#Turtle Rescue and release | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

cupcakeslushie · 2 years

Text

Alrighty, you’ve all been asking for it and here it is. I hope this timeline of what’s basically the first two seasons, makes following the comic easier. Which speaking of—obviously there will be spoilers for the future of the comic, so if you want to continue on reading that with blinders I would just ignore this completely or you could only read up to the prologue end where what’s been released catches up. And obviously the “filler episodes” might not make it into the comic—I’ll probably just get by on those being simple one shots or something, but I wanted to include all my thoughts.

This is really mostly for the ppl who want all that lore now. Or the ones who don’t want to go through a thousand pages of unorganized text posts 😜

Big Freaking Timeline for Empyrean Weeping Separated AU

Pre-Prologue

Many Generations ago…

The Leader of the Foot Clan [name lost to time] made a deal with an oni for power and was sealed inside his own armor. He turned his clan to the ways of murdering innocents and pillaging villages to spread their control. He quickly gained the name the Shredder. Hamato Karai, daughter to the Shredder, created her own clan to fight them. After many years of the two clans warring, Karai was able to banish the oni, killing her father. The power behind the armor was destroyed, leaving it as basically nothing more than ornamentation for each new leader of the Foot to inherit.

Karai sealed the demon in the twilight realm, but was killed by the demon’s final blow.

Many years later….

Hamato Yoshi and Oroku Saki are born into the still warring clans. Hamato Sho, grandfather to Yoshi, struck down Saki’s parents in revenge for them killing his daughter, Atsuko. He then took their infant son Saki and raised him alongside Yoshi, telling the two they were brothers, hoping that one day this would lead to a path of uniting the two clans.

Yoshi and Saki grew up together, trained in the art of ninjutsu, but Yoshi left to become an actor. Saki found out the truth of his parentage, and he embraced the Foot clan’s bloody path. He swore revenge on Yoshi and the entire Hamato clan.

Yoshi meets Big Mama on the set of Crouching Shrimp Hidden Tiger Prawn and the two date for a few years but break up.

Yoshi ran into his old childhood friend Tang Shen and the two began a romance, got married, and had a baby girl—they named her Karai after Yoshi’s great ancestor.

Big Mama kidnapped Yoshi from his wife and daughter, and kept him trapped in the Battle Nexus as her champion. Saki, not realizing Yoshi was gone, attacked Teng Shen, but found Karai in the fire and took her.

For five years (I know the creators said ten but idk that’s just way too long imo) Yoshi fought in Big Mama’s Nexus, until taken by Draxum.

Yoshi broke out during Draxum’s experiment and grabbed the four turtles he saw. As he’s escaping he dropped the soft-shell, but thanks to the fire and debris, was blocked from doubling back to rescue it, forced to leave it behind.

Draxum was left with a destroyed lab and only two of his five test subjects; Three—the male soft shell turtle, and Five—the female box shell turtle. Five was much too weak to live on her own, so Draxum was forced to keep her in a coma, confined to a healing vat. He worked on rebuilding his destroyed lab, and raised Three with the intention of training him to be a great warrior in the fight to save the yokai. As Three grew, Draxum was already impressed by the intelligence he saw from Three, but was not too pleased with the lack of interest Three showed for combat training. Still Draxum would work with what he had, and if nothing else, having access to Three’s blood meant at least he wasn’t starting from scratch. The boy was smart, and helpful in the lab. For eight years Draxum trained Three and helped nurture his mind. Draxum even found a way to get wider access to Empyrean, and was really able to continue his work, but the effects of working with the Empyrean….

Prologue beginning

Under the Cut

Five years after Splinter saved the turtles he could (Raph:7, Leo:6, Mikey:5). He brings them topside, having no choice but to do a food run with them all—unfortunately the Foot finds them, and Leo and Mikey get captured.

On the way, Leo is able to injure the nin holding him and Mikey enough that he drops Mikey. Leo ordered Mikey to run, while he struggled to keep the Foot Soldier from recapturing him.

Mikey left Leo behind and ran to hide in the alleyway behind Big Mama’s hotel, where he’s later found and taken in by the spider yokai, who finds Michael adorable and interesting enough to hold her attention for now.

Leo is taken before the Shredder, and Saki decides to raise Leo instead of killing him. He trained Leo to be Karai’s(10) bodyguard and demanded Kitsune use her mystic spells to bend Leo’s memories and mind so he became the perfect soldier.

One Year After Separation

Raph(8) meet April(9) and the two became best friends. Splinter begins training them both in ninjutsu so they can protect themselves from any surprise Foot Clan attacks.

Two Years After Separation

Three(8) developed an idea for a drill that Draxum took and employed to begin a secret way of mining empyrean without drawing the attention of the Hidden City Police. As the years passed, his experiments on Three became more and more depraved. The stress and torture caused a lot of strain on Three’s mind.

Three continued his work on Five’s body, convinced he can create something that will allow her to live outside her tank.

Overseas Saki ran the Japanese branch of the Foot, and ordered the destruction of a hidden yokai village. Usagi Miyamoto(9) is taken hostage and begins lessons with Leo(8) and Karai(12).

Four Years Post Separation

Saki returned (with his odd gaggle of child soldiers) to lead the US branch of the Foot Clan.

Five Years Post Separation—(ONE YEAR BEFORE SEASON ONE)

Usagi(14) finally escaped the Foot Clan

Big Mama grew bored of raising Michael(12) and threw him into her Battle Nexus. (First Actual page of the comic)

Big Mama and Draxum cut a secret deal, once he learned she has his Fourth subject. He offered Five to Big Mama as a go-between on the grounds that she will report Four’s status in the Nexus back to Draxum, but in the interim Big Mama may use her however she desires.

Three(13) began making shock collars for Big Mama with the demand that they will never be used on his brother, and that he got to see the weekly footage of Four’s Nexus fights.

Draxum met with the Foot clan and began providing Saki with empyrean in exchange for weapons. He saw Two(13) there, under the Shredder’s command. Draxum brings Three with him from then on, to gauge just how deep Two’s loyalty to the Foot Clan ran.

In that year of dealing with Saki, Three talked excessively to Leo any chance he got in the maybe four or five times they met, but was not provided with much of a response.

Usagi, with nowhere else to go, signed up for a few fights in Big Mama’s Nexus. He meets Mikey. Out of all the jerk contenders, the two actually like each other well enough. They’re as friendly as two people that may someday fight to the death would be.

After frequently running into each other, April(15) and Raph(14) got Casey(15) to give up her role as a Foot recruit and join their side. She gets the idea to become a double agent, and is now always sneaking out to meet them and be, in her own words, “a badass vigilant”.

After a few months fighting in the Nexus Usagi left and spent a few weeks on the streets before sneaking into Run of the Mill Pizza and getting caught by Hueso. The skeleton offered a safe place for Usagi to stay.

One night while patrolling, just the two of them, April(16) and Raph(15) see Mayhem get taken and April chased after just before the portal closed. Raph went to Splinter for help and the two headed off to the Hidden City. Before they can make it to Draxum’s lab, they spot Mikey(13), fighting in the Nexus, on one of the massive view screens.

After recovering April who’s basically saved herself and Mayhem without Draxum being any the wiser. Raph and Splinter brought her back home and then quickly returned to the HC and requested an audience with Big Mama.

Splinter dropped to his knees and begged to make a deal. He would fight Big Mama’s current champion if he could have his son back. Raph cut in that he would be the one to fight, and Big Mama accepted.

Raph fought a host of contenders before Big Mama revealed that he would face off against Mikey, who didn’t seem to recognize his big brother or father. Raph managed to grab Mikey in a bear-hold and got him to listen long enough for Mikey to remember the night they were separated. He and Raph and Splinter cried and hugged and Mikey confronted Big Mama to announce that he would be leaving with his family and that he would not fight for her any more.

Big Mama remained stoic and cold, taking the news rather well, until alone in her office. In a fit of rage she screamed and even threw a few glasses at the wall before she called for Five, who she had named Venus(13).

Big Mama gave Venus the footage for the previous week of Mikey’s fights. Along with the news that it would be the end of her and Three’s deal since Mikey was now gone.

Venus returned to Draxum’s lab and ran immediately into Three(14). Three, upset by the news that he would not be getting the most recent footage Big Mama had, and that their deal was ending, became upset and his yelling drew the attention of Draxum.

Draxum locked him up for a week before he allowed Venus to release her brother. Finally Venus sat Three down and began to tell him that Mikey is now with One and Lou Jitsu.

Quick Cut—Shredder has noticed that Kitsune’s magic on Leo’s(14) mind seems weaker, and demands more exposure to the empyrean. With a demon under his control, and Karai as the perfect successor, the Foot Clan will be unstoppable, and he will finally have the ultimate revenge on Hamato Yoshi.

Mikey returns to the lair with Raph and Splinter where he meets April. He’s shy, but content. Later, when in bed Mikey’s thoughts do wander to worries that his family may one day grow bored of him, just like Big Mama did. Mikey falls into an uneasy sleep.

SEASON ONE

Leo day after day as Second in Command of the Foot Clan finds his mind harder to focus lately. Something about the two turtles he keeps running into on missions plus the odd, manic one that always accompanies Draxum during his deals with Master Shredder. They seem to scratch an itch in Leo’s brain that just won’t go away.

Leo runs into Raph and Mikey and April long enough for them to finally try to talk, but . But Tigerclaw interrupts and takes Leo away when he refuses to fight his brothers.

Later when Leo is kneeling before Saki, Leo finds his Master isn’t pleased that he failed to kill their enemies when he had the perfect opportunity. Saki punishes Leo far more severely than he has in years. Casey, who knows Leo is in danger, fetches Usagi from his job at Run of the Mill, and Mikey meets them in the alley with the idea to go to Big Mama for the fastest route to Saki’s private compound and save Leo just in time.

Leo spends the next few months recovering and reluctantly staying in the lair, smart enough to know that returning to his Master would be a death sentence. Eventually his memories that were tampered with start to slowly return and he feels deeply the need to protect Mikey. Unfortunately his hatred for Splinter doesn’t seem to be dissipating and he spends a lot of time butting heads with Raph. He sees April’s skill and is impressed. He ignores Casey and refuses to see her as anything but a traitor.

Eventually his family grows comfortable enough to let him have more freedom, and Leo begins to join them on patrol.

While out one night, Leo cuts down a whole squad of Foot ninja when Mikey gets badly hurt. Raph is pretty shaken up and Splinter bans Leo from patrolling with the team, until he can learn to use less lethal methods.

One day, Splinter brings Leo into the dojo and shows his son the old shrine that was made for him and Mikey.

Splinter then shows Leo the weapons hung next to the shrine.

(Excerpt from notes app lol)

Splinter looked at the wall as he spoke. “Raphael and Michelangelo have already chosen their own. I always planned to gift these to you boys. Seeing how effortlessly you used to copy me when I practiced myself. I’d be honored for you to carry a piece of the Hamato clan with you.”

Leo mirrored Splinter’s gaze and stared straight ahead, not knowing how to feel about that bit of information. Regardless he found it easy to keep his tone detached.

“Shredder had me master a number of weapons. But I’ve always been best with my katana.”

Splinter chuckles with a fondly, sad smile. “Hm, yes. You were always most eager to swing around anything you could when you boys played. And would pretend to stab Raphael in the gut whenever he offered to play the role of the big scary dragon.”

Stoicism was now perhaps a bit harder. Still Leo would not allow himself to show any weakness over something so trivial as a tale he didn’t even remember.

“It would be foolish to trust your enemy with such a deadly weapon.”

Finally Splinter took his eyes off the wall and faced Leo. The terrapin refused to return the courtesy, but Splinter wasn’t deterred by the cold shoulder.

“You are not an enemy. You are my son.” Leo was slightly shocked at how easily Splinter claimed him. The rat spoke as surely as if he was simply reading facts from one of those dusty old scrolls he had tried to get Leo to read. A (poor) early attempt to reintroduce Leo to the great and honorable Hamato Clan. Perhaps his father had hoped it would be one possible way to cut through all the lies that Saki had spent years filling his son’s head with. Leo had not gotten very far into the literature before tossing it aside in frustration.

The rat continued on, still not once wavering. “The katana has always been a weapon of honor. I trust you to use them well, in the service of protecting this city and your brothers.”

Leo grew pensive—it was like viewing a weapon he’s cast his eyes on a million times in a new light. It had been a few years since Leo had heard something rather similar.

Only one other person in Leo’s entire life had spoken to him of honor in regards to the blade.

The slider tried not to think of the boy he hadn’t even seen in years. Now that he’s not so far under Saki spell, Leo could recognize the lump of coal that sat heavy in his stomach as guilt. Just the small reminder of the rabbit set it immediately ablaze.

Leo’s not sure why only now the idea of honor moved something in him, but since first waking up in the lair, and the months he’s spent with his actual, true family. The slider had found his thoughts more open to wandering and engaging with ideas that he would’ve never entertained while under Master Shredder.

Splinter continued quickly, seeing some kind of headway in the more and more open look that grew on Leo’s face. “These have been in our family for generations. And even though you boys were apart, It seems fate of some kind has paired you to each of these.”

He paused just a moment to chuckle sadly as if a stray thought suddenly occurred, “I do wonder, with you choosing the Katana. That just leaves the Bō. I’m curious how your brother Donatello would have wielded it. A simple weapon but in the right hands it can be most versatile.”

“Donatello?” Leo searched the bits of stray memories that had returned to him these last few months, but in none of them, he recalled seeing a third brother. Splinter’s words had him beyond confused, and a little worried that he had even more lost memories to regain.

Splinter looked embarrassed over the clear confusion his rambling had caused to suddenly shatter the previous air.

“Ah….yes. Forgive me. I did not wish to overwhelm you when you first arrived, but I suppose now you are ready to hear about how you were created. How Draxum—“

“Draxum?!”

Season One Midpoint

Draxum decides to finally hold another meeting with Shredder after a few months. Three now finds out that Two has ran away after failing in a mission. When he returns to his lab, Three activates the tracker he secretly placed on Two and is beyond shocked to see him in the company of One and Four.

Three suffers a serious break when he sees them with April, and thinks he’s been replaced by a human. As the final straw shatters his control, Three attacks them all in an attempt to get answers and find out why they all seemed so happy together while he was left alone. After an intense fight, Raph manages to grab Three and Leo knocks him out, so they can take him back to the lair.

Donnie spends the next few months getting used to living with his family.

Raph and Leo continue to get into frequent arguments. Leo’s anger only seems to be getting worse. Mikey tries to keep the peace and does his best to keep the lair running smoothly. Leo takes his anger out on Mikey and immediately feels bad.

Tide Pod bros themed episode. Leo apologizes to Mikey for yelling at him. They bond while doing something silly.

April and Casey start dating. Hypno and Warren episode (plot tbd but they keep interrupting the girls’ first date)

Donnie starts constructing his lab and finally seems like he’s developing a stronger relationship with Leo. The two come up with the whole ‘twin’ idea and agree to share a birthday.

Mikey and Raph have a fun bonding episode (Maybe either Meat Sweats or Stockboy)

Venus runs into the family while out on a mission for Big Mama. Donnie tries to talk with her but she remains silent and shows no mercy in attacking him. Later Donnie explains who she is to the fam and the brothers promise him they’ll find a way to bring her home.

April, Raph, Donnie run into the Purple Dragons while incognito at a tech store that Donnie really wanted to go to. Donnie is beyond impressed by them, but Raph is wary. April warns the boys the Purple Dragons are trouble. But Donnie doesn’t listen, and fights with April then to spite her, asks to join their group. They let him in after he shows off his tech and eventually Donnie discovers that April was right. She helps Donnie take back his tech that was stolen, but the Dragons get away. Donnie apologizes for the way he’s treated April since joining the family and the two gain a better understanding.

Leo and Raph argue one night and it’s so bad that Leo takes off. While out he gets recaptured by the Foot and Saki holds him for weeks at his secret compound. Leo sees visions of his long dead ancestor Karai who tries to help him through the constant torture, but thanks to Saki merging Kitsune’s magic with the empyrean, Leo’s mind is falling further than ever under the Shredder’s control.

Season One Finale

When the family finds Leo, he is trapped in a new type of mystic armor and doesn’t even seem to recognize them, viciously attacking them. He takes out everyone but Raph, and when he goes after his oldest brother, he almost manages to take him out as well, but Karai comes to Raph in a vision and helps walk Raph through the ancient ritual she created to banish the empyrean from Leo’s mind. Now free the two then take on Shredder, before grabbing their family and retreating. Family also learns about Karai being Splinter’s daughter.

Season Two

Twins’ Birthday episode for season premiere! Home once again, Leo finds he’s much calmer, only growing angry for shorter and less frequent bouts. And now that the family knows what’s causing it, they can work on controlling it. Donatello informs Leo that he and Draxum were the ones responsible for providing the Shredder with the empyrean, but Leo doesn’t care and tells Donnie not to worry about it. They enjoy their first real birthday with the whole family.

Another run in with Venus while Donnie is out with Mikey. This time Donnie tries his best to explain that he never wanted to leave her behind, and wants her to come back to the lair with him. Venus looks unsure, but refuses and retreats. Mikey&Venus twin reveal.

Leo and Raph gain a new understanding and grow closer. They settle into co-leading the team.

Leo, April, and Donnie have a fun episode together. Raph and Casey vigilante B plot. Splinter and Mikey want to watch their shows but the Wi-Fi is not working, with Donnie gone, they accidentally destroy the lair attempting to fix it.

April and Casey try again for a second date that once again keeps getting interrupted by goofy stuff. This time by the boys.

Rat Flu episode

The gang run into a salamander mutant named Mona and have to stop her from stealing a big jewel from a museum. Raph is pretty smitten when she manages to surprise him by taking him down easily and escaping.

Purple Dragons episode (plot tbd) but something akin to the Fourfold Trap from tmnt!2012

Donnie manages to convince the family to try and repeat the very same ritual Raph did on Leo, on Draxum. They reluctantly agree, as long as Donnie goes through it as well. He agrees and they come up with a plan to capture Draxum.

Season Two Midpoint

Venus agrees to join them temporarily, and helps them take down Draxum long enough to get him back to the lair. In the middle of the ritual, Mikey’s mystic powers activate and somehow manage to link Donnie and Draxum’s minds, pulling the boys in and letting them see all the horrible things Three went through. They run into the darker hallucination versions of themselves that Donnie always sees and have to make a run for it when they’re attacked. Then they meet an adorable, little Three who guides them deeper into the mental link where they finally see Draxum, who looks worse for wear and cries upon seeing the small, child version of Three.

The ritual works and Draxum is purged of most of the empyrean, when the boys are pulled out however, they realize it didn’t work on Donnie for some reason. Donnie doesn’t seem bothered and is just excited about what the ritual working on Draxum means, but Draxum is too ashamed to face anyone and makes a run for it while the boys are distracted.

The boys and April have a fun day enjoying the snow, but get into it when they can’t agree on whether Lou Jitsu or Jupiter Jim is better. Raph and Mikey are on team Lou and Leo and April on team JJ, Donnie who can’t decide, keeps switching back and forth.

The gang spends a day in the Hidden City and ends it by attending a show where the lead singer is a shockingly loud, spunky female turtle. The boys are confused to see another mutant turtle, but Donnie promises Draxum only had files on the Five of them, and is convinced she must be a yokai. The band gets attacked by some of Big Mama’s goons and the gang rush in to help. After everything is settled the female turtle introduces herself to the gang as Jennika and vows to repay the boys for saving her.

Karai episode (plot tbd)

Leo, Raph and Splinter all have trouble accepting the new Draxum so Mikey as Dr Feelings has the bright idea to spend a fun day touring New York. April comes up with a scavenger hunt but it quickly goes off the rails thanks to Big Mama (not exactly Battle Nexus: New York, more like a mix between the Hidden City episodes and then the start of the BN:NY ep)

(Now closer to the actual BN:NY ep) The whole family gets taken prisoner by Big Mama, who reveals her grand plan to have Raph and Mikey battle it out to see who will be her new champion. They win by outsmarting her and the last shot is her looking very disheveled and angry. As a last resort she calls a contact from deep in the underbelly of the Hidden City. A man covered with bandages, who looks practically like a corpse, emerges from the shadows and asks how he can help.

Leo asks Usagi to join him on a vision quest and the two leave for Japan via portal, where Usagi knows of a place that is said to provide those worthy with great inner peace. Usagi-centered episode. We get to see his village which Leo and Usagi are shocked to find out has been rebuilt in the years he’s been gone.

Season Two Finale

Donnie’s side effects from the empyrean are growing worse and he begins to research in secret the origins of the mystic substance. In his desperation for answers Donnie ignores an alert for a 317-39.4 that comes up right as he’s made a huge discovery. Not wanting to stop just as he’s found something big Donnie takes off without telling his brothers. His findings bring him to the Crying Titan where he discovers the source of the empyrean, the skeleton, inside. But before he can attempt to investigate further he’s stopped by the appearance of a young boy calling himself Casey Jones Junior, and his hooded companion. The companion warns Donnie that unless he wants to lose an eye, he shouldn’t get any closer to the creature. Donnie is skeptical, but heeds the warning, especially when the boy tells him they’ve come back from the future to help and uses a special code Donnie developed during a late night bout of insomnia driven boredom.

Donnie takes the new strangers back to the lair where Raph and Mikey are both upset over Donnie’s disappearance. Raph says they could’ve used his help fighting Warren Stone and Hypno, who managed to make off with robbing some old artifact. Donnie admits to ignoring that alert in favor of his research and Raph grows even more upset.

The hoodie figure declares to the boy that they’ve arrived too late and the two future strangers tell the family that they’ve come to stop the Kraang and that they need to call Leo back home. They will need everyone if they’re going to stop the end of the world.

MOVIE TIME

Haha jk no major spoilers quite yet.

986 notes · View notes

tmntkiseki · 2 months

Text

(Massive spoiler warning!) Let's talk about the TMNT 2003 oneshot from the 40th Anniversary Anthology

Ohhhhh boy, my friends, it is finally here. The Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles 40th Anniversary Comics Celebration was released a few days ago and with it, the first comic-based piece of TMNT 2003 media in over 16 years. Whether this oneshot will pave the way for future comics set in the 2003 universe is yet to be seen, but for now, Lloyd Goldfine, Khary Randolph, and Emilio Lopez have cooked up an incredibly delicious treat for fans of the 2003 series, so without further ado, let's dive in because it's ninja time!

(Note: This post contains full spoilers for the "Splinter Forever" oneshot. If you haven't read the comic yet and want to go in as blindly as possible, please do not read beyond the "Keep Reading" and avoid this post like the plague.)

"And how could I have imagined that most incredible transformation of all?! Here, I speak not of mutation... but of my sons. Could I ever have dreamed I would become a father?"

So, before we talk about the actual story of "Splinter Forever," let's talk about a pretty important detail of the comic itself; the fact that it is only eight pages long. While it is certainly not impossible to tell a good story with such a limited number of pages (the Archie oneshot from earlier in the anthology certainly did it, and it had only four pages to work with), it certainly makes telling a deeper, more complex story that much harder since you don't have as much time to tell it. Knowing this, Lloyd Goldfine opted to play it safe and keep things fairly simple in terms of narrative—whether he played it too safe is certainly up for debate, but I personally think that "Splinter Forever" more benefits from this approach than not. What it lacks in interesting plot, it more than makes up for in its characterization and presentation (and believe me, we will be talking about the artwork A LOT in this post.)

"Splinter Forever," at a glance, is pretty straightforward in terms of story; taking place at some point after Turtles Forever, it is about Leonardo, Raphael, Donatello, and Michelangelo rescuing Splinter, who has been captured by the Shredder; he is assisted by Hun, who is still trapped in his mutated turtle form due to the events of the movie. "Splinter Forever," however, is so much more than just the turtles kicking butt and looking cool—it is a story about Splinter expressing his undying love for his four children and how he values his family above all else.

After a brief flashback to Splinter's days as an ordinary rat in the care of Hamato Yoshi, the turtles make their big entrance by crashing through one of the windows of the Foot facility that Splinter is being held in. Each of the next four pages focuses on one of the turtles, showcasing their combat prowess as they fight Shredder, Hun, and the Foot, all while Splinter... pretty much gushes over them. He highlights Michelangelo's nature as a comedian who, none the less, is the most naturally talented of his brothers at martial arts, the fact that Raphael is actually much softer than his tough, aggressive personality would suggest, Leonardo's big heart and unyielding dedication to protecting his brothers, and Donatello's great intellect and unique worldview. Splinter is just so, so, so proud of the people that his sons have grown into and while none of them are perfect, he wouldn't have them any other way.

Now, the one full page from the oneshot that I am able to include in this post is the one focusing on Michelangelo, as it was made available via IDW's social media several days prior to the release of the anthology in order to promote it. There are two things I want to draw everyone's attention to: Khary Randolph's panel composition and Emilio Lopez's use of color.

So, for starters, the composition; The panels on these four pages are rendered in such a way that they resemble broken glass. Makes sense from a narrative standpoint given how the turtles just appeared to crash Shredder's "Let's kill/experiment on Splinter" party, but I genuinely feel like there are some lines to be drawn between Leo's iconic window scene from season 1 and how this is basically the inverse of that situation; instead of one turtle being tossed by the Foot through a window after being beaten near to death, all four turtles are jumping through a window in order to lay a sound beating on the Foot for trying to harm their father. (Or maybe Khary Randolph just thought it looked cool, I don't know.)

Second; Emilio Lopez's use of color. Oh my gosh, Emilio Lopez's colors. It's amazing because the colors used for the turtles are fairly in line with how they appeared during the first five seasons, but rather than looking dark and muted like in the show, they are rendered in such a way that they appear bright, vibrant, and above all, eye catching. Combined with Khary Randolph's dynamic poses and perspective, the turtles are practically popping off the pages. It's literal eye candy no matter where you look!

Besides that though, comparing Raphael and Leonardo's pages to Michelangelo and Donatello's pages is really, really interesting, especially when done so while examining both Splinter's narration as well as the action happening on-panel. On Michelangelo's page, Emilio only really used gold/orange colors for the backgrounds; on Donatello's page, outside a single panel where Splinter catches his cane, only violets are used for the backgrounds. In contrast, the backgrounds on Raphael's page use both reds and violets, while Leonardo's page includes blues, reds, and oranges.

In terms of the action on Mikey and Don's pages, they are absolutely destroying the Foot that they're up against, and Splinter's narration is nothing short of praise for both of them. When we get to Raph's page, though, he's struggling a bit with Hun. In one panel, Hun manages to grab hold of his arms and in another, he punches Raphael away; the backgrounds of these panels are rendered in violet. But in panels where Raphael is on the offensive, the backgrounds are rendered in red. And then there's Splinter's narration from this page.

"Raphael. Always so angry...most reliably, at himself. But, in truth, he is only half as fearsome as he makes himself out to be... Which of course, is more than fearsome enough."

I don't know if this was intentional on Emilio Lopez's part, but it seems to me that the backgrounds are being used to help characterize the turtles more. In the panels where Hun has the advantage and Raphael is presented as weaker/more vulnerable, the backgrounds are rendered in violet. But in panels where Raphael has the advantage and is confident/on the offensive, the backgrounds feature his iconic red color. Raphael's nature as an "rough on the outside, soft on the inside" type of character is being represented via color! I love that!

Something similar is done on Leo's page. Panels where Leo has the upper hand on the Shredder have the backgrounds rendered in his associated blue, but panels featuring the Foot and the Shredder getting the upper hand on him are rendered in either orange or red. As we know, Leonardo's nature as a perfectionist is his big fatal flaw as a character; on one hand, he trains the hardest and is the most skilled of his brothers in terms of his overall combat abilities, but whenever he perceives himself as having failed his family, he takes it hard, and this is reflected in Splinter's narration.

"Leonardo. He trains so hard. Cares so much. All this... to ensure he never, ever fails his brothers."

Also, I think it's worth pointing out the colors used for the panels where Shredder either only barely avoids hitting Leo or manages to land a strike on him. Orange and red. Michelangelo and Raphael. Leonardo is thinking of his brothers in those moments and how he can't let them down. God damn it, Emilio.

Anyways, after Donatello frees Splinter on his page, we are treated to a gorgeous two page spread that parodies the one from the first Mirage issue; however, now Splinter is a part of the composition and... god, I really love this image. The colors are fantastic, Khary Randolph improved on the posing from the original, and it's a perfect tribute to the original comic that started it all. The box with Splinter's narration where he speaks of how proud he is of his children is even in the same spot where Leo's narration from the original image is!

The final page of the oneshot has Splinter easily kick the Shredder's ass. He breaks his Utrom exosuit and proceeds to send little Ch'rell... flying through a window. God, to do the same thing to the Shredder that he did to Leo in Season 1 is poetic justice at its finest. The four turtles embrace Splinter, and the oneshot ends with the family, now reunited, returning home. The end.

Honestly, my only real nitpick with the oneshot is the fact that there is no explanation for how Ch'rell came back after literally being vaporized during Turtles Forever, but again, Lloyd Goldfine only had eight pages to work with, so I can pretty much let it slide on that basis alone because otherwise? This oneshot is so, so good. It is not only a perfect tribute to Splinter's deep bond with Leonardo, Raphael, Donatello, and Michelangelo and the love he holds for them as their father, but to the entire 2003 series as a whole. It was certainly worth the wait and I'm definitely hoping that this won't be the last we see of the 2003 turtles in the comic books.

"Yes, mine is a life I could never have imagined for myself...and, even if given forever... I could not have dreamed of one better."

#teenage mutant ninja turtles #tmnt #tmnt 2003 #tmnt 2k3 #tmnt 2003 spoilers #tmnt spoilers #comic spoilers #spoilers #I am slapping as many spoiler tags as possible so people can avoid this post if they want/need to sfjgkdfjgkfd #tmnt splinter #tmnt michelangelo #tmnt raphael #tmnt leonardo #tmnt donatello #tmnt shredder #tmnt hun

61 notes · View notes

aealzx · 1 year

Text

“Pss… Hey…. Wake up…”

Lil Mikey could hear an unfamiliar, slightly rough voice close to him, but he wasn’t sure if they were talking to him, or someone else. Partially because it felt like he wasn’t fully there, and partly because wave after wave of noxious energy that scrambled his mystic energy was pounding into his head. It earned a low groan, his brain gradually returning to his aching body and making him aware of the strain on his stretched arms. Something was messing with something on his wrist too, shifting his arm around gently. And when he forced his eyes open through flutters he was met with a blur of red and green that quickly got shoved out of the way for orange and green.

“Hey lil guy. How you doing? What’s your name?”

The voice was hushed, but full of mirth and anticipation. Lil Mikey had to blink slowly while the questions processed, and eventually gave a slightly mumbled answer. “...Mikey…”

“Haha! I knew it. Look guys, it’s alternate dimension mini me,” Mikey laughed, and Lil Mikey could feel gentle hands on his cheeks that he leaned into.

“Yeah yeah, we guessed as much,” Raphael huffed, though the concern was leaking through more than irritation. “..... Don, can’t you get those off faster? He doesn’t look good. Like something other than the normal ‘I just woke up in a weird place’ grogginess.”

“Unfortunately no,” Don commented back, and Lil Mikey looked to his left to see there was a third mutant turtle wedging thin tools into the chained cuff on his wrist. “They’re bugged. If I don’t disable the alarm on them we’ll blow our cover too soon.”

Fighting to ignore the rhythmic pounding on his head, Lil Mikey squinted at the restraints he was in. They were rescuing him? He vaguely remembered being snatched up by a disgusting black void. So he’d been kidnapped. “...Can I just cut the chains for now?” he asked, flexing his hand a little to test his mobility.

Don paused for a moment, trying to think of just how Lil Mikey was going to be able to cut through solid metal while being restrained by said metal. “Uh…. sure, if you can manage it. The wiring is only in the cuff parts- Oh!”

As soon as Don said it would be fine, Lil Mikey tried to summon his own chains, a slow inhale turning into a sharp gasp as his markings flickered with a glow that was shredded to a faint haze before he let it go. “Khh-.... Something is messing with my magic hands. Can you turn it off? ‘S like a speaker right next to my head.”

Taking another moment of thought, Don reached up to enable the mic in his headset while Raph mouthed ‘mystic hands?’ to Mikey. “April? Can you see if you can turn off any devices that are giving out a consistent energy output reading?” He wasn’t sure what was being used, or how. But if it was a continuous effect then he figured they should be able to pick up on something giving a continuous feed.

“Sure thing Don. It might tip them off that I’m here though. Is that okay?” Mom April responded, and the three adult turtles could hear the faint tap of a keyboard through their earpieces.

“... Yeah. Try to release the restraints on all of them as well. Leo should be able to handle himself if he’s free, and we’re close enough to the second one,” Don confirmed, giving a wary look at the camera in the room. It would only be moments before the security team realized there was a loop anyway.

The group waited in silence for Mom April’s update, and Lil Mikey took the moment to look over his rescuers. Red, purple, and orange. Orange was his color though. But they did look older than them. “... Heheh, are you guys copycats? Color coded ninja turtles is our thing…,” he giggled through a slight mumble.

Mikey just grinned while Raphael raised a brow. “We’ll explain later, little guy. Right now let’s just focus on getting out of here,” Mikey consoled, making the rare choice to stay focused.

“Don, it looks like it can’t be shut down remotely. But I can overload it to a burn out…” Mom April spoke up again.

“Do it,” Don agreed. Burning out the machine that was causing trouble would be better in the long run anyway. Especially if it was what was causing Lil Mikey to not be fully alert.

“Alright. Overload in three, two, one…”

The pressure Don had been feeling consistently in his head, that he’d thought was just a tension headache, gradually intensified for a minute before abruptly fizzling out. Which made him realize it had been something affecting him, and potentially his brothers as well, and not just their dimensional guests. Just too a lesser severity it seemed.

“Woah… There goes the salt headache…,” Raph commented, confirming Don’s unspoken question if the others had been feeling it too.

Any responses broke off momentarily as red lights flared on, and a muffled announcement could be heard outside the room. “All employees execute Protocol Pesticide immediately. This is not a drill.”

“Aaaaand there goes our cover,” Mikey chuckled.

“Good. I’ve been itching to break things,” Raphael grinned, hooking his sai from his belt with a finger and giving a twirl. “Since we don’t need to be subtle now…,” he started, raising his hand with the intention to break the cuffs off Lil Mikey with his sai. His actions stopped when bright orange chains ghosted into view, a lazy curl around Lil Mikey as the spot markings on his body glowed steadily. In a blink the chains snapped towards Lil Mikey’s restraints, curiously slicing through the metal easily. Raphael reflexively reached his hands out to catch Lil Mikey, assuming he’d fall now that he wasn’t supported. But to his surprise the smaller turtle stayed floating gently in the air for but a moment before gently lowering his feet to the ground.

“.... Oookay…,” Raphael voiced, raising a brow again.

“Cooooool,” Mikey chimed in.

“Interesting…,” Don breathed, a whirl of questions bubbling into his mind.

Blinking a few times to clear the residual haze from his mind, Lil Mikey looked up with a brief grin. “Thanks! That feels a lot better. Do you know where Donnie is? I’m pretty sure we were together. He grabbed me when the black ink monster was all groaaarr bleehhh. Is he who you were talking about-”

Raphael’s brow raised more, if possible, but he couldn’t help but grin. It seemed the kid was feeling a lot better now. But they couldn’t continue chatting, for a soft beep and shift of sliding metal alerted them of something happening in the room. Flinching, the four crouched while the three with weapons drew them, gathering in a circle back to back. A slight hissing noise caused them to look up, catching sight of a thick purple gas leaking through vents near the ceiling.

“Don’t breathe that!” Don hissed, quickly shrugging the backpack off one shoulder so he could dig the portable gas masks from it. Slipping one over his own nose and mouth, he let Raphael and Mikey take care of themselves in favor of helping Lil Mikey put one on as well.

“What is it?” Lil Mikey asked, obediently holding the mask to his face while Don tried to secure it.

“Cellular corrosion gas,” Don answered, spending unusually long on trying to get the mask fitting properly before he gave out a slight noise of distress. “...too big,” he muttered. “Keep your head low, and the mask pressed against your face as much as possible, okay? We’ll get you out and taken care of.”

Lil Mikey nodded despite the anxiety bubbling in his chest. The mask was too big? But he just had to stay low and keep it close? That was easy. He was pretty small already. “...Is this place a bad guy base?” he asked suddenly, wanting confirmation it was okay to destroy things further.

Raphael paused for a moment, looking back, but Mikey was the one that answered. “Oh yeah! A really nasty lady owns the place. We’ve been fighting her for weeks- no months now I think! She kidnapped you and your brother, and our other brother. We're just waiting for her to leave where he is before we get him too.”

“That’s all I need to know,” Lil Mikey responded, giving a devilish smile that squished his cheeks before turning to charge towards the sealed door, hands holding the gas mask pressed against his face. Giving a whooping cheer, he leapt forward into a rolling bodyslam, curling his limbs in tight, but not pulling into his shell since he wanted to be slightly bigger. “WRECKING BALL!” he cheered, more of the orange chains curling around him in a shield that sliced into the door before his illogically heavy impact smashed through the remains.

The other three stared for a moment before Mikey let out his own whoop. “OH YEAH! Little me has super powers! Awesome!” he cheered, pumping his hands in the air and charging forward with his brothers to follow the small teen. “Let’s go!”

___________________

Previous (image of bloody mouth) Next

___________________

double Mikey time X'D

Mom April = 2003 April

#my art #rottmnt #rise of the teenage mutant ninja turtles #tmnt 2003 #tmnt crossover #rise + 2003 crossover #cross dimension kidnapping #mikey #writing #long post

276 notes · View notes

keywestwildlifecenter · 2 months

Text

Eight hatchling Loggerhead Sea Turtles rescued late last night after becoming disorientated at the Pier House. The Loggerheads are being transferred to Save A Turtle of the Florida Keys this morning for release after they are evaluated. www.keywestwildlifecenter.org

#wildlife rescue #loggerhead sea turtle

156 notes · View notes

reimagine7 · 2 years

Text

A thing for Aquaman (Kelley O'hara x reader)

This was a request, but I had a tough time writing it and don’t know if I achieved your expectations. It’s a short one.

Kelley pov

“Hello ladies! My name is Shean and I’ll be one of the instructors that will be guiding you all today.” We were at the Marine Life Rescue center in Florida. The USWNT is combining forces with the Program to help raise visibility to their mission, so we are making a visit and recording some media stuff. A few of us visited the Clearwater aquarium, some went to the beach to see a turtle and a dolphin release. Me, Lindsey, Alex, Sofia, Trinity and Sonnett are in the group that is going scuba diving.

“So, a quick story before our leader gets here. The Marine Life Rescue Project was created to support the mission and funding to Clearwater Marine Aquarium Research Institute. We believe in preserving our environment while inspiring the human spirit through leadership in the rescue, rehabilitation, and release of marine life. By research, conservation and environmental education of the community. Alone, we can’t do much, so that’s why your visit here is so important for us…” The boy kept talking and my attention quickly was out of it. I poked Alex and asked. “This guy sounds like he is repeating this line for the hundredth time and has zero animation to be here” Alex laughed but kept looking at the boy, Lindsey that was near heard me and answered. “He is cute though. But I don’t know if I’m too excited to enter the water. I think I will rather stay in the boat talking to him.” Trinity, who was also listening to us, spoke. “What? We are scuba diving for free. Why would you want to stay in the boat?” “What if there are sharks in the water?” Lindsey whispered loudly. “That’s the fun part.” Trinity has a smirk on her face. “I don’t think there will be sharks in there. Right?” I tried to calm Linds, but I was not too sure of myself.” “Don’t worry, the sharks don’t like humans that much. They usually don’t show up. Usually.” A woman whispered behind us, making the girls who were close jump a little as we haven’t seen her before. “Usually?” She just shrugged. “Who are you?” I was the one making the question now. “I’m…”

“Y/n! You made it. Come here.” The woman winked at us, stood and went up front. “Girls, this is Y/n Y/l/n. She is going to be the lead instructor that will be diving with some of you. Any questions?” Lindsey raised her hand and asked. “Can I stay in the boat?” We all laughed and Y/n answered. “Of course you can, no one will be forced to be down there. But I must warn you that you will be missing a lot.” “Thanks. But I rather stay here than risk being eaten by a shark.” “First, sharks don’t attack like that. That is a huge myth created mostly due to Spielberg's movies. There is a bigger chance of you dying in a plane crash than being eaten by a shark.” Y/n corrected Lindsey, who still didn’t look convinced. “I think I'll take my chances with the plane.” Y/n laughed but before she could say anything the other instructor called her informing that everything was ready on the boat. “We are going. And second…” She interrupted herself by taking off her hoodie, and Oh, dear! She has muscles. God, she is hot. “Second, I know this beach like the palm of my hand. I know these animals and you’ll be safe with me and my team. Don’t worry. Let’s go girls?” With that she walked toward the boat leaving us behind.

We watched her going and I broke the silence “Have anyone else seen those muscles?” “Yeah. You know what Linds, you can stay in the boat. I will dive with her.” Sonnett grabbed her backpack and started her walk to the boat. “Wait. I think I changed my mind. With those arms, I think I will be safe.” Lindsey says following Sonnett. “You know Kells, if you want a chance to stay near those arms you’ll have to run. Sonnett and Linds are thirsty.” Alex laughed at me and we all ran to the boat.

An instructor started the drive and we all sat in the boat waiting for the boat to stop at the diving spot. “So Y/n, is being this muscular and hot a requirement to being a scuba diving instructor?” She laughed and answered. “If it was Shean over here would be with his days counted.” “Hey! I work out.” “I’m just kidding man. But answering your question, it’s not. But it helps to keep the girls' attention at you when you’re repeating the program instructions.” She winked at me. “I noticed, but don’t know if I paid too much attention to what you were saying, was occupied with something else. Too distracted. I would love to learn more about it.” “Well, unfortunately that isn’t part of the tour but I’m always open to show what those muscles can do some other time.” “I think I know how those muscles work in the gym.” “I imagine, but I wasn’t talking about the gym.” My eyes widened and I stayed speechless. She stood up and started grabbing the equipment.

“Well, as we already pass through instruction on the beach, I won’t repeat them. The only thing I’m reinforcing is to make sure to be close by. This water is normally safe and calm, and you will have the chance to watch the most different species of animals and corals, but your safety is the most important thing here and any caution is too much. Any question?” This time it was Trinity who raised her hand. “How close can we stay to you?” “Can I hold your arms?” Sofia asked. Y/n only laughed and put her backpack on. “Calm down girls, there is enough of me for everyone. Now, who is ready to dive?”

Next thing I know Y/n was helping the girls with their equipment and Alex poked me. “Really Kell? You’re almost drooling over her.” “Can you blame me? Look at those muscles.” “She is more than just that, you know?” “I know, but how can I not want that? She is smart, strong, funny, and hot. She is friends with the fishes, sharks, and almost the whole marine life. She is basically the female Aquaman.” “Kids, why did I have to stay in the kids group?” She walked away and Y/n came near me to help me with the equipment.

“Everything is good?” Y/n asked. “Yep.” “Great. Let's finish our tour then and wish for it to end with a success.” She said finishing tightening the strap. “Success? I thought you said we didn’t have to worry about it.” She looked at me. “You don’t. Not on my part anyway.” I looked at her confused. “What do you mean?” “You know the story, the hero saves the ladies from the sharks and gets the girl in the end.” “Who says you were the hero?” “We are in a small boat Kelley.” A smirk appeared on her face and she went near the edge of the boat. “But don’t worry, I won’t tell anyone you have a thing for Aquaman.” She winked at me and jumped in the water. Oh God, I have a thing for the female Aquaman.

#uswnt imagine #uswnt x reader #woso x reader #woso imagine #kelley o'hara x reader #kelley ohara imagine

334 notes · View notes

thdorkmagnet · 11 months

Text

Hello all! Got something a bit different for you today. Since I've been gone, I've fallen deep into the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles fandom (you can thank Mutant Mayhem for that) and I've created a fanfiction for a truly lovely comic from @indieyuugure known as Indie's Turtles. The actual comic itself isn't out just yet but they've been posting stuff for it and I just knew I needed to make something for it!

This fanfiction takes place during the Space Arc (link here) and deals with Donnie's trauma after the events of the previous arc the Save Donnie Arc (Links here, here, and here). Basically, Bishop kidnapped Donnie and experimented on him and the bros had to swoop in and rescue him. I also touch on some this comic (linkie here too) at one point.

Also please go easy on me if anyone is out of character this is my first time writing any version of the turtles ever! Haha, hope you enjoy!

Disclaimer: I do not own Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles or any of its variants. Indie's Turtles/ Indie TMNT belong to @indieyuugure.

The door to the ship's bathroom slid open, Donnie stumbling into the room a moment after, his breathing heavy and labored, a hand clenched tightly to his chest. He froze for a second, realizing too late that the bathroom was smaller than he remembered, already feeling suffocated inside. But he was snapped back to reality as the door slid shut behind him, the noise causing him to jump. Using this new wave of panic, Donnie willed himself forward, muttering the command to the ship's AI to activate the door lock.

He practically fell against the sink, leaning all his weight on it as his knees shook terribly. His hands just dangled there, hot sticky blood dripping onto white marble, Donnie squeezing tighter in some vain effort to stop the bleeding but there was too much of it- there was so much blood- he needed to wash it off. Get it off, get it off, get it off. In order to do that he needed to turn on the sink. Steeling himself, Donnie released his grip, only for a new wave of blood to slide down his hand, pooling in the sink. Donnie shuddered, keeping his right hand turned down so he didn’t have to see. In a single fluid motion he turned the handle, hot water instantly bursting from the pipes. Without a second of hesitation he stuck both hands into the falling stream, wincing as the gash in his hand throbbed. As the majority of the blood washed away down the drain, Donnie felt his breathing start to steady, his mind returning to him. Okay, okay, this wasn’t so bad. He was… he was doing good. He just needed to clean the wound up, slap a bandaid on and it would be over. There was no need to panic. He was safe.

But as he flipped his hand over to examine the gash, a new wave of terror clenched his heart. The entirety of his middle finger had been split open, endless waves of blood spurting from the cut and Donnie was pretty sure he could see the bone. A wave of nausea hit Donnie all at once and he gagged, pressing his good hand over his mouth to try and keep it down. Hot water soon poured into the gash, a muffled hiss escaping Donnie’s lips at the pain. Pain, pain. It hurt so bad. Make it stop hurting. Donnie’s breathing became raw and raspy, struggling to pull enough air into his lungs. He was dying. The pain was unbearable as the pressure of the water cut into the wound. He could feel the blood flowing from his body, leaving a horrible, hollow feeling behind. The water was too hot, every drop felt like needles being jabbed into his skin, over and over again. Get them out, get them out.

He tried to remember the breathing technique dad had taught him but he couldn’t find it in the cacophony of thoughts screaming in his head. Stop, stop. Pain. No more. Brothers. Need my brothers. Donnie let out a wail, thankful the sound was muffled by his hand. It was too much. The blood was everywhere. He was dying.

“Oh relax turtle, you aren’t dying.”

Donnie whimpered and squirmed as the needle was jabbed into his arm just below the elbow. It hit a vein, he could feel it. He felt the blood being drained out of him. It burned. He squirmed, trying to break free, trying to escape but he couldn’t. He was trapped. He was helpless. Where were his brothers?!

“STAY STILL! Unless you want it to hurt more.” The threat made his blood run cold. Even though it burned. He hated this. He hated this place. This was agony.

Finally, the needle was ripped from his arm and Donnie hissed, squeezing his eyes shut to hide the forming tears. The man didn’t even bother to clean or cover the puncture wound, a stream of warm blood dripping down Donnie’s arm, echoing the tears that slid down his cheeks.

“All that fuss over one little needle. You are making this so much more difficult than it needs to be.” Good. If Donnie was going to go through this he wanted to make it as painful for this monster as possible. He was about to make a witty retort but before he could the man spoke again, his voice cold and cynical. “You might as well get used to it, y'know. We’ll be at this for a while.”

Donnie didn’t even have time to scream before he felt the stab of another needle and the whole painful process started over again.

Donnie was trembling head to toe now, his body drenched in sweat as the flashback ended. Or paused really, since he was currently reliving the nightmare in real time. Tears dripped down his face as he sobbed brokenly. He shoved both arms entirely under the running faucet scrubbing at them with his good hand and his bad, dripping blood all over him. Everything itched. Everything hurt. He was coming undone. The sobs wracked his whole body, his tears mixing with the blood and water, a flood of pink filling the sink before swirling down the drain in a hypnotizing dance. Donnie felt his attention pulling away from the wound and onto the drain, watching it with a kind of mindless fascination.

He felt light-headed, like his brain had detached from his body floating freely above, an observer in his own skin. He could hear his thoughts roaring in his head, feel the knots in his stomach and the tears on his cheeks, the throbs of pain in his hand, but it was like he wasn’t there. He was separated, disconnected. The logical part of his brain told him he was losing too much blood. He needed to stop the bleeding. But that part was so far away. He couldn’t hear it through the fog. He fell to his knees. He wanted to lay down. He wanted to lay there and drift away. Maybe he would find a new self to inhabit. One that wasn’t so broken. One that didn’t hurt like he was hurting. He could just drift away and…

Footsteps. Footsteps down the hall. Someone was coming. Something about that grounded Donnie, pulling him back into himself. His head still spun but he was there again, in his own body. He tried to stand, using the sink for support, feeling his knees wobble but somehow keeping his balance. Who was it? Who was coming? His brothers? Fugitoid? Were they coming to check on him? How long had he been gone? They couldn’t see him like this. He didn’t want to be seen. He didn’t want to be touched. If they found him here they would make him go to the medbay and the thought of that alone made him nauseas all over again. He couldn’t. He couldn’t go in there, no matter what.

Thinking fast he turned on the showerhead, water bursting from the nozzle and soaking the floor. Steam flooded the room, fogging Donnie’s glasses, rendering him blind. But at the very least it was no longer obvious he had been crying. He grabbed a towel and wrapped it tightly around his hand, trying to stop the bleeding or at least try and hide it. Which seemed pointless since there was blood everywhere now.

There was a soft knock on the door and Donnie jumped. Every nerve in his body felt like it was on fire. Or maybe that was just the heat from the shower and faucet finally getting to him.

“Hey, Don, you in there?” Leo. It was Leo on the other side of the door and he suddenly felt compelled to run into his arms and hide there until the pain ended. He might have done so if his legs weren’t shaking so much.

“Y-Yeah,” Donnie stuttered, hoping he sounded normal and not… well, the opposite.

“How long you been in there?” Leo asked, a hint of concern in his tone.

He had been expecting that question. It was a normal occurrence for him ever since he had started to shower longer than he should, since Mikey had found him in the middle of his multiple-hour showering sessions, scratching at his arms until they had been rubbed raw. Since then his family and friends had tried to limit the amount of time he was allowed to spend in the bathroom. “J-Just now,” he replied, trying to pull the towel tighter. It was starting to bleed through.

“Didn’t you get one earlier today?” Did he? Don couldn’t think straight, couldn’t make sense of the confusing mess of his mind, the fog still present and persistent.

“I, uh, spilled something on me. Needed to wash it off.” It was a weak lie but it was the best Donnie could do right now.

There was a pause as Leo seemed to hesitate. “...Are you doing okay?”

Donnie felt his chest clench. Had Leo seen through him? Did he know he was lying? What had tipped him off? “N-No, I’m fine, everything’s fine.” Why wouldn’t he just go away? Donnie’s resolve wasn’t very strong right now and he knew with enough pushing Leo could get the truth out of him. Maybe even get him out of the bathroom. He wasn't sure if he wanted that or not.

Another pause before a tired sigh. “Don, there’s blood leading from your lab to here.” Donnie flinched, wondering how he had overlooked something so simple. Wasn’t he supposed to be smarter than that? Leo seemed to be waiting for a response but Donnie didn’t know what to say, his tongue suddenly feeling like lead in his mouth, his thoughts too jumbled and the pain too great for him to form any kind of excuse. Finally, Leo continued, his tone gentle and coaxing. “Look, I know you probably want to be alone right now but, uh, I just want to make sure you're okay. It was… a lot of blood and I know you don’t… handle that well.”

Donnie swallowed, his eyes flooding with tears yet again, the urge to run to his brother growing stronger by the second.

Leo’s voice was soft. Calculated. “I won't push you. I just want to help."

“P-Promise you won’t say anything,” Donnie finally managed to get out.

“I won’t, I promise,” Leo’s voice replied, hopeful, relieved.

“And don’t m-make me go to the medbay. I don’t… I can’t.”

“Yeah, no problem.” Leo sounded a bit confused by that request but still agreed in a heartbeat. That was enough for Don, sucking in a deep breath, trying to steady his nerves as he muttered the unlock command, the door sliding open in an instant. Leo shuffled inside, eyes wide, clearly taken aback by the state of the small bathroom. Then his eyes fell on his brother and Donnie felt the sudden urge to hide. He knew it must be quite a sight to see, Donnie and the bathroom covered in blood, hot steam billowing out of the small room in droves, cheeks damp with fresh tears and a bloody towel haphazardly wrapped around his right hand. But somehow Leo kept his promise, clenching his jaw tightly, forcing his face to stay neutral. Still Donnie squirmed in place, wondering what he was supposed to do or say now that Leo was here. An explanation would probably be nice.

“I-I was tinkering with some of Fugitoid’s tech and the- the metal piece slipped and well…” Donnie felt his skin crawl and he shuddered, the sentence dying on his tongue. He looked away, no longer feeling strong enough to face his brother, feeling hollow and exposed. What was Leo going to say, what was he going to do? If the roles were reversed Donnie would be lecturing by now. A few tears pricked at his eyes. He didn’t want his brother to see him this way, so useless and scared and broken.

But all Leo did was crouch down in front of his brother, slowly holding a hand out to him, waiting patiently for Donnie to react. It took him a few seconds to process what Leo wanted, a silent request to check Donnie’s finger. Don hesitated but finally worked up the courage to give him his hand, placing it flat against his brother's palm. Slowly Leo unfolded the towel, expression focused but calm. As cold air hit the open wound, Donnie hissed through his teeth. Leo’s eyes widened, worry etched into his features as he stared at the gash, some blood already starting to leak out again.

It felt like a lifetime before Leo moved again, finally nodding to himself, a decision made before he met Donnie’s eyes. “It needs stitches.”

Donnie felt a tremble jump up his spine, pulling his hand away and to his shell, shaking his head violently. No. No needles. He couldn’t. He struggled to articulate this though, instead merely whimpering pathetically. “I know, Dee, I know,” Leo said softly, shooting his brother an apologetic smile. “But there’s no other way. It’s gotta be done.” Donnie knew he was right but it still terrified him. “Let’s go back to my room, okay. I'm sure you don't wanna do it on the bathroom floor."

Donnie nodded numbly, allowing his brother to take command like he always did, gently pulling him to his feet. Leo grabbed another towel and wrapped it around the gash, tying a knot to try and hold it better in place. He then instructed Donnie to put pressure on the wound, guiding his shaking hands as Donnie failed to follow along with what Leo was saying. He felt really dizzy and tired all of a sudden, the pain and panic still tugging at his heart and head but almost… muted now. He was disconnecting again, he realized. Only this time he had Leo to ground him.

Leo turned off the faucet and showerhead before wrapping an arm around brother's shell, keeping him steady as he swayed unevenly on his feet. Donnie hadn't even noticed. Leo's other hand was cupped over Donnie's, helping to add a bit more pressure. It felt nice.

"What about the mess?" Donnie sluggishly asked, feeling a pang of guilt for reasons he didn't really understand.

"Later. Right now we gotta get you patched up."

Donnie grunted in agreement, finding himself leaning into his brother, allowing Leo to guide him to his room. He felt Leo shift, readjusting his grip so he could better support Donnie’s weight.

He needed this, Donnie realized. This comforting grip from his brother, this safety. He hadn’t realized just how much he had come to rely on the others since Bishop. Some days it felt like their support was the only thing keeping him stable. It made him feel a bit… helpless. In the past the others had always relied on him, he was the brains, the inventor, the medic, the one they went to when they didn’t know what to do. Now though. Now he relied on them. An equal exchange maybe. Donnie didn’t know anymore and he was too tired to care. Right now he just wanted to be there in the protective grip of his older brother and believe everything was okay.

Maybe that was enough for now.

…

Leo had experience with pain.

As the oldest and the leader, Leo was used to taking the hits the others couldn't. He did his best to cover their weaknesses, to endure the brunt of the attack so that his family didn’t have to. He thought he could take it, he had a high pain tolerance only rivaled by Raph, and most of his injuries healed pretty quickly anyways. At the time, he thought he was being heroic, but looking back it had been nothing more than naive stupidity.

It was only when he got his first real taste of pain Leo learned he wasn't as invincible or as strong as he thought he was. It had felt like dying. The agony, the fear, the helplessness, they were thoughts and feelings he had never known before. No loss had ever felt like this, nothing had ever come so close to breaking him before. Sometimes late at night, he wondered if he actually had broken and just pretended not to notice. Those nights he usually never got to sleep.

When Leo finally woke, body still alive with pain but no longer alone, surrounded by his family and friends, he had thought the worst was over. But once again it was either optimism or innocence blinding him to the truth.

He hadn’t escaped from the fight, it had just changed form.

The weeks and months that followed were the hardest of his entire life, a never-ending struggle against his own mind and body, nightmares and flashbacks haunted him like ghosts, and the few bits of Leo left felt so utterly empty, like there was nothing of him left at all. Every day was a fight that left him drained and exhausted, pushing his limits and tearing at the fabric of his sanity, always one step away from unraveling the empty self Leo had become.

Somehow though, Leo had kept going, kept pushing, kept trying. He still didn't entirely know why, maybe it was his dad in him, maybe he was just too stubborn to roll over and die, or maybe it was the leader refusing to abandon his team, but something in him kept him going. Kept him fighting. He fought for his family, for his friends, for his city, for himself.

And slowly, ever so slowly, things got better. Easier. Day by day, step by step, Leo got better. There were still hard days when he fell apart all over again but he was strong enough to overcome them now. He wouldn't say he was healed, not completely, but he was more whole, more himself.

Which is why it felt like sick irony that the moment Leo started to feel more whole it was Donnie who fell apart. His time as Bishop's experiment had been brief but it had left him in the same broken state Leo knew all too well. The circumstances were different but the scars they left were the same. And if Leo had thought it was painful experiencing it firsthand, it was pure agony watching the same thing happen to his brother, to Donnie.

The others had noticed the changes in him, too, but not on the same level as Leo. No Leo was painfully aware of every hitch in his brother's breath, every involuntary flinch at the wrong word or sound, every shudder when he thought no one was looking. He knew them because at one time they had been his.

Leo did his best to be what Donnie needed him to be. A pillar of strength in a sea of darkness and fear. He remembered his family's support during his lowest and how much it had done for him. Leo wanted, needed, to be that for Donnie. And as the group made the jump from New York to space, Leo started seeing a more positive response from his brother. The fear still lingered but it was drowned out by the thrill of discovery, Donnie captivated by the new technology he saw, enthralled by the new places and species they encountered, an eagerness to learn and understand that was so fundamentally Donnie it made Leo's chest hurt. He had missed this side of his brother. More than he knew. And maybe that was why he foolishly, stupidly, started to believe that things were better. That Donnie was fine.

Leo really had to stop pretending he knew anything.

Seeing the blood staining Donnie’s workbench had been a wake-up call, a cold splash of reality that turned his veins to ice. His body moved before his mind could, running down the metallic halls of the ship using the trail of blood to guide him. He reprimanded himself, cursed himself, for ever believing Donnie was okay. Not when he knew the effort it took to heal, to make any kind of progress. It was an exhausting struggle, a push and pull against hope and despair that never seemed to reach a victor. Even if things had improved Donnie’s scars were too new, too fresh, that anything could send him spiraling. Leo still remembered the first month in the farmhouse when Mikey had fumbled and shattered a cup. The family was more careful around glass after that.

Leo hadn't started breathing again until he heard Don's voice through the bathroom door. It surprised him that his brother had chosen to take shelter there, since small spaces tended to be another trigger of Donnie’s. He must have been desperate. It had taken some gentle persuasion to get inside, giving Leo momentary relief as he feared Donnie might completely shut him out in this state. However, all thoughts froze the moment he saw his younger brother.

It felt like looking into a twisted mirror, distorted but still the same, reflecting his past self back at him. Donnie’s body was covered in blood, cheeks red and puffy from crying, his breathing shallow and quick. It had clearly been a bad attack, one of the worst Leo had ever witnessed and his heart ached for his brother. He struggled to keep his face neutral, trying to remember the promise he had made, clenching his jaw and biting down so hard on his tongue he tasted blood. Donnie seemed to shrink under his gaze, trying to offer a weak explanation that quickly broke off as his eyes grew listless and empty, clearly pulled back into a painful memory. Leo could guess which one.

There was something achingly familiar in Donnie’s broken look, he could see him struggle to hold back the torrent of emotions pulling him down and Leo feared if he did nothing his brother might drown in it. No, Leo thought, steeling himself. He couldn’t let that happen. He had to hold Donnie up until he could swim on his own again, the way Don and the others had done for him. So he had shoved it all down, all the emotions threatening to strangle him, and forced himself to focus on his brother. He had decided to come at it logically, turning his attention to the most pressing concern right then which was most definitely the gash in his brother’s hand. The panic attack seemed to have mostly subsided, even if it had left Donnie shook, but even with a towel pressed to it, he had clearly still been bleeding. And he had lost too much blood already.

He hated how his brother seemed to recoil at the first mention of stitches. The way Donnie pulled his hand away and shook his head reminded Leo of when they were kids and their dad had tried to coax Donnie into eating something on his plate he disliked. Donnie had always been the picky eater of the family. Leo felt himself trying to match his dad’s tone in those moments, soft, apologetic, but with no room for argument. It surprised him a little when Donnie wordlessly agreed, expecting some kind of fight on the matter.

But as he practically carried his brother to his room, it occurred to him that Don just didn’t have the energy to argue. For some reason, that made Leo’s stomach twist into knots. Donnie had felt so limp against him, his movements sluggish and unfocused, the exact opposite of the brother he knew and loved. He wanted that brother back so, so badly.

As they settled on Leo’s bed, however, small bits of Donnie started to return, reprimanding Leo for forgetting to disinfect the wound before starting, even if he kept his eyes on the far wall instead of his brother. He had begun a long-winded rant about the dangers of infection and Leo had just let him talk, knowing it was more to distract himself than to actually educate. He still noticeably flinched every time Leo pressed the needle into his skin but both turtles pretended not to notice.

Eventually, the speech had trailed off and Donnie went uncharacteristically quiet. An uncomfortable silence filled the room, the only sound was the tapping of Donnie’s foot against the ground, anxiously bouncing as he fought to hold back the panic. Leo glanced up every so often to see how his brother was holding up, everytime greeted by the same wide eyed look staring off into the distance instead of at him. Donnie had pressed a hand against his mouth, possibly to cover the frantic breathing Leo could just barely make out. He tried to work faster but stitches were a bit outside his area of expertise. He had tried to point this out to Don but his brother was adamant that it needed to be him. Leo couldn’t help but feel flattered by that, even if a part of him knew it was just Donnie being cautious. Mikey and Raph were likely to freak and that only raised his chances of visiting the dreaded medbay. That meant Leo had to take the extra time to do it right. He couldn’t risk it reopening and causing a fiasco. Or worse, send Donnie spiraling all over again.

So instead, he did his best to distract, asking Donnie a question he hoped would get him talking again. "So, Don, what were you working on? Anything interesting?"

Donnie flinched before going still, even the tapping stopped, drawing Leo’s attention upwards. Leo saw his brother’s eyes glaze over and nearly panicked, worried he had said the wrong thing. But before he could try and change the subject Donnie responded softly, "I was trying to upgrade my staff."

Leo held in a sigh, returning his focus back on the stitches. Good. At least Donnie was talking. “Oh. What kinda upgrades?” Leo had done some minor tweaks with his katanas in the past but knowing Don his plans were probably excessively excessive.

“Well for starters I’m going to reinforce the base using titanium to help strengthen it in combat. From there I have some ideas for additional weapon enhancements.”

“With like, what? Missiles? Rockets? Lasers?” Leo teased.

“Yes,” Donnie said simply and the grin vanished from Leo’s lips. Okay, yep, that was definitely excessive. And unnecessary. They were ninjas, they were supposed to be silent killers, it was gonna be kinda hard to do that if they were blowing up anything that got close to them.

But not wanting to offend his brother, he instead asked, “Isn’t that more replacing than upgrading?”

“Perhaps to some.” There was no emotion in Donnie’s tone, his eyes growing distant and vacant. Though his foot had started tapping again, the only indication of his distress.

Leo swallowed down the lump in his throat, lowering his gaze again as he finished off his current stitch and started the next one. He felt Donnie tense and gave him a weak apology. “Sorry, almost done.”

“It’s fine.” Nothing about Donnie’s tone was fine but Leo didn’t want to comment on it and neither did his brother.

“So when do I get to see this cool futuristic staff?” Leo asked, trying to put as much enthusiasm in his voice as he could.

Donnie let out a tired sigh. “Too early to say. It’s still very much a work in progress. I haven’t even finished the frame.”

“Well whenever it’s done, I’m sure it’ll be awesome. Like everything you make,” Leo complimented.

Donnie grunted in agreement before going quiet again. Luckily, Leo was close to finishing so he decided to let the silence settle, focusing intensely as he added the last few stitches. Once he was done, he tied a small knot at the end to keep it from unraveling before severing the thread and putting it and the needle back in the small case sitting next to him.

“There done,” Leo said in relief, observing his handiwork. It was far from perfect, the stitches crooked and poorly spaced, no doubt Fugitoid could have done it better, but the wound was sealed and that’s what mattered. At the very least he didn’t have to worry about Donnie further injuring himself.

After a moment, Donnie inspected his finger as well, something akin to fear flashing across his eyes before he looked away. Leo wasted no time in sliding a black fingerless glove over the wound. “I-It looks good.” Donnie’s voice cracked and he quickly cleared his throat to try and hide the slip up. “Decent work for your first time.” His fingers seemed to subconsciously pick at the glove as he nervously spoke.

“I’m sure Fugitoid could have done it better. Or you for that matter," Leo replied.

Donnie swallowed before giving him a weak smile. “Regardless, it was a good job. You did a good job."

Leo paused, waiting to see if Donnie had more to say. There certainly seemed to be more, something heavy and unspoken hovering between them. But Leo didn't push, instead returning the compliment with a grateful nod. "Glad the genius approves," he joked. "Although it's probably going to scar, there wasn't much I could do about-"

"Why aren't you asking me about what happened?!" Donnie blurted out and Leo went silent, waiting patiently for his brother to finish. "Go ahead, I know you wanna know right! Or maybe you wanna lecture me! Tell me how broken I am! How I'm being careless! How I nearly died because I was too stubborn to ask for help!" There was anger in his tone, raw and vile and hateful, and while Leo was the target, he knew he wasn't the source. He wanted to believe it was Bishop who had invoked Donnie's wrath but he knew better.

This kind of anger could only ever be self-inflicted.

Donnie buried his face in his hands, unknowingly sliding his glasses up to his forehead, hiding the frustrated tears threatening to spill over. "I just don't understand what you're waiting for! You already saw everything, I know you're worried about me!" Donnie barked out a soulless chuckle. "I'm worried about me! If Mikey or Raph were here they would have already dragged it out of me! So why aren't you?!"

Leo nearly laughed at the irony. He remembered having those exact thoughts when Raph had comforted him. Leo had woken from a particularly violent nightmare, panting and bathed in sweat. He had given up on the hopes of sleep thanks to the throbs of pain from his newly acquired wounds, instead sneaking downstairs to play video games. He didn't even bother picking one out, just playing what was already in the N64. His thoughts began to wander as he played through a few levels of Street Smash, muscle memory kicking in as he powered through enemy after enemy. Leo's thoughts, however, were stuck in a losing battle as he relived that night again and again and again. He was lost so deep in the memory he didn't even notice Raph until he was standing over his shoulder, questioning why Leo was up at 3 in the morning.

Leo tried to dodge the question, anxiously waiting for Raph to call him out, to begin pestering him for answers he was too tired and too broken to give, to turn the game off and force him back into bed. Instead, he plopped down next to him and started to play too. Of all the responses Leo had been anticipating this was not it. Here Raph was pleasantly chatting about Street Smash as if the brother sitting next to him wasn't sleep-deprived and traumatized. It was jarring but not unpleasant, the first real sense of normalcy since he woke up.

It didn't take much for Leo to open up after that, the silence that settled between them the final push he needed to get him talking. It was reluctant at first but soon he couldn't stop the words as they poured out of him, burning like fire on his tongue. And Raph just listened, watching him with gentle, worried eyes. That split open a dam in Leo's heart, tears rolling down his cheeks in waves. Raph pulled him into a hug and Leo just cried for all he lost. He felt like a little lost kid as he buried his head in Raph's plastron, sobbing brokenly.

It felt like a lifetime before the tears finally stopped, leaving Leo too exhausted to move or think or feel. He expected Raph to let go but he just continued to hold him there, rubbing soft circles into Leo’s shell. A calmness settled over him, strange and foreign but not unpleasant. He leaned into the feeling, letting it settle in his bones.

Raph asked if Leo wanted to go to bed but he shook his head, worried that the nightmares would chase this warm feeling away, leaving him lost to coldness and fear. Raph finally pulled out of the hug but only so he could snuggle against Leo, picking up his controller and restarting the level. The two stayed up the rest of the night playing video games and Raph never once spoke about what happened, content to just sit there in silence with his brother.

Things got a little easier after that, leaving Leo a little stronger to face what was to come. Leo didn't know where he would be now if Raph hadn't been there that night to listen, to support him, to pull him out of the brink of despair and help him find his footing again.

Now it was his turn to be that for Donnie.

Leo considered his words carefully, asking himself what Donnie most needed to hear right now. "Did you want to talk about what happened?"

Donnie seemed taken aback by this reply, shifting awkwardly on Leo's bed. "Not particularly," he mumbled.

"Then we won't," Leo replied simply. Donnie's eyes narrowed suspiciously, doubt written across his features. Clearly Donnie wasn't taking him at his word. He looked like he expected the whole thing to be a trick, like any second Leo might suddenly start prying into things he'd rather keep to himself. It was distinctly familiar, a look Donnie had flashed him a hundred times and he very nearly laughed in relief.

"What, I'm being serious! Yeah I'm worried about you but I'm not gonna force you to talk about stuff. I'm here to support you, Don, in whatever way you need."

Donnie’s expression softened but the skepticism didn't quite go away. "So we can just sit here? In silence?"

"If that's what you need."

"And there are no ulterior motives?" Donnie moved in so their faces were inches apart. "Like, perhaps, getting me to talk about what happened with… Bishop." Leo didn't miss the subtle shudder at the mention of Donnie's captor.

Leo kept his face neutral, matching his brother's suspicious look with one of sympathy. "You just came down from a panic attack, pushing you is the last thing I'm going to do."

Donnie hesitated, Leo practically seeing the gears turn in his brother's head, before finally giving a curt nod, collapsing back onto the bed with a noticeable sigh. "Thank you," he mumbled, pulling off his glasses so he could massage his eyes with his one good hand. Leo studied his brother closely. All the emotion had washed from Donnie’s face leaving only exhaustion in its place. Leo could see the eyebags, thick and heavy, an exact match for his own back in the day. Who knows how long it had been since Donnie had a good night's sleep.

"I'm sorry you had to see me that way," Donnie finally said. Even his tone was just tired.

"Dee, you've seen me fall apart plenty of times," Leo reminded him.

"Yes but for you it was more justified."

That gave Leo pause, unsure how to even process that statement. What was that even supposed to mean? That Donnie's wasn't justified? That he deserved it! What kind of nonsense was that?! Leo just couldn’t wrap his head around it. How could Donnie, his genius of a brother, not only say something so obviously false but actually believe it! It was baffling! "I- What- How is that-" Leo sucked in a breath, gathering his thoughts, not sure where to even start to dissect Donnie’s logic. "Okay, back up. Explain to me how exactly what happened to me was 'justified' compared to you."

"You almost died." Donnie said it like it was obvious. Like it was a fact.

"You weren't exactly living it up when we found you, Don," Leo reminded him.

Donnie sat up in a flash. "True but I wasn't at risk of dying. Bishop made it quite clear he intended to keep me alive. You, on the other hand, nearly lost your life! You were in a coma for three weeks! You have scars that permanently altered your body! In comparison, I should be doing so much better!"

"And you went through something just as awful, Don!" Leo argued, putting both hands on his brother's shoulders. "Don't turn what happened into a contest of measuring scars, you went through a crappy situation and now you're trying to heal from it, end of story."

Donnie growled in frustration. "But I still should be doing better! What happened is already done! I know that! But the second something goes wrong it's like I'm back there and I can't convince myself I'm not and every little thing sets me off and I just don't know what i'm doing anymore! Nothing makes sense! I don't know how to fix it!" Donnie pressed both fists into the side of his head, the pressure enough Leo feared he would leave bruises. If Donnie had hair he was sure his brother would have ripped it up by the roots already. Instead he just pressed tighter in some vain effort to physically squeeze the thoughts from his head.

Leo gave his brother a sad smile before gripping him by the wrists, pulling his hands away from his skull. Donnie gave him a look of tearful bewilderment but it seemed to refocus him a little. Another flashback, no doubt. "I know, Don. I know it's hard. Believe me I do. But this isn't something you can just fix. It takes time and it takes energy, sometimes more than you feel like you can give. It's like… y'know the metaphor about climbing over the mountain?"

Donnie's nonexistent eyebrows pinched together, giving Leo a puzzled look. "Vaguely," came the skeptic reply.

"Well it's kinda like that, only the hardest part isn't getting to the peak, it's getting knocked back down and still having enough strength to climb back up."

Donnie gave him a long, hard stare. "Your metaphor has several holes in it," he deadpanned.

Leo's face lit up in a blush. "Hey, I'm trying here," he groaned pathetically. "This stuff isn't exactly easy to talk about."

Donnie lowered his gaze, staring at his gloved hand distantly. "Still, I do get what you're trying to say. For me, it's just… not that simple." His eyes narrowed, nose wrinkling in disgust. "Everyone is… counting on me! They can't afford to wait for me to get better! I don't have time to fall apart!" A few tears dripped onto his opened palm and he clenched it into a fist and looked away.

Leo gently reached out and cupped Donnie's hand in his own, rubbing his thumb in soothing circles the way Raph had to Leo’s shell that night. "I know it's hard for you. You've always been the type to give and give until there's nothing left to give. But you can't do that now, Donnie. Not with this. You gotta put yourself first this time."

"But Leo I can't just stop-"

"I'm not asking you to stop. I'm asking you to slow down and give yourself the time when you need it. Can you at least do that? For me?"

Donnies breath hitched, coughing as he tried to suppress the sob. He wiped away a few stray tears, nodding silently. "Yeah," he choked out.

Leo felt the tension in his body start to fade. That’s all he wanted to hear. To know that Donnie would listen. That he wouldn’t push himself until he broke. That he wouldn’t give more than he had to spare. That was enough for now. Leo could help with everything else. He would be there. He'd make sure of it. "Good," he whispered. "And it gets easier, for the record. You just gotta take it one day at a time."

Donnie sighed, sliding his glasses back on. "I sincerely hope so. I have a lot of projects to finish and I hate the idea of stalling them every time things get bad."

"But you will, right?" Leo shot him a scolding glare.

Donnie just rolled his eyes. "Yes, yes, I already said I would. What do you need me to cross my heart, pinkie swear, maybe give it to you in writing?"

Leo couldn't help but smile. This was the brother he was missing. He had changed, grown more skittish, but he was still fundamentally Donnie. In the same way Leo was still Leo. No amount of pain could take that away from them.

"No, that's good enough," Leo said with a shake of his head. "And hey, if you ever need help with all this, just know I'm here for you. Whenever you need it."

Donnie seemed to contemplate this for a moment, slowly opening his mouth to speak. Leo kept his face even but felt hope flutter in his chest all the same. Maybe today was the day his brother would finally talk about Bishop, finally find some relief from the pain building and bubbling inside him. But Donnie seemed to think better of it, mouth snapping shut as he gave a half-hearted nod. "Thanks, I'll … keep that in mind."

Leo masked his disappointment behind an understanding smile. He wasn't ready yet. That was okay. They could take this as slow as Donnie needed. Baby steps.

Instead he moved to slide off the bed, only for warm arms to envelop him from behind. Leo froze and held his breath, worried Donnie might take back the hug and pretend it never happened. But he didn't. Instead, Don clung tighter, pulling Leo as close as they could go until they were pressed shell to shell. Leo slowly turned to try and read his brother's facial expression but Donnie had already buried his head in his shoulder and out of sight. Leo could hear and feel Donnie’s breath shudder as if fighting back tears.

"Please stay." The request was so soft Leo barely heard it. It made his heart shatter and melt at the same time. Despite being taller, Donnie looked so small pressed up against him, and Leo swallowed back the lump in his throat. How long had it been since his younger brother had clung to him like this? Not since he was thrown through that window, Leo realized. The day Donnie's perception of his older brother had changed forever, the day Leo had proven to be fallible. Yet another thing lost to the Shredder's brutality.

Leo gave Don's arms a squeeze. "I will," he reassured softly. "Can I give you a hug?"

Donnie nodded, releasing his grip long enough for Leo to turn towards him before latching on again, pressing himself firmly, almost possessively, against his brother’s shell. The mountains had given way to ocean, the waters stormy and violent, the depths eagerly waiting to swallow them whole. Waves of despair crashed against them, threatening to pull them under, while the icy wind whispered their demise.

Donnie sobbed once and clung to his lifeline with all he was worth and Leo hugged back just as tightly, promising he wouldn't let them drown.

Soon Leo would have to let go. He couldn't leave blood splattered all over the ship, not unless he wanted the others to have a meltdown. But right now, he just wanted to hold his little brother. To know that he was here, that he was safe. He needed that reassurance just as much as Donnie did. There was still a long road ahead for both of them. But in this moment, they were okay. Everything was okay.

And maybe that was enough for now.

Thank you for reading! I had a lot of fun with this little side project! It was supposed to be done in a day but then I got stuck on Leo's part and ended up spending a month on it haha! This story was mostly an excuse for my headcannons about Donnie post-kidnapping. That being his germaphobia getting increasingly worse, taking extra long showers, and scratching at his arms without thinking. He also hates the medbay on the ship since it makes him have flashbacks to Bishop. During the writing process I actually remembered Indie's post about Donnie's trauma and was surprised I was right on the nose with a lot of it haha. I also briefly hinted on the fact that Donnie feels inferior to Fugitoid but didn't want to dive too deep since I know Indie will do it much better than I can here. There was a lot of speculation going on for stuff but I'm happy with how it turned out! Still can't wait for the actual comic though haha!

#my writing #tmnt #tmnt fanfiction #indie's tmnt #indie's turtles #donatello hamato #leonardo hamato #cw: blood #cw: panic attack

106 notes · View notes