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Mikey steepled his fingers in front of his face, taking a calming breath. Then another. And another. Should he take another breath? Something had to have changed within those few seconds, right? Opening his eyes, he peered at the room before him.
Nope, everything was the same as it was when he'd closed his eyes three minutes ago. That was fine. Absolutely fine. Everything was oh-so fine.
Mikey nodded to himself, feeling a wide smile creeping across his face.
In fact, everything was so fine that he wasn't even worried! Leo and Donnie weren't worried either!
He let his hands fall to his sides. His smile felt wooden and fake.
"This," Mikey murmured, staring into the darkness of the sewer tunnels, "feels like a job for Dr. Delicate Touch."
His brothers kept on joking between themselves, paying no mind to his warning.
Oh well; their funeral.
He took a deep breath.
"SHUT UP AND HELP ME FIND RAPHIE, OR ELSE DAD'S GONNA KILL US!!"
His brothers just about leapt a foot into the air at the sound of his voice. Mikey felt a brief moment of satisfaction at their responses. Then the guilt filtered in, and he was apologising, because he was so sorry for startling them, never mind the fact that he needed their attention and for them to take this seriously.
"Relax, Mikey," Leo drawled, once he had gotten over his shock. He tossed a hand over Mikey's shoulders, giving him a gentle smile. "I'm sure Raphie's fine!"
Mikey felt himself wilt in the face of the reassurance. "But you guys know how the little guy gets when he's alone!"
"I feel that I should remind you that ‘little' is no longer an accurate description of our beloved younger brother," Donnie helpfully interjected. When Mikey fixed him with a stern glare, he backtracked, placing a hand against his plastron with a dramatic flourish. "But our dear Angelo is correct; Raph does not do well with being left alone. Case in point, he slept with Mikey until last year."
The box turtle nodded, confirming what they all knew. Raph used to creep into his bed at nights, once they'd all gone to bed. Driven by night terrors at first, the snapper used to rotate between his three older brothers' beds. But after his first growth spurt, he'd stopped frequenting Donnie's bed, something that Mikey knew saddened the genius.
But when Mikey sat him down with Dr. Feelings, he’d had to agree. Raphie’s new size, combined with his sharp claws and spikes, could cause problems with Donnie’s soft shell.
Then the came the second growth spurt and Leo made an off handed joke. Just like that, there was only one bed-partner left.
Another session with Dr. Feelings, and Leo spent the next year beating himself up about it.
But damage done was damage done, and Raphie was no linger too keen to share a bed with Leo, conscious about his muscles, and the fact that he and Leo were almost the same height, sharing a twin-sized mattress.
Mikey was safe though, Raphie had confessed. He was safe, because he was the only one of them who regularly slept in his shell,so there was always space for another turtle in his bed.
And then, along came their Dad. He meant well, Mikey knew. Pizza Supreme, the rat meant well.
But, shortly after Raphie's twelfth birthday, their Splinter had made a comment about their youngest's size and his spikes, and Mikey's already self-conscious brother grew even more cognizant of how he was now standing eye to eye with both Leo and Donnie. And that he was now a full head taller than his oldest brother.
And, just like that, Raphie stopped sleeping in Mikey’s bed. Those first few nights, without the bigger body curled around his shell were so, so cold.
Leo, sensing Mikey's plummeting mood, pulled away from him with a bounce in his step. He bounced away, giving a little twirl as he got his arm around his twin's shoulders.
"Miguel, relax," he soothed, radiating with a confidence that Mikey wished he could feel right now. "My genius twin probably has about a gajillion trackers planted on our dear brother, and can tell us where exactly he is!"
Donnie nodded, and Mikey felt the weight lifting itself off his shoulders, making him light enough to float off.
"And I would do just that, if I wasn't on vacation, and didn't leave my tracking gear behind."
And with that declaration, Mikey was back on the ground. He looked away, down through the tunnel that Raph had gone down. "We gotta go find him guys," he whispered.
One of the twins approached on near-silent feet, placing a hand on his shoulder.
"Hey, bro. Bro, look at me." Leo insistently pressed on his cheek until he turned his head to look at the older of the twins. He smiled, softer and smaller than he usually let himself do. His brows furrowed with worry, assuring Mikey that he wasn't the only one taking this seriously. "We'll find Raphie. We'll find him way before he goes savage, okay?"
"Rest assured, my beloved elder brother,”Donnie reassured, putting a hand on Mikey's other shoulder. From the corner of his eye, Mikey could see the arm raised in an oath. “Once I am off my vacation, I'll be giving our youngest even more trackers!"
"Raphala, if you do not put your brother down, I am going to get Michael to revoke your internet privileges!" Donnie screamed, right before Raphie's beast threw him.
Leo caught him before Mikey could even get his feet underneath him. The two of them tumbled to the ground, far enough that Raphie wouldn't bother with them just yet. Oh no. That honour would be reserved for him.
He yelped, pulling into his shell as his little brother got his hands on him.This was going to hurt, wasn’t it?
"I think that whole 'internet privilege thing' is something that Mikey reserves for you, Don-Don," Leo mused.
“Well that’s hardly fair,” Donnie grumbled.
“Tello, my brother in pizza. You do realise that you are the most attached to your tech out of all of us, correct?”
He wasn't wrong. But -
"Guys, a little help!?"
Air rushed into his shell as Raphie tossed him like a football and -
"That's it, guys!" Mikey rushed out, popping out of his shell a little too soon. He slammed into a wall, sliding down with a pained groan.
When had his baby brother gotten so strong?
Raphie's fist collided with something, and Leo joined him on the floor. He groaned, sitting up with a wince. Once it faded, Mikey's beautiful younger brother held up Lace Face. "Please tell me the Midnight Special was what you just thought of?" he asked, smiling weakly. “Otherwise I probably just got pummeled by a thirteen year old for no good reason.”
“You beautiful, beautiful soul!” Mikey snatched the ball out of his brother's hands, sprinting away. Then he leapt as high as he could, rocketing the ball towards his brother with a kick. "Look alive, Leo!"
The slider caught it with a grin, passing it across his arms with a cheerful, "Trick passing!"
"Sports!" Mikey wasn't sure where Donnie came from, but the younger twin gleefully leapt into the air, smashing the football like a volleyball. He panicked briefly because this was a bad idea. Who’s idea was this again?
Raphie was gonna get lost again, trying to get the ball! He had to stop this!
But Raphie was already diving towards the ball, a spark of something in his eyes.
Mikey was cheering before his baby brother even touched Lace Face. And when Raphie came back up smiling, he was quick to plaster himself across his brother's plastron. As the twins joined the hug, their baby gave a nervous chuckle. His arms nonetheless came up to return their affections.
"Back?" he questioned nervously, voice cracking on that one word. "Raph didn't get weird again, did he?"
"A little bit weird," Mikey conceded, trying to merge his brother with his own plastron. Maybe, if he squeezed just a little bit harder...
"Super weird," Donnie corrected, extracting himself from the hug.
"But we learned a valuable something about never something-ing you alone again," Leo laughed, pulling away as well. "Um, Mikester?"
Mikey shook his head, giving Raphie another squeeze. He didn't know how he could ever let his baby brother go. He couldn't bear to lose him again.
Raphie attempted to squirm out from under his arms but when he realised that Mikey had no intention of letting him go, he settled into the hug. He curled around Mikey’s head, just like he used to do when he crawled into his bed. A contented rumble started in his chest, vibrating Mikey with the sound.
"Aw, I love you guys!" he rumbled. "Can we try tubing again tomorrow?"
That was how he could let go.
Mikey released Raphie at that, taking a few steps backward. He took a deep breath in preparation.
"That can't be good," Leo murmured, possibly to Donnie. Oh, who was Mikey kidding. Leo was definitely talking to Donnie, who was most certainly getting snacks out of his battle shell.
Let them enjoy themselves for now. Dr. Delicate Touch would be paying them another visit soon.
"Son,” he began calmly, reaching up to place a hand on his little brother’s shoulder. He inhaled deeply. “ARE YOU OUT OF YOUR OOZE-TWISTED MIND!"
As he tore into Raphie about why going tubing again, so soon after this mishap, was a very bad idea, Mikey couldn’t help but smile. Internally, of course. Dr. Delicate Touch was working.
“Mikey?”
Mikey popped his head out of his shell, looking out at his room with bleary eyes. He blinked the sleep out of his eyes, focusing on the dark shape in the doorway. Raphie slowly came into focus, shuffling his feet in apprehension.
“What’s up, little man?” He was out of his shell in an instant, and out of his bed even faster. “You good?”
Raphie looked away, rocking back and forth on his heels. “Is it okay if Raphie…Raph, I meant Raph. Is it okay if Raph spends the night in here?”
Oh? Mikey raised a brow ridge. Raphie hadn’t come back to share a bed since Splinter had made those comments last year. Even when Leo had insisted on that horror movie marathon a few months ago, his little brother hadn’t shown his face.
He must have paused a moment too long, because Raphie wilted.
“Nevermind,” he chuckled weakly, fiddling with his hands. “You’re probably right. I’m too big too be sharing a bed with anyone. I’ll just-!”
He easily flopped onto Mikey’s bed, caught off guard when he wrapped his kusari-fundō around him, using it to drag him over.
“Sure you can, Raphie,” Mikey agreed, scooting closer to the wall. “I was getting a bit scared to sleep alone, after today.” He pulled the sheet up over his little brother, tucking him in with an ease that came from years of practice. “I was just trying to be brave.” He turned on his side, fixing himself so that Raphie could tuck himself into Mikey, if he wanted to.
It took a while, but his little brother slowly relaxed, curling into Mikey’s plastron, and tossing a hand over his carapace.
“You sure, Mikey?” he murmured slowly. Sleep was already claiming him. “Raphie doesn’t wanna take up too much space on your bed…”
“Shh.” Mikey put a finger against his brother’s lips. “It’s dark and I’m lonely, and you’re the perfect size to cuddle with.” He tossed a hand over his brother’s shoulders and pulled him even closer. He began rubbing a pattern into the shell.
“If you say so.” Raphie was practically asleep, tucked up under Mikey’s chin and curled around him.
Mikey closed his eyes, opening them a few seconds later when someone knocked on his door.
“Mikey?” Donnie whispered, easing into his room. “Are Raph and Leo in here?”
“Donnie?” Mikey blinked sleep out of his eyes for the second time tonight. He pat the bed behind his baby brother, feeling the sliver of empty space. “Raphie’s here, But Leo isn’t.”
“He isn’t in his bed,” Donnie noted, venturing closer.
Before Mikey could warn him about the paint supplies on the floor, he stumbled over something.
He tried to get out of bed to check on the younger of the twins, but Raphie’s arm had him pinned.
“Donnie,” he whispered instead. “You good man?”
“I found Leo,” Donnie groaned, the same time as Leo did. “Couldn’t you pick a better place to sleep?”
“Hey,” Leo hissed in return, “the bed was full!”
“So you chose the middle of the floor?”
“I didn’t expect anyone else to come in!”
“Ladies!” Mikey hissed, feeling Raphie twitch beneath his own arm. “You’re both pretty. Now be quiet! You’re disturbing Raphie!”
That did the trick, and the twins fell silent. Donnie didn’t get back up. But, it looked like he’d come in with his own blankets and pillows, so Mikey was sure that it had been his intention to sleep on the floor in the first place.
“Raph’s good though, right Mikey?” Leo ventured a few minutes later. “I went to check on him, but he was already in here.”
“I didn’t note any excessive distress spikes in his readings when I checked,” Donnie whispered. “But maybe I missed something?”
“I think he was feeling a little nervous after today,” Mikey murmured, rubbing circles into Raphie’s shell. “So he came looking for company.”
“That tracks,” Leo offered. There was some shifting, and his face popped up at the edge of Mikey’s bed. “The little guy probably didn’t wanna spend the night alone after going savage like that.”
“Again,” Donnie provided from the floor, “ the word ‘little’ is no longer an accurate description of our younger brother. But I second Nardo’s hypothesis.”
“Probably,” Mikey agreed, letting out a yawn. “Anyway, let’s get some sleep guys, especially if we’re gonna go tubing again tomorrow.”
“Were you serious about having us tie our tubes together?” Leo wondered.
Mikey chose not to answer that, pulling his baby brother closer and snuggling into him.
“Mikey? Mikester? Why aren’t you answering me? Mike, Mike, Mike!”
”Dr. Delicate Touch would like a word with you in the morning, Leo.”
“Dr. Del- Mikey, what did I do? Why would Dr. Delicate Touch want to talk to me? Mikey-”
Donnie slapped a hand over his brother’s mouth, and Mikey sighed in relief. He had a full day ahead of him tomorrow, going ahead of the others to lay out some safety precautions.
But for now, he’d sleep, surrounded by his brothers.