Note: I know this is long overdue… I feel like I say this a lot… haha. But I was mainly focused on my DtRH update and now that THAT story is complete I have time for all my smaller works… Finally! SO… Onward with the alphabet!
Dis: I don't own TMNT
Crayon
Title: Sadness In Colors
Summary: Michelangelo reflects on an event during his childhood that still affects him to this day.
Rated: PG (lang)
Characters: Mikey, Frey(OFC from Frey and Unexpected), Shadow
Genre: Drama
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Michelangelo sat on the floor of Frey's apartment watching as whom he considered his niece colored a picture. His observant baby blues stared as Shadow, Casey and April's daughter, made swirls of blacks and browns around numerous pieces of paper. There was no structure to the five year olds work, at least not this time. Their fridge at the lair had many pictures of flowers, rainbows, and an attempted puppy but nothing like these. He smiled as she took another piece of paper and did her best to color every spec of visible white away.
He didn't ask her why she wasn't using any colors, because something similar happened to him years ago and it shaped how he grew up. Back when he and his brothers were five or six, Master Splinter had come to the lair with a surprise. He handed each turtle a box of crayons and a large notepad of paper. All four of them had been happy to start the new activity and he had eagerly grabbed his box and sat at his favorite spot.
Black had been the first crayon he pulled out. He'd been five and had no plan just started scribbling. Numerous pages were covered in black in the span of minutes, flecks of the color crayon sticking to the paper. A shadow had come over him and he had looked up to see Splinter frowning. Worried that he had done something wrong Michelangelo had stopped coloring.
"Are you all right my son?" Splinter had asked.
"Yes," Michelangelo had answered.
"You are only using black. Why?"
The truth was that he had been so excited that he hadn't even bothered to look at the other colors. Setting the black aside he had pulled out his favorite color: orange. Slowly he made orange swirls and lines to blend in with the black and he looked up at his father for approval. Michelangelo had stopped coloring when seeing tears start to fall out of his father's eyes. Was this because he had used black?! He didn't like seeing him so sad. At that moment he had vowed to never use a black crayon ever again.
"There. There should always be some color to your life, my son. Never linger in the darkness."
"Okay," he had said, vowing to do his best to never let such a sad look cross over in his father's face. He supposed that was why he acted the way he had when he was younger, always goofing around. He wanted people to smile, regardless of his mood. He never allowed himself to have the same temper as Raph. Even Leo and Donatello let their demons out once in a while.
Him? He just locked them away. He sometimes worried when they would come out.
"Hey, Shadow," said Frey, sitting down and looking at the pages.
Michelangelo saw a familiar frown at the corner of Frey's lips and he panicked. Would Frey talk about her only using black? Would she open the door that would take Shadow down the same, lonely path he had taken? His feelings and emotions had almost crushed him in his younger years and he didn't want that for Shadow.
"Hi."
"I love your picture."
"S'not really a picture."
"Sure it is. I like it. Do you like black?" asked Frey, a panicked sweat now forming at the base of Mikey's neck.
"Yeah! I like all colors."
"Me too. I have a spare binder that we can start putting all your pictures in." Frey settled in closer to Mikey, her legs pressing against his as she snuggled against his side. "When you're done we can go find it."
"Okay," said Shadow with a smile, dropping the black crayon to switch to blue.
Frey looked up at Mikey and frowned, her hand going up to rest against his cheek.
"Hey you."
"Hey," he said, hand going up to cover hers.
"You okay?" she asked, brown eyes searching his. He smiled, bending down to press his lips to hers quickly before settling back in his position of the floor, shell resting against the couch.
"Never better," he answered, shifting forward to pick up the black crayon. He studied it for a moment before grabbing a piece of paper. He worked quickly, bold lines and curves pressing into the paper, the tip of the black crayon flat by the time he was done. Shadow had given up her project to watch him and he felt Frey's presence at his side. When he finished he settled back and he heard Frey gasp. It was a picture of her. The most beautiful thing in his life brought to life on a piece of paper using a black crayon.
"Holy cow!" said Shadow. "It's you Auntie Frey! Can ya draw me next, Uncle Mikey? Pllleeaassee?"
"Sure." Michelangelo reached for another piece of paper. "Now… You want horns on your head, right?"
"NO!" squealed Shadow, giggling behind her hands. "You're so silly!"
Michelangelo smiled before starting his drawing of Shadow. When he was done Frey had come back with the promised binder and Shadow instantly started putting her pictures inside. The picture Mikey drew of Shadow took the first slot followed by her black and blue vortex.
Later, after numerous stories about Princess Shadow and her turtle Knights, Mikey found Frey sitting on the sofa watching Lethal Weapon 3. He settled in beside her easily and wrapped at arm around her shoulders and she melted into him with a smile, eyes instantly drooping now that he was by her side.
"I forgot how good you are at drawing. You should keep it up," she said softly. "Maybe make that graphic novel you keep talking about."
"Yeah," he said, bending to press a kiss at the top of her head. "Maybe I will."
END
