He Changed My Life || Book One

Chapter 5 || My Fault

Foot Headquarters

The doors swung wide open as young Kade entered with a foot ninja on either side next to him. He looked up at the throne where a young Japanese woman with short black hair and brown eyes sat, wearing metal armor. "Kade, just the person I requested." The woman said in a stern tone. "Mistress." Kade bowed.

"Please tell me you killed Makoto and his family." Kade gave a nervous look. He didn't finish the job that his mistress gave him. "SPEAK!" She slammed her fist on the arm rest of the throne. "We killed Makoto, his oldest son, and youngest daughter. We were not able to kill the rest." He bowed again. The woman stood up from her throne and approached the boy.

She was now in front of him, brows furrowed, holding anger in her eyes. "Why not?" She muttered. Kade didn't have the words, he was speechless. "I SAID WHY NOT?!" She yelled again. "His oldest daughter, Annabelle, holds great interest to me." He finally replied. "Go on." She motioned him to continue.

"When we were trying to kill her, her eyes turned purple, her reflexes were faster and stronger." He said. His mistress wore a smirk. "Find Annabelle and bring her here. She might be useful to us." Kade bowed. "Yes Karai." He exited the room along with the two ninjas.

~~~

Leonardo was focused. His katanas are drawn from their sheaths. Training in the dojo early in the morning was always a habit of his since his father died. His father. His mind wandered to the day Shredder stabbed Splinter through the chest. Leo froze, dropping his katanas. "It's all my fault. If I didn't just stand there like a dumbass, you would still be alive, father." Leo muttered under his breath.

"It's not your fault, Leo." He was snapped out of his trance when he heard a female voice approach him. He turned around to see Briar, wearing a black tee shirt and grey sweatpants. "Briar, why are you up?" The blue banded turtle asked. "I'm worried about you, Leo." She said, putting his hand into hers.

He pulled his hand away and picked his katanas up off the ground. "I'm fine, Briar." He said, sliding his katanas into his sheaths. "No you're not, I may be blind but I'm not stupid." She replied with seriousness in her voice. He slumped his head, he knew he couldn't hide his feelings from his best friend. He let out a sigh and sat down, Briar copying him. "I feel overwhelmed." He said, burying his face into his hands.

Fearless leader wasn't much of an open book. He knew he had to be strong for his brothers, his friends, and his master. "Ever since Splinter died, I've become the new sensei to my brothers and all I get from them is backlash." He said as his mind wandered to all of those memories of him and Raph fighting almost all the time.

Raph and Leo both took Splinter's death the hardest, Leo had trouble sleeping and trains every morning before anyone else gets up and Raph became more aggressive to all of them, including Fallon and Briar. "If only she was still alive." Leo muttered under his breath, hoping that his best friend didn't hear him. She knew who he was talking about.

"Leo, don't you dare blame yourself for Maisie's death." Briar placed her hand on his shoulder. "She needed me. She was screaming my name. ALL I DID WAS WATCH SHREDDER TORTURE HER!" He yelled. He was now on his knees, slamming the floor with his fist as he spoke. Fearless didn't want his best friend to know he was crying through his words.

"Leonardo!" Briar finally snapped him out of his state. He then wrapped his arms around Briar, embracing her. She wore a smile as she hugged back. "Things will get better Leo. I promise." She whispered.

Raph and Leo haven't talked all day. They never did. The two youngest brothers noticed the tension between them but always shook it off. Donnie would always work in his lab and Mikey would read his comic books.

It was dusk, Fallon and Briar were both working. The turtles had no idea what Annabelle was up to. It's been two weeks since they saved her and she hasn't come back to the lair. The only turtle that was bothered by this was Leonardo. Ever since they met, Leo has been drawn to her.

Leo's patience deteriorated as he walked out of his room, both katanas in their sheaths. "Where you goin' fearless?" Leo froze. He turned around to see Raph standing behind him, spinning one of his sais in his hand. "Out." Leo replied. "Where?" Raph placed his sai back into his leather belt as he walked up to his older brother. "That's none of your concern, Raph." He snarled before exiting the lair.

Fearless leader was jumping from rooftop to rooftop, his only thought on the black haired green eyed girl. He finally landed upon the rooftop of Fallon's apartment since she told him that Annabelle lives with her. He jumped to the fire exit, looking through the window of the bedroom that the girl was staying in. It was dark, he then opened the window which was unlocked and slipped through before closing it again.

Once he had gotten to the room, the lights flicked on, blinding him for a second. There at the door stood the black haired girl. Her hair was in a messy bun and the white streak really stood out. She wore a pink tank top and grey shorts as well. "Leo, what the hell are you doing here?" She asked, glaring at the blue clad turtle.

"I came to see you. You haven't stopped by the lair ever since we helped you." He said, crossing his arms over his chest. Annabelle stared into his ocean orbs that held worry and concern. Leo smirked at the beautiful girl in front of her, she noticed and shook her head. "Look Leo, I've been busy." She said, leaning against the grey colored wall.

"With what?" Fearless asked. "My mom and brother got out of the hospital last week, so I was helping them settle in. Plus, I started a new job." She gave him a soft smile. Her smile. God damnit Leo, what are you thinking? His train of thought was interrupted with a giggle coming from Annabelle. Leo's cheeks started to heat up from her laugh.

"So what kind of job did you get?" Leo asked, changing the subject. "I work as a waitress at a Japanese restaurant." She replied. But their conversation was interrupted when an older woman with brown hair and green eyes opened the door.

"Hey Belle, who are you-" The woman was cut off when she saw the six foot, blue banded turtle standing in front of her. "Mom, I can explain." The girl gave her mother a reassuring tone.

A/N- I'M BACK YALL!! Anyways, I hope you guys enjoy chapter 5. I really wanted Leo and Belle's relationship to start developing since we're already on chapter 5. Plus, I wanted to more in depth into Leo's PTSD. For those of you who are confused about who 'Maisie' is, she was Leo's girlfriend before she died.