A/N: Eek! Sorry for the delay!

Chapter 4: The Sweet Smell of Victory

A light breeze whipped at the tails of Leonardo's mask as the turtle ran through the wooded park, focused on his mission. The natural setting was foreign to him as he and his brothers usually stuck to rooftops and buildings. Under different circumstances, he would have liked to savor the feel of the grass beneath his feet and soak in the rustling of the leaves above his head. But a peaceful stroll would have to wait as he had far more important things to concentrate on at the moment.

"I guess it's true - some turtles really are slow, huh, Slash?"

Leo glanced behind him as a ruthless snarl met his ears. The massive turtle was still following closely behind him, and he could barely contain a smirk at how easy it was to keep Slash's attention on himself. If the goal had been to escape his pursuer, he would have hidden himself away amongst the shadows of the branches some time ago. But he knew that Mikey and Raph were in trouble, possibly in need of help, and for now the best shot at finding them was to keep Slash distracted while Donnie searched the destroyed playground for clues. He just needed to make sure he bought his brother enough time. Luckily for him, while Slash was surprisingly fast for his size, he knew he could easily outrun him should he suddenly lose the upper hand.

A smile curled up on Leo's face as he heard his opponent wildly thrashing about behind him in an angry tirade. This was, of course, exactly the response to his taunts that he'd been hoping for. While he was able to conserve his energy, the larger turtle was spending it in spades. If he could manage to keep him haphazardly swinging his giant mace long enough, he would be able to easily outlast him in a battle of stamina. On top of that, Slash had already sustained a fair amount of damage before he and Donnie had arrived. Now he just needed to make sure he stayed far enough out of his reach so that none of the frenzied blows made contact.

"You alright back there, Slash?" Leo shouted again as he glanced behind him, "I'm surprised you can even keep up with those stubby legs of yours. Should I slow down a bit for you?"

Letting out another angry roar, Slash swung his mace furiously at his tormentor while Leo nimbly jumped away. He dodged around a nearby tree right as the spiked weapon made contact with it. The blow caused it to nearly break in half, sending hundreds of tiny slivers of wood flying into the air.

Facing away from the enraged turtle once more, Leo grinned to himself, satisfied with Slash's overreaction. He had fought with Raph enough times to know that while rage and adrenaline could make one appear stronger, it also made them a lot sloppier. With any luck, the large turtle might be careless enough to run into a hidden tree or trip over an exposed root. The very thought of Slash falling flat on his face widened Leo's triumphant grin, and as the trees began to grow more dense, he couldn't help but revel in the thought.

Suddenly turning fully around to face his pursuer, Leo began jogging backwards, glancing over his shoulder for oncoming obstacles as he stared the massive turtle in the eye.

"Here. Is this better?"

As Leo received the typical roar in response to his taunt, he turned back around, facing forward once again. A look of surprise quickly wiped away his confident smirk, however, as he realized he was about to run into a fallen tree. The image of himself face planting into the dirt rather than Slash flashed before his eyes, a scene he desperately didn't want to see unfold in reality.

"Woah!" he cried as he quickly threw out his arms, using them to clumsily hop over the rotted tree. Unfortunately, the added weight was more than the old tree could handle. He could feel it cracking under the added pressure, and before he could land safely on the other side, the outer shell gave way, revealing it to be hollow. His left arm had no where to go but down into the jagged edged hole.

Refusing to panic, Leo grit his teeth as his forward momentum jerked to a halt as the broken bark clawed at his trapped arm. Landing with a thud, he quickly stood and yanked his scraped up arm back out, knowing he had to start moving again. But those precious seconds were all that Slash needed to catch up. No sooner had Leo retrieved his arm than he found a giant mace landing directly where he'd been mere moments ago, completely shattering the hollow tree.

Instinctively he brought his arm up to shield his eyes and face from the bits of wood and bark, but the large turtle had simply gotten too close. Before even bothering to lift his mace, Slash balled up his free hand and swung it out toward Leo, knocking him backwards. His shell made contact with a nearby tree, causing him to wince in pain. Shaking it off, he jumped to his feet once more and drew his swords. It appeared that the time for running away was over, and when Slash came at him with another attack, he was ready.

Determined to not allow his prey to escape again, the angry turtle closed on Leo quickly, raising his weapon above his head. Rather than dodging the attack like he'd done previously, Leo readied his swords, and when the mace came swinging down, he skillfully caught the weapon between his blades, changing it's trajectory just enough so that it fell harmlessly to the ground next to him.

Without a moment's hesitation, Leo leaned back, threw out his left leg, and kicked his opponent squarely in the gut. Losing the grip on his mace, Slash stumbled backwards but managed to grab on to a sturdy tree trunk before he lost his balance completely. Racing forward, Leo wasted no time making sure he stayed between the large turtle and his fallen weapon, a fact that didn't seem to faze his opponent in the slightest.

Letting out yet another angry roar, Slash extended his claws and charged the smaller turtle. Leo smirked as he swung his blades through the air, thinking this just another blind attack. But as his swords came down, he found them scraping against tough shell as Slash had turned his body at the last second, taking the blow but using his shell as a shield. He didn't even have a chance to blink before the mutant turtle lowered his shoulder and slammed into his chest, throwing him back onto the ground. Another sharp pain shot through his body as he felt himself being brutally kicked out of the way.

Leonardo tried to suppress a groan as he slowly got back to his feet, watching his opponent as he reached down to pick his weapon up off of the ground. The loud roars had stopped, and Slash's movements had lost a bit of their frantic edge. The large turtle was visibly panting now, but this was of little reassurance as Leo was very much aware that what little advantage he had held was fading fast.

"That's the best you can do?" mocked Leo, trying to sound more confident than he felt.

Slash glared fiercely at the smaller turtle and growled as the grip on his mace tightened. "All you do is talk," he spat as he raised the spiked weapon, "We're sick of that cocky mouth of yours, and I'm gonna make sure to shut you up once and for all."

As soon as Slash unleashed his next attack, Leo dodged out of the way, ducking behind a tree in order to sneak behind the large turtle and out of his immediate range of vision. Slash's choice of words, meanwhile, had not gone unnoticed.

"'We'?" repeated Leo as he sheathed his swords and jumped into the low hanging branches above his head. "You're the only one here, Slash."

Hearing his prey's voice coming from behind him, he whirled around, swinging his mace with all the force he could manage. But Leo had already distanced himself from his opponent, jumping through the trees from branch to branch using the leaves as cover. As the irritated turtle looked around for any sign of where the blue masked leader had gone, Leo made sure to keep moving, staying well out of the heavy weapon's reach.

"Not sure who else you think is on your side," continued Leo as the massive turtle whirled around, trying to pinpoint the location the voice had come from. "Unless of course you somehow think that Raph is."

Leo watched as the fist gripping the mace began to shake until it's owner suddenly raised it and began smashing it against any tree within arm's reach with a fierce growl.

"I don't need him!" he bellowed angrily.

Jumping through the treetops, Leo continued to avoid Slash's increasingly errant swings. "That's good," he said, "because he's already forgotten all about you. See, Raph's already found someone else to team up with."

The twitch that rippled through the large turtle's body was the sign Leo needed to confirm that he was on the right track. His voice grew cold as he continued his verbal assault.

"That's right. Raph found a new partner. You know, someone who won't try to murder his family?"

The woods grew quiet as Slash froze in place, his weapon still lifted above his head. Just one more push.

"He doesn't need you anymore, Spike."

The ticking time bomb that was Slash finally went off. With a roar louder and more ferocious than any previous, the massive turtle began demolishing the trees around him at an alarming rate as he searched for his elusive prey, his rage fueling him on.

Leo remained hidden amongst the branches, but as he continued to hop from one to another in order to escape the rampaging mutant, a sudden realization struck him. Too caught up in his own plan, he had failed to notice that Slash had been systematically tearing down the densest areas of the woods. Thinking only of avoiding the spiked weapon's reach, he had already subconsciously begun backtracking toward the playground where the trees were spread further apart, rendering his current tactic useless. He would be forced back to the ground and out in the open. Slash had been driving him.

Aware that he was going to run out of cover soon, his mind raced through his options. The last thing he wanted to do was lead the angry turtle back toward Donatello, but with all of the destruction Slash had caused, he wasn't sure he had a lot of choice. It was either that, try his luck running through the downed trunks and branches, or cut to his left and go around it, hoping that the large turtle wasn't fast enough to cut him off.

As Leo at last reached the point where he simply could not jump to another tree, he had to make a decision. Stealing his resolve, he swiftly jumped to the grassy earth below and took off at a sprint, no longer bothering to keep his pace in check. Once he put enough distance between them, he would try to go around. Leo was already breathing hard as the sound of the trees crashing to the ground ceased, quickly replaced by heavy footsteps. The race was on.

The sparse trees were easy enough to navigate through, but thin, low hanging branches scratched at his arms and face as he concentrated solely on his speed. He did his best to control his breathing as he waited for the sound of the footsteps behind him to grow distant, but to his surprise, Slash was keeping pace. The longer he waited, however, the closer he brought his pursuer to the park. It had to be now or never. But just as he was about to cut to his left, he felt a hand suddenly grab his arm and yank him around a tree to his right.

With a yelp, Leo made to draw his swords, but he stopped short as a familiar flash of purple waved in front of his eyes followed by a loud crack. As his hands fell back to his sides, he turned in surprise, peeking out from behind the tree at the scene before him.

"That's for what you did to my brothers."

There stood Donatello proudly, bo staff in hand, with Slash in a crumpled heap at this feet, a nasty gash on his head.

"Donnie?" said Leo as he leaned against the tree trunk and gasped for breath, "What are you - "

"Leo!" interrupted Donnie excitedly as he quickly turned and walked back to his brother, "I'm glad you're safe, but we gotta hurry up and get outta here. I found Raph and Mikey. Mikey was fine, but Raph was hurt pretty bad, so I sent the two of them back to the Shellraiser with the mutagen while I used my T-phone to track you. We've gotta get going before Sleeping Beauty over there wakes up."

As his brother's words sunk in, a weary smile lit up Leonardo's face. He was so relieved to hear the good news. Straightening up, he did his best to get his breathing back under control. There was still work to be done, and now was not the time to rest.

"Right," he said with a sharp nod, "then let's move."

As Slash lay on the ground, head throbbing in pain, he tried to clear the fog from his mind and listen in on the two smaller turtles' conversation. He was having trouble focusing, but as soon as he heard Raph's name, his eyes shot open. Concentrating solely on Donnie's voice, it didn't take long for him to hear exactly what he needed to know.

Raph was carrying the mutagen.

All traces of the trance-like stupor he'd been in while chasing Leo through the woods suddenly vanished as if a veil had been lifted from his eyes, reminding him of his true goal. Taking down Leo, or any of Raph's brothers, didn't matter. They were simply a distraction. He had come for Raphael, and he wasn't going to allow any chance to track him down pass him by.

While part of him wanted to wait patiently for the two present turtles to be on their way to assure he wouldn't be followed, he knew time was of the essence. Even if Raph was injured, if they all made it back to that massive, gaudy vehicle of theirs, he'd have no hope of catching them. The trap he'd set for them that night would have been for nothing.

Without warning, Slash jumped to his feet and began racing through the woods, not even bothering to pick up his giant mace as he felt the extra weight would only slow him down. As he ran toward the scent of the mutagen, he vaguely heard the two turtles he'd left behind cry out. With a snarl, he pushed the voices away, intent on remaining focused on his mission. But as Slash continued onward, he couldn't help but hear Leo's mocking words from earlier echoing in his brain.

"He doesn't need you anymore, Spike."

A low growl rumbled in his throat as he shook his head in a vain attempt to clear his mind. It didn't matter if Raph had found a new partner. The two of them were enemies now. Raph had betrayed him and needed to be punished. But as Leo had continued to egg him on, he could feel his anger growing, and memories of a past long since gone had begun to resurface.

It was strange being able to recall a time when he was simply a small pet riding on his owner's shoulder without a care in the world. Without even trying he could recall all of the times Raph had come to him for comfort, seeking someone to confide in. The sudden memories of all of the angry tirades caused by the eldest sibling had filled Slash with a startling desire to avenge his former friend, just like Raph had always said he'd wanted. For a brief moment, he was the confidant that knew all of Raph's secret desires and was now big enough to carry them out. For a brief moment, he had forgotten about Raph's betrayal.

"He's already forgotten all about you."

Slash's eyes narrowed as he forced those thoughts from his head. While he had indeed allowed himself to get caught up in the heat of the moment, none of that truly mattered anymore. There was no longer a need to take revenge on behalf of Raphaell; he himself had even said that he no longer desired it. The only thing he needed to worry about right now was finding his betrayer and making him pay.

With belief in his mission renewed, he quickly made his way through the woods as he followed the scent of the mutagen, and soon the tall fence surrounding the playground came into view. Ignoring the pounding in his head and the pain shooting up his right arm, he reached up, grabbed a low hanging tree limb, and swung himself over clumsily. The mutagen was close. He could smell it somewhere near the front entrance.

His breathing was already ragged as he did his best to avoid tripping over the fallen beams. He knew that Raph wouldn't be alone; that obnoxious younger brother of his was going to be with him. But as he pushed on he refused to let this chance escape, even if it meant the two of them going down together.

All doubts left his mind, however, as he rounded the last pile of debris, for there in front of him was the mutagen securely tucked under Raph's arm. He slowed his pace, though, as he noticed that something was off. There before him stood not two turtles but one, and while that turtle was indeed wearing a red mask, it was most definitely not Raphael.

"You were expecting someone else?"

Blue eyes peeked out from behind the red mask and a grin spread across his freckled face as Michelangelo quickly initiated step one of his master plan. Once he had spotted Slash out of the corner of his eye, he had readied a smoke bomb. As soon as the realization that his prey was no where to be found dawned on his opponent's face, he let the small, egg-shaped projectile fly. Smacking directly into the surprised turtle's forehead, a flash of light followed by a thick, black cloud erupted, momentarily blinding him.

"Bullseye!" crowed Mikey as he took off at a run, heading straight into phase two of his plan. The mutagen was tucked snugly under his arm as he raced around the perimeter of the ruined playground.

Rushing around toward Slash's side, he made sure to keep a close eye on the large turtle. Just as he'd predicted, Slash had his nose raised into the air, following the scent of the mutagen. Mikey hurried to his checkpoint before the smoke could dissipate; while he wanted to keep his opponent's attention, the last thing he needed was for Slash's eyesight to return in time to avoid his next surprise.

Upon finally reaching his destination, the small turtle quickly ducked low. No sooner had he done so than a pained grunt sounded from behind him and another egg-shaped object flew over his head. Again the projectile struck the large turtle in the face, but this time, rather than a dark cloud of smoke, a foul stench filled the air, and a gooey mess dripped down Slash's beak.

Mikey glanced behind him with a grin. "Nice shot, bro!"

Raphael stood on the ring of concrete along the fence, tightly gripping a bolted down metal bench for support. He was breathing heavily, and Mikey couldn't help but think about how much younger he looked without his trademark mask.

"Piece of cake," he replied, panting. As he gave a weary attempt at a thumbs up, it was obvious that what little strength he had was waning.

In the midst of the rubble, Slash momentarily grew silent. Stunned by the unexpected tactic, his brain attempted to process what had happened. But before his hands could even reach his face, the overwhelming stench of rotten eggs filled his nostrils. He immediately clamped his mouth shut so that the foul substance wouldn't reach his tongue and let out a low whine.

"That's my cue." With Slash's nose currently preoccupied, Mikey tossed the mutagen canister to Raph who fumbled it slightly before securing it in his uninjured arm. With both hands free at last, he took off toward the distracted turtle in order to complete the third and final step.

Gripping his kusarigama chain tightly, he knew it was now or never. As he let the end fly, he cried out in excitement, watching as the chain wrapped itself around his opponent. Slash had been desperately clawing at his face in a feeble attempt to rid himself of the horrible smell. Unfortunately for him, this meant that his hands were now pinned above his shoulders, and by the time he realized what was happening, he was unable to break free of his bonds.

With a tight grip on the other end of his kusarigama, Mikey circled the struggling turtle until he was directly behind him, his eyes fixated on one of the last remaining support beams from the playground. Upon reaching the post, he securely attached his end of the chain to it. Once he was finished, however, he whirled back around, sensing movement from where his captive stood behind him.

Still fighting against the chain, Slash had managed to turn himself around so that he now faced the smaller turtle. Determined to not allow him any chance at escape, Mikey quickly jumped into the air, flipping over the large turtle. Once he was again directly behind him, he crouched low, extended his leg, and swept it across the ground directly into Slash's ankles, knocking his opponent into the sand with a thud.

"Booyakasha! Eat it, Slash!" cried Mikey as he jumped to his feet.

Forcing himself to hold in his victory dance until they were well out of harm's way, he sprinted back toward Raph, making sure to stomp on Slash's legs on the way. If he could get to his brother before the large turtle could escape his chains, all it would take was a simple smoke bomb to the ground for them to vanish into the night without a trace, leaving Slash with no way to track them.

"Collecting mutagen and taking down the bad guys," gloated Mikey as he approached Raph, "Nothing the great Michelangelo can't handle!"

His enthusiasm dimmed slightly, however, as he noticed the look on his brother's face. Even though Raph was wearing his usual defiant scowl, his eyes failed to fully hide a sense of regret. Glancing behind him, he followed his older sibling's gaze to where the fallen turtle lay helplessly in the sand. Slash had managed to roll just far enough so that he was now facing his former owner, but Mikey was surprised to find the large turtle currently very still, the same melancholy look reflected in his own eyes.

But even Mikey knew that there wasn't time for this. Raph could wish with all of his might for things to go back to the way they had been in the past, but that wouldn't make the damage Slash had done that night any less real. Determined to get his injured brother back to the lair before he could do anything rash, Mikey quickly raised a hand and smacked him on the back of his head.

"Hey!" Raph instinctively grabbed his head and shot a glare at his youngest sibling who had a forced scowl on his red masked face.

"Quit spacing out, you dork," said Mikey in a low growl. His attempt at imitating his older brother fell flat, however, as the corners of his mouth couldn't help but twitch, curving up into a mischievous smile.

Raph blinked in surprise at the admonishment before his eyes narrowed dangerously. Raising his own hand, Mikey flinched and let out a yelp, but rather than a knock to his head, he felt the red mask being torn from his face. Peeking up at his brother curiously, he found Raph smirking back at him, all signs of hesitation gone.

"I'll get you for that later," he said, "Now let's go home."

Quickly drawing a smoke bomb from his belt, Mikey held it high in the air with a grin. "You got it, bro!"

As he aimed another curious glance at Slash, unsure of why the large turtle was no longer struggling, he felt his older brother's good arm wrap around his shoulders. Mikey couldn't help but marvel at the rare display of what Raph would surely deem weakness as he felt his sibling's weight lean heavily on him. Bringing up his free arm to wrap around his brother's shell for additional support, he at last sent the smoke bomb hurtling toward the concrete below.

After a quick flash of light, a billow of smoke rose up, hiding the two turtles from Slash's view. By the time it had dissipated, they were gone, and the chained turtle found himself very much alone in the empty ruins of the playground.

"...and rotten egg exploded all over his face! That's when I jumped into action..."

Michelangelo's voice carried loudly through the sewer tunnels as the four turtles approached their home. As he excitedly filled Leo in on everything that had occurred that night, often stopping to flail and jump about dramatically as the story grew more intense, Raph hobbled along ahead of them, his good arm wrapped around Donnie's shoulder for support. His younger brother had already attended to his injuries while they were returning in the Shellraiser, and Donnie had insisted that he keep as much weight off of his sprained foot as possible.

Upon reaching the entrance to the lair, Raph winced as Donnie helped him through the turnstiles. He felt like he was bruised from head to toe, and the pressure from the metal bars wasn't helping. Once on the other side, he glanced back at Mikey who continued to recount the events of the night to Leonardo.

"I took my kusarigama and wrapped him up tight like a burrito. Then I knocked him to the ground - BAM!" Mikey somersaulted over the turnstiles, turning back to Leo as he landed. He placed his hands on his hips and stuck out his chest, practically beaming with pride. "Everything went exactly according to plan; the big guy never knew what hit him."

Raphael held back an eye roll as his youngest sibling finally completed his grand tale. There had been more than a few embellishments along the way, of course, like how he had apparently been on his hands and knees begging Slash to spare his life before Mikey had swooped in to save the day. After receiving a hard smack to the back of his head for that one, Mikey had made sure to remain well out of his older brother's reach for the remainder of his retelling.

Leo, who'd been listening intently while Mikey explained his grand scheme, smiled. "I gotta admit, Mikey, that was some plan. I can't believe you were the only one of us to remember that Slash could track mutagen by it's scent."

"I can't believe he came up with a plan to utilize that fact," said Donnie, earning a smirk from Raph.

As Mikey continued rambling on to Leo excitedly, Donnie lead Raph up the stairs and toward the kitchen. Heading straight for the freezer, he used his free arm to open it and grab some ice packs before closing it again and heading back out to the common area. All Raph wanted now was to relax on the bench with a little TV to distract him from how miserable he felt, but as they reached the bottom of the stairs, Donnie began guiding him toward the bedrooms instead.

"Donnie, I said I'm fine," insisted Raph as he attempted to adjust their course. In his weakened state, however, his taller brother definitely had the upper hand and, with a firm grip, refused to allow his escape.

"Raph," he began with an exasperated sigh, "you nearly passed out on the ride back here. You are not 'fine'. I only let you participate in Mikey's plan because all you had to do was throw an egg while the rest of us did all the hard work. Now that everyone is safe and sound, you are going straight to bed to get some rest, and that's final!" He poked Raph's injured arm for good measure, earning a pained squeak from his stubborn brother.

Seeing the stern look in Donnie's eyes, Raph gave in begrudgingly. Allowing himself to be lead through the common room, he shot a quick glance toward his two other siblings. They had yet to make it much farther than the lair's entrance as Mikey was apparently still boasting about everything that had happened. Returning his gaze to the front as they reached the stairway leading to the bedrooms, his little brother's voice could be heard chatting along behind them.

"Of course, that was just the back up plan. I was hoping that maybe Donnie's sneak attack would knock him out long enough for all of us to get away," he said casually. "I guess Donnie just wasn't strong enough to handle it. As usual, I had to step up as the great protector of this family to save all of your shells."

Raph was mildly shocked that his eyes didn't roll all the way back into his head as he let out a groan. They would be hearing about this for a long time.

"We'll see who's 'strong enough' in training tomorrow," muttered Donnie as he helped his older brother through the doorway and into his bed. Once Raph was settled, he grabbed some blankets, rolled them up, and shoved them under his swollen foot in order to keep it elevated. He then took some bandages from his belt and used them to lightly wrap the ice packs around it.

"Now, remember," said Donnie seriously as he continued to work, "It's important to keep your foot iced and to stay off of it as much as possible for at least two weeks."

Raph's eyes widened in surprise. "Two weeks!? But - !"

"Two. Weeks."

As Donnie finished tying off the bandage, his eyes narrowed dangerously. Before his stubborn brother could protest further, he flicked Raph's injured foot.

"Ow!" cried Raph with a jump, "Quit doin' that!"

"You start listening, and I'll stop doing it." Donnie smirked as he calmly returned the remaining bandages to his belt.

Raph let out a low growl, but said nothing, knowing it was pointless to argue. Instead, he turned away and crossed his arms with a pout, trying not to wince at the pain in his injured arm and chest. His gaze, however, fell upon the empty crate sitting next to his bed where his former pet used to sleep. Seeing it forced him to recall the final moments of their confrontation, a detail Mikey had thankfully neglected to mention in his retelling of the day's events.

Even after everything that had happened, everything that Slash had done, when he had seen his old friend lying chained and helpless on the ground, he couldn't help but feel an enormous sense of... guilt? Frustration? Sadness? He wasn't sure he could pinpoint any single emotion in particular, but the one thing he knew for sure was that he had suddenly felt solely responsible for everything that had happened that night.

His quiet melancholy had apparently caught Donatello's attention as he was abruptly jerked out of his thoughts by a hand resting lightly on his shoulder. Glancing up into the gentle eyes of his younger sibling, he was immediately irritated with himself for allowing his emotions to show clearly on his face for the second time that night. Truthfully he had been grateful for Mikey's playful handling of the situation, but he knew better than to expect the same of Donnie. And right now the last thing he wanted to do was talk about - he suppressed a groan - his feelings.

Unaware of his brother's discomfort, Donnie smiled down at him with a determined look in his eyes. "Don't worry, Raph. I'll find a cure."

Taken slightly off guard by the confident tone in Donnie's voice, Raph stared up at his brother. He would have been lying if he said that he hadn't thought about Donnie finishing his retromutagen and using it on Slash. Things could return to normal. Spike could be back by his side, casually chewing on a leaf while he talked about the various happenings of the day. But he also couldn't shake the feeling that perhaps it was too late for that.

Shoving those thoughts aside, he finally mumbled a simple thanks. Seemingly satisfied with his older brother's response, Donnie gave him a pat on the shoulder and turned to head back toward the hallway.

"Hey."

Upon hearing his brother's abnormally quiet voice, Donnie looked back from the doorway. "Yeah, Raph?"

"Just promise me one thing," said Raph seriously.

"What's that?" He was about to walk back over to his brother's bedside, but Donnie's hopes of a meaningful conversation were quickly dashed as a devious smile crept across Raphael's face.

"Promise me you won't come back in here before you've had a shower."

Raph couldn't help but relish the look of annoyance that Donnie shot him before he huffed out the door, slamming it behind him.

Alone at last, Raph could feel the events of the day catching up with him. He let out a loud, unexpected yawn, suddenly very much aware of how exhausted he really was. And as he yawned again, he carefully laid back in his bed. Lying down on his back, he closed his tired eyes, deciding to take Donnie's orders seriously just this once. But before the bliss of sleep could claim him, he heard his door quietly creak open as someone slipped inside before shutting it once again.

Opening one of his eyes to take a peek at the intruder, he let out a sigh. Mikey. Of course.

"Listen, I lived through this story. You don't have to repeat it to me," he grumbled. "Besides, you heard Donnie. I'm supposed to be resting."

His youngest brother's wide, innocent blue eyes did nothing to make him feel better about his sudden appearance.

"Can't a turtle check in on his favorite second older brother to make sure he's feeling ok?" said Mikey a little too sweetly.

Raph raised an eye ridge suspiciously before he offered up a knowing smirk. "Donnie's looking for you to clean his room, isn't he."

"Aw, come on, Raph!" pleaded Mikey. He had his hands folded out in front of him and everything. "I saved your life tonight! The least you could do is let me hide out in here for a couple days or so until he forgets."

Raph rolled his eyes. "Yeah, whatever," he said as he let out another yawn, too tired to press the issue. "Just be quiet, alright?"

"No problemo!" said Mikey with a grin, sliding his fingers across his mouth as if zipping them shut. He hummed to himself as he walked further into the room, reaching over to pull the small stool out from behind Raph's drum set. Setting it down beside his older brother's bed, he plopped onto it cheerfully, swinging his legs back and forth.

Closing his eyes once more, Raph did his best to block out his youngest sibling's presence. That, unfortunately, was something he was never much good at. The simple fact that Dr. Prankenstein was sitting within arm's reach could spell trouble for him, especially considering he was the only one to avoid his earlier prank with the spoiled eggs. He found himself tensing up at the mere thought of what Mikey might be cooking up just for him.

"How can you stand the tails of your mask being so long?" blurted out Mikey suddenly.

"Huh?" That certainly wasn't a question he'd been expecting. Opening his eyes, Raph looked at Mikey curiously as the young turtle reached behind his head to play with his own short mask tails.

"How do they not get in your way all the time?" he mused as he pulled on the ends. "All it would take is a light breeze to whip them in your face. They could poke you in the eye or block your view so someone could hit you with a sneak attack."

"Some of us don't get so easily distracted," said Raph dryly, "We cut yours off because you kept chewing on them, remember?"

"Oh yeah," said Mikey thoughtfully. Dropping his hands back into his lap, he grinned and let out a short laugh. "After that I cut all of your guys' off too. You got so mad at me. You were convinced the long ones somehow made you look cooler or something, especially when Spike would chew holes in them. Remember? You thought it looked all 'edgy' and 'tough'."

As the name of his former pet escaped from his brother's mouth, Raph felt his chest tighten, and he clenched his jaw. He really didn't feel like discussing Spike right now, especially with Mikey.

"Yeah, well, they get ripped up easily enough without his help," said Raph a bit more tersely than he meant to. He again closed his eyes, silently begging for his brother to take a hint and stop talking.

Mikey, however, seemed oblivious to the sudden tension in his brother's voice. "Well, he definitely helped rip them up tonight."

With a frown, Raph glared at Mikey, determined to change the course of the conversation. "You borrowed it. How do I know those weren't from you chewing on it like a five year old?"

"What? No way! Who'd wanna put your sweaty mask in their mouth? Yuck!" said Mikey as he scrunched up his face and stuck out his tongue in disgust. As Raph rolled his eyes, he noticed Mikey place his hands on his hips with a smirk before adding, "Besides, I was too busy being awesome."

Raph wanted to respond to the claim with one of his typical, snarky comments. But as he watched Michelangelo stick out his chest proudly, he found he couldn't help but think about everything his baby brother had done that night. If not for him, he might not be lying safely in bed right now - somewhat worse for wear, perhaps, but safe. Between returning to the park just in time to stop Slash from bashing his head in to coming up with a plan that involved him taking down the giant turtle practically singlehandedly, he felt his sarcastic comeback die before it could leave his throat. Instead, he found a smile tugging at the corners of his mouth.

"Yeah," he said at last, "You were kinda awesome, huh?"

"Just 'kinda'?" replied Mikey.

It was said with a teasing tone, but Raph could see how sincerely happy the small amount of praise had made him through his wide eyes and grin. He suddenly felt a touch of guilt, well aware that he wasn't very good at giving his brother the credit he usually deserved. He paused slightly before locking his gaze with Mikey's, no longer trying to hide his smile.

"You did good tonight, little brother."

Mikey leaned back and began kicking out his legs cheerfully. "Just doing what you'd do for me, bro," he said.

Before Raph could even think of a response, however, the moment was interrupted by a loud slam. Both of their heads whipped around to see the door wide open. In the entrance stood Donatello, a dark look on his face.

"MIKEY!"

With a yelp, the young turtle jumped out of his seat in a vain attempt to evade his older brother as he stormed into the room. It didn't take long for Donnie to corner and grab Mikey by the back of his shell.

"Save me, Raph!" cried Mikey as he found himself being unceremoniously dragged out of the bedroom, looking to his injured sibling for support.

"So much for being the 'great protector' of our family," snickered Raph with a smirk as he merely watched the event unfold from the safety of his bed.

"Come on, man," pleaded Mikey. He reached out and gripped the edge of the bed tightly, still seeking Raph's help as Donnie attempted to pry his fingers loose. "After everything I did for you tonight! We had a deal!"

"Sorry, Mikey," said Raph with an amused smile as he pointed toward his sprained foot, "I gotta stay in bed and get some rest - doctor's orders."

"But - "

Before he could plead his case further, however, his fingers were torn from the bed frame, and Donnie was pulling him harshly out the door.

"Maybe next time," Raph called after them as Donnie slammed the door shut behind them. He couldn't help but grin as his youngest brother's cries for help continued down the hallway until he heard another door being violently opened and closed again. It wasn't long before the cries turned into desperate wails.

Closing his eyes for what he hoped to be the final time that night, Raphael let out another deep yawn. Trying to get as comfortable as he possibly could with his propped up leg and injured arm, he felt the fatigue from earlier catching up to him once more. The grin on his face refused to fade, however, as Mikey's muffled moans slowly lulled him to sleep.

A/N: Oh my goodness, this took way too long to finish. I signed up to write two fics with deadlines, so I put this one on hold in the meantime. But all three are finally done, and I apologize again for the delay!

I had a lot of fun pushing myself with this. Maybe I'll try more action stories in the future, but for now, I hope you enjoyed it. Thanks for the encouragement as I got back into writing this past year, and as always, critics and grammar police are appreciated!