Author's Notes: Hey everyone, I know I should have been working on my other fics...but I had this idea that I couldn't resist. The premise may seem a bit odd, but for those of you who know "Coming Out of Their Shells." this is a little nod to it. Strange as it may, it was actually quite fun to write. I hope y'all enjoy. Happy Reading! ^.^

The cool air trailed against Raphael's skin as he leapt from rooftop to rooftop. His mind was clear and he was enjoying the solitary patrol. Feelings of his stress were lifting off him as time went on. He just had to get away from his brothers, especially Mikey. Lately, they've been grinding his nerves and he could hardly stand it anymore.

Skidding to a halt, a heavy sigh passed his lips as he knelt down on the edge of a building. He pulled out his T-phone and pulled up Casey's number. Then with the mashing of a few buttons, he sent a text. "Casey, where they heck are ya'?" He mumbled to himself in an aggravated tone.

Folding his arms across his plastron, he waited patiently for a reply. Casey had promised to come out on a patrol with him earlier, but he was nowhere in sight. As he sat in silence, the sounds of cars cruising along the streets filled his ears. The wind tugged at the rugged tails of his mask ever so slightly.

Finally, his phone went off and he glanced down at the screen. His eyelids dropped and his mouth formed a hard line. "Ah whatever, I could use some alone time." Putting his cell away, he sighed out.

Then gathering to his feet, he stretched his arms above his head and exhaled. His muscles relaxed and he rolled his shoulders in relief. "Hmmm, let's find some heads to knock then." As he thought to himself, a mischievous grin broke out onto his face and his emerald green eyes gleamed.

Readying his muscles, he lifted his feet and sprinted forward. Using the strength in his legs, he hopped a large distance to the next building. Once both feet were planted on the hard stone of the roof, he felt the shock of the impact jolt through his legs. "That was nothing." He commented with a smug look.

Shifting his head side to side, Raph made his way to the other side of the building, but before he made any moves, a cry caught his attention. At the sound, he whipped his head downwards and peered into the dark alleyway. He scoffed at what he saw.

Two purple dragon members were crowding a young woman, backing her into the dirty brick wall. She looked frail and frightened. "Oh what do ya' know, some purple dragons are out to play."

Cracking his neck, Raphael then jumped down. Sticking to the shadows, he drew his sais out and readied them. His emerald green eyes twinkled in anticipation. "Hey guys, slim pickings huh? You need to mug a defenseless girl to get your cut?" Smack talking, Raph called out to them in the darkness.

Immediately, the two of them darted their attention towards the back of the alley. Fong narrowed his eyes and tensed up. "Crap, it's one of the freaks. Sid, go in there and take care of him." Swiping his hand through the air, he ordered.

Before he could turn his attention back at the girl they were mugging, he felt a sharp pain erupt in the back of his head. Raph used the hilt of one of his sais to strike him. The impact caused Fong to stumble while clutching his head. His sidekick Sid swung the air blindly, missing Raph by a long shot.

The lady used the chance to escape, angering Fong. In retaliation, he pulled out his blade. The hotheaded turtle chuckled and now that the lady was gone, he stepped out into the open. Lifting his hands, he blocked Sid with his sais and slammed him into the ground. His opponent's head struck the ground, causing him to lose consciousness.

"Man, for a big guy he sure went down easily." Smirking, he commented. Then he looked back at Fong. "Your turn!"

Then lunging forward, he dodged the incoming strike and elbowed the arm away. Fong cried in pain, and tried to kick the turtle. Failing, Raph caught his shirt and tossed him against the wall. A loud thump sounded, and his opponent collapsed to the ground, dazed.

Slipping his sais into his belt, a heavy breath escaped from the turtle. "Man, that wasn't as fun as I wanted it to be. Oh well, got to bust some heads at least." Rubbing the back of his neck, he muttered under his breath.

Before turning to climb up the fire escape on the other building, something bright caught his attention from the corner of his eye. Glancing over, he turned and took small steps. A low hum erupted from his throat. It wasn't often something caught his fancy, but this item did.

Sticking out of the dumpster, a neck of a saxophone gleamed in the light. With both his hands, he leaned over the edge of the almost full dumpster and eased the instrument out. His eyes trailed each detail, captivated by it.

As he looked over again and again, he noticed how banged up it was. The bell of the sax had a unpleasant dent in it and many little dings were spread throughout the body. Scratches lined the instrument and many of the silver rods were bent. The instrument itself was dirty and the gold was tarnished. However, Raph's mind recalled memories of seeing sax players on television and it reminded him of those old mobster movies.

The saxophone in his hand looked quite a bit different than the ones he saw and it was considerably larger. Using great care, he brought it close to him, taking up his entire torso. A decision came to mind. "Imma take this home. Maybe Don can fix it." With a hopeful tone, he said to himself as he gazed down at the instrument.

Making his way into the lair, Raph kept the large instrument close, taking great care not to drop it. The main room looked empty for the most part, but he could hear the clacking and banging sounds echoing from Donnie's lab.

"Good, he's still awake" He quietly noted as he walked to the lab door.

Light was seeping from the small gap where it was open. Shifting the weight of the saxophone to one hand, he used the other to lightly press against the door. It creaked, letting Donnie know he had company. Then stepping inside, Raph pressed his shell against the door to close it behind him.

"Hey, Donnie."

Donatello lifted his head up from his work and set down a wrench. "What's up, Raph?"

Raph shifted his weight between his feet and adjusted his grip on the instrument. His brother turned to face him, and eyed the item in his hands. His eyes brightened with curiosity, and he crossed his arms over his plastron. "What's with the saxophone?"

A sigh passed his lips as he looked up towards the taller turtle. "Found it after beating up a couple of Purple Dragons." Then eyeing the floor, his voice dropped a few levels. "I was hoping to see if you would fix it for me…"

A light smile appeared onto his brother's face. Then stepping towards him, Donnie reached out to take the instrument from his hands. "Sure, however it's not going to be as easy to learn to play like your drums were. I'll have to adjust the triggers for your hands." Explaining carefully, he eyed the instrument in the light.

Then continuing, he added "Also, it sustained a lot of damage."

Raph cocked his head and pointed up at him. "But, you can fix it…right? Maybe clean the gold up too?"

Giving a heavy breath, he narrowed his eyes at his shorter brother. "Of course I can. However, saxophones are made of brass, not gold. Brass is also an alloy, which lucky for you, I specialize in metallurgy. It does look gold, because it's got gold plating, but I can always replace the plating." A confident smile broke out onto his face as he bragged proudly.

"Alright, so when can I have it?" Clenching his fists enthusiastically, he asked his brother. His emerald green eyes glimmered with excitement.

Turning away, Donnie set the instrument down lightly onto the workbench he was working at earlier. "Hmmm, it'll take a few days or possibly a week. I need to do research before even altering it."

Something clicked in Raph's mind. "Speaking of altering, why does it look so much different than the saxes I've seen on TV? I mean, it's huge!" Throwing his arms in the air, he exasperated.

A laugh broke from Don as he heard the question. "That's because it's a different type of saxophone. There are many different kinds and if memory serves correct, then this would be a tenor." Lifting a finger in the air, he said matter of factly.

Everything his brother said to him didn't strike him as important. Shrugging his shoulders, he lifted a hand and waved it. "Alright, well I'll leave ya' alone. Just let me know when it's ready."

Scoffing in annoyance, Donnie remarked "Well, it'll be a few days or so, so have fun waiting!" His voice held a high pitch as he watched his brother leave the room.

Raphael sighed and stretched his limbs. "Well, I can wait."

Slouching in his seat in the pit, Raphael had a comic book close to his face. A week has passed since Donnie promised to fix the instrument and he was starting to feel antsy. During the week he would pull out some old jazz CDs and started listening to them without his brothers' knowledge. It was like the phase he went through when he got his drum set. He still tinkers with it, but something about the jazz music, just struck him.

Lost in his thoughts, he couldn't focus on the comic in his hands. In fact, he didn't even know which comic it was. His eyes were glazed over as he stared at the pages, without absorbing in any details. A heavy sigh passed his lips and he flipped another page, not caring at all.

Suddenly, he heard Donatello come up behind him. "Hey Raphael, got a minute?"

Chucking the comic, Raphael glanced up over his shoulder. A smirk spread across his face. "Yeah, is it ready?" He struggled to contain the eagerness in his voice.

"Yeah, but I'm not going to hand it over to you just like that. You need to come with me into the lab so we can work with it." His voice held a certain serious tone and he eyed him carefully. "Like I said, it's not going to be as simple as your drums."

Raph rolled his eyes, and eased himself to his feet. "How much harder could it be?" He thought to himself with skepticism.

Without another word, his brother turned and headed to the lab. Raph picked up his feet and followed along, wondering why his brother was being overly serious about it. "It's just an instrument." He scoffed silently.

Easing the door close behind him, he waited for his brother to pull up the instrument. He inched closer to the table, wanting to see his next piece of equipment. When his brother turned to face him, Raphs green eyes light up with delight.

A slight breath of awe escaped from him as he looked over the instrument in amazement. The light from the lab bounced off the bell of the saxophone. It's tarnished and rusted color was replaced with a unique deep golden color, polished to a shine. He immediately noticed that all of the dents were absent, making the instrument look new. Also, an inscription "KING" was boldly imprinted on the bell, along with the large numbers "662". All of the rods were straightened perfectly, and the neck had a slight dip in its curve. His eyes were drawn to the pearl-like keys, since he didn't realize the keys looked that way when he picked it up. Then he noticed something hanging off the body. A bright red leather strap swung through the air, capturing his sight.

He glanced back at his brother. "Don, it's amazing!" he exclaimed with a voice full of wonder. A huge smile was plastered across his face. Glancing back down at it he asked "Is this really the same sax I brought home?"

Donatello gave his older brother a proud look and dipped his head. "It certainly is. It actually wasn't too hard to work with, like I originally thought it would be. The hardest part was actually getting the right components together for the plating." As he explained, he stared down at the instrument in his hands.

Raph couldn't help but feel excitement well up inside of him. Donnie noticed this and he reached the instrument outwards. "Here, now you need to be careful on how you hold it. Never grab it by the neck and avoid bending the rods." In a light cautious tone, he explained as the instrument was lifted from his grasp.

"Mhm" as all Raph let out as he carefully pulled the strap over his head. It felt tight and the heavy sax felt awkward to hold. "Donnie, this thing is awfully tight and the sax is pulled too close to me." He complained in a heavy voice.

"Adjust the straps then. Now that you have it around your neck, the instrument should be safe as long as you don't swing it around. I used a heavy duty clip to keep it in place."

Immediately Raph noticed the adjustments and he fiddled with it till the sax was comfortable in his hands and he didn't feel like he was suffocating. He then brought the instrument to his mouth and blew into the black mouthpiece. Nothing.

His face lit up with shock and he furrowed his brows. "Why the heck does this thing not make noise?"m

Donatello let out a throaty laugh, since he saw this coming. "See, told you it's not that simple." In a lighthearted voice, he stated.

As he continued to laugh at his brother's face, he pulled out a small wooden stick. It was sanded down finely to a very thin point. "Here, put this in your mouth."

"What?" Taken aback, he asked.

"If you want sound, then put this in your mouth. You want the sax to work, right?" Still chuckling, he eyed his brother mischievously.

Grunting, he knew he had no other option than to listen to Don. His hand swept through the air and snatched the wooden reed from his brother's clutch. Then he stuck it in his mouth and he grimaced in response. "Tastes like wood and sweat. Now, why am I doing this?"

There was a slight twinkle in the taller turtle's eyes. "Well, that's called a reed. I had to make it myself, so it probably won't sound that great. Next time you see Casey or April, ask them to get you a real one."

Raph's eyelids dropped and he continued to suck on the reed. "That doesn't answer why I'm suckin' on a piece of wood." His voice held annoyance.

Donnie laughed once more at his brother and placed his hands on his plastron. "The reed needs to be nice and moist in order to work. That's what makes the sound." He wiped the tears from his eyes. It was too much for him.

Now Raph couldn't believe his ears. "Pfft, yeah…okay."

"No, really. When you blow into the mouthpiece, the reed vibrates and the saxophone is the conductor that amplifies the sound." Regaining his composure, he explained. Then he glanced back towards the table and picked up a small metal ring.

"Alright, take it out now. It should be moist enough." Curtly, Donatello ordered with a smirk.

Heaving a breath of relief, Raph took the reed out of his mouth. "Next time, I'm just going to soak this in water." He thought bitterly to himself. Then he looked back up at his brother, tapping his foot in anticipation.

Rolling the metal band into his palm, Don offered it up to the shorter turtle. Raph reached out and plucked it up and brought it close to his green eyes. His face held a puzzled frown as he wasn't quite sure what to do with it.

"Alright, see those screws?" Lifting his index finger, Donnie motioned towards the band.

"Uh huh."

"Well, pull out the mouthpiece. Then take the reed and have it so that the tip is just barely parallel to the edge. After that, slip the band over the two and tighten it. Just, don't make it too tight so that it can't vibrate." Using his hands, he acted out what he explained while trying to control a bit of laughter.

Without saying a word, Raph did exactly what his brother said and thought nothing of it. He just wanted to get it over with, so he can fiddle with his new instrument. Once he had the mouthpiece all put together, he slid it back on. Immediately, he brought it to his lips and blew on it. The result was a raspberry into the instrument mixed with a sound like a mouse squeaking.

Burrowing his face into his hands, Donnie continued to chuckle. There was no way he was going to let him have the instrument without showing him all the proper procedures. He put a lot of work into the instrument, and he was afraid of it getting smashed from his hotheaded brother's frustration.

"Raph, look. You need to wrap you bottom lip around your teeth and then round your mouth around it. That's the only way it's going to work. It'll take a lot of patience, so expect to squeak a lot." While explaining, Donnie demonstrated the mouth position.

Feeling slightly agitated, Raph rolled his eyes and mimicked. Then he blew into the instrument, getting a clear sound. Excitement boiled up to the surface, threatening to over flow. "Donnie, didja' hear that?"

A slight smirk spread on his face at the question. "I did." Then folding his arms, he glanced over towards his computer. "Now that I've shown you how to actually use it, I'll give you a fingering chart and scales. Also, I don't have a tuner to give you, so I'll hand you a CD with the notes in tune and you'll have to do it by ear. Oh and to tune it, just push or pull on the mouthpiece."

Once he finished speaking, Donnie turned his back and walked over to his desk. He gathered everything in hand and brought them back to his brother. Raph held a huge smile and he took the haul with enthusiasm. "Thanks, Don. You're awesome."

"I know, but remember… you owe me a favor now." Cocking his head to the side, he pointed down at the instrument.

"Yeah, whatever. Cya!" Dismissing his brother, Raph turned to exit.

"Wait, I almost forgot!" Donnie called out to him.

Stopping in his tracks, Raph exhaled. "Ugh, now what?" He grumbled as he looked over his shoulder.

"See the screw on the neck? Well, when you're finished playing, unhook the neck and wipe out your sax. Don't skip out on it, unless you want mold growing in there." Using his singsong voice, he warned his older brother.

Darting his head back towards the exit, Raph shrugged. " 'kay, got it." Then he left Donnie to his work.

Inside of his room, Raph switched on all the lights. He had set down the all the papers Donnie gave him and he put the CD into his player. The saxophone was pressed up against his plastron as he settled himself onto his bed. He wasn't quite sure how to hold it, so he decided to let the bottom dip down next to his right leg. Placing his thumbs where they needed to go, he outstretched his other two fingers and toyed with the keys.

He instantly noticed that one finger was almost big enough to reach three keys. Lifting up the fingering chart, he glanced at what holding down three keys would make. "G, huh?" He muttered as he used his left hand to press down all three keys at the top.

Using what he remembered from Donnie, he wrapped his lips around the mouthpiece and blew into it. A full sound emitted from the instrument and a squeak followed. The sudden squeal caused him to jump in his spot, making the bed creak. "Crap."

"He wasn't kiddin' when he said this would be harder than the drums." As he thought to himself, he looked over at his drum set close by.

Deciding to try another note, he glanced down towards the chart. "Hmmm, I could try the F" he said in a hopeful voice. Then following the notion, he adjusted his right hand. "Now, I need to only press one key…maybe if I shift my finger this way- ah perfect!" His face lit up with excitement as he learned to adjust his hands right.

Once more, he tried to make a full sound. However, he quickly learned the lower the note, the more air in needed. The "F" wasn't nearly as full and he struggled to sustain it. Out of frustration, he accidently popped the trigger above his left thumb, causing the note to go up an octave. The sudden change in pitch caused him to cease the air flow. "Woah, I gotta' admit that was awesome."

Suddenly, curiosity hit him. Pressing down the six main keys, he repeated the steps. With the amount of air needed to get the note out, it made his face turn beet red. The result was a deep low note that vibrated the air around his ears. Quickly pulling the sax away from his mouth, he let out a chuckle. "Man, this thing's cooler than the ones you see on TV." His emerald green eyes twinkled with delight as he stared down at the polished bell.

An hour passed as he experimented with each note. He was glad his brother gave him a chart, since some of the sharps and flats were hard to get to with his large fingers. Soon, all the muscles in his face ached and his lower lip became sore. When it got to the point he couldn't keep his lips firm around the mouthpiece anymore, he decided to call it quits.

He unstrapped himself from the instrument and gently placed it on the bed. Taking his hand, he rubbed his jaw as he stretched it. His lips felt a tad chapped and he stifled a yawn. "Well, I'll listen to some music." In a low tone, he said to himself.

With careful choosing, he pulled out an old jazz CD and replaced the tuning disk. Pressing play, he sighed and plopped back down onto his bed. He felt his weight sink into the mattress as he adjusted himself. The springs inside of it grated in protest. Once fully comfortable, he darted his eyes back down at the sax as the swinging tune passed through his ears.

"I don't want mold in there, so I guess I'll clean it now." Reaching behind him, he pulled a ragged cloth off his shelf and brought it close to his instrument. Taking the mouthpiece off the neck, he grimaced when spit came flying out of it.

He took the mouthpiece apart and wiped it out. Then using great care, he unscrewed the neck piece and saw more of his saliva drip out of it. "Now I see what he meant by mold." Commenting with disgust, he gave it a quick swab.

The task of drying out his instrument felt tedious, but he couldn't help but admire how the light hit the deep golden color. As he listened to the music, he paid careful attention to the saxophone part. He hoped that he could play like that one day. The deep melody resonated with him in a certain way that was unexplainable.

In the following weeks, Raph practiced every day. He learned to tolerate the aches that came with hours of practice. Inside of his bedroom, he set up the stereo and put on a low gritty jazz song. The sax in the music played a bluesy tune, and Raph couldn't help but let the music flow into his ears.

The song was his favorite out of that CD, and after weeks of listening, he managed to pick out what all the notes were. Bracing himself, he brought the sax to his lips and eased his eyes shut. Then his instincts took over and he felt the rhythm course through him as he exhaled into the saxophone. A clear full sound erupted from the instrument and his fingers moved fluidly, pressing the keys in time.

Keeping his ground with both his feet, he rocked his weight to the swing of the music, as he continued into the song. All of his senses felt alive as each note vibrated into the air. It was as if all of his frustration from all the little things subsided and faded away.

With each note, he poured his thoughts and feelings into it, giving it soul. Each time he hit a high note, it pierced the air with ferocity and then it swooped down low, gracefully. Once the song ended, he pulled the sax away and gave a breath of relief.

Then he tilted his head downwards, and his emerald green eyes reflected the gold hue of the instrument. He felt proud of playing the song as well as he did. It was a similar satisfaction that he got when he pounded some heads or put in a hard day's worth of training. A sweet soft smile broke out onto his hardened face, and he unstrapped the instrument from his neck.

Suddenly, there was soft click at his door and he tensed up. When it creaked open, he turned to see who it was. "Oh, hey Don. You shoulda' knocked first."

His brother gave him an awkward smile. "Yeah, sorry about that. I could hear you playing and I just wanted to see how the sax was holding up." Then rubbing the back of his neck, he added "It sounded great."

Raph felt a slight twinge of embarrassment from the complement. "Well, I was about to polish it. But, if ya' want, I can play another song." In a low voice he relied as he shifted his weight.

Donnie's reddish-brown eyes showed that he was quite intrigued and he dipped his head. "Yeah, I'm quite interested in how well the repair worked out."

"Right." With a sarcastic smile, Raph thought to himself as he pulled the strap over his head. Then leaning over, he switched to another song and prepared himself. A more of jazzy swing echoed out into the room, and in response he drew in a deep breath.

He prepared himself for the entrance and as soon as it came, he nailed it. With each note, he became lost in the music. He didn't care if his brother saw. He didn't care if he looked like dork. In fact, he didn't care about anything, but hitting those notes right. All he did was pour his feelings into the sax, letting out everything he had within him.

Author's Notes: Hey everyone! I hope you all enjoyed this little oneshot. Now, as to why I chose a Saxophone and even a Tenor at that. Well, in "Coming Out of Their Shells" Raph not only played the drums, but also a saxophone. When I looked up info, I instantly saw he was holding a black tenor. Now, the instrument he found and that Donnie fixed up was based off of my very own instrument that I personally play. I thought it would be cute to have another nod, since in the 2012 cartoon we saw he had a drum set in his bedroom. Well, feel free to leave any feedback. I appreciate any thing my fans do for me and I can't thank you all enough for reading ^.^