Raph couldn't stop fiddling his hands as he walked down the hall. He and his family had been staying with Himari and Usagi long enough to feel comfortable here, but he still felt nervous about the idea of approaching their hosts with more personal questions. Granted, they were all focused on Leo's wellbeing, but still…

When he reached Usagi's room, the snapper peeked in to see the rabbit seated on a mat by his bed, clearly in meditation. Raph hesitated, debating whether he should just leave. But before he could make up his mind, Usagi spoke up in a calm voice without opening his eyes.

"Come in."

Raph blinked in surprise.

"Uh… what?"

Usagi opened his eyes and smiled.

"Leo's right about rabbits having good hearing. And we're both pretty well trained to be tuned to our environment."

He gestured to the spot in front of him.

"So, come on in, sit. You want to talk about how he's doing?"

Raph couldn't stop a sheepish smile from coming to his face as he walked over and sat in the same cross-legged stance.

"That easy t' tell, huh?"

Usagi returned his smile with an amused grin.

"Let's just say I get why he calls you a mother hen."

That got a chuckle out of Raph, but he couldn't suppress a twinge of unease. The last thing he wanted to do was embarrass his brother, and if Leo didn't feel like he could come talk to him about it…

A hand on his shoulder stopped his spiraling thoughts. Usagi was looking at him with a much softer look now, sympathy in his eyes.

"It's not that he's embarrassed about it, you know," he said. "No more than any other, anyway. He's glad to have you here."

Raph felt a surge of mixed emotions at that, and once again Usagi seemed able to read him enough to work out the basic idea of his train of thought. The rabbit cocked his head.

"I don't want to push in where I shouldn't, but it seems like you feel guilty about him."

The snapper was surprised, but not too much. He'd known Usagi long enough to know he was extremely perceptive… it seemed to be one of many things him and Leo had in common.

"Everyone tells me not to," Raph sighed, fidgeting uncomfortably. "An' I try not to, but… every time I look at Leo an' see him like this, I think of how I kept nagging at him to step up, be a hero. I'm proud of him for everything he did, and I know he's happy doin' what he was meant to do, but every time I see him worn down, scared, or… hurt, like this, all I can do is wish I could go back and redo everything. I wanted him t' step up, but I did it all wrong and now he thinks steppin' up means taking everything on his shoulders an' throwing himself in danger t' protect us."

By now, Raph was barely aware of where he was, so sunk in bitterness and regret that he hardly noticed Usagi watching him. Letting out a heavy sigh, the snapper tried to blink away the tears welling in his eyes as he blurted out the cold truth that had been haunting him the past several weeks.

"I'm supposed to look out for him, and I screwed it up so bad it's almost gotten him killed twice now."

He took a deep, trembling breath to try and calm himself, desperately wanting not to cry in front of one of their hosts. But only a moment or two passed before he felt Usagi's hand on his shoulder again.

"Raph, I know I can't even pretend to understand what you all went through. I mean, we faced the Krang too, but I didn't experience anything like you did. But I can tell you I know what it's like to feel like you failed people who depended on you."

Raph looked up, slightly surprised by those words, and when he met Usagi's eyes he saw a sadness in them that he knew too well. The rabbit gave a solemn nod and went on.

"And my grandma told me something I'm sure you've heard too. When you take on the kind of responsibility we do, it's far too easy to forget how young you really are. And no matter how wise or strong you are, everyone makes mistakes. You've still done more than most adults ever do."

A slight smile tugged at the rabbit's face.

"And I can tell you now, none of your family thinks you've screwed up that bad. Especially not Leo. Even without everything he's told me, I see the way he looks at you. You're a hero to him, and that's not because of your mistakes… it's because of all the great things he's seen you do. Anyone who looks closely can see what a natural leader he is, but some of those skills were learned too, and a lot of that was from you. Whether you believe it or not, whatever else you might've done wrong, you still inspired him to be a better person than he would've been without that influence."

Raph could only blink at first; he couldn't help but be surprised at hearing such wise words from someone only a year younger than him, and he could hear Himari's influence so clearly in them.

"I… well, thanks," he managed to say. "But, ya know, I'm glad Leo has you and your grandma now too. He's been so down since he got hurt, and I know you're really helping. I mean, I looked in on you guys in your session this morning."

Raph felt a swell of warmth as the corners of his mouth tugged up.

"I haven't seen him smile like that in weeks."

Usagi returned his smile, clearly just as pleased by the memory.

"Yeah, I liked it too. He's dealing with a lot, but he's a great guy. I really like working with him."

Raph took in the rabbit's smile, noting the brightness in his eyes. It was almost identical to Leo's expression whenever he talked about Usagi. Which was a lot lately, Raph hadn't failed to notice. Unable to resist, the snapper adopted a casual tone as he replied.

"Well, ya know, he says the same about you. Thinks you're major awesome, actually."

Usagi's face immediately lit up, his body jerking ramrod straight.

"He does? Really?"

He seemed to realize what he was doing, and Raph raised a brow as the rabbit quickly cleared his throat and did his best to look relaxed, which was somewhat undermined by the faint blush just visible under his fur.

"Um, I mean, I'm glad he's enjoying the time. I'm glad to help."

"Sure," Raph said with a slight, teasing smirk. "I can tell."

His amusement then moved to the back of his mind, and he reached out to place a hand on Usagi's shoulder. He looked at the rabbit, placing all the earnestness he could into both his voice and his eyes.

"Ya know what he's been through… how hurt he's been."

Usagi met his gaze with just as much sincerity, and if he was nervous at all he wasn't showing it.

"I know, Raph. He's here for help, and that's all I want to give him. I swear on my father's honor, I'll do whatever I can to make sure he's not hurt again."

Raph was no genius, but he knew enough to tell that Usagi wasn't referring to physical hurt. As much as he wished otherwise, there was no avoiding that. Still, a warm feeling of gratitude filled him, and he smiled as he gave Usagi's shoulder a gentle squeeze.

"Thanks, Usagi. I'm glad you're here for him."

There was no trace of nerves in the rabbit's returning smile.

"I am too."