Chapter 3: Fury
A/N: Sorry that it took me so long to update. I've had writers block for awhile and lost the drive to continue writing. Please review.
3 Months Later
THUD! Mikey hit the floor of the training room with a groan. He pulled himself off the floor and complained rather loudly, "Did you really have to hit me so hard, Raph?" In response to the question, Raph just shrugged his shoulders and smirked. Michelangelo pouted and stretched his sore muscles as he left the mat.
He kneeled at the edge of the mat and watched his remaining brothers fight. Soon Donnie joined him and Mikey flashed him a wide smile as he sat down. Donnie ignored his brother and remained quiet. In response, Michelangelo crossed his arms and sat Indian style on the mat. Michelangelo sat in thought then nudged his brother with his arm. Mikey continued to nudge him until Donnie turned his way. Donnie looked at Mikey, set his jaw and glared at his brother. He was still upset with Mikey after he messed up his newest invention and his small scale laboratory.
It's a long story but let's say that after Mikey's "little" mistake in the lab, Donnie is no longer able to use his lab for the next week according to the maids, and Mikey is no longer to combine exotic/newly made treats from street venders in the nearby towns by order of the King.
Raphael and Leonardo met each other at the center of the mat and took their fighting positions. Their father stood at another end of the tatami mat observing the scene before him. Both boys were tense as they waited for their father's command. Leonardo smiled at his brother and tried to ease the tension that radiated from them. Raphael only scowled at his efforts.
Finally, with a tap of his jade cane, the king began the fight. Raphael immediately jumped into action. He aimed a kick at Leonardo's face but Leo moved out of the way. Leo tried to kick at Raph's turned back but Raphael dodged it last minute. Raph shifted his body and aimed punch, after punch at Leonardo. Leonardo was sloppily able to dodge Raphael's relentless onslaught of attacks.
"Geez, Raph! Take it easy. It's just a sparring match." Leo said while still trying to dodge the attacks.
"Shut up!"Raph yelled in response. Raph paused his frenzy to catch his breath. The attacks were starting to exhaust him. Leo took this opportunity to attack. He decided to use his newest power moves. Leo focused on the spark he felt when fighting the Foot and channeled it into his roundhouse kick. Raphael was knocked back by the blast and fell on the floor. Mikey laughed at his brother's misfortune.
Mikey's laughter abruptly ended when the King pounded the end of cane on the floor and yelled, "Yame!" Leonardo went into a respectful bow while Raph stood up from his clumsy position on the floor. The King took a deep breath before he asked, "Do either one of you two want to explain to me why I am sensing high amounts of hostility in this sparring match?"
"Maybe it's because Fearless has to be so perfect all the time." Raph muttered under his breath while crossing his arms. Master Splinter suddenly appeared right behind him and his the top of his head with his cane.
"What was that?" Master Splinter questioned with a look on his face that said say that again young man. Raph was used to the look by his but it still made him feel ashamed.
"Nothing, Master." Raphael responded while he hung his head and kept his eyes glued to the floor.
"Raphael was attacking me, Master Splinter, so I used one of the new moves you taught me with my powers. I didn't want him to hurt me." Leonardo explained to his father.
"Baby." Raph muttered while glaring at Leo.
"Raphael." Splinter reprimanded harshly. He continued, "Apologize to your brother right now."
Raphael was still glaring at Leo then he stomped his foot and reluctantly said, "Sorry."
Splinter then turned to look at Leonardo and said, "As for you Leonardo, even though Raphael was aggressive towards you, that does not excuse your actions. Now that you have your element you are stronger than your brothers and you can seriously injure them if you use your powers so carelessly."
Leonardo responded, "I'm sorry Master Splinter."
Splinter nodded and said, "Training is over for today. You all are dismissed except for Raphael."
"Ooooh, someone's in trouble." Mikey taunted. Raphael clinched his fists so he wouldn't punch his brother in the face.
"Michelangelo. Leave." Master Splinter commanded. Mikey all but ran out of the room at his father's harsh voice. He did not want to be on the receiving end of his father's fury. Donnie and Leo followed shortly after him. Splinter watched his three sons leave the room before he turned to his fourth son and asked, "Do you know what I am going to say to you, My Son?"
"That I'm a disappointment and can't do anything right?" He sneered at his father.
Splinter sighed, "No my son. I was going to ask why are you acting so hostile to your brother? Do you really think I have not noticed your change in attitude towards your brother for the past two weeks?" Raphael remained silent and suddenly became interested with his shoes in response to his father's accusations. Splinter watched his son fidget for a minute and lifted his son's chin and spoke, "Please look at me when I am speaking to you, Raphael." Raph slowly looked at his father but he remained silent. "Please tell me what's troubling you, My Son." Splinter continued desperately.
"Nothing's wrong." Raphael responded harshly. Splinter quirked his eyebrow at Raphael but remained silent. Raphael crossed his arms over his chest and stubbornly glared at his dad. He slowly uncrossed his arms and asked, "Can I leave now?"
Splinter looked at his son as if he was trying to read his thoughts. After he scrutinized his son for another minute or two he reluctantly said, "Yes if that's all you have to say then yes, you may go." Raphael nodded and quickly bowed before he ran out of the training room. Splinter shook his head and muttered to himself, "What am I going to do about that boy?"
Raph ran out of the room and headed towards his bedroom. When he shut the door, he noticed that Leonardo was waiting for him.
"So what's up with training today?" Leonardo questioned his brother while sitting on a bed with his arms crossed with his right eyebrow slightly raised.
"Mind your own business, Leo." Raph commanded as he turned to walk out of his bedroom.
Leo followed his and pressed, "It is my business when you are attacking me and all of your unreasonable anger is directed at me." Leo ran ahead of his brother and blocked his path down the corridor. He continued, "Please Raph, tell me what I did wrong? I'm sorry for whatever I did."
"You're sorry?" Raph exploded at his brother's face. Raph continued, "How can you be sorry when you don't even know what you did?"
"Well then tell me so we can work this out. I don't want to fight with you." Leo pleaded with his hot-tempered brother.
Raph chuckled darkly and said, "Of course perfect little Leo doesn't want to fight. He can't do anything wrong and always has to fix everything." Raph jammed his finger at his brother's chest and snarled, "Do you wan to know what my problem is? You. You are my problem. You have to follow every order and act just like a Splinter Junior!" Leo was hurt by his brother's words but Raph didn't care as he continued, "And you think it helps that you got your powers by saving me. Thanks a lot. Now for the rest of my life I'll know that I was to weak to face an enemy and needed you to save me!" Tears were pooling in Raph's eyes as Raph's anger and embarrassment that he has been suppressing for weeks finally came to light. He exploded, "I hate you!" As he made a pushing motion at Leo, fire exploded from his finger tips. Leo was moving to dodge the attack but he wasn't quick enough.
The fire hit Leonardo in the chest and he fell to the floor. Part of his outfit was catching on fire. Leonardo tried to pat the fire out and started rolling on the floor to try and smother the flames. Raph looked at his brother that was partially on fire in shock. He looked down at his fingertips that were still sparking with flames. He hurriedly tried put the flames out by shaking them, but that didn't work.
"Raphael what is going on he-holy!" Master Splinter exclaimed. He saw the scene before him of Leonardo putting out flames and flames coming from Raphael's fingertips.
"Master Splinter? Help me!" Raph yelled at his father while he was still trying to put out the flames.
"Raphael. You need to calm down. The flames react to emotions."Master Splinter said while slowly moving towards Raphael with his hands held in surrendering motion. At this point Donnie and Mikey flanked by guards entered the corridor to see what the commotion was about.
"Calm down?! "How can I calm down when fire is exploding from my hands and I hurt Leo?" Raphael snapped back at his father while waving his hands around.
"Raphael. Stop it. Guards, help Leonardo." The King commanded. The guards rushed to help the fallen prince. They picked him up by the arms and headed to the infirmary. The King looked back at his other sons and saw that Michelangelo was gripped tightly onto Donatello's arms. He pointed at them and ordered, "You two, go with the guards to the infirmary."
"But-"Michelangelo tried to protest but his father cut him off.
"Go now. Donatello take your brother and go." Splinter ordered while trying to put out Raphael's flames. Donnie nodded his head and grabbed his brother's hand to lead him away from the dangerous scene. Michelangelo reluctantly followed his brother while looking at his brother and father. After they left, Splinter turned his attention back towards his remaining son. "Raphael take a deep breath and focus on me. You need to calm down. Your power is very emotionally fueled." Raphael breathed in and out. "Very good. Keep it up and imagine the flames going away. Try to diminish your spark." Raphael closed his eyes and continued the mantra and eventually the flames began to recede.
He opened his eyes and looked at his hands that were now completely free of flames. He was relieved but then his relief turned to embarrassment and shame as he remembered what he had done or could have done. He ran out of the corridor and away from his father. He ran and ran. He could not handle being around his family after he hurt Leo. He could not believe he did that to his brother. He finally stopped running when he made it to the fountain of the royal garden.
He decided to catch his breath and sit on the fountain. He found it was hard to catch his breath a lump in his throat. His tears finally started to fall as he moved his knees towards his chest and put his head against his knees. He stayed like that until he something tugging at the fabric near his ankle. His paused his sobbing and rubbed his nose against his sleeve. He looked down and saw a baby turtle trying eat his pants.
"Hey. What are you doing done there, little guy? I guess you aren't afraid of me, are you?" He questioned the baby turtle rather curiously. The turtle only blinked in response then tried to eat his pants leg again. "No. Don't do that. You're going to choke." He said while picking the little turtle up.
The turtle didn't fight against his grasp, all it did was blink at the young prince. "You're a funny guy, you know that? You must be hungry. Are you hungry little guy?" Again the turtle slowly blinked. "Let's get you something to eat." He said while carrying the turtle over to the vegetable section of the garden.
Let's see. What do turtles eat? Raph thought to himself. He decided to try feeding the turtle lettuce. He grabbed some lettuce and sat down with the turtle on the ground. He pulled off a small piece on lettuce and tried to feed it to the turtle. "Here you go little guy." He said while ushering the lettuce into its mouth. The turtle sniffed at the lettuce then bite part of it. The turtle began to eat more and more pieces of the lettuce. "You must be really hungry." Raphael commented.
Eventually the turtle at the entire head of lettuce and settled itself beside the young prince. The prince pet the little turtle and thought out loud, "I can't keep calling you little guy. Maybe I should name you. What do you think?" The turtle did its usual blink in response. "Hmmm what's a good name for you little guy?" He questioned the baby turtle. Again the turtle only blinked in response. "You seem like a tough guy. I'm going to call you Spike. What do you think about that?"
Again the turtle only blinked. "Yeah that's what I thought." He said as he rubbed the turtle's shell. After spending some more time with Spike, Raph decided that it is time to face the repercussions of his actions. Raph brought Spike back to the fountain and laid him inside the fountain. Spike began to swim around the fountain then looked back at Raphael. Raph smiled and said, "See ya later, Spike." Spike continued swimming on his merry way as Raph turned to go back inside the castle.
Raphael made his way into the infirmary to check on his injured brother. When he walked in he was greeted with the sight of his brother's and Father looking at Leonardo on the infirmary bed with the doctor, Asas, looking over and mending his injuries. "Raph?" He heard Mikey say in shock. Every eye in the room turned to face him.
Raph hesitantly walked further in the room but he was still a couple of feet away from the infirmary bed. Raph hesitantly asked, "How's Leo doing? Is he alive or…"
"Your brother will be fine, Raphael. Asas was able to use his healing abilities to stop any permanent damage and burns." Master Splinter responded in a sorrowful tone.
"I'm sorry. I didn't mean for it to happen. I was just angry at him and my powers just took over. I really didn't want to hurt him." Raph explained mournfully with new tears glistening in his eyes. The King walked over to him and laid a hand on his shoulder. Raph broke down and cried. Through the tears he continued, "I got my powers by being angry at him and hating him for being better than I am. I'm a horrible brother."
"You are not a horrible brother. You said some things in anger that you did not mean and your powers manifested at the wrong time." Master Splinter spoke as he hugged his son and pat his back.
"But how do you that Leo won't hate me?" Raphael questioned his father as he put his head in his father's maroon kimono.
"Because I don't Raph. I know you didn't mean it. You looked scared when it happened."
"Leo?" Everyone in the room collectively gasped in shock as Leonardo was moving to a sitting position.
"Bro, you're awake?" Mikey exclaimed in shock and awe. He then tackled Leonardo in a flying hug.
"How are you feeling?" Donnie asked while pulling Mikey off Leo so he could breathe and would not cause any more injury.
"I'm okay." Leo responded and turned to face Asas and continued, "Thank you for healing me."
"It was my pleasure, Your Highness." Asas responded while bowing to the royal family. He then left the room and ushered the guards to leave with him, so the family could have some time to themselves. Raphael towards the infirmary bed and Donnie and Mikey made room so they could all sit next to Leo.
Raph was silent for a moment before he looked at Leo and said, "I'm sorry Leo. I don't hate you. I was jealous and angry that you got your powers and all the attention for being the star student." Raph looked down and started playing with his hands before he continued, "I just…wanted to be like you. I thought I would never be as good as you. You defeated a legion of Foot soldiers while I was unconscious. If it wasn't for you then I could be in dungeon in Shred Head's lair somewhere or worse."
Leo pulled Raph into a hug and said, "No. It's okay, Raph. I'm not seriously injured or anything and I know you didn't mean to attack me."
"Well since we're all apologizing…D I'm sorry that I destroyed your lab, Dude. I didn't mean to. I just wanted to help you with your experiments." Mikey said looking left out that he wasn't included in the hug.
Donnie huffed before he said, "It's okay, Mikey. I'll let you name my newest inventions as long as you don't try to mess with any other of my projects. Deal?"
"Deal!" Mikey said excitedly before pulling all of his brother's into a group hug. Michelangelo suddenly broke out into laughter which is not abnormal for him to do so. "Dudes! I just thought of something." The energetic prince all but yelled at his brothers.
"Uh oh. That's dangerous. Don't hurt yourself, Bro." Raph teased.
"Shut up. It's good." Mikey did a dramatic pause before continuing, "Since Raphie has fire powers now, does that mean he is actually a hot head now?" Leonardo laughed at the joke while Donnie was holding his sides and wheezing. Mikey's pun even earned a smile from Splinter. The only one who was not amused was Raphael.
Raphael scowled and yelled, "Mikey!" He then launched himself at his orange clad brother.
A/N: So this chapter was long over due. Tell me what you think and what your thoughts on what Mikey's or Donnie powers are going to be.