Chapter three:
"W-What are you doing back here? Weren't you on the run to stop us from stopping you?" Donnie attempts to sound as brave as he can even in such a situation. He tenses as Leo's eyes go to the book Donnie is holding. He shifts it trying to keep the other from figuring out what book it is.
"Oh my. Looks like you found something important." Leo mentions making Donnie take a step back.
"You can't have this! I've been searching for this for a long time! It's just a random book!" Donnie tries to lie however he has a feeling that his face is giving him away. He was never the best at lying to his brothers.
Leo chuckles. "I don't believe you." He raises a hand snapping his fingers.
Donnie spins around spotting movement. His eyes widen as another Shadow in the form of a turtle appears.
This one has pink added as it's only other color.
Donnies eyes dart to either side when two more appear on either side of him.
One has green as the only other color and the other has a mahogany looking color.
Donnie backs up only to bump into someone. He glances over his shoulder seeing Leo staring at him. "J-Just how many of you are there?" He questions nervously and Leo smirks at him.
"That is not for you to know."
The pink Shadow yanks the book out of Donnies grasp.
"No!" Donnie tries to grab it back having been taken by surprise.
"Would you look at that. A book all about us." The pink Shadow flips through it before chuckling. "The only way to get rid of us is to kill the host body according to this."
The other Shadows chuckle including Leo.
"Planning to kill your own brother?" Leo's questions makes Donnie fully spin around to face him. He is smirking widely with amusement. "My. I knew you didn't care but didn't think you didn't care that much."
"You've got it wrong." Donnie glares at Leo intending it only for the Shadow that has stolen Leo's body. "We won't kill him. There is another way. We just know it."
"Hm." Leo's smirk slightly fades though does kind of remain on his face. "Are you really so sure about that? You never even knew of us before. What makes you so sure that you know more than those that knew we existed?"
"It doesn't matter. People of the past can be wrong." Donnie insists at Leo still glaring. "We will find a way. No matter what it takes." He blinks letting his gaze soften. "Leo. Leo please. If you can hear me, fight this thing. We care about you and we want you back with us. As who you are. Because we love who you are." He tries and there is a pause with Leo before the other laughs.
"You seriously thought that would work!?" Leo says between laughing before calming himself down. "Your brother is stuck with me now that he's agreed to be my host. Those chains don't just break through willpower." His tone clearly shows that he thinks Donnie is an idiot. "Do you want to understand him?"
Donnie blinks in confused shock at this. "W-What?"
"My friends need hosts too." Leo's words make Donnie's heart skip a beat in fear. "You could become one too. Then you'll understand him and you won't be apart."
Donnie closes his eyes before opening them again with a glare. "As if I would ever do something like that! I want to understand him yes. I want to understand what lead up to this. What weakness you exploited for your own gain." He clarifies to a disappointed Leo. "However, I will not just lay my body down for any of you Shadows. I want my own brother back. The brother without you in his life."
Leo stares at him for a moment before letting out a breath. "So be it. Then we are indeed your enemies."
Donnie turns back to the other three Shadows that chuckle and begin moving closer.
Suddenly someone tackles one managing to knock that one into another.
Donnie feels some relief at seeing that Splinter is here. He doesn't question it right now however he is just glad that he isn't facing this alone.
"Go!" Splinter orders to Donnie who grabs the dropped book racing away from the lair. "Guess my instincts were right." Is the last of Splinters words Donnie hears as he races away.
Donnie hears soft chuckles as one of the Shadows must be chasing him. He keeps going not looking back as he has to get away for now. He exits out of the sewer tunnel, through an opening coming out of a hill, though doesn't go the obvious way of forward. He instead darts to the side hiding in an unfinished pipe. He peeks out doing his best to keep his breathing quiet.
The mahogany Shadow emerges and slightly glances around before heading for the direction of some woods. It must seem to think Donnie is hiding that way.
Donnie lets out a breath ducking into hiding again. He pulls out his phone quickly messaging his brothers.
Leo was in the lair when I got there. There was three more of those Shadows. Dad managed to give me a chance to run out of there. They know we have the book. I'm hiding by one of the tunnel entrances as one of them chased after me.
Donnie gets responses pretty quickly from the other two. He reads Raph's then Mikey's.
On our way.
I'll come meet you. Send me your location.
Donnie tells Mikey where he is and waits for his brother to arrive.
...
Raph hurries through the sewer tunnels hoping that Leo is still in the lair. He can hear something up ahead where the lair is.
"You won't win." Splinter hisses slightly.
"We'll see about that." Leo responds with a chuckle.
Raph slows down deciding that he needs to take Leo by surprise. He has to try to restrain him so hopefully he won't run off again. He peeks inside seeing two other Shadows, a pink one and a green on, holding Splinter down. He also spots Leo looking over Splinter smugly. He clenches his teeth at seeing Leo's body being used for whatever that Shadow wants. He carefully darts to a spot where there is a shadow. He crouches there waiting for an opportunity.
This spot is pretty small and barely fits one of them. So this spot is really only used if one needs to sneak back in. Usually they get stuck there until Splinter isn't paying attention or until Splinter passes out.
"My friends here need their own hosts. And either we'll cause misery to humans until they can be taken over. Or we'll get those other turtles to comply" Leo blinks at Splinter. "You could take one of their places."
Splinter pauses to stare at Leo before seeming to have a thought pass through his mind. "And if I agree then what will you do to whichever of my sons you don't make into hosts?"
"Trap him until we can find any more of our kind. There has to be more of us out there that are still alive surely. After we were forced to run into hiding by that one magician. We may have been separated for many many years but that'll change. The Shadows will take back this land and make the humans suffer for doing what they did." Leo stares at Splinter as he says this. Not noticing that Raph is getting ready to spring at him in order to try to restrain him.
"How did a magician force you all to leave?" Splinter inquires to which Leo chuckles.
"You don't need to know that information." Leo slightly leans over as if to lean closer to Splinter. "Focus on my proposal. I mean, you've already ruined their lives pretty good. They even treated one of their own like an outsider because who else can they do that to?" His words make Raph flinch at the reminder of how they should have treated Leo better, and more like a brother. "You were the reason for this. Teasing behaviours have to go somewhere. While normal people can tease other humans or gossip with friends about them, your sons had none of that. All they could do was target one of their own. Poor Leo." He starts a concerned tone which knowing that things intentions is clearly fake. "He had no one to truly turn to. You weren't in their lives enough to even be able to actually understand them. And his own siblings made him the outsider. Oh the despair he felt. The ways he tried to make things right before he accepted my offer."
Raph wonders if this is truly the reason that Leo had ended up accepting the Shadow.
Was it really their fault for making Leo feel like an outsider which allowed the Shadow to target him? How hurt was Leo before that thing made it all worse?
Raph shakes this off telling himself that he needs to focus. He once again gets ready to spring at Leo.
"You did nothing to stop this from happening." Leo continues staring right at Splinter. "Don't you want to try to fix things? Show him that you finally want to understand him? That you finally want to make things right for what you let happen?"
Splinter flinches though before he can say anything Raph leaps.
Raph knocks Leo to the ground fighting with him as he tries to restrain his arms behind his back.
Leo struggles trying to throw him off. He ends up unsuccessful as Raph has more physical strength than him. His hands go behind his back and the two Shadows can only watch.
If they let go of Splinter then the rat mutant will help Raph.
"Let him go." Raph insists to the Shadow possessing Leo's body.
"You just want things to go back the way they were." Leo taunts looking over his shoulder at Raph. "You want to just be able to treat him the same way you have for the rest of your lives. You don't actually care."
"You don't know anything." Raph growls narrowing his eyes at Leo. "I want to fix things. I want to make things right to him. I want to help him through all of this." He keeps his gaze locked with Leo's own. "Don't act like you know me just because you have this picture of me painted to torment Leo." He wants everything to become alright. He wants Leo back so much. He tries to hide his guilt for letting things like this happen.
Leo seems to analyze him for a moment before seeming to sense the guilt. "I see." He watches Raphs face. "And what makes you think that you can fix things? That you can make things right? You've already fucked up. You've shown you don't care. You only care now because what has happened reveals what you've done. You are only doing this because you believe it is the right thing to do."
"I'm doing this because I care about Leo." Raph clarifies not hiding his love for Leo. "Yes we could have done better. However I love Leo. I care about. No matter what you try to say about me. I plan to improve and show it better to him." He doesn't hide his honesty. "You're so caught up in your own lies and twisting of events that you didn't take notice of something. You didn't take notice of how we do show we care. Sure we didn't show it all the time, however we always cared. He may have forgotten about that especially thanks to you. However when we get him back we'll make sure he won't ever doubt it again."
Leo stares at Raph who stared back unwaveringly. "If I had not shown him any of the truth of how you don't actually care, even if you talk big, then you would have continued to hurt him."
"If you hadn't started twisting things to Leo we would have realized our mistake at some point. We would have improved and become the brothers that Leo deserves." Raph insists making Leo chuckle.
They all turn as Donnie and Mikey enter the lair.
"Look out!" Raph gasps causing the two to turn spotting the mahogany Shaodows eyes.
The Shadow leaps at the two with a big grin and an evil sounding chuckle.
Mikey and Donnie leap in different directions only for the Shadow to dart after Donnie.
The Shadow pushes Donnie to the ground leaning close as he looks up at its eyes. "Pretending to care to save your own asses from what you've done isn't going to get you very far." It taunts leaning even closer to Donnies face. It can see that Donnie is hurt and worried about Leo and what caused all this to happen.
"We do care!" Mikey jumps at the Shadow on Donnie.
The Shadow fades away making Mikey slam into Donnie instead. It reappears right beside where the two turtles lay on top of each other.
"I won't let you hurt them!" Splinter struggles trying to escape the hold the Shadows have on him. He manages to slide his tail to a position to use it. He swings it at the green Shadow making it vanish then manages to shove the pink one off of him. He races for Mikey and Donnie as they get up only for the green Shadow to leap onto his back. He has to stop
The pink Shadow and the mahogany Shadow head for Mikey and Donnie.
Mikey and Donnie get to their feet ready to fight.
Raph slightly glances around at all of this before his eyes come to Leo.
Leo looks to be watching things with contempt as if knowing that they'll win.
Raph had hoped that things wouldn't happen like this. He however thinks it might be the best way to do this. He turns Leo around causing the other to look to him with a glare. He keeps his hands pinning Leo's arms to help him from pushing him away. "I know how I can show that I do love and care for Leo a lot more than you want him to think." He leans close and Leo tries to wiggle away.
"What are you doing!?" Leo demands only for Raph to seal their lips together in a kiss.
Raph feels some sort of spark and a pull. He closes his eyes mentally following it as it makes him feel like his spirit is being drawn towards Leo. He opens his eyes as Leo disappears from under him. He blinks at finding himself in a strange place.
This place almost looks like Tim Burton's Alice in Wonderland landscape.
Raph remembers them getting to see it once and he swore it looked like Leo enjoyed it more than they did. He wonders if he can find Leo somewhere in here; Perhaps Leo managed to make this place for some form of comfort.
Only one way to find out.