A/N: Thanks for the reviews! Glad to hear you're all enjoying the story so far.

The voice crushed something in him, opening a wound he hadn't even known existed until then. Then his legs buckled. A can rolled under him and he slid across the floor, his face meeting the linoleum with a force that would have resulted in blood gushing from his nostrils if he'd been human. As it was, he'd probably be awkwardly rubbing and scrunching his beak for a week, but then the shelf followed him down, literally crushing him, and he couldn't breathe. He wheezed as the voice he'd heard, the familiar one, suddenly sounded alarmed and was joined by a voice that sounded more nasally and exhausted.

He curled in on himself, feeling hurt and scared and where was Leo? But then the shelf was being lifted off of him and he could breathe and- be slammed against the wall by an angry frog. Because that was just the sort of day he was having.

It was hard to focus with the hand around his throat but it was also impossible not notice that the green blur that had saved him and then pinned him against the wall wasn't a frog at all. It was a mutant turtle.

"Hey," the turtle growled, "unless you want to end up like your buddy over there," he jerked his head towards Sid tied up with weighted ropes around his arms and legs, the money spilled over the floor, then let his narrowed eyes drift to the old man "then I suggest you answer one simple question, newbie: Where are my brothers?"

Even though the turtle was armed, angry, and clearly more competent than the average garden-variety New York ninja, his leafy green eyes looked more hurt than anything. And it wasn't anything Mikey had done or even something that had happened recently. There was breaking and shadows in them.

But he and Leo had waited. They'd waited days - weeks - for someone to find them, for someone to want them, and it was the Shredder who'd come, who'd rescued them.

Behind the angry green-eyed turtle, a taller turtle with a bo staff and a purple mask was being thrown around by Rahzar like he was made out of cotton and fluff. "Uh, Raph," Mike's blue eyes went wide as dinner plates, because he knew this voice, this face, even the sheer exasperation he managed to exude despite his foot currently being captured and his head making pretty holes in the ceiling panels, "if you're not – ow – too busy – ow – do you think – stop that!" The purple masked turtled slammed his staff onto Rahzar's fingers, right across his knuckles, and the wolf mutant snarled with irritation and pain. Now that Rahzar's grip was momentarily weakened, the turtle twisted, wrenching his legs from his fingers and then adjusted his weight as he fell so he was in the perfect position to clock Rahzar across the broad side of his skull with a staff that was made for breaking bones.

"Huh." Rahzar's entire body went stiff, mouth gone silent mid-roar. Then he toppled over like a domino. "Looks like I didn't need the help, after all." Raph spared him an impressed look as he jogged over, and Mikey noticed for the first time that both of these mutants looked like they hadn't slept in months. The dark circles under their eyes sank all the way to their cheekbones.

Mikey's breath hitched, his head hurt. Something was struggling to swim to the top of his brain but, whatever it was, it hurt. Hands grabbed his arms, shaking him. "I said, 'Tell me where my brothers are!"

"Raph." The purple masked turtle looked completely drained, all the triumphant high from his victory gone like smoke as he laid a three-fingered hand on the other turtle's shoulder. "Look at him, he's shaking. And he's probably younger than us. Even if the Purple Dragons are with the Foot, I doubt he'd know." Then he turned to leave, and something in Mike twisted. He didn't know them or remember them and he definitely didn't trust them. But he didn't want them to leave.

"Wait," Mikey croaked. The pressure around his throat reduced to almost nothing, the two ninja in front of him suddenly gaping at him like they'd been wandering lost in a maze and he'd just shown them the way out. Or like he was the missing piece of the puzzle they'd spent their whole lives looking for. They looked at him like he was everything.

Fumbling, trembling hands pushed his hood back, pulled his mask down, and there was so much doubt and fear and hope as they breathed, "Mikey?"

A small object the size of a grenade flew through the broken window and hit the ground with a thud, releasing a dense purple smoke that spread across the entire store in seconds. Strong arms pulled Mikey away from the hands that had held him and dragged him out the door.

It hurt to hear the two turtles – mutant turtles like him and Leo – as they called for him, their desperate cries following him out the door and into the street, never quite leaving his thoughts long after he was out of earshot.

He didn't remember having brothers or even a family. Just Leo. But what were the chances that there were completely unrelated ninja turtles looking for their brothers in New York and who knew his name?!

The family he and Leo had waited a month for, the one they'd given up on… maybe they'd never given up on them.

And maybe he'd inhaled some smoke or maybe he was just scared, but by the time Leo stopped and turned to face him, Mikey felt like crying.

"Mikey?" Leo said, immediately easing up on the death grip and going into Big Bro mode when he saw the tears, concern etched all over his face. "Are you okay?" He checked him over, frowning at the tender spots and bruises. Cold intensity entered narrowed eyes as he glared back at the pharmacy where Xever was now dragging Rahzar behind him like he was an old luggage bag and Sid was frantically hopping to keep up the pace. "The two ninja who had you cornered- did they hurt you?"

Mikey went to shake his head but the finger-shaped bands around his neck answered for him. Likely, the green-eyed turtle, Raph, hadn't meant to hurt him so much as he hadn't cared if he did. Unfortunately, it didn't make much of a difference to Leo whether the strange ninja he'd seen pinning his little brother against the wall had meant to hurt him or not.

Honestly, though, Mikey didn't want to fight anymore. Fong had told them the coast was clear when it wasn't, the Shredder had told them the cashier knew they were coming and he hadn't, the two ninja he'd met looked like him and they were probably about his age and the way they'd called for him, like they'd shatter if they had to lose him a second time, ripped at his heart, but it was all too much to think about then. He was tired.

He leaned against Leo's chest, whispering an apology for the mission, for everything, even the things he couldn't help and the things that weren't his fault, and Leo relaxed, letting some of the ice building in him melt so he could wrap his arms around his little brother, tell him everything was going to be alright, and bring him back home.

"You called for us, Master Shredder?"

The second they arrived back at the Foot base, Mikey, knowing he didn't have a lot of time, told Leo all about the two humans he'd found huddling in the can section. He may have passed over Rahzar trying to eat him (it wasn't exactly unexpected), the sneaking suspicion he had that Master Shredder had been less than truthful about their 'test,' and the fact that the two ninja that had gotten the jump on him were also reptiles trained in ninjutsu and, oh, they just happened to be looking for their brothers. What a funny coincidence, right?

Right. Like that didn't sound completely insane.

Would Leo even believe that if he told him? Three weeks ago, Mikey would have told him anything, but that was when they'd just had each other, when Michelangelo alone had been enough for his older brother. Now, he was afraid that if he told Leo what he thought about the strange ninja he'd encountered, Leo would report what he said to the Shredder. And something quiet, something half-forgotten or maybe half-remembered, whispered that he absolutely couldn't let that happen.

Leo threw an arm out, stopping him in his tracks. The Shredder was standing in the center of the room, facing them with his arms behind his back, and from what little they could see of his face, he wasn't happy.

"Master." Head bowed, Leo kneeled, with Mikey joining him on the floor immediately after. "I wish to accept full responsibility for the mission's failure." He felt more than saw Mike open his mouth and threw a hard glare his way to keep him silent.

The Shredder grunted, as though he'd expected this. "From what I heard of Xever's report, you fulfilled your role more than adequately. Every weapon, every man, was present and where they were meant to be."

"That's true, Master," Leo replied, having trouble keeping the unease from his voice as Mikey fought to keep his breathing under control, "However, the actions of every ninja under my command are also my responsibility."

The Shredder paused, considering. "You are correct, Leonardo." Hearing that, Mikey nearly leapt to his feet, except Leo threw an arm out, his face gone soft and begging for him to trust him. It was his 'I have a plan' face. It'd gotten them through a few scrapes and it'd kept Mikey's head above the water on those nights when the pressure of being lost and homeless got to him. Leo knew how much he believed in him. And Mikey knew that he'd do anything to keep him safe.

Before Mikey could even finish being conflicted, the Shredder ordered Leo to stand on the opposite side of the room. Defiance glowed in Leo's eyes like burning embers for an instant, then it faded and he climbed to his feet, bowed his head deferentially, and moved across the floor. As he moved, the Shredder turned, his gaze following him, so Mikey saw the cord of leather clutched in his hands first.

The fear struck him like hot iron in his chest. Whether it was for him or Leo, it didn't matter. That whip wasn't for show. He opened his mouth to warn Leo, Leo who was looking at him confused and frightened because he didn't know why Mikey looked so scared, Leo who was already moving to run to his side. Then chains sprang from the floor, shackles wrapped around his ankles and wrists, dragging him back down to his knees. "Master," Leo gasped, "what is this? What are you doing?"

"This is your punishment, Leonardo." The Shredder said simply. "A true ninja kills his heart. This is a lesson you and your brother must learn. And as your sensei," the whip came out from behind his back and blue eyes shrank to pinpricks, "I am bound to teach it to you."

Mikey shot to his feet, lunging forward to free his brother, and quickly found himself airborn. It didn't last more than a breath, though, because the Shredder slammed him down on the tile, then followed the blow by stepping on his shell with a heavy armored foot.

From across the room, Leo raged and writhed and fought, the chains clanging as he strained against them. "DON'T TOUCH HIM!"

The first strike of the whip barely hurt. It was loud, though, and Mikey ended up shouting more out of shock than anything.

The third strike hurt a little. The whip sent flecks of shell through the air now. Distantly, Mikey wondered what it looked like.

Seven strikes.

Twelve.

Mikey swallowed a scream the first time lightning hit his back. He wanted to reassure Leo, wanted to tell him that it'd be over soon, to smile like everything was going to be alright, especially since Leo was looking at him like his entire world was ending. But when he opened his mouth to tell him, the scream he'd swallowed came back up.

Eventually, the sound of the whip came to a halt. Mikey had his eyes closed, barely conscious but holding on. There was a metallic click as the shackles around Leo snapped open and he fell forward, sobbing so hard his chest ached.

It was just to the two of them now. He ran to his little brother, stumbling and tripping over himself as though he'd forgotten how to walk, and gathered him into his arms. "Mikey?"

Mikey heard the way Leo whimpered his name and urged his eyes to open, begged himself to move. He was almost as surprised as Leo was when he actually managed it.

Mikey opened his eyes, the ghost of a smile on his face as he patted his older brother feebly, trying to tell him without words that he was fine – or would be, at any rate – and Leo made a choking little sputtering sound as he pressed his forehead against his little brother's and whispered, "I'm so sorry, Mikey. I never meant for this to happen."

Closing his eyes, Mikey wordlessly returned the pressure, trying to tell Leo that it wasn't his fault, that he literally didn't blame him at all. But whether Leo understood or not, Mikey wasn't awake long enough to find out.

The darkness lurking behind his eyelids reared up, dragging him into sleep, and the next time he woke up he was in bed, his shell cleaned and bandaged. And the Leo he remembered – the kind of lame one that liked to practice his rousing speeches in the mirror and tickle him in the morning - was gone.

A/N: To those of you who predicted that this would happen immediately after reading the first chapter, you guys are too smart. On that note, did you guess who the owner of the voice at the end of the last chapter was right? Did everybody think it was Raph like I thought they would? Of course, I thought you would think it was Raph because it was Raph, so no tricks there:)