Two souls are sometimes created together

and in love before they're born.

- F. Scott Fitzgerald

Chapter 7

Homecoming

The last time I'd tromped through these woods had been with my Leonardo. This time it was with the shadow of him, a crazed version that for some reason thought we were two parts of a constellation. One insane idea backed by another. He wanted to kill April. And she wanted me to lead him right to her.

The slow burn between my eyes had spread up and across my brow, then began to radiate out with every telepathic word April spoke. Lure him to the cliff. We'll be waiting. Tell him it's our rendezvous point.

Okay already. Quiet down, O'Neil. You're tearing my head apart… and the whole talking to me while not being here thing, it's creepy.

What's creepier is that I've been with you since you set out on this mission.

What?

I had to figure out a way to repair the seam, to send back all the spirits that do not belong here… while keeping myself alive by the end of it. That meant I needed a lock, and I don't know if you're going to like it but I think I found one.

Why am I less than thrilled about this?

Because it's a pretty permanent solution. Maybe it won't be so bad, if it works.

I groaned and Dark Leo's eyes narrowed on me. "You're quiet."

I shrugged. "I'm meeting my friend in the woods so I can help you kill her and combine mystical energies somehow so we can repair a rip in the universe and return to our celestial home. You know, I've done some crazy shit but this ranks pretty high up."

He bore some kind of unreadable stern expression that made my stomach turn. He didn't move like Leo, or talk like him, yet he was him. Or he was in there. My heart knew it more than my pounding head did, because with every step closer to him, to our cliff, an ache began to build inside me. One way or another, maybe even one universe or another, we would be together.

As we breeched the clearing, April was nowhere to be found. I approached the cliff, a pang in my heart at the remnants of ash from a fire long burned out. What was I doing?

It was hard to look over the valley, the rise and dips, a grey world beneath a sunless sky. Everything was dying. All that was green was brown. I closed my eyes, feeling the breeze on my face, the ache in my heart great. If I could find Dark Leo's version of me, whatever April's plan was wouldn't be warranted.

Yes it would. And we're here, you just can't see us. Stand in the circle.

What? Who's here? Why can't I see you? And stand in what circle?

You're exhausting you know that?

My teeth ground together. I'm getting sick of you in my head, O'Neil.

From the sound of it Dark Leo was stomping around. "Where is she?"

We're all here, even Michelangelo. Stand in the center of the fire pit.

I barely stopped myself from gasping. My heart picked up pace. Michelangelo is awake?

He is. He's okay.

"Where is she? You said she'd be here!" I ignored Dark Leo's complaints, so relieved to hear good news. I opened damp eyes, turning my back on the mountains. April, why can't I see you?

Well, for better or worse, it's uh some combination of physics and— oh just let Donnie explain it later. Get in the circle.

As I took a step toward the soot, Dark Leo marched toward me, one hand reaching for his weapon. "Where is she?"

Where I should feel fear, should be stricken and terrified of him, of losing my life, of losing this long, endless battle, I wasn't. He'd revealed too much. Told me what he believed to be true, whether it was or not, it gave me an iota of power and that was more than enough. I stepped into the circle as he closed in. "Are you going to kill me, Leonardo? Is this it? You've come all this way, been through so much, to take me down here, now? Why? Because she's a few minutes late?"

His heels dug into the soil, puffs of dirt wafting around his feet. His eyes grew wide, his features soft for a second, but he didn't lower his hand as a breath later he steeled himself, pulling forth his weapon. "I will. I can, and I will."

Catch, Karai!

Catch what? Before I could react my tanto seemed to materialize in thin air. Oh! This was the work of Donatello for sure. I grabbed my weapon as Dark Leo took his first strike.

He scowled, eyeing my tanto. "How did you do that?" Our swords clashed as he glared at me over the sharp of his blade. "Has this place put some power in you?"

Get him in the circle!

His eyes darted over me, searching for some explanation. A slight smile graced the corner of my lips and he snarled, wheeling back to launch forward for another strike. "I will kill you! I will! I will and this hurt will die with you!"

I blocked his strike again, my feet sliding, my heel breeching the edge of the ring. I thrust my weight forward, digging in, pushing him back too far.

Hurry up, Karai, I can't hold this field much longer. We're all about to be exposed and if he's not in before that happens, all hell will break loose.

I grunt, struggling to hold my ground. Hasn't it already?

The circle, Karai!

I'm working on it! "Oh, come on, Leo! I know you're in there damnit!"

Dark Leo let out a roar as if willing himself to engage me. I edged back, letting him in close, dropped down, and executed a precise kick to his sword wielding hand. His palm opened releasing the weapon, which I kicked away. He ground his teeth together, lunging toward me as he entered the ring.

But as I leapt to my feet, his hands closed around my throat. I looked him in the eye, my heart pounding. "I love you, Leo. I know you're in there and I need you— I need you. Help me help you. Please—"

A bolt of lightning branched across the sky, lateral above us rather than reaching down for the earth. It bore piercing white arms with crooked limbs, bringing with it clouds that rolled in like gathering cattle. The breeze grew to a strong wind, dirt swirling at our feet as one by one our family appeared.

"I am the dragon of the east." Donatello's eyes were closed as he and his brothers sat in lotus, April completing the circle.

"I am the bird of the south." Michelangelo echoed, his eyes closed as well.

Raphael glared at his lost brother's face. "I am the tiger of the west."

"I am the tortoise of the north." April strained to repeat her words again and again in cadence with the brothers. "We are the guardians of the elements, of cardinal directions, the keepers of the seasons and of one another."

Dark Leo's eyes flashed, darting to April. "YOU! I'll destroy you. You are not me. You are nothing!"

April's eyes glowed bright white. "I will return you to where you belong, to who you are, with the one you love, and I will become something new, the yellow dragon at the center, guardian of earth." She reached out, touching Leo's leg. "I am the yellow dragon. You are the tortoise of the north."

Karai, tell him you are the snake.

The winds surrounding us grew to hurricane force, trees bending in half, a dark circle opening at the funnel above us. Oh gods. My nightmare. It was happening. Hair whipped across my face, I felt two hands, one on each of my calves, looked down, Michelangelo and Donatello. Raphael had Leo by the opposite leg from April. All were still chanting, and my body began to transform, taking its serpent shape. "I am the snake, lover of the tortoise, keeper of his soul as he is keeper of mine."

My eyes were wet. If I had to go with this creature, to be with Leo, I would. I looked to his face, his eyes were closed, the space surrounding him calm as if he'd gone into a trance, but the winds grew ever fierce lifting first April, tearing her grasp from Leo, Donatello released me to grab onto her to stop her flying away, he was sucked up too, Michelangelo grabbing his ankle, and Raph onto his. There they were being carried into the sky. Then everything seemed to slow to fractions. I looked at the swirling heavens, recognizing yin and yang represented in night and day, light and dark. At its center the black hole and my family coasting right toward it.

My entire being began to shake, my knees threatening to give. I wasn't going to lose Leo, I was going to lose everyone. I reached for Leonardo wrapping my tubular body around him so that he was tight in my embrace our two heads cheek to cheek. "I've got you, Leo."

Black smoke emerged from his nostrils, floating up. As I exhaled, a long string of white slipped from my lips. I watched as the two, shapeless spirits wove around one another before forming the tortoise and the snake.

"And I've got you," Leo whispered, lifting his hand for the sky, summoning our family to return. "All of you."

The two spirits drifted through the black hole and the dark seemed sucked into the tiny space like a vacuum before closing. Our world was our own again. Our family collapsed around us, heavy sighs, coughs and groans as they dusted themselves off.

"Is everyone okay?" Leo asked, lifting a hand to touch my face.

"Is it really you, Leo?" Michelangelo scrambled to his feet, throwing his arms around the two of us, as I was still woven around my love. It was him. If not for his voice and touch alone, I'd know him anywhere.

Leo let out a tired laugh. "Yeah, it's me."

Raphael tugged Michelangelo away and I reluctantly released Leo, shifting back to my human form.

Donatello helped April to her feet. "It worked." She threw her arms around him. "It worked!"

The genius turtle grinned like a fool. "It did!"

"Oh!" She released him, near pushing him over and he fumbled then rubbed the back of his head. "Oh. But we have to seal the lock to make it permanent, so the Unnamed can't do this ever again." She reached into her pocket, fishing out two plain silver rings. "You two ready to get married?"

Leo's entire body went rigid and I looked at her like she was nuts. "What?"

April nodded. "Oh, yeah, see ever since we lost Leo I noticed something off about you too. But I couldn't put my finger on it until you had the dream, then you revealed to me your first date with Leo, then he revealed the truth and his plan. We had more than enough energy to draw power from between the five of us. The turtle and snake are home, but to keep them there and safe, the two of you must make an eternal promise to one another."

Leo remained silent, though I could see his Adam's apple bobbing in my periphery.

"Why?" I loved Leo and all, but marriage was nowhere on my radar. I glanced at the rings she held out to us, my heart skipping beats. Not on my radar at all.

"Because your souls mirror theirs. Their bond is eternal, protected from their side, but if yours isn't sealed by some act, something that locks the two of you together, you aren't safe and therefore neither are they." April brazenly reached out, shoving one ring in my hand and the other in Leo's. "Everyone knows you love each other. Let's make it official, because I for one never want to be used by a sentient being ever again. Twice in on lifetime is twice too many."

I swallowed hard as I squeezed the cool metal against my palm, exhaling a shaky breath. This wasn't who I am, was it? A wife? Was it? A lump rose to my throat, moist heat burning my eyes. Would he want this?

It was hard to look at the former shadow of Leonardo. I thought I was starving and desperate to look upon his true face, into the heart beneath his endless blue eyes. But to look in them with this demand thrust upon us…. My hands began to shake. Yet as I lifted my gaze he was smiling.

"So, you saved me for once, huh?" He grinned, a boyish grin I hadn't seen in so long it sent a pang through me. Suddenly it was all I could do not to wrap my arms around him and weep. Our journey had been long, so very long, and I was tired.

His face became blurry as my eyes grew wet. I found it difficult to speak for the tightness, the growing pressure inside me. "Yeah, I think we kind of saved each other. It's what we do."

His eyes held me, a tumult of emotion rolling through them like an endless rising tide, uncertainty, confidence, relief, hope, love. "So you, uh—" He held up his hand opening his palm, then closed it and looked to our family. "Can you guys give us a minute?"

Our grumbling bunch warned a time limit of no more than two minutes before a pissed off sentient might rip apart the universe again.

Leo reached for my hand, dropping the ring in my palm. "I'm not going to lie. I have thought about this. A hundred different ways but none of them like this. I thought I'd do something corny like—" He dropped down on one knee and my face rushed hot. "Like this. I thought the stars would be out—"

Both our gazes lifted to the sky as it slowly faded from bright blue to black, one by one the stars shining bright. Perhaps the black tortoise of the North had something to do with that, it did shine brightest. Huh, I could find it so easily now.

He stroked the back of my hand with his thumb. "I imagined a lot of things, but I don't know if I ever thought they'd be real. But here we are." A flicker of doubt, no—worry, furrowed his bare brow. "Will you marry me, Karai?"

My head was bobbing, as I dropped to my knees the words bursting from my lips. "Yes, you stupid, annoying, adorable, loyal, dork of an honorable turtle. Yes. I just never want to see that kind of darkness in you again." I swiped at my eyes, opening both my hands to reveal the two rings, one large and one small. I held his out to him, placing it on his finger. "I will keep close for always, Leo. Nothing will ever come between us, not even the stars."

His hands were shaking as he placed the smaller ring on my finger. "I love you, Karai. Thank you for coming for me. But understand, it isn't the stars that kept us apart it was them that created us in the first place."

It was two years ago when our surprise marriage was thrust upon us. Thankfully, it's been two very quiet, peaceful years. The only upheaval that has occurred to the Hamato clan in that time has been Raph's continued grousing, Michelangelo's antics, Donatello's creations, and April's learning not to use her telepathy to eavesdrop. Of course there was the one enormous development that occurred between me and Leo.

I leaned against him, inhaling a mix of cedar smoke and sandalwood, peering up at the constellation that started it all. He hummed into my hair, watching the flames dance about the fire. It bothered him sometimes, the things he had done, because he remembered them, and he recalled Dark Leo's life before we knew him as well. I exhaled a happy sigh, a sentiment he echoed. I glanced up at him and him down to me then we both looked toward the tent.

"Think she's still sleeping?" he whispered.

I chuckled. "I think you don't want her to be. We wore her out with the hiking to get here."

"What hiking did she do? I carried her most of the way." He grinned a somewhat dopey smile. He'd loved every minute of our family adventure.

Moving as if we were one, we inched toward the enclosure, peeling back the flap to reveal the sleeping toddler, red-cheeked, almond-eyed, with thick black hair clinging to her face. Her hand curled into a fist and when she stretched out I caught glimpse of the terrapin-snake shaped birth mark on the underside of her wrist. We both held our breath, hoping she didn't wake. That would surely involve crying, and hours to get her back to sleep. Kameko was beautiful. Even when she shifted, her semi-formed carapace, her little terrapin body was perfect. It had terrified me at first, her skin in her mutant-hybrid form, a glowing iridescent white instead of green. When the sun hit her carapace it reflected pearly rainbows. And she smelled so good, of baby wash, sandalwood, and jasmine. My heart swelled. I thought I'd never be a wife, let alone a mother. For a while I didn't think I'd even have Leo, or maybe any sort of life at all.

Using every ninja skill in our bag of tricks we crept into the tent, Leo on one side of her, me on the other. We exhaled in unison, our gazes lifting at the same time. Moments like this it was hard to believe there had ever been any darkness at all, that it wasn't merely a nightmare I'd dreamt up. As we drifted closer above our sleeping daughter, Leo's rich scent mixed with undertones of baby and my heart fluttered. Our lips met in the sweetest graze, mouths parting, tongues seeking, hearts reaching, always reaching… I was a wife, with my soul mate for a husband, and our daughter a gift from the stars... It had all been worth it.