Chapter Seven

"Man, it's stuffy back here," Raphael whined as he followed Leo's shadow darting past the ordered piles of luggage. "I don't remember the airport bein' like this."

"Well, they are in the non-commercial areas," Leo chuckled over his shoulder.

"I prefer this to the actual airport, though," Raphael grumped.

"I distinctly remember you not enjoying the crowds," Leo mused as he paused, checking the flight numbers above their heads. "This way."

"Don' like the crowds," Raphael muttered as he threaded his way over to him. "So what now?"

"Well, I simply stowed away on the baggage cart," Leo shrugged. "Or we can make a run for it once they open the lower hatch on the plane itself. Either way, we'll be in the luggage area, and it's going to be very cold."

"Oh, so that's why ya insisted on the blanket," Raphael snorted.

"I told you I had a reason," Leo said, giving him a knowing glance.

"Ya coulda explained," Raphael said, rolling his eyes.

"Yes, but it's much more fun to keep you guessing," Leo teased, taking his hand and pulling him onto one of the nearby carts. "Once they roll the cart out to the plane, we can hide behind the larger pieces of luggage as they roll inside on the conveyor belt. Understood?"

"Yeah, yeah," Raph said, sounding bored. He'd already worked that out in his head but of course the ingrained leader in Leo had to spell it out to him.

"Good. Silence, now."

Raphael nodded, folding his legs underneath him and curling happily against Leo's chest. Leo shook out the dark coloured blanket and draped it over them before wrapping his arms around Raph's shoulders, holding him tightly. He was mildly surprised to feel Raph tilt his head and steal a soft kiss before resting his head against his plastron. Leo's eyes narrowed; he shouldn't be thinking of such things while they had to concentrate. His breath puffed as he smiled, ruffling Raphael's bandana. It certainly had been nice, though.

They didn't have long to wait as they heard a pair of laughing workers approach and kick the baggage cart.

"Ya got this one?" one of them asked.

"Yeah, you get the other."

It was dark, even as they were rolled from the cover of the warehouse and out into the open, and they could barely see one another. Leo put his hand on Raph's forearm, communicating with gentle squeezes as they neared the plane. The two workers were still talking as they began tossing the luggage onto the moving belt; completely distracted by their conversation and so missed the two dark shadows that rode into the plane's belly.

Leo leaned and put his lips next to Raphael's ear. "Now we just have to find a comfortable place for the trip."

Raphael nodded, pulling him further inside where there was already a sizeable pile of baggage. He gently shook a few of the bags to make sure they didn't have anything hard or breakable in them and arranged them in a circular cocoon. He flopped in the middle, stifling his laughter when Leo pounced on top of him. He snatched the blanket and covered them with it.

"Are you sure you don't want anything for motion sickness?" Leo whispered, his brow furrowed with worry.

"Nah." Raph waved a hand dismissively.

"There are no windows in here; if you get sick, you can't see outside to calm your stomach," Leo urged, pressing a finger into his chest gently.

"If I need somethin', I'll take it then," Raphael said, poking him back playfully. "Okay?"

"Alright," Leo sighed. He fussily tucked the blanket around them so that they were completely enveloped by the soft material. Satisfied with their homemade shelter, he relaxed against Raphael, nuzzling his nose into the crook of his neck. "Get some rest."

"How long is this gonna take?"

"About six hours. Maybe a bit less or more depending on the weather. There's a stopover in Miami for fuel, but no one leaves the plane, and we shouldn't be bothered. It's safe to sleep if you want. I suggest doing so, if only to pass the time."

"Mmkay, think I might." Raphael gave an exaggerated yawn, then peered over at Leo. "You gonna sleep?"

"For a few hours, yes."

"Mmkay," Raph said again. He locked his hands around Leo's shell and leaned his head back.

By the time the plane had reached its maximum altitude, they were both fast asleep.


Raphael was surprised to find Leo still asleep when he felt the plane descending. They were probably refueling- there was no way he'd slept the entire six hours. Once he thought that, he became worried and shifted gently to paw at the phone in his belt. He flipped it open, then nodded to himself. It was just the stopover.

He yawned silently, turning his head slightly from Leo. He was still tired, but had gotten enough rest so that he wasn't sleepy.

When the wheels shrieked as they touched down, Leo's body tensed. Raphael leaned his head into him reassuringly.

"Refueling," he whispered.

Leo mumbled something, rolling halfway off Raphael and stretching.

"Damn cold," Raphael shivered, trying to pull Leo back down.

"Told you," Leo smiled. "It'll be warmer when we arrive."

"Good," Raphael said gruffly. "Feels like friggin' winter."

Leo crawled back on top of him, and Raphael could feel his gaze sweep over him in the dim light. He gently cupped Raphael's face in his hands as he ducked his head, tilting Raphael's chin upward and pressing heated kisses to his neck. Raphael moaned softly in appreciation as his hands trailed down Leo's sides, the pads of his rough fingers applying pressure in long-memorized sensitive areas.

"Feel warmer?" Leo murmured against his skin.

"Not as warm as I could be," Raphael grinned back.

Leo paused momentarily, then nipped at his collarbone. "Not here."

"Oh c'mon," Raphael sighed, his hands wandering down further to squeeze Leo's thighs suggestively. "Don't'cha wanna join that- that- somethin' plane club?"

Leo couldn't resist smiling at the thought. "'Mile high club'; we're on the ground currently; and no we're not doing that here, and that's final."

"Chickenshit," Raphael grumbled, then gasped when Leo bit his shoulder in retaliation. "C'mon, what's the harm?"

"I am not going to drop my guard that much whilst in transit, and I'm not going to chance sullying a random stranger's luggage," Leo said patiently.

"You are a chickenshit," Raphael sniggered, then sighed happily when Leo's teeth clamped on his skin again- he'd counted on that, and he knew Leo knew he had. He loved giving Leo 'excuses' to emphasis his point physically. "Alright, fine. But yer missin' out."

"I think I can live with it," Leo replied dryly.

"Yeah, well, yer makin' me miss out too, which I ain't too happy with," Raphael retorted. "Ya know that'll be the firs' question Mikey asks when we get back!"

Leo snorted but didn't bother to reply as he leaned against his chest, resting his head under his chin. Raphael briefly wondered if he'd upset him with his teasing, then decided against it. Occasionally Leo would do this when he didn't want to continue a non-serious discussion; simply fall silent and busy himself with another task and ignore any further questions. Raph considered it fairly annoying, but Leo never did it when they were talking about anything remotely important, so he didn't bitch about it much.

Within a half hour they were roaring back into the sky, engines rumbling behind them. Raphael decided he liked the sound, even if it was loud; it almost sounded like the trains when they went past in the subway tunnels. He frowned, idly tracing the lines of Leo's shell. He knew he was going to get homesick, and felt a surge of gratification to feel Leo's familiar weight on his chest. Everyone had gathered to tell them goodbye before they left, exchanging several embraces and well wishes between them all before they finally stepped out.

Raphael was in the middle of worrying about how well Donnie could handle Mikey's need for attention when he eased back into sleep. Leo felt his breathing deepen and slow, smiling against Raph's plastron before placing several feathery kisses on it.

Mile high club, indeed.

A secretive smile curled Leo's lips. Maybe on the way home…


[Author's Note]
Raph's so gonna talk Leo into it on the trip back, you just know it! xD