#Written back when I was a teenager

[animeboye]

The Dragon Virus

At only 11 years of age, young Tommy knew he didn't have a lot of time left. Was he dying? No. Well I suppose you can't really say that. HE wasn't dying...but his humanity was. Tommy's story technically began a month ago. After coming home from school, Tommy's parents noticed something odd about their son: Even though he was sick, it was only his arm that had an off color to it. As days passed, Tommy didn't get any better. In fact, his condition was actually getting worse. His parents took him to his doctor, whom confirmed that he had obtained a disease called "The Dragon Virus".  As a recently discovered disease, the Dragon Virus had no known cure. In fact, Tommy was one of the first people who had acquired the disease. Since there was no cure, Tommy's parents knew it was only a matter of time before the Tommy they knew was gone. Tommy sat in the lobby at the doctor's office. He scratched at his right hand, which was covered by a glove, as was his left hand. The reason for the gloves was that Tommy's hands had changed due to his disease. His hands were missing both pinkies and both thumbs. The fingers that hadn't disappeared grew claws. First his nails grew. Then eventually enveloped themselves around the tips of his fingers, moving down his fingers and covering them in his nails. Which eventually hardened into dragon claws. Blue scales also popped up and covered his hands too. "Tommy, dear, stop scratching at it. You'll just make it worse." His mom said. "These gloves are making my hands itch though." Tommy whined. "You can take them off when the doctor calls for us." Tommy's mom said. Tommy tried to keep himself from scratching his scales. He grabbed his hat and pulled it down. Under his hat, were developing dragon horns. Since he was diagnosed with the Dragon Virus, Tommy had to wear his hat and gloves every time he went out in public. He hated it but his parents told him it was for the best. "Mr. and Mrs. Feeble?" The nurse called.

Tommy and his parents got up and headed into the doctor's office. After the nurse took Tommy's temperature and blood pressure, she asked Tommy why he was in today. Tommy was very nervous about telling her. "It's okay, Tommy. Go ahead." Tommy's dad said. "I..." "He doesn't want to say." His mom said. She wrapped her arms around her son and hugged him tight. "I'll tell her. Will that be okay?" She asked Tommy. Tommy nodded, his eyes focused on the ground. His mom sighed then looked at the nurse. "It's his Dragon Virus. It's not going away." "I'm not surprised." The nurse said. "This virus was just discovered. Very few people have the Dragon Virus." The nurse typed down everything, then headed out. "The doctor will be with you shortly." She said. Tommy took off his gloves, his scales now less irritated. He looked at his hands. They were exactly like a dragon's in every way. The look of them, the claws, the scales, Tommy's hands were now no longer his. They were a dragon's. The door opened and the doctor walked in. "Back again, huh, Tommy?" The doctor said. "Hi, Dr. Feirstein." Tommy greeted, in a melancholy voice. "So what can I do for you today?" He asked, trying to lighten the mood a little. "It's Tommy's Dragon Virus. It's getting worse." Tommy's dad explained. The doctor fixed his glasses. "I see..." "I didn't want to tell either of you during your last visit since I thought we might still be able to prevent this..." "Yes?" The family asked at the same time. "But the Dragon Virus so far has no cure for it." The doctor said in a serious tone. Tommy's parents felt their heart sink. Tommy himself, after hearing this, was on the verge of tears. "Then...Tommy..." "Will have finished changing by the end of the week." The doctor explained. "What'll happen to me then?" Tommy asked, his voice strained from trying to hold in his tears. The doctor stood up. "Can I talk to you two outside?" He asked Tommy's parents. "Mom? Dad?" Tommy asked. "We'll be right back, sweetie." His mom said. After they exited the room, Tommy began to feel pain in his ears. He tried to keep himself from screaming from the pain as they grew pointed, eventually turning into fins. Tommy felt his ears, surprised that, just like his hands, his ears now looked more like they belonged on a dragon instead of an eleven year old boy. Tommy plopped one of his new ears against the door and listened outside. He heard the doctor tell his parents what would happen after his transformation. "Then..." Tommy's parents said, almost about to cry. "I'm sorry. When Tommy's transformation is over, he won't remember anything. Not his family, not his friends, not even who he used to be." The doctor explained. Tommy went back to the chair and sat down. His mom and dad walked over to their son, both teary eyed, and gave him a huge hug. Tommy himself could no longer fight back his tears as he began to sob uncontrollably. Tommy's parents dried their tears and headed out. Tommy however, couldn't stop crying. It was his fear of losing everything, memories and humanity included, that made him cry like that. He grabbed his hat and pulled it over his ears, his budding horns starting to poke out. No matter how hard he tried, he couldn't hide his sadness. Tommy and his parents made their way home. Tommy got out of the car, his paws still pulling his hat over his ears, which just caused the horns to rip through the hat even more. As the family made their way into their home, Tommy took his hat off his head and threw it on the ground. He ran into his bedroom and sobbed into his pillow. His parents walked in and sat on his bed. "Tommy..." They said. They were at a loss for words. They knew they couldn't tell him it would be alright. They couldn't tell him everything would be better. In fact, it would probably just make Tommy feel worse. Tommy's dad put his hand on his only son's head and rubbed his head, smiling. It was a compassionate smile, showing his son love and understanding. "Be strong, champ." His dad said. His parents left the room to let Tommy be by himself for a while. All through the last few hours of the day, Tommy continued to cry, eventually he cried himself to sleep. The next day, it was 10:30. Tommy woke up and stretched. He felt something laying against his leg. He turned his head to see what it was. It was a tail! Tommy had sprouted a tail during the night! He grabbed his tail and held onto it. It was a beautiful tail, the top covered in rich blue scales, while red scales made up the lower half. A ridge of spines grew from his tail, starting at the tip of his tail and finishing at where the tail attached to him. He got up and looked behind himself. He tried to wag his tail. It moved just like he thought of it moving. Tommy had to admit, even though he still hated the fact that he wouldn't be a human much longer, having a tail really intrigued him. He walked into the kitchen, his parents already up. "Hi, mom. Hi, Dad." Tommy greeted, but not like he used to greet them." "Hi, Tommy." They said, smiling. At the time, it may not have seemed like the right thing to do but they didn't want to make Tommy any sadder. They figured he might be happy if they are. "Hmm?" Tommy's dad walked over to his son, noticing his new tail. "Is this your tail?" Tommy's dad asked. Tommy flashed an (obviously) fake smile. "Yep. It's my tail." He said, trying to hide his real feelings. Neither Tommy nor his parents could hide their real feelings. A feel of sadness loomed over the kitchen. "Tommy, what d'you say we go do some stuff? As a family?" Tommy's mom asked. "Like what?" Tommy asked. "See a movie, go mini golfing, have a picnic, anything." Tommy's dad said. "Maybe a movie?" Tommy said. "Okay. Then we'll get going in a few hours. Go get cleaned up, Tommy." So for the next three days, Tommy and his parents went out and did stuff together, as a family. Tommy knew he would soon be finished transforming, but the time he spent with his family were probably the happiest moments of his life. However, after Tommy's posture was changed to a quadruped stance, the family's happy activities were called to an abrupt end. Up to this point, the family was able to hide most of Tommy's transformation(Tommy himself had to wear an XL winter cap in order to hide his finned ears and horns) Another three days passed. This time, the scales had completely overtaken Tommy's body. His feet were bigger and looked like his hands. His big toes and little toes retreated into his body, leaving him with only three toes on each foot. November 23rd, Tommy's final day as a human. Like the doctor had said. A whole week passed and Tommy's transformation was near its conclusion. All that was left was for his wings and snout to grow. Tommy lay down, on his bed while his parents sat on the side of his bed. They watched as the final changes began to take place. Tommy's shoulder blades moved and reformed. Two incredibly thin arms grew form his back, becoming leathery wings. His face pushed out, growing longer, becoming a dragon's snout. Tommy felt his eyes begin to ache. He figured it wasn't over yet. He shut his eyes, hoping the final changes wouldn't be so bad. "Tommy. No matter what you become, we'll always love you." He heard his parents say. Soon after, he passed out from the pain. The last words he heard were, "Please, never forget us." A short time later, the child dragon woke up. It looked around its room. Or, the room it had in its human life. It got up and walked into the kitchen. It saw two adult humans, sitting at a table, crying. "Mom, dad, what's wrong?" The dragon asked. Tommy's parents gasped. The doctor said when Tommy's transformation had ended, he wouldn't remember anything from his past life. So...how... "Tommy? You remember us?" His mom asked. Why wouldn't I?" He asked. "Well, Son. You're finished changing. " His dad explained. Tommy's mom got on her knees and hugged her son. Neither of them knew how Tommy was able to keep his memories intact. Were the symptoms wrong? Was it the love of his parents that saved his memory? Neither of them cared. All that mattered to them was that Tommy was still Tommy, even in the body of a little dragon. Tommy's mom let her dragon son go. He walked back to his room. "Good night, mom. Good night, dad." He said. Tommy got into his bedroom and hopped into bed. He got under the sheets and quickly drifted into sleep. All the while he slept, a warm, draconic smile was apparent on his muzzle. Even if he was a different species now, it didn't matter to him anymore. He was happy to still have his memories.

[bambiraptorx]

Raph eats spiders i guess

finally got around to drawing something else for IMNDY again and it's this lol

[ryukisgod]

The Dolly version of Jolene is knowingly pathetic in the way she pleads with Jolene. The Beyoncé version is unknowingly pathetic in the way she threatens Jolene to stay away from her man, it’s giving Better Than Revenge.

Out of the two versions, the self awareness Dolly’s version has and the lack of self awareness Beyoncé’s has makes Dolly’s the clear winner.

[secondbeatsongs]

replaying Life Is Strange, and hoo boy, I was not prepared for the emotional impact of seeing what it was like to be a teenager/young adult in the early 10s

I remember it all too well

[ace-beef]

maybe I'll write one more Mavin fic... just for old times' sake...

[asummersday]

i want to talk about this because it's a multi-chapter project i have in my WIP folder that i know i won't touch until all the ashes in my wake wraps up, so i'm gonna share it here.

a while back, i came up with an idea. a very angsty silly idea inspired by Jason Todd, the Robin who died and came back practically a brand new person.

and this idea is very simple: what if Leo died when he was rescued from the Prison Dimension? like, for several minutes, and had to be revived, because there's no fucking way he didn't suffer critical damage at the hands of the Krang, poor guy :((

so. Leo dies for several minutes-- heart not beating, not breathing, dead in every single way. and then he's brought back. but he comes back wrong. but wrong in just a subtle enough way that it doesn't go noticed at first.

i think it's the small things, at first. a shift in tastes. leo doesn't like to eat sugary cereal for breakfast anymore. he's a bit quieter, not laughing as loudly, not grinning as widely. he likes his food with a bit more salt. he doesn't like it as spicy as he did before. he wears more layers because he gets cold more easily now. he's more touch averse, he doesn't seek out his brothers as often anymore.

and Leo knows he came back wrong. he knows there's something so deeply wrong with him. he shouldn't be here.

he no longer belongs here.

to Leo, he's still dead. he's already dead. he died before he actually stopped breathing, when he locked himself in the Prison Dimension and cleanly severed his link to his ninpo, to his family.

Leo can't ever be the person his brothers think they brought back, and I think it drives him a little insane.

and i think, in part, it's Leo's family kind of ignoring all the signs and pretending that everything's okay. there's nothing wrong, because Leo's alive and here, and yeah there's something off about him, a little off-kilter, but he's breathing and it doesn't matter much beyond that, right?

because how do you start grieving a brother who's still breathing? who sits at the breakfast table with you, and smiles at jokes and watches movies with you in the living room? how do you grieve someone who's so alive?

honestly. the idea isn't a very happy one. it's just a bittersweet little thing i've been thinking about on the side.

quick lil thought i wrote down for this the other day under the cut <3

im just basically saying the same thing but ehh

(i covered up my nickname bc this is like my personal discord and im using my real name and im too lazy to change it ahfjdkd)

[cakeemoji]

hit the jackpot in life when i found a fever you cant sweat out vinyl & my chem's may death never stop you at the store. obviously i bought them to display them proudly in my room like the trophies i never won from track and field in 7th grade

[liminalweirdo]

.

[huyao]

SAYING THAT ASEXUAL AND INTERSEX PPL "deviate from the sexual norm" IS LITERALLY PARROTING "bigoted cishet rhetoric propaganda" (what an amazingly meaningless word salad) ARE YOU FUCKING STUPID. PERPETUATING THE IDEA THAT THERE IS SUCH THING AS A "sexual norm" OR EVEN A SEX BINARY IS NOT THE PROGRESSIVE GOTCHA YOU THINK IT IS. DUMB CUNT. YOU'RE THE ONE WHO NEEDS TO DO "actual research" HOLY SHIT

cishet aces are NOT oppressed because they are fucking CIS and HET -- they have NOTHING in common with me, a TRANSGENDER BISEXUAL. THEY ARE ALLOWED TO MARRY AND ADOPT AND DONATE BLOOD AND USE THEIR FUCKING BATHROOM OF CHOICE.

IT IS INSANE THAT ONLINE DISCOURSE HAS BEEN ALLOWED TO ERODE AND ECLIPSE REAL LIFE ACTIVISM AND THEORY.

[animeboye]

New Dragon’s World Chapter 17

Chapter 17: Heading Out "Gah! What's your problem, Sarah?!" Titus exclaimed. "My problem?! What's yours?!" "What are you talking about?" Titus asked, not understanding why she was so mad. "I mean why are you being so mean to Rick?" Sarah explained. "Well…I…" Titus stuttered. "I…I just don't trust him. That's all."   Sarah sighed angrily. Just as she was about to speak, she noticed everyone looking at them. "We'll talk about this later. But I will tell you this: You be nice to Rick, Titus? Got it?! He helped me through the most painful part of my life." Sarah whispered. Sarah opened the door to Lucas' car and got in, riding shotgun. Everyone walked up to Titus, confused about what just happened. "Everything OK?" Ben asked. "Let's just go…" Titus said equally as angry as his wife. Titus and Lucas started their cars back up and drove away from the park, continuing their journey.  Sarah rode with Lucas this time, as did Rick. Sean and Tim both offered to ride with Titus, his parents and Drake so as to make room for Sarah and Rick. Titus kept a stern eye on the road, his anger swelling. "Dad, what's wrong with Mom?" Drake asked worriedly. Titus let out a long, bothered sigh. "Drake, your mom and I just had a little argument. Things will be okay. Alright, buddy?" Titus smiled. "You and mom aren't gonna get divorced?" Drake asked worriedly. "Of course not! I love your mom…and I love you, son." Drake nodded, smiling, reassuring himself things would be fine between his parents. Just then, he heard noises in the back of the car. He swore that he had heard something moving around amongst the luggage. He leaned over the seat, noticing that it was Crystal who was hiding in the back! "Crystal!!" Drake exclaimed. Crystal shushed Drake so as not to be found out. She rearranged all of the luggage so that it covered her entire body but left just enough room for her to breathe. "What's wrong, Drake?" Sean asked.

Everyone except for Titus looked at Drake. "Oh! I just remembered that Crystal wanted me to call her when we get to the next town!" Drake said, lying. "If you want Drake, I could give you my cell phone and you could call her now." Titus offered to his son. Drake shook his head and thanked his dad for the offer. He figured that once they got into the next town, he would ask Crystal everything. In the meantime, with little to nothing to do, Drake shut his eyes and slowly drifted off into sleep, as did Sean and Tim. For that time, the three friends slept together peacefully… Titus looked back at the three sleeping together and smiled as did his parents. For the next couple hours, no words were spoken…so not to wake them up. Several hours later, Drake awoke. He stretched and yawned as he looked outside. The scenery was different. Drake noticed that they had made it to the countryside. Everywhere he looked, it was nothing but fields. Fields that stretched as far as the eye could see. Drake looked on in awe, a smile on his face. He had never been to the country before. Even though there wasn't much to look at, Drake's childish wonder and excitement to see new places was enough to keep him interested. Shortly after, Sean and Tim woke up too. "Good morning, guys." Titus said. "Morning? It's almost dark." Sean corrected Titus, rubbing his weary eyes. Tim yawned and, likewise, rubbed the crust from his eyes. "Where are we, Uncle Titus?" He asked. "We're in the country, boys." He responded. The brothers looked out the window to catch a glimpse of the scenery. They watched as they passed by a barn. They looked at the passing rows of corn and the windmill that hung high into the air.   "I wonder if there's a town around here." Titus' mom asked. "Yeah…I don't even see a town coming up." Titus added. Just then, Titus began browsing through his CDs and came across a burned CD titled "Sunday's Best". "Hey, what do you guys say we listen to some music for the time being?" Titus asked. "Sweet! What're we gonna listen to, dad?" Drake asked, interested. Titus handed the disc to his son who read it out loud to himself. "Sunday's Best?" Drake asked. "Yep. I listened to these guys all the time back in high school. Sadly they were never too popular. Real shame too because they had some really awesome songs." Titus said. Drake gave the CD back to his father who put it into the disc drive. The first song that played was "The Californian". While the song played, Titus and Drake tapped their fingers to the beat of the song. After the song was over, the next song, "White Picket Fences" was just starting. As the song continued, Titus and the others came up to a small town. "Langesh".  It was a small, bustling place with a population of about 15,000.  The buildings and houses were all very old and small, the tallest of the buildings being the town hall which rested right in the middle of town. In the back of Titus' car, Tim started to squirm around a little. He whined and moaned as he put his hands near his midsection. "Hey, Tim, are you alright?" Drake asked. "You feeling sick, man?" Sean asked his brother with concern. "No." Tim whined. "I need to go potty!" As Tim's whines grew louder, Titus looked around for somewhere to stop. A restaurant, a gas station, anywhere. He came across a gas station and pulled in. Everyone got out of the car as Sean took his brother by the hand and walked over to their father's car, just as everyone else was getting out. "Hey, what's wrong, Tim?" Lucas kneeled down to his youngest son's level. "I need to use the bathroom!" Tim whined loudly. Lucas ran into the bathroom, holding Tim's hand as Sean went with them. In the meantime, Titus figured this would be a good time to get some gas and directions to the next town. Sarah and Rick got out of Lucas' car as they stretched. Rick went ahead as Sarah looked over to Titus, a look of anger on her face. Titus didn't understand how she could still be so angry at him. He walked over to Sarah, concerned and worried. "Can I talk to you?" Titus asked meekly. "If it's about how you don't trust Rick, I don't want to hear it." Sarah said. "Look, Sarah - -" "No, you look, Titus! I know Rick a lot better than you. I don't care if you don't like him, but dammit, you treat him like you would treat Lucas or Ben!" Sarah exclaimed. Titus just growled. A small fire building up in his throat. He tried to calm himself. He took a deep breath as a miniscule flame came out with it. "Alright. You know why I don't trust him? I just find it a little strange that you haven't seen him for twenty-odd years and all of a sudden, out of the blue he reappears in your life? That seems pretty suspicious to me." Titus explained. "Well…" Sarah was about to say. "Not only that, but what if you fall in love with him again?" Titus asked with worry. "Well I- - Wait, what?" Sarah asked, confused at what her husband meant. "What if you suddenly decide that you love Rick so much and would want to go back to him?" Sarah had a really confused look on her face. She couldn't believe what she just heard Titus say. She was surprised at how immature her husband sounded. "You're kidding, right?" Sarah asked, truly hoping Titus was kidding. "Titus, I DO love Rick! But I love him as an older brother. I never loved him romantically. Neither of us had that much of an attraction to one another! Go ask him! He'll say the same thing!" "And besides!" Sarah continued. "If I was in love with Rick, do you think I would have married you and had your child?!" At that moment, Titus started to feel like an idiot.  While he realized his hatred for Rick was misplaced, he still wasn't sure about how he really felt about him. Sarah went ahead and joined up with Rick, Ben, Jessie, Kyle and Jackie. In the meantime, Titus filled his car up.  As Titus filled his car with gas, Drake sat on the edge of the seat, the car door open as he looked around and waited for his dad to go inside the station so he and Crystal could talk. "Hey, Drake!" Crystal whispered. "Shhh! My dad's still out there!" Drake whispered back. "Say something, Drake?" Titus called out to his son. "No, Dad!" Drake answered. Titus put the pump back in its holder and went to join the others in the station. At that moment, Drake ran over to the back of the car and opened the trunk, helping Crystal out. She wore a light blue shirt with a dark green overall dress over it. Crystal stretched her sore arms and legs, at the same time flexing them to get the feeling of stiffness out. As soon as her limbs were feeling better, she hugged Drake tightly, happy to be there with her two best friends. Reluctant, Drake returned the hug, unsure if he was happy about Crystal being with him or upset. For a brief moment, the two just stared at each other without saying a word. Both Crystal and Drake had no idea of what to say to one another. "Hi, Drake." Crystal said to kick off the conversation. "Uhh…hi…" Drake said, rubbing the back of his head. "Hey…Crystal, what are you doing here?" Drake asked. "I just wanted to be with you and Sean!" Crystal exclaimed. Crystal continued. "And I wanted to tell you something." Lucas and his sons walked out of the bathroom when Sean saw Drake talking with Crystal. He couldn't believe what he was seeing! How was it that Crystal was here with them? He ran ahead of his dad and younger brother as Lucas and Tim went to join with Titus and the other adults. "Drake, when you told me you loved me, I - -" "Hey, guys!" Sean interrupted as he ran over to Crystal and Drake. Sean looked at Crystal, not believing it was really her. He simply stared right at her, as if she had something on her face. Crystal grew increasingly uncomfortable with Sean staring at her. To make sure it was really Crystal he was looking at, Sean pinched her cheeks to be sure. Crystal's feeling of uncomfort turned to annoyance as Sean continued pinching her cheeks. "Ow, Sean! Stop!" Crystal commanded. "Drake, this can't be Crystal! How'd she get here if it is?" Sean asked, still not convinced. "I AM Crystal, you idiot! Will you please stop pinching my face already?!" Crystal exclaimed angrily. "Oh, sorry!" Sean said, embarrassed. Crystal rubbed her cheeks, which had turned a slight red from Sean pinching them. "So how did you get here?" Sean asked. "I hid in the back of Drake's dad' s car like an hour before you guys left. I told my parents you were going on vacation and that your dad said I could come too, Drake." Crystal explained. "And they believed you?!" Drake and Sean said at the same time in amazement. Crystal nodded proudly. "You know, I'm really glad we're all together." Crystal said, smiling with glee. Sean nodded. "Me, too!" Drake nodded likewise. "Me, three!" The three friends gathered into a circle. Drake placed his hand in the center. Followed by Crystal placing hers on top of Drake's. And finally, Sean placing his hand on top of Crystal's. "No matter what! We'll always be together!" Drake exclaimed. The three cheered in agreement. Meanwhile in the gas station, Titus and his friends browsed the store's selection for some snacks. Tim browsed the store's selection of candy, picking out three of each of his favorite pieces of candy. When Lucas saw how much candy his son has picked out, he nearly had a heart attack as he saw Tim carrying the candy bars on his shirt like a tray. He told Tim he could only get two candy bars or he'd get a stomachache. Reluctant, Tim put most of the candy back until he had only two candy bars left. Lucas went over to Sarah, who he asked to keep an eye on Tim while he went to go fill up his car. As Drake, Sean, and Crystal talked with one another, they saw Lucas leaving the store and making his way towards them. Crystal ran behind Titus' car as Drake and Sean stood by the cars and talked together as of nothing was out of the ordinary. "Hi, Uncle Lucas!" Drake greeted. "Hello, Drake. What are you two doing out here?" Lucas asked. "We were just talking, dad." Sean smiled, beads of sweat trickling down his face. Lucas began to pump gas in his car as Drake and Sean peered over to the left of Titus' car to see Crystal hiding.  Then they peered back over to Lucas, still fixated on his car. They moved in front of Crystal, hoping Lucas wouldn't see her. Sean continued to watch his father filling up the car. A short time after Lucas was finished, Crystal was about to get back in the car, when they saw Lucas walking over to them. Drake and Sean's hearts began to race. They tried to help get Crystal back into the car as quickly as they could but it was too late. "Hey, boys, I'm going back in for a little bi- -" At that moment, Lucas caught sight of Crystal's leg just as she was climbing in. "Hey, who's…?" Inside the gas station, Titus was paying for the gas. "That'll be $40.00." The employee said. Titus reached for his wallet and pulled out two twenties. "Say, could you tell me how far it is from the next town?" Titus asked. "Well the closest town is about 25 miles from here. But if I were you, I wouldn't even go." The man said. "Why not?" "You haven't heard what happened up there?" "No.  Not a thing. Is there something we are supposed to know?" Titus asked. "Well this is just what I have heard but last night, the entire population…disappeared." The man explained. "Disappeared?" Titus asked. "Yep. They say not one person remains. I was thinking on going up there myself. See an old friend of mine. But I guess that won't be happening anytime soon…" Titus didn't even have to guess who was behind the town's disappearance. He knew right away who was behind it all. So…Titus thought…the dragons were finally setting their plans into motion. Titus knew they had little time left…but he had no idea just how little. The information he had received made Titus frantic with worry. At this very moment, the dragons could be collecting humans. "Sir, you said it's 25 miles from here? The town I mean?" Titus asked. "Yes, sir. Wait! You're not really gonna go up there, are you? What if whatever got the town gets you and your friends?!" "Well then we'll just have to fight it." Titus said with utmost confidence. "How?!" The man asked. Titus just smiled, not saying anything. Everyone got some snacks and beverages for the next leg of the ride to Death Valley. As soon as they paid and got ready to head out, they were stopped by the gas station employee. "Hang on a second!" He called out. "If you're dead set on going to that town, I'd suggest finding a place here to crash for the night. You don't know just what might be out there at a time like this and with the neighboring town's population up and missing, it never hurts to be safe, you know?" Titus nodded in agreement. And just as everyone was paying for their food, Lucas came running in. "Luke, you alright?" Titus asked. "Titus, you need to come out here for a sec." Lucas said. "What's going on? Is this town being attacked too?!" Titus asked once more. "No, it's not that bad but just come on!" Titus wondered what it was that had Lucas so riled up. While everyone else paid for their food and drinks, Titus and Lucas ran out to see what was the matter.

[mejomonster]

Creating stuff is so weird. (This time im talking about writing) like. U plan a story. U have an idea or vague vision at least in your mind. Then it comes out of your hand. Scenes expand, new scenes emerge that you didn't even know would be there, which lead to new realizations of what this story Becomes as it starts to exist piece by piece. And word choice, you didn't predict any of it, it came out on the spot, each moment a new surprise at what words your mind supplies, the options it offers in the second its demanded to give you a way to describe what you imagine. New descriptions come out, the words tack on bits of the moment you didn't see in your imagination until they come out, and now in a new light this scene is so much More than you ever imagined. It exists now on a page or screen, it is an imprint of this moment of contemplating it. Because any other moment, other words might have poured out from your hand and mind, because close as it might be to the silhouette you imagined initially weeks or months ago, or even a few seconds ago when the new possibility revealed itself, as it is written down it's taken on the qualities of this moment. Of right now. You never would have made precisely this, you won't make anything quite identical to it again. The image in your head that has existed forever long kept morphing, blurred at the edges or at the minimum in how its details spiraled out to connect to other scenes, and each time you contemplated it was just a little bit different. Close sometimes. And when you finally write it down, the blurred bits solidify into something this moment creates, unpredictable but you've tried to shape it up to this point and even as it happens you're trying to guide the thread of it into a more detailed rendition of what you meant initially or better. And then you finish writing that chunk. And are in awe of what came from a blurry idea.

Even the messes. Even the bits that come out of your hand and you're like: how in the fuck did this turn out so Far Away from what I wanted it to be? Even if you scrap it lol. There is a bit of wow there too, in how some moments your brain just refuses to cooperate or the words dont come and the slightly blurred picture in your mind turns out like when i draw a person and my hand isnt warmed up and i cant even get an oval shape right. In all that mess its like, how did what we didnt want even pour out, whys it in us to begin with, is there any gem in the disaster worth keeping. Is it so off the rails we decide the scene we imagined isnt what we thought or hoped itd be, and decide to throw it out all together and try a new scene entirely.

[ananas-pineapple-thing]

climbs back onto the stage to continue a two day old post. also people hating rachel bc she’s rich suck bro she’s 15 what do u want her to do 😭 rr likes writing rich people with helicopters it’s not her fault

[betelgeusing]

john hillcoat adapting blood meridian into a movie

[sundroptower]

why isekais always do this to me

how you gonna unfind her found family

and the girls arent even super close anymore ?????

like i get it. the message was important.

but also just

once

i'd like to see these things stick

just

once

ive been told that same message my entire life

dont we get just one time where you dont have to say goodbye? where you can actually find where you belong and not have it taken from you? not that they dont belong where they are now in their lives but like

fucking sucks

[perenlop]

been talking w lex and man ngl ive been ragging on lionblaze but i dont really like jayfeather either. hes not worse than lion but hes also just so shitty to dove and ivy and also gets abusive to a literal orphan child and is shitty to the other disabled characters. and i hate how he gets a pass on all that bc “oh he breaks the mould and is funny and its internalized ableism”

[gwydionae]

Bound

A/N: Realized I never posted this chapter here. Whoops!

Fic posted on fanfiction.net >here<.

Prologue on tumblr >here< Previous chapter on tumblr >here<

Fic Teaser: Yoshi is forever changed when he loses a son so soon after his wife and daughter. Life in the lair is far from idyllic as a father’s desire to shelter his sons causes friction and rebellion. But as they are bound to him, their lost brother remains bound to others, the life he’d lost kept hidden from him. Fate tore them apart, but now it seeks to bring them together once more.

Chapter Teaser: Mikey discovered a long time ago that his feelings and desires were no less legitimate than anyone else's.

Bound: Chapter 4

2006 - Hamato Michelangelo, age 9

Sitting still for longer than ten seconds at a time had always been a challenge for Michelangelo. There was constantly something more interesting to see, more exciting to do pulling his attention away from whatever lesson their sensei was teaching, whether it be academic, spiritual, or martial in nature. When he was younger, often his restlessness would be greeted with a soft sigh and shake of a furry head, but an amused smile wouldn't be far behind. But the older he got—the more Splinter tried and failed to rein his energy in—the fewer smiles he received. Instead Mikey began to see something reflected in his father's eyes he couldn't quite place.

The entire lair seemed to be filled with fewer smiles these days. The only times Raph appeared happy was when it was just the two of them, both his and Leo's faces hardening the moment they set foot in the same room. Mikey had never noticed how dark and oppressive the lair could be until the laughter and scampering of playful feet began to fade, replaced more and more with shouting and the crack of something being broken. But he was determined to fix that.

Never allowing even the dourest of atmospheres to get him down, Mikey made sure to laugh louder and smile wider. There was a bit of a learning curve when it came to understanding his various family members' evolving moods, but as he came to realize that Splinter was most at ease in the evenings, sometimes Leo just needed quiet, and Raph wasn't always in the right frame of mind to be teased, he grew more successful in his quest to bring back the light, adapting to the needs of others. He still struggled to stay focused during lessons, and occasionally his desire for attention coincided with none of his family members being in the proper mood to give it to him, but overall life in the lair began to improve.

It was around this time that he found the skateboard. Splinter would on occasion take his three pupils on a trek through the sewers, an exercise in stealth with a duel purpose of familiarizing them with the area surrounding the lair. Mikey was often trying to collect random bits of clothing, broken toys, and other discarded items on their journey. As usual he was in the process of being told to leave his latest discovery behind when the piece of wood with four wheels attached caused him to forget all about the bright pink rubber ball he'd tried to hide in his fist.

His find had Raph and even Leo momentarily forgetting the stealth aspect of the outing, both staring wide-eyed as they fawned over the contraption before all three were gently reprimanded by their ninja master for their lack of discipline. Informing them of what it was called and how it was used, Mikey pulled out his biggest puppy dog eyes, begging their father to let him keep it as if his very life depended on a skateboard. To the surprise of the three, young turtles, with a sigh and a smile, Splinter relented.

Weighed down with his newfound treasure, it was pure torture having to remain still and silent the rest of the journey back to the lair. Mikey could not keep a bounce out of his step, Raph would huff whenever their progress was halted, and Leo's gaze kept darting back to the prize in his youngest brother's arms. As soon as they reached the entrance to the lair, Mikey danced in place, hugging the skateboard to his plastron as their father fixed his youngest with a pointed look. Their new toy came with new rules. It was only to be used on the flat concrete directly outside the lair, not on the steps, and especially not in the lair itself. Pads must be worn at all times, and no one was to ever use it alone without someone else nearby to keep an eye on them in case of an accident. By far the hardest rule to follow, however, was that before it could be used, it needed to be thoroughly scrubbed and disinfected, a decree met with multiple groans of impatience.

Never had a chore been finished so quickly. The skateboard now with distinctly less mud and grime seemed to glow as Mikey ran with it high over his head through the turnstiles, Raph and Leo in tow. For once, it was all three of them, and everyone was smiling. Mikey took a turn first, getting the hang of balancing on it long enough to skate the length of the platform before offering it to Raph. While it took him a bit longer, he too eventually managed to grasp it, and Mikey watched with delight as, without prompting, Raph somewhat hesitantly held it out for Leo.

The three brothers continued to take turns trying to work up speed and laughing when one of them inevitably fell off until it was bedtime. Mikey attempted to crawl into his bed with it like a stuffed animal, but Splinter plucked it out of his grasp, tucking him in before leaving to deposit it into the small community toy box. Not that it made much of a difference as two hours later Mikey snuck out of his room to retrieve it, curling up under his blanket with his arm tightly wrapped around it.

He had owned it for less than a day, and already the addition of the skateboard had brought a brightness back to the lair, the time spent with it the happiest Michelangelo had felt in ages.

It was clear that of the three siblings, Mikey in particular had a knack for skateboarding. It was rare that he found something he excelled at over his brothers, but more amazing was the fact that neither one resented him for it. Unlike when it was either Leonardo or Raphael at the top—the lesser of the two showing a wounded pride at their supposed failure—both would encourage him, ever increasing his desire to impress them. But there was only so much he could experiment with on the small strip of platform just outside the lair, and Mikey yearned for a bigger challenge. He knew that Leo would never allow anything that broke Master Splinter's rules, and while Raph would likely relish the idea, he didn't want to pull him into something that might worsen his already tenuous relationship with Leo. It was with that thinking in mind that Mikey began sneaking out late at night, heading further into the sewers to practice alone.

To say that he was nervous was an understatement. Breaking the rules didn't bother him too much, but traversing the damp, dark sewers without his family at his side had him jumping at every little drip of water and scurrying bug. But once accustomed to the unfamiliar sewer's inherent creepiness, he began trying out new tricks. The increase in cracks compared to back home forced him to figure out how to pop his wheels high enough to not be thrown off whenever he encountered one. The first time he succeeded sent a giddy tingle down his spine, pushing him to figure out how to pop them higher and higher until the entire board was inches off the ground. He practiced the jump for a week on his own before presenting his "new" idea to his brothers, both of whom just couldn't figure out how Mikey had mastered the skill so quickly. Their praise only fueled him to go bigger.

While during the daytime with Leo and Raph he would practice things like trying to pivot on a dime while in motion or spinning the board as his feet left it, at night he would test the limits of his jumps. He started by hopping down the several inch curb, quickly growing bolder and finding higher ledges to leap from. The more hang time he got, the more the adrenaline spurred him on, that brief moment of weightlessness one of the best feelings in the whole world. If he could only prove that he was capable of handling tricks with a higher level of difficulty without hurting himself, perhaps Splinter would be more lenient with his rules.

It was his brothers finally mastering the small jump that spurred him into action. Thinking themselves to have caught up to his level of skill, Michelangelo decided it was time to show them just how far behind they really were. Before Leo could catch on to what he was about to do and try to stop him, Mikey raced up the stairs, hopped onto his board, and propelled himself down the length of the turnstiles, a mischievous grin on his face as his brothers watched in shock as he hurtled toward the top of the stairs. Upon reaching the edge, he popped the front of his board up and flung himself into the air. The exhilaration, however, was quickly snuffed out as he realized that jumping the stairs was nothing like the ledges he'd been practicing on. He had been prepared for the height; he had not been prepared for the distance.

Panic didn't even have a chance to settle in before his front wheels hit the bottom step awkwardly, sending him flying face first toward the ground. His arms shot out to break his fall, but the snap followed by a sharp pain in his right arm as he landed were indication enough that it wasn't the fall that was broken.

Raphael ran to his side as Leonardo took off toward the dojo, returning swiftly with Splinter close behind. The pain was nothing like Mikey had ever felt in his short life, tears streaming down his freckled cheeks as his father immediately got to work on immobilizing the arm, his brothers helping as needed. But the worst of it came later when he knelt before Master Splinter in the dojo to be questioned about his actions.

With both his siblings as witnesses, there was no point in trying to lie about what he'd done. Mikey tried to explain that he really had expected the trick to be within his ability, that he'd be more careful next time, that now he understood his mistake. But the longer he talked, the clearer his father's expression became, and as his excuses petered out, Mikey believed he finally understood the meaning behind that look he'd been receiving increasingly more often from him.

Disappointment.

Trust broken, Michelangelo was forbidden to use the skateboard until further notice.

The mood in the lair plummeted. Mikey did his best to keep his spirits high, but with his favorite source of entertainment no longer an option and one of his arms out of commission, it was difficult to stay positive. Neither Raph nor Leo would touch the skateboard after that, both claiming they simply had lost interest, but Mikey suspected it was because they didn't want to risk upsetting him. He would have been grateful except for the fact that with their shared activity now gone, they were slowly returning to their previous state of barely being able to stand being in the same room together.

After two weeks, everything was exactly as it had been before Mikey had found the skateboard, and at the end of a day that brought with it three separate fights and multiple disappointed looks, he couldn't take it anymore. Not caring that his arm was still healing, Mikey snuck out of bed, grabbed the skateboard, and headed deeper into the sewers.

Trying to skateboard with one arm in a splint and sling was tricky as his balance was thrown off, but rolling through the dark sewers gave him at least a small taste of the freedom he'd been missing. He decided then and there: he wouldn't give this up again, even if it meant disobeying his father. But he knew that if Splinter ever found out about his nightly excursions, his skateboard would likely be disposed of for good. So as his time drew to a close, he kept his eyes peeled for somewhere secret to stash it.

Right as he was about to settle for wedging it behind a metal pipe, a crumbled gap in the wall caught his eye. It was easy to miss with dark shadows obscuring its view, but as Mikey reached in to see if it was deep enough for his skateboard, he realized it was actually a hole leading into a walled up portion of the sewers, just large enough for a mutant turtle. Squeezing through, he smiled at the room before him. It wasn't very big, maybe twenty feet square, but the walls were lined with dusty shelves, most of which were empty save a few abandoned tools, an old tarp, and a few chewed up cardboard boxes. It was the perfect hiding spot.

Predictably, it wasn't Master Splinter who noticed that the skateboard had vanished. Leonardo was the one who cornered him, asking him if he knew where it had disappeared to, though Mikey didn't miss the hesitance in his voice, as if afraid of the answer. He was aware that Leo was only concerned for his well-being, especially after having a front row seat to him barreling down some stairs and breaking his arm, but Mikey couldn't bring himself to respond truthfully, doing his best to skirt the subject. Raph found them right as Leo was beginning to grow more adamant with his questioning. Understanding of the situation dawning on him, Raph surprised both of them when he loudly proclaimed that, in fact, he had been the one to take the skateboard, claiming to have simply gotten rid of it as he thought it was upsetting Mikey. Leo looked at him dubiously before turning back to the youngest. Staring him dead in the eye, Leonardo paused before stating that if Michelangelo promised him that what Raphael said was true, he would believe him and not question him further.

Mikey knew that to Leo a promise was binding, knew that Raph would take any possible burden from his baby brother's shoulders, and he knew that one, simple response could free him of suspicion. He didn't enjoy throwing anyone to the wolves or lying to his family, but all of his efforts over the past year had done little to bring them closer together, and if life in the lair was going to continue to get rockier, he refused to let go of his only taste of freedom. He told Leo that Raph was telling the truth.

Leo kept his word and never again asked him about the skateboard. Raph, easily guessing the truth of the matter, merely stated that he hoped he stuck with it so long as it made him happy. And Mikey continued to practice in secret, skateboarding—as well as his new hobby of collecting forbidden objects in his secret hideout—giving him the outlet he needed to continue brightening their ever darkening home with the biggest smiles he could muster.

________________________________________

2012

Mikey didn't like how quiet it was. Tucked firmly in his warm bed with an ice pack on his forehead and Raph seated on a stool next to him, the quiet only served as a reminder of his current condition and how quickly it could decline. If the worst of his injuries had been attended to and all he needed was some rest to fully recuperate, Raph would be teasing him relentlessly about the fact that he'd been taken down without landing a single blow. But his silence spoke volumes about how worried he was, and Mikey was too exhausted to keep trying to convince them both that everything would be ok.

The situation didn't improve once Master Splinter entered with Leo close behind, both looking more grim than usual. Their father informed them that Mikey would have someone keeping an eye on him at all times for the next twenty-four hours, remaining in bed until they could be sure his injuries were not more severe than they appeared on the surface. His two older brothers were told to get some rest as well, both leaving reluctantly as they headed for their own rooms. Mikey had desperately wanted to talk about Donnie, fill the silence with something more than the creeping dread of his potential untimely demise, but the adrenaline that had propelled him forward that night at last abandoned him, leaving him too drained to push the subject.

As the warm blankets worked their magic, enticing him to close his eyes, there was barely time for his brain to start whispering of never waking up again before he felt a freshly reheated water bottle being slipped under his covers and his now room temperature ice pack switched out for a cold one. He peeled his eyelids open, finding them crusty with sleep. It was already morning.

"Good morning, Michelangelo," said Splinter softly upon noticing the stirrings of his youngest. He placed a gentle paw on his shoulder. "How are you feeling?"

Noting that Raph and Leo had both returned to check on him, Mikey wriggled his arms out with a wince as he stretched and yawned. "'m fine, Sensei," he said groggily as he wiped the sleep from his eyes, "a li'l sore, but tha's it."

"Soreness is to be expected after what you've been through, but I am pleased that you were able to sleep well, my son." A faint smile appeared on Splinter's face as he gave his shoulder a light squeeze before removing his hand.

"So is he gonna be ok?"

The hope lacing Raph's blunt words was mirrored in Leo's ever so slightly widened gaze, both of them looking to their father for reassurance. Mikey smiled, always touched that his well-being was one of the few things they consistently agreed upon. It faded a bit, however, when Master Splinter's face regained its usual stern countenance.

"It is still too soon to say for certain. We must remain vigilant." Splinter stood and faced his eldest sons. "It is time for me to rest. I trust that the two of you will keep a close watch over your brother. Alert me immediately if there are any changes in his condition."

"Hai, Sensei."

Splinter was already moving toward the door as Leonardo and Raphael responded in unison. Forcing himself awake, Mikey pushed himself up, removing the ice pack as he called out to his retreating father's back.

"What about Donnie?"

Turning to face him once more, Mikey didn't miss the twitch of his sensei's ear and whiskers, brown eyes betraying the wells of emotion dug up from simply hearing his missing son's name.

"He's out there, Sensei," he said, blue eyes wide and glistening with hope. "We're gonna go after him, aren't we?"

Out of the corner of his eye, Mikey caught Leo and Raph sharing a look as Splinter pulled himself up to his full height, hands firmly gripping the walking stick in front of him. The emotion from a mere moment ago tempered with steely resolve as he opened his mouth to respond.

"Yes, Michelangelo," he said, voice strong, "we will find your brother. If your condition remains stable, then Leonardo, Raphael, and I will begin our search tonight."

The excitement buzzing through his now wide awake brain subdued as he took careful stock of exactly what his sensei had just said. His face crumbled. "Why can't I—"

"You will stay here and rest until you have fully recovered," Splinter said, cutting off his youngest's protest.

Mikey deflated with a pout as his father turned back to the door, signaling an end to their conversation, but there was one more thing he needed to ask.

"What about that girl who got kidnapped?"

Donatello wasn't the only one who needed their help. Today some human family in the world above was missing their daughter, and Mikey couldn't help but feel at least partially responsible for being unable to keep her from being taken, especially when one of their own was involved. In his mind, they owed just as much to her as they did Donnie. Splinter's hesitation in answering, however, was proof enough that their sensei did not feel the same.

Hand still on the door, he finally replied over his shoulder, "What happened to her is unfortunate, and should our paths intersect, perhaps we might be able to free her as well. However, this family must take priority. We put ourselves at risk every time even one of us steps foot in the city above, and a mission to find Donatello will only increase such a risk tenfold. I will not place any further danger upon our family." Before Mikey could interject, Splinter put an abrupt end to the conversation, saying, "Do not allow Michelangelo to leave his bed," as he hurried out the door and back toward his private room in the dojo.

The response he'd received shouldn't have surprised him. Master Splinter had always been very clear about the importance of protecting their family, and while he didn't exactly disagree on that front, Mikey knew that it wasn't the only thing in life that mattered. Staying safe in their underground bubble with as little risk as possible hadn't been enough for at least two of them for years now, and if they had the opportunity to put their hard learned skills to good use rather than simply enjoying a night on the town, it seemed obvious which they should choose.

"How can you seriously wanna go after that guy after what he did to you?"

Raph's terse voice broke through Mikey's thoughts, drawing his gaze. The most short-tempered of them wore a dark scowl, his arms crossed tightly across his plastron as if to hold himself back from going on one of his tirades.

Mikey tried to keep the hurt from showing on his face. "Donnie's our bro, Raph," he said, "I'm sure he's not really a bad guy. He just—"

"— just electrocuted you, left you for dead, and then kidnapped an innocent girl," retorted Raph as he leaned forward into Mikey's space, counting off Donatello's crimes on his fingers as he listed them.

But Mikey did not move, eyes narrowing in defiance. "That's because he doesn't know any better! There's no way those weird dudes told him about us, so he was obviously confused!" His eyes darted back and forth between Raph and Leo who stayed silent where he stood. "You guys didn't see him up close! He was staring at me, like he couldn't believe I was real. He only attacked me when I reached out to him. He must've thought I was going to hurt'im or something."

Apparently realizing that convincing Mikey was a lost cause, Raph straightened with a huff, shooting the eldest who was remaining unusually neutral during the whole ordeal a sideways glance. "And how do you feel about all this, fearless leader?"

Leo was also standing with his arms crossed, but his eyes were focused on a random spot on the floor as if lost in thought. He looked up when addressed, but lowered his head again, brow furrowed as he spoke, "Master Splinter wants nothing more than for this family to be whole and safe."

Raph turned to face him full on. "You're not Splinter, Leo. What do you think?"

Raising his head, Leo first looked to Mikey before meeting Raph's gaze. He lowered his arms and said, "If Donatello can be saved, we owe it to him to try." Before either of his brothers had a chance to voice their approval or lack thereof, he quickly continued, "But after what happened last night, I think we need to approach the situation with the understanding that he may not want to be saved. He doesn't know the name 'Donatello' or 'Donnie' or who any of us are, and he may not care." He paused glancing to Mikey before quickly averting his gaze to Raph. "We have to be prepared to make a hard choice if necessary."

"What!?" Mikey would have jumped up and out of bed if Raph hadn't quickly strong-armed him into staying put. "You can't be serious! He's our bro—our family!"

"I'm not saying this because I want to hurt him! No one wants that!" retorted Leo, though the short huff from Raph told Mikey otherwise. Leo either didn't hear or chose to ignore it. "I'm just saying that fifteen years is a long time to go without a family, and obviously those alien robot guys didn't take the time to teach him about morality or he wouldn't be kidnapping helpless girls."

Time seemed to come to a screeching halt as Mikey's brain had skidded to a stop partway through Leo's explanation. Eyes wide and jaw dropped, once he regained control of his motor functions he loudly exclaimed, "Those guys were alien robots!?"

Raph sat down on the stool and rolled his eyes. "If you'd've helped us fight them off instead of standing there allowing yourself to be electrocuted maybe you would've realized that a lot sooner."

A high-pitched whine escaped from Mikey as he clutched the sides of his face. "I can't believe I missed out on fighting alien robots! What'd they look like? You know, underneath the weird identical human-looking disguise thing?"

"If you calm down and rest, maybe you'll heal in time to see them for yourself," said Leo gently.

Mikey's shoulders slumped as he woefully glanced from one brother to the other. "I'm fine! I'm just a little sore, that's all. You gotta convince Sensei to let me come with you tonight!"

"No way," said Raph sharply. "You already got zapped once—who knows what would happen if he got you a second time."

"But—"

Raph put a hand on Mikey's shoulder. "Look, you don't have to worry about anything. Splinter's gonna be with us, and you know that he's gonna do everything he can to save Donatello." Mikey didn't miss the way his older brother spat Donnie's name out of his mouth like it was a curse. "And if we do fight any robot aliens, maybe I'll bring you home a souvenir for your collection," he added with a smirk. It did little to lift Mikey's spirits.

"Actually," began Leo slowly as he slid over towards Mikey's door and peeked out before closing it and returning to his bedside, "there is something I need to talk to you about. It's Master Splinter. Last night, he—he collapsed when I told him about what happened with Donatello."

Mikey's eyes widened at the news, and he noticed Raph's muscles tightening, hands balling into tight fists. "He... collapsed?" he said at last in a quiet voice. "Is he ok?"

Leo shook his head with a shrug. "He seems to be, but I don't know for sure. He was having trouble breathing and..." Mikey watched as his oldest brother closed his eyes and took in a deep breath, a technique he had seen him use often when trying to rein in his emotions. Opening them once more, he focused solely on Raphael. "I'm worried that facing Donatello directly could cause it to happen again, especially if he continues to fight against us. I tried to convince Sensei to stay behind and let us handle it, but he insists on coming. If you and I can track him down ourselves and end this tonight, one way or another..."

Rising from his stool, Raph stood directly in front of Leo, green eyes stern as he studied his older brother's face. "If you're really willing to go behind Splinter's back like this, asking me for help, I know that whatever happened must really be serious." He paused before a small, ironic smirk appeared on his face. "So when do we leave?"

"No way!" shouted Mikey as he finally managed to hop out of bed before either one of his brothers could stop him, knocking both the discarded ice pack and forgotten hot water bottle onto the floor. His blue eyes were furious. "You two can't go alone! Donnie took you both out single-handed! And what happens when you start fighting each other, hm? You guys can't even get through breakfast without—" His rant was cut short by a coughing fit pushing its way up his throat.

"Mikey!"

His two brothers surrounded him frantically as they forced him back into bed. Mikey waved them off as the fit stopped, but their faces were still tight with worry. "I'm fine," he said, making sure to keep the volume low so as to not agitate his throat further. "Come on, bros, it was just a cough."

Both appeared unconvinced, but it was Leonardo that fixed him with a look, one that held a desperation rarely seen on the eldest's face.

"Mikey, all I want—all I've ever wanted—is to keep this family safe," he said, vulnerability seeping into his words. "I know that you and Raph rarely listen to what I or even Sensei has to say, but we could have lost you yesterday, and we don't know how today will go. So will you please listen to us now, just this once."

The earnest plea softened Mikey's heart, and his blue eyes looked from Leo to Raph who was now sitting on the bed next to him, hand rubbing gentle circles on his shell. A stiff nod was all the indication Mikey needed that his two older brothers were in agreement.

But he wasn't ready to give up just yet.

"So, how are you guys gonna find Donnie?"

The question was innocent enough, but the slightly sheepish look on Leo's face as Raph turned and waited for their leader to respond was all the answer Mikey needed. He smirked. "You have no idea, do you? What, you guys gonna just run around all night, keeping an eye out for any creepy alien robot dudes walking around?"

"No," said Leo, though it lacked his usual confidence, "I thought we could head back to the scene of the kidnapping. They might have left a clue behind for us to follow." Mikey's smirk widened as Leo pointedly ignored Raph's derisive snort.

"What if you checked out the dry cleaning place that was on the side of the van?" suggested Mikey, already knowing exactly how his brothers would respond.

Leo blinked in confusion. "Dry cleaning place?"

"No one pays attention to the name of a dry cleaners when they're tryin'a stomp some bad guys into the ground," said Raph before aiming a flat stare in his baby brother's direction. "You know it's name, don't you?"

With a grin and a nod, Mikey stretched his sore arms wide before resting them behind his neck, leaning up against his headboard. "Sure do, bro. And, even better, I happen to know exactly where that particular dry cleaners is."

"Where?" Leo's eyes lit up at the new development, and Mikey was quick to make his demands known.

"I'll only tell you if you promise to take me with you."

Raphael might have no particular qualms over breaking a promise when he felt it necessary, but Michelangelo knew that to Leonardo, a promise was binding. He looked him straight in the eye as he waited for their response.

With a growl of frustration, Raph said, "Come on, Mikey, there's no way we're gonna promise that! Just tell us where it is already!"

"And I'm not going to let my bros go out there and take on a bunch of alien dudes alone!" said Mikey defiantly. "It's way too dangerous, bro! Face it, you need all the help you can get, especially if you plan on ditching Master Splinter. Besides, you expect me to trust a guy who blames Donnie for every bad thing that's ever happened—" he pointed sharply at Raph, "—and a guy that doesn't even see him as part of the family that needs protecting—" he turned his finger on Leo, "—to bring him home safe? Not in a gazillion years, dude." It was his turn to cross his arms, daring his brothers to see exactly how stubborn he could be when he wanted to.

Raph again opened his mouth to protest, but Leo cut him off. "I'll make you a deal," he said, keeping his voice even but firm as he met Mikey's unusually hard gaze. "If you rest all day and there are no signs that your injuries might be worse than they appear, I'll let you come with us. But in exchange you have to tell us the location of that dry cleaners right now. We need to make a plan, and, if the worst does happen..."

Leo's voice trailed off, but Mikey had a pretty good idea of what he was getting at. "If somehow I am real messed up inside and I don't make it, you'll still know where to go," he finished.

"How can you guys even talk like that!?" roared Raph as he shoved himself off the bed and began pacing the room, hands balled into tight fists. For a moment it seemed like he might go into one of his rampages, but Mikey could see the fear behind his angry facade as instead he let out his anxieties by merely punching the far wall with a snarl.

Mikey turned his attention back to Leo. "If I have to tell you now, then you have to promise you'll save that girl that was kidnapped no matter what. I know what Master Splinter said, but we can't leave her there. She's someone else's Donnie. We gotta get her home to her family."

The look in Leo's eyes told Mikey that he had disagreed with their sensei on more than one subject over the past twelve hours, and Raph's silence on the matter at least meant that he wouldn't fight the idea. Mikey smiled.

"I promise to tell you where the dry cleaners is and stay behind if there's any sign I'm not good to go by tonight if you promise to save that girl and let me go with you if everything seems fine. Deal?"

He may not have liked the possibility of his older brothers throwing themselves at danger without him, but Mikey wasn't foolish enough to think himself invincible either. If such a deal was what it took to give him a chance of joining them, then he would bet on himself. It wasn't as if this would be the first major injury he'd rushed himself back from.

Leo looked at him long and hard. If he agreed, Mikey knew that he would keep up his end of the bargain. Even taking his less than a day old rebellious streak towards Splinter's decrees into account, he knew it would be impossible for Leo to break a direct verbal contract.

Gaze never wavering, Leo stood straight as he drew a deep breath in and let it out before saying, "Deal."

Raph merely growled in irritation, refusing to look at either of them.

With a nod, Mikey opened his mouth, "Get the Funk Out."

There was a pause as two sets of eyes blinked at him before Leo finally raised an eyeridge and said dumbly, "What?"

"Get the Funk Out," Mikey repeated, "it's a dry cleaners near the corner of Ricci and Jase."

The exaggerated eye roll from Raph brought a cheeky smile to Mikey's face. "Of course you'd remember a place with a name like that," Raph grumbled.

"Do you know where that is?" asked Leo, reminding Mikey that last night had only been his oldest brother's second ever trip into the city.

Raph gave a curt nod. "It's a few blocks away from where we were last night. Shouldn't be hard to find."

"Alright, we need to plan how we're going to get out of here without alerting Master Splinter. Raphael, if you could draw up a rough map of this area of the city, it will help us figure out our best move," said Leonardo, instantly taking control of the mission. "We can't know what to expect once we're inside, but we need to be ready for anything. We're dealing with a bunch of pink, alien brains, after all."

"A bunch of what!?"

Leo and Raph did their best to calm Mikey down as he grilled his brothers for as many juicy details as possible. One thing was now very certain: he would do whatever it took to appear in the most perfect health by tonight no matter what.

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A/N: It was difficult trying to describe Mikey's skateboarding without using proper terms, so hopefully it came across ok (apologies to any actual skateboarders out there). Had fun getting to write from Mikey's perspective.

As always, critics and grammar police appreciated!

Chapter 5 on tumblr >here<