Could I request either 27 or 28 from the hugs prompt list with Leo and Raph? Whichever you're more in the mood for ^^
prompt ask!
thanks for the ask! hope you like this<3 here's some tmnt 2007, raph & leo, 1.2k words:
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“Leo,” Raph says, “open the door.”
His voice is hushed, almost too quiet in the midnight darkness. The others went to sleep hours ago after the celebratory pizza and movies and games and more pizza. Raph had pulled the blankets over their backs when he made his nightly pit stops to everyone’s rooms—an old tradition he carried out before every Nightwatcher patrol: make sure everyone’s asleep—alive—with their doors shut—unlocked—and the lair quiet—safe.
His gaze drops to his feet, and with bitter humor he thinks about how often he’s been here for his last pit stop, looking at the gap between the floor and the door and trying to imagine light shining through it, bright and present and here.
This time he doesn’t have to imagine it, the amber glow spilling out over concrete, and he almost feels grateful for it before it's quickly soured by anger. A part of him is always angry when it comes to Leonardo.
“Leo.” He says again, sighing. “I’m not going to ask again.”
Yes, he will, he thinks. He always does.
The light flickers, a shadow moving, and a second later the door opens. Raph’s heart is thudding in his ears as he looks up to see Leo’s face.
“What?” Leo sighs, already exhausted.
He always looks like this, exhausted. Costa Rica must not have been particularly kind to him, Raph realizes for the umpteenth time, studying the dry darkened scales, the wiry muscles, the red sclera, and that weird squint in Leo’s eyes like there’s not enough light in the lair.
“Can I come in?” Raph asks like he’s dreamt of asking for the last two years.
Leo stays silent for a beat too long, long enough for Raph’s heart to drop in the realization that oh, he could be denied entry, which was a possibility that had never crossed his mind this whole time.
“Sure.” He says finally, moving aside, and Raph releases a quiet relieved breath.
If he hadn’t been this amped up, he would’ve noticed a few things about the room. He would’ve noticed that Leo’s radio turned up, playing some old-timey classical music from one of the only stations active in the middle of the night. He would’ve noticed that the packet of chips Mikey had chucked at Leo earlier this evening is still on his desk, more than half full. He would’ve noticed that all of Leo’s scented candles are lit, covering every corner of this room in light and leaving no shadows anywhere. He even would’ve noticed that Leo has a few pieces of paper littered over his bed and they look vaguely familiar, like the old letters Mikey used to send him.
But right now, the only thing he can think of is saying, “You owe me ten bucks.”
Leo pauses. Whatever he’d been expecting—and he’d definitely been expecting something bad if the clenched jaw is anything to go by—that had not been it. “Huh?”
“For our bet.” Raph continues, his brain telling him to stop talking, what are you even saying. “You said I couldn’t keep a secret for longer than a week. You were wrong.”
Leo blinks slowly, his brain trying to process that, before a small smirk grows on his face. “Right. But you didn’t.”
“Did too.” Raph argues. “No one knew I was sneaking out for a year and a half. No one figured out that the Nightwatcher was me.”
“Yeah, but the bet was that you couldn’t keep a secret from me for longer than a week.” Leo points out. “And you couldn’t. I found out as soon as I got back.”
“And what about all the time before that?”
The words escape Raph’s mouth before he can help it, and he freezes.
Dang it.
The smirk falls off Leo’s face immediately, the levity gone as soon as it had come.
“Of course I couldn’t figure it out.” Leo replies after a beat, voice bland. “How was I supposed to?”
You never sent me any letters.
Raph can hear the accusation despite the lack of emotion attached to the reply, and a part of him reacts angrily to it. “Well, you were supposed to try. You could have figured it out, figured me out, if you tried harder.”
Leo flinches.
Raph sees it happen in slow motion, and his heart drops again, this time in guilt.
Leo’s lips pull back in a snarl, teeth glinting in the excess light, and the ever-ready creature in Raph’s chest flares up too, hungry for the incessant urge to fight, fight it out with me, give me one more chance to win, to listen, to try, to lose—
—But before it can happen, Leo exhales heavily.
The tension seeps out of his body with the breath, shoulders sagging and eyes shutting, and Raph blinks in surprise at the sudden change. The creature in his chest sits back on its haunches, confused.
“No.” Leo says softly. “No, I’m not—we’re not doing this again.”
He opens his eyes and his gaze is sharp and steady.
“I’m not fighting you, Raph. Not again. Not anymore.”
And—
Oh.
An old ache somewhere behind Raph’s ribcage eases, like a muscle that’s been spasmed for too long finally loosening.
It’s funny—this always happens in the aftermath of every fight he’s been in. The sudden burst of clarity he gets when the anger and adrenaline clear the red haze out of his vision and he finally sees the thing under his fists as a person and not a target, as a brother and not a rival born out of years’ worth of resentment. He starts to see Leo as the idiot whose hand was molded to fit in his and not the leader with the blue-hilted sword pointed straight to his heart.
“Cool.” Raph manages.
Leo’s brow ticks up. “Okay?”
“Yeah, okay.” He inhales a shuddering breath, suddenly feeling like he’s nine instead of nineteen again and Leo’s found him in the bathroom after having a meltdown in public. “We’re okay.”
“Good.” Leo nods shortly. His eyes dart to the clock. “Now, if you’ll excuse me, I’d like to get some shut-eye before I get up for training in the morning—”
Raph steps forward and wraps his arms around Leo.
He doesn’t even realize he’s moving until his fingers are flat against keratin, cold and scaly and nicked in several places with new scars. Leo freezes under the contact, his entire body tensing like a coil, words caught in his throat.
Something about the stiffness of his posture makes Raph huff in hysterical amusement, decidedly not thinking about how the touch feels like it’s burning him, especially since it’s Leo, Leo’s here, Leo’s back, Leo’s staying. And since he’s in for a penny and all, he squeezes even tighter, imprinting the embrace into his own skin before he’s forcefully shoved away.
He’s never shoved away.
Slowly, ever so slowly, two arms come up to rest on his own shell. And suddenly, Raph’s being crushed in a hug tight enough to make him wheeze, Leo’s pointy chin hooked over his shoulder and digging into the muscle like it belongs there.
It’s the first time in forever that Raph can finally breathe.
For real this time!! Here’s the action packed second part to this chapter!! You’re gonna see a much of Katie’s feral side coming out cuz of the jaguar form. Plus, some Raph, Casey and Mikey action goodness! General warnings like swearing and heavy violence once again!
Hun is not gonna have a good time 🤣🤣🤣
LET US GET TO THE ACTION!
Ransom 5
A TMNT Crossover Short Story Fanfic
Part Five: Revenge
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…
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… “— eave the freaks—“…
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… “— want guns on all doors—“
… a harsh thud, something being thrown without care…
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…
… distorted voices clashing left and right, belligerent and vile, resisting, almost screaming…
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… “—ou fucking—“
… a sharp crack, something being hit…
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…
…
…
… thu-thump. Thu-thump…
Thu-thump. Thu-thump…
Thu-thump.
Thu-thump…
… was he alive?
… he wasn’t sure. He wasn’t sure what this was.
It was as if he’d been submerged underwater: all sound escaped him, muted, garbled by the unknown. If there was any type of noise it was drowned out by a rush of water that pounded through his ears, blocking it out. His body was weightless, drifting aimlessly in this eternal darkness, dragging, pulling, clawing for his soul as invisible hands latched around his limbs and held on. Naturally, he was stricken by a wave of terror.
Was this the afterlife? Purgatory?
Or the entrance to Hell?
He prayed it wasn’t the latter.
He hoped he’d pass on to a place where his soul was forgiven for all the stupid bullshit he’d done as a young man. He wondered if Ma was waiting for him on some sunny beach shore. She always loved the beach…
He thought about the light of his life, emeralds gemstones for eyes dazzling, a radiant smile set ablaze by her beauty.
He thought of her voice… hoping it would lull him into a sense of calm before he went…
…
…
…
… but… he remembered…
Voices. Echoes, words reverberating back at him from the void, filling his being with a sense of purpose…
‘You wouldn’t cut your losses and turn tail, would you?’
‘DAD! GET UP!’
Thump-thump-thump-thump-thump-thumpthumpthump—
Leo… Kathrine… they were in trouble!
He started willing himself to move from this void; arms as heavy as lead writhed and struggled, his legs kicking through a sea of molasses, body thrashing and swimming against the strain of heaviness. The hands around his soul wouldn’t release him so easily, anchored to the very essence of his aura to sink him further. No! Opening his mouth he screamed, screeching and shaking, wailing, crying out in protest. There was nothing he could do, nothing else to offer, nothing but his soul to sustain him as he fought to break free. There were people who needed him. There were things he needed to fix. There were still experiences he had yet to try.
He still needed to help his family.
He still had to look Kathrine in the eye and finally say with his full chest, ‘Marry me goddamn it.’
He swam, he fought, he writhed and kicked and stretched his arms and pleaded, please please I know I ain’t th’ best guy, I ain’t th’ hero, I know I made mistakes, I know I’m not worthy but lemme see her one more time, lemme help her son, please!
With the combined strength of a thousand men, he ripped himself free of the darkness, swimming, swimming, fighting to reach the surface with all his might, extending his hand to grab on to something to pull him free—
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…
…
…
…
…
…
…
Oxygen.
Awareness.
Sound.
Pain.
This was the reality Danny was brought back to as consciousness crashed into his body like a freight train going off the tracks. Lungs seized momentarily as air caught in his chest, dented ribs yearning to bring life to deflated organs. He choked down the wheezing gasp that brought with it a coppery taste which coated his tongue, making his nausea worsen. Vicious, horrible head pangs hammered all over his skull and brain hard enough to make coherent thinking a chore. A sticky liquid had crusted his hair and caked around the entire right side of his head he realized, not too keen to face the possible doom of hemorrhaging. Danny briefly worried if he were going to slip back into unconsciousness due to the head trauma.
“—all four of you to take point at the rear. Cover the block. Scope the entire street.” Commanded a gravely voice. “She won’t get three feet inside this place without getting shot.”
“Mmmph!” Protested a muffled cry. “Mmhprh!”
“Don’t worry, turtle. First your ‘mother’, then the two of you. If the rodent isn’t already dead, that is.” The deep rumble of insidious laughter followed.
Danny found it a battle to pry his eyes open— his right, he discovered quickly, was swollen shut, only allowing his left vision, albeit hazy and unfocused.
The world spun. He found he was laying on his back, bright lights blinded his retinas and rendered the yōkai queasy. Colors were a kaleidoscope. As he tilted his head to fall to the side where the voices were loudest, he regretted the motion when his skull rattled with a vengeance. Figures taking shape with darker shades stood out, amongst them the giant of a man walking away from a green and blue mess kneeling in front of him.
Leo.
Leo, who sat with his back facing Danny, wrists painfully tied, torso wrapped in rope, ankles also bound glaring at the human as he left. The hoodie he wore was torn at the shoulder and collar. Danny’s heart sank when he spotted the familiar gag fixed back around his mouth to stifle his speech. But his posture suggested defiance. Bound hands were tightened into fists. He knelt in front of the rat with a level of determination, hatred in his eyes.
Was he… shielding him?
Danny blinked his good eye slowly, blinking back the misty vision of the world to better clear its fog. When he breathed his lungs ballooned and his chest heaved, causing the man to choke on air as he coughed against an obstacle stuffed into his mouth. Fucking Hun. First he tries t’ pummel me t’ death then he gags me? If he wasn’t suffering from internal bleeding he’d have rolled his eyes. Danny raised his head as much as he could, pushing the surge of nausea aside as he worked the energy to make himself known to the kid. So, twisting his torso to turn his body to the side the yōkai mewled to get his attention.
Leo’s body went rigid the moment Danny spoke. He whirled himself around, eyes wide, meeting the gaze of his caretaker with a sense of shock. Violet rings hung thick under puffy eyes like he hadn’t gotten any rest in a month, along with a nasty gash across the bridge of his beak that stained the cloth around his face. There was hesitation lingering from the boy’s being, not quite sure if he was imagining things or if Danny truly was alive.
Danny, stubborn as always, chirped weakly to settle his anxiety.
Instantaneously the mutant’s eyes watered. The way his eyes crinkled around the edges, the way his expression brought such a wave of relief, Leo sounded ready to burst at the seams. He whimpered to his guardian in a manner that suggested concern— no doubt about the current condition he’d been forced to endure. He clearly didn’t know the extent of his injuries. For all he knew, his internal bleeding could be getting more severe the longer he laid here like a slab of concrete.
And yet Danny still found the strength to offer Leo a smile. A crooked, weary, broken smile with bloodied teeth chomping down around the gag to provide some semblance of comfort to the boy.
Leo’s whimpering turned into sobbing. Thin tears trailed along the curves of his wounded face, evidence of being pushed too thin, of the last three days worth of stress and confusion catching up to him. Danny’s heart ached for the poor thing; how long had he been out? How long had this kid believed he’d been dead?
Worse yet… what time was it?
Danny’s golden orbs flickered past Leo’s shoulder to gauge what was going on. There were men stationed at the garage entrance— he counted twenty goons all displaying the Purple Dragon logo on their vests, more than he’d previously calculated— armed with firearms of different make, pistols, shotguns, rifles. Hun was talking to three other guys, telling them to head to the back with the others on the second floor. But when he craned his sore neck up to look up at the ceiling once more to find, amidst all the irritating lights currently driving pins into his eye, the skylight displayed a sea of stars drowning in a darkening dusky sky.
Fuck. He thought with a twinge. If th’ time limit is gettin’ close then I gotta figure out how t’ get loose if I’m gonna give Kat any kind of assist once she gets here.
Danny didn’t have to struggle to know he was still tied up; the way his fingers twitched told him his circulation was cut off, they were freezing cold. Movement was still limited by the restraints but what little he could do wasn’t much. Unless he wanted to wriggle around like a hooked bass and speed up the process of his internal bleeding, that was. There was no way he’d be able to get his hands free, he knew, but what else could he possibly do?
At this rate, Kat was good as dead.
Danny twisted one hand around in the bonds, ropes biting down into torn flesh under his fur. Blood crusted between his hands and fingers. No dice. Grumbling with agitation, he kicked his legs out in anger, tail curling around his ankles—
He went rigid. His eye went wide. Hold on a minute…
Tail?
Hadn’t Hun snapped it with the crowbar? With bated breath he went to shift it just slightly enough to evade prying eyes. The bottom half of his tail hadn’t been busted. The upper half was terribly broken, but from the mid-point down he had full mobility of the appendage. There was a searing pain that shot to his spine when he moved it… but it was free.
Holy fuck. Holy. Fuck!
He had an out.
Hun wasn’t counting on him regaining consciousness. He probably assumed he’d done enough damage to leave him totally out cold through the night and hadn’t accounted for the likelihood of him waking up. He’d left his tail unbound.
Danny’s grin turned evilly cocky behind the cloth. Ya messed up, fuckwit.
Sluggishly the yōkai slithered the tail towards the easiest place to reach, his feet. If he could get them free, Danny could sit upright and hopefully untie Leo’s hands— it was a long shot, but it was still a plan. Danny fussed with the knots of the ropes tethering his feet together, the tip of the tail tugging at the sturdy restraints with all the strength he could muster. He must’ve been messing with the damn knot for what felt like an eternity, meanwhile Leo sat vigil at the yōkai’s side, unwilling to let his guard down.
Danny could feel his throat tighten with agony, breathing growing more difficult. The thought briefly came to mind; ‘What if I bleed out? What if I got some kinda puncture in my kidney or liver? What if I’m close t’ passing out before Kat gets here?’
The thought scared him. And he didn’t get scared easily.
He couldn’t die yet. Not when Leo still depended on him. Not when Katie was at risk of getting gunned down. He had to pull through long enough for help to arrive.
He had to. He HAD to…
The knots were starting to give to his persistence, he could feel them waning. That gave him hope. If he could just keep up the pace—
“Well lookie here!”
Danny’s heart thudded in his chest, gaze rising to locate Hun as the bigger man finally took notice of Danny’s awakening. Leo’s anger reappeared, his hands balled into fists, snarling behind the gag as best he could. Fuck, not now. Not now not now why NOW?
“I thought you were dead!” Hun chortled— too loud, too much soprano, too much noise in his jelly-like brain— “You certainly looked the part all damn day! The blood that came pouring outta your ugly face after I beat you senseless? I’ve seen faceless nobodies bleed out a thousand times, but you’re a stubborn little roach!”
Hun stormed towards the two; Leo instantly began to shout around the gag furiously, thrashing in his binds. Danny wanted to calm the kid down before the thug laid his hands on him, but it was too late. As Leo created more noise, Hun shoved the helpless turtle aside, causing him to tumble onto the ground with a heavy slam. Unable to use his arms to catch his fall the turtle struck the concrete unforgivingly hard in a pathetic display of writhing.
“I must’ve crushed th’ back of your head,” Hun surmised, grabbing Danny by the bloodied collar of his shirt. He held him aloft like he weighed nothing, dangling the rat man with one hand in the air. “Your eyeballs almost popped outta your skull! I was certain I killed you, but,” he chuckled. “Guess I didn’t hit you hard enough.”
“Mmrgh…” Danny mumbled behind his gag in an attempt to speak but it did nothing. Keep yer eyes on my face and not my feet, just keep flapping yer yap. All I need is a minute.
“You should’ve seen your boy,” Hun scoffed. “The dumb animal really went savage on me!” Lifting his right hand the man showed off a set of severe bite marks around the space between his thumb and index finger that punctured deep enough to draw blood. Holy shit, LEO did that? “Tried taking my thumb off. Put up a pretty decent struggle before I shut him up. He really doesn’t know when to pick his fights… I guess he takes after you.”
Don’t let him get t’ you don’t let him get t’ you, he’s trying t’ crack you down, do not let him win!
“You should’ve heard it! ‘Don’t touch my Dad! Leave him alone! Wake up, wake up!’ I didn’t know turtles were so worthless without their guardians protecting them. He thought he was actually going to SAVE you!”
Danny’s hands twitched, unable to move, unable to wrench himself free. If he’d had the power he’d have gouged Hun’s eyes out. His expression turned vile against the swelling and bruising. Just a little bit further, he could feel the bonds at his feet giving way. Come on, come on, PLEASE!
“He kept saying, ‘My Dad’s hurt, do something! My Mom will kick your ass!’ I’ve never heard something so hilarious in my entire life! You freaks are so loyal it makes me SICK!” Hun brought Danny closer, their faces eerily inches apart to the point where Danny could see the deep brown irises of the human man, how sinister they were, how his pupils shrank with sadistic glee at the yōkai’s plight. “Why is it you lot are so determined to protect each other? Why do you go so far just to save your kin? In my world, it’s every man for himself. You should know! You were a convict too; I can see it in your eyes, you know what I mean. You’re a guy who’s been in the slammer once. I don’t forget that look in anyone’s eyes. Why stick your neck out for the sake of this dumb terrapin?”
Around his feet the ropes went slack. They slipped to the ground, unnoticed.
Somewhere overhead shadows fell past the skylight, the evening finally setting in. Four figures hovered from the glass panes.
Danny’s heart skipped a beat. Kat.
Hun, confused, looked up to inspect the strange arrival. “Who—“
This moment of distraction was all Danny needed. He held his breath, counted to three—
CRACK! “AUGH—?!”
Danny threw his head forward and smashed his brow directly into Hun’s, hearing the familiar sound of bone shattering. The pain that erupted throughout his entire skull added onto his other trauma and almost knocked him out cold, but he gnashed his fangs into the cloth and fought through it. The moment Hun staggered and his grip on his collar lessened, Danny quickly brought his knee up and, without giving him the chance to react, crushed it under his jaw and cracked his chin in one swift motion. He kicked off Hun’s chest to get himself loose, freeing him of the human’s hold as he dropped to his feet.
Don’t think, just move! Acting fast his aching tail lashed out, wrapping around Leo’s middle as he tried to make a desperate break for the nearest exit, dragging the bound turtle in tow. It didn’t matter if his hands were still tied, it didn’t matter if he could barely move, it didn’t matter, it didn’t, he had to get Leo out of here, clear a space, get him to—
Something was chucked into his spine.
He saw stars.
It hit him with such power it threw him off kilter, sending him tumbling, unintentionally dragging Leo alongside the rat. Danny heard a brick clatter to the wayside.
“YOU STUPID ANIMALS!” Hun tenaciously roared, slightly slurred from the broken nose he currently clutched, drawing a small revolver from his belt as he took aim…
Right for Leo, who sat entangled in the tail wrapped tight around his stomach, who stared at the gun with this strange blank expression, caught in headlights, motionless as though he’d already mentally accepted his fate.
Time slowed.
‘All it takes is one second, Daniel.’
Hun cocked the safety off.
‘One second to choose between life… or death.’
Danny’s heart dropped with terror. He screamed, shoving himself in front of the kid, acting as a living barrier between him and the impending bullet, praying to God for a quick death, praying the shot didn’t go through him and into Leo, praying for Kathrine to forgive him; Kat, Kat, Kathrine I’m so sorry, I love you so much, please don’t hate me, please—
C
R
A
S
H
Glass exploded overhead. It rained down onto the unfortunate bastards caught in their deadly hail, spliced and diced as the shards fell, catching pieces of moonlight in their fractured panes.
Without warning, four shadows fell into the warehouse among them.
One hit the ground hard and fast, a tremor shaking the foundation of the first floor when he landed. Two others dropped stealthily silent at his side, framing the giant. All of them were wearing thick, heavy black clothes and masks.
The last slowly rose to her full height. Covered from head to toe in black, the woman leveled a pair of toxic green eyes onto Hun beneath the hood of her jacket, taking in her target.
In her hand dangled a revolver. The other, his Cloaking Broach.
Katie’s voice broke through the blanket of silence that captured the unexpected audience. With a murderous hiss, she spat Hun’s words right back at him. “You’re going to regret pissing me off.”
She raised her gun to the sky.
She fired.
BANG!
Her shot struck the circuit breaker in the ceiling, taking out all the lights. Electrical sparks showered down around the warehouse.
Soon, a cacophony of voices rang throughout the warehouse as Hun and his lackeys panicked.
“WHERE ARE THEY?! SOMEONE GRAB THE MUTANTS!” Hum exclaimed.
Then, another voice. “LEAVE NONE STANDING.” As dark green and purple tendrils warped around the slim figure of Katie in the pitch black, transforming the woman. Three silhouettes branched off.
Cries bellowed into the dark as the three moved at once. In a matter of seconds, all hell broke loose.
Danny wasn’t taking chances; tail tightening around Leo he all but hauled him out of gunfire range as bullets began to soar and whiz past his ear. The deafening screams and wails of the hapless goons went ignored.
Danny hadn’t gotten a decent look around the premises but he at least managed to find cover thanks to his night vision, however obscured it was; he ducked behind a tall set of crates, pulling himself and Leo behind the sturdy barriers. He didn’t know how long they would hold but for now, it would have to suffice. Despite the chaos unfolding around them he found it easier to breathe.
They found them. They came. They really came. Kathrine had pulled through.
He could feel Leo start to tremble; violent, terrified, full bodied shakes rattled the slider. His breathing turned uneven, uncontrollable. He heard him begin to weep.
Danny didn’t have to be the best medic in the world to know this was a panic attack.
He’d had a gun pointed right at him— he very likely could have been shot and had it not been for the timely intervention of their group, the turtle could have…
Acting on instinct the yōkai hugged the slider close to him— unable to wrap his arms around the boy, his tail curled tighter at Leo’s middle to shield him from the madness. Truth be told, Danny was scared shitless. Anything could go wrong. Anything could happen. But in this small corner Danny was all Leo had to protect him from whatever threat crossed their path. Hell or high water, he would die fighting to keep his promise.
Let them kill me first. I ain’t letting this kid down.
*********************
Five seconds.
That was all it took.
Five seconds for her to break the necks of the lookouts on the rooftop to get by undetected.
Five seconds for Katie to shatter the skylight windows of the warehouse and leap into the fray of goons packing heat.
Five seconds was all it took for her to move when she saw Hun point a pistol at her baby and the man she loved, who threw himself in front of the mutant red eared slider in an attempt to take the shot meant for the teen.
Five seconds of dark red tinting her world in a bloody film.
The Cloaking Broach effortlessly turned her from woman to yōkai, the cover of shadows illuminated her ghastly feline form as terrified thugs began to blindly open fire, pops of light like firecrackers indicating their unlucky locations. In one command her boys pounced into action: Raph taking the stairs. Casey covering the entrance. Mike advancing on the main floor.
Katie bared her fangs as a bloodcurdling growl rumbled deep in her throat, lowering herself into a crouch, the thin fur on her arms and neck rising with unbridled rage. The jaguar form granted her plenty of advantages, one of them the blessed gift of speed and inhuman strength. She had to make full use of their abilities before her stamina wore off. Mouth dropping open she released a gut churning screech that echoed throughout the facility.
Katie took off in a sprint.
Her hands grabbed one guy by the back of his shirt and seized him. One instantaneous snap to his neck and he crumbled. Kicking off his falling body she grappled another man by the torso and took him down, his gun firing sporadically as they collapsed. He didn’t get the chance to scream when she tore his neck open. She ripped the gun from his hands, taking shots towards where the stairs started as three goons tried to ambush Raph whilst he was busying himself with two burly looking jackasses.
Three shots. Three bodies staggering along the stairs. Katie continued moving.
She lunged for another big fellow, a woman this time, trapping her in a corner. She went to throw a fist, but Katie dodged. She moved to uppercut her, but she parried. Using her elbow Katie crushed it into her chest area and cracked two ribs. Finally she unleashed long, thick claws to sink them deep into the stomach and slashed it open. The sorry excuse for a woman gurgled something that sounded like ‘help’ under her breath. She thought she heard her wheeze, ‘I have babies.’
Katie spat on her.
No mother in her right mind would ever think of harming another’s child. Not unless they were depraved.
“GOONGALAAAAA!” Casey declared nearby, followed by a heavy thwack from his hockey stick as he struck someone. Seconds later an explosive hockey puck blew some guy far back into the brick wall. He skated around a pillar just in time to avoid being pelted with a piece of broken concrete, using the cover to thrust his arm out and catch the man in the torso and tase him with his glove. Dark blue light ignited around the man’s body as he was electrocuted without mercy.
Raph on the other hand sprang forward onto one goon, canines bared like a vicious snake ready to devour its prey. Sai in his fists he used all his strength to bring them up and into the shoulder blades of the hapless moron beneath him, pushing off the man to twist his body into the air and kick one leg outward, striking another bastard in the groin with powerful force. Tearing his sai out of his opponent’s arms he jumped to his feet and tackled the second to the ground, landing devastating punches one after another at the thug’s face, bellowing in outrage with each blow.
“You want some’a this, fool?!” Mikey’s tone suggested anger as he lashed out, nunchucks spinning rapidly, striking with precision and careful timing. The biggest of her kids battered and bludgeoned any man who tried to touch him, expertly weaving and leaping out of harms way in time as a shot nearly took the gentle giant down. He used his height to his advantage to gain leverage over his opponents, striking with deadly precision. “Come GET some!”
“FLUSH THEM OUT! I WANT LIGHTS, GET EYES ON THE FREAKS!” Hun screamed amidst the frenzy of rapid fire and ricochet bullets. “I WANT THEM DEAD!”
You’re going to be dead in ten minutes, but I’m patient, Katie thought.
She flipped over one guy like an acrobat, unknowingly catapulting into another duo of morons that managed to get some solid blows into her sternum and face as she struggled to gain her bearings. A couple of hits to the diaphragm rendered her momentarily stunned, fingers latching into her hair and ripping her backwards to deliver a strong-armed punch to her cheek.
“Stupid—“ Asshat hissed as he went to punch her in the nose. She caught his fingers in her teeth and sank them down to the point of breaking them. When the hand let her hair go Katie struck her palm straight up, breaking the teeth from his mouth and slicing his lips. Katie swung her hands in crazed, rapid motions, cutting him deeper, deeper, slicing his face and torso until she took him down to the floor. Whomever had tried to assist him ran away in fright— smart man.
“MA!” Raph yelled from the second floor, sai clashing into a shotgun, using the prongs to shove the barrel to the side and sideswiping his attacker to take him down. “Three o’clock!”
Her eyes widened. Turning in the direction of the crates, she caught a trail of blood streaking an unsteady line around the corner. In that bloody mess the footprints turned somewhere in the slew of storage containers.
Danny. Leo.
Katie just barely managed to avoid being stabbed from behind as a squealing simpleton attempted to run her through with a switchblade. Seizing his arm she snapped it at the elbow joint and rammed her own straight into his throat, proceeding to body slam him as she cracked his head open like a walnut. She tore the knife from his twitching fingers, clutching it in a fist, claws digging into the metal handle. Where was Hun?
“FUCKING— CAN’T DO ANYTHING RIGHT! WHAT DO I PAY YOU IDIOTS FOR!” Hun shouted in outrage, the unmistakable sound of a Glock disengaged off its safety. “WHERE ARE YOU, RAT?! I’M ENDING THIS!”
Katie’s mouth twisted dangerously into a ravenous sneer.
The clock started ticking.
Ten.
She cut through the rest of the lackeys in her way, moving against the wave of bodies that struggled to find and subdue her. No. No. NO. No man was going to stop her now. Not while she was still breathing.
Nine.
Hun was a fortress as he pushed and shoved his cronies aside like they meant nothing, searching the crowd with ominous intent behind every fiber of his body. He grabbed one of the heavier crates and heaved it across the warehouse— her heart skipped a beat when the massive wooden box hit Mikey dead center in his chest and sent the ‘chuck wielder into a beam shell-first. The sound that came from the metal structure reverberated into her eardrums and made her fur stand straight. “MICHAEL!”
The orange masked teen huffed, getting back to his feet albeit shakily, spitting blood to the side and calling, “Good! I’m good! Just… dizzy!”
“Casey, cover Mike! Raph, on my seven!” Katie cried. She took point as she raced forward. “NOBODY follow me!”
She didn’t want them seeing what she was about to do.
Didn’t want them to see the carnage that was about to unfold.
That was her sin to bare. Not theirs.
Eight.
Hun pushed aside another crate, searching high and low. He fired his Glock randomly at something in his line of sight. The gunshot struck a solid object, but thankfully not any people. “Where are you?! When I get my hands on you both I’ll make you WISH you’d been shot!”
He fired somewhere near his left—
A muffled scream made her stomach seize.
Daniel. That was Danny’s voice.
And from where she stood a mere twelve feet away, she saw understanding cross Hun’s repulsive features.
He readied another shot with a click. “There you are.”
Seven.
Katie suddenly found her second wind. She flew— soaring off unmoving bodies and gaining momentum as she ran. The muscles in her calves and thighs tightened. The adrenaline rushed all over her body. Her veins were on fire.
She didn’t care.
As Hun prepared a second round she caught him off guard. She lunged, grabbing him by the shoulders as she hung on. Then she drove the switchblade into the depths of his back and started repeatedly shanking him. Hun screamed, blindly reaching behind him, trying to grab Katie to pry her off. She avoided his meaty hands, continuing to stab him in the muscled tendons of his back and aiming for his spine—
“FUCK OFFA ME!” Hun exclaimed. Without hesitation he threw himself back, and in turn, took Katie with him as he slammed her into the wall. She grunted, the pain exploding into her head and back, as Hun did this a second and third time. She lost her grip on the knife as it clattered out of reach into the dark.
Hun shook her off enough to seize her by her ankle, tearing Katie off and holding her aloft like a gutted fish. “YOU!“
Katie growled in return.
She twisted her body like a python, wrapping her arms around his appendage and sinking her claws through the sensitive skin around his forearm and shredded it completely open.
Six.
Hun reared back like a horse, wailing his arm around to toss her off. She didn’t let go. She instead haphazardly clawed her way up his arm, to his chest, to his shoulders as she latched on and embedded her teeth into his collarbone—
The gang leader punched her. He cracked her jaw as he dislodged her off him, taking the opportunity to snap her head back as he grabbed her throat and began to squeeze. Katie gagged, coughing, kicking and hissing against the ironclad grip around her windpipe. Her claws scratched his knuckles and wrist.
“Finally,” Hun panted, shaking the mutated woman like a ragdoll. “YOU’RE the top prize of New York? Another genetic hybrid? You’re a MENACE. I can’t believe you caused all this mayhem for worthless freaks! You really must be that deranged!” He crushed his thick fingers around her neck, making her spasm in agony as the ability to breathe was robbed from aching, broken lungs. “Just wait. I’ll take your pets. I’ll take them and turn them into handbags, sell their shells, turn their blood into addictive drugs… and I’ll make you watch it all. But not the rat. That rodent has something VERY special waiting for him. He’ll be saved for last. I’ll take all the fur from his skin piece by piece, I’ll rip his tail off, I’ll take his eyes… and you’ll see the life drain out of him as he dies at your feet… all the while I’ll keep you as my private little WHORE.”
Five.
The scent of death was so potent it could have strangled an elephant.
One thought integrated into her brain:
KILL.
Four.
Katie snarled. Not in despair…
But bloodlust.
She swung on him; thick black claws caught the bottom of the left eye and tore the fragile flesh. Hun yelped.
It wasn’t enough.
It wasn’t enough until she took his life.
Katie pile-drove both feet right into his abdomen and kicked over and over again, heels digging hard enough to knock the wind out of him. Pummeling her booted feet as physically hard into his pelvis, the force of the strike the final time made the buff gang leader spit blood as something in his pelvic region cracked. As soon as he was doubled over, Katie knocked both feet into his face and sent him sprawling. She wrenched her neck out of his hands and climbed on top of him. When he swatted at her she pushed his arms down.
Three.
Katie straddled the bigger man, hovering over the disgraceful cur— a primal animal ready to devour.
Hun’s eyes squinted through the daze of his attack, grinding his teeth in agony when he stared up at the jaguar woman. Realization dawned upon him. “You wouldn’t DARE.”
Katie slowly raised her arm. Claws extended out of the tips of her fingers.
Hum’s face blanched. “You wouldn’t!”
Two.
Katie’s eyes flickered a deadly shade of crimson. Her face turned feral.
She thought of Danny, the man she loved— his screams of anguish that would forever haunt her.
She thought of Leo, her son— pleading for Danny’s life, the horror that filled his voice.
She thought of Grace, her sister— handed off to Draxum and taken to a lab, being used for some kind of sinister experiment.
Letting him go would spell death for them all.
Letting him walk away after everything he’d done? All the lives he took? All the devastation he’d created?
Never.
One.
In the darkness the jaguar screeched, bringing her claws down like a guillotine.
In the darkness Hun drowned in his own terrified cry as she ripped his jugular open with her hands.
In the darkness, blood was spilled.
True to her word, Hun hadn’t lasted more than ten minutes.
**********************
The chaos lasted an eternity. That’s what Danny believed.
The gunshot was TOO close to his head and had missed by inches— inches. A single shot nearly blew his brains out and he would never have been known until it was too late. His heart had stopped after the attempt on his life, he could barely catch his breath after that. Any closer t’ th’ left, and I’d be…
He’d gone into a shock of sorts, freezing on the spot as he struggled to put the pieces of his composure back together. Air dragged into constricted ribs, quickened and erratic. But he refused to waver. During the horrific ordeal he never let Leo go, having clung to the teen as though he were a lifeline, holding him close to keep him safe. The poor kid was a hysteric mess, burying his face into Danny’s arm and weeping, terror plain to see from a mile away as tears stained his sleeve. Danny sat like steel. Never moved. Never once did he dare to ease his grip on Leo. Nobody was taking this kid, nobody was going to hurt him, nobody would get the chance, nobody—
The brawl came to an abrupt end. Doors flung open as petrified screams fled into the night.
Quiet settled over the warehouse. Dread hit him at once.
Where was Katie? Where were the boys? Had Hun done something, had he hurt her? Where did everyone go? Where were the gang members?
He felt Leo shiver against his side, whining worriedly. Danny’s tail pulled him closer, shielding him. Don’t let him out of your sight.
He couldn’t chance it.
He couldn’t risk being careless—
Physical contact viciously ripped him back into reality.
It became a battle to breathe.
Someone was touching him. Hands were on his shoulders someone was touching him they were going to start with him someone was going to take Leo away—!
NO!
Fight or flight set in. Primal desperation kicked his senses into overdrive. Danny began to buck like a lion, yelling and howling against his gag in outrage, no no no they can’t do this, they can’t, I’m not going down like this I’m not dying here I’m NOT LETTING THIS KID DIE. “MMHF— DNN PHHKN THHK HHMPH! DNN HHFF HHMPH!”
“DANIEL! DANIEL, DANIEL, IT’S ALRIGHT! IT’S ME!”
Clarity.
He froze. Was that…?
Eyes shot open in the dark—
Lights blinded him, white LEDs shooting daggers into sensitive retinas after spending days being shuttered away. Recoiling Danny groaned, shying from the source, the hands returning to touch his face, he fought the urge to scream—
“Daniel.” Gentle, soft as silk, quiet and comforting. “I’m here.”
He forced his blurry eyes open a second time. Blinking away tears that prickled weary orbs, Danny finally found a familiar face.
The most beautiful sight on this planet.
Emerald green eyes. Tan complexion. Tussled black hair. Smooth, elegant face. Blood speckled around her cheeks and neck. Bruising crawled throughout her throat. Her clothes were tattered and bloodied. A battery powered lamp sat at her side. She looked like she’d been run over by a truck.
But Kathrine was gorgeous. She always was.
“Oh God… Danny,” Katie whimpered. Tears stung his eyes as she spoke his name. “What’d he do to you…?”
His shoulders shook. His barriers came tumbling down around him. In this moment Danny broke into tears, cutting like razor blades down an injured face. He kicked himself for this internally. Men were supposed to stand strong in the face of despair. Men were supposed to be the fortitude for others to fall to in dire need. Men, his father taught him, would never shatter under the pressure. They couldn’t show sensitivity, they couldn’t CRY. It was a privilege reserved for women or weaker people with no backbone.
But damn his old man.
The woman he loved made it. Leo was okay.
They were going home.
Katie brought him closer, tilting his head forward to touch her forehead to Danny’s. Her fingers tenderly brushed his shaggy hair out of bloodshot eyes to better get a look at him, the motions familiar, slow, rhythmic, compassionate as she soothed the battered yōkai. As tears trickled down his muzzle and stained his gag he wept joyfully in her hands, yearning for his words, wanting dearly to voice his gratitude. She mumbled to him, “I’m here baby. I’m here. Sorry I took so long.“
Danny shook his head, trying to talk, trying to tell her it was fine, but he settled with a muffled grunt for now. This tender feeling of comfort provided by the woman who loved him was more than enough. He just wished he could kiss her.
At his side Leo squeaked, timid. Danny relinquished his grip on the terrapin, nudging him to look over.
Katie raised her head to find Leo. Her eyes widened painfully, and her lips quivered. “Mijo,” she gasped.
Leo almost instantly tried to hurl himself into her arms, but still being bound he teetered forward clumsily, Katie catching him before he could shatter his beak into solid ground and pulling him into a crushing embrace while the boy sobbed with relief in her shoulder. “Oh mijo…! Bromista! I’m so so so sorry, I’m right here, shhh-shhh-shh Mama’s got you.”
“Mom!” Coming in from behind the other three arrived, winded and sheathing their weapons, the battle over. “All clear. Those bozos ain’t coming back—“ Raph sported a gnarly gash under his jaw, his black clothes ripped and torn apart at the elbows, dark brown eyes turning alert as soon as he saw Leo. “Oh shit… Leo…”
Leo’s eyes poked around Katie’s shoulder, dark red and glassy. The slider’s expression fell even farther into remorse. He strained his hands against his bindings, weeping harder at the sight of the older turtle. Like being torn out of a trance Raph moved; lowering himself to a kneel as he drew the bound terrapin into a hug, forgoing his own injuries in favor of providing him reassurance. “I’m so sorry, bro… I’m so so sorry, I’m such an idiot, I never meant a word o’ what I said. I’m so glad yer okay.”
Nobody missed the warbled shake of Raph’s voice repressing tears.
Mikey wiped blood away from his nose with the back of his arm, cuts sinking deep into his legs and shoulders, shaking slightly from being chucked into a steel beam. His expression sank with empathy, but he immediately dropped to his knees to help his surrogate mother with the slider. “Hey Lee. We got your back.”
“I got the first aid kit,” Casey knelt at Leo’s side with a seriousness Danny had never seen before, rummaging around his duffle bag. His bottom lip was split, his left hand looked swollen, his ear bled from the earlobe, hockey mask pushed up to rest atop his head. “What looks the most bad?”
“There’s a gash on the bridge of his snout. This thing stopped a majority of the bleeding but it looks deep,” Katie gently tilted Leo’s head forward to grab ahold of the knot tying the gag in place. “Honey, hold still. I’ll get you loose. Mike, can you please untie Danny?”
Mikey nodded. He unclipped a shuriken from his belt as he moved behind the yōkai with a friendly grin. “‘Sup, rat dude! Don’t worry, I’ll have you outta this in a minute!”
He sat still for the bigger turtle as he worked on the ropes, sawing away at the restraints diligently. As he waited for his bonds to be cut Danny watched in silence as Katie took care of Leo, Raph using one of his sai to slice through the cords around his wrists like butter. She whispered consoling things to the kid as she fussed with the gag, some words in Spanish, others in English, but her attention never strayed off the slider. A mother in her element.
“Respira, cariño, solo respira profundamente,” Katie soothed, untying the cloth and easing it off his mouth, taking care not to disrupt the gash across his snout in the process. “Just focus on my voice. I’m not going anywhere.”
Leo hacked out a blood soaked wad of fabric, sputtering into a coughing fit that robbed him of the ability to use his words. Katie rubbed his shell in circular motions, easing the turtle forward in case he needed to vomit. Raph slashed the last of his bonds free in one fell flick of the wrist. Leo’s hands slowly moved to the front, both visibly shaking, the traumatic stress still apparent. “I gotcha Bud. You’re good. Ma, ya need th’ water?”
“Yeah. Leo, here, take a drink of this—“
“N-no…” Leo’s voice was a raspy whisper. Shaking his head he pointed a finger over to Danny, who blinked his good eye in befuddlement. “D-Dad… h-he needs it…”
The cords holding Danny prisoner finally snapped, Mikey’s impromptu knife severing the strands. Blood rushed back into numbed over fingers and made his hands prickle from the sensation of circulation returning, rushing back into aching veins that yearned for movement. A relieved huff pushed through the fabric still wrapped in his teeth.
Fingers found purchase on the knot at the back of his head, and two seconds later the gag was finally loosened from his mouth. Swollen clawed fingers reached up to yank the cloth free, spitting the long since blood saturated rag to the side as he nearly choked. He struggled to repress a wheezing fit, fighting to keep his pain to a minimum but his lungs ballooned in his ribcage and begged for air. What I wouldn’t give for a bottle of gin.
“Dad…!” Leo, unable to withhold his worry, attempted to go help him. But the slider was still weak, atrophy turning his arms into sore, shaking twigs that went to reach for the yōkai. He nearly collapsed had it not been for Raph helping him to kneel.
Katie squeezed around the two to fit in the space to reach Danny, her hands cupping his face as blood slithered down his chin. “Daniel. You okay?” She asked.
“‘M… fine.” Danny worked his words out of a parched throat begging for water. “J-Just a he-headache…”
Not falling for his charade Katie held a bottle of water to his lips, encouraging him to drink. “Hey, take it easy. You probably have brain fog.”
“Side note, is anyone else confused?” Mikey piped up, cutting the last of the ropes from the yōkai’s torso. “Leo must have some kinda concussion. He just called Danny ‘Dad.’ I think you got the wrong rat, man. Your Splints is gray.”
“D-Don’t… have one,” Leo cleared his voice to better speak. “I know… what I said.”
“Wait whaaaat?” The ridges of Mikey’s brows rose.
“Dan? Dad?” Casey had to ask next. “Dude, seriously? You sure you’re not concussed?”
“Yep.” Leo grinned. The motion almost looked too forced from the pain. “That’s… my Dad.”
Katie’s emerald orbs glistened— tears hanging at bay, a soft smile growing across her face. Glancing back at Danny she mouthed, “Really?”
Danny took one look at Leo, who grinned weakly at his guardian with happiness. He looked back to Katie, tired hands reaching up to run them through her hair. The feeling of her smooth locks beneath aching, battered palms grounded him. They anchored him.
They reaffirmed the reality of his survival, of all the suffering he’d endured to reach this point.
How he’d go through it all over again to keep them safe.
Mikey finds Donnie passed out on the kitchen table in the middle of the night, one hand loosely curled around a still-full mug of black coffee, the other resting on a stack of unpaid bills.
He sighs quietly, feeling a familiar exasperation tinged with sadness at the state of him. He moves around the space with ninja stealth, silently shutting all the open cabinet doors and trashing old paper plates—things that somehow only Raph seems to remember to do without being reminded—and eventually settles down in the chair next to him, studying him under the yellow kitchen light.
Not for the first time, Mikey wishes he could just... grab Donnie and shake him, beg him to stop this stupid stuff, to let it all go to hell, to focus on his own health instead of everyone else’s, if only to let their family have at least one more functioning member back.
Too bad Leo was the only one Donnie ever listened to.
New York City is cold, cold like ice forming into crystals on metal, cold like white moonlight streaming through snow, colder than stray breezes breaking through sweltering tropical humidity in a desperate, momentary relief.
Leo breathes deeply in this cold, feeling the icy air touch the bottom of his lungs, and he shivers.
Immediately, warmth envelops him on all sides: a press of an arm leaning against his, a calloused hand on his knee rubbing in some heat, and two lithe arms winding around his neck from behind, with a head happily resting on top of his.
But more than anything, the warmth is present in their voices, in their laughs and teases, grounding him to this moment like he's a planet orbiting a burning star.
Mikey points out an oddly shaped cloud in the sky, Donnie dutifully describes the phenomenon that must've created it, Raph steals some of his hot chocolate and squawks undignifiedly when twin snowballs hit him, courtesy of April and Casey—and Leo finally rests, finally peaceful, finally home.
A/N: Thank you so much to everyone who read and supported this series! It was the first month-long challenge I've ever completed, and I loved all the reactions I got in the notes.
If there's any prompt fill you thought was interesting, let me know and I might continue it as a longer story!
Donnie snorts himself awake, head atop a pillow instead of his usual pile of paperwork, and catches a stray Raphael, crouched over his bedside table with a tray in his hands, frozen like a deer caught in headlights.
"Uh," he begins, wincing at how terrible his voice sounds, "what're you doin'?"
"…Coffee," Raph answers after a moment, setting the tray down with a clink, and sure enough, there's the mug of coffee, right next to some buttered toast and DayQuil pills.
Donnie blinks, mind lethargic from the feverish cloud of confusion, and stutters out a thank you, but Raph holds up a hand before he even gets to those two syllables, impatient and sleep-deprived, "Don't, just—be quiet and go back to sleep."
He says nothing else, silently turning on his heel and walking out—and Donnie blinks at the door, wondering if he hallucinated the whole thing.
Raph stares at the battered cellphone in his hands, weakly lit up by the waning moonlight streaming through the heavy clouds, and slowly types the message into the text box:
‘Happy new year’.
He deletes it immediately after, and then types it again, over and over, before eventually, with his heart in his throat and a bitter hope in his chest, he hits send.
Until he remembers that not only can Leo never get this SMS all the way in Costa Rica, this number isn’t even active anymore.
Raph feels a thread of disappointment shoot through him, before he forcefully tamps it down. Ah, well, Leo’s supposed to come back in the next few days; he’ll just wish him then.
Raph’s breath hitches as he stumbles to a stop, feet barely keeping him from falling off the rooftops. The hands tightly wound around his sais momentarily go numb, as a painfully familiar tune greets him from the window below.
He stands there, stupidly frozen, feeling caught between multiple moments: the one right now, armed in his Nightwatcher gear on a windy, muggy summer night, and many, many ones from home, from before. Walking towards the kitchen passing by Leo’s room, going for patrols with a small speaker hanging off Leo’s belt, chilling on the couch with Leo as he read a book and quietly hummed to himself—and this song, playing over the montage of photographs flipping through his mind like papers caught in a storm.
Raph stays there for the entirety of the song, and when the closing guitar riff ends, he’s distantly surprised to feel a burning in his eyes, exacerbated by a deep ache in his chest—one he stopped feeling a long time ago—and then he grits his teeth angrily, pulling his helmet tighter over his ears, and turning away.
