Michelangelo stood in the upper alcove next to Raphael's weight bench as his brother lifted, but his attention was elsewhere. From his position much of the lair was visible, including Donatello's work area, fondly referred to as the 'lab'.
As usual of late, whenever Don was working there, Leonardo was nearby. Today the leader in blue was seated in a chair behind Don's, reading aloud from one of his books as Don typed things into his computer.
Mikey had started to notice a change in the way those two brothers interacted back even before their first home was destroyed. The family had been through a lot since then and Mikey knew that Leo – that all of them – relied on Don's genius for many things. Now though it was starting to appear that Leo might depend on Don for more than just his intellect.
It wasn't as though Mikey meant to spy on them. He was just naturally curious and observant and a lot of little things between that pair were starting to add up.
To what exactly Mikey wasn't sure but this was something he thought he needed to find out. A shift in their dynamic was important to know about, in fact he could practically hear Master Splinter saying that very thing. At least that's what Mikey told himself whenever he was snooping.
Mikey had always thought that it was inevitable that they'd come into contact with the outside world despite how their father admonished them never to do so. Why else would Master Splinter have chosen Leo to lead their team? Why would they need a leader or even a team if they were never to go topside?
Being leader was not a job that Mikey had ever coveted. He had thought about what it meant to have that job though. It would be hard and it would require a kind of inner strength that Mikey instinctively knew he didn't have. Mikey's heart ruled much of what he did and while that was a valuable asset for their team, it was a liability for someone who had to make tough decisions.
There had been a time when Raph thought he should have that job. Somehow he'd thought that being the biggest, physically strongest, and an incredible fighter was what made for leadership qualities. Mikey secretly believed that Raph just didn't like being told what to do and if he was leader, it would be him giving the orders.
His sneaking around and going topside without permission was what had led April O'Neil to them in the first place. Not that it was a bad thing in the long run, in fact it was awesome that April was now in their lives. But because Raph didn't stop to think things through, they'd seen their first home destroyed, gotten captured by the Foot, and nearly lost Master Splinter.
Reviewing those events in his mind, Mikey realized how much Leo had depended on Donatello to find solutions to their growing list of problems. Don found them too, quickly and unerringly, seeming to preen whenever Leo acknowledged his accomplishments.
When Leo had been unconscious and sliding through the snow, it was Don who had so uncharacteristically jumped from the back of a moving truck to rescue him. Raph had been ready to go, but Don had stopped him, saying "allow me to be the badass for once". Mikey only knew he'd said that because Raph had told him. It had stuck with Raph since none of them had ever heard Don say something like that.
Not that Donnie wasn't capable of being a 'badass'. He could kick butt right there with the rest of them. It was just that he wasn't normally the aggressor, tending towards things that were brainier.
"Earth to Mikey," Raph said as he sat up on the weight bench and drew his brother's attention. "What the shell have ya' been staring at for the last fifteen minutes?"
"Leo and Don," Mikey replied absently, still caught up in his thoughts.
"What about Leo and Don?" Raph got up and came to stand behind Mikey so that he could see what his brother was looking at. "They ain't doing anything."
"They're hanging out together," Mikey said, "again."
"Big deal, so are we," Raph said. He began changing out the weighted plates. "Get your ass over here, it's your turn to lift."
"Okay," Mikey said, reluctantly turning away from his view. Raph might not see the difference between the two of them and the way Leo and Don behaved, but Mikey did. He was also determined to keep an eye on that pair until he got some answers.
After a dinner consisting of pizza, Mikey plopped down on the couch and turned on the television. From his position, he could see Leo and Don, who'd remained in the kitchen. Seated at one of the tables, the pair was engaged in a game of chess.
Mikey had no idea what was on TV because his attention was on his brothers. One of Don's hands lay idle on the table, as did one of Leo's. As Don moved his chess piece, Leo's hand slid forward so that he could caress the back of Don's fingers. Don smiled shyly at his older brother and shifted one of his long legs so that it brushed against Leo's calf.
"What the hell are ya' watching?" Raph asked brusquely, crossing in front of Mikey and blocking his view. "Gimme the remote."
Raph snatched the remote control from Mikey's hand before sprawling out on the easy chair. He sped through the channels until he found one showing wrestling and then settled back to watch, ignoring his younger brother.
It was a good thing too because Mikey was barely aware of Raph's presence. In his mind he was visualizing the scene in the alley when they'd met Casey Jones. Don was standing next to Leo, one arm leaning casually on Leo's shoulder. Maybe that wasn't as casual as it had looked, maybe it was Don wanting to have physical contact with their leader in blue.
Donnie went to Leo when he'd discovered the secret of the purple ooze. He had told Leo how re-engineering that ooze could change them in a life altering way. When Leo had said they didn't need that kind of change, Don had immediately understood what Leo meant. Don had also kept his mouth shut when Leo had told him to.
During the argument that Raph and Leo had over the secret of what the ooze could do, Leo had told Raph that he'd consulted with Donnie about it, as though that ended the matter. Maybe it did for Leo, not only because he didn't want his decision second guessed, but because Don's support was what really mattered to Leo.
When the alarm had sounded at the planetarium, Leo had taken Don with him, leaving both Raph and Mikey behind. Mikey had been hurt by that; he hadn't even been involved in their argument. Now he thought that Leo's fight with Raph had caused him more inner turmoil than Leo had let on. Donatello's presence had a calming effect on Leo, it always had, even when they were younger.
What was it that Mikey had heard in some movie he'd watched long ago? It had something to do with how a self-made man hadn't actually achieved success all on his own. How a lot of it had to do with the woman behind the man. Or in this case, the turtle behind the turtle.
Mikey knew that it wasn't always perfect between those two, they had moments just like anyone in a family did. After their botched attempt to get the portal part away from Bebop and Rocksteady, none of the brothers were feeling charitable on the plane ride home. Don had fussed at Leo that he'd had the device in his hands and that Leo had pushed him aside. Leo had countered that Don should "get out of your head and communicate". When Leo attacked Mikey, Don had told him "you may know a lot about strategy, but you know nothing about feelings."
From the looks of things, Don was teaching Leo to get in touch with his feelings and Leo was redirecting Don's attention to something other than his gadgets.
The mutant family had gone from a life of total concealment, to being on the most wanted list, and now to a certain level of acceptance. They had friends and allies, including Chief Vincent. That was a big thing, especially for Raph who liked to do her favors. It kept him from getting bored or antsy which was good, because an edgy Raphael was not a good thing.
Mikey too had many interests to keep him entertained. He enjoyed hanging out with his brothers, but he could find activities of his own to keep himself amused.
Thinking about it, Mikey discovered that the difference between he and Raph and the two brothers sitting there playing chess came down to one of responsibility. Both Leonardo and Donatello had a great deal of it. One was taxed with leading them, getting a job done, and keeping them alive. The other carried the weight of finding answers, coming up with solutions, and making things work.
Mikey had never thought before about how heavy those burdens must be. Or how lonely it must be to have to carry them. Was it because neither Mikey nor Raph truly understood the weight of that kind of duty that Leo and Donnie had gotten so close to each other?
Master Splinter had gone to bed and Raph was dozing in his chair by the time Leo and Don finished playing chess. Mikey had noticed the two of them casting glances in his direction, so he'd feigned sleep in order to learn what the pair planned to do.
Leaving the chess board where it was, Leo took Don's hand and led him down the stairs to where the garbage truck was parked. They entered the back, closing the big door behind them.
Mikey waited a few minutes before glancing over to make sure Raph was asleep and then getting up from the couch. Employing his best ninja stealth skills, Mikey avoided Don's internal security cameras and crept up to the back of the truck.
Despite the thick metal paneling, when Mikey pressed his head against the door he could just hear the faint murmur of sound from within. He would have thought he could hear words, but figured they must be conversing in low tones.
That made Mikey even more curious. He didn't like it when anyone had secrets they were keeping from the rest of the family. Raph wouldn't like it either when he found out; he'd made that abundantly clear the last time that Leo had withheld information from them.
Then Mikey heard a very distinct churr from inside and he nearly banged his face against the truck when he turned his head in surprise. He knew perfectly well what that sound meant, he made it every time he pleasured himself.
Were Leo and Donnie engaging in . . . ? Could it be that the two of them were hooking up with each other?
Mikey's feet slid out from under him and he sat down heavily. Another churr reached his ears, followed by a loud moan.
There was a thump from within the truck and then twin churrs that overlapped. Mikey's face felt suddenly hot and he scrambled to his feet, barely remembered to dodge the security cameras as he made straight for his bed.
It took a little while for Mikey's wildly pounding heart to smooth back out to a steady rhythm. He stared up at the ceiling, hearing again over and over the sounds that had come from two of his brothers.
After a bit he chuckled, not at anything funny about the situation, but at the fact that once again his intuition had been right. Something had changed between Leonardo and Donatello. They'd become lovers.
The more Mikey thought about it, the less it bothered him. Other than them keeping it a secret, Mikey couldn't really find fault with what had happened between the two. He figured that they wouldn't try to keep it hidden forever because they were both too smart to know that was even possible.
Now Mikey perceived something else as well. No one could be as strong in the face of such heavy burdens as those two undertook and do so alone. Survival meant leaning on someone else for support. Leo and Don were dependent on each other in a lot more ways than even their family knew.
With a satisfied smile, Mikey decided to throw his support behind the pair when they finally decided to share their relationship with the rest of the family. This was how the strong survived, by relying on the ones they loved.
Mikey would make sure that they knew they could depend on him too.