This fic is for guest Akimii, who requested a tender brotherly moment between Raph and Mikey.

NOTE: There will probably be grammar mistakes which I will fix later.

When Raph offered to get him some ice cream, the first thing Mikey thought was that his hotheaded brother wasn't feeling very well. But despite how weird it felt, he eargerly accepted and the two went out for some brotherly bonding time, which they didn't have very often anymore.

They sat at the very top of the water tower, eating their ice cream and looking up at the beautiful full moon, which shines brighter than all of the city lights put together. Mikey sighed happily as he licked his strawberry and vanilla ice cream. He just loved moments like this.

"You know, me and the guys have been talking," Raph spoke as he continued to stare up at the glowing white orb. "About your future."

At this, Mikey looked over at Raph. He should've known there was motive behind this random act of kindness from his brother. "Oh, yeah? What'd you talk about?"

Raph looked uneasy and his Adam's apple bobbed up and down as he swallowed. "Well...about whether or not you should continue being a ninja."

Mikey just looked at him confused. "...huh?"

Raph gritted his teeth. He really wished that Master Splinter was still here, since he was better at this kind of stuff. "I mean, it-it's not like we don't believe in you or-""

"Hold up, Raph," Mikey cut him off. "Are you saying that you guys don't want me on the team anymore?"

He could hear the hurt in Mikey's voice and he couldn't bring himself to look him in the eye. "We'll always want you on the team, Mikey," he softly said, "whether you're a ninja or not."

"Then what are you saying, Raph?" Mikey pressed for an explanation.

Reluctantly, Raph turned his head to look directly at Mikey, but he still couldn't look into his eyes. "That...maybe you should think about doing...other stuff."

Mikey stared at him with an incredulous look for a moment, before he narrowed his eyes in anger. "What 'other stuff', Raph?" He sounded awfully calm but Raph knew better. "There's nothing else I'm good at."

Raph shook his head. "That's not true, Mikey. There are a lot of things you're good at."

"Yeah, cooking," Mikey muttered as he stared off into the horizon. "But that's about it. And sometimes you won't even eat the stuff I make 'cause it's too weird or too gross."

"Yeah, but most of the time, your cooking rocks! And you're talented in art. You draw better than everyone else in the lair-"

"You once told me that I draw like a two-year-old."

Raph winced with guilt as he remembered that he did, indeed, say that to Mikey once. "Uh..."

"Anything else you'd like to add, Raph?" Mikey sarcastically and bitterly asked.

He scratched the back of his neck as he tried to think of more. "Well, um...you're funny." He mentally slapped himself, but it was the best he could come up with.

Mikey closed his eyes and softly scoffed, shaking his head. "I'm funny, huh? Well, you guys sure don't act like it. Every time I crack a joke, you all yell at me or slap me instead of laugh."

"You are funny, Mikey. It's just...you joke around too much. That's exactly why we're having this discussion. You can't seem to take the missions seriously enough. You have a hard time focusing and you're always goofing off. And ones of these days, you're gonna wound up hurt. Or even worse."

"I can take care of myself, Raph!" Mikey started to raise his voice. "Just because I'm not perfect like you guys doesn't mean I can't do it! I do my best-"

"Yeah, but you lack focus, Mike!" Raph raised his own voice. "Without focus, you can't reach your full potential! But we're not condemning you for that! We're just trying to protect you! You're not meant to be a ninja!"

Mikey stood up and was now screaming at Raph. "I AM A NINJA! I'M JUST NOT THE NINJA YOU WANT ME TO BE!"

Raph was left speechless by Mikey's outburst. Sure he saw Mikey mad before, but never this furious. His inner angry dude was definitely showing now. He watched as Mikey slowly calmed down his unsteady breathing and sat back down on the roof, refusing to look at him and instead focusing on whatever was in front of him.

He cast his eyes down at the chocolate ice cream that started to melt in his hand. He kinda figured that this conversation wouldn't end well, and seeing that betrayed look on his brother's face made him feel like a bad guy who was worse than even the Shredder, himself.

"Why now?"

He looked over at Mikey. "Huh?"

"We've lived and trained together for over sixteen years," he said in a voice so quiet and filled with sadness. "Why are we talking about this now?"

Raph closed his eyes and sighed heavily. "'Cause...Splinter's not around to guide us or look after us anymore. So we have to take care of ourselves and each other now. But you're our baby brother, Mike. You're our top priority, and if anything were to happen you, we'd have failed both you and Father."

Mikey finally looked at Raph, surprised and touched by this confession. He was beginning to see why his brothers were suddenly trying to pull him off the team. It wasn't because he was inconvenience; they were only trying to protect him and be the big brothers they were supposed to be.

He quickly finished up his ice cream before it completely melted and then turned back to Raph. "Look, Raph, I get it. You guys want to keep me from getting hurt. But this is my life. You don't get to decide my future, I do. I know none of you think I can make it, but I can."

Raph looked down in shame at the now melted ice cream that dripped from his hand and onto the ground below, forming a small brown puddle.

"I know I'm not great," Mikey continued, looking up at the moon with wet eyes. "Every time I step into that dojo and see you guys being the perfect ninjas that Splinter always wanted, it feels like a slap in the face. And there wasn't a single time when I hadn't noticed Sensei's disappointed look every time I goofed up or goofed around. I know I'll never be as good as you guys, and Sensei knew it, too."

At that moment, Raph's heart broke for his little brother. Has he always felt this alone, and full of low self-esteem? "Mikey..."

"But I'm not gonna give up," Mikey looked at him with so much determination in his eyes. "No matter what. And I know Sensei would've wanted me to keep on fighting, even if I am a screw up."

Screw up. Raph remembered when he called Mikey that back at the farmhouse, and even through the two made up afterwards, Mikey must've still been feeling the impact of those awful words and even believed them to be true.

He reached over to gently grab the back of Mikey's neck so that he could pull him closer and they could look deep into each other's eyes. "You're right. It's your life, Mikey. But don't keep fighting just for Master Splinter. Do it for yourself. You know you can do it, and that's all that matters."

Now Mikey's baby blues were welling up with tears but he was smiling.

"And let me tell you something," Raph warmly smiled back, "you might not be the best ninja, but you are the best friend a guy could ever have. There's no one else in the entire world I trust more than you. And whatever happens in the future, you know you can always count on me to stay at your side to the very end."

Laughing and choking back a sob, Mikey engulfed his brother in a warm hug, whispering thanks and loving things to him.