1 year and 6 months... That's how long it's taken to finish this story. Was that how long i intended? No... Was it worth it? Hell freaking yes! Guys, after months and months of preparation and work, i am please to present the final chapter... of this story...

Before we begin, i would like to mention a few people who have helped me along the road continuously and greatly...

grapejuice101, bluebarnowl, and TheMysteriousSecretiveWriter. They were the ones who helped me constantly, even when I had writers block. Thank you guys, for everything! If there was anyone else that i forgot to mention, please forgive me. My human brain is not perfect, i can't remember everything.

Now, without further a due...

Enjoy...

Ch. 28
Showdown: Part 2

You know, of all the ways this mission could've gone, I didn't expect this. Not by a long-shot. I was sure once we had destroyed the portal that we would be home free. But, staring up at the gigantic Technodrome, I felt immensely grateful that April, Vanessa and Angus were safe in the lair.

"I think I speak for all of us when I say… Ah! Ah! AHH…!" Mikey screamed fearfully.

"You and me both, buddy!" I piped up, my voice shaking slightly.

"What the heck is that thing?!" Raph yelled.

Leo, who was still on Raph's back, responded, "It's the end of the world!"

"Actually," Donnie cut in. "It just the end of humanity's rain as the planet's dominant life form. You know, like, when the dinosaurs-"

"Now?! Really?!" Leo cut him off angrily. "You're gonna do this now?"

"Well, excuse me!" Donnie snapped. "But, it's how I deal with stress!"

"Guys, stop it!" I hollered. "We gotta stop fighting and get away from that thing, we have no idea what it's capable of!"

"Well, maybe it doesn't have weapons," Raph said, rather hopefully. "Does it look like it has weapons?"

I had just enough time to turn my head before several, giant pink lasers shot out passed us.

"Guys!" I yelled. "It has weapons, and big ones!"

As soon as I spoke, the weapons started firing at maximum amount. I had to constantly swerve and duck and dodge just to avoid getting hit at all. The boys were the same, yelling as they looped around and around to avoid the lasers. Mikey soon went out of control, and he rammed right into Donnie.

"Donnie! Mikey!" Leo yelled.

The two went spinning as they crashed into the roof of a nearby building. I gasped and instantly went after them, dodging the lasers. I landed gracefully onto the roof and ran over to the other two.

"Guys, are you okay?" I asked urgently.

"We're cool!" Mikey said, helping Donnie up.

"Where're the others?"

I whipped around, looking up at the sky. As soon as I did, I saw the figure of Raph start falling down, heading towards the alley next to the building we were on. I gestured for the other two to follow me, and we all ran over to the ledge, leaping over it and sliding down fire escape.

As I landed on the ground I saw Leo laying on a filthy mattress, and Raph was leaning out of a nearby dumpster. I would've laughed if the situation wasn't so serious.

"Are you guys alright?" Donnie asked.

"Been better," Raph groaned.

At that moment, a huge shadow loomed over us, and I looked up to see the Technodrome hovering above us. Somehow, it looked scarier down here than it did when I was up in the air.

"What do we do now?" Donnie asked Leo.

"We need to talk to Splinter," he said. "C'mon!"

"Hello? Sensei?"

"April?"

"Spike?!"

Raph looked around the living room, searching for his pet. Then, there was movement from one of the pillows on in the pit, and Spike lifted his little head. Raph immediately ran forward and picked the little turtle up, placing him on his shoulder.

"Oh, don't scare me like that, buddy," he sighed, smiling down at his pet.

I grinned at him before looking around. Aside from the pet turtle, the whole living room seemed to be empty. I would've expected Vanessa and Angus to at least be in this room when we got here.

"Where is everyone?" I said out loud.

"I dunno," said Mikey.

He turned and started heading towards the dojo, and I followed behind him. To my surprise, Sensei wasn't in here. I was sure that he and April would've been here. Maybe he was in his room?

"Anyone in here?" Mikey asked, looking around.

"Sensei?" I called out. "Are you there?"

But there was no response. Then, from behind me, I heard shuffling. I glanced behind me, and gasped as I ducked to avoid the oncoming staff that had been heading for my face.

"Mikey, watch it!"

I heard Mikey yell as he avoided the staff too. I looked up and was surprised to see Mr. O'Neil was the one wielding the staff.

"Wow dude, chill!"

"Hey!"

I whipped around to see Leo, Donnie and Raph running into the dojo. They all leapt forward and pinned Mr. O'Neil to the ground. I ran forward and snatched the staff from his hands.

"What the heck is going on?" Raph said, staring down at Mr. O'Neil.

"Guys, check this out!"

Donnie pulled the back of Mr. O'Neil's collar down, and we all saw a small, metal object attached to the back of his neck that was blinking pink.

"Kraang tech, anyone?" I said.

It took Donnie half an hour to take the object off of Mr. O'Neil's neck. Whatever it was, it was making the man act super strange. It wasn't until Donnie had removed it that he finally had a chance to get a good look at it.

"So, what is it?" Leo asked.

"I think it's a mind control device."

"Really?" Raph asked wickedly, and before any of us could stop him, he snatched the device from Donnie and pulled Mikey forward by the arm.

"No, stop it! Stop it!"

"Raph," Leo said sternly.

Raph rolled his eyes and released Mikey. Then, from behind us, there was a low groan. I turned and saw that Mr. O'Neil was awake again and was now sitting up on the couch.

"Mr. O'Neil?" Donnie spoke up as we all ran towards the tired man. "Are you okay?"

Mr. O'Neil rubbed his forehead. "I… I've done something terrible…"

Donnie put a hand on his shoulder. "It wasn't your fault, Mr. O'Neil."

"Yeah, you were being controlled against your will," I said. "Just tell us what happened and we'll take care of it."

Mr. O'Neil stared up at us, then lowered his head as he sighed.

"It appears the Kraang have formed an alliance with your enemy, Shredder," he said. "That's not all. I fear Shredder has handed April over to the Kraang."

"Shredder kidnapped April?!" Donnie yelped.

"Sensei must've gone after her," said Raph.

"But, what about Vanessa and Angus?" I asked urgently. "They're gone, too."

"Ugh… it's kind of blurry…" Mr. O'Neil said tiredly. "But… I do remember leading April away from the lair, and… and Vanessa and Angus followed me. Once they realized what was going on they tried to run, but…"

I felt my heart stop. Shredder kidnapped Vanessa and Angus too? What did he do with them? Did he hand them over to the Kraang as well? Or… did he do something much worse…? If so… it's all my fault that they're in this mess in the first place.

I felt a warm hand on my shoulder, and I turned my head to see Raph looking at me.

"They're okay, Nia," he said. "Don't worry."

I gulped, and nodded, trying to convince myself that Raph was right.

"So, where is April now?" asked Donnie.

"They're taking her to the Technodrome," said Mr. O'Neil.

"The what?"

But before Raph's question could be answered, there came a voice right behind us. And it was coming from the TV.

"Carlos Chang O'Brien Gambe here. Pandemonium in the streets as a… Techno-terror-dome… hovers over downtown…"

"Dudes," Mikey quivered. "This is gettin' freakier by the minute!"

"We just escaped that freaky sphere!" Raph snapped. "Now we gotta break into it?!"

"We don't have a choice, Raph," I said seriously. "April's in there, and Vanessa and Angus are probably in there too. We have to help them before something bad happens to them."

"In a manner of hours," said Mr. O'Neil. "The world we once knew will be gone. The Kraang want April to help in their conquest of Earth!"

April's P.O.V.

I could feel something cold and metal across my chest and legs, holding me down. Memories of what had happened flashed, and I struggled to wake up and open my eyes. A few moments later, I opened them. The first thing I saw was a pair of big, yellow eyes before I realized I was staring up at a Kraang alien. Not like the usual little brain things. This one was huge- gigantic even, and was contained in some kind of metal sphere that was holding it up in the air. I gasped at the creature before instinctively trying to move around, but I was kept still by the metal arms holding me down.

"April O'Neil…" the Kraang drawled out softly. "Kraang has waited a long time…"

"Where am I? What's going on?" I asked, looking around the room. Then I gasped, "My friends! Where are they? Where did you take them?!"

"The humans that were with you during the drop off were put into a separate pod from yours," the creature said lowly. "They will be brought here, and placed into one of our chambers. Do not worry, they will not be put to waste. They will be used by Kraang for future experiments for Kraang, just like the other humans we have captured."

I glared up at the alien. "Who are you?"

"Like all Kraang, I am called 'Kraang'. But you can call me 'Kraang,'" it answered. "Kraang has need of this planet for Kraang to live on."

"Um, that's great, but we're kind of using it," I said waspishly. "So, you came all this way for nothing. Bummer."

"No… Kraang came all this way for you, April O'Neil."

I scoffed. "Oh, really? As if I have anything to offer to you Kraangs!"

"Your mental energy is uniquely in tuned to this universe," said Kraang. "Once Kraang gains this ability, Kraang will transform your world into a world for Kraang…"

I gulped, feeling my heartbeat start to pick up much more.

"And… how are you going to do that, exactly…?"

Kraang didn't answer. But, as soon as I spoke, multiple strange, long, mechanical devices shot out all around me, all of them glowing pink. They all made strange whirring sounds as they inched closer and closer to me. I started struggling against the metal bindings, but couldn't budge. The second the devices touched me, I felt a sudden jolt and I screamed.

Splinter's P.O.V.

"Oroku Saki… You were once my friend, I thought of you as my brother. There was a time where I would have trusted you with my very life. But, 15 years ago, I was a different man. I had everything I could want- a loving wife and a beautiful daughter…"

I blinked, and for a moment I could see myself, 15 years earlier. I was sitting in my home next to my wife, Tang-Shen, and holding my beloved daughter, Miwa. Then, the memory faded, and I was left standing in front of the monster who took that family away from me.

"And you, my loyal friend… Jealousy consumed you. You sought that which was mine. You took everything that I loved. Everything! And still, you hunt me down!"

The memory of my home erupting in flames flashed in front of me, and I remembered being crushed underneath the rubble as the Shredder walked away, never looking back.

"So, I fight you now… to end this!"

I clenched my fists tightly, and without another word I leapt forward, Shredder doing the same. We met in the center and I spun and aimed a powerful kick that struck his face. He aimed to strike me once, twice, and on the third time I leapt up into the air and landed back several feet, grabbing my staff off of the ground. Shredder charged at me, and I ran forward, raising my staff to block his blades from hitting me. But then he aimed a punch at me that managed to strike my torso. But, I recovered quickly and slipped by him, leaping into the air and aiming my staff at his head. But, he dodged, and rolled out of the way. He leapt up to the upper level, and I tossed shuriken at him, but missed. I then leapt up to join him on the same level.

There was a short pause, in which we glared at each other. I spread my feet out more on the class, but suddenly it fell open, and I fell down onto the concrete below me. I quickly pushed myself up, shaking my head as I looked back up through the glass, but Shredder was gone. I got up to my feet and looked around, standing in defense. I slowly walked around the area, keeping an eye out for the Shredder. I heard movement from behind me, and I whipped around, throwing more shuriken. But, the stars only met with one of the decorative boulders that surrounded me down here.

I stood very still, staring around me. He could not stay hidden forever. Then, I heard movement above me, and I looked up in time to see him charging down towards me. I raised my staff and blocked his attach, pushing him back. When I looked up, he was gone again. Then, from behind me, there was a loud noise, like a lever being pulled. I turned around and saw sudden bursts of fire, coming closer and closer towards me. I turned and ran forward, leaping off the boulders to stay above the fire. On the last boulder, I gave a powerful leapt, and landed back above onto the main floor. I looked up to see Shredder standing there. The second I looked at him, he lunged at me again

I aimed my staff at him, but he blocked it. I spun around, blocking his next two hits. I lunged my staff forward towards his face, but he blocked it with his blades, a second later slicing the top. He leapt up into the air, aiming his blades at me. Little does he know that the top of the staff was just a holster for the katana hidden inside. As he lunged at me, I lunged at him as well. Somehow, we were both able to avoid each other's blades. He slide passed me and halted just a few feet away from me.

"Why must you persist in this insanity?!" I demanded of him.

"You took Tang-Shen from me!"

"She was never yours!"

I grabbed the end of the hilt and pulled it out, exposing the long rope inside. I swiftly threw it forward at Shredder, who raised his hand to block it. But, the rope had wrapped around his gauntlet. I leapt up into the air, moving the rest of the rope around his torso, tying him up. I landed on my feet and raised the blade up, lunging at him as fast as I could. Shredder managed to raise one of his arms and blocked my attack. But, my katana managed to slice off one of the blade from his gauntlet.

"You never had anything but your hatred!" I yelled. "And if you defeat me, you will have nothing!"

Shredder growled loudly before finally busting through the ropes. He lunged his blades at me, and I leapt back, landing far away from him. Shredder straightened up, and to my surprised, he reared his head back and roared with laughter.

"That is where you are wrong!" he bellowed. "You took something from me, so I took something from you- Your daughter!"

My heart seemed to stop right at that moment. My blood ran cold, and my whole body felt numb. No, it couldn't be true. Miwa died in the fire with Tang-Shen. But… we never could find her body, but I thought she had just perished in the flames. But, this… can't be true… it couldn't be true. I felt the katana in my hand slip a little.

"No… it can't be…"

Nia's P.O.V.

The surface was complete chaos. People everywhere were screaming and running, completely in panic. What was more, the Technodrome had dispensed some kind of pods, and they were swooping all over the city, scooping up pedestrians.

Right now, the guys and I were crouched behind a few abandoned cars. On the other side was a large group of Kraang droids, and a pod.

"We gotta get in one of those pods," Leo whispered.

"But how?" asked Donnie. "There are eight Kraang droids between us and there."

"We could create a diversion."

"Well, whatever we do, we gotta do it fast," I said. "Those pods aren't gonna be there forever."

"Excuse me, how many did you say there were?" Raph asked.

"Eight."

"We could all dress like robots!" Mikey said enthusiastically. "Sneak in!"

I chuckled as I rolled my eyes. Leo and Donnie were not so amused.

"Or… I could try to override their security codes by-"

But Donnie's explanation was cut off at the sound of grunts and banging metal. We all whipped around, and I was surprised to see Raph standing on top of one of the pods. Apparently, he had snuck passed us and took it upon himself to take care of the droids. He gave the decapitated on that was standing next to him a good kick, and knocked it off. Then he raised his sai into the air, and cause the droid's head on the blade. He smirked at us, spinning the head on his sai.

"Or… that might work…" Leo said shortly. "Let's go."

We all leapt up over the cars and jumped into the pod. I walked up to Raph, placing my hands on my hips.

"You never fail to surprise me," I told him. "And that's saying something, considering we both grew up with Mikey."

Raph flicked the droid head off of his sai, smirking before winking at me. I looked at him curiously.

"Hold on," Donnie said, reaching up and pulling the glass shield down over us.

We all kneeled down as the shield shut on us. A few moments later, the pod hovered up a bit, and then started to float away into the sky. The pod reached closer and closer to the Technodrome, until a small door opened up, and the pod floated through it. The inside was nothing but a long, seemingly endless hall of chambers. Hundreds of other pods were floating down the hall, some being pulled off into different chambers by mechanical claws.

"Okay guys, this is it," Leo said in a hushed voice. "On three. One… Two… Three!"

Raph grabbed the edge of the glass shield and swung it opened. We all made to jump out, but the second we stood up our bodies all lifted up into the air. I felt my stomach backflip as I yelled out in surprise, the boys doing the same thing.

"Bloody hell- what?" I hollered.

"What the heck's going on?" Raph gasped.

"I think the Kraang forgot to pay their gravity bill!" Mikey yelled.

A second later, a mechanical claw shot out and grabbed Mikey, pulling him into the chamber. I gasped in shock. Then, behind me, I heard some metal shifting around. I turned my head to see another claw from a few spaces back shoot Mikey back out again. He groaned, spinning in the air slightly.

"It appears the Kraang have generated antigravitons!" said Donnie.

"Is there any way for you to generate anti-antigravitons?" Leo asked him.

"You mean gravitons?"

"Yes!"

"No!"

"Guys, I'm gonna throw up," Mikey warned us. "Or down. Or maybe sideways. But one things for sure, I'm majorly gonna throw!"

"Mikey, don't you dare!" I said firmly. "If you throw up and it starts flying everywhere, we're gonna have serious problems!"

Another pod coming up from behind Mikey came forward against him, pushing him back towards us.

"We still have a job to do," Leo said, his voice determined. "So, let's go!"

With that, we all floated forward and grabbed onto the edges of the portal. It pulled us forward down the hall, taking us past several chambers of pods. Suddenly, halfway down the hall, I heard my name.

"Nia!"

I blinked and whipped around to face the pod that was right in front of us. I gasped. Vanessa and Angus were inside, banging their fists against the glass.

"Guys, look!" I shouted at the others before pushing off to the next pod.

"Ness!" I heard Mikey cry out, following right behind me.

"Stand back!" I told them.

They did as they were told and stood at the back of the pod. I took out one of my kamas, and Mikey shot out the blade from his kusarigama chain. We both reached up and then shoved the blades underneath the glass sphere, grunting loudly as we pried it open. I threw the shield up and reached out.

"C'mon, you two."

"Thank god," Angus breathed, running forward and grabbing my hands. "I thought we'd never see yah again."

"Dudes, what happened?" Mikey asked as he helped carry Vanessa out of the pod.

"It was an accident," she said, sounding close to tears. "April was leaving with her dad to go help you guys. We didn't want them going alone, so we followed. But…" she looked at me sadly. "Nia, I'm sorry… we didn't mean to…"

"It doesn't matter," I said, floating forward and pulling her in for a hug. "What matters is that you're safe."

"Alright, you two," Leo said seriously. "You're not getting out of this mess until we do, so you gotta stay close and hang low. Don't get yourselves into any more trouble. Understand?"

"Got it," said Angus, while Vanessa nodded.

"Good," Leo looked around, then gasped, "Quick! This way!"

We all followed him into the chamber right next to us, floating as fast as we could. We all floated in and leaned against the chamber wall. A few moments later, a group of Kraang aliens came floating past, screeching in their weird language.

"This is seriously trippy," said Vanessa, staring down at her own floating figure. "But, kinda fun."

"Yo, zero G is bangin'!" cheered Mikey, who was currently floating upside down. "The Kraang should turn this into a carnival ride!"

"Uh, I think they're more interested in using it to destroy the earth," Leo said firmly.

Mikey shrugged. "It could do both."

Suddenly, there was a loud, piercing scream that echoed all throughout the chambers.

"The hell?" gasped Angus.

"It's April!" Donnie cried.

"Can you guys say that a little louder?" Raph snapped in a hushed voice. "I don't think the entire Technodrome heard you!"

As soon as the words left his mouth, what looked like fifty floating Kraang aliens suddenly appeared at the entrance of the chamber we were in. Raph stared in surprise before shaking his head.

"Never mind. They did."

Without needing to be told, the boys took out their weapon, ready to charge at the wall of Kraang. I turned back to see Angus and Vanessa floating behind me, looking confused as to what to do. Well, I could just leave them defenseless, but I had to help my brothers. All of the boys started to go out after the Kraang, but I quickly grabbed Raph's arm before he could leave.

"What?"

I nodded over at Angus and Vanessa. He seemed to understand. He rummaged around in his belt for a moment before pulling out a pair of brass knuckles.

"Hey Angus, heads up!"

He tossed the knuckles, and Angus floated forward, grabbing both pairs in his hands.

"Knock yourself out, dude!" he said enthusiastically before following his brothers out.

Angus stared down at the knuckles for a moment, then he adopted a look of determination as he places the weapons on his hands. I floated over towards then, reaching into my back pocket and taking out a pair of throwing knives. I quickly thrust them into Vanessa's empty hands.

"Stay on your toes, you two," I said. "And stay focused."

They both nodded. With that, I turned and leapt out of the chamber, pulling my kamas out. A Kraang alien shot straight for me, and I kicking it so hard it slammed against the roof. I wasn't sure how well my kamas would work in zero gravity, so I decided to not throw them this time. I floated forward and pushed my feet off against the wall, charging at a group of Kraang. I swung my kamas out, knocking two of them to the side and pushing the third out of the way.

As I straightened up, I saw Angus float up from the floor, holding his fists up. I Kraang screeched and shot straight towards him. Angus glared up at it before raised his fist and giving the alien a good punch to the face. The creature floated back, dazed, and Angus lunged forward and kneed the aliens floating pod, knocking it back several feet. Angus' face changed to one of success, and he hollered before floating forward, brass knuckles raised.

"This should be interesting," I muttered.

From below me I heard a yell and looked down. Vanessa was standing with her back to the wall, three Kraang aliens advancing on her. I was about the float down to help her, but then I saw the expression on her face shift. Her eyes narrowed, and I saw her spin the knives around her fingers before stepping forward. The alien at the front of the group floated forward, but Vanessa swung her knives forward, causing the alien to fall back. The other two Kraang shot forward at her, but she swung the blades at their faces, knocking them down. I quickly kicked off and floated down next to her.

"Where did that come from?" I asked, surprised.

"My uncle Dennis taught me how to use butterfly knives," she said, spinning one of the knives on her finger. "Wanted to make sure I could protect myself in the city."

I grinned at her. At that moment, there was a loud, rumbling sound that vibrated throughout the halls. I realized that it was coming from the Technodrome itself.

"That can't be good," said Leo.

There was a loud screech, and a Kraang suddenly lunged at Vanessa, grabbing onto her shoulders. She yelled, and I snap-kicked the thing off of her. She spun around and swung her blade at it. Then, another alien snuck up behind me and grabbed me around the throat. I choked, grabbing onto the metal arms to pry them off. Then, Angus lunged out of nowhere and punched the alien off of me with his knuckles.

"You okay, Nia?" he asked.

"I'm good," I breathed, rubbing my throat.

Suddenly, pink lasers started to fire at us. I looked down the hall and saw several Kraang aliens coming at us, firing their lasers.

"Let's finish these creeps!" said Raph.

I smirked before following him and the others down the hall, leaping against the walls to avoid the lasers. It seemed that, despite the situation, the boys were having fun fighting in zero gravity. Not that I blamed them, I was having a blast too. We all hooted and hollered as we leapt off the wall, coming closer and closer to the aliens. One at a time, Raph, Mikey, Donnie and I all took out one of the floating aliens, knocking them down. The last one stood floating in the air for a moment before Leo leapt down and crushed it onto the ground.

"I think that's all of them," I said, looking around the empty hall.

Suddenly, there was a loud, distant scream.

"That's April!" cried Vanessa.

I looked around and saw Raph was pressing his head to the floor. Then he raised his sai and struck it into the floor. He pried open the metal slot and it floated away. Now, we could hear April screaming and what sounded like cruel laughter coming from below. Raph went through first, and the others followed him.

"C'mon," I said to Angus and Vanessa before following the boys in.

Splinter's P.O.V.

This… this cannot be happening. It just couldn't be true. Shredder continued to laugh.

"Do not look so glum, Hamato," he jeered. "After all, you managed to find a replacement for your little Miwa. What is that strange girl's name again? Lavinia, wasn't it?"

Hearing him mention Lavinia seemed to snap me out of my temporary trance. I shook my head slightly, and glared at Shredder with anger.

"No one could EVER replace Miwa," I growled. "But, that does not meant that I value Lavinia less than I did her."

Shredder scoffed. "Value? You do not even value her for what she really is!" he glared at me. "You do not even know who she truly is, do you?"

I stared at him. What was he talking about?

"Ha, you don't. I'm surprised at you, Hamato. I would've thought you of all people would have seen it."

"Seen what?" I snapped. "What games are you playing, Shredder?"

"You know I play no games, rat," Shredder spat. "You must know who the girl looks like- who she reminds you of."

I narrowed my eyes at him, but did not move. Whatever was going on, it did not seem to be any kind of trick. Then, Shredder started to move, and so did I, and we began to circle each other.

"Tell me, Hamato," said Shredder. "Do you remember someone by the name of… Angelina Carnell?"

I gasped slightly. Suddenly, memories began to flash in front of me; memories of me, Oroku Saki, and a small, blonde girl with emerald green eyes. Angelina Carnell. She was a young, American girl who came to Japan every summer. She, Oroku Saki, and I were the greatest of friends growing up. I shook my head, keeping my eyes on Shredder.

"Of course I remember her," I said lowly. "How could I possibly forget?"

Shredder glared at him through his mask. "Do you remember what happened to her 15 years ago?"

I raised an eyebrow. "Fifteen… Fifteen years ago Angelina vanished. Her and her husband disappeared."

"Of course they did. No one ever saw them again. I'm glad to see you also failed in that category as well, Hamato-"

"What about you!" I yelled. "You were her friend too, Saki! I didn't see you coming to America to help find her!"

"You know as well as I do that she never wanted to see me again!" Shredder snapped. "Not after what happened between us."

I shook my head. "Angelina has been gone for over 15 years now, Saki," I said. "Why bring her up now? What has she got to do with this?"

"She has got everything to do with that little girl you call a daughter. Don't you see, Hamato? The second I saw her little face, I knew…"

"What are you talking about?"

"Of course, I couldn't be sure just based on an observation," Shredder continued, now talking more to himself than to me. "I had to be sure- thoroughly sure. I had to act fast. I stole the girl's watch around her neck the night I fought her and the turtles. It was not much, but it was enough. I had that fool Baxter Stockman analyze the DNA found on the watch."

I stared at Shredder. What was he on about? Then, he looked up at me.

"Tell me, Hamato… when Angelina disappeared, she was pregnant wasn't she?"

"What does that have to do with-"

"Wasn't she?!"

I glared at him. "Yes, she was. But, what does that have to do any of this?"

"Because Angelina's DNA is still in the system. I had Stockman compare her DNA with your daughter's," Shredder seemed to smirk beneath the mask. "Their DNA matched."

It was at that moment that I finally realized what Shredder was trying to say, and it made me stop where I stood. All of a sudden, everything seemed to be coming back. Memories of Lavinia, of her laughing, smiling and crying… It was then that I realized how similar they were to Angelina's. How did I not see it before? Perhaps I saw it when Lavinia was a child, but pushed it aside, assuming it was just painful memories coming back to haunt me? Perhaps I just passed it off as a coincidence that they were similar and simply forgot all about it.

"No…" I shook my head. "You are lying!"

But, I could tell by the look on his face that he wasn't lying.

"Oh, I can't assure you, I'm not. In fact, I'm surprised it took you this long to realize the truth. But, that does not matter! You won't have to worry about it for long. Soon, I will bring you to your end. And once I do, I will defeat those turtles of yours as well, and I will take your daughter for my own, just as I did so many years ago," Shredder threw his arms out, the blades of his gauntlets shooting out. "You were not worthy of raising Tang-Shen's daughter, why should I leave Angelina's daughter to the same fate?"

Without warning, Shredder suddenly lunged at me again. The long break and the shocking news I received had left me in such shock that I was not ready. His punch hit me in the torso, knocking me back. I quickly got into a defensive stance and was able to block his next few hits. I aimed a kick at his feet, but missed. Suddenly, he started hitting my face repeatedly before swinging back and knocking me backwards. I felt dazed as I looked up, but he was right there. I caught a glimpse at his fist before it connected with my nose, knocking me off my feet so hard that I fell backwards and landed on my stomach. I groaned painfully, pushing myself onto my hands and knees.

"It's over, Hamato," Shredder glowered. "Soon you will be no more, and your own daughter Miwa will go through her life cursing your name. And, by the time I'm finished with your lovely Lavinia… she won't even remember you or those turtles she cares so deeply for."

I felt a surge of rage suddenly rush through me as I snapped my head up to glare at Shredder. How dare he take my daughter away! How dare he threaten Lavinia! The anger burst through me, and I lunged forward, dodging Shredder's blade. He whipped around and thrust it at me again, but this time I dodged and bit down on the blade with my teeth. I glared at him as I snapped the blade off. I flipped over and gave him a powerful kick to the chest, knocking him off of his feet. I landed on all fours on the ground and then lunged at him.

Shredder regained his stance and tried to block me, but I was too quickly. I delivered punch after punch, hitting all of his important spots and not slowing down. I couldn't slow down even if I wanted to. My mind was reeling, my blood was pumping, I had never been so angry before in my life! I continued to strike him over and over again, each hit getting harder and faster than the last. Then, I spun around and kicking him in the chest again, sending him backwards. He landed on the ground and started throwing shuriken at me. I ran forward, dodging all of his stars. I ran in circles around him, trying to distract him. It worked. He stopped when he finally looked at me, and I lunged at him. I moved so fast he had no time to even react. I was hitting him everywhere I could, doing everything I could. Finally, I knocking in into the air, leapt up, and did yet another powerful kick. This one sent him slamming into the stairway of his throne, knocking his helmet clean off.

Shredder lay there, glaring up at me, his scared face ugly and unrecognizable. I wasted no time in picking up my katana and sprinting forward, determined to do what I should have done 15 years ago.

"No!"

Suddenly, a blade blocked my path. I roared as I whipped around, striking at the figure who had stopped me. They blocked my strike and held our blades in place. I glared down at my new opponent, and saw that it was a girl. A young one, too. This must be the Karai girl that Leonardo had talked about constantly. Suddenly, as I stared at her face, into her eyes. They were just like Shen's…

"Miwa…?"

The girl pulled her blade back and swung it forward. It struck my shoulder, but only slightly. I moved out of the way, holding my shoulder gingerly. I saw the girl run back behind me, towards the Shredder.

"Father!" she cried.

I inhaled sharply and looked around. The girl was helping Shredder to sit up, holding him gently.

"Karai…" Shredder groaned, pointing a finger at me. "That rat is… Hamato Yoshi…"

I stared at them. "Miwa…"

"My name is Karai!" the girl snapped at me. "Father told me what you did to my mother, and now I'm going to return the favor!"

From behind her, Shredder smirked at me, chuckling darkly. The girl- Miwa- withdrew her sword again and started charging towards me.

"No!" I cried.

I turned and sprinted away, leaping up to the upper level by the open window. It did not matter if she believed me to be her enemy, I would not fight my daughter.

"Why won't you fight?!" Karai screamed. "Coward…!"

I felt my heart break as I turned and ran out through the window. I ran over to the ledge and leapt out, diving and landing on the concreate below. As soon as I did I felt myself stumble backwards and my back fell against the wall. I clutched at my robe, breathing deeply, my heart pounding in my chest.

"Miwa…" I whispered in a ragged voice that did not sound like my own.

Nia's P.O.V.

"April O'Neil… your mind belongs to Kraang… Soon, your world will be ours! Let the planetary mutation… begin…"

"That thing is so nasty," I whispered, and Raph nodded.

We all slipped through the shaft, crawling down the long cables and wires. I looked down at the disgusting, giant Kraang, and then down at April. She was strapped onto a metal table, her head hooked up to a strange machine that seemed to be extracting something from her.

"Witness the end of your kind!" the Kraang screamed gleefully.

"Not if we can help it!" Leo called out.

The creature blinked, then turned its ugly head up at us.

"The turtles?!" it screeched. "Kraang will not be stopped by pathetic mutants!"

"At least we're not stupid aliens!" Mikey jeered.

"Raph, quick!"

Raph did as Leo ordered, and lunged forward, aiming a powerful kick right between the Kraang monster's eyes. As the alien screeched, the others and I climbed down the cables. I stayed behind to help keep an eye on Angus and Vanessa as Donnie went over to help April. I watched as Donnie managed to get the metal table to come down. The arms holding April released her and he removed the device from her head. She almost fell forward, but Donnie caught her in his arms. A second later she lifted her head, and gazed up at him, grinning.

"You're my hero…" she said dreamily.

Donnie's face went straight up pink as he giggled happily at her. I heard Vanessa giggle from above, and I covered my mouth to hold in my laughter.

"Hey, Chuckles," Raph said seriously, making Donnie glare at him. "We gotta get outta here."

Donnie nodded. "Let's go!"

Donnie lifted April onto his shell, carrying her as they all started to climb back up the cables.

"And we go back," Vanessa said tiredly, her and Angus climbing back up.

It took us 10 minutes to find an exit. We had to get back to the chambers so that we could find an escape pod to get out of here. Donnie stayed in the middle of the group, still carrying April on his back. I stayed in the back to keep Angus and Vanessa safe, though they had been doing okay on their own. The others were leading the group, keeping us safe and blocking the lasers of the Kraang droids.

Eventually, we reached the end of the hall we were running down and reached a room. I looked up and saw the long, hallway of chambers above us. We would all have to climb to get to one of the pods. I reached behind me and pulled out a grappling hook. I pointed up as high as it could go, and shot it out. The hook landed about halfway up and hooked onto one of the levels.

"Angus, here," I said, thrusting the rope into his hands. "You're gonna have to climb. Vanessa-"

"I got it, dudette!"

Mikey ran forward and turned in front of Vanessa. She grinned before wrapping her arms around his neck and leaping up onto his shell. At that moment, several more aliens from above started charging down at us, firing lasers at us. We all started leaping up onto the levels, trying to get as high as we could. I stayed behind a bit just to keep an eye on Angus, who was climbing as fast as he could, but still falling behind. Suddenly, there was a loud creaking sound, and the walls began to fall forward. It seemed that the Technodrome was turning for some reason.

The turning stopped once the hall we were climbing was flattened enough for us to walk on. We all straightened up and the others began running forward. I ran back towards Angus and helped him to his feet.

"Angus, c'mon! We gotta go!"

He nodded quickly, and as soon as he was up we started sprinting forward. A few Kraang floated towards us, but I knocking two of them back with my kamas, and Angus punched one with his knuckles. Up ahead, several Kraang droids appeared and started firing at us. The others that were up ahead sliced and knocked them out, clearing the rest of the way for us.

"Leo, I have a question!" Mikey yelled, now running side-by-side with Vanessa.

"Can it wait?"

"Not really! Did we beat that big Kraang thingy?"

"Yes, Mikey, we did!" Leo said, sounding annoyed.

"Okay…! Then why is it following us?!"

That made us all stop in our tracks. I turned around, and to my horror I saw that giant Kraang monster was indeed following us. It appeared that the metal sphere it was in wasn't just for show. It was attached to a large, metal suit, which made it look taller and bigger than before. I screeched loudly, stomping towards us. Instantly, we all turned and started sprinting forward as fast as we could.

"Angus," I yelled. "Go up ahead and stay with the others! I'm gonna stay behind and make sure no one falls back!"

"Got it!"

Angus sped forward, landing in the middle of the group. The Kraang screamed, now purposely stomping its metal feet to try and crush us. Then, there was a loud wiring sound, and suddenly it started shooting beams of electricity at us, causing the areas it hit to explode.

"Everybody, there's one last escape pod up ahead!" Donnie yelled at us.

He was right. Ahead of us, just about 50 feet away, was a single escape pod. If we could just stay ahead of the monster, then we could out run it, get into the pod, and leave without worries.

Just as this thought crossed my mind, the Kraang's metal foot stomped down, and Mikey was knocked down into one of the chambers below. He screamed, and Leo and I skidded to a halt. We looked at each other, nodded, and instantly ran back towards him. The Kraang leaned forward to look down the chamber Mikey fell through, and the gun on top of his head started to power up.

"Get away from my brother!" Leo screamed.

He leapt forward, raising his katana, and sliced the gun off of the Kraang's head. I slid forward on my knees, stopping at the edge. Mikey was a few feet down the chamber, pressing his hands and feet against the wall to keep from falling.

"Mikey, up here!" I yelled down at him.

I reached my hand down, and he reached into his belt and took our one of his nunchucks. He swung one end up, and I caught it and used it to pull him up. Leo landing beside me to help me, grabbing the nunchuck and helping pull Mikey up. As soon as he was out, we all turned and ran forward, Mikey sprinting ahead of us. The others were already in the escape pod, waiting for us.

"There's nowhere for you to run, mutants!" the Kraang yelled.

We ignored him and continued running forward. Mikey was ahead of us and got into the pod with the others. We were about to join them when the monster stopped his metal foot hard, shaking the floor.

"Leo! Nia!" Donnie yelled.

Leo and I skidded to a halt, turning to look at Kraang, who wasn't that far away from us.

"All of you will die here!"

This was bad. This was very, very bad. He wasn't that far away, we'd never make it out in time. I glanced over at Leo, hoping he had a plan for this. I saw he was glaring at Kraang, his face firm and set. At that moment, I could hear Sensei's words from before echoing in my head.

"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."

I suddenly realized that Leo did in fact have a plan, and I was having none of it.

"Don't do it," I said lowly.

Leo glanced over at me. "Don't do what?"

"Don't do what you're thinking."

"You don't know what I'm thinking.

"That's bull and you know it."

Kraang screeched, stomping closer towards us. If I was going to do something, I had to do it now. Leo sighed and looked away from me.

"There's no other way, Nia," he said. "If I don't do this, then we all die."

I shook my head. "Why does it have to be you?"

"I'm the leader, it's my responsibility."

I looked at Leo firmly, then looked up at Kraang who was getting closer and closer. I sighed, hanging my head slightly.

"You're right… you are the leader, and it is up to you."

Leo nodded, and gripped the nunchucks in his hands. But, I grabbed his wrist to stop him.

"But, I made a promise to Sensei that his boys would get home safely," I whispered. "And I intend to keep that promise… no matter what."

And before Leo could do anything I snatched the nunchucks from him and kicked him in the torso, knocking him back against the pod. I whipped around and sprinted forward, yanking the chain out to its maximum length. I heard the others call after me, but I ignored them. I kept running until I was at Kraang's feet, then whipped the chain out as I leapt up into the air. I leapt all around him, tangling his arms and legs into the chain. When I finally had him tied up, I landed behind him, holding onto the chain with all my strength. I took out one of my knives, shoving it through the chain and sticking it to the ground. It wouldn't last more than a few seconds, and I held onto the rest of the chain. Kraang screeched, pulling against the restraints.

"Nia, get back here!" Leo yelled.

"No!" I shouted. "You guys gotta leave, now!"

"Nia, are you crazy!" Raph shouted.

"We're not leaving you, dudette!" cried Mikey.

"I wasn't asking!" I snapped.

The chain snapped off the knife, and I dug the heels of my feet into the floor, holding on the chain. The metal was cutting into my palms now and I could feel them start to bleed, but I continued to hold on.

"Nia, I am giving you a direct order!" Leo shouted at me. "Get back over here!"

"There's no time to argue!" I screamed. "I can't hold him for long! You gotta get them out, now!"

Even though I could barely see him, I could tell he understood. I gritted my teeth, holding onto the chain as hard as I could. I heard Leo shout, "Let's go!" I felt relieved for a moment. I heard Raph start to argue, but I saw Donnie pull him back as Leo got into the pod.

"Nia!" Raph yelled.

"We gotta go now!"

Mikey closed the glass shield, and the pod started to fly back. Suddenly, the chains on Kraang broke, and I fell back, landing on my side. My bloody hands slammed on the floor, and they stung painfully. I looked up to see the pod shoot back out of the door just as Kraang swung at them. The others were safe.

I looked around frantically, wondering if there was some way out. Then, I stood up onto my feet and started sprinting forward. I ran out from underneath the Kraang and towards the door. I took out my kama, aiming it at the door, hoping beyond hope that I could bust through.

Raph's P.O.V.

"Lavinia…"

The last thing I saw was the chains breaking and Nia falling onto her back before the pod shot back, pulling us through the door. The second we were outside the pod started to fall, until it finally landed in the East River. The pod floated back up to the surface and the shield flew opened.

"I… I can't believe it!" said Donnie. "We made it!"

There was a loud sound from behind us, and we all turned to see the Technodrome falling out of the sky. It kept falling and falling until finally, it crashed into the water. The movement shifted the surface, making the pod tilt. Vanessa tripped and fell, and Mikey helped her to her feet. As the pod started to settle, we all looked to see the Technodrome was slowly sinking deeper and deeper into the water.

"Nia!" Mikey cried. "No…!"

We all watched sadly as we saw the last bit of the Technodrome sink below the surface. It was over.

"I can't believe she's gone…" Mikey whimpered.

"Nia…" Donnie sighed.

April let out a soft noise, leaning into Donnie's chest.

"No…" Angus breathed.

Vanessa, who was actually crying now, whipped around and threw herself at Angus, who hugged her back tightly. I stumbled back until I met the wall of the pod, and I fell down onto the floor. Nia… Nia was gone. Just like that. Every fiber in my body was screaming in protest, but I knew it was true. I looked up when I heard Leo groan.

"This is all my fault," he said angrily. "I shouldn't have let her! I could've… I should've just…"

He let out a shaky breath as he fell to his knees, his face in his hands.

"It wasn't your fault," I told him in a toneless voice. "Nia wouldn't have left any of us in there. She… she was too good for her own safety."

I sighed, lowering my head. God… how are we supposed to explain this to Splinter?

"Aw, that's so sweet."

I snapped my head up.

"…Nia?"

I whipped my head around, and gasped. Nia was in the water, swimming slowly towards us. Her head was threatening to go under, but she managed to keep her face up. She smiled as she floated towards us.

"Hey guys," she said in a breathless voice. "How's it going?"

Me and Leo sprang to our feet. The others all gasped, looking delighted.

"Nia…!" I gasped. "You… you idiot! You scared the shell out of us!"

She grinned, and weakly lifted her hands out. She nearly fell below the surface, but Leo and I instantly grabbed her arms and pulled her in gently. She fell onto the floor, looking very tired. At once, I sprung forward and wrapped my arms around her, Leo, Mikey and Donnie doing the same. At once, we all started cheering and laughing.

"We won…!" Mikey cried out joyfully. "Aw man, I love you bros!"

"Hell yeah!" Angus yelled out, and Nia laughed.

There was loud splashing all around us, and I looked up. All of the pods that were inside the Technodrome were popping up out of the water. Men, women, children, even animals were coming out. The people all cheered and yelled, happy to me safe and alive.

I turned to look at Nia as the others released her. She grinned at me, and I grinned back. Then I reached up and smacked the back of her head.

"Don't ever do that again!" I snapped.

She chuckled. "Yes, mother."

I rolled my eyes. Then my gaze landed on her hands. They were severely cut up and bleeding a lot. I grabbed them and glared at them sternly.

"Donnie, bandages."

Donnie instantly went forward, holding a roll of white bandage in his hands. He unrolled it and started wrapping it around her palms. Nia shivered, now looking pretty cold. Angus quickly took of his green flannel and knelt down, wrapping it around her shoulders.

"What were you thinking?" Leo said, half laughing.

Nia didn't answer immediately. She waited until Donnie was done wrapping her hands before turning and smiling at Leo.

"I told you. I promised Sensei you guys would get home, and you know I never break promises."

Leo stared at her in disbelief. Then he shook his head, reaching forward and pulling her into another hug.

"That stupid moral of yours is gonna get yourself killed."

Nia chuckled, hugging him back.

Nia's P.O.V.

"You sure you're good?"

"Raph, I didn't lose that much blood," I said, my voice a little scratchy. "I'm fine, I promise."

He nodded. As we entered the lair once more, the first thing I did was go to the dojo. I had to see Splinter. I shuffled slowly towards the dojo, and I could feel the other's eyes on me as I did. I walked up the steps and entered the dojo. I smiled. Sensei was inside, standing in front of his shrine. I walked in.

"Sensei?"

He turned.

"Children…"

I glanced behind me. The others were all standing behind me. I guess they followed me and I didn't notice. I turned back to Sensei, walking forward slowly.

"We did it, Sensei," I said lowly. "We stopped the Kraang. We… we saved the world."

Sensei stared at me. Then marched forward and grabbed my arms gently.

"Lavinia, what happened?" he asked. "Your hands… what did you do?"

I lowered my head. "I'm sorry, Sensei. I know what you said before, and I know I said I would listen, but…"

Before I could finish, Sensei gently pulled me forward and embraced me into a hug. I grinned and hugged him back.

"I am so proud of you, child," he whispered to me. "All of you. You have all done so greatly. I am honored to call you my children."

As soon as he said that I heard footsteps as the other came in and joined in the hug. I chuckled tearfully as we sat there for a few moments before breaking apart.

"Alright, boys!" said Vanessa. "How's about we order some Antonio's? Dinner is on me!"

"Yes!" Mikey cheered. "Nothing is better than free food!"

Thirty minutes later had us in the living gorging on pizza, laying around the living room. Mikey was so happy and enthusiastic that he had started chanting.

"Who saved the world?"

"WE SAVE THE WORLD!"

"I said, who saved the world?!"

"WE SAVED THE WORLD!"

"I SAID-!"

"Stop asking!" Raph snapped.

Mikey blinked, finally stopping his chant.

"We saved the world…" he mumbled.

Then, Raph grabbed one of the many pizza boxes that lay all over the living room, and smacked it in Mikey's face. The box fell to reveal a smiling Mikey with a slice of pizza in his mouth.

"You can't keep chanting forever, Mikey," Vanessa giggled, taking a bite of her own pizza.

I laughed as I ate the last of my crust. As I glanced around I saw April walking into the dojo. Curiously, I followed her. I continued walking until I was at the entrance. April was standing behind Splinter, who seemed to be looking at the old photo of his family. This made me slightly confused, but I was distracted from this by April talking.

"Sensei, I want to apologize… for the way I spoke to you earlier…"

Splinter placed the photo back onto the shelf before turning around.

"No need," he said gently. "You spoke what was in your heart. I am just relieved that you made it home safely."

I grinned. Then, Sensei raised his head, and his eyes met me.

"Lavinia," he said. "Please, come here."

I blinked and slowly walked forward until I was standing next to April.

"I'm sorry, I wasn't trying to intrude-"

"No no," Sensei said a little quickly. "It is not that."

Splinter took a step towards me, placing a hand on my shoulder.

"Lavinia, what you have done this evening has proven to me that you have grown greatly and beautifully since I first saw you over seven years ago. You've shown what it takes to truly be a kunoichi, and a protector of this family," he placed his hand on the side of my face. "I have never been prouder of you… my daughter."

I smiled up at him lovingly.

"Thank you, father."

I thought I saw his face shift slightly at that, but he continued to smile down at me as he removed his hand. Still, I couldn't help but notice that he looked a little more stressed than usual.

"What's wrong, Sensei?" I heard Leo ask. He must've come in behind me.

"I learned some things from the Shredder…" Sensei said lowly, but didn't continue after that.

I frowned. "What things, Sensei?"

Splinter blinked, then looked down at me and Leo. He smiled.

"That's for another time, my children," he said, putting a hand on each of our shoulders. "Tonight, is for celebration! After all, it is not every day you make the world safe from an alien invasion."

"Can't argue with that logic," I said, making Leo laugh.

"You got that right!" Mikey said, suddenly appearing with the others, throwing his arms over our shoulders. "Everybody! Who saved the world…?!"

"Mikey," we all said, sounding annoyed.

Mikey groaned.

"WE SAVED THE WORLD!" we all cried, leaping into the air.

The rest of the day is spend relaxing and having fun at the lair. Vanessa and Angus' folks were still severely worried, but they managed to convince them that they were fine and that they were staying at my place to be safe. We had some fun eating more pizza and playing video games all afternoon. I stomped Raph at Smash Bros., and Mikey destroyed Angus as Mario Kart. Everyone had a turn at playing and defeating each other. After a while, we were just laying around and relaxing. Angus was in a mood to play a little music, so I let him borrow my guitar for a bit.

"Dudes, this day was crazy," said Mikey, who was laying down on the couch with his head in Vanessa's lap.

"That's the understatement of the century," said Donnie.

"Only word I could think of," said April.

"Hey, we all got through it didn't we?" I said. "We all made it home, right?"

"Because of you," said Leo. "We wouldn't have made it out of there without you, Nia."

I felt my cheeks go pink as I smiled, scooting into the beanbag chair more. I heard Raph snort as he nudged my arm, and I shoved him playfully.

"Man, this guitar plays beautifully," said Angus, who had been playing randomly this whole time. "How long have you had it, Nia?"

"Since I was 11," I said. "That's when I first started learning how to play."

"Hey, what was the first song you could play?"

"Huh?"

"The first song you could ever play," he repeated. "Yah know, the first one you were able to play good. Mine was 'Walk the Line' by Jonny Cash. My mom loves old music like that," he answered sheepishly as the guys all looked at him funny.

I giggled. "Nice."

"Well, what was yours, Nia?" asked April.

"Aw, it wasn't anything special," I said, waving it off.

"C'mon girl, what was it?" asked Vanessa.

"Oh… it was just this little lullaby Sensei taught me. It was called, uh… 'Hushaby Mountain', I think."

"I know that one!" said Angus. "Did it go like this?"

Angus sat up a little, and started laying again. The second the tune started I instantly recognized it.

"Oh, yeah!" I said excitedly. "This is it! Man, I haven't sung it in years. If I remember the lyrics…"

It was then that I noticed everyone was looking at me with expectant smiles on their faces. I rolled my eyes. I should've seen this coming.

"Alright, alright."

Vanessa clapped excitedly, and I giggled. Angus smiled and started the music over again. I listened closely to the tune, trying to remember the lyrics.

A gentle breeze, from Hushabye Mountain…
Softly blows o'er Lullaby Bay…
It fills the sails of boats that are waiting…
Waiting to sail your worries away…

It isn't far to Hushabye Mountain…
And your boat waits down by the que…
The winds of night, so softly are sighing…
Soon they will fly your troubles to sea…

So close your eyes, on Hushabye Mountain…
Wave goodbye, to cares of the day…
And watch your boat on Hushabye Mountain…
Sail far away from Lullaby Bay…

I took a deep breath and sighed. It had been so long since I had sung that song, and it felt so good to sing it again.

"That was lovely," said April.

"Yeah."

By the time it was 5pm we were all very exhausted. We probably should've slept earlier, but we were so happy that we had to celebrate earlier. Vanessa, Angus and April all finally went home an hour ago. The guys and I had decided to turn in really early. Mikey and Donnie had already turned in and had gone to sleep. Raph was just laying in his room, and so was Leo. I was super tired, but I was also pretty dirty due to the fact that I had to take a dip in the East River. I took some time to myself to take a long, warm shower. It felt as though it had been a long time since I had taken some time to myself in such a way.

After taking shower I dressed in more comfortable clothes. All I put on were pair of soft, white mini shorts, and Angus' green flannel. I tried to give it back to him, but he said that I could keep it. I towel-dried my soaking wet hair as I walked towards the bedrooms. I stopped when I reached Leo's room. The door was ajar, and I could see Leo laying on his bed, staring up at the ceiling. I grinned and knocked on his door slightly.

"Hey."

He looked up from his pillow. "Hey," he sat up quickly. "You're still up?"

"Yeah, I was just about to go to bed. Why are you up?"

"Eh… having some trouble falling asleep."

I smiled. "Well, I got something that might help you out."

I bent over and picked up Donnie's laptop that I had set on the floor. I held it up and took a step inside the room.

"What's with Donnie's laptop?" Leo asked.

"I asked him if I could borrow it before I went to bed."

"And…?"

I smirked, and then opened up the laptop. It was open to a website I had pulled up before closing it. It was a site where people uploaded cartoon series, and someone happened to upload the last episode of 'Space Heroes' from last night. The second Leo saw the episode on the screen he gasped and ran forward.

"Wha- really?!"

I nodded. "I figured you at least deserved to finish it after all of this."

Leo stared at the computer with his jaw hanging open for a moment. A second later he gave a loud gasped and grabbed the laptop, beaming with delight.

"Nia, you're amazing! Thank you!"

And just like that, Leo pulled me forward and kissed me on the cheek. I giggled, blushing slightly.

"No problem, bro."

Leo smiled at me before turning around and hopping onto his bed, opening the laptop. I grinned as I slowly shut his bedroom door.

I made my way to my own room, feeling very sleepy now. I shut the door as I made my way to my bed, still drying my hair with the towel.

"Oh man…" I sighed.

Then, I heard a knock at my door. I looked up. The others should be asleep right now. Maybe Leo accidently exited the site and needed help or something? I stood up, dropping my towel as I reached up and opened the door. I was surprised to see Raph standing in the doorway.

"Oh, hey dude," I said. "I thought you were asleep."

"Nah, not yet," he said.

I backed up, gesturing him to come in. He walked passed me and I shut the door behind me.

"That was kinda cool what you did for Leo."

"Oh, you saw that?"

"Kinda hard not to see that dork fanboy over his crap. How's your hands?"

"Oh," I looked down at my palms, which had been wrapped in new, clean gauze by Donnie since arriving home. "They still really sting, but Don says I'll be okay. But, he gave me strict instructions not to handle my weapons or play my guitar until they've healed. Real pain in the ass if you ask me."

I chuckled. Raph grinned slightly, then he looked me up at down.

"Hey, isn't that Angus' shirt?"

"Oh, yeah," I said, holding the end of the flannel. "I was gonna give it back, but he said I could keep it. Said it looked better on me anyway."

Raph nodded, rubbing the back of his neck. I frowned as I noticed the stern look on his face.

"What's wrong?"

He shook his head, but I wasn't having any of it.

"It's what happened today, isn't it?"

"…Kinda, yeah."

I sighed. "Are you upset?"

Raph sighed deeply, then turned to face me completely.

"Look, Nia… what you did for us was awesome, really, it was. It was great, but…"

He paused. I had a feeling of where this was going. I fiddled with my hands as I walked over to my bed and sat down on the edge of it. I gave Raph a small nod.

"It was great, but… stupid!" Raph snapped, suddenly angry. "You scared the hell out of us! Do you have any idea what it was like thinking you were…"

"Raph," I said. "It's okay. I knew what I was doing. Look, I'm sorry if I scared you guys, but I had to do something. Leo's our leader, we'd be lost if we didn't have him. And you guys need him more than you need me, so-"

I was cut off as lunged forward, grabbing me by the collar and pulling me forward. I gasped, staring into his eyes. I've never seen him so angry before.

"Don't," he breathed. "Ever… say that. Don't ever assume that we need you less or not at all. Don't! Do you have any idea how much we need you? We'd have no idea what we'd do without you. None!"

I blinked up at him, staring in surprise. Raph's grip on the flannel loosened and his eyes softened. He sighed, hanging his head down. I relaxed slightly, looking down at him sadly and with concern. Slowly, I reached up and grabbed his hands, gently pulling them off of the shirt. Raph stood there for a moment before looking up at me. It almost looked like his eyes were watering, but for the sake of his pride I decided to say nothing about it.

"Raph… I can't promise I won't do something like that again," I said gently. "You guys are my family, and I'm never gonna stop fighting for you."

Raph's eyes narrowed and he looked away. I took one of my hands and placed it on his shoulder.

"But, I can promise that you'll never loose me."

Raph looked back up at me, looking slightly confused. I grinned at him.

"C'mon dude, you know us. It's gonna take a lot more than the Kraang to keep away from you guys. And that's a promise I'm happy to make."

Raph stared at me, mouth slightly open. A second later he closed his mouth and nodded slightly. I grinned at him and pulled him in for a hug. He was still for a moment, then wrapped an arm around me, hugging me tightly. How long we sat there, I had no idea. We continued hugging for what felt like an hour before he finally loosened his surprisingly tight grip on me. I sat back, grinning up at him. He stared at me for a long time, his eyes never leaving mine. Then, I felt one of his hand press against my cheek. I glanced down at it, then up at him. He still didn't say anything, but continued to stare down at me. Then, he sighed, and leaned in close to me.

Before I could ask I felt him kiss my cheek. It wasn't like the kiss that Leo had given me. This was soft, and surprisingly tender, and for some reason it put a bubbling sensation in my stomach. I felt him back away from me, but before I could even full register what happen, Raph turned and quickly left the room, shutting the door behind him.

I sat there, staring at my bedroom door for what felt like hours. Fingers felt tingly and stomach was fluttering. I gulped, and swallowed the large lump that had formed in my throat.

"What the shell…?"

OOHH! And the plot only thickens! So much plot, so much reveal, what could it mean? Only I know, and only I will tell! But! Not until i come back... For season 2!

Now, about Season 2... I'm wanting to take a little break before i get into it. I just got out of my first year of college, i have an online summer class to do, and i just got a new puppy and i need to take care of her. I got a lot of stuff right now, but don't worry! I will be back soon! Just keep an eye out for season 2 when it comes. And, when it does, i severely hope you guys like it as much as you liked this one.

That's all for now. Please leave a review, it helps me alot, and i will see you guys later. BYE!