i love future leo fans bc they love to make all this angst where leo is so completely alone and all his brothers are dead as if mikey isnt right there

sano manjiro x reader

warnings? spoilers of the last chapters!! , suicide, blood

a/n? i just got this sudden idea that seems so perfect! i know ken wakui once said that he might give manjiro a girlfriend but that was years ago. you will see what i am talking about c; . no one's pov!

"go back.. and save them"

takemichi's last words sprung across the air. reaching everyones ears like whispers but mikey's like daggers

with his last breath gone, mikey fell into such pressure, his head seemed like a boulder and his heart like something so much bigger

mindlessly, he carefully layed his friend down from his lap and took the katana out of his dead body. blood dripping all over, his face full of horror

with shaky hands, he cried and cried as he led the katana to his neck, loud whispers of some shouting that the people around him covered a tiny bit of the monsters in his head

his hand trembled, his eyes stuttered close, his nose dripping as his eyes ran rivers down his cheeks.

in a second, in a moment. he pressed and sliced his throat.

as if he fainted and awoke, his eyelids were heavy and somehow not sore. the light of pure brightness touched his soul too while hurting his dark adjusted eyes.

he looked around, not understanding. his breathing became louder, and louder as he began walking thru these white painted walls.

where was he? slowly but surely, he began remembering this place, these halls

"—...-—...–pacient named Sano is in room 217"

his buzzing ears stopped once he heard someone talking. he was in a hospital

"room 217...?"

thats where his mother was. the room he daily visited with stories of what fights he won and wishes of good health were said.

he followed the little girl that walked in the direction of the room, his heart beating faster and faster as he got closer.

he was a blurred person layed in a white bed once the girl opened the door.

"wha...what...is that really.."

words cannot describe what he felt. at once he opened the door, and his eyes filled with tears.

"manjiro? why are you crying my angel?"

her soft light skin, eyes, hair, voice and her words. they were all the same. his poor soul began breaking before her as all his troubles seemed to vanish at the sight of her mother

"come 'ere"

the open arms he long forgotten.

"mom...i missed you"

"oh you, manjiro. didn't you say you hate crybabies? whats with your crying? im always here in the same place"

seconds of silence before he spoke again

"i like crybabies now"

he said, with a soft giggle remembering his friend. she patted his blonde hair with care and his little face never seemed more calm than this

"uhm..."

suddenly

"oh! im sorry, manjiro, this is y/n"

he took a long time to ripe his face out of his mother's neck. but he didn't seem to regret once he saw the girl on the chair next to the bed

"hi"

with a little wave, the little girl said

"i should leave now then- you can spend more time with your son"

she said blushing, almost even stuttering as her eyes began avoiding his.

"no no! you don't have to! i meant to introduce you two long ago anyway!"

she said smilling, patting on the free spot on her bed

"manjiro, she is the daughter of an old friend of mine, i would love to see you two start a friendship!"

his eyes layed on his mothers, the eyes that were the same as his, not long before his eyes landed on the little girl that seemed, familiar.

just the simple gaze that stood between the two, changed the fate of many. as simple as that.

[YOO im havin shivers, i want to clarify, the moment mikey came back is the moment he was meant to leave the hospital. thats why it changes the future, because the turns around and meets the girl (you) that went to visit his mother right after he left. the answer was so close all along. can you tell i love making stories]

Nothing Haunts Us (like the things we don’t say)

Part 3/3

(part 2 here)

(part 1 here)

---

The journey from Manhattan to Staten Island by car is about an hour and a half, give or take traffic and weather. The turtle tank halves that with Donnie white-knuckling the wheel, nearly flattening parked cars and pissing off dozens of drivers, horns blaring and furious curses bouncing against the tinted windows.

April's stomach is doing crazy gymnastics that would make Mikey jealous. Her nails bite into the plush leather of her seat as she fights for balance every time the tank swerves or picks up speed.

It's still not fast enough.

Donnie had alerted the tank almost immediately after Leo kicked them out of the Mind Meld to come to pick them up. Splinter had surprised them from inside once that hatch lowered, yelling at them to get in and not waiting before yanking Casey and April in with his tail. Raph had filled him in as best as he could, still shaken. The rat man listened to his eldest and seemed to age ten years. April doesn't want to look in the mirror for a while, afraid she might find grey strands of her own.

She tries not to think about the last time she'd been to Staten Island, but she does anyway. She remembers every moment before it, too. She remembers holding Splinter as he broke down, head in clawed hands that trembled, silent sobs shaking his form as he prayed and begged for his second youngest child. She remembers looking over her shoulder, tears streaming down her face, to see lady brain face laughing at their grief. April had never wanted anything more dead in her life.

She remembers walking the deserted streets, holding Splinter's hand, and stumbling upon a catatonic Casey holding one of Leo's katana like a lifeline. She remembers the haunted gleam in his eyes seconds before he broke down in her arms.

She remembers getting the call on her communicator, Raph's breathless laughter stained with tears—“We got 'im! Leo's alive, we got 'im back!”

It was only ten minutes, but it was the worst ten minutes of her life.

(She refuses to think about the moment right after the portal had shut. She wants to forget the sound of bones breaking under cruel, cold metallic fists, the cries of pain and fear, that final scream before the comm finally went dead—

But she can't. Not after what Leo had said. Not after she'd slapped him for it.)

They make it to the island at the thirty-minute mark—an eternity to April—tires screeching against the asphalt, but Donnie doesn't stop. Mikey's still on Casey's lap, tucked inside his shell, Casey's arms wrapped tight around him as he strains against his seatbelt as the tank swerves again. Splinter curses loudly in Japanese (a nasty one, too, despite every young ear in the vehicle understanding him), claws scraping against the floor, but he says nothing about Donnie's reckless driving. The look on Donnie's face screams 'I'm this close to a nasty meltdown and my fingers are touching', so it's probably for the best—

“There he is!” Raph shrieks. Everyone goes flying as Donnie stomps on the breaks.

April doesn't wait for the room to stop spinning before she's tearing her seatbelt off, racing out of the tank before the hatch is fully lowered. Donnie beats her out by a millisecond.

She sees Leo, and the breath leaves her lungs.

Leo sticks out like a sore thumb against the twilight, mask tails fluttering in the breeze where he stands still as stone at the edge of the bay. Both katanas are extended in front of him. She can't see his face, but she can feel his fear as they close the distance.

April skids to a halt a beat before Donnie, the others piling in close behind her. Leo doesn't move, nothing to indicate he knows they're here. She can't even tell if he's breathing. His arms shake.

Donnie's voice is the knife that cuts the silence. “Leo.”

Leo whirls, blades raised to guard, his eyes wide as saucers and bright with unshed tears and emotions too numerous to pin down—except for fear, confusion, guilt, and uncertainty that should never be allowed. Not here. Not with them.

His cheek is as bright as a neon sign, sore and dark with the start of a bruise where she'd hit him.

“How—” Leo's voice breaks like glass. He swallows, lowers his swords and tries again. “How did—what are you all doing—how did you—?”

“Ninja Mind Meld lets you see, feel and hear everything the other person does,” Donnie says, and now April can hear how clipped and cold he sounds, like every word out of his mouth is a battle to keep it below a scream. “You may have tried to kick us out—a valiant effort—but you can't hide everything from us, Nardo, truth spell or no. Least of all from me.”

Leo stares at him, all of them. His gaze lingers on Raph and Splinter—the worst victims of his verbal attacks save for his twin—before he looks away again, staring at his feet. “Right,” he says, resigned. “Guess that means you... you know why I'm...”

Please don't, April thinks, begs. Please don't say it. Please don't—

“Yeah. Yeah, we do.” Donnie takes a firm step forward, eyes never leaving Leonardo. Leo shuffles half a step back. Pain flickers across Donnie's face before he pulls the mask back down. “You were trying to go back, weren't you.”

It's not a question. Leo answers anyway. “I was.”

Sweet Jesus.

Mikey whimpers, Raph's breath hitches, and Splinter clenches his fists hard enough that April hears the bones crack. Casey says nothing, jaw clenched.

“But I didn't want to.”

April blinks. She can smell Raph's Confusion Stink.

“What?” Donnie asks.

Leo swallows again, eyes shining with the threat of tears. He clenches his jaw like the stubborn thing he is to keep them from falling and meets no one's eyes. “I said—I said before that you'd have all been better off if I hadn't—hadn't come back, so... I thought, since I said it, it had to be true. That I really think that—so I came here. To—to try to go back—” His voice cracks and the tears fall. He glares at his feet, fists clenched tight around his katanas. “But I—I tried to m-make a portal, a-and—and it wouldn't work. I can see the prison dimension so clear in my head 'cause I dream about it every night, I can see—him, 'cause all can hear is him screaming at me and, and hitting me over and over, and—and it wouldn't work, because—”

His katanas clatter loudly to the ground as Leo drops them. He wraps his arms around himself, ducking his head as he trembles. April watches, her heart breaking in a million different ways. He looks every bit his age. Sixteen years old and scared.

“I don't wanna go,” Leo whimpers, hands clasped against his chest like he's holding something precious there—whatever it is, it's the only thing holding him together. “I know I said it, so it—it must be true, but I—I don't wanna go back, I'm scared and I don't wanna go—”

Donnie stomps the distance between them. Leo looks up and goes ridged, eyes wide. April doesn't blame him because Donnie looks ready to kill something, every muscle wound tighter than a copper spring. He lifts an arm high, and Leo flinches—

April reaches for Donnie a beat too late.“Donnie—!”

Donnie grabs Leo by the shoulder and yanks him into his chest, arms snapping around him in a tight embrace. Leo stares straight ahead, dumbstruck. April drops her hand.

Leo blinks. “... Don...?”

“I'm gonna say a bunch of things now,” Donnie says against Leo's shoulder, and he sounds all kinds of pissed off, yet it's the softest April has ever heard him. “And I need you to listen good because I will never be this emotionally vulnerable again for the rest of my life. Not necessarily by choice, but because feelings are difficult for me, as you are aware, and somehow this spell lifts the cap off of every bottled-up thing in my neurodivergent brain. So... so listen up, okay?”

“... 'kay.”

Donnie takes a deep, deep breath. April can't see his face, but he can hear his grimace, uncomfortable even without the 'cap' keeping every thought and feeling at bay. But he doesn't let go or loosen his hold around Leo. If anything, as Leo relaxes against him, Donnie's arms tighten.

And then—“I adore you, Leonardo.”

Leo gasps softly. Donnie keeps going, arms tightening.

“And you are my twin. Biology be damned, you are my twin brother in every way that matters. We balance each other out. I'm book-smart, the best with machines, engineering and science in general, while you're street-smart, witty and honest to god sly in ways I could never be. You fuel my love of musical theatre and act as my soundboard when I get suck on a problem. I'm your cuddle buddy while we're watching old Barbie movies when you're having a Bad Brain Day. You're my sword, and I'm your shield. That's you and me. A pair of disasters who barely function on our own but are unstoppable when we're together. That's how it's supposed to be. That's how I want it to be, for however long we have on this dumb planet. Because I love you, Nardo.

“You're my twin, my only twin, and I love you so freaking much it's scary. I'm nothing without you. I felt you leave this dimension the day we nearly lost you. I thought I felt you die. I never want to go through that visceral pain ever, ever again. I swear to whatever higher power I don't believe in, if you ever think about leaving us again, if you make me an only middle child, I will hunt you down like a dog, drag you by your shell and glue The Bucket to your goddamn, blue gum-ball son of a bitch head for the rest of your life.”

April huffs something between a laugh and a sob, echoed by Raph as he swipes a thumb under his eye. Of course, anything 'heartfelt' from Donnie would be sprinkled with insults and half-baked threats. But just as Raph hovers and mothers, how Mikey paints and attacks with cuddles and kisses, it's just one of the many ways Donnie wears his love.

Tears stream down Leo's face, arms slowly coming up to hug Donnie back just as tight, fingers digging into the grooves of the battle shell. ��But—but you said—“ He hiccups. “You said we weren't—you called me a selfish prick. I called you s-so many awful things. I hurt everyone, you, Raph, Dad, Mikey—“

“Yeah, you did. So did I. We were pissed off and tired, and we hurt each other. But that's the thing about feelings...” Donnie draws back just enough to look Leo in the eye. April can see the dampness on his cheeks as he smiles. He presses his forehead against Leo's. “They're not facts. And you know how I am about facts.”

Leo's lip trembles against his smile. “Yeah. Y-You're like the freakin' Bible, but without the fear of god.”

“Funny, but I'm still talking.”

“Right. Sorry.”

“Thank you. And the cool thing about feelings?”

Donnie takes Leo's chin between his fingers and lifts his head to meet his eyes. “They're true in the moment, but they can change. And yeah, sure, I'm still nice and pissed off that you punched me, bit me, told me you were better off dead and then ran off, but mostly? I'm so freaking glad you're safe, and you have no idea how sorry I am for what I said and did. I'm so sorry, Leo. You're my little brother, my twin, my better half, and you mean everything to me. That is a fact. The day it isn't is the day I defy the laws of the universe to make it so. Okay?”

Leo stares at Donnie. April sees the second he breaks before he launches himself at Donnie, sending them both crashing to the asphalt.

“I'm so sorry, Don-Don!” Leo wails into Donnie's chest, a heartbreaking sound that finally pushes April over the edge as she wipes fruitlessly at her own tears. “I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I love you, I love you so goddamn much, I don't wanna leave, I wanna stay, I wanna stay, I'm sorry—!”

Donnie clings to Leo, burying his face into the crook between Leo's neck and shoulder. The twins wrap their arms and legs around each other and hold fast; it'd take a miracle (or a death wish) to break them apart. No one tries. Instead, Raph and Mikey rush past and skid across the concrete, barrelling into the twins and wrapping them up in their arms. Mikey's wailing just as loud into Leo's arm. Raph's tears are silent as he crushes his little brothers against him.

This would be where April would join in, screeching her name and love for her family at the top of her lungs and clinging to her boys. Instead she hangs back, her hand still burning as she clenches it tight behind her. Casey notices and says nothing, draping an arm around her shoulders.

Splinter hobbles over, reaching for Leo through the barricade of sobbing turtles to cup his striped cheek. Leo's head snaps up. “Dad, Daddy, I'm so sorry,” he says, all shades of miserable and guilt ridden, “I didn't—I never meant to—I know you tried, you always t-tried, I know you love us, and I love you, I—”

“Hush, Baby Blue,” Splinter says, cradling his sons' face in both hands and kissing his forehead. “I know. It's alright. Everything will be alright. For now, let's get you home.”

Leo sniffles and nods. “Okay. Okay. I really wanna go home.”

“Good,” Raph says roughly. “'Cos after what you pulled, that's where your ass is stayin'. I'm invoking Dad's grounding privileges, and you, little brother, are grounded for a week.”

Leo chuckles wetly, nuzzling his cheek against Raph's arm. “I'll take that, boss man. Honestly, as long as I can still get cuddles, I don't care how long you ground me.”

“How about a year?”

“... I care a little bit. And where the hell are April and Casey?”

April stiffens. Casey jumps, then points at himself in question.

“Yes, you, you big turds! I wanna hug my other little brother right freaking now!” Leo wriggles one arm free from the embrace and reaches for the boy, making grabby motions. His smile is wide and real, but still, it trembles. “And I want my big sister.”

April's breath catches.

“I wanna hug her and tell her I love her, and I forgive her for everything. Please?”

Oh, damn you, kid.

She and Casey charge the turtles and slam into the embrace, Raph lifting an arm to let them squeeze in. Casey winds his arms around Donnie and Leo, the former refusing to budge even as he frees one hand to clench the back of Casey's shirt. April peppers Leo's face with kisses until he's giggling, and then finally, finally, she wraps her arms around her little brother. “I'm so sorry, baby,” she whispers against his bruised cheek.

He frees one arm to snake it around her waist and squeeze. She feels him smile. “I know. I forgive you.”

April smiles back.

~0o0~

True to form, they have a blanket fort constructed within minutes of getting home.

Raph orders from Run Of the Mill, and Splinter makes good on his promised hugs. Mikey makes too many cookies, and Casey cries into his hot chocolate through Ratatouille. April snorts into hers during Howl's breakdown in Howl's Moving Castle and ends up with chocolate up her nose. Leo laughs in her face. It's the most delightful sound, but she still chucks marshmallows at him.

Donnie doesn't leave Leo's side for longer than he deems necessary. Leo is in no rush to stop him, a clinginess that she hasn't seen from either of them since they were younger. Or since Leo's recovery after the invasion.

She keeps one eye on them for most of the night, draped over or wrapped up in each other as close as they can get, sharing blankets and pillows, fingers interlocked as they watch movie after movie, stealing food and doing absolutely nothing about it save for the odd glare. It's the cutest damn thing she's ever seen. Splinter pushes his ninja skills to the limits to secretly film them with his phone.

She texts him to send her the video. He replies with three minutes' worth of footage and a thumbs-up emoji.

Everyone else has fallen asleep, Lost World playing softly in the background when April hears them whispering. It's rude, but she keeps her head down where it's pillowed on Casey's chest and pricks her ears.

“You know how I record everything?” Donnie says, unprompted.

“Yeah? You recorded Hypno's spell that one time. Do you still have it?”

“Freakin' yeah, I do. Kinda wanna use it again, too.”

Leo giggles sleepily. “Yeah, it was fun. Weird, but fun.”

“Sums up our lives perfectly.”

“For real, though. Why'd you bring it up?”

Donnie says nothing. April slowly, carefully turns her head to face them, mindful of the boy she's using as her pillow. Leo's legs are draped over Donnie's lap, the slider nestled against his older twin as he absently plays with the fingers of Donnie's left hand, the other arm wrapped around Leo's shell. They're both in their biggest, cosiest hoodies—matching unicorn ones Donnie had bought for Leo as 'compensation' after the last bout of Rat Flu. It's a wretchedly adorable picture, but April can't snap a pic and risk being discovered. Curses.

Then Donnie says, “We heard what happened in the prison dimension.”

Leo stiffens, eyes haunted. So does April.

Donnie, what the hell?

“... what?”

Donnie's eyes are locked on the screen, watching the T-Rex chase the characters through the jungle. “Your comms were still operational,” he says tonelessly. “It's a marvel, really. I hadn't expected that to be a thing my tech can do, so that's cool. But yeah. We heard everything. I still have the recording stashed somewhere in my hard drives. I haven't listened to it since I found it, but something illogical in me tells me not to delete it.”

April knows all of this. She was there when Donnie chanced across the audio file and held him during his breakdown. She was there when it happened, watching the blood drain from Splinter's face as the monster purred with a wickedness that chills her to the bone even now—

“My wrath will be reserved for you alone.”

She remembers the crunch of bones, the sound of skin and flesh tearing, crumbling concrete and her little brother's screams of pain. A whimper, so small and afraid she almost hadn't heard it, and then—

“Wipe that grin off your face!”

—before the line went dead. She'd been so sure Leo had gone with it.

Wide-eyed, Leo curls closer to his twin. “... oh.”

Donnie rests his chin atop Leo's head. “Yeah.”

“... that's why you got so pissed off when I asked for your password.”

“... yeah. I didn't want you to hear it and trigger you. It's bad enough that you went through it at all. You've barely healed from the physical wounds. I didn't want you hurt because I can't delete a stupid recording of the worst moment of your life. Our lives. But for the life of me, I can't delete it. It's like a part of me wants to hold onto it as a reminder.” He scoffs. “As if I'll ever forget how I nearly lost my best friend.”

Oh. Oh.

The thing that pushed Donnie over the edge, ensued a fight and sent Leo away—

Donnie wears his love with layers of sarcasm, empty threats and insults. His worry isn't much different, not even under a truth spell. In trying to protect his brother, Donnie had nearly driven him off.

Jeez. These boys are gonna kill me.

Then Leo laughs softly, scrubbing his dry cheek with his shoulder. “Dude, you should've just told me. I wouldn't have looked or even asked if you'd said.”

“You didn't ask, therefore, I was not compelled to tell you.”

“But you literally just told me, unprompted, that you had it. We're watching CGI dinosaurs kill people, and you decided to confess that you screamed at me because you were scared I'd trigger myself over a recording. I did not ask you a damn thing.”

Donnie stares straight ahead, eyes wide like he's come to a revelation of some kind. “... Huh. Well, shit.”

Leo muffles his laughter against Donnie's hoodie. “You're an idiot.”

Donnie scowls but cuddles in closer, de-tangling his hand from Leo's to tug the blanket over them. “Yeah, well, if we're going by twin logic, I'm only half an idiot, making you the other half. Together we share one brain cell.”

“No, that's half a brain cell. Together we make one whole brain cell and one whole idiot. Wait, no—this is getting away from me. I'm really stupid right now, I can't do twin math.”

“Yeah, no, please never try to math again. Leave the thinking to me.”

Leo snickers. “Yeah. Book-smarts, street-smarts. Sword and shield.” Leo goes quiet for a heartbeat, his smile a soft thing April rarely sees. “... that was really sweet, actually. I mean, the whole speech was just. Top-notch, not gonna lie—”

“You physically can't.”

“I know, so, yeah, like. It was nice. Really nice. I... really needed to hear it. And I really am sorry for the things I said. And for beating the shit outta you.”

“I forgive you. Already said that.”

“I know. Just making sure you know it's true.” Leo smiles and shuts his eyes, cuddling closer. “I love you. Weirdo.”

Donnie smiles back, closing his eyes. “Love you, too. Dum-dum.”

Soon, their breaths even out. April watches them a moment longer, safe, sound and comfortable in each other's embrace, her heart full of love for the pair of idiots she calls her brothers. She snuggles against Casey, bringing his arm over her shoulders as she closes her eyes, finally dozing off.

She has high hopes for tomorrow.

~0o0~

Day Three begins with a phone call from Draxum.

After calling in a favour from an old contact, he got his hands on a scroll from Witch Town detailing the terms and conditions of spells of this nature and, more importantly, how to break them.

A little late in the game, but better late than never.

“According to the terms,” Draxum says, eyes roaming down the length of the scroll while Mikey sits behind him on top of the couch, braiding his hair, “to break it, the afflicted one must confess a truth from the depths of their heart that would otherwise be left to wither with time. In other words, go big or go home.”

Huh. It's that simple.

April wants to hit something. So bad.

“You're seriously telling me,” Leo seethes beside a silent Donnie, “that all we had to do—”

“Was having a therapy session like I said we should do literally in the first place? Pretty much,” Mikey chimes with a grin that teeters between sour and smug, finishing Draxum's braid. He slides from the top of the chair onto Draxum's lap, landing upside down with his feet on the yokai's shoulders. Draxum sighs but lets him have his way. “Could've avoided all this drama if we'd just talked to each other, but nah, y'all said to hell with that crap, I'm gonna make a scene in my own dang home and—”

“You're a real bitter piece of shit when you're compelled, eh, Miguel?” Leo grins, taking the sting out of the jab. Mikey grins back, shooting finger guns. Draxum sighs again. Donnie looks at his lap and says nothing.

Raph claps his hands together, grinning. “Great! We break the spell early, and everything can go back to normal! Which hopefully involves being more open with each other so we don't have situations like this again! Please. Raph can only take so much.”

“Loud and clear, big guy.” Leo drapes an arm around Donnie's shoulders. “I know I'm like, the king of emotional repression and bad coping mechanisms save for Dad, but... I'll try to be more honest with you guys going forward. For real.”

April reaches for him, cupping his cheek in her palm. The bruising is already fading. “That's all we ask, Leo,” she says. Leo puts his hand over hers and smiles.

Mikey mimics Raph and claps his hands once. “Aight! So all we gotta do is confess a deep-seated truth about ourselves and this nightmare is over! I'll go first!” He squirms on Draxum's lap so that he's right side up, crossing his legs as he clears his throat pointedly. Unconsciously, April leans in. They all do.

And despite offering to go first, despite all he preaches, Mikey hesitates. He twists his fingers on his lap. “... so, um... the truth is, um—m-my truth, um...”

On Draxum's left, Splinter smiles. “Go ahead, my son. It's alright.”

Mikey offers his Dad a wavering smile before taking a breath. And another. “Okay. The truth is... the truth is that I'm scared of—of growing up. I mean, not physically, and maybe not the same way April or Casey might be, 'cause they'll have to look for jobs, places to live and worry about adult human things. Me, though? I don't know what the heck I'm supposed to do.” He looks at his hands, three-fingered and calloused, stained with paint and faint scars like cracked pottery running under the length of black wrappings.

“There's so much I wanna do. I wanna show off my art. I wanna travel the world and see where Dad grew up. I wanna make Papa proud and master mystic arts. But at the same time... I know I can't do all of them, at least not with this whole situation,” he gestures to his face. “And using a broach... that's not who I really am. And, these are all things I gotta think about when I get older, and I'm—I'm scared I'm not gonna be ready for it! I'm scared I'm gonna let people down 'cause I'll never reach my full potential, I'm scared of—of changing from who I am now to whoever I'll be as an adult! And—and as much as I complain and moan about it... I'm scared of not being your little brother anymore.”

April doesn't have to touch her face to know she's crying. The rest of her boys aren't faring much better. Even Draxum looks choked, blinking a bit too much to be natural. She's surprised Splinter isn't outright bawling. Then again, maybe not. With his past, she wonders how often he'd asked himself the same questions, hid the same fears under costumes and layers of pride.

“Well, you don't have to worry about that, Mike,” Donnie says, clearing his throat when his voice cracks in a vain effort to sound bored. “You'll always be our little brother, no matter how much you grow up. And all those fears you mentioned? Psht. Child's play. You're far more capable and remarkable than you realize. Have more faith in yourself. Besides, if you do, in an impossible scenario, happen to fail, you'll still have us. Capiche?”

They stare at Donnie.

Damn, April thinks. Truth spells are really something.

A few tears roll down Mikey's cheeks before he scrubs them away with a wobbly grin. “Y-yeah. Yeah. Okay. Thanks, Dee.”

Draxum lays a hand on Mikey's shoulder. “How do you feel?” he asks.

Mikey takes another deep breath through his nose. “I feel... better, I guess. Feels good to let it out.”

“Good. Do you know who filled my coat with those disgusting jelly beans last night?”

“Uhhhh no idea! Sorry, Papa!”

April chokes. Leo and Raph gape. Casey gasps. Donnie nods with a slow grin.

Mikey blinks. Then he squeals, leaping off Draxum's lap and pumping his fists in the air. “Ohhhhh hell yeah! I broke the spell, baby! I can say whatever I want again!”

“Excellent,” Draxum nods. “But that also means I know you just lied to me, so no jelly beans for a week. Busted.”

Mikey's grin drops like a stone. “Aw, nuts.”

“And on that note, I guess I'll go next. Go big or go home, right?” Leo sits up straight with a sigh. He scratches the back of his head, his other hand squeezing Donnie's when his twin reaches for him.

“So. Pretty sure it's no big secret that I still have nightmares of the—the prison dimension and stuff. I think about it a lot, about what could've happened if Mikey hadn't gotten me out. And yeah, sometimes when I'm having a bad day, I think, 'maybe if I'd stayed there, things would suck but not for long, right?' Which, yes, before you say anything, those are Very Bad Thoughts to have and I should've said something sooner, but... y'know me. King of bad coping mechanisms, yo...”

He holds up a weak peace sign, eyes welling up. Donnie squeezes his hand tighter. Leo scoots closer, sniffling. “And... and what's really wild is I didn't—I didn't wanna go the first time. I really, really didn't. But that bastard was too strong for all of us at our strongest. It was me, or you. And Raph was right. It was time I stepped up and started acting like a hero, a leader. And heroes sometimes have to make sacrifices, so...”

April expects the heartbreak in Splinter's eyes, the fresh tears in Mikey's, and the forced indifference from Donnie. She doesn't expect Raph's deep growl, and it startles her.

Leo seems to realize his error and tries to scoot away, but Raph is faster. He reaches out and grabs Leo's chin—careful, even at his angriest, always with them—turning Leo's head so their eyes meet.

“You,” Raph hisses through clenched teeth, “will never do that again. I've told you once, and I'll tell you again: You're my little brother first, and as my little brother, I would very much like you to live.” The anger abates a fraction, a wet sheen glistening in Raph's eyes as his hand moves to cup Leo's cheek instead. “You don't have to die to be a hero. You don't have to And I'm sorry, so damn sorry, that I ever gave you the impression you have to push yourself to your breaking point to prove you're worth something. Because you're worth everything, Leo. And I don't care if you're not a great leader—those guys die for good causes and get made into legends or whatever, but good leaders? They stick around and lead the teams they're put in charge of. And that's what you're gonna do. What we're gonna do, together, from here on out. Okay?”

Leo stares at Raph with swirling eyes. He shuts them and sucks in a deep breath. When he opens his eyes again, he's smiling. “Loud and clear, big bro. And for the record... about that whole 'worth something' thing? I'm starting to believe it. I do believe it. But it's nice to hear it every once in a while, so... thanks.”

Raph grins back.

Then Donnie leans forward. “Say, Leonard, do you know where my favourite fidget spinner went by any chance? Also, Raphaela, were you the one to bend my metal straw after you made that fruit smoothie yesterday?”

Leo sweats. “Haven't the foggiest, brother dear!”

Raph chuckles and looks away. “Nah, nah that—that wasn't, no, it was—oh! Oh! Hey, we broke the spell!”

“Oh hell yeah, you're right! We can lie again, sweet pizza supreme in the—oh, wait.”

Donnie grinds his teeth hard enough that April can hear them, his bo transforming into a rocket-boosted hammer drill. “You sons of bitches—!”

“Wait, wait!” Mikey slides on his knees between a livid Donnie and their quivering brothers, arms spread. “Before you blast 'em, you gotta break your own spell! I'm sure there are plenty of nice things you can think to say before—”

“I already broke it.”

Silence. 

Mikey blinks. Leo and Raph blink. Draxum and Splinter stare. Casey tilts his head. 

April says, “What?”

Donnie leans back with a sigh, the anger leaving him in a rush as the hammer drill dissolves into mystic pixels. “I broke my spell hours ago. You may recall the incredibly touching and heartfelt speech I bestowed upon my then-wayward twin here. That was when I no longer felt compelled to tell the truth or answer every question asked of me. I thought that was just me going non-verbal after stressing out for hours, but it wasn't until Leo pointed... something out to me that I will not disclose at this juncture—because I can do that now, hell yes—that I realized I had broken free of the spell. So, yeah. Tello takes the first prize for beating bogus spells. You may applaud.”

Everyone stares for a beat until Mikey starts whooping and clapping. Casey follows with equal enthusiasm while Raph rolls his eyes but claps, too, ever the supportive big brother. The co-parents share a look that speaks a thousand words, and April shakes her head, because of course he broke it first. Always the overachiever, even when he's not aware of it.

Which means that everything he said after, to Leo and just now to Mikey...

April's heart melts. Aww, Dee.

Leo, remarkably, says nothing. Instead, he shuffles back to Donnie's side and throws his arms around his shoulders, pressing a loud, smacking kiss against his cheek. Donnie shrieks in protest, arms flailing as he curses Leo like a Japanese sailor. Clinging like a limpet, Leo throws his head back with a laugh that fills the lair. Mikey and Raph, as usual, are quick to join in on the cuddling, squeezing until Donnie stops squirming and gives in.

All it takes is a look from Leo before April charges in, screeching her name at the top of her lungs, dropping right on top of a howling Mikey. Casey flops across Raph's shoulders, scrambling for purchase like a gremlin until the snapper is giggling—“Casey, stop, yer ticklin' me~!”—while Draxum and Splinter watch on.

April squeezes Leo, smushes her cheek against Mikey's, and lets herself breathe. 

Finally, she thinks. Finally. I got my brothers back.

~0o0~

The following week, they bump into the witch that cursed them. Her face is twisted into an ugly, smug thing when she catches the turtles flinching.

April pulls out her bat and swings.

“What the crap, April?!” Mikey screeches, hands hovering over the unconscious, bruised yokai. The twins are barely standing as they howl with laughter. Raph puts his face in his hands to muffle a scream.

April shoulders her bat and grins. “Just giving her my honest opinion.”

---

(This is so long! I just didn't want to add a part four XD)

Reblogs are appreciated :)

Feel free to send more requests, I love writing for these boys <3

Nerding out about Rise Movie

(Yes I am aware Im late. That's my whole brand. Shut.)

Anyway. This is specifically about the last bits cause of course it is.

*ahem *

Cant find a GIF but yknow that bit, when Leo tells Casey to basically pull the plug, to let him die, and the kid grabs the key to do so. But he doesnt do it right away and you can see the struggle so clearly its amazing.

Theres Casey knowing he will be the cause of losing Leo again, in such a short time. He doesnt want to. This is his father figure/uncle. This is one of the only comforts he knew and he has to be the one to kill it. And then there's resolve that its the right thing to do.

Its almost like Casey was trying to impersonate Future Leo, a person he looked up to, who made hard choices for the good of everyone.

But then the bravery is gone, crumbling at his feet and Casey doesnt want to make the hard choice. This is still a kid. This is still someone who a few hours earlier had watched his world die. Every last bit of it.

He doesn't even look when he finally does it. And he doesn't stay put and pull, he runs away.

-

The moment the portal shuts Leo stops fighting.

The moment his brothers are safe he just stops.

There is no brave front, no stoic decree that he will make the Kraang's life hell or take revenge somehow more than he has. He's done.

However almost everyone I see writing this bit in fanfics always makes it sound like he didn't care about dying and that isn't true. He wants to live. He's crying, wanting his family to hold him and be in the good times again so he holds onto the picture. But he's genuinely too tired to do much and he knows there's nothing he can do anyway. Doesn't mean he doesn't still want there to be.

Who says sacrifices arent scared of dying?

-

The fact the boys gave it everything they got and all the Kraang had to do was flick a finger. That is terrifying and such an awesome way to display the villain's power. They have no hope of defeating it, and its not hard to see how the Kraang took over the world in a different timeline. To have the turtles do all that and it to be brushed away as a little less than an inconvenience. Horrifying. Good job.

-

Call it talking about something obvious, but I love the scenes we see that we thought was the end, with Leo gone forever. Cause at that point the world was saved, people were probably celebrating if they could see it happening, but to our heroes there was no victory. To them the end is as devastating as if they had lost. The background behind Casey as he clutches Leo's sword is the same red he grew up with, where death and loss and fear was as common as air.

Donnie is crying, and he shakes his head as he realizes cause no, this cant be reality. This wasn't in his plans. He denies the tears because that means its hurting. And if it's hurting that means that it happened.

Raph is on the ground cause he is the big brother, meant to protect them, and he failed. The grief is piled on by guilt and anger and sorrow and the need to do something but he can't and its too heavy. Even he can't carry all of it.

-

Fun little tidbit to finish but I love how when Mikey opens a portal to get Leo back, Raph and Donnie also take some of the backlash to that power. Its also a little funny that its the two turtles who were dead when he opened the time gateway, especially since Ninpo is stronger when they are united as a family and he opened that portal alone.

Thank you for coming to my TED talk

sometime if you feel like it i'd be really interested to hear more about your georgia and utah's personalities and their dynamic together. I've picked up some from art context and some of your posts but im curious to see it written out :3

guess who’s back. Me

warning⚠️ warning this post is me blabbing ⚠️ you have been warned ⚠️

acckkk where do i start.

Georgia? Kind of a dick for no reason. he’s the bully of the moi and everyone kind of hates him a little bit. he has like an air of superiority to him despite not being like the highest rank n doesn’t have a lot of close friends, so he usually hangs around south (probably cause she doesn’t want to sit with the other lancers n the other lancers don’t want to sit with him Lmao.) he kind of parallels carolina n how he reaches far over his limits trying to be the best but unlike Carolina he isn’t actually the best n will pussy out prob. (for other reasons too but that’s not important.) Other notes in the other ramblepost blah

Utah is silly and yippeepilled Ok. He has a pretty calm demeanor and is pretty optimistic, even though that might just be cause he’s a little dim (not like, in a caboose way but more in like a donut way. like you could get him to eat dirt with enough convincing). Most people on the moi generally like him, he’s friendly to even the lower tiered lancers and to employees, but he only has a select few closer friends. I see him as the leader of the B team, so he can stand his ground and have a loud voice when he needs, but usually takes a more seated back approach to try to support his team instead. He usually keeps his helmet off.

okay now them as a dynamic. since they both have pretty small friend groups that includes eachother. they work well together as they have contrasting fighting styles and they generally enjoy eachothers company

Georgia has a Horrible crush on Utah. utah kinda knows but he’s really stupid a bit to advances and kind of just stares off into space confused sometimes. they’re generally very close friends tho like they steal eachothers clothes but it’s not gay its just being homies yk. geo will still be kind of mean to him but it’s more in a playful way than like actually trying to hurt his feelings

however, all that being said, one of the main reasons Utah’s friend group is so small is because of Georgia. no one really likes him so since they’re together so often, people tend to stray away from Utah too. even though utah can stand his ground in a battle situation, he’s kind of a pushover when it comes to Georgia’s bullying, telling him to stop and reacting negatively to it but not really going farther than that. they’re a bit toxic like that. georgua would be a horrible partner tbh.

in canon I feel like either geo gets his shit together in the endless void of space or he lands on a planet and continues to be an asshole. destined to be horrible or dead or something.

uhhhh. if you want to see more of my interpretation ov them I have 2 oneshots in this fic (yes, I know now you’re suppose to post separately) one with my au n one of them with them generally. thanks for letting me yap mikey

He was on a roll today! He didn’t want to stop. Havent even started the ep and we are like 3 cigarettes in and 4 pills down. He had an audience of one (to his knowledge) to entertain and he delivered. But he was stressed. It started with him coming back inside and going ‘okay i think I’m ready.. i could be wrong tho’ honestly this is a mood ngl, ‘do you think Brian buys him alcohol..or does he have a fake id? Idk whats cuter. OH MY GOD HE IS DRUNK AND CARING ABOUT HIS EDUCATION! Why am i finding this cute?..my dream is for brian to tell justin he loves him. Seriously dude wtf has to happen for you to tell him’ I swear i deserve an award bc he says stuff that would usually get a reaction from me but i have to be normal about it and it is hard! ‘Oh god, how weird do you think had to be to film blow job scenes?..his hand still acts out! How is he gonna do in school? Oh Brian can’t get enough of him. SIR’ ‘..oh my god MIKE HAS THE SAME WAY OF DEALING WITH PROBLEMS THAT I DO..remember when i dyed it purple for that girl who said her favorite color is purple..and then she never talked to me again?*long pause* honestly i dont blame her that was a bit *waves his hands around* much.’ ‘..brian actually cares about Teds weird addiction enough to show up for an intervention? See! And he got him a job! There is potential here somewhere just let me uncover it!’ ‘Oh Justin is drawing again, dude it’s okay just take a deep breath, count to ten, shake your hand a little and do it again. That’s what my therapist told me to do…although i was 12 and it was bc i was scared to make friends…oh no his hand is gonna be a problem isn’t it?!’ He is now having a moment bc he feels bad for Mikey but he is conflicted with his feelings..’i need him to listen to Bri Bri and quit his job. Oh my god JUSTIN IS STILL HERE?! OH GOD THIS IS PAINFUL TO WATCH. So what if he lost control?! HE IS CLEARLY DISABLED TO SOME DEGREE! Would you kick a handicapped person out of school bc they can’t attend gym class?! Oh i hate this guy! How about you HELP him meet the requirements somehow?! You see he is talented and instead of HELPING him as a teacher, you are gonna spit on him bc he’s disabled?! OH FUCK THIS GUY! FUCK HIM ALL THE WAY TO HELL. I need a cigarette again. Pause this shit bc i am not okay’ he is currently outside pacing back and forth mumbling while smoking and i am learning so much about him bc of qaf, this is actually insane. ‘Okay turn it back on. I’ve calmed down now (cut to justin saying he is dropping out) I LIED I AM NOT CALMED DOWN WTF YOU DONT LET PEOPLE WIN WHEN THEY MAKE YOU FEEL BAD ABOUT DISABILITIES!..oh i love all of their reactions! But Brian is about to have a stroke if Justin doesn’t stop’ ‘WAIT THAT WAS LIKE WHEN BRIAN DID IT IN THE PILOT! okay that was cute! The way Bri Bri stares at him and then he dried his face. Fucking adorable, i almost forget that im mad that he dropped out..(and we are at the computer scene) OH MY FUCKING FUCK CRISPY JESUS HE GOT HIM THAT COMPUTER! THAT IS NOT NORMAL FUCK BUDDY BEHAVIOR BRIAN! Oh this fucker cares so deeply for him and everyone else but doesn’t want anyone to know. CMON JUSTIN STOP BEING A LITTLE BITCH AND TRY IT! Oh that’s messed up Justin, he isnt trying to fix you, UNLIKE THE TEACHER HE IS TRYING TO HELP YOU FIND WAYS TO DO YOU THING! Oh he looks like he just watched a puppy get hit (he now got sad at a fake scenario he just made up about the puppy)..OH HE DREW A PENIS NICE’ 1/2 of 2x05

Oh he drew a penis, nice. DEAD.

Anon you are so brave and strong for not telling him the things that you should not be telling him.

Your brother has gone straight (pun intended) queer theory to disability theory. He needs a full honorary degree. I love him.

fandom list

i’ve been trying to get back into writing but i don’t have the motivation to write a full length 5k oneshot on tumblr, i prefer to do those over on my AO3. it’s a shame that i’ve never once completed any of the fanfics i set out to write but i hope to start changing that.

there are a few fandoms i have been into lately, and that i am willing to write fluff/angst/character analysis SFW fics for. i just want to let you know i am no longer as willing to write explicit smut, however things like aftercare/morning after requests are still alright. i also do not mind going out of my comfort zone and try my hand at the DEAD DOVE DO NOT EAT type of requests, but if i do not write them i suppose i was a little uncomfortable with those. i might not have a schedule for updates or whatever but i will try to squeeze whatever i can in between because i love writing and i want to practice my skills. however, i hope yall don’t mind that my uni work still comes first.

fandoms i am writing for and characters i am EXTRA willing to write for:

JJK [no thoughts head empty just yuta okkotsu. and maki ofc why would i not fall in love with her? im the biggest pick-me for her and her only]

Tokyo Revengers [i’m fine with everyone but mikey/baji angst no comfort? i have a least 654265565656 ideas for them in my brain, bouncing off the corners like a 90s windows computer screensaver. also bonten kakucho is so fine and for what. for what ken? to make me cry and throw up? to simp and be down bad horrendous?]

TBHK/ JSHK [family man minamoto teru has my heart i understand nene]

Genshin Impact [i have never simped for an entire franchise more then i have for all the characters in genshin. especially for albedo and kazuha]

Trash of the Count’s Family [big cale brainrot, my god this man is fine as hell— might be inaccurate for this one because i only have read the manhwa so far and i heard the novel has more stuff so might get into that if i have more time during semester break]

Owari no Seraph [is this fandom still alive? are we doing ok? if we are, hi this is a long time shinya simp since what? i was 13? and no i have yet to catch up to the recent chapters, let me know if anything happens to my boy.]

Ensemble Stars [when i started this game i had my national exams the next day, i did not fail but i also did not get into junior college and now i am older then the main cast. i will write for anyone honestly, but i only recently gotten back into the fandom and now all the story translations on wiki are gone so uh....]

Kimetsu no Yaiba [if you were with me i since the start of this blog, you will know how down bad i am for sanemi, so let’s pretend that didn’t happen]

Cookie Run [if you are shameless enough i guess]

NEW ADDITIONS:

Honkai Star Rail [good lord above i can’t stop thing abt jing yuan jing yuan jing yuan jing yuan jing yuan jing yu-]

Return of Mount Hua / Return of the Blossoming Blade [baek cheon the man that you are!!!! cheong myeong!!!! my pookies!!!!]

Omniscient Reader’s Viewpoint [wow it changed my life fr]

Alchemy Stars [look,,, i am an old man dick-rider]

Touken Ranbu [welcome back to sword hell bitches]

Return of the Mad Demon [new manhua new me, new men to peg,,, looking at lee jaha in particular.....]

Heavenly Grand Archive’s Young Master [beom hang kinda,,,,]

Academy’s Undercover Professor [i love me a pop-culture nerd, ludger the man you ARE!!]

Heavenly Sword’s Grand Saga [i have to tell you,, i got a soft spot for thug-ish characters]

Star Instructor, Master Baek [smiling, giggling,, kicking my feet whenever  baek suryong appears on the screen]

What Kind of Music Slashers Would Vibe to Headcanons♪

This little thing popped into my head. Fyi, the canon timelines are thrown out the window for this so... Yeah.

Bring forth the bop~

RZ Michael Myers

"Let my weapons be your children, let my armies be your damned. Try to suffer on in silence, try to stop me if you can." --- This Cold Black by Slipknot

I think he'd really enjoy metal in general. I can totally see him unknowingly stomping to some Marilyn Manson and Meshuggah, though the lyrics and message probably will just fly over his head.

He listens to some heavy shit, but probably all the more mainstream bands/artists.

The loudness and organized chaos of the genre fills the void in his soul and reflects the state of his mind, despite his stoic and non-verbal outer demeanor.

Someone please do everyone a favor and introduce Michael to some death metal. Admit it, it really fits his aesthetic.

This is just based on speculation, but I suspect a 70% possibility of RZ Michael resonating with Cannibal Corpse. Fight me.

He hates classical music with a burning passion. Back in Smith's Grove, they played Bach's Air Sul G on tap. (its canon in the first movie lmao) He hates it. Mikey no likey.

Freddy Krueger

"No stop signs, speed limit, nobody's gonna slow me down. Like a wheel, gonna spin it, nobody's gonna mess me around." --- Highway to Hell, by AC/DC

Freddy listens to classic rock, period.

This guy is ngl a supporter of music taste discrimination. You listen to pop? Disgusting. You listen to Jazz? Disgusting. Classic rock is the epitome of all music.

He'll call you music-related slurs you never knew existed.

As stubborn adamant as Freddy is, he does harbor some guilty pleasures, including 70's hair metal and glam rock. Pshh. What a heckin hypocrite.

Some of his all time favorites are Guns N' Roses, Led Zeppelin, Van Halen, and AC/DC.

(Basic bitch)

*Hip thrust movements to go with his 'The Sprinkler' dance moves, Welcome to the Jungle by Guns N' Roses blasting in the background*

OG Michael Myers

He doesn't listen to music, but if he did, he would probably enjoy Jazz.

Michael only listens to Miles Davis because he enjoys his music and can't be bothered to discover more artists.

Oml Michael I know Miles Davis is amazing but don't neglect other iconic artists plzzz. Someone please make him listen to some Teddy Wilson and/or Dave Brubeck.

I imagine him sitting stiff-straight on a rocking chair (he just likes how it moves), knife in his lap, rocking and zoning-out relaxing to 'Blue in Green'. (I love that piece)

#AfterHeFinallyKillsLaurie

#RetirementGoals

He also hates classical music because of the same reason as RZ Myers. Seriously, if either of them so much as hears the opening chord of Air Sul G, expect the speaker to be stomped to a pulp in a split second.

Bubba Sawyer

Alright let's all be honest with ourselves... 70's pop and country is Bubba's shit.

Look me in the face and tell me he wouldn't adore ABBA, The Jackson 5, and Dolly Parton. Thats right you can't

Everytime 'Dancing Queen' starts playing on the radio, Bubba will drop everything and start busting down.

Ain't nothing and nobody stoppin him. Drayton is powerless against the supreme sovereignty that is ABBA.

But let's also appreciate the fact that our Bubster can motherfuckin get down. *wipes sweat from forehead + heart eyes*

He would also do passionate lip sync with his heart and soul, to Dolly Parton's 'I Will Always Love You'.

50% chance of him starting to cry right after he finishes his earnest performance.

*Holding Bubba in your arms, rubbing comforting circles on his back as he bawls hysterically, incoherently babbling on about how much he loves you*

I also feel for some reason he'd really like Joan Jett & The Blackhearts.

Thomas Hewitt

"For one moment, I wish you'd hold your stage, with no feelings at all. Open minded, I'm sure I used to be so free." --- Citizen Erased by Muse

Y'know what I have a hard time imagining the type of music Tommy listens to. Kutos, Mr. Hewitt, you have defeated me.

siKE

(This is where I yeet the timeline out of the window y'all)

Thomas enjoys Muse, Evanescence, and Radiohead. (Fight me)

He just loves how emotional their songs are. He'd have one earbud in as he works away at his projects for hours. The music helps him concentrate, it is also a source of emotional support to him.

Hearing the heart-wretching lyrical content of 'Lost in Paradise' performed so beautifully by Amy Lee's angellic voice is really comforting to him. It's like hearing about another person's experiences. It makes him feel less alone in dealing with his emotional and mental turmoils and burdens.

The first time Thomas heard 'Creep' by Radiohead, he almost cried.

He also listens to My Chemical Romance sometimes. He only knows the Black Parade album, but he loves it. If 'Creep' didn't make him cry, listening to that entire album from top to bottom sure did. He started sobbing half-way through 'Famous Last Words'.

Tommy is emotional boi 🥺

Brahms Heelshire

C l a s s i c a l

No matter how stinky Brahms is, you can't tell me that he's not classy.

Schubert is his bitch. Schubert's style tends to be quite majestic and/or dreamy, (generally) and can change color/sound very abruptly yet appropriately. (This is just my opinion based on experience with Schubert's pieces, but then I only know his piano pieces soo) (let's still cue that maestoso to scherzando transition)

But of course, Schubert isn't the only thing he listens to. He prefers the romantic period, so Mendelssohn, Rachmaninoff, Chopin, Shostakovich, Brahms, Schumann, you get the gist, all the staples. Oh yeah Elgar too. To be a proud English lad.

*Brahms swaying in the living room with the grace of a baby giraffe, engrossed in the beautiful melodies in Schumann's Kinderszenen.*

(Oml please check out 'Von fremden Landern und Manschen' and 'Kind im Einschlummern') (For those who play piano, they aren't that difficult too totally recommend) (Ok sorry I'm done now)

Brahms would totally waltz around alone to Chopin's waltzes and nocturnes.

Oh yeah apart from that classy shit, he likes to jam to meme songs.

"Hey now, you're an all star, get your game on, go play---"

*cut to Brahms passionately fortnite dancing*

Listens to The Strange Man Who Sings About Dead Animals for a good laugh. (Please, all of his songs are gold)

Vincent Sinclair

He'll have 'emo' and 'classical' with a side of metal, thanks.

I headcanon that Vinny McWaxy is an INFJ, so the boy is likely prone to crippling existentialism. It would make sense for some aspects of his music taste to reflect that.

*cut to Vincent sitting rock-still on his workbench/stool, hands hover in mid-air, staring straight ahead, some John Cage piece playing*

You'll never hear this from Vincent but he enjoys sexy-time music. He has this whole erotic playlist he listens to while working. (Boy likes to feel sexy on the job, I respect that.)

I think its pretty much canon that Vinny loves MCR. (Hello fellow emo piece of shit 👋) His favorites are everything by them really. A hardcore fan. He used to have MCR, P!ATD, and 30 Seconds to Mars posters plastered everywhere in his workshop until he had to remove them all to add to the intimidation factor of his waxy hell for passer-bys. For the record, he is very gay for Frank Iero.

On the metal part of his spectrum is mostly classic metal, groove metal, and thrash/heavy metal.

Rammstein, Pantera, Vildhjarta, new and old Metallica, Dream Theatre, Coheed and Cambria. His bitches.

He also uses music to scare victims when bringing them down to his workshop. *cue horror movie soundtracks*

*KI KI KI MA MA MA*

Is a whore for the dramatics when in a good mood.

*Lacrimosa by Mozart plays as he makes a point to bring the wax painfully slowly down toward a drowsy and petrified victim*

A lament for your upcoming death, pitiful human.

Bo Sinclair

"The day has come for all us sinners, if you're not a servant you'll be struck to the ground." -- Beast and The Harlot by Avenged Sevenfold

Bastard boy is into dad-music™. (same)

Dad rock, classic rock, pop punk, punk rock, old school pop, his shit.

He listens to a lot of the same bands as Freddy, but Bo (generally) doesn't discriminate and explores a more diverse variety of music.

Its a fandom canon that Bo loves Avenged Sevenfold. I totally agree.

A7x is the perfect amount of cynical, political, and shred for Beauregard, (I hc that ge hates his full name so plz don't ever call him Beauregard)

He listens to the radio whenever he's at work. Whatever that might be.

Will NEVER admit it, but he thinks Vinny's music taste is dope as hell.

He'll turn off the radio just to strain his ears to listen to Vincent's music downstairs. No one will ever know that though. You don't.

Actually likes classical music too. Its not one of his main genres but there's one piece he really likes, Second Movement of Shostakovich Piano Concerto No. 2 in F Major.

He never thought he'd enjoy this type of music. Its so.... Calm. He discovered that piece from Vinny's playlist. When he first heard it on his brother's speaker, he fell in love. It was one of the extremely rare cases in which he'd be committed enough to ask Vinny the name of the music.

Tiny shuffle for man-kind, huge fuckin step for Bo. Good job Bo, we're proud of you.

Also pleeeeeaaase message me or request stuff, I'm bored and have little inspiration 🦊

I might do a pt2 of this, since I didn't write many of the boys and gals🤷‍♀️

Also sorry if I've neglected some genres/artists (Like i've neglected non-piano classical pieces.... Bc ya girl is just a pianist), a person can't know everything😗

---Zali 🖤

exes au part 11

post directory

obsetress: i'm about to fully fall asleep but i have been thinking about exes au danvi and like the isabel of it all and dani dating a single mom and how just like

obsetress: vi is so protective of isabel and as much as she loves dani like

obsetress: she took SO LONG before introducing her and then like

obsetress: when they broke up dani left and dani wasnt in isabels life anymore and dani was so good for isabel and viola just feels so fuckin shitty and blames herself and

obsetress: but i'm also thinkin bout soft fluffy stuff too like how much dani loves isabel and how much vi loves watching isabel w dani and

em: hey hannah what the fuck

obsetress: isabel has a nightmare one night and goes to her mom's room and dani's there too and she just curls up between them

em: do you think when they finally reconnected dani was like hey um. does isabel remember me. would it be weird if

obsetress: FUCK

obsetress: this absolutely happens

em: viola is VERY apprehensive at first

obsetress: god yeah esp after getting so hurt by it but

obsetress: viola sure cannot say no to dani!

em: i love some dani with kids tho

em: maybe too soft but do u think for at least a couple years dani would like. send isabel a bday card

em: like dead air otherwise

em: hmm idk i am chewing that one over more

obsetress: god it's hard i think dani wants to but she doesn't

obsetress: i could see dani writing them and holding onto them

em: oh that’s even worse

obsetress: even tho she really doesnt think she'll ever talk to vi again

em: what a soft and depressing thought. thank u. i resent u.

obsetress: yeah it hurts!

obsetress: but then she does! and she gives them all to isabel when she's older maybe

em: hold on i’m gonna bawl

em: sometimes my parents will be like um. do u remember this person and i’m like uh i don’t remember people i worked w two years ago let alone

em: but i think isabel does

em: i will be thinking about this all afternoon bestie have a wonderful slumber

[em note: em yells in hannahs DMs while she's asleep dot png]

em: no um. mate im still furious about the isabel of it all wtf

em: thinking about um. like ok i dont wanna use isabel as a prop but this is certainly one of those times where

em: violas been hurt before and viola's hurt other people before because she's deeply troubled and i feel like that would be one of the first times she sorta. sure she licks her wounds and feels miserable for herself but its also like uh

em: really sobering to realise This Hurts Isabel Too

em: because yknow violas very gatekeep gaslight girlboss i think shes got a strong enough sense of self that nothing really shakes that. maybe even to a deluded degree. i dont think she goes to therapy because shes like wow im fucked up i gotta get help, she's more like

em: shes really driven by her love for isabel!! gestures WILDLY

em: realised this is an au where parents get therapy and dont pass their traumas onto their kids and i want OFF this WILD RIDE im so tired of discovering things about myself through the realm of fiction

obsetress: yeah same i kept thinking about it too alfkadlsfkjdasf

obsetress: i want to reply to every single line of the isabel thing but i'm not gonna do that so let me just say: YEAH

obsetress: like isabel is her cornerstone full stop everything comes down to isabel

em: dani's probably so nervous reconnecting w isabel again. absolutely spinning her lil wheels

em: they set up a lil date and time and dani's doing her gay nervous babble abt if isabel even remembers her or god forbid resents her n jamies like...

em: im pursing my lips as i draw a line on the whiteboard between jamie's whole childhood and isabels and shaking my head Goddamn It

em: jamie lets dani babble it out n pauses and reflects on what she's saying n then jamie's like. the fact ur nervous means u care. n kids are v good at picking up when ppl care. you'll be alright.

obsetress: god yeah this bit i can just. hear it

obsetress: it's so visceral

---

em: viola

obsetress: god my favorite taurus hedonist

[em note: hannah yells in em's DMs while em is asleep dot png]

obsetress: god fuck what was i thinking about isabel this morning like

obsetress: that's what i get for daydreamin between snoozes and not writing it down alas

obsetress: but just like how excited isabel is to see dani again when she does and also like, isabel and rebecca

obsetress: then i started thinking about

obsetress: rebecca and vi getting married and vi's always like i'm not gonna get married again it's bullshit and rebecca's like it's not for me but then they just

obsetress: like they live together and they share everything and rebecca looks out for isabel just as much and they get to a point and it's like

obsetress: oh. oh

obsetress: like they're both like it's the logical thing to do. it's logical and it's safe and we should have this extra layer of protection but also it's like

obsetress: they find themselves more and more excited a lil you know? and just thinking about how isabel's there and how excited isabel is and

obsetress: but god yeah what i was thinking about this morning like. one day vi has to tell isabel dani's not gonna be coming around anymore and like

obsetress: isabel doesn't really understand and she's so sad and then vi feels even shittier

obsetress: and she's like "we'll be okay. it's you and me, remember? moving mountains"

obsetress: "you me us, right?"

obsetress: the first time rebecca meets her she brings her a book as a gift and is like "this was one of my favorites" and

obsetress: OH I REMEMBERED

obsetress: so like when dani sees isabel again finally (and yknow as nervous as dani was vi was even more on edge because it's so inconsistent and is she gonna understand yknow? and the two of them just spiral––which is also another thing about the two of them in a relationship! i think they push each other down spirals)

obsetress: jamie's there too and dani's like "this is... this is, uh, jamie" and it's like you said jamie isabel parallels and so jamie's like a lil tender

obsetress: spoiler: isabel and jamie end up bonding the most

obsetress: jamie's like running around with isabel on her shoulders and then showing her all these plants and taking her to gardens and

obsetress: another tentative jamie vi alliance

em: isabel mikey hangout When

obsetress: isabel mikey hangout!

obsetress: they're hanging with isabel and she and jamie have a very spirited discussion where isabel's like "i wanna be a princess" and dani's like "why not a knight?" and jamie's like "why not opt out of the feudalistic hierarchy entirely and ditch the kingdom for the high seas?" and convinces isabel to go full pirate

obsetress: and then isabel kinda passes out with her head in jamie's lap and jamie's just kinda idly playing with her hair (vi is already like "am i... attracted to jamie in this moment?")

obsetress: and jamie's like "y'know, i should bring mikey round next time isabel's here" and viola's like "......who?" and jamie's like "my little brother? mikey?" and viola's like "right.... right"

obsetress: cut to later, when dani and jamie have retired to vi and becca's guest room: "since when does jamie have a little brother?" "she always has, babe"

em: kinda obsessed w like. violas love for isabel means her wires get crossed when the surly gardener is Good With Kids

obsetress: yeah

obsetress: mikey and isabel immediately hit it off i think

obsetress: a bit of an odd couple because i think isabel is definitely, like, her mother's daughter and mikey is............. mikey

obsetress: but i think they meet in the middle and help each other grow and play pirates together

em: viola is like. of course mikey and isabel will get along. isabel is wonderful. but jamie is quietly Sweating about the whole thing

em: so damvibecca are having their afternoon tea and their little cakes and jamie is Quietly sweating and she’s like ‘quiet is good, right? like they’re not tryna k-‘ and then there’s the sound of two 8 year olds (idk how old they are tbh) YELLING as they chase each other down the hall w wrapping paper tubes

obsetress: nervous babbling dani x quietly sweating jamie, an otp

em: isabel has gotten into the make up n given them both black eyes n scars and moustaches n everyone’s like oh no how’s viola gonna feel about this but viola is DELIGHTED

obsetress: dani's like "chill you all she's gonna––" and then viola is getting up and asking them to do her face too

em: made a parrot outta a sock and newspaper

obsetress: viola playing pirates w isabel and mikey

em: kids w their endless creativity n absolute disregard for personal property is truly a thing of dreams

obsetress: mikey gives her a paper tube and she disarms isabel, takes hers, and offers it very seriously to jamie

em: cuteeee

obsetress: rebecca's giving dani a look and dani is completely unfazed and reaching for another tea cake

em: absolutely unflappable dani clayton

em: dani and rebecca sharing a Look like hey have you ever seen her this gleeful

obsetress: there is something very tasty about jamie taylor having a direct hand in making viola so gleeful

em: takes a village!

obsetress: when viola's two big loves are sitting five feet away from them both

em: everyone changes everyone for the better

em: fucken soft ass chat over here

obsetress: everyone changes everyone for the better

obsetress: soft as hell

em: thesis statement everyone likes each other so much (jamie pretends she doesn’t)

obsetress: (jamie pretends she doesn't) (jamie might like everyone the most)

obsetress: viola registers mikey for isabel's school n pays full tuition

em: oh my god

obsetress: jamie is horrified and refuses to accept it and viola waves a hand and is like "too late, deposit's non-refundable"

em: (they carpool)

obsetress: PLEASE

obsetress: oh god and like

obsetress: flora and miles go there too

obsetress: full circle complete

em: broke: highschool au woke: guardians of primary schoolers au

obsetress: dani jamie in bed jamie's like "you don't...... think it's weird?" "hmm?" "mikey going to.... school with our boss' kids?" "why would that be weird" "i dunno" "he also goes to school with my ex's kid" "he's best friends with your ex's kid" "and that's not weird, is it?" (grumbles) "not anymore" "so why would this be?"

em: jamie’s ribbing mikey for his silly tie and straw hat but she teaches him how to tie a tie and also she keeps crying for some reason???

obsetress: oh fuck

em: mikey: can’t i just get a fake tie >:/

jamie: no because when u have a real tie you can leave it untied a little as an act of rebellion

obsetress: god it's jamie crying for me

em: i love that big baby

obsetress: so much!

em: jamies like idk what’s gotten into me i never cry n danis like. raises one eye brow and mentally checks off all the times jamie has absolutely bawled watching a movie

em: not even a sad movie

em: dani plays along

em: maybe ur getting soft in ur old age jamie

obsetress: jamie i cry three four times a day five if i'm being honest taylor

em: thinking about their weekly weekend lunch w damvibecca and hannah and owen and miles and flora and

obsetress: dfjsldkfjslfslfj

obsetress: god big found family

obsetress: you know viola doesn't like

obsetress: dani and jamie respectfully toe around whatever the fuck owen and hannah have going on but viola just does not suffer it. she's so blunt to them

em: big viola grin and all ‘owen, hannah, i assume you will be each other’s dates?’ (owen chokes on his tiny egg sandwich)

em: hannah grose is serene and unreadable as she dabs a bit off yolk off owens moustache

em: maybe even a bit pleased

obsetress: everyone is always so tense when viola and hannah get together because neither of them take shit yknow

obsetress: and everyone's like "which way is this gonna go"

em: god. peak snarky broads

obsetress: but usually they end up good. two apex predators where one is a lil vicious but the other is so confident in its status that it just chills

em: they have the Best gossip

obsetress: would love to sit in and listen as they drink tea and gossip tbh

em: viola presses owen on hannah and he goes red and viola presses hannah on owen and she does a little wouldnt-you-like-to-know into her tea

em: viola nee willoughby and hannah grose friendship is. truly something i never knew i needed until now

em: they’re both just that lil bit older than the rest of the gang too

obsetress: an important coalition

obsetress: hannah grose! hannah looking out for rebecca and that's the couple times she gets a lil testy w vi

obsetress: mikey and isabel besties but flora and mikey get along really well and isabel and miles do too i think

em: the sheer chaos of a taylor-lloyd-windgrave story time

obsetress: LDKFjKLSDJF HELP

obsetress: taylor lloyd wingrave story time

obsetress: jamie suddenly very invested in story time

obsetress: dani's like "i know this is the first time you've actually cared about story time, babe, so let me give you some pointers"

em: i was just in my head thinking fondly about like. jamie is a drop out and plays a lil dumb sometimes for fun but also prolly reads a lot especially to mikey and now i’m like. wait i’m talking to Ms Floras Two Moms herself

em: idk if i had that headcanon before i read she taught me a lesson alright but yknow what! doesn’t matter it’s a beautiful one

obsetress: thank youuuu i love it a lot

obsetress: jamie big reader is generally one of my fave headcanons tbh i'm glad it seems to be widely accepted. can't even explain why it's just nice

em: sometimes i will talk 2 ppl about my passionate drop out jamie taylor belief n then they’re like but she’s smart (it’s only happened a couple times hahsj) and i’m like these aren’t mutually exclusive!! this is my very biased experience but my friends who do manual labor for a living seem to read so much more than my friends who don’t

em: your brain wants to chew over things while the hands are workin i reckon

obsetress: yes yes yes yes yes

obsetress: i think that's also like (sighs heavily)

obsetress: symptomatic of hegemonic perceptions of the working class

em: i love when u sigh heavily it’s always a fun take

obsetress: i think jamie is v clever and reflective and like if there's one thing i've learned getting older it's

obsetress: smart doesn't matter i think the most insightful most thoughtful people are the most reflective ones

obsetress: like none of it fuckin matters just be a nice person

A Long Way Home - Part 2

Part 1

Pairing: Gerard Way x Female Reader Rating: General Requested By: Anon Word Count: ~7900 total, about ~4450 in part 2 (minus the song lyrics used) Author’s Note: The song featured is Audience of One by Rise Against, it can be found in the playlist, here. I hope you enjoy the conclusion to the story!

As the tour rolled on, (YN) started to wonder if maybe there was a chance that the crazy commenters online were right about the possibility of her and Gerard being something.

It seemed like he always made time to see them perform now, and talked to her when he got the chance. It was never overtly flirtatious, but she couldn't help but wonder and hope that he was trying to get closer to her.

Unfortunately the tour had reached the halfway point and that meant saying goodbye to Taking Back Sunday. (YN) felt so thankful that she could now count Adam, John, Shawn and Mark among her friends.

Now Crystal Lake Cemetery had joined the tour and the overall vibe shifted. There had been such a welcoming camaraderie at first, but the new band didn't seem to want much to do with anyone else, returning to their own bus after their set was done. Rebecca and Jake took their lead, leaving Liam and (YN) to hang out with My Chem whenever the opportunity presented itself.

Now it was finally one of the rare days where there was enough time between shows to get a night in a hotel. Everyone appreciated the chance to get a decent shower and sleep in a real bed.

Everyone except (YN). She found herself on a couch in the hotel lobby after going out for dinner and drinks with Liam. He had started chatting with a guy, and ended up bringing him back to the hotel. All she could do now was wait for him to let her know it was ok to come back to the room and scroll through social media.

Up in his room, Gerard was doing the same when he noticed the square icon at the top of his phone. He smiled to himself when he saw that it was a notification that (YN) had updated her story.  He opened it up and saw it was a selfie of her pouting dramatically. With the caption "i havent been sexiled from a room since that semester i went to college 😫"

‘Where are you?’

The DM from Gerard surprised (YN), not only because he saw her post, but how quickly after posting it he responded.

‘Lobby. Liam brought a guy back, so I'm waiting for the all clear to go back up.’

‘Wanna hang out in my room?’

(YN) felt her heart rate shoot up. ‘Sure’ she replied as casually as she could with shaking fingers.

‘529′ he replied moments later and she jumped up, hurrying to the elevator. The ride up felt like it was moving painfully slow. She tried to keep her pace casual as she walked down the hall and smiled at Luke and Will, two of the members of Crystal Lake Cemetery who were talking in the doorway of the room across the hall, before knocking on Gerard's door.

“Hey,” he greeted her with a smile and she tried to keep from letting her knees go weak.

“Hey, thanks for inviting me up. I was getting kinda bored in the lobby,” she laughed as she walked in.

“Of course. Umm, wanna watch a movie?" Gerard asked as he made his way over to the couch.

"Sure, whatever's on," (YN) replied as she sat down next to him. She couldn’t help but wonder who designed the layout of the room with the couch not actually facing the tv as she found herself sitting sideways.

"Looks like The Martian is about to start, have you seen it?"

"Once when I was in a hotel room in Rochester, but I had taken so many cold meds that day, I'm pretty sure I thought I was a martian," she laughed. "I was so sick that tour. I hate when they schedule shows in the winter."

“I agree, those are always kinda miserable, seems like everything is always cold and wet. Oh, do you wanna stretch out?” He asked when he noticed how she was shifting uncomfortably.

“Sure,” she laughed a little nervously as she stretched her legs out over his lap. It wasn’t much later that her eyelids began to grow heavy and the next thing she knew, she was waking up as the end credits were playing, and her head was against Gerard's shoulder. Then she realized his arm was around her, his other hand on her shin, rubbing small circles, almost absentmindedly. "I guess I'm never gonna see this movie," she mumbled, feeling a little awkward.

"That's too bad, it was pretty good," Gerard laughed.

(YN) picked up her phone from where it had slid to the floor and saw that Liam still hadn't messaged her. "Damn dude," she muttered.

"Hmm?"

"Oh, Liam still hasn't given me the all clear. I guess him and this guy really hit it off.”

"How are things with the other two? They never seem to be around much."

"Weird. I dunno, something is going on and no one is talking about it. Well no, they're talking about it, but not to us. Liam overheard Rebecca telling Jake that I’m selfish and I care more about the band as a concept than as four people making music together," she sighed. "And I do see it now that it's been pointed out."

Gerard shook his head. "I get it, I was the same way the first time round. I wanted everything to be the way I envisioned it in my head, I had that goal that I was working toward and that was all I was focused on. Though, for what it's worth, I think you're pretty great."

"Stop," she replied, covering her face with her hands to hide the fact that she was blushing.

"I'm not kidding," he said tugging at her wrists. When she looked up, he was smiling softly at her.

She shook her head. "Anyway, can I crash on your couch tonight? I'm not sure the staff would appreciate a rock star sleeping in the lobby."

"You take the bed, I'll sleep on the couch," Gerard replied.

"Gee, no, I'm the one who is invading your space!" She said getting up.

"I invited you," he replied, getting up as well.

"Share?" The word tumbled out of her mouth before she could even realize what she said.

Gerard looked a little caught off guard. “Oh, umm, yea-”

“I’m sorry, you don’t have to. Again, I’ll sleep on the couch.”

“No, (YN), it’s fine,” he shook his head. “Please don’t worry, we can share.”

She nodded. “Ok, fine.”

~

The next morning she woke up and Gerard was still sleeping peacefully next to her. That was a sight she felt like she could really get used to and had to restrain herself from reaching out and brushing the hair from his face. He looked so peaceful and it warmed her heart. She rolled over and checked her almost dead phone, and found Liam had finally messaged her.

‘Ok, you can come back now’

‘Yooooooooooooo where are you i wanna talk to you come back’

‘For real text me back, i’m getting worried, if ur dead an its my fault im gonna be so mad at you’

She tried not to laugh out loud and wake Gerard. ‘I’m fine, found another room to crash in, we’ll talk soon 😁’

“Hey,” Gerard mumbled sleepily next to her.

“Hi. Thanks for letting me stay here last night,” she said as she rolled over and smiled at him.

“Anytime. I really like hanging out with you (YN).”

“Same. We should do it more often," she offered with a shrug.

"I'd love that," he replied softly.

"I should get going, Liam sent me about 100 texts," she said shaking her head. She got up and gathered the few things she had brought with her to Gerard's room. "Thanks again," she said. She didn't realize what she was doing when she held her arms out for a hug.

He smiled and got up and wrapped his arms around her. Her heart was pounding so hard she worried he would notice, but he was so warm and smelled good, she quickly forgot her worried.

Eventually she pulled back, and gave him a wave before heading out. When she opened the door, she noticed the door across the hall quickly close. She shook her head in confusion as she headed back to her room.

~

From that day on, things began to get strange. Garden of Woe's gear and wardrobe carts were moved into different rooms, their dinner orders were cancelled, and at a soundcheck Liam and Rebecca both found their instruments wildly out of tune, despite the guitar tech claiming he had tuned them before any of the bands came in.

“It feels like someone is fucking with us,” Liam said shaking his head as he and (YN) hung out with My Chem’s in their dressing room.

“The only thing that’s different is Crystal Lake Cemetery is here now,” Mikey said cautiously.

“Why would they be messing with us though? Are they hazing us?” (YN) asked. “I’ve never experienced anything like this, and we aren’t close enough to them for this to be okay.”

“I’m gonna have the tour manager talk to them, it’s not right that this is happening to you,” Gerard said from his spot next to (YN).

“Thanks,” (YN) smiled up at him appreciatively.

“Of course,” he replied looking back at her fondly. They were again oblivious to the looks being exchanged by their friends around them.

The talk must have worked, as nothing further was done to mess with the bands stuff, but what (YN) didn’t know was how the rumor mill was now working overtime.

~

“I can’t deal with this, I fucking can’t deal with this. Fuck this, fuck you, I can’t believe it,” (YN) snapped before rushing out of the dressing room. Tears stung at her eyes, blurring her vision so she couldn’t see who she ran into. "Fuck, sorry."

“Woah, (YN) what’s wrong?” She heard Gerard ask. She just shook her head in response and looked up at the ceiling, trying in vain to keep the tears in place. She felt Gerard taking her arm and leading her into another dressing room for privacy. But as soon as the door was shut behind them, she couldn’t hold it in anymore.

"It's over, it's all over," (YN) sobbed.

"What is? What's going on?" Gerard asked, concerned, rubbing her arms.

"Rebecca and Jake are leaving the band at the end of the tour."

"What?! Why?"

"They're gonna go have a kid and be a family and leave us behind," she wailed, the tears coming harder again. Gerard pulled her in tight and let her cry on his shoulder.

(YN) had no sense of how long she had been crying when she finally felt herself calming down and her tears slowing. "I'm so so sorry. You don't need to be bothered by my stupid problems. You're like the most important person here and I'm nobody. I’m nobody with no band anymore," (YN) said pulling back and wiping her eyes. She was thankful she hadn't put on her stage makeup yet, or his olive jacket would have been ruined.

Gerard shook his head, his eyes soft and full of sadness for her. "No, you’re important to me. And yea your band is gonna change, but you’re so talented, so is Liam, you're gonna do amazing things.”

“You think?” she asked looking up at him and he nodded. “Thank you for helping me calm down.”

“Anytime.”

She realized his hands had settled on her waist, and she looked back up at him as she clung to his jacket, to find he was still smiling down at her softly. This was the dream for her. Well, not the part where she found out half her band was leaving, but being held by Gerard Way while on tour together. The fan fic was practically writing itself in her mind until she felt her phone vibrating in her back pocket.

“Ugh, I gotta go deal with this,” she replied when she saw the text messages rolling in from Clark in all capital letters with many expletives and exclamation marks.

~

Garden of Woe's show that night was not their best, but no one spoke of it, mainly due to none of the band members speaking to each other at all. The bus ride to the next town was silent and when they arrived, Liam and (YN) found a private place to talk about the situation alone.

"I can learn drums, and play and sing like Don Henley. Or we could call Dallon and Ryan and see if they wanna form a supergroup? I DONT KNOW HOW BUT THEY FOUND Garden of Woe?" (YN) suggested.

"Genius," Liam laughed. "But (YN), we're gonna be fine. We'll figure this out as we go along. Well take a break and maybe they'll even change their minds."

"Jake maybe, but I doubt Rebecca will. She's been on edge for a long time, I just don't know if this life was ever for her. Maybe she's doing exactly what she needs to."

"What was it she called you?" Liam smirked.

"Scene whore," (YN) laughed darkly as she shook her head.

"Yea, that was something else.”

"I don't wanna talk about this anymore. I got my call with my therapist in five minutes."

"You doing ok?" Liam asked, concern crossing his face.

"This whole situation just reminded me a lot of what my mom did. Bailing on us to form a new family and all that."

Liam nodded thoughtfully, remembering how betrayed (YN) had felt when her mom left. "I get it," he replied as (YN) got up. "But hey."

"What?" (YN) stopped in her tracks.

"Remember what got you through back then?"

A smile fought its way across (YN)'s face. "Listening to hours and hours of My Chemical Romance?" Liam shrugged with a smug smile. "I'll give it a shot," (YN) laughed.

That night as she stood off stage (YN) felt like she was going to puke. The crowd was already so loud and the lights hadn’t even gone down yet.

“Ready?” Liam asked.

“Not at all,” she shook her head. “But fuck it, let’s go.”

The duo walked out on stage, where two stools and microphones were set up, a spotlight shining down. “What’s up California?!” (YN) shouted and the crowd cheered. “We are half of Garden of Woe, unfortunately Rebecca and Jake are both feeling under the weather tonight, so we’re gonna do a short acoustic set for you and then Crystal Lake Cemetery is gonna be out here to do an extra long set to get you hyped up for My Chemical Romance!”

The crowd cheered, albeit less enthusiastically than before. (YN) felt like shit lying to the audience like that, but Rebecca and Jake couldn’t be convinced to come off the bus, and it was either they do a modified set, or give up their time on stage altogether. The duo started with a couple of their best songs that sounded good while being played acoustically.

“Ok, we have one more song for you, it’s a cover of a song that means a lot to me by Rise Against. It’s called Audience of One. Thanks again guys you’ve been amazing,” (YN) said and Liam started playing. (YN) knew that it would take a miracle to make it through the song without breaking down.

I can still remember The words and what they meant As we etched them with our fingers In years of wet cement The days blurred into each other Though everything seemed clear We cruised along at half speed But then we shifted gears We ran like vampires from a thousand burning suns But even then we should have stayed But we ran away Now all my friends are gone Maybe we've outgrown all the things that we once loved Runaway But what are we running from? A show of hands from those in this audience of one Where have they gone? Identities assume us As nine and five add up Synchronizing watches To the seconds that we lost I looked up and saw you I know that you saw me We froze but for a moment In empathy I brought down the sky for you but all you did was shrug You gave my emptiness a name Then you ran away And now all my friends are gone Maybe we've outgrown all the things that we once loved Runaway But what are we running from? A show of hands from those in this audience of one Where have they gone? We're all okay, until the day we're not The surface shines, while the inside rots We raced the sunset and we almost won We slammed the brakes, but the wheels went on We ran away And now all my friends are gone Maybe we've outgrown all the things that we once loved Runaway But what are we running from? A show of hands from those in this audience of one Where have they gone?

The tears streamed down (YN)’s face as she finished singing. She didn’t know if the crowd could see it or not, and she didn’t know if she cared either way. She waved with Liam at the crowd and retreated off the stage. As soon as they were out of sight, he wrapped her in a tight hug and she cried against his shoulder.

After calming down and washing her face, (YN) and Liam went out to the merch booth to sign for fans but not many turned up. As they headed back through the corridors of the venue, they spotted Clark heading toward them.

"If it isn't my favorite PR nightmare," Clark said, annoyance clear in his voice.

(YN) and Liam looked at each other. “Oooh, Liam’s in trouble,” (YN) sing-songed with a smirk.

“Not him.”

"Wait what did I do?" (YN) asked, eyes going wide, as Liam snickered.

“In here,” Clark said, nodding toward the dressing room door, shutting it behind them. "When did you start hooking up with Gerard?"

"What?! We haven't done anything, where did you hear that?!"

"Apparently just about everyone else on the tour is talking about it. They’re saying you've spent  nights with him, you’ve been spotted ducking into abandoned dressing rooms with him."

"Well yea, I mean I stayed over in his room when Liam was hooking up with that guy in Texas, but we just hung out! And the dressing room thing, I don't even know when that would be other than that time I ran into him and he was comforting me when I was upset about Rebecca and Jake. Who would make something out of nothing?"

“People love starting rumors, especially about big names,” Clark shrugged. "If this gets out of just this bubble, people are gonna think-"

"Yea, yea, I know what people are gonna think," (YN) waved him off.

"We have enough problems coming up at the end of this tour, can you at least make sure this isn’t one of them?" Clark sighed before leaving the room.

Liam let out a long sigh as well. "I'm sure he's making a big deal outta nothing, don't you think?"

(YN) didn't answer, she had her head in her hands, staring at the floor. "What if Gerard thinks I started those rumors? What if he never wants to hang out with me ever again because he thinks I read too much into when we've hung out and think there's more to our friendship than there is? Now even if we ever had a chance at something more, it's ruined."

~

The last few nights of the tour dragged by, but they were finally back in LA for the final four shows at the Forum. The bands were given the option of staying in a hotel near  the venue, but (YN) just wanted to go home. She was tired of going out of her way to avoid everyone, especially Gerard, and she wanted some peace and quiet, even if it meant dealing with traffic.

(YN) unlocked the door to her apartment and walked in, dumping her luggage just inside the door. She breathed in the stale air that filled the apartment from being closed up for two months. She felt like she was going to be taking on the world when she left, and now she was home feeling utterly defeated.

She wandered over into the kitchen and opened the fridge. It was filled with nothing but condiments that were very possibly expired. She checked the pantry and found a stash of canned soup and spaghettios. She got a pot of spaghettios heated up before moving on to her laundry.

As she threw her clothes into the washer, she wondered what she’d wear to the show tonight. Did it matter? These were the last four shows that the band would be performing together and she had to pretend like everything was fine. Should she really live it up, or give up? (YN) trudged back to her kitchen and started eating her half warm lunch straight out of the pot. Was this what her life was about to become? Miserable and alone?

That night when she arrived at the venue she hid in the dressing room until sound check. She continued to avoid everyone except Liam until the show started. After, she went to sign for the fans and for the first time she didn’t hurry back to see My Chemical Romance play. Her heart broke as she heard the first notes. She wondered if Gerard noticed she wasn't there. She wondered if he was glad she wasn't bothering him anymore.

As she laid in her bed the morning of the last show, staring up at the ceiling, she couldn’t help the tears that rolled down her cheeks. She had barely slept the last few nights, her mind racing, and she felt like shit. She dragged herself out of bed and down to the kitchen, starting a pot of coffee and staring at her still bare pantry, the last can of spaghettios staring back at her. She sighed, the feeling of defeat over everything hitting her harder than it had yet.

Her doorbell ringing made her jump, pulling her from her thoughts. For a second she considered not answering. But when it rang again she decided to check who was interrupting her self-pity fest.

"Gerard? What the hell are you doing here?" She asked when she opened the door. "And how do you know where I live?"

"Liam told me.”

"Has he told you my blood type and social security number as well?" She sneered, but held the door open for him to come in.

"I was worried about you, (YN)," he said softly, his eyes filled with worry.

"Gee," she started running her hands through her hair frustratedly. "How could you possibly care about me? I am useless damaged goods! I'm barely functional! I've been eating spaghettios for the last four days because I can't bring myself to go to the store. My band is about to break up, and meanwhile people think I fucked my way onto the tour of a lifetime. Everything is," her voice started to crack as she sank down on the couch. “This was supposed to be the best thing ever, and it was at first, but now it’s ruined and you should hate me.”

“Why?” He asked as he sat down next to her, wrapping his arm around her shoulders.

“Don’t you think I started those rumors about us?” She looked up at him.

“No!” he replied. “God no, I know you better than that (YN). And I know those assholes from Crystal Lake Cemetery. Now I wish we never had to bring them along on this tour because it meant that I’ve had to spend time away from you these last few days.”

(YN) was dumbfounded. “Do, do you mean that?”

Gerard nodded. “Mikey told me like the second day of tour just to ask you out, but I didn’t think I’d have a chance in hell with you. And then I got to know you even better and I, I knew I was falling for you, but I still don’t believe you could feel the same way about me.”

“How could I not?” She asked, astonished.

“Because you’re this amazing up and coming star, you’re beautiful, and funny and could get any guy you could possibly want and I’m older than you, I got an ex that everyone knows and still brings up and a kid. Because I got this grey hair, and I look like this,” he said gesturing to his body as he looked down forlornly.

“Gerard, stop it,” (YN) snapped. “I will not tolerate you being so mean to someone I love.”

His head shot up, eyes wide. "(YN), do you mean that? Do you really want me?"

"More than you could ever know," she whispered, not breaking eye contact.

Gerard leaned in and kissed (YN) hard. She immediately responded by grabbing his jacket to pull him closer before reaching up to run her hand through his hair. His hands were on his waist as he leaned into her. She took the lead, pulling him back so he was laying over her on the couch. He deepened the kiss as she let him move his tongue against hers.

When they came up for air, Gerard brushed the hair out of her eyes and she laughed lightly. “I missed that sound,” he said quietly. “God, I love you (YN). Fuck what anyone says, I wanna be with you, if you’ll have me.”

“I thought that kiss made it pretty clear I do,” she laughed softly again and he blushed. “Because I love you too, everything about you.”

He leaned in and kissed her again. “Would you like to go get lunch before we gotta be at the venue?” He asked when he pulled back.

“I would love nothing more than to not eat another can of spaghettios and get lunch with you,” she laughed.

They grabbed lunch at one of Gerard’s favorite spots, finding a secluded corner where they could talk away from any fans who might just happen to stop in. (YN) had been spending so much time with Gerard before Clark told her about the rumors that she felt like they had so much to catch up on after just a few days apart.

“So how was this for a first date?” Gerard asked after they finished eating.

“Perfect,” (YN) nodded contentedly. Gerard was looking at her with a soft smile on his face. “What?” she laughed.

“I’m just really happy,” he said, taking her hand.

“For the first time in quite a while, I am too,” she agreed.

When Liam saw Gerard and (YN) walking into the venue together, he sighed in relief. “Hey guys,” he said tentatively. “Everything good?”

(YN) nodded. “Yea, we got it all sorted out,” she said glancing up at Gerard, who was smiling back at her.

“Good because tonight should be the best show of the tour, and I could not put up with any more of your moping (YN),” Liam laughed.

“Thank you for your support in my time of need,” (YN) rolled her eyes.

“Gerard, there you are, you’re on for soundcheck,” the very tired look tour manager called from down the hall.

“I’ll see you later,” he said leaning in and gave (YN) a quick kiss before heading down the hall.

“So when you said sorted out,” Liam started.

“We’re together,” she blushed.

“My god, your 16 year old self must be dying right now,” Liam laughed.

“Stop,” (YN) shook her head before heading back to their dressing room.

When Garden of Woe took the stage for the last time, everyone played well, and the crowd was going crazy, but (YN) was struggling to act as if nothing was wrong. Her heart felt heavy until she glanced to the side of the stage and saw Gerard leaning against a crate, giving her a nod and a smile, reminding her that everything would be okay.

“Are you ok?” Gerard asked, wrapping her in a hug after the band took their last bow.

“Yep. Things change, but I think everything has ended up exactly where it needs to be,” she nodded before leaning in to kiss him again.

The Return, Pt. 2

aka im a lazy shit and can’t seem to write a story where there are genuine chapters because my mind says “no, do this first!” so i’m doing parts so then you guys can somewhat get the timeline. somewhat.

PLOT: a week after leo's return, him and raph attempt to break the tension between them, but it does not go as raph had planned.

CHARACTERS: leonardo, raphael.

TRIGGER WARNINGS: family argument, cursing, death mentions, self harm mention.

They both look at each other, emerald green eyes meeting an oceanic teal, brother facing brother. Raph had previously thought Leo to be dead in the two years he had been missing. He’d never thought his little brother would ever be returned to him, until a week ago, where it was as if Leo had returned from his grave and left a piece of himself inside it. His brother, who had previously been haunting his nightmares in presumed death, had been revealed to be in the land of the living, at least physically.

But he’s different now. Holds a sadder ambiance, the air of a man who has been broken too many times and now struggled to keep on going. Two years prior, Leo had been this constantly buzzing social butterfly with jokes easy on his lips and a grin stitched across his face. Now, there was no sign of any happiness within him. Only dull eyes- one that brilliant teal, the other blind and scarred and burned with that milky blue pupil holding a glare within it, surrounded by the bloodshot appearance of the white of his eye. His bandana was missing and he hadn’t taken it upon himself to grab another from his room, his plastron scarred from what Raph assumes being cut into, the wounds scattered across his body making Raph’s mind cower in fear every time he looked at them. Leo.... he had walked through Hell and exchanged secrets with the Devil, learned the world’s closest regrets and now beheld them. Knocked on Death’s door and left after supper.

Raphael has no idea what to say. So he starts quietly with a fragile attempt. “You.... came back.”

Leo’s gaze lifts to meet the red-clad turtle’s green one. Those eyes accusatory, but of what, Raph couldn’t tell. Though he also isn’t sure if he’s imagining it or not, either. “I promised, didn’t I?” The words sound like something the old Leo would say, but the tone was all wrong. Not holding that joy, that bright charisma, that snarky attitude. Just.... bland. Emotionless.

“I... Leo, I know you promised, but it’s been so long that I-”

“You thought I was dead and gave up.” Leo cuts him off sharply, and Raph falls quiet. “You gave up on searching. Fine.” His gaze drops back to the cup of tea he has in his hands. His sleep time tea, something to make him fall asleep, but it had never worked on the insomniac before.

“I’m sorry.”

Leo doesn’t bother with a reply, nor does he bother to acknowledge his elder brother. He just brings the hot tea cup to his lips, sipping it quietly. Sets it down with a clink against the wooden table.

“I should’ve known. Should’ve kept looking. Shouldn’t have lost you in the first place.” He’s ashamed of it. Hates himself for it. “We should have listened to your plan and trusted you. You’re.... You’re our rightful leader.”

“Doesn’t matter now, does it?”

“’Course it does. We gotta get our home back.”

“No, we have to make sure everybody is good enough to fight first.” Leo’s quick to shoot down Raph’s words, his eyes still trained on the cup, as if it were more important. “You can’t bring a team to fight if no one’s head is in the game, Raph. You blame yourself for what happened to me. Mikey’s afraid that one of us will die or get kidnapped again and refuses to believe that reality is the way it is. Donnie cut one of his arms off for what he says is self improvement, but what is really him trying to understand what happened to me. Miko’s blaming herself for Dad’s death. April and Casey are off playing vigilante behind your back. And Lavi’s trying to keep everybody stable when she herself isn’t.” He rises to his feet, his tea returning to it’s spot in his hand. “Two years, Raph. Two years I was thought to be dead. You should have done something. Everyone’s divided- you and Mikey on one side, April and Casey on the other, Donnie and Miko somewhere in between, and Lavi running around trying to keep you all sane.” His gaze hardens, and something in it reads to Raph as hatred and disgust, but Leo couldn’t possibly hate him.... could he? “I had been home for a day and I noticed all of this. This isn’t a team, Raphael. I’m not even sure it’s a family.”

“It ain’t like that. We all love each other.”

“And yet you all fell apart. That love’s fading. You hardly support each other anymore.”

“You weren’t here, so you wouldn’t know that.”

“You’re right! I wasn’t here, because I took a risk so you could all live happily as a family, and look where that got me!” His voice rises to a shout, that anger that was trapped inside him flowing out. Raph had wanted Leo to show some sort of emotion, and apparently Leo was dealing out anger. “I’ve been experimented on, burned, stabbed, sawed into, drugged, injected with who knows what, and then i fought tooth and nail to get back to my family where I thought I’d be able to be happy and safe again only to realize that my abduction had caused you all to seperate!” His free hand waves around as he speaks. “This isn’t the home I loved. This isn’t the team I worked with and trusted. This isn’t the family who I was raised with. Fuck, I don’t even know what this is, but I know it’s broken.”

Raph frowns- was this really what Leo thought? That everything was broken and in shambles? Tears burn in his eyes and he looks away. In a way, he was right. Raph and Mikey relied heavily on each other- Mikey on Raph to calm his anxieties, Raph on Mikey for his fear of being alone and being abandoned. Donnie and Miko, where Miko would draw out Donnie’s frustrations and talk them out with him before talking about her own and both pass out somewhere due to emotional exhaustion. April and Casey, in their vigilante routine that Raph knew about but never tried to stop, where they would go and beat up criminals to calm their anger and try to get some justice for what happened. And Lavi, who ran around trying to take care of everyone, and then she’d collapse on the couch and wake up to do it again the next day. They’d split up in pairs rather than talked as a family, even if they all grieved together. Broken apart.

“You’re right. We should have fixed it sooner.”

“Sure. Fixed it.” Leo sighs. “This isn’t something you just fix.”

“Then what the hell are we supposed to do?!”

Leo’s gaze is like fire. Full of anger, of pent up rage he’s onnly barely let out, his wrapped up furies he keeps mostly contained. He only takes a long sip from his tea. Takes a deep inhale to calm his nerves. Then swallows the rest of the tea in one long gulp, letting out a shudder at the taste of it afterwards, as the sleep time tea doesn’t exactly have the best taste, especially when you drink it quickly.

“Well, Raphael,” he says, setting the tea cup in the sink. “You could start by showing that you actually give a shit.”

He turns on a heel and leaves the room, with Raph staring after him. Because as much as his words hurt, he knew he was right.

Raph needs to get his family back.

TMNT 2007 talk

Okie dokie since we’ve been on hiatus for a long long time, but I still want to talk turtles, I figured I’d talk about the TMNT 2007 film again. If you’ve been with my account for a while you may know what a huge fan I am of this particular movie (of course I love the other films and may talk about them at a later date, but this one just hits differently for me mainly because it’s what got me into the Ninja Turtles in the first place) 

So, I have already briefly covered my take on the 2007 film as a whole.  Aaaand, @my-sai-and-i _and_i wrote a post that goes in depth about the emotional scarring that the fight had on Leo and Raph. It’s a wonderful post and you should def check it out 👌🏼

I am currently watching the 2007 film (yet again (HA what is my count up to now? Can’t keep track. Lol moving on—)) and once again I am breathless at the climactic fight BATTLE that Leo and Raph have. Every single time I watch it, my love for the franchise grows even more. I think this may be because I’m actually such a fan of the TMNT trope that is the constant butting heads of the two oldest brothers (oof sorry not sorry 🤭). I’m also going to talk mainly about this fight scene because it’s literally the EXACT scene that I started watching when I was first introduced to tmnt. That is already talked about in another post, however 😂

Okaaay, let’s get into this thing. First off, the score for this chase scene is already making you very anxious for some sort of confrontation between the two boys. It gives you chills right off the back. Whenever Nightwatcher accidentally cornered himself I got to thinking what it would have been like if we had seen Leo and his trip out into the city instead of the diner scene with the 12th monster. Like, was he just out looking for Raph and heard police scanners saying there was an issue with the diner? Then he headed over to possibly help, but ran into the vigilante Nightwatcher. I can only assume he was already looking for Raph since Splinter right beforehand advised Leo that he needed to get off his high horse and work things out with Raph. Since April and Casey were in the lair, I’m sure Leo didn’t expect Raph to go back to their apartment. He probably went around to their old hangout places in the city (before Leo was sent to South America) but since he had been gone so long, maybe he figured his brothers didn’t hang out anymore since it wasn’t all four of them. Sure, Casey’s a great friend, but never a replacement for one of the turtles. Leo could have also gone back to the construction site that they had partly demolished with that first monster a couple nights prior. Raph did make a point in saying that they needed to find out who was responsible for the sudden burst of creatures in New York. Don’t get me wrong, learning where the 12th monster was when Raph fought it was important I guess? I mean, it made the stone generals stationed in the area, but still not THAT close to where Raph and Leo ended up (they ran quite a ways. A mile at least.)

Okay, back to the rooftop scene. The setting was beautiful and I just— *chef’s kiss* love it. The rain. The red glow of the Red Eye Club sign. Which, I’m just now thinking about this but if an English teacher was asking you what the red sign symbolized I do believe that that could be some sort of symbol/foreshadow that Raph will be the one who comes out victorious in the upcoming brawl. In case I’m not completely giving that a whole-ass stretch, I looked up the Red Eye Club to see if it was a real place but all I got were a bunch of pictures of marijuana so I’m gonna assume NOPE. It could be a minor detail or it could just be a coincidence 🤷🏽‍♀️ I mean the neon sign did not have to be red specifically. Lol don’t @ me 😂

Anyway, I love the way the rain falls on the metal of Raph’s armor. I can only imagine how much of a BITCH that rain was to animate. 

Leo starting off with the good cop persona is very in touch with his character and I like. He’s still the “talk first, shoot later” wise character we LOVE, while Raph is so much the opposite (which we LOVE JUST AS MUCH (ugh sorry im gushing again)). I like how Raph stayed silent. He didn’t give his identity up. He didn’t try to stop Leo from starting a fight. He WANTED to fight Leo. And this was the perfect opportunity without Leo holding back by being aware of his own brother under the suit. It’s sort of like a Red Hood/Batman type scene. And, it’s hardly audible but, Leo then continues to try and calm down the vigilante by saying “The road you’re on is a dead-end. Believe me, I’ve tried it.” He has no idea who is behind the mask. For all he knows, he’s talking to a complete stranger, yet he is still trying to be the voice of reason. The Nightwatcher could be a deranged murderer for all he knows. He is only aware of what the News has been recently saying. You can tell he doesn’t know everything about this vigilante (which, side note but, this all seems a bit hypocritical if I’m honest. Up until Donnie and Mikey got jobs, all the turtles/Casey/possibly April did was vigilantism. I mean, does Leo think that the Nightwatcher is correlated with the monster sightings? Is that his main reason for being a vigilante to stop a vigilante??) ALSO when Leo said “…believe me, I’ve tried it” is that referencing his time in South America? I know he “got caught up in his own world” and “forgot about everyone else” but does that necessarily correlate with what he’s talking about? Did something really bad happen in South America that we didn’t see? Did he become like Hawkeye (cough* Ronin) in Endgame? 

This also makes me wonder what would have happened if Donnie and Mikey had gone out to help Leo search for Raph. It could have been like a Teen Titans scene where Robin was posing as Red X and the rest of the titans unknowingly fought their ally because he was seemingly just another villain. If things played out that way, I’m not even sure that Raph would have put up much of a fight. He didn’t have any major beef with his younger brothers. The scene would have probably been way less emotional as well. Plus, Leo probs wouldn’t have been captured. 

Whenever Raph first wields his weapons, signifying he’s ready to fight, Leo gives a very small smirk. He wants to fight as much as Raph does. But for different reasons. Raph knows his opponent and is angry with him— furious even. Leo… I think deep down he loves to fight. He knows he’s good at it. He knows he’s going to win. But it’s probably been a long time since he’s actually felt that great adrenaline rush of a fight (yes, I’m aware he was in the fight with the first monster but that’s not a one-on-one duel) Which is why when he says “Trust me when I tell you. You don’t want to do this” he says it in a way that he’s still trying to be the voice of reason… BUT it’s also very much a threat. He’s been wanting a proper fight for a while. There’s a certain thrill I’m sure he gets when he’s faced with someone who is probably an even match for him. Even with the threat he gives, he’s fully aware that his opponent will strike. 

COCKY LEO. 

I’m not going to even try to get into the subject as to why on earth Leo cannot recognize his own brother under the suit because @my-sai-and-i already explained that WAY better. 

I mean, Leo is chuckling as the Nightwatcher does his second swing. It’s funny to him because he still knows he’s going to win this fight. There is no doubt in his mind that he will defeat this amateur clown in a costume. But this is the way, I’m absolutely positive, Leo acted as a teenager to common criminals on the streets.  He’s always known how good he was at fighting, so I can bet money he was cocky growing up. And yeah, it’s way different than how he was fighting the raiders in the beginning of the film. Back in South America he acted all dark and silent, more than likely trying to keep up the persona of the Ghost of the Jungle. If he acted all cocky and obnoxious to the raiders, I’m sure word would get out, which might frighten the villagers even more. Being his sneaky stealthy self, he was less likely to scare the villagers, and probably able to keep up the thought that he was just a peaceful legend (kind of like Katara as the Painted Lady in Avatar (I’m referencing soooo many other things, but it makes sense to me 😂)) So, now that Leo’s back in the place where he grew up, of course, his old cocky tendencies would come back. It’s almost nostalgic for him. 

Another thing. Leo is completely defensive for the majority of this fight. He hardly ever throws an actual blow. He jumps back out of the way when the Nightwatcher swings his chain at him again. Which is a completely smart move. Another reason to note that he KNOWS WHAT HE’S DOING. He’s fought for about 20 years (we don’t actually know their ages in this movie (or do we ?) but I would guess around 18-20 ??) so he’s fully aware of the fact that one of the best fighting techniques is letting your opponent tire themselves out so you can then finish them off and become victorious. But Raph’s temper has always led him to go guns blazing. Shoot first, questions later. 

Leo continues to mock the Nightwatcher because he knows he’s going to get a rouse out of him. He spent a good enough time sparring with Raph to figure out how to egg on that temper. A temper that would then make Raph angry and thoughtless, thus becoming rash with his fighting technique. Ultimately becoming careless and in total defeat. Again, don’t get me started on how Leo has NOT recognized his brother yet. Even after Leo has eluded yet another strike from the chains and the Nightwatcher turns around, Leo still gives a CHUCKLE to his face. He’s begging for that temper to be released. He’s ready for a real fight. And Raph’s more than ready to finally kick his big brother’s ass. 

Raph absolutely takes on the offense with a full charge to Leo as he does three heavy swings. Leo eludes all three until coming back with a counter-attack on the third. Leo does a fair job of holding his defense until Raph throws a huge right hook to the side of Leo’s head. I mean, it’s enough to knock him back a few paces and shake it off. This is when his face really goes completely serious. He’s just been caught off guard. There’s something in him that’s telling him to quit the wise-guy act. I mean, it was a simple punch, something I’m sure he is mentally beating himself up for misreading. Yet, he doesn’t charge back. He stands his ground while Raph is still the offender. 

Then Leo tries to continue to coach this dude by telling him how anger is destructive. This is probably something Splinter did as they were growing up. Also, Leo never once unsheathes his weapons on the Nightwatcher (yes, he ultimately does with Raph, but that’s later on. Hold tight, my dude). Even when the Nightwatcher drew out his chains, Leo didn’t react by drawing his own blades. I feel like being able to hold your own during hand-to-hand shows power/strength, while fighting with weapons shows skill. Which is another reason why I think Leo teased him at the beginning of the fight; he didn’t really expect this vigilante to have had any actual training with these weapons. He’s probably just some punk who thinks it’s cool. Another Casey Jones or Purple Dragon that could probably be knocked on his ass in 3 hits max. 

Leo’s uppercut is powerful as hell. He shot Raph like 6 feet in the air. And that can’t be easy. I can’t imagine how much these boys weigh. They’ve got the mass of a typical bodybuilder + the weight of their shell + the weight of their weapons PLUS Raph’s entire armor. That’s heavy as hell. 

Okay. The “Goodnight, Dark Prince” line. I don’t like it. It doesn’t seem to fit. When has this character ever been referred to as the Dark Prince? The only other thing Leo has referred to this vigilante is Nightwatchmen. Though, I get that it would be kinda redundant to say “Goodnight, Nightwatcher.” 

That’s another thing. Leo never meant to kill this dude. Just knock him out to drop him off at the police station later. Leo doesn’t kill. I mean, the very beginning of the film where he had his one-on-one with the raider leader almost implied that he killed him. Because the shot changed as soon as Leo made contact with the guy and all you hear is a loud scream making a flock of birds fly away in fright. If he was dark enough to kill these types of men (because IF he killed him, that probably wasn’t the first guy he had killed) in South America, that’s most likely the “dark path” / “dead-end” that he was referring to earlier. But I guess being back in the city does make him revert back to his old tendencies (but it shouldn’t completely disregard whatever messed up shit he had done in South America. That stuff should still be carried with him). Not even Raph is low enough to kill criminals. In his first scene in the film all Raph does is knock out some burglars and chain them up for the cops to find later on. It makes me wonder what would it have been like if Raph had gone to South America instead of Leo, while Leo stayed in the city. Would Leo have taken on his role of his own Nightwatcher? In the 2012 series, we see him become some sort of vigilante but he’s got Karai and Shinigami with him. It doesn’t seem very in character for Leo to go solo like Raph did. Of course, Leo would still miss the fight, but I’m sure he’d wise up and get a job just like his younger brothers. 

Okay, here we go. Here’s that brother angst we’ve been waiting for. When Leo first realizes who’s actually behind the mask, he’s not angry. He’s not mad. Not even disappointed. He’s really just shocked out of his mind. Complete disbelief. He just walks closer to Raph in hopes to talk to him. Perhaps apologize for fighting him just moments before, that he truly had no idea. But Raph doesn’t even turn to face his brother before doing a powerful back kick to Leo’s chest. Which, of course, takes Leo by surprise. Sure they had had a couple arguments since he’s been back but honestly that’s how Leo remembered things being with Raph. He remembered small quarrels. Nothing serious. They had always butted heads. Even though Splinter warned Leo that Raph had taken Leo’s absence pretty hard, he didn’t really know what that meant until now. He didn’t understand why his brother had so much pent up rage toward him. 

And Raph is throwing all these words at Leo. Calling him out by saying that he believes the world revolves around him. That they couldn’t possibly survive without him. I’m sure these words sting a bit to Leo but that’s not what he’s focused on. He’s starting to register everything. THIS is why Raph has always had an issue with him. THIS is the reason for his younger brother’s constant attitude. And when Raph says that they got along just fine without Leo, for a split second, you can totally see the pain that causes Leo. Like, that shit hurted. But he raises his voice and retaliates by calling him out on his bullshit. He’s telling Raph how immature it is that he’s taken up this new persona (*cough* still a tad hypocritical since he did basically the same thing as Ghost of the Jungle) because it’s causing danger to their family. I mean, at least the villagers were never truly afraid of Ghost, but the citizens of New York are terrified at what the Nightwatcher is and his motives. It’s all they’re talking about on the News lately. Raph has been causing a panic without even realizing it because he’s been too blinded by his own good intentions. 

But Raph doesn’t want to hear it. Leo hasn’t been around. He left. He wasn’t there when the turtles were just sitting by without a leader while criminals still ran amok. I mean, Raph has been angry at the thought “why does Leo get to go?” “What are we supposed to do now?” And with Donnie and Mikey being too passive to stop Raph, there really isn’t anyone around to keep Raph from straying from this road. How can Leo honestly expect things to go back to normal?? How can this big shot waltz back into our lives after he’s missed the last year and a half? And how the hell does he think he’s still the boss of me? 

And now Leo is trying to explain to him that the reason for being gone so long was to better himself for Raph and the boys. It wasn’t up to him to go to South America and be gone for so long. He didn’t ask for it. Just like Raph never asked to be second best. He didn’t want someone to lead him. This is just how things turned out. Neither of them can help what they went through in the past. It’s just a recipe for disaster when one party is trying to be the best they can be for the other party and positively beats themselves up if they let the second party down. Aaand when the second party is completely resentful of the first party because they were chosen for the role the second party wanted. Leo can’t get over the fact that no matter what he does to better himself for Raph, Raph will still disregard it. And Raph can’t get over the thought of the living embodiment of perfection that is his older brother, so he’s angry with himself for not being as perfect and takes it out on Leo. 

And Raph has become his own leader. He’s become a lone-wolf that doesn’t need a leader anymore. He has good intentions (even though they are not being followed through quite right) and Leo is just coming back and messing everything up. Things have changed and Leo needs to realize this. But Raph also needs to take into consideration that Leo is trying to realize this. He’s been trying to reconnect with his brother. But Raph has put up such a strong wall around everyone that he thinks talking isn’t going to help.

Leo telling Raph that he isn’t ready to become his own leader is a tiny bit selfish in my opinion? I mean, I agree, but still. Like Leo sees that Raph never went on a hardcore training period off in some jungle halfway across the world. So, he thinks, how CAN Raph be ready if he hasn’t done that? But that’s the thing. Leo and Raph have their own way of doing things. Leo, in multiple iterations, tries so hard to have his brothers be exactly like him. If he achieves something a certain way, he expects his brothers to reach their achievements by doing it the exact same way. But Raph is fully capable of reaching his achievements his own way (same with Donnie and Mikey). That’s something that Leo has had a difficult time wrapping his head around. 

I also don’t feel like Leo outwardly staying that he’s better than Raph is true to his character. There’s no doubt in my mind that Leo believes that and has thought it on SEVERAL occasions. But with his “gotta be the bigger man” personality, it’s hard to believe he would stoop so low as to actually say it to Raph’s face. 

Now Raph laughs at this. And I feel like most of it is a fake laugh, but there’s still a part of it that’s real because he’s finally ready to show Leo that he’s better than him. This is the real fight that RAPH has been waiting for. The perfect match. The leader and the lone wolf. The Ghost of the Jungle and the Nightwatcher. Leo and Raph. 

Leo still tries to have him call off this fight. He’s confident in himself that he will win. Both parties are, in fact. They’ve both developed such different fighting styles since the time they’ve sparred together, that they’re basically strangers to each other now. They both know this isn’t going to end well. That things will be different after the dust (rain?) settles. Leo has a negative outlook on it. He doesn’t think that Raph will ever be happy towards him again. If anything, Raph will probably shun him. This defeat could push Raph over the edge. This could make Raph leave for real. He doesn’t want that. It pains him that he has to fight his little brother. But Raph? Raph has a positive outlook. He believes that after he defeats Leo, Leo will then see Raph’s true potential. He’ll be recognized as the best, no longer second-best. He finally gets to prove to Leo that things are different. 

Leo visibly sighs and shakes his head knowing there’s no getting out of this fight. His stubborn little brother won’t back down. It wouldn’t be honorable for Leo to stand down and admit defeat. It also wouldn’t be honorable to disgrace Raph by completely disregarding that he’s his brother and just going for the kill. He’s at a complete crossroads here. So, ultimately, he draws his swords. 

The shot of the two boys staring at each other from across the roof — I want that as a poster !! It’s so gorgeous. I’m just noticing this now but it’s split JUST down the middle in terms of color. It gives a very yin and yang type picture. Leo is on the side where the red neon sign is glowing bright, thus making him glow a faint red color. Raph, on the opposite end, is on the side where the shine of the moon is hitting down, making his armor almost glow a pale blue. Ugh so much symbolism I may cry.  Right off the bat you can tell the differences in the two boys. Raph has been in his ready-stance for a while. He’s been waiting for this. Leo stands tall with blades in hand but not in an attack stance. There’s still that sliver of hope that Raph will back down. It’s still early enough to put this behind them, but that window is fading fast. As the rain beats down around them, Leo realizes that the window is closed. Nothing will stop this fight. It’s happening. There is no going back. 

Per the theme this rainy evening, Raph is the first one to charge. He runs like the brute he has become, fists clenched around his sai so he’s ready to stab or punch. Leo charges in a very graceful samurai run. Also the music. The thundering drums that beat so deep and so fast. It’s such a powerful scene. 

The shot of the tip of Leo’s blade grazing the water on the roof is STUNNING. Honestly, who thinks of these details because I hope they got a RAISE back in 2007 😂 it’s beautiful 

I also love how they both jumped toward each other as their first move. This shows that they are now both on the offense. Something snapped inside Leo to make him change up his tactics a bit. Almost to throw off Raph, who has never been the best at a defensive position. His strong suit is in the offense. 

Still the differences between their fighting styles after the jump. Leo did a beautiful forward shoulder roll, which is a proper technique of coming out of a forward jump. It keeps your momentum going into your next attack. Raph landed on his feet which, may not be ideal, but gave him a split-second advantage to be on the offense for the next attack. Leo then had to block with his sword. This fight goes FAST. I’m watching it so carefully and I’m sure there are things that I’m missing. I love how Leo does a roll over Raph’s shell, and up until now I figured he had made contact with his shell, but he actually didn’t because just as Leo started his roll, Raph ducked forward out of the way. Then Raph does a couple kicks towards Leo’s head, which cause water to sprinkle EVERYWHERE and it’s gorgeous. Raph is just going ham and not letting up on Leo as he’s still going for those strikes. (Lol I took a stage combat course over the summer so I know a little bit of the lingo (but good god I am no expert so please call me out if you know I’m using improper terms)) Watching this scene makes me want to do a move chart with a list of moves they are doing and in the order they’re doing it haha. Finally, Leo is able to squeeze in two strikes towards Raph, both of which he ducks and then blocks. 

The camera angles are wonderful. Have I talked about that yet? I mean the shot of the two of them squaring off. The little shot of the two of them fighting between the E and the D in the neon sign. And even the upcoming shot from below when they’ve got their weapons locked together. So beautiful. 

This scene also really shows the details of the Nightwatcher suit. 

And when Leo is able to do an X cross block with his swords at the downward blow Raph is throwing with his sai, and the camera angles are just moving with the characters. UGH. Here you can see that Leo really is mad. The fury of the fight is showing through his eyes as he watches his brother with a predator-like stare. *frantically looks up synonyms for furious* and boy oh boy, Raph is just seething as he twirls his blades. This small segment of them circling each other (sort of like a Spaghetti western style) is a fighting trope that I really dig. Sais are actually a lot larger than I gave them credit for. Those sharp boys are HUGE. 

The way they have their teeth bared as they circle each other reminds me so much of two very dominate male animals fighting. Like two lions fighting for the pride. When Leo finally comes to a stop his eyebrows furrow just a tad bit more, almost impatiently waiting for Raph to make another offending move. Or possibly giving thought as if the fight was coming to its end. And Raph’s pupils are crazy dilated as he charges yet again. It’s like a sickness that has infested his mind, this constant need to one-up his older brother. It’s making him crazy. And the heaviness of that armor is making Raph charge like a rhino or something. And the shot of Leo tightening his grip on his blade gives the implication that there may have been a split second where he believed Raph was ready to be done with the fight. 

Their eye contact hardly ever breaks during this scene. Raph is wanting to see that split second of worry in his brother’s eyes. He’s wanting to see that hesitation. 

Now Leo charges and he has taken full offense. He strikes at Raph many times, closing him into the wall under one of the two signs. He throws seven blows before doing a jumping spin kick to Raph’s abdomen. You can tell that blow sent Raph back a ways, maybe even farther if that wall wasn’t there to stop him. He probably has some form of whiplash. And even as he’s starting to lock eyes with his opponent again, Leo’s sword comes RIGHT BY HIS NECK. Leo literally got so close to making a fatal would for Raph. And no, Leo had no intention of killing Raph. He was probably aiming to give Raph a nasty slash on his cheek. Just a warning. Something that would remind Raph to stay in his place. 

Now here it is. The locking of their weapons. The climax of the fight. Raph is enraged and is gritting his teeth so hard that he’s shaking. In the shot from below, you can see the absolute force that they are using to one-up the strength of the other as their muscles are just quivering. And Raph tries to make himself become larger to push Leo back. Leo gives a quick glance down to his weapon in fear that the thin blade will give out. Swords aren’t meant to withstand this kind of pressure. 

And when they do break. b o i. The shock and pain that sweeps through Leo is heartbreaking. He just lost. Even before Raph throws the final blow. Leo’s swords are finished, just as he is. His swords. The weapons he’s most likely had since he became leader all those years ago. A literal extension of his body. Taken away from him in an unforgivable instant. And right as Leo is taking a glance back up to Raph, Raph is already coming up to powerfully kick him straight through the jaw. Through his kick, Raph is still in his jump twirling around to deliver the fatal blow to his brother’s head. The spear of his sai is centimeters away from Leo’s head as he falls back and hits the concrete behind him. As soon as his eyes open after being knocked back, he registers how close that blade was to piercing his skull. He’s been around long enough to recognize a deadly shot. You can tell his mind is racing in that fraction of a second as he sees the blade and looks back up to Raph to question why on earth he would throw such a potentially devastating blow. And just like that, Raph standing above with Leo pinned to the ground, he has won. He has defeated Leo. Even still, you can see their expressions change numerous times as they process what has just happened. Raph still bares his teeth in anger/triumph. He’s finally showing Leo what he thinks of his “place”. Finally showing him that he is a worthy opponent to Leo. 

Again, Leo is in shock. All he’s thinking is “why” and “what” and many other synonyms for said terms. You can see his eyes flit between Raph’s own as he continuously tries to read what his brother is thinking. Then his brows furrow once more as it finally sinks in. Raph hated Leo for so long. Up until the point where he came close enough to kill him. It didn’t matter how much Leo trained to be better for Raph. Raph still hated him. Every fiber of his being. He’s confused and frightened still as to why. Just because they fought doesn’t mean there was any resolution. Leo is still left in the dark as to WHY his brother actually despises him. 

Raph, still seething, is beginning to shake all the way up to his face. Then it hits him. What he’s done. His pupils widen as his eyebrows slowly shift up. That’s Leo. That’s his older brother. That’s his family. That’s who he’s got pinned down. Who he nearly sent a sharp blade through the skull. Who he nearly murdered. Leo is still staring up at him, I’m sure wondering how someone could be filled with so much hate. Maybe for a split second, if the Ghost of the Jungle actually did kill those raiders in South America, Leo saw himself in Raph. Perhaps that scared him. This could have been the path Leo was headed down if it wasn’t for April coming and pleading for Leo to return home. No one was able to help Raph. No one tried to stop him from going too far down this path. Was it because he had been absent? Was this all because he left? This is what Raph really thinks of Leo, huh? 

I love how no words are spoken here, yet again. It’s brilliant what can be said without any actual words. There’s so much emotion between the boys after what just happened. 

And here’s Raph again. Still processing. He tries to shake it away as if it’s just a bad thought or a nightmare. He’s in disbelief of his own actions. He then starts to shy away from Leo as if in apology but honestly what’s to be said after that that will make everything better? He also looks a little to the right of Leo, but we don’t get to see what he’s looking at. Up until this point, I’ve always just figured he was just looking away in thought, not on anything in particular. But now, I feel like he could possibly be looking at the rain falling on the concrete roof as if to help him figure out that this is reality. That he’s actually here in this moment. And so is Leo. OR, he could be looking at Leo’s broken swords, which is also bringing him back to reality. He destroyed a part of his brother. He could have done so much more destruction. He gets up ever so gently as if Leo is a paper doll that will break under his weight or a sudden shift of movement. 

Leo still clutching onto his sword handles is probably subconscious instinct, like when something suddenly scares you and your muscles clench up and you hold tighter onto whatever. And here you can see that he’s actually showing that he’s in pain. His adrenaline is wearing off so the blows from just moments before are actually beginning to enflame his body. I’m sure there’s a part of him that’s scared of Raph now. Like there’s no more teasing or mocking. If he were to try it again, I’m sure he believes things could spiral out of control again. Something neither of them wanted anytime soon. His face is a little hard to read when he stands up, but mostly because he’s in pain and is showing that in his gestures and expression. Knowing Leo, he’s probably mentally asking so many questions. I’m sure he wants to talk. I’m sure he wants Raph to talk. But what on earth are either of them to say? 

They’re exhausted from the fight. Leo is visibly heaving his body. Raph is still stunned as ever as his eyes are fixed on his brother who is SOMEHOW ALIVE ?? He shakes his head slightly as the thought creeps through his mind again. As the more devastating idea enters. He doesn’t even want to consider what the aftermath would have been like. What if it actually happened. What if Leo wasn’t standing right in front of him? What if he was still on the concrete ground, covered in rain pellets, immovable. Just… still. With a single sai protruding from his head. No. He messed up. How could things ever be the same again? How could he move on from this? How could he go home and face his family? His brothers? Splinter? He feels like such a little kid. A scared child who’s worried about the consequences of his actions. He would be disowned. He would be shunned. He would be hated. What was he to do? He glances down at his weapons, still in hand, and gives a tiny gasp. These were almost murder weapons. Of his own brother’s death. So, he runs. Any specific destination, probably not. He just needed to be away from Leo. He has no idea if he’ll ever see him again. Or his family. He just messed up way too horribly. How would anyone be able to forgive him? How could Leo even be facing him?

As he turns away to disappear into the night, Leo inaudibly tries to call him back. Even after all that, Leo’s still trying to reach out to him. He doesn’t want Raph to leave. This is something they NEED to discuss. He’s not mad or angry at his brother. He’s confused. He could see it in Raph’s eyes that Raph was guilty about what he almost did. I’m sure he doesn’t audibly call out to Raph because he’s partially too exhausted to do so. Plus, I’m sure there’s still a bit of fear right on the surface. 

As Raph runs, he is most definitely ugly crying. But we can’t see that because of the pouring rain :’D so. And then Leo gets captured and yadayada. Wow. I think I may be FINALLY done talking about this 😂 I’m exhausted. If you read this much I’m honestly super proud of you and I appreciate you haha you’re amazing. If you have anything you want to talk about concerning the ninja turtles (preferably the 2007 film because it’s fresh on my mind, but I’m also down to talk about the other movies or the tv shows) don’t even hesitate to ask. I love talking about the turtles. We can debate certain topics, gush about OTPs, talk about issues we had with certain things. I love all that. 

Time! Let's log off, Becky, and get out of here. Hey, I got eight hits on that last batch of "help wanted" ads. I was right in the middle of chatting with Stuart, the clown from Pittsburg who thinks we're going to get married. Did he get that check you sent him last week to help with the wedding expenses? Yeah. Just give it a few days, let the money show up in his account, and Bam! I'll get him to send it right back to me. You know, I'll make up some emergency expense that suddenly came up that I had to cover. Fool won't know what hit him. What did you tell this one? Oh, this one? I told him that I am putting myself through nursing school, modeling underwear for catalogues. That one's almost too easy. The guy probably had never had a real date in his life. Yeah, but he's still going to wonder why I bailed on him in the chat. You know the rules. Never stay wired for more than thirty minutes. I've already sniffed another open network near the motel. We can log on there later and finish up. OK, but I still want to call him. I don't want him to start getting suspicious or something before I've hit him up for the green. But use the prepaid phone and keep it short. I don't want him to have anything to connect back to us. Chill, Abs. I know the drill. Well don't screw up. I'm like Paris baby. Orange ain't my color. So, who are you supposed to be today, Niece? I'm a sixty-three-year-old woman named Brenda, recently retired from school teaching, and I've settled in New Mexico. Yeah? I can see that. You already got the divorce and the cat. That could totally be you in about thirty years. That's cute, Lang. I wonder what that says about you, though. You play better females than I do. She's got a point, Howie. Remember that mope from Nigeria last month? I think he was in love with you. Any leads on our "work at home" scams out west? Yeah. There's several new job listings on one of the resume websites this morning. It's the usual pitch. "Wanted: international company seeks payment processor." These guys claim they're from Ireland, and they need someone to process payments to avoid making customs fees. You thinking it's our "coffee shop bandits?" Fits their "M.O." The "coffee shop bandits"….that's what we've been calling them for weeks now. We've tracked them to a series of coffee shops, hotels, laundromats, and other locations in the Southwest. They use public wi-fi hotspots to connect to the internet wirelessly. Their scams cover a whole range of internet fraud with one common link - they all depend on counterfeit checks and money orders. The payment processing clerk con is one of their favorites. They target people who want or need to work from home - retirees, single moms with kids, even people with disabilities. Once the person accepts the job as a payment processor, they're asked to open a checking account for the overseas business. In a few days a series of checks arrive from their customers. The new employee is told to deposit these checks, and once they've cleared, to wire ninety percent of the money to their employer. The clerk is told they can keep ten percent of the payments as their salary. When they check their available balance, the money is there. But actually it can take weeks for a check to clear or be discovered as counterfeit. But the ATM said that the funds were available. Yes, it did. At the time it was in there but in five or six days… If the person withdraws money during this period, then they become responsible for covering the bank's loss. But I've spent some of the money… We've seen victims lose tens of thousands of dollars on this type of scam. This job posting is nearly identical to the one we saw last week. Hey, if it's working, why change? There are thousands of new people who look at these "help wanted" postings every day. Where did you tell him you lived? Truth or Consequences. Priceless. OK, so what else we got on these guys, Derek? Well, first of all, they're not guys. Remember that last trace that we ran? An inspector went to the scene. Ran into a dead end. They got their room with a stolen credit card…fake names on the registration. But he spotted an ATM across the street, and we managed to get these photos. But these photos, they don't give us a whole lot to go on. You underestimate me. Another phone was used at three of the bandit’s locations. And this phone, it's not a prepaid cell phone. It's registered to a Becky Meyers of Key Largo, Florida. NCIC says she got a list of arrests for all kinds of petty stuff - everything from shoplifting to bad checks. OK, I'm impressed. Any idea who her friend is, Sherlock? Hey, man, I had to leave something for you guys to do, right? You're not calling one of the punks on that phone, are you? No, dope. I'm calling Mikey. I need to get some refills on those checks. Your boyfriend gives me the creeps. Whatever. You don't like any of my men. Besides, he's better than anybody we know with Photoshop. Look how legit these things look. I told you to stop flashing those! You're going to blow this whole deal! I'm going to blow this whole deal? There wouldn't be a deal if it wasn't for me! This sweet ride…my deal! Hardly! You and your boyfriend would still be passing bad checks for beer money at the Piggly Wiggly if it wasn't for me! Still, you've got to admit, Mikey's got good hands…and mad skills on that printer. So what did you turn up on Becky Meyers? Hey, I'll check you a little later. Thanks. According to her parole officer, her printer is a local loser named Michael Friedman. They've been an item since high school. He spends most of his time playing those multi-player games online, printing counterfeit checks, just as a way for him to keep the lights on. So who's playing "Thelma" to her "Louise?" Our best bet is another high school friend, Abbey Seals. She was a computer science major at FSU until she dropped out last year. Miami cops busted her on a DUI a few months back, Becky Meyers in the car. Almost violated her parole, but the judge cut her a break. So this Abbey Seals may have helped take their bad check racket high-tech? Looks like it. Trouble is, her PO says she's skipped. Hasn't check in in three months. That fits the timeline to our scams. But we stills can't actually connect them to any of the frauds, or any of the victims' wire transfers. Which brings us back to Brenda, from Truth or Consequences. Alright, do it. I'm on it. Oh, damn it! Stupid freaking woman! God! What is it? It's that woman from New Mexico, the teacher. Now she can't figure out how to send a simple wire transfer. She deposited those checks like two weeks ago. If she doesn't send the money soon, the bank's going to tip her off, and the whole thing is going to fall apart. How can one woman be so dense? Did she email you? No, we're chatting on IM. Oh wait, get this. She didn’t trust the guy at the wire service. Good god! Stupid broad took the money out in cash! Well, how much? Ninety percent. Almost thirty thousand dollars. You're kidding. Now what? Well, she's wants to meet in person so she can deliver it. Doesn't she think the company is located in Ireland? Yes, but remember? She thinks we have an office in Forth Worth. Yeah, OK, OK. No way in hell do we ever meet anyone in person. That's the rule, remember? Yes. Well we have to think of something else. Are you kidding me? Stupid hag could barely open the account. She's never going to brainstorm a wire transfer. And besides, the bank is going to call her any day now and tip her off. The money's going to walk. Then it walks. We never meet anyone in person. Time! What? Bull! Log off. No, No! What am I going to tell her? Come on. It's thirty grand! Tell her you'll call her later. Now log off, Becky. I mean it! They just logged off. She said she was going to call me on the phone. Do you think they bought it? I don't know. They've been playing it really safe. They might now be willing to risk a meeting in person. We better hope that they're getting greedy. If they keep using these web-based email services to open networks, limiting their access time, we're never going to be able to connect them to any of these "work at home" scams. Come on. Yeah. UC phone. Hold on, hold on, hold on. Caller ID says, "unknown." It's her. Yeah, trace that call. OK? Go. Hello? Hi there, Brenda? Oh, hello, dear. Hey listen, I was thinking that you really shouldn't come all the way to Forth Worth, especially carrying all that cash on you. We're concerned about our liability, because our insurance wouldn't cover it if anything happened to you. Oh, I just don't trust those wire services, dear. My father tried to wire money to my Uncle Benjamin once when he was having twin girls. And he tried to wire it to Tulsa, Oklahoma, but it went to another Benjamin in Kansas City. They didn't even have the same last name. Kansas City is nowhere near Tulsa. Yeah, I know where Tulsa is, Brenda. Hey, listen, my partner and I, we're going to be in your area. We're going to be looking at some land that we're considering. Why don't you at least let us meet you halfway there, you know, to save you some trouble. Oh, it's no problem, dear, to drive to Fort Worth. I have a half sister in Irving. I've been dying to see her miniatures collection. No, no, no, Brenda, really, I insist. Listen, Friday, let's meet at… You know what? Why don't we meet at Alamogordo. Do you know where Alamogordo is? Oh, certainly, dear. Everyone knows where Alamogordo is. That's where they tested the first atomic bombs in the 1940's. It was part of the Manhattan Project. That's a funny name, actually, as it was here in New Mexico and nowhere near New York. Well, that was really fascinating, Brenda. Well, listen, OK, Friday it is. I'll call you on your cell phone when we get there, like right around lunchtime. Of course, I'll bring you a receipt. Alright, well listen, Friday it is. I've got to go, Brenda. OK? Alright. Bye bye. Harmless. We'll meet her in the middle of nowhere, in and out, ten minutes, we're done. Less if I could get her to shut up for five seconds. Cake. I still don't like it. What if she's a cop? I swear, you must think I'm mental. Listen, I'll go in there, and I'll talk to her. You wait, out in the car. If something smells funny, we'll walk. Can't tie us to the phone calls, or the checks. Thank you. Did you get it? Yep. It's the same signature as the phone used to call the other victims. I'd like to see their lawyer explain that one. We're still going to need them to show up for the transfer in order to pick them up. I mean, by the time they do this trace, they could be a hundred miles from here. No problem, we'll pick them up on Friday. Aren't you kind of forgetting something? What? They're expecting a sixty-three-year-old named Brenda. It's after one. Look sharp, everyone. Possible suspect vehicle - white Ford Mustang, late model. We couldn't make the tags off the ATM photo. Location two, clear. Niece, they called you again? No, it's been forty-five minutes. She said they were running late. They'll be here. Our suspect is approaching, east side of the street. No sign of her partner. Bingo. Becky, dear. Brenda, I wasn't sure that was you. Sorry we're running late. It took a little longer to tour the property. Oh, that's fine, dear. I've just been sitting here enjoying my tea, and reading up on the history of this wonderful little town. Did you know that Robert Oppenheimer was almost convicted of being a traitor and a spy? Can you imagine? You look a lot younger than I expected. Oh, you're sweet, dear. OK, OK, Thelma's getting nervous. I don't think she's buying Niece's makeup. Find Louise, fast! I got her. She's parked just down from the war wagon - white Mustang in that alley. I'm on it, Lang. Watch my back. Everyone else cover Niece. Wait for my signal. I have the money right here. I put it in this bag. I didn't want to attract attention, you know. It's under my needle point. No, that's OK, Granny. You keep it. I'm giving you a raise. Federal Agent! You're under arrest! No! No, no, no! This is complete crap! It didn't touch that money. Police! Police! Freeze! Hands up! Hands up! Clear the door, folks, please clear the door. Thank you. Listen, everybody, thanks for your help. I need everybody outside. There's nothing else to see here. Thank you very much. Get up. Howie, she's all yours. Have a nice day. Did you have any trouble with her friend? Nah. She's already trying to pin the entire scam on Becky and her boyfriend. Yeah, she didn't take the bait. She's got several phony checks in her purse. Well, we're still going through the car, but so far, we've got lots of fake checks, prepaid cell phones, and your little friend Derek is going to have a field day with the laptops. Oh yeah, we got a whole lot of love letters from Mikey the printer. Can't wait to send in the Miami team. Did you recover any of the victims' moneys? Not a whole lot. About eight grand on them. Whole lot of neat toys and shwag from the shopping sprees though. Yeah, well at least they're off the street. Yeah, this time they're all looking at ten to twenty for mail fraud. You know, I've got to tell you. You look…ridiculous. I told you you weren't going to pass for sixty-three. What's the matter with you? Thanks to some solid police work and the efforts of the Technical Services Division, these two high-tech crooks are behind bars. Unfortunately, there are hundreds more of them out there, operating these scams from around the world. Remember, on the internet, these crooks can pretend to be anyone that they want. Often, they construct elaborate fronts to make them seem legitimate - fake websites, phony pictures, even references that can vouch for them. We refer to this as "the anonymity of the internet." But don't be fooled. There are very few legitimate jobs that allow you to work from your home, and none that involve processing checks or money orders. To avoid falling into these traps, remember these important tips. Number one: Never accept a check or money order for payment for any items if the check is greater than the amount owed to you. These so-called "overpayment scams" seem like a ticket to easy money, but usually leave the victim with an overdrawn account and empty pockets. Number two: Just because your ATM or bank statement says "funds available" doesn't mean that the check has actually cleared. By law, banks must make funds available to you in a few days. After that you can access the funds, but the check may not clear for weeks. Until the check does clear, you're legally responsible for the deposit, as well as any funds that you withdraw. Number three: Many lottery or sweepstakes frauds involve counterfeit checks. You receive a check for a portion of your winnings and are told to deposit it. You're then instructed to use a portion of these moneys to pay for taxes or fees, with a promise of even bigger winnings to come. Don't buy it. It may seem like easy money, but it will cost you big in the end. And lastly, don't forget your good common sense. If something sounds too good to be true, it probably is. There are no "get rich quick" schemes, and you can be sure that no one needs your help to transfer millions of dollars into or out of their country. Cops call these types of scams "419 fraud." They've been around for years, only now they've been updated for the information age. Play it safe, and log off on these fake check scams. For more information on how to avoid counterfeit check fraud, visit our website at www.fakechecks.org.

External Link: Behind the Badge: The U.S. Postal Inspection Service,   Transcripción en español

Ep. 2: “I’m Trying To Lay Low” - Jake

JENNET

plan worked fabulously purrrrrrrrr

(a little later)

maybe its me being paranoid but why are jake,jones, and lindsay always the last three to leave calls............ when i have a f2 with all of em....

JESSICA

Song of the day is ELVIS by AOA. My favourite workout bop. Silver got voted out! So sad, I wanted to play with him. But also, kinda cool! This is the only game I have played where I truly didn't know anyone (except my very first ORG). What an experience. I know last confessional I said Sam and Shane were both kinda on the fence for me in terms of if I wanted to maybe work with them or not. An update: I think I want to work with both! Both of them, unprompted, told me they wanted to work with me if we lost immunity, and I have actually been getting along well with both of them I feel now that our conversations are moving past the sort of awkward beginning stages. I still like Sammy even though I probably should talk to him more oops... and Daisy/Lovelis/Ethan are also still in my good books. I kind of keep forgetting Pete and Cloud are on this tribe but when I remember, I am happy they are here. That being said, I think Cloud or Madison will be the first to go if we lose. Cloud is very inactive. Madison is too but she was at least on the call tonight. It might come down to how immunity goes. I want to participate because it will bond us as a team. That way even if we lose, I was a part of the team effort and won't stand out as someone who people don't know or want to work with. Also while I personally want Cloud or Madison out as I know them the least, I am not going to push it. I'll let somebody else throw out a name and as long as that name isn't Jessica then I will consider it. I sort of chilled today with the social game and only messaged people as they messaged me. The vibe of this team is very relaxed from what I can tell and I didn't want to overdo it with conversations and come across as too much. Tomorrow, my goal is to talk to every single person for at least 1 (one) whole real conversation. I might have to start using my good ol' tactic of sending people random youtube links and saying "what do you think of this" to get something going.... Honestly nothing starts a conversation like David Hasselhoff and his cinematic masterpieces that we call music videos. I hope the other tribe is full of problems so that when we eventually swap, I have a very easy time in this game.

LINDSAY

no recording tonight because i have a headache:( anyways i'm apparently not in as good of a position in the tribe as I was hoping. got left out of a six person group chat bc I was associated w Silver and people were nervous abt this vote w me. Jake luckily looped me in but I'm kind of bummed out people didn't trust me enough to let me in on this. I know it's probably just cuz Silver and I had been getting along alright the past two days but that means I'm in kind of a yucky position in the tribe that is starting to gear me up to a S6 type deal from survivor umich and I'm not fuckin' vibin. I'm gonna try to reach out (Nash appears to be ignoring me currently tho so lol) and try to fix that. I still want to work tight w Jones and Jake but I don't want them to be my only options. I need some more connections than that. ALSO WHEN SILVER DID THE THING MY HEART STOPPED LOL SO THAT MIGHT BE WHY IM BEING IGNORED also "you kept laughing at silver's jokes" was a comment someone leveled at me today and i couldn't find a good way to level and say i laugh at everything because that's how my brain is trained to react to everything. monkey brain cannot comprehend emotions so i laugh everything off. anyways i guess this is my clue i've got to step up. i mean, it's fine if i'm under the radar some because it's not merge yet so like it's fine, but i'm... worried. if nothing else we're even tho bc the galaghers got revealed as well as the six person alliance so we're all even here. bottom line is, i'm winning this fucking scavenger hunt this shit aint happening next week

JAKE

https://youtu.be/amXasrOidh0

y'all I'm still shaking from tonight tbh....

PENNINO

https://youtu.be/_26B1wn1pDw

JONES

https://youtu.be/7FngYQfYMB0

PETE

Nobody will want to vote me out if I have kittens and share pictures of them muahahahahahahahahahaha

JESSICA

Oh no, we lost! I hope that Shane and Daisy want to be a final 3 because that is what I am envisioning in my hopes, dreams, and mood board.

SHANE

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1mNEOfPVwOp-ltGoNTdEq59su-9Vl_Adm/view?usp=drivesdk

ETHAN

AHH TRIBAL IS SCARY MORE TO COME SOON BUT EVERYONE IS SO QUIET AND I DON'T LIKE IT BECAUSE I FEEL LIKE I AM THE TARGET BUT IF I AM I DON'T EVEN KNOW WHY IT IS JUST WEIRDLY QUIET AND MY PARANOIA IS EATING ME ALIVEEE

DAISY

https://youtu.be/tBDHsLvF8W8

NICOLE

WE ARE IMMUNE!!! I’m so excited to have flipped the vote on Silver AND got us immunity but, I’m gonna have to be more careful if I’m gonna go far in this game. I know I can be strategic, I can be a comp threat but I really have to work on making myself a little dimmer in the social department. If we swap or merge obviously down the line, I feel like I’m gonna have a LOT of different potential paths to the end but, it won’t matter if they all realize that. So I really really have to be careful here. I am playing this game with a level head so far and really trying to make my rounds daily to talk to people. I am close with Jake, close with Jones and close with Nash. I am working on forming better bonds with Jabari, Lindsay and Jennet right now and honestly to me, Pennino is a non factor as well as Mikey but I am obviously going to try to maintain being on their good side. So that’s all I got for this round it’s been pretty tame except for Jennet immediately leaking our alliance by accident. At this point I really don’t think it matters.

MADISON

Okay so our tribe is not superhuman and we finally lost a challenge so we will be attending tribal tonight. Nobody is really saying much in terms of what will happen which is extremely worrisome, however, I did hear Sam on call very subtly throw Cloud out there and I'm kinda hoping that Jessica and Shane heard that too and will kind of run with it. Daisy wants both of us to be safe and I feel the same way so I'm hoping that's what will happen. In other news!!! I have officially begun the idol hunt one round too late but perhaps that works out better because if something is found, I'll know it. So because of the way things were worded during the hunt, the idol has either been found already or whoever wrote this system wanted to through a red herring in there to trick us. I'm going with the latter because I feel like Jarod would do that. That's all from this neck of the woods for now, hopefully will be writing another one of these bad bois next round :*

SAM

https://youtu.be/liGOEuFKiFo

JENNET

I WILL die for jones btw...

(a little later)

Survived the immunity challenge... at what cost

(after falling asleep on the beach)

The way we accidentally won that comp is literally a joke.... period i guess?

PETE

so we lost cus we’re the beauty tribe not the brains tribe fuck math dude anyways, it’s been hella fuckin quiet like not a lot of people are on and aren’t really talking. Up until about, 4 hours before tribal Sam comes to me and says the vote is gonna be Cloud and i’m like what who why. All he said is “that’s what he’s heard” honestly i think it’s just his own idea but whatever. I don’t know Cloud at all so it’s fine with me. Sam, myself, Jessica, and Shane apparently are all agreed to vote Cloud and with Ethan’s vote that’ll be 5.

CLOUD

i have nithing to say other than i might just be the stupidest person on the planet. absolutley nothing is happening in my head ever. if i stay its pure luck HSKSHSNSKBSKS

NASH

smiles at immunity... this is cute it feels good to not be in danger for once! i’m honestly still worried my tribe might want to cut me at next tribal but at least tonight can be chill! i hope kiki is first brookeisa boot xoxo

SAMMY

honestly there is no tea, daisy found an idol and gambles her vote but she lost her vote early so no worries w that! I love her so much and i hope she doesn’t snake me...but daisy if ur reading this, in this moment i love dont snake me mwah!! I love Jess and I love Cloud but everyone’s telling me Cloud is the vote but I’m so sad because I had such a good time with them and they are one of the few funny ones in the game!! Anyways not much is happening we lost the challenge cause we are just bad at math...blinks...I don’t think I’m in any danger and this vote should be unanimous. I was also told someone said I was one of the few active people so that’s a check in my book!

JAKE

https://youtu.be/HmtSAjyQoJI

I'm trying to lay low so if I'm not very present on Discord the next day or so that's why hehe

PETE

so ethan is down for voting Cloud, sammy too. Cool great awesome hot. i’m just sitting here vibing and suddenly Sammy tells me that my (and Madison’s) name came up for a second. He said it went away and it’s Cloud for the vote but like jskdhd why do i aaalways get targeted bitch i’m literally just sitting here whYY can’t i relax for once?! Frfr every survivor game it’s always this person or me. I’m always the other option and i just don’t get why lmao

LOVELIS

This tribes been kinda dead until like an hour ago plss, a new alliance of 5 has been organised and somehow me and Shane managed to make it seem like it was Jessica’s idea? Don’t really know how that happened in all honesty but a vibe. Then Daisy also leaked that she’s in another alliance who’s actively idol hunting so that was a lovely bit of beef that I love to see - my guess is she’s in a duo chat with Jess and they’ve tried to get this group formed with people who they think are unconnected, unbeknownst to them that me and Shane have a final two deal and I kinda have one with Sammy as well that happened on day one but it’s not really developed as of yet, he’s not really tried to talk game with me as of yet, but all in due time I suppose there’s plenty of time for more shenanigans 😂

MIKEY

HONESTLY Chile. Not much tea going around since this round we won. Im very proud of Nicole as she literally carried us and I pray she'll do it again dhbhsfg. Ive started getting really close with Jones and she's so fun to talk to, im hoping me her and nash can form a little trio and work together but who knows. Jennet STILL hasn't replied back after like a week so idk what's up w them LMAO

JABARI

So our tribe loved it when we blindsided silver, it puts me in a much better position than before. Now I have to talk more to people and take time to realize what's gonna happen. As of right now I have 2 alliances. The big majority one and the one where its just me and Jake and Jennet.

JENNET

exactly.... 

https://open.spotify.com/album/0pWu9s2gPdVgqHpMR2LDEx?si=uOqh6Ar9RiqNLUfaBZEkvw

TRIBAL COUNCIL

1/3 And here we are folks. The finale. I apologize for how long this could be because it was A LOT: ‘Im not ready for this to end. I don’t think you understand just how scared and not ready i am’ He is a mess btw, his hair is sticking in all directions, he spilled his drink bc he knocked it over with his cast and he is probably 5 seconds away from crying so i already know this is gonna be a rollercoaster. And because he couldn’t sit still he even brought out his stress ball that he bought like a month ago. Anyway, one last episode update: the episode starts with Mikey narrating ‘ew, i forgot about that. Make it stop’ ‘AHHH BRIAN LOOKS SO FUCKING GOOD! DAMN JUSTIN LOOKS GOOD TOO! BEAUTIFUL! LOOK AT THEM!..can Michael shut up now?’ ‘Fuck you, these ads are hilarious. Does she know who the fuck she came to for hel- SEX ALWAYS SELLS!’ And we are at the stag party! ‘Thank god thats done. I didnt wanna be rude but holy fuck Tad was annoying. Ted you can do better. Okay but Brian isn’t gone, he’s just getting married? Theyre acting like he died *looks at me confused* whats going on? Why dont they just fuck the stripper together? Why is blondie looking at him like that? *snaps his fingers* ah! He wanted to fuck him together.’ And we are at Brian/Gus scene ‘this is so fucking cute! And they act like he didnt care about the kid! Oh fuck you mel’ and Mel and Brian are now alone ‘they would have all the happiness in the world if ONLY their fucking friends learned to mind their business. Aww look at Brian admiring his work’ Mel says that considering what he’s sacrificing line ‘Nah fuck this and fuck her, everyone literally makes and made it their business to make it their number 1 priority to always interfere with Brian’s life. And it is NEVER to make it better. But they NEVER say no to his money. *throws the ball at mel on tv* what? She stressed me out, its a stress ball!’ ‘That smile was the smile of a man who is so used of people hitting him below the belt. I fucking hate it here. And i fucking hate all of Brian’s friends, i will never forgive them for how they treat him’ we are at that mikey/brian scene with the flashback ‘what the fuck is this? (Mikey says he jerked off to brian) Now why the fuck would he say that to him? This whole scene felt out of place and weird’ And we are at the scene with Britin where they decide to call off the wedding ‘thats adorable. Aww he wants to cuddle. Blondie, he cuddled you after you cheated, what are you talking about? (Justin has his brian kinney speech) what..bro, what is happening? so hes mad he’s not fucking guys? See, i told you he wanted a threesome. WAIT PAUSE THE FUCKING EPISODE NOW *i pause it* HAS HE BEEN MONOGAMOUS SINCE THE PROPOSAL? I thought they were still fucking around? But also blondie wanted monogamy, what? Im confused, theyre confused, we’re all confused’ Brian asks about New York ‘hold the fuck up, why is new york being mentioned? Why would he go there over one fucking review? Brian knows he’s sacrificing his career…oh no. IM CONFUSED, can he only paint in new york? Do they not have paint brushes in Pittsburgh?’ And the sacrificing part is up ‘he did the same shit with LA. But that was different!! He had a job offer from a director! Damn it you too blondie? WHAT IS HAPPENING? What the fuck just happened? What did i just watch?’ And we are at the scene where Britin announces theyre not getting married ‘ooohhh fancy! THATS RIGHT DAPHNE! JUSTIN HAS EVERYTHING! Ahhhh look at them! THEY LOOK FINE AS FUCK! Brian has been wearing the fuck out of that stripped suit tho. (They announce it) *he’s dead silent and his arm with the cast is covering his mouth* oh thank fucking god *he sits back and lets out a deep breath while his arm is in his hair* i didnt wanna judge but that was one of thee worst ideas they’ve had. We are once again on the same page boys! Party, fuck and just enjoy life.’ And now we are at Brian’s meeting ‘that ad is the second worst idea he’s had. TELL HER BRIAN! HA! THATS RIGHT! THATS MY BABY! IM SO PROUD OF HIM!’

OH FUCK WE’RE REALLY IN IT NOW FRIENDS. HERE WE ARE.

The stag party is a cute moment but right? Why didn’t they fuck that guy together? They can be married and nonmonogamous.

They sure as fuck do love to fuck around in his life and not to make it better but are always happy to take a handout.

WHY WOULD HE GO THERE OVER ONE FUCKING REVIEW? fucking this a million times. it makes no fucking sense. Am I addressing that in my fic? I’m sure as shit trying to.

A job offer from the film director DID make LA different. Do they not have paint brushes in Pittsburgh? That’s a fucking great question Brother!

It was one of the worst ideas they have ever had but they didn’t need to send Justin to NYC to undo it (and then the final scene).

Turtles Forever Part 67

Darkness Within

The kitten, Klunk, was watching the turtles as they were fixing up the Battle Shell.

"Donnie, these techno brainstorms of yours have gotta stop!" Raph said as Donnie walked up with a blowtorch in his hand.

"Are you kidding me?" Donnie questioned, putting his goggles on. "When we're done, the Battle Shell will be sheered and-" But, a knock on the garage door interrupts them.

"Guys! Guys, are you in there?!" Angel called out from the outside, still banging loudly. They ran to the garage door and open it to see the teenage girl standing in front of them.

"Angel?" Donnie asked.

"Something terrible has happened!" Angel exclaimed. She lunges forward into Mikey, hugging him. He hugs her back, trying to calm her down.

The four brothers, along with Mona, Venus and Alopex were in the the Battle Shell, driving on the road. Splinter volunteered to look after the new born baby, spending time with his new granddaughter.

"Where are we going?" Donnie questioned.

"Wall street and Hanover." Angel explained, pointing him in the direction to drive.

"Take the West side highway." Leo said. Mikey smiles teasingly.

"Wall street? Is this about your portfolio? Too many tech stocks, huh?" He joked, looking at the map. Angel held out a gold coin to him. Mikey's eyes widen in surprise. "Whoa..." He takes it, inspecting the coin.

"Gold? No way!" He commented.

"Angel, where'd you get a gold coin?" Raph questioned.

"My brother gave it to me. He found it at the construction job he was working at, the Volpeharp building." Angel explained.

"It's dated 1611." Mikey murmured, looking at her. "Oh, your brother found buried treasure?"

"I told him not to go back. I told him I had a bad feeling about it. That was three days ago. Since then, nothing" Angel covered her eyes.

"What did the police say?" Leo asked.

"They said they were too busy with the fallout from the invasion to go look for some punk on a treasure hunt." Angel sniffed. Raph hugged her.

"It's okay," He said. "We're going to get 'im back."

The van turned around the corner and saw a very large old building.

"That's it. That's the Volpehart building." Angel said. Donnie stopped the van. The group walked out and heading towards the very ominous building. There were gargoyles at the top of the door, staring down at them.

"Man, talk about creepy central!" Mikey exclaimed.

"I don't get it." Donnie spoke. "What kind of a building on Wall street doesn't have any security?"

"Guys..." Mikey called out. "Look. C. F. Volpehart. 1616. Whoa, could this place be any more like Castle Dracula?"

"Come to me." A dark voice called out. Angel and Alopex gasped.

"Who said that?" Angel and Alopex asked at the same time, looking around.

"Said what? Are you okay?" Leo questioned.

"It's -It's probably my imagination." Angel explained. "I'm a little freaked out, that's all."

"Come to me." The two girls both heard the voice spoke again. "Find the way." Quietly, Alopex walked over to a tapestry and lifted it up. Underneath it was a button, that had an eye on fire above a pyramid. She pressed it and it began glowing. She gasp as the place started to rumble until a hidden floor open up, making an underground passageway. Everyone looked down at it, curiously.

"Alopex, how did you?" Donnie questioned.

"I-I don't know. I sort of knew that it was there..." She stammered.

They walk down the stairs into an underground hallway, with torches lit up along the walls. The feet splashed in the water as the group walked up to a large door. It had the same symbol with an eye and pyramid.

"Whoa, ladies and gentlemen, welcome to Creepsville!" Mikey commented. They look up to see writing above the door.

"What's it say, Don?" Leo murmured.

"It's Italian. It says 'abandon all hope, he who enters here'." Donnie explained.

"See, what did I tell you? Creepy!" Mikey called out.

"Yeah?" Raph spoke. "Well, check this out." He gestures towards the skeletons and piles of bones. Mikey made a girlish scream.

"Can we get a move on!?" He pressed.

"We've gotta find my brother! He's gotta be in there!" Angel insisted. She ran over to the door, banging on it.

"Angel, no!" Leo warned. They pushed the door, trying to get it to open, but it didn't budge. Suddenly, the eye began to glow bright red as do the skeletons. Everyone heard whispering as the skeletons began to come to life. They turned around to see the horde of undead advancing towards them.

"Ah, is it just me or is this way off the creepy meter?" Mikey asked, nervously, gripping his nunchucks.

Raph jumps up and smacks slices the head off a skeleton, but it smacks Raph away. Donnie fought with a skeleton, jumping and ducking, as it swing its sword. Leo jumps at a skeleton and kicks it down. He turns around and blocks with his katanas against an skeleton as it struck.

"There's something seriously wrong here." Donnie said to Leo. " You can hit them, but they just keep coming! "

"And," Mikey shouted as he punched a skeleton. "There's more of them! Look!"

More skeletons stood before the group as the others started to reassemble themselves.

"You fools!" A voice shouted. Everyone looked and saw an old man holding a lit lantern. "You can not kill the dead!"

"Run, you must follow me!" He called out. The turtles and girls ran over to him as the skeletons followed behind them, chasing them. They ran up the stairs and the old man quickly pressed the button, closing the passage. A skeleton's head gets chopped off, as the stairs closed itself, landing in front of the group.

"What the shell is going on around here?" Raph demanded

"Silence!" the old man shouted. "You should have not come here, but it is too late now. You have gone too far. There is no going back, if you truly wish answers to your questions, you'll follow me."

The old man lead the group into his study. There was a painting of a young man with blond hair. The old man stared into the fireplace.

"Uh, sir?" Donnie called out. "Aren't you the least freaked out? I mean, seeing us?"

"I have seen many strange things in my life." The man turned off the lantern and turned to face them. "Very little surprises me, but know this: the money that you seek will never be yours. It is bait for a trap, only a gruesome rate await those who go after it.

"We're not here for the money. We're looking for my brother! Tall, brown hair-" Angel started.

"He found this coin here and came back looking for more." Leo explained, holding the gold coin. "That would have been about three days ago

"Yes, he was here." The man took the coin from Leo. "I gave him the same warning as I gave them all, but they ignored me. They went through the golden door and never returned.

"Then we'll just have to go in after him." Raph replied, holding his sais.

"Ignoramus! Perhaps, you will change your mind when you know something of what you will find there." The man took a book from the bookshelf, dusting of off, revealing the same eye and pyramid.

"A thousand years ago, there fell to Earth a meteorite. It brought with a creature of terrible evil and un-sensual hunger, whispering promises of great wealth and power. The creature lured the gluttonous and greedy to it's side. Fortunately, the native people proved too strong of character. In fact, they created a weapon to protect themselves from the creature, a weapon created from the growing red stone from the meteor itself. But before the natives could slay the atrocity with the meteor spear, the call of the creature's life had reached across the sea to a race of men filled with greed for the good of the new world. One such man was C. F. Volpehart. Volpehart took the land by force. And so, Volpehart's fortune grew. His dark legacy endured and the ancient evil creature from the stars thrived. It is no accident that that the financial capital for the entire nation surrounds this very edifice. The Volpehart building."

"But, what about you?" Leo questioned the man, wondering. "How do you fit into this?"

"I...I am Volpehart's heir," The old man explained. "I have vowed to destroy the creature, to the curse from my family. But I was too weak. Too long under it's influence. No matter how much I desired to end it's accursed life, I could not. Do you still wish to face this beast?" He asked, turning to them.

"We don't have a choice." Leo answered.

"We have to." Raph replied.

"You have courage," The man praised them, taking out a spear from hidden drawer. "Here, the meteor spear," He handed it to Leo.

"May it serve you in your time of need."

The passage opens again as the group stood in front of it.

"Hey, guys!" Angel called out, running over to them. "Wait up!"

"Sorry, Angel, you gotta stay here where it's safe." Leo said.

"Please find my brother." Angel pleaded.

"We will." Leo answered. "I promise."

They walked down the stairs and were now in the same hallway again. The spear illuminated a red glow as they walked towards the door. As soon as they entered, the door began to glow red making the skeleton come back to life again. They began to advance towards the group.

"Great, here comes the bone brothers again!" Raph grumbled, irritated.

"Back off!" Leo ordered, brandishing the spear at the skeletons. They screeched in fear seeing the spear, backing off. The group headed towards the door and it opens for them. They walked inside and the door closed shut behind them.

The group walked deeper as they found themselves in a cave with Leo walking in front of them, holding the spear.

"You guy's buy that old man's story?" Raph asked.

"After those skeletons, I'm about ready to believe anything." Leo replied. They walked deeper into the room to see a huge fire engulfing a rock in the center of it. There were strange pods, as well, all around the room.

"Well, I guess that's the meteor the old man told us about." Donnie replied.

"Guys, over here," Leo called out, walking over to one of the pods. "What are these?" He cuts it open and inside was a skeleton along with money. Donnie picked it up

"This is a civil war bond," he explained. "This guy just be a hundred and fifty years old."

"There are thousands of these cells." Leo pointed out. "If Angel's brother ended up in here, it could take us weeks to find him."

Suddenly, tentacles began to come out from every crevice, heading towards them. "Come to me." Mikey noticed one of them.

"Uh, guys? Don't look now, but the creepy meter just went def-con one!"

Everyone looked around to see that they were surrounded by the tentacles.

"Is it more than one creature?" Leo asked.

"I don't know." Donnie answered.

"I don't want to know!" Mikey replied, spinning his nunchucks.

Raph growled and jumped up trying to fight the creature. Mikey gets caught by one of the tentacles. Apple's tried to run over to help him, but caught as well.

"Hold on!" Raph called out, rushing over to the two. A tentacle catches him from behind, followed by Mona. Donnie, Leo and Venus tried to fight off the tentacles as it came at them. Two tentacle grabbed Donnie and Venus, capturing them. Leo tried to reach out to them, but eventually gets caught as well, making Leo drop the spear.

They struggled against the tentacles hold on them then one appears in front of Leo.

"No!"

Darkness filled Leo's vision as went unconscious. He gasped as he opened his eyes to find himself covered in goo. He looked around to see that he was in a pod. How long had he been out? What about the others? Were they alright? Suddenly, Leo heard thumping to his right and he turned to see two figures outside. It whacked against the pod, opening it, revealing to be Splinter and Yuuki.

"Master Splinter?" Leo exclaimed. "Yuuki? What are you doing here?"

"We sensed that you were in trouble." Yuuki explained, helping Leo out of the pod.

"We came to rescue you." Splinter said.

"Where are the others?" Leo asked, kneeling down.

"We must find them." Splinter ordered. He looks up and the ceiling to crumble down on top them. Tentacles from the creature began to slowly head towards them. "We must hurry!"

Leo stood in front of Yuuki as it came closer. He pulled out his swords while Yuuki pulled out her tessen heading themselves.

Suddenly, a familiar evil laugh made the Leo, Yuuki and Splinter freeze. They turned their heads to see Shredder emerge from the shadows standing in front of them. Leo cringed.

Great, what more can go wrong?

Donnie found himself walking down a yellow hallway. He stops when he sees two people in front of him, Angel and Venus. "Angel?" She and Venus walk up to him. "What are you doing here? We told you stay outside."

Angel laughs as she and Venus ran off. Donnie chased after them, calling out to them. There were two tunnels. Venus ran to the one on the left while Angel ran to right. Donnie stopped at the tunnels deciding who he should go after. Venus was strong she could look after herself. However, Angel wasn't. Donnie ran to the tunnel on the right chasing after the teenage girl.

"This is no time for games! Wait up!" He chased after Angel, trying to stop her.

"Where are you going?"

They appear in the same room with the fire and meteorite and where his brothers and the other girls were captured. Donnie was that Angel was walking dangerously along the edge of the fire with the meteorite.

"Angel, I don't know what's going on, but, get away from the edge!" He warned. Angel laughed as she turned her head looking at him. She slips falling off the edge, screaming.

Donnie gasped and he quickly ran over looking over the edge in horror.

"No!"

"Donnie," Donnie heard Venus call out to him from behind. He turned to her.

"Venus! It's Angel, she fell-!" Donnie's eyes widen. Venus was standing in front of him, but her eyes were gone. They have been plucked out. Donnie felt like he was going to be sick as he stared in horror at his girlfriend.

"Venus,..y-your eyes! What happened to your eyes?!"

"Where were you? Why did you leave me?" Venus said.

"I-I thought you were safe-"

"Well, I wasn't!" Venus snapped. "The Prime Leader found me and stole my eyes and it's all your fault! The only thing that I have left of my people is gone!"

Donnie stared silently at her in shock.. The Prime Leader?! Wasn't he in prison? How did he escape?

"Venus, I'm sorry."

"No you're not!" Venus shouted. Donnie flinched.

"I wish that I never met you!"

Venus opened her eyes, only to see that her hands were bound. She stood up and looked around the room to see that she was on a Triceraton ship. She froze when she saw Zanramon staring directly at her as he sit on the throne. He stood up and started to advance towards her.

"Venus, how lovely of you to return," He smiles evilly.

Venus eyes widen as she tried to back away from him. But, as she did, she trips over something and falls down on the floor. Her eyes widen in horror to see Donnie, completely beaten up. He could barely move as he tried to reach out to her.

"Venus, run..." He said, hoarsely. Venus stood frozen where she stood completely paralyzed in fear. Zanramon now stood in front of her, towering down on her. He looked down at Donnie and kicked him on his side.

"Don't!" Venus cried out. Zanramon turned his eyes to her and laughed evilly.

"How pathetic that you would chose such a miserable creature over me." He started to walk over to her and bend down on his knee, grabbing Venus by her cheeks. Venus teared up.

"I would chose him a thousand times over you, you murder!" She shouted. "My entire race, my father, Chung I, is dead because of you!"

Zanramon stared at her silently then growls. Venus eyes widen and Zanramon grabbed her by the throat, choking her. Venus struggled to break out of his hold, but he was stronger. Venus shut her eyes as she struggled to breathe. Then she found herself pinned to the floor as Zanramon leaned over her.

"I will make you mine!" He smiled, evilly.

"No!" Venus screamed.

Water from the ceiling dripped down on Mikey, waking him up. He groans as he sits up. "Leo? Raph? Donnie? Allie?" Mikey called out, looking around. "Are you guys here?"

"I'm here, Mikey." Mikey heard Leo's voice behind him. He sees Leo hiding in the shadows.

"What happened?" Mikey questioned.

"The creature got us, but it was merciful." Leo replied. But, something in his voice sounded off. "It offered a chance to join it, to serve it, to become like it. I took it's offer." He steps out revealing tentacles on his left arm. Leo ran towards Mikey, attacking. Mikey backs away, gripping his nunchucks.

"Ew!" He commented on disgust. He pulls out his nunchucks and tried to hit Leo. But, the tentacles grab Mikey by his wrist and Leo kicks him down. Mikey lands roughly on the ground and looks up at his brother. "Leo?"

Leo laughed silly at him and the tentacles wrapped around Mikey.

"Noo!"

Alopex woke up to find herself in a dark room. She stood up and walked towards the door, only to find that it was locked. She tried to bang on it.

"Hey, guys! Mikey?!" She shouted. "If this is a joke it isn't funny! Let me out!"

The door opened and Alopex eyes widen to see an old fox woman standing in front of her, her grandmother, along with two younger fox females, her half sisters. Alopex eyes widen as she backed away from them.

"Look, who came crawling back to us," the old women, smiled evilly. The other two foxes laughed.

"No..." She murmured. "Not here. I can't be back here."

The two fox women grabbed her and dragged Alopex out by her hair. She screamed in pain as they took her into a courtyard. Alopex was tossed hard to the ground. She looked up and saw that she was surrounded by multiple foxes old and young as they all stared at her with a dark look and disgust.

She was back in her old village. Same eyes staring at her with hatred. Everyone began chanting around her and in a sing song tone "murder." Alopex eyes widen in horror as she tried to cover her ears.

"I'm not a murder!" She cried out loud. Then her grandmother walked over to her and slapped her across the face.

"My daughter, your mother is dead because of you!"

"No...I-I didn't...It wasn't my fault!" Alopex argued. Her grandmother scoffed.

"Not your fault?" she said. "My dear, if it wasn't for you, she would be alive right now, with her people." She bared her fangs at Alopex angrily. "But, because she choose to run off with a man that wasn't a fox. She had you, and now she's dead. You killed her because you were born."

"Stop..." Alopex pleaded. Her two older half sisters picked up rocks and started to throw them, hitting her.

"Half breed!" The two of them taunted.

"Stop, please!"

Mona woke up and found herself unable to move as she was contained in a glass cell. She pounded on it trying to find a way out, but to no avail. Then a bright light blinded her as it came on. Her eyes widen in horror to see Bishop, smiling evilly on the other end of the glass prison.

"Y-You!" she stammered. Her eyes wondered around the room. "Where's Raphie?" Bishop laughed darkly and stepped to the side, revealing Raph strapped on a table.

"He's right here." Bishop said. "Along with your little daughter as well."

Mona's eyes widen in horror to see Elizabeth as an agent brought her in, placing her in Bishop's hands.

"Please, don't hurt them!" Mona pleaded, frantically. "Don't hurt her! Do whatever you want to me but leave her out of this!"

"Let's start with the experiment's, shall we?"

"Stop!"

Raph hears water dripping near him and he wakes up. Then he hears evil laughter that sounded so familiar.

"Huh, what's that? Who's there?" Raph demanded. Shredder stepped in front of him.

"Shredder," Raph growled pulling out his sai. "Why am I not surprised that you're behind all of this? Bring it on!" Raph spins his sais and lunges directly at the Shredder. The Shredder ducked blocking Raph's sai with his gauntlet. He punches Raph back and he rolled on the ground colliding with the wall. Parts of the ceiling crashed down on Raph hitting his head.

"Alright, Shred head," Raph growled, angrily rubbing his head. "Let's try that again!"

He kicks Shredder to the ground and back flips onto his stomach, only to get punched in the face. Shredder pushes Raph's face to the floor and Raph kicked the Shredder's helmet off. It was himself. HE was the Shredder! Raph's eyes widen in shock.

"No..." He said in disbelief. "You're...you're me!"

His evil self laughed evilly and punched him in the face.

Leo, Splinter, and Yuuki look around as the tentacles began to surround them. "Master Splinter, Yuuki, the creature! Look out!" Leo warned. Yuuki and Splinter dodged the tentacles as it came at them. Then the Shredder started to advance towards the group. Leo was struggling as he tried to fight of the creature. Yuuki saw the Shredder heading towards them. She landed next to Leo kicking a tentacle away.

"I'll keep him away. Help Splinter!" She told him. Then she charged at the Shredder and began fighting him. A tentacle grabbed Splinter.

"Leonardo!" Splinter called out as Leo sliced some tentacles. Leo gasped when he saw Splinter in the creature's grasp.

"L-Leo!" Leo turned his head back towards Yuuki to see she was disarmed by the Shredder as he knocked her weapon out of her hands. Shredder came towards her raising his gauntlet in the air. The creature began to squeeze Splinter. Leo looked back over at Splinter to see the the creature drop him as Splinter landed on the ground with a thud, lifeless. Then Leo heard a haunting blood curdling scream. He looked back over towards Yuuki and what he saw would forever haunt him in his memory. Shredder had struck Yuuki down with his gauntlet. She fell to the ground with a thud with three huge slash marks deep across her chest. Shredder had somehow mysteriously vanished.

"No!" Leo cried out. He quickly ran over to them, holding Splinter and Yuuki in his arms.

"Master Splinter? Yuuki?" Leo shook his head in shock. This can't be happening! "Master Splinter, Yuuki. No! Noo!"

Leo blacked out again. He opened his eyes to find himself in the pod and covered in goo again. Again, there was thumping next to him and Leo turned his head and gasped when he saw Yuuki and splinter, completely unharmed. And alive?

"Master Splinter? Yuuki?" Leo asked as Yuuki and Splinter helped pull him out of the pod. Leo looked at them confused. "Master Splinter, Yuuki, I...I thought I saw you," Splinter placed his hands on Leo shoulders. "You weren't-"

"You are confused, my son." Splinter explained.

"We're fine, Leo." Yuuki replied. There was something off with their voices. Leo shook his head.

"No, I'm sure." He pushed Splinters hand away from him and stood up. "I know what I saw. You both were..." There no way they were alive, but here they were completely unharmed. Leo tried to think what just happened. Something was wrong....

"You can't be my master and my girlfriend." Splinter's and Yuuki's eyes glow red as they picked up their weapons. "Something's not right."

They both attacked Leo, knocking him down. Leo turned to them. "Yuuki? Master Splinter?"

"You have disappointed me, Leonardo. Now I must teach you your final lesson!" Splinter said as he and Yuuki began to advance towards Leo.

"I never loved you!"

Leo backed away from them.

"Master Splinter, Yuuki! No! Noo!"

Leo cringed as the two raised their weapons above their heads getting ready to bring them down. Leo kicks splinter and Yuuki away.

"This can't be happening, this can't be real!" He scrambled to get up and quickly ran over to his swords, picking them up.

"None of this can be real! You can't be Yuuki and Master Splinter!" Leo shouted, pointing his sword at Splinter and Yuuki, who were getting up again. Their weapons floated from off the ground and went back into their hands and they both attacked Leo again. Leo slashed Splinter's staff in half and kicked Yuuki, knocking her back. Splinter and Yuuki both kicked Leo, knocking him down to the ground then they both jumped in the air lunging at him.

A sickening sound was heard as flesh was cut through pierced the air. Leo stared up in horror at Splinter and Yuuki as his swords pierced through their chests.

"Leonardo...What have you done?" Splinter asked, his eyes turning back to normal.

"L-Leo,...why?" Yuuki cried. Leo shook his head and immediately shut his eyes tight.

"No! It's not real! Its. Not. Real!" Leo shouted. Splinter and Yuuki's eyes turn red again and laughed evilly.

Leo gasped as he opened his eyes, seeing that he was in the pod, again. He took his swords and sliced through it, jumping out. He looked around and saw seven glowing red pods next to his. He sliced one and pulled it open to see Mikey covered in goo. He was struggling in his sleep.

Mikey looked up as "Leo approached him. "Listen to me, Mikey, this isn't real. It's all in your mind." He heard Leo's voice speak to him. Mikey looked to the side and saw the real Leo.

"You have to wake up." Leo put his hand on Mikey's shoulder, waking him up. He opens his eyes in surprise.

"Huh? Leo! What happened?" Mikey said.

"It was a dream, a nightmare," Leo explained. "Come on, we've got to wake the others up."

Mikey opened a pod and saw Alopex inside of it. He grabbed her shoulders, shaking her trying to wake her up. But, something strange happened. As he did, he could see what Alopex was seeing.

In Alopex's mind, He saw that he was in a village completely inhabited only by foxes. As he walked in, Mikey saw a huge crowd, cheering, some throwing rocks, and chanting at someone. He walked closer and his eyes widen in surprise to see Alopex as she tried to defend herself from the flying projectiles.

"What the shell? Are all you people doing?!" Mikey shouted, angrily. Everyone stopped and turned to him. Alopex grandmother stepped up.

"This is none of your business, kappa!" She shouted. "Leave now!" Mikey stared at her, confused. What's a kappa? He shook his head then walked over to Alopex, helping her up.

"I don't know what's going on," He said. "But, I'm taking her with me."

"So you want the freak?" one of Alopex older sisters replied.

"Yeah, she's a murder!" the other one shouted. Mikey's eyes widen and looked at Alopex. She turned her head away from, not looking at him.

"Look, I don't care what Alopex did to you guys. But, that's in the past." Mikey said. "I will not let you hurt her."

He looked at Alopex and held his hand out to her.

"Come on, let's go," He said. "You don't need them." Alopex stared at Mikey with wide eyes then back to her grandmother, and the rest of the villagers then back to him. She smiled then nodded and took Mikey's hand.

Eventually, everyone was free and out of the pods and were clean.

"So some how, this creature or whatever its, was manipulating our minds." Leo said to them.

"Well, I don't like being anybody's lunch asleep or awake!" Mikey exclaimed, crossing his arms.

"Let's get Angel's brother and the shell out of here," Raph said, jerking his thumb.

"When I opened your cells, they were glowing," Leo explained. "something to do with creature's power," He looks around and saw another glowing pod ahead. "There!" He pointed to it. Everyone ran over to it and Raph opened it up with his sais. Inside was Angel's brother.

"No, don't! She's just a kid." Her brother screamed. Raph placed a hand on his shoulder.

"Give me a hand." He said.

Raph and Leo helped carry and guide Angel's brother. He starts to wake up and looks around confused until he sees the four turtles and three girls. He backs away from them in fear. "What? Who? Who-Who are you?!" He bumps into Donnie and falls to the ground.

"Don't worry, you're hallucinating," Raph said. "We're just a part of a very very weird dream. Now let's get you out of here before-" The cave started to shake as the ceiling began to crumble. "Too late!"

The creature shot it's tentacles at them and the four brothers and three girls jumped out of the way. It grabs Angel's brother, capturing him. Everyone struggled fighting the creature's tentacles. It raises a tentacle high in the air and knocks Raph and Mikey down. They get back up and Donnie was knocked back by a tentacle, crashing right into Venus. Raph and Mikey were knocked back and crashed into Alopex, smacking right into Donnie as well, as he was getting up. Leo jumps up, dodging away from a tentacle and lands near the flaming meteor. He staggers, nearly losing his balance from the edge.

Leo looks to the side and saw the meteor spear lying on the floor next to him, right where he had dropped it. "The meteor spear, " Leo murmured, picking it up. The cave began to shake more violently and the ceiling began to crumble and fall down. The creature emerged from the ground, revealing itself. It looked like a giant scorpion mixed with squid attributes, as well. It's glowing red eye stared down at Leo. Leo held the spear tightly in his hands.

"Feel my power, see my strength. You can't fight me. You cannot win," Leo heard the creature's voice in his mind. "If you serve me, I will give you cities. I will give you power and wealth. I will give you the world," His eyes turned red.

"The world," He said.

"Leo, don't!" Leo heard another voice desperately call out to him. His eyes widen and turn to normal and he quickly turned his head to see Yuuki, well, in spirit form.

He stared at her in surprise. "What are you doing here?!"

Yuuki placed a hand on Leo's shoulder. "I sensed that you were in trouble and it looks like I was right." Leo smiles and turned his head back towards the monster. He raised the spear in the air.

"Sorry, not interested!" He shouted, throwing it into the creature's eye. The creature shrieked as it screamed in pain and began to glow very brightly. Leo shielded his eyes from the light until it diminished and the creature was gone, destroyed. He turned his head to see that Yuuki was gone as well.

The old man groaned as he leaned on the table, wiping off the sweat. "Your friends have done it. They have defeated the beast," He said, falling to the floor, taking off his glasses. "I am free from it's grasp."

"Free?" Angel asked. "What do you mean?"

The old man turned to her. "My.. name...is C.F. Volpehart." he explained. His body began to collapse and slowly turned to dust. Angel backed away in shock. She hears the doors open behind her and sees her brother along with the turtles and three girls.

"Angel?" Her brother asked.

"Ryan! Ryan!" Angel ran up to him, hugging him. "You're okay!"

"They will be, after a nap." Donnie pointed. "and a shower."

"Hey, where's the old dude?" Mikey asked, looking around the room as he walked in.

"You're standing on him," Angel said. Mikey cringes and looked down to see Volpehart's dust underneath his feat.

"Gross, gross, gross!" Mikey screamed in a girly voice, jumping out of the ashes, trying to dust the remains off his feet.

"Come on, let's go home," Donnie said. "I've had more than enough weirdness for a lifetime, let alone one day."

They drive away in the van, leaving the old house, to take Angel and her brother home. They pass a man, wearing glass who walked by a phone booth when it starts to ring. He answered it.

"Hello?"

"Come to me," He hears a voice on the other end. "Serve me and I give you power and wealth. I will give you the world.-" The man interrupted him. "Sorry, but you have the wrong number." and he hangs up the phone, walking away.

Yuuki was in her room doing her homework, when she heard a knock on her window. She looked and saw Leo outside. She ran over and opened it, letting Leo in.

"Leo, what are you doing here? " She asked. Suddenly, Leo pulled her close to him, hugging her tightly.

"I just had to see for myself that you were okay." She heard him say as he buried his face in her shoulder. Yuuki returned Leo's hug and took his hand leading him to her bed, sitting down.

"What happened, Leo?" Yuuki asked.

"I saw Splinter and you. Both of you were dead."

"We're fine, Leo. He's fine, I'm fine. We're both okay." She told him. Yuuki climbed into Leo's lap, sitting on it, facing him.

Leo leaned in and kissed her. Yuuki kissed him back placing her hand on his plastron, pushing him down onto the bed. The two stared into each other's eyes, in anticipation. Both excited and nervous.

That night would forever be treasured in Leo's and Yuuki's memories.

As they both became one...