Cris looked so tired. She was awake now, quietly holding Thane after feeding him. Her hazel eyes full of love for the tiny green thing in her arms. But the sheer exhaustion on her face worried Raph as he looked on. To be completely honest with himself...he felt a little guilty. He did that to her, he had made the baby that grew in her and gave her a hell of a time coming out. Thane was definitely a bigger baby than his cousins had been, and Cris had struggled hard with him. But to see the sheer joy on her face now... The big guy had to blink back tears...again.

It had been a long labor, way longer than Vicky's had been and she was screaming like a banshee through most of it. Towards the end he had grown frightened at how hard she struggled. But Donnie stayed calm and so did Caitlin as they helped her and with a final cry and push, her hand squeezing the life out of Raph's, the sounds of crying had filled the room. Those loud cries bringing tears to the eyes of his parents as Cris collapsed against the pillows, and this time Raph squeezed her hand as he stared in shock at the baby Donnie held in his hands.

"Wh-what's wrong with his shell?" Were the first words he uttered, concern now flooding him. He didn't know what he was expecting to see really, but the squashed up looking carapace on his son's back didn't sit well with him. Scared the piss out of him actually. The twins didn't look like that when they were born... What if he had some life threatening problem? Maybe the infant version of shell rot or something... What if it was-

"Nothing." Donnie calmly replied. "It's still soft at this stage. It just conformed to fit through the birth canal, much the same way a human baby's skull deformes for the same reason. He's a big baby Raph, and if it hadn't adjusted your son would have torn her open. It'll adjust itself back in time."

"Thane..." Raph then mumbled, still in shock as he watched Donnie and Caitlin work on the child.

"Excuse me?" Donnie asked him as he wrapped the baby in a blanket. "Didn't hear you."

Raph looked at Cris who was smiling back up at him, then nodded. "Thane. His name is Thane..." His voice trailed off as Caitlin walked over and handed Cris the child. "A good strong name, for a good strong child..." Then he blushed a little in embarrassment. "That just sounded corny..."

Cris just laughed softly as she held Thane close to her, her eyes lost in his. "He is so beautiful..." Her emotion choked voice reached Raph and she gently held Thane to where he could get a good look at this small, green, wiggling lump of softness that was his son. Raph leaned over and for the first time met his son's eyes. Eyes that were the same hazel as his mother's. The boy got a good look at his father, then started wailing like a fire engine.

"Lungs work." Raph muttered at the noise, but smiled anyway. His son was just as loud as his parents. His...son... Hardcore Raphael found himself blinking back tears again. In a rare moment of public affection, he leaned over and kissed Cris' cheek. "You did good, firecracker." He murmured to her shocked look. "You did real good." His eyes met hers, that were filled with unshed tears, tears that spilled over when he added "I love you Cris."

"I love you too." Was the answer along with a soft kiss, Thane's crying filling their ears.

Once Thane had settled down, Cris was starting to show the effects of her labor, her head was drooping and she could barely hold onto the small bundle in her arms anymore. "Take him." Cailin told Raph as she came up to the bed, covering up the groggy new mother.

"I'm not going to take him!" He snapped back. "I'll break him!"

Caitlin's eyes flashed a moment as she glared at him. Then she calmly reached over and took the child from Cris, and squarely plopped him in Raph's arms. "Shut up and hold him! She's carried him long enough, it's your turn now!'"

"Yes ma'am..." He muttered as she turned to settle Cris down. Thane was also protesting his current position as he started crying again. "Oh stop." Raph told him gently. "You may not like it little boy, but I'm your father and you're stuck with me. You might as well get used to it."

Thane quit crying and looked up at his father before letting out a small sigh, then drifted off to sleep. It was about then that it clicked in his befuddled mind that there were other members of the family waiting to see this little noisy thing. With a silly grin plastered on his face, he went to go make the introductions.

Once all that settled down, Raph just quietly sat in the chair next to the bed, Thane still in his arms. He was so...tiny. Donnie had said he was big, but to Raph he looked small and fragile. Raph hadn't lied when he told Caitlin that he'd break him. One good sneeze on his part would squish the little guy. But there was one thing this child could do that was a pretty damn impressive feat...he made Raph's heart melt. Now that he held the child, he couldn't put him down. Thane slept on, completely unaware of the soft looks his father was giving him. "You've got so much to learn." Raph rumbled quietly to his son. "How ta fight, and you're gonna be damn good at it. Gonna do big things with your life." Thane shifted in his arms and Raph smiled down at him. "Got a lot of punks out there that are goin' ta get a decent asswhoopin' from you. And ya know Ima teach ya how to beat up on your Uncle Mikey."

"How about we teach him the basics first before you send him out on unsuspecting thugs." Cris told him archly, finally waking up. "You know, like walking, talking, eating with a spoon...things like that." She held out her arms and reluctantly Raph gave up the tiny bundle to his mother. Cris' face was tender as she held him close to her and she quietly cooed to him when Thane began to squirm and whine a little.

"Think he's hungry." Raph remarked as the mewling noises started to turn into cries.

"Wouldn't surprise me." Cris replied. "If he's anything like his daddy, he's going to need a lot of food to keep up with the growth." Thane let out another wail and Cris rolled her eyes. "Just as impatient as you are."

Raph just grinned at her. "Like you're any better."

"Oh hush."

He quietly watched his family as she fed their son. And it was then, as she held the baby close to the scar on her chest, that Raph thought of something. Something he was pretty sure had to have crossed Leo's mind a few times as he watched scenes like this play out with Vicky and the twins. He had almost lost her once. Had come so close to never being able to hold her in his arms again. And yet, that tragedy, that painful memory for him because he had felt so damn helpless, had finally turned into something that brought a completely different set of emotions to the fore front. If that hadn't happened, Thane wouldn't be here now. Was a pretty big thing to wrap his head around.

Still, that wasn't what he wanted to think about right now and he firmly pushed that thought away. He was right now at peace, content, with things. He was so happy right now it was just downright...sickening how he felt inside. All warm and goey. Here in a little bit he was going to have to demolish a wall or something to get his toughness back. Oh well...

This time when Cris began to nod off again, he didn't hesitate to take her small burden from her. Thane didn't protest either too much as he shifted back to his father. Raph looked down at that face and into the small hazel eyes that looked back up at him. "Between you and me, little man," He said quietly "you'll always have a soft spot in my heart, right next to your mother." Then he smiled. "But if you ever tell anyone that I'll deny it. I do have a reputation to maintain after all."

Maybe it was a trick of the dim light in the room, he wasn't sure, but Raph could have sworn he saw Thane wink at him...