Chapter 12

Leo P.O.V

After several minutes, the eldest's mind had eased slightly from his flashback, but he was still troubled that the violent memories had assaulted him when attempting to tap into his brother's mind. It made him wonder if it was a mistake not going to search for his directly younger brother in case Raphael was in danger. No, he continually scolded himself, that was not possible. They were in the middle of nowhere, no enemy was a threat here… Weren't they?

Yet despite the constant worrying, during this time he had managed to find his swords with great difficulty. Raph had obviously listened to Donnie- which was a first- and had attempted to hide the two newly forged blades in a place Leo's currently injured state would not allow- the ceiling. True, Leo had not thought to look there but when he caught a glint of steel behind the rafters of the ceiling he had grabbed a chair and- admittedly with great difficulty- used his crutch to poke out the boards and out fell his swords and sheaths. Leo had smiled, Raph had tried, but now he had his mind set on recovering, the eldest wouldn't let anything stop him from training again.

Once he had managed to climb down off the chair, Leo had unsheathed his signature weapons only to discover the smaller of the two blades was a good hand shorter than it should be, yet apart from that, Raphael seemed to have spent a long time forging the weapons with skill. Leo was impressed and honoured his brother had put in so much effort for his sake. The weapons were truly a sight to behold.

Taking his eyes away from his swords, Leo turned his gaze to the clock to check how long Raph had been missing for- around three hours- and he decided that he would attempt- no, do, a good half an hour of training by the edge of the woods before joining his family to search for Raph if they had not returned by then.

As Leo began to limp towards the front door, a thought hit him so he took a change in direction up the stairs and into the room he and Raph shared. On the bedside was the clean blue of Leo's bandana which had been washed since his fight so there were no longer any signs of battle left on it. He recalled his conversation with Raph about that very mask, "I don't feel worthy of such powerful meanings- I will wear it when I feel like that again, but not now…" But when would he ever be ready again to be considered confident, wise and deep when his mind was in freefall and his emotions even more so. It would be a very long time, that much he was sure of.

All the same, Leo picked the bandanna up reluctantly, and wrapped it around the handle of his katana, hoping that through some bizarre cosmological fate, the fabric would seep its strength into the weapons and, in turn, into his shattered soul. He needed to be strong for his brothers, but now, he just needed to train.

Leaning on his crutch he turned around and moved slowly back down the stairs and out of the door. As he moved, Leo was comforted by the feel of the bandanna trails rubbing against his neck and the weight of the blades pressed against his shell and it dawned on him that these small sensations helped to relieve the gapping emptiness of the void where there was no sensation at all. It was also incredible to have been able to fight back from the near brink of death and from this, the world seemed that little bit brighter and more spectacular. Sure, in Leo's mind there was darkness, suffering and fear, but in the surrounding environment, there was new life and hope. Even the coolness of the katana blades in the sheaths against his shell sliced away a small chunk of the pain and sorrow which had engulfed the eldest turtle and he almost- even if it was for a short time- felt as if he could fight back for his family and be as he was before the fight.

That was, up until he stepped in a rabbit hole and jerked his bad knee so badly the new sense of life shattered into pieces, yet biting his lip to stifle the cry of pain, Leo tightened his grip of the crutch and continued on, only releasing the support once he had reached the training area under the tree.

Now Leo understood Donnie's warning of not training too hard- he was stubborn, not stupid- and knew his current condition would not improve with strenuous activities, so began with a simple kata, the first he had ever mastered.

Pulling out a single sword, he closed his eyes and, using both hands, he swung the sword forth, striking from the head before twisting around to aim for the neck then another turn and releasing the blade with one hand- step forwards-

"NO!" Leo cursed as his knee roared in agony and he felt himself drop forwards, landing awkwardly so not to damage his wounded limb further. "Focus, Leonardo," He scolded himself harshly, hating his weakness, "Get. Back. Up." This was his easiest kata so he shouldn't struggle. With a frown of frustration, Leo heaved himself to his feet, gripping the katana tightly for support.

Again.

Swing, head, twist, neck, turn, release, step, step- No! Not again! This time Leo picked himself up before the pain registered in his mind.

Swing, head, twist, neck, turn, release, step, step, twist blade face up, pause- yes! He was doing it, he was- step- no. This time his arm twisted beneath him as he landed, making it even harder to get back up.

"Come on, Leo." The leader growled to himself, carefully getting back to his feet, "Again." He muttered as he reached for his sword, ignoring the sweat which ran in rivers down the side of his face and down his neck. He was seriously out of practise and this sliver of failure would not budge from his mind. If he did not complete this, it would weigh heavy on his mind for goodness knows how long.

Three more times Leo tried and three more times he fell, each attempt aggravating another area of his battered body, yet he still stood back up, taking out a second sword to balance himself more effectively.

Swing, head, twist, neck, turn, release, step, step, blade up, pause, step, step,

This time the pain was almost too much and the swords sank into the earth as Leo fell to his knees, every part of his body joining the growing symphony of the pain's song.

"Get on your feet, Leo," he whispered, his sweat drenched palms grasping the handles of the fierce katanas, taking the weight as the leader dragged himself upwards, his arms shaking with the effort. "Stop whining, get up!" With a gasp, Leo found himself upright, but the pain of his arm was pulsing the worse and made him pause even longer- yet a rustle made him turn around. Please say they've found Raph. He found himself silently begging, yet he was surprise when the red that emerged from the branches was from hair rather than a bandanna.

"April?" He asked as the human girl emerged, limping heavily- her gaze slightly dazed and her face bruised. Suddenly she tripped and her eyes suddenly snapped wide as she registered who stood before her,

"Leo!" She cried, attempting to reach out, desperation filling her voice but as the eldest began to rush forth, his own body unable to move fast, April was dragged back into the darkness, her final cry for help ringing through his head as the turtle collapsed once more under the growing burden of pain.

But there was no time for self-pity, his family needed him. The time for training was over, it didn't matter if he was in pain as he had a mission to complete. He needed to ensure his family was safe and even if he was confronted by the dreaded Shredder again, he couldn't back down.

He was their leader and it was about time he started acting like one again.

Sorry for the long wait but I hope it's worth it. Also THANKS to pownxmanonnie for the idea about the swords hiding place! That was perfect!

The fearless leader is beginning to emerge form his shell (excuse the pun!)so:

How will he manage to find the others?

Will he break down or stand strong?

AND, as I know many of you guys want to hear these:

How will Leo react to Raph?

What happens to Leo's injuries?

I hope to update soon, but who knows with my current schedule?!

LL99 OUT!