#writing ninja turtles as imaginary coping mechanisms

[brightlotusmoon]

Blackout.

[afreakingdork]

ROTTMNT Compensate Compromise and Codependency (Childhood Friends AU)

Can I ask about this one for the wip game? Anything detail you wanna share

Oh surely, of course you can! This is one of the ones that is currently shelved as one I don't plan on writing, but because of that I can share everything I got written for her!

I will say this WIP is a bit of a vent piece and touches on themes of abusive and unhealthy coping mechanisms such as codependent relationships.

Please enjoy the outline for Compensate, Compromise, and Codependency a ROTTNMT!Donnie x Reader Childhood Friends AU:

This is an unedited outline

As a child reader had an overactive imagination, but not an imaginary friend. It easy to escape into imagined scenarios, but more difficult to try to conjure a ‘person’ when the only people you know in your life are abusive. Forced to mature fast, even at 6 reader is already making their own breakfast and getting themselves ready for school. Not even knowing the word, reader knows that ‘logistically’ there’s no way they can run away. They’re a kid with no where else to go. That doesn’t mean that sometimes, when their mom is passed out that they don’t sneak out onto the roof, fire escape, or back alley adjoining the house just to get away for awhile. The trips are tedious, there’s always a fear that mom will wake up and her wrath will be swift. They’re also necessary and a great avenue to play out more day dreams.

One day out in the alley, reader is hiding behind a dumpster from ‘enemy fire’ when a manhole cover moves. Outgoing (and maybe a little swayed by Men in Black), reader finds a young Donatello who has similarly ‘run away.’ At first the two dance around each other. Wary as hell, but reader breaks their ‘spy’ character first when they notice Donnie’s red rimmed eyes. Donnie is reasonable like them but in a totally different way. Instead of being choked, he’s drowning in his intellect. He didn’t run away, he needed to get away; from his brothers overbearing nature and lack of understanding. He’s desperate for attention from a who can’t give it as he barely has enough time to take care of four superpowered children, let alone deal with the fallout grief of his own collapsed life.

Reader sees a comrade, someone who can finally understand (and maybe just a little bit of an imaginary friend because how on Earth could a turtle person be real?) The two find solace in each other that day and agree to meet again. Over the years the friendship grows along with your age and issues. You find better ways to get ahold of each other, warnings are put in place when things are particularly bad, and you both make the time for each other when it need be. Donnie builds a clubhouse on the roof out of an old aviary and the birds still come. You like the birds, they have a freedom you’ll never have. You crave normalcy, he craves validation. You’re both broken in a way that suits on another. Rules are decided if this is going to benefit you both. You can rant and rave, but it stops at that. You’re there to comfort each other and not drag those things into the peaceful safehaven that was built. The clubhouse is for comfort only.

He, however, is also a ninja. He’s a vigilante at night and while high school is suffocating you, he’s literally saving lives. Shredder. Krang. Horrors you can’t understand. Life goes on and gets worse for both of you in different ways. At least you have each other. Except, he has more. He has his family and almost losing them is a sobering moment. You don’t. A resentment forms, but you don’t voice it because you still desperately need him.

Your life gets worse. Your almost aged out of your house and you have nowhere to go. You have friends, but their lives are in similar shambles to yours. You scrounge by on part-time jobs, but it’s not enough to move out on your own. Not with the city being repaired. There’s barely enough room for those who’s homes weren’t destroyed.

Donnie is getting better and better and the dynamic shifts. He’s not as broken as you. Instead of taking solace in each other, you now see yourself as a leech. He’s the one good thing in your life and your siphoning off of him. Then it happens. They’ve been known since the Krang incident and slowly, with great push back, mutants and yokai are becoming commonplace. During a news broadcast of a fight, you see Donnie get injured. It’s bad. You don’t know what to do. You can’t imagine life without him. So you go, break the unbroken rule of not entering one another homes and you descend into the sewers. He’s gone on about the new lair and you’ve pieced together where to go. You come upon chaos. His family is dealing with the injuries and now they have a human stumbling into their lair. They’ve been raided before, this isn’t somewhere you’re supposed to know about. You aren’t someone they know and Donnie can’t confirm anything for you. Not only are you sent away, but you realize he’s never mentioned you. Sure you were each other’s best kept secret, but hadn’t the family opened up about everything? Even your mom knew your mysterious little friend.

As he heals you’re left to think things out. How long can you keep him caged in the clubhouse? Coming to you as you keep calling long after he’s stopped needing the same. You decide you can’t. He deserves more than someone who only knows how to share their misery. You don’t tell him. You’re just going to open the door. You break down the club house and block his number.

Except he shows up. After weeks of not seeing him, he appears outside your apartment when you’re on your way to work. He doesn’t address anything and acts like everything is normal. He’s never done this before. You don’t know how to react except that growing bud of resentment is now a writhing vine that strangles your heart. It ends up bursting free and you unload on him. He can go be happy now. He has people. He doesn’t need to keep taking care of you. You weren’t important enough anyway. You were a secret that he can let go in a lifetime he has long grown up from. He takes in your points quietly which is a rarity for him. You still have a shift regardless of how many tears you’ve shed or how blotchy your face is. He leaves you there, but takes your hand in parting. You want to throw it down, but don’t. He simply squeezes your hand and leaves you to work. Cue him now always there. You never told him your schedule but he keeps showing you.

You try everything. You give him the cold shoulder. You scream at him. You say cruel things you never meant. Anything to drive him away, but he doesn’t. He’s quiet. He’s there. He’s present. You also never ask/tell him too. You can’t. You still desperately need him.

WIP the ending, but essentially it should go big breakdown scene where you realize that only you can pull yourself out of what’s happening. Donnie isn’t the solution and that’s why he never helped. He just made himself as available as possible to show his commitment in how you aren’t alone. You can start anew together with a real and healthy relationship that isn’t built on sorrow, but instead wanting to find joy in one another.

✨ the end ✨

[brightlotusmoon]

I really want an adult TMNT cartoon I also feel like that's something TMNT needs it has to go to more matured audience I'm not saying going all murder I'm just saying that the story's in TMNT are really dark and was always meant for adults and the kid rating is obviously holding the show back from being able to go in more depth with the Characters You can even tell that some of the show runners are annoyed they can't go darker with he series.

You, me, and all the elders in the Fandom. It's a pipe dream to get Adult Swim TMNT. We like to talk about what it would be like, the sheer grit and depth.

Whenever we talk about the franchise, we have to explain that it was never for kids. It was a hand made independent comic with violence and death and fear and hope and queerness and

WEIRDNESS

And it was a toy company that made it kid friendly, and it rolled from there with a cartoon and so on.

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles changed the face of independent comics forever and it introduced a collective entity that rivals Cthulhu in popular culture. People get into fights over how characters get treated in fanfiction, isn't that insane? I got death threats for asking "what if Raph hurt Mike and felt bad about it" and my friends got death threats for putting characters in relationships. Can you even believe that?

Could you imagine what those immature people would think of a real adult TMNT cartoon? Like, on the level of other dark gritty adult animation? Hopefully they would stay the fuck away. I'm already imagining the death threats from whiny kids who think Raph doesn't gets enough angst and that Mikey needs his head caved in?

[brightlotusmoon]

Me, rewatching Captain Marvel 2019, belatedly realizing that when I was writing a massive Ninja Turtles fanfic in 1998 I basically gave Michaelangelo's psionic powers the same origin story: absorbed cosmic dimensional energy from the crashed ship of an alien species. I rewrote it in 2016 a little differently, but I am extremely amused that it took this freaking long to make connections. I'm now laughing at myself.

[brightlotusmoon]

tmnt writers seem so scared to write darker things about Mikey like there's over 100 of cut content about Mikey that have really dark moments.

Yes, that's a unique niche, isn't it? I admit, I've bookmarked a bunch of them because the angst is delicious. I don't like actual death fics, I need the Angst With A Happy Ending. I need the Comfort part of Hurt Comfort. He can be revived easily, he can stay alive and healing.

Every few years you'll see this in the fandom on Tumblr: fans turning Michelangelo into an emotional mess being crushed under the pressure to mask his darkness.

We will pull out receipts both for and against him making attempts, depending on the iteration. 2012 Mikey is very popular. 2003 Mikey is fun to play with because he is the absolute least likely candidate, and yet we can dig down enough to find ways to break him.

[brightlotusmoon]

Not a hot take: All the ninja turtles throughout every iteration are disabled in multiple ways with chronic pain. We know they're all neurodivergent by now. It's time to discuss the physical and neurological trauma.

In this essay I will

[brightlotusmoon]

Wait, IDW turned Mikey into a literal projective empath who can control other people's emotions and communicate with animal minds.

That's my headcanon from the early 1990s, spurred on by 1987 Mikey's telepathic friendship with the parrots and cats and his friendship with the veterinarian we never saw again, and his obvious skills reading other people.

I started using the Empath Mikey tag on Tumblr in 2016, after I met @catbowserauthor when she was writing as ThickerThanLove and UlisaBarbic for 1987 and 2003 Michelangelo, who she gave actual ESP and intense empathy.

*claps hands* *slams table* Empath Mikey is canon! EMPATH MIKEY IS CANON.

[brightlotusmoon]

I don't know why I get the immediate rush of serotonin and a little oxytocin whenever my You've Got Kudos! emails are long enough to scroll. I assume it's because I wrote well enough that some readers just dove into my Works and splurged.

Also, my fic count is 40. Huh. That's more than I thought. Although I did start in 2016.

[brightlotusmoon]

Ninja Turtles Chinese Theater: Hand Imprint Ceremony on Sept 7

Then there’s an even cooler, more personal, way to be part of Hollywood history, and that’s to have one’s hands imprinted outside the TCL Chinese Theater. That honor is only reserved for the biggest of the big and now, four turtles from the sewers of New York City are joining those ranks.

[brightlotusmoon]

I like how the Rise never really want to be human. They like human stuff, but they never want to become human themselves. Their proud of their species and the idea of not being mutant/Yokai never occurs to them.

I think that's one of the reasons Rise represents and embodies the Spirit of the franchise.

They've pulled the story into the ever-changing future where self acceptance, self respect, and acceptance of others has bloomed.

They've gone from the lonely fate implied in the Mirage issue Sons Of The Silent Age to dancing around in Times Square without a care.

[brightlotusmoon]

Leo: How do you remain optimistic and upbeat in the face of such horrors?

Mikey: Awww, thanks, it's all the chronic stress and trauma making me extra resilient! Like tearing a muscle! Just keep smiling! The bruises heal eventually! Excuse me, I need to go cry quietly and draw something that would terrify a psychologist.

Leo: ...that makes sense. I'm gonna think about that. *thousand yard stare times five*

Donnie: Oooh, PTSD discussion. Mind if I join and stay forever?

Raph: You're not just a member of the Trauma Club, you're the president. And I'm the bodyguard.

Donnie: Here's a chart I made of all our most traumatic adventures. Sorry it's so big. We're lucky we're immune to most diseases and have a healing factor. Mutagen is weird.

Mikey: Anyway, I made us all a cake. The icing reads "Congratulations on surviving." We're not celebrating anything in particular.

[brightlotusmoon]

In honor of my state legalizing cannabis, I'm going to post a long scene from the Rise/Bay crossover RP turned fic I've been writing with @remmushound for years. The Bayverse Turtles are nicknamed while the Rise Turtles are fullnamed. They're all a little older and wiser. This includes Baron Draxum, who takes edibles for the first time with the experienced Bay boys while the Rise kids are napping.

Should I put the scene on Tumblr under a cut, or in AO3 as its own scrap?

[brightlotusmoon]

I love the thought of the Bayverse Turtles purring so much that in my fics I have them do self healing purrs. I like to think it helps their immunity to most disease.

@remmushound this is why Mikey started purring after his seizure.

[brightlotusmoon]

When fellow fans want to make comics and fics based on your character analysis essays that you've been Tumblring for literally over half a decade, you know you've made it as a Fan Who Knows Things.

[brightlotusmoon]

Hi! I just wanted to let you know that your work on AO3 means the world to me. When I'm not feeling good, I can always count on your writing to cheer me up. So thank you so much for continuing to write such amazing fanfiction.

🥺😍

*wibble*

Thank you. I really really really needed that. Especially because I have been having the worst writers traffic.

[brightlotusmoon]

hiii i've been following you for a while and I'm curious about getting into TMNT. I've read a few crossover comics and I grew up when the 2003 cartoon was running so I saw a few of those episodes. But what would you recommend to someone as a starting point for TMNT?

Aww, thanks! Hello!!

Well, I often recommend 2003, which is closest to the source material, the Mirage comics.

The 90s movie trilogy, the 1987 cartoon, and the IDW comics, which has been reprinting Mirage, are of course part of the history and often permeate the fandom like ghosts, or background memes.

2012, the Bay films, and Rise Of can be watched later, once you have the concept down.

Because the franchise is such a phenomenon and cultural touch stone with at least a dozen iterations including parodies and crossovers, it's usually best to pick one, finish it, and keep going.

Some folks watched Rise first and have been working their way backwards!

Of course, the fanfiction and fanart is vast and full of quality. And sometimes even the wildest fics can't top the weirdness of some of the Mirage Tales Of The TMNT issues.