Hello everyone! First off, I want to apologize to everyone for this chapter taking so long. Also, don't worry, this will be five parts instead of four just because there is so much material to get into this thing.

Important note*: the Swap series will be the last thing in Brotherly Blunders. But I will be posting another collection of one-shots that will be the same type of thing, which I am going to call Brotherly Bonds. So be sure to check that out when I get it up and running!

(Also, if you haven't checked out my fic called Outtakes you might want to because there are several chapters in there that never quiet made it into Brotherly Blunders, but that are just as worthy. There are also some interesting little tidbits and changes to previous chapter bits that you might see as well.)

And now that all that is done, enjoy the chapter and I promise that part five will be up soon! I've already got it all planned out! :)

Ch. 29-Swap Pt. 4

Mikey's POV

So, I'd finally coaxed Leo into sparring with me. We'd been going at it for about half an hour actually, and Leo definitely wasn't going easy on me. And sparring with these swords is really hard! They're so heavy!

"Hey Mikey, nice job with the polish, they look almost as good as when I do it."

I actually paused for a moment and preened at my brother's praise. "Aww thanks Leo!"

Leo actually took advantage of the opportunity to bowl me over and the next thing I knew there was a sai pointed straight at my face.

"Aw man, again?!"

My oldest brother chuckled. "Guess it just isn't your day, little brother." He smirked. He actually smirked!

"Why are you so happy?" I grumbled frustratedly as I jumped back to my feet and we began to circle once again.

The blue masked turtle laughed. "I think I'm actually getting the hang of these things." Leo said, waving the sais tauntingly the same way Raph does.

I rolled my eyes. "Great. Next thing we know you'll be using one sai and one katana."

He shook his head. "I don't think so Mikey. I like my katanas too much. But I have to say it's an interesting prospect."

"Yeah, think of the advantage of being able to use lots of weapons."

Leo's eyes narrowed and he smiled. Oh no, he's seen through me.

"I know what your game is little brother. You're trying to distract me, aren't you?"

I smiled "How can you tell?"

He chuckled and I lashed out while he was distracted. "Ha, I got you!" I exclaimed as I pinned him to the ground.

"Are you sure?" He asked jeeringly from where I had him pinned.

I did a double take and put my hands on my hips. "Yes, I'm sure!"

The next thing I knew I was being bowled over by my older brother.

"Are you sure?" He repeated.

I groaned disappointedly and looked away.

Suddenly the sound of loud voices made our heads snap up. "Was that Donnie?" I asked.

We listened carefully and heard a slightly quieter voice yell back. "And Raph." Leo answered. We both exchanged glances. "Let's go!"

Leo's POV

Michelangelo and I rushed out, but as soon as we got to the door of the lab Raphael and Donatello burst out. Raph looked like he was about to explode and Donnie looked guilty. I tried to stop Raphael and ask him to explain, but one look into those neon green eyes and I knew now wasn't the time to ask. Worry began to churn in my stomach. I turned to Don and asked, "What happened?" but he shook me off and followed after Raph.

We all tailed Raph to the dojo where he proceeded to yell his complaints to Master Splinter. I don't think I've ever seen my hotheaded younger sibling so eager to just…give up…on something. Raphael has always been the king of willpower. I mean, just look at all those strenuous workout routines of his! Raph does not give up easily. But right now he seemed almost…beaten.

I paid special attention to Raph's body language. His hands were shaking, meaning he was under great emotional strain, anger mostly, but I could also perceive a great deal of hurt in his eyes. Raph doesn't hurt easily either. He's one stubborn turtle. It takes a lot to hurt him, but he is sensitive to certain things. What could have happened to hurt him so badly? In my peripheral vision I noticed that Donnie had his head bowed with a guilty and remorseful look on his face.

I could feel a frown forming on my face. I shifted nervously as Sensei asked Raphael if he had learned anything.

"Hai Sensei. I've learned that everyone has a place in this family. And that those roles can't be changed or altered. I've learned that in order to get things done right that particular person has to do it. I've learned that anyone else who tries only screws everything up." Raph hung his head and I finally managed to catch his eyes. The look was one I had seen before, one I hated with every fiber of my being. I hated to see that look in Raphael's eyes. It was a look of self-depreciation.

"I screwed everything up." Raph whispered. His voice was so quiet that I could barely make it out.

Sensei's mouth curved downward into a deep frown. "And what has given you that opinion, my son?"

Neon green eyes shifted over to Donnie. Sensei sent him a rather curious stare.

My eyes narrowed. Anger surged up within me as I turned to my second youngest brother. "What did you do?!" I asked heatedly.

Donatello just looked away and refused to meet my gaze. Suddenly I realized that Donnie was already blaming himself, so I shut my mouth and let it go at that as Sensei went on to tell Raph that there was no possible way he could have screwed everything up.

Raph retreated back into the lab, with Donnie close on his heels. I frowned a little, but eventually decided that those two could work it out for themselves.

It was still light outside, so it wouldn't be able to safely journey to the Mighty Mutanimals' lair for a while yet. After a short bout of wandering around aimlessly, I went back to Raph's room, my eye immediately focusing on Musashi. Ugh! I want to read it so bad! But I can't. I have to finish searching the lair for Raph's kunai with the red-wrapped handle! Honestly, I just don't understand! Why is that thing so important to him?!

With one last forlorn glance at the book tucked neatly away on Raph's shelf, I turned and left the room. I have to find that kunai!

Raph's POV

After finally fixing those damn break lines Donnie and I parted on good terms. I was thinking about repainting the turtle van, but I was pleasantly surprised when Don objected strongly. He's gone on to do…whatever it is he has to do now and I'm alone the lab once again.

I am not exactly sure where to begin with the whole researching snake venom thing, but I guess the best thing I can do is search it up on the Internet. Of course, I realize that I probably won't be able to learn anything that Donatello doesn't already know, but at least I'll be up to speed and I'll be doing what's on the schedule.

Typing snake venom into the search engine, I click on the first thing that pops up, which is a page on some kind of Internet encyclopedia. I can barely even get through the first sentence without being completely lost. Ooh boy, looks like I've got a lot of advanced vocab to sift through.

Sigh. This is going to take a loooooooooong time.

30 minutes later…

Hmm…huh. So a snake's venom toxicity is dependent on many different types of factors: biophysical environment, physiological status, ecological variables, genetic variation…and the list goes on. Maybe by manipulating one or more of these factors we could find a way to neutralize Karai's venom, or at least make it less potent. Then we might stand a better chance of getting her out of Shredder's control! Oh man, Don was right to have this on his schedule! This could be really important stuff!

But if it was…could the brainiac really trust me to do it right?

Don's POV

I'm going to do it. I'm going to actually do it. I am going to make a pizza. I am! No matter what! The oven will not win! Not this time! This time I will emerge victorious!

Palm, meet face. Oh no. Now I really am starting to sound like Mikey!

After I finished helping Raph with those brake lines and things were back to normal, well normal as they can be given the circumstances, I returned to the kitchen for my second attempt at cooking today. I have now determined that the oven has a mind of its own and is determined to become the bane of my existence. It is probably my biggest obstacle in this whole process. After all, at lunchtime I had the makings of a beautiful, and perfectly symmetrical pizza. But of course the oven decided to go and burn it. And therein lies the problem. I have to use the oven if I want to cook the pizza, but the oven doesn't like me.

Ugh! Donatello are you even listening to yourself?! You're personifying a cooking utensil that does not even remotely possess a mind!

You're right! You're right! I'm the one with the power here! So I'm the one in control! Take that oven!

One deliciously delectable pizza coming right up!

Leo's POV

"Hey Slash."

Green eyes narrowed. The light was dim and he had probably mistaken me for the hothead. "Leo." The large turtle greeted with no small amount of surprise in his voice. "How did you find this place?" Slash asked slowly.

"Raph told me where to find you. He was going to come himself, but Master Splinter had us switch places for today."

Slash gave me a once-over. Then he remarked, "That's not all you switched." A large hand gestured to the mask.

I nodded, and couldn't help but grin. I fingered the sais in my belt awkwardly, "Yeah. It feels weird...being Raph, that is."

Slash frowned a little. "Only Raphael can be Raphael."

We shared a bit of an awkward silence before I broke it with a cough. "Yeah, well, um... Sensei thought it would help us learn some things we may not have known about our brothers. I want to learn as much as I can about Raphael."

Slash grunted. "It's about time. You guys have lived together for sixteen years, you'd think the three of you would at least try to get to know him."

I frowned and crossed my arms. "We can't do much more than he'll let us."

"That's because you don't go about it the right way." Slash muttered.

I was about to open my mouth to retort, but I immediately thought better of it. Instead of arguing, I decided to change the course of the conversation. After all, this was a fabulous opportunity to get some inside insight on my red-masked brother's thinking. "He's very important to you, isn't he?"

Slash glued his gaze to the ground. "Of course he is." The large turtle's fists clenched tightly, "I hate seeing him hurt."

My voice softened a little as curiosity propelled me forward. "And he 'hurts' a lot?"

Mutagen-colored eyes rose to meet my dark blue ones. "A lot more than you think."

My eye-ridges furrowed with both confusion and worry. "Why?"

Slash's expression was grim. "Because the world is cruel."

The look on my face must have signaled to Slash that I didn't understand because he began to elaborate. "Raphael tries to bear the brunt of it. He tried to protect the three of you from the heartbreak, from the pain. But no matter how hard he tried, he couldn't do it. He can't. He isn't strong enough. That tears him apart."

I had no idea that Raphael even... I looked up at Slash, insistently. "Tell me more."

Slash's expression was grave, but understanding. It was time one of Raph's brothers learn the truth. "He hardened himself so that he could live with the weight of the world on his shoulders. Raphael's emotional side, however, was never truly able to do so. His heart is pure, Leonardo. Sometimes even he has difficulty living with his actions. His emotions are just too strong. He's held them back for so long that he's terrified of what will happen if he really does let go of his control."

I suddenly found myself feeling very put-out and frustrated with Raphael and how much he kept from the four of us. "But why can't I understand him? What's so hard to understand?!"

"If you have to ask, then you're not ready to know."

My eyes were rock solid. I took a deep breath and released my frustrated tension. "Slash, I really want to get to know him better, you have to believe that, but it's so hard just getting him to open up to me."

Slash's expression was grave. "Never stop trying, Leo."

I canted my head and sent the larger turtle a questioning stare.

Slash's voice lowered, "You have no idea how much Raphael appreciates it."

That was a surprise. I took a moment to absorb that before asking, "Could you...I don't know...maybe tell me about him? I mean...the part of him that you know?"

Slash grinned and his eyes filled with a tint of nostalgia. "You know how softhearted Raphael really is?"

I returned the grin and nodded.

The larger turtle's grin dimmed and his lips tightened. "That's just the tip of the ice berg." Slash closed his eyes. "Raph's emotions go so much deeper." Mutagen colored eyes flicked back up, "I don't suppose you're aware that he's an insomniac?"

My jaw dropped. I tried to cough up words that wouldn't come and ended up just shaking my head. Slash didn't seem too surprised by my reaction. His expression was severe. "Raphael has a tendency to beat himself up about all kinds of things whenever he gets enough time alone. The three of you get so caught up in his tough guy performance that you forget how sensitive he really is." Slash's voice faded, and he slowly asked, "...you know that time Master Splinter had the three of you insult him in training?"

I nodded.

My eyes must have asked what my voice could not for Slash answered, "Yes, he told me about it."

There was a brief lull in the conversation and I suddenly realized that Slash wasn't going to tell me just yet. So I turned back to the matter at hand. "I'm looking for Raphael's kunai with the red-wrapped handle. You wouldn't happen to know where it is, would you?"

"He lost it?!" Slash asked sounding surprised and a little bit hurt.

I immediately felt a little bit timid for some odd reason and I shifted my weight nervously. "Well, um, no…but he's not exactly sure where it is at the moment. Just…what is so significant about that kunai?"

"It was the first weapon Master Splinter ever gave him, for one thing."

I frowned. "But Master Splinter didn't give us any weapons until we were eight and he assigned us each one."

"Nope. He gave Raph the kunai as a reward for how well he had been doing in training, but he made Raph promise to keep it a secret between the two of them. The day that he received it was also the day that he found me in the sewers. So you could say it holds rather a double memory for him. He's always been meticulous in keeping track of it until now. I hope he hasn't lost it. Losing it will certainly put a damper on his spirits."

My heart suddenly swelled in my chest as an image of Raph's disappointed face flashed in my mind's eye. If I don't return with that kunai Raph will be devastated. All day I've been searching for this kunai, thinking it was a pointless waste of time and that Raphael was attaching way too much importance to a little piece of metal that was practically worthless. I have to find this kunai. It may not be important to me, but it's important to Raph.

And I'm not about to let my little brother down.

Mikey's POV

Huh. I don't smell anything burning yet. Maybe Donnie will actually present something edible for dinner tonight.

Well, how was it? What was your favorite part? Review Please!