Disclaimers: Ninja Turtles belong to other people. Not me. Riana belongs to me, tho'. No demons or faeries were harmed in the making of this fic, only brutally maimed and killed.

Note: Apologies for taking so long to finish this (but what's a couple of years between friends?). But finished it is. This was started awhile ago, back when the pop culture references were current, and my writing skills weren't so mindbendingly awesome.

~*~

Leonardo's eyes snapped open as he took a sharp breath. He held still for several seconds until he remembered that he had been asleep on the couch, and that he had just woken up from a dream. A nightmare, actually, but those didn't bother him anymore. He was used to them now. In fact, he'd noticed that he was beginning to like them. The nightmares gave him extra training time, where he could work out different strategies and tactics. If one of his siblings died, then it was just a dream, no matter how horrific it turned out to be.

Speaking of training, he thought, rising up. It would be another hour before his family woke up. He could get at least some warm-up exercises done. Or...this would be the perfect time to try out that move that'd been giving him so much trouble. He wasn't even sure if he could execute it, but he had to try. He quietly stood and crossed over to the training room, taking his katanas with him.

I was lucky this time, he thought. This time he had his swords in his hands, not the guns. It was always easier when the character he was imitating had the proper equipment.

He stood in the center of the dark room, not turning on the lights for fear his brothers might wake up, and then began, not knowing that he had picked up an audience. Venus sat in the corner, hidden in the shadows, where she had been meditating a few moments ago. Not as accustomed to nightmares as Leonardo, she had not been able to calm down from her dream of being unable to breathe. She still hadn't told anyone about her nightmares, instead preferring to calm down alone in the darkness. Now, however, she had something else to think about.

She watched the unofficial leader leap and twist, pulling his swords at the same time, struggling with the timing of the move. He aborted midway through, landing with an irritated look on his face. He replaced his swords, then tried it again. After a few times, she managed to figure out what he was trying to do. It was like a mix between a flying dragon kick with the rising phoenix stance, but the two moves were different somehow. Where had he learned this new move?

Twenty minutes (and several futile tries on Leonardo's part) later, she was about to let him know that she thought it was useless, surprise him though it may. Suddenly he managed to complete the move, startling both of them. She gasped in awe, betraying her presence. He whirled, his swords still out and ready to attack, but his guard lowered when he saw who it was.

"How long've you been watching?" he asked, putting his swords up.

She smiled. "Since you came in. That was amazing. Where did you see that move? I've never seen anything like it before."

His gaze drifted away even as he knelt beside her. "You have to swear you'll never tell Raph or anyone else."

She nodded.

"I got it out of a comic book."

"A comic book?" Venus gaped. She had seen him reading those things, half picture book and half corny movie with disproportionate people fighting strange looking villains, but she'd only thought he'd been reading for entertainment.

"Deadpool, to be exact. They've got some great action scenes in there. If they're really good, I'll sometimes try to copy a move or two."

"How?"

He shrugged and leaned up against the wall. "I just try doing what the artist drew. It's easier if the main character's using swords instead of guns, though."

"Is that why you read those things?" she asked, knowing how much he enjoyed them.

Leo nodded. "But the stories are good, too. Deadpool reminds me of a mix between Mike and Raph, part clown and part psychopath."

Venus laughed. "I'm going to tell them you said that."

"Don't you dare!"

"I could keep my silence," she offered, "for a price."

His gaze drifted sideways to her. "Such as?"

She lay her hand on his, opening her mouth to say something, when the lights abruptly snapped on. They each stood up and flipped to different sides of the room, hoping no one had noticed they had been so close together. Neither of them wanted the comments that would bring from Raph or Mike, or the stern looks from Splinter.

Unfortunately, Splinter had been the first one in, leading three sleepy turtles behind him. He spotted his two best students dashing away, and he frowned slightly. It bothered him to think that something might be blossoming between the two, especially when they were so young. Worse yet, they were trying to hide it.

He shook his head. Time enough to worry about that later. It is time for morning practice. I can speak with them afterward. Still, if he could discourage the two through sparring...

"So, what're we doing today, Master?" Mike asked through a yawn. Of the five, he was the worst morning person, all though Raphael was a close second.

"More paring off, likely," Raph grumbled in a low voice.

"Not today," Splinter shook his head. "Your individual talents are fine enough. It is your teamwork which needs improvement."

"But we always do fine," Mike said.

"No, you rely on Leonardo to tell you what to do," Splinter said. "It is time for you to practice fighting together without his guidance. I want to see how you would fare."

"Does that mean I'm sitting out of this one?" Leo asked.

Splinter was about to nod, but he held back, his whiskers twitching with an idea. "Not quite. Venus, Raphael, Michaelangelo, and Donatello, all against Leonardo."

Malevolent smiles broke out on everyone's faces, especially Raphael's, while Leo took a step backward, away from the mob advancing on him.

"I don't know if I can pull my punches if I'm fighting all of you," he warned them.

"Don't worry, you won't get a chance to throw any," Raph grinned, drawing his sais.

Apparently that had been the cue everyone had been waiting for. With Raphael as the surrogate leader, they rushed at Leo. Back in the corner, Splinter sighed and shook his head.

Such wonderful teamwork, he groaned.

Wasting no more time, Leonardo backflipped over and over, just out of his siblings' reach. As he went, his right hand landed on a discarded staff. Instead of losing his balance like everyone thought he would, (Donatello actually crowed in premature triumph), he grabbed the staff and brought it up with him as he stood. Everyone backed up out of his extended reach.

They all move as one, Splinter sighed, but not as a formation, as a herd, rather. This should go quickly.

Splinter was almost correct. Without waiting for them to attack as a group, Leonardo rolled forward and swept Mike's feet out from under him. Everyone backed away as Mike fell hard, and that gave Leo the opportunity to continue the assault on his little brother. He raised the staff, then dropped it so fast that everybody thought it would hit Mike in the face. Mike shut his eyes, then opened them a second later when he didn't feel anything.

The staff hovering mere inches from his face, he saw his older brother grinning. "You're dead, Mike," Leo laughed, already leaving him behind so he could start against the remaining three. Mike groaned and left the fighting ground, sitting down hard in the corner.

"Come on," Leo said as he twirled the staff in one hand, "who's next?"

"Me," Don said, stepping forward. "Let's see how you last against someone who knows how to handle a staff."

Donatello whirled his staff, then swept it down. As Leo dodged, Don pulled the bo up, swung it around and jabbed it forward. Leo leaned hard to his left, just barely avoiding being hit. He attacked then, swinging the staff to the right. Donatello went to block it, then realized it was a feint and struggled to get his staff to the left. Leo spun around again and clipped Don on the right shoulder, dropping him to the ground.

Don rose quickly before Leo could attack him again. "A counter-counter strike," he mumbled to himself.

He tried to circle his brother, but Leo wouldn't fall for that old trick. He kept backing up and moving side to side, but never around. That would have made him turn his back to Venus and Raph, and that would have been suicide.

Suddenly Don lunged, bringing his staff down toward Leo, who fell to one knee to block it and then countered Don's next hit. While he was down, though, Raph took the opportunity to lash out, darting under the staffs to slice at Leo.

Leonardo rolled backward and stood up. Venus, Don and Raph were starting to surround him. He considered for several seconds. Don would be easier to get rid of, but he didn't want to face Raph and Venus together. If he could get one of them to take out another, that would be great. Actually, if he could take out two at once, that would be much better. He scanned the three. Don and Raph were just barely close enough...

He turned quickly to Venus, who held a spear with bright ribbons on the ends.

"Here, catch!" he yelled, tossing her his staff.

Surprised, she did, giving him enough time to turn and draw his swords. Cursing her momentary stupidity, she threw the bo like a javelin at him, but he had anticipated that. He leaped into the air, executing the move he had only learned that morning. Donatello, kicked in the chest, landed hard on the mat. Raphael managed to dodge Leo's swords, leaning closer in, but that left him vulnerable to the staff Venus had hurled beneath Leonardo. Raph caught the staff in the stomach and fell back on the floor, but before the staff could drop to the ground, Leo had dropped his swords and grabbed the staff again. He whirled it around and brought it down horizontally across both Donatello's and Raphael's faces. They winced in anticipation until they realized it was not going to actually hit them.

"Dammit, Venus," Raph growled as he and Don left the fight. "Whose side are you on?"

"It is not entirely her fault," Splinter admonished him. "You should have seen that staff and ducked."

"Quack, quack, quack," Mike said.

Raphael's eyes narrowed and he dived on top of his younger brother, pinning him on the floor. He sat down on Mike, ignoring his protests. "You wanna talk noise, pipsqueak, you take the consequences."

Meanwhile, Venus and Leonardo circled each other, each looking for an opening. Venus constantly twirled the spear so that the ribbons on either end made it impossible to tell where the blade was. Without warning she lunged out at him several times, forcing him to back up unceremoniously. She received cheers and applause from the three on the side.

"Come on, Venus!" Don clapped, "trip him up!"

"You go, girlfriend," Mike yelled, "take him to the curb. Give him the hand!"

"That's it, Mike," Raph mumbled, "no more Springer for you."

Leo allowed himself the luxury of taking his eyes off of Venus for a brief moment. "All you three need are a few skirts and then you'd be regular cheerleaders."

"Hey, we're just waiting for the skirt to beat you," Raph called back.

Silence followed for a moment.

"Oh, now you've done it," Mike whispered.

Venus glared at Raphael, who actually seemed to whither under her gaze. "A skirt?" she asked. Ever since Leonardo had explained sexist epithets to her, anybody calling her a skirt, chick, or anything else, was in severe danger of being pummeled, which Raph had learned the hard way a few days ago in practice.

"Once I'm finished with Leo," she said, "you're next!"

Raph looked away and waited for them to keep fighting.

Venus turned back to Leonardo, who had let her vent at his brother. He loved it when Raph was slammed. Still, a fight was a fight, and both of them intended to win.

They held completely still, waiting for the right moment. Everyone was quiet, and only when they needed to exhale did they realize they'd been holding their breath. A few minutes went by. The three brothers on the floor started drumming their fingers impatiently, and Mike started to hum the Jeopardy song until Raph bounced on him once. Soon even Splinter was getting impatient.

Everything happened all at once, so fast that they barely saw what happened. Venus thrust the spear at Leo, who did not back up but rather spun around her and swept her legs out from under her. She dropped with a yelp, struggling to strike Leo with her elbow as she fell. She connected, and both of them went to the mat. He managed to twist around a split second before she did, though, and pinned her hands down. Their faces were only a few centimeters apart.

"Is this what it takes for you to get close to me?" she whispered.

His eyes widened and he stood up faster than he should have, helping her up amidst groans of displeasure from his siblings. A quick whap on the head from Splinter's stick, though, quieted them.

"You see, teamwork is vital," Splinter said. "When you act alone, the result is chaotic and disastrous. You must work on developing communication in a fight, and plan your attacks out."

Everyone bowed as he finished speaking then headed for the kitchen for breakfast. Leonardo was the last to leave as he replaced the staff and his swords. As he headed for the door, Splinter stopped him with a curious look on his face.

"Where did you learn that jump?" he asked. "And how did you know to spin aside like that? I did not teach you those moves."

"Fighting manuals?" Leonardo offered, hoping his master would accept the half-answer.

No such luck. Splinter merely waited for his son to answer more truthfully, one eyebrow cocked.

"Deadpool and Poison Elves," Leo admitted.

Splinter raised both eyebrows in surprise. "The comic books you read? You are mimicking their moves?"

Leo nodded. "Well, nobody else uses that fighting style, and it's pretty unpredictable."

"Indeed..." Splinter said dryly. "They are quite creative and effective, as long as you do not depend too heavily on them."

Leonardo shook his head. "No, master. They're just good additions."

Splinter glanced sideways to the kitchen. As usual, Raphael and Michaelangelo were fighting over the cereal and the remains of last night's pizza, while Donatello was kept busy dodging flying food bits and flailing hands. Venus looked down hastily at her own plate, which was when Splinter realized that she had been watching them.

"Leonardo, may I speak with you in private?" he asked, in a tone of voice that said it was not a request.

He nodded and followed Splinter into his private room, exchanging a nervous glance with Venus. When he was inside, Splinter sat down and indicated that Leo should sit opposite him. Leonardo knelt down, looking at the floor.

"I believe you know what I wish to speak with you about," Splinter started. His son nodded slowly. There was a brief pause. "Is it serious?"

"I don't know," Leo answered. "It hasn't come to that, yet."

Splinter sighed. "Leonardo, I am worried about you. I do not think you are ready for this sort of thing yet."

Leo looked up, a little angry. "I'm not a child, master."

"You are only sixteen," Splinter said. "You may act older, but never forget your true age."

Stung, Leo glanced away. Splinter berated himself. That kind of response was not what his student needed right now.

"Your emotions could hinder your thoughts in a fight," Splinter said in a softer voice. "If you become too involved, you could become ineffective in battle."

Leo nodded, tired. He had thought of that already, dozens of times. "But I'm also emotionally attached to my brothers," he argued.

"But not blindly," Splinter countered. "And you do not favor one over the other. Leonardo, you must tread carefully in matters of love and affection."

Leo nodded again. "I understand that, master."

Splinter looked up. "Good. Leonardo?"

His student glanced up.

"When do you practice those moves you take from your books?"

He hesitated a moment. "In the morning, and at night."

"When everyone else is asleep?"

"Yes."

"How many hours do you sleep a night?"

"About four or five."

Leonardo didn't seem to think anything was wrong with that, so Splinter let it go. It was hard to tell him to stop practicing so hard when his brothers' lives counted on it. After a few more minutes he let his pupil go.

It was late in the afternoon. Michaelangelo lay sprawled on the couch, flipping rapidly through the television stations. Splinter had stopped scolding him long ago after he realized that the youngest was the only one who was up on current events and pop culture. "Zoning" might be a lazy habit, but it was also an arguable skill.

Donatello sat at his computer, punching away at the keyboard. He mumbled at the screen as he went backward and forward, editing and correcting mistakes.

"What'cha doing, Donnie?" Mike called from the couch.

"Making a virus," Don growled, "but the damn thing won't work with me."

"What's it for?"

"I'm gonna launch it in to an enemy computer, if we ever get the chance."

"Who's?"

Don shrugged. "Whoever's first."

Mike glanced back at the television. Buffy the Vampire Slayer was coming on in a few minutes, and he didn't want to miss it.

"Aw, man!" came a disappointed voice from a subway car.

They both looked toward Leo's room. "Everything all right?" they called.

"Yeah, Siryn just turned out to be Typhoid Mary, is all," Leo said.

Mike gave Don a confused look. "Comic books," they nodded, rolling their eyes.

"You take those things waaay too seriously, bro'," Mike said.

"This from the guy who cried when Johnny Cage died in the second movie?" Leo replied.

"I didn't cry!" Mike yelled. "I was just upset."

"You were crying like a girl," Leo shouted back.

"Was not!"

"You are so lucky Venus ain't here, Leo," Don laughed. "She'd have killed you for that remark."

"Like she did this morning?" Mike asked, rolling on his back.

The Buffy theme song came on then, and the show commanded Mike's entire attention for the next few minutes. In that time, Raphael came back from wherever he had gone. No one ever really bothered to ask him except for Leo, and he was so engrossed in the comics he was reading that he didn't care about Raph for the moment.

"Hey, Buffy's on!" Raph grinned, plopping in a sofa beside the couch. "Leo, I thought you liked this show?"

"It's a rerun," Leo called back. "It's the one where Buffy got telepathic, remember?"

"Oh, yeah," they both nodded. "What else is on?"

Mike flipped a few channels. "Xena's on!"

"Which one is it?" Don asked.

"Um, it's got Autolycus, and Joxer..." Mike mused. "It's a good one!"

Leo came in from his room while Don left the computer.

"Bruce Campbell does great work on this show," Leo said, leaning over the couch.

"It's better when he's in them than when he's directing them," Don replied, sitting in the other sofa.

They watched for the length of the show. When the commercials came on between Xena and the Hercules, Raph headed to the kitchen. Suspicious, Mike followed and then helped his unusually friendly brother make the huge amount of popcorn it took to satisfy all of them. For some reason, watching Xena made Raph nicer than usual. Meanwhile, Leo stole Raph's seat. When Raph and Mike came back inside and noticed that only the couch was open, they dashed off, tossing their brothers the popcorn bowl as they ran. A few white kernels fell over the floor.

Raph took a flying leap and landed on the couch first. Mike groaned and stood over his smug brother.

"Raph, if you'd just sit up, I could sit down, too."

Raph shook his head. "You know this couch is strictly for laying down on. I got here first."

Mike sighed, then climbed up on top of the couch back. With a little balance, he managed to lay across the padded back.

As the show went on, an evil thought worked its way into Raphael's head. A malicious grin spread over his face. Leo noticed it, then realized what his brother was about to do and kept quiet. Raph was in such a good mood he didn't want to ruin it. Besides, it wouldn't kill Mike to learn not to trust such a precarious perch.

"Hey, Mike," Raph said, "you comfy?"

"Yeah," Mike grumbled.

"Good," Raph responded, rolling quickly off of the couch. The seat fell backward, with Mike yelling as he went with it. The three older siblings started laughing.

"Are you okay?" came a kind voice.

Mike opened his eyes and found himself looking up at Venus. "Sure, V-babe. Nothing broken."

She helped him up and he got back on top of the couch.

Raph looked at Venus. "How come Mike can call you...that..." he said, "and we can't?"

Venus laughed and sat on the arm of the couch. "Because I know he doesn't mean anything by it."

After Hercules was over, Mike flipped over to the Comedy channel before anybody left. The Tick was coming on. As the commercials ran, the pay phone rang. Knowing better than to move, Leo, Don, and Venus held still. Like a whirlwind, Raphael and Mike leaped up and raced to the phone, jumping and pushing each other. A cushion flew from behind and struck Raphael down suddenly, and Mike made it to the phone first. Raph glared at Venus.

"That's for the 'skirt' remark earlier," she laughed.

"Hi, April!" Mike said, listening to the phone. "Yeah, we're all here....what?...no way!...For real?..."

Everybody looked at Mike. "Well?" Raph demanded.

Mike waved them down. "No, we're not doing anything for the week, not that I know of...Are you serious?!...Dudette, you are the best!...Oh, that's even better!...Let me ask them."

Now all of them were staring at him.

"April's gonna go to Ireland to visit a friend, and she wants to know if we want to go to with her. She said we wouldn't have to hide out 'cause her friend is used to our brand of weirdness. Well?"

They all cast a quick glance at Splinter's room. Standing in the doorway, the old master smiled and nodded his approval. Leo looked back at Mike. "For crying out loud, say yes!"

"It's a go, Ape!...Okay...Yeah, we can do that...Yes, we've done it before...trust me...'kay, see you then." He hung up the phone.

"We leave for Dublin day after tomorrow at four a.m. sharp," Mike said. "The only problem is we're flying there."

"Damn," Raph growled. "There's always something."

Venus looked at them in confusion. "What? What's wrong?"

"It just means we're gong cargo again," Leo sighed. "We've done it before, when we went to Egypt. It's no big deal, it's just boring." He stood up and went to the phone. "I'll go ahead and get it set up."

As everyone scattered, Venus followed Mike to his room. "What do we pack?"

"Not that much," Mike told her. "Just weapons, flashlight, a couple batteries, and something to do in the box."

"The box?" Venus recalled what Leo had said. "You mean we really are flying in the cargo section?"

Mike nodded. "Yuppers. It's okay, just take a fan and a book or something." He grabbed a bag of chocolate chip cookies from a drawer. "And something to chow down on fast. Food goes fast when we got something coming up."

Venus walked out and saw Leonardo talking on the phone. She went closer to see what he was saying.

"...yeah, that's right, S-M-I-T-H-S-O-N-I-A-N. There, got it? Serial number, too? Good. We got five sculptures to send to the Dublin Art Museum. By Leonardo, Donatello, Raphael and Michaelangelo. And we're also sending the Venus de Milo, too. I'd insure those for about a million each. Yeah, they are pretty priceless, huh? They'll be at the airport at 3:30 early, so make sure you have them on the plane fast. Great. Bye."

He hung up and noticed Venus staring at him. "You okay? You look nervous."

She nodded. "Are you certain this will work? It seems a little crazy."

Leo smiled. "Relax. We've done it before. Just take something interesting to read on the flight, and a good light. We'll probably be shut in for seventeen or eighteen hours."

Her eyes widened.

"It'll be all right. We'll have our communicators, so if you want to call, go ahead."

She smiled shakily. "I don't think I'm going to enjoy this that much. I'll just take a few daggers and other items with me. Day after tomorrow, right? Is Master Splinter coming?"

Leo shook his head. "He doesn't like traveling that much. He'll be fine."

Venus nodded in agreement. If Mr. Paranoia himself wasn't worried, then it would be okay. At least I have an extra day to relax, she thought.

As soon as Venus disappeared to her own room, Leo slipped another quarter into the pay phone and dialed April's number. He leaned against the pole, watching to see if his brothers would come out. He didn't want them to get nervous around April, but something just didn't sit right with him right now.

"Hi, Leo, I knew you would call," April answered as she picked up. "Casey said you'd call in the next five minutes."

He smiled. "It's not that I don't trust you two, but I don't know anything about this friend of yours. What did you mean about her being used to our brand of weirdness?"

"Well, it's hard to explain it. See, I met her when I had to report on site in Ireland after that terrorist attack a few years ago. We got to talking and we've been writing to each other ever since. Her name's Riana, by the way. Anyway, she called yesterday, and begged me to come over there right away, and to bring my five strange friends with me. She said I'd know who. Leo, I swear I've never told her about you."

"That's odd," he said, nodding. "Did she say how she knew about us?"

"She said she used Tarot cards," April sighed. "I know this is asking a lot of you guys, to trust her without knowing her, but she sounded really scared."

"Don't worry about it. If anything happens, I'm sure we can handle it. Are Casey and Shadow coming?"

"Yeah. It's not like there's any place we could leave Shadow and not worry about her. Besides, Riana said she'd put us up at her castle, so we wouldn't have to worry about a hotel. "

"That's good--castle?"

April laughed. "I reacted just like that, too. Apparently some ancestor of hers was royalty, but now all she has is the family castle and money from the books she writes."

"Sounds like a real eccentric."

"I don't think she's dangerous, Leo."

"I believe you, April. We'll see you over there."

He hung up the phone, debating on whether or not to tell the family. He shook his head after a moment. They would find out when they got there, and in all likelihood it probably wouldn't be bad. It would be interesting to see what would happen.

Venus' extra day passed quickly, though, and she soon found herself nailed into a large box at the end of the warehouse they had snuck into. They seemed to know what they were doing, though, so she had to force herself to stay calm. She just did not like putting herself in such a vulnerable position.

Mike nailed Venus into her box, Don nailed Mike and Raph in, and Leo sealed Don in. Somehow Leonardo managed to seal the box he was in by himself. The wait was not long. Only a few minutes later they felt themselves put into a truck and then driven to the right plane. Once he was certain it was safe, Leo switched on the communicator and made sure everyone was accounted for.

"Mike, you there?"

"Roger, sir, captain Leo, sir."

"Raph?"

"Yeah, yeah."

"Don?"

"Present."

"Venus?"

"Right here."

"Hey, who brought cookies?!"

"I did, Raph, so what?"

"Mike, you rat! I thought we were out!"

"No, you just didn't get there fast enough."

"Leo, you grabbed them, too?"

"I think you're the only one who got left out."

"Aw, Donnie--Venus, you don't have cookies, do you?"

"No."

"Phew. Thought I was the only one for a moment there."

"No, Raphael, I have a package of Kudos bars and a Coca-cola."

Silence.

"Dammit! It ain't fair."

"Man, I knew I forgot something."

"Mike?"

"I ain't got nothing to drink."

Raphael cracked up. "Got Milk?"

"This ain't funny, dude! Aw, hell, this sucks! All I got is water. What good is water with cookies?"

Everybody started to laugh at that point.

"Okay, okay," Leo said, "see you in Ireland."

They switched their communicators off. Leonardo started to read the three comic collections he had brought, The Dark Knight Returns, Sandman: The Wake, and Kingdom Come. Raph turned on his tape deck with Iron Maiden, and started to zone. Donatello turned on his laptop and went right back to working on his virus, and Mike bemoaned his lack of milk as he went back to sleep. Waking up at 2:30 was fine for Leo, but Mike needed his beauty sleep. Beside him in the next box, Venus opened the first page of the graphic novel Leonardo had lent her, Mad Love. Next were the two Poison Elves collections. She had to admit, Leo had a point. These had a few good moves in them.

Venus woke up when the plane touched down, struggling to keep from hitting the sides of the box as they hit the ground. She hastily gathered her items together and placed them in a bag so they wouldn't rattle around once she began moving. The last thing they needed was a human checking to see if the priceless statues had broken.

"Venus, you there?"

The communicator startled her and she jumped, hitting her head on the box. Grumbling, she flipped it on. "Yes?"

"Just making sure you're all right," Leo whispered. "How's your head?"

"Fine, it--how did you know?"

"I heard you all the way over here," he said. "Sounded like it hurt."

"It was your fault," she grumbled.

"I can't help it if you startle easily. See you outside."

They stopped talking just as she heard the main door open. A few seconds later her box was gently carried out and across the airfield. The five turtles were set down in a warehouse. As soon as they heard the guards leave, they gathered their items together and prepared to leave. Venus pushed the top of her box up and found Leonardo already helping Mike out. Raphael was sitting on top of Donatello's box, refusing to get off.

"Come on, let me out already," Don said. "It's cramped in here."

"You deliberately didn't tell me there were cookies," Raph said, leaning back. "I had to spend an entire day fasting while every body else got to eat."

"Blame Leo," Don said, "he didn't tell you either."

Raph shot a glare at his big brother.

Leo shrugged. "I thought you'd have gotten there first. Were you too slow?"

Knowing there was no right answer to that question, Raph sighed and turned, ripping the top off of Donatello's box. Don rose, staring at Raph and muttering under his breath.

"What was that?" Raph asked, egging his brother on.

Mike rolled his eyes and looked at Leo. "So, where do we meet April?"

"At the airport entrance," Leo said, glancing out of the warehouse. "Wherever that is. At least it's already dark. We won't have to worry about being seen."

They left what they had brought with them in the boxes, until they would all mail themselves back again. Slowly, they slipped around the airport, searching for the front. After several minutes of dodging guards and workers, they made it to the parking lot. There were only a few streetlights, but they managed to spot a small family of three waiting at the main entrance.

"There they are!" Mike whispered. Leo rolled his eyes, but he didn't bother to tell to quiet down. Mike was just excited, and besides, there was no immediate danger. The entire group slid silently into the dark shadows behind April, Casey, and Shadow.

"Psst, behind you!" Raph called out, laughing as Casey whirled around.

"Jeez, Raph," Casey grinned, "you almost gave me a heart attack."

"What are you guys waiting for?" Mike asked.

"The limousines," April answered. "Riana said she sent out two of them to pick us up, but I don't see any yet."

"Would it be those two over there?" Venus asked, pointing to their right.

They all looked to the side. Sure enough, there were two limos parked in the darkness, with two drivers sitting inside. A sign on one of them said, "April O' Neil and company."

"I guess that's them," April said. "They've already got the baggage, let's go."

More than a little wary, they finally relaxed when they saw that the drivers could not possibly see their passengers because of thick, black shields between the front and back. Apparently Riana had taken care of that for them.

"Great," Leo sighed in relief. "Raph, Mike, you go with April and Casey."

"All right!" Mike cried, leaping in after Shadow. Raph groaned, but got in anyway. He was eager to trade vigilante stories with Casey.

"And us?" Don asked.

"We get to sleep," Leo said, knowing Venus and Donatello had not slept either. "Come on."

As soon as the cars started off, Donatello crashed. He lay on one long seat, breathing softly as he slept. Venus glanced out of the window.

"Um, is he driving right?" she asked in a worried voice.

"Yes," he smiled, "they drive on the wrong side of the road over here. Try to relax."

"Look who's talking," she whispered, so as not to wake Don. "Sometimes I wonder if you're not paranoid."

"Well, don't you ever feel nervous?" he asked.

"Not in my own home," she shook her head. "Not with my family and friends around me. Do you?"

He nodded. "Yeah. I guess it comes from being responsible for all of you."

Venus was about to argue when she realized what he meant. "You have to take care of all of us and make sure we're safe, is that it?"

He nodded again.

"Leonardo, that is too much responsibility for someone to handle, even for you!" she sighed. "Besides, the rest of us aren't exactly lousy at self-defense, either."

Leo smiled. "Oh, yes, you four showed me just how well you can work together a couple days ago."

Venus leaned back against the seat, resting her hand on the leather interior. Leo glanced out of the window at the dark street passing by. Still asleep, Donatello rolled onto his side, facing the seat. Suddenly Venus lay her hand on top of Leo's. His muscles tightened for a moment, then relaxed as he wrapped his fingers around hers. She settled against his shoulder, falling asleep. He smiled, looking down on her, then went back to staring out of the window. Despite staying awake during the flight, he didn't feel all that tired. Besides, he had to stay awake and keep watch over his family.

Too much responsibility? he thought to himself. No, just selfishness. I don't want to lose any of you.

*

Even though it was several hours before they even reached the long, winding road that led up to the castle in the distance, the moon was still high in the sky by the time they arrived. Leo felt a little apprehension as they neared their destination. For some reason, the castle reminded him of the House of Usher. He glanced down at Venus and nudged her.

"Wake up, we're nearly there," he said gently.

"Finally," she yawned, sitting up and looking out the window. "How long have we been riding?"

"About five hours," he said before he realized he was being baited.

She glared at him. "You didn't sleep at all, did you?"

"Sure I did."

"What did you dream about?"

"I can't remember."

Venus rolled her eyes and leaned back in her seat. She knew damn well she wouldn't get an answer out of him. She looked out of the window toward the house.

"It's beautiful," she whispered. "It looks so old."

"It looks depressing," Leo replied.

"What? Are you serious?"

"Yes, I'm serious. It looks like the House of Usher."

"The what? Oh, that stupid book you keep reading."

Leo bristled at that remark. "It is not stupid."

Venus smiled. "Of course not. Donatello," she said, raising her voice, "time to get up."

"Huh, what?" Don rose up on his arms, trying to wake up completely.

"We're almost there," Leo said. "What do you think?"

Donatello glanced out of the window at the castle. "Now that's a dark castle. I wonder if Dracula lives there."

Leo shot Venus his famous I-told-you-so look. She sighed and shook her head.

"Well, I still think it's nice. I wonder if the others are up."

The cars pulled up to the house and dropped their passengers off. Casey and Mike eagerly pulled out the family's luggage and started up the staircase to the front door. Everyone followed after them, but Leo and Raph hung back a little.

"You ever get the feeling you're being watched?" Raph asked his older brother.

Leo nodded. "You feel it too?"

Raph glanced sideways at Leo. "Okay, fearless leader," he asked, "what didn't you tell us?"

I can never hide anything from him, Leo realized. "Actually, I'm surprised April didn't tell you."

"Tell us what?"

"April, 'tis so good ta see ye all!" came a new, heavily accented voice from the front door. They looked up to see a young woman in her mid-twenties rush out of the front door to embrace April.

"Riana, you've hardly changed," April smiled.

"Riana's a looker," Raph said.

Leo would have agreed if he hadn't considered it beneath him. Riana had bright, red hair with copper eyes, and a form that was easy to tell in her slim dress. She would have seemed like the stereotypical Irish woman if not for the Michael Jordan sneakers on her feet. Raph was a little surprised at how fast she took to his brothers. It was as if she had known what they were before they came and had been expecting it, and he mentioned it to Leonardo.

"She told April that she knew about us from her Tarot cards," Leo whispered to Raph. "And that she needed our help right away."

"And you trusted that?" Raph asked in amazement.

Leo shrugged. "I trust April. She's a fairly good judge of character."

"Ye must be tired from yuir journey," Riana smiled at all of them. "Would ye like to rest for the night?"

"Sure," April nodded. "I think we've all got jet lag."

"Well, come on, then," Riana said, turning to the door. Her long hair swirled behind her back. "Ye dinnae want to stand oot 'ere in the cold. There's rooms in the castle ye can stay in."

She led them into the castle, where they couldn't help but stare. The main hall looked like something out of a Robin Hood movie, complete with a large chandelier in the ceiling and tapestries hanging in the wall.

"We're here to inspect the tapestries," Raph said to himself.

"There're four rooms that're fit to stay in," Riana apologized. "The other three 'ad water pipes bust in their walls and they were all soaked through."

"That means we're pairing up," Leo said.

"Daddy, can I stay with Uncle Mikey?" Shadow asked.

Casey was only too happy to agree. "Sure, sweetie, just make sure you don't wear him out." Everyone started chuckling at that. Mike had the reputation of being able to exhaust even the most hyper children.

Venus' mind raced. On one hand, this gave her the perfect opportunity to get Leo alone, but if they were caught together...or if the others even suspected...She sighed in resignation.

"Donatello and I can pair up," she said. She could almost see Leo relax, and then tense up again as he realized what that meant.

"Aw, man," Raph groaned.

"I think we can manage not to kill each other," Leo sighed. "At least not for a few days."

Riana hadn't heard them, and continued talking. "Dinnae worry if ye hear any creaks or such, 'tis just the wind. Ah'll wake ye up aroond whut time?"

April checked her watch. It was one in the morning. "Oh, ten is good. I'll see you then."

"Aye, 'tis good ta see ye agin." Riana and April hugged one more time, and then their hostess disappeared into the dark hallway.

They each filed into their rooms, closing the doors behind them.

There were two beds in each room, alone with all the necessary items and things, so everyone was comfortable. Well, almost.

"I swear, Leo, do you ever relax?"

Leonardo, who had just finished examining the room, smiled despite himself. "Admit it, you feel better knowing it's safe in here."

Raph didn't answer. He just collapsed on one of the beds and started to ease between the blankets. "Oh, these are comfortable." He suddenly jerked for a moment, then reached underneath himself and pulled out his sais. "Damn things keep stabbing me," he cursed, setting them on the nightstand.

Leo stood in front of the nightstand by his bed and started to remove his swords, the daggers, the throwing stars, the shuriken and then the smoke pellets he sometimes used when escape was almost impossible. The weapons made a small pile on the table.

"It's like disarming Germany," Raph said. "I didn't even know half that stuff was on you."

"That's the point, isn't it?" Leo asked. He slid into the bed, falling asleep even as his head hit the pillow.

"You didn't sleep at all, did you?"

He barely opened one eye, then decided to ignore his brother and fell back to sleep.

Raph smiled to himself and lay back on the bed. Teasing Leo was fun, even if they were both dead tired. He let his eyes close and he dropped off to sleep.

*

Leonardo woke up suddenly, not knowing why. He held still for several seconds, glancing to his right. Raphael was still asleep. He looked around the room. The light from the window told him that it was only an hour or less until dawn. After a few moments, he figured that he was just imagining things and decided to go back to sleep. That's when he heard it. A slight scratching outside the door.

He sat up, listening to the sound, and after a minute, he realized that it had drifted into the room and was moving under the bed. No, not his bed. Raph's. He slipped a dagger into his hand as he knelt on the mattress.

"Raphael, wake up," he whispered in an almost inaudible voice.

On cue, Raph's eyes snapped open, then narrowed when he saw his brother. He heard the noise beneath him. Slowly he reached to the nightstand and took up one sai. He sat up and twisted to mimic Leo's position. Suddenly he leaped from the bed to the wall, hit the light switch, and jumped onto the second bed.

Moving almost as quickly, something dark and small ran out from under the bed after him, then disappeared under a nightstand when he left the floor again. Raph and Leo exchanged looks.

"Now I know how chicks feel about mice," Raph whispered.

"I don't wanna get off the bed now," Leo admitted.

"Wanna call Mike in?" Raph grinned wickedly despite the situation.

"No," Leo whispered. He took a deep breath, steeling himself for something. Without warning, he leaned over the edge and reached beneath the bed. He caught something in his hand, then brought it out into the light. It looked like his hand had disappeared into a fuzzy ball of darkness. With a jerk, he flung it against the wall, where it disintegrated into fine powder with a final squeal.

Leo looked at his brother. "What the hell was that?"

"Is your hand all right?"

"Yeah. It's a little cold, though. That thing was freezing."

Raph opened his mouth to say something when a loud bang interrupted him. They both looked at the door.

"Whoa, whoa, whoa!" came Mike's voice from across the hall.

The two eldest ran to the door and flung it open just in time to see the door of Mike's room fly open and a large bed run out. The wide doors were just barely large enough to accommodate what looked like a bed running of its own volition and Mike riding on top. It turned a hard right, then galloped down the hallway with Mike hanging on for dear life. Soon they could not hear it anymore.

As it disappeared, Leo turned to Raph. "Raphael?"

"Yeah?"

"Did you just see a bed run out of a room by itself with Mike still on top of it?"

"Yeah."

"Okay, then I'm not going insane. Let's go get him."

Leo took a step into the hallway, then paused. He could hear something coming back up the hall. He and Raphael backed into their room again as Mike and the bed returned and went back into his room. They heard a loud thump, then a lighter one, and then a faint groan. Right after that they could make out the sound of Shadow laughing.

"It can't be that bad if she's laughing," Raph said.

"Better check anyway."

As they walked down the hallway, they were joined by Venus and Donatello, neither of whom looked too happy to be awake. They merely nodded at each other as they went inside.

"Mike, what happened?" Raph started to ask, then stopped when he saw his little brother leaning back on the bed.

"Oh, hi Raph. I take it you saw Mr. Bed's Wild Ride?" he grinned.

"Are you all right?" Leo asked, glancing at Shadow. She was still giggling on her bed.

"Yeah, yeah, except for when the bed slammed back into the wall, nothing bad happened."

"Hey, did anything weird happen to you two?" Raph asked Don and Venus.

Both of them shook their heads.

"Are ye all right?" came Riana's voice from the hallway. "Whut was all that commotion?"

At that point Casey and April came into view. Shadow grinned and ran up to her father.

"Daddy, you missed it! Mike rode the bed!"

Casey placed a hand on her shoulder as he looked at the turtles. "Say what?"

"It was like the bed turned into a horse!" Mike explained. "It just started running out the room, down the hall, and then came back. I slammed my head into the wall when it stopped, though."

"At least it didn't come near your brains," Raph said.

Mike just glared at him.

"Oh, is that all it was?" Riana sighed in relief.

They all stared at her as if she had just sprouted daisy petals.

"Does this happen often?" Leo asked.

Riana tilted her head. "Ah thought ye knew. Muh castle's famous for all the ghosts and boggles it has. People come sometimes to try to find them, but for all the tricks they play, the ghosts have never been taped yet."

"So they do this to everybody?" April asked.

"Aye, aye, the castle spirits were merely welcoming ye," she nodded. "Ah take it ye met the little darkling spirit? Ah wouldna be surprised if it vanished for ya."

"You mean that ball of black fluff that disappeared?" Raph asked. "That thing scared the hell outta..." he paused, not able to admit he had been scared. "...outta Leo."

Leonardo glared at Raph. "You were the one who couldn't stand to stay on the floor," he growled, "and I didn't see you grab it from under the bed."

Venus giggled. If there was one thing Leo couldn't stand, it was insinuations that he was afraid of anything.

Raph glared back at Leo. "Shut up, big brother," he growled.

Leo wouldn't back down, not on something like this. "'Now I know how chicks feel about mice,'" he said, mimicking Raphael's voice remarkably well.

Everyone started to snicker at Raph, who just sighed and looked away.

"Well, ye all can go back to bed," Riana said. "They won't play with ye again for the rest of the night, and there are still a few hours left before ten."

She went back down the hall, leaving her guests again. Everyone looked at everybody else.

"Do you think it's safe?" Mike asked Leo.

"She didn't seem to think it was dangerous," he answered. "But next time, if the bed does take off, try to hang on when it stops."

Mike half smiled as he rubbed the back of his head. "Yeah, yeah. G'night, people."

April and Casey glanced at each other, then shrugged and went back to their room. Both of them were too used to hanging around their friends that this didn't really bother them. Don and Raph disappeared, leaving Leo and Venus alone.

"Will the mighty warrior be all right, then?" Venus asked in a hushed whisper, mimicking Riana's accent.

Leo rolled his eyes. "Don't worry about me. Just watch yourself. Don't hesitate to call if something happens."

She smiled and lay her hand on his shoulder. "Chances are, you'd already be in the room. Just promise me you'll get some sleep. I have a feeling we'll need to be well rested for tomorrow."

He nodded. "I promise. Night, Venus."

She nodded, yawned, and slowly made her way into her room. Leo took one last look down the hallway, then went back to his bed and fell asleep.

*

Part 2