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"What is it this time, Donnie?"
"What is it? Only the best scientific discovery to be made on Earth!" Donnie exclaimed, waving his hands in excitement.
"Didn't you say that last time, dude? And the time before that? And they both messed something up," Mikey pointed out, leaning against the weird circular metal structure, taking up most of Donnie's lab. It was so big it was touching the ceiling.
"Well, this time it's true. If you look closely, you'll notice the portal like structure in my lab," Donnie stated, gesturing towards said portal like structure like it was the tiniest speck of dust that they wouldn't have noticed if he didn't point it out.
"Oh, that thing? I hardly even noticed it was there. It's so small," Raph said sarcasticly, saying what they were all probably thinking.
"Heh. Anyways I believe I have replicated a device used to travel back in time!" Donnie announced.
The three of his brothers did not immediately fall into impressed clapping and praise.
"Like Honeycutt?" Raph asked, not sounding very impressed.
"Uh.. maybe. But this is better! It's very functional and safe, but I do need you guys to walk in it for a second."
Leo stared at him, "We are not doing that, Donnie."
"What? Why not?" Donnie whined.
"Because I don't want to time travel for no reason. Everything is okay now. What if we change something and nothings the same."
Donnie scoffed, "You're really not going to do it? Wow, you guys are such wimps! I bet you're just scared," He shouts, Leo rolls his eyes.
"Playing chicken isn't going to w-"
"I'll show you wimp!" Raph said, not even sounding that upset about it as he casually ran into the purple portal.
"Wh- Donnie! Seriously, this is a bad idea!"
"I dunno Leo, I could see Renet again," Mikey said, giving Leo his best puppy eyes.
"That's not even -"
"Great! Thanks, Leo!" Mikey said, pulling him into a short hug before pushing him away and running towards the portal as well.
Leo stared at Donnie angerly, sighed, and walked through the water like texture the doorway created.
His eyes shut automatically when he was immediately met with flickering lights, constantly changing from purple to white.
Only a mere two seconds later, a sudden gust of wind hit him. He opened his eyes and saw what looked like the average New York apartment rooftops.
"Wow, dudes! It's so colourful!" Mikey exclaimed, abruptly throwing himself onto Leo's shoulder. He stumbled but managed to steady himself.
"Oh wow, really? I hadn't noticed even though my eyes were literally burning out of their sockets," Raph rolled his eyes, then peered over the side of the edge of the building, "Loads of people too."
"I think you mean figuratively," Donnie snarked, pulling out a device that looked similar to the one they used to track mutagen.
"What's that?" Leo asked.
"I'm trying to figure out where we are. The air is really bad here, so I'd say we're sometime in the future."
"Woah! The future? AGAIN? Yes! I am totally going to see Renet!" Mikey exclaimed, shoving his fist into the air in celebration.
"Hmmm, maybe not. I think we're in a different universe. These patterns are similar to the way the weirdly cute turtles dimension was different."
Mikey immediately deflated.
"Great! Thanks a lot, Donnie. If I have to hear some turtle say an annoying catchphrase again, I will screa-"
"HOTSOUUUUP!"
"Huh?" Mikey said, turning towards the noise only to be hit in the head by what looked like an empty turtle shell.
"Ahhhh! Dude! This is so messed up! His littlest brother shouted.
A turtle emerged from the shell, also shouting, "Ah! Witches!"
"What? We aren't witches. We're turtles," Donnie said.
"Oh. Why aren't you in the Hidden City?"
"The what?"
"Uhh, the hidden-"
"Mikey! I told you my turtle launcher is still in beta- holy talupa, it's you," said a purple turtle, slightly shorter than Leo.
"You know us?" Leo asked, moving closer to inspect them.
The purple one, who was probably this world's Donnie, had a metal shell and a larger than usual forehead. He had a tight grip on a metal bo and stared at all of them with obvious glee.
"Yes! I knew the multiverse was real!" Other-Donnie celebrated, waving his free hand around very quickly.
"The multiverse? It's just like in the new Spiderman!" The other (most likely Mikey) turtle exclaimed, pulling Leo's Mikey closer to him to get a better look.
"Yeah, we're pretty cool," Mikey said, accepting the inspection.
"I have so many questions. What year are you in? Do you know if you're the only other universe? If you do know, have you come into contact with them? How old are you? Sweet Newton, how do you exist?!"
"2015 as of currently. We met another one a few years ago. We are nineteen, and I believe this is evidence of the theory that everything that could happen has happened."
Donnie continued, "One major difference I noticed between us is that you're a.. softshell? And your brother is a common box turtle. Meanwhile, my brothers and I are most likely diamond back terrapins, so it could be that muatagen had just hit different species that made us."
"This could prove the theory that the quantum theory doesn't decide what's happening, just it happens in every universe. That's just a guess, though, I never really was interested in parallel universes," he said, and finally finishing his rant.
"Sheesh, talk about nerd fest." Raph grunted.
"You guys are so old!" Other Mikey said, stepping away from Actual Mikey.
"No, we aren't! We aren't even twenty," Raph shouted.
"That's almost twenty," Other Mikey said, voice full of sarcasm.
"I dunno I'd say you're nearly at your death bed, " said a voice from behind him.
Leo's hand flew to his swords handles. His grip loosened when a very... flamboyant looking turtle strutted towards the other turtles.
Raph barked out a laugh, "Don't tell me this is your Leo!"
"The one and only," the other him said, leaning against his Donnie the same way Mikey had done to him earlier.
"Wow. But you're so much gayer than ours," Mikey said.
Leo felt his face flush, "Mikey. I will kill you," he bit out.
"Oh my gosh, what!? Oh no, how will I tell my boyfriend!" Other him replied, pretending to pass out onto other Donnie.
He was pushed off by a robotic arm, "You wish you had a boyfriend. Lonely bitch."
"Love you too, D."
"My Leo might be gayer but your Raph is bitchier," other Mikey said, crossing his arms and shaking his head."
"I'm not bitchy!"
"You kind of are little dude," said another different voice.
"AGH! What is your problem with sneeking up on people!" Donnie shouted.
"Don't call me a little dude! If someone attacks me verbally again, I will shove my sais so far up their tail they feel it in their toes!"
"Oh."
"You guys are so short," Mikey observed, poking gay Leo's arm.
"I'm the exact same height as you, you idiot," he responded, ruffling Mikeys nonexistent hair before pushing him away, "And look, don't touch."
"Talk about zest fest. And I thought the Donnies were bad."
"Yeah, and Raph's huge!" Other Mikey said, pointing towards the, indeed huge turtle.
"What were you fed growing up, jesus."
"Raph doesn't remember. Most things from childhood Raph doesn't remember," other Raph said.
"That isn't terrifying at all."
"Huh.. that's weird," Other Donnie muttered, staring up at the sky.
"What's weird?" Other Raph asked.
"It's snowing," he replied, and just as he did, something cold and wet landed on Leo's head.
He felt his throat tighten at the words. Suddenly being hit by a wave of nausea.
"In October? That is weird," Other Leo responded, sticking his tongue out, most likely in an attempt to catch a snowflake on it.
"Well, the climate is changing."
He stared down at the snow sticking onto the dry rooftop. He looked over the edge and saw a construction site.
Just like that, everything seemed to fade away. It was warm. It was warm, and it was snowing . He was sweating and couldn't breathe because if he tried to breathe, it would distract him, and the foot soldiers would kill him and he'd never be able to protect his family, or the world again.
"-overconfident. He will fall."
The words were clear. So clear it felt like they were being shouted in his ears.
"Leo?"
Right, he was not in his dimension. It just.. looked that way. And when he tried to turn his attention to his brother, it was very normal that he was met with the Shredders imposing presence.
"I think it's best we get out of the snow. You guys have a lair, right?"
"Sure do! I'll portal us there using my super cool ninpo."
"Your what?"
Something cold came into contact with his arm, and he shivered at the feeling.
The temperature shifted after he took a few steps. It was cold. He looked down at the water in the contrction site.
"-kay? Looks more yellow than green."
"-ah- appens- should be- in a few minu-"
"Boys? Did you get April?"
He sucked in another breath. Tiger Claw. Tiger Claw was here, and Leo was already worn out. He was not going to win this fight.
"Boys?"
He tried his best to hold off the sob that immediately tried to escape his throat.
That wasn't Tiger Claw. That was Master Splinter.
It was Master Splinter right in front of him in a weird looking lair.
"Do you have a bathroom?" He asked, in a voice that was surprisingly calm.
"Uh.. yeah. Just to your left, down the hall and then left again."
As soon as he could comprehend the words, he walked towards the room in a way he hopes looked put together and perfectly balanced.
He opened the door he had been instructed to and shut the door behind him as quietly as he could.
The sob he had tried to hold off came out, and tears began to rush down his face.
His father, who he'd seen die, twice, was alive again. How many times would he be forced to watch his father die before the world was satisfied?
How many nights would he have to spend training to be as good as his father was because he has to be their sensei and father.
Because he has to be better than he is.
He looked down at the wrappings on his wrist and tore them off, throwing them onto the ground, backing away from the door and falling the the ground, and moved his knees to be pressed against his plastron.
When they had hit the ground, they made a clanging noise. A noise of metal falling onto stone.
He pushed himself forward and dug through the wrappings before his eyes drifted to what he had been searching for.
A kitchen knife he had stolen from April's farmhouse.
It had a red and black handle and was the sharpest one the O' Neils had. He had checked.
He brought the knife up to his wrist and pushed it into the hard skin, wincing at the burning it left and the feeling of blood hitting air.
He deserved this. He had failed and failed and was supposed to be learning from his mistakes, but all he was learning was that Splinter making him leader was the worst choice he ever made.
The knife pushed in deeper, and he bit his tongue at the feeling. He dragged it across his arm and bit off a whimper.
He felt lighter than before. Like when he was meditating. He brought the knife to another spot on his arm and repeated the action from before.
His hand shook, he rested his head against the wall, and a wavering breath left him.
What would Splinter say to him if he could see him now. His Splinter.
The one who always gave mixed signals and confusing advice. The one who laughed at his own jokes in a way that always made him smile and would do anything to protect them. The one who gave punishments that they would never forget and the one he heard Donnie admit he hid from when he was angry.
He deserved this, he reminded himself.
He would never forget.