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20s-turtle-posting · 1 year

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Wherein April and Casey Are Told Some News 2.8k words | previous installment >here<

April isn’t quite sure what’s going on, but she hasn’t been friends with the guys for almost five years for nothing, so she’s positive that something is up. She just has yet to pin it down. Casey, too, she knows, has picked up on the unusual atmosphere but has just enough tact that he doesn’t say anything about it. He’s shot her more than one glance, waiting for some sort of signal from her, but she just shakes her head faintly.

It’s movie night after all, a sacred time. Leo has picked Star Wars, predictably, and is relentlessly defending the bad graphics of Episode I no matter how much Donny complains about it. Raph likes the action, as usual, cheering when the Jedi engage in a lightsaber battle, while Mikey sits on the floor and laughs at the jokes. There’s popcorn getting crushed into the rug, Leo keeps gesturing dangerously with his glass of soda, and there’s more than one solid brotherly smack delivered to Mikey, who lobs throw pillows at his brothers in retaliation.

Basically, it seems perfectly normal.

Except it isn’t.

There’s a very faint sense of tension, somehow, though April can’t quite place it. Maybe Donny isn’t ragging on the graphics and the science quite as hard as usual–Leo actually lets a comment slide once, and it’s one that April distinctly remembers really rankling him last time they saw a Star Wars movie. Mikey, in between bites of popcorn, gulps of soda, and raucous laughter, is actually working on a little craft, which isn’t necessarily odd for him. Usually though, he sketches during movies, doing a physical craft is a task April has rarely seen him undertake before.

And then there’s Raph. He’s oddly quiet, is only halfway through one beer from Casey’s stash when usually he’d be on his second, and whenever he glances at what Mikey’s making he doesn’t even comment on it. Instead, to April's confusion, his expression always softens before he settles back into the easy chair.

Their behavior is just one step to the left and taken all together, it makes for one hell of a puzzle. April just hopes the boys will let her solve it before they leave at the end of the night.

At some point in the movie, Raph gets up to go grab some more snacks, stepping over Mikey as he goes. Mike looks up and calls out after him, “Yo, El, grab me some pretzels?”

“Sure.”

Casey’s forehead wrinkles. “‘El?” he asks.

Mikey shrugs and laughs lightly. “Oh, you know, just trying to think of new ways to tease. Our names have a lot more nickname potential than we live up to, y’know?”

His tone is light but April instantly feels the tension increase, something held taut in the room. The more extra-sensory aspects of ninjutsu are not her strongest suit, but April could swear she senses the relentless focus of Leo and Donny, honing in that slight interaction. In the kitchen, Raph shuts the cabinets a little louder than necessary.

Casey seemingly picks up none of this, but after a second of mulling over this information he grins. “Yeah, you’re right.” He looks towards the kitchen, “Yo, El, grab me another beer!”

The tension vanishes from the room so fast that April blinks in surprise.

“Sure, Case,” Raph calls back, cracking open the refrigerator door. “Anyone else got a request while I’m still up or can I stop runnin’ ya’ errands?” he snarks, kicking the door shut again and stepping back into the living room.

“Nahh,” Don says, “unless April’s got some spare good taste lying around, Leo needs it.”

“Hey!”

As the boys settle back to give Leo a good-natured haranguing over his love for Star Wars April suddenly realizes that she hasn’t heard any of them call Raph by name until now. She frowns slightly, thinking hard, but can’t remember a single instance. Weird. Not a single “Raph.” No exasperated “Raphael” from Leo or “Raphie boy” from Mikey. Some of the puzzle pieces start to click together in her mind; somehow, Raph is the center of attention tonight.

April can’t focus on the movie at all anymore.

A thought occurs abruptly. Could Raph be…? It seems so strange…. No there’s definitely other explanations. She files the idea away for later, not entirely dismissing it; her life is way too crazy with this family for her to completely toss out an idea.

Still, she sits puzzling it over for the rest of the movie, barely cheering when Padme Amidala bravely leads the resistance to free her planet, and only able to dedicate a single sad “oh no” when Qui-Gon is killed. Most of that tense feeling is gone for now, the brothers are all sucked into the movie, even Donny watching intently. Leo is squeezing life out of a pillow and he almost throws it when the heroes win the day.

The credits roll with a soaring burst of music and Leo rolls back dramatically onto his shell, rocking slightly and tossing the pillow at Donny. “Okay, I know that this movie isn’t the best but still! It’s setting up the whole story and I really like learning about Obi-Wan’s history.”

Don catches the pillow and rolls his eyes. “You already do if you read the novels, Leo. These prequel movies have to try too hard to squeeze everything in and the dialogue is so awkward sometimes.”

“I dunno, I liked it,” Casey chimes in. “Especially ‘cuz this is the first time I stayed awake through the whole thing.”

“You would sleep through some of the most important sci-fi cinema in recent history,” Mikey jabs.

“Hey dude, I’ve lived through important sci-fi history, remember?”

“The invasion doesn’t count as cinema, Jones,” Mikey retorts. “And by the way, I can’t believe you’ve seen a show like Space 1999 and never Star Wars!”

“There’s something seriously messed up about that,” Don agrees.

Casey throws a piece of popcorn, and April escapes the couch before the battle can escalate into a wrestling match. Surprisingly, Raph follows her instead of joining the encroaching fray, gathering up discarded beer bottles and empty soda cups on the way to the kitchen.

“I’ll help you wash up while they have a nerd battle,” he says gruffly.

April smiles at him, which is still strange to do while looking slightly up, but the turtles had finally hit a bit of a growth spurt recently and both Raph and Donny were taller than her now. “Thanks,” she says gratefully, “it’s nice to have a helping hand.”

“No problem.”

They stand side by side at the sink rinsing bottles and washing cups, comfortably silent while the living room echoes with hollering and thumps as Casey tackles someone to the floor. Raph has never been the chattiest, but April can still sense that something is hovering in the air around him, something that keeps him more subdued than usual. She decides to brave this strange atmosphere.

“So,” she starts casually, keeping her tone and body language perfectly relaxed, open, casual, “El?”

The cup in Raph’s hand almost drops to the counter, and he fumbles to grasp it again, then finishes drying it squeaky clean. He doesn’t say anything, and April thinks she’s ruined it. She has no idea what ‘it’ is but her heart sinks regardless.

Carefully Raph sets the glass on the shelf and shuts the cupboard. “Actually,” he says, in the softest voice April’s heard since that night over four years ago in the farmhouse, “I have somethin’ I wanna tell you. You and Casey both.”

April sucks in a breath, feeling unexpectedly winded. It’s like Raph is slowly peeling back layers of his armor as he speaks, while simultaneously becoming harder and harder to read. She has no idea what he’s going to say, but she knows exactly what she’s going to say.

Resting a hand on his shoulder, she looks him straight in the eyes. “I’m here, Raphael. I’ll listen to you.”

Her heart squeezes, hard, when she sees his mouth pinch. It almost looks like he’s trying not to cry, and it’s an expression that, once again, she hasn’t seen since Leo was on his deathbed in snowy Northampton. Then, Raph had turned away and put his back to the whole room, still holding her and Casey at careful arms’ length and trying to stay strong for his family. Now, however, he seems to crumple slightly, and leans down to press his forehead against her shoulder, facing her, hiding in her for however brief a moment.

When he pulls away he’s put himself back together again, but that heavy expression still hangs on him despite the lopsided smile he gives her.

“Let’s go break up those yahoos b’fore they smash up somethin’.”

April smiles back. “Don’t worry, I keep all the important stuff as far out of smashing range as possible.”

When they step back into the living room Leo is perched on Casey’s back, mercilessly holding one arm in a twist, not tight enough to be truly painful but enough to immobilize his opponent. For some reason Mikey has Don in a headlock and is smacking his face with a pillow while Donny attempts to kick his ankles.

“Yo!” Raph calls, “can we get a time out here?”

“Time out!?” Casey hollers, as if he’s not on the floor and incapacitated.

The turtles pick up on some silent signal from Raph, and in almost creepy synchrony they stop what they’re doing and cluster together. Raph goes back to sit in his favorite armchair and clears his throat.

“I got somethin’ to tell ya, Case. So can we just calm down for a second?”

“Woah, Raph tellin’ me to calm down? Now I’ve seen everythin’!” Casey sits down anyway, and drapes his arm over April’s shoulders when she sits next to him. “Okay, so what’s this about?”

Raph fidgets for a second, and April finally realizes he’s wearing some sort of bracelet, striped with pale color; it looks like the craft Mikey was making earlier. Mikey himself perches on the arm of Raph’s chair, curling his legs up to his belly and wrapping his arms around his knees.

“Okay so…” Raph starts, hesitant, “I… I don’t really know how ta’ say this. Uh. F’starters, it’s El. From now on. Not Raph.”

April can see her confusion reflected on Casey’s face as his eyebrows pinch together. She twitches her shoulder into his armpit as a warning to stay quiet, and he takes her signal to heart and keeps his mouth shut.

“I’m…. I’m changin’ my name,” Raph says, not quite able to make eye contact with them, “It’s… my name is Ella. El for short.”

“Oh.” The word escapes April’s mouth before she can stop it.

The turtles tense, and Leo, Don, and Mikey shift their weight very slightly, moving closer to their sibling. They’re closing ranks, April realizes. Instinctively drawing into a tight, guarded formation centered around the last of them April would have ever expected. Raph, their bruiser, the tank, the one who’s only ever a hair behind Leo if he’s behind him at all, is the one being surrounded, protected.

They’re not hostile, but they’re wary, and April hasn’t seen them like this in a long time. Her heart breaks and heals in the same moment.

“I’m sorry I didn’t mean that,” she says. “El, go on.”

El nods, and the brothers slowly relax without moving from their positions; Leo with his elbows braced on the back of the chair, Don standing to El’s right, thumbs hooked in his belt, and Mikey curled up on El’s left.

“This is-look I know it’s not really…. Ugh.” El makes an exasperated sound. “I dunno how else to say it but this is important. I’m not a guy. I’m a girl. And I’m Ella, or El, I mean, and please act like I’m one. A girl.”

“Because she is,” Leo says. His tone of voice clearly says that there is no other option for you and, hidden even deeper, or else you’ll lose all of us forever.

There’s a long moment of tense silence.

Casey scuffs a hand through his hair. “So… You’re actually a chick?”

“Wow, sexist right off the bat,” Mikey snarks.

“Casey!” April hisses, elbowing him.

“Sorry!” he protests, “I’m just tryna get things figured out okay?”

“Yeah,” El says, “I’m a ‘chick’ but if you call me that again I’ll punch you in the gob and make you shit yer own teeth.”

“El’s the exact same as she’s always been,” Don says firmly, “In fact, more herself than ever.”

“And we completely support that,” April says, smiling. “I’m only sorry we didn’t know sooner. No wonder you guys haven’t said her old name the entire time this evening.”

“Huh, didn’t notice that,” Casey mutters. Then he grins and waves his hands in the air in a peaceful gesture. “Look du-I mean, b-ah shit. Okay look gang, I know I’m a bit of a meathead-”

“Only a bit?” El snorts.

“-but I promise, I’ll get this on lock.”

April looks at him, mildly surprised. It’s not like she expected him to be against it, considering how easily he’d accepted when Leo very casually dropped the fact he was bisexual, but it’s still a pleasant sort of shock to realize that her husband is so easily accepting.

No. Maybe not. They do have large green mutants as best friends-slash-family.

Evidently the turtles are just as pleasantly surprised as she is, because they stare at Casey for a long second. He squints back at them.

“What? Listen, I got a cousin, y’know? Tony. Used to be Tanya, back when we was just kids. Long hair and skirts n’ all. Then one summer we show up for a reunion and his hair was buzzed and he was beatin’ the snot out of Sid just like usual, except easier because Uncle Dan had finally left that slimy skank of a wife of his so Tony could finally wear cargo shorts.”

“Oh.” El seems to deflate, going nearly boneless in her chair. “Oh shit Casey why haven’t I heard that one before? This would have been so much fuckin’ easier if I knew that!”

Casey shrugs. “It hasn’t come up. And I have told you about my cousin Tony before, I’m just not lamebrained enough to tell everyone that he used to go by Tanya, becuz’ that’s fuckin’ rude.”

“Oh right,” Don snaps his fingers suddenly, “I remember now. Cousin Tony who’s married to…. Whozzit…”

“Debbie,” Mikey provides, “The one who works at the hardware shop across the river.”

“Right,” Casey nods, still grinning. “I think Debbie is like you too, uh, El.”

“Oh.” El nods jerkily. “Cool.”

Her face suddenly gets that pinched expression again and April is out of her seat and across the room in a moment, arms out.

“C’mere you big silly,” she says, “let me give you a welcome hug.”

El surges out of her chair and into April’s waiting arms without an ounce of hesitation, which is not typical for her, but maybe it’s something she’s always wanted to be more free with and never even gave herself a chance at. April squeezes her tight, tight, tight, knowing that she can’t hurt her, knowing that the intensity of her hug has to convey even a fraction of the love she feels for El.

“I’ve always wanted a little sister,” she whispers, secretly, just for El. If her shirt gets a little damp where El’s face is buried in her shoulder, she’ll never tell.

When she lets go no one comments on how damp both of their eyes are, and Casey is next to scoop El in, smacking her shell enthusiastically as always. He also whispers something privately to her, and El laughs briefly before ducking her head again to quickly wipe her eyes. She punches Casey when he lets go, and then he immediately scoops in as many turtles as he can reach, shouting, “family hug!”

Mikey grabs Aprils wrist and drags her in too and she tucks herself between the warm arms of her husband and the cooler skin of her younger brothers and sister. They almost all fall over in a pile and the hug dissolves into giggles, nerves finally releasing after the cautious tension that had held them all evening.

“Well, this calls for an extra special treat,” April declares, breaking away and heading into the kitchen. “I’m going to break out the bottle of good wine I’ve been keeping stashed, and the ice cream cake I hid in the freezer before you all showed up.”

Whoops and cheers greet this statement, and April is grinning to herself as she pulls out the cake and quickly wipes away the message that is iced on top. Don darts in a second later to help her grab the cake and plates, so April digs the wine out of the fridge and balances five glasses between her fingers on the way back out to the living room.

April’s surprise can wait till next movie night.

Tonight they’re celebrating Ella.

#TMNT #TMNT 2003 #TMNT 2k3 #Raphel #transfem Raphael #20s scribblings #2k3 #raph #april #casey #no transphobia here only love and support <3 #u think casey would accept little green reptile men as friends and NOT accept that one of them could be trans?#hell naw casey the himbo we deserve. the himbo we need

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undercoverwizardfanfiction · 1 year

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Title: Drowning

Part:1, 2, 3 4, 5

Verse: ROTTMNT

Summary: If Leo was grateful for anything, it was that Donnie hadn’t gotten hurt as well

Characters: Baron Draxum, Leonardo, Donatello, Raphael, Michelangelo

Pairings: FOR THE LOVE OF-

Warnings: Medical setting, terms

Being a member of an ancient race older than most languages, Draxum had little to no concept of time. This, in theory, sounds cool, but, in reality, it leads to a lot of burnt microwavable meals and expired fish food. But he had never been aware of how long an hour was until now.

He tried to keep himself occupied by checking his inventory and ordering Hugin and Munin to do repairs for damage done by Janet and her spawn. But no task held his attention enough to keep him from looking at the clock on the wall, the clock on his phone, and the clock on his stove every second since Donatello’s phone call. Five minutes became ten, ten became twenty, and Draxum crushed the carton of Basilisk Milk he had been holding when it was half an hour. “He is late,” he snaps over at Hugin and Munin with such ferocity that the two jump in alarm. They flap in surprise and knock over the checkerboard they had been playing (badly) on.

“At this time of day it takes precisely half an hour to arrive at my location. Forty five if you are doing the lollygaggin’. Unless you are Michelangelo trying to avoid a shot, then it takes MUCH longer.” Draxum still had bite marks from the orange turtle trying to escape his grasp.

“Do you think he’s buying us a gift,” Hugin asks. “He did miss our last fourteen birthdays but I didn't want to say anything-”

Draxum growls slowly, “You two, go survey the area and see if he’s nearby.” The two gargoyles give him a happy salute and fly out the window. The glass shimmers pink, indicating their presence at the exit before melting back into place. Just one of the Clinic’s illusions Draxum had so masterfully set up.

Drauxm pulls his phone out again and redials Donatello’s number, barely waiting for the voicemail to indicate for him to talk. “Listen here, Donatello Gazpacho Splinterson, if you do not find yourself in my presence in the next,'' Draxum checks the clock on his stove, “five minutes, I will not only tell your father about the time I found you and Leonardo smuggling illegal meatballs out of the Hidden City but also about the time I caught you for using his toothbrush to-” There was a rapid tapping on the window. “That had better be you,” Draxum threatens the phone before hanging up and going to the window.

So whoever was knocking at the window could enter, Draxum deactivates the locking runes keeping everything locked out. Barely a second later, the unconscious form of Donatello tumbles in. The only reason he doesn't hit the floor is Hugin is holding the back of his battle shell. Munin hovered into Donnie’s chest, and slowly the two of them managed to lower him until Draxum took over and lowered him to the ground the rest of the way. The Baron grabbed Donatello by the shoulders, and he could see sparking from the battle shell. Upon closer look, Draxum realizes one of the hover fans has been crushed. He releases the gear on his hover shell and lets it fall to the ground. Draxum was already starting a preliminary check, fingers to the purple turtle’s neck, which gave him the pulse he needed. But Donnie’s breathing was shallower than it should be, even if he was asleep.

“Where did you find him?”

“He was in an alley outside. There was a trash wizard by him. I think he was about to make Donatello a sandwich cause he was spreading mustard on his leg,” Hugin answers.

Draxum blinks and peers down to see Donatello’s left leg is, in fact, smeared with mustard and pepper. “Get that cleaned up,” he demands before lifting the turtle into his arms and hurrying to lay him on one of the “borrowed” hospital beds. The moment Draxum lays him down, Donatello gives a loud gasp and shoots up into a sitting position. He was hacking loudly into his hands with such force Draxum had to grab him by the shoulder, so he didn't cough himself off the bed. Donatello goes limp again in Draxum’s arms. Before Draxum can assume he’s passed out from coughing, the soft shell twitches and looks at him with barely coherent confusion, “Drax? How-”

“You were late, so I sent the gargoyles out to look for you.” Draxum takes up an infrared thermometer from the counter by him and flicks it across Donatello’s forehead. He frowned at the reading, “Did you check your temperature before you left the lair?”

“I checked it when Leo fell asleep, and it was fine.”

Draxum frowns, rechecking the reading before pushing Donatello’s mask away from his eyes and pressing the back of his hand directly to his brow. “I am not sure what your body temperature is normally, but it's past what a human would consider normal.” It was probably why Donnie passed out on the way here. From his lung's inability to process oxygen or a seizure brought on by his rapidly spiking temperature. Draxum doesn’t say anything to the thought other than activate the cooling features part of the hospital bed, “I’ll need to run some tests. Does it hurt to breathe when you lay down?”

Don gives a weak nod, but Draxum can tell the only reason he’s still sitting up is by pure will alone, but that couldn’t last forever. So Draxum reaches behind the bed and pulls the lever to raise the back of the bed upright. Don sighs briefly before relaxing his shell, “B-be honest Draxum, how bad is it?”

“How bad is it to ingest water into your lungs and not immediately seek treatment? Let alone sewer water. The fact you have not gone septic yet is a miracle.” Draxum returns with an IV and a needle. “Now hold still, the sooner we start antibiotics the better,” before Don can interrupt, Draxum adds, “They are the modified antibiotics you gave me so there should not be any negative reactions.” He waits for Donnie to give a nod of consent before he injects the needle.

Despite his anger, Draxum is as gentle as possible, and judging by the small blink of surprise, Donatello doesn’t feel a thing. Draxum goes to grab a heated blanket from the cabinet, and Donatello speaks in a small voice, “Thank you, an-and I’m sorry.”

Draxum doesn’t look back at the young turtle but closes his eyes and sighs. The fact Donatello was even apologizing made him want to call Splinter on the spot. But he didn’t want any unnecessary stress on the injured boy, “You are in pain, do not waste your breath on apologies. If you must speak, tell me, how much water do you think you got in your lungs? How difficult has breathing become for you?'' When he doesn’t get an answer immediately, Draxum looks back over to the soft shell thinking he just fell asleep. However, Donatello’s fingers twitch and unfurl for a moment, “At initial contact, I was too distracted trying to get Leo to safety. But when I got us both on the walkway, I coughed up most of the water in my lungs, but…not all of it. Leo was so distressed I had to focus on him.”

“I doubt he even noticed,” Draxum mutters with no small amount of venom. But as he turns with his tablet to complete another scan, he is faced with a frown filled with enough intensity to make the alchemist pause in place.

Donnie spoke with a glare, “Leo didn’t notice because when you almost drown and live your biggest fears it's hard to focus on anything else. It would have happened to Mikey, it would have happened to Raph and it would have happened to you, too, Draxum.”

The Baron is not sure he agrees with this, but he also knows if he grinds the soft shell nerves too much, he might refuse treatment altogether. So instead, he walks back over, “On a scale of one to ten how would you describe the pain when you breathe, and describe your difficulty with breathing?”

“The pain started as a four, but since traveling here it has escalated to a seven. My breathing started out the same.”

Draxum nods as he quickly moves to one of the corners of highly unorganized medical equipment he had set up but not sorted out yet. “Remind me, do any of these have use for oxygen?”

Donatello leans forward slightly and squints, “I see a centrifuge, EKG, incubator. I’m too scared to ask why you’d need an MRI.” His eyes were wide, “I’m too scared to ask how you got that, but it’ll come in handy. And, is that- yeah, a ventilator. That-that’d really help right now.” He sighed before lowering himself back on the bed with a cringe that told Draxum it took far more precious energy than necessary to help guide him. Donnie spoke slowly, “Do you know how to set them up?”

“It was designed by creatures who live only an eighth the life I have. Anything that was conceived by their inferior brains is no match for my superior intellect.”

“Is that why you’re trying to insert an electric toothbrush into the Battery Management Unit?”

Draxum blinks down at the two pieces of technology, ”I thought the bristle part was used to scrub a human's lungs.”

“Uh huh, get off your high horse. You don't know everything. Now listen to the person who actually knows everything.” Over the next few minutes, Donatello guides Draxum in great detail on how to assemble the ventilator. (No, Draxum, I’m entirely sure you don't need to scrub my lungs. No, don't put that part in water– don't put it in water) After an appropriate amount of time watching the machine power up, Draxum wheels the machine over. He takes Donatello’s half-asleep head and carefully puts the mask in place. The effect is almost immediate as the turtle squeezes his eyes shut for a moment. “Thanks,” he breathes out.

“Do not concern yourself with gratitude. As soon as I find out what ails you, we are calling your father and you are confessing your ailment. Understood?” He looks over his shoulder but is unsurprised that Donatello has already fallen asleep. Whether from exhaustion or relief, he doesn't know, but Draxum tucks the warmed blanket more over Donatello's shoulder with a slight grumble, “Dragging me into your lies….” He pulls his white lab coat on and pulls his hair back into a ponytail.

(#)(#)\/(#)(#)

Believe it or not, Leonardo often thought of himself positively. Even fearless sometimes. It wasn’t that he didn’t have anxiety. It was just that he didn’t have that many fears. Embarrassment? That was just a different type of attention. Heights? Not since he was twelve. Real Estate Agents? Maybe, but out of the ones listed, he considered that one to be the only rational fear. So, as he’s surrounded by total darkness, he is not as panicked as one would think. “Helllooooo,” Leo calls with his hands cupped around his mouth. “Anyone home?” He listens for a response, but only his voice echoes back, indicating the walls are far closer than he thought. He confirms his theory by leaning over and feeling the sewer tunnel's familiar, curved, slimy stone wall. “Oh ew, this is why Donnie carries sanitizer with him everywhere,” Leo says, wiping his hand on his leg.

As he moves to take his next step, his foot catches on nothing, and he falls forward, his hands barely having time to catch himself before he can faceplant, “OW, geez-” Leo goes to pull his leg free when his ankle catches onto something. After a bit of twisting, he manages to roll around to see his ankle caught between two sharp stones. “Nice watching where you were going,” Leo grumbled to himself as he managed to get on one knee. Leo inspects his ankle for a moment with the eyes of a medic. It didn’t seem to be too bruised up. The biggest risk seemed to come from the sharp rocks digging into his spats.

“That's just great,” he says as he moves to lean in closer, but when Leo places his hand on the ground to lean in, Leo feels the stone vibrate so softly he almost doesn’t notice it until the tiny rocks by his hand start to tremble as well. Leo’s head shoots up as he looks around the tunnel. Years of sewer safety training shot through him like adrenaline as he realized the source of the noise coming from the tunnel. “Oh no. Oh no, no-” Leo grabs his ankle again, desperately trying to pull it free as the sound of rushing water fills the tunnel. Memory takes over as he looks up over the ledge. Leo could just barely see the purple battle shell of one of his brothers and the flicker of a soldering iron, “D-Donnie, I’m stuck! I can’t get free-” Leo says, pulling on his leg harder, “I need- I’m stuck, Don-” he quickly looks back toward the tunnel. Leo’s heart stops as he watches a giant wave of water hover over him as though moving in slow motion.

He freezes in fear as a pair of hands grab him from behind just as the water crashes over him.

(#)(#)\/(#)(#)

Leo springs up from his deep slumber in the armchair with a jerk and a gasp. He stands up, but his ankle gives out with shooting pain, and he falls forward, bouncing off the junk food coffee table. But before Leo hits the ground, a pair of massive arms catch him. After a few moments of looking around the room in a panic, he finally looks up at the arms owner. Raph’s concerned face was looming over him, “Hey, hey, it's ok, breathe. It was just a bad dream. We’re here. You're safe.”

Chest heaving like he had just run a marathon, he looks around the room between Raph and Mikey (who had joined a moment later). “I’m sorry. I’m sorry, I didn’t mean- I’m so- there was so much– I,” Leo would have kept babbling if not for Raph’s large but soft hand coming up to hold the side of his face, with a smile so gentle it could have been from their father. “I know, little brother, you don’t have to apologize, and you don’t have to be brave. Let us do that for you.”

Leo looks between his brothers before tears fill his eyes, and he hooks his arms around them into a tight hug with his face hidden by their shoulders. He feels Raph’s other arm wrap around his shell and stroke the back of his head. Raph takes a few moments to hold his brothers close before they lose their strength, and he is forced to let go. But Raph must have sensed his loss of strength as he adjusted his grip to lower Leo back into the armchair. Leo scrubs his eyes on his hoodie sleeve before reaching over to the spot by him and realizing it is still empty, “Is-is Donnie still getting a soda from the fridge,” he asks.

Raph’s face twisted up for a moment as though this was the last question he wanted because he didn’t have the right answer yet, “Um, kinda. He said he had to grab something from the surface, and he’d be back soon.”

Leo’s anxiety spiked for a moment, “O-Oh.” He was hoping it hadn’t been noticeable but judging by the disappointed look on Raph’s face; it had been. Raph puts a hand on Leo’s shoulder, “I’m sorry, you know how he is. I don’t think he was trying to stress you out-”

“No, no of course not,” Leo interrupted, “I know that. I get it, I’ve been a little clingy, and he needed air-”

“You’re allowed to be clingy, man. You almost drowned not even two hours ago-”

Even the word ‘drowning’ is too much, and Leo can’t help the tremble that escapes him as he hugs himself. Mikey is at his side a moment later, slipping into the spot Donnie had been and wrapping Leo up in another hug he gratefully leans into. “But-but I didn’t.” Leo says, “I didn’t drown. Cause Donnie was there. He saved my life. He took care of me. If he needs time for himself that’s fine. If it was overstimulating for me, I could only imagine what it was like for him.” Leo smiles at Raph.

After giving Leo a scrutinous look, Raph sighs and rubs Leo’s scalp as though he is ruffling his imaginary hair, “Yeah, ok. Do you need anything?”

Leo thinks for a moment. Then, as he goes to answer, he unconsciously moves his bandaged ankle and triggers the pain again, making Leo instantly grab his leg with a groan, “Honestly? Donnie mentioned we should see Draxbutt at some point to see if he can look at my ankle. He doesn't think it's worse than a sprain, but he wanted a second opinion.”

“Makes sense, not like he gets a lot of clients in that clinic of his. When we arrived, he was shining stethoscopes.” Raph blinks, “I hope those were stethoscopes at least. We could probably pop over for a bit.”

“How mad do you think he’ll get if we arrive uninvited?” Leo asks, glancing over to Mikey, the resident Draxum expert, who gives him a nervous smile, “Maybe a lot? I tried texting him to see if he’d mind us coming back, but he hasn’t responded. I know he’s still home because his quilting circle from work doesn’t meet up this week. He’s probably doing what he does every night and watching the fish on his computer monitor.”

Leo blinks, “Did you tell him-”

“That they’re not real fish? MORE times than I can count. But he thinks having immortal fish that come to visit him through a window of another realm is more likely than a screen setup to not burn out your computer.”

“Draxum is a spectrum I will never understand. I dropped a blanket on his head once and he fell asleep instantly,” Raph says. Leo lets out a full loud laugh before pulling his phone out.

“I’ll text Donnie and let him know where we are heading. In case he wants to stop by.” As much as Leo knew Donnie probably just needed his space and he’d have the comfort of his remaining brothers, Leo couldn’t help his shoulders from sagging as he pressed the send button.

He was just grateful Donnie wasn’t hurt as well.

(#)(#)\/(#)(#)

Having been in such a deep sleep, Donnie forgot phones existed. He nearly jumps out of his shell with only the oxygen mask acting as an anchor. He scrambles between yanking himself free and trying to find the phone hidden on his body. Draxum spins from where he had been sitting at his desk, “I said not to touch-”

“Shshshshshsh,” he shushes loudly. “Leo’s heading this way right now, he and the others a-are heading this way-” Donnie dissolves into a coughing fit.

Draxum’s vine snatches the phone out of his hand and reads the message before pulling up his own phone. “Impossible. I have informed Michelangelo that I require at least twelve text messages in advance before- '' but as he turns his screen on, his face freezes. Draxum pulls out a pair of wireframe glasses and uses his thumb to scroll through the screen. Judging by the reflection in his wire-framed glasses, he has more than a few messages. Draxum throws his phone across the room with an angry gruff of frustration, and Hugin thankfully catches it.

“Curse you ‘do not disturb’ mode! It does not matter, we still have time before-'' There's a tell-tale blue flash from underneath Draxum’s door that makes Donnie sit up more. The Baron puts Donnie’s phone on the counter and rushed to the door, setting Donnie’s phone on his desk, “No, No, do not panic. That is not necessarily your brothers. It could be Carol or the mutants who finally realize I am a competent Doc-” But as Draxum opens the door, he freezes and quickly slams it shut, spinning around with his back pressed against the door. “It's them. It's definitely them.”

“Drax-” Donatello sits up more, reaching up for the oxygen mask but is unable to find the leverage to pull it off, “I don’t want them to know yet-”

“Yes. yes, you’ve made that painfully obvious,” Draxum snaps before the door behind him knocks loudly. “Just a minute! I’m showering my….toaster!”

Donnie blinks, “Do you know what a toaster is-?”

“Obviously, I know what a toaster is,” Draxum said as he ran over, grabbing the hospital bed and the ventilator as he wheeled them over with such speed Donnie had to hold the edges of the bed to feel safe. But before he can say anything, Draxum wheels him to one of the curtained-off areas. “It's fine, it's fine! Stay here and be quiet! I’ll take care of what they need and send them on their way, just don't make a noise!”

Donnie nods quickly, but before Draxum pulls away, he reaches out, takes his massive hand in his, catches his annoyed attention again, and says softly,” Thank you.”

The Baron’s annoyed expression softens slightly as he sighs, “Do not thank me yet, as soon as I finish saving your life I’m telling your father to ground you for a thousand years for this much trouble.” Draxum pulls the blanket more over him before stepping out and closing the curtain.

(#)(#)\/(#)(#)

Even for a yokai who spent six months actively trying to murder them, slamming a door in their face was rude even for Draxum. “Um….” Mikey looked back at Raph and Leo with a nervous and apologetic smile, “He’s not used to guests still.” He turns and knocks on the door again, “Barry! It's us! Is everything ok there?”

From the other side of the door, there’s a loud muffled, “Just a minute! I’m washing my….toaster!” The response was immediately followed by the sound of hooves running away.

“Does Draxum know what a toaster is,” Leo asks from his spot on Raph’s shoulders.

“I mean…I thought so?” Mikey says in confusion, ”We might have to go over our human object flashcards again.” He goes to knock on the door again when it flies open, and Draxum stands in the doorway. His face was flustered, with his fists on his hips. He had an unsettling, what could almost be described as a, cheerful look. If he had been an alien with three mouths and sideways teeth trying to show other aliens how humans smiled.

“If it isn’t my terrapin compatriots! How may I assist you this evening?”

Leo blinks before looking down at his brothers, twisting around to make eye contact with Raph to see if they were offended by this sudden friendliness. Especially from the person who once threatened to steal the spirit of Arbor Day. While Raph shares his expression, Leo’s surprised to see Mikey give him the same expression.

“Um, did you get my text messages Barry,” the smallest brother asks.

“Yes of course. I received all-,” Draxum looks at his phone again, “thirty-eight of them. That’s why I didn’t respond. I was too busy awaiting your arrival.”

Leo wasn’t sure what to expect when Draxum declared he wanted to open a yokai/mutant clinic (or, in his words, “a place where I can apply healing stabbing needles to the helpless”). What could anyone expect to come of Draxum’s already modest apartment? But it was awe-inspiring what Draxum had managed to do.

The large room seemed impossible compared to the building's size, with several curtained-off patient areas and hanging lights. A door that would typically lead to Draxums closet was now, from what Leo could see, full of chairs and a table of magazines to act as a waiting room. There was a stack of boxes labeled with several recognizable (and expensive) medical equipment. Only a few had been set up, but it was possible, given the space. Draxum was still trying to find room to set everything up. There appears to be one main treatment room for now (and judging by claw marks on the wall, it was the same place that he had treated the octopus earlier)

“Do I want to know how you doubled the size of your apartment in the three days since I was last here,” Leo asks. ”I’m not even going to ask how you got all this hospital equipment-”

“Do not concern yourself. I revisited some old incantations to increase not only the square footage of my home, but also allow the clinic to be at its own level.”

“You broke the laws of physics for a bigger apartment.”

“I found that the size of my home did not meet my current needs, and that New York real estate is a lawless landscape. I even tried to find a home in the sewers, and there was a ten-year wait period!”

What that meant, Leo wasn’t sure. But when Draxum leads them to an examination table by his desk, Raph reaches back and readjusts Leo down to his arms before sitting him on the table with a hand on his shell to support him. But Leo squirms slightly, “I got it, big bro. I’m not that injured,” he says with a smile but only receives half of one in return. Before he can say anything else, Draxum hooks his rolling stool with his hooves and pulls it over to sit down, looking over Leo’s bandaged leg. Then, a moment later, he jabs it with a pen that makes Leo yelp loudly and pulls away, “OW!”

“There’s the sprain. I won’t charge you for wasting my time. Don't let the door hit you on the way out, but it might anyway cause it was enchanted to do that.”

“What are- Barry you barely looked at it! I may not be the best medic in the world, but I am the most handsome, and even I know it's not ok! Donnie was the one who said I needed to stop by and get you to check it out.”

“Of course he did,” Draxum growls between his lips in a way that Leo can tell they’re not supposed to hear, “Fine! You want to walk sooner, I can simply remove it and-”

“Heal, heal,” Leo yells, scooting back and climbing up Raph in terror, “Heal!”

“Why are you screaming?! The reason I chose the forms for you that I did was because of their genetically superior ability to regenerate their limbs with three times the muscle mass then they had.”

Leo, Raph, and Mikey all look at each other (Leo with far more of a “please don’t let former warlord back alley doctor remove my leg” expression) before Mikey, bless his heart, dares to say, “Draxum turtles can’t regrow their limbs.”

Draxum stares at them for a solid minute and pops his lips annoyed. “That back alley herpetologist lied to me.” He slams his book shut, “Fine then, we will do this the hard way.”

“Why are you in such a hurry Barry? You said you didn’t have any other patients today anyway,” Mikey asks. For a moment, Leo could have sworn he saw Draxum’s eyes flutter back into the clinic before shouting, “Of course not. I just dislike insulting my intelligence with such a minor injury. But if you insist.”

Leo glances back at his brothers with concern before slowly moving back to the examination table. This time Draxum takes a closer look. He unwinds the bandage with a surprisingly gentle touch and rotates his ankle in his hands, “As expected, it looks as though it was dislocated recently but set back in place. It will be tender for a few days but nothing that requires so much fussing.”

That was news to Leo. While he doesn’t remember having his ankle set, he does remember falling asleep after they arrived home, “I mean Donnie is a good medic too, but I doubt he could have set it without waking me up.”

“Do not underestimate your brother's abilities. He may not act like it, but more than you realize he does have your best interest in heart even when he shouldn’t.”

“I,” It's not often Leo is at a loss for words, but he stares at Draxum to ensure he heard him right. “Wow, that's awfully nice of you. What brought this on?”

Draxum gives him a look that, before Leo can place it, is gone just as fast. “Your brother has done an adequate job treating your ankle. The only improvement I can make is providing you with an ankle brace so your brothers do not have to be burdened carrying you everywhere.”

“Aww but Raphie-ronie-and-cheese is so comfy,” he says, leaning back against Raph.

His older brother grins down at him and rubs his scalp, ”You big baby.”

“A-hem, as previously informed by Draxum, I am in fact the second oldest. And by my very scientific calculations that makes me the best oldest,” Leo says with a flourish and grin. Draxum starts digging through the cabinets, and Leo knows it's almost time to go. He takes his phone out, “I’m going to let Dee know we’re on our way home,” he says before sending off a text. But before he can put his phone away, a familiar buzzing fills the air that makes him freeze. Leo looks at his brothers before their eyes all fall on a flashing purple light coming from underneath a clipboard by Draxum’s computer (who was too busy looking to notice the noise). Mikey is the one who steps forward and moves the papers aside. He turns around and shows Leo and Raph a familiar purple smartphone. Before Leo can try and make any excuse to himself on whose phone it was, the locked screen flashes with a ‘new message alert’ from ‘lesser twin.’

There’s a moment of silence, then Draxum finally grumbles, “How do I have twenty five left tentacle braces but not a single-”

“Barry?” Mikey interrupts him quietly, “Barry, why do you have Donnie’s phone?”

“What do you-” Draxum turns to him with one tentacle brace in one hand and a leg one in the other and freezes when he sees the phone. Panic. Plain on his face. Leo knows it well. It's the same expression he or one of his brothers have when they’re caught trying to hide something.

Then a muffled coughing fit breaks out.

Leo could point out the sounds of one of his brothers coughing from a mile away. That’s what happens when you grow up with a brother. And he knew this one. He heard it growing up whenever his brother had a cold or wanted to exaggerate how bad one of his brothers smelled.

Before an excuse could form, unmuffled coughing filled the clinic. Leo sits up, “That sounds like-” but Draxum is already on his hooves and running past them before he can finish. Leo grabs the edge of the exam bed or stands up, but a hand on his shoulders almost shoves him back onto the bed, “Stay here!” Raph orders before running after Draxum.

“No, wait,’ Leo calls, but even Mikey is gone.

He pushes up to stand, but the sharp pain shoots up his leg, and he nearly falls to the ground. Holding it between his hands, hissing loudly, looking after the path his brothers had gone. “Guys, what's going on?!” Leo calls after them. He does not get an answer over the coughing, and Leo desperately shouts louder.

“GUYS!?”

Part 1

Part 2

<Part 3

Part 4

Part 5>

Part 6 (coming soon)

#rottmnt fanfiction #hurt/comfort #rise of the teenage mutant ninja turtle fanfiction #rottmnt #raphel #michelangelo #donatello #leonardo #baron draxum #lunch subordinate

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