Six years later Donatello was much more prepared for what Spring had in store for him. While his brothers spent their season feeling a bit more restless and agitated, Donatello spent his isolated in his lab or his room, hiding his growing discomfort once he was gravid as the eggs grew inside him and other… symptoms.
It was significantly worse than those first couple years but the fact that he knew what to expect and was able to plan and prepare made it less troublesome or rather, less frightening. The eggs he carried now in his late teens were significantly more and larger and instead of a single lay in spring he had to cope with two or three.
He calculated he must have about a dozen in him now, he thought as he pressed his hand against his side again before standing up and going for a bit of breakfast. His stomach complained at the thought, mornings weren't so good for him in his state and as he neared the kitchen he hoped Michelangelo wasn't making eggs. Just the thought of them made him gag.
He could more or less stomach them other times of year if they were scrambled and well seasoned with herbs and he didn't have to watch Mikey break them and beat the gooey insides but in Spring he couldn't even stand the hint of the smell they gave off when they were cooking. He spent a morning scrubbing at a pan when it was his turn to cook because he could still smell them on it even after being in the dishwasher.
As soon as he was in the kitchen he took one whiff and turned back around to leave, covering his nose and mouth with a hand as his stomach threatened to turn inside out even if it was empty. He darted back out of the kitchen before Mikey had a chance to turn around, deciding to head for the lab and having a breakfast of tap water and plain crackers was his best option. He didn't get very far though.
"You're not skipping breakfast again, are you?" A gruff voice stopped him in his tracks and Donatello quickly removed his hand. "You ok?"
"No, yes!" Donatello answered in a rush. "I mean, I'm just going to have a quick bite to eat in the lab."
"That where you hide food now so we don't see ya stuffing your face?" Raph teased and lifted a finger to poke Don playfully but Donatello's hand shot up and covered his side, shielding it from him. The teasing smile fell off his brother's face
"I didn't mean ta... " He began. "I was only joking, Don, Leo's exaggerating. You haven't put on that much weight but you know how he is."
Raph rubbed the back of his head as his voice trailed off, uncomfortable at the lack of response from Don but he just didn't know what to say to that. He didn't like them pointing out any of the changes they noticed in him.
"It's the smell, isn't it?" Raphael said after a moment and Donatello's head shot up at him. "Yeah, thought so. It happens to all of us, can't stand the smell of the others sometimes and I'm sure they feel the same about me. Thought you didn't get that part as bad because you don't smell like they do but I guess it's just different for you."
"Yes, it's the smell." Donatello agreed though they weren't really talking about the same thing.
He hadn't really noticed a change in smell in the others, they smelled like themselves, maybe a little stronger. He found it kind of pleasant to sit on the couch after one of them and catch their scent there, identify where they'd been by it, smell a little like them even after he'd gone off to do something else later. He knew it bugged the others sometimes when they found out someone had been sitting in their spot or touching their things, though he had assumed it was more a territorial thing, hadn't linked it to scent marking.
Don found himself hiding from Raph's inquisitive look until his brother walked away to the kitchen. "Don't be late to practice," he called over his shoulder, "I think Master Splinter is going to be on you after the last few days."
Donatello nodded before hiding away in his lab again, groaning as he forced himself to chew and swallow a dry cracker. He could probably risk putting a little more effort and energy into training today. He stopped himself from feeling the eggs again, it was an anxious reflex and if he wasn't careful he'd end up doing it in front of the others. They weren't too big yet, though he would still have to be careful about receiving any blows to the midsection or be mindful of his falls, but they should still allow him to move around more or less normally.
It was just that he felt so tired all the time, as if his body weighed a ton and if he were left to his own devices he would probably spend most of the day dozing. His joints and muscles felt sore most of the time too and he had to be careful to not groan out loud when he'd get up from kneeling in seiza during training, his ankles and feet feeling bloated and stiff more than usual.
Gulping down a few more crackers washed with a sip of water he eyed the clock on his computer screen. There was no more delaying, he breathed in deeply and straightened before pulling on his gear quickly and heading to the dojo.
I can do this. He said to himself as he walked out of his lab.
I can't do this. He thought as he panted.
Even taking in deep lungfuls of air he felt as if he wasn't getting any oxygen at all, his head felt light and his body sluggish and trembling, slick and cold with sweat. When the dojo began to spin he knew he was in trouble.
"Again, Donatello!" Master Splinter called out to him.
Sensei had been especially hard on him today, pointing out every misstep and having him repeat moves over and over. It wasn't such a tough work out, really, and they were almost done but Don was already at his limit. His brothers looked at him from the exercises they were doing on the other side of the dojo when Donatello didn't obey Sensei immediately.
"Donatello! We will not be done until you do this correctly." He said firmly, ignoring that his other sons had stopped what they were doing to witness his rebellion. "I have been too lenient on you recently. Your season is no excuse to neglect your abilities in this way. I shouldn't have to be pointing out these corrections at this stage in your training, Donatello." He stopped pacing and then stood straight, with his arms behind his back. "Again!"
Donatello swallowed and bit his lip, shifting his lead body into the starting position before slowly taking the first step forward. His staff slipped through his unfeeling fingers and clattered onto the floor. He didn't have the strength to turn his head to look at his father but heard the sharp intake of his breath in outrage at the perceived defiance. He could feel himself sway in slow motion but his ears were full of the sound of his heavy breathing and the faraway echo of alarm of one of his brothers as his eyes lifted to the ceiling, his vision reduced to a pinpoint as his breath became frantic short gasps of air.
He didn't hit the floor, maybe someone had caught him but he couldn't see who it was even though he thought his eyes were still open, couldn't respond and just listened to how the air passed through his lips. Someone was saying his name as his vision cleared and his body twitched back to life again.
Michelangelo was cradling him on the floor of the dojo, a terrified grimace on his face. A warm hand patted his cheek from the other side and he turned his head to find Master Splinter's worried gaze. They were whispering to him if he was okay and he only could nod in return. Pressing his eyes closed when his stomach lurched as Mikey lifted him up a bit.
"You need to stop bullying him into skipping meals!" Raphael was arguing with Leonardo a few steps away.
"I didn't, and lack of nourishment had nothing to do with this or he'd be losing weight instead of gaining. He's in worse shape than we thought." Leonardo responded.
I'm right here. Donatello thought but had to grit his teeth against the wave of nausea that hit him.
"You're talking as if he had a beer belly and was on his ass the whole day. He's still fit as an athlete." Raphael bit back.
"It's not good enough. Our lives depend on our form, we're not athletes, we're ninja." Leonardo answered looking to Master Splinter for approval. The rat nodded at Leonardo and he crossed his arms.
"He didn't have any breakfast today." Michelangelo added perhaps to defend him or maybe just to add more to the list of "things Don is doing wrong".
"That you saw." Leonardo continued. "He's probably binge eating in private. Must have a stash of food hidden in his lab like Mikey has in his room."
"Hey!" Mikey called out and shifted his grip on Don so his arm curled around the back of his shoulders and his palm pressed right into his side.
Donatello flinched, brought back to full awareness by the touch and he flailed a bit to get out of Mikey's octopus hold around him. "I'm okay! I'm-"
As soon as he was upright his stomach clenched and all he could do was lean forward on his hands and knees to avoid throwing up on himself. He emptied his stomach at the arguing turtles' feet.
"Yeah, binging." Raphael mocked Leonardo as he jumped back from Don. "I'd say there's about… three crackers and a glass of water. Don must have had a party this morning in private with that stash of his."
Don groaned loudly and they stopped talking, Leonardo knelt down beside him and held him in place when he looked like he was about to tip forward. "Don, are you-"
"I don't have a stash." Don replied, wiping his mouth with the back of his hand.
He wasn't lying. Well, not completely. He did have a few things in his lab: a box of crackers, a few energy bars, some juice… It couldn't really be considered a stash, could it? Not if they were comparing it to the closet full of potato chips, sweets and chocolate Mikey had in his room.
"Don't worry about that now." Leonardo told him gently making Don grit his teeth at the dismissal. "Can you stand? What do you want us to do?"
"I'm okay, I'll just clean up and…"
"I got it, you go lay down or something." Mikey said as he quickly went to fetch a dirty towel from the hamper in the room while the other two helped him get to the living room couch. He could walk on his own but he couldn't blame them for hovering after what had just happened.
"I shall prepare some tea to settle your stomach." Master Splinter said as he patted Donatello's arm and then left for the kitchen with Leonardo in tow, most likely to talk about him in private.
Donatello sank into the couch with a sigh and began squirming to get comfortable. He could really use a nap right now but before he could settle in he caught Raph looking at him with an odd little smirk.
"Uh. I'm sorry, did I sit in your spot?" Donatello sat up from where he had comfortably squished himself into a groove for his carapace in the pillows, probably made by Raph who would usually sit right here. The hollow sort of swallowed him up snugly as it was made by a larger shell.
"Nah," Raph put his hands out to stop Don from getting up. "It's fine. You can have my spot."
"I thought you didn't like the whole smell… thing." Donatello answered through a yawn but scooted back into the couch groove, his eyelids already drooping.
"I don't like their smell. Yours is fine, it don't bother me." Raph lowered his voice and pulled down the blanket draped over the back to cover Don with.
Donatello breathed into the fabric, burying his nose into the soft material. It also smelled of Raphael. "I like it too." He sighed as he dozed off, missing the curious look Raph gave him.