When Leo Met Mona
Chapter Twelve: Dysphoria
"Leo? Leo, help!"
He jerked awake at the sound of his name. No idea how long he was out, but he no longer had a needle in his arm. He found Mona Lisa's unfamiliar, reptile-like form leaning over Donatello's body.
Her hand was on his forehead. "Leo, he's burning up."
Leonardo reached to touch his brother's arm and found heat rising off the body hotter than any turtle should be. He ripped the blankets off and looked at the bandages. They were soaked in blood. He removed the bandage around Donatello's leg. The open gash was red, and swollen. It smelled of infection.
"Okay, hold on," he said in the most steady voice he could muster. He walked to the door and yelled. "Someone get me some hot water!" Then he went over to the cabinet in the corner and began rooting around. The place was stocked with all sorts of medical supplies. Including several large ready-made shots calculated at a dosage for very large mutant turtle bodies. The sides of the syringes listed the medicines within in small, black letters. That was Donatello's doing. Leonardo's hand at organizing the first aid room was to add a second label in large, red letters to state what each medication did, so anyone could make use of the supplies.
He found a syringe that said "FEVER AND INFECTION" and plunged the needle into Donatello's arm. At that point, Splinter came in with a bowl of hot water and some clean cloths.
"All his bite wounds are infected," Leonardo told his sensei. "We've got to clean them out again. Where is everyone?"
"Your brothers escorted April home." Splinter helped to remove the soiled bandages. "The sewers are no longer safe for her to travel alone."
Leonardo set his jaw as he was reminded that there were still very large, very hungry reptile creatures wandering the sewers. They had no idea how many and it was a problem they couldn't afford to ignore for long.
Donatello, though still unconscious, winced slightly as Splinter began to gently squeeze blood full of bacteria and puss from his wounds. Seeing that his father had Donatello's aid under control, Leonardo turned his attention to Mona Lisa. She looked exhausted. Hardly had the strength to continue to sit up as she propped herself up on one elbow and watched Donatello's face.
Leonardo sat next to her and helped her into a sitting position. "He's going to be okay. He just needs some time to fight off the infection."
He half expected her to curl up in his arms, but she instead leaned against the wall, tiredly pulling up the blankets to cover her nude body. That act alone seemed to wind her.
"How do you feel? What can I do for you?"
"Water?" she asked. "And a shirt or something?"
Shirts weren't something the turtles wore, but Leonardo thought he might be able to raid Michelangelo's room for a loose hoodie. "Okay, I'll see what I can find. Are you hungry?"
She looked sick for a moment and then desperate. "I'm starving, but I'm not feeling great."
"We can put on some tea and make soup," Splinter offered.
"That sounds amazing," she said with gratitude. She reached over and touched Donatello's forehead to check his temperature.
Leonardo didn't like that. He wasn't sure why, but he was suddenly not happy she was touching his brother. That she was in bed with him.
"Can I put you somewhere else? Do you want to rest in my room?"
She pulled the blanket up tighter. "Can I stay here? At least until Donatello's fever goes down? I don't mind keeping an eye on him."
That irritated him, but Leonardo said it was fine. He went to fetch her some water and watched as she hesitated to touch glass with her now four-fingered hands. Still, she eventually took it and guzzled it down. He went back to the kitchen to check on the warming canned soup on the stove. It was a couple more minutes until it was ready, then he returned with a steaming bowl. Only to find Mona Lisa asleep again, curled up against Donatello's arm.
Leonardo let out a long breath and set the bowl on the nightstand. He wasn't mad with her that she had fallen asleep. Her mutation must have taken so much out of her. But he still didn't like that she was in bed with his brother. He bent down to retrieve her.
"And what are you doing?" Splinter asked as he re-bandaged the last of Donatello's wounds.
"I'm taking her to my room."
"I heard her say she wanted to stay in here. You're not respecting her wishes, my son."
"She'll be fine resting in my room."
"She is fine where she is right now." Splinter leaned over to pull the blankets further over both of them. In doing so, he brushed her green skin.
Something in Leonardo's primitive reptile brain could not handle that and he growled. Splinter looked at his son with wide eyes. Since the turtles were old enough to make turtley growls they had growled at each other, either in play or if one of them were irritating the hell out of the other. None of the turtles had ever growled at their sensei.
"Out," Splinter said, pointing to the door.
"What?" Leonardo challenged.
"You are grounded from this room. Out."
The turtle blinked at him. "You can't ground me! I'm an adult!"
"As long as you live in my lair, I can ban you from any room I wish. Now go!"
Leonardo looked all shades of displeased, but he left with a huffy snort and stalked off to other parts of the lair.
.
Donatello woke with a slight headache and feeling more parched than he ever had in his life. At first, he thought he was alone in the medical room. But glancing to the side, he did a double take at the thick head of brunette hair at his shoulder. He felt the weight of her cheek on his arm, her body practically wrapped around it.. She was deep asleep and he didn't want to disturb her. The wounds in his side and leg throbbed and he thought back to what happened. What little of it he could remember.
He had almost died that night, eaten by a giant, starving mutant. But Mona had been there. Wounded, lost, also starving, she literally pulled him from the jaws of death. And now she was here, sleeping peacefully next to him. Safe. And...green.
He reached to the nightstand for his glasses and put them on to get a better look at her. He didn't recognize the face, but he thought she was beautiful. So much so, it surprised him and he looked away, feeling warm. What was he supposed to do now? He didn't want to wake her if she needed the rest.
He opted to remain as he was for a while, hoping someone would eventually come in. The quiet room and the warm, soft body against him had him drifting in and out of a light sleep. Until he felt the body twitching against him.
"Uh...Mona?" he asked.
She didn't respond. She seemed to be dreaming. Having a nightmare was more like it as her face looked distressed. Donatello shifted his arm with the purpose of rousing her and her response was immediate. Her golden brown eyes popped open, wide and wild as she lashed out. Donatello hissed as her razor sharp claws had no problem slicing the skin of his arm in the blink.
And a blink was all it took for Mona to be fully in the moment. She shot up, looked at the damage she inflicted and fear flooded her face.
"I'm sorry," she whispered, almost as if she was afraid he would hurt her back. "I'm so sorry." She backed away from him, eyes wide. Pupils barely pinpricks of black in her eyes. And she promptly fell backwards off the bed with a heavy thud.
Donatello tried to sit up to assist her and pain immediately shot across all the wounds on his left side. "Leo!"
Only a few seconds and Leonardo appeared in the doorway.
The first thing he noticed was Donatello holding is right arm. The next was Mona Lisa sitting on the floor with knees drawn up to her chest and hands protectively over her head like a scared child. He crouched down in front of her, tipping his head to be closer to her eye level.
"Hey," he said softly.
She looked up at him with wet eyes. "I hurt him. I didn't mean to."
Leonardo glanced at his brother over the top of the mattress. Donatello lifted his hand, showing three claw marks that had a bit of blood rising to the surface. The look on his face told it wasn't a wound he was concerned or bitter about.
"He's fine. I mean, he's covered in bandages, but he'll be okay."
Leonardo's attempt at humor didn't reach her as she continued to look traumatized by her own actions.
"Hey, everyone okay in here?" Raphael called as he poked his head in.
Only then did Mona realize she wasn't wearing any clothes. She crossed her arms over her chest with a squeak of horror.
"Can you give us a minute?" Leonardo asked in irritation, moving his body to block his brother's view.
Raphael didn't seem bothered with the situation either way. "Hey Mikey!" he called out to the lair. "Where's the thing you were supposed to get?"
"Oh, right here, bro!" Michelangelo's voice replied from somewhere in the lair. Followed by a hoodie hitting Raphael in the face. He then tossed it to Leonardo.
Mona sighed in relief as she was finally able to properly cover her body. Though the sweater barely made it a few inches past the tops of her thighs, it was better than nothing. She was grateful for Leonardo helping her back to the bed where she could cover her lower half with a blanket.
On the other side of the mattress, Raphael helped Donatello sit up.
"I'm so sorry," Mona said again. "I don't know what happened."
"What happened is you've been through a lot," Donatello said matter-of-factly. "And this is nothing. Not after what you did for me."
She looked a little troubled, a little confused.
"Do you remember what you did?" he then asked. "Do you remember what happened?"
"A little," she said in a soft voice. "Some of it is hazy." She gazed at her green, four-fingered hands and then delicately touched her face. She looked a little horrified when she could feel that her face had changed. The stout reptile nose particularly disturbed her and she flipped the sweater hood over her head and pulled the drawstrings as tight as she could to hide. "Is it bad?" she asked from behind the material.
Leonardo looked to his brothers then back at her. "I mean, you do look different, but it's not bad."
"I don't look like me anymore...do I?"
Silence from all three turtle brothers. None of them knew what to say. Then her stomach growled in the silence.
"Have you not fed her?" Donatello demanded. He raised his voice. "Mikey! No one's fed Mona!"
"Oh, is she up?" came the reply from the main area. "Let me pause my game and I'll get on it!"
In the meantime, Mona's hooded figure peered out at Donatello. "Are you okay, Donnie?" she asked quietly.
Donatello winced as he shifted. "Some painkillers would be nice. But I think I'll be okay."
"You had a fever. It was pretty bad," she told him.
Now it was Donatello's turn to try to remember what happened.
"Here you go, Babe," Michelangelo called as he breezed into the room. Smooth as silk, he slid right past Leonardo and sat himself on the bedside. He snorted a little at her hiding her face with the hoodie. "Do you want to take that off so you can eat?"
She only loosened it a little. Enough so her mouth could be seen.
"It's not very hot," Michelangelo said as he handed her the bowl of chicken soup. "We weren't sure when you would wake up. But maybe that's good so you can—" He paused as she tipped the bowl to her mouth and began downing the entire thing. Not even bothering to chew. "Yeah, just like that. We have some pizza in the fridge. Do you want that?"
"Yes please," she said with her mouth full and then continued emptying the bowl.
"Donnie, you want something?" Raphael asked.
"Feed her first. I'll eat whatever's left."
"If there will be anything left," he joked.
Michelangelo quickly returned with three slices of pizza heated in the microwave. Mona offered the plate to Donatello as she took one herself. She took several bites and then suddenly stopped and stared at the remains of the slice.
"You okay?" Leonardo asked. He had been silently watching every move she had made, standing in the corner, shifting from one foot to the other.
She looked defeated. "I can't...I'm suddenly so tired. I can't even chew anymore."
Michelangelo offered a hand for the pizza and she gave it to him. It immediately went in his mouth and she didn't mind.
Leonardo stepped in then, leaning over her as he slid his arm under her legs. She didn't have the energy to protest. All of her reserves were spent getting the food to her mouth.
"Where you going?" Raphael accused of his brother.
"To a less busy room where she can rest," Leonardo shot back in a possessive tone. Now that he finally had what he wanted, he didn't let anything get in his way as he whisked her off to his bedroom. He kicked the door closed in satisfaction now that he had privacy from all the other males in the lair. He set her down in his bed—his nest—and sat on the mattress next to her.
Mona Lisa just sat there, eyes drooping. She shivered with a sudden chill, as if her body no longer had the energy to produce heat.
"You're cold?" he asked, though it was the middle of summer. He checked her for a fever. When he found that she was actually cold to the touch, he went to dig out some extra blankets. He turned back around to find she had flopped onto her side, not moving. Her bare green legs and thick tail caught his attention, though they weren't moving either.
Blankets were piled on top of her and then Leonardo stretched out on the bed next to her. He tried to gather her against him, but she had curled up, arms folded to hug herself. As if she were protecting herself from any touch. He opted for rubbing her arm, and even then, she shifted as if she didn't want to be touched. Yet, she still talked to him from behind the hood.
"I'm so tired I can barely move. What happened? I was fine earlier."
"You're still recovering," he said softly. "You've been through so much. Let yourself rest. Sleep if you're tired. Eat when you're hungry. Take it easy for a few days." He paused and then added. "I'm sorry it took me so long to find you. I had been looking the whole time. April went asking questions at your job and they gave her false information. Even a doctored security tape. If I would have known that was the last place anyone had seen you, you know I would have torn that place apart."
She brushed her fingers against his plastron. "I know. I didn't doubt you guys were looking."
"I'm sorry I failed you. If I would have known where you were sooner, maybe I could have stopped what they did to you."
"You couldn't have." She paused, her voice tired. "The second they had me they were turning me. Even if you had gone directly there the moment I called you, you still wouldn't have been there fast enough."
Leonardo closed his eyes as a wave of anger washed over him. He tried not to let it tinge his voice. "I still could have done better."
"You were there to get me when I was about to give up. I had made it to the sewers, but I was so tired. I didn't know how much further I could go. And then I heard all of you screaming in that tunnel. That was all I needed to keep going. And you brought me back here. You were there to carry me when I had done all I could do myself. That was all I needed."
He tried to hold her again and her shoulder shrugged him off. "I'm sorry. Everything is still so sore," she sighed. "It's nice that you're here, but it doesn't feel good to be touched right now."
Leonardo hated those humans that had done this to her all over again. That they caused her to not want his touch, that they made her unable to accept physical comfort was enraging. Her fingers against the back of his hand calmed him. She had claimed her own vengeance. His job was to take care of her now. He would stay glued to her side for as long as she needed him. He kept watch next to her as she quickly fell asleep.
.
When she awoke, she found the light had been left on, which she appreciated. Leonardo's room was as dark as the center of the Earth when the lights were off. Next to her, Leonardo slept. He had rotated his mask to use as a blindfold to block out the light. One hand was barely brushing hers, as if he couldn't stand to not be in contact with her.
She felt bad for him. She could tell he wanted to be close, but she just couldn't bring herself to engage in more intimate contact. It wasn't just that her body felt like foreign bones and muscles had been shoved into it. It was also her skin. So green and rough. She wouldn't make him touch it. She didn't even want him to be able to see whatever horrors the mutation did to her face.
Having to pee, she slipped carefully out of bed as not to wake him. A heavy thud hit the floor and she froze. Her tail. It was a thick, dead appendage fused to her spine. She had been trying very hard to pretend it didn't exist.
Despite the sound, Leonardo continued to sleep so she carefully slipped out of the room and down the hall to the bathroom. She wasn't sure what time it was, but it must have been late. Many of the lights were off and no one seemed to be up. Perfect. She slipped into the bathroom without running into any of the lair's other denizens and shut the door.
Once done with her business, she watched her green hands as she washed them at the sink. She held one up. It still bothered her that she was now missing a finger on each hand. Was that her pinky that she lost? She just no longer had one? If she were to turn human again, would it grow back or were they gone forever?
The thought of being human again sent a shiver through her. Was it even possible? She had gone through so many changes, could it ever be reversed or would each mutation attempt continue to alter her in all sorts of different ways?
Even though she stood before a mirror she had been too scared to look at it. She was afraid to see the damage. Afraid to see that she was so altered that her original face could never be put back together. But she knew she had to look. She couldn't go on pretending this didn't happen. She couldn't keep hiding her face in a hood for the rest of her life.
She took a deep breath and looked up. The reptile face that stared back wasn't her and she had to glance away. Her heart raced and she took a moment to calm. Then she looked again. Closer this time. She really took her time to look. Her eyes were the same. Her hair by some miracle she had somehow managed to keep through all her transformations. If she had lost that, too, she wasn't sure if she could have handled this. The dusting of freckles across her face were still there. Though instead of dark spots, they were now a green lighter than her skin.
"You're still you," she whispered to the mirror. "You're still in there. I see you."
Yet, the pep talk made her heart sink. Her life was over. She couldn't go out and get another job. She couldn't pay her rent or her bills. She couldn't be human anymore, let alone take care of herself. In this form, she was unable to do for herself—something she always had pride about doing. And she was a prisoner here in the sewers. Unable to walk the streets of New York. Would she even see the sun again?
Self-pity washed over her and jabbed her in the heart. Up until then, she had kept all her feelings back, but she couldn't do it for much longer. She needed to face what happened to her; she needed to properly mourn what she had lost.
A knock on the bathroom door. Shit. She shoved it all back down before it could fully come to the surface. There would be a time to feel, but now was not it. Not when there was a witness right outside.
"Yeah?" she called as soon as she was able to keep her voice normal.
"It's me," came Leonardo's soft voice.
She opened the door.
"Just checking on you," he said. A look of slight concern crossed him and she wondered if it was caused by something in her expression.
She quickly cut off any thought he had. "Can I take a shower? I smell like the sewers. How did you even allow me in your bed?"
"Sheets can be washed," he said. The concern on his face left for a moment. "Let me show you where the towels are. April keeps some shampoo here, too, I think."
"Bless her," Mona sighed. "My nasty hair is making crinkly noises."
Leonardo dug around for a bit and then produced both towel and shampoo. As he handed them to her, he lingered, his body close. "Do you want company?" he asked in a low tone.
At any other time, that tone would have sent electricity down her spine and warmed her to her toes. She had always wanted to share a shower with him and the feeling had seemed to be quite mutual. But the one in her apartment was barely big enough for her. At this moment, she hadn't even had a chance to look at her body. She wasn't ready for him to put eyes on all of her just yet.
She must not have done well in checking her expression, for Leonardo immediately said, "You don't have to agree. I understand. But I'd like to stay in the room in case you don't feel well or you need help."
She wanted him to go. She wanted five fucking minutes alone to cry in the shower, the noise of the water drowning out all sound. But he was also so sweet and it was probably smart to have him close by just in case.
"That's fine."
He turned on the water for her and both of them waited quietly in the bathroom for it to get warm. Leonardo has purposefully planted himself directly in front of the frosted door of the shower and looked at her with expectation.
"What? You're going to watch me undress and stare at me while I'm in the shower?" she demanded.
The look on his face told that was exactly the plan.
"No, that's creepy," she informed him. "You're not going to evaluate my every move." She pointed to a spot on the floor, the same wall as the shower so he couldn't see in. "Sit here. Shell against the wall the entire time."
He frowned. "I feel like I'm being punished. I'm trying to look after you."
"I don't want to feel like I'm being leered at while I'm still trying to figure out my shit," she shot back. "Your options are to sit here or wait outside. Pick your poison."
He got that stubborn look on his face. "It's just me. I don't understand why you're doing this."
She closed her eyes and set her jaw, trying to keep it together. No emotions. It wasn't time to let them spill out. Her voice came out slightly more than a whisper as she fought to keep it steady. "I know. I'm sorry you don't like what I'm saying, but I am really struggling right now, Leo. So I need you to either do as I ask or get the fuck out of the bathroom. Because if I have to try try to explain myself right now—"
She was cut off with his strong hands on her arms, squeezing them. She expected them to squeeze too tight. She expected him to be confrontational. But his touch was warm, accepting. Instead of pulling her to him, he stepped into her space. His arms went around her, as if to hold her, but he didn't touch. Just encircled her in a warm halo of his presence.
"I'm sorry," he whispered. "I forgot for a moment how to be patient with you. It's been a while since I've had to wait for you to be ready."
She dared look up at him, to give him a full on view of her mutated face. "Is that what all that time was? You were waiting for me to be ready?"
He gave her a small smile that only pulled on one side of his mouth. Then he sat himself where she had indicated and leaned his shell against the wall. But he was still watching her. She gave him a pointed look. Still gently bemused, he turned his gaze. Just as he used to all those months ago when she would change clothes in front of him in her little studio apartment. Before they admitted to what they felt for each other.
As soon as his eyes were averted, Mona threw off the hoodie and quickly fled into the shower. Once safely hidden, she stared at the frosted door to see if Leonardo was going to behave. His form never appeared. But she knew better than to linger here. If she broke down for a silent cry now, he would know. She didn't know how he would know, but she just knew he would catch her.
So she set to work sounding busy in the shower. Brown water washed off her as she lathered her dirty hair. As she rinsed, she took note of the yellow stripe that went down her front. Just like a lizard's belly. And she noticed her breasts. The mutation had taken away her nipples.
"The hell?" she spoke aloud.
"Need help?" came Leonardo's hopeful response.
"Mind your own business, Leo," she shot back, arms around herself. She watched and waited. Again, he didn't seem to try and sneak a peek. She wondered what else about her body has changed as she glanced lower. She couldn't see anything and she was too chicken to explore with her fingers in case Leonardo ran out of patience. Instead, she quickly finished her shower and immediately grabbed a towel.
She was fully covered again before Leonardo could get up from the floor.
When he stood, she told him, "I really need some clothes."
"We found a few things for you. I've got them in my room. Later, I'll get some things from your place. Whatever you want me to grab."
"That would be great, thank you."
Leonardo seemed placated with her thanks and was happy to be the first to leave as she motioned him toward the door. Clearly, he thought she would follow. She caught his look of surprise when she shut the door on him and locked it.
"Mona?"
"One second, Leo. Just give me a moment."
Now alone, she stood in front of the bathroom mirror and exposed herself to her reflection. Her first full view of her mutated form. She wasn't prepared for the fact that she looked as anatomically correct as a barbie doll. Is that what she was now? A doll? Her real self was trapped in this lizard shell, this false body. And she had no idea how to get out.
Her attention was ripped from her reflection when the doorknob jostled and she heard a click. Leonardo had managed to unlock it from the other side. She quickly wrapped herself with the towel as he allowed himself back in.
"I told you to give me a moment!" she barked.
He seemed unoffended with her tone. "What were you doing?
"Nothing."
He gave her a look. One that reminded her of their promise to talk to each other.
"I was just getting a look at myself."
He was clearly puzzled. "Why can't I look with you?"
"Why do you need to look?" she shot back defensively.
"Again, why can't I look? I've seen your body before. You're my girlfriend."
"Oh, I'm yours? Like you have a right to my body? Like you own me?"
He looked hurt and disappointed. "Why would you take it that way? You know that's not what I meant."
She did know. And she immediately felt bad about her words. She didn't know why she was acting like this. She didn't know what to do at all. So she slipped past him and headed back to his room. A glance back at him and he followed. When they both stepped inside, she nodded to the door and he closed it.
Now that they had their privacy, she turned to face him. With a long exhale, she removed the towel, holding the ends aloft in either hand so he could see her. Leonardo stared. He moved forward, only a few feet from her now. And his eyes left trails over her form from head to toe.
After what felt like enough time, Mona began to wrap the towel back around her, but Leonardo stayed her hand.
"Hold on. I'm not done."
"You're not done looking?" she demanded, confused. Was there really that much to look at?
With his other hand, he slowly touched her with the back of his knuckle, rubbing her side where the green skin met the yellow. "I like the tummy stripe."
"Tummy stripe? You're making it sound cuter than it is."
His electric blue eyes rose from her body to meet hers. "I think it's very cute. Can I see the back?"
She blinked at him for a moment, trying to process that he seemed completely earnest in his words. Silently, she turned around, drying her hair with the towel so her back was exposed to him.
He appraised her back with his eyes. To him, the mottled pattern of greens going down her spine was beautiful, as was the long tail that went all the way down to the floor and then some. But the soft, endearing pattern was mottled with scars of bite and claw marks. Her second mutation had forced her wounds to heal, but the proof of the violence she survived would be forever tattooed on her skin.
He walked over to his basin of clothes and pulled out an overly large T-shirt that Michelangelo had scrounged up just for their newest resident.
"Here, raise your arms."
Mona glanced back at him and obediently let him dress her. The large shirt fit, going down to cover her to mid thigh. It was certainly better than nothing and she was grateful for it. She watched him with gratitude as he pulled her wet hair out of the collar and draped it over her shoulder.
"Thank you for putting up with me," she said softly.
Leonardo looked at her, then stepped into her space. His arms went around her slowly, carefully pulling her in to a loose embrace. Ready to let her go at any objection.
"You are mine," he spoke into her hair. "Mine to love. Mine to take care of. Mine to protect. I'm so sorry I failed you at that." He pulled away and touched her chin. "And I am yours, for you to do with me as you wish."
Her mouth twitched slightly. "I'm sure I'll be keeping you. At least for a little while longer."
He smiled softly and leaned in to kiss her. When she ducked away, he wasn't offended or discouraged. His mouth set itself gently to her forehead and she quietly allowed it.
.
At first, it didn't seem like anyone was up. But as Mona sat down at the table and Leonardo went to scrounge around in the cupboards, the family began to stir. Splinter came out and set some tea on the stove. Leonardo placed some milk and cold cereal in front of Mona with an empty bowl, apologizing that that was all they had. Mona was already pouring it before he was finished talking.
Michelangelo was up and walking around, singing to himself. He didn't yet appear in the kitchen, but his voice could be heard as he walked into the medical room and cheerfully greeted Donatello. Raphael was the last to come skulking in like a dark, tired cloud. He plopped himself in the chair opposite Mona and grabbed the cereal box.
"How you feelin'?" he greeted of Mona as he poured himself a bowl as well.
Her mouth was already full of food, but she nodded as she chewed.
"Good," he replied. "You look good. Better than before."
Leonardo, who had been wandering around, decided he didn't like Raphael complimenting his girlfriend while he was on the other side of the room. A protective, nearly territorial streak ran through him. He walked to stand behind Mona Lisa's chair, claiming his territory.
She let out a closed-mouth scream when he felt his foot stand on something solid, but with organic give.
Leonardo jumped back. "Sorry! I'm sorry! Are you okay?"
Raphael watched in confusion as he saw Mona Lisa's face clench in an expression of pain.
"Mona," Leonardo pleaded.
She pounded her fist on the table before letting out a hard, sharp breath, then another. Then swallowed down her agony. "I'm okay," she insisted with a strained voice.
"What happened?" Raphael asked.
"My tail."
"I stepped on her tail," Leonardo admitted as he sat himself down in the chair beside her.
"You're going to have to learn to keep that tucked in," Raphael said.
"I'll try. It doesn't really move. It's just dead weight."
Raphael looked perplexed as he ate his cereal, but didn't respond.
"You guys up?" Michelangelo called from the medical room. "Donnie wants to say hi. We've got April on the line, too."
Mona immediately perked up and hurried on over, keeping a careful distance from Leonardo and his big feet. Donatello was still bedridden in the medical room, but was sitting up in bed with a laptop in his lap.
"Here she is," Donatello announced as Mona stepped in.
She happily crawled right up on the bed next to him, close to his side so she could see the computer screen and April's face. Very unaware of Leonardo's frown as he watched her sidle up next to his brother.
"There you are," April said. "You look better."
"I'm feeling better," she replied. "A bit." She paused and looked at Donatello. "You look better, too." She glanced at the barely scabbed claw marks on his arm and was glad it wasn't as bad as she had originally thought.
He just smiled at her, then looked up as the rest of his brothers and Splinter came in. "They're all here, April."
"Good," she said as Donatello turned the laptop around to face them. "As I was telling Donnie and Mike, your mutants have already started to cause problems. Reports are coming in to the police of giant lizard monsters. You said they were hungry. They've been attacking people's animals. They've been attacking people. New York's homeless population most specifically. People are disappearing off the street and being dragged into the sewers. No bodies have been found yet, but there has been blood."
The feeling in the air turned grim.
"They didn't waste any time at all," Raphael rumbled lowly.
"I don't think they had been fed the entire time I was there," Mona said. "Which was..."
"Six days," Donatello finished for her. "Reptiles, usually, can wait a few days between feeding. Depending on how much they ate, but this was clearly too long. They're going to keep eating anything they can fit in their mouths."
"Which is pretty much anything," Michelangelo said with a haunted look.
"Then we need to get back out there," Leonardo decided. "We'll push them into the second mutation like we did Mona. At the very least, it will reduce their size. We'll figure out what to do with them after that."
"I'll let Chief Vincent know," April replied. "She's been calling me non-stop. I'm surprised she hasn't sent any officers after me."
"Tell her we'll handle it," Leonardo said with finality.
"Will do. I've got to go. Talk to you later."
"You're going back out there?" Mona asked in a weak voice after April was gone.
Leonardo paused for a moment. He had never heard her sound so small like that. Scared and uncertain. He had that urge again that had been driving him the entire time since he brought her back to the lair. He had to be near her, he had to be her shelter. He walked over to her side of the bed, the mattress the only thing keeping him from being right next to her. "We have to. I finish what you start, remember?"
She glanced at all of them. "Be careful. I...I guess I'll stay here with Donnie while you guys are gone." She looked at him again. "Is that okay?"
Donatello brightened. "Always okay."
A low growl rumbled from deep in Leonardo's chest, causing her to look his way. "Excuse you. Why are you growling? Are you mad at me?"
It immediately stopped as he blinked at her. "No, I'm not mad at you."
"You're mad at something."
He gave a guilty frown, but didn't respond.
"Leonardo," Splinter said, "You and your brothers need to prepare. People's lives are at stake. Our home could also be in jeopardy. If the humans come down here looking for those mutants, they might find the lair. We need to take care of the problem first before they expose themselves in a way that the humans can't ignore."
As he spoke, Donatello tapped Mona Lisa's shoulder. He turned his laptop screen to her. He had a word program up where he had typed. It's not Leo's fault. He's in an enclosed space with a group of males. His instincts make him protective of you.
She rolled her eyes. "He can control it," she insisted in a voice barely a whisper. "None of you are a slave to instinct."
"Maybe we need help," Raphael was saying, unaware of the private conversation. "You haven't seen these mutants, Sensei. They're massive. You saw what they did to Donnie. That one could nearly swallow him whole. And it wasn't even the biggest one we saw. Talking with Vincent, getting a SWAT team down there might be our best bet."
"They're mutants like us," Leonardo insisted. "They're victims, too. We should try to help the ones that are left."
He glanced at Mona, seeking her approval for that statement. She wasn't really paying attention. She smiled and nodded, then read on Donatello's screen: It's a stress response. He's not always aware he's...not behaving himself.
Mona thought about that for a moment. Of course Leonardo was stressed. She could feel his stress from where she was. She could give him a little bit of a pass. She took the laptop from Donatello and typed. Can I do something to make it better?
"And what if we can't?" Raphael challenged back. "We have to get within reach of those jaws in order to dose them. What if the next one grabs Mikey or you? Or me? Our team's already down by one."
"I can come up with something that should allow you to inject them with the mutagen from a distance," Donatello said as he typed on his computer. "It shouldn't take me too long to put it together, I would just need assistants to help me get things from the workshop since I'm not getting up anytime soon."
"Oh, no rush on that," Michelangelo said, a bit nervous. "Take your time."
"I could probably have it ready by tomorrow," Donatello said, and subtly slid his laptop to the side so Mona Lisa could see the screen. It read: He will probably calm down if you smelled like him.
She wrinkled her nose at that. She didn't want to be a party to Leonardo's primal urge to mark that which he thought of as his. It seemed a little degrading.
"By the way, Donnie," she said aloud. "Why did you smell so good?"
Donatello looked perplexed at the accusation and then smelled his arm. "I don't think that I do."
"You definitely do. I've noticed it since I woke up. It's a little like lavender. Not necessarily flowery but it's very..." She paused to lean in and inhale. "It's like a calming smell. Makes me want to curl up and take a nap."
As she leaned in to sniff him again, Leonardo's growls started back up. She patted him lightly on the thigh. "Stop growling at Donnie. He can smell good if he wants."
"Maybe the mutation has changed your sense of smell," Donatello offered. He swatted at Michelangelo who was attempting to sniff him. "Different species of animal are sensitive to different types of smell. That includes humans. Now that you're a reptile, maybe there's something about my smell you're more sensitive to. Though that's just in theory."
Mona remained quietly perplexed.
Donatello decided to add, "Though I'm happy it's a good smell."
"Do I smell good?" Michelangelo wondered.
"You smell like pizza," she said without thinking about it. "You have always smelled like pizza."
"Great, see? Mikey's going to get eaten first," Raphael said to Splinter. "He smells like pizza."
"Raph! Don't say that! You're going to jinx me!"
"Nobody's getting eaten," Leonardo said with finality. Then he looked at Mona. "And you are not going to be in bed with Donnie while I'm gone."
She narrowed her eyes at him and pointedly took the laptop and typed, then showed Donatello the words. What do I have to do?
Donatello flushed as he read, paused, and then started typing.
The growl came back. "What are you two typing to each other?"
"Nothing. Don't worry about it, Leo."
Donatello showed her what he typed: Skin-on-skin contact.
"Seriously, what are you—"
Mona cut him off as she stood and took his arm. "Come with me, Mr. Grumpy Pants. We need to have a talk."
She pulled him all the way back down to his bedroom, feeling his displeasure at her back. Once inside, she shut the bedroom door and Leonardo's disapproving glare turned to surprise as she pulled off her shirt, leaving her naked in front of him.
"Uh...what are you doing?" he wondered. "Not that I'm complaining, but..."
She spread her arms out to him. "Okay, do it."
He balked. "Do what?"
"Put your smell on me. Donnie said you'll stop being such an asshat to your brothers if I smell like you."
"That's what you two were talking about?" He narrowed his eyes at her. "Did he really use the word asshat?"
"Are we doing this or not? How does this work? Are you just going to rub up on me or...?"
He glanced at her up and down, still looking unsure. "Are you okay with me touching you now? You said you didn't want me to before."
She softened. "It's okay if it's you. If this helps you concentrate more when you're out there instead of being worried about me sitting too close to Donatello because of your wacky male instincts, then do what you have to do."
He too relaxed as some of the stiffness left his shoulders. He moved into her, coloring her space with his aura. "I'm not actually worried about you with my brothers. I'm just..."
"Stressed out? Not thinking clearly?"
He sighed with closed eyes, pressed their foreheads together. "Yes. There's been some of that. I just want to touch you, hold you. Make you feel safe. Remind myself that I haven't lost you. Having to live with that fear for days that I might never see you again..."
She pressed herself against his plastron and his arms pulled her in, holding her tight against him. He picked her up just enough to drag her up on his bed where he then stretched out on top of her. With a hasty motion, her jerked off his mask and proceeded to nuzzle her. Cheek to cheek, he rubbed his face all over hers.
"Wow, this is really happening," she joked. "You're like a very friendly cat."
"There's more thorough ways to mark you, but I think this is more your speed right now."
She warmed slightly at the implication. At the thought that he would even want that kind of intimacy with her in this form.
"What have I been smelling like to you that's triggering your little turtle brain?" she wondered.
Currently, his face was nestled into her neck and he huffed out hot air into her skin before pulling back to look at her. He took his time to gather up the wild hair framing her and brushed it away from her face.
"You smell female," he told her.
She chuffed in humor. "I didn't smell like a woman before?"
"You smelled like a human woman before. Now you smell...like a mate."
She wrinkled her nose. "I don't know if I like that word."
He shrugged. "That's what you smell like." Then moved on to nuzzle her chest, still only rubbing his face on her skin.
Mona stared at the ceiling. Her mutation changed her to something more genetically complimentary to his instincts. She was, after all, a reptile now in some ways, she supposed. Not his species, but closer to what he was than before.
He came back up, visibly looking more relaxed. "What do I smell like to you?"
"Oh, I'm not sure. I haven't really noticed. You smell kind of clean, I guess."
He looked disappointed with the answer, so she tugged him up closer to her. She pressed her face to his neck and took in a deep inhale.
"Mmm... a little like sandalwood, mixed with the smell of a forest floor. It's nice." She went in for another sniff, nuzzling him this time, and he gave a deep, rumbled churr in response. There was something so soothing about it, healing. Something she needed.
"Can you purr again?" she asked shyly. "The vibrations make me feel better."
He gathered her under him, pressed chest to chest. Face in her neck, he took a breath and then, with a long exhale, churred as loud and as hard as he could.
Her eyes went wide as the rumbling vibrated through her entire body. "Oh my God."
"It's that good?" he joked.
"I need you to keep doing this for at least ten minutes."
He huffed out a laugh. "I don't know if I can keep this up for that long, but I'll try."
She cupped his face in her hands and then brushed her cheek along his. "Can I also make you smell like me?"
His churr stuttered a little before going back to its steady pace. "I definitely think you should try."