Dis: I don't own TMNT

Note: This has been a great ride. Thanks for reading my first Leo/OFC fic! Well, it didn't get too romancey, just a little fluffy, yeah? Sequel WILL be coming… I'll be wrapping up DtRH and some other fics before working on the sequel to this though. Once again, thanks to all my readers, I hope you enjoyed this short story!

Note: I'm doing my best to follow the 'Return to New York' episodes but this update will have some scenes and parts cut out…

.

.

.

So far the plan was working. Akumi stays beside Leo at all times from crawling in through a large pipe to breaking into the large command center. Breaking in was proving to be a lot less difficult than first thought. Their first snag was a locked door but Raphael rectifies that by smashing the door in and the onslaught of Foot Ninja had been a great warm up. She took her spot by Donatello, taking on the stragglers that got past the turtles and their master Splinter before they could stop him from doing whatever it was he was doing on that computer. He is grateful for her backup when a flying body comes in his direction, courtesy of Mikey who has kicked the Foot Ninja, and she intercepts the body with a kick of her own and sends the Foot back to where it came from. Mikey easily flips out of the way as the body slams into two other opponents.

"Thanks," says Donatello, fingers wildly traveling over the keyboard. "Watch where you're throwing out the trash, Mikey!"

"Sorry, Bro!" shouts Mikey.

Akumi uses fists and feet in this battle. Her dogi never even leave her belt. When Donatello is done with his programming, the Foot has been taken care of. They exit the room using an air duct. Akumi crawls right behind Leo, and exits the shaft easily to land on her feet. There are many electronics that she does not know the use of and while the boys admire the hardware she can't shake the feeling that they are being followed.

"I feel a presence," says Splinter and Akumi nods.

"As do I."

"But there's no one here other than us turtles, and uh, you guys," says Mikey.

"Foot Tech Ninjas!" shouts Don before an invisible fist punches him in the face.

Akumi did NOT like the Tech Ninjas. Leonardo made it looks so easy before but with the added noise of his brothers and the extra commotions he was having just as difficult of time battling them as everyone else. A sharp hit to her face has her flying into a shelf full of odds and ends, it collapsing on top of her. Red paint stains her clothes as does oil. Growling she stands, her dogi now in her clenched hands. She tries to do as Leonardo did before and use her ears and other senses but it is more difficult. She struggles and a sharp kick to her gut has her wincing as Raphael shoots his first laser beam shot into some Foot from the flying device he is now operating. They take advantage but the Tech Ninjas are smart. Akumi flips and dodges the best she can until Raphael loses control of the craft he is on and it smashes into the ceiling. Flames heat her skin and smoke threatens her lungs as the blaze threatens to consume the room just as Leonardo tosses up red canisters. Raphael throws his dogi at the canisters and a white cloud settles over them. The Ninjas are now easy to see and Donatello shocks him with his electric shuriken.

"Now where do we go?" asked Mikey.

"Up," says Leonardo and Akumi sighs while tucking her dogi into her belt. It's a high and long jump and she is certain she can make it but someone grabs her around the waist and makes the jump for her. Raphael.

"Thank you" she says. "I could have managed but it would have taken me longer."

"No problem," he answers with a pat on her head before walking away.

"Whoa, what is this place?" asks Leonardo and Akumi's eyes travel over eerie tanks filled with dark figures and glowing green liquid.

"It looks like a genetics lab," says Donatello just as an alarm goes off.

"I didn't do it!" shouts Mikey as the tanks open and the liquid drains. Three menacing figures varying in size as well as the number of their limbs slowly exit their tanks. "AHHHH Shredder clones!"

"They all looked to be genetically modified using Shredder's DNA!" shouts Donatello before tapping his ear piece. "April, can you get us out of here?"

Indeed. They all had metallic armor resembling that of Ch'rell as well as glowing red eyes. One was tiny, something to be easily dealt with you would think. Another is massive with four arms and the last had claws resembling one of the sea creatures on her home world that could snap a boat in two. Once again, weapons are drawn.

Leonardo and Raphael take on the little one, which Akumi almost finds amusing because one would think their strength could be used for a much larger problem. Michelangelo and Splinter take the one with the claws leaving her and Donatello with the massive creature. She and Donatello share a look before launching forward. It is strong, and it takes all the focus within her to avoid its meaty arms. Donatello is knocked aside and Akumi watches as he falls into the hole in the floor.

No!

Before she can help him, four arms encircle her and begin to squeeze. She shouts out. Her arms are banded to her sides and she cannot move them to use her dogi. She struggles but soon find breath is hard to come by and just as she feels she is about to pass out something hits the monster and she falls to the floor: coughing and gasping for air.

"Akumi!" Leonardo is there, hands on her shoulders as he kneels beside her. She looks up, blue eyes pained. "Are you ok?"

"I will be…" She sucks in more air as Splinter and Michelangelo rock one of the large tanks over to fall on the goliath that had been crushing her. "You?"

"They've been dealt with," said Leonardo, offering his hand and she took it and let him help her stand.

Donatello lost his communicator but it is rectified as April calls Mikey's phone instead. She leads them to the elevator that goes up but the problem is that the large hole in the floor blocks their path to the elevator. Luckily, Donatello came prepared and hooks a roped up on some low hanging pipes and swings across just as the three monsters rise from their unconscious state. Michelangelo and AKumi swing over together then it is Leo with Splinter as the monsters get closer. Raphael is fighting them off and Akumi reaches into Donatello's bag of tricks and pulls out the metal shuriken he had been a fan of earlier. Reading her mind he activates one as well and they toss them at the creatures and they screech in pain and fall as Raphael swings over with ease.

"TURTLES!"

"Well dat would be Hun," says Raphael with a smirk, coiling the rope and handing it to Don. "Too bad I can't say hi just yet."

"C'mon!" shouts Donatello as they hit the elevator button to go up. He then taps his comm. "April, where does this elevator go?"

"Straight to the top," she answers.

"This is it," says Leonardo.

"Let's kick some shell," adds Raphael.

Akumi sighs. This WAS it. This is the moment she has been waiting for. She WILL avenge her people. She WILL defeat Ch'rell so that no other race would feel the pain that hers had. The sword at her back starts to glow and vibrate the closer to the top they get and she inhales then exhales deeply before her eyes meet Leonardo's. She can sense his unease, he is restless, and she knows that she can use the connection to calm him. His brothers may tease her for it, but she wants… no… NEEDS to help him. She tucks her dogi into her belt then braces her hands onto his familiar feeling plastron.

"A-Akumi?" he asks, slightly startled.

"Be careful, Leonardo," she whispers softly. She tugs the covering on her lower face down before rising to her toes and pressing her lips to his, fingers closing around the top of his upper chest plates.

She reaches out with her mind and reluctantly he opens his mind up to her. She embraces him not just physically but mentally. She is aware of his arms encircling her and her hands reach up to cup his cheeks as he deepens the kiss. She feels her cheeks warm as her tongue slides past his parted lips and connects with his and that familiar spark travels through her body. The elevator stops and she pulls back, her bright eyes melding with his dark ones. Her hands fall and she shivers as a fingertip trails up the pointed edge of her ear.

THIS is different. He does not know that only lovers and mates on her home world are allowed such intimate caresses and her knees grow weak as he presses his lips back to hers in another kiss and this one… This one is sensual and has NOTHING to do with the connection and she sighs are her body instantly starts to react to his attentions…

A throat clears and they pull fully apart. A blush paints their cheeks and Leonardo looks over to see Raph and Mikey's jaws drop. Donnie looks perplexed and his Father looks… Uncomfortable.

"Hey!" says Mikey, the first to recover. "Where's MY kiss?"

Leonardo isn't aware of his body's actions until he feels the sting against his palm after smacking Mikey upside the head.

"Ow!"

"Way to go, Bro," says Raphael with a smirk as he is the first to exit the elevator. Donnie and a pouting Michelangelo follow.

"My Son… Keep your mind clear…"

"It is, Sensei… The connection helps ease my doubts and fears…" says Leonardo, truly feeling renewed.

"It is not your doubts or fears that worry me it is your, lets say… The natural train of thought any teenage boy has after a kiss like that!"

'Just kill me now,' thinks Leonardo as Splinter leaves and he and Akumi step off the elevator together just as the Foot Elite appeared out of nowhere. 'Great…'

.

.

.

Akumi has the sword in her hands while she, the turtles, and Splinter face off against Shredder. He is snide and laughs when he sees her. The monster of a man known as Hun as well as the Elite stand with him as he calls them all fools. His voice is poison and she wants to cut off his tongue. However, she is having an inner debate on her own. Where should she strike? Somewhere beneath all that armor was a tiny little slime monster that needed slaying. Before she can think of an appropriate attack plan the floor shakes and splits open and they all step back: Leonardo standing protectively in front of her, as another large machine with a human inside it comes into play.

"STOCKMAN!" shouts Shredder as the ground stops shaking. "DESTROY THE TURTLES."

The one known as Stockman laughs and says that he would destroy the turtles as well as Ch'rell. Akumi perks at this, hoping that Stockman would put his trouble with the turtles behind him to battle the Shredder. She is wrong… Stockman takes them all on. At first she sticks to the sidelines with the turtles as Stockman defeats Hun, the Elite, and even Shredder in no time at all. Raphael pulls her behind him as Stockman turns his attention to them.

"And now you. You've ruined my ingenious plants one too many times turtles! And…" He focuses on Akumi. "Well I have no idea who you are but you will share their fate!"

The battle commences and Akiumi feels that no matter what they do they cannot defeat him. She finds herself doing what she never thought possible and that is working WITH the Shredder to defeat the giant robot. Though it seems he is sticking to the shadows while they do most of the heavy lifting. Stockman's robot loses limbs, gets tossed back down the hole it came from, and still manages to come back just as strong. She grunts as a missile explodes near her feet and she is airborne for quite some time before her head connects with a beam. She moans, falling to her knees, staring up at the robot that wants her to meet her end.

"Die," growls Stockman as he opens fire on her and a body is suddenly on her, hugging her to his plastron as he rolls behind cover. She gasps as a bullet grazes her arm and winces as Michelangelo pulls her in tight against his chest.

"You okay?" he asks.

"He got me," she says through gritted teeth, panting because of the pain. "With his gun arm."

"Hang on." Mikey holds up her arm and winces before peeking around the corner. Raphael and Leo are battling Stockman now alongside Shredder, slicing more at his limbs. "Medic Don we need your assistance!"

Donatello easily flips over and within minutes Akumi's arm has a bandage on it. She stands shakily but feels ok just as Donatello perks up over something Stockman says. It is something about batteries and emergency power supplies in all of his parts and Donatello picks up one of the sliced off gun arms and fires it at Stockman, finally ending him.

With Stockman gone, the Shredder uses that as an opportunity to attack. Splinter is the first to go, a powerful kick sending him out the window and Akumi's heart leaps into her throat as Leonardo follows him with a rope in hand to save him. Angry, Akumi launches forward with Raphael and they leap into the air and kick the Shredder back. He stumbles and Mikey and Donatello fly in from behind them and kick him through the weak doors and to an outside area. They all rush outside and face off to him but the Shredder is swift and fast. Mikey gets kicked into a tree and Donatello into the outside pool. Raphael goes in high, managing to get a punch in before his leg is grabbed and he is tossed aside. Akumi tucks her dogi into her belt then takes out the taki: it glowing as she launches forward. Shredder growls as she attacks. Left, right, left, right, up, down, her blade sings until he blocks it with the blades on his arm. He kicks her in the stomach and she falters. He lashes out with a punch to her face and she goes down. She looks up to see him over her, ready to strike: until of blast of light launches him backward.

"GET AWAY FROM HER!"

Leo. He is using the Sword of Tengu! Shredder sees this and falters. The sword scares him. He screams that he will NOT lose and goes to push a button of some sort and Akumi launches forward, unsheathing a dogi and throwing it to have it embed in the Shredder's wrist. He is a good actor, he pretends it hurts. What he doesn't know is that they all know his dirty little secret.

That he is not human. She screams as she brings the sword down and he barely dodges, gripping her by the throat and tossing her aside easily. She wants to scream in frustration but Leonardo is suddenly there again but the Shredder manages a lucky hit in and Leo loses the sword. Immediately, the Shredder grabs the sword.

"The Sword of Tengu. I had almost forgotten. The sword, of which I laid villages to waste, castles to ruin and vanquished armies with… the sword I used to concur Japan…." He turns to her, red eyes aglow as he points the sword in her direction. "The sword I used to tear your pitiful planet apart. Your people were easily defeated and now you will share their fate!"

"NO!"

Leonardo blocks the hit meant for her, and then Raphael is there, and blasts of blue energy is lighting up the sky. Foot Ninja that were late to the party come up to help their master and Akumi begins to wonder if all is lost when numerous figures fall from the sky wearing dark clothes and golden amulets.

"Perhaps we can offer you a little assistance," says the one acting as leader and Akumi looks closer. They look familiar but she doesn't know how. "We will take care of these men. You go after the Shredder and get the Sword of Tengu away from him."

Then they are gone, engaging the Foot Ninja and Akumi winces while standing to her feet in time to witness Shredder losing the sword to Leonardo's powerful attack. He screams his rage and attacks but Leonardo has the sword now and Akumi watches in amazement as he takes Shredder's head. The sword at her back continues to burn and while the body lies dormant and Leo sheathes the Sword of Tengu, she knows it is not over. Standing, she sprints forward, the gifted sword of the Gods above her head and she brings it down hard. A loud, pained scream fills her ears. It gurgles and squeals as the sword glows brighter and brighter. It is hot in her hand and she hears Leonardo screaming for her but she cannot lose focus. She grips the sword tighter and suddenly she is no longer on Earth. No longer in New York City.

She is home, with the smoldering body of the Shredder at her feet.

.

.

.

"Akumi? AKUMI!"

"Leo!" shouts Raphael, grabbing his brother's arm as the Police sirens sound. "We gotta go!"

"But… but…"

"I know, Bro," says Raphael softly. "But we gotta go."

Leonardo's angst does not end for where he left Splinter to battle Shredder was now empty save for his cane. His torment grows. First Akumi and now Splinter. This was his fault. He knew Shredder wasn't human, so why didn't he think to check the body before sheathing the sword? Akumi made the final blow and now, along with his Sensei, was gone.

"Leo! We gotta go!"

"The helicopter," he says emotionlessly, eyes trailing toward it. "Let's go."

After settling into the seats they are flying away, leaving the burning building behind them.

"We did it, Bro," said Raphael. "We beat the Shredder."

"Yeah," says Leo, eyes looking down at the city below him. "But at what cost?"

.

.

.

Akumi stands before her people and holds up the corpse of Ch'rell. Two days after returning home she is finally able to stand on her feet and standing now in a ceremonial white robe she felt like a goddess. In her hand is the dead enemy that the sword helped her slay and her people continued to cheer and shout their pleasure before she tossed the corpse into a large fire that had been lit at her feet. Surprising how a little slimeball like that could cause so much chaos. Slimeball… Hm… Must be a word she picked up from Leo.

"HOO WAHH OHH EH!" shouts the people of Luna and Akumi raises her fist into the air just as a bright light shines before her eyes and the spirit that blessed her with the sword is floating there with a pleased smile on his face.

"You defeated the Shredder," he says, ignoring the awed looks from her people.

"Yes! With your help, I thank you."

"One day I will call upon you again. Will you, Akumi, dedicate yourself to the light? Be the warrior of good?"

"Yes," she answers without hesitation. "I will."

"Good. Rest, child, for just because this snake has been slain does not mean another does not wait in the grass."

Akumi watches as he vanishes and she sighs, her sad eyes traveling over the faces of her people before she turns away. She is aware of her mother calling her name but she runs until there is no land left to run on. She faces the open water, the wind whipping at her face and making her hair fly behind her.

"Leonardo…" Her ears lower slightly. "Leonardo I miss you…"

.

.

.

"You ok?"

Leonardo looks up from the maps on Don's desk to his brother. Donatello looks just as haggard as he feels. Leo knows he's been up 24/7 to get the Battleshell up and going again. They were all going stir crazy. It's been days and there were still no signs of Splinter or Akumi.

"As I can be Don."

"We'll find them, Leo. BOTH of them."

"I hope so."

"Did…" Donatello picks up a gadget, tinkering with a piece of it, making it bend. "Did you really like her?"

"Yeah…" Leo looks down. "I did. But we have to focus. Akumi… She might be back home. I PRAY that she is back home, and that the sword took her there. Splinter is our number one priority."

Donatello nods before turning away and Leo's eyes close as his fists ball on the table.

"I'll find you master… And Akumi? Thank you for helping us… I… I wish you were here but… I have a feeling that we WILL see each other again…"

END