Chapter Text
FREAKSHOW - CHAPTER 1
Brother Brother
"Hey Leo, check this out!"
The red-ear slider sauntered over to the edge of the building where his bouncy ball of energy brother pointed. Below in the once empty lot above the wharf by fire light, there were a massive collection of humans constructing tents of what reminded him of blue raspberry candies, bright and striped. Trailers were everywhere and some didn't look like RV.
"Could it be a fair?" Innocent gold stared up him, "How about we get a closer look?"
"Nah, it looks more like a circus or carnival." Leo mused eyeing the posters plastered on some of the trailers, though he couldn't get the best view from all the way up here. "Best to stay away for now."
"That's even better! I’ve never been to the Circus." Mikey chittered in a voice a few octaves higher than normal tenor as he playfully yanked on Leo's arm like a toddler, "Come on there's got to be some cool things going on!"
"Oh my god, Miguel, relax." Laughing and enjoying his little brother's exuberance, Leo nonetheless extracted his captured arm. "Leave them be. There's nothing to see then watching the humans set up. Boring..."
He nudged an elbow into his little brother's side, right where he knew the tickle spot was. Mikey shrieked and scuttled away with a smile as Leo nodded to the other side of the building.
"Come on. Raph will have my hide if I don't get you home by day break."
"Awww..." Mikey wailed, "can't we do something fun? It always mission this or mission that."
Swinging his sword as he walked backward, a cunning smirk grew on Leo’s face. “I mean, it is just a patrol. It’s not like we have to get back right away. Like us the night is young…”
The little puppy pout dropped as Mikey turned his big inquisitive eyes on him. Leo preened under the attention. It was too easy to harness his kid brother’s attention into shenanigans.
“What do you say to the Ultimate Skills Challenge?”
Bouncing to his feet, Mikey nodded. “Name the terms!”
Gotcha.
Leo’s grin widened. “A rooftop race around Harlem, parkour and gymnastics only. Also if we see any baddies, we will just see who can annoy them the fastest. First one back to the lair gets dibs on the next outing.”
Mikey mimicked his devious smirk, holding out a pinky. “You swear?”
“You don't trust me?” He gripped his chest and dramatically stumbled back. “The very thought!”
The little gremlin just smirked. “If you want me to agree.”
Leo threw the back of his hand against his brow, “My own blood. How devastating!”
Mikey giggled as Leo feigned hurt, though he smiled when he turned his back on the younger turtle. “And here I was going to give you a head start. Now I’m not sure I can cope with the betrayal!”
All chuckles and smiles, his little brother gave him a tackling hug.
“Silly Leo!” Those gold orbs of pure joy gave Leo so much thrill, “You alway cheat! Just pinky promise to the terms! No mystic powers and the winner chooses the next event out. “
Hooking their pinkies into the promise, Leo subtly crossed the fingers on his hand gripping his odachi. “With great reluctance, I accept.”
That devious grin was back. What was his little brother-
“3-2-1 GO!”
Shooting off like a bolt of fire, Mikey careened over a gap to the next rooftop in the blink of an eye.
“HEY!” Leo gave chase, “Who’s the cheat now you little fire gremlin!”
Jumping pipes and parkouring across the building, Leo reveled in the breeze that rippled through his mask tails. Raph’s orders to get home when they were finished with patrol evaporated from his mind like smoke as he kicked off another wall. He launched into a backflip with a whoop and propelled off a random crate with a handspring. Minding a sheer drop to the black pavement below as he sailed over a gap, he pelted along the next roof edge with a manic grin on his face.
Ahead of him, Mikey bounded off bricks and mortar as if he were made of rubber. Swinging around poles and flipping towards anything he could ricochet off with more grace and pizzazz than even Leo could pull off in mid air. Snagging a horizontal bar of a bird feeder, Mikey launched into a double flip before unfolding and grabbing the lip of the next building much higher. With a ‘’hup”, the younger turtle hopped up and disappeared over the edge.
Leo stared up at the obstacle before him. Dang that kid had moves! Didn't mean he didn't have his own style as he surveyed his options. Getting a running start, he leapt and scraped his toes as he kicked off the rough brick texture of the apartment building and then the crates to get height. Flipping into a landing on a chimney stack, Leo refused to survey the space between himself and cold hard death. A quick launch and he rolled to safety on the next rooftop.
"Keep up, Leo!" Mikey perched like a tweety bird on a lampstand, all teeth and coiled muscles. “You getting slow or what?”
The gremlin chuckled and leapt like a frog with the grace of a bird away.
Oh he did not just…
A grin split his features. Scrabbling to his feet, Leo bounded off after the cheeky brat. He threw his arms back in the perfect ninja dash. Oh no, he was not getting left behind.
"Was that a challenge little brother?"
“If the shell fits!”
Oohhhhh! That did it.
Drawing the Odachi from his shell, Leo rocketed off a crate and sliced the air.
Nothing happened except for some fancy shmancy mystical wisps. Bursting through the sparks, Leo controlled his landing and somersaulted back to his feet and resumed the race.
He glanced at the Odachi, "Dang it I just got this to work. What gives?”
"That's what you get for cheating!" His little brother sang as he bounced and sailed over the alleyway. "No mystic powers!"
"That's the whole point of my charm!"
Leo propelled himself to a higher point and frog-hopped the ledge to get some air to get over the drop. Tripping on contact but stumbled into pace without face planting, he flicked his sword to the side to extend his ninja run. What good was a teleporting sword and a fake promise if he couldn’t gain ground?
"Besides,” Leo bounded over a collection of rises and drops with an equal amount of simple flips, one hand jumps, and a few controlled descents. “Who wants to play by a rule book that doesn't exist?
“You're the one that pinkie promised!" Mikey called, twisting in the air but still maintaining his lead.
“Jokes on you! I crossed my fingers!”
The insulted screech from the bouncy gremlin was so worth it.
“What is with you and all the lies!”
Crash!
Pulled up by the resounding clatter from an alley nearby, the brothers’ game came to a screeching halt as they peered into the street below. A river of mini, yet familiar, identical chomping mutants scurried in all directions as humans screamed and fled the sudden infestation.
An oversized pig dressed in an apron and horribly stained muscle shirt burst after the tiny mutants with a sack on one shoulder and a spiked mallet on the other hand. A near feral grin as he sniffed the air and his beady red eyes combed the street littered in panic prey.
“Apparently, one mutant’s nightmare is another's meal ticket.” Leo mused sharing a grin with his kid brother. “Shall we?”
Mikey pouted, “You owe me!”
“Alright, Alright!” Leo glanced down at the mayhem smugly, “Dastardly Duo time?”
His little brother’s grin was all he needed.
"I say, I do fancy a meal on the run." Meatsweats mused before raising the mallet. "But I prefer my meat properly tenderized!"
"Not on our watch!"
Whirling around, the large mutant stared up at them. Leo flicked his blue mask tails as he sat his sword over his shoulder, his little brother swinging his kusari-fundo that sparked to light up his equally orange gear - and maybe Leo’s jealousy. Both posed like superheroes. Pointing the sword like some scepter down on the scene below, delight hummed through Leo at the sneer it drew from the hog.
"You're in violation of poor health codes, swine.” Leo called, puffing his chest out in imitation of his favorite movie celebrity.
“Yeah! You would be giving your guests indigestion!” piped up Mikey.
Hey... Let him have the spotlight.
"Turtles," The ex-cook muttered. The twisted grin just looked so wrong as the pig spread his arms wide, "didn’t you have your fill last time? I would gladly serve you up some decent payback."
Leo opened his mouth to reply, but Mikey beat him to it.
"Leave the little ones alone, Swaggart," Mikey remarked, following Leo’s lead. "They're off the menu!"
"A chef doesn't take orders." Meatsweats laughed. "He makes them!"
As the pig returned to terrorizing the mutants, Leo glowered at his brother.
“Dude! What did we talk about?”
Sheepish, Mikey chuckled with a shrug. “Couldn’t help it.”
"Still, don't villains ever just heed the warning of the superstar lead?" Leo asked indignantly as the silverfish screeched in panic.
"You mean me?" His kid brother sang with a mischievous grin. “I’m the one that needs the annoying villain as I’m the one with Splinter’s good looks.”
“Pfft, more like the adorable sidekick.” shoving his little brother away by the face, Leo waved it off. “Heroes are a symbol of peace or authority.”
“HA! Yeah right.” Mikey chuckled, “And while you are monologuing like the comic relief, Meatsweats is terrorizing silverfish. So un-main character like.”
"How rude!" He glanced over the scene. “Frightening mutants while the Dastardly Duo are speaking.”
"None of the villains ever hang around for a life defining speech," Mikey sighed, "It's like in their DNA or something."
Ignoring the distressed little mutants, the brother in blue tapped his chin. "Hmmm then may I suggest a butt whooping instead."
A feral but blinding smile spread on the one resembling a spring, "Bet I can take him down before you can.”
"Not if I take the oversized piggy off the market first." Sharing an equally feral grin, the older of the two wielded his sword.
Both lept from the edge of the pet store and surged into battle. Leo swept his sword in an arch, only for it to fizzle out from under him and send him ricocheting off the awning below. He smacked face first into the pavement.
Mikey seamlessly swung around the fire escape and somersaulted on landing.
“You ok, bro?” Mikey called.
He offered a thumbs up.
“Looks like I get first points then!” Giggling, Mikey bounced off into glorious battle.
Prying himself off the ground like some wimpy cartoon, Leo growled at his sword. No flashy moves tonight then. Crap. That was the second time tonight and Mike was already recklessly leaping around the cook without a care. Delighted whoops pierced the air.
A glint suddenly drew his attention.
In the shadows of the other side of the street, a figure in a trench coat and a fedora raced along the far storefronts. That would normally be fine if they were fleeing the sudden mutant flood down mainstreet, except they pressed the fedora close as they slipped into the alley right across from the fight and melded with the dark.
Was it his imagination or had they cast a lingering glance their way?
“What…”
“Little help, Leo!”
He snapped back at the sound of his brother’s shriek.
Trying to pound his little brother into turtle steak, Meatsweats growled everytime Mikey mocked his technique.
“You should really take better care of your cooking equipment.” The orange brother back flipped as the mallet smashed through the asphalt surface where he once was standing. “Tsk tsk… Street wear and tear will really chew it up! I would rather not find gravel in my burger later.”
“How insulting,” the swine pried the instrument up and hefted it with a twirl, “to imply that I use that same blessed equipment to prepare my meals as I do for pounding my meat into submission.”
“EEEWWW!” Leo intoned rushing to flank their opponent. “I know I’m a snack, but no.”
Meatsweats grinned between the two, “Ever had turtle flambé? It’s rather tasty with butter and garlic sauce.”
“That still sounds good…”
“MIKEY!” Leo cried as his little brother practically puddled into bliss.
“What?!” Mikey shrugged “Butter and Garlic is a classic! Excuse me for wanting to be eaten in style!”
“We need to have a talk about flambéing with the enemy, little brother.”
Why his brother still idolized this guy was beyond him.
Meatsweats charged.
“Watch out!” Leo intercepted.
“Whoa!”
His little brother sidestepped, allowing Leo to slide in front of the raging pig and catch the mallet on his blade.
“I admit, you're a quick one,” the chef mused, then sneered, “but fast food isn’t my style, I prefer gourmet.”
“I am not one to cast pearls before swine.” That’s when he noticed the sky above starting to lighten.
Uh oh.
Raph was gonna kill him.
They broke apart as Leo growled, “Time to run squealing back to your house of sticks, Meatsweats.”
“That’s not my name, you worthless pile of green flesh.” The murderous chef growled.
“Oh really? And what was it?” The tease was instant. “Pig Guts?”
Beady red eyes flare the same hue as the breaking dawn. A deep crimson behind that hungry snarl.
Good. Get annoyed, piggy.
“Oo Oo.” Mikey bounced up with a raised hand. “It’s Rupert Swaggart!”
Ruining the moment, Bro.
Again, stop up staging him.
“Right…” Leo rolled his eyes, “Back when he wasn't a mutant murder! Meatsweats suits him so much better.”
“I’m right here you brat!” His hand splintered into tentacles, and swung his way.
Side stepping, Leo watched as the life-sucking appendages came within inches of his handsome face in slow motion. He leaned into the rotation, and the world caught up as he used the momentum to swing his Odachi and slice through one of the tentacles.
The swine howled. Leaving him completely open.
“I got him!”
His little brother rushed past, spinning his fireball demon weapon.
“Mikey, wait!”
Too late. The swine snatched the chain of the weapon and pulled Mike off his feet with a yelp. Leo’s heart lurched as Meatsweats caught his baby bro by the plastron. A savage snarl seeped out, as he slammed Mike into the middle of the street with such force, the ground shook.
His kid brother yelped, and his insides flared.
Raph was going to kill him.
“I’m a little tired of playing with my food.” Meatsweat snarled as the younger turtle wiggled, “Maybe I should just eat you now.”
“Oy! My brother is not sashimi!” blinded by his brother struggling helplessly under the brute, the slider rushed in.
The tentacle rounded and back-handed him, sending him skipping over the asphalt. Grunting Leo slammed shell first into the brick exterior of the pet shop. Stars flashed before his eyes, spotlighting his failure. He needed to get back in the fight. What kind role would he have if he let Mikey get captured in their quest for stardom?
Shaking off the lights, he caught sight of Mikey getting his weapon ripped from his grasp and tossed away.
“Not fair!” The orange turtle bit out. “Where’s the celebrity chef that was my idol?”
The pig chuckled, raising his tentacled arm, “I found my true calling, hunting down the very best ingredients.”
Leo stumbled to his feet. Flinching as his back twinged, he twirled the odachi in front of him. Sparks danced and, for a second, he thought he’d opened a portal to yank the crazy pig off his brother.
It snapped shut.
“Give up turtle.”
“I’d rather die.” Mikey huffed, making Leo stagger.
Not good, not good, not good!
“That could be arranged.” Meatsweats licked his lips.
The tentacles descended. The younger turtle shrieked in a way that wasn’t anywhere close to the joy from earlier.
“Hands off!” Leo sailed out of nowhere with a flying sidekick to the hog’s rib cage, sending him flying off his brother and crashing into a dumpster.
“Leo!” Mikey breathed as Leo pulled him up. “Thanks!”
“No problem, little brother,” Leo checked him over. Other than out of breath and gripping his side, Mikey seemed fine. “You’re ok, right?”
The kid nodded as he bent over his knees and gulped down a breath.
“Good.” Passing him his kusari-fundo that lay at Leo’s feet, the older brother smirked, “Let’s roast some pork chops before Raph fricassees us for being out this late.”
Mikey shook, even if he grinned. Must be the effects of nearly getting his essence sucked out.
“Deal, but you know I can still roast anything better than you.” and he took off.
Nevermind. The kid was peachy.
With a laugh Leo jumped and landed in front of the pig. “No competition there, I can’t cook.”
Meatsweats growled and swung his mallet at Leo. “You don’t deserve to be in a kitchen where only kings thrive.”
“HA,” Leo hollered as he sidestepped, slicing at the pig. “Don’t need it. I'm already King of the Lair Games.”
“No one is ever going to call you that!” Mikey snipped back and swung his kusari-fundo.
The hog whipped around to pound them down but the flaming ball collided with his head, causing the chef to stumble.
The younger turtle took a moment to glare at Leo.
“Why not?” Leo whined as he dodged Meatsweats, leaving his foot out and tripping the guy. “It has a nice ring to it.”
“Leo so help me-”
Mikey was cut off as sirens blared somewhere close, a revving engine as a news truck zipped onto the scene.
“Party's over!” Leo grabbed Mikey by the wrist making him yelp in surprise and raced into the nearest alley.
Mikey bounded up to the roof in nothing flat as Leo was stuck climbing the ladder the old fashion way when his portals failed again. Why tonight of all nights, did his Odachi have to sputter out! It made his life so easy except now it just felt like dead weight.
A flash came from across the street.
It was the guy in the fedora, a camera in hand. What the hell?! So he wasn't imagining it. His stomach dropped, because that lens pointed right at him and Mikey. The road between them was filled with sirens, flashing lights, and news crews.
Meatsweats had disappeared too.
They had to move.
"Leo, come on!" Mikey cried, crouching on the lip of concrete as he glanced into the crowded street “We gotta go!"
Right, no more wasting time. Leo scurried the rest of the way up the fire escape.
Fueled by the afterburn of adrenaline, they both ran.
Casting a glance back Leo could still see Fedora watching them.
As they descended to the manhole that overlooked the bay, Leo could already feel Raph breathing down his throat as the sun began crowning over the water.
"You what?"
Leo rolled his eyes as he trudged his way into the lair holding Mikey close.
"We ran into Meatsweats and barely got out of the area before the news crews were crawling over the scene. I just said that. You really don't listen, do you?"
Visibly peeved, his eldest brother fumed. "Oh I’m listenin’ alright! You were goofing off like always. Past daybreak, I need to remind you."
Pizza Supreme in the sky, he got it!
"Need I remind you that I know that?" He quipped a little hotly.
He was going to be stuck inside for most of the day anyway. He didn't need this.
"We got home just fine." Mikey grouched, “No one saw us."
The image of the Fedora Man flashed through Leo’s mind. Yeah.. he couldn’t say they got away scott free on that one.
"That not the poin-"
"It's not a big deal." Leo sang, cutting off his red dressed brother.
"Big deal? The sun rose and you kept Mikey out."
Oh boy. This conversation again.
"And?" Leo griped, "He’s a big boy. We handled it."
"We're no longer tots, Raph." Mikey chimed in as Leo steered him into the infirmary. “Lay off.”
"You," Aimed at the youngest, "don't understand how dangerous it is out there. Both of you! This isn't a game."
"You mean like how it's all serious and boring when you're right there hyper managing us?" Leo droned, setting Mikey in a chair and grabbing a few bandages.
"Hyper... I don't micromanage!" Raph yelled.
"Pfft, right," he cockily returned to his little brother and lifted his arm to check the injured side, "Nothing about a helicopter older brother screams micromanagement."
"We made it back in one piece." Mikey hissed when Leo pressed his side. “Mostly anyway.”
Raph growled at the blue brother wrapping up the younger and gestured. “See! THIS is why sneaking off after a mission and staying out past dawn by yourselves is a bad idea!”
Leo sneered up at him. “Maybe we did it because we were sick and tired of being ordered around like tots.”
“My orders keep you knuckleheads safe!”
"Stop cramping our style!” Mikey wriggled, still gasping for breath. “Leo was there the whole time and got Meatsweats’ tentacles off me before anything-”
“You let Meatsweats get that far?” Raph thundered, “Where were you?”
Hackles raised, Leo stood to full height. Not that it mattered compared to Raph’s outlandish advantage on him.
“Not like you would understand, but I was having his back.”
“Getting his life sucked out is not having his back.” Raph snapped. “What’re you going to do when Donnie and I are gone today?”
“Geez!” Mikey cried. “Leave him alone, I’m the one that rushed in!”
Raph looked ready to pop a gasket.
“Right, probably because Leo,” the eldest jabbed a finger in Leo’s chest, “encouraged you into his scheme.”
Leo clenched his fists.
“So what if he did?” Mikey said, “At least it was fun!”
“It’s ok.” Leo said, calming. “It’s not like he’ll change his mind.”
He could almost envision the smoke coming out of Raphs ears as he met his gaze. “I’m the screw up of the family.”
“Lee, Please.”
Leo didn’t want to hear it and slipped past Raph. “I’m tired and Mikey’s treated. I’m done.”
Seriously though, Leo was already not in the mood. He fell off a roof tonight, Mikey was near zapped of life, and his odachi…
He ripped the thing from his back, his face a gleaming mockery in its perfect surface. If it had worked, he wouldn’t be plummeting from a tight rope of expectations.
Leo flung the defective sword against the wall and let it clatter to the ground.
Maybe for everyone's sanity, mostly his, it would be good to have some time alone to distract himself from the way his hands were twitching.
How there was possibly a picture of him and Mikey floating around.
“Back off, Raph!”
Mikey stormed out of the med bay with the big guy following.
“Where do you think you’re going?” Raph called.
“Out.”
Leo watched as his little brother collected his graffiti gear by the lair’s front door, an annoyed scowl on his face. However their eldest brother didn’t seem to like that.
“No you’re not! It’s freaking daylight out there!”
Mikey scowled.
“You don’t think I don’t know that?” Sidestepping the large hand that grabbed for him, Mikey swung his graffiti bag and mask over his shoulder. “I’m not stupid, Raph. Just angry.”
Ah. The Muse of Wrath over-taketh Michelangelo. Leo shook his head. That was Raph’s death wish to get between a self-aware Mikey and his outlet.
“Who needs you, anyways?”
“Don’t talk to me like that, you- Hey don’t walk away from me, Mikey, or so help me-”
“Or what Raph?” Leo interjected, gaining Raph’s ire once again as his kid brother slipped out the lair door. “He knows to stick to the sewer, let him express his feelings by tagging the tunnels.”
“He’s too young to go solo!”
Rolling his eyes, Leo gestured. “He just did.”
Raph jerked around to look before, “Where do you think he gets this rebellious streak from? The sky?”
“Probably,” Leo continued his retreat despite his full name getting shouted through the lair.
How Mikey bounced back from getting hurt and scolded by retreating to art always amazed him. Creating something wonderful with all his pain. Leo kinda wished he could do that, but the bitter aftertaste of Raph’s accusations lingered.
He dragged his exhausted self into the family room to find the news rolling with not a whisker of his Dad in sight. Huh, must be looking for some kind of dinner or snacks. Snagging a loose comic from the arm of the couch, Leo kicked up and relaxed on the couch. Nothing like some well-deserved R&R.
"... mutants around NYC are becoming more and more pronounced. New ones pop up every day, causing property damage and attacking civilians. We’re not sure where they come from..."
On the screen, his stomach sank as Meatsweats and silverfish were framed behind a windshield as they fled the camera. Squeamish, he searched for the remote. There had to be a different channel.
“Some would say these are menaces in our streets, but others like the New York Branch of Multisapian Activists believe that not all these mutants are dangerous.”
The camera panned to a shot of fleeing dark silhouettes from the ground.
A curse slipped past his beak.
"A brilliant fail, brother."
"Guh!" Leo whipped around to glare at his twin.
Donnie just raised an emotionless eyebrow before returning to his phone where he leaned beside the door.
"Didn't Dad ever teach you it's rude to sneak up on people?" Leo grouched, feeling a headache brewing.
"Negative. He taught us the basics of stealth and encouraged its use a disturbing amount in our childhood."
He pocketed the device, and leveled a glare at Leo "I'm surprised that it didn't stick in your hollow cranium."
Leo's claws bit into the sofa back. "Stealth shcmelth... what's it to you?"
"The difference between a cool head and being hidden versus emotional and compromised exposure." He pointed to the screen. "Apparently you and Angelo are headlining."
He felt his stomach swoop, even as he eyed the scrolling text on the bottom of the new report.
"'Mysterious mutants divert rabid swine?'" He snorted. "That's the worst title there ever was."
“Really?” Donnie droned. “Your reaction to possible exposure is to laugh?”
“We weren’t exposed.” Leo opened his comic. “The news didn’t even get a clear shot. Lighten up.”
If only he could. The clips played again, and he wished that he could say that was the only evidence out there.
“Pfft! Look, Meatsweats was the one that caught the spotlight!” deflect. “Now if it was me, you know they would have gotten my best side.”
“If it were you, I would have half a mind to leave you in their clutches.”
Leo eyed him and smirked. “So cold and malicious, and here I thought you actually cared.”
“Don’t delude yourself, Nardo. I’m more worried about Angelo’s well-being under your so-called watch.”
Leo groaned.
“I don’t need another ‘you're in charge of Mikey tonight so be responsible’ lecture.” He waved off the annoyance. “We got this.”
Donnie scoffed, pulling on his purple hoodie. "At least feed Angelo something edible."
Leaning his head over the back of the couch, Leo raised an eyebrow at his twin. "You're telling ME to feed Mikey? The dude cooks his own meals! You got a few screws loose or something?"
"Fine. Do what you want.” Donnie kicked up his staff from the ground and caught it out of the air before storming out of the living room. “Don’t call me when something eventually goes wrong. I’m not bailing you out of whatever stupid net you got yourself tangled in.”
"Like that will happen!" Leo called after him, "We can take care of ourselves."
Geez, if it wasn’t about him being irresponsible it was baby ‘Angelo’ needing to be watched. The kid was just a year younger and could take care of himself… if only he could spread his wings a bit. Couldn’t their brothers have a little faith in them?
"That's besides the point, Leo.” Raph lumbered in.
Not another lecture. This would be what? The THIRD one of the day? That had to be a record.
"As much as I hate this,” Raph rammed a beanie over his head and pulled on a black sweater. “Mikey’s in your care today and tonight, it's your job to make sure he doesn't get hurt. Or do something incredibly stupid."
Leo tilted upright, looking his big brother up and down. "We are talking about the same brother right? The kid’s thirteen, he's fine."
Raph jabbed at him. "You're responsible... and guh! That sounds so wrong!"
"Don't hurt yourself Raphela," Donnie countered, poking his head back in. "If we think too long about this it will blend both our brains to mush."
Leo bristled. "We'll be fine ok? What could go wrong?!"
Both brothers shot him an aghast look.
"You know what" Donnie monotoned as he pinched his brows, "I'm going to forget your dum-dum voice just said that out loud with NO thought to the consequences! I swear five years of bingeing Juniper Jim's sixty movies..."
Donnie’s rant faded as he left the room, leaving Leo chuckling up a storm. That didn't mean Raph would let it go.
"Mikey is out there alone, and you think he’s fine?"
"Pfft, I got it covered Raph," he flippantly waved him off, turning back to see that the news went to commercial. "DAD! The breaks are back on!"
"Leo…" his eldest brother growled.
"Raph, my man, my guy!" Leo cut in. "Go bond or whatever you do on the Donnie and you only mission. I'm cool with the night off. Aaaaand Mikey will be fine. Geez let the kid live a little and cool off. Yeesh!"
"If anything-"
"Happens to him? You'll yeet me over the skate track. I get it. What's he going to do? Run off to the circus? Please! Now shoo. Dad really likes treadmill infomercials."
"Actually," the old rat pulled on his Hawaiian shirt and sunglasses as he waddled past. "I have an emergency errand, seems like Purple and Orange ate the last of the snacks -"
"I would never!" Came Donnie’s distant shout.
"- And I have additional business to do."
"Sooooo..." Leo looked them over. "It's literally me and Miguel trapped at home."
Now he just felt left out. Sure not going out on a mission was a nice break. But if everyone was out...
"Where is Orange?"
"Leo!" On cue their resident orange ball of joy came hurtling in from the outer tunnels.
Donnie yelped. Followed by a slide and crash.
"Angelo, what is the name of Einstein?"
"No time! Hey, bro!" Mikey shot past his eldest brother and Dad. Covered head to toe in spray paint, his gas mask and graffiti bag swung from his small frame as he launched over the couch with his phone in hand.
"That answers that question. I'm off!" The rat wandered out.
"But Pops!"
"Don’t you and Purple have someplace to be, Red?" Splinter asked from the hall. "Leave them be, your racket has given me a headache."
Mikey popped up like a prairie dog, "Raph, I swear if you're razing Leo again…"
"I- but-"
"Raphela! Time waits for no turtle, let's scram!"
"GRRR... fine!" Raph turned to Leo. "You're responsible for him, got it?"
"For the thousandth time, YES!" Leo snapped.
Finally some peace from Raph’s mother henning and lectures. Leo sank down into the cushions as the news rolled back on. Gripping his comic as if it was his last shred of sanity.
"In other news -"
"Bro, look at this!" Mikey shoved the colorful screen right over Leo's Juniper Jim comic. "Remember that circus we saw earlier! It has animals!"
Clearing his head from the verbal whiplash, Leo glanced at what Mikey was so ecstatic about.
An insta-ad displaying details about the circus had come to NYC. From the quick once over, it was located not too far from the harbor side sewer access tunnel. There was a whole line of different creatures as he scrolled, all professionally done with colorful backgrounds.
His eyes lifted to the TV where the tent was in the process of being erected.
"Animalpalooza has come to the wharf of NYC Harbor. I'm here with Shane Tales, the master handler of the animals. Sir can you tell us what brought you here?"
Guy had a whole gallon of grease slicking back his black hair. Leo gagged. From the way the perfectly white smile flashed at the camera to the criminally dark brown eyes that seemed to bore into his soul, Leo could feel his skin crawl.
However, Mikey flung himself over the back of the couch to watch with glittering golden eyes.
"Well, Animalpalooza is a great place to come and see the joy of our favorite furry friends. We encourage families to come out and enjoy our petting zoo and see the exotic creatures in a safely controlled environment. Myself and my crew are well trained in taming the most elegant of creatures. We are hoping that New York will prove to be a better investment for us."
"Sir, most people claim that some shows like this are inhumane. How is your show different?"
"We give our talented creatures the best care we can provide, no beast is in danger. We use special effects for more dramatic tricks but no creature is harmed during our shows. Please. Come down and I will give you all a tour of our facilities!"
Leo narrowed his eyes. However the thirteen-year-old using the family couch as a bouncy board could not stay still. How much sugar did this kid have today?
"He's the master animal tamer!" Leo wasn't expecting his kid brother to shake him by shoulders in his ecstaticness. "Isn't he the coolest!”
Mikey leaned over into Leo’s space and navigated to a new screen, a bio page.
“He promotes animal safety and his biography mentions that he went into show business to share his joy of animals! Health codes even say he has clean practices and the animals are well cared for!"
Sure.
His eye balls rolling around in his head, Leo swatted the younger turtle. "Knock it off. So he has some fancy-shmancy tents and an animal show. Big deal. He's probably just using a front to not get banned or avoid being put out of business."
He tossed the phone with the circus info aside and resumed his adventures of Jupiter Jim.
"So can we go? It would be so fun! "
Leo glanced up at the tamer waving before the camera cut to the anchor talking about details. Then back down to his comic.
"No."
"Why?" Mikey picked up his phone. "Come on! It looks cool. It is not that far from here anyway. It will be like a team up! But with popcorn!"
Dad did say they were out of snacks...
"My gut says it's a bad idea."
If pouts could kill. Yeesh!
"Your... gut... " Mikey drolled.
"Yep."
"What's so wrong about a harmless circus?"
"Miguel," Leo pinched his brow, "those places are just full of scams, trust me."
The kid deadpanned, "Sounds like your kind of place."
Ouch!
"I make plans, Mikey.”
The slow blink under a raised eyebrow almost made him crack up.
"I watched you con Donnie out of the last ice cream cone last night." He stated, "and you already had one..."
"Schemes and Scams." Leo waved it off. "Two different things."
Groaning, the orange brother slid further over the furniture and flipped over into Leo's lap. Completely upsetting Leo perfect viewing of his comic.
"Again, not that different." Mikey quipped, folding his arms. "Besides Raph and Donnie are obsessed over this secret mission that will keep them out AAAALLLL day and night."
Leo tried to reposition but Mikey was not budging. "Well, you can never tell what our resident evil genius is planning. Geez Mike, can you move?!"
"No." Pouted Mikey, "You pinky swore that the turtle to make it back to the lair first got dibs on the next activity."
Leo gawked.
“We came home together, you little sneak!”
Mikey smirked. “Or did you willingly push me in first?”
“You were hurt!”
Shrugging, the gremlin closed his eyes. “Fine, I’ll just tell Raph and Donnie when they come back that you just ditched me all by my lonesome to go hang out at Run of the Mill all night.”
Leo’s eye twitched. “You wouldn’t dare.”
“Oh and maybe I was hurt worse than you originally thought so I spent the entire night in pain.”
His temple throbbed.
“I will contaminate all your watercolors and oil paints.”
With that devious grin on his little brother's face, Leo wasn’t sure if he was making the right decision, or the worst mistake of his life.