Disclaimer: Do not own anything recognizable, just these prompt ideas and plots – Thanks!
"Random Subject Prompts"
Chapter 022: Donatello
Movie: Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles
Prompt: Love confession
Chapter Warning(s): a form of 'nerd flirting,' if you will
Author's Note: I stopped editing from a certain point, so if there are any mistakes please let me know! Otherwise, enjoy (:
KHD*KHD*KHD
The night started off as usual. Leonardo was training, honing his swordsmanship and concentration. Every so often his brow would furrow as a particularly difficult mental battle was waged and conquered. Raphael was pounding away at the punching bag, his expression fierce and almost angry. His scowl was present, burning off his inner demons. Michelangelo was stuffing his face with pizza as he sat on the couch, his baby blue gaze focused entirely on the television. Any minute now he would start playing video games, it was inevitable. Master Splinter was even enclosed inside his room, meditating and calmly sipping his ever-present green tea.
And Donatello was happily tapping away at his computer, making improvements and upgrading his various programs. Technology was his ultimate love, and he knew if it weren't for it, he and his brothers wouldn't be as successful as they were when it came to protecting New York. His hacking abilities were one of his better qualities – at least, he thought so, anyway.
Beep! Beep! Beep!
Donny's fingers stilled, his eyes blinking owlishly behind his glasses.
Well… this was unexpected.
Beep! Beep! Beep!
The Turtle Cave was suddenly flooded with red light, the flashing alarm loud and catching everyone else's attention immediately. They stopped what they were doing, alert, turning to face their genius brother.
"Donny," Leo called out, moving swiftly, "talk to me. What's going on?"
Raph scowled, annoyed. "Shut that thing off, would you?" he demanded, referring to the near-deafening alarm.
Mikey swallowed a bite of pizza, not at all worried and more curious. "Dude, what's going on? Did you get caught hacking into some secret government facility or something?"
"That was one time," Donny instantly defended himself, a bit put-off. But he quickly reorganized his priorities, eyes going back to his computer screens. "But no, that's not what's going on right now." If possible, he paled as a sudden line of code appeared. He instantly started typing rapidly, near panic having his heart skipping several beats. "Someone's hacking into our system!"
"What?" his brothers exclaimed in disbelief.
Leo placed a hand on the back of Donny's chair, his expression half worried and half anxious. "Can you stop them?" The blue-clad leader had never thought it possible, but Donny's computer was actually being attacked – and succeeding, from the look of things. His brother was the smartest being he knew; this could not be happening.
The purple-clad turtle pursed his lips together tightly, his entire focus on the screens and lines of code he was quickly creating to hopefully prevent the hacker from entering their system. He had always thought his firewalls were the perfect defense – he'd created them himself, after all – but clearly this unknown hacker was clever and sneaky.
If it weren't his system being compromised, Donny would admit to being highly impressed and near-awestruck. The program that was steadily corrupting his was a sheer stroke of genius and downright poetic. He could weep with envy – you know, if his brothers weren't around.
"I might be…" he trailed off, sweat beginning to pop out on his forehead. "I could…" He cursed under his breath, abruptly standing and pulling on various cords and plugs. His computer screens instantly went dark, the soft hum of his drives turning off with no power to sustain them. Damn it…
"Donny?" Leo questioned, confused and concerned.
Raph was less subtle. "What the hell is going on? What happened?" At his sides, his hands clenched into fists, clearly agitated. From his side, Mikey didn't say anything but his expression spoke volumes. The orange-clad turtle was nervous.
His breath was almost hyperventilating, but Donny couldn't slow his pulse down. This was bad. Very bad.
"They know," was all he said, his eyes glazing over in shock. His body started to shake with reaction, almost shivering with dread and astonishment. "They know…"
Leo demanded, "Know what? And who are they, Donny?"
The purple-clad turtle finally looked at his brothers. His eyes were too big behind his glasses, and his breathing hadn't calmed yet. It instantly alarmed his brothers, and they straightened to attention to hear what he had to say.
"They know… everything."
KHD*KHD*KHD
A Few Weeks Later
Leo, Raph, and Mikey watched with varying expressions of worry, disturbed, and scared as Donny typed at his computer's keyboard. It wasn't anything new but, ever since they were hacked and their secrets exposed to some new foe, the purple-clad turtle had taken it as a personal insult that his system could be so vulnerable.
It had taken a couple of days before Donny had felt it was okay to plug in the computers once more. It had taken a few more before he felt safe to start reloading everything and reinforcing his firewalls.
And ever since then, he'd holed himself inside the computer room. Dark, indecipherable mumbles could be heard every so often, and the others swore they heard high-pitched, disturbing giggles as he planned the hacker's demise. Not even Raph was brave enough to approach Donny when he was in this type of mood.
Something had obviously snapped within their normally analytical and levelheaded brother. No one had ever breached his (computer) defenses before, and Donny was clearly not handling it well.
So, without saying a word to each other, the rest of the ninja turtles decided to avoid him as he lost his sanity trying to figure out who was behind the sudden attack – and the incredible hacking skills.
Meanwhile, shoulders hunched and tense, Donny stared with unblinking eyes as his fingers typed furiously at the keyboard. He had a personal vendetta, and he was not going to lose to whoever had decided to make a fool out of his system. His reputation – though secret – was at stake!
A small, almost unnoticeable smirk curved his mouth up. If anyone had been around to see it, they would have felt a shiver of dread race up and down their spine. The expression was just… so unnatural on Donny.
He hit the Enter key with a flourish, a feeling of victory puffing his chest out. A sense of arrogance that was normally associated with Raph filled him.
"Take that, you slimy hacker!"
KHD*KHD*KHD
A Few Days Later
April O'Neil blinked, not sure what she was seeing. She had just finished a day at the News Station and had wanted to visit her favorite turtles from childhood.
But… this hadn't been what she'd had in mind.
"What's… Donny doing?" she asked, uncertain but also wondering if she even wanted to know.
Mikey helpfully replied, "He got hacked a while ago – and thus, our secret identities are not so secret anymore – so Donny apparently decided to try to create a program that could hack them back, but it backfired!" He smiled, like nothing was wrong. "He's been having issues since then. Personally, I think he's constipated."
"It's not constipation!" Donny practically roared in self-defense, showing he was still listening to the things that were happening around him. His eyes, however, never left the computer screen – as was normal since 'the incident.' His fingers were a blur as he typed and scowled at the lines of code that popped up. "As I told you before, Mikey – for the twenty-seventh time, I might add – I'm trying to create a tracking program based on the little bit of trail this bastard left behind when they first hacked into the system." And that still left a bitter taste in his mouth, though he wouldn't admit it out loud. "I just have to find the right program to implement my plan. Nothing backfired! It was just a… miscalculation."
"Uh huh," Mikey replied skeptically, "whatever you say, Bro."
April leaned closer to Donny. "Do you need me to do anything to help?" Although she was worried about the turtles' identities being exposed to the public, she was confident they would come up with something. Besides, if someone had wanted to reveal the information they'd stolen, they would have by now. At least, that's what April's intuition told her.
Donny took a second to wave his hand in the air dismissively. "Nah, I got this. This is my personal battle – and I don't plan on losing."
"Again," Mikey chirped, grinning in amusement.
The purple-clad turtle twitched. "Shut up, Mikey."
KHD*KHD*KHD
The Next Day
Donny knew he should be sleeping by now, but he couldn't. Despite knowing he needed the rest, especially if a new baddie decided to pop up on the streets, he couldn't bring himself to leave his computer. He was so close to finishing the new tracking program. It was, quite literally, his best work and he was extremely proud. He couldn't wait to unleash it on the unsuspecting hacker.
Really, he had a lot to thank this new foe for. If it hadn't been for his sneaking into their databases, Donny would have never pushed his mental capabilities as far as he had to try to outsmart them.
But that was all he was going to thank them for. Period.
It didn't matter how amazing this hacker was, how smart and brilliant. The purple-clad turtle knew he could learn a lot from them, but he would never admit it. He would just work harder on his own. It didn't matter how admirable the other person's skills were. Really, Donny would never think of them again… Really. Really, really. He meant it, darn it.
He cursed under his breath, his fingers pausing over the keyboard as he gazed unseeingly at the screen. What am I going to do? He thought to himself, mentally debating the pros and cons.
Before he could come to a solid decision, a ping! alerted him to a new instant message.
Is that tracking program meant for me, Kame-san?
Donny blinked, astounded. He mouthed the foreign word, knowing it was Japanese for 'turtle.' This had to be the hacker!
"What should I do?" he mumbled to himself, his breaths coming a little faster. He should be jumping to his feet, alerting his brothers to the hacker's presence. He should be running every program he had to try to track this unknown person. He should not be thinking about responding to the seemingly innocent message.
But he did.
What if I said it was?
Donny held his breath, waiting to see what would happen next. Anticipation had him leaning closer to the computer screen than necessary.
So bold! the next message said. But it won't work, sorry ;P
His jaw dropped. He responded before he realized his fingers moved.
Why in the world not?
The next message threw him off guard.
Let's play a game and you'll see why not :D
His brows furrowed. If he wasn't already bald (and a turtle) he would've pulled all of his hair out by now due to sheer frustration. And maybe a little bit of excitement at the prospect of putting his mind to the test against such a formidable opponent. Intellectually, Donny had yet to meet his equal.
The computer gave another ping! Obviously, the hacker was a little impatient for his answer.
What do you say, Kame-san? Want to play a game with me?
Donny hardened his resolve. He wrote back only two words, but they were ones that would change his life from that moment onward.
You're on!
KHD*KHD*KHD
New York – Penthouse Apartment
You're on!
In the darkened room, the only light source coming from a laptop screen, the owner of the high-tech device smiled brightly. Amethyst eyes sparkled at the challenge, having seriously fallen in love with the firewalls and programs she'd hacked into some time ago. There was no way she was letting this male specimen walk away.
He was, after all, the most intriguing being she'd come across in a long time. Not only was his brain incredibly active and brilliant, he was a turtle! A walking, talking, can-stand-upright turtle. She had never met someone like him before, which was saying something.
Kagome leaned back in her seat, stretching her stiff muscles. The smile never left her face, she was just so happy with the outcome.
"Let the games begin, Kame-san," she said out loud to the empty room.
KHD*KHD*KHD
One Month Later
The games started out small and simple, like online checkers, chess, and Words with Friends. It was through the latter that Donny realized that the infamous hacker he'd been so desperate to "one-up" was actually a young woman. She hadn't tried to hide her gender, for one thing, and it wasn't like she didn't know what he was.
At first, it had surprised Donny but it had quickly turned into open admiration. His naturally chivalrous nature had taken over, and his grudge against her had disappeared. It had taken a few days, of course (he still had an ego), but it was gone faster than it had started.
It also helped that the mysterious female hacker hadn't exposed his and his brothers' secret identities. She never made a single comment about it nor had she asked about it. If anything, she showed interest in getting to know Donny, the man turtle, not the science experiment gone wrong (or incredibly right, depending on how one looked at the situation).
Donny, surprisingly, felt his heart flutter at the thought. It was infinitely flattering to know that someone out there – and a woman at that – would show any real interest in him. He could understand females being drawn to any of his brothers. They each displayed their own type of amazing qualities, like Leo's leadership and sense of duty, Raph's secret golden heart, and Mikey's infectious happy-go-lucky personality. But him? He was just Donny. He loved computers and accepted being a nerd.
From the entrance to Donny's computer room, Leo, Raph, and Mikey all cautiously leaned in to peek at their brother. The late night, high pitched giggling and insane, disturbing grumbles had stopped about a month ago. While the others were thankful Donny was once again his analytical and levelheaded self, they weren't sure this new version was any better.
As if on cue, Donny let out a near-girlish giggle. His cheeks would have been flushed pink, too, if his skin hadn't been green. The way his face broke out into a huge grin was different, and the way his fingers moved swiftly over his keyboard was borderline neurotic. If the others were any judges of character, they would say they were looking at a teenage girl trading emails with her first crush.
Raph was the first to break the silence.
"Of course only a couple of nerds would understand this type of love confession."
KHD*KHD*KHD
~Epilogue~
From her penthouse apartment, Kagome lightly giggled to herself. The online game she and Donny were currently participating in was a bit more complex than their regular chess matches but no less enjoyable. Being able to match wits with someone was exhilarating, especially when that someone was as unique as Donny was.
And he was utterly fascinating. Before, Kagome had been intrigued by him (and, by extension, his brothers) because she hadn't met beings like them before, not even during her years of traveling to the Warring States Era. Now, however, things were different.
Donatello was more than just intelligent. He was kind, a gentleman, and adorable. Stumbling upon his and his brothers' secret had purely been by chance, but Kagome was happy with the turn of events. Their ensuing hacking war had been thrilling, their wits put to the ultimate test to see who had the better computer skills. Each person had their own personal code on the web, which told others a lot about them.
Then again, she thought, smiling deviously as her fingers rapidly tapped over the keyboard, I've always had the better system. Being the VP of one of the world's top-leading technological companies did have its perks, after all. Still, she had built her computer from scratch, and she was sure Donny had done the same with his. That put them on equal footing.
Kagome paused the game. Her expression thoughtful, she pulled up an image she'd taken from a security camera a few days after she'd found out the turtles' secret identities.
Four shadowed figures were leaping from rooftop to rooftop. If one looked closely enough, they could make out the distinctive colors each wore, along with their personal weapons. Amethyst orbs zeroed in on one particular turtle that wore glasses and carried a long, wooden staff across his back. A small smile appeared on near-angelic features.
"Maybe it's time we officially met instead of this constant online flirting…?"
Thank you to everyone who reviewed, followed, and added this series of random prompts to their favorites list! (: You've made my day!
The Blue Insanity 8500: Thank you for reviewing! I appreciate it (: Hope you enjoyed this chapter as well!
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Nessa Kane: Silly me, I didn't think about using Iruka Umino! I'll definitely have to think about the perfect prompt for him ;) Thank you for reviewing!
PatrinePtn: I'll definitely need to think of something for that; Bucky needs all the love he can get ;) Thanks for reviewing! And don't worry, I haven't forgotten about Owen or Kakashi :D
kakashixangela: I'm definitely working on sequels to previous chapters. I'm so hyped up and excited! (: I loved the song when I heard it, and it matched so well with what I wanted to do for that particular prompt :3 Thank you so much for reviewing! Hope you enjoyed this chapter as well :D
BunnyWK: As always, I love reading your reviews (: Thank you so much! I appreciate your kind and encouraging words. Bucky is one of my favorite characters to match up with Kagome, and I also enjoyed writing that scene ;) he's too adorable! I hope you enjoyed this chapter as well (:
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