I don't own the turtles, but if I did, Leo would never leave my room…
This request is from HannahCake310 ( u/4545733/) and she's awesome!
Summary: Leo never got into using his senses; he always knew one would eventually slip from him. He just never expected it to be his most trusted sense…
Proven to be worthy
He wasn't blind. He could still see. He could see shadows and whispers of objects. He could sense a solid thing seconds before he ran into it or it ran into him. He could see through useless eyes just the same as any normal person. He was neither a shell of himself nor an echo of what he once was. He was still the Fearless Leader Leonardo even though he had looked right into the fire that had burned his eyes.
It took seven minutes of missing a whole bunch of stumbling and tripping on… whatever Don had in this lab of his and found the aid kit Don kept on the end of the examination table with the other entire medical supply.
He shifted through the medical kit and pulled out a wash set; a chemical wipe, flushing water, tweezers, and other things Don explained to well for him to know.
He picked them out and refuses to let it go, afraid that if he should have let them go, it would be his final breath. Why you may ask, is Leonardo using these things…
-Flashback—
"If this is a way to say you don't need me, SAY IT!" Raphael snapped after the minute of silence.
"Seems like you don't know your own words, you can barely understand, hot-head! You are needed on this team as much as anyone else!" Leo snapped as the temper, rarely, shown comes to light through his eyes.
Both eyes were slit and burning emotions to the others mind through the eyes. Leo's burned with concern, agony, sorrow, and swollen anger but Raph's burned with territorial competition, red hot fiery, dislike and slight agony himself. Neither wanted to fight (both for separate reasons) nor continue listening to the other throw an important point in their face, but this was an issue that needed settling now.
"AND WHAT'S ME PURPOSE?! You already told me the team was better off without me, what could possibly change YOUR mind?!" Raphael got closer, he was breathing like a bull and the amber eyes that shined with mischief and disobedience now shone with anger and, if possible, more hate then before.
"Don's our brain; he keeps us alive and healthy. He never stops looking after us and if he were to stop, he's busy with someone of something else that needs his attention. Mikey's our baby, he makes the most of a bad situation. Mike's the glow when it gets dark, he's the angel when you're surrounded by demons, and he's the skin off the back of your neck. He's the most innocent person in the world, and you need to protect him so he never forgets. And you…" Leo got closer to Raph, his eyes slitting even more making those brown and gold speckled eyes look as if a monster was passing upon you.
Raph seemed frightened and his slit eyes turned back to normal and he shrunk ever so slightly and the more Leo moved closer to him he would step back.
"... You're the brave and strong one, loyal to the bone of the family. Taking hits when it was meant for someone else, taking rash roods just to avenge a loved one's wounds or DEATH, or hurting you to make it right! You think brute force can solve anything, and sometimes, you prove others wrong because they don't listen! You care for the one's you love and you're a remodel to Mike, Don, Angel, HECK anyone who watches you! I…" Leo kept walking forward with the same look on his face; eyes, stance, and all.
"…L-Leo, I…" Raph couldn't finish because the demon that toke over his older brother made him shrink.
As Raph and Leo walked (and backed up) into the living room, the family and guest look up in shock at Leo's demon side.
Mike and Don stood up behind the far end of the couch, obviously ready to check on the elder brothers, never mind on that plan. Splinter sitting on the couch in front of his youngest sons, stared by the sudden dark spirit that followed Leonardo and Raphael. April and Casey sitting on the love seat the family the scavenged, astonished to see the one and true, Time-Boom-Leo.
Don stepped forward in front of Mike to protect the baby, who, was clinging to Don's back like a baby bat. Splinter stood up with help of the couch arms and grabbed his staff, ready if one tried something risky. Casey held April as the duo got closer to the couch and, from the perspective, one's grave most likely.
"…I have never seen someone as cocky and confident more than Mike, and it seems I was wrong! You never cease to amaze everyone you WORK around. You encourage Don to work on his inventions cause his favorite, and I do mean this, is the SHELLCYCLE! You take care of it; you make sure it's fine, that helps Don realize that he is PERFECT at what he does. He only does these things, because you helped him realize. You encourage Mikey every day to be the best because you make it look easy! You may not get things right, you might get one of us hurt, but look! Mikey follows you around as if you were the best thing in his LIFE! He follows you, because you make every day brighter for him! A-and I…" Leo's eyes close as he choked on his sobs but keeps walking.
"…Leo, b-bro, I ne-never knew…" Raph still stayed in astonishment as his brother showed his emotion box full of toys. And it seems their reaching the sadness toy. Raph tripped over a cushion and fell to his shell and slowly scooted away from Leo's approaching figure.
Everyone's heart broke at the tears that flowed from Leo's eyes and his feelings brought unpleasant thoughts.
"I LOOKED UP TO YOU! YOUR LIKE A HERO TO ME, I SEE YOU AS A PERSON OF STRENGTH! I NEVER GOT HOW SOMEONE AS IDIOTIC AS YOU COULD BE AS PERFECT AND ENCOURAGING BUT I DIDN'T CARE! EVER FLAW YOU HAD, I PUT IT ASIDE CAUSE I CARED, I hated the way I was nothing like you! Hated, pushed aside, avoided; that was me! The lonely turtle that got shoved around and died was me! You! On the other hand; loved, respected, treated with care, and never missed an opportunity to spend time with your baby brothers! EVER SCAR YOU GAVE ME, I take it as a privilege that was given to me because I somehow earned it!" Leo sniffled as he breathed hard; his eyes glossed and refused to stop spilling almost 20 years of agony.
Raph's mouth hung open as his older brother let everything lose. Leo stopped waking to him when he got to the center of the room. Raph stood up and tried to touch Leo; comfort, hold, he really didn't care what but something.
"EVERYTIME MIKE OR DON COMPLEMENTED ME, I TOKE IT AS AN AFFENSE! When I beat you in training and everyone congratulated me, I didn't care! But seeing you hate me after winning against you, almost made me die! I wanted to die…" Leo trailed off covering his face but continued, "I tried Seppuku at age 6! It didn't work because I did something wrong and you found me! You untied the rock from my leg, and I was able to pull it off as if I got caught!"
Tears now rushed from the palms of the bottom of his hands. But he wasn't the only one. April and Mike clung to Don and Casey as Leo told his childhood pain. Don looked nearly to tears but he was strong to keep it back. Splinter, tried and failed, to mend his own broken heart as if he had once more lost his Master Yoshi after getting him back after a life time without him.
"T-that's why y-you were tide d-down so we-well? I knew so-something was f-fishy when those ties looked to meaningful. They were meant to end it…" Raph choked on his own air, remembering the knot used on his bros ankle.
"Y-Yes…" Comes the broken hearted reply.
Raph tried to touch Leo, hug him more like it. But Leo let out a blood curling scream and fled as if monsters were going to kill him if he didn't go back to the safety of his room…
-End of flashback—
Since then Don put Leo on therapy. But that was six weeks ago…
He refused to look at Raphael at any time of day. Splinter even split them up from training together for time being. His Seppuku thoughts never stopped coming; knives, drowning, fire, it seemed to all come back. But Don seemed ahead of schedule. Don had depression medicine, medicine to help Leo.
Leo toke those three times a day, after he ate a meal. And he's doing better, the pills helped him get over the Seppuku thoughts and everything around him now felt real. He even spared with Raph, not looking at the owner of beautiful amber eyes of course.
But it was a fateful night of cleaning Don's lab that hurt him worst then fire…
Leo wanted to distract himself from the depression as Don got more pills. So he cleaned Don's lab, with special permission of course. Don gave him lists and lists of what to do, what not to touch, what goes where, and special info. Don warned that rats have been nibbling on rusted chemical pipes lately above his work desk and to mindful of leaks. But Leo paid no attention to the sharp toothed rat that munched on the pipes above.
If Leo noticed to nibbling seconds before a snapped metal sound, he would have had time to block his eyes from the acidic or alkali substance pouring into his eyes and burning as it sinked in slowly.
Leo pushed his face in the bathroom sink, which is full of cold water, and flushed his eyes the best he could till Don came home.
He only hoped it would be soon…
TBC…
No flames please, I don't like them. And I will block you.
R&R.