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It was just an average Thursday night, honestly stuff like this was to be expected by now.
The turtle brothers were in the Hidden City and decided to take the long way to Señor Hueso’s restaurant instead of just having Leonardo make a portal. Despite Raphael not being leader, he had managed to convince them, saying it was “for the extra exercise”.
It just so happens that on the way, a gang of around 20 bird mutants decided they wanted to pick a fight. Apparently hearing of the four oh so great “Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles” that defeated the Krang three months ago and wanting to get rid of them so they could do crime in the Hidden City without the fear of getting caught.
So that brought them to where they were now, at 9:00 PM in the middle of The Hidden City located under New York fighting in a small alleyway, hoping that no unfortunate citizen decided to walk by at the wrong time.
“Is one normal day really too much to ask for?” Leonardo shouted, ducking down to avoid a crowbar a crow mutant threw at him, he felt the metal just graze the top of his head. “Like, please? Just one?”
“Yes Nardo- hmph!” Donatello hit two sparrow mutants with his tech bō that got too close. “We established this months ago. God hates us.”
“HA! I thought you didn’t believe in God?” Leo taunted, punching the crow mutant in the face knocking her out instantly, her body went limp and hit the floor like a sack of potatoes.
“Oh, I don’t!” Donnie shouted back, dodging an attack from what looked to be a robin mutant. “It was simply a different way of saying our luck sucks ass!”
Leo giggled and looked around, Raph and Mikey were fighting in a different alleyway than he and Donnie were so he was just a tad bit anxious he couldn’t see them, but deep down he knew they would be fine.
They did defeat the Krang and Shredder, they could deal with some lousy birds. Even if for some strange reason the bird mutants were more than double their height.
Leo was too busy thinking about his brothers he didn’t have enough time to dodge the two large talons coming from behind him, both around the size of his head and he couldn’t react fast enough before they grab onto his left arm and pulled up-
“Uh oh. Dee! Don! Shit- DONNIE! DONATELLO! HELLO?! A LITTLE HELP PLEASE-!” Was all Leo was able to get out before his feet were no longer touching the floor and he was dragged into the sky. Raphael and Mikey were too far away to hear him, but he saw the raw terror dawn on his older twin's face as he quickly got carried to a nearby rooftop.
Unable to do anything except blindly swing his weapon Leo was carried high into the air. When the owl deemed it high enough, he dived down and dropped Leonardo, the turtle couldn’t steady his footing in time and landed on his left hand. His arm buckled under the weight of the rest of his body, so his head hit the floor next. Fortunately, thanks to his ninja skills he landed somewhat properly with minimal damage, any normal person would’ve died.
Unfortunately, the impact of the fall made him drop his weapons, sparks flew as the metal clashed together loudly as his Odachi’s slid a few meters away from him, far out of reach.
Leo quickly attempted to stand up but before he could move the owl sent a sharp kick to his ribs, talons luckily not managing to get a good grip on his plastron so all it did was send him tumbling backwards, his head hit the floor for a second time with a *THUD!* and his vision went from blurry to a blinding white.
“Ow, dude chill out! No need to ruffle your feathers- OKAY SORRY NEVER MIND!” Leo screeched as the owl pinned down his leg and held him in place. He accidentally hit his tongue hard enough to make it bleed and grimaced at the metallic taste.
“Do you ever shut up?” The owl leaned down and asked, his wide unblinking blue eyes staring directly into Leo’s.
Seeing as he was the biggest and somewhat scariest looking, Leo could guess that he was probably the leader of the gang that attacked them.
Leo smirked at the owl mutant that was now towering over him and spit the blood on the others leg much to their disgust. He ignored the feeling of blood slowly trickling down the back of his head, down his neck, and resting on his tongue. Or how he could feel and hear his heartbeat in his ears. Or how everything was too loud and too bright. Or the sharp pulsing pain in his left wrist and left shoulder. Or how it felt like there were hundreds of bees buzzing around in his head.
“No not really, but anywhizzle, I got a question for you.” Leo paused, taking a shaky breath, his vision was no longer white but had gone back to being blurry and his lungs felt like he had inhaled a bucket worth’s of cinnamon. “Do you wanna know one of the main similarities between a snapping turtle and a s-soft shell?” He asked, blinking away the small black dots that were so rudely starting to invade his vision.
The owl sneered, flexing out his talons on the cold concrete floor as he tilted his head to the side, the grip on his leg loosening a fraction. “What?”
Leon saw the small glint of purple out of the corner of his eye and felt his body relax almost instantly, his blue eyes now half lidded as he looked up, his smirk turning into a full-on grin.
“They both bite.”
*THUMP!*
“GET THE FUCK AWAY FROM MY BROTHER!”
The owl mutant didn’t have enough time to react when Donatello slammed into his right side, ramming into him with his jet pack. Leo winced at the loud noise and covered his ringing ears as the owl let go of his leg and crashed onto the floor with a startled hooting sound.
Uh oh. Donnie was MAD mad.
Before either turtle could react, the owl let out an ear shattering screech of anger and rushed forward, using its wings to speed up its momentum as it charged for Donatello.
Donnie used his jet pack to rise himself up to the owl's level, thrusting his tech bō out in front of himself, prepared for the owl to face him head on. The owl was now only a meter away, talons extended in front of him like a bird about to catch its prey.
Donatello swung.
He missed.
The purple masked turtle didn’t expect the owl to dive right underneath him, he ended up swinging his tech bō at an empty space. He felt his blood turn to ice, and his heart clenched painfully in his chest once he realized the owl’s true intentions a little too late.
“Stand down or your brother gets it.” The owl warned from somewhere behind him, when Donnie turned around, he felt all the air rush out of his lungs in an instant at the sight before him despite predicting it.
The owl had Leo, his little brother was being pinned to the ground by his neck, and was wheezing- gasping for air, using his nails to claw at the talon in a desperate attempt to be released. It was clear the blue masked turtle had attempted to make a dash for his weapons but failed miserably.
‘He’s suffocating.’ Donnie quickly realized with horror as he watched the owl choke his brother. His jet back deactivated and his feet hit the ground, dread settling in his stomach.=
The red eared slider couldn’t breathe.
Leo was hurt.
His twin looked scared.
All because of the bird mutant standing before him and his gang, who randomly decided to pick a fight with a bunch of teenagers for no good reason.
The whole situation escalated so quickly, in just over 40 seconds what was once just a normal fight took a much darker path.
He couldn’t lose Leo a second time. Couldn’t feel the helplessness he felt when his little brother was trapped in the prison dimension with the Krang.
Something inside Donatello snapped.
“Let him go.” The soft-shell turtle whispered, sounding breathless. He crouched lower to the ground, his stance shifting into something much more dangerous.
Much more predatory.
The owl mutant pretended to think about it for a moment before answering. “No.” His sneer grew into something more vicious, and he pushed down on Leonardo’s neck with double the pressure. Donnie felt his mind go blank as Leo’s struggling got weaker, a small chirp coming from his throat before his body went slack.
Donatello. Saw. Red.
“LET MY BROTHER GO!!” Donnie screamed, his markings started to glow, and his eyes turned to slits as they flashed between red and purple. A low, dangerous clicking sound escaped his throat, his retractable claws that rarely ever came out made themselves known to the world for the first time since the Krang invasion. Behind him, his mystic powers activated for the first time in months, burning bright purple as it crackled around him. Two missile launchers formed, one on each side and each with thousands of barrels towering over the owl with the intent to kill. His bō which was pointed at his opponent suddenly engulfed in a blaze of purple fire as it formed a large drill at the end, just slightly smaller in size than the one he shot the Krang with.
The owl looked at the weapons towering over him in fear, his grip on the blue turtle faltering for just a moment.
That one second of hesitation was all Donnie needed.
The drill on the end of Donatello's tech bō turned on shot out with what speed of a lightning bolt, having only one goal. To get the owl away from his brother.
It hit its mark.
The owl was forced to let go of Leo as he rocketed off the rooftop, the drill rammed into his wing with a sickening *CRACK!* no doubt breaking it. The owl's fearful screams echoed off of every building and alleyway as he fell off the roof.
The silence after was deafening.
Donatello acted out of instinct, sprinting forward and pulling his little brother away from the edge because he couldn’t stand the thought of Leo falling-!
He stumbled backwards and tripped on his own feet with the sheer force he used to pull Leo back, the missile launchers by his side disappearing the second he fell on the ground.
“LEO!” Donnie quickly placed his brother down so he could get a proper look at him. He grasped his little brother's wrist and prayed-
There was a pulse, thank God. It was strong and steady.
“Nardo, hey!” He rapidly tapped his brother's forehead; he needed his brother to wake up and stay awake. “Come on! Come on! Please-!”
Leo quickly sat up and gasped for air, his breaths coming in short and ragged, he spotted a Donnie and tensed up as if seeing someone else before he relaxed, body slumping forwards as he used one hand to hold his sore throat, wheezing as his eyes started to close.
Donatello shook his head and gently pushed Leo so he was lying on his back. “No! Leo! Eyes open. Now! Let’s go! Hey! C’mon, Nardo you cannot fall asleep on me before I check your injuries- LEO!” Donnie panicked when Leo’s eyes closed completely, gently slapping his brother's cheek in a poor attempt to try and keep him awake.
Leo flinched away from the mini assault and hissed before looking up at him in confusion. “Ow… tío Hueso…? Wha…? Wha’re you do’in here…?” He weakly started pushing Donnie’s hands away while attempting to sit up again, much to the others’ horror. “Not… not safe- fighting… birds. Big birds, ya gotta… go. Por favor, vete…”
‘Hueso? Tio? That’s Spanish… oh God he’s hallucinating.’ Donnie thought, freezing when Leo gasped in pain and held his wrist close to his chest.
“Damn it Nardo, don’t move! At least let me scan you first.” Donnie used one hand to push down Leo’s shoulder to make sure he stayed down as he used his other to scan him for injuries using the small machine on his wrist.
“Fractured left wrist, mild concussion, muscle strain in left shoulder, bruised ribs, swelling in the throat, Jesus Christ Leo you weren’t even out of my sight for twenty seconds!” Donatello shouted, his mouth snaped shut when Leo winced and tried to move away. Right, concussion. No loud noises, got it.
“Okay I’m sorry for yelling” Donnie whispered, watching his brother’s tense posture relax a bit. “What hurts-? Aside from your chest, throat, shoulder, wrist, or head.”
“Hmph… Dee?” Leo coughed, grimacing at the pain talking brought his throat. His eyes were glazed over as he slowly looked around the rooftop. “Where’s Raph an- and Mikey? They okay… safe?”
‘Of course, that’s what he’s worried about’ Donnie thought, groaning as Leo attempted to push himself up for a second time. “I’m sure they’re fine, most of the birdbrains were already handled when you got carried up here from what I’m aware of.”
“So… safe?” Leo looked at his brother, keeping his injured wrist close to his chest as he finally managed to sit up properly.
Donatello exhaled heavily through his nose, a smile making its way on his face despite himself as he shakily pulled his little brother into a hug. “Yes, dumb dumb, we’re safe.”
If Leonardo noticed his voice wavering, he didn’t say anything.
“What’re you do’in…?” Leo slurred, squinting his eyes suspiciously as Donatello shifted their position so now, he was now resting his head on his older twin's shoulder.
Donnie shushed him, quickly patting his shell as if that would get him to stop talking.
He still felt livid, his teeth were clenched, and his heart was pounding in his ears, his markings were growling, not as bright as before but they were. His blood was still boiling with red hot rage. Not directed at Leo, no. Never.
He was mad at the stupid bird that put him and his brothers in this situation.
“Don’t talk.” He ordered. He wasn’t the medic of the team, but he knew very well that Leonardo’s throat would start to swell and talking would become increasingly painful. “Just shut up for a minute, okay? You’re fine. Everyone’s fine, just shut- shut up.”
Despite having a concussion and being only half awake, Leo looked at his brother with a mix of an offended and dumbfounded expression.
“Wha bout the big guy…? Owl dude…” Leo whispered, tensing up and blinking away the blurriness in his vision as he looked over Donatello’s shoulder to try and spot the enemy.
Donatello froze, his grip on Leo tightening for just a moment before he realized that his claws were still out. Quickly retracting them he looked towards the edge of the roof the owl fell from.
He had heard the crack of the bones snapping when his drill hit the mutant's wing. He heard the fearful screams followed by something hitting the ground floor and then the sudden silence after. The roof they were on was over 100 meters tall. Logically speaking, he knew what happened. What he did.
And he didn’t regret it.
There was no feeling of remorse. No guilt. No Regret. No Sadness. No Sorrow. No Shame. None. Sure, it could’ve ended better, he knew that. But he panicked and there was no way to be sure Leo would have survived if he didn’t act the way he did.
Based on the savage look in the mutants' eyes Donatello could tell that the owl would have snapped his brother's neck if it wasn’t for the split-second hesitation when he had two missile launchers pointed at his face.
“He’s been dealt with properly; he won’t bother us again.” Donnie answered honestly, one arm wrapping around Leo in a half hug as he used the other to grab his T-phone to send his brothers their location and let them know of the events that happened just moments ago.
“Hey Dee?” Leonardo said after a few seconds of silence, he attempted to lift his head and look at his brother, but the action got a hiss out of him, and he resisted the urge to throw up, knowing his brother was a huge germaphobe and it would not end well for either of them.
Donatello raised an eyebrow, he mentally cursed himself for having Alexithymia because he never was able to properly articulate his emotions. His throat suddenly felt raw, and it took him some time to find his voice before he responded with a “Yes?”.
“Thanks for coming for me.”
Donatello’s breath hitched at that, and he blinked back tears, he took a second to even his breathing before he leaned down and placed his chin on the top of his brother's head, tightening the hug.
“…Always. I’ll always be there for you dummy.”
Leo let out a mix of a happy and sleepy chirp as he snuggled into the embrace, tucking his face into Donatello’s shoulder. From pure instinct Donnie chirped back, rubbing soothing circles on his brother's shell.
“Don’t fall asleep on me Nardo, I’m serious.” Donnie hissed as he put his T-phone back into his pocket, ignoring his brother's loud whine. “No, you know as well as I do that it’s dangerous for you to fall asleep before we get your head properly checked out.”
“But Dee, I’m tired…. let the insomniac rest…” Leo mumbled, leaning forward so he was now putting his fully body weight against his brother, the air around them felt damp, like it had just finished raining.
“Leonardo, I swear to-”
“Kay! Mhm, got it. No sleeping… understood.” Leo quickly nodded, wincing when the action made the world start to tilt. He hated it when his brothers called him by his full name. That meant they were either really mad or being very serious.
Donatello sighed, cringing when he saw dried up blood on his hands that was no doubt from the cut on the back of Leo’s head. “Let’s just talk to keep you awake, Mikey and Raph should be here in a few minutes.”
Leo hummed but didn’t make an attempt to raise his head, feeling too dizzy to do so without throwing up. “Not much to… talk bout. Sides didn’t you just say no talking…? Make up your mind jeez…”
Donnie rolled his eyes, God his brother could annoy him and talk for hours nonstop, but suddenly when he wants him to talk, he decides he’s not in the mood and shuts up?
Talk about unfair.
An idea popped into his head, and he smirked, poking at his brother's leg to make sure he had his full attention.
“Why don’t we talk about when you started calling Señor Hueso tío? I know very few words in the Spanish dialogue, but I am certain tío means uncle.” Donnie questioned, his grin widening when he felt Leo freeze in his embrace.
That’s how Mikey and Raphael found them two minutes later, the twins were both sitting on the rooftop floor in an embrace. Leo blushing bright red from embarrassment, hiding his face in Donnie’s shoulder mumbling incoherent sentences, and Donnie giggling quietly like a villain from one of those cliche horror movies.