Rated T

2003'verse

Leo grumbled something to himself about stupid brothers as he tried to sweep up the bathroom mirror, another victim of one of Mikey's October pranks. He shuddered as it came back to him.

Mikey had snuck up on him while he was brushing his teeth that morning and Leo had hardly gotten out of the way of a loogie that was so big and was sent so hard that it cracked the mirror and shattered it all over the floor. Now Leo was responsible for cleaning because Mikey had taken off to the surface.

As he was putting on his rubbed gloves to pick up the bigger pieces that the broom couldn't get, Mikey appeared in the doorway, a pendant around his neck and one in hand. Leo rose an eye-ridge. "What the-?"

"Leo, put this on! You've been cursed with bad luck for breaking the mirror! We all have to wear these to protect ourselves from you!"

Leo chuckled at this despite his bad mood. "Mikey, you actually believe that crud?"

"Yes! I got Sensei to wear one, too!"

Leo rolled his eyes. "He's just humoring you, Mikey. You know I don't believe it, and you shouldn't either. Humans are just stupid enough to think that coincidences have to do with luck. I don't believe in that."

"Yeah, 'cuz karma's any different."

"It is, actually. Karma is the consequence of past actions, whether it be good or bad. It just... works different for giant mutant turtles, I guess," Leo said thoughtfully.

"Just shut it and put it on!" Mikey exclaimed, trying to force it onto Leo's neck himself.

Leo smiled still, forgetting about the glass as he stood up, grabbing Mikey and putting the orange-clad turtle's arms behind his shell, pulling up. Mikey cried out. "Get out, Mikey! I have a mirror to pick up!" Leo exclaimed in a no-nonsense tone.

Mikey leaned on the doorway, keeping silent.

Leo rolled his eyes tolerantly and turned back to his job.

And stepped on a piece of glass.

The 4-inch shard cut directly into his left foot, going in about an inch.

"Ow!" he yelped, grabbing his foot.

"See!" Mikey exclaimed, pointing.

"Shut your trap and get me to Don's lab!" Leo growled at his little brother.

Mikey shrugged, remembering that he was protected by his medallion and helped his brother limp to the lab.

Don groaned. "Mikey, when I put this thing on-!" he started as he got out his med kit.

"Don't say it, Don!" Leo yelled at his brother as he was sat on a cot. "This was a pure freak accident! And it's Mikey's fault!"

"What?!"

"You're the one that took me away from picking up your mess and I cut my foot on the glass!"

Don slapped them both. "Shut up so I can work!"

Leo crossed his arms as Mikey left and Don treated him.

Leo slumped on the couch. putting his left foot on the coffee table to keep it from reopening its stitches. Raph glanced at him, then at the pendant around his neck. "Uh..."

Leo smiled grimly. "I'm not cursed," he stated simply. "It's just one of Mikey's silly beliefs."

"Awright. I don't really believe it, eitha. Put da damn t'ing on ta shut 'im up."

"Heh."

Mikey came running in. "Leo! I'm telling you, it's bad luck! You have to put this on to at least delay the onslaught until we can reverse it!"

"I'm not taking part in any of your stupid games, Mikey," Leo sighed.

"Please, Leo!"

"No, Mikey!"

Mikey stomped his foot. "Fine! Don't come crawling to me when a piano falls on you!" he yelled.

Leo glanced at Raphael, who chuckled wryly.

Leo walked through the streets of New York City, trench-coat wrapped around him and hat on his green head. He had a scowl on his swollen face. In the past few days since he'd been 'cursed', as Mikey was putting it, he'd gotten hit by Don's staff in training multiple times, slipped and fallen on his ass or face countless times, and had nearly burned the kitchen down - without even being within 10 feet of it. He'd touched one of Don's experiments and set off the toaster.

He growled and kicked a rock on the concrete sidewalk, but no one cared enough to look down at his two-toed, green foot.

He still didn't believe Mikey's silly beliefs, but he was seriously considering putting on that stupid necklace just to shut that bastard up!

Leo turned into an alley towards an apartment complex.

"Alright, I'm going to April's to get supplies. That's it," he reminded himself, unconsciously avoiding being under any windows. Mikey's warning was still ringing in his head from a few days ago.

"Don't come crawling to me when a piano falls on you!"

Leo scoffed as he arrived at the apartment and climbed up the fire escape with ease, not noticing as it creaked under his weight. Just as he was about to knock on April's window, he heard the shrill sound.

CREEEEEAAAAK! it screamed, then collapsed.

Leo yelped as he fell with it, landing on top of the rusty piece of metal and receiving multiple cuts on his already battered body. His head was spinning. He blinked away stars.

Unconsciousness took him.

Don ground his teeth, waiting at the door his brother. He actually believed what Mikey was spouting, and Leo had been gone way longer than he should've been!

"Hey, bro!" Mikey exclaimed, putting a hand on his immediate older brother's shoulder, making the genius jump in surprise.

"Jesus, Mikey! Don't do that!"

"Dude! Where's Leo?!"

"Hell if I know, Mikey. He's been gone for a while!"

"But I'm hungry!" Mikey whined, his pendant banging on Don's carapace as he hugged his brother from behind in a not-so-loving manner.

"Don't care. Just wait for him and hope this... whatever it is you've been ranting about isn't real."

Mikey's eyes widened. "LEO!"

Don face-palmed as Mikey grabbed another pendant from goodness-knows-where and ran out of the Lair, but followed him anyways.

Leo blinked as his eyes fluttered open slowly. He hurt. That was his first thought.

Had a piano actually fallen on him? 'Cuz that was what it felt like.

He tried to find some kind of leverage to sit up, but only found himself getting more cuts on his hand. He was going to need a major tetanus shot when this was over...

He rolled off the pile with lack of anything else to do. He groaned as he impacted the cement face-first. "Owwwm," he groaned, getting on his hands and knees. He struggled to stand up, leaning against a wall with a burning pain in his left knee.

Sighing, he took out his Shell Cell; at least that wasn't damaged, if not surprisingly. He dialed Don's number and held the cell to his ear.

"Leo? We're on our way to April's right now. Are you hurt?"

"Worse than I've been in the past week?"

"Yeah."

"Yes."

There was a sigh on the other end. "Sit tight. We'll be there in about 2 minutes."

"Mkay."

"If you hit your head, don't fall asleep!"

The moment Donatello mentioned that, Leo realized that he had hit his head, and it hurt a lot. But he wasn't really tired. Luckily.

Don't think about that word!

He stood up, looking up at the now empty wall underneath April's window. He looked up at the other building.

And then he groaned.

Above him, a giant piano and a man with giant headphones hung. The man, who wasn't in any way under it, didn't know he was there.

The rope around the piano started to break.

Leo was too fatigued to move.

"Shit."

The rope was hanging by a thread-

SNAP!

Leo's eyes widened as the piano started to fall. "SH-!"