OMGOSH GUYS. Not only do I have TWO HUNDRED AND ELEVEN reviews, but one of you nominated my story to the readers choice awards?! Thank you SO MUCH! I honestly never thought so many people would love this fic so much! So thank you guys, you really make my day with your sweetness. This chapter is odd, and I think It might help to remind you that all normal italics that look like this Are memories or dreams, sometimes both. So yeah.

Disclaimer: I only own the OC's!

To Beakers47: ikr? And the reunion comes next chapter, not today. Mwehehehehe.

To DonellaT'sGHOST: YAYYYYY! :DDD hehehe.

To SuperStarSykor58: Donnie….doesn't know WHAT to think really. He wants it to be true, and he doesn't at the same time. He does think a bit about it this chapter, but only after Mikey has some time.

To Skye7Diamond: Yeah, Raph's life is pretty messed up.

To S.S. Chewie: haha, he isn't back yet! Not 'till next time! *evil grin* sorry for the cliffhanger though.

To TMNT Fan 2012: Haha, Leo and Mikey's reactions are pretty priceless next chapter! Just you wait!

To KaylaMicael: heh, thank you! And yeah, that was one of my favorite plot twists in here! :D

To Mikey4ever: I know you are all eager to see the reunion, but this chapter is good too.

To Wow: THANKS!

To LadybugGirl7068: I hate it when the notifications just quit like that! And thank you so much! I'm glad you like it!

And now, enjoy!


"Hey! Mikey, Dinnertime!" the six-year-old looked up at the stairs before grinning, he got to his feet and ran up the stairs like his life depended on it. A man caught him as he ran through the doorway and swung him up, tickling his sides. Laughter filled the room as Mikey tried to get away.

"No, stop!" he pleaded, tears of laughter in his eyes, "It's dinnertime!"

"Me next, Dad!" Ryan pleaded, tugging on the man's shirt. The man looked down with a twinkle in his eye.

"Who, Ryan? Why not both of you?!" he suddenly held Mikey in one arm and grabbed Ryan in the other, pulling them to his armpits like footballs. "Let's go!"

"Dear, it's dinnertime." a soft voice reminded from the table, where a woman fed a baby- Joey?

"Ah, right." the man carried the two boys over to the table and dropped them gently on the chairs. "Dinner time, boys." Ryan and Mikey giggled, Mikey being only a year younger than his seven-year-old brother.

"Eat!" Ryan declared, gripping a fork in one hand and a knife in the other, holding them straight up from the table top. "Eat eat!" Mikey grinned and did the same.

"Yummy!"

"Be polite, kids." the woman said, smiling.

"Yes, Mommy," Ryan said obediently, setting the silverware down, Mikey did the same, smiling at his copycat game.

"Good, here's your dinner you two crazies." the man said, placing plates of macaroni and cheese with chicken nuggets in front of them. Mikey grinned and plucked up a dinosaur shaped nugget.

"Lookie, Ryan! He's gonna eat your mac!" he sang, walking the object over to his plate.

"Not if my ternydactley can stop him!" Seven-year-old Ryan declared, picking up one of his own nuggets. "Get away, meanie T-rex! This is Ryan's mac and Cheese!" Mikey giggled and made his Tyrannosaurus back up.

"I will get Ryans mac if it is the last mac I ever eat!" he said in a deep voice, "charge!" Mikey made his 'toy' run toward Ryans plate. "Wahahaha!"

"Don't play with your food!" the woman reprimanded the two of them, and they both looked up at her. Mikey grinned and held his other hand above the nugget.

"But what's this? A giant Mikey hand is here to eat !" he cried in 'dismay', before scooped up the food and biting off the dinosaurs head. "Yummy!" both adults laughed lightly and the man reached over to ruffle Mikey's hair. In a flash, Michelangelo was disoriented. This didn't feel right, this wasn't what usually happened, but seconds later Ryan flew the Pterodactyl past Mikey's nose, and the six-year-old forgot about his confusion.

Suddenly, days started flying past Mikey faster than they should, the day's going in fast forward. He and Ryan both played soccer when they turned eight, Mikey got the winning goal. Afterward, they went out for Pizza, and Ryan gave him bunny ears in the picture.

When he turned ten, Mikey got new roller skates, Ryan had received a pair a few months before that, on his own eleventh birthday, and they learned together. On the first day, Mikey fell and skinned his elbow, but Ryan skinned his knee, so he didn't mind that much. They fell asleep after hours of talking and giggling from the top bunk to the bottom bunk in their bedrooms, Mikey clutching his teddy and Ryan with one arm hanging off the top bunk.

Mikey was nearly shouting in excitement as he sat in front of a cake with candles on it, thirteen, he was finally going to be a teenager! Ryan, his slightly older brother, watched him happily while, Joey, who was a few years younger than Mikey, watched with jealousy as Mikey received a new cell phone.

"Thanks!" Mikey squealed, face lighting up with joy as daddy set it up for him, the screen lighting with an orange background. "Check it out, Ryan!"

"Awesome!" Ryan declared, grinning at his brother, who was as close to him as anyone. "And you're going to love seventh grade I bet, it's so cool!" Mikey beamed, but the smile faltered. This wasn't right, he never celebrated his birthdays? But he remembered everything. Realization hit Mikey and he woke with a start.


As Michelangelo lay on his bed, staring at the ceiling, a deep sense of loss hit him. It wasn't fair. How come his brothers, biological brothers, had been raised so...normally, while he was beaten and starved and abused, but now throw these fake memories, these dreams at him? How much did the whole universe want Mikey to be hurting? The blue-eyed teen rolled over and stared at the wall. He had all these memories of birthdays, when in actuality he had never received a birthday gift that he could remember, at all. He knew he'd been born sometime in January, but other than that? He'd never needed to know that. It wasn't fair!

Mikey buried his face in his pillows and contemplated what it must be like to have grown up like his biological brothers did, like his friends at school did like normal people did. To have someone always hug you and kiss your hurting places, to have a parent who didn't look at you coldly, whose face you never memorized because you couldn't look at them without permission? He didn't understand at all, he'd been abused as long as he could remember, really. He had small, faint memories of days when he hadn't been, but those were so forgotten and repressed that Mikey couldn't make out any details, just a sense of love.

With a sigh, Mikey sat up, unable to sleep. What had he done to deserve such a fate? What did anyone do to deserve anything? What did Leo do to lose everyone he cared about, what had Donnie done to be abandoned by his birth parents, what had Raphael done to watch his own father kill someone, what had the kid done to deserve to be killed? Mikey ran his hands through his hair, stopping halfway to grip it as he stared at his knees.

"I don't understand." the whimper came out of his throat sadly, "I just don't." no one deserved this, so why did these things happen? That in mind, Michelangelo once again gripped his hands tightly together, closed his eyes, and began to pray.


"Dee! Dee! Watch this!" an older Raphael called, running along the sidewalk, Donatello grinned after him, though his hand remained tightly clutched to his mother's. Raph took a running leap and landed on top of a banister, grinning wildly, Don released his Mother's hand to clap.

"Yay! Go waphie!" he cheered, grinning a gap-toothed grin. "Mommy, did you thee waphie?" his mother smiled fondly at her son's speech impediment.

"Yes, Donatello, I saw Raphie," she said, speaking slowly and clearly, correcting him without telling him he'd done wrong. Donnie held her hand again as they continued walking, Raph joined them and grinned like a crazy person at his five-year-old brother.

"I can't wait for baseball practice!" he declared, "When do we get there, Mommy?"

"Soon, just a few more blocks." the woman laughed, Don smiled, though his mind was on other things.

"Do I havta play?" he asked sulkily, slumping down. "I don't wanna! I's scared!" Raph hugged his brother and kissed his cheek in the way that the six-year-old often did.

"It's okay Donnie." he comforted, one arm still around his shoulders. "You and me are on the same team, we'll win all the games!" Don smiled, nodding.

"Okay, Waphie." he agreed, then got an impish look in his eyes. "Race ya!" he took off toward the corner with his brother right behind him.

A few years later, Donatello stood on the pitcher's mound, his tongue sticking out of his mouth in concentration. He heard his parents cheering loudly in the stands, and could see Raphael out of the corner of his eye as the third baseman. He pitched, and it whizzed right past the batter as his fastballs always did.

"Strike three!" the umpire called, "out!" the team erupted into cheers and a few hands clapped Don on the back, he grinned, feeling at home as his team made their way to the dugout.

"Good job, little brother." an arm flung around his shoulders and Raph grinned back at him, green eyes gleaming. "Ya really showed them, didn'tcha?"

"I guess I did," Don said, smiling as he accepted a Gatorade. After taking a sip, he continued. "Thanks for the help with my batting though, I think all I'm good for is pitching sometimes!"

"Yer da pitcher, it's what ya do." Raphael shrugged, "ya don't need ta know batting, but it's still fun." Don nodded in agreement as they made their way to the shower rooms. For the first time, he felt completely out of place where he was as if trapped in two different realities.

"Don? Donatello, get up." Don blinked. "Donnie come on, you don't want to be late for school, the Christmas party is today!"


"Huh?!" Don sat up, delirious. His dream was still playing over and over in his head, a lifetime of someone who was him but also wasn't.

"Get up, Donnie," Leo repeated from the doorway, a smile on his face. "I thought you were taking April to the dance after school anyway?"

"April?" Don echoed, then blinked. "Oh yeah, school! Sorry, Leo, I was having a weird dream." Leo nodded, closing the door as he left. Don sat dumbfounded in his bed for a moment. He knew what the dream had been, it had been what his life would be like if he had not been abandoned when he was a baby if he had been raised beside Raphael. It was odd, having 'experienced it' but not really, even now the details faded. Don groaned, getting up and stretching. Raph hadn't moved back to the Hamato house yet, he was waiting for the first semester at his school ended, today. Sometime in the next week, he would move back into his old room, which had been mostly undisturbed since he left. Donnie yawned and got dressed for the day before grabbing his backpack and heading down to the kitchen, where he could hear Michelangelo singing Christmas songs.

"Hi, Dee!" he declared, looking up from his toast. "I had a weird dream last night!"

"Did you?" Don asked absently, placing toast in the toaster, "so did I, what was yours about?" Mikey hesitated.

"Nothing specific, it was just weird is all." he said quickly, "you?"

"Same." Don lied, though he knew Mikey was doing the same. "Excited for two weeks off of school? I know I am."

"For once in your life." Leo joked as he entered, dumping his backpack on a chair. "Toast?"

"You aren't coming near this toaster." Don quipped back. Leo had a nasty habit of managing to break the appliance. Don could fix it, but it annoyed him. "I'll make you some."

"Ok," Leo said, smiling sheepishly. He sat beside Mikey and ruffled his hair. "How'd you sleep last night, Mikey?" both Mikey and Donatello looked at him in surprise.

"What...do you mean?" Mikey asked, nibbling at the edge of his toast, looking at the table top. "I slept fine."

"I heard you awake in the middle of the night, that's all." Leo shrugged, getting up and walking to the fridge. "I was just wondering." Don frowned, buttering a piece of toast. He hadn't heard anything, and he was a light sleeper for the most part. But he had been preoccupied with a dream of his own.

"Do you want jam?" he asked Leo, who was pouring a glass of orange juice.

"Sure." Leo replied, "thanks, Don."

"No problem," Don replied, grabbing the jar of strawberry jam, it almost surprised him, having a normal day. Sure, it was only about seven in the morning, but they could hardly get through a week without someone getting kidnapped, having a nightmare, court cases, it was kind of nice,, but he was sure it wouldn't last, after all, they'd have to find out Raph was returning to live with them again, and then, of course, they'd find out the whole crazy fiasco that was Donatello's biological family life. Which he hadn't even known about himself a week ago. And to be honest, Don had no clue how he felt about it.

He apparently had a parent in jail and another who had committed suicide, in prison. And they had been in prison because they killed someone his age, in front of his biological brother who they, coincidentally, hadn't abandoned. The brown-eyed teen sighed, watching his own toast as it slowly turned to a golden brown. He had no idea what he felt about this entire situation, he'd always hated his biological parents for abandoning him, but now this? He finds out that they only abandoned one of their sons, and it was because the husband liked the one who looked like him more? He knew that Raph was having just a weird a time with this, but he didn't know what to do. Don jumped as the toast popped out, Mikey laughed.

"Hah, you totally zoned out Donnie!" He giggled and Don sighed, removing the toast and buttering it. "Hey boy!" Don glanced behind him, Mikey was dangling a piece of his toast above Klunk's head, while the small dog yapped, wagging his tail.

"Stop teasing him," Leo said, rolling his eyes. Donatello took a bite of his toast and watched Mikey toss the toast to his pet, who ate it gladly. "Are you alright, Donnie? You seem upset."

"Upset?" Don asked blankly, "no, Nah I'm not upset Leo, just thinking." he sighed again, mind already drifting away to somewhere else.

"So, we were in bed when you guys got back last night," Leo stated, pulling Donatello out of his thoughts again. "How did it go?" Don blinked. Mikey and Leo were looking at him expectantly.

"Oh, it went fine," he said vaguely, taking the opportunity to take another bite of toast, as an excuse to not speak more. Leo frowned. Mikey shrugged.

"What do you think of them, or...him? How many people did you meet?"

"Oh...one," Don said, swallowing. He glanced at the clock. "We better get going, come on guys." he straightened his glasses and grabbed his backpack, out the door before either brother could reply. He didn't want to talk about it until he completely understood it himself, and besides, he wanted to have a good day today. Don sighed, burying his hands in the pockets of his coat.

"Hi Donnie!" he turned, April was approaching from down the street. "I came to the bus stop early because I keep getting here late." Don smiled.

"Not all the time," he said fairly, "just…"

"Most of the time." April laughed, "and thanks for all the math tutoring, Donnie, it really helps." Don shrugged, breath misting in front of his face.

"You're smart, April, some people just have a hard time learning in groups like a classroom, and learn better with one-on-one. It's a scientific fact." as the words escaped his mouth, Donatello realized what a nerd he was. Luckily, April didn't seem to mind.

"Hi, April!" Mikey joined them, face pink with the cold. "Here early today?"

"Yeah, I don't like making the bus driver wait."

"Guess what Donnie?" Mikey looked at his brother, grinning. "Mom says that this afternoon we're getting the Christmas tree! How great is that?"

"Really great," Don replied, spotting the bus down the street. "Where's Leo?"

"I'm coming." Leo sighed from the porch. He closed the door and walked over to join them, blinking rapidly. "Gosh, the cold makes my eyes water."

"Haha!" Mikey giggled, earning a playful shove from his brother. Donatello smiled as they climbed onto the school bus, maybe things could go back to some sense of normal after all. Like they say, anything's possible.


So what did you guys think? I wanted to just put in what the guys lives could have been like if something was different, and it turned into angst. Hehehehe. Guess the chapter title makes sense now though. Thank you for reading and please review!

Until Friday,

-Jelly