A/N: I just realised that this is my longest fic… o.0
Pretender Fanatic – Actually, when I look over my story board, I don't think I'll be finishing this in the next 4 chapters… considering I've still got to kill someone off and jump ahead another four years… o.0 Eep! I can always try though… and dream!
Mica – I don't think it would have been that hard. Sure, England would have liked to keep the turtles for tourism purposes, but then again they didn't have the appropriate facilities, and all the observation notes that have already been taken are still in America. Zoos also sort of help each other out, like if they have an extra tiger or something, they cooperate and move it overseas where it can more useful in a breeding program. Also, it's America and Britain, who aren't exactly cut throat enemies. If it was somewhere in the Middle East, then there would be a problem… The same applies with Australia. Now that they've gained access to the turtles, they wouldn't want to keep them because of quarantine and facility issues.
Chapter 26: A Plea For Help.
Raphael at first struggled against the mystery person, though he suddenly relaxed when he realised the man had only three fingers… and was green. Even though he couldn't see the turtle's face, Raphael quickly followed his instincts and calmed down, allowing the unknown turtle to carry him along the tunnel and into a dark corner which turned out to be a great hiding place. They both remained silent for the next couple of minutes; slowly waiting for the sounds of the humans to dim and fade away.
When it was clear that the people were well and truly gone, Raphael was finally released from his silenced hold and was able to look into the face of his rescuer. A part of him was expecting to see either Mike or Leo, but instead he saw an unknown male, adult turtle. He wore a purple bandanna along with elbow and kneepads of the same colour. His face was less stressed than Leo's, though wiser than Mikey's. Raphael felt as though his eyes were filled with kindness and delight. In an instinctual way, the boy knew that this was Donatello, but he asked just in case.
"Are you… Donatello?" Raphael asked timidly. Don simply nodded in reply. The two turtles continued to stare at each other, not knowing what to do or say next. After all these years of waiting and pondering on what to say to Raph's child, in an instant, Donatello had forgotten every question he ever wanted to ask. Raphael bit his lip while Don shifted his feet as both of them started to feel the awkwardness that was quickly settling in. Not knowing what to say, Don gestured for the boy to follow him, and Raphael obliged.
Suddenly Raph remembered why he was looking for the purple-wearing turtle in the first place. "My family's been captured! You've gotta help 'em! I, I tried to go back but…" Raphael trailed off, thinking of his failure. After raising an eye-ridge at his accent, Donatello hushed the panicking boy and bent down to his eye level.
"Calm down. Now, tell me everything that has happened," Donatello asked slowly. Raphael took a deep breath and told the adult turtle about the plane flight, the trap, the escape and the attempted rescue. Donatello remained silent the whole way through, simply contented with just being in the boy's presence.
"You've gotta help us…" Raphael finished his long and worried explanation.
"Well we can't do anything for now. We'll just have to lay low for a while and then rescue them later. C'mon, I'll show you my lair," Donatello invited. Raphael stared blankly at him for a couple of moments while he tried to get used to the Australian accent he was hearing. Don started to walk down the tunnel, but Raphael stubbornly didn't follow.
"But… but Leo taught me that with rescue missions, the quicker is better, because the enemy won't be expecting any company so soon," Raph tried to explain his point of view.
"I know but… from what it sounds like, it seems you went back for them too early, when the humans were still looking for you. The least amount of time you should wait to rescue someone is one hour, and even then it's still sometimes too early. You see, around the one-hour mark, humans start to become restless and sloppy with their guarding or patrolling, and that's why it's good to strike then. But if you strike earlier, they're either still looking or expecting you," Donatello reasoned.
"So can we rescue my family in an hour?" Raphael hoped anxiously. Don sighed and shook his head.
"Well… I think this is going to take a lot more planning. But we'll rescue them as soon as possible," Donatello reassured the boy.
"But…" Raphael was about to protest, but then thought better of it and kept his mouth shut. The two turtles started to walk down the tunnel. Don offered his hand, but Raph subconsciously ignored it, creating tension between the two. They remained silent for some time, until Donatello finally realised that they hadn't been properly introduced.
"So what's your name?" Don asked softly.
"Raphael," the boy responded. Don paused as he was slightly taken off guard, but then started walking again shortly after.
"That's a nice name," Don complemented. Raphael said nothing in reply. "So what's your sister's name?" Don asked another question.
"Diana," Raph said simply.
"After the princess?"
"Nope. After the Goddess," Raphael responded. "It's a Venus thing," he added, causing Donatello to smile in reply. "She's my half-sister though…" Raph admitted softly.
"I know…" Donatello whispered. "So who's Diana's father then?" Don asked out of curiosity.
"Leonardo."
"Figures," Don muttered. Raphael quietly followed as Donatello made a couple of tight turns until they reached a medium sized room filled with all sorts of rundown furniture and technological gizmos. Raphael stared in shock at the high standard of the lair. He was anticipating a mattress or a blanket, and maybe even a table and a couple of weapons, but this just completely exceeded his expectations. This was the best equipped lair he had ever seen.
Donatello quickly made himself at home and turned on the television. Raphael timidly entered the lair when he'd gotten over the shock, and wordlessly sat at the table. He found a scrapbook nearby and curiously decided to look through it. Raphael was surprised once again when he found pages and pages of newspaper clippings, all of which were focused around his family's adventures in London and New York. He flicked through and read a couple of articles at random, before freezing on a particular page. Raphael looked at the picture of himself that was taken by Bonesteel when he was four years old. He shuddered as a repressed memory came to the surface of his mind. He remembered the seeing the shell of his father, the glee of success from Bonesteel and the terrified feeling he experienced. Raphael quickly closed the scrapbook and pushed it away, not wanting to think about it at that particular moment.
"Are you alright?" Donatello asked. Raph nodded his head, though that didn't fool Donatello. "Would you like something to eat and drink?" Don offered, deciding not to delve further into the topic.
"Yeah… What do you have?" Raphael asked softly.
"Not much, but I have some coke, lemonade, orange juice… I can make you a hot chocolate if you like," Donatello started. He opened the refrigerator to see what else he had. "As for food, I can make you a sandwich… Oh! I've got some left over pizza! Would you like that?" Don offered. He saw the large smile on Raphael's face and took that as a yes.
"Pizza and hot chocolate please," Raphael confirmed. With a smile, Donatello started to prepare his meal, which basically consisted in heating everything up in the microwave. After a couple of minutes, the food was ready.
"Your mother wouldn't like you eating this much junk food, but seeing that you've probably had fruit for the last couple of months, I think we can make an exception," Donatello said with another smile as he gently placed the food down in front of the boy. Raphael tucked into it almost immediately; realising how hungry he was. As he ate, Raphael observed all the scrunched up pieces of paper on the floor.
"What's that?" Raphael asked with a mouth full. Donatello picked a couple of sheets off the floor.
"Old escape or rescue plans," Donatello answered softly, while opening up the scrunched up pieces of paper and showing Raphael. The boy stopped chewing so he could focus on the scribbling of thoughts and diagrams that were on the numerous sheets.
"You were going to rescue us?" Raphael wondered out loud after he had swallowed the food in his mouth. Donatello nodded slowly.
"I couldn't come up with the perfect plan though…" Donatello softly admitted. Raphael looked around the lair and for the first time noticed all the sheets of paper containing potential plans pinned onto the walls or scrunched up on the floor. All of a sudden, Raphael felt guilty for thinking badly of Donatello when he was trying to figure out a way to help them all along.
'He never forgot about us,' Raphael thought sadly. "What was wrong with all these plans?" he had to ask.
"Oh… I just didn't like them… I guess I was simply too scared of failing," Don answered slowly, partly upset that he couldn't overcome his fear of being captured.
"I can understand that…" Raphael softly admitted. After a few seconds, the boy gave Donatello a smile, wanting to make up for the misjudgment of character earlier. Donatello gave him a small smile back. "So… how are we going to rescue the others?" Raphael asked curiously.
"Well… That's what we've got to figure out. Knowing how strict Australia is with foreign wildlife, Leo and the others are probably in quarantine right now," Donatello hypothesized.
"Where's that?" Raphael asked.
"I don't really know… I'm pretty sure the zoo does quarantine though," Donatello thought out loud. "I've been there before, but I don't exactly know where they would be kept," Don added.
"Why were you there before?" Raphael questioned curiously. Don gave him a smile.
"Long story," Don answered simply before continuing the discussion on possible plans of action. "I know how to get the zoo, but I don't know how we're going to get back," Donatello wondered.
"Well, since it's still Halloween, can't we just walk around the streets normally like we did in New York?" Raphael asked. Donatello's eye-ridges furrowed in slight confusion.
"But it's the second of November," Don said slowly.
"But… but it can't be!" Raphael became confused as well. Donatello smiled when he figured out what had happened.
"Australia's really ahead in time when compared to America. See, because on the International Date Line, if you fly from Australia to America, you gain a day. But if you fly the other way, you lose one," Donatello tried to explain.
"But what happened to the first of November?" Raph uttered, still confused.
"Well, you guys spent that day in transit," Donatello said. Raphael continued to give him a confused look. "You'll understand it one day. But even if it was Halloween, that plan still wouldn't work as Australians don't exactly celebrate that holiday," Don reasoned.
"Why not?"
"Well… Some people celebrate it, while others don't. There's a small conflict about it, where people are saying that it's an American holiday and therefore it has no relevance to them, while others say it's fun and brings the community together. So you'll still see some people dressed up, but not enough to blend into the crowd unnoticed," Donatello explained further. Raphael sighed.
"So what are we gonna do?" Raphael questioned worriedly.
"Leave it to me. I'll figure something out," Donatello murmured. "Do you know how to use any weapons, Raphael?" he changed the topic. The boy nodded.
"Sais. Though I don't have them anymore because they were taken away from me when I was trapped in the zoo," Raph answered. Donatello suddenly remembered.
"Well, come over here, and I'll give you something special," Don enticed. Raphael stood up from the table and chair and made his way over to the big black bag the turtle was pointing to. Intrigued, Raph waited patiently as Donatello unzipped the bag and pulled his present out. A wide grin was planted firmly on the boy's face as he stared at the sleek metal of the two sais. Carefully, Don handed the sais over, in order for Raphael to get a feel for the weapon.
"They're heavier than what I remember," Raphael murmured more to himself than to Donatello. He rolled one of the sais over in his hand, admiring the worn, red handle and the engraved letter 'R' at the base. "Are these for me?" Raphael asked, still in disbelief. Donatello nodded. Raph went back to admiring them. "Were these… my father's?" he had to ask.
"Yes," Don answered softly after clearing his throat. "Those are the original weapons, not his spares. He succeeded in many battles with those… They always got him out of trouble," Donatello added with slight reminiscence.
"So… you knew my father?" Raphael asked.
"Of course I did," Donatello admitted. Raphael looked on as Don continued to pull out other belongings from the black bag. The boy fingered the knee and elbows pads, along with the red, torn bandanna.
"Were these his as well?" Raphael questioned. Don nodded in reply.
"This was his spare set though," Don confirmed. He watched as Raphael took off his own bandanna in order to try and wear his father's, though it ended up being way too big for his liking.
"My father must've been pretty big…" Raphael wondered out loud.
"Yeah, he's the type of guy you wouldn't want to mess with. He used to do a lot of body building," Donatello explained.
"So he was really strong?"
"Yeah, pretty strong," Don admitted, starting to feel more relaxed with the topic.
"Stronger than Leo?" Raph wondered.
"That's… debatable," Donatello answered with a smirk. "Don't ask Leo that question, or he'll give a half hour lecture," he added lightheartedly. Raphael giggled in response.
"So… were Raphael and Leo best friends?" Raphael wondered. Donatello tried his best not to laugh out loud upon hearing that question.
"Um… I'd say so, yes," Don answered. "They were the type of friends who were completely honest with each other… sometimes brutally honest. They fought a lot, and they had a lot of differences, yet they also had a lot of similarities. I think in the end, they both valued each other's criticism and used it as a means to improve both themselves and the group… It was a love hate friendship," Donatello summarised. Raphael looked surprised.
"But if Leo hated my father so much, then why did he choose to raise me as his son?" Raphael asked, becoming confused.
"Because Leo doesn't hate him. That's the point. They might have acted like that, but deep inside, they truly cared about each other, and Leo looked after you most likely out of honour," Donatello explained. "Do you understand now?" he asked softly.
"I think so, yeah," Raph said. As they fell in silence, Donatello glanced at the clock on the VCR.
"Gees, I didn't realise it was so late," Don muttered. Raphael started to yawn and tried to hide it from Don, but he wasn't successful. "You should get some sleep," Don stated. Raph shook his head.
"We have to rescue the others soon," Raph denied stubbornly with another yawn. Donatello frowned.
"How about you get some sleep while I come up with a plan," Don reasoned.
"Will you wake me up when it's time to rescue them?"
"Of course," Donatello reassured him. Raphael tiredly nodded in agreement and plodded over towards the mattress on the floor. He curled up into a ball and closed his eyes, allowing Donatello to cover him with some blankets.
It only seemed like he had fallen asleep for a few minutes, but when Raphael was awoken by Don, a couple of hours had in fact passed. "Hey, it's time to go," Donatello said as he shook the boy awake. Raphael groaned and rubbed his eyes, slowly getting used to the dim lighting.
When he was ready, the two turtles equipped themselves; Donatello had his electronically improved bo staff while Raphael had his father's sais. Don silently put on his trench coat and fedora, and gave a spare one to the little boy. The adult chuckled at Raph's appearance. The coat was far too big, so large that you couldn't see his hands, and his legs were entwined with the remaining mass of material at the bottom. The fedora was also too large, and Raphael had to tilt his head upward in order to see anything. Donatello told the boy that he didn't really need a disguise… since it wasn't much of an inconspicuous disguise in the first place, but Raphael persisted and Don left it at that. Prepared, Don led the boy over to the Hog.
"Cool!" was Raphael's first reaction. Donatello grinned.
"Thought you might like it. It was your father's after all," Don said.
"Wow! My father was cool…" Raphael stated.
"Yep, he was quite the rebel," Donatello said as he neared the vehicle.
"I've always wanted to ride one of these things, but I always knew that I never would," Raphael said, still in awe of the machine.
"Maybe when you're older you can own this," Donatello suggested. Raphael's eyes widened in delight, but Don was unable to see it because of the enormous fedora slapped on the boy's head. Donatello hopped on the Hog and Raphael quickly followed after. With a rev of the engine, the two turtles were off down the tunnel.
Raphael held on to Donatello's carapace tightly for the first couple of rapid and close turns, but soon the boy found himself enjoying the ride and Don's company. They soon stopped at a large gate that led outside. Raphael watched as Don reached into his trench coat pocket to pull out a few strands of wire. With a little bit of tedious effort, the gate's lock clicked open and the two turtles were free to continue their bike ride.
Raphael became nervous when Donatello started to ride along the highway along with other cars, though the adult kept reassuring the boy that it was alright. After some time, Don turned the Hog into a side street and parked at the first available spot he could find. Raphael continued to follow as Donatello inspected the nearby cars. Pulling out the couple of metal strands again from his pocket, Don picked the car's lock before sitting inside to work on the ignition. Raphael curiously continued to watch as Don made an incision around the steering wheel in order to expose the wires. After a few more seconds of fiddling around, the car's engine started.
"Hop in," Don offered as he reached over and opened the passenger side door. Raphael did what he was told and sat next to Donatello in the car. Soon after, Donatello pulled out from the side street and, a few roads later, joined the highway once again.
"Where did you learn to break into a car?" Raphael wondered out loud.
"Your father," Donatello replied with a smirk. Raph smiled. "You're father and I always wanted to know how to do it, but it was your father who actually went out and experimented. When he was finally successful a few years later, he came and told me, and gave the whole family the Hummer as a result. Of course, it wasn't long after when he got his Hog; he wanted his own form of transport," Donatello informed the child.
"That's so cool. No one tells me these things about my father," Raphael admitted.
"Oh well. You're willing to listen and I'm willing to tell," Don summarised simply.
"Yeah… Dad, Leo that is, and Mum don't like to talk about him too often. Uncle Mikey sometimes does," Raphael said sadly.
"Well are you comfortable speaking about your father?" Don asked carefully.
"I am now. I wanna know what he was like," Raphael said while Don nodded. "I want to avenge his death," Raphael finally admitted a minute later. Donatello didn't say anything for a while.
"What does Leo think of that?" Don asked seriously.
"He doesn't want me to," Raphael grumbled.
"Raphael… Revenge won't solve the problem. Although it's hard, forgiveness is always the best answer," Donatello said gently.
"Dr Welner still has to pay for what he's done though," Raphael muttered under his breath.
The couple fell silent as the dimly illuminated zoo loomed in front of them. Without saying a word, Donatello turned off the stolen car's headlights, wanting to stealthily approach their destination. As silently as possible, Donatello parked along the road, not wanting to be obvious and park in the zoo's car park. He sighed as he turned of the ignition. "Are you ready for this?" Donatello asked before getting out of the car.
"Ready as ever," Raphael answered. Taking a deep breath in order to try and relax, the two turtles exited the car and started to execute their rescue mission.