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afreakingdork · 7 months

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Weak Spot - Chapter 38

RotTMNT Donatello x Reader

Chapter art by the INCREDIBLE @garbagemilkshake

Warnings: Aged-up Turtles, Romance, Meet Cute, Villain Donatello, Cussing, Crushes, Xenophobia, Fear, Intimidation, Implied/Referenced Suicide, Hurt/Comfort, Love, AFAB Reader, Vaginal Sex, Sex Rough, Sex, Penis In Vagina Sex, Creampie, Teasing, Scent Kink, Sexual Tension, Breeding Kink, Multiple Orgasms, Cunnilingus, Fellatio, Marathon Sex, Somnophilia, Intercrural Sex, Bondage, Feral Behavior, Feral Donatello (TMNT), Mating Cycles/In Heat, Public Sex

Synopsis: A love story of villainous proportions! Though it hadn’t come easily, as these things rarely do, you found yourself in a whirlwind romance with a handsome and mysterious mutant. His idiosyncrasies had been easy to ignore as attraction grew into something more. However, will love endure when the unknowns about him end up being far darker than you ever considered?

Warnings Below Cut.

Also available on Ao3

First 💜 Previous

Warnings: mentions of domestic abuse and kidnapping

Please keep yourself safe.

“Okay.” Across from you, your ex-roommate, Coral, pressed her fingertips to the table.

From where you were sitting at the same wired structure, you glanced around the café without moving your head. She’d recommended getting coffee before officially hitting the farmer’s market and meeting up with the others. It hadn’t struck you as odd since your schedules hadn’t substantially sunk up since Donnie’s heat, but now, seeing her as ready as someone about to make a business deal, you were on edge. “Okay…?”

Your drinks hadn’t even arrived yet.

“First off, safe space. I already took your phone.”

“You-?” Hands flying down to check you found your left wrist empty. “Coral…”

“Your weird bracelet also wigged me out.”

“Coral!” You seethed, taking your turn at putting your hands to the table, albeit with more force.

“I know.” She flicked her gaze up to meet yours.

Seeing only severe honesty there, you wilted with a partial scowl. “You stole my shit. What do you mean safe space?”

“I want you to know he’s not listening in.”

“Who?”

She gave a heady sigh and took a languid look around. “Do you ever feel followed?”

That was a mounting concern, but not one you’d shared with her. “No.”

She passed you a glance in turning her head before sweeping a hand back through her unruly locks.

There was something telegraphed about the move that had you narrowing your eyes. “What was that?”

“All clear.” She responded easily.

Spine straightening, you spun around in your seat and combed the same area. At first glance, nothing was out of place, but as you started to examine the New Yorkers, you caught a glimpse of Kaleb from behind a newspaper. “They’re all here, aren’t they?”

“Yes, we set up a perimeter.”

“What the fuck!?” You snapped back to her so fast your body hadn’t quite caught up with the rotation. “What is this?!”

“It’s not-” Coal stopped and beamed a smile.

You soured knowing it was a café worker before they even spoke.

“Here’s your drinks! Let me know if you need anything else.” With a parting peppy voice, two ceramic mugs were set down on the table.

Coral scooped hers up and took a sip.

From where you’d unconsciously hunched over yours, you examined her through your lashes. All she needed was a hat, sunglasses, and a Parisian backdrop and she’d be something out of a travel ad. “Cor.”

She finished off a long gulp and set her mug back down on a saucer. “It’s not an intervention.”

“Explaining what it’s not doesn’t say anything about what it is!”

“I just want you to know you’re safe.”

“I don’t feel like it! You took my phone and-” You stopped short and bit down on a grimace. You’d never even named your tech gauntlet and now certainly wasn’t the time to start. “-my bracelet. Do you know what a huge invasion of privacy that-?”

“I need you to know he’s not listening in.”

“Who!?” The only person who could was S.H.E.L.L.D.O.N. and he had your full trust. More often than not these days, he rarely tapped in unless you gave him a signal or your vitals indicated something.

“I passed it off after we ordered. Nels has it and he’s the furthest away.”

“You’re…!” You felt crazed. Wild eyes looked through the reflections of the café window. “I know you’ve messed with my shit a lot over the years and I should have put my foot down, Coral, but this is-!”

“I know.”

Her harsh words cutting straight through to your core caused you to give an exhausted slow blink. Coming open you took a sip of your drink and spoke against its rim. “The others wouldn’t be playing along without good reason.”

“There you are.”

“I didn’t go anywhere.” You grumbled, finishing a swig. Coming down, you clanked your mug. “So not an intervention. What then? You’re acting like I died.”

“You almost did.”

“This again, Coral, I already explained-!”

She slapped the metal of the table so hard your hand shot out to stabilize your mug.

She let hers slosh. “I’m going to come right out and ask; I just want you to take a moment and not react right away when I do, fair?”

You stared at her and threw a helpless hand up. You let it gesture to go ahead before it fell back to the metal with a plop that stung.

“Has Donatello hurt you?”

She hadn’t needed the warning.

Even without her input, you would have slowed.

Giving a sigh, you propped an elbow to the table and fiddled with your mug’s handle.

This wasn’t the first time she had brought this up. During the multiple times you’d come home bruised and battered, she’d hinted heavily that she thought it was his fault. In the many ways you’d twisted it, they’d all been believable enough and she’d let the whole thing lie. The change that must have recently cinched it for her was your withdrawal. Seemingly out of nowhere, in her eyes, you’d stopped hanging out with the group as a whole. Cursing the blue idiot who’d pushed you to do so you shook your head. “No.”

Coral didn’t move a muscle, but it was clear she didn’t believe you.

“Cor-”

“Then who?” Her voice was hindered.

“I told you-”

“You told me something, but that wasn’t the truth, was it?”

Looking away would admit guilt, so you closed your lips around circling the same excuse.

“I just…” She broke first, gaze shooting away with a flash of picked at wounds. “It’s not me. I have to believe that; that it’s not that you don’t feel comfortable in telling me, so what then? There’s something preventing you from being honest. This all started when he came around so it has to be him. That’s why I got the phone away and that weird communicator; in case he’s listening.”

How’d she know you could communicate with it? “He’s not.”

“Then why?” Her gaze returned with glistening eyes, but she buried them to drain her mug. Slamming it down, she regained her cool and steadied her shaking fingertips in straightening ceramic. “Sorry, guilt’s not a way to go about it. I’m supposed to make you feel safe; sorry about that.”

It wasn’t new.

You’d never once missed her worry.

She was obvious about everything she did.

What struck you in that moment was the separation.

You’d forgotten that since moving out, she didn’t have the same access to you.

What she’d gotten instead were bits and pieces filtered through digital means. You’d gone from living together to barely seeing each other where life interfered. The worries she had already had must have rotted her away in that time. She didn’t have the same reassurances of seeing your highs. It’s not like you took to a messenger to scream when you were living it up. Being immersed in elation was often done in the moment. It was when you were down and lonely that you reached out. It perfectly coincided with your hike of messages. You’d stopped going out the same time you tripled your online presence. It indicated something she had no way of knowing.

All her messages asking how you were took on a new light.

“I won’t… do anything.” She gave a chuff that looked like it hurt. “That’s saying something, but I swear I won’t. If we need to get you away, we have a whole smuggling plan that’s admittedly half baked. He may be a mutant, but there’s way more of us.”

You softened sadly.

She took the look with a nervous flick over your features and stumbled on. “You might feel trapped, but I want you to know that’s not the case. We’re all here for you. I didn’t bully everyone… mostly. Okay, I bullied them a little bit, but you know they wouldn’t let my ass have free reign.”

You nodded.

“What I’m trying to say is… and I’m not trying to read into things, but that look kinda makes it seem like there’s no other way, but there is. I need you to hear that there always is.” She turned up the bearing of her soul to stare into your eyes.

You had to tell her.

At this point, why hadn’t you?

She was crazy, but she also loved you.

You loved her.

You probably would have needed to assemble your friends the same way to break it to her though.

That was just her nature.

“Coral.”

She nodded, clearly wanting to spew more of her research, but kept a tight lip.

“I haven’t been honest with you and I want to say it was for good reason, but right now… seeing you like this… I’m not so sure…”

Her fingers squeezed her mug handle.

You reached out and laid your hand out on the table, palm upright.

Her appendage dropped right into it.

You squeezed, once for reassurance. “It’s my turn. I’m going to say something and you’re going to wait before you respond.” The second constriction was to drive your point home.

She scoffed, but there was a warbled quality to it before she gave a nod.

“Two of the times were Donnie, but not in the way you would think.” You had to look away as nerves reared their heads.

Even if you had decided to explain, that didn’t mean you weren’t mortified by the prospect.

You were as sex positive as the next person, but society's shame ran deep.

She pinched your index finger to alert you that she’d heard.

The fact that she was holding back spoke volumes.

Returning your gaze, your bottom lip curled.

“The… first time, early on? When I was having trouble walking…?”

She was watching you with open intention, taking everything in earnest.

You wanted to bury yourself in a hole. “Ugh.” Lowering your head you reached your free hand up to rub your temples. “Just say it.” You brought your head up and mustered courage. “There’s a learning curve to human-mutant sex that neither of us accounted for.”

Though her eyes were still trained on you the same way, they seemed to lose their luster.

“I wasn’t hurt, but I did… need to heal…” Your teeth flashed as your anxiety fizzled out.

“You literally couldn’t walk.”

That had two connotations. “Yeah…”

“I know I pestered you about his dick, but… come on!”

You let her hand go and shook it out as if she burned you. “There’s more, can you not… get into that so soon!?”

“Is it more sex stuff?”

“Coral!”

“Eugh! It is!!” She laughed, threading her digits into knots of metal. “I mean, get it, but I was worried over that!?”

Your palms were pressing into your lids before you realized it. “There’s more. Can you-!?”

“You’re right, you’re right. Your humiliation fuels me. Keep going.”

“The second injuries… are harder to explain so let’s wait, but I will say they are not from Don at all, okay?”

She nodded.

“The most recent…” With your lips still parted a weird noise came out like a creaking door. You pressed your tongue to the roof of your mouth to silence it before trying again. “That was the worst one, right? I disappeared. Car crash… my dead… relative…?”

“I could smell that bullshit a mile away considering you didn’t immediately know which.”

“I thought you were being a little too cool about that…” You gave an awkward laugh.

As if to scorn you for even trying to inject comedy into the situation, Coral folded her arms.

“To be fair, this was totally new for Donnie too. None of us knew this was going to happen.”

She arched her brow. “Quick question.”

You were almost thankful for the small reprieve. “Yeah?”

“Us makes it sound like there’s someone else.”

You shrank a little in your seat. “There… uh… is…”

Her brow only rose higher and seemed to cause her head to tilt with the weight of it.

“Another shelf, just temporarily… When I start to explain it, it’ll come together-” The reality of the content begged to differ, but you had to force that sense away. “So Donnie… well… he went into heat.”

“Like a dog.” She spoke without missing a beat.

“Not… not like a dog…?” You squeaked out, hating that you’d used a double negative.

There wasn’t a trace of anything you could glean from Coral’s features.

“It lasted roughly 8 total days and you can kinda… guess… what… happened…”

“No.”

You rose to look at her, sheepish, until you saw her expression.

“What I know is I couldn’t fucking get ahold of you. Threats that you were dead and you’re sitting here, telling me you were just getting fucked?”

You bobbed with a reflexive tightening in your thigh. “Y-yeah… I didn’t….”

“Didn’t what?!”

“If we move to the second time-”

“I don’t think we’re done with this one!”

“Coral…”

“No, don’t say my fucking name. What the fuck are you even saying right now?! Do you know how worried I was?!”

You could only quiet.

“You couldn’t message?! I was stranded!! My bank locked me out and then I couldn’t get a hold of anyone! You know the only person I could!? Your stupid fucking boyfriend! Why couldn’t you!?”

“That wasn’t really…”

“That wasn’t…!” She stopped short, stooping over the table. “Who’s the third person?”

“S.H.E.L.L.D.O.N… sort of… interfered.”

“Who the fuck is Sheldon?!”

“Donnie’s… son…?”

“His…” She blinked wide and looked around as if there might be cameras even though she’d set this whole thing up. “He has a son now! Wow!”

“S.H.E.L.L.D.O.N. isn’t… exactly what you… might be picturing…”

“What the fuck does that mean?! What does any of this mean, Y/N!?”

People around were starting to stare.

You didn’t care.

She certainly didn’t.

She never did.

“Coral, Donnie is…”

“I knew he was fucking weird, but it seemed like he genuinely loved you, but right now I’m second guessing relying on that! Who the fuck can live off love!? That’s literally a thing! You can’t!!!”

“Donatello is a villain.”

Coral came to a statuesque halt with both hands raised at different heights like a scale.

You gave your mug a cursory push knowing full well you’d never get to enjoy the rest of your drink.

Coming down for her was similar to breaking free of Medusa’s magic. Cracks of hardened rock flaked off as her arms wobbled down. Catching fingers on the table to prevent a complete fall, she hung her head just enough so she could still watch you.

There you saw the flurry of math flying around her head before the equation came out, solved for x. “He’s the Lilac Lunatic.”

You gave a faint nod.

Stupid monikers.

There was no end to them.

“Ha…” She managed a single laugh before falling back into her seat so hard it came off two of its legs. “He’s a… He’s a…” She wasn’t stammering.

Your head started to bob in time.

“What isn’t he!? Fuck, Y/N! Do you know-?” Distress filtered through a broken sieve and soaked her. “You know exactly how bad it is.”

You continued to nod, now rocking.

“You’re still together.”

You were almost seasick.

“You said… ‘is’ as in he still is?”

Capsize was imminent.

Something changed.

You felt it in the air and it was enough to stop you from shaking.

Across from you, Coral seemed pained. She gave a bitter sigh before offering her hand on the table the same way you had. She couldn’t bring herself to watch, but you deposited your appendage the same way she did.

She continued the mimic with two squeezes.

One reassuring, one viscous.

You told her everything.

The tale was condensed and instead filled in the spaces that had been seen or misconstrued for her. Coral interrupted several times with bitter remarks, but was able to shove herself back into line without much complaint from you. You didn’t try to convince her; she was always going to make her own conclusions. You simply told the truth. No matter what the outcome was here, you were at least sure of one thing: you weren’t leaving Donnie.

It didn’t make you worry any less as she started to grow more silent as the tale went on. You hoped it was simply shellshock, but with Coral anything was possible. Catching up with the present and having just shared your worries about when Leo might show up again, your ex-roommate gave a faraway nod. She then scrubbed a hand down her face and looked out across the street. It was where Kaleb was, but she hadn’t thrown any obvious cues that she'd alerted him of anything. She instead seemed to be processing and swept to you after such a long time that you’d almost forgotten you were waiting. “You weren’t abused at least.”

You had to laugh. The air had been so thick; the absurdity caused you to giggle as if inhaling gas. “Nope.”

“What the fuck!” She drew out the plosive and tossed her head back to look at the sky. “You’ve been dealing with all that, alone?”

“Kin…da…? It wasn’t always lonely. There were times though.”

“Yeesh!” She hollered and then came down. “I’m… gonna have to think about all this.”

You gave a sharp nod.

“You love him though, like a lot?”

“Absolutely.”

“How much?”

“The ‘spend the rest of my life with’ kind.”

Coral blew out a breath and came back with a lopsided grin. “He treats you good?”

“Oh yeah, he’s terrified of losing me.”

“ Keep it that way.” She tapped her mug twice. “Ugh, I need ice cream. You’re buying now that I know you aren’t hurt.”

“Hey!”

“What?!” She stood and loomed over you. “Want to talk back!? After all the lies!?”

You shrank down and shot your gaze away. “No…”

“That’s what I thought.”

“About the others…”

“We’ll tell ‘em one day, not soon.”

“You… sure?” You took a step out following where she’d freed herself from the table. “Wouldn’t that prolong the lie? I was ready for this to be a whole day reveal.”

“I personally can’t handle that much honesty, so let’s stick with just us. They’ll survive.” She did a half moon sweep. “If we aren’t 100% sure about each of them, Donnie might end up with like 12 life sentences if what the tabloids said he’s done are true.” Head barely towards you, she peeked out the corner of her eye to see.

You gave a zippy nod that you hoped conveyed you weren’t alright with his transgressions.

“Geez, that dick must be something.”

“That’s not why!” You huffed. “I regret telling you about the sex more than lying!!”

She barked with laughter.

Clicking your tongue, you headed towards Kaleb with her trailing behind.

“I-I-” She choked, wiping her eyes. “I wanna meet your kid though.”

“S.H.E.L.L.D.O.N.?”

“Yeah, I’m gonna make him pay.” She cracked her knuckles.

Reaching your chill friend, you steeled yourself for reintroduction. “Good luck with that. Knowing him, he’ll want to meet you, no fear.”

“Plankton didn’t mess with him, did he?” Coral oozed menace even though she’d just threatened the party she was now defending.

“How are you guys talking about Spongebob?” Kaleb huffed, folding his paper under his arm like an old man.

“Because I’m safe and sound.” You chirped, coming to a stop with a rock of your body.

“Yes! Hug time!” Kaleb swooped in and picked you off of your feet before you could say anything.

Balanced against his belly, he spun you around before setting you down.

“I told you!” He released and pointed an accusatory finger at Coral. “My Colonel would never!!”

She backhanded his digit away. “Better safe than sorry.” She shot you a smarmy look.

“I’ll buy you ice cream!” You croaked.

“It went like that, huh?” Kaleb bobbed knowingly.

“Like what!?” Nels’ nervous voice picked up.

Others were filtering in, like your phone-obsessed friend, Eugene, who was aptly scrolling as he joined the foray.

Coral stalked around Eugene like a predator and leaped at Nelson who screamed in outright terror.

It broke the tension of the group and gave everyone the cue that things were good. It saved multiple conversations dragging the same point and everyone headed towards the farmer’s market. Having been at least an hour over from your appointed time, the stalls were gaining various lines. Splintering off near immediately as people didn’t want to lose their spots, you joked at how the supposed meet-up was going well. You were scoffed at in a show of love that filled your chest with a warmth you imagined would last for days.

Stuck with Coral and her choosy nature, she kept dismissing stalls on a search for ice cream. Mourning your lost drink, you were peckish and losing patience with whatever she was looking for. She kept saying she’d know it when she saw it and you didn’t know that meant until she threw an arm out like a safety bar and it smacked you in the chest. “Hey!”

“This one! I want a Bomb Pop!” She pointed with glee.

“We could get that at any convenience store, why the hell would you want that from… here…?” Slowing, you took in the odd stall. Covered by a bright red tent, little aisles were set up to make it look like a bodega, except it was outside. “Why…?”

“It’s funny.” Coral chuckled. “You get the popsicle and whatever else you want and I’ll get you a drink from there.”

Following her thrown thumb, you saw a fancy drink place touting local ingredients straight across from the convenience store stall. “Okay, whatever…” You shook your head and the two of you parted.

Winding around cereal and Chef Boyardee, you tried to figure out who this particular stall was catering to. The nearest bodega was certainly only a couple blocks away at most so setting up something like this for whatever price the spot cost seemed ludicrous. Winding around one alley, you spied the shopkeep who could not care less about your existence. You ignored him all the same as you followed a line to where an ice cream cart was sitting in the back part of the stall. Further confused by its existence as you were sure you had seen it near Central Park, you rolled your eyes as you cracked it open.

Pleasantly cool air rushed out and fought against the summer heat. Sticky, but not miserable, you had once planned to fend this exact weather off by arriving at an early hour. Now you were in for discomfort and could only hope Coral got you something iced. Knowing she might very well not for kicks, you debated getting her the wrong iced treat. Also aware that you wouldn’t hear the end of it, you grabbed her popsicle along with a couple other options for your friends. Coming up from the ice box with chilled fingers, you heard several products fall and then a shout that made you fumble your pile.

“What did I tell you!?”

“S-sorry!”

Turning curiously, you watched as a red and green figure rose, towering above the aisles.

“And don’t you go tell your friends I was mutant-phobic! Word travels fast! Just like how I’ve heard how that tail of yours has been wreaking havoc all day!”

“Yessir. Sorry, sir.” Stepping out even though he was already clearly visible, you saw a bundle of spikes.

Going limp, all your ice cream hit the floor.

“No! What is going on? You pick those up!!” You could hear a slam as the shopkeeper smacked his counter.

“Raph.” You whispered to the air.

Said turtle had his tail bunched up in his arms. Errant spikes from it caught his hoodie where it seemed his daggered arms had completely shredded the sleeves. Crouched down in baggy basketball shorts with compression leggings underneath, he looked more ready for the gym than trying to gather all too small cans of cat food. “Uh… Hey, Y/N…”

“Wha…?” Your arms wouldn’t obey.

None of your body would.

You had never been this close to him.

He was unreasonably large.

He had to dwarf Donnie by at least a foot.

It wasn’t fair.

“Pick those up or I’ll report you!!!” The shopkeep roared.

Animated by nothing, you dropped to a squat and started to grab the ice cream. Raph appeared, done with his task and attempted to grab the furthest treat. It caused you to halt with curled fingers in fear of touching him. He didn’t seem perturbed and instead offered, “Sorry for scaring ya.”

“What are you doing here?” You hoisted your armful up and away from him.

“Ya know!” He quacked a little too loud. “Looking for ar-tisanal goods! I’m so into that and it’s totally not just Mikey’s thing!”

You stared at him flatly and turned to march straight toward the register.

You could hear Raph’s heavy steps chase you.

Shooting you both dirty looks, the man rang you up while muttering loudly about people messing up his shop. Only thinking how dumb that was since he had set up amongst the elements, you saw him package up all he had before he turned an annoyed look beside you. “Buddy, I don’t have all day!”

“Yeah, got it.” Raph responded and, from this proximity, you could hear the wane in his apologetic attitude.

The big guy had a limit.

Passing over the ice cream he’d gathered, the shopkeeper then turned a screen toward you so you could see the total. You went to get your wallet when you saw green extend beside you. Looking out of the corner of your eye, sweat cropped as you measured that Raph’s fist was larger than the whole of your head.

With a snatch, the shopkeeper stole a bill from green fingers.

“For startling you.” Raph said simply, watching the man with more patience leaking out from him by the second.

“No receipt.” The shopkeeper snapped before pinching the edges of a sack. You held a hand out to take it, but he dropped it early so it would plop on the counter.

Slighted by all means, you grabbed it and stomped out of the stall.

Heavy steps continued to follow you.

“What’s the plan here?!” You spun around and watched as a turtle nearly twice your size jolted like you’d scared him. “You gonna join up with my friends?! Hang out!?”

“No.” He got out with closed eyes before looking down at you with a battered expression. “That wasn’t the plan.”

You needed to keep your eyes on him, but at the same time you desperately had to look for Coral.

She had to see you.

It’s not like you weren’t standing next to a Statue of Liberty look alike.

Trying to strain out your periphery, you didn’t see her messy locks at the drink stand.

“Why can’t you just leave us alone!?”

Raph looked struck by your words and then softened apologetically for the second time.

“What did you do with my friend!?”

“Y/N, listen…” Raph’s hands came up.

“No!!” You took a step back, readying to swing your ice cream as the only weapon you had. “I’m tired of this! I’m tired of living in fear! You’re fucking stalking me and I didn’t do a damn thing!! Leave me alone!!!!”

Raph’s eye darted. “Y/N, you need to be quiet… I was hoping we could chat…”

“Fuck you!” You swung your bag and Raph took a step back to dodge it. “I’m not going anywhere with you!!!”

“You need to be quiet. People are taking notice.” Raph’s head was in motion.

“Uh duh! I want them to notice! I’m calling stranger danger!” Chancing it, you spun around and saw nothing but a blur of faces. Their whispers reached you, but not a single one was familiar.

There were six of you.

Where had your friends gone?

“I’m not saying this for me.” Raph spoke, stern, and took a step forward.

You screamed and swung your bag again, but it disappeared into a disc of glowing blue light.

Your stomach dropped.

“Told you.” Leo huffed to your right.

Color fading with your blood pressure, you turned to nothing. Carried by intuition, your gaze rose to find the blue turtle sitting on the point of the stall cover as if it were any old bench. Contrasting his brother, his crisp blue jeans popped against the red and a simple white tee was covered in a brown bomber jacket. Tipping his head down to see you over his aviators, his blue ball cap shaded him from the sun.

“I had it. You just can’t wait one second, can you?” Raph turned his scorn toward his brother.

“Was it going to be before or after the police were called?” Leo folded his hands on top of the sword hilt held in front of him.

“Before! Clearly!” Raph’s arms mirrored the movie without a weapon.

“Whatever, April got the jammer going anyway.” Leo rolled his eyes to stand. “Let’s go.”

“Yeah.” Your voice was too damn small. “Go.”

Leo lit up and then leaped into the air. Losing him to the harsh sunlight, you winced until there was a loud slap of him landing on the concrete between you and his brother. You stumbled backward as he came up with his swords dangling by his sides. “I think you misunderstand.”

Staring at the near manic expression on Leo’s face, you turned to Raph with one of incomprehension. “You can’t mean…! Not with me? You can’t seriously think I’ll go with you?!”

Leo twisted a sword and thrust his hand through a newly formed portal. Before you could register what was happening, he snatched up your bag and brought it to him.

“This is what I was trying to tell ya.” Raph caught Leo’s shoulder and yanked him with crinkling plastic. “You have a choice!”

“In what?” You squawked.

“Were you gonna eat all this yourself?” Leo peaked in the bag and let his brother shove him further out of the way.

“We can talk, you and me, or we do it Leo’s way.” Raph explained.

“Oh sweet, Rocket Pop! Dibs!”

“That’s not-!” You hissed.

“Yours!” Raph scolded, snatching the bag away and pinching Leo’s arm from where he was trying to rummage through it.

“Sheesh!” Leo rubbed the spot and sauntered away like it was his idea.

“Here.” Raph held out the bag.

“Why?” You didn’t move.

“It’s… yours…?” Raph wondered with a creased brow.

“No, why do I have to talk to either of you? Why is it a decision? I don’t owe you anything.”

Raph’s canine appeared as he sucked in sharply. Digging into his lower lip, he opened and closed his mouth twice before continuing. “We’re concerned.”

“You are or he is?” You spat with a flick of your gaze to Leo.

The blue turtle was perusing cereals and only bobbed his shoulders at the mention of his name.

“We…” Raph winced as if knowing what he was saying was wrong. “…decided as a group that based on the nature of your relationship…” He glanced at Leo and then back. “…which we’d find out… organically, that we’d have a few outcomes…”

“Do you hear yourself?”

“Oh, yeah!” Raph brightened. “Mind Raph is way too loud to ignore.”

You could only stare back and feel the way your lips were parted in disgruntled confusion.

“He’s no’rong.” Leo mumbled through a mouthful of cereal.

“Hey!!!” The shopkeeper shouted.

You sent a plea to the man which fell on deaf ears.

“Yeah, buddy, relax!” Leo swallowed harshly. “I was gonna pay! Ever heard of a hero’s discount? This city, I swear!” Stomping away, Leo entered the stall.

Raph rushed to close the space.

Your hands flew to your person where you drowned in a new sense of dread.

Coral still had your phone and tech gauntlet.

You weren’t sure it would have mattered based on the whole jammer thing Leo had mentioned.

Leo also lied.

Often and always.

Hands sliding down your hips in defeat, you were confronted by the girth and height of Raph’s form. “Ah!”

“No, no!” Raph held out the ice cream. “I can explain. I want to explain. I know how scary this all is. Please.”

You stared at the handles only imagining how Raph could enclose his fist around the expanse of your arm and meet the elbow.

“You do not want to do this Leo’s way.” Raph dropped his voice and shook the bag in time.

It was a move that struck you as a means to further cover his comment from sharp tympanum.

“What is his way?” You whispered back, knowing you didn’t have the same ability.

“He wants to-”

“Whatcha all talking about?” Leo appeared and you both jumped. “Tough crowd.”

“Why are you so damn determined to ruin the credibility of our team!?” Raph shouted suddenly. “We’ve been a cohesive unit for years and you’re throwing it away on obsession!”

The sincerity of Raph’s statement struck you, but you had no time to mull its significance as Leo grew dark enough to summon rain clouds. The weight of his blackened aura became so thick you thought you might suffocate on it. He then turned the brunt of that storm on his much taller brother, who seemed to dwarf under the weight of it. “Obsession?” Leo took a step forward where he was already too close. “Obsession. Me? You make it sound like I’m the only one who’s been here for the last two plus decades. For the death and the mayhem and the life threatening injuries and the fear of collapse and separation and rot! How we all rotted away!! How he poisoned each of us physically and mentally and how almost none of us fucking survived!!!!”

Leo jabbed a finger into Raph’s plastron and the red turtle wilted till he was nearly on his knees.

“That’s what I thought.” Leo kept his hand in place, but whipped his head around to you. “And now, he’s making a new move and everyone around me is acting like I’m the insane one when I know for a fact that this is a game. If we want to be players on the board. We need to grab the pieces.”

“T-there are people…!” Your voice shook and you listened.

Those whispers were still there.

People were still watching.

“You're just going to… what? Take me? In this crowd?”

“No.” Leo tipped his head and retracted his finger. He then shoved the box of cereal he’d bought into Raph’s chest for the red turtle to catch as he let go.

“There’s still a choice!” Raph snapped.

Leo took a commanding step towards you.

You tried to flee.

Your feet were cemented.

Looking down at them found that not to be true.

Nothing was keeping you.

By the time your gaze came back up, the blue turtle was upon you. “Did you want to talk to Raph?”

“You’d need to leave.” You tried to sound forceful, but there was something unhinged looming in him.

“Do you-” Bending at the waist, Leo’s head came beside yours. “-choose Raph?”

“Yes.” You wanted to kick him again, but something told you he wouldn’t fall for the same stunt twice.

“Yo’ve got ten minutes.” Leo straightened and strolled away.

Ten minutes to stall until your friends finally took notice.

Raph stared after Leo with a furrowed brow and then glowered down at the cereal he now also had to hold. “Y/N.”

“Just stop.” You held up a hand that said the same. “Why is he in charge? I don’t know, but you seem… way more reasonable.”

Raph juggled his items to free up a hand which he used to scratch the back of his head. “He wasn’t… always. Dad decided when we were young.”

Dad?

“All I can say is he’s making us look way worse than we are. I’m not saying we’re great, but we usually do earn the hero moniker. This…” Raph brought the arm back around and used it to gesture a spiral into the air. “…is some kinda trauma.”

“I get that.” You wrapped your arms around yourself.

“Would you want to sit down…?”

“I want to move and stand in the very center of the market with as many people around as possible.”

Raph’s teeth flashed in a way that said this was the best he could do.

“We stay right here.”

He nodded.

“What did you do to my friends?”

“They were… lured away by free prizes.” Raph sighed.

“How…?” You shook your head. “You know what? I don’t want to know! Let’s wait out the clock and then I’m going to go.”

Again, his teeth made an appearance in the same way.

The snaggletooth might have been endearing under any other circumstance.

“What?” You snipped.

“We just need to figure out what’s going on.”

“Nothing!” You threw your arms out at where Leo had left. “You said it yourself! He’s obsessed! I told him there’s nothing! What did he tell you!?”

“That you and… Donatello were… dating.”

“Exactly! So, now you know!” You brought your hand in and then flicked a wrist at him. “Again!”

“That’s just kinda…”

“Unlikely! Yeah.” Venom dripped from your words. “I’ve heard that from just about every single person who knows Donnie, but you know what?”

Raph startled a little, but there was genuine curiosity in his gaze.

“They’re all wrong. He’s not that person anymore. I don’t know how long it’s been, but I don’t think he has since before me.”

Raph’s mouth opened with protest.

“I get it!” There was so much gusto in your shout that your feet planted. “He was bad, but you know what he does now!? He’s sweet! He remembers all my favorite foods, even the ones I’m pretty sure I never told him about! He’s caring! He bends over backwards to dote on me! He tries so damn hard! He messes up! He’s not perfect, but he tries! He’s a good partner and I want to leave here and go back home to him!”

Raph’s shoulders loosened.

“And I’m tired! I’m tired of having to justify our fucking relationship to you! Do you know what I just did!? I just told my ex-roommate everything! She’s a hundred times more unstable than you and somehow she took the news better! I just don’t get it!!!”

Plastic crinkling, Raph looked away.

“Is that good enough or do you need me to draw you up a fucking written version?”

“I want to let this go.” Raph spoke.

Though you’d paused on what was a clear rhetorical question, you weren’t prepared for him to answer.

“Trust me.” He shot you a heavy glance that said that and more. “More than anything, I want to put him behind us.”

His phrasing had you leaning back.

“It can be hard to understand. Unlike Leo, I don’t think you were fed a line, but there’s no way he told the story the same way.” In a shift, Raph looked at the snacks in his hand. “Sorry, gonna put this on the ground for a sec.”

You nodded, unsure of what was happening or why’d you stopped.

He set the snacks down with great care and then reached behind his head. There, he undid his mask and pulled it off. Though you had clearly seen the scarring pouring out from under it, there was something different about seeing his whole face.

Marred and twisted, his skin was warped by burns that had aged many years. They ate away at his cheekbone with green flesh singed with brownish rot. His right eye was puffed up around a milky pupil which spoke to the blindness there. “Do you mind if I tell you how I got this?”

“He�� dumped acid on you…” You sounded like you were on the other side of the market.

Raph bobbed with attention. “Did he tell you why?”

“You…” Your gaze plummeted. “You tried to paralyze him.”

Raph let out a single loud chuff. “The scars on his legs?”

You nodded, assaulted by an odd shame.

“That happened a totally different time, Y/N. I made those scars trying to get him off Leo. I wasn’t trying to do anything other than stop him from killing my brother.”

You brought your gaze up to match his.

“Some kids were selling in Bushwick which was odd. I tracked ‘em back to their supplier and found a ring. The usual shootout started up, but you’ve seen my sai.”

You couldn’t respond.

“I was making my move when suddenly they all just… dropped.” Raph looked down, his good eye narrowing. “Like puppets without strings. I checked the closest guy and he was just… dead. Then came the burning”

You dug your nails into your arm.

“It’s pain like…” Raph shook his head and tied his mask back in place. “He used to have this laugh. Broken, loud… Cartoons don’t do it justice.”

“How…?”

Raph picked up the bag and cereal. “Hm?”

“How… old…” You forced yourself to look not knowing when you’d turned away. “…were the kids?”

“Fifteen. He had failsafes implanted in them. The kids, the dealers, the cooks, he killed them all to protect his assets or himself? Hard to say. I never really understood.”

The same age they were when they met.

When they started fighting.

“What happened… after?”

Raph walked over to you. “He left. It wasn’t about me or them. My best guess is my timing was terrible and he happened to be there picking up his money. I never saw him…” His head tipped. “Saw half as much after that, mostly a blur of gauze and skin grafts.”

Did you apologize?

“Hey.”

You looked up at him.

“I’m not telling ya ta feel bad. I know it sounds like it, but the story is kinda like that. I’m trying to give you perspective.” Raph knelt down onto one knee in front of you. “That was one time. Now multiply that by 20 years.”

You nodded, slowly.

“Leo’s scared. He’s more scared of Donatello then Krang Prime which if you’ve seen the guy is… something else.”

“Otherworldly.” You hated that you’d even said it.

“Yeah…” Raph held no resentment. “He’s stressed too. Me and Mike aren’t reacting how he wants. I’m never going to forgive Donatello, but I’m tired of it. I’m tired of the fighting and torment. If we can stay out of each other’s ways, I’m gonna take that in a heartbeat, but I don’t think Leo thinks he can stop worrying until Donatello is…”

“Gone.” The word sounded like a ghost.

Raph gave a nod, not wanting to give the poltergeist any more voice. “He blames himself for all of it. He’s like that; self sacrificing. His worst character trait is he doesn’t think he’s worth a thing without his family. That we define and give him worth. I don’t think he’s lived his own life because of it.”

“He…” You cleared your throat. “He’d hate that you were telling me this.”

Raph almost smiled and pointed to his bad eye. “20/320 and I can see him glaring at me right now.”

You gave a single humorless exhale.

“So… yeah.” Raph stood and held the bag out to you.

You took it. “What happens now?”

“You go back to your friends and I talk to Leo about what I know.”

“But I didn’t…” You glanced over the clearly melting ice cream and up at him.

Raph smiled with a lopsided grin. “Oh you did, yelled at me good.”

“There’s no way that was convincing.”

Raph shrugged his shoulders, but kept his smile. “I’m a good judge of character.”

“How does that convince Leo though?”

“What do you mean?”

“He already knows the deal. He’s not worried about me; he’s worried about Donnie.”

Raph opened his mouth to say something else, but Leo’s voice cut through the crowd. “Time’s up!”

You turned to him with heavy lids, bored of his shenanigans.

“Hey.” Raph greeted his brother, ignoring the dark aura Leo took with him. “Let’s get one of those juices you like and I’ll catch you up.” He shot you a quick wink. “I got intel you’ll want to hear.”

“I heard.” Leo was curt.

Raph’s hackles went up along with your own. “Leo…” He warned.

“We didn’t want to cause a scene.” Leo took a long way around you to end up near his brother. “No more screaming. No one’s watching. You did a great job throwing off the heat, big guy.”

Raph’s eye widened before he snapped his gaze toward you.

Struck by the fear there, it took you a moment too long to realize he wasn’t actually looking at you.

He was looking behind you.

“Sleep.” Mikey’s unmistakable voice whispered like it was coming from all angles. A thousand touches from Donnie helped you identify what were mutant turtle fingers brushing at the back of your neck. Anesthesia then ran through a drip without a needle into your veins. Drunken, everything began to warp. You could hear Leo counting backwards from ten as Raph yelled beside him. You fell with a blur of blue and a burn from the sun before night swallowed you whole.

I'd be toiling away in misery if it weren't for my betas @tmntxthings and @thepinkpanther83

#weakspotfic #rottmnt #rottmnt donnie x reader #rise of the tmnt #rise of the teenage mutant ninja turtles #rottmnt x reader #donatello hamato #donnie x reader #rise donnie #rise donnie x reader #rottmnt donatello #rottmnt donnie #me #fanfiction #my fanfiction

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