#because that's what splinter told them he would have called their lost brother

[allmightyscroll-swag]

WAIT NO WE WERE TALKING ABOUT YOUR AU I DONT AANT TO...GO BAVK TO TALKING ABOUT ONE OF MINE😭😭😭

SKSEKEIEIEEIIEIC

THERE'S NOT ACTUALLY VERY MUCH TO TALK ABOUT THO.....

At least in the plot department because I don't know how to plan things AT ALL. Like, I know Don would see the others in like, early season 1 (I don't remember the episode) when the foot clan was first introduced? Expect that the others wouldn't know about him until like, the next encounter maybe? But like??? I have so so many ideas on how things could go from there but their all just random ideas I'm attempting to mush together with no real foreshadowing, twists or turns really 😭😭

[shantechni]

I noticed this a looooong time ago, but I didn't mention it and sort of kept pushing it aside as an unimportant detail. After coming across this for, like, the fifth time though, something finally strikes me as supremely odd, and it's these two simple lines Leo says in the first episode of S2.

Between the S1 finale and the S2 premiere, Splinter told his sons that he defeated the Shredder when they faced off in the hideout. Not only that, he told them they'd never see the man again because he lost his honor, but both of these statements are immediately proven to be contradictory to what actually took place, as well as to what Splinter believes about the Shredder's way of thinking.

Anyone who has watched the S1 finale, specifically the second part, knows that the fight was brought to a screeching halt when Karai ran in to stop Splinter from finishing off the Shredder. And, after seeing just how deeply influenced Karai has been to hate him, Splinter left in a hurry to avoid fighting who he now knows is his thought-to-be-dead daughter.

Now, it makes sense that Splinter didn't tell the boys Karai interrupted the fight considering she was a touchy subject, one he didn't approach all of his sons with until midway through S2 in The Manhattan Project. He was still coming to terms with the revelation himself, and his avoidance of everyone's questions tells us that he genuinely didn't want to explain why Karai believed he killed her mom. In the process, he'd have to get into the reason Shredder led Karai to believe that lie and yadda yadda.

So, not telling them Karai was there makes sense. But why tell them the Shredder was defeated?

Something like that would be believable if he didn't imply any finality by telling them the Shredder was taken down, because he goes on to wonder outloud if their enemies were truly defeated and even reaffirms that, "The Shredder is a crafty and patient foe who bides his time." But Leo clearly says that Splinter told them they'd never see him again after he apparently lost whatever honor he had left. And we can't point fingers at any potential dialogue or writing error because they make sure the audience hears that Splinter did indeed facilitate this calm behavior of theirs.

One can wonder if he didn't truly intend to flat out lie, but rather to placate his sons by withholding a harsh truth and giving everyone the time they need to revel in their victory. However, that's another odd decision for Splinter to make since he's usually the one to remind his sons that none of their enemies will stay gone for long, the first and most notable instance of this being when they first encountered Bradford and Xever.

Anyways, after Leo says what he says, Splinter takes offense to Raph casually adding that they'll take care of the Shredder if he does come back, and, upon realizing that his prior statement has heavily blanketed them with a false sense of security, he harshly tells his sons the month long celebrating is over.

Honestly, even though I said sugar coating is very out of character for someone like Splinter, it's the only sensible answer for him lying to the guys. And probably himself for a minute there, too.

He knows the Shredder isn't honorable. He's traitorous, underhanded, and full of spite for those he feels wronged him. Oroku Saki is a vengeful man who has been undeniably wronged in his past, but refuses to learn from it and will shift the blame onto those undeserving. He's tenacious in the way he literally left Japan with a singular image of a Hamato clan shuriken as proof that he has another chance to kill someone he used to call his brother.

Splinter knows all of this, but he still went ahead and made the morally dubious decision to construct a perfect, short-lived world where he could tell his sons they wouldn't have to worry about the Shredder again.

And where he doesn't have to face the gravity of the changes yet to come.

[soapiemomorphine]

My Rottmnt Separated Au!// Masterpost

(*Dj Khalid voice *: Another one ) (scroll to bottom for links to other posts)

This one’s called:

How I Met Our Brothers

And it’s an au of my own inspired by all the greats, like @daedelweiss @dianagj-art @trubblegumm @red-rover-au and more! (Seriously go follow their blogs)

Mainly by @trubblegumm and by the feral Leo from @cupcakeslushie , and you’ll soon why

With out further ado;

DRUMROLL PLEASE DUN DUNNUNUUUUHHHHH

(Also dont worry ab my chicken scratch I have it all written down lol)

(Click for better quality lol)

Since my writing’s shit (lol) here’s the transcript for what I wrote: the character descriptions first, then the pluses from top to bottom

Donatello Hamato:

Raised by Splinter/Hamato Yoshi/Lou Jitsu in the sewers under Brooklyn

Started looking for his bros after his dad told him about them

Met April when he was 9 (she was 11)

He met Leo when they were both 11

Baron Michelangelo:

(I hc that Baron is a title, not a name; like Lord or Lady, so Mikey inherited Draxum’s title)

He’s been training to be a mystic warrior since he was born

Muninn (the one with a larger body and the underbite) wanted him to be named Angel, Huginn (the one with a larger head and overbite) wanted him to be Michael, so they compromised with the perfect name (don’t tell Draxum they saw it in a human pamphlet )

Raised by Draxum alone until he was seven

At 7 y/o he met Raph and ever since both Big Mama and Baron Draxum have joint custody over them

BM and BD raise them like a divorced couple, they alternate houses weekly and they celebrate each holiday twice, (Big Mama and Draxum only come together for their b-days)

Besties with Raph and Cass, (met Cass when he was 10, she was 13)

Rapheal Jitsu :

Training to be a mystic warrior since he was 9

Big Mama named him what she and Splinter would have named their first son; (he proposed to her, you can’t tell me that they didn’t talk ab baby names)

Big Mama was not the only secretive one in the relationship, she didn’t know what Splinter’s real last name was, (and as a gang leader she doesn’t use her name anymore) so yes, Jitsu is Raph’s legal last name

Met Mikey when he was 9 y/o

BM and BD raise them like a divorced couple, they alternate houses weekly and they celebrate each holiday twice, (Big Mama and Draxum only come together for their b-days)

Besties with Mike and Cass, (met Cass when he was 12, she was 13)

??????? —> Leonardo Hamato:

He grew up in the sewers in Staten Island, the one who brought him there was *REDACTED*

Staten Island is full on awful people, so nobody took him in, and he learned to fear people

Donnie found him, and named him Leonardo and gave him his birthday, making him 11

Other Info:

+ because Leonardo was hella malnourished as a growing young lad, Donnie ended up being the 2nd tallest by the time of the movie

+Splinter became more proactive in Donnie’s life ever since he lost sight of the other three brothers and became more proactive in his training when he met April because he’s more paranoid than he is in the show

+Don didn’t really care for Leo (he was comfortable as an only child and Leo changed his routine), until Leo got deathly sick and nearly died

+Big Mama and Draxum (somewhat) reformed only b/c Mikey and Raph would cry and throw tantrums (they won the moral argument slay) when they would talk ab their plans and beliefs (Draxum loves his children more that he hates humanity, and Big Mama finally learned how to love with Raph)

+Mama truly loved Splinter, but was insecure about him loving her as a Yokai (she had trust issues) and b/c her morals are hella skewed, it seemed like a great idea to keep him the only way she knew how, by putting him in Battle Nexus (and she makes bank with him there! In her mind it seemed like a win-win)

(Note: Big Mama’s and Splinter’s relationship will solely be as exes, because it would be hella unhealthy for Splints to trust her after she betrayed it like it. (They both lied to eachother during their relationship in this au) Their relationship in my comics and fanfics in this au will solely be as estranged exes, they will not be getting back together)

If this post gets like, at least 30 notes then ill post a comic on how Leo and Donnie met! (Edit: oh wow. U guys did it)

Lists of HIMOB Posts:

Disaster twins post

Sunset duo post

HIMOB Donnie meets the Canon Mad Dogs // Bonus Comic

Donnie and the Stranger: Part 1 // Part 2

The name Rapheal: Part 1 // Part 2

The Caretaker: Part 1 // TBC . . .

[phoebepheebsphibs]

Double-Mutated Mikey

Chapter 33: Infiltration

Continued from the short story written by @boots-with-the-fur-club

Prev || Next

Splinter rushes down the hall and into the elevator, slamming the buttons frantically. The doors finally slide open and he rushes in, practically punching the key for the lobby. It's an eternal misery as he waits for the elevator to arrive, and he instantly bursts through as soon as the bell dings and the doors release him.

"Michelangelo!" he shouts in a mad panic, searching all over for him. "My son, where are you?!"

His heart pounds in his chest as he rushes up and down the streets looking for him. He thinks he sees a blur of dark green and bright yellow scurry away into the town.

"MIKEY!"

Splinter runs after him, though he knows he's already lost him. With Mikey's newfound speed and agility -- not to mention the wall-crawling advantage he now possesses -- Mikey will be long gone by the time he reaches the point he last saw him.

Splinter rushes to the first person he sees -- a bear Yokai leading a group of young children down the street.

"Excuse me, miss?" he asks, hands quivering from anxiety. "Did you happen to see a lizard-turtle-snake-jaguar-monkey mutant run through here?"

"I beg your pardon?" she asks, flabbergasted. "A what now?"

"My son! He's green with yellow spots and long claws and a tail," Splinter rambles. "He ran off and I can't find him!"

"I didn't see anyone like that," the bear Yokai answers, still a bit concerned and confused.

Splinter thanks her anyways and runs off in the direction he last saw Mikey go. He approaches an axolotl couple and asks the same thing. And he gets the same result from them, too.

"Meh," the husband shrugs. "Didn't see nuthin'."

"Sorry, I can't say I have," the wife sighs.

Splinter groans and continues to run, calling out his son's name as he does.

"Mikey!" he cries, over and over and over again.

After an hour or two, he gives up. Mostly because he's exhausted from all the running around in circles, and because he's losing his voice from the shouting.

Splinter sighs, sliding down against a stone pillar and contemplating his next move -- when he hears a buzz from his pockets. It's his cellphone. He doesn't even need to see the caller ID. He instantly knows who it is and why they're calling. He hesitates, swallows, and pulls out the phone. The screen is blue, with one of Leo's baby pictures as the icon.

He taps the green button, answering the call. He tries to greet his son, but the words get caught up in his throat. Splinter waits for Leo to engage first.

"...Dad? Hello? Are you there?" Leo asks.

"...Y-yes, Blue. I'm here."

"Hey, where are you guys? We just got back to the room and it's empty. Did you take Mikey out or --"

"Leonardo."

The line falls silent. Splinter very rarely uses their names. Leo knows that whatever follows... is bad, bad news.

"...What happened....?" He whispers nervously.

"Did you not call for Mikey? Didn't you see him?"

"Call for --? No, why would I -- Pop, just tell me what happened! Isn't he with you?"

Splinter swallows again. He forces the words out.

"Michelangelo ran away from me."

Silence.

"...Where are you?"

"In the Hidden City center square --"

A blue light sparks from behind him, a sound of swirling wind and sparkling magic. He turns to see a portal open up, and Leo steps through -- face pale as a sheet, his expression constantly switching between absolutely furious and utterly devastated. He hangs up the phone, which he's practically crushing in his grip as he stomps forwards.

"Pop," he says, voice low and eyes wide. "What. Happened."

Splinter shakily explains about how he'd fallen asleep during the movie, and woken up to find Mikey in a manic state going around the room and shouting for Leo. He told him how Mikey said he'd heard his brother calling out for him. As he recounts the event to his son, the rest of the group pour through the portal, wondering what has happened. Splinter catches them up as best he can.

"...And then he jumped out the window and went off to look for you," Splinter stammers. "I went after him from the lobby, but by that point he'd already gotten to far away that I lost him in the crowds."

The old rat sighs loudly.

"I am so sorry, my son. I should have --"

Leo takes his father's hands in his own, getting down on one knee to be eye-level with him.

"It... it's not your fault, Dad," Leo trembles. "I should have known he wasn't ready... But I thought he'd learned his lesson. I thought I could trust him to..."

Leo groans, lowering his head in despondency.

"I just can't believe he made up a story about me calling him."

"...I'm not so sure he did..." Splinter murmurs.

Leo looks back up at him. His forehead wrinkles in confusion.

"What do you mean? He had to have made it up! I didn't call for him, and even if I did, I was miles above ground and even more miles away fighting noise-cancelling mutants! And you yourself said you didn't hear anything!"

"But that doesn't mean he didn't hear something."

Raph steps forwards, scratching the back of his head as he tries to understand.

"What're ya sayin', Pops? That Mikey heard something he thought was Leo?"

"Yes. Mikey wears his heart on his sleeve, his thoughts are never hidden. I saw the look on his face, how he responded... this wasn't an act. He wouldn't do that. He heard something. I am sure of it."

"Could it have been an auditory hallucination?" Donnie wonders aloud.

"There are hundreds of Yokai down here, many with mystic abilities and genetic ones," Splinter counters. "You'll find several people know how to mimic a voice."

"That doesn't explain why only Mikey heard it," Donnie chimes in. "And why someone would want to mimic Nardo's voice to --"

"...To lure Mikey away?" Leo finishes.

The group exchange glances.

"What if... it wasn't a Yokai or a mutant that figured out how to copy Leo's voice?" Raph realizes.

He turns to Leo, who grits his teeth and nods.

"Donnie. Trackers. Now."

"Already on it, leader," Donnie returns, clicking away at his wrist tech. "He's above the surface. Judging from the speed and direction he's going, I'd say he's in a vehicle."

"They found him," Leo gasps. "They're taking him back to the TCRI!"

"I'll call Bishop," Casey says, whipping out a cell phone and dialing the number he was given.

"What do we do?!" April shouts worriedly. "The last time we lost him, he was gone for a whole week and came back with no memories! We can't let them do that to him again, we gotta save him!"

"It won't be enough to just 'save him' this time," Donnie adds. "They'll only keep coming back for him. We have to stop the TCRI for good!"

"But how?" Raph asks, pacing back and forth. "I mean, how do we take down a secret government organization without violating any laws or branding ourselves as terrorists?"

"He has a good point," April relents. "You guys are already viewed as, like, New York City's personal cryptids! And the other mutants aren't exactly helping your case right now..."

"Maybe we can... I dunno, ask for help?" Leo thinks aloud. "From that Bishop guy? He said something about trying to take down the TCRI and the EPF. Maybe he can help --"

"I don't think so," Casey mumbles, nervously looking back at the group. "The number's been disconnected. I can't get through to him."

"What do you mean, disconnected?" Leo asks.

"It means that the phone is no longer in service," Donnie explains.

"Thank you, Dee. Where would we be without you."

"Probably in a dark hole making elaborate dances to elder gods hoping to get the cable working again."

Leo rolls his eyes.

"He meant what does it mean if a government agent that was working to help us suddenly has his personal phone disconnected, Dee," April grumbles.

"Oh, that. Well, that would indicate that his cover's been blown and they eradicated all proof of his existence so no one will suspect anything when he also disappears," Donatello elaborates.

The group go silent.

"Well, this can't be good at all."

"I'll try calling the other number, then..." Casey whimpers.

"What other number?" Leo asks.

"Agent Bishop gave me his contact info and one for a scientist or something that was helping him out. Professor Honeycomb, I think..."

Casey types the number into the phone and dials.

It's silent as they all listen with baited breath.

The phone rings once. Twice. Thrice.

"H-hello? Who is this? How did you get this number --"

"Uhhhhhh hi, i-is this Professor Honeycomb?" Casey mumbles.

"Honeycutt, and y-yes, it is! Who is this?"

"My name is Casey Jones, Agent Bishop gave me this number for emergencies and --"

The voice on the other end shushes him quickly.

"Please, keep your voice down... Bishop gave you this number? Then... you're one of the mutants? Or the human child?"

"I'm the human," Casey confirms. "Where's Bishop? He's not answering my calls..."

Honeycutt's voice pauses before hoarsely whispering back to him.

"...Bishop was taken prisoner by the TCRI. They found out he was working as a double agent for you guys... I don't know what happened to him beyond that. They haven't told me anything concerning his condition --"

"When was this?!" Leo asks, jutting into the conversation.

"Th-three days ago," Honeycutt responds. "They took him to a sublevel and locked me in my lab. Hang on a mo', you sound familiar--"

"Wait, they found you out too?" Casey yells. "B-but how do you have a phone?"

"It's my private burner phone, I keep it hidden for emergencies. Though, I'll have to destroy it after this call..."

"Listen, Honey-guy, they found Mikey again. They're bringing him back to the building as we speak. Is there anything can you tell us that might help?" Leo asks.

They hear Honeycutt hum as he thinks it through.

"Well, I know that they've been commissioning a heck of a lot of weapons designs and strange technologies, so if you were planning on storming the castle, prepare for heavy artillery. And be aware, they have video evidence of your existence."

"Video?"

"Yes. During the invasion. That's how we were able to identify the human boy -- er, Casey. And we have some surveillance of your home base, as well as drone shots of you fighting at the pier and in a junkyard. There's even some audio clips, if I'm not mistaken."

"Audio..." Leo connects. "That's how they had my voice... they caught me on tape!"

"You do talk the most," Donnie chimes in. "And the loudest."

Leo grumbles at him as Casey tries to continue the conversation with Professor Honeycutt.

"Why do they want Mikey so badly?"

"I can't say I am entirely sure, my field of research is mostly limited to the technological side of things. But I do know that Dr. Rod Timothy considers mutants to be the next evolution of humanity, and Dr. Chaplin was incredibly invested with Mikey's powerset and abilities. The last test he did with him seemed to really excite him."

"What test?"

"The test with the A.L.P.H.A. device--"

The phone's speakers pick up the sound of sliding doors, and a gruff voice that chastises Professor Honeycutt.

"Hey! Whatt're you doin'?"

"O-oh! Nothing, just... uh... talking to myself! Being isolated in an office space for a week can really affect a person's mental health, you know!"

"Well, cut it out! And get back to work!!"

"A-absolutely, sir! My apologies... Um... goodbye..."

Casey hears Professor Honeycutt lean close and whisper into his receiver.

"And good luck!"

The phone clicks. The line goes dead. The group stands in silence, exchanging soft glances between one another as they contemplate what to do next.

"...So? Any ideas?"

"We're going after him," Leo growls. "Now."

"NOW??" Casey gawks. "Are you serious? We have no plan, no idea what to do, or what kinds of weapons they have!"

"He's kinda right, Leo, this isn't exactly the time to do a 'go-in-guns-blazing-to-save-your-brother-because-the-enemy-kidnapped-them' type of thing," Raph mumbles, his hand subconsciously reaching for his eye.

"Well, last time we waited a week before going in! I'm not doing that to Mikey again. We're going back in there. Today."

"With what plan?" Donnie counters.

"With this plan..."

Leo gathers the group together in a huddle as he explains their next moves.

"Me, Raph, and Donnie will use our ninja skills to enter in from the vents at the roof."

"But what about me and CJ?" April asks.

"You'll need a distraction to get in. And I think I have a pretty good one in mind..."

.

.

.

Inside the TCRI lobby, the secretary sits behind her desk, typing away. A security guard sits beside her, trying unsuccessfully to flirt. It's late afternoon, and she's ready for a break so she can doomscroll on Facebook while absentmindedly eating her bagged lunch. She doesn't notice several people take position outside the front. But she does notice when when a young woman kicks the door to the lobby open with a furious expression.

"Hey, lady!" Cassandra Jones shouts, commanding attention. "You work at the TCRI or something?!"

"A-ah, yes?" The poor woman stammers, jolted by the sudden noise and aggression. "How can I help you?"

“I wanna see the boss man right now!” Cass yells as she rushes into the building. “I got a complaint against one of your products!”

“Excuse me?” The guard at the counter asks incredulously. “What product?”

“My toaster!” She yells, slamming a beat-up appliance onto the desk. “Look at this! It’s pathetic!”

“Um… we don’t… make toasters?” The secretary tries.

“Oh yeah? Then explain this!” Cassandra shouts, lifting up the bottom of the toaster to show a pathetic logo hastily printed on the bottom.

“…That says ‘RITC’, ma’am.”

“I wanna see the head geek!” Cass bellows, jumping up onto the countertop and pointing her hockey stick at the secretary. “Or I’m gonna smash this place to bits!”

Cassandra starts whacking the toaster with her hockey stick, then rams it into the computer. Sparks fly, and the secretary yipes as she hides under the desk, shouting for additional security.

Several guards rush in from an elevator. As they do, Casey Jr. and April run into the building quickly.

“GIVE ME TOASTERS OR GIVE ME DEATH!!” Cass battle-cries, body slamming into the guards that run in. “GIRL SCOUT SQUADRON, ATTACK!”

Several ten year olds rush in from their hiding places previously stationed within the lobby, and begin to pummel the men with stale brownies.

"Dang, Cass has been training them well," April mutters as she and CJ dash towards the closing elevator and slip through.

Cassandra winks at the two, giving them a thumbs-up before the doors slide shut and the lift takes them away.

"Well, that was easy enough," Casey Jr. sighs. "What's next, Commander?"

"You remember the plan," April says as she climbs onto his shoulders and lifts up the ceiling panel. "The guys will enter in through the roof and find Mikey. You go looking for Honeycutt and Bishop, and get them out. I'm going to the records room to find any information on this 'A.L.P.H.A. device' or whatever the doc called it."

"And we meet back at the turtle tank in 30 minutes, unless they call to abort the mission," CJ finishes.

"Right! See you then," April adieus, climbing through the vent and clambering away.

CJ stays in the lift, waiting for his floor. Following the building plans that Donnie had accessed for the original rescue mission, the private offices would be near the top floor.

The doors open, and CJ peeks around the corner.

The halls are empty. But there are security cameras twelve feet apart from each other. CJ activates a device from his gloves that Present Donnie made for him, igniting several mini zappers and firing them one-by-one at the cameras. They each go down with a fritz and a zitz.

Casey Jones Jr. makes his way down the hall. He'll rescue Honeycutt first, then the two of them will find where they've been keeping Bishop.

CJ runs, passing each door with caution. They all have names printed on them... Dr. V. Falco... Dr. R. Cobrato... Dr. F. O'Toole... Prof. L. Cycloid... Dr. M. Malignus... Dr. M. Richards... How many scientists does this place have?!

Casey spots one door in particular -- Prof. Z. Honeycutt! That's the one!

He goes to the door and starts pounding. It's locked. He rams against it, once -- twice -- three times! The hinges break loose and the door cracks down the center. Casey kicks it down the rest of the way and rushes into the apartment room.

"Professor Honeycutt!" He calls out. "Professor! I'm here to... rescue... you...?"

The apartment is empty.

.

.

.

April kicks the emergency exit panel down and slides through the tiny opening into the hall. For the most part, it's deserted. There is one guard, but he's going to the exit stairs. Now's her chance!

April books it to the end of the hall, skidding to a halt as she gets to the records room. There's a keypad lock, but she's been prepared for this! She whips out a small ninpo USB drive that Donnie made for her and slams it into the keypad. There's a crackle of purple sparks, the keypad glitches, and then dings. The locks click and the door slides open. April peeks through and sees the room is empty. She ducks in before a security guard can catch her. It's dimly lit, but the files are all here. Now she just has to find the right one...

Prev || Next

[angelmichelangelo]

ugh i was thinking abt karai all of last night and it made me Angry. the missed opportunities of karai in 2012 are TRAGIC. she wouldve been such a good older sister living with the turtles and splinter like can you IMAGINE the antics. karai purposefully pissing off raph and they get into sibling slap fights. she indulges mikey on whatever he wants bc hes the youngest and won her heart immediately. she makes fun of donnie for being a nerd but also consistently brings him snacks and makes him go to bed when hes been in his lab for a while. her and splinter talking about their traumas and healing as father and daughter. AUUUGGHG ciro when i catch you. ciro you mf

oh absolutely!! it's so sad that such a big chunk of the entire tmnt plot was karai's backstory and getting her back to her family, and once that was all achieved she kinda just.. faded into the background like a cousin that occasionally showed up every now and then for big showdowns.

ESPECIALLY since she was splinter's long lost daughter. the daughter he'd told his sons about countless times, the one where he'd mention her, get all sad and go 'but no worries i have you boys now:)' like ??? that could have made for some AMAZING storylines. a little bit of jealousy for angst? splinter's guilt?! them trying to relearn their entire family dynamic.. and they chose to go with 'yeah the whole leo and karai thing was weird. that's still going strong btw just a heads up'

we really were robbed of her interactions with the turtles one to one. i'll say this: the turtles relationships with each other? great, fantastic, love to see it. but outside of their brothers.. yeesh. they don't mix well in terms of how they're written. and a lot of characters suffer for it. i can't think off the top of my head a single time karai interacts with, say, mikey, alone. just even in the background. like yeah they pair her and leo off together a lot and raph chews her out a few times but she really deserved to actually hang out with her little brothers a lot more and that's sad :(

i would have really have loved to see everything you mentioned! i think (and correct me if im wrong) but mikey is like the only one who outright calls her their sister. i would have loved to have seen an entire episode where the rest of the brothers kinda come to terms with that, leo ESPECIALLY! he's a daddy's boy at heart and now his dad's first child is back and he maybe feels a bit put out. maybe don raph and mike already feel like they never got enough attention have to try and cope with the fact that they feel even more pushed out, even if not on purpose.

and then on top of that, the guilt karai feels, torn between feeling glad she has her real father back, and sad because she doesn't know this man like the others quite do and she knows she's taking up his time and attention... :( there was so much they could have done! and yet!! and yet!!!!!!!

ugh. i guess that is what fanfiction is for, huh friend :') lol

[thedawningofthehour]

How did the search for Galois in Chapter 33 go for both sides (Draxum and his side looking for Galois after he was captured and Leo and his side when Galois got away from them/evaded Raph)? Who was the most calm, who was the most hysterical, etc.? Did Leo lash out at anyone on his side in particular/blaming them? Did Draxum?

Hmm, I'm trying to think back now to what Draxum and co were doing during the chapter. The fact that I never write this shit down is gonna kill me one day, I swear.

So after Draxum's team regrouped and Cass and Tigerclaw told him what happened, Draxum probably had some...choice words for Tigerclaw. And for everyone else, but they were keeping their distance and he wasn't lashing out at anyone in specific, just anyone he saw. He was probably close to hysterical even before the Phone Call, but the whole thing with Leo parading his victory and verbally attacking him, (which he knew was absolutely deserved and that made it even worse) the sound of Galois screaming for him, hearing Splinter's voice and knowing Donnie's real father was with him-if he wasn't so practical he probably would have attacked Tigerclaw. But he needed to find his kid.

I think I had Tigerclaw and Cass take two of the people they were with to search while Huginn was with the other three, because Draxum trusts none of his allies and thinks they're all secretly planning to take his son and sell him off or whatever. He didn't trust them not to hurt Cass if left alone with her either. (Huginn's harder to injure so he didn't really care) He went off with just Muninn so he could cover more ground and because he'd probably murder anyone else he was around. (Muninn kept his beak very firmly shut) He knows the rough area of the lair but as a show of respect to Donnie's final wishes he never uncovered the exact location. Which he regretted, after sending out search parties to scour the hundreds of miles of sewer tunnels under Manhattan.

Cass probably went into Full Chaos Mode and was ready to destroy any turtles or rats or stupid humans with bats she came across-after making sure her little brother was unharmed. Tigerclaw, he's a professional, he's good at keeping his cool. He kept Cass from breaking her neck and generally balanced her out, they made a pretty good team. Both the gargoyles were seconds away from breaking into tears, but they choked it down. There were several instances where Gale almost came across a search party looking for him, but swam away because he heard voices and assumed it must have been the turtles.

Draxum was completely frantic. Galois was scared and potentially injured and Draxum was terrified by what Leo and the fam might be able to do to the memory spell. He's very confident that it's secure by now, but in Donatello's old home surrounded by Donatello's family and Leo being given ample time to work his machinations-he already has nightmares of the spell unwinding, he can only deal with them by telling himself that they're complete paranoia. If Leo gave them weight, Draxum's heart might give out.

He 100% cried in the shower afterwards.

On the fam's side, let's see, Raph and Splinter searched together so I must have had Leo and Mikey as the other search party, since April stayed back in case Donnie stumbled back in or Draxum found the lair. (she probably called several people to help search, but Leo was in such a state that he just didn't remember anything afterwards)(plus there was the whole 'Donnie is ready to murder and a bit feral right now and he might legit try to kill anyone who corners him' to contend with, so April wasn't a good candidate for engaging) She was probably kind of a mess of everything. Anger, crying, denial. She wouldn't remember much of this either.

Unfortunately, I feel like Splinter would really detach after all the kids were home safe. He'd be good during the initial search, keeping everyone on-task and staying relatively calm, but after realizing that he'd really lost Donnie again he just...shut down. Probably spent the next couple of days staring at the wall. Raph would have accepted defeat first out of everyone and set to taking care of his remaining family, like he does in the movie. Mikey and Leo were the ones who had to be physically stopped, because they would have kept searching until they collapsed. Mikey cried a lot. He still has bouts of crying over it, honestly.

Leo, though, Leo was in an absolute frenzy. He'd planned this out for weeks, and he thought it was all but foolproof. He thought he was entirely in the clear once they got Donnie in that blanket. He'd really believed that the ordeal was over and Donnie was back home for good-and then that was snatched away. He lost his brother again, and he had no more aces up his sleeve. That was his best plan, and it still didn't work. He was completely out of everything, ideas and energy and lies he told himself, and he still didn't have Donnie.

He was nasty. Yelling at everyone, hitting and biting anyone that tried to get him to give up. He was the last one home, and I think I mentioned this but they literally had to sedate him because he was acting so erratically Splinter was legitimately afraid he was going to hurt himself or someone else.

Nobody held it against him. They knew they'd probably react the same in his shoes.

[starlightshadowsworld]

The truly heart breaking part of the Casey raised by Shredder AU.

Is that history repeats itself in Raph and Casey.

Raph has vouched for Casey since the beginning.

To Raph their is no distinction between his brothers and Casey.

Because Casey is his brother too.

They are family.

Even when the reveal of Casey's true parentage comes to light.

Raph still vouches for him.

He's hurt, he wishes Casey could have told him but he gets why.

He even jokes like what does make us cousins?

Casey revealed himself to protect him.

To protect Raph and the others.

He knew they could turn on him and he did so anyway because Casey would rather they lived to hate him than die loving him.

And that means so much to Raph.

Casey could have died for them.

Multiple times.

He has fought with them.

He has laughed with them and he has been their friend, their brother and fellow warrior.

Raph knows that what they have is real.

He has never questioned it.

... And than Leo gets hurt....

Super Shredder is here and Leo almost dies.

Splinter is dead.

Casey reaches out to help.

And Raph slaps his hand away like he's been burned.

For the first time Raph questions if Casey ever was his friend.

He's hurt, he's traumatised, he's terrified and angry.

He's so so afraid and it comes out in rage.

Raph can't fight the Shredder so he takes it all out on his son.

And... Casey doesn't fight back.

If anything that makes Raph angrier.

Raph yells, he screams.

Casey cries and pleads.

Both of their fathers are on the ground and yet its like they've turned back time and are standing here.

And just like than, something breaks between the son of Splinter and the son of Saki.

Raph turns away from Casey and he doesn't look back.

He picks up his brothers and he gets in April's dad's van.

He doesn't even notice that April won't even look at him.

It doesn't register in him till months later when Leo's awake and asks where Casey is.... That his family is missing more than one person.

And he thinks good riddance, this is his fault anyway.

Doesn't even know who he is.

Raph ignores the way his heart sinks, the tears in his eyes and the picture by his bed of them both smiling.

... He lost more than one brother that night and he doesn't think he can get him back.

And Casey... Casey is all alone, running a clan he was never meant to lead. Trying to cure his father and sister.

Buried Splinter alone.

Trying to fix Irma who was destroyed.

The only friend he has is April and she had to go keep the others safe.

The Krang turned on them, the city is over run with mutants.

But their safe... And isn't that all he wanted?

"Raph please!"

"It's Raphael!... Only my family calls me Raph."

"I am your family, please I never meant for any of this to happen. You have to trust me!"

"Trust you?! My dad is dead because of you! My brother might die! And if he does it'll be all your fault Jones! Oh wait that's not even your real name is it?"

"Raph...Raphael please, this was all an accident, a mistake. My dad he wasn't, he wouldn't... The Krang they did this!"

"No you know what was a mistake, me ever thinking we were friends."

"Raph-"

Steps closer and gets a sai at his neck

"... You come near me or my family again and I'll end you."

Casey is all alone.

And if you ask him, he deserves it.

[skylarmoon71]

Leonardo (Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles)- Chapter 4

Your little outings with Leo became a bit of routine. 

He’d stop by after his patrol and take you to different venues around the city. You’d seen a lot in your life, but this was different.

There was a difference between surviving and actually living life. Wherever he took you, there always seemed to be something to discover. New York was his home as much as it was yours. But to you, it never felt like a home. Just another stop to a destination you had to get to.

The more time you spent with him, the more your feelings seemed to be changing. Not about humanity.

But him.

It was a bit aggravating actually. Because you tried to find flaws at the very start. You couldn’t grasp any that would make you dislike him anywhere near the amount that you did for your own race. If anything you wish there were more like him. 

That’s how bad it got.

That night as you sat in the window sill waiting for him to come, you couldn’t get your mind to stop racing.

So you sat there in hopes that when he finally appeared it would all make sense. But the later it got, the deeper the pit in your stomach became. Because Leo never just bailed. He always told you when he would be preoccupied. You glanced at your phone, but there was no message or indication that he wasn’t coming.

“He’s fine, there’s nothing wrong.”

That’s what you try to convince yourself of. 

Finally your thoughts seem to win the battle. You moved to the ground, crossing your legs and closing your eyes.

“Show me what’s wrong.”

~The Lair~

“He’s bleeding too much!”

April called.

Mikey and Donnie were scrambling to get more gauze. Raph and Splinter were right at Leo’s side.

“It’s..just a scratch.” Leo tried to assure. 

Yet the bullet wound in his side proved differently. 

They were all frantic. It was a miracle that she’d even been able to get the bullet out. The amount of blood he’d already lost was alarming and none of them were doctors. It’s clear that he needed a transfusion. But how could they go about that without endangering both him and his brothers.

Leo sat upright.

“I’m fine, I just need rest.”

“You’re not fine.”

Leo blinked, for a second he thought he was imagining it, but he wasn’t.

“(Y/N)..”

April stared at him as if he’d lost his mind and Raph came back with a roll of gauze. Donnie held the back up bandages.

Leo looked back at his family confused. No one seemed to be experiencing what he was at the moment.

“You're a jerk. You didn’t even call to tell me you were busy. “

Leo couldn’t help but laugh, despite his predicament as you kneeled next to him.

“Currently tied up at the moment. “ He responded.

“Who is he talking to?” Raph asked.

April shook her head. 

“I think he’s delirious.”

“Am I delirious?” He asked. You shook your head.

“You’re not.”

You pressed your hand to his wound, and he could see the fear in your eyes. The raw pain as you looked back at him.

“Why do you do it..why do you keep risking your life when all they do is create a cycle of pain.”

Leo placed his hand over your own.

“Because I know in the end it’ll be worth it. It’s..” He grunted, trying to stay upright.

“It’s hard to explain. I..I just know. The same way I know you can change.” 

He found himself reaching up, hand laying on your cheek.

A single tear ran down and he brushed it away easily, sending you that comforting smile.

Leo felt a dull burn in his side and when he looked down he was startled at the glow that sparked.

“W-WHAT’S HAPPENING!!” April yelled.

They all just stared at the wound. Leo looked back up at you for an explanation, but you offered none. Your body seems to vanish the same way the wound on his body did. The minute the light was gone, Leo jumped to his feet in a panic.

“Hey! You need to sit down! Y-Your body just healed itself!!”

“I don’t have time to talk, I need to see her. I-I need to make sure she’s okay!”

“Who?!”

“(Y/N)!!”

Raph recognized the name and that look he wore. He took a step back, nodding.

“Go and check on her. Make sure ya come back.”

Leo nodded, grabbing his swords as he took off.

“A-Are we really going to just let him go?” Donnie asks.

“He’ll be fine. I don’t know how but that chick, she saved him”

It had to be her.

Nothing else made sense. 

[strawberry-creep]

Okay idea, TMNT2012 x Sweet tooth

Mikey (10) as Gus

Casey (18) as Jep

Karai (20) as Bear

Shini (20) as Tiger

Donnie (18) as Aditya Singh

April (20) as Rani Singh

(theyre more like found family not romantic partners tho)

Shredder/ Oroku Saki (old as dirt) as Douglas Abott

Leo (16) as Wendy

Raph (13) as Tommy (could change)

Jennika (adult idk what age // yeah i know shes not a part of 2012 but shjh) as Aimee Eden

Splinter (deceased lmfao) as Pubba (Richard Fox)

Tan Shen as Birdie

and thats as far as ive gotten

Few things i have changed, Both Hamato Yoshi and Tan Shen were scientists who worked together and eventually fell in love and started a family their oldest Miwa, second oldest Donatello, Middle child Leonardo, second youngest Raphael and youngest Michelangelo. Yoshi had always known Martial Arts and taught his children when they were old enough to learn. Yoshi and Shen being home mutagen that is highly dangerous bc they dont know shit abt it yet. Donnie having a love for science and wanting to impress his mom takes it upon himself to go and investigate it which prompts his siblings to want to check it out too. Raph having an obsession with turtles brings his pet to come watch and Mikey crawls in (hes around 1-2 ish at the time). The mutagen spills mutating all the brothers but in different ways: Donnie only gets a turtle shell with all his other features being relatively human like, Raph gets mutated into a half turtle half human hybrid (like regular 2012 raph), Leo has turtle like limbs with the rest of his torso and head being human like, and mikey gets mutated into a half human half turtle hybrid like raph since he was exposed to it super young. Miwa finds them and calls for her parents who at first freak out and then try to find the cause of the mutation to turn their children back. (I havent fleshed out what the virus would be but lets just say the kraang had something to do with it) Then the government starts freaking out about the virus which causes chaos and once they find the mutated brothers they arrest tan shen and Don, Raph, and Leo leaving Miwa alone because shes human. Yoshi is in his lab monitoring Mikey because hes still a baby and just got mutated. Once he catches wind of the arrests he flees into the woods with mikey thinking that Miwa is safe. She wasnt and she and donnie were separated from their mother, raph and leo (who escaped). Oroku Saki being the person people go to for answers sees the potential in Donnies smarts and Miwas skills and decides to keep Donnie alive because of it having his partial mutation be a manipulation point for him and giving him to a wealthy and smart family where he can continue to advance in his studies (the o’neils) while oroku trains Miwa. After a few years of training under oroku miwa and her girlfriend Harmony escape and decided to form their own pack of children who lost their parents the foot clan and train them in martial arts they were taught. Both change their names Miwa becomes Karai and Harmony becomes Shinigami

During the shake down Casey Jones’ younger sister was born her being a hybrid (plot hole i will patch up later) which causes him to freak out

Back with Mikey and Yoshi, Yoshi changes his name to splinter as to not associate himself with his scientific discovery gone wrong and trains mikey for 10 years of his life also telling him stories of how life was and his family before all this happened until Casey finds Mikey and Splinter (dead), Mikey who has grown up with the sense that there was more to the world than what splinter told him wants to go and see for himself and find his family. Casey having a soft spot for hybrids agrees and together they travel

thats as much as im going to write bc its two am and i have school in four hours

[tworoadsandapenny]

What You Wish For: Chapter 8. Hard Truth

I always imagine that Mikey and Raph get sick more than their brothers. Mikey because he's not always the most sanitary, and Raph because he'd rather die than admit he might need to rest instead of go out on patrol.

Anyway. On to the story.

~*~*~*~*~*~

“Is he gonna be OK Sensei?” Mikey asked sheepishly, almost afraid to hear the answer.

“Only time will tell.” Was Splinter’s vague reply as he adjusted the blanket under his eldest son’s chin.

But the worry in their father’s eyes did little to alleviate Mikey’s fear.

“He’ll be fine.” Raph piped in with a grouchy snort. “Ain’t no way Leo’ll let a bunch of Foot keep him down for good.”

Mikey nodded, liking the sentiment. But Leo’s face looked so bruised and cut up… he’d never been hurt this bad before.

Placing a hand on Leo’s shoulder, Mikey stared at his unconscious older brother. “We’re here, Leo. And we still need you. So pull yourself together and get better, Okay?”

An unexpected groan slipped from Leo’s lips, and Mikey couldn’t help but grip his shoulder tighter.

“Do not fear, my son.” Splinter rested a paw on top of Michelangelo’s, wiping as much of the worry from his eyes as he could. “Your brother is still fighting. He will find a way back to us.”

Mikey nodded, eyes fixed on his eldest brother. He had to be okay. He had to. Leo was the best fighter, the best strategist, the best at using swords—he was their leader. He was the most responsible and unbeatable guy Mikey knew (except for Sensei).

Without him… what on earth were they supposed to do?

“It’s the same as last time. Last time, we were all scared and we huddled around you and we begged and we prayed and we told old stories to give you something to hold onto. Last time, we had hope you would be okay because you’re Leo and you never give up. Last time… Last time you woke up. You opened your eyes and you healed and everything was back to normal.” Placing a hand on the black bag in front of him, Mikey hesitated over the zipper. Casey was back inside, Don was lost in reconstructing his drone, and Sensei and April were focused on Raph when Mikey’d left, so no one was going to walk in and stop him.

Just one more look. Maybe his eyes would be open. Maybe he’d be OK. Maybe he’d pull off one of his crazy last minute come-backs. It’s not like this was the first time Leo’d been “dead” before. They thought they’d lost him lots of times over the years. In explosions, fires, spaceships, even alternate dimensions. What if this was all part of some crazy plan Leo’d hatched up to take down the Purple Dragons?

What if…

“My son.”

Michelangelo’s hand pulled sharply back under his blanket. If Sensei saw—and Mikey was sure he did—he didn’t say anything. Just quietly sat down, folding his legs beneath him, his robe brushing Mikey’s blanket.

Silence descended.

Mikey gulped as he stared at the black bag before him. Stared and waited. Maybe it would move. Maybe it was all a trick. A nightmare. Maybe he’d wake up and find Leo sitting by his bed—because he somehow knew when Mikey was having a bad dream—waiting to comfort and reassure him. Maybe…

Sensei didn’t speak. Didn’t move. Just sat there, staring at Leo—the bag—with no expression on his face.

Mikey felt like he should say something. But what? The only thoughts in his head were of memories long past or denial of the present. “He didn’t suffer.” The words had tumbled from his lips so quickly, he scarcely recognized he’d been the one to utter them. He didn’t need to look to know Splinter’s gaze was now on him. Mikey shuddered in a breath. “It was barely twenty minutes from the time Raph called to the time we got to the roof. Don said with where the bullet hit—“ his breath hitched involuntarily. Why was he saying any of this? Leo could still be— “He bled out quickly.”

Splinter sighed a low breath through his nose, but remained silent. Mikey was shivering visibly by now. He didn’t feel cold. Just numb. “Twenty minutes…” And the words kept coming. He couldn’t stop them. “That would have been enough time to get him home. If we’d have left right away, it would have been enough time…” Leo could still be alive. He could still… it was a trick. An elaborate rouse for another one of Leo’s crazy plans. He could… “We could have… if we’d just…” He held his breath, trying to hold the words in like he would a sneeze. But they blurted out of him all the same.

“He can’t really be gone, Sensei! He’s too important! He’s too smart and too skilled and too… too good! Good people don’t just die like that! He can’t be gone. We had enough time to save him. Why didn’t we save him!? He can’t be—we still need him—he wouldn’t just leave like that! It’s a trick. It has to be.” His hand shot forward to grab the zipper of the bag, fully determined to prove his theory right. Leo was alive somewhere, waiting for the perfect moment to make a miraculous return. He was—

In the blink of an eye, Mikey’s hand was pulled away from the zipper, and his face buried in his Sensei’s robe, an arm around his shoulder. clasping his shell in a firm hug. “My son. Your brother is—“

“NO! No he’s not! He’s not gone! He can’t be! He wouldn’t—“

“He gave his life—“

“No!”

“—Protecting what he loved.”

“NO!”

Mikey shoved Splinter aside, grabbing the zipper and yanking it open. His desperation turned to horror as he starred at the sallow skin and closed eyes. The blue bandana. The leather hilted katana.

Leo.

A wail bubbled in Mikey’s throat, starting low as he stared and stared and…

It was really Leo. He really left.

His lament grew louder and louder, tears pouring down his cheeks. His heart throbbed so hard, he was sure he was dying.

Not a nightmare. No last minute save. He was… he was really…

“My son.” Warm arms wrapped around Mikey’s quaking body, pulling him close. This time, Mikey didn't move to push him away. He wrapped his own arms around his father’s body, clinging to him for dear life.

“He can’t be… Sensei, he’s… He can’t…”

Leo couldn’t be dead.

~*~*~*~*~*~

Splinter’s heart was beating out of his chest. His legs moved so swiftly beneath him, he’d nearly tripped thrice as he flew from roof to roof. And his nerves ignited ever more the moment he spotted the smoke.

His sons were there. He knew. They were always in the middle of the fire.

Barely a heartbeat later he was standing adjacent to the smouldering pile of wood and concrete that used to be a warehouse, eyes searching in constant desperation for three green shells.

Nothing. No sign of them. No proof they’d been here other than the flames. What if they…

No. He would know. He’d have felt it. The empty void in his soul would have swallowed him entirely.

Focus. Don’t panic. They were alive. Where would they have escaped? Underground or—

His eyes narrowed on a small blot of blood speckled on the far ledge of the roof. The limited trail continued to the edge, and as Splinter jumped to the adjacent building, he found more. They were alive. Injured, but alive.

Splinter forced himself to breathe. Think.

If they were injured, they were surely headed home. The sirens had all died down which meant they weren’t pursuing anything, but staying with the burnt building, so his sons should be clear to find a sheltered alley and duck into the sewers. And there were no other tracks on the roof to indicate an enemy following behind.

They would head home by the safest route, which was the sewers. Unless their injuries were great, in which case they would opt for speed, sticking to the rooftops as much as possible. Either way, if Splinter doubled back, he would surely meet them en route, or at the very least at home.

His feet were already in flight before the thought landed.

They were alive. Injured, but alive.

Possibly dying.

He picked up his speed.

~*~*~*~*~*~

“Ow! That hurts!”

“Mikey, I haven’t even touched you yet.”

“Oh.” Mikey tensed his body, waiting with bated breath as his brother approached with the needle again. “Wait!”

“Will you quit being such a child and sit still!”

“Newsflash bro: I AM a child! And so are you! You’re ten years old, Don, how do you know how to use a needle?”

“The same way I knew how to fix that N64 in the living room: I read about it.” Don lifted the needle once more.

“OW!”

“Still haven’t touched you.” Don groaned, washing a hand over his face before looking to Leo with exasperation. “Will you keep him still, please? I can’t give him his shot with him moving around and shouting every time I look at him.”

“I don’t want a shot!” Mikey pled. “Raph’s the one who’s sick, why do I need a shot!?”

“Because flu’s are contagious, and you’ll get sick if you don’t. Besides, Sensei had to go to a lot of trouble to get this stuff, we can’t let it go to waste.”

“But Donnieeeeeee!” Mikey widened his eyes and pouted his lip, attempting to sway his brother with his innocent face.

Don rolled his eyes and looked to Leo once more. “You see what I have to deal with?”

The older turtle’s lip quirked up in a grin and he shook his head in amusement. The minute he was close enough, Mikey grabbed his arm with both hands, holding on for dear life.

“Please don't make me do it, Leo! I think I’d rather get sick! What’s a little runny nose compared to a giant needle!?”

“It’s a lot more than that, Mike. It’s a cough and nausea and a bad fever.” Mikey gave him a ‘so?’ shrug, so Leo elaborated. “Fevers are dangerous, Mikey. Especially to us.” Don noticed him glance at the door. “And do you really want to be nauseous? You couldn’t eat pizza for a week at least.”

Mikey was aghast. “A WEEK!?” He looked from Leo to Don to the needle and couldn’t help but inch away from the pointy object. “But… But…”

Leo moved behind him, holding his shoulder with one hand and holding out the other in offering. “Just squeeze my hand if it hurts. I promise it will be over quick.”

Mikey pouted but nodded in defeat. “Ok. But if I turn into some sort of monster because Dee mixed the medicine wrong, I’m coming for you two first.”

Don rolled his eyes as Leo gripped his brother’s shoulder tighter. “I’ve got you, Mikey. Nothing’s going to happen.”

It was the calm of his brother’s eyes that really hit home. Mikey nodded, held out his arm, and squeezed his eyes shut. “Ok, Dee, do it. I’m ready for it. Just do it quick and get it over wi—“

“Done.”

Mikey stared at his arm as his brother placed a He-Man bandaid over the area. “That was it?”

“Yup.”

“Well why didn’t you just do that to begin with? We could have been done a long time ago. Jeeze, Dee!”

Don face-palmed and turned away from his brother, silently trying to calm himself down.

“So are we done? Can I go now?”

Leo nodded. “Just remember to keep the noise down. Raph needs his rest.”

“You got it, bro!” Mikey zipped out, heading for the living room. A moment later, he popped his head back through the door, finding his eldest brother’s eyes. “Hey Leo.”

“Hm?”

In the blink of an eye he was at his brother’s side, wrapping his arms around his waist and hugging tight. “Thanks.” And he was gone again.

Leo shook his head.

“Why will he listen to you and not me?” Don griped, placing the needle down and putting away the small vial of medicine.

“Because I’m the wise older brother with a calming voice, and you’re the mad scientist with a needle.”

Don couldn’t help a small laugh at how accurate that probably was to Mikey’s thought process. He turned back to his older brother, who was staring at the door again. “He’s gonna be okay.” Leo glanced at him, prompting Don to continue. “His fever’s already going down and his stomach is settling enough that he can have broth. I’m sure he’ll be back to punching walls by the end of the week.”

“I know.”

“Then why the face?”

“I just…” Leo sighed. “I don’t know, Don. Anytime you guys are sick, I get this feeling in my stomach like I wanna throw up, but don’t. What would you call that?”

“Anxiety?”

“Yeah.”

Don nodded. It made sense, but there really was nothing to worry about. Raph was through the worst of it, he just needed sleep and he’d be fine. …Right? “…Do you wanna go check on him? Just to make sure he’s not too cold.”

Leo couldn’t have nodded faster. “Okay.”

Don fiddled with a screw he couldn’t seem to tighten properly.

Even when they were young, Leo’d always been anxious. Always been worried.

He loosened the screw, realigned it, and tried again, finally successful in his attempt. He picked up the next one, twisting it into place with delicate precision.

But back then he was more open about. Before he was made leader, he opened up to Don all the time: about his insecurities, about his fears, about… anything.

Another screw in place, Don reattached the wires he’d cut, slowly making sure everything was put together the way it was meant to be.

Back then, Leo’d play games with them all the time, he’d run around the lair with wild abandon, and he’d even been known to pull a prank or two (so long as it wasn’t on Sensei).

Adjusting the plastic edging around the propellers, Don spun them to make sure they were centered and fastened. 

Back then Leo was free. Free to be himself. To play and explore and make mistakes. Then they grew up.

Grasping the screen by the edges, Don placed it over the camera lens and used a q-tip to clean it and press it gently into place.

Suddenly Leo had responsibility. He had to take care of everyone. He had to lead. Be an example. Be perfect.

The panel was placed on top over the new circuitry, carefully screwed and glued so it would remain where it should, despite it’s dented, slightly deformed shape.

He no longer opened up. He no longer let his brothers see the cracks in his flawless persona. He closed off. To keep them same. To keep them from worrying. To protect them from his fears.

Flipping over to lay on it’s back, Don attached the legs, standing it up to make sure they were even and secure.

But Don had always wondered… if Leo had been anxious when they were kids, how much worse had it gotten when they grew up? How difficult it must have been to deal with.

A quick test proved the lights, the propellers, and the camera were all working smoothly.

He’d always wondered what kind of a toll leadership took on his eldest brother. …Now he knew.

Everything was in perfect order. Completely rebuilt. Even improved upon.

Leadership had taken his life.

Don placed his finished drone on the table, turning it off to preserve battery power. All the parts that had been strewn about on the coffee table had disappeared to create this machine. It had taken him all evening, but he’d done it. Without the help of his tools from home.

He’d fixed it. So why… why did it still hurt? Why did his chest still tighten when he breathed? Why did his stomach still churn? Why did his mind shut down every time he thought of…

“I’ve got you. Nothing’s going to happen.”

It couldn’t be fixed. It never would be… Leo… Leo was…

Jolting to his feet, Don headed for the door, grabbing a blanket and the cup of tea Sensei had handed him after coming in from the barn a few minutes ago. “I’m gonna check on Mikey.” And he abruptly left the cabin, leaving a worried Splinter to sit in the living room alone.

~*~*~*~*~*~

“Don’t be such a baby, just let him look at it!”

Michelangelo. Splinter’s sharp ears picked up his son’s voice before even entering the lair.

“How many times I gotta say it? I’m fine!”

Raphael. His booming tone was recognizable even at such a distance.

“You could have muscular damage.”

Donatello. They were all here. All safe.  

“Just let me look and make sure the bullet—“

Splinter’s heart spiked so hard and fast, he nearly fell to the floor winded. A bullet. They’d been shot. Again. His fear prevented him from being subtle. “My sons!” He burst through the doors to the medical room, eyes darting about until they found each child: Michelangelo stood near the cabinets full of bandages, frozen in a moment of handing several to his elder brother, Donatello, who was poised tall over Raphael, one hand on his shoulder, looking to be forcing—or attempting to force—him to sit in the stool. Raphael held a hand over his arm, and it wasn’t until Donatello released his brother that Splinter noted the blood. Donatello’s hand was covered in it.

Raphael had turned away to hide his left from view, but Splinter was already at his side.

“Raphael.”

“He’s okay, Sensei.” Don was quick to explain. “A mild concussion and a bullet pierced through his upper left shoulder, didn’t hit anything vital on the way out. Nothing that can’t be fixed, if he’d just let me take a look at it.” Don glared at his older brother, directing the second half of that sentence right to his face.

Raph had suddenly gone silent, eyes glaring holes through the floor.

“Sit.” Splinter’s voice was gentle but commanding, and his son didn’t put up a fight, slowly lowering himself onto the stool. His hand still covered the wound on his shoulder firmly. Splinter placed his palm on top of his son’s, gently lifting it away to reveal the blood covered gash. It took every ounce of concentration to keep his fear from screeching across his face in that moment. It wasn’t life threatening, it was as Donatello said, but the fact that it had been so close…

He held his hand out to his taller son. “A cloth, please.” Don dutifully handed him the wet rag he’d been trying to clean his brother’s wound with. Splinter gently placed it atop the injury. It only took a minute to clean away all the blood, at which point Splinter had Donatello examine the gash once more, make sure there was no further damage.

All was well. His son would recover. Splinter stitched up the wound himself.

No one spoke. Not a word. Not even Michelangelo, who was normally quick to add noise where there was none. The walls of the lair were void of any sound. All that could be heard was the breathing patterns of the three turtles, and Splinter carefully listened to each one. Michelangelo breathed in hitches, as though he was holding his breath in fear and then releasing it as he convinced himself everything was alright. Donatello breathed deep and measured, clearly attempting to hold in a powerful bout of anger. And Raphael barely breathed at all. Hardly blinked. Just glared at the floor as though it was the source of all his problems in the world.

They were distant. Not just from him but from each other. Splinter had expected a level of isolation from his children after such a grave loss, but he’d hoped their grief would eventually draw them closer together. If they continued on this path…

As he finished the stitches, Splinter placed the needle on the metal tray beside him, examining his work to be sure it was enough, and closed his eyes, breathing in a deep, low breath. “My sons,”

“It’s not what you think, Sensei!” Michelangelo, already presuming they were in trouble, tried to explain. “We had to go! They’d taken it and were displaying it like a—“

“You didn’t have to go.” Donatello’s anger bubbled with every word he spoke. “And you certainly didn’t have to go alone. You could have told us, we would have helped!”

“I told you, we didn’t have time! We had to move quick or we would have lost our window of attack!” Or at least that was the excuse Mikey was sticking to so as not to throw Raph under the bus. Truth was, they probably could have called Don in. Or Splinter. But Raph was on the warpath, and Mikey had known there was no way he would’ve waited for backup.

Don seethed. “You blew up their base! You didn’t just infiltrate without backup, you blew up the hornet’s nest! Now they’re going to come after us with a vengeance and we don’t have the strength to fight them off if we’re found.”

“So we lay low. We stay down here until things cool off.”

“That’s what we were doing before you two decided to go gallivanting off playing vigilante!” Donatello threw his arms in the air in angry exasperation. “UGH! You guys are infuriating! It’s no wonder Leo—“

The minute the name left his lips, a grenade may as well have gone off. Everyone fell immediately silent when Raph’s eyes snapped over to his brother’s, piercing him with their rage.

“Enough.” Splinter stood, blocking the brothers from glaring at one another. “What is done is done. We cannot change it now. I am simply grateful you all came home safe.” His emphatic tone cooled the animosity of the room somewhat, his children’s shoulders all suddenly slouching in guilt. He continued. “Raphael. Michelangelo.” Only the younger met his gaze. “Help me understand. What had they taken?”

Mikey turned to his older brother in red, waiting for him to reply, but was once again met with silence.

Splinter was about to pry once more when Michelangelo turned to take something from the counter behind him. His demeanour changed immediately, taking on a sombre reverence as he held out the item in his hand. Splinter felt his fur stand on end.

Leonardo’s missing katana.

~*~*~*~*~*~

Previous < - > Next

I've said it once, I'll say it a thousand times: if you'd had as many "almost" deaths as these boys, your family and friends would be skeptical at your funeral too. It's why Superman won't have anyone show up if he ever actually kicks the bucket one day.

End of Line.

-TRAaP

[afreakingdork]

...

how do i even start.

Miss Dork, do you realize you make me miserable? how am i supposed to wake up everyday and deal with the fact that i'm deeply in love with a man that doesn't exist.

How am i supposed to cope with the fact I will never hold him on my arms or hear his voice say my name? I will never be able to ask him how his day is and ask wtf he meant when he uses his nerd words.

Having said that

EPIGUOHJG0IPDS´JD´SOMIG{ÑSJOKGBJNDFBUÑOIHSDJKOVDSI{GNJDS´PJDSPIDSNGÓIDSONGDSJNSD{LFL{FKÑASO{ÑJSAFHDSJLGJDSLF{DSFJDSLFNSDOÍJDS´GJDSOGI´DNHGIÓSF{KMLÑMSF{LKDSFNASPFOJFÓSDHFJ

1-SHELLDON SHELLDON SHELLDON SHELLDON SHELLDON

HE IS SO CUTE, I WANNA PUT HIM IN MY POCKET I WANNA SLEEP WHILE HEARING HIS DRONE FANS

HE DESERVES THE WORLD THE INTERACTIONS BEETWEEN THE 3 OF THEM WERE SO AMUSING

2. AH YES, READER GIVING DONNIE A TIME OUT IT'S WHAT I NEEDED TO INCREASE MY LIFE EXPECTANCY

3. THAT FUCKING BITCH HID HIS IMPLANTS!!!!! MAKES SO MUCH MUCH SENSE OMG!!!!!!!!!! I NEED TO HUG HIM SO BADLY (had to look up for that on the google, i've been reading the chapter with the browser and traductor open as always lmao)

4. POSSESIVE DONNIE YES I LIVE FOR THIS

5. Reader: "didn't u said u named urself?"

me: HELL YEAH READER ASKING THE RIGHT QUESTIONS I NEED TO KNOW SO BAD

donnie: *ptsd*

me: MISS DORK WHY DO U DO THIS TO ME

(splinter splinter splinter splinter??????????????? i can smell daddy issues, I KNOW THAT SMELL SO WELL)

6. tbh donnie is so lucky to have reader. can a person fall in love with the reader? well, seem like it's possible, look at me. Theyre so sweet.

7. "If all of this hasn't finally cemented your decision otherwise..." YOU WISHED BITCH UR NEVER GETTING RID OF US

8. "it will aide my explanation and give me achance to itemize all the individual apologies necesary" fucking nerd i love u so fucking much for that you have no idea i will kill for you.

9. I love mikey but "orange oaf" sound really fitting. At least coming for someone who doesn't entirely understand the weight of the insult sdgjh´guj.

10.All of the conversation about the bastard's three (i'm starting to have question about this name) is just so sdhgusdghhsfhdfhusg

11.YEAH FREE CONTEXT FOR OUR POOR READER

12. Donnie: "fucking botched bullshit rescue attemnt. He's utter scum. I'll"

Me: u///u

13. "Sort of.. kicked him off the roof?" "Oh and I called him carrot cake and told him to get lost"

"kiss me"

I HAVE- I CANT EXPLAIN-

YEAH I WILL LITERALLY TEAR APART EVERY PERSON YOU DON'T LIKE IF THAT MAKES YOU FEEL HAPPY AND PROUD AND LOVED. I DON'T CARE IF THEY'RE "THE GOOD ONES" AND GOD I WILL COMMIT ALL THE WORST ATTROCITIES IF IT MEANS YOU WILL LOOK AT ME THAT WAY AGAIN URGGGHHHHHHHHH

14. NO PLEASE DONNIE DON'T LEAVE ME I LITERALLY NEED YOU FOR MY BRAIN TO GIVE ME THE HAPPY JUICE

15. BIG ASS APOLOGY WALL TEXT I'M GONNA TATTOO IT IN MY OTHER FVCKING TIGHT I SWEAR TO GOD

YEAH BITCH APOLOGIZE FOR EVERYTHING SO I CAN FORGIVE YOU WITHOUT A SECOND TOUGHT AND THEN HOLD YOU IN MY HANDS BECAUSE YOU DESERVE THE WORLD IDC YOU CAN KICK MY MOM AND ILL SAY "AWW NO BIGGIE BBY"

16. OF COURSE HE HAS LOTS PROPERTIES ALL LOOKING THE SAME YEAH READER HE IS INDEED A STUPID RICH IDIOT

IT'S SO SAD BUT SO FUNNY THAT HE CAN'T GET ATTACHED TO ONE PLACE SO HE HAS TO DO THAT HE CAN LEAVE IN MY HOUSE NOBODY WILL EVER FIND HIM IN MY SHIT ASS TOWN (jk i love my town)

17. Donnie being seduced by reader insulting his (not) brothers

18. "I had made it to 30" the exact moment I started to cry.

19. "I will never be more than a deplorable villain." YESYESYESYESYES IT'S HAPPENING

THE CONVERSATION- ITS HAPPENIGN

DONNIE EVEN IF THAT WERE TRUE I WOULD LOVE U FOR THAT DONT EVEN WORRY ABOUT IT

20. "Your blind eye will get you killed and I will decimate this planet for even considering bringing harm to you" THIS EXACT MOMENT FREAKING DORK, THIS EXACT MOMENT MADE MY BRAIN STOP FUNCTIONING.

LITERALLY, THIS FANFIC IS A COCTEL OF ALL THE STUFF I LOVE AND THIS IS THE FUCKING CHERRY ON TOP. I CAN'T EVEN BEGIN TO EXPLAIN HOW MUCH I LOVE THIS SINGLE LINE. I WILL SCREENCAP THIS PART OF THE FIC AND IT GOES TO MY WALLPAPER.

21. the final scene is so touching. I really love those two and I know they'll be together again but part of me feels so bad for them for having to be apart for so much time ("at least a few weeks" it's a fvcking lot). I wonder how will reader process al this information when she's away from all of this. I wonder what will happen with dispute of donnie and his (not) brothers.

I WONDER IF THE BASTARD IS SPLINTER OR IT'S THE TURTLES. I GOT THE DOUBT AND LOOKING IT UP IN GOOGLE TRANSLATE ONLY CONFUSED ME MORE.

-

My asks are getting longer and longer BUT THERE WAS SO MUCH I NEEDED TO YELL ABOUT I SWEAR TO GOD

I've decided chapter 19 was my favorite yasterday but now you blessed us with this one. THIS IS MY TOTAL FAVORITE, I DON'T EVEN HAVE TO THINK TWICE, IF EVERYTHING THAT HAPPENED IN THIS CHAPTER WASN'T ENOUGH TO MAKE IT MY FAVORITE THAT LINE, YOU KNOW WICH, ABSOLUTELY BOUGHT ME.

i hope you have a good day bye!!!!!!!

You miserable? I'm the same way! It's excruciating to be in love with a purple turtle. He is both everything and some how nothing when he is so real in my dreams 😩😩😩😩

S.H.E.L.L.D.O.N. is the best white noise machine. There, i said it.

Daddy issues, huh? 👀👀👀

Mr. Alliteration over here has a color insult for each brother. Oaf is a little lighthearted overall, but from Donnie it's straight hate.

Ahhhh!! I'm not commenting on every item, but you highlighting them makes my heart swell!!! I can't thank you enough! This really made me smile!! You have a wonderful day as well!!!

[nightyslibrary]

Pizza Means Family

Another separated au, where Mikey is the only turtle Splinter saves. While he finds April accidentally and wastes no time to call her his sister, his siblings are raised by two of the famous bad guys. This get out of control when six of them end up at the same place, and each sibling has to decide what to do with what they learn. aka where you belong au because I'm either too good with titles or too bad haha

🐢 Click here to read on AO3 | 1,693 words | for WYB AU stuff click here 🐢

Chapter 1: Just a Few Hours Ago, When Everything was Normal

Mikey grinned as he read April's message. Tonight they had made a plan, a late celebration for Mikey's birthday. Since she and Mikey couldn't celebrate it outside as they had planned because of her school, they had postponed it to today. Which Mikey had been hardly able to wait.

They would go eat pizza, have some fun at the roofs, hang out in several places, jump into a pool... so many activities that Mikey was ready for. He and April would meet in the back alley of her apartment. The text was a reminder, in case Mikey got too lost into hobbies- again. The box turtle was grateful for his sister's thoughtfulness, but she should've known there was no way he was forgetting about this.

Maybe he should start getting ready though.

Mikey leaned to get his pouch, wristbands, socks, kneepads and lastly bandana. The bandana was April's gift for his birthday (along with another gift). He and April had learned how to make their own accessories, sew their own clothes, and such stuff from various sources over the years (like her mother's magazines, internet, and Splinter teaching them). This bandana was a result of that, a symbol made with their mutual knowledge over the craft and friendship.

It was nice to have a big sister who would always know how to give the best gifts.

He wondered if his brothers would be good at giving gifts too.

Mikey looked at the table, a few drawings of his ideas and imagination based on the information he accidentally found out on his thirteenth birthday. He still could remember the shock of hearing his dad talking to himself, mourn the turtles he never was able to save. How he wished to be able to find them, and how he hoped they weren't with Draxum. Mikey wondered who that Draxum guy was. But what he currently cared about was how he had siblings.

Dad had said three names.

Raphael, Leonardo, and Donatello.

That day Mikey had gotten so excited that he had texted April to meet, and without waiting an answer had run to her place. He had some lost brothers to find, and he had to share his plan with her. April had agreed to help, but she had told him that they should plan this with more care.

They had tried their best on their search, April joining whenever she had free time. They had found nothing.

This didn't stop Mikey from wondering who they were. How did they look? What food did they like? Did they grow up in sewers too? Were they a fan of Lou Jitsu or Jupiter Jim as well?

Did they know about him and Dad?

Another message ping distracted him from his thoughts.

🏵 April🏵:

You better be ready and heading out.

Mikey winced, noticing how much time had passed. If he didn't move, he'd be late.

As he walked out of his room, he glanced at the drawings of his dad, himself, and the other three turtles.

Once again, he wondered if they were really out there.

Once again he told himself he'll find them.

𓍊𓋼𓍊𓋼𓍊

Red had a bad feeling.

Yes, Red was anxious often and felt bad about some stuff more than the yokai who raised them or the gargoyles that took care of them as kids… but this was different.

Something was wrong, and he wasn't sure if it was Draxum's plan or Purple's behavior.

Whenever Draxum would ask Purple to take care of stuff in the back, he'd get grumpy. He'd do his job, better than everyone else Red has ever met in his life, but he'd still be bitter. Red had an idea why.

Today he was bitter too, except there was something else along it. He had made that face he'd do when working on his ninpo, creating "something useful", as he would say. Determined, perhaps. Red was worried. Whenever Purple tried something for the first time, there was a risk of failure. Red was not a fan of those risks. Not with how many times he almost hurt himself. So Red hoped his senses were wrong.

Meanwhile, Red was asked to assist Draxum. He would be by his side, in case any of his test subjects tried to run away or anything went wrong- just like how it did thirteen years ago. So Red had worn his armor as always, and quietly waited for orders.

As he watched Draxum work and control things Red never quite understood, he started thinking about his origin. The story about their creation always fascinated him, but not because of what Draxum had managed to create (as he would say with pride). No, what fascinated Red was the others. The man who gave them their DNA and the siblings he was never able to meet again. At least he had Purple, Draxum, Hummin and Mummin.

Still, he wondered if the slider, the loggerhead, and the box turtle were okay.

He wished to know more about them. Had they survived? Was the box turtle with Lou Jitsu? Were the slider and loggerhead what the big lady wanted them to be?

Would he ever see them again?

"Red," Draxum called the snapper.

"Yes, Draxum?"

"Come here."

Red did as Draxum asked, pushing away the thoughts regarding his lost family and focusing on what he had now.

◇◇◇◇◇◇◇

Purple wished that for once that Draxum would take the risk and put him on the field. He knew that he was aware of Purple's strong ninpo and his genius brain, but Draxum refused to forget that one of his powerful mutant warriors had a flaw that almost cost his life twice.

A flaw that Purple hated passionately.

He knew well that Draxum had the knowledge of his softshell and his weak points, and honestly Purple was surprised that the yokai had chosen him as one of his warriors. Yet, one would expect that he'd have something in his mind for the battlefield if he chose him on purpose.

(The possibility of Draxum adding him into the mix just because of curiosity made Purple feel sick. It couldn't be true anyway. It was Draxum.)

So what if his laboratory once got demolished and he almost died? Who cares if when he and Red played roughly as tots he almost got hurt very very badly? He could protect himself now! He even had made himself a shell out of his ninpo to prove it!

Why had he had to stay back and control everything from outside of the main area?

The worst part was he knew that Red agreed with him, but his brother always would follow what Draxum said.

This wasn't fair at all.

…

Okay, so maybe he did follow Draxum's words too. But not like Red. Purple was different from him. It was just that he wanted Draxum to be happy and proud of him. So that nobody would ever forget him and get rid of him. Exactly what everyone would want.

But he could never prove himself from the back.

Which was why after today it would be different. At the moment of importance, he'd step in and prove he is much more capable than what Draxum thinks!

He looked through the windows. He was already almost finished with his job here, so all he had to do was to climb up to the higher levels and wait.

Perfect plan, Purple. He praised himself as he smiled. Perfect .

☆☆☆☆☆☆☆☆☆☆☆

"Come on Veeeeeen! I can't stay inside here anymore!"

Leon's was whining for a while now, half dramatic, half genuine, begging for his sister to take him to her simple mission. So far it was going well.

"Leon shut up, someone will hear you! Do you want us to get into trouble?" Venus glared at him.

"No, I thought I made my request oblivious." Leon said.

"You can't come with me, you know the rules." She reminded him, for a millionth time.

"But Mama doesn't have to know. It will be a simple trip. You get to do your shopping, I'll tag along and see some people, and we will be back before anyone knows." Leon knew he couldn't do much and risk it all, he guessed Venus would know too. So why not give him a chance?

Venus looked at him with softer eyes this time, "I know you're bored of Nexus Hotel and want something different, but you've been to Hidden City. Why don't you save your chance for something else?"

Leon looked away from her, instead focusing on a wall. A wall he had been seeing for the past fourteen years of his life and getting sick of it. Hidden City though? That was a rare feat. "It's been so long, Vee." He sighed. "I know Mama doesn't want any of us out without permission, but I think I'll go insane if I spend another day here."

She rolled her eyes, "You're exaggerating." Still, she came and sat by his side on the enormous bed. "But I can consider it…"

Leon's eyes immediately brightened up. "Thank you Ve-"

"...Only if you wear your guard costume too."

Ah. Of course. The itchy guard costume. "Can't I wear another disguise?" Leon whined.

"No." Venus answered, a sly smile on her face.

"You know, I had heard sea turtles are kind. Unlike you. Are you sure you're not mixing up your species?"

He met with a pillow on his face. "Either be ready when I come back or stay here. You got fifteen minutes."

"Okay okay, fine." Leon huffed. Then smirked, "Good to know you still know to not miss the right offers."

She grinned, "You keep forgetting who taught you first." She said as she left the room.

"Keep believing that!" Leon shouted after her, grinning as well.

As the door closed, he felt his grin get wider. It had been so long since he was able to get out of this building. He was sure Venus wouldn't mind having some extra fun in Hidden City, too.

••••••••

Somewhere far, far away, a teenage mutant girl smiled and laughed with her father. Unaware of the world, dangers, and fate that awaited her.

[mikeydraws]

This took me ages to finish but it’s finally here! My own spin off verse of TMNT!! I’m honestly so happy with these, and I’ll talk abt them separately!

Also expect art from underverse and undertale, I got back into that phase after leaving it years ago 😭 not complaining tho (and also sonic, somehow it got to me through sonic prime)

This AU is called Horror AU bc of all the horrors happening and they faced quite a lot

This AU is abt the guys being more murderers and crazy more then anything really, their backstory is that splinter was a bit more abusive and meaner, (yes I did him dirty) he was stricter and never treated his sons like his own sons, he felt like he lost everything bc of them and saving them, and when he went on the battlefield with his sons to fight he died. This made the brothers unstable and resulted in killing as a stress reliever.

Let me also explain in what they live in, I got inspired by the last ronin for this! They live in a dystopian completely controlled by the foot clan, foot members are merciless, they will kill any yokai or “monsters” in their paths, every wall are covered in wanted posters of monsters. They are hunted down till they are dead, they are alliances and groups of monsters who try to stay hidden, it’s basically a war.

Good old Leonardo, now in this AU they don’t really have a leader of some sort, yes Leo does make a few orders but there’s also orders from others in the team, mostly from Donnie. As you can see Leo’s sheet looks unfinished, bc it is, there are some things I didn’t do while finishing it and I didn’t double check. Leo is the manipulating bitchass who cracks jokes about dying and shit, he’s always smiling and being a narcissist ass, him and mikey are the ones that act the craziest of themselves with each other while murdering. He is a red eared slider because I can’t see him as anything else, he is 16 and 5’0 feet

Now good old Donnatello! He lost his eye to a foot clan ninja in an ambush and replaced it with a lil screen. He is a Diamondback terrapin, 5’3 feet and 16. Donnie is the one that provides his brothers with machines and medical care alongside april, he doesn’t kill as much as his brothers bc he doesn’t quite see the joy in it, instead he sees joy in technology. He also likes dissecting human bodies and studying them, he gets them from the foot clan ninja they killed. But when people mess with him he is the fastest and most brutal in combat, no mercy. Him and Leo do this thing where they put makeup on each other when going on a killing spree, to be like a duo, it’s mostly Leo who makes Donnie do it.

When he is angry god help you bc you are dead in seconds, he is the most violent when feeling angry, frustrated or disrespected. I made him a spiny soft shell bc they are violent when feeling threatened, he is 5’10 and 17. He was always been told off by everyone for his anger bc most of the time it would get outta hand, he felt like he wasn’t good enough and a failure to his team, so he trained harder. He got one of the worst injury on the back of his soft shell, it was hard for him to recover.

And last but not least…MIKEY!!! Mikey’s sheet is heavely packed with drawings, i didn’t realize till I compared him to Leo and Raph, and he was only the second to be made! He is a spiny terrapin turtle, 14 and 4’11. He is the most unstable out of his brothers, he wants to eat organs, he is quite impatient and firey, he never lets go and he likes to spill blood and also he likes to pretend to be a clown when he is killing ppl, it gives him reassurance

Anyways, next time I’ll give to you april and jones! And maybe splints! This AU isn’t gonna be used really, unless I do drawings of it, and you guys get to draw it as well! If you wish to do that ofc! I would love to see some drawings or writings of these!

[ducknotinarow]

Snippet thing. Raphael (2012) reflects on his father's death.

Dose it ever get easier? He wondered as he looked at the screen door that separated Splinters room from the rest of the dojo. Recalling all the times that door slide open and Splinter was just there.

He's not now. Yet he still sitting here as if Splinter will just open it and call him in to talk.

He can't do that. He won't ever do that again. They weren't close, but he was still hus dad in every sense of the word. He gave Raph advice, and Raph wished he had taken it more often than he had. It just didn't always work. Letting things roll off his shell like water. It always felt like if he did that, the water would build and drown him. So he let fire burn and evaporate it all away to nothing instead.

Splinter won't be there to correct his form anymore, either. Not that he had since he was a tot. Stepping over to gently set his hands on Raph. Adjusting his arms or pointing out where his feet needed to plant down for better balance. Not that Raph always cared about form. He kind of wished he listened more on how to do them right. Raphael was to busy trying to be faster than Leo. Finish before Leo, win fights better than Leo even. Seemed all so stupid right now how much time he spent so focused on that.

He just wanted Splinter to see his worth too. See he was just as good as Leo. Ego made him often take that up a notch to better than Leo. He couldn't be a leader though humbled finally when almost getting his brothers killed. Thought his job was to protect and he made sure to stick to that. Make sure everyone always made it back home.

Splinter didn't though.

Leaning forward he let his forhead gently rest to the thin paper of the screen door. Letting eyes shut a moment. The way one knew Raph loved them as much as a son could was with the dumb childish thought he still was carrying. That Splinter would just come back. Everytime they lost him before. No matter what he came back they always found him or got him back no matter what. Even if Raph at times would expect the loss as is. Maybe because it was real for once. But he swore when he stepped into the dojo just now he heard thier voice.

"Raphael"

The name his father gave him, named after a reneassainace artist. He looked it up and would ask Splinter about them during late night talks no one knew he had with his father. Sometimes, after a fight with Leo. They talk about pretty much anything Raph would allow. Or they sit in quite together. Not like this. Raph couldn't hear thier resting breath or the way thier ears would flick when deep in thought. He didn't like going to the grave. This is where Splinter was to him. It's why he came here so much now. But he feared sliding the door open because he knew. They wouldn't be on the other side anymore. So easy to take advantage of the fact he would have just always been there before.

"The reason I always brood in the water. Is cause of somethin' ya told me. mizu ni nagasu, let it flow. I thought you told me let it soak. So I started sittin' in the water when I got real upset." He laughs softly at that sniffling a little as he rubs at one of his eyes.

Letting it drop soon after lifting his head up to trail his fingers over the door. "I couldn't make you proud when alive. I promise I will now...dad."

[random-thought-depository]

My attempt at this concept (I did it from the perspective of the predator); under cut for the nastiness you'd expect in a situation where there's two sapient species and one habitually eats the other:

Why doesn't she kill me?

I ate her calf once. Its meat was so soft, so tender, so delicious. The memory of eating it comforted and tormented me in the hungry time. As I tore into the soft flesh I heard her bleating in the distance and I remembered the whimpering of my mother when my brother died; the sound was different but I recognized the grief of a mother who has lost a child.

I killed her mother too, me and my mother and my sister together, when I was very young, it was the fifth time my mother took me hunting. That one was not so tasty; old already, old and tough.

My kind call her kind meat-that-talks.

How can she not want to kill me? How can she tolerate my touch? How can she not hate?

I know her kind hate us. I have seen their rage. My brother was caught among them on the hunt, he was still young and inexperienced. They killed him quickly, perhaps feared his teeth and claws too much to indulge in prolonging his pain, but afterwards... They tossed him between them, taking turns impaling him upon their horns, slamming him into rocks and trees. They trampled him with their heavy hooves until there was nothing left of him but a misshapen sack of bruised flesh filled with bone splinters, and then they tore that apart. When they were done with him, what was left of him was hardly recognizable as having once been an animal.

Even they, who live mostly on grass and leaves, will sometimes nibble the meat of a carcass if they come upon it before other animals have finished stripping it to clean bones, but they did not nibble on my brother. They inflicted only destruction upon him, they took nothing from him.

If they can, they will follow a nursing vixen back to her den and try to kill her cubs, try to kill the adults of the family too if they try to defend the den and the cubs who are too young to walk. My mother's family was almost wiped out that way once; it was before my birth, but I was told my sister survived because my mother carried her to safety in her mouth. We obscure our tracks as much as we can after we hunt them.

My mother told me that once when she was young her brother tore open the belly of one of them, and even as it was dying it used the last of its strength to savage its killer; he died three days of agony later, from the wounds it had inflicted on him even as its life's blood gushed out onto the grass and into the thirsty earth.

We do not hate them. They are our food, we need them, we want them to survive until the end of the world and to be healthy and strong and many so we may eat well. But they do not need us. We learn their bleating speech, because it is useful to be able to listen in on the conversations of our prey; we hear and understand the songs they sing about how wonderful it would be if we all dropped dead this instant, we hear and understand the vows of vengeance they sing to the night stars after we kill one of them, we hear and understand the victory songs they sing after they manage to kill one of us. We know how much they hate us, how full of rage their hearts are; rage in proportion to the fear and grief we cause them.

I would feel the same way about us if I was one of them.

Why doesn't she kill me? Doesn't she hate like the rest of them? How can she not hate?

I ate her calf in what I remember as the good times, when my mother and sister were both alive and with me and we were healthy and strong and our pelts were a glossy and lustrous red. There was plenty to eat back then, but our kind had succumbed to the old temptation to make too many cubs, so there were too many of our kind and we were eating our prey faster than they bred, slowly thinning their numbers, slowly diminishing the great herds. In time our prey became few, and then came the time when hunger rarely left us long.

In time we became so hungry that our instincts to attack and eat other creatures began to turn on each other, that I and my mother and my sister began to eye each other as potential food, and we began to fear that hunger would take hold of us with such force that we would forget that we loved each other and see each other only as meat that could be eaten. It happens to our kind if we become hungry enough. We decided that two of us should eat the third before that happened, so at least the process would be controlled. My mother was the obvious logical victim; she was old enough that her strength was beginning to fail and it would not be long before she became too feeble to hunt, and she was old enough that it would be a strain for her to give birth to the next generation of cubs when the hungry time was over. My mother agreed with this assessment and consented to her own destruction and consumption, but when we attacked her she could not restrain her instinct to use her teeth and claws to defend herself; she bit and scratched me deep as I and my sister killed her. We whimpered with grief and the pain of our wounds as we opened her belly and ate her organs, tore her tough, thin flesh off her bones, tore apart her head and ate her tongue and eyes and brain, trying to ignore how every bit of flesh tasted and smelled of her, reminded us of who we were eating. We were less hungry after that, because my mother's death meant our hunting territory was supporting one less big predator.

My sister left me not long after that. She found a family of two males, a father and son. Their family's vixen had died years before, but they had apparently done better than us. Their coats were lustrous sable, they did not reek of high allostatic load as we did, they were not scrawny like us, we could see by how they moved that they were still healthy and strong, their skin was not marred by oozing sores like ours. My sister could join them as a mate, but the sable males wanted nothing to do with me. They put themselves between my sister and me and barked at me "THIS IS OUR TERRITORY! THIS IS OUR VIXEN NOW! NOT-FAMILY COMPETITOR-ENEMY MALE GO AWAY OR WE KILL AND EAT YOU!"

I told them it would be difficult for me to hunt alone. Their response was, "GOOD, WE HOPE NOT-FAMILY COMPETITOR-ENEMY MALE DIES SOON!" I had not expected pity.

I did not look back as I slunk away, but my ears tell me almost as much as my eyes; what I heard was enough for me to know the sable males were taking turns mounting my sister.

For some time afterward my sister and I would sometimes howl messages to each other beneath the night stars, but we were never able to talk very long; the sable males would chase me away.

With my mother and sister gone, I had no-one to hunt with me, so I dared attack only poor prey; small things that scurried in the grass, sometimes something a bit bigger but still less than a tenth my size. The adult meat-that-talks and other big prey were too strong and dangerous for me to dare attack one alone, especially when I was weakened by hunger. I could eat enough to survive this way, but it was a poor diet; I became quite thin, weak, and sickly.

I did manage to catch a meat-that-talks calf once. I seized it by the neck and darted into a maze of rocky crevices the meat-that-talks adults were much too big and bulky to follow me into and when I found a sheltered place where I felt safe enough I devoured my prize. The meat was so soft and tender and rich. I reveled in the salt caress of the blood on my tongue. The blood and flesh of my victim entered me like a blessing; I could feel it restoring my strength to me. Ecstasy. My whole body shivered with the pleasure of it.

The reprieve was not long. I was hungry and weak and miserable again when I found her.

She was even more unfortunate than I. She was alone, as meat-that-talks almost never are. She reeked of disease. I recognized the stink of her disease; meat-that-talks afflicted with it are usually cast out of their herd by their fellows so it does not spread to the rest of the herd. That explained why she was alone. Her disease cannot afflict my kind though; we can eat these sick outcasts without danger; they are an excellent opportunity to us, alone and weak. Her disease is slow but deadly; it was killing her; I could smell it. She reeked of high allostatic load. She was thin. Her fur was like pale brittle dry grass. Sores pocked her skin. She moved with rickety instability and uncertainty. One of my kind must have made an unsuccessful attempt on her already; a large, ugly wound marred one of her legs, and she limped. I could smell her wound, smell the rot in it, smell living flesh rotting and becoming liquid. I could see maggots writhing in it. I studied her weakness with the eye of a hunter; it tantalized me. This one might be weak enough I could kill it even without help.

I had the hopeful thought that my jaws might be a mercy to her and so she might not resist me, but I knew it probably would not be so. At this point continuing to live seemed to promise me little but further accumulation of misery, and yet my life was still dear to me; if the sable males had come to kill me I would have defended my life with all my remaining strength. I expected her life, however miserable, was probably similarly dear to her, and she too would defend her life with all her remaining strength.

I was right. She ran from me. We ran a long chase. I know the weakness of prey intimately, it is important for a hunter to know, I know what a wound like the one on her leg means; it astonished me how long and how fast she was able to run. I think she must have wanted to live very much, and that gave her the strength of spirit to run on that leg so long, so fast. We ran so long that I became aware that I was using up the last of my strength, that I was running for my life now too, because if I failed now I would probably not have the strength to hunt again. It was stupid of me to not stop before that, but the temptation of feasting on her flesh was so great, I could not bring myself to concede the chase.

I almost caught her once. I almost caught her leg, but I was just a little bit too slow; my jaws closed on empty air, close enough to her leg I think she might have felt my breath on it. If I had made contact I would have bitten down and torn tendons and broken bone (my kind has strong jaws!) and unbalanced her and not let go. It took me a few moments to realize I had failed. I wanted her thin blood and sick flesh on my tongue so badly, imagined it so vividly, that in the moment when my jaws closed I tasted it, and it took me a moment to realize my teeth had closed against each other and were not meeting the resistance of hide, tendon, and bone.

In the end, her remaining strength was greater than mine. I collapsed in exhaustion and lay on the rocky ground I had been chasing her across.

It took me a long time to gather enough strength to rise again. After I did, I walked slowly to a rocky place where there was a narrow gorge, and I descended into the gorge to the dry stream-bed at its bottom and found a sheltered, hidden place to lie down. I had the thought that there I might recover my strength to hunt again, but I knew it was more likely that the value of that place to me would be that it would be a place where I could wait to die without very much worry of something coming and eating me while I was dying. In that sheltered place I lay down. I made very little sound, so nothing would notice me in my vulnerability. I knew I was dying. I wanted so badly to live.

I want to live! I want to live! I want to live! I want to live!

I must kill to live. Does that make me evil for wanting to live? Am I evil because of the way I was born?

As I lay there I heard slow, hesitant, unsteady hoof-falls on the rock above me, and I looked up and saw her slowly making her way down the rocky slope toward me. And I thought, I will not have to wait long to die after all. She will come down to me and pull me out of my hiding place and in glory and triumph she will trample me to death, she will bring her hard hooves down upon me with bone-breaking force again and again until I am a dead sack of bruised flesh filled with small bone splinters. I feared the pain such a death would involve, and I wanted to live, so I gathered up the last of my strength and rose and tried to hide my weakness, to make myself look strong enough that my enemy would decide attacking me was too risky. I tensed as if to fling myself at her, I growled and snapped at her. Bloody froth flew from my mouth as I growled and yapped and snapped my teeth at her, because I had broken teeth and their jagged edges had cut my mouth; I hoped this would seem intimidating to her, instead of the betraying sign of weakness it really was.

She stopped, and told me that if I followed her she would lead me to food, and she would not hurt me.

Curious and thinking I had little to lose, I followed her, and she led me to a fruit tree by a stream. She picked some of the fruit with her mouth, and set them in front of me, and encouraged me to eat. As her kind eat mostly grass and leaves but will sometimes nibble at a carcass, my kind eat mostly meat but will eat fruit when we find them. I ate the fruit she set before me, and they were delightfully wet and full of sugar that restored my strength, and after I ate I drank from the stream.

She treated me kindly. She licked me clean. She let me sleep nestled against her so I could enjoy her softness and her warmth. When I got hungry again she picked more fruit for me.

I thought she was trying to trick me into lowering my guard so she could kill me. I was miserable and lonely enough to decide a few minutes or hours or days of comfort and feeling something a little like being loved was worth my life. I let my guard down expecting her to impale me on her horns or crush my head with a hoof, lying to the part of myself that feared death and pain that the blow would not come so I could at least relax in the short time before it did, but the blow I expected did not come. I rested nestled against her side, enjoying her warmth and listening to the constant churning of her stomachs, expecting her to at any moment roll over and crush me to death beneath her great weight, but she did not roll over. I fell asleep nestled against her, expecting to not wake up or to awaken only for a few moments to the final pain of mortal injury, but I woke up and found myself unharmed.

When the fruit on the tree was gone, she would go away sometimes, and return later carrying more fruit in a leather skin she carried in her mouth. She would give me the fruit she brought back this way.

Was the bargain that if she fed me I would not attack her?

She brought strange-tasting plants and encouraged me to eat them. At first I distrusted them, thinking she might be trying to poison me. I could not communicate this to her, I can understand the speech of the meat-that-talks but my mouth is poorly formed for making it, but I suppose she guessed my thought, because she said if she wanted to kill me she could have done it many times already, and she brought back larger amounts of the strange plants, in amounts proportionate to her size measured against mine, and ate them in front of me, to show they were not poisonous. I ate the strange plants she gave me, and the smarting cuts on the inside of my mouth began to heal, and the sores on my skin began to heal, and I began to feel better. I suppose it makes sense that eaters of grass and leaves know many medicinal plants my kind do not.

Her lips and tongue are much more flexible than mine. She could do many wonderful things with them. She was able to use a piece of hard bone to slowly grind my broken teeth into shapes that would cut the inside of my mouth less. It was a long time before I trusted her enough to open my mouth to her and let her do that to me. I think it must have been scary for her too; she had to bring her lips and tongue very close to my sharp teeth.

I was still not eating well, the fruit she gave me was just enough for me to barely survive on; she said it was all that she could find, and I think she was not lying. But at least now I was less sick, and my mouth hurt and bled less, and I felt better, and I was not alone.

She was kind to me. As my sister had been kind to me when she was still with me, as my mother and brother had been kind to me while they still lived. I did not know what to make of that. I still don't.

Soon I regained enough of my strength that I was able to sometimes roam away from her and hunt small things, little animals that hid in the grass, sometimes things bigger than that but still small compared to myself. I always came back to her though. If I was successful in one of these hunts, I tried to drink from a stream or pond on the way back to her, so my mouth would not smell strongly of blood when I returned to her. It rarely fully washed the scent out though; I know she smelled the blood on my breath. I didn't try to fully wash out the scent; I wanted her to smell that at least I had eaten only small animals, not one of her kind.

Once, I was walking beside her as she grazed in a lush meadow of green grass and blooming flowers dotted here and there with clumps of bushes and a few trees, and she bade me look around, and told me, "Want you to imagine something. This place, but no grass, no flowers, no bushes, no trees. Barren desolation of stone and mud and dust. Place I would experience, as you experience this place. Understand you better now after imagining that. Understand better how hard it must be to be one who cannot live by eating leaves and grass." And she licked me behind my right ear and softly almost whispered into it, "Can almost forgive you now. Almost."

Six days after that, my sister and the sable males found us.

My ears are sharper than my new friend's, and I heard them coming before she did. They were moving with obvious deliberate stealth. That told me they were hunting. They were moving directly toward us. That told me they had caught my new friend's scent and were coming for her.

They split up and came at us from three directions, so we had no good direction of retreat. They stayed concealed behind ridges and trees and in long grass as long as they could. I recognized the rhythm of my sister's footsteps; the sable males were not familiar enough to me for me to do that, but I guessed it was them, and when they emerged into my line of my sight I knew that guess was right. I saw and smelled that the sable males were sleek and strong and healthy, and I suppose my sister must have benefited from her association with them as she had hoped to, for since I had last seen her she had put on weight, and her coat had regained luster, and the sores on her skin had disappeared, and when the wind carried her scent to me she smelled healthier than I remembered. Her scent also told me she was pregnant, and I could see a telltale drooping of her underbelly beneath the weight of the unborn cub inside her. No doubt she had been made pregnant by the sable males.

My new companion and I moved into position for me to defend her. We did it without words. The battle of my kind against hers was so familiar to us both that we did not need to talk to coordinate the best defense we could manage, though defending one of her kind instead of being one of the attackers was a novelty to me, and I suppose having one of my kind as an ally instead of an enemy must have been a novelty to her. My sister and the sable males had chosen their battlefield well and chosen their approaches well; we had no good direction of retreat, any path of flight would take us closer to the jaws of one of them before taking us farther away, and they had chosen approaches that would make the terrain funnel us toward one of them if we tried to run. It was less bad to stand and fight.

When attacking an adult meat-that-talks, my kind always attack from the side if we can. Attack from the front, and they can stab at you with their horns and kick at you with their front legs; both are deadly. My companion's horns are smaller than the horns of a male of her kind, but if anything they are more deadly; lighter and nimbler weapons and still long and thick and sharp enough to do great injury to an enemy. Attack from the back, and they can kick you with their back legs; those too are deadly. But their legs and horns cannot easily be turned against an attacker coming from the side. My companion positioned herself against a cliff that would prevent an attacker approaching from that side and was high enough that an attacker could not safely climb to the top of it and leap down onto her back. I positioned myself to guard her other flank.

As my sister and the sable males closed in I barked my warning to them over and over; "ATTACK THIS MEAT-THAT-TALKS AND I KILL ALL OF YOU OR HURT ALL OF YOU AS MUCH AS I CAN BEFORE YOU KILL ME!"

My sister and the sable males slowed and paused. I read hesitation and uncertainty in their posture and the flicking of their ears. My actions must have been very strange to them. They were strange to me too.

My sister said, "Your sister is pregnant and hungry!" My only response was to keep repeating my warning.

My sister tensed and ran at my new friend, opening her jaws, her predatory intent clear. I suppose she thought I would not really hurt her, because she was my sister.

She was wrong. I leapt at my sister and my jaws closed around her neck and I bit down with my full strength. My kind's jaws are strong; the bite shattered my sister's spine just below her skull. She was living-dead before we hit the ground together, and truly dead a few moments later, when she suffocated because her lungs had stopped working because her brain could no longer tell them to breathe.

If the sable males had attacked me right then, they would have torn me apart. Each of them was stronger than I. But I had one great advantage; what I had done must have been so strange to them that they did not know how to react to it. Befuddled, they hesitated. And in that moment of hesitation I attacked again. I chose the son, the youngest and strongest and most dangerous of them, and leapt at him as I had leapt at my sister, and I killed him as I had killed my sister; my jaws closed around his neck and I bit down and shattered his spine not far below where it connected to his skull, and he died in the time of a few breaths.

The older sable male must have seen it happen, seen my jaws close around his son's neck and heard the crunch of breaking bone as they did so, must have known I had killed his son. He gave an agonized yelping howl as if he had received some agonizing wound himself, and ran at me, barking "DIE DIE DIE DIE DIE DIE DIE..."

I tried to kill him as I had killed his son and my sister, and he leapt at me with the same intent. Neither of us was able to kill the other immediately, so we crashed to the ground together and fought messily and fiercely, biting and clawing each other, inflicting deep bleeding wounds on each other. He was stronger than me and I think he would have killed me, but suddenly the weight of him was gone from me and I saw that my new friend had impaled him with her horns and was lifting him off me while he was still stuck on them. With him still stuck upon her horns and yelping in agony, she rammed into a tree so that the impact broke his back (I once studied the skull of a meat-that-talks after me and my mother and sister had eaten the flesh off, their skulls are very thick and strong and protect their brains from impacts well!), and then she slammed his head into another tree with great force. Then she lowered her head and pushed him off her horns with a hoof. He was still twitching and making soft sounds of pain when I reached him. I tore open his throat and his blood gushed out onto the thirsty earth and he died.

As I lay whimpering with grief over the corpse of my sister, my new friend licked my wounds clean, and chewed up some leaves of a medicinal plant she knew of and licked the juices of it into my wounds so they would be less likely to fester, and whispered into one of my ears, "Thank you..."

AUTHOR'S NOTES:

My model of what's going on here is this is happening on an alien planet. The narrator's species and the "meat-that-talks" likely evolved to sapience in parallel through a predator-prey cognitive arms race.

This was heavily inflected by my take on predator-prey relationships here.

If I was actually consistent about borrowing gender terminology from terms used for foxes for the narrator's species, a quick Google search tells me a male fox is called a dog fox or tod, but I think using those terms would have been more likely to confuse people than just using "vixen" for females.

Does anybody have that "threesome between a sheep, a herding dog, and a wolf" post that went around a while back? Cause when I saw it I felt like doing some xenofiction in response to it that's basically illustrating "uh, actually in that dynamic I do not think it's a foregone conclusion that the prey species would be 'on the bottom,.'" and I think the story I might write there might work as a distant sequel to this set thousands or tens of thousands of years into the future of the same world, extrapolating from the possibilities hinted at by the relationship of the narrator and his "new friend"...

predator animal falling in love with prey animal. You really love to see it.

[thedawningofthehour]

If Draxum had raised Gale then it would be a normal separate AU, which wouldn't hurt me as much since at least no one would be actively trying to keep the brothers apart (EW Shredder doesn't count because he's brainwashing his turtle too). What's more, in most separate AU's Draxum wants them to meet. And now I absolutely want to know what your version of that AU would be.

Because that's the part that bleeds me, for me, turtles are a package deal, you either get them all or you get none. I don't care if Draxum is trying to conquer the world as long as all the turtles are together and I think I just explained why my AU exists.

My whole basis for doth was literally a separated AU but with all the angst of having developed that brotherly bond and having it snatched away. With every other separated au, even ones where they were originally together and kidnapped/lost as older children, (like Leo and Mikey in EW, and there is one fic where Draxum kidnaps Donnie at a young age whose name I can't remember now) the bond still isn't what it is in the show. And it's ironic mentioning slushie's au, since that was one of the stories that inspired doth. I basically looked at that and went "I can make that more emotionally wretching." I wanted MAXIMUM angst, and this was how I decided it was best to deliver it.

An actual doth separated au, hmm. Well, first of all we have to overlook the fact that Donnie named himself here, realistically Draxum would have named him something else, (probably after some heroic Yokai or maybe his father or something) but for simplicity's sake I'll continue to call him Galois. A lot of it really depends on how Gale ended up with Draxum and what went down when the turtles were separated. Splinter could see that there were four turtles, did he think Donnie died in the blaze? I could see him becoming even more depressed if that was the case, trudging along to care for his remaining sons but always feeling the gap where his fourth kid should be. (he might have even resented April a bit, feeling like she was taking the spot his 'real' daughter/fourth son should have occupied) He probably wouldn't have told the boys about Donnie-until he was confronted with evidence that he survived the lab explosion, and then honestly it's a 50/50 shot whether he'd go murder a goat right then and there or jump straight to denial, because there's no way he could have just left his child with that nutjob for thirteen years.

If he saw Draxum take Donnie for himself, there's no way he'd leave that alone. He'd make sure his other boys were safe, but he would go at Draxum with everything he had to try and rescue his son. Maybe that's the situation he'd go back to Big Mama for, knowing she could keep his other kids safe and help him get his last baby back. Draxum would probably have to go into hiding.

On Draxum's side-I mean, like in doth, he'd go from 'warring warrior scientist' to "I love my son and if anything happened to him I'd kill everyone in the world and then myself" in about three seconds flat. Gale would do exactly one (1) cute thing and he'd be a goner.

Logistically, Gale's upbringing would be pretty much identical to the backstory Draxum fed him in doth. He would have been very hesitant to take Gale out in public, homeschooling him and, after realizing how intelligent he really was and giving up on the whole 'warrior and protector of humanity' thing, training him to take over as his scientific successor. They'd have a very close relationship, Draxum would probably be a little more affectionate, and Galois a little less.

I also don't know if he'd be the only one by the time the show rolls around. The ooze used to create the turtles was destroyed and Draxum didn't back up his notes apparently, so the formula was lost. He could have theoretically used Gale's blood to try and reverse-engineer the ooze, (something he does actually try in slushie's au) but it would be a question of if he was willing to use his son like a lab subject. He's very uncomfortable with the notion, he wants to maintain a separation between Galois and the crimes against humanity he regularly commits in the lab, and even something like taking his blood for a mutagen experiment feels like the first step down a slippery slope that Draxum is terrified of going down. But this Draxum would also still be on the 'army of elite warriors' things, plus he's enjoying this whole dad thing. He kind of wants more kids.

When he does realize that the other turtles survived, oh yeah he'd tell Galois everything and try to convince them to 'come home' to him. I don't think he could ever bring himself to harm them, knowing they're his son's brothers. Draxum and Gale would probably try doing what the fam is doing in doth, reverse-kidnapping his brothers and trying to make the case that Lou kidnapped them first and Draxum is their real father.

I still kind of wish I had set this story up just from Gale's pov after waking up from the brainwashing, treating his memories like they were real and having the truth slowly revealed through interactions with Leo and the fam. Most of the story would be missing then and the ending wouldn't really make sense, but that would have been SO COOL.