Author's Note:

Some gentle stuff here, still awkwardness between these two. But it's going to be as much fluff as I can push in, your thoughts so far? The cultural aspect is light, but evident. No flames please!

The turtle was quiet company when journeying to the back of the farmhouse. Silently stepping across the fallen leaves that Autumn night and making absolutely no loud breaths in those two minutes it took to reach the barn back door. Casey held the box with one hand, balancing it on his hip to push open the door.

He braced with his back, using sheer determination to coax the door open inch by inch- until it managed to leave an opening big enough for the boy to squeeze through. Casey stood on his tiptoes and hit the switch with his nose to send light into the barn. Leonardo arched an eye ridge- and with one hand, propelled the door to its full potential. Casey didn't say a word- grateful the turtle didn't say a thing either.

Leonardo wouldn't have said a thing in any case- because the sight before him stole his breath.

If he thought the barn was messy before… this was a completely different thing. Leonardo blinked twice, bracing the door because how else could he stand upright without stumbling back?

"Are those…" his voice returned slowly, "Clay pots?"

Casey turned around, eyes widening and then reverting his attention to Leonardo with a sheepish smile, "Yeah… At least… what's left of them."

Casey was right to say 'what's left of them'. What could have been tiny little bowls were now broken into shards here and there, a lucky few cracked but most well burnt until black. Some of the brown had been painted white, a couple blue and green. There were odd ones shaped horrible before being cracked, and others so perfect they looked near clean. All contributing to a large pile that blended in so well with the dull brown of the barn that Leo wouldn't have noticed it from the distance of the farm.

Only one word managed to escape the turtle, "How…?"

Casey put his box down next to at least three other boxes of cotton before him, and put his hands on his hips, "They were always here. For years… Just behind the other junk we have back here."

Leonardo nodded, his feet itching to check if any pottery shards had managed to find their way to Casey's bare feet. Because why the boy chose to go bare foot that night was beyond Leonardo- and he asked, "How are we cleaning this up?"

Casey didn't hesitate, "You're helping?"

Leonardo rolled his eyes, as though the answer were obvious to the boy all alone, "Of course, and then you'll be showing me how to make a diya… right?"

Casey's jaw slackened, and he slowly nodded, "Yeah… if you still wanna."

Leo knelt down, picking up a chipped little clay bowl that fit perfectly into the palm of his hand, "Or show me first, then I'll help clean."

Casey shoved a thumb behind him, and to the large table that could have been a dining table once, "I've got an example here. Just gotta relight it."

"Perfect," Leo jumped up, cradling his little pot when he followed Casey, "Then we decorate… right?"

Casey shrugged again, eyes lifting to the roof, "I only wanted to make one or two… for respect to Auntie Baby but-"

Leo had to cut him off with a perplexed, "Aunty who?"

Casey turned, head tilting so his hair fell over his ear and onto one shoulder, "Aunty Baby. She was a friend of my grandma. She's err… from the Caribbean- you know, South America. A ugh… Indo-Guyanese I think."

Casey gestured to the clayware behind them, "She used to put up the diyas every year, around this time. She said it was her tradition, and even after she died Grandma and I continued it."

Then Casey's eyes glimmered, red radiating flames rivalling dancing fire, "We make a bunch of sweet meets and light diyas, some years we make awesome rangoli and then there's this awesome story about a saint or something making a journey so they would light the way to guide him home. -The food's always vegetarian though, but don't let that stop you from eating a bunch. Then sometimes I gotta wear this kurta which is really close to one of you guy's Japanese dress thingy and... And…"

Leo was lost- and it was only too well displayed on his face. The frozen posture in addition to his wide eyes, mouth struggling to say something other than, "What?"

Casey blinked slowly, as though reminding himself that this mutant turtle was as innocent as could be to the traditions of anything other than Japan and things he saw in New York. Leonardo winced, head turning away from the still look of Casey to awkwardly rub his arm.

The blue eyed male glanced up to the ceiling, noticing the bigger cobwebs with little bundles of their prey still hanging about. A few lights, sending golden glow into the barn was their only source, but at the front… Leonardo tilted his head, leaning back so he was forced to put one leg in the air for balance so he could glimpse a lone light flickering at the front.

"It that a diya back there?"

Casey arched a brow at Leonardo's strange pose, balancing the diya in one hand while leaning back so he almost looked as though he were lying down, "I lit one already. Just for show."

"To show what?"

To say Leo didn't resemble Mikey at that moment would be an unforgivable lie. But the different shades of blue made the difference stand out- because Mikey had lighter eyes. And Leo's were deeper in blue. How Casey knew that difference, was something he never thought about before.

"To show…" Casey lifted his hands, twirling them around for the words to come flying at him, "To decorate you know? Like… practice before the real thing,"

Leo straightened his posture, nodding to himself as though realizing something, "You mean… you put the clay pots- I mean, diyas on the ground to make a design?"

Casey nodded, a small smile edging on his lips, "Exactly- but this year I'm making a small one,"

Ever curious in the ways of new things, Leonardo tilted his head, and cradling his little clay pot closer he asked, "Why?"

"Because I'm doing it alone this year,"

Something about Casey's lamentable tone caused the turtle to sigh. Something… forlorn about the expression looked so off on the usually bright face of the only human boy on their team. Eyes glancing down and hands tightly grit as though holding back a wave of emotion- it wasn't ugly… There's no way Leo would ever say Casey looked ugly… but it wasn't something Leo would like to see. And in a split second, Leonardo determined that he was going to try his utmost to make sure that look stays off his face.

"You're not alone Casey," Leonardo raised his head sigh, catching the boy off his guard, "I'm with you- I'll help."

And the leader inside didn't need any mask when he announced, "We're going to make this a holiday we'll never forget,"

The turtle held up his little clay pot, "Where's the fire? Let's start burning some oil."

Leonardo strode straight past a wide-eyed Casey, and onto the table where a large glass bottle of brown oil was filled to the brim, "We duck the cotton in oil right?"

Casey waited a moment, and when Leonardo turned, he found the most childish grin of utter gratitude on the boy's face, mingled with what could only be excitement, "Right!"

And they began. Starting off a holiday to remember.