#and if not I feel like Leo and Mikey being twins would actually be an interesting dynamic as well
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I’ve seen people’s take on the ages of the MM turtles (Leo’s the oldest, Mikey’s the oldest, Raph and Mikey are twins, etc) and here’s MY TAKE:
They’re quadruplets
Look I don’t know about you guys but for once in my time in the fandom I’ve truly felt they’re the same age (or relatively on the maturity level). It could be the teenager/pre-teen VAs, but I don’t get the same ‘they’re different ages’ energy from the MM boys.
Like although Leo’s the anxious one I don’t get the feeling he’s the most anxious because he’s the oldest and the leader and blah blah blah. He’s just a teen full of anxiety.
And Mikey doesn’t feel like the youngest to me (because the scene he had with talking about the watermelon being like his head) but not like the oldest either (because he’s equally fooling around with Raph and Donnie). He’s isn’t some young goofball baby of the family but not a cool oldest sibling either.
And same thing with Raph and Donnie. Donnie for more obvious reasons mostly because the VA I’m gonna be honest but just his general demeanor. He feels like a teenager who happens to be smart, not someone who’s smart but happens to be a teenager.
And Raph doesn’t give me ‘edgy wishes to be leader roughy guy’ he’s just a jock teen who wants to do sports. He doesn’t give off the same ‘second oldest’ energy all the other Raphs (minus Rise Raph) have.
TL;DR: It could just be the VAs and the fact we only got a few scenes in the trailer, but I don’t feel like the MM boys have like ‘youngest to oldest’ energies like most TMMT incarnations do. When I compare them side-by-side they all just feel like quadruplets with different personalities.
#look this could just honestly be me fed up with the typical ‘Leo’s the oldest then Raph Donnie and Mikey’ lineup#but I do feel like they’re all the same age/maturity relatively speaking#look I CAN accept the idea that they’re different ages/ranges of maturity#but ONLY if Raph and Donnie are considered twins#like yeah I can see Mikey and Raph being twins but I’m sorry the whole brawn & brain dynamic#plus the fact Donnie was just recording Raph about to throw a shuriken at Mikey without interveneing#they just give me bigger twin vibes#and if not I feel like Leo and Mikey being twins would actually be an interesting dynamic as well#so yeah that’s my take on this#don’t take this as actual analysis or anything i just wanted to say this#ANYWAYS IM EXCITED FOR THE MOVIE ARE YOU GUYS?!#WOOO!#being honest when I saw the trailer and I saw the whole ‘ooze’ scene I was like#this is it. they’re quadruplets. we’ve finally reached it. peak sibling.#tmnt mutant mayhem#tmnt#tmnt headcanons#mm leo#mm mikey#mm donnie#mm raph#I love them and I would die AND kill for them#also side note love it how one trailer afterwards and we all decided to adopt them no questions asked
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As Don nudged Mikey to tell him to bring the food Lil Mikey and Leon had made to Donnie, Raphael cleared his throat and brought Leon over to Raph. “C’mon kid. Lets have you sit with your brother now. You need some time to relax.”
Leon didn’t quite seem to want to rely on Raph at the moment, considering Raph was still way more injured than he was. But he at least took a seat next to Raph and let April squish up next to him. And when Lil Mikey shamelessly clambered up on Raph’s lap to be wrapped in a hug, Don took a seat carefully on the foot cushion Raph’s leg was propped up on.
“...I’m sorry if this is really uncomfortable for me to ask. But could you tell me what just happened? I want to know what’s normal for you guys so I don’t have to worry about if there’s something medically wrong,” Don prompted, trying to be delicate but having his curiosity way outweigh his respect for privacy.
After a quick glance at the others, and seeing Leon just avert his gaze to the floor, Lil Mikey looked over with a slight smile. “He was talking to Donnie.”
“...Through a communicator?” Don asked, not quite sure how the two boys were able to speak without yelling between the rooms.
“In their brains,” Lil Mikey corrected with a bright grin, using his left hand to point at his own head. “Though I’m not sure if it was the ninja mind meld this time or just the twin thing.”
The words Lil Mikey said made no sense to the other two, and Raphael drew a slight sigh as he looked to Don, ready for him to explain. But it seemed Don was also failing to comprehend what Lil Mikey was saying, for he had his fingers pressed together while pursing his lips.
“Oh, here we go,” Leon muttered when Don finally drew a breath to speak.
“I’m sorry, what do you mean by ‘twin thing’?” Don asked first. “You mentioned earlier that they’re twins, but I’m not sure I follow considering they’re-”
“Different species? Yeah, Donnie argued that a lot in the beginning too,” Leon filled in, rolling his eyes slightly.
“...Yeah…,” Don agreed, now even more confused since they actually did seem to be talking about the two boys being biological twins and not just using the term incorrectly.
“We used to think it was just a thing Leo liked to say to feel close to Donnie, but Dadxum told us recently that it’s actually a legit thing,” Lil Mikey explained, voice full of mirth and excitement when talking about Draxum. “He said that since Leo and Donnie were probably born around the same time, and now share 50% of the same DNA, they became twins when they were mutated. And now they’re always in each other’s heads. Well- Sort of? They just always know how each other is feeling and stuff.”
There was a lot to unpack from what Lil Mikey said, but luckily Don had seen enough mystic happening to not immediately discredit it. And the more he thought about it the more he understood, and it explained things that had been a little odd before. April saying that Leo and Donnie caused each other to spiral off each other. Leon reacting to everyone being loud when apparently it was actually just Donnie that was bothered by it. Leon being so certain that Donnie wouldn’t eat the stew, and would be asleep for awhile. And the fact that he wasn’t worried about Donnie being asleep in the first place.
“You saying Lil Leo and Donnie have some constant psychic connection with each other or something?” Raphael piped in now, sort of following with what Lil Mikey was saying. At first he thought he was being pranked, especially when Lil Mikey nodded so happily. But the way Leon almost looked embarrassed, and April rubbed his back made Raphael doubt his initial thought.
“We can all do the ninja mind meld, where we can talk in each others’ heads super fast. But Leo says with him and Donnie it’s all emotions and not words,” Raph supplied, pointing to his own head with a grin, then looking down to Leon to make sure he was explaining it right. “We always just thought he just knew Donnie really well and was good at guessing what was wrong. But after-” Raph spoke happily for the most part, but then abruptly cut off as he almost breached the subject none of them liked talking about. As Leon hunched up more, Raph reached over to pull him close, tucking him onto his lap with Lil Mikey and looking more sullen. Even April scooted over to get close again and leaned over to lay against Leon, almost like she was afraid he’d vanish if she wasn’t in contact with him. Clearing his throat, Raph shifted subjects back. “Anyway. He used to drive Donnie crazy sometimes, telling people they were twins and all. But now he’s gotten a little more closed up about it.”
This time Leon spoke up before the others, getting tired of being in an uncomfortable topic. “Yeah, well… before it didn't mean that much,” he half huffed trying to play it off as not a big deal even though it was obvious to his family it was something that really bothered him. “Before it was just something for me to have in common with Donnie that you guys didn't. We happened to be the same age, so why not tease you guys and say we were closer than you guys could ever be? But now?... Now…,” the slight sharpness to his words faded with them, being replaced by a slight shudder instead as fresh tears welled in his eyes. “Now it hurts. Now it’s a lot more than what it was before. And if this is what Dee felt like all the time back then now I know why he'd always shut me out. Sometimes it's… sometimes it's just a lot and it's too much.”
Don and Raphael were quiet when Leon explained his side. It made sense then why Leon hadn’t wanted to talk about it. And why he seemed so frustrated and upset. “So… something changed? And you haven’t gotten used to it yet?” Don summarized what he understood so far, and also prodded for further response.
It seemed he wouldn’t get an answer from Leon this time, for he just squeezed his eyes closed and pressed his cheek against Raph, needing a moment to recollect himself. His brothers didn’t seem to want to answer either, so April sat up slightly to take over. “...We almost lost Leo a few months ago,” she explained as softly as she could. It caused Don’s heart to skip a beat, his own unwanted memories flashing briefly through his mind as Raphael sucked a slight hiss. “He was… he…,” April tried to continue, but found she couldn’t say it fully and skipped ahead. “Donnie says it was like having a piece of his heart ripped out. He said he’d always felt something more than others before, but he’d just assumed that it was his own difficulty in recognizing his own emotions. But… when Leo was gone for a moment… It took losing him for Donnie to realize that extra stuff was from Leo and not himself. And after that he said he stopped trying to push it away.”
“.... How did that make things different?” Don asked before he remembered what Leon had said and made his own hypothesis. “It’s more intense for you now?”
“...Yeah…,” Leon admitted, motivated by hearing the thoughts Donnie had expressed a while ago included in the discussion instead of just focusing on him. “Before it was like feeling something from a long distance away. Like it was a faint feeling in the back of my mind. But now… it’s like two people sharing the same body. If that makes sense.”
“Yeah, it makes sense,” Raphael finally commented, a hand rubbing the back of his head to try and dispel the awkwardness he felt about being able to understand something like this. “You said he’d always shut you out before? Why don’t you do the same now?” It was a blunt question, but it was the first thought he had. If something was so hard to deal with, why not just make it take a step back?
It was a fair question, and probably would make sense to just turn off the faucet if he couldn’t handle it. Any smart person would. But Leon found he just couldn’t do that. “...Because he doesn't anymore,” he admitted quietly. “He just accepts everything from me now, even if it’s too much for him and makes him hurt. And I can't just turn it off now that he's so open. Now that it's like how I always wanted it before. It’s just… Sometimes it's just hard… I’m sorry.”
“No, don’t be sorry,” Don was quick to reassure, reaching a hand out to rest on Leon’s knee once again. “I’m sorry for prying into something so personal. But… I have to admit it’s actually really cool.”
The blunt admittance of finding Leon and Donnie’s connection to be a merit earned a snort from Raphael, and broke Lil Mikey out of his sullen silence. “That’s what I said! They share a brain twenty four seven, and don’t even have to talk to know how each other’s feeling. It’s like the ultimate Dr Feelings technique,” he gawked, sounding both in awe and extremely disappointed.
“Doctor what now?” Raphael coughed in surprised mirth.
“Mikey’s persona when he’s playing family therapist,” April answered quickly. “He finds it’s easier to let the others know what he expects and what to expect from him when he gives them names.”
“Oh…. I guess that makes sense,” Raphael admitted, then rubbed the back of his head again as he thought back to the other topic. “Well… while Don thinks it’s cool - and it is cool, I guess - …… I think it just goes to show how impressive you guys are. I had a hard enough time dealing with my own emotions as a teenager. To deal with someone else’s on top of it? …. Let’s just say I can’t blame you if you end up murdering something.”
The last line earned a choked snort from Don as he looked over with a wry grin. “Raph,” he chided lightly, shaking his head. “Let’s keep murder off the table for at least another twenty years.”
The comment caused the rest of the people in the room to silently stare at Don with wide eyes. Raphael having not expected Don to include a timeline, and the others having not expected jokes about murder from the one that seemed to be the most gentle person they’d met so far.
“... Oh, you and Donnie really are a lot more alike than I thought…,” April commented, mentally filing that fact away for later if necessary and earning a barked laugh from Leon.
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Aaaand here's the other half of that spurt of writing X'D The song I had on repeat was mostly responsible for this section and only slightly the one before. It was [Fate/stay night Heaven's Feel III spring song OST - In early Spring -you were always brilliant-] if anyone is curious.
Took way too long doing the drawing though, and at this point I don't care if there are mistakes. |D
#my art#rottmnt#rise of the teenage mutant ninja turtles#long post#writing#cross dimension kidnapping#fanfic#rise + 2003 crossover#Raph#Mikey#Don#Leo and Donnie are twins
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shaking at a frequency that could shatter glass I know I've been here not too long ago, but. please.
h—headcanons..,, maybe...?? f-for.
Peepaw/Dad!Leo with an adopted child!reader...,, please...,... i-i need some Dad fluff with this tortuga. this overgrown hard-shell melon. this- this. (gestures vaguely) y'get me?
he's so Dad shaped. he's so fond and just radiates safety and warmth and affection and ugghhhghhh i just KNOW he'd be the best dad EVER. nay, he IS the best dad. (pseudo) sibling Casey attests to it.
( ꈨຶ ˙̫̮ ꈨຶ ) i think i'm actually going to lose my mind . the Clan as uncles/godparents/aunties. grandpa splinter. sweet brother Casey. it takes a village to raise a kid, they say.
do you see my vision here mate? as always, only if you want to ☜ (↼_↼) & if you do? just .. go ham. if anything strikes you, PUT IT IN THERE. I NEED TO HEAR IT FROM OTHER PEOPLE TOO . (/lh)
This seems appropriate to celebrate me finishing the Rise movie (I am still emotionally unwell this is me coping) I shall grant you headcanons my dearest darling /p
PEEPAW LEO AS AN ADOPTIVE FATHER
....................................
Let me start this off by saying that this man-
This man is best dad.
He finds a lost child?
'Tis his child now.
You are his child now.
Casey?
He's ecstatic.
NEW SIBLING LES GO
Especially since you're younger than him,
(Not by much, maybe afew months)
Casey makes it his life mission to protect you at all costs.
His favorite thing to do is hold your hand and lead you around.
Leo is so so good at being a dad.
I mean look as CJ,
He's got this ok?
Feeling clingy?
He'll hold you until you want him to put you down.
Nightmares?
That's ok kiddo, come curl up next to Papa, he'll keep all those monsters away.
When you get older, you are not going anywhere without him, Casey, or anyone else.
It's not safe, and the same rule applies to CJ.
So you guys go on lots of scouting missions together.
You two may as well be twins, you never go anywhere without the other.
Sometimes, you and Casey will be sent to scout really last minute,
And Leo won't be notified until you two are gone.
Whenever this happens he gets super pissed off and worried because those are his kids,
He should be the one to give them clearence to leave,
Not some random officer who decided to send you two out.
If one of you ever comes back hurt,
God speed to whomever sent the two of you out.
Leo is mad.
Like, mad-mad.
So are April, Mikey, and Donnie.
Leo would literally fall apart if he lost you or Casey.
He swore to Cass that he'd protect Casey, and he promised himself he would keep you safe.
If he lost either of you he just might completely fall apart.
Leo's busy, he's running a resistance afterall,
So he can't keep eyes on you all the time.
That's why the Hamato's take turns.
Leo's in a meeting?
Let's meditate with Master Michelangelo.
Oh he's busy too?
Time to visit Uncle Tello's lab.
Can't find him?
Well where's Commander O'neil?
Can't find her either?
Welp, enjoy the meeting, cause you're stuck there now.
Play rock paper scissors or somethin idk.
If you're around before Splinter passes, he spends alot of time around you.
He's always wanted grandchildren, and he's going to cherish you,
Especially with the world in anarchy.
When you start losing people, it get's hard.
First it was Grandpa Splints,
Then it was Uncle Tello,
Then Auntie April...
Through it all Leo made sure you were ok.
You're just a kid, and you have to grow up in this hellscape?
You've never seen the blue sky, or normal rain,
And everyone you hold close is being ripped away.
That's not fair.
So he does everything he can to make sure you grow up safe and happy.
One of his favorite things to do was tell you and Casey stories of what the world used to be like.
Your favorite is when he describes the stars.
It sounds so amazingly beautiful, shimming lights like glitter sitting up in a blackish blue abyss.
Wow...
After the events of the movie, (you knew it was coming goddammit)
Your first request is to see the stars.
Which is pretty hard since New York is really bright like all the time.
So they took you and Casey to the docks where you would be able to see them best.
You looked up at the sky in absolute awe,
Papa's words would never do the stars justice.
After a minute, you broke down in tears.
It hurt, he promised to be the one to point out the constellations and his younger self doing it just wasn't the same.
Griefing is going to be a really big thing post movie.
In the future, you never really had the chance.
Everything happened so quickly and anytime wasted on griefing could have been a death sentence.
But now, you don't have to watch every corner, you don't have to wake up in fear you'll be alone.
So you grief.
You grief your family, and Casey does too.
Sure, technically they're right outside your room.
But it's not them.
They didn't raise you.
When Leo sends you and Casey back in time,
You took it much worse than Casey, who was focused on completeing the mission.
Sure, you wanted to stop the Kraang too,
But you missed your dad...
So when you find your family's past selves,
And Leo is being so...
Reckless,
You're angry.
Really angry.
Never in your life had your father acted this way, and Casey needlessly boosting his ego 30 seconds into knowing him wasn't helping.
Through out the movie, Casey needs to remind himself that this Leo isn't your Leo.
You have absolutely no trouble with that.
You come across as cold and angry, which worries your brother since you've never been like this before.
The others just assume you're always that way.
But you're not,
And acting like this makes you hate yourself.
You're grappling with the loss of your dad, and the fact that you might fail to do what you were sent here to in the first place.
Casey pulls you aside and gives you a talk.
He understands that your hurting,
He is too,
But this isn't about the two of you.
This is about saving the world and stopping the Kraang.
After that, you can hurt all you want.
That talk ended with you sobbing into Casey's shoulder, practically collapsing to the ground while you clinged to him and begged him not to leave you too.
Aight imma hit ya with the sandwich technique.
Fluff, angst, fluff.
Boom.
When you were a kid,
You had a habit of collecting anything shiny.
Old coins, jewelry, even just shiny rocks.
If it glimmered, you wanted it.
So whenever Leo had to leave the base, he always came back with something shiny for you to add to your hoarde.
He liked to compare you to a crow, and you asked what a crow was.
Right, raised in the apocolypse.
Sure there were plenty of birds around,
But they weren't.... normal.
So Leo explained what a crow was, and that they liked to collect shiny things.
You understood, but you wanted to know what one looked like,
So you went to Uncle Tello and asked if he could show you what a crow looks like.
He showed you, and immediatly you took to the comparison proudly.
You were like a crow!
Mikey liked to put on little shows for you and all the other children that lived in the base.
Making animals and such out of his ninpo.
Your favorite were the birds, the rabbits too.
But the best was the butterflies, which he also used to help you and Casey fall asleep.
They'd flutter around you room kinda like a nightlight.
I also like to imagine that when you and Casey start scouting, you get in trouble for fucking around.
Mostly making stupid bets for your shiny things.
Casey would collect shiny things just to make these bets.
Usually it was simple stuff, like who can throw a rock the farthest,
But even stuff like that could get both of you killed.
Neither of you really listened until one day,
You're making your bet like usual,
And the building you were scouting out wasn't as empty as you thought.
The two of you nearly fell to your deaths, luckily Casey managed to grapple the two of you to safety.
But after that, you had a major fear of heights, and Leo didn't let the two of you out of his sight for a while.
He made sure to scold the two of you when you returned that day,
Before hugging you and telling you how scared he was for a second.
Leo has no problem with you and Casey being included in meetings,
Honestly he prefers it.
If you two are gonna go running around scouting, you should know what's going on.
You'll have the occasional adult who thinks you and Casey are incompitent because of your age,
And that you shouldn't participate in meetings.
But Leo puts that to rest pretty quickly.
"If they can go out, and risk their lives on missions, they can attend the meetings." He'd say.
Leo loves you with his heart and soul.
If anything happened to you, he'd fall apart.
Sometimes he just needs you to have little sleepovers with him, that way he knows you're safe and sound.
He just wants to protect you.
You're his kid,
And he loves you
....................................
I wrote this while listening to anarchy by egg, and damn that song fits.
This one is LONG that's my bad, I got alittle carried away :^
#tmnt#tmnt x reader#x reader#leonardo x reader#rottmnt#casey jones junior#casey jones#casey junior#casey x reader#platonic x reader#future leo x reader#future leo#bad future#save rise of the teenage mutant ninja turtles#leo rottmnt#normie writes#mikey x reader#donnie x reader#april o'neil#grandpa splinter x reader#leonardo x reader tmnt#peepaw mikey#peepaw leo#peepaw donnie#meemaw april#rottmnt x reader headcanons#rottmnt x reader
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Hi, I really love your AUs, can't wait to see more!
eEEEE THANK YOU ; w ; this all so sweet and makes me so happy aaaAAAAAA
ask dump below~
he was 5'3" previously, he's now more like five feet maybe a little bit less. if you were to measure him and mikey back to back, mikey would be a tiny bit taller. you can't really tell yet, though, since donnie currently can't stand, and up until now he was constantly on tip-toes. he's also just very underweight right now, which makes him seem even smaller. as he recovers and gains some weight back, he'll seem a bit less itty-bitty.
thank you! ; w ; also while i don't think he's ever, like, straight up wiggled his fingers at a boy, i do think he occasionally gets a little fidgety/twitchy with his hands and fingers when he has a crush. maybe also tends to do little arm/shoulder touches with his outstretched fingers as well when he's flirting. u w u
It's completely gone! his tummy and hips are now just like the other exposed parts of his body, like his arms and legs-- just skin and scales. I don't think it ever actually came up in the main part of the comic, but is illustrated in his reference image in the masterpost! Also don't worry, no ill-effects from being crop-topped. It'll just take a bit of getting used to. (If anything, it's a bit of a boon at the moment for the rest of the fam. A lot of medical care is a lot easier without plastron blocking the patient's entire torso.)
HEHEHE, thank you <3 i love making them wag their tails I think it's so cute and silly... <3 I think Raph (across all AU's, lol) has definitely accidentally hurt himself wagging his tail in excitement on at least one occasion.
Oh gosh. It's hard to say because it's such a spectrum... It would have to be a pretty nasty injury for the witchdoctors to not be able to do something about it. But assuming they can't... Big Mama would never outright ask the Gems to perform on a serious injury, but the twins would definitely feel pressure to continue performing for as long as they possibly could, and to keep recovery time as short as possible. If they had to take time off to heal, they would, (and have in the past,) but they'd definitely be impatient to get back on the field. If the injury is truly so bad that one or both of them can no longer perform, they'd probably both retire, (though extremely reluctantly, and doing so would be incredibly heartbreaking for them and cause them a lot of grief and guilt,) because neither would want to go on without the other. There might be some pushback from Big Mama, though, and the uninjured party could potentially be convinced, with enough time and enough conversations, to make a comeback...
Poorly. It'd probably go about the same way it did for Donnie, except worse the second time around. They'd probably both be in trouble for it-- Leo for keeping things for her, and Donnie because she (correctly) assumes that he's 'influenced' Leo somehow, since he did the same thing first.
he is being SOOOO brave right now... but he can't NOT. not when his kids are on the line :< though I will say, you're being quite optimistic about how his conversation with Big Mama is gonna go... 👀
lmao april is maybe in a TEENSY bit over her head, bless her. splinter definitely struggled over whether or not to bring her with him to see big mama. he tried to convince her to let him escort her back home once he realized where he had to go, but of course she wouldn't hear of it. thought about having her wait outside, but... is so reluctant to leave her alone in the hidden city... knew she would probably pushback anyway, too, so...
the twins will definitely have a ton of therapy and healing to tackle in the future <3 my poor sweet baby boys....
THANK YOU <3 <3 <3
@11bountyhunters @oh-my-muffins @oneshortlove @khlegacynexus @animal-lover-forever @wings-of-sapphire @devious-little-creature @riseleon
#asks#ask dump#sorrywhatnowau asks#gemini au asks#gemini asks#swanatello asks#anon#HEHEHE THANKS GANG#sorry i always hoard so many of these lol#if you sent one in that isnt answered here its probably been answered before#or im saving it for a swannie update#or i wanna draw something in response#or it just got ated by tumblr lol = 3 =#sobs... im really happy... that i can inspire some people... and you guys like the things i do... ; w ;
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Top Ten Posts of 2023
I decided, why not? ^^
I'm limiting this to fics/analysis/headcanon/etc posts I made during the year and skipping over anything that isn't my actual creative work. That said, if you're curious, my actual top post was this funky screenshot from episode 2.
10. Everyone's just fine with Donnie modding the moon buggy? (362 notes)
It occurred to me that despite being MASSIVE nerds for the Jupiter Jim franchise, the bros seemed awfully chill with Donnie taking an actual on-set moon buggy and modding the hell out of it.
A few people argued with me in the notes that the Turtle Tank is so cool no one could possibly be mad about it and I do think that's fair. The Turtle Tank is easily my favorite thing Donnie made in the show.
9. Splinter and Leo talk post movie (443 notes)
And then his dad walks in and says, “I would like to talk to Blue, please. Alone.”
And suddenly Leo doesn’t feel so good anymore.
This is the most recent tumblr fic I've done (I think lol), so seeing it make it this high felt pretty good. I love Splinter and his boys... they make me emotional.
8. A headcanon about the Disaster Twins (445 notes)
I have a headcanon that the twins are lowkey always trying to get each other to laugh.
This is still true.
7. A showcase of Donnie's injuries in End Game (462 notes)
So everyone talks about Donnie getting his shell shredded by the Shredder in Many Unhappy Returns but I feel like it’s underappreciated that that happened to him coming off of getting his ass beat in End Game like
One of the first posts I made when I made this blog haha. Poor Donnie |'D
6. Donnie records everything (617 notes)
broke: Donnie listening to what happened in the prison dimension
woke: Donnie showing Raph Leo’s big damn hero speech since he wasn’t there the first time
The main reason why this has so many notes is because @roseverdict wrote a great fic down in the notes that you should all go read.
5. Leo asks Donnie a favor (829 notes)
“You might as well tell me what you need,” he says, turning to his computer and pulling up his list. “I’ll assess it and prioritize.”
“No, no, that’s okay. It’s nothing,” Leo insists.
“Nardo.” Donnie levels his best stare at him. “What is it?”
I love writing the Disaster Twins being soft and you guys love it when I write it too.
4. Present Donnie and Future Donnie have a little disagreement (CAS AU fic) (1,242 notes)
“What was I supposed to do, tie him to a chair?”
“Yes!?” says Mini-him like he’s stupid, which warrants a scoff.
Shoutout to @skcirthinq who doodled a comic version of their conversation.
3. Casey Jr. and Uncle Tello troll Present Donnie (CAS AU fic) (1,701 notes)
Casey Jr, says Uncle Tello’s voice.
Uncle Tello?
Do you want to see something really funny?
This is my actual fic with the most notes! I'm glad you all enjoyed this silly little take on what was actually an incredibly intense moment in Cass's original comic.
2. Mikey contacts the Hamato ancestors (2,054 notes)
future Mikey: *trying to contact the spirits of the Hamato for advice and guidance in the apocalypse*
Donnie’s spirit: Hello, you are now communing with Donatello.
I can't believe you guys gave over 2K notes to the stupidest joke I've ever made. Shoutout to @nonymous06 for this artist's rendition.
and finally, drum roll please.....
My top post of 2023:
1. A very silly idea for a separated AU (4,283 notes)
non-angsty ROTTMNT separated AU where the boys meet online and bond over their shared love of Jupiter Jim and skateboarding and Lou Jitsu. Then one day they agree to meet irl for the first time at a con and decide to dress as turtle aliens.
This post spawned an adorable fanart by @thatsmutbean , this hilarious fanart by @onionninjasstuff , and an entire fanfic called new phone who dis by @rbtlvr
This has been an incredible year! My love for ROTTMNT has not diminished in the slightest and I still have lots of ideas, so I hope you guys stick with me for 2024. Thanks again! Happy New Year!!
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this might be a stupid question but, what exactly did Splinter do to the MM!trio? you’ve mentioned in both Don and Leo’s redesigns (both of which look awesome btw) how they feel about his ‘past actions’
is it just referring to his neglect, or did something else happen?
sorry again if this is a dumb question, or if you’ve already answered this. im just confused jsjabjs
No worries, I've been vague-posting about it and never really explained so you're definitely not alone lol, explanation under the cut as usual (warning, it's a bit long)
So I'm very interested in the headcanon that Splinter went through depressive episodes while trying to raise the turtles, and as a result neglected them by being emotionally absent, which could be technically canon based off how they characterized him in early episodes and various bits of dialogue?
I don't wanna jump the gun and say it's true to the show but there's hints here and there that he wasn't the most emotionally present parent (the fact Donnie has never had positive reinforcement from an adult and never spends time with Splinter, the fact Leo assumes he's the least favorite, Raph's entire conflict in the season 2 finale being burdened with too much responsibility, Mikey basically being the family therapist in place of, oh idk a parental figure, etc). Anyways, canon or not it's a legitimate thing in this AU.
Once the trio was old enough to look after themselves, Splinter fully fell into his depression and barely did anything around the lair. He would go days without leaving his room, not eating or doing anything, practically comatose in bed. His depression definitely wasn't helped with the way he lost Raph right after escaping Draxum's lab. I said it once, I'll say it again: survivor's guilt is a bitch
But the longest (and last) time he ever did so was when the turtles were 9-10 (Mikey 9, the twins 10). He completely isolated himself and left them to survive on their own for two weeks. Which doesn't sound that long, but it wasn't like they had two weeks' worth of food stocked up, not to mention the necessary upkeep around the lair. Leo and Donnie made it work, all while doing their best to keep Mikey happy, but it really took a toll on their trust in Splinter. After that, Splinter slowly made a recovery and has spent years doing his best to make it up to them. Leo appreciates it, Mikey acknowledges it, Donnie ignores it. But even now, nobody has yet to actually discuss the incident beyond surface-level apologies.
All in all, the fam is Not Okay but refuses to acknowledge it. I don't wanna get into too many details though, because a bunch of this stuff is gonna be talked about in either the fic or comic parts as they come out. Hope this cleared up any confusion :]
#i have so many thoughts on how their relationships have changed in this au but i wanna hold off on the details#at least until it's revealed in the actual storyline#whenever that may be#rottmnt rant#mutant manhunt au#asks open
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List of ROTTMNT headcanons/rando ideas I will maybe draw!
Disaster Twins edition!
Okay, so I personally think they could be actual twins and canon could explain it as a mutation effect do it you cowards-
Donnie and Leo share a brain cell, Donnie just hoards it 99% of the time. But that 1% of the time Leo has it is beautiful (chaotic).
They absolutely could finish each other’s sentences, and sometime do without realizing it.
As tots they could practically read each others mind, and while they can’t as much anymore if one is asking for something but can’t remember what it’s called the other will know what the other needs.
If they tried hard enough. They could use twin telepathy. They stopped doing it after Leo used it to rickroll Donnie for three hours straight.
If they were to switch weapons they would be able to use the others weapon easily, its a twin thing.
They always dress identically without trying too. Sometimes they shrug it off and go with it. Other times they’re like “well one of us has to change.”
Leo is the only person that has the honor, nay the privilege, to touch Donnie’s softshell without having to ask. He also has the privilege to rest on it during turtle piles.
They can sing any Brittney spears song from memory flawlessly.
Leo most definitely came across a softshell turtle cooking video, watched it in absolute horror, and proceeded to latch onto Donnie for the rest of the week. (Totally not something I did-)
As the taller twin Leo has claimed the older twin role. In reality they hatched at the exact same time.
Donnie only denies being Leo’s twin as a front, people can’t know he has… feelings (dramatic gasp). Leo knows this and likes the “arguments” over whether their twins or not just so he can saw random not facts to make Donnie mad.
In the apocalyptic future of the ROTTMNT movie, Leo felt when Donnie died. It was like a part of him was suddenly missing. He was likely in battle when it happened, and that feeling made him collapse and break down in the middle of the fight. Needless to say he was not surprised when April gave him the news, just saying “I already knew… its a twin thing. Was a twin thing…”
Alternatively, when Leo sacrificed himself and was trapped in the prison dimension Donnie felt a similar feeling. While it wasn’t as bad as it would’ve been had Leo died, it still left Donnie feeling hollow inside.
And since I can’t end this on angst-
As Turtle Tots, Leo found out about conjoined twins and wanted in. It took a bit of convincing, but after claiming it would be a fun experiment, talked Donnie into make a machine to fuse them together. They were conjoined at the hip for a month because someone (*cough* Mikey *cough*) ‘accidentally’ used the machine as a chew toy. Donnie still has that machine, for research. Obviously.
Pt 2: Here
#rottmnt#rottmnt headcanons#disaster twins#rottmnt leo#rottmnt donnie#rottmnt donatello#rottmnt leonardo#rottmnt disaster twins#make disaster twins canon you cowards!#turtle tots#rottmnt turtle tots
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2012 Leo is the oldest out of the turtles including the rise ones and he’s also somewhat of a mom figure. If he were to ever get angry or scold the rise turtles how would each of them react?
Ooooooo I love Mom Leo omg-
Okay so as we all know 12 Leo takes quite a bit to get actually upset and angry with people but should he actually get angry or scold at the younger turtles such as the Rise boys it'd probably go something along the lines of:
Rise Raph being downright surprised pikachu meme. Rise Raph is the oldest out of his brothers so he's a lot of times in the place that 12 Leo holds which is the scolding parental disappointment. So he's not used to being on the receiving end of this kind of thing. Our large turtle boy would essentially be stunned by the scolding and then most likely apologize for the thing he'd done to upset 12 Leo because surprisingly the smaller turtle can be quite imitating especially with the trademark disappointed mom vibe. Once he got scolded good and well he'd probably do things like keep the other boys in line or help keep the lair in order to get back into 12 Leo's good graces, which wouldn't take long for it to happen. 12 Leo's a forgiving mom lol. Once they got things cleared up Rise Raph and 12 Leo would be just fine (aka Mom and Dad would be an iconic older sibling duo once more lol).
Rise Leo if he got scolded by 12 Leo would undoubtedly be super bummed, sad and a bit frustrated by it. Rise Leo somewhat looks up to his older counterpart and like many young lads who admire someone he'll want to only make 12 Leo proud and happy. So having 12 Leo scold him would leave him feeling pretty crummy. He may even get annoyed with it at first however once it was over and he thought about the situation he'd eventually go back to the older turtle and awkwardly apologize for causing trouble. 12 Leo of course is very quick to forgive his younger counterpart and they'd probably spend a bit of time together to talk about the situation and figure out how to avoid it in the future. (They'd also talk about Rise Leo's self esteem issues and 12 Leo would explain that just because he scolds him doesn't mean that he doesn't love him, he does it because he cares and he likes his younger, taller companion just the way he is and would smother him in his trademark Motherly Affection).
Rise Donnie would definitely have an internal breakdown if 12 Leo scolded him. Our soft shell boy thrives on parental praise and encouragement. He literally strives to be the best he can be just to get some of that sweet, sweet validation that he craves and 12 Leo is one of his main sources for this kind of thing. So to be scolded by the older turtle would lowkey make him a mess on the inside. On the outside he'll act unbothered and nonchalant about it but on the inside he'd be having a trademark BREAKDOWN, BREAKDOWN. It'd only be after it was all said and done and when everything had settled down that 12 Leo would seek out Rise Donnie to talk to him and explain that he only scolded him because he was worried and that he was still proud of him. Rise Donnie would be back in good spirits after that. After all he got his mom to still be proud of him and that's all that matters to Rise Donnie in the end. (He may also get doted on by 12 Leo in trademark Motherly Affection for a bit much like his twin).
Rise Mikey if he was scolded by 12 Leo would be the definition of a kicked puppy. I'm talking the big sad eyes and the shimmying foot against the ground and the bowed head of shame type of ordeal. Rise Mikey hates having parental figures be upset at him and to have the mom of the group scold him for something would make him very sad. However things would be fixed shortly afterwards because much like 12 Mikey, 12 Leo's got a soft spot for the babies of their small clan and seeing the kicked puppy look on the smaller box turtle would make him internally battle himself on whether he should remain firm in his scoldings or if he should just let it go because omg Rise Mikey looks so sad and he hates it when Rise Mikey is sad because he thinks of 12 Mikey and in the end he ends up losing said battle and letting it go.
It drives 12 Raph and 12 Donnie nuts when he does this lol. 12 Mikey on the other hand would find it hilarious.
#oli talks#ooc#muns ramblings#mindless ramblings of a madman#asks#anonymous asks#ask and you shall receive#teenage mutant ninja turtles#rise of the teenage mutant ninja turtles#rise of the tmnt#tmnt#rottmnt#tmnt/rottmnt crossover#tmnt 2012 rottmnt crossover#rottmnt tmnt 2012 crossover#tmnt 2012#tmnt 2018#tmnt leo#rottmnt leo#tmnt raph#rottmnt raph#tmnt donnie#rottmnt donnie#tmnt mikey#rottmnt mikey#12 Mom Leo scolding his babies lol adore it#he'd totally give the twins a bit of affection because they've got some major self esteem issues and he can't have that lol#Rise Raph would be wondering if he goes off like that whenever he scolds his own siblings and pulls an uno reverse on 12 Leo
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Eyes Wide Open
Donnie + gn!reader & Leo x gn!reader
Warnings: mutual pinning, mentions of marriage, fluff, aged up, no tcest!!!
A/N: The twins ever! I wish I had a relationship like theirs with my twin. :( Also, I can't get over how cute Donnie is in the gif...
Donnie │ Raph │ Mikey
"Screwdriver..." Donnie held his hand out to you.
"What kind?" You ask. "Phillip, flat... torque?"
"Phillip..." He sighs. You place the Phillip head in his hand. "When have I ever used torque?"
"Never, so why do you have it?" You laugh.
"It comes in the pack..." His voice drifted off as he worked. You spun idly in your chair. "Finished. Ta-Da."
"Thank you so much, Dee." Donnie hands you your fixed coffee machine. "You're the best!"
"I only fix a few things for free, then you have to start paying." He reminds you. "Unless you're family."
"Am I not family?"
"Hmmm....? No. Not yet."
"I'm hurt, Grimace." He hated being called Grimace, but you loved calling him it. Especially when he was being stubborn.
"Maybe you should marry Leo, then we can talk pricing." Donnie smiles. You feel your face heat up. Donnie always had to have the upper hand...
"Don-"
"Think about it." Donnie covers your mouth.
You left with your coffee maker, grumbling about Donnie. You made it home finally, not expecting a blue branded turtle to be sitting in your living room.
"Leo!" You grin, setting your coffee machine on the kitchen counter.
"I was wondering when you'd get home." Leo hugs you, picking you up a little. "Where were you?"
"I was with Donnie, he was fixing my coffee machine." You answer, wrapping your own arms around him.
"You were at my house and I am at yours..." Leo chuckles, setting you down. "We have to work on that."
"You're brother..." You shake your head. "Telling me I have to pay for him to fix stuff."
"Did he really?" Leo snorts. "He's been doing it for April, no charge."
"He said family gets free maintenance. I'm not family so then he told me to-"
"What did he tell you to do?"
You shook your head, trying to make the topic drop. It was a ridiculous thing Donnie said to rile you up, he liked doing it as payback for calling him Grimace.
"Let's just say I called him Grimace."
Leo laughed. He loved the nickname, though he couldn't use it because Donnie isn't afraid to send Leo to med bay. "I'm actually very curious as to what he said after you called him Grimace."
"It was just Donnie being Donnie." You joke.
"I'm serious. What did he say?" Leo gave you puppy eyes and you were doomed.
"He told me I should marry you if I wanted the family discount."
"He said that?"
You nodded. Leo paused for a few moments, like he was digesting those words.
"I don't know about marriage..." Leo ponders, hand on his chin. He turned away from you.
"W-What?" You cough.
"Yeah... I mean, that's a way off, right?" Leo smirks, turning back to you. "I think we can start smaller... Don't you?"
You couldn't speak. Was this really happening? You nod, numbly. Leo's smile widens and he cups your face.
"No offense, but I really would like to hear you say it." Leo shrugs. "I just like verbal conformations."
"Yeah... That sounds good." You manage. Leo leans down and kisses you. He pulls away and you laugh, softly.
#{fish answers•°}#rise leo#rise of the tmnt#rise of the teenage mutant ninja turtles#rise donnie#leonardo teenage mutant ninja turtles#leonardo#tmnt leonardo#leo x reader#leonardo x reader#tmnt donatello#tmnt 2018#tmnt donnie#donnie tmnt#unpause rottmnt#unpause rise of the tmnt#unpause rise of the teenage mutant ninja turtles#save rise of the tmnt#save rottmnt#leo tmnt
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So it seems like Leo and Donnie get pretty close fairly quickly in your au so I was kinda wondering if that's something the rest of the other brothers/family would be jealous of? Like just the fact that these two click so well while maybe some of the others are struggling with that?
At the start Raph might be a little jealous of Leo’s relationship to Donnie and Mikey but after Leo’s rescue their relationship changes a lot. All in all though Raph and Mikey aren’t really jealous of the twins’ relationship, cause they all each have their own special kind of bond with each other.
Raph and Mikey are the Lou Jitsu, skateboarding, and comics lovers duo. They both enjoy the more traditional stuff that teenage boys like, so they probably spend the most time hanging out doing those, just the two of them. Especially seeing as Leo and Donnie can prefer their solitude by way of the dojo and lab (though the whole keeping their distance thing is worse mostly in the beginning and they do get better).
For Leo and Donnie it’s like…two chaotic, but wholesome puzzle pieces finally slotting together to make a full picture. Raph and Mikey can tell how much their brothers benefit from something like that, so they’re happy to see it.
For Leo and Raph, (post 2nd rescue at least) they bond over being the two oldest, and help each other deal with the stress that comes from that. They both have issues dealing with their anger, so they have a space of time each day where they work on either mediation or sparring in the dojo. And since they co-lead the team, they spend time coming up with ideas for training, or patrol routes.
For Leo and Mikey, their relationship is close to canon. Where Mikey clearly, really looks up to Leo, and they certainly become a very…special kind of lovably dumb when they’re together lol. But the biggest difference is Leo’s way more overprotective of Mikey, thanks to the whole mess of Leo feeling like he failed to protect Mikey when they were younger.
For Donnie and Raph, Don puts Raph on a pedestal and admires him a lot, both for traits Donnie has sorta created in his head, and actual real stuff he sees from his big bro, but then, the more Donnie learns about Raph, the more he realizes Raph is even cooler than anything his brain could come up with. When Donnie needs a break from working in his lab, they’ll spend lazy afternoons just playing video games and eating junk food.
For Donnie and Mikey, they cause max stress to their big brothers any time they decide to do anything together outside the lair. Also they are the best for info-dumping to each other. Mikey will sit in the lab for hours while Donnie rambles on about his ideas, or any future designs. Alternatively Donnie will bring a small project with him into Mikey’s art studio while Mikey talks a million miles an hour, jumping between subjects with no warning. Each has no trouble keeping up while the other talks.
#rottmnt#ask slushie#separated au#rottmnt separated au#rise of the teenage mutant ninja turtles#rise of the tmnt#rise donnie#rise leo#rise mikey#rise raph
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Things I Need To See If When We Get Rottmnt Season 3
-More Apritello (wait don't leave yet!)
-It doesn't need to be romantic (although they have such a good dynamic I honestly wouldn't mind if they did as long as it was done right)
-but seriously, they're just chaotic together and I need more of that
-Along those lines I also feel like there needs to be more one on one time with April and Leo as well as April and Raph
-Like??
-Both duos are so good and they just don't get enough screen time at all
-Also, I need the turtles + Splinter to actually meet April's parents
-Did I know I needed this until I saw the disaster twins psyched for a nice dinner in their matching sweater vests? No.
-Do I need it now more than ever? Y e s.
-I also need them to actually acknowledge the events of the movie and not just brush past it like it was no big deal. Let it come up later. Let the rest of the turtles be just-barely-noticeably a lot more overprotective when it comes to Leo. Don't tell me they would almost lose him like that and continue letting him be reckless all the time.
-GIVE. ME. MORE. CASEY.
-You CANNOT just add her to the mix and dip like that. I NEED to see how she fits in with the group. Will her and Donnie be completely unhinged together? Absolutely. Will Splinter dote on her like she's his daughter and she'll absolutely love it and swear to make him proud? Probably. Will her and April be an absolute girl boss team together and probably have sleepovers while gossiping about whatever? Y e s. Will she be completely unused to getting positive reinforcement and being part of an actual family who loves her even if she makes mistakes? For sure. But will she adore it? Um, yes!
-Leader Leo Leader Leo Leader Leo Leader Leo Leader Leo Leader Leo Leader Leo Leader Leo
-Will this poor boy be immediately overwhelmed with this responsibility and continuously doubt himself? Yes. But Raph would be giving him tips and pointers the entire time because he KNOWS how stressful it is to keep everyone in line and stop them from getting hurt or worse. Let Leo come to terms with his role and realize he's actually really good at it! Let him be so relieved to finally feel like he has a place on the team and isn't actually a useless screw-up.
-Alternatively, show us how Raph feels about this development! Will he be proud of his little brother for stepping up? Of course! But maybe, just maybe, he goes through some withdrawals? Maybe he has a hard time remembering that he's not in charge anymore and Leo is the one calling the shots. Maybe he feels a little lost on his place in the team now that he isn't the leader. Would his brothers immediately reassure him that he's still irreplaceable and is just as important to the team now as he was before? Yes, but it still might take him some time to get used to that.
-Mikey Magic. Magic Mike. (Jk)
-You really can't tell us Mikey is some powerful mystic warrior and not expect us to want more answers. Can he control it? Or is it fuelled by fear and desperation? Can he learn to harness his power without his brothers absorbing the energy with him? If done correctly, does this potentially open the stage to Mikey being able to time travel whenever he chooses? That could be interesting.
-Soft Shell Donnie
-Maybe it's just my desire for angst, but I think we should see more of Donnie without his battle shell. It would certainly make for more dramatic fight scenes if that vulnerability was exposed more.
Here are a few more minor ones that have zero plot relevance but I just think would be neat:
-Raph should get some sort of pet
-The turtles should occasionally make little chirps and hisses like real turtles do
-April should have a bigger wardrobe
-We should see Mikey actually graffiti something (I know he's the artsy one but have we ever actually seen him paint something??)
-I would love an episode centered around a hatred fueled disaster twin prank war. (Each prank gets progressively more crazy and dangerous until the others have to eventually interfere so they don't kill each other)
-Let Donnie perform a musical number like the absolute theater kid he is (other than a rap?)
-Random, but I also think it'd be funny if Mayhem had a growth spurt and was actually meant to be the size of a tiger. Plus April could ride him into battle like the badass she is.
-We should have a cool underwater fight scene! They're literally turtles! Plus, I think softshell turtles are supposed to be suuuper fast swimmers and I want to see that
A few more people have suggested:
-Raph/Donnie duo! We need a red and purple episode now!!
-Give. Donnie. His. Fashion. Montage. Seriously, we were robbed
-Alternatively to Donnie's musical performance, give us an entirely musical episode! We know they all have amazing voices!
That's all I could think of for now. Feel free to chime in any ideas you have!
#rottmnt#rottmnt donnie#rottmnt leo#rottmnt raph#rottmnt movie#rottmnt mikey#rottmnt splinter#rottmnt season 3#save rottmnt#rottmnt apritello#rottmnt angst#rottmnt april
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@skylabrea Leo took it upon himself to learn Morse code while Donnie learned asl in case they ever needed it in battle, Donnie also knows Morse code and with this knowledge Leo learned Morse code VERY well from being an absolute menace to Donnie, donnie doesn't know it as well as leo because he just prefers ASL and everyone in the family knows it
Leo knew he was dying, he could feel it in his body and him being the main medic of the team he knew he was getting worse, he knew more than anyone that he was dying so he decided to spend as much time as he had left just spending time with his family, he didn’t realize how fast he was dying though and by the Time he realized it was his last moments he only had enough strength to see one person so he went to his twin
Not only was Donnie the second closest to the medbay but Donnies lab just became his safe place when he struggled to sleep
Dee always had a backup chair for leo to sit next to him and listen to him rant about a project or a game he was interested in, eventually putting him to sleep. In turn Donnie would fall asleep shortly after listening to Leo's eepy chirps and churs, tuning his brain out enough to relax and get his own amount of sleep.
So it was a bit of both to wanting to see his brother and knowing that he was passing
In part 3, Leo doesn't understand how mikey knew morse code though.. only Donnie and him know it.
My friend responds that worded it way better than I ever could :]
"This hits really hard when paired with the Mikey drawing, because you can tell Leo is sorta just thinking things over and trying to come to terms with his reality and how he's going to like. Minimize the damage of his death. Knowing full well he can't, really. He can only pray that everyone will just kind of see him as this strong, funny guy that they grew to love, thinking that he'd be showing weakness if he didn't at least pretend he was fine"
"It's almost scary how much hes convincing himself that his death won't actually be that bad, as long as he fakes it til he makes it, hoping that everyone will be in there so he can give them a lil speech and then just pass in his sleep so he doesn't have to see it. Cause Leo knows. He knows every layer to it"
:]
Till next time
#rottmnt#save rise of the tmnt#rottmnt leo#rottmnt donnie#unpause rottmnt#rise of the teenage mutant ninja turtles#rottmnt mikey#little baby blue au#asks#??? i think#not entirely sure
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raph fans come get y'all juice. chapter four of i'm sorry, teenage mutant what now? is up! read it on ao3 or below the cut!
[ prev ]
Okay, fine, he’d admit it. Dad was acting weird.
Like, weird weird, not regular weird. Their dad had always been weird, which Leo had always chalked up to 1.) him being their dad 2.) him spending time in Hollywood. But this? This was off, even for him.
Last night, he spaced out in the middle of one of Mikey’s stories, and Leo still wasn’t sure if he had literally fallen asleep with his eyes open or if he had just accidentally astral projected to the Twilight Zone or something. Of course, they had all then proceeded to say the most absolutely asinine, insane shit that they could think of in an attempt to goad a reaction until Mikey finally managed to snap him out of it by throwing some lentils at him. The day before that, he caught him rifling through that old shelf of weird knick-knacks that none of them were allowed to touch, muttering to himself the entire time like some crazy supervillain. Like, dude, had some ancient ninja ghost replaced their daddy, or what? ‘Cause this was getting freaky. He had kind of just thought Donnie was overreacting, but maybe he was onto something��
He hated it when Donnie was right. It happened annoyingly often and he could never admit it, lest he risk his twin’s ego becoming even larger. There’s only room for one egomaniac in this family.
“Think we can corner Dad on the train ride home and find out what’s happening? That way he won’t be able to run.” He said, casually, inviting himself into his twin brother’s room and tossing himself down on their bed.
Donnie pulled his eyes away from whatever robotics project he was currently tinkering with in order to glare at his brother, spinning around in his desk chair.
“Groan. Do we have to? That sounds unpleasant at best.”
“Hey, you started this in the first place. And you agreed to the plan,” he countered, pointing accusingly at the other. “You don’t get to back out now.”
“I’m not saying that I’m not worried, or that I don’t think someone should talk with him. I’m just saying that I don’t want to do it.” Donnie defended.
“Bummer. You’re participating.” Leo deadpanned. “Between you, me, and Raph, we might have half a chance. And if not… Well. We’ve got the big guns waiting at home.”
Donnie shuddered a bit. The Doctor.
“I don’t know. Based on historical data, there’s about a 76.4% chance that Dad will attempt to bodily throw himself out the window of a moving train if we try to talk to him about his feelings.”
“Do you think we can find a train car without windows?”
“I’ll do some research. I’m sure there are specs available online...” Donnie sighed, turning back around to face his desk and pulling out his phone.
Leo hummed softly, knowing that Donnie would, in fact, actually do that, whether or not it was realistic.
“I’m serious, Donnie. We actually have to talk to him.”
“I mean, yeah, sure. I am too. But what the hell are we gonna say?”
“Ugh. I don’t know! You’re the one with a therapist! And you’ve been seeing her for how long now? Shouldn’t you know how to do all the talky-feely shit by now?”
“I’m autistic.”
“So?”
“You should get a therapist.”
“Off-topic,” Leo muttered, rolling his eyes. “This is, like, weirder than he usually is. Like… Something is for real wrong. It’s kind of spooky.”
“It’s Mikey.”
Leo scoffed. “It’s not Mikey.”
“Yeah, it is. He started being weird right after Mikey lit himself on fire.”
“Mikey didn’t light himself on fire, Dee.”
“Well, he clearly did something . And Dad keeps looking at him like he thinks he’s gonna combust at any moment. There’s a very clear pattern of behavior, Leo.” He insisted. “Also, you don’t know what the hell Mikey did, either, because we both know he wasn’t just playing with matches in his room.”
“He might have been.” Leo huffed. “That kid is way more fucked up than we give him credit for. Remember in the fourth grade when someone destroyed his science fair project?”
Donnie shivered. “You don’t just forget something like that, Leo.”
“Exactly! Playing with lighters is totally within the realm of possibility.”
“There’s a difference between enacting violent but justified revenge and doing simply dangerous stuff just for the fun of it.” Donnie countered, glancing up at the other through half-lidded eyes. “Plus, he’s used to all of us doing dangerous stuff for the fun of it! Dad wouldn’t react this way if he was just worried Mikey was gonna hurt himself. He deals with worrying Mikey is gonna hurt himself all the time. Nor would he let Mikey get away with this with nary a punishment if that were truly the case. In the very least, Dad doesn’t think the event was the result of Mikey just ‘playing with lighters.’”
“Oh, so what? It’s magic? His notebook magically caught on fire?” Leo challenged dryly, giving his twin an unimpressed look.
“Of course not. I’m a man of science.” Donnie scoffed. “I’m sure there’s a logical explanation, but, admittedly, I haven’t been able to intuit exactly what the cause was just yet. My investigation is still ongoing.” He sighed. “... But maybe Dad thinks it was?”
Leo paused for a moment, rolling the thought around in his head, frowning a bit.
“You think Dad thinks Mikey magically caught his notebook on fire?” He questioned, raising one brow in doubt.
“It’s possible,” Donnie said, shrugging. “We know that he’s superstitious.”
Leo hummed softly, his hand automatically moving to spin the small silver bracelet on his wrist, running his fingertips across the smooth edges of the blue crystal in its center. One in a set of five. He supposed that that was technically true… ‘Superstitious’ wasn’t really the first word that would come to mind if he was trying to describe his father. It wouldn’t even be in the top ten. But slapping actual good-luck charms onto each of his children did kind of automatically sort him into that category, didn’t it?
He knew his dad had a small altar in his room, and they would occasionally celebrate, or at least acknowledge, Japanese holidays that he had grown up with. But they didn’t have any other charms or amulets in their home, at least not that Leo knew of, just old knick-knacks and trinkets that lived on shelves or in closets. They had never gone to a shrine or temple or church or anything of the like in their lives, and he had never heard his Dad pray before. But the bracelets? He had always been really invested in that. Leo literally couldn’t remember a time when they hadn’t all worn them. He had told them since they were small that they ‘kept them safe ,’ and it had been a hard rule their entire lives that they weren’t to be removed.
It was the kind of thing that Leo was pretty sure people would think was weird if he brought it up-- so he usually didn’t. He used to think it was weird, too, honestly, and kind of dumb. I mean, they were just bracelets, right? So what did it matter? But he remembered the one time he had tried to take it off when he was around seven. Even now it was absolutely vivid in his brain every time he thought about it.
He hadn’t been trying to rebel or make trouble or anything, he had just been bored. He forgot exactly where they were, but they were waiting in line for something at some building with lots of desks and people milling about, discussing boring things. And there wasn’t anything to do! He had exhausted all viable options for entertaining himself: Annoying his father. Annoying his brother. Annoying his other brother. Annoying his other other brother. So he had basically run out of ideas.
He hadn’t even taken the bracelet off. I mean, not all the way. He was just messing with it, kind of yanking it up and down his wrist, and seeing if he could wiggle it up his hand over his knuckles--
But god, he remembers the way his father’s voice sounded when he caught him, biting out his name like it was painful. He remembers the look on his face, and even now it makes him feel small.
Not because his dad was angry. But because he was scared.
He had never seen his dad look that way before in his entire life. Like he was about to watch the entire world crumble down around him.
It was scary. His dad was scared, so he got scared, too. He shivers a little bit at the memory, his frown deepening. They had left shortly after, and Dad had assured him at least twenty times that he wasn’t mad, and he was sorry for scaring him, and it was okay, but that he couldn’t take the bracelet off. It was important.
Leo and his brothers had kind of decided after that that it probably was important and that they really shouldn’t take them off. Leo wasn’t entirely sure if he completely believed now that they actually ‘kept them safe’ or whatever, but he had certainly believed it then. And besides that, clearly, their father believed it, and that alone was enough for him. It was too small to really get off now, anyway. They had grown enough that Leo doubted he could wriggle his way out of it even if he wanted to. It was a small miracle that Raph hadn’t busted his with how damn beefy he had grown, but hey, he wasn’t gonna look a gift horse in the mouth or anything.
“Okay. Fine.” Leo conceded. “So, Dad thinks Mikey has magic hands, or whatever. What do we do about it?”
---
The train ride over to the swim meet was relatively calm, filled with idle chatter and conversation. Leo, Donnie, and Raph had met their Dad at the station after school, and they spent the trip discussing the new leaf Donnie's Monstera was growing, the most recent viral street magic video Leo had seen, and the latest funny thing Raph's swim kids had done. Raph attempted, unsuccessfully, to prod their Dad into sharing as well, but the most he got was information about the latest reality show episode he had watched. Their Dad wasn't always the biggest sharer, but usually, they could at least get him to discuss the state of his Dojos, any new acting prospects, or celebrity gossip. He loved celebrity gossip! But not today-- the conversation stayed squarely focused on his three sons.
Still, it had been pleasant, even with the slight stirring of anxiety in Raph's stomach. They were all busy more often than they weren't, so it was always nice to get to spend any amount of time together. Their pops didn't always attend all their various sporting events, recitals, or other competitions-- it just wasn't realistic. There was only one of him, after all. But they were getting towards the end of the season at this point, which meant that all the 'important' events were beginning to crop up on their calendars. Their Dad hated to miss those-- even if they did go pretty much every year. He always said he wanted to ‘brag about how talented his children were.’
The sports center was just a short walk from the train station, and Raph glanced down at their father as they made their way into the bustling lobby. "You know where you're goin', pops?"
"Yes, yes, of course. I could give tours of this place." His father joked, his frame shaking with his laughter. "You boys know how to find me if you need me. Now, go and have fun. And also, kick some butt!" He encouraged with a toothy grin.
"You got it, pops!" Raph assured, smiling wide in response, herding his two younger brothers off to the locker room. Usually, they'd come here with the rest of their team. Rather than traveling with their Dad, they'd travel with the other kids and their coach. But this was the city-wide meet. Qualifiers only-- which thinned out the crowd. Raph knew there were other competitors from the Mad Dogs Swim Team around here somewhere, but until they could hunt them down, it was just the three of them. Luckily, this was far from their first rodeo.
"Dibs on Candy Locker!" Leo yelled.
"Leo, no one else wants Candy Locker," Donnie said.
"Do not touch the Candy Locker!" Raph shouted.
They did this every year.
The infamous Candy Locker.
Raph, Leo, and Donnie had been competing in swim since they were eight and seven, respectively. And every year since then, all three of them had qualified for city-wide. And every year, city-wide was held at the Aquatics Pavilion at the Ithaca College campus. And every year that they came here, since they discovered it their very first time, the Candy Locker remained.
It was basically a historical landmark at this point, and Raph was continuously baffled that it still persevered. There were rows and rows of shiny slate gray lockers in the changing rooms, free for whatever visiting athlete to use while they competed, just big enough that you could fit a swim bag in there if you really put some muscle into it, all labeled and neat. Typically, you would open a locker without a padlock, and there would be one of two things there. One: someone else's clothes and bag. Someone already took this locker, but is playing it fast and loose and trusts no one will steal their shit. That's cool. Stealing ain't the Mad Dog way. Two: An empty locker. Sweet, free locker. You can shove your shit in there. But at the Aquatics Pavilion, there was also a third option.
That option was a faded yellow pillowcase filled to the brim with about two pounds of Halloween candy.
The running theory was that someone had stashed it here ages ago, forgotten it, and it had just been there ever since, therefore transforming Locker 336 into ‘Candy Locker.’ Raph wasn't sure if the staff at the school truly just weren't aware of it, if they just didn't feel like dealing with it, or if they too respected it enough that they couldn't bring themselves to destroy it. All he knew was that Candy Locker was forever, and a fixture of the institution.
He also knew that every single year, without fail, Leo tried to sneak chocolate out of Candy Locker.
"You can't use Candy Locker. Leo! It's not open for use! It's Candy Locker, and it needs to be treated with respect!" Raph yelled, giving a low groan of annoyance as Leo just barely glanced back at him, just for a moment, this absolutely feral look of excitement in his eyes, and darted off, breaking away from their small group. Dammit.
All of Raph's little brothers were fast and small and nimble. Raph always felt a tiny bit awed when he watched how they moved-- weaving about obstacles like minnows swimming upstream, dancing and darting about in a way that always looked effortless. Raph was fast, too, and he was far more acrobatic than the average high schooler... Don't get it twisted, he was perfectly capable of back-flips and cartwheels. But small? Small he was not.
It was tough being a big guy sometimes. I mean, he didn't dislike it by any means! He loved being large enough that he could see over crowds and keep an eye on everything. He loved feeling strong and powerful enough that he could plant himself in between his family and any kind of danger, and feel like a wall-- an immovable object. He loved being strong, relished the rush of pinning his opponents to the ground beneath him without any effort and smashing his way through obstacles.
... But with size and strength comes responsibility. Wait, was that the quote? Something like that. The point was, if he ran after Leo, he'd mow half these kids down. And he didn't wanna hurt anyone or anything. He knew better than that.
"Raphael."
Raph's father knelt down next to him, his voice gentle, but nudging, demanding to be heard. It took Raph a few moments, but eventually, he glanced up at him, peeking shyly at his father from behind his hand and uncurling from the small ball he was rolled into just the tiniest bit.
"Raphael, did you hit Leonardo?"
He hesitated for a moment, and then nodded a tiny bit, sniffling loudly.
"And bite him?"
He nodded again, drawing his legs up to his chest and hiding his face in his knees.
His father sighed softly. "Red, we cannot--"
"He pushed me first!" He bit out, and he could feel his face burn even hotter than before, all muddy with shame and anger sloshed together. "H-he was being mean, and, and he wouldn't leave me alone! And I wanted him to stop!"
"I will talk to him, Red. But just because he pushes you does not mean you can push back. Or hit him, or bite him. You are bigger than him, Raphael." This brought a fresh sob tumbling through Raph's chest, despite his best efforts. His father sighed again before slowly sitting down, holding out his arms.
"Come here, my son."
Raphael rolled over onto his hands and knees, crawling into his dad's lap and burrowing his face into his chest. His dad's arms wrapped around him, squeezing him tight and rocking the two of them back and forth. And for a while, they just sat like that, quiet and still, hidden away in the hallway closet.
"Is Leo okay?" Raph eventually mumbled, not picking up his head.
"He will be alright," Dad confirmed. "But you did hurt him quite a bit, Raphael."
"Sorry." He whispered. He wiped at his face with balled-up fists, hiccuping a few times. His mouth tasted salty, now, from the tears, but it still tasted bitter from the blood, too.
"...You did a very good job coming to get me right away."
Raph hummed a tiny bit in response, but he didn't say anything beyond that. He wished he could fold himself up even tighter and hide. He wished he was so small he could fit in between the floorboards. He wished he could disappear.
"You know, your gym teacher is very impressed with you, Red." Dad eventually began to speak again. "He told me all about how wonderfully you do whenever he sees you. You're bigger and stronger than the other kids in your class," He continued, and then laughed. "And I think that is very cool! And it makes me very proud to hear about how well you have done."
Raph finally dared to peek up at his father again, wiping some of the tears off his cheeks.
"But I know it can be hard to be strong sometimes. It is a lot of work, being big and strong! You have to be careful with others around you, even if they're not careful with you back. That is very difficult!" He said, his hand moving in slow circles up and down his child's spine. "But I have seen you many, many times be big and strong to protect your brothers, and keep them safe, and to help them." He said, keeping quiet for a moment before exhaling slowly through his nose. "... Can I share a secret with you, Red?"
A secret? His eyes widened a bit, and he immediately nodded.
"I have been thinking that perhaps you boys might be ready to start learning proper martial arts at the dojo." Raph let out an audible gasp, his entire body perking up with excitement. Actual for real kung-fu and karate and stuff?! Not just blocks and poses!? "But I am a little worried that your brothers might hurt themselves, or fight with each other if I teach them."
Oh. Raph hadn't thought of that before. He frowned a bit, his brows suddenly pinched with worry. He hadn’t ever considered before that learning martial arts could actually be a bad idea. If he learned martial arts with his Dad, what if he just hurt his brothers worse?
"But I know how much you all want to learn. And I can already see how much potential you all have." He continued with a soft smile. "So I was hoping that you could help me. I don't like that you and Leo got into a fight, or that he got hurt... But now I know that you know what it feels like to hurt someone that you love. And that it doesn't feel very good, does it?"
No... It felt horrible. He furrowed his brows, frowning before nodding a bit.
"So I think that means that I can trust you to help me with teaching them how to be careful and strong at the same time, and keep them safe. Do you think you could handle that, Red?"
Raphael swallowed hard, feeling this wet lump form in his throat. All the tears from before welled up in his eyes again-- even though he didn't wanna live in the floorboards anymore. His dad still trusted him that much? Even now, after he messed up really bad? He tried to tell his father 'yes,' but his lips were wobbling too much for his tongue to work right, so he just nodded as hard as he could instead. Yes-- He wanted more than anything to help protect his little brothers, no matter what. ‘Cause even when they made him so, so angry... he still loved them so, so much.
"I thought so." Dad laughed, kissing the top of his son's head before ruffling his hair lightly. "And I know we will not have any more fighting like this. And no more biting , Raphael. We have talked about this. If you want to bite something, I will get you something else that is for biting. But it cannot be people! Understood?"
Hiccuping a bit, Raphael nodded again. Somehow, he wasn't even upset to be scolded this time. And he knew that he had said he wouldn't bite people before, but this time he really meant it.
"Good boy. Now, I am going to go check on your brothers. Do you want to stay here a little bit longer, or do you want to come with me?"
Raph took a long, deep breath, swallowing the lump in his throat so that he could find his voice again.
"I wanna see my brothers."
"GET BACK HERE, LEO. DON'T MAKE ME COME AFTER YOU." He shouted, and was completely ignored. "Donnie--"
"Not involved." Donnie immediately replied, not looking up from his phone.
Raph groaned, trying to pick up the pace without taking out any bystanders, muttering repeated, "Pardon me's," and "'Scuse me's," as he went.
Leo really wasn't that far ahead of them-- He wouldn't completely ditch them, but he did get far enough ahead that he was already breaking into Candy Locker by the time Raph rounded the corner, his face set into a deep scowl.
"Leo. Don't you dare."
"Look! Untouched and beautiful as ever!"
"Leo, do not eat the candy ."
"Wow, and they have all our favorites, too..."
"They are at least eight years old! At a minimum , Leo!"
"Oh, pshhh. As if I haven't seen you wolf down two-week-old leftovers before." Leo scoffed.
"Remember that time he ate beef jerky out of the trash?" Not helping, Donnie.
"It was right on top! Practically untouched!" Raph protested. "And that's completely different! Plus, eight years is, like, twelve times longer than two weeks is!"
"That math is not correct..." Donnie mumbled under his breath.
"Chillax! I'm not gonna eat any of the candy." Leo said, holding his hands up in mock surrender.
Oh, thank god.
"I just wanna have one. To like... put on a shelf or something. I bet Donnie could make a little pedestal for it."
Dammit.
"One year." Raph said, pinching the bridge of his nose. "Just one year. I just want us to leave Candy Locker in peace... for one year . It's a sacred space, Leo!"
"Mmmm..." Leo pursed his lips, placing a hand on his hip. "Yeah, I mean. I see what you're saying, but... I'm pretty sure no one is gonna miss, like, one Tootsie Pop."
"Stop messing with him, Leo." Donnie chided, cracking open a locker nearby, tossing his bag down and shucking off his jacket.
"Okay, okay. Fine. Because I'm an amazing brother, I will refrain from interacting any further with Candy Locker until after the meet." Leo declared, slapping the locker shut again with a flick of his wrist and a satisfying metallic clack. "But know this, Raphael. This isn't over."
Raphael scoffed, rolling his eyes, glaring at Leo as he yanked open his own locker. He loved his brothers dearly-- he did. But they were really lucky sometimes that he didn't just snap their necks.
---
At this point, Yoshi had a pretty good handle on these types of events, and he knew well enough how to navigate. He knew exactly which corner bounced cheers and shouts about the least, knew just where all the vents, pumping in warm air to prevent all the swimmers from freezing their butts off, were hidden, so they could be avoided, and knew the best seating arrangement that allowed for minimal soreness the following day. Metal bleachers weren’t exactly easy on your back, after all! Armed with years of experience, (plus his cellphone and earbuds for when events did not feature his sons and he got bored,) he was fully committed to making it through the meet and focusing for the entirety of it. Had he made any progress on the whole Hamato Ninpo thing? Well, no, not exactly. Which was. Ah. Worrisome. But, now was not the time for that!
He was quite excited to watch his three eldest sons kick ass and take names, as per usual.
He said 'hello' to a few of the other parents that he knew and made some polite small talk, settling down to watch the meet. Warm-ups were already done by the time he was all seated, and he could see his boys and the rest of their team from where they sat across the pool; audience members sat on one side, and competitors on the other. He watched them doing much of the same-- making conversation with each other and their teammates, checking their phones, and cheering whenever anyone they knew was in the water.
All in all, everything was fairly normal and expected. Yoshi still struggled a bit to keep himself focused, and not think too deeply about all the worries in his head, but it wasn't as bad as it had been lately... It had been nearly a week now with no further incidents, no questioning from his children, and no spooky prophecies or visions from his ancestors or anything like that. So he was beginning to wonder, or perhaps more accurately, hope that maybe it had just been a fluke. Just a one-off event rather than the beginning of anything trying. Maybe his family was fine, their identity and secrets were safe, and nothing further was going to occur to jeopardize that-- they could just continue to live in peace just as they had been.
He watched the twins get up from the bench for their next event, shedding their hoodies and towels in favor of goggles, only to get waved over by an official. The two wandered over and joined him and what appeared to be another parent. He couldn't hear what they were saying from where he was, but the conversation soon became animated-- Donnie's arms crossed over his chest, Leo talking wildly with his hands, and worry immediately began to blossom in his chest. He had just gotten to his feet, beginning to make his way over to the group when the discussion seemed to dissolve, his two sons walking away visibly upset. Yoshi met them halfway.
"What is going on?" He immediately questioned, his brows knit together, forming wrinkled creases in his skin. He could see Raphael straining to see from his side of the pool, a similar expression on his own face.
"Ugh. It's nothing." Leo huffed, a scowl set on his face, his hands on his hips. "Some Karen or whatever is just mad that we're gonna ruin her kid's record or whatever, so she talked the officials into drug testing us."
"Which is obviously a complete waste of time and resources," Donnie added in, rolling his eyes.
"She's just gonna embarrass herself when it comes back negative. As if we need any steroids to clean up shop." Leo declared, a small, sly grin growing on his face, offering out a hand to high-five his brother like, ‘Sick burn, right, Dee?'
His brother accepted, slapping his palm firmly. "Indeed."
Yoshi had broken out into a cold sweat, feeling as though his entire body had turned into stone, freezing him in place.
"O-oh. A drug test. Yes, how silly..." He mumbled, forcing a grin on his face. "How. Uh. How exactly... Does that work? Is it going to take long? I would hate for the, uh, the meet to be held up...!"
"No, they're just doing a rapid test." Donnie hummed. "Obviously it's going to be a smaller panel than they could achieve with a proper lab test, and not achieve quite as accurate or varied of a data set, but it should only take five minutes or so. I understand they're fetching the technician now, and then it should be as simple as collecting a urine sample to use. It can only reveal a 'negative' or 'positive' result rather than any more detailed variations or anything of the like, but of course, this isn't a concern for us, since we already know neither of us is using any drugs. It's actually a very fascinating process--"
Yoshi wasn't listening anymore, because all he could hear in his ears was his own voice screaming TURTLE PISS TURTLE PISS TURTLE PISS.
Logically, the test did not have the capacity to give such information. Donatello had just said that there were only two possible test results, positive or negative, and his purplest son usually knew what he was talking about regarding such things. So, reasonably, he knew it could not possibly come back ‘Mutant Turtle’. And rationally, he knew that his family had been under further scrutiny in the past and come out on the other side just fine. This did not ease his panic. It never did.
Insurance cards? Check. Paperwork? Check. All four children? Check. He went over his list for the fifth time in his head, glancing down at his kids, two on either side of him, as they approached the office. Right... Yes. He had everything he needed.
So why didn't he feel even the least bit prepared?
He had gone to such lengths to ensure the success of this plan. He had accounted for every document that would need to be forged, had crafted an elaborate story to explain his disappearance, and had paid dearly for the five bracelets that concealed his and his sons' mutant identities. He prepared for every possible threat to their new identities, and did everything he could to allow the success of their new lives.
It wasn't like he didn't account for this. He knew that it would be an obstacle, and he knew that it would be one that they would have to face. That didn't stop it from being terrifying.
The doctor.
Despite all the paperwork he had fabricated, he knew that they wouldn't be able to avoid going to the doctor forever. Even if he falsified records indicating his sons were up to date on absolutely everything and in perfect health, this would only buy them a year or two before they would be due for a visit, or risk being barred from enrollment in public school. And even if he somehow avoided this, too, what if one of his children got sick? Or injured? Was he to simply keep them at home and deny them medical care?
No, no. He wanted his kids to have a normal life. He wanted them to be able to do things like go to school and play in parks and make friends with other children... and have proper medical care when it was needed. He wanted them to be vaccinated, to be screened for problems, to have regular check-ups and be able to go to the hospital when they were hurt. He desperately wanted this.
But jesus christ, this was terrifying.
"Are you ready, boys?" He asked, glancing down at his children once more. He was trying to keep his voice level and his body language calm, but he could tell that his sons could sense his anxiety. His heart broke a little when four pairs of big, horrified eyes looked up at him and they shook their heads.
"Ah, where are my brave boys?" He questioned, nudging them ever so slightly, beginning the walk into the office. He held Mikey and Donnie's hands tightly so that they wouldn't be able to tell he was shaking. "Do not worry. I promise that Dr. Davis is very nice. Nothing bad will happen." He assured.
The boys didn't seem too convinced. He wasn't either, truthfully, but he marched them inside anyway.
It had been over a decade since he had last been inside a doctor's office, and even longer than that since he had been to a pediatrician. Yet somehow, it felt like nothing had really changed. Colorful wires with wooden beads strung on them stuck out from a brightly-painted table in the middle of the room, in sharp contrast to the faded burgundy chairs lined along the walls. Children's books and Highlight magazines covered every available surface, which Donnie immediately took to reading. There were a few other parents with their children as well, but the Hamatos were in no mood to socialize. After speaking to the woman at the front desk, Yoshi got to work filling out a literal stack of papers. He was so nervous, he messed up at least three different forms, and had to sheepishly request new copies.
And then they waited.
The longer they sat, the more the collective anxiety seemed to mount. Yoshi couldn't help the scenarios running through his mind over and over, each one ending with a doctor or nurse shrieking in horror and calling Animal Control--
"Dad."
Yoshi blinked back into reality, looking down at his youngest son, pulling at his sleeve with tears in his eyes.
"Dad, I wanna go home," Mikey whispered, leaning in close to him and sniffling a bit. "I don't wanna see the doctor."
Quite frankly, Yoshi was inclined to agree with his kid, to pick them all up and walk out right this very minute. But he suppressed the urge.
"I know, Mikey. I do not like seeing the doctor either." He admitted, scooping up the preschooler to hold in his lap. "But I promise... Dr. Davis is very nice, and, ah, I will not let them do anything bad to you... I am sure everything will be fine...!"
Before he could continue his, quite frankly, horrible pep talk, a nurse poked her head into the room from the back.
"The Hamatos?"
"Yo. Dad. You good?"
Yoshi paused for a moment before he returned properly back to the present day, glancing over at his sons and giving a nervous laugh, which then dissolved into a cough.
"Ah! Yes, of course! I am perfectly fine! Why wouldn't I be!" He wheezed, and his sons exchanged looks.
"Papa, honestly, it's fine. This will take ten minutes tops, and again, I assure you that neither Leo nor myself are engaging in any kind of recreational substances." Donnie said.
"Yeah! All we gotta do is piss in a cup." Leo added in. "And then we'll be all set. It's just annoying. Here, why don't you sit down, watch some Netflix or something-- I know you like Netflix-- and we'll be back in a bit, okay? Just chill."
"Right. Of course. I am... very chill." Yoshi insisted, even though he could feel his hands trembling a bit. Gah! Stupid traitor hands! Stop it!
"Surrreeee," Donnie said, taking him by the arm and slowly leading him back to the bleachers, sitting him down and patting his shoulder. "We'll be right back, alright? Nothing to worry about."
---
"Alright, you should be all set." Dr. Davis hummed pleasantly, offering a gentle smile to her latest anxious parent. "Everyone looks great! Healthy weights, nothing scary going on... We'll send you home with some literature and referral information for Donatello. I would recommend considering getting in contact with them if you can, especially since he's gonna be starting school soon, but beyond that everything looks fantastic."
"Yes-- thank you," Yoshi said, forcing a smile, shakily accepting the new stack of papers that the doctor handed over.
Nothing had gone wrong.
Well, a few things had gone wrong. Mikey and Raphael had both cried when they got their shots. Donnie had a small meltdown after being repeatedly touched by people he didn't like. And Leo had punched a nurse in the gut for upsetting his brothers.
But their bill of health came back clean. No mentions of turtles, mutations, cold-bloodedness, or reptilian features of any kind.
They made it through. They would be okay.
"... And we'll see you back in about five weeks for their next booster series, okay? Jacklyn up front can get you all scheduled!"
Yoshi pursed his lips slightly, his mouth suddenly feeling rather dry.
"... Ah. Yes. Of course."
---
The concept of buoyancy was built upon that of displacement; the idea that two different forms of matter could not occupy the same space. Archimedes once theorized that water, a liquid, would be pushed aside by a solid mass, but an object of an appropriate weight, density, or shape could ensure that the displaced weight of the water was greater than the total weight of the object, therefore ensuring it to float. This is, of course, connected to the concept of forces. Gravity is a downward force that acts upon all objects; when an object is placed in a fluid, that fluid must supply a force equal in magnitude but opposite in direction to the gravitational force for the object to float. Scientifically speaking, it was all a matter of density and mass, and every action that one took in the water, as well as every action that the water had in response, could be explained through a series of formulas and equations.
... In a non-scientific sense, however, water was safe and soft and inviting. Water would make room for you, no matter who you were or what you were doing. Once you got in, it would change itself to make exactly enough space for your body. Water was fluid and changing, soft and gentle when you moved softly, hard and firm when you moved harshly. In the water, the way you move changes. The way you see and hear changes. Perception itself shifts.
God, Donatello loved swimming.
Even just swimming laps was great, but a race only heightened the experience, engaging every bit of his body and mind and encouraging him to push. From the moment the buzzer went off and he dived from the starting block, ( push off with your legs, you're going for distance, not for height, hands together, smooth entry point, ) to the lap down, ( head down, no breathing except for when you absolutely need to, arms go back and glide over the water-- imagine your fingertips skimming just over the surface, no unnecessary movement, just enough for the maximum propulsion forward with minimal effort, ), the turn at the wall, ( watch the floor, see the blue tile end and the white begin-- you know the math, count it out, at five you duck, chin to your chest, arms together, kick off the wall and get as much air off that sucker as you can, ) and the sprint back, ( kick from your hips, not your knees, no reserving energy, it's just a fifty, this is a ‘dash,’ so dash -- )
Every second of it he was engaged, and every second of it he adored the experience. He didn't even slow down when he approached the wall, ramming into it at full speed and using his outstretched hands to stop himself and trigger the timer that stopped the clock. They didn't have to worry about slowing down. They wouldn't run into anything. Their own hands and the water would catch them.
Sucking in ragged breaths, he looked to his left, and then he looked to his right. Leo was right behind him, but as he glanced up at the display board on the wall to check his time, he grinned widely. He had more than a five-second lead over him. More than enough to qualify for Regionals-- not that he had been worried. Leo was well within the range as well, just as expected. The three of them always went to Regionals. And Donnie was quite pleased to note that the kid from Lane 4, the child, he and Leo had deduced, of the woman who demanded they be tested, was significantly behind the two of them. Sure, his time was good enough to qualify for Regionals, too...
But it wasn't anywhere near as good as theirs. Haha. Suck it.
One by one, all of the racers joined him at the end of the lane, bobbing about in the water and holding onto the pool edge or the lane lines, everyone out of breath and filled with adrenaline. He shook the hands of his two lane neighbors, congratulating both of them on a race well run, and once the referee blew his whistle, he clambered out of the water, hoisting himself up back onto dry land and moving to rejoin his twin.
"Killed it." Leo said, though breathlessly, ("if you're not struggling to breathe by the end of a race, you're not doing it right," their coach often said,) offering a fistbump, which Donnie reciprocated.
"As expected." He said, grinning wide as the two of them made their way back to the bleachers.
"Leo! Donnie! Nice!" Raph called as they approached, tossing them each a towel to wrap around themselves, each beginning to dry themselves off, peeling goggles and swim caps off their heads. "Good time! But, uh, what was with the--?"
"Some lady made us do a drug test," Leo explained, waving a hand as if to dismiss Raph's concerns. "It was dumb, we both passed, it's all good now. Just annoying."
"A drug test?! Seriously?!" Raph said, scoffing loudly. And admittedly, Raphala was no stranger to similar situations. Donnie recalled he had been accused of taking steroids or faking his age more than once in his various sporting exploits, but it typically wasn't taken as far as to actually test him. Donnie thought, vaguely, that he was almost surprised that Raph wasn't subject to the same treatment as he and Leo were today, but he supposed it did make at least a bit of sense. Raph was big-- he was tall and visibly muscular and powerful. People looked at him and expected him to excel in athletics.
He and Leo? Not so much. Leo was only 5'5", and he himself barely passed 5'3" without his boots, much to his annoyance. They were both lean and clearly athletically inclined, sure, but they were both much smaller and slimmer than their older brother was. People looked at them and were often surprised by their respective sporting resumes. Especially him.
"Yes, yes, it was an unfortunate waste of everyone's time." Donnie agreed. "But to no one's surprise, it came back completely spotless, and we were able to proceed without issue and completely destroy absolutely everyone, in your face Karen, thank you very much."
"Is that why Dad's been freaking out?" Raph asked after a moment, raising a brow. Donnie followed his eyes to steal a glance over at their father on the other side of the pool, looking much better than he had before they received their test results, (both he and Leo offering him thumbs up from across the way once they had been cleared, and watching him sag with relief,) but still seemed a bit shaky.
"Yeah," Leo said, wrinkling his nose. "I thought he was gonna pass out for a second there when we told him. He was sweating so much, it was disgusting."
"He doesn't seriously think you guys' would come back positive or anything, does he?" Raph scoffed, frowning a bit, and Leo shook his head.
"Nah, I don't think so. But you know how scared he is of doctors."
---
Dad always got like this whenever they had an appointment.
'This' meaning, of course, 'Visibly and overwhelmingly anxious and frightened, absolutely filled with dread and horror.'
They were all kind of used to it by now.
When they were little, it would sort of freak them out, because every time they had to go to the doctor, he had to come with them, and he'd be in a state of near-panic the whole time. And if Dad was freaking out, then they should probably be freaking out too, right? Looking back, Leo recognized that he was always trying to hide it, but quite frankly, he did a pretty shit job at it. Now that they had gotten a bit older, however, collectively exiting elementary school years to enter junior high, they more-or-less recognized that Dad's doctor-induced panic was really more of a personal thing, and not necessarily something that they needed to worry about themselves. Leo still didn't really like the doctor, and he kind of doubted he ever would, but he wouldn't really categorize himself as 'afraid' any longer.
Their Dad? Not so much.
The four of them had been long aware of the little note on the calendar in the kitchen, the sacred piece of literature that controlled all their lives, dictating that at four o'clock on this date, their dear father would be summoned to the doctor's office. And they knew that, of course, like he did every time, he would totally freak out. And, just as predicted, he had been an anxious mess all day, pacing around the house, mumbling nonsense to himself, (something about them being ‘onto him’ and ‘rat blood’ and other completely meaningless jibber-jabber.)
But this time, they had a plan. They absolutely could not continue to watch him like this. Everyone was in place. Leo looked across the living room, nodding to Raph. Raph glanced at Donnie, who checked his watch, and likewise nodded an affirmative. Mikey put down his sketchbook, getting to his feet, and the four of them, following his cue, fell into step with each other and filed into the kitchen.
Mission: Save Daddy From the Horrors was a go.
"Hey Dad," Mikey began, wrapping an arm around his shoulder and leaning into him slightly. Raph, at the same time, got to work preparing a pot of tea-- Donnie fetched the cream, Leo was on sugar duty. "So, we were thinking. Maybe we could come with you this afternoon?"
Their father startled slightly, immediately moving to glare at Mikey with suspicious eyes. "What?! Come with me? Why would you want to come with me to a doctor's appointment?"
"Well, we were just thinking, it might be a nice, uh... family outing!" Raphael offered with a shrug, chuckling nervously and looking to the side. "And maybe we could, I dunno, get frozen yogurt on the way back?"
"And we could watch that game show you like on the way over. With the mystery shrimp?" Donnie suggested.
"Plus, I mean, I've been meaning to get some acting tips from you? Not that I need them, obviously, but..." Leo added, placing a cup into his father's hands as he narrowed his eyes.
"... You boys are... up to something..." Dad mumbled, looking between the four of them with a slight frown.
"Up to something? No! Of course not!" Raph insisted, and Mikey placed a hand on their father's shoulder.
"We just want to spend more quality time with you! As a family! Don't you want to spend time with us, your loving sons?" He questioned, batting his eyes. "Plus, we can get frozen yogurt! We know how much you love frozen yogurt, right?"
"Yeah, what they said," Donnie said.
"Pleaseeeee?" Leo went in for the kill, offering a dramatic pout, poking his lower lip out as far as it could possibly go. Mikey joined in shortly, combining their powers to reach near-dangerous levels of puppy-dog-eyes.
"... I suppose... If you really would like to..."
Score. They were in. Goal: minimize anxiety and get their dad home from the doctor's office in one piece for a change. And if they got some frozen yogurt in the process? What was the harm in that? As far as Leo was concerned, so long as they could manage to get their Dad through this appointment without totally freaking out, that'd be a win. And, if things went well, it would be that much easier to convince him to allow them to accompany him to future appointments, too.
---
The rest of the swim meet went about as expected. Donnie easily got the best times in every event he participated in, and all three of them, plus a couple of their teammates, made it into the upcoming Regionals. Trophies and ribbons were given out in the end, which they had all immediately passed on to their father, ‘cause he was more excited about them than they were and would surely figure out a way to find space for at least some of them at home. Raph physically wrestled an ancient Twix bar out of Leo's hands, and once his little brother finally cried for mercy and swore to leave Candy Locker alone for the remainder of the trip, he unpinned him from the ground and allowed him to get back up. Normal stuff.
It wasn't until the train ride home that things got kind of weird.
About fifteen minutes in Leo started giving him these looks. Looks that said, ' go on, say something.' So Raph started giving Leo ' no, you say something ' looks. After some back and forth, they both tried to give Donnie looks, but Donnie completely ignored them in every sense of the word, pointedly refusing to look up from his phone as he discussed the process of coding artificial intelligence to their dad, who clearly didn't understand anything they were saying, but to his credit, was doing his best to nod along.
After losing a silent game of rock-paper-scissors played at knee-level, just outside of their father's field of vision, Raph cleared his throat, leaning over slightly.
"Sooo, Pops... You been... sleeping okay?"
"Hm? Oh, yes! You know I am always out like a light after my before-bed snack!" Dad replied easily with a chuckle, and Raph frowned, ‘cause he could tell just by looking at him that that was a lie.
"Uh-huh. Right." Leo scoffed, not buying it. "That's crazy. Because, no offense, but you look kind of like garbage. And like you haven't so much as touched a pillow in, like... ever."
This immediately earned him a smack to his forehead.
"Garbage?! I will have you know that I was voted Hollywood's ‘Sexiest Action Film Star’ five years in a row! No respect!"
Leo whined loudly, rubbing his forehead and mumbling "ew," under his breath, but Raph knew it was all for show. Dad's infamous ‘Karate Chops’ never actually hurt. Though it could be that Leo was more hurting from the psychological damage of hearing their father refer to himself as ‘sexy’ than anything else...
"I concur-- ew. And as fascinating as this factoid that you've cursed us with is, father, it doesn't really address the fact that you've clearly not been sleeping." Donnie remarked, still not looking up from his phone screen. Raph knew he was listening, though. He wasn't typing, no video was playing. He was fully engaged with the conversation. Just needed his barrier.
"Yeah, if anyone is qualified to identify an insomniac, it's me!" Leo added in.
"What we're trying to say is," Raph jumped in, hands held out and a nervous smile on his face, "Is just, uh. That we're a little worried about you, Pops. I mean. You've seemed kind of, uh, out of it... since..."
"Since that thing with Mikey." Leo helpfully supplied, crossing his arms over his chest.
Raph noted the slight twitch in his Dad's left eye.
"What thing with Mikey?" Dad feigned.
"Uh, the thing where he started a fire in his room? That thing? Ringing any bells?" Leo pressed, with a tone and a look that said 'yeah, nice try.'
"Oh, yes. That." Their dad said, waving a hand dismissively. "We have already discussed this, boys. The important thing is that Mikey was not hurt, and Purple, I know you are upset because you are not allowed to start fires anymore--"
"It's not about Mikey, Dad," Raph interjected. "It's about you! You've just... you've been acting... weird! And it's been nearly a week now! And-- and if something's goin' on, we wanna know!"
"Nothing is going on." Their father immediately denied. "I already told you all. That was simply a freak accident, and it is not anything worth worrying about. I am fine! It is nothing you need to concern yourselves with."
"Dad, come on. There's obviously something bothering you!" Raph pushed a little harder, despite the anxiety bubbling up in his stomach, feeling like a soda can in a washing machine. "We just wanna help. Come on, don't you trust us--"
"Enough." This time it was Dad who interrupted, his voice harder now, firm and definite. Raph flinched slightly. "I already said it is none of your concern. I am fine. I am perfectly capable of handling this, and I do not want any of you involved!"
Raph opened his mouth like he was going to say something, but was surprised to find that there were no words. So he closed it again. He glanced over at Leo and Donnie, but they had about the same expressions on their faces as him.
"Please, Red." He heard the sigh in his father's voice, and he sounded softer now, tired even, and placed a hand on Raph’s shoulder. Raph glanced downwards, his eyes following all the knobs in his father’s fingers, the wrinkles in his knuckles. He didn't want to look at his face, because he knew that if he did, he would see him as an elderly man rather than Dad. He hated it when that happened, when he fell into that headspace... Just seeing people as people, just looking at them for exactly what they were, with all the familiarity and memories stripped away from them. "Just let me take care of this. I have everything under control."
Raph frowned a bit, not entirely sure if he believed him.
"We have a good life, Raphael. I need you to let me keep it that way." He said. "And to trust me enough not to get involved. Please."
He didn't look at Leo or Donnie this time. Something in his gut was screaming at him that this wasn't the move. The words Dad was picking here felt... off. But the way his voice sounded... He swallowed thickly, and then slowly nodded.
"Yeah. Okay, Dad. We trust you."
Far beneath the city, below the concrete, below the subways, below even the sewers, the world eventually became city again-- Hidden below the oblivious humans above. At the edge of this city, a small vine grew from the soil, slow and silent, just at the seam of a brick wall. Ever-so-carefully, the vine grew and expanded, pushing itself upward, dark and veiled in violet veins.
The vine pressed itself up against the stone wall, curling unnaturally upward, and a bit of stone cracked in response, falling away to the soil below.
The vine pushed further.
[ next ]
#sorrywhatnowau#sorrywhatnowaufic#fanfic#rottmnt#tmnt#rottmnt fanfic#rottmnt human au#tmnt human au#rise raph#rottmnt raph#turtle tots#fidgetwing
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Raph is the eldest, the Protector. He was the shield to keep his siblings safe no matter what and a role model to show then right from wrong. They could come to him about anything and he would promise no judgement (well, maybe a little teasing) and his complete support and he had made sure his brothers had known this since they were very young. And he'd been doing a pretty banged up job of it too, bug brothering like a Boss!! At least, that was what he had thought up until this point. Then he discovered Leo and Donnie were a little more special than they'd first thought.
They were a Fated Pair, according to a decidedly smug Draxum. According to yokai legend, every few hundred or so years a pair of seers, usually twins although not necessarily. And he had suspected for quite some time that Leo was one of them, although it was only recently he figured out which. Leon was a doom prophet, someone cursed with prophetic dreams and vision of future disasters, while Donnie was ironically the soothsayer, blessed with visions of fortune.
All Raph had really understood out of that was that his brother's dreams weren't just dreams and his brothers had been keeping soem serious secrets from him. He'd always known Leo had trouble sleeping and Donnie had the uncanny ability to guess good news even before it's told, but he'd never really thought too much about it. Donnie has freely admitted to recording and even spying on his family before so it wouldn't be hard to imagine he'd just overheard it while Leo is... Leo. He's never been much a of a restful sleeper. He'd never thought anything of it until recently.
Then CJ came along.
Raph adored the human boy, they all did, but that's nothing on how downright protective if the time traveler Leo and Donnie were. How they seemed to just know things about CJ that they shouldn't know at all, like his fear of snakes (something shout a crazed snake yokai trying to eat him when he was younger). And of course theirs the stories CJ would tell, about how Leo and Donnie's future selves. Whenever the boy would bring up anything about Leo and Donnies' future selves' uncanny ability to plan ahead for almost any eventuality, even when there was absolutely no foreseeable way for then to tell soemthing was going to happen, the turtles in question would be quick to change the subject, insisting that it must be exaggeration on the part of the apparently prevalent rumor mill of yhe apocalypse.
That was the start of it, and not long after the kid came along and they'd fought their greatest battle yet, the truth was revealed. Raph was concerned, of course, who wouldn't be learning such a terrifying thing about their younger brothers!? Donnie would insist the visions aren't anything to worry about, more a nuisance than anything.
"Whats the point of a surprise party or dazzling someone if you already going to know what's going to happen!?" Donnie would complain whenever asked about it, "I'd rather not know what my next birthday present will be thank you very much..."
On Leo's end the slider would just shrug it off, likening his visions to just another nightmare.
"I'm used to it, it's jsut more of the same right? Insomnia stops me form sleeping and I get nightmares. Just cuz they come true don't mean much if anything!"
Raph had a feeling that Leo was downplaying how bad his dreams were and that Donnie wasn't being completely upfront in the matter of his feelings about his visions, but considering the circumstances in which they had discovered the visions the snapper couldn't blame them. This was something deeply personal that got thrown out for the world to see after all, and as long as they know to come to him if it gets worse, all is well and good. Besides having brothers who can see the future is actually cool, or at least thats what Raph ahd thought until he had to witness one of them.
Leo had woken him late one night with a terrified scream, prompting him and Mikey to rush to his room. His eyes and markings were glowing as he gasped and whimpered in desperate pain, nails digging into his face as he scratched desperately at his temples and scalp, convulsing with the sheer power of hus uncontrollable visions. He was having a vision, one of the rare waking ones where he wasn't asleep, and Donnie was nowhere to be found! Stuck and unsure what to do, Raph tried to snap him out of it only for Leo to curl up more, more pained cries escaping his beak. Mikey was fumbling with his phone, trying to get Donnie on the line. Nothing they were doing was helping and Raph, desperate, jsut did the only thing he could think of.
He scooped Leo into his arms, sitting in the floor with the convulsing and crying turtle in his lap and wrapping himself around the smaller liek the world's most dense weighted blanket and just held him close, heart breaking as Leo instinctively clung to him, nails digging in as he bit his lip in a desperate attempt to stifle his crying. Donnies voice came on the speaker, held close by Mijey with promises of coming home as soon as possible and telling Leo to hold on.
Donnie sounded breathless, telling stories about good times yet to come as he runs, not hover but actually runs, back to the lair in n attempt to comfort Leo. The sound of his twin seemed to help, but not enough, it wasn't nearly enough and Raph's heart shattered even more as he picked up the panicked tone in Donnies voice as the realization that nobody knew how to handle this set in.
Leo was the expert when it came to this strange future sight... Donnie had freely admitted to only recently even noticing his own powers and beginning to learn them but Leo had been aware of then for far longer and any questions they had would be best asked of the slider or Draxum. Draxum was away on some charity event the school he worked for was hosting to help with the hundreds of people now homeless after the invasion, and Leo was catatonic and suffering.
As Raph sat there waiting for this to pass, Mikey curled against his shell for comfort but unwilling to slide in next to Leo who needed it more and Donnie rushing back, he thought. His many times, he asked himself, how many times has this happened to his brothers and he wasn't there to help!? How much has Leo and Donnie kept hidden from hin because they didn't want to worry him with these visions? How many times was Leo brought to this state, alone and suffering in the dark as he stifled his crying? What was it Leo was seeing, that made it so his strong and thick skinned little brother would cry and weep and convulsed in pain form sheer grief at what he was seeing!?
No more. Raph won't let them suffer alone anymore. He may not get this whole seer thing much but he doesn't have to to understand that his brothers need him. Hours later, when Donnie had arrives and Leo's episode had ended, twins sleeping peacefully once more, Raph carefully traced the yin and yang marks on his brothers' faces before tucking the blanket around them closer. They were in a turtle pile, everyone too freaked by Leo's waking vision to sleep alone.
Tomorrow, Raph will discuss setting up soem ground rules on regard to what the twins do and do not hide when it comes to their visions and ask Leo just what it was he had seen.
This is so great!!! Raph is such a good big brother! I love this so much!
also just
He's going to be talking to them about all this. But tomorrow. (off mikey's getting more blankets and pillows for a proper turtle pile)
THank you!!!
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Hallo, hate to bother ya but is it okay if I request poly turtles (dark au or normal) x y/n who like physical affection but is kinda selective about affection (don’t know how to describe it, kinda like Donnie I guess).
You don’t have to, just wondering!
Two posts within a week?? wow I might actually get back to a decent schedule, hopefully. I went with Normal! bc I have so much shit for Dark AU, I just wanna appreciate my original boys, y'know? (also, I'm fucking around with how my posts look, so, sorry abt that besties :'})
I left the cause of Reader's Selective Affection/Selective Touch up to interpretation but it's mainly written for those who get overstimulated (ASD)
✩ Poly! Rise! Turtles x GN! Selectively Affectionate! Reader ✩
Post Format: Headcanons
CW/TW: angst for Leo's areas and possible hints of Mikey guilt tripping you unintentionally at the end
✩✩✩✩✩✩✩✩✩✩✩✩✩✩✩✩✩✩✩✩✩✩✩✩✩✩✩✩✩✩✩✩✩✩✩✩✩✩✩
They actually take it pretty well once it's explained to them.
Donnie takes it the easiest, obviously, But Raph also takes it generally well, maybe not as well as Donnie but that's to be expected tbh, I can't decide who would take it the worst though, definitely Mikey or Leo, though.
Now that I think about it, Leo probably takes it worse but gets over it VERY quickly
Why?
Donnie. Donnie will actually beat his twin's ass over it, understanding how it feels to be touched when you don't want to be (even if your issues don't stem from overstimulation.)
But Mikey very rarely gets punished from it due to baby sibling privileges, it'll take him longer to respect that boundary, especially if you don't regularly enforce it with him.
Now that's not to say that he doesn't respect it, it's just, like Leo, he's a very touchy person affection-wise, his preferred choice of showing love is physical touch.
He'll end up stopping all-together until you tell him it's okay, until then? Surprise hugs from behind!
I'll get more into them now, that's just the things that came to mind immediately.
Raph respects it, he might mess up a little bit every once in a while, and he apologizes profusely once it happens
Because while he definitely respects your boundaries 1000%, his usual form of affection is physical touch, but he'll try to find other ways! It'll just take a bit :}
Donnie definitely respects it, scarily so, often avoiding even brushing against you if he can help it
As he has Overstimulation issues and hates being touched at times, he understands the feeling, often he struggles to understand if your selective touch doesn't stem from ASD/SPD (Autism Spectrum Disorder/Sensory Processing Disorder), but he treats it like it is so it's easier for him to relate to.
Leo is difficult about this, I consider Leo a boundary pusher when he doesn't understand or agree with something, for this, it's the former
He doesn't understand why you don't want him to touch you sometimes, if it goes on long enough, he might start to doubt you love him, as his insecurities kick in and overthink about it, he'll think you hate him and just can't find a way to break it to him that you don't love him as much as his brothers
His walls get wrecked and forcefully torn down during this, which is why he gets desperate for affection from you, leading to him getting his shit kicked in by Donnie, just treat him with patience and have a talk with him about it, okay? It'll make him feel a lot better
Mikey is also a Boundary pusher, but not intentionally! He's just.... super Physically affectionate..... he wants to cuddle his darling 24/7 and gets a little bummed during your No-Touch/Affection periods
He still tries to sneak in a hug or cuddle, leading to Donnie scolding him (Donnie is the only brother who calls him out on this behavior lmao), he slowly gets more and more respectful, especially if you call him out on it. He doesn't want to make you uncomfortable after all!
Unlike Leo, he doesn't get insecure about this, he knows you love him, you say it all the time! Why would you lie?
Once you get out of these moods or if this is a constant thing, warm up to the idea of being touched by them, they're ecstatic.
Raph loves cuddling and peppering you with kisses for hours and playing cutesy games like AC:NH on the switch, probably tickles you if you're okay with it.
Leo gets emotional and just clings to you, especially if his insecurities were really bad before you gave the go ahead, you're not allowed to pee or get up for ANYTHING for a couple hours lmao.
Donnie is a 50/50, mainly because if you are okay with touch again, he might be in an Overstimulated state, so sometimes you don't get to cuddle him, but when you do? He's clingy like Leo, understanding that he doesn't know when he'll get the chance to do this again.
Mikey lovebombs you, dragging you to the couch to hug and kiss, constantly complimenting you and whining about how hard it was to not hug you, because he loves you so much!!
All in all, just give them patience and communication and they'll try their best to make you comfortable
7/10, communication is key, boys, communication is key.
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Sorry if it's bad by the end, I'm super tired lmao, but I had the motivation to write and idk when I'll get more :'}
#rottmnt headcanons#rottmnt x reader#rise of the teenage mutant ninja turtles x reader#rottmnt#save rise of the teenage mutant ninja turtles#save rottmnt#donnie x reader#donatello#raph x reader#raphael#mikey x reader#michelangelo#leo x reader#leonardo#chaotic gremlin fae#fae rambling#fae rambles#fae being a dumbass#poly! turtles x reader
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Loving your seperated raph au so far! So if Raph wasn't around, Leo must be the leader up til now? How did that affect his personality?
Thanks so much! And I actually have several ideas for their dynamic without Raph that I've been exploring, so prepare for a long-winded rant because I have Too Many Thoughts
I've brainstormed a lot about how the leadership role would work with Raph out of the picture, and my consensus is that Leo isn't a full-fledged leader. Instead, he and Donnie accidentally end up as co-leaders!
And by "accidentally", I mean "Leo elects himself as leader but Donnie hates the idea of being ordered around by his slightly-older annoying twin so much that he turns it into a competition for the leadership role". Actually in this context, I'd call it more of a president/vice-president dynamic, with Leo taking charge more often and Donnie occasionally stepping up if he doesn't agree with a decision. Poor Mikey kinda ends up stuck in the middle of all this, lol.
Outside of leadership, Leo is definitely more responsible as the self-appointed oldest brother, but that responsibility is more spread out between him and his brothers than it is with canon Raph. My reasoning behind this is how he's just barely the eldest. The difference in age between him and Donnie is so small that his younger brothers feel more inclined to help him out. Overall, the trio is more mature than in canon, but not by much (this isn't one of those super serious AUs where it's all about survival and familial issues, trust me. they're still a bunch of gremlins that love each other and do as they please, they just. know how to do their chores now.)
Also side note, without Raph around to be the tank/shield that takes the big hits, the trio's missions default to stealth if they're unfamiliar with whoever they're facing. At least until they get a handle on their mystic weapons; after that they can go into fights guns-blazing in all of their unhinged glory >:] (and i'd say Donnie with his tech takes up the mantle as the "tank" of the group, i mean did u see the first episode's fight with draxum? he was the only one getting effective hits in)
Exploring their dynamic is gonna be fun, especially how Leo and Raph might clash about leadership once things start winding down and Raph is finding his place in the family. He'd definitely feel like he should be the protector, what with his size, strength, battle skills, street smarts, etc etc, but I imagine the trio would be hesitant about the idea. After all, they've survived just fine up until now. Sure, they've got a few extra scars they could've done without, but they're still kicking!
To sum it up, Leo and Donnie somewhat share leading the team while also competing to become the True Leader, then Raph comes along and unwittingly joins in on the competition while Mikey has to just Deal in the background. Wonder how long it'll take for Dr Delicate Touch to step in?
Anyways, rant over. I hope this answered your question! (and sorry if it's kinda rambly, my thoughts usually come out as word vomit and this is the first time i'm posting them publicly ('._.))
#didnt think i had so much to say about their dynamic#but here we are lol#rottmnt#rottmnt mikey#rottmnt donnie#rottmnt leo#rottmnt raph#seperated raph au#mutant manhunt au#rottmnt rant
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