TMNT etc are not mine. (I'm still grieving with the reality)
This story line was borrowed from a challenge from the Stealthy Stories site. (Ta guys)
Ah'Kalina is my OC. I figured she was already in my head so I added her in too. Plus she starts to take control if she hasn't been out in a while.
The Giant Hippo of Eternal Patience in the River of Continual Contentment, isn't mine either. Mr Hippo belongs to an odd and very funny friend who keeps a little wooden Hippo on her desk for such intolerable emergencies. Though I have found myself praying to him on occasion. Try it, it works, seriously :)
Donatello & The Hippo
Donatello was patient. It took alot to rattle him and when it did, the rage didn't last long.
Ah'Kalina had once compared him to a Hippo and given him a small carved figurine which she'd stuck on top of his monitor with blu-tak. He'd not been sure if she was insulting him or not, so out of curiosity he spent an hour or two researching the robust creatures. He'd never really considered the attributes of the common African Hippo.
They spent most of their time in the water, happily swimming and floating around in the muddy, murky water unconcerned about the world around them, surfacing only for food once all the other pesky savannah animals were gone. They lived their entire lives in close proximity to Crocodiles, sharing the same streams and rivers but only ever attacking when one of the herd was in danger.
They looked peaceful, contented but in truth they were more dangerous than the Lion, the Crocodile or other predatory animals that roamed the large African continent.
Kali figured he was like a Hippo, and after the week he'd just had, Donatello could see the similarities.
It had been brewing for a while, and the more he thought about it, it was probably his own fault.
Sunday had been the beginning of his downward spiral... It was on Sunday that the sleeping Hippo of Eternal Patience had begun to stir...
"Something is wrong with my computer." He frowned at the screen and slowly turned to look at the guilty looking turtle to his right, "What did you do Mikey?"
"Why is it always me?" The brother asked backing away slowly as Don got up out of his chair.
"It's always you Mike. I just had it up and running again, now it's freezing, shadowing and none of my JPEG's exist any more!" Donatello closed in on his little brother, "What did you do?"
"Nothing." Mike made a quick move over the couch, making sure there was something between him and the angry looking geek approaching him, "I just... downloaded...stuff?"
Don stopped at the couch, narrowing his eyes he asked, "What stuff?"
"stuff?" Mike tried to shrink into his shell, "maybe a game or two?"
Don opened his mouth and with a quiet 'meep' from the figure trying to hide behind the cushions, he gave in. He shook his head and groaned, returning to his computer with nothing more than a whimper.
Mikey breathed a sigh of relief, but knew it wouldn't take long for Donatello to realise it wasn't just his images that were missing. He needed something to do and fast, something that would take him as far away from Don as possible.
"Hey Raph?" He stuck his head in the dojo, "How fast you reckon I could get to China?"
"What?"
"Michelangelo!" There was a blood curdling yell from the other side of the lair.
"Never mind." Mike ran, as fast as he could.
Donny couldn't be bothered trying to chase him, he didn't have the energy. He sighed to himself and turned back to his computer. Everything, every drive had been wiped clean, all his data, his projects, everything gone. It would take him days to restore it all and that was just getting it back to skeletal condition. His headache was returning, the same dull throb that had been sitting at the base of his skull all weekend. He dug around his desk looking for the aspirin bottle and swallowed a couple with the last of his coffee.
He didn't have time to worry about it now, the hot water system had finally given in and that needed repairing first, then he could get to the television. Once that was up and running he could concentrate on his computer, then he could worry about what was on the rest of his 'To-do' list.
Don realised he should have probably slept Sunday instead of continuing to mess around with a hot water system that was already waltzing around gadget heaven. It was a futile attempt, fixing the ten year old, second hand system that he'd picked up from a construction site in the first place. But Don hated throwing away anything that could possibly be used again, he was too practical.
Monday had only made things worse... it was on Monday the Giant Hippo of Eternal Patience waded out of the muddy water of Don's psyche...
"For the hundredth time Raph, No."
"Why not? Come on it'll take you five minutes."
"Fine, I'll do it tomorrow."
"I need it now."
Don sighed and looked up from the pile of shattered parts he'd been working on. "I have enough to do, why can't you do it?"
"I'm busy."
"And I'm not?" Don's patience was wearing thin, "My computer is completely wiped, the scanner in the west tunnel is malfunctioning and I already told Splinter I'd fix the tv. Not to mention this... heap."
"Come on, I do favours for you."
Don looked up at his brother, "Like what?"
Raph shrugged his shoulders, "There's bound to be something."
Don sighed again, "Fine I'll look at it but I'm not promising anything." He rubbed his eyes, the glare from the monitor was getting to him. "Leave it over there."
Raph dropped the police scanner on the table beside the broken toaster, the kettle with the burnt element and parts for the hot water system.
Don felt his energy pouring out of his toes.
"I got that jar down for you."
"What?"
"On the top shelf, I got it down when you couldn't reach it."
Don looked at his brothers retreating shell and called out, "We were six!"
The ache in his head was preparing an onslaught. He could feel the muscles in his neck tighten and his eyes were growing tired from use and lack of sleep. He knew he should be hungry, he hadn't eaten much in the last couple of days and as willing as it was he doubted coffee was considered a food group. He sighed again, swallowed another couple of aspirin and the last of his can of cola and concentrated on the burnt out element in the kettle, the hot water system would have to wait until Kali or April could get him the spare parts.
Raphael could push him at the best of times but his brothers constant demands and his impatient stare had made him cave under the pressure. As he recalled he hadn't slept Monday night either, not counting the quick thirty minute power nap at his desk, and the more he thought about it he couldn't remember eating anything either.
Tuesday was a continuation of his descent...Tuesday was when the Hippo of Eternal Patience showed its teeth...
"About that scanner."
"Leo don't start, I'm not in the mood."
"Have you been sitting here all night?" He could hear the accusing tone in his brother's voice.
"No." He moved his head, trying to get the crick out of the cramped muscles in his neck, "I got up for a coffee."
"What have you been doing all night?"
Donny was hoping that was a rhetorical question but knowing Leo he'd require an answer, "Trying to restore my computer files, including the original schematics for our defence system, the wiring plan for the kitchen and everything else I've been working on for the past oh I don't know... ten years. Plus the tv, the toaster, Raph's police scanner and half a dozen other things that have piled up on my desk in the last twenty four hours."
"So you looked at the scanner in the west tunnel then?"
"Yes Leo and I can confirm it's screwed!"
Leo frowned, "You don't need to get agro."
"I'd cry but that requires energy." Don pushed his chair away from his desk and wheeled back to his computer.
"We've got training."
"I'll skip it."
"You can't 'skip it'." Leo's frown deepened, "You've been slacking off all week."
"Slacking off! Slacking off! What do you think I do Leo? Sit here and play games all day? I fix everything Raph breaks, everything Mike screws up and everything you decide is more important than everything else I have on my ever growing list of things to do. I am not slacking off! I work hard to keep everything in the pristine condition you expect it to be in, I keep Mike from going insane and Raph from ending up in a cage! Do not tell me I'm slacking off!"
Leo had a brief look of concern, "Maybe you should take a break?"
"No Leo," He tried to calm down, his head was spinning, "What I need is peace and quiet and no interruptions."
Leo backed away without another word, leaving Donny surrounded by broken appliances. His head was screaming in agony, his cornea were dancing in his eye balls and he could no longer feel anything from the chin down, but that had never stopped him before. He had a list of parts he needed and reached out for the phone, the sudden movement sent his head in a spin, he felt sick and dizzy.
In what had seemed like slow motion Donatello fell face first, he reached out for something to hold onto but there was nothing there, luckily, the floor caught him.
The Giant Hippo of Eternal Patience had been forced out of the water before it was ready, the Croc's had invaded the river, there were animals all over the bank and the Hippo was really not in the mood to discuss territorial ownership. Donatello has seen a few documentaries on Hippo's, they're not at their best when angry, they make odd noises and sink nice sharp arm length teeth into one another.
Looking back he was glad he'd passed out, he didn't think blood curdling anger and vein popping stress was a good look for him.
He didn't remember much else of Tuesday, and Wednesday and Thursday were a complete blank. Friday had seen the Hippo angrily sitting on the edge of the river bed, waiting for the water to fill back up...
"Donny." A soft concerned voice drifted through his head, "Don I need you to sit up for me."
His head was still screaming, his brain felt like it was doing the River Dance across his eyes.
"I need you to drink this."
He lifted his head as much as the dancing Leprechauns would let him and drank down whatever was in the glass the soft voice was pouring down his dry throat. For a minute he thought he would throw it back up but as his head hit the pillow his stomach began to settle.
"Is he ok?" Another voice asked.
"He'll be ok." He felt a movement on the bed as someone sat beside him, "He needs to keep drinking the electrolytes and as much water as you can get down him. It's important he gets as much sleep as he needs."
"He's been asleep for two days." Don recognised Raph's voice, it expressed more unease than usual.
"I'm surprised it's not longer," It was Kali's voice, she was sitting beside him, "He's been living off aspirin and caffeine, when was the last time you remember him eating anything?"
Donatello tried to think, Sunday? No maybe Saturday, he remembered having toast on Saturday, no that must have been Friday, when the toaster broke. No wait... the toaster broke on Thursday.
"When do you think he'll be back on his feet?" Leo asked.
"That depends on his system and how much damage he's done to it. The fact he passed out isn't good, his blood pressure is still high and I'm worried about his sugar levels, he's pushed his body to its limit. It's now on auto pilot and rest is about the only thing that will help."
"That and this junk." Mike was in his room too? Was there no privacy?
"That junk," Kali told his brother, "is full of all the vitamins and minerals his body is craving. Without it his body will shut down even further."
Donatello listened as Kali lectured them on mineral depletion and vitamin intake. She was beginning to sound like him, only she didn't use big words. He drifted in and out of sleep, each time being woken by one voice or another, told to lift his head and drink. After a while he was able to open his eyes, the River Dance had slowed to a subtle waltz and his head was beginning to form lucid thought patterns. His stomach ached with hunger but his brothers were under strict instructions not to feed him anything but water and Kali's special electrolyte tea.
The Hippo grumbled quietly as the monsoon began to fill up the river. The sudden flood had sent the Croc's further up stream and the inhabitants of the Savannah were occupied with greener pastures. It was content as it waded back into the muddy waters, happy but cautious.
Saturday he'd managed to sit up, propped up on a couple of pillows he'd eaten a bowl of sweet sticky rice and a few half cooked vegetable's Kai had sent up with Leo.
"You scared the hell out of me." His brother frowned, "Why didn't you say anything?"
"Like what?" He asked, still tired.
"I don't know." Leo shrugged, "Anything."
Don would have thought 'no' and 'go away I'm busy' were expressive enough, but obviously his brothers needed something a bit more explicit.
"I thought I was ok." He admitted, "I lose track, it was only a head ache at first."
Leo's frown deepened. Don ignored it as he slowly ate through the rice.
"Mike fixed the tv."
"Oh god." Don suddenly felt worse.
"No it's ok," Leo smiled, "It actually works, we even get what I think is a Columbian channel now."
Don wasn't sure Mikey fixing the tv was a good thing, he'd have to check it out.
"I looked at the scanner too, it was some loose wiring, looks like something chewed through it. I found some tape so I fixed it up. I think it's working ok."
Don was worried, Leo tampering with his wiring. He'd have to make note to look at that too.
"And Raph's ganna' give the vigilante stuff a break, for a week at least. He got a new toaster and kettle too, I don't think we want to know how."
As the rice and veggies settled in his stomach Donatello's brain began to clear, "And you couldn't have done this before?"
Leo shrugged sheepishly, "You don't know what you've got till it's gone I guess." He took the empty bowl from Donny, "Plus Kali's been kinda' pushy all week."
Don smiled, the idea of quiet demure little Kali bossing around his three brothers was amusing. "She been here all week?"
"Mike called her after you passed out, she's been cleaning out the store room and sorting through all your junk."
"Oh great." Don grumbled, "So now I won't be able to find a damn thing."
"She's labelled everything." Leo smiled, "She knows how anal you are about your stuff. She's been pretty good actually."
Don couldn't help his yawn, "You're just saying that cause she cooks and keeps Raph and Mikey busy."
Leo watched his brother yawn again, "You'd better get some more sleep, I'll let Raph and Mike know your ok."
Don rested back against his pillows and closed his eyes. It didn't take long for him to fall asleep.
And that bought him back to Sunday...
"Here." A large bowl of sweet chilli noodles was shoved under his nose, "Eat."
He looked up at his brother and took the steaming bowl, "You're going to stand there and watch me eat it aren't you?"
"Yep." Mike sat on the corner of the bench his own bowl in his hands.
"Great." He looked over to the kitchen, Leo, Raph, Splinter and Kali were sitting at the table. Leo was watching him.
"Kali made hot fudge pudding too, but she says you can't have any unless you come out and eat it like a normal mutant." Mike shoved a fork full of noodles in his mouth, "She's not actually as nice as she makes out you know, she made me clean out the dojo."
He looked over to the kitchen table, Leo and Raph were in the middle of a playful argument over Kali's leftovers and Splinter had settled into the fudge pudding with a quiet grin. Mikey sat at his desk beside the parts for the hot water system that couldn't be bought back to life.
"You wanna' come watch tv?" Mikey asked as he finished his noodles, "There's this really cool movie on but it's in Portuguese, we'll have to make up the story 'cause I can't figure out how to get the subtitles back up."
Don grinned, "Sure."
He was still tired but with his headache gone and his body feeling close to normal he was happy. He looked at the tiny little Hippo sitting on his monitor and wondered how long it would take for the Croc's to swim back down river, he figured it didn't really matter. The Giant Hippo of Eternal Patience was back wallowing in its River of Continual Contentment, and all the animals of the Savannah knew not to contest its peaceful territory again.
The little wooden figurine grinned knowingly at him, he pulled it off his monitor and gave it a gentle smile,
Donatello liked Hippo's.