Chapter 35: A Little Shot

A squeal of laughter rang through the lair as Michelangelo tossed a happy Donatello in the air and expertly caught him. Mikey brought Donnie up and nuzzled their noses together before tickling him and sending him back in the air. Raph and Leo only laughed at the joy their younger brothers were having. When Mikey first tossed Donnie into the lair, both had leapt from their seats, intending on catching Donnie and beating Mikey. Of course when Donnie laughed, they couldn't find it in themselves to break up the fun.

"When will the Mutanimals be arriving?" Karai asked, walking over to stand by Leo and Raph to watch the two play.

Leo glanced at the clock on the wall. "They should be arriving any moment now."

"That's good," Karai yawned, sitting down on a chair. "Man, I'm tired."

"We all are," Raph growled out, letting his head fall onto the table.

"It's been a rough two weeks," Leo tried to reassure. "Hopefully Donnie will be stable and he'll be able to have the next shot."

"I'd hate to see him go through any pain though," Raph murmured, lifting his head to watch the joyous interaction between the youngest two.

"All of us would hate that," Karai agreed.

"Awwwwwww! Look at the little turtle!"

The three at the table immediately jumped at the voice while Mikey caught Donnie and tucked him into his chest, all ready for any sign of danger. Pigeon Pete stood at the entrance, hands up in surrender as the rest of the family relaxed.

"Wow, he really is a baby," Slash said as he walked around the frozen bird to greet their friends.

Mikey instinctively held Donnie tighter, causing the little turtle to cry out in discomfort. "Oh man, I'm sorry, D. It's okay. They're just some new friends. Want to say hi?" Donnie sniffled and looked over with wide eyes. Leatherhead walked straight up to Mikey and held a clawed hand over Donnie. The little turtle blinked up at him before happily giggling and grabbing the finger. Pete took that as a cue to fly over and coo at the baby.

Splinter opened the door at the commotion and crossed the room to welcome their friends. Slash gave a small bow as Rockwell walked forward to shake his hand. "I trust your journey was peaceful?"

"Of course," Rockwell reassured. "How is everything here?"

With Splinter telling Rockwell of the ups and downs of Donatello's past couple weeks, Slash turned toward Raph, Leo, and Karai. "He's so small."

Raph shrugged his shoulders. "Well, Donnie is a baby right now and those tend to be small."

Slash rolled his eyes. "Of course, Raphael. I guess I was surprised at how small Donatello really was."

"Isn't he the cutest thing?" Mikey announced bringing Donnie closer to the talking turtles. "Say hi Donnie!" Mikey reached over and took Donnie small hand and made him wave at Slash. Slash blink in confusion before waving back at the small turtle. Donnie gave a wide smile and reached out toward Slash. "Want to hold him?"

"Ummmmm, what?" Slash stammered.

"Come on! He's not dangerous. Donnie just wants some love," Mikey said, holding Donnie out.

Slash glanced over at Raph. Raph gave a smile and motioned for Slash to take the baby. Slash awkwardly held out his arms as Mikey placed Donnie in them. Donnie stared up at Slash, blinking at him curiously before breaking into a wide smile and reached out to a big finger.

"I want to hold him next!" Pete exclaimed, walking over to Slash to coo at the baby.

"Just hold him tight for a second, Slash," Rockwell said, walking over with a needle and Splinter.

"Wait," Karai interrupted. "I don't think Slash should hold him for this. This is their first meeting. Donnie would associate the needle with Slash and won't react kindly anymore. Here, give him to me."

"Karai is right," Splinter agreed as Slash handed Donnie over to Karai. Karai held her brother carefully as Rockwell quickly took a blood sample. Donnie immediately scrunched up his face and screamed, trying to wiggle away from the pain. Rockwell pulled away and Karai tucked Donnie into her neck as he cried. Raph got to his feet and left the room with Karai following close behind, both wanting to calm down Donnie as fast as possible.

"I'm sorry, Splinter," Rockwell breathed, hating that he caused Donnie to cry.

"He's only a baby," Leo tried to reassured before his father could speak. "Donnie doesn't understand. To him, it hurts. That's it."

"Leonardo is right. None of us blames you. How soon will you have results?" Splinter asked.

"If you would allow me access to Donatello's lab, I can give you an answer in about fifteen minutes."

"Fifteen minutes?" Mikey asked.

"That's pretty fast," Leo said suspiciously.

Rockwell nodded. "All I really need to do is look at his cell structure and see how stable it is. It isn't a complicated process."

"Go ahead, Doctor Rockwell. I'm sure we will want results as soon as possible," Splinter said. Rockwell thanked the rat and left the room to go to Donatello's lab. Donnie's cries were slowly diminishing but Mikey gave their guests a quick look before running out of the room. Karai and Raph probably needed help.

"How has everything been? I would imagine it would be hard," Slash admitted.

Splinter shook his head. "It's not every day when one of your children are turned back into babies. I had to help my other children with how to deal with Donatello but if this will help bring him back, I will do it."

"That's good to hear," Rockwell said, walking back into the living room. "Donatello's cell structure is still a bit unstable but I should be able to administer the next shot in the next three or four days."

"Let's make it five, just to be safe," Splinter said. "Thank you."

"I just regret I caused Donatello pain," Rockwell admitted.

Slash interrupted, "We should be on our way. We've got a few errands to run before returning back to our home." Leatherhead and Pete followed the other two out of the lair as Raph, Karai, and Mikey emerged from the other room.

"Awwwww, they're leaving?" Mikey whinned.

"They do have other things to do, Michelangelo," Splinter stated, turning to take Donatello from Karai's arms. Donnie gleefully giggled and wrapped his little arms around Splinter's neck, his shot completely forgotten.

"What did Rockwell say about the next shot?" Raph asked.

"It will be safe to give it to him in about five days," Splinter answered.

"How old will he be then?" Karai asked.

"Around four."

"How much trouble will he be?" Leo asked, reaching up to take hold of the little hands.

Splinter rolled his eyes. "Let's hope someone is looking out for us."

Author's Note: Cuteness! Special thanks to Fever To Write, Pilyartquitect, Aoifetello, CuriousHeather, Bipper Cipher 3, Andraia452, and Turtle Lover101 for their reviews! Hope you liked the chapter. Also, the weak immune system for Donnie is one of my favorite headcanons. I just love the idea.