#azucar skull | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

aquietwritingcorner · 3 days

Text

The Seeping Cold

For @tmnt-write-fight for @drebspells2022 @mackself and @azucar-skull

Title: The Seeping Cold Prompt: Any iteration: Leo centric sickfic; fever; bad dream Fandom: TMNT 2003 Word Count: 10,045 Author: aquietwritingcorner/realitybreakgirl Rating: T Characters: Leonardo Warning: Dream sequences are a touch intense, but I don’t go into detail. Summary: The lair itself seemed a bit cool to Leo, and he shivered lightly as he silently padded to the edge of the walkway and jumped down to the first floor. Maybe he needed to have Donnie check the heating. It was a little early for it to be this cold. Notes: I, uh, make a lot of references in this. But I assure you that they are all within the timeline and you don’t actually have to know much about them to understand the story. I’m just trying something, to see if it helps flesh the world around them out a little more, or if it’s just distracting ^^; ffn || AO3

____________________________________

The Seeping Cold

Leo groaned, rolling over in his bed as his clock went off. He felt like he was pulling himself awake from the depths of a deep but unrestful sleep, having to force his groggy mind to start working enough to reach over and turn off his clock. It took him a time or two, but he managed to get to it before it started going into the incredible fast paced and loud beeping that was its second setting. Flopping back into his bed, Leo laid there for a moment. Even with an uneasy feeling leftover from his dreams, he really didn’t want to get out of bed. He wasn’t sure why, but he felt like he could go back to sleep and sleep for several more hours, at least. Even just a few more minutes would be nice, snuggled in under his blankets, with the relative silence of the lair enveloping him and the allure of sleep singing its siren song to his eyes…

Leo abruptly shook himself awake, realizing that he was starting to fall back to sleep again. With another groan, he rolled himself out of bed, shivering as his feet hit the cold floor. He stretched a bit, rolling his shoulders, finding them stiff. Trying to shake both the remnants of sleep and his dreams off, he reached for his gear, pulling on his pads, his belt, his mask, and his swords, and headed out of his room and to the bathroom.

The lair itself seemed a bit cool to Leo, and he shivered lightly as he silently padded to the edge of the walkway and jumped down to the first floor. Maybe he needed to have Donnie check the heating. It was a little early for it to be this cold.

The jump seemed to reverberate through his legs, and he shook them out a bit as he walked, heading towards the bathroom. Fortunately, getting up this early meant that he didn’t have to fight for his turn. He simply went in, did what he needed to do, and left, although he had to admit that he took his time. The bathroom was one of the warmer rooms in the lair, along with the kitchen and the medical area, and he almost didn’t want to leave it.

Finishing there, Leo head headed towards the kitchen. Normally he would fix himself something light to eat, but this morning he only set the kettle on the stove, not really feeling like eating. Turning the stove on, Leo leaned against the counter and waited for the water to heat up. The heat from the stovetop felt good, and Leo leaned into it a bit, rolling his shoulders again as he realized that he had a bit of an all-over ache.

Leo sighed. He knew that he’d overdone his training last night. Splinter had warned him not to, as he’d been practicing some fairly advanced moves, but he hadn’t listened. He was paying for that now, but, well, that was the consequences of his choice, and he’d deal with it. He’d just have to make sure to stretch a bit more today before they started training. It would probably do him good, anyway, with the chill that was in the air. It was winter, but the Lair was still normally warmer than this, even in the coldest parts of the season.

Reluctantly, Leo pushed away from the stove, going ahead and preparing his tea cup, as well as one for Splinter, when he woke. He also got the coffee ready ensuring that whoever got in here first—Raph or Don—could start it with no issues. There was no telling what Mikey would go for. It could be tea, coffee, or one of those energy drinks that Angel had unfortunately introduced him to.

The kitchen, despite being a warmer room, still held the presence of a chill to it. It was like when summer was turning to fall and, while not in any way cool, you could tell that there was something cool in the air, even if it was still hot out. Leo keenly felt that as he moved around the kitchen and away from the stove. It made him hurry through his motions, wanting to get back to the warmth of the stove.

It didn’t take much longer for the water to be heated, and Leo took the kettle off of the eye before its whistle could build and wake the others up. Carefully, he poured some into his cup, letting it run over the tea leaves he’d put in earlier. He turned the burner down to a simmer, ensuring that the kettle would still be warm for Splinter but not in danger of whistling loudly enough to wake the whole lair. He let his tea steep while he made sure he turned down the correct eye—no need for a repeat of a month ago--and then sat down with it at the table. Normally he picked a chair where he could see the doorway clearly when people entered, but this time he sat in the chair nearest to the stove, leeching what heat off of it that he could.

Leo wrapped his hands around his teacup as the tea steeped, letting the warmth soak into his aching hands. He only moved them when it was time to take the tea leaves out, and even then, he was quick to bring his hands back around the cup. He brought it up to his lips, drinking it slowly, savoring the warmth that the tea brought him. He let his mind blank, instead of taking the time for some light meditation as he normally would have, not feeling quite awake enough for it.

His mind drifted as he sat there, and he let it, not directing it. The quiet of the lair bled into him, but instead of it soothing his mind, it let the uneasy feelings from his dreams seep back in. He couldn’t quite place anything specifically, but he knew that whatever he had been dreaming about, it hadn’t been anything good. It was as if the dreams and their feelings were behind several layers of thick walls, and while he knew the feelings had been more intense, all he felt now was unease about his family and everyone’s safety.

Fortunately, his thoughts were broken when Raph stumbled into the room a few minutes later, sleep still obviously clinging to him. He gave Leo a grunt of acknowledgement, heading straight towards the coffeepot and turning it on. He stared at it for a few moments, clearly still waking up, even as the sounds of Mikey’s off-key singing could be heard coming from the bathroom. Leo took another sip of his tea and considered going for another cup when he finished this one.

Suddenly, Raph turned and looked at him, blinking. “…That ain’t where you usually sit,” he said bluntly.

Leo shrugged. “I wanted the heat,” he said, tipping the cup up and drinking the last of his tea regretfully. As much as he wanted another cup, he knew that he probably was better off just sticking to the one. He stood, moving a little stiffly, and turned to put his cup in the sink. “I’m going to go warm up.”

Raph grunted, and Leo made his way out of the kitchen, heading towards the dojo area. He passed a very sleepy Don on the way, who gave Leo a half-hearted wave as they passed. Leo waved back, and then paused. “Hey, Donnie.”

Don stuttered to a stop and turned towards him, “Hm?” he said, voice still heavy with sleep.

“Can you check the heat later today? It’s a little colder than it should be,” Leo asked him, not entirely sure if his brother would be awake enough to remember this conversation later.

Don blinked at him, as if filing that away. “Yeah. I can do that.”

Leo nodded. “Thanks,” he said, before he continued on to the dojo, hearing Don’s shuffling steps heading towards the kitchen.

Once in the dojo, Leo quickly settled into some stretches, starting with some very basic warm-ups, trying to work through his sore muscles. Bit by bit he took the time to stretch out each of his muscles, starting gently and then working his way up to harder stretches. He vaguely heard Mikey pass by him, the energetic turtle practically bouncing towards the kitchen. He heard Splinter walk by, his cane tapping on the floor as he made his way towards the kitchen. He heard Don emerge from the kitchen, padding towards his lab, and Raph follow him out not much later.

However, while Leo would normally have paid more attention to the details of his family moving around him—what song Mikey was humming, if Don had his coffee cup with him, how Splinter seemed after his morning meditation, where exactly Raph went—this morning he found that he needed to keep his focus closer. He let the details slip away from his awareness and instead focused on stretching out each of his aching muscles, continuing to move up in intensity as he did. He lost all track of time, choosing instead to focus on what would, hopefully, help his muscles loosen up before practice.

All too soon, one by one, his brothers wandered over to join him, doing their own stretches and trying to loosen up. After a few more minutes, Splinter joined them as well, going through his own routine. Almost before Leo knew it, it was time for practice. Leo rolled his shoulders as they all got into position for the day’s lessons to begin, not completely satisfied with the result of his stretches. While it had helped, he still could feel that bone-deep ache, with a little bit of tiredness creeping in. He really shouldn’t have pushed himself as hard as he did yesterday.

Training went as usual. Meditation, warm-ups, practice, the day’s focus, practical application, practice, cool-downs, and meditation. It was nothing that they weren’t used to, and nothing out of the ordinary. However, Leo found that it seemed more difficult to him today. It was harder to focus during meditation, teaching, and the application, and he struggled to keep up at his usual pace. His mind kept drifting back to the vague feelings of unease that his dreams had brought him. His muscles, too, felt overworked and overused. By the time they finished, he felt less like he had been in training, and more like he’d been in a long, drawn-out battle—something he unfortunately knew what felt like.

Of course, despite his best efforts not to show it, his family took notice, even as they all laid collapsed on the dojo floor.

“How hard do you think he’s gonna drill us in the new move tomorrow?” Don asked.

“I don’t even wanna think about tomorrow,” Mikey said. “I just wanna lay here until my shell rots.”

Raph lightly kicked Mikey, causing him to rock on his shell. “Yer brain’s more likely to rot first, Mikey.” He glanced at Leo. “The real question is, how much time do ya think Leo’s gonna spend practicing it this afternoon?”

“Believe it or not, not much,” Leo said. He could catch Don’s frown out of the corner of his eye. “I… might have done a little too much yesterday,” he admitted.

Don huffed. “I thought you were moving stiffer than normal. Didn’t I tell you to take it easy? You got too cold the other night when we were all out late. It’s winter, Leo, and you’re more sensitive to the cold. Give your body a chance to recover. We’re not entirely warm-blooded, you know.”

“Please, Donnie, I’m beggin’ ya,” Raph said from where he laid, “do not go into the whole lecture and explanation.”

“Yeah, we already know it,” Mikey said. He pitched his voice a little to mimic Don. “’We’re neither completely endothermic nor exothermic but somewhere in between. Because of this we are capable of regulating our body temperature to a degree and employing typical endothermic regulation processes, but at the same time our bodies are influenced a great deal by the external conditions which surround us’.” He dropped the voice. “Blah blah blah, we don’t need to be in cold or heat for too long, and take longer to bounce back, blah, blah, blah.”

“I don’t sound like that!” Don protested, offended.

“Don’t worry,” Leo said, interrupting the conversation and starting to roll over to get up. “I don’t plan on doing a lot today.” He got up and stretched a little, trying to work out some of the stiffness. “But unless anyone needs it, I might go get a hot shower. Try to work out some of these kinks and warm up a bit.”

The others were slowly rising to their feet as well.

“Nah, go ahead. I’m gonna do a little work with my bag,” Raph said.

Don shrugged. “I’m due to give the Battle Shell some maintenance.” He paused, clearly thinking back. “Ah. And I’ll check the heat.”

“I have a whole stack of comics to read!” Mikey said with a grin.

“Clearly an important job,” Don shot at Mikey, but softened the blow with a teasing grin.

Mikey just shrugged and grinned back. “Someone’s got to do it, and I’ll gladly sacrifice my time towards it.”

Raph sighed, and Leo just shook his head.

“Alright,” Leo said. “Then I’m going to go shower.”

His brothers made noises of acknowledgement, and Leo headed towards the bathroom. In truth, Leo would have loved to soak in a tub. He could remember doing that when they were small, and it was cold out. Splinter would heat up water for them, putting them all in a tub, and let the water help keep them warm during cold snaps. Even as they got older, they would occasionally soak in a tub, and it always felt so nice. Don, however, hadn’t gotten around to installing a tub for them, and all they had was a shower. However, considering all of the other things Don regularly built and maintained for them, Leo wasn’t going to complain. A shower was good enough.

He set a towel and washcloth aside for himself, and checked to make sure that the shower was clear—no unauthorized experiments via Don or Mikey, or a bar of soap left on the floor to make everything slippery via Mikey or Raph, or something sharp left propped somewhere via Raph or Don—and started up the water. He let it warm before he got in, taking the time to take off his pads and mask. He carefully set his swords and their scabbard outside of the bathroom, not wanting the moisture to get to them, and made sure to set everything else aside. It didn’t take the water long to warm, thanks to Don’s superior plumbing, and Leo slipped in, letting the warm water run over his aching muscles.

It felt good. The heat felt more than good, and he found himself bumping it up a little more than he normally would. The heat soaked into him, and while it didn’t completely take the ache away, it did alleviate it some. He just wished there was a better way to keep all of him under the shower’s spray. Anytime he shifted to give one area more warmth, the parts of him that were out of the spray felt the cold much more keenly. It made him wish for a tub even more, but he’d take what he could get.

Little by little, Leo bumped the heat in the shower up more and more as the water cooled, until the water finally cooled enough that he couldn’t turn it up anymore. With a sigh, Leo reluctantly reached over and turned the water off. Almost immediately, even though the bathroom was full of steam, a chill wrapped itself around Leo, sending a shudder through him. He ignored it, reaching for his towel. After all, it was normal to feel a little cool once you turned off the water. He toweled off, trying his best to get all of the water off of him. No need to let it keep cooling him down, or to drip in the lair. And, he admitted to himself, he might be a little reluctant to leave the warm bathroom.

Still, he could only dally for so long, and so before he really wanted to be, Leo was as dry as he could get, with his gear back on. He exited the bathroom, only to shudder again as the coolness of the lair hit him. Either Don hadn’t fixed the heat yet, or the temperature difference was that big between the rest of the lair and the steamy bathroom.

Probably a little of both.

Not quite wanting to completely lose the warmth he had in the bathroom, Leo made his way over to the kitchen, slipping his swords back on as he did. It was always warmer in the kitchen, and a mug of hot tea sounded good right now. He could hear the radio playing in the kitchen, along with Mikey’s off-key singing, and smell food cooking. Leo’s stomach rumbled a bit. He had skipped breakfast, after all. Maybe a little food would do him good.

Mikey looked up when Leo entered and grinned at him. “Was beginning to wonder if you’d just decide to revert to full turtle, bro. You were in there so long I ran out of hot water!”

Leo grimaced slightly. “Sorry,” he apologized, heading towards the kettle. “The water just felt that good.”

Mikey waved a spatula around in the air dismissively. “Nah, no worries, bro. We all need that sometimes.”

Leo smiled back at his brother as he put some more water in the kettle. He hesitated just before sitting it on the stove. “Were you going to need…?” he asked.

“Put it on the smaller one,” Mikey said. “I’m gonna need the bigger ones.”

Leo nodded and did as Mikey said, before looking back at his brother. “What are you making?”

“Soup!” Mikey said enthusiastically. “We’ve got some chicken we need to use up, and an overstock of beans, so I thought I’d try some kind of Mexican-inspired soup! It’s a little early in the year for it, but it should be good.”

“I think it sounds great,” Leo said, starting to prepare a mug for some tea. “Nice and warm.”

Mikey laughed a little, but just grinned at his brother as he shook a bottle of some sort of spice blend. “It might be warm in more ways than one! I plan on giving it at least a little kick.”

Leo blanched a little. “Not too much, okay? We don’t need a repeat of the last time.”

“Nah, I learned from that time,” Mikey said. “But who knew that Sensei had the highest spice tolerance out of us all?”

“It was certainly a surprise,” Leo said. “Do you need any help?”

Mikey waved him away again. “Nope! You just sit down and rest, bro. Everyone needs a day off once in a while, even you.”

For once, Leo didn’t feel like arguing. He just gave a one-word response of agreement and propped himself against the counter, waiting for the kettle to be ready. It was warm near the stove and oven, and he soaked it in, watching as Mikey bounced around the kitchen. His brother didn’t seem to be cold at all, but then again, Mikey was moving around a lot. Besides, Leo was more sensitive to the cold than his brothers ever since Shredder’s attack on him. He didn’t know if it was a physical thing or all in his brain, but in the end it didn’t really matter. The cold got to him, reminding him, consciously or not, of that desperate rooftop gauntlet, and how outnumbered he was.

The kettle whistled before his mind had time to travel down that path too far, and he gladly accepted the distraction, reaching for the mug he had prepared, and pouring the hot water over the tea leaves in it. He took it back to the table and sat down, breathing deeply and closing his eyes while it steeped, just relaxing into the moment around him. He let his mind drift, not keeping track of what was going on around him but enjoying a blissful moment of just letting his mind blank out. He could still feel the uneasy from his dreams, and knew part of it came from the reminder the cold left him, but he tried his best to slide that to the side, and just exist in the moment.

It wasn’t going very well. He was just too unfocused today.

He was startled out of the moment by the sound of a plate sliding in front of him, and he opened his eyes to see some steamed veggies on a small mound of rice sitting in front of him. He looked up at Mikey questioningly.

“Saw that you didn’t eat breakfast,” Mikey said. “After that practice, I figured you could use something to eat.”

Leo gave his brother a grateful smile. Of course, Mikey would have noticed that and fixed Leo something even in the middle of cooking something completely different. “Thanks, Mikey.”

“Anytime!” Mikey said, going back to his cooking, continuing his singing, although thankfully, a little quieter. The radio was also switched over to something a bit more lowkey than the usual colorful array of pop songs Mikey liked to play, making sure to annoy Raph by belting Oops, I Did it Again loudly whenever it came on. Leo would be fine if this radio station skipped that top song, thanks.

It was honestly nice just sitting in the kitchen with Mikey, and Leo enjoyed it, choosing to stay even after he finished his food and tea. He left, once, retrieving the book he was in the middle of, and then just sat there, drinking mugs of tea and reading his book. He had a little trouble concentrating on it, no matter how much he wanted to, but he just figured that it was due to the presence of Mikey. His little brother was hard to ignore at the best of times. Besides, Leo often had a second awareness when it came to his brothers, and at times it made it hard for him not to pay attention to them.

Still eventually, he grew restless, and he stood, stretching. Mikey glanced over at him.

“Going somewhere?” he asked.

“I think I just need to stretch out a bit,” he said, gathering his book and his tea mug. “I feel like I’m getting stiff just sitting here.”

Mikey nodded. “Totally get that. I’ll leave the kettle on if you want more tea, though.”

“Thanks, Mikey,” Leo said with a smile as he headed out.

The air outside of the kitchen was decidedly cooler than in the kitchen, and Leo felt a chill run through him. Don must be having some sort of problem with the heating system if it was still this cool. That might mean that he’d need to do a junkyard run. Leo let out a silent sigh. It wasn’t that he minded junkyard runs. But with as achy and sore as he was feeling, along with how cold it must be topside if it was this cool in the lair, well, it wasn’t something that Leo was looking forward to. Still, if Don asked him, he'd go. He certainly wasn’t letting his brother go alone. Then again, Don might ask all of them, if he thought he’d need a lot of parts, or a bigger component.

With another sigh, Leo sat his book and mug down on the edge of the walkway that ran around the dojo area, and went there, starting some simple stretches. Raph was nearby, working with some weights, and he nodded at Leo. Leo nodded back, the two brothers simply working side by side. After a few minutes, though, he became aware of Raph standing next to him, and he looked up at his brother.

“You good?” Raph asked him.

“Just a little sore,” Leo said.

Raph frowned. “Still?” he asked. “You musta really overdone it.”

Leo looked a little sheepish. “Yeah… I really wanted to get that move right, but I’m paying for it now.”

Raph grunted and shook his head. “Want me to help you stretch out some?”

Leo blinked at Raph, not expecting that offer. He wasn’t going to turn it down, though. There were some stretches that were just easier to do or more effective when they could be done with someone else.

“Sure,” he said. “It might help.”

Raph grunted again and gestured for Leo’s arm. “Gimmie your arm. We’ll start there. Let me know if it’s too much.”

Leo nodded, putting his arm in Raph’s grasp, and let his brother start manipulating it around. He started with a light pressure, a light stretching, but slowly he moved into stretches that pulled more at Leo’s sore and aching muscles. It hurt a little, but in a good way, especially when Leo added some resistance to some of the stretches. Muscle group by muscle group, the two of them worked their way over Leo’s body, stretching out everything. By the time they finished, Leo felt a lot looser, and a bit less sore.

“Thanks,” he said, taking Raph’s hand to help him up. “That does feel better.”

“No problem,” Raph said, clearly dismissing it. “It isn’t like we haven’t all needed that before.”

Leo chuckled. “True enough.”

“Gonna do anything else?” Raph asked, clearly curious.

Leo thought for a moment, before taking in a big breath and letting it out. “No. No I think I will try to rest today, at least until we need to do anything else. Might as well give my body some time to recover.”

Raph nodded. “Sounds good.” He glanced at the book and tea that Leo had sat down earlier. “Go enjoy your cold tea and weird fantasy book, I guess.”

Leo shook his head as he walked towards them to pick them up. “I’m telling you, Raph. You’d enjoy this one if you’d give it a chance.”

“I’m not starting something new until I’ve finished the series I’m reading,” Raph said, turning back to his punching bag. “I’m a one-series at a time kinda guy, you know that.”

“Well, just keep it in mind for when you’re finished with that series,” Leo said.

“Yeah, yeah, I will,” Raph said, and turned his attention completely to his punching bag.

Leo took a sip of his tea, and blanched when he realized just how cold it had gotten. Book tucked under his arm, he made his way back to the kitchen where Mikey was dancing away, still cooking. He dumped out the cold tea, poured himself some fresh, and turned to head out of the kitchen, only pausing when Mikey caught him off guard and stuffed half an orange in his mouth.

“A little vitamin C never hurts!” Mikey said with a wink.

Shaking his head, Leo plucked the half an orange out of his mouth, and continued on, heading towards the living room and peeling a section off so he could eat it. The mug of tea was warm in his hand, and he knew as soon as he sat down, he was going to wrap both hands around it, letting it warm them. He was partway to the living room when he saw Don come out of the elevator, wiping his hands on a rag, grease in streaks on his arms and plastron. Leo changed direction, hoping to ask him about the heat. The chill in the lair hadn’t improved, and may, in fact, have gotten worse.

“Don. Hey, Donnie,” Leo called out to him.

Don was clearly caught up in some sort of deep thought, but Leo’s call broke him out of it. “Hm? Oh, hey, Leo. What’s up?” he asked, a curious tilt to his head.

“I was wondering if you had a chance to look at the heat yet,” Leo said. “It still feels about the same in here.”

Don looked at him, puzzled for a moment. “The heat? Why would I—oh! Oh, no, Leo, I completely forgot! I was doing some maintenance on the Battleshell, and then I got this idea for an upgrade and, well, I guess I just sort of lost myself,” he said sheepishly.

That wasn’t too unusual, and Leo just fondly shook his head. “It’s okay, Don. Bu I really would appreciate it if you’d look.”

Don nodded. “Sure! I can go do that right now. I’ve got to let some things set on the Battleshell anyway, so I’ve got some time.”

Leo smiled and nodded. “Thanks, Donnie.”

Don just waved a greasy hand at him. “Not a problem, Leo!”

With that, the two parted ways, Don heading towards his lab and Leo towards the living room. He settled on the couch, placed his warm tea on the coffee table, and mindlessly ate the half an orange as he opened his book. The open space of the living room was cool, though, and it wasn’t long before Leo was pausing, pulling a blanket down across his shoulders. He popped the last slice of orange into his mouth and chewed it, trying to focus in on his book. But try as he might, he had the same focusing problems out here as he had in the kitchen.

He was hyper aware of Raph, and the thuds and rattles that came from his punching bag. He could hear Donnie digging around in his lab, the clanks, and clacks from him moving things and gathering tools, along with the tinkle of something metallic spilling out of a container. Mikey and his loud radio, off-key singing and banging of pots and pans was audible, even from this far away. The only one he wasn’t hearing was Splinter, but that was normal. And his aches, which were returning, and the cold in the lair were plenty distracting on their own.

With a sigh, Leo closed his book. Looked like he wasn’t going to be able to focus on reading it at the moment. Sitting it down and reaching for the remote, Leo turned the TVs on, flipping through the channels until he found what seemed to be a marathon of Star Trek: The Next Generation on one of the cable channels Don somehow got for them. That was perfect, as far as he was concerned, and Leo wrapped his blanket tighter around him as he settled into watching episodes that he knew all too well but enjoyed rewatching anyway.

The longer he sat there, though, the colder and achier he seemed to become. He unfolded the blanket, wrapping himself up in it as opposed to it simply being around his shoulders, and laid down on the couch, curling up. His orange and tea were long since finished, but he didn’t feel like getting up to get more. Despite the blanket, the cold of the lair seemed to seep into his bones, and as on-screen, Picard insisted there were four lights as his capture told him there were five, Leo slipped into sleep, the sounds of the TV mixing with memories, merging old and new together in ways that Leo’s mind took and ran with.

The cold closed in around Leonardo, and he ran. The rain pelted his skin, cold, sharp, stinging. He could hear the steps of other ninja, not far from him, keeping up. He gripped broken swords in his hands, holding onto the hilts. Maybe they wouldn’t been good for long range attacks, but the shards that were left were still deadly and he could do damage with them.

He fought on, running, running, only stopping when an enemy forced him to. He fought, feeling every strike he took beat down on his resistance and endurance. And yet he managed to keep running. His lungs burned, it felt like he couldn’t get enough breath. But he couldn’t stop. If he stopped, he’d be killed or captured, and he couldn’t allow that!

And yet he had no choice. He ran into something. An invisible wall. An invisible person. Both. Neither. A Foot Tech ninja. A hidden force field. It, they, kept him from going on, from going forward. He turned. He had no time to see if he could go over or around. The other Foot were here, and they were on him. He fought, fighting against not only the ninja around him, but also the cold that surrounded him. The rain leeched his heat away, drove the cold in further with every driving pinprick of it that hit him. He stabbed with what remained of his swords, but those were quickly taken from him as well. He fell to the ground, the Elite Foot raining blow after blow on him, their attacks complimenting the rain that fell. Leo wasn’t sure how much more of this he could endure.

And then, they stopped. They stopped and backed off, leaving him lying there. The cold of the pounding rain hurt now, enveloping him with its fridged temperature. He couldn’t breathe right. He couldn’t move. Footsteps sounded close to him, and Leo looked up. The Shredder was there.

“Take him,” the Shredder said, and Leo felt the elite get their arms under him and lift him up. He looked across the road, towards April’s building, and saw Raph standing in the window, pounding on it as if he couldn’t get out, with Don pulling on his arm to lead him away. He saw the Battleshell start up, and he felt relief knowing that he was the only one captured.

He was in a cell, in a dark room, in an office, bound to a chair. Shredder—Saki—was talking to him.

“Tell me how many of you there are.”

Leo held his silence.

“Tell me who trained you.”

Leo said nothing.

Shredder hummed and then suddenly Leo was alone back in a cell, a tiny room. It was bitterly cold, freezing, and Leo shuddered, his body trying to build up any warmth it could, without any success. The cold was everywhere, pervasive and drilled deeply into him. It was inescapable and he struggled to think through it.

He was back in a room, with a blanket around him. He sunk into its warmth, pulling it tighter around him. The room was dark. Four lights shone down on him. He was in a chair. He was bound, he wasn’t, he was both at once.

“My men say your… accommodations… are cold. You may take the blanket with you—if you’ll tell me where the rest of your clan has gone. Or how many lights there are.”

Leo refused to give him any information, only stating that there were four lights. The blanket was ripped away from him.

He was back in the cell, back in the cold. He shuddered, the cold feeling like it was freezing him from the inside out. He was bound, although he wasn’t. He felt trapped, even though he knew there was a way out. He had to keep his family safe. They’d come. They’d come. They’d never give up.

Saki was there, and he wasn’t. He was omnipresent, his presence permeating everything. Leo was in the cell, but he was in an office, but he was in a room. He was bound, he was trapped in a chair, he was free while Karai was there, so that she didn’t have to see the brutality he was going through. Leo had food, but he didn’t. He heard the voices of his family, but they weren’t there. He was taunted with warmth.

And over and over again, Shredder tried to break him, the four lights shining down on Leo relentlessly, while Saki told him he was wrong, that there were five lights, not four.

And yet, Leo resisted. He refused to say what Shredder wanted. He refused to break. At least, he did until Shredder drug Mikey in front of him, beaten, bruised, restrained, and muzzled, and demanded that Leo tell him that there were five lights. Leo looked at the lights, then back at Mikey, and there was only one thing he could say. Leo shuddered, staring at his brother, and said that there were five lights. Shredder laughed, and Leo bowed his head, knowing that he was broken. He looked up, wanting to apologize to Mikey, at least with his eyes, but he looked up just in time to see Shredder take Mikey’s head off.

Leo yelled out, waking up fighting against whatever it was that was holding him down. It took him a second to realize that it was hands, that they had backed off, and that he wasn’t in some cell Shredder had, but in his home. But that didn’t mean—maybe they had rescued him, but Mikey—

Leo looked around wildly, his heart feeling as if it were going to beat out of his chest. Star Trek played on the TVs behind Raph and Don, who were at his side, Don with what looked like a thermometer in his hand. Splinter was nearby, too, but he didn’t see—

“Got the water and the washcloth—oh hey! Leo’s awake!”

Leo whipped his head around, making himself a little dizzy, but focusing completely on Michelangelo walking towards them, a large bowl in his hands. His brother’s voice had never sounded sweeter “Mikey!” he gasped out, fighting at the blanket that had him trapped.

“Whoa, Leo, hang on there!” Raph said, putting his hands on Leo’s shoulders to push him back down. “Just hang on a second!”

“No!” Leo said, still trying to get up, but finding that he didn’t have as much power as he thought. “I need to see Mikey!”

Mikey hurried towards him, setting the bowl of water down on the coffee table, and then moving in to take Raph’s place beside Leo. “I’m here, Leo, I’m here. What’s up, bro?”

Leo didn’t answer, just frantically looked Mikey over carefully, his hands coming up to probe at Mikey’s neck. It was solid, not even a scar there. His head was firmly attached, and Leo let out a relieved breath, leaning his forehead on Mikey’s shoulder.

“I thought—you were—the Shredder—” His words were all jumbled up, but Mikey seemed to understand the gist of it.

He wrapped his arms around Leo, rubbing his shell. “Aw, bro, no. I’m here, I’m fine, and I’ve not been anywhere near the Shredder in, like, weeks. Haven’t even been out of the lair today.”

Leo nodded, beginning to get better control of his breathing and of his mind.

“I… they were chasing me again. But it was the first time. But they captured me, put me in a freezing cell. Shredder kept trying to break me, asking me how many lights there were, but I wouldn’t answer the way he wanted until he had Mikey. Then I did, but he killed Mikey anyway. And everything was so, so cold.”

Leo looked up just in time to see Don glance at the TV and then back to Leo. “It must be the fever,” he said. “I bet the fever made you feel cold, which brought of memories of when the Foot attacked you. But your subconscious also worked in the episode of Star Trek—the two parter where Picard’s captured by the Cardassians and Gul Madred tried to break him with the same light method—and made that part of your nightmare.”

“Perhaps we should find something less adventuresome to watch,” Splinter said, picking up the remote and changing the channels until he landed on an old sitcom.

Ignoring the voices of Lucy and Ethel in the background, Leo turned his attention towards Don. “Fever?” he asked.

Don nodded, even as Mikey and Raph encouraged Leo to settle back down. “Yep. Mikey was actually the one that realized you had one. He was bringing you some more tea, when he realized you were asleep, but that something didn’t seem right. He got me and I took your temperature. You’ve got a nice, high fever there, Leo. Its no wonder you’ve been a little odd all day.”

Leo’s brow furrowed. “A little odd?” he repeated.

“Yeah, bro, you’ve been not quite right all day,” Raph said. “You haven’t heard us when we’ve walked up to you, until we’re almost there, and you had trouble concentrating all day. Don’t think we didn’t notice.”

“And there’s the long shower, all the tea, skipping breakfast,” Mikey listed.

“It also explains why you were so concerned about the heat, and while you’ve felt achy and sore all day,” Don said. “It wasn’t that you overworked yourself, its that you’ve been getting sick.”

Leo blinked. “Oh. Was I acting that off?”

Splinter moved in, laying a paw on Leo’s forehead for a moment. “Yes, my son, you were.” He leaned in and sniffed Leo slightly, before pressing his nose to Leo’s forehead, the same way he used to check for fevers when they were tots. “I should have smelled it on you, but I did not pay attention. Forgive me my son.”

Leo shook his head. “There’s nothing to forgive, Sensei,” he said. “I didn’t realize it either.”

Don huffed a little bit, and gently pushed his way back to Leo’s side, scooting Raph and Mikey over. “Well, we know about it now,” he said. “At least you didn’t push yourself too hard today, although I’m positive that doing it yesterday didn’t help.”

“Sorry,” Leo apologized.

Don shook his head, his attitude softening. “No, don’t worry about it. I should have noticed something was off, too. Here,” he held out some pills. “Take these. They’re fever reducers. They should help. And they should help with the achiness, too.”

Leo let Raph help him sit up—although he really didn’t need the help. He just knew it made Raph, made any of them, feel better, as if they were helping—and took the pills, using the tea to swallow them. Don nodded, satisfied with that, and then held out some water.

“Drink some of this. Swish it all around,” he said. Not knowing why, exactly, Leo did as Don said, taking a few drinks of the water and swishing it around in his mouth. Don seemed to be satisfied and held a small Petrie dish to him. “Good. Now spit in this.”

“Ew!” Mikey said.

Don shot him an exasperated look. “I have to see what he’s sick from, Mikey, and this should give me something to look at without having to draw blood. Unless you’d rather me do that,” he said, addressing the last part towards Leo.

“I would not,” Leo said, cutting off whatever it was Mikey was about to say. He spat in Don’s Petrie dish and leaned back against Raph.

Splinter hummed as Don stood up with the Petrie dish in hand, heading towards his lab. “Michelangelo. Switch places with Raphael,” Splinter said.

“But—my soup, Sensei!” Mikey protested.

“I will finish your soup, my son. You said that all it needs to do is simmer for another half hour, correct?” Splinter said.

“No, Sensei,” Mikey said, already trading places with Raph. Leo relaxed back into his little brother. “I said that it needs to simmer for another half-hour and then the lime juice and corn need to be added to it. I think. I’m kinda making it up as I go.”

Splinter nodded. “I will follow your directions, then, my son, but I believe that you are more needed here.”

Mikey looked at Leo, and Leo tried not to look embarrassed at all. Apparently, he was still an easy read to his father. Splinter knew that after that dream, Leo wanted Mikey close.

“Yeah,” Mikey said after a moment. “Yeah, okay. Can do, Sensei.”

Splinter nodded. “Raphael. Come with me. I have tasks for you.”

“You got it, Master Splinter,” Raph said, following Splinter.

For a moment, it was quiet, everyone scattered to work on a task, and Leo simply laid there, his head resting in Mikey’s lap as the two turtles watched the televisions. Leo shivered again, and Mikey immediately took notice.

“Are you cold?” he asked. He was already reaching over, pulling the blanket back up around Leo and tucking it around him. “Is that better?”

Leo hummed. “Yeah. Thanks Mikey.” Leo snuggled into the blanket it, its warmth enveloping him. It was only a thin blanket, but it was far better than nothing, and it worked well enough. Besides, Mikey was warm, and that helped. “Hey Mikey?” Leo asked, waiting until he had an acknowledgement from his brother. “Sorry.”

Mikey blinked down at Leo, his attention taken completely away from the TV where Lucy was getting in a fight in a wine press. “Sorry?” he parroted. “Sorry for what?”

Leo shifted a bit. “Sorry for freaking out when I woke up,” he explained.

“Dude. There’s no reason to apologize for that,” Mikey said. “How many times did I wake you up just to make sure you weren’t possessed by that creepy tentacle monster? I get it, no worries.”

Leo hummed. “Still,” he said. “I’m sorry. And thanks. For letting me check, I mean. And maybe sacrificing your soup.”

Mikey made a dismissing noise. “Nah, it’s all cool. Besides, I can always make the soup again!” Mikey moved his hand around to lay on Leo’s forehead and frowned a bit. “Here—lemme put a washcloth on your head. You’re still pretty hot.”

Mikey shifted around, dunking the washcloth in the water and wringing it out one handed. He placed it on Leo’s forehead and, despite Leo feeling cold, the cold cloth felt good to him. It was just more evidence that he was sick, he supposed. Leo hummed in thanks, but didn’t move, letting his mind drift as more I Love Lucy played on the TV. He looked up when he felt an extra weight, only to see Raph putting a heavier blanket over him. He gestured for Leo to lift his head, and he put a pillow on Mikey’s lap, making it more comfortable for Leo. Mikey let Raph do as he wanted, and then put his hand back on Leo’s shell, rubbing it through the blankets. Leo relaxed into it, content, for the moment, to just be. He watched as Splinter came around, putting a fresh cup of tea on the coffee table, and taking a moment to change Leo’s washcloth. It wasn’t long after that that, when Don came out of his lab, offering two more pills for Leo to take. Raph was almost constantly checking on him. Mikey just rubbed his shell, and softly churred.

Leo stayed on the couch with Mikey, finally starting to relax and content to let his family move around him. He drifted in and out of sleep, stirring occasionally. Some time he woke for decent periods of time. He woke long enough to eat some of the soup that Mikey had fixed, complimenting both him and Splinter on it. He listened to Don as his brother declared that Leo had the flu, and that they should all probably be watching themselves for signs of it too. He drank the tea that Splinter gave him, not complaining about the medicinal taste.

But there were other times when he was only somewhat aware of what was going on around him. He murmured his thanks when he felt Raph change the washcloth on his forehead. He blearily followed Don’s instructions to take his temperature. He laid lethargically on whoever was sitting with him, not bothering to move when they switched out, but instead letting them maneuver him around. Even though he was sick and felt terrible, there was something comforting about just letting go and trusting that he would be taken care of. It reminded him of when he was a child, before he knew just what the upper world could be like.

His brothers and father all took turns sitting with him. Sometimes they read to him, sometimes they watched something, and sometimes someone sang. Don had a wonderful singing voice that he hardly ever used, except, sometimes, when they were sick. Master Splinter singing to them was always comforting, remind them of when they were tots and he would do the same. But if Splinter couldn’t sing to them, Don was the next best thing, all the brothers agreed.

Still, it wasn’t all comfort and ease. As the flu progressed, Leo’s fever fluctuated, his aches came in waves, and his head often hurt. It didn’t help that the sleep he did get was punctuated with nightmares. More than once, he had woken up in a panic, fears and distress clinging to him as he struggled to differentiate his dreams from reality. The worst ones weren’t the ones where he failed his family, or where someone was hurt or killed because of something he did or didn’t do. The worst ones were the ones where it was a mission or adventure that they had been on that had been successful, but in the dream, through nothing but bad luck or a wrong step, a brother or Splinter or a friend was horribly injured or killed. The images stuck with him, and he often needed to see whoever it was to help him calm down.

Mikey didn’t move forward enough, and the last buzzsaw got him as they moved through Shredder’s tower.

Don was hit by a shot from the Utrom, hard enough to throw him into another room, but this time it had burned a hole through his plastron and Don wasn’t just addled when they got him—he was dead.

The wasp’s stinger got Raph, but it was more than a paralytic. There was nothing they could do as the poison coursed through Raph, shutting down his systems one by one.

Hun grabbed April, ripping her away from Leo, and Leo had a front-row seat as Hun crushed her throat.

The Triceritons sent Casey and April tumbling off of Casey’s bike, and a second shot left Casey dead.

Splinter was right where Leo left him, but too badly injured. There was nothing they could do for him, except be with him in the end.

Don’s body, breathing, but lifeless, with a helmet left on it, lying in front of Prime Leader Zanramon.

Mikey and Donnie, frozen in the back of a truck, displayed like animals.

Raph, blind, unable to see ever again, his future uncertain.

Splinter, held hostage by Bishop, and them arriving too late to save him.

Leatherhead, taken down by a hunter who didn’t care that his prey could talk.

Angel, killed in retribution for leaving the Purple Dragons.

Splinter not getting to Don’s side in time, and Bishop’s strike with Leo’s own sword taking Don’s arm off.

The ceiling of their first lair crashing down on Don, trapping him while the rest of their home collapsed around them.

Robot Splinter managing to slip under their defenses, killing them.

Over and over again, the scenarios played out in the worst way possible. These nightmares left him shaken and gasping, feeling an all-consuming need to do something to protect these people that he cared about. They haunted him, eating into his ability to rest. Donnie was, surprisingly, the most effective at helping him move past these moments. He would often comfort Leo and lead him through a sort of grounding technique, helping him to remember clearly what had and hadn’t happened, and move past the need to jump up right then to check on whoever had been featured in that dream.

Leo had a feeling that there was something about that that he should follow up on, but at that moment he was too sick to parse through it. He’d come back to it after he was better.

It was week of misery and Don insisting that he drink lots of fluids, but eventually his fever broke, and Don declared him officially on the mend. That, of course, didn’t mean that he was just allowed up and around right away. No, he was still recovering, and for that his family seemed to firmly insist that he stay on the couch.

Leo didn’t mind so much.

Still, he was more than glad when he was allowed to return to training. He’d slept that night in his room, fresh sheets on the bed courtesy of Raph. When he woke up that morning, it was after a full night’s rest. He turned off his alarm and stretched, swinging his legs out of bed, not feeling the need to crawl back under the blankets or to sleep just a little bit longer. The floor was its usual slightly cool feeling, but nothing out of the ordinary, and Leo quickly pulled on his mask and pads, grabbing his swords as he stepped out of his room and into the lair.

No one else was awake yet, which was how Leo preferred it. The lair felt warm and cozy, even in the quiet of the morning, and Leo took a second to stretch more before he jumped down to the lower level, heading towards the bathroom. He landed lightly, and went in, quickly taking care of washing his face and preparing for the day. That didn’t take long, and on silent feet he made his way into the kitchen.

Leo quickly got the kettle, checking it and adding water to it. Humming to himself, he turned an eye on and sat the kettle on it. He prepared a cup for himself and one for Splinter, and then turned his attention to the coffee machine. It didn’t take long before he had the coffee going for Raph and Don. He turned his attention then, to making himself something light to eat for breakfast. He was no chef, but he could scramble a couple of eggs. He was in the process of doing that when something caught his attention, and he smiled a bit.

“Moring, Raph,” he said, knowing his brother was there before he could say anything. “Sleep well?”

Raph paused for a second, but grunted something that sounded like a positive answer, and headed straight for the coffee pot. Leo finished his eggs and set the pan aside for someone else to use. The kettle cheerfully whistled, and Leo took it off the eye, pouring some of the hot water over his tea leaves. He turned down the heat, set the kettle back on it, and then took his plate and tea to the table, settling into his customary place. It wasn’t long before Raph joined him as well.

The two sat in companionable silence, until Leo, without even looking up from his tea said, “Morning, Donnie.”

“Nnngh… coffee…” was Don’s only response, and Leo couldn’t help but smile a little at it.

Don, though, paused on his way to the coffee pot and turned, squinting at Leo. He stared for a second, then nodded. “Good,” he said, and gave no further context than that. Raph and Leo exchanged an amused look.

Don got his coffee and sat down heavily at the table with it, pulling a notepad and pencil out of his belt, staring at it before starting to scribble on it.

“Here comes Mikey,” Leo said as the youngest burst into the kitchen.

“Goooood morning family!” Mikey said “This feels like an energy drink and pancakes day! Where’s the Mrs. Buttersworth?”

“Mikey you know both of those are terrible for you, right?” Don said.

“You only live once, bro!” Mikey said. “I intend to enjoy it!”

Don sighed, but said nothing further, concentrating on his notepad. Mikey put the radio on some obnoxiously loud pop station, Raph growling under his breath about it and getting up to change it. A small scuffle between the two started, Don expertly ducking a glob of pancake batter that flew past him. Shaking his head, Don got up and reached for a packet of instant oatmeal.

“If you two break it, I’m not fixing it this time,” Don said.

Raph and Mikey paused, looked at each other, and somehow miraculously agreed on a light rock station.

“Good morning, my sons,” Splinter greeted as he walked in. The boys murmured their greetings back, even as Mikey reached over and snapped the eye under the kettle higher. “I see it has already been an eventful morning,” he said, eyeing the pancake batter.

“Ah—sorry, Master Splinter!” Mikey said. “I’ll clean it up!”

Raph had broken away from Mikey and was reaching for the cereal.

“Good, Michelangelo. And I am positive that Raphael will be willing to help you.”

Raph froze, but then sighed. “Yes, Master Splinter,” he said.

The kitchen was a hub of life, with everyone moving around, fixing themselves food or cleaning. It was a normal, noisy morning for all of them and Leo settled back into it, enjoying the chaos for what it was.

It didn’t take long for breakfast to finish, though, and for training to start. It was an easier session than most, but Leo was pleased to find that he was able to concentrate well on it. Meditation wasn’t a struggle, nor was anything else. And although he ached when he finished, it was simply the ache of a good workout and not anything more.

As they all laid on the floor, breathing hard, Leo couldn’t help but compare this to over a week ago, when he had been sore, achy, tired, and sick. Even laying here, tired, he felt leagues better than he had then.

“Hey, Leo.”

Leo clued back into the conversation when Raph called him name. “Hm?”

“You ever finish that book?” Raph asked him. “I finished my series when I was babysitting you.”

“Actually, yes,” Leo said. “I’m onto the second one now.”

“The one I told you about?” Don asked. “It’s good, isn’t it?”

“Which one?” Mikey asked.

“Howl’s Moving Castle by Diane Wynn Jones,” Don responded.

Mikey sprang up. “What no way!” he said. “I wonder if it’s the same as the movie that came out in Japan!”

“There’s a movie?” Leo asked, also rolling to his feet.

“No, nuh-uh. No movie until I’ve read this book,” Raph said as he got up. “I wanna read it first.”

“Don’t worry about that, Raph,” Don said, already heading towards his computer. “I’ve got see if I can find it online anywhere, first.”

“Dude—I can absolutely help with that!” Mikey said, bounding over to join Don.

“If you send me to anymore sites with viruses on them—” Don threatened.

Leo looked over at Raph. “Give me a minute. I’ll go get it and my book, too.”

Raph nodded. “Sounds good.”

He headed towards the kitchen while Leo jumped up to the second level, heading to his room to grab the books. By the time he returned, Raph was sitting some tea for Leo and a coke for himself on the coffee table. Leo passed the book over, and settled in with Castle in the Air, the second in the series, both brothers quickly falling into their reading for the next couple of hours.

“Score! We found it!”

Mikey’s voice broke through. “Hey, Raphie! How much more you got?”

Raph looked at his book. “Uh… I’m about one third of the way through.”

“Excellent,” Don said. “You keep reading, and I’ll work on downloading this and cleaning it up a bit. By tonight, you should be finished, and we should be ready to watch.”

“We should totally sub this and put it up on some of the streaming sites,” Mikey said to Don. “You know it’d get mad views.”

Leo smiled to himself as Raph lost himself in the book, and Mikey and Don argued the finer points of their fansubbing translating endeavors. He was warm. He was comfortable. His family was around him. No one was in danger or hurt or sick. He let out a contented sigh and settled back with his book. Life was good, and this was exactly what he wanted.

“Hey, Donnie?”

“Yeah, Mikey?”

“Is it a little cold in here, or is that just me?”

#tmntwritefight #tmntwritefight fic #tmnt #tmnt 2003 #tmnt leonardo #drebspells2022 #Mackself #azucar-skull

13 notes · View notes