Chapter 6

Raph P.O.V

"You told him what?!" April leant over the table as if she were debating on whether or not to strangle him.

"I… I said Splinter stayed behind to report in on the situation back in the city."

Despite this being the second time he had explained to the others about Leo's nightmare and his question about Splinter, Raph's statement was still met with angry and disbelieving stares from April, Donnie and Casey while Mikey's eyes were beginning to fill with tears.

"Wait- let me get this straight, Raph. You lied to Leo?" Donnie joined in, peering down at Raph from the other end of the breakfast table, "Why would you ever think that would be a good idea?!"

Raph stood suddenly and met his brother's gaze coolly, "You try telling him in the middle of the night that…" his voice broke slightly yet he did not falter, "Sensei's gone! How could I do that to him? He'd just tear himself-" the second eldest turtle froze as he hear a sharp intake of breath from behind him- out in the corridor. He didn't need the shocked looks from the rest of the family to know who it was.

He turned,

"Leo- I-" but before he could elaborate, the leader had gripped his crutch tighter and hobbled off towards the front door.

"Well done Raph!" Mikey snapped, his eyes wide and damp. The youngest jumped to his feet and rushed off after Leo. Donnie met Raph's gaze- just as surprised at their baby brother's reaction- before he followed suit.

"We'll… give you guys a second." April muttered. Raph nodded and trudged after his brothers, not wanting to face them after his outburst. He knew what he had told Leo was wrong- but how could he had told his elder brother that he just watched as their father was defeated? That he wasn't able to help?

The front door to the farm house had been left wide open, and through it Raph could see the kneeling figures of his brothers beside the row of trees where the woods began. The red banded turtle hovered back from a second. Listening to what his brothers were saying without him present.

"…Raph telling the truth?"

"Leo… We… we watched it happen…" Donnie's voice was sorrowful yet oddly calm- it was the same tone he used when sating a scientific fact. "He was in the middle of a battle with the Shredder when we found them- Leo!" Donnie's sudden exclamation jolted Raph into action. He rushed out of the farm house and to his brothers' sides where he found Leo shivering despite the warmth of the morning- his eyes wide.

"Whe- when was that?" Leo's voice trembled as he asked the question, his fists tightly clenched in his lap.

The other turtles all exchanged a glance.

"Perhaps an hour after you… you know." Mikey faltered, gesturing with his hand falling through the window as his eyes showed that he did not wish to recall the events of that day.

"Then it's all my fault…" Leo muttered, barely above a whisper as his crutch free hand wrapped around his shell. The others leant closer- not quite hearing what he had said, yet spookily, Leo continued to repeat it over and over to himself until his panicked voice was heard by all of the turtles. Their reactions were instantaneous.

"Shut up bro! You couldn't have done anything!" Raph shouted, clenching his fist tight so he wouldn't be tempted to punch someone.

"Leo! You weren't there- you couldn't have done anything!" Donnie added, yet it was Mikey who managed to get through to the eldest turtle.

"Why was it your fault?" And with the simple question, Leo blinked and fell silent. Everyone looked to the eldest turtle whose grey blue eyes began to darken.

"I didn't take him down." The statement was quiet and said in a shaky voice, but the tone was cold and hollow. It sent a shiver down Raph's spine, reminding him of Leo's comments the night before about needing to be strong which seemed a million years ago. "I wasn't strong enough and…" the eldest choked on his words, "And now sensei's… gone because I lowered my guard!"

As the words sunk in, the three youngest turtles moved as one, their collective arms wrapping around the forth as one by one they collapsed into tears. The sorrow and horror of their loss had been stored away for the past three months, the younger three wanting to be strong for Leo, but now he too was learning about the fate of Splinter, they could all grieve as one. They had lost their teacher and father and they had nearly lost Leo as well, but now one had returned to the land of the living, the loss of the other cut even more deeply.

"It wasn't your fault, Leo." Mikey muttered into Leo's shell, "You wouldn't be able to take a life anyway…"

Raph felt Leo tense and he recalled the nightmare Leo had told him about, yet with a hug from Mikey, the leader relaxed slightly, the tension gripping his form beginning to lose its hold.

"So you faced Shredder?" Donnie asked quietly, nodding at the scar on Leo's side amongst the tangle of arms.

A second passed before the eldest self-consciously nodded.

"But you don't want to talk now?" Mikey thoughtfully added, his baby blues piercing Leo's in a startling resemblance to Splinter's kind gaze.

Yet to the brother's surprise, Leo pulled out of their collective embrace and sat back, wincing as he moved his knee, and began to talk.

"Not really, Mikey- but-" he coughed, clearing his damaged throat, "I didn't want to fight a couple dozen FootBots either but I had to." Raph stared at Leo in awe. A couple dozen? That was a vast amount for the four of them to take out in one night, but for a single one against such numbers… He knew that Leo was a mighty warrior but this was something else. Raph could tell his two brothers were thinking along the same lines but Leo acted as if he didn't notice. "Raph made me realise last night that I shouldn't keep it to myself as we're brothers- we don't hide anything." For some reason Mikey flinched, but as he met Raph's gaze he pouted and rubbed his leg as if he sat on a stone. He turned back to Leo, "After we got separated it seemed that the Kraang were coordinating their attack with the Foot as if I moved in any other direction than towards the construction site- where Shredder was-" He shook his head, "More FootBots or Kraang droids would show up. When I reached the surface there was an ambush set up and it went downhill from there…" He looked at his brothers and despite there being a clear sense of shame in his eyes he continued, "I fought a load off when I noticed Shredder, Fishface, Razzar and Tigerclaw watching, and…" he sighed, "I told Shredder to face me himself."

"You what?!" Raph and Donnie both exclaimed at once. Neither of them had expected Leo to act so cocky during a fight. Leo dipped his head in shame.

"I knew a fight with him would take place so I knew I would stand the best chance before fighting off masses of his troops." He sighed, "Bu he didn't listen and his archers fired at me. I dodged those but more Bots came. I lost one sword when I got caught by the chain then the other when a bot attempted to get me from behind. One grabbed my foot and sent me down an embankment into a pool of water." He shivered, "When I got out- Shredder and his henchmen were there. 'Now you may finish him' he said…"

"Wait!" Mikey interrupted, "You had your swords back- right?"

To their amazement, Leo shook his head. The again, Raph thought, they shouldn't be surprised as Leo didn't have his swords on his when he was thrown through the window. The red banded turtle had spent the first couple of weeks forging new blades for his brother- he would have to get them for him later.

"They got a couple of good hits in first of all, but then I took them out quickly- no weapons…" He closed his eyes and his hand crept up his side once more, "The last thing I remember is a shadow falling over me, turning around and Shredder…" his voice faltered- not needing to explain what happened next- that was clear to see. "I'm sorry…" he muttered, "I left my phone on… they must have tracked you to April's then gone after sensei…" The mighty Leonardo bowed his head as his brothers digested the information.

"You took out over twenty FootBots, three of Shredder's top henchmen and you're apologising?!" Donnie was the first to break the silence, causing Leo to look up.

"You're not angry?" The leader's voice sounded oddly small.

"Angry? Leo are you out of your shell?!" Raph snapped, amazed at his brother's single tracked mind.

"Dude, I can't believe you took out that many!" Mikey waved his hand excitedly, "You need a nickname, like-" but whatever his new nickname would be, they never found out because Raph slipped a hand over his baby brother's mouth- recalling Leo's reaction the night before to his 'fearless' nickname.

Leo shook his head.

"From the void-" he blinked at the other's confused faces then quickly explained, "The darkness of the last months- I was certain I'd fail you…" He sighed, his eyes flickering slightly as if he was recalling something dark. His brothers noticed and moved closer once again- but the leader's next word jolted them back into the harsh reality they had left behind in New York, "But I won't do so again. Give me a week-"

"A month." Donnie interrupted.

"Three weeks-" Leo continued, ignoring Donnie's glare, "And we can head back to the city."

Mikey cheered but Raph understood the message behind the words of the leader and strategist of the team- Leo would struggle for the next couple of weeks and needed to begin getting ready to recover. Raph was glad his brother had opened up about his experiences, but he knew there was something else he wasn't telling.

"Come on." Raph muttered gruffly, standing up and, hefting his belt up slightly, he realised he'd gotten slightly thinner- obviously all that time spent worrying over Leo. "Let's start training."

"Good idea, brah!" Mikey leapt to his feet, "I can-"

"No. I need you to lend me a hand in the barn, Mikey." Donnie slowly got to his feet and helped Leo up, only releasing him once the crutch was wedged firmly under his arm. The scientist turned to Donnie, "Don't be a shell-brain, Raph." He pulled the bottle of mutagen medicine out of his belt and passed it to Leo, "Only take some if you really need it." Donnie warned, but he knew that Leo would only do that and wouldn't take it for the sake of taking it, once Leo had taken the bottle, the purple banded turtle grabbed the youngest and dragged him away, towards the barn, leaving Raph and Leo alone.

"So…" Leo shrugged.

"Let's get you training again." Raph replied and began to jog ahead, quickly changing to a sprint- despite knowing Leo wouldn't be able to keep up. He desperately needed a moment to calm himself after learning how close his brother had come to joining Splinter in his fate- hopefully he would also have enough time to cry before Leo caught up.

Aww poor Raph, he does have a soft side after all!

So:

Will Leo catch up?

What was he not saying to the others during that confession?

AND:

HOW DID HE GET SO HURT? (I won't accept the quote "we got hit by a bus!"... Then again I love quotes so yes- I would actually! :D )

Leave your amazing reviews and I will reveal vaguely the reasons in the next chapter then full on it the one after that!

LL99 OUT!