Six Months Later

Donatello huffed and sat back from his worktable. A maze of gears, servos and straps was slowly taking shape on the graph paper in front of him. He was nearly done designing it, then there would be computer simulations and finally, production. There wouldn't be any rushing of this though, the meticulous engineer was taking it slowly. Gotta get this right the first time. If I give it to him and its not ready yet? He shook the very thought from his mind. To disappoint his oldest brother with this would not do.

Time for a break. Donnie rolled away from the low, tool-scored butcher block and stretched as far as his shell would allow. Muscles loosened, he stood and ambled out of his lab. Pausing in the entrance, he briefly looked over the Lair's main chamber. Washroom or kitchen? His internal debate was interrupted by the tell-tale click of a walking stick. Donatello's brown eyes wandered over to the kitchen in time to see Leo slowly striding out, mug of tea in one hand, improvised cane in the other.

He's getting faster. Those first few days after they had rescued Leo, he'd barely been able to shuffle from one end of the bus to the other. Granted, muscles had been strained in their mad dash to escape, and the rocking motion of their unwieldy vehicle hadn't helped either. Still, since acquiring the help of a walking stick, something the zookeepers would never have thought to give him, Leo had greater confidence and stability, allowing him to walk a bit more quickly. Resuming his ninjitsu training helped as well. Leonardo had fallen far from the skill level he's achieved before leaving all those years ago, but old muscle memory coupled with help from his family allowed him to increase the strength of his undamaged leg muscles as well as his stamina.

Now, under Donatello's watchful eye, Leo was making pretty good time. As he reached the couch he set his tea on the table, then carefully sat down. Cane set to the side he retrieved his tea and settled back to watch some TV. A little hair and he really would be Splinter Jr. The young genius thought, smirking to himself. Not that he would ever say it out loud. They all knew that nickname annoyed their eldest brother, and after nearly losing him, none of them yet had the nerve to say something potentially hurtful to him.

Once they'd finally gotten him home in fact, they'd waited on the much-missed turtle hand and foot. Eventually his more independent nature had rebelled though. One hoarse squawk, Leo hadn't spoken for years after all, and the eager nursemaids had backed off….. at least a little.

Right now, all Donnie wanted was to relax with his big bro.

"Hey Leo, what's up?" The turtle in question looked back over the couch. "Nothing much. Just gonna veg for a bit."

His voice had become raspy, after years of mistreatment, but it suited him. A little rougher around the edges and beat up, it made him seem like a retired action hero, which really, he basically was.

"Whatcha watching?" Don asked, leaning over the back of their old broken-in couch.

"Murdoch Mysteries. I'm part way through season 3."

"Ooooo. Mind waiting while I grab a coffee?" It was one of the rare shows that they all enjoyed, and it would be a pleasant way to relax after a morning of meticulous design work.

Leo perked up a little. His brothers didn't get to spend as much time with him as they liked, all of them having become gainfully employed since he left. "Yeah, sure Donnie. Y'know, I think Mikey squirreled away some cookies in the drawer under the oven while you're in there."

Cookies with a side of brother trolling? Yes please. With a maniacal grin, Donatello sprinted for the kitchen, Leonardo's laughter ringing behind him. Slamming into the kitchen, Don quickly poured a full mug from the coffeemaker on standby. At the same time, he pulled the oven drawer open with his toes and snagged the bag of cookies with his dexterous digits, then flipped them up to grab with his free hand. Hasty ballet complete, Donnie carried his drink and ill-gotten baked goods back out to the couch; making a mental note along the way to get Leonardo a serving tray so he could carry more than one thing at a time while using his cane.

Munchies handed over, Don plopped down next to his brother, grabbing a nearby throw blanket to, well, throw over them both. Snuggled down into their impromptu nest, nibbling and sipping, they dove into the adventures of the Artful Detective. Two episodes later, they paused the show to take a bathroom break and refill their cups.

Leo spoke up while Donnie quickly checked his email before starting the next episode. "So how was work this morning?"

Absently clicking through the various spam and phishing messages, the younger replied, "All right. I'm actually in between contracts at the moment. I just delivered a big one and I'm waiting on some info for the next, so I was working on a couple personal projects this morning." Having finally saved up enough from his tech support job, Donatello had launched Hamato Software Solutions; his own software design company and was rapidly making a name for himself building elegant, secure and user-friendly systems.

All three of the younger brothers had their own businesses now in fact. Mikey had continued his party entertainment gigs but was trying to slowly make it into more of a catering company, gradually phasing out the turtle mascot gimmick.

Along with taking up the leadership role after Leonardo was thought dead, Raphael had finally settled down a bit and went into partnership with Casey to open a motorcycle shop. Repairs, custom paint jobs and selling refurbished bikes them kept busy, with Casey handling the actual customers of course.

The brothers still trained together every day, then worked for awhile before coming home. Donnie just had the advantage of being able to work from his lab. "So, what've you been up to?" Don asked, setting aside his phone, then dipping a cookie in his coffee.

Leo shrugged, focussed as the murder mystery began. "Not much. Flexibility is getting better. I'm working my way through the stack of books April brought down. Raph offered to help me make a cane sword, so we're getting materials together for that. Like I said, not much."

"Sounds… riveting."

The elder brother snorted. "Well it's not like we've got many enemies left, and honestly, I'm fine with that." He admitted, absently rubbing his mangled thigh.

Donnie heard what his brother hadn't said though. "But, you're bored."

"But, I'm bored."

"Well, now that you've mostly recovered, have you been thinking about what you might want to do?" the purple clad turtle asked, trying to subtly side eye Leonardo.

With a gusty sigh, Leo paused Murdoch mid-exposition and rolled his head back to lean against the couch. "I don't know. My original sort of 'life plan' had been to work on mastering ninjitsu, then continue training with Master Splinter to eventually take over, do my best to take care of the family. Now… now I can't even leave the Lair without you guys guarding me." Don wasn't sure what Leo saw on his face, but his brother immediately started to backpedal, "I really appreciate it! You're all busy, between patrols and running your own businesses, so I'm grateful for the help to visit April and Casey or go somewhere else. I just, don't want to be in the way."

"Leo, you are NOT in the way. We WANT to be with you. We thought you were dead and now that we have you back? I mean, we enjoy all that other stuff but we miss you when we're on patrol or working." Don turned to face his brother directly. "Honestly, I for one wish you'd ask for more."

"Donnie.." Leo winced, "I can't. It .. bugs me, how little I contribute now. I can't lead any more, I can barely participate in training, I'll never be well enough to patrol again. All I can do is assist Master Splinter and take on as much of the housework as I can handle."

Donatello wasn't at all surprised at what his eldest brother was saying. Frankly, he'd expected this to become an issue much earlier. "And all the hard work, sacrifice, protection you gave us in the past doesn't count? If it was the other way around, all this had happened to one of us, would you feel they had to contribute more?" The genius' heart began to pound from fear that this could drag his brother into another depression; it was a miracle the drugs and trauma hadn't already.

"I know, I know. I just, want to be useful. And again, I'm bored." Leo agreed sadly, plucking at a catch in the couch upholstery, his abused voice starting to crack with emotion. Don's heart broke a little.

"Ok. Well, look at how we did it. Each of us took something we enjoy and ran with it. We had the advantage of starting with really low living expenses, but we just gradually built up our hobbies into something profitable." Donatello could already see how this was going to go but pushed ahead anyway. "So, what would you LIKE to do?"

Leo's dark eyes widened in utter bewilderment. "I mean, I don't know."

Ok, you expected this Don. "What're your hobbies? Aside from ninjitsu."

"I guess," the elder started, "I like reading?"

Oh boy. "Have you ever tried your hand at writing?" That's a yes. Leo's eyes suddenly became shifty, flicking down and to the side. "I mean… a couple short stories. Nothing I'd really want to share though." He perked up a bit. "Y'know, I got pretty good at making insects decently palatable while I was in the jungle." A mischievous smirk tracked across Leonardo's face, "Maybe I could ask Mikey for a job. Bill it as an environmentally friendly alternative for some dishes."

Don lost it. Just imagining their little brother's face at the suggestion had him cackling like the mad scientist he was, nearly rolling off the couch. "Mealworm melts? Cricket fritters? Please, I beg you, let me be there when you ask him?" Leo himself was chuckling at this point, clearly enjoying his little brother's laughter. "I'll make sure to sync it up with both your schedules."

Happy atmosphere restored, the two returned to their show. Eventually Don's phone dinged. "Oh, that info I was waiting for finally came through. Took them long enough, its not like they set the deadline or anything."

"Guess you have to go back to work now huh?" Leo asked, a little wistfully.

Don thought for a second. "Yeah, but, if you want something to do, I could use your help."

"Me? What could I help YOU with Don?" Leo asked, clearly thinking he wasn't qualified for the job.

"C'mon, I'll show you." The tech answered, while gathering up cups and cookies so Leo wouldn't have to carry anything back to the kitchen. Clean-up done, he met Leonardo part way to his lab and led the rest of the way in. Clearing a workspace, Don grabbed his spare laptop, a stuffed folder and quickly set it all up.

"Here, have a seat." Donnie pulled a chair out for his brother. Once settled, the elder asked, "What is it you want me to do?"

"Ok." Don, heaved a sigh. "So, now that I've got my business up and running all official and legit, keeping it that way comes with one major downside; taxes." A rueful grin crawled across Leo's face. They often dreamed about being part of the human world, but there were cons.

"Donatello, engineering extraordinaire, doesn't want to do something involving math?" the blue-banded turtle asked, smirking at his little brother.

Said engineer rolled his eyes and grinned back. "Yeah yeah, look. I like designing things, but this? This is just tedious. It's like if Sensei had you go back to the most basic katas for an entire training session." Leo winced. "I could do it, but it's just so… eugh…, you'd be doing me a huge favour."

"Um," the retired warrior looked at the many forms in the folder, "ok? I'll do my best but, I can't make any guarantees." Donnie huffed and put a comforting hand on his big brother's shoulder. "You'll be fine, I've been doing it since I got a job. It's mostly you just go down the forms and fill them out, then follow the instructions at the end for the calculations. Let me know when you're done, and I'll send it in."

"Kay." The bewildered turtle answered in a small voice. Don gave him one last pat then walked over to his own workspace and got down to business.

The next hours passed quietly, each turtle muttering to himself as they worked through their tasks. Leo would pipe up with the occasional question, usually getting a piece of paper in reply, then they would both settle in to work again. Don absently noted that he seemed to be looking a lot of stuff up online.

Eventually, Michelangelo wandered in, shook his head and announced, "Good evening my brothers nerdy and obsessive, if you'd be so kind as to join us, dinner is ready." He got the expected hand waving and murmurs. "Guys, c'mon it's time to eat. Save your spot and get out here."

Don sucked in a deep breath while slowly standing, working out the pins and needles. "Okay Mikey, we're coming." When there was no corresponding answer from his work mate, he turned to the little desk. "Leo?"

"Mmm? Oh, I'm almost done, and I don't want to lose my train of thought."

Donnie frowned while their baby brother huffed disapprovingly. "Bruh."

Leo turned slightly, eyes still focussed on the screen. "Really guys. I'll be out soon, I promise."

Hamato Leonardo never made a promise lightly, so his younger brothers shrugged at each other, took him at his word and headed for the kitchen to join their father and Raphael. At their questioning looks, Don answered, "He'll be along soon. Nearly finished and doesn't want to lose his place."

Raph huffed. "What's he inna good book or somethin'?" He started handing out plates of the casserole Mikey had made. "No," Donnie took his serving, "actually, he wanted something to do so I asked for his help. Leo's been filling out my tax forms."

Everyone froze a bit while they processed that. "You have Leonardo doing your taxes, my Son?" Splinter asked, slight disapproval in his tone. "He was bored!" the genius protested, "It's really just basic math at the end of the day. Honestly, I don't know why regular people pay to have it done. If you don't have a whole bunch of income streams and complicating factors, it's not that hard."

Raphael snorted. "Maybe for you; lookin' at that stuff makes my head hurt. Casey sends ours to the same person April uses. She's supposed to be retirin' soon though, so we might haftah find somebody new for next year."

"Aw, I give my stuff to April to pass on too." Mikey said, tucking into his plate. "We should get that lady a retirement gift. Ohh! I could make her a cake!" Splinter's ears perked up at the mention of cake. "Daaaaad." And his ears dropped again at Donatello's foreboding tone. "You know you're supposed to cut back on the sweets."

"Yes… my Son." Just gotta remind me that you're still the Father here, don't yah?

Twenty minutes later they all heard Leo's stick clicking across the Lair's stone floor. I should get him a cane with a rubber bottom. Making that much noise walking must be driving him nuts. Mikey quickly grabbed a plate to warm up Leo's dinner in the microwave before their eldest reached the kitchen.

Said turtle hobbled into sight shortly, file folder in his free hand. "Hey guys."

They all greeted him in kind while Raphael kicked out a seat for his older brother. "There yah go Fearless."

"Thanks Raph. Here Donnie, all done. Oh, thanks Mike." Leo said, passing over the file while accepting his plate and starting to eat. Don looked over the papers, double checking, then stopped at the end. "This is four percent less than I paid last year."

"Really?" Leo asked around his meal, "Cool."

"I made more this year though." Donnie was confused, going back through the forms one by one, checking each entry against the records in the file, all meticulously in order.

"Oh. Huh. I just made sure to check every possible thing listed, looked some stuff up and found a few that allowed for more deductions." The turtle in blue shovelled some more veggies and pasta into his mouth, "There's also a list of things I found that you could do to make it better next year." He pointed with his fork.

Don flipped to the end of the file and sure enough there was a paper with his brother's neat handwriting. Get invoices from Mikey and Raph for services. Make donations to registered charity. Set up a 401k and maximise deposits into it. It continued on with a few other items. "And this will reduce how much I pay?"

"Mmhmm." Leo swallowed. "I also found a recommendation that you pay during the year so you don't get slapped with a bill at the end. You can get a refund if it ends up you overpaid."

"Huh. There's more to this than I thought." The formerly confident genius leaned back in his chair, running over the numbers again.

"Yeah, there's lots of little things you can do that really add up."

Figures. Of course the strategist finds all the loopholes and, well, counterattacks in the tax code. It all checks out. "This is really well done Leo. Thanks! I'll submit it in the morning."

The eldest blushed and ducked his head. "You're welcome Don." Quick glances between the others showed they'd noticed his pleasure at being able to help. "Hey Leo?" Mikey piped up, putting the leftover casserole away in the fridge. "Would you mind taking a look at mine too? If you've got the time. I've got a couple employees now and it complicates it all a bit. Could we expense it if I pay you?"

His brother blinked a few times. "Uh, I think I would have to be certified for it to count. But, sure," he grinned ruefully, "I'd be happy to help. Not like I don't have the time anyway." The leaf green turtle shrugged a little, cleaning off the rest of his plate. Then, "Actually, I had been thinking to ask you about a job anyway."

Mikey stopped cold, a look of horror creeping across his face. Leo's "skills" in the kitchen were infamous, so he clearly had no idea what the elder thought he would do in Mike's company. "Uh, really? What sorta job were you thinking of?"

Don put a hand over his beak and focused on his tax forms, not wanting to give the game away.

"Well," Leo enthusiastically began, "I know there's a movement for more environmentally friendly and ethical foods, so I thought I could help with that." Out of the corner of his eye, Donnie could see a disarming, genuine smile on his face.

"Oh." Mike sat back at the table, setting a bowl of fruit salad out for dessert. "Have you been reading up about that or something?" He started filling smaller bowls to pass around, obviously relaxing.

"More like testing." Don could stand it anymore and looked up to watch. With sparkling eyes, Leo continued. "While I was in the jungle I got really good at preparing bugs to eat, so I thought I could share my recipes with you and develop more."

Mike dropped a bowl, sending the juice sloshing over, across the table and into Splinter's lap. The youngest turtle gaped, aghast both at Leo's suggestion and soaking their Father with sugary juice. Silence reigned for a moment, then the other three brothers lost it. Splinter sighed. "Kids."

A couple weeks later, Leo found himself at April's kitchen table, dropped off by Raphael in the Turtle Hauler on his way to work with Casey. "I really appreciate this Leo. I knew I was going to have to find a new bookkeeper soon but since poor Irina fell… I don't blame her for deciding to just retire a year early. No way she could make it through tax season with a concussion and a broken arm." April called from the washroom, finishing getting ready to go downstairs and open her shop.

"It's no problem April!" Leo hollered back, sorting through her papers to get them in the order that he thought he'd need them. "At least you had her services most of the year, so you can still expense that." His eyeridges rose at an invoice for a porcelain commode. People buy antique piss pots? And humans call us freaks. "I'll text you if I have any questions, but it looks like she pretty much had everything ready to go." Leo had done some extra research last night, expecting April's taxes to be the most complicated that he'd done yet, though the bike shop's was probably good practice.

"I'm not worried." She came around the corner, tucking a few last strands of hair back into her bun. "You've done a great job on everyone else's forms and I'm sure you won't have a problem with mine either. Don showed me his and it was immaculate. I used to do my own when I had time and you found lots of little things even I wouldn't have thought of." The red head leaned against the door frame, a speculative look on her face.

Uh oh. "What?"

April huffed a laugh. "You say that like I'm about to make you have a tea party with the Foot. I was just thinking, you're genuinely very good at this Leo." He ducked his head, trying to hide the blush. "Everyone keeps saying that. I'm just following the instructions on the forms and looking up terms I don't understand. I'm happy to help though." The turtle answered not wanting her to think more of it than it was.

"And cooking is often just following a recipe, but Mike does research and finds other little ways to take his dishes to the next level." Huh. "Don't you appreciate his hard work? Both in feeding the family and in his business?" She asked, coming to stand next to him. "Well, yeah. He's really good at it, and it makes all our lives better." Leo answered, meeting her emerald gaze. We could live off our own cooking, but it wouldn't be enjoyable.

A pale hand rested on one of his own. "No pressure, I just want you to consider the possibility, but what do you think about maybe taking a course to be a bookkeeper or a registered accountant?"

"Me. A CPA."

She huffed a little laugh. "Why not?"

I…. well…. Why not? ... I … I don't know.

April seemed to think she'd made her point, patted his hand once. "It's something to consider. You never know, maybe you could open your own business." Leo felt his jaw going slack as the idea started to percolate in his mind. "Speaking of, I need to go open mine." She gave him a peck on the cheek and walked out, leaving him paralyzed at the table. Me? A CPA?

Hours later, Leo was interrupted by the sound of April coming back up for lunch. "How's it going?" she asked, slipping in the front door.

"Ok," he answered absently, "just about done. I want to go over it one more time to check for mistakes."

"How about you take a break for lunch and check it over with fresh eyes after." His sister suggested, heading into the kitchen and pulling a couple dishes out of the fridge.

"You're the boss." Leo quipped, setting it all aside in a neat pile to get up and help. Once he'd given her a quick hug, they got busy reheating left over mac and cheese, BBQ chicken and cooked green beans. Everything warmed, they sat down to eat. "So…" Leonardo led, "I've been thinking about what you said."

April looked up at the hesitant turtle. "And?"

He pushed his mac around a little. "I.. see the possibilities. I just." Leo huffed. "It's not something I ever considered before." He put down his fork. "I mean, do you look at ME and see an accountant?"

Oh, she gave him a look alright. "You of all people should know that looks don't mean much." Her face softened. "Leo, you're more than your swords and ninjitsu. You're smart, sweet, kind and funny. For this in particular, I think you're more than smart enough to take the course and qualify. You're also honest, straightforward and, most importantly, discreet. All essential qualities for a good accountant." April paused to eat a bit and let him think on what she said.

After a few minutes she decided to make one last argument. "I'm so confident, in fact, that I'd like to offer you an interest free loan to pay for the course. You can pay me back after." She kept speaking over his attempt to interrupt. "Leo you'd do the same for me and you know it. Just give it some honest thought and let me know, ok?"

"You fight dirty."

"Duh."

He went for it. Suddenly, Leo was no longer at all bored. Tired, stressed, felt like his brain might leak out his ear, but never bored. While he obviously kept up with his physical training as much as possible and did his share of the housework; every spare moment went into schoolwork and figuring ways around having to do anything in-person for his CPA program.

The clan was completely on board, thrilled to see their brother so engaged with something again; though they made sure he took a little downtime every week to spend with family and recharge. Long days were spent side by side with Donatello in his lab; a dedicated workspace now set aside for the eldest brother sat plowing through coursework. Some help from the Guardians in the form of working with TCRI's accounting department for the experience portion of qualifications and before he knew it, the former warrior found himself sitting in April's apartment for a celebratory dinner.

Raphael stood up and read from the newly framed certificate, "The University of thah state of New York, education department. Be it known that Leonardo Hamato, having given satisfactory evidence of the completion of professional and other requirement pro.. prescribed by law is QUALIFIED to practice as a CERFITFIED PUBLIC ACCOUNTANT in thah state of New York!" The emerald turtle's bright grin lit up his face as he slapped his big brother on the back. "Yah did it Leo! You're a CPA!" Everyone else cheering their congratulations.

Leo blushed and took the frame back from his brother. "Thanks Raph." He looked around the room at his family, "Really guys, thanks. I couldn't have done it without all your help."

"Well, you've already got four clients lined up," Don said, handing the brother of the hour a glass of special sake he'd ordered, "so, it shouldn't take too long to build up a decent customer base. I also happen to know somebody that could set up a website for you." The olive turtle grinned. Leo laughed. "Just make sure you bill me promptly so I can expense it." The whole family chuckled a little, happy to see him revelling in his new role.

Mikey was practically vibrating in his seat. "Guys, can we do it now?"

Raph sighed and smacked his baby brother upside the head. "Really? We were gonna wait 'til aftah dinnah." Leonardo looked around at his family, all of them disgruntled or bemused. "I know," Mike answered, "but I just can't wait. I wanna see his face."

"Guys?" Leo asked, wondering what was going on.

"Well now we gotta, don't we? Thanks a lot chucklehead." Don admonished. "C'mon Leo, we've got something to show you. Oh! Bring your certificate."

As everyone got up, Mikey bolted, living up to his nickname and chuckling all the way down the stairs. The rest of them took their time; especially Leonardo, making sure to take them one at a time with an iron grip on railing and new cane. At the bottom of the stairs, they approached Kirby's old basement office, the basement having largely survived the explosion all those years ago. Next to it was the concealed entrance to an emergency tunnel the brothers had constructed, connecting to the nearest passable line.

With his family expectantly lined up by the office door, Leo began to get an inkling. "You didn't." Mikey cleared his throat dramatically. "Mr Hamato. Your office." He then opened the door while bowing.

Beginning to choke up, Leo gamely walked into the room with as much dignity as he could muster. It was simple, but exactly him. The warm lighting revealed a set of filing cabinets, a clearly antique wooden desk, a comfy couch and matching ottoman for him to put his feet up. Likely the furniture was a collaboration between Mikey and April. He also noted a Donatello- special laptop sitting on the desk and what looked like a scooter? bike? propped up against the wall. A wall unit was set up with an electric kettle, microwave, toaster and mini fridge. Next to that there was a door opened into a clean, bright little washroom. Probably Raph and Casey's handiwork.

"You guys wanting me to move out?" Leonardo laughed, quickly making use of the chair rolled out and ready next to his new desk.

There was a round of chuckles all around. Then Raph plopped himself down on the couch. "Nah, we yah might wanna place tah work where nobody'd bother yah. An, we just wanted to make sure you wouldn't hafta go up an down the stairs too much when you're workin'." Leo found himself having to throttle down the tears again. "Thank you, so much. This is great guys."

"Oh but wait." Don came forward to open the laptop. "I had FUN with this. It's all set up for you with the latest accounting software, customized by yours truly, to work with my own personally designed operating system. And….", the olive turtle walked over to the scooter. "this is an 'e-bike'. It's designed so that you can pedal or, if you don't feel up to it, you can engage the electric motor and just ride it. I figure you can use this to get back and forth in the tunnels. Just remember to check the charge before you leave."

Leo didn't miss the greater personal freedom his brother had just given him. He wouldn't need an escort to get to April's anymore. Or to get to my office now, I guess. Words wouldn't do for this. The brand-new CPA held out his arms in a silent request for a group hug. I have the best family. He thought, while is Father hung his certificate on the wall.