Leon, Raph, Michael, Don - Rise

Leonardo, Raphael, Mikey, Donnie - 2012

Trigger warnings for panic/anxiety attacks, mentions of self-harm, as well as fairly graphic violence.

Rise!Splinter is still a bad dad. He's… like… trying to be better, but only half trying. He's too tired to try harder, and he enjoys seeing his sons panic.

Also, this was written before the movie trailer was released! As such, the turtles are keeping their old lair. It's just under heavy repairs.

Furthermore (last A/N for this chapter, I swear) I wasn't actually going to put this on here, because doesn't have a section for Rise as far as I can tell, but this did well enough on AO3 (like, seriously, you all are such sweethearts) that I think it's worht it regardless. UwU Enjoy~!

(:)

"Oh, and Blue is the leader now!"

"Wait, WHAT?!"

Leon choked on his sharp inhale, spluttering out a rough cough as he kept his gaze firmly locked with the back of his father's head, not trusting himself to speak. Him? Leader? Of all the things- he couldn't be the leader. That was Raph's job, and he was so good at it! Not to mention, Leon hardly contributed to the team as a lackey, as the resident face-man, but as a leader-

He'd screw everything up! That was kinda his whole thing! He hadn't been able to make portals properly when he had the ability, and his plans were always lackluster or required modifications aside from the original idea. Heck, Leon had made his brother drop the oozesquitos in order to grab him, and that moment had made Raph decide, months later, to chuck himself off a cliff. He couldn't even strike up enough of a deal with Big Mama to prevent her from bringing Shredder back, and he hadn't predicted that she would do such a thing, even though it was obvious that she would at least try something of the sort. He kept messing up, and there was no sign of him stopping it.

Yet…

Here Splinter was, wanting him to be leader. The opportunity to mess up was practically given to him on a silver platter. The thought made Leon's stomach clench uncomfortably, and a peek at his brothers showed that they were expecting the same.

"Well!" Splinter clapped his hands together, pointedly ignoring his sons' varying expressions of horror. "Let's go home!" He pivoted on his heel, strolling away casually, not checking to see if the turtles followed him.

Of course, his sons trailed after him anyway, but honestly, they only did it because they needed to know what Splinter meant. He had been smiling like crazy, like it was all some big joke to throw them off, which just forwarded their confusion.

Donnie and Leon snapped out of their shock first, running over to either of Splinter's shoulders, turning their entire attention onto their father. Raph and Mikey hovered several steps behind, following at a slower pace. Mikey latched his arms around Raph's right arm, burrowing his face against Raph's elbow and refusing to let go, trying to ward off Raph's anxiety, the oldest brother's breaths already starting to gain speed and irregularity.

Splinter kept silent, ignoring Donnie and Leon's attempts to be heard, his attention diverted forward and only showing interest in the next jump and how he'd stick the landing. Leon tried to give Donnie a desperate look, but his twin didn't respond to his gaze. Instead, one of Donnie's claws extended from his battle shell, gripping their dad's shoulder and forcibly pivoting him around, making him face them.

"Papa, you can't just… make an announcement like that and walk away!" Donnie exploded, trying to look mildly concerned and like he was open to having a conversation about the subject, but his tone of voice said nothing about pleasantries and everything about needing answers and now. "You have to explain!"

"There is nothing to explain." Splinter shrugged, his expression neutral. Even his ears didn't betray his thoughts, remaining straight up at the attention. "Blue is the leader, and there is nothing more to it."

"No!" Mikey refused, jumping off of Raph's arm to tackle Donnie away from Splinter only so he could take his genius brother's place in front of their father, gripping Splinter's hands tightly. "Raph's the leader! That's how it's always been! For Leo to be leader, it'd be… it's just wrong!"

Leon nodded in agreement, peeking over Mikey's shoulder. Donnie hovered over the other shoulder, joining the youngest in glaring at their father, and Raph towered over all his brothers, but his eyes were full of pain and betrayal rather than determined aggravation.

"Being the leader's tough, Pops!" Raph stated, his voice shaking hard, his hand coming to rest on both Mikey and Donnie's backs, leaning slightly away from Leon. And honestly, Leon wasn't even surprised. "Leo can't handle that kind of weight on his shoulders! I'm the biggest brother, and biggest brothers…they carry that. He can't!"

Splinter heaved a heavy sigh, freeing one of his hands to cradle Mikey's face, one of his thumbs running across Mikey's cheek in a calming motion. "This is not about age, and I am not telling you this as your father. This is me, as your sensei, telling you that Blue is the best equipped to lead."

"But-!" Raph protested, trying and failing to chase off the tremble of his bottom lip, reaching one hand towards their father but not quite close enough to make it to Splinter's hand. "That doesn't… I've been trying so hard! I've been doing good, haven't I? I don't…"

"You will grow to understand, my son." Splinter shrugged, deflecting the question to his sons' frustration. He pulled his hands fully away from Mikey's face and grip, turning away to start moving again. "Let us go home, I have a bed with my name on it!"

"Pops-" Raph whimpered, fidgeting his fingers together, staring after their father. He cut himself off, burying his face into his hands and releasing a dull sob, shoulders shaking as he ultimately lost the battle to keep himself together. Mikey was upon him in the next second, jumping onto his back and wrapping his arms firmly around his oldest brother's neck, refusing to let go a second time.

Leon turned to face Raph while Donnie muttered a couple choice words after their father, mostly about how much he apparently didn't care about Raph's clear existential crisis. Leon took in his older brother's pressed eyebrow ridges, barely able to see any of Raph's facial features through his fingers, but trying his best anyway.

"Hey, big bro," Leon tried gently, reaching out his hand to pat Raph's shoulder. Their leader - former leader now, what the shell - flinched from the touch, tearing away his hands to stare at Leon with wide, unfocused eyes. His face twitched into something of fear, and he cowered away a few more steps, curling around Mikey like he was protecting him, shielding him from Leon, like… like…

Like Leon was going to steal Mikey away, too. Just like he stole the leadership position. Like he was hurting them. Hurting them just by…

Aw, shell. This was bad.

"Sorry." Leon whispered, careful to keep hurt out of his voice as he took a couple steps back, letting Donnie pull himself out of his furious stew over their father and join the oldest and youngest in their hug. "I just- I didn't mean to-"

"'Nardo," Donnie said, gently guiding Raph to his feet. Mikey followed along, easily propping Raph up as well, and allowing the eldest to lean on him. For such a little guy, Mikey was much stronger than he looked. Donnie continued, "Maybe it's best if you don't talk right now."

Oh. Leon nodded wordlessly, taking a step back to allow his siblings to move ahead of him. He stayed out of their line of vision, walking ninja-style behind them, not making a noise. He felt… alienated. Pushed back, shut out, and he couldn't fix this, because he wasn't the one who did this. Or maybe he was, but how? Why would Father… did he not understand? Did he not see what was happening?

As if on cue, Splinter twisted his head around to look at his sons, and his face crumpled at the sight of his two secondary-colored sons holding Raph, and he hurried back over to their side, reaching back to seize Raph's face in between his hands. Leon couldn't help but note bitterly that Raph didn't flinch away from their father. "Oh, my son." Splinter breathed, tone apologetic and dripping in sorrow, bringing Raph's face down so that he could press their foreheads together. "I am not meaning to hurt you with this."

"I don't understand." Raph whined, voice reaching an unsteadily high pitch, wrapping the arm not being mercilessly held by Mikey around Splinter, holding both tight. Donnie nestled against them, and Raph let him, but Leon didn't dare to take a step closer. "I was doing good."

"You were doing wonderfully." Splinter praised full heartedly, his words gentle and comforting, cradling Raph's face. "You are still doing wonderfully. But you need to rest, my son. And you will not rest as long as you lead. Entrust the team to your brother so you can finally sleep easy. I love you so very much, and am not doing this to hurt you, but rather to bless you, my Red."

Raph whimpered, still shaking, but certainly less panicked than before, a long sigh escaping from his lips as he melted into the embrace.

And he was… he was resting. Leon had never seen him lose that much tension in his shoulders, and he didn't understand, Raph wasn't really that stressed, was he? Why hadn't Leon noticed? Holy shell, he really was a bad brother, and he was going to make an even worse leader, and he-

"And Blue…" Splinter called carefully, attracting Leon's attention back to him. Splinter took in how tightly Leon gripped himself in a self-hug, how his hands turned pale from the sheer force of his grip, and his expression somehow softened even more than it already had. "…Leonardo, I trust you."

But somehow, even though that was all Leon wanted, to be trusted by his brothers and his father most of all…

It didn't feel the same.

(:)

The way home was spent in absolute silent misery.

Leon was the last one into their lair, still hugging himself as they went. None of his brothers had even looked at him, much less asked him how he was handling the new news. Or asked if he even wanted to be leader.

And he didn't want to! Being the leader… It was completely and utterly wrong.

He wasn't supposed to be the leader! He was supposed to be the Face Guy, trademarked pending. He wasn't supposed to offer anything to the team. Sure, he always wanted to have a real role, real worth… but he hadn't wanted to steal it from anyone, least of all from Raph. He would've been perfectly happy if he had just stuck to the side and never, ever, ever had any true value in the team if it meant that his brothers weren't shoved to the side. Shell, what if this meant that Raph was now the useless member? What if he-

No. Raph would never be inadequate like Leon. He was too good at protecting and generally babying them to just be… discarded like Leon was. Had been. Not anymore. Because Leon…

For the first time in his life, Leon felt like he had worth. And it was…

He had dreamed about having worth so many times. Too many times. They were nothing more than fantasies, thoughts that came and went that were too good to be true, but this? This was horrific, because this was real. It wasn't one of his daydreams where his brothers affectionately told him how smart and clever he was. He actually had to be that smart and clever, or they'd all…

They'd all…

"Are you sure you're going to be okay?" Mikey whispered, his face filled with open concern, his hands still wrapped firmly around Raph's arm. Raph was calmer, but his face was still downcast, and… heck, it was Leon's fault he felt like that.

"Yeah. I just…" Raph sighed deeply, shaking his head in a futile effort to clear his rampaging, screaming head. "I think… Dad's right. I just need. A nap. Or… or something." He brought his free hand to his beak, pinching it as he tried to massage the sleep crusties from his eyes. "I will definitely be okay, just… I need to rest. Like he said."

"Sleep is a guaranteed way of rejuvenating one's mind and even mental health." Donnie confirmed, one hand still snuggled in between some of Raph's shell spikes, rubbing comforting circles on the eldest's back. "That's why it's such common advice to 'sleep on it' before making complicated decisions, or after a particularly mentally straining day."

"I'm not… mentally strained." Raph whined, glowering down at Donnie. "That sounds psychotic."

"Psychopaths usually aren't aware that they're mad until they're in a mental asylum." Donnie comforted warmly. "And we can't exactly get you into one with your whole 'green' and 'turtle' condition, so you'll likely never know."

"Thanks." From his tone, Raph was not grateful for Donnie's helpful insight.

"It's my oh-so-humble pleasure." Donnie responded in the exact same tone, but it was his normal tone, so whether he took Raph seriously on that or not was up to debate.

Leon bit the inside of his lip to try and smother any wisecracks, looking down to his crossed arms. He didn't fit in with the picture here. With his brothers comforting Raph, and actually almost drawing a smile from their… former… leader, he absolutely wasn't needed here. Making a joke or a wry quip wouldn't help anything, it would just… make it worse.

"Going to bed." Leon warned, but Raph and Donnie ignored him completely while Mikey shot him a quick thumbs up over Raph's back, out of sight of both of their older brothers. "...okay, cool." He muttered bitterly to himself, quiet enough that he knew none of his brothers, not even Mikey who at least briefly had lent some of his attention, could hear him. Try not to miss me or anything, guys.

Leon paced restlessly up the ramp to the upstairs levels, grateful that their bedrooms had been mostly out of the way of Shredder's attack six days previously. All of the upper rooms had mostly been untouched, as a matter of a fact, except for Donnie's lab, the arcade, and the kitchen. Which, of course, was Leon's fault. It had been far enough away from the main battle grounds of the atrium that it would have been relatively undamaged if Leon hadn't put Gram-Gram there rather than… oh, anywhere else in the world?

At least the atrium was able to be inhabited again. Donnie had coated the rift down to the Hidden City with a special adhesive that had sealed and made the area feel more like a trampoline than a hole leading down to almost certain death. Later on, they would properly seal the area again with concrete, but it would certainly be a while. The debris had been mostly cleared away from the floor, and Mikey had forced everyone to help him begin rebuilding the skateboard ramp, because. Well, priorities.

Right now, Raph, Donnie, and Mikey stood to the side of the atrium, heading over to the lumpy couch they had managed to drag down from one of New York City's numerous dumpsites a couple of days beforehand, easing Raph onto it as they continued to chatter next to him, doubtlessly offering encouragement and their support as he struggled with being replaced.

…by Leon.

Leon watched them from the platform outside his room, his brothers talking among themselves and jovallly attempting to clear the mood. They fit together perfectly without Leon there, bossing them around. Doing leadery things. Being authoritative.

Shell… What was wrong with him?!

Leon slammed the heel of his palm into his eye, huffing out a ragged breath as he tried and failed to subdue his tears, feeling the liquid drip down his cheeks. Stupid, stupid! He was the leader now! He shouldn't cry! Raph never cried! He was strong, and tough, and held it together, and-

He broke down crying while they were trying to learn the Hamato Ninpo, though. Because he wasn't strong enough. Was that why he was removed from the position of leader? Because he started to crack under the pressure? The helpless pressure they had forced him under? Who… who told Splinter about that? A Hamato ancestor? One of the brothers? April?

If it meant Raph would get hurt like this... nobody should've said anything about it!

Leon slid into his bedroom, not bothering to turn on the lights as he went, climbing onto his bed. He pulled his knees to his chest, burying his head into his hands, and tried not to cry. Because it wasn't fair. Raph got kicked off of leadership because of… why? A moment of weakness? It didn't make sense, but if being weak wasn't why he got demoted, then… then…

Then why? There would be no reason for it!

And then, that would mean that Leon…

He… he didn't know what he was doing. He didn't understand how this… how this worked. He was supposed to be the leader, that's what Splinter said. The leader was supposed to know what to do, to hold it together, to take care of his team

And yet Leon had never felt more useless then he did now.

His tears lulled him to sleep.

And new horrors began.

(:)

The gray void extended around him as far as he could see. Sprinkles of stars were scattered throughout the bleak expanse, providing the only source of light, and the only defining trait of the entire area around him. There was no notable floor in place, but Leon wasn't floating, so he figured he was standing on a fairly flat plane. His feet were transparent, like misty glass, and through his feet, he could continue seeing through the infinite gray nothingness.

Like, man, whoever made this place really had a thing for gray.

"This is really boring!" Leon announced to the surrounding area, placing his hands on his hips and rocking forward on his heels, scowling the air around him. "Get an interior designer!"

Unsurprisingly, nothing answered his shout. The air remained quiet, and the shimmering of the stars did nothing to signify anything was wrong. Everything was as bleak as when he first arrived, and nothing did anything to change.

Boring.

Leon firmly crossed his arms again, face twisting into a confused grimace, once again taking a look around. This time, it was mostly to confirm his isolation than to get his bearings. His mind… pulsed in such a way that it felt like a dream. Maybe not his dream, because his subconscious was typically more lively with dragons and secret orders of ninjas, but it felt like it was someone's dream. It might have been his, for he had never had a full-on lucid dream, or been aware that he was dreaming at all when he had dreams.

So who really knew?

If it was his own dream, which, honestly, it probably was from the distinct lack of anyone else here, his mind was a total letdown. He was a total letdown. And not just because he was the leader-

Oh. Right.

He was the leader.

He had forgotten about that particularly nasty subject sometime in between closing his eyes and waking up here.

Heh.

At least he didn't have to face Raph's heartbroken expression, Donnie's horror, or Mikey's ceaseless confusion.

"Ha!" Leon announced loudly, puffing himself up in fake unearned pride, cupping his hands to his mouth as he screeched. "You guys can't follow me here, so for once, I'm leaving you behind! I'm alone! Completely without you guys! Isn't that great? Now you don't have to worry about me, or think about me, and…! And…! How do you like that?!"

Leon had heard, repeated over multiple sources and several different sources of media, and of course from Donnie, that screaming into the void was supposed to be therapeutic. He had experienced it for himself, too. Sometimes, after stressful days or missions, he and his brothers would seek out an empty field in the middle of nowhere, or more often an abandoned warehouse on the outskirts of the city, to yell into. They would often release a feral scream, where nobody would hear or at least complain, and just let themselves go. They would receive no response, aside from ordinary city noises or crickets, but it always felt nice regardless.

Here was no different. From his simple rambling of frustrations and anger, his chest felt lighter, and he took comfort in the fact that nothing was listening except for a nothingness that couldn't care or respond.

Until it did.

Leon felt the crackle of the air before he sensed anything else, the static electricity enough to make Leon's completely nonexistent hair stand on end. A tremble jerked through Leon's limbs, and he flinched, pivoting on his heel to give the area around him another glance. There wasn't… anything here. He was just being paranoid! There was absolutely nothing to worry about, and…

"Turtle!" The throaty roar made Leon twist around again, his hands twitching up instinctively to where his katanas lay, going for the sharp blades for defense, narrowing his eyes at the shrapnel monster looming before him. "I have found you!"

Oh, great. A bigger threat than his existential crisis. Could he go back to panicking over being leader, please?

"I'm really hoping you have the wrong guy here!" Leon squawked awkwardly, offering a strained smile as he took a faltering step backwards. He took a moment to thank the general infinite emptiness of the space surrounding them, grateful for the easy mobility it provided. If the newcomer's looks were anything to go by… he was in trouble.

The beast that towered over him was simultaneously ugly and blood-curdling terrifying. Every surface of the venous, fleshy creature was covered in elongated spikes, and a mask made up of what looked like bones curled around the behemoth's face. Below the curls of facial armor, two tiny pinpricks of ice blue eyes peered out at him, hatred flooding their gaze. Every movement the creature made caused its heart and veins to throb violently, warbling back and forth, nauseatingly pulsing with the rhythm of its heartbeat.

Leon felt almost like throwing up, keeping his gaze locked confidently with the beast's, avoiding eye contact with the skin parts of the creature.

The behemoth had no desire to keep up pleasantries, a laugh full of nothing but bitter spite pouring from its mouth, its jaws not even opening to do so. "Allow that hope to be dashed. You are exactly who I seek!" And then he charged forward, claws glinting in the starlight.

Leon gasped, jerking out of the way and instinctively raised his right arm to block, flinching as steel slashed straight through the fabric covering his arm and straight into his skin, luckily pulling back before the talons met his bone, and he flinched away, curling his arm against his chest as red hot pain spiked through it. Blood gurgled against his plastron, and he whined deeply in his throat, staring down at his suddenly mangled limp in horror. "…oh."

The beast came to a stop, whipping around again, and relocated Leon, pinning him down with its sharp gaze. It turned its attention down to his arm, taking note of the red that was splattered around his plastron and dripping down on his leg, and something close to a smile seemed to flash across its immovable face. "You've gotten slow!"

"'Gotten'?" Leon echoed with a whimper, his injured hand completely dropping his katana, and he watched it go with a sympathetic wince. Ah, well. All good swords must come to a fall… "What do you-"

He dropped to the ground as the creature approached again, claws snagging the air where Leon's head had been only a second before, a wince pulling across Leon's face as he lurched to the ground, narrowly avoiding a face full of claws.

"What even are you?!" Leon whined, retreating as much as possible in the little time he was given, pulling back his still throbbing arm to take a look at the slashed skin. The blood was already beginning to slow, and he was relieved to find that the cut was fairly shallow. It didn't make the ever-present sting hurt any less, but it was a comfort to know nonetheless.

Leon's gaze flickered up again, and he ground his teeth together upon realizing that the beast was watching him once more. "Are you… some dream hopping Yokai?" He nibbled his lip in worry, hoping that he was wrong on that front. There were only so many things the creature could possibly be, and, well… if it was a Yokai, it was definitely on the more… ugly side of things. Leo couldn't even tell what animal it was mutated with. It was like a spike-y… knife-y version of Captain Piel. "And if you're my subconsciousness, you are uh-gly. I would be more fabulo- ACK!"

Leon rolled between the creature's legs as it snapped forward, landing messily on his feet behind the beast, glancing down at his remaining katana and figuring he should probably start using it. "Okay, okay, so you're not a conversation type, I get it! But you could totally chill with the attacking-thing until I get my breath back!"

The beast snarled again, turning around slowly, allowing Leon to see every detail of its lavish helmet as it pivoted, towering over him. The turtle felt insignificant underneath the ridiculing, superior glare, twitching restlessly. "You cannot fool me, boy. You may have changed your skin, and lost your skills, but your aura remains the same."

"What?" Leon blinked, miffed, and adjusted his hand on his sword, curling his injured hand to his side, out of view of the creature. In his momentary distraction, the creature lunged forward again, and Leon barely managed to avoid the sharp whip of metal extending from the creature's hands. Leon glanced up, and stabbed his katana upwards, straight into the beast's heart.

The creature stared at him for only a moment, and then flexed. Leon's katana shattered, shrapnel flying through the air surrounding them. The katana's shards hit Leon, but phased straight through him, perks of the weapon being made from his own soul. The other pieces of the katana bounced off of the beast, not leaving any mark on its horrendous skin. The heart beat on, unharmed, and Leon felt his faith in himself deflate.

"Wow!" Leon sarcastically gasped, staring down at the hilt in his hands, offering the beast his most innocent smile. "Who put that sword there? Sure not me! Sorry about tha-"

The creature snapped its hand around Leon's hand, yanking him into the air, holding him suspended a foot above the ground, leaning in so that Leon could only see its eyes.

"I think," Leon hissed, trying and failing to kick the behemoth and escape, swinging back and forth dangerously, "that there's some mix-up here! I don't recognize you, like, at all, and I get it, I'm annoying, but you don't have to take it out on me!" He glanced at where he had dropped his katana earlier, wincing at the distance between him and it. Making a split-second plan, Leon felt fairly more confident, letting his signature smirk spread across his face again.

"You killed me, turtle! I do not forget such things easily!"

Leo hesitated for a moment, contemplating, then snorted, mirth crawling onto his expression. "You look pretty alive to me. Besides, I wasn't even able to kill a worm by slicing it in half, so, I think you're good!"

"I am no worm!" The thing bellowed.

"Oh, yeah, I think I'd recognize that worm if I saw him again, too, and you don't look a thing like him." Leon glanced up at the claws the beast held against his throat, straining to yank his throat away. "So, uh, sorry? Invade someone else's night's sleep, please?"

"Hamato Leonardo!" The creature hissed, tossing Leon away, clenching his hands into fists, expression twisting into fury. "You will pay for your ignorance!"

Leon whined as he rolled over his injured arm as he crashed against the floor, far too much unhelpful pressure being applied to his wound. Fabric from his gloves was pressed roughly into the open injury, aggravating it. "Ack! Ow! Okay, okay, so maybe you have the right guy, but I don't remember you! I'm sorry, I hope you get your body back, but I really don't think dream-killing me is going to help!"

"This is not about regeneration." The beast snarled, watching Leon stumble to his feet, taking a threatening step toward the blue-clad turtle. "This is about vengeance. You stole everything from me!"

"I don't even know you!" Leon admonished, safely gaining the creature's anger and having his complete attention on him.

He glanced at his katana again, then phased from reality, hearing the beast's snort of confusion as he materialized beside his blade, snagging up his sword in hand. To his disappointment, the creature reacted quickly, whipping around to relocate Leon, its eyes narrowing in frustration as it appeared to figure out how Leon's teleportation worked. Its stare landed on Leon's katana, and there was a nod of understanding. Quick, divert attention. "Dude," Leon whined, "just give me a name drop or something, and I should remember you. But this isn't very-"

He barely managed to lash up his sword to parry the behemoth's claws, surprised that the creature's claws didn't damage his own blade. Then, that begged the question, how did the beast's heart just… shatter his katana? That didn't make any sense!

Leon withdrew his sword, falling into a duck. He spun around as he went down, popping up to stab against the creature's arm. His katana did not pierce the beast's flesh, deflecting immediately as if its skin was solid stone. The ricochet tore itself from Leon's hand, going flying through the gray.

Leon gasped, stretching his hand out towards the blade, allowing the teleport to carry him through the air and back to his sword. He seized the hilt in his hand, landing feet-first, his hands instinctively falling into a dab. "And land safely!" Leon cooed in victory as he dabbed, grimacing as his injured arm whined at him. "Okay, ow."

"You're pathetic."

Leon glanced up, mouth opening into an 'oh' chirp as he stared up at the beast, lifting his arm to toss his katana. The creature's fist slammed into his back before he had time enough to move or even get his katana out of his hand, sending him careening towards the ground. Its clawed food slammed against Leon's back, pinning him to the ground.

Leon flinched as the behemoth's fist slammed into his last katana, shattering it just like the first one. Leon watched it shatter, felt the metal hit his head and pass straight through, the last of the katana kicked far away. He whimpered as his last line of defense was destroyed, glancing up at the behemoth.

"If you truly lost your mind along with your flesh, I shall enlighten you." The creature reached down, curling its fist against Leon's head, keeping his face in place, crunched against the ground. Something about the way the beast's hand fit around his head resonated with familiarity, and Leon's eyes flickered open in realization.

"I am Oroku Saki. The Shredder. And you are the bane of my existence."

"Nonono-" Leon whimpered through the air, growling through his teeth as he squeezed his eyes shut, because this wasn't right! They purified him why was he back they were supposed to have purified him, how'd he crawl back he was supposed to be with Gram-Gram and the other Hamatos and nononono-

"You do remember me!" The Shredder laughed, his voice grating and cruel, squeezing enough to break through Leon's skin, claws scraping through his scalp. "Then you shall remember enough to know that you are completely deserving of what comes next."

Leon sobbed, the noise grating against his throat, thick tears beading up in his eyes. He couldn't even beat Shredder with all his brothers! They had needed their entire family, and Leon didn't even have his brothers. He was alone, and his family wasn't going to come. The Hamatos had surely abandoned Leon to his fate, and he couldn't escape this on his own. He was powerless, and he couldn't-

He couldn't move.

"Here is where you meet your demise." The Shredder flexed his claws, pulling back his hand from Leon's skull, raising his fist high in the air, preparing for the strike downwards. "May your bloodline end with your own blood staining your bed!"

His hand came down.

It never hit.

(:)

Leon lurched forward, head snaking up from where it had fallen onto his knees, gasping into his dark room. Sweat beaded on his forehead, dripping down his face and chin and forming a small puddle in his lap. Oh, shell.

His mind rang painfully in his ears, and he raised his hand to cradle his head, a whine biting its way out of his throat. Just a dream. Just an awful, very real, very painful, bad dream. Just stupid trauma taking the Shredder and warping him into a person, filling in the blanks of what he looked like in his mind, and…

Leon's right arm pulsed in agony when he moved it to cup his head as well, and he tiredly pulled his arm away from his body to study it, watching it with tired eyes. The glove around his arm was still perfectly intact, not a single tear in the fabric. However, something sticky pulsed against his skin underneath the glove, and he slowly took his glove and tugged it off, inhaling sharply at what he saw.

The same jagged slash mark that the creature had given him was cut into his skin like a brand, and while it wasn't bleeding too badly, it became evident that his glove had been serving as a patch to slow the bleeding. Heat radiated from the wound, and Leon quickly realized that while the cut hadn't been too deep, infection was still a likely possibility. And one he'd rather avoid.

And then the implications of his wound hit him.

Because if he was still slashed here… then that meant his dream was real in some way. That thing…

It was real.

(:)

Leonardo, a dimension, two miles, and approximately seven blocks away, jerked awake, staring at the ceiling of his room. His breath escaped from his lungs in quick pants, and he lifted his hand to press against his chest.

A dull buzzing filled Leonardo's mind, filling his senses and threatening to pull him apart, as he desperately tried to make sense of everything he had just seen.

There had been a flash, and he had caught a glimpse of steel and a glint of blue eyes peering out at him from a mask made of bone. Sharp spikes of metal had twisted around the face like a hideous crown, and the visage's teeth had curled together in a snarl. Super Shredder had lunged forward, claws glinting as he took aim towards Leonardo. His claws almost found their mark, but Leonardo's arm had flashed up from instinct alone, and it had burned, snaking through his flesh, and he hadn't been able to register through the pain, the pain-

He flinched away from the next blow, twisting away to a safer position, his lips parted in a strained cry. He looked down at his arm, watching the red pooling down it, but it wasn't his arm, it was foreign, and it was a turtle arm, but it wasn't his, too thin, guarded with a glove, but it was connected, and Leonardo didn't know what-

And then his eyes blinked open, and his mind was filled with only one thought.

Shredder was back. And he was attacking someone new. Leonardo needed to find them, no matter what.

(:)

Can you tell that this whole thing is me whining about how absolutely ugly Super Shredder is?