Chapter Six: Back wards Words?

Data is not information, information is not knowledge, knowledge is not understanding, understanding is not wisdom.
Clifford Stoll

Warning: Not Beta yet

Leo for the most part had a lot of time to listen to his youngest sibling rattle on when it came to this one other passion of his life: comic books. How Mikey could just talk for hours and hours about those made up hero's and their fake tales made him want to bang his head into the ground for the moment but being the oldest and the leader and also being a brother with a lot of praying to great Kami's was holding off from doing such a mundane thing.

"Ok then Light Rider was all like attacking Mr. Doom with his staff!" Mikey said, eminent in a clear ring of joy to his words. "Man Leo it was just epic man!

"I know Mike, this being the fourth time you have told me this…" he yawned a bit, letting the boredom in his voice.

Mikey could hear that all to well know sound of Leo and signed a bit himself. Yah he knew he had been just talking and talking over and over but he did it to keep Leo from going down that emo and blame path he always did when these things happened to the brother. Sure their brother was the leader and Mr. Ninja but Mikey also knew that Leo had a lot of doubt and stress to deal with on his own.

"Mikey, question."

Turning to hear this, the sibling raised an eye brow a moment under his mask and tiled his head; "Yah?"

"Why do you even read comic books in the first place? No offense but it seems a bit shallow and a waste of time to me. Why not try a book?" Leo pushed it a bit, knowing that they had nothing else to talk about for the moment.

What got him was the abnormal silence of response from the normally hyper turtle for the moment that went from seconds to mintots as he head only a bit of long drawn breathe from his brother as if he was trying to get his thoughts in order. Mikey never tried to get his thoughts in order but what came most was the solid tone from his brother that lost any kind of humor from it.

"Swear to me you will never tell father or Raph or any one else Leo if I tell you this…" Mikey tone held even a threat?

Blinking, Leo found it most off his brother would even use this tone on him but he knew this was always a bit of bait to some dark secret of Mikey. Even the idea of Mikey having a secent might be worth it. Like Mikey could even keep something to himself!

"Sure, I swear Mikey."

"You know how I hard time learning to read and spell as kids?" Mikey said quickly, hugging his knees closer.

"Yah, sensai had to teach you away from us a lot. Personally I thought you just acted out to get more of his time away form us." Leo frowned a bit, recalling how Mikey would act out on purpose.

"Well that was not the case….which Donnie and I found out a few years ago…"

"Ok so he could tell Donnie and not tell the rest of us?" Leo thought for the moment, feeling a bit of jealous his other brother had kept something from him.

"Donnie gave me a bunch of word test and spelling test Leo about two years ago, he kind of asked me the same thing you did on my whole come book thing." Mikey shifted a bit, feeing uneasy about the whole subject now. "I see E's backwards and L's and sometimes the words just blend into blobs…or I can't apart the words well like in grammar and spelling..."

"So what it mean then Mikey?"

"I got Dyslexia Leo; it's why I like comic books so much. They use images to tell a story so I could understand them better."

Silence fell on the other side of the vent as this discovery of his younger brother hit a home run in his mind. His little brother had a learning disability? He had kept this also to himself all this time while they had teased him on being a bit dumb at times or having brain damage! Man did he feel even worse in recalling his own long talks to Mikey on reading a book or messing up on writing or home work. Shell he felt like a total ass hole now.

Mikey rolled his eyes in knowing now Leo was going to do the blame game on this one. "Leo, don't blame yourself dude, some people are just born with it man. It's just something I learned to live with all this time and it's not like it affects my ninja training."

"Mikey…I am sorry about some of the things I use to tease and lecture you on…" Leo bit his cheek a touch.

"Dude doesn't do this to me now! Sheesh Leo! It's not your fault like I said! I just learn things different like then you guys and a touch slower when it comes to words and such. Just don't tell Raph or the others please," Mikey trailed off, feeling strangely out of place from his own family.

"I promise and how about this Mikey! Why don't I help you on the spelling or maybe we could try books on tape for you? I maybe got a few you might like." Leo smiled, hoping his little bro would take the bait.

"Books on tape? Huh? Never thought of trying that one before! Thanks Leo!"

Having a happy Mikey was a lot better then having a depressed one? Thinking back on what kind of stories Mikey might like…"How does Lord of the Rings sound as a start? You love the flicks!"

Smiling in recalling the epic movies made the hyper one smile more in thinking he could listen to his favorite movies as books. "Sure dude, let's start on those when we get home! I can listen to them when we work out or before I go to sleep!"

"Sounds like a good start Mikey"

Note: Yah…not my best but as for main story idea on this one. I had a friend who had Dyslexia in school and a lot of times she used book on tape and got really into manga! I thought of why also Mikey might read comics like he does and well wrote on it.