A.N.: Rating: PG-13. There are some things in the following chapters (2 of
'em anyway) that may be found disturbing to some readers. I assure you that
Lana's dream in NOTHING like it was last time. I completely changed it.
Also, more chapters have been added at the end. Four new ones to be exact,
if I remember correctly that is. Enjoy!
Chapter 51: Morning.
Master Splinter stood in Raphael's bedroom doorway, watching his son sleep. He'd known all along his son cared for Lana more than he was letting on, but never knew just how much until now. Needless to say, he was surprised when he checked on Raphael, only to find that she was curled up next to him.
"I wonder why she did not stay with Michaelangelo?" Splinter wondered. "Normally she would rather have him or Donatello with her. Something must have upset her to make her come in here."
Leonardo came to stand next to his sensei.
"Whatcha looking at?" He asked softly.
"Look for yourself, Leonardo," Splinter said.
Leonardo glanced into the room and was quite shocked to find Raphael lying there with Lana in his arms.
He looked at Splinter. "I thought she was with Mikey?"
"So did I," Splinter replied. "But when I checked on him she was not there. I assumed she was elsewhere in the lair. I never thought I would find her in here though."
Leonardo gave a small laugh as his brother tightened his grip on Lana in his sleep, and she automatically curled up closer to him.
"Guess even Raph has a soft side," he whispered.
Splinter nodded and smiled.
Michaelangelo came running out of his room then.
"Where's Lana?" He demanded frantically.
When they didn't answer him he asked again.
"Where is she?"
"Relax Michaelangelo," Splinter told him. "She is quite safe."
"But." Michaelangelo trailed off, as Splinter motioned for him to come over where they stood.
"What's going on?" Donatello queried stumbling down the hall. "Why's everyone staring at Raph? Isn't it bad enough we have to see him when he's awake?"
"Whoa," Michaelangelo gasped.
"What?" Donatello wanted to know.
Michaelangelo pointed into the room. "Look. Something we can use to blackmail him with."
Donatello gave his brother a weird look as he took off to find a camera. Once he looked into the room, he understood why everyone was standing in Raphael's doorway.
"Kodak moment," he laughed.
Michaelangelo returned with the camera then and began snapping pictures like crazy.
"Hey!" Raphael cried after the flash had blinded him. "What the."
He spotted everyone standing in the doorway. He looked from them to Lana, then back to them again.
"Don't look at me like that!" He snapped. "I didn't know she was in here."
"Yeah, sure you didn't Raph," Michaelangelo said, snapping another picture.
"Augh! Mikey!" Raphael growled jumping up and almost knocking Lana off the bed.
"Hey!" Lana cried as Raphael caught her before she could roll off and hit the floor. "I was sleeping Raph!"
"Sorry," Raphael mumbled as his brothers laughed at him.
"Way to go Raph," Leonardo began. "Kill her while she's asleep."
"I wasn't trying to kill her, Leo!" Raphael retorted, beginning to get mad. "Must you guys stand in my door like that?"
"Yep," Donatello answered. "It's our duty to make your life miserable."
"Then it's my duty to beat the shit out of you," Raphael rejoined.
"Raph!" Lana groaned. "Go back to sleep!"
Raphael looked to Splinter for approval, knowing they had practice soon. Splinter nodded, knowing there was a reason for her being there with him.
"It is alright, Raphael," Splinter told him. "You may skip practice today and go back to sleep."
"Hey!" Michaelangelo whined. "That's not fair! How come he gets to skip practice?"
"Because I said so," Splinter said turning on him. "And must I remind you Michaelangelo, you owe me some extra katas and numerous ten flips for yesterday. Plus a meeting in my study."
Michaelangelo groaned, but left to go warm up, for what he knew would be, a very long practice.
"Thanks," Lana mumbled as she snuggled into Raphael once more. "Now, go away."
Raphael shrugged, but lay back down next to her, pulling her close after fixing the blankets.
Once they were settled, Splinter shooed his remaining sons away from the door. He glanced back into the room, gave a small smile, then closed the door behind him.
Chapter 52: Week later.
It'd been a week since Lana's safe return, and the turtles were beginning to notice a habit in her sleeping pattern. She would start off with Michaelangelo in his bed, but every morning would wake up in Raphael's. They were all wondering what she kept dreaming to make her cling to Raphael the way she was. Master Splinter was becoming slightly annoyed, as she wouldn't let Raphael out of her sight. He sensed her fear and always ended up letting Raphael skip practice to stay with her, so she could sleep longer.
"Anyone else finding it strange that Lana won't let Raph leave her in the morning or during the day?" Donatello asked his brothers. "I mean, it's been a week, and she's still running to him every night."
"Yeah," Michaelangelo added. "If she's just gonna go to him in the middle of the night, why doesn't she start off in his room to begin with?"
"I'm wondering the same thing," Leonardo said. "It must have something to do with these nightmares she keeps having."
"No shit Leo," Raphael piped up. "And here I thought she was just bunking with me 'cause she was trying to get away from you."
"Lose the sarcasm, Raph," Leonardo rejoined. "You're not helping the situation any."
"Well, neither are you," Raphael retorted. "Why don't we just ask her what the hell the dream's about?"
"There's something you can do," Donatello replicated. "Raph, you're gonna ask her 'bout her dreams."
"Me? What the. Why me?" Raphael riposted. "Why do I have to do the dirty work?"
"The dreams are about you, dude," Michaelangelo reminded him. "You're the only one she'll carry out a conversation with anymore. Jeez. She hardly even talks to me and I'm her hero."
"Augh!" Raphael growled. "Fine!"
He calmed himself before going over to where Lana was sitting playing N-64.
"Hey Kid," Raphael said sitting next to her on the floor. "Can I play?"
"Here," she replied, passing him the other controller without taking her eyes off the screen. "You're Luigi."
"The green guy?" Raphael checked.
"Duh!" She answered. "You ought to know his name by now Raph."
"Meh," Raphael shrugged.
The two of them played for a bit, before Raph decided to ask her about the dreams she'd been having.
"Um.Lana?"
"Yeah, Raph?"
"You know how you've been coming into my room every night after having those nightmares?"
"Yeah?"
"Um.well.I was just wondering." Raphael trailed off. "What are those dreams about? I mean, I know I'm in it, but what happens to make you come running into my room and jumping into my bed?"
Lana's facial expression changed then. She seemed to lose all colour in her face, then turned a little green.
"It's.its not.important," she said.
"Lana, it has to be important if you're not talking to anyone, Mikey included anymore," Raphael rejoined. "Jeez. Even Jeff asked if there was something wrong."
"Just drop it," Lana ordered. "It's nothing."
"Lana." Raphael tried.
"I SAID, DROP IT!" She screamed jumping up. "JUST DROP IT!"
Raphael watched as she ran to her room and slammed the door.
"What was that all about?" Donatello asked, poking his head out of the kitchen.
"You talk to her!" Raphael snapped, storming past and soon slamming his door.
"I take it the talk did not go well, my son," Splinter piped up.
Donatello turned to look at him. "I guess not. They're both upset now."
Master Splinter placed his hand on Donatello's shoulder. "Not everything goes as planned. She will come around. You will see. She will talk to someone soon enough."
"I sure hope so," Donatello sighed.
Awhile later, Raphael heard a soft knock on his door.
"Go away," he grumbled.
"Raph?"
"Lana?"
"Um.yeah."
"Come in," Raphael said.
Lana entered his room and closed the door behind her.
"I'm sorry I got mad earlier," she apologized. "I didn't mean to yell at you; I just don't really wanna have to re-live the nightmare that's been haunting me every night."
Raphael motioned for her to come and sit on the bed next to him.
"Look Kid," he began. "I didn't really wanna push the topic earlier either, but I'm worried about you. All of us are actually. We just wanna help you if we can. None of us like seeing you scared like this. According to Donnie, it's not healthy."
"Nothing's ever healthy according to him," Lana muttered.
Raphael ignored her comment, knowing she had a point. "Lana, if you wanna talk, I'm here, okay?"
Lana nodded. "Okay."
"Well, now that the mushy stuff is over, what do ya say we go and practice some?" Raphael suggested. "Alright?"
"Alright," Lana sighed.
The two of them then went into the practice room to do some katas. Raphael put the "Do Not Disturb" sign on the door and closed it. He knew the others would just think she was watching him; they didn't need to know just yet that he was teaching her how to use the sais.
They began their katas, but Raphael could tell that Lana's heart wasn't really in it. Though she looked and seemed determined enough to kill, her motions lacked the hearty efforts they usually had.
"You're not in the mood for this, are you?" Raphael asked.
Lana lowered her head in shame. "No. Not really," she admitted softly.
"Hey, it's okay," Raphael told her, crouching down to look her in the eye. "I know something's bothering you, so we'll just let it slip today, okay?"
She nodded wordlessly.
Raphael put his hand under her chin and lifted her head up.
"Least you could do is smile," Raphael started. "I mean, you're getting off pretty easy here Kid. Normally I'd fly off the handle and make you practice 'till you dropped."
Lana gave a small smile accompanied by a little laugh.
"Thanks Raph," she whispered hugging him.
"You ready to talk now?" Raphael asked.
"Yeah," Lana sighed. "I'm ready to talk."
Raphael led her over to a bench along the wall, where they sat down facing one another.
Chapter 53: The dream.
Lana looked around nervously. "Um.Mikey's not around, is he?"
"No. Why?" Raphael asked, noting she seemed scared for some odd reason. "What's wrong?"
Lana glanced at her feet.
"The dreams," Raphael began, "they're about Mikey, aren't they?"
Lana nodded weakly.
"I don't get it then," Raphael said confused. "If they're about Mikey, then why are you running to me?"
Lana's eyes filled up with tears.
"You know what he did to April, right?" She queried.
"Yeah, why?" Raphael wanted to know.
Lana looked at him, pain evident in her eyes.
Raphael clued in then. "You saw what happened, didn't you?"
"Yes," Lana whispered quietly.
"Damn him for being stupid," Raphael muttered. "He should've at least turned you away."
Lana glanced at her feet.
"Is that what you've been dreaming about?"
Lana nodded.
"I still don't see what that has to do with me though," Raphael stated.
"I'll tell you if you'd let me finish a sentence, and stop reading my mind," Lana replicated.
Raphael gave a half grin. "Wisecracking, are ya?"
Lana gave him a small smile. "Guess so."
Chapter 54:
Dream:
Lana snuck back into the lair, which was in complete blackness as everyone was supposed to be asleep. She'd just about made it halfway across the den, when she bumped into the couch.
"Ow!" She muttered softly. "Stupid thing."
The lights suddenly snapped on then, and she did the only thing she could think of, which was to dive behind the couch. She lay there silently, hoping that whoever it was hadn't heard her and would just go back to bed. She listened carefully for footsteps, but didn't hear a thing, as she wasn't a skilled ninja.yet.
"Hello Lana," an all too familiar voice said.
She glanced up, eyes huge, only to find a very angry Michaelangelo staring back down at her.
She gulped. "Um.hi?"
"What are you doing coming in at this hour?" Michaelangelo demanded. "You know you're not allowed out this late at all."
"I.uh.went for a walk," Lana replied quietly. "I.I needed some.some fresh air."
"If you want fresh air, you wake someone up to take you out," Michaelangelo retorted.
"S.sorry," Lana apologized. "Guess I.I forgot."
"Forgot my ass," Michaelangelo snapped. "Come with me."
Lana still lay there looking up at him.
"I said, come with me!" Michaelangelo repeated harshly. "I'm not gonna tell you again."
She slowly got up and followed him into the dojo. Her eyes went wide when she saw him take a belt off one of the racks.
"Take your pants down," Michaelangelo ordered.
Lana stared at him, not believing.
"I said take them down!" He barked.
She ever so slowly obeyed his command.
"Underwear too," he growled.
Once she stood naked from the waist down, he told her to turn around and bend over.
"Don't you dare even think of moving any either," he threatened, folding the belt in half. "Do, and you'll be very sorry."
"I'm sorry now," Lana thought, as she felt her heart drop.
She heard him whip the belt through the air a couple times.
"He's just doing that to scare me," she told herself. "He'd never actually hit me with it, would he?"
She felt the belt buckle connect with her bottom then.
"He would," she thought miserably, as tears streamed down her face.
Lana was forced to stand there as Michaelangelo punished her. She felt utterly helpless, as all she could do was stand there and cry.
Michaelangelo abruptly stopped what he was doing.
"Take the shirt off," he ordered. "Now."
Lana shook her head no, only to receive another whack in the ass with the buckle. She slowly took her shirt off then and shivered in the sudden coldness.
Michaelangelo grabbed her by the hair and dragged her to a hidden room in the back of the practice room. In the room there were prisoner chains on the wall. He chained her up so that she was facing the wall, so that he wouldn't have to see her face while he punished her.
Lana whimpered, as she was pretty much hanging by her arms for her feet weren't touching the ground.
"Shut-up!" Michaelangelo barked, striking her back with the strap part of the belt now, instead of the buckle. "You'll not make any noise, ya hear?"
Lana nodded weakly, tears streaming down her face.
He continued to beat her with the belt, growing angrier by the second.
"Chain me to the wall and leave me here to starve, will they?" Michaelangelo grumbled. "How dare they leave me here!"
"That was an accident, Mikey," a voice said suddenly.
Michaelangelo turned only to find Raphael standing there, glaring at him.
"Accident my ass!" Michaelangelo cried. "You left me there all day!"
"You wouldn't have starved," Raphael stated. "Also, must I remind you that we were only six, and that I was punished severely 'cause of your damn complaining."
"I." Michaelangelo tried, but Raphael cut him off.
"I left the damn light on for you," he growled. "Splinter turned it off on me."
Raphael got a good look at Lana then, and scowled.
"How could you Michaelangelo?" Raphael said disgusted "How could you do this to her? The one who looks up to you more than anyone."
"She deserved it," Michaelangelo countered.
"There's nothing she could ever do to deserve this," Raphael snapped. He started to move towards Lana so he could unshackle her, but was stopped by his brother.
"She's staying here, Raph," Michaelangelo said.
"No she's not," Raphael rejoined, ramming Michaelangelo into a wall and knocking him out. He then very quickly freed Lana, and somehow managed to carefully pick her up and hold her.
"Stupid asshole," Raphael muttered looking at his unconscious brother on the floor. He glanced down at Lana. "Don't worry. I promise he won't ever hurt you like this again."
He then hurriedly left the room to go find Donatello, so he could clean and bandage her wounds properly.
End of dream
Chapter 55:
Raphael looked at Lana, who was sobbing, shocked. He'd never thought her dreams could be that bad.
"Whoa," he managed. "Mikey didn't.he hasn't tried."
Lana shook her head. "No."
"Then why would you dream something as horrible as that?"
"I.I don't know," Lana wailed. "Mikey's never...never hurt me.ever."
"Jeesh!" Raphael said as he pulled her into a hug, not knowing what else to do.
"I.I don't wanna be.be afraid of Mikey," Lana sobbed. "He's.he's my.my hero."
"I know Kid, I know," Raphael sighed, then soothed, "Shh. It's okay. Don't cry. Shh."
He sat there for quite some time, just holding her and telling her that everything would be all right. He didn't know what else to do. He was mad at Michaelangelo for being an idiot, and letting her see him lose control. But, he was also pained, as the hurt and fear in her eyes was so evident it was unbearable.
"Raph?" Lana began, looking up at him, "you're not gonna tell the others my dream, are you?"
"Not if you don't want me to," Raphael replied. He, too, knew what it was like to have a horrible nightmare, and not want anyone else to know. "Do you want me to?"
"No," Lana choked out. "It's.it's just.too.too."
"I know Kid, I know," Raphael replicated, hugging her tighter. "You don't have to explain it to me. Trust me. I know."
Lana buried her head in his plastron and cried her heart out; she hated being afraid of Michaelangelo, but no matter how hard she tried, she couldn't make the dreams go away.
"You wanna just go straight to my room tonight when you go to bed?" Raphael questioned. "I mean, you might as well, seeing as you're always there in the middle of the night."
"I'm not bugging you, am I?" Lana queried worriedly, looking at him with a tear-stained face. "If I am, I'll just sleep in my room or something."
"Lana, I already told you, I don't mind. I understand completely," Raphael informed her. "I know what it's like. I've had nightmares myself too. One plagued me for months when I was little. Wound up in Splinter's study with him every night."
"Really?" Lana asked surprised.
"Yeah," Raphael admitted. "Just don't tell anyone, okay?"
"Okay," she shrugged.
They sat there in silence for a couple minutes, before Lana voiced her question.
"What was the dream about?"
Raphael closed his eyes and took a deep breath, as the memory flooded through him.
"I was being dissected by some mad scientist," he answered. "He began to dissect me, after making me watch him dissect the others and Master Splinter."
"Eew," Lana responded, crinkling her nose up. "That's gross."
She glanced up at Raphael, who looked sick to his stomach. She knew how he felt, and understood why he kept saying he understood her fear.
"It's okay Raph," she said softly, hugging him again. "I'll make sure no one dissects you."
Raphael looked into her eyes and saw the sincerity of the statement.
"I'll make sure no one hurts you as well," he stated, with, he hoped, as much sincerity in his eyes.
"Raph?"
"Yeah, Lana?"
"Mikey.Mikey wouldn't do that, would he?"
Raphael thought a moment before replying.
"No. He wouldn't do that to you," he rejoined. "He loves you too much to ever hurt you like that. He may get mad once in a blue moon, but he'd never ever raise a hand to you. Not even if you really deserved to be spanked, would he raise a hand to you."
Lana let out a breath she hadn't known she'd been holding. "Thank God."
Chapter 56:
The next morning.
It was four o'clock when Lana snuck into the practice room. She had decided to find out whether or not that secret room she dreamt about was real or not.
"Now, where did Mikey lead me in the dream?" She pondered. "Think Lana, think!"
She wandered around the dojo for about half an hour, when she finally found the room, hidden by a swinging shelf.
"Bet Donnie thought of the shelf, so they'd never have to see this room again," she thinks to herself as she enters the room cautiously. "Now, where's the light switch?"
She soon found the switch and turned it on, shocked to see that everything from her dream was indeed there in that small room. She was holding an ancient Japanese knife, when she had the feeling someone was standing behind her. She turned only to find Michaelangelo standing in the doorway watching her.
"Whatcha doin' in here?" He asked. "No one's been in here for years."
"Just.looking," she answered.
Michaelangelo came into the room and stood next to her. "Cool knife, eh?"
She nodded slowly. "Yeah."
He took it from her. "I remember when Splinter said we weren't allowed to touch it, yet I just had to anyway. Almost hurt Donnie with it too 'cause I accidentally let it slip outta my hand when I turned to see who'd followed me."
Lana looked at him, her eyes wide. "You.you almost hurt Donnie?"
Michaelangelo nodded grimly. "Yeah. Wound up not being able to sit for a week 'cause of it. Never seen Splinter so mad."
He looked at her then. "Hey, want me to show you all the stuff in here?"
"Um.okay." Lana trailed off.
"Come here," he said excitedly as he went over to the far wall. "You gotta see the ancient katanas. They're the coolest things in here, and Leo's favourite thing to stare at. Actually, I think that's why Splinter hid them in here, so Leo would stop gawking at them."
Lana slowly went over to where he was to inspect the katanas. She smiled slightly when she saw that he was right, they were really cool looking. They had inscriptions along the blade and neat designs on the handles.
"No wonder Leo loved to look at them," she thought. "I could easily stand here and gawk at them all day too."
Michaelangelo put them down then and lifted her up. Once he had her in the air he chained her to the wall, so that she was still facing him.
"These are what the guys and I used to play with all the time, though Splinter always told us not to," he told her. "Said someone could get hurt and if we played with them we'd be punished. Well, what he don't know won't hurt him, will it?"
Lana hung there, fear beginning to escalate through her body as her dream played over and over in her head. She watched as Michaelangelo turned away and picked up a whip and thrashed it through the air.
"Weren't supposed to play with these either," he said turning to face her once more. "Too dangerous Splinter said. Let's just say he was right, they were. Painful too. Especially if Leo was the one using them 'cause he was upset you'd messed up during practice or hidden something he valued. I'll never forget when Splinter caught him hitting Donnie and I with 'em, while Raph yelled at him to stop."
Michaelangelo chuckled then. "Shall we say, our fearless leader couldn't sit for quite some time and was grounded even longer."
Lana watched the whip in his hands closely, never once taking her eyes off them. She was too afraid that if she did, he'd use them on her. Despite what Raph had told her about Michaelangelo never raising a hand to her, she was still scared shitless.
Chapter 57:
Meanwhile.
Raphael woke up, only to find that Lana wasn't lying next to him anymore.
"Where the hell did she go?" He wondered.
He glanced around his room, trying to see whether or not she was even in the room. When he didn't spot her anywhere in there, he grudgingly climbed out of bed and headed out into the hall. He'd figured he'd best look for her, just in case something was wrong or bothering her.
"Why don't I hear anything?" Raphael pondered after checking her room and the kitchen, as well as the den, which he'd passed through to get to the kitchen. "Where the hell would she go at this hour?"
A thought passed through his mind then. "Oh, shit," he thought. "Don't tell me April's back again. If she has her."
He'd trailed off right then, as he'd noticed that there was a dim light coming from the practice room.
"Who the hell's up at this hour practicing?" He thought. "I sure as hell know it ain't Donnie and Mikey; once they're in bed, they stay there unless they need something. And I could've sworn Leo had said he'd given up on that for now, as he hasn't been feeling good lately."
He quietly entered the dojo, only to discover that the light came from the far right corner of the room.
"Wait a minute." he trailed off silently. "Isn't that where. Oh, shit."
He hurried to the dimly lit room, only to find Michaelangelo in there, cracking a whip.
"What's he doing with the whip?" Raphael wondered. It was then that he realized that his brother was talking to someone.
"You should've seen the look on Sensei's face when he saw Donnie beating the crap outta Raph," Michaelangelo laughed. "Good ole quiet Donnie was actually using violent force on someone."
Michaelangelo shook his head. "Seriously Dudette, you should've heard the lecture they got, Donnie especially."
"Dudette?" Raphael thought. "What girl do we know that'd be."
Raphael stopped mid-thought as it dawned on him. "Lana."
"Shit!" He took another step forward and looked past Michaelangelo into the rest of the room. His eyes widened as his jaw almost hit the floor when he saw Lana chained to the wall and shaking like a leaf.
"Mikey!" He cried. "What the Hell do you think you're doing?"
Michaelangelo turned to look at him. "What?"
Raphael glared at him, then darted his look towards Lana.
"I'm just showing her around, Dude," Michaelangelo replied shrugging slight as he put the whip down. "No biggie."
The turtle in red shot his little brother a dark look, and angrily stormed past him, going straight over to where Lana was hanging.
"You okay?" he asked, sticking an arm under her butt, to support her, so she wasn't hanging by her arms anymore.
Lana nodded a small nod.
"Raph, what's wrong?" Michaelangelo wanted to know; he was confused as to why his brother suddenly seemed angry with him.
Raphael ignored him and went on unshackling Lana, who seemed scared, beyond belief.
"He hurt you," he demanded looking at her, as he unshackled the last chain, and she fell into his arms.
Lana, who'd buried her head into his plastron, shook her head ever so slightly.
Raphael turned to Michaelangelo once more. "Consider yourself very lucky, Michaelangelo," he said coldly. "Very lucky."
He then stormed out of the small storage area and out of the dojo, only to go into the den and find his other two brothers up and wrestling over the remote.
Leonardo and Donatello had been playfully arguing over what they were going to watch, when they sensed someone else in the room, and thought they heard sniffling. They turned around only to find Raphael standing there with Lana in his arms.
"What happened?" Donatello queried, as Michaelangelo came out of the dojo looking confused. "Why's Lana upset?"
Raphael saw Michaelangelo out of the corner of his eye and glared at him.
Leonardo eyed his brothers, then looked at Lana, who'd her head buried in Raphael's plastron, to try and hide her tears from them.
"Guys, what the hell did you do to her?" He demanded.
"I did shit," Raphael stated. "Michaelangelo's the one who scared the shit outta her."
"I what?" Michaelangelo said loudly. "I did not!"
"You did so!" Raphael snapped. "You're just too stupid to know it!"
"I am not!" Michaelangelo retorted.
"You stupid Dick-head!" Raphael shouted, hugging Lana closer. "You scared her shitless, and were too damn blind to see that she was shaking from fear!"
"I." Michaelangelo began, only to be cut off.
"Silence!" A voice ordered sternly. "Raphael, Michaelangelo, that is enough."
They both turned to look at their father.
"Master Splinter!" Michaelangelo cried. "Raph's saying I scared Lana, when I didn't! I swear I didn't!"
Raphael rolled his eyes annoyed. "Whatever."
"Hey! I."
"Michaelangelo, silence!" Splinter snapped. "I will hear both of your stories, once I am sure that you are both calm enough to tell them."
He left to go make a cup of tea, then returned and sat down in his armchair.
"Now, tell me my sons, what has happened to upset the poor child?" He asked calmly.
"I."
"Mikey."
Splinter raised a hand. "One at a time. Michaelangelo, you go first."
Michaelangelo smirked at his brother, then began to tell his side of the story. Donatello and Leonardo, who'd seen his smirk, just rolled their eyes, as their brothers came around to the other side of the couch, both still standing.
"I woke up to get a glass of water, and saw a light coming from the dojo," Michaelangelo began. "I went to check it out, and found Lana in the old storage room looking at a dagger. I then showed her the katanas Leo used to always gawk at, then showed her the chains and how they worked."
"Yeah, by chaining her up," Raphael muttered bitterly.
Splinter shot him a stern Look, silencing him.
"I was telling her 'bout the time Donnie beat up Raph, when Raph came in and suddenly got all mad at me for no reason," Michaelangelo continued. "I was hurting her or nothing. I was just telling her a story, while playing with some of the things in there."
Master Splinter looked to Raphael then. "What is your side of it, my son?"
Raphael, who'd tuned Michaelangelo out and was whispering to Lana, looked up after a moment.
"I woke up only to find Lana gone," he started. "I was worried something was wrong, so I went to look for her. I looked around in here, then spotted the light in the dojo. I investigated and found Mikey in there snapping a whip while Lana hung from the shackles on the wall. I knew she was scared from the moment I spotted her and got her down. I brought her out here, and I assume you know what happened after that."
Splinter glared at his youngest son. "Michaelangelo, you know what I think of you and your brothers using those shackles, more or less that whip. What do you have to say for yourself?"
"I still don't see how I scared her, Sensei," Michaelangelo replied. "She knows I wouldn't hurt her. I mean, like, hello, it's me, Mikey."
Everyone looked to Raphael, who was now rubbing Lana's back, not caring how much emotion he showed.
Raphael looked down at Lana. "Is it okay if I tell them now? I won't if you don't want me to."
Lana looked up at him, her face still wet from tears, and more threatening to fall at any given moment. She fearfully glanced at Michaelangelo, then buried her head back into Raphael's plastron, nodding her head.
"Go ahead," she grumbled.
Raphael instinctively pulled her closer to him.
"She's been having nightmares about that room. I dunno why she was dreaming 'bout it, since she never knew it was there, but she was. She'd come in the lair late and been led into the dojo by an angry Mikey. He used the buckle end of a strap on her rear-end, then dragged her into the small room by her hair. Once in there he shackled her to the wall and began to beat her back with the strap. He was grumbling 'bout how we chained him up in there when we were small. I came in the room then and stopped him once I saw what he was doing. Told him off too."
Raphael sighed heavily once he finished, as he felt as though he'd just lifted a weight off his shoulders for some reason. He also felt bad for making Lana re-live her nightmare again.
"Why would she dream something like that?" Leonardo wondered aloud.
"Because Shit-headed Mikey let her see him lose control," Raphael spat disgustedly.
"I what?" Michaelangelo said, looking confused. "When the hell did I lose. Oh."
Now everyone turned to look at Michaelangelo.
Donatello looked at him wide-eyed. "You let her see you go after April, didn't you?"
Michaelangelo looked down at his feet sheepishly. "Maybe."
"Mikey!" Leonardo cried. "You know how stupid that was?"
"I didn't think of it then," Michaelangelo replicated quietly. "Forgot she was there 'till old Shred-head stopped me and told me to get her out of there. Said she didn't have to see what he was about to do."
"Well, at least one of you had common sense!" Donatello yelled. "I can't believe you Mikey!"
"Surprisingly, it was old Shred-head, and not you, who cared enough to make sure Lana didn't see something she wasn't supposed to," Leonardo rejoined shaking his head. "I can't believe, that you of all people, would make her suffer like that."
"Did you not think about what the hell it would do to her to see you like that?" Donatello bellowed. "You're her frigin' hero for crying aloud!"
Michaelangelo hung his head. "I'm sorry, alright?"
"No, it's not all right," Donatello growled. "You tormented her by letting her watch you hurt April! I can't believe I have such a damn Asshole for a brother!"
"Donatello," Master Splinter spoke up. "That will be quite enough. As you can see, Michaelangelo feels terrible enough as it is, and does not need you and Leonardo shouting at him."
"But." Donatello protested.
"Donatello," Splinter said, raising an eyebrow. "Do you dare to challenge me?"
"No Sensei," Donatello answered, beginning to turn a slight pink.
"I shall deal with Michaelangelo myself," Splinter told him. "You are to leave him alone, and not shout at him for his idiotic act, understood?"
"Hai," Donatello responded quickly.
"Leonardo?" Splinter queried, turning his gaze to his son in blue.
"Yes, Master Splinter," Leonardo replied quickly.
"Raphael."
Raphael looked over at Master Splinter.
"Take Lana to your room and get her settled," Splinter ordered him. "I believe she needs to lie down as the child is bleary-eyed and exhausted. She has endured enough for one day. Please keep her calm and re-assured that no harm shall come to her."
Raphael nodded and said nothing as he carried Lana back to his room.
Chapter 58:
In Raphael's room.
"Raph?" Lana said softly, once they were situated on his bed. "The part 'bout you chaining Mikey up, was that true?"
Raphael gave a grim smile. "Afraid so," he replied. "I dunno why the hell you were dreaming 'bout that either. Wish I did, but I don't."
"Why didn't you guys ever tell me about that room?" She asked curiously.
"Lana, all I'm saying, is that that room brings back a whack of painful memories," Raphael riposted. "A bunch of memories I'd rather soon forget."
"Was what Mikey said true? Did Leo really use that whip on you guys?"
"I said I don't wanna talk about it," Raphael snapped. "Now, I'd advise you to get some rest like Splinter suggested."
"But."
Raphael shot her a stern Look. "Also, I'd advise you to stay the hell outta that room from now on."
"Why? It has cool."
"Lana Marie, I swear that if you ever set foot in there again, I will tan your ass so damn good and hard that you won't be able to sit for a whole frigin' month. Do you hear me?"
Lana nodded wide-eyed. She couldn't understand why he was getting so upset with her innocent, yet curious, questions.
Raphael looked at her and saw the bit of fear in her eyes. He sighed and felt his face soften.
"Lana, just please promise me you'll never go in there again, alright? I don't want for you to have to live out what I did, okay?"
"I promise Raph," Lana whispered, afraid he was now mad at her. "I won't go in there anymore."
"I'm not mad you, Kid," he stated. "I didn't mean to snap at you either. There's just some things you don't know and I prefer it that you never do."
"Oh," Lana said, lying her head on his plastron once more. She closed her eyes as he rubbed her back. "Raph?"
"Yeah?"
"Will you sing?"
"What do you want me to sing?"
She looked up at him, knowing he'd read her look.
"Oh, all right," he groaned. "But remember, nobody needs to know I sing this to you."
She nodded and cuddled up to him again as he began to sing.
"I can see that you've been crying. You can't hide it with a lie. What's the use in you denying that the love that you have is wrong. I heard he promised you forever, but forever's come and gone. Baby, he would say whatever it takes to keep you blind, to the truth between the lies," Raphael sang. "Oh, I will love you more than that. I won't say the words then take them back. Don't give loneliness a chance. Baby, listen to me why I say, I will love you more than that."
Chapter 59:
In the den.
Master Splinter sat in his chair quietly sipping his tea. He finally decided that he'd waited long enough and spoke.
"Leonardo, Donatello, please go wait in the kitchen until I have called you back."
The two turtles nodded and said nothing as they left the den, raising their eyebrows at Michaelangelo.
Once they were gone and he'd finished taking another sip of his tea, Splinter motioned for Michaelangelo to sit down. Once he was seated, Splinter had his say.
"Michaelangelo, what possessed you to hurt April, knowing full well that Lana was still in the room with you?" He asked calmly. "I know you were upset, but you know full well that that is still no excuse in my eyes, nor your brother's."
Michaelangelo looked down at his hands. "I dunno Sensei. I just kinda.spazzed. I didn't think it'd.it'd scar her like this."
"My son, when there is a child involved, especially one who looks up to you a great deal, you must always think of them first, before carrying out your actions," Splinter told him gently. "No matter how upset you may be, the child must always come first."
"I know that now," Michaelangelo whispered.
Splinter nodded slightly. "You must always remember it as well, Michaelangelo, especially if Lana is nearby. Her friend, Jeff, seems to like you a great deal as well, so I would advise you to be careful around him also."
"I will, I promise," Michaelangelo murmured.
Splinter looked at his son, and noticed the teardrops falling from his eyes.
"Michaelangelo," Splinter began softly, making his son look up at him. "Do not cry, my son. Lana shall 'hang' with you again and be fine given some time."
Michaelangelo said nothing, as he suddenly collapsed at Splinter's feet and sobbed like he had when he was a mere child and something had scared him.
Master Splinter stroked his bald green head to let him know it was all right.
"I'm sorry.Daddy," Michaelangelo whispered, clinging to his father's robe. "Daddy.I'm sorry."
Splinter sighed, as Michaelangelo hadn't called him that in a long time. Not since he'd gotten lost in the dark sewer when he was six. No. Wait. He hadn't called him 'Daddy' since he was ten and had fallen through ice while playing in the snow with his brothers.
"It is quite alright, Michaelangelo," Splinter said, smiling softly, as he pulled his son closer to him. "All will be well soon enough."
A.N.: Well, thatz it 4 now. Phew! That was exhausting! Four chapters in one night; Sheesh! I figured y'all had waited long enough & deserved an update, thought it may be awhile before another one. Well, adios! KTBSPA & KTNTPA & KTACPA & KTJTPA & KTKCPA & KTCPA & KTJTTPA!!!!!
Chapter 51: Morning.
Master Splinter stood in Raphael's bedroom doorway, watching his son sleep. He'd known all along his son cared for Lana more than he was letting on, but never knew just how much until now. Needless to say, he was surprised when he checked on Raphael, only to find that she was curled up next to him.
"I wonder why she did not stay with Michaelangelo?" Splinter wondered. "Normally she would rather have him or Donatello with her. Something must have upset her to make her come in here."
Leonardo came to stand next to his sensei.
"Whatcha looking at?" He asked softly.
"Look for yourself, Leonardo," Splinter said.
Leonardo glanced into the room and was quite shocked to find Raphael lying there with Lana in his arms.
He looked at Splinter. "I thought she was with Mikey?"
"So did I," Splinter replied. "But when I checked on him she was not there. I assumed she was elsewhere in the lair. I never thought I would find her in here though."
Leonardo gave a small laugh as his brother tightened his grip on Lana in his sleep, and she automatically curled up closer to him.
"Guess even Raph has a soft side," he whispered.
Splinter nodded and smiled.
Michaelangelo came running out of his room then.
"Where's Lana?" He demanded frantically.
When they didn't answer him he asked again.
"Where is she?"
"Relax Michaelangelo," Splinter told him. "She is quite safe."
"But." Michaelangelo trailed off, as Splinter motioned for him to come over where they stood.
"What's going on?" Donatello queried stumbling down the hall. "Why's everyone staring at Raph? Isn't it bad enough we have to see him when he's awake?"
"Whoa," Michaelangelo gasped.
"What?" Donatello wanted to know.
Michaelangelo pointed into the room. "Look. Something we can use to blackmail him with."
Donatello gave his brother a weird look as he took off to find a camera. Once he looked into the room, he understood why everyone was standing in Raphael's doorway.
"Kodak moment," he laughed.
Michaelangelo returned with the camera then and began snapping pictures like crazy.
"Hey!" Raphael cried after the flash had blinded him. "What the."
He spotted everyone standing in the doorway. He looked from them to Lana, then back to them again.
"Don't look at me like that!" He snapped. "I didn't know she was in here."
"Yeah, sure you didn't Raph," Michaelangelo said, snapping another picture.
"Augh! Mikey!" Raphael growled jumping up and almost knocking Lana off the bed.
"Hey!" Lana cried as Raphael caught her before she could roll off and hit the floor. "I was sleeping Raph!"
"Sorry," Raphael mumbled as his brothers laughed at him.
"Way to go Raph," Leonardo began. "Kill her while she's asleep."
"I wasn't trying to kill her, Leo!" Raphael retorted, beginning to get mad. "Must you guys stand in my door like that?"
"Yep," Donatello answered. "It's our duty to make your life miserable."
"Then it's my duty to beat the shit out of you," Raphael rejoined.
"Raph!" Lana groaned. "Go back to sleep!"
Raphael looked to Splinter for approval, knowing they had practice soon. Splinter nodded, knowing there was a reason for her being there with him.
"It is alright, Raphael," Splinter told him. "You may skip practice today and go back to sleep."
"Hey!" Michaelangelo whined. "That's not fair! How come he gets to skip practice?"
"Because I said so," Splinter said turning on him. "And must I remind you Michaelangelo, you owe me some extra katas and numerous ten flips for yesterday. Plus a meeting in my study."
Michaelangelo groaned, but left to go warm up, for what he knew would be, a very long practice.
"Thanks," Lana mumbled as she snuggled into Raphael once more. "Now, go away."
Raphael shrugged, but lay back down next to her, pulling her close after fixing the blankets.
Once they were settled, Splinter shooed his remaining sons away from the door. He glanced back into the room, gave a small smile, then closed the door behind him.
Chapter 52: Week later.
It'd been a week since Lana's safe return, and the turtles were beginning to notice a habit in her sleeping pattern. She would start off with Michaelangelo in his bed, but every morning would wake up in Raphael's. They were all wondering what she kept dreaming to make her cling to Raphael the way she was. Master Splinter was becoming slightly annoyed, as she wouldn't let Raphael out of her sight. He sensed her fear and always ended up letting Raphael skip practice to stay with her, so she could sleep longer.
"Anyone else finding it strange that Lana won't let Raph leave her in the morning or during the day?" Donatello asked his brothers. "I mean, it's been a week, and she's still running to him every night."
"Yeah," Michaelangelo added. "If she's just gonna go to him in the middle of the night, why doesn't she start off in his room to begin with?"
"I'm wondering the same thing," Leonardo said. "It must have something to do with these nightmares she keeps having."
"No shit Leo," Raphael piped up. "And here I thought she was just bunking with me 'cause she was trying to get away from you."
"Lose the sarcasm, Raph," Leonardo rejoined. "You're not helping the situation any."
"Well, neither are you," Raphael retorted. "Why don't we just ask her what the hell the dream's about?"
"There's something you can do," Donatello replicated. "Raph, you're gonna ask her 'bout her dreams."
"Me? What the. Why me?" Raphael riposted. "Why do I have to do the dirty work?"
"The dreams are about you, dude," Michaelangelo reminded him. "You're the only one she'll carry out a conversation with anymore. Jeez. She hardly even talks to me and I'm her hero."
"Augh!" Raphael growled. "Fine!"
He calmed himself before going over to where Lana was sitting playing N-64.
"Hey Kid," Raphael said sitting next to her on the floor. "Can I play?"
"Here," she replied, passing him the other controller without taking her eyes off the screen. "You're Luigi."
"The green guy?" Raphael checked.
"Duh!" She answered. "You ought to know his name by now Raph."
"Meh," Raphael shrugged.
The two of them played for a bit, before Raph decided to ask her about the dreams she'd been having.
"Um.Lana?"
"Yeah, Raph?"
"You know how you've been coming into my room every night after having those nightmares?"
"Yeah?"
"Um.well.I was just wondering." Raphael trailed off. "What are those dreams about? I mean, I know I'm in it, but what happens to make you come running into my room and jumping into my bed?"
Lana's facial expression changed then. She seemed to lose all colour in her face, then turned a little green.
"It's.its not.important," she said.
"Lana, it has to be important if you're not talking to anyone, Mikey included anymore," Raphael rejoined. "Jeez. Even Jeff asked if there was something wrong."
"Just drop it," Lana ordered. "It's nothing."
"Lana." Raphael tried.
"I SAID, DROP IT!" She screamed jumping up. "JUST DROP IT!"
Raphael watched as she ran to her room and slammed the door.
"What was that all about?" Donatello asked, poking his head out of the kitchen.
"You talk to her!" Raphael snapped, storming past and soon slamming his door.
"I take it the talk did not go well, my son," Splinter piped up.
Donatello turned to look at him. "I guess not. They're both upset now."
Master Splinter placed his hand on Donatello's shoulder. "Not everything goes as planned. She will come around. You will see. She will talk to someone soon enough."
"I sure hope so," Donatello sighed.
Awhile later, Raphael heard a soft knock on his door.
"Go away," he grumbled.
"Raph?"
"Lana?"
"Um.yeah."
"Come in," Raphael said.
Lana entered his room and closed the door behind her.
"I'm sorry I got mad earlier," she apologized. "I didn't mean to yell at you; I just don't really wanna have to re-live the nightmare that's been haunting me every night."
Raphael motioned for her to come and sit on the bed next to him.
"Look Kid," he began. "I didn't really wanna push the topic earlier either, but I'm worried about you. All of us are actually. We just wanna help you if we can. None of us like seeing you scared like this. According to Donnie, it's not healthy."
"Nothing's ever healthy according to him," Lana muttered.
Raphael ignored her comment, knowing she had a point. "Lana, if you wanna talk, I'm here, okay?"
Lana nodded. "Okay."
"Well, now that the mushy stuff is over, what do ya say we go and practice some?" Raphael suggested. "Alright?"
"Alright," Lana sighed.
The two of them then went into the practice room to do some katas. Raphael put the "Do Not Disturb" sign on the door and closed it. He knew the others would just think she was watching him; they didn't need to know just yet that he was teaching her how to use the sais.
They began their katas, but Raphael could tell that Lana's heart wasn't really in it. Though she looked and seemed determined enough to kill, her motions lacked the hearty efforts they usually had.
"You're not in the mood for this, are you?" Raphael asked.
Lana lowered her head in shame. "No. Not really," she admitted softly.
"Hey, it's okay," Raphael told her, crouching down to look her in the eye. "I know something's bothering you, so we'll just let it slip today, okay?"
She nodded wordlessly.
Raphael put his hand under her chin and lifted her head up.
"Least you could do is smile," Raphael started. "I mean, you're getting off pretty easy here Kid. Normally I'd fly off the handle and make you practice 'till you dropped."
Lana gave a small smile accompanied by a little laugh.
"Thanks Raph," she whispered hugging him.
"You ready to talk now?" Raphael asked.
"Yeah," Lana sighed. "I'm ready to talk."
Raphael led her over to a bench along the wall, where they sat down facing one another.
Chapter 53: The dream.
Lana looked around nervously. "Um.Mikey's not around, is he?"
"No. Why?" Raphael asked, noting she seemed scared for some odd reason. "What's wrong?"
Lana glanced at her feet.
"The dreams," Raphael began, "they're about Mikey, aren't they?"
Lana nodded weakly.
"I don't get it then," Raphael said confused. "If they're about Mikey, then why are you running to me?"
Lana's eyes filled up with tears.
"You know what he did to April, right?" She queried.
"Yeah, why?" Raphael wanted to know.
Lana looked at him, pain evident in her eyes.
Raphael clued in then. "You saw what happened, didn't you?"
"Yes," Lana whispered quietly.
"Damn him for being stupid," Raphael muttered. "He should've at least turned you away."
Lana glanced at her feet.
"Is that what you've been dreaming about?"
Lana nodded.
"I still don't see what that has to do with me though," Raphael stated.
"I'll tell you if you'd let me finish a sentence, and stop reading my mind," Lana replicated.
Raphael gave a half grin. "Wisecracking, are ya?"
Lana gave him a small smile. "Guess so."
Chapter 54:
Dream:
Lana snuck back into the lair, which was in complete blackness as everyone was supposed to be asleep. She'd just about made it halfway across the den, when she bumped into the couch.
"Ow!" She muttered softly. "Stupid thing."
The lights suddenly snapped on then, and she did the only thing she could think of, which was to dive behind the couch. She lay there silently, hoping that whoever it was hadn't heard her and would just go back to bed. She listened carefully for footsteps, but didn't hear a thing, as she wasn't a skilled ninja.yet.
"Hello Lana," an all too familiar voice said.
She glanced up, eyes huge, only to find a very angry Michaelangelo staring back down at her.
She gulped. "Um.hi?"
"What are you doing coming in at this hour?" Michaelangelo demanded. "You know you're not allowed out this late at all."
"I.uh.went for a walk," Lana replied quietly. "I.I needed some.some fresh air."
"If you want fresh air, you wake someone up to take you out," Michaelangelo retorted.
"S.sorry," Lana apologized. "Guess I.I forgot."
"Forgot my ass," Michaelangelo snapped. "Come with me."
Lana still lay there looking up at him.
"I said, come with me!" Michaelangelo repeated harshly. "I'm not gonna tell you again."
She slowly got up and followed him into the dojo. Her eyes went wide when she saw him take a belt off one of the racks.
"Take your pants down," Michaelangelo ordered.
Lana stared at him, not believing.
"I said take them down!" He barked.
She ever so slowly obeyed his command.
"Underwear too," he growled.
Once she stood naked from the waist down, he told her to turn around and bend over.
"Don't you dare even think of moving any either," he threatened, folding the belt in half. "Do, and you'll be very sorry."
"I'm sorry now," Lana thought, as she felt her heart drop.
She heard him whip the belt through the air a couple times.
"He's just doing that to scare me," she told herself. "He'd never actually hit me with it, would he?"
She felt the belt buckle connect with her bottom then.
"He would," she thought miserably, as tears streamed down her face.
Lana was forced to stand there as Michaelangelo punished her. She felt utterly helpless, as all she could do was stand there and cry.
Michaelangelo abruptly stopped what he was doing.
"Take the shirt off," he ordered. "Now."
Lana shook her head no, only to receive another whack in the ass with the buckle. She slowly took her shirt off then and shivered in the sudden coldness.
Michaelangelo grabbed her by the hair and dragged her to a hidden room in the back of the practice room. In the room there were prisoner chains on the wall. He chained her up so that she was facing the wall, so that he wouldn't have to see her face while he punished her.
Lana whimpered, as she was pretty much hanging by her arms for her feet weren't touching the ground.
"Shut-up!" Michaelangelo barked, striking her back with the strap part of the belt now, instead of the buckle. "You'll not make any noise, ya hear?"
Lana nodded weakly, tears streaming down her face.
He continued to beat her with the belt, growing angrier by the second.
"Chain me to the wall and leave me here to starve, will they?" Michaelangelo grumbled. "How dare they leave me here!"
"That was an accident, Mikey," a voice said suddenly.
Michaelangelo turned only to find Raphael standing there, glaring at him.
"Accident my ass!" Michaelangelo cried. "You left me there all day!"
"You wouldn't have starved," Raphael stated. "Also, must I remind you that we were only six, and that I was punished severely 'cause of your damn complaining."
"I." Michaelangelo tried, but Raphael cut him off.
"I left the damn light on for you," he growled. "Splinter turned it off on me."
Raphael got a good look at Lana then, and scowled.
"How could you Michaelangelo?" Raphael said disgusted "How could you do this to her? The one who looks up to you more than anyone."
"She deserved it," Michaelangelo countered.
"There's nothing she could ever do to deserve this," Raphael snapped. He started to move towards Lana so he could unshackle her, but was stopped by his brother.
"She's staying here, Raph," Michaelangelo said.
"No she's not," Raphael rejoined, ramming Michaelangelo into a wall and knocking him out. He then very quickly freed Lana, and somehow managed to carefully pick her up and hold her.
"Stupid asshole," Raphael muttered looking at his unconscious brother on the floor. He glanced down at Lana. "Don't worry. I promise he won't ever hurt you like this again."
He then hurriedly left the room to go find Donatello, so he could clean and bandage her wounds properly.
End of dream
Chapter 55:
Raphael looked at Lana, who was sobbing, shocked. He'd never thought her dreams could be that bad.
"Whoa," he managed. "Mikey didn't.he hasn't tried."
Lana shook her head. "No."
"Then why would you dream something as horrible as that?"
"I.I don't know," Lana wailed. "Mikey's never...never hurt me.ever."
"Jeesh!" Raphael said as he pulled her into a hug, not knowing what else to do.
"I.I don't wanna be.be afraid of Mikey," Lana sobbed. "He's.he's my.my hero."
"I know Kid, I know," Raphael sighed, then soothed, "Shh. It's okay. Don't cry. Shh."
He sat there for quite some time, just holding her and telling her that everything would be all right. He didn't know what else to do. He was mad at Michaelangelo for being an idiot, and letting her see him lose control. But, he was also pained, as the hurt and fear in her eyes was so evident it was unbearable.
"Raph?" Lana began, looking up at him, "you're not gonna tell the others my dream, are you?"
"Not if you don't want me to," Raphael replied. He, too, knew what it was like to have a horrible nightmare, and not want anyone else to know. "Do you want me to?"
"No," Lana choked out. "It's.it's just.too.too."
"I know Kid, I know," Raphael replicated, hugging her tighter. "You don't have to explain it to me. Trust me. I know."
Lana buried her head in his plastron and cried her heart out; she hated being afraid of Michaelangelo, but no matter how hard she tried, she couldn't make the dreams go away.
"You wanna just go straight to my room tonight when you go to bed?" Raphael questioned. "I mean, you might as well, seeing as you're always there in the middle of the night."
"I'm not bugging you, am I?" Lana queried worriedly, looking at him with a tear-stained face. "If I am, I'll just sleep in my room or something."
"Lana, I already told you, I don't mind. I understand completely," Raphael informed her. "I know what it's like. I've had nightmares myself too. One plagued me for months when I was little. Wound up in Splinter's study with him every night."
"Really?" Lana asked surprised.
"Yeah," Raphael admitted. "Just don't tell anyone, okay?"
"Okay," she shrugged.
They sat there in silence for a couple minutes, before Lana voiced her question.
"What was the dream about?"
Raphael closed his eyes and took a deep breath, as the memory flooded through him.
"I was being dissected by some mad scientist," he answered. "He began to dissect me, after making me watch him dissect the others and Master Splinter."
"Eew," Lana responded, crinkling her nose up. "That's gross."
She glanced up at Raphael, who looked sick to his stomach. She knew how he felt, and understood why he kept saying he understood her fear.
"It's okay Raph," she said softly, hugging him again. "I'll make sure no one dissects you."
Raphael looked into her eyes and saw the sincerity of the statement.
"I'll make sure no one hurts you as well," he stated, with, he hoped, as much sincerity in his eyes.
"Raph?"
"Yeah, Lana?"
"Mikey.Mikey wouldn't do that, would he?"
Raphael thought a moment before replying.
"No. He wouldn't do that to you," he rejoined. "He loves you too much to ever hurt you like that. He may get mad once in a blue moon, but he'd never ever raise a hand to you. Not even if you really deserved to be spanked, would he raise a hand to you."
Lana let out a breath she hadn't known she'd been holding. "Thank God."
Chapter 56:
The next morning.
It was four o'clock when Lana snuck into the practice room. She had decided to find out whether or not that secret room she dreamt about was real or not.
"Now, where did Mikey lead me in the dream?" She pondered. "Think Lana, think!"
She wandered around the dojo for about half an hour, when she finally found the room, hidden by a swinging shelf.
"Bet Donnie thought of the shelf, so they'd never have to see this room again," she thinks to herself as she enters the room cautiously. "Now, where's the light switch?"
She soon found the switch and turned it on, shocked to see that everything from her dream was indeed there in that small room. She was holding an ancient Japanese knife, when she had the feeling someone was standing behind her. She turned only to find Michaelangelo standing in the doorway watching her.
"Whatcha doin' in here?" He asked. "No one's been in here for years."
"Just.looking," she answered.
Michaelangelo came into the room and stood next to her. "Cool knife, eh?"
She nodded slowly. "Yeah."
He took it from her. "I remember when Splinter said we weren't allowed to touch it, yet I just had to anyway. Almost hurt Donnie with it too 'cause I accidentally let it slip outta my hand when I turned to see who'd followed me."
Lana looked at him, her eyes wide. "You.you almost hurt Donnie?"
Michaelangelo nodded grimly. "Yeah. Wound up not being able to sit for a week 'cause of it. Never seen Splinter so mad."
He looked at her then. "Hey, want me to show you all the stuff in here?"
"Um.okay." Lana trailed off.
"Come here," he said excitedly as he went over to the far wall. "You gotta see the ancient katanas. They're the coolest things in here, and Leo's favourite thing to stare at. Actually, I think that's why Splinter hid them in here, so Leo would stop gawking at them."
Lana slowly went over to where he was to inspect the katanas. She smiled slightly when she saw that he was right, they were really cool looking. They had inscriptions along the blade and neat designs on the handles.
"No wonder Leo loved to look at them," she thought. "I could easily stand here and gawk at them all day too."
Michaelangelo put them down then and lifted her up. Once he had her in the air he chained her to the wall, so that she was still facing him.
"These are what the guys and I used to play with all the time, though Splinter always told us not to," he told her. "Said someone could get hurt and if we played with them we'd be punished. Well, what he don't know won't hurt him, will it?"
Lana hung there, fear beginning to escalate through her body as her dream played over and over in her head. She watched as Michaelangelo turned away and picked up a whip and thrashed it through the air.
"Weren't supposed to play with these either," he said turning to face her once more. "Too dangerous Splinter said. Let's just say he was right, they were. Painful too. Especially if Leo was the one using them 'cause he was upset you'd messed up during practice or hidden something he valued. I'll never forget when Splinter caught him hitting Donnie and I with 'em, while Raph yelled at him to stop."
Michaelangelo chuckled then. "Shall we say, our fearless leader couldn't sit for quite some time and was grounded even longer."
Lana watched the whip in his hands closely, never once taking her eyes off them. She was too afraid that if she did, he'd use them on her. Despite what Raph had told her about Michaelangelo never raising a hand to her, she was still scared shitless.
Chapter 57:
Meanwhile.
Raphael woke up, only to find that Lana wasn't lying next to him anymore.
"Where the hell did she go?" He wondered.
He glanced around his room, trying to see whether or not she was even in the room. When he didn't spot her anywhere in there, he grudgingly climbed out of bed and headed out into the hall. He'd figured he'd best look for her, just in case something was wrong or bothering her.
"Why don't I hear anything?" Raphael pondered after checking her room and the kitchen, as well as the den, which he'd passed through to get to the kitchen. "Where the hell would she go at this hour?"
A thought passed through his mind then. "Oh, shit," he thought. "Don't tell me April's back again. If she has her."
He'd trailed off right then, as he'd noticed that there was a dim light coming from the practice room.
"Who the hell's up at this hour practicing?" He thought. "I sure as hell know it ain't Donnie and Mikey; once they're in bed, they stay there unless they need something. And I could've sworn Leo had said he'd given up on that for now, as he hasn't been feeling good lately."
He quietly entered the dojo, only to discover that the light came from the far right corner of the room.
"Wait a minute." he trailed off silently. "Isn't that where. Oh, shit."
He hurried to the dimly lit room, only to find Michaelangelo in there, cracking a whip.
"What's he doing with the whip?" Raphael wondered. It was then that he realized that his brother was talking to someone.
"You should've seen the look on Sensei's face when he saw Donnie beating the crap outta Raph," Michaelangelo laughed. "Good ole quiet Donnie was actually using violent force on someone."
Michaelangelo shook his head. "Seriously Dudette, you should've heard the lecture they got, Donnie especially."
"Dudette?" Raphael thought. "What girl do we know that'd be."
Raphael stopped mid-thought as it dawned on him. "Lana."
"Shit!" He took another step forward and looked past Michaelangelo into the rest of the room. His eyes widened as his jaw almost hit the floor when he saw Lana chained to the wall and shaking like a leaf.
"Mikey!" He cried. "What the Hell do you think you're doing?"
Michaelangelo turned to look at him. "What?"
Raphael glared at him, then darted his look towards Lana.
"I'm just showing her around, Dude," Michaelangelo replied shrugging slight as he put the whip down. "No biggie."
The turtle in red shot his little brother a dark look, and angrily stormed past him, going straight over to where Lana was hanging.
"You okay?" he asked, sticking an arm under her butt, to support her, so she wasn't hanging by her arms anymore.
Lana nodded a small nod.
"Raph, what's wrong?" Michaelangelo wanted to know; he was confused as to why his brother suddenly seemed angry with him.
Raphael ignored him and went on unshackling Lana, who seemed scared, beyond belief.
"He hurt you," he demanded looking at her, as he unshackled the last chain, and she fell into his arms.
Lana, who'd buried her head into his plastron, shook her head ever so slightly.
Raphael turned to Michaelangelo once more. "Consider yourself very lucky, Michaelangelo," he said coldly. "Very lucky."
He then stormed out of the small storage area and out of the dojo, only to go into the den and find his other two brothers up and wrestling over the remote.
Leonardo and Donatello had been playfully arguing over what they were going to watch, when they sensed someone else in the room, and thought they heard sniffling. They turned around only to find Raphael standing there with Lana in his arms.
"What happened?" Donatello queried, as Michaelangelo came out of the dojo looking confused. "Why's Lana upset?"
Raphael saw Michaelangelo out of the corner of his eye and glared at him.
Leonardo eyed his brothers, then looked at Lana, who'd her head buried in Raphael's plastron, to try and hide her tears from them.
"Guys, what the hell did you do to her?" He demanded.
"I did shit," Raphael stated. "Michaelangelo's the one who scared the shit outta her."
"I what?" Michaelangelo said loudly. "I did not!"
"You did so!" Raphael snapped. "You're just too stupid to know it!"
"I am not!" Michaelangelo retorted.
"You stupid Dick-head!" Raphael shouted, hugging Lana closer. "You scared her shitless, and were too damn blind to see that she was shaking from fear!"
"I." Michaelangelo began, only to be cut off.
"Silence!" A voice ordered sternly. "Raphael, Michaelangelo, that is enough."
They both turned to look at their father.
"Master Splinter!" Michaelangelo cried. "Raph's saying I scared Lana, when I didn't! I swear I didn't!"
Raphael rolled his eyes annoyed. "Whatever."
"Hey! I."
"Michaelangelo, silence!" Splinter snapped. "I will hear both of your stories, once I am sure that you are both calm enough to tell them."
He left to go make a cup of tea, then returned and sat down in his armchair.
"Now, tell me my sons, what has happened to upset the poor child?" He asked calmly.
"I."
"Mikey."
Splinter raised a hand. "One at a time. Michaelangelo, you go first."
Michaelangelo smirked at his brother, then began to tell his side of the story. Donatello and Leonardo, who'd seen his smirk, just rolled their eyes, as their brothers came around to the other side of the couch, both still standing.
"I woke up to get a glass of water, and saw a light coming from the dojo," Michaelangelo began. "I went to check it out, and found Lana in the old storage room looking at a dagger. I then showed her the katanas Leo used to always gawk at, then showed her the chains and how they worked."
"Yeah, by chaining her up," Raphael muttered bitterly.
Splinter shot him a stern Look, silencing him.
"I was telling her 'bout the time Donnie beat up Raph, when Raph came in and suddenly got all mad at me for no reason," Michaelangelo continued. "I was hurting her or nothing. I was just telling her a story, while playing with some of the things in there."
Master Splinter looked to Raphael then. "What is your side of it, my son?"
Raphael, who'd tuned Michaelangelo out and was whispering to Lana, looked up after a moment.
"I woke up only to find Lana gone," he started. "I was worried something was wrong, so I went to look for her. I looked around in here, then spotted the light in the dojo. I investigated and found Mikey in there snapping a whip while Lana hung from the shackles on the wall. I knew she was scared from the moment I spotted her and got her down. I brought her out here, and I assume you know what happened after that."
Splinter glared at his youngest son. "Michaelangelo, you know what I think of you and your brothers using those shackles, more or less that whip. What do you have to say for yourself?"
"I still don't see how I scared her, Sensei," Michaelangelo replied. "She knows I wouldn't hurt her. I mean, like, hello, it's me, Mikey."
Everyone looked to Raphael, who was now rubbing Lana's back, not caring how much emotion he showed.
Raphael looked down at Lana. "Is it okay if I tell them now? I won't if you don't want me to."
Lana looked up at him, her face still wet from tears, and more threatening to fall at any given moment. She fearfully glanced at Michaelangelo, then buried her head back into Raphael's plastron, nodding her head.
"Go ahead," she grumbled.
Raphael instinctively pulled her closer to him.
"She's been having nightmares about that room. I dunno why she was dreaming 'bout it, since she never knew it was there, but she was. She'd come in the lair late and been led into the dojo by an angry Mikey. He used the buckle end of a strap on her rear-end, then dragged her into the small room by her hair. Once in there he shackled her to the wall and began to beat her back with the strap. He was grumbling 'bout how we chained him up in there when we were small. I came in the room then and stopped him once I saw what he was doing. Told him off too."
Raphael sighed heavily once he finished, as he felt as though he'd just lifted a weight off his shoulders for some reason. He also felt bad for making Lana re-live her nightmare again.
"Why would she dream something like that?" Leonardo wondered aloud.
"Because Shit-headed Mikey let her see him lose control," Raphael spat disgustedly.
"I what?" Michaelangelo said, looking confused. "When the hell did I lose. Oh."
Now everyone turned to look at Michaelangelo.
Donatello looked at him wide-eyed. "You let her see you go after April, didn't you?"
Michaelangelo looked down at his feet sheepishly. "Maybe."
"Mikey!" Leonardo cried. "You know how stupid that was?"
"I didn't think of it then," Michaelangelo replicated quietly. "Forgot she was there 'till old Shred-head stopped me and told me to get her out of there. Said she didn't have to see what he was about to do."
"Well, at least one of you had common sense!" Donatello yelled. "I can't believe you Mikey!"
"Surprisingly, it was old Shred-head, and not you, who cared enough to make sure Lana didn't see something she wasn't supposed to," Leonardo rejoined shaking his head. "I can't believe, that you of all people, would make her suffer like that."
"Did you not think about what the hell it would do to her to see you like that?" Donatello bellowed. "You're her frigin' hero for crying aloud!"
Michaelangelo hung his head. "I'm sorry, alright?"
"No, it's not all right," Donatello growled. "You tormented her by letting her watch you hurt April! I can't believe I have such a damn Asshole for a brother!"
"Donatello," Master Splinter spoke up. "That will be quite enough. As you can see, Michaelangelo feels terrible enough as it is, and does not need you and Leonardo shouting at him."
"But." Donatello protested.
"Donatello," Splinter said, raising an eyebrow. "Do you dare to challenge me?"
"No Sensei," Donatello answered, beginning to turn a slight pink.
"I shall deal with Michaelangelo myself," Splinter told him. "You are to leave him alone, and not shout at him for his idiotic act, understood?"
"Hai," Donatello responded quickly.
"Leonardo?" Splinter queried, turning his gaze to his son in blue.
"Yes, Master Splinter," Leonardo replied quickly.
"Raphael."
Raphael looked over at Master Splinter.
"Take Lana to your room and get her settled," Splinter ordered him. "I believe she needs to lie down as the child is bleary-eyed and exhausted. She has endured enough for one day. Please keep her calm and re-assured that no harm shall come to her."
Raphael nodded and said nothing as he carried Lana back to his room.
Chapter 58:
In Raphael's room.
"Raph?" Lana said softly, once they were situated on his bed. "The part 'bout you chaining Mikey up, was that true?"
Raphael gave a grim smile. "Afraid so," he replied. "I dunno why the hell you were dreaming 'bout that either. Wish I did, but I don't."
"Why didn't you guys ever tell me about that room?" She asked curiously.
"Lana, all I'm saying, is that that room brings back a whack of painful memories," Raphael riposted. "A bunch of memories I'd rather soon forget."
"Was what Mikey said true? Did Leo really use that whip on you guys?"
"I said I don't wanna talk about it," Raphael snapped. "Now, I'd advise you to get some rest like Splinter suggested."
"But."
Raphael shot her a stern Look. "Also, I'd advise you to stay the hell outta that room from now on."
"Why? It has cool."
"Lana Marie, I swear that if you ever set foot in there again, I will tan your ass so damn good and hard that you won't be able to sit for a whole frigin' month. Do you hear me?"
Lana nodded wide-eyed. She couldn't understand why he was getting so upset with her innocent, yet curious, questions.
Raphael looked at her and saw the bit of fear in her eyes. He sighed and felt his face soften.
"Lana, just please promise me you'll never go in there again, alright? I don't want for you to have to live out what I did, okay?"
"I promise Raph," Lana whispered, afraid he was now mad at her. "I won't go in there anymore."
"I'm not mad you, Kid," he stated. "I didn't mean to snap at you either. There's just some things you don't know and I prefer it that you never do."
"Oh," Lana said, lying her head on his plastron once more. She closed her eyes as he rubbed her back. "Raph?"
"Yeah?"
"Will you sing?"
"What do you want me to sing?"
She looked up at him, knowing he'd read her look.
"Oh, all right," he groaned. "But remember, nobody needs to know I sing this to you."
She nodded and cuddled up to him again as he began to sing.
"I can see that you've been crying. You can't hide it with a lie. What's the use in you denying that the love that you have is wrong. I heard he promised you forever, but forever's come and gone. Baby, he would say whatever it takes to keep you blind, to the truth between the lies," Raphael sang. "Oh, I will love you more than that. I won't say the words then take them back. Don't give loneliness a chance. Baby, listen to me why I say, I will love you more than that."
Chapter 59:
In the den.
Master Splinter sat in his chair quietly sipping his tea. He finally decided that he'd waited long enough and spoke.
"Leonardo, Donatello, please go wait in the kitchen until I have called you back."
The two turtles nodded and said nothing as they left the den, raising their eyebrows at Michaelangelo.
Once they were gone and he'd finished taking another sip of his tea, Splinter motioned for Michaelangelo to sit down. Once he was seated, Splinter had his say.
"Michaelangelo, what possessed you to hurt April, knowing full well that Lana was still in the room with you?" He asked calmly. "I know you were upset, but you know full well that that is still no excuse in my eyes, nor your brother's."
Michaelangelo looked down at his hands. "I dunno Sensei. I just kinda.spazzed. I didn't think it'd.it'd scar her like this."
"My son, when there is a child involved, especially one who looks up to you a great deal, you must always think of them first, before carrying out your actions," Splinter told him gently. "No matter how upset you may be, the child must always come first."
"I know that now," Michaelangelo whispered.
Splinter nodded slightly. "You must always remember it as well, Michaelangelo, especially if Lana is nearby. Her friend, Jeff, seems to like you a great deal as well, so I would advise you to be careful around him also."
"I will, I promise," Michaelangelo murmured.
Splinter looked at his son, and noticed the teardrops falling from his eyes.
"Michaelangelo," Splinter began softly, making his son look up at him. "Do not cry, my son. Lana shall 'hang' with you again and be fine given some time."
Michaelangelo said nothing, as he suddenly collapsed at Splinter's feet and sobbed like he had when he was a mere child and something had scared him.
Master Splinter stroked his bald green head to let him know it was all right.
"I'm sorry.Daddy," Michaelangelo whispered, clinging to his father's robe. "Daddy.I'm sorry."
Splinter sighed, as Michaelangelo hadn't called him that in a long time. Not since he'd gotten lost in the dark sewer when he was six. No. Wait. He hadn't called him 'Daddy' since he was ten and had fallen through ice while playing in the snow with his brothers.
"It is quite alright, Michaelangelo," Splinter said, smiling softly, as he pulled his son closer to him. "All will be well soon enough."
A.N.: Well, thatz it 4 now. Phew! That was exhausting! Four chapters in one night; Sheesh! I figured y'all had waited long enough & deserved an update, thought it may be awhile before another one. Well, adios! KTBSPA & KTNTPA & KTACPA & KTJTPA & KTKCPA & KTCPA & KTJTTPA!!!!!