Leo smiled and shrugged, fanning his wings gently. If they wanted a chase, they had one! With new confidence, Leonardo shook his wings out and surged into the sky like a bullet out of a gun.
Flying slowly, the blue-masked turtle kept an eye out for his brothers in case they tried to jump him in the air from a tree. Or worse yet, wrap chains around his wings and hang him somewhere for the night.
Chuckling, Leo flitted about, not bothering to hide himself. With his elevated hearing and smelling, he'd be able to sense them before they did him.
"You sure, Raph?" Mike whispered, watching his brother rig the trap. Don was in the tree across from them, attaching his end of the net.
"Mike, this'll only work if you shut your trap. If he hears you, we're dead meat!"
"Ready!" Don called softly in a voice that hardly carried. Raph nodded and jumped down.
"Now, remember, we have to time it just right. Wait for me here. When he comes past, drop the net on him."
"We know," Mike assured Raph. "Go!"
Raph nodded and disappeared into the forest. He'd head for the farmhouse, that's where Leo would expect them to go.
Silently, Raph made sure to hide from eyes above, in case Leonardo was flying as they had anticipated.
Soon, the farm was in sight. Slowing, Raph stood under a tree and looked around the clearing, then up in the sky. Aha! There he is!
Leo was spiraling lazily, and gave no indication the he knew Raph was there, nor did he seem to know about their trap for him.
Faking ignorance, Raph sprinted across the clearing, making a beeline for the house. However, a laugh above made him look over his shoulder and he saw Leo start a dive that would intersect their course.
Slowing, turning, and speeding up again in ninja style, Raph pelted for the forest again, as if running from Leonardo. His flying brother chuckled loudly and gave chase through the forest. Raph made sure to stick to the paths Leo's wings could fit.
They got close to the tree; Mike gave an alerting whistle that sounded just like a bird. Leo strove harder, knowing that the forest got thicker ahead and that he'd lose Raph to the trees.
"Now!" Raph cried, running under the net suspended in the trees. Leo drove his wings back, trying to brake or at least get above the obvious trap that he saw now, but to no avail.
The net crashed into him, and with a screech his new vocal chords made, Leo was dropped. Wings bound at odd angles by the net, effectively pinning him down, Leonardo was trapped.
Don, Mike, and Raph came into his field of vision. They were laughing, and doing so while leaning on each other. Leo grimaced; the fall was not kind to his wings.
"Laugh it up," he growled, wondering how he could get out of this net. Then he wondered how they had tricked him. He'd been confident, he realized, too confident that they'd lose again. He had to remember that they were not tots anymore, but grown turtles.
"So, do you yield?" Raph asked formally, sitting lazily on Leo's left wing as Don did the same on his right. Mikey was prepared to tickle their bigger brother into submission.
"Yeah, I yield." They all heard the terror in those words; Leo had years of payback coming to him.
"Good. Since all three of us caught you, we get to have you do three things," Mike crowed. "I wanna go first!"
"No way! I'm picking first!"
"I don't care," Leo chimed in. "Just let me up so I can close my wings. You're hurting them."
"Sorry," Don apologized, standing up and heaving the net off of Leonardo. They weren't worried about him backing out; he was now honor-bound, and Leo never tainted his honor.
"Alright, Mike, you first," Raph allowed graciously, smiling maliciously. "Make it count, bro, this'll probably be our only chance."
"Okay!" Mikey grinned, putting his chin in his hand as he gazed at their quivering leader, who was standing ready to bolt. "I got it!" he crowed triumphantly, stabbing a finger in Leo's direction. "Bro, you're gonna hate this."
"I already am," Leo assured Mike. "But as these are the rules, I shall obey your wish." Mockingly, Leo swept out his wings and bowed profusely.
"Alright. You have to stop training for a whole week."
Silence. Then laughter from Raph and chuckles from Don at the look on Leo's face. He seemed as thought the whole world was ending.
"Specifically, you have to be with one of us at all times, you may not train other than what Master Splinter orders has us do in the morning. You cannot meditate unless we all do."
"But-"
"Ah, no "buts", Leo. This is my punishment for you. Bro, you've got to loosen up a bit. You'll kill yourself with this stress." Raph looked at Mike meaningfully. "And we have something to discuss, too, about a certain someone's soul."
All color drained from Leonardo's face, to the horror of his brothers. They'd never seen him so beaten and cowed; his wings drooped and shook, but Mike was not going to back down no matter what. Raph was staring at him compassionately, Mike was not smiling, and Don was confused.
Leo turned away for a moment, gathering his thoughts consciously. Reaching up absently, he rubbed his shoulder and wing joint.
"Very well," he answered Mike in a shallow voice. His brothers' hearts almost broke hearing it. "I accept those terms. For one week, I will spend all of my time with one or more of you three, and will not train unduly nor meditate unless told to strictly by Master Splinter. These are the terms?"
"Yes," Mike answered, stepping forward. "And we're gonna have a talk about a certain soul."
"It's too late," Leo whispered, his wings engulfing his body.
"Never," Raph answered heatedly, taking a step forward and forcing Leo's wings open. Don just stared in confusion; what the shell was going on?
"Dammit, Raph, let it go!" Leo shouted angrily. In his astonishment, Raph let go of Leonardo's wings and backed off a step. Taking his chance, Leo took off, his wings driving up dust that choked his brothers slightly.
"Come back here!" Raph ordered, looking up in the sky. Their brother was floating over them, his wings creating a shady place that swallowed them completely. "Follow us!" he commanded, giving their signal for such a demand. Leo's wings dipped in acknowledgement and their brother followed above through the forest towards the barn.
Master Splinter was waiting on the porch, a bemused smile on his lips. However, as he saw the deflated look on Michelangelo, the hurt on Raphael's face, and the confusion in Donatello, he inhaled sharply. Where was Leonardo?
"My sons-"
His words were cut off as his best student back-winged to a landing in front of the group. What stopped the rat Sensei was the look of terror and horror on the blue-wearing turtle's face. Something grave had happened, he knew such immediately. The blood still on Leonardo's wings did nothing to persuade him otherwise.
Reaching out, Master Splinter touched his eldest son's mind carefully, only to find it shut tightly and "reeking" of pain and loss.
"What has happened?"
"Nothing, Sensei. A game of tag that ended with Fearless Leader being caught, Master Splinter," Raph added quickly when the rat glared at him.
"Indeed. Sit, my sons. We must speak with each other. I sense great disturbance."
Raph stifled a growl. He needed to get that diary and read more; he'd read some on the way here, when he wasn't driving, and it was all bad. Leo was… a selfless idiot, Raph's mind supplied immediately.
Sighing, Raph and Don sat on Master Splinter's right, Leo and Mike on his left. Leo had to stand with his wings until Mike had sat down and looked back up smiling at his big brother. Only then did Leo awkwardly sit down with his wings extended so that they didn't crunch up against the ground. Mike leaned into the soft leather, exhaling happily as Leo's right wing wound around him slightly.