"My wife and my child," Yoshi said softly "They died not long ago." He rose and came to stand beside her "This my wife made for me. I leave it here In remembrance." He picked up the scarf and opened the cloth. It was painted with green dye, a network of delicate vines and leaves.

"It's so pretty" Jessie nodded sadly, "Can I….touch it?"

He nodded, and gently placed it in her hands.

"Ohhh…it's so soft" She ran her fingers over the material. She studied it for a moment, her eyes far away in thought. Then she carefully gave it back to him.

"I'm sorry." She said softly. She looked back at the shrine and then did what she remembered seeing her mother do at special places like this. She folded her hands and bowed her head silently for a long moment. Then very softly she said "Mom? Please be friends with Yoshi's family so they aren't lonely where you are."

He watched this and smiled softly "Thank you, Jessica. I have faith your mother hears your words." He refolded the scarf and placed it back on the altar.

She lived a few miles west of his apartment. His neighborhood was poor, but hers was in a part of the city known for drug deals and gangs. He was even more disturbed that she had been out alone in the fading light.

She just shrugged "I know what to do. I'm okay."

She led him to her building but wouldn't let him go inside with her. Try as she might, the child was too young to really know how to hide the unease from him. He decided not to push the issue for now.

"Can I come see you again, Yoshi? I can find you again. I know the way now." she said.

He knelt to be face to face with her "Yes" he said "when it is light out. When it is safe for you to come."

She nodded "Okay" and then surprised him by putting her arms around his neck and hugging him. He brought his arms up and held her for a moment, suddenly thinking of his lost daughter who would never be seven years old. The idea that this child's father allowed her to be alone…maybe hurt her himself…made the slow deep anger rise in him. How any parent could reject the gift of a child….more so how any parent could hurt their own child…it was unthinkable madness.

"Thanks, Yoshi" She stepped back and grinned. It lit her face "I'm glad we're friends" and with that, she went inside leaving him on the street looking up at the building.

Two days later he returned to his apartment in the early evening hours to find Jessie sitting on the stoop of the building, leaning on the railing asleep. He let her in and fed her. He tried to find out more information from her but she refused to answer his questions.

This time when he offered to bring her home, she said her father was working overnight. That she lost her key, and couldn't get into the apartment. Could she sleep there until morning, and then she would go home before school?

He agreed but he didn't like it, mostly because she was so clearly lying. Something terrible was happening to this child, and he needed to help. But how? What to do. Surely there was someone he could alert. The police?

Yoshi didn't know what to do. He was here on a temporary visa, awaiting a chance to apply for naturalization. He couldn't afford trouble- being deported back to Japan, back to the Foot and Saki, would be a death sentence- but he couldn't turn his back on the child. He was aware of how some people might see this- an adult man with a strange child in his apartment. Still, he could not bring himself to send her away. Shen would not forgive him if he did so.

He made her a place to sleep on the floor, a little nest of pillows and blankets. She settled into it with a contented sigh. After a long moment, she said "Do you know any stories? My mom used to tell me stories if I couldn't sleep."

He smiled a little and sat back on the sofa. "There once was a boy who drew cats." he said softly "Big cats, and small cats. Thin cats and Fat cats. Long cats and short cats. All manner of cats, and his drawings were the most skilled in all of Japan. It was said his cats were almost alive."

Jessie listened as he told her the story of the boy who drew cats, her eyes half-lidded. As he told the story he could see her slowly falling asleep. By the time the tale was told, she was deeply and peacefully asleep.

It became a pattern, not every day but every few days.

A week after he had met the child, one of the other building tenets pulled him aside. Her name was Mrs. McCony, and she had always been polite to him, if not particularly friendly. Today she had a blue scarf tied over her white hair, her green eyes sharp.

"Have you seen that little girl that keeps hanging around here?" She asked. "Brown hair, kind of brown-green-gold eyes. Whatta call it, hazel?"

"I have" Yoshi said

"Do you know who she is? She keeps coming around like she's waiting for someone, but she doesn't belong here. She should be home, but she just runs off everytime I try and ask her where she's from." The older woman folded her arms "I don't like it."

Yoshi answered carefully, "I think she is a neighbor's child."

"Well if you see her, call me. I want to know what's going on. And Joe's going to want to know too." Their landlord lived in the top apartment, and Mrs. McCony kept him informed of anything she thought was wrong.

He talked to two of his co-workers on his next shift as they stocked the grocery store's storage room shelves. He was careful not to give them details, only that he suspected that a neighbor's child was being neglected and abused.

"I mean you can call in a Department of Child Welfare report." Gene, one of the men, said. "They'll take it."

"Waste of time," Said Jose as he set a crate of lettuce on a shelf "They're so backed up, you'll be lucky if they get to her in a year." he looked at Yoshi "And half the time, the foster families are just as bad, or worse. Listen, Yoshi, you're better off leaving it alone. Someone at her school will call it in. You don't need the trouble. Keep your head down until your paperwork is all set, and they can't send you back. Believe me, you don't want any part of this kind of thing. It's just a sad fact of the city. Some kids, well….they fall through the cracks.

Yoshi didn't answer, but he knew. He knew that no matter how much sense that made, he couldn't follow that advice. He wouldn't be able to live with himself. Shen would never have left a child in need.

When he returned that afternoon, Jessie was not on the stairs. When he put the key into his door though, she popped up from the alleyway that ran behind the building. She had a large bag at her hip, the strap going over her opposite shoulder. She smiled when she saw him "Hi Yoshi!"

He smiled despite his mood "Hello Jessica." He said, "It's very good to see you." He opened the door "Will you come in?"

She slipped in and half turned "I brought dinner!"

He looked surprised, "Did you?" he said.

She proceeded to open her bag and bring out two cold-cut subs, a bag of chips, and two cans of soda. "See?"

"A feast" He smiled. He wondered where she had gotten the money to buy food, but he didn't ask. Instead, they sat at his tiny kitchen table and ate.

She told him about her day at school. From her bag, she produced a small sketchbook and a tin box of colored pencils. She opened the book and turned it to show him the drawing she had made.

She had drawn him, Shen, and Miwa as they appeared in the photo on the shrine. He was astonished at the drawing, the girl was very skilled. She was obviously still learning, but she had a skill level far above her age.

"This is very beautiful." He said, "Do you like art, little one?"

She nodded "I want to be an artist when I grow up. Miss Lenox, my teacher, says I can. She likes my drawings. I thought you would too. It's for you."

He smiled as she tore the page free and gave it to him. "Thank you, child. I will treasure it." He carefully folded it into his pocket "When I was a boy I wished to be an artist as well. I used to read about all the great masters. Michelangelo, Raphael, Botticelli."

"Were they artists?" Jessie asked, fascinated.

Yoshi got up and returned with a large hardcover book. He opened it on the table and began to show her the great paintings of history.

Within a month of their meeting, she was coming every other day. She was careful now that the other tenets wouldn't see her waiting for him. Sometimes she came in the afternoon, and sometimes she came in the morning when she knew he wasn't working. He would feed her, and she would sit and draw as he cleaned the apartment. She always helped with what chores she could, and she brought him food and small things he needed. She would sometimes sleep there, on the floor in a little nest of blankets and pillows he made for her. She stopped making excuses, she would just say she couldn't go home until the morning.

And he saw fresh marks on her arms, and sometimes the smudge of a bruise on her chin, or her cheek. Sometimes he caught her limping a little. And so, despite his own fear of where this would all lead, he allowed her to stay more and more. He didn't know what else to do. The fact was the more he allowed her to stay in the apartment, the fewer her injuries.

When he was not working they would go to the park and walk. She showed him her favorite places including the Alice in Wonderland statue. As they spent more time together, her cautionary watchfulness vanished and she was just a little girl, playing and running and climbing.

Sometimes on those days, he would use the open space to practice his skills, keeping his training. She started sitting and watching but then moved to trying to imitate what he was doing. The girl was quick and agile…but more so she was stubborn. When she lost her balance or did something wrong, she was back on her feet trying again.

He began to slow his motions, showing her how to properly do each move, showing her Kata that would allow her to practice. She was bright, and she picked things up quickly.

The most important thing he tried to teach her was that fighting was for when you had no other choice. You ran unless you could not run. Then you fought, but only to open up an escape.

"To fight should never be the goal" he explained in a warm afternoon about a month after they had met. "The morning we met, I would have let those men have my money. It was not worth a battle. I only fought when I saw you were in danger."

Jessie considered this "I made it worse" she said glumly. "I was trying to help you."

He smiled softly "Your heart is great, Jessica. You crave to make the world better. This is nothing to be ashamed of. You must also make your mind great, so you may make wise choices and then your heart and mind will be one. Then you shall do the greatest of deeds."

He sat on a nearby bench and motioned her over "I have a gift for you" he said. She came to him curiously. He held out his hand and showed that it was empty. Then he reached behind her head and produced a silver key in a long silver chain. She laughed and he put the chain around her neck.

She took the key and looked at it curiously. "What's it for?"

"The door to my home." He said. "I know you do not want me to know why you stay away from your home. But I know you have your reasons, and I hope that someday you will trust me with those reasons. You need a safe place to go. Even if I am not there, my home is a safe place for you. I promise you this, child. You will always be welcome there, and you will always be safe."

She looked at him surprised and nodded. Then she looked back at the key and said softly "I…I want to tell you Yoshi. But…..I don't want….." she stopped, her shoulders hitched, and she started to cry softly. Not like a child in a tantrum, but almost silently as if she was afraid she would be punished for it.

"Jessica" he spoke gently and drew her to him in an embrace. He held the girl, his hand cupping the back of her head. He rocked her, and he began to sing softly under his breath in a language she didn't understand but knew to be a lullaby despite that. She put her face against his shirt and cried harder.

They stayed like that for a long time, and when she finally calmed down, he looked at her.

"I know you are afraid." He said "There is no shame in that either. I will be here when you are ready to tell me. I will never never judge you, little one."

"You won't think I'm bad?" She asked, almost in a whisper.

"Nothing in this world could make you bad, child. You are a gift" he said gravely.

She nodded, and one hand came to touch the key, and she tucked it under her shirt for safe keeping "Okay. Thank you." She gave him a small watery smile "You're a good guy, Yoshi. Like my mom was."

He smiled gently at this, but his mind was troubled. There was a part of him that wanted to meet her father- and visit on him what he was doing to her.

Her father had this gift. This child. Yoshi missed his wife and his daughter every day with an ache he knew he would always carry. This man HAD what Yoshi had lost, and yet…yet here she was hurt and alone and afraid. The man who should have been her protector, and her heart, was her tormentor. Yoshi knew this to be true, and the anger in him at the idea, at her tears and her shame, burned in him.

The child did not need anger. She needed care and compassion. He made the anger lay still.

The key meant that almost daily now, he came home to find the little girl asleep on the floor, or woke to find her in the apartment already. There was always food ready. She had figured out how to use the rice cooker, and she had already known how to cook simple things. Often there would be food that he didn't buy. Jessie would tell him she had money, but she never explained where she was getting it.

He told her stories often, and they would look through his books of art. The Renaissance, Japanese art, and medieval art. She ate it all up.

And sometimes they drew together. He used a little of his pay to buy her a new sketchbook, and a tin of high-quality artist pencils.

She also cleaned, although he made it clear he had no expectations of her. It was as if she was trying to prove to him she was someone worth keeping around.

She did tell him some things. Mostly about her mother, but sometimes she would talk a little about her father, and this only made him more sure his instincts about the man were right.

He was able to coax one piece of information from her that only troubled him more. He woke one morning nearly eight months after they had met, to find her sitting on the floor drawing in the sketchbook. She had let herself in sometime overnight. She smelled faintly like beer. Not her breath, but her hair.

"Where did you get beer?" Yoshi asked her.

"I didn't." She looked at him from her drawing and he saw a dark smudge of a mark near her jawline. "I tripped and bumped dad and he spilled it."

He motioned her over, and gently turned her head to look at the bruise "Someone has struck you."

She shook her head "I fell" she said, quickly. Practiced.

He frowned a little and got the first aid kit. Her father was drinking, and drinking so much that he was unable to keep his feet. Yoshi had her press a cold pack to her face and went to finish preparing the food. He considered his options. He knew what a striking blow looked like. She had not fallen. He ultimately decided to let it rest for the moment, but it sat in his mind as a poisoned pearl. What could he do? What was the best way to help her?

As he lay out the meal, he picked up the sketchbook and smiled a little despite himself. She had drawn herself, taking a pose of one of the kata he had taught her. It was a rough sketch, but she had captured the stubborn expression she always wore when she was learning. Behind her, he was doing the same Kata, although she had not finished drawing him. He looked calm, serene even, and his expression had a touch of kind humor to it.

They ate and he checked her face again. She seemed uneasy and watched him as he did. She said "I'm sorry. You can't help. I know you want to." Her eyes were careful and full of shame. He hated seeing that in her. She was not the one who should be ashamed.

He didn't reply to this right away "Have I told you what the greatest truth of the ninja is?" He asked.

She shook her head

"We do not fear to do the impossible." He told her, gently.

She thought about it for a minute "I don't understand."

He smiled "That is good. Now you have something to think on until you do. It is a mystery for you."

She smiled in return, and she hugged him. He hugged her back, for a long moment and then said "You are safe here, Jessica."

"I know." She said softly. She paused as if she wanted to say something else and then she said "You're my best friend."

He smiled at this, and set the girl beside him on the sofa "Shall we tell a story?" he said.

"Yes!" She smiled, her hurt forgotten "About the boy who drew cats!"

"I have told you that one so many times, child." He laughed a little.

"It's my favorite." She said,

"As you wish. There once was a boy who drew cats….."

Soon she was lost in the rhythm of his voice, and the vision of the story, and for a little while things were alright.

The very last day they had together, although they didn't know that at the time, was at the park again several weeks later. Yoshi had saved some money and had bought a small kite shaped like a bird. He took Jessie into the park, to Sheep Meadow.

He showed her how to hold the kite and how to run with it. She watched, as she always did with those bright eyes taking in everything, and then did as he had shown her.

The little girl flew, moving so fast he had trouble keeping up. The bird's wings rustled in the wind, and in moments Jessie had the kite in the air and climbing.

"Look!" She laughed, pointing. Yoshi caught up with her, also laughing "Yes, you've done very well!" He beamed "Now let it climb" he stood behind her, putting his hands on the string with hers to show her how to control the kite.

The wind was strong and warm, her face turned up to the sun, her hazel eyes full of light. She turned her face to him, laughing excitedly and he felt a swell of emotions in his chest at that look. Something he had not felt since he had held Miwa in his arms.

The word "daughter" had not touched his lips since his first child had died. Looking at her smile like that, he had to admit to himself that that word had been growing in him when he thought of this girl, he felt the word in his heart looking at her.

This child had come to him. This miracle in darkness. He realized at that moment that he would have to act. Somehow. He could not let her suffer anymore. He must act soon. Even if it cost him his chance in this country. He no longer could be silent. She needed him to be her voice. She needed a father.

By the next night though, it was too late.

The pain was incredible. It was the whole world, as his body twisted and convulsed. His skin was on fire as thousands of strands of fur forced their way through, his spine twisted as it elongated into a tail, and his face forced into an animal's muzzle. There was pain, and horror as his mind struggled to cope with what was happening in this dark alley.

Instinct took over. To bite and claw until he could get away. His mind overlapped that with his knowledge of fighting arts. The rat who had been a man only moments ago, turned and took down the last of the strange men that had attacked him, striking out and snapping his jaws.

He collapsed against the wall of the alley, a range of smells and sounds never before accessible to him, overwhelming him. He held up his hands…paws…something in between and stared in horror. There was motion to his left and he turned his head.

He had stopped at a pet store after his shift. A small pet would give him more company, and give Jessica a companion when she came. He saw the four little turtles and lifted each out of their enclosure to examine them. He then handled a rat and was charmed by how bright her eyes were, and how much she reminded him of Juliet. He nearly chose her, but then saw that the little turtles had all turned to watch him in their bowl. He thought that four little friends might make Jessica even happier than one, and so he made up his mind.

He had been carrying the turtles in a bowl on his way home before stumbling on the strange men, seeing the glowing thing they held, and being pulled into the alley and forced to fight to escape.

The glowing glass had broken, spraying both him and the turtles with the chemical. Then the pain began.

The turtles were not turtles anymore. At least no turtles that he knew. They were green, with shells, but they now stood on their hind legs and reached toward him with three-fingered hands. They were the size of toddlers, and they looked afraid.

He was afraid, his mind was in a whirlwind of fear. But the turtle's eyes broke through it. They were children, and they needed help.

A harsh voice broke through only a short distance away "This is the place of the battle that Kraang will be joining! Kraang will hurry now!"

Yoshi scooped up all four turtles and rushed up the fire escape. Whatever the glowing ooze had done to him, he moved with more ease and power now, and his ears were sharp as he ran from the voices.

He found refuge many blocks away in an old maintenance shed on the roof of an apartment. As the drones went by with their scanning purple light, he crouched down and hushed the turtle children.

Jessica would be waiting for him by now and felt his heart twist. He could see enough of himself to know he was a monster now. The child would be terrified of him, and even if he could make her understand he would be leading these things straight to her. They might hurt her, or kill her. Or use the glowing substance on her.

He watched for the lights through the cracks in the boards, soothing the turtle children, his heart heavy.

Four days, and they had managed to stay ahead of the Kraang. They still traveled at night, and he had scrounged enough long baggy clothes with a deep hood to hide his form. The turtles he nested in a large box he could carry with both gloved hands.

He had found a broken mirror and seen his face the second night. A beast's face. A rat. He had not looked again.

He paused in the alley now, watching the door of his apartment…or what was once his. He knew he was taking a huge chance, but he needed just a few things. If this curse was to be on him, he would at least take what was precious with him as they found a safe place to hide.

At least, he would take some of what was precious to him.

He silently opened the door and stepped in. He laid the box on the floor. The turtles slept inside.

The room was dark, but his eyes were better in the dark now and he saw her right away. She was on the sofa, curled up with one hand loosely curled against her cheek. She was asleep, deeply asleep. She didn't even stir.

He could see evidence around the room that she had been there for at least a few days. Half-done drawings, and paper plates in the trash from her meals. Her face was drawn and tense even in her sleep.

At the sight of her, his eyes filled with tears he hadn't even known were there. And his new sharp nose picked up the faint smell of salt from her skin. The child had been crying before she slept.

He made himself look away, to the family altar. He crossed the room silently, took the photograph of his family, and tucked it into a pocket of the coat he wore. He took the scarf, and as he started to turn he saw he had placed the drawing Jesse had done of them doing kata together folded on the table. Quietly he took it, and carefully tucked it beside the photograph, safe in his coat.

He started to leave and then stopped and looked at the scarf in his hands. He bowed his head, and opened the cloth to its full length. He knew he was taking a chance but he had to. He couldn't just leave in the night, maybe this would let her understand. Maybe she would know that he had never wanted to leave her behind.

He had an urge to just take the girl in his arms and run with her and the turtles. He could protect them all. Then he need not break his promises. He couldn't leave her here, to believe he had abandoned her. That she might think he didn't care for her after all. Never know that he had come to love her, as he had loved his first daughter. How could he leave her here in the care of a man who only wanted to hurt her….his own child…a monster? A true monster.

She deserved to know she was loved. To be protected and cared for. There was no justice in this.

It was madness, desperation. He could not do that to her. He could not risk her to these creatures that now hunted them. No. Because he loved her, he could not take her with him. He knew this. It was terrible, but it was the truth.

He looked at Jessica asleep and thought Shen, my beloved. Please do what I cannot. Protect her. Give her strength. You would have loved her as a mother should. Please help her.

He stepped to the sofa and softly lay the silk scarf over the sleeping girl. She stirred just a little as the cloth came to rest on her.

"Oh my little one" he whispered "Please forgive me."

Then he turned and took the baby turtles in their box and was gone, rushing into the night.

He was on a rooftop four blocks away when he heard it. Faintly behind him, but clear as his ears twitched.

The voice of a little girl, crying out his name into the darkness.

She had dreamed of Yoshi's voice in anguish, asking her to forgive him. She woke in darkness. Her hands brushed the light silk lying over her shoulders. Her eyes shot open, and she sat up to find Yoshi's scarf lying over her.

She clutched it to her chest and rushed to the door. A great panicking fear, fluttering like a small bird trapped in an attic, beat at her mind.

She ran to the sidewalk in front of the stoop and cried out into the darkness. "YOSHI! YOSHI!" she began to sob as she called out.

There was no answer "YOSHI!"

Someone above her yelled from a window "Shut up, Kid!"

She half turned to look up the street "YOSHI!" She started to run forward, but a hand came down on her shoulder. She cried out and tried to pull away.

There was a man there, not Yoshi. An older man, in his mid 60's, with a shock of white hair.

"Where the hell did you come from?" Joe asked, and then almost to himself "Damn it, McCony was right."

"Let me go!" Jessie yelled, "I have to find…."

He saw the silver key around her neck and frowned. He lifted the key and pocketed it. "What the hell was that guy's game? Were you in the apartment with Yoshi? Who are you, kid?"

He half led, half pulled her inside. She had dissolved into tears. As angry as he was, he felt a wave of pity for the kid.

"Did he hurt you? What the hell was that guy doing to you?" He asked.

Jessie didn't answer. He sat her on his sofa, gave her a box of tissues, and went into the kitchen to call the police to come and get her.

When he came back, the window was open. It led directly to the fire escape. The girl was gone.

Three blocks away, she dropped the wallet she had stolen earlier in the night, the cash in her pocket, and headed back to her apartment. Her father….

That's not my dad. My dad is gone.

… would hopefully be passed out. She carefully folded the scarf into the inner zipper pocket of her jacket so Kevin Walker wouldn't see it. She had to protect it. She had to. When Yoshi came back for her, he would want it.

It felt like her life ended there, but of course, it didn't. She went forward. For a few more years she survived under the rage of the man who was her sire. She couldn't think of him as her father anymore. She waited, understanding she still needed to learn before she could survive alone. She watched and waited. She practiced her skills and learned new ones from any source she could find.

Then one day, when she was about 10, she closed the door of her childhood apartment and disappeared into the city. She never saw her sire again.

Years passed. She worked alone and slept alone in dark hidden places. But eventually, she connected with other kids like herself and formed partnerships that became friendships. They took a secret name amongst themselves- they were Shadow because they went unnoticed. Not children but shadows.

They invented a leader, the Manhattan Queen. They spread rumors that they served her, a woman of great power and skill, and it worked. Many street gangs wouldn't bother with them when they noticed them. It was too much trouble to risk the "queen's" wrath.

Jessie grew taller and grew in her skill. She learned how to take care of herself, and so she could take care of others. Over the years, on many nights, she dreamed that Yoshi would come back to find her again, and finally take her home.