#I came up with Leo being a slider before I was even aware of Rise's existence

[yki-dolls]

These are my designs of the turtles that originally started off as 2003 designs but kinda aren't any more but kind are but whatever I like them

(older art lmao)

[renae-the-turtle]

I have an idea and I gotta tell someone about it or else I won't be able to stop thinking about it.

It's a concept for a rottmnt au focused on the Disaster Twins, which I'm calling the Hybrid Twins AU. Full concept is under the cut, but if you don't wanna read my whole explanation, the idea is that Donnie and Leo got mutated with each others' DNA as well as Lout Jitsu's.

So you know those pods that Draxum stuck the turtles in when he mutated them? Well, in this AU, the gargoyles accidentally broke one after they captured Yoshi. Draxum decides it would take too long to fix it first, because he finally has Lou Jitsu and he's not going to risk giving him time to escape, even if he seems remarkably content in that cage.

So he has decided to go ahead and mutate the turtles, but he only has three pods, and four turtles. He's aware that if he sticks two turtles in one pod, they will mutate with each other's DNA as well as Lou Jitsu's, which could be unstable – all his experiments so far have involved combining only two sets of DNA – but, he reasons, if two of them... don't make it, then he'll still have the other two.

Obviously, this means he has to consider which ones he'd rather keep, and which ones have the most compatible DNA, to increase the chances of a stable mutation. After some consideration, he picks the red-eared slider and the spiny softshell. They're both aquatic species, and are similar in size and approximate age, so he estimates that they have the best chances of survival. And it could be interesting to see how their traits combine.

Draxum goes ahead with the mutation as planned, but with two turtles sharing a pod. All he actually gets to see of their combined mutation is that they now share similar markings, before Lou breaks out and snatches the turtles, just like in canon.

From then on things aren't really any different, except for the twins looking different and having a slightly different dynamic.

I really wanna draw out what they look like properly, as that's what I was focusing on when I came up with this, but I literally only thought this up today, and haven't had a chance to sit down with my sketchbook yet. For now, have this reference sheet I made for their markings and colour:

Interesting things to note, which should be visible here:

- their skin tones have shifted towards each other, so Donnie's skin is a little lighter and Leo's is a little darker

- they both have yellow sclera (in canon, Leo has white sclera and Donnie has yellow)

- their shoulder markings go all the way down to their elbows

- Leo's markings are a bit brighter than Donnie's

Other things I came up with:

- their shell markings also match now, though Donnie's still a softshell and Leo is not. So Donnie gained lighter-coloured markings that perfectly match Leo's shell pattern, and Leo has dappled darker spots on his shell like the spots on Donnie's.

- both of the twins are sensitive about their shells being touched. And they're very defensive of each other, so when they were tots, if one of them got his shell touched by someone when he didn't want to be touched, then both of them would try and bite the offender. Splinter has scars on his fingers, yes

- you know how rise!Donnie always wants to blow things up? And how his brothers always stop him? Yeah, in this AU, the only ones trying to hold him back are Raph and Mikey. Do not leave the twins alone together, because Leo's definitely not gonna be holding Donnie back from going lethal

- related to the last point: moral alignments! The way I see it, rise!Raph is neutral or lawful good, rise!Mikey is chaotic good, rise!Leo is... probably chaotic neutral, and rise!Donnie is chaotic evil. In this AU, the twins are both chaotic evil

- how about I let Leo swallow a sandwich whole. Even better, let the twins have eating competitions that focus solely on "how much can you swallow at once without chewing", which Raph and Mikey might try to get involved in, but it would eventually just become a twin thing. Mikey would always be the first one out, and Raph would last a bit longer simply by being bigger, but then it would be down to the twins

- can't believe I almost forgot this one, but they have actual twin sense. The mystics involved in their mutation, combined with their Hamato genetics, plus the fact that Leo and Donnie got mutated in the same pod and share enough DNA to be almost (but not quite)as closely related as identical twins, means that they have the ability to sense each other's emotions, and will probably figure out how to do the Ninja Mind Meld before even unlocking their ninpo. Or even before using any mystic powers whatsoever. Because yeah. I'm a sucker for giving them twin telepathy hehehe

- outfits! Have you noticed that in canon, whenever the turtles get dressed up, Leo and Donnie's outfits usually complement each other? Most notably the sweaters they wore for the family dinner in Repairin' the Baron, but other times too. Yeah, I definitely wanna draw them in matching/complementary outfits.

- I considered having Donnie wear a different mask, one like Leo's, because of his stripes, but I don't wanna get rid of Donnie's eyebrows, and neither does he, and trying to draw eyebrows on a mask like that would be too difficult. However, when little Leo failed to convince Donnie that they should have matching masks, he wouldn't stop crying over Donnie "trying to cover up his stripes" and "not wanting to be twins" and stuff like that. So, to get him to stop crying, Donnie drew red stripes on his mask, above his eyes where his natural stripes are (I can totally picture it and I absolutely need to draw it soon). He likes the way it looks and likes matching with his twin, so he keeps drawing those stripes along with his eyebrows

- with how similar Donnie and Leo look, there's no way anyone can deny that they're twins, not even Donnie, but it still bugs him that he doesn't know how they are twins, because he can tell that they appear to be hybrids of two different turtle species. He can't find the answers on his own, and so he bugs Splinter about it until he finally caves and tells the boys that they were mutated using human DNA (not specifying which human) and that Blue and Purple got some of each others' DNA as well. So when Leo is wailing about thinking Donnie doesn't want to be twins with him, Donnie comforts him in his own logical way and assures him that there's no way they could ever NOT be twins, pointing out that they share more DNA with each other than they do with Raph or Mikey or even whatever human they got their DNA from, and adds on that even if they didn't have that much genetic material in common, he'd still want to be twins. (I need them to be soft, plz! Turtle tot twins are adorable!)

- speaking of Splinter, whenever the twins aren't wearing their signature colours, he has a really, REALLY hard time telling them apart. He was worried about being able to tell Raph and Leo apart in canon; you can't tell me he wouldn't get these twins mixed up All. The. Time.

- the twins are nearly inseparable. They always wanna do everything together, especially when they're young. Because of this, they end up knowing a lot of the same stuff, because they are each others' favorite person to info-dump to when they learn something new. So this Donnie has a bit more respect for Leo's intelligence, which is to say he won't outright say or even imply that Leo is stupid. Calling him smart would still be going too far though, duh. Gotta have some squabbling somewhere in here.

- yeah I guess they're really competitive. They compete over everything. Including rights to being the older twin. I'm a firm believer of the the fact that they have no way of knowing which of them is actually older, even in canon, so there will be no "older twin" or "younger twin" headcanons here. It's way more funny if they're constantly arguing about it, anyway. Or if they switch it up depending on their mood, cuz sometimes being the second youngest of four can be pretty appealing.

- uhhhh let's see do I have anything else...?

- oh yeah, I'm considering giving Leo some sort of shell cover? 'Cause I said that he's sensitive about people touching his shell, like Donnie is, but he has a hard shell so he doesn't actually need a battle shell.

- leading from that, though, I think both twins have a lot of similar sensory issues. And they're both neurodivergent. Donnie is autistic, and Leo is AuDHD (that refers to having both autism & ADHD, in case you didn't know. It's what I've got)

Anyway that's all i have for now. Might edit this post if I think of anything more later.

[ducknotinarow]

“Mm..” ( rise!LeoSagi )

| Send “Mm..” and my muse will react to yours kissing their neck.

Legs were crossed, and hands were set into his lap, eyes closed, as he softly breathed in and slowly breathed out again. Repeating the breathing as he was mediating currently. Trying to form the habit and well usually he was able to do so with out any issue. Having a chance to gather his thoughts, to relax his mind. Not to mention it was good for some physical traits as well. But he did have some help with trying to get better when it came to it, having asked Leo to do everything they can to pretty much be himself. A distraction to Usagi. Well and in general. Completely meaning that in a good affectionate way of course but hey if Usagi could mediate even when his attenuation starved boyfriend around? Then he could do it anywhere. Though the rabbit maybe should have consider that fact of Leo being attention starved a bit more.

His ears would twitch and lift a little when ever they started to speak, even if he was listening to Leo drone on he was able to keep his breath steady at the same time. Which was a good step for the rabbit because it was hard to not right away open his eyes so he could listen to them instead. Or to crack a smile over his face when they told a joke better laugh even. Slowly he was drifting off, into his mind everything slowly being blocked out. Still aware of the turtle but no where near distracted. Uh maybe he was finally just used to them that he could easily do this? Or maybe Leo was running out tricks-

"Mm"

Wait, hold on a moment. He could feel something now pressing in against his cheek at first. Smiling a little he knew that feeling well a kiss wasn't going to get him. So he thought till they seemed trail that kiss down now. Oh so this was their next trick uh? fine Usagi could resist. Tilt they press a kiss in against his neck, he bite down on his bottom lip. Dang it. Once more he felt another kiss against his neck the slider clearly noticed that it seemed to have worked on Usagi. Usagi's white fur betrayed him as his cheeks were dusted in a faint shade of pink, opening an eye too look to his side at the turtle. Smiling as he set a hand on against the turtle plastron a way to say stop. "Alright, alright you win it only took you five minutes this time." Usagi conceded. Only for Leo to press more kisses against his neck, earning a slightly laugh out of the rabbit. "I already said you won dork!" it was a little ticklish of a space for him even if he did tilt his head to the left to allow them more access to his neck. Setting his hand on his side to try and keep his balance. Not it did much because as the two of them fell over suddenly as Leo kept kissing against the rabbit's neck earning a slight snort that mixed in between laughs.

Light pink colors sure darkened into red when he heard his own snort, attempting to cover his mouth when he swiped out the hand he was hold both thier weights against, causing the pair to topple over to thier thier sides. "Sorry" Usagi offer still laughing a little as he tried to catch his breath now. Eyeing that smug smile on the turtles face now. “You know you’re lucky I adore the smug look.” Usagi went to point out. As he shifted a little closer to them “and know how to get rid of it too.” Leaning in to steal a kiss from their beak, before he went to trace over the curve of Leo’s beak by trailing kisses up to the corner of their smug little smile, hand set to the turtles shoulder to guide them to roll over and rest on their shell, moving to climb over them as he went to container his path along the turtles jawline.

“Sorry can’t help it when being smug like that.” Usagi teases, well also admitting how attractive that side of Leo was to the rabbit. Soon he dipped his head down to kiss along the side of their neck. Before he pulled away satisfied with the reaction that would earn him as he smiled at them “though this expression is far cuter in my opinion.” A soft laugh given as he breathed out, leaning in to place a kiss just above thoer nostrils. "Your turly are a good distraction I will admit it." He sighs knowing the turtle will eat up the next set of words "you were right." The rabbit yokai dose at least smile over the admission though.

[remmushound]

Beyond the bay part 16, What Lurks?

Summary - Leonardo assesses Mikey’s physical and mental state. 

Tags - @selfindulgenz @brightlotusmoon @ilo-artistry

Content warnings: Medical exams, medical assessments

Everything was wrong. Wrong and so very dark. Mikey felt as if the clouds had fallen from the sky and come to settle in his mind; yet, despite the mental lag that weighed on him like lead, his body felt impossibly light, almost drifting. He had to find them; he had to find his team! But he felt like he was suffocating, like there was hundred pound weight bearing down on his chest. There was… something that he was wading through. Something that shifted and rippled and flowed around him like a cool, moving blanket.

He had to find his team. He had to get back to the mission! He had to find that mutagen and he had to find his way! And… he had to wake up…

“Ow…?” Mikey opened one eye, and then the other as he was suddenly and acutely aware of strong fingers digging into his muscles. His head was throbbing with a steady thump thump thump.

“Mike.” Donnie’s voice was breathless and urgent, but nonetheless gentle as he momentarily paused his massage in favor of more important exams. 

“Ah— again with the light?” Mikey whined and raised a hand to cover his eyes as Donnie shined his flashlight in them.

Donnie returned to the painful massage. “Do you know your name?”

“Mikey…”

“Do you know where you are? Do you know what happened?” The more questions Donnie asked, the more pressing his voice became. When Mikey didn't respond, Donnie repeated himself louder and clearer.

Mikey could only sputter. He knew he should know those answers, but when he reached out to grab them, they slipped through his fingers like sand. His eyes grew wider, and he shook his head. Why couldn’t he remember?

Leonardo was there too; Mikey didn't notice him until the red eared slider moved directly in front of him and waved a hand. The motion made Mikey focus on him, though at the time there seemed to be more than one of the blue-clad ninja, like Mikey was seeing double.

Leonardo, as opposed to Donnie’s bombardment, only asked a single question. “Can you tell me who is best turtle?”

Mikey’s face wrinkled in his concentration, and then split in a grin. Now that he could remember! “Trick question, it’s me! I’m a triple threat: brains, brawns, and a dazzling personality.”

Leonardo couldn’t have smiled wider if he tried. Now that Mikey could focus better on the room around him, which slowly came back to him as the infirmary, he finally located the source of the thumping that he had thought was just in his head. He saw Donatello hanging in the background, the young mutant looking blatantly bored, like he’d rather be doing anything else at that moment. He was bouncing a tiny, purple ball against the wall, catching it, and then bouncing it again in a steady rhythm. Unlike the other turtles, he didn't seem to notice nor care that Mikey was awake; his only acknowledgement was to Mikey’s self-declaration of being best turtle.

“Well that is too bad, because I am a quadruple threat.” Donatello bounced the ball one last time, then caught it as he made his way over to the group. “Strong, funny, amusing, and hilarious.”

“Aren’t three of those just synonyms?” Donnie questioned without looking up from Mikey’s tensed muscles.

“You.” Donatello said. “I do not like you.”

“But I like the confidence!” Leonardo declared, and held out his hand to Mikey. “High three!”

Mikey was all too glad to meet the inviting gesture— that is, until his hand seemed to faze through Leonardo. Mikey frowned, and then he tried again with the same result. He missed? If Leonardo noticed Mikey’s confusion, he didn’t show any reaction to it. Instead, he grabbed Donatello’s ball, much to the grievance of his twin, and tossed it up in the air a few times.

“D’ya wanna play catch?” Leonardo offered, his smile slight and soft. He grabbed the ball between his thumb and pointer finger, showing the tiny rubber toy off to Mikey. “Might help you concentrate~”

Having something to do with his hands did help. Mikey nodded eagerly and held out the arm that wasn’t currently being assaulted by Donnie’s therapeutic rubbing. Leonardo swung his arm back and forth a few time, allowing Mikey the chance to focus before Leonardo tossed the ball with a careful swing. Mikey’s eyes followed the ball as it glided smoothly through the air, and he raised his hand to catch it. It slipped right through his hands. 

Mikey blinked. His eyes pinched together as they searched and eventually found the ball on the floor rolling away from him. He missed? Again? Now he had a tight pain in his chest, one that refused to go away. A ball of discomfort and anxiety and fear that grew bigger and bigger, trying to force itself up his throat to choke him.

“Are you playing tricks?” He didn't know why his voice sounded the way it did, like a child who hadn’t yet found the confidence to speak up.

Donnie frowned at the weakness of the voice, gently cupping Mikey’s head in a hand to tilt him back and examine his throat. Mikey gave a low churr of disapproval, but didn't resist.

“No tricks!” Leonardo said, and he held up his hands as a show of surrender. He held that stance for a few seconds more before gathering the ball from where it had fallen and placing it back into Mikey’s hand. “Okay, now you pass it to me.”

Donnie backed away from Mikey to let him have space while the younger box turtle stuck out his tongue and tried his best to focus on Leonardo’s shifting figure. It was like a filter had been laid over Mikey’s vision. A filter that made Leonardo seem as if he were in constant, blurred motion and made his voice like something at the end of a cavern.

“Whenever you’re ready.” Came the echo of Leonardo’s voice, so distant and lost to Mikey’s ears. The tunnel was so dark, and the sewage was up to his knees and uncomfortably warm. He breathed, but it burned so he did it as little as possible. For the republic, he had to keep moving. Mutagen was fuel, mutagen was life, and there was mutagen in this dark place. He just had to get back to Commander Mozar and find it. Mozar would know what to do. He was hand-picked by the prime leader himself!

There was someone calling his name. His commander? No, someone more familiar, more like a brother. Zog? No… no that wasn’t it either.

“Leon…?” There was a slick, cool hand pressed over Mikey’s forehead.

“Hey, bud.” Leonardo said, and he was smiling; Donnie’s face was turned into a tight frown. “You zoned out for a sec. All good?”

“Head hurts…” Mikey swatted Leonardo away and tried to sit up.

“Hey hey hey hey!” Leonardo didn't let Mikey get very far, “Easy. You need to lay now.”

“No… no we need to find him!”

Leonardo cocked his head. “Find who?”

“I… him!” Was all Mikey could offer, “He’s scared and alone.”

“Where is he?”

“I… I don’t know!” Mikey knew he should know but he didn't, and in retaliation against his own mind he began to repeatedly strike himself right between his eyes. Donnie intervened before he could hit himself more than twice, forcing Mikey to lower his arm but only making the box turtle more frustrated.

“Mikey, take it easy.” Donnie tried, but Mikey didn't seem to care about doctor's orders. He started to try and resist Donnie’s efforts to keep him still. “Little help here?”

Leonardo was hesitant to lay a hand on the thrashing Mikey, but when he finally found a hold, he pressed down firmly on the older turtle. His attempt to restrain the mutant wasn’t very effective, and when Mikey was able to stand, Leonardo pulled back and simply let Mikey leave while Donnie kept trying to stop him.

“Ge’ off!” Mikey shook his shoulders trying to dislodge his brother.

“Mikey, what—?” Donnie was unrelenting.

“GET OFF!”

Mikey got as far as the doorway before he was picked up around the middle and carried back inside by Raphael, holding the shinobi like he was nothing more than a child throwing a tantrum. He laid Mikey back down on the bed and Donnie skirted around the snapping turtles shell, grabbing Mikey’s arm to keep him still while Mikey tried to shake the grabbing hands off of him.

“Mikey, if you don't stay down I’m gonna have to strap you down.” Donnie said with a voice even and placid.

“What happened?” Raphael’s lips pulled into a frown, his hand going down to feel Mikey’s forehead.

“I don’t know, he just freaked out.” Donnie said calmly. He ran his hand across Mikey’s cheek and made soft, shushing noises intended to sooth. “How is Yoshi?”

“Yeah, he uh… he’s fine.” Raphael said absently, his head nodding along with his words, “Just hate to think how long he was alone for…” 

“Mikey, do you know where dad went?” Donnie asked softly; Mikey seemed calmer now, no longer resisting his bedrest, but his teeth were still bared to show his discontent. Donnie sighed. “Guessed not.”

Raphael laid a hand on Donnie’s shoulder and prompted the box turtle to look up at him. “He can’t have gone far. Maybe he just wanted to explore a bit.”

“He wouldn’t just leave your father here alone.” Donnie sighed, shaking his head.

“You’re probably right.” Raphael admitted. “Your Leo’s probably going crazy.”

Donnie closed his eyes and, ever so slowly, leaned his head back as he sucked a deep breath through his nostrils. Then he lowered his head and pinched the bridge of his nose, trying to nurse a growing migraine.

“I’ll go talk with him. Can you sit here with Mikey?”

“Of course.” Raphael said with a patient nod, sitting beside the bed and resting a hand over Mikey’s plastron.

Donnie left the two younger turtles in charge of his brother while he left the room in search of the oldest. He first found Michelangelo and Raph in the exercise room; the massive box turtle practically had steam rising off of his muscles from the heat of his body, slick with sweat and eyes focused determinedly on the ceiling above him as he worked his reps. Michelangelo wasn’t exercising, but he seemed to be having a good time hanging onto the bar while Raph lifted it so he could dangle and swing like a monkey. Donnie felt his migraine only worsen as he slumped against the doorframe, rubbing his eyes with enough force to make stars dance in his vision.

Raph had been in that same spot since they had made the discovery of their fathers absence several hours before, and Donnie could practically smell the frustration and understand it too, because he felt the exact same way. He needed to go and find his father before something awful happened, but he couldn’t leave with a clear conscience with Mikey in the state he was in. When it came to the choice of which was more important to him…

Donnie shook his head. Mikey would always come first. He and his brothers had agreed on that when they were little, and that agreement would live as long as they did. Splinter was strong and Splinter was capable, and right now Mikey needed them more. All of them.That didn't make the worry for his dad any less burning.

“You gonna say something?” Raph’s voice rumbled, “Or just stand there starin’?”

Donnie laughed, but it was a half-hearted and weak laugh. He shook his head and didn't bother to answer the question verbally. He simply walked into the room to stand over Raph; the middle child didn't pause his reps, not even for his brother.

“How’s Mike?” Was Raph’s next question.

Donnie almost naturally reached out an arm so that Michelangelo could climb onto him, and Michelangelo was more than happy to do just that. He swung on his friends arm with happily, monkey-like giggles while the other brothers retained composure and hardly reacted to the childish games.

“Awake.” Donnie said, “Confused. Raphael and the other Leonardo are with him now.”

“Good.” Raph kept pumping, eyes focused.

Donnie sighed. He carefully picked Michelangelo off of his arm, one of his hands enough to completely engulf the box turtle's plastron, and placed him on the ground. He stepped over the smaller mutant and grabbed Raph’s bar, yanking it pointedly from Raph and replacing it on its shelf. Raph’s eyes sharpened, snapping to Donnie and ready to give him hell before he saw the icy, cobra look in Donnie’s eyes. Instead of yelling, or saying anything, Raph simply sat up and shouldered his way past Donnie. They didn't need to exchange words for Donnie to know where Raph was headed.

Donnie shook his head once more before grabbing Michelangelo, who had his arms up asking to be held. He carried Michelangelo the rest of the way back to the infirmary; Raph was there, kneeling on the ground beside the bed and holding Mikey’s hand in his. He was talking slow and soft words to his youngest brother, words Donnie couldn’t make out, but the intent was there. Donnie plopped Michelangelo down on the floor and turned back around, leaving the rest of his family and continuing his search for Leo.

He found his eldest brother in the zen room; the room itself wasn't very well-maintained, once teal paint peeling off the walls and plants that were either overgrown and swallowing the walls of the room or dead at the root. The dead ones were the fault of none— being so low in the sewer, access to any sort of sunlight was a scare rarity that growing such plants were always difficult. For the rest of the plants, it was sheer neglect that led them to grow as immensely overpowering as they had, seeking any glint of light to sustain them. Leo sat in a lotus position in front of a green pool, just as neglected and forgotten as the plants, though it seemed to be from natural deterioration and not any contamination from the sewage around them. 

“Hello Donatello.” Leo said without bothering to open his eyes or drop his position. “How is Michelangelo?”

“He’s okay.” Donnie sat beside his brother; his long legs weren’t built for the lotus position, so he just sprawled out and got comfortable. He had the feeling he was going to be here for a while. “Are you?”

Leo took his time to consider the question, rolling potential words around on his tongue before he settled for something that felt right. “I am dealing, considering. If Michelangelo is well, then we should think about going after father. Is that why you’re here?”

“Yeah.” Donnie nodded, “Everyone’s sitting in with Mike to keep him company.”

Leo nodded slowly and finally opened sapphire eyes. “Then perhaps just us two should go. Let Raphael and our friends stay here with Mikey. We can move faster on our own.”

Donnie couldn’t help but agree with that, but there was still a twinge of doubt that refused to be ignored. “These aren’t our sewers, Leo. We should bring at least one of the Hamato’s to lead the way.”

Leo considered. “Alright. We’ll take the other Leonardo then. Perhaps his sense of direction is as good as mine.”

Leo’s sense of direction had always been advance, far more than his brothers. You could place him in the heart of a maze and within minutes he would be able to find his way back out again. He knew he would be able to navigate these sewers even with what little knowledge he had of them, but Donnie’s anxiety was never something to ignore. Leo took a final, sharp breath before standing, inclining his head ever so slightly toward his brother.

“Let’s go now. No time to waste.”

“But— but Leo, we can’t take both me and Hamato Leo, we need a medic here in case Mikey has another fit.” Donnie reasoned.

“Fine, then we’ll take the other Donnie.” Leo decided promptly, waving for his brother to follow. Donnie obeyed.

“What about other Raph? It might help to have some extra muscle if we find ourselves in a pinch.”

“Uh.” Leo looked down at his bicep and, just for good measure, he flexed to make the muscles more defined.

“You know what I meant.” Donnie’s eyes rolled, but he pursued the issue no further. There was very little time to do so even if he wanted, because already they were entering the med bay.

Mikey had his eyes closed, lips pulled down in a tight frown as he stretched his head back as far as his neck allowed. Despite the position, Donnie knew he wasn’t asleep; he knew his brother too well to assume such things. All eyes turned to them as the two entered, and both older Splinterson’s could feel the shift in energies tingling their skin. 

“What’s up?” Leo asked. 

Donnie’s instinct was to immediately go to Mikey, doing a quick check of his vitals and finding them as steady as they had been when he left. Donatello seemed to be the only one of the turtles who wasn’t entirely on edge, taking the time to yawn and stretch before pulling out his phone and pulling up an article. He held his phone out where the older brothers could see that it was a current article posted just hours before, the headline bold enough to catch anyone's attention.

DINOSAUR SEEN IN SEWERS

[rottmntquotes]

The Best He Can

Okay, so maybe saying what Donnie said was a bit stupid and insensitive, even for his standards, and maybe using the tone that he did conveyed a message that he didn’t mean, and maybe, just maybe he should have paid attention to Leo’s body language as the words that flowed into the air continued to rise in volume and lower in mercy. He understood that now, and he was desperate to apologize to his twin, despite how terrible he was at it. When all had been said and done, when hearts had been broken, tears had fallen, and nothing was able to break the tension as Leo ran away, everyone else knew that it was time to do something.

‘Besides,’ Donnie thought to himself, ‘even though apologizing isn’t my strong suit, this can’t end up being that difficult, right? It’s Leo for crying out loud! He’ll be ready to forgive and forget in no time!’

And now, because of that train of thought, Donnie found himself standing underneath a large tree in the forest, his brothers and father(s) near for moral support. It was on the eighth branch that had a decent length- and a curiously steady hold despite how thin it was -where Leo hung upside down, and ‘Oh my god, when did our tails become prehensile?!’,  Donnie thought to himself. When he sensed his family near, Leo’s head pulled into his shell, along with his arms and legs, leaving only his shell and his- just barely visible tail -out in the open.

“I don’t want to talk to you! Leave me alone!” came Leo’s muffled shout, pain evident in his voice. “Go back home!”

Of course, Raph took this as a challenge, and he- being the sweetheart he is who is willing to do anything to keep his family happy -started to climb the tree, ignoring the words of protest he earned from the others. Every now and then, the words “You’re too heavy! The branch won’t hold!” would be spoken, but Raph responded with a very convinced claim of “I’m a ninja! If I can be Light As A Feather, I can balance myself on a branch!”

Splinter muttered an exasperated curse in Japanese under his breath, having become fed up with the stubbornness that was very clearly an inherited trait of the Hamato family. “Raphael! The branch is going to break! You may have advanced in your Ninjutsu, but you are still the size of a car!”

“Guys! Stop worrying!” Raph scoffed, finally making it to the branch that his upset brother dwelled. With slow and steady steps, Raph inched over to Leo, smirking smugly as he continued on without making the branch even creak. “Hey buddy... I know that you’re not feeling too happy right now, but I promise that Donnie is really super sorry about what he said.”

Leo hissed loudly, momentarily poking his head out to snarl at Raph before retreating into the dark sanctuary that was his shell. Raph huffed, moving closer and closer to Leo. Low warning growls were directed at Raph, but he pointedly ignored them, reaching out a hand to try and grip the edge of Leo’s Carapace. In one swift movement, Leo popped out of his shell, unwrapping his tail from the branch and hopping onto one higher up. The sudden movement caused the branch to break, sending Raph falling flat onto his face.

“I’m okay.” Raph mumbled, lifting his face and shaking the grass off his face. “So... maybe me going up there wasn’t the best idea.”

“Oh really? Who would have guessed?” Draxum scoffed, looking directly at Donnie. “You! Purple! You were the one who started this! Go up there and soothe your brother!”

“But I-”

“DO IT NOW!” Draxum’s order echoed through the forest, and Donnie yelped, activating the wings on his battle shell and flying up to gently land on the branch his brother was perched upon. With one final glance to Draxum, Donnie sneered before turning his full attention to Leo.

“Um... hey...?” Donnie muttered, clearly unsure of what he was supposed to do and say. Leo scoffed at the awkward attempt of an icebreaker, his tail wrapping around the branch as a warning that any wrong movement or word would send him straight back to his hiding position. “Well what do you want me to do?! You know how bad I am at this!”

“Yeah, I do, and you wouldn’t have to do it if you hadn't said what you did.” Leo turned his back to Donnie, pretending to stare out at a cloud that was coincidentally shaped like a rubber ducky. “All I did was pull a prank, bro. I didn't mean to hurt anyone, let alone you.”

Donnie frowned at the reminder, rubbing the back of his neck bashfully. “I know you didn’t, ‘Nardo, but...” Donnie took in a deep breath; if he was going to set things straight, he might was well do it with a clear head. ‘Tell the truth’ is what his mind constantly told him, and he intended to. “I wasn’t yelling at you, per se, nor was I trying to hurt you in any way.”

It was clear from the look on Leo’s face that his interest was piqued, and he finally turned to look at his twin. “What’s that s’posed to mean?”

“Do you remember that time we got our tongues stuck in those mouse traps?” Donnie asked. Leo nodded, a bit annoyed that his question was answered with a question, but trusting that he would get an actual answer soon enough. “It was a stupid dare that got us yelled at for nearly half an hour. I honestly remember it like it was yesterday; to tell you the truth, I swear that I’ve never seen dad’s veins that visible since.”

Leo snickered, smiling for a brief second before replacing it with a frown when Donnie looked his way. “Is there a point to this, or are you just trying to avoid the subject?”

“There is a point,” Donnie assured, “but I would get to it faster if you shut your snout.”

“I make no promises.” Leo quipped, slowly but surely unwrapping his tail from the branch. It wasn’t exactly an ‘I Forgive You’ gesture, but it was close enough to spur Donnie on.

“Well, to delay your inevitable chatter, I will ask one final question.” Donnie waited for the frustrated groan from Leo he was sure to receive. When it came, Donnie continued. “Do you remember why dad yelled at us like that?”

“I don’t remember the exact wording, but I’m pretty sure it was something along the lines of “I was more scared than angry. When I saw you two in pain, I couldn’t help but feel the need to protect you.” which is when he proceeded to ground us.” Leo recounted the event almost easily, a fond smirk appearing on his face. “But what does that have to do with... what you said?”

“When I yelled at you, I wasn’t upset. I was honestly kind of terrified...” Donnie paused, scratching at a bit of loose skin from the branch the two were settled upon. “You don't know how scary it was to see my own twin brother lying on his Carapace, covered in blood.”

“But it was fa-”

“I know that! But I didn't care! One of my biggest fears is losing you, all of you! I thought that I had left something out that had hurt you, that I was the reason why you were just... lying there... you looked so lifeless.” Donnie wiped away the streams of tears falling from his eyes. “Ugh, look at me... the guy who doesn’t understand feelings is sitting here crying because of some stupid prank pulled by his equally stupid-” Donnie cut himself off, remembering the words he’d uttered that started this mess.

“Go on, say it.” Leo huffed, his frown returning. “Say that I’m just as stupid as the prank.”

“No.” Leo looked up at the refusal, asking many silent questions with his wide eyes. “I’m not going to say it, because it isn’t true. You aren’t stupid. I was just upset, and when I get upset I get snappy.”

“Snappy? That’s what you’re calling it?” Leo asked in disbelief, giving a genuine snicker, which soon turned into a full-hearted laugh. For a while, Donnie watched Leo in confusion, wondering what was so funny. “Dude, you cannot tell me that you truly believe Snappy does what you said justice! Your face was as red as Raph’s mask! You looked like a freakin’ cherry!”

“Okay, I get it, ‘Nardo. You don’t need to ruin the mood.”

“Uh, what mood? This whole conversation has been as awkward as Dad’s relationship with Draxum!” An indignant scoff came from Donnie, and Leo barked out a laugh that left him coughing violently. “Don! Can’t breathe!”

Donnie groaned, drawing Leo close and massaging the back of Leo’s neck. A good minute or so passed, and Donnie had started to contemplate karate chopping Leo in the stomach, but Leo eventually stopped coughing. A loud sputter was shared between the twins, and they chuckled at the coincidence.

“So uh... am I forgiven?” Donnie asked, wanting desperately to be able to get home and disappear into his lab to try and forget this mess. Unfortunately for him, however, Leo was aware of this plan, and the mutant Slider gave a false hum. “Leo...”

“I’ll forgive you on one condition.” Leo chimed, looking directly into Donnie’s eyes. “You have to spend the rest of the night in the Apology Nest with me, where we will drink hot chocolate and watch cheesy B-Movies until we pass out.”

“I am not going to do that.”

“Then I’m not going to forgive you. What you said really hurt, Dee. I hope you at least realize that it’s a feat in itself to get me to forgive you for... y’know.” Leo lowered his gaze to the ground, where the rest of the family had sat down to talk about whatever. “It made me cry, Dee. Something that’s really hard to do, mind you.”

Donnie sighed heavily, weighing his options before deciding that, yes, he did owe Leo the Apology Nest treatment. Nothing could excuse what had happened in the lab earlier that day, and Donnie knew this. What he said was despicable, thoughtless, and heartless. Even if he meant none of it, he had no right to say it.

“Alright,” Donnie finally whispered, “I accept the conditions.”

“Good. And thanks.” Leo replied happily, standing up and balancing on the branch.

“What for?” Donnie raised a brow, standing up as well and holding Leo in a tight hug so that they could both safely float down to the ground. As they descended, Leo responded:

“For doing the best you can.”