Disclaimer: see chapter one
At first Donatello thought he had done the meditation wrong since he had ended up back in the lair; however, as he looked around, he realized he was back in the old lair, the one they lived in when they were kids. A pang of sadness clenched at his heart and Donatello fought back tears. He needed to find the piece of Raphael's conscience. Donatello began searching the lair for any signs of his brother.
"Raph?" he called. "Raph, where are you? Raphie!"
Donatello came to the bedroom he used to share with his brothers and that's when he heard it; someone was crying. Heart racing, Donatello threw open the door of the bedroom and was greeted by the sweet sight of his red masked brother. However, confusion quickly took over when Donatello noticed that he was looking at a toddler, no more than two years old. Donatello slowly made his way over to the bed his toddler brother was sitting on and knelt down. Raphael had his face buried in his hands and his knees pulled up to his chest.
"Raph?" Donatello asked gently.
The two year old looked up, tears shining in his amber eyes. It broke Donatello's heart to see his brother in such a state. Even as a kid, Raphael had never been the crying type, even if he got a serious injury that would have made any one of them cry, Raphael would put on a brave face and pretend it didn't hurt. So to see Raphael crying his little heart out made Donatello's heart break.
"What's wrong?" Donatello asked.
Raphael sniffed. "Hurts," he sobbed.
"What hurts?" Donatello wanted to know.
"Eveyting," Raphael replied. He sniffed again and more tears filled his eyes. "Nonie, it hurts."
Donatello sat on the bed and Raphael crawled into his lap and buried his face in his brother's chest as he continued to sob. Donatello wrapped his arms around his brother protectively and began to rock back and forth.
"Shh," Donatello whispered gently as he rubbed Raphael's back. "Everything's going to be okay."
Raphael sniffed again. "Eveyone left," he mumbled. "No one loves me."
"That's not true," Donatello said. "I'm here. I love you."
"You left, too," Raphael accused. He looked up at his brother, his big amber eyes sad and questioning. "Why you not come?" Raphael asked.
Once again, Donatello felt his heart break. He didn't have an answer to that question. How could he tell his now little brother the reason why he didn't go after him was because he thought he was safe?
"Why you not come?" Raphael asked again, this time sounding a bit more like his grown-up self with a hint of anger in his voice. "Nonie no love me."
"I do," Donatello proclaimed. "I do love you."
"Then why you leave me for bad man?" Raphael questioned. "Bad man hurt. Bad man had sharp things."
Before Donatello's eyes, Raphael's body changed. Lacerations littered his tiny body and his shell above his left shoulder faded, leaving behind a gaping hole. Donatello felt tears stream down his face and he held Raphael close to his chest as he began to sob. Raphael laid his head against his brother's chest and listened to Donatello's sobs.
"Am I bad?" Raphael asked quietly.
"No," Donatello answered without hesitation. "No, you're good. Very good."
Raphael looked down at his beaten body. "Then why did bad man hurt me? Did I do someting wrong?"
"No, Raphie," Donatello whispered. "You did nothing wrong. He was just a really bad man. But you're safe now. You're home."
Raphael closed his eyes and listened to the beating of his brother's heart. Donatello looked down to see the lacerations on his brother's body begin to bleed. He shifted Raphael in his arms and got to his feet, walking out of the room and out to the bathroom where the first aid kit was kept. Donatello sat Raphael down on the toilet and opened the medicine cabinet. He pulled out the red bag and went back to Raphael.
"Let's get you bandaged up," Donatello said as he opened the first aid kit and pulled out some bandages.
Taking great care not to hurt Raphael, Donatello bandaged up his brother's wounds as best as he could. Raphael simply sat on the toilet and did as he was told when Donatello instructed him to do something. Donatello tied off the final bandage and closed the first aid kit. Raphael looked down at his bandaged right arm then up at Donatello who was placing the first aid kit back in the medicine cabinet. His eyes focused on his brother's strong shoulders and confident posture. Something in his two year old mind told Raphael what he had to do, but he was too scared to do it. What if Donatello wasn't ready? What if he wasn't ready? Raphael swallowed nervously as he looked down at his arm again. Was he ready to remember why he had received his injuries? Was he ready to face the memories of his true self?
"Hungry?" Donatello's voice broke Raphael out of his thoughts.
The red masked toddler looked up to find Donatello standing over him, smiling; not knowing what lay before him. Raphael nodded and Donatello held out his hand. Raphael took his brother's hand and hopped off of the toilet. He was led out into the kitchen. Donatello carefully lifted him up and placed Raphael on a chair at the table before heading to the fridge.
"What would you like to eat?" Donatello asked as he rummaged around the fridge.
Raphael placed a hand on his growling stomach, but even though he was hungry, he didn't have an appetite. Donatello looked up when he heard Raphael sniffle. He hurried over to his brother just as the water works started.
"Raph, what's wrong?" Donatello asked, worried that he had somehow upset his brother.
"I'm scared," Raphael sobbed.
"Scared of what?" Donatello wanted to know.
Raphael sniffed and wiped tears from his eyes. "I don't wanna go," he hiccupped.
Donatello's heart leaped up in his throat in terror when he saw Raphael begin to fade. "Don't want to go where, Raph? Talk to me."
Raphael looked up at his brother and sniffed again. "Will you help me?"
"I will do whatever you want me to," Donatello answered. "That's what brothers do, right? We look out for each other."
Raphael slowly came back into view as a small smile crept across his face. Donatello smiled back and pulled Raphael into a gentle hug. The toddler put his arms around his brother's neck and squeezed as tightly as he could.
"I will always be there for you, Raph," Donatello promised. "No matter what happens. I will be by your side through thick and thin. And if you're scared, I will do my best to help you through that. You don't have to be afraid anymore, Raph. You're safe in the arms of your brothers."
Raphael closed his eyes and fresh tears streamed down his face. "Tank you, Nonie," he whispered.
The kitchen began to fill with a red light. Donatello looked down to see Raphael's small body glowing red. Soon, he was holding a red orb of light in his arms instead of his brother. He glanced up from the orb when the kitchen faded away to be replaced by a dark, dense forest. Donatello got to his feet and looked around. He turned to face a darker section of forest. Heart hammering in his chest, Donatello took a deep breath, held the orb tightly to his chest and began walking; following the pull of his brother's spirit.
Leonardo had half expected to find himself back in the eternity chamber, but he was surprised when he opened his eyes to find himself in a forest. The blue masked turtle looked around, trying to get a feel for his surroundings. He was in a dark, dense forest that had an air of evil about it. Leonardo instinctively went for his swords, but his hands wrapped around air. He growled in annoyance when he remembered he was in the spirit realm; physical weapons had no use. Leonardo looked around again when he heard the sound of wolves howling. He glanced skyward to find large birds of prey circling overhead. He took off at a run towards where the birds were circling.
As he ran, Leonardo got the sense that he wasn't alone. He turned his head to the left and saw a dark four legged figure racing alongside him. Leonardo picked up the pace when he heard the wolves howl again. He jumped over tree roots and ducked under low hanging branches. The trees parted to reveal a large clearing. Leonardo cried out in horror when he saw several wolves advance on a very still and very defenceless Raphael. The blue masked turtle took off at a break neck speed and let out a battle cry as he sprang forward and connected with two of the wolves. The animals were stunned for a moment until they regained their senses and began to advance on their prey again.
Leonardo backed up towards his unconscious brother and tried to keep all the beasts in sight. The wolves snarled at the being keeping them from their dinner. Leonardo growled right back, telling the creatures that he meant business and that he wasn't going to give them a free meal. Three wolves charged and sprang at the turtle, but he was ready. Leonardo knocked two of the wolves away, but the third landed on his back. He reached behind him, grabbed the wolf's fur and slammed it down on the ground. It whimpered in pain and scampered away. That just gave the rest of the pack an excuse to pounce all at once.
Leonardo was quickly overpowered by the pack, but he fought back nonetheless. Relying on nothing but his ninja skills and the adrenaline that was pumping through his veins, Leonardo managed to knock out a handful of wolves. The rest were relentless. Leonardo cried out in pain as the beasts clawed and bit him, but he never wavered; if anything, it only added fuel to his fire and he fought back with everything he had.
Seeming to have had enough of the two legged turtle with too much fight in him, the wolf pack retreated back into the shelter of the trees, but Leonardo knew that they were just regrouping for another attack. He stood panting and gasping for breath. Eventually, his legs couldn't support his weight any longer and he fell to his knees beside Raphael's unmoving body. Leonardo placed a hand on his brother's cheek and his heart dropped at how cold and clammy Raphael's skin felt.
"Please don't let me have been too late," Leonardo prayed.
He glanced up when he heard footsteps pad across the forest floor. In the darkness of the trees, eyes glowed menacingly and Leonardo wished that Donatello and Michelangelo would arrive to help him fend off the wolves. Out of the shadows, the looming figures of the wolf pack emerged; their movements slow and deliberate. Leonardo looked around to find himself surrounded. There was no way he could fight off so many, not by himself. He needed help; he needed his brothers.
Then, the ears of the wolves perked up and as one they all looked up as if sensing something. Leonardo narrowed his eyes when he thought he saw two separate light sources appear in the darkness ahead of him, and with each beat of his heart they got closer and closer. As if sensing danger, the wolves retreated back into the darkness of the trees.
"What in the...?" Leonardo whispered just before two beams of light shot out of the trees. "Whoa!"
He dived to the side and shielded his face from a blinding flash of light. Leonardo looked up to see Raphael's body glow faintly before it died out. He got up and went over to his brother's side. He placed a hand on Raphael's cheek and sighed in relief when his brother's skin felt warm to the touch.
"Leo!" Michelangelo's voice rang out.
Leonardo looked up to see Michelangelo run up. His orange masked brother was panting deeply.
"Sorry. Kinda got away from me," Michelangelo apologized.
"What got away from you?" Leonardo asked.
Before Michelangelo could answer, Donatello appeared in the clearing. "Twitchy little...hey guys," the genius turtle greeted breathlessly.
"Can someone please tell me what the light show was all about?" Leonardo asked.
"Raph's conscience," Donatello and Michelangelo answered in unison.
"And let me tell ya, he was no peach," Michelangelo said. "Dude was practically the Hulk."
Donatello frowned in confusion. "That's weird," he commented. "Raph was a two year old toddler to me."
The siblings' attention was brought to the fourth brother when Raphael let out a small groan. Donatello and Michelangelo gathered around Raphael and watched and waited for their brother to wake up. Eventually, Raphael's eyes flickered open and he looked up at the others.
"Hey, Raph," Leonardo greeted with a smile.
"Hey," Raphael grunted hoarsely.
"We thought we lost you, bro," Michelangelo said.
Raphael groaned as he pushed himself up. He swatted Leonardo's hand away when the leader tried to help him. Raphael got to his feet and took a deep breath. The others also got to their feet.
"Does this mean you're back?" Michelangelo asked.
"No," Raphael replied.
"But, you're awake," Leonardo pointed out.
Raphael looked at him. "You talk to the conscience part of me. My soul is still trapped."
"Then what are we waiting for?" Michelangelo wanted to know.
Raphael glanced down at the ground, his eyes distant. Donatello knew that look. He had seen it in the eyes of the toddler side of Raphael's conscience.
"You're scared," Donatello stated quietly.
Raphael closed his eyes. "If you faced Death, you would be, too."
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