Acceptable Risk
Pink Elephants
Disclaimer: I do not own the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, neither characters nor anything pertaining to the franchise. I do own a laptop with a sticky O key which is a real pain.
Author's Note: So I've decided to write some shorts (some might not be so short, some might be really short) from the perspective of April/Raph. Originally for the 2012 series Raph was supposed to be in love with April, not Donnie. Since the series presents him as a guy who can't really be honest with his feelings I figured that Raph would be the ultimate tsundere type guy.
Also I'm on tumblr starsiasestra#tumblr#com (#=.). Come follow me if you like. I'm a big turtles fan and sometimes post extra stuff there
Once bitten, twice shy. Once again Raph finds himself bitten by Fishface but this time he starts revealing things that he really would have liked to keep quiet. April finds out what it's like to be the sober friend at a party.
"Donnie!" Leo shouted, his voice straining under the weight he carried. "We've got a problem."
There was a crash and a bang, then Donnie came sprinting out of his lab with April hot on his heels. The end of Donnie's mask was singed and there was an ugly black stain on one of April's boots. Both looked sufficiently ruffled as the rushed over to the turnstile.
"This better be important." Donnie snapped, using two fingers to put out his still smoking mask tail. "You just ruined a very delicate experiment."
"Hey Dooooonnie," Raph drawled, a lazy smile on his face. "I dunno what Leo's talkin' about. Everything's fiiiiiiine."
Leo grunted and hauled Raph up a little higher on his shell. The red masked turtle was slung half across his brother's back, seemingly unable to stand on his own. Beads of sweet trailed down Leo's face as the strain increased with each passing second.
"What happened?" April gaped at Raph's seemingly boneless form. He was humming cheerfully as his head lolled back and forth. "I thought you guys were just getting pizza."
"Dude, it was epic" Mikey chirped, bouncing on the balls of his feet. "There were all these Foot guys and Dogpound and Fishface. But we totally kicked their butts. Except Raph got bit by Fishface again. Lucky for him I was there to save the day. "
With a wide grin Mikey hefted the pizza box in the air.
"I even saved the pizza. It may be a little smooshed though."
"As great as this conversation is," Leo broke in, panting, "Raph isn't exactly light. If someone could maybe give me hand before my arms fall off that would be great."
"Oh ya, right." Donnie took off into his lab in search of the anti-venom.
Carefully, Mikey and Leo led Raph over to the pit, and with much effort, managed to get him settled. Keeping him upright, that proved to be a slightly more difficult task. Every time they got him sitting properly he would end up sliding either to the side or onto the floor. Finally, they managed to get him wedged in, Mikey and Leo steadying him on either side.
"Alright, I've got it." Donnie bustled into the room with a syringe in his hand.
Gripping Raph's bicep Donnie cast him a small gentle smile.
"This won't hurt a bit."
At the sharp pinch Raph grunted, and everyone heaved a sigh of relief. With any luck Raph would be back to his normal charming self any minute.
"Look at all the pretty bubbles. Boop. Boop." Raph's hand waved through the air, swiping at nothing.
Any minute now.
"Hey, hey Donnie," Raph turned and stared at his brother, a serious look on his face, making Donnie heaved a sigh of relief. Finally the antidote was working. "What came first the waffle or the waffle iron?"
Or not. So much for luck.
The sound of a clearing throat caused them all to jump. Staring down at them with a concerned frown was Master Splinter. He surveyed the group, taking in each face. Each one held varying levels of panic. All except Raph, who was staring up at him vacantly. It was most disconcerting.
"Sensei!" A shining grin lit up Raph's face.
Most disconcerting indeed.
"What is wrong with Raphael?" Splinter asked his voice steady and soothing.
All eyes turned to Leo and he heaved a sigh. Being the leader could be a real pain.
"We were on our way back with dinner when we heard some noises in an alley. Some of the Foot were robbing an electronics store, probably for part for more Foot bots. We were able to stop them but Raph got bit by Fishface. Donnie just gave him the antidote but…"
"But it's not working." Mikey broke, hysteria working its way into his voice. "He's still all crazy bananas."
"The venom must have changed,"
Now, even Donnie was looking concerned as he checked Raph's pulse and the dilation of his eyes. Taking a cotton swab out of his belt, Donnie swiped it over the tiny bead of blood that the injection left behind.
"I'm going to take this sample to the lab to see if maybe the venom has mutated in some way." He turned away, only to turn back a moment later. "Does anyone remember what symptoms Raph was showing after he got bitten?"
"Ummmmm," Mikey stared up at his brother with a vacant stare, very similar to Raph's.
"I got this."
Leo jumped up from the bench and out of the pit, following Donnie out of the room.
Glancing down at his sons, Splinter took in Raphael's glazed eyes and the hint of sweat on his brow. As a ninja master he was knowledgeable in the ways of poison but it would be of little use against this particular foe. All he could do was try to keep the effects at bay until Donatello was able to create a cure.
"I will go make tea," He said finally, it was important to keep Raphael hydrated and there was a particular blend that would likely slow the spread of the poison.
The rat master turned to leave when a tug on his sleeve drew him to a halt. Looking down he saw the large watery eyes of his smallest son. Using one hand to hold up Raph, Mikey kept a firm grip on Splinters sleeve.
"What is it my son?" Splinter asked gently.
"Can I make some soup for Raph? To make him feel better?"
Staring down at Michelangelo's puppy dog eyes Master Splinter contemplated the request. While it would likely be easier to make the tea without is most exuberant son under foot, the concern Michelangelo held for his brother way understandable. Left to his own devices Michelangelo would likely try to help his brothers in finding an antidote and he was the most competent of the four in the kitchen.
"I am sure he will appreciate it and I would enjoy the company."
With a face-splitting grin, Mikey vaulted the pit's bench, bouncing along at Master Splinter heels. Abruptly a thought crossed his mind and he turned to April with a serious look that was out of place on his normally cheerful face.
"You take care of Raph okay April?"
"Um, ya sure." April replied.
A sharp nod and Mikey's face was back to its normal sunny demeanor.
All of a sudden April found herself very much alone with a swaying Raph.
…Wait swaying?
"Whoa there big guy."
April managed to catch hold of his arm just as he started to topple over. Heaving with all her strength she managed to drag him into the sitting position. This worked for about a minute, before he was flopping again. Unlike the others April didn't have the necessary size or strength to keep a five foot tall mass of muscle in place. After about the third time April gave up.
"Okay Raph, yoo-hoo," She snapped her fingers; trying to get his attention from…whatever it was he was staring at. "Raph, no focus, I'm going to need you to lie down okay?"
"Lie down?" Raph repeated the words like they were a foreign language. "Why do I gotta lie down? 'M not tired."
"Please Raph," April begged, straining to keep him upright, "lie down. For me?"
Staring at the red-head with wide eyes, Raph nodded his head vigorously.
"For April? Of course I'll lie down for April."
And all of a sudden he was pitching sideways and April was left with a lap full of turtle head.
"'S that better?" Raph drawled, staring up with a hopeful smile.
April couldn't help but giggle. He looked so much like a little kid.
"Yes that's much better." She patted him gently on the head.
From his vantage point, Raph's entire field of vision was filled with April. It was GREAT. She was all soft and squishy and pretty. So, so, so pretty. And she smelled nice, like the sun and soap.
"You smell pretty." Raph managed to burble out. It was hard 'cause his tongue felt funny.
"Thanks Raph," April couldn't keep the giggle out of her voice.
As she turned her head the light caught her hair, entrancing Raph as he watched. In the florescent lighting shades or orange and red and gold wove through each lock. He wanted so bad to touch it but he knew he shouldn't because…because...Unable to come up with a good reason Raph decided touching April's hair would be an excellent idea. Reaching up a shaky hand, Raph took a clumsy swipe.
Catching the movement April was able to move out of the way just in time to avoid being poked in the eye. Undeterred Raph took another swipe, missing again but managing to smack April on the chin.
"Hey," April frowned, rubbing her chin, "what are you doing?"
"I wanna touch your haaaaaair." Raph whined, pouting as best he could.
Looking down at his wide eyes and protruding lip, April had to smile. For all his tough exterior and constant teasing f his brothers, especially Mikey, he could pull of a begging pout as well as any of them. It was the same one that Donnie used when he wanted to experiment on her MP3 player, or Leo when he was trying to get her to watch Space Heroes, or Mikey when he wanted…well anything really.
Another near eye gouge brought April out of her musing. Raph was, if nothing else, persistent.
She reached up and carefully removed her hair from its tie, letting it fall loose around her shoulders. Taking Raph's large callused hand in her own she guided it to its destination.
Finally finding the glimmering locks between his fingers Raph let out a contented sigh. It was softer then he'd ever imagined. Smooth and silky, like the silkiest silk. Over and over he allowed each lock to slide along his outstretched hand. Red and green looked good together.
"I's soft," he muttered, barely audible, "like kittens."
April didn't say anything, only patted his head again while biting her cheek to keep from laughing. Content with his newest fixation Raph continued to run his fingers through April's hair, oblivious to her obvious amusement.
Suddenly a look of seriousness crossed his face as a jarring though entered her mind. He liked April. April was nice, and pretty, and she even laughed at his jokes sometimes. She was their friend and cool and stuff. But she left before. What if she left again? That would be the worst thing ever. He'd loved Spike and Spike went away. What if April went away again too? Forever?
"Hey…"
"Yes Raph?"
"Can we keep you, fluffy kitten?"
April looked down sharply, half expecting the same zoned out expression that he'd been wearing since they dragged him in. Instead, she found his eyes surprisingly sharp as he continued to drowsily stroke her hair. It would have been all too easy to joke it off, to make some kind of sarcastic comment but something in his face stopped her short. The look on his face was as unguarded as she'd ever seen it. More unguarded then the night he'd told her about Slash. As unguarded as when they'd nearly lost Leo.
So instead she simply smiled and continued to stroke his forehead.
"Don't worry Raph. I'm not going anywhere."
This was sooo fluffy that I don't even know what to say. By the way I imagine that they all have nicknames for April. Donnie's is Princess, Raph's is kitten, Leo's is Sunshine, and Mikey…Mikey has a list, like seriously a list. His favorite is Sis though, shhhh. I'd been planning this one for a while but the wonderful I-Luv-Raph sent me a PM recommending this idea s I knew it had to come next. Had a little trouble with Raph's hallucinations but I eventually got through it. So hope you like it and if you notice any missing o's well…my o key hates me right now. If you have any idea drop me a line I love to hear them and keep the Apraphael alive. Night.