So, my little muse has been nagging me ever since Thanksgiving to write a Christmas Story. So, in order to get him off my back, this is what I've spent the last few weeks working on. I don't think it's my best, and I've had to re-do many-a-parts, and it started out as going in a completely different direction. But this is what my muddled brain came up with, so enjoy!
Disclaimer: The TMNT still do not belong to me :P (But one day... they will...)
TMNTTMNTTMNTTMNT
The sun was bright, making the snow glitter as the rays hit it. It was smooth; not a footprint or indentation ruined the perfect blanket that covered the ground around the small house. Even the trees seemed to not want to disrupt the picture, as the snow that sat on their branches refused to fall and not a being dwelt on them to disturb it.
Raph smiled quietly to himself, enjoying the silence that was so rare. His family and friends were still sleeping, despite what day it was. Usually, Mikey had forced them all up by this time, but when Raph had snuck onto the porch an hour ago, the youngest turtle had been sleeping peacefully. Even Don was still in dreamland, another unusual thing. And Leo…
Well, Raph didn't think Leo slept to begin with, as he was always the last to go to bed and the first to wake up; or, so he said. But the eldest turtle was still inside, head buried in his pillow on the floor. Raph had stopped for a minute to watch him sleep for a minute, as it was extremely rare that anyone awake before the blue-banded turtle. But the steady rise and fall of his chest reassured him that Leo was still alive.
Raph smiled as he thought of his brother. They had been getting along much better since the "Winters Incidence" and it made Raph feel good. It felt like they were best friends again; sure they still argued, but it wasn't as bad, or as often as it usually was. They were too different not to argue. But now they seemed to have an understanding between them. Raph knew just how far to push Leo before anything bad happened, and by that time, he had his anger under control, and Leo had become looser. He wasn't as uptight as before, and Raph, as well as the other two of his brothers, were able to get away with more.
The red-banded turtle sighed contentedly and continued to lean against the porch rail and look at the beauty that surrounded him. He had always been the turtle that had liked going topside most. The rush of the air as he leapt from rooftop to rooftop, the sight of lights flickering past in the city that never slept. It was nice, especially when he was with his brothers. Being outside with them, with no boundaries and no arguments, just jumping from roof to roof and exchanging little jokes and banter as they did so.
There was a small creak behind him and Raph turned around to see Leo smile guiltily at him. Raph returned the smile and continued to look at scene before him. Leo came up next to him and leaned forward on the rail, crossing his arms on the wood and putting his chin on his hands.
The two brothers stayed like that for a long time, not saying anything, just enjoying each other's company. It was rare that the two of them got to spend time alone.
"You know, I still can't get over the fact that you're actually here for Christmas this year," Raph said, looking down at his brother. Leo turned his head on his hands and looked at Raph. "It's just… it's been kinda weird, having two Christmas's without ya when we've had fifteen together. Then, suddenly, you're back and it just seems… weird."
Leo scrutinized Raph for a minute, then turned back to the white blanket of snow before them. Raph stared at him for a while, and when her realized that he wasn't going to get anything out of him, sighed and followed his brother's eyes. They were silent for a while more.
It was a short time later that sounds from inside indicated that the other members of their family were starting to wake up. And if that wasn't enough, the very distinct "Raph! Leo! Come on! It's time to open presents!"
Raph chuckled and Leo smiled as they straightened and walked inside. They were greeted with the sight of Mikey sitting under the tree, a Santa hat on, and just a bouncing ball of pent-up energy. Don was sitting on the floor next to him, a small smile on his face, but anyone could tell that he was just as excited as his younger brother.
"Come on, guys!" Mikey exclaimed, standing up and running over to his older brothers. He jumped up, and, in one swift movement, he planted reindeer antlers on Raph's head and pulled him over the tree, where he sat him down on the floor and thrust a candy cane in his head.
Leo smiled and joined them before Mikey had the chance to put anything on the top of his head. Master Splinter was sitting in the chair across from the tree. April and Casey were sitting on the couch, watching the exchange go on with amused faces.
"Me first, me first, me first!!!!" Mikey cried, practically jumping up and down. Without waiting for a reply, he dived into the dozens of colorfully wrapped boxes and came up holding a large package above his head. He looked at the tag that was attached to it.
"Donny, this one's for you!" he cried, and handed it exuberantly to his immediate older brother. As soon as the box left his fingertips, he dived down again and came up a few seconds later, handling a gift to Raph.
Five minutes later, everyone had a small pile of gifts next to them. Well, for Mikey, it was more like a small mountain. (Everyone liked to baby Mikey, and he basically got everything that was on his Christmas list.) Mikey beamed at his family and friends, awaiting the word that would allow him to massacre the wrapping on the boxes.
Master Splinter smiled slightly as he glanced out of the corner of his eye at his youngest charge. He calmly took a sip of his herbal tea, delaying the inevitable a bit longer. Mikey was nearly bouncing out of his skin by the time he said, "Let us see what this year has brought us."
With a small cry, the turtle in orange attacked his presents. Paper flew in all different directions and landed everywhere, including a small, white bow on Raph's head.
Master Splinter's grin grew wider as he also opened his gifts. Everyone around him followed his actions. Mikey's cries of "Yes!" and "Alright!" and "Awesome!" and small squeals of glee were tuned out as everyone opened their gifts. Raph wasn't much better than Mikey, except he threw all his wrapping paper in a small pile next to him. Don's movements were neat, using his finger to rip down the side of the boxes, much like Master Splinter. Leo's were neat and precise; he undid everything that was taped and then folded it and set it beside him. Of everyone, he had the smallest pile.
A few minutes later, there was a small exchange of "thank yous" and then everyone immersed themselves in their newly acquired items. Master Splinter was curled up in his chair, a book in his hands. Beside him on the floor, where his gaze flickered every now and then, was a picture frame given to him by his three youngest sons. It had a photo of him and all of his sons, taken the night before he told them that Leonardo was going away. They were all so happy, and on the back of the frame, they had all signed it.
As for Mikey, he was sitting in front of the television, playing a new video game he had gotten. His tongue was sticking out of his mouth in concentration as he moved his body slightly in motion with the game. Don was sitting at the kitchen table, an engineering kit set out all over the table around him. He had a screwdriver in hand and he was busily tinkering with some old gadget. April was sitting next to him, painting her nails with a new color of nail polish that had been given to her. In the garage, Raph and Casey could be heard putting new attachments on their beloved bikes. Laughter, a few jibes, and a few angered sounds could only mean that they were having the time of their lives in that old garage. Leo, meanwhile, was standing by the fire, staring into the depths of the orange flames.
It wasn't that he was angry about not getting anything for Christmas; that wasn't what Christmas was about. He was happy about being home and being with his family. It was just that the gifts he had wanted to give hadn't arrived yet, and that the gifts he had gotten were just basically… well, the hand made paperclip ornament Mikey had given him hadn't been exactly well thought-out.
He felt a hand on his shoulder, and he looked up to see April standing net to him, smiling gently at him.
"Everything okay, Leo?" she asked
Leo smiled back at her and nodded. Even April's gift had been lacking in thought. "Just thinking…"
April nodded as well. "You just seem a little… out of place…"
Leo's smile dropped a little. "Just kinda getting back into the way things are, I guess," he said.
April looked a little confused, but a triumphant yell from Mikey turned her attention to the youngest turtle. He was standing up, punching the air with his fist as he stared at the screen in front of him. April smiled softly, and then turned her attention back to the blue-banded turtle, only to find that he had vanished from his previous spot. She looked around the room, her eyes searching for the eldest turtle, and saw the ends of blue bandana tails disappear swiftly out the door.
TMNT
Leo sat on a large rock in the middle of the forest. The cold was a little bit bitterer than he had expected, and he briefly regretted not grabbing a coat when he had left the house. His swords were sitting in the front room as well, so there was no way he could do anything without going back in there.
And right now, he didn't feel like being with his family and friends.
Why did he feel so underappreciated all of a sudden? He was the one who led them into battle, and thought of the battle strategies that saved them from getting too beat up. All he wanted was a little acknowledgement, and on the one day a year that that could happen, all he got a paperweight on a string.
He shivered slightly and sighed. He was going to have to face them again eventually. But right now, even if it was a little cold, he was still not willing to go and face them right at this moment.
A sudden thump and feeling on cold on the back of his head made the eldest turn in surprise to look behind him. There, standing a few yards away, were his brothers, all dressed in coats and scarves. Mikey was laughing uncontrollably, and Don and Raph smiled and gave each other a high five.
"Oh, man!" Mikey breathed. "Dude! You should see the look on your face!"
"Sorry, bro," Raph said, smiling. "You were just to easy a target!"
"What are you guys doing here?" Leo asked, wiping the remnants of the snowball off the back of his neck.
"I think a better question would be 'what are you doing here?'," Don replied.
Leo shrugged. "Just thinking."
"Uh huh," Raph said. "Without any proper clothing on?"
Leo blushed ever so slightly.
"Seriously, bro," Mikey said. "What's eatin' ya'?"
Leo looked away. "Nothing," he muttered.
Another snowball slammed into the back of head again. Leo whipped around to see Raph bounce another one up and down in his gloved hand.
"Their gonna keep on coming until you tell us what's going on."
Don scooped a handful of snow up and packed it into a ball as well. "Don't think we won't do it either."
Leo smiled slightly. "I'm just mad that the gifts I got you didn't come in in time for the holidays," he confessed. It wasn't the entire truth, but it was better than nothing.
The three younger brothers looked at one another, then back at Leo.
"Uh, they wouldn't happen to be a stack of new books for Don, new comics for Mikey, a new staff for Splinter, and new pair of sais for me, would they?" Raph asked.
Leo looked confused as he stared from one brother to the next. Then he nodded. "How'd you know?"
Raph looked at Don, then back at Leo. "They arrived last month," he said. "That's why we didn't really get you anything for Christmas this year."
"We thought that since you had sent the gifts early, it meant that you weren't going to be home for the holiday…" Don continued.
"So when you came home a few weeks ago, we didn't have time to go and get you anything," Mikey finished.
Leo looked at them. "I though that they had gotten lost," he said quietly. "Why didn't you tell me?"
"We thought you knew…" Mikey replied. He looked at his brothers who met his gaze, and when they turned back to look at their brother, he was gone. There were no footprints to indicate where he had gone.
"Leo?" Don called, looking around.
There was no answer. The three youngest turtles looked around, trying to locate their eldest brother, when all of a sudden, there was slurry of snowballs beating down on them.
"Hey!" Raph called, looked around, trying to pinpoint where the attack was coming from.
"That's what you get for not telling me about the gifts and making me feel like a horrible brother, as well as underappreciated," Leo's voice rang out from somewhere in the woods.
The three turtles looked around, before another attack began. This time, though, Raph was able to see where the snow was originating. Hiding his face from the snow, he plowed forward, and found his elder brother, hastily throwing snowballs from behind the cover of a nearby bush.
"Haha!" Raph said, startling the older turtle. Leo looked up, eyes wide. "Gotcha!"
And the tables turned. The three brothers all started forward toward their eldest, who stood up and backed away slowly.
"Guys… I, uh…" Leo said nervously. He looked at his brothers, then turned shell and fled, his attackers right behind him and snowballs raining down upon his shell. He smiled, and behind him, his brother's laughter echoed around the woods.
TMNT
Later that night, as Mikey snored softly in the house, a video game controller held loosely in his hands, and Don asleep at the table, drooling slightly on the project he was working on. April and Casey were dozing slightly on the couch, and Master Splinter was tiredly flipping through channels on the T.V. Leo was outside on the porch, a blanket around his shoulders. He had gotten in slight trouble by Master Splinter for being outside in the cold with nothing on; the cold tended to effect them more, as they were cold-blooded creatures, and it had taken him several hours before he could actually move his fingers.
A slight creaking sound made Leo turn around to see Raph coming up behind him, a mug of steaming hot tea in his hands. He handed it to Leo, who gratefully took into his slightly cold and shaking hands. He took a small sip and smiled at Raph, who smiled back. They both turned to look at the yard, where, only this morning, they had been standing, looking at its beauty.
However, unlike earlier, the yard was not perfectly smooth anymore. Footprints made it seem like million of tiny meteors had landed everywhere. There was even a large patch where the grass was showing; the spot where Mikey had tackled a fleeing Leo and a turtle-pile had ensued. To the right, directly under the tree, was a snowman. Mikey had conned all his brothers into making the thing. Leo smiled as he remembered the day.
"So, how weird is it being home for Christmas?" Raph asked quietly, glancing at Leo.
Leo stared at the snowman for a long time before he answered. "It's not weird at all, actually," he said. "What's weird is how much I missed the snow…"
Raph looked at him.
"I mean, I missed you guys too," Leo continued. "I didn't like spending the holiday alone. I really missed seeing your guys' faces as you opened presents. But there isn't snow in the jungle… I didn't like it. It didn't feel like home…"
Raph nodded slightly, before engulfing him in a small hug. Leo was a little surprised, but hugged back all the same. When they broke away, Raph kept his arm around Leo's shoulders. "You're home now, bro," he said. "And ya' ain't goin' anywhere for a long time."
Leo smiled. "I know," he replied.
Raph chuckled as he felt a shiver go through Leo's body. "Come on. Let's get you inside and warmed up before Master Splinter yells at you again."
Leo's smile grew wider as he let his brother lead him inside.
Sure, he might not have gotten top-notch gifts, but he did get the best gift he had had in two years.
He got a Christmas with his family. And that was the best gift of all.
TMNTTMNTTMNTTMNT
See what I mean about it being lacking? I kinda got tired of writing it at the end, but I had to end it someway, and that was what came out.
My muse is apparently still not happy with how this came out. :P So, I'll be back soon with another Christmas One-shot; one that my muse is satisfied with. But until then, review!