I wanna thank my gorgeous/handsome reviewers: Emily-twilight, NightWindAlchemist, teiaramogami, Jackalin Hodkinson, Giai Kame, and xonexmorexnobodyx
~Just a little notes:
Jackalin~ Me too! The heterochromia is kinda a b*tch no? I have a light, diversifying rarity. (Both eyes change randomly-one is blue-green while the others blue-green-grey-yellow) It's very hard to buy that "for your eye color" make up...very irritating. Glad we have that in common (:
~ Teira, thank you so much for all your reviews love, they mean alot (:~ Night, don't worry too much dear, this chapter Raph will be getting some love (:
(: Read and Review:
Raph and Mikey rushed out to help us drag the bags in. Mikey smiled, presenting me with another small pine branch. I laughed, shouldering a few of the bags and put the tiny speck of christmas tree in my hair. Mikey smiled, grabbing as many bags as he could and racing inside. Donnie and Master Splinter were settled in beside the still unconscious Leo.
The fire was going strong in the fireplace, even more logs placed by the burning inferno. April stayed in the kitchen with Casey to put away some of the groceries. I knelt awkwardly at the foot of the couch, watching the strained rise and fall of Leo's labored chest. Raph was beginning to pace the room like a trapped cat. Golden eyes were slanted in anger, his teeth grinding and fists clenched. Master Splinter kept one eye on Leo, the other on the antagonized Raph.
Raph growled, lumbering up to the couch and punching the wall behind it. The sound was loud enough for my ears to slightly ring, but Leo didn't even flinch.
"Why won't he wake up?" Raph growled angrily, glaring down at his older brother.
"Healing takes time, and Leonardo is recovering from more than just physical wounds. His spirit has also been grievously injured." Master Splintered spoke silently, ears pressed back against his head. Leo made no movement, but did make another series of little moans.
"Ya think he can hear us?" Donnie asked, sitting beside me. Master Splinter took a step back, allowing the purple banded turtle and I to scoot closer to Leo.
"Perhaps." Splinter said, rubbing his chin. Donnie took a deep breath, closing his brown eyes for a second before starting.
"Hey Leo, it's me..Don.." He seemed a little lost on where to begin. Don turned back to look for Splinter's assurance. Splinter nodded, smiling and Don turned back to face his older brother. I patted his knee beside him, he swallowed nervously.
"Listen..you're gonna pull through this. I know you are..you have to..I mean..you know what kind of trouble we'd get into without you!" Donatello sighed worriedly, wringing his hands. Something clicked in his mind, his eyes lighting up.
"Like...remember that time I built that remote control car. I was so excited to show it off to everyone, and you were the first person up. I dragged you out into the tunnels to show off the mechanics and turning radius. I mean..this was no ordinary car,I'd built that bad boy from scratch and it was my first-" Donnie began his eyes bright with memory. Raph cut him off, clearing his throat. Donnie smiled and shrugged, clearing his own throat.
"-Anyhow. While showing off, I'd accidentally driven the car into the stream of water. Leo tried to talk me out of going to get it, but I just wouldn't listen. There was all kinds of debris clogging up the tunnel and the sewers were overflowing from the heavy rains we'd just had. But..I wasn't paying attention to that, I just wanted my car back..." Donnie reminisced, scratching the back of his head.
Everyone was quiet as we listened. Leo kept making little groaning noises if Donnie stopped talking for too long. Donnie took Leo's hand in his own, squeezing lightly. Leo's body was covered in bruises, and it looked like one of his arms was either horribly sprained or broken. Donnie sighed deeply, closing his chocolate orbs and tried to brush away the tears absentmindedly.
"I tried to grab the car, but I ended up falling in..The current was so strong and I couldn't fight it. I was swept downstream, and into one of the main water containment centers. My...my foot was stuck underneath some of the debris..and the water was rising. I-I don't remember so much,..the water was churning to violently.." Donnie whispered the last part, bringing on hand to rest on his forehead.
"I kept screaming for Leo..and he dove in after me. He got my leg free, and dragged my sorry shell into a clear sewer tunnel. We must have laid there trying to catch our breath for ten minutes..when I could talk the only thing I could think about was to taunt him that he didn't grab my toy." Donnie snorted at the last part, wiping away some tears.
"I-I was in so much shock..I didn't fully realize that Leo had saved my life.." Donnie sighed, squeezing Leo's hand.
"You really came through for me that day Leo. You always do and I know you will again..." Donnie sighed happily, making one more squeeze at Leo's hand before letting the leaf green appendage go gently.
Raph scoffed, "Looks like you got him hanging on your every word Don." He growled, emerald arms crossed across his plastron. Leo apparently heard his brother, and he moaned again after Raph stopped talking. Leo's eyelids flickered, but they didn't open. Raph's mouth opened in shock, but he quickly snapped it shut.
"Hey! I t'ink he heard ya' Raphie!" Casey said happily. April nodded, smiling softly at the red-banded turtle.
"Maybe talking to him does help!" She seemed optimistic as Raph's eyes went back to his brother. Raph turned to look at me, golden eyes a few shades darker than normal. I smiled, holding my arms to my chest, that posture bringing me a small amount of comfort.
"It is said that the voice of a loved one can guide a lost spirit back to it's home." Master Splinter said, eyeing Raph. Raph made no move towards Leo, and the silence was becoming almost too thick to breath through. Mikey took a deep breath and slowly walked forwards. Donnie stood up and stood next to Raph, allowing Mikey his spot by Leo's head.
"Mind if I take a crack at it?" Mikey asked Donnie, who smiled and nodded his head.
"Listen bro..just like..concentrate on my voice. C'mon Leo! You know how focused you get when you set your mind on something!" Mikey said happily, placing his hand on Leo's covered plastron softly. Leo was quiet, but I felt that he was somehow hanging off Mikey's every word. Ice blue eyes shut and stayed closed, trying to recall every single second of the memory he was having.
"Like..remember that time you were trying to perfect your katas? You were so into them, and I just wanted attention. But, nothing in the world was gonna break your concentration, but that wasn't gonna stop me from trying.." Mikey's eyes were still closed as he told his story, but I could almost feel that mischievous spark that would be ignited in those eyes.
Donnie smiled fondly, seemingly remembering the story as well, a smirk coming across his olive green face.
"I tried making faces at you and joking around, but you just kept on doing your katas and ignoring me!" Mikey's eyes snapped open for a second, remembering his annoyance at the situation. He smiled softly, closing his eyes again and let a soft laugh fall from his lips.
"Hehehe..you know how I hate to be ignored. I popped a balloon in your face, put those mustache glasses on you, but no reaction. At all! Master had left some onions out from dinner last night and I started juggling them. When I noticed your eyes weren't following them I ate them both and let out the most awesome, stank-tastic bletch right in your face!" Mikey started cracking up, a tear welling up on the side of his cheek.
I couldn't tell if the tear was from crying or laughter, Mikey wiped it away with the side of his hand.
"You didn't even bat an eyelid...So then I decided if I couldn't make you laugh, maybe I should just make you say ow.." Mikey's voice deepened, and a devilish little smile crossed his face. I could imagine that: A little Mikey just bothering the snot out of his older brother.
"I had my 'chucks, ready to whack you, when all the sudden you went crazy hidden dragon on me! Had me on my shell so fast it took me awhile to figure out what happened!" Mikey laughed, Donnie snorting back his laughter. Mikey sighed, clenching his hands before opening his eyes. Ice blue turned to cobalt blue, but Mikey pushed a somewhat crooked smile onto his face.
"Leo..when you put your mind to something, you're unstoppable! So..how about using that famous focus of yours to come back to us.." Mikey whispered, dropping his hands to his knees, eyes darkening to even deeper blues. I can't get over how expressive Mikey's eyes were. I sighed, placing my hand on his knee, but Raph's irritated growl interrupted.
Why does everyone here like to be rude and interrupt?
"HEH..ya ask me, Leo's not comin' back cause he's afraid." Raph growled, golden eyes glaring holes into Leo's prone body. Mikey's shoulders stiffened as he turned to glare at his older brother. I grimaced towards Raph, who was breathing heavy.
"Good, no one asked you!" Mikey squared his shoulders and glared at Raph, who shot a disgusted look right back. Leo's breathing changed, his breathing became a little more shallow, and his skin turned a bit clammy. He could hear his family fighting, and he wasn't liking it.
"Raph..please..You're upsetting...L-Leo." I whispered, making the flaming gold eyes glare into my own mismatched ones.
"Y'know, he got his butt whooped, an' now he's too chicken ta' come back an' face it!" Raph shouted down at me, taking a few steps to tower over me. I shrunk back a little into the side of the couch, but my eyes didn't waver. If I let our eye contact break, he might take that as submission. His eyes tightened as he realized that I refused to look away. Donnie was becoming irritated, roughly placing his hand on Raph's shoulder.
"That's enough Raph!" Donnie growled, his own eyes darkened to black. Raph sneered, shaking the hand from his shoulder.
"Well, I say who needs ya!" Raph growled, casting his arms out. "It's not like we can't get on without ya playing 'Fearless Leader'." He kept growling, his arms thrashing with violent motions, trying to physically display all his pent up anger. Why wasn't he this angry on the drive over here? Had he been bottling up the anger then?
Whatever emotions that were fueling this tirade of Raph's, they suddenly depleted. Raph's arms drop to his sides, and tears welled up in his golden eyes. He clenched his eyes and jaw, trying to fight back the tears. His eyes turned a light brown, his shoulders locking stiffly, trying not to let the tears fall. Raph's insides must have been tumbling. One moment he was calm, then playful, then angry, seething, and now sad. Raph didn't have a good hold on his emotions.
"Back in the day I always figured I was gonna be top turtle. I was strongest, bravest." Raph recalled, the muscles in his arms tensing up.
"Remember that time I brought ya' to that closed off section of tha' sewer? We were playing follow tha' leader. Ya tried ta talk me out of goin' down that tunnel, but I went down anyways. I made fun of ya' for followin' all the rules, an' you followed me down tha' pipe. We was sewer surfin' with the broken boards when we came ta' that bottomless drain.." Raph's eyes were on Leo only. Raph didn't kneel down by Leo's side, but he stood in the middle of the room, a safe distance away.
"Somethin' was movin' in tha' water..All the sudden this giant ass white 'gator came out..I was so stubborn..I wouldn't let'cha help me until tha' thing was about ta' eat me..You had ta' jump in and use some damn pressure points ta' save my shell..Ya always got my back.." Raph started stumbling with his words. He ran his hands over his head, like he was trying to pull out his invisible hair. Raph took a few cautious steps towards Leo.
"I..I don't even know why I told ya that story..I..I guess ya just..I mean..What I'm tryin' ta say is.. Raph put his hand over his face, completely overwhelmed. I bit my lip, placing my hand on his knee as Leo groaned towards Raph. Master Splinter's warm eyes were wet. He placed a furred claw on his son's shoulder, Raph lent backwards into the comfort.
"Your brother hears you Raphael. He understands.." Master Splinter whispered as Raph wiped away a large tear. I rubbed his knee, causing him to look down and smile at me. He bent down and grabbed me by the elbow, dragging me to my feet. I was confused, but stayed silent as the teary eyed turtle walked us over to the window. Raph pressed us into the glass, his plastron hard against my back as he placed one hand against the cold glass, the other arm resting against the window's wooden frame.
April and Casey nodded, both taking their turn to sit by Leo's side. Casey started telling a story of how one night he was out fighting some Purple Dragons (PD's for short) and totally got ambushed. And who else had come to save his sorry ass? Leo. April started talking about how sweet the blue banded turtle was. How he always had time to talk to her and help her around the shop. She talked about how he had sacrificed himself to try to safe her home, and for saving all of their family.
"Raph..why are...w-we over...here?" I questioned softly, whispering so I would not interrupt April and Casey's story.
"You're gonna tell me if anyone's comin' dis way." Raph answered softly, his voice a little shaky. I tried to turn to face him, but he pressed us further into the window. The glass was cold, I could feel the frost from outside, but I didn't dare push against the glass.
I can tell that glass isn't really one of my best friends, my neck still hurt like a bitch.
I felt what seemed like a tablespoon of water fall onto my shoulder, seeping into my shirt. I thought the roof was leaking, but this water was warm. If water was leaking from the roof, it would have been cold. I felt two more large drops against my shoulders and Raph drew a shuddering breath. I wrapped my hand around his own, the skin cold to the touch. Raph took half a step back, giving me a little space to turn around. I kept my face neutral, Raph wouldn't want any pity. Once golden eyes were now almost a feral yellow. Big, fat, silent tears dribbled down his emerald green face. I patted the top of his plastron, where the bright yellow armor met the emerald skin.
"He's gonna be okay..I have to...say somethin..-g quick.." I whispered. Raph nodded, dropping one of his arms and letting me walk back over to Leo's side. Raph stayed by the window, hastily wiping his face with the back of his hand and the tails of his bandana. I knelt by Leo's side, Casey now sitting beside me. It was quiet, and for some reason my heart was pounding. I was able to make it through a sentence without stuttering if I whispered.
"I don't feel like I have any really great 'remember when' stories with you just let Leo..give it some time, I'm sure we'll make some as we go.." I smiled and let out a strangled laugh. I saw Mikey smile from the other side of the room, Donnie's eyes light up and Raph turned around to face the room, eyes bloodshot. I took a deep breath, preparing to say my speech.
"That night..with Saki and the ninja..When the ninjas came out of nowhere..you were so brave. You covered and protected me as best as you could. Even at April's..you were so hurt..but I know you fought to protect us..We're so lucky to have a guy like you...a friend like you..a family member like you. I'm glad I'm an idiot and went for a walk that night, because I met you. I'm glad I went with you that night to Saki's, because I really saw your inner character. I'm glad I've followed you on every adventure, because we all grow closer, even though I'm usually screaming 'why do I hang out with you guys' during the whole fiasco. I'm glad I know you..I've never had a stronger..family."
I took another deep breath and stood. I felt two hands on my shoulders, one three fingered, one furry. Casey grabbed my hand and squeezed it softly as Master Splinter and Mikey stood at my sides. I smiled, Casey moving to stand beside April and Splinter went and knelt with Leo. Mikey's hand tightened on my shoulder, and turned me around. He smiled, his deep blue eyes looked about to burst as he wrapped me in a bear hug.
I heard Master Splinter's soft voice in the background as Mikey and I held onto each other.
What can I say? It's been a touchy-feely, emotional night.
I listened to Master Splinter's story, his deep voice somewhat like a bedtime story. I slowly began to realize how late it was, resting my head against Mikey's shoulders. He must have felt the shift in my weight, because all the sudden he was hefting me up. He held me against his hip like a child would hold a teddy bear. I smiled, closing my eyes and listening to Splinter's story.
Apparently Leo was afraid of something, heights. I tried to choke down the laugh at that. I'd seen that crazy ninja leap from roof to roof and dive down the sides of story tall fire escapes. I just couldn't believe he had once been afraid of being only fifteen feet in the air. I heard the blankets on the couch shifting slightly, causing one of my eyes to pop open. Out of the corner of my eye, I could see Leo moving around a little bit, his two toes had come out from under the blanket and were twitching.
"You learned to clear your mind of all distractions..do so again. Ignore the fear my son. Let your spirit heal and find your way home. Return to us." Splinter commanded softly, causing Leo to almost immediately groan. Mikey started breathing heavier, the grip around my waist tightening.
"Is he...?" Mikey asked softly, clutching me to his side.
Why do I always feel like the child's stuffed toy around here?
"No...Fear.." Leo groaned, shifting. His grey-hazel eyes slowly opened, and turned to face everyone tiredly. Mikey cheered, Donnie raced over and tossed his arms around both of us and hugged us tightly. I wheezed, the air being squeezed out of my lungs. Mikey laughed, nuzzling our cheeks together. I couldn't help but giggle, Donnie's large hand pushing the hair away from my face. A large smile was on the genius' face, chocolate brown eyes were warm again.
Raphael was jumping around and cheering, shouting random obscenities in joy. Boundless 'fuck yeah''s and 'oh yes! oh shit!'s echoed around the room, his strong arms pumping up and down as he jumped and cheered.
Wow, Raph's really going all out.
Is..is he doing cheer leading moves?
...How can he kick his leg up that high over his head?
I tried to ignore the usually gruff, cheer leading turtle to turn to see April and Casey hugging. They smiled, their eyes meeting before they jerked away from each other rapidly. They stumbled on words, trying to come up with a reason that they hugged, other than they liked each other. Splinter wiped away a single tear, watching the stuttering couple. Splinter smiled at me, wagging his eye brows in the couples direction, causing the two to blush even more.
"We thought you were gone bro!" Raph stopped his cursing-cheer leading to shout happily at his brother.
Is Raph bi-polar?
Leo smiled, sitting up slowly and just a little bit.
"I-I was...but..you brought..me back. All of you.." Leo sighed happily, his grey-hazel eyes darkened to straight grey.
"You fought your way back, my son. You have done well." Splinter praised his tired child, pressing a loving claw to Leo's cheek.
"Thank you..Sensei.." Leo whispered softly, laying back down and closing his eyes. Leo fell into a deep, peaceful sleep now. Splinter sighed happily, his ears and tail drooping in exhaustion.
"The danger has passed..now we must let him rest." He said wearily, starting towards the exit of the room. Everyone slowly followed, including Mikey. I still clung to the sea green turtle, eyes now closing. My eyes were getting really heavy, I yawned against Mikey's shoulder.
"Aye Leo, if you need anything, I'll be right outside." I heard Raph whisper as he was the last one out. He left the door open as we entered the kitchen. Casey told us where the stairs were, and April, Mikey, Splinter and I went upstairs as Donnie, Raph and Casey stayed in the kitchen.
Casey's grandma had run this place all by herself. She'd had ten children, Casey's mother included and they all lived in this house. Casey's grandpa died in the war, leaving old Mrs. Jones alone with ten kids. Because of all those little guys running around, some rooms had two beds, or even bunk beds. Mikey raced into one of the rooms that had bunk beds and placed me on the bottom bunk.
I sleepily tugged the blankets over me as Mikey turned off the lights. I whimpered, but the blue eyed turtle quickly flicked on the tv, and put the volume down.
"I'll check for night lights around tomorrow. I noticed the one in your room..Hopefully the tv's a good enough light." Mikey whispered, and I could feel a blush coming on. He'd noticed my embarrassing night light, and therefore my hate of the dark. I nodded, confused as Mikey's face started coming closer and closer.
"Mikey..?" I questioned, but was cut off by a pair of cold lips. My eyes snapped open and my chest burned. The kiss lasted seconds, but the burn was there, all over. My face burned, my lips burned, my head, my chest, my stomach, my heart. It wasn't a bad burn..but it was just..warm..but warm wasn't enough to describe the heat. It wasn't lust..just..heat.
Weren't they supposed to be cold blooded.
Mikey smiled down at me, eyes dark. He stepped away, tugging on the door behind him. He left a crack open and I could see the shadow of his feet under the door. He whisper-cheered to himself and squealed.
"MAN..I am good!" He whispered to himself, but I'd heard. I smiled, curling into the bed.
Yes...yes he is.
HA! Bet no one thought that Mikey would make the first move ;D hahaha.