*~Okay, I promised everyone a new chapter of something else, but I'm so excited to finish this one! Wait...wait..don't do that!!! *hides as rotten food splatters every where* I'll do them next! I proooomise! *peeks out* and don't forget to review! *cringes as an apple explodes on the face*....please.
Leonardo careened through the blackness until water suddenly engulfed him. His lungs spasmed with shock, and water rushed into his mouth as he screamed. Everything spun dizzily in every direction. No matter how hard he kicked and fought, the current's fingers held him down. His sight began to blotch out and coherent thought hovered like a cloud beyond reach. Suddenly, a small hand caught him and pulled him up. Cool air blasted his face as he jerked up to the surface, and he immediatly began coughing fits. Donatello's iron grip kept him up in the meantime. Slowly, his hearing came back and the roaring with his brother's sobs overwhelmed him.
"Leo! I thought....I thought I'd never..."
He clung to the slimy pipe and coughed out the last of the water in his lungs.
"It's okay. I'm fine," his voice was raspy between gasps.
"Leo, my leg's stuck. I can't...what are we going to do now?" he began to cry again.
Leo shivered as the cold shot up his spine. Water lapped at his chin and his fingers began to cramp from holding onto Don's hand. He was too exhausted to climb up.
"Help...call for help."
Donatello sniffled," Mikey? Mikey!"
"Raphael!" Leo joined in.
"Help!"
"Raph! Miiiiiike!"
"Help. Please," Don then withdrew to sulk.
"Keep calling!"
"It's no use. They can't hear us above this noise!"
"Keep trying!"
"It's no use, Leo. No use."
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
Splinter's nose was nearly pressed against the glass as enormous sky scrappers whizzed by. Hundreds of tiny lights reflected in his deep brown eyes like fireflies.
"What's the matter?" Michelle broke the silence and looked away from the windshield briefly.
"It's very beautiful."
"Yes, I suppose it is," she frowned.
"Anything on your mind?"
"Oh, forgive me," he turned to her," I often think of topside like looking into a glass bowl from the outside. A world I can watch but never be a part of."
"That's not true. What if..."
"I only seek peace for my sons and I. There are many out there," he looked out the window again," that will never accept us. My sons are my reason for living. Without them peace means nothing. Acceptance means nothing. Life...means nothing. They grow bigger everyday and I must teach them to accept the outside, but I must also teach them that though they may not join the life inside the bowl, they can influence it."
Their eyes made contact briefly, but the emotion shining outward toward each other was infinite.
"Remember the first thing you said to me? About a sad way to spend Christmas? Well, the truth is, I have no where else to go."
Splinter cocked his head slightly.
"I mean, I have a home and all, but I live alone. Remember Roger, the last guy who left?"
He nodded shallowly.
"He's my husband's brother. When I first started working here as a secretary, Jake was my boss. Over time we began to date, and he promoted me to be his personal lab assistant. Well, like turned into love and we married. I-I've never met somebody so caring. He loved animals. We used to sneak out late at night when the lab was empty and let a few of them go. Later, we had a daughter, Emily. It seemed nothing could ever break us apart. They were my world, just like your sons," tears began to sting her eyes,"and then there was an accident. Jake took Emily to the pound to pick out a puppy for her birthday while I was preparing for her surprise party at home. While I was baking the cake, I got a phone call. They told me a there was a chemical spill at the lab, so I went over there right away. But they wouldn't let me in.
She pulled over to the side of the road suddenly.
"They wouldn't let me in," she began to sob on the steering wheel.
Splinter leaned over and gently cupped her chin his palm.
"The past is always difficult to recall, but it's a good thing."
She sniffled as he wiped away the rivulets running down her cheeks. Her fingers curled around his hand and moved it away from her face. Holding hands like old friends, she continued.
"After they cleaned up the chemical, nothing was found alive. I-I remember holding his cold hand in the ambulance, sobbing on his still chest, and kissing lifeless lips. I couldn't let them go. They couldn't live me alone. Not all alone. They had to pry my daughter's limp body from me, and the last I saw it was lying in a coffin. They looked so peaceful lying there, soft interior, fresh flowers all around. Then I watched as they buried my whole world in the ground. I haven't been back to that spot since, but I can still see their souls in those animals' sad eyes. So I stayed at the pound to help them, just like Jake did. It's what he would have wanted."
Splinter nodded again with understanding. Then, unbuckling his seat belt, he reached into the back seat and brought a striped rainbow blanket to the front. She starred at it unblinking as a rush of memories bombarded her.
"Was this Emily's?"
"Yeah...I kept all her things."
He put it in her arms and her eyes wandered excitedly over the bright colors as an occasional tear fell.
"The past is like a blanket. Wrap yourself in it, but do not let it slow your movements forward."
She smiled back and hugged him.
"Thank you...for everything."
Suddenly, his eyes grew wide and his whiskers twitched with agitation as they parted the embrace.
"Quick, we must go. Something is very wrong."
"What?"
"My sons!" he clutched the dashboard and gazed intensely out the window. The panic pooling in his pupils lurched her stomache. Immediatly, the engine roared to life and the car rushed back into the street. After a moment, Splinter pointed to an alley as they approached it.
"There."
Michelle turned the wheel sharply and Splinter was out the door before the wheels even screeched to a stop.
"Hurry!" he held the manhole lid open as she rushed over,"Down here."
Normally she would have felt obligated to protest, but his rush left her no time for thought. They dropped down and he brought out a flashlight from his cloak. The air was damp and heavy with danger. The smell clogged her lungs, but the rush of adrenaline seemed to block it, luckily. But it wasn't just the pounding her ears that urged her forward. It was that feeling all over again. That need to be there for someone else. It soared even beyond her own life. The same sensation was pouring out from Splinter like a flood as his steps quickened.
"Do you hear that?"
They paused and groped through the thick silence with amplified ears.
"No, only water and..."
"There!"
They listened again. A small voice echoed softly from far away and rang new hope.
"This way!"
He took a sharp turn and broke out into a trot. The light beam bounced as he panned it from side to side, looking over every detail of the sewers. There was also a humming sound which gradually grew louder as each turn whizzed by. Then it gradually became a hoarse roar. Splinter jerked to a stop and gazed wide eyed at what the beam revealed. Two shadows clung to each other with freight while sobbing with exhaustion. She was afraid that Splinter was paralyzed with shock, but he suddenly bounded like lightning to their rescue.
Leo's neck ached from the strain of holding his head above the water. He had already given up hope, and he gradually inched lower into the pool. Don's grasp on him was still firm, but stressed and dulled. Just a little lower and he'd be swept away. Lost forever. Just then a hand grabbed his arm and hoisted him into the folds of a warm cloak. The other hand reached for Donatello and he cried out in pain as his leg left the pipe's cleft. With both in the crook of his elbow Splinter spun around and made a detour around the whirlpool. Michelle followed him willingly down several passages. Exactly how many sons did he have? Her question was answered as they stopped and his beam danced across two peacefully sleeping faces. He motioned for her to pick them up, and she looked down, realizing the blanket was still in her hands. Raphael and Michaelangelo stirred slightly as the warmth snuggled them and lifted them away.
When they reached the lair, Splinter rushed his passengers into his bedroom for immediate care while Michelle gently lowered her load onto the couch. Again they moaned slightly and cuddled closer. That empty void in her heart seemed to flood with new passion. Little turtles. Not little rats, but little turtles. These mutants were full of suprises, she mused. Then she pulled the smaller of the two on her lap and stroked his warm cheek softly. His face was serene with a careless doze. His eyelids flickered with pleasant dreams. Gently, his tiny hand clutched her own, just like Emily used to do. Tears began to fall again, although, not for the past but for the future.
When Splinter returned, he smiled faintly as the three cuddled each other on the couch, fast asleep. The blanket had fallen on the floor, and he slowly bent over to pick it up. His muscles protested as the adrenatline faded away, leaving an aching dullness. He then spread it across the forms and briskly touched each cheek with a caress only a father could posses. Then a thought floated like a breeze across his weary mind. Perhaps this wasn't such a bad Christmas after all.
Looking back on the memory of
The dance we shared 'neath the stars alone
For a moment all the world was right
How could I have known that you'd ever say goodbye
And now I'm glad I didn't know
The way it all would end the way it all would go
Our lives are better left to chance I could have missed the pain
But I'd of had to miss the dance
Holding you I held everything
For a moment wasn't I a king
But if I'd only known how the king would fall
Hey who's to say you know I might have chanced it all
And now I'm glad I didn't know
The way it all would end the way it all would go
Our lives are better left to chance I could have missed the pain
But I'd of had to miss the dance
Yes my life is better left to chance
I could have missed the pain but I'd of had to miss the dance
"The Dance" by Garth Brooks
( Listen to it here: http://www.geocities.com/ziptangoszone/midis/thedance.mid )
Leonardo careened through the blackness until water suddenly engulfed him. His lungs spasmed with shock, and water rushed into his mouth as he screamed. Everything spun dizzily in every direction. No matter how hard he kicked and fought, the current's fingers held him down. His sight began to blotch out and coherent thought hovered like a cloud beyond reach. Suddenly, a small hand caught him and pulled him up. Cool air blasted his face as he jerked up to the surface, and he immediatly began coughing fits. Donatello's iron grip kept him up in the meantime. Slowly, his hearing came back and the roaring with his brother's sobs overwhelmed him.
"Leo! I thought....I thought I'd never..."
He clung to the slimy pipe and coughed out the last of the water in his lungs.
"It's okay. I'm fine," his voice was raspy between gasps.
"Leo, my leg's stuck. I can't...what are we going to do now?" he began to cry again.
Leo shivered as the cold shot up his spine. Water lapped at his chin and his fingers began to cramp from holding onto Don's hand. He was too exhausted to climb up.
"Help...call for help."
Donatello sniffled," Mikey? Mikey!"
"Raphael!" Leo joined in.
"Help!"
"Raph! Miiiiiike!"
"Help. Please," Don then withdrew to sulk.
"Keep calling!"
"It's no use. They can't hear us above this noise!"
"Keep trying!"
"It's no use, Leo. No use."
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
Splinter's nose was nearly pressed against the glass as enormous sky scrappers whizzed by. Hundreds of tiny lights reflected in his deep brown eyes like fireflies.
"What's the matter?" Michelle broke the silence and looked away from the windshield briefly.
"It's very beautiful."
"Yes, I suppose it is," she frowned.
"Anything on your mind?"
"Oh, forgive me," he turned to her," I often think of topside like looking into a glass bowl from the outside. A world I can watch but never be a part of."
"That's not true. What if..."
"I only seek peace for my sons and I. There are many out there," he looked out the window again," that will never accept us. My sons are my reason for living. Without them peace means nothing. Acceptance means nothing. Life...means nothing. They grow bigger everyday and I must teach them to accept the outside, but I must also teach them that though they may not join the life inside the bowl, they can influence it."
Their eyes made contact briefly, but the emotion shining outward toward each other was infinite.
"Remember the first thing you said to me? About a sad way to spend Christmas? Well, the truth is, I have no where else to go."
Splinter cocked his head slightly.
"I mean, I have a home and all, but I live alone. Remember Roger, the last guy who left?"
He nodded shallowly.
"He's my husband's brother. When I first started working here as a secretary, Jake was my boss. Over time we began to date, and he promoted me to be his personal lab assistant. Well, like turned into love and we married. I-I've never met somebody so caring. He loved animals. We used to sneak out late at night when the lab was empty and let a few of them go. Later, we had a daughter, Emily. It seemed nothing could ever break us apart. They were my world, just like your sons," tears began to sting her eyes,"and then there was an accident. Jake took Emily to the pound to pick out a puppy for her birthday while I was preparing for her surprise party at home. While I was baking the cake, I got a phone call. They told me a there was a chemical spill at the lab, so I went over there right away. But they wouldn't let me in.
She pulled over to the side of the road suddenly.
"They wouldn't let me in," she began to sob on the steering wheel.
Splinter leaned over and gently cupped her chin his palm.
"The past is always difficult to recall, but it's a good thing."
She sniffled as he wiped away the rivulets running down her cheeks. Her fingers curled around his hand and moved it away from her face. Holding hands like old friends, she continued.
"After they cleaned up the chemical, nothing was found alive. I-I remember holding his cold hand in the ambulance, sobbing on his still chest, and kissing lifeless lips. I couldn't let them go. They couldn't live me alone. Not all alone. They had to pry my daughter's limp body from me, and the last I saw it was lying in a coffin. They looked so peaceful lying there, soft interior, fresh flowers all around. Then I watched as they buried my whole world in the ground. I haven't been back to that spot since, but I can still see their souls in those animals' sad eyes. So I stayed at the pound to help them, just like Jake did. It's what he would have wanted."
Splinter nodded again with understanding. Then, unbuckling his seat belt, he reached into the back seat and brought a striped rainbow blanket to the front. She starred at it unblinking as a rush of memories bombarded her.
"Was this Emily's?"
"Yeah...I kept all her things."
He put it in her arms and her eyes wandered excitedly over the bright colors as an occasional tear fell.
"The past is like a blanket. Wrap yourself in it, but do not let it slow your movements forward."
She smiled back and hugged him.
"Thank you...for everything."
Suddenly, his eyes grew wide and his whiskers twitched with agitation as they parted the embrace.
"Quick, we must go. Something is very wrong."
"What?"
"My sons!" he clutched the dashboard and gazed intensely out the window. The panic pooling in his pupils lurched her stomache. Immediatly, the engine roared to life and the car rushed back into the street. After a moment, Splinter pointed to an alley as they approached it.
"There."
Michelle turned the wheel sharply and Splinter was out the door before the wheels even screeched to a stop.
"Hurry!" he held the manhole lid open as she rushed over,"Down here."
Normally she would have felt obligated to protest, but his rush left her no time for thought. They dropped down and he brought out a flashlight from his cloak. The air was damp and heavy with danger. The smell clogged her lungs, but the rush of adrenaline seemed to block it, luckily. But it wasn't just the pounding her ears that urged her forward. It was that feeling all over again. That need to be there for someone else. It soared even beyond her own life. The same sensation was pouring out from Splinter like a flood as his steps quickened.
"Do you hear that?"
They paused and groped through the thick silence with amplified ears.
"No, only water and..."
"There!"
They listened again. A small voice echoed softly from far away and rang new hope.
"This way!"
He took a sharp turn and broke out into a trot. The light beam bounced as he panned it from side to side, looking over every detail of the sewers. There was also a humming sound which gradually grew louder as each turn whizzed by. Then it gradually became a hoarse roar. Splinter jerked to a stop and gazed wide eyed at what the beam revealed. Two shadows clung to each other with freight while sobbing with exhaustion. She was afraid that Splinter was paralyzed with shock, but he suddenly bounded like lightning to their rescue.
Leo's neck ached from the strain of holding his head above the water. He had already given up hope, and he gradually inched lower into the pool. Don's grasp on him was still firm, but stressed and dulled. Just a little lower and he'd be swept away. Lost forever. Just then a hand grabbed his arm and hoisted him into the folds of a warm cloak. The other hand reached for Donatello and he cried out in pain as his leg left the pipe's cleft. With both in the crook of his elbow Splinter spun around and made a detour around the whirlpool. Michelle followed him willingly down several passages. Exactly how many sons did he have? Her question was answered as they stopped and his beam danced across two peacefully sleeping faces. He motioned for her to pick them up, and she looked down, realizing the blanket was still in her hands. Raphael and Michaelangelo stirred slightly as the warmth snuggled them and lifted them away.
When they reached the lair, Splinter rushed his passengers into his bedroom for immediate care while Michelle gently lowered her load onto the couch. Again they moaned slightly and cuddled closer. That empty void in her heart seemed to flood with new passion. Little turtles. Not little rats, but little turtles. These mutants were full of suprises, she mused. Then she pulled the smaller of the two on her lap and stroked his warm cheek softly. His face was serene with a careless doze. His eyelids flickered with pleasant dreams. Gently, his tiny hand clutched her own, just like Emily used to do. Tears began to fall again, although, not for the past but for the future.
When Splinter returned, he smiled faintly as the three cuddled each other on the couch, fast asleep. The blanket had fallen on the floor, and he slowly bent over to pick it up. His muscles protested as the adrenatline faded away, leaving an aching dullness. He then spread it across the forms and briskly touched each cheek with a caress only a father could posses. Then a thought floated like a breeze across his weary mind. Perhaps this wasn't such a bad Christmas after all.
Looking back on the memory of
The dance we shared 'neath the stars alone
For a moment all the world was right
How could I have known that you'd ever say goodbye
And now I'm glad I didn't know
The way it all would end the way it all would go
Our lives are better left to chance I could have missed the pain
But I'd of had to miss the dance
Holding you I held everything
For a moment wasn't I a king
But if I'd only known how the king would fall
Hey who's to say you know I might have chanced it all
And now I'm glad I didn't know
The way it all would end the way it all would go
Our lives are better left to chance I could have missed the pain
But I'd of had to miss the dance
Yes my life is better left to chance
I could have missed the pain but I'd of had to miss the dance
"The Dance" by Garth Brooks
( Listen to it here: http://www.geocities.com/ziptangoszone/midis/thedance.mid )