#the fourth oldest and third to youngest got caught and in trouble we all almost got our phones taken 😭

[anonbinaryweirdo]

the amount of times this has happened with my sister + our cousins is wild

[poppywrites41]

Captive Love Ch. 2

Prince! Yoongi x Maid! Reader

Here is chapter 2! This chapter will focus on Y/N’s first day of work…and maybe a little bit of a cliffhanger.

Warnings for this chapter: Swearing, violence, description of past deaths, mentions of smut

Prev | Next

“Rise and shine girls!” Lilith shouts through the halls of the servants’ quarters, her meaty fists pounding on each of the girl’s doors. Y/N swears she can feel her room shake every time that woman’s fist comes in contact with a door. “You all have 10 minutes to get dressed and come down to eat!” Lilith calls, her heels clacking away. Y/N raises her arms up to stretch. She looks out of her small window to see a garden with a path that leads to a small set of doors going into the back of the castle. She turns to her cupboard and takes out her servant’s outfit. She takes off her dress that she wore yesterday, neatly folded it like her mother taught her to, and placed it in the cupboard. She took a look at the outfit laid out on the bed. It was not elegant in the slightest, but it was sure prettier than any outfit she had worn in her life. It was a pretty beige with ¾ sleeves that were flexible enough to move the arms comfortably to perform the needed tasks. The skirt was neatly fitted on the waist and ran to the ankles. It was not puffy at all and had a comfortable feel to it. And to top it all off, pretty little white lace ruffles were added to the ends of the sleeves and around the top opening to give it some style, which Y/N really appreciated. When she got the dress on, Y/N took a look at herself in the small mirror hanging on her wall above her tiny sink. She spotted some dirt on her cheeks, probably from the wagon, so she splashed her face with water, rubbing at her skin. After her facewash, she noticed how messy her hair had gotten. She ran her fingers through the h/c locks and tied the hair in the front to the back, creating a half up-half down style. She made her way to her door, slipping on her shoes and head down the hall to the servants dining hall.

When she arrived, she found a seat at a table where some of the girls she arrived with yesterday were sitting at. They were not talking to each other as much as the other servants were, probably because they were new or nervous. Y/N sat down next to a young girl with dark brown hair. Once she sat down, an older woman brought her a tray with a piece of bread, some water and a small bowl of what looked like to be chicken broth. Y/N turned to the girl and offered a small smile, “Hi, I’m Y/N. We came together on the wagon yesterday. Sorry for not introducing myself earlier.” The girl’s hazel eyes met hers and she gave Y/N a small smile, “It’s okay. I’m Emily. I don’t really talk when I’m nervous. I have a lot of anxiety when I feel pressured.” She said in a quiet tone. “I get it. I am totally nervous. I mean, yesterday I was living my normal life and now suddenly, I’m a servant to the royal family. The people who I thought of as family, gave me away for money without a second thought.” Y/N said taking a bite of her bread and immediately chasing it down with some water. Emily frowned, “I’m sorry to hear that.” “So,” Y/N said after eating a spoonful of the bland broth, “How did you get here?” Emily looked down at her food and played with it with her spoon, “I’m actually a twin. My sister and I are daughters of bakers. My mom and dad worked so hard their entire life, baking for the royal family. My sister was a big help in the kitchen. She is so smart, kind, outgoing and beautiful. She is pretty much everything I am not. I would usually mess up tasks that would get me in trouble, but she would always defend me. My parents loved me, don’t get me wrong, they were just worried about me a lot. I wasn’t let out a lot. I could have been an embarrassment to them. Then, my sister met a man who came from a good family. They fell in love and are to be married. However, the guards came before the wedding and were trying to get my parents to give them my sister for a large sum of money. So that’s when I volunteered myself to go in her place. I didn’t want her to leave everything behind and to ruin her chance of a happily ever after, so I went in her place.” Y/N looked at the girl with awe, “You are such a good and brave sister to go in her place. I’m sure she is very thankful for you. I don’t think you are an embarrassment. Just stick with me and we will get through this together!” Emily smiles at her and nods in agreement. Before anything else could be said, Lilith’s voice was booming throughout the room, “Mealtime is over! Everyone sit down a listen. Tomorrow is the Grand Royal Gala so we will need to clean the castle extra today. Royal families from all over the country will be attending so I want that castle spotless. Here are the groups and their tasks for the day. Rosetta, you and your hall will clean the floors and windows of the ball room. Claire, take your girls and polish all of the utensils and dishware. Isabel, you and your hall are in charge of cleaning the dinning hall. I want that space especially clean.”

While scrubbing away the dirt on the floor of the halls, Y/N reflected on what Elizabeth informed them about the royal family:

First off, the king. He has his own personal servants who clean, dress and cook for him, so it was highly unlikely for her to be involved with him. He is a strict ruler and likes for everything to be perfect. He does not interfere much with his sons’ lives, but he is more attentive to his two eldest sons. He wants to make sure they are both well-educated and fit enough to rule the kingdom when his time is up.

Same goes for the queen. She is a more carefree person than her husband. She enjoys balls and festivities. She interacts more with her sons than her spouse, but definitely more with her youngest sons, since the older ones are with the king or in counsel or military meetings. She clearly loves her family but is not the most observant or caring mother. She lets them do as they please.

Now, the eldest prince, Prince Seokjin. He is the next in line for the throne. Elizabeth said that he is very serious about his role in the family. With his brothers, he can be a fun person who will crack jokes and enjoy the company of others. But when wronged, he can be a completely different person. He once chopped off a chef’s fingers for making a soup too spicy for his liking and fed those fingers to his dogs. Since he will most likely become king in the near future, more galas will be held to find the prince a suitable wife. Overall, Y/N believes that she will not be in contact with the prince very often either.

The second eldest is Prince Yoongi, the second in line for the throne. According to Elizabeth, he rarely shows his face in public. He is extremely introverted. He keeps to himself, usually in his room where he will write poems, or he will be sleeping. Even with his introverted nature, he is somewhat of a genius. Elizabeth said that when he was a teenager, the king went to war with a foreign land and was at a disadvantage. It was Prince Yoongi, at age 16, that stepped in and completely remodeled the military tactics, which won them the war. However, like his brother, when wronged, he turns into a beast. One day, he was asleep in his room when a servant came in to clean. The servant did not notice the prince asleep and continued his task. It was not until he accidentally knocked the prince’s favorite ink off of his table and spilled it on the ground. The prince woke up in a rage. The man tried to apologize to the prince, only to have himself sent to the dungeons for a week with no food or water. On the last day, Prince Yoongi went down to see the servant, only to behead him himself.

When Elizabeth told them that story, Y/N felt deep chills run down her spine. Hopefully she won’t have to interact with Yoongi during her time at the castle.

From what she heard about the third and fourth oldest princes, Hoseok and Namjoon, they are not as hot tempered as the two eldest. Hoseok is a kind person with a bubbly personality, but when he is pushed the wrong way, he can be a force to be reckoned with. Namjoon on the other hand has not publicly displayed any hostile actions. He is extremely smart and a good leader. From what Elizabeth said, Namjoon is somewhat of a leader to all the brothers. He is very considerate of all of their opinions and is able to settle any arguments between the brothers. Y/N does not suspect to have any issues with those two princes.

Now the last three. Jimin and Taehyung, the fraternal twins who like to cause mischief in the palace. They seem to like to pick on the staff and belittle anyone who is of lower status then themselves. Out of the two of them, Taehyung is more sadistic. He will keep harassing staff members until they leave, hurt themselves or commit suicide. Jimin on the other hand, likes to make people, especially the women he has accompany him in his chambers, feel like they cannot survive without him. Whenever he has wronged one of his girls and they try to talk to him about it, he uses his charming attitude and well-chosen words to turn the whole conversation around onto the girls. He would make them feel like they were the ones who wronged him, and they would apologize to him and swear that they will do better.

Last but not least, the youngest prince, Jungkook. He had everything handed to him on a diamond plate. Elizabeth noted that his beauty almost rivals that of his oldest brother and Jungkook knows it. She said that he excels in anything he does. However, he is probably the scariest out of all the brothers. Jungkook can get away with anything…ANYTHING. Apparently, he was in love with a princess once and planned on marrying her. One day before he planned on proposing to her, he caught her having sex with one of his guards in the library. Furious, he went to his room and waited for her to return. When she did, he asked her where she was, and she lied to him saying that she went for a walk in the palace garden. Jungkook then called the guard she was with into his room and had two guards block the doors out of his room. He tied the princess to a chair, ignoring her cries trying to convince him that she would never cheat on him. He then ordered the guard to remove all of his clothing, leaving him nude. Jungkook had the guard put on prison cuffs himself while the prince hammered a hook into the wall. He beckoned the naked guard to lift his cuffed hands onto the hook. Once everything was in place, he slowly began to castrate the guard, relishing in the man’s screams of agony and the princesses’ shrill screams of horror. After he castrated him, Jungkook swiftly sliced the man’s neck, causing blood to spew out from the slash and him to choke on his own blood, all the while Jungkook forced the princess to watch. Once the man’s body stopped twitching, he untied the frozen princess and took her to his balcony. The princess began apologizing to the prince promising that she will never be unfaithful to him ever again, swearing her loyalty to him and begging for his forgiveness. He gave her a warm smile and gave her a small kiss on the lips, telling her that she is forgiven. And Just as the princess began to relax, Jungkook shoved her over the balcony and watched her body fall to ground. When the prince’s parents found out, they sent word to the princesses’ father that she had run off with a man and that they cannot find them anywhere. The princesses’ father believed them and sent search parties all around the country, never to find out the truth about what happened to his daughter. It’s because of that incident that Jungkook ends the lives of those who betray him.

All of a sudden, she heard something being knocked over and water spilling. Then a sudden cry of pain. Worried that one of girls hurt themselves, Y/N immediately got up and ran down the hall towards the noise, ignoring Emily telling her not to involve herself.

Y/N could hear a males voice from down the hall, “You stupid whore!! Your spilled you water on my fucking new shoes!!”

Once she turned the corner to where she would find the girl, her eyes widened, and her heart stopped.

[this-that-and-every-thing-else]

Superman’s Kingdom: Spawns of Satan

A/N: So I came to realize that there is very little Goonies fan fiction out there and even less revolving around Brand. So, I’m starting this series revolving around him and his family. I feel like this one really started out strong but got less and less as I went so I do apologize for that. This is the most I’ve written in well over a year. If anyone would like to be tagged in the series, feel free to let me know.  I may do a part 2 for this specific story if people want it. 

Word count: 2.4k

Summary: Brand has been away for two weeks on a business trip and his wife Sadie is left alone and pregnant to look after their normally well-behaved children...this time they’ve managed to turn themselves into the Spawns of Satan. 

Warnings: None really...its fluffy, some minor child annoyance. 

Sadie Walsh was a patient woman. She had no problem with waiting in lines, she had no problem waiting for food at a restaurant or waiting at the doctor’s office. She didn’t even mind waiting to go out if her husband was watching a football game. What she didn’t have patience for, were her children misbehaving in the grocery store. She was very close to losing her cool. Her normally well behaved children had somehow been replaced with the spawn of Satan. Bryon, her normally adorable youngest, was currently running circles around his 5-month pregnant mother, while her oldest, Mikey, was trying for the fourth time to add candy to their cart even though he’d been told that he couldn’t have any. Yes, they had truly turned into little monsters these past few days.

Sadie took a deep breath and turned to Mikey. “Take the candy out of the cart. I told you no three times already.”

Mikey, looking up at his mother with a defiant glint in his eye, reached out to the shelf, grabbed a random bag of candy, and proceeded to toss it into the cart. “What did I just say Mikey? No. Candy! How many times do I have to tell you?”  She was very close to just leaving the cart in the middle of the aisle and going home. Then again…they’d have no food for dinner tonight if she did that.

“But I want it! I want it and I want it now!” Mikey whined, stamping his feet and his face turning red. Sadie closed her eyes, counted down from ten and wondered who took her sweet 9-year-old and turned him into a 2-year-old demon.  “Mikey, enough! You are 9 years old! Act your age! Now, take the candy out of the cart, if I have to tell you again you’ll be grounded and won’t be going to camp next week. Understood?”

Mikey huffed, stomped his foot once, but reached into the cart and removed the candy. Sadie sighed, hoping that this was the end of the issues for the day. The sound of breaking glass broke ended that though very quickly. Sadie looked towards the end of the aisle where Bryon was standing, looking down at a pile of glass and what looked to be jam seeping onto the tiled floor. Bryon looked up at his mother and then back at the mess. Thinking he was in bigger trouble than he actually was, he burst into tears.  Not softly crying either, full on, large tears, snot running down his face and chest wracking sobs as if the world was ending. Yes, Sadie was losing her patience.

Sadie sighed, and proceeded to try to pick up her crying son, struggling to do so with her slight baby bump in the way, but eventually succeeding. She sat him in the cart and headed to the checkout where she continued to comfort her son and offered to pay for the broken jar. Thankfully the cashier was understanding and declined the offer. Small miracles do happen. She fought her way to her car, with one child still crying and the other trying to run into traffic. She quickly got them into the back seat and the groceries in the trunk before getting in the car herself and taking a moment to breath. Bryon was finally calm and Mikey was playing with whatever action figure he had left in the car.

The drive home would only take her 20 minutes, 20 minutes that she hoped would be peaceful. She must not have hoped enough because as soon as she turned out onto the road, the boys began fighting. Bryon wanted to play with Mikey’s toys, even though he had some of his own. Mikey wasn’t having any of that and now there was a full on tug of war in her back seat with two screaming children. Maybe if she ignored them long enough they’d stop…

Just as she was a block away from their home, Sadie heard the tell-tale sound of a hand connecting with skin, hard. With it came the pained screams of her youngest. Gritting her teeth, she pulled over to the side of the road, unbuckled her seatbelt and turned around to face her children. Bryon was holding a tiny hand on his face, with fat tears rolling down it and an angry red mark peeking out behind his hand. Mikey had his arms crossed and was glaring at his brother.

“Brandon Michael Walsh! You do NOT hit your brother! How would you like it if someone went around hitting you? Apologize right now.” Sadie was at the end of her rope. Her back hurt, her feet hurt, she was getting a headache and her children were being holy terrors. Thank god Brand was returning home tonight.  

“But Mama he tried taking my army man! I don’t want him to have it!” The 9-year-old was now starting to sniffle, knowing very well that he was in big trouble.  “Then use your words! It won’t hurt you to share with your brother. When we get home you are going straight to your room until dinner. After dinner you’re going right to bed. Do you understand me? I’ve had it with your nonsense today, both of you!”

With that, she turned back in her seat, buckled her seatbelt and carefully pulled back out onto the road and heading home. Thankfully, they pulled into their driveway two minutes later with no more incidents. Mikey was sulking with his arms crossed, and Bryon was rubbing at his face, glaring at his big brother.

Getting out of the car, Sadie had both of the boys grab a bag or two of groceries, while she grabbed the rest. The kids had waited on the porch for her to unlock the door. Once she had, they dropped the bags in the kitchen and headed for the living room, Bryon grabbing his Lego and Mikey turning on the television. Sadie sighed and shook her head, clearly the message hadn’t gotten across.

“Mikey, turn that off and go to your room, I told you that you would be staying there and I meant it. Bryon, I think you need to go down for a nap, head on upstairs and hop into bed, I’ll be up in a minute.” Thankfully for Sadie, with the exception of Mikey huffing, they both listened and headed on upstairs to their bedrooms.

Sadie dropped the groceries off in the kitchen and made her way upstairs to check on the kids. Mikey was sitting on his bed with a book in his hands. She was okay with that, if he was being quiet, she was happy. Bryon was lying in bed as he was asked and was curled up on his side. Sadie pulled down his blinds and read him a quick story to help him fall asleep, which thankfully didn’t take long.  With both kids taken care of she was more than happy to make her way downstairs to put the groceries away…and then hopefully get to put her feet up, although she should start thinking about getting dinner ready.

When she finally got to sit, she did so in Brand’s favourite chair, curling her feet under herself and tipping her head back with her eyes closed and wishing he were here already. She couldn’t wait for Brand to get home that night. His presence these passed two weeks was sorely missed. The first week hadn’t been bad, the kids had behaved, looking forward to phone calls from their father every night, asking him all about Texas, was it as hot as they say? Was everything reallybigger there? Was the gym almost ready to open? When was he coming home? Did he buy them anything? The questions went on and on until he’d tell them to go to bed and he’d ‘read’ them their favourite book over the phone…because he was super dad and had it memorized. There’s a reason she called him her Superman…so many reasons actually.

The second week? It seemed like all hell had broken loose. He wasn’t able to call as much, the kids were constantly fighting, and Sadie was tired, she was sore, and she missed her husband. She never slept very well without him and he was a godsend when it came to the kids. She got lucky with him, he was very hands on with the kids both in keeping them busy, healthy and when they were sick he was right there, ready and willing to take on clean up, staying up all night and whatever else was thrown at him. And when the kids were misbehaving? He put on his stern face and made sure they knew why they were wrong in what they were doing, why they were being punished and just all around made sure they understood. He’d never been gone this long and it was taking its toll, on both the kids and herself. But, he had to be there to oversee the opening of the newest Walsh Fitness facility, it was only the third location to be opening and the first out of state.

The stress of the day, well really the last two weeks, caught up with her and instead of relaxing she found herself starting to cry a little. Overwhelmed, emotional and in need of a nap of her own, she was unable to stop herself. Later, she’d chalk it up to the pregnancy hormones, but for the moment she let herself cry it out.  Normally, Brand would be right by her side, taking a lot of the load off of her, sometimes it scared her how much she relied on her husband, but that’s what marriage was about, sharing the burdens, the highs, the lows, and of course loving each other unconditionally. But without him and their children being tiny little…well, assholes? Yeah, she was just a little emotional and deserved a bit of a cry.

The crying didn’t last long; she couldn’t let it last long to be honest. One of the kids could catch her and then they’d be upset, plus she didn’t want to look horrible when Brand got home. Lord knows that when she cries she ends up looking like a mess. So, once she got it out of her system she turned the television on, it was some kid’s movie, but that was fine, it wasn’t like she didn’t usually end up watching that anyway with the kids.

Surprisingly she found herself sucked into the plot, it may have been for kids, but damn, Disney was good and she couldn’t deny it if she tried. She got so into the movie however that she didn’t notice the sound of a car pulling into the driveway, or the front door being opened and someone kicking off their shoes. Nor did she hear the sound of a gym bag being dropped on the floor by the staircase. She did however hear the creak of the floorboard next to her as Brand came into her line of vision, coming around the chair to kneel down in front of her.

Before he could even speak she launched herself at him with a squeal of delight, finding a burst of energy somewhere within the depths. Her arms wrapped around his neck in a fierce hug as his wrapped around her waist, pulling her close as she toppled them over and onto the floor. Murmuring a quick hello and an ‘I missed you,’ Brand slid a hand up from her waist, brushing her bump and over her breasts before cupping her neck and pulling her down for a much needed kiss. God he’d missed this.

Breaking away after a few moments Brand was more than happy to just stare at his wife. His wife who had clearly been crying at some point and looked utterly exhausted. He cupped her face, rubbing his thumb along her cheek. “You look awfully tired for someone who said she was doing just fine Princess.” Sadie leaned into his touch, almost nuzzling his hand like a dog or cat would.

“I’m okay Superman, honestly, I may have almost killed your children today though.”  He frowned a bit, sitting them both upright but staying on the floor. With her arms wrapped around his shoulders and his around her waist, she told him what all went on this week with the children, from the attitudes to the near constant fighting and her just being tired and sore in general. The baby was certainly sapping her energy and taking care of the boys by herself clearly hadn’t helped. He felt horrible for leaving her alone, but he did have an idea to help her relax a little.

“Tell you what darlin’, why don’t you go on upstairs, get in a nice bath and just relax. I’m gonna ship the kids off to my parents or Mikey, get dinner started and we’ll have a weekend to ourselves. Just you, me and the bump.” Sadie just closed her eyes, resting her forehead against his and nodded with a smile. That sounded like a fantastic idea to her. Why she hadn’t thought of asking her in laws to take the kids in the first place she didn’t know. She’d blame that on pregnancy brain. The doctor said that might happen, and it had with the other two.

Speaking of doctors…

“Before I head on upstairs, I had that ultrasound appointment the other day.” Sadie was excited to tell him about this one, they’d wanted to find out the gender of this baby, just like they had the others and while she had wanted Brand to be there, well he had to work and he’d told her to go right ahead and she could tell him when he got home. Though, since there had been no girls born into the family for a few generations, it seemed like there was no reason to check, still they both agreed it would be good to know for sure.

“And? What’s the verdict?” He was looking at her with such anticipation on his face and was almost bouncing on the spot. She couldn’t hold back a grin.

“We broke the curse; you Superman must have super sperm because you’ve got yourself a little girl on the way.”

His eyes widened and he broke out in a huge grin, pulling her close once again and into a deep kiss, yes, he was definitely a happy man.

[catbowserauthor]

Next Part of my Lost TMNT story

And here we have the third chapter...

EDIT: Chapter One: http://ulisabarbic-blog.tumblr.com/post/176470662623/lost-tmnt-story-of-mine

Chapter Two: http://ulisabarbic-blog.tumblr.com/post/176501947253/more-of-my-lost-tmnt-story

  Chapter Three

        Eyes tightly shut, Splinter’s form reflected more than anything else how deeply disturbed he was. He shook, his body trembled and sweat coated the whole of his face. The issue with visions however, always remained that they were vague. They never gave you a clear picture. More than anything else, they could alarm you to the type of emotional situation you would soon be faced with but not the specific details you may encounter. So  far, all Splinter’s vision had revealed for him had been dozens of different emotions: fear, anger, worry, hopelessness.

            That was perhaps the most frightening.

            He had learned over time that hope was the most precious thing that one person could possibly possess. It would lead one through a lightless tunnel and allow them to emerge on the other side victorious. It was difficult to take away but when it was accomplished, failure and loss followed swiftly. He did not like the fact that this was the emotion he was sensing the most. That and fear. Lots and lots of fear. Given that he had been raised among a fighting family, he was well accustomed to fear. He grew up with it and it pretty much dictated the way he ran much of his life. He had raised his sons to accept and respect the emotion.

            Yet even with that type of background, he was not accustomed to this level of the emotion.

            Eyes flying open, the old sensei gasped for air a moment, a hand to his chest. His entire body felt cold, like he had been doused with ice water. He blinked a moment, realizing he was still in his home, he could hear his oldest son Leonardo in the training room, perfecting his katas. Donatello was working hard in the laboratory; he could smell the scent of oil and mechanical grease. The typing of buttons and yelling from the living room told him that Michelangelo and Raphael were settling one of their video game duels again. It gave a sense of relief to his older heart to know they were all safe.

            All the same, the presence of the vision was enough to make him want to delve deeper and learn more. Despite it causing him pain and worry, he closed his eyes once more and focused on that dark premonition.

OOO

            Halfway through his latest kata, Leonardo was broken from his concentration by the rapid beeping of the turtle com on his waist. Blinking, he was rightly surprised. All  three of his brothers and his sensei were accounted for which meant it had to be either April or Zach. They had been working together for the majority of the summer, she had been kind enough to let Zach come on camera with her a few times and he had waved to them every single time. Even so, a great a majority of their news reports had been limited to things like business openings or, in the past week, a handful of riots. It had actually been pretty boring lately.

            So, he was not really sure what he was going to see when he flipped open his turtle com but it was not what he got.

            Zach’s face peered back at him, covered in vomit, skin pale and sweaty and shaking like he was in some kind of Artic storm. Leonardo could hear banging and groaning in the background.

            “Zach, what’s wrong?”

The boy’s voice answered him with a flurry of sentences, some coherent and some not but all of them flowed together as the boy sobbed out his answer as tears erupted from his eyes: “I don’twannadie,Idon’twannadie. April’s hurt and…Freddy…Freddy…dead! He’s dead, theyatehimtheyatehim!”

            Leonardo caught some of it but not all of it. He caught something about April being hurt and someone dying but the rest was all a blur of a child’s terrified sobbing. He took a breath to keep himself calm as all kinds of scenarios flooded his mind. What could possibly be going on that got Zach this frightened? More so, what could have frightened him so much that he was unashamed to show it? Zach always tried to put up a hard face to the turtles, Leonardo and the others knew that all too well and it had gotten them into trouble on more than one occasion. So, for the child to call him now, sobbing, in hysterics and unable to stay focused on one topic was unnerving at the highest degree.

            “Whoa, whoa, Zach, calm down.” That was the first step, he reasoned, calm the boy down. He would get loads more information if the boy was not in shock and screaming and crying. He tried to keep his voice level and calm, it seemed to usually work on nearly everyone he spoke with. He was known for having a very soothing attitude and it was something he attempted to utilize here by locking his eyes with Zach’s. However, as he did that, he became acutely aware that it was not doing any good. The boy’s eyes were wild. He was beyond calming. Okay, step two: “Zach, where are you?”

“I’mgonnadieI’mgonnadieI’mgonnadieIdon’twannadieIdon’twannadieIdon’twannadie!!!”

By the end of that mess of syllables, Leonardo had only managed to translate that the boy was scared of dying which meant whatever threat he was facing was still close. He had no other information but judging from the banging and Zach’s face, it was very dire situation indeed. So, given that he could get no information from the boy, he would have rely on Donatello’s tracker. Thank God he had thought to put those in. It had come in handy more times than he could count and now, it looked like they needed it badly. “Okay, just stay put, Zach, okay?” Leonardo was jogging from the training hall, heading for his Master’s room even as he spoke. “Stay put, Zach” he tried desperately to put a strong emphasis on that phrase. The worst thing that could happen now would be an emotionally torn child wandering around, “We’re coming.” He attempted to reassure his young friend even as his feet slammed against the lair floor.

“I’mgonnadie.”

“Iie!” Leonardo cut in then blinked, realizing he had switched to Japanese for a moment. Taking a swallow of breath, he amended, “No, no you’re not Zach. It’s going to be alright—“

“Idon’twannadieIdon’twannadieIdon’twannadie!”

That was easily the most horrible thing Leonardo had ever heard. He had finally managed to catch what his young friend was saying and hearing your young friend, one you looked upon as a younger brother, pleading over and over that he didn’t want to die cut into his heart more deeply than he thought anything was capable of doing. He wanted to just reach through the turtle com, pull him to his chest and hold him tightly, as he swung his katana to disintegrate whatever dared cause him such fear. However, he did not have that option, so instead, he focused on getting to his brothers and sensei so they could end this.

“Zach, listen to me. Can you hear—“

“I’mgonnadieI’mgonnadieI’mgonnadie!”

“Zach!” Leonardo hated to raise his voice, especially since the boy was obviously terrified but he needed to get his attention, he needed him to focus. “Zach, you need to take some breaths. Remember the meditation training Master Splinter taught you! Use it!”

“Don’twanndiedon’twannadiedon’twannadie!Mommy!Daddy!Idon’twannadie!”

It was never good when people started calling for their parents.

Leonardo sped up.

OOO

“Score! I smoked you, dude! For the fourth time!”

Raphael threw down his controller in frustration and scowled at his bragging little brother. “Only because you used every cheat code in the book…and some that aren’t in the book.”

Michelangelo just beamed widely “Aw, do I sense a sore loser? You’re just mad you now owe me…” he pretended to count out on his left hand, “Five pizzas…plus a soda.”

Raphael was in the middle of a snappy comeback when the door opened and Donatello emerged from his lab, covered in oil and rust. “Good news guys! I got that dimensional portal working.”

Without looking up from his discussion with his other brother, Raphael quirked “Now, is this work-work or Donatello-work?”

Flushing a faint color of anger, Donatello responded “I’ll have you know it can access, without problem, almost any dimension now!”

Michelangelo turned “Whoa! So, could you like tune into any dimension?” at the exact time that Raphael joked, “He said no problem, which means everything’ll go wrong.”

Donatello beamed at his youngest brother, choosing to ignore his other sibling, glad to see some enthusiasm, “Exactly. No more needing a fancy lab to go after Shredder, we can get to him right from my lab.”

“All Expenses Paid Shell Kicking, now available in Delivery to your own home” Raphael snorted at his brother, though he was glad to see him finally get out of that stupid lab. He was beginning to think he was going to set up camp in that stupid room. Granted, having a dimensional portal was useful and helpful but as far as he was concerned, it was most costly than it was worth, especially given the amount of times that dumb portal broke down but he had to admit, it was nice to see Donatello in a good mood instead of frustrated as all hell.

Plus if the portal worked, it meant the means of communication with Dimension X were back up which meant…

He leaned over and elbowed his youngest sibling in the ribs, grinning from ear to ear, “Looks like you and your girl can move beyond pen pals then, eh?”

Blushing a dark red, which looked odd against his green skin, Michelangelo responded “I..I dunno what you’re talking about Dude…Kala and I are just…”

Donatello leaned over the couch, laughing “If you say, just friends, Michelangelo, just remember Yama-sama pulls out the tongues of liars.” He and Raphael gave one another a high three as their youngest brother pushed himself off the ground, scowling “Totally uncool, Dude.”

Raphael stood and pulled Michelangelo into a noogie, saying “Hey, if we ever stop picking on you, I’m pretty sure we lose the Big Brother card.”

Pulling himself free of his sibling, Michelangelo gave him a playful shove back, saying “I’m in the mood for a victory pizza, maybe something with chocolate and marshmallows.”

Donatello shook his head but all their plans were crushed when the door to the left and the door to the right both opened at the same time and Leonardo charged in from the right, Splinter from the left.

“Something’s wrong!” they both cried at once.

Raphael blinked, looked from one to another. “There an echo in here?” Leonardo gave his brother a scowl but then focused on his father,

“Master, you-“

“Yes, my son. Something horrible is happening.” The elder ninja master clasped his hands close together, trying to erase the horrific emotions that had shot through his mind and heart for the last three hours. He had hoped them to dispense or become less intense but if anything, they were worse. Seeing Leonardo charge in, in a near panic only confirmed his fears. “I do not know the cause or what exactly is going on, but something horrible is happening. Something beyond what you have faced before.”

Leonardo nodded “We have to go, Zach called me and said April’s hurt and he was panicking, crying, and slurring his words, the whole mess.” Leonardo frowned as his brother grasped their weapons and added “I could hear something in the background but I couldn’t make it out. Could be anything, but sounded like banging or moaning.”

Michelangelo’s entire body posture changed. He stood more upright, his eyes narrowed and he eyed his elder brother “Where is he? Where’s April?”

Diverting his gaze to Donatello, Leonardo commanded, “I need you to track his turtle com, Donatello. He can’t calm down enough to give me an answer.”

“On it.” The joking manner had left the room as Donatello wiped out his own turtle com and started pressing button after button. They had gotten accustomed to this over time, especially with the many kidnap attempts on April so tracing a turtle com signal had become second nature. He had upped their power especially because of this reason.

Ignoring his brother’s progress, Michelangelo took out his own com and called up his young friend, “Zach, hey, little amigo, you there?”

A moment later, he heard Zach’s voice and then saw a pale face, shaking and stuttering “I’mgonnadieI’mgonnadieI’mgonnadie!”

Panic set into the young turtle’s heart, made worse by every word that broke from Zach’s throat. He took off for the garage, with his brothers on his tail. Donatello took up the far end and Master Splinter called after them “Go with care my sons. If they are injured, bring them here!” There was so much intensity and desperation in those words, in particular the last line. It caused enough pause that Donatello froze, turned.

Surprised, he tried, “But Sensei…” He was no doctor. Oh, he could treat minor wounds but major wounds, he was always nervous when he had to do more than stitch a minor injury on his brothers. He could not imagine the types of wounds they might be faced with in this situation. Especially with how panicked Zach sounded, it was not a minor matter. Who knew what kind of injuries they would be dealing with? He might do more harm than good. In fact, he was SURE he would do more harm than good.

“There is no time right now, my son. But you MUST bring them back here.” Splinter’s words were fierce and determined. They rang like a bell on a silent night so Donatello simply nodded

“Yes, Sensei.”

“Now go, with haste!”

Taking off down the hall and into the garage, he let out a sigh of relief as his com found its target “I’ve got it guys, the corner of Eastman and Laird!”

Piling into the van, Michelangelo was still trying to talk Zach down, “Zach…Zach? Zach?”

Nothing. The turtle com was blank, no face but it had clattered to the ground and they recognized all too well the red of blood that splattered the screen. Michelangelo’s entire world turned red as his blood ran cold. His speed easily tripled as he darted to the van, his siblings close behind him. He ignored their like charge. Thousands of horrible things were rushing through his mind. What could cause that much blood? Why wasn’t Zach answering anymore? As they pulled open the door to van, Michelangelo pushed past his elder brothers and slammed himself into the driver’s seat. The other three ran in through the back, Leonardo ahead. He rarely saw the type of look in his youngest brother’s eyes that he saw now and that made him nervous. Out of all of them, it was no secret that Michelangelo was the best with kids and that he was the closest with Zach…or that he was easily the most emotional of the four. He had all kinds of things rushing through his mind, he could only imagine the emotional level his sibling was on and the idea of an emotionally charged person behind a wheel made him more than a little uneasy. “Michelangelo, you’re too upset right now, let me—“

Shooting his brother a death glare that would have made Shredder run in fear, an army retreat and Sensei go silent, Michelangelo spat out his response like each word was poison, toxin dripping from his eyes and tone, “Urusai yo! Watashi wa unten, Leonardo! SUWARINASAI! DAMARINASAI!” His voice echoed like the voice of Kami-sama himself by the last statement. His eyes burned like fire and his hands gripped the wheels intensely, the knuckles burned to a light lime green color through his deeper green skin. Michelangelo could be dangerous, and very dangerous at that, if given the right motivation. It was something only his brothers and sensei knew of and even they only saw it on occasion. Each and every time, it was frightening.

It was petrifying to see that reflected in their youngest sibling’s face now.

It was also rare for any of the turtles to use Japanese frequently though they were all four fluent in it, given their Master’s background. It had become an emotional sign, a signal that there was a great deal of emotional weight in the situation. Leonardo was known to slip into it on occasion, Raphael and Donatello would let one or two word phrases slip that Sensei no doubt would have turned red with fury if he knew they used them. As for the baby of the family, he was only known to use an occasional “Surgoi!” if something exciting was going on or occasionally use Onii-chan if he needed or wanted a favor. If he wanted Leonardo’s help with something, he was known to use Ani-ue even if he knew, as Leonardo had explained to him, that such a term had not been used since the Middle Ages. All the same, regardless of who he used them with, he used them sparingly and as a result, they worked almost one hundred percent of the time. But to hear such caustic commands emerge from his throat was enough to stun all three of them for several minutes.

The van went dead silent until Raphael reached over and pushed Leonardo into the passenger seat “You heard the turtle. Sit down and shut up!”

No sooner had he said that, then Michelangelo pushed his foot all the way down to the floor and the van jumped from 0 to about 65 in less than four seconds, all courtesy of Donatello’s engineering feats. Donatello flew back to the back of the van and Raphael hit the ground. The only two that didn’t move were Leonardo and Michelangelo and that was because they were seated. The needle kept climbing, stopping at 115 as Michelangelo pressed the pedal completely horizontal, flat against the ground. The needle peeked at the very edge of the speedometer, firmly seated there as its driver did not relent in the slightest on his accelerator pressure. Donatello managed to get to his feet as they rounded a corner with a turn that should not have been possible. He could smell the tires burning on the cement ground.

“Hamato Michelangelo!” It was unsure if that was Donatello, Raphael, Leonardo or all three. It was rare for them to ever use his full name. That was usually a Sensei only privilege, “Slow down! You still have the grate up ahea—“

“SHUT UP!” He spat and pulled the nearest lever, bringing up their large laser cannon and fired it, full force. The grate exploded outward, with the van’s squealing wheels less than a second behind as they sped towards downtown. Raphael managed to grasp hold of the back of his brother’s seat and Leonardo reached up and grasped his sibling’s wrist to make sure he stayed upright. If the situation had been any less serious, Raphael would have made a sarcastic bite towards his younger brother’s driving skills but you could have cut the tension in the air it was so thick. That aside, despite his rather nonchalant outward appearance, Raphael’s mind was doing all kinds of flips as well. He may have found Zach annoying at times but he didn’t want anything happening to him. They had all kind of acquired the brotherly protective streak over the young boy, though Michelangelo more so than any of the others.

Then, there was April. She was the adult in the situation. Why had she not called them? Zach had said she was hurt but they hadn’t gotten any more information from him. If she was hurt enough that she was not able to call them, if she was hurt enough….that had been blood that had clouded Zach’s view screen and while it hadn’t been dark red, thank God (Sensei called it  the ‘death red.’) there HAD been a LOT of it. When they had been trained as children, he had been quick to teach them the warning signs, made them memorize the most vital of signs and what to do for them for the worst of the worst injuries. Knowing them and having to use them was something else altogether. Raphael felt his breath catch at the possibility that their oldest friend may well bleed to death before they got there. He tried to stay positive but…that had been a lot of blood…too much…

Maybe it was a good thing his emotional driven brother was driving…

OOO

Blinking, Raphael climbed out of the van and looked around, joining his siblings. It didn’t take long for them to find the Channel Six van. The entire place was deserted and in New York, that was disturbing. It would have been a lot more comforting if they had stumbled onto a scene of hysteria, fights and shouts. That would have been normal and easy to deal with. Well, okay, maybe not EASY but it would have been something familiar. He liked familiar, he liked known. He liked evils that he had dealt with before. He knew what to expect, how to react. It made him uneasy to not know what he was walking into. His nerves were put up on edge and the dark, eerie silence of a normally busy intersection just added anxiety to his fire.

Michelangelo had started to run ahead but Leonardo had been quick to pull him back and had whispered something harsh to him in Japanese. Though he did not catch the whole of their conversation, the red banded turtle, did hear ‘gomen ne’ and ‘onii-san’ from his youngest brother and it was rare for Michelangelo to use such an honorable suffix with his brothers outside of a teasing mode, likewise, he rarely apologized in Japanese. He felt more comfortable in English. Leonardo’s tone had been harsh as well and Raphael had caught the title of ‘little brother’ which again, was rare. Leonardo did not like lessening his siblings to titles. He did not catch all the words in-between but, well, he was willing to bet his eldest brother had said something along the lines of ‘don’t push me right now’ or maybe even, ‘that’s an order.’

Raphael had not caught it but whatever had been said, but as his youngest brother started forward again, Leonardo pulled him back and hissed,

“Wakarimasu-ka?” his tone was heavy and dark as he requested clarification that his youngest sibling understood.

“Wakatta, ‘Nii-san, Wakatta!” Michelangelo insisted and his older brother released him.

Perhaps it was best he didn’t know.

Looking around, he shuddered involuntarily “When did this turn into an episode of ‘The Twilight Zone’?” he spoke, mainly just to break the silence. Leonardo shushed him and motioned them forward, silent and still. For all their playfulness when the events took this dark a turn, they fell back on the harsh and dark nature of their ninja training: the ability to become one with the shadow, to move within it. The four of them crept forward with the grace and dignity of a jungle cat and just as silent.

The area around the Channel Six van was decorated with broken equipment, broken glass and blood. There was…a lot of blood. It was the death red. Raphael closed his eyes tightly, trying to block out the obvious conclusion. If that was April’s blood, it did not matter how fast they had arrived or what kind of medical magic Donatello possessed. You could not undo a bleed-out. He stepped forward gingerly, trying to avoid getting the liquid on his feet, not out of disgust necessarily (Splinter had made sure they were well accustomed to injury and blood quite early on) but out of the idea that it might have been his dear friend’s.

Rounding the back of the van, Leonardo stopped short, his brothers slamming into him. Michelangelo looked around his sibling and paled significantly. His two other brothers followed suit.

Though he kept his voice to a whisper, Leonardo swore, “Nande kuso…”

Lying at the floor of the van, just inches from the doors, was what was left of a corpse. They recognized some of the remains of the clothes; it was a cameraman. There was not a lot left to him though. They could make out the skull and it was a clean white, but not from age. It looked like a chicken bone when it had been scrapped and ripped of all its flesh. Some remains of skin and muscle clung to the left arm, but that was minimal. The best way to describe it was as if someone had thrown a body into a pit of piranha. There was little to no skin (or ANYTHING) but judging from the pool of blood he was lying in, he had been torn apart. The right arm bones were a good five feet away and they had bite marks all over them, like when a dog gnawed on a bone too hard to break. Except these were not canine bite marks.

Raphael, always being the blunt one, stated what was on everyone’s minds, “Shimatta…”

Michelangelo eyed his siblings “Dudes, we need to get them and get out of here!”

Donatello nodded, his eyes still focused on the remains of the camera man. The blood was still fresh. Hell, it was still warm! This couldn’t have happened more than…fifteen minutes ago. But, what in God’s name could reduce a healthy human male to literally skin and bones in that short amount of time? Was it still here? Still stalking about? Donatello put one hand on his bo, tightly, as his other hand clasped at his ninja stars tucked into his belt, though he never lessened his grip on his first aid kit.

Creeping around the lost camera man, Leonardo banged once on the van, “Zach? April?” Raphael tugged on the van doors and they held fast though they opened maybe a half inch or two. He could smell blood, sweat, urine and tears. As soon as the doors crept open though,

Oh, that scream would haunt them forever.

OOO

Blinking, Zach’s eyes opened to a cold, uninviting floor that he recognized all too soon as the floor of the Channel Six van. Sitting up was a difficult task. His hearing and sight was fussy and he felt cold, through his entire body. He saw Miss O’Neil still on the floor. She hadn’t woken up. How long had it been? She didn’t look like she had slowed at all. He was unable to help her and now…, yes, yes he was surer than ever that she had died. He was all alone. No one was going to help him. They had killed poor Freddy…eaten him. Eaten him alive.

Zach buried his face into his hands, crept to the very back of the van, pressing into the multitude of wires and panels. He started to rock back and forth, chewing on his left thumb. He wished more than anything else that he was at home right now. He wanted his mother, he wanted his father. He would even take Walt. He wanted anyone, anybody to just take him away from all of this. He wanted away from all of this. The look and sight of Miss O’Neil was starting to make him sick and he could smell the…well, what had happened outside the van had a smell and that just made the visions replay, replay, replay. Tears began down his face again and he sniffled as his nose began to run. Wiping his face with back of his arm, mucus was dragged across his nose and mouth.

He heaved again, though he had emptied the contents of his stomach earlier. The dried results of it were present all over him. “Mommy! Mommy!” He had switched from Mommy to Mama not even two years ago but right now, he didn’t care. He wanted her here! “Mommy!” Truthfully, she probably would have been more helpless than him but at the moment, he found himself calling for anyone. His father, his mother, his brother, the turtles, April (even though she was right next to him) and yes, his friends the turtles. Honestly, he probably called for them the most.

Banging. Jerking his head up, Zach’s heart beat doubled and then tripled. He heard it, all over again. They had come back! They had come for him and Miss O’Neil! They were gonna die! Just, just like Freddy had! Torn apart, ripped to pieces. Oh, GodohGodohGod! Tears erupted anew and Zach tried to make himself as small as possible, pulling the wires and cords down in a frenzy, covering his body with them. They were heavy and made it hard to breathe but maybe, maybe that would be too much trouble for these monsters! If he could just become tiny and disappear, disappear…

The doors cracked open.

Zach screamed, screamed like he never remembered screaming before. It seemed to cut loose directly from his heart, and poured out of his mouth like some kind of endless pool, constantly being fed. All his fear, all his horror, all his anticipation was embodied in that one single scream and he kept screaming. He could hear the doors moving, he saw something reach through and those strings, those simple lines that were keeping him safe… severed. Nononononono! He was gonna die!

Grabbing his knapsack, Zach grasped the nearest thing, his wallet, then his Junior Detective kit and he chucked it as the doors were crashed inward. He never stopped screaming, even though his throat was starting to protest. The monsters were here, they were here, they were here!

When one of them reached out for him, Zach swung his fist. He kicked, he spat, he bit and he bit hard.

OOO

“Ah, damn it! Zach, it’s us!”

Raphael’s words did not seem to reach the young boy at all. He screamed, his eyes were wide and frantic. He kicked at the turtle with all his strength and for such a small boy, that was a surprising amount of force. Michelangelo moved from the entry way, followed by Leonardo and Donatello and tried to console his younger friend. He had never seen Zach really frightened before, not like this. He didn’t even look like he had heard Raphael and the guy was right next to him! What had happened to his little amigo?

“Hey, Zach, it’s us! The boys in green, the good guys!” Michelangelo dropped next to his brother, trying to reach their hysterical little friend. Zach, if anything, became more upset and howled again, clamping down on Raphael’s hand again with his teeth even as he tried to kick out with his legs. Michelangelo grasped hold of his ankles and pinned them to the ground as his brother pried his hand loose. Zach screamed even louder, not even words now, just screams. It was horrible to hear, like witnessing an animal dragged to its slaughter.

“Ayie! Fearless!” Raphael called to his blue clad sibling, “A little help over here?”

Leonardo sprung over, slicing the wires with his sword. Grasping Raphael by the shoulder and Michelangelo by the arm, he pulled them both back, away from the wall. This gave them a little more room. Without saying a word, he grasped Zach’s legs, releasing Michelangelo of it and the younger turtle instantly moved to support the boy’s head. Last thing they needed was him splitting his head open on the hard floor. The noise was deafening and all Michelangelo could think of was:

“This is gonna call whatever the hell did this back!” he screeched to his older brothers. He was scared; he was not ashamed to admit it. He was scared for Zach, scared if they were in time to save April, scared if whatever this thing was still lurked close and he was also reeking of anger and a desire for vengeance. The multitude of emotions made him see red and he had to restrain his strength. Focus on little Zach, he coached himself. Keep him safe. You know he’s alright. Keep him safe.

“Agreed, we don’t have time for this.” Leonardo turned to his other brother, “Donatello—“

“Cook up something, boy genius!” Raphael demanded, pinning Zach to the ground with his own weight across the chest. He wasn’t trying to crush the kid but damn it, the kid had to stop kicking and biting. Especially him! Apparently, he must have looked like a steak or something with all the kid’s teeth marks being pinned into his skin. It didn’t hurt, not a lot anyway. His skin was naturally tougher than most but the state of panic Zach was in was the most unnerving thing he had seen in a long time and coming from a mutated turtle who frequently fought for the safety of Earth, that was saying something.

Already digging through his kit, Donatello eyed the small boy, his eyes awash with pity. But his face was all business and it came out in his voice. “Roll him onto his side.”

“Got any ideas how to do that?” Raphael spat, though he was already working with Leonardo to do just that. Michelangelo kept still, using his own body as a barrier between Zach and the floor of the van. Not to mention all the equipment around them. It was already feeling claustrophobic and this was probably going to lead to some bruises later on but the orange dressed turtle kept his eyes constantly locked with Zach’s and he was still trying to talk to him, reminding him that they were ‘the good guys, remember?’ Raphael didn’t know how much good that was doing but he was not about to discount it. Damn it, how was a puny little kid this strong? Once he and Leo got a good grip, keeping him still wasn’t a problem but he was surprised how much strength it was taking. Did adrenaline really give you this much of a boost? He was afraid he’d hurt Zach if he put any more strength into his hold.

Sticking two capped syringes into his mouth and one in his hand, Donatello crawled over to his siblings and their struggle, though by now Leonardo and Raphael had a good handle on it. He knew it was difficult to restrain their strength though and that was what they had to do. Grasping hold of the jean waistband of their younger friend, he mumbled an apology to the boy and wriggled the boy’s slacks down, just enough to expose some of the buttock. Swiping an alcohol swab over a section of skin, he uncapped the syringe in his hands and with a “Sorry, kiddo,” though his clenched teeth, he poked the needle point into the skin and pushed the medication in. Then without waiting, he repeated it with the two he carried in his mouth. By the third injection, Zach seemed to have some recognition of reality, at least minimally, because he yelped in pain. Donatello rubbed the injection site a moment, saying, “Sorry, kiddo,” again.

At first, it didn’t seem to do much but after about another five minutes, the boy’s kicking was lessening in intensity. He was still struggling but it was lessening. Leonardo locked eyes with Michelangelo and the younger one nodded and stroked Zach’s blond hair. “Hey, little amigo? It’s us, it’s the good guys.” He repeated for about the tenth time. This time though, recognition seemed to take place and Zach lifted his head, seeming to realize who was with him. His kicking stopped entirely and he stopped throwing punches.

Raphael and Leonardo both immediately released their hold. Zach turned, slightly so he was cradled in Michelangelo’s lap. He blinked a few times, then asked, “Leonardo? Michelangelo? Raphael? Donatello?” Were they here? He was not hallucinating? Help was here? He wasn’t going to be ripped apart? Relief like a fog swept over his heart and despite any pride, tears came to his eyes, as his voice choked, “Guys, you’re here. Leonardo…Michelangelo, Donatello, Raphael…” By the last name, his voice was slurring. But he had to say them again. To make it real to himself.

 Leonardo smiled at their younger friend, despite the intensity of the situation. Michelangelo felt a sense of relief wash over him and Raphael sat back, rubbing his wrists. Despite his usual gruff attitude, even he managed a smile at the realization that their little friend was finally keyed into reality.

 “You’rehere?” Zach managed, though his eyes were definitely clouding. It was hard to focus on anything but yes, he recognized their voices now. He was more sure than ever that they were here but he had to know. He had to be certain. He didn’t want this to be a dream. Help had come. He wasn’;t going to…go like Freddy did. Freddy. Oh, God, Freddy…

Leonardo gave him a gentle punch to the cheek, more like a push which seemed to snap him from those thoughts and said, “I told you we were on our way, Zach.”

Despite his usual desire to appear tough, to appear strong, to be every bit as brave as they were, Zach was, above all other things, a little boy. A boy that had just turned ten and had seen things that no child should have to see. He had faced villains with the turtles before but he had never been exposed to so much carnage, so much fear of death before. He could still smell that horrible iron stench of spilled blood on top of rotting flesh, he could still hear Freddy’s screams, his futile cries for mercy.

Tears welled up in the boy’s eyes, higher and higher until, despite his desperate attempts to stop them, to slow them, they spilled down his cheeks. He bit his lower lip so hard that blood seeped out. “You…came…” His voice finally cracked at the end.

Michelangelo being both the closest in proximity and in relationship to the boy took him into a tight embrace. Unlike his brothers, Michelangelo had never been one to shy away from showing affection, at least not too much. His brothers had learned a long time ago that the best way to calm him was with an embrace so he utilized that here. It was odd to be playing the role of ‘big brother’ but he couldn’t stand the sight of Zach so scared. It tore his heart open. He wanted to take all that pain onto his own heart. But, not being able to do that, he settled for pulling the boy into his plastron and stroking his hair, “Course we came, amigo. Nothin’s gonna get you, little buddy.”

Raphael knelt, putting a hand on Zach’s shoulder, “Part of the hero contract, kiddo—all fellow turtles get top billing on the rescue list.”

The human boy managed a small smile and wiped his face with the back of his hand though he still shook like a leaf; Donatello stood, “We need to move though.”

Nodding, the leader stated, “Right, let’s go.”

Zach tried to stand, not about to be more embarrassed than he already was but swayed instantly. Michelangelo grasped him by the shoulders. “Easy, compadre. Take the turtle express today.” That said, he scooped the boy up into his arms, the boy’s head against his plastron. Zach blinked, “April��” he tried to push his way into a sitting position but Michelangelo was having none of it and he had to admit he really didn’t feel like fighting it. “She was hurt. I tried to—“

“We’ve got her, kid.” Raphael assured him as he hoisted the limp reporter into his own arms. “Rescues are our specialty, remember?” He thumbed the boy’s nose, “You did a good job with what you had, kid.”

Zach nodded, his eyes drooping. Michelangelo gave him a light smile, “See? Relax, little dude. We’ve got this.”

“Freddy..he’s…” Zach started but Leonardo shushed him, though not unkindly, with a gentle finger to the lips.

“Shh. We saw Zach. Time for grief and answers later. Right now, I need you quiet as you can be. Understand?” Despite the gentleness in his voice, there was also a determinism in it that left little room for argument. Zach recognized it, despite not hearing it very often. He tried raising his hand to give Leonardo a salute but the rest of the medication hit him hard right then and his eyes finally shut completely, leading to him laying against Michelangelo, out like a light. Raphael whistled softly though his teeth as they climbed out of the van, gently hoisting April into his arms,

“Potent stuff, brainac.”

Donatello frowned but did manage a low chuckle, saying “Took it a while to kick in. He’s a fighter.”

“Yeah, but dude, what did you give him?”

A smile finally breaking through his frown, Donatello always found himself touched by his youngest brother’s ‘mother-hen’ tendencies when it came to Zach. It mirrored their own behaviors concerning him actually but to see his youngest brother, standing there, looking so vulnerable with an armful of frightened child, despite the situation, and maybe even to defuse the situation, the purple banded one replied, “Same thing I gave you when Pizza Hut went on strike last year.”

Michelangelo narrowed his eyes at his brother, clearly stating without words that he was not in a joking mood. Truthfully, Donatello had not expected him to be but all the same, it had been worth a try. In any event, Donatello quickly remedied his response, “Haldol cocktail. He’ll be in la-la-land for a few hours.”

As they quickly moved through the carnage and back to the van, Leonardo inquired “Where do you get this stuff?” While his younger brothers may not have recognized what kind of drugs were in a cocktail (and he certainly didn’t know all of them) he had heard enough about Haldol in the news and his general reading to know it was not a drug you could just waltz into a drug store and request.  His genius brother shrugged in reply.

“Usually the labs and stuff that we end up helping end up asking to compensate. Providing me with some drugs and equipment usually works.” He cleared a space in the back for his brother to lay April down, stating, “I never know exactly what we’ll need so it never hurts to be prepared.” He winced though as Michelangelo climbed in, still cradling their limp ‘fifth turtle.’ “Just sorry I had to give him something so strong.”

At Michelangelo’s look, he added, quickly, “It won’t hurt him, Mikey. I promise. He won’t exactly be shootin’ hoops when he wakes up but he’ll be fine.”

The younger turtle gave a nod as his red banded brother made his way in with their older friend, trying not to jostle her too badly.

 “How’s April?” Raphael asked simply, setting her down as gently as he could.

“She’s alive. She’s lost a lot of blood, looks like a bite into her pectoral muscle.” Donatello turned to Leonardo and Raphael. “Let’s get them both back to the Lair.”

“After a bite like that?” Leonardo inquired.

“Sensei told me to bring them back to the Lair, not to a hospital.” Donatello informed his leader, his eyes serious as he patched what he could on April for the moment. At least he could put a permanent pressure on it. That would help. Wrapping it as best he was able to, as well as quickly as possible, he started to look her over for any other injuries, any other signs, anything else that could be important.

Thus, the trip began, Leonardo taking the place in the driver’s seat as the other three settled in the back, Donatello working on April, Raphael standing at the ready and Michelangelo cradling Zach close to his chest. The boy breathed but did not move otherwise. “Hey Donatello?” Michelangelo kept his voice very low but focused nonetheless.

Though he did not move from his position over April, he responded “Hmm?”

            “What do you think did this?”

            A pause, silence “I have no idea but if I had to guess, demon would be a pretty damn good place to start.”