A/N: Sorry it's taken me so long to update. Hope you can forgive me. I'm sad to say that this story is drawing to a close.
Disclaimer: see chapter one
"What do you mean...death?" Michelangelo asked nervously. "Like small D death?"
"Capital D, Mikey," Raphael corrected his brother.
"Eep," Michelangelo whimpered.
Raphael gave him a questioning look. "You're the ones here. Surely you knew what you were walking into." He gave Leonardo a sideways glance. "Unless someone didn't tell you."
Leonardo looked away. "There hadn't been a whole lot of time to explain. You were dying."
"Still am," Raphael said.
"Then take us to your soul," Donatello beseeched. "Let us do what we came here to do."
Raphael turned to look at him. "Are you ready to face the consequences that will come from cheating Death...again?" he asked.
"Let us worry about tall, dark and gruesome," Michelangelo said. "You just lead the way."
Raphael sighed in resignation. "Fine. Follow me, and don't fall behind. This forest isn't too kind to stragglers."
He started walking with his brothers right behind him. As they walked, Donatello studied as much of the forest as he could. Through the trees he could hear low growls of animals, and he wondered if they were the cause behind Raphael's warning not to fall behind.
"So, what is this place?" Donatello asked, jogging to catch up with his red masked brother.
"My in between," Raphael answered.
"Your what?" Michelangelo asked.
Raphael sighed. "The place I come to die," he replied sharply.
Michelangelo swallowed thickly. "Oh," he said softly.
"But, last time we were in a stone chamber," Leonardo pointed out. "Why the change?"
Raphael didn't answer right away. His eyes remained focused on the path ahead. "I guess it's because I heard you," Raphael replied at last.
Leonardo frowned. "Heard us? Heard what?"
"Your reading," Raphael told him. He turned to Michelangelo. "'The Hobbit', right?" he guessed.
Michelangelo nodded in confirmation. "Is that a bad thing?"
Raphael shook his head. "No, it...it was relaxing," he answered with a soft smile.
"Was?" Donatello echoed.
"Well, you're obviously not reading now, are you?" Raphael pointed out. His smile faded. "At least I got to hear your voices one last time."
Leonardo put a hand on his brother's shoulder. "You're not dead, yet, Raph. And we don't intend on you dying anytime soon, either."
There was a short pause. "We'll see," Raphael said.
They came to another clearing with a large rock formation in the center. Raphael pointed to the formation.
"You'll find me in there," he explained.
"You're in a cave?" Michelangelo asked incredulously. "What are you doing in there?"
"Was lookin' for Leo," Raphael replied, looking at the blue masked leader.
Donatello swallowed nervously, a heavy sense of dread washing over him. "Anything else we should know?"
"Yeah. Death's in there, too," Raphael answered. "So, be careful."
The three brothers began walking towards the cave. Leonardo stopped and turned around to ask Raphael if he was joining them, but the red masked ninja was gone. He heard Donatello calling to him to get a move on. Leonardo turned and ran after Donatello and Michelangelo. The siblings made their way through the dark and damp cave.
"It's pitch black," Donatello stated. "How was Raph able to get around?"
"Yeah," Michelangelo agreed. "For all we know we could be headed straight for a wall."
As soon as the words were out of his mouth, the orange masked turtle brought up solid against a rock wall. He fell back and rubbed his head and groaned.
"Ow," he moaned.
Donatello raised his hands and felt out in front of him. His hands touched fallen rocks. "There was a cave in," he told his brothers. "Guys, Raph could be on the other side of this wall."
"Then start digging," Leonardo commanded.
All Raphael could do was stare at the doors. A part of him wanted to end it and open them, while another part wanted to turn tail and run the other way, to live to see another day. However, he knew that Death wasn't going to let him go so easily; not this time. He still felt Death's cold skeletal hands on his shoulders.
"There's no way I can take a rain check, is there?" Raphael asked.
"You don't want to see your Master Splinter again?" Death inquired.
Raphael's heart skipped a beat at the mention of his sensei's name. "Splinter?" he whispered in a small voice.
"Yes," Death replied with a smug smirk. "He's waiting for you, just on the other side of those doors. You can see him again, hold him, talk to him. Anything you want. Have a father-son bonding moment, have several; you'll have eternity."
Raphael felt his heart clench tightly in his chest. He wanted nothing more than to see Splinter again. But what Donatello? He could leave him all alone, even if his brother would never want to see or speak to him again after what he did to Leonardo and Michelangelo.
"I don't..."
"This is what you've been asking for, isn't it?" Death asked. "An escape from the burdens of life."
"What about Donnie?" Raphael wanted to know.
"What about him?" Death questioned.
"Who'll look out for him? Have his back in a fight?"
Death seemed to be losing his patience. "Donatello will be fine. He has April and Casey looking out for him." He guided Raphael over to the doors. "No one will blame you for this. You deserve a peaceful rest."
"How can I rest peacefully if I know that Don's going to be all alone?" Raphael asked.
He frowned when he thought he heard his name being called. Raphael stopped in his tracks and looked around.
"What is it?" Death asked.
"Do you hear that?" Raphael questioned. "Listen. There it is, again."
He broke free from Death's grip and hurried over to the caved in wall. There was the distinct sound of shifting rocks. Raphael put his ear to the stone and listened.
"Raph!" someone called through the rock.
"Raphie!"
"It's nothing," Death said. "Probably just the wind."
Raphael frowned in suspicion. "The wind doesn't talk," he pointed out. "Someone's on the other side."
"Raph, we're coming."
Raphael's frown deepened. "Leo?" he whispered in disbelief.
"Hang on, Raph, we're almost there!"
"Mikey?"
Raphael felt joy wash over him. His brothers were alive; he hadn't killed them. Death suddenly grabbed his shoulders and pulled Raphael away from the wall, pushing him back towards the doors.
"They're nothing, now," Death said impatiently. "You have a promise to keep."
The rocks fell away and sunlight poured into the cave.
"Raph!" Donatello called.
"Raphie, don't go!" Michelangelo pleaded.
Raphael took a deep breath and slowly let it out. "Hey, Death, about that promise," he said.
"What's that?" Death asked.
Raphael swatted Death's hands away and turned and walked towards where his brothers were waiting for him. He looked over his shoulder. "I had my fingers crossed," Raphael replied.
Death growled as the turtle walked away. "I'll be back for you, Raphael!" he yelled. "You won't escape me forever!"
Raphael waved over his shoulder without turning around. He climbed through the hole that had been dug out and was instantly embraced by his brothers. Michelangelo threw his arms around Raphael's neck and refused to let go. Raphael put his arms around his baby brother and buried his face in Michelangelo's neck. The youngest felt something wet splash on to his shoulder and he realized that Raphael was crying. An anguished sob escaped Raphael's throat and his body shook with uncontrollable sobs.
"It's okay, Raph," Michelangelo spoke softly. "Let it out."
Raphael continued to sob into his brother's shoulder, unable to do much else. Leonardo rubbed his brother's back in a comforting manner.
"I thought I killed you," Raphael whispered wretchedly.
"Donnie patched us up," Michelangelo replied. "Now we're as good as new."
Raphael's breath hitched in his throat and he let out a choked sob. "I'm sorry," he apologized. "I'm so, so sorry."
"All is forgiven, Raph," Leonardo said. "You didn't mean it. We're the ones who should be apologizing, not you."
Raphael looked up at his eldest brother. "I put the lives of strangers before yours. What kind of brother does that make me?"
"You had no choice," Donatello told him. When Raphael looked at him he continued, "We found out about the ambush. About what Travis put you through." Tears welled up in his eyes. "Raph, I'm so sorry," Donatello whispered.
"We should have come after you sooner," Leonardo added.
Raphael shook his head. "Then you would have fallen into Travis's clutches."
Michelangelo pulled away and gave his brother a smile. "Enough doom and gloom talk," he said. "Let's get you home."
Raphael smiled back. "Sounds good."
Michelangelo took his brother's hand and led him back towards the entrance of the cave. When they got there, the forest had been replaced by a bright glowing gateway. Michelangelo was about to pull Raphael through, when the red masked brother pulled back.
"What's wrong, Raph?" Donatello asked.
"You guys go through, first," Raphael said. At Michelangelo's worried look he added, "I'll be right behind you, don't worry. There's something I have to do before I go back."
Leonardo put a hand on Raphael's shoulder. "We'll be waiting."
Reluctantly, Michelangelo followed Donatello and Leonardo through the gateway. Raphael sighed and slowly turned around. Another turtle, this one with a plain grey mask, stood a few feet behind him.
"Aren't you coming?" Raphael asked.
The other turtle looked at the gateway and sneered. "Not on your life," he replied. "I'm not going back to that wretched life. Why you would want to go back is beyond me."
"Our brothers are there," Raphael pointed out. "Why wouldn't you want to go back?"
"Are you hearing yourself?" the grey masked turtle asked. "You want to go back to a life where you could very well be crippled for the rest of your life? And you know what that means, right? No more being a ninja, no more fighting, no more training...is that really what you want?"
Raphael frowned. "When did you become such a pessimist?" he asked.
The grey masked turtle looked away. "Since Travis broke me," he answered quietly. He met Raphael's gaze again. "I'm your spirit, Raphael. I have more say than you think."
"People always said you were strong," Raphael said.
The grey masked turtle scoffed bitterly. "I'm just as strong as any other. And I can break just as easily as any other, too."
"What do you mean?" Raphael wanted to know.
"While you refused to cry out while Travis was carving you up like a Thanksgiving turkey, I was screaming at him to stop," the grey masked turtle explained. He looked down at the ground. "I'm your spirit, Raphael. There's only so much torture I can take."
"Is that why you begged Travis to end it?" Raphael asked.
The grey masked turtle slowly moved his eyes upward. "You were going to die either way," he said in a soft voice.
"You just wanted quick and painless," Raphael added.
The grey masked turtle looked up fully. "Which would you have rather? Quick and painless or slow and painful?"
Raphael turned to face the glowing gateway. "Whichever one told me I lived for something," he answered.
The grey masked turtle sighed and shook his head. "You're an odd one, Raphael."
Raphael looked over his shoulder and smiled. "See ya 'round, Spirit," he said.
The grey masked turtle waved his hand. "See ya 'round."
Raphael walked through the gateway and re-entered the world where his brothers were waiting for him.
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