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Author's Chapter Notes:

In honour of the new review I spotted earlier! [Thanks Marie!] :) Enjoy!

Disclaimer: Only own Catarina, Marietta, Rembrandty, baddies, & story idea. Mirage Studios owns everything TMNT [including Karai, & The Foot Clan]. Thank-you!

Leo was driving, as Donnie had Rina, Raph was still not up to it, Master Splinter didn't know how, and Mikey had taken the Shell Cycle. Marie groaned, as she sat down on a seat in the back, suddenly remembering she'd still a scalpel stuck in her arm.

 

"Oh, boy....." She sighed, knowing it'd hurt like a bitch to get it out.

Leo revved up the engine of the Battle Sell and it roared to life. He took out a couple trash cans as he drove it out into the street. Marie braced herself and hissed as the scalpel in her shoulder ached.

 

Master Splinter noticed her pain. "Marietta, my daughter, come here," he said, beckoning her over.

 

She stood up and stumbled towards him, unable to keep her balance with Leo's crappy driving.

 

"No wonder Donnie or Raph always drives!" Marie said.

 

Leo glared at her via the mirror, "Marie, I don't want to hear anything from you. At all."

 

Marie frowned but held her tongue as she knelt in front of Master Splinter.

 

He glanced over the scalpel and sighed, "Marietta, why did you not tell anyone?" He gave a tsk and shook his head as he ripped a strip off his robe off. "I am going to remove it," he said, looking at her eyes.

 

"No, Sensei, it's fine, it doesn't really hurt," she said, leaning away from him. Quicker than she could follow, he had reached out and yanked the scalpel from her arm. She let out a scream and grabbed at the wound. "Shit! That hurt!"

 

Master Splinter moved her hand away and wrapped the wound tightly, staving off any further blood loss. "There you are, Marietta," he said, giving her a smile.

 

She stared back at him, not sure of how to react.

"Sensei, are we going back to the lair?" Leonardo asked. He was driving one-handed since Mikey had called him on his Shell Cell.

 

Master Splinter shook his head. "We shall continue on to Ms. O'Neil's farm house," he said, stroking his chin, "The city is a dangerous place for us at the moment. I think it is best if we retire there for the time being."

 

Marie moved over and sat down next to Rembrandt. Well, at least they were going to the farm house, even if it was under bad circumstances.

 

Rembrandt was looking at Rina, his grey eyes worried. He hoped that she would make it; it'd hurt to lose a family member he'd just met, especially the one who had named him.

 

"Hey Leo," Marie started but Leonardo gave her such a glare that she stopped.

 

"Marie, don't talk," he growled.

 

Marietta leaned back against the side of the side of the Battle Shell and put her head to her knees. It was going to be a long ride…

About an hour later; Raphael was coherent enough to figure out everything that was going on. He turned to Marie who was sitting beside him and scowled fiercely.

 

"Just what was going through your pea-sized brain, Marietta?" he suddenly snapped, causing her to stare at him. She cringed, she had been expecting this. "Did you really think it would be a good idea to go back in there and attack that guy? Did you even think that we might come after you? Damn, could you be any more self-centered?!" he snarled, shoving a finger into her face. "You and your crazy sense of vengeance! I told you that you were going to get someone hurt. And look, you almost managed to kill off your entire family! Good job, genius!" He threw his hands in the air, "You better be glad I'm not up to hitting you right now. I swear, Marie, for once, couldn't yah have thought of someone ‘sides yourself?"

Marie shrunk some, partly relieved her brother wasn't up to hitting anything or anyone - namely, herself. She kept silent though, as Leo had instructed her to do. For once, she was actually going to listen to her brothers - no matter how much she hated having to keep quiet. She buried her face into her lap, though it killed to do so, as the welts on her legs were throbbing like crazy.

 

Rembrandt watched everyone, also quiet, but by choice not orders. He wasn't quite sure what to say, and he was still overly concerned about Catarina, who still remained unconscious in Donatello's lap.

 

"She'll be okay, won't she?" He asked finally, unable to stand the tense silence any longer.

 

Donnie glanced up, giving him a hopeful smile. "She should be," he said. "I'm hoping, anyway."

 

Raph glared at Marie upon hearing this, and the girl just shrunk even more - if at all possible.

They drove for quite a while, making sure to take a different route than usual, should someone actually be following them. Soon enough though, they reached April's farmhouse, and pulled into the long driveway. Once they had parked, everyone began to pile out. April and Casey had tagged along as well, as April had the keys to the house.

 

"Here, let me unlock the door," April said. "Then you can get Rina upstairs and into a bed."

 

Donnie nodded as he climbed out carefully. "Make it one near the bathroom," he replied. "In case I have to bring down any fevers."

 

Everyone else followed Donnie out of the Battle Shell, except for Marie, whom was extremely sore, and a bit scared to move.

 

"Wow," Rembrandt breathed, looking around wide-eyed. "This is a farm?"

 

"Yup!" Mikey smiled, draping his arm over the younger boy's shoulders. "This would be the farmhouse we were talking about."

 

"Casey!" April called. "Come help me get some sheets on a bed for Rina!"

 

"Comin', Babe!" Casey called back, hurrying upstairs after the woman he loved.

 

"I'm not a babe!" April's voice rang out.

 

While everyone else went inside, Marie stayed out in the Battle Shell. She didn't want to go inside and face everyone. It'd be worse now that they were all together and in the house. They were going to be so angry. She sighed and put her head in her hands. She was so afraid of making Raphael angry and now he was furious at her. She had no idea how she was going to fix this one. And what about the others? It seemed like Leonardo wasn't going to talk to her, Donnie obviously wasn't happy with her, and who knew what Mikey was thinking? Rembrandt was probably indifferent but she knew Master Splinter was going to be disappointed. A hiss escaped her mouth as she brushed her elbows against her legs. Wow, that hurt…Outside, the sun was starting to rise over the treetops; Marie could see the dim light from the back of the Battle Shell.

 

"Marie, come on, get out of there," a soft voice said from the doorway of the Battle Shell.

 

She turned her head and saw Leo standing there, one hand on the door. She shrunk back from him and looked down at the floor of the van.

 

"I don't wanna," she said, fiddling with the handles on her sai.

 

Leo rolled his eyes and stepped into the Battle Shell. "You can't sit out here all day," he said, his voice much nicer than she had expected. "We're all tired; you should be in bed."

 

Marie looked up at Leo and blinked a couple of tears out of her eyes, "O-okay." She climbed out of the van behind him.

 

He narrowed his eyes as he saw the angry red welts on her legs. "Where did those marks come from?" He asked, pointing to her legs.

 

She shrugged her shoulders and winced as she walked up the stairs. "They're nothing…" She said but he wasn't convinced.

 

"They look like whip marks, Marie," he mumbled and she looked away. He braced his shoulders; as if this night wasn't bad enough, that man had taken a whip to his little sister. "We'll put some ice on them," he said firmly as they walked into the front hall.

 

Marie sighed as she was steered into the den.

 

Mikey was in there, and he gave Marie a small smile as she walked in. "Hey, munchkin, how ya feeling?" He asked as she sat down on the couch.

 

"Lie down," said Leo and she followed his orders.

 

Mikey noticed the welts and gave a sympathetic hiss of pain. "Ooo, kiddo," he said, his beak scrunching up. "That doesn't look like fun. How'd you get those?" He asked, sitting down on the floor beside the couch.

 

Marie sighed and looked up at the ceiling. "That bastard had a whip," she said curtly, "And he knew how to use it. Sicko."

 

Mikey frowned but took her hand and gave it a squeeze. "It'll feel better soon, don't worry," he said.

 

Leo came back in, a couple of rags in his hand and a bowl of cold water with ice in it. "This'll take the sting out and make the swelling go down," he said as he dipped one of the rags into the water.

 

Marie held tight to Mikey as Leo laid the rag against her enflamed skin. She chewed on her bottom lip. Damn, ow…

 

Upstairs, Raphael had crashed on one of the beds and was dead asleep.

 

"Bed don't even got sheets on it," mumbled Casey as he leaned against the doorway, watching his friend sleep.

 

April put a hand on the big guy's shoulder. "Like you sleep with sheets," she teased him.

 

He smirked down at her, "Hey, where I sleep now, we got nice sheets. Pink, yeah, but they're still nice."

 

"Caaasey!" April exclaimed, smacking him on the shoulder. She nestled her head briefly against his shoulder before turning around and going back into the room she had just left.

 

Donnie had put Rina to bed but he needed some sleep as well. His head kept drooping down onto his chest.

 

April smiled down at him as she touched his shoulders, "Donnie, go get some sleep, I'll keep an eye on her."

 

"But April…"

 

"No, go on, I'll watch her," April said, pushing him to the door, "I'll come get you if anything happens."

 

He finally nodded; he wouldn't be any good to her right now anyways, as tired as he was. He wandered into a room and found Rembrandt asleep on top of the covers. He smiled a bit; the kid obviously didn't know when to crawl under the covers. He grabbed a quilt and threw it over him before lying down in the other bed.

 

Master Splinter, meanwhile, had decided to check on each of his students, to ensure that they were indeed all right. He smiled softly, when he found Raphael passed out in a bed - no doubt his red masked son was still groggy, and more than likely still extremely furious with his sister, who he'd yell at some more when he felt up to giving her a better scolding. He shook his head, and made his way on down the hall, smiling again when he found both Rembrandt and Donatello asleep in the same room. It was obvious his second oldest son had covered the younger boy up with the quilt that lay over his young sleeping form. He was glad to see his sons had willingly accepted their newest brother into the family with open arms. He continued on down the hall, stopping at the doorway of the room he knew Rina indeed lie inside of. He entered and made his way over to his daughter, passing April on his way.

 

"How is she?" He asked, smoothing back the hair of his child.

 

"As well as can be expected," April sighed. "Donnie's sure she'll be okay within a few days though. I mean, somehow she'll sense she's safe - right?"

 

"Yes, I believe that she will know she is safe," Master Splinter agreed. "She may be the quieter of the girls, but she is still a fighter."

 

He smiled proudly, as he sat in the chair that had been placed next to the bed. "I shall sit with her for now, Ms. O'Neil. You and Mr. Jones need your rest as well."

 

"Are you sure?" April asked, grateful but hesitant all the same, as she was worried about the young girl that still lie unconscious.

 

"Yes, my child," Master Splinter assured her, giving a nod. "You must rest."

 

April kissed his furry cheek. "Call me if you need anything," she told him, before leaving the room and joining Casey in the master bedroom, where she too crashed along side of him.

 

Back downstairs, Marie stifled the whimpers that desperately wanted to escape. Her legs were now cold and still throbbing - though, Leo had assured her the cool cloths and ice would make the swelling go down - she just hoped she didn't end up with frostbite.

 

"Why don't you sleep, Munchkin?" Mikey suggested, as he sat playing with her hands that had clung tightly to him while Leo tended to her injuries. "We're not going anywhere."

 

Marie was hesitant, but spoke softly, eyeing both her brothers. "Promise?" She half asked, half pleaded.

 

"Promise," Leo replied, giving her a sincere look. He may be extremely upset with her still, but he wouldn't allow for her to be scared more than necessary.

 

"Okay," Marie whispered, relaxing as she lie against Mikey, who'd carefully maneuvered them so that they were both in a more comfortable position.

 

Leo put the foot stool on the lazy boy chair up and made himself comfortable, knowing he'd have to keep an eye on Marie's legs throughout the night, to ensure she didn't end up with infection or frostbite. Soon, all in the farmhouse were asleep, all completely exhausted from what had happened earlier that night.

 

That evening, Marie woke up to sound of someone crashing around in the kitchen.

 

"There's nothing to eat in this place!" Raphael yelled as he slammed one cabinet closed and opened another one. He rummaged around, not really finding anything.

 

Marie turned her head to find Mikey sleeping next to her and Leonardo sacked out on the floor. She didn't know if she wanted to go face her older brother in the kitchen or not. He would most likely still be angry at her. Still, she was feeling mighty hungry. She moved away from Mikey and stood up from the couch. Well, her legs didn't hurt as much as they had the day before. She walked into the kitchen just as Casey came in.

 

"Damn, Raph, be a little louder, would ya?" the human grumbled. He had to duck as the turtle in red launched a box of cake mix at his head. Casey rolled his eyes and nodded to Marie, "Hey kid."

 

Raphael stopped rummaging through the cabinet and turned to look at her. He scowled fiercely but it didn't seem like he was going to attack her. Oh, no, he had come up with a better punishment than that. He had decided to ignore her except to glare at her. He wasn't even going to acknowledge her.

 

Marie let out a sigh of relief when Raphael didn't launch himself at her. Maybe he wasn't as angry as she had thought.

 

Casey came back out of the pantry holding a bunch of cans of food like green beans, corn, and other vegetables.

 

"We gotta go to the grocery store and soon," he said as he put the cans down on the table. "Hey, you two wanna start opening some cans?" he asked, rummaging around the drawer for a can opener.

 

Raphael smirked and grabbed a knife from a drawer. He slammed it into a lid and started sawing away.

 

Casey rolled his eyes and handed the opener to Marie. "I'll start the stove up."

 

A few minutes later, the others started wandering into the kitchen, following the scent of food.

 

"MMmmm, what is that?" asked Mikey as he walked into the kitchen. He ogled the food on the stove top and grinned, "Hmm, veggies."

 

"Be glad it's something, Mike," said Casey, waving a ladle at the turtle.

 

Mikey put up his hands, "Hey, I'm not complaining." He sat down at the table next the Marie who was watching Casey cook.

 

Raphael had gone outside and hadn't spoken a word to her.

 

"Well, look who's up," said Leo, coming into the kitchen.

 

Marie gave him a half-smile and ran her finger along the table top.

 

Leo looked over at the vegetables and Casey frowned at him, "Not a word, blue boy."

 

Leo smirked and headed out the door to check on Raphael.

 

Rembrandt raced down the stairs next, nearly colliding with Leo. He took a quick step to the side to avoid the older turtle and then sprang over to the table.

 

"Food!" he exclaimed, "I knew I smelt it."

 

Mikey laughed at him, "You have the best appreciation for good food ever, Rembrandt."

 

The turtle in grey smiled back, "I try."

 

After Rembrandt came down, Donnie was next.

 

"Morning, Don," Casey said as the turtle in the purple bandanna leaned against the wall.

 

"Morning, everyone," he replied, giving them a soft smile. He looked over at Marie, "Are you feeling okay?"

 

She nodded, trying not to think of the welts on her legs. "I'm fine," she said.

 

"Hey, how's Rina?" Mikey asked with concern.

 

"I'm okay," a soft voice said from the stair well. Rina was standing there, leaning against the doorway. She had woken up after Donnie had come to check on her and she had followed him downstairs. She was a bit dizzy but she was thinking that she could walk it off. She was just happy to see that they had somehow made it to the farmhouse, though she was entirely confused on how that happened.

 

Donnie quickly rushed to Rina's side, steadying her as her next step was a bit wobbly. "You could've yelled for someone, you know!" He exclaimed, glad she was okay, but still quite surprised to find her following him downstairs.

 

Rina groaned, rolling her eyes slightly. "I'm fine Donnie.....just make the room stop spinning," she told him, though she did lean against her brother in purple.

 

Donnie shook his head. "Between the two of you, I don't know who is more stubborn," he commented, easing Rina into a chair.

 

Rina shrugged. "I hafta eat, don't I?" "

 

Yes, you do," Donnie agreed. "But, still!"

 

Marie smiled a little at her sister, before staring back down at the table cloth. She was still unsure just how angry everyone was with her - even if they were being pretty caring, since she had gotten hurt as well.

 

Rina sniffed. "Veggies?" She said, wrinkling her beak slightly.

 

"Hey, until April gets to the grocery store, this is all we've got," Casey replied, dishing some out onto each plate that set upon the table.

 

"I heard that!" April stated, entering the kitchen then. "And who says you're not doing the grocery shopping, hmm?"

 

"Aww, April," Casey pouted, causing Mikey to laugh.

 

"She's got yah there," Mikey grinned.

 

Rembrandt smiled listening to them all, and eagerly dug into the vegetables that had been placed before him on his plate. Boy, was he ever starved!

 

Master Splinter came down the stairs then, smiling when he found Catarina sitting at the table as well. "My daughter," he said, smiling, as he went over and patted her shoulder. "How are you feeling, my child?"

 

"Hungry," Rina told him, then admitted. "And a little dizzy....nothing I can't walk off."

 

Master Splinter smiled and kissed her head, before taking a seat as well at the table. "Mm....Wise choice, Mr. Jones," he said, referring to the meal. "I believe me pupils are due for a good, healthy meal."

 

Raph snorted as him and Leo re-entered the kitchen, via the back door. "I'd prefer a burger or pizza, but this crap'll do."

 

"My son, you should be grateful for any meal you have," Master Splinter reprimanded.

 

Raph grunted, taking a seat next to Rembrandt, and as far away from Marie was possible - which, was odd, as they always sat near one another.

 

Marie glanced up to eye her brother in red, as Leo took the seat next to her - he and Mikey seeming to be the only two of the four that were willing to sit with her, though she hadn't seen much of Donnie.

 

"I take it everyone slept well," Master Splinter queried.

 

"Like a rock!" Rembrandt exclaimed, smiling big. "I've never been so comfortable in my life!"

 

Everyone smiled at the young boy's enthusiasm - they all knew this was probably like Heaven to him. Heck, anything was better than where he'd been stuck his whole life, until they'd rescued him.

 

"We are rested, Sensei," Leonardo stated, after having had taken a look around at his brothers. He didn't bother speaking for the girls, as he could tell they were both not well and still a bit exhausted from the night before - Rina especially, since she had had to endure so much considering all those stupid tranks they'd ejected into her system.

 

They all ate, talking amongst themselves as they tried to decide just what they were going to do that day - Rina not happy at all with Donnie's insistence of her sticking to bed rest.