What's in a Name

by Ham Atom

Michelangelo Hamato wasn't always Michelangelo Hamato. Before he was adopted, he was called something else, and something else before that. But he doesn't talk about that. Ever. AU—details inside.

2. Losing It

A/N: ChibiLover123, remind me to send you a tub of sugar cookie dough. And Paranoidman, you're...the man; glad you're liking it so far. Thanks for the reviews, guys.

Disclaimer: Psh. Can you prove that I don't own them? No? Well, then I'll just go ahead and admit it. Morosely.

Act 2

The brothers spent awhile skipping around town, people-watching and playing tag and follow the leader, and generally enjoying the lights and the noise and the fresh-ish air to be found above ground. Raph was purposefully steering them toward the south side of the city, and he was pretty sure his little brother knew as much. But Mikey didn't say anything about it. And even if he had, it wouldn't have changed anything—which, come to think of it, is probably why he didn't.

Something down below caught Raph's eye as he ran, and the red-banded turtle stopped short. Mikey had been following behind, matching his moves, and had to slam on the breaks, narrowly avoiding plowing into the turtle.

"Raph!" Mikey whined, panting behind the mask. "Give a guy a heads up or some…"

"Sh," Raph cut him off shortly, backing up silently and peering over the edge of the old brick building. "Thought I saw somethin'." On the opposite side of the street, there was a small sudden movement. Raph pointed. "There."

Mikey squinted in the darkness next to him. Just then, a man seemed to materialize from the shadows in front of a liquor store that had been closed up for the night. A brief moment of fiddling with the lock, and the door was quietly opened, the man slipping inside, four more joining him from the shadows. The Foot. "Dude. How'd you see them from up here?" He gave his brother a skeptical once-over. "You sure you're not part eagle or something? Next mission, your code name is Eagle Eye. It would be Hawk Eye, but that'll just make everyone think of M*A*S*H…"

"Bro," Raph cut him off. He knocked himself in the head, gesturing at the building across the way. "They're knocking over a liquor store? Really? How desperate do ya gotta be?"

"Well, we did kinda clean them out. Twice. Plus, that Tatsu clown's probably their leader by now, and I heard he's kind of a...you know…" He pantomimed a drunk Tatsu with a bottle in his hand.

"You're makin' that up."

"Am I, Raph? Am I?" He clearly was.

"I don't know about you, but I could use a little workout." Raph edged closer to the side of the building. "There's five guys in there. Barely a warm-up."

"Whatever happened to sticking to the rooftops?"

"New plan, Tonto."

Mikey stood closer, whispering, "Raph, can you spell bad idea?"

"Can you spell shut up?"

"S-h-u…ow!" Mikey rubbed the back of his freshly-thumped head. "Raph, like you said, there's five. We should let the cops handle it. Dudes get paid for a reason, you know. And Leo and Donny don't even know where we are. These guys are always popping out of the woodwork like roaches. Or…termites. Whatever. What if there's more…"

"We'll be fine. These guys need to know we ain't lettin' our guard down. And how exactly you gonna call the police?"

Mikey took hold of Raph's jaw and wordlessly turned it to face the payphone at the end of the street. "I take back what I said about you being part eagle."

Raph shook off Mike's hand. "By the time the cops get here, these guys'll be long gone. That what you want?"

Mikey gave a grudging "No."

"So what gives?" Mikey wasn't typically the type to back off of any kind of possible excitement.

"Nothing. I just…I don't know. It feels..." Mikey trailed off, looking like he was going to say something but decided against it. The way he shifted from one foot to the other, though, brought Raph back to his own feelings of uneasiness. Kid shrugged it off. "All right, fine. You wanna be the sit-in leader? What's the plan, mon capitan?" Mikey blinked at him.

Raph shoved his feelings aside again. He gave a thin smile. "I think I got it."

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Mikey slid down the fire escape and made his way to the payphone as loudly as possible, all grins and whistles. He punched in 9-1-1, let it ring. As soon as they answered, he said, making no effort to lower his voice, "Hey, yeah, there's some ninja types robbing Chet's Liquor down on Keystone. They got the masks and everything, like those League of Shadows guys in Batman Begins. You should send some cars. You know, police cars. With like police in 'em. You guys work this late, right? What do you mean you haven't seen Batman Begins? Everybody's seen...well, look dude, you should probably hurry, 'cause that's the thing about ninjas; they're all here one minute, and then you turn around twice and…"

Mikey dodged just in time to avoid a fist that went crashing into the payphone. The black-masked ninja-wannabe reeled back, clutching his knuckles in pain. Mikey put his mouth back to the phone. "So yeah, you'll be here in five?" Then he swung the receiver, hearing the dull clunk as it connected with the bridge of his foe's nose. "Dude, if you wanna use the phone, form a line, you know?" His assailant growled and threw himself forward, an attack Mikey easily countered with a spinning back kick that knocked the man flat. He looked up to see Raph engaged with two of the ninja. The other two were walking toward Mikey, their movements slow and calculated. Mikey pulled his nun chucks from his belt and set them to spinning. "For the record, this was all his idea." He grinned. "I'm just the decoy." The two attacked.

"Hey, Mikey!"

Mikey didn't look over as he blocked and returned a punch. He didn't need to. "Yeah, Raph?"

"Did you get through okay?"

He dodged a vicious kick and konked one of them with his chucks. Laid the guy out. "Oh, you know how it is. Had to put me on hold for two or three minutes, didn't even play any good music."

"That's public service for ya."

"True that."

"When they comin'?"

"Lady said two shakes. Possibly two and a half."

The last guy was backing off toward the alley. He had a satchel slung over his shoulder—the money, Mikey presumed—and he held a katana in each hand. As he stepped beneath the light of a streetlamp, the glow illuminated the smears of red along the smooth metal blades. Mikey stopped for a moment. Blood. Not his blood. Not Raph's. Then whose…? He looked up and down the street, memories ghosting through the back of his mind, only tangible enough to raise goose bumps on his arms. There was an apartment on the second level of the liquor store. This wasn't a robbery, he realized. This was an assassination.

The man eyeing him through a black mask suddenly turned and took off running, leaping onto a nearby fire escape and flipping over onto the roof.

"Oh no you don't." Mikey tore after him. The guy had sheathed his swords, and was now bounding from rooftop to rooftop. "I was never too good at follow the leader," he said as he gained on the man. "I was always way better at tag!" He pushed off the ledge of an old brick office building, lengthening his body, eyes only on his target, until he hit, using all his body weight plus the momentum to knock the Foot soldier off his feet. The two humans skidded across the rooftop, gravel tearing at them, until coming to a stop in front of the raised ledge of the six-story building. "All right, dude. A little Q and A. Who'd you hit, and who ordered it?"

"I have nothing to say to you," the man snarled. "You betray your own kind!"

Mikey could hear the sirens in the distance. "'My own kind'? Seriously? Dude, you're the guy with the blood on his sword. I'm assuming whoever you just killed was human. Tell me what's going on with you and the Proud Tide. You just take out one of theirs?"

"They cannot defeat us. We are invincible. As you will soon find." Kind of a cackley voice. Erie.

Mikey blinked. This guy was cracked. Like, more than the Foot usually were. "O-kay. Someone had his crazy juice this morning. Part of this mentally imbalanced breakfast, right?"

The guy moved suddenly, and Mikey had to duck a fistful of sand and gravel hurled at his face. The guy caught him with a cheap shot to the solar plexus. Mikey gasped as the wind was knocked out of him, and the man in black shoved him off and did a back handspring to land on the ledge of the dilapidated building. The Foot's aim was inches off, and his toes landed on the very edge of the brick, which wouldn't have been so bad if the force of his landing hadn't knocked pieces of crumbling brick loose. The dark ninja started to fall.

Wheezing, Mikey jumped up, grabbing one of the man's pinwheeling arms. He braced both feet against the ledge and leaned back, letting his legs take most of the weight as the man's fall was cut short. The Foot ninja was now hanging over the ledge, feet dangling in the air, attached to the building only by Michelangelo's hands.

"Mayday, Mayday. Dude, pull up!" Mikey yelled through his teeth. The featureless, masked face seemed to zero in on him for a moment before the Foot ninja's free hand shot out and clamped onto Michelangelo's wrist.

"I am invincible," the man whispered. "Like my master." With that, he brought his legs up, feet pressing against the outside of the building. And he pulled.

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It was kind of like a dream. One of those horrible, frustrating, terrifying dreams where you're running as fast as you can, but it feels like you're underwater because everything is moving so slow and blurry. Raphael hated those kinds of dreams. Hated it a thousand times more when it was no dream.

After taking care of his share of the Foot, Raph had piled them up for the cops and gone after his brother. What he saw in the distance made his heart freeze in his chest. Mikey, feet braced, hands gripping tight to a dangling Foot ninja. The bad feeling in his gut erupted, and he put on a burst of speed, praying he'd get there in time as the black ninja grabbed his little brother's wrist and moved to send them both over the edge. I gotta make it. I gotta make it!

"Mikey!"

There was nothing the kid could do to avoid it. His arms were pulled over the ledge, followed by his head, chest, legs. Raph let out a yell as he sprinted those last few feet and dove. The turtle only just managed to grab hold of Mikey's foot as it disappeared over the edge of the building. He tightened his hold. Braced himself.

The sudden snap of all that weight coming down, threw Raph against the ledge, but he held tight, arms extended over the drop. The arc of their fall had caused Mikey to slam into the side of the building, and with that dang ninja still holding onto his hands, there was nothing the teen could do to protect himself. Raph heard the sickening thud of his little brother's head connecting with brick. The kid didn't move.

Raph breathed, muscles straining, and glared down at the ninja still hanging onto Mikey's hand and wrist. "Let go 'a him!" he yelled. "It'll be a lot easier way to go, pal, believe me! Let go of him now!"

The ninja peered up at him through that stupid, shadowy mask. He seemed to catch on the glint of metal hanging down from around the unconscious teen's neck. Without words, the ninja kicked off the wall and started to swing. Side to side.

"Hey!" Raph ground out as his arms protested. There was nothing he could do but hang on. He started seeing red. "Knock it off, you sick…"

The Foot soldier released the kid, using his momentum to carry him to the fire escape landing below and to his right. His hands caught the metal rail, and he pulled himself up. Then, turning back to Raph, he held up a familiar antique pendant hanging from a chain. Mikey's necklace. Raph could feel the man smiling at him. The turtle felt his teeth grind together, the blood going hot in his veins. That twisted... "I'll be waitin' for the day, pal," he said lowly, knowing the guy probably couldn't hear the words but would understand the sentiment. "You an' I are gonna finish this real soon."

The man flipped silently down the fire escape and disappeared into the night. Carefully, Raph pulled up the still body of his brother, laying him out on top of the roof. He pulled off the orange mask, not failing to notice the red staining it. He felt anger and guilt swirl up inside him, and he wanted nothing more to find that guy and pound the life out of him. Later. Bet. He had to concentrate on right now, and right now, his first priority was an unconscious Michelangelo. The kid had a cut just above his temple. It was bleeding. Raph swore quietly. He balled the orange material up and pressed it to the wound. "I know. You hate it when your mask gets all bloody and gross. Tough. You're gonna have to wake up and whine about it." The cut didn't seem deep, but head wounds bled a lot, and Raph didn't like it that his brother wasn't waking up. He took off his red mask and tied the make-shift bandage to his little brother's head. He needed to get Mikey home. This was Donny's department, not his. "Okay, Tonto. Let's get you up." More guilt. He lifted the teen, resting Mikey's head in the crook of his neck, trying to keep the kid as immobile as possible. He sighed as the wind picked up. "Hi ho Silver, right?"

Ten-year-old Raphael plodded into the common room next to Leo, rubbing the sleep from his eyes. He stopped short at the pair of blue eyes staring at them over the back of the couch. Raph's eyes immediately narrowed. So it wasn't just some nightmare. Donny really had brought some human in last night. And the human was still there. In his home. "What are you looking at?" he grumbled. The kid flinched a little, and Raph felt Leo's elbow embed itself into his side. Raph just grunted.

"Um, hi," Leo offered.

"You're not Donny," the kid said quietly.

"Gee, what gave us away?"Raph rolled his eyes. Human boy was obviously some kinda moron. He caught Leo glaring at him. "What?"

"I'm Leonardo," the blue-banded turtle introduced himself, still shooting Raph looks. "You can call me Leo if you want to. My brothers do." When it became obvious Raph wasn't about to say anything like that to the topsider, Leo jumped back in with "And this is my brother Raphael. You can call him…"

"Raphael," Raph cut in sharply, crossing his arms, sending the little intruder a glare that no idiot could ever mistake as friendly. He wasn't about to buddy up to some spoiled human brat.

Leo, apparently though, was feeling all diplomatic, and he turned to Raph with that cursed superior tone of his. "Raph…"

"What? No need to get too familiar, right? Ain't like he's gonna be stickin' around long enough to…"

"Quit acting like a jerk." Leo leveled a severe look at his fellow turtle before turning on a smile for their uninvited guest. "And how about you? What's your name?"

The little guy looked away, opening his mouth, looking pretty unsure of what would come out, when Donny suddenly showed up out of nowhere.

"He…ah…he's got amnesia," the purple-masked turtle said, appearing in the kitchen entryway. "No name. Yet."

Raphael shrugged. "I can think of a few names…"

"Raph. Will you shut up?" Leo said sharply. Eyes clearly telegraphing, What's wrong with you?

Raphael merely shrugged, not repentant in the least.

"Guys, breakfast's ready," Donny said, looking from person to turtle to turtle.

Leo looked back at the boy as he walked to the kitchen. "It was nice to meet you." Raph snorted as he followed. As soon as they were out of earshot, Leo whirled on his brother, vocalizing what Raph could tell he'd been thinking back there. "What the heck is wrong with you?"

"Ain't nothing wrong with me," Raph said as he shouldered past. "What's wrong with you?"

"Raph, he's a little kid. Why are you acting like such a…"

"Yeah. A little human kid. I can't even believe Master Splinter let him in here at all, but now you're fawnin' all over him like this is the best idea in the world. So it never occurred to you that he's the freakin' reason we all gotta live down here in the first place?"

Leo flung his arms out, straining to keep his voice quiet. "What are you talking about? He's like seven!"

"All he's gotta do is tell one person, Leo. One. And we're through. You trust him enough to bet all our friggin' lives on it? This is a bad idea. The sooner we boot the kid outta here, the better."

Before Leo could say anything, Master Splinter walked into the room. "Good morning, my sons."

"Good morning, Sensei," they both answered, eyes never leaving the other's as they sat across the table from each other. Raph didn't care what Leo said or what he thought. Humans were all the same. None of 'em cared that his family had to live in the sewers all the time and live off what they could find. None of 'em cared that all the Hamato clan could ever have was whatever humans threw away. None of 'em cared that they had to hide and worry always that some human might find out who and what they were one day and tear their family apart. Didn't Splinter always say how the humans could never understand? How the turtles couldn't belong above. Well, it goes both ways, he knew. None of them belong down here. This place is ours. No human was ever gonna change that, and Raph, for one, was going to make sure nobody ever tried.

Raph picked his way through tunnels he knew like the back of his hand. He would have just stuck to the rooftops—it was faster—but the wind had really picked up, and it was the swirling kind that seemed to always blow right in your eyes no matter which way you were facing. Besides that, he didn't want to risk taking some of the jumps that would've been necessary with the cargo he was currently carrying. He finally came to the place and lifted the sturdy, water-proofed trapdoor Donny had put in. He shifted Mikey up higher on his shoulder and stepped down the ladder, pulling the door shut over him. He grunted. "You know, you could wake up at any time and give me a hand, lil' bro." No answer. He picked his way down the ladder, quiet and careful, and shifted Mikey in his arms as he all but jogged to Donny's room. He slid the door open and stepped inside. "Donny, get up."

Donny's eyes opened. "Wha…?"

"Get up and get the lights. Mikey's hurt."

"What?" That got him up. He threw back his blanket, swinging his legs over the side of the bed as he switched on the lamp at his bedside. He saw Mikey's prone form and quickly stood so Raph could set the boy down on the bed. "How bad?"

"That's what I'm s'posed to ask you," Raph answered as he laid Mike down.

"What happened, and how long has he been unconscious?"

"About fifteen or twenty minutes. He got hit on the head."

"With what?"

"Uh…building, actually."

Donny gave a quiet huff as he eased back the blood-stained cloth from Mikey's wound. "I don't want to know. Well, scratch that, yes I do. You're going to tell me. Just not right now." He examined the cut. "Looks like it stopped bleeding. Grab me that kit over there. Third drawer."

Raph turned. There was a desk, a couple file cabinets, and a dresser, all with drawers full of…only Don knew what. "You're gonna hafta be a little more specific."

"Left file cabinet."

"Of course. Perfect place to keep a first aid kit." He grabbed it and brought it over, hating how he felt so nervous. He knew Mike was going to be fine. It was just that he was currently helpless to do anything for him really. And that always made him nervous.

Donny took out the peroxide and quickly began cleaning the cut. "Any other injuries I should know about?"

"Not that I could see."

Donny glanced up briefly and gave one of those short Donny-smiles. "I was talking about you, tough guy."

Raph blinked. Was he injured? He supposed it was possible. Since he saw his littlest brother nearly take a header off a six story building, he'd been a little preoccupied. But then Donny could always think of a hundred things at once. Raph looked down at himself. Everything seemed in order. Couple of nasty scrapes and bruises on his arms from being tugged across that ledge. But no biggie. "Nah. I'm good. I came in walkin', didn't I? Just wake him up."

Donny finished dressing the cut and clicked on a penlight to check Mikey's pupils. "Working on it. He's got a minor concussion, looks like. Should wake up soon."

Raph let out a small breath. It was his fault Mikey had been hurt in the first place; there was no getting around that. He wouldn't be able to breathe a real sigh of relief until he got a glimpse of those baby blues, but if Donny said he'd be okay, he would. Raph would just have to tuck the guilt away for later when he got his hands on that piece of garbage Foot…

"Raph." There was a note of what was almost a warning in his younger brother's voice. Don was looking at Mikey's arm—the finger-shaped bruises wrapped around his wrist to be exact. "I'm counting five fingers here. Not three."

Raph realized what his brother must've thought. Don had probably figured they were messing around topside—something they were kind of known for doing—and Mikey had had an accident. It had happened to all of them at one point or another. But if Raph had grabbed Mikey to keep him from falling, the bruises would definitely have looked a little different. "Yeah. My hands were on his ankles."

"So you guys got in a fight? With who?"

"Foot."

"You've got to be kidding me."

"'s what I said."

"So what happened?"

Raph waved him away. Now that he knew that Mikey would be fine, the fact he'd come so close to not making it on time was starting to catch up. He really wanted to go hit something. Someone. "I'll tell you tomorrow."

Donny drew his brow together in annoyance. "It kind of is tomorrow."

Raph shook his head. "Whatever. Later. When did you say he's gonna wake up?"

"Any time now. If he's not conscious in fifteen minutes, I'm going to call April to take him to the hospital just in case."

A groan from Donny's patient let them know that wouldn't be necessary. Raph grinned a little. Mikey would wake up just to avoid a trip to the hospital. Mikey's eyes fluttered and opened. He quickly squeezed them shut again and brought his hand up to his head. "Ow."

Donny pulled the hand away from his head. "Hey. How you feeling, Mikey?"

Mikey's forehead was scrunched up from what had to be a killer headache. "And again: Ow."

Raph leaned over to look at him, letting the relief wash over him. "Psh. Sounds okay to me."

Mikey tried opening his eyes again, this time more slowly, keeping them narrowed into slits. "So. Concussion?"

"Yep," Donny answered.

"Did I win?"

"I don't know. The way I heard it, you took on a building, Don Quixote style." Donny looked at Raph.

"Oh." Mikey looked confused. "Did I say why?"

"A Foot ninja pulled you off the side of a building," Raph said quietly.

Don's eyes widened incredulously even as Mikey sat up, grabbing both sides of his head.

"He fell off a building?"

"I fell off a building?!"

Raph shook his head, shrugging uncomfortably. It was only a matter of time now before he noticed. "Naw, I grabbed you. You just got a bump on the head is all. You're fine. Donny said so."

That seemed to calm the orange-clad ninja. "Oh. Well, Donny's pretty trustworthy. So what, Raph? You swooped in and snatched me out of the air?" He grinned, hand reaching, almost subconsciously it seemed, for his chest. "You are like an eagle. Part turtle. Part eagle. That'd make you a teagle. Or and eag...le. Huh. Well..." He felt around for that familiar bulge under his shirt Raph knew he wouldn't find. He smile froze as his hand met with nothing.

Don noticed. "Mikey? You okay?"

Michelangelo's breaths came faster and harder as he frantically felt around his chest before hands went up to his neck. Nothing. He looked at Raph. "It's...You…you have it, right?" Dang. There was so much desperate hope in those words it hurt.

Raph felt his fists clench as his chest was flooded with guilt. He couldn't look at his brother. "He took it, Mike. That ninja. But I'm gonna get it back, I swear to you. I'm gonna find a way to get it back."

Mikey was already on his feet.

Donny reached out to steady him as he swayed slightly. "Whoa, Mikey, don't…"

But Mikey pulled away, heading for the door.

Raph rolled his neck and let out a frustrated sigh as he followed his little brother out of the car. "Mikey, stop."

"I gotta go get it back." Kid wasn't really hearing him at all.

"You're not goin'. Not now. Not alone, you're not. You don't even know…"

"I'll find out." Mikey's breathing was quick and uneven, and Raph didn't have to see his face to know he was hurting, bad.

"Stop, Mikey. You don't run out like this."

"I'm going after it."

"You're dead on your feet! That guy's probably at the Foot headquarters, wherever that is, and even if you do find it, you walk in like this, and you're dead!"

"I'll risk it!"

"Tough! You don't get to make that call!"

"You can't stop me."

"Oh, don't make that bet, baby bro." With that, Raph caught him roughly by the back of his jacket and spun him around, pushing him backwards until he held him pressed up against the side of Leo's subway car, fists balled in the front of his jacket. Leonardo came out just then, having heard the commotion.

"Raph! What the..." Donny waved at him to be quiet.

Mikey was glaring at Raph, jaw stiff, eyes blazing. Hiding pain with anger. That's usually my shtick, little bro.

"I'm going after it," he said lowly.

"No. You're not." Raph met his glare head on.

Mike tried to pull away. Raph wasn't about to let go. "Why not?"

"'Cause I don't wanna hafta carry around a friggin' locket with your picture in it for the rest of my life!" For a second, Mikey looked like he'd just been slapped, and Raph hated himself for that. Then the kid blinked and he just kind of crumbled. Anger melted into anguish.

"It was my mom's," he whispered brokenly. "She…she gave it to me, and I lost it." He turned pleading eyes to his big brother. "Raphie, I gotta get it back, please."

"I know, buddy. I know. You didn't lose it, okay? That punk stole it, and we're gonna get it back. I promise. Just not tonight."

Mikey bit his lip and nodded, blinking back tears. Mikey didn't cry much. Sure he'd pretend to blubber all over him if they were watching a sad movie, but that was funny and mostly just to annoy his brothers. Raph figured he could probably count on two hands the times he'd seen the kid really cry. That necklace, it was a locket, about an inch and a half long, and an inch wide, made of cheap brass that had probably once been painted gold. And there was a picture in it. Mikey's mom. It was the only thing he had from his life before, the only thing he wanted from his life before. And he'd lost it. Because of Raph. Raph felt his gut clench. Mikey sniffed and pushed Raph's hands off his shirt. "I'm sorry," he whispered.

"Shut up," Raph said softly with more gentleness than he wanted anyone to know he was capable of. He took him by the shoulders and turned him towards where Donny was standing a few feet away. "So go to sleep or stay awake or whatever Don says you're supposed to do with that concussion." Mikey nodded as Raph pushed him towards his other big brother. He took a deep breath and sighed as he watched Don wrap an arm around Mikey's shoulder and lead him back to his room. Mikey would talk to Donny. Donny knew how to talk to Mikey. Always had.

Raph looked at Leo. "I need to talk to you."

Leo was looking worried and serious. Heck, since neither of them had their masks on, it was kinda like looking in a mirror. "I would say so, yeah."

Splinter had materialized behind him at some point. Raph pointed at him. "And I need to talk to you, too."

The rat nodded. "Come." The two turtles followed their father to his room.

Raphael didn't even wait to be prompted. "It was all my fault."

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Donny stepped up closer to the couch. "Good morning," he said with a smile.

"'Morning," came the reply. The little stranger looked a little nervous and shaky, but, all things considered, the kid was taking this whole giant mutants thing remarkably well.

"How'd you sleep?"

"Fine."

"How are you feeling?"

"Fine."

"Uh-huh." Donny didn't think he believed either of those answers. He reached out to check for fever only to have the kid shrink back away from him. "Hey. I just wanna see if that fever's still hanging on from last night. Hold still."

The boy looked wary and flinched slightly as Donny's hand landed on his brow, but allowed the contact this time. "I had a fever?" he sounded puzzled.

"Nope," Donny sighed. "You have a fever. It's a little one, though. We just gotta keep an eye on it, I think. You want some breakfast?"

The kid suddenly looked at him suspiciously. "Well, what do I hafta do?"

"Do?" Donny asked. "What do you mean what do you have to do? It's breakfast."

"I mean, to eat. To…you know…earn it. What do I hafta do here?"

Donny shook his head. "Oh, little human," he said softly. "Listen. All you have to do is promise not to tell anyone about us, okay?" Geeze, what kind of eight-year-old kid assumed he'd be forced to work to earn a meal? No wonder he was so skinny.

"That's it?" He sounded confused.

"That's it."

"Oh. I can do that."

"Promise?"

"I promise."

"Okay then."

The boy chewed his lip, thinking. "Well…what makes you think my word's any good? What if it's not? You don't know."

Donny shrugged. "I guess I just hope it is. But even if it isn't, I'd still let you eat."

"Really?"

"Really. So. Think you can make it to the table, or would you like me to bring your breakfast out here?"

"Um…" The human seemed more thrown by the question than to actually be considering an answer. "I can make it."

"You sure?"

"Yes."

"Okay then. It's this way. I see you've already met my brothers. That's good. And don't worry about Raph. He seemed kind of…whatever. He'll get over it. We're just not real used to having visitors, you know? Master Splinter's waiting at the table. You'll love him. I know it." The little guy had been fascinated last night by Donny's descriptions of the wise Japanese rat. But then, he'd been fascinated by just about everything, fighting the sleep his body so obviously needed to ask question after question until Donny had finally declared they both needed some rest.

Now the little guy rose carefully from the couch, gripping the armrest as he swayed a little. Donny offered his hand. Kid shook his head. "'m okay. I got it." He squeezed his eyes shut briefly. The boy had to have a monstrous headache.

"We've got some Children's Tylenol in the kitchen. It should help some," Donny offered.

The boy looked surprised. "That's okay. I'm fine. For real." The last came out through gritted teeth as he began making his way forward.

"Little human," Donny chided. The boy looked at him, guarded. "There's no shame in letting someone help you, you know." He held out his hand again with a grin. "Master Splinter says that kind of thing to Raph all the time."

The boy stared at the offered hand. He looked kind of sad. "I can't trust you." It seemed a little like he was reminding himself as much as he was telling Donny.

"I know," the turtle answered. "But you gotta let me help you a little right now."

Deep breath. He let it out in a huff. "Okay." He slipped his hand into Donny's, and turtle helped human to the kitchen. As they reached the entryway, though, the boy let go and stood up straight with obvious effort. "I'm okay now. Thanks."

Donny sighed. "You don't have to worry about them, you know. They're not gonna be looking to prey on your weaknesses."

"Okay," he nodded like he got it. Even so, the kid walked in unassisted.

Splinter was sitting at the head of the table, Leo and Raph on his right. All three looked up. Splinter smiled at the boy who'd dropped his gaze and was now trying very hard not to fidget. "Good morning to you, young one. How did you sleep?"

The boy continued to study the floor. "Good. Thank you, sir," he answered politely in a nervous voice that was just barely audible.

The ninja master smiled warmly. "I am glad to hear it. Now come. Sit and eat."

The human gave a soft smile and moved as quickly as he could to obey. He climbed up into the chair to Splinter's left, finally daring to peek up at the large rat. "Thank…"

"That's Donny's spot." The cold voice came from the turtle wearing red. All eyes quickly shot toward Raph to see him sitting with arms casually crossed all but glaring at the human boy. "That chair you're sitting in," he nodded at it, "it's Donatello's. Move."

The boy's posture stiffened as he looked at Raph with wide eyes. He started to move, but Don stopped him with a hand on his shoulder. Big blue eyes flicked back to find the purple-banded turtle planted firmly behind him returning Raph's glare.

Leo was trying none too subtly to get Raph's attention, but Raphael's eyes were only on Donny. For his part, the human boy's jaw had a stubborn set to it, but he really looked like he just wanted to disappear.

"You're fine where you are," Donny told him deliberately, though the words were at least as much for Raph's ears as they were for the boy's.

Raph shrugged, his eyes still hard. "I'm just sayin' it's your spot, Don. He don't belong there." His words were too measured.

"Raph," Leo hissed.

Donny's eyes narrowed. "He does now."

A long, tense silence followed these quiet, forceful words, and it seemed like no one moved. Tension filled the place, focusing on the sightline between Donny and Raph. Then the little boy cleared his throat audibly and turned to Master Splinter, tilting his head to ask with genuine curiosity, "Where'd you get that robe?" The old ninja master looked down at him, slightly surprised by the question. "I mean…you're a rat. Where'd you find a robe that fits you so good?"

There was another silence, this one much shorter, before Leo suddenly let out a surprised chuckle. "I never thought of that before. Where did you find it, Master Splinter?"

The old rat chuckled himself, and much of the tension was suddenly forgotten. The rest was momentarily ignored.

TMNTTMNTTMNTTMNTTMNT

The Foot ninja glanced behind him for the hundredth time, making sure he wasn't being followed. Not that he expected to be, but he wouldn't take a chance on failing his master. He stuck to the brush at the edge of the old gravel road that wound up to an abandoned factory outside the city. It was a forgotten place, overgrown by trees whose leaves were turning their shades of yellow and orange. The ninja scaled one of these trees and slipped through a busted out second story window. He could hear the sounds of his fellow soldiers on the floor below training and sparring. An empire that once claimed over six hundred members was now reduced to but sixty men and women of all skill levels. After what had happened with those mutant abominations the Shredder had created, many of the Foot had turned traitor and left, to their own dishonor. Others had been arrested. But that wasn't a problem. Their numbers were growing daily. They would rebuild. They'd done it before. It was only a matter of time.

He made his way down a narrow hallway, avoiding the dark and warped places in the decrepit flooring. A large metal door stood at the end of the hall. He knocked twice.

"Enter."

Slowly, nervously, he pushed open the heavy door. The room was large and mostly empty with a high ceiling. The floors had been reinforced in here and were covered with a training mat. On the walls hung racks of weapons of all kinds. At the far side was a large chair. It was empty. The man who normally sat in it was currently running through an advanced kata as if he'd been born doing it. This man was the reason the floors had been reinforced in this room. Muscles bulged under a specially-tailored dogi designed specifically for the man wearing it. The man finished the kata and straightened, his back to the ninja. "Come," he said, unnaturally deep voice reverberating through the ninja, making his heart skip a beat.

The great man walked across the floor to the chair. Reaching toward the side table, he picked up a masked helmet, candlelight dancing across its surface. He placed it on his head, turned, and sat. "Is it done?"

The ninja dropped to one knee and bowed his head. His fingers twitched. "Yes, Master."

"The others?"

"We were attacked. One of the turtle creatures and their human. The rest did not get away. But I completed the mission. Both tasks." He rose, slipping the satchel off his shoulder and setting it at his master's feet. Licked his lips.

"Good. It is only a matter of time now until…" His master stopped abruptly. The ninja looked up to see those bottomless dark eyes staring at the small trophy he'd stolen from his enemy hanging around his neck. "What is that?" A hand flashed out, ripping the thing from his throat. The master studied it for a moment, ever unreadable. "Where did you get this?" His voice held a tone the ninja had not heard from his master before. Things were starting to get fuzzy, but he knew somehow that if he didn't answer right, he wouldn't live to see another sunrise. He felt the fear starting to well up. He hated the fear.

"The boy." He swallowed. "The boy that fights with the turtles. He wore it around his neck."

The master gripped the trinket tightly before clicking it open. It was a locket. The master stared at it and bowed his head, silent for a long moment. "Take your payment. Return in six hours. I will have a task for you."

The ninja bowed, taking the bag hungrily and reaching inside for a patch. He raised his sleeve and stuck it to the bare skin of his arm, feeling the world return to normal, feeling the fear ebb away. "As you wish," he said, "Master Shredder."