Chapter Text
The fruit was smaller, now, but it remained. Maybe more like a kumquat. It still smelled like a corpse and sat heavy on the counter. They still had not talked about Leo’s disappearance. The way his letters stopped coming and he never came home.
The way they all never said anything. The way they just waited. Like fools.
It had been six years. Donnie had a close call with the Foot Clan, who acted more like mercenaries these days. Captured, he had been certain his brothers would come.
Donnie stared up at Karai and wondered if that is what Leo had thought. Was he captured like me? Left alone to be experimented on in some facility, taking comfort in the thought that we’d know something was wrong? That when his letters stopped we’d check on him?
Did he get sick and starve to death? How long was he dead after we got his last letter? Could we have saved him?
When the two saved him, in the nick of time as all daring rescues must be, Donatello made a request. Let’s go to Costa Rica. I want to know what happened to Leo.
It was both harder and easier than expected to sneak onboard a boat to Costa Rica. The three of them carried enough supplies for a month, though they didn’t expect to be gone that long. Donnie couldn’t remember what supplies Leo had carried. It had been six years.
He knew in his heart that Leo hadn’t taken that many supplies.
It was humid, but not unbearably so. They had come during the wet season, so there would be less tourists. It rained every day while they searched the jungle for traces of Leo. They’d had no luck by their third day, but they had encountered plenty of bugs. Luckily turtle skin was pretty hard, but the bugs were annoying all the same.
They also encountered monkeys, colorful birds, and some cool sloths. Donnie could probably name the exact species, but Mikey had other priorities. Leo had disappeared somewhere in this jungle, and they should have followed him out here long ago. Mikey would not fail his brother again.
A couple days later they reached the town they’d received his letters from. The people were obviously poor, but they looked happy. The children ran carefree through the streets. The adults watched the trees with tired apprehension. The kind of apprehension born from long experience, rather than a real threat. Whatever evil had plagued this village was long gone.
In the outskirts of the village lay a small shrine. It was lovingly cared for, and beautifully painted in bright blues and greens. There was no picture, but a piece of fruit lay on the altar. It was a guava, slightly moldy from the exposure. A woman passed by the shrine, her small son in hand. She paused for a moment, staring at the moldy fruit. She closed her eyes briefly before continuing on.
The three brothers sank back into the jungle, to look for other signs. Dudes, I just know Leo helped those people out.
He always did have a hero complex. Mr Martyr to the end.
Like you’re one to talk, “great Nightwatcher”.
Yeah, well, there’s only ever been one Fearless.
They searched until the sky grew dark and the rain poured down. Most clues had long since vanished into the mud and greens. It had been six years, after all.
Though, Donnie confessed, that shrine seemed much more recent. Either they’ve been meticulously taking care of it- unlikely, considering the state of that fruit- or it was only built two or three years ago.
But why would they do that? I mean, Leo stopped writing to us after only six months.
Maybe the shrine wasn’t for him. Raph had a gruff answer. Maybe we’re seeing something that isn’t there.
The next day Mikey found a katana: blue hilt stained brown, biting steel useless from rust. The sword lay unassuming beneath wide leaves. The quiet tumbling of water filtered through his shock. Rivers weren’t safe in the jungle.
Mikey stayed put and examined the katana. Hey, guys, you need to see this.
They found a cave to spend the night in, away from the river. Raph carried the rusty katana. It felt oddly light against his back for such a heavy find. They had hoped to find clues out here, but their discoveries simply fueled his regret. Huddled in the cave together, Raph allowed himself to feel his brothers’ presence. They were still here. They were still alive. And he’d never let them slip away.
In the morning, Donnie investigated their cave. I’m hoping to find signs of Leo. I mean, he had to have lived somewhere around here. And find signs of Leo he did. Hidden deep within the cave, behind several twists and turns, was a secret lair. It looked untouched. Leo had clearly known what he was doing when he hid it. Raph, who had insisted there would be nothing back here, was shocked.
Mikey wandered around as Donnie investigated the markings on the walls. It was Leo’s handwriting, shaky, but detailing various locations. He had been fighting someone. Maybe some kind of group or organization? Most of it was insensible to Donnie. Which river was river Three? Which town was Yellow? The scrawls mostly remained in English, save for some words Leo obviously didn’t know the English translation of. Probably another precaution against potential intruders.
His notes were suspiciously well-preserved. The dust layer was thick, but not as thick as it should be.
Maybe Donatello just didn’t know enough about the jungle. He was a genius, but he didn’t know everything.
Raph called him over to where Mikey was sitting with some papers in his hands. It was the letters they’d sent to Leo. He’d kept them. Some of them were obviously worn from re-reading. Raph was holding one such letter, one of the few he’d sent Leo.
Hey Fearless. I know you’re going full jungle-boy out there, but don’t lose your skills while you’re away. I’m planning an epic sparring session when you get back. After I wipe the floor with your shell we should hit the town. Between you and me, the criminals are getting a bit cocky with us off the streets. -Raph
Mikey held his own worn letter. It was a lot longer than Raph’s, but part of it was more worn than the rest.
We haven’t heard from you in so long, bro. Did you forget to write to us? Things are weird here without you. I miss you. Don’t you want to come home?
None of Donnie’s letters were more worn than the rest. He knew his letters had been filled with tips about jungles and facts about his latest science project. It still hurt.
They (aka Donnie) tried to decipher Leo’s wall markings for some clues. But they were obviously referencing his personal experience and designed to be unintelligible to others. They stayed in that cave for two weeks.
Donnie read every letter he had sent Leo. He knew the others read their own letters as well.
In that time Donnie managed to discover (mostly by luck and perseverance) what two of the locations meant. River Three was east of the cave and had a quicksand bank. Town Yellow wasn’t a town at all, but was a location buried deep within the jungle past River Three. There weren’t any records of towns or buildings out there, so the three of them set out to investigate.
You’d think these mosquitos would’ve given up on eating turtle by now! I mean, dude, it’s getting seriously annoying.
It was a sunny morning, crawling with noise as the boys traveled silently along the branches. Which was tiring, but Leo obviously thought someone would come looking for him. And while I suppose those villagers could have been wary about animals, I highly doubt it.
Not to mention the fact that Leo just disappeared out here. There’s no way Fearless just croaked because of some bad fruit or whatever. Raph’s hand drifted towards his sai. Someone out here took him from us. And he’s gonna pay.