Chapter eight:
Donnie lets out a long sigh as he looks down from the prerecorded footage of Leo. He puts his face in his hands. He wishes that things had been different. He feels like he could have let their last memories be a little better. He wonders if the mistakes that Leo made aided in his decision to do what he did... Did Leo even really think at all beyond wanting to fix what he believed he messed up? He honestly isn't fully sure and is unsure that he'll ever even know. He feels a wetness begin to gather on his hands making him pull back. He blinks his tear filled eyes as he realizes what's happening, before closing his eyes and just letting it happen. He quietly sobs to himself inside of his own lab.
Leo shouldn't be gone. Not like this. He didn't deserve it.
Donnie puts his arms around himself like a self-hug that Mikey showed him years ago. He continues to sob just wanting his brother, his twin, back. He hates that it had to be Leo of all of them to end with such a fate. He should have been a better brother to him. He should have helped him more when Leo clearly needed it the most.
Leo is still learning just as much as the rest of them. He has his own way of stupidly making things up to his family. He hates making his family suffer for his mistakes. He must have felt so much regret for what he had done that lead to that point.
If only Donnie could have helped dissuade Leo from feeling like that was the only way.
Maybe he would be here then. Where he belongs.
Donnie wonders what things would have been like had Leo even just been saved from his fate. He wonders if they'd have celebrated after patching up their wounds. He wonders if things would be closer to being back to normal, especially compared to the continuous depressed atmosphere that stays with them. He wonders if he'd still cry over what Leo did for them to make up for his mistakes. He stays there letting himself cry until he can't anymore. He gets up deciding to just work on a complicated project. To not let himself think anymore. His thoughts aren't all that great anyways.
...
Leon has been getting better with the forearm crutches as the days pass. He is doing a test with Donatello to see if he can start using it outside of practicing with it. He makes it a pretty good distance across the room then excitedly turns to Donatello.
Donatello smiles at him. "You can use them instead of the wheelchair." He agrees with this. "You keep making great progress towards walking."
"Thanks!" Leon smiles as he is happy to hear that he won't be stuck in a wheelchair.
"Just keep in mind that your body will probably take awhile to be able to walk lots again. Especially after not doing so much for a good while. Don't even get me started on doing more than just walking. For now we'll focus on just the walking. I know how eager you are to get home. You can continue recovering once back in your world." Donatello warns to which Leon nods.
"I understand."
"Great. I'll go tell Splinter the good news. I'm sure he'll want to work with you again." Donatello leaves the room with that.
Leon doesn't get a chance to respond as he feels the sensation that Donnie needs him. He looks sadly to the ceiling. "I'm working my way to coming home." He whispers to no one meaning it for his brother. "Just hold on a little longer for me." He turns away and heads out of the room. He heads towards the kitchen, where he finds Raphael having a snack and Leonardo having some tea.
"Hey. You're truly walking in a way I suppose." Raphael mentions causing Leonardo to turn to Leon who smiles at them.
"Sure am! Getting closer to being able to go home." Leon confirms and heads over to get himself some water... Only to realize he's not fully sure how with these crutches. He turns as Leonardo comes over and helps him. He thanks him and drinks the water with Leonardo's help. He feels a little stupid but the water feels too good to dwell on it long. He finishes with another thanks then heads out of there. He notices Splinter approach him.
"Good to see you up and moving about more." Splinter mentions with a smile at Leon who keeps his head high.
"Thanks. It feels good to be moving around more again. Shall we work on what we've been working on?" Leon is a little eager as he knows he's getting even closer to being able to go home. He finds this world is really great but nothing can beat home.
"Lets." Splinter agrees and the two of them head to his room. He helps Leon be able to sit comfortably which ends up being with his legs straight.
Leon looks to Splinter who smiles before bringing out the katanas. He mentally takes a breath then makes himself reach for it. He tries to get his mind to focus on the better days. He finally manages to grab one and he picks it up... Only for his mind to flash to show the moments before the portal had closed behind him... How he had sacrificed himself to trap the Krang. He jolts slightly and drops the katana which clatters to the ground snapping him back. He looks to Splinter, not wanting to look to the katana now next to him, and sees a comforting smile on his face.
"You did wonderful. It is a great start." Splinter assures Leon who feels like he could have done better. "How do you feel?"
Leon lets out a quiet breath trying to keep Splinter from hearing it. "I can do it again." He insists and turns to the katana next to him. He starts to reach for it only to stop and finds he can't make himself pick it up again. His body too scared of the memories that his mind might flash before him.
There is quiet for a few long moments as Splinter waits to see what Leon will do. He then speaks up when Leon doesn't make anymore progress. "We can stop here today. I am very impressed with how much courage you had to pick it up. Even if it wasn't for long." His voice brings Leon's gaze to him. "What matters is that there is improvement. It's not perfect yet but it is better."
The two turn to the doorway as Donatello calls that they're heading out; to deal with some trouble that came up.
"Well we will have the lair to ourselves for a bit it would seem." Splinter mentions and Leon turns to him.
"Then let's practice a little more. Please." Leon blinks at Splinter who after a moment gives in.
"Alright if you're certain." Splinter grabs both katanas. "Let us begin once more." He adds as he receives a nod.
... Elsewhere...
The four turtles arrive to where the report was found of something going on. They find that the Footclan has cornered a young girl, while a few carry what looks to be stolen goods.
Leonardo leads the way by moving first. He tackles the Footclan member closest to the child away from her.
Raphael and Michelangelo joining in on attacking other members swiftly after.
Donatello goes for the child scooping her up. He uses buildings to climb to get her somewhere safe. He keeps her held close so she doesn't have to watch them fly through the air, with that big drop below. He lands in an alley and sits releasing a breath before speaking. "It's alright. You're safe now. We'll find your mommy and daddy. Do you know where they are?"
The child looks up wide eyed and shaking. She clearly can tell that Donatello is trying to help... Only she doesn't seem to understand what he is saying. She speaks up and it turns out to be a different language than English.
Donatello doesn't know how to speak this language, and knows that trying to do the right thing just got harder. He turns as his brothers arrive probably having looked for him. "She doesn't speak English." He informs them and looks to the child as do the others.
The child turns to the other three trembling. She says something in the other language and cries a little.
"Damn. Can't understand a word of that." Raphael admits with a slight hiss.
"Well we'll have to do something. She needs to get back to her family where it's safe." Leonardo points out to which Raphael sorts.
"How?! We can't understand her and she can't understand us. It sounds all just Spanish to me. And no way in hell are we going to figure out what she's saying."
Donatello blinks as Raphael's words makes something click in his brain. "There might be a way." His mention of this gains all three of his brothers attentions. "I think I know how we might be able to translate what she is saying." He gets an encouraging nod from Leonardo so he continues. "I'm not one hundred percent sure though it is worth a shot. If we can get Leon here maybe he could translate. Just trust me on this. I have a feeling that he can do it." He rubs the girl's back to try to help calm her.
"Like you said it's worth a shot." Leonardo nods his head in approval.
"Okay but how in the world are we supposed to get him here? He's barely out of a wheelchair and it's not like we can just wheel him through the streets."
Michelangelo chuckles causing them all to turn to him. "That may be true but you're forgetting something." His words gain interest from the others. "The turtle tank! We could load him in and drive him here! Then just the car would be seen and not us. Plus it'll be faster than walking. Just there's the fact that one of us will need to carry him to it.
"I'm sure that won't be a problem." Donatello waves it off. "You three go ahead and get Leon. I'll stay with her." He nods to the child trying to bury herself into his chest.
"We'll be back soon." Leonardo tells Donatello before they head off to get to the lair. Donatellos gaze shifts to the girl sticking very close to him.
...
The three rush to the lair and burst in making Leon turn in worry.
Leon is in the living room on a short break that Splinter insisted for him. "Is everything okay?" He turns his wheelchair around, meant to help him relax further, to fully face them.
"Actually there is something that we need your help on." Leonardo admits which makes Leon blink curiously. "Explanations can wait." He, with Raphael's help, get Leon into the turtle tank.
Leon tries to figure out what's going on as they drive to the spot on the surface. He is helped out then is wheeled to Donatello where he sees a little girl by him.
The little girl looks to Leon before speaking up in Spanish. ""I just wanna go home!""
Leon blinks as he quickly understands now. He responds also in Spanish making the girl pause. ""Hey. It's okay. You don't need to be afraid. What's your name?""
Leonardo, Michelangelo, and Raphael look on in surprise that this is actually working. They watch on quietly as does Donatello.
""My name is Monica."" The little girl tells Leon moving closer to him.
""It's nice to meet you Monica. Do you remember where home is? It's okay if you don't. We can help you find your mommy and daddy."" Leon inquires to the little girl who looks away tearfully.
""Mommy and daddy left me at the new home. They had to go somewhere and couldn't take me with them anymore."" Monica turns offering Leon a smile. ""But I have lots of friends now! Home is by the edge of town!"" She pauses to glance around before turning back to Leon. ""I got lost because those scary people chased me away from home after I snuck out.""
Leon blinks sympathetically at this.
"What is she saying?" Rapahael questions before Leon can respond to Monica.
Leon turns to Raphael. "She's saying that she lives in an orphanage her parents left her at. She snuck out only for scary people to chase her." He explains and Donatello is the one who responds.
"Is this orphanage on the edge of town? I think I might know what one it is."
Leon nods to confirm this.
"Great! I think I know where we are going!" Donatello exclaims so Leon turns back to Monica.
""Stay with us. We're going to get you home."" Leon is a little surprised when Monica climbs onto his lap sitting there.
They take her into the turtle tank by wheeling Leon in.
Donatello drives them to a building where they park so they can't be seen.
Leon wheels Monica out before picking her up. He gently places her to stand on the ground. ""Okay Monica."" He begins in Spanish as she listens. ""We'll watch you to make sure you make it back home safe. Just go straight there. And you seeing us is a secret okay? Some really scary people might come for you if you say that you know us.""
Monica nods then gives them a big thanks before running to the building.
A woman rushes to greet the little girl and embraces her. ""Where have you been?!"" She questions Monica in Spanish that Leon hears from here.
""I just went for a walk."" Monica tells her making the woman sigh.
""I told you stay here."" The woman carry's Monica into the building.
Leon turns to the others. "We're good." He informs them and they all climb into the turtle tank. He feels like he did pretty well. He's laying on the couch watching Michelangelo play video games. His eyelids start to get heavy until he drifts off into sleep; despite that he tried to fight it. He finds himself thrown into the memories of the Krang attack.
Michelangelo turns, game paused, upon hearing Leon to start whimpering. He can tell that the other must be having a nightmare. He leaps to his feet even more worried when Leon's stripes start to glow.
Leon's eyes snap open showing to also be glowing. He still whimpers as if still trapped in his nightmare.
Michelangelo rushes towards him calling out his name. His call attracts the attention of the other three turtles who come over.
They also become concerned when they notice what's happening.
Michelangelo reaches for Leon... Though as soon as his hand rests on the others shoulder his own eyes glow, he finds himself taken away from the lair.
The other three reach out and touch Leon, before they notice what happened to the youngest of the four of them, to try to help soothe him only for their own eyes to glow.
All four of them glance to each other before glancing around. They have found themselves in a spot and they notice the events seemingly play out. They take a moment before remembering what was explained to them. They tense as they realize they're seeing Leon's memories of the events that happened. They aren't at the beginning of the whole thing, they have found themselves moments before Leon's sacrifice. They watch how things progress until they're standing with Leon looking to the sky.
The threat of the end of the world slowly coming out of the portal.
The four find it is a terrifying thought of what could become of this world. They turn as Leon dashes forward after speaking to his family.
Michelangelo calls out for Leon to stop... Though it doesn't seem like Leon can hear him.
The four left to just watch as Leon sacrifices himself to save the world. They try to charge forward to stop Krang just beating the shit out of Leon. Though they can't get close enough to do anything. They are blocked by some force field.
Leon seems about to black out when he is rescued, by being grabbed by an extendable mechanical arm Donatello had quickly grabbed once they saw Leon.
Just after Raphael tosses a ninja star at the Krang the four find themselves thrown back to the lair.
Leon scrambles up with a gasp as he awakens. His breathing heavier than the other four as they all try to come down from the shock. He turns to them after a moment as if just realizing they're there.
"W-W-What was t-that?!" Michelangelo manages to stutter out looking at his shaking hands. "W-We just... W-We just saw..."
Leon blinks as he realizes what has happened. "That happens sometimes." He admits gaining their attention. "Sorry about that."
"Could you maybe explain? You were glowing, and then suddenly we were taken to what I presume is your nightmare of the events you went through. Or at least some of it." Donatello requests hugging Michelangelo to try to help him settle down.
Leon lets out a breath. "Well it hasn't really happened to me much, but sometimes if we get way too overwhelmed especially by a nightmare, our magic reacts to our emotions. It makes us start glowing and there's the risk of a Mind Meld as we call it. It's when our magic lets our minds link together and basically become one. If this is activated by a nightmare then we can be transported into seeing the nightmare too." He explains to the four of them who are surprised about this.
"Your worlds magic is fascinating." Donatello mentions more to himself than to Leon.
Michelangelo breaks away from Donatello after calming himself down. He stands by where Leon is and offers a smile. "That's okay! It just means we understand things better than before." He mentions to Leon. "It'll be fine." He's clearly just trying to bring Leon's mood up.
Which does work as Leon can't help a small smile at seeing Michelangelo smiling like that, reminding him of his worlds Mikey. "Well if you're sure. But yeah maybe if you don't want to have that happen next time I'd suggest not touching. However I'll leave it up to you all."
"Well thank you for the heads up." Donatello nods to this.
"Is there even a point in talking about things further?" Raphael questions making Leon think that there really isn't much else to say.
"I guess not. It's not like it's news to you since I told you my story." Leon points out though Michelangelo speaks up.
"Well surely something must be bothering you. I mean with your nightmares and then this. We're here to help you, really we are. If only you'd let us."
"Leon's nightmares are perfectly normal. While yes trauma can cause mental issues that he can have the nightmares may not be a telltale sign." Donatello mentions to Michelangelo who turns meeting his eyes. "Though we probably should keep a closer eye just in case. What was seen does point to being able to cause some after effects mental issues. Ones we may not have noticed yet."
"Good to know?" Leon poses like a reminder that he is right there.
"Sorry Leon." Michelangelo is the first of them to apologize for them talking like he wasn't there.
"Eh. It's fine." Leon assures him. "At least I get to hear what you guys think about the nightmare thing."
"Well for now let us focus on the healing we can work on. We'll keep an eye out for anything else that may need help." Donatello mentions clearly wanting to run off to his lab. He probably wants to have alone time to fully process all that was shown. He will probably also look up some mental health stuff.
"Okay." Leon agrees and Donatello leaves in the direction of the lab.
Raphael heads off as well with Leonardo going with him. They head into the kitchen for now.
Michelangelo stays with Leon though they don't really talk.
Leon hopes that this won't delay his healing and getting back to his brothers. He likes this world though he wants to be home.