Don't Lie
A/N: It's been a little while since I've written any Turtle Tots stories, and I decided to just go with it again. This was inspired by a conversation my sister had with me about her fiance's boys and how they have a habit of lying too much. I thought it would be interesting to explore how the Turtles learned lessons about certain morals within their younger years and how they handled it. This will be the first in a series I like to call The Morality Series. I hope you enjoy this one-shot.
Disclaimer: I don't own the TMNT or anything associated with them. I only own the plot of this story.
Summary: Four young Turtles learn about how it's not nice to tell a lie and what the consequences of doing so could be. First in the Morality Series.
Splinter smiled as he made his way home from a scavenging mission. His sons were growing and needed more nourishment now than they ever did. It was difficult to find food that was edible for them, but Splinter somehow managed it. He felt guilty leaving the young ones home alone, but he knew that he couldn't bring them with him all of the time. He thought about what they might be doing as he made his way closer to their home. They were probably sitting quietly watching television or coloring in one of the coloring books that he had gotten for them.
When he arrived home he found his sons talking frantically in whispers which abruptly stopped as he entered the room. The Rat was very confused as to what was going on.
"My sons, I am home," he said. "Would you like to help me unload the groceries?"
"Yes, Sensei," Leonardo said hurriedly as he and the others went to help their father with the groceries. Once the items were unloaded, Splinter did an inventory of the rest of the Lair, hoping that his sons hadn't gotten into any mischief. Upon entering the dojo, he noticed that two of the weapons he usually stored in the racks were gone! He quickly went to his sons, knowing that they had to have been playing with them.
"My sons, where are the weapons that normally hang on the racks?" he asked them, trying to be patient with them.
His sons squirmed as they heard his question, knowing that they were going to be in trouble.
"Leo took the weapons out, Sensei," Mikey tattled. "I told him it wasn't right, but he didn't listen."
Leo glared at his brother. "That is not what happened," he protested. "You took the weapons out and began to fight with Raph."
Splinter was a bit confused. "Leonardo, did you take the weapons out?" he asked.
"No, Sensei, Mikey did," Leo replied.
"Did not!" Mikey contradicted. "You did it, Leo, and you know you did."
"Donatello? Raphael?" Splinter prompted his two other sons. Maybe they would have the answer he was looking for.
"It was Leo," Raph replied. "He did it."
"Yeah, it was him," Don added.
Leo glared at his brothers, offended by the betrayal of the other two. "I did not take those weapons out!" he cried. "Mikey did it!"
"I did not!" Mikey continued to argue.
"Enough!" Splinter chastised. "You four are to remain in your room for the rest of the day until someone confesses to the crime. I will not allow such tactics to be displayed in my home. One of you is lying, and I will not tolerate this behavior from my sons. Now, go!"
The four Turtles did as they were told and went to their room, silently arguing on the way there.
Splinter went into his chambers to meditate. Clearly, his sons were not being truthful with him, though he didn't know why. How was he to get the truth of what had happened? He decided to make them remain in their room until one of them confessed to the deed. He didn't want to think that his sons would lie to him, but they obviously had. It was a behavior that had to be nipped in the bud before it escalated further.
22222
Meanwhile, the Turtles were in their room and arguing about what had happened.
"Why can't you admit you did wrong, Leo?" Raph asked.
"Because I didn't," Leo insisted. "Mikey took those weapons without permission. We're going to remain in here for the rest of the day because you guys lied along with him. Why did you do that?"
"He promised us he wouldn't play pranks on us if we went along with him," Raph replied. "You know how he gets sometimes."
"That's no excuse," Leo replied. "You know better than that. Mikey, you're going to go and confess to Sensei that you took the weapons."
"No way!" Mikey cried. "I always get blamed for stuff. It's about time you took the blame for once."
"I'm not going to take the blame for something I didn't do," Leo retorted. "You need to confess to Master Splinter. If you want, I'll go with you for support."
"Hey, no need to be so quick," Raph said. "Splinter can't keep us here all day, you know."
"He said we're to remain here for the rest of the day," Leo said. "That means we can't watch TV."
"We may not even be able to eat," Don said, catching on to what Leo was getting at.
"He can't starve us," Raph retorted. "That's child abuse."
"Splinter can do anything he wants," Leo replied. "He's the father. So, Mikey, do you want to continue to lie about what you did, or do you want to confess so that you can eat?"
Mikey thought about it for a minute. He knew he couldn't go without eating anything for a whole day, even if he knew he was going to be punished differently if he confessed. "Okay, Leo, I'll do it," he said.
"Good," Leo said. "We'll back you up."
So the four Turtles headed to their father's room and knocked on his door.
"Enter," Splinter said.
The Turtles timidly entered the room and saw their father sitting as though he'd been meditating. Splinter looked up at them as they came into the room.
"Yes, my sons?" he asked them. "What are you doing here?"
"Master Splinter, Mikey has something to say to you," Leo began. He pushed Mikey forward to prompt him to confess.
Mikey took a deep breath and said, "Master Splinter, I was the one who took the weapons out of the dojo, not Leo. I only said it was Leo so I wouldn't be punished."
"I see," Splinter said. "Donatello? Raphael? Why did you go along with Michelangelo's story?"
"Because he promised us if we would, he wouldn't pull pranks on us," Don replied.
"And yet you knew that Leonardo had not done what Michelangelo accused him of doing?" Splinter inquired.
"No, Sensei," Don and Raph replied.
"Very well," Splinter said. "Michelangelo, you are grounded from the television and video games for one month. You are also to write an essay about lying and why you must not do it. Donatello and Raphael, you will also be grounded from the television for one month, and you must also write an essay about why it was wrong of you to encourage your brother to lie. Such behavior will not be tolerated in this home, do you understand?"
"Yes, Sensei," the three Turtles replied.
"Good," Splinter said. "When one lies, it is very hard for others to trust them again." Then he told the story of the Boy Who Cried Wolf and how lying had affected him when the real wolf came. "Do you see why lying is wrong, my sons?"
"Yeah, we can see it," Mikey replied. "It's wrong because if you lie, then people won't know when you're telling the truth."
"That is correct," Splinter praised him. "Now, go to your room, you three. You are still being punished. Leonardo, you may stay out and do as you please. Although I must ask, what caused Michelangelo to come and confess?"
"I told him that if he didn't confess, he wouldn't be able to eat," Leo replied. "I didn't know if we were gonna get meals or not."
"I see," Splinter said. "Well, I can assure you that I will never forbid you from having meals. After all, you are growing boys and need your nourishment. Now, run along."
From that moment on, the Turtle learned never to lie to their father again. He even put up a sign that said, "No lying in the Lair" to remind the young Turtles about lying. As they grew older, they looked back on that lesson and how grateful they were that Splinter taught it to them.
The End
A/N: And so ends the first story in my series. I really hope you enjoyed it and will stick around for the others. Feel free to leave a review and have a shelltastic day.