Author's note: I've been holding this chapter for a while. Writer's block's got its ugly hold on me and won't let go. I know what will happen next, but who's POV it will be and how it will be writen is what is really troubling me. I don't really like how this chapter came out to bare with it. Mikey's onna seem kinda crazy to Raph in this chapter but not to you readers who know what it really going on. I drew a cover page for this and uploaded it into my deviantart account under "Donnysgirl" if you want to see it. I'll make a link to it in my profile as soon as possible. While I shouldn't keep you for too long so.... read on!
Disclaimer: I don't own the turtles & company. My OCs and the plot are mine though.
Raph's POV:
I watch Mikey as he cowers slightly from my gaze almost guiltily. I slowly approach him and sit down next to him on his bed. "Who's Henry?" I ask.
"No one," Mikey says as he turns away from me.
"I think I remember hearin' dat name before…" I say, slowly.
"No you didn't." Mikey says, firmly. I look over at him as he stares at me with his big blue eyes. Why is he hiding something from me?
"Mikey," I say as I place my arm around his shoulder. "Yer my little brother; I know yer not sayin' sum'thin'. What is it?"
"It's nothing, really Raphie," He says. I know he only calls me by that horrid childhood nickname when he's scared or upset. I rub the back of his shell as I think about what to say next.
"Mikey," I say, "I can tell ya don't feel like talkin' 'bout it right now, so I won't force ya to. Ya gotta tell me though. When ya feel up ta it, you'll tell me, right?"
"Yeah," He says, warily. Only then do I remember where I heard the name Henry.
"Hey, Henry was da name a' dat skeleton in the trench, right?" I ask, "Ya called it 'Henry the Skeleton'. Now I remember. It was in yer first message on da wall a' dat trench." I watch as Mikey's fist suddenly clenches and he mutters something under his breath I can't quite catch.
"What waz dat?" I ask. Mikey slowly unclenches his fist before he answers.
"Nothing," He says. I can hear a touch of anger in his voice I've never heard there before. It's rare when Mikey gets mad and I can tell his never been this mad before.
April's POV:
Leo doesn't stay long and I didn't expect him to. He left to search for the injured cat's kittens. With him gone, I pick up the cat and look over at Casey. "Can you do me a favor?" I ask him.
"Whateva ya need," He says as he slowly walks over to me almost tentatively.
"Could you take her to a vet?" I ask as I pet the cat in my arms. "She'd be better taken care of there."
"Are ya still scared ta go out?" He asks, "Ya know I'll be there fer ya. We can go tagether if it'll make ya more comfortable."
"I'm not scared, Casey," I lie, "I have to stay here with Caden and Annie." I turn away from him so he won't notice my struggle against my tears.
"April," Casey sighs behind me, "Yer not makin' this any easier. I'll take da cat, alright? Hand it over and I'll take it ta da vet alone."
"She's not an 'it'!" I snap at him, "She's a female and a mother at that!"
"Sorry babe!" Casey says and I can almost see him holding up his arms submissively, "I'll take 'her' to da vet, okay?" I turn to face him and hand over the cat.
"Here," I say, "Be careful with her. I didn't take the bullet out yet in case it only made the injury worse, so hurry."
"Got it," He says as he takes the cat out of my arms and leaves the room. As soon as I know he's gone, I fall back into the couch, wrap my arms around my torso, and bring my knees up to my chest. I don't know what to feel anymore. I know Casey's trying to help, but it's just not working. I don't know how to accept his help. It's already a strange idea coming from him. I feel so vulnerable and invaded. I just want to forget everything that happened, but I can't. How can I go on living like this? I can't even step outside my front door anymore! The shop's closed until I can get back to running it again and I don't know when that will be. What if it never reopens?
"April?" I hear Annie tentatively ask. I quickly wipe away any tears and look up at her. "Oh April!" She says, "It's alright!" She wraps her arms around me and I absently brush my fingers through her thin brown hair. The aroma of cookies fills the room as I unwillingly allow my legs to fall back over the edge of the couch.
"April?" Caden asks as he peeks his head out of the kitchen towards us. "Are the cookies done yet?"
"Caden!" Annie says, "I told you to stay in the kitchen!"
"I am in the kitchen!" He says back as he folds his arms comically across his chest. Annie rolls her eyes and turns back towards me murmuring "Boys!" under her breath.
"Are you alright now, April?" She asks me.
"Yeah," I say, slowly, "I'm fine. I bet the cookies are done right now."
"URECKA!" Caden yells as he punches the air with his fist.
"Really?" Annie asks.
"Let me go check first." I say as I get to my feet.
"Maybe we can give some ta tha guys too!" Caden says, "Maybe it'll help them ya know?"
"Maybe," I say.
Mikey's POV:
I hate Henry! Why did he have to say that about Raph? After my brother had figured out where Henry came from, Henry had sarcastically said, "Why isn't he intelligent? It took him long enough!" I had told him to shut up, but he only laughed! I hate him so much right now. He has no right to dis my bros like that! What was he thinking?! Ugh! I didn't even hear Raph leave after that. I wasn't paying attention to him. Henry appears in that chair of his again and I get to my feet, glaring at him. "I hate you!" I say.
"You won't think that for long," He says, "Soon you'll see it my way. I'm only thinking about what's best for us. These animals you call family are only hindering your true potential. You don't need them."
"They're NOT animals!" I yell, "They're my family!"
"They don't understand you. You can go so far if you just leave them. I will be there to support you. I am your only friend here. No one else cares about you the way I do."
"Be gone!" I say as I turn away from him.
"You'll see my way soon enough, Michelangelo."
Raph's POV:
I lean against the counter in the kitchen staring back the way I came. I'm really starting to worry about my baby brother. I can tell something's up, I just don't know what it is yet. Maybe I can do something for him. I turn, walk towards the fridge, and look inside. There's some frozen pizza in the freezer. I take that out and set it on the counter. Since it's only a plain pepperoni, I decide to spice it up a little. I take out most of Mike's favorite toppings and set them on the counter as well. Some of them have to be chopped up first and I have to force myself to pick up the kitchen knife. With the handle clenched tight in my hand, I stare at the sharp blade. I remember the feeling as sharp blades cut into my skin. I remember how my heart felt as practically pounded out of my chest. I remember the feeling of my blood bubbling out of each new cut added to my skin. I quickly squeeze my eyes shut against the memories and shake the images away, dropping the knife onto the counter in the process. I hate this. Why can't I just forget?
As soon as I manage to get a grip on myself, I open my eyes again and glare at the knife. I won't let these memories control my life. It's time to try again. I pick the knife, slower this time, and prepare myself against any more unwanted memories. After a few minutes pass and nothing happens, I begin to prepare the toppings. I'm careful to only allow my mind to pay attention to the chore.
When that's done, I place the pizza in the oven and set the timer to the specified time. I don't want to end up burning it after all that work. I really need to work on getting rid of that stupid fear. I can't allow it to get to me like this.
Leo's POV:
I find the alley, again, where I found the cat and begin looking for any sign of kittens. It's likely chance they will be in this area. The mother cat did look like she could have been protecting something now that I think about it. The cat had left a trail of blood leading to the end of the alley. A box had been tipped onto its side and that's where I found them. There were four of them all curled up next to one another. One was all orange, one orange and white stripped, one just had a white underside while the rest was orange and the last was the only one with white paws while the rest of it was orange.
As I kneel down for a closer look, the all orange kitten's ear twitches and lifts its head towards me. With a small meow it tilts its head to the side before detangling itself from its siblings. The one with the white underside reaches sleepily for it and the first briefly looks back it before placing a paw in front of its siblings and looking over at me. With another choked meow, it now stands completely in front of the other three. The one with white paws wakes up and bites the all-orange one's tail, pulling it back. The one with the white underside finally wakes up fully and watches its siblings for a while before it notices me. Then it hops around the two of them and slowly approaches me. Both siblings instantly stop wrestling and look over at the half-white one. One of them even cried out for it.
I slowly reach out for it as it just stares at me, tilting its head every now and then and meowing curiously. By now the last kitten has awakened and I can see its watching me as I pick up its sibling. The two wrestling siblings instantly pounce on me and I quickly place the half-white one onto my shoulder where it stayed as I grab the other two. I walk up to the stripped kitten who still hasn't moved yet and I instantly notice a few things: it is smaller then the rest and it looks like it could be injured due to the small amount of blood it's laying in. It tries to stand at my approach, but only collapses back onto the ground with a weak meow. The two kittens I'm holding in each hand struggle against my hold and the one my shoulder hops off to walk over to the injured kitten and starts nestling it with its head. I set the two kittens in my hands onto the ground and reach over to pick up the injured one. It meows weakly again as I look at it. I turn the box I found them in right side up and place all four of the kittens inside. Now I have to figure out what to do with them.
Mikey's POV:
The aroma of pizza precedes my brother into my room. I don't turn around as I sense him approach and sit down next to me on my bed, setting the pizza between us. I turn to look down at the pizza and recognize most of my favorite toppings. I grunt before turning back towards the wall.
"Mikey," Raph says, "Ya want any? I made it fer da two of us."
"So Donny's not gettin' any?" I ask
"He's locked 'imself in his room. I don't think he's gonna let me in anytime soon." Raph sighs and I finally look up into his eyes. "I wanna talk ta ya, Mike." He continues, "Sum'thin's up wit'cha. What is it?"
"Please stop asking me that." I say, "Didja really make this for me?" I ask as I detach a slice of the pizza from the rest and sit up straighter.
"Yeah," Raph says as he rubs the back of his neck. A sure sign he's feeling a little awkward about my change of subject.
"I'm surprised Raph." I say, smiling slightly, "This is new."
"I thought it might make ya feel better," He says.
"Yeah, nice peace offering." Henry says and I just know he's rolling his sightless eyes without even looking at him, "He's obviously just trying to distract you so he can laugh at your stupidity."
"Shut up!" I yell as I turn to where I know he's sitting.
"Huh? Mikey?" Raph asks.
"I wasn't talking to you, Raph," I say, still glaring at Henry.
"Then who where ya talkin' to?" Raph asks me.
"No one," I say, quickly.
"Yeah, that's right," Henry says, "Lie to him. You'll just make yourself seem crazier."
"You're the crazy one," I tell him.
"Just look at yourself, Michelangelo," Henry says, laughing, "Look at that buffoon of a brother of yours! The one thing Raphael does seem to get is your idiocies."
"I'll kill you, Henry, if you say stuff like that again!" I yell as I jump to my feet. Henry just laughs. Raph steps in front of me then and puts his hands on my shoulders.
"Mikey," He says, "Henry is not in this room. He's probably still rottin' in dat trench. Maybe he even got blown ta bits when Don blew da place up!"
"That's all he knows." Henry says with a dismissive wave of his wrist, "It's not like he can hear or see me, but you know I'm really here, Michelangelo. I'm apart of you; a projection of your inner feelings. Raphael is just too stupid and simple minded to understand this."
"No way," I say.
"Just calm down, alright Mikey?" Raph says, "Ev'rythin's gonna be fine."
"He is really such a useless creature." Henry comments, "I don't even understand how he is still living. He should be dead along with all the other hotheaded ignoramuses before him."
"SHUT UP!" I yell as I cover my ears. Henry and Raph had started talking over each other and it was starting to give me headache. "SHUT UP, BOTH OF YOU!" I push Raph out of my way and run out of my room.
Raph's POV:
I watch as Mikey runs out of the room. Again, for the second time today in only a few hours, I had been knocked to the ground. First Leo and now Mike? What's going on? Was he really talking to Henry? Was Henry just a skeleton or was he something more? An hallucination maybe? I'll have to ask Don about that…if he ever talks to me again…
I don't stay on the ground for long. I quickly jump to my feet and run out of the room after my youngest brother. At the entrance to our lair, I almost run into Casey and Caden. In Casey's hands is a plate of cookies and I stop running for a second to look at them.
"April said ta bring these over." Casey says, noticing where I'm looking, "What's up with Mikey?"
"Didja see 'im run outta da lair?" I ask.
"Yeah. He looked upset." He answers, "What happened?"
"There's no time ta explain. I hafta talk ta 'im." I say before grabbing most of the cookies off the plate, sticking them in a bag in my belt, and grabbing my sais off the table. I always remove them when I'm in the lair. "Get Donny ta eat sum'thin. He hasn't had anythin' since he woke up dis mornin'. And save some a' dose cookies fer 'im. He's locked 'imself in his room."
"Sure thing, man," Casey says before I run out of the lair after Mikey.
Author's note: Raph's POV may continue on into the next chapter, but here's where writing this fic gets difficult. Please review so I now it's good enough for ya!