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Chapter Text

It was lunchtime at Eastman High School and Leo was ready to sit with his brothers and forget about the test he took last period that stressed his whole class out.

“Man, glad that’s over. Hopefully, the guys are having a better time than I am.” Leo thought to himself.

He then noticed them talking about something with excitement in their voices. Raph was especially enthusiastic, which made Leo very curious.  

“Hey guys, what’s going on here?” asked Leo.

“Oh Leo, Raph’s been waiting to tell you about his big idea,” said Mikey.

“Big idea?” asked Leo.

“Alright, so you know about the pep rally that’s happening next week, right?” asked Raph.

“Yeah, I’ve actually been looking forward to it,” said Leo.

“Well, you’re more or less alone in that department. See, I’ve been talking to people about the pep rally and how they feel about it. And most of them think it’s a waste of time.” said Raph.

“Really?” asked Leo.

“Yep, and it gave me an idea. Instead of having a generic pep rally, what if we have an event dedicated to us? But not just any event. I say we do an AMA (Ask Me Anything) with the whole school. That way people won’t be bored for an hour.” said Raph.

“An IRL AMA? With the whole school? I…I don’t know, Raph. I don’t think it’s a good idea.” said Leo.

“Why? What’s the problem?” asked Raph.

“The problem is that this could go very badly, Raph. What if people ask inappropriate questions? What if the questions get too personal? What if things get out of control?” asked Leo.

“Nardo, relax. We actually have control over this,” said Raph.

“We’ve talked to teachers about Raph’s idea and they’re okay with it as long as it’s school-appropriate. Meaning no NSFW questions,” said Donnie.

“And if we get any questions that we find uncomfortable, we can just not answer them. It’s that simple,” said Mikey.

“Okay, but you guys know I’m not the biggest fan of large crowds,” said Leo.

“We know, Leo. Large crowds can flare up your anxiety. Trust us, if it’s too much for you, we’ll stop the AMA. As our big bro, you come first before anyone else.” said Donnie.

“Thanks, guys,” Leo said, greatly appreciating his brothers for being empathetic when it came to his anxiety.

“Great! This is going to be awesome!” Raph yelled in excitement.

Leo wasn’t feeling quite as enthusiastic as his hot-headed brother, but he was happy his brothers were happy and that’s what mattered most to him.

But it wouldn’t hurt to have a second opinion, so he called April after school to ask her about Raph’s AMA plan. Now that they’ve been friends for several months, it was easier for Leo to have casual conversations with April, without him sounding peak cringe.

“Leo, what’s up?” asked April.

“Hi, April. Um, are you busy?” asked Leo.

“Not really. I’m taking a break from some stupid algebra homework. Why? What’s going on?” asked April.

“It’s nothing serious or anything but did my brothers tell you about the event we’re doing next week?” asked Leo.

“No, but I’ve heard rumblings about it in school. You guys are doing an AMA-type thing, right?” asked April.

“Yeah, Raph came up with the idea. So, do you think we should go through with it?” asked Leo.

“Hmmm. I mean, do YOU want to go through with it? Personally, I don’t think it’s a terrible idea. It’s certainly better than doing it online. Our classmates are NOTHING compared to the weirdos you see on the internet.” said April.

April was right about that. Leo shuddered at the potential questions he and his brothers would’ve faced had they done an AMA on Twitter or X or whatever it’s called.

“Well, I know my brothers really want to do it but…the visual of being in front of a ton of people asking me questions just isn’t the most appealing thing to me,” said Leo.

“So, you don’t want to do it?” asked April.

“If it was just me, no. I couldn’t handle it. But since my brothers will be right beside me, I think I could stomach it.” said Leo.

“You sure? Because we don’t need you becoming ‘Puke Boy’. Trust me, it’s no fun.” said April.

“I’m sure, April,” said Leo.

“Okay. I’ll be with you guys to make sure everything goes as smoothly as possible,” said April.

“Really? Great! Thanks, April, you’re the best!” said Leo.

“No problem, Leo. Well, I have to go finish my homework. I’ll talk to you, tomorrow.” April said while smiling.

“Okay, you see tomorrow. Bye,” said Leo.

“Bye,” April said before she hung up.

Since April would be there to help with the AMA, Leo could now try to relax a little. Keyword: try.

“Okay Leo, just chill. Everything will be fine. Your brothers will be there. April will be there. It’s fine. It’s just an AMA. It’s not like we’re fighting Mechazoids or sea mutants or anything crazy. We’re just answering questions. In front of hundreds of people. How bad could it be?” Leo said to himself, trying to convince himself that this was a good idea.  

Chapter Text

Well, the day had arrived. A day Leo wasn’t looking forward to that much, but he knew his brothers were. The IRL AMA with the whole school.

The very idea of a bunch of people asking him and his brothers various questions, questions that ranged from serious to absurd, made Leo feel uneasy. Although his brothers tried to hide it, he could tell they felt nervous about it too.

The night before the AMA, the four brothers had an honest discussion over how they were feeling about the upcoming event.

“So, you guys ready for tomorrow?” asked Leo.

“Kind of. I mean I’m still excited, but I think the nerves are starting to kick in,” said Mikey.

“Same. The idea sounded really cool on paper but after giving it some thought, I think I understand why you were so apprehensive about it. We don’t know what questions our classmates will throw at us and there’s no real way to prepare for any curveballs.” said Donnie.

Noticing how Raph was looking down at his hands and not giving eye contact, Leo asked, “Raph?”

“I…I don’t know. I want to do it but I kind of don’t want to do it at the same time. But it was my idea and I’m going to commit to it. I don’t want to wimp out just because I’m a little nervous.” said Raph.

“Raph, you know it’s okay to be nervous, right? You don’t have to act tough 24/7,” said Leo.

“I know,” Raph said quietly.

“I mean I know I’m nervous. Extremely nervous. But with the four of us doing this together, I think it’ll go okay. After all the villains we’ve beaten, there’s pretty much nothing we can’t do as a team.” said Leo.

“As corny as you made that sound, I agree,” said Mikey.

“I agree too,” said Donnie.

“Me too. Let’s do this thing and rock this AMA!” said Raph.

That was yesterday. Now, the turtles were right outside the door to the gymnasium, awaiting their cue to enter.

“And now without further ado, please give a very warm welcome to Leonardo, Donatello, Raphael, and Michelangelo! The Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles!” April announced, which was their cue to enter the gym.

When the four brothers walked through the doors and made their way to the makeshift panel, the gym erupted in excitement. Even though he was incredibly nervous, the look of pure joy on the faces of his brothers, not to mention seeing April as their moderator, told him that everything might be okay.

After the turtles sat down at their table, the crowd settled down enough to where April was able to give a proper introduction.

“Okay, welcome to the first-ever Eastman High AMA, featuring the heroes of New York City!” said April, which got another loud ovation from the crowd.

“Now before we begin, we need to go over some rules first. One, NO inappropriate or NSFW questions. Those won’t be allowed. Two, please note that the guys are NOT obligated to answer every question, particularly those that might hit a sore spot or make them uncomfortable, so don’t be disappointed if they don’t answer. And three, let’s just have a good time.” said April.

“Hold on, April. There’s one more rule I want to add. Okay, for the sake of everyone here, I don’t want to hear ANY questions about anime, manga, or K-Pop because my weeaboo brother will go on and on for hours and no one will be able to ask any more questions.” Raph said while pointing at Donnie.

An offended Donnie said, “Hey! I wouldn’t talk about it for that long.”

“Donnie, we know you. You would. Don’t lie.” said Raph.

“I…(sigh) whatever,” Donnie replied, annoyed that he wouldn’t get to talk about his favorite anime, manga, or K-pop bands.

“Alright, now that we got through all that information, who wants to ask the first question?” asked April.

Immediately, hundreds of hands were raised.

“Woah. That’s a whole lot of hands. Okay, umm, how about…you in the purple and red jacket and the Spider-Man pointing meme shirt.” April said while pointing at the classmate.

“Me? Okay, well, I’m Rob and my question is for Raphael,” said Rob.

“Alright, shoot,” said Raph.

“So, you and your brothers now have labels attached to you. Like how Leo’s ‘the leader’, Mikey’s ‘the comedian’, and Donnie’s ‘the smart guy’, you know. Your label tends to be ‘the angry one’. Does that bother you?” asked Rob.

“Nah. Anger’s always been part of me, ever since I was little. Sure, anger can suck sometimes and make me do stupid things, but it also helps me in fights and makes me look intimidating. So, yeah, I’m not super bothered by the label, but I am trying to find ways to calm myself and not let anger control me so much.” said Raph.

“Okay, next question goes to…you with the orange hat and the superhero shirt,” said April.

“Cool, so I’m Wayne. I’m wearing a Justice Force shirt; it’s based on a super niche indie comic. Anyway, my question goes to Mikey.” said Wayne.

“Alright, ask away,” said Mikey.

“How do you have braces? Like, I can get Donnie finding glasses in the sewers but I’m pretty sure there are no underground orthodontists in New York, unless I’m just wrong. Is there a story to it?” asked Wayne.

“Yeah, there is a story to it. So, for most of my childhood, my teeth were AWFUL. They were all crooked and they caused me so much pain. It really wasn’t pleasant.” said Mikey.

“We legitimately lost count of how many times Mikey whined and cried about his teeth,” said Donnie.

“So, our dad, who had to endure years of me crying about my not-so-pearly whites, went topside and somehow found someone who happened to be an orthodontist and got him to look at my teeth. And what’s real crazy is that the orthodontist, who I won’t name, actually kept his mouth shut about the existence of mutants,” said Mikey.

“It probably helped that if he tried to tell people about mutants, they would just find him crazy, and he would end up getting fired. So, career-wise, that guy made a smart move,” said Leo.

“The dude put braces on me last year and has checked the state of my teeth every few months,” said Mikey.

“Before we met April, he was the only human we ever really knew and even then, only Mikey got to see him,” said Raph.

“And the great news is that I’m finally getting them removed next year!” said an excited Mikey, who got some applause from the crowd.

“Yep, soon enough it’ll be no more braces for me and no more metal mouth jokes from my brothers. So yeah, that’s why I wear braces,” said Mikey.

“Alright, next question goes to…the girl in the green varsity jacket with the ‘Mystic Mayhem’ shirt. And by the way, I love your glasses.” said April.   

“Aww, thanks. Okay, so my name’s Kat, and I want to speak for all the girls when I say that you guys are SO FREAKING CUTE.” Kat said, as all the girls in the crowd screamed in agreement.

“Hey, I’m not cute!” Raph complained.

“So, my question is for all four of you. Besides being heroes, do you guys have any future career plans?” asked Kat.

“Personally, I want to either be a stand-up comedian or an actor. And might also do podcasting as a side job,” said Mikey.

“I would love to be a video game designer or any major job in the tech field,” said Donnie.

“MMA fighter. It’s been my ultimate goal ever since I was a kid,” said Raph.

“I’d really like to be a professional comic book artist. If not, then maybe an online artist. I think it would be really cool.” said Leo.

April smiled at Leo’s answer before saying, “Cool, next question goes to…girl with the red hair and yellow alien shirt.”

“Okay, I’m Mae and my question is for all four of you. Admittedly, this is a weird question, but I know I’m not the only one who’s thought about this. So, in school, you guys wear clothes. Shirts, shoes, pants, the whole shebang. But when you’re fighting crime, you’re more or less naked. And I’m not judging or anything but is there a reason why do you that?” asked Mae.

“Yes, actually. For about 99% of our lives, when we were underground and didn’t believe we had a shot of being accepted by humanity, we just didn’t wear clothes. Our Dad just didn’t see the point of dressing us up.” said Leo.

“Not to mention, our shells make it a little difficult for us to wear clothes,” said Donnie.

“Personally, I’d rather be naked all the time. No offense to you guys but human clothes SUCK, especially when you’re in a fight. They literally serve no purpose; they restrict movement, and they make it hard for me to store my sai. So, if you ask me, I’m against clothes but I’ll wear them when it’s absolutely necessary.” said Raph.

“For me, I think clothes are pretty cool. But like Raph said, they get in the way of fighting so that’s why we don’t clothes when we’re on patrol,” said Mikey.

“Alright, next question goes to…the guy in the purple hoodie that says, ‘Got Uranium?’,” said April.

“Okay cool, well, I’m Josh, and I actually have two questions, one for Donnie and one for the four of you. Donnie, have you ever thought about giving your bo staff a tech upgrade? And just so there are no misconceptions or anything like that, are any of you neurodivergent by any chance? You don’t have to answer but I think it would be good to know that way we don’t make any incorrect assumptions.” said Josh.

“Well, when it comes to the bo staff question, it would be cool to give it some upgrades but…guys, I’m not THAT smart. I mean I’m really smart but I’m not CRAZY smart. I’m not Tony Stark. I can’t just whip up machines and gadgets with no effort. That’s not me. I’m just really good with computers. But I do like the idea of upgrading our weapons though.” said Donnie.

“And as for the neurodivergent question, well, I know I have anxiety. I think that’s pretty obvious at this point. But that’s just me, I’m not going to diagnose my brothers or anything like that. It’s not really my place to say what they may or may not have. Heck, none of us have yet to be properly diagnosed by a doctor.” said Leo.

“Actually, while we’re talking about this, there’s something I want to make public. Um…I’ve done research with Donnie and…I’m pretty sure I’m autistic. Like Nardo said, I haven’t been diagnosed by a doctor, but I do share a lot of traits with it so…yeah, that’s all I wanted to say.” Raph said with an uncharacteristically shaky voice.

Leo, Donnie, and Mikey looked at their hot-headed brother and smiled, proud of him for being open and willing to disclose such personal information to everyone.

And they weren’t the only ones who were proud of Raph, as April and the entire crowd applauded him.

During the applause, Leo whispered to Raph, “Are you okay?”

“Yeah, I’m fine,” said Raph.

“I’m really proud of you,” said Leo.

“Thanks, bro,” said Raph.

“Alright, next question goes to…guy in the red shirt with the fire-breathing turtle on it,” said April.

“Name’s Sean and I have a question for you guys. This doesn’t really apply to Raph, since he’s kind of buff, but how is it that you guys are so skinny yet so strong at the same time? It doesn’t make a whole lot of sense to me.” said Sean.

“One word,” said Donnie.

“Mutagen.” Leo, Donnie, and Mikey said simultaneously.

“Mutagen makes us WAY stronger than the average human, even if we have noodle arms. I mean, Raph can lift up a van BY HIMSELF,” said Donnie.

“Facts. I am just that freaking strong.” Raph said, fighting the urge to drop an F-bomb.

“So yeah, mutagen makes us as strong as we are. But I WOULD NOT RECOMMEND putting mutagen in your body. Just because it worked out for us, it doesn’t mean it’ll work out for you. Just wanted to mention that.” said Leo.

“Okay, next question goes to…the dude with the fruit ninja beanie and the really cool portal shirt,” said April.

“Yes! Awesome! My name’s Ben and I have a question for the turtle in blue, Leonardo.” said Ben.

“Oh, um, okay. Go ahead,” said Leo, who was caught off guard, as he didn’t expect anyone to ask HIM any questions.

“Cool, so you’re the leader of your team, right? What’s that like? Is it difficult?” asked Ben.

“Well, it certainly has its ups and downs, I can tell you that. I constantly have a ton of pressure on my shoulders and the fear of choking under said pressure can really get to me sometimes. My anxiety and my brothers’ antics don’t help. But I know I have what it takes to be a really good leader. My brothers witnessed my potential first-hand when things were looking hopeless during our battle with Superfly. I just need time, that’s all.” said Leo.

“And a confidence boost,” Mikey added.

“Yep, just time and a confidence boost,” said Leo.

“Okay, next question goes to…you with the blond hair and the orange shirt that has ice cream and cats on it,” said April.  

“Hey, I’m Greg, and I have a question for all of you. So, I know you guys only have 3 fingers on each hand and 2 toes on each foot. Does that make life more difficult for you compared to us 5-fingered, 5-toed humans?” asked Greg.

“Well, our toes aren’t really a problem. Our fingers though? Yeah, life can be a little annoying with only 6 digits.” said Mikey.

“Like if we had to wear gloves or anything on our hands, it would have to be custom because last I checked they don’t sell 3-fingered gloves in stores,” said Donnie.

“They should,” said Raph.

“Yeah, our lack of extra digits can be a minor inconvenience at times. But it’s nothing serious. It’s just how we’ve lived our lives.” said Leo.

“Okay, we’re almost out of time, so the last question goes to…guy wearing a blue beanie and a rabbit samurai shirt,” said April.

“My name’s Michael and I have a question for all four of you. So, I know you guys are probably on a high right now after defeating Superfly but are you preparing yourselves for the next major threat? I’m asking this because you guys are basically superheroes, and if there’s one thing I know about superheroes, it’s that once they get rid of one threat, a new one pops up. And then another pops up and then another one and then another one and then another one, you get it. So, are you remotely prepared for future threats? Do you have a plan at all?” asked Michael.

The turtles took a moment to process Michael’s question as it was by far and away the most serious question they’d received. Not to mention, the most important.

“Woah, that’s…that’s a loaded question,” said Mikey.

“We don’t have a concrete plan. We kind of just do things on the fly which I know is not a good thing to say considering our responsibilities as heroes,” said Donnie.

“I’ve thought about discussing strategy with my brothers and how we should deal with various threats like gangs and evil mutants,” said Leo.

“We’ve also heard rumors about an evil ninja clan in Japan but we’re not super sure they exist,” said Mikey.

“I mean, we can try to prepare ourselves but it’s tough because we have no real idea what to expect. I mean, how do you prepare for a threat like Superfly? How do you possibly prepare for a kaiju-sized mutant? Well, the answer’s simple. You can’t.” said Leo.

“I gotta agree with Nardo. We can’t prepare for all the crap that gets thrown our way in advance. There’s no way. But with my bros and our mutant cousins, I think we can handle big threats.” said Raph.

“Yeah, what Raph said,” said Donnie.

“Yep, you can count on us to save the day!” said Mikey.

“And with that, we are officially out of time. Sorry if you didn’t get your questions answered but for those who did get their questions answered, I hope the guys gave you some clarity on things you were curious about. And before we all go back to class, how about one more round of applause to the heroes of New York!” April said, which led to the crowd giving the turtles another round of applause before everyone began to leave.

“See y’all later!” Mikey said before he, his brothers, and April left their panel and the gym so they could attend their remaining classes for the day.

Chapter Text

After a very eventful day at school, the turtles were glad to be back home in the sewers. The moment they entered the lair; they made themselves comfortable by taking off their human clothes and putting on their signature bandanas. Initially, only Raph did this but after a while, the others understood why Raph wasn’t the biggest fan of clothes. Besides, it’s not like they had to wear clothes ALL the time, especially when they were at home.

Once they put their clothes in the hamper, Leo said, “Dad, we’re home.”

“How was school, boys?” Splinter asked as he and Scumbug greeted their children.

“Eventful, to say the least,” said Donnie.

“We did an AMA with the school!” said Mikey.

“AMA?” asked a confused Splinter.

“Ask Me Anything. People at school asked us questions and we answered them. That’s what we did.” said Raph.

“People asked you questions? Were they inappropriate?” asked Splinter.

“Don’t worry, Dad. It was a clean AMA. No inappropriateness whatsoever.” said Leo.

“Good. I am glad to hear that. (Pause) They didn’t ask you boys about milking, right?” asked Splinter.

“NO!” the turtles said simultaneously.

“Okay, just checking,” said Splinter. Scumbag said something incomprehensible before she and Splinter walked away.

“Dad has GOT to move on from the milking thing,” said Mikey.

“I know, he has Vietnam flashbacks every time the word ‘milk’ is even discussed. What could’ve happened to him to make him think this way?” asked Donnie.

The brothers tried to think of potential incidents that could explain their father’s behavior but all they got were unpleasant images in their brains.

“Yeah…let’s…let’s not think about it anymore,” said Leo.

“Couldn’t agree more,” said Raph.

Later that night, the turtles had a little meeting in the living room about their thoughts on the AMA.

“So, we actually did an AMA, huh?” said Leo.

“Yep, and you know what? It actually wasn’t that bad,” said Mikey.

“Yeah, our schoolmates were way more normal about it than I thought they would be,” said Donnie.

“True, I was worried they would ask how we go to the bathroom or something weird like that,” said Mikey.

“I certainly didn’t expect Raph to be as open as he was, that’s for sure,” said Donnie.

Realizing how Raph was being quiet, Leo asked, “Raph? Are you cool with us talking about what you said earlier?”, wanting to make sure he was comfortable before continuing.

“Yeah, I’m cool,” said Raph.

“Okay, great. So, you actually made your unofficial autism diagnosis public,” said Leo.

“Yep,” said Raph.

“Any reason why you chose to announce it when you did?” asked Donnie.

“I don’t know. It was one of those ‘in the moment’ type things. That Josh guy asked about us being neurodivergent and I just thought it would be the best time. And now I don’t have to deal with people asking me if I have it or not.” said Raph.

“People have asked you about it?” asked Leo.

“Yeah, some idiots in my class kept bothering me about it. Saying that I was probably an ‘autistic freak’. A few punches in the gut later and they never bothered me again.” said Raph.

“Oh. I’m really sorry you had to go through that,” said Leo.

“It’s fine, Leo. It is. You don’t have to worry about me. I dealt with the problem.” said Raph.

“Well, it’s not how I would’ve dealt with the problem but if it works, it works. Just don’t immediately resort to violence every time. You could get into serious trouble. You can just-” Leo said before getting cut off by Raph.

“I know. I know. Use my words, not my fists. Talk to you guys and Dad. I know, Nardo. I’ll start trying it your way at school, okay?” said Raph.

Leo smiled and said, “Okay, Raph.”

“Judging by the response you got from the crowd; it seems a very large majority of the school is cool with you being autistic,” said Donnie.

“So, if anyone has a problem with you being yourself, just remember, we got your back/shell,” said Mikey.

“Thanks. I definitely know my wrestling buddies got my back,” said Raph.

“Even better,” said Mikey.

“So, I guess that’s it? We’re not doing AMAs again?” asked Leo.

“I don’t know. It could be fun to do another one,” said Raph.

“How often should we hold AMAs? Like once a month?” asked Mikey.

The other turtles simultaneously yelled, “NO!”, in response, shutting that idea down.

“Doing that every month would be a nightmare,” said Donnie.

“Okay, so no monthly AMAs. How about we make it yearly then? We can make ourselves the premier pre-homecoming event until we graduate.” said Mikey.

“I’m down for yearly AMAs,” said Raph.

“I certainly prefer it over the once-a-month schedule you said earlier,” said Donnie.

“What do you think, Leo?” asked Mikey.

Leo thought about Mikey’s idea. The AMA experience did go better than he expected, and he would only have to do it at least 2 more times. It wouldn’t kill him to answer more questions from his fellow schoolmates.

“Honestly, I like the idea,” said Leo.

“Wait, you’re cool with doing another AMA? I thought your nerves would say otherwise,” said Donnie.

“Well, I guess they actually want me to live a little,” said Leo.

“Alright! That’s what I like to hear! Nardo not being fearful for once!” Raph yelled excitedly.

Leo laughed in response, agreeing with Raph. It did feel good not to feel fear about another AMA. No fear. Hmmm. Maybe he could turn that into a nickname.