Chapter Text
Ever since the day Splinter brought up that he had siblings— brothers, something hummed in his chest, knowing this with the same certainty as he did that they were out there somewhere— Mikey thought about what they would look like a lot.
The only detail Splinter seemed to remember clearly was green, they were all green, which wasn’t much but it was something. Mikey could find green mutants if they were out there— they were, he could feel it, even if he could never explain how— but the other details were lost on him. Meaning Mikey’s efforts to picture what they would look like… Didn’t go well.
He tried drawing them a few different times so he could feel connected to them. Sometimes they were the same kind of turtle he was, sometimes they were left ambiguous, and a few times he tried to see if he could dig deep into the faint connection he felt with them and trust his instincts to guide how they should look.
Nothing felt right. It frustrated him to no end.
His brothers were out there and Mikey had never met them. He didn’t know what their personalities were or if they were artsy like him or if they even looked anything like him. Mikey didn’t know and it felt like something was missing. A connection lost, just out of reach, and Mikey could try all he liked to close the distance but ultimately, he never could.
Mikey could tell Splinter wasn’t sure if they were alive or not. He knew his dad had his doubts, no matter how hard he tried to hide them. Mikey wanted to tell him why he thought— knew— they were alive and out there but he doubted himself too. Doubted that faint feeling that never went away. What if it was nothing? What if he was dragging his dad into hoping just to let him down?
For years, Mikey went back and forth. Thirteen years wondering why something felt missing and if he would ever be rid of the feeling, or if it would stop feeling like an ache one of these days.
Needless to say, finally standing in front of one of his brothers was a surreal experience.
He’s different from Mikey. Of course he entertained the idea of his brothers being different kinds of turtles many times but now he knows for sure it’s true for at least one of them. He doesn’t have any spots, his shell is spiked, and he’s twice Mikey’s size.
Big brother, Mikey thinks to himself in stunned awe, emphasis on big.
There’s no doubt in Mikey’s head that this is one of his brothers. Maybe there should be seeing as he doesn’t know for sure— but something feels right when he looks at him. Like a piece has slotted into place.
The big brother in question is absolutely dumbstruck by his presence, blinking a few times quickly as if he’s trying to determine if he’s seeing Mikey right. Mikey commits what he looks like to memory— aside from the different aspects in being a different kind of turtle, he’s got red wrappings on his arms and legs, a red scarf that’s seen better days around his neck, and a black belt around his waist. There are various healed scars littering his body but the most noticeable one is one on his left eye, though it looks long since healed and the eye itself looks fine.
Slowly, one of his brother’s hands outstretches to gently nudge Mikey’s shoulder, but the second he makes contact, he yelps and pulls back like he’s been burned.
“You— you’re real!”
That snaps Mikey out of his haze, sputtering. “Wha— of course I’m real! Why wouldn’t I be?”
“I don’t know! You’re— you!” He gestures wildly at Mikey, then his gaze darts to the girl beside him— April’s friend, Cass, if his memory of April’s stories and pictures is serving him correctly. “You’re seeing him too, right? I’m not— this is actually happening?”
Cass, who had been staring at Mikey in equal awe, finally snaps out of it and nods vigorously. “He’s so small!” She whisper-shouts, though it’s more like the latter from the sheer volume. “How is he so small? How did he even get here? Hey! Where did you come from?”
“Oh uh,” April finally steps in, waving her hand to catch Cass’ attention, and his brother by proxy. “That would be my fault. Sorry, Cass, but he’s been looking for his long-lost brothers for a long time.”
“Brother?” Both Cass and Raph squawk in surprise, then stare at Mikey as if they’re seeing him in a new light.
Cass is first to move, immediately circling Mikey with a critical eye. “You’re sure? They look completely different! He doesn’t have any of my brother’s spikes!”
“Unless you know any other green, mutant turtles, yeah, we’re pretty sure.” April’s gaze moves to Raph, taking him in. “Mikey and his dad said there were three others— two now, not counting him.” April nods at him.
“There’s three— no, wait— there’s four of us? Four mutant turtles? I— I got…” He trails off, unable to take his eyes off Mikey. “I got brothers?”
Mikey nods vigorously, finally stepping forward and extending his hand. “Hamato Michelangelo, your newest brother! You can call me Mikey!”
“Raph— Raphael Jones.” He takes Mikey’s hand carefully like he’s afraid of crushing it. Seeing as his hand dwarfs Mikey’s, he can see the logic behind it. “I mostly go by Raph though. Uh, nice to meet you? I’m sorry— I didn’t know I even had other siblings. I totally would’ve been looking for you if I knew!”
Mikey waves him off, bouncing on his heels. He can’t believe this— this is his brother! His honest to god brother! “It’s okay! The only way I knew is because dad told me! Our dad! We were mutated with his DNA!”
“I have a dad too?” Raph’s face twists in surprise and disbelief. “Man, I gotta sit down for this, it’s too much. I thought it was just me ‘n Cass this whole time.” He sinks to the ground, letting out a slow breath. “Raph has a brother and a dad. Never had those things before.”
“Take all the time you need, big guy!” Mikey plops himself in front of him, crisscrossing and patting his legs excitedly. “Not like I’m going anywhere!”
Cass ends up taking a seat on one side and April takes the other, effectively making a circle with the four of them. Cass is still inspecting him but it’s with less skepticism now and more consideration, which he thinks is a good thing. It felt like Cass was unclear if he was a threat or not before but definitely no longer thinks this is the case.
…He thinks anyway. Mikey did just meet her.
“You said you were mutants?” Cass asks, a frown tugging on her lips. “Explain. Please.” The latter word is spat out quickly, almost as if she’s making sure she’s not being demanding since the tone could be misconstrued otherwise.
Mikey smiles and nods, happy to do so. He’s heard the story a dozen times before, always pestering his dad about it in order to memorize all the little details. He’s never gotten to tell it himself, even with April, as Splinter had taken over that time too.
Now though? It’s all Mikey, and he wastes no time launching into the story of the warrior alchemist, gargoyles, their dad, and four baby turtles.
He takes pride in the fact that Raph and Cass are enthralled by the story, drinking in every aspect and detail they can. By the end of it, Mikey mentally dubs himself the best storyteller of all time and is buzzing with newfound energy.
“After dad managed to escape with me, he returned to New York and we’ve been living in the sewers ever since!” Mikey finishes proudly. “I gotta show you the place sometime, it’s great!”
“I bet!” Raph agrees, interest dancing in his eyes. “So we were made in a lab? What happened to that Draxum guy?”
“We haven’t seen him since. I think dad’s afraid of what he would do if he knew I was still around.” Mikey perks when a thought occurs to him. “How’d you end up here?”
“I found him in a gutter.” Cass tells him, straightening up. “He stole my lunch and kept hissing at me but he was small and scared so I made him my brother!” Her eyes narrow slightly. “You’re not taking his Jones title from him!”
“Oh!” Mikey holds his hands up quickly. “I wouldn’t dream of it!”
“Good!” Cass says, nodding firmly but has a brief look in her eye that seems more relieved than anything.
Mikey takes note but spares her from Dr. Feelings for now, looking at Raph. “How’d you end up in a gutter in New York?”
Raph winces, awkwardly rubbing his neck. “Uh, I don’t know. Everything before Cass is kinda a blur— meeting Cass is a blur. Apparently I bit her?”
Cass nods vigorously, quickly maneuvering her shirt to show off a part of her shoulder. The scar has long faded but if you really focus on it, it definitely looks like a bite mark. “A battle scar between siblings.” She tells Mikey solemnly, almost proud. “I knew he was a fighter just like me! Our meeting was fate!”
Mikey smiles at the idea. Maybe meeting the people he has is fate. Maybe he doesn’t need to worry so much about never finding their other two brothers because it’s going to happen. Maybe that’s how he knew they were out there.
“I hate to break this up,” April says, and all attention is turned to her. She’s on her phone, rapidly sending a text before looking up. “But Splints is worried sick.” She shoots a flat glare Mikey’s way. “For the sake of your father’s health, check your damn phone every once in a while!”
Realization hits him and Mikey fumbles for his phone. Sure enough, the second his screen lights up, it’s filled with missed calls and increasingly worried text messages. He winces, shooting back a quick sorry and tells him he’ll be back soon. “Probably should’ve told him we were going out— that’s on me.”
Mikey stands up, prepared to say goodbye with a promise to return, when it hits him. An idea that shines in his head, making him feel like he’s bursting with light from the inside out, and he starts bouncing on his heels again. “I gotta head back home but, why don’t you two come with? We can have a sleepover!”
Mikey doesn’t have to wait for the verbal answers. One look at the pair’s faces when he says ‘Sleepover’ is enough to know the answer.
—
Mikey knows his dad well enough to know he’s gonna be standing in the entrance to their lair, tapping his foot with a hard look on his face. It’s why he tells Raph, Cass, and April to hang back a second so he can talk to him first.
“Hey Dad!” Mikey greets warmly, stopping right in front of him and trying not to give away how excited he is.
“Michelangelo.” Splinter says, and if Mikey didn’t have the best news at that moment, he’s pretty sure he would get a lecture. Though, he might still later, but it’ll be lessened so the point still stands.
“I know you’re not happy that I wasn’t replying,” Mikey starts, and his dad’s eyes narrow further. “And I’m sorry. But it was for a good reason, I swear!”
“A good reason.” Splinter echoes dryly. “You had your father worried sick! But no, it was for a good reason, so of course it’s okay to leave without telling him where you’re going and ignore his attempts to check in and make sure you weren’t in any danger!”
“A mistake I will work on in the future! But dad, you won’t believe what happened!” Mikey takes a few steps back and clears his throat. “Dad, I present to you… One of my brothers!”
Mikey gestures wildly over to where Raph, Cass, and April are supposed to pop out. There’s a beat of silence, before there’s a quiet, “Oh!” and Raph quickly steps into the open to reveal himself. Cass and April take either side of him, arms splayed out to present him.
The change is instant. Splinter’s mouth hangs open, eyes going wide, and his tail droops in shock.
Raph smiles nervously, glancing to Mikey, who shoots him a thumbs up, and back to Splinter. He raises one hand to wave half heartedly, grinning toothily but waves of nervousness rolling off of him. Mikey wrinkles his nose at some kind of stink in the air that wasn’t there before.
No one says a word, as if they all collectively and silently agreed that Splinter should be the first. Splinter takes a while to process, trailing over Raph like he’s taking note of everything about him as if he’ll disappear if he blinks. The silence is long, but they all wait and in time, Splinter takes a half step forward.
“…My son?” He calls, hesitant and more fragile than Mikey had heard him in a long time. “Is that you?”
“Iiiii think?” Raph rubs his neck, still straining a smile. “I, uh, couldn’t tell you for sure but I’m a mutant turtle and I hear you’re looking for those?”
Splinter doesn’t respond directly. He continues to stare in awe, and dares to take another few steps forward. “You… You’ve gotten so big. I never imagined…” Another step. Then another. Then Splinter finally dashes forward and crashes into Raph, arms wrapping to hug him the best he can despite how short his arms are in comparison.
Raph startles at first but carefully hugs back. The hesitance is still there but he’s relaxed a little and his smile is smaller but a little more genuine.
Splinter pulls away after a few moments, swiftly wiping his eyes before taking his hand and beginning to pull him towards the lair. When Mikey is within range, Splinter takes his hand too and leads them in. Mikey bubbles a laugh and follows and Raph shuffles with them, his attention drawn to the lair as a whole when they enter.
“April!” Splinter calls over. “I don’t know who your friend is but bring them to the kitchen with us! We have very important guests and my mother would be appalled if I didn’t cook for them!”
“You don’t have to—” Raph tries to says but Splinter shushes him.
“Nonsense, my son! I’ve missed hundreds of meals, allow me to make up for at least one of them.”
Splinter wastes no time ushering them all to the dinner table, having to pull out a few extra chairs for Cass and Raph, before he begins digging through the cabinets. Cass sits upright next to April, eyes darting around with interest, and Raph’s awe is palpable.
“Are you and your— are you and dad artists?” Raph asks after a beat. “There’s so much of it— and it all looks great!”
Mikey shoots back a toothy grin. “It’s all me, baby! Do you draw at all? Paint? Color?”
“Oh uh, no. A lot of the pencils broke when I tried and it’s just not for me.” Raph pauses. “But I like… Wrestling! Anddd— comic books! Oh, and Jupiter Jim!”
Mikey squeals in delight. “Another Jupiter Jim Fan? Ohmigosh— we are brothers!”
It’s easy to slip into a rant about Jupiter Jim with Raph. It feels almost natural, like a spark igniting into a cozy fire, and when talking about their favorites, April and Cass join in, having watched a few movies themselves. Splinter rolls his eyes a little good naturedly when the actor in particular is brought up, and Mikey snickers knowingly as he’s heard his dad rant many times about a few famous actors he knew back in the day and was not his biggest fan, but he lets them have this one and eventually, brings over bowls of piping hot soup and dishes it out.
“Thank you, Mr. Rat Sir.” Cass tells him when he hands her a bowl and wastes no time digging in. Raph echoes a similar sentiment when he receives his, and Splinter waves them both off.
“It’s my pleasure. Now— I need some names! You can call me Splinter or Dad, I will respond to both, regardless of who you are.”
“My name is Cassandra Jones!”
“And I’m Raphael Jones. Or Raph. You can also call me… Son?” Raph shakes himself. “Sorry, kinda my first time doing this. I don’t really know where to start. Never had a dad before, much less talked to one.”
Splinter’s eyes sadden a little, but he smiles anyways. “You can go as fast or as slow as you need to, Raphael. I’ll meet you there either way. I’m just happy to know you’re alive and healthy. For many years, I was… Unsure of what your fate might’ve been. It’s a relief to see you turned out just fine, even if it saddens me that I could not see you grow, and that you had to do it on your own.”
“It’s okay— Mikey told me what happened, sounds like you couldn’t control it. And I didn’t grow up on my own— I had Cass with me!” Raph gestures to his sister, who nods enthusiastically. “She took me in as her brother!”
Splinter’s gaze turns to Cass, softening. “I owe you a great debt then, for keeping my son safe.”
“Of course! It was nothing!” Cass tells him. April bumps her shoulder, the pair sharing a brief look before her shoulders seem to relax a bit and Cass stares at the table.
“Not nothing to me.” Splinter hums, and blows on his soup before beginning to eat.
It’s strange, having more people at the table than just his dad and occasionally April, but good strange. That distant ache in his chest feels a little lesser, like he found what he’s looking for, and it feels good. Really good.
Questions are thrown around as they eat. Splinter asks all about Raph and Cass and how they grew up and Mikey tries to find more in common with his newly discovered brother. Raph and Cass’ questions vary, some on Splinter and Mikey themselves while others being curious about the lair and pointing things out.
Eventually, Mikey sees Raph is pretty much done eating and asks him if he wants a tour of the lair. He gets an enthusiastic yes back, and after everyone else decides to hang behind, Mikey wastes no time grabbing onto his brother’s hand and guiding him through the lair. There’s a lot to show him— his room, his studio, the dojo— and Raph takes it all in stride.
“A whole dojo to just you and your— and dad?” Raph whispers in awe, stepping inside and doing a full 360. “Me ‘n Cass always had to sneak in at night when it was closed. We’d spend hours there because we didn’t always know when we would have time to go back.”
“The good part about living in the sewers is that you don’t have to hide as much and there’s lots of room!” Mikey watches as Raph eyes one of the hanging training dummies that’s a little higher up from the rest, hanging from the ceiling. “That one is for aerial attacks! Cool flips and whatnot!”
Raph squints at it before he squares his shoulders and leaps. He gives it a solid punch, causing it to swing wildly around as he lands with a heavy thud. Mikey whoops, clapping.
“You got some power!” Mikey grins. “Guess that makes sense! April said you are one of those Night Watchers guys— that right?”
Raph nods, tongue sticking out a little as he jumps up and strikes the swinging dummy again. “We both like fighting— it just made sense! We wanted to leave an impact on the world somehow. There were a few ideas before it that just… Didn’t really work out. It’s hard to explain but after a lot of different ideas and plans that fell flat, vigilantism came up. Once we got a taste of that, there was no going back.”
“Do you have to hide your secret identities like in the comics?”
“Kinda?” Raph shrugs a little. “Outside of the costumes, I don’t have to worry as much. Cass still goes to school and has a job but since it’s just me and her… We don’t have much to hide at home.”
Mikey hums. “Is it fun?”
“In a way.” Raph leaps up again, hitting the dummy at an angle that makes it spin like an overhead fan. “But it’s mostly about making a change! Bringing hope! And with Cass, I feel unstoppable— we’re a team!”
“Got room for more?” Mikey can’t help but ask hopefully.
It’s not lost on him that Raph visibly hesitates. However he shoots a smile at Mikey and says, “Maybe. You sure you’re up for it though? It’s not as easy as it looks. It’s pretty rough out there.”
“Ya boy can do rough! Want me to prove it?” Mikey takes a fighting stance, grinning wildly. “C’mon, big bro! Show me what those muscles can do!”
Raph shoots his hands up as a surrender, looking almost uneasy. “Oh no— I couldn’t! Maybe another time, Mikey.”
Mikey drops his arms with a huff but concedes. “Alright— but you owe me one!” He jerks his head towards the exit. “Ready to move on? I still got a few rooms left to show you!”
“Sure— just one more for the road.” Raph returns his gaze to the hanging dummy once again and winds back. He springs up, punching the dummy, and this time the rope snaps and sends the dummy soaring towards the wall, hitting it with a thunk.
Raph stares at the dummy and turns back to Mikey with a guilty look. “Uh— I can fix that.”
Mikey rolls his eyes and waves him off. “This stuff breaks all the time, don’t even worry about it. Now c’mon! The tour is not complete!”
—
With Raph and Mikey off and Splinter humming as he puts the remaining soup into containers for later and does the dishes, April turns her full attention to Cass. Her eyebrows raise.
“So.” She says. “The Night Watcher thing.”
Cass’ eyes widen a little but she pivots towards April instead of turning away. April always liked that about her— she prefers to face most things head on if possible. “Yes. You were right, one of them is me. I’m sorry I didn’t tell you sooner.”
April waves her off. “I’m not worried about that Cass, we’ve known each other less than two months and that’s a big thing to talk about. I’m just curious about it.”
“Oh.” Cass noticeably relaxes. “It was my brother’s idea. We were both warriors but had nowhere to apply it but he figured if we put it towards beating up criminals, we would be putting our strength to good use!” She grins toothily. “We will control New York City’s Criminal Underbelly in no time!”
“Ambitious.” April grins back. “I like it. Also— you’ve been living with a giant, mutant turtle this whole time?”
Cass nods. “There has been a lot of ruined furniture on the road to siblinghood but it’s all worth it! I had him and he had me— that’s the Jones way!”
Splinter interrupts this time. “Just the two of you?”
Cass’ face scrunches up in confusion, looking over at him. “Who else would there be?”
Splinter is facing them now, putting the last dish down to dry. He frowns deeply. “No… Parent or guardian? No adult guidance or care?”
“We got an uncle but he’s not around much.”
There’s a troubled look in Splinter’s eye but he shakes himself with a sigh and says, “At least you have each other.”
April chooses not to comment, unsure of what she’d say, and instead opts for saying, “Want to set up a fort in the living room and put on a movie?” And gets an enthusiastic yes.
—
It’s midnight, the movie is still playing softly in the background, but as Splinter soundlessly enters the room, he finds he’s the only one awake to notice it.
April and Cassandra share one of the armchairs and have fallen asleep leaning up against one another. April’s face is buried into the crook of Cass’ neck, and Cass’ head rests gently on hers. They’re sharing one blanket, though Cass seems to have unintentionally stolen a little over half of it, not that April is awake to care.
On the couch, Raphael is tangled up in a blanket and snoring softly, with Mikey on the ground next to him, a mountain of pillows serving as a makeshift mattress and snuggled in his favorite blanket.
They’re all sleeping peacefully and Splinter’s heart untwists a little looking at it. Unconsciously, he trails back over to Raph and examines him again.
He’s got little, healed over scars littered all over his body and markings on his hands that Splinter knows all too well as ones of a fighter. He knew this already, of course, with the stories of vigilantism and how both him and his sister spoke of fighting, but it’s still further confirmation.
All Hamatos are fighters. It’s in their blood— Splinter knew this but had avoided it in some ways and indulged in others. He thought being an action movie star was as far as he would get in that aspect until he was thrown into the Battle Nexus and was forced to knock Yokai down for entertainment.
It was horrifying in many, many ways, but in others, it felt like a free fall. Adrenaline he could no longer deny and pushing himself to better, greater, and chasing a high that the Battle Nexus gave him. Of roaring crowds and a need to fight.
He stopped when he remembered where fighting had gotten his family. Where it had gotten his mother. And suddenly it felt sickening and wrong and when Big Mama showed up to his room to ask why he refused the last couple fights, he told her he was done. That if she threw him out into the ring again, he wouldn’t fight, and her champion would get torn apart.
She threw him into a cell without all the luxuries he had gained over the years, but never into the arena. She tried to talk to him some days, but it always fell flat, and in the end, Splinter only got visits from her guards. And that was the end of it— Splinter thought that’s where the Hamato bloodline’s need to fight would end.
Then he had a son. A son who watched him train in the dojo so he would feel a little more like himself again and begged to do the same. A son who had that same fight in him, that same look in his eyes that Splinter once had, and he had felt sick at first. But he couldn’t deny his son forever.
So he taught Mikey how to fight— how to defend himself— and that was… Okay. Mikey wouldn’t get taken away and forced to fight like he was— Splinter would be there, watching his back, and ensuring that.
Except now Splinter has two sons, and it was obvious enough that the same need to fight had passed to him too. He had the scars to prove it— nothing major from what he could see, though the eye scar probably bled a lot, but it still worried him.
Raphael looked to be older than Mikey was but he still was so young. A teenager for sure— one who was out there, fighting crime with another teenager because he was driven by an invisible force in his bloodline to do so.
Cass had said it was only them. Next to nobody else was looking out for them out there.
Splinter missed over thirteen years of his son’s life— years he could’ve spent protecting him from all that hurt had he actually been there. But as much as he wished it to be otherwise, there was nothing he could do about that now, the damage was done.
But he could support them now. They might not want it right away, but he could offer and hope. He could make things right at last, because for years he thought only Mikey had survived that night, but he was wrong about that. There was another and he was here and alive and safe— for now at least.
Splinter had been wrong and Raph grew up without him. And there had been four of them in total, meaning he could very well be wrong about the other two as well.
Splinter straightens out and resolves that he will see all of his sons again one day, and make things right for all of them. It’s only right after missing so much time.
Splinter has not had to fight like he did back in the Battle Nexus in a long time, but if he has to for his sons, he will.