He woke up suddenly to a strange noise. Tensing, he waited and took stock of his surroundings. He listened to water dripping until he heard a repeat of the strange noise: a gasp and then a whimper.
Quickly, he rolled over and immediately began trying to wake up his big brother by shaking his shoulder. Leonardo's eyes shot open, but Raphael could tell he wasn't fully awake yet.
"Leo, yer having a bad dream. Look at me. Yer ok." He tried to keep his voice down. All four brothers slept in a pile on a makeshift bed and he didn't want to wake up their other two brothers. Or their father, who was sleeping nearby in a recliner.
Leo's head jerked in Raph's direction and he whispered, "Raph?"
"Yeah, Leo," he whispered back. "Yer ok," he repeated.
Finally, Leo seemed to recognize that he was awake and not in the grips of whatever dream he'd been caught in. He surged forward and wrapped his arms around Raphael's neck. Raph gladly welcomed him and pulled him in close to his plastron, slightly alarmed to feel his big brother shaking.
"What was it?" Raph asked.
Leo only shook his head and nudged his face deeper into Raph's neck, doing his best not to sniffle or give away the fact that he was on the verge of actual tears. He was practically ten years old. Too old to cry about a bad dream. Instead, he tried to take deep breaths and calm himself by breathing in Raphael's familiar scent.
Raph could hear Leo's altered breathing and didn't call attention to it. He rather liked having Leo curled into him and didn't want to chase him away by asking if he was crying.
After a few long moments, Leo leaned back far enough to be able to look up into Raph's bright green eyes, the color visible even in the darkness. "It was a monster," he whispered. "A big metal turtle grabbed you and took you away from me."
"A metal turtle?"
Leo only nodded, his big blue eyes full of fear. "I tr-tried to chase him, but he was too fast. And then you were gone. I failed as your big brother."
"You'll never fail as my brother," Raph said, fiercely. He cut off whatever Leo was about to say next, knowing Leo could drown himself in guilt even over a nightmare. As if he had any control over what happened in the dream world. "And I'm fine. I'm right here with you. I promise I wont let a metal turtle anywhere near me." It was certainly a strange thing to have to say, but he said it sincerely, without sarcasm. He'd say anything to make Leo feel better.
Leo ran his fingers up and down the edge of Raph's shell and Raphael tried and failed to suppress a shiver. Leo didn't seem to notice. He appeared to be considering Raph's words.
"Promise?"
"I promise. I'll always be here. With you. For you," he answered back.
"Thanks, Raphie," Leo said with a small smile, knowing how much Raphael disliked the nickname when Mikey said it, although he let Leo get away with it.
Raph only glared lightly at him.
"I'm sorry I woke you."
"Shh," Raph said, pulling Leo closer again. He listened until he heard Leo's breathing even out before he allowed himself to go back to sleep as well.