AN: First TMNT fic EVA! It was meant to be a one-shot, but I think it might keep going… I apologize in advance for any mistakes, 'cause I ain't perfect. Anyway, enjoy!
Hiccup
"You guys ready?" Leonardo Hamato's voice rang out through his home in the sewers, echoing off the walls. Michelangelo's voice sounded soon after. "Almost done, Leo! I just gotta grab my 'chucks!" Leo rolled his eyes and yelled, "Don!" His purple-banded brother rushed out of his room with both his duffel bag and his bo staff. "Yeah, I'm ready to go." Donatello nodded once before walking over to stand by his brother. "Raph!" Leo called. He was met with silence. Mikey broke said silence by running out of his room and almost tripping over some random object on the ground. He hopped on one foot for a moment, before he regained his balance and carefully walked over to the other turtles. He smiled and said, "You know, Raphie's really enjoying this."
"Of course he is. It's his favorite hobby to annoy the shell outta me, isn't it?" Leo muttered. "Raphael!" He yelled. His voice was loud enough to make the turtles next to him wince. The red-banded ninja casually strolled in from the dojo, a smug grin on his face. He had his sais in his belt and, as he walked over to the other ninjas, he twirled them happily. "Raph, come on, we have to-", Leo's sentence was interrupted by a hiccup. Mikey struggled to keep from laughing his shell off at Raph and Don's expressions, but it was Leo's shocked face that finally broke his self-control. Raph glared at Mike, who was on his shell laughing at his brothers before grinning again and asking, "What was that, Fearless Leader? I didn't hear ya."
"I said, we have to go topsi-", Leo hiccupped again but chose to ignore it and continued, "-de now to check the Foot's usual hideouts since Karai's i-", another hiccup, "-n charge now. Got that?" Leo finished with a slightly muffled hiccup. Leo glared at Raph, who nonchalantly glared back with an especially smug look on his face. Don and Mike rolled their eyes at their brothers' staring contest. This happened practically every time they went on patrol, which was almost every night, so they were used to it. Finally Raph shrugged and responded, "Well then, what're we waitin' for, Fearless? We got heads to bust."
With that said, the four ninjas left their home in favor of the sewers, before heading topside and climbing up a fire escape up on the nearest rooftop. Leo hiccupped quite a bit during the trip, but no comment was made. Once they got to the rooftops, however, their resident hothead couldn't take it anymore. "Leo, do ya gotta be so darn loud? In case ya forgot, we're ninjas, bro. Silent ninjas. So could ya shut up?" Leo opened his mouth to reply, but instead, a hiccup came out, which startled a cat in the dumpster below them. The clatter the cat made lit up several apartment windows and Raph slapped his hand across his face in frustration.
The annoyed red-banded turtle went to say something else, but Don gently pulled him away. "Look, Raph. Hiccups can't just be 'shut up'. You quit bugging Leo and let me talk to him. We probably need to go back to the lair so we don't risk alerting the Foot or anyone else with a death threat against us to our presence." Raph gaped, "No busting heads?" Don sighed, "No Raph, no busting heads tonight. Sorry, bro." Raph glared, but left it at that and stormed over to the edge of the rooftop, plopping down on the edge, to sulk. Donatello sighed. That was the easy part. Now, he got to try to talk Leo into going back home and skipping patrol tonight. Yay.
The brainy turtle walked over to his brother/leader, which was definitely in his leader mode right now. Said turtle was standing on the side of the rooftop that looked toward the center of the city with his arms folded across his plastron. "Um, Leo?" Don asked cautiously. Leo nodded to show he was listening, not wishing for a repeat of his attempt to chide their hot-tempered brother. "I think we should go back to the lair because you kinda already scared a cat half to death, and I don't want to accidently alert anyone, Foot or otherwise. And, you know, we could just head home, only for tonight, and we'd be fine. Just tonight," Don trailed off and flinched, awaiting his brother's reply.
Leo didn't respond for a moment. He hiccupped, and Don shifted his weight from foot to foot. Leonardo shook his head. Don frowned and asked his brother, "Why?" Leo waited until another hiccup passed before quickly answering, "I'm not hiccupping that loudly. I think we can make a quick patrol before heading home." Then, he hiccupped. "Okay," Don said with a shrug. He walked over to his other brothers and paused. Did I hear something? No, I'm probably just being paranoid. He shook his head and continued on his way across the rooftop. Raph and Mikey were wrestling on the ground, so Don opted to stand on the opposite side of the roof and look around, just in case.
Leo managed to tell his brothers that they were going to go for a run without hiccupping. They leapt from rooftop to rooftop, flipping and showing off just because they could. It started raining, and the eldest felt something was wrong. Something was very, very wrong. He commanded his teammates to stop, and they did. The blue-banded turtle scanned the rooftops around them, then the streets below. He heard his brothers playfully fighting and called for them. With a hiccup, he told them, "Keep a lookout."
"Any particular reason?" Don asked. "Something just-", he hiccupped, "-doesn't feel right," Leo responded. "Finally, a chance to bust some heads!" Raph cracked his knuckles in a very intimidating way with a slightly sadistic grin on his face. Mike glanced around. "I don't see anything," he reported. Don narrowed his eyes and looked around. "Hmm, it's not Purple Dragons, or else we would have heard them by now. Maybe the Foot," Donnie trailed off for the second time that night. I hope not, Leo thought gravely. Maybe we should go back to the lair now. Maybe Don was right.
With those thoughts churning through his mind, Leo decided he was just paranoid after Don's request. He shook his head and glanced around again. Raph and Mike were arguing playfully and Don tried to break it up half-heartedly. I just have a bad feeling, but normally that happens for a reason, Leo realized. Sadly, he had realized this a little too late.
Foot ninja surrounded them now, on every rooftop around the one the turtles were currently on. Okay, we're surrounded, visibility might be a little down, but overall not a problem. Leo narrowed his eyes, three-fingered hands unconsciously reaching for his katana. Our best chance would be: running. He hated to admit it, but it looked like there were sixty to seventy out there, and they would be exhausted before the Foot's numbers were low enough for them to fight with their energy levels so low.
"Fall back!" Leo called. "What?" Raph yelled. "We get a chance to finally bust some heads and you say retreat?" Leo hiccupped, and it was surprisingly loud in the dark night. He heard laughing, but it was unfamiliar. Leo's eyes widened. No, no I couldn't. I couldn't have! His thoughts tortured him as he realized that he could, and he did. He led their enemy straight to them. It was his fault, and if he had to, he would pay the ultimate price for such a foolish mistake.
"Fine. Let's bust some heads," Leo agreed. Mikey and Don gaped. Their brother must know that they had no chance against this many enemies, that they were doomed. Yet, he doomed them himself. What was wrong with their brother?
"Attack!" Leonardo yelled, and his three brothers did so. The Foot ninja charged as well, and it was all a blur from there. Leo dodged blades and arrows as he leapt into the midst of it all. He had to make this right. He struck a man in the stomach with the katana in his left hand, and said man fell, most likely to never get up again. Ignoring all other sensations, Leo was blowing through the fight as quickly as he would a simple kata he had mastered years ago. He felt no pain. Must be the adrenaline, Leo thought with a grin. He seemed to be enjoying this fight.
Raph was enjoying it even more. He couldn't stop as both sais flew through the air, cutting, slicing and stabbing so quickly he hardly realized what he was doing. The Foot ninjas didn't realize what he was doing either; they would be standing there, waiting for an attack to come their way, and then they were on the ground, bleeding to death. Raph just kept going, not stopping for anything, just givin' the dirt bags what they deserved.
Don moved through the fight unsurely. He didn't know why Leo was dumb enough to risk this fight. His body moved of its own accord, decommissioning evil ninja after evil ninja. He mind flew, thoughts bumping into each other, as he tried to figure out why his usually practical brother would send them into a battle they had no chance in winning. His bo staff smacking enemies aside, Donatello gave up on learning why Leo had put them into such a situation, instead concentrating on a plan to survive it.
Mikey ran through the army of ninja, nunchucks swinging wildly. Wonder why Leo thought it'd be a good idea to fight this battle. I mean, wasn't he planning a retreat? Yeah, he was until Raph started yellin'. I can't remember what he yelling about, but I guess it changed big bro's mind. He shrugged and thought about the next issue of his Justice Force comics that was coming next week, still fighting.
By now, only half of the original number of Foot remained, but the same had happened to the turtles' energy. Leo's body wanted rest, but his mind yearned for everything to become right again. He had to adjust the balance. His intense desire to make things as they should be took away some of his concentration from checking on his brothers and moved it towards reaching his goal. He was distracted, much too distracted.
Raph was getting bored. He took out one ninja and two more took its place. They had the advantage in numbers, but the turtles had the advantage in skill. The problem was, the Foot had less skill, but with all the ninjas there, they had more energy. Raph realized that it might have been better to retreat as Leo had decided, yet he had ignored. He told himself that they couldn't run now, and he couldn't change the past. It was too late.
Don hit the ground hard, but got back up quickly, leaping back into battle again. He wasn't sure why, but he seemed to have more ninjas attacking him than his brothers did. Maybe they thought he was the weakest. They should know that they were all strong, so what was it that caused them to plan this so? Maybe, his mind whispered, you are the weakest. Don ignored that train of thought and decided it was something else, he just didn't know what yet.
Mikey yelped. Those arrows came outta nowhere! He glared at the last archer and threw a shuriken at him, accurately killing him. Good, no more random raining arrows. Those were just plain annoying. He pulled the shaft out of his arm and realized it had hardly pierced his flesh. He rolled his eyes and threw it at the nearest enemy, successfully disarming him from a quick strike to his wrist. Mike finished him off, and went to the next ninja, wondering when this stupid fight would end.
Leo stopped, glanced around. He noticed that most of the Foot ninja were gone and only fifteen or so were left. The problem was, he was tired. All his energy was spent, but the battle wasn't over yet. Gotta keep fighting, he thought desperately. He coughed a couple times, and looked for his brothers.
First he spotted Michelangelo taking out any ninja dumb enough to get in his way. After the ninjas stopped attacking him for a while, Leo saw his youngest brother slump as he wiped his forehead. He made eye contact with Leo and gave him a look that clearly said, I wanna go home and go to bed. His left eye twitched for extra effect. Leo tried a sympathetic look, but it turned into a grimace. Mike turned away to go beat up another ninja, leaving Leo with his thoughts again.
Next, he found Raph. His red-banded brother was taking out ninja after ninja, but he looked just as weary as Leo and Mikey were. After knocking the last of the group to the ground, Raph turned to him with a tired smile. Raph turned away, not wanting his brother to see his pain-stricken expression. His ankle sure hurt like shell. Leo could see his plastron heaving from the other side of the rooftop as Raph turned. Raph's tired. He's actually tired during a battle. This was such a stupid decision.
Finally, he saw Don. The scene hit him like a punch in the gut. Donnie, the one who had told him in the first place to turn around while they could, was thoroughly exhausted from the fight he had tried to avoid. Leo could tell by the sickly paleness of his brainiac brother's face that the fight hadn't gone as he'd planned. He had lost his bo staff at some point during the fight, and his duffel bag was on the ground at his feet. Leo watched from the opposite side of the rooftop as a ninja stabbed Don's plastron, but because it was so hard, he was still alive. Though, Leo quickly realized, they wouldn't be for long if they didn't take out the last five and get back to the lair now.
Leo gripped his katana harder as he ran to Don's aid. He took out one, and saw a flash of orange and blue-green as the next ninja fell to the ground. Another green blur, this one darker with a dash of red, took out a third. The blue-banded turtle noticed how deadly his family was when one of them was threatened, and worked that to his advantage. Donnie looked a bit stronger, and slightly embarrassed, as he knocked the remaining two to the ground with a roundhouse kick.
"Is everyone okay?" Leo's voice sounded weary and Don answered quickly, "I think we should get back to the lair before more Foot ninjas get here. We've had enough for one day, don't you think?" The others nodded and hopped down the fire escape as fast as they could, before climbing into the nearest manhole and splashing through the sewers.
"Are we all okay?" Leo repeated his question. He was worried about his brothers. "I'm sorry. It's my fault. If it wasn't for me and my stupid hiccups-" He was interrupted by a very excited Mikey. "Dude! Your hiccups are gone!" He cheered. "And that's what we should be worried about?" Raph asked sarcastically. Leo shook his head and told them, "Yeah, my hiccups are gone. Hooray. Now is anyone, other than Don, seriously hurt?"
He wasn't expecting an answer since Mikey was quick and good at dodging blows coming his way. Raph wouldn't answer even if he was hurt. That was just how Raph was. Mike shook his head and said, "I just got a nice bruise on my arm. And I'm tired. Ya know, a pizza sounds really good right now." Raph slapped the back of his head gently and muttered, "'m fine." Don was silent. Did he know something the others didn't? Well of course he did. He wasn't famous for building things out of scrap for nothing. But, something seemed wrong.
"Don?" Don had a hand on the wound on his plastron, trying to stop the blood flow, but it wasn't helping. Blood leaked through his fingers into the sewer water at his feet. "Oh, Don," Leo breathed. Not only was he losing blood quickly, his face was paling more and more by the second. He was stumbling a bit too, but none of them had noticed because Don was just that quiet. He was the stealthiest out of them after all.
"Raph." Said turtle nodded and picked Don up, cradling him like a baby. Don was still silent. "Uh, Don?" Mikey asked with a confused look on his face. "Shhh," Raph commanded with a smile. His younger bro had passed out in his arms, but the blood flow had slowed, and now Donnie was sleeping peacefully. Mikey whispered to Leo, "Totally a Kodak moment. Right here, right now, bro." Leo smiled.
The brothers continued, and Don stayed in Raph's arms. At least, he did until Raph started limping about halfway back home. Leo pulled Donnie out of Raph's arms, muttering something about him knowing Raph was hurt. Mike put his arm around Raph's shoulders to keep his older brother up, and Raph reluctantly did the same, keeping it there the rest of the way back to the lair.
Once they got there, they found Master Splinter, April, and Casey all waiting for them. "My sons," Splinter greeted, obviously relieved. "Guys!" April and Case called. Casey ran over to give Raph a monster bear-hug, but then he noticed their current condition. "Woah, Raph, whaddya do this time? Was it the Purple Dragons? They'll get it the next time we go out to bust some heads, won't they Raph? Raph?" Raphael grunted and jerked his head to Leo, who was still carrying Don. "Aw, man," Casey gaped. "Guys, what happened?" April asked, hands on her hips. "Yes, my sons. What caused these injuries?"
The turtles bowed to their sensei. Well, at least the conscious ones did. Placing Donnie on the couch, Leo began his explanation. "Master, I'm sorry. We never meant to stay out on patrol that long. It's just, I had the hiccups, and I scared a cat and then the Foot found us from the noise it made. After that, they attacked and it's my fault Master Splinter and-"
"Hold up," Raph interrupted, shrugging off Mike's arm and standing up as well as he could, he continued, "Your fault? If mem'ry serves me right-and I'm sure as shell it does-you were the one tellin' us to retreat. Master Splinter, it was my fault 'cause I told 'im to stay and fight." Raph bowed somewhat awkwardly as Master Splinter walked over and tapped both of them on the head with his walking stick.
"It is never one's fault. It is a chain of events that lead up to one larger one. Both of you did what you believed was right at the time. It is alright, my sons," Master Splinter reassured them. "No it's not!" Mikey exclaimed suddenly. "What is it, Mike?" Leo ran over to his brother who was kneeling by Don. Mikey looked up to his big bro with tears glistening in his eyes. "Donnie stopped breathing!"
"What?" Practically everyone in the room panicked but before they could do anything, Don started breathing again. Almost everyone sighed in relief this time. Mikey looked to the others, tears streaking down his cheeks, and the look broke April's heart.
"Oh, Mikey, it's fine. He's breathing again, it's all gonna be okay, you got that?" Mike sniffed but nodded nonetheless. "He needs medical attention," April stated briskly. "The rest of you need some too. Let's go!" With that, Mikey helped Raph into the infirmary while Raph comforted the still sniffling Mikey on the way there. Leo walked over to the couch to pick up Donnie. "You sure he isn't heavy?" April asked gently. "He isn't heavy. He's my brother," Leo replied with a shake of his head.
Leo carried Don to the infirmary where four cots sat, two of them occupied. Raph sat on the edge of his, and Mikey was just pulling himself up onto his when April and Leo walked in. The blue-banded turtle gently placed his brother onto the cot between Michelangelo's and his own before pulling himself up as well. April checked them over, starting with Don.
She muttered to herself before pouring hydrogen peroxide onto his main wound, then bandaging it. She placed enough painkillers for Don and a glass of water on the counter, followed by three more sets, each for the respective turtle. Then she checked Raph. She muttered again as she poked and prodded his right ankle. "Yep, it's sprained. Gonna have to stay off that for a while now, buddy." She gave him a smile, to which he groaned and flopped back onto the bed. She moved to Mikey, since his cot was next to Raph's.
"You've got a nice one on your left arm. That'll need ice for a while," April decided. Handing him an ice pack and whispering a few comforting words to the depressed turtle, she passed Don's quiet cot and moved on to Leo's. Said turtle was currently sitting up and April had to gently push him back down to check him over. "Chill, big guy," April soothed. His muscles were tense, as if he expected an attack to come any second. He let out a breath, and relaxed. She rubbed his shell then his shoulders saying, "Leo, it's not your fault, and Donnie's going to be fine. Right?" Leo nodded as he slowly slipped into unconsciousness.
April sighed. This had been a rough day for them. For all of them. Now, she heard Raph snoring, Mikey muttering in his sleep, and Leo's deep, even breaths. They would be fine. She forgot to give them their painkillers, but she could give those to them later. Right now, they needed rest.
She exited the room and saw Master Splinter and Casey's expectant faces. With a sigh, she explained their current conditions, but that they'd be well soon, with lots of rest.
"It's simple. Mikey needs to stay mostly in bed for about a week, Leo, I'd say the same as Mike. Raph, I'm thinking four, and Donnie," She shrugged. If you don't mind, I'd like to just come to check on them during this healing period. I'm honestly not sure about Don's state. Unstable, is the only way to put it. He needs five to seven weeks of rest. That's my best guess. Sorry I couldn't do more," She finished.
"You have done more than enough, Miss O' Neil. Thank you. We shall contact you if we need any guidance or assistance in this healing process. Thank you for being here for my sons. They may have passed without you." The sentence hung in the air until Casey swatted it out by saying, "Well then, the guys'll be okay?" April nodded. "Thanks Ape!" Case gave his girlfriend a bone-crushing hug. "I woulda gone nuts without Raph to bust some heads with!" April smiled.
"Master Splinter, when they wake up, give them the painkillers and water on the counter in there. I have them labeled, so you know whose is whose. We'll be going now, if you don't mind," She told the rat. He nodded. "See ya later!" Casey called, before the couple walked out.
Master Splinter checked on his sons. He saw Raphael and Michelangelo sleeping peacefully, but Donatello and Leonardo seemed to be having nightmares. Don frowned in his sleep, seemingly trying to roll off the bed onto the floor but the rails on the side of the cot kept him from doing so. Leo was muttering inaudibly, and squeezed his eyes tightly shut. Feeling mildly alarmed, the rat master tried to wake Donatello first, but to no avail. He tried Leonardo next, and managed to awaken his son.
Don still turned in the thin, white blankets April had provided for him. Finally, he screamed. "STOP!" Then, he began sobbing. Master Splinter didn't know what to do. He noticed his other sons awaken and walk over. Raph was aided by Mikey, who had tears in his eyes once again. They watched in horror as Don's sobbing got worse, and when Splinter touched his second youngest son's forehead, he pulled his hand back in shock from the heat radiating from Don's skin.
"Oh, my son. My son." Master Splinter worried with his three conscious sons about the fourth. Mike was full out crying into Raph's shoulder, Raph was doing his best to comfort his sad brother, but he had tears in his eyes as well and they sobbed into each other. Leo watched with a blank look. How had it turned into this?