AN: If you are reading this than I have already achieved my goal. Someone looked. Welcome to my very first TMNT fanfic, and my very first one to be posted outside of a fan-forum!

This is a very nerve-racking experience for me for two reasons, first because I have never opened up and posted my literature under my personal internet username before, always a pen-name and always with shame. Second is because I am rather new to the TMNT fandom. Thank you 2012 series for making me curious. I have a lot to learn, and fanfic research has been incredibly educational for this fandom.

Anyway, about "Triangle", my first TMNT Fanfic. It'll take place in the 2012 universe, as it is the one I am most familiar with at this time. This is going to be a big one, bigger than anything I've ever written before. Looking at my massive story summary scares me, and I'm only looking at the one I wrote for the first part of the story, which is what you're about to start reading now. It's a slow go for me, I am spending a lot of time doing research, thinking, editing and expanding. All of which I can be working on if I stop writing this AN that is longer than my first chapter. Ouch.

Triangle: Part 1- Leadership

Chapter 1

They were alone, Leonardo knew, but an uneasy feeling that crossed him caused him to take pause. His brothers halted cautiously, trying to sense what had suddenly put their leader on edge. Leo's eyes scanned the shadows and rooftops, spotting nothing out of the ordinary, but yet the uneasy feeling remained. Raph let loose an impatient sigh. Their rooftop run had been meant for training, and in a sense it still was; If you'd count a full-out search for their youngest as a training session. Michelangelo had felt restless, and offhandedly mentioned that instead of specialized combat training he'd rather be home playing games. That was when Raphael suggested "Hide-and-kick-Mikey's-shell". He was being sarcastic, but Mikey had jumped at the idea and vanished into the night without another word. They had been searching for him for hours now, but the youngest had mastery of this game. Leo sighed heavily in thought, they were running out of time, it would be sunrise soon. Their pride was at stake. With renewed determination to win he turned back to his brothers, " Split up."

Feeling brave, Leo took to the alleyways, searching bins, boxes, trash, and cars. Seeing movement inside towards the back of an open and abandoned vehicle, Leo reached inside, only to be rewarded with a sharp pain; a scratched up hand for disturbing a mother cat with newborn kittens. Giving up on the streets, he utilized a fire escape to get to another rooftop. A shadow flashed into his view, but quickly vanished. Leo blinked. Was that someone, or was he seeing things? The sound of footfall caused him to start and take up a defensive stance,

" Any luck?" Donatello jogged up beside him, panting.

Leo relaxed and lifted his clawed up hand, " Only the bad kind."

Donnie sighed, his breathing returning normal, and shook his head, " We'd best go meet up with Raph, perhaps he's had better luck."

They met up at the rendezvous rooftop just before sunrise and, to all of their irritation, Mikey had managed to elude them. Donnie sat, silent in deep thought, while Raph paced in frustration. Absently Leo ran his hand over his head, scratching at the back of his mask, " So I guess if Mikey doesn't come home with us, I get to eat all of his pizza." he recited.

"Wha? Jus waitaminnit! I looked harder, I get Mikey's pizza" Raph pushed his brother aside, " Just because you're leader doesn't mean you can jus-"

"Shhh" Leo cut him off, " What are you doing? I am trying to-" Leo waved it off in frustration, " Whatever, so, that didn't work." He muttered in thought. " Perhaps he went home already?"

Donnie stepped up beside Leo and glanced down the side of the building, " I think we should be getting back, Mikey will be fine, the chances of him being found out here by a human when we couldn't even find him are slim. In fact, when we get home I can use my computer to-"

" Alright, lets move" Raph interrupted his brother's rambling and set out ahead, Leo close behind. Donnie flashed them an unseen indignant look before following at the rear.

Upon arriving home and finding no trace of Mikey, Donnie immediately holed up in his room, deep in thought. Raph sprawled on the bench in front of the tv, his eyes shifting to Leo, " What's his problem?"

Leo shrugged, " You know how he gets when he can't solve something." The leader paced in thought, concern beginning to etch it's way onto his face "I'm going to go talk to Sensei, maybe he has an idea." The leader retreated behind a curtain to the back, leaving Raph alone.

" Pah" Raph muttered, absently reaching for a slice of pizza from the box on the arm of the sofa. When his fingers felt nothing but empty box, Raph shot up straight. That was a full box before they left. His eyes scanned the room another time, to be sure. He gripped the box in a rage hardened fist, " Mikey!" He bellowed in frustration, holding the box above his head like a weapon.

Donnie looked up from the little project he had started in the center of his space. He was partway through attaching a small device to a leather wristband when the sound of Raph's angry voice echoed throughout the lair. " Impossible, Mikey isn't in the sitting room." Donnie muttered in thought. He took the time to glance at his computer another time before standing up to see what the commotion was about. Upon exiting his room he promptly dodged a violently thrown pizza box, " Hey!"

" When I find him I'm gonna-"

" Mikey? He's in his room Raph." Donnie pointed with a thumb at the doorway to the youngest's personal area. " If you'd listened earlier I was saying I have a- Hey!"

Raph pushed past his brother and entered Mikey's room, and just as quickly had his younger brother dragged out and laying helpless on the floor withstanding an emotional assault of fists. " We looked for hours and you were in here the whole time?!" Raph growled threats and he continued to assault his brother, helpless on the floor.

" Stop, stop, I don't wanna play this game anymore" Mikey whined between blows " I had to hide down here because if I hid up top it would become day and we can't be up there in the day! Duh!"

Coming out from the back room at the sound of ruckus, Leo took a second to witness the struggle from the doorway. " Good work Raph!"

Donnie raised his hand slightly, " Actually I used my-"

The leader brushed past his awkward brother and lifted Mikey up to his feet before smacking him across the skull, " Don't run off." He growled before plunking down on the bench with a grunt. " Wasn't there Pizza?" He asked, looking up to his brothers with a raised eyebrow. Mikey cracked a nervous smile, which was promptly beaten from his face by Raph. Leo sighed loudly " Seriously Mikey? Seriously?" His palm met his face with a smack. " Arrg. Donnie would you go grab us- Donnie?" The three of them left in the room looked around, suddenly aware that one of them had slipped off.

End Chapter 1

AN: dun dun duuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuun. And the big plot starts in our next chapter.