Crash and Burn
***
Chapter Five: Forgiving
***
It was nearly dawn before Kali woke up. She snuggled closer to what she thought was her pillow, but it wasn't. It was much too hard. She opened her eyes up to the dark gold plates of Raphael's plastron.
As her body continued to wake up, she felt Raphael's hand resting on her hip. She turned her head to look up at his face. He was awake, and smiling down at her.
"Sleep well?"
Kali pushed herself up into a sitting position. "Uh, yeah," she replied, stretching her arms over her head. She ran her fingers through her hair. "Ewwww... I need a shower," she said as she pulled down the bottom of her sweater.
Raph let his lips curl up in a sly smile. Kali caught the look. "Don't even think about it." She poked him in the beak.
Raph rubbed his beak where she had poked him. "Geez, you play Peeking Turtle once and they never let you forget it."
Kali stood up and walked over to the window. "Looks like it's cleared up."
"Yeah." Raph leaned back against the couch, arms behind his neck.
"You gonna get going before it gets too light out?"
Raph shrugged. "Kinda thought I'd crash here awhile."
"Raph?" Kali asked. "Did you get a fight with Leo last night?"
"Maybe."
"Over me?"
"No, over what material to reupholster the furniture in." He looked back at her. "You gonna take that shower or not?"
"Yeah, yeah."
Raph smirked then turned back around and reached for the TV remote. He listened for the lock to click then the sound of running water. He grinned to himself as he reached for his lock pick.
"What the?" He patted down his pockets, then checked his mask and pads. He was sure he had it last night. He'd tried to pick the cell door lock, but he couldn't reach it.
Kali set Raph's pick down on the bathroom counter. "I trust you Raph, but I know you, too."
***
Raphael trudged back home, slipping into the sewers just before dawn. Luckily his coat was dry from the snow last night. No one was in the main room when he got there, and he hoped he'd be able to get to his room without running into anyone. No such luck, he ran into Leo coming out of his room. Leo looked surprised to see him.
Raphael gave him a warning growl as he reached his door.
"Raph, we've gotta talk."
Raph didn't even turn around. He was still furious with Leo. "I don't want to hear it." He opened his door and slammed it behind him. Leo stood there, looking at the door, contemplating just walking in there, but he decided that Raph wasn't in the best mood for anything.
***
Raph reappeared around noon. He went straight for the kitchen to scavenge through the refrigerator. He sighed as he felt the lack of cold air against his skin. "Donnie, 'fridge is busted!"
"I know," Don called from the living room.
Raph rummaged through the cabinets and settled for making a peanut butter and jelly sandwich. He headed to the living room where Splinter and his brothers sat, looking at him, like they had been waiting. "What, do I have peanut butter on my face?"
Mike bit his lip to stifle the laugh. Leo stood up. "Raph, I just want to say something," Leo said, clearing his throat. "I see now that what I did to Kali was wrong. I acted out of fear, please forgive me."
"Uh huh. So what, my word wasn't good enough, you had to get some second opinion?"
"Raphael," Splinter snapped. He met the gaze of his son and an unspoken message passed between them.
Raphael growled. "Okay, Leo, fine. But I ain't the one you should apologize to."
Leo looked horrified for a moment. "Okay, I will."
***
Leo left for Kali's apartment a few hours after dark. He had an uncomfortable feeling about this. He was still nervous about Kali, and what he sensed from her. He planned to ask her about it, after he apologized. He had done her wrong, and he had to put it right.
Leo stopped as he found himself in the same ally he and Mike had been ambushed in last night. A cold chill ran down his spine, and it wasn't from the weather outside. It was surprisingly mild tonight compared to last night, and he was bundled up this time.
He looked up at the apartment building. Raph had said he could go inside and not run into anyone, but Leo was more cautious than Raphael was. He'd take the fire escape up.
He did a double take when he saw someone up on the roof. He squinted to try and make out who it could be. It looked like Kali, but he couldn't be sure from this distance. He started to climb up slowly, and when he was sure it was her he picked up his pace. When he was a couple flights from the top, she waved down to him.
"Hey," Kali said as he climbed onto the roof. "Raph called, told me you were coming."
"How nice of him," Leo deadpanned. He stood there in silence for a minute, not knowing how to begin. He decided to start with a simple, "I'm sorry."
Kali shrugged. "It's okay, really. I get that kind of reaction a lot."
Leo bit his lip. "Yeah, I can see why. But still, I was wrong to turn you away like that, especially after you had saved us. It's just..." Leo shook his head. "Nevermind."
Kali looked over at him. She sat down and gestured for Leo to sit down, too. "I know you've got a lot of questions, so if you're willing to listen with an open mind, I can try and comfort some of your fears."
Leo narrowed his eyes. He didn't like people accusing him of being afraid, especially when it was true. He decided to sit anyway, because he had vowed to get to the bottom of all this, for his family's sake. "Why did you admit to being evil?"
Kali smiled. "Because I am, at least by most people's definition of the word."
"But Splinter says you have a good heart, how can you be both?"
Kali looked at him for a moment before bursting out with laughter. Leo felt his face grow hot. She was laughing at him. "What's so funny?"
Kali took several deep breaths to stop her laughing. "I'm sorry, Leo, sometimes I forget how mortal minds work." She gave him an apologetic smile. "Is that really how you see the world, Leo, in black and white? Something's either good or evil?"
"Well, isn't it?"
Kali shook her head. "Nothing can be pure good or evil, Leo, it just doesn't exist. Both have to be present in everything. There are good people who do bad things, and bad people who do good things."
"And which one are you?"
"Hmm?"
Leo cocked his head to the side. "A good person who does bad things, or a bad person who does good things?"
Kali stared out over the roof. "I don't think it's that clear cut. Nothing's really that clear cut. I realize it's in your nature to want to classify things, but it's really limiting."
"How do you know what's in my nature?" Leo snapped. "We've met three times, including this time."
Kali turned and looked him in the eye. Leo stared right back, until what he had said sank in, and then he bowed his head. "Oh. I'd almost forgotten how that feels."
Kali waved it away. "I meant it in a general way. Most people think like that. Me? I'm just doing what's in my nature."
"What are you, anyway?" The question wasn't threatening like before, just curious.
"I told Raph I was a demon."
"But you're not?" Leo guessed. Her wording was throwing him off.
"I am, but it's like what I was saying before with classifying things, one word doesn't really describe a person. Demon is a general, English word used to categorize my kind. Beings whose purpose is to bring chaos and destruction."
Leo looked aghast. "But why?"
Kali shrugged. "Because that's what we do. Just like angels bring about love and harmony." Kali frowned. "I've never had to explain this before. I know how things work, but it's hard to put into terms you'd understand."
Leo raised an eyebrow. "So you're trying to dumb things down for me?"
Kali looked shocked. "No! It's just that I'm not used to putting it into words. It's like trying to explain an emotion, or faith, or..."
Leo nodded. "I think I understand. I couldn't quite explain my suspicions about you, either." He froze. "Um, not that I have them any more. Well, I still do kinda, but it's-"
Kali reached out and put her hand on his shoulder. "Leo, it's okay. Anything else you want me to clear up?"
Leo thought for a second. "Shredder."
"Ah."
"He has the same power you do, doesn't he?"
"Yep."
"How?"
Kali was silent for a long time. "I think I know, but I'm not sure."
"He was dead," Leo reminded her.
Kali nodded. "I know, which makes me more certain of my theory." She smiled at him. "Don't worry, I'll tell you anything I find out. No one hurts my friends and gets away with it."
Leo couldn't help but smile back.
Kali sat back into a more relaxed position. "So, is everyone okay after the fight?"
"Yeah, no real damage done." He sighed, pulling his hat down over his eyes. "Do you know why they chose to ambush us so close to your apartment?"
"Nope. It was a good thing though, because if it were anywhere else, we never would have heard the fight, and you and Mike would have been on your own."
"Lucky for us." Leo frowned. "If I hadn't upset Mike, he never would have run out in the first place. Maybe I should have listened to him when he said he didn't think you were bad."
"What, you'll believe Mike but not Raph?"
"Mike's a pretty good judge of character."
"And Raph's not? Or is it that you don't like the standards Raphael judges by?"
Leo shrugged noncommittally. Kali smiled, "I see."
Leo turned his head back to her. "See what? What are you smiling about?"
"Nothing."
***
Kali stepped out into her father's garden. She wasn't five feet in when something jumped on her, knocking her flat onto her back. She felt hot breath against her face and a heavy weight on her chest.
"Red, down boy!"
The miniature dragon reluctantly crawled off his much-missed friend, and sat next to her. Kali reached up and scratched the back of his neck and he let out a purring sound. "Yeah, I've missed you too." She stood up and looked around. "Do you know where Daddy is?"
Red jumped up and took off down the path. Kali shook her head at the antics of the baby dragon. Red had been given to her as an egg by her aunt when she was a toddler. He'd hatched that same day, and he became her pet and companion. Not like people kept pets on Earth, because dragons were much smarter than a dog or cat, even at this young age, although he hadn't mastered speech yet. She missed him, but even in New York, someone would notice a dragon roughly the size of a motorcycle.
Red was actually colored in shades from lilac to royal purple. He had been named while still in the egg, which had been red. He led her through the maze of flowers and bushes, dark, twisted versions of what you'd find on Earth, to where Darce stood talking with someone. Kali grabbed Red around the neck and held him back.
"I told you, I cannot give you any help," she heard her father say.
"You promised that I would be unbeatable!" the other man shouted back.
Kali looked around the corner. She wasn't surprised at all to see her father talking with Shredder. She suspected the "particularly evil soul" her father had "recently recruited" was indeed Shredder.
"I said no such thing. I said I would give you more power than you had ever dreamed of, and I have. Your failure is not my fault."
Shredder shouted something obscene at her father and disappeared from sight. Kali moved from behind the bush and walked towards her father, Red following at her feet.
Darce turned towards her. "Ah, it's good to see you back so soon, my dear."
"I won't be staying long." Her father's smile fell. "So, you were the one who resurrected Oroku Saki."
"Yes, I was. What of if?" He eyed his daughter. "It was you, wasn't it? The one who interfered?"
Kali nodded sadly. "He was after my friends, I couldn't let him kill them."
Darce shook his head sadly. "What am I going to do with you? Were these the same friends you were so upset about the other day?"
"We got that straightened out."
"So you're not staying?" Darce frowned.
Kali shook her head. "Sorry, no. I just came to ask you something, which I did, so I'll be going now." She turned and walked back down the path.
"Kali, wait."
She stopped, and Red reached his neck out to nuzzle her hand.
"I do wish you'd reconsider," Darce told her. "You could have a happy, comfortable life right here."
"I know." Kali scratched Red's snout. "I just don't think I can live like you do. At least not right now, maybe later."
"And when will that be? Agreed, you have your friends now, who seemingly accept you, but how long will that last?"
"They aren't going to suddenly turn on me," Kali said softly.
"No, perhaps not. They may stay by you until they die. But they will die, Kali. They are mortal."
"I know."
***
Raph pushed forward through the kata. He tried to clear his mind, tried to focus completely on the motions, tried to get his mind off the fact that Kali's been missing for two weeks.
Two weeks of wondering for him. The first few days, he honestly thought Leo had done something to her, since he was the last to see her, but Mike had managed to convince him how stupid that was. Leo had gone to apologize. After three days of checking in at her apartment, the snow had come back and they had to stay in the lair. They couldn't risk being captured by Shredder again, not with his new abilities.
"Raphael."
Raph slowed to a stop when Splinter called his name.
"Practice ended an hour ago."
Raph nodded.
"It is unlike you do spend extra time practicing"
That was true. Usually Raphael wanted to get practice over with as soon as possible. "There's nothing else to do."
"You are worried about Kali," Splinter said.
"She can take care of herself," Raphael answered back.
Splinter smiled to himself. "You miss her."
Raph turned and left the dojo with Splinter falling into step beside him. "Yeah, so what if I am? It's boring here," he said as they walked into the living room.
"Hey, I'll give you something to do!"
Raphael looked up at Casey, who was sitting around the TV with the others. Shadow was sitting on the floor with Mike playing some patty-cake game. "Hey, Casey, haven't seen you in awhile."
Casey grinned. "Yeah, I know. I heard you got yourself a girl."
Raph returned a sly grin. "Maybe."
Casey laughed. "She must be a real number if she's going out with you! Need some advice?"
Raph snorted. "From you? No thanks, I'd rather this work out."
Casey frowned. "That's cold, Raph. Anyway, where is she?"
Raph was about to open his mouth when another voice floated in from the entry tunnel. "Right here."
Raph smiled at the look on Casey's face, his eyes looked like they were going to drop from their sockets. "Hey, Kali, you've got perfect timing, you know that?"
"How'd you get in here?" Don asked.
"Through the door," Kali answered matter-of-factly.
"But I didn't hear it open."
Kali smiled back at Raph, her face looking a little tired. "Sorry I haven't been around, but I had to go on a trip."
Mike looked up at Kali, not missing a beat in his game with Shadow. "Cool, did ya bring presents?"
"Mike," Leo chastised, shaking his head.
Kali laughed. "Actually, yeah. I've got something to help with your Shredder problem." She pulled a small metal box out of her shoulder bag. Leo immediately was up and standing in front of her even before Raph could get there.
"So, you did figure it out?" Leo asked.
"Figure what out?" Mike asked, picking up Shadow and bringing her over to where the small group was forming.
Kali nodded as she handed the box over to Leo. "This artifact should help you defeat him."
Leo started to open the box, but Kali pushed the lid back down. "It absorbs the energy from demons and soul-sellers, making them powerless. This box acts as a shield, but not completely."
Leo held Kali's gaze with a look of understanding. "Right."
"Demons? Soul-sellers? Will someone tell me what the heck is going on?" Casey asked.
"It's better if you, and the kid, don't know," Mike told him.
Kali turned to Mike and noticed Shadow for the first time. Leo caught an odd mix of emotions in her eyes.
"Hi," Shadow said, looking out from behind Mike's mask.
"Hi," Kali said in return before turning back to the others.
"But what is a soul-seller?" Don asked. "I've never heard that term before."
Kali opened her mouth, then glanced over at Shadow. "I don't think she should be hearing this."
Casey took Shadow from Mike. "This was getting a little too weird for me anyway. I'll see you guys later." He grabbed his and Shadow's jackets. "Uh, it was nice to meet you, Kali, was it?"
Kali nodded. "Nice to meet you too, Casey. Bye Shadow."
Shadow waved from over her father's shoulder.
Once they heard the door open and close, Kali knew it was safe to explain. She moved over to the couch, it was getting hard for her to stay standing. "Would you mind taking the box into another room?"
Leo looked down at the box. "Oh, sure. Be right back."
Raph sat next to Kali. "You don't look so hot, you okay?"
"Yeah, it was just the artifact. Being around it is not very good for a demon's health."
Leo returned quickly. "I miss anything?"
"Nope," Kali sighed. She pointed at Don. "Soul-seller. That would be your Shredder, a person who has "sold" their soul to a demon for power, riches, revenge, etc., etc. They get their power from the same source we do, only at a lower level. That little bauble I gave you will basically leech their energy."
"And you were carrying it?!?"
Kali smiled at Raph. It was nice to know he was actually worried about her. "I was okay. The box protected me somewhat."
"So how do we use it?" Leo asked.
"Just take it with you. If he gets anywhere near it, it'll drain him. The closer you get, the more it'll drain, and the weaker he'll get."
"What if he touches it?" Mike asked.
Kali winced. "If it doesn't kill him instantly? Most likely it will permanently block his line of power."
Leo nodded. "Thanks, Kali, you really came through for us." He paused a second. "Again."
"Hey, what are friends for?"
***