Chapter Text
He wasn't dead.
Or maybe he was, Donnie didn't know.
He didn't know because whilst he was feeling sensations, like warmth blanketing his whole body and softness – in life, he had never given much thought as to what lay on the other side, mostly because delving too deep into that topic gave him existential dread.
So he didn't know what to expect, if he really was dead right now.
He didn't believe in any God, so the concept of something like heaven didn't come to his mind. Maybe though, some kind of... simple, peaceful place existed. He'd settle for that. It wouldn't be eternal worship or somewhere filled with angels, but maybe something like a field under the lowering sun of the evening, lying in the long grass. Or a beach with a never-ending shore, listening to the waves gently lapping. Now that'd be paradise.
Donnie thought he deserved paradise. And sure, maybe that was cocky and prideful in of itself, and maybe that pride would be the reason he would not be making it into heaven if all those religious texts were right. But he had a stressful life, okay? A really stressful life, and he had only lived fifteen years of it. How sad. An eternity of relaxation was the least he could be offered as compensation.
But Donnie wouldn't get his answer until he opened his eyes. And either he'd be all alone, a wandering spirit, or he'd wake up to the same, solid world he'd always been in.
He relished the peace of the darkness for a few moments longer, listening to wind gently rustling leaves before deciding he should open his eyes, wincing at the sun rays breaking through the drainage gate.
𝘋𝘳𝘢𝘪𝘯𝘢𝘨𝘦 𝘨𝘢𝘵𝘦? 𝘚𝘰 𝘩𝘦 𝘸𝘢𝘴 𝘪𝘯 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘥𝘰𝘫𝘰, 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘯.
Alive.
At home.
There was the whoosh of a sliding door, and his father's face, woven in worry, appeared in view above him.
“Sensei, I'm sor-” He choked on his apology halfway through, his throat straining.
“You do not need to apologize for being hurt, Donatello.” Splinter said.
He turned his attention to the sun again, remembering that the last time he was conscious it had been pitch black. It must be a new day.
“H-how long have I been out for?”
“Some time.” Splinter replied.
“And exactly how long is ‘some time’?” He croaked.
“Maybe thirteen hours, if not longer.”
Another door opened. “Sensei? I heard you talkin’–” A dramatic gasp.
“Guys, guys, get in here! Donnie's awake!” Mikey ran over to him, grinning like he had won the lottery.
Donnie propped himself up on his elbows, trying to scramble backwards.
“Wait, wait! I'm still injured–” It was too late. Mikey toppled onto him and he thudded onto his shell again. Raph and Leo came to the doorway, letting out sighs of relief and making their way over too.
“Michelangelo, get off of Donnie.” Leo reprimanded.
“Awh, but Leoooo!” Mikey whined.
“Your brother is right, Michelangelo. I'll be in my room; call me if you need me. Don't bother Donatello too much, my sons.” Splinter padded away, closing the door behind him.
Mikey huffed and pulled away, but not before Donnie affectionately patted him on the head, which would earn a smile. Donnie smiled gratefully at Leo for him telling Mikey to dial it back.
“It's good to see you awake, Donnie.” Raph crossed his arms.
“I'm glad to be awake,” He sighed, “I really thought I was going to–’
It hit him that he really did almost die. It felt odd to be sitting here when yesterday he had been so certain that was his last night alive. His brothers picked up on what he was going to say even though he didn't finish his sentence, and they all frowned uncomfortably. Leo averted his gaze.
“...Y'know.” He mumbled vaguely instead of saying the word ‘die’. It didn't make any difference.
“We wouldn't let you die, Don.” Raph dug his fingers into his own arms.
Donnie avoided a quip reminding Raph that sometimes you had no control over who lives or who dies, as nice as that would be. Instead he just nodded once.
“How are you feeling?” Raph said next.
“Well… I ache.”
“Where?” Mikey cracked his knuckles like he was ready to give his sore brother a massage.
“Everywhere.” He said bluntly.
“...Oh.” Mikey's hands lowered, “Well, I don't think I have enough hands for that.”
Donnie huffed in laughter.
“It's alright.” He said, before his mind started to drift to last night again. His forehead wrinkled in concentration.
“Wh-what even really happened last night? I remember being strangled, but then what? There was something else because my whole body felt like it was on fire.” He frowned at the memory. He felt like there was static under his skin even still.
Leo rubbed his arm guiltily, and Raph turned his gaze away next. Looking at his older brothers and realizing neither of them were going to say it, Mikey blurted out, “Leo electrocuted you.”
An angry shout of “Mikey!” simultaneously came from Raph and Leo, while a squawked “What?!” left Donnie.
Donnie gawked at Leo, expecting him to elaborate. Leo laughed nervously.
“Donnie, I didn't want to do that. I wouldn't cause harm to you unless there was no other choice, you know that!” He stammered.
Donnie's frown only deepened.
“Look, Rahzar said if we moved, he'd kill you. A quick, indirect attack was the only way to take him down. I'm sorry, Donnie.”
His expression softened slightly. He was a logical guy, and reasonably he did understand Leo's desperation and also knew he shouldn't really hold a grudge over it for that reason, but it was still hard to not be salty when you feel like you have been flattened by ten buses.
“Yeah, I understand. Don't worry about it.” He settled on.
“So then what happened?” Donnie couldn't help but ask.
“Well, Fishface up and split.” Raph scoffed.
“And then we had to drag you and that weird desk thing into the Shellraiser!” Mikey chimed in, “And Donnie, dude, you're a lot heavier than you look.”
Donnie rolled his eyes, not appreciative of that last comment.
“Thanks.” He said sarcastically, though he was relieved to hear his brothers had taken the desk back with them.
“So where is–”
“In your lab.” Raph said.
“Good, good,” He nodded slowly.
“Uh, Donnie, about that… desk,” Leo paused when he said that, almost like he had been searching for a different word, because saying desk just felt ridiculous. Shredder wanted a 𝘥𝘦𝘴𝘬.
“Do you know why Shredder might've wanted it?”
“Not that I know of so far… as far as I can tell, it's just a normal desk, albeit oddly designed. Though I suppose anything that came from the Kraang would be oddly designed.”
“Maybe Shredder just has an interest in unique decor that we didn't know about?” Mikey smiled, and Raph smacked him upside the head.
“Don't be stupid.” He growled.
“Anyway, as I was saying… I checked over that thing the first time we went into that facility. Nothing was on top of it, and nothing was in the drawers. It's just… odd. Very odd.” Donnie murmured.
“And you're a hundred percent sure there was nothing of use?” Leo prodded.
“Yes, Leo, a hundred percent.” Donnie was slightly ticked that Leo doubted him.
Mikey flopped down to lay on the carpet, kicking his feet, “So what happened with you, Dee? Y'know, before you called for us.”
Donnie blinked. “Oh, right! Well uh, as you know I was just originally planning to go out for a walk. Maybe go to the junkyard and see if there was anything interesting. But while I was going across the rooftops, I saw… glowing eyes in an alley below.” He swallowed thickly, beginning to shake slightly as even talking about it made it feel like he was reliving it all over again.
Suddenly he was back, transported to last night, where his muscles and his train of thought had halted in sync. When he stopped on a roof, peering curiously over the edge and into the darkness on the other street, feeling the chill of fear and also the chill of the weather start to settle deep in his bones. He remembered how hard he strained his eyes at that alley, because for a moment he believed he was being tricked by a case of pareidolia. Had he really seen the silhouettes of someone... or some thing, shifting about?
The eyes that suddenly popped up was confirmation for the latter.
His brothers shared a look of concern at the change in demeanour.
“B-but I realized it was Rahzar and Fishface standing outside the Kraang facility. I didn't think much of it at first, because I was confident there was nothing useful in there and whatever they wanted was gone. Then I decided I didn't want to risk it, so I reached for my T-Phone to call for you guys, a-and…” his voice broke.
“It wasn't there!” He blubbered, covering his face as tears began to pour from his eyes, “I had left it here at the Lair like an idiot! And when I looked back up, they were looking directly at me,” he gasped, “they gave chase and–”
“Donnie, you don’t have to keep going. You're just getting yourself worked up.” Leo said worriedly.
He opened his mouth to protest, but found that he physically couldn't talk anymore. His throat felt like he had gargled a bunch of acid – it burned so badly.
He sniffled, his shoulders shaking with stifled sobs. Even the mere action of crying hurt. 𝘞𝘩𝘺 𝘥𝘪𝘥 𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘳𝘺𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘩𝘢𝘷𝘦 𝘵𝘰 𝘩𝘶𝘳𝘵?
Leo interlocked his hand with Donnie's, gently rubbing a thumb in circles over his skin.
“Shhh, you're alright now.”
Donnie weakly tilted his head to face the opposite direction, not wanting to look into his brother's eyes. It felt embarrassing laying there limp, crying like a child with all of his brothers hovering over him.
“And for the record, you're 𝘯𝘰𝘵 an idiot for forgetting your T-Phone, Don. We're still teens. You made an honest mistake. Everyone forgets things once in a while.”
“Like how Raph or Leo didn't make sure the faucet was turned off before leaving the bathroom last night!” Mikey piped up.
“What?” Leo said in confusion, turning to look at Mikey along with Raph.
“Yeah, I went into the bathroom after helping Master Splinter and the water was still running.”
“Huh.” Leo hummed, blinking in surprise, “Well, there you have it, Donnie. Even me and Raph forget to do things like turn the water off.” He joked, hoping to help Donnie not feel so bad about himself.
Donnie nodded, managing a wobbly smile.
“Sleep for a few more hours, Dee! Maybe you'll feel a bit better when you wake up?” Mikey said hopefully.
He brought up a hand to brush away some of his tears, considering it. A few more hours of sleep wouldn't hurt. He closed his eyes again and listened to his brothers’ footsteps retreat.
────────
When Donnie awoke again he still ached. He dragged a hand down his face and yawned.
He knew he realistically couldn't, but he really wished he could just sleep through this recovery.
Sleep. Wake up? Go back to sleep. Keep sleeping and sleeping until eventually he would wake up and the aching deep in his bones would be gone.
He sat up, which meant he was seeing his arms and legs in full view for the first time since waking up. Donnie felt a pit form in his stomach.
There wasn't a smidge of green that he could see on his arms or legs – they had been wrapped in layers and layers of bandages. He knew his skin was seared and peeling underneath. He could still smell the acrid odor of his electrical burns even through the coverings.
He took in a deep breath before trying to get up.
Donnie attempted to stand repeatedly, with him falling back down onto the futon several times before he would succeed. He felt like a deer trying to take its first steps; he was glad his brothers weren't around to see.
Donnie left the dojo, turning his head to the small noises coming from the kitchen. He walked over, pausing at the curtain that separated the kitchen from the rest of the Lair. It wasn't fully pulled across; there was a tiny gap that allowed Donnie to peek through, just enough to see what was happening.
His brothers sat around the table, plates of pizza set in front of them. Mikey and Raph were both eating, but Leo wasn't. He idly picked at the cheese, staring hard at the slice and clearly thinking about something.
Mikey paused when he noticed Leo wasn't eating. “What's up, Leo?”
Leo looked up and sighed, “I don't think Donnie should be allowed to go on patrol with us for a while.”
“... Are you sure Donnie would be okay with that?” Mikey slowly set his slice down.
“It doesn't matter. Donnie can complain all he wants if he doesn't like it, but it wouldn't change my decision. He needs to heal, and we can't risk him getting even more injured before he does.”
Raph spoke next, “Donnie's a reasonable guy anyway, Mikey. I highly doubt he'd complain about Leo not letting him on patrol considering how badly he's hurt. I think he'd understand the reasoning.”
“I guess.” Mikey mumbled.
“And besides, Donnie locks himself away in his lab all the time. What's the difference?” Raph shrugged, cramming another slice of pizza into his mouth.
“The difference is that's Donnie's choice.” Mikey frowned, “Donnie decides when he wants to get some fresh air and when he wants to bury himself in his work. Now we're just taking away the option of leaving altogether.”
Leo shook his head. “The decision is final. You know I'd do the same if it was either of you that got hurt.”
Donnie took a step backwards from the curtain.
A million different questions ran through his head at Leo's decision, but the main one was – 𝘩𝘰𝘸 𝘭𝘰𝘯𝘨 𝘸𝘢𝘴 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘨𝘰𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘵𝘰 𝘵𝘢𝘬𝘦? It could be forever until he fully healed. He was going to go stir crazy locked up in here like Rapunzel.
Donnie considered walking away and going back to sleep, but instead he pushed past the curtain.
Everyone paused, staring at him in silence.
He should've just gone back to sleep.
He was also a bit embarrassed really – he had immediately clocked the way their snouts slightly scrunched, and how Raph's arm twitched like he wanted to raise it to cover his nose. Donnie was aware he smelled awful, because when are burns ever going to smell like sweet roses and girly perfume? Never. The answer was never.
The scent was a monster that hiked on Donnie's body. It wasn't just him that had entered the kitchen, it was him and the thick smell of burnt skin.
Leo instantly put on a massive smile, pulling another chair out for him to sit on. “Donnie! Sit down, are you hungry?”
Donnie sat down and nodded. He actually wasn't hungry; he was just trying to move past the awkwardness of his entrance. Mikey smiled at him too once he was sat, which Donnie actually returned this time, because he could tell Mikey's was genuine – Leo's was a wide, uncanny and awkward smile that he wore for no reason other than to bury the previous conversation.
Leo stood, grabbing a slice of pizza from one of the boxes on the counter and setting it onto a plate. He placed it in front of Donnie.
Donnie inhaled the scent, picking the slice up. He was sure he could make some room in his stomach just for this. He took a large bite, strings of cheese pulling. Donnie held in a groan of delight; this was by far the best thing to have happened today since waking up.
The dough was perfect, there was just enough sauce to taste the richness of the tomato, and the cheese was gooey. It was pure bliss. Until he came to swallow.
Donnie sputtered, his eyes watering. Raph shoved himself away from the table.
It felt like he had swallowed a lump of cardboard and he could feel it pushing up against the inside of his throat, blocking his airway. His vision went blurry as tears welled in his eyes. He let out a croaking gasp, fingers twitching desperately whilst he grasped at his throat.
Raph was quickly by his side, and performed the Heimlich maneuver. He hacked his food back up – the mushy ball, wet with saliva, smacking back onto his plate. Donnie dissolved into a harsh coughing fit, each one wracking his weak frame. Raph patted and rubbed his shell until it was done.
He laid his face down on the table, wanting to melt into a puddle out of embarrassment.
“You good?” Raph tilted his head.
He let out a miserable groan in response.
“Ooh, wait! I have an idea so you can still eat, Donnie!” Mikey grinned, and Donnie reluctantly peeled his face away from the table to see what Mikey had in store.
Mikey crammed several slices of pizza into the blender and then grabbed a carton of milk. Donnie watched in dismay as the milk glugged out, submerging the slices. Mikey put on the lid and started it. The blender sputtered a few times before fully starting, whirring in strain.
“Shell, even the blender can't take it.” Raph mumbled, rubbing his temples.
Once the pizza was officially turned into a milky beige sludge, Mikey poured it into a cup. It was so thick it looked like a milkshake, and chunks of dough that didn't get fully blended floated about on top.
Mikey placed it on the table.
“Bone apple teeth.” He said pridefully.
Donnie scrunched his face up at the mere sight of it.
“You're not really going to drink that.” Raph paused, “Are you?”
Donnie flicked his gaze to Mikey, and he was instantly met with a deadly set of puppy dog eyes. He sighed.
His little brother was only trying to make sure he could get something into him.
Donnie picked up the cup and started to drink.
Raph gawked. Mikey let out a happy squeal that Donnie was trying his idea.
Donnie set the cup back down on the counter with a clank and shuddered. He had drunk it all just to please Mikey.
“So how was it? Delicious?” Mikey asked.
Well, it tasted like pizza… with hints of milk. It had served its purpose of being something his throat could handle, but it didn't make it any less disgusting. He shakily gave a thumbs up and Mikey pumped a fist in the air.
“I always knew I was a cul-uh-neery genius.” Mikey sniffed, wiping away a fake tear.
“It's pronounced cul-uh-nuh-ree, Mikey. And you aren't a culinary genius.” Raph rolled his eyes, turning to Donnie, “Jeez, Donnie, I'm beginning to sound like you, correcting Mikey like that.”
He smiled gently at his brothers’ bickering. He and Raph had always been similar in many ways, so he didn't exactly mind that it would be Raph taking his place of nagging Mikey about his mistakes when he found it hard to talk. If it had to be anyone, Donnie would want it to be Raph.
As they dissolved into petty back and forth insults Donnie slipped away from the table, no one noticing his departure.
Raph and Mikey had fully turned to face each other in their seats, starting to flick each other's foreheads and snouts before descending into full slaps like two alley cats in a fight. Leo was busy keeping an eye on them, making sure their little fight didn't go 𝘵𝘰𝘰 far, and watching with the exhausted look of a middle-aged mother wondering where she went wrong.
Donnie paused for a moment in the common room, his eyes catching his T-Phone which sat on the surface of their couch, untouched and screen black. Right where he had left it. The sight of it gave Donnie an odd twang in his chest, because the thought of his very possible demise came to him again.
Death and the grief that followed was a funny thing. The person goes, but all their belongings are left behind. Echoes of the person, at least. If he had died, then his T-Phone would've remained on that couch, never to be used again and the screen slowly collecting a layer of dust until one of his brothers or their father would move it.
And he thought of his left-overs in the fridge, several sticky notes tacked to them in warnings not to eat, mostly aimed at Mikey. He had a black hole for a stomach. They would start to rot away and go bad without him there to eat them.
What need would there be for a giant laboratory in their home if suddenly there'd be no one to use that either? Chemicals and whiteboards smeared with equations in marker strewn about, concoctions never finished, equations never solved.
He stared long at his T-Phone. The one defining factor that maybe could've changed all this. If he just... hadn't forgot. If he had remembered to take it with him, ducked out of sight and called his brothers before he was spotted. They could've taken down Rahzar and Xever as a team.
If he hadn't forgot, maybe he wouldn't be in so much pain right now.
Donnie dipped down into the pit, picking up his T-Phone. He vowed to never be caught without it ever again.
Donnie climbed back out, walking up the few stairs to his lab and sliding the door across, shutting it behind him.
He walked further inside, one goal clear in his mind.
He needed to figure this desk out.
It stuck out in his lab like a sore thumb. It was just… there. It was off-putting in a way, not that he'd ever say that to his brothers because he'd be teased to death – but it was something about an unassuming item potentially being a threat that irked him.
Donnie never thought that in all his years of life he'd see a desk that looked more like a metallic stick of butter.
He brushed his fingers over the surface: definitely nothing on top. He then opened every single drawer and felt around inside, and just as he expected, there was nothing there either.
He took several steps away from it and scratched his head. He was stumped. Donnie then tilted his head, trying to see if looking at it from a different angle would help.
And then he saw it.
There was a small, black square right in the middle.
He didn't know how he hadn't noticed it before… he walked over to it, pressing his thumb against it to find that the small panel was made of glass. Donnie hummed and put his eye right up to it.
What he saw was overlapping, square, green grids that seemed to go on and on forever, sitting in a black void.
He pulled away, spotting a button directly underneath it. He scrubbed his eyes roughly, wondering if he was going crazy. He was confused as to why he was only noticing these things now.
He tried to rationalize. It wasn't that ridiculous of an idea to assume he had simply missed it, it 𝘸𝘢𝘴 kind of hard to see, even now. The button barely protruded from the desk, and it was made from the exact same metal as the rest of the desk, too – so it was kind of blended in. Easy to slip from your sight at first glance. But Donnie had given the desk several glances at this point, and each time he was confident that there was absolutely nothing whatsoever.
Donnie wriggled his fingers before smacking his hand against the button. He flinched, covering his head, but nothing happened. He sighed in relief that the desk hadn't exploded or something. Unlabelled, mystery buttons didn't bode well most of the time.
‘𝗚𝗿𝗲𝗲𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴𝘀, 𝗼𝗻𝗲 𝗰𝗮𝗹𝗹𝗲𝗱 𝗞𝗿𝗮𝗮𝗻𝗴!’
Donnie yelped and fell back onto his shell. He immediately sat back up in surprise. The desk had spoken! It must have a speaker system from somewhere inside it... He stood, dusting himself off.
‘𝗣𝗿𝗼𝗱𝘂𝗰𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗵𝗼𝗹𝗼𝗴𝗿𝗮𝗺: 𝗺𝗮𝗽𝗹𝗲 𝘁𝗿𝗲𝗲.’
𝘞𝘩𝘢𝘵? Hologram? Maple tree? What was this thing blabbering about? Maybe it was broken.
Donnie turned away from it and paused.
There were pixels flying around his lab.
Donnie did nothing but stare as they all gathered together, the brown pixels forming the trunk and then splitting off into branches. The orange, red, and yellow pixels blossomed over the top like a fire, until eventually there was a lone maple tree atop a small, grassy mound. Right in his lab.
He knew Kraang technology was advanced – but this! This was on a whole other level!
It was so hyper realistic that Donnie wouldn't doubt it if you told him that was a real tree. It had even the smallest of details. He could see every mark and groove on the tree bark, and the colours on the leaves were so vibrant, they even ruffled together as though there were a breeze, like the wings of a fiery feathered bird, despite the air in his lab being still.
He reached out, but hissed at the pain that shot through his arm. He cradled it close to him, blinking away tears. Instead of trying to stretch out a burnt limb, Donnie decided to merely step inside the hologram.
The pixels of the trunk scattered out of the way, making room for his body. When he stepped back out, all the pixels flooded back into their previous place.
He giggled, placing a hand over his mouth that concealed his dorky grin.
Donnie turned back around, kneeling to inspect the panel again, when he picked up on a wet smear across the glass. He blinked in confusion, then realised what it must be. He had his hands near his mouth just now – he probably just got a little bit of spit on it.
Donnie went to wipe it with his thumb, but before he could do so, the simulator started chattering away again.
‘𝗡𝗲𝘄 𝗗𝗡𝗔 𝘀𝗮𝗺𝗽𝗹𝗲 𝗿𝗲𝗰𝗲𝗶𝘃𝗲𝗱!’
…
‘𝗪𝗼𝘂𝗹𝗱 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝗹𝗶𝗸𝗲 𝘁𝗼 𝗽𝗿𝗼𝗱𝘂𝗰𝗲 𝗮 𝗵𝗼𝗹𝗼𝗴𝗿𝗮𝗺 𝗼𝗳 𝘁𝗵𝗶𝘀 𝗻𝗼𝘄?’
“Uh–”
‘𝗚𝗿𝗲𝗮𝘁! 𝗣𝗿𝗼𝗱𝘂𝗰𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗵𝗼𝗹𝗼𝗴𝗿𝗮𝗺 𝗼𝗳: 𝗗𝗼𝗻𝗮𝘁𝗲𝗹𝗹𝗼 𝗛𝗮𝗺𝗮𝘁𝗼.’
Donnie frowned.
Okay, so the simulator could respond to verbal commands, though apparently it appeared it didn't receive those commands very well, misinterpreting his noise of confusion as a ‘yeah’.
He stood back up, aware that something was already there waiting behind him.
Donnie slowly turned around to look himself in the eyes.
His heart sank.
It painfully looked exactly like him.
Donnie immediately brushed a hand against his plastron, making sure that he was the solid one. It had every blemish on his skin, every bit of wear and tether that ran across the strap on his plastron. Still, there were telltale signs that this was not him.
The hologram didn't retain any of the injuries he currently had, and the eyes – its eyes were too dead. They didn't reflect the lights in his laboratory, nor did they have the wet glisten of organic eyeballs.
Donnie was glad there were differences. Had it looked any more like him, the hologram would've been a perfectly serviceable replacement. He shuddered at that thought.
Donnie thought that once a new hologram was produced, the previous hologram would disappear, but the tree remained behind his hologram. Instead, it must be some sort of default background.
In silence, the hologram raised its right arm and waved at him.
Donnie whirled his head to his lab door at the sound of nearing voices: it sounded like Leo and Mikey. He lunged for the button, turning the simulator off.
'𝗣𝗼𝘄𝗲𝗿𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗱𝗼𝘄𝗻.'
He sighed in relief, turning to watch himself fizzle away.
Starting at the feet, the pixels were whisked away into nothingness. The hologram continued to bore its gaze into him as its feet disappeared, and its whole legs, and its arms and plastron, and still its careful eye did not waver as the disintegration creeped up its neck.
It stared until its eyes bursted into pixelated blotches of white and brown, an empty space left in its wake.
He turned around just in time to see Leo and Mikey open his lab door, standing side by side in the doorway.
“Donnie?” Leo said worriedly, “We didn't even notice you leave. What are you doing?”
Donnie patted the surface of the desk.
“Oh – seeing what 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵'𝘴 all about. That's great, Donnie, but there's no rush, you know? You're still hurt and I would advise you to sit or lie down as much as possible.”
Donnie huffed.
“Oh please, I'm perfectly fi–”
Donnie's world suddenly dipped low to the ground as his legs buckled. He wheezed, fingers fumbling for the edge of the desk like it was a lifeline. His everything.
────────
“𝘋𝘰𝘯𝘯𝘪𝘦!”
“𝘋𝘦𝘦!”
“𝘏𝘦𝘺 𝘣𝘳𝘰, 𝘸𝘢𝘬𝘦–”
“𝘈𝘳𝘦 𝘺𝘰𝘶–”
Donnie groaned loudly at the swirling mix of voices filling his ears. He didn't catch a word of it, his head was throbbing too much.
𝘗𝘢𝘵 𝘱𝘢𝘵. Against his face.
His beak scrunched up and he whined, squeezing his eyes shut. If he did that, maybe they'd get the hint and leave him alone.
They didn't.
The patting got harder, more frequent, until it turned into a panicked slap.
“𝘖𝘸!” He yelped, his head snapping up from where it had been previously drooping. He saw spots for a few moments until he shook his head, and what was once blotches of orange and blue focused in his vision to be the worried faces of his brothers.
Actually, Mikey was a bit too close. He smacked a hand against Mikey's face, feebly pushing him away.
“Jeez, you are seriously hogging all of my oxygen.” He said breathlessly, trying to gather back in all the air that felt like it had been extracted from his lungs. He slumped in his office chair, trying to take a deep breath. His brothers must have moved him there.
“Sorry for the slap, but you weren't responding!” Mikey fretted. Leo moved past him, kneeling down in front of Donnie and snapping his fingers twice.
Donnie's eyes flicked to Leo's hand. That was a good sign – he was seemingly more alert and not so terribly out of it now.
“Donnie? Can you hear me now?”
He nodded. Noise didn't sound like it was underwater or gibberish anymore.
Leo stood back up to his full height, crossing his arms.
“And 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵'𝘴 why I said you shouldn't be doing more than your limit right now. You need rest, Donnie.”
Donnie scowled, feeling anger broil inside him. Okay, well Leo didn't have to sound so smug about it. It sounded like Leo was almost grateful Donnie's body had proved him right, grateful that he could utilize it as an infuriating ‘told you so’ moment.
He gripped the arms of the seat, choking down a snappy comment.
“But since you've already looked at it regardless, did you find anything unusual about it?”
Donnie's mouth fell open, ready to spill into an excited ramble that it was actually a hologram machine! A crazy, never-seen-before, realistic hologram machine! But he didn't say that. In fact, he closed his mouth.
One – he felt petty. He was sour with Leo right now and didn't want to be all chipper and happy with him. Let alone share information.
Second – Donnie was going to miss out on things for a while. How many inside jokes that he'd never fully be able to understand will be created on patrols without him? Or listening to music in the Shellraiser, badly singing along to songs without him there – or how many battles won would they celebrate that he was sat at home the whole time for?
There were fun things about patrol. Fun, small, heart-warming things they did together amidst all the stress of their lives, and he'd have to miss out on that for a good while.
So the desk could be his private thing. Yes, his special project that only he knew about. They could miss out on this. He would reveal it to them eventually, when he was healed and could join in with patrol again.
So, after straightening his posture and clearing his throat, in the plainest tone possible – he lied.
“No, Leo. I checked over the desk several times, and I couldn't find anything wrong with it.”