Follow Your Heart

Karai swiftly ran towards the entrance of the lair keeping her silence. She wasn't going to drop this matter that easily. Oh no, maybe her father could do that, but she was a different story. In fact that shred head don't deserve any mercy for what he had done. He not only took her mother away from her, but also herself! Her anger rose in her chest remembering every moment she had called that heartless man her father. HER FATHER! And she clearly didn't understood why her father didn't do anything about this. How can he stay silent when his so called brother and friend took away everything he once had. She had questioned him. But his answer was simple and she couldn't argue with him on that one.

'My daughter, what happened happened. You have to learn to let the past go and live in the present. It might be true that I lost so many things in my life. But look what I have gained. Like your new brothers. And destiny had some mercy for us too. Because I finally got my daughter back and now we can start over, with a new life ahead. If only you're ready to see the sun rise of a new day of your new life. My daughter we'll start a new life together.'

Despite for the reassurance she got from her father's words, she couldn't help the desire for vengeance build within her heart. She shook her head firmly. She came this far, no way for turning back now. Karai was THIS far for the entrance, when someone's voice rang through her ears.

"Sneaking away, aren't we?"

Karai knew exactly to whom that voice belongs to. And it was surprising that she didn't heard him. Maybe she was caught in her own thoughts too far to catch any sense of his presence.

"Don't try to stop me." Knowing exactly where this conversation would go and deciding to end it now, Karai said as the blue masked turtle leaped to the floor with ease from the water pipe which ran above their home.

"I'm not going to stop you, You can go if you want" He said as the black haired kunoichi sighed. "I know Leo but, wait-" Karai turned as fast as wind towards her blue masked brother. "What did you just said?" Didn't understanding if he is toying with her, she asked him, her amber eyes turning wide from shock.

"You can go if you want" Leo repeated calmly crossing his arms over his plastron. Karai couldn't help the shock she felt and knew her amber eyes were betraying her. 'Now is he serious or just messing with me?' She searched his ocean-blue eyes for any mischievous, but was taken aback when she saw nothing more than seriousness reflecting in his eyes. Tension silence settled between them for a few awkward seconds as Leonardo waited for his sister to move. And as he expected, standing there for a few seconds with her amber eyes as large as dinner plates and her mouth slightly a gap with her body seemed to be frozen ( Leo couldn't help but raised an eye ridge at her, dramatic behavior), she recovered form her shock and turned to move, her eyes narrowing in suspicious.

"But first-" Leo started as Karai's shoulders dropped. She knew something was missing! "I'm giving you a little choice to make and hope you'll choice wisely" He finished as Karai raised an eye ridge at him. "And what kind of choice are we talking here?" "A choice that you have make from your heart, not from brain!" Leo said as Karai's eye ridge rose more. But before she could say anything more, the blue masked turtle continued.

"First, let's compare our persons in these choice. Shall we?" He asked as Karai automatically said. "Splinter and Shredder!?" It was more like a statement than a question, for which Leonardo nodded.

"You obviously know shredder. Always searching for revenge, vengeance, vendetta and say everything in his way is just a distraction. Even an alien invasion." Karai puffed at that. She obviously remember the said occasion where she struggled to stop the kraang invasion, while shredder wanted nothing more than his revenge on Hamatos.

"And now to Splinter. You even know what he had gone through in his past. He lost his clan, his master, his wife" Leo paused for a second before continuing. "his daughter" Karai's shoulders dropped at this, as he expected from the black-haired kunoichi. "Then his home, his humanity. But he never seek for revenge, cause revenge...couldn't change anything." Karai dropped her gaze to the floor. This is the same thing she heard from her father. It had reassured her, but only for awhile. But for some reason, she felt a true guilt feeling and regret for her actions for revenge, from the young leader's words. 'Weird' She thought. 'Can he really change my attitude so...so easily? Or am I more willing to listen to him more than anyone?' Karai quickly dismissed that thought, while turning her attention back to the teenage turtle.

"Instead, he started over. With a new life. And now he got his lost daughter, who he thought he failed and now he's willing for a new life with his new and expanded family". Leonardo stopped again, to see the guilt look crossing the stubborn teen-girl's features, before continuing again. He said about a choice. And he was close to present the said choice. He hoped the girl was truly feeling guilt as her features represented.

"And your choice is..." Karai lifted her head a little, not so much so that her eyes met his of course. "To be like shredder...seeking for revenge, and not stopping until you're success at it. Or...be like Splinter, forget the past and move on. Satisfy with what you have now." Karai lowered her head again. She felt like that Leo had just now slapped her hard in the cheek. It really was a big shot.

"Choose wisely Karai...be like Shredder or like Splinter. A murder...or an honorable warrior." With that being said Leonardo turned around and directly walked to his room, without another word to the guilt swelling kunoichi.

Karai just stared at the floor, unsure of what to do. Of course she could just pretend that nothing happened and continue on her revenge desire, but she just couldn't get her feet to moving towards the destination. She felt like that her feet were glued to the ground, with each word the blue-masked turtle said to her, rolling around her mind, she couldn't continue on the path anymore. Her desire of seeing blood pouring from the Shredder's heart, long lost, as she continued to stare at her feet. Karai carefully reflected every word the young leader had said to her.

'He's right.' She finally thought making her final decision. 'It's true I was blinded by the desires for blood for long sixteen years, but I'm still not late. I still can turn around and finally be the true warrior who my real father wanted.' With determination filling her mind for a fresh start, Karai nodded to herself before eyeing the blue-masked turtle's room, which the door was firmly closed. She smiled softly before disappearing to her own room, the desire for revenge long lost.

Master Splinter was awaken in the midnight, from the shift of the air of the next room to him. He stood, walking silently using his all skills on stealth, as he opened the sliding door a crack, before peering outside. The scene which met his eyes made him frown. Karai was sneaking away, just as he thought. He shook his head, with a sigh. He knew keeping this girl away from the desire of revenge was next to impossible. Master Splinter was about to go to stop the young, black-haired kunoichi, when something caught his attention. His blue-masked son was on a pipe on the ceiling, above their home, with a bored expression on.

Karai didn't seem to notice, as she continued. He almost felt to go to stop her, if Leonardo wasn't acting. But he kept his patience, trusting his teenage son to take the best decision. To his satisfaction, he didn't had to wait too long, as the turtle opened his mouth.

"Sneaking away, aren't we?"

After that, what happened was both a surprise and a proud to Splinter, as he watched his son giving her a choice to make about the best thing to do. As Leo walked away, finishing his talk with his sister, Karai just stayed standing there, with her head hung. Master Splinter almost thought that when she couldn't even listen to her own father, she won't be listening to Leo either. But he was surprised to see Karai lift her head up a little, other than walking away, as her red lips decorated with a soft smile. He felt a warmth in his heart blooming up, as an equal soft smile crept along his lips, as the young kunoichi walked to her room, slowly closing the door. After he was positive, that he won't have to deal with anymore sneak aways, master Splinter walked to his own futon, as he laid there with a light heart. He welcomed the comforting darkness, with open arms, as his soul wandered away to the land of dreams.

Next day morning

Leonardo's lips decorated with a soft smile as he watched the black-haired kunoichi going through a kata in the lair's dojo. He was happy, that Karai had made her decision wisely. Waiting for the end of the complex kata, before walking in to the well-arranged room, leaning against the frame of the rice paper door.

"Well, looks like someone had made a smart decision." He commented as the black-haired kunoichi turned to him smiling softly. "Yup. Someone could made me see the light." She said as Leonardo smirked which matched the kunoichi's smirk. Karai sheathed her tanto before walking outside. Before completely disappearing to the living room she yanked Leo's forearm, leaning close to his ear, whispered a small word which she never thought would come out from her lips.

"Thanks!"

Leonardo smiled softly before whispering back. "What siblings are for?" Karai smirked before entering the living room with Leonardo closely behind.