Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

ARC 1
  CHAPTER ONE

  “ I must warn you. ”

  “..What?”

    Leo stared at the mutant in front of him, which balanced itself on its knees as it peered down at him – obviously not aware of personal space. Leo blinked to himself as his fuzzy surroundings became more clear – the frightening silence of New York, the sky, in which mixed itself together with darkness and light. He brought himself to look down at the empty streets from where he sat up on the rooftop. 

  “..Is this a dream?” He asked slowly, acknowledging the foggy feeling in his head. 

  “Yes.. ” The mutant said, while it- they tilted their head to the side. “And no. ”

  Leo frowned, staring closely at the visitor. He wasn’t completely sure why, but the longer he stared down the mutant, the more something bit at his head as if to say I know them . This stranger was awfully familiar, too familiar, and far too personal. However, Leo couldn’t place where he’s seen the face before, even though he’s sure he should’ve known. This fact brought him to say, “Do I know you?”

  They smiled. “I don’t know. Do you? ” 

  “I feel like I do..” Leo said, squinting at them. “Things are… Fuzzy.” And as if he was unable to control it, his mouth spoke for him very suddenly, “Is this a dream?”

  What was even more confusing, – especially during Leo’s wacky mindset at the moment, – was that the mutant never replied, as if they knew this. They continued with the very first sentence. “I’m here to warn you.” They said. Leo shook his head to himself, running a hand over his face. “Warn me of what?” He asked sluggishly, feeling his mind begin to drift.

  “They’re on their way.”

  “Who?..”

  “Kraang.”

  As Leo awoke from his slumber, he sat up in the bed with a sharp gasp for air. He adjusted to reality, and it then hit him how cold it was in the room. He shivered and wrapped himself back into the covers, sinking back down into the mattress. He listened for passing cars above him.

  After a long moment of silence, Leo wondered to himself how late it could be. His eyes still felt heavy. In fact, he felt exhausted, despite how many hours of sleep he usually had during the night and day. It was as if he hadn’t slept at all.

  What a strange dream.

  Mikey had suspected the new lair was haunted. Donnie simply explained it was just the change in atmosphere and location. Raph was silent, deep in thought, and Leo mentioned how ghosts weren’t real.

  He didn’t mention his strange dreams that had begun to get repetitive.

  He’d wake up on that stupid rooftop, in that awfully silent world, face to face with a stranger that he felt he should know very well. He could never quite remember the things they’d say to him. What they looked like. Things were always blurry, which wasn’t surprising since Leo never really remembers his dreams. 

  He’d gone to Donnie one day to mention his recurring headaches, which felt more like migraines. Donnie said it was because he wasn’t sleeping enough, taking note of Leo’s baggy eyes and tired form. Leo knew he was sleeping, though. He slept a lot.

  Donnie suggested drinking more water. Leo did. Nothing changed.

  The soft shell then suggested a checkup. Again, he told Leo nothing was physically wrong with him. When Leo finally mentioned his dreams, Donnie swept it aside, explaining that everyone dreamt and dreams were naturally strange — the scientist found them fascinating. He then rambled on about the science behind them.

  Leo went to sleep that night and had the same dream. 

  Tonight was different, he thought, finding that his surroundings were less blurry and that he could think straighter than before. Again, he met the visitors eyes, mesmerized by the bright familiar blue. He spoke softly.

  “Mikey?”

  “I have to warn you.” He said, which was always the same.

  “I don’t understand.” Leo said, furrowing his brows. “Why are you in my dream?”

  “We have a connection, Leo.” Mikey replied, which was something new and Leo loved it. But that didn't get rid of the growing confusion in his head, the fuzzy feeling slowly overtaking him again. 

  “A connection?” Leo asked. Mikey simply nodded, looking away from the slider and into the unusually quiet city. “They’re on their way.” He said.

  “I know that.” Leo stressed out, speaking with a rather annoyed tone. “You always say that.”

  “But you don’t remember who.” 

  “I never do. I never remember my dreams.”

  “You have to.” Mikey said, finally looking to him again. It was a quiet, but desperate plead, and — he had to admit — it scared Leo, just a little bit. “But why? It’s just a dream.”

  Mikey shook his head. “Soon, it won’t be.”

  “I don’t get it!” Leo exclaimed, shaking the overwhelming exhaustion out of his head. “You speak in circles, Mikey! Why can’t you just say what you mean?”

  Mikey blinked at him, staring at his features for a long moment. He looked frighteningly serious, which wasn’t familiar on his young brother’s face. A rather different face, he’d say, but trying to fully analyze his differences was difficult at the moment.

  “Every night I see you, Leo.” He finally said. “I don’t know why, but I do. It’s beginning to get… Confusing.”

  “Wait-“ Leo stammered, leaning closer in fascination. “What do you mean?”

  “Wake up.” 

  Leo ate his breakfast slowly that morning, aware of the strange looks his family sent his way. 

  April watched him closely as he rambled. But she listened, and Leo appreciated it. She didn’t speak until he was finished, waiting a minute or two after he spoke to be sure he was done. 

  “Maybe you’re trying to tell yourself something.” She said soon after. Leo blinked, turning his gaze to her. “What do you mean?” He asked — he seemed to say that a lot now — and April shrugged. “Sometimes dreams mean things. Sometimes your subconscious is trying to tell you something. At least, that’s what my science teacher said.” She then gave him a gentle smile for reassurance. “Tell Donnie. He should know.”

  “That’s the thing.” Leo said, rolling his eyes. “I did. And he said it was nothing.”

  April hummed. “Maybe it isn’t. Don’t worry too much about it. If you can’t remember, then it’s probably not important.”

  Leo tried to take it to heart.

They didn’t speak at first. Leo just peered down at the empty streets, trying his hardest to spot some form of life in the quiet world. Mikey seemed to know what he was thinking.

  “It’s just us that exist here, y’know.” He said dismissively. Leo blinked. “Oh.” He murmured. 

  This time Mikey hadn’t said his previous warnings. This time it was strangely peaceful. 

  “I see Master Splinter every time I wake up.” Mikey said. Leo looked his way, not replying, waiting for the turtle to continue. “If he’s not there, he’s waiting for me in the dojo. He never says anything. Just nods.”

  “Weird.” Leo replied.

  “Yeah.” Mikey said, grinning slightly. “I tried to tell Donnie about this whole thing. He told me it was nothing, which isn’t really a surprise.”

  Leo scoffed. “Tell me about it. Mine said I needed to sleep more. Can you imagine that?”

  “I sleep all day.” He grinned.

  Leo returned the expression. “So do I.”

  They returned to the peaceful silence. Mikey tapped a rhythm onto the rough stone, dangling his legs off the building. Leo began to think aloud. “Do you think we could leave this place? Off this building?”

  Mikey shrugged. “Depends if you’re really real or not.” 

  “You might not be real too, you know.” Leo said.

  “Well I know I’m real.” Mikey rolled his eyes. Leo narrowed his eyes. “Same here, kid.”

  “You know I’m older than you.”

  Leo paused, taking a moment to stare bewildered at the sudden change in tone. Serious, off-putting. “What?”

  “I’m sixteen. You’re fourteen.”

  “..How do you know that?” Leo asked slowly.

  “We have a connection Leo.” 

  When Leo jumped out of his bed, — like he always did, — he suspected that those weren’t actually Michelangelo's words.

  No one else had these dreams, and if they did, they never mentioned it. Leo had begun to remember each and every dream, but never the first one. The Dream Mikey never repeated his previous words from the first dream, and Leo wondered if they were ever important. 

  Finally, he confided in Raph. 

  He ruffled Leo’s non-existent hair. “You’re worrying about this too much.” He said. “I have recurring dreams all the time.”

  Leo gaped up at him. “You do?”

  “Yeah.” He shrugged carelessly. “But it’s always different sometimes. Just me in the Lou Jitsu movies, doing my cool moves.”

  Leo’s hopes were soon shattered, but he made sure to give Raph a small laugh at that.

  “You’re Mikey.” Leo said that one night.

  The mutant turtle nodded, resting his head on his palm with amusement. Leo wasn’t sure what to think about that.

  “But you aren’t my Mikey.”

  Mikey thought for a moment while looking away. He pursed his lips. “No.” He said slowly. “And you aren’t my Leo. But there’s a reason we’re here. I just have to figure that out. I have trouble with that kind of stuff, though.”

  “So do I.” Leo said. “Donnie could probably figure it out.”

  “He probably could. But he’s not here, is he?”

  Leo stared him down for a long time, fully aware that Mikey was avoiding his eyes. “You aren’t telling me something.” He said.

  Mikey continued to stare off into the distance. Leo humoured himself with the fact that this sort of thing happened in movies a lot. It was a usual thing in the Lou Jitsu movies.

  “You’re right. ” Mikey said with a frown. 

  “…So what is it?” Leo asked.

  Mikey huffed, sitting up and resting his arm by his side. “Sometimes my words aren’t mine.” He said. Leo frowned, eyeing him strangely. 

 “I don’t get it.”

  “I don’t either.” He said helplessly, finally turning to him. “But I don’t like to think about it.. It’s scary.” Both him and the slider didn’t speak any further, settling back into the silence of the city.

  A strange feeling poked at Leo’s chest. “..I think I need to wake up.” He found himself blurting out. Taken aback, he couldn’t find his words, as if his tongue had disappeared and the world was nonexistent. He didn’t even notice Mikey glance over to him with a lost look, because Mikey wasn’t there anymore, and Leo was instead waking up in an unusual position that never paired with these dreams.

  He woke up in the newly built dojo that none of them had bothered to fix up, on his knees that scratched painfully against the rough wooden floor and hands clasped together.

Chapter Text

CHAPTER TWO

  Leo hadn’t had another dream after that, however his sleeping schedule did get worse. He often lay down to sleep only to toss and turn endlessly, soon burying his face into the pillow to let out a loud but muffled groan. It was almost miserable. Fortunately, that was where Donnie came in.

  The soft shell had loudly stressed out that he couldn’t always help with all of Leo’s problems, but Leo must’ve hit a soft spot when speaking triedly, “Okay.” Because Donnie immediately scoffed, though it sounded too fake, and told him to stay put while he searched for a sleeping medication. 

  It was later on that Donnie discovered Leo’s immune system was acting up after a frequent checkup – despite the one only day's before – that he said was ‘required’. Every month or so, Raph and Donnie would demand that Mikey and Leo get physical checkups to make sure they were healthy, “Since we do live in the sewers,” Donnie had said. 

Raph had always been known as the overprotective one in the family, especially the lucky number one above Splinter. Leo knew he meant well. That didn’t mean he or Mikey enjoyed the checkups that the both of them claimed as, “Unnecessary!” And Mikey even made a google slide on why he disapproved of the check-ups. Leo, of course, cheered him on.

  As a hatchling, not long after he got older since the mutation, Leo had always had the ideal immune system. Truth or Dare and Would You Rather was additionally important at the age of nine, and when dared by Mikey to lick the toilet or drink the sewage water, Leo would follow through with it and have no problems. Donnie scolded him, saying it’d cause ‘God-Awful’ health problems the older he got, but Leo ignored it, happily.

  At the moment, Donnie must’ve been thinking about the exact time he said so, because he clicked his tongue and shook his head knowingly.

  “And this is why you don’t lick toilets.”  

  “Truth or Dare is a serious thing!” Leo snapped, crossing his arms. Donnie paid him no mind while placing a hand onto his head. “Okay, sure, but is it really worth it if you get sick all the time?”

  Leo took a moment, biting his tongue and stubbornly avoiding his older brother’s gaze. He then let out a quiet groan. “No..”

  “Exactly.”  

  Leo kicked his leg in the air with an annoyed grunt. “..Okay but a week ago you literally said I was fine inside and out.”

  Donnie hummed softly. “It takes time for things to show.”

“Yeah, but Don, I’m feelin’ pretty good right now!” Leo said with a frown. Donnie paused in his thoughts to look up at Leo and arch his brow. Leo stared back boldly, but after Donnie’s never-ending-glare, he gave in. “Yeah, fine.” 

  “And how have you been sleeping?” Donnie asked as he turned around, using his ‘doctor-voice’. 

  Leo shrugged, looking down at the ground. “I dunno’,” he muttered, “it’s whatever.”

  “I see, it is whatever? ”

  Leo let out another groan and looked away, making sure Donnie saw the rude expression on his face. “Stop pressuring me okay? It’s the same.”

  Donnie watched him for a long moment. “..Okay.” He said, not going on further with the topic. Leo glanced over to watch him scribble in his notebook, muttering inaudible words to himself. Leo cocked his head to the side. “So… Whatcha’ writing?” 

  “If your insomnia is getting worse or not.” Donnie replied nonchalantly. Leo glared. “Thanks.” He said. Donnie shrugged carelessly.

  “And what about those dreams Leo? You said they were bothering you.” 

  Leo blinked over to his brother, taking a moment before saying, “They stopped a while back. You were right, of course… It was nothing.”  

  Leo wanted to slap the smirk off of Donnie’s face. The soft shell then clicked his tongue once again, which was a regular, and motioned for Leo to hop off of the table he was sitting on. “Out you go, then. Tell Mikey it’s his turn.” 

  Leo let out a small, “Finally,” while breaking out into a grin, and then said, “will do, thank’s Donnie, love ya’!”

  Donnie did not reply.

  What Donnie was concerned about were the faint scratches on his knees. Leo really didn’t want ‘sleep walking’ added to his chart, so he had explained that he had simply scratched his knees on accident while skateboarding.  Donnie knew it was a lie, Leo knew he did. However, to the slider's surprise, Donnie had let it slide. (He thought that was a funny joke.)

 There was a one time where Leo had stayed up all night, unable to get not even an hour or two of sleep. The following day, he had been watching a movie with Raph and Mikey, growing more tired as the film went on. Next thing he knew, he woke up in his bed feeling slightly fresher than he had felt for the past few days. 

  Raph asked if being around someone helped him sleep better. Leo immediately denied this, mentally shouting that there was no way he’d be sleeping with anyone at the age of fourteen. But Leo was a bad liar, and before he knew it, Raph was creating a sleeping schedule for him. Thank God for Mikey, because the young turtle told Raph off, giving Leo a thumbs up moments later.

  Later on, Leo had thanked Raph for his concern, but said he’d be just fine. 

  That night, Leo laid down to bury the right side of his face into the pillow, closing his eyes and drifting off.

  “Hi.”

  “..Hi.”

  Leo had turned his face away from the other to avoid eye contact, not in the best of mood that he was back where he had started a week ago. He had finally gotten some sleep, and he was in the one place he didn’t want to be.

  He heard Michelangelo click his tongue. “Uhh, it’s been a while.”

  “Yup.”

  He could feel Michelangelo’s eyes burn into the back of his head. He absolutely hated it.

  “So you’re… Actually real?” He heard him ask. Leo blinked, looking over with an offended expression. “Duh,” he glared, “and you’re obviously not. Just some.. Weird imaginary friend of my little brother. Probably my subconscious trying to scold me about somethin’ stupid.” 

  “It’d be pretty weird to have an imaginary friend of your brother, dude. Also, I think I’d know if I was real or not. And… I’m pretty sure I’m real..”

  Leo scoffed quietly at the first sentence.

   “Sure, keep telling yourself that. You humor me.” Leo bit at him, and turned away again. Michelangelo frowned, – from what he could hear, – “Okay.” He sighed heavily, looking to the opposite direction of Leo. “I don’t like you much anymore either, but we’re both here for some reason, so we just gotta deal with it. I’m not really good at figuring stuff out, though.”

  Leo didn’t reply.

  “I bet Donnie could. He’s pretty smart.”

 Even though Leo had lots to say, he has so much to say, he bit his tongue and continued to avoid the visitor, quietly pondering over what would come next.

  They had seemed to make lots of friends after Shredder. At least, that’s what Mikey said. Leo had said they were more of ‘Frien-emies’ due to Hypno’s continuous  last minute betrayals and Casey’s little snarky comments. Casey had been doing much better with the whole friendship thing. Mikey had decided to teach her how to cook more complex meals other than Ramen Noodles and beef tips. April had begun to bring her around more often, happy to have another lady to hang out at the lair. Leo was fine with that. Everything was fine.

  What wasn’t fine was Donnie repeatedly telling him that two hours of sleep wasn’t enough. Leo hated that. He just wanted Donnie off his shell.

  What had occurred to him was, time passed much differently in his dreams, – as would be predicted, – that when asleep, it felt like more than two or three hours. In reality he was getting a single hour of sleep each night. 

  It explained why he had been so irritable. So much as a quick glance sent his way caused Leo to develop an attitude, which ‘Doctor Feelings’ disapproved of very quickly. Leo understood, though. He knew just as much as anyone else that sleep played a large part in physical and mental health, and he lacked it badly.

  So Leo made a plan. When he was in a bad mood, he’d make sure to kindly let everyone know. He’d then go into his room to lay down, or read a comic-book. 

  If he was perfectly fine and dandy, well, he’d do whatever the shell he wants. 

  Despite both of those facts, Leo had been going through the absolute worst with his health. Not in a depressing way, of course, but he had slowly been getting exhausted each day. 

  Donnie had become more concerned once he lost his appetite, and told Leo that if he didn’t sleep, the soft shell would soon make him go to sleep, and that sentence coming from someone like Donnie had to be serious. And un-enjoyable. 

  So however tired Leo looked, he’d say he got more than eight hours. It didn’t matter how bored he was, he’d stay in bed past nine. He’d leave around ten to find Mikey making lunch, and would yawn loudly, exclaiming that he had gotten the best sleep of his life(!) . 

  Donnie wouldn’t so much as give him the most bored expression he could muster. Leo ignored it, giving him a goofy look in return, blowing a raspberry his way. 

  And thank God his mask hid the bags under his eyes. Being a ninja was amazing. 

  “Your pride will be the death of you, Leo..” Donnie said, shaking his head. Leo opened his mouth when asked so Donnie could slide the thermometer under his tongue, and made sure to give Donnie the largest grin after.

Chapter Text

CHAPTER THREE

  Their lives had been quiet for a good month — Leo finally slept more, not that it did much — before Donnie barged in with – what looked to be – four tickets in his hand. Leo glanced up from his comic to take a look, arching a brow just when Raph asked, “What’s that, Donnie?”

  Donnie had the largest grin on his face. “What’s it look like? Tickets to a masquerade ball!” He exclaimed. Donnie tossed a ticket Raph’s way, while Leo narrowed his eyes down at Mikey’s ticket. “A what?” He asked, meeting Donnie’s eyes.

  The soft shell muttered out, “Scoff..” And then rolled his eyes. “You heard me, Leo, don’t act like you didn’t.” He took a small trot over to hand one to Leo, crossing his arms after. “We’re all going.” 

  “What!” Leo sat up on the beanbag. From across the room Mikey squealed. “Oh-me-gosh! This’ll be so fun! Family bonding time, right?”

  “Uh, sure.” Raph replied to the younger. He turned his focus onto Donnie, tilting his head. “Are there actually masquerade balls in New York?” By the look his little brother gave him, he guessed not. Donnie answered it aloud for him. “Well, duh, of course not. We’re not going to a human party. It’s in the Hidden City.”

  "Wait, just- let me get this straight. You. And us, are going to a... Masquerade party?"

  Donnie confidently nodded.

  “And… Who exactly is throwing this party and how did you get invited?” Leo asked, closing his comic to set it down beside his beanbag. Donnie smirked. “Big Mama.” He replied simply – Leo was more taken aback that Donnie had no rude remarks about the yokai. Raph, however, did. The snapping turtle shot up out of his seat to let out a loud yelp, “Big Mama!?”

  “Mhmm.”

  “Are you crazy, Donnie?!” 

  Donnie shrugged nonchalantly. “When I want to be, but at the moment, no.” Leo sent his brother a firm frown. “I thought you didn’t like Big Mama?”

  “Well…” Donnie slurred out, looking away. “No. But, I just have a deep appreciation and love for masquerade’s. Not only are they elegant, but very fashionable…” Mikey clapped from across the room and shouted, “So we can go, right?”

  “No.” Raph glared. Leo mutely watched Donnie break, shoulders immediately slumping and face going pale. He sputtered for a moment before begging Raph by taking his shoulders and shaking him violently – not very effective, Raph was very large. “Please, Raphael! It will be- dare I say, fun, and Mikey wants to go too!”

  Raph grimaced, shooting Mikey an unsure look. “You guys- there has to be a reason Big Mama – of all people – invited us. What do you think, Leo?..” Leo blinked and shrugged, looking away to avoid all three of their stares. “It sounds boring. What's the point of them, really?”

  Donnie sent him a rude look. “Actually, Leo, there are very important points. Back then, masks were worn by the upper class at balls. The specific masks worn were created to express emotion and personality, and to determine the other’s identity, and the parties were made to symbolize the Dance of Life, leaving only-”

  “Please stop,” Leo said, burying his face in his hands, “I’ll vote to go, okay?”

  “Three against one, Raph!” Mikey chimed in.

  Raph stood quietly, trying to decide hastily between the three – two, actually, minus Leo – pleading looks his younger brothers gave him. Especially Donnie. The soft shell looked particularly excited, and how often did that happen? 

  He sighed. “Well.. I suppose since we went to Leo’s magic thingy-majig..”

  Donnie engulfed him into a hug. “I love you so much, let’s go!”  

  Raph smiled sheepishly and returned the hug, patting Donnie’s head. “So where is this place, exactly?”

  “The Nexus Hotel. Where else?”

  All three of them knew this was Donnie’s first masquerade ball. It was, obviously, their first time too, but Donnie took the time to explain how to act and what to wear. He even said he had prepared before introducing the trip to them, and handed them all decorative masks with their signature colors. Leo pursed his lips at the feathers coated alongside the outside of his mask, but then decided he liked it. He would’ve liked a different shade of blue, however, other than a darker one.

  Mikey looked to be having the time of his life, scattering around before Donnie pulled him back to scold him. Leo was partly glad they came, because he could smell all the delicious goods that he knew he was going to hoard. Leo glanced beside him, suddenly feeling bad for his vote due to how uneasy Raph looked. He was obviously on guard, and his I don’t like this stink was very apparent. 

  Leo slapped his back, causing Raph to jump in alarm. He relaxed when realizing who it was. Leo sent him a grin. “Relax, big guy. Have fun! Relax a little, meet a nice lady. No one will even recognize you.” 

  Mikey frowned. “He’s pretty big, Leo-” Leo gently slapped Mikey’s arm. “Not helping. Raph,” he continued, making sure to soften his tone, “remember, we’re here for Donnie. If anything happens, we’ll be on the lookout.”

  “...Okay.” Raph sighed. “Just be careful.”

  “You got it,” Leo beamed, holding a thumbs up. “I’ll keep an eye on Mikey. Donnie- aaand he’s gone.”

  “Where!?”

  “Big Mama and him are talking.” Mikey helpfully supplied, pointing a finger back at the two across the room. Raph radiated with anxiety, rushing over before Leo could stop him. From the looks of it, Big Mama and Donnie were having a simple conversation, a thank you for coming’s. Leo hummed under his breath. Maybe there really was some good left in Big Mama, just like Splinter said. 

  Mikey skipped over, fixing his mask. “What do we do now? I don’t think I can do the, ‘dance classical’ stuff.”

  Leo snickered. “I can’t either. Hey, let’s go raid their buffet!”

  He and Mikey shared a high-three before doing just that, passing right by Big Mama and their brother’s. Raph was hastily fidgeting with his hands as Donnie spoke kindly, still speaking as he slapped Raph’s hands strictly. Raph gulped as he put them by his side.

  “This is all really special.” Donnie said, looking around the room. “I’ll admit, I was surprised that you of all people were throwing a masquerade ball. But, I’m not really complaining.”

  “Oh, yes.” Big Mama said, swiping a hand through the air dismissively. Raph tensed. “I’ve had little to do since my Battle Nexus day’s… I thought a little party would be a nice change. I tried to invite your father, but he hasn’t shown.”

  Donnie immediately thought of the fifth ticket he dropped in the sewage water, internally sweating. He let out a weak laugh. “Splinter’s always busy, off doing things.. I’m sure he wanted to come but couldn’t.”

  Raph frowned. “He is? I thought he was going to watch the new-”

  “Change of plans, Raph! He told me April had something very important going on..”

  “Oh.” Big Mama hummed, tapping her chin. “I hope he’s okay. Nevertheless, this party will be just lovely without him! I’m overjoyed you have shown!” She then gestured towards her colorful mask, littered with beads and feathers, almost similar to Leo’s except much more dramatic. “I’m surprised your brothers didn’t forget their masks, much less come.”

  “I actually had to bring them masks.” Donnie sighed while eyeing Raph. Big Mama let out a small chuckle, and then glanced behind them, soon frowning. “Uh, are your brothers raiding all of the food?”

  Donnie quickly paled and looked back behind them, almost jumping out of his shell. He held up a finger to the woman and said, “I am so sorry, I will be right back.”  

  As Donnie rushed off to smack his brother’s shells, Raph met eyes with Big Mama. He forced a small smile. “Uh, thanks for the invites, Big Mama…” She grinned. “Of course, Turtely-boo! You see, I’ve had a change of heart since the whole.. Shredder situation.”

  “Are you apologizing?...” 

  “Oh. No.” Big Mama said, rolling her eyes exaggeratedly. “These invitations were simply peace treaties. I figured that besides your father, and me helping you, that you four still disliked me. Can’t have that, now can I, Heinous Green?”

  Raph let out a heavy breath. “He’s not here, is he?” 

  Big Mama laughed. “Heavens no! He’s more brawn than brains. He’d lose his temper and trash the whole place in less than a second! You remember how that went.” Raph nodded slowly, tapping his foot. “I sure do. You actually, kinda rat me out.”

  “Your little group of criminals are here, though.” Big Mama helpfully said while ignoring his comment. Raph gulped.

  “You should go see them!” Big Mama said, despite his ghostly expression. “I’m sure they'd love to see you!”

  “Sure…” Raph grimaced. “I’m surprised you invited them. They are criminals after all..”

  “My dear, they wouldn’t dare steal from me.” Big Mama explained, looking across the room to gesture to the three figures. Raph could tell – just from his time hanging out with them – that they were tempted to snag something. Possibly anything. Leonard was just holding the two fiend’s back. “I think they understand how that would go. Go on, now!” She said, gently pushing him towards the group, “Go have fun and visit some old friends! The dance is starting soon, don’t be looong!”

  Raph swallowed his fear, giving big Mama a quiet thank you before heading over. He glanced back at Donnie who still scolded Leo and Mikey, having to pull Mikey’s hand away from the loafs of bread he continued to lean towards. 

  Donnie sent Raph a small smile as he passed before turning back to his brothers. “You can’t just come to a party to steal all of the food!” He hissed. “Big Mama worked very hard on all of this!”

  “Donnie, bro, c’mon. The chef and servant’s worked on all of this. Big Mama’s just hosting it.” Leo deadpanned. Mikey nodded, taking a large bite of the cookie he had in hand. “Yeah, Don! And that’s the point of parties. The food!” 

  “Yeah, nobody comes for the fun, they come for the food.” 

  “Well I actually thought this might be fun..” Mikey frowned.

  Donnie groaned quietly, running his hands down his face. “I didn’t get you all a nice suit and mask for you to goof off. This whole thing brought an opportunity to get out of the sewers anyway. We don’t need to be cooped up in there all day. Especially Mikey at his age.”

  “You’re a year older than me!”

  Leo gave him a funny look. “We aren’t cooped up Don! We go out for pizza sometimes, and help April with homework-“

  “Okay, sure, that’s getting out.” Donnie said slowly. “But is that anything exciting?” 

  Leo cocked his head to the side. “You’re always working in the workshop anyway. Why do you care?”

  “So I get bored sometimes!” Donnie said rather nervously, looking away. “Maybe fighting all those mutants was fun sometimes… It’s good we got rid of the oozesquito’s, but..”

  Mikey blinked, awaiting, while Leo watched Donnie intriguingly, urging him to continue.

  “..You know what, never mind.” Donnie replied.

  “No, no, Donnie, keep going.” Leo pleaded gently, smiling while pushing his twin’s arm. Donnie huffed, trying to shield his awkward expression and said, “I guess I… Don’t have anything to build anymore?…”

  Leo continued to listen, ignoring Mikey stealing another two cookie’s.

   “Um. I feel like.. I’m not…” 

  “I know emotional conversations are hard for you, Don, but you really gotta stop pausing so much. It’s one of my pet peeves.”

  Donnie squirmed, and then groaned quietly all while saying quickly, “I feel like if we have no one to fight, I can’t be of.. Use to you..?”

   Leo smirked, though it was fond. “Gee, Donnie having an emotional conversation? This is new.”

  Donnie glared. “Don’t make me regret sharing my feelings with you, Leo. Take this seriously, I literally just- I swear to-” He came to a stop when Leo held up a finger. Then, the slider gave Donnie a soft pat on the shell, grinning wider when Mikey opened his arms for a hug. When Mikey hugged Donnie he tensed up slightly, but not from discomfort. He gave Mikey a small pat on the head before the latter pulled away, and then sighed. “..So. What do you think?”

   “I honestly think it’s stupid.”

  Donnie glared before Leo held up his hands in defense. “You’re our brother, Donnie! My hermano! You shouldn’t think we’d dump you about something so stupid like that.”

  “But my inventions-“

  “Are cool, yeah, and blow up sometimes. Or, blew up. But they don’t define you.”

  Donnie smiled. “…Thank you, Leon. Hey-.. Where’s Mikey?”

  Leo paused to scan the room. He chuckled when finding the empty plate next to them. “Simple. He took all the cookies before you could notice.”

  “See, this is why I don’t do emotional conversations.”

  "That little! ” Donnie and Leo took a turn to look behind them. Big Mama had a look of fury slapped across her face, Raph standing nervously beside her while a group of three stood across from them defensively. “You stole from me!” Big Mama growled, ignoring all the eyes trained on her. 

  Leo was slow when sneaking over, not too far away as he whispered to Donnie. “..What’s happening?” 

  The rat in purple pulled off his mask to glare more clearly up at her. “We didn’t steal nothin’! You think we got a suicide wish or something?”

  Raph rolled his eyes. “Broke into two police stations, so.. You would think so.”

  “Those were your ideas!” The blue one snapped.

  Big Mama interrupted the small bickering. “Then explain to me why it’s gone! I took that mask off for one second to set it and-” The rat put up his paws. “Look, Mama, I’m a rat of my word. Why would we want that stupid mask anyway?”

  “Yeah.” The orange one piped up.

  “That mask had priceless jewels and diamonds on it.” Big Mama said accusingly. “You of all people would just love to take it for yourself. Don’t think I’ve grown soft since Battle Nexus young man…”

  Leo felt Mikey creep up beside them. They watched Raph make his way between the four. “Look, get a body search and if they don’t have it, we’ll find it Big Mama! Me and my brothers can look.”

  “You won’t find nothin’.” The blue one said again, giving Raph a nasty look. 

  They continued to chatter, and Donnie turned to Leo. “Another thing. This is why you don’t leave Raph alone during parties. He meets bad people.”

Chapter Text

CHAPTER FOUR

Donnie had to scold Raph at least five times before he felt contempt with his lecture. While Mikey and Leo made fun of Raph for his little backstory with the three criminals, Donnie was — as expected — the exact opposite. Raph stressed out to Donnie that it was a ‘simple mistake’ , which Donnie had replied with ‘it could have easily been avoided’. He had to explain that ‘Mind Raph’ was no excuse for his actions.

  The soft shell then went to Big Mama to apologize for the commotion, and suggested a body search just as Raph did on the three fiends. Leo watched Big Mama explain the importance of the mask and how it was ‘awfully expensive,’ and, ‘these jewels are rich and ancient. Surely you of all mutant’s would understand the importance.’ 

  To this Donnie swore they’d find the missing mask, and Big Mama thanked him dearly, promising him a handsome payment. Leo personally thought this was all too dramatic. But Donnie insisted, and so did Raph — Mikey had whispered to Leo about how he thought it was out of pettiness towards the ‘Mud Dogs’.

  Leo thought the Mud Dogs were interesting, in a cool way. They had these cool ‘book words’ in the front of their real names, and Leo thought it’d be neat to have one. He never got through to asking, though.

  The Mud Dogs were ordered to stay behind and be guarded and searched thoroughly, and Big Mama took the four turtles to make sure they remembered what the mask looked like. Leo muttered stubbornly, “Of course, it was the brightest thing in this room.” To which Donnie smacked him over the head.

  At the moment Big Mama was muttering to her guards while the turtle’s watched silently. Once she turned back to them she grinned. “Thank you for this, really. My guards could handle it easily but, it’s nice of you to offer to look.”

  Leo scrubbed his eyes to avoid them rolling. 

  Raph sent her a small smile back in return. “Yeah, o’course Big Mama. It’s what our Pops would do.”

  Mikey stayed silent but grinned. “Does this mean the ball is over?..” Donnie asked, glancing around at the gathering people. Big Mama sighed mournfully. “Yes, I’m afraid so. I can’t have any thieves running about to steal more of my precious things. But everyone is getting a full body search before leaving.” She watched as everyone eyed her. “Full body search.”

  “Glad we’re not leaving.” Mikey muttered to Leo.

  “I will stay to punish whoever is the culprit.” Big Mama said, standing by the door. “But it’d be kind of you to take a good look around the building in case it was stashed anywhere. It’s always possible one of my employees have stolen from me..” 

  “Oh, they wouldn’t dare,” Leo said jokingly. Big Mama frowned. “You’d be surprised.”

 “Will do, Big Mama.” Raph said, giving her a thumbs up. “And,” Big Mama continued, looking at Donnie specifically, “I can always reschedule another ball. So look forward to an invite dear.”

  Leo turned to avoid Donnie’s large grin, walking off before he had to listen to his twin’s endless thank you’ s. Mikey trailed off after him and stopped once he did, he took his mask and threw it behind him. “Whoo! So glad we don’t have to wear those anymore.” He said, grinning up at his older brother and placing his hands on his hips. “So where to, Leo? No wait- I wanna be the leader. I say we go-“

  “No, no, no,” Donnie interrupted and gently pushed Mikey back. “You and Leo will only goof off. Mikey, you go with Raph. I’ll go with Leo.”

  Mikey frowned. “But-“

  “No but’s. Come on, Leo.” Donnie said strictly. Leo smiled apologetically at Mikey and went off to walk beside Donnie, glancing over at him. “So, uh. Where do we go first?”

  Donnie tapped his chin. “Well,” he mused, looking around the lobby of the hotel, “obviously the culprit wouldn’t stay in the main room. And if they left, they’d be checked.”

  “And if they left before the mask was noticed missing?”

  “Then it’s probably a lost cause.” Donnie shrugged. “Nevertheless, it wouldn’t hurt to look… I scanned the remaining guests leaving the building after talking with Big Mama. I didn’t see anything physical on their person besides personal belongings, but, I did pick up a strange energy.”

  Leo blinked, glancing over at Donnie with a weird look. Upon seeing this, Donnie elaborated. “It disappeared moments after but it was a life form energy. An energy I’ve never seen before.”

  “I thought you had every possible life form scannings written into your.. Tech codes?..” 

  “Yes, tech codes, we’ll go with that. It’s actually ‘written into the program’ but it’s close enough. And yes, I do. That’s why I’m a bit lost…” 

  Leo hummed thoughtfully, a bit restless at standing for too long. “Do you think they slipped away without anyone noticing?”

  Donnie blinked. “Hm?” Leo shrugged in response and went on. “Well you said the energy disappeared.”

  “Oh.” Donnie nodded. “Yes, probably so.”

  The slider began to walk towards the stairs, but Donnie tapped his shoulder and motioned to the elevators. The two argued for a moment over which was a faster route, until Donnie explained that it was smarter to check one of the hidden rooms or a ‘staff-only’ accessed room like the utility room, because no idiot would roam the hotel hallways if they had stolen something.

  Leo huffed in defeat and used the elevator.

  Leo then suggested the kitchen, which Donnie thought wouldn’t hurt, and still they had found no leads. Donnie had been using his goggles to detect any activity and trails, such as scent or footsteps, — Leo found the scent part odd, but asked no questions. Due to the hotel’s large size, it had taken an hour or so before Donnie had exclaimed that he had found a trail of footsteps near the stairs and on the fourth floor.

  “Told you the stairs were the best place to look.” Leo scoffed. Donnie sent him a look, which Leo quickly ignored, and the soft shell then shook his head and motioned for his younger brother to follow him through the hall. He chattered as they did so. “I am so glad Big Mama’s mask got stolen,” he said with a grin, tapping a code into the tablet around his wrist. Leo grimaced. “Gee, Don.”

  “Think about it! I was just talking about how I missed the excitement of adventures. This is fun, isn’t it?” Donnie asked, looking back at him. “Looking for leads, a missing item, a mystery life form!” Leo laughed. “Your excitement is making me excited.”

  Donnie’s grin grew wider. “Good! Now come on, we have to be getting closer.”

  “How do you know that?”

  “Goggles, Leo.” Donnie sighed.

  “Oh.”

  A sudden crash in the janitor's closet caught their attention. Donnie rushed Leo alongside him towards the sound, all while Leo pulled out his ōdachi in case of a threat. 

  Peering in the closet, they found-

  “A girl?” Leo blurted out. He and Donnie stared wide eyed at the young girl who looked back, suddenly startled by their presence. She was standing on a chair to access the vent built into the ceiling, and in her hand was-

  “The mask!” Donnie pointed. Suddenly brought back to action, Leo reached for the mask until the mystery girl pulled back and kicked him in the gut. Leo let out a short yell, taken aback and saying weakly, “Geez, you’re strong!-“

  Donnie went next, going for the mask until she swung for his head with a broom she had hastily picked up. Donne slid under the girl’s swings and attempted to grip her shoulders in order to flip her on her back. However, the human bit into the mask to use both hands instead of one, and jabbed the broom’s stick into the soft shell’s groin. Donnie choked on air and stepped back, letting out multiple groans. Taking their positions as an advantage, she flung the broom towards Leo and bolted out of the closet and down the hallway, unable to crawl through the vent in time.

  “Leo!” Donnie snapped, and took the blue masked turtle’s arm to pull him harshly out of the closet. The two began to chase after her. Leo slid down the hallway and took a turn, meeting the girl’s eyes as she glanced back. Her expression immediately darkened.

  Leo looked back to make sure Donnie was behind him; he was, however the distraction at his brother paused his attention towards the chase and ended up halfway dodging paintings being thrown his way. 

  “Hey- what’s a human girl doing here anyway?” Leo called back, ducking as a flowerpot flew over his head. “I don’t think it’s a human girl Leo- AH!” Leo took another sharp turn down the hall, wondering when the girl would give up the chase. “My scanners say she’s…”

  Leo listened intently, waiting while catching a painting skillfully and throwing it back towards the girl. She easily avoided the attack. 

  “That’s weird…”

  Leo skidded to a stop and took his ōdachi in both hands, forming a portal. He hopped in, and it disappeared just as Donnie ran past it. The girl jumped to a stop when the portal appeared in front of her. Leo popped out and grinned, jumping out to proudly gift her a ‘funny’ quip, but before he could do so, she swiftly ducked and swung her leg towards Leo’s, causing him to take a harsh fall and hit the floor. 

  Just as Donnie entered the scene, she made another run for it, heading for the elevator at the far end of the hall. Donnie paused at Leo’s condition.

  “Go, go gogogo!” Leo rasped out. 

  Turning in the girls direction, Donnie spotted the weak point in their fight. The girl was impatiently pressing the button to the elevator continuously, looking back anxiously at Donnie as he gained closer very quickly. Just as the elevator doors opened, the masked turtle pounced and pushed them both into the small space, both grunting and pushing harshly. It was difficult to reach the mask during all of this, but Donnie had finally got a hit on her as he kicked her side.

  She shouted and went to cradle the targeted body part. Just as Donnie had the advantage and went for the mask, she seemed to have snapped back to reality just in time to shove him and kick him back. Donnie slid across the floor on his battle shell, and whipped his head up to see the doors closing to shield a strange glare. 

  The older turtle heard Leo’s footsteps arrive behind him, obviously watching the scene from afar. “Dude, she took my- Did we just lose?”

  Donnie sat up a little straighter, taking a look at his wrist-tablet in astonishment. 

  “Did we just lose to a human girl?”

  Big Mama lightened at the sight of Mikey and Raph’s return. Upon seeing their apologetic expressions, however, she frowned and tilted her head down at them. “I’m guessing you didn’t find it?”

  “Um, no.” Raph replied, stopping just as the two met her eyes. “Sorry, Big Mama.”

  “Oh, do not worry. This isn’t your business, anyway. I mean that nicely, of course.”

  “Yeah, yeah. Of course.” Raph said. The three stood silently for a moment before Mikey asked, “So did those Mud Dog guys not have it?”

  “No. No one leaving the building had it in their possession.” Big Mama replied. “But no worries,” she said, smiling a little after, “I’m sure it will turn up. I’m.. Sure. I’m not happy about it, though.”

  Raph nodded, looking down at Mikey only for his little brother to look back. They silently agreed to the question, so Raph went to ask, “I get if it was expensive or whatever, but I’m sure you have loads of money, Big Mama. What’s so important about that mask anyway?”

  Big Mama watched the two of them thoughtfully for a moment, and then clicked her tongue as if deciding it was the right moment. “Well, you see, not only were the jewels ancient, and expensive. The dealer who sold to me said they had an ancient type of mystic power. They’re not from here, apparently. I didn’t bother to ask from where.”

  “Dealer?” Mikey blinked, “I thought you bought jewels from a store!”

  “Have you ever seen jewels like that before? They aren’t from the Hidden City or the human world. They were positively gorgeous.” Big Mama explained. “Those weren’t just regular jewels you could find in a store, dear. They’re otherworldly.”

  Raph frowned. “..And that means?..”

  “That’s just what I was told. From my experiences of mystic energy, however, I’m sure it was just a special word for how rich they are.” 

  “Right..” Mikey drawled out. 

  “What I found strange though, was how the dealer wanted yokai money.” Big Mama went on, looking away and tapping her chin. Raph cocked his head to the side. “Why’s that strange?” He asked. 

  “Usually yokai want human money. If you buy from stores, the money we make here is perfectly acceptable.” The spider yokai said. “It’s just the dealers that want the human money. That way they can live amongst the humans richly while doing… whatever they do up there.”

  Before Raph could go on to ask more, Big Mama spotted Donnie and Leo walking over. While Leo looked absolutely crushed — partly ashamed — Donnie looked intrigued, just jumping in place and biting his tongue to stop himself from speaking endlessly. 

  Whenever Leo tried to mention the girl, Donnie kicked his leg harshly. Leo let out a sharp hey(!) but backed down at Donnie’s glare. While their brothers watched curiously, Big Mama narrowed her eyes, quietly staring them down, but soon after she smiled and urged them out, saying go home go home, darlings, thank you for your help.

  When Leo asked why he had been silenced, Donnie said, “We don’t need her up there looking for some human girl. Not that she’s human, anyway.”

  Raph, after hearing their story along with Mikey said, “What do you mean?”

  “Look at these readings.” Their purple-masked brother said, coming to a stop. They peered over his shoulder.

  “Uh. Donnie. Hate to be that guy.” Leo said, blinking down at him cluelessly. “But what do they mean?”

  Donnie rolled his eyes. “These aren’t human readings or yokai readings. It’s that weird lifeform energy I picked up.”

  “Okay, that’s better.” Leo grinned.

  “..Why ?”

  “It means we didn’t actually get our butt’s kicked by a human girl.”

  “That’s insulting to April. Not cool, Leo.”

  
  Raph watched the two of them and sighed. “We got some information from Big Mama that might help all of this make sense.” He said, meeting his younger brothers’ eyes. “We wondered why someone would want a simple mask, and we got an answer. I don’t think it’s money they want.”

  Mikey frowned. “Big Mama said that they were worth a lot.”

  “They were worth a lot,” Raph said in agreement, “but how many yokai know about them, Mikey? They have to be special or something…”

  “Okay.” Leo said, eyeing them playfully. “It’s your turn to tell a story. Just exactly what did Big Mama say to you two?”

Chapter Text

CHAPTER FIVE

2k12verse

“You need to sleep more, is all,” Donnie said, gently running a hand over Mikey’s steaming head. The younger examined the dusty floor while fiddling with the side of the table he sat on.

  “I am.” He said plainly.

  Donnie watched him closely for a moment before turning to ruffle through a drawer. “You’re perfectly healthy, Mikey. You feel sick because you aren’t sleeping.”

  Mikey stared down silently. “..I do sleep.” He insisted stubbornly. He looked up to meet Donnie’s disapproving gaze. He narrowed his eyes. “Really. I do.”

  Watching the way Mikey tried his best to stare Donnie down, all while fighting to keep his eyes open sobered the older up. He neared Mikey and brought up a finger to tap his beak affectionately, saying, “You sleep, but do you sleep enough?”

  The small turtle nodded quickly.

  Mikey watched Donnie soften before picking up his notes. He flipped through them, clicking his tongue now and then, and Mikey could have fallen asleep to the sound of turning pages and Donnie’s small hums.

  “Here’s what we’ll do.” Donnie’s gentle voice began. “I can start you a lukewarm bath to start with your fever. That should lower it, make you feel better.”

  “What does lukewarm mean?”

  “Warm water. Not hot, like you, Raph and Leo use, which is terrible for your skin, by the way.”

  “Oh.”

  “And maybe after.. I can get you some of those popsicles April brought over.”

  Mikey immediately brightened. “The kind you freeze?”

  Donnie smiled softly. “Mhm. The kind you freeze.”

  It was worth it for the popsicles, even if he was forced to take nasty medicine afterwards.

  What had recently occured to Raphael was how sloppy Michelangelo had gotten on their missions.

  Don’t get him wrong. Mikey was prone to mess up. It was his entire purpose, in a way, — not that Raph completely means that, it’s just obvious sometimes — but since Donnie mentioned the turtle’s night terrors, Raph couldn’t help but admit his worry.

   At first he said to himself it was just one of Mikey’s childish nightmares. This was a usual thing every two months. Mikey would whine at breakfast about a terrifying nightmare and wouldn’t sleep for at least a day or two. He claimed he was ‘scared it’d come back’.

  Raph would just slap him on the head and the kid would go to sleep just fine. Problem fixed, he’d wait another month, let’s go again.

  However… Mikey just almost fell off a building the other day.

  Casey was the one to pull him up, exclaiming that Mikey almost ‘kicked the bucket’ that night. Mikey waved him off, looking ever so far away as he rubbed his face sleepily. Both Donnie and Leo sent him home after that.

  Hours later after the mission, Donnie explained that due to Mikey’s recent night terrors, he was obviously not getting a good night’s sleep. Raph had never seen Mikey that twitchy or limp. Falling asleep during training was no different for the little brother, but there were still multiple signs that something was wrong.

  One day, it was different. Because Donnie stayed up so late, he was used to hearing Mikey’s screaming when the mutant woke up from a nightmare. However, one night, it miraculously.. Stopped.

  And the next night. And the next. And soon Mikey didn’t seem afraid to sleep anymore. He still looked exhausted to no end, but Mikey had gone back to Mikey again.

  Donnie’s curiosity had caught up to him. He asked Mikey if they stopped, though it was the obvious answer, and Mikey said, “No.”

  Raph frowned. “No?”

  “No.” Mikey replied, poking at Ice Cream Kitty while throwing a slice of pizza into the blender. “They didn’t stop. The dreams didn’t. The nightmares did. Now I just dream of..”

  Raph — as did everyone else — noticed the way Mikey shied away from explaining. Leo leaned closer. “Dream of what, Mikey?”

  Mikey stilled for a moment, and then pressed the button on the blender, causing the small machine to make a horrifying sound. Raph caught him glancing hesitantly to Master Splinter, who stood calmly in the corner of the room.

  Donnie had tapped the counter twice to get his little brother’s attention again. When Mikey ignored it, it was obvious he wasn’t open to any more questions.

  What was strange, Raph began to think, was the way Master Splinter watched Mikey with a knowing glint in his eyes, mixed with wonder and astonishment.

  Leo looked often hurt when Mikey drifted away from his side, unwilling to meet his eyes. It was just a strange interaction between the two. Master Splinter ordered it stop, but Mikey paid no mind. Neither tried to fix it. Later that night, Leo asked Donnie and Raph if he had done something to upset Mikey, which was a difficult thing to do, and the two had no answer.

  Donnie forced Mikey into his lab to check his temperature multiple times. He wasn’t sick. Mikey was as healthy as one could be, despite his terrible immune system and junk food, and though it brought Donnie relief that his little brother was okay, it still left him confused.

  Mikey did look appreciative at the — out of the blue — love being sent his way. There was a time when he woke up on the couch, not remembering falling asleep there, groggy, rubbing his sore face, and Raph had peered over him to look his brother over. “..Gettin’ worried about ya’ there, Mike.” He said. Mikey smiled at this, and waved his hand dismissively. “Eh, I’m fine, stop worrying your shell off.”

  Raph sent him a short glare before hesitantly patting the younger’s head and walking off.

  If that wasn’t enough, Leo would offer to make their plates at lunch or dinner more often, asking Mikey if he wanted seconds, which usually never happened. He’d admit it was a bit overwhelming, but Mikey was slurping every bit of the attention up willingly.

  So Mikey guessed it was safe to say all three of his brother’s noticed his slacking. The sleeping had been a small problem at first with his nightmares, soon turning to you know what, which he had decidedly nicknamed The Situation. The Situation turned into The Problem, which would most likely turn into something else Mikey’d have the offer to name.

  And it all started with those stupid dreams.

  Mikey laid down for sleep, cradling his aching head for a moment. He let out a quiet groan and rolled on his side.

  He wanted to tell Donnie about the dreams, — because maybe he could fix it — once again as he did that day after he hadn’t stopped his questions. But Donnie wouldn’t believe it.

  So, Mikey let his eyes droop, ready for the sights that awaited him.

  However, Leo was not there in his dreams that time. Mikey was alone, and sat there for a long while, waiting to wake up.

Chapter Text

I am planning on re-writing this story as I've slacked off greatly and have planned it out much more in my head. If you'd like to see it, it'll be published and this version will be trashed within the few days after. I'd like to know if you're actually interested, so please comment if you like :)

The order of these chapter's rarely make sense so I'd like to get more forward with the story so it doesn't drag on like those shows with 8 seasons and 100 episodes in one. You know how it is... Until then :)