((THANK YOU THANK YOU CYNLEE! From plot ideas to dialogue, you are the
WO-MAN. Enjoy all))
"Master, that water's COLD," Mike whined while both trying to avoid the spraying hose and get the foul smelling goop from his body.
Splinter's sigh could not be heard over the spraying water or the protests and sputtering of his other sons or their friend. He had been enjoying a nice snack. Leonardo's meal, while nutritionally sound, did leave a lot to be desired. So, he thought some cheese and crackers, along with a nice cup of tea would be just the thing. Unfortunately, he was only about two minutes into his relaxing meal when Donatello came tearing through the lair.
Splinter jumped to his feet when four beings came running in right behind him. For a moment he thought intruders had found the lair. He was only seconds from attacking the lead man when he realized…it was Raphael. His sensitive nose wrinkled in disgust and it was only through years of practicing self-control that he did not vomit his snack on the couch.
One shrill whistle and all movement stopped. Donatello poked his head out from where he had been trying to hide in his room. There were nasty footprints all over the floor and the smell…
"Donatello, clean up this mess!" He could figure out easily enough just who was responsible for this whole thing. "The rest of you, OUT of the lair!"
And now, some twenty minutes later, he was still trying to hose them down.
"Turn around, Raphael," Splinter called out to his son, knowing that there was still a great deal of the stuff on his carapace and legs.
"I'm gonna KILL him," Raph grumbled complying. "Dammit, OW! Sensei, can ya turn DOWN the power on that thing a lil?"
Casey leaned forward letting the spray soak his hair. When he had first seen Splinter coming with the hose, his first thought was to run. Then again, where would he run? There was no way April would let him in the apartment that way, and if he tried to make it to his place, he would be arrested for environmental pollution or something. Now his clothes were soaked through. "Gonna burn them anyway," he muttered to himself.
Splinter stepped a bit closer to Mike and finished rinsing him down. He let go of the sprayer for a moment and tossed his youngest a towel. "Go and shower, Michelangelo." He noticed his teeth chattering just a bit. Michelangelo's tolerance of the cold has always been lower than his brother's. "Find something warm to put on."
Mike gratefully dried off with the towel and headed for the door. He passed Donatello on the way in. His brother was kneeling down trying to scrub the floor looking very much like a green Cinderella. He was so blissfully unaware that Mike wound up the towel ready to snap him with it.
"And leave Donatello alone!" Splinter called after him.
Don looked up quickly at Mike and smiled slightly. "Nice shower?"
Mike lowered the towel giving Don the sternest leader-type glare he could manage. "You're grounded!"
Don blinked in surprise for a moment but recovered quickly. Posting his best Raphael expression on his face, "Bite me." He went back to scrubbing, pleased with himself in general.
Mike scowled as he heard the hose turn on again to finish with the cleaning. He twirled the towel and snapped his brother's backside hard with the wet cloth. He hurried to the bathroom before Don's yelp could be heard and responded to.
From the sewers, Splinter could easily pretend he didn't hear his son's surprised cry of pain. He concentrated the spray of water on Leonardo. It appeared that his oldest son got the worst of the deluge. Why did his sons never learn? This sewer water was dangerous. It only took a little amount to cause severe illness. He had considered using the medicine to induce vomiting, but he knew it would be a struggle. His sons had become wise to that concoction many years ago.
Splinter turned off the hose and set it on the ground. He handed the remaining three towels and folded his arms. "Would anyone care to explain?"
Leo wiped his face and looked up. He thought of saying something along the lines of, "that's Mike's job" but instead opted for silence.
Raphael, however, had no problems venting. "The only thing left to explain is how many ways I can make Donatello suffer for this."
Casey, who had already taken off his shirt, wished he could take off the jeans as well. There was no worse feeling than wet jeans. Ok, there were worse feelings, but not many. "I'll hold'em for you."
Don listened just inside the door. He knew he was putting life and limb on the line when he concocted this scheme, but he didn't care… at the time.
But Splinter wasn't about to let this whole thing escalate further. "No one is going to do anything to Donatello," he said firmly.
That's telling them, Sensei, Don thought, smiling. I knew I could count on you.
"I will deal with him myself," Splinter continued.
Don's smile fell away quickly. Damn. He got to his feet with the bucket and scrub brush. The floor was as sparkling as he could make it and he'd used a deodorizer to help with the smell, so the lair was back to normal.
He smiled slightly at his brothers and Casey as they filed back into the lair behind Splinter. There was only one shower, so they would have to wait for Mike.
"Leonardo, go and tell Michelangelo that he has five more minutes," Splinter instructed. He turned to Casey and Raphael. "There may be something for Casey to change in to. Check the old trunks in the storage closet."
Raph glared at Don as he past him and Casey offered his own scowl as he squished by.
That left Don with Splinter. Don smiled slightly. "The floor's clean. I think I need to polish my sai…" Or something…
"It will keep for a moment, I am sure," Splinter said dryly. "Donatello, you know that it is dangerous to dump this stuff on people. The infections…"
"Raphael did it to me!" Donatello interrupted hotly and winced a little at his tone of voice. He'd become possessed with the spirit of Raphael.
"That was an accident, you had said so yourself," Splinter replied sternly. "And watch how you speak to me Raph…I mean Donatello." Splinter blinked and caught himself. He very rarely mixed up his sons in such a way. Perhaps it was his age catching up to him or perhaps it was the way Donatello was standing. Feet spread slightly apart, arms crossed over his chest with a scowl on his face. If he had not been wearing the purple eye mask…"You are restricted to the lair for one week."
Don's eyes widened. Grounded? Him? He didn't get grounded. MIKE got grounded. Raph got grounded. Even Leo on occasion when he and Raph fought. But not him! "A week? I splattered them, I didn't DROWN them."
"I could always make it two," Splinter said calmly.
Don's mouth snapped shut and he glared for a second before storming away with the cleaning bucket. He growled under his breath, ready to let loose on the first thing that got in his way.
From the opposite direction, Mike came out of the bathroom dressed in a fluffy yellow robe that April had left after one of her overnight stays. "Who was that masked turtle?" he asked smiling. His lips no longer a shade of blue he dropped down on the couch to finish warming up.
Splinter shook his head. "I am not sure." He sat down on the couch wearily. "It seems as though he and Raphael switched bodies."
Mike snickered. "Well, they kinda have. And we know whose idea that was…." He trailed off seeing the not so happy look on Splinter's face. He snapped his fingers. "I just remembered! Bye." He was up and out of the room in the blink of an eye.
Splinter sighed and glanced at his cold, stale snack still on the coffee table where he left it. "Kids."
