Author's Note: THIS IS IT! The final chapter of The Beast Below the Blue! A gigantic thank you goes out to anyone who gave this story a chance. Your reviews inspire me and I have enjoyed writing every single chapter of this epic tale. As for yet to come stories, I will be continuing my writing of TMNT fics, so please do look out for those in the future.

Do drop a review on this last chapter or the story in general. Thanks for journeying with me on what has been an awesome adventure and I shall see you all in the cyber world. Stay awesome everyone!

Disclaimer: I definitely do not own the characters or the show. Only my own ideas.

Chapter 20: Epilogue

Donnie's POV:

*One year later*

At his desk, Donnie took a breath and steadied his hands, carefully extracting a drop of green mutagen from the glowing canister. With the mutagen in the dropper, Don steadily transferred the substance to a petri dish and secured the lid, enclosing the radiating mutagen inside, intending to study it under a microscope. There was still so much that he could learn from the substance. It was exciting.

Although he tried, it was hard to ignore the commotion coming from outside the lab. Don could clearly hear the shouts from his younger brother and the crashing noises which followed. Mikey was yelling in silly excitement, almost sounding like he was still seven years old again, "Who's gonna kick some shell tonight? Oh yeah, that's right, we are!"

There was a bang and then Mikey was shrieking – "Ahhhh! Raph! Raph! Stop it! Lemme go! LEO!"

Don shook his head and rubbed his temples, closing his eyes. He could feel a headache coming on, probably caused by too much time spent in his dark lab, leaning over his experiments. At least he knew that they weren't caused by his bad dreams…as he simply didn't get them anymore. Everything was relatively normal, for once. His family wasn't falling apart at the seams and the A.T.P.L had been quiet. Dead quiet.

"Something got you down?"

Donnie opened his eyes to see Leonardo leaning on the wall next to his desk. His face was of curious compassion. Scars were still evident across his skin; but now they were fully healed. He looked good. Strong. His muscles were defined, no longer frail. He didn't look like a skeleton, malnourished and weak. Donnie hoped to never see him like that ever again.

Donnie shook his head, "I'm alright. Just a small ache."

There was another scream from the living room from a distressed Mikey, "AHHHH LEO! HELLLP!"

A bellow from Raphael came after, "GET BACK HERE! YOU ARE SO DEAD MIKEY!"

Donnie smirked, "You're not going to rescue our brother?"

Leo shrugged and shifted to half sit on the desk, "He'll be fine. You know Mikey, he'll find a way out of trouble."

Don opened his mouth but then the doors of the lab slammed open. Almost on cue, a shrieking Mikey pelted in, whilst Raphael barrelled in after him, his Sai already drawn and swearing his head off like a trooper.

"Told you," Leo shouted over the commotion whilst laughing, "he's fine."

Mikey ran at Leo, perhaps looking for a human, or in this case a turtle, to hide behind. Leo stepped aside swiftly, leaving Mikey sprinting at the table where the mutagen canister was still sitting, open. It was still OPEN! Time slowed. Mikey didn't seem to notice the canister, too panicked in his fleeing. Raphael was yelling. Donnie registered the danger and leapt forward out of his chair, blocking Mikey from the mutagen.

He felt the impact as his younger brother slammed into him, full speed. And then he was falling backwards.

Together they crashed into the desk. Chemicals went flying, exploding and sizzling as they collided mid-air. The mutagen tipped, heading straight for the disorientated Mikey who was still flailing around on the ground.

Donnie's eyes widened, "MIKEY!" Instinctively he pushed his brother aside and winced as the mutagen tipped onto him…except it didn't.

In a flash of green and blue, the mutagen was swiped from the desk, the glowing substance almost spilling over the side before the lid was slammed onto the top.

Leo stood with the canister, smiling down at Donnie and already holding a hand out to Mikey. "You okay?" Leo asked. "Everyone okay?"

Don let out a breath that he didn't even realise he was holding as Mikey nodded and was hauled to his feet.

Donnie sighed. He had pushed Mike out of the way purely on instinct. He knew that the mutagen mutation would have been inevitable and irreversible. What would he have mutated into it? Probably a sewer slug turtle hybrid, knowing his luck.

Donnie dusted himself off and clambered to his feet, with some help from Leo. Don took the canister of mutagen from Leo's hands, "I'm going to put this someplace safe."

Leo smirked, "Might want to put it under lock and key too and above Mikey's reaching height."

Mikey sagged his shoulders, "Hey, it wasn't my fault. Raph was the one who-"

From the edge of the room, Raphael groaned and threw up his arms. "I what, Mikey?! You were asking for it!"

Donnie sighed, knowing that his brothers could bicker like this for days. He had seen it all before. It would start with Mikey's continuous pranks which would then make Raphael increasingly furious, which would then, in turn, incite additional pranks from their little brother. It was a never-ending cycle, until they tired themselves out and gave up.

"ALRIGHT!" Leo shouted. "That's enough guys. We clearly need to blow off some steam."

Mikey nodded enthusiastically and Raphael twirled his Sai.

"Ready for patrol?" Leo asked.

Before Don could even answer, Mikey and Raph were already out the door, taking off through the Lair and into the sewers.

Don looked to Leo and placed the mutagen back on his desk, "How long do you think it will take for them to find trouble?"

A loud shriek from Mikey came from somewhere in the sewers and echoed back through the Lair, "AHHHH GIANT SQUIRREL RAT! Oh, it's just you Raph. OW!"

Leo grinned, "About that long."

Donnie smiled and followed his brother, as Leonardo took the lead and ran from the Lair. They ran through the living room and past Master Splinter who bowed his head, allowing them passage and good luck on their patrol. Catching sight of his shoulder bag laying on the couch, Don grabbed it quickly and waved goodbye to his Sensei who was now behind him, watching their departure.

Don's mind was running wild. His heart was pumping, his feet splashing through the cold sewer water. He felt alive, running with his brother through the sewers. Together they climbed a ladder and exploded up through a sewer cover to confront the wide and dangerous and wonderful world above.

Mikey's POV:

Atop a rooftop, Mikey was trying to defend himself. Shielding himself from his hot headed brother, Raphael.

Sai out, Raphael was pummelling Mikey's nun-chucks which he had raised above his head in an attempt to save his head from being punched in. Raph really hadn't appreciated being called a squirrel rat, even though he reeaaallllyyy looked like one, especially in the dark sewer. The similarity was astounding! Anyone could have made the same mistake. That didn't seem to matter now though, with Raph's rage reigning down.

"Who's the giant squirrel rat now, huh?!" Raphael was yelling.

Mikey turned on his feet and attempted to scramble away, accidentally losing his nun-chucks along the way as he ducked around a vent, almost stepping and slipping on his skateboard which he had brought up from the Lair. Why would he choose to run across the roof-tops, when he could skate across like a pro instead? Way cooler.

That uber-tastic thought didn't last long though, as after two super milli-seconds, his plastron was flattened to the cement with Raphael sitting on his shell.

"SAY IT," Raph demanded.

Mikey flailed his arms and legs about, "NEVER! GET OFFFA ME!"

Raphie's arm wrapped around his throat, in an impossibly unfair neck hold, which Master Splinter had taught them all, instructing them to – 'Only use this kick-butt awesome booya-butt-kicking hold when it is absolutely necessary.' Okay, so maybe that wasn't exactly what he had said, but it was close enough. Mikey squirmed more. "HEY! NO FAIR. SENSEI SAID-"

Raph's grip tightened, "Yeah, but Sensei isn't here. Now say it!"

Mikey sighed, "Okay! Okay! I'm the giant ugly squirrel rat!"

Raphael increased the weight on his shell, pushing down. "And who is the king of the world and the lord of all and better than his dork of a brother Mikey in every single way?"

"You are, oh Lord Raphael."

The pressure was released from Mike's shell. He stood and grabbed his chucks from the roof. Kicking up his board only then did he notice Leo and Donnie standing near them with smirks on their faces. "Oh so nice of you two bros to finally show up," Mike giggled.

Raphael scoffed from behind him, "Yeah two took your time. Couldn't keep up, eh?"

Donnie chuckled, "Was more so a...didn't really want to keep up, kind of thing."

Mikey slung his arm around Don, "It's okay bro, you don't have to admit that you couldn't keep uppppp with the Turflydo and his side-kick, the incredible Raphie. We understand."

Don sighed, "Okay yeah, you got me. That is exactly what happened."

Mikey frowned, "Are you being sarcastic? I can't tell."

Don answered with some retort, probably a smart one, but Mikey missed it. He had switched his focus to Leo. Mikey spent a lot of his time quietly watching Leo. Making sure he was okay. It was his job. Leo had saved him, as the Krang ship had gone down and then Leo had repetitively saved everyone from the A.T.P.L by resisting them for so long. He could have given up information about them, but he didn't. He could've done a lot of bad things…but he didn't.

Leo had eventually told them about everything that had happened. About the torture and the tests. It still made Mikey cringe. Almost cry. He didn't like the thought of his hero in pain and he didn't think that he could have been as brave. Or as strong. Really, he didn't know what he would have done in the same situation. It was too hard to think about. He couldn't help it sometimes though, so he had made it his responsibility to make sure that Leo was always doing okay.

Leo on the rooftop had turned away from them and was looking out, surveying the dark city as a silent sentinel. A protector of all. Like a super hero. A really awesome super hero who could do anything - who could protect New York.

The night was quiet, for New York. The air was clean and the wind, fresh.

Mikey glided over on his skateboard to stand beside his brother, "Whatcha thinking about?"

Leo waved a hand over the city, "Everything."

Mikey rolled his eyes, "Ahhh, sorry to tell ya, but that's not very helpful."

"It's nothing really. Just that there's so much happening in the city that we don't know of. The A.T.P.L were working practically at our doorstep and we never knew."

Mikey frowned as he was kind of catching on, "You worry too much. We can't be everywhere at once dude. We just gotta help as many as we can."

Mike saw Leo smile and it made him smile too. It felt good to know that he could still make his brother happy.

Leo turned to him then, "Mikey, I think you are wiser and stronger than you know."

"That's right. I'm da brains," Mikey turned back to his brothers, ready to rub it in, "You hear that Donnie? Leo said that I'm the smartest."

Donnie's mouth dropped open, "WHAT?! Oh, come on!"

"That isn't quite what I said," Leo intercepted.

Mikey could practically see the veins of Donnie's head throbbing. He decided that this was the perfect time for a victory I'm so smart dance, which involved general flailing across the rooftop, particularly close to Donnie in order for maximum annoyance of his brother. Really he probably would have gotten his butt kicked if Leo hadn't stepped in.

"Okay," Leo unsheathed his Katana, "this should be a regular patrol. Stealth mode only, unless we see something that feels off. Let's get going."

Mikey took off, board in hand, his legs propelling himself from the roof and down a fire escape, onto another building. He yelled back to his brothers, excitement filling his heart, "Last one to the Chinese Lantern hatched from a rotten egg!" With a clear head start, he was sure to win.

Or not. His lead was short lived as it wasn't long until Leo and Raphie caught up. Over-head, Raph zip lined with his Sai, using a cable connecting two restaurants. It put him slightly ahead as he landed one building in front of Mike.

As for Leo, well he, the show-off, back flipped over a water tower and slid down a fire escape railing before pummelling up the side of a building with his grapple hook. He always had some sweet and smooooth moves. He over took Raph with style, who threw up his hands, still in pursuit.

Mikey willed his feet to run faster. Harder. His feet pelted along the rough cement rooftops, taking skin off, but he didn't notice much as he was gaining ground on his brothers. He wasn't gonna be the rotten egg! No way!

He couldn't see Donnie anywhere. Don's staff and stupid shoulder bag were probably slowing him down. Don could win with that staff of his if they were simply running along the rooftops, but his brothers were being smart and sneaky, using short cuts and tricks in tight spaces, where the staff just wasn't as useful. Don would maybe think of something to catch up. He usually did, with that big brain of his. The smarty pants.

Mikey scooted down a garbage shoot. Disgusting but effective, as it popped him out next to Raphael, who growled and shoved him slightly.

Mike shoved back and added a smile, jumping onto his board. He picked up speed until he could see the green and orange lights of the Chinese Lantern up ahead. A few blocks away. It was time to pick up the pace again, if he could. Leo was still ahead, sure to win, with too much of an advantage now, but maybe he could still teach Raphael a thing or two.

Seeing an opportunity, Mikey made a hard left turn on the roof, skating towards a construction site, where scaffolding lined the building and continued almost all the way to the Chinese Lantern. He could make out the bars, ladders and polls down a dark alley and he could use them to win. Raphael continued straight over the rooftops and disappeared from his sight. That was his big mistake. Mikey grinned. He had this. He totally had this.

Not slowing but clenching a little, Mikey leapt off his board, grabbed it, and then hurdled off the side of the building, plummeting towards the ground below in complete free fall. He closed his eyes, stretched out his hand and hoped. YES! His hand slammed against the metal framework of the construction and he used the momentum of the fall to swing up and then to the next bar. He was flying then – up ladders, down rails and swinging from beam to beam. Like a monkey. A turtle-monkey. "BOOYAKASHAAAAA!" he yelled in pure delight.

With one last swing, he was through the construction, popping up directly in front of the Chinese Lantern, with only one more leap to secure a second place victory over Raphael.

From somewhere behind him, Raphael yelled in anger.

"Too slow RAPHIE!" Mikey bellowed, puffing out his chest and laughing.

At the Chinese Leo was leaning on a Katana blade with a smug smile on his face. He waved.

Mike made the leap and landed by Leo's side.

Leo beamed, "Nice work."

"Like a turtle dooooo," Mikey raised his hand for a high three, which Leo obliged to, their hands meeting with a resounding clap in the otherwise silent night.

Mikey watched with his brother as an angry looking Raphael ran closer to the Lantern, "I guess Donnie hatched from a rotten egg."

Leo held up a finger, "I wouldn't count on it just yet."

"Come on man. He's out. I can't even see him."

Leo smiled, "Is that so? You might want to double check that."

Mikey squinted harder through the darkness and sure enough, Donatello emerged from the night, sprinting and….flying between buildings? Wait…what? Attached to his shell was something resembling a small glider, made from what looked like a vacuum cleaner, scrap metal and rags stitched together. He was gaining ground on Raphael, fast. Too fast almost.

Within seconds and with one jump to go, Donnie was soaring past Raphael.

"CHEATER!" Raph yelled.

Donnie retracted the wings onto his shell and seamlessly landed next to Mikey, barrel rolling across the roof to soften the fall. Raphael, red faced with anger, leapt across the gap, in last place. "You guys cheated."

Mikey, unable to control his giggles, started to dance on the spot and in a sing-song voice began to taunt his brother, "Raph hatched from a rotten egg. A rotten egg, a rotten egg."

Raphael balled his fists, "I did not!"

Mikey opened his mouth to reply, but was cut off by the sound of shattering glass and alarms. The sound was close. The wailing of the alarm pierced through the night and made his head ring.

On cue, Mikey unsheathed his weapons and along with his brothers, he ran silently towards the unknown danger, leaving the rooftop without anyone noticing that they had ever been there.

Raph's POV:

The sirens were bloody loud.

Raph snarled, looking down at a group of Foot Soldiers rummaging around in a warehouse below. Raph could see them through the windows; the idiots weren't very discreet. He clenched his Sai harder and whispered to Leo, "Come on man, tell me why we can't just jump 'em? The looks on their faces would be frickin' hilarious."

His brother in blue sighed in his 'all-knowing' leader way, like he knew something that Raphael didn't. It made Raph just that little bit more frustrated. "Because, Raphael, we need to know what they are doing. You don't find this strange, at all? Why would the Foot need to rob a warehouse? What are they stealing?"

That was it. Raphael exploded, raising his voice, "What I find strange, is that we are just WATCHING them up here, twirling our DAMN THUMBS!"

Next to him, Donnie held a high tech pair of infra-red binoculars to his eyes, "Uh oh…we appear to have been noticed. Nice going Raphael."

Raphael smiled impishly, "Finally! Now let's go kick some shell!" He leapt from the building, not waiting for Leo to command the group. His brothers landed behind him, swift and silent.

The Foot had very much noticed them, starting to flood out of the warehouse. Some were still holding their loot, boxes of what looked like machinery parts…or something. He didn't really care. Raph wasn't much into mechanical parts and more into busting heads. He growled and launched forward.

The Foot fought back, dropping the stolen boxes for their weapons. Foot Soldiers ran forward, yelling, meeting Raphael in the middle of the street. With a loud clang, Raph met a Tanto with his Sai, then blocked a Ninjato from slicing him in half and then followed by twisting a Yari from a fumbling Foot's hands, to satisfyingly see it spin across the street and embed itself in the wall of the warehouse.

Around him, Raph's brothers fought ferociously. Shuriken stars flew from Donnie's hands and Mikey had knocked out three or four soldiers with his spinning nun-chucks. Leo was cutting down enemy after enemy.

Raph blocked more attacks. The Foot Soldiers were thinning. Some even fled, disappearing into the darkness. Raph snickered as he felt a rib of a soldier shatter under the hilt of his Sai. The soldier screamed and crumbled to the ground and it was bloody exhilarating. The fighting. The sweat. The slashing. The brutal and fulfilling clash of weapons with armour. The thought of the Foot nursing their injuries for the months to come made him smile.

And it felt damn good; until it wasn't so good.

Out of the corner of his eye, he saw it.

A Foot Soldier on the ground had stirred and with a Katana raised, was ready to slice into Leo's head from behind. The soldier sprang towards Leonardo, who was still completely unaware.

Raph launched towards the soldier, yelling to his oblivious brother, "LEEEO! LOOK OUT!"

Raphael almost closed his eyes, but he heard the familiar and sharp sound of metal clanging, as his Sai blocked the deadly Katana blade. He looked up and found himself directly under the Katana, with his Sai above him. Staring at the masked Foot soldier, Raph saw red, and surged upwards, kicking the man in the stomach and plummeting him backwards.

And suddenly with that kick, all the feelings that he had pushed deep, deep, deep fucking down inside his gut, everything that he had felt from the past year, came rushing back.

That feeling of pure desperation in his hunt to find Leo. His guilt from not realising where his brother had been. His rage for what the A.T.P.L did. And the hurt from almost losing him, again, just now. It was just too close. Raphael screamed and ran forward, aiming to kill, to plunge his Sai into the soldier's skull, "YOU STAY AWAY FROM HIM, YOU MOTHERFU-"

A hand on his shoulder pulled him back. He whipped around, ready to strike, to find Leonardo with his cool and collected eyes watching him.

They were alone in the dark street. The rest of the soldiers had fled. Donnie was inspecting the contents of the boxes that the failed thieves had left behind and Mikey was practicing kick flicks with his skateboard. Behind him, Raphael heard his intended prey scurry away.

Raph heaved, his plastron rising with each breath.

Leo shook his head, "Raph, I'm fine. I'm good. Raphael, are you hearing me?"

"He could have killed you."

"And yet, he didn't," Leo smirked, "thanks to you. What else are brothers for, right?"

Raph shook his head, "Exactly! Brothers are meant ta' look out for each other! What did we do?! Left you! I mean, shit Leo-"

Leo sheathed both of his katana blades, "You didn't know."

"You reached out to all of us!"

Leo looked so calm. Raphael didn't understand how he wasn't ever angry. Angry at everything that had happened and angry at them for not trying harder. For not being there for him when he had needed them the most.

"I reached out because I was alone and scared but more than anything I was worried. About all of you. For a while, I thought that something had happened to you all, and no matter what they did to me in there, the thought of losing one of you, or not being able to help or never seeing you again…that was the worst torture of them all."

"How did you keep going?"

Leo smiled, "I put together, slowly, that you were all safe and clung onto that. I reached out to you because it was comforting. Don't you get it?"

"Get what?"

"That it doesn't matter. What happened to me, it happened but I got out. I got out and what I feared most in the world, didn't happen. You're all here and safe. I don't know about you, but I'm counting my blessings."

Raphael stooped his head. His shoulders relaxed, as if a massive weight had been lifted off him. A weight that he hadn't been aware that he was carrying. His brother was right. They were lucky. They were the lucky ones. His family was still together, against all the odds. Somehow, against everything, they were all still here. Leonardo, his lost brother, who had sunk below the waves, was here.

Raph could feel his chest welling and he couldn't help it. He stepped forward and wrapped his arms around his older brother, hugging him. Leo stumbled back, clearly not expecting the embrace, but he accepted it, returning the gesture as Raphael felt Leo's hands wrap around his own shell. And Raph felt proud. Proud of his brother and of his family. And he felt whole.

To his side, Raphael heard Mikey making little squeaks, before his younger brother yelled, "AWWW GROUP HUG!"

Raph felt his youngest brother launch himself onto them and Donatello came up from behind, placing a hand on both his and Leo's shoulders.

They stayed like that for a moment, in the cold street, which now seemed so warm.

And then the moment passed and Raphael broke away, clearing his throat, not wanting to hug his brothers for too long. Would ruin his reputation. Mikey would never take him seriously again. "We should probably, ahhh get going, you know."

Mike was smirking. Donnie had a happy gleam in his eyes. Leonardo was looking at him closely and smiled, "Yeah, you're right. More criminals are sure to be out tonight."

Raphael nodded and twirled his weapons, tucking them into his belt, "More heads to smash?"

Leonardo walked towards a fire escape and started to climb up, looking back at him. "Something like that. Come on guys."

His brothers followed Leonardo and disappeared up onto the roof. Taking a final look around him, checking for witnesses, Raphael was the last up the ladder, following his brothers into the night.

Leo's POV:

After their encounter with the Foot, Leo and his brothers had a relatively quiet night.

They stopped a small time mugger who stole an old woman's purse, checked abandoned warehouses for Krang bases and last but not least, helped a cat out of tree which Mikey refused to leave.

Now they ran across the rooftops again, doing one last patrol around the city before the sun came up.

It was that time of morning where the sun was just peeking over the horizon, turning the night into a sleepy shade of light blue. It was beautiful. Calm.

The air was soft.

The smell of garbage wafting up from the streets was comforting.

Soft and comforting probably wouldn't be the words used to describe New York by most people, but to Leo, the fresh air was welcoming, having been cooped up in a cell for so long. It was almost funny that the smell of garbage was a constant reminder of his freedom.

Freedom was around him, everywhere and in everything. It was in the morning sun and in the now sleeping stars.

Before his capture, he hadn't been one to admire the stars, that was more Donnie's thing, but now, having not seen them for so long, he understood their meaning and their endless beauty. Across the night that had been, he had constantly looked towards the stars, relishing in their beauty and grace.

He knew that some were already long extinguished and dead in the sky, their light only just reaching them now. It didn't make them any less beautiful though. He actually admired them, because despite being dead, they still were seemingly in the heavens, watching over them. They were never truly gone.

Maybe if he had died, he would have been like a star to his brothers. Always watching over them.

He could only hope so.

Leo ran along the rooftop, inches away from the edge, trusting his balance. Raph and Don ran behind him, silent and stealthy. The only sign of their existence, was the noise of Mikey's skateboard rolling across the cement.

He was coming to the edge of the building and trusted his instincts, letting his feet carry him off the edge and down to a lower building; his feet connecting again.

They continued like this through New York, looking for crooks and bad guys, who would be slinking back to whatever hole they crawled out from, with their dirty deeds now done in the cover of night.

Leonardo didn't even realise where he was leading his brothers until suddenly he was there, looking out onto the rubble that was once the A.T.P.L building. It looked like the carcass of a dead animal in the desert, with steel bones still standing but everything else burnt and unrecognisable at the base. It had been like this for a year, slowly becoming forgotten by the world.

His brothers were beside him. Donnie placed a hand on his shoulder.

It was strange but his collar bone pained slightly, remembering the agony that was once there. The agony that the A.T.P.L, that Dumb-ass, the scientists and Serley had afflicted. He still had the scars across his body. The white gash across his face was never going to heal fully. He shuddered.

He had made peace with everything that had happened. The A.T.P.L's building was destroyed and the organisation was silent. He and his brothers throughout the year had been looking for any sign of the Prevention League re-emerging, but there had been nothing. After all, their leader, Serley, was dead. The survivors of the explosion and the assault on the Lair had run in fear and they had not resurfaced.

Dumb-ass was gone as well. The last Leo saw of him was when he had fled from the Lair. Maybe, in a year, he had managed to make a better man out of himself. Leo liked to think so anyways, considering that he was the one who had spared Dumb-ass' life. He hoped that he would not come to regret that decision.

Leo gazed out upon the heap of rubble which was once the A.T.P.L's fortress of suffering. Surprising him even, he let out a small giggle, "You guys really know how to take a building down. Like really, solid job."

Donnie puffed out his chest, "All thanks to my make-shift bombs. Not bad for a homemade job, if I don't say so myself…not that I'm proud of blowing you up. That was an accident. I really didn't think that you-"

Leo cut his brother off, saving him from his own rambling, "Donnie, relax."

Behind them, Mikey had started to glide around on his skateboard. "Yeah D, you need to 'C' to the 'H' to the 'I' to the double 'L'! Chill dude."

Leo watched on as his brothers bickered, Donnie claiming that he was chill whilst Mikey listed the reasons why that was not the case, which did include that Donnie didn't like jellybeans on pizza and that he hardly invented things that go boom.

This went on for a few minutes, but then Leo noticed that the sun had truly begun to rise into the sky, banishing the moon. He watched as the bright golden orb of light rose up and over the remains of the A.T.P.L. The warm sun kissed his face, making him smile. Behind him, even Don, Raph and Mikey settled, their laughs and comments easing as they all watched the rising sun pour golden light on to the rooftop and surrounding city.

Raphael was the first to break the serene silence, "There's still one thing that bugs me."

Leo turned to look at him, "Yeah? What's that?"

"When you killed Serley, you said something to him. None of us heard it. Mind shedding some light on that?"

Leo couldn't help the smile that crept onto his face, "I told him to go fuck himself."

Raph exploded in laughter.

Leo wanted to explain further, "I told him that I'm more human than he will ever be and that he would never touch me or hurt my family again. That I had won, whilst he lost everything."

Raph nodded, "Like an absolute boss."

The sun was now well in the sky, rising fast, illuminating the waking city. Dogs started to bark. The streets were slowly becoming busier with cars and taxis. "Time to go home," Leo announced, "before the city fully wakes."

With his brothers, Leonardo turned and started to head home. The wind was strong and his blue bandana whipped at his face. The cloth was new, only a year old. No blood marks stained the bright blue colour. It was whole again, across his face, where it should and always would be, as long as he had breath in his lungs. He had been re-appointed as the leader of his brothers and leading them across the city was where he was meant to be. He could feel it.

What he had said to Serley was true and it was what he believed in, most in the world - that even though he was a mutant turtle, he was more human than Serley or the A.T.P.L would ever be. He was good and true. He knew what it meant to love and to be loved by others. He understood the importance of family and the bond between brothers which could never be broken.

With the sun at his back and New York on the horizon, Leo's heart pumped and his soul sang.

He had held on for so long, fighting against the A.T.P.L and he had almost lost himself along the way. But now his great struggle was over and he was safe. Everyone was safe.

He had been broken, pulled apart and then stitched back together.

He had been to the edge of his sanity and back again.

He had fought the beast inside of him and he had won.

Dumb-ass had called him a beast to demonize him, but why couldn't he harness its raw power and use it? The beast was deep within him, dormant but waiting. He could feel it, below the blue, its calm and deadly fury, ready to be unleashed when his brothers needed it, when they were in danger. The world was a perilous and scary place, but Leo tried to be brave.

Surely, that is the definition of bravery. Bravery in knowing the danger was out there but facing it anyway, despite sometimes being afraid.

And that danger would eventually come for them, because the world was always going to be filled with evil and those who did not understand. Those like the A.T.P.L.

But when that evil came looking for them…

He would always be there.

Ready to fight.

And ready to win.

The End.