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[TMNT!RISE One-Shot]
It's been a week since Donatello's last encounter with The Purple Dragons, one in which he wished he could easily forget. To him, it seemed like just yesterday when those pesky teen misfits used him for their own wicked schemes.
What he thought was a harmless video game turned into his worst nightmare.
After he had defeated the giant robot and stopped his enemies from destroying his brothers and the city, it seemed like a job well done for the Mad Dogs. His three brothers, of course, were celebrating on their way home to the lair and praising their genius brother for saving the day and stopping The Purple Dragons.
Even though Donnie wanted to celebrate alongside with his brothers, he didn't feel like it was right, especially since he blamed himself for the giant robot appearing and almost destroying the city in the first place. Had he not listened to his brothers in the first place, none of it would've happened. His brothers wouldn't have gotten hurt, his city wouldn't be in flames, and his enemies wouldn't have used him like he was a puppet.
Donnie sighed as he laid his head on the cold metal table, using his arms to cover his head.
When the turtles returned to the lair after defeating the giant robot, Donnie locked himself in his lab all week, not wanting to be around his brothers after what he had done to them. He didn't understand why his brothers could forgive him so easily, but after seeing the cuts and bruises on them, he simply refused to believe he deserved their forgiveness. All he could think about was the pain he caused them, even when they told him a hundred times that they were okay.
How can they forgive me when I'm the one who put them in danger? Donnie thought to himself. The question made the young turtle bawl his three-fingered hand into a fist.
Ever since Donnie locked himself away, the other turtles have been growing more worried about their genius brother. He hasn't come out to eat, to hang out with his brothers or even when his father, surprisingly, offered him to use the television for a whole day. Nothing was convincing him to leave that room, even when they had to resort to calling April and nothing happened.
At first, Leonardo joked around about it, saying that his twin would come around and gloat about his victory, but when he - along with his two other brothers - noticed how quiet his brother has been, not hearing a single word or any crazy inventions being made in the lab, he too started getting worried about his soft shell brother. Even though Leo liked picking on his younger twin from time to time, seeing him like this was the last thing he ever wanted. He knew Donnie was upset but couldn't bring it to himself to accept that he wasn't okay and thought he just needed space.
Raphael was the first one to notice something was wrong. Was it because he noticed how quiet his brother was during their ride back to the lair? Or was it because his big brother instincts kicked in and he knew something was wrong? Whatever it was, Raph knew his little brother wasn't acting like himself and this led him becoming more anxious than the rest of his family. Of course, he tried to get him to open up, but knowing Donnie, he wasn't very good with his feelings. Especially when it came to his brothers.
Then there was Michelangelo. His poor little brother was confused and worried about him since the moment he locked himself in his lab. Like Raph, he too was anxious to know what was going on with Donnie, but he wasn't as pushy to ask him like his brother, respecting and understanding that he wanted to be alone. But that also didn't stop him from sitting in front of his lab door everyday and sleeping on the floor every night, just to make sure his big brother was okay. There was times when Raph had to carry him and take him to his room, not wanting him to be uncomfortable on the ground.
Even now, the brothers wait patiently at the atrium everyday, hoping their genius brother would come out and be himself again, but for now, they keep themselves busy by riding on their skateboards or playing some games nearby. Neither of them wanting to be too far in case their brother needed them.
"Do you think Donnie's ever going to come out?" Mikey says to his older brothers as he's sitting on the edge of the atrium floor (the second floor), just close by to the wooden skate ramp.
"I don't know, Mikey.." Raph says as he looks up where the lair is, "I just hope Donnie's okay." He was sitting by his little brother.
Leo was the only one skateboarding on the ramp. When he skated up to the second floor, he hit a hard landing where his brothers were but was able to keep his balance and stop himself from crashing to the ground. He kicked the back of the skateboard, having it stand up on his side and turned to look at his sulking brothers. "You guys, Don's going to be fine! He's just upset cause those Purple Dragon losers used him against us. He just needs some space," He reassures to them.
Raph looks over at his younger brother before his eyes lowered in defeat, "I just wish he would talk to us.. I know Don's not the best with emotions but I at least want him to know we're here for him." Which was true, Donnie wasn't very good at expressing his feelings and all Raph ever wanted was for his younger brothers to know that it's okay to trust in one another, whether it's on the battlefield or with their emotions.
"Mikey, can't you have Dr. Feelings have a word with Donnie? Maybe he could get him to come out here and talk to us. I know you're pretty good with that kind of stuff," Leo asks his little brother, leaning on his skateboard for support.
Mikey sighs before answering, "I mean.. I've thought about it, but honestly, I don't even think I could. It's like he's completely shut us out and even if I could get him to open up, he's not going to listen to me."
"The only thing we can do, boys, is wait until Donnie is ready, and when he is, we'll be there for him in a heartbeat," Raph says to his brothers, looking back at the lair one last time.
The brothers sat in silence.
Not an awkward or uncomfortable silence but one where they knew no words were needed to be said. No matter how hard they tried to get their mind off of their brother, nothing was able to distract them from the horrifying concerns that kept running through their heads. And all those concerns were nothing but Donnie and how powerless they feel, not being able to help someone they care about.
Meanwhile, back in the lair, Donnie heard everything his brothers were saying. His battle shell was pressed against the wall and his eyes swelled with tears. The turtle was not one to cry or show emotion, but he didn't realize his decision to be away from his brothers were affecting them as well. His body was screaming at him to move his legs and embrace into his brothers' arms but his fear kept holding him back.
He was scared to look at them and remember what he had done.
Donnie lowered his head before allowing his legs to give and he slumped down to the ground, feeling his eyes getting heavy before slowly succumbing to the darkness.
❁ ❁ ❁
"We wanted our revenge and you played your part perfectly. You almost destroyed your own brothers," Kendra laughed menacingly on the screen.
"Yes. But I didn't. Mostly, mostly," Donnie admits.
"While we would've really enjoyed watching you smash them, watching you watch us smash them will be JUST AS NICE!"
Donnie watched helplessly as Kendra, the leader of The Purple Dragons, switches her screen to show a live video of the giant robot chasing after his brothers.
He didn't know what to do or even what to think. His body was strapped to the gaming chair the Purple Dragons held him prisoner in, and he didn't have his weapons to get him out. He tried to use his brain to figure out another way to escape but for some reason.. he couldn't. Why couldn't Donnie move? Why was he just sitting there and letting it happen?
And that's when he realized, he was paralyzed with fear.
Watching the scene in front of him, he realized he couldn't do anything about it. His arms and legs were trembling, his body was sweating profusely and his eyes were fixated on the screen. He was internally screaming at his body to move, to do something, but it was like something was preventing him to. Something was stopping him from saving his brothers.
It was his fear.
Fear had corrupted the poor genius' mind. Usually he would find a way to get himself out of a sticky situation but not this time.. this time, he just sat there, like an idiot waiting for the inevitable. His eyes teared up as he watched his brothers fighting against the gigantic robot.
Please, stop, he wanted to say.
Don't hurt them, he wanted to scream out.
He watched as the robot grabbed his brothers, squeezing them in its large fist. They were struggling in its grasp and fighting for their lives.
"Donnie, you gotta stop this," Leo pleads to his twin brother as the robot started squeezing them harder, cutting off their oxygen. Donnie could see their eyes bulging from their heads. The lack of oxygen was causing the turtle's voice to strain between his words. "I love you and your gaming is hurting me. Like literally hurting me!"
Save them, Donnie said to himself, you have to save them!
"Please.. don't.. hurt them.." Donnie was finally able to speak up, his voice sounding hoarse and rough. It was like he could feel something was tightening around his neck, preventing him from being able to speak. The pain was unbearable but seeing his brothers like that only made it feel hundred times worse.
Kendra only laughed, "You can't save them, Donnie. You'll never be able to save them because you're weak. You can't even save them from Baron Draxum.. You’re pathetic."
Before he knew it, the robot lifted his other hand and slammed it down towards the turtles. The turtles screamed for Donnie's name and all Donnie could do was watch in horror as the robot's large fist crushed his brothers without hesitation.
"Nooo!" Donnie woke up, his heart racing and his mind spinning from the nightmare he just witnessed. A nightmare, that's what it was. It was simply just a bad dream and he had to remind himself that his brothers were safe at home. That he did save them from the giant robot. He put his hand on his plastron, trying to slow his breathing.
When he was finally able to calm down, he looked around the room and noticed he was still slumped over by the wall. His only explanation was that he must've passed out from the stress and the lack of sleep from the past few days that he forgot he was in his lab and not in his comfortable bedroom.
Donnie pushed himself off the ground and hugged his body close to the wall. His legs were wobbly and he could barely keep his balance. He was afraid to stumble over.
"Did you guys hear that?"
Donnie blinked when he heard a whisper coming from the direction of the door. Was that Raph?
"It sounded like Donnie screaming! Should we do something??" This time it sounded like Mikey.
"I don't think so, hermanos, we said we would wait until Donnie's ready! I'm worried about him too but we shouldn't go barging in there. That would only just make things worse," says his twin, Leo, this time.
Donnie couldn't help but smile after hearing their voices. Even though he was afraid to face them after what had happened and all the doubts he was having about himself as a team member, the only thing he wanted was to be with his brothers. And the fact that they were worried about him only made him want to see them even more, to tell them that he was okay (even if he wasn't) and that he was sorry for making them worry.
And that's what he did.
He didn't even realize his body was slowly making it's way to the door and opening it, allowing a bright light to slither its way into his dark-infested workshop. And as soon as he opened the door fully, he was greeted by three shocking faces staring at him.
"D-Donnie?" Raph looks at his little brother stunned.
He could see his poor brother wasn't himself. His face was pale green (like he was sick), he had bags under his eyes and sweat was coming down his forehead. He wasn't wearing his mask so you could see those details very clearly, but then again, Donnie didn't care at the time. He also noticed his brother hugging himself and his body trembling. He was barely keeping himself up, using the door frame to prevent himself from falling over again.
Donnie looked at his brothers, taking in each of their faces. Suddenly the flashes of his dream appeared in his mind, showing his brothers in an almost illusion-like state in front of him, beaten and crushed from the hands of the robot rather than what they looked like a second ago. He looked away, afraid to see what would’ve been the alternative had he not freed himself.
It’s not really, he told himself, It was just a dream. It’s not real. It’s not real. It’s not real!
”Little brother, are you—” Raph noticed Donnie’s sudden behavior and reached his hand out towards his shoulder, wanting to comfort him until he stopped when Donnie looked over at them again.
"Guys.. I.. I am so.." The second he saw his brothers, Donnie couldn't hold it in anymore. Without even realizing it, he felt to his knees and covered his eyes with the palm of his hands. The sound of sobs escaped his lips.
He was.. crying. The brothers couldn't believe it, he was actually crying in front of them. This was something they never expected Donnie to do and they weren't sure what to think. But one things for sure, seeing their brother broken like this and then apologizing for something he shouldn't made the three brothers know what to do.
They all looked at each other and gave each other a nod, knowing fully well what had to be done.
Before Donnie knew it, Raph picked him up off the floor and carried him down the first floor of the atrium in a bridal style and into his bedroom. Mikey and Leo were following right behind him. "G-Guys, what are you—" Donnie was caught off guard when Raph carefully laid him down on his bed and all three of his brothers joined in, cuddling around him. Raph was laying on the bottom while Donnie was on top of his plastron, Leo was on Raph's side and keeping a hand on Donnie and Mikey was laying on Raph's legs.
Donnie was shocked by the level of affection they were giving him. "I-I don't understand.. You guys shouldn't be nice to me. I-I almost got you guys killed."
"No, you didn't, Don. It was those loser Purple Dragons, not you," Leo says to his twin, "You shouldn't beat yourself up, especially when you didn't know it was happening in the first place. It could’ve happened to any of us."
"B-But I-I couldn't save you, I was too weak.." His brothers didn't realize he was talking about the dream he had earlier.
"But you did save us, bro!" Raph speaks up this time, "You're not weak. Sure, you rely on your tech a little too much but you still have a good heart and that makes you one of the best ninjas out there."
"You don't have to be scared around us, D. Nothing was your fault and you know we're always going to be here, annoying you and even touching your stuff," Mikey says this time, giving him a cheeky smile.
Even though that last comment would've made Donnie roll his eyes and make a snarky remark in return, he instead smiled warmly at his little brother and then the rest of his brothers. He wasn't sure what to say. All this time he was worried that his brothers would hate him or be angry at him for allowing his gaming obsession to go so far as to allow a giant robot to destroy half the city but.. he was glad they weren't.
Now don't get me wrong.. he does still feel bad for almost destroying the city, and even if his brothers weren't in any danger, he knew he was still responsible if anything had happened to the humans. He honestly thought it was a video game and not actually reality. If Raph hadn't gotten through to him, who knows what could've happened.
"Thanks guys," Donnie says genuinely before he yawned, "You guys are the best bros any turtle could ask for." Before he knew it, his eyes started getting heavy and he finally allowed his body to get some well deserved rest. He slept peacefully for the rest of the night, feeling the comfort of his brothers and knowing they were safe.
[END.]