Hi, everybody! I'm back! (everybody groans) Well, don't all come rushing at once! (people come up to her)
(sniffs) I know what you're all here for. My stories are all that matter. (pauses) Even to me! But, you like 'em, so why don't we just get started! And I'm nice and safe here in my box! And, just in case, I've hired a bunch of superheroes to guard my box until it's safe to come out. You may be wondering how that happened, after they found out why I'm in here in the first place. I gave them advanced copies of the story! So ha!
(starts crying) I know I killed Sil, but you guys didn't have to be so mean! Okay, you were actually pretty benevolent. But I got threatened with a club! Actually, I probably would've done the same thing.
I just hope you guys will stick around! No more deaths, I promise. (winces) Well, no more important deaths.
Bwa-ha-ha-ha-ha! (blinks) No idea where that came from. Aw well. I'm back with another chapter for you to read! (sniffs) Ya know, it's only common courtesy for you guys to return the favor! (cough: Gemdrive, Darktiger2, Sassyblondexoxo, Goblin Cat KC, etc.)
Um, I really don't know too much about medical things, so please forgive me if I mess up. All I had to work with was a small picture and the little information my mother gave me.
Remember, italics are: thoughts, flashbacks, dreams, and anything else I can think of.
Disclaimer: I don't own the TMNT, unfortunately, but I do own three mental disorders! See? I own a big screen? No, because someone will steal it. But nobody wants mental disorders… except for the people on death road. My, am I random today.
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It was late, but cars still zoomed on the road to their left, many going over the speed limit, their headlights creating streams of dazzling gold that drew all eyes to its magnificence, shining brightly compared to the dark clouds forming above their heads.
A light at the end of the tunnel.
Hidden in the shadows, Leo was the first one to get to the nearest manhole cover, but Raph wasn't too far behind. Mikey and Don were only a few centimeters behind him, with Mikey helping Don.
The blue-clad turtle had forced himself to slow down a while back; remembering that he still had an injured brother to worry about.
But right now, all he wanted to do was walk right out into that street; get hit by one of the speeding cars and flung a few yards, breaking several ribs and other bones that would lead to his death.
Because of his ignorance, Donny was injured and Sil was dead.
His heart broke just thinking about her. I should've made her go back to the lair. If he had just told her to leave, she would still be alive. Why didn't I make her go?
Because you wanted her to stay. You wanted her to be with you. She was your friend, and you killed her.
Angry with himself, Leo's hand's turned into fists. Selfish.
Maybe if he was lucky, one of the driver's of the automobiles would be drunk and hit him.
Leo kicked himself mentally. Selfish.
It was true. He was selfish. If he had just told his brothers what was wrong, they would've known what they'd been going up against. No one would've gotten hurt; no one would've died. His brothers would be better off without him now.
After all, he couldn't tell them. Somebody was watching, and not Baxter Stockman. No, they'd been watching him since this whole mess had started.
And somehow, he knew it was those children.
Without words, they were begging him not to tell. Silent screams were full of fear, terrified that it would only hurt more. Leo didn't know if it would be in the form of a punishment or something else, but he didn't want his actions to hurt them.
His actions had already hurt too many people today.
With a jolt, the blue-clad turtle realized he'd been standing by that manhole cover for a while now. How many minutes, he wasn't sure. It mustn't have been too long though, because Mikey and Don looked like they'd just arrived. Only Raph looked at him suspiciously.
Ignoring him, Leo lifted the manhole cover, dropping it with a sudden clang when he saw what was under it.
The sewers were flooding. That wouldn't have been so odd, except they really hadn't had that much rain recently. Not to mention how familiar the water looked. He had seen it every waking moment these past few days.
Good 'ol H-two-o with just a little dab of human blood.
Raph, Don, and Mikey gave him a weird look but Leo paid them no response. Donny, wincing slightly, bent down to take a better look at the 'water'. "These are just like the water samples I took." He said aloud, mostly to himself.
Mikey looked up suddenly, eyes wide. "What about Master Splinter?"
Leo's self-loathing thoughts stopped. Baxter Stockman had something to do with this, that much was obvious. If anything's happened to Master Splinter, I'll…
Someone called Splinter on the Shell Cell. Leo didn't really know who; he couldn't get much thought with this headache he'd just recently developed. They came anywhere between two or three hours before the dreams.
"Leo." He heard Raph's voice breakthrough the friction in his brain and to him. "We're goin' to April's apartment, okay? Or do ya have a better idea?"
He shook his head. "I don't care. As long as we get Don's burn treated, I don't care."
"Leo," this time it was Donny, "we're sorry about Sil."
At that, the elder turtle straightened up just a little. "What are you sorry for? You aren't the one who killed her."
I am.
For a second, Leo wondered if he'd spoken that thought out loud or if his brother's were mind readers because the expressions on their faces showed that they knew what he was thinking.
Leo turned sharply and walked at a quick pace towards April's. He didn't stop when he heard them call after him, even if he did hear.
Out of the corner of his eye, he watched a group of young men standing near their cars, drinking beer. One threw the bottle down and it shattered against the asphalt. They laughed and talked some, then split in two, one group in one car, the second in another.
It didn't take long for him to realize that they were planning a street race; they had the cars for it. Still not looking directly at them, Leo shook his head in disgust. Stupid idiots. They're going to get themselves killed.
But at the same time, he thought something else. Hit me.
Selfish.
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When the three, younger turtles had shown up, they found that Leo hadn't gone into April's apartment yet. He'd just sat outside the backdoor, in the shadows, waiting for his brothers to show up.
After Raph knocked, and April came to the door, she immediately ushered them in, after seeing that something was wrong. Leo was the last one to come in but nobody noticed.
Don figured that was how Leo preferred it.
April had immediately gotten out every medical supply she had in her possession to treat Donny's burn. After cleaning it, which had stung badly, she took a closer look at it.
"Well, it's only a second-degree burn. That's a plus. Not a very big one, but I'd prefer it over a third-degree any day."
Mikey looked up from his place on the floor. He was the only one not watching. "But I thought only third-degree burns bleed."
April took out some more things, obviously deciding to clean it again. "It wasn't his blood."
Donny had known that, remembering all of the odd devices he had ran into while in the warehouse. Looking up, he saw an expression on Raph's face that shown he had too. But whose blood was it?
A while later, after making absolutely sure that she'd fixed Donny up to the best of her abilities and checking the other turtle's for wounds as well, she sat down on the couch, bringing a bottle of Tylenol. "I'm sorry, I don't have anything stronger than these. Are you sure you're okay?"
He nodded. In all truth, it hurt like a bitch, but he was trying to ignore it. That was proving itself to be a very hard task. Second-degree burns were no fun. Looking down, he could see the blisters forming on his rough, green skin.
He took as many Tylenol as he was allowed.
&&&&&
Donny had fallen asleep not too long ago, obviously in a great deal of pain. April forced her eyes away from his burn, which was starting to make her stomach churn.
Looking around the room, she saw Mikey sitting soberly in the armchair; Raph leaning against the wall not too far away. Leo was sitting cross-legged far-off in the corner. Everything in the room was still; frightening. It's like someone died. She didn't understand. Donny would be fine in a few weeks, as long as he didn't get an infection from the blood she'd found. But April didn't think that would happen. She'd cleaned it out too well.
"Guys, what's going on? What happened?" She was far from stupid. Something had happened not too long ago. Don's burn was proof enough of that.
Mikey was the only one who spared her a glance. He looked very upset.
Maybe I shouldn't talk about it. April decided to switch over to a subject that she was sure wouldn't distress them. "How's Sil?"
This time, Raph looked up at her too, his eyes wide. He and Mikey turned their heads to face their elder brother.
Leo just stared out the window, his teeth clenched. Then he got up and walked out of the room.
April got up to go after him, but felt Raph's hand on her shoulder, holding her back. "Don't."
"Why? What's wrong?"
Raphael sighed before looking at her again. "Sil's… dead."
"What?"
"She's dead!" The look on his face was fierce, but his eyes were full of remorse. "She passed away, she's gone, not alive, kicked the can; how else do ya want me to put it?"
They heard a sniff come from Mikey as his eyes started to flood with tears. "That's harsh, Raph."
The red-clad turtle turned his gaze to the ground and took his place back at the wall. April crossed her arms over her stomach. Silhouette had been a great kid. She's been so precocious, yet so small, even for her age.
And now she was gone.
"How-" she sighed, "How's Leo taking it?" It had been no secret. Leo had been the closest to the little girl. They shared some bond. April didn't really know what it was, but she knew that ever since Sil had come along, Leo had been getting somewhat better. Or so she thought; hoped.
No one answered her question. They didn't need to. One look told her all she needed to know. Not good.
Turning her head away from them, her eyes caught sight of the burn on Donny's leg once more. She stared at it for a few seconds, the wheels in her head turning. Eyes widening, she gasped. "Oh my gosh." Her head turned sharply to the two left in the room, her eyes asking a silent question, pleading it wasn't true. She burned.
They nodded.
April started to cry. In her mind, death by fire was the worst death imaginable. She'd always been afraid of flames since she was a child, but had since learned not to panic around them.
But tonight, the inferno had claimed another soul. A child. It had no mercy.
Trying to avoid the tears, she sat down; busying herself with checking Don's wound for the third time.
&&&&&
"Mikey?" He heard April call to him.
The younger turtle opened his eyes. He'd fallen asleep in the armchair. "Wha?"
"Are you hungry?"
Michaelangelo smiled a little, despite the days events. "I'm always hungry."
April smiled, shaking her head a little. "Of course you are. I made something to eat for you guys. It's in the kitchen."
Sitting up with a muffled groan, Mikey checked the clock. Half after nine. He'd been asleep for only two hours. He cast a glance to his purple-clad brother. "How is he?"
April gave him a reassuring smile. "He's going to be fine. Let him rest."
Nodding, he got up to get his dinner when April said something else. "Hey, Mike? Do you think you can find Leo? From what Raph's been telling me, he hasn't been eating much lately. And I haven't seen him since, well, you know."
Mikey remembered the flames from the burning warehouse. "Yeah. I'll go find him."
April's apartment wasn't that big, so Mikey was surprised that within a few minutes, he still hadn't found Leo.
Finally, he came to the kitchen window. It was open, rain flying threw it.
"Aw, crap."
&&&&&
"Raph! April!" Mikey's voice rang out threw the apartment.
Raph had been sharpening his sais, thinking about all the things that had happened today, all the things Leo had said, when his younger brother burst into the room.
April walked quickly over to him. "Mikey? What's wrong?"
"Leo's gone! I can't find him anywhere! I think he went out the window, unless April decided that she wanted to let the rain in."
"But," the red-head looked at him in disbelief, "I was just in there a little while ago. The window was shut-"
"Wait, it's raining?" Raphasked, thinking back to a conversation they'd had just a week or so ago. Mikey nodded.
A grin touched Raph's lips and quickly disappeared. "I think I know where he is."
He looked sharply at Mike and April. "You guys stay here. I'm gonna go after him. But I gotta make a call first."
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The city was bright at night, looking so innocent. From up here, it was like you were far away from all of the malicious acts that went down below. But you weren't. The sounds could easily reach your ears. You could hear women crying as they got raped, children screaming for the mommies as they got taken away from their daddies, who were getting mugged for not paying up. You could easily hear the sirens of police vehicles that would inevitably arrive too late.
That was why he'd decided long ago to only come out on rainy nights. Not as many people were out in such weather, and anyone who was couldn't be heard through the loud patters of the raindrops.
Sometimes, it was the only peace of mind he could afford.
Behind him, he heard slow footsteps. Eventually they stopped standing still. Had it been a normal person, they would've screamed by now. He knew who this was.
"Go away, Raph."
Raph came out from behind him, walking to his side, but not sitting down. "If ya didn't want me around, ya shouldn't have told me where you'd be."
"I didn't-"
"Yes, you did. The day Sil arrived."
The memory surfaced and Leo turned back to the city, upset that he would let such things out.
Raph sat beside him then. "You've been havin' a massive lapse of memory lately, bro. Among other things."
"I know."
"Then why the hell ain't ya doin' anything about it?"
Leo sta on his hands to keep them from hitting his brother. "It's none of your business." He had to strive to keep his voice even as he said those words.
"And it was Sil's?"
His breath caught in his throat. How had Raph known?
Choosing to breathe again, he was about to ask, but his brother went on. "She was gonna tell me, ya know. Don't ya think that means somethin'? Apparently she thinks- thought, somethin' was wrong. You trusted her, Leo. Ya need to trust her judgement now, too."
Leo's hands clenched and unclenched uncontrollably. Sanity was drifting far away until he vaguely remembered it. He was becoming someone else.
Raph continued, lowering his voice to something more intimidating. "You might get someone killed."
With no control whatsoever, Leo punched him, not caring where he hit him. Raph moved just in time, diverting the blow from his jaw to his shoulder. Raph grabbed his wrist tightly, glaring at him.
Leo returned the glare. "Don't you remember, Raph? I already did kill someone."
"No. That was Stockman. But out of the two of us, if you're gonna blame anyone, blame me. I-"
"Didn't get to her in time." Leo shook his head. "Doesn't matter. She's dead because I didn't make her leave. I thought I needed her there because she was the one person who understood." An exasperated laugh emerged from him, stopping as quick as it came. "Wasn't I stupid?"
"Calm down, Leo." Raph said through clenched teeth.
"Leo's free hand was turning into a fist. "I don't want to calm down. What I want to do is kill him. It's my fault, but Stockman's the one ho's responsible. And he's going to pay."
Stop it! It'd been a few days since he heard that voice. Sanity was calling to him once more. Don't let him get to you! Don't let him see!
Him. The voice wasn't talking about Raph. It was Stockman. Stockman had said he had a gateway to Leo's unconscious mind. Losing himself to his anger and frustration meant letting the guy through.
Leo immediately calmed down. Raph didn't see it. "Don't you even think about it! Not today. I won't let ya. And I'll fight ya if I have to. I got Casey down there, too. We aren't lettin' ya do something so stupid when you're like this." He smirked. "That's my job."
Leo nodded slowly. "I'm not going anywhere."
Raph let him go, first making sure he wasn't going to hit him again. "So are ya gonna tell me, or what?"
Surprising himself, Leo nodded, hesitantly. "But when we get back to April's."
Raph just stared at him for a long time before sighing. "All right." He stepped to the edge of the building. "Yo, Case!" he said in a loud whisper, "We're headin' back to April's!"
His answer was the revving of a motorcycle. Then the two brothers were off, running across the rooftops with Casey on his motorcycle below them.
They reached April's apartment at the sae time. Walking in, they saw Mikey lying on the floor by the couch, asleep once more, and April sleeping in the armchair, in a position that clearly showed she hadn't been intending to do so.
Raph turned to him. "Ya thirsty?"
Leo shook his head.
"I am!" Casey announced. "What does she got in her fridge?"
In seconds, he was off in the next room. Raph took a look at Leo. "Be right back." Then he too left him alone.
At almost the same moment they left, the sound of children screaming filled his ears. Oh crap. He couldn't say anything at all, nor could he move. Not here…
His legs, refusing to hold his weight, began to buckle beneath him, forcing the turtle to lean against the wall for support. His eyes closed as he slid down the wall, allowing eighty-eight voices to join his soul. He barely had the time to see it was only two minutes after ten before darkness claimed his vision.
My, was Stockman bust tonight.
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Wow! I did a long chapter! Hooray for me!
Ah! Gotta go! I'm gonna be late!
Please review!