TMNT: Missing: Chapter 5 - Leo's Question

Chapter 5: Leo’s Question
“You what?” Raph yelled causing Mikey to whimper at the sharp volume change.

“I went to see Karai to see if what Mikey said was true.”

“Oh and you think she-Shredder would tell you the truth? Wow you must---”

“Shut up Raph! I don’t like Karai!” Leo shouted, causing Mikey to whimper again.

“Guys if want to keep yelling at each other do it in another room, you’re going to give Mikey a panic attack. I can feel his heart beating in his feet!” Donnie hissed. Raph and Leo looked Donnie in the eyes, “C’mon guys Mikey needs our help and we can’t help him if we are yelling at each other,” he looked at his brothers.

“Leo were did you think you would get with Karai?” Raph asked trying to keep calm.

Leo let out a sigh, “I don’t know, I just….”

“Wanted vengeance,” Raph said, “for what they did to Mikey,” Raph looked down at his brother. Mikey was still very thin. Luckily he had started eating more and would soon starting putting more weight back on, Master Splinter and Donnie were both very concerned with his thin frame. Even though he knew his own body he still found it hard to believe that Mikey would not just fall out of his shell.

Leo dropped down next to Mikey’s bed. He was still trying to piece together everything that has happened. He wanted to ask Mikey about the night of his capture, but he was warned by Splinter and Donnie to be careful about bringing up the events of what happened.
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When Raph woke up he realized that Mikey had somehow, in the middle of the night had crawled into his lap and he was curled up. Mikey’s head was resting on his shoulder, “pss, Donnie, Leo, wake up,” Raph called. Donnie stretched and sat up. Leo turned around, he was kneeling next to the bed now, “a little help here,” Raph said as Mikey snuggle closer to his brother.

“Everything looks fine to me,” Leo said laughing.

“Yeah,” Donnie said, “Mikey looks pretty comfortable to me.”

“But I ain’t a pillow,” Raph said

“Well Mikey thinks you’re one. I say we leave you two like that,” Leo said smiling.

“Fine,” Raph mumbled adjusting his arms so that his brother was wrapped in a hug. Mikey nuzzled against Raph.

“Now try not to scare him, we don’t need him going back into his shell,” Donnie said.

“Yeah cause if he tip him upside down he will fall out of it,” Raph said cynically.

“Raph, you know that is impossible,” Donnie said.

“I know that!” Raph shouted slamming his fist down by Mikey’s side. The commotion cause Mikey to start breathing heavily, Raph could tell he was scared. “Sorry Mikey,” Raph said. Mikey tried to pull himself from Raph’s arms, but Raph held him tighter, “Mikey’s it’s me Raph, your brother.” Mikey’s breathing slowly began to slow down, his once tense body began to relax. Once Mikey was sleeping Leo and Donnie helped lay Mikey in his bed.  

Once outside Mikey’s room they looked at each other. “Guys, Mikey is scaring me. We never know what Mikey we are getting, the goofy who plays pranks or the one who is scared of his own shadow,” Leo said, “yesterday when we went on that walk because he was feeling claustrophobic, he saw his shadow and nearly fell.”

“He went through a great deal of trauma, we can only guess what happened,” Donnie said.

“We know what happened,” Raph snarled, “they nearly beat him to death! They starved him too, made him eat baloney I don’t even know what that is! And by the sounds of it I never do!” Leo chuckled at his brother’s comment.

“My sons, you need to stop questing what happened, and start helping your brother to heal,” Splinter said entering the room, “I have already told you boys this,”

“But sensei, we can’t help him if we don’t know what he went through,” Leo said.

“You are not allowed to ask your brother about what happened, if he freely offers information you are not press for more details. Is that understood?” Splinter said.

“Hai sensei,” they said, just as they heard more whimpers coming from Mikey’s room.

“Get off my back Karai,” Mikey mumbled.

Everyone raced into Mikey’s room only to find him alone and sleeping.

“Mikey, Karai is not here,” Leo said.

“I knew it! You are in with her!” Mikey snapped, his eyes still closed tightly.

“Mikey I’m not in with her!” Leo snapped, just as he was about to put his hands on his brother’s shoulder but, Raph stopped him.

“Don’t lie to me, Leo!” Mikey said.

Leo was about ready to shake Mikey, but Splinter stopped him, “Leonardo, leave the room,” Splinter said sternly. Leo was about to question his father but, he stopped; he sighed and tuned to leave the room.

“C’mon Leo,” Raph said and he placed his arm around his brother’s shoulders. Raph lead his brother out into the hall way.

Splinter sat down beside Mikey, “Michelangelo, you are home and safe. I need you to listen to me listen to my voice,” Splinter spoke calmly and gently.

“Don’t touch me,” Mikey’s voice cracked.

Donnie looked over at his father, he could see his father was concealing the hurt he felt. Mikey’s first week back was hard on everyone. He always seemed to recognize Splinter, this was the first he spoke negatively to his father.  Splinter cleared his voice, “Donatello, stay with Michelangelo, I am going to meditate,” before Donnie could even answer his father left the room.
----
Early the next morning Leo woke up, he went to see Mikey. When he walked in Mikey was propped up in almost a full sitting position, with his leg resting on two pillows. Donnie was sitting by his brother’s side he was reading a book, it looked like had not slept all night. “Hey Donnie,” Leo said greeting his purple clad brother. Donnie looked up and yawned, “You should get some sleep. I will watch Mikey. Leo walked over to Donnie and helped him to his feet and walked him to his room and forced him to his bed.

Leo walked back to Mikey’s room to find Raph in there. “Where’s Donnie?” Raph asked.

“I just walked him back to his room, he has been up all night. I think he fell asleep sometime between me helping him and the way out of Mikey rooms.” Leo said laughing.

“Why do you want to know what happened to Mikey during those three months?” Raph asked after a long pause between the two brothers.

“I want to know if he remembers our patrol that day, and being captured. We still don’t know what happened to us that day,” Leo looked at Raph, “we can’t ask him with Donnie or Splinter around,” Leo said.

“Ask ‘im what?” Mikey said weakly.

Raph looked from Leo to Mikey. For the past thirteen weeks Leo has been question how they managed to be left unconscious, alone, separated, and Mikey missing.  “Mikey do you remembered being captured?” Leo asked.

Mikey whimpered, he did not respond to Leo. Mikey grabbed his crutches and as quickly as he could left his room. He went into Donnie’s lab and locked the door.

“Mikey, what’s wrong?” Donnie asked panicked. Mikey just sat down, pulled his knees close to his plastron and started to cry.

“I don’t wanna talk about that night,” Mikey cried, Donnie could hardly make out his brother’s words.

“No one asked you, Mikey,” Donnie said, now sitting by his brother, debating if he should place a hand on his shoulder.

“L-Leo did.”

“He what?” Donnie yelled causing Mikey to jump. Mikey then began to rub at his injured shoulder. Mikey was breathing heavily and sobbing.

“Y-you all want to know so bad huh?” Mikey choked out each word, “then fine get Leo and I will tell him.”

“Mikey you don’t have to.”

“L-Leo w-wont stop,” Mikey sobbed.

Against his better judgment Donnie rose to his feet to get Leo and Raph. “I thought we said NOT to talk to Mikey about what happened. Now he is in my lab crying, thinking he HAS to talk about what happened. He get nightmares about he is sleeping in your bed!” Donnie glared at Leo.

Leo gulped, he has never seen his even tempered purple clad brother worked up like this before. Sure he got mad when they touched his stuff in his lab, but this? This was Donnie truly angry and yelling. “Aren’t you curious about what happened? We all woke up alone, on separate roofs and no one remembers anything! Mikey could know. . .”

“No, Leo I stopped caring about what happened once we found Mikey half dead in the street,” Donnie said cooly.

Mikey was now standing at the door, “We left the lair, it was just like any other night,” Donnie walked Mikey over to the bed so he could sit down, “We went to see April before we started patrol. After that we followed some Purple Dragons to this warehouse, but lost them in the rain. Things got weird after that, we were on this rooftop, I did not recognize it,” Mikey stopped to calm himself down.

Leo looked from Mikey to his two other brothers, the places Mikey named were where they woke up. They never told Mikey about what happened.

“There was bolt of lighting,” Mikey continued, “and I was alone, my nunchakus were gone. I-I was still outside, it was raining and I was cold. There was another flash of light, I was blinded this time, I felt something cut my arm, then I was knocked to the ground. When I was on the ground I felt something slam into my head, it felt like someone’s foot. When I came too I was in a jail cell,” Mikey stopped there and broke down crying. Mikey turned to Donnie and buried his face into his brother’s plastron. Mikey began to shake uncontrollably. Donnie placed his hand on the back of Mikey’s head, Mikey did not flinch.

Donnie looked up at glared at Leo once again.

“D-did you k-know they beat me? It-it got so bad that on-on time---well twice…..a d-doctor g-gave me stitches, so I-I would’t d-die,” Mikey sobbed out each word. After he finished he tucked himself into his shell.