Synopsis: Reader has a plan to win her favorite terrapin over. Step One: Learn how to fight. Now if only Raph would agree, then everything else could follow.
Warnings: None, really Raph being stubborn and arguing ensues lol
Word Count: 2130-ish
“No,” the word- quiet as it may have been- reverberated through the lair as everyone fell silent, including Mikey.
“What?” I asked, scrunching my brows in confusion. Out of all the brothers I figured Raph would be the one who would teach me how to fight, or at least teach me how to defend myself.
“Ya heard me,” the largest and fiercest (in my opinion) of the brothers stated, sounding annoyed as he crossed his arms over his chest. A tell tale sign that he wasn’t backing down any time soon.
“Why-”
“I’ll teach ya, Dudette,” Mikey stumbled over the pizza boxes on the floor in his rush to get to me, settling a heavy, beefy arm around my shoulders.
“No,” Raph shoved his arm off my shoulders before pushing him away from me. “Ya won’t.”
“I won’t?” Mikey sounded hurt as his shoulders slumped in disappointment- as did mine.
“Why not?” I asked, too confused to be angry about Raph hurting his youngest brother, who only wanted to help- he always wanted to help. My words caused Mikey to gaze up hopefully at his favorite brother.
“‘Cause he won’t take it as seriously as it needs ta be taken. He’ll get distracted too much or make ya do too much too early or somethin.”
“I can teach her,” Donnie piped up, sliding his glasses back up his nose, sending a sweet smile my way. I beamed back at him, nodding excitedly. There was no way Raph could say no to Donnie, he was the most careful of them all.
“Nuh-uh,” Raph shook his head and my heart dropped.
“Bu-”
“Yer too sciencey ‘bout it. All those numbahs and figures and wha’not,” he shook his head again. “It gets confusin’ and that’s not wha’ anybody needs when they’re fightin’ fer their life.”
“I’ll teach you, y/n,” Leo stepped forward from the outskirts of the room, daring Raph to contradict him as the two younger terrapins and I glanced back and forth between them. He was the leader, after all. My heart soared at the prospect. I truly wanted Raph to teach me- for reasons nobody needed to know- but Leo was the only one who could really challenge Raph in a spar. Not to say Donnie and Mikey couldn’t handle their own, but I could always tell Raph took it easier on his little brothers, but always gave his best with the oldest. Whether that was because they were almost always at odds or because Leo was truly more of a challenge was yet to be discovered.
“No,” Raph growled out, his stance shifting from relaxed and in control to tense and barely contained fury in the span of less than a second. It was amazing really- how quickly he could go from one extreme to the other. His green eyes- sharp as the sais glued to his hips- clashed with Leo’s icy blues. I stepped back, knowing better than to interrupt as I silently prayed this wouldn’t come to blows.
“And why not?” Leo smirked, knowing there was no real reason Raph could possibly come up with.
“‘Cause,” Raph surprised us all with a smirk of his own as he continued. “Last I checked, yer girlfriend don’t like it when you spend time with y/n, here. Plus, all that meditatin’ crap prob’ly ain’t necessary for what she wants.”
Leo’s eyes widened a bit and his step faltered, eyes flickering in my direction as if he was worried I didn’t know Layla wasn’t my biggest fan. My stomach dropped as all hope drained out of me.
“It’s okay,” I whispered, gaining everyone’s attention as I gave Leo a tight smile. “I don’t wanna cause any problems between you and Layla. Besides, I know she doesn’t really like me much.”
“Sorry,” Leo started, reaching out for me before I stopped him.
“Don’t worry about it,” I said, wishing to be anywhere but there. “Um- I’ll just head home for the day. I have homework to do anyway.”
~~~~~~~~~~~
Raph watched you leave with a heavy heart. It wasn’t that he didn’t want to teach you per se. It was more like he didn’t want you purposely putting yourself in danger. He knew when you got good enough (which you would, he had no doubt about that) that you would want to help them on patrol, or worse, go fight on your own during the day when he couldn’t be there to keep you safe. And it was that thought- the thought of you getting hurt because he wasn’t there- that kept him from teaching you how to fight. He wouldn’t be able to live with himself if you, of all people, got hurt.
“I’ll go make sure she gets home safe,” Raph quickly stated and followed after you- only to get tugged back by all three of his brothers.
“It’s daylight-”
“So?” He growled, yanking his arms out of his brothers’ grips to no avail.
“You could be seen-”
“I don’t care! She could get hurt!”
“Which is exactly why she should learn how to fight,” Leo muttered under his breath. Raph heard though. Loud and clear. The words forced him to pause, allowing his brothers to drag him back.
“No,” Raph’s voice was quiet before he turned on them with a piercing gaze the moment their grip loosened, pointing at each one with a dare. “None o’ ya betta go behind my back and teach her.”
“Whoa, dude,” Mikey lifted his hands in surrender. “I won’t teach her anything. Promise.”
“Good,” Raph grunted out, looking at Donnie.
“I like my shell in one piece, thanks,” he said, walking off toward his lab.
“And you?” Raph glared at his older brother.
“Fine,” he huffed out. “But I don’t see why you won’t let her learn. It would be good for her, ya know.”
“Doesn’t matta’,” Raph dismissed, marching his way out to the tunnels. He had to make sure you made it home safe.
“She should be able to defend herself!” He heard Leo shout after him. “You can’t always be there!”
Raph barely kept himself from telling his brother that he should worry more about Layla’s insecurities than you, but decided that particular fight wasn’t worth it.
The sun hid behind deep, gray clouds as Raph caught up with you. He cursed under his breath when he noticed you turn down an alley. You had told him yourself that you didn’t like taking alleys and almost always stayed out of them. So why had you taken one that day?
Raph sighed in relief when he saw the alley was empty aside from you and made his way down.
“Why ya takin’ the alley?” Raph asked worriedly, causing you to spin around in shock at the sound of his voice.
“Raph!” You whisper-hissed, eyes watery from unshed tears. “It’s daylight!”
“So? I wanted ta make sure ya got home safe,” he shrugged like it was no big deal if someone saw him and wondered what made you cry.
“Well, I wouldn’t need you to make sure I got home safe if you would teach me how to defend myself,” you stated defiantly, crossing your arms over your chest.
“Ya still on that?” He growled, fisting the hands at his sides.
“Yeah, Raph. I’m still on that,” you fumed, hands now on your hips, causing his gaze to settle on those curves. He wondered what it would feel like to rest his hands on those same hips. “Leo teaches Layla, why can’t I learn?”
“Don’t tell me ya jealous,” he scoffed- a sad attempt to cover up his own pang of jealousy at the mention of his brother’s name. Is that all you wanted? To win over his brother?
“No. I just wanted to- Ugh. Nevermind,” you sighed, dropping her hands before turning around to head home. “It doesn’t matter anyway.”
“It doesn’t?” Raph’s heart tore at your retreat. “Then why’d ya ask in the first place?” His voice taunted you.
“Because, Raph,” you spun on your heel, piercing him with a fury he had never seen before. “I wanted to spend time with you.”
He took a step back as you stepped forward.
“I wanted to not feel like a defenseless little girl.”
Another step as frustrated tears fell from your eyes.
“I wanted to not be so afraid.”
Another had him against a dumpster as you continued forward, poking him roughly in the chest
“I wanted to not be such a worry- a bother to you.”
Raph shook his head, but you ignored him like you did your tears.
“But apparently, that’s all I’ll ever be.”
“Ya not-”
“Or maybe you just don’t think I’m worth the time, huh? Is that it?”
“Y/n,” he grabbed your shoulders, shaking you gently to get your attention- he had heard enough.
“What?” The tears blurred your vision as you let them fall, not caring that he saw.
“Y/n,” he rasped, leaning down to your eye level, cupping your cheeks to wipe the tears away. “Yer not a botha’ and ya don’t have ta be afraid ‘cause yer not defenseless,” he smirked. “Ya got me.”
“Raph,” you all but snarled, frustrated beyond belief as you ignored the way your heart fluttered at those words. You wanted to pull away, but couldn’t find the strength- his hands on you felt so comforting, so right, so- “That’s the point! What if you’re not around?”
“I’ll always-”
“Like right now! You aren’t supposed to be up here!” You couldn’t help but stomp a foot on the pavement. “That’s why I was taking the alley. To maybe get hurt-”
His gentle grip on your face tensed as you realized your mistake.
“You what,” he ground out through clenched teeth, moving his hands back to your shoulders- unwilling to let go, even if you were being unreasonable.
“Well, I- I thought if I g-got hurt maybe you’d teach me to d-de-defend myself,” it all sounded like a question as you second-guessed yourself. It had you wondering if maybe your plan wasn’t quite full proof.
“Lemme get this straight,” Raph stood tall, reluctantly releasing his grip on you. “Ya thought gettin’ yerself hurt would force me ta teach ya how ta fight so ya can purposely find trouble?”
“Well, y-yes and n-no,” your gaze flicked beyond Raph, onto those walking past the alley entrance. He followed your sight to the traffic and, with a heavy sigh, picked you up in his burly arms.
“Wh-”
“The roof,” he stated flatly as he hopped up to the roof, bouncing from fire escape to fire escape before settling you down on a random metal box. “Please, enlighten me,” he demanded, staring you down, eyes sharp and all-knowing as he crossed his arms over his chest. Touching you did distracting things to him and he did not need that while he was trying to figure out your way of thinking.
“Uh,” you gave him a tentative smile as you found your bearings. “I don’t wanna find trouble, I just wanna be able to fight it off.”
“What ya were tryin’ ta do- searchin’ fer somebody ta hurt ya- proves ya wrong, y/n.”
“It was only to make a point!” You exasperated, rolling your eyes, wishing Raph would understand.
“So, if-” your head snapped up at him, looking too hopeful for his taste. “And that’s a big if, Princess.”
“Yeah?” You smiled.
“Do ya promise not ta go lookin’ fer trouble?”
You started nodding your head when he gestured with a hand to stop.
“And don’ ya dare go thinkin’ ya can go on patrol.”
“I promise! I promise!” You hopped up, jumping up and down in excitement. “Please, please, please!” You begged, grabbing an arm and hugging it tight as you rested your head on his bicep- considering you couldn’t reach his shoulder.
“Fine-”
“Yes!” You loosened your grip for a victory pump, but Raph caught it before you could.
“But if I so much as hear ya got yerself in trouble-”
“I won’t! I promise!”
“Good,” he grunted out. “But if ya do, then ya neva’ leavin’ my sight. Got it?”
“Got it,” you beamed up at him before nudging him down enough so you could tip-toe up and give him a peck on the cheek, surprising him. “Now let’s go!” You squealed, running for the ladder to get off the roof.
“Now?” Raph asked, cheeks red from your kiss.
“Yes now,” you rolled your eyes with a smile, excited to spend more time with your favorite turtle, hopeful your relationship will grow into something more than friendship as you proved yourself to him. “I’ve got some fighting to do!”
“I’m gonna regret this,” Raph muttered under his breath, shaking his head as he followed you to the lair.
Hello I’ve gotta write 9271 words today to meet my camp nanowrimo goal of 50k words this month and I’m at 3870 so it’s definitely not happening especially cause I just wrote this scene and I’ve been melting from cuteness for the past 10 minutes instead of writing more.
It’s the usual lunchtime rush at the Leaky. In a quiet corner of the room Billie Weasley is waiting for her sister. Billie’s sipping water, but she looks as though she’d really like something stronger.
The oldest Weasley takes a deep breath, not quite sure how to word what she’s about to say.
Billie is relieved that the secret’s finally out. Charlie however...
A few moments later...
Billie: I know you work really, really hard. But I...needed someone to talk to.
Billie: I’ll tell you, Miss Charlotte. So... Last week I went and visited Fleur in France. She’d asked me to meet her family. So I did and I just… I saw her joke and laugh with her sister and her parents and then she looked at me and…
Billie: A little while later we were sitting in the garden at her parents’ house and it was slowly getting dark. The others had already gone inside, so it was just us two. I asked her to go for a walk with me. She looked a little confused but she said yes.
Billie: I’m pretty sure I wanted to ask her on day one.
Charlie looks quite impressed, then she has an idea...
Billie, completely unsure: You think?
Charlie turns to leave, but Billie needs to know one more thing.
FIN
((OOC:
Charlie, aka the best little sister and Dragon Girl Extraordinaire, played by the fantastic Jo @maraudersandlily20 who is lovely, kind and so freaking talented. She was the first one to read the script and her encouragement was essential. <3
Future!Wife and absolute boss lady Fleur played by the sweet, skilled and amazingly brilliant Bella @asklestrange who immediately said yes when I asked if she would want to work on this little project. Don’t tell her because it’s kinda embarrassing but I did think of her when I first had the idea so Fleur’s part was actually written for her. <3
Billie, as well as the script, by...well, me. :D
This was, although a lot of work, so. much. fun. Thanks for checking it out, everybody. And special thanks to Jo and Bella, of course!
ALSO: French translation in case my acting is so bad you couldn’t guess: “Fleur, would you like to make me the happiest woman in the world and marry me?” But my French is incredibly rusty, so please be kind if you spot any mistakes, okay?))
