My Toy!
Master Splinter and the Turtles were exploring the sewers. Normally, Splinter would leave his children back at the Lair but decided to let them come with him during his salvaging. Children they may still be, but the Turtles were now old enough to adventure out with the promise of staying near the rat and not wander off without his consent. The boys were finding the salvaging interesting and poked around as they imitated their father's actions. They didn't know what he was looking for, but it didn't matter to them. Mikey, however, lost interest quickly and decided to wrestle with Raphael. Raph was a little annoyed by his baby brother's pestering and played into the game. Leo continued following his father closely while Donnie was looking at the items collected so far.
Master Splinter noticed Mikey and Raph starting to wander off and called them back beside him. The boys obeyed and the family continued their adventure through the sewers. They came upon a subway and Splinter made sure no one was around and kept his ears open for any trains that may come by. When he decided it was safe, the Turtles followed him. He helped them over the edge to the other side. There were plenty of items here and Splinter noticed the boys were starting to get bored.
"Boys, I'm going to continue looking for our essentials. You may play here, but stay in the area. I do not want anyone getting lost."
"Okay, Dad," Leo promised with a smile. The other three nodded, glad for the break.
Raph was the first to run off in search of something to tear up. He was eager to find a pillow to rough up. Donnie found a magnifying glass and began using it to look through the garbage as if searching for clues like a detective. Mickey found a box and used it as a sled down the piles of garbage around them. Leo watched them all at a distance, making sure everyone was near and not causing trouble.
"Hey, check this out!" Raph declared as he took out an action figure of a superhero from the rubble he was playing in. It was a little dirty, but still in one piece.
"Awesome!" Mikey said coming up. Soon all four brothers were gathered around curious in the new object.
"He's an astronaut!" Donatello said. "We need to find a space shuttle for him to travel to space with!"
"An astronaut? Phhft, that's so lame! A demolition guy is way more cool!" Raph grinned.
"No, he's the mayor of the city!" Leo declared as he took the toy from Raph. "He's a leader!"
"I know!" Mikey yelled, snatching the toy from Leo and waving it above his head in excitement. "He's a superhero! Look at him fly and beat up the bad guy!"
Raphael growled and swiped the toy from his brother. "I found him first, he's mine! And I say he's a demolition guy!" Then he ran off with the toy!
Angered, the three brothers chased after Raphael to have their turn at the toy. Leo was the first to catch up and tackled his brother. Raphael dropped the toy as he fell and fought to get Leo off of him. Mikey went to grab the toy, but tripped over an object and landed hard on his face. Donatello picked up the toy while Leo and Raph were distracted and tried to run off.
"Hey!" Raphael yelled, finally shoving Leo off from him. "That's mine!"
Don stuck out his tongue to tease and made a run for it as Raph got to his feet. Donatello held the toy close to him and could practically feel Raphael's rage behind him. Mikey and Leo got to their feet and chased after the two again.
Master Splinter heard the commotion and looked up from where he was looking. He frowned and left the items to go after his sons. Something had gotten their attention enough to cause a lot of noise.
Donatello ducked behind a new pile of garbage and was certain he had lost his brothers. He chuckled in relief and began to admire the toy. But then a shadow appeared above him and he froze in terror as Raphael's eyes sparked revenge. Raphael grabbed the toy and the two struggled with each other to keep the toy in his own grip.
"Give it to me, Snort Breath!" Raphael demanded.
"No!" Donnie pulled back.
"Give!"
In the struggle Raphael lost his temper for real and bit Donatello's hand, forcing the younger brother to let go. Donatello let out a holler and started crying as he caressed his hurt hand.
Raphael waved the toy around in victory as Leo and Mikey came rushing up.
"Raph!" Leo glared at him. "Are you crazy? You hurt Donnie!"
"So? He should have kept his hands off like I told him."
"W..why are you always so mean?" Donnie sniffled as Mikey came over and hugged his injured brother.
Master Splinter appeared and was not happy. All the Turtles fell silent as he approached them.
"I told you not to run off, and you disobeyed me," He frowned down at them. "What is this all about? What happened?"
No one answered him and looked down at the floor in shame. That hated that look he gave them when he was angry.
"No one is going to answer me? Very well. We are going home and you four are going to spend five minutes in reflection until you tell me what happened."
The tots remained silent and followed their father.
Back at the Lair, the brothers were still upset with one another and still refused to say a word about what happened. Master splinter sighed as he looked over at the clock. The boys have been in the reflection room for nearly an hour. He didn't want to keep them in there, but no was apologizing to one another or explaining why there was a fight.
He got up from the table and went to check on his sons. Maybe now they will finally tell him what happened.
Master Splinter walked into the dimly lit room and sat down. The boys all had their backs to one another.
"I know this has been hard, my sons. But I put you in here because I was not pleased with you running off like that and starting a fight. Are you all ready to apologize now?"
There was silence for a moment, but finally Mikey looked at his father with teary eyes. He hated this room as much as his brothers did and wanted to seek forgiveness.
"I'm sorry, Dad! Please don't hate me! I just wanted to play with that cool toy. I didn't mean to disobey you."
Master splinter nodded and hugged his son, forgiving. "I would never hate you, Michelangelo. Thank you for apologizing. You are free to leave the room."
Mikey walked out, wiping his tears. Leo was mortified and walked over to his father.
"I'm sorry, too, Dad. Like Mikey had said, we got excited over a toy and….well," he was embarrassed to say more. "I shouldn't have acted that way. Do you forgive me?"
Splinter nodded and hugged his oldest son, letting him leave the room as well.
"And do either of you have anything to say?" he asked Donatello and Raphael who clearly were still holding a grudge against one another. "If you wish to leave, then you must apologize."
The two glanced at one another for a moment. Neither one wanted to stay another minute in that boring room and burst out crying. Master Splinter did not expect that reaction from them. He pulled them close and hugged them.
"It's alright now. There is no need to cry," he shushed them. Raphael looked up at his father.
"It's my fault, Dad. I wanted to keep the toy so bad and I got angry. I…I bit Donatello. I started the fight."
"We all wanted to play with the toy," Donatello admitted with a nod. "We got jealous."
"I see…," Master Splinter nodded. "I believe there is a lesson you all have learned through this."
He gathered the four Tots together in the main room and held them close.
"My sons, I am very proud of you for telling me what had happened today. What did you learn from today's experience?"
"Not to wander off?" Leo answered.
"Yes, but what else?"
The Four pondered for a moment as they looked from one to the other.
"Jealousy can lead to anger and hate," Raphael answered looking at Donnie with an apologetic smile. "Toys can be fun, but fighting and hurting one another is never okay."
"Toys can be replaced," Donnie nodded in agreement. "But the relationship you have with others is more important than any object."
"That is right," Splinter nodded with a proud smile. "I love you, my sons."
"We love you,too!" The four returned the smile as they snuggled close to their father's warm fur.