Love Never Lost

It Came From the Depths: Part 5/I, Monster: Part 1

Brooke's POV:

Raph: "We're surrounded."

Mikey: "We'll never hold them off."

All the commotion is giving me a headache, which is surprising after a decade with these guys. I grasp the sides of my head with a groan as Donnie approaches me, looking me over for any other symptoms.

Donnie: "Guys, I think she has a slight concussion from before."

Leo: "We gotta get out of here. Donnie, can you get this subway car running?"

Donnie: "This track is dead. There's no electricity."

Leo: "What about the power cell? Can you use that?"

Donnie: "I might be able to hook it up to the motor, but I'll need time."

Leatherhead: "I will buy you time.-*to Mikey*-My friend, you & your sister have trusted me. Now, I am trusting you. I will deal with the Kraang."

Leatherhead hands Mikey the power cell and walks out to fight the Kraang. Mikey hands Donnie the power cell, and he gets to work on the motor, gently passing me over to Raph.

Leo: "Donnie, we're running out of time, and Brooke needs medical attention."

Donnie: "I'm working as fast as I can!"

Me: "Don't worry about me.-*groans*-I can handle this.-*chuckles*-I live with you four, don't I?"

Suddenly, a group of Kraang bust in to attack me from behind, but Raph closes them off.

Raph: "Donnie, will you hurry up?"

Donnie: "I got it."

The power cell starts whirring aglow, and sends the car off at the speed of a rollercoaster, suddenly teleporting us to who-knows-where. The guys all scream in surprise, which isn't helping my condition. Donnie opens the door as we stop in the middle of a road.

Leo: "Where the heck are we?"

Donnie: "According to my calculations-*sniffs the air*-Sewage plant?"

Mikey: "Wow. It's as beautiful as they say."

After trying to get the tank and ourselves back home, we park outside the lair's entrance, and Donnie leads me into his lab. I have a slight concussion, so Leo's excused me from training for as long as it takes to heal. According to Donnie, that should only take two weeks. Till then, I'm on strict bed rest, which isn't so bad when you've got an overprotective hothead as your caretaker/boyfriend.

{A/N: I'm skipping over 'New Girl In Town' since I don't see Brooke's presence in it having any significant changes; Except, I imagine Leo coming to her instead of April for advice}

A couple of weeks later, with my concussion fully healed, I've been training non-stop to make up for the days I've missed. Today, Splinter stands at the opposite side of the dojo, awaiting our 'surprise' attacks. The turtles and I huddle together to create a foolproof plan.

Leo: "Ok, here's the plan. Donnie, you're gonna strike first."

Donnie: "Wait. You want me to come at Splinter? I'll get pummeled."

Raph: "Well, getting pummeled is your specialty."

Leo: "Trust me. It's all part of my plan to catch Splinter off-guard."

Mikey: "Uh, Leo, don't take this the wrong way, but against Splinter, your plans always get our butts whipped."

Leo: "Ok, new plan. Mikey, you attack."

Mikey: "He took it the wrong way."

Me: "IIt's all part of the training process, guys. Sometimes you gotta roll with the punches, literally. You'll be fine. We've got your back. Right, Leo?"

Leo nods in agreement as we turn to attack Splinter. That sounded a lot less violent than I thought. Mikey leaps forward to kick Splinter in midair, but Splinter grabs and flings him to the other side of the room. Leo and Donnie lunge toward Splinter, but he dodges them and does the same when Leo strikes. He grabs Leo & Donnie's feet and flings them into Raph. Leo hits Splinter in the face while I sweep his leg to disarm him. I extend a hand to pull him up, which he accepts with a proud smile.

Splinter: "Well done. You saw an advantage, and took the action you thought best for obtaining victory."

Leo & I bow in respect.

Me: "Thank you, Sensei. So, no hard feelings?"

Splinter: "Of course not. It is all part of what makes you a better ninja, and a better leader for your team. Now, that is all for today. Unless, you care for a rematch."

Donnie: "No thanks."

Mikey: "I'm good."

Raph: "Yeah, I think we're all set here."

Splinter nods and walks into his room as the others all rush toward Leo & me with impressed smiles.

Mikey: "Dudes!"

Raph: "Not bad."

Donnie: "I can't believe you actually took down Sensei. That was epic."

Mikey picks up the hand that Leo hit Splinter with.

Mikey: "The hand that punched Splinter. You know you can never wash this again."

Leo: "We are definitely getting better."

Donnie: "Think we might be catching up to Splinter?"

Mikey: "Yeah, maybe soon, we won't need him to train us at all."

Me: "Guys, we will always need Splinter. Just because we managed to win in a fight this time doesn't mean we don't need him anymore."

And it's the truth. We may be improving, but we're nowhere near as good as Splinter. Maybe one day we will be, but as our father, the man who helped me all those years ago, he will always be needed.

TO BE CONTINUED