Chapter Text
Leo stared up at his ceiling in frustration. This is going to be another sleepless night, his head was a battlefield of emotions that just wouldn’t cease fire for one goddamn minute.
Scrunching his face he turned to his side as he went through what Donnie had revealed to them.
How could there be no pulse? It was impossible to live without one. Hell, it was impossible to live without sleeping or eating. What Donnie is saying makes no sense.
And yet Leo had checked. There was no pulse. He even put his head to his brother's plastron and heard nothing, zilch, jack squat. Not even a breath or inhale left or entered his twin. Which was even more confusing because how the hell did Donnie still manage to sigh? Or even talk for that matter?
There were so many questions that Leo had, like how was any of this possible? Donnie said he didn't know why, but Leo calls bullshit on that. Leo was supposed to believe that this impossible thing happened and Donnie knew about it for six months and didn't find any clues or answers. Yeah, that was unlikely, and even if his older twin didn't have answers he would at least have ten different theories, and yet when Leo had asked he gave nothing.
Yeaaahhh, no. Leo wasn't gonna buy that. His brother knew something, but the soft shell has already demonstrated how stubborn he is when revealing this kind of stuff so asking him or calling out his B.S. wasn't gonna get Leo anywhere. So he just had to wait until something slipped.
A loud groan of frustration left the red-eared slider as he stewed in silence. If any deities existed they better give Leo an awesome afterlife because he was exercising the patience that only saints could have.
Leo loved his twin, don't get him wrong, but sometimes there were moments when his brother was so infuriating to the point where Leo has considered teleporting his genius brother onto the surface of the sun. Unfortunately, his powers didn't work like that, he knows because he's tried to do it before, except it was to the surface of Pluto but Donnie doesn't need to be any colder than he already is.
The only benefit that comes from this development is that they shouldn't have to worry about Donnie dying. God, Leo had so many mixed feelings about this. On one hand, he's happy that his brother is still here with his sarcasm and emotionless passion to boot but at the same time his brother was still dead and this had some troubling implications about the Kraang and Donnie’s... continued existence. Is Donnie incapable of fully dying anymore, if that's the case then Leo would rather Donnie be gone for good, as depressing as that thought is. Sure he'll be depressed as hell but then his twin wouldn't be subjected to a continued existence that lasts forever.
The thought of his family dying and Donnie just... continuing on without them leaves a cold sinking feeling in the blue turtle's chest.
Has Donnie thought about that?
Of course, he has, he's had six months to think about all this stuff and what it could mean for him.
Leo screwed his eyes shut as tears sting the corner of his eyes. Oh dear pizza supreme, Donnie has thought about this. Donnie who admitted that he thinks of the worst possible outcomes has thought about this.
Leo loves Donnie, loves and is proud of how smart his twin was, but he wishes that he could turn off Donnie's brain, for the genius's sake of sanity.
That would explain why his twin looked so dead and tired. Who the hell would smile knowing the fact that they might exist forever watching everything they love me care about decay and die?
Sitting up, Leo wiped his eyes and sniffled. His brother didn't deserve this.
Swinging one leg out of his bed the red-eared slider made his way out of his room. He needed his twin right now.
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Donnie looked up from his work as he heard footsteps approaching him. Turning in his chair the genius saw his twin enter his lab, a tired look on his face, and... were his eyes red-rimmed?
Must not be getting enough sleep. Or was he crying? Or were his eyes irritated? I mean, maybe he had been crying, he should ask him what was wrong right? But what if it was because he hadn't been getting enough sleep, that would just be awkward then if he asked him why he was crying. He really should pay more attention to his siblings, he might have noticed at dinner if Leo was sleep deprived. But maybe he should ask, just in case ya’ know... however, he wasn't good at that stuff. Like what if Leo was sad, what does he say to him then? Or if he wasn't well then he looks stupid.
“Hey,” is what he settled with.
“Hi, what are you working on?” came his twin's reply as he pulled out an extra chair and sat down.
Donnie let out a hum before turning back to the blueprints he had been working on, “Nothing too important.”
This is true, it is nothing important when compared to everything else. Not to mention that it was improbable as of yet. The idea of building a little spaceship had come to Donnie when he realized that he may exist forever, and if he was unable to... perish he wanted to find some way to make that possible and guaranteed. His first idea had been to throw himself into a black hole but now thinking about it... it is unlikely to happen. It would require a lot of things that Donnie was unwilling to expend. Like his sanity. He would rather live forever on earth than live forever in space.
Leo’s voice broke through Donnie’s chain of thought, “Oh ok.”
Speaking of which, “Why are you here,” oddly blunt but Leo knows he doesn't mean it rudely.
“Couldn’t sleep.”
Donnie turned to look at his twin with a questioning look, “Does your melatonin dosage not compatible anymore?”
Leo looked at him incredulously, “Donnie you told me that you are dead not even a couple of hours ago.”
Ah, Donnie was hoping that they would skip over that, but unfortunately, he lives in a world where coming out as dead to your family is a concern. He was truly the smallest minority group in the world. He's fairly certain that there's no other autistic mutant turtle that is dead but still exists in an undead state.
Leo stared at him with concern “Donnie, are you ok? Never mind, that's a stupid question.”
The softshell let out a small chuckle before answering his twin's question anyway “Not really.”
“I mean yeah, again considering the elephant in the room. I mean, I wouldn't be ok.”
Donnie let out a hum before looking down at the blueprints and scraping them.
Yeah, existing like this wasn't pleasant. His chest ached constantly and it felt like he was drowning 24/7, the want to breathe was there, however, there was no need to, so he didn't, couldn't. There was always a tightness around his chest. His sense of touch and smell were fucked, he didn't need them so everything was a bit dull. It both worsened and bettered his sensory issues.
“So do you really not know anything?” Came his twin's next question.
Donnie could lie and say yes but he knows Leo wouldn't buy it, honestly the only person in that kitchen who probably believed that was his dad... and yes Donnie is gonna ignore how disheartening that is, but he supposed that the truth may be beneficial in this case.
“Would you believe me if I said yes?”
Leo let out a short guffaw before replying with a blunt, “No.”
Eh, it was worth a shot, “Well, from what I've gathered, when I connected to the Kraang's ship the little roots had to get to connect to my nervous system. The best way to do that through my shell would be my spin.” Donnie shuddered at the memory of feeling those things digging into him, he could feel them wrap around his spine and crawling along up to his neck-
Donnie screwed his eyes shut to get rid of the horrid memory.
“Hey, if you don’t wanna talk about it you don’t have to.” came Leo’s soft reply.
“No, I should, it’s just… very horrible. Anyway, after I had been removed from the Kraangs ship my neck snapped,” another shudder ran up his spine remembering the sound of bone snapping and the quick second of pain before everything went dark. Even now his neck aches with a dull pain, the bone still broken because a dead body doesn’t heal like an alive one. Sure his cuts heal and burns went away with enough time, but bones, those stay broken. Shaking his head he continues on, “I don’t know much but what I do know is that those roots, or tentacles, stayed with me. They connected to my nervous system, and kinda replaced it. So I think the main reason I’m still here is because those things are inside me and have connected what has been broken.”
He turned and looked back at his brother who had a horrified expression, “So… how is that even possible.”
Donnie stood from his chair and started walking out of his lab, Leo quickly followed, “I’m not too sure but I think the Kraang are plant based, maybe fungi. It makes sense then that they could continue to exist despite being cut off from the ship. If the roots remain it could continue to thrive.”
Leo sounded amused now “So, you’re now part plant?”
Well if Leo is overlooking the whole Kraang roots part and focusing on the plant part then that’s good, that’s one less horrified sibling.
The less horrified they are the less self-hatred Donnie experiences. Which is still a lot considering that he is now an abomination of nature in more ways than one. Dead and Kraang, lovely. Just what he needed to be in life.
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Leo felt a little better, sure his twin was still dead but he was part plant and those die so Donnie should be fine, he won’t have to exist with immortality.
Looking at his twins back he let out a relieved sigh, “Well, Donnie, I’m gonna go to bed now, you should too btw or else I’ll tell Rah you pulled another all nighter.”
Donnie turned and looked at him with genuine confusion, “Leo… I don’t sleep anymore… because I’m dead.”
“Oh, right,” Leo forgot about the no need for sleep thing, along with the no need for food thing, “well take a break, you’ll work yourself to death… oh wait.”
His twin cackled manically as he walked away, his head thrown back and hands thrown up in the air, “Not even death can stop my reign of terror, my dear brother, for my hubris knows no bounds! The gods will have to smite me down in person!”
Leo smiled to himself before turning around and heading back to his room.
They’re gonna be fine.