Donnie has walked through his brother's time-gateway. Now, he is exactly twenty-two years before when he just came from. The only difference is, this place is safer than it was, or would have been. Hamato Donatello shall seek his long late family, and it will be nothing what you'll expect. (Or maybe it will be exactly what you expect, I'm not exactly psychic!)
2022 â Three weeks post-invasion|
Donatello walked through the portal, weary from what had just happened, his brotherâsâ ermâ his katanas in hand as he shielded his face from the sudden brightness. He took a deep breath of fresh air that he forgot he was missing out on; he opened his eyes slowly, blinking as his eye adjusted to the sunâ which he forgot the Earth had. He was on a roof-top, a familiar one, though he couldnât quite place which one it was. After his eye fully adjusted, the purple-masked turtle saw that there were still Kraang parts scattered around the city that he had once been able to protect. What? Whatâs going on? I would have expected Casey Junior to succeed on his missionâŚ
As Donnie looked closer with his mono-ggle, he realized that most of the Kraang matter had been deactivated, terminated, or contained at this point. âSo,â Donnie said to himself, âwhile New York isnât in its best stateâ haha, state; âNardo would be proud of me for that one. Anyways, while NYC isnât exactly looking its beeeessst⌠itâs still standing, and looking better than the one I came from.â He looked around gladly, andââOh, not again.â Donnie put the katanas back in their sheath so that he could untie his mask and wipe his eyes. âDum-dum universe decide that the dum-dum explosion would only mess up my eyesight. Tch,â he said bitterly as he rung out his mask. He held his left wrist up to his mouth after he had re-tied the mask and ordered, âD-Tech, reset clock to the correct year, month, day, hour, minute, and second.â
There was a robotic ding and Donatelloâs own pre-recorded voice responding,
âReset time to: Year - 2022 | Month - May | Day - 10th | Hour - 16:39:25 seconds and counting |â
âConfirm change.â Another robotic ding confirming that the time had been saved. Donatello pressed a button to close the screen before looking out at the world around him; everything he had hoped for, dreamed for! but nothing he expected. âHoney-nut oatmeal and raisins, twenty-twenty-twoâŚâŚShell, Iâm old.â He looked back to the roof-top he had happened upon and wondered why it felt so familiar. âWell, Iâm sure Iâll figure it out sooner or later,â Donnie said as he jumped down.
He looked around a bit more and then asked himself, what he thought was a very important question. âSoooooo, where to now? Iâm here, Iâm alive, and thereâs no Kraang butt to kick. I have no brothers, sisters, sister-in-laws, nieces, neâŚphews.â He thought for a second then, remembering how this world hadnât met itâs endâ at least, not yetâ the same way as Donatelloâs own world. âHmmmm, I wonderâŚâ He moved a bit more into the shadows of the ally-way he was in, remembering how much humans hated things they didnât understand in this day and age.
He lifted his gauntlet up to where he could easily view it and type on it. The soft-shell pulled up his tracking file to see what he could see. âWell Iâll be a Kraangâs uncle. Heâs actually here! Yes! Genius Builtâ˘ď¸ tech never fails.â Right on the map, in the location of Donatelloâs old home, before the Kraang attacked, was a blinking maroon dot shaped as Casey Juniorâs face. âHow did he find the old Lair!?â Donnie exclaimed to himself.
âHmmm⌠Itâs twenty-twenty-two, and-- what am I saying? Caseyâs a smart kid, courtesy of me, of course. Also courtesy of me, he has Genius Builtâ˘ď¸ technology, complete with a digital map, tracker, navigator, and other AI features. Not to mention anything else he might have taken here with him to survive and aid him that I am unaware of or forgetting. Nevertheless, that does not explain how he found the LairâŚâ He tapped his chin and thought as he looked at the map and the blinking dot-face. Then it struck him, and it was so obvious it was painful, in light of recent events. âNardo drew the Key on the back of an old picture of us and gave it to him. Still, if I werenât such a literal person, Iâd say that kidâs a genius. Then he focused the map in on his own purple point, and entered Caseyâs location into the GPS. âNow, whereâs a manhole coverâŚâ
âIf you walk farther down the ally you should see one, but I donât know why you would wanna go down there unless youâre used to it. Or unless you like that kind of stuff, for some reason.â
The lone turtle froze. He recognized that voice, but it had been so long since he had heard it, he almost couldnât, almost wouldnât believe it.
âUmmm, Iâd not think youâd be that scared of me;â the disembodied voice replied, seeming to take his stiffness incorrectly, âIâm just a girl coming back to her momma for dinner and youâre⌠bigger than I am. Man, how tall is that? Seven feet?â
Yup! He definitely knew this girl, and he didnât know how he was going to respond. While he was trying to swallow the tears that were definitely yet to come, (who he assumed was) April started putting the pieces together. âHold on, I recognize that coatâŚItâs my lucky jacket! They only sold them for a limited amount of time, in a few specific sizes, and only one style and design and color. Not inâŚwhatever size youâre wearing, and the length that itâs in. Hey, that only has stitches where mine does. But Iâm wearing mine, so you couldnât have stolen it from meâŚ.Is that a purple maskâŚ?â, she asked as Donatello straightened up to his full height and tried to compose himself.
âYes, it is,â he said in a choked, weary voice. He turned around, only to find what he expected. As if he wasnât having trouble keeping it together already, the time space continuum decided to throw this at him. He teared up at the sight of April, though she was younger and less scathed than Donnie remembered. Still, it was her. The tears were now flowing like a healthy stream as the two looked at each other. Now that was just perfect, wasnât it?
âDonâŚnie?â, she asked as she looked him up and down again.
"Yes,â he answered, looking away from her now.
April advanced towards him, examining him more closely. âWell, if youâre telling the truth, youâre definitely not my Donnie. Youâre going to ask how I know that, so itâs because Raphael currently will not let him get out of bed except to use the restroom. As in, Raph basically lets Donnie leave the med-bay for as long as a worm surfaces on dry day, and then only so much more than that. Dee hates it, even though he knows Raph is just a tad bit worried and restless.â
âRAPHâS ALIVE!?!?!?!?â, Donatello exclaimed, his breaths coming short and quick. Donât hyperventilate donât hyperventilate donât hyperventilate DONâT HYPERVENTILATEâ He looked back down towards April and searched her face for some sort of joke. Actually, now that he thought about it, was thisâ April standing in front of him, and ranting to him about this timelineâs version of himselfâs safety, a joke? Was it a dream?
âYes, thank goodness,â she sighed with relief.
âYouâŚare alive? Youâre real, and this isnât the universe tricking me into a dream?â He spoke as he stooped down so that they were at eye-level.
April looked at him, concerned, knowing immediately that this was her best friend, her brother, even if he did hail from somewhere else. âYes, Iâm here. Iâm alive and well, and thereâs no more dangerâ wait, let me rephrase that. Thereâs no more danger than anyone wants. You can relax.â She put her hand on his shoulder, what April usually did to say without words, âTell me what I can do for you.â Donatello yanked her into an almost crushing hugš, and hid his face in her shoulder. âOh!â, she exclaimed, a bit shocked by his sudden movement, but she hugged back, just like he remembered she used to. She rubbed his shoulder comfortingly and said, âI just got back from the Lair to have dinner with my mom at home. Sheâs been taking care of injured humans and yokai alike these past few days. Sheâs also met my brothers and Splints now. Would you like to stay here for a bit, or continue on toâ wherever youâre going?â
âThank you for the offer; I would love to stay,â Donnie said, breaking away from the hug. His watery eyes looked at Aprilâs face. She smiled reassuringly at him, and he couldnât hold back a small sad, happy laugh. âI canât believe it! Youâre actually here!â, Donnie said disbelievingly.
âCome on,â she said grabbing his hand and tugging on it.
âYou canât drag me like before, remember?â, Donnie stated amusedly.
âJust get up so I donât have to wait for dinner any longer, mâkay? Iâm starving!â She walked up a few steps and opened the door. âMoooooooom, Iâm here! And I have a surprise guest!â
âA surprise guest, hm? Well, how much does this âsurprise guestâ eat?â, Carol Oâ Neil asked, as Donatello followed April into the house, having to duck because of his height. âThereâs only so much edible food that survived the invasion, and weâre nearly out.â He looked at the doctor, a spoon in the right-hand and the other on her hip, no different than what Donatello remembered as well.
âIâll eat only as much as Iâm allowed to,â he responded, smiling a bit timidly at this not so new face.
Dr. Oâ Neil looked him up and down with a doubtful eye. âApril, I will never understand how you befriend these strange people on the streets and in suspicious ally-ways, but you go to school and youâre the most socially awkward young lady in all of New York!â
Donnie outright laughed at this. He had forgotten about that! Still, somehow, at the same time he always sort of remembered. âOh! Thatâs hilarious! I had almost forgotten about that,â he said once he recovered. âI am terribly sorry for the improper introduction. I am Donatello from a separate bifurcated time branch. I already know who you are, though. In any case, do you have a preference as to what I call you?â, he asked, extending his hand and smiling all the while.
âYou can call me whatever youâd like, hon,â she responded accepting his hand. Her grip never changed, Donnie thought fondly. âApril, could you set the table? Iâm going to finish up dinner,â Carol ordered requested as she walked back towards the stove and oven. âSo how long will you be staying here?â, she asked as she stirred the soup.
âProbably just for dinner. Iâm trying to find my nephew, and Iâd like to find him soon,â the purple-masked turtle responded.
âYour nephew, mm? Now why would he be in this time branch? Unless you know for sure that he is?â, Dr. Oâ Neil wondered.
âHm, I suppose Iâll have to explain everything, wonât I? Well, have either of you met Casey Junior?â, he inquired.
âYes,â the two women responded, the younger curious in tone.
âWHAT!?!?!?!?!?â, April exclaimed. âHow is a human boy your nephew?â
âHave you ever heard of adoption?â, Donnie asked sarcastically.
âAâ buâ wha⌠Whoâs the father then?â
âLeo,â Donatello answered, no doubt crossing his mind, much less wandering into his voice.
âBut he calls Leo âSenseiâ!!!!!â, April protested, confusion of the utmost written all over her face.
âWell, there werenât any papers to sign in the apocalypse, now were there?â
âWhat would that have to do with calling him âDadâ or âFatherâ or whatever anyways?â
âThey werenât ready yet. Plus, Casey Junior wouldnât call Leo âDadâ or anything like that unless his sister said she viewed Leo as anything more than a Master, a leader, a President-of-the-Apocalypse if you will.â
ââŚCasey didnât say he had a sister.â
âHm, thatâs strange, the two were nearly inseparable. Fun fact: not only were they siblings, they were twins. Yes, twins; scientifically even! Thatâs something I wish I could say if, Iâm being completely honest.â
April just stood there, processing every single bit of information before Dr. Oâ Neil walked over and spooned dinner into the respective dishes. âWell, thatâs a lot to process, iânâ it?â
âYep,â April said, going over to the kitchen sink to wash her hands. âOh, maybe itâs a bit different from when you come from, uhm, other Dee, but no weapons at the table here,â the young woman said as she dried her hands off.
âOh, of course,â Donnie said, quickly taking off the coat he was wearing, removing the nunchucks from his belt, the bĹ and swordsâ sheaths from his back, and the quote-on-quote âsheathâ for Aprilâs base-ball batâ the April from his home time-branch. The Oâ Neils watched him, surprised by the amount of weaponsâ and scarsâ on him. âShould I remove my prosthetic as well? I donât want to go through the hassle of disabling itâs more harmful mods, and it automatically turns off when itâs not hooked up,â he pondered.
âNoâ no, itâs fine dear. How âbout you wash your hands now and then come sit down for some nice, tortilla² soup,â Carol said.
âTortilla soup!? Oh, it has been a while since Iâve had anything that will actual sustain myself, much less something that good!â Donnie said as he walked over to the kitchen sink.
âReally? What did yaâll eat in the apocalypse? Besides rats, CJ already told us about that,â April shuddered.
âWell, there were bugs, but not a whole bunch of people were desperate enough for that. After the world had run out of what had already been stored up is when we started eating rats, mice, rabbits, possums, or any other animal that was not claimed by the Kraang or as a pet that we could find. No, we did not eat Lieutenant Mayhem or or any sort of cat or dog. We werenât complete savages,â Donatello explained.
ââLieutenant Mayhemâ? That was a joke, right? No offense, Mayhem,â April said looking at a corner where the fluffy little dog-cat-thing sat curled up. He squeaked, showing that he had taken offense.
âNo, it was not a joke. If you are sentient enough to give, take, and follow orders, as well as the physical capabilities to do so, you are given an official position.
âAnd something else that isnât a joke, is how SPECTACULAR this soup is! Though, something lighter would have been better after not eating much these past few weeks, you wonât find me complaining about actual food!â
âA few weeks?â, Dr. Oâ Neil asked, concerned.
âI thought that your brothers and I would have drilled it into your head that you need to eat three meals a day by now!â April glared at him and stirred her soup.
âHeh, like I had many other options. Leo and I were hiding from the Kraang for as long as we could, anywhere we could, for the weeks following Caseyâs departure,â Donnie provided, lifting another spoonful to his mouth.
âAh. I donât know what to expect at this point,â April commented after pausing.
âIf youâve been through all that, you must be hurt one way or another. Let me patch you up after dinner, alright dear?â, Carol suggested after taking a few more bites.
âSounds great. Thanks, Dr. Oâ Neil,â Donnie smiled gratefully at her.
A few more minutes of silence went by, the time in which Donatello absolutely inhaled his dinner (not literally folks, dw). âSo, remind me what your into these days. Itâs been about, pffffffff, twenty-two years since I was sixteenâ and fifteen years since Iâve seen you,â Donnie prompted as he stretched in his chair, muttering the last part to himself so that the Oâ Neilâs couldnât hear him. He was happy to see April again and wouldnât waste a minute of it.
âIâm majoring in journalism at my college; planning on beinâ a news journalist for Channel 6, if I can get the job. They're looking to get a section in the paper approved for them, and then they'll start hiring people in a couple of months.â
âOh, Iâm positive you will get the job. You were always good at getting messages across at debriefs and for mission logs. Our data collection missions were always successful in the early days as well,â Donatello reminisced.
âWhatâs the early days for you?â, Carol asked, question in her gaze.
âAnytime in my life before my mid-twenties or my thirties; I havenât decided yet,â Donnie answered, fidgeting with the red cloth on his arm.
âWhat changed? I remember you and Mom telling me the age of twenty was the human bodyâs prime? I donât know how much it technically counts for mutant turtles yet, but eh, itâs enough Iâm sure,â April asked.
Donnie looked down at his right lower arm. The colors of blue, red, orange, and black were wrapped around it. Basically and ironically, Donnie was wearing his heart as his sleeve. (It is ironic, due to my general personality and character not following the metaphorical phrase âwearing your heart on your sleeveâ.) He then moved to fidget with the black choker on his wrist between the orange and blue cloth. âYou see these scars?â, he asked, gesturing to his whole right half of his body.
âYeah?â, April responded, curious.
âThey are from an explosion that made me blind in my right eye, deaf in my right ear, and gave me twisted scars on my lower leg because Kraang gunk splatted on my exposed flesh, and it had already begun to spread by the time I got back to the base withâ Cassandra and April,â he concluded the sentence reluctantly.
âWhat does this have to do with the âearly daysâ?â, April inquired, beginning to feel impatient with this Don-pelgängerÂł, who was trying to slowly explain the situation instead of just saying it bluntly. He had definitely changed.
âWell, the early days were before I got this scar. I was about twenty-three, April and I were on one of our intel collection missions again, and Cassandra had been assigned to join us because she was getting restless, and Casey Jr. and his sister were young; we didnât want them to become orphaned again. I still had my ninpo then, just so you know. We were doing alright, until Kraang somehow detected our presence. A Kraang android came out and I fired at it, successfully, mind you, except that the Kraang appeared to know we were coming. They sent out an android that basically had what could be simply described as a land mine inside of it; mix that with the missiles I had just fired at itâ well⌠things didnât turn out that well. I had my battle shell on, but the explosion still reached past it. And Cassandra and AprilâŚâ Donnie trailed off, he couldnât finish the sentence, or he would become an absolute mess, since anytime truly he relived that memoryâ well, he never wants to relive that memory. But when he does, he always collapses into a shaking heap.
âTwenty-three? My little brother could haveâ has lost me, at the age of twenty-three!?!?!?â, April demanded, furious and fuming.
âYes,â Donnie said, his voice audibly meeker than it had been before.
âIndeed. It was not how any of us imagined sheâd die,â Donnie smirked at his comment, despite the topic.
âYeah, I bet. How did Future-Boy react to this? Iâve gathered that Caseyâs his mom from what CJ has said, what you said, and the first and last names,â April queried.
âAh, yes. How old was he then? Two or three I think. Yeah, you were also a mother-figure to him, so that didnât exactly helpâŚâ, he mentioned hesitantly. âOh, poor thing,â Dr. Oâ Neil sadly murmured. âYeah. This is not a me only thing when I say: that never should have been the life those kids led,â Donnie agreed, face solemn while putting his hands up by his head as if a gun wereâ bad analogy, you get the point. By now, the Oâ Neils have finished their dinner; everyone has cleared their spots and the patient has been doing what he did best: explaining.
âAlright now, Don. How âbout we go to the couch and get ya all fixed up? April, get the first aid kit and my work bag,â instructed Oâ Neil Senior. The two walked over to the couch as April rushed to grab what she had been ordered (after saluting of course). âNow, can you tell me if anything hurts anywhere at all?â, asked the seasoned doctor.
âWell, I have a few bruises and cuts that may or may not become infected, but nothing serious or unusual, I believe. I might have dislocated my humerus from my shoulder at some point?â Donatello responded, bending down to unlatch his prosthetic and check the damage. âEugh, Iâm going to have to tighten a few screws; nothing major, thatâs good. Maybe a bit of oil to loosen up the joints, Iâve got that resource now. Oh, Iâm going to abuse my accessibility to resources, and will have no regrets, what-so-ever,â Donnie said, his face betraying all of the gremlin inside of him.
âWow! Thatâs a wicked cool prosthetic! You make it?â, April asked as she approached with the medical cases.
âWho else? Raphael? Leonardo? Of course I made it,â Donatello responded, holding it up in case she wanted to look at it closer. She reached for it once she had set the bags down, eyes glittering, but Donnie stopped her before she made contact with it. âIâll warn you, itâs quite a bit heavy if you are the size that you are, and/or not used to the weight of it.â
âOh, okay, thanks,â April said eagerly, hurriedly, while reaching for the metal contraption, as if Donnie would change his mind at any second and yank it back. Scoff, he thought. As if I could be that careless. âWow! This is so cool! Mind if I take a few pics to send to Dee?â, she asked, already getting her phone out to take pictures. âUm, my Dee, I mean.â
âBut, of course. Not that heâll be needing it, seeing as he may be able to tear it apart and put it back togetherâ under my supervision, obviously,â Donnie answered, lifting his left pant leg so that the doctor could treat his wounds.
He bit his tongue as she cleaned and disinfected them with some water, hydrogen peroxide, and a cloth. It was really the cloth that did it for him, seeing as water and hydrogen peroxide had never bothered him in the past.
âSweet!â, April said, obviously hyped at this whole situation. Donnie heard the classic sound of a smart phone taking pictures while he watched Carol examine his injuries a bit closer; putting her glasses on so that she would actually be able to see clearly. âYouâre lucky itâs not as bad as the stain on your pant told me it was,â she commented while she grabbed bandages. âYouâve got some gashes, nothing I canât handle. Anywhere else, dear?â She put some more disinfectant on cotton-like pad, this time, and put the pad on the gashes, what she would then wrap the bandages around.
âAs I said before, I believe I dislocated my right shoulder during a fight within the past few weeks. I believe I managed to pop it back in, but better safe than sorry. Itâs still a bit sore,â he added, rolling said shoulder to test it out against his better judgment. Carol tsked and got to work on examining it once she was done with his leg.
âMind if I send these pics to DonâŚuuhhhhh, other Don?â, April asked, flipping through the pictures of the senior turtleâs prosthetic.
âVery well, only if you wish for an excruciating amount of questions that he will have for you, of which I will make sure you donât answer. Not to mention the countless questions he desires desperately for how it works, which I will also make sure he does not receive unless I abide. I will only answer if he asks me in person, and only if I so desire,â Donatello said, leaning back with an especially bored expression on his face, finger-tips touching so that he made a very loose triangle. âSo, yes, you may. But only if you are willing to take a great risk at your sanity, and your brotherâs.â
April stared at the old soldier dumb-founded-ly. âSoâŚyes? But at my own expense?â
âPrecisely,â the soft-shell replied.
âGeez! You could have just said that! I guess some things never changeâŚâ April commented, scratching her head.
âAlright,â Carol began. âYou were right, Donnie. You dislocated your shoulder, buuut you didnât pop it back in, so weâll do that now, okay hon?â Dr. Oâ Neil started putting her tools down.
âOh? Well alright then. Just give me a count down,â Donnie said, re-situating himself so that the doctor could easily proceed with relocating his shoulder.
âOkay,â she said, grabbing his upper-arm and around his collar. âYou ready?â
âAlright. Three,â she counted, âtwo, oneâŚâ Donnie felt pain and pressure in his arm and through-out his shoulder area. He winced and sharply inhaled through gritted teeth and a clenched jaw.
He had been through much worse procedures than this without pain meds, or being put under, so ideally this should be nothingâ and it wasnât for the most part. Donnieâ along with most of the adults in, at least, the Liberty Resistanceâ had built up a strong immunity to pain, so he didnât feel it as much as an ordinary person would have. I also have been living off of strong pain meds though, so that may also be it. That doesn't mean he didn't feel it, though.
âMan! I don't think I saw you even flinch! Did you even flinch? No, you didn't even do that!â, April observed, obviously impressed.
Even though Donatello was much older than her, he couldnât help but feel his chest swell with pride at her tone. His brain argued that it was silly. This was a young, inexperienced, just-into-college girl, and even if Donnie had somehow figured out how to reverse age, and turned his own April into someone of this same age, it would still be different than this. Still, given the information that Michael gave him, it made complete sense that he felt this way.
Back to realityâ a reality, at least, his shoulder was sore. âYeah, thatâs what happens when you build up a decent immunity to pain. Still hurts though,â Donnie added ,trying to be modest for once in his life. He was barley managing to half-lie through his teeth, and was immensely grateful that April didn't notice it-- or bother to ask.
âYou should take that arm easy for a few days, at least, before you do anythinâ exciting, alright dear?â, Carol ordered prescribed, examining Donnieâs shoulder a bit more before moving on.
âI suppose I can do that. Sigh,â sighed Donnie reluctantly, knowing that if his family were here then there would be no questions. They werenât and somehow that made Donnie want to listen to their hypothetical opinions more. Ugh. How could I become such a sentimental fool!
April interrupted his thoughts again, making another exclamation. âWhat? Donnieâs agreeing to rest, and not have someone FORCE HIM TO!?!?!?â
âIndeed, dear April,â Donnie said, closing one eye and putting a hand on top of his ear to muffle the sound more than his mono-ggle already did. âIn my time, in the twenty-two years of the apocalypse, my family, and some close friends in the resistanceâ all the sameâ insisted that I rest whenever I had serious injuries. I eventually learned that arguing was just wasting time that they and I had to loose, so why do it?â, he explained simply.
âSo thatâs all it takes to get Donnie to rest, huh? Lots of pestering and saying that timeâs being wasted?â, April wondered. âWell, Iâm going to abuse this information on my Donnie at least,â she said in a chipper voice.
âI believe thaâ ouch! What was that?â, Donatello asked, surprised.
âOh, just tweesinâ out some small shards of metal in your leg. Donât worry theyâre not rusty, but did you have tetanus vaccines in your time? Or at all? Better to be safe than sorry,â Carol responded, showing him a small piece of metal the size of a finger-nail clipping covered in blood.
âYeesh. Yes, and yes, but not within the past fifteen years at least,â Donnie answered as he examined the shard. âNever fear! I always keep A.T.A.S. on me since both Leo and I have metal prosthetics, and we could accidentally cut someone at any point. Coughâ Casey Juniorâ cough,â he explained, fake coughing, though at the same time you could distinctly hear the words âcoughâ.
âUmmmmmmm,â April raised a finger.
âHither, hand me mine coat. It should be in thereâŚâ Donnie said, snatching the piece of cloth from Aprilâs hands as she held it out.
âOkay, one: didnât anyone from the future tell you that you sound weird when you talk like that? I know that weâve told our Don, but I donât know if thatâs the same, too,â April shot at him.
âOh, yes. Countless times, before and after the Kraang invaded. Two?â Donnie noticed that April flinched when he said the name. âDonât say their name?â April nodded. âUnderstood. I shall try. Anyways, two?â Donnie didnât want to bother getting anymore information until he had met all of his timelineâs counterparts.
âTwo, what in the world is A.T.A.S.? Why not atlas? It sounds better than atas,â April criticized.
âAh. Well, it is for the reason of A.T.A.S. being an acronym for my Artificial Tetanus Antibiotic Spray,â Donnie explained, pulling out the spray can and demonstrating to each word as he said it before he shook the can and tossed it to Dr. Oâ Neil. âDonât worry, you, Leon, and a number of other scientists and medical professionals approved of the formula and successful tests I providedâ, he reassured as she read the drug facts on the back. âNothing exciting happened the times that weâve used it, so either A: no one has been infected with the bacteria, or B: my formula is extremely effective.â
âWell, it seems alright. âJust enough to cover the wound in a silvery sheenâ is what it says? So, lightlyâ, Carol checked.
âCorrect,â Donnie nodded. Dr. Oâ Neil popped off the canâs lid and sprayed it on the cut. Then she wrapped it.
âAlright, I think thatâs it,â the doctor said, looking over her handiwork, double checking the turtle for anything she might have missed.
âHow âbout your shell, Dee? Is that alright?â, April tested.
âNo harm in checking, I suppose,â Donnie agreed, his tone reluctant. âThough, I havenât taken it off in weeks, and nothingâs happened, so I would prefer to wait until I go to sleepâ or at least sit down for a longer rest.â
âWai- wai- wai- wai- wait. You, Donatello Hamato, are not being forced to rest, pushed to rest, nor asked to rest, but justâ youâre justâŚvolunteering?????â April looked like she had been lied to beyond belief.
Donnie just chuckled to himself and clicked his leg back on; he had already put on his coat once Carol had said she was definitely finished with him. âSome things never change, April, but some things do,â he said, catching her off-guard again when he threw âwise-old-man-adviceâ at her. She stared, shocked yet again by how much her best friend, her brother, had changed over the time and events that she had never experienced.
âAlso, Iâm pretty sure youâve been shocked by me accepting help the whole evening, Apes.â Donnie stood and stretched. âThank you for your hospitality, my friends,â he said, âbut I really should find my nephew and see how heâs been holding up.â Donnie reached for his additional weapons, and grabbed the A.T.A.S. can with one of his robotic arms and stowed it in his coat as he did so. âI didnât get how heâs been faring, by the way. How is he doing? Iâm more worried about how heâll adjust to us as teenagers more than anything. The kid is adaptable and can absolutely hold his own.â A tone of concern, and then fondness and pride, had worked their way into Donnieâs voice; he was the only one who didnât notice.
âOh, yeah, heâs definitely still adjusting. It has just been a little less than a month since we met him after all. And donât worry. Out of all of us, he was probably injured least. Well, he was at least no less injured than I was, and he was a bit messed up when I found himâ or rather he found me. I just knocked him out,â April explained.
âOf course he did; and of course you did,â he said, sighing (fondly, though he wouldnât admit it) and scruffling Aprilâs hair.
âHey!â, she protested to no avail.
âI need to leave now,â Donnie said. âI believe I have all my arms.â April snickered, the sentence sounding funny to her, even though she knew what he meant. Donnie just stared at the ground. He could almost hear his twin. âUnlike meâ, he would pout; Donnie would groan and face-palm, then say, âSeriously, âNardo? This is extremely important; We donât have time for puns!â, and Donnie would throw his hands up in exasperation. Donnie smiled and shook his head as he recalled this happening on multiple occasions.
âKnock-knock? Anyone in there?â, April poked, waving her hand in front of his face as much as she could.
âOh, right. Yes, Iâm here. Apologies,â Donnie said, snapping out of his quote-on-quote âtranceâ.
âNo worries. See ya later, then?â, checked April. He could hear the hope in her voice; he needed it.
âWhy, of course, my dear friend. May I have your phone for a moment? I donât want to bother hacking into it right nowâ, Donnie asked as he opened the door. Fresh New York air blasted his face and he breathed deeply. I didnât know I missed this so muchâŚ
âUuuuuhhhhh, sure,â April handed her phone to him.
Donnie went to contacts and added his phone number and email. âThere,â he said, handing the phone back. âI labeled myself as âDonatello Seniorâ, should you not misunderstand who is trying to contact you.â
âOh, thanks! And, seriously. Stop talking like that.â She made a disgusted face at his choice of phrasing.
âSigh. I suppose not everyone might be able to have such a well rounded vocabulary and selection of sentence phrasing as I,â he sagged dramatically. April rolled her eyes and he smiled. Donnie knelt down and gave April a hug. It didnât compare to Raphâs, but it definitely just passed as âsufficiencyâ. âBye,.. April,â Donnie said, just outside the thresh-hold.
âBye, Don. Thanks for choosing to come to my neck of the woods first! See ya later!!!â, April waved enthusiastically as Donnie walked down the front steps and into the alley-way.
Donnie waved back for a moment, then continued on his walk until he reached a man-hole cover. The mutant lifted it, peeking inside to make sure it was safe. âWell,â he said to himself as he pulled up the holo-screen on his gauntlet again, âtime to goâŚhome.â He jumped into the grimy sewer, not seen by any other human eye that night.
Chapter 1!!! Yippeeee!!!!! I've had the first five chapters written out for months, so I'm happy that I'm getting the first one out!
Also, @queenofthewigglers, you seemed interested, so here you go :)
Prologue | Chapter 1 | Chapter 2
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the hug is only crushing due to their size difference
tortilla pronunciation (for those who do not know) -- tore-tea-a (idk how to do pronunciation dictionary stuff shdjsshsg)
the name "Donnie" meets the word "doppelgänger"