Chapter 7: Everything that NEEDs to be Talked About (2k03 Ver.)

Physical Plane -Dojo-:

Splinter looked around as suddenly gasps were filling the room and Mikey's head shot up from his lap with a raspy cry as tears started flowing as sobs shook from lithe shoulders as the other buried his face into his hands.

"My son!" He cried, tears of happiness springing into his eyes as a forest green blur dashed passed him and towards Mikey pulling the slighter turtle into a broad plastron, fingers scrabbling against the smooth plates before clutching into weak fists.

"I'm sorry!" The orange banded turtle was sobbing into Leo's chest. "I-I'm so-sorry! I wanted to tell you but I didn't want you to worry! I didn't want to be treated any weirder than you already do! I didn't want any of this! I just wanted to b-be normal!"

Leo felt his heart clench painfully as his youngest brother cried and he couldn't help but feel like it was all his fault. He was the leader, he should be able to tell when things weren't okay with his family. His family thrives off one another's energy; if all the energy that Mikey had been showing recently was all fake, what else was his brother faking? How much pain did that smile hide?

Finally, Mikey's crying subsided and was reduced to soft hiccupping sniffles. Tilting his head down, his eyes softened and a gentle smile pulled onto his lips as he regarded his brother who looked back up with red-puffy sky blue eyes.

"It's okay." He nuzzled the lighter green head underneath his chin gently. "We know, I know you only thought about how we would react. How you feel is also important Mike, and I never want to blow over that again.

The sea-green turtle looked at him before glancing back at his other two brothers, Donnie smiled in that sympathetic way of I'll-always-be-by-your-side, while Raph tried to seem tough even if it was useless in the way his amber eyes shone softly at their youngest.

Another watery noise was pulled from Mikey's throat as he smiled at them. He jumped when he felt a paw land on his shoulder. "My son, I think we should all have a very deep discussion."

"Aw, do we have to?" Mikey whined, shoving his face into the crook of Leo's neck. "I'd rather hug it out and go to bed."

Leo frowned at the way Mikey was so easy to dismiss his own problems, Donnie seemed to share the sentiment as the others frowned, arms crossed. "I don't think so Michelangelo. We're talking about this tonight; whether you want to or not."

The orange banded turtle whined low in his throat and shrunk into his shell as his brothers leveled him with a glare. With a sigh, he got comfortable against Leo, shifting his weight so he was basically in his eldest brother's lap as he stared at the rest of his family.

"Well," He shifted slightly. "Where do you wanna start?"

"When did dis star' 'appenin'?" Raph grunted as he sat crossed legs in front of him.

"Hard to say, to be honest." Mikey shrugged, trying to come off as indifferent. "When I was little I once snuck into Master Splinter's room when he had a meeting with the Ancient One and I think I wasn't feeling too well because of Raph's anger back then, I'm not sure anymore. I stopped by to tell Master Splinter I wasn't feeling well and...I think the Ancient One found me. He told Master Splinter that something wasn't right with me…"

The brothers turned to their father as the gray rat gasped in realization.

"I remember that," He shook his head. "Ancient One told me that Michelangelo's powers were too weak and unstable for his young body to handle so in order for him to live normally and strongly, he sealed them. But it was such a long time ago and I simply thought he meant your brothers weak immune system at the time. I didn't think he meant anything beyond that for the Ancient One would have told me if my son had such a dangerous power."

"...after that my health stopped going down but the overwhelming feeling of the emotions didn't stop," The turtle shuddered a bit. "In fact, I think it got worse. The seal didn't stop anything...I still felt every emotion. All of the raw pent up feelings."

"Describe them to your brothers Michelangelo." Master Splinter looked at the shivering turtle laying in Leo's lap. "They'll understand better the power of emotions that way."

"Jealousy running through me like cold water." Leo looked away, ashamed at the memory of being jealous of Mikey's natural instincts.

"Frustration holding me down like a weight of chains…" Donnie bit his lip, all the past memories of frustration at his family for trying to pull him away from his work. Himself for not being as athletic as his brothers and preferring to work with electronics to better his ninjitsu.

"The disappointment tied me down as I tried to please everyone…" Splinter's ears went down as flashbacks of Michelangelo suddenly acting out and blowing off his training like it was a joke for the sake of his brothers.

"The overwhelming rage burning through me, trying to take me down like a forest…" A particularly hard shiver running through him as he remembered the wildfire running through him, causing physical illness from it all. Raging fevers for days until whoever was feeling it finally calmed down enough for his body to physically heal.

Raph looked away, tears stinging the back of his eyes as memories assaulted him from him getting angry for no apparent reason to getting angry at losing to his brothers; to even small things like not being able to find something and blaming everyone else.

"I just decided since I couldn't please everyone," Blue eyes looked back up with determination. "I'd please myself and ease their problems as much as I could. Even if that meant playing the joker, the one who didn't think; the slacker wild card. I'd take it all to make you all better. I could handle it, and I did for fifteen years."

"Well," Leo cut in, face soft as he rubbed a finger underneath Mikey's cheek in a form of comfort. "You don't have too anymore. We'll work on it; together."

"As a family." Donnie smiled, hand running over the back of his only little brothers shell.

"We won't be lettin' ya figh' dis alone." growled Raph, gently noogying the top of his head.

"Michelangelo my son," Master Splinter sighed as he walked forward. "I'm sorry. I didn't think of back then as nothing more than a dream and yet, it was so real; and it hurt you dearly. For that, I swear to you that we will find a way to make this work as a family."

Mikey thought he'd been cried out. But as it turns out, he had more tears stored just for happy moments like this in his life; for as he sat there taking in everything his family said, crystal clear tears dripped down his beak and chin in a steady stream as he smiled at them.

"Duh, because ore wa hitori janai yo." He smiled serenely after his statement as his family stood there dumbfounded.