"Please tell me we're done now?" Michaelangelo begged. His voice high-pitched and whiny, slicing through what had started off as a very peaceful and quiet afternoon in the woods of Massachusetts.

"Quit yer complainin and it'd probably get done sooner." Raph pointed out. Thrusting a freshly chopped stack of wood into the younger siblings' arms.

Mikey groaned, his body sagging as if his burden was weighing him down. Slowly dragging his booted feet, the orange-masked turtle spun about and carried the wood to the log wrack. Shoulders hunched and shivering against the cold, fall breeze that blew through the fibers of his borrowed wool coat.

"Relax, Mikester. We just got a few more logs to chop and we'll call it a day." Their human friend, Casey Jones, assured him. Raising his axe above his head and thunking it down into the trunk of a fallen tree with little effort. Looking at him dressed in a buffalo checkered shirt, mud caked jeans, and brown work boots, you'd never guessed he was a city man.

"You think my complaining's annoying, Raph?" Mikey responded to his brother's earlier comment. "Try putting up with my stomach. Its been hootin and hollerin for the past two hours! It's gonna eat itself if I have to continue smelling April's delicious cooking another second!"

"Then do us all a favor and hold yer breath." A mean grin spread across the volatile turtle's face. His words punctuated with the sound of his axe splitting the log in two.

Mikey's eyes turned haughty at the underlying threat. "You'd like that, wouldn't you?"

"Nooo, what gave it away?" Sarcasm practically gushed out of every word as Raph gathered the wood from the ground and held it out for the youngest to take.

Sticking out his tongue, Mikey roughly snatched the wood and stomped away.

"I don't know about you guys," Casey interjected the banter. Propping the handle of his axe atop his shoulder and breathing the pine scented air deeply. "but I've missed life in the woods. I forgot how relaxing it can be."

"Sure beats honkin horns and the smell of pollution." The red-masked terrapin agreed. Watching as a hawk dive bombed something in the brush. Rising back into the sky a second later with a chipmunk caged in its talons.

"Certainly isn't any less cutthroat though." Raph added under his breath.

A few chopped logs later and the blue painted door to the farmhouse swung open on squeaky hinges. A constant reminder they needed to get WD-40 but could never seem to remember it when they were at the market.

The three males paused in their work to look at the red-headed woman that emerged, dressed in a pure white, over-sized, cable-knit sweater, and tan slacks.

"Look at my big, strong boys working so hard. Come on in, you've earned yourselves some dinner."

"Bless your big, beautiful heart, April!" Mikey cried with joy. Dropping the logs from his arms right where he stood and taking off up the porch steps. Stopping just long enough to give their female friend a quick hug and a peck to her cheek before rushing inside.

"Nothin like a warm meal after workin up a sweat, eh Raph?" Swiping at his forehead with the back of his sleeve, Casey wedged the blade of his axe into the wood with one strong downward swing.

The blue-haired man climbed up the steps and spread his arms wide for his own hug. A cheeky grin spreading across his face.

"Uh-uh, no sir. Not before you wash up." April took a quick step back, palms raised to fend off the sweaty, dirty man.

"Ya let Mikey give ya a hug." Casey argued, his bottom lip jutting out in a pout as his arms dropped loosely to his side.

April's red lips pursed as she resisted the urge to smile. "Reptiles don't sweat. Human men do. Now, get inside and clean off."

"And then I can get my hug?" Casey asked, ever hopeful.

"I'll write you an IOU." April hip-checked the man as he passed before she turned her attention to Raph who had just finished picking up Mikey's mess and was making his way towards her.

"Oh, Raph, do you know where Don and Leo are?"

"Believe they're both in the barn. Don's been dyin to pick apart that tractor and Leo's. . . ya know, bein Leo."

April frowned at that last statement. "Is he still in that funk?"

"One way of puttin it, yeah."

"I hope he get's back to his old self soon. I miss our long conversations over Japanese history."

Raph chuckled, "Can't say the same about that, but yeah, I hope so too."

Noticing the woman starting to shiver, her sweater a flimsy protection against the biting wind, Raph took her shoulders and gently steered her back inside.

"Don't worry, I'll go get em, okay? Ya guys go ahead and start eattin."

"Thanks, Raph. I'll make you a plate." April informed him with a sweet smile before he turned to head for the old, decaying barn. It's once vibrant, red paint was now sun-bleached to a pale orangish brown. The tin roof almost completely swamped with rust.

Raph tried to refrain from going in that dump as much as possible for it looked like it was about to collapse on their heads at any second. He didn't understand how Leo or even Don could spend hours underneath that roof without getting anxiety.

They wanted to try fixing the thing up but the farmhouse was currently top priority.

Raph pushed the barn's creaking doors open with a grunt, the peeling, green paint crackling underneath his palms.

The inside was dark save for the sunlight that shined through the cupola above the hay loft. Illuminating piles of storage boxes and an assortment of farming tools crammed into the empty animal stalls.

There was a dream-like haze to the place, thanks to the amount of dust floating in the air and coating everything like snow. Making him cough.

At first, the barn appeared to be devoid of any life, until the clank and rattle of metal being tinkered with brought the burly ninja's attention to his right where a large, rusted tractor was parked. A pair of muscular, olive-green legs stuck out from underneath the vehicle like the Wicked Witch of the East after getting crushed by the flying house.

Smiling at that mental image, Raph walked over to his second younger brother and gave the legs a kick with his foot.

"Ow, what?" Donatello's annoyed voice trailed up from under the tractor. Not even bothering to check who it was.

"Please, that didn't hurt." Raph tsked. Steepling his fingers together and bending them backwards till they cracked. "But I can make it hurt."

"Got tired of torturing Mikey or something?" The brains of the family asked placidly.

"Like I could take any pleasure from listening to that brat's whininess fer two hours straight." The temperamental mutant shuddered uncomfortably at the memory. "Nah, April sent me tah retrieve ya guys. Dinner's ready."

"Cool. Tell her I'll be there in a sec." Don muttered, distractedly. Cursing after a sudden and rather loud bang of metal against metal.

Normally, Raphael would've just shrugged and left the genius be, but, knowing how easily his brother gets absorbed in his work, a 'second' can mean another three hours in Don's book.

And since their leader seems to be too out of commission to keep on top of them at the moment, Raph naturally took it upon himself, as the second in command, to shoulder the responsibility of sticking to everyone's ass.

Much to the discouragement of everyone else.

"No, Donnie. Now." Raph ordered. His voice hardening.

"I said I'll be there, Raph. Christ almighty."

Now, it wasn't common for the usually placid turtle to swear like this except if he was in a particularly crappy mood. Which could be taken as a warning for you to get the fuck out of town as fast as possible unless you wanted to get hit with a metaphorical, but sometimes literal, explosion.

However, Raphael was cold, hungry, and tired and that made his patience meter drop down from 'cool as a cucumber' to 'I don't give a rat's ass' level. No disrespect to his Sensei, of course.

Bending down, the sai-wielder grabbed Don's ankles and yanked him out from under the rotting bucket of bolts, earning him a very irate cry of protest.

"Seriously? What part of 'a second' did you not understand?"

"One." Raph answered with a lazy grin.

Glaring, Don shoved his brick wall of a brother aside to give him room to stand. "Smartass."

Raph chuckled, enjoying himself immensely. "I thought you were supposed to be the one with a smart ass."

"Amazingly, you've taken the cake this time, brother." Don said, tossing the wrench he held into a nearby toolbox and slipping off his safety goggles from around his face. Replacing them with the purple mask he had slung across his shoulders.

"So, where's Leo?" Raph asked, leaning around the corner to see if he could spot him, but the rest of the barn appeared completely undisturbed.

"He's back there, somewhere." Don answered as he wiped his dirty hands on a rag from a workbench. "He's. . . been kinda all over the place."

Raph eyed the other ninja quizzically. "What's that suppostah mean?"

"Well. . . at first, he tried to help me. But when his injuries started bugging him, he switched to meditating in the corner. That lasted for maybe thirty minutes, which is very short for Leo, before he was up and trying to perform some katas." Don explained, his right hand trying to massage a kink out of his neck.

"As you can imagine, it didn't go so well and this began pissing him off to the point he started throwing a mini tantrum. I mean, chucking things all over the place and causing all sorts of damage Casey's not going to be too happy over, kind of tantrum."

Raph's frown mirrored his brother's perfectly. "What happened after?"

Don hesitated a second before admitting in a lowered tone, "he broke down. . . cried for a solid ten minutes before eventually falling asleep in the hay for maybe another fifteen."

The engineer shook his head slowly. Emotion building up in his eyes at the memory of watching his once stoic and proud leader falling apart into something unrecognizable.

"I've never seen him like this, Raph. I tried to comfort him, but he just gave me this. . . death glare."

Raph nodded. "Ya know what he's doin now?"

Don shrugged. "Not sure. I could hear him moving around but decided to give him some space."

Silence settled like the dust in the barn as Raph processed this information. Everyone knew Leo's injuries extended much further than just mere physicalness.

After being ambushed by the Shredder and his goonies and being beaten to an inch of his life, the six of them had quickly grabbed Leo and fled New York with April's antique shop burning in their wake.

Exactly what happened on those rainy rooftops was a mystery only Leo would be able to solve, but the rest of them were well aware that it would take the mutant a good, long while before he'll sing about it.

"Head inside, Don. I'll handle the rest." Raph patted his younger sibling's shoulder affectionately.

No longer in the mood to argue, Don turned and left. The barn door thumping ominously behind him.

The red-masked mutant coughed at the dirt kicked up and headed further into the barn.

"Leo? Ya here, bud?"

Spinning in a 360 degree circle, Raph examined every nook, cranny, and shadow large enough to hide a massive mutant turtle.

"Alright, where ya hidin?" Raph muttered to the room. Pushing back the pinch of panic from the possibility Leo might've left. Where would he go? And without telling anyone? That might be something he himself would do, but not Leo.

Of course, Leo's been doing a lot of things abnormal for him lately. . .

Worried now the eldest might've done something stupid like fall into a ditch and further injure himself, Raph turned to go alert the others. Until a massive and dense weight crashed on top of him and knocked him to the ground along with his breath.

A task not easily accomplished when it came to the beefy turtle.

"Senses are getting a little rusty, aren't they, Raphael? Why wouldn't you think to check the rafters? Your head could be rolling across the dirt as we speak if I'd been an enemy."

"Who says yer not?" Raph spat granules of Earth from his mouth as he hissed, "Fuck, I dink I bit mah tongue."

"Could've been a lot worse." The cocky, blue-masked terrapin pointed out.

"Yeah, yeah. Get offa me."

Hopping of his younger sibling's shell, Leonardo tried desperately to hide his sly grin as he held out a helping hand.

Raph smacked the offered appendage away and stood on his own. Dusting off dirt from his scraped-up knees, Raph leveled a glare on the injured leader. "So, ya happy now that ya won yer little dick sizing contest?"

Leo cocked an unimpressed brow at the crude choice of words. "I wasn't measuring anything except my team's observation and detection skills as well as reaction times, which, by the way, everyone's incredibly lacking in since my 'decommission'."

"Oh, come off it, Fearless. Yer just wantin tah prove tah yerself ya still got what it takes."

"The fact that I still got the jump on you even in my injured state further proves that something is seriously wrong with this team."

"I let ya win." Raph fibbed. "I just wanted ya tah feel better about yerself. Apparently, it worked too well."

Leo rolled his eyes. "So, I'm guessing you're just here to check up on me? Make sure I haven't gotten myself killed yet?"

Raph could tell by his leader's tone that he noticed all of his family members, including their human companions, treating him with kid gloves ever since he woke from his mini coma. . . and was none too pleased about it.

If there was one thing that could be said about the great and mighty Leonardo, was he absolutely loathed the role of patient. Even more so then Donnie, who often preferred to treat himself rather than tell one of his brothers what to do.

The only one who never seemed to mind receiving medical care was Mikey who tends to bask in the glow of the attention and take full advantage of your generosity until you're a hair-breadth away from strangling the life out of him.

"Actually, I came here to get ya fer dinner." Raph stated, almost wishing that Leo could be a little like Mike and just enjoy the support. Almost.

Leo's brown eyes drifted off to the side. The energy from before dispersing from him like air out of a balloon. "I'm not very hungry."

Raph snorted in disbelief. "Like hell ya not!"

"Look, I'll eat something later. I just. . . don't want to sit at a table and have everyone staring at me like I'm glass about to shatter." The sword-wielder's muscles were bunched with so much tension his shoulders practically reached his temples.

Raph pinched the space between his eyes and huffed out a breath in an effort to dispel some of his irritation. It wasn't like he didn't understand where Leo was coming from, but he also knew that avoiding his family wasn't going to help anything either.

"Ya do realize they're only doin that cause ya gave us one helluva scare, right? That's what family does, Leo. They worry. Cause they care."

"I know!" Leo snapped, then inhaled a deep breath and squeezed his eyes shut. "I know. I just. . . can't face them right now."

"Leo. . ." Raph murmured, taking a step closer to his older brother so he could lay a hand on his shoulder. "I practically had tah drag the Braniac outta here. I'm not afraid tah do the same tah ya."

Just like that, the dark rain cloud of melancholy and depression vanished. Replaced with a fiery look of indignation deep rooted into his irises.

Leo tried to pull himself away, but Raph's hand clamped down on the joint like a vise.

"I'm not in the mood to deal with you, Raphael." Leo growled in warning. Grabbing onto the darker-skinned wrist with equal amount of strength.

Well, that made two of us, Raph thought.

"Can't you just drop it and leave me alone?"

"No." The hotheaded turtle said simply, right before he stooped down and wrapped his arms around the pair of leaf-green legs. Hoisting the full 285 lbs of pure muscle and shell over his shoulder, fireman style.

"Raphael, put me down, right now! That's an order!" Leo snapped angrily, squirming so violently in his grip, Raph had to pause to readjust in fear he would drop him.

"Yessir. Just as soon as we get where we're goin." Raph smirked as he shoved his way through the barn doors and trekking the few yards across the property. Through the golden glow of the windows, he could see their family all huddled around the table, talking, laughing, and shoveling food in their mouths.

Raph couldn't care less how uncomfortable Leo was. He knew he needed to be here. The isolation would only deepen the wounds. Being surrounded by people who loved you was the only way to heal.

He would know that better than anyone, after all.

Only when the pair entered the cozy warmth of the foyer, did Raph set his brother back on his feet.

The scorching glare that greeted Raph when he straightened caused him to grin in amusement.

"That was entirely uncalled for, Raph!"

"I beg tah differ." Raph countered as he stripped off his coat and hung it on the wrack with the others. Kicking off his boots next to the shoes piled against the wall haphazardly.

Meanwhile, Leo's eyes drifted to the doorway of the dining room where voices of their family could be heard exchanging childhood Halloween experiences.

The anxiety of walking in that room and ending the jovial atmosphere as they all turned their pitying gazes on him was enough for Leo to turn tail and walk out the door.

Or, he would have had his burly and therefore, stronger brother not caught his wrist halfway down the hall.

"Oh no ya don't, Fearless."

Leo could've laughed at the irony of the nickname had it not been so pathetic. He'd just survived being attacked by the Shredder and his elite army of well-dressed foot ninjas, but couldn't seem to muster the courage to face his own family at dinner time.

Thoroughly disgusted with himself, Leo shrugged off the sai-wielders grasp and marched into the dining room.

As expected, conversation immediately ceased as all eyes swiveled to him.

However, not one of them looked at him with an ounce of pity or disappointment.

Instead, they all seemed to light up like lights on a Christmas tree, one by one.

"Finally, ya guys made it!" Casey piped up, raising a glass bottle of beer in a cheers gesture.

"Yeah, we were starting to worry you were beating each other up or something." Mikey said, teasingly between a mouthful of food.

"Michaelangelo, please swallow your food before speaking." Master Splinter chastised his youngest son, gently.

"Oh, believe me, he tried." Raph responded with a hearty laugh as he came up from behind the blue-masked reptile. "He didn't get very far, though."

"Need I remind you who got the jump on who?" Leo jabbed an elbow into the darker turtle's ribs.

"Need I remind you that I let ya win?"

"You're still sticking with that story, huh?" Leo rolled his eyes.

"It ain't a story if its true. It's history!" With a flash of his pearly whites, Raph plopped himself down between Splinter and Don. Catching an unopened beer that Casey tossed across the table at him.

"Really, Mr. Jones." Splinter quirked a disapproving brow at the blue-haired man. "Is it not the law to be sharing such drinks with my underaged son?"

Before Casey had the chance to shrink with embarrassment, Raph spoke up. "Ah, come on, pops! It's a holiday! This is my treat for putting up with all the tricks."

With a single strike from the heel of his palm, the bottle cap cracked open on the edge of the table. Winking at the elderly rat, he took a swig from the amber liquid.

"Don't worry, Splinter. I'll keep an eye on them." April rested a soothing hand on the grey paw.

"Besides, isn't our entire existence technically against the law?" Mikey pointed out.

Splinter sighed heavily, knowing he's been outnumbered. "Fine. Just remember to not overindulge."

"If that's the case, pass one to me, Case." Donnie spoke, raising a hand.

Leo's eyes widened with surprise as he sat himself between April and Mikey. "Really, Don? Beer? You?"

Don shrugged casually. "Like Raph said, it's a special occasion. Besides' it's not any worse than coffee."

"Says the sociopath who only drinks it black." Mikey muttered with a snigger.

"Ya could probably use one of these yourself, Nardo." Casey announced as he tossed another bottle towards the leader. Reflex allowed Leo to catch it with ease but he wasn't anymore interested in the taste then the last time he tried one when Raph had snuck a case into the lair.

"Hell, if Leo's gonna have one, I'm not about to be the only one who doesn't!" The youngest balked and held out a hand to which Casey obliged breezily.

"Ya sure ya don't want one, Splints? It might help ya relax some?" Casey waved a bottle under the old rat's snout.

Raising his hands, Splinter shook his head with a wry twist to his lips.

"Please, Mr. Jones. While I thank you for the offer; if I were going to indulge, my palate would much prefer the flavor of Sake or Oolong Hai."

Shrugging, Casey opened the bottle and tilted the beverage back.

"Since when did you indulge in alcohol, dad?" Don asked, curiously.

A single brow quirked at his genius son's question. His spoon dipping in an out of his soup. "How exactly did you think I managed to raise four boys by myself without loosing all my fur?"

The table went silent for several seconds before everyone broke into hearty laughter.

Leo smiled fondly at the image of his perfectly-odd family. Despite so much physical difference in species, they all melded together into one unit as if it were the most naturalistic thing in the world. He was aware just how lucky he truly was and while it didn't completely erase the wounds to his pride and honor, it did allow him to forget about it for a few hours.

Leo thanked April as she set a plate heaped with food in front of him and Raph. A loud, angry rumble from his stomach contradicting his earlier claim of not being hungry.

Face heating with embarrassment, Leo quickly glanced around the table to see if anyone noticed. Thankfully, everyone was more enthralled with the tale Casey had resumed to hear.

Everyone except Raphael, of course, who was smirking knowingly at him.

The eldest glared as he shoved a forkful of food into his mouth. Raph's shoulders jerked up and down as he chuckled. His eyes moving back over to his best friend.

This is a project that I've been working on for a while on my AO3 account as a Halloween Special turned full-blown story and have been dying to put it up here too. Now, I know what you're thinking, "Kat, you already have tons of stories you've started on and have yet to update." Yes, I know, and hopefully I will get to them again, sometime. But this one has been going extremely well and I know it will not disappoint!