Best Birthday Ever
No set universe, though order of birth is Leo, Don, Raph, Mikey.
Disclaimer: I own nothing
Chapter 1: Leo's Gift
It was to be expected that they would forget his birthday. After all, they'd forgotten the last four years running so why should this year be any different? It didn't hurt – not anymore, at least. In fact, Hamato Leonardo rather enjoyed the lack of attention on his birthday. Instead of cake, gifts and bad singing, he treated himself with something entirely different, something he hadn't had since Master Splinter had named him leader: time. More precisely, time with his brothers. The activities varied from one year to the next mostly because he didn't want to draw attention to himself or to what he was doing, so he masked his enthusiasm with his big-brother-slash-leader voice and feigned resignation.
After routine training and a short meditation session, he sauntered down the hall in search of whichever brother he happened upon first. He rounded the corner and almost crashed into Donatello.
"Eeee!" his brother squeaked in surprise, and something shiny fell from his hands.
Leo caught it deftly before it hit the floor.
"Wow, Leo! Nice catch!"
Leo handed the tool back to his brother with a solemn "Ninja skills. What are you working on now?"
"Oh, this and that," Don said dismissively, waving a hand. "Nothing of consequence."
Leo carefully hid his smile and crossed his arms over his chest. "Since when does someone of your intellectual calibre bother with 'nothing of consequence'?"
Donnie had half-turned away from him but whirled back around with wide eyes. The two eldest brothers stared at each other for a long moment before he said, so quietly, "Do you want to see something cool?"
"You sure you don't want to show Mikey?" Leo quipped dryly.
The horror on Don's face more than proved what he thought of that question. "Come on, Leo," he urged. "I promise this is no ill-fated gizmo."
Success, Leo thought happily as he sighed, nodded and followed after his younger brother.
He spent the better part of the morning in Don's lab, passing him various instruments and tools as his purple-banded brother constructed another physical materialization of some random idea concocted who knew when. He let his brother ramble, throwing in appropriate commentary at intervals to keep him chatting amiably. He loved being in the lab. He loved working with Donnie. He was always amazed at what his hands created for them: gadgets and gizmos for easier living or easier ways to kick shell or both. He barely understood half of what his brother spouted as they tinkered away but he didn't let that bother him because it was his birthday and he was spending it the way he wanted.
Then Mikey walked in.
"Hey, guys!" he crowed. "Whatcha doin'?"
"Very important and very delicate work," was the stern reply from Donatello who didn't even bother looking up, and Leo tensed marginally in preparation to intervene.
"Cool! What is it?" Mikey was unfazed by the tone.
Leo hid his smile as the stiffness in his immediate younger brother's shoulders eased; Don never could resist telling (bragging!) about his newest invention.
"It's a hands-free communication device," he announced proudly, and he held up the thing that was smaller than a dime.
"News flash, Brainiac, we've already got phones," Mikey said with a smirk.
Don threw Leo a look as if to say this is why I don't let Mikey in here on purpose, and Leo allowed a tiny smile to curl across his lips. "Don thinks that something hands-free would be more effective if we're fighting or we need to stay in contact but still use our hands," he explained smoothly, emotionlessly. Oh, he was enjoying this so much!
"Oh." Mikey smiled. "Well, that's cool! When's it gonna be ready?"
Don smiled, pleased. "I need to run a few more tests on the prototype but it should be ready sometime next week."
"Can I test it? Dude, please? That would be so awesome! Please, please, please?"
"Uh, no. Definitely no," Donnie deadpanned, his smile gone.
Mikey danced towards them…and then around them. "Oh, please? Oh, please, oh, please, oh, pleeeaaase?" he sang.
"I would love for that to stop," Don growled.
And that's my cue, Leo thought as he stepped forward. "Hey, Mikey. If you stop bothering Don for the rest of the day, I'll play Super Smash Bros. with you."
Mikey froze in the act, his arms immobile in the air as he had swung them around his head. Don stared at him, mouth agape.
"What?"
Leo sighed and crossed his arms. "Don't bother Donnie and I'll play video games with you," he said slowly, as if his brother were impaired.
"You want to play video games? With Mikey?" gasped Don, clearly affronted that Leo would favour such mindlessness over inventing.
"No. I want to get Mikey out of your lab so you can finish what I think could be a very useful invention."
"Dude, you are so on!" Mikey leaped forward and grabbed his arm, dragging him to the door. "See ya later, Donnie!"
Leo looked back over his shoulder at his purple-banded brother and smiled. Don rolled his eyes and shook his head, and the door clicked closed behind them.
"Dude, Leo, this is gonna be epic! I really hope you're ready to lose!"
"We'll see about that," Leo replied smoothly, successfully concealing his grin.
-:-:-:-
It was a miracle (*cough* Donnie) that their beat-up Nintendo 64 even worked, let alone still worked after three years of Mikey, plus for however long it had sat in the junkyard. Two hours later, it was past lunchtime and Leo leaned back as his Samus Aran delivered a blow to Mikey's Donkey Kong, effectively blasting the gorilla off the building.
"Nooooo!" Mikey wailed when the round ended, Samus declared the winner.
Leo exhaled on his fingernails and rubbed them against his plastron smugly. "What's that now, Mike? Thirteen to four?"
"How are you so good at this game when you don't even play?" his brother demanded for the umpteenth time.
"Ninja skills," was the lofty retort. "It's all hand-eye coordination. It's really not that hard."
"But I have the best hand-eye coordination! Video games are scientifically proven to increase it!"
"You forget, brother mine," Leo said sagely, "that ninjutsu does the same thing. Besides, I have naturally quicker reflexes."
"Whatever." Mikey tossed his controller onto the cushion beside him and pouted.
Leo chuckled and nudged his shoulder with his own. "Hey. Why don't we make lunch?"
"You want to make lunch with me?" His little brother's pout vanished and confusion danced through his eyes. "But…you suck at cooking."
Leo could not help his laugh – oh, it felt so good to laugh with his baby brother! "I can't be that terrible when the best chef in the house is right beside me."
Mikey regarded him silently for a moment, unnerved by his lightheartedness, but then he smiled. "Well, okay. But how about something simple? Grilled cheese and soup?"
Leo smiled. It was perfect for the first day of chilly February. "Sounds perfect," he said.
There was a reason Leo did not cook. Even with Mikey supervising, Leo yelped in dismay when the two sandwiches in the pan blackened.
"Dude, what'd you do!?" Mikey demanded, pretty much body-checking him out of the way and removing the pan from the stove to the sink where he dumped the smoking, cheesy charcoal.
Leo reddened and looked down. So much for his good day. "Um…"
Mikey strode past him, hot pan still in hand and glanced at the stove dial. "Geez, Leo, this thing's way too high! You could've started a fire! With grilled cheese!" Leo wasn't sure if his brother was fighting laughter or rage at his idiocy. Either one was humiliating.
"Sorry, Mikey," Leo mumbled to the floor. "I'll, um, I guess I'll just set the table." He made to step away but his brother caught his elbow.
"Here." Mikey said kindly as he guided him to the counter and dug in the bottom cupboard, pulling out the blender. "Why don't you make the drink instead?"
"Okay." Leo didn't look at him, too angry at himself for messing up something as simple as a dumb sandwich.
"Hey." Leo lifted his head a fraction, hesitantly meeting Mike's eyes. Mikey smiled kindly at him. "You might not be able to cook worth beans but you're the only turtle I trust to make the best, dang drinks this side of anywhere. Surprise us. I'm down with anything you make anyway." With that, he turned away to the bread box to replace the destroyed sandwiches.
Leo stood and stared at his brother's shell, completely floored and flabbergasted, for a solid minute before he wandered over to the fridge. With only a few words, his baby brother had salvaged his pride and his good day, and he smiled as he pulled out a bottle of strawberry daiquiri flavouring. He hoped they still had some Nesquick chocolate powder left…
Lunch was consumed with the usual gusto, though everyone had something to say about the milkshake he made. Even Raph growled "This is great", and Leo's small smile widened a fraction and his heart soared.
-:-:-:-
After the meal, Splinter invited him to train in the dojo, which Leo accepted without hesitation. While he enjoyed his own, personal training sessions, Leo always learned something from the old rat about whatever his master deemed relevant that day. The lessons varied from new and more complicated kata to an improvised obstacle course to sparring to joint manipulation. Today was different than most.
Splinter handed him two short, wooden batons, arming himself likewise, and smiled. "Aim to kill, my son. Begin."
Leo had barely time to recover from the shocking instruction before Sensei rushed him. He blocked without a second to spare and let his body take over for the fight. He was surprised at the lesson because if Sensei had taught them anything it was that every life was precious and valued. To kill in any circumstance other than self-defence was abhorrent to the art of ninjutsu and to Bushido, and even then it was better to maim or injure than end a life. But Leo knew his father was no fool. He knew that he knew that killing was part of their lives. Leo was seventeen now and he had killed long before today. He shuddered a little at the memory of that night more than a year-and-a-half ago.
"Are you all right, Leonardo?" Master Splinter asked kindly even as he swung his baton at his head.
Leo parried and thrusted in rapid succession, v-stepping to the right and jabbing. "Yes, Sensei. I was just remembering something."
Splinter blocked effectively and turned expertly to follow the quick turtle. "What is it, if you don't mind my asking?"
Leo danced out of his father's reach. His shoulders drooped with the memory but he kept his batons up. "My first kill," he murmured.
Sensei froze in his attack and slowly lowered his weapons. "Ah," he said.
"It doesn't bother me," Leo said hurriedly. "I mean, well, it does but I did it for the right reasons and it was self-defence and it was the Foot and it happened a long time ago so I really shouldn't be bothered but…" He trailed off, looking away. Splinter was silent, waiting, and Leo sighed. "It was someone's life. I took a life. I've taken more in the time since and always it was in defence but that doesn't make me feel any better. And I don't like envisioning ways to kill you, Father. I don't like aiming to kill you."
"I see," Sensei mused. He tucked the batons into his sash and strode forward, taking his face in his hands. "You are wise beyond your years, my son," he said. "It is the mark of a great warrior – and a great man – who takes no pleasure in killing. I know that it was not wrong of me to teach you ninjutsu, for I wanted you and your brothers to not only survive but to live. Even so, I knew that when I began to teach you when you were not even five years old, that I was teaching you how to kill. The knowledge that you would eventually kill someone haunted me for years as you trained and excelled and eventually journeyed to the surface to test your skills. I, too, remember that night." Tears welled in the old rat's black eyes but they didn't fall. "That night was one of the worst of my life as I witnessed the shattered soul of one of my precious children. Your reason for acting was sound: you acted to protect Donatello; but you nearly lost yourself to grief, anguish and self-hatred."
"You pulled me out of it, Father," Leo whispered, feeling tears of his own sliding down his cheeks. "I still remember what you said."
"And what did I say?" prompted Sensei.
"You told me kishi kaisei. I was mad at first because I wasn't the one who was dead, but that wasn't what you meant. I wasn't physically dead but I was on the inside." Leo smiled up at his father despite his tears. "You urged me to live, to rise from the horrible thing I'd done."
"And you did, my son," whispered the rat as he pressed a rare kiss to his brow.
Leo leaned into his father, the batons limp in his hands. "I realized it wasn't a bad thing to save Donnie. I did what I had to do to keep him safe. The Foot ninja I killed was a man, and he was loyal and honourable to his master. I can't fault him for doing what he thought was right, and that was what almost ruined me. But then, when you sat with me all that night and said what you did, I realized that a true ninja, a true warrior, does not blindly trust what he is told. Prejudices and fear can get in the way but we all have a conscience, even Foot ninja, and he ignored his. He chose to act and he paid for his choice with his life. His choice wasn't my fault."
"Do you wish it was?" Sensei asked.
Leo was silent for a long moment, staring up at his beloved father with every ounce of admiration, love and honour he possessed. "No," he affirmed. "But sometimes I wish I could take it back, bring back to life all them I killed. Is that wrong?"
Splinter smiled at him as he said. "No, my Leonardo. It is wise and compassionate, and I am proud of you for wanting to restore what was lost, but think on this: If your wish were granted, you would have that many more enemies to protect your brothers from."
"That's true," Leo agreed with a small smile. "I still don't like trying to kill you, though."
Splinter nodded. "Then how about we meditate instead?" he offered.
Leo grinned outright at him. "Do you have to ask?" he wondered.
Sensei chuckled as he took Leo's batons and set them all back on the weapons rack. "Sometimes I wonder why I do," he admitted as he turned away to his rooms.
Leo trotted to catch up, smiling and feeling lighter because he hadn't realized that his heart had been heavy in the first place.
Meditation didn't last long. Less than an hour later, there was a bang, a crash and a resounding roar of "MIKEY!"
Neither turtle nor rat flinched at the noise but both sets of eyes snapped open, their meditation rhythms broken, and Leo sighed. "I'll take care of it, Sensei," he said as he rose.
"I think I will accompany you, regardless," replied Splinter, getting to his feet and following Leo out the rice paper doors.
Stepping into the living room, Leo's skin tingled with approaching movement and he skillfully side-stepped into the path of the incoming, catching his baby brother in both hands as he tried to run past. "Whoa, Mike!" he exclaimed when Mikey stumbled and almost fell. "What happened?"
"Uh, nothing really. Raph's just being sensitive." Mikey tried to smile but there was no denying the fear in his eyes.
"Sensitive!?" A snarl came from the side. "I'll show ya sensitive, Mikey!" Raphael advanced like a tiger, growling with tense muscles and bared teeth.
Leo didn't really mind Raph's stance but when his hand twitched over his sai, he moved: swinging Mikey around, he tucked him between the wall and his shell, and stood in front of him. His hands were loose at his sides; he didn't want to draw his weapon on his brother. Not today. "That's enough, Raph," he warned.
"Quit bein' the protector all the time!" his brother bit out. "He's not a kid anymore. He can fight his own battles."
"I do not think Michelangelo wishes to fight his brother," a soft voice murmured from the shadowed doorway. Leo had completely forgotten about Splinter but he stepped forward now, his coal-coloured eyes calm but firm as he regarded the red-banded turtle. "There is such a thing as temperance, my son," he continued. "Perhaps a hundred flips will bring the lesson home?"
Raph seethed under the rat's hard stare.
There was a reason Leonardo was the leader: his ability to come up with plans on the fly was almost revered, and certainly came in handy for tight spots. Leo half-turned to Sensei, saying, "Father, if I may? Raph's just restless. Let me take him out into the tunnels for a run. We won't go topside. We won't go farther than a few miles."
His request was met with stunned silence and then, "Don't need ya coddlin' me, Fearless."
Leo couldn't help rolling his eyes. "Then by all means, do your one hundred flips," he replied smoothly, glancing at him sidelong. "But you and I both know that if you don't do something physical about your irritation with whatever this is, then you'll be doing another one hundred within the hour."
Beside him, Mikey snorted but quickly clammed up when Raph glared at him. In his peripheral, Sensei was trying not to smile.
Leo turned back to Splinter. "Father?" he pressed.
Splinter met his gaze squarely, measuring. "Agreed. Raphael, go with your brother. I expect your attitude to be changed upon your return."
Raph's amber eyes flashed but dimmed with obedience and shame. "Hai, Sensei," he muttered.
Leo jerked his head toward the door, making sure Raph went ahead of him to keep him from hitting Mikey. His brother stalked to the door, and Leo, making sure he had his phone with him, followed him out.
-:-:-:-
Leo set an even pace, jogging pleasurably through the dank tunnels. The route he had chosen was a favourite of his brother's, though he had been certain to keep his face blank as they'd chosen the right fork only a hundred yards from the lair. The route was a little long, close to eight miles as a roundtrip, but there were several shafts, pipes and pools along the way that would be very pretty this time of year, still more than half-frozen into waterfalls and unstable rinks. Theirs breaths steamed in the air as they moved, and Leo kept an eye out for ice.
Beside him, Raphael was sullenly silent for the first quarter, his breathing more like growling off the echoing stone, but Leo didn't comment. He let him work out his frustrations on his own; it was something he had only recently learned in order to defuse the tension that so often sprang up between them. After all, running and chatting (lecturing) were difficult to do at the same time.
As they finished the second mile, Leo noticed Raph relaxing. The intensity in his face eased, the irritation in his eyes vanished, and his stiff-with-suppressed-rage movements smoothed. Leo saw his opportunity and took it, gently nudging his irritable brother with an elbow and a smile.
Raph glanced at him, startled, but saw his expression. He chuffed, shaking his head. "Yer insufferable, ya know that?" His tone was gruff, slightly breathless from the run, but there was humour in it.
Leo allowed himself to grin. "You say it like I don't know," he quipped. "I've been insufferable for years!"
Raph chuckled at that. How Leo loved to hear the hot-headed ninja laugh! "Makes me wonder how ya ever got ta be leader."
"I just chalk it up to one of the Mysteries of Life and move on," offered the blue-masked turtle.
"Mystery of Life, indeed," Raph concurred in a humorous grumble as he elbowed him in the ribs. "C'mon, enough wastin' breath. We got six more miles ta go."
Two miles from the lair, on the homestretch, they had to be careful here: a narrow but deep channel ran through the tunnel, with walkways on either side. Bits if ice and debris floated swiftly down. This particular area was dangerous because the tunnel suddenly veered away but the channel kept going, disappearing under the wall for however long it took to drain out. While Raphael had this innate ability to draw trouble to him, Leonardo had a habit of anticipating it. The fact that they were together and alone should have been a warning for Leo but as it was, he didn't really think about it (mostly because it was his birthday and he was enjoying his time with Raph) until their turtle luck reared its ugly head in the form of…
"Raph, watch out!" Leo saw the unnatural shadows a split second before ten Foot ninja leaped around the corner at them, steel gleaming in the gloom. He unsheathed his right katana first, brandishing it in his left hand and side-stepping a sword thrust, just as he pushed his brother back with his free, right hand.
"Aw, shell!" Raph hissed as he unleashed both sai. "What're ya guys doin' here?"
"It is a cold day out," one of the ninja replied, sweeping a naginata from his back, "and Master Shredder is in the mood for turtle soup."
"I'll bet he is!" Leo spat, unsheathing his second katana. Ducking and coming up under a swing, he slashed his opponent in his vulnerable belly. He shoved him away and turned to take two katana from two separate ninja on his crossed swords. "Can't we leave this for tomorrow or how about some time next week?"
"What's the matter, freak? Is it your birthday?" sneered one.
Leo was very glad that his brother was busy with enemies of his own because he never heard the comment, nor did he see honourable, always-fight-by-the-rules Leo shift his weight, still keeping his balance despite the crossed katana, and kick the sneering fellow in the groin. With his buddy suddenly on the floor, the second ninja staggered under the turtle's strength. Leo pushed him back with a shing of metal on metal and kicked at his head, downing him, too.
Looking for his brother, he saw that between the two of them, they'd taken out half the squad; Raph had also backed himself into a corner to inhibit the Foot with closer quarters. His sai shimmered in the faint light as he slashed and stabbed, and Leo rushed to aid him, neatly disarming one and slamming his left pommel into his face, and slicing the tendons of another's legs. Both dropped and now there were only three left.
"Looks like yer luck just ran out," Raph said with a smirk when Leo took a stance behind the three remaining Foot. "Care ta rethink yer life choices?"
"We are loyal to the Shredder," one declared. "We are honour-bound to do his bidding!"
Leo sighed and tried not to think about his conversation with Sensei barely two hours ago. "You know," he said softly, "you're always the first to throw punches. We only act to defend ourselves and the innocent. Sometimes I wish you were more honour-bound to Bushido than to Shredder. Sometimes I wish you would just grow a conscience. Maybe then you'd leave us alone."
Raph met his gaze with wide eyes, and Leo kicked himself mentally for being such a sap in the middle of a freaking war – which held true when the declared-loyal-minion whipped around and thrusted towards Leo's gut with a hissed "Freak!"
The fight was back on as Leo parried and back-fisted him, sword in hand, in the face before slicing at his shoulder and then at his leg in quick succession. Leaving his enemy on the ground, he cut at the first of the last two ganged up on Raph. The man was a knife-wielder and threw a shuriken at his face. Leo barely managed to avoid the star but got his cheek nicked anyway. The ninja palmed three more, tucking them between his fingers, and loosed. The blue-masked turtle used his swords to deflect them expertly back at their owner, and they imbedded themselves in his chest; he dropped.
"Leo!"
Leo spun at his name and only twelve years of ninjutsu training saved him as he instinctively swept his left katana across his body, effectively blocking the thrust aimed for him by the ninja with the broken nose; blood seeped through his mask and dribbled onto his black uniform. Leo didn't give the ninja time to react. V-stepping to the left, he used his momentum to bring more strength into the vicious cut that beheaded his opponent.
"Stand down!" a voice that was not Raph's shouted.
Leo looked up and his cold-blooded veins iced over: Raph's sai were on the ground; Raph was kneeling on the ground; and the last ninja stood behind him, his katana point at the base of his neck, just above the shell's rim.
He sheathed his katana obediently but his eyes were thin slits of hatred as he shifted.
I will not lose my brother on today of all days!
It was his only thought as he lunged forward and leaped, tackling their enemy to the side – and right into the icy channel.
"LEO!" he heard his brother bellow a second before they were swept under the wall.
They punched and pummeled each other as the river carried them down the tunnel. Leo had the advantage of being an aquatic reptile: all he had to do was outlast him. But Fate had its own ideas. The tunnel steepened sharply and turtle and man slid down an incline that Leo was pretty sure Don would know the degree of, but he was too distracted when their heads burst through the water and something dull metal grazed his collarbone. Leo grabbed the kunai before it did more damage and punched the ninja in the face for good measure. The man went limp in the water.
Then the tunnel ended and Leo found himself falling. As much as he wanted to do the honourable thing and save the man who had almost killed him and his brother, Leo knew he wouldn't be able to save anyone if he was dead.
His reaching hands found something solid and he clenched hold with all his might as he swung, using his momentum, and landed plastron-down on an old, wooden beam. Wrapping his arms and legs around the slick wood, he shut his eyes and prayed the deluge would end soon.
