The Thing
~
Frakly joined Mikey and April in the main area fifteen minutes after he had dealt with Leo. The professor had suggested to Leo to get some sleep after he had cleaned up his wounds, and the turtle had not even had the strength to argue. Now Frakly walked in to find his pet curled around the couch, at the end Mikey was sat at. April kept glancing at it, but Frakly expected her to be nervous.
"How are they?" Mikey asked when Frakly joined them.
"Leo is going to be alright. He's just very tired and sore. Donnie, well, he's got a lot of recovering to do. But he will be fine." The professor then turned to April and extended a hand. "I'm professor Frakly. I'm sorry I didn't introduce myself earlier."
April took his hand and introduced herself.
"Ah, the news reporter," Frakly nodded, smiling. He sat down in the armchair and looked at Mikey. "Seems you are the only uninjured turtle. Let's hope it stays that way. And, um, you wouldn't mind telling me who those men were who attacked your brothers?"
Mikey paused, still having a difficult time grasping the fact that it was the Foot. But April even confirmed it herself, and he had had a quick word with Leo before he had gone to bed too.
"It was a group of Ninja men called the Foot," Mikey began to explain, slowly. "They were led by a guy called Shredder, one really mean dude. He lead his Foot clan to do bad things, and we got in the way of his plans one time, we were always there to stop him. He tried to get rid of us but he never did. We actually did get rid of him one time, only this bad guy was a real pain in the butt. He came back from the dead, or at least where we thought he was dead. He tried anything and everything to get rid of us. Eventually we got him again, and his Foot died down with him a second time. They aren't that strong, but from what I've seen tonight, I'd say they're stronger and more determined. We thought we'd seen the last of them, but I was surprised when April described them. They probably want revenge."
Frakly nodded, listening carefully to Mikey.
M'reagro growled from the floor. It was only soft, but it made April turn and glance at him nervously.
Mikey yawned and realized how tired he was. It was probably only afternoon, but down there the time of the day didn't matter unless there was something on TV worth watching.
"I think we all need some rest," Frakly announced, standing up.
Mikey nodded and turned to April, who was also trying to stifle a yawn.
"Do you want my bunk?" He asked. "I can sleep in Donnie's lab."
April refused, but Mikey said he was sleeping in Donnie's lab no matter what she said and it would be a waste of bunk if she didn't take it. In the end she grinned and he walked with her to the car he and Raph shared.
"If you –" he tried to stifle a yawn, " – Want anything, just say."
"Thanks, Mikey."
"Night, April."
"Night, Mikey."
The door shut behind him and April yawned again. She was glad she left a key in her door in her apartment so Splinter would be able to lock it. She felt bad for leaving him alone, but he would be safe there as long as all the windows and doors were locked.
She turned to the bottom bunk, Mikey's, and realized who was in the room with her.
She stood on Mikey's bed and looked at Raph, who sleeping soundlessly. She could only just see his plastron move very slightly with each breath, if not she would have thought he was dead. He was so quiet, but she was sure he was all right. He was laid on his stomach, arms bent at the sides of his face. His covers had been kicked into a heap at the end of the bed and his head wasn't even resting on the pillows. She smiled. It was one of those few times she would ever see him like this.
She brought her hand up and rubbed his cheek. His eye ridges furrowed slightly and she smiled even more. She reached her arms up and picked up the end of the sheets. She pulled them up halfway to his shell and titled her head.
Then she got down and slipped under the soft covers of Mikey's bed. He was sweet to let her have it for the night. She sighed and rolled over, comfort of sleep began to overwhelm her. Before she dropped off to sleep, she managed to say, "Night Raph."
//\\
The Foot were everywhere. They surrounded him. He could feel the painful thumps and kicks, but he couldn't do anything. There were so many. They moved in and out of the dark like the shadows themselves. He couldn't see them. He couldn't hear them, but he knew they were there. All of a sudden he was hit and thrown to the floor on his stomach. They came from nowhere and started to punch, kick, bite and hit him with blurred objects. The pain was agonizing. He couldn't take it. Then he saw his brother. His brother was fighting them off strongly. But wait . . . What was that thing behind it? No! His brother was in danger. That thing had come back, back to kill them and it was behind his brother. Leo! Turn around! Noooo - !
"Noooooooo!" Donnie bolted up in bed, covered in a thin film of sweat. As soon as his mind registered the throbbing and aching of his body, he gasped in pain and fell back. His arm and thigh were white hot with pain. He glanced down and saw bandages covering his leg and arm, and gauze bandages taped to over wounds.
"Don? Donnie!?" Mikey came running into his room, worry and panic masked his cute features. "Donnie!? Are you all right? You're awake! Thank God, how do ya feel?" Mikey bent down beside his brother's bed, hands on the mattress.
"Mikey! Leo! Leo's in danger -- I saw that beast thing and it ca –"
"Donnie, Leo's fine!"
Pause.
"Wha?"
"Leo is fine. M'reagro saved you both. He scared the Foot away, and then he brought you back here."
"Leo's . . . Fine? Oh man, I thought . . . I just had a nightmare . . . Sorry, Mike. Was I screaming?"
Mikey smiled. " 'Fraid so. How do you feel? You were beat up really bad."
"Huh? Whassat noise?" A head in a blue bandanna peeked down from the top bunk. His tired and half-open eyes widened as he saw Donnie. "Donnie! You're awake. How d'ya feel?"
"In pain," Donnie moaned as he changed position. "My leg's killing me more than my arm."
"Yeah, the blade dug deeper in your leg . . ." Mikey said.
"Donnie!"
They all looked up as one to see April standing in the doorway, obviously woken by Donnie's shouts. Donnie looked down, embarrassed he had gotten everyone out of bed. And as they heard Frakly behind April, asking what was wrong, Donnie felt even worse.
"Nothing. Just Donnie had a nightmare." Mikey said to the professor and April.
Frakly moved into the room and crouched down near Mikey.
"Let me take a look at you." He said to Donnie. Then he turned to everyone else. "I think we out to all go back to bed. I will as soon as I have tended Donatello."
Mikey looked at Leo and they exchanged glanced. Leo disappeared back over the edge of his bunk.
"You're the doc," Mikey said, and he and April walked back out. He walked her back to the car again.
"Thanks, Mikey. I hope I don't have any nightmares of that . . ." She looked at M'reagro, who was curled on the floor, watching the activity. He was curled around the couch where Frakly had made himself comfortable for the night, ". . . Thing. Can it understand us?" She added.
"Um . . . I think it can . . ." Mikey glanced at it as well.
April stared and then turned to the car.
"Night, Mike."
"Hey, that rhymes!" Mikey said.
April laughed, kissed him goodnight and disappeared back inside the car where Raph was still asleep. He hadn't even moved.
April wondered if he was all right, but then she thought he was just exhausted. He was the deep sleeper of the four, but it was usually Leo who never moved. She sighed and got back into bed, trying to fall to sleep. She kept thinking of poor Splinter, left in her apartment on his own. She would have to go straight back in the morning. He knew to help himself to whatever he wanted to eat and drink, April just hoped he wouldn't be too much of a gentleman and refuse any food. He would probably meditate all night, worrying about his sons and her.
She was just drifting to sleep when the car door opened very slowly and carefully. She froze in her bed and watched out the corner of her half-closed eye. All the lights had been turned off in the main area so all she could see was a silhouette form of a human. She gasped and jumped back against the wall. The figure rushed towards her and put a hand gently over her mouth. She could now just make out the features of Frakly.
"What are you doing?" April whispered, when he took his hand away, as soon as she saw his face.
"Sorry I startled you. I had to come in to see to Raphael."
April stared for a second, then nodded and sat back as Frakly stood up and did what he was there to do. She noticed he was carrying something when he came in. She didn't lay back down until Frakly had finished, nodded goodnight and left again.
Finally. Can I get some sleep!?
April was just about to lay down when she heard voices and a small knock at the door. She threw back the covers and sighed, frustrated at the disturbance. She got up and opened the door quietly.
Mikey was at the door, looking at to his right when she opened it, but he turned back to her when he heard it, smiling sheepishly.
"April, can I just get my teddy?"