Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

1 hour before:

After delivering all the antidote dusted pizzas, Mikey was STARVING. Finding and delivering to all the mewbie hot spots had taken hours, and it was well past dinner by the time they finally reached home. So when he saw a few leftover pizzas sitting on the kitchen counter, he figured he should help himself. After all, what harm could it do? He wasn't even under the influence of the pheromones, so it probably wouldn't do anything. Donnie would have warned him If it would.

The pizza tasted pretty normal to him. It was slightly bitter, but Mikey assumed that was probably the anti pheromone. After a 3rd slice (look being a ninja made him hungry, ok?), he went over to join his brothers watching tv. Finally, this was all blowing over.

30 minutes before:

Mikey’s stomach was starting to hurt a little. He assumed it was probably the anti-pheromone upsetting his stomach, after all, Mikey had no clue what chemicals were in it. The stomach ache mostly went away after a little while, so he was probably fine.

5 minutes before:

He and his brothers had just finished watching April's news broadcast, and Mikey's heart felt like it was sinking in his stomach. The anti-pheromone hadn't worked, it had turned the mewbies into these feral creatures, driven only by instinct. Crap.

“...Guys?” Mikey said, trying to take a deep breath. His stomach was churning, and he felt like he was sinking.

“What?” Leo asked. He was clearly pretty disappointed that their plan had failed, but it was about to get a lot worse.

“I… I had some of the pheromone pizza”

“WHAT?!” Raph shouted. Mikey winced, but the reaction felt pretty standard coming from Raph.

“Dude, that was so stupid… Why did you think that would be a good idea?!” Donnie squeaked out “You had no clue what was in that stuff, Why would you eat it?!”

“I… I don’t know dude! I was hungry!”

“We could’ve ordered a NON chemical filled pizza!”

“Ok we can worry about this later- we don’t even know if it will make him feral. Maybe you already need to be pheromoned for it to work.” Raph said, even though he sounded nervous.

“Yeah… I guess” Mikey said.

0 minutes before:

Suddenly, Mikey let out a chirp.

Chapter Text

Raph’s heart dropped down into his stomach. Mikey’s eyes had turned a weird shade of purple. Raph tried to reach out for him, but Mikey scampered out of the room on all fours. Raph felt like shattering.

“Ok… Don? Explanation?” Leo asked, panicking. They could all hear Mikey chirping in the kitchen, bumping into things and scampering around.

“Well… He’s pretty much operating on his hatchling instincts, mixed with his human ones. I guess he’s still a child in turtle terms”

“So what is he trying to do?”

“I… I believe he’s trying to look for his mom, but in like… a hatchling kinda way? I don’t know if that makes any sense.”

“Ok… guys I think I have a plan.” Leo said, standing up in front of Raph and Donnie. He felt extremely nervous, but he fought to keep from showing it. “I’m gonna try to convince him to trust me. I’m gonna get him to come towards me, and you and Raph can grab him. After that… I’m not sure”

“It’s worth a shot.” Raph said.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Leo snuck around the corner and found Mikey scampering around the kitchen, looking back and forth wildly. Leo took off his mask, maybe looking a bit more like a turtle would help. Turtle instincts involved facial recognition, right?

“Mikey?” Leo said softly, crouching down. The last thing he wanted was to scare the poor guy off. “Can you understand me? It’s me, your brother.”

“Chirp?” Mikey said, turning his head towards him. His bandana was halfway off his face, he had clearly been trying to claw it off.

“Can you come over here for me? I can help you get that bandana off.” Leo felt like he was talking to a child, but it seemed to be working. He tried not to move too quickly, so as not to startle him. “I promise I’m not gonna hurt you. You know me, remember?

Mikey very slowly started moving towards him. He seemed reasonably cautious, and Leo wasn’t even sure if he could tell who he was.

Unfortunately, just as Mikey was about to reach Leo, Raph came in to grab him, but tripped over one of the containers strewn on the ground and Mikey scampered out of the lair and down the sewer tunnel, landing sideways on his ankle.

Chapter Text

“MIKEY!” Raph screamed through the gate. They had forgotten the auto lock was on, and Mikey had shut the door, trapping them in. Raph reached his arm out through the gate, but it was hopeless.

“DUDE COME BACK!” Leo yelled, panicking. “What are we gonna do?? I don’t think turtle instincts are built to survive NYC in the WINTER!”

“I’m calling dad, he has a key.” Donnie said, opening his phone. “ You guys get ready to leave, there’s not much we can do until dad gets here.”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Raph was sitting on his bed, freaking out. His little brother was running around the streets of New York in the dead of winter all on his own, probably scared out of his mind. He could be practically anywhere by now! He was so out of it, he hardly noticed his dad coming in.

“Raphael?”

“Dad! Did you unlock the door?” Raph said, springing up in bed.

“Yes but-”

“THANK YOU I GOTTA GO FIND HIM-” He ran forward, tying his bandana around his head.

“RAPHAEL!”

Raph paused, one sai in hand reaching for the other.

“We aren’t leaving yet.”

“What?? Why?!”

“We’re going to wait for April to come over. She’s going to make a news broadcast so more people will help look, and we’ll help her film it. She said she’d be here in 15-”

“But- But I- I have to find him!” Raph’s vision was starting to blur as tears formed in the corners of his eyes.

“Raphael, we can afford to wait. He is going to be ok.”

“No he’s not! He’s alone on the streets- and- and- we’re partially cold blooded so- so he’s probably freezing-” Raph said, his voice thick with tears. No no no no- he had to be strong for Mikey- he was the strong one-

Splinters pulled Raph into a hug before he could continue to spiral. Raph realized just how fast his breathing was, and made an attempt to slow it down as he rested his head on his dad’s shoulder.

Usually he would have tried to keep up his tough guy act, but this was too much, even for him. If Splinter noticed his shoulder getting wet, he pretended not to. Raph would never have admitted this in a million years, but he was terrified. He had no clue if or when he would see his little brother again, the little brother he had spent practically every second of his life with. He squeezed his dad a bit harder, sobbing.

“He is going to be ok, my son. I trust that you will find him. I also trust that Mikey will find his way home eventually. He cannot have gone that far, and April has many fans who will be looking as well.”

“Dad- he- hic- he didn't even recognize us- H- how will he know that- that he has to come ho- home?” Raph said, his voice muffled by his dad’s shoulder. If Raph had not been severely overwhelmed he probably would have been out of his mind with embarrassment. Instead he just continued to hug his dad. It felt like the last bit of solace he had.

“He will.”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~`

He ran down the tunnel, not caring about the pain in his ankle. He had to find her, he NEEDED to find her. He ran through the long tunnels till they opened into a big room with large fans spinning around. The wind blew at him, sharpening the already cold air.

“Are you here?”

“Are you here?” A voice rang from across the room. His heart soared as he bounded forwards.

“I am here!”

“I am here!” the voice responded. He ran forward, the pain in his ankle long forgotten. Mama!

“Mama! It's me!” He said, closing in on the end of the room “Where are you?”

“Mama! It’s me!” The voice responded, His heart dropping as it did. “Where are you?”

“Mama?”

“Mama?” It was just his echo. She wasn't really here. Of course.

He turned around and walked sadly in another direction. She probably was up on the surface, but no matter how far away she was, he knew they would find each other.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

He had found a way up to the surface. Maybe she was up here! But oh- It was SO COLD. He crawled into an alleyway, cowering behind a dumpster. His skin was growing numb, and he curled in on himself, preserving the little warmth he had.

“Mama I miss you… It’s so cold here…”

He shivered, looking around for anything that might keep him warm.

“Mama I'm scared… it hurts… and I’m so tired…” A strange liquid was pooling in the corners of his eyes and his heart hurt.

His eyelids were getting heavy… maybe he would look for her a little later.

“Goodnight mama… I love you”. The liquid was falling down his face. It felt warm.

Chapter Text

April had come over and they had very quickly made a news broadcast for her youtube channel. It was less polished than April would have liked, but they couldn’t afford to be picky. When she had arrived, Leo had been on the edge of a panic attack, and April didn’t blame him. If her little sister had been missing, she would probably be feeling the same way.

“April O'Neil here, sorry for the rushed broadcast. Mikey, a member of the mutant team that saved New York and was helping with the mewbies, has gone feral. He ran away from his sewer home, and we need to get him back as fast as possible. You all probably know what he looks like, but here’s a photo anyway. If you see him, please call 886-740-4531 and say where you saw him. Ok bye, April O’Neil out.”

Raph had thankfully calmed down enough to come out of his room, and he and Donnie were sitting by the phone, while Leo and April went to search the sewers. Raph was no longer crying, but Donnie could still see the fear on his face. They all knew Raph and Mikey had a special bond, and it really sucked to see him this upset.

Splinters had made them both tea while they waited, which made Raph feel loads better. Staring at the phone was starting to drive him insane, though. Splinters had also ordered some pizza and despite insisting, neither Raph nor Donnie felt like eating anything. Raph kept wiping at his eyes, trying to pull himself together, he knew he was stronger than this… but it didn't feel like it. Time moved like it did back in the hospital after saving the city, passing by in a blur. He felt like he could shatter.

Eventually, they both fell asleep on the couch, Raph’s forehead leaned up against Donnie’s

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Raph woke up to Donnie rustling around.

“Mh- D’the phone go off? Dee?”

Donnie didn’t respond, and Raph could see that his eyes were closed, but he continued to move slightly.

“Donnie-”

Without warning, Donnie sat up, and looked at Raph.

“Did you see it?!” Donnie asked.

“Did I see what?” Raph said, scooting closer next to him. “Dee, you ok?”

“The- Mikey.”

“What?”

“The - I- I don’t- Mikey.” He didn’t seem to be able to explain what had happened.

“He’s not here Dee. I think you just had a nightmare dude.” Raph said, shifting so he could sit up more “You ok?”

“I- Oh. Yeah.”

“... Mikey’s gonna be ok Don. I promise. I can tell you're really worried, but it’s gonna be fine.”

“I- yeah. Ok.”

“...Want a hug?”

Donnie wrapped his arms around Raph’s neck, and he leaned his head against him. He didn’t feel like he could do this. He just wanted his brother back.

“It’s gonna be ok Dee.” Raph said, pulling him a little closer

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

It was too cold to sleep any longer, the chill was now settled deep into him. He decided that he would continue his search. Not like there was much else he could do.

“Mama? Are you over here?”

He walked down the alley, looking around. He was SO COLD… why was it so cold? He had to find her, she would fix it. She would fix everything. She always did.

“Mama, where are you? I’m so cold…”

He climbed on top of a dumpster, looking at the contents.

“Mama? Are you here?”

He peered over the edge of the dumpster before tumbling in, his head landing on one of the black bags inside it.

“Ow…” He looked down and saw a piece of something clear in his arm. He tried to get it out, but that was taking too long and it hurt and he was so tired…

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

When he woke up, he was still laying in the dumpster. His arm hurt a lot more, the thing in it must still be lodged in there.

“Ow… It hurts…”

“~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~”

He jumped backwards. Who was that?

“Stay back! Leave me alone!” He hissed, attempting to scare the figure in front of him. It seemed to have no effect.

He began to try and scramble out of the dumpster. He had to get away from that thing, it could be dangerous!

“Mama! Mama help me! I’m stuck!”

“~~~~~~~~~~~”

“Help! Help! I’m stuck! Get me out!”

“~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~”

He finally managed to scramble on top of a garbage bag, jumping out of the dumpster and running off. He winced as his limbs took the weight of the impact, but he didn’t have time to care.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Leo and April were busy searching the sewers, but were having no luck whatsoever. Not even a trace of him.

“Mikey? Are you here?” Leo said, walking through a tunnel for what felt like the thousandth time. They had been doing laps like that since dinner.

“Leo… It’s midnight… maybe you should head back home and get some sleep” April said, putting a hand on his shoulder. “You aren’t gonna find him any faster by exhausting yourself. Someone’ll call eventually.”

“I’m fine. You can go back if you need to.”

“Leo.”

“What?”

“I know what you’re thinking. I know you think that if you stay up all night looking for him you’ll find him. But I don't even think he’s down here”

“No- no he has to be down here-”

April took a deep breath, and met Leo’s frantic gaze.

“Leo, baby turtles look for sunlight- or moodlight. He’s probably gone up to the surface and someone will see him soon. That’s what the broadcast was for. A lot of people watch my videos.”

“No- you don’t understand- it's all my fault- I have to find him-” Leo freed himself from April's grasp, turning around to continue his search. His hands were shaking slightly.

“Leo.” April said, stepping in front of him, and setting both hands on his shoulders. “He’s not down here. I think we both know that.”

“I- I- I don’t-”

April wrapped her arms around his neck, startling him. “It’s going to be ok Lee. I can’t imagine what you’re going through right now, but I do know one thing. Mikey’s a smart kid, he’ll find his way home eventually. What happened wasn’t your fault, and I don’t think anyone would blame you. I sure don’t.”

Leo hugged her back. Usually he would consider this a romantic moment, but now he was just happy someone was here to help. This was too much for him. He couldn't do this… not on his own at least.

“ I guess going home wouldn't hurt...” Leo mumbled from her shoulder.

“Yeah, let's go.”

Chapter Text

The three turtles woke up in the early hours of the morning to the phone ringing. Leo didn't think he’d ever moved that fast in his life, and he was a ninja!

“Hello?!”

“Yeah uh I saw your brother in a dumpster on 28th street, he just ran off towards central park”

“THANK YOU BYE-”

The 3 of them quickly grabbed their weapons and ran out the door.

“Ok I got 28th street pulled up on google maps.” Donnie said, pulling out his phone.

“Ok cool- let’s go.” Leo said.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The turtles had all split up, searching the area. None of them found him, but they all froze when they heard Donnie from around the corner.

“Oh no…”

“What is it???” Raph said, running over. He was surprised to find Donnie kneeling down in front of a gate, a bright red shirt stuck to it. Wait, wasn’t this Mikey's?

“He took his shirt off. It must have gotten stuck to the fence when he was cornered and he must have taken it off to escape…” Donnie said, facepalming. “He’s probably freezing, partially cold blooded, and he takes his shirt off…” Donnie sounded a little exasperated.

“We’ll find him soon, don” Leo said, putting a hand on his shoulder. “ He can’t have gone that far.”

“Alright you and Don can keep searching, I’ll head home and see if we get any calls.” Raph said, his breath fogging up in front of him. Raph can’t imagine how cold Mikey must be right now.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The timer on the microwave said 3:07, but no one was asleep. They all sat in the living room in silence, staring at the phone waiting for a call. April had gone home, not wanting to disturb them. Raph had the phone in his hand, but they hadn't gotten any calls since morning. Donnie kept zoning out, his head snapping back up every few minutes.

Splinters was in the kitchen, making tea. He was exhausted, but he needed to stay awake in case his sons wanted him. They were all completely silent. Splinters walked into the room, handing a mug of tea to Leonardo. Donnie was dozing off on Raph’s shoulder, his glasses askew, half off his face. Splinter smiled softly at the sight.

“Anything yet?” Splinter asks, handing Raph the other cup.

“Nope, nothin.” Raph responded, yawning. He looks exhausted, the bags probably under his eyes hidden by his mask.

“You can sleep. I know you need it. I’m positive that the phone ringing will wake you up, so there’s no reason to exhaust yourself.”

“Mno… I gotta stay awake… mikey might come back…” Raph says, slowly nodding off. Splinter slowly lays him down, covering him with a blanket. Raph was apparently too sleepy to protest, he let himself be taken care of.

“Goodnight Raphael.”

“Mmm… night dad.”

Donnie shifts to lay on Raph’s left side, and Splinter takes off Donnie’s glasses and sets them on the coffee table. Leo rubbed his eyes sleepily, and Splinters felt reminded of when the turtles were kids and he would tuck them into their beds. Ah, that reminded him. He laid a blanket over them, then turned to his eldest.

“You should get some sleep too Leo, it's late. Or… early I suppose.”

“No, I need to stay up… If the phone goes off I need to be on alert so I can… mh”

“You will be a lot more awake and alert if you go to sleep, Leonardo.”

“...Fine,” Leo yawned. Clearly too tired to respond any further, he got up.

Splinters set his hand on his son’s carapace, leading him forwards. He brought his son to his bed, Leo nodding off all the while. Splinters laid him down in his bed, covering him with his blanket, Leo hummed happily in response.

“Good night my son. Sleep well.”

“Mh… Night dad, love you.”

“Love you too.”

“Will you wake me up if… if the phone- Yaaawwwnnnn… rings?”

“Of course. Now get some sleep, ok?”

“Mhm… love you.”

“Love you too Leo..”

Splinters exits the room, heading back over to the couch. He puts a pillow under Raph and Donnie’s heads, but neither of them even stirred, besides Donnie clinging to Raph a little tighter. Splinters sat down on the couch next to them, before falling asleep himself.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

“Mikey? Mikey! Are you here? It’s me! Leo!” Leo called out, walking around the abandoned shopping mall. Why was he here by himself, he wasn’t sure.

“Chirp?” came a response from far away.

“Guys I found him!”

“Alright, I’ve reviewed his diagnosis.” the doctor said. Leo was in the hospital with Mikey. He was alone again. Where were his brothers and his dad? When did he get here?

“Unfortunately he is too far gone. I will not be able to change him back.”

“Wait what???? No-”

“He wasn’t found fast enough. Why didn’t you find him faster? Do you not love him?”

“No, you don’t understand- I tried to find him- I really did-” No- this was his fault- this was all his fault-

“No you didn’t. You sat in your house with your brothers. You went home with April instead of continuing to look for him. You are the reason he doesn’t love you.” IT WAS ALL HIS FAULT IT WAS HIS FAULT STUPID STUPID-

“Grrrrr” Mikey growled on the exam table

“Mikey I’m sorry-”

And then he pounced.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Leo shot up in bed, hand over his chest. It was just a dream. Just a stupid dream. That didn’t mean his heart wasn’t pounding.

Leo got out of bed and walked tentatively into the living room. Raph and Donnie were sleeping next to each other, and their dad was asleep on the opposite side of the couch. Dad. Leo wanted nothing more than to lay down next to him. His heart was pounding, but his pride was preventing him from sleeping. Come on leo, you are not a child. It was just a stupid nightmare, go back to bed.

No. Leo resolved. I’m not going to avoid getting help. I deserve it. Ignoring the part of his brain that told him he didn’t, he laid down on the couch and wrapped his arms around his dad. Instantly, he felt his worries being taken away, and a warm feeling spread over him. He felt himself relax, felt all the tension slip out of his body as he drifted into sleep.

Chapter Text

He woke up to loud noises. People were yelling in words he didn’t understand, holding up signs made of paper with things on them. His confusion was interrupted by his stomach growling.

He was so hungry- maybe mama could wait a little longer. He had to find food.

He smelled food, it must be out there with all the people. Oh boy…

He would have to risk it.

He ran out into the street, running towards the smell.

“~~~~~~~~~~~”

“~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~”

“~~~~~~~~~~~~~~”

The beings all around him were talking, but he couldn’t care less about them. He was so hungry- hungry hungryhungryHUNGRY-. He scampered through the croud, and hardly noticed the beings spreading out to make him a path.

He found the source of the food, it was a metal cart. He ran up to the man at the cart.

“Help- Food- please-”

The man looked down at him, and seemed surprised. He almost ran away from the man right then and there, but he was too hungry to care.

“~~~~~~~~~~~~” The man pulls out a small rectangle from his pocket and begins tapping on it.

“Food- please-” The man was talking into the rectangle hurriedly as he continued to look down at him.

The man put the rectangle back into his pocket and bent down.

“~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~”

“Please I’m so hungry-”

“~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~” The man asked, handing him the thing he was selling.

“Food-” He began to devour the food put in front of him. He didn’t even care what it was, he was just so hungry! It had a strange shape, but it tasted wonderful.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Raph woke up to the phone ringing. He didn’t think he had ever sat up so fast in his life.

“Hello??” Apparently Donnie was faster than he was.

“Put it on speaker!” Raph said shakily. Donnie did so, and Raph noticed that Leo was still asleep, cuddled up next to splinters.

“Hey- Uh is this the number for the missing turtle?”

“Uh- Yes! Yes this is that-” Raph went to go shake leo and splinters awake.

“I found your brother at the mutant rally, and I gave him some food. He’s with me right now on-”

Donnie ran off to go write the location down on a piece of paper. His glasses were hanging off his face, but he could see enough to write.

“Dad- Leo- wake up-”

“What- Raph what is it…” Leo mumbled. Splinters began stirring along with him.

“Someone’s calling about Mikey. They found him-”

“WHAT-”

Raph doubted they had ever gotten ready that fast. In 5 minutes, they were climbing out of the sewers and hitting the sidewalk.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

“Yknow, from the way your brother’s sounded over the phone, they’re gonna be real happy to see ya.”

Mikey said nothing in response, that pheromone really did its job. Poor kid.

“You uh… want another pretzel?”

“Chirp!”

“I’ll take that as a yes!”

“Chirrrr” The turtle said, before chowing down on the pretzel. The kid must be hungry. Oh he hoped they got there quick…

Chapter Text

Leo was hurriedly driving, Donnie yelling out directions from the back. Raph was tapping his leg on the ground, mind racing a mile a minute. He was out of his own mind with anxiety, he felt like he was dying-

“Raph- are you ok? You’re breathing like- Really fast.”

“I- n-no I don’t think so.”

“Ok, just try to slow it down. Leo- We’re about 5 minutes away”

Raph followed donnie’s advice and tried to get his breathing under control. C’mon Raph, just like that one poster in the social workers office. In for 4, out for 4.

In 4, out 4. In 4, out 4. In 4, out 4.

He didn’t even notice Donnie holding his hand.

“Ok- We’re here. Get outta the car and look for a pretzel cart.”

Raph got out of the car on shaky legs, scanning through the crowds. “What is this anyway?”

“I think it's a rally for mutant equality or something. So we can get back to school.”

“Oh- GUYS! THE CART IS OVER THERE! THERE'S A GUY WAVING AT US!”

The three of them ran over, pushing through the crowds of people. Luckily, they were let through pretty quickly.

“Hey- Do you- Where’s our brother?!” Raph said, his breathing picking up again.

“He’s sitting in the alleyway over there, on his 3rd soft pretzel. The poor guy was hungry.”

They ran into the alley, Raph’s heart continuing to race. They came face to face with Mikey. Dirty, disheveled, and scared looking.

“Guys- take off your masks. The more we look like turtles, the more likely he is to trust us. We’ll get him into the car, take him to the hospital, and hopefully they’ll cure him.”

They began to slowly advance towards Mikey, staying low so as not to scare him. He looked so frightened and cold-

“HISSSSSSSSS”

“Turtles hiss??” Raph asked.

“They do when they're cornered. I did some research on this.” Leo said.

“Ok well what do we do??”

Leo crouched down “I looked up a bunch of videos of turtle noises. I’m gonna try to calm him down”

“Hisssss-”

Oh he really hoped this worked…

“Chirp.”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

“Safe.” The creature in front of him chirped. He looked… a little like a turtle!

“Mama- please help-”

“Safe.”

“Please- why did you leave me?? I have to find her!”

“Safe.”

“Mama… Please-” The warm liquid was falling down his face again. The turtle in front of him looked upset.

“Safe.”

“... Are you sure?”

“Safe”

“I’m just so tired and cold and everything hurts…”

“Safe” The creature beckoned him forward.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Mikey walked forward, tears falling down his face. He just looked so miserable…

“Chirp.” Leo had no clue what that even meant, but it had apparently convinced mikey to walk towards him.

“Chirr? Chirp…”

“Chirp” Leo really hoped his response made sense, the chirp was far from perfect. He may look like a turtle, but he still had human vocal chords.

Mikey was right in front of Leo, looking up at him, tears still streaming down his face. Leo reached out and brought Mikey closer, pulling him into a hug. Mikey didn’t put his arms around Leo, he just leaned on him.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

FINALLY, he was warm. The turtle in front of him surrounded him, protecting him from the cold. The other turtles sat down next to him, each putting a hand on his shell. The liquid continued to pour down his face, and one of them gently wiped it off.

“I’m so tired…”

“Safe.”

He closed his eyes, and let himself go limp.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

“I think he fell asleep.”

Donnie stood up. “I’ll go get the backseat set up for him, can one of you carry him to the car?”

“I’ll take him.” Raph said.

Leo, with some difficulty, handed Mikey over to raph. They both walked back to the car together, a slumbering mikey in Raph’s arms.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Mikey was laying down in the backseat, still next to Raph. Leo was driving them to the hospital, while Donnie gave him directions.

Halfway through the drive, Mikey stirred.

“Chirp?”

“Hey dude. You’re in the car. We’re going to a hospital.”

“Chirp.” Leo chirped from the front seat. Might as well remind him.

“Chirp.” Mikey settled back down, setting his head on Raph’s lap.

“Here- uh- wanna watch something?” Raph pulled out his phone.

“Raph he can’t understand you.” Donnie said from shotgun. “Even if he could, he has no way to communicate back.”

“Ok whatever, I’m gonna do it anyway.” Raph remembered seeing one of those fruit sensory video things on a plane movie listing once, maybe he’d like one of those.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

One of the figures started showing him something on the small rectangle the food man had. He didn’t quite understand it, but it felt nice to listen to anyway. The quiet music made him sleepy though…

The box he was in continued to turn, and he was finally warm.

Maybe he would never find his mama, but he was alright staying like this for a little while.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

When Leo arrived at the hospital, Mikey was still watching that video. He was smiling softly.

“Raph, can you carry him inside?”

“Ok, just tell the doctors we're coming.”

“I think we've been here too many times, we know most of the staff by name.”

Raph wrapped Mikey up in the blanket he was under. Mikey panicked slightly, clinging to Raph’s shirt.

“Chirp…”

“I know Mike, It’s gonna be ok. You’re safe now.”

“Sniff- Chirr” Mikey curled weakly into raph’s chest as he carried him into the hospital.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

He felt himself being carried down a long hallway, but the continuous chirps of “Safe” from one of the figures convinced him to go along with it. It was warm in the building, and the cold that had filled him was slowly seeping away.

He was set down on a bed, and the blanket that had been around him was now placed on top of him. A soft thing was placed beneath him, and he chirred as he sunk into it.

“Feels nice. Thank you”

“~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~” One of the figures responded, patting his head.

This was nice. Maybe he would just go back to sleep.

“~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~” Another figure walked into the room.

The figures began talking to each other, but he couldn’t care less about it. He was warm, he was fed, and he was happy.

“Chirrrrrrrrrrrrrrr” He nuzzled his face into the hand of the turtle next to him. He loved it here.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

“So do you have a cure??” Donnie asked.

“Luckily for your brother, we do! It’s a powder that can be put into water. I’ll go get it.”

Mikey continued to chirp and chirr happily under Raph’s hand.

“Oh thank goodness…” Leo slumped back against the wall.

Donnie rustled through his backpack and pulled out a small squishmallow. “ It’s the smallest one on Mikey’s bed, I figured he’d like it”

Donnie handed the still churring Mikey the squishmallow, which Mikey looked at curiously for a moment before settling for biting down on its ear.

“Mikey-” Leo said, attempting to take the toy and give it back to Donnie.

“HISSSSSSSSSSS”

“Oh- Ok- Sorry.” Mikey wrapped his arms around the stuffie and returned to nibbling on it. Raph set his hand on top of Mikey’s head.

“You know he’s less like a turtle and more a mix between a baby and a puppy.” Raph said.

Just then, the doctor walked in with a bowl full of water that was slightly white and cloudy.

“After he drinks it, he’ll get tired and fall asleep. When he wakes up, he should be back to normal. He’ll sleep for a few hours, and we’ll try to get as much bandaging done as we can while he’s out.”

“Why a bowl?” Leo said, taking the cure from the doctor.

“Usually the patients taking the cure aren’t really… up to drinking from a glass.”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

A bowl of water was placed in front of him.

“Can I drink this?”

“Safe.” One of the figures responded.

He quickly gulped down the water, he hadn’t realized how thirsty he was.

Chapter Text

He was beginning to feel sleepy, his eyelids feeling heavy. He laid his head down on the bed, curling up around the soft thing.

“Safe.” The voice continued to reassure him.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Raph placed a pillow underneath Mikey's head, and he quickly drooped on top of it. He appeared to be trying to fight his exhaustion.

“S’ok. You can go to sleep.” Raph said, scritching his head.

“Chirp.” Leo chirped from the spot on the floor he was sitting on.

“Chirrr…” Mikey responded, closing his eyes. He finally went limp.

“I’ll go get the doctor.” Leo said, leaving the room.

Raph put a blanket over Mikey, and he smiled softly before falling asleep.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Splinters was going to lose it. His boys hadn't called him since that morning, and he had called April hours ago.

The two of them were sitting on the couch, staring at his phone, drinking tea.

Huh. Deja vu.

“You know, they probably found him already and were so wrapped up in the moment they forgot to call you.”

“Yes, maybe.” Splinters mumbled before going back to stare at the phone.

Suddenly, the phone rang.

“Boys??”

“Hey dad, It’s Leo. We’re at the hospital.”

“Is he ok??”

“Yes, we found him.” Splinter fell back into the couch with relief. “We’re at the hospital, they gave him the cure, and they took him away to patch him up.”

“Alright, me and April will be over there soon. Love you.”

“Love you dad. Bye.”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

April was being driven to the hospital by splinters. Thank goodness they had found him. April was obviously closest with Leo, but she was still very worried about Mikey. Poor kid was an endless ball of sunshine and optimism, and she really hoped he would still be able to hold onto that.

April: Lee, u there?

Leo: Yeah. You on the way?

April: yup. How’s Mikey?

Leo: He’s asleep. The cure knocks you out for a bit, and the doctors are trying to get as much as they can done while he’s sleeping.

April: I’m imagining he didn’t come quietly.

Leo: Actually, he did! I learned how to replicate a chirp, no idea what it means, but he likes it. Some street vendor found him and called us.

April: Is he gonna be ok?

Leo: I really hope so.

April: We’re almost there. See ya soon leo

Leo: see ya.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Raph was the 1st one to notice when his dad walked in.

“Hey dad.” Raph said, wrapping him in a hug along with the others.

“Where’s Mikey?"

“The doctors took him away to get x-rayed. He’s been asleep for about an hour and a half, and the doctor said he would wake up soon.”

“Good. So he’s going to be fine?”

“Yup.” Leo said, sitting back down. “He’ll probably crack a joke about it when he wakes up.”

Chapter Text

Mikey felt like he had been hit by a truck. He found it hard to move, like he was under a weighted blanket. He opened his eyes and found himself in a mostly white room. What the…

“Mikey! Guy’s he’s up!”

Oh.

Raph wrapped him in a tight hug, pulling him close. He realized that he had a cast on his leg and a brace on both of his wrists, and he was covered in bandages.

Oh…

“Mikey, are you ok?”

OH…

All the un-felt emotions of the past few days filled him up like water.

“Mikey?” Raph had backed up now. Tears were pooling in the corner of Mikey's eyes. He was so cold- hungry- and TIRED- and he missed his brothers so much and he was alone and scared-

This was all his fault.

“M’so sorry…” Tears began spilling down his face, and his dad rushed in to hug him. April silently left the room. She wasn’t needed.

“How much do you remember?” Donnie asked, placing his hand on Mikey's arm.

Mikey just sobbed, and the three other turtles collectively cringed. That was answer enough.

“It’s alright Mikey, you are safe now. Do you know where you are?” Spinters said.

“Hospital.”

“Good. You’re ok.” He sighed. The other brothers were moving to sit around Mikey.

“M’so sorry dad…”

“It’s alright. I’m not mad.”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Splinters had gotten up to go get April once Mikey had mostly calmed down, and left his brothers to sit with Mikey.

Donnie sat up from the bed and rustled through his bag.

“Here, I grabbed it from you when you had to get the x-ray, you can have it back.” Donnie handed him back his small stuffed animal.

“Sniff- thanks.” Mikey tried to wipe his face with his hand, but the brace got in the way. He settled for using the sleeve of his hospital gown instead. Then he took the toy and laid back down on the bed.

“M’just gonna get some more sleep. Night.”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

April returned into the room to find Mikey asleep on the bed, a stuffed animal in his arms. He looked smaller than he used to be, he had probably lost weight. Poor kid, he’s had a rough week.

“Boys, can you drive yourself home? I will stay with Mikey overnight, it’s getting late.”

“But dad-” Raph interjected.

“You’ve all had a long day. Try to get some sleep alright? For me?”

“Fine.”

“C’mon April, we’ll drive you home.”

April nodded and followed them out.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Leo had dropped April off and was driving his brothers home.

“Dad texted, he says that Mikey will be able to come home tomorrow, and to order a pizza.” Donnie said from the backseat.

“Of course he did.” Raph said, looking at his own phone and seeing the same message.

They rode in silence for the next few minutes.

“I… I just really hope he’s gonna be ok… you know?” Leo said.

“Yeah… I get it.”

“He’ll probably be joking about it by the time he gets home.”

Chapter Text

Mikey woke up hungry. No wonder, the only thing he ate yesterday was a hospital dinner and soft pretzels.

“...Dad?” Splinters was fast asleep in an armchair. Shoot. Mikey shook his arm gently.

“Hm?”

“Dad?”

“Ah. Good morning Mikey. Are you alright?”

“Yeah, feeling a little better. Where are Don, Raph, and Leo?”

“I sent them home.”

“Oh…”

“The good news is that the doctors said you could be discharged after a quick checkup. Should I tell them you’re awake?”

“Yeah.”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Raph was sitting in front of the tv, watching a show. He was staring at his phone, a message to Mikey left unread.

Raphie: Hey, text me when you wake up.

“Yawwwnnnn… Morning Raph.”

“Hey.”

“Has mikey texted back yet?”

“No.”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Splinters opened the gate to his sewer home.

“Boys?”

“Dad! Is Mikey with you??”

“Hi guys!” Mikey said, stumbling in. “Sorry- I’m still getting used to the boot-”

He didn’t get to finish his sentence before his brothers wrapped him into a hug.

“Welcome home.”