A/N: They there! well here you go! Thanks to my beta. Thanks to everyone who has read, reviewed, faved, and followed!
also remember that flash back from Chapter 7? I posted a full fic for it called "Separated" check it out!
I own no mutant turtles :( I do have a crazy cat. . .
Chapter 9: Crayons and Nightmares
Leo was the first one to turn and look at his sensei. Leo could tell that Splinter was disappointed in them.
"How can we know his true skills if he is always goofing off?" Donnie asked.
"You must help him see his potential."
Leo looked confused. "How can we help him find that?"
"You have already started to," Splinter said with a knowing smile.
"How is that possible?" Donnie asked.
"Well, Donatello you went in to find Leonardo and Raphael with the help of only Michelangelo. Leonardo, you instructed him to guard over Raphael when he could not fully protect himself. Raphael, you allowed him you be your eyes." Splinter looked at his each of his sons.
"The only reason Mikey was watching Raph was because I told him too," Leo said.
"Your sight was better than Raphael's if you did not trust Michelangelo to watch over your brother then you should have him guard you or have him with Donatello. You trusted him. He was doing what you wanted him to do if the situation came up." Splinter looked into Leo's eyes.
"I did not think something like this would happen," Leo said.
"Raphael, did you trust Michelangelo to protect you?"
"Yes," Raph said, "I had to."
Splinter went to speak, but the sounds of Michelangelo's voice made him stop.
"M-ma...ke it s-st...op," Mikey was breathing fast and he was crying.
Raph rubbed Mikey's head. He was hot.
"Donnie could you get something cold for his head?" Splinter asked.
"Yeah, yeah sure," Donnie said.
Raph sat Mikey up, placing him against his own plastron. His breathing got slightly better.
Donnie came back and placed the cloth on Mikey head. Mikey rubbed against Raph's plastron.
"D-don't...le...ave...me,"
"I won't," Raph said
"Pr...o…mis..e?"
"Yeah, Mikey I promise."
Mikey struggled to bring his arms around Raph, but when he did the tension in his body lessened.
Not wanting to move Mikey, Raph spent the night awkwardly holding onto his brother. Leo and Donnie went to their rooms to sleep. Splinter left the room as well.
"Mikey!" Leo called. Running over to Mikey. "Raph how could you!?" he snapped. "Because you are blind Mikey is dead!"
Donnie dropped to his knees next to Leo and Mikey, he pulled Mikey close; he was crying.
"Raph, how could you let this happen?" Donnie sobbed.
"But-but Mikey, jumped in the way!" snapped Raph
"He's not dead!" Raph shouted waking up Mikey.
"Ra...phie o...kay?" Mikey mumbled, "who's not de...ad?"
"Yeah, I'm okay," Raph lied "No one is dead."
"O...kay," Mikey said falling back asleep.
"Raph you okay?" Leo asked he came racing into the room with Donnie not far behind.
Raph hesitated. "Yeah," Raph lied again.
"You woke up screaming 'he's not dead' and you are okay?" Donnie looked at his brother skeptically.
"I'm fine!" Raph yelled.
Mikey started to stir in his sleep.
"Raph!" Leo hissed "Don't wake Mikey up,"
Raph carefully moved Mikey off him and laid him in bed. Raph walked past Leo and Donnie without a word.
"D-don't le...ve me," Mikey cried.
"We are still here," Donnie told him.
"Donnie you stay with Mikey. I am going to check on Raph," Leo said.
"Okay," Donnie said nodding.
Leo went to see Raph. "Okay Raph what happened?"
"Nothing, I am fine,"
"You woke up yelling 'he's not dead' and you are telling me you are fine? I find that hard to believe."
"Fine!" Raph snapped "You really want to know?"
"Yes, tell me."
"I dreamt that Mikey died protecting me…." his voice was quiet and trailed off.
Leo's heart skipped a beat. "Raph it's not true," Leo said
"I know that!" he yelled "but it could have happened!" his heart was racing and he was growing angry. "Just leave me alone Leo!" Raph snapped pushing him out of his room and slamming the door shut.
When Leo went back to Mikey's room he found Donnie had propped him up in a sitting position and weakly trying to color.
"All Raph's yelling woke him up," Donnie said. "I was looking for a comic book for him and found his old coloring books from when we were kids. I found crayons too." Donnie smiled.
"I lik-ed the idea," Mikey spoke slowly. He was smiling. "Lo-ok Leo it's you!" Mikey turned the book around to show a cartoon turtle with a drawn in blue mask.
Leo laughed. "I like it! You have something for me to color?" he asked. It had been so long since they had all colored and it looked like it was keeping Mikey's mind of the pain.
"Yeah here you go," Donnie said looking over the pile of books to find some blank pages.
Leo flipped through the book and found a picture of kitten. He picked up the orange crayon and began to color. Then he took the blue crayon and colored in the kitten's eyes.
"This is you if you were a cat!" Leo said smiling showing Mikey.
Mikey tried to laugh, but it hurt, so he smiled instead. "It's cute! I wish I had a cat! What about you guys? What ani...ma...ls are blue or pur...ple?" Mikey asked slowly, longer words were still tripping him up.
"There are some fish that are blue," Donnie said. "I can't think of any purple animals."
"A fish?" Leo said disappointed.
Mikey flipped through the book of animals and stopped at the first uncolored animal. Mikey picked up the purple crayon
"Here you go Donnie! You can be a sheep!" Mikey showed him the sheep colored in purple. "And Leo how about a…" He looked over the pages. He picked up the crayon and began to color. "Look!" he turned it around.
"Is that a baby chick?" Leo asked confused
"YUP!" Mikey smiled "it was that or a but..ter...fly! I made Raph the but...ter...fly!" Mikey turned the page to show the red butterfly.
"Uh, Mikey," Leo said, "Raph is going to kill you."
"But, I made it just for him!" Mikey smiled "Leo, can you give it to him?" Mikey turned to Donnie. "What did-" Mikey winced and brought his hand to his wound
"Mikey! You okay?" Donnie asked.
"Y-yeah it jus' 'urts a little," he shifted his position slightly while couching; He sighed.
"Why don't you lay down," Donnie said, moving the coloring books and crayons off the bed. Donnie laughed. "He is already asleep."
Leo took the butterfly that Mikey colored and wrote on it: Raph, Mikey colored this for you. He wanted me to give it to you. Leo.
Leo slipped the paper under Raph's door.
Mikey was walking around the lair. It was oddly silent. Leo was sitting at the kitchen table with a photo album open. It was from when they were young. They were in the dojo with their weapons for the first time.
"Leo?" Mikey called. There was no answer. He waved his hand in front of his face. "Okay," Mikey said walking off.
He saw Raph, he was lying on the couch with Spike on his plastron. Raph was sleeping. In his hand he held a picture, it was from the photo album Leo was looking at. It was the four of them on their first Mutation Day.
"Raph?" There was also no answer. He poked him; nothing. "Donnie?" Mikey called. "What is going on here?" Mikey made his way to Donnie's lab.
Donnie was sleeping with a t-pod in his hand. His computer was scrolling through pictures of them and April. "Donnie wake up!" Mikey said shaking him.
"What can't anyone hear me!" Mikey shouted. "Master Splinter!" he yelled. He ran to his sensei's room and pulled the shoji screen open. He gulped with what he saw.
"I'm not dead!" Mikey woke up screaming. "I c-can't be!"
"Mikey!" Donnie shouted placing a hand on each shoulder. "You're not dead!"
Mikey was breathing fast. "D-Do-nnie," Mikey cried. "W-will I die?"
"No, Mikey, not now," Donnie said. "What happened in your dream?"
"-and when I got to Master Splinter's room there was table with my mask, nunchaku, and a picture of me. The picture had a black ribbon on it." Mikey's voice was quiet and he spoke slowly.
Mikey grunted and held his wounded side. His eyes rolled up back in his head; he fell forward. Donnie caught him.
"Mikey, wake up!" Donnie shouted. "Talk to me!" Donnie called desperately.
"Raph this is all your fault!" Leo shouted shoving his brother back. "Because you had to be weak Mikey is dead!"
"You're blinded too Leo!" Raph snapped. "It's not my fault it took me longer to get my sight back!"
"Raph, Leo, stop it!" Donnie shouted "We can't change anything now. We just need to except that Mikey is-is…" he did not want to say it. He wiped the tears from his eyes.
Raph woke up. His heart was racing again. He stood up and headed towards the door. When he got closer he stepped on a piece of paper. He picked it up, on the page was a red butterfly.
"What's this?" he asked himself, he noticed the note: Raph, Mikey colored this for you. He wanted me to give it to you. Leo.
"Hey Mikey!" Raph called out "A butterfly? Really?"
He went to Mikey's room. Leo, Donnie, and Master Splinter were already in there. Master Splinter had his paw on Mikey's head, he was speaking quietly. They did not even notice him when he came into the room.
"What's going on?" He demanded.
Splinter turned around. "My son, it is good you are here."
Raph looked around the room. "Is-is he d-d-d-"
"No, he is just very sick," Splinter said. "It is good to be surrounded by the ones you love, when you are ill,"
"But, Leo just gave me a picture Mikey colored, he was awake then. What happened?" Raph asked.
"He was not up long. I would guess about a half hour," Donnie said,
"He was must have been masking any pain he was in, or he was distracted." Leo said.
"After that he woke again up he was screaming that he was not dead. That time he was only wake long enough to tell me about his dream," Donnie continued.
"He had dream like mine?" Raph said, a little louder than he thought.
"Raphael, you had dream where Michelangelo died?" Splinter asked.
"Well…" Raph paused. "Yes, I did," he looked to the floor. "Instead of getting hurt when he was protecting me he died. Only I could see everything. Leo and Donnie blamed me," he figured it was best to tell Splinter what happened instead of being asked.
"I see," Splinter said, "have you had this dream more than once?"
"Yes," said Raph looking at his feet. "twice, but it's the same dream just...keeps going, I guess." Raph was losing his train of thought.
Mikey left Spinter's room. He was dead? How was that possible? He went to his bedroom, maybe there was clue in there. Out of habit he shut the door behind himself. Lodged in the door was kunai; stained in blood.
All of a sudden Mikey felt the same searing pain in his abdomen as he did the night in the alley. He held his hand to the spot and dropped to the ground. He closed his eyes.
Mikey let out an ear splitting scream. His hand was tightly held tightly over where the kunai pierced him; he formed himself into a tight ball.
"Michelangelo!" Splinter called out.
Mikey was panting now. Splinter pulled his son close to him. He could hear his son's heart racing.
Leo and Donnie looked at Splinter and Mikey with horrified eyes. Raph was staring blankly ahead.
Mikey screamed again; Splinter held his son tighter. Mikey's body felt as if it was on fire.
"What is happening to him?" Leo asked.
"I do not know," Splinter said softly as Mikey shook in his arms. "Everything will be okay, my son."
"-urts…" Mikey mumbled. "do...n't wan...na d..ie," Mikey struggled to talk.
Splinter kissed Michelangelo on the top of the head. "Donatello," he said keeping his voice calm. "Could you please fill the tub with cold water?"
Without question Donatello left the room to complete is task.
"Why sensei?" Leo asked calmly
"His body is incredibly hot, we must bring down his body temperature," he said. "Help me remove his knee and elbow pads," he instructed Raphael and Leonardo. After the task was complete, Splinter picked up Michelangelo and carried him to the bathroom.
"It's ready," Donatello said as they entered the room. Splinter placed Michelangelo into the cold water.
"Too c-cold," he tried to climb out, but Splinter kept a firm hand on his son. Splinter took wet a cloth with the cold water and placed it on his son's head.
"Do you think his injury could be infected?" Donnie asked.
"It is a possibility," Splinter responded.
Donnie's face fell. "I did everything you taught me," he said.
"There is nothing you can do if the blade it's self is infected," he said gravely.
"Why would it take so long to take effect?" Leo questioned.
"Many poisons work many ways. There are some the spread quickly while other take their time. Did you keep the kunai?" He asked.
"Yes, I did," Donatello said.
"I would like to see it," Splinter said.
Raph dropped down against the wall. He stared blankly ahead; it had been a long time since he had spoken.
Once Splinter felt Mikey's body was cooled down enough he picked him up from the tub and brought him to the couch.
"Raphael," he called to his second oldest son. "Please take a seat on the couch and watch your brother," Splinter laid Mikey's head on Raph's lap. "Keep an eye on him. I will be right back." He went to Donnie's lab with Donnie and Leo.
"Here is the kunai," Leo said.
"Mikey," Raph said softly, "I-I don't think I ever said thank you," he took a deep breath "for what you did." Mikey let out a moan in pain. "Now I have been having these dreams…" he was not sure if he should go on; he sighed. "These dreams where you-you d-die…." It was hard for him to get the words out.
"Ra….phie" Mikey squeaked out. Mikey slowly moved his hand to find Raph's; he gave it a weak squeeze.
Raph brought his hand to where Mikey injury was, he gently placed it on top of his brother's wound. Mikey moaned slightly from the pain. "Don't worry, the others are trying to figure out what is wrong," he tried to sound positive, but it was hard. He knew they would, but whether it was good news or not he did not know. "You were very brave," Raph said breaking the silence, he felt the need to talk, "Just like the heroes in your comic books."
"-urts," was Mikey's response.
"Raph!" Leo called causing both his brothers to jump at the unexpected voice.
Raph spun his head around. "What Leo?"
Leo's heart was beating fast.
"It's deadly isn't it?" Raph asked
Leo shook his head no. "No, but…" he tried to steady his breathing, "it's pretty serious. It effects his memory."
"But, he was fine before…" Raph's voice trailed
"It's a slow poison," Leo said. "We will have to see what happens after his fever breaks."
A/N: Oh noes! You should know me by now :) So what did you think?
Orange cat? KLUNK! yay, well sort of. I just had to give Klunk a shout out!
Also I hit the 30 review mark! (well 33 total) woot! so big for me! I gifted my 30th reviewer a fic so that will be coming once I finish it haha (I asked what they wanted so it's gift-request)
well until the next chapter!
~colonelduckie
