***
Veronica shifted in Leonardo’s arms. She felt his breath on her forehead and sighed. She couldn’t remember the last time she’d been this happy.
Suddenly, a sharp pain seized her abdomen. Leonardo woke up and looked at her with concern "What?"
Veronica was breathing heavy. "I don’t know. I think…" Another pain seized her.
Leonardo’s eyes widened to the size of dinner plates. "Donatello!"
Leonardo leapt from his bed to his brother’s.
Donatello rubbed the sleep out of his eyes. "Leonardo, what is it?"
"It’s Veronica. She’s in labor!"
Donatello had never woken up so fast in his life. Soon, everyone was up. "Michaelangelo boil some water! Raphael get some towels!" Leonardo yelled.
Raphael grumbled. "Our Fearless Leader is back to normal, telling us what to do."
"Just do it!" Angel yelled as she ran past.
***
Donatello collapsed into an armchair. Angel sat on the arm and handed him a glass of water.
"Thanks." He looked up and saw Angel looking over at the new family. They seemed almost normal. The mother was cradling her baby in her arms, with the father leaning over her shoulder. It was a pretty picture if you ignored the fact that the mother was a certified psycho and the father was a mutant turtle.
Donatello leaned back in the chair and sighed.
***
Veronica stared down at the tiny bundle in her arms. It was so small, so fragile.
The little three-fingered hand wrapped around her index finger. "Vincent," she whispered. He blinked open his pale blue eyes and yawned. She let her gaze travel over his pale green skin down to his shell, still soft.
He was perfect.
She felt Leonardo kiss her cheek. "I love you," he whispered. She leaned against his arm and sighed contentedly.
***
"Aww." April held the baby in her arms. "He's adorable."
Veronica gave an awkward smile. "Just like his father."
April smiled at her. She felt odd, being so comfortable in the presence of this woman. After all, she had been in a mental institute for killing three people. "I guess you really have changed."
Veronica gave her a confused look.
"I mean…that is…" April tried to find an inoffensive way to say it. She settled on, "Motherhood has a way of doing that to people."
Veronica looked down at her hands. "I don't think I've changed at all."
April laughed. "Not physically. Psy…mentally."
"Oh." Veronica frowned again. She still didn't think she'd changed.
***
"Through this world I've stumbled, so many times betrayed…"
Veronica rocked her baby boy in her arms in an attempt to put him to sleep. Raphael stood at the door, watching her. The rule that they always keep an eye on her was still in effect.
"And I would be the one to hold you down…kiss you so hard…"
Raphael had to admit that she had a decent singing voice, even if her choice of music was off. She put Vincent down and left the room with Raphael.
"You aren't fooling me," he said.
Veronica turned, her hair casting a shadow over her eyes. "I'm not trying to fool anyone, Raphael."
He narrowed his eyes. "They all think you've changed. Splinter's even thinking of taking away your twenty-four hour watch. But I know better. You're still the same sick psycho that burned up those three people and raped my brother."
Veronica leaned against the wall. "You're right. I am that same person, and I haven't changed. I won't deny that."
She tried to leave but Raphael grabbed her arm. "One day, you will slip up."
She looked into his eyes. "So will you, Raphael. You have less control than I do. We both know it. Besides, for the first time in a decade, I'm happy. Why would I screw that up?" She pulled away from him. "Believe it or not, I do love Leonardo, and he loves me."
"I choose not."
She let her breath out through gritted teeth. "All right, I can see I can't convince you, so this conversation is over."
She turned her back on him and walked away.
"No way, psycho, this is far from over."
***
~~~ Possession by Sarah McLachlan ~~~
~~Listen as the wind blows from across the great divide,
Voices trapped in yearning, memories trapped in time.
The night is my companion, and solitude my guide.
Would I spend forever here and not be satisfied?
~~And I would be the one to hold you down,
Kiss you so hard…I'll take your breath away.
And after, I'd wipe away the tears.
Just close your eyes dear.
~~Through this world I've stumbled,
So many times betrayed.
Trying to find an honest word to find,
The truth enslaved.
Oh, you speak to me in riddles
And you speak to me in rhymes.
My body aches to breathe your breath
Your words keep me alive.
~~And I would be the one to hold you down,
Kiss you so hard…I'll take your breath away.
And after, I'd wipe away the tears.
Just close your eyes dear.
~~Into this night I wander,
It's morning that I dread.
Another day of knowing of
The path I fear to tread.
Oh, into the sea of waking dreams,
I follow without pride.
Nothing stands between us here
And I won't be denied.
~~And I would be the one to hold you down,
Kiss you so hard…I'll take your breath away.
And after, I'd wipe away the tears
Just close your eyes.
***