A/N: This is a type of freestyle poem called a 'Sestina.' The rules are pretty simple: 1) the last words in each of the six lines in the first stanza become the last words in the lines of the next five stanzas, but none of the six words ever reappear in the same line location; 2) the last word of line six of one stanza becomes the last word in line one of the following stanza; 3) in the seventh stanza (this one is made of three lines), three of the end words appear at the end of the line and three others appear in the middle of the lines. Sounds fun, right?
Disclaimer: Heck, I can't even get them on my ipod... :(
Sneaking up to the topside, bent on finding him, Leonardo
Searched throughout the park for where his hidden
Brother might be slinking anywhere, deep inside the bushes or high amidst the trees
Hanging overhead. The rain was coming down as lightning
Flashed in the sky. Finding his lost brother who had run away from home was now a matter of bushido,
But at night it is very hard to find a shadow.
The rain dripped off of the leaves as they cast their faint shadows
As he passed by the faintly glowing streetlights. Leo
Looked up at the ice-like precipitation and knew that any ninja worth his honor
Would be home by now and safely hidden
From the revealing flashes that were now lighting
Up his worried eyes as he scanned every foliage, every tree.
Suddenly, there was a movement up in the branches of one of the trees,
Bending the opposite way as the wind was blowing, as a darkness leaped down like a long-forlorn shadow.
It no longer mattered to either that the ever-increasing sudden brightness
Showed them. The once-missing ran to his brother, Leonardo,
The fear on his face barely being kept hidden
By his orange mask. It was this mask, this symbol of honor,
That marked each of them. To lose the mask was to lose honor,
But should it be that one should be forced to stay behind the mask when even among lonely trees
And yet always stay eternally in the background. Should one always be hidden?
He pondered these thoughts as he took his brother. Both the shadows
Walked slowly back to the nearest manhole cover with Leonardo
Supporting his brother. Like always, he reflected under a final flash of lightening.
Even in the flooding tunnels of the sewers, the thunder that once was accompanied by lightening
Could be heard echoing. Though exhausted, he was more than glad that he had honored
His Sensei's wish to go out one last time. Leonardo
Felt pure happiness surge through him as he was with his brother, safe from the leafy boughs,
Could be returned to the warm arms and loving hearts that lived in shadow.
He pushed open the secret door that lead to their home, still hidden.
There was darkness. A candle was lit to reveal the hidden.
The old rat the ninjas called 'father' walked forwards, his eyes lighting
At the sight of his youngest son retuned safely home to the shadows.
There was no anger in his eyes, only peace, love, and honor.
"He was searching for cover over in Central Park when I found him. He was trying the trees
To see if they could block out the cold rain," explained Leonardo.
His father sighed from the shadows, pleased with the honor
His son brought him by returning the hidden Michelangelo with only lightning
To reveal him in the trees. Yes, he was proud of Leonardo.
Please review! I know you're reading! :-) Flames will be used to make me actually study for that test on Wednesday!