I stared down at the drawing Leonardo lay out on the table in front of me. I sighed and looked up, trying not to flinch at the piercing look he sent me from those electric blue eyes of his. "Leo, drawings aren't always a reliable source. What if it isn't accurate? We could be chasing down some random guy."

His eyes shone like beacons from behind his bright blue mask. "Raph draws from memory, April. Look at this." Leo showed April the drawing of himself. "You still think Raph's drawing won't be accurate?"

I pulled the drawing that had been torn from the book closer and studied it intently. My bottom lip pushed out and I asked, "Is he as accurate with backgrounds as he is with figures?"

Don raised an eye-ridge and leaned over my shoulder so that he could get a better look. "Why? What do you see?"

I motioned the turtles to come closer and pointed at the area directly behind the human where there was a large photo of a hockey team standing on the desk shelf the man was leaning against. My eyes narrowed and I turned to Donatello. "You see that?"

They all narrowed their eyes as I pointed at a figure in the front row with his arm slung playfully around one of the other players' shoulders. "Isn't that the same guy?"

"Whoaaaaa. You're right, bruh!" Mikey stated, awed.

Don brought his hand to his chin, thoughtfully. "Indeed. It looks like that was the only face that Raphael bothered to detail. The others are just vague figure outlines."

Leo sent me a curious glance. "So, where does that get us?"

"This looks like a college or professional-level hockey team. And I'm willing to bet that he probably hasn't stopped playing. And judging from all the New York sports collectibles he has," I pointed to some of the rare jerseys and autographed pictures in the background, "the guy is most likely a local."

"What's that mean?" Mikey asked.

I frowned. "It means, if he played professional hockey, or even college hockey, we can narrow our search field. It would probably be best to start with the ice rinks."

Don raised a finger. "I hate to be the voice of cynicism here, but do you even realize how many ice rinks there are in this city?"

"I have a few more hours before the rinks close. I might be able to get a bit of investigating done tonight." I took out my camera phone and took a picture of the drawing. Satisfied with how it turned out, I muttered to the guys, "Don't expect immediate results. It'll probably take a while to track down somebody who knows this guy given the number of people in this city."

I was about to leave when a giant hand latched gently onto my elbow, slowly turning me around. Leo's expression had softened and I could see how weary he was. He looked horrible. His eyes were bloodshot from lack of sleep and a frown marred his face. "April, thanks for all your help. You have no idea how much this means to me, to us." Leo looked at his brothers and they offered him reassuring grins before solemnly nodding their agreement.

I smiled and put a soft hand on his shoulder. "I can take a guess."

He smiled sadly at that. "Please call us the moment you know anything."

"I will." I promised him. And I would. After everything they had done for me, the least I could do was help them get their brother back.

——————————

I rode my bike to the nearest hockey stadium. It was the middle of the season, so a reporter on the scene wouldn't be too unusual. I'd considered the problem from all angles and decided to start with the pros and work my way down.

My first attempt yielded nothing but an angry coach. I got myself kicked out for being too great of a distraction.

It wasn't until my third stop that I began getting warm. It was late by the time I got there and practice had already ended, so there weren't too many players left. One of them was sitting off to the side while the others were getting some extra practice on the ice. I decided to start with the one on the side. "Hey."

He looked up, giving me a quick once-over before leaning back slightly and giving me a crooked smile. "Hey yourself." He wolf-whistled and I rolled my eyes. "You need something, princess?"

My eyes narrowed at his tone. "Just some information." I stated evenly, flashing my press ID at him.

He deflated and crossed his arms over his chest, his muscles immediately tensing up. "What kind?"

I pulled the picture up on my phone and handed it to him. "Ever seen this guy before?"

He glanced at me for a few moments before finally turning his eyes down to the photo of Raph's drawing. His eyebrows shot up. "Yeah, I seen him around. Don't know him very well, though. Used to play pro or somethin' before he got injured. You want more info than that, yur gonna have to ask Gibbs over there." He pointed to one of the figures out on the ice. "They're pals."

I waited not-so-patiently for Gibbs to get off the ice. When he finally did I shot over and called out to him. "Gibbs?"

One of the incredibly large hockey players turned to me and removed his helmet. "Yeah? Who's asking?"

"April O'Neil." I answered offering my hand.

He shook it hesitantly. "What's all this about?"

I showed him my ID and he relaxed a little.

"Official business then?" He asked with a toothy grin.

He seemed like a nice guy, so I decided to be on the level. "No, actually. It's just that the ID was the only way they let me in here."

Gibbs raised an eyebrow. "Then what do you want?" He asked, now slightly on-edge again.

"Do you know this guy?" I showed him the picture.

"Casey Jones? Course I do. He's an old friend. Why? Is he in some kind of trouble?"

I could definitely hear the apprehension in his voice. Chances are if I don't come up with a story fast, Gibbs isn't gonna tell me anything. "No, no, nothing like that. It's just that I found some old leftover stuff in his old apartment that I thought he might like to have. Unfortunately, his supposedly 'new' phone number the landlord gave me is a bust. This drawing was in with the stuff. I was hoping maybe you could give me his new contact information?"

Gibbs raised a very suspicious eyebrow. "That's a lot of trouble to go to for a couple of leftover boxes."

"They're full of mementos. Old yearbooks, family photo albums..."

His chilling blue eyes narrowed as he bent intimidatingly over me. "Casey hasn't moved apartments in over ten years. So who really wants to send him those boxes, eh, Red? Let me guess. It was his sister, Jillian, wasn't it?" He growled.

At first I stared wide-eyed for a few moments before I actually managed to create a response. "Uh, yes. Yes it was. She wanted to know where he was so that she could stop by for a visit."

His smirk was positively primeval and he kept getting closer to me, forcing me to back up until I hit the wall of the rink.

"Anyone who knows the Jones siblings knows that they haven't spoken to each other in six years. Jillian would never just stop by for a visit. So why are you really here, Red? I ain't gonna ask you again." He threatened.

I sighed as I realized the futility of my situation. "Fine. Some friends of mine had a fight with their brother and he ran off. Casey Jones is a friend of the one that ran away. My friends are desperate to find their brother and it's possible that Casey Jones is the only one in this entire city who knows where he is."

Gibbs stepped back and I watched in awe as his expression softened. He sighed. "Ay, Case. That's Casey Jones for you. Always willing to help someone in a fix." He rubbed his temples with a distressed expression. Then he tensed again and frowned. "I'll tell Jones yur looking for him. Come back tomorrow night and I'll tell you whether or not he wants to talk to ya."

I left the hockey stadium in a flurry, booking out of the building to hop on my bike and speed back to the lair.

—————————

"Guys! Guys!"

They all jumped up from where they were seated, watching the news and spoke simultaneously:

"April! Did you find Raph?"

"What's up bruh?"

"What's wrong?"

The sound of someone clearing their throat made everyone quiet down and I turned around to come face-to-face with Master Splinter. Everyone bowed respectfully to the old rat.

"April, have you any news?" He asked softly, and I could see hope glimmering in his eyes.

I nodded. "His name is Casey Jones. He used to play pro hockey but he had to stop due to some kind of injury. He had a sister, but they haven't spoken to each other in six years. From what the guy I talked to told me, it sounds like he's a very charitable guy, always willing to help a friend in need. I'm going to meet with that guy again tomorrow for more information. He's going to try and set up a meeting for me and Casey."

Mikey raised an eye-ridge. "So, Raph's hanging with a professional hockey player? Why does that not surprise me?"

Suddenly there was the sound of a news bulletin and we all turned to the television.

"We bring you this straight from the mouth of Police Sergeant Sterns. Last night, ten more members of the Foot gang were found bound and gagged in an alley across the street from a police station. The gang members reported being attacked by a vigilante wearing a white hockey mask."

Silence spread through the room. My eyebrows furrowed suspiciously and I turned slowly to the turtles and their father. Splinter was stroking his beard thoughtfully and shaking his head while the turtle brothers were exchanging very uncomfortable glances.

Donnie was the first to speak. "You don't think..."

Leo tensed and remained silent, sending Donnie a look. My eyes widened.

"The white string." Mikey murmured and everyone turned to stare at him. His eyes narrowed a little. "Raph lied to us about the white string because he didn't want us to know about his human friend. A white string, a vigilante wearing a white hockey mask."

Splinter's expression was grave, Leo's even more so as he finally spoke.

"It would make sense." The blue-masked turtle murmured.

Don sprung into action and ran to Raph's room, his brothers close on his heels.

"Donnie, what—" Leo began, but Don cut him off.

"We should find the most commonly frequented points on this map where the red and white strings meet. If we patrol those areas we might just have a chance at finding Raph."

"But Donnie, April is going to meet with that guy again tomorrow to get more information. We should wait rather than storming over there and risk running into Raph on the streets. If he knows we're getting close, he might run, and that's the last thing we need."

Don's eyes narrowed. "Easy for you to say! You're the reason he left in the first place, Leo!"

I frowned sadly as Leo's normally proud shoulders sank.

"I know Don. That's precisely why I'm not going to risk losing him again. If we spook him, Raph could disappear forever!"

The brainy turtle went silent and watched as Michelangelo rushed to wrap their eldest brother in a hug. It wasn't until about half a minute had passed that I realized it was really Leo who was comforting Mikey. The youngest whimpered and whispered. "Raphie will come back, right Leo?"

Leonardo rubbed Mikey's shell softly and leaned into the hug. "I hope so, Mikey. I hope so."

I hope so too.