I don't own TMNT.
Horror in the Dark
Leo lay sleepless in his bed, his eyes darting to the shadows, fear in his mind.
'Why? What am I afraid of?' he cursed, 'Seriously? He was afraid of the dark?' He sighed, sure, kids were often afraid of the dark... But he wasn't a kid. He hit his fist against the bed, mad at himself. Wishing he could just crawl in bed with one of his brothers like they use to when they were kids. But was the leader, fearless, letting his brothers know he was afraid, wouldn't do.
'Your being stupid, there's nothing there' He told himself as he rolled over again to face the wall. That just made things worse. His skin crawled, and he knew someone was watching him. Staring at his back, waiting for him to fall asleep, that's when they would strike.
'I'm in the lair, no one is there... well, except maybe a brother' He rolled over again looking for any signs his brothers were playing prank on him... 'then again, why would I be afraid of my brother walking around our home?'
He hit the back of his head on his pillow. Giving up. He sat up on the edge of his bed and lit the candle that sat on his bed stand. He glanced around his dimly lit room. Shadows clung to the corners, spaces he couldn't see. He looked at his feet, sitting on the ground right in front of the bed. He jerked his feet up quickly before he quite understood why. Hanging his head, he sighed at himself again, the candle didn't help.
'Yeah a foot is in my room and they darted under the bed when they saw me turn to light a candle, and are going to slice the back of my legs with a shuriken' He told himself sarcastically.
He lay back down, not bothering to blow out the candle... 'Well, At least I can say I'm not afraid of the dark.' it was little consolation. 'Granted, there are a lot of things sneaking around in the shadows worth being afraid of... but I've faced them all head on with no problem. Then again his brothers had always been beside him when he faced them then.'
He took a deep breath, and closed his eyes; If he didn't get to sleep his family would be worried about him in practice the next day.
His eyes darted open as he heard a floorboard creak. A few breathless minutes later the toilet flushed, and light footsteps came back down the hall. He groaned, now he was jumping at the normal sounds of the night.
He should just go to one of them, He bolted upright again sitting on the edge of the bed. His brother didn't need to know why he came over... he could say... He could say ... What could he say? He wanted to scream.
What would his brothers do If he just showed up asking to bunk?
Raph would curse him out for waking him up and send him away.
Don, would probably try to determine if he was going insane.
Mikey... Mikey would probably let him stay but then he and Raph would spend the entire next day teasing him about being afraid of the dark.
He blew out the candle on his desk, suddenly worried his awake brother would see the light and wonder what was up.
It was too late. His brother, had already stopped in front of his door, and was peaking though a crack in the door way.
A frown crossed the youngest brothers features. He had been there long enough to understand his brother was unable to sleep. Why, he couldn't be certain... He pondered, 'What would keep Leo up?' ... If it was him, it probably would just be another nightmare. But if it was him, he would of gone to Leo hours ago, knowing the oldest wouldn't complain and just scoot over for him.
'Why didn't Leo come to one of them? Was he too good for that? Did he not think his brothers would be willing to help?' A tiny bit of anger went though Mikey... but he shrugged it away quickly... 'No... he's just too proud... or doesn't think we'll follow him if he's not fearless... Stupid Raph for putting that in his head' Mikey rolled his eyes, not quite sure what to do.
He pondered for a while, quietly watching Leo toss and turn more. Then he grinned, Leo was too proud to go to one of them... but Mikey wasn't!
Mikey frowned, his plan involved a blatant lie. He pondered for a moment... 'Then again,' He told himself 'a little white lie for his brother wasn't so bad was it? I mean It wasn't like he was killing someone... not that I haven't done that for them either.'
That made up his mind and Mikey pushed though Leo's door.
"I had a nightmare, Can I bunk here tonight?" Mikey said quietly with a sheepish grin. Leo looked at him for a minute, and Mikey feared he'd call him out on his lie. But Leo just scooted over pressing his shell against the wall, and pulled up the covers so Mikey could crawl in. Mikey happily grabbed the opportunity, snuggling close into Leo's shoulder.
Leo smiled slightly as Mikey fell quickly into sleep. Certain his brother had come to rescue him from himself. He almost laughed, trust Mikey to find a way to help Leo without hurting his pride. He took a deep breath, as he finally relaxed, and fell into a deep sleep himself.