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Astronaut: A Short History of Nearly Nothing

Summary:

Songfic based on “Astronaut: A Short History of Nearly Nothing” by Amanda Palmer
Song lyrics in bold.

Inspired by the 2012 Season 4 space arc.

Leonardo’s thoughts are in black italics.
All color-coded dialogue lines are direct quotes from the show.

Notes:

I’ve had this as a WIP for over a year and finally got motivated to finish it as a birthday gift for Pulsing Space Music since the title is so fitting! Happy birthday, my friend!

(See the end of the work for more notes.)

Work Text:

Is it enough to have some love?
Small enough to slip inside a book
Small enough to cover with your hand
Because everyone around you wants to look…

“The Earth, Splinter, everyone, everything…”
“Gone… lost forever in an infinite gravitational singularity.”
“We lost our friends, our allies, even Master Splinter.”

 

Is it enough to have some love?
Small enough to slip inside the cracks…

“What if we could convince them to work with us?”
“Worst idea you've had and that's saying something. Forget it, Raph…”
The pieces don't fit together so good
With all the breaking and all the gluing back.

“Guys, hold up. Where's Raph?”
“Oh no… I bet he went off to talk to his girlfriend. I've got a bad feeling about this. Yeah. We're in trouble.”

 

And I am still not getting what I want…
I want to touch the back of your right arm…

“Everybody go! I got this.”
“Leo, are you crazy? What are you doing?”
I wish you could remind me who I was
Because every day I'm a little further off…

“Not without Leo! Wait, where's Raph?”
“Come on, Leo. Move it, Leo!”

 

But you are, my love, the astronaut
Flying in the face of science!

“Grr... The rage! It's so hard to control!”
“Look, just because you're leader doesn't mean you have to get into everyone's face!”
“Don't start on that leader thing again, Raph. You've always been jealous of me.”
“Jealous? That's because you were always Splinter's favorite!”
I will gladly stay an afterthought
Just bring back some nice reminders…

“Raph, I love you, bro.”
“Leo, I—I'm sorry! I don't understand what's going on!”
“The planet—it keeps messing with our heads. We gotta remember that… We have to focus.”

 

Is it getting harder to pretend
That life goes on without you in the wake?
And can you see the means without the end?
In the random frantic action that we take…

“Leonardo, what is it that troubles you so, my son?”
“We've got one chance to save the Earth. If we don't get the second piece of the Black Hole Generator, we've lost everything. And it'll be on me…”
“You must not give in to despair. You all must remain diligent to save the Earth.”
“But, Sensei, what if we can't?”
“You must hold on to hope. And with that hope, you must lead by example. You are all truly worthy heroes.”
“Hai, Sensei.”
But… how can I hold on to hope when you’ve taught me that deception is a ninja’s greatest weapon?

 

Is it getting easy not to care?
Despite the many rings around your name.

“So, um, where's Leo? Or should I guess?”
“He's in the holo-room, talking to the simulator again.”
“Maybe it's not healthy talking to a hologram of Splinter all the time. I mean, I miss him too, but…”
“Leo just needs him right now more than ever. He'll be okay.”
“Hey… how's it going, Leo buddy? Everything cool?”
It isn't funny and it isn't fair.
You've traveled all this way, and it's the same…

And I know they've all been talking about me…
I can hear them whisper and it makes me think there must be something wrong with me…
Out of all the hours thinking somehow I've lost my mind…
But I'm not crazy, I'm just a little unwell…

 

But you are, my love, the astronaut
Flying in the face of science!

“Leo, ya can't blame yourself.”
I will gladly stay an afterthought
Just bring back some nice reminders…

“Leonardo!”
“Hold on, Leos!”

Is it the same for my alternate selves or am I the only one? The ones we met, his Raphael called for him the same as my Raph called out for me… the concern in their voices, the way they rushed to our rescue… I spent so much time training them to fight we never got to learn about love…

 

I would tell them anything to see you split the evening…
But as you see I do not have an awful lot to tell.

“My son, you have a lot of explaining to—Leonardo? Why are you so sad?”
Everybody's sick for something that they can find fascinating…
Everyone but you, and even you aren't feeling well…

“Raph, what happened back there?”
“Raph, we gotta fight!”

I can’t tell him; Master Splinter would be so disappointed.
I can’t tell him; Raphael could be so disgusted.
He’s not himself right now… I don’t care what he says, he can never trust anyone else in the galaxy as much he can me—I’d die for him and never betray him like she did. Ever.

 

But you are, my love, the astronaut
Flying in the face of science!

“Everything was a lie!”
“I'll come up with my own plan…”

I will gladly stay an afterthought
Just bring back some nice reminders…

“Leo? He never came back!”
“Oh, no. He's about to do something really stupid…”
“Dude, Leo, don't do this, bro! We need you up here!”
“I know what needs to be done.”

 

Yes! You are, my love, the astronaut
Crashing in the name of science!

“Uh-oh…”
I thought it would be easier, dying with honor.
I’ve lost everyone and everything… Not just the Earth, but my very own right hand. He is smitten with another and our brothers have found someone else as well. What good am I except to sacrifice myself to save them?
Yet, I find myself feeling scared as my breath leaves my body… my heart stills as the cold seeps in and the darkness settles.

Just my luck, they sent your upper half.
“Now come on! We got to save Leo!”
It's a very nice reminder.
It's a very nice reminder…

With the world at stake, the only thing of importance is that you complete your mission no matter what you have to sacrifice—or who.

 

You may be acquainted with the night
But I have seen the darkness in the day!

“Do something, Donnie!”
“His heart… Stand back!”
“Leo! You're back! I thought you were a goner, dude.”
And you must know it is a terrifying sight…
Because you and I are living the same way.

“Ya got to chill out, man. Enough with the crazy one-man missions. Leaders are called leaders because they're supposed to lead a team!”
“Sorry…”
“Just don't do that again…”

~*~*~*~*~

“Space is awesome, guys, and if there's one guy in the universe you can trust, it's the Professor…”
“I think we must talk about this!”
I should have listened to Sensei… I was just so tired and relieved to be back home, I was selfish and didn’t think about our other selves. They should have stayed and we left after giving them a second chance free from the trauma of witnessing the Earth’s destruction, free from the consequences of our travails in space.

A life in which Michelangelo’s mind wasn’t captive by aliens and invaded by his brothers.
A life in which Donatello wasn’t made to realize how stunted his genius is in our galaxy.
A life in which Raphael never met some blue lizard who knocked the sense out of him…
A life in which I never died mentally, emotionally, or physically.

We should have returned to the spaceship to give our past selves a future so that they aren’t picking up the same broken pieces of our present…

~*~*~*~*~

Notes:

(1) Lyrics borrowed from another song, “Unwell” by Matchbox 20.

(2) Episodes quoted:
Annihilation: Earth! Part 2
Beyond The Known Universe
The Moons of Thalos 3
The Outlaw Armaggon!
Riddle of The Ancient Aeons
The Cosmic Ocean
Trans-Dimensional Turtles
The Evil of Dregg
Earth’s Last Stand