I'm so sorry for the late update….

~You can fix a broken mirror but the cracks will always remain.~

Splinter sighed and glanced down at his son. His oldest son was still cradled close to his chest and was still unconscious. Just after Miwa left Splinter had brought Leonardo to his room to rest but he found himself unable to leave. Instead he too climbed onto the bed and kept a hold on his son.

Slowly he closed his eyes. He still remembered the first day when he noticed his sons were gone. They were already a few hours too late and none of them answered their shell cells. He still remembered his aching heart, which never left. And even now he still felt it.

Even though they were home and save, they were still suffering. He could see it the way they reacted. How they talked to April, Casey or Master Splinter. But most importantly to each other.

They would always find reassurance with each other but right now they didn't. Even Splinter could see how much they were avoiding each other. Donnie and Mikey were always so close with each other but right now Mikey didn't even want to know how Donnie was doing. And Donnie hadn't even asked how Mikey was feeling.

They hadn't spoken to each other apart from a few necessary words, they hadn't hugged each other or even looked at each other. They had completely ignored each other. But Splinter knew it wasn't on purpose.

From the minimum things his sons had told him he knew Donatello had been raped, and Michelangelo had to watch it. He couldn't possibly imagine how painful that had to be, for both of them.

And while Donnie and Mikey were close, so were Leo and Raph. They may argue a lot, disagree with each other and sometimes fight with each other, they were always so close. Raph really cared for Leo even though he wouldn't show. But he really cared and in times they would get hurt he would always show.

They would always find comfort in each other. And sometimes Splinter would think Leo was the only one who could comfort Raph completely. And the other way around. Of course Michelangelo was the one who could calm Raphael down mostly but when he would be really upset Leo was the only one who could manage to calm him down.

But right now, just like Donnie and Mikey, they hadn't spoken to each other, they hadn't comforted each other. They had just ignored each other. They didn't speak to each other. To no one.

And it pained Splinter to see them like that, so broken and devastated. Just like the mysterious creature had said 'they were broken' He didn't know what he had meant just then but right now he understood. The only reason for their capture was to break them. He didn't know why but he knew what was done.

Slowly he opened his eyes again as he noticed that Leo began to stir in his arms. He still had the same pained expression on his face and he didn't seem really comfortable. Even when Splinter allowed Leo to rest on him.

"My son it is alright" Splinter whispered in his son's ear when he began to struggle. His eyes were still closed which meant he was either still unconscious or just didn't want to wake up, but still he tried to escape out of Splinter's hold.

"My son you are safe" He tried again and watched as his son slowly calmed down. Only occasionally twitching. His face was contracting in a slight grimace and it took him a few more minutes to really open his eyes.

He blinked a few times disorientated before trying to push himself off the bed. Only to collapse fully on his father again when his arms collapsed under him.

"W-What ..happened?" Leo whispered as his father gently helped him up again. The last thing he remembered was being in the sewer. He remembered the stinging pain he felt through his body, but most importantly his aching heart.

"I do not know my son, Miwa brought you home unconscious" Splinter explained as he cradled Leonardo closer to his chest. Leo closed his eyes in defeat and leaned into his father's fur. Splinter carefully wrapped his arms around Leonardo's body and rubbed along his arms. Avoiding the bruising.

"What am I supposed to do father?" Leo whispered after a long silence. "I-I failed them. I f-failed the team" He sniffled slightly, trying to suppress a sob.

"My son did you do everything you could?" Splinter said in a soft voice, continuously stroking Leonardo's arm.

".. yes…" Leo mumbled and bit his lip slightly. Splinter planted a quick kiss on Leo's fore head and looked into his eyes. The deep blue eyes of Leo began to water slightly but he made no effort to wipe them away.

"You are not to blame my son. I know you did everything you could to save your brothers." Splinter pointed out and kissed Leonardo again on his temple. And despite his mood Leo giggled slightly. It was so long ago they were so close. Their relation was mostly serious the last few years. But doing this again made him realize how much he had missed it.

But that didn't mean he had stopped blaming himself. He still felt like it was his responsibility and he had failed them. They were hurt and scared. And somehow he couldn't even muster the energy to face them. He had not seen them after they were rescued. He just couldn't talk to them.

"Leonardo, they do not blame you" Splinter obligated as if he could read Leo's mind.

"I know sensei" He sighed. And deep down he knew they didn't but he couldn't help himself. It was so hard to describe what he was feeling. "But they were still hurt, and I am their leader"

"Tell me, do you blame me?" Splinter suddenly asked. Leo frowned slightly and pulled out of his father's hold.

"O-of course not Sensei. You saved us and I could never blame you!" Leo blurted out. His eyes were wide and he was desperately shaking his head. He couldn't believe Sensei was even suggesting this. Of course he didn't blame his father. How could he?

"But I wasn't there when you got hurt, or when your brothers got hurt. And as your father I should protect you" Even though he tried to hide it you could feel the hurt behind the voice. And it was certain his father did really blame himself.

"It doesn't work like that! You couldn't help and you did everything….." Leo stopped mid-sentence as a small smile grew on Splinter's face. "… You tricked me" Leo mumbled as he realized what Sensei just did. He had just defended himself. He had pointed out his own flaws and corrected them.

"My son, I helped you physically. Now it is time you help your brothers mentally. They need their leader" a shallow smile formed on Leo's face as he once again hugged his father.

"Thank you father" He whispered and nuzzled his face in his father's fur. Splinter began to smile too and wrapped his arms around his son once again. Maybe they weren't broken after all. Maybe there was still hope for them.

TMNT

"Mikey you have to eat something" April whispered as she looked over to the smaller mutant. His head was resting on his left hand while he was pointlessly picking on the food in front of him. His eyes glued to the food beneath him. But he wasn't hungry. He was far from hungry.

Mikey glanced up slightly. Both April and Casey were watching him and he hated it. He always loved the attention but right now he hated it. He just wanted to be alone but they wouldn't let him. Why couldn't they just leave him alone?

After Leo was brought in both April and Casey had left to the store to get more supplies for them, but most importantly to find something to break the collar with. Eventually they came home with a buzz saw and eagerly had tried it but eventually it didn't work.

Mikey's eyes landed on the saw again. He had hoped so badly it would finally work. He hated the collar so much and wanted nothing more than to get it off but just somehow they wouldn't let him. And sometimes he thought he would never get it off.

"I'm not hungry" Mikey whispered and placed his fork on top of his food. "Can't I just go?" April and Casey exchanged some glances before April finally nodded and walked over to Mikey.

"You know you can always tell what happened right?" She whispered as she sat down next to Mikey and took his hand. Slowly stroking it. Mikey looked into April's eyes. Slowly the baby blue eyes filled themselves with tears and just for a second April thought he would finally open up before Mikey quickly withdrew his hand.

"Can I go now?" His voice was barely above a whisper but even then it was so hard to keep the hurt out of his voice. Why couldn't they just realize he didn't want to talk. He didn't want to relive all of it! He just wanted it to be over.

April sighed slightly. "Yes" She said after a few seconds. Mikey seemed to hesitate for a second, unsure whether to go or not but eventually walked out of the kitchen. He just didn't understand why they were pushing so hard. Casey didn't push Raph, April didn't push Donnie. Splinter didn't push Leo. Not even Karai pushed Leo.

So why did they have to push him? It wasn't fair. Why couldn't they realize it, he didn't want to go back, he didn't want to see Thorn's face again. He didn't want to be remembered how he was treated. How he was branded or how he was forced to wear a collar.

He shook his head slightly and continued to walk towards the living room.

The sight he met wasn't anything different than hours ago. Raph was still sleeping on the couch. Mikey had no idea what was under the bandages, well he did know, he just didn't know how they got there. And he wasn't sure if he even wanted to know.

Donnie was curled up into a ball. The blanket April gave him still firmly wrapped around his body. But both were far away from peaceful. He hated how lifeless Raph was sleeping. He would always turn and twitch in his sleep but right now he was just so quiet.

And even from here Mikey could guess how Donnie was doing. They didn't need words to communicate with each other, most of the times, he knew Donnie was suffering from nightmares and the memories. The memories he managed to block for now.

He wanted to be there for Donnie, but he just couldn't. How could he help him while he was suffering himself. How could he listen without having to experience it himself? How much he wanted to help him, he couldn't.

Mikey gritted his teeth slightly. He hated feeling like this. He was the least injured. He couldn't complain. He wasn't beaten or raped. He wasn't so scared he would hide in his shell, he wasn't the one with the constant feeling of exposure, he wasn't the one who broke his arm.

Slowly he took a step towards Donnie but was stopped when 2 other pair of footsteps entered the living room. His head whipped around and he honestly had expected April and Casey to show up again but it wasn't. It was his father, and Leo.

Mikey's eyes widened upon seeing his brother again, he did yesterday but this was the first time he saw him conscious since they were rescued. Slowly he began to sway on his feet.

And then he was back again. The shell raiser was twisting and turning while his father was driving. The scent of blood was so strong right now. Blood was oozing from Raph's wounds. Leo was writhing in pain, Donnie was crying and bleeding between his legs.

Mikey stared with wide eyes at his family, beaten, raped and broken. Just so broken. And slowly everything faded and a familiar face came into view.

"N-no" Mikey stuttered and wanted to walk away from Thorn, only to find himself chained to the wall again. "No" He whispered and grabbed the collar around his neck. And slowly it started squeezing him. Enclosing on his throat, forcing all air out of him.

"No" He squeaked again and dropped on his knees and desperately tried to tug away the collar. And then he froze. The collar stopped moving and he was finally able to breathe again but what he felt was even worse. He didn't even dare to look but he did. Slowly he brought his hands into view and gasped.

His thumbs were gone. Blood was oozing out of the wounds were his thumbs belonged. Tears started to form in his eyes and he looked up to Thorn. He felt so alone and so desperate. And Thorn just stood there. A big knife was tugged in his belt, blood dripping down and staining his trousers. His blood.

"Animal" He snickered and walked over to Mikey. The young turtle whimpered but found himself unable to move. Thorn gave a strong kick to Mikey and forced him flat on his shell. Mikey's eyes widened when he saw what Thorn was holding. Mikey whimpered again before darkness knocked him out. And the last thing he saw were his thumbs in Thorn's hands.

TMNT

Leo froze when his eyes locked into Mikey's eyes. His younger brother's eyes were wide and his whole body was trembling so badly. His baby blue eyes were beginning to water and slowly he began to cry silently. Still frozen in place.

There was hurt in his eyes. They weren't bright as usual. They were…. They were … blaming him.

And it didn't matter what Splinter said, he had failed as leader, and from the reaction of Mikey he knew they were all blaming him. He had failed them.

Not my best chapter, I struggled so much on this chapter and I don't even know why :/

Reviews are highly appreciated ^^