Rating: K
Words: 557
Author's Note: I've written chibi Leo and chibi Mikey, so I figured a chibi Raph drabble was in order. (I imagine him being about five or six in this) Plus, not only do we have adorable interaction with Rat Daddy, this also feeds my head canon that Raph loves to draw. Hope you all enjoy!
Every color imaginable lay before him in a beaten up cardboard box. He didn't even care that most of the crayons were broken or worn down to a nubbin. They were his.
It was one of those boxes that had at least thirty colors inside, most of them, Raph had never seen before. He'd never had his own box of crayons before, and when Papa had given it to him, it was like Mutation Day had come early.
Grabbing the thick black crayon, he started sketching the outlines. He was already a decent artist, though he didn't always show of his art to his brothers. He didn't want them to think that because he liked to draw, he was weaker than them.
This had to be perfect…
Dang it, he made Mikey's head too big… Oh well, maybe Papa wouldn't notice. He could argue that he was drawing Mikey in a realistic way. And he'd made Donnie's feet too big. That wasn't fixable, but it would be fine.
He didn't have the right shade of red for Papa's kimono… But if he layered some purple on top of the red, it would be close. He put the finishing touches onto the picture, then stepped back to admire his handiwork. The picture of his family was rough and textured from the concrete surface of his bedroom floor so it made the wax lines look spotty in places, but overall, it was not the worst drawing he'd ever made.
He'd heard once that a real artist always signed his work, so slowly and with all of his concentration, he wrote RAPH on the bottom right corner.
Grabbing up the drawing, he sprinted out of his room and toward the dojo, where he knew that Papa would be at this time of day. He called out as he pushed open the paper divider.
"Papa!"
Splinter was deep in meditation, yet he cracked open one eye to see what his young son wanted.
"Yes, my son?"
"Look what I made!" Raph exclaimed, holding the drawing up in front of his father's face so there was no way that he would miss a single detail. "It's kind of messed up in places, like Leo's legs are too small and Mikey's head's too big and-"
Splinter chuckled as he gently took the drawing from Raph's fingers.
"This is indeed a beautiful work of art, my son," he said, admiring the piece. Gathering himself to his feet, he strode toward the door. "Follow me. I believe I know the perfect place for this."
Puzzled, Raph padded after him. He had no idea what Papa had in mind until they came to the kitchen. Splinter fastened the picture to the fridge with a magnet and stood back to admire it further.
"I believe that with practice, you will rival your namesake, my son. I am very proud of you, and I hope that you will bring me more of your artwork."
Raph's young heart soared at the compliment, and though he had never been much of a higher before this, he wrapped his short arms around Splinter's leg.
"Thanks, Papa! I will!" He hustled out of the kitchen, already planning his next drawing and hoping that Papa would put that one on the fridge too.