Serpent Leo

Finale

Several weeks after defeating the Triceratons and returning from space Karai, April, and the three turtles were on patrol. They were celebrating April being promoted to a full kunoichi. They laughed and chatted as the ran along the rooftops of the city. They finally came to a stop at the edge of a building. Karai surveyed the area. "Alright ninjas why don't we call it a night!" She said to the group. They all let out a collective groan in protest. "The city's quiet, for now at least." Karai said as they turned to head back to the lair. "I'm sure that'll change soon. With Shredder gone, there's gonna be a ton of gangsters and supervillains moving in on his turf." Raph commented. April suddenly stopped in her tracks. "You okay, April? What's wrong?" Donnie asked worriedly. "I'm pretty certain someone is following us." April replied as she touched her temples. The group became on high alert after hearing that. They looked all around them and their hands hovered over their weapons ready to draw them at a moments notice. Karai looked over at the brick doorway on the roof of the building they were on. She saw movement in the shadows and threw a shuriken in it's direction. It stuck into the side of the bricks. "Show yourself!" Karai yelled. The group was shocked to see Leonardo step out of shadows. "Leo?" They all gasped. "I didn't mean to sneak up on you, I just didn't know how to approach you!" Leo said, his voice shaky. "What are you doing here? Where have you been?" Karai stammered out. "I-I just wanted to see you guys again and to apologize. I need to let you know I'm no longer under Shredder's control." Leo said nervously. "How do we know this isn't a trap? I mean he could be playing innocent just to get access to the lair and destroy us." Raph said. He wanted his brother back badly but he knew they needed to be cautious. Karai had pulled a trick like this, claiming to believe Splinter was her father only to gain access to the lair and lead Tiger Claw to it. Of course that plan backfired when Karai really did learn the truth and wound up captured by Shredder. April closed her eyes and placed her hands on her temples. The crystal around her neck glowed bright. She let out a shaky breath as she opened her eyes back up. "He's telling the truth." She said quietly. She let out a shaky laugh as she looked up at Leo. Leo gave her a shy smile. Smiles spread across the faces of the group and they let out cheers of joy. They rushed over and wrapped Leo in a group hug. Tears of happiness leaked from everyone's eyes. They stayed like that for a few moments before pulling away. Karai wiped away her tears. "This is perfect Leo! Now you can come home! Father and Casey will be so excited to see you again! Come on!" Karai said excitedly. She and the rest of the group turned to start their trek back. They stopped when they noticed Leo wasn't following. "Leo what's wrong?" Raph asked. "Aren't you gonna come home?" Karai asked. Her face was covered in concern. "I don't think I should come home." Leo stated. His expression looked pained and he averted his eyes from them all. "What are you talking about?" Karai asked confused. Leo screwed his eyes shut and turned away from the group. Tears began to stream down his cheeks. "After everything that's happened? Everything I've done? Why should I be able to go home?" Leo choked out. Karai grabbed his hand and turned him back around. She cupped his face in her hands and wiped away his tears with her thumbs. "Leo are you crazy? Absolutely none of what happened was your fault." Karai told him softly. Leo slowly opened his eyes and met hers. "It was all Shredder's fault. He was the one who mutated you, he was the one who took you from your family, and he was the one who mind controlled you and used you as a weapon." Karai assured him. "None of us blame you for what happened Leo." Donnie said softly. "Yeah dude, Shredder's the one we're mad at! Dude's a total psycho!" Mikey declared. Leo let out a soft chuckle. He'd missed his youngest brother lightening the mood. Karai took her hands from Leo's face and took his hands. "Come home Leo, it's where you belong." Karai said. Leo took a deep breath and let it out slowly. "Ok." Leo said with a small smile. Karai grinned and pulled Leo over to everyone. "Let's go home." Raph said smiling. The group arrived home to a quiet lair. "Leo wait here I'll go find father." Karai whispered. Karai ran into the dojo where Splinter was meditating. "Father we're home!" Karai said quietly as to not startle her father. Splinter cracked his eyes open. "It is awfully late my daughter. I should hope you all have good reason for staying out so late." Splinter said. Karai let out a nervous laugh. "Oh trust me we do, and I think it's something you're gonna wanna see." Karai said as she pointed towards the living room. Splinter sighed as he stood up and followed his daughter out to the common area. "What is it you have to show me?" He asked. Everyone moved aside to reveal Leo. Splinter let out a surprise gasp. "Leonardo?" He asked, not believing his son was truly there. He must be dreaming or hallucinating. Leo slowly shuffled closer to his father. As he finally reached Splinter he let out a sob as he wrapped him in a tight hug. Splinter was shocked for a moment before wrapping his own arms around his son. "Oh my son, how I've missed you." Splinter whispered to him. "I missed you to father, so much." Leo cried. After a few minutes the two pulled apart. They both wiped away tears as they smiled at each other. "I've gotta call Casey! He's gonna be so excited you're back Leo!" April said happily. She wrapped Leo in a quick hug before rushing to make her phone call. Mikey popped up beside Leo. He grabbed his hand and pulled him towards the kitchen. "Come on bro we gotta get you some pizza!" He yelled. "Ok ok I'm coming." Leo laughed as he let himself be pulled. After getting Leo set with a large plate of pizza, Mikey pulled him over and sat him down on the couch in front of the television. "Dude, we've found so many new shows, movies, and games since you've been gone! We gotta get you caught up!" Mikey said grabbing an arm full of dvds. "We also gotta tell you all the crazy stuff that's gone down since you've been gone." Karai said. "Yeah we even went to space!" Mikey yelled. "Wait, you guys got to go to space?!" Leo yelled shocked. "Trust me it's not as cool as it seems. But at least I got this little guy." Raph said as he presented Chompy. "What the heck is that?" Leo asked completely confused. "This is Chompy. I found him on an alien planet and now I'm taking care of him." Raph stated. Leo gave the little alien a scratch under his chin and Chompy let out a content purr. "Leo!" Casey yelled as he entered the lair. His clothes were disheveled and his hair a mess meaning he'd obviously just been woken up. Casey rushed over and crushed Leo with a hug. "Oh man I can't believe you're back!" He yelled. Leo chuckled as he returned the hug. "Where have you been?" Casey asked as he pulled away. "Yeah Leo you never did tell us what happened. We haven't see you since the whole crazy trap incident." Karai said. "It's all kinda blurry. I could vaguely see and hear what was happening but I couldn't control my body. Then I remember Sensei using what I assume was an ancient healing technique or something like that. Then I felt immense pain my vision went black. Next thing I knew I was in a sewer tunnel coughing up some disgusting worm thing and my mind felt clear again." Leo told them all. "Why didn't you find us sooner?" Karai asked. Leo sighed sadly and looked down at his feet. "I was afraid. Afraid that you'd reject me, afraid that Shredder would find me again, afraid that he'd make me a slave again and I'd put you all in danger again. But mostly, I was afraid I'd lose control of my serpent side again and end up hurting you all. I couldn't let that happen." Leo said sadly. Karai smiled and rubbed Leo's shoulder. "Well it seems like you've still got full control to me." She said. "Yeah I guess so. Now come on, I wanna hear about this whole space adventure I missed out on!" Leo said with a smile. "Dude it was insane!" Mikey yelled as he began to recall their adventures. Splinter watched as his family laughed and talked. It was like old times again. He let out a sigh of content and happiness. He returned to the dojo to resume his meditation. His mind finally at peace now that his family was reunited once more.