My Fearless Leader | Leonardo x Reader

Road to Recovery

"What's going on?" Mikey was the first to speak in the midst of the silence that followed.

"Yeah, you're starting to freak us out here," Raph griped, sounding more nervous than he intended.

Leo looked to Splinter for a moment, waiting for some cue. When he saw how much he was struggling to begin the conversation, he spoke again before anyone could notice.

"Okay... It turns out that, the reason Karai has been so hell bent on destroying us, is because she thinks Splinter is the reason her mother is dead."

"What?"

April shook her head. "Why would she think that?"

"Because that's what Shredder's been telling her this whole time. That Splinter killed her. And when I tried to tell her the truth... well, she wasn't very open minded about it."

"So that's what she meant when she kept mentioning you lying about her family..." Casey concluded, picking at his bandaid.

April shook her head. "Why? Why would you expect her to believe you?"

"Because Leonardo knows the truth." Splinter answered, and they all looked to him. Leo felt uneasy with anticipation, knowing what he was about to do. Before anyone could ask, Splinter went on, all eyes and ears trained on him. "That the child I had with Tang Shen, the child I thought I lost so many years ago... is Karai."

"Hold on– what?" Raphael scoffed and looked to Leo, whose face said everything. "... That can't be right."

"Wait... who?" Casey mumbled, confused and trying his best to focus in his hazy state.

"Guys–"

April's eyes widened and she stood up. "She's your daughter? No, that's not possible."

"Are you saying... Karai's our sort-of-sister?!"

"But, Sensei–"

"Guys!" Leo yelled over the small crowd, getting them to quiet. He saw Splinter getting overwhelmed and tried to draw attention, to give him a moment. "I know it's a lot, but we have to hear him out first. Try to understand."

Donnie nodded, and slowly straightened his back and faced the whole room. "This is going so fast, can we just... slow down?"

A few seconds later and silence had settled in, like the room was taking in a deep breath. No one spoke until the elder stepped forward.

"I should explain." Splinter prompted, and prepared himself to relive the story from almost two decades ago.

"You all already know the story of how I came to America... and the events leading up to my decision. But I did not tell you everything. I will do so now." Leo's hands clenched and unclenched. Something felt so wrong about hearing the story this time. He shouldn't have to tell everyone this until he was ready, and Leo couldn't help but feel responsible for his part in this, too. "When the battle began the night I lost my family, I left Tang Shen outside to stay with our child and stay safe. But she insisted on not letting us fight, and when she ran in to stop us, she left our baby outside.

"She ran in between us before we could realize, and a blow from Saki that was meant for me, hit Tang Shen, and it took her life." Leo looked from his sensei to his brothers and April. Aside from Casey, they had all heard the story before, but they still hadn't heard the truth behind it yet. And besides Donatello, whose eyes seemed to be working it out, he could tell they hadn't even realized it yet.