10

AN: Wow, I'm amazed at how many people are reading this! Although, in proportion to that, there aren't many reviewing, that's okay. Last chapter, I said I would upload this after I finished Chapter 5. And, I do keep my promises. But, I'm sure that all of you Leo fans want to know why I'm torturing him. I do give a reason, but, also, for some reason, I'm having a little trouble writing him, and would love any pointers you Leo fans have! He's my fave turtle too, and I really want to do him justice. Anyway, please enjoy the third chapter!

Mikey, the Trypanophobiac

"Excellent, Leonardo!" Splinter praised, clicking his claws together and bowing to the only turtle still standing.

Leonardo returned the gesture, turning and smirking down at his brothers when their father was not looking. His brothers could only groan, knowing they were about to get a lecture. "Michelangelo, a ninja must always anticipate unorthodox attacks." Mikey groaned, his voice still high from the blow his brother had given him. "Raphael, your coordination was off." Raphael grumbled, rubbing his still tingling feet. "And, Donatello, you weren't even paying attention half the time!" Donatello groaned, cursing the fact that he had lapsed into daydreams whilst his brother was focusing his attacks on Raphael.

"Leonardo is correct, my sons," Splinter stood beside said turtle, eying his sons with disappointment in his eyes. "Clearly, you three were not 'on top of your game' as they say," the four turtles groaned inwardly. "I suggest the three of you consider extra training sessions, particularly you, Michelangelo."

"Whaaat?" Said turtle protested, holding his arms in a Y. Thankfully, his voice had returned to its normal pitch. "Leo kicked me in the 'forbidden 'area'! I thought we weren't allowed to attack there!"

Splinter did raise his furry eyebrows at the blue clad turtle at that. "I do admit, Leonardo, that perhaps that particular attack was somewhat inappropriate."

"Somewhat?!" Mikey exclaimed. "I'm still sore!"

"Michelangelo, enough!" Splinter silenced him and his other two groaning sons. "Training is over for now. You are dismissed!"

Leonardo sheathed his katanas and bowed once more to his sensei, throwing one last reproachful look at his brothers before disappearing out the door.

Donnie, Mikey, and Raph staggered to their feet, all three groaning perhaps a little dramatically. "Thanks a lot, Don." Raph grumbled as he followed his brothers out of the dojo. "If ya had jus' stayed put, Fearless wouldn'ta been so pissed and I wouldn' be so sore!"

"All right then, Raphael," Donnie snapped back. "Next time, I'll just leave you dangling upside-down in the closet for all of eternity."

Mikey perked up at that. "What now?"

"Nuttin,' shell-fer-brains!" Raphael growled, struggling to catch up to his brothers. "Wait fer ma! Ma feet are still tinglin'!"

Mikey glanced at his purple clad brother, brow ridges raised and a question in his mischievous eyes. "Whadaya think, bro? Should we wait for the hothead to catch up, or continue on our merry way?"

Donnie's eyes twinkled, joining in the fun. "I dunno, Raphie! It's so much quieter with only the two of us up here!"

"Shuddup, brainiac!" The enraged behemoth behind them bellowed. The two smaller turtles chortled before speeding up, easily outdistancing their red clad brother, who was grumbling under his breath about idiot brothers.

Donnie and Mikey were still laughing when they entered the main living area. Leo, who was sitting in front of the wall of windows meditating, scrunched his brow in annoyance and shushed them before returning to the astral plane.

Mikey watched his brother in disgusted curiosity. "Donnie, you're smart. Do you know how Leo can sit meditatin' fer hours without his brain turning to mush?"

"If only I knew," Donnie sighed, flopping down on the floor and folding his arms. Technically, Leo hadn't said he could get up yet, practice clearly being an exception, and he had already irritated the blue clad turtle enough without pushing it. Besides, it wasn't as if he had anything better to do.

Then he remembered that he most certainly did have something better to do! "I'm such a bonehead!" Donnie bellowed, bolting to his feet like a rabbit on steroids just as Mikey was sitting down to join him. The orange clad ninja watched his brother in silent fascination, brow ridges raised, as he barreled past Raphael, who had just reached the doorway to the main living area.

Raphael stared after his brother in shock for a moment before limping inside and scanning the room. Catching sight of Mikey, who hadn't moved due to the shock, he limped over and flopped down beside him, copying his posture. "What's wrong with Donnie-boy?" He asked, only half-interested, as he returned to massaging his sore feet.

Mikey shrugged. "Apparently, he just remembered something he was suppose' ta do."

"Wonderful," Raph grumbled. "Whadaya wanna bet it's sumthin' ta do with this whole 'biological testing ta figure out our real ages' thing?"

Mikey blinked. "That was a lot of words to describe one thing."

"Ah, shuddup, shell-fer-brains," Raph growled, reaching over to whack his orange clad brother upside the head.

"Whaaat?" Mikey complained a little too loudly.

"WILL YOU TWO BE QUIET?!" They both jumped, swinging around to see an enraged Leonardo glaring at them from his place beside the wall of windows. They had quite forgotten he was even there.

"Uh, sorry, bro," Raph hurried to appease his brother. Seriously, had he woken up on the wrong side of the bed or something? He'd been grouchy all day. "We'll try ta keep it down, 'kay?"

Leonardo grumbled under his breath before returning to his meditation, taking deep breaths to calm his suddenly racing heart. Although clearly the side of the bed you get up on does not usually effect your behavior for the rest of the day, he hadn't gotten much sleep last night due to a certain orange clad ninja who didn't like sleeping by himself in strange places and had kept him awake the entire night with his snoring. Although the four ninja turtle brothers had been in the future for some time now, certain things were still odd for them, and the sleeping arrangements was one of them.

Back in their lair in the past, their bedrooms had been all relatively near each others'. However, in the future, one could shout down the hall from his bedroom door and his brothers may or may not even hear it. Thus, the orange clad, and often thought of as the youngest, ninja's difficulty in sleeping.

Normally, Leonardo blatantly refused to let his brother sleep in his room, but he'd been caught at a moment of weakness and Mikey's puppy dog eyes had been particularly tear-jerking last night.

And, on top of that, he'd had a pulsating migraine for the past few days that he was just barely keeping contained. For the most part, he had been able to ignore it, but, after a full night with no sleep and listening to Mikey's snores, he was finding it—how do you say it?—more difficult to control himself. Having to deal with three somewhat unruly "little" brothers and just the stress that comes with being Leo, after all, is no easy job.

So, if he was a little snappy, grouchy, and overall violent, he decided that was okay. Everybody was allowed to have an off day once and awhile.

Just then, Donatello reappeared in the doorway, breathless and eyes shining as he clutched a white first aid kit in his arms. Leo had only furrowed his brow in annoyance, the only sign he even knew his brother had entered, but Mikey and Raph were staring at their brother in confusion.

"Uh, Don?" Mikey attempted. "Are you okay?"

"Fabulous!" Donnie exclaimed, startling both his red and orange clad brothers and earning a growl from the blue clad. "I almost forgot that I have to get blood samples for the DNA testing!"

"Blood samples?" Mikey asked, blinking stupidly for a minute. "As in, with a needle? A needle going through my skin? That kind of blood sample?"

Leo had given up on his meditating and risen to join his suddenly hyperactive purple clad brother. Donnie grabbed his brother's arm and dragged him over to their other two brothers, beginning to excitedly tell Leonardo just how incredible and fantastic it was going to be when—

"I'M NOT LETTING YOU POKE ME WITH A NEEDLE!" Mikey exclaimed suddenly, bolting from his place on the floor and backflipping over the couch. "I have rights!"

Raph got to his feet and peered over the back of the couch at his trembling brother. "Ah, come on, Mike. Needles ain't so bad. Here, I'll even go first."

Mikey poked his head over the back of the couch as Raph stepped forward and held out his arm to Donnie. The genius clicked the first aid kit open and took out an empty syringe, wiping it with a sterile cloth before swiping a small area on his brother's forearm. "This'll sting a little."

"I have been poked with a needle before, bro," Raph snapped as Donnie grabbed his arm and poked the needle through the skin, pressing down on the top to draw the blood out. Due to their thick reptilian skin, he had to apply more force than would be needed on a human.

Mikey watched in silent fascination from behind the couch, not noticing when Leo sneaked behind him after a pointed look from Raph.

"There, all done," Donnie said, pulling a test tube and stopper from the first aid kit and emptying the contents of the syringe into it before stopping it. "Your turn, Mikey."

"Uhhh, no way, dude!" Mikey began, sitting up and holding up his hands as if to ward them off. "I'm not going anywhere near—HEY!"

Leonardo had jumped him from behind, pinning him to the couch with his weight. "Just hold still, Mikey. This won't hurt a bit."

"Yes, it will!" Mikey protested, struggling beneath his larger brother. "GEROFF ME!"

"Leo, can you sit him up so I can draw the blood?" Donnie asked as if this were all completely normal, rounding the couch and sitting beside his brothers.

Leo grimaced. "I'll try." He slid off of his brother but kept him pressed firmly into the couch. "Can't you just do it this way?" He pointed at his brother's arm that was hanging off the side of the couch. "I'll just sit on his shell and you grab his arm. Raph can—"

"NO!" Mikey managed to yank his arm up and tuck it under his plastron. "Why are you being so cruel to me?!"

"Mikey, for the love of—STOP FIDGETING!" Raph bellowed, surging over the couch and moving to help Leo hold his brother down, although he swayed slightly. He paused when he noticed both Leo and Donnie staring at him. "Wha'?"

Donnie's stare was particularly penetrating. "How do you know that word?"

"What? Fidgeting?" Donnie nodded. "What, I'm not allowed to have a large vocabulary?"

"No," Leo interrupted before his genius brother could say something very un-genius-y. "It's just that you don't have much of a vocabulary."

"Ha ha!" Mikey mocked, although his words were muffled due to his face being pressed into the couch. "Raphie-boy got pwned!"

"That's it!" Raph made to jump his brother, but Leo held him off. "Leo, lemme at 'im!"

"After Donnie gets the sample," Leo replied. "Donnie?"

"Just sit him up," Donnie ordered.

"Why can't you just use his leg?" Raph demanded.

"EEP!" Came from the couch cushions.

"The muscle is too thick," Donnie explained, prepping a new syringe. "I'd have to go pretty deep to reach a blood vessel, and that would cause him more pain than necessary."

"His neck?"

"Please tell me you are kidding, Raphael," Leo deadpanned. "Mikey, if you sit up and let Donnie take a sample like a good boy, I'll let you up and even keep Raph from pummeling you."

"Hey!"

"I'd rather be pummeled than have a needle stuck in me!" Was Mikey's reply. At least, that's what they thought he said. It was hard to tell through the couch cushions.

Leo sighed. "Then I guess we do this the hard way." Without warning, he stood up and scooped the smaller turtle into his arms.

"HEY!" Mikey cried, flailing his arms and struggling. "Whadaya doin'?! PUT ME DOWN! This is totally unethical!"

"Did you guys steal my dictionary or something?" Donnie demanded as both he and Raph moved forward. Raph grabbed the arm not pinned to Leo's plastron and kept Mikey's legs at bay. Donnie calmly stepped forward, swiped a spot on the arm Raph held out to him, and stuck the needle in.

"YAAAAHHHHHHH!" All while Michelangelo was yelling bloody murder. "I HATE YOU GUYS! YOU'RE THE WORST BROTHERS EVER! LEONARDO, PUT ME DOWN THIS INSTANT! RAPHAEL, LET GO OF MY ARM! AND, GET THAT NEEDLE OUT OF ME, DONATELLO! SENSEI!"

"Done!" Donnie cried in triumph as he pulled the needle from his brother's arm. "You can put him down now, Leo."

"SENSEI!"

"Shuddup, shell-fer brains!" Raph snarled, smacking his brother upside the head. "Sensei's on the roof tending his garden."

"HE CAN STILL HEAR ME! SENSEI!"

"Michelangelo!" Leo snarled through his teeth, tightening his hold on his still struggling brother. "You know how sensei gets when he's gardening. It doesn't matter if he hears you. He'll know it's nothing serious and ignore you."

Mikey went limp at that. "Leo, have I ever told you that you're, like, the best big brother ever?"

Leo sighed as he walked the few feet to the couch and dropped his brother on it. "You don't know that I'm your big brother, Mikey."

"We will after this test!" Donnie exclaimed, his eyes shiny. "Your turn, Leo!"

"All that jus' fer Mikey," Raph shook his head. "Whada waste of time."

Mikey made a face and stuck his tongue out at Raph while Leo was calmly letting Donnie draw a sample of his blood in the background. Raph snarled and leapt on his brother, suddenly remembering he was going to pound him.

"Here, Leo," Donnie handed his brother a fourth syringe. "You know how to do this, right?" He asked as he held his arm out to his brother.

Leo laughed. "Of course, Donnie. We all know basic first aid." The two calm turtles seemed to be completely oblivious to the sounds of their obnoxiously loud brothers in the background while Leo swiped his brother's arm and slipped the needle in.

Donnie flinched and Leo put his other hand on his arm to reassure him. "I'm fine. I'm not exactly a fan of needles either," Donnie explained quickly, knowing how concerned his brother could get.

Leo rolled his eyes at that. "Compared to Mikey, the family trypanophobiac, you're practically fearless."

Donnie laughed. "I thought that was your adjective." Leo smirked. Donnie laughed louder until he realized something. "Okay, seriously, where did you guys put it?"

Leo looked up at him and laughed. "Let's just say I have this odd habit of looking up random phobias. As far as I know, your dictionary's safe and sound."

Donnie frowned. "So, what's trypa—trypno—what did you say?"

"Trypanophobia," Leo supplied. "It means a fear of needles." AN: I didn't make this up! That really is what it's called! And, for those of you who think Donnie should know this word, not even geniuses know everything.

Donnie blinked for a moment before he laughed. "Yeah, that's Mikey all right."

"OWWW!" Speak of the devil. "LLLEEEOOOO! MAKE RAPH STOP PUNCHING ME!"

"FEARLESS CAN'T HELP YA, LAME BRAIN! YER ALL MINE!" Raph smiled and spoke in a normal voice. "'Sides, he gave me permission."

"Hey, Leo?" Donnie asked, casting a weary gaze at his two brothers who seemed to only be getting louder.

"Yeah?"

"Am I allowed to move if I go train?"

Leo laughed. "You up for a spar?"

Donnie gave his brothers one last glance. "Anything to get away from them for awhile." He packed up his first aid kit and followed his brother out the doorway.

"SERLING!"

"OH, NOW YER JUS' GETTIN' DESPARATE!"

AN: And that concludes the third chapter! I will not be posting the fourth until I have completed chapter 6, though. This may take a few days. And, yes, now you know why Leo's been so grouchy and easily provoked! Honestly, I've never had a migraine, but my mother used to get them for days on end, and she was absolutely miserable. And, yes, this will be the last chapter where he's like that! He gets a good night sleep after this or something, I don't know. Anyway, for any who have been wondering if I will do anything with the Dark Turtles, the next couple of chapters will focus mainly on them. I would love your input on their personalities and whatnot! With so few episodes focused on them, I almost had to invent personalities for them, except for Dark Leo, of course. Anyway, thanks for reading, and do leave a review. I really do care what you think.