Hi y'all! I know, I know… I'm late again. I'm so sorry, but I really can't help it. I cannot make a story in a week anymore. I kind of feel guilty about it since I made a promise to upload every Monday, but I guess I have to change that in every other Monday. Man, it sucks.. And again I'm sorry. But I really hope you understand.
That being said, I really want to thank you all for your comments! I love them all! :D. Really, guys. Without your reviews I would not have made it this far. You guys keep motivating me to continue.
Alex: I'm really glad you liked the chapter! Thank you so much!
roxygoth: Thanks, glad you loved it! This chapter actually was the end, but if you're not satisfied, I'll consider a fourth chapter on Don's coffee addiction :).
jmg0292: Thanks! It was always the plan to continue this story, so I had to write it someday. And the same goes for you: if you want a continuation, I'll consider it :). Glad you liked the mention of Quilliam :).
JunjouRomanticafortheWinxoxo: First of all, I want to thank you for your extensive reviews you give me. I love to read them every time :D. As for this review, thanks! I also think it's great when three bros work together to help the other, and yeah, the combination of Leo/Raph/Mike totally works.
yukio87: Thank you so much! I love a grumpy Don, he's indeed scary, haha. And Mikey's ways to 'help'... Ah well, a little bit drastic, but hey - That was the deal right ;). Keeping You Safe will be a thing, but it won't be posted unless I'm up to chapter 50 with The Things I Do. I can't even write a decent chapter in two weeks, so can you imagine how it will be when I have two stories to worry about at the same time. But really, don't worry, it will come!
Turtlefanforlife1982: Glad you found it funny, thanks! Haha, I should not try it on your husband! I just came up with it, so it's not really well-grounded. But hey, Donnie might not listen, but your husband might ;). Just try.
Guest: Really glad you liked the combination! I also love a good family/bonding story :D.
Elyon5: Thank you so much for your reviews on the chapters! I'm happy I can make your day. So do you with your kind reviews, so I guess we're even ;). And yeah, Quilliam… I needed a kinda cute, but cheesy name (come on, Mikey came up with it, whatcha expect). Glad you liked hero-Mikey and worry-Raph, I also like that mix. Dude, totally, I share your thought on Mikey: he's way better than he let on. And April-Don is a great combination, especially in the 2k3 show. In 2k12 it's a bit overdone and I just don't care anymore. It's dragging on and on and on… Okay, I haven't seen past Dimension X, so I don't know how it's developing in season 3. Anyway.. Thanks for your comments on the chapters :).
As for the future… I'm still planning on making at least 50 chapters, but also to keep this story open for future chapters. They will not be uploaded every other week anymore, since I'm going to be occupied with other stories, but never say never to a new chapter!
Further I'm still working on some requests. Unfortunately I'm letting all requests about the 2012 series go, since I just don't get into the series. I'm very sorry Mistystar. But I'm still going to write about Leo/Mikey for JunjouRomanticafortheWinxoxo (I might include the 'bros cheering up Mikey' part), Quilliam and Raph (sorry, I'm gonna let go the Don introducing part) for Kittyfan12 (guess what.. scroll down ;-)), and unfortunately I'm still dubbing about the prank war of Donnie and Mikey from WildChild13. But maybe I can make that work. And maybe I'll write the last part of the coffee addiction, since some of you guys weren't satisfied with the end. So there's still much to read!
As for the SAINW request from lastell6, I'm actually going to write a multichapter story about it. It will be a six-chaptered chronological story set around the events of SAINW, and each chapter from another person's point of view, ending with Donnie, which was the original request. I hope you're okay with it. If so, look for the title The Pain of Loss.
And, as I just mentioned to yukio87, I'm going to write an extended story of the chapters in which Leo got hurt. It will consist kind of the same events, but with more hurt/comfort/family/recovery. After I've reached the 50-chapter mark on this thread, I'm going to rewrite Keeping You Safe, posting it soon after.
Jeez, that was a big introduction, but I just wanted to say my thanks to you guys. Really, all of your review efforts are highly appreciated. They totally make my day!
But you didn't come here to read my extensive author's notes. No, you're here for the chapter. This one's for Kittyfan12! So, without further ado, here you go! Enjoy!
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Bonding
It was a rather quiet afternoon in the home of the Hamatos. Leo and Splinter were doing some balancing exercises in the dojo, while Don and Mike were out scavenging, searching for things to upgrade the lair. Well, Donnie was - Mikey was just there with him because he didn't have much of a choice. Ever since the annoying little pest had pulled that prank on his two oldest brothers this morning, the bugger wasn't safe anywhere - Raph had made sure of that, as Leo allowed it. Not that Raph would care whether his older brother would stop him or not... But before it got out of hand, Mikey had fled the lair to go with Donnie. Pretty soon after Splinter and Leo had disappeared in the dojo, leaving Raph to enjoy the peaceful quietness. And what was better to fill in an afternoon off?
Staving off to his room, Raph got a smile on his face by the look of his favorite area - the Muscle Corner as he called it. It was way too long ago since he actually had touched his weights. Time for a good training session.
Turning on his stereo, he grabbed a barbell and started of easy to warm up his muscles. But quickly he put more and more weight on the metal bar, pushing his muscles to its limits.
Almost fortyfive minutes into training he pressed his barbell once again upwards, now from a lying position, and grunted under the strain of the heavy weight. He didn't mind it though, he loved the tightness in his muscles. And of course the aching afterwards. He grinned. The aching of accomplishment. Man, did he love a good muscle workout.
He heard his radio skip to the next song and he gave a disappointed groan as the music was a little too soft for his liking. Quickly he finished his reps and stood up from the low bench to search for a good hard rock track. Satisfied he bobbed his head to the beat and went back to his bench, laying down again. He reached up and grabbed his barbell tightly, as he shifted in a good position. With little effort he lifted the weight off its support and started his next set.
Halfway through, he suddenly noticed his open door slowly opened a little bit more. Brushing it off as the wind he continued his workout, until he suddenly felt a small pressure on his plastron. Lifting his barbell again, he tilted his head up to see what was going on.
"Holy crap!" he called out, almost dropping his weight straight down on his face because of his surprise. On his chest he saw Klunk, his head curiously tilted sideways. "Mew?"
"Stupid cat. Ya scared tha crap outta me," Raph grumbled, still holding his barbell over his head. "Get lost."
Instead of listening, Klunk walked even further up Raph's chest. "Meow."
Raph gave an annoyed grunt. "Shoo, ya fleaball," he said, tilting his chin up, since his hands were already occupied to make a go-away-motion. Liking the gesture, Klunk put his nose against Raph's chin, followed by a small lick. A little surprised about his brother's cat behaviour, Raph finally put the barbell on its standard. As soon as he did, Klunk moved backwards a bit and sat down on his lower plastron. "Meow."
Raph pushed himself up and leaned back on his elbows, examining the cat. "What's yer problem?" he asked, knowing Klunk never came to him for anything. "Did Mike ferget ta feed ya?"
Quickly the cat stood up and jumped off, brushing his body along Raph's leg. "Mew."
Raph gave an annoyed sigh. "Well, than ya wait till he gets back." He laid down again, searching for the perfect grip on his barbell again. "Now scram." The moment he wanted to lift the weight up again, he felt the cat jump on him again.
"Seriously?" he called out. "Now that numbskull is out, yer gonna take over his job ta annoy me?" With force he dropped the barbell and he jerked up, causing Klunk to jump off again. "I'm gonna kick ya out if ya don't go yerself, fleabag. Yer choice," he warned the kitten, pointing his finger. Not the slightest taken aback, Klunk came closer and curled his body once again against Raph's leg, softly meowing. Raph bit his lip, not really knowing what to do next. He knew the cat wouldn't leave his room unless he physically put him outside himself. A little trick he probably had picked up from his master.
Making up his mind since he really wanted to finish his workout, Raph stood up and reached out to grab the cat. With the speed of light Klunk slipped through his fingers and ran off towards the door. With raised eye ridges Raph looked at the kitten, who kept on standing in the doorframe, looking expectantly in his direction. "Beat it," he said, making some wild movements with his arms. The cat didn't move.
Giving an exasperated sigh Raph walked forward with big heavy steps, causing Klunk to flee through the door. Raph gave a proud grin. "And stay out." Triumphantly he walked back to his bench, until he felt a presence behind him once again. With a frustrated growl he turned around, seeing the curious head of Mikey's kitten peeking around the doorframe. "Meow?"
"Fer cryin' out l-," Raph started angrily, but calmed down a bit when he realised he was talking to a cat. "Really, furball, I'm not in tha mood ta play. Go bother Fearless or somethin'."
Taking a careful step back into the room, Klunk tilted his head even more sideways. "Mew."
Raph sighed again. "Seriously, Mike, I'm done wi -" Realising what he just said, he barked out a defeated laugh as he facepalmed himself. Did he really just called the kitten 'Mike'? Well, actually it wasn't that weird - the cat is just as annoying and persistent. Like master, like pet, right?
"Okay, fine," he admitted, looking back at Klunk. "I'll feed ya. But after that yer leavin' me alone!"
Without giving an answer Klunk leaned his head the other way. If Raph hadn't a tough-guy posture to maintain, he would say it was rather cute. The moment he took a much less menacing step towards the cat, Klunk happily trotted through the door and waited for the turtle to catch up. As Raph walked over, the cat started to purr softly and brushed his body around Raph's legs.
"Stop vibratin', ya stupid cat. An' walk normally. If I stumble, I'll make sure I fall right on top of ya," Raph growled, giving the cat a light push with his foot so he would not be tangled up between his legs. "And I know how ta aim," he added. Understanding the gesture, Klunk cheerfully strolled ahead to the living room. Shaking his head, Raph followed and walked straight up to the kitchen. Suddenly he heard a loud meow from behind him. A little surprised Raph turned around and looked at Klunk, who gave him an offended look.
"Wha? Ya wanted ta eat, right?" Raph asked, pointing to the kitchen. As a response Klunk turned around and took a few steps forwards before looking back to Raph, who crossed his arms. "Look, Mittens," he said mockingly. "I'm only givin' ya one chance here. Ya want food or not?"
Again Klunk took a few steps and looked back at Raph eagerly. "Mew?"
Frustrated Raph threw his hands up in the air. "Ya know what, screw ya!" he called out and turned on his heels, marching back to his room. He stopped when Klunk meowed hard.
"What's yer problem, cat?" Raph asked, turning around again. Klunk mewled and took a few more steps before looking back at the turtle. A little bit fed up with the cat, Raph gave it a thought. "This suck," he mumbled, before walking towards Klunk, who quickly came in motion. Crossing the living room, Klunk shot into one of the half open doors. A little shocked, Raph realised what door the cat took. "No! Bad cat!" Raph yelled, quickening his pace. "That's Don's lab!" Not getting a response, Raph grumbled as he walked into the dim lighted workplace of his brainy brother. "Klunk!" he hissed, looking around the stuffed lab. Not seeing the cat, he growled frustratingly. "Stop hidin' like a pussy and c'me here!"
There was a soft meow coming from behind some large machines which were set up to serve as a separation unit for the lab. Raph knew behind it there was Don's enormous working desk he used for drawing and studying blueprints, or to stall out hundreds of machine parts when he took some technical doohickey apart.
There was another meow, and this time it sounded a little more urgent. Grumbling in exasperation, Raph marched forward. "Really, once I get ma hands on ya, I'm gonna throw ya out in tha sewers, ya hear me." Rounding the corner of the large unit, Raph saw Klunk standing on top of the messy desk. There was stuff everywhere - Don was probably working on something, otherwise there weren't so many things scattered around. As Raph came closer to grab the cat before he could mess things up, Klunk meowed again as his paw touched something on the desk.
"Stop that," Raph warned, already reaching out. Then he saw what Klunk was touching. Between all the wires and the tools was Don's hedgehog, tangled up badly and unable to get free. A little startled Raph looked at it, before Klunk mewled urgently.
"Yeah, yeah, I'll help," Raph quickly said, helping the little critter out of its straitened situation. After a few moments he had removed everything and he scooped the hedgehog in his hands, bringing it to eye level. "So… Quilliam, right?" he asked, a little uncertain, since he never took the effort to meet the new family member. Quickly he examined him for any injuries caused by his entanglement, but couldn't find anything. He smiled quickly in relief, before setting his face back to a frown. "How tha heck did ya escape?" he asked as he gave Quilliam's hutch a quick glance. Suddenly he felt some pressure against his lower plastron. Looking down he saw Klunk brushing along his abdomen, purring contently. Raph gave an semi-amused huff and reluctantly stroke the cat's fur. "So ya just wanted someone ta help yer buddy, huh?"
"Meow," Klunk answered, curling his back against Raph's open hand. Raph gave an approving nod. "I can respect that." Absentmindedly he gave the cat another stroke, as he suddenly felt Quilliam move in his other hand. He looked at the little critter who was curiously sniffing around.
"Alright. I'm gonna put ya back," Raph said as he lowered Quilliam gently in his hutch. Immediately the hedgehog started to run around in circles happily, climbing on everything his little paws could reach. Intrigued Raph looked at it and gave a chuckle. "What does Don gives ya ta eat? Rocket fuel?" he asked as Quilliam started to move his toys to make a small pile next to the wooden house that probably functioned as a burrow for the night. Satisfied the critter looked up and started to climb up the pile to reach the roof of the house. Sniffing around a bit it searched for the highest point and turned to the back wall which was directly next to it. With careful precision Quilliam stood up on his hind legs as he leaned forward against the backwall. In a tiny jump he reached the edge and with some difficulty he held on with his front paws, his tiny legs flailing around to search for a grip.
"I'll be damned," Raph muttered, seeing the hedgehog slowly pulling himself up to the top of the wall, only to let himself fall off on the other side. Shaking his head happily, he looked around and then toddled off to Klunk, who laid down on his side and gently started to play with Quilliam.
Startled Raph looked from the hutch to the two animals in front of him, both making happy sounds. "Unbelievable," he mumbled, thinking his previous statement about animals and their masters over. It looked like his hedgehog had actually Donnie's genius. He scratched the back of his head, thinking what to do next. He couldn't just leave those two in Donnie's lab - That was asking for trouble. Not to mention Quilliam could fall off the table.
Sighing deeply, Raph made up his mind. "Alright!" he announced, reaching out to the critter. Gently he picked the animal up again. "Yer comin' with me before yer doin' somethin' ya regret." He turned around and wanted to walk away, until he realised something. He turned his head, looking straight at Klunk, who was a little offended he had taken his friend.
"Come on, furball," Raph said grumpily and immediately the cat jumped off the table and stroked his body once again against Raph's legs. "Yeah, yeah, jus' move along, ya stupid cat," he said, although a bit less snappy than before. Joyfully Klunk took the lead all the way towards Raph's room. Once inside the cat respectfully sat down next to the bench Raph had used a couple of minutes ago and started to wash his paw, clearly satisfied with Raph's performance in saving his buddy. Raph bended over next to him, putting Quilliam down. "Stay," he ordered and slowly walked backwards, his eyes on the two animals, who innocently looked at him. When he saw nothing bad happened, he dared to turn around to grab some pillows from his bed. As he walked back, he took one of his barbell bars with a large diameter. Squatting down, he laid out the pillows in a rectangle, closing one edge with the steel bar. Immediately Klunk jumped in and made himself comfortable, as Quilliam trailed behind as fast as his tiny legs could carry him. Right before the bar he halted, looking up to the strange material.
Raph chuckled and picked up the hedgehog and carried him on eye level. "Yer gonna stay in this pillow fort with tha kitty. No escapin', otherwise I won't be so nice next time," he said, lowering Quilliam next to Klunk. In an instant the two found each other and curled up next to each other.
Shaking his head with light affection, Raph walked to his bench, ready to continue his workout. With a grin he sat down and cracked his neck. Right before he laid down, he gave the animals a quick look, seeing they were dozing off silently.
With a somewhat proud grin he grabbed his barbell again and lifted it off its standard, content he could finally finish his workout.
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I know, not much action but I really hope you liked it :). I love to see your comments :)