Chapter 9

Raph P.O.V

Once Mikey had placed the phone in front of Leo, Raph had waved everyone out of the kitchen, Leo's words ringing clearly through his head, "tell me that if you were in my place- just waking up to discover three entire months of your life are missing- that you would not want to know why your body is in constant agony, why you can barely walk or why-" Despite the eldest cutting himself off, Raph could guess what he was going to say, and why he had stopped himself.

Only Raph knew the extent of Leo's nightmares and how they were just- if not more- painful than his physical wounds for only Leo could see the true horrors. Leo was going to say, "Or why you keep seeing blood everywhere."

Leo may not have informed his brother of the constant sea of blood which filled his mind, but the moaning during the night and the winces he subconsciously gave when he saw blood on the TV show Mikey had talked about, it was clear to tell what was going on in the leader's mind.

He couldn't say anything else because upon hearing about Splinter, Leo understood the clan all looked to him as the pillar of support. Raph may have taken charge in Leo's absence, but that had only been temporary. Leo was the strongest- even though it used to pain Raph to admit it- so the leader felt as if he needed to act like that for the sake of his family.

That was the reason Raph had waved everyone out of the kitchen, to give Leo some space and to compose himself before facing the others. Raph guessed his brother would take an hour or two, re-watching each part, much like Donnie had, as for Leo- he would not be analysing, he would be healing. To the eldest, Raph guessed the video would be a sort of closure, helping him to understand how he ended up injured in the first place.

In all honesty, Raph could see the reasons Leo wished to watch the clip, so the arguing had only been an act to attempt to bring like back to the way it normally was- however there was one thing for certain. April and Casey would not be watching the video- a least- not unless Leo wanted them to for a particular reason. The human teens had always been able to see Leo as the strong leader- they had not seen him cry, break down or loose it like Raph and his brothers had throughout their years as a family, so that would be the way it would stay. Before the turtles went into the kitchen to find their brother meditating, they had indeed stopped to inform the others of how Leo was wounded, but only in vaguest of terms. That alone was enough to shake both April and- to Raph's surprise- Casey.

So now all the group could do was wait in the sitting room for however long it took for Leo to return.

"So… How bad was it?" Casey awkwardly broke the building tension that was the silence, receiving an agitated glare from both April and Donnie. Ignoring the others, Raph shook his head as he crossed his arms, attempting to get a grip on the anger which had been building up since he had watched the clip.

"Bad." He grunted, "When we next face those jerks- I'll-"

"You'll fight them the same way as usual." Leo ordered from the doorway, his sudden appearance making everyone turn suddenly.

"Leo- dude- I didn't want to-" Casey began apologising, looking extremely embarrassed for prying, but Leo cut him off with a shake o his head as he limped further into the room.

"Yes, it looks bad, but it's in the past." But despite his authoritative tone, Raph could sense the uneasiness behind the words. Leo was shaken. "When we get back to New York- it will not affect our mission or how we carry it out. Clear?" he turned his head, meeting every gaze in the room, but when he reached Raph- the fierceness in his eyes seemed to waver.

The others all gave reluctant nods, yet there was clear that Leo was taking such a stand, showing that he- as the leader- could still be relied upon in a time of trouble. But that did not fool Raph in the slightest bit. He stood up to face his brother.

"So you're fine with it?" The words escaped the red banded turtle's mouth before he could stop them.

Leo met his gaze and instantly, everyone else seemed to drop away. Beneath the blue, grey depths of Leo's eyes there was clear turmoil, but beside it, there was a silent plea for Raph to back down, Leo didn't want trouble- not now- not like this.

"No. I've accepted it. There's no way to change what they did- so it's time to move on." Leo's voice was oddly calm and collected. Raph grudgingly nodded and sat down, but he hoped Leo could read his gaze which said- quite simply- we'll be talking tonight. Whether you like it or not.

As Raph dropped his gaze from Leo, he realised everyone else was staring at him flabbergasted, obviously surprised at the lack of an argument and a burst of anger from Raph's side, but it didn't matter. Leo's eyes had flashed in understanding. The eldest knew why Raph had backed down.

Clearing her throat, April stood,

"I'll make drinks." She announced and left the room. Then silence fell once more, until Mikey reached in front of him to turn on the TV and began to flick through the limited amount of channels. Donnie and Casey followed suit, the latter pestering the former over some random heap of spare parts out in the barn. But Raph continued to stare forward at the TV, yet he did not take anything in. He was listening to the sounds behind him to make sure his brother was alright. There was the soft shifting of Leo moving about in the armchair by the fire to get comfy, followed by April's returning footsteps. A soft tinkle of cups told Raph she had placed the tray down and then a single tap as one cup was placed before the eldest turtle- green tea most probably- before April quietly ask Leo if he was really alright. That brought a small smile to his face, asking Leo that was hightly unlikely to result in an answer.

"I just can't stop thinking about Master Splinter." Leo muttered to Raph's surprise, but Leo had obviously wished for the conversation to be muted, so faltered when everyone looked around at their father's name. The silence which followed showed they were all waiting for him to elaborate. "Maybe he's not really gone…" Leo's voice was straining with hope, "I mean- those squiralanoids were flushed but they were in dimension X…" Leo's voice faltered, both from use and from emotion.

"So you mean you want Sensei to be with the Kraang?" Raph grunted- hating to rain on his brother's parade. He too missed their father and teacher, but unfortunately- in the words of Leo- that was in the past. Nothing could be done about it now.

Leo bit back instantly,

"Of course not, Raph- it's just-" the leader sighed, "He nearly defeated Shredder before…" the falter in his words told Raph he was considering his own battle with the head of the foot clan, "I just refuse to believe he's 'gone.'"

"Leo-" Donnie spoke up, much to everyone's surprise. Donnie wasn't one for speaking about these sort of things but would rather stay quiet and speak when he felt the time was right and in a privet place, "We saw it happen. Shredder caught him off guard and threw him down a drainpipe." Raph watched his scientific brother blink back tears and Casey kindly look away to give Donnie a moment.

"Maybe Leo's right." April added, attempting to lighten the mood, "I mean- Splinter was a great ninja master." Although she made a good point- the word was rang through everyone's minds.

"The greatest of the century." Raph pointed out before he could help himself. Suddenly the crushing weight of the loss of their father came crashing back once more, but Mikey being Mikey- made an attempt to lighten the mood.

"Hey dudes! The show's starting!" he cheered, but as the words left his mouth- the electricity failed, plunging the room into darkness. Ignoring Mikey's dramatic yell of desperation, Raph turned around to see April drop down next to Leo who was weakly shaking his head. Beside him, Donnie said he would fix it, but Raph's attention was on his elder brother who was attempting to tell the red head that he was fine as his voice betrayed him. The flash must have reminded Leo of when Shredder slashed him and turned his world black. Meanwhile Donnie had returned with a torch, just as the fire blew out, so the red banded turtle decided it was time to have a look at the chaos surrounding him.

"Great- looks like we need more fire wood." He muttered, but when no one answered, or offered- Raph put up his hands in defeat and moved over to the door, pausing next to the now standing Leo for a second, patting Leo's shoulder in reassurance.

They were going to have an interesting talk tonight, Raph thought as he left the house, however he didn't realise how interesting that night would turn out.

Another chapter, another day. This story has nearly filled an entire notebook and I haven't even reached the second episode of season 3 yet!

So what do you think of Leo's reaction?!

What will happen that night? (besides the creep as we all know that much!)

Will Leo get over the blades in the dark?

Will April and Casey ever find out about the full horror of the clip?

The next update may have to wait two weeks as of exams- so I apologize, but hope it will be worth the wait!

Thank you so much to all who have reviewed, you guys continue to support me and I thank you all from the bottom of my cold, murderous heart! ;P

LL99 Out!