Just Another Rottmnt Blog

He should’ve waited on his brothers.

He should’ve listened to Raph.

He should’ve waited for Donnie’s assessments to conclude.

He should’ve let Mikey come with him.

He should’ve, he should’ve, he should’ve.

And now Leo found himself running faster than he thought was possible, bounding rooftop to rooftop as he was pursued by the Villain-of-the-Week.

His feet rose and fell with hesitant determination. It was a miracle he hadn’t lost his footing, and he wasn’t quite sure what was keeping him going aside from pure adrenaline at this point.

“ C’MON, BOY! FINISH WHAT YOU STARTED! ”

Chills crawled up his spine as something in his body screamed ‘ PIVOT! ‘

So he did. Whatever guardian protected him today needed a raise as Y/N’s foot pierced where he occupied only a second prior.

She carried no weapon yet split through the air with such speed that it sounded as if she struck with the thinnest, sharpest blade known to any craftsman.

“ How about no! ”

Leo quipped weakly as he stumbled backwards. His gaze was fixed on her—quite the angry mutant.

It had happened earlier this week, Donnie had theorized. There was a mutant trying to create some type of reverse formula, a sort of ‘ anti-mutagen ’, but all they came up with is another dose of mutagen.

Raph and Leo both agreed that it should be seized at once and properly disposed of.

The ooze-squitoes were already a pain in the ass, though only producing mutants whose novice abilities couldn’t quite reach as dangerous a level as the Hamato brothers.

“ GYACK—“

Leo choked as his heels slammed into the rim of the roof’s edge. His eyes shrunk in fear as Y/N dug their heel into the concrete and shot off towards him like a bullet straight from the chamber.

Gravity reached up and yanked him down the building’s side desperately, allowing him a narrow escape from the angered rabbit. She fell after him, well beyond reach.

This woman had been in the wrong place at the wrong time—a classic scenario.

The mutant swore the mutagen they created was their cure. They begged, pleaded, and finally fought to keep it in their hands.

Desperation was a crazy stimulant for strength.

Amidst their tussle, Mikey grabbed ahold of the vial—such a small amount, it shouldn’t have been so potent!

He threw it to Raphael who threw it to Donnie who fumbled it towards Leo after the mutant grabbed ahold of his robotic limbs and /yanked/.

Leo’s fingertips grazed the vial as he haphazardly leapt to catch it, only to find himself staring down at a hefty fall to the New York roads below.

He quickly produced a portal, and on the other side was Y/N. Just a poor girl in a poor position, turning the corner of an alleyway after hearing something that sounded like an injured animal. She worried it might be a cat or a dog hit from the busy street over.

Pure intentions.

Instead, she was met with the frightening sight of a blindingly bright circle burning through the space before her. Out came a swirling test tube and a startled mutant with a blue bandana.

It burst open as it collided into her, soaking as Leo followed after and quiet literally slammed her down onto the cold hard concrete.

Shortly after that accident, they were unable to find her again for weeks.

For whatever reason, Y/N suddenly appeared after almost a month, hellbent on getting ahold of the brothers.

“ We can talk about this! ”

Leo yelled as they both fell along the length of some of the tallest buildings in New York.

Y/N’s expression twisted painfully as she beared her teeth in a snarl.

“ Are you KIDDING ME?! ”

Her body maintained a humanoid figure, albeit with rabbit-like features. After the incident, her ears had lengthened and grew fur, resembling floppy bunny ears. Her nose and mouth altered into a snout with a little button nose and whiskers that only heightened her senses—quite overstimulating for a previously-human.

Even Y/N’s hands morphed, transforming the nails into something sharper than human or rabbit, more catlike in their lethality. Complete with a little cotton ball tail and legs more geared towards powerful jumps and kicks than regular human walking, she was the spitting image of “ far-from-human. ”

“ UghhhRRRRHH! ”

Y/N gave a growl that grew into a pitchy screech as she kicked her feet for momentum. Her falling position quickly turned into a spin, and with enough force focused in her heel, she redirected the spin into a heavy drop-kick.

Leo sucked in air too sharply for it to sound remotely like a fearful gasp. His ōdachi sliced the air below him to create another portal. His gravity shifted as he fell across another rooftop and scrambled out of the way of the hellbent rabbit decimating the ground instead.

“ Come on! We can talk, I swear. Mutant life isn’t even that bad, I mean look at me? I was born this way, and I turned out fi—“

If only his legs were running as much as his mouth did. He watched in horror as Y/N recovered faster than usual and leapt toward him ferally. Leo was backing up as he spoke, recreating yet another trip backwards.

Her hands connected with his shoulders, gripping tightly, as they both fell into the ground.

“ Talk? You want to TALK? ”

“ That’s all I’ve been saying! ”

Y/N’s chest heaved as she glared down at him with wild eyes. One hand pressed hard into his shoulders, illiciting a sharp hiss in pain from Leo. Her other hand pulled backs her index and middle fingers—paws? paw-ingers?— pressed together as the rest of her fingers tucked tight.

Leo could already see his life flashing before his eyes. He should not have confronted her alone.

“ Fine! ”

She growled, catching him off guard.

“ Let’s talk! Let’s talk about how I’ve been TREATED since turning into THIS! Let’s talk about what people have DONE to me! LET’S TALK ABOUT HOW YOU RUINED MY LIFE WHEN YOU THREW THAT-THAT—THAT—!!”

“ Mutagen? ”

“ SHUT UP! ”

Her voice cracked with emotional pitch, her fingers folding into a fist as she instead punched him across the cheek.

Leo’s head snapped to the left before returning back to staring up at her. His chest was heaving just as wildly hers. The moon above them framed her in an almost ethereal way that lit the way for guilt to claw up his throat.

“ You made me into THIS! I had enough to deal with, and no offense to you, but I do NOT make a cute mutant! ”

Y/N’s lips tightened into a frown that obviously held only enough anger to keep from crying. For a moment, she faltered. That fighting spirit wavered as her gaze trailed from his face to the ground beside him, over to whatever was to the left of them.

Maybe it was the birds circling his head after that hit, but Leo was started to find himself entranced as he was able to get a closer look at this particular villain. The nightly glow casted on Y/N’s face illuminated the more minute features that only a trained—or adoring—eye could catch. All the wrinkles, moles, freckles, things like that. Her whiskers, her nose, the fur, her ears, and how her hair framed her bunny face..

Leo felt defeated. He was at a loss for words. She wasn’t even really deserving of the “villain” moniker—well, aside from the ‘ trying to kill him and his brothers ’ part.

No, but he had a few words in particular left.

Rather, he was at a loss for anything more intelligent to say.

Y/N pulled her arm back again, and Leo didn’t flinch. Her index and middle fingers connected tightly, her other digits folded. There was nothing for her in this society, not as a mutant!

She would kill them! All of them! It’s their fault! Who’s going to accept all this anger?

Who’s going to accept HER?

“ I look so, so.. STUPID! So, just, I’m so—! ”

“ Beautiful… ”

“ Wh—Guh—Sh—.. Hwuh-Huh…? ”

Y/N completely weakened, sitting all her weight into Leo as she just… gave up.

The fight in her fizzled instantly. Her voice lost its sharpness.

“ You.. … Shut up.. ”

Leo stared up at her, dumbfounded. He didn’t know that would work. His lips moved faster than his brain. That wasn’t a plan, it wasn’t a clever strategy to take her by surprise.

It was just his thoughts: plain, simple, raw.

“ You’re beautiful.”

Leo repeated, doubling down with a clearer tone. Louder, too.

The words stung. They felt bitter to Y/N. Emotion welled in her chest, the kind that felt suffocating. Tears welled up in her eyes.

“ Shut up, stop it! ”

Her voice wavered.

Leo moved as barely as he could, sitting up on his elbows to get a better look at the now-calm villain sat upon him.

“ It’s hard not to say when you’re perfectly framed by the moon. … You’re breathtaking.. ”

Y/N snapped her head behind her, looking up at the moon. Its reflection swirled in her eyes as her hand planted firm against Leo’s chest. There was no strength behind the gesture. It carried with it the tone of ‘ don’t even try to get away ’ but held none of the intimidating weight.

Tonight, the moon was overbearing in the sky. The clouds were scarce, and of course the stars wouldn’t be so visible in New York’s sky, so it was just the moon.

…

All alone..

Y/N slowly turned back to Leo. Her shoulders dropped as a gurgling noise bubbled up her throat. It quickly transformed into the rawest, most vulnerable of sobs.

Even the way her tears rolled down her fuzzy cheeks was drawing him in.

Was this the innocent charm of a bunny, pulling him in until she could take the final strike?

…

Leo thought for a second that he’d let someone this beautiful kill him if she promised to be the last sight he saw.

“ … I’m sorry for.. this.. ”

Leo gestured to her bunny-likeness

Y/N’s hands rose up to cup her face as she cried into her palms, shrinking into herself.

He shifted his weight into his right elbow, maintaining its propped-position, as his left hand reached to plant gently on Y/N’s back. He gave the lightest of nudges, an invitation for comfort if she were to accept it.

Y/N fell against his plastron like deadweight, letting him hold her.

He couldn’t remember the last time he felt this horrible for the people mutated or affected even by his mistakes..

It wasn’t too long until he finally saw his brothers in the distance.

“ … How do you know where to pin everything? ”

Leo was comfortably sat on his beau’s bed, leaning back with palms flat against their floral comforter. The sheets were neatly laid, tucked at the corners, and finished up with a little drapery along the edges to cover the underside.

A box was peeking through the bed skirt; its lid laid toppled over beside it, and the contents were dragged out in a chaotic searching-for-something fashion.

His legs were crossed lazily as his gaze settled upon the hunched form of his lovely artist.

“ Oh, well.. ”

Y/N perked up, pulled from her focus on the fabric edges. A few pins stuck sharp-side-out between her lips, occasionally plucked out and then pushed through the velvet material cascading around an obviously well-loved mannequin.

She paused and took the pins out of her mouth as she turned back to look at Leo.

“ I do have patterns that tell me where everything connects, but by this point I kind of just… know? ”

Y/N grins sheepishly, shrugging after their rather plain explanation.

Leo was obviously expecting a more interesting answer. He watched her turn back to her work, slipping in a couple more pins. It looked so easy, but he could just feel something in his chest telling him otherwise.

Silence blanketed the two both aside from the clinking of needles in their tin and the swishing of fabric—both on the mannequin and upon Y/N’s body as they seemed to bend and bow around the figure.

It was meant to be a sort of wrap skirt, a velvet one. The fabric was pinned to form cascading ruffles that spiraled down. Hopefully the end product would be a delightfully spinny skirt, albeit a smidgen too fancy for casual wear.

Luckily, New York was the hub for questionable fashion choices and ill-fitted occasions.

Unfortunately, the silence was starting to get to Leo. He loved sitting in Y/N’s company, but he would have much rather preferred her attention. Blasphemous, though. He’d feel too guilty to take her from something that obviously made her so happy… Ugh!

What could he do to get both her attention and let her do her artsy thing…

…

Ah! He brightened with an idea, rising up off the bed and striking a pose.

“ Would you ‘ kind of just know ’ how to make me a matching outfit? ”

“ What—“

Y/N straightened in her crouched position, back to Leo for only a few seconds. Just enough to make his hand twitch. Did he say the wrong thing? Was that a dumb idea?

As he was starting to falter in his sauve, “ genius ” idea, Y/N rose to her feet and rushed up to Leo so quick he squeaked in surprise. She took his hands and stared up at him with the biggest eyes shining in delight.

His heart nearly vanished from its chamber just to lay itself in her loving hands.

“ You mean it?! ”

“ I love you. ”

“ Wh—I love you too? That’s not a yes or no, Leo! ”

He shook his head to get out of that stunned stupor, only for Y/N to take his head in her hands and force dozens of kisses on his face.

“ Oh we have to start right away! I need more bolts of velvet! There’s a PERFECT shade of Cyan for you at Michelle’s! You go, go! No, wait, take me! We go! ”

Y/N ran across the entire apartment, collecting her things—phone, wallet, a notebook for sketches and laundry lists, and finally Leo’s swords ( which always sat neatly with her umbrella at the door in a cute upcycled vase. )

Leo loved his spunky little whirlwind. She was plenty of times hard to keep up with, but he would never ask for anything else.

She was lovely.

“ Wait, why do you say it like you had this planned? ”

“ I always plan you a matching fit! ”

Y/N took his hand and quickly clambered through the bedroom window, out onto the fire escape.

“ Wait, always? ”

“ Yes, now let’s go! They close in an hour and it’s across town. ”

Y/N took his arm and wrapped it around her waist then began flipping through the pages in the notebook, muttering about each one.

Leo settled for a laughing scoff—a quarter disbelief, a pinch of “ oh brother, I can’t believe her ”, and a cup of “ what the princess requests, the princess receives. ”

Was there anything he would do for you?

———-

There was nothing more impressive than how quickly Y/N could work, especially when there was a flame lit under her tuchus! It had only been a couple of days since he made the suggestion of marching outfits.

In that timeframe, he had been measured, used as a living-mannequin, and then stood in the mirror a dozen times for micro-fixes he never noticed but somehow Y/N insisted existed.

The end result was the current sight of him in velvet slacks with matching ruffles that began at his knees and down opposite of each other to form a type of /\ pattern down to the cuffs.

His gaze shifted slightly in the reflection to see Y/N beside him, soaking up at every detail in how they fit.

“ It’s gorgeous! So cute!! ”

She was giddy beside him, bouncing in a way that swayed her matching velvet skirt. The bolts of fabric she collected were inversions of each other—Leo’s being cyan swirling with brown florals, and Y/N’s being brown with swirling cyan florals! Think the beautiful florals from the early 2000s, like a floral Frutiger aesthetic <3

Leo gave a loving sigh as he watched her dance. This was the perfect moment to share a romantic sway to music playing in their heads, and maybe he would hum something aloud just to share a romantically cringe yet vulnerably intimate moment with her. It was the perfect idea to make her fall even deeper in love, for her love to rival his all the same.

Leo reached for Y/N’s hand, a light smile curling on his features.

His fingers gently stepped between hers as she turned to look up at him with those glittering eyes, glossy.

“ Y/N—“

“ Oh look, my darling brother has decided to leave the door wide open. ”

“ HI LEO! ”

“ Whoa, Y/N, you look amazing! ”

Donnie stood in the doorway with crossed arms and a smug grin. Mikey nearly bounced off the door frame to squeeze in and mess with Leo, stopping only to gasp dramatically at Y/N’s lovely skirt.

His gasp rose an octave as he looked at Leo’s pants, and just climbed higher and higher as he gestured between the two.

Raph stood sheepishly behind Donnie, waving with a toothy grin.

Leo wanted to fall to his knees. Instead he settled for a long drawn out sigh as Y/N left his side to join hands with Mikey.

“ Haven’t you guys ever heard of priva—“

“—Nope!”

His three brothers responded in coordinated sync. Donnie and Raph followed Mikey, watching him and Y/N giggle a storm while spinning each other around.

“ Did you make this, Y/N?! ”

Mikey slowed them both, his hand lowering to touch the ruffles.

“ Yeah! I usually just make regular clothes like tops and stuff, but I had an idea after Michelle’s expanded their fabric section! ”

Y/N could’ve sworn she heard a disgruntled noise from Leo but forgot about it as soon as it happened.

Donnie followed suit with robotic limbs stretching from his back and holding a part of the material at her feet. He stroked it with his finger, mumbling all types of observations.

“ And you made Leo’s pantaloons, I presume? ”

Donnie cocked his browline as he thumbed the skirt’s hem and looked over Leo’s pants.

Leo seemed to shrink a bit, slightly embarrassed at this point. He needed to take back control! His brothers were quite literally fawning over HIS girl! During his time with her!

His attention!

His moment!!

“ She most certainly did—”

Leo’s expression took on its characteristic shit-eating tone as he struck a dramatic wide-leg stance with his hands miming a tie.

“—Why, are you jealous, Donnasmello~<3”

Donnie rose up and jabbed a finger in Leo’s direction, already falling for the bait and ready to go down fighting.

“ Could you make us clothes too? Matching? ”

Raph’s voice perked up, stirring all the brothers’ attention on him. Per usual, he wore a sweet smile as his arm rose to rub the back of his neck in a common gesture of anxiety.

“ Ah, unless that would be too difficult.. Especially considering Raph’s.. Raph-y size. ”

There was a few beats of silence. All but Leo worried maybe it was a bad ask—they obviously all hoped for a Y/N-made gift too, especially given their anatomy not allowing the most room for swanky clothes that fit their styles, but maybe this particular project was too personal!

Had they overstepped? Did they insult? Please answer quickly?!

Leo, on the other hand, already knew what she would say in response.

The silence was just because of the volcano of emotion bubbling up.

Donnie and Mikey turned back to see Y/N’a face brightening up with a grin that grew bigger and bigger until it was quite literally ear-to-ear. Her feet started pitter-pattering against the floor with the vigor of the world’s fastest tap dancer until she erupted into leaps of joy.

“ YES! YES, YES, YES, a hundred—no, a thousand—NO, A MILLION TIMES YES! ”

Y/N vaulted herself into Raph’s arms, nearly taking the big ol’ lug down to the ground with the sheer weight of her and her joy.

Leo watched as she quickly went back into work mode, measuring tape stretched thin. She was starting to boss Donnie around to bring her pen and paper, which he wielded in two robotic limbs that wrote and drew for her. Mikey joined, matching her process by measuring Donnie while she measured Raphael.

Didn’t take very long before Splinter busted in to ask what all the ruckus was. And yes, of course he wanted to join. Though, he wanted a velvet robe, not pants or a skirt. That was important, make sure to note it!

It was heartwarming. Something not even Leo could get upset about. He loved Y/N, and his jealousy fizzled into something lighter, kinder, as he watched how much she cared about his family, too..

She was fun. Bright. Loving. Dumb. Smart. Amazing. Hilarious! Perfect.. He couldn’t have asked for better..

Someone who could love not only him but also his brothers? His dad? April, Cass, and Casey Jr. too?

She had stood by him even when he was a pain during the alien invasion. Y/N was always there, always present..

“ How do I look? ”

Raph stepped out in pants Y/N made. This pair was red and brown swirled, turned into a more relaxed straight leg fit.

“ ME TOO! ”

Mikey bounced around him in orange/brown pants with a barrel-leg fit.

“ Step aside, boys, the star of the show is here. ”

Donnie pushed past in bell-bottom pants in the obvious purple-brown fusion. He struck a dramatic pose, leaning like a damsel in distress with his robotic limbs catching him.

“ Psh, Star? You don’t even come close to the glory of—“

Leo stepped in front of them all, posing like a cool guy from a 90s movie like The Outsiders or something.

“—the original.”

They all looked expectantly at Y/N. She was clapping and blowing kisses.

“ They ca—“

“—NOT SO FAST! ”

Splinter shoved the boys with such force that Y/N thought she heard something like bowling pins getting thrown?

Wait, was that the Wii Sports Bowling Alley victory sound?

“ It is obvious that I look the best and there is no contest! You boys pale in my shadow! Oh, but—”

His tail wrapped around Y/N and pulled her to stand beside him.

She goofily struck a pose alongside him.

“ All except Y/N, of course. Only she and I look amazing. You boys can leave. ”

“ DAD! ”

As the brothers quickly recovered and ran to play fight with their dad, Leo sat up and remained. He watched everyone playing together—everyone, including Y/N..

It wasn’t just him and his family and her.

She was apart of the family now..

It was almost poetic how one could become Hamato, regardless of their strength..

“ Leo? ”

Y/N reached her hand to him, laughing as she shoved Mikey away playfully with a ‘ hey! quit that, haha! ’

Leo stared at her hand before dropping his head, shaking lightly, and chuckling. He rose up and stepped until his hand met hers, allowing himself to become weightless enough to get dragged along easily.

“ Yeah, yeah, I’m here. ”

He leaned down to press a kiss against her hair, lavishing in how the strands tickled his face.

“ …. ”

The days following the Kraang almost-invasion were rough.

Buildings had been collapsed, people killed, and communities ruined.

There were still plenty of efforts made to find missing persons, and some stretches of the city were yet to be cleaned of the pink alien goop that turned people mindless and violent. 

The four turtle mutants—Popularized as the “ Hamato Family ”, Raphael, Leonardo, Donatello, and Michelangelo—had been praised across all stretches of New York.

Though many were frightened by their appearance and claimed they were a foreboding existence, the majority were too thankful to be alive to really mind their otherworldly bodies and abilities.

It was the clean-up that debuted Y/N’s vigilante career.

Too many people were afraid and not enough ready to step up, that much was painfully apparent.

The “ kraang slime ” left behind was discovered to multiply if left alone for too long. This prompted a need to accelerate the cleaning project altogether, and though there were many hands to rebuild initially, the alien’s multiplying ability proved to be too frightening for regular citizens.

It wasn’t too long before many of the clean-up crews went into hiding, afraid the masses were multiplying as a way to foreshadow a Kraang resurgence.

They believed it was safer to go into hiding than to risk it in the streets.

Watching as the brothers took to the streets and worked twice, thrice, and quadruple times as hard to make up for the dwindling number of hands on deck inspired Y/N.

They took to the streets themselves, trying to clean and lessen any stress on the boys, but Raph was unable to find comfort at the thought of his beloved helping out.

The people of New York, sure. He cared about them, truly, but it’s hard to connect on a personal level to so many strangers. They just happened to… blend together, into a conglomerate.. 

But you?

No..

He remembered how it felt to be dominated by the Kraang, to lose every part of himself to that writhing mess of foreign cells… 

That was a nightmare..

He couldn’t let Y/N experience that. 

So he would leave you home instead, and make up all sorts of excuses. Just to keep you safe.

And thus began the efforts of “ The Red Angel of Preventing Harm! ” … Part 2!

…

“ Red Angel ”, for short, curtesy of Raph’s earlier days as the sewer-hero of this city.  

Y/N became well known amongst small communities that any citywide movements failed to notice—whether purposely or not.

As the “ Red Angel ”, Y/N would take to the streets with an … outlandish weapon of choice, to say the least. 

See, as was made apparent by up-and-coming reporter, April O’Neil, a local university had been outed for trying to pass off a herbicide as  “ harmless ” when really it was formidable enough to eradicate the impending alien threat. 

Now, for the composition of Y/N’s … weapon.

To paint a picture, have you ever seen Ponyo? The classic love story between a sea creature and a boy. Fujimoto, Ponyo’s father, is against it—so much so that he climbs to land to retrieve his daughter who has gone along with the human boy. While on land, as a sea creature himself, he survives through use of a backpack style humidifier that wets the floor in front of him at the push of a nozzle.

The water sprays out similar to a spritzer. A clever idea. 

One with which Y/N agreed profusely with.

Thus, their weapon of choice as nothing more than a regular-degular mortal, was a backpacked-tank of that very same “ herbicide ”, albeit watered-down to elongate its usability.

     “ Hello! Thank you for calling me. ”

Y/N bowed politely to the community members who had come out to greet them. 

     “ No, thank you, Red Angel… No one comes to this neighborhood, and we’re much too old to take care of the.. ”

An elderly woman speaking on behalf of her neighbors had stepped forward to express gratitude. Her voice trailed off as she glanced nervously at the railing. 

Everyone stood atop a small bridge, underneath was a slight creek that fed through tunnels that likely eventually trailed into the sewer systems. 

Y/N mentally noted relief that the boys now lived in an abandoned transit line instead of the sewers. 

     “ I understand. If you’ll excuse me. ”

They gave another polite bow then walked towards the railing. Their hand laid against it, inspecting the rust vining along. Just a leap of faith. Everything will work out.

It always does.

Pressing their weight down into the palm holding on, they leapt over and into the shallow water below with a shallow splash. Y/N’s vigilante costume included a visor, which both shielded their eyes yet also provided visibility in the darker environments. 

From head to toe, the ensemble had combat boots of a very “ Raph-approved ” caliber and charcoal-denim jeans tucked in tight around the ankles. No chance for gunk to slip in!

Creativity had quickly ran out as the top consisted of nothing less of a regular t shirt—thrifted without a second thought and plain as can be. The costume was tied together with a leather jacket, arguably the best or maybe second best part of the fit...

Not fun in the summer, but certainly safe provided a Kraang-zombie intended to sink its teeth into their arm. 

Below the visor was a gas mask; and though it aided in further identity-obscuring, it also helped cover the stench. 

Surely you didn’t think Kraang smelled… pleasant? Even remotely delightful?

They carried a putrid stench, something between rotten food, death, and used-up litter. Whether this was a natural state or just the byproduct of semi-sentient goop slogging about with the bare minimum instructions, the left-behind smelled overwhelmingly bad for a mortal’s senses. 

As Y/N trekked down the tunnel, deeper into the darkness, they grew even more aware of even the most minuscule of sounds.

     “ This’ll just be a simple clean-up… Spritz of sum‘this, n’I can go on to the next client.. Easy-peasy. ”

Each step was taken carefully, eyes searching the darkness for any sense-making. Y/N’s hands gripped the spritzing mechanism, be it for grounding or idly, who knows. 

The subtle, rhythmic water drip from the ceiling was the only part of this search that gave some type of solace—a constant, something reliable. It was as much a mundane sewer as a sewer could be, with some sort of slimy-glisteny gunk painting the walls edges where the still water sat. Y/N expressed unspoken gratitude over the mask filtering out such unpleasant scents.

Their trek down the path added to the atmospheric drip of whatever sat at the top of these pipes—condensation, maybe? Oh, or maybe it’s from the recent rain. These pipes do fill up. Probably just rain from last night.

The residual rain’s subtle drip-drop was accompanied by the acoustic splashes of heavy boot-footfalls.

The entrance’s light grew dimmer and dimmer the further Y/N walked. Impatience filled the space light left.

     “ Where is this thing? Did these people mistake something else for the Kraang residue? ”

Their face twisted in confusion, eying the shmuck where the wall met the water. Algae, maybe? Or mold?

Turning back, they noticed the light filtering in from the entrance was so far it was but a speck that could barely be made out. 

There was a sort of ferally-human feeling settling in their stomach. Something was teetering on the edge. A fullness filled their chest. It was as if their innate human instincts were clocking into something they had yet to see…

     “ … Something feels.. off.. But what? ”

Looking around provided nothing out of the ordinary. It was just a simple drainage tunnel, dripping with what remained of a previous storm..

Drip.. drip..

Drip.. drip..

There was a sound from the tunnel’s entrance—a voice calling out. Y/N subconsciously acknowledged it as one of the people getting antsy and checking up on them. Not important. Where was the target? 

What did these people see?

Drip.. drip..

There’s nothing here?

Drip.. drip..

Is this mission a bust already? A waste of time?

“ What am I missing? ”

Drip.. drip..

Drip..

Y/N stiffened, gaze slowly shifting upwards as the hair on the back of their neck rose. Goosebumps trailed across their body quickly. 

     “ … It hasn’t.. rained.. in a while..”

Their heart dropped as they stared at what previously looked like nothing more than some type of algae or other muck that tends to line these tunnels. Water dripping down from above this consistently.. They reached for the miniature flashlight keychain clasped at their belt loop and raised it.

     See, in darkness like this, the visor did provide visibility, albeit low. Nervously, Y/N tapped the on button, their flashlight illuminated the ceiling above them, revealing the entire stretch to be a sickly, unnatural pink-ish shade.

That visibility was an unremarkable colorless spectrum of grays. 

Y/N couldn’t have known what coated the ceiling without proper lighting.

——-

     “ No, I’m just saying! It’s weird for a vigilante to be hitting the streets with Raph’s name.. ”

Raph was pacing in the living room, pausing occasionally to look over his audience upon the couch—the ever-so-present Mikey, the clearly-not-listening Leo, and the here-in-spirit Donnie. 

     “ Maybe they’re just a huge fan~.. ”

Mikey reasoned in a sing-songy tone. He was always a fan of helpers, so even if there was a vigilante out there using one of their names, as long as it was in good spirit, who cares? 

     “ Either that, or a grade A stalker. ”

Leo piped up, gaze lifting inquisitively from the magazine he was passing time with. Something of a teen’s magazine talking about latest trends. 

     “ What if it’s someone who’s trying to replace you? ”

Leo continued, turning to Donnie expecting some secret third option. Strangely though, his theorizing fanatic brother was abstaining from participating in conspiracy. There’s no way he was that absorbed in whatever was displayed on his devices?

When the know-it-all Donnie kept quiet for too suspiciously long, Leo settled for a quick backhand to the bicep.

Donnie responded with an immediate yelp and a robotic ligament outstretched from his back. It pointed in Leo’s direction with a scrutinizing air before suddenly scruffing him and dangling him above the couch. Out of hitting reach, of course.

“ Wuh—HEY—“

     “—Whatever the reason, they’re certainly no bother to us. Nope, nada, completely scientifically insignificant. Plus, I’ve already been following their location. I don’t think they are of any… Harm, per se. ”

Donnie squinted, expression reading sloppily of “ I know something but am not allowed to let-on about it ” and “ I’ve said too much ” thrown together.

After all, there was no way you could’ve created that spritzing contraption or even harnessed that herbicide in such an inspiring way alone.

It only made sense you had an accomplice who was paid handsomely in the form of metal scraps and other materials the scientist used diligently. 

Said complice had lasted thus far without blowing your cover, but it was nothing short of a miracle. This brother wasn’t exactly the best choice for secret-keeping.

Raph squinted at his brother, sensing something awry but sacrificed that rabbit hole in exchange for the task at hand.

     “ … And? So where are they now? What’re they doing? Why is this vigilante doing good under Raph’s name? Don’t trust it, not one bit. ”

Leo was struggling for his freedom from the scruffing robotic hand. He paused with comical stillness and crossed his legs as if sitting in a recliner with a humble cup of tea. In a dismissive manner, he waved his hand while grinning lackadaisically.

     “ You worry too much, dear brother. This is why you’re already starting on Raph Chasm numero dos! ”

Raph’s hand immediately shot up to his forehead, expression melting from sudden fright to a scowl as he recalled the last time he was warned of the infamous “ Raph Chasm. ”

     “ Still not funny, Leo. ”

     “ What? I’m just saying. If you’re that worried over this hero-potentially-villain, why don’t you confront them? ”

Mikey nearly skyrocketed out of his seat, feet excitedly pitter-pattering against the floor.

     “ Ooh! What a great idea. Raph, you should go meet them! It could become a team-up—maybe they can become our friend <3 ”

He was already in la-la-land, imagining what this masked hero could provide to the team… 

     “ … Yeah.. maybe you guys are right. Raph needs to face this head-on! Donnie, where are they? ”

Donnie, already imagining the earful he’d receive from you, reluctantly projected the cameras that had tracked your movements. 

     “ Looks like ‘ Red Angel ’ is in the western district in the Edgewood neighborhood. There must have been a call-in about Kraang material in the area, since—as I’m sure you’ve already been made privy to— this particular vigilante works via client-calls. ”

Raph stared at the screen, watching you bow to the community members. 

     “ Alright.. Raph’s got this. It’ll be a simple talk—just asking them why they know me and what they get out of Raph’s name! ” 

He was trying to pump himself up, wiggling off the nerves while Mikey cheered him on.

     “ Oh yeah! You show that fear who’s boss, Raph! ”

Sheepishly he thanked Mikey then set out to find them. 

As he left, there was a small scuffle behind.

     “ Oh. ”

     “ AGH—”

Something about Donnie dropping Leo, Leo getting upset, blah-blah-blah.

——-

Raph landed near the bridge, over the entrance they disappeared into shortly before he left. Before he could enter, a small human grabbed his hand with urgency.

     “ Wait, Mister Turtle-Hero! ” 

He glanced down at the kid and hummed in confused acknowledgment.

     “ You shouldn’t go in there! ”

     “ Hm? And whyzzat? ”

     “ Because Red Angel went in, and they still haven’t come out in forever! ”

Raph glanced down, growing a bit worried for an assumed-stranger. 

     “ Ah, it’s alright, kid. Mister Turtle-Hero will check it out. ”

     “ Mm’kay.. ”

The kid grumbled, clearly distressed but not quite sure how to voice it. 

Raph took it as his push and descended upon the tunnel. For someone of his stature, it was a tight fit, and that made him feel sickeningly claustrophobic. 

There was a dripping sound, but something was off about it.. It sounded distant.. Slightly heavier than water..

Vigilante or not, ‘ Red Angel ’ was another denizen of New York he had sworn to protect. 

Trailing down the tunnel, he already felt on edge. Something was off, unsettling. He was aware that this vigilante was hunting residuals of the Kraang’s zombie-virus, so surely this tunnel must’ve been infested with relation. 

     “ Hello…? ”

Drip.. drip..

And that “ something ” was stirring up unsavory memories. Raph watched as a little light illuminated far ahead. That must’ve been Red Angel, he noted, pace quickening to catch up with them. 

He stopped dead in his tracks as the light sputtered out and clattered against the ground. The thud echoed the tunnel alongside a deeply frightened screech that spurred the red yokai into immediate action. 

     “ RED ANGEL! ” 

Raph shouted.

This tunnel was slowly getting consumed by a piece of Kraang material that had quite obviously been eating well. It must have loved the slimy darkness and thrived like the scum it was. 

The dripping had been the pink alien’s goop expanding and breaking off in a cyclical fashion, likely feeding the problem of the city clean-up taking so long. 

This felt like a nursery of sorts. Were there more, just like this?

As Raph came closer, the sight felt too familiar. You were struggling against the weblike alien, the pink goop fighting back with a shot from the ceiling that held you flat against the ground. Pathetically writhing to break free as it covered your face.

He reeled his arm back, steeling himself to strike, but something about how the webbing began constellating across your chest—obviously searching for a way in— made his breathing cease. 

Raph could remember it all. The alien forcing his muscles under its control, invading his body in ways he wished he could forget. 

He wasn’t over it yet. 

     “ GYACK—h—help! ”

The sentient goop had lifted their body and slammed it against the ground, drawing out a small, pathetic ‘ help ’. Their voice was so startlingly small that it shocked Raph into striking. His fist tore through the thin rope, dislodging its grip on Y/N.

He stood between Red Angel and the substance, gaze glancing back confusedly at the glowing liquid leaking behind them.

     “ Uh, I think something you have is… spilling? ”

Y/N turned quickly, and sure enough, the sudden tussle and slam had caused them to hit the ground with force strong enough to crack the tank. The “ herbicide ” petered out of the thin crack, running into a small-but-growing puddle too close for comfort. 

At the thought of making contact with such a harmful acid, Y/N sprung forward, colliding with Raph’s shell. 

Ouch. 

     “ Oof—”

They mustered, stumbling to the side.

Getting slammed into the ground after being caught so off guard sure did the trick at completely discombobulating someone. 

His arm shot out to catch them. The warmth of his hand on their hip was a familiar relief amidst their spinning head.

     “ We have to get out of here! ” 

His voice was laced with rising alarm. Too many frightening memories were welling up. This was getting to be too much for him. No amount of interrogating was worth this mess. 

Y/N shook their head.

     “ No! I have to.. Ugh, my head.. I have to.. What’s the word.. What am I trying to say.. ”

They gripped the spritzer, their weight leaning more and more into Raph.

      “ I.. have to finish what I started, Raph. ”

He flinched at hearing his name from the vigilante’s mouth, the taunts of Leo coming back to echo ‘ grade-A stalker ’. This vigilante knew him too familiarly.

That, coupled with this uncomfortable moment was enough to have him getting more suspicious. 

Just who is this masked person? Why do they say his name so personally? 

Raph was slowly starting to develop a theory of who was beneath the mask that he didn’t want to believe. His heavy hand rests on their shoulder, trembling in a noticeable way.

     “ Please.. ”

Y/N glanced up at him and felt their chest turn. He looked uncharacteristically small, and that just made them angry. Confused why he was here, angry that this whole kraang debacle was dragging on, and a teensy bit relieved he had come at just this moment. 

This whole debacle was so… exhausting. If only the kraang never came. If only Raphael hadn’t sacrificed himself so.

If only he hadn’t given Y/N the fright of a lifetime when they saw his hulking kraang-infested form, terrified that he was in a state he could never come back from..

That alone was enough.

Steeling themselves, Y/N—‘ Red Angel ’— lunged forth as the kraang material shot out. They swung the nozzle towards it and gripped tightly upon the rubber ball to release the acidic mixture. As it met with the alien goop, the dissolving reaction surged so quickly it looked like someone took an eraser and quite literally erased it out of existence. The chemicals were eating away at the Kraang creature as Y/N ran on pure adrenaline and instinct.

More gunk shot from the ceiling, striking them across the jaw and tearing the mask off. The straps must’ve been worn from the tussle. The stench flooding into Y/N’s lungs was enough to drive them even further into an animalistic battle against the alien.

Raph’s hand reached out feebly, terrified at the situation, but immobilized. He felt useless. He .. Just…

Defeated. No words. Empty.

Scared.

Y/N struck down the final piece of kraang, pinning it firmly to the ground beneath the toe of their boot. Their flashlight laid on the ground, slightly submerged in the sewer water. The light framed the pink alien dimly.

“ You don’t belong here. ”

Harshly, their fist clamped the rubbed ball and splooshed out a hefty amount of the herbicide. It was overkill, but therapeutic.

Their chest heaved up and down as they tried to catch their breath. Everything was catching back up to them as the adrenaline simmered away.

“ Ooough… ”

Y/N grumbled, stumbling back. Their feet felt so heavy to lift. Their body felt too heavy to keep up. Everything felt … heavy… so.. They dropped.

Expecting to collide with the gross ground, Y/N was already melting into the unexpected warm embrace that held them instead. What a nice reward—their beloved, cradling them so sweetly after a fight like that?

His chest was raising with something Y/N struggled to get a read on. Was he nervous? Scared?

Maybe this kraang stuff had brought up memories he wished didn’t exist.. Y/N felt bad, their heart twisting over him having to relive any of that..

“ Raph is… Has… A lot of questions. ”

“ H-Haaah… Fair.. ”

Y/N’s hand lifted to cradle his face, their lips following to press against his… So much relief.. What would life be like without h—

“ Ack—! ”

Y/N yelped as Raph had pushed them away almost at light speed.

“ Raph, what the heck? ”

“ A LOT OF QUESTIONS! ”

They looked up to see him covering his mouth, foot bouncing nervously. He dropped his hands and took a step back to put space between them.

“ Yeah? Ask, then? I don’t understand why I had to get thrown though. ”

“ BECAUSE RAPH HAS A PARTNER! ”

“ I’m aware?! ”

Raph looked like all the blood ran out of his body.

“ Oh my god, Leo was right, you are a stalker. ”

“ WHAT?! ”

Y/N struggled to rise to their feet but got up anyways. They fell forwards a moment before catching themselves with a heavy stomp.

“ YOU CAN’T CALL YOUR PARTNER A STALKER?! ”

“ I DON’T KNOW YOU! ”

“ WH—“

Y/N stilled, then sighed. Their hands rose up to pull down the visor, revealing their face.

Raph had already assumed a stance similar to a running start before he immediately slacked and took Y/N into his arms in breakneck speed.

“ GAH—”

“ You shouldn’t be anywhere near fights like this! ”

He butterflied kisses all over their face while Y/N tiredly fought back, their small hands lightly pushing his cheeks as they tried to escape the tickling affection. They writhed in his hands without much effort added.

“ Irk—Raph! Come on! It’s not much different from you risking your life out here—! ”

“—No, but—”

“—Let me finish! You risk your life out here all the time, sometimes without your brothers.. ”

Y/N’s gaze lazily followed the sewer walls as Raph carried them back to the entrance. He hushed up, albeit reluctantly. It felt as though he was starting to drag his feet.

“ Not even the clean-up crews across New York still stand, they’re all too chicken to clean our own streets up..”

They pulled their hands to their chest, trying to drown out their heart’s thundering beat. This conversation was a long time coming, yet still frightening to have. What if he didn’t listen?

Y/N turned to Raph, nuzzling their fatigued body closer into his chest. Their dearly beloved, fighting his nightmares—alone? All because this city of cowards would rather their heroes risk their lives than fight in the streets they all live in?

That just wasn’t fair.. Why did Raph have to risk himself for them?

“ Don’t I get a say? ”

“ You do, I just—!”

“ Then let me fight too. ”

Raph smacked his teeth, his grip on Y/N’s body lightly tightening. He seemed to be holding his breath for a few beats before finally sighing.

“ But I don’t want you to.. Doesn’t Raph get a say, too? ”

“ Yeah, but Raph’s say feels more like an end-all-be-all. I couldn’t be there for you when the Kraang attacked, can’t I be here now? You’re worried about me being out here, but I’m just as worried.. ”

Both stayed silent as he emerged from the end of the pipe. Y/N could tell that their words were starting up something in Raph, some sort of conflict between the safe and the fair. They wondered what he would settle on—keeping them in a makeshift birdcage to keep Y/N perpetually safe or letting them free to join in the fray.

The community folks were equally as conflicted, though they were between worry for their requested hero being carried out by the city’s hero and rejoicing over their having come out alive & assumedly victorious.

Y/N felt embarrassed the entire time of Raph refusing to let them down. He could be stubborn as a mule, even if it was out of the best intentions. As he explained the situation to the people around them, Y/N quietly kept their head buried in his chest as a way of maintaining their identity.

Maybe it was stubbornness that kept them out, risking their life as a vigilante. Maybe it was love, wanting to take up the mantle before it crushed Raph beneath its weight..

Maybe there was no reason..

Raph ducked his head in a polite bow to bid farewell then turned on his heel. With red magic whirling around his arm, it grew into a larger version of his arm that reached to the building rooftops and pulled the two along.

Y/N found the silence to grow… annoying. Bothersome…

Worrisome.

“ … Are you mad that I want to fight? ”

His magic fizzled for a moment, caught off guard.

“ What—no, no, just.. ”

He sighed as he landed upon a rooftop. Raph pulled Y/N into a tight hug. His voice was muffled as he pressed his face into their shoulder.

“ …’m just… scared.. ”

dating donnie means dating someone whose brain never really slows down: he’ll be talking about one invention while already mentally building the next one.

physical affection isn’t always his first instinct, but once he realizes you enjoy it, he starts unconsciously leaning against you whenever he’s focused on something.

he absolutely infodumps; you’ll ask one innocent question and twenty minutes later he’s explaining quantum mechanics with a whiteboard full of equations.

he loves when you genuinely listen instead of pretending to understand (if you stop him and ask questions, he’ll get even more excited)

he’ll call you into the lab every five minutes.

“babe, look at this.”

“…what am i looking at?”

“exactly.”

his sleep schedule is terrible; there are nights where you practically have to drag him away from his workbench because he’s been awake for almost twenty-four hours.

if you fall asleep waiting for him, he’ll quietly carry you to bed before returning to the lab… only to come back an hour later because he missed you.

donnie acts confident—sometimes almost arrogant—but he secretly worries about being too much, too loud, too weird or too obsessed with science.

he’ll occasionally ask, in a completely casual tone “you’d tell me if i was annoying, right?”

he pretends not to care about compliments, but they stick with him for days.

he gets flustered if you compliment his intelligence instead of his appearance.

he’ll absolutely make gadgets just to make your life easier (a self-heating mug, a phone charger that never tangles or tiny drones that help you find your keys, for example)

gifts are usually practical… but somehow incredibly thoughtful.

if you’re sick, he’ll become insufferably overprotective.

he’ll scan your temperature every fifteen minutes.

“your heart rate increased by three.”

“i stood up.”

“…concerning.”

arguing with donnie is… an experience.

he’ll try to debate using charts and statistics.

you eventually have to remind him that relationships aren’t scientific experiments.

once he realizes he hurt your feelings, though, the smugness disappears immediately.

apologies don’t come easily, but when they do, they’re genuine.

he works hard to fix problems instead of pretending they never happened.

he loves when you sit in the lab while he’s working.

you don’t even have to talk.

your presence alone helps him focus.

if someone insults your intelligence, he’s already halfway through dismantling their argument before you can respond: “factually speaking, everything you just said was incorrect.”

he isn’t jealous very often, but if someone clearly flirts with you… “…interesting.” that’s all he says, and somehow the person ends up walking away after a five-minute conversation feeling intellectually defeated.

he absolutely shows off in front of you, although not on purpose. he just suddenly starts doing unnecessarily complicated calculations in his head because he knows you’re watching.

you never win against his sarcasm, you don’t even try.

shelldon adores you almost immediately.

the first time you visit the lair, shelldon quietly flies over, looks at you for a few seconds, and decides you’re safe.

after that, he’s constantly following you around.

somehow you’re the only person besides donnie who can convince him to stop doing something dangerous.

donnie pretends he isn’t relieved.

you start reminding shelldon to recharge, checking if he’s damaged after missions, and cleaning little scratches off his shell.

one day donnie walks into the lab and finds you polishing shelldon’s shell while quietly talking to him.

shelldon is happily chirping the entire time.

donnie just… freezes.

“…you’re babying my robot.”

“he likes it.”

shelldon immediately scoots closer to you and nudges your hand for more attention.

from then on, it becomes normal.

shelldon climbs into your lap while donnie works.

if you leave the lair, shelldon follows you to the exit before stopping, almost like he’s waiting for you to come back.

you end up carrying tiny repair supplies specifically for him.

donnie catches you worrying over a small dent on shelldon’s shell more than once.

“…it’s superficial.”

“he still got hurt.”

“…that’s… actually sweet.”

watching you care for shelldon so naturally does something to donnie.

it isn’t just that you’re taking care of his creation; you’re treating shelldon like family and to donnie, shelldon is family.

As you usually do on Fridays, you drop by the turtle lair. And you never arrive empty-handed, so the brothers and Splinter greet you as you give out treats for everyone. But one turtle is missing.

You head to the lab where, as expected, you find Donnie working away on his newest project. Since he has his goggles on, you greet him as you approach the table so as not to startle him when he has a rather strange looking tool in his hand. You grab one of the chairs before you walk up to him, intending to just join him and watch him while he works. But to your surprise, once you’re standing next to him, he tilts his head without looking up from his work, offering you his cheek.

The sight makes you giggle, but more than anything, it warms your heart, knowing that he's grown so accustomed to your kisses that he's now expecting them.

So you lean down and press a lingering kiss to his cheek. You decide not to comment on the slight blush emerging on his face.

When you finally sit down, you prop up your elbow to hold your head. “What are you working on?”

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