Rating: T - for Raph and Mikey's potty mouth.
Warnings: Overall story - Brief mentions of torture. Bit of language.
Disclaimer: Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles and all related characters belong to Nickelodeon.
A/N: Lots and lots of Raph and Mikey bonding!
Also, I have another author note after the chapter. It's... lengthy and I apologise. I just feel it needs addressing but I understand if you aren't interested in reading it or responding.
CharmGirlLove: Even I have no idea when the difference in the age thing will come up. It'll just have to happen when it comes up naturally XD Sorry for the delay in updates.
T420000: Well, hopefully the progress in this chapter helps make up for it XD
Minnie1015: It's definitely a process, even if it seems a little disheartening at times. Thank you :-)
KaylaMicael: It's interesting thinking about what the differences may mean for the too XD
HeartAngel1796: 'Far From Home', 'Besties' and a few other 'AOtGO' stories are posted in the work called 'Tales From AOtGO'. 'Ghosts From the Past' is not, however. It's been long written and I have it's place in continuity but despite it being short, it's a lot too spoilery so I can't post it until I actually get to that point in the story. Sorry. Yes! You've caught me out! I've always intended to make use of certain *cough* tech found in 'Wormquake'. In fact, it's hinted at in 'Far From Home'. However just because it's possible, doesn't mean the correct dimension will be easy to find :-) I look forward to the reuniting too but if we get there too fast, it'll spoil all the fun XD
AOtGO – Aftermath
Ch 17
Date: 23rd Sept
"Donatello!" Leonardo commanded, reaching over and grabbing his arm to get his attention.
"What?" Donnie snapped, whirling on Leo in exasperation for being interrupted.
Leo nodded surreptitiously towards Mike and Donnie turned to look. To really look, this time. That's when he saw Mike staring off to the side and trembling badly. Realisation flooded Donnie and his face heated up in shame.
"Darwin's beard! I-I'm so sorry, Mike! That was... it was uncalled for. I-I shouldn't have gone on like that without regard for your feelings," Donnie apologised in a gush, all but begging for Mike to understand he hadn't meant to upset him and that he'd only intended to learn how he could help him if it ever came down to it. He only hoped his behaviour wouldn't push the other-dimensional turtle away or stop him from coming to him in the coming days as they'd talked about. He shifted closer, blanching when Mike visibly flinched and in a small, desperate voice added, "You know I'd never hurt you, right, Mike?"
That was too much for Michelangelo, though, and in a flash, he was on his feet and vaulting desperately from the pit for the safety of his room. He dashed between Raphael and Casey, bumping them accidentally as they stood flabbergasted on the sidelines.
A few moments later, the bedroom door slammed loudly closed and Donatello cringed. He looked around, gulping nervously at the faces around him glaring accusingly.
"That's the thing, brainiac, he doesn't know you'd never hurt him because as everyone's so fucking fond of saying, he doesn't know us!" Raph snapped angrily. "And us causing him to freak out one after another doesn't fucking help build that trust!"
"I... I didn't mean to..." Donnie whispered brokenly.
"Don't you think he's had a bad enough day already without doing something so damned stupid?" Raph ploughed on, ignoring the fact his brother had spoken. "You're supposed to be the smart one, Don!"
"He knows, Raph," Leonardo admonished sternly. "You don't have to make it worse by yelling."
"I'm not fucking yelling!" Raph yelled, all but snarling in his fury.
"You kind of are, Raph," Leo retorted.
Raph's face screwed up as he sneered at Leo but before he could say anything in response, Casey spoke up.
"What had him so freaked out though? Even I know Gaptooth wouldn't do anything, even though he does look at us as if we're bugs under his microscope half the time."
Raph rolled his eyes.
"God, Jones! You can be so insensitive!" April glared in disbelief. "What Donnie would or wouldn't do isn't the issue here! I've told you what the Kraang are like! I told you a couple of weeks before Mike even turned up here! I told you some of the things they did to my father and the other scientists they took and I told you what they tried to do to me when they got their tentacles on me last time!"
"Yeah, I get that Red but..."
"But nothing!" April exploded. "You..."
Raph made a disgusted sound and whirled on his heels, shutting out the sounds of his arguing brothers and friends to go chasing after Michelangelo instead. As expected, the door to his little brother's room was shut and when he tried to open it, the handle turned but the door wouldn't budge even half an inch, leading him to believe Mike had barricaded it. Whether with furniture or his own body, Raph didn't know, but sure it was the latter, he didn't push. For a few impotent minutes, he stood there, watching helplessly, before turning and storming for the kitchen, blatantly ignoring the group in the pit. Their arguing had tapered but the room was still heavy with tension and he knew if he didn't ignore them, he'd be drawn back into it and make everything worse all over again.
Once he reached his destination, he beelined for the fridge and pulled out a bottle of water. Then, he turned and headed straight back to Mikey's door, settling down beside it and waiting patiently as he listened to the loud, ragged breathing behind it.
After a few minutes passed, Raph knocked on the door and sure he had Mike's attention by the sudden hitch in the heaving breaths, called out loudly enough to be heard through the door but not the rest of the lair. "Hey, just want you to know I'm out here, okay, Mike?"
He heard a faint shuffle on the other side of the door.
"I promise not to let anyone through until you're ready." Raph then fell silent, not really sure what else to say. He'd never been great with words and he didn't know how to be comforting. All he knew was that he needed to be right here, right now, a barrier between the hurting and scared other-dimensional turtle and the savage world around him.
Sometime later as he sat there, Leo came looking for him.
"We're going topside to dump the trash and patrol for a while," Leo said, frowning at him sitting against the door. "Are you coming?"
Raph shook his head once. "Nuh."
Leo's expression turned questioning. "It's not like you to stay behind."
Raph shrugged and turned his head to glance at the closed door behind him. "I'm where I need to be," he said gruffly. "You got Casey and April tonight, you guys can handle it without me but if something comes up, call and I'll come save your useless shells."
Leo regarded him for a few moments more before nodding sharply. Then, he left and Raphael continued just sitting, occasionally speaking just to let Mike know he was still there and that he wasn't leaving.
Eventually, the ragged breathing behind the door subsided and evened out and Raph decided enough was enough. He scrambled to his feet and narrowed his eyes. "Right! Now that you've calmed down, you got five seconds to open this damn door before I kick it in." He heard a noise like someone straightening to attention on the other side but Michelangelo made no move to open the door itself or respond.
"One!
"Two!
"Three!
"Four!
"Fi..." before he finished speaking, the door handle rattled and turned. Raphael smiled grimly and pushed the door. It wouldn't open at first but a moment later the sound of a body shuffling to the side hit his hearing and Raph pushed the door the rest of the way and entered, closing it behind him again. Trying not to obviously wrinkle his beak at the rotten smell in the room, he looked down to see Mike seated on the ground, knees drawn to his plastron and arms wrapped tightly around them. The other-dimensional turtle looked a miserable sight with his forehead laying atop his knees and the occasional full-body shudder.
Unsure what to say or do, he wasn't the best turtle for this, Raph gazed wordlessly for several moments before suddenly remembering the bottle of water and brusquely holding it out. "Here, take it."
Startled, Mike looked up and stared at Raph in confusion, face pale and with red-rimmed eyes. Finally, he shakily reached out to take the drink with a murmured, "Thanks," before simply holding it against his knee and staring forward.
"What did they do to you?" Raph asked bluntly.
Mike blinked and continued staring forward at nothing in particular. "Don't wanna talk about it," he muttered.
Raph frowned and slid down the door to sit beside him, barricading it the way Mike had earlier. For a few minutes, the pair sat in silence. Then, "Would you talk to us if we were your real family?"
Mikey stiffened. "Dunno," he answered sullenly a few moments later.
"You've got to talk to someone sooner or later, Mike," Raph frowned, staring forward at the ship's wheel at the end of the bed so as not to make the other turtle feel scrutinised. His missing brother sure had fucking weird taste.
"I know," Mikey muttered, barely audible.
"Do you?" Raph pressed, trying and failing not to sound accusing. "'cause you don't act like it."
Mikey stiffened again. "Just go away and leave me alone, Raph."
"No."
Mikey lifted his head again and turned his red eyes on Raph in shock.
"You're probably going to be stuck here a long time, you know," Raph pointed out bluntly, likewise turning his own bright green eyes on the lost turtle, "so you've got to start trusting us some time."
"I do trust you Raph," Mikey mumbled, turning away again and laying his head back on his knees.
"Yeah? 'cause it doesn't show. You keep your problems and fears to yourself. You try and do everything yourself and you refuse to ask for help and when you do actually ask for help, it's so you can just do it yourself," Raph pointed out with a growl. "Look, I'm not telling you to rely on us for everything, we'd probably get pissed off if we had to do everything but what I am saying is that you can rely on us. You can trust us to help you however we can." He waited for some reaction from the other turtle and when he didn't reply, he forged on. "Look, I'm shit at talking and giving advice and that crap but I can listen just fine." Raph waited as Mike shuddered again. "If you don't talk about it, we can't help you. If we don't know shit, we can't help but hurt or scare you by accident all over again and we don't want to do that!" He sighed and rolled his eyes. "It's not my place to tell you this but Donnie didn't mean to upset you. If your Don is anything like ours, then you know what he's like when he gets caught up in some stupid idea or other."
Mikey nodded wordlessly.
"He's sorry about what happened and he'll probably tell you again himself when you're ready to face everyone again."
Mikey nodded again. "I know," he moaned miserably. "I..." he sighed and made up his mind. "It's just... it was bad, Raph, really bad and... and every time I close my eyes I think I'm back there..." Mikey chanced a glance at Raph out the corner of his eye, gauging him for his reaction. Raph didn't move though. He wasn't looking expectantly at him or anything, just gazing forward at his missing brother's bed. His body language, however, said he was paying attention to every word and that he was actually, really, truly, honestly there for him. "I'm safe and free now," Mikey continued morosely, "but even after four days of being here, it still hasn't really set in... a-and I'm afraid that if I talk about it... then... it'll make it real again and I will actually be back there having never actually gotten out and this all being some dream."
"You're not there, though," Raph pointed out quietly. "You are here."
"I know," Mikey replied after hesitating again, "because if I was dreaming this, I'd be home, n-not here. Even my imagination couldn't dream you guys up. But..."
"So then, prove it to yourself," Raph scowled.
Mikey's jaw dropped and now he actually stared openly at the hotheaded turtle beside him.
"You don't have to tell me everything, just tell me something and prove to yourself that you aren't back there!"
"I... uh... wh-what do you want to know?"
His scowl deepened. "Whatever you want to tell me."
Mikey reeled at the idea before wracking his brain but there was nothing he wanted to talk about. It was just all too much. Too fresh. Too painful and terrifying and he wanted to keep his tenuous grip on his sanity and control thank you very much. "I got nothing," he finally admitted quietly.
Raph pursed his lips. Trouble was, he knew so little about what Mike had been through that he had no idea where to start either. Then, it hit him. "Alright, how about how you broke your arm? Tell me about that," he suggested.
Mikey blanched but then he sighed and nodded. "Alright," he agreed, his voice defeated. "I... can't be sure exactly when but it was a few months after I ended up... there." His eyes flickered to Raph and Raph nodded to show he was listening. "I..." he took another deep, ragged breath. "It happened when they recaptured me after I escaped," he finally admitted.
"Wait, you escaped?" Raph asked in surprise, whipping his head around and gazing at Mikey in something that might have been admiration. "How? When? What happened?"
Mikey let loose with a bitter half-laugh. "It's nothing to get excited about, dude, I just said they also caught me again."
"Doesn't matter," Raph retorted. "If you escaped once, you coulda again."
"No, I couldn't," Mikey slumped miserably. "I never got another chance because they stopped taking chances. In fact, if you guys didn't come when you did... well, let's just say it was impossible after that..."
The look in Raph's eyes became concerned. "Okay. Well, what happened when you did escape?"
"It's a long story, bro," Mikey said reluctantly.
"I got all night," Raph shrugged. "I already told Leo I was staying home tonight."
Now it was Mikey's turn to be surprised. "Wait... you did?"
When Raph nodded sharply, Mikey told him everything, though what he did say was light in details. He told him how he'd taken to feigning sleep when they brought him his food and how they began to lower their guard, the way he'd taken them by surprise, using one of them as a springboard as he leapt from his cell. The way he'd made his way to the ground using the other floating cells and platforms to bounce or swing off of on the way down, how he'd seen two other prisoners as he made his escape; a pigeon and a monkey mutant.
"Pigeon Pete and Dr Rockwell," Raph supplied.
"Mmm," Mikey nodded, though he'd never known their names. He continued his story, telling Raph about his mad race through the facility, both looking for a way out and a way to ditch his pursuers. He explained how he'd stumbled upon a storage room that contained the remains of his 'chucks and other stuff and how he'd decided, thusly armed, it was time to go back for the other prisoners.
"Pete and Rockwell."
Mikey nodded again. That had been his downfall, going back for them. It was the right thing to do, he knew that but it hurt and frustrated him knowing it had been a doomed mission. He told Raph about how he'd managed to free Pete and that Rockwell had taken advantage of the commotion only for a small army to enter the room and stun Pete while Pete's claws were wrapped tightly around Mikey's ankle after catching him and how they'd then fallen from several metres up with Pete landing atop him. Raph winced sympathetically at that, especially after Mikey explained how he'd eventually woken up in the process of being strapped down where he was kept for days or perhaps weeks, for all he knew. He hadn't known at the time what happened to his arm beyond seeing the bones jutting from his skin. For a while, he'd been sure it amputated and replaced with a robotic limb that only they could control and therefore used to control him. Raph looked like he was going to be sick at that and Mikey let out a small self-deprecating chuckle before explaining it had turned out to be some weird version of a cast that entirely encased his arm. It had hurt. It had been terrifying but it had done the job of helping to repair the arm. A small part of him thought his arm only healed as well as it did because of it, especially in light of how Donnie had told him how badly broken it had been. That, he did not tell Raph.
"After they finally took that thing off, they started gassing me so I couldn't fight back whenever they opened my cell to feed me and then... a week or so later..." Mikey trailed off, feeling sick as he remembered the way the device clamping tightly onto his forehead had felt, the way he'd felt something force its way through the bone of his skull and into his head. His stomach churned badly as a fresh wave of terror of losing control of his body filled him. For a moment, he squeezed his eyes tightly closed as he tried desperately to shove the feeling away but it only made it worse and his stomach heaved.
Raph looked at him in alarm, then scrambled to his feet and across the room for the small waste paper basket he doubted his brother had ever even used and thrust it in front of Mike just in time.
"I... I'm sorry," Mikey mumbled, half-sobbing when he finished throwing up. He was trembling again and so cold.
"It's fine," Raph reassured gruffly as he looked at the sea-green turtle in concern. "You got water there," he said, motioning to where Mike had dropped the bottle. Mikey glanced at it and shakily picked it up. His hands were trembling too much to twist the lid off so Raph did it for him and handed it back, watching patiently as Mike rinsed his mouth out before draining half the bottle.
Raph moved the bin aside but kept it nearby just in case and the two sat in silence for some time before Mikey was able to continue.
"Th-they came in my cell without gassing me first after a week or so of doing it a-and shot me," Mikey suddenly said in a small voice. "Some... projectile thing that... that I couldn't avoid and it dug into my forehead." He knew as recently as just last night, or rather early that morning, that the indentations were still there. Four shallower but more obvious ones from where it clamped tightly onto him and... and one less obvious but deeper one from where it buried and drilled into him. He couldn't help his hand drifting up to touch it again and shuddered bodily at the impression. "I... I couldn't move after that," he mumbled. "I... I couldn't even move my eyes or talk or... or anything!" As he spoke, his voice became higher, more hysterical and horrified, Raph reached out a hand, hesitating and unsure before resting it on his arm. Mikey turned to look at it and it seemed to ground him. "They controlled my body, Raph. I... still had my mind but I was a remote control toy or puppet and the only thing missing were the strings! I... Th-they paraded me around all the time, putting words in my mouth, using my voice to tell me I would be their puppet for the... the rest of my life. Fuck, Raph!" Mikey heaved a breath, trying to calm down again. "They... they could even st-stop my breathing when they wanted to and they did it often. Just... just to terrify me while they laughed at me!"
"You weren't like that when we found you," Raph pointed out, conveniently forgetting they hadn't actually seen him until they'd all escaped the facility and were back safely on the streets of New York. He had seen the device Mike was talking about at work, however, on Spyderbytes and Snakeweed.
"Metalhead deactivated them," Mikey explained tiredly. He was emotionally and physically wrung out by now. "I... was under their control for over a week! I..." he fell silent again, unable to say anything further and his head bowed down to rest on his knees again as he shook harder than ever.
"Damn... I can see why just their tech alone freaks you out," Raph muttered in disbelief over the sheer callousness of the Kraang. "It'd freak me out too, after that."
Mikey turned his head to the side so he could watch Raph.
"You're okay now though. You're safe, okay? We won't let them hurt you again!" Raph exclaimed fiercely.
A small half-smile appeared on Mikey's face. "Th-thanks," he rasped before turning his head so it was facedown on his knees again.
With Mike spent and Raph unsure what to say or do to comfort him, he gazed around the familiar bedroom, frowning as he tried to work out what had changed about it. Suddenly, it hit him. "You cleaned up?" he choked in shock.
Startled, Mikey lifted his head. "Uh... yeah. J-just the rubbish though."
"It looks better," Raph said critically. Then his eyes fell on the cardboard cutout of Chris Bradford and his expression hardened. "You shoulda dumped that fucking thing too," he said acerbically, his mouth wrinkling in disgust.
Mikey's gaze followed Raph's. "Yeah, it's heh... pretty creepy. I thought it was just the eyes watching me that bothered me but I dunno why but it gives me seriously bad vibes," he explained, still sounding kind of shaky.
Raph glanced at him, then pushed himself to his feet. "I'm getting rid of it then."
Mikey shot to his feet in alarm after him. "You can't!"
"Why not?" Raph growled. "That thing should've been trashed months ago!" he spat.
"Because... because... it's not yours!" Mikey floundered. "It belongs to your bro!"
"So did all the other trash but you got rid of that!" Raph retorted hotly in disbelief.
"What've you got against whoever that is anyway?"
"Chris Bradford!" Raph spat in disgust. "Famous celebrity martial artist who turned out not just to be Foot but one of Shredder's top lieutenants!"
Mikey's jaw dropped as he stared at the hotheaded turtle in shock.
"That fucking creep tricked Mikey into thinking they were friends before we knew the truth about him and then captured him to get to the rest of us!"
"That's low," Mikey said, turning a dark expression on the cutout, "but you still can't throw it out."
"Seriously?" Raph asked, stunned.
Mikey glared stubbornly at him, "Your bro obviously kept it for a reason, dude. How do you think he'd feel if you dumped it?"
Raph stared at Mike for a moment before wilting, "Yeah, if it was something of mine someone got rid of, I'd be pretty pissed," he admitted reluctantly.
"See?"
"But Mikey's not me! He'd get over it!"
"You still can't make that decision for him!" Mikey countered, trying so hard to keep a rein on his own temper. "It's not cool!"
Raph glowered. Then, "Fine!" he grumbled, "but I'm still taking it out of this room! I'll dump it in the storage room 'til he's back!"
Mikey nodded sharply with a glance at the creepy cutout. He was definitely a fan of that plan.
Raph reached out and grabbed the cutout, then opened the door, stalking out with it. "I'll be right back," he promised.
Mikey nodded silently as he watched the other turtle walk away. Then he took a deep breath and gagged. Looking around frantically, he spotted the plain metal wastebasket with his puke in it and wrinkling his beak picked it up, holding it at arm's length as he headed to the bathroom with it. Thankful it had been empty before the impromptu use, he tipped the offending contents down the toilet before turning on a tap to rinse it out. He was rinsing it for a second time, this time more thoroughly, when Raph appeared in the door behind him, looking worried.
The other turtle's gaze fell on the bin and softened. "You should've left that to me."
Mikey shook his head. "It's done now."
"And that's what I was talking about earlier. You don't let us help you."
Mikey's eyes widened and he turned to stare at Raph incredulously. "What was all that, then?" he managed not to explode.
Raph grunted. "I didn't do anything but listen."
"Dude! Sometimes that's all you can do and trust me, it helped. I'm mean, yeah, I'm feeling pretty crap right now but... I also feel better, you know?"
Raphael relaxed a little but still reached out and took the bin from him. He dried it out before spraying some air freshener in it. Then went and, to Mikey's surprise, sprayed his room too. Mikey shot Raph a questioning look and Raph grunted.
"It smells like rotten egg or something in here! How haven't you noticed?"
"Uh... I'm... used to it?" Mikey questioned numbly as he sat on the bed.
"Right!" Raph snorted. "So you feel like telling me what happened this morning?"
Mikey's gaze dropped to the floor and he swallowed. "Like... like I told Grandpa and Donnie, I-I don't really know. At least, n-not really."
Raph canted his head and sat on the chair by the desk.
Mikey swallowed again and took a deep breath. "R-right... remember how I told you when I broke my arm th-that they strapped me down for... I dunno, weeks?"
"Yeah."
"W-well, when they did, th-they also attached this mask to my face that was... designed to hold a feeding tube in my mouth twenty-four/seven. I-it wasn't the first time they'd done that o-or even the last." Mikey stole a look at Raph who was simply watching and waiting for him to continue. "The f-first time they did that, it was... because I refused to eat whatever the shit was they called food so... they forced me to swallow it if I wanted to breathe." He squeezed his eyes closed in pain as the terrifying memory that had plagued him ever since haunted his mind. "It looked and smelled and tasted so bad I couldn't even keep it down but if I didn't want to drown in it, I had to swallow it back down anyway... I... L-Leo's cooking... put me back there."
"Is that why you don't eat much?"
Mikey nodded reluctantly. "I... I try but..."
"But your cooking's amazing!" Raph protested in disbelief. "It's nothing like whatever the hell the Kraang call food!"
"I know," Mikey said quietly, feeling slightly warmer at the praise.
"So... I guess we gotta make eating a... positive experience again, then?"
Mikey lifted his gaze. It would take a lot more than just that but he nodded anyway.
Raph brightened as a thought came to him. "Everyone's out but us and Master Splinter. Why don't we, and by we, I mean you, make something for dinner we can just graze off of while I beat you senseless at the arcade games?" he suggested with a wicked, taunting grin.
Mikey raised an amused eye ridge. It wouldn't work but Raph was trying and it sounded fun at least. "You beat me? The Battle Nexus Champion?" Mikey scoffed derisively, pushing all thoughts of what they'd been talking about out of his head and instead, rising to the challenge. "In your dreams, Raphie-boy!"
-:-
A/N:
Sorry about this long author note but I wanted to discuss something with you all. I was sent some concrit via PM after posting the last chapter and I do appreciate it, very much so and I recognise I do have some issues with this story, for example, that it's not as balanced as it could be considering both sides are going through garbage and I've sometimes had to fight to remember to put things in during editing to show that the 2k12 family is hurting too (there will be a bigger focus on that in a near-future chapter though, considering Mutation Day is fast approaching for this side of the story) but this story is predominantly from Mikey's PoV so at the same time, that makes sense. He knows it, he acknowledges it but it's not really in his frame of view, so to speak, so it makes sense. Though that said, I could do better.
However, some of the things pointed out to me are that I am ignoring Mikey's flaws (because he's my favourite character) in favour of 'drawing out' others' flaws, that I am making Donnie out to be a jerk and that it's not fair to everyone else to be walking on eggshells around Mikey.
Honestly, I've been down a lot lately and when I saw the comments I was hit hard by them. I've taken them in since, considered them but I responded straight away while emotional (I was already in a bad place which is why it hit as hard as it did). Now, they were a fair opinion but after a week of thinking it over and then talking to a friend, I'd like to respond again and I'd also like the input of other readers if you're willing. (sorry, it's now been a couple of months since I wrote these notes)
The 2k12 family walking on eggshells around Mikey:
1: They are going through stuff too. They are missing their own brother. They suddenly have a stranger among them who is very much like their brother in many ways and very different in other ways. They don't know how to deal with each other right now considering one of their own is missing and they don't know how to deal with Mike either. Them walking on eggshells isn't just in regards to Mike's feelings but their own also, though it makes sense to me that they would do so, especially after some of his reactions.
They are younger than Mike, they have less experience in the human world and dealing with other people outside of their immediate family. They have less experience dealing with trauma and they have no one to turn to to learn how to deal with it.
Yes, Splinter's gone through trauma and they grew up with him but while he loves them, he is a rather stoic character and is seen to keep things from them often. They know his past but he would have done everything he could to shield them, and himself, from his actual feelings about it.
April. Sure, she's been captured by the Kraang before. A couple of times, in fact. But for as long? Did she go through anything too bad besides her liberty and father being taken and basically being afraid? Not really. There was the incident in which they were going to drill into her head for DNA or whatever but it didn't get very far and she stopped it before being rescued by Raph. Her father was held captive for a long time and then later mutated. Her mother went missing when she was young. She's learnt to deal with trauma, at least to an extent. She probably picked up some stuff from her father (even though he's a hot mess himself). The 2k12 family's dealings with April are very different to that of Mike and by now, they also know her well so interacting with her and her personal trauma is very different from trying to deal with someone else's and their own.
2: Despite the number of chapters, only a few days have passed by this point. Mikey's only been awake since being rescued for 3-4 days. It's still early days. There is a learning curve for both sides.
No one knows how to deal with this. Not even Splinter, though he's trying. He's putting himself out there, offering time to Michelangelo (a stranger who very much reminds him of his missing son), offering an ear to him. Splinter never had anyone to turn to for his own trauma. He had to let his children heal him and they were only infants when they were thrust together into a life that no one actually asked for.
Mikey has also noticed they are hurting and is also trying to be careful for their sakes.
Yes, it's not fair and yes, if everyone continues to walk on eggshells for long, someone will snap. Raph or Mikey himself probably, but it could be anyone. At this point, I think I stand by everyone being careful (it won't always be this way) but if anyone has a different opinion, please, let me know and your thoughts about why.
Donnie being a Jerk:
He was not being a jerk. He was caught up in a moment. The thing is, I do see 2k12 Donnie rambling when he's stuck in a scientific thought train. Which is why that happened. It wasn't because he's not my favourite or I see him as a jerk... In fact, he is a very close second favourite character. I love Donnie be it 2k3, 2k12, '87 or any other version. (not counting RoT here because I have only seen half the first season before lame, filler-style mini 'Scooby and Scrappy Doo'-like episodes put me off – I have, however, read the occasional RoT fanfic and enjoyed it, though I don't go looking for them)
He doesn't only do this where April is concerned or an exciting invention/piece of tech. Okay, it's probably more prevalent then, but I very much doubt those are the only times. He's often gone off on tangents while excited or consumed by a train of thought and that's what happened there when he was thinking about the differences between Mike and themselves. Which, while it's not tech-related, does fall under science.
While talking to my friend, she said, and I quote "I didn't even blink at him doing that. It's totally a Donnie thing to do. Get wrapped up and not notice someone being uncomfortable." *Her name is not mentioned to protect her anonymity.
Mikey realises this and he doesn't blame Donnie (as was mentioned in this very chapter – which has in fact been roughly written since about October or November 2021 and planned for years before that). He too was caught up in the moment and thinking back to when the Kraang were experimenting on him.
2k3 Donnie is a gentle, considerate, well-meaning and kind dork. 2k12 Donnie is a highly strung, occasionally (though not deliberately) inconsiderate yet thoughtful and kind, well-meaning dork. I love them both and for different reasons.
Ignoring Mikey's flaws in favour of drawing out the 2k12 family's flaws:
Again, this story is predominantly from Mikey's PoV so it's harder to notice since he, himself, wouldn't be reflecting on them but that doesn't mean it's not there.
He's talked back to Splinter, he's sworn (something he doesn't normally do), he's impatient to train fully and spar, even though he's not yet up to it, he's lashed out or run away at various times, hell, he attacked Leo. Yes, he was stuck in a PTSD induced flashback, didn't know where he really was and was terrified at the time but he still did that. Mikey has been deliberately and willfully annoying and gross in an effort to distract others (talking with his mouth full and chewing with it open in front of Donnie while Donnie was trying to have a serious conversation with him). He has been distracted and not fully focused at times, a very typical Mikey thing but that said, he's been trying harder. Because he doesn't want to end up captured and controlled by the Kraang again and he doesn't want to alienate this family who he barely knows if he can help it. He will push himself harder for those reasons, try harder to focus and do more, because he's scared and shaken by what he went through.
The reason for the focus on the 2k12 family's flaws is because Mikey is a stranger to them and it is him seeing them and him comparing them, however unfairly, to his brothers and we, as the readers, are seeing through his eyes.
I'm no psychiatrist or psychologist but I do know that trauma affects everyone differently. There is no right way to deal with it for everyone. Only ways that might help one person but not necessarily someone else. It's a matter of finding the right way to help the individual in question. For that matter, none of the 2k12 family are psychiatrists or psychologists either, though April's father is. Unfortunately, at this point in the story, he is still a mutant bat who only barely has enough self-awareness to remember April is important to him and therefore, no help.
I think some of my problems stem from having not given this story as much attention as it deserves for years due to being distracted by other projects and having a hard time splitting my attention more evenly.
2k3 IS my favourite TMNT universe but I love other versions too, especially 2k12 despite its many, many flaws. In fact, 2k12 only enhanced my love for TMNT in general and made me see deeper into other versions of them.
I'm not attacking the concrit, I'm just responding more thoughtfully after having time to think about it and talking it through with a friend and when I'm not in as bad a place as I was when I PMed my original reply.
For anyone who is still reading this far down (miracle), I am genuinely interested in what you have to say. I am serious when I say I want concrit because I do want to improve. This is only a hobby but writing is also the only thing that makes me truly happy. Heck, I could live with just writing for myself and not posting if it came down to it. Sometimes it feels like I'd be better off not posting anyway because there's so little interest in anything outside of my main couple of stories but I'm not going to stop writing what I want because it (and reading) is the only thing that makes life worth living.
That said, I am sorry for the delay in posting of recent. Not only had I been in a bad place for a bit there but then horrifying events in the real world caught my attention and made it harder to write. The good news, though, is I have managed to write 3 one-shots (1 stand-alone 2k3 story and 2 set in the 'How Much is that Turtle in Window' universe) in the last week and a half after leaving the house and going to the library and I'm in the process of writing a 4th. I kinda needed a break and to write something that wasn't part of a massive multi-chapter story to help me get back.
* If you ever see my stories posted anywhere other than under the name Zelgadis55 at Deviant Art, FFNet, AO3 or Live Journal, then they have been stolen. Please report them.