A/N: The end… the real and true last of the Drabbles Forever series.

Many thanks to those who stuck with the series, and a huge, glomping hug of thanks to my amazing beta-readers.

One more time, Polaris'05, Diva Danielle, Melody Winters, with occasional assists from DuckiePray and FairDrea, you gals all rock my Turtle and Ratty Socks.

Thanks will be at the end as always.

This was originally titled "Still" and contains a nod to the first movie. I intended it as Splinter's first Drabble, but a chat with one of my betas inspired Seimei, and it seemed a better fit.

Chapter 5 ~Understanding: Leonardo~

"Don't ya ever get tired o' meditatin', Fearless?" There's a sneer in my brother's voice as he walks past. I let his words flow over me, sliding past as if they are nothing more than the sound of the wind.

In. Out. Breathe.

"You must learn to focus your minds, my sons. Through control of the mind, control of the body follows. Now, close your eyes, Michelangelo. Breathe deeply. Focus… close your eyes, Michelangelo."

In. Out. Breathe.

The humans came closer, their lights echoing off the walls, their toolboxes rattling. Their voices were loud, amplified in the tunnel. I pressed close to Sensei, his hand wrapped around mine. My other hand was on Mikey's shoulder. Raphael and Don were back at the Lair, waiting for us to come home from scavenging. I could feel Mikey trembling with tension.

"Be very still, my sons," Splinter whispered. "We must make no sound."

We all froze, holding our positions, until the humans passed the dark tunnel we were crouching in.

Once the tunnel was silent again, Splinter let out his breath in a slow hiss.

"You have done well," he said, more to Mikey than to me, to stop the flow of tears sliding down his cheeks, but he gave me one of his rare, precious small smiles of approval.

In. Out. Breathe.

Splinter'd been missing almost a week. Raphael had recovered from his injuries, but the tension of not knowing was making us all go a bit stir crazy. I sat in the woods, breathing deeply, allowing the spiritual plane to rise up around me.

In. Out. Breathe. The exercise I'd practiced a thousand times, striving for silence, for peace in my spirit, but this time… this time…

Leonardo.

Father?!

It was in the stillness that my world, all our worlds, came right again.

If you've read this far, thank you, for sticking with this series for so long. They have been incredibly fun, and challenging, to write. And I absolutely could not have finished this series without the help of the wonderful ladies who beta'd each and every one.

Melody Winters, Diva Danielle, Polaris'05... you gals rock. Fair Drea, DuckiePray, thanks for the encouragement, the support, the heart palpitations and the virtual cookies. You girls also rock.

Thanks as well to:

Goddess Hanyuu for the first review :)
lorientmnt for wanting more
TigerToa for almost feeling bad for the Foot soldiers and buying Donny get-well cards in bulk lol
Reinbeauchaser for support throughout and for being an epic fangirl ;)
minuet-of-forest for kind reviews
Harmony Winters for dropping in to review
Longing For Leo for liking Leo's drabbles and for having an epic screename :)
Candelight for sharing her light
Livi Love for giving me a deeper understanding of Karai
Pinguin1993 for feeling unable to review
FairDrea... Yes, he is. He really is. *snicker*
CheshireDreaming for nice reviews
BlackShuriken for "wow"
54Viruses for a little happy dance
Ramica for being awesome
Scribe of Theresa for nice reviews :)
LadyBlue001 for a sweet review
AlyssaFelixa for wanting an awesome TMNT hat
lost frequencies for checking Leo out on YouTube
Kyaserin Marii for soldiering on
UltimateLeoFangirl for laughing at Leo's driving skillz
Joy Jababanoid for calling the drabbles "professional"
sabra jaguar for being awesome and inspired. Can't wait to see where inspiration takes you!
Raph's Destiny for epic awesomeness and That's what she said. LOL
xxKuroyoxx for telling Raph! HA
Rika24 for remembering Joy
LadyBlue001 for a nice review
Butterfly Meadow for reading
Donata for laughing at Don
XMenfan23 for liking surprises
"Mikell", aka DivaDanielle (who forgot to sign in under her own name before reviewing) for making me laugh randomly for days at the silliness. hugs Danni :)
Mondhexe for loving a chapter, and for her epic fic Fanfiction, a Turtle's Reply. :D
Falruza Black for a nice review
AlexHamato for ranting ;)
Leonardo Mystic for a kind comment
magiccat for asking for updates :)
Eridani23 for liking Mikey chaps
sait4soreyes for wanting a "Maryverse" which made me lol
firstar28 for loving Mikey
DuckiePray for just being epic
Mew Sakura for coming back
WebMistressGina for not bothering lol

Thank you all so very much. I hope it won't be very long before I begin another adventure with our favorite boys. Until then, doomo arigatoo gozaimasu, Thank you very much indeed.

Rejoicing in the day,

-Mary