Disclaimer: Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles is the property of Viacom, Nickelodeon, Kevin Eastman, Peter Laird and all organizations associated with said names. This is non-profit.
Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Exile
by BrownEyedBirdie
Author's Note: Welcome back! We're on the downswing now of this series. I know I've neglected "Love's Symphony" but I've been having a lot of fun with this story so I've let other projects slide. Don't worry, they're not abandoned. Weiterlesen!
Chapter 17 – Place
The days fell into routine after Leo's fever finally broke. His breathing became clear and steady and his sleep was untroubled by dreams. The weather also grew steadily warmer.
"But let's not get irrationally optimistic," Donnie said, "Spring is still about two weeks away. And we've got enough to do between now and then."
As the beginning of Daylight Saving Time, there had been three days of 40°.
So as Leo slept on, the three Turtles and two humans shoveled the snow, swept the steps, and cleaned out the chicken coop and gutters on the house. April and Casey continued to sell at the farmer's market, which now were happening every weekend. The chickens, which now number an even two dozen kept a steady flow of egg income in the hands of the household. But April and Casey had explained why it was better not to go back to the same local town.
"There's just too much at stake if the Kraang have been there," April said, "I don't know if they actually saw us or if it clicked who we were, but we'll have to go somewhere else."
A second town, smaller and less populated, was in the opposite direction over an hour away. This meant getting down to the absolute essentials only. April took it upon herself to run the household. In addition to being responsible for earned money, April set the chore assignments, managed the shopping lists and schedules and began to extend the cooking duties to the rest of the team instead of just Mikey.
"But I don't mind doing the cooking," Mikey said, "It's just fine. My cooking is-"
"We're all going to start sharing the work," April said, "That's how a family does things."
Mikey agreed, but refused to give up his responsibility for the chickens to anyone else. April agreed that he should have that job alone.
"Donnie has the lab," April said, "And the medicine. My job is this house. You can keep the chickens. Raph will have his job to do too."
Training, Raph's other job, would have to begin soon. When Donnie had agreed to lead the team, one of the conditions had been that Raph would take charge of training practices. At the time, it had been an easy agreement. But now Raph spent even more hours sitting with Leo, sometimes barely sleeping. Mikey would often pass the room where Leo slept and hear Raph muttering, "What would you do for this? What about this?"
April continued to maintain a distance with Donnie and vice versa. Both seemed to have moved past their anger, but the subject of the fight and their anger was not forgotten.
"You think they'll ever patch it up?" Mikey asked Raph one evening. Raph narrowed his eyes thoughtfully.
"They're both stubborn, smart and convinced the other one is wrong," Raph said, "I'm about ready to lock them up and make them talk it out."
"You'd do that to our leader?" Mikey asked with a grin. Raph smirked back.
Casey, aside from carting things in and out of the house, the barn and the farmer's market, found no real personal project. He spent his time going from person to person and helping them out with their jobs or doing extra chores if someone else was busy. It usually meant covering for Donnie's chores as the warm weather allowed Donnie more time in the barn. Casey didn't mind doing the work. Donnie completing the medicine would mean Leo could recover that much quicker.
Casey was sitting in the back, peeling potatoes for mashing; it was April's turn to cook and she'd chosen meatloaf and potatoes with gravy.
"Hey, come on Red," Casey called into the kitchen, "Just how many potatoes do you need?"
April came out of the kitchen and looked at the potatoes in the bowl.
"All this time spent with the Turtles," April said, "And you still have no idea how Mikey eats?"
"I've peeled half of Idaho's best, April," Casey said, "I need a break.
"Fine," April sighed, "I'll do the rest. You rest your dainty hands."
Casey grinned, despite the sarcasm directed at him. He handed over his bowl and knife and stretched his stiff legs. Out of the corner of his eye, he could see Donnie. He was carrying something out of the barn and throwing it onto a pile of junk.
"Whatcha up to, D?" Casey asked as he wandered over.
"Just getting rid of some unneeded clutter," Donnie replied. Casey picked up the new item.
"This is a shock for a truck," Casey said, "At least it would be if it still had the coil on it."
"I used the coil," Donnie said, "I needed it to distill some liquids."
"Where'd you get this?" Casey asked. Donnie indicated the barn behind him and Casey peeked in. At the back of the barn, near to where Donnie had set up his lab, was the old, rusted out truck.
"When did you get that here?" Casey asked. He hurried over, remembering how the truck had been just the shelter he'd needed. Donnie followed him in, stopping to warm his hands over an oil drum with a small fire in it.
"Raph and I used the party wagon to haul it back here a few days ago," Donnie said, "We got tired of hiking back and forth in the cold."
"How much is left of it?" Casey asked.
"I'm not finding much more," Donnie sighed, "I've mostly used the rubber tubing, the grill and the metal of the car hood and cab. The rest is basically worthless."
"Worthless?" Casey said in surprise, "This is in great shape, once it's had a little work done."
"We already have a car," Donnie said, "And I don't have the time to work on a second one."
"So I'll do it," Casey said, "I've had some shop classes. That's how I built all my wicked cool gear."
"This is a little bit more complicated that some inline skates and an electrically charged potato masher," Donnie said, giving a long sideways glance at Casey, "You're a high school hockey player and no high school shop class is going to teach you all you need to rebuild a car."
"Hey, one of those classes was on a college level," Casey said defensively.
"The answer is no, Jones," Donnie said, "Now let me get on with my work."
"I've been doing more work than most of you guys to help April out," Casey said, "But mostly so you could have the time free to fix Leo's medicine. I think I deserve a little gratitude."
"You have my gratitude," Donnie said, "But I still have a team to lead and I need everyone on this team to do a job."
"And who said I was ever on this team?" Casey asked. Donnie looked at him in surprise.
"You go ahead and you finish that medicine," Casey said, "That way we get a real leader back instead of a spineless jerk.
Donnie came forward and stared coldly into Casey's eyes. Casey stared back, but found his gaze flinching slightly as he realized that it was not the same jealous eyes he'd come to recognize. These eyes held something older and deeper than Casey knew and he didn't like that it was making him lose control of the situation.
"Whatever," Casey said with a shrug, "You just keeping working, Donatello. Call me when you decide you're ready for an intelligent conversation."
Casey walked out of the barn and back to his chair, resuming his potato peeling with renewed vigor. Donnie stood in the doorway for several moments before he walked into the barn, shutting the doors behind him.
Dinner was quiet that night. Raph and Mikey found themselves having three isolated conversations; themselves, them and Donnie, them and April and Casey. Casey occasionally would shoot angry looks at Donnie, but Donnie's eyes were buried in a notebook, scribbling out more formulas.
"Donnie, can you please not do that at the kitchen table?" April asked in a guarded sort of voice.
"I just have a few more to write down before I forget them," Donnie said, echoing her guarded tone.
"Like that big ol' brain of yours forgets anything," Casey said. Donnie didn't acknowledge the spur.
"Donnie, I know the formula is important for Leo," April said, once again sounding guarded, "But it can wait until you leave the table."
Donnie looked up at her with a harsh gaze. Without another word, he stood up, took his empty plate to the sink and turned to leave the room. April sighed and rubbed her eyes, fighting more tears of anger and frustration.
"Who does he think he is?" Casey said.
"Back off, Jones," Mikey said, "D's just got some major pressure right now. He'll come around."
"In the meantime, we all have a job to do," Raph said, "Training starts tomorrow. We're all out of shape and we've got a lot of work to get back into our groove."
"We'll be movin' and groovin', dawg," Mikey said, "Like a turtle do!"
"Well, you guys can train," Casey said, "You all do the ninja thing. Me, I'm on my own and I've got a project I want to do."
"What do you have in mind?" April asked curiously.
"That old truck," Casey said, "The one you guys dragged back here. It can be fixed up and we can use it."
"Donnie's been using that for his lab," Raph said.
"He says he's picked all the good parts clean," Casey said, "I thought I'd give it some TLC and fix it up."
"Did you ask him about working on it?" April said. Casey gave her a curious stare.
"He's not my leader ," Casey said simply, "I don't have to get permission. It's on your property, Red, so I do need yours."
"So, Donnie said no?" April said shrewdly. Casey frowned.
"He said I don't have the experience to work on it," Casey said, "And not alone. Can you believe him? I'm old enough to drive and I've got plenty of experience. It's not his decision to say what I can and can't do with something that's yours, not his."
"He's the leader though," Mikey said, "We're a team."
"Not my leader, not my team," Casey said, "I'm a team of one."
Everyone was quiet. Casey looked at April, waiting for her answer.
"Well, I would have liked Donnie to ask me," April said, "And while I do think that you probably do know what you're doing, I'm gonna have to side with Donnie on this one."
"Are you serious?" Casey asked.
"Casey, that truck is ancient and so is that barn," Raph said, "If you want to work on the truck, I'm sure we could convince Donnie to let you work on it while he's out there."
"I don't need anyone babysitting me," Casey growled.
"That's a matter of opinion," Mikey said quietly, but not softly enough for Casey to not hear it.
"Jones, I'll talk to Donnie," Raph said, "You want to make that your little pet project, it's going to have to be on the terms of the owner."
"And that's me," April said, "And I know Donnie knows his stuff about cars. If he says not alone, then that's the way it is."
Casey stormed out of the house, tossing out a few colorful phrases that probably would have been better received on the hockey ice than in the O'Neil kitchen.
Casey stood outside and fumed. The nights were still chilly but Casey felt none of it. He stared at the darkened barn and made a decision.
"Casey Jones is a lone vigilante," he muttered, "And this is one vigilante who isn't going to take orders."
April sat on the couch, reading a book. Mikey watched TV while Raph had gone upstairs to sit with Leo. Donnie was parked on the floor by the fireplace, scribbling formulas down in his notebook with his tongue poking out. Raph came downstairs about an hour later, stretching his arms.
"Leo's temp is down to normal," he said, "Sleeping as soundly as if he'd had one of Mikey's almond and honey pizza."
"Sounds…yummy," April said hesitantly.
"Actually, it is," Raph said, "Master Splinter always used honey when we couldn't sleep. And you know Mikey when it comes to experimenting with foods."
"Honey didn't work so well on algae and worms," Mikey said seriously. Raph groaned in agreement. Suddenly, Donnie gave a yelp.
"Finished!" he said excitedly.
"You finished the formulas?" Raph asked, "Which one will help Leo?"
"No idea," Donnie said, "Next up, testing them in the lab. There are about 30 formulas I have to try with the few chemicals I managed to bring from the lair."
"Dude, that's gonna take forever!" Mikey groaned, "Even I couldn't try all 30 flavors of ice cream at Famous Franks!"
"It's better than where we were before, Mikey," Raph said, "How soon can you get started, Donnie?"
"Two more days," Donnie said. He collapsed on the couch in contended heap. Mikey grinned at seeing his brother so stress free at last. Even April giggled at the lanky tangle of limbs. Donnie looked at her out of the corner of his eye. Then he sat up.
"Where's Jones?" Donnie said.
Everyone looked around.
"Last I saw him, he was pouting out back," April said, "He was pretty upset about the truck."
"I wanted to talk to you about that," Raph said, "Is it really so unsafe to work on that truck?"
"At the moment, yes," Donnie said, "There are so many frayed wires and spark plugs; even the fuel line is a mangled mess. If this had been summer, we might have found a raccoon nest in the engine block, judging by the leaves and mess in the trunk."
"It's not a one person job," Raph said. Donnie looked at him knowingly.
"Forget it," Donnie said, "You said yourself training starts tomorrow. We've all got stuff to do to get ourselves and this house in shape. And just because Leo's fever is gone and he's healing doesn't mean there isn't more to worry about."
"How much more could we possibly find?" Mikey asked.
"Internal damage," Donnie said, "I wish we could get him into a hospital or at least a clinic where there's an x-ray machine."
"There was a vet's office in town," April said, "But we can't go there anymore. It's just not safe."
"Right now, I think we got bigger problems," Mikey said, "Like who left the light on in the barn?"
Everyone ran to the window and stared out at the flickering light from the barn windows.
"Jones!" Donnie said sharply.
Casey heard them coming before they even hit the barricaded door. Somewhere at the back of his mind, he knew it was childish to lock himself in the barn with a car, but he very seldom listened to that side of his mind.
"Jones, get your butt out of there!" Raph shouted. Casey grinned.
"Sorry, Raph," Casey called back, "But I don't take orders from you."
"Jones, if you break anything in that lab, I'll gladly give you a deviated septum to match your malocclusion," Donnie shouted.
"And I definitely don't take orders from you, punk!" Casey snapped back. He connected a few wires and spark plugs back into place.
"Come on Casey," April said, "This isn't funny. You're gonna get hurt!"
"Give me a little credit, Red," Casey said, "I've connected the wires and everything back into place. Once I get this baby going, I'll be able to tell just how much work is left."
"You want to work on that death trap, Jones, fine," Donnie said, "But you do it when I'm there since it is my lab."
"I don't need anyone to help me," Casey said, "I know a thing or two about inventions and mechanics too."
"Then what happens when you have exposed wire near a heat source," Donnie said, "Especially one that also ignites gasoline."
Casey turned the key at the same instant Donnie's words left his mouth. He frowned at the sizzle and pop he heard before he felt his body flying.
"Jones!" Raph shouted as the pop and growl of an engine roared like a caged tiger. Then it sputtered and died.
"He got it to work," Mikey said. Quickly, he climbed up the barn wall to look through the tiny skylight.
"It's too quiet in there," Donnie said, "The Jones I know should be gloating by now."
"He's down!" Mikey called from above them, "He's lying on the barn floor. I think he must have got zapped. He knocked over that oil drum too!"
"Raph, toss Mikey your sai," Donnie shouted, "We need to lift the latch inside. Mikey, attach it to your chain. April, get the first aid kit."
April took off as Mikey caught the sai and lowered it on the chain of his nunchakus. Donnie peered through until he saw the point of the three-pronged weapon. He pulled a length of wire from his belt and made a hook. He pushed it through and caught the chain, pulling the sai until it slipped under the latch of the barn door. Quickly, Mikey pulled the chain up and lifted the latch, opening the doors. Raph and Donnie hurried in. The fire in the oil drum had not been a big one but a few pieces of kindling were already starting to get dangerously close to other items that might make a fire worse. Donnie grabbed an old blanket and began to beat the fire out. Raph lifted Casey's limp body and carried him out of the barn. In a few moments, Donnie had put the fire out.
"Donnie!" Raph shouted, "Get out here!"
Donnie ran out of the barn and saw Raph and Mikey standing over Casey. April was running hands along his arms and legs. Then she looked up with horrified eyes.
"He's not breathing!" she cried, "Casey's not breathing!"
As he had before, Donnie moved into action without thinking. He tilted Casey's head up and listened. Then, pinching his nose, Donnie breathed two long breaths between Casey's lips. Then put his hands on his sternum and began to pump.
"Come on, Jones," Donnie said, grunting with the effort. April's eyes filled with tears and she buried her face against Mikey. Raph's eyes were constricted tightly with fear as Donnie continued to pump.
"Come on, Jones!" Donnie said again, "After everything you've done, you're gonna let a car beat you?"
Casey let out a gasp and began coughing. Donnie felt backwards into the snow and sighed.
"Dude!" Mikey said, "You're okay!" He threw an arm around Casey in a hug then smacked the back of his head.
"Ow!" Casey said weakly, his voice hoarse from coughing, "What was that for?"
"What were you thinking?" Mikey snapped.
"Ease off, Mikey," Raph said, "Wait until he's better. And then get in line behind me."
"After me," April said, "Casey, that was the stupidest thing you've ever done. And that includes fighting a giant monster made of mutagen."
"Casey Jones has done stupider things than that," Casey said, "This just happens to be one of the ones you've seen."
"You're just lucky Donnie was here," April said, "He knew exactly what to do and didn't waste a moment."
Casey looked at Donnie for a moment. A lot of thoughts passed through his head and each remark seemed to sound stupider in his head. For once, he chose to listen to that sensible part of his mind.
"I get that," Casey said, "Don, I'm sorry about that. And about saying you were a lousy leader. I take it all back."
"Yeah, well, I probably got a little overprotective of my space," Donnie said, "I'm not used to sharing a work area."
"It's your space, Donnie," Casey said, "I'll stay out of it. That truck is in pretty bad shape."
"Maybe it wouldn't be so bad having an extra set of wheels," Donnie said.
"Huh?" Casey asked.
"You got it to work, Jones," Raph said.
"I did?" Casey asked. Everyone smiled and nodded.
"Goongala!" Casey sighed happily, "I told you I could get that baby going. Casey Jones knows his business."
"He's back," Donnie said with a roll of his eyes.
"But it's gonna be a couple of days before you get to work on it again," April said, "In the meantime, I think I've got a few chores in the house that have your name on them."
"Oh yeah?" Casey said suspiciously.
"Yup," April said, "And I think it starts with more potato peeling."
Casey groaned as everyone else began to chuckle. As Raph helped Casey up, April looked at Donnie and then reached out to squeeze his hand. Donnie froze and looked at her. She smiled at him hopefully, but Donnie's face took on a look of sadness and he pulled his hand free gently.
*()()()*
Okay, I know I tend to pick on Casey a lot, but he's an easy target. I think I've said this before; Casey in this new series seems halfway between the Casey of 2003 (which was a lovable doofus) and the comic book/1987 series (which was a bloody psychopath). This Casey has his dumb moments, but he's also clearly got a few synapses loose. It makes stories like this easy for me to use him for target practice.
For all you Apritello fans, next chapter is the one you've been asking for and hoping for since chapter 9. See you then!