Mikey

The whiteness in the eye-slits of Leo's mask vanished in a blink, uncovering ocean blue eyes. They softened when they found me in the inky blackness of the alley. A warm smile tugged at the corners of his mouth.

"Mikey." He let out a relieved exhale as if he had just learned how to breathe.

Before I got a word out, Leo shuffled over and pulled me into him. His burly arms squeezed me like a trash compactor. Though it was my favorite kind of hug, I was disturbed under his loving hold. Don't get it twisted; I love hugs. But Leo's not the kind of turtle to go around embracing others. It was as common as a penguin flying across the Atlantic.

There was a watery sniffle muffled in my shoulder, raising more questions in my head.

Now we're adding crying to the list?

I was confused, but I could never deny a good brotherly hug. My hands couldn't fasten together due to Leo's strangely new brawny shape, so I clung to his arms. There was something different about his stature, not to mention he seemed a whole couple of inches taller! When he backed away, he rubbed at his misty eyes, beaming like I'd never seen before. Suddenly, the warm glow disappeared, and he looked around in a panic.

"Wait, this isn't right. What day is it?" he demanded, looking to me for answers.

I blinked at him. "The thirtieth, bro."

Leo's features froze as if he had come to some kind of realization.

"Um, Leo? Are you feeling okay?" I finally asked.

As my bro opened his mouth, a new voice broke through the night, startling me.

"Mikey!"

I looked up at a shadow descending between Leo and me, landing with the grace of a cat. It was…Leo? Blades drawn, he made sure to plant himself in front of me. This Leo was smaller than the one I hugged—the one I argued with and ran from just minutes ago. My shriek from the sudden flash of light must have led him there.

"Get away from my—" he stopped cold at seeing himself, his body going completely stiff. Glancing slightly over his shoulder, he looked at me. "Mikey?"

I moved my shoulders up and down.

"Allow me to explain," the buffer Leo offered, taking a calm step forward.

"That's close enough, you…clone!" Leo threatened, flinching forward with his sword that unfazed the other.

"Leo, chill!" I set a calm hand on my bro.

"He has Baxter Stockman written all over him," Leo uttered to me with his eyes trained on the other. He flinched forward again, saying much louder, "Is this what Shredder's been planning these past few days?"

That was a plausible argument on my bro's behalf; this seemed like something Shredder would try. Shell, it was surprising that he hadn't already ordered the mutant fly to create bigger clones of ourselves to destroy us. And if it weren't for the loving, sincere hug and the fact that this new Leo materialized through a big ball of light, I probably would have agreed with my bro. On the other hand, he'd been very paranoid lately, though I doubt he thought I'd noticed.

"I don't think it's Stink-Man, dude. Let's just hear him out," I reasoned.

Leo glanced at me over his shoulder, his stiff posture easing as well as the katanas. The air between us was so tense, given I had yelled at him a while ago. I was surprised he listened to me with no disagreement. This silence encouraged the bigger Leo to step up, folding his arms.

"Your defensiveness is sensible, but I'm not here to hurt you." As the bigger Leo spoke, I noticed his voice was deeper and older than the Leo I stood next to. "I come from five years ahead of this time to help you."

"Help us with what?" I heard myself asking before thinking about it.

The bulky Leo's form sank, and his eyes hit the ground before meeting ours again. "This would be better to explain with all of you present."

My bro went stiff again, his protective walls building back up. "Lead you to the rest of my family? Give me a reason to trust you first."

We watched Leo from the future shrug with a sigh as if saying, of course. He must have expected this from his past self.

"I know you're the first descendent of the Hamato Clan, that you keep your room pristine, you're obsessed with Space Heroes and love your brothers," he paused and looked at me, sadness reflecting in the blue pools of his eyes, "no matter how much they drive you insane. I also know you've recently obtained the Heiwa no Buki and the awful feeling it has plagued you with, both of you."

My eyes widened. He knew about my headaches. But how was the Weapon of Peace affecting Leo? He'd never said anything.

"I came here for a reason, and that reason would be better explained back at the lair," Future Leo continued.

The Leo beside me sighed heavily, shielding his katanas and looking back at me placidly. "Well, that's it, then." I knew by the tone of his voice that he was won over by his future self's speech.

"Awe, yeah!" I cried with a fist pump. I rushed over to the future Leo, bouncing on my heels. "I can't believe you're from the future! Are there flying cars? Is there finally a way you can make pizza materialize in front of you? Can you teleport?"

He chuckled and patted my head as we walked home. "It's only been five years, Mikey. Nothing ground-breaking has really happened yet."

"How did you get here, then?" I asked.

"Why don't you save your questions for later, Mikey? Don't pester him," current Leo said. He had his T-phone, most likely texting Raph and Donnie to get home.

I crossed my arms and then looked back up at the future Leo. "Well, hopefully, you're not as big of a jerk in the future as you are now, Big Leo."

I stuck my tongue out at my present bro as he turned to shoot me a glare.

Leo

Mikey, myself, and my… future self (man, I had to get used to saying that) made it to the lair first. It had hardly registered in my mind that we made it home as I pushed through the turnstiles. I was too immersed in thought.

Not only did I have to worry about Mikey and his stubbornness to tell me what's going on with him lately, but now I've got a me from the future telling us that we're in danger. He hadn't said so yet, but that was the message I was getting just by his behavior. If I knew myself well—which I did—I knew that if I had worrying or bad news, I would only have the energy to share said news once and make sure all who needed to hear it were in one place, depending on how bad it was. And judging by how he avoided all of my annoying little brother's questions, it was bad.

Mikey skated over the turnstiles and kickflipped with a Booyakasha he'd been saving all night. I couldn't believe how normal he was behaving after our little spat on patrol. He was sorely mistaken if he thought putting on an act would distract me from talking about it later. Every guilty look he gave me with each passing glance told me he knew it too. He was lucky my future self t-boned our evening.

"I'll get Sensei," Mikey offered, hopping off his board and shooting toward the dojo.

My future self—who Mikey had dubbed 'Big Leo'—watched him go with a half-smile, shaking his head as if slightly amused. I watched him and folded my arms.

"Alright, so what's the severity of this bad news?" I asked.

His eyes drooped, still unmoving from watching Mikey. He knew he didn't have to hide with only me. "Worse than you think."

The churning pain in my stomach made a reappearance. I instinctively gripped it with hundreds of scenarios racing through my mind.

"This gut feeling I've had… is the Heiwa no Buki causing it?" I dared to ask.

A grin quirked on my older self's face, and he lightly punched my arm. "Look at who's asking the questions now."

I rubbed the back of my head, amused but still nervously waiting for his answer.

"I've had five years to think back on this. It could very well be the cause of your feeling. But then again, it could be your ninja instincts kicking in—a sign of a good leader," he continued.

Then it was my turn to smirk. "Are you trying to make me feel better or patting yourself on the shell?"

He laughed for the first time that night, knocking my shoulder and leading me to the pit where we sat and waited. There was something warm about having my older self with me, like I knew I was safe and protected. I wondered if this was how my younger brothers felt with me around. It was nice having an older self near, like having a big brother. A sense of calm washed over me.

As we got comfortable, I couldn't help but remember he said earlier that Mikey was also being affected by the Heiwa no Buki. I'd supposed he was referring to the headaches the kid complained about. But out of concern for my little brother, I needed to ask.

"And what about Mikey?"

Big Leo instantly frowned, forcing a pang in my gut. As he opened his mouth, the dojo doors slid open. Sensei and Mikey stepped out, the youngest guiding Father by the hand. My future self stood upon seeing the rat, bowing respectfully.

Sensei released Mikey's hand and sauntered over to him. Although my older self reached a new height in the past five years, he still hadn't surpassed Sensei, who looked down at him and squeezed his face together with his paws in disbelief. Mikey covered his mouth, stifling a chuckle at the scene, and after meeting his quick gaze, I suppressed a grin myself.

"You have been through much anguish, chōnan. Your aura…it is hurting," Sensei said regrettably, now resting a paw on Big Leo's cheek. "What terrible occurrence has brought you to our time?"

Big Leo gently removed the paw, his eyes misty. "I intend to tell you when my brothers arrive, Sensei."

Like magic, the familiar clicking of the turnstiles echoed through the lair as he said that.

Mikey

"Oh no. Now there's two of 'em?" Raph shouted into the common room. Donnie trailed behind him, his brown eyes wide with confusion.

"Nice to see you, too," both Leos said at once, then smiled at the other.

I chuckled and pointed at them. "Hah! It's like you're twins, but you're not."

My bros made it to the pit, keeping a reasonable distance from the new turtle in the room. Before the awkward silence hung in the room, it was up to me to ease everyone's worries. I jumped up, wrapping an arm around the future Leo.

"Meet Big Leo, guys. He's from the future." I dragged out the last word with a wave of my fingers.

Donnie's eyes sparkled, circling our guest and marveling at him with a finger to his chin. "This is incredible! How did you get here? A teleportation device? Portal? Time machine?"

Big Leo clasped a hand on my genius bro's shoulder with a warm smile. "The latter. Built by the smartest turtle around." He winked, causing Donnie to melt like a popsicle in the summer.

"Me? Wow…"

"Not to ruin your moment, Donnie…" Raph piped in, raising a hand, "actually, I don't care, but can someone tell me what the shell is going on before I freak out?"

"We're not entirely sure what's going on, either," Leo said.

"Big Leo found us on patrol. There was this big light; it was like whoooosh!" I gesticulated with my hands, making my story ten times cooler. "And then zip, he appeared! Then Leo was like, 'stand back, you clone!'" I pretended to hold a katana, using my best Leo voice that I knew would get a chuckle out of Raph like it always did.

"I don't sound like that," Leo whined under his breath.

As I opened my mouth to continue, Big Leo set a hand on my shell, halting my incredible story.

"Can I take it from here, Mikey?" he asked with a grin. When I nodded, he took his place in the center of the pit. "I know this is all very confusing, and I'm sorry for dropping in so fast, but there's a very important reason I'm here."

I raised my hand. "Big Leo, why are you the only one here? Where are our future selves?"

"Stop interrupting, and he'll tell you," Leo groaned. I looked over to stick my tongue out at him, but his angry moue stopped me. It was clear that my big bro was done with me for the day, our argument still fresh in his mind. The feeling was mutual.

Big Leo sighed. "I suppose I'll start with the Heiwa no Buki; it must be disposed of as soon as possible. You've no idea the danger attached to it that you brought here."

I could feel my entire family freeze at his words, each of us probably thinking the worst amid the awkward few seconds that passed.

"How can a weapon of peace be so dangerous?" Raph asked. "Also, do I need to remind everyone again that it's a stick!?"

"I think you've made it clear," Donnie said, rubbing his ear hole that was shaken by Ralph's yell.

"It's not only the Heiwa no Buki you need to worry about, but the junsuina mono that can wield it." Big Leo's eyes landed on me, staring at me expectedly. I gaped back with the same look, waiting for him to continue. Soon, everyone's stares were fixed on me, and I felt like crawling into my shell. Usually, I loved attention, but there was something about this that made me uneasy.

Finally, and all at once, my three brothers shouted, "HIM?"

My stomach fell to my butt at the sudden realization. I felt my skin grow cold and sweat forming at the same time. It all made sense why Zilch wanted me to absorb the light. They were referring to the Heiwa no Buki's power!

Zilch was the Heiwa no Buki!

I'm going to throw up…

"ME?"

Big Leo crouched in front of me, squeezing my shoulder in hopes of easing the impending anxiety attack he could see coming, but I shook him off, pacing the pit before my family.

"But I-I don't want to be a junsuina mono! I mean, do you guys remember what happened to the last dude who used the weapon?" I ranted.

"Wow, I thought he'd be bragging," Raph muttered to Donnie, who shrugged.

I whirled to look at Big Leo, my body trembling. "What happens to me?"

He stood, his eyes sunken in and sad, as if this conversation was physically hurting him. This look of his started becoming more frequent.

"If we don't get rid of that thing, Shredder will soon discover your connection to the weapon. And if he does, you're in grave danger, Michelangelo."

My heart thrashed in my rib cage, and my body turned to ice. This was so unfair! It wasn't my fault I was so pure. Wait, maybe it was. I had to stop being so nice.

"What happens to me?" I demanded this time.

Big Leo sighed heavily. Clutching my shoulder, I could see he was prepared to say something vital, yet he hesitated, glossy eyes shimmering into mine. I felt sick looking at the pain on his face. "Shredder… he'll make you a mindless warrior, forcing you to use the Heiwa no Buki however he wants."

I blinked back at him, expecting a worse answer judging by the heart-wrenching look he gave me. Could it be he was sugar-coating it?

"You became our enemy, and for five years, Shredder has tried using you to destroy us, taking down New York in the process. During that time, Donnie built the time machine. Unfortunately, because of the small power cell that we were able to recover from the Kraang, there was only enough power to send one of us. I went…I had to," Big Leo continued.

I pulled away from him, trying to suppress the fear on my face, but everyone was aware. It was painfully obvious, and I hated it. Then two warm paws settled on my shoulders, turning me around to find Sensei's calm face. He pulled me into him, and I found myself instinctively clutching his maroon robes, struggling not to wet the fabric with tears.

"My sainenshō no musuko, I always knew your spirit was unique. It is no surprise to me that you are worthy of wielding the Heiwa no Buki," Sensei said.

I tried so hard to stop the flow of tears, but they rolled down my face, my shoulders hitching after with a sudden gasp. "But I don't want to be worthy, Papa. I don't want to be used against you."

"You won't," Leo said sternly. I cheated a glance behind me to see him standing, his blue eyes more serious than ever. "Shredder will never know; we won't let him."

"Yeah! No little brother of mine is going to be Shredder's mindless killing machine." Raph stood, too, twirling his sais with a maniacal grin.

Donnie stood as well. "Besides, we have an advantage thanks to Big Leo."

"Have faith in your family, Michelangelo. As long as we stand, you will be okay," Sensei said gently.

I looked up at a warm smile shining down on me like sunlight. I basked in it, feeling Papa's warmth with a calming sensation taking me over. As my freckled cheeks burrowed in his robes, I felt utterly protected.

"I'm sorry, Mikey. You were never supposed to know all this," Big Leo piped in from behind.

"What do you mean?" Leo asked.

Big Leo sighed again, rubbing the back of his head. "There was a mishap. Donnie was supposed to send me to the midnight of the twenty-seventh. Then, I was to take the weapon from Tiger Claw myself and dispose of it. I wasn't supposed to find you."

"What happens now that you've warned us?" Raph asked.

"His reality should be replaced by a new one, ceasing his existence immediately," Donnie answered.

"So… why is he still here?"

We all looked at Big Leo, who seemed just as confused as us.

"Perhaps ensuring the Heiwa no Buki is gone will complete your mission, Leonardo," Master Splinter offered. He gently let go of me, and my heart sank as I still craved his protective warmth. Yet he still had a paw on my shoulder, and I kept an arm fastened tightly around his lower half. It was good enough.

Raph threw a sai at the practice dummy in the distance, striking it directly in the chest. "Then what are we waiting for? Let's destroy it."

"We tried in my time… it is indestructible," Big Leo shot down defeatedly. "The magic inside somehow protects it like an outer shell."

"Then we'll toss it in the ocean, something. It's too dangerous to be kept here any longer." Leo claimed.

"Yes," Sensei agreed. "Unfortunately, you won't make it back before sunrise. It will have to wait, my sons."

My heart twinged at his words. By looking at my bros' faces, they were just as disheartened. Not only did we have to keep the Heiwa no Buki for another night, but that was a night more I had to go without sleep. I just hoped I could push my body a little longer. If I gave in to the sweet embrace of slumber, there'd be no stopping Zilch from pulling me to the astral realm and getting me to absorb the Heiwa no Buki's power.

"In case it did not go without saying, you are welcome to stay here, Leonardo," Sensei said to Big Leo, jolting me from my frightful thoughts.

"Thank you, Sensei," Big Leo replied with a bow.

"Get rest, my sons." Master Splinter paused to look at each of us, landing on me, who still clung to him like a koala. "All of you."

"Hai, Sensei," I heard myself saying in tune with my brothers. It was a mindless acknowledgment, knowing darn well there would be no sleep for me.

My family dispersed to their rooms except me. I sauntered to the kitchen for some nightly tea like I'd done the past couple of nights. Fighting a broad yawn, I stood on my tippy toes to reach the caffeinated batch. I let it sit in the steamy water, and when done, I added a butt load of sugar—like, a candy store amount.

"One more night," I said, staring back at the weary Michelangelo in the reflection of my beverage.


Okay, so I wasn't extremely happy with the ending to this chapter. I felt like I could have done better, but I was a little stuck. I still hope it was enjoyable nonetheless. Let me know what you think of this chapter, and I hope you have a great day!