Barter
"Earth ta Donny," Raph said, standing in the lab's open doorway.
Don blinked and looked up from the schematics he was studying.
"Oh hey Raph. What's up?" Don asked.
"I got a big problem with the bike bro'," Raph told him. "I need ya' ta come look at it."
Don shook his head, a slightly pained expression on his normally placid face. "Can't right now Raph. I'm right in the middle of something pretty important."
"Okay, later then," Raph said. "What time do ya' wanna meet me in the garage?"
Don leaned back in his chair and sighed. This was how a request from one of his brothers usually went; they always needed him right now. None of them had the patience to wait for anything.
"How does a week from Thursday sound?" Don asked calmly.
"Heh, heh. Funny one, Don," Raph said. "Ya' know if this was a little problem I'd fix it myself, but it's bad enough so she ain't running. I can maybe live without her for a day, but not much longer."
Don placed the palms of his hands against his temples and rubbed. This was his own fault; he had always been so eager to please that he'd let his family become spoiled. Now they assumed he was at their beck and call twenty-four hours a day, seven days a week.
Being necessary was nice, but it was getting out of hand. No one seemed capable of doing anything for themselves anymore and they were taking his services for granted.
Maybe if they weren't so free his brothers would think harder about when they actually needed him.
"I have an awful lot on my plate, Raph. Things that are a much higher priority than your motorcycle," Don said.
Raph walked further into the room and stopped a few feet in front of Donatello. Scratching his chin with the back of his hand, he contemplated his brother.
"I guess those priorities depend on who's looking at 'em," Raph said with a hint of a grin. He tucked a thumb into his belt, flexing his biceps and expanding his chest while his golden eyes gleamed.
Don swallowed thickly. His brothers all had different methods for getting their way and this was Raph's. The big turtle oozed sex from every pore and the very sight of him striking a pose would normally melt Don into a mound of quivering flesh.
Flicking a tongue across his lips, Don's mind started to race. Raph saw Don's eyes begin to glaze over and a corner of his mouth twitched upwards.
It irked Don just a bit to realize that Raph thought seducing him was payment enough for dropping everything and rushing to do Raph's bidding. That was pretty damned cocky of his red banded brother.
Of course, that could also be turned to Don's advantage. Raph wanted something and it was only fair Don got something in return. But this time it was going to be something Don had been wanting for quite a while.
"I think we could come to a mutually agreeable compromise on that to-do list of mine," Don said slowly. "I could definitely move your motorcycle to the top, but I'd want something in return."
Raph's smirk was evident. It was obvious that the red banded turtle thought he had the upper hand.
"Ya' got anything particular in mind?" Raph asked in a voice that was almost a purr.
"Let's barter," Don said, standing up. "Getting your motorcycle fixed is pretty important to you, so I'd want something of equally important value to me in return."
"I'm listening," Raph said smugly.
Don smiled and tipped his head sideways, his eyes drifting away from Raph's as they traced a trail down Raph's body to his ass.
"That's what I want," Don said, his voice getting a bit husky.
The gesture took Raph completely by surprise and his eyes opened wide.
"You're kidding right?" Raph asked incredulously. "Nobody tops me."
"Well, that's not factually accurate," Don said blithely. "I know for a fact that Leo took your virginity. If you want your bike fixed you'll have to trade something that has value to me. I want your ass for one night. Otherwise, you're free to borrow the technical manuals and tools so you can attempt to fix her yourself."
Raph was staring at him with a dazed expression and Don knew his brother was trying to figure out whether it was possible to fix the bike without Don's assistance.
Finally Raph drew in a huge lungful of air and exhaled before saying, "Fine. Deal. But ya' gotta fix my bike first."
"Nope," Don said with a grin. "You pay first and then I'll work on your bike. I think you know quite well which one of us will procrastinate on their part of the bargain."
"Dammit Don, you're a tough fuckin' negotiator. Tonight then; just ta get it over with. And ya' better not run around braggin' about it either," Raph said ominously.
"Why would I?" Don said, hiding his mounting excitement. "Just think of this as a business deal, Raph."
"Yeah," Raph replied dubiously, giving Don a hard stare before leaving the lab.
On his way downstairs later that evening, Mikey heard a churr followed by a low groan come from Donatello's room. Stopping to listen, because he felt absolutely no shame in doing so, he recognized Raph's voice.
"Oh fuck, Don. Oh shit that's good," Raph moaned, his voice low and deep.
Don's almost breathless voice followed, "Th . . . there, mmm, yes. Raph, yes!"
Mikey covered his mouth so that his laugh wouldn't be heard. Raph was normally fairly verbal during sex, but Mikey didn't think he'd ever heard quite those kinds of sounds coming from the hot head.
Don was a very innovative bottom, always coming up with new techniques to drive his brothers crazy. He must have discovered something fresh if the sounds he was pulling out of Raph were any indication.
As far as sounds went, Don's churrs had gotten so loud they were practically drowning out Raph's words.
Mikey heard Raph say, "Come on Don, ngh! Give!" This was followed by a series of animalistic grunts and Mikey started to become aware of his own growing need.
Sliding away from the door, Mikey decided to go in search of Leo. He couldn't wait to tell his big brother that Don had apparently added something really hot to his sexual repertoire. With any luck, Mikey's descriptive skills would get Leo fired up enough to take care of the painful ache between his youngest brother's legs.
A few days later Don was in the kitchen working to repair the refrigerator. He had pulled it away from the wall so he could get to the back and was between the wall and the fridge when he heard Mikey calling his name.
With a grimace of dread, Don held his tongue, hoping that Mikey would give up on looking for him. He should have known better; Mikey was nothing if not tenacious.
"Donny!" Mikey's head appeared from around the side of the fridge, his face wearing the grin he saved for times when he was attempting to wheedle something out of one of his brothers.
"Whatever it is, Mikey, it'll have to wait," Don snapped in a preemptory tone.
It didn't stop Mikey, who had a fairly bourgeois' attitude towards life. "I was trying to load some music on my iPod dude," he said, as though Don hadn't spoken. "I did just what you showed me, but it wiped out all of my music instead of giving me the new stuff. You gotta figure out what's wrong."
"I don't 'gotta' do anything," Don said with a frown. The refrigerator coils were filthy and covered in dust; it was going to take a couple of hours to clean. By the time he was done, Don was going to be just as filthy and the thought was not appealing.
"Come on Donny," Mikey pleaded, his eyes bright. "The refrigerator isn't going anywhere."
"Neither is your iPod," Don informed him. "If I don't take care of this now, the motor is going to burn out and we won't have a refrigerator."
"So, you can always salvage another from the junkyard," Mikey said.
Don's head came up, his brown eyes snapping. "Oh, it's that easy, right Mikey? Just dash on out to our favorite shopping grounds and drag another fridge back home. Spend a couple of days figuring out what's wrong with that one before I get it running. While I'm doing that, all my other work just continues to pile up."
Mikey's grin faded and his lower lip began to push out. Brow furrowing, Mikey opened his blue eyes wide. It was his famous guilt trip pose, meant to shame his brothers into doing what he wanted.
"I just wanted a little of your time," Mikey said in a low voice.
Don's gaze softened. "What will you give me?" he asked.
Mikey looked startled. Don had never wanted anything in return before.
"Uh, I dunno," Mikey said, thrown off by the question. "Um, I don't think I have anything that would interest you."
"Actually, you do," Don told him. "So let's barter." The phrase rolled off his tongue, its taste as sweet as honey.
"Sure, Donny," Mikey said, the grin coming back. "I just need my music dude. You can have anything."
"That's wonderful. That's exactly what I wanted to hear," Don said as he also smiled, if somewhat lecherously. "I want your ass."
Whatever else Mikey had expected his genius brother to say, that wasn't it.
"M . . . my ass?" Mikey stuttered.
Don nodded, his eyes narrowing a bit. "That's right, Mikey. I've never had your ass and heaven knows you've had mine enough."
"That's 'cause you like to bottom," Mikey said quickly, scrambling for a way out of Don's request.
It wasn't as though Mikey never bottomed; he almost always did when he had sex with Raph. He and Leo were almost fifty-fifty in that department; Leo liked giving up control sometimes.
But nobody bottomed for Don. Not ever. What would his brothers think if they found out?
"I won't tell anyone if you don't," Don said, as though reading his little brother's mind. "Of course, it all depends on how badly you want that iPod fixed. Considering the items that currently have priority, I could probably get to it in six or seven days."
"I can't wait that long," Mikey said frantically before realizing he was playing into Don's hands.
Don's smile grew wider as he began to look exactly like a spider watching his prey squirm.
"And you'll pay up first," Don added softly. "I wouldn't want your new music to make you forget about your part of the deal."
Mikey bit his lip and then blurted, "Okay! I'll do it. When and where?"
Don pointed at the back of the refrigerator. "I need to finish this chore first and since you haven't anything else to do, you can help me. Afterwards, we'll hit the showers together. I really doubt if anyone will wonder what's going on in there considering how dirty both of us will be."
Mikey perked up a bit; shower sex was always fun. He turned his mind away from what he'd just agreed to and set to work helping Don.
Steam was rolling out from under the bathroom door and it drew Leo's attention. His brothers had gone in to clean up and had been in there for three-quarters of an hour.
He was about to open the door and ask if anything was wrong when he heard churring. The sound, in two separate pitches, was quite musical and held Leo in place.
"Don~ny!" Mikey groaned, his voice sounding more needy than Leo had ever heard it.
"Mikey, so good," Don moaned in return, his last word tapering into a churr.
Leo smiled and shook his head. He should have guessed that Mikey would make Don pay up for the help he'd given the genius in repairing the refrigerator. Mikey never did anything for free.
"S . . . so close!" Mikey cried out, his voice quivering. "I'm gonna . . . Donny! More, now!"
"Anything for you," Don churred, the sound ending in a breathy gasp.
That was all Leo could take. Striding away from the door quickly, he knew he was either going to have to meditate or seek out his hot headed brother in order to gain some relief. He didn't remember ever being quite so turned on by the sounds of any two of his brothers having sex.
Mikey must have been correct when he told Leo that Don had come up with something new. Now Leo was wondering when it would be his turn to find out first-hand what that something was, because Raph absolutely refused to talk about it.
"Don. Donny, wake up," Leo's quiet voice worked to rouse his brother.
Don lifted his head from his arms, blinking wearily as he looked up. He had spent seven straight hours staring at his computer screen as he attempted to track down a problem with one of his tunnel cams and the early warning alarm in that part of the sewer.
After he found the glitch, it took another three hours to traipse through the tunnel and replace the faulty wiring in the electrical junction box. When he got back to the lair, he knew he wouldn't be able to sleep until he ran a diagnostic check on the rest of his security setup.
Apparently he had fallen asleep whilst doing just that. So much to do, so little time to do it in.
"Yeah, Leo. I'm awake," he grumbled, automatically reaching for his coffee mug. The dregs in the bottom were ice cold and even he wasn't desperate enough to drink it.
"Please tell me you aren't going to miss practice again," Leo said, watching as Don sat up to stretch. "I've let you off the hook for the last four days, but it's not doing us any good trying to maintain some level of teamwork when one of the team members is always missing."
"Tell that to the security equipment in sector seven," Don retorted, feeling grouchy.
Leo's arms folded over his plastron, a sure sign that a lecture was forthcoming. Don steeled himself; Leo was damn good at making him feel guilty about letting his ninja skills suffer in place of the many tasks that were always waiting for him.
"Donatello," Leo began, "you of all turtles should understand the benefits of prioritization."
Angry as he was becoming, for some reason those words made Don chuckle. The more he thought about them, the harder he began to laugh.
Leo's arms dropped as he became alarmed. Don almost appeared to be on the verge of hysteria.
Reaching out, he gripped Don's shoulder tightly. "Hey bro', are you all right?"
Don sucked in a breath and his laughter all at once. "Yes, Leonardo. I'm fine. What you said just reminded me of something I tried pointing out to both Raph and Mikey this last week. Everyone around here seems to have a differing idea about what a priority really is."
Leo agreed with a single nod. "I can see that. But don't you think it would be best to stand back and look at things from a larger picture standpoint? Our first duty as a family is to honor the traditions of our clan, the teachings of our Bushido code, and the training of our minds and bodies in ninjitsu. Everything else is secondary."
Don offered him a small smile. "It's secondary until the lights go out, or our clean water stops flowing. Isn't a part of what we learn in our training the art of being prepared for an attack? That's exactly what I'm doing, Leo. Our security systems are a way for us to be prepared for an attack."
"The price for that seems to be your physical well-being," Leo shot back. "I understand everything you're saying Don, but that doesn't change the fact that you have to show up for practice. What do I need to do to make that happen?"
"Practice before the other work I've got lined up?" Don asked rhetorically.
His mind was already racing as his mouth curved into a broader smile. Don could tell that his elder brother thought he'd proved his point and was expecting Don to give in as he always did.
"Exactly," Leo said; his voice smooth with self-satisfaction.
"What will you offer me in return?" Don asked unexpectedly.
"I'm sorry, what?" Leo asked, confused by the question.
"If you want me to shift my priorities and place training above all of the rest of the things I'm expected to accomplish, I would like some type of fair recompense," Don explained carefully.
"You want to get paid?" Leo asked incredulously.
Don shook his head. "Not paid," he said. "My idea is much older than the exchange of something monetary. I'm talking about a trade, Leo. Barter."
"You want to barter with me about doing your duty? You shouldn't have to be bribed into doing what you're supposed to," Leo said.
"You don't understand, Leo. I'm already doing what I'm supposed to; in fact, I'm going above and beyond the call of duty. All I'm proposing is that you give me something I've been wanting for a long time," Don told his brother.
The relieved look on Leo's face struck Don as amusing. His brother hadn't even heard his request yet.
"Tell me what you want, bro'. You know I'll always do anything for you," Leo said.
Those words were music to Don's ears. He knew Leo wouldn't back out no matter what Don asked for now; it was a matter of honor.
"I want to top," Don said matter-of-factly.
Leo couldn't have looked more shocked if the Shredder and Bishop had strolled into the lair arm-in-arm.
"Sex? You want sex in return for showing up for practice?" Leo asked.
"Not just sex, Leo," Don said, entertained by the look on Leo's face. "To put it bluntly, I want to screw your ass."
Leo said absolutely nothing for a few minutes as he tried to process his brother's request. How had he never known about Don's desire before now?
"All right," Leo said slowly. "We've got six hours until it's time for practice."
He held his hand out to Don and the purple banded turtle took it eagerly. When they reached the upper level of the lair, Don opened his door and pulled Leo inside.
"We'll do this in my room," Don explained hungrily. "I know where everything is."
Wondering just what exactly he'd gotten himself into, Leo stood completely still as Donatello stripped him of his gear and his mask. Leading his older brother over to the bed, Don pushed him down gently and then signaled for Leo to lie back.
Leo tried to get comfortable as he watched Don remove his own gear. Those dark chocolate eyes never left Leo's face as Don readied himself for bed.
Crawling onto the mattress, Don parted Leo's legs and positioned his lower plastron against his brother's as he lowered himself down. Smiling at Leo, Don placed a long, searching kiss to the leader's mouth, churring when their tongues met.
Despite lingering misgivings, Leo couldn't help the feeling of surprised enjoyment. He didn't remember Don's kiss as ever being so thorough and arousing.
Moving his mouth to Leo's neck, Don found the most sensitive spot on his brother's throat and gently sucked at it. Leo's breath hitched at the sensation, he never knew that Don was aware of his weaknesses.
Leo's eyes almost rolled into the back of his head when Don ground their lower plastrons together. An unexpected churr escaped him, followed by another as Don's hands began to roam Leo's body.
"Don," Leo moaned as a sudden thought came to him, "did you barter with Raph and Mikey too?"
Don's teeth were lightly nipping at Leo's collarbone, but he stopped for a moment to look into Leo's eyes.
"Maybe," he answered noncommittally.
"You did," Leo said with certainty. "That's why Mikey thought you'd come up with something new for the bedroom. He heard you with Raph and I heard you with Mikey."
"Don't get me wrong, Leo," Don said. "I like to bottom. In fact, I prefer it. But you know, just once I wanted to try sex from the other side, so to speak. But you guys couldn't wrap your heads around the idea."
"So you chose to achieve your goal through trade," Leo said, gasping as Don's hand tweaked his tail.
"Actually, it didn't start out that way," Don leaned down to lick at Leo's pulse point and made his brother gasp again. "Once the idea came to me, I really liked it. And since I do bottom all of the time, I have an excellent grasp of what feels good."
To emphasize his point, he tilted his hips up and slipped a hand between their lower plastrons, grazing Leo's slit with his fingers.
"Oh, shell," Leo groaned as butterflies started to dance in his lower extremities.
Don smiled at him. "I think you're going to end up liking this trade, Leo. I think you're going to end up liking it a lot."
Leo swallowed hard as Don's talented hands continued to pull him into a lustful frenzy. Don was right; the genius did know what felt good.
He also knew how to barter.