TMNT 2003: Mikey's Adventure in Oz

When Mikey falls asleep after being injected with a general anaesthetic as part of his operation to remove his tonsils, he wakes up to find himself in an adventure within the land of Oz. Inspired by the film Wizard of Oz and the Rugrats episode "No Place Like Home".

I do not own TMNT 2003 or Wizard of Oz.

Chapter 1-Operation Preparations and Support

"Cough…cough…cough…Owww…"

Mikey cringed in pain and held his very sore throat after his coughing fit had ended before he laid his head back down on his pillows with a groan.

"Are you ok, Mikey? How are you feeling?" Leo asked his sick brother as he approached his bed to check on him when he and Raph walked by the infirmary door and heard the sound of coughing.

"…Never better… Ngh!" Mikey managed to say despite the pain that he was in.

"Yeah, ya sound great, bro…" Raph said in a concerned and sarcastic tone after he heard the croakiness and pain in his little brother's voice.

All of this started about a week ago when Mikey began to feel a sore sensation in his throat, which at first was diagnosed as just a random infection by Donnie, but as time went by his condition worsened to a point where he wasn't able to swallow his food and would only drink cold fluids, and he was also starting to feel warmer in temperature.

After another check-over from Donnie, it turned out that Mikey had developed Tonsillitis, which was at a stage where it would not get better with antibiotics alone, meaning that his tonsils would have to be removed as soon as possible to prevent his condition from getting worse. This led to the present day, with Mikey being on bed rest and his immediate older brother Donnie preparing him for the operation to come in the next couple of hours once Leatherhead arrived.

"I wish I could give you something to drink to soothe your throat, Mikey, but that would only delay the upcoming operation for another few hours, and I also can't risk in giving you painkillers before I administer the anaesthetic. You'll have to tough it out until it's all over, bro…" Donnie said to his little brother sadly whilst he was double-checking Mikey's vitals on the monitors that were attached to his body.

"I know..., you're right, bro…" Mikey replied with a sigh of frustration and disappointment since he was starting to feel fed up with having to wait with this sore throat a bit longer. Leo noticed this straight away, so he sat down on the edge of Mikey's bed and placed a comforting hand on his little brother's shoulder before he spoke with a warm smile.

"Don't worry, Mikey, it won't be much longer until Leatherhead arrives and everything is set up and ready for the operation. Hey, once this is all over, you can have as much ice cream you want."

This made Mikey look up at his oldest brother with a surprised look on his face before he developed a smile as he spoke.

"Really…!?"

"Yes, but you need to give your throat some time to recover a bit after the operation first, bro…" Donnie said with an amused but thankful smile towards Leo for cheering up his little brother after he spoke to him. Mikey nodded with understanding, still wearing his smile before Raph spoke up next with a cocky smirk.

"Ya sure ya want him ta recover his voice quickly, bros? I kinda like it ta be quiet a bit longer fa a change, especially with da hockey game dat Casey told us about coming up."

Mikey glared at him and was about to respond to his brother's comment before Leo beat him to it to keep him from talking too much.

"Raph, you're not helping and you're being unfair to your brother who is not feeling his best!"

"Yeah, and we have already told you that we can't go to the game with Mikey sick like this," Donnie said firmly whilst holding a thermometer up to show Raph that Mikey's temperature was still higher than normal.

"Geez, calm down, guys. Can't ya take a joke? Besides, he's hardly helped us out in da past week as always, whether he's sick or not. Might as well make him our team's sidekick or mascot since they're just as useless!" Raph bit back firmly as he looked from Leo to Mikey when he said the last sentence, causing Mikey to gasp in shock and look down with tears developing in his eyes.

"Raphael! How could you say that to him, especially when he's too sick to defend himself!?" Donnie said with anger in his voice before he tended to Mikey to try and calm him down.

"Go outside and keep an eye out for Leatherhead with Master Splinter, since you're just making things difficult for Mikey!" Leo told his red-banded brother firmly with his leader-like voice.

"Fine, whatever…" Raph said in a huff as he turned away and was about to leave before he looked over at his now crying brother, causing a frown to develop and the feelings of regret and guilt were beginning to build in his heart before he left the infirmary all together.

After seeing his hot-headed brother leave, Leo turned to look at Mikey with concern on his face before he watched on as Donnie tried to comfort his little brother whilst gently wiping his tears from his face.

"Don't listen to him, Mikey. Raph's just ticked off because he's tired of fighting against the increased number of bad guys lately," Donnie said softly.

"That's right, little brother, he never watches what he says until after he's said it," Leo said in agreement as he walked towards his little brother.

"B-But he's right; it's my fault that you all come home all banged up from fights during the past week…all cos of a stupid throat problem!" Mikey said firmly with more hot tears falling from his eyes before he cringed and held his throat in pain again.

"Careful, Mikey…, don't try to talk too much or you'll make your condition worse," Donnie warned him softly whilst rubbing his brother's arm in comfort before Leo spoke up next.

"It's not your fault, Mikey; things like this happen and they are beyond our control. You mean a lot to us as a brother and a ninja, not a sidekick or mascot, so don't be so hard on yourself, ok?"

Mikey turned his head to look at Leo after he spoke before he gave him a small nod and then sniffled as he lowered his head, with doubts about himself still weighing heavy on his mind. Leo noticed this straight away and he immediately embraced his little brother into a supportive hug just before Mikey began to sob in his arms.

"Shhh…Shhh…. calm down, little brother…everything's going to be ok…" Leo said soothingly as he gently rocked back and forth with Mikey in his arms to try and calm him down. Donnie watched on in sadness before a past memory flashed in his mind.

"Oh, I almost forgot! April has brought a little something for you, Mikey, to help cheer you up," he said as he went over to his desk and picked up a small box with an orange-coloured ribbon wrapped around it on all sides, and then turned to walk back towards Mikey's bed.

Leo loosened the hug to allow Mikey to slowly lift his head from Leo's shoulder and he heard Mikey sniffle as he turned to look at the box presented to him.

"W-What is it?" He asked with a raspy voice due to his sore throat and the amount of crying he did.

"Well, if you open it you'll find out. It seems April wanted to keep it a surprise judging by the way the ribbon has been wrapped around the box," Donnie answer as he slowly handed Mikey the present into his hands.

Mikey carefully undid the ribbon and lifted the box's lid to reveal something that made his eyes widen in surprise; inside the box was a small kitten plushie which featured ginger-coloured fur and green-coloured eyes, and it also had a red-coloured collar around its neck with a note tucked under it that said;

"Dear Mikey,

Here's a little friend to keep you company and help to keep your chin up before and after your operation.

Get well soon,

April xxx"

Mikey smiled at the message before he gently took out his cuddly kitten from the box and then gave it a cuddle, causing his brothers to look on with heart-warming smiles on their faces.

"I love it! It looks just like Klunk!" Mikey said after he looked back at his gift with happy tears in his eyes.

"It is adorable, and it does have a resemblance to Klunk too," Leo said as he gently stroked the stuffed animal's fur.

"Yes, it does. I think April knew that you would like it since the real Klunk will not be allowed inside the infirmary before, during and after the operation due to the risk of contaminating the equipment and room, and distracting me and Leatherhead throughout the operation," Donnie explained before Mikey nodded in understanding.

"Can you tell April that I said thanks for the gift since I might not be able to speak for a while after the operation?" Mikey asked his brothers, knowing that he wouldn't be able to speak to her personally after the operation.

"Of course we will, Mikey. We'll tell her after you've recovered a bit from the operation," Donnie answered with a warm smile.

A moment later, the turtles heard the infirmary door open and they turned their heads towards it to see Master Splinter enter through it with Leatherhead followed close behind him.

"Donatello, Leatherhead has arrived," Master Splinter said before he moved aside to allow Leatherhead to move forward a couple of steps with a smile on his face as he said, "Hello, my friends".

"Thank you, Master Splinter, and hello to you too, Leatherhead…Leo, we're going to start the operation soon so you'll have to wait outside," Donnie said with his 'doctor Don' voice as he turned to his blue-banded brother.

"I know, Donnie. I'll see you after the operation, Mikey. Don't worry; you'll do just fine and everything will go smoothly, ok?" Leo said softly to his little brother as he gave him another hug.

"Thanks, bro…See you later…" Mikey replied after he broke away from the hug, despite the anxiety and fear building up inside his heart.

Donnie and Leatherhead watched on as Leo stood up from sitting on the edge of Mikey's bed and walked towards the doorway to leave the infirmary whilst waving to his brothers and Leatherhead as he left.

"Alright, Mikey, Leatherhead is going to administer the anaesthetic now which will be done intravenously, so just relax, ok?" Donnie said gently to his little brother before he moved slightly from his sitting spot on Mikey's bed to allow Leatherhead to inject the anaesthetic carefully into Mikey's arm.

Mikey flinched and hissed as soon as the needle entered his skin and into his vein, but Donnie was there to help him stay calm by holding his hand in his own and squeezing it gently whilst Leatherhead injected the fluid into his vein and then carefully removed the needle from his arm shortly after.

"Well done, bro. You might start to feel sleepy in a couple of minutes, but don't worry; I'll be here to make sure that you're completely asleep before we start the operation," Donnie said whilst giving his brother's hand another squeeze.

"Can my little cat…stay here with me until…I'm asleep too?" Mikey asked tiredly to his purple-banded brother as he was slowly starting to feel the effects of the anaesthetic.

"Of course he can, Mikey, and I'll put him in a safe place nearby so that I know where he is when I return him back to you after the operation," Donnie answered softly with a warm smile.

Mikey returned the smile before he yawned and his eye began to droop as his vision started to become blurry.

"Are you feeling sleepy, Mikey?" Donnie asked softly whilst rubbing his thumb on Mikey's hand.

"Mmm hmm…" Mikey managed to reply before his body relaxed even more and his eyes closed fully, causing his vision to become shrouded in darkness.