Chapter Thirty-Nine: Broken Toys
AN: Horray! Finished a chapter. Not edited, so any mistakes are purely Michelangelo's fault. :D Wanted to get something out quickly to help stave off boredom. Hope everyone is safe and well!
AN2: Are you enjoying the story? Working on the next chapter already, while also working on another Sai Fi and of course, my Transformers fic. Should have another chapter by next weekend
Reviews make the muse go faster… hint hint.
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Donnie returned to the lair refreshed and ready to face any challenge, including Leo, though when he entered his home, his older brother was no where to be found.
Mikey was sitting morosely at the table, Raph busying himself cooking. Mikey visibly perked up when he saw Donnie and motioned for the lanky turtle to join him.
Mikey's pained expression when he moved did not go unnoticed.
"Take it easy," Raph muttered.
"Mikey, what happened?" Donnie asked, approaching and finding Mikey covered in shamrock colored bruises.
One eye was partially swollen shut and Mikey's bottom lip was split, dried blood stretching an inch along the green skin.
"Training," Mikey said in a forced, happy tone.
"Bullshit," Raph snarled, spinning and slinging spaghetti sauce around the kitchen. "Don't try to cover for him! You know he did that shit on purpose!"
Mikey quailed, shrinking down as if expecting a blow.
"Battle simulation. No punches pulled."
"Fucking abuse," Raph snapped. His shell was bouncing with the heaviness of his breathing. "Leo knew damn good and well what he was doing! And he did it on purpose!"
"Leo did this?" Donnie asked, checking over Mikey's wounds.
Mikey, as always when injured, was totally submissive. He allowed Donnie to poke and prod at his wounds and give him a thorough scrutiny.
"I checked him over," Raph said, going back to stirring the pot of bubbling sauce. "Ran your scanner over him. Nothing broken. Just bruising and minor cuts."
"Why did Leo do this?" Donnie asked, double checking Mikey's cut lip to make sure he didn't need stitches.
"Give you one guess," Raph growled, stirring violently. He placed his hand on the hot stove, making him hiss and jerk away, muttering obscenities under his breath.
"Me?" Donnie asked sadly, sitting down at the table as his legs were weak and shaky.
If Leo got mad at Donnie and took his aggression out on Mikey, what would Leo do once he saw Donnie?
"Partly." Raph was never one to mince words. "But when you left to see Sable, Leo called for a long training session. After about an hour, Leo said we need more experience in actual combat situations, so we began to fight. Little did I know, Leo was out for blood and wasn't kidding when he said we weren't to pull punches."
Raph rubbed his jaw.
"Got me good a couple times, but Mikey got the brunt of it."
Mikey remained silent, staring at his hands which were clasped on the table in front of him.
"It's okay, Raph," Mikey said softly. "It's training. We need to be ready to take a hit because the bad guys won't be following a code of conduct."
"No, it's not okay," Raph said, patting Mikey on the shell. "Leo should be ashamed of himself for hurting you."
"Where's Leo now?" Donnie asked, glancing around in case the unstable brother jumped out of the shadows and attacked at any second.
"In his room. Healing." Raph's expression turned dark and dangerous. "Master Splinter wasn't too happy with Leo's training style, so he gave him a taste of his own medicine."
Mikey wrapped his arms around himself, curling inward, his face drawn, voice low and scared.
"Dad told Leo to apologize, but Leo was mad and refused and next thing you know, they're shouting at each other."
"Leo yelled at dad?" Donnie breathed in disbelief. His green eyes were huge behind his glasses.
The idea that Leo, the most noble and honorable and obedient among them, would dare lift his voice to his father was something unheard of.
"I'm going to go lay down awhile," Mikey said, getting up from the table. He moved gingerly, shuffling toward his room. Though instead of taking the tunnel that led to his bedroom, he slipped off down a side tunnel.
Raph and Donnie exchanged a look.
Mikey was going to go cry and he didn't want his brothers to see. He didn't like others to see him weak, vulnerable, even if they were his brothers. Sure the brothers had witnessed the others cry, but as they grew older, there was shame in allowing one to show such weakness.
Mikey could face an enemy and not shed a tear from injury. Family conflict, however, tore the little turtle up. He hated to see his family in such chaos. It was breaking his heart.
Raph turned the stove low so the food could simmer while Mikey took his 'nap', i.e. moment to cry unobserved, and sat down in Mikey's vacated seat. Raph scrubbed at his face with his large hand.
"I've never seen him like this, Donnie," he said after a moment. "Leo's always had his moments of leadership and being Splinter Jr, but this is…different."
"He's in pain," Donnie said sadly.
Raph allowed himself a hearty chuckle. "Especially now. Dad laid into him pretty good."
"I can't believe Leo argued with sensei," Donnie said, unable to fathom such a catastrophe.
Raph, never one to withhold his opinion, nor censure his speech, rested his elbows of the table and stared at Donnie.
"When Mikey got hurt, I…I just lost it. I punched Leo, he punched me. Sensei broke us up and all I could think about was helping Mikey."
Raph's expression went darker than normal. "Blood was all over his face. He wasn't responsive. Just laid there, blank expression and empty eyes, like he was dead. I've never been so scared."
"But you took care of him," Donnie put in, reaching out to touch Raph's hands.
Raph didn't pull away, which was a sign of how distraught he was over the whole situation. He had fought with Leo before. It was natural, both being alpha males and establishing their dominance within the family unit.
Not to mention, friction was normal between brothers, regardless of species.
"I've never seen dad so angry," Raph whispered. "Leo screamed and shouted and no matter how much dad tried to be calm, Leo wouldn't listen. On and on he went, saying we were weak. Worthless. Useless. That we were a liability."
Donnie lowered his eyes. He knew the rhetoric all too well.
"Dad told him we were none of those things and Leo just went off!" Raph's eyes widened, the memory still difficult for him to believe. "Said dad was taking our side and that made him just as weak."
"Oh, Leo," Donnie muttered sadly.
It pained him to see how much Leo had fallen. How far he had been swallowed by the dark.
"Mikey woke up in time to see dad challenge Leo," Raph recounted, rubbing at his face. His jaw ached from the blows Leo delivered. "Leo yelled at dad that it was his fault for being so soft on us. For making us weak. Dad tried to reason with him but Leo was beyond listening. So dad challenged him."
"Bet that went well,' Donnie said, wishing he'd witnessed it, but at the same time, glad he hadn't.
"No holds barred. No punches thrown." Raph gave a shudder. "Dad beat the hell out of him. Leo wasn't able to get any hits in. Dad was unrelenting. Leo was barely conscious when dad ordered him to his room until he learns his lesson."
"Think he has?" Donnie asked.
"Hope so," Raph grunted. "If he loses control again, he could seriously hurt you or Mikey."
Donnie caught Raph's meaning. Subtly wasn't his strong suit, but he was right. Raph was the only one who could possibly best Leo during combat simulations. The burly turtle could take a hell of a pounding.
Mikey emerged from the shadowed tunnel. As expected, the orange around his mask was much darker. He limped back to the kitchen with his stomach growling.
"Couldn't sleep," he said, sitting down with a heavy sigh.
Neither Raph nor Donnie called his bluff.
Master Splinter made an appearance, smiling when he found Donnie seated at the table.
"Donatello, you appear well rested."
Donnie smiled, hoping his father didn't notice his blush. "Feeling much better, thank you, sensei."
"Perhaps now you may focus upon one project at a time, hmm?" Splinter teased.
"Highly unlikely," Donnie answered truthfully. He perked up, motioning to his family, "Come on, I wanted to show you something."
Together they went to Donnie's makeshift lab. Donnie picked up a small dragonfly looking object.
"I've slimlined the attack drones, giving them a quieter motor," Donnie explained, slapping Mikey's hand away as the youngest couldn't help but touch it. "I've designed a launching platform for them that fits into an Ipad case."
"Awesome," Mikey said, trying to poke the dragonfly wing.
Donnie swatted him again.
"I've also designed these shuriken spikes to electrocute the enemy or emit a chemical compounded upon impact that will cause severe burns. I can also make some with incendiary for explosions."
"Cool," Mikey breathed, reaching out to touch the innocent looking metal. "Can I have some of those?"
"No, you'll blow your shell off," Donnie said, putting the dangerous things out of Mikey's reach.
"Man!" Mikey whined. "I never get to play with the fun stuff."
"I have something else for you," Donnie said, withdrawing what looked like slender sticks of dynamite.
Mikey must have thought that's what they were too, because his eyes got huge, mouth gaping open as Donnie presented them for Mikey's investigation.
"Trying to finish the circuitry for those, but you'll need to practice with them so I can adjust the balance," Donnie said, smirking as Mikey rolled the thinner nunchukus in his hands. "They'll be adjustable so you can make them short for close quarter combat, or extend their link, striking an enemy at a distance."
"Dude, this is like the coolest thing, ever," Mikey gasped, tugging on two sticks and watching as they sprang back and forth.
"And don't think I forgot you, Raph," Donnie said, tossing over a sai.
"Hey, I haven't seen these in ages," Raph mused, whirling the deadly steel along his hands with the ease of a master. He hefted them in his large meaty paws. "They're lighter than I remember."
Donnie made a disgruntled noise, showing Raph the indentation in the handle. "You stopped using these when you progressed to the sharper sai, but these, I've augmented to emit an electric shock." He showed Raph the tiny button at the base. "When finished, they will deliver a heavy jolt to whoever touches them, physically or parrying with a weapon."
"Cool," Raph repeated Mikey's favorite expression.
"Oh, and I made a dozen of these," Donnie held up several small white capsules. "They provide a thick black smoke that allows us to disappear without a trace."
Before Mikey could reach for it, Donnie had put the dozen capsules away, giving his brother a look of warning. Mikey grinned innocently.
No one bought it.
"I'm also in the process of making Leo some energy swords, but it's difficult to forge metal here. Maybe I'll be able to do something at Sable's? Plenty of room and no one will hear the banging of the hammer and anvil."
Donnie rustled around a few canisters in a box, extracting an aerosol can with the word 'Stink' on it.
"I've also made a couple cans of isotopic markers, which incidentally, also carry a stench that can't be washed off. In fact, the more water a person uses, the worse the smell becomes. It has to wear off naturally, though I haven't had a chance to test it. Didn't want to smell up the lair."
"Yeah, thanks for that," Raph said, jerking his thumb toward Mikey. "We already have one who stinks the place up all the time."
Mikey crossed his arms over his chest, whimpered from the strain, and loosened his defiance.
"If that's not enough of a reason to avoid vegetables, I don't know what is."
Donnie didn't disagree. He tugged on a large folded piece of paper and opened it up, smoothing it out on top of the workbench.
"I'm working on the schematic for a small, more maneuverable battle vehicle. Armor plated. Loaded with weapons. Possibly able to combine with another vehicle."
"Like a transformer?" Mikey asked in awe. "That'd be wicked, brah. We have four vehicles that transform and become one big one! No traffic for us!"
Donnie made a scribble along the margin, liking the idea.
"Oh, and Master Splinter, I think we need to have a more functional bathroom," Donnie put in, showing his father a rough outline of what he had in mind. "When Sable visits, she can't be squatting over the drains."
"Total mood killer there," Mikey muttered.
To Splinter, the drawing was merely a jumble of lines and mixed colors, but if Donnie was confident in his sketch, then he approved. "That would be most wise. Young ladies need their space and privacy." He glanced to his sons and added, "All of us need some space and privacy."
Donnie put away his schematics and took a piece of paper from his back pocket.
"Which reminds me, Raph, Mikey, I ordered some building supplies. Thought we'd get a jump start on converting the attic."
"Righty-o!" Mikey called, his gave a partial grin, as his split lip made his usually broad smile painful. He nodded toward the bedrooms where Leo had been sequestered. "Maybe Mr. Moody Turtle will be in a better mood."
"Hard labor might do Asshole some good," Raph muttered, then whined when his father's tail cracked him on the lower shell in reprimand. "Ow! Sorry, sensei."
"Before we see what the Foot are up to," Raph interjected, tapping his huge finger on the wall calendar of a busty blonde Donnie had hanging up at his work station. The date was circled with FOOT stamped across it. "Might have to take a little vacation and clean up the Foot."
Mikey checked the date and muttered. "Nine days. I better heal up."
"Yup, which means you need to eat and rest," Raph said, taking on the paternal and leadership role, tugging on Mikey's shell to direct him to the kitchen. "So, we'll have some spaghetti and I'll make you a pizza for dessert."
"Ohhhh," Mikey bemoaned, adopting a fake limp and panting as a dying man in a desert. "I… I don't think… I can… make it. Carry me."
"Brat," Raph muttered, shoving Mikey toward the stove.
Splinter placed his hand on Donnie's arm, preventing him from leaving before the rat had a chance to speak in private.
"Master?" Donnie asked innocently.
"I know it is in your nature to nurture those who are in pain, but I must ask you to not do so with Leonardo," Splinter said. "He must learn to control his emotions. Until then, I ask you give him space and let him put to rest the demons that haunt him."
Donnie's dimples appeared as he pouted. "I just wanna help him."
"I know you do. We all do, but right now, he is shrouded in darkness. Only –he- can decide when he wants to return to the light. The more we press, the deeper he will go."
"I wish there was something I could do to help bring him out of this funk."
"He knows we are here. That we love and support him. When he's ready to unburden himself of this darkness, he will let us know."
"This sucks," Donnie whined, shoulders drooping. "There's so much I want to tell him."
"I know it is difficult to exercise patience, but this is something Leonardo must face and conquer on his own."
"Come on," Mikey called, waving to his brother and father. "Lunch is getting cold!"
Donnie and Splinter joined the turtles at the stove to find Raph had already prepared them plates of mile high spaghetti and a couple dozen breadsticks on the table.
"But what about Leo?" Mikey asked before digging in.
"I will take him a plate,' Splinter said, taking his own plate and carrying it to Leo's room.
He was back within a minute, clearly not taking any time to speak to Leo while the eldest was sulking in his room. Splinter settled down as Raph made him a new plate before taking his seat to eat.
As the family talked and ate, Donnie, naturally, became distracted. Idly he scribbled something on the table top, not catching Splinter's annoyance, and within a minute, the tech turtle was up and meandering to his work station, bread stick hanging out of his mouth.
Life, it appeared, had returned to normal in the lair.
Master Splinter went for a walk. Mikey occupied himself by playing video games. Raph took out a fraction of his aggression on a punching bag. Donnie flittered about his work station, pausing every few moments to write something on a notebook, on the bench, or the chalkboard. And though he was distracted, his actions lacked the erratic fanaticism from a few days prior.
The day passed into evening and as everyone was settled in after a big dinner of pizza lasagna (Mikey's own creation), Leo graced his family with his presence.
He slinked into the room, green skin mottled with bruises. His jaw was swollen, as was one eye. He hesitantly approached his family, head down, timid almost. It was most unnatural for him.
"Sorry," Leo said, taking a risk to meet his family's gaze. "I was out of line. Been out of sorts lately and taking my anger and resentment out on you. I apologize."
Splinter gave a nod of approval. He had hoped Leo would see the error of his ways and do the honorable thing.
Mikey got up, making a direct line to his big brother. He carefully threw his arms around Leo, both still suffering from injuries.
"It's all good, brah," Mikey muttered, holding Leo tight.
Leo returned the gesture, burying his face in Mikey's neck.
"I'm so sorry I hurt you, Mikey. Please, forgive me."
"Forgiven, dude," Mikey said, battling back tears. "We all get crazy sometimes. It happens."
Leo gave a noncommittal noise.
Mikey, ever so naïve and bubbling with enthusiasm, held Leo at arm's length, his face alight with happiness.
"Dude, Donnie's been working on some new toys for us! And, he's going to make you a lightsaber!"
Leo's expression faltered, not believing Mikey's estimation. Looking to Donnie for clarification, Leo faltered upon finding Donnie's gaze adverted, nervously picking at a spot on the couch.
"Please tell me he's joking," Leo said at last, hoping to break the tension.
Donnie shrugged one shoulder.
"Not a lightsaber, per say. No. But an electric edged sword."
"You can do that?" Leo asked, extracting himself from Mikey's grip, as the youngster tended to latch on like an octopus when overly excited.
"I've had the idea for awhile," Donnie said, finally meeting Leo's eyes. "Thought we could augment weapons for different combat situations."
"Glad you found the time to tinker," Leo said, his words more of a barb than praise. "You are always happiest when you're building something."
Donnie nodded, looking away. He didn't want Leo to see the hurt on his face.
"He's going to check out the barn at Sable's and see if there's an anvil and place to forge the metal," Mikey put in helpfully. "We're going to her place on Friday to get started on the attic."
Leo swallowed the burning anger in his chest. With the Foot Clan up to no good, they needed to spend very available moment in training. They had already lost valuable time. The transmission was scheduled in 9 days. They had to be ready. Why couldn't his brothers see that?
Feigning a smile and tamping down his frustration, he adopted a friendly manner.
"Sounds great."
"Dude, you're going to have so much fun there!" Mikey explained, tugging Leo toward the couch to join them in watching a sci fi movie. "And Sable said I could have some animals to take care of. Oh, and we're going to build a bonfire and make smores and pee in the woods…"
Leo wiggled himself free of Mikey.
"Sounds great, Mikey, but if we're going to go do all that work for her, I'm going to need to rest."
Leo offered a smile that didn't reach his eyes and went to the kitchen, retrieving food and drinks and retreated to his room.
Mikey, oblivious as ever, returned to the couch, stealing Raph's popcorn and enjoying the movie.
The rest of the family exchanged knowing gazes.
Leo may have apologized, but there was no truth behind his words.
They were empty.
Raph stared at Donnie.
"He so much as raises his voice toward her and he'll be eating his shell."
Donnie offered a sheepish smile. He had been worrying over Leo's visitation to the farm. But with Raph's reassurance, and their father going along as well, Donnie put his troubles at ease. His father and brother would make sure Leo stayed in line.
Donnie only wished Leo would break through the darkness shrouding him. Return to being their leader. Their family was not the same with Leo being sidelined and harming his brothers out of anger and resentment.
Time would tell if Leo was able to pull himself away from the edge of darkness.
It was only a question of whether or not his family would survive, with or without him.
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*cue dramatic music*
Da Dunt Dunt Dunt da-dah!
Key the family friction!
and.. who wants to coddle Mikey?
