A Turtle on the Outside, a Wolf on the Inside

by Sairey13

Before Yoshi got the turtles from the Pet Store, Leo was found playing with the manager's dog, who was told to be a wolf-hybrid. Right before Yoshi took the turtles away, Leo ate some of the canine's fur and when he got mutated, the mutagen somehow enhanced the inside of his body to match a wolf's behavior and abilities. NO T-CEST, LEORAI or APRITELLO!

19. Tales of Leo

July Eleventh, 2012; Three Weeks Ago: New York...
The citizens of New York are in the process of calming down, after their ordeal with Kraang's attempt on abducting them and taking over the city and then, the whole world. No human had any idea who stopped the aliens and how they're still here, but the animals of the city knew who saved them all.

It was three humanoid-turtles and the humanoid-wolf/turtle, Moon Scar, who saved them all.

Word immediately spread by the birds, who then carried their story to other neighboring states of the city and allowed them to pass on the message to other animals of the further parts of the land. The animals of New York hoped that their words travels beyond the land and ocean of the planet; not only to let all Earth Young learn how close to possible extinction they were from off-world trespassers… But, also, for all to keep an eye out for the humanoid-wolf/turtle, who disappeared the very day day Kraang was defeated and has not been seen since the fall of the Technodrome.

The birds saw the three humanoid-turtles and a human-girl escape the great ship before it sank to the bottom of the ocean, and not one of them could locate where the fourth turtle was underneath the waters... The only thing that they found that belonged to him, was a blue ninja-mask surfacing from below the waters and the waves carrying it towards the shoreline.

For four days, the strays and birds of New York searched for the humanoid-wolf/turtle. For four days and four nights, none stopped on their efforts to find the one who saved not only them, but the Earth, herself.

However, when the fifth night rolled by, some started to stop on the search for that need to focus on taking care of their youngs and/or finding new homes when their old one got damaged or destroyed by Kraang. Tomorrow, will be undecided on who will continue looking for Moon Scar and who will stop.

One thing the animals know for certain, even if they stopped looking, the three humanoid-turtles and human-girl won't stop on their own search for their missing pack member.

They search high and low for the oldest-turtle, always calling out his human name for him to reply back to, from early dusk till dawn. The human-girl, even in the middle of the day, would continue the search on her own, while hoping he hadn't been spotted by other humans and taken away to some lab for experimentation.

It pleases the animals that Moon Scar's Pack is also looking for their brother and leader... However, they know if the humanoid-wolf/turtle isn't found in a certain amount of time, it'll be a terrible A tragic day for all to have to conclude, to their forced decision, that he has died giving his life for all on Earth.

And when that day come, it'll be the hardest moment for his pack to accept.

---

July Seventeenth, a Week Later...
An orange-masked turtle sat on the couch of the living-room, playing Super Smash Brother Brawl on the television... Alone. He asked his two older-brothers to play with him, but both turned down his offer: Donatello was too busy fixing the Shellraiser, with Kirby O'Neal assisting him, and Raphael preferred to train than waste time with video games. He would've asked April if she wanted to play with him, but was hanging out with some of her human friends at the mall and won't be back until tomorrow, since she'll be having a sleepover with them.

Ever since the invasion, April's father has been coming down and vising them lately, wanting to get to know the mutants that had protected his daughter from Kraang since his abduction and training her to protect herself if left on her own. He mostly comes over near the evening, about an hour before dinner starts for the Hamato Clan. During his visit, Splinter shows to enjoy the human's company and be able to spend time with somebody when it's tea time, since Le-

Michelangelo immediately shook his head and, realizing he hadn't been actually paying attention to what was happening in the game, ended up having to watch his Donkey Kong get blasted off the battlefield by the Computer Player as Samus Aran, costing him the game and naming Samus the winner.

"NOOOOO! DK!" Mikey cried out, falling to his knees in a dramatic way to express his horror to his sudden defeat in video games.

"Calm down, Mikey. It's just a video game." Donatello called out from his lab, still working on the Shellraiser.

The youngest-turtle chose to ignore his older-brother, too busy on looking at the screen, lost in thoughts on how he could've let himself get distracted from playing video games when he was so close to victory. Only to know why he let it slip right out of his grasp: Because his mind went to thinking about his big brother, Leonardo, who may or may not be in New York... Or even alive, for that matter. He didn't like to think so negative, let alone believe that thought to be true, but his mind couldn't find any reason to convince himself, otherwise.

It was just two days ago, while still looking for their big brother, that they searched at the shoreline for the twentieth time and failed on finding him... However, they did ended up finding a blue-bandana that they knew belonged to Leo.

Since finding the abandoned ninja-mask, none were certain on what to think. They head back to the Lair, where they encounter their father and present them with what he gave to the eldest-turtle when they were six. Once given the mask, all the fifty year-old father did was clench it to his chest and head for his room, most likely to meditate... Or, in their own opinions, mourn in solitude.

They still continued to search for Leo, but as each day passes and with each unsuccessful attempts to finding him, the more each of the brothers started to believe they won't find their missing brother and will have to face the unfortunate possibility that he's-.

Michelangelo felt tears filling his eyes, which he immediately wiped away, sniffling a bit.

"Don't think that," he whispered to himself. "He's can't be dead. Leo can't be defeated that easily. He wouldn't go down without a fight, so there's no way that giant-brain alien could-... Well, Leo would find a way to escape and pull a Batman on anyone if he's recovering from whatever injuries he got from Kraang-zilla."

A part of him knew he was making up another excuse to hold on to that small glimmer of hope that his big brother will turn up, but he didn't care. Mikey already knew how close the others are at having to accept that Leonardo is gone when they haven't found his body, let alone his swords, and he feels he would be the one to hold on to that hope for all of them. The only one who supported his decision to keep believing Leo is alive is April, who stated that she can still 'feel' him.

Donatello would claim that he believes that, too, but mostly because he didn't want to upset the girl and admit to doubting her unexplainable 'gift' she has. And Raphael... While he seems to, also, doubt Mikey and April's reason to not accept the possibility that Kraang killed Leo, he wasn't going to give up on the search for his twin-brother.

Master Splinter, clearly, showed to having to already given up the instant he was given the ninja-mask. On each of the bandanas, there's a faint Kanji symbol of the Hamato Clan on the right-side of the masks, next to the right-eye. Of course, he had given them spares should their current masks gets damaged or they, somehow, lost it. But the mask he held in his hand, he is certain to being the very mask he gave to Leo, for it's faint scent of incense that only he had possession of*.

His father's response and reluctance to help then look for Leo hurt the orange-masked turtle, only to soon find out that humanoid-rat would meditate to look for the oldest-turtle on his own investigation, which always lead him to finding nothing. If Splinter is unable to locate Leonardo in the Astral Plane or get some answer to find out what became of him when the Technodrome sank, then it was no wonder he was so quick as to quit searching for his eldest-son.

Despite learning his father's failure and inability to locate his big brother, Michelangelo was more determine to go look for him

'When I needed help, Leo was always there to help me. Shell, he came back and saved me from Kraang!' He heart clenched from the utmost reason why he wants to keep looking: Guilt that he almost got himself killed by Kraang and that his brother, not only risked his life to save his, but delayed them from immediately escaping the Technodrome when they were a good distance away from their enemy.

To Mikey, he was the one to force Leo to stay behind and hold back Kraang, allowing them to escape before crashing into the ocean.

'We need to find him... I need to find him, no matter what.'

He attention on video game, waiting for him to decide to continue playing or to quit. And immediately, he or pressed 'Continue' and resumed his battle against the Computer Player, Samus Aran... Only, this time, he played as Lucario.

'I'll find you, Bro. Even if the guys and Sensei stopped searching, I won't stop until I find you... Dead, even, so long we actually find you and not some piece of your armor, because you helped me when I needed you.'

---

Flashback, Nine Years Ago…
"For the thousandth time, Mikey, I'm not going to help you find your Game Guy!" Six year-old Raphael yelled at his youngest-brother, who was grabbing him by the leg and pleading for him to help him look for his small game-system.

"But Raphie, I need your help to find it!" The youngest-turtle pleaded, giving him his big, puppy-dog eyes to get him to change his mind. "I promise to leave you alone, if you do it. Please?"

Raphael raised a brow at his brother, very much irritated of his baby-brother bothering him when all he wants to is keep pummeling the practice dummy their father set up for them to us as target practice to enhance their punches and kicks.

"You said that the last time you lost something, and guess what? You kept on bothering me, because you wanted me to play video games with you!"

The youngest of the quadruplets already knew that, but is very determine to get his older-brother to play with him and not be cast aside, like their purple-masked brother had done. So, pulling his ultimate trump card, his eyes watered a bit and his lower lip quivered.

"Pwease, Raphie?"

Out of all of the Hamato members, Raphael is the second to least likely to fall for the puppy-eye trick the youngest would pull, but when seeing the small tears in his eyes and quivering lip, set off the warning bells on his head. Michelangelo is threatening him in a situation where he would allow himself to cry, acting or serious, and make the second-eldest look like the bad guy to their father for hurting his brother's feelings.

He had to act fast and think you a quick plan to avoid possible punishment, before the waterworks kicks in.

"Uh... Did you asked Donnie?" That got the youngest-turtle's eyes to water even more.

"He wouldn't help me, and kicked me out of his lab." He whimpered.

Then, out of the blue, Raph's thoughts went to his older-twin.

"What about Leo?" He quickly asked, feeling a slight hope of relief when seeing the confused look on the orange-masked turtle's face. That was his ticket to freedom. "He's been in the living room the whole time after morning training, right? He may have seen it."

The red-masked turtle silently prayed for somebody from above to let his lie work, and save him from his baby brother's threat to get him in trouble for something he didn't do.

...Luckily, the orange-masked turtle bought his lie.

"Okay. I'll go see Leo!" Immediately, the tears went away and the puppy-eyes turned back to normal pairs of eyes, no traces of sadness is left on the freckle-faced turtle, and began to skip out of the dojo and head for the living room.

Raphael let out a big sigh of relief, mouthing the words 'thank you' to the air above him, before turning back to the practice dummy* and proceed to punching it to his heart's content.

Outside of the dojo, Michelangelo scoped out for his big brother with such determination to find his missing Game Guy. He already thought about looking for the blue-masked turtle in his room, but remembered that Splinter had told him, after training, to do something outside of his bedroom. And he knew, for a fact, that he would never go to the kitchen, even if he was thirsty.

So, the most logical choice for the youngest on where to find his big brother, is the living room. And when he went over to the couch, he found his guess to being correct when he saw the blue-masked turtle, laying on his plastron on one of the two couches, focusing on the cushion instead of the TV.

A sudden thought came to Mikey's head, making him grin a wicked smile on his face. Slowly, and as quietly as he became, went behind the couch his brother laid on and took a deep breath. He counted down the numbers in his head, planning to make his move on three, when...

"Don't even think about it." The instant Leonardo finished his sentence, Michelangelo, with his cover blown, ended up blowing a raspberry, some spit flying and jumping off of his lips in the process*. His plan to scare his brother by screaming his name, foiled.

With his cover blown, Mikey launched himself to the otherside the couch.

"How did you know what I was going to do?" He asked his big brother, who continued to stare at what was beneath him on the cushion.

"I'm your big brother. I know everything," he answered. "Now, what is it that you want?"

Michelangelo gave him a confused look.

"I thought you knew everything," he replied. Taking a closer look, he noticed paper underneath his brother, a green color-pencil held in his right-hand. His curiosity got the best of him. "What you drawing, Bro?"

He didn't cease his drawing, but Leo did acknowledged him by answering his question.

"I don't know." His answer earned him an odd look from Mikey.

"You're drawing, and you don't know what it is?"

On the piece of paper, is a well done drawing of a plainfield of grass, underneath blue-sky and, behind the field, a few greyish-mixed purple mountains. The colors blended so well and mixed together in a certain pattern, that words couldn't even describe how much work and talent the blue-masked turtle has in art.

He was so taken back by what he sees, Michelangelo completely forgotten about the search for his missing Game Guy and now found a new interest to do.

"Dude… This. Is… Awesome!" He complimented, having his brother to blush from both shyness, and embarrassment. "Can you teach me how to draw like you? Please?!"

Leonardo was completely taken back to his brother's request. While he knows of Mikey's interest of drawing, having the orange-masked turtle asking him to help him with a talent they both share to enjoy is something he never expected to happen.

Lifting his gaze to look up to the youngest-turtle, he gave him a smile of reassurance.

"I don't think I can teach you how to draw exactly like me, Mikey." He answered, confusing the orange-masked turtle and having a look of disappointment.

"How come?" He asked.

Sitting up from the couch, Leo faced his baby brother.

"Because everyone has a unique talent that is unique only to them," he started to explain. "You see, Mikey, people who are skilled in art, all have their own unique talent and gift on how they make art come to life in their own way. Because of that, it's physically impossible for anybody to copy another's style of art. I mean, many would try, but under the trained eye of a professional, they'll be able to tell the difference between the real thing and what's fake."

Michelangelo, who understood what his big brother is trying to tell him, couldn't stop the disappointment to appear on his face when given the news. His eyes watered, staring down at the beautiful picture his brother made on his own that he wish to be able to do, too.

Leonardo watch as his brother slowly pouted, which he knew will lead to sobbing and then crying. Unlike Raphael and Donatello, the blue-masked turtle isn't that all fazed when their baby-brother breaks down into tears. Real, or just to gain attention by putting on a show. And whenever dealt with a situation where the orange-masked turtle is going to let out the water works, the blue-masked turtle would find ways to prevent them from going off.

And, right now, he knew exactly what to do.

Underneath his drawing, a few extra sheet of paper are pulled out. Pulling out one of them, he held it out to the youngest, who immediately stopped his silent sobs that were starting to form. Mikey gazed at his big-brother, confused.

"Here," the eldest turtle said.

Still confused, Mikey gently took the paper from Leo, who then pulled out a pencil box that held a bunch of pencils mixed in with other coloring pencils. Pulling out another blank piece of paper for himself, Leo got off the couch and laid on the floor.

He looked up at the still confused Mikey, who he gave a small-smile.

"I won't be able to get you to draw like I do. However, what I can do is show you some other drawing techniques that you may use to perfect your own drawing. Only if you wish to, that is."

Baby-blue eyes widened to the offer Leo is giving to him. His heart raced with anticipation, finding hope to do copy what his brother's doing, as his mind is ready and excited to be learning something new that he can do with his drawing.

Immediately, the tears were gone and dropped down to the ground in front of Leonardo, a blue colored-pencil in hand, waiting for the blue-masked turtle to give him lessons on certain art styles he never knew about.

For the next hour, the oldest and the youngest Hamato Brothers drew, enjoying in each other's company: One of them, taking pleasure at interacting with one of his big brothers. While they other brother, proud to get the orange-masked turtle to do something creative than waste time searching and playing with his missing game-system.
End of Flashback

---

Pausing the game, he got up to his feet and made his way to his bedroom. Beyond the room that's littered with pizza boxes, old toys, clothing that, for some reason, he keeps and will wear from time to time, is a dresser at the far left-corner of the room. Heading immediately for the furniture, Michelangelo pulled the drawer. There, within the drawer, are stacks of papers of his drawings he's done in the past. However underneath his drawing, is one particular picture he kept very good care of. Pushing aside his creations, he pulled out the drawing that always served as a reminder of his brother's kindness and how he views the orange-masked turtle.

It was the picture of the plainfield of grass, with the blue-sky hanging over the field and the mountains from behind... And, for the finishing touch to the picture: A pure-black Mustang, standing at the very top of the hill, waving it's front-hooves in the air while standing on it's hind-legs.

Mikey smiled at the magnificent creature his big brother drew, gently running his fingers over the horse, marveled at the littlest details Leo put in to create the Mustang.

As they were drawing to their hearts' content, not only did Leonardo have him great drawing tips to help him improve his drawing, but also found his missing Game Guy, which was hiding underneath the couch, after the orange-masked turtle dropped it from sleeping on the couch in the middle of the day. Mikey was thrilled to have found his missing game-system, though didn't feel the need to play it right now and wanted to draw a few more things before afternoon training starts.

When Splinter announced his sons to clean up and get ready for training, Leonardo finished drawing the black-Mustang and, as Mikey took his drawings to his bedroom, gave him his drawing to keep. Of course, Mikey refused, not seeing it right to take something that clearly belongs to his brother, but Leo convinced him to have it as a gift.

"Besides," he said. "I was finally able to finish it, because of you."

To this very day, Michelangelo treasured the picture his brother made and, had it serve as a reminder what the two share is special and unique, to the both of them. Written in black colored-pencil, underneath the black-horse, there was a special writing the blue-masked turtle written that pushed the orange-masked turtle to be who he was:

強大なムスタングのように、誰かにあなたやあなたの精神を引きずり込ませたり、風のように素早くさせないでください。(Never let anyone, or anything, drag you or your spirit down, and be swift as the wind, like the mighty Mustang.)

A tear slid down his cheek, which he quickly wiped away before it could land on the drawing, before setting it down on his desk. A smile spread on his face.

'I promise, Leo.' He thought. 'I won't let anything drag me down... So long as I know that some way, some how, that you're still alive, I won't let anyone, or anything, pull me down.'

---

July Twenty-Second, Five Days Later…
"Almost done... Just a little bit more Sulfur, and that should-"

"Hey, Donnie!" Michelangelo's yelling, practically in his ear, caused Donatello to jerk and spill his chemical experiment he's been working on for over a month and a half all over the counter, with the beaker shattering into shards when crashed to the ground.

Both gaze down the destroyed glad that held the clear-liquid, then stared at each other. Donatello glared daggers down at the orange-masked turtle, who gave our a nervous chuckle.

"Oops," he said. "Sorry about that, Bro."

Clearly, the purple-masked turtle didn't approve his apology that easily. His reddish-brown eyes simply narrowed, as a low groan of anger could be heard in his chest.

"I've been working on that experiment for over a month, Mikey." He growled out, making the youngest-turtle to be more nervous send a little scared of his older-brother towering him. "Now, I gotta redo the whole thing, again."

He turned his shell to his brother and walked across his lab to grab for a rag and broom, muttering his annoyance on how much longer he'll have to wait to see the results of his experiment... Along with wanting to show it to April to impress her what his experiment will be able to do for the city of New York.

Eyeing at the damage breaker on the floor, Michelangelo noticed other breakers holding the same clear-liquid the last breaker held.

"Hey, Donnie, how come there are more of those liquids over here? Why not use these with whatever you're doing?" He asked, making an attempt to grab one, only to have Donatello grab his hand and pulling it away from his other experiments.

"Because, Mikey, each of those beakers are in the cleansing process from each parts of the sewers' waters that's at about a two mile radius from the Lair. If I add water from a different area of the sewer, it'll contaminate the cleansing process and ruin the experiment. -He set the beaker back in it's spot, then turned his head to stare at his only younger-brother.- What are you even doing here, anyway, Mikey?"

The orange-masked turtle, who was still a little hurt by his brother's angry voice, gave him a gloomy look.

"Master Splinter wanted me to come get you out of the lab," he answered. "You've been in here for days, Bro."

His claim to how long he's been inside his sanctuary, startled the purple-masked turtle.

"'Days'?" He repeated, losing the anger he had towards Mikey. "That can't be right. I've been in for hours!"

The youngest-turtle raised a non-existing brow, crossing his arms over his plastron and lightly tapping his left-foot. He, Raphael and Splinter expected this to happen.

"What day is it, Dee?" He asked, though he already knows he'll answer question with the wrong answer.

"It's the... Twentieth. Right?" The genius turtle cautiously answered, his sleep deprived making him not being truly clear of the day.

Michelangelo, disproved if response, pointed a finger to the older-turtle's computer.

"Dude, go see what today is."

Donatello did as his brother told him to do, and was shocked to find what is computer told him what today is. Immediately, he realized his mistake, and why their father has sent Michelangelo to retrieve him from his lab.

"Oh, no." He grumbled, gently slapping himself in the face.

"Yeah, and he said that if you don't come out, he's going to drag you out, by the cheek, and lock the doors to your lab for a week."

In the back of his mind, the genius turtle felt like Mikey was lying to him by the warning threat. He also noticed that, without thinking, the orange-masked turtle rhymed the last to part of his sentence.

Irritated, Donnie made his way to the youngest-turtle, narrowing his eyes.

"Did he actually told you that specific threat, word for word, Mikey?"

Immediately, Michelangelo realizes his mistake by bringing up the cheek threat to the purple-masked turtle. in no way, no how, their father ever threatened them by saying he was going to grab them by the cheek; he would already be doing it, without uttering a word.

Also, while Master Splinter would want his intelligent son to not spend his entire time in his lab, twenty-four/seven... The humanoid-rat hasn't been talkative lately, let alone fully aware on what's going on amongst his… Three sons.

Seeing the fear in his baby-blue eyes, Donatello knew, without a doubt, that the orange-masked turtle lied to him and has purposely interrupted his work.

"Mikey…"

Knowing he's been caught, Mikey found no reason to keep lying to his older-brother anymore. And so, he got down to his knees before his brother, two-hands held together.

"Please, come out, Dee." He cut right down to the chase, giving him his big, puppy-dog eyes.

Donatello kept glaring down at his brother. Completely unaffected by Mikey's Puppy-Eyes of Doom.

"I need to finish my work, Mikey." He told him, heading back to his table to restart Beaker "SE47".

Irritated at being ignored and his own concern for his older-brother being tossed aside, Michelangelo just about had it. And so, decided to pull up another one of his trump cards.

"If you don't stop with your experiment and come out of your lab, I'll get Raph to drag you out."

Again, Donatello felt the chill of fear crawling down his shell and spine. Out of the three who can bring him out of his sanctuary, Raphael is the one capable to physically drag him out. Not only that, but his way of handling the purple-masked turtle is to do a suflex or, worse, a pile drive, leaving the genius turtle with pain that can last for almost an entire month.

With Master Splinter's threat and reasoning to get him out of the lab, Donnie can handle. But Raphael's methods, is almost a fate worse than death.

"You... You wouldn't." 'Please, please, for once, have him in a bad mood and spare me from Mikey's threat.' He silently begged for somebody up above to hear his plea and save him.

Sadly for him, no one was going to save him. Michelangelo gave him a slide smile and, purposely, let out a deep gasp of breath to fill his lungs to the fullest.

"RAA-!" Immediately, Donatello covered the orange-masked turtle's mouth with both of his hands, cutting off the yell just in time.

The genius turtle knew he has no other choice, but to give in, if he wants to avoid Raph getting involved.

"Alright," he said. "I'll come out."

Satisfied, Michelangelo made a bunch of muffling sounds, talking very fast and excited. No doubt, Don guessed he was naming up a bunch of things to do together. He knows better than to try and talk him out of the plan, unless he wants to risk having Raphael brought in.

He released the orange-masked turtle, who immediately took off to who knows where. Left all alone, Donatello let out an annoyed sigh of breath, lifting part of his mask up to rub his eyes to rid away the drowsiness that held in his chocolate-brown eyes.

'That little Terror,' he thought. 'Can't he, for once, learn to take a hint and leave me to my work?'

He stared at the multiple breakers on his work bench, all showing no activity or response to the compounds he added into the liquids he collected from the sewers. He walked to the table, glaring at them as if willing himself to use his non-existing heat-vision and disintegrate them.

'I was certain there would've been more results. Why will none of them start dissolving?!' He let out a groan of frustration, grabbing his head when a headache formed... Then, let out a very long sigh, feeling defeated. '...How could this have gone wrong?'

That time, he isn't referring to his experiment. He's referring to what he refused to bring up, eleven days ago.

The day he, Hamato Donatello, is convinced that their big brother, Leonardo, is dead, and tried to tell his remaining brothers that they need to face that terrible fact.

Needless to say, neither of them took his words very well: Michelangelo was using every ounce of energy to not break down and cry, while Raphael... He decided to leave him with a black-eye and a very-bruised lip. The genius turtle is just grateful that Master Splinter and Mikey stopped the red-masked turtle from punching one of his teeth out to make the gap of his tooth any bigger.

April, herself, claimed he is wrong and that she can still feel him, despite not understanding why or having any proof to back up her claim.

He wanted very much to believe her. He really did, and not just because his crush towards the redhead wants him to do whatever it takes for her to like him just as much as he does towards her.

He truly wants his brother to be alive, wherever he is, and bring him home.

'There's so much I need to say to him,' he thought. 'He's done so much for us, including myself, that I took his help for granted. Even when it's to get me to put down my work and go to bed.'

---

Flashback, Seven Years Ago...
"A few turns, and that should just about do it." Eight year-old Donatello said to himself, turning the last two screws into the little toy car he made from scraps and parts Master Splinter found while scavenging for supplies.

Earlier, on TV, he watch how people made their own remote control toy car and watching what they do inspired the young turtle to do the same. For the whole week, the tell genius requested his father to look for certain parts that he needed to make both the remote control and the car, itself. Some of the parts he needed took a little longer for Splinter to find, but in the end, after nearly two weeks a progress, he just about finished.

With his trusty screwdriver, Donatello made the first two turns, tightening the screws that held the wheels to the car.

Just as he was about to finish the third turn...

"Donnie." A voice from behind made the purple-masked turtle to jump, letting out a high-pitch yelp, dropping his screwdriver from his hand. Turning, eyes wide, he saw the intruder being his big brother, Leonardo.

Judging by the sheen of his forest-green skin, he just got out of the shower, appearing to be much fresher and relaxed than he did during evening training. He also noticed a few parts of his shell looking a lot better, considering all four of them are in the process of shedding their scutes.

Nevertheless, seeing that it was his blue-masked brother who dares to intervene with his creation, made Donatello a not so very happy turtle.

"Leo!" He yelled, placing a hand over his chest to calm his beating heart. "What is it with you and sneaking up on me?! What are you even doing here?"

Unfazed by his brother's attitude and response to his choice of making an appearance, Leonardo calmly answered his question.

"There will come a time where you shouldn't have your guard lowered, even if we're living in the sewers. As for why I'm here. -He pointed a finger to the clock hanging on the wall, directing Don's attention to the time.- It's time for bed."

The clock reads 9:13 and, because he's been his lab since finishing dinner, Donatello found his brother's claim to be true. His joy on finishing his toy immediately drained away.

And, as any eight year-old child would do when told to do something that don't want to do, he complained.

"But Leo, I'm just about finished making the car." He stated, presenting the almost completed toy he made with his own bare hands. "Please, give me a few more minutes?"

The blue-masked turtle simply folded his arms over his chest, shaking his head from side to side.

"Master Splinter sent me to get you to bed," he replied. "We also have training tomorrow, so it's best to hold off your invention until after breakfast."

Donatello already knew his big brother wouldn't agree to his request, but even that didn't mean he wouldn't start throwing a tantrum.

"I need to do this, Leo!" He whined, throwing his goggles onto the table. "It's really important that I finish this! Why can't you and the others see that?! None of you understand how much this means to me!"

Leonardo narrowed his eyes into cold slits, lifting part of his lips to showoff his shiny, sharp teeth. He let out a low growl, shutting Donnie right up from his continuous outburst of demanding to be allowed to continue working on the car and how unfair the oldest-turtle is being.

The instant he went quiet, did Leo went silent, too.

"Are you done?" He asked, keeping his glare on his brother. Unable to make a sound underneath the burning gaze, Don nodded his head. "Good. Now, I'm going to start talking and you're going to listen. All right?" He earned another nod from his purple-masked brother. "Okay. First: You've been in your lab since dinner. That was over three hours ago, and that's not including the two hours you spent in your lab after lunch and the other three after breakfast. Meaning, you've wasted eight hours cooped up in your own lab, without any interaction with Raph, Mikey, Sensei or even myself, outside of morning and afternoon training session."

Donatello blushed at the information, eyes wide and astonished at his big brother for the info.

'He actually kept track on how long I spent in the lab, all day?'

"Second: You know that Master Splinter has us on a schedule that we need to follow, especially since we'll end up having to do more time into our training sessions when we get older. However, because we are children and, though both training sessions are only an hour long, we need to follow a certain sleep pattern to regain whatever energy we used up to remain active and healthy. I wouldn't need to tell you this, if you hadn't been slacking off in training from your little 'Night Projects' you would do until dawn."

Fear flashed in Don's brownish-red eyes.

'He knew?!' "H… How-?"

"Don... Whose room is next to yours?" Leo asked, giving his answer to his brother in the form of a question. "And Sensei already knew, himself, that you've been waiting, in the middle of the night, to sneak into your lab and do your little projects through the rest of the night, just by seeing how much you keep nodding off… Plus, you have a knack for not closing the door to your lab all the way."

The purple-masked turtle screamed 'Stupid!' in the back of his mind at himself, for letting himself get caught so easily of his attempt to continue working on his most important work before Fall comes around.

"And finally:... I can't believe you would say an object, a meaningless possession, would be far more important to you, than your own health and safety." His eyes remained cold, but the Cerulean/Sapphire color of his irises showed no signs of hatred. Only concern for the second youngest-turtle. "You may be right that none of us understand your passion for science and inventing, but you'll have to accept that certain activities you grow to love can't be place over what's actually important in your life."

Donatello took his words to heart on what he's telling him to hear. Yes, he knew how much he needed to sleep and, yes, because they're eight years old, they need plenty of sleep to get through the day. However, to the genius turtle, there were many things on TV and interesting facts from the free books that possess, that he couldn't help but get lost in the wonders if science and technology.

He was just so excited and thrilled on what both has to offer, that he began to neglect without thinking about the consequences his negligent to his own well-being was taking a serious toll on himself... And, without realizing it, ignoring how brothers and father, in the process.

'I knew my curiosity for inventing and science would demand my attention, but I never realize how much it's taking my attention from my family.' He bowed his head, ashamed of himself for his outburst and comments he made to his big brother. "I'm sorry, Leo."

Leonardo's eyes turned from narrow slits to normal, round eyes. He gave him a sad-smile, came up to his brother and placed a hand on his right-shoulder.

"Now do you see it's important to stop when you must?" He asked, earning a nod for an answer. "Good. Now, go brush your teeth and head on to bed, before Master Splinter gets here and decides to lock your lab for a day."

Donnie knew it was light-hearted threat, but both knew their sensei would very well do so if he doesn't listen to Leo's warning. He got out of his chair and made his way to the direction for the bathroom.

Before leaving the room, his brother's voice made him freeze in his steps.

"When you finish this, you should show it to us." Leonardo suggested, eyeing at the toy car on the table. "The guys and Sensei will be very amazed on what you can make and do, for the Lair… I know I find this very cool."

Joy spread in the younger-turtle's from his brother's compliment of his car. In his mind, he was more than happy to show Leo what parts their father found to help make the car and how he's able to make it work, but his eyes reminded him that he needs to go to sleep. So, he decided with a compromise.

"I will," he promised. "When it's done, I'll show it to you guys."
End of Flashback...

---

Donatello pinched the bridge of his beak with two of his three fingers, feeling a headache building up and his eyes struggling to stay open.

'I need more coffee…' He thought to himself, heading to his computer to grab for his coffee mug that still had some coffee left. As he reached for the handle of the cup, over his head, something caught his attention. Looking up, he saw what he hadn't seen so long ago: The toy car he made, at the age of eight, seven years ago.

Just as he promised to Leo, after morning training and breakfast, he finished the last adjustment to the small-toy and proudly showed it off to his brothers and father. Even before he gotten the chance to demonstrate it on how it functions through a controller he, also, made, Raphael and Michelangelo were very much ecstatic to finally have a toy to play with. Splinter, himself, was beyond impressed on how his genius son was capable of making a toy with scraps he found in the sewers, never certain if they could be useful at all.

As Don showed them how it worked, Leonardo gave him a proud smile. Getting any form of praise from his big brother, is just as equally satisfying to Donatello as it was getting praises by their father.

Of course, as he should've expected, Michelangelo pasteurized Don to let him try the toy car. Barely five minutes later, somehow, he destroyed the remote control and made the toy crash into the wall. That ended with Raphael chasing the youngest-turtle all over the Lair and both of them being punished in the Dojo by performing ten flips and five Kanku Sho Katas.

Don did fix the toy, but decided to not fix the controller. He also decided to keep the car in his bedroom, to hide it from Mikey until the guys hit puberty and Don was tall enough to put the toy on the high-shelf of his lab.

For over four years, he never once looked at the first toy he made... Until now.

Reaching out, he grabbed the car off the shelf, staring at the few rusts and chipped paint that covered the once, proud toy he made with his own hands. A tear made it's way into his mask.

"You believed in me," he whispered. "Every project, experiment, even some crazed idea I would blurt out, you always gave me the confidence to try. No matter how the results would turn out, successful or complete fail, you were always there to show your support. -More tears fell from his eyes, one or two of them dripping off his mask and landing on the toy.- And now, when I'm trying to find solid evidence that you're either deceased or alive, I'm left with nothing."

His nose went stuffy, as he wiped his tears away with his arm.

"Not finding anything should make me feel hopeful. That, in some way, Mikey and April are right about you being alive, and could be somewhere in the city... But, I can't, Leo. No matter what, even if a fairy godmother that Mikey keep thinking we have like in Cinderella suddenly appears out of thin air, I need to find facts to prove for certain that it's real."

"Yo, Don! You coming out?!" Michelangelo's voice brought him out of his conversation with nobody but himself and the toy car in his hand. "I'm putting on a movie, and it involves popcorn! You better come out, before I eat it all!"

His stomach growled from the sound of food, startling the purple-masked turtle of his lack of eating as of late. Now that Mikey has stopped him from his work, his body was making him feel every ache, hunger and lack of sleep he didn't noticed for quite some time.

Knowing he won't be getting back to work until he satisfy his baby-brother's demands for attention, he set the toy car on the table and made his way outside of his lab.

'While I can't deny what the facts are telling me… So long Mikey and April claim that Leo is still alive... I won't object to their lack of evidence being unreasonable.'

---

July Thirtieth; Eight Days Later...
*Thump* *Thump* *Thump* *Thump* *Thump* *Thump* *Thump*

His punches are going at a rhythm, catching small gasp of breath in the process, pushing himself to keep going.

*Thump* *Thump* *Thump* *Thump* *Thump* *Thump* *Thump*

Massive amount of splinter went flying as he continues punching a wooden beam he set up before him, ignoring the protest in his knuckles of wood digging into the scabs of his hands.

'Stupid Kraang... Stupid Lava-Rock Monsters... Stupid Kraang... Stupid Foot... Stupid Kraang…!' Rage-filled tears clouded his eyes, as his teeth clenched tightly together and formed a snarl of anger at the wooden pull he set up before him. While a wooden pull stands before him, his mind made him think of the aliens he and his brothers had encounter and beaten many times since their first adventures to the surface world.

...And since the day they saved the world, his hatred towards the aliens grew over a thousand folds, on account they were the reason to Leonardo's dea-... Disappearance.

He let out a snarl of frustration, now grabbing the pole by both hands and decided to start bashing his head against the damage wood.

'Damn it. Damn it...! DAMN IT!' His voice roared in his mind, repeatedly slamming his skull at the pole, ignoring the blood surfacing from good head or the massive headache ramming his brain like a freight train.

He kept on headbutting the pole until, after fifteen seconds, it split in two. With his opponent completely destroyed, all Raphael could do was just breath.

...Then, his body slowly went down to kneel before the bottom half of the pole... His bleeding hands on both of his side... Tears mixing with the blood gliding down his face and through his mask.

He struggled to keep his sobs down to a minimal, only to be making light choking sounds when each sniffles he made banged against plastron.

"...Why?" He choked out, his eyes staring down at the tatami mat beneath him and the broken wooden-pole. "Why did you have to stay behind...? Why did you make us leave you behind...? Why did you sacrificed yourself... ?"

He lowered the top-half of his body forward, bowing over the pole before him. He placed a hand over his face, slightly to wipe away the blood but mostly in a futile attempt to conceal the fact that he's crying.

With one hand over his face, the other clenched into a fist and started banging against the ground.

"Stupid Leo... You stupid...! Unselfish jerk! -He raised his head to stare up at the ceiling, blood and tears gliding down his face and neck.- Why couldn't you be selfish, for once, and escape with us...? Why couldn't you be selfish!"

Raphael already knew the answer: Because Leonardo is never selfish. Besides his running away, which he, himself, caused to happen, his older-twin brother always put the needs of his brothers and Sensei before his own. Even as toddlers and young children, he never asked or demanded for anything for himself.

...However, being unselfish always has a drawback: If not careful, others will take advantage of those who are unselfish their kindness, abuse their aid as an act of charity... But most damning of all, those who are unselfish and wise to know what needs to be done, always end up choosing the hard way.

And that's what Leonardo just did: In order to save all life on Earth, including his friends and family, he chose to stay behind. He purposely chose to remain in the Technodrome, with the giant Kraang, so his brothers and April can escape.

in a ceremonial fashion, Raphael grabbed for his mask and pulled it off of his face. With his face bare, he stared down at the empty spaces his own eyes stared through.

At a young age, he and his brothers were given these masks when they've proved themselves worthy to wear them as the new generation of Hamato Clan ninjas... But they also served as a reminder of the many risks they will take... Even if it means they will die.

Raphael knows that rule very well... Leonardo made sure he understands what wearing the mask will cost them.

---

Flashback: Four Years Ago...
Eleven year-old Raphael released his perfectly tuned fight engine* upon the practice dummy, venting his anger on his poor victim.

Today, they were perfecting speed by doing a little game of Ninja Tag. And, of course, Leonardo has shown to process such great speed by avoiding to get tagged by any of his brothers, getting the most praised by Master Splinter out of the four turtles.

While his older-twin brother passed the training session, Raphael has been the victim of being it the most. And every time he missed tagging one of his brothers, his anger would get the best of him and would chase whoever was in his line of vision. When he finally caught one of his brothers, his victim being Donatello, he all but body slammed him to the ground.

He got scolded for letting his anger get the better of him, which resulted a massive bruise to appear on the back of Don's head. And for his punishment: No TV for a week, and he has to do Don's share of the chores.

He isn't angry about being grounded from watching TV or that he has to do Don's share of the chores, which he knew it's fair while the purple-masked turtle recovers from the bruise. What he's angry, is his anger getting the best of him... Again. Also, at Leo for being praised and easily winning the training session with no problems at all.

"Why does he always have to showoff to us?" He growled, punching the dummy in the stomach. "If he didn't have to showoff like that, I wouldn't had to jump Donnie too hard."

He then grabbed the dummy to him and proceed to slam his knee into the same area, before he sank teeth into the leather material and pulled at it's arms with both hands. in mere minutes, Raphael has succeeded in dismembering the dummy of it's arms and head.

With his victim destroyed, the red-masked adolescence continued seething with rage, standing over the dummy. Not one ounce of regret in his bone on destroying their practice dummy.

"You really gave it to him, this time." A voice pulled Raph's attention from the dummy and looked over his shoulder, eyeing the intruder with such rage that he might as well gained Superman's heat-vision.

"What do you want, Leo?" He growled out, not wanting to see his twin at the moment while still caught up in his anger.

"I came to check up on you," the blue-masked turtle answered. "You've been here for over an hour, since practice ended. Sensei sent me to make sure you're all right. Although -His eyes stared down at the dismembered dummy on the ground.- It doesn't look like the dummy survived your brutal attacks... Again."

Raph glared at his brother about the condition of the dummy. Sure, both of it's arms and head are torn from the body, and there are tears in certain parts of the chest and stomach area to expose it's insides being a sack, but that didn't mean they can't use the remains of the dummy while Splinter repairs it, for the thirty-sixth times.

"You gonna tattle on me?" He asked, clenching and unclenching his hands to try and calm himself down. "Get me into more trouble than I'm already in?"

"I'm not going to inform anything what Master Splinter already knows," the eldest-brother answer. "As for the predicament you had gotten yourself into-"

"All because you chose to showoff during training!" Raphael barked out, stomping over to Leo. "We know how better you are in training than we are, because of your 'Special Training Sessions' with Sensei, but you didn't have to make it so obvious by making it hard for us to catch you!"

Leonardo simply stared eye-to-eye with his younger-twin, who clearly demanded to know why he didn't play the same level like the rest of his brothers… Then, without warning, the blue-masked turtle slapped Raph upside the head.

"Hey!" The red-masked turtle yelled, resting a hand to where he was struck. "Why'd you do that for?!" Instead of answering his question, Leo, once again, slapped him in the head, again. "Leo, cut it out!" Raph yelled, his muscles tensing up as he awaited for the next blow to come... Only to fall on his shell when Leo sweep him off his feet with his own leg.

Before he could do or say anything... Raphael found himself pinned against the tatami mat by his brother... Who trapped his neck within his mouth, firmly squeezing his throat to make him start to panic.

"Leo! What the he-ah!" Raph choked out, fighting to free himself from the blue-masked turtle's hold and to his feet. However, because of his continuous beating on the dummy for a whole hour, made him over-used his energy and his tired body unable to kick or even force the older-twin off of his body. His anger screamed for him to keep fighting, to attack his brother and force his jaw to open, but the air being cut off was making him start to panic and his lungs demanded air.

Just as he started seeing spots popping before his eyes, Leonardo immediately let him go.

"You're dead," he flatly stated.

Rage spiked up within Raphael, giving him the energy to jump up and deliver a punch to Leo... Who, easily, dodged the attack and, with great speed got behind him and body slammed him on his plastron... Once again, biting into Raph's neck to choke him from oxygen for ten seconds before, again, releasing him from his grasp.

"You're dead," he repeated.

"Will you shut up about that?!" Raphael yelled, thrashing to get the older-twin off his shell. "And will you stop biting me in the neck?"

The only answer he got is another bite in the neck for ten seconds, with the same response after the attack.

"You're dead."

"Rrrraaahhh!"

The same procedure continued on for seventeen minutes: With Raphael continuously trying to grab, or attack his brother, as Leonardo continues to pin him down and bite him in the neck for ten seconds, repeating the same line after releasing the red-masked turtle from his grasp.

"You're dead."

For the sixty-second times, Leonardo said the two words that drove his younger-twin crazy. Though, now, after being spent from his attempts to get his brother and the multiple choking sessions, Raphael made no comment or movement whatsoever. Instead of snapping and springing up to keep fighting, he remained sprawled out on the ground, gasping for air. His rage still burns within him, but it felt more curbed for him to control.

'Was this what he planned to happen?'

Leonardo hovered over his brother, a calm expression on his face. Cerulean/Sapphire-eyes showing no fear to being close to his brother who could attack at any moment; he knew he won't attack, not when he's completely spent.

"I'll answer your first question, with a question of my own. And should the answer not satisfy you, I shall leave you alone and you can believe whatever the answer you come up with to be what you think is right. -He leaned in closer, so Emerald-green eyes don't turn away from what he needs to say to him.- Deal?"

Still out of breath, as well as being taken back to his proposal, Raphael nodded his head. Leo nodded back, pulling away to stand over his fallen brother.

"Answer me honestly, Raph: Why do you think Master Splinter gave us these ninja masks?"

Out of all the questions he expected to hear, that question wasn't what the red-masked turtle thought to hear.

"What kind of a question is that?" He replied, pushing himself to a sitting position. "Father gave us these masks, because he knew we're ready to become ninjas. How does that even answer my question?"

Leonardo shook his head, releasing a deep sigh.

"That's what I expected to hear from you, Raph."

Said turtle glared up at his brother, but refrained himself from attacking, having a nagging feeling in the back of its head that his brother would pin him down and bite him in the neck.

"Sensei didn't give us our masks, because he thinks we're ready to become ninjas... He gave us these masks, because he believed we are mature enough to understand what it means to wear the masks to become ninjas."

Raphael wanted a straight answer to that meaning, never being the turtle with that much patience to figure it out on his own.

"And what is there to understand, exactly?"

Unexpectedly, Leonardo undid the knot from the back of his head and pulled his mask off his face. Uncontrollably, his twin slightly flinched when he saw the crescent-moon scar over his right-eye. A year had past since the gator incident and Leo's wounds had healed up, but that scar will forever serve as a reminder to the hotheaded turtle what he almost caused to happen to his brother.

Not bothered by the discomfort of his brother staring at his scar, the older-twin answered the question.

"By wearing the mask, we showed to understand what being a ninja will demand us to do. As such, the consequences of being a ninja may also mean the danger we'll be putting ourselves in... Which can mean our deaths."

Raphael already knew the danger of being a ninja will cost them; having to be told of their father's past moments and the near-death experiences he went through back in Japan, along with their first battle with White Death, was more than enough to alert the red-masked turtle that he and his brothers can get killed in battle. He knew Leo, also, understood the danger just as much as he does, and Donatello has more than enough smarts to figure that out on his own. However, he isn't completely certain if Michelangelo knew that being a ninja isn't a game and has to take his training seri-

His Emerald-green eyes widened to what he just thought… And, immediately, he face-palmed himself in the face, a small-blush spread on his cheek. Above him, Leonardo gave him a smirk.

"You figured out the answer, didn't you?"

Raph groaned to his question, though no longer being angry at his brother for asking him such a question.

"You weren't showing off... You were taking your training seriously."

The maskless turtle smiled down at his brother's answer.

"Exactly. -He tied his mask back on to his face, relieving his brother from staring at the scar on his face.- If I decided to hold back, then I'm not really learning or taking Sensei's teaching as seriously as I should. By giving it my all, I show that I'm ready for the next level of our training and improve my skills, to better my chances against all foes we'll be encountering in the future."

He extended a hand out to Raph, who was never one to wanting help and act like a tough guy, but accepted his aid to get back on his feet.

"Glad to hear that," he commented. "But would you mind telling me -He rubbed his neck with a hand, feeling faint bumps to indicate where Leo's teeth had implanted themselves to, surprised that they didn't break the skin and isn't bleeding- why, the bloody hell, did you have to keep biting me in the neck and choking the life out of me?!"

Leonardo rolled his eyes to the question.

"Simple:…To help you stay calm and control your anger."

The answer didn't make any sense to the hotheaded turtle.

"How does almost choking me to death help me control my anger? And why do it again? The guys and I thought you finally outgrew the biting."

The blue-masked turtle shook his head.

"I never 'outgrew' the method, Raph. In case you've forgotten, I would only do that whenever you three would misbehave and that, alone, gets you guys to stop whatever you're doing. Besides, I haven't had a reason to pin you by your necks in a few months, which isn't enough time at all for anybody to outgrew something they've been doing for so long. As for how it helps, is quite simple: By continuously cutting off your air like that, I'm getting you to subconsciously take slower breathing and to not panic sooner than you would the first few times going through the procedure. Haven't you noticed a sudden change to your anger?"

Raphael thought long and hard and, almost a minute, realized that his anger, indeed, felt less constricting and burning than it had been from training. He actually thought that it was from burning more energy for an hour with the dummy that his anger started to die down, but found that not being the case.

"You were helping me gain control of my anger, by a method I would understand." At that discovery, he couldn't help laughing. "I can't believe I didn't realize it; not only were you taking your training seriously, but you also used a method that wasn't even Master Splinter's own teachings."

In a playful manner, Leonardo bumped his fist against his brother's head.

"Of course I would use a different method; the only way to get through to you, is by brute force. So, I decided to do a little rough housing with you and, just as I expected, it worked."

At that, Raphael let out a warning growl, alerting the blue-masked turtle on what's going to happen.

"You called that rough housing? I'll show you what rough housing really looks like!"

Immediately, the eldest turtle took off running, laughing as his brother pursues him in a chase that, while it may seem to be hothead attempting to attack his older-twin, is a special game that the two can relate being fun... While at the same time, training.
End of Flashback...

---

Raphael ran his finger gently through the material of his mask. His sobs completely spent and left feeling nothing but an empty feeling in his chest. His head still hurts from his self-inflicted injury he did to himself, but that failed in comparison from what his brother told him the true meaning of being a ninja meant.

"By wearing the mask, we showed to understand what being a ninja will demand us to do. As such, the consequences of being a ninja may also mean the danger we'll be putting ourselves in... Which can mean our deaths."

Somewhere along the way, the red-masked turtle either had forgotten the conversation or had gotten over confident that he didn't think anything bad would happen to him and his brothers... Until their battle with Kraang and saving the world from the invasion, made him realize that his brother's words had finally caught up to them.

and in the end, it was his only big brother that ended up paying the price, for following the ways of ninjutsu... Thus, wearing the mask that their father had given them all.

Raph let out a tiring sigh, staring down at his mask. A piece of himself that he felt had always been with him since his birth, his very existence.

"We could've saved you," he whispered. "We could've all gotten out of the Technodrome, together. We would've handled that giant Kraang, if it did captured us from escaping. -He bowed his head, resting his bleeding head on his red ninja mask, imagining his own mask being the mask of his brother's.- Why did you have to go play the hero, and leave us like that?"

he didn't know how long he stayed in that same position, but the numbing in his legs told him it's been quite some time since he last moved. Tired and spent, he slowly got to his feet, putting his mask back on his face. He stared at the damaged pole and the splinters he left on the floor, reminding him on what took place before his sudden breakdown.

He went to retrieve a broom and dustpan from the kitchen, only for his head and hands to throb, reminding him of the injuries he allowed to inflict on himself... And from the feeling of the pain, a smirk appeared on his face.

'Whenever we get hurt, even if it were a minor cut or bruise, Leo would make sure we get patched up before we did anything else.'

If that were the case, he would come to believe that, even in death, his only big brother is still looking out for them… Yet, in his heart, he didn't believe that to being true… Because, in his heart, he held on to what Michelangelo and April had been trying to convince them that Leo is, in fact, still alive.

He was never one to believe that twins have telepathic abilities, or if they can sense each other's pain. Hell, even Donatello found some theory and/or evidence of said rumors to be highly impossible for anybody to possess, especially young children. Besides, if that were true, Leonardo would've asked Raph if he'd ever felt anything different, without warning or unexpectedly, while the blue-masked turtle was training, meditation or off scouring the sewers.

...Not only that, but if they'd really had that telepathic bond that human twins claim they share, then Raph would've used that to find Leo when he ran away at the age of ten*.

But, again, he doesn't believe that load of bull that humans are never completely certain to be true or a myth. Believing in something that he, himself, don't know actually exist or not, means he'd finally lost it and will keep lying to himself until somebody drops the bombshell and destroys whatever hope he has left that his brother is still alive. And the last thing he wants to do, is go crazy from a comforting lie.

'…But Mikey and April both seemed very certain when they say Leo's still alive. How can they be certain if they don't know how or why, without knowing for sure if it's true?'

Raph did not want to think that some person with mystical powers from the sky is the source to their success with Kraang and the Foot Clan, though he wasn't saying that there isn't a God looking down on them; Even when he was still Hamato Yoshi, Splinter always had a belief that God does exist and, like his father before him, shared the belief of his religion to his four sons. Don was the hardest to get through, while Raph isn't one to think somebody else is the reason they can do what they can when he and his brothers did all the hard work on their own. He knew, without a doubt, Mikey will believe anything their father tells them is real or not. As for Leo… Well, the red-masked turtle isn't certain on what his twin thought; he was never one to give out his own opinion to his brothers and father. When asked the question, April claims that she thinks there is somebody watching over us, even though she and her father sometimes go to church but only with some of Kirby's friends and when they have free time to go.

The red-masked turtle never really know what to believe in… But, if it's possible that this God Master Splinter believes to be real is, in fact, real… Then, what does he got to lose, if he doesn't try?

'This is going to be stupid.' He grumbled in his head, as he stared up at the ceiling. 'I probably look like an idiot.' He pushed back the embarrassment he's feeling right now... And began talking. "Hey, God. You know who I am; I've been told you know everyone, from my father... This feels really dumb, like Mikey dumb... But, I don't really nowhere else to turn to... I just want a straight answer, which you already know what I'm going ask you to answer:... Is my brother, Leonardo, still alive?"

He's left with a silence response, just as he expected to gain. He let out a light snarky sound.

"Of course I'm not going to get a answer from you," he muttered. "Why did I think this was going to work? All because many people claim they've been saved or given a miracle by this God person they speak of, that I decided to see if it would work for us? I shouldn't have expected much! This just proves that they're fools to believe in some imaginary person that they don't know if he's real or not! If he was real, how come he didn't stop the invasion? How come he didn't save all those people, when they were being a ducted by Kraang?!"

His eyes stung, alerting him of his tears being formed again, but is able to hold them back this time.

"Why didn't you save my brother, when he did all the work that you should have done to save everyone! He's the true hero that saved the Earth, not you! And yet, those fools claim it was you who saved them! -He snarled at the ceiling above him, glaring at nobody but imagining a figure that people call 'God'- it's because of you, that my brother is gone! He gave himself up to save us all, and you can't even pull off a miracle for us and have him come back to us?! How could you do that to us?! To Leo?!"

Once again, throughout his whole conversation, he received no word, no answer from anyone. A great feeling of lost and despair grew inside of Raphael, that he fell to his knees.

"...Why did it have to be him...? Why did you have to take my brother away from us...? From me?"

In the back of his mind, he is grateful that Donatello and Michelangelo had left to go see April and stay the night at her place. he didn't want to worry them any more than they already are, especially with their father being so distance from them since presenting Leo's ninja mask to him.

The pain in his chest grew, as he struggled to hold in his tears he didn't think he still had... Then, he felt a hand rest on his shoulder and when he looked up, was glassy-eyed when he saw his absent father, Hamato Yoshi, kneeling before him.

He didn't say anything, didn't utter a single word or sound. The two stare at each other for a moment, before Master Splinter pulled his second son to him, enveloping him into a hug. Ralph isn't usually the one who craves physical contact as Michelangelo does, but right now he didn't have the strength to even left his arms to either push Splinter away from him or to return the embrace. He feels numb.

Father and son leaned against one another, one trying to comfort the other, who doesn't know what to believe or what to do, besides going day by day with his life.

'...We just want him back,' he thought. 'Please, bring him back.'

---

August Third; Four Days Later…
"Ha!" April cried out, imagining to deflect a knife coming her way with her weapon of choice: The Tessen... A special weapon passed down amongst the Hamato Clan for over three hundred years.

Back when he was still Hamato Yoshi, Master Splinter had wanted to pass down his family Heirloom to his daughter, Miwa. However, believing her dead, he never thought to ever give another person this special fan-weapon. Even with his four sons, he wasn't certain any of them would want to have any ownership with the small-weapon... Despite having Leonardo mastering the War Fan, and proven to be a very well fighter with the fan.

April truly felt honored that her sensei, her second father-figure, would give her the Tessen as her chosen weapon. As such, she made sure to take very good care of the War Fan and practice very hard to wield it.

"Hyah!" She yelled, swiftly transferring her weapon to her other-hand and slicing the air in a diagonal position, creating a small gust of wind in the process. She made sure her feet are planted firmly on the ground, putting more pressure at the balls of her feet and toes to remain keeping her balance. In addition to stay firm and her back straight, she had her left-arm straight out behind her back, her hand held up as if expecting somebody to run into her from behind and slam into her open-palm.

She stood still for five seconds, before standing tall and straight.

"Haa…" She let out a deep sigh, wiping the sweat from her forehead from having to train with the Tessen for nearly an hour. Her muscles felt slightly sore, but nothing she couldn't handle. And her body is handling the training session, much better than it did when she first started her training. In fact, not only has she been improving her Kunoichi training, but has also started to put on some muscles she didn't noticed she had. Not too much to make her look buff, but enough to show how healthier she's been since being trained to become a Kunoichi.

At a time like this, she would want to show off her small-build to her human friends, maybe even convince her father to take up some defense classes to properly protect himself, should Kraang try to kidnap them, again… Sadly, she isn't in a joyful mood to do anything, other than keep up with her training and continue her life as a normal sixteen year-old girl.

Deciding to end her training for the day, April sat down on the tatami mat to rest. As she catches her breath, the light above him reached the Tessen and shined a bright light to her face. Her attention drawn, she stared down at the silver-fan. A sad-smile appeared on her face, as she now held the open fan in both hands and be mesmerized at the designs of cheery-blossoms and the Hamato Crest.

"I'm getting better at wielding you, Shirogane (Platinum)." She said to her weapon, lightly running her thumb over the smooth material of the War Fan. "Hopefully, I'll be a master, worthy to be acknowledged as your owner… Somebody, Leo would be proud to know is taking care of a weapon that was supposed to be his sister's."

A tear surfaced, gliding down her cheek and almost dropping onto the Tessen, if she hadn't made a move to wipe the tear away.

After being told of Splinter's wife and daughter's passing, April had pondered what relationship she would form with the four turtles... Despite already knowing Donatello's crush for her, that she, sadly, doesn't share similar feelings with. At the end of the day, when accepting the Tessen as her own, found herself taking the role as being the turtles' sister they never gotten the chance to live with.

While she doesn't share any blood ties with the Hamato, she sees herself as part of the family. And, as such, loves each and every member of the Hamato Clan… So, on the day they escaped the Technodrome, without their leader in blue, April was very much heartbroken and in the early state of mourning. She knew what it was like to lose somebody you love; she lost her mother when she was six. She doesn't remember what happened or how she died, but it still hurts the sixteen year-old to this very day.

And now that she lost another person close to her, it became too much for her to bear… Yet, for some reason, his loss isn't as painful as her mother's. And that's because, while she and the others witnessed the Technodrome sinking to the bottom of the ocean and didn't see Leonardo escape the ship, her 'gift' that Master Splinter claims she obtained is telling her that he's still alive.

At first, she thought her mind was playing tricks with her, as if refusing to accept she lost a friend until somebody has to spell it out for her to accept the terrible truth that he truly is gone... But then, she started having strange dreams of being in a forest. She would find herself in a den-like cave, only to follow a single trail leading her to a hill, where she saw a shady-figure standing on the top. The figure on top would turn, as if to face her, and held out a hand to her.

…Hands, that had three fingers. Instantly, April believed that the figure is Leonardo and would make an attempt to run up the hill. However, each and every time she would run up the hill and make it to the top, the figure would vanish. In the figure's place, two Ninjatō/Katana swords resting on the grass. April would then reach out to touch them, which would then engulf her in the moon's light, waking her up in the process.

She doesn't understand what her dream was telling her, but in her heart, she felt it's a sign that proves Leo is alive and well.

April wanted to tell Splinter of her dreams, but debated against that idea; he's a grieving father at the moment, even if her own father would come by and interact with the Hamato Family, and if she told him something about the son he believes to have lost, she fears he won't be reacting very well and would tell her that she was merely dreaming something she hoped to be real. She did, however, told Michelangelo about her dream, which, while uncertain to believe in a dream that came to his human-friend and not he and his family, felt some form of comfort and hope to grab hold that his big-brother is alive.

That was a week after the guys saved the world and since then, she used her dream to keep pushing forward on her training and to help the guys with their stages of grief.

She pushed herself to get back to her feet and resume training, but her muscles tensed and made her remain on the ground… At a time like this, she imagined Leonardo intervening and convincing her to allow her body to rest.

A happier smile spread on her face.

'Good old Leo,' she thought. 'Once you get to know him, he'll do whatever it takes to help others out. Even finding ways to make them happy.'

---

Flashback: June Seventh; Eight Weeks, One Day Ago…
"Hah!" She called out, swiping her weapon in the middle of the air... Only to lose part of her footing and fall to her knees. "Haugh!" She groaned, glaring down the weapon sprawled underneath her right-hand. "Damn it! I thought I had it!"

A chuckling sound made her jump, blushing that she didn't sense somebody enter the room and was being watched. Turning her head, she saw the intruder being her favorite blue-masked turtle: Leonardo. He was leaning next to the Shoji door, arms folded over his chest, with a snicker on his face.

"I never thought I'd ever hear you curse, until now." He stated, making his way over and offering her a hand to get back up to her feet. She took his help and now stood before him, glaring at the ground with embarrassment to be caught messing up with her training with the Tessen and for the comment she gained from Leo.

"I don't usually have a reason to swear, unless it's involved with something that pisses me off." She replied, clenching her hand around the closed fan. "I've been practicing for a whole week now, and I still can't get it to work!"

As if to prove it to the turtle, she turned to face the other end of the dojo and swung the Tessen into another diagonal line, which resulted her to stumble and almost fall on her side, if Leo didn't catch her.

"I figured that was the case," he chuckled. She pouted to his response, but didn't say anything as he helped her to her feet once again. "Raph and Mikey thought the same thing, too, when we started training with our weapons at the age of ten*. Sensei had to remind them sixth times that they don't automatically become masters of their weapons in mere days, until it finally got through to their thick skulls."

April couldn't help but giggled at the information, no longer feeling embarrassed and glad she's not the first to have trouble wield the War Fan. Still, hearing that the turtles didn't so easily mastered their weapons, didn't really help the redhead to figure out how to wield her own weapon.

"How long did it take you to control your swords? Did you find a quicker way to master your weapon?" She couldn't help but asked, eagerly awaiting to hear what other teaching methods the blue-masked turtle used to help speed up his training and hoping he'll let her use the same method to increase her training.

What she wasn't expecting from Leonardo, was an angry glare and such disappointment staring straight into her soul.

"I just told you that nobody can master their weapons in such short time, and yet you still ask for a shortcut to force Shirogane to obey your every command?" His reply to her request caught her off guard, especially that name he just said.

"'Shirogane'? Who's that?"

Leo lifted her right-hand, forcing her to open the Tessen.

"The name of the weapon you hold in your very hand," he replied. "I'm still shocked that, to this very day and possibly many more to come, that Master Splinter actually gave you his family heirloom weapon. A weapon that was meant to be given to our late sister, Miwa."

A flash of sadness can be seen in his Cerulean/Sapphire-eyes, as he stared at the silver War Fan reflecting his face back at him.

The sixteen year-old redhead immediately felt guilty of her words, feeling she forced him to recall a lost family member he never gotten the chance to meet or bond with.

"I'm sorry, Leo. I didn't mean for you to bring up… Your sister."

She couldn't help but feel jealous over Splinter's daughter; she may had been a baby when she was, sadly, presumed dead, but April at times felt like being reminded that she isn't their blood-sister. Mostly by the humanoid-rat, himself, as if afraid to be replacing his own child with another's that he bonded with as if she really was Miwa.

A hand rested on her left-shoulder, drawing the teenager out from her thoughts and looking into the kind face of Leonardo.

"I know you didn't," he reassured. "I'm still saddened that she isn't with us, but I'm glad that Shirogane is at least given to my other sister and no longer collecting dust like she had been for the last fifteen years."

April felt happy to be included into the family by him; the only other person to openly refer to her as family is Mikey, while Raphael isn't one for word and Donatello… Again, his crush on her makes her feel awkward. Being reminded of her weapon's name, she couldn't help but laugh.

"Where did the name came from? Did Sensei named her?" She asked, finding the name being very fitting for a weapon that's stronger than steel.

"No. Actually, I named her Shirogane." His answer was a bit of a surprise to the older-teen. "You may be her new owner, April, but remember: I started training with her, long before you decided to have her as yours. And, as such, every weapon I trained with, I solidify my bond with them by giving them names."

"Do you also decide what gender they are?" She asked, chuckling a bit at the slight blush on his face.

"Not really. Whenever I bond with a weapon, I would feel like I can see what they would appear to be if they were humans. Some warriors believe to have the ability to see a weapon's soul and appearance, which allows them to view the current condition they're in by their masters*."

"…Whoa... You make it sound like they're alive."

"That's because, in some theory, they are. -April gave him a confused look, which he expected from the girl.- Back in the Feudal Era, many warriors, who bonded with their weapons, come to terms that their weapons are alive. Basically, by properly taking care of your weapons: Sharpening them, cleaning them from blood or grime, even training with them. In exchange, they shall take care of you: Reflecting light or other's reflection, hunting down prey and even being your first act of defense close by. And some say, if you're truly in tune with your weapon, there is nothing that'll stand in your way. Even the mightiest and largest weapon of all of Japan, will fall by the true strength between warrior and weapon."

April was in awe by his words. Her heart beat with such force, that her hands trembled with anticipation.

"Will I be able to be in tune with my we-… Shirogane?" She asked, ready to get back to training and feel that bond that warriors forged with their own weapons.

"Perhaps," the turtle answered. "So long as you keep up with your training, realize your flaws when caring for both yourself and Shirogane... But most of all, know that none can truly control the full might of the weapon. You must prove yourself worthy to your weapon, so that she will see you as an equal to fight alongside in battle and share her strength with your own… Maybe, as a sibling, even."

He then pulled out his two swords from their sheaths, catching her a bit off guard and thinking of the possibility of having a sparring match with the most experienced turtle. Reading her eyes staring at his weapon, Leonardo figured what she was thinking.

"We'll probably spar, one day, when you are fully in tune with your weapon. Right now, I want you to pay attention to my movement and see how I fight with my weapons."
End of Flashback...

---

Their private lessons with each other was truly something April O'Neil enjoyed. Not only had he shown her how to properly perfect her katas, but he had surprisingly shown and given her some interesting advice on how to fight and move with her weapon.

'Who would've thought that ballet would, also, be useful in katas and perfecting to dodge attacks... I never would've taken Leo to take up doing any form of dancing, let alone using ballet to improve his movement.'

When given the suggestion to study the ways of ballet, April decided to do some lessons of her own from a friend of hers from school. And a good choice she made on her part; she never realized how flexible she could get after an entire month of private lessons, along with incorporation ballet into her Kunoichi training.

'Seriously, athletes should consider taking lessons for themselves, to perfect their footwork, balance, posture and reflexes.'

She made another attempt to get to her feet, and this time, she succeeded on getting to her feet. She made her way to the Shoji door, before she stopped in her steps when her I caught something.

On the tree, is a barely visible mark of a cut on the bark... A mark she had made, with her own Shirogane.

It was few days before the Fourth of July, and she wanted to show Leonardo that she can toss her weapon and catch it like a boomerang. She succeeded on tossing a perfect throw... What she didn't get right was catching it, which resulted the Tessen to hit its mark at the tree. they were lucky that it landed on the ground and didn't cut into the tree, or Splinter would've been greeted by a sight of his beloved tree being impaled by one of his own weapons he passed down to one of his pupils.

She wasn't the first to make their mark on the tree, later finding out that the turtles, also, pulled the same stunt she did when they were younger, and she will surely not be the last to implant a mark on the tree. Luckily, she decided to be wise and not pull another stunt like that again, until she is completely positive that she can complete a task in her ability of wielding Shirogane.

The faint mark on the tree served as another reminder she and Leonardo shared a sweet moment with each other... Which also fueled her hope that her turtle brother is still alive.

'I know you're still alive, Leo. No matter what, we will find you. And we will bring you home.'

---

August Seventh; Five Days Later…
'Inhale... Exhale... Let your mind wonder. Do not allow thought to distract you of your task...'

In the darkness of his room, Master Splinter sat in the middle of the floor, in a lotus position... In his clenched hands, resting in the center of his lap, he held the mask he gave his eldest-son when they were three, all those years ago. The only piece that remains of the eldest-turtle his remaining sons were able to find of him.

He didn't wanted to believe what he's been told; his eldest-son, his second baby, had sacrificed himself to save his brothers and April, and went down with the Technodrome. Even as they gave him Leo's mask, he still try to fight off the feeling that he dreaded to feel after fifteen years by meditating.

Even without a body to prove if he still lived or not, by entering the Astral Plane, Splinter will be able to search his son's own life force or spirit. And if he is still alive, he'll be able to use his own son's spirit to try and locate his current position. If he didn't make it... Then, he'll know for certain that his done died, as a true warrior.

For weeks, he searched for his son's spirit... But, for some reason, he couldn't find Leonardo anywhere. He never dealt with the situation before, even when he couldn't find his own wife's spirit. At least with her, he can still sense her somewhere within the Astral plane that tells him she's still around, even in death.

However, with Leo's condition, it was like he completely vanished from the living and the Afterlife. Like he never existed to begin with. The only time something like that were to happen, is if that person has successfully concealed their entire being from ever being detected. His own father, Hamato Yūta, is one of those very few who has succeeded such a task that many Masters before him never were able to reach.

There was no way that Leonardo, despite being the strongest amongst his sons to possessed great spiritual potential, would be able to master such a task that took many years for true Masters to perform. While Splinter hoped that it was just another Ninja Master who is concealing his son's location, he mostly hoped that his son hadn't been found or, his greatest fear, being held captive by their archenemies.

He couldn't bear the thought of his son, in the hands of Kraang... Terrifying of all, Oroku Saki. Being tortured, beaten and imprisoned to the point of dea-

Immediately, Splinter was pulled back into his body, snapping his eyes wide open and, once again, back in his room. Small trail of sweat glided off his fur, as he lightly gasped for air. His shock immediately switched to anger, mostly towards himself, and then slammed his fist against the tatami mat beneath him.

"Kuso!" He yelled. "Why do I keep allowing myself to get distracted?!" His tail thumped against the floor, nearing knocking his nightstand onto the floor. "I almost felt him. I was certain I could finally reach him!"

That was a lie; it's the same thought he kept telling himself, as a form of drive to keep pushing himself to continue his search for his missing son... Even when they all end up with the same results: His mind slipping it's focus from his thoughts for Leonardo, be pulled back to his body and wallow in self-pity of his failure as, not only as a teacher, but also a father in general.

After his encounter with Oroku Saki, in his attempt to rescue April, he discovered a terrifying truth that'll haunt him for months to come: Karai, the Kunoichi that he told his sons to never trust, is really his presumed deceased daughter, Miwa… And, believing the lies his enemy has told her, has sworn vengeance for her mother and every intent to kill him. If that wasn't bad enough, when three of his sons and April returned from taking down the Technodrome, they had to inform the stricken father that his fourth son didn't make it out and had sacrificed himself to allow them to escape.

Splinter didn't want to believe he lost another child... That he was the cause for Leonardo's death, when he told him he would have to make sacrifices to succeed on saving the world. He never meant to put his son in a situation that he feels like he has to become that sacrifice, because he had hoped the eldest-turtle would be able to make the impossible, possible, without any casualties to befallen amongst the team.

…He was wrong. Dead wrong... His sons and April searched for their missing teammate for long hours of each day, while the fifty year-old would make his own search through the Astral Plane and after thirteen days since the invasion, the only thing they found was Leo's ninja-mask.

Splinter knew that they can't keep searching for Leonardo every night, not when Kraang is still walking amongst the Citizens of New York and Oroku Saki sending Foot Ninjas to find their Lair and dispose of them. Even as April and Kirby O'Neil would keep searching in the middle of the day for Leo, it would prove to be futile to not take care of themselves first. When stating that they'll only look for Leonardo once every few days for a couple of hours, he and Raphael got into a heated argument until the red-masked turtle was forced to back down and accept what their father told them to do.

The fifty year-old father hated himself for making such an order, as if he'd already given up on Leo and is abandoning him for death, but he has to make sure the wellbeing of his three… Remaining sons won't be put in jeopardy. He knew his sons and the O'Neil Family won't give up on their search, not until they find out for themselves if he truly had perished in the Technodrome.

He wasn't going to give up on his search for his eldest-son, as well. But, with each failed attempts to locate Leonardo's Spirit in the Astral Plane, made his efforts feel more in vain and a complete failure as a father.

Splinter's Ruby/Amber-eyes, clouded by anguish tears, stared down at the mask he held against his chest, clenched tightly in his left-hand. His breathing quivered, shoulders trembling, as a sob wracked his body. With his head bowed and eyes closed tight, he brought the mask to rest against his forehead.

"Leonardo... Watashi no musuko, anata wa doko ni imasu ka? (My son, where are you?)" He didn't get an answer, just as he got none when in the Astral Plane. His fangs clenched against each other, struggling and failing to stifle his crying.

As Head of the Hamato Clan, he has to be the strong. He has to be the example, for his sons to look up to and go to when they need him. He isn't allow to show his own distress, no matter how difficult or painful the situation puts him in… However, behind closed doors, where his sons can't see or hear him, does he allow the tears to come out. To lower his stoic demeanor, and reveal himself a parent who struggles to do what's best for the family.

Splinter never felt so alone than he ever did, even when being the sole survivor to live after the Shredder's attack among the Clan, than right now. Kirby tried his best to be there for the grieving father and help him go through the pain of loss, but the humanoid-rat didn't want to burden his new friend any more than the human has to deal with being on high alert for Kraang coming for him and April.

And yes, he still has his three sons, but it's dreadful of the thought of having three sons remain in his life and a daughter trying to kill him and her half-brothers… Who, none of them understood the burden their father has to carry on his shoulders… None, except for Leonardo. The son he gave the responsibility of Leader to... The son he most likely got killed, because he pressured him to only focus on completing their mission and ignore everything else.

…The son he pushed to become like him, and stripped him from his chance on having a childhood that his brothers were allowed to have.

God, he felt like a monster… No... As Leonardo once said to him... Like the Shredder, himself.

'Is this my punishment?' He asked in his thoughts. 'Am I being punished, once again, for a committed sin I've caused? By having my son... My Akachan (baby) taken away from me, permanently?'

His heart felt like it was struggling to keep up with the fast paste it was going, as it felt like stone weight pulling it down to the pit of his stomach and his mind racing and pulsing an unbearable headache. The fifty year-old father doesn't want to think that. Not when he promised his sons he'll protect them.

---

Flashback: February Twentieth, 1997…
The Winter has been unforgiving to the thirty-five year-old father. and still, even after learning that Spring has come early this year, the cold was still overbearing for Hamato Yoshi and his four turtle sons.

Down in the sewers, in a makeshift shelter that's been abandoned and long forgotten, the humanoid-rat could only watch as the four turtles slept in their sleep spot, covered in the warmest blanket he owned. Because he didn't have any source of heat to keep the turtles warm and are stuck living in a cold sewer, the new father had no idea how to continue caring for them.

He just finished attempting to feed them and, sadly, none of them responded to the baby food and/or milk he presented to them. They remained motionless and very still, as they sleep through the Winter. Hibernating through the Winter that Yoshi was unfamiliar with. While he does have some knowledge about turtles, thanks to his late wife, he didn't know what to do and what not to do while turtles hibernate through the Winter. That includes, knowing when they'll wake up.

Yoshi just assumed, because of their human-heritage, they would be able to avoid the call to sleep through the cold season and, actually, celebrate their first Thanksgiving and Christmas together. There was so much he wanted to do, especially now that his son, Leonardo, suddenly awaken and can finally interact with the rest of the family… Sadly, the next day after he woke up, the eight month-old turtle immediately went back to sleep. This time, his brothers followed suit with him and all four remained asleep since that day.

That was over three months ago and still, the humanoid-rat kept a close eye on his four sons and monitored their conditions, hoping they will wake up.

In just a week or two, the day they became what they are right now is coming up. He couldn't call it their birthday, since his true birth was in October and the turtles most likely hatched in the second week of February. Since it clearly was some form of scientific conspiracy that, in form, transformed them into anthro-animal human-hybrids, he thinks the correct term of their day of transformation should be called 'Mutation Day'.

He really hopes that they'll all wake up before that day arrives; the Lair has gotten much too quiet for any one to feel any sense of peace, even for him.

'And to think I told them to be silent like ninja, back when we were escaping from those strange beings. Now, I would give anything to even hear them screaming and yelling.'

"Mmmm…"

A soft moan, coming from the little ones, brought the thirty-five year-old from his thoughts and immediately kneeled before the four sleeping turtles. They all looked calm and peaceful… Then, he saw Michelangelo kicking his little legs, both colliding with Raphael's shell... Who responded by emitting a low growl.

Yoshi was ecstatic.

"They moved!" He cheered, pride swelling in his chest as he saw more movement coming from his two sons… Which, to more of his delight, seemed to start rousing Donatello from his sleep when the third turtle made a whining sound and turned himself on his shell. His arm accidentally slammed against Raphael's head, letting out another growl before digging his face into the blanket.

…Then, when he turned his head, his eyes were wide-eyed opened.

The humanoid-rat couldn't help but gasp in surprise, mesmerized by Raphael's Emerald-green eyes, blinking up at him... Completely awake. With such relief, Yoshi scooped his fierce son into his arms, cuddling him close to his chest and nuzzling his face against the baby's head.

"My wild fire, Raphael." He whispered, landing a light kiss on top of the turtle's forehead. That earned him a giggle from the turtle, who lightly pounded his little fist against the arm closest to his plastron, as his feet kicked against the father's chest.

Yoshi chuckled, setting the turtle down in his lap and keeping him in place with his left-arm.

"Ba, ba ba ba!" A second voice blurted out, belonging to Michelangelo, who shrieked at seeing his father and brother, forcing himself to crawl from the blanket and make an immediate beeline for the humanoid-rat. Ignoring Raphael's warning growl, Mikey climbed into Yoshi's lap and raised his arms up, demanding to be held.

Keeping his right-arm on Raphael, Yoshi lifted the freckle-faced turtle with his free arm, giving him the same treatment that he gave to his brother. Mikey's response to the treatment, was to grab for his father's whiskers and started pulling on them.

Yoshi immediately pulled away, resulting the tugging to worsen when the turtle kept firm of his grip. Hearing the distress sound his father made, Michelangelo continued on laughing with joy, promoting him to tug harder on his father's whiskers.

It took the thirty-five year-old three minutes to get the toddler to completely let go, after the toddler kept making grab for his whiskers and tugging them for his amusement. Raphael, very much annoyed of his brother forcing out pain sounds from their father, lunged up to land a blow to Mikey's legs.

Michelangelo let out a big wail.

"Raphael!" Yoshi scolded, lifting the freckled-faced turtle to his right-shoulder to cry on and grabbing for the angry toddler with his left-hand. "You do not hit your brother!" All Raph did was pout, glaring back at his father, showing no signs of fear of getting in trouble or showing any signs to obey what his father told him. In fact, when he leaned in to tell him not to hit Mikey, Raph pulled one of his fists out and delivered another punch to the other turtle's leg.

Once again, Mikey wailed.

"Raphael!" Again, Yoshi yelled, pulling back to gently soothe the toddler in his arm.

Throughout the entire time this was going on, Donatello was roused up by Michelangelo's screams. After turning to his plastron, he sat straight up, letting out a loud yawn before sticking a thumb into his mouth and sucking on the digit. He watches as Yoshi tries to comfort Mikey to stop crying, while pulling Raph away from beating the freckled-face turtle and disciplining him to stop. The sight before the little genius was very intriguing, but also dangerous that he knew to stay away.

He then looked over to his left and saw his third brother remained asleep, quiet and still. Don knew that he should be awake right now and, like any infant would do, after crawling over to be beside him, started patting his hand against Leonardo's head.

"Gu, ah." He babbled, sloppily aiming his slaps from his brother's head to his shell. When that didn't work, he then tried to make his brother move by pushing him to his shell and slapping on his plastron. That method didn't work either. Don then decided to pick up his brother's right-hand... And lightly nibble on his fingers. It always bothered Raph when he or Mikey used his fingers as teething toys, so why not try it on Leo?

Surprisingly, even that didn't rouse the sleeping turtle... But he did, eventually, gained their father's attention.

"Donatello!" Yoshi exclaimed, using his tail to curl itself around the turtle's shell and pull him into his lap with his two brothers. "You mustn't disturb your brother when he is sleeping."

Taken away by his brother, Donatello's curious mind turned to the pink-tail that wrapped itself around his small-body... He decided to see if it was food, by biting down on it. Luckily for Yoshi, their baby teeth were too dull to cause any serious pain to his tail. Though, he knew that he has to feed them before they start biting each other. Or worse, himself.

After setting down three of his four sons and before getting up to grab the baby food, Yoshi took the moment to stare at his sleeping son. His ears dropped when seeing no response coming from the sleeping turtle, even when lying on his shell.

Gently, he turned his son back onto his plastron and laid a light kiss on his forehead, nuzzling his nose against his head.

"Watashi no musuko, mōsugu okimasu (Wake up soon, my son)." He whispered into Leo's ear, then got to his feet and made an immediate path for the kitchen to grab the baby food. When he got back, Donatello was trying to pull Raphael away from Michelangelo, beating him upside of his head.

It took Yoshi twenty-seven seconds to break up the fight and four minutes to finish feeding his three sons, which was a difficult task when three turtle toddlers kept getting in each other's way to eat their portion from the spoon and starting a fight to continue where that left off. To top it all off, the three ended up getting food on themselves than getting it into their mouths.

The thirty-five year-old ended up gathering three, messy babies into his arms and taking them to the bathroom for a bath... Which left Yoshi wondering: which is worse to deal with, his sons fighting over food and getting themselves dirty or having to be victimized in their little game of water fight. The one to start the water fight, surprisingly, is Raphael.

He hates getting baths and will do whatever it takes to get out of the tub, even if it means he would get in trouble and would find a way to getting payback if he does't succeed at escaping, by splashing their father with water. Michelangelo, thinking that his brother started a game, join in at splashing both his father and his brothers with water. Poor Donatello try to seek shelter from the splashes and is unable to escape getting caught in the middle of this horrible game.

Nevertheless, the humanoid-rat got them all cleaned and what's more successful at drying them up, before scoping them back into his arms and heading back for the living room.

Yoshi let out a tiring sigh, feeling a bit cold from the water soaking through his kimono and onto his fur.

'Perhaps, next time they hibernate, I should remind myself to never ask for them to scream and yell, again.'

"Do da da, ya ya ba ya de." Michelangelo babbled, reaching for their fathers thin beard, giving the humanoid-rat barely enough time to pull away from Mikey's death grip hands.

Rather than get annoyed, Yoshi couldn't help but chuckle that the turtles persistence.

'Or, it's something that I should get used to dealing with.'

So focused on the three eight month-old babies in his arms, Yoshi almost didn't notice a certain surprise waiting for him if he didn't hear a sudden sound that didn't came from either of his three sons he held. When he lifted his gaze... his breath was taken away from him, as he froze in his steps.

There, still in the blanket of the sleep pile, slowly sitting up and stretching his arms and legs, is the fourth turtle: Leonardo.

"Uuahh..." The boy let out a big yawn, similar to how cats and canines yawn, before slowly getting to his hands and feet. His limbs wobbled a bit, but gradually stayed firm underneath the turtle's body.

After shaking his body a bit and lifting his head, did Leonardo realized that he had a small group staring at him. His Cerulean/Sapphire-eyes flashed at the humanoid-rat with uncertainty when seeing his brothers being held like human hatchlings... Until his mind reminded him that they're no longer normal turtles and are now humanoid-turtles.

Yoshi, stunned by what he's seeing is too good to be real, slowly got down to his knees and set his three sons on the ground, all of which made an immediate dash for their brother and enveloped him in a big group hug.

Leo, by surprise, let out a small yip. All three brothers let out laughter and proceeded to play with him by attempting to dogpile him.

As his son's play with one another, Yoshi watches over them from afar. his heart felt like it was going to jump out of his chest at any moment, as his Ruby/Amber-eyes kept observing his fourth son successfully escaping his brothers' game and staying at a safe distance while on all-fours. Letting out yipping sounds, that the others found very funny and continuously coming for the Cerulean/sapphire-eyed toddler.

As much as he wanted to scoop him into his arms and keep him in his embrace, the thirty-five year-old father allowed his boys to play with each other to catch up after hibernating for so long.

He stared up at the ceiling, feeling truly blessed by God, himself, to have four sons to love and raise.

'I make this solemn oath,' he thought. 'I shall love and treasure my sons, over all else. I shall let them live happy and loved, just as I was by my own family. Like I was raised to be, I shall train my sons to follow the family tradition, on the path of ninjutsu, when they become of age... But most of all, no matter what, I shall protect them from all who would dare to harm them... Even, at the cost of my life.'
End of Flashback...

---

Tears stained the blue-mask. Leaving deep water-markings into the material that'll eventually fade away. If only the same could be said about the cold-hand squeezing his heart.

His claws dug through his thick fur, slightly digging into his skin and leaving a small-trail of blood to merge with brown-fur and Kimono. He didn't care that he self-harmed himself; he couldn't feel any pain that he will surely feel later on when his mind will come to it's senses.

He now held his son's mask in both hands, burying his face into the soft material, as he sobbed his heart out.

"Forgive me, Leonardo. Forgive me, for breaking my promise. For making you feel like you must become a sacrifice, to spare your brothers and April from Kraang... For being a terrible father...!" He rocked himself in his spot, unable to find any comfort from the pain. "I failed Miwa when she was a baby, and should had searched for her. I failed Shen, when I should had done more to save her from Saki's attack. I failed your brothers, when I should had better prepared yourselves with your fight against the Foot Clan and the Kraang... Worst of all, I failed you, by not being the father you needed me to be."

His sadness is like a dark storm, striking his mind with the terrible reminder of his failures... While in his stomach, a great quake of anger roared towards his hatred for the aliens that mutated them all those years ago... And the Shredder, for betraying him when they were brothers, killing his wife and kidnapping his daughter and turning her into a killer he molded her to become.

Losing the person you love is devastated, especially when losing one you would call your soulmate. But to lose a child... It's something that haunts you for the rest of your day; Yoshi should know, when he thought his daughter was dead. But this helpless feeling of failing to find his son and to think he has perished... It's ten times worse for the grieving father.

His tears continued to be shed for the eldest-turtle, as a single message ran through his thoughts.

'Please be alive, my son. Please... Watashitachi ni modoru (Return to us).'

---

Everyone deals with grief in their own ways, expectedly or unexpectedly: Some deal with it, by attempting to go on their usual routine. Others, purposely or not, lock themselves away or keep themselves occupy to push themselves from confronting their problems. Many tend to lash out in anger, because how much pain they keep holding inside of them and don't want to admit how truly hurting they are in their grieving state. A few tried to remember the good times they had with the person they lost, hoping to overpower the sadness of never creating more memories with their missing loved ones. For some, it works to push on... For others, it makes the pain much more real and unbearable to find away around it.

For the ways of the humans, their emotions make them behave very irrational and, at times, unpredictable... For the ways of the animals, it's another story.

They grab hold to the understanding of Life and Death, much more than humans believe they can. When an animal loses a companion close to them, they do have a feeling of great pain and sorrow… But, unlike humans, they don't grieve for very long. Because emotions, feelings are, by nature, irrational. Distractions that they can't afford to get in the way, for those who are still living. Even love they have for their mates, younglings, companions and members of their group are all but a hindrance when struggling to survive a single day more. They can't allow feelings to blind them when hunting for food, fighting to protect and defend intruders, or even when on the brink of death.

But, just because animals don't allow themselves to express how they feel in the way humans tend to do, doesn't make them heartless. They know there's a time when it's okay to express one's behavior, when they know it's appropriate to let out those feelings. So long that it doesn't counter with a situation when they need to be collective, that could very well mean Life and Death for their very survival of all.

Losing a loved one is truly a great loss that none can ever recover from, no matter how much time would past or when they, eventually, find the path to keep living. Many would pray, sending their loves to the ones they lost, or hope to find some sign as proof their loved one is still around.

…Only very few, who hope for some miracle to be given to them, will gain such an honorable gift on having their prayers be answered.

---

August Eighth; the Next Day, at Night…
"Oh, come on! That movie was funny!" April argued with the red-masked turtle, who he and his brothers are dressed in hoodies and baggy clothes to disguise themselves from the humans, as they left the theatre after watching "Ice Age: Continental Drift".

"No offense, April, but that movie sucked." Raphael replied, glaring at Michelangelo, who kept humming the 'We Are Family' song. "Their adventure was way too short, and their fight scene was plain out childish! I was actually hoping Manny would get his eye cut out and get a cool, battle scar!"

"I thought it was quite intriguing." Donatello commented, clearly lying through his lips and trying to share April's interest in a movie he didn't find very amusing. "I mean, it seemed very unlikely for a Gigantopithecus to push solid ice to match the exact weight and mass as his previous ice-ship, despite their sheer strength."

"I liked how Sid was able to communicate with those little hamsters, and the squirrel still ends up losing his nut in the end." Michelangelo added in, finally giving the song a rest for a moment to make a point of his own. "And it's like I've been trying to tell you, guys: Squirrels did create the world as it is, today."

Raph and Don both face-palmed themselves to their baby brother's claim.

"We went over this, Mikey. It was just a movie! The continents were still a single, lard island, millions of years ago, until it eventually broke into two continents. The seven continents didn't become what they are right now, until many, many years later. Squirrels had absolutely nothing to do with the changes of the Earth, at all!"

Mikey gave him a suspicious look.

"Of course, you would say that, Dee... If you were really a squirrel, in disguise!" He pointed a finger at his older-brother, who gave him a blank look on his face... Until let out a yell and started chasing the orange-masked turtle.

"For the last time, I'm not a squirrel!"

"The gap in between your front teeth saids otherwise, Bro!"

As the two brothers continued their little game of cat and mouse, April and Raph watch in amusement.

"You can't actually think it's all terrible?" She asked, raising an eyebrow to give the hotheaded turtle a look that wanted him to be honest with her. He slightly blushed to her question… Then, seeing his brothers occupied with each other, decided to answer her.

"…I liked Shira," he answered. "…And Sid's Grandma was pretty awesome, with her whale... But I still think the whole plot was a load of bull, and should've stopped at 'Dawn of the Dinosaur'."

She patted him on the shoulder.

"Maker's do whatever it takes to make money," she informed him. "But you got to admit, that a How to Train Your Dragon 2 would be awesome."

That, Raphael could agree to.

"If they don't make it, I don't see how else they'll be able to make money by not making a sequel to an already awesome movie."

"I know. The movie is really good, and it wasn't too dark or feel rushed at all. I hope they do make a sequel and continue the story, without killing a beloved character or putting Hiccup and Toothless in a difficult situation that'll put a strain on their friendship*."

"Ahhh!" Michelangelo cried out, being pinned down by his plastron and his left-arm held in Donatello's grasp. "April, Raph, help! Have mercy, Donie!"

"Not until you take back of me being a squirrel, Mikey!" The purple-masked turtle ordered, slightly tightening his grip on his brother's arm, making him beg for more mercy. Both of the older teens chuckled at the scene before them, before they came up and saved the youngest-turtle from the wrath of the genius turtle.

After the movies, they went to see Murakami-san to enjoy some Pizza Gyoza, which Mikey insisted that they go to. It was nice to see the blind-man; they've been so caught up with patrol and dealing with Kraang and Foot Ninjas, they hadn't been coming to their favorite Noodle Restaurant as often as they planned to. Apparently, business has been going well for Murakami-san, especially since his Pizza Gyoza has been a classic favorite for many of his regulars.

In fact, business has been so well, that he was able purchase better stools for his customers to sit in, which the guys had eventually taken noticed. He also bought better kitchen utensils to help him with his cooking, increasing his production nearly a third his speed. But the most wonderful news he wanted to share with them: With the money he's making, he'll be able to hire a few workers to run the shop, mostly for the day-shift. That way, not only will he be able to take some time off for himself, but will also be running the night-shift much more often than he normally does.

The turtles and April were very happy to hear such good fortune for their blind friend… Then, without realizing it, Murakami-san destroyed the joy when he asked where Leonardo was. They didn't have the hearts to tell him that they lost him since the invasion. So, they decided to tell him that he isn't with them right now, telling him a half-lie to buy them some time to eventually tell him the truth. Murakami knew they were lying, but said nothing and chose to wait until they come back another time to ask them for the truth.

After dinner, while bringing some leftovers to take home for Splinter, the five teens decided it was getting late and is time to get back to the Lair. They decided to not do patrol for tonight, on account that it was slow night with very little activities from the Foot Clan and the Kraang.

As they made their way for the nearest manhole-cover, April felt an odd presence nearby. She didn't know what it was, but it felt somewhat familiar to her. Her heart banged against her chest when she felt the presence within her mind, telling her to look for whatever it was she was sensing.

The guys noticed her hesitation and when asked what was wrong, all she said was "I feel something… Familiar.". Not wanting to make her turtle-brothers worried, she pushed aside her instinct to go look for what she didn't know what it was and bring up the rear on entering the sewers.

She hoped that the feeling would go away, but as they slowly continued on towards the Lair, the pulsing in her mind grew with each steps she took. Her heart hammered a bit quicker, making her adrenaline kick in from anxiety and anticipation.

'Why am I so pumped? And why do I have this urge to run?'

before she realized it, without any kind of warning, April immediately took off ahead of the group. She ran like she never ran before, ignoring the cries of her concern friends. She knew that she had to find the source to what she was feeling in her mind. that whatever it was that she sensing, needs her help and needs her right now.

Tears suddenly formed from her eyes, but they weren't tears of sadness... But of joy.

"If you feel something telling you must do or go somewhere where you need to be, then you follow what your instinct or intuitive tells you to do."

Her sky-blue eyes widened, and her feet picked up their pace.

'Could it be? Is it-...? Please, let it be!'

She skid a corner, nearly fallen from a puddle making the ground slippery, following what the pulse in her head is telling her to go. The more rapidly the pulses went, the closer she knew she was heading for the source. Her hope was soaring, as her spirit felt free of all burdens that plagued her mind this past month.

'It's got to be him! It must be him!'

Three minutes of running without stopping, she found herself in a cross-section tunnel. Finally, having to stop when she needed to get the air back into her lungs. Also, that the pulsing in her head instantly went silent.

She had reached her destination... And yet, she found nothing. the only thing she found in the tunnel, was a simple stray sewer rat, that immediately ran from her. Other than that, there was nothing else that caught her attention.

Her hope immediately crumbled away, her joy replaced with sorrow and disbelief.

'I actually thought I felt him. I was certain that I felt-... Is my mind playing tricks with me?'

It didn't take long for the three turtles to catch up to her, all a little winded but not in the least tired as she is.

"Jeez, April, where's the fire?" Raphael asked, his eyes scanning for anything suspicious within their surrounding and keeping a firm grip to their leftover meal.

"Did something happen, April?" Donatello asked, concerned that something scared her and was ready to take on anybody who dare to threaten his girl.

The sixteen year-old let out a deep sigh of defeat, lowering her head to stare at the ground beneath her feet, as she then turned and started making her way back to the path where the Lair is located.

"…It was nothing," she whispered.

Both Raph and Don stared at each other, uncertain on what to do, as they started following the teen back to their home... Until they realized that Michelangelo wasn't following them back.

"Mikey, let's go." The genius turtle called out. He didn't hear a reply, nor did he hear the freckled-face turtle coming their way. In fact, the only thing they did hear from Mikey, was the deep breathing that sounded like… Gasping?

Both older-brothers turned to stare at the orange-masked turtle, who continued staring out ahead of them. Raphael mumbled a few words under his breath, not wanting to stay any longer in the sewers when all he wanted to do was sleep after watching a movie.

"Come on, Mikey. It's time to go home. Don't you want to finish the rest of Murakami's Gyoza?" He quickly pressed on, knowing how much his brother loves food, especially the Pizza Gyoza their human-friend made for them and will immediately take off home to start eating their leftover food.

…Startling as it was, the youngest-turtle still remained in his spot. He didn't even turn his head to their direction, as if Raph and Donnie hadn't been talking to him at all. That, alone, got the two very worried.

They immediately went to their brother's side.

"Mikey, what's wrong?" Donatello questioned, placing a hand on his forehead to feel for a sign of illness.

The turtle's baby-blue eyes were wide, almost owl-like, completely mesmerized by what's keeping his full attention on it and not his brothers and April, who came by to see what the orange-masked turtle was looking at.

Realizing what she didn't see at first, she noticed something laying on the ground in the shadows. In her line of vision, it looks to resemble a large-dog. Soon after, Raph and Don noticed the figure on the ground, too.

"What is that?" Raph asked, as April slowly went over to the figure to get a better look at the figure. He may be trained to work in the shadows, but has yet to be able to see in the dark. Donatello and Michelangelo were in the same predicament, and April hasn't been properly trained to do so until she improves her senses.

As she got closer, her ears were ringing from her heart banging against her eardrum. She got down to her knees and as she reached a hand out, her hand was trembling.

'…Please.' She prayed, leaning in to the figure. 'Please, let this be the day… Please…!'

When her hand finally made contact with the figure... She gasped at the feeling her hand felt. Immediately, she reached out with her other hand and turned the figure onto it's back.

There, at that second, she let out the one word the guys never thought to hear... A word that will bring their family back together, again.

"Leo!"

TBC

---

Yep! Leo's back! I know you guys are expecting a touchy-family moment for an ending, but I feel like that moment can wait for another time, either in a flashback or a brought up by his brothers.

…Well... We finally reached the end... Of Season One! Next chapter, we'll be entering the Second Season. Some interesting surprises will occur... Along with some dark events. So, be prepare!

*: Before any of you guys say, "But didn't Leo changed his mask in the chapter: Disobey a Leader's Order, and you Suffer?", consider this possibility: Leo snuck into Splinter's room when he wasn't in there and was able to get some of the incense to take to his room. Wolves rely on sense of smell to identify their pack-mates and, because the scent of incense reminds him of his sensei, whenever he goes out to patrol and trouble comes, he would focus on the scent of incense his mask carries to stay calm and collective on what to do. Meaning, Splinter could very well mistaken one of the spares for the original mask he gave to Leo and not know about it.

Also, he could've easily switched the masks when it finally washed, at any time, in-between the time period of chapter 8 to 16. So, very likely, the mask he wore in Chapter 17, is the mask Splinter gave him.

*: Back then, Splinter had the practice dummy in the dojo, so he can keep an eye on how each of them attacks, until they were old enough to no longer need somebody to spot for them and moved it to the living room.

*: I always imagine Mikey trying to pull a Tarzan on Leo, only for him to be caught off guard when the eldest turtle knew what he was going to do.

*: If you guys guessed it, it is from Raphael vs Donatello mini-clip... It was hilarious!

*: I don't doubt twins have that unique, special bond that may be like telepathy to each other; I'm just not certain if it's what other people claim it to be, when they (myself, included), weren't born with a twin to properly explain it or find that theory being true or not.

*: Remember- Leo started weapon training at six with Splinter, while the others started at ten but they don't know that Leo was already ahead on weapon training... Until he demonstrated how well he wielded their weapons (Chapter 16: Nature Vs Toxicity).

*: I'm making it up… Unless, that's what people back then believed to be real.

*:…I'm still upset with HTTYD 2 and, actually, disappointed with HTTYD 3.

I did tell you that this chapter would be a challenge. I was hoping to finish this before my 24th birthday, which was on Wednesday… I, honestly, didn't expect this chapter to get long... But hey, at least this should keep you guys entertained until the next chapter comes up.

R&R