Chapter 16: Pristine
Splinter let out a sigh of contentment. His sons were on patrol, and the elderly Rat had the Lair all to himself. It was so rare for him to get any alone time, and when he did he savored it. He looked around their home and smiled. At least it was clean for now. Splinter liked for the Lair to be so pristine, but having four sons sometimes made that difficult. He ventured up to his sons' rooms and looked them over. Leonardo's was the best out of all of them as he valued a pristine room. He had everything in its place, and his floor was immaculate.
Donatello's was a little messy, but not too bad. He was also very organized, though he sometimes left things cluttered when he was working on a project. His laboratory was worse, but Splinter didn't worry about that too much. At least Donatello had the sense to clean it, and he was very particular about who was allowed in there. Even his father had to come in with his permission, and even though Splinter didn't like the idea that much, he did respect his son's wishes.
Michelangelo's room was very messy with scattered comic books and candy wrappers everywhere. The Rat tried his best to instill in his sons that a clean room was a happy room, but Michelangelo often ignored this. He was just too absorbed in his own world. Splinter winced as he stepped on one of Michelangelo's Justice Force action figures. With a heavy sigh, Splinter put the figure on one of the bookshelves because he wasn't sure where it went. He would have to speak to his youngest son soon about this room because he wasn't happy with the way Michelangelo continued to be so messy.
Raphael's room wasn't much better, though he did only have magazines and some weights scattered about. His punching bag was falling apart, and Splinter knew he'd have to remind his son to fix it. The Rat frowned as he spotted a magazine that wasn't very appropriate. He'd have to speak to Raphael about keeping such magazines on the floor in plain view. He decided to confiscate the magazine to teach his son a lesson.
Splinter went back into the living room after putting the magazine in his own room. Normally, this room would also be messy with pizza boxes and popcorn strewn everywhere, but Splinter had made his sons clean up before they went on patrol. He was sick of always stepping on something and injuring his foot. With a sigh, he settled in his chair and flipped on the television.
"I might as well enjoy this pristine home while I can," he mused. "Once my sons get home, it will be chaos."
A/N: Wow. 463 words with this one. I enjoyed writing this so much and using Splinter. He's so much fun to write. Feel free to leave a review, and have a shelltastic day.