The lair was empty as he entered it. He seldom saw Mike or Don down here this time of the day. They were most likely up in the two apartments at April and Casey's house. He yawned as he closed in on the room. He glanced into the rear end of the lair. Saw the iron stair. The markings where Donatello had found hollow stone. Something he'd been amazed over. And he still was curious howcome Raphael knew about it.

"Secret!" had he been told. As Raphael shoved the door aside he could hear sounds from the traininghall. He looked at the bed, it was quite convincing when it came to offer him some sleep, but he rejected it for now. Instead he walked over to the hall and peeked inside. As he could have figured it out, Leonardo was practising.

"Morning!" he called out in the middle of the kata he was about to finish.

"Where have you been?" he asked. Raph yawned, covering it up with his fist.

"Out "

"Out where? We had an rather gross encounter with DeMiro's gang yesterday." Raphael looked up. Every time he heard DeMiro's name he had to listen. He wasn't very amused over having the drugking back trafficking the area again. The gang had ruined a school, selling cheap dirty drugs to kids. Leo had knocked the man off a building once. But the bastard had survived the fall and was back. His hate for the turtles was growing as they stood there.

"Really? What happened?"

"Mike is Ok. But Don took a rather heavy blow to the head. Most likely he'll have a really bad concussion. Probably broke some bones in his left hand as well. We really could have used you there!" stated the leader and glared at his brother. Leo and Raphael were equally impressive in their full adult height. The proportions of their bodies had changed as well. The shell seemed smaller now and their arms and legs a bit longer. Leo stretched his legs and resumed his practise.

"Well, excuse me for wanting a life, Mr Perfect." mumbled Raphael and started to walk away. "No one is perfect, bro. Strive for it if you want to " he then added. Leo stopped and looked at him. Something was definitely happening. Something that annoyed Leo a lot. Something radical and not exactly what they had expected. This unique bond they had, all five and Splinter, was being strained. The past weeks it had been even worse. Not to speak of the past days. And with these nightly escapes out to something made the strain even worse. Leonardo contemplated the cause as he grabbed a bokken wood sword and resumed the training. Just as gracefully as before he slowly moved the sword around. This was his version of tai-chi. It was far more relaxing then meditation sometimes.  

Raphael was digging into the fridge for something to eat. He didn't to go to bed on an empty stomach. But just as he was about to grab hold on a can of pickles, a furry hand was placed on his arm.

"Sensei?" he asked as the rat came into his view. Splinters brown eyes looked straight at him and for a brief moment, Raph felt as if the old sensei knew everything about the past week.

"We need to talk " he said.

"Now? I am so tired I am about to collapse!" Raphael complained and closed the fridge, ending up with a can of salted cucumbers.

"Yes, now " said the mutated rat with his husky low voice. Raphael moaned and followed him.  

Splinters room was located at the far end of the subway station. The room was actually two rooms, but only a screen made of the thinnest ricepaper framed off the immediate sight into the inner corners of the room. It was very sparse when it came to decorations. Sparse but tasteful. It was like haven from all the stuff that was building up out in the other rooms. Mostly due to Mick and Don's fancy for all kinds of weird stuff. The one thing that made everyone laugh, was a gigantic stuffed moosehead, complete with horns. Mike had pulled it out of a dumpster one rainy evening. Now it hung on the wall above the TV. Raph disliked the critter and if he hadn't been so aware of his smaller brothers liking for it, it'd been dumped right back.

"Sit, my son "

Raphael settled face to face with Splinter.

"I have sensed something changing around you. You do not take your practise as willing as before. Neither do you stay here with your brothers."

"I never did before either " he started. Splinter raised a hand and the ninja silenced.

"And I sensed something else." He touched his black nose "I may be old, but my senses are still strong. And when you came in here, you smelled of roses "

Raphael moaned and shook his head. "Don't "

Splinter nodded. "Yes. I know about her. Venus told me earlier today that you had asked her to find a kimono. A good one. And before that, a rose? And a minikatana?"

Raphael felt like he most of all wanted to burst out of this joint. Out of the sewers and up eight floors to a certain penthouse. But Splinter held him there, not with his hands, but with the sheer presence that marked out the words "Duty" as if they'd been written in the sky.

"I can't really explain it." Said Raphael and tugged at the belt he had. "I just saw her once and I couldn't get her out of my mind!"

Splinter sat still as a stone and looked straight at him. The sensei was a good listener. As he waited, Raphael wrestled with the memories from that strange journey a few months ago. That glimpse of a possible future. But he also remembered the look of the stranger that had been his guide. That darkskinned turtle with a yellow bandana. "There are things that I need to tell you, Sensei."

Splinter nodded slowly.

"Then do so."

It wasn't over until two hours later. Then he had told Splinter about that walk into the alternative world. About the stranger and about what he had seen. Splinter sent him off to sleep, as if he still was five and claimed he didn't need to sleep. This time however, Raphael felt that he was burning the midnight oil. He more or less crawled to bed. Mike was still asleep and was snoring loudly.

"Shutup " he mumbled and tossed a comicbook at him. Mike looked up, saw him and fell asleep again. Nolonger snoring. Raphael sat down on the futon he had and sighed. After this evening, it felt strange to go to bed alone. It seemed so big suddenly, and so very empty. He sighed as he lay in the darkness and looked up. More of the lights they had turned on daytime shone in thru the cracks in the door, and he could hear Leo walk into the other room. Probably to check on his brother. Don was most likely tucked into his own bed and would be there for many days to come. Somehow Raphael didn't feel good about that. He should have been there But then he waved it off and pulled up the good old blanket.