Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

The four turtles were on patrol one night. Usually, they had their human friends with them, but they were working on school assignments that night. Turns out saving the world multiple times doesn’t really help get grades up.

Casey was of the opinion that he should just drop out completely, living underground with the turtles and going to the farmhouse over the summers. Donnie called him an idiot and told him to get an education since he could.

The turtles, meanwhile, were going out less often. After everything that happened, humans were very nervous about mutants. Even Muckman, despite being hailed a hero, faced danger when he went outside. Though, he and Mondo were out almost constantly, sticking close together, but advocating for the safety of mutants. 

They were making progress, but not enough.

Eventually, the turtles found their way to the site of a break in, quickly intervening. Luckily, the alleyway was empty other than the purple dragon goons. The shop owner must have already closed when they broke in.

Leah flipped a purple dragon thug over her shoulder, sending him flying into a wall. She whirled around, glare on her face, as she stared down the other thugs she and her brothers were fighting. In a split second, she had caught two others that were charging towards her, slamming their heads into each other.

“Yeah!” Mikey called out. “That’s my sister!”

Leah blushed, hesitating for a second. It had been well over a month since she had come out to her brothers, but it still made her unbelievably happy when they referred to her correctly.

“She’s our sister too, dipshit,” Raph argued, punching a couple purple dragons. “Stop distracting everyone.”

Mikey stuck his tongue out, flipping around the battle.

Leah smiled at them, glad they’re able to be so carefree. With Sensei gone and Don Vizioso’s goons getting more and more motivated, things had been tense. Seeing them joking and teasing like this…

Her thoughts were cut off when one of the goons, who had somehow gotten behind her, had grabbed her bow and pulled.

The level-headed turtle growled, drawing everyone’s attention. The thug who was holding onto her bow paled. Everyone knew the blue one rarely got angry, but when she was…

She grabbed the offending hand, grip tight enough to force the man to let go. She pulled the arm forwards, drawing him in front of her, where she hit pressure points on his arms, letting them fall limp at his sides. He whirled around in terror, but was unable to stop her from pressure pointing him in a way that froze his whole body, then kicked him in the stomach, sending him flying towards a group of other goons. His dead weight was effective in keeping the others down as well.

“...that’s my sister,” Mikey said quietly. He giggled when Raph, who had heard him despite his volume, took off chasing him around the alley now that the thugs were all defeated. He kept shouting about how she was their sister too.

Donnie stepped next to her, watching the two run around laughing. “What children ,” he scoffed.

Leah looked at him. “You can join them,” she said. 

He stopped for a second, before turning to her with a small smile. He was tired of being scared, of hiding. It was nice to just watch their brothers mess around.

A yell from their red-clad brother startled them, though. They turned towards the two, Leah ducking on instinct as a projectile came flying towards her. Donnie let out his own yell of outrage as the water balloon exploded in his face. 

Another one came flying, this one Leah caught before it hit anyone. Mikey was looking at her with a nervous expression. She glanced at the blue water balloon in her hand, before turning to him with a big smile. 

“Get over here!” She yelled, running after him with the water balloon.

Donnie looked at the scene with a fond smile on his face. “That’s my sister,” he said.

He joined in eventually, the chase leading to the rooftops as the siblings ran around, laughing all the while. For one night, they forgot all their problems.

—

“LEEAAAH!!” Mikey yelled, one day, early in the morning.

The aforementioned turtle startled from where she was staring at their father’s shrine. She rushed out of the dojo, looking for her youngest brother.

He was sitting on the couch, a bowl next to him and the TV on the Space Heroes DVD menu.

“Wha- Mikey, what’s wrong?” She asked.

He looked at her, a fake look of confusion on his face. “Who said something was wrong?”

She sighed, wiping her face, hoping he hadn’t noticed the tear tracks. Knowing her little brother, he probably already did. “You yelled my name,” she pointed out.

“Oh, did I?” He said. “I guess , if you’re here, I could use some more popcorn.” He held up the empty bowl, giving it a little shake. He had an absolutely unapologetic look on his face.

She sighed again. Might as well. She probably needed to get out of the dojo for a bit anyways. 

The popcorn had just started popping when she heard the lab doors open. She leaned out, noticing her purple-clad brother rubbing his eyes tiredly.

He yawned widely, before noticing her disapproving look. 

“...I heard the microwave,” he explained. He avoided mentioning the fact that he had probably not gone to sleep the night before. 

His sister just nodded. “I’m making popcorn for Mikey,” she explained.

He nodded, walking over to the coffee maker. “Just don’t use the toaster,” he commented.

Leah gasped in outrage, smacking his arm. Both him and Mikey (who was still in the pit) laughed at her. 

“I’m not that bad!” She protested. Donnie shot her a look as he reached for his coffee. “I’m not! And don’t you dare! You need sleep, not coffee!” She pushed him away from the brewer, despite his protests, shoving him into the living room.

When he fell towards the couches, she gestured at Mikey to keep an eye on him. He laughed, saluting her jokingly.

From down the hallway, Raph threw his door open. Chompy pushed at his heels as he walked, guiding him towards his siblings like an Australian shepherd herds sheep. He walked angrily, not quite stomping (he didn’t want to accidentally step on Chompy), towards the couch.

“He could smell the popcorn from my room,” he explained. “Who had the bright idea to make some?”

“Mikey,” two different voices called out.

“You need to eat, don’t you?” She asked, looking at her brother, who had probably locked himself in his room for a while. “Take a seat on the couch, I’ll make more popcorn.”

He grumbled, but didn’t disagree, settling down on the couch, trying to sneak a look to see if Mikey had any popcorn still left in his bowl.

Leah took out the finished bag of popcorn, putting another one in. She brought it over and dropped the unopened bag in Mikey’s dish, looking down at him. 

“You did this on purpose,” she accused. 

He shrugged, looking anything but innocent. “Maybe. Maybe not. You were the one to make them stay.” He opened the popcorn bag, dumping it into the bowl, which he offered to his sister. “And since you’re all here…” He held up the remote, pointing at the Space Heroes DVD screen.

His siblings all softened, Leah going to grab the second bag of popcorn before settling in on the couch, quickly followed by her brothers. They all settled in to watch TV, just like they did when they were younger.

She ended up right next to Mikey, who leaned over until his head was resting on her shoulder. To her left, Donnie had slowly tilted over as well. At that point, he was fully laying down on the sofa, his legs dangling over the edge. To Mikey’s right, Raph was sitting upright, Chompy nestled onto his lap for his own nap, Raph not long behind.

“You know-” Leah startled slightly when Mikey spoke. “-I miss you.”

Leah looked down at her brother. “Wha- Mikey, I haven’t gone anywhere.”

“No, but you just haven’t been yourself,” he said, avoiding looking at her. 

The blue-clad turtle tensed. “I- I am myself now,” she said. 

Mikey seemed to realize what he was saying. “Oh- no! Not that! Leah, I’m so glad you were able to tell us the truth, but I mean… like- we’re watching Space Heroes.”

“Yeah?”

“You’re not saying their lines with them.” He looked down, glancing at the once-again empty popcorn bowl. “All three of you have been stressed lately. I just-”

Leah looked at the TV, finally taking in the show instead of staring blankly at the screen. To be honest, she had been spacing out, thinking about anything and everything. She watched Captain Ryan dismiss Dr. Mindstrong’s concerns, warping the two of them down to the planet.

“You know, this episode was supposed to be the finale, but then the series got renewed. Of course, it was so late in the process that the writers had all moved on to other jobs and they couldn’t get anyone new in time, which is why it seems abrupt and poorly written,” she said, as the heroes were shot by alien lasers.

The screen faded to black, but then suddenly lit up again as Captain Ryan ‘woke up’ from a ‘nightmare.’

“Really?” Mikey asked. He had most likely heard her explain it before, but it was nice to hear get excited again.

Leah nodded. She continued to explain details about the show, even as her little brother seemed to nod off, content to fall asleep listening to her talk.

After a while, Raph woke up to the sound of her talking. He glanced over, noticing that her eyes were glued to the TV as she said every word the characters were saying. He rolled his eyes fondly. “That’s my sister,” he said, amusement in his tone.

She seemed to hear him, turning her head and blushing in embarrassment when she realized he had heard her.

She turned away, shifting to gently let Mikey lie down so she could get up. “I’ll… be right back,” she said.

While she left for the kitchen, Raph glanced around the room. Space Heroes was still playing on the TV, though the popcorn bowl was long empty. Donnie was curled up on the other edge of the couch, legs curled up on the seat next to him and a blanket covering him up to his shoulders. Mikey was now laying down on the couch, one of the throw pillows under his head. Chompy was still asleep, curled up on his lap.

He took in the peaceful atmosphere and relaxed.

Until the kitchen exploded.

“LEAH!!!”

“IT’S NOT MY FAULT-!!”

Donnie woke to his older siblings’ yelling immediately following the explosion

Apparently, Leah had tried to use the toaster. He sighed, rubbing the sleep off of his face. “That’s my sister,” he said tiredly.

Mikey snored next to him.

Donnie rolled his eyes, getting up to go help in the kitchen.

—

Leah tensed where she was sitting on Donnie’s medtable. She had been wrestling with Raph when she had landed wrong, wrenching her knee out of its socket. Now, her younger brother was glaring at her as he prepared to set it back into place.

“This wouldn’t happen as often if you just used your brace or cane,” he scolded. Leah winced, looking down to avoid his gaze. “I don’t know why you wouldn’t do something that would significantly reduce your pain. No, you just have to make it hard on yourself,” he ranted, getting angrier. “But hey, that’s my sister for you!”

“I don’t need it.”

She sensed their other brothers peeking through the doors of the lab. Due to her averted gaze, she couldn’t see their faces (she wasn’t sure if she wanted to). 

She did, however, feel the searing heat of her other brother’s glare.

“You don’t need it?!” He yelled at her, slamming his hands on the table. She felt like flinching, but held herself still. “You don’t need to reduce your pain?! To make your life easier?!” He walked away in anger, waving his hands in the air. “What if it acts up while we’re fighting?! What then?! You’re lucky it hasn’t dislocated in battle!!”

“It won’t,” she said. Her voice had taken a gravelly tone, but it stayed flat. “I just need to be stronger. The pain is all in my head.”

She actually flinched when a wrench was thrown across the room. “Leah!! Your knee is in three separate pieces!! That’s not in your head!!” He yelled at her. He let out a wordless yell, letting out a sound of pure frustration.

Suddenly, there was an orange aura in front of her and a red one across the room, in front of Donnie.

She vaguely heard Raph calming Donnie down as Mikey took her hands in his own. 

“C’mon Leah,” he said softly. “We just want to help you.”

She sniffed, holding back tears. “I don’t deserve help,” she said.

“Oh, Leah…” Mikey said, pulling her into a hug. She tensed, but after a second, the tears started flowing freely. 

At some point, she felt the presence of her brothers getting closer, Donnie more subdued and slow.

“I’m sorry for yelling at you,” he said. There was a pause, and the sound of an impact before he continued. “I feel… upset… when you let yourself be hurt. And… in the future… I would prefer if you took care of yourself better.”

(She felt Mikey give Raph and Donnie high-fives over her head and elected to ignore it)

Slowly letting go of the hug, she lifted her leg more securely onto the table, eyes boring holes in the flooring.

Three sighs filled the room as she felt the knee brace slide onto her leg. It felt tight, but didn’t restrict too much movement (of course it wouldn’t, Donnie made it just for her).

She felt weak for having it on. She avoided looking at it.

Beside her, Mikey smiled softly, nudging her with his elbow. “We’ll work on it, okay? Now that the Kraang and Shredder are dunzo.”

Leah slowly lifted her gaze upwards, glancing at him in disbelief. “‘Dunzo?’”

Raph rolled his eyes aggressively, grabbing Mikey by the shoulder and leading him out of the room. “Let’s not interrupt the check-up any more,” he said, dragging their youngest brother out with a pointed look at their purple-clad brother.

Mikey gave one last peace sign before the door closed behind them.

Donnie tensed, before sighing, shoulders dropping in defeat. "I just- Vizioso's dangerous. I'd rather you use your brace and cane than he or his goons get the jump on you and- and-"

Immediately, she realized what he was referencing and all the fight drained out of her. "Oh, Donnie, I'm sorry," she said.

He shook his head. "I just want this to be over with," he admitted. "If I never see Vizioso's face again, it would still be too soon."

Leah held her arms out, letting him fall into a hug as her younger brother cried quietly.

"April says things up top are changing for the better, but I- I can't just invent something that would make them go away. There's no hivemind to shut down or control panel for me to hack," he said. "I'm… I'm scared, Leah."

She willed her own tears to not fall. "I'm sorry I can't fix it either. But I'll be right here if you ever need help."

"Of course you will," he said, letting out a small laugh through the tears. "You're my sister."

—

Despite being the only sword user, Leah was giving a demonstration of her sword skills to the group. Everyone wanted to learn something, so they all asked her if she could show them how she does it.

Casey was watching her form, as someone who used weapons with a similar reach. April was studying how she maneuvered the sharp edges to her advantage. Her brothers were all watching so they could practice with swords themselves.

Leah was moving slowly through her katas to demonstrate because of this. In her own mind, she was using it as a form of meditation, finding a rhythm in the movements.

She paused at the end of one set, letting herself breathe for a moment. Around her, everyone started clapping, making her remember what she was doing. She blushed slightly, grinning at Mikey, who was being very aggressive in his cheers. Donnie, to his right, looked unamused at their youngest brother's shouting and subsequent elbowing.

Raph rolled his eyes, though kept a small, fond smile on his face as his sister demonstrated the next kata.

She sliced, blocked, and parried in a rhythm, the order and stances shifting between forms. Raph could almost imagine the drum beat he’d play in the background if it was actually a dance. Something quieter, but on a strong beat. Maybe they could all play music together some day. 

He focused back in when he realized she had finished another set. 

Ever the humble master, Leah blushed, quickly calling April up to lead her in the stances. Mikey and Donnie followed her cue and stood up to start their own practice, Raph turning to Casey to help him with his own forms.

“So, dude, we gonna go an’ bust heads tonight?” His friend asked.

He tensed. “Nah, man. It’s too dangerous.”

Casey slouched. “C’mon, just ‘cause Leah’s a worry-wart-” He stopped talking and recoiled when a firm punch landed on his arm, and instead, he let out a noise of offense.

Raph glared at him. “That’s my sister you’re talkin’ about,” he growled out.

“I- …sorry,” the teen apologized. “You just- you’ve been locked up here forever . You like busting heads!”

By that point, the two of them had stopped practicing, and were just standing in place, talking. Of course his siblings had all noticed, but none of them deviated from their own training.

Raph averted his gaze, but pretended it was a normal transition. He looked to where Donnie was training. “I do… it’s just- this Vizioso guy…”

Casey nodded in silent understanding, though he felt guilty for pressuring his friend just seconds ago.

The purple-banded brother finally reacted to their staring, throwing a blade at his immediately older brother. “STOP STARING!!” He yelled across the dojo, glaring at the two.

Raph caught the blade, throwing it back with a gesture that involved his second finger pointing upwards.

However, the distraction did lead to Casey and him getting back to training, so it served its purpose.

After a while, the two paused for a break. Raph chucked a water bottle at Casey’s head and his friend accepted it with a raised finger. When they finished, they stood for a second longer, watching as April and Leah moved through forms together.

Casey grinned, a horrible thought crossing his mind. He, in a purposefully nonchalant voice, muttered out “that’s hot.”

You could almost hear the crack of Raph’s neck as he whipped around to face his friend (or soon to be ex-friend).

“THAT’S MY SISTER YOU-!!!”

Leah turned over at the very creative choice of words, pausing in her forms as her red-clad brother chased around his friend, who was laughing the whole time, a proud look on his face.

The others walked over to join her, her younger brothers looking less than impressed with the fighting.

“What’s that about?” April asked.

She just shrugged. “I have no idea.”

—

Chloe giggled as the turtles all sat around her kitchen table. They used to do tea parties in her room with just Miss Turtle, but her and her brothers absolutely cannot fit at her table. That would just be improper!

Today, though, Mr Red Turtle and Mr Purple Turtle were angry with each other.

“ You got plenty of cookies at home. It’s mine ,” Mr Purple said.

Mr Red growled at him. “Those were cookies Mikey made. They had cayenne pepper in them,” he argued.

“Are you saying my cookies aren’t delicious?” Mr Orange Turtle asked. He always dressed up nice for the tea parties, unlike Red and Purple. His eyes got really big and sad when he asked his question

Miss Turtle sighed. She was also dressed up. Chloe had made her dress herself, though her dad was still confused on where the blue bed sheets went. It was a very pretty dress. Miss Turtle had said so herself. “Mikey, you made them specifically to trick Raph into eating them,” she scolded. 

Orange looked at Chloe, who was watching the conversation with rapt interest. He winked at her. “It was hilarious.”

Chloe giggled.

Leah sighed, tired of the others fighting over the last cookie. She grabbed it off of the plate, holding it out for the other girl to take. “I think Chloe should have the last cookie,” she said, glaring pointedly at her brothers.

The girl gasped in surprise, lighting up at the suggestion. She looked up at the other turtles. “Can I?!”

Sure enough, they all folded, letting her take the cookie.

Leah smiled, sitting back in her chair. It was nice to be reminded that there were some humans out there who would accept them.

“Miss Turtle?” Chloe asked. She had finished the cookie and was looking at the blue turtle with big eyes.

She laughed. “Chloe, you can call me Leah,” she reminded the girl. “But what do you need?”

“Can you be my big sister?” She asked.

The boys all immediately started protesting jokingly. “Hey, she’s already our big sister!” Raph said, smiling slightly at the girl.

Chloe stuck her tongue out at them. “Nuh-uh, she’s mine now!”

Donnie gasped in mock outrage. “That’s my sister!” He argued.

“No! That’s my sister!” Mikey yelled.

Within seconds, they were all arguing over who got to keep Leah after the tea party was over. Occasionally, the boys would directly talk to Chloe, who would giggle while she responded. Even so, they took her comments with utmost sincerity.

Leah sighed fondly. She turned towards the girl next to her. “Don’t you see what you’ve done?” She scolded, a smile on her face. “They’d be lost without me.”

—

Times Square was full of interesting sights. Many people came to see the tourist attraction, and because of that, there were always New Yorkers trying to pull some scam on them. It wouldn’t be out of the ordinary to see at least 5 different mascot costumes roaming the square.

Even so, the giant turtle crashing into a statue in the middle of it all drew people’s attention. The base of the statue had cracked, and the blood dripping down suggested the turtle was hurt too.

A crowd formed, circling around the strange sight. A man with a strange looking weapon emerged from the crowd, right in front of the turtle person. A couple other armed men lined up beside him.

“Behold!” He called. “These monsters claim to be human, to be safe, but the freaks lie! ‘Mutant heroes’ are a joke!” A couple people in the crowd shifted. “Vizioso will keep us safe! We will eliminate the mutant threat ! They are nothing but soulless, stupid animals! I will put this one down, and prove to you that they are nothing to fear with Vizioso in charge!”

The crowd was tense, everyone gathering closely to try to see what was happening. A couple people had phones out, recording the events or live streaming it.

Even still, to one side, the crowd started to part. Yelling was heard as a path was cleared from one of the alleyways.

People looked around, glancing at the disturbance. 

“LEAH!!” An orange-wearing turtle yelled, tears filling his eyes. “THAT’S MY SISTER!!” He shoved his way through the crowd. A path started forming as people got out of the way. He looked tired and roughed up, sporting more than a few injuries.

He didn't look at anyone he passed, only looking at his sister, collapsed on the ground and bleeding.

A couple people looked at where the turtle had come from, spotting two more in the alleyway.

One, wearing a red mask, had a hand reaching out towards where the orange one had gone, as if he had frozen, reaching out towards his brother. His other arm was being held by a taller, purple-wearing turtle. They were both covered in injuries as well, and they looked terrified and tense, staring at the crowd.

The other turtle had made his way to the front of the crowd, leaving an open path as he made his way forwards. Right before he cleared through the crowd, two of the armored and armed men grabbed his arms, holding him back.

"THAT'S MY SISTER!!" He yelled desperately.

"Shut up, freak!" One of the men responded, uncaring.

"MIKEY!!" The purple turtle yelled. The red one seemed frozen, torn between holding back his remaining brother or going to save his siblings.

The thugs tried forcing the orange turtle to the ground, but he kept trying to move forwards, gaze still locked on the turtle on the ground, forcing them both to a standstill.

The man in charge snarled, aiming his weapon at her again. "Just look at this filth! These beasts, incapable of anything but violence! Don Vizioso would protect you from this threat!" His finger tightened on the trigger.

A shot fired, and the turtle in blue yelled in pain, despite being unconscious. It was echoed by her brothers, and the crowd went crazy, running frantically in all directions.

Raph unfroze when Donnie pushed past him, charging forwards to try to reach their siblings. He followed, half in a daze, as the purple turtle pushed his way towards where they last saw Mikey.

In the panic, the men holding him had been run into, forcing them to drop the turtle, but leaving Mikey unable to get back up.

When they found him, Mikey was in his shell, lying on the ground. A human woman stood over him, stance trying to be steady against the crushing crowd. She kept people away as best as she could, but she was faltering in the panicked mob.

Donnie burst through the crowd, stopping right in front of her. When she saw him, she stepped back, nodding at him as she stopped the crowd from the side opposite of him. He nodded back, numb, and picked up his brother's shell.

Meanwhile, Raph kept pushing through where Donnie had stopped. He was right by the statue, but he couldn't find Leah anywhere. Several people pushed into him in their panic, jostling him around as he tried to look for her.

For a split second, the crowd had parted to allow the mob enforcer to see him, but within seconds, he was hidden again. Raph had to keep moving.

He pushed through, seeing Leah's blood, but no Leah. "LEAH!!" He yelled in panic. Donnie, holding Mikey, was pushing his way through the crowd towards him already.

"Over here!" Someone yelled.

Raph turned his head, finding his sister laying on the ground on the opposite side of the statue, where someone was using the structure to block her from the crowd. The person waved him over as someone else stood above them, blocking them from the crowd.

He pushed through, just about collapsing on the ground once he reached his sister.

His hands hovered in a panic, unsure of what to do for her injuries, or if he even could move her to look at them.

He whirled around in a panic. "DONNIE!!" He yelled at his rapidly approaching brother. "WHAT DO WE DO?!!"

The purple-clad turtle settled down next to him, glancing around in a panic, arms holding securely to his little brother. "I don't-!!" Donnie said, also panicking.

"YOU DIE!!" The main enforcer yelled, finding his way back to the turtles. He had his weapon pointed at them, a frantic look on his face. He was disheveled from being pushed around, and was clearly unhappy with the turn of events.

The human who had been crouched over Leah yelled in panic, while the turtles tensed, Raph putting himself between his siblings and the man.

His finger tensed on the trigger

Chapter Text

Leah blinked her eyes open. She felt heavy, like she couldn't move her limbs. After a few seconds, she registered that she was staring at Raph, who was asleep in a chair next to her.

" Raph, " she said quietly.

"Leah?!" A voice called out from behind her. 

The yell had woken up her red-clad brother, but Leah was trying to find where the yell had come from. She turned her head over, and after a second to process, realized who was on her left. 

"Mikey," she said, pride in her voice. He smiled back at her, near bursting with joy. 

"Leah," a voice on her other side said. "How are you feeling?"

She thought for a few seconds, staring blankly ahead before she came to a conclusion. "Sleepy," she declared.

That got a snort out of both of her brothers. She grinned in triumph, though she didn't quite understand what was so funny.

Raph put a hand on her arm. "Go back to sleep, then."

" I want to sleep," Mikey complained.

"Yeah, well, sucks to suck, you got yourself a concussion."

Leah fought her drooping eyes. "You're okay? 'N Donnie?"

Her two brothers looked at her in surprise.

"We're all okay," Mikey said. "Donnie's talking with a doctor."

She smiled. "Good, good." And stopped fighting the sleep.

Right before she drifted, she heard Raph sigh and say: "That's our sister. Concerned about us even when she ' s the one who got hurt badly."

—-

A while later, Leah woke again, slightly more coherent. She looked over, finding Donnie where Raph was sitting earlier.

"Hey," she said. Her eyelids still fought to close, but she wanted to stay awake this time.

Donnie, meanwhile, nearly startled out of the chair he was in. Leah looked at his laptop from where it landed on the ground while he stepped up alongside her.

"You're awake!" He said, happily. "Raph and Mikey just went to go get food. April and Casey had to leave, but-"

"Where are we, Don?" Leah interrupted, tearing her eyes from the laptop to the room around her.

It was weird, clean-smelling and filled with medical equipment they could only dream of having. There was a curtain to one side, presumably covering the door.

"We're in a hospital."

Leah blinked in surprise. That did explain the room… somewhat. "How'd you sneak us into a hospital room?"

A knock on the door interrupted the conversation. She turned, finding a human nurse standing in the doorway. She felt Donnie's hand tighten slightly and realized he had been holding her arm.

The nurse smiled at them. "Hello! It's good to see you awake," he said to Leah. "Do you think you're ready to eat something?"

She blinked at him until Donnie answered for her. "Bring in some crackers, but it may be a while until she eats them," he said.

The nurse nodded. "I'll go get that, then," he said, leaving and closing the curtain behind him.

Leah stared at the doorway for a little longer before she turned towards her brother. "How..?"

He looked at her and sighed, untensing.

"Well, the enforcer was about to fire his weapon at us…

But his weapon was knocked aside by a flying milk carton, causing him to miss the turtles.

All around them, the crowd thinned significantly, allowing them to see Muckman rapidly approaching.

"You leave those kids alone!" He yelled, pointing at the enforcer. "Your reign of terror has gone on long enough!"

The enforcer growled, holding his weapon as if he wasn't sure where to point it. Muckman glared at him, in a stalemate.

Behind him, police began pulling up to the scene. They all got out of their cars, guns pointed within seconds.

The enforcer smirked. "You freaks lost!" He cried out. "The feds are here to kill you all-!"

"You are under arrest!" One cop interrupted. "Put down your weapon!" The unit moved forwards, standing between Muckman and the enforcer, pointing their weapons at the mobster.

The mutant hero stared down the man, waiting for him to surrender.

Under the threat of the New York police, he and his team were quickly rounded up and put in police cars.

Meanwhile, Mondo Gecko had snuck over to the turtles. He was surprised to find two people still standing by them, though the two looked unsure of what to do.

Donnie had Leah turned onto her side, and was trying to assess the damage to her shell. 

Raph was still standing guard over them, hands empty of his usual sai.

Mikey was barely peeking out of his shell, eyes locked on his older sister.

"What's going on?" Mondo asked Donnie.

He shook his head, shaking slightly. "I don't- I've never treated a broken shell-" he said, voice shaking.

Raph stole a glance over, tensing even more and averting his gaze back to the arrests.

"We have to keep it dry, right?" One of the humans said. She was a shorter woman, carrying a tote over one shoulder. She was pulling a sweatshirt out of the bag. "You can use this to try to soak some stuff up."

The brothers stared at the offered item, unsure.

The woman blushed. "Sorry, I just- I had a turtle when I was a kid and I read all the books and the number one thing they said to do when a shell cracked was to keep it clean and dry." She paused, silent, as Donnie carefully took the cloth to press on the wound. "That's not weird, is it? That I had a pet turtle?" Her friend kicked her lightly, indicating she should stop asking.

"No, I did too," Raph said, bluntly, eyeing the now approaching paramedics.

"What about the rest of you?" Mondo interrupted, ignoring the confused glances the humans sent at the red-clad turtle. "Are you hurt?"

Donnie and Raph glanced at each other, before the younger of the two spoke. "We're… mostly okay. I can take care of it."

One of the paramedics who had made their way over protested. "No way, that's our job," he said. When he got too close, Raph growled in his face, but to his credit, the emt didn't flinch. "I've had too many people yell at me for that to work. I'm here to help."

" I can take care of it," Donnie insisted. "I've spent eighteen years taking care of our wounds. I can figure out what I don't already know."

“You shouldn’t have to,” the EMT reasoned. “You’re a teenager-”

“I’m 18 ,” he growled.

The paramedic looked at him with a concerned face. “That’s still a teenager. Just let us help.”

“Donnie,” Mikey interrupted. He looked at his brother, eyes pleading. He had always been the one to be the most hopeful when interacting with humans. Plus, he knew that Donnie wouldn’t be able to fix everything this time.

The purple-clad turtle was forced to give in. “Okay, okay,” he conceded. “But! I know how things should be done, so I’ll know if you do something to hurt us.”

“That’s perfectly fine,” the paramedic said. “Can we pull the ambulances closer?”

“Fine,” Raph said. “But I will kill you if you betray us.”

Mondo let out a strained laugh as more paramedics came over. “He’s just joking.”

“No, I’m not.”

While they were loading Leah into an ambulance, one of the EMTs almost slipped on a dropped drink from the panic earlier.

“Hey!!” Raph yelled at them. “Be careful!! That’s our sister you’re treating!!”

Eventually, though, they loaded Leah and Donnie into one ambulance and Raph and Mikey in the other. They were able to treat all cuts and bruises on the red and purple turtle, and diagnosed the orange turtle with a concussion. Leah got basic first aid, but the paramedics said that they’d need to take her to a hospital to recover.

“-and they gave you the good painkillers,” Mikey joked.

Leah slowly finished off her last crackers, nodding slowly. “And people were just… okay with it?”

Donnie let out a snort. He walked over to the window. “In a strange turn of events-”

He opened the window, and the room was instantly filled with chants of “save the turtles!” Before Donnie closed the window again.

“They’re way more than okay with it,” he finished.

Mikey nodded. “I was talking to a doctor earlier, and they were trying to figure out if I was eating enough, but then the real doctor came in and the first person was apparently not a doctor, they were just really concerned the hospital was treating us poorly.”

Donnie and Raph glanced at him in confusion. 

“The hospital still kicked them out, of course.”

Leah just nodded. “Yeah, okay.”

Her brothers all glanced at each other. She usually would be the first one expressing concern.

“Wow,” Mikey commented. “You’re on really really good painkillers.”

She just blinked at him in confusion.

They were interrupted by a knock on the door. The nurse from before stood in the doorway, holding a clipboard. “Hey, how are you doing?” He asked.

Leah looked up at him. “I’m okay,” she said, smiling. “I’m glad you guys had my back .” 

Her brothers groaned at the terrible pun. 

“That’s our sister,” commiserated Donnie.

Before long, she was being discharged. Although the hospital didn’t know exactly where they lived, they advised against living in the sewer while they were recovering. So, the family was living in one of Karai’s New York apartments she inherited from the Shredder.

Most of the humans were surprised when the giant snake woman showed up at the hospital in a limo to pick them up, but people didn’t say much (partially because Karai was terrifying).

As they were leaving, Leah noticed why she came in snake form. On the other side of the adoring crowd, there were some people protesting. Mikey also glanced out the window, both him and his older sister deflating in slight disappointment. Raph moved to block the window, crossing his arms and glaring at the ground.

Karai, by the other window, blocked her siblings from seeing outside, but was definitely making a mental list of the people outside.

After a while of driving (including some evasive maneuvers to lose any possible tails) they pulled into the garage of the building. Shinigami, April, and Casey stood waiting when they got out.

"How're you feeling?" Casey asked.

Leah shrugged. "I 'unno," she said, blinking very slowly. "Soup?" She questioned.

The humans all looked at her in confusion before April nodded and turned towards the elevator. "Yeah, let's get you some soup."

She nodded. "Yes. Then to bed."

"Of course," Mikey said, voice full of insincerity. The elevator door closed behind them once everyone was inside. 

Leah smiled widely. "That's good! I'm so glad you're all here to help!" 

Raph noticed Mikey slowly returning a water balloon to his belt, guilty. He rolled his eyes. Leah's 'I'm so proud of you' routine always worked on their brothers (and totally not him, Raph was totally immune).

When they arrived at Karai's floor, a pot of broth was already boiling away at the stove, making Raph extra grateful for April's improved telepathy skills.

Everyone dispersed, going to set up the apartment, leaving Raph alone in the kitchen with Leah.

He watched as she walked over and grabbed a mug from the cabinet. She brought it over to the soup, and he watched in awe as she poured approximately half the pot onto the counter in her attempt to fill the mug. She set the pot back down, and lifted the mug, from which she took three sips, before she set the mug on the table and left for the bedrooms.

Right after she left, Donnie walked in, coffee machine in hand. He set it on the counter, right on top of the spilled soup, which he realized seconds after putting his hand in it. The purple-clad turtle whirled around, glaring at his immediate older brother.

"Raph!!"

"That's not me!!" He protested. "That's our sister!!"

"It doesn't matter!! You should have cleaned it up!!"

Mikey wisely decides to avoid the kitchen for a bit.

—

A couple days later, and a lot more lucid, Leah was laying on the couch. The doctors and Donnie both told her not to do any extreme physical activity (like training) so she was stuck channel surfing, waiting for the later showings of Space Heroes.

She stopped on a news station.

"- is this all mutant mayhem? Or is it the rise of a new danger? We're here to discuss the mutant population springing up around New York."

She paused, lowering the remote.

"Thank you, John," another reporter commented. The cameras shifted to face a woman in front of a display screen. "Mutants recently came into public light during the multiple alien invasions. Whenever there was trouble, half-human, half-animal beings could be seen running around with weapons." The screen behind her showed brief, blurred images of the mutanimals and the turtles during various invasions and conflicts. It ended on the smoke-screened image of the turtles' silhouettes from Muckman's early appearances. 

At that time, Casey walked into the room. He had been staying at the apartment with Leah while her brothers ran back to the lair for some more of their things.

"Many New Yorkers know of Muckman, the mutant superhero discovered by Joan Grody of Grody to the Max. Back in the day, he claimed this image was fake. Yet videos show mutants just like these in Times Square less than a week ago. If the so-called hero was hiding this from the people of New York, who's to say he's not hiding anything else?"

"You should turn this off," Casey commented, a defeated tone in his voice.

Leah glanced at him, but held the remote closer to her chest. It was better to be aware of the dangers out there.

"Thank you, Jane." The camera cut back to the man at the desk. "We've brought in a special guest. He's one of the top names in biology in the country. Thank you, Johnson Newman, for meeting here today."

The camera panned to show the two men sitting next to each other. "It's no problem, thank you for having me," he said.

Leah's eyes narrowed in confusion. "That's Chloe's dad," she noted. She wasn't sure why he was called on the show, though.

Casey looked at her before glancing back at the TV.

The host and Mr. Newman had done their introductions, and began discussing mutants.

"-I believe this could be a territorial behavior," he said. "Some innate biological desire made extreme-"

"That's not true!" Someone yelled, just off screen.

The two men froze. Mr. Newman paled significantly. "I'm sorry, I couldn't find a babysitter for my daughter. I promise she'll stay quiet-"

"No, no, it's fine," the host assured. He developed an amused look in his eyes. "I, personally, want to know what she's talking about."

Leah's heart clenched when Chloe walked onto screen, escorted by a studio intern. She noticed out of the corner of her eye as Casey leaned forwards from where he was sitting.

The girl was given her own chair, though she sat significantly lower than the two men.

"So," the host prompts. "You don't think it's a territorial thing?"

She shook her head. "No, Ms. Turtle says that they do it because they do it because it's the right thing to do."

The whole studio seems to pause. Mr. Newman begins to sigh. "Sweetie, it's not the best time for your imaginary friend-"

"She's not imaginary!" Chloe protested. " You just don't believe me!"

The host leaned forwards. “Are you saying you’ve talked to one of the mutants?”

“Oh, yes,” Chloe said. “Ms. Turtle and I frequently have tea time. She says that tea ceremonies are different in her culture, but she likes having princess tea parties too.” 

“Interesting,” the host said, ignoring Mr. Newman’s crisis on the other end of the table. “And you two talk a lot about the invasions?”

“Uh huh.” Chloe nodded. “Ms. Turtle and her brothers fought against the Kraang.”

Out of the corner of her eye, Leah noticed Casey texting rapidly.

“Oh? Didn’t the aliens make them? Are you sure they didn’t fight with the… Kraang, you said?”

Chloe frowned at him. “Mr. Purple said that humans were made by the Kraang too. He’s really smart, he knows things like that.”

“Is Mr. Purple another mutant?”

“Yes, why?”

The host smirked. “So they could be lying to you? As Jane just said, there is evidence of Muckman’s lies, hiding four mutant turtles.”

“Ms. Turtle doesn’t hide things from me, she’s my sister. You’re not very good at your job,” Chloe remarked. “Ms. April said journalists are supposed to not take sides and present as much information that they can so that viewers can make their own choices,” she recited.

The host sputtered in offense. “Cut to commercials!”

Leah blinked as the news station rapidly shifted into a truck commercial. She felt proud tears in her eyes, despite the abrupt end. 

There was a slight click, and she turned to find Casey pointing his camera at her.

“Casey…” she said, a warning tone in her voice. “You better delete that.”

He looked in her eyes for a second, both in a staring contest. Then, he leapt off the couch and booked it.

“CASEY ARNOLD JONES YOU GET BACK HERE!!!”

—

A while later, Leah was up and walking again (she still couldn’t train, though, which disappointed her). She had been sitting in the kitchen, being careful of her shell, drinking some tea when Mikey had walked in with his most pleading face.

She sighed. “What do you want?”

“Me and Mondo were talking, and, like, wouldn’t it be cool if we got an Amstagrin account?” He said.

“Don’t you already have a Friendbook? You used it to talk to Bradford that one time,” she questioned.

Mikey shook his head. “No, I mean like, one for our family as a whole. If we show people we’re not scary, then maybe…”

They sat in silence for a second as Mikey looked up at her with his biggest, most pleading eyes.

Eventually, she relented. “As long as Donnie sets up security for it.” 

Raph groaned from the other room. She hoped she wouldn’t regret it.

A couple days later, she went to check on what happened when lunch wasn't ready at the usual time. Leah found plates of food sitting on the table while Mikey looked at it, despondent. His phone, with Amstagrin open, was sitting on the table next to him.

"What happened?" She asked. "Did something go wrong with the food? It smells good."

Mikey looked up at her, then he glanced back down, looking at his phone. "Do you think my cooking is bad?" 

"No? Why would you think it is?"

"It's not weird?"

"I- sometimes, I guess?" Leah shook off her surprise. "Mikey, what's this about?"

He looked up at the plates of anchovy, spinach, and egg salad sandwiches. "The internet says my cooking is really, really, gross. That you guys have to be pretending to like it because you feel bad."

"Mikey, look at me," she said. He reluctantly tore his gaze away from the table, but met her eyes. "Do you really think Raph would lie to protect anyone's feelings?"

That startled a laugh out of him.

"I'm serious!" She said, a smile filling her face. "He told you how much he hated those cookies, and he didn't even know it was a prank at the time!"

Mikey smiled a little more. "Yeah, I guess so." He glanced at the plates. "Why don't you get the others for lunch."

Leah hummed in consideration. "Before we do, can I talk to the people who said those things about your cooking?"

"What- you mean, like, all of them?"

"Yeah, can I call them?"

Mikey slowly reached for his phone. "...I can live stream?"

Leah nodded. "That sounds good."

He lifted the camera, pointing it at her and nodding when it started broadcasting.

"It's working?" She asked. He nodded in return, unsure of where it was going to go. A bunch of people joined the livestream almost immediately (he had gained a pretty big following once he proved he was a real mutant turtle).

She looked at the camera, smiling kindly. "Hello, people of Amstagrin. I just wanted to discuss some comments and concerns people have been expressing about our diet. I'm here to assure you we only eat what we like and we make sure to get enough nutrients.

"I'm sure many of you may be confused by this. You see, for most of our lives, we ate worms and algae. Gross, I know. But it was what was available for us in hiding. Mutants couldn't exactly walk into a Bodega and get some chips, you know?

"So, when we first came to the human city, we got to try different foods for the first time. It was options we had never dreamed of before, so we began experimenting. My brother Mikey tried so many different combinations, and while some failed, he made some of the best dishes we had ever tasted. He’s a very talented chef and he makes most of the food we eat.

"Later on, some of our human friends tried explaining that for many humans, some foods just aren't supposed to go together. That didn't make sense, and the idea of judging people based on their food seemed stupid, so we just kept doing what we wanted. I will be very disappointed if you keep shaming my brother over this. Thank you."

She finally looked up at Mikey, who was grinning over top of the phone at her. He pressed a button and put the phone down on the table.

“Thanks Leah.”

She smiled at him, sitting down to eat.

A couple days later, Leah sat on the couch drinking her tea when Mikey ran into the room.

“LEAH!!” He yelled. 

Used to his antics, she didn’t startle. “Yeah, Mikey?”

“People loved your livestream!”

“Oh, that’s nice.”

“Someone made a fancam of you! There’s a group of people who really wanna date you!”

Leah choked, dropping her tea cup and coughing tea out onto the carpet. She whirled around to see her brother pointing his phone at her, a conniving smirk on his face.

“MICHELANGELO!!” She yelled, jumping up from the couch and turning towards him.

“Oh shit,” he said. His face fell and he turned and sprinted down that hallway. He addressed the livestream one last time. “That’s my sister, Leah! Sorry to cut this short! If I die give my comics to-”

The video turned off when he suddenly crashed right into his red-clad brother, who yelled in surprise.

—

“Donnie.”

Said purple-clad teen tensed at her tone, turning slowly to see his sister standing in the doorway. “Leah…”

She walked into the temporary lab he had been using, a sandwich in hand. “Take a break.”

“I can’t, there’s too much to do-”

“Take. A. Break.” She commanded. “I feel like I never see you. You can’t keep locking yourself up in the lab.”

He shook his head, turning back towards the computer and restarting his typing. “I’m working on finding admissible evidence of Visioso’s crimes against humans. If we can get him on something- a speeding ticket, even- then they’ll take care of him and I won’t have to worry about-” He paused, taking a deep breath.

Leah’s face softened, but she knew she had to stay firm. “They’re looking into it already. You need a break. The humans can take care of it for once.”

He continued typing. “I don’t see why I couldn’t just kill him-”

“And become a case of a ‘crazy mutant murderer?’ They were already terrified of us when we were just seen around tragedies. I don’t want you to have to deal with that,” she said.

“I could handle it-”

“Why do you have to?!” She yelled. “I refuse to let any of my brothers be hurt anymore!!”

Donnie paused, hands hovering over his keyboard. 

Leah continued speaking. "I know you, Don. I know how much being accepted means to you. I'm not letting you throw that away because of some low-life who doesn't deserve it. So please," she begged. "Let them take care of it. Take a break."

After a few seconds of silence, the sound of a measured breath filled the room. Then, a droplet hit the desk.

Her face fell. "Oh, Donnie, I'm sorry, but-"

She was cut off when he slammed into her, embracing her as he cried.

She set the plate of sandwiches to a side table, moving to return the hug. Though he was taller than her, she was able to surround him in warmth.

"I'm scared, Leah," he admitted. "I'm scared he'll come after me again, or he'll get one of you next time. He almost got you that day." 

She held him tighter. "I'm not going anywhere," she said.

"You don't know that. I had to trust humans while you were bleeding out because there was nothing I could do to help you."

They stood there for a while in silence, just hugging and processing everything that was said.

"Come on," Leah eventually said in a gentle tone. "Let's go eat and watch some Super Mecha Robo Force Five in the living room."

When they left the temporary lab, Mikey and Raph were not-so-subtly setting out food and turning on the TV. Leah shooed Donnie over to the couch with Raph and went to go help Mikey with the plates.

The red-clad turtle glanced at his purple brother. "She knew just what to say, didn't she?"

Donnie nodded. "She is our sister."

—

Healing felt very repetitive, Leah realized as she continued sitting on the couch drinking tea. Her life felt almost on pause while her family kept moving and living around her. She had Space Heroes playing on the TV while she read some comic books Mikey had gotten her.

April eventually walked in, settling on the other couch and placing her bag on the ground. Since everything calmed down, she got to start working on getting a GED after missing most of high school. In the meantime, she was still interning at Channel 6 News (which was not the station that had Chloe and her father).

After a moment of silence, she spoke up. “Hey, Leah?” Said turtle looked up from her comics. “Are- how are you doing?”

“I’m fine, why?”

The red-haired girl sighed, messing with her hair. Within the past few years, they discovered she had Kraang tentacles growing out of her head as part of her mutation. When she was in public, she usually hid them. Right now, she was letting them wrap around her fingers. “I don’t know, I guess just with all the anti-mutant sentiment going around… and I know how you hide things from your brothers. I thought I might offer to listen.”

“Do you want me to be honest?”

The girl nodded.

“I’m worried. Some news stations are still talking ignorantly, there are businesses with 'no mutants' signs up, and people still yell at my brothers when they're out and about." She set her tea on a saucer and set it on the table. "People are starting to change, but sometimes I worry it's not fast enough. Like, historically speaking, I think this is the fastest public opinion has ever changed about a minority group," she joked darkly. "But, I'm still scared whenever other mutants go out in public. And I've always been scared of crowds, but I think if I tried to go in one now, I'd die of fear." She took a measured breath, trying to keep from crying. "I even worry when you go to work, though I know you know how to hide your features."

April moved couches, coming over to sit right next to her, opening her arms for a hug, which Leah gladly took. "I'm sorry," she said, holding the turtle tight.

Though she had always been closer with Donnie, April considered Leah one of her closest friends. Having a psychologist as a father, she understood a lot of things the others didn't. From time to time, the two would get together and vent, good or bad, like when Leah first met Karai and didn't realize what gender envy was.

Eventually, Leah resumed talking, mentioning how she was actually worried about the mobsters being caught and how scared she was that someone was going to hurt Chloe for speaking in favor of mutants. How she was scared that Mikey's new social media obsession would go wrong and his page would be flooded with hate, more serious than comments on his cooking.

April just hugged her and let her vent. The blue-clad turtle had always felt like a sister to her, and letting her vent was the least she could do in return for the turtles saving her life so many times.

A week later, the whole family was watching TV, waiting for April to appear on screen.

Her boss had told her to get in contact with the scientist who was the most knowledgeable about mutants and mutagen. She had found the scientist, but told her boss that he would prefer to stay anonymous until he appeared on screen, and would only speak if she was there with him.

The host of Channel 6 news (who was frankly a better reporter than the one who interviewed Chloe) sat at his desk, looking at the camera.

"Good evening folks. Tonight we're going to be talking to one of the leading minds looking into mutation and mutants. Many people have discussed what they have observed, but we're here to talk about the science behind it."

Then the camera slowly panned out to show April sitting at the other end of the table. Casey cheered from next to Raph on the short sofa, resulting in him being elbowed and shushed.

"This is one of our interns, April O'Neil. She's here on request of the scientist to help the conversation go smoothly."

"Thank you, Jason. And yes, while he is a genius, he tends to forget that not everyone else is as smart as him," she joked.

The host laughed. "It's happened more than once, where is he at?"

"Three seconds away. He wanted to grab coffee."

"Oh, so any-"

"Here! So sorry about that," Donnie said, stepping onto screen. He held a cup of coffee in one hand and a bundle of paper and his laptop in the other.

You could see the shock on Jason's face for a second before he gathered his bearings. "Do you have anything to set up before we begin?" He asked, tentatively.

Donnie untensed slightly, shaking his head in response. As the interview went on, he became more and more relaxed.

The whole family sat around the TV, celebrating their victory.

Leah watched proudly as her brother discussed the facts behind mutation with a human news anchor. 

Beside her, Mikey had his Amstagrin open to the post where the news station had promoted the interview. “People love the interview! Donnie’s famous now!”

Raph rolled his eyes as Mikey started jumping around in excitement, but he smiled as well. Casey, loving the energy, joined Mikey in jumping around while Karai and Shinigami laughed at the show.

Leah looked around her family, glad to see them all happy.

On the TV, the host switched topics after exhausting all questions about mutation. “If you don’t mind me asking, how have you been dealing with the anti-mutant panic? I can’t imagine it’s easy to deal with.”

Donnie blinked in surprise. He contemplated for a second before answering. “It’s been hard. But having my family with me helped a lot. We’ve always been there for each other.”

Leah, despite knowing everyone around her was already watching, pointed at the TV and smiled. “That’s my brother!”