Leonardo was by no means a chain smoker, and he rarely indulged himself with more than a single pathetic cigarette every few weeks. He had found the crumpled, water sodden and half-empty packet laying teasingly on the railing of a porch on one of his many excursions to the surface. He had impulsively snatched it the second his three younger brothers had raced ahead to talk amongst themselves. The blue cladded thoughtfully flicks some ashes into the air, his tired gaze following them as they flutter into the alleyway below. The dusty grey flakes danced in the street light below, a choreographed ballet conducted by the gentle wind. As he watched, his eyes grew a tiny bit wider; the wind quickened for a brief second. The blue cladded turtle frowns deeply, visibly stiffening as one hand twitches towards the sheaths of his katanas.

Facing forward, the mutant turtle utters cooly and flicks the cigarette from his free fingers onto the ground, "It's been a while, Karai. What, couldn't find any old ladies' purses to nab?"

Leonardo pivots around on one foot, simultaneously yanking his blade from its sheath and locking it with the tanto that was cutting in a perfect arc in the air towards his exposed shell. Karai's painted red lips twist into a sneer as she hisses in response, "Always got to have something clever to say, don't you, freak?"

The blue cladded turtle slightly bends his knee and pushes forward with the flat of his blade, which sends the kunoichi stumbling several inches backward. "Heh, well, we've got to have a little bit dialogue between our little clashes, otherwise it would get boring pretty quick," He points out with a perk of his lips and a one-shouldered shrug, his eyes glittering in the pale moonlight above, "You're much more dangerous when you don't have something to keep you occupied."

Karai lets out a breathy spurt of laughter, before cutting it off abruptly as she begins to circle him with her tanto blade positioned close to her chest. The way her muscles were curled taut and her earthy brown hues were narrowed into dangerously focused slits, reminded the mutant turtle of a snake coiling into itself before it would strike.

"There is no talking your way out. Not this time, Leonardo. You," The kunoichi halted her pacing to stand in front of him, twirling her blade from one hand to the other and took a step forward. He took a cautious step back, his lips pulling into a thin line as his blue hues meet her's, "Forfeited your life when you worked up the guts to cross me. Any other occasion and I might have been impressed. Unfortunately for you, it was my father's life in the line this time around. Not some faceless nobody in the clan."

"I'm just kicking myself because we missed," Leonardo snarls in turn, showing a glint of his canines as his lips upturned into a spiteful smile.

"That's the last pass you get. Don't speak another word against my father — your future master," Karai abruptly interjects, her tone one of warning.

The blue cladded turtle felt a painful twist in his chest and his breath escapes his lips in a strangled gasp as he chokes out, "What did you just say? Tell me you're not that stupid to believe that I would ever join you —"

"You will," The kunoichi says as if it is an undeniable fact and not a foolish opinion. She rubs two of her gloved fingers together, picking at a loose string in the material, "I've made it clear since our first encounter that I want you by my side. You don't want the same things as your brothers—you're different. You've seen it, you've felt it, too, I know, Leonardo. Join me, join the Foot Clan and we can put that mess behind us. Your life can be spared," She offers a hand forward, moving to grasp the side of his face when he takes a step back, disgust clear in his gaze, "Here, let me make things simple. So simple that even you'll understand. I'm going to make a few little guesses based around that whole nasty situation with my father and at any point, if I'm wrong you just cut me off. One, you didn't want to fire at him. You didn't want to betray my trust, to turn your back to me when I so graciously stuck my neck out for you..."

Leonardo does not part his lips to speak and his blue hues are oddly still and wooden in their sockets. His mouth is pulled into a taut line, his thick, green fingers curled into pale, bloodless fists at his sides. Karai's painted red lips tug into a small, self-satisfied smirk and she nods knowingly.

"Two, it was your precious brothers who proposed the idea. Who pressured you into going through with it, despite how foolish and fruitless you know it would prove to be," Karai continues, her tone questioning. She then chuckles low in her throat, shaking her head from side to side in a slow, disbelieving manner when the latter stays silent, "You know I really did think you were different, but you and my dear old dad are a lot more alike than the two of you would like to think. You're just as single-minded and obsessed as he is... You just keep your mania focused on that makeshift family of yours."

The blue cladded turtle responds defensively, "It's looking like you've thrown the whole 'no talking' thing out the window, so I'll just say this," A muscle in his jaw twitches as he bites out, "I am far from the perfect leader my brothers and so many others mockingly call me, but I know that I am the farthest thing from your father possible. I know where my loyalties lie...where my heart and soul lie. And that is with my family, with my clan! You'll never get me to turn against them, Karai. I won't join you."

Karai cranes her neck towards the other rooftop adjacent to where they stand, where a small group of ninjas clad in traditional Foot Clan garb are standing at the ready with their weapons drawn. Growling more in annoyance than anger, Leonardo snarls with his bared teeth peaking from his lips, "And now that I've denied your kind offer you're going to try and kill me - emphasis on the try part. Big surprise there."

Karai cocks her head at him and utters coyly, "Kill you? I have no plans to kill you. For now," She tossed her head to the side, facing him as the short wisps of raven hair framing her face whip around in the wind and she goes on, "I've said what I needed to say, Leonardo. I want you by my side. So for the day my friends over there will just send you limping back to your pathetic family. We'll be seeing each other again soon enough."

With her words said, Karai was gone with nothing more than a cool rush of wind to signal her departure. Each side stood tense, waiting for the first move. One ninja towards the front pulled out his katana with a metallic hiss, presenting an open challenge as he offers one hand forward beckoning him. Leonardo quickly swipes a smoke bomb from his belt, throwing it into their midst, sending thick smoke over the rooftop and up around them. Most of them coughed loudly and stumbled back blindly, while a few of them drew their weapons. Instead of waiting for the smoke to recede to start his onslaught, the blue cladded turtle silently moved through it and back into the shadows, letting them slash madly at the swirling shapes with cries varying from panic and falsely assumed victory.

The smoke was eventually cleared entirely by the wind, but there was no obvious sign of the mutant turtle. Only half a dozen of the ninjas were left standing as the smoked cleared revealing the rest of their comrades out cold on the ground that might as well have cartoon canaries fluttering around their heads. One of the few standing ninjas makes his way across the rooftop, katana drawn at his side with his breath held as he waited in anticipation. Placing one foot on the edge of the roof as he lifts his blade high above his head, he peers at the ground below, eyes scanning the area around. A three-fingered hand shot up from the underside of the roof and with a startled cry the ninja is thrown off the edge and lands with a resounding thud on the fire escape several feet below.

Leonardo pounces upward with his twin blades pointed downward as he soars through the air, landing in a crouched position in the middle of the swarming ninjas. With a katana on either side of himself, he meets two clashing blades, gritting his teeth as they both push forward before he sends the ninjas on either side of him stumbling back. Then he lunges into the air again, snapping his legs apart into a split kick in midair, simultaneously knocking them out cold and sending them flailing onto their backs. Three choose that moment to gang up on him and while two seize his arms and wrench them apart, the third ravels his gloved hands around the turtle's throat forcing him backward.

Leonardo slams his head forward, cracking it against the human skull and ignoring the throbbing pain, he thrashes out his arms and swipes madly with both his katana. The two ninjas back up, sloppily evading the uncalculated swipes with the blades meant only to drive them back. It was in that moment he drove his balled fist forward slamming it into the ninja on his right stomach, before balling his free hand into the sleek black cloth of his uniform and throwing him like a sack of potatoes at the ninja on his left. The two topple like bowling pins, leaving only one ninja standing several feet away with a katana and tanto blade drawn in an open challenge.

The blue classes turtle rolls his shoulder blades in their sockets, and with barely a scoff he drives forward and meets the charging final ninja with ease.  He brought one katana blade up, easily defecting the opposing blade. He pushed the sword away but the user was already bringing his arm back, slicing towards the turtle's unguarded face. Their blades interlock in a resounding clash of metal on metal, before the mutant turtle, twists both of his blades simultaneously and forces the latter's blade upwards, before relinquishing it from his hands as it clatter across the rooftop.

Growling in frustration, the lone ninja charged with his tanto blade. As fast as he dodged, Leonardo didn't even feel the wind from the blade pass over his ducking neck. He slides to his knees, before quickly turning around again and went to all fours as he used his arms to brace himself as he mule-kicked the ninja. Sheathing one sword, the blue cladded turtle spins the blade in his grip before pointing the tip towards the latter's chest, silently requesting a surrender. The ninja's hands go up, but the grip on his tanto blade doesn't loosen in the slightest. And in a predictable move, he sloppily lunges forward and slashes the blade rapidly in the general direction of the ninja turtle's throat.

Everything at that point seems to slow down, going in tune with Leonardo's heartbeat as his eyes slowly widen and his lips part to release a strangled breath of air. He could easily lift his own drawn sword, send the tanto blade flying from the latter's grip. If the blade was too close to forcing his blade forward, then he could simply perform a snap kick and send the assailant flying back from him. In those precious moments, he could have done any number of things to evade the slicing blade, but he didn't because a sick, morbid curiosity overtook him. All he can think of in those agonizingly slow heartbeats was floating alone in the swirling torrents of dark, salty water, and the gargantuan alien's departing screams as his heart stuttered to an abrupt halt. Of dying.

"Kraang knows this...you, turtle will never earn the sweet release of death. No, you'll never...ever..."

Leonardo closes his eyes, his eyelashes fluttering as an agonizing pain like a thousand red-hot nails tear into his throat, ripping it open as blood arced into the air, a red ribbon in the pale moonlight. The cry that emitted from him was barely more than a wheeze as both of his hands claw at his mangled throat, trying futility to slow the blood that flowed like a lazy river. But, oh, there was so much blood - dark crimson, with a discreet, metallic scent. It cascaded across the turtle's paling skin, right through his fumbling fingertips. A bitter cold gnawed its way into his insides like a hungry rat making its way into his bones as he fell to his knees and began to slouch over onto his side. His surroundings blurred into a new sick reality as darkness pushed its way into his vision. With one final wretched gasping attempt to inhale through the gouts of claret, he goes completely limp and succumbs to the heavyweight of the shroud of darkness pressing in from all sides.

———

"State your number and designation," A voice crackles in the darkness.

"Number: MT-1987," Another voice replies, devoid of any emotion, "Designation: Guardian."

A beat of silence. "What is your purpose on the planet known as...Earth?"

"Mission statement: Protect the secret and defend the masters."

The silver moon was high in the sky giving off the only light, apart from the lampposts whose rays died inches from the dirty tungsten bulbs. On the rooftop, a mutant turtle lay in a breathless sleep with his eyes fixed and vacant, staring at nothing, a trail of dried blood dribbling over his lips and down his face. And though no wound is seen underneath, the once spreading stain of red on his throat had become stiff and hard against his skin. His heart is as still as stone beneath his yellow platted chest and his lungs are long bereft of air, his skin cold and pale. Then like lightning striking, his heart gives a single solitary beat, then another, then another until there's a long, steady rhythm going. Then his chest lifts upwards and intakes a breathe like it was made into an art form, his chest rising and falling with the sedative qualities of a lullaby.

Leonardo could feel his heartbeat, every single pound in his chest. Not through his ears, but that pounding, that great pressure, he felt from within. He slowly sits up, his head hanging low as his fingers twitch across his skin, trailing up the dried layers of blood clinging stubbornly to his skin. He gulps thickly, his bleary unfocused gaze darting around the rooftop as memories come rushing back to his conscious mind. His free hand abruptly slaps over his gaping mouth, frantically cupping it as a cry escapes his trembling lips. Every part of him wants to scream himself hoarse, to cry until his tears run dry, but he instead finds himself numb with this startling realization. With all the steadiness of a toddler taking its first steps towards their parents' waiting arms, he stands and takes one step forward. Every second that passes from that moment to the next is a blur, for he blinks and he's no longer on the rooftop, standing in a pool of his blood, but standing at the entrance of the lair, leaning heavily against the turnstiles. He absently notes that his feet are wet, hears the long since past splashes that had echoed through the space of the tunnel.

Raphael is stomping towards him, growling in agitation,"- a few minutes, my shell! We've been blowin' up your damn shell cell for hours now! I oughta wring your neck for this new 'tude of yours!"

Michelangelo is quipping," Yeah, dude, you've got the lose the attitude. The last thing we need is another Raph," He smiles as he puffs up, pointing to himself," Now another me on the other hand -"

"As you can see there's clearly no getting out of this one, so you might as well just suck on your thumb and follow me to my lab," Donatello states firmly when his face suddenly closes up and he shoves a hand in between his other two bickering siblings," Guys, stop! Quit it, now! Leo? Leonardo...?"

Leonardo lifts his head at the sound of his name, revealing the dried blood coating his throat that splashed down to his upper chest with a few stray flecks covering his entire form. "Don... I didn't..." The blue cladded turtle whispers hoarsely, stumbling forward as the latter quickly moves to catch him, "I'm sorry...I'm sorry... please... Just please..."

"Get Sensei! Get him, now," The purple cladded turtle screams, hands going over the evident source of the blood, only to frown when he can't find a wound," Leo - Leonardo! I need you to tell me where you were hit! Leo? Raphael damn it! Get over here and help me!"

"What do I do," The red cladded turtle inquires his voice thick, going to his knees beside his two brothers," Don?"

The purple cladded turtle snaps," I'm thinking! I can't find any wound, but this much blood...whoever did this...they're dead, Raph."

"So it's not Leo's," Raphael breathes in relief, eyes slackening.

"It can't be," Donatello confirms propping Leonardo's limp head in his lap," All I can think is that he had a less than friendly encounter topside, and now he's in some form of shock."

"Leo? Hey, c'mon, Fearless! Look at me! C'mon," The red cladded turtle hisses, repeatedly slapping the flat of his palm on the side of the limp turtle's face, but he gets no physical response,"...Leo? Oh, shit, Don. Shit, shit, shit... what the shell is wrong with him? Don — Don! Answer me!"

Master Splinter is suddenly bounding into the room, a fretful Michelangelo hot on his heels, and both skid to a halt beside the three turtles on the floor. The mutant rat gently pushes aside the purple cladded turtle, pulling the blue cladded turtle close to him as he closes his eyes and breathes in deeply. The red and purple cladded turtle stay on their knees beside him, watching with enraptured fascination as he lowly chants a mantra beneath his breath. A dull glow spreads across the mutant rat's hands and he stretches them out, settling them over the blue cladded turtle's yellow platted chest, making his eerily still form gleam in the faint lighting.

Master Splinter orders, "Michelangelo go boil some water. Donatello bring me some rags and retrieve my healing mantra scrolls from my personal library. You should recognize the emblem. Go, hurry now," Then he snaps his attention to his remaining son, going on to hastily add, "Assist me in moving your brother to his room."

One Week Later

It was strange, Leonardo thought as he stared at Master Splinter sitting cross-legged across from him on his bed. He closes his eyes briefly, gulping and though he knows tensing against the shaking of his limbs is useless, he does it instinctively. He attempts to drink in the silence, rather than wonder over the strange, awkwardness of it, to counteract the fear that threatens to engulf him. He exhales, blinking open his eyes to find the latter's eyes fixed on him, and even though he knows that the gaze isn't intentionally cold (it was hard to convey a lot of emotion when one had a rat's eyes) he couldn't suppress the shiver that went down his spine.

The mutant turtle and the mutant rat each had a ceramic mug of gyokuro tea encased in their cupped hands, and a wooden tray bearing the tea set was precariously balanced on the bed in between both of their forms. The tea set was made of an aging clay that had an ocean blue glossy interior with a speckled coffee bean brown exterior. The blue cladded turtle knows all too well that the thick silence that hung in the air would not dissipate until he spoke, for that was his Sensei's way. He often did not pry, not unless necessary, instead choosing to allow his sons to reveal their hidden truths in their own time.

"Sensei," Leonardo utters lowly, lowering his mug of tea with trembling hands. His eyes are averted away from the mutant rat and his mouth is pulled into a thoughtful line, "After... When I came back to the lair and you, all of you, had to see me like that...I...I... I'm sorry, Sensei. I don't really even know where to begin."

"You gave us quite the scare, my son," Master Splinter strokes the fibers of his beard in between two fingers, stating sagely to his pupil, "All stories start with a single word, so begin there."

Leonardo's royal blue eyes were glassy and fogged over with death. A single rivulet of blood ran down his cheek, still warm to touch, but quickly turning cold.

The blue cladded turtle flinches as if he had been struck, his eyes are blown wide as his hand hovers above his neck. "I-I'm sorry...I'm sorry, Sensei..."

The mutant rat waves his hand, his brows snapping together as he utters," Calm yourself, my son. I can see this approach is only further distressing you," The end of his tail flicks, lazily swinging behind him, "We shall go a different direction. I would like to address your...worrying behavior prior to this incident."

Oh. Leonardo gulps thickly, responding to the latter, "I'm not sure what you mean, Sensei."

"I believe you know precisely to what I am referring to. You have a new hardness to you, my son. You have begun to distance yourself from your family..."

"With the world at stake, the only thing of importance is that you complete your mission. No matter what you have to sacrifice...or who."

Leonardo cuts in as the latter trails off, wringing his hands together as he stumbles out with, "Do you remember what you told me just before the assault on TCRI?"

Master Splinter's expression is clouded with a sudden sadness as he admits solemnly," I do. I regret my words, my son, more than you'll ever know," His brown eyes bored into his son as he went on to say, "There is a part of myself I try to ignore when I allow you and your brothers to leave this lair, the part of me that is a parent, because if I only ever thought of you and your brothers as a father would...I would never be able to let you leave my sight."

"Sensei..." Leonardo murmurs in a soft voice, creasing his brows," You know that I don't blame you for what happened. It was right and it was necessary. I'm the leader of this team, and their older brother...their lives will always come before mine. I know this," He exhales shakily, keeping his lips parted," But ever since I went down with that damn Kraang ship...I feel like a part of me never came back from that water. Even now, I can taste the bitter salt in my mouth, feel the water filling up my lungs as my heart hammers madly in my chest. It's all that I see, all that I dream of ...a-and...and..."

"Leonardo, do you believe that these nightmares are beginning to affect your reality? The way you perceive your world," The mutant rat interjects.

The mutant turtle stiffly lifts his head up and down, choking out with a watery voice, "I-I don't want this. I don't want t-to feel this way, Sensei," He clenched his eyes closed as the familiar sting of tears enters his vision, his jaw tightening, "Sensei, I don't...I-I can't...get t-these images out of my head... A-and I'm trying, I am..."

"What occurred last night on the surface, were you or anyone else of import hurt," Master Splinter inquires of the latter, his hands clasping the handles of the tea tray as he begins to stand.

"No, Sensei," Leonardo answers truthfully, sniffing as he hurriedly wipes the underside of his eyes.

Master Splinter releases a long, weary sigh, the tea set clinking gently on the tray as he edges towards the door. He had held up a finger then, his eyes darkening from the seriousness in his gaze. "I'll let this go, Leonardo," He declares quietly, "But only for now. And if I get the slightest hint that your focus is being disrupted again, you are sharing, is that absolutely clear?"

Leonardo had swallowed at that, the part of him that would always be Master Splinter's tiny, helpless son quailing.

"Is that clear," Master Splinter repeats, raising his brows, and Leonardo nodded frantically.

"Hai, Sensei," Leonardo confirms verbally with a slight bow as he watches him depart with a swish of his dark robes.

"And one more thing - You will be taking a break from any sort of excursion to the surface until I say otherwise," The mutant rat adds, eyes narrowing and searching for any physical indication his son was going to challenge this order.

"Hai, Sensei," The blue cladded turtle repeats pitifully.

Leonardo goes to his feet, walking the small length of his room until he stops in front of the mirror hanging on the far side of his wall. The blue cladded turtle gently slides his fingers against the crease of his neck and feels the light thrum of blood pumping steadily through his veins. He observes in the mirror the steady rise and fall of his chest, watches with enrapt fascination as his warm breath fogs the glass. The blue cladded turtle reaches a finger forward swiping two diagonal lines on the misty surface that aligned with his eyes, before creating a long frown that lined up with his straight lips swipes his hand across the cool surface, wiping away the moisture clouding his reflection. He tears his transfixed gaze away, turns on his heel, and goes toward his door, hand tensing on the handle before he slowly turns it.

Immediately Raphael goes stock still in front of the punching bag Casey is holding, his fist frozen in midair. "Leo," He states aloud, tense," Sensei told us you were up and talking."

"I even managed to tie my own shoes," Leonardo quips, a hint of a smile on his lips.

Donatello asserts quickly, "You're looking better," He begins a brisk walk towards him and stops a few inches from his older brother, "But another checkup wouldn't do you any harm."

The blue cladded turtle agrees with a slight tilt of his head, crossing his arms, "Yeah, okay. If it'll keep you off my shell, Don."

"Oh," The purple cladded turtle utters, blinking in surprise, "I was expecting a bit more of a fight, but alright. If you'll just follow me."

Leonardo wordlessly followed Donatello towards the direction of his laboratory. Immediately the purple cladded turtle guides him to the large metal table situated off to the side of the room, patting it to imply he needs to jump on it, and with a roll of his eyes, the blue cladded turtle obeys. The purple cladded turtle turns his back to him, sorting through the toolbox that acted as his first aid kit, unexpectedly yanking out a bone saw, before laughing nervously and shoving it back into the box. Then he pulls out a simple glass thermometer, holding it gingerly by the end.

"Alright, bend over and cough for me," Donatello orders him, his face stony.

Leonardo blushes a bright shade of magenta, stuttering out in objection," What? No - No, absolutely not -"

"Joking! I was joking. You're a turtle, not a puppy. The mouth will work, "The purple cladded turtle chuckles, patting his hand on the side of his brother's face and as the latter obediently opens his mouth, he cautiously guides the thermometer in," It should take around three minutes. Hold still and keep that under your tongue - No talking! And stay still!"

The blue cladded turtle stiffens, his lips puckering around the delicate piece of equipment settled snug under his tongue. The purple cladded turtle either doesn't notice his older brother's tenseness or he's simply choosing to ignore it. The older mutant turtle eyes scrutinize his younger brother as he hums to himself whilst securing the torn and frayed cuff of a blood pressure meter to his lower left bicep. His younger brother's practiced fingers glided over his skin, settling over the slot in his wrist to take his pulse.

"Hmm. Let me see the thermometer," Donatello commands, pulling his fingers away from his brother's wrist and snatching the thermometer, "85.66 Fahrenheit. A little above normal for a red-eared slider, but nothing to get worked up over. Your blood pressure is another matter entirely, and you're going to have to make some changes."

"'Changes'? What kind of changes," Leonardo demands with a frown, his brows raised.

The purple cladded turtle wags a finger, grabbing a clipboard from beside the latter. "Don't test me on this, Leo," He clicks a pen and begins to scribble onto the clipboard," High blood pressure is bad enough for your average Joe human in their late 50's, but you're a 15-year-old mutant turtle. And another thing -"

The blue cladded turtle tunes out the latter's nonsensical rant, his eyes diverting to a large bin at his side, which has a knob of an oxygen tank protruding from the top. "Don," He starts lowly, before inquiring," What's this in this bin here?"

"Huh," Donatello grunts out, then he directs his gaze towards where his brother is looking," Oh, oh that! That's just some diving equipment I found a couple of dumpster runs ago. I've modified it to fit my specifications, to you know, accommodate a shell, and I've managed to patch it up quite nicely. Sometime in the next few weeks, I'm wanting to take it for a test run."

Leonardo abruptly blurts out," Can I?"

"Hmm, what? You want to take it for a spin," The purple cladded turtle questions.

The blue cladded turtle gives a nod, telling him," Yeah! I mean, if you think it's safe enough for you to take it for a spin -"

"I don't see a problem with it," Donatello interjects," I mean, I don't see why you'd be interested in it, but if you really, really want to. We can take it sometime next week."

Leonardo bumps his brother's shoulder with his knuckle, replying to him, "Sounds good to me! Now, if you're done chewing me out on my health..." The latter's expression tenses and he opens his mouth to say something, before quickly snapping it shut, "Is there something you want to add?"

"Leo," The purple cladded turtle utters weakly, one hand settling on his forehead, "Last night - Shell, I don't even know where to start -"

"Then don't," The blue cladded turtle cuts in, "Forget that it happened. I'm fine, Don. I'm fine."

"But you weren't, Leo," Donatello objects, distressed, "Not last night. I thought...I thought you'd gone catatonic - !"

Suddenly Leonardo choked. Blood sprayed from his lips and a single tear ran down his cheek. Then slowly, ever so slowly his eyes fluttered closed behind the slits in his mask. Then his lips parted, his last gasping breath of air escaping. His chest stopped moving and his heart ceased beating. Leonardo was dead.

Leonardo settles his hand on his brother's shoulder, his eyes boring into him. "Don, I..." He paused, then shook his head, "I can't. I just can't."

The purple cladded turtle whispers," Leo, you're shaking..."

The blue cladded turtle raises one hand in front of himself, shocked to see the limb tremble uncontrollably, his fingers twitching as if grasping at the empty air. "Can't you just let it go for now," He asks, then he closes his eyes briefly, and there's a visible tick in his jaw. He clenched the same hand into a fist and lets it hang at his side, before continuing," I'll tell you when I'm ready, but for now...I'm asking you, I'm begging you...Let it go, and tell others to do the same."

Donatello bobs his head up and down stiffly, responding to his brother," Okay. Okay, I'll stop asking, for now, Leo."

Relieved, the blue cladded turtle states a simple," Thanks, Don."

———

"Is it me or is Leo still actin' like really off," Casey comments giving a furtive glance towards the turtle walking furthest behind, "I get a really weird vibe around him now, and it's startin' to creep me out, yo."

Donatello nodded thoughtfully, remarking, "For once I agree with puck-head," He quickens his gait, going to stand between his two other brothers, "He's been oddly distant and when we try to close that distance, he gets jumpy."

"Real jumpy, dude! It's like he's scared of us, " Michelangelo adds with a sad frown, "This morning I just tapped him in the shoulder and he practically pounced three feet in the air." 

Raphael quickly shoots a look towards the turtle that was the topic of the conversation, and he notices him intentionally walking at a much slower pace, his eyes flickering warily around the area they're walking. "Maybe Sensei shouldn't have let him out tonight," He comments cooly, crossing his arms over his chest, "I mean, he's not even doing his usual schtick. No rehearsed plans, no cheesy one-liners before we attack - Nothing!"

"If I didn't know better, I'd say you missed our Fearless Leader," The purple cladded turtle comments teasingly, nudging his brother with his elbow.

The red cladded turtle scoffs, "As if," Despite his adamant denial, his expression betrays him, "Okay, maybe I do. So what? There's nothin' we can do about it. The dude is a closed book."

Leonardo speaks for the first time since the group had left the lair, startling the group and making them immediately fall silent. "Quiet, all of you," He abruptly snaps, lifting one fist, "There's a Kraang patrol up ahead. We move in at my signal."

"' Bout time! I was about to call it a night and head home," Casey whispers, flicking down his mask with one finger, "Finally! Get to bust some heads - Goonga - !"

Leonardo thrust his arm in front of the human, not even flinching as the human ran head-on against it, stumbling back with a wheeze and clutching at his throat. "That's funny, I don't remember giving a signal. Verbal or otherwise," He says dryly, not noticing the human and the other three turtles staring at him with their jaws hanging, "I'm going to scale the side of the building so that I can get a better look at their numbers and weaponry. Keep an eye on me and wait for the signal."

With soundless steps across the concrete and a front flip towards the opposite building, the mutant turtle is out of sight. Immediately the human boy squeals in a hushed whisper, "Damn! When did he get so strict? I think he dented my windpipe -"

"Don't be so dramatic," The purple cladded turtle interjects, keeping his steely gaze skyward, awaiting the signal, "Let's just all keep our eyes open. He's not in the mood tonight, so I don't think any of us should push his buttons... And by us I mean Raphael."

"Hey! I'm not the only one that butts heads with him," The red cladded turtle objects with a growl, "Besides, it's Mikey we should be worrying about. He's the one that was plannin' on puttin' ketchup packets under the toilet seat to rile him up!"

"Uh, guys -" The human starts, pointing towards the rooftop.

The orange cladded turtle exclaims in dismay, "Great! Now you've ruined it. Besides, it wasn't just meant for him," He raises his hands in mock surrender, "I don't discriminate with my pranks. Anyone is game."

"Guys, for real-" Casey hisses more insistently.

Donatello snaps, "Giant who cares! Both of you had better get used to walking on eggshells around him!"

"Dudes! The signal," Casey shrieks at last, frantically wagging his finger towards the empty rooftop, "Well, he's gone now...I think he got tired of signaling and left - Wait -"

"Holy chalupa - He's taking on that entire Kraang squad himself," Donatello exclaims in shock, sliding his bo staff from the sheath on his back and charging towards the building.

Raphael draws his sais, twirling them expertly, before charging after his brother, muttering under his breath, "Great, now we're gonna get an earful."

"Booyakasha," Michelangelo exclaims enthusiastically as he spins his nunchucks, before catching them back under his armpits, "That we are, my bro."

"It is the ones known as the turtles," One Kraang robot utters, raising its weapon cautiously, "How does Kraang wish to proceed, Kraang?"

"Kraang will distract the ones known as the turtles, while Kraang captures the one known as the leader of the ones known as the turtles," Another Kraang answers, turning his weapon towards the approaching group.

Donatello growls, "They're after Leo! But why -"

Leonardo slashes the katanas that are in either hand simultaneously, slicing two of the robots in half while their alien occupiers squeal and begin to drag themselves away by their tentacles. "Ah, so you guys haven't left me here to my inevitable doom," He quips, raising his twin katana in front of himself, "How lovely."

"We'll write you some apology notes later," Raphael retorts, shoving his sai into the underside of one of the robot's head, "Why are they after you - ?"

"Does it matter," The blue cladded turtle barks out, grabbing the spindly, metallic arm of one of the robots attempting to pin him to the wall, and throws him over his shoulder, "They're after me, and they're not laying off!"

Casey grunts, swiping out another robot's feet from under it with his hockey stick, jesting aloud, "Maybe they're experimenting with attitude adjustments."

"Well, I'm sorry if I'm less than cordial when a bunch of alien robots are trying to -" Leonardo yells out, throwing a shuriken at the head of a robot sneaking up behind the latter, embedding it in its eye with a spray of sparks,"-dissect me!"

"Thanks, dude," The human grunts in appreciation, "Now, duck!"

The blue cladded turtle goes to his knees, sliding across the pavement with his swords on either side of him, and severs several robot's legs. He goes to his feet, sheathing his sword as he declares, "I think that was the last of them."

The purple cladded turtle inquires, "Why the shell were they after you specifically? I mean, there are four mutant turtles, why choose you - ?"

"I don't know," The blue cladded turtle interjects harshly, "I think that wraps it up for the night, let's head back to the lair."

"There's somethin' you're not tellin' us, man," The red cladded turtle snaps, "Look, I know we've been ordered to just step around the topic, but I can't take it anymore more - You've been actin' off ever since you went down with that damn ship -"

The water angrily surges just below his neck. The blood seeps from the wound in his shoulder, spilling into the rising waves.

"-and you ain't been yourself! Now, you better fess up right here and right now -"

Blood gushes from the tear in his neck, pulsing past his scrabbling fingers. The metallic taste fills his mouth.

"-what are you hiding from us?"

Leonardo gulps and he can feel his pulse pounding in his temples. "I..." With hands clasped tightly in front of his stomach he constantly fiddled with his knuckles, weaving his fingers in and out of each other," I...I don't...I can't..." His fingers fumble into his belt, clenching desperately around a smoke bomb.

"Leo," Donatello starts, raising a hand behind himself to signal the others of the group not to approach, "It's okay. Whatever it is...you can tell us. We're your brothers, your teammates. There is nothing you can say, nothing that will ever make us turn our backs to you. You have to know that."

Michelangelo adds softly, "Yeah, my bro. We may not have ears, but we'll listen."

The blue cladded turtle slowly lifts his head, acknowledging lowly, "You say that now," He crushes the smoke bomb within his grip, instantly engulfing the area with thick white smoke. He weaves into the obscureness, crouching low as he backs out of the area the group occupies, "But you have no idea...none..."

———

"Look, Leo. I know you've been having your difficulties lately. I mean, whenever I talk to one of your brothers it takes a lot of willpower to keep myself from telling them to just stop with all the complaining, you know," April starts tentatively, her eyes scanning over the mutant turtle, "And when I get a call from one of your brothers, saying they have no clue where the shell you are is a pretty good indicator that your brothers are being a bit...overprotective."

"They called," Leonardo groans, burying his face in his hands. After a brief moment, he lifts his head back up. His gaze flickered back towards her and the human girl smiled at him, but his friend didn't return it.

The human girl gently tells him, "Everyone needs to get away sometimes. I get it."

Hesitantly, the blue cladded turtle inched forward, stating aloud, "Yeah. But it's... I don't know how to explain it. It's different, somehow," A barely noticeable flush is highlighted against his cheekbones, "All I know is.....I-I can't go back, at least not right now."

"No situation is gonna be the same, Leo, "April replies knowingly, "And hey, I'm not here to criticize anyone. I've done my share of stupid things in the past too. But the funny thing is, if you never do anything stupid, you'll never do anything smart. My dad tells me that."

"I know what I'm doing is stupid! I can't avoid telling them for the rest of our lives," Leonardo admits sheepishly, "But...I don't know what else to do. For now, I just need some space from them."

"Hey, is that all you need to talk to me about?"

The turtle glanced back up sharply. "Yeah," He answers curtly, "As I said, I just had to get away for a bit. I just wanted to know what you thought, and all. Y-you won't say anything to them right?"

April shook her head, reassuring him, "Of course not! My lips are sealed," She makes a locking motion over her lips and sends him a wink, "So where are you going?"

Leonardo lets out an exasperated sigh, stating, "Home. It's getting late- or early, I suppose." He says looking out the window as the sun slowly rose, "I think I've given my family enough heart-attacks lately."

"You don't look like you wanna go back."

Laughing, the blue cladded turtle finally cracked a smile. The human girl didn't know what was stranger, seeing him being curt and straightforward or watching him now that he was more comfortable with her. Either way, it wasn't the mutant turtle she was used to. Watching the way the barely-there smile makes the corners of his eyes crinkle, the girl decides with her smile she could get used to it.

"I don't. Shell....I-I don't want to."

April takes a deep breath, suggesting to the latter, "Look, why don't you stay the night? Dad is out of town until tomorrow, so you wouldn't have to worry about being seen."

Leonardo shook his head, replying, "That's cool of you, but I'll be all right. Besides, I'm already testing the limits enough as it is."

Leaning forward on the couch, April puts her hand on his. "Hey, if I weren't worried about you, Leo, I wouldn't be offering. But that's something a friend does from time to time. You've helped me out on more than one occasion when I thought I had things covered. The least you can do for yourself is to trust me here."

Leonardo gulped nervously as his wide eyes took in the latter, and a blush spread to his cheeks. He sighed and rather guiltily, he nodded. "All right."