Chapter 26: A Different Kind of Bonding
Splinter sat in the dojo, watching the flames flicker from his candles as the hum of voices came through the door. His hand rubbed the small shell of Donatello as he napped on his lap. He sighed as he listened to Rockwell and April talk about the possibilities of finding a solution. The situation was bleak but he was glad his son was alive in a sense.
A small sound from below caught his attention. Splinter looked down to see Donatello had poked his head out of his shell and looked up at the old rat. "Oh, my son, I'm so sorry this has happened to you." The dull brown eyes looked up, not taking in what he was saying and Splinter's heart broke. He reached out and stroked the little head, earning a purr of shorts. Soft steps alerted him to someone at the door. Splinter looked up to see his youngest, Michelangelo standing there. "What is wrong, my son?"
"I…I…." Michelangelo started, shifting uncomfortably. "I wanted to see how Donnie is doing."
Splinter sighed and motioned for his youngest to come in. Michelangelo ran in, knelling next to his father. "Donatello is doing just fine. This will be an adjustment for everyone. He will need to be watched."
"I heard Raph say something about setting up Spike's old tank," Michelangelo said sadly. "I don't like the idea of Donnie being in a tank again."
"Neither do I," Splinter admitted. "It will only be temporary, my son."
Michelangelo paused, stroking Donatello slowly before looking up with wide, blue eyes. "Even if we remutate Donnie, will he be the same?"
Splinter paused. He hadn't thought of that. At the time, he was only concerned with making sure Donatello would be alive. He never thought that his son would be gone. That brought up the question, would it have been better to have let Donatello die himself or be living as an unintelligent lifeform? "My son, I trust Doctor Rockwell will be able to do his best work. We can only hope." Michelangelo nodded and rose to his feet. He gave a small bow before crossing the room. "My son." Michelangelo stopped and looked back at Splinter. "Has Leonardo and Karai come back yet?"
"No, Sensei."
Splinter sighed. "Maybe you should check on Raphael." Michelangelo nodded before leaving the dojo. Splinter looked back the turtle in his lap, the one enjoying the shell rubs and the attention.
After Michelangelo had been calmed down enough to totally grasp the situation, Leonardo had run off into the sewer with Karai following close behind. It had surprised everyone when his eldest son had left but Splinter understood. Their world was falling apart and it was shaking everyone to the core. Michelangelo hadn't smiled since being reintroduced to Donatello, Raphael had sunk deep inside himself, holing up everything, and Leonardo had left their home.
A small nip to his fingers brought his focus back on the turtle. Donatello had taken one of his fingers in his mouth and was affectionately nibbling on it, looking up at his with dull brown eyes. Splinter used his other hand to stroke the tiny head.
"I have failed you, my son. When you were first captured, I feared the safety of your brothers. I held them back. I didn't want them to get captured as well. I was only thinking about how I lost my daughter and then how I lost you. I didn't want to lose any more children. I…. I…. I almost took them away and almost vowed to forget about you. I didn't want to lose any more people I cared about. I am so sorry, Donatello. I should have never even had that thought cross my mind."
"Then, I felt your anguish, your pain, your fear. I knew I could never forget about my bright boy. I love all my children. I vowed to save you. I almost left your brothers here while I did it but….. well, you know how we attacked you. I never dreamed that the Shredder would do something like that to you."
"When we went to Stockman's lab, I was determined to find you and bring you home. Then, we found Karai. I'm sorry, my son, I failed you again then. I had my daughter back. I had forgotten about you and since it seemed like you weren't there, I was ready to leave. At the time, I thought, at least I had gotten one child back. I almost grabbed Karai and ran, leaving the creature she wanted to bring along."
"I… I….. I almost did something terrible. I'm so lucky Karai stepped in, and Michelangelo too. I only saw a threat to my family in you. I almost push aside my children and almost killed you on the spot. My own child…. What kind of monster am I? A father should be able to know his child, no matter what, and I didn't see you. Michelangelo was able to lift the vail from my eyes."
Splinter shuttered, remembering the horrible feelings and the sinking of his stomach when Michelangelo called out to the large turtle. He remembered the horror of realizing the thing he was going to kill was his lost son. "I am sorry, my brilliant son. This should have never happened to you. No one should have this fate. We are realizing what place you have in this family and how much we are lost without you. I should have protected you more."
"You were always the gentlest among your brothers. I remember thinking that maybe you were never cut out to be a ninja but you proved me wrong. You seem to always do that. Please, Donatello, surprise me, prove me wrong. I want you to return to us, full and yourself," Splinter whispered, lowering himself down to rest his forehead on the shell.
"I hate that I was forced to use your own creation to save you and now… Donatello….. my son… We are lost without you….. I….. I… I want to try again…. To be a better father to you… Please….. my son…"
Author's Note: I'm glad you guys loved their reactions. I think Leo, Raph, Donnie, and Mikey wouldn't really know what to do if they didn't have each other. If you look at their lives, they haven't been apart very often. I think if four were to become three, they wouldn't really know what to do. And so far, option B is the more popular one but I've gotten a few ideas for option A. It's still up in the air on what I'll pick. Special thanks to Fever To Write, Juanita27, Aoifetello, Pilyarquitect, BipperCipher3, Sonic155, Andraia452, guest, Gnomjovel, Purple bandana, and Heather for the reviews. Also to starscream36 for being the 150th reviewer!