Yo, it's been a while.

Sorry for the long absence, there is some serious crap going down here- with my family and friends. So I often find my attention devided. However I got an idea for this story after starting Redemption (another TMNT fic) and it hit me so hard that I just couldn't shake it. I'm not totally sure of the pairings yet, it will be a toss up between Leo/OC and Raph/OC.

Here's a brief summery of the story- Karai fought so hard to kill them, but they killed her first. And now that things are finally getting back to normal, things are about to get shaken up again in a big way.

Karai's sister Isis is back in town. And Karai's will has finally gone into effect- stating that her sister must take control of the Foot clan and that she must also make things right with the Hamoto family by marrying one of it's son's.

But how is she to make things right when her new family is suspicous of every move that she makes?

Wild right?

You're reviews will help me figure out the pairing for the story. So... R&R, ok.

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16 years before-

The shredder stood over his second daughter with a look of disgust in his eyes as he looked down at her. This child was pathetically weak. He thought as he caught his first daughter struggling to her feet, and smiled behind his mask. Karai at eleven was far more superior a warrior than her sister would ever be. Even now he could feel a surge of pride towards his first daughter as she finally managed to gain her footing again and grip the weapon that he'd given to her to use for her training.

While her sister...curled up on the floor and started crying.

God save me from the foolish nature of my young. He thought almost in irritation. "Get up." He ordered again in a cold tone as he looked down at his youngest child. Her small face was littered with bruises and blood- all of which were her own- her vivid red hair slipping over her little shaking shoulders in uneven lengths from where he had slashed it off with his claws a few minutes ago.

Her pale turquise eyes glazed with pain, and glassy looking from the unshed tears gathering in her eyes.

"Get up." He said again and stopped Karai with a motion of his hand when she moved to help haul her little sister up. The child didn't move.

She just laid there sobbing and after a minute or so of trying to get her up so that they could continue their training, the Shredder gave up with a roll of his eyes and kicked the child hard enough to send her rolling across the floor before coming to a stop after hitting the wall.

"Ugh! Such a pitiful child! You're useless to me unless you fight!" The Shredder growled as Karai pulled on his deep purple cape, gaining his attention.

"Please forgive Isis father. She's still very young and doesn't understand why we have to fight." The Shredder knelt down in front of his favorite child and ruffled her hair almost affectionatly before asking.

"But you understand, don't you Karai?"

"Hai, father. I understand very well..."

The Shredder looked upon his daughter with as much affection as any father then turned his head and looked at the whimpering child laying with her back against the wall and silently snarled behind his mask. Her disgusting weakness was not something that he could easily bear. "I'm glad at least one of you isn't a disappointment to me-" He said before falling silent for a moment, his mind working quickly. "Perhaps it would be best for me to focus on training you from now on Karai. Seeing as your sister does not have any spirit in her to oppose me-"

"That's not true father. Isis has lots of spirit!" Karai said before slapping a small hand over her mouth as her father glanced down at her, his eyes curious now as she gave him a 'whoops' look and quickly averted her eyes as her father asked.

"Are you keeping something from you're father?"

"Uh..."

"Karai-" The Shredders tone took on a menacing purr that she knew only too well...

.

.

.

The rest of the training session resulted in more colorful bruises than Karai could count. But once it was over she made her way over to her little sister to check on her. The little red head had lain so still after their father had kicked her that for a little while Karai had worried that their father had killed her. Which had angered her and thrilled their father since he had really got a good grasp of what she could do.

She knelt down next to her sister and placed her slender fingers against her throat and jumped when Isis jerked and let out a growling sound.

This always happened. Everytime their father wanted them to train Isis would get hurt and drop to the floor crying, unbeknown to their father that she did so in an effort to keep control of her temper.

To keep herself from stomping their father into the ground like she did with the bullies at school.

Not that their father knew this. Karai doubted that he would ever know just how much control Isis exercised over her temper. And that was just fine since Isis was still young and it was her job to protect her little sister and defend the clan.

Isis turned slightly and looked at her, her eyes red rimmed and angry looking as Karai gave her a small tentative smile. Uncertain of what to do or say for the moment aside from, "Training is over. Wanna get something to eat?"

Her sister was quiet for a heartbeat or so before nodding her head and slowly rolling her body so that she could climb to her feet. Karai helped her, but only a little bit since she knew how much Isis hated leaning on her for any reason. She had said as much the last time their father had broken her leg during training. And while it had stung Karai to know that her sister felt that way, it had also forced her to see Isis as something more than something to be coddled.

Despite what their father may say and think of her little sister, Karai knew that Isis was unusually strong. She just hoped that their father never found out otherwise Isis may not survive.

.

.

.

16 years later-

Karai stood in a circle of flames with her arch enemy, Leonardo Hamoto- her father's killer and couldn't stop herself from smiling.

Not because the mutant freak was now cornered and all hell was breaking loose around them, but because she could recall the last time her sister had come home. She'd been seventeen and had been walking the hallways singing her latest favorite song.

Standing outside the Fire, by Garth Brooks. A country singer.

Karai could remember hearing someone's voice echoing through the mansion that she had called home all her life. She had followed the lyrical sound, finding it lovely and had been curious as to who would bring such beauty to her grim and dreary home when she had rounded the corner- and there was her sister, singing. Her voice rising and falling in perfect harmony with the song blaring over the headphones she was wearing.

Her semi long mid shoulder length red hair had been drawn back into a ponytail and she had been wearing a teal and lavender colored kimono.

Karai could recall seeing the light from the windows hitting her just right and thought with envy, how beautiful her little sister had become. Like a bright flame. Always standing out in stark contrast to Karai's darkness.

She felt a sharp burning sensation on one of her upper arms and hissed as her mind snapped back to the here and now. Leonardo held up one of his katana blades to let her see the blood- her blood- slowly running down the blade and made a tsking sound. "Daydreaming Karai. I thought that your father taught you better than that."

"You'll pay for that freak." She said as she bared her teeth at him and slashed at him with her katana, watching as he quickly moved back just beyond her blades reach. The bastard. She thought darkly as they randomly started to slash at eachother. They were like children fighting.

Each wanting to draw more and more blood until an adult came to seperate them.

The clang of their weapons could be heard over the screams and small explosions rocking the mansion as Leonardo's brothers, and freak father tore through her men and brought a majority of her home down around them. Isolating them until only herself and Leo were the only one's fighting while everyone else stood off to the side, watching.

Waiting with bated breath, hoping that Leo would emerge victorious.

The two fought for what felt like forever to Karai before she felt her arms starting to hurt and knew that she had to finish the fight soon before her strength gave out completely. She lunged at Leonardo, her arm extended, her blade aimed at the center of his chest. He moved so quickly that she didn't have time to register the fact that one of his katana blades had just been pushed through her ribs and into her heart until she spat up blood and her vision started to blur.

She tipped her head back just enough to see Leo's expression as her vision cleared and gave him a small, pained smile. She couldn't feel anything but she knew that he felt the horror that she should have been feeling in that moment.

"D-Don't look at m-me like that..." She gasped out as she tried to keep breathing. "W-When you l-look like that...y-you break my heart." She managed to wheeze out as she collapsed against him, vaguely aware of him talking to her, his hands sticky with her blood, smoothing her dark hair back as he tried to give her some comfort in her final moments.

.

.

.

Leo held Karai in his arms up until her last, shuttering breath. All while thinking how unfair it was that things had come to this. Especially when he had gotten to know her so well before killing the Shredder.

Karai had been the closest person other than Splinter who had truly understood him and how his mind worked. She had understood his necessity to hide himself away behind facades of honor and politeness to keep others from discovering the darker side of his personality.

She had known the reasons why he and Raph were always at eachother's throats. She had known that secretly deep down he had envied his two younger brothers for their innocence. She had known that he often felt frustrated with his father for putting him in charge when Don would have been the better, more rational choice.

And now that she was dead...he felt empty. The only friend that he had ever considered his and his alone was gone.

All over a vendetta for a man that never should have involved her to begin with. He closed her eyes and hugged her to him for a moment, whispering that he wished things had ended another way, then lay her down on the floor and quickly, woodenly pulled his katana from her chest and leapt over the climbing flames to where his family was feeling as if he should have been the one to die here instead of her.