Brother in Blue

“A rubber ducky? Oh man I haven’t had a rubber ducky in years!” Mike exclaimed gleefully. “Talk about your silver lining!”

He grinned at Leo’s laughter and offered him a cheeky wink. “Well, if you were the size of oh, say, Leatherhead… then I would absolutely insist on being carried off into the sewer sunset!” He looked over himself briefly again, then smiled reassuringly. “And I don’t think I’ve got anything open enough to worry about now that the gash is covered up, so unless you actively shove me into raw sewage I should be fine.”

He snorted as Leo helped him over the beam - he didn’t really need the help, but he could tell it made Leo feel better to provide it, so he accepted the assistance without comment. “A good chunk of said weight is shell, yes, but the rest is all grade-A, high-density turtle beef, thank you very much! It contributes to the magnetism, y’know.” He paused, then added thoughtfully, “Or possibly gravitational pull.” 

Leo’s quiet words made something twist deep in Mike’s chest, but he simply nodded with an understanding little quirk of his mouth. “I know,” he murmured as he sat down on the pile of bricks that Leo had steered him to. As Leo stepped away to make the call, Mike watched him for a moment, then turned his attention to scanning their surroundings for potential threats. Leo’s conversation was little more than a quiet background murmur, and Mike didn’t bother trying to eavesdrop on it. They’d been lucky so far - nobody else seemed to be around this area, but it wasn’t entirely dark yet and Mike wasn’t going to let his guard down. The last thing they needed right now was to get spotted and wind up in a fight. 

Their luck seemed to be holding out for once though - apart from the occasional pigeon, Mike saw no movement until Leo started heading back to him. He scanned their surroundings one last time, then blinked as Leo spoke up. “Marius, Marius… why does that sound familiar?” His brow furrowed in thought even as he got back to his feet. “That’s gonna bug me all day now…” He shrugged slightly, then returned his attention back to Leo. “Disappearing into the sewers sounds good,” he replied with a matching lopsided smile. “Lead the way.” 

Leo chuckled at Mike’s comments, struck by the similarity between the older turtle and his own brother. “Don’t worry, I probably won’t shove you into raw sewage,” he said lightly. “Just make sure your personal gravity doesn’t pull us in.”

He smiled sheepishly when Mike asked about the name Marius. “It’s from Les Miserables. Jean Valjean rescues Marius by carrying his unconscious body through the sewer. But, uh - well, you seem like you’re planning to remain conscious. And, like you said, I’m no Leatherhead.”

“No hose?” Mike brightened, and it was only half in jest. “Does that mean I can get an actual hot shower? Oh goodie!” 

He then snickered and grinned at Leo. “And since when have I ever been concerned about less-than-tidy? We live in the sewer!” As Leo offered his support, Mike blinked, then gave him a sly grin as he leaned lightly against Leo’s shoulder, careful not to rest too much weight against him. “Careful there, Leo. I may just end up insisting on you sweeping me off my feet and carrying me home - and I’m not as petite as I used to be! With age comes wisdom - and weight, apparently.” 

His humour faded somewhat as Leo brought up the rest of his family, and Mike hesitated for a moment, chewing his lip. “I don’t want to inconvenience - or worry - anyone…” he replied hesitantly, “… but it might be for the best.”

Leo grinned at the way Mike’s expression brightened. “I’ll even make sure you get a rubber ducky.” 

His grin turned into a laugh as he steadied Mike on his feet. “I would think a pretty princess like you would prefer being swept off his feet and carried into the sunset. Or, at least, into the sewer. I know you’re used to it but I was most concerned about walking through the sewer with open wounds, even though it wouldn’t be the first time.” 

He gripped Mike’s belt to provide support as he helped him over a fallen beam. “You’re not kidding about the weight,” he said with a wink, “but don’t worry, I think it’s all in the shell.” 

Leo wasn’t surprised that Mike wanted him to call ahead - it was why he’d made the offer to begin with - but he couldn’t help the regretful ache that came with the answer. “You know it’s impossible for us not to be worried,” he said quietly, “and I hope you know we’d never think you were an inconvenience. But I’ll make the call. Hang on, we’re out of the worst area now. Just sit tight for a few minutes and then we’ll be on our way.”

He helped Mike sit on a pile of bricks that looked sturdy, then stepped a short distance away and pulled out his shell cell. His thumb automatically hovered over the speed dial for Raph, but after considering a moment he shifted and pushed a different button. The phone only made it through one and a half rings before Don picked up. Leo smiled to himself. He knew Don was likely busy with a project, but he never failed to answer. “Hey, Leo, what’s up?”

“I ran into a bit of an unusual situation,” Leo said, speaking quietly. “Mike’s back. Everything’s okay, but we had a bit of trouble and he got banged up a bit. I need to get him back to the lair to get him patched up.”

“Okay.” There was a brief pause while Don let that sink in, then Leo heard shuffling and a clang, and he could picture him pushing himself back from his work station. “Okay, sure. What can we do? Do you need us to come get you?”

Having his brothers show up in the Battle Shell would save a lot of time and spare Mike an inconvenient and potentially difficult walk, but Leo knew he’d never accept, and he wasn’t hurt badly enough for Leo to insist. “No, we should be able to get home without issue. But listen, the reason I called is...well, Mike would prefer not to see anyone. I thought you should gather everyone and head out to one of our satellite locations for a bit.”

There was another pause before Don very quietly said, “Oh.”

“He hasn’t met you yet, Donny,” Leo said gently, keeping his voice low so it wouldn’t carry. “And even if he had - from what you’ve told me, I think it’d be too painful for him to see everyone. But I thought you should be the one I call about this.”

“Yes. I know. I understand.” Don was quiet for a moment longer before he took a deep breath and erased the sorrow and regret from his voice. “All right. I’ll get everyone together and we’ll be out of here in 10 - 15 minutes. Good enough?”

“Very inconvenient,” Mike deadpanned, then grinned. “And I’m not sure if it’s even possible to tone down my sparkle - I’m a shining star of terrapin perfection!” He looked down at the dust and dirt coating himself, paused for a beat, then added wryly, “although I will admit I’m not so shining at the moment. Gonna need a hose-down, at least.”

He let out a sigh at Leo’s diagnosis, confirming what he’d already suspected. “I really hope it’s not cracked,” he grumbled even as he automatically held his arm out for Leo to bandage it. “Still, no dislocation or anything is good - I’ll take what I can get.” He deliberately avoided Leo’s mention of home, not wanting to think about the possibility of encountering any of the rest of the family that would likely be there. Instead he focused on the bandage being wrapped around his forearm, keeping the limb as steady as he could while Leo worked. 

Once Leo was done, Mike gingerly flexed his hand, then nodded in satisfaction as he carefully tucked his arm in against his torso, forearm resting across his belt. “Nice work - it helps. Thanks, Leo.” He stood up and scanned the surrounding area for a moment, then looked back to Leo with a raised brow ridge and a lopsided smile. “So, where to next? Sewers? Gotta admit I’m not too keen on rooftop running right now.”  

Leo chuckled. “You definitely could do with a hose-down. But fortunately we won’t need to use a hose when we get back.”

Mike huffed out a short laugh, grinning. “Well, at least you acknowledge my magnetism and raw appeal. And prettiness.” His grin quirked wryly. “I still would prefer if they didn’t work on inanimate architecture though.” 

As Leo gently manipulated his arm, Mike winced and hissed another breath through his teeth. “There. And– ouch. Ow, ow ow ow ow, yikes, ouch. Hngh.” Despite the discomfort, he was careful to not jerk away from Leo, enduring the gentle manipulation with as much good grace – and okay, petulant whining – as he could muster. “Ugh. Is that gash gonna need stitches? It’s gonna need stitches, isn’t it. Damnit.”

Leo hmm-ed at Mike’s comment about architecture. “That is rather inconvenient. I guess you’ll have to work on toning down your sparkle in certain situations.”

futureorangeturtle:

Mike let out a snort at Leo’s ‘irresistible magnetism’ comment and gave him a wry little grin. “Man, I don’t know if I want to entertain the idea of being irresistibly attractive to walls,” he deadpanned with a roll of his eyes. “On the plus side, at least nothing hit my beautiful face! For once.”

He blinked slightly at Leo’s question, then smiled and nodded. “Of course. Some of that debris was sharp. And heavy.” As Leo checked his arm, Mike carefully stretched his legs out one at a time to look them over. Fortunately, they had escaped most of the damage, only marred slightly by minor scrapes and bruises - and a liberal coating of dust and grit, which extended to the rest of him as well.