Song: Whatever Reason - Disciple

"Lizzy!"

His sky-blue eyes. His freckles. His sunny smile. I've seen them in my imagination so often that I had almost forgotten they're actually real.

   Michelangelo's arms are around me in a split-second. He lifts me off the ground, causing my heart to skip a beat in worry. I hate when my feet can't touch the ground because I have an intense fear of heights, but I make an exception for my best friend's sake.

My best friend. The words ring throughout my head as a smile contaminates my face.

Michelangelo finally sets me down, but his arms don't completely release me. "I missed you so much, dudette!"

I giggle at the joyful tone he uses. "I missed you too, Mikey." I look over his shoulder to take in everyone else. "I missed all of you."

All of my friends are grinning, even Raphael. As soon as my eyes connect with his green ones, I am reminded of the dream about my brother.

"What are you doing here?" Donatello asks curiously.

I decide not to voice my thoughts about my dream right away- I just arrived. Plus, I want to catch up with them. Maybe we can all have some fun before we get down to business. I think I deserve that much, at least.

"I just wanted to come see you guys," I reply happily. "It's been torture having to stay away."

"You can stay here forever now!" Michelangelo chirps, finally letting go of my sides. "We have way better skills now! We can protect you and ourselves!"

I don't want to get ahead of myself. Still, I find myself nodding in agreement. "We'll see," I say gently.

My eyes fully connect with Leonardo's for the first time. His gaze gives nothing away, as per usual. I suddenly wonder if I've made things worse by coming back. I hurt him when I left; I don't want to renew that pain. But there's no turning back now.

I take a few steps towards him. "Hi," I murmur softly.

Surprisingly, he smiles, but only a little. He's always one to play it cool.

"Welcome back," he greets, and I'm shocked to hear his voice sounds deeper. I've changed completely since last time I saw him.

I tilt my head in confusion. "What happened to your voice?" I can't help but ask.

"He got hurt by the Shredder!" Michelangelo informs me. "His shell got cracked and he was out cold for months."

My eyes widen. "Are you ok?!" I question the blue-clad turtle in alarm.

Leonardo chuckles. "I'm fine, Lizzy."

Lizzy. It feels good to hear him say that again, even with a deeper voice. It will take some getting used to, of course.

I glance over at Casey, realizing he hasn't said anything since I arrived. Once I get a look at him, however, I can see why he isn't drawing attention to himself. He is plastered in mud. And shame.

"What happened to you?" I can't hide my laughter.

Casey glares at me and doesn't respond.

"He got in a brawl with Bebop and Rocksteady!" Michelangelo speaks up once again, coming to stand beside me.

"Who?" I give him a quizzical look.

"Two thieves who were recently mutated," Donatello explains. "We were just about to go find them and see what funny business they're up to. Do you want to go with us?"

"No way!" April argues. "Look at her; she's exhausted. We should forget about them for now. They aren't going anywhere."

"I say we just head back to the lair," Leonardo puts in his two cents. "Whatever they might be planning can wait, anyhow. Nothing has ever been put anything into play immediately."

"True," Donatello murmurs, while everyone else nods. Well, everyone except Casey.

"So you guys are just going to give up?!" he questions in shock. "You're just gonna let those freaks get away with it?!"

"Get away with what? Blocking traffic?" Raphael shakes his head. "In case you haven't noticed, we aren't cops."

"They're probably just looking to start a fight," April comments. "It must get boring hiding from the public all the time."

Leonardo starts away from the manhole. "Let's go back to the lair."

All of us follow the turtle, except Casey. He stays behind, his voice bouncing off of the walls.

"Fine! Be cowards! I'll stop their plan myself," he snaps.

"Good luck with that, Mudman," Raphael calls back, earning a few chuckles from Michelangelo.

Casey lets out a loud, frustrated noise. "Casey Jones will prove you wrong!" he yells, and that was the last I hear from him for the night.

~*~*~*~

On the way to their home, the turtles tell me stories of what I had missed. I notice that they each have a personality to go along with their tales. Donatello's storytelling focuses on the scientific aspects of their missions. Raphael likes to mention how bad he beats up his enemies. And Michelangelo, well, he likes to exaggerate every detail.

Leonardo, however, isn't speaking much. I catch him glancing at me, but his lips are sealed tight, unless it's to correct Michelangelo's stories. Even April has a few things to add to the flashbacks. So it worries me that Leonardo isn't participating. And dare I say, it makes me a bit self-conscious.

The lair is the same as I remember it. The television and sofa-like contraption are here, as well as the pinball machine. A punching bag decorates one corner, while other things, such as skateboards, litter the floor. The only thing different from my first arrival is the fact that I am used to the sewer's smell.

"If we had known you were coming, we would have cleaned up a little," Leonardo says as he clears a skateboard out of the way.

I smile, glad to hear him speak again. "Yeah, right. You'd only clean the place if Captain Ryan was visiting," I tease.

Leonardo turns slightly pink.

Donatello took a seat on the sofa and looks up at me expectantly. "So, tell us about your new home."

"Actually, I'm going to have to take a rain check on this story time," April breaks in. "I'm exhausted. I'll see you guys in the morning." She gives me a smile and exits the room.

"Well?" Michelangelo asks, bringing my attention back to the rest of the turtles. "How was your aunt's?"

"It's only a few hours from here," I explain, surprised by his intense curiosity. "I figured I didn't have to go too far, since I'm not a threat to the Shredder outside New York. It's a small town. Everyone knows each other, so it's probably max of two hundred residents. There's always a happy feeling in the air," I go on, leaving out the part about the disappearances. They will hear about that soon enough. "Also, I got a job at my aunt's restaurant, something I've always wanted. And guess what?" I add, focusing on Michelangelo.

His eyes light up ecstatically. "What?!" he demands with eager impatience.

"I got your omelet put on the menu."

Michelangelo seems like he might explode from joy overload. He jumps into my lap and embraces me tightly. "Thank you, thank you, thank you, thank you, thank you!" he gasps as he squeezes me. "It's a dream come true!"

I laugh and pat the back of his shell. "You're welcome, Mikey."

He releases me quite quickly and tilts his head questioningly. "You seem different," he comments suddenly.

I blink. "What do you mean?" I ask, bewilder. That's not something I expected him to say.

"You must be hungry," Michelangelo replies, and I am certain he is just trying to change the subject.

He grabs my hand and tugs me towards the kitchen. "C'mon! We have leftover pizza!"

"No we don't, Mikey!" Leonardo calls after us. "You ate the last slice, remember?"

"You don't know about my secret stash! I mean-" Michelangelo quickly tries to cover up his words- "I can just make something else!"

As I glance over my shoulder, I notice Leonardo giving me a strange look.  Then he blinks, and it's gone.

Leonardo is certainly acting strange.