May 16, 2014

Donatello reread the same paragraph in his textbook for the fifth time before checking his phone. Still no movement. He rubbed the tiredness from his eyes, pushing up the glasses he'd reverted to wearing since studying for finals.

A fresh cup of coffee was gently set down next to his arm.

"It's 4am, Donnie. Can't you sleep?"

Donnie accepted the hot drink from his older brother as Leo pulled up a chair. "If I'm going to be up anyway, I might as well be productive."

Leo pulled his chair closer. "Where did April tell Splinter she would be tonight?"

"Girl's night with Sunita." Donnie didn't look up from his textbook.

"And where is she really?"

The turtle sighed as he reached for his phone. A map filled the screen with a blinking yellow dot. "Looks like she's still at a club in the Hidden City… probably with that Casey Jones." Donnie tossed his phone across the desk. He winced at the harsh clatter it made.

Leo took a long sip of his cup of tea before speaking again.

"Donnie, I gotta ask… why are you still covering for her? It's been months. And Karai tells me that April's been hanging out with that Casey guy on her own more and more…" The leader paused, seeing Donnie's shoulders tense. Leo placed a hand on his brother's arm.

"You've been all in with April since Day 1. If something happens… I just don't want to see you getting hurt, Dee." He said softly.

"Something… might be happening…"

Leo frowned. "What do you mean?"

Donnie leaned back in his chair, once more rubbing his eyes. "There's something I haven't told you; told anyone. When I was coming back from NYU on April's birthday, I had an… encounter."

"An encounter?" Leo's brow furrowed.

"Yeah. There was this portal and a metal… thing… reaching through."

"Was it a Kraang? Another invasion?"

Donnie shook his head. "No. This was something else." He paused. "I think it was… me. Me from the future."

"Uh…" Leo blinked. "Are you sure you've been getting enough sleep, Dee?"

"I'm serious!" Donnie opened a drawer in his desk, shuffling papers around until he found the one he was looking for. "I sketched what I could remember when I got home that day. See? This looks like something I would design!" He pointed out the purple fins that hung behind the mech's head. "Don't those look like my bandana tails?"

"Maybe…" Leo rubbed his neck. "Did 'you' say anything?"

"He told me there was something about April's crystal, that she would change; and if I didn't save her…" He took a deep breath. "...the future would be at stake."

Leo scoffed. "Well, I don't know if you've noticed, but April's changed a lot over the last couple of months."

Donnie rolled his eyes, returning the sketch to its place in the drawer. "Sarcasm isn't a great look on you, Leon. It's more Raph's thing."

"Whatever, man." Leo gestured to the drawer where Donnie's sketch now lay. "So if the… Donnie Mech… says that the problem is April's crystal, then what's stopping us from taking the dumb thing and destroying it?"

"Aside from destroying the bonds and trust built over the last 13 years?" Donnie looked incredulously at his older brother. "Since the warning in February, I've been running some tests. It looks like there's a strong psychic link between April and the crystal. Who knows what would happen if we forcibly tried to separate her from that thing."

Silence hung between the brothers.

"So…" Leo said slowly. "She's got a bond with the crystal. What about your bond? Neither of you have had that look you get when you talk to each other mentally."

Tears pricked Donnie's eyes as he took a sip of coffee to steady himself. "I haven't been able to get through to her for two months. It's been garbled for a little longer than that; like… trying to talk through water. Then one day, she shut me out."

Leo scooted closer. "I'm so sorry, Donnie. I know how much April and your bond mean to you, but I gotta ask again: why do you keep doing this to yourself?"

"Because I'd give anything to bring her back, Leo. Because… I love her."

Leo held his younger brother as he finally let his tears flow.

Another short one, but... Y'all ain't ready for next time