Disclaimer: TMNT not mine!
Time had slowed to an intolerable crawl as Donatello awaited the results to the tests he was running. He tapped his foot restlessly as he continued to cast impatient glances at his computer monitor. There were a few minutes remaining, but they were dragging relentlessly.
"Now I know how Mikey feels when he's waiting for his pizza to be done cooking…" he muttered to himself.
Taking a moment away from his fixation on the computer screen, he turned to check on Leonardo behind him. Leonardo had turned to face the wall. Based on his breathing, Don surmised that he was awake, but had taken his advice to rest.
Donatello knew that his older brother had been made the leader of their foursome for a reason. He was honorable, brave, the most talented ninja of the bunch, and a master strategist. He could remain calm and focused under insurmountable odds and still bring the four brothers to victory. Donatello usually trusted his leader's judgment, but this time…
The genius' attention was broken by his computer alerting him that the analysis on the samples was complete. He eagerly pressed "enter" and began reading the results as they scrolled onto the monitor. His intense expression broke into a grin of satisfaction as he took the values in.
"Pretty much normal," he stated to himself. "I love it when I'm right."
Donatello's words caught Leonardo's attention. He turned around and brought himself up to a sitting position, his shell propped against the wall.
"Normal?" Leo echoed incredulously. "Are you sure, Don?"
Donatello raised a skeptical eyebrow ridge. "You have to be one of the few people in the world who would be upset by a diagnosis of 'normal'."
Donatello turned the computer screen at a slight angle in order for Leo to be able to see it as well. He knew Leo wouldn't understand what was there, but he figured Leo would be appeased by how easily Don was sharing the information and that this would would hopefully ease some of his apprehension.
"As you can see, Leo, everything is as it should be. Your electrolytes and trace minerals are mostly in range, your white blood cell count shows no sign of infection, and your hormone levels are normal as well. Nothing to be concerned about that I can see. I'm no doctor, but the science never lies."
"Wait, Donnie…" Leo frowned. "You said 'mostly within range'."
"Your iron level is a little low, which can actually cause dizziness, nausea, and fatigue, which explains your symptoms. Just take it easy, stick some steak on your pizza, and call me in the morning," Don explained, grinning good-naturedly.
"And you're positive about that?" Leo said slowly, his words seeped in disbelief.
"Does Michelangelo like pizza?" Don replied smugly, crossing his arms.
Leo's frown deepened, but he remained silent.
"How you feeling there, Fearless?" Raphael's voice called from the entrance of Don's lab. Michelangelo and Master Splinter had accompanied him.
"I think I'm alright," Leonardo answered.
He swung out his legs and placed them on the floor, experimentally putting a slight amount of weight on them before he stood. Donatello moved to his side when he saw what his brother was attempting, ready to catch him if he were to fall again. Leonardo took that moment to stand and was grateful when he was not met with any dizziness.
"Good!" Raph smirked. "Cuz it's your turn to do the dishes tonight!"
Mike elbowed Raph playfully and whispered out the side of his mouth, "Seriously, dude?"
Raph shrugged nonchalantly. "You know I hate doing the dishes, Mike…my hands get all pruney…"
Master Splinter made his way over to his eldest son and placed a comforting hand on his shoulder.
"I am much relieved that you are feeling better, my son," Splinter said. "Come, let us go eat lunch and nourish the spirit."
"Alright, dudes!" Mike rubbed his hands together in excitement. "There's this new pizza recipe I wanna try and…"
Raph smacked Mike playfully on the back of his head. Mike scowled in response.
"Enough with the pizza talk, geez…all I ever hear! I love pizza as much as the next turtle, but enough is enough!" Raph moaned, rolling his eyes.
"Sorry, dude, no need to get all cheesed off about it!" Mike said mockingly, his grin full of mischief.
Raph groaned in disgust and left the lab.
"Hey, bro, wait, I got more…" Mike called as he trailed after Raph.
The rest of the day passed without much incident. Leonardo tried as best as he could to go about his activities as usual, and was able to albeit feeling short of breath when training and having to stop to rest often. He took Donatello's advice and put steak on his pizza at lunch, hoping that the solution was really that simple. However, as the hours trudged on, the lingering doubt that he had that Donatello had indeed missing something began to grow like an unchecked field of weeds. He even caught Splinter eyeing him curiously on several occasions.
After they had eaten dinner (and Leonardo reluctantly washed the tower of dishes) Splinter took him aside.
"Something troubles you, Leonardo," Splinter said to him.
"Hai, Master," Leo nodded, "I just cannot shake the thought that my dream was trying to warn me of something. Donatello says everything is alright with me, but…" Leonardo's voice trailed off, not finishing his thought. He shook his head in dismay.
Over the years, the group had come to rely heavily on Donatello, and Leo was having a difficult time doubting him.
"Come meditate with me, my son," Splinter suggested. "Your mind is in much turmoil and your thoughts conflicted. You need to center yourself in order to set your mind on the path to clear thought."
Leo gave Splinter a weak smile in agreement and followed Splinter to his room. Splinter lit some candles and incense and took his seat on his mat in the lotus position. Leonardo followed suit, closing his eyes and focusing on his breathing. He relaxed his body and tried to clear his mind. In..out…in…out…he was finally feeling calm and at peace…
But all that was lost…
When he found himself in the dojo…
