Gapped Knowledge

by RonnaO_O

Summary:

Due to his father's secret about his origin, Donatello's life seems to take an unexpected turn as he finds himself being targeted by the Shredder himself.

—————————————-

A Donatello-centric story that is set in the 2012 universe and focuses on the struggles of family dynamics.

(The chapters are short and therefore there might be a lot of chapters to this story xD)

Notes:

Hello! The author is here! This is my first fanfic so I hope that it came out good ^^

Chapter 1: Chapter One- Hidden Knowledge

I have been suspecting my father of hiding something from me since I was a child. Whenever I questioned our origin and asked my father about it I could see him slightly flinch. It was well known in my family, and certainly to those around us that I was very smart and hard to fool. I guess that our father is worried that whatever secret he may be hiding, I would probably be the first one to tell. I kind of let it go, thinking that maybe the story of the day that we were mutated is a bad experience for him that he would rather forget, which is probably why he looks stressed out whenever I ask him about it.

I am now sixteen, and although our situation isn't the best, we are still living as a happy family.

Our father, friends, Mikey, Leo, Raph, and me- Donatello.

I sighed as I put my pencil down. As usual, I overworked myself in my lab to the point where I don't even know if I should take a break or just continue working. I got my answer right after this thought.

"Donnieeee…"

I turned around as I gave my answer.

"Yes, Mikey?"

"You have been here for hours! Can't you come out once in a while and show us that you are alive?"

I sighed. Mikey would always pull me out of my lab in the middle of my work to spend time together. I guess that I could use a break.

"Alright, let's go." I said, putting on a smile.

In the Foot's HQ

—-

The Shredder sat on the throne, inspecting the files that were given to him.

The clan have fought the turtles for months. However, finally, two days ago they finally managed to acquire a piece of DNA from each of the turtles. And today was finally the day that they have gotten results. The Shredder suspected the origin of each of the turtle's DNA, given that they all have different appearances and probably got the DNA that made them look like this from the last thing that they have touched. Oroku Saki wanted to explore their DNA, since it might give him important information. As Saki suspected, their DNA was from workers in the pet store that they were in, which was confirmed in the files that he was inspecting right this moment, and could see by the information on each file that each person that gave them their DNA was a worker in the same pet store. Saki smirked as he thought about how they were originally only little and pathetic turtles. He suddenly flinched in surprise.

"What is this?! Bradford!" He called out.

"W- what is it, master?" Bradford asked in fear.

"Why is there no information on Donatello's DNA?" Saki asked, irritated.

"W-well master, we checked their DNA based on the humans that could have touched them, which are pet shop workers. But…"

"But what? You've been squirming in your place since I have gotten these files. Is there something that you would like to tell me?" Saki asked, irritated.

"Yes, I have been wanting to tell you something about Donatello's information…" He said, looking on the floor.

"What is it?" Saki asked, suspicious.

"Their DNA shows turtle DNA, which was then mixed with human DNA." Bradford said.

"And? Out with it!" The Shredder said in anger.

"It's backwards." He replied simply.

"...What?" Saki asked, dumbfounded.

"Donatello's. It's backwards."

Chapter 2: Chapter Two- Confusion

Notes:

Hello! The author is here. Here is the second chapter! I hope that you find the story interesting and well written. Your support encourages me alot and I appreciate it very much! ^^ Now, let's start with the chapter!

The Shredder paced in the throne room in thought. He had ordered everyone out so that he could try and think about the situation.

'How could this be?' He thought in confusion.

'A human! How could it be that Donatello was originally human? And why is he the only one who is originally human out of all of his brothers?' He stopped walking as more questions flooded his mind.

'It feels suspicious. As if there's more to this story than meets the eye.' He thought.

'I have a feeling that I have to find out what's the story behind this. I need to know what's going on.' The Shredder decided as he left the throne room.

In the Lair

As usual, Donatello was in his lab working on his projects. He looked tiredly upon the destroyed objects that his brothers asked him to fix. Obviously, most of the objects were destroyed by Raphael.

"I swear that I would fill his bed with cockroaches." He said to himself, irritated.

'I need a break.' He thought to himself as he left the lab.

He looked around in the living room. It was as usual. Leo reading comics, Raph and Mikey beating each other up in video games, and Splinter probably in the dojo.

"Hey D! Want to see me beat Raph up in this game?" Mikey said, smirking.

"You wish!" Raph replied angrily.

Donatello rolled his eyes and smiled as he sat beside them.

In the dojo

Splinter feels anxious. He doesn't know why, but his intuition is telling him that he should be more careful. Watch out for dangers that might occur. He kept meditating, hoping that it would bring him an answer, or at least give him some peace of mind. For now he needs to collect himself, and try and understand what might give him such an uncomfortable feeling. Only time will tell him what is the reason for him being so anxious.

Notes:

And this is it for the second chapter! Please stick around to find out more about what is going to happen :D Thank you for reading!

Chapter 3: Chapter Three- Investigation

Notes:

Hello! Welcome to the third chapter. I hope that you like the story so far! I enjoy writing this fanfic and I hope that you enjoy just as much reading it ^^ Now, let's begin!

"Are you sure that it will work?" The Shredder asked.

"Certainly, mazzter." Stockman answered, pronouncing the word weirdly due to his mutation.

"I have created a system that can try and match Donatello's DNA to other humans that can possibly be his biological parents. Since we have the information that he is around 16 years old, we can assume his year of birth and direct the system to find his biological connections more efficiently. I will start by having the program try and find a match with the citizens of America that were in the continent around the year of his birth. " Stockman said, buzzing throughout his explanation.

"When will the results arrive?" The Shredder asked.

"Soon. It wouldn't take too long." Stockman answered.

"Call me as soon as you get them." The Shredder said.

"Yezz mazzter." Stockman replied.

"Hmm, guys? What is this?" Donatello asked, looking at their 'dinner'.

"Just some pizzas that I tried upgrading. Why are you asking?" Mikey asked.

"Don't touch the pizzas ever again." April stated, horrified.

"What?! But it's so good! You didn't even try it!" Mikey said, offended.

"Who would want to eat-? Casey! don't touch it!" Raph said in disgust as he watched Casey.

"What?! This is pretty good!" Casey said.

"Yeah! He gets it!" Mikey said.

"You guys are animals." Leo stated as he looked at Mikey and Casey actually enjoying whatever this is.

It was a normal evening. Casey and April arrived at the lair to hang out and eat dinner with the brothers. Once Splinter saw what their dinner was, he decided that maybe skipping it only once isn't such a bad idea. Maybe Mikey shouldn't prepare dinner anymore.

Splinter was meditating once again for the same reason. He couldn't find the reason for him feeling so anxious lately. Perhaps he will find out with time, but it's still bothering him. Maybe he should just ignore it, and push it to the back of his mind for now.

Notes:

And this is it for this chapter! I hope that you liked it ^^

Chapter 4: Chapter Four- One Step Closer

Notes:

Hello! Before the chapter starts, I just wanted to thank you for your support! It helps me keep going ^^ Anyways let's begin!

"What?" The Shredder said, annoyed and confused.

The results of the program had just arrived, and as soon as he saw it, Stockman went to update Oroku Saki.

"There are no results." Stockman buzzed.

"How can there be no results?!" The Shredder asked angrily.

"Perhaps it means that his biological parents are not from America, mazzter." Stockman said, scared that the Shredder would lash out at him.

"Then what-" The Shredder started, but then paused in thought.

"..Mazzter?" Stockman buzzed in question.

"Change the information on the program." The Shredder declared.

"Change to what, mazzter?" Stockman asked.

"This time, try to find his parents in Japan." The Shredder replied.

"So let me get this straight. You thought that stabbing the toaster with your katana would help?" Donatello asked in disbelief.

"I didn't try to stab it…" Leonardo looked away, embarrassed.

"Well, you did." Raph said, looking at him from the side and smirking in amusement.

Splinter entered the kitchen to prepare a cup of tea, and witnessed the scene.

"I do not think that this is what you are supposed to use your katanas for, Leonardo." Splinter said, lifting one of his eyebrows as Raph laughed.

"I didn't mean it!" Leo declared, embarrassed.

"You are getting a new toaster yourself this time." Donnie said, leaving to play videogames with Mikey.

"What? Don't be like that, D! Please?" Leo said, desperate.

"Just get one after patrol." Raph said.

"Yeah… The patrol will probably end early again anyways." Leo said, sighing.

"It's so annoying! Why isn't there any Foot activity lately?!" Raph said, annoyed.

"Do not underestimate your enemy, my sons." Splinter said. 'Perhaps the Foot clan is planning something against us? Maybe this is the reason for me being so anxious lately.' Splinter thought to himself.

"We are not, sensei. We will be careful." Leo said, trying to reassure him.

"Alright, my son." Splinter said, smiling.

Notes:

And this is it for this chapter! Stay tuned ^^

Chapter 5: Chapter Five- The Night Patrol

Notes:

Hey guys! Welcome to another chapter! This fanfic is really fun for me to write and I hope that you like it ^^ Now, let's start!

"Wooooo!" Mikey yelled as they jumped from one roof to another, full of energy.

"Focus, Mikey!" Leo scolded as they ran.

"Calm down, Leo. There's not much action lately anyways." Raph said, rolling his eyes.

"Still! What if someone is following us right now?" Leo said, with a serious expression.

"Even better!" Raph said, smirking and hoping that they will get into a potential fight.

"Argh." Leo groaned, annoyed.

They all came to a stop as Donnie suddenly paused.

"Donnie?" Raph questioned.

"Hm, guys? Check this out." Donatello said, pointing at a van.

"It's a van of the Foot!" Mikey declared.

Not too far away from the group was a van of the Foot, which just started to drive away from the building it came out of.

"I say we check it out." Raph said as Leo nodded at him.

The group climbed down from the rooftop they were on and came to the opening of the building.

"Alright Donnie, open the door." Leo said as Donnie nodded. The door seemed to have a lock on that could only be opened with a code.

"Can't I just force it open?" Raph said, impatient.

"It's a building of the Foot, Raph! What if there is an alarm?" Leo said as Raph groaned in annoyance.

Donatello managed to open the door and the group sneaked inside.

Luckily, the building didn't seem to be of high importance to the Shredder since there weren't many guards or Footbots.

"Alright. There doesn't seem to be much security so each one of us will go to a different floor to see if there is anything important there." Leo said as they all nodded in agreement.

"Donnie, you will stay here and check this floor out. Raph, go to the second floor. Mikey, you go to the third and I'll go to the fourth." Leo said as they all split up.

Donatello checked almost all of the rooms and saw basically nothing but supplies and medicine. He then arrived in front of the last room's door. 'Mhm, probably just supplies as well.' He thought as he opened the door. The fact that the room ended up being an office surprised him a bit. He lifted an eyebrow in curiosity as he looked around. The room was white, with a few working stations for employees. In each station was a white chair, a white table and a black computer.

Curious, he went to one of the computers. Obviously, opening it wasn't really hard for him.

He smirked as he managed to unlock the computer.

Notes:

Hey guys! This is the end for this chapter! Please stay tuned ^^

Chapter 6: Chapter Six- Results

Notes:

Hey guys! We are getting closer and closer to the drama! I hope that you enjoy this series, and stay tuned! ^^

When Donatello opened the computer the first thing that he was met with was someone's email. He frowned as he saw that the emails didn't contain much information that would benefit them. It probably explains why the building wasn't really guarded. There wasn't much need to protect what was in it. Then an idea popped up in his head. 'What if I use this email to hack into other emails that belong to people who are related to the Foot? It would be easy if this email was used to interact with other Foot members.' He thought with a smirk. He used the email account to find another account that might have more information that they would need. After a few minutes he managed to hack into one of the accounts. Through that account, he tried to go further in, and managed to end up hacking into the whole database of someone's computer. The owner of that computer ended up being none other than Baxter Stockman. Donatello rolled his eyes at how easy that ended up being. He was about to check out the information on that computer, until a message popped up. "The search is complete. Enter to see the results."

'Huh?' Donatello thought to himself. Curious, he clicked on the message, that seemed to belong to a program that Stockman designed himself.

He froze as he saw the screen.

"Is this- DNA?" He asked himself out loud. "Our DNA?"

His eyes widened as he tried to think of why the Shredder would even want their DNA.

'Was he secretly collecting our DNA to find information about us to use to his advantage?' He thought to himself.

Every page seemed to be the DNA result of a different brother.

Donatello wasn't really surprised to see his brother's DNA results. He had already suspected where they had gotten their human DNA and they all knew that their human genes weren't from the same human for sure, since they all look very different.

Donatello frowned as he tried to think of what's going through the Shredder's head that he would even want to get information on their DNA.

He tried to scroll through all of the pages to see their DNA results.

He didn't see much. Not anything important anyways. However, he didn't see his yet.

'They probably didn't find anything important for me as well. Does it even matter if I check my results out?' He thought to himself.

Donatello sighed as curiosity got the better of him and he scrolled down to the last page, where his DNA results were.

Notes:

And this is it for this chapter :D I hope that you liked it ^^

Chapter 7: Chapter Seven- Reveal

Notes:

Hey guys! I'm really happy that there are readers to this series! Thank you very much and I hope that you enjoy it! ^^

TW: Panic Attack

Donatello, curious, decided to scroll down to see his DNA results.

He frowned as he saw the results.

"Huh? What is wrong with my results?" He asked himself out loud.

"Why is it-" He started, and then paused in understanding as his eyes widened in terror.

His breath started to get quicker and quicker as he continued to stare at the computer.

'Why are my results different- What is this? Why is it backwards? It can only mean- No, a prank by the Shredder? It- It can't be a prank- It's too real-' Donatello's thoughts started to go wild inside his head.

Donatello tried rereading the information many times, and each time, he felt more likely to pass out.

'It can't be. Why am I the only one? Why are only my results different- Why does it say-' He kept thinking as he started to realize. 'Sensei… Always tried to avoid the topic of my mutation- He always spoke of what had happened to us as a group, but whenever I asked him about myself specifically- He always looked worried, and if he didn't repeat the story that he had told us, he would simply try and avoid speaking about it with me…' Donatello thought in horror.

Donatello gripped the table as he tried to keep himself from falling off the chair.

He tried to deny whatever he was reading, but he secretly knew that this might be possible.

He then tried to scroll down a little more.

'There's more…?' He thought to himself as he saw that this wasn't the end of his results.

When he scrolled down he flinched in fear when he read the title.

The head of the second page of his results was labeled "Biological Parents".

Donatello tried to close his eyes and steady his breathing. When he understood that it was impossible to calm down, he simply kept reading.

…..

….

….

Donatello lost all connection to the world as he fell from the chair and landed on his butt and sat on the floor.

His breathing was uncontrollable.

His eyes were staring at the floor although he didn't really notice his position.

He was shaking, he was horrified- And he didn't like it. Not one bit.

He couldn't process any thought that he was trying to create. He didn't even notice that his cheeks were wet from tears.

"Parents…" He whispered to himself as he felt that he was about to scream from an overload of emotions.

Notes:

And this is it for this chapter! The end of the first season (not the end of the series, don't worry xD) is really close! Please tell me your thoughts on this series! :D Stay tuned to find out more!

Chapter 8: Chapter Eight- "Calm" Before The Storm

Notes:

Hey guys! Before the chapter starts I just wanted to say that I'm reading all of the comments that I am receiving and I really appreciate it! It makes me really happy to see that you like this fanfic and makes me want to write even more ^^ Now, let's begin!

TW: Panic Attack

The doors of the building burst open as Donatello ran as fast as his legs could take him. He didn't care about stealth and the only thing that he wanted to do right this moment was to get away from that building as far as he could so that he could be alone. Finally, Donatello stopped running and sat down on the rooftop of one of the buildings. He tried to calm his breathing as he thought over what he had just seen. He couldn't create any thoughts aside from seeing the results over and over again in his mind's eye. He didn't even know what to think.

"What do you mean 'disappeared'?" Splinter asked his sons, worried.

"We tried to contact him, but he wouldn't answer! We couldn't track his T-phone either!" Raph responded, confused and worried.

Splinter looked over his three sons and saw their worried expressions. He feared as he thought to himself. 'Is that why I was so anxious lately? Did something happen? Is Donatello alright?'

"Did you look for him?" Splinter asked.

"We tried. It's as if he doesn't want to be found!" Leo said as he tried calling Donatello again.

"He doesn't even answer our calls!" Mikey said with tears in his eyes as Raph tried to calm him down by patting his shell.

"It will be alright, Michelangelo. We will find him." Splinter said as he put his hand on his head and tried to put on a gentle smile to try and calm him down.

'Did Donatello get captured? Did he get injured? Maybe he simply didn't want to be found and ran away by himself?' Thoughts flooded Splinter's mind as he tried to figure out what could have happened.

His thoughts were cut short as he suddenly sensed someone entering the lair.

All of their gazes moved to the opening of the lair as they suddenly saw Donatello entering the lair.

"Donnie!" All of the three brothers called out together as he simply walked past them.

He wore a weak but serious expression as he stood in front of Splinter.

Splinter couldn't react from the shock of seeing Donatello's state. He was very pale and looked as if he had just seen a ghost.

"Donatello? Are you-" Splinter was about to express his worries as Donatello cut him short.

"Sensei. We need to talk. Privately." Donatello said as his cold expression didn't change.

'I need to figure out what is going on, and I'll get the answers that I want right now.' Donatello thought to himself as he tried to keep his cold expression from faltering, and to hide the fact that he was actually "scared as shell".

Notes:

And this is it for this chapter! The next episode will be the final of the first season. Get ready! :D

Chapter 9: Chapter Nine- The Confrontation

Notes:

Hey guys! This chapter is the end of the first season. I hope that you liked the series so far! Now, let's begin! ^^

Splinter stood inside of the lab, feeling worried. Donatello had come home, looking really upset, and asked him for a private talk. This has never happened before. Donatello seemed to find privacy for this specific conversation really important since they are going to have the talk in the sound-proof lab instead of the dojo like they always do. Splinter had to personally ask the brothers to let them have privacy since they were worried as well and wanted answers. They seemed against the idea of a secret conversation being kept from them after all that had happened this evening, however they had to listen to their father so they gave them privacy.

Splinter looked at Donatello as he finished locking the door and came to stand in front of him.

"Is something the matter, my son?" Splinter asked.

Donatello couldn't help but flinch when Splinter said "my son", which didn't go unnoticed.

"Donatello?" He asked again.

"Sensei… Something had happened on patrol." Donatello said nervously.

"What is it, Donatello? What made you so upset?" Splinter asked, curious and worried.

"We managed to find a building of the Foot that had low security." Donatello simply said.

"Oh? Really?" Splinter asked curiously.

"Yes, and we split up since there weren't many guards. I went to check out one of the floors…" Donatello said as he started to tremble.

"D-Donatello? What's wrong?" Splinter asked worriedly as he held Donatello's shoulders.

Donatello stepped back and out of his reach. Splinter was a little surprised by this action, but decided not to question Donatello.

"And in one of the rooms I found computers… I went to one of them and used my skills to try and find information about the Foot." Donatello said as he took a deep breath.

"And I found out that the Shredder tried to find information about our DNA…" Donatello said as he looked at his father.

He didn't like what he saw.

Although he didn't tell what he saw yet, he could already see that Splinter already knew what he was talking about. Splinter's eyes widened and his breathing became a little faster and heavier.

"You- you knew- didn't you?" Donatello asked, with a voice that delivered the message that he felt hurt, angry, sad, and many other emotions.

"Donatello…"

"I saw our DNA. My DNA." He declared.

"Donatello… I…" Splinter didn't even know where to begin.

"Do the others know already?" Donatello asked, upset.

Splinter simply shook his head negatively.

"I see…" He said quietly, a little relieved.

"How long were you going to hide this from me?" Donatello asked.

"I don't know." Splinter simply answered, feeling guilty.

"It seems like I should know if my whole life is a lie." Donatello said as he started to tremble again, trying to hold himself together.

"Donatello- It is not a lie-" Splinter started but the look of sadness and horror on Donatello's face made him stop talking.

"It feels like a lie." Donatello said quietly.

"Donatello-"

"I saw who my biological parents are as well." He said as he trembled even harder. His eyes started to fill with tears.

Splinter flinched in horror. He didn't even know what to do. He never even thought that he would have to reveal the secret so he didn't plan his actions in case he would need to tell him about his origin.

"I- I saw…" Donatello said as he hugged himself and tears started to go down his face.

"Donatello…" Splinter said as his expression turned from horror to sadness for his son.

"When were you going to tell me?" Donatello started questioning him as tears kept wettening his cheeks.

"When were you going to tell me that I was human…?" Donatello said as he clutched with force at the table that he usually uses for working on his inventions.

"Wh-when were you going to tell me about my pa-parents?" He questioned as speaking seemed to get harder and harder as he cried.

"When…"

Donatello then took a deep breath and managed to finally ask what he wanted to ask from the beginning.

.

.

.

.

"When were you going to tell me that the Shredder is my father?!"

Notes:

And this is the end of the first season! Did you expect the twist?! I hope that you will stick around for the second season! :D

Chapter 10: Season Two- Episode 1: Painful Truth

Notes:

Hi guys! Thank you for waiting! This is the start of the second season :D I hope that you enjoy this fanfic ^^

"When were you going to tell me that the Shredder is my father?!"

.

.

Splinter trembled after Donatello said it. He himself didn't like to think of it. Donatello, the son that he loves so much just as he loves his other sons, being related to the monster who ruined his life as a human. Splinter truly doesn't mind that. He just worries what would happen if the truth were to come out to the open.

Donatello bit his lower lip as he tried to stop himself from crying. He looked up at his father's face, waiting for an answer.

Time seemed to move on too slowly as nobody said anything.

Splinter simply stared down, keeping quiet.

Donatello sighed as he tried to wipe off his tears.

"Sensei…" Donatello said, looking at Splinter.

Splinter looked back on his son. "Donatello-" He tried to say as Donatello cut him off.

"Sensei- I need some time alone. Alright?" Donatello asked quietly.

"Of course, my son…" Splinter said sadly. Donatello seemed to flinch a little when he referred to him as "his son". Splinter quietly left the lab in sadness.

As the door closed, Donatello fell on his knees as he started crying even harder. He felt exhausted. Donatello wanted to crawl into his shell and disappear.

Their life seemed to always somehow get tougher and crazier. However, this time, it was too much.

Donatello thought over all of the things that he experienced. All of it, while knowing himself as a mutant. Nothing more, nothing less. The fact that he wasn't even meant to be a mutant in the first place was hard enough on him. But now, seriously? His parents and their identity just had to prove that his life was more of a soap opera than he had thought. It's so ridiculous.

No matter how much he cried, he couldn't stop thinking about it. Everything is a mess. Donatello tugged on his mask's tails as he lifted it so that he would be able to see it. The color of the mask that is supposed to represent him. Does it stay the same? Is he still the same as before, or different? And if he is indeed different, is it for the better or for the worse?

Notes:

And this is the start of the season! Thank you for reading and let me know your opinion! :D

Chapter 11: Season 2: Episode 2- Processing

Notes:

Hello! Welcome to another episode of my fanfic ^^ I hope that you like the story so far :D

"Sensei!" Leo called as their father left the lab. The three brothers stood in front of him, wearing worried expressions.

"Is something wrong with Donnie?" Mikey asked Splinter as they all looked at him, waiting for an answer.

"There must be, right? He looked really scared when he came back- not to mention the fact that he disappeared!" Raph said, expecting an explanation from their father.

Splinter sighed sadly as he looked down.

"Donatello simply… needs space. It is not for me to say what happened to him. Just give him some time to calm down." Splinter said. He then turned and left the room.

Donatello finally managed to calm down a little. Well, as much as he could anyways. He was still really confused, and really, really scared.

What is he supposed to do now? Is he supposed to tell someone? Try and forget about it? And what will he do when he faces… him?

There's no way that he can have a positive relationship with the likes of him anyways…

Donatello sighed as he looked at the ceiling. 'It would have been much better if I didn't find out… What good does knowing it even do?' He thought to himself, frowning.

He wanted to cry, yell, scream, or simply disappear. Whatever he could do just so that he would feel a little bit better than he does right now.

What would his family think? His friends? His… enemies?

Now whenever his father, his brothers, his friends, or anyone else will mention him… Will it disturb him? Should he feel bad about fighting him? Will trying to bring him down feel like he's the bad guy in this situation? Attacking his own biological father…

All their lives they learned to fear the Shredder. They learned that he brought only misery and pain to the others around him… "And he brought me." Donatello whispered to himself. Will people turn on him? Treat him differently because he was born to their greatest enemy? It's not like he asked for any of this…

Could he consider himself as his biological son or his enemy?

Notes:

This is the end for this chapter :D Please stay tuned for updates!

Chapter 12: Season 2- Episode 3- Decision

Notes:

Hi guys! I'm busy as of late so updates might take some time. I hope that you enjoy the story as much as I do! :D

Saki trembled as his eyes turned wide. He held the results as he breathed heavily and clutched at the paper with uncontrolled force.

Stockman stood in front of him, shocked and confused as well.

"Master, I-" Stockman said as Saki cut him off.

"Leave." He commended simply.

"Mas-"

"LEAVE!" The Shredder yelled.

Stockman hurried out of the room and finally left Saki to his thoughts.

How could this be? This question kept repeating itself in his mind. He kept reading the results over and over again. However, no matter how many times he read it over, he still didn't manage to calm down.

Donatello. Of all the people it could have been. Donatello? The turtle? His "enemy" that Hamato Yoshi had raised himself?

The more Saki thought about it, the more anger his Deja Vu had brought him. Is it the same story all over again? How dare he, HOW DARE THAT RAT. He dared to steal his own son. He dared to turn him against his own father. He dared to make him live his life as a mutant. A TURTLE MUTANT.

The more Saki tried to understand the situation and his feelings, the angrier he became.

No, he wasn't just angry.

He was furious.

All along, one of his enemies that he spent so much time hating and planning to destroy, revealed to be his own biological son.

"This disgusting rat." Saki whispered to himself as each word was said with hatred and anger.

This disgusting Hamato made him try to harm his own son. He made him hate his child. And for what? So that he could steal another thing that originally belonged to him?

He was right to try to destroy the rat.

Saki gripped at the armrest of his throne to try and calm himself down.

At least now he knows the truth before it becomes too late.

Now he can reclaim his second child and his son could return to his rightful father and sister. The rat had made a grave mistake by trying to separate his family. Saki would make him pay.

Plans and ideas started to form in his mind. He will take his son back. He will destroy the filthy Hamatos. He will get his revenge. And no one would stand in his way. Brainwashing his son into hating him and becoming a Hamato would be the rat's most regretful act.

Now that The Shredder knows the truth, he would make sure to set things how they were supposed to be.

Notes:

And this is it for this chapter! I hope that you liked it. ^^

Chapter 13: Season 2- Episode 4: The Day After

Notes:

Hi guys! Welcome to another chapter of my story :D I'm also really happy to read your comments and receive your support and I wanted to thank you for it ^^ Now, let's begin!

It was finally morning. Last night was… Crazy, to put it simply. Donnie disappears without a word, shows up in the lair while looking like he was about to collapse, and initiates a private conversation with Master Splinter. It was all very unlike him. At some point Donnie entered his room and hasn't come out since. He didn't even leave for breakfast! It all made the brothers very anxious. They wanted to try and talk to him but Master Splinter had asked them to give him space. Whatever was wrong, it seems to disturb Donnie very deeply.

"So, what do you think it is?" Leo asked Mikey and Raph, with a concerned expression.

"Whatever happened must have been serious. Donnie never disappeared during a patrol and then came back looking like he had seen a ghost." Raph said in thought as he frowned.

"Maybe he really did see a ghost?!" Mikey said in shock.

"No, Mikey. He didn't really see a ghost." Leo said while shaking his head as Raph rolled his eyes.

"Well, whatever it is, he can't stay in his room forever. He would come out and tell us what made him act like this eventually." Raph said, sighing.

"Hopefully it will be soon." Leo said sadly as the rest of the brothers nodded in agreement.

Meanwhile, in Donatello's room, Donnie was still thinking about the events of last night. It's all just crazy. The fact that this is his reality now makes him feel drained. He also saw in the results that he was the only one that the Shredder looked for his information about his DNA in Japan specifically. Now that he thinks about his appearance, it doesn't really surprise him. He can see it a little. When thinking hard enough about it, it's possible to see that he's Japanese.

He was now in a deep problem. The Shredder must know of the results since it was for him to see, and Donatello was too distracted to delete it.

"The mess that we will have to face because of it is inevitable, and I am in the middle of it all, if not the cause of it. Maybe… Talking about it won't be so bad. Someone needs to know about it anyways. It's just going to be hard to talk about it. However, it will surely make our lives harder and messier, because there's no way The Shredder would see the results and it will all stay just as it was." Donatello spoke to himself in thought.

"Well, if anyone needs to know, it's gotta be the leader. I just hope Leo won't take it as hard as I did."

Notes:

And this is it for this chapter :D I hope that you liked it. ^^

Chapter 14: Season 2- Episode 5: A not-so-simple request

Notes:

Hi guys! I apologize that it takes me time to upload, I am simply taking a break from writing here and there, but that does not mean that I stopped writing the story! I hope that you will enjoy it :D

The three brothers kept conversing until they suddenly heard the sound of footsteps. To their surprise, it was Donatello, who had finally left his room.

"Donnie!" Leo called out in surprise as the three of them hurriedly moved closer to him.

They all flinched as they noticed Donatello's face.

"What is going on, Donnie? You look like you didn't sleep for a week!" Raph exclaimed worriedly.

"I'm just… In a tough situation right now." Donatello said as he frowned and looked down to the floor.

"A tough situation is putting it lightly! What happened?" Raph asked as Leo and Mikey looked at Donnie, waiting for his answer.

"I…" Donatello said, trying to think of the right words.

"D? What's going on? You would feel better if you talk about it!" Mikey said, trying to get an answer for what has been going on with Donnie lately.

"Actually… I came out to call Leo so that I can talk about it with him." Donatello said nervously, looking at Leonardo.

Leo looked at Donnie in surprise, not expecting that Donnie simply left his room to call him so that they could talk.

"Huh? Talk to Leo?" Raph said confused as to why Donnie only wanted to talk to Leo.

"Yeah…? I just feel like there's something that I need to talk to him about." Donnie said, looking away while rubbing his neck nervously.

"But what about us?" Mikey said, looking at Donnie sadly.

"I would let you know. I just want to talk to him privately right now." Donatello said, trying to comfort Mikey.

"Alright. Let's go." Leo said, curious as to what Donnie wants to talk about.

Raph and Mikey wanted to protest that they should be in the conversation as well, but decided to back off when they saw how tired Donatello was. It still doesn't mean that they aren't curious as shell.

Notes:

And this is it for this chapter! I hope that you liked it :D

Chapter 15: Season 2- Episode 6- Discovery

Notes:

Hi guys! Thank you for being patient with me and waiting for me to update :D Please enjoy!

Once again Donatello found himself in the sound-proof lab to hold a secret conversation. Only this time, he is about to have a talk with Leo.

Leo couldn't help but feel anxious as he stepped into the lab. Donatello has been acting very odd lately and apparently he is about to find out why. However, it makes him even more nervous since Donnie wanted to talk to him personally. 'Perhaps Donnie wanted to talk about something really personal? Maybe that's why he wanted to only speak to me instead of all of us as a group.' Leo thought to himself.

"You can sit down." Donnie said, gesturing to one of the chairs in the lab. "Believe me, you should sit down if I am going to explain what has been going on." Donatello added, sighing in exhaustion.

Leo blinked in confusion, but then sat down as he was asked.

"So, Donnie… Maybe you should explain to me about the reason you ran off that night…?" Leo asked, curious.

"...Okay." Donatello said, frowning.

"So, you remember how we broke into the building of the foot?" Donnie asked.

"Yeah, but it didn't seem that important since there weren't many guards." Leo responded.

Donatello nodded. "Yes. Anyways I checked the floor that you told me to check and found an office. I tried hacking into one of the computers there since I thought that maybe I would be able to get important information there. The computer ended up not having much information to hide, but then I decided to use said computer to hack into other computers that might have more useful information on them. Anyways… I ended up hacking into Stockman's computer."

"Stinkman's?!" Leo said in surprise. He was getting more and more curious about what could freak Donnie out as much as it did.

"Exactly. I was about to check it out until I suddenly saw a message saying something about a search and how 'results were received'." Donatello said, starting to get nervous.

"And what happened then?" Leo said, pressing for some answers.

"Apparently the message was from a program Stockman made himself… And it was to study our DNA."

"WHAT?!" Leo said in alarm.

"It was more about basic information rather than how our DNA works." Donatello said, trying to calm Leo down.

"So… They didn't find anything important…" Leo said, anxious.

"Well, not about you guys." Donatello said, nervous.

"What? What do you mean?" Leo asked in surprise.

"..."

"You can tell me, bro." Leo said as he noticed that Donatello had a hard time continuing. Leo rubbed Donnie's shoulder and smiled at him to reassure him.

"Okay… So I saw my results… And I found out that unlike you, I was… Originally human. And apparently The Shredder is my biological father. And Sensei knew about it." Donatello said, trying to reveal it as simply as possible.

This is all a pain in the shell.

Notes:

And this is it for this chapter! I hope that you liked it :D

Chapter 16: Season 2- Episode 7- Impossible

Notes:

Hey guys! I apologize that it takes me time to update. However, it does not mean that I will stop writing! Please be patient and enjoy :D

Although Donatello tried to reveal the news to Leonardo as simply as he possibly could, he still felt very uncomfortable about the whole situation. He found out about his true origin story not that long ago, and he's already revealing it to his oldest brother. Donatello's hands clenched into fists as he tried to calm himself down. His gaze was directed at the floor the entire conversation as he felt shame about something about himself that he couldn't even control. What would Leo even think? If Donatello can't accept something that is literally about himself, how would Leo, a bystander, react? Leo is the leader, after all. Although they all feel the pressure of having to avoid Shredder's plans to destroy them, Leo is affected the most, given the fact that he needs to- well, be a leader. And now, not only is Leo's own little "Brother" someone that turns out to be entirely different from what he knows about him, but he is related to his biggest and most dangerous enemy.

Donatello shook his head while keeping his eyes shut, trying to get rid of his anxiety. It was already stressful as it is without him adding more reasons to worry, after all. It was too late anyways. The truth was out. Leo knows now…

Donatello frowned in thought as he suddenly realized that he didn't hear Leo say anything after he confessed the truth. His gaze lifted from the floor and landed on Leo. Donatello's eyes widened a bit in surprise as he straightened his back.

Leo stared intensely at Donatello, making it look as if his eyes were about to pop out of his head as his jaw seemed like it was just about to hit the floor. It seemed as if Leo was going over what Donatello had said in his head, as his eyes scanned over him. He was very likely trying to compare him to the Shredder, to see any possible resemblance.

"Ha!" Leo forced a laugh as he wore a feigned smile. Donatello stared at Leo in surprise. He sure didn't expect this reaction out of him.

"Good one, Don. I almost believed you." Leo said, still forcing himself to smile. However it wasn't hard to spot how he frowned a little, secretly wishing that it was indeed a joke.

Donatello sighed sadly as he composed himself.

"Leo, I'm not joking-" Donatello tried explaining, until Leo cut him off.

"Donnie, be serious. Tell me that it was a joke." Leo said with a stern face, losing his fake smile.

Donatello's gaze simply shifted to the floor again as he stayed quiet. Leo understood the meaning of this as his eyes widened once again in realization. Leo closed his eyes as he took calming breaths, trying to compose himself.

"How is that possible?" Leo asked, wearing a stern expression once again, in order to hide his shock and confusion.

Donatello, who didn't lift his gaze from the floor, simply shrugged his shoulders slightly in a motion that indicates that he, himself, doesn't know either.

Although Leo himself was struggling, he managed to understand that Donnie is having a hard time himself- which isn't really surprising. This whole story was about Donnie finding out his own true identity, after all. Leo leaned in closer to Donatello and rested his palm on his shoulder.

"Donnie… Are you okay?" Leo asked as his expression turned into one of concern. Donatello firmly shut his eyes as his lips slightly trembled. Leo's concerned expression deepened as he leaned closer to Donnie's face.

"Do you… Need to cry?" Leo asked Donnie gently. Donatello weakly shook his head to answer with a 'no' without having to speak. Donatello weakly wrapped his arms around Leo as he leaned in and rested his forehead on Leo's shoulder, trying to comfort himself.

Leonardo weakly smiled as he wrapped his arms around Donatello in return, while using one of his hands to pat Donatello's head gently.

"It's all good, bro. It will all be alright." Leo told Donnie quietly, trying to calm him down.

"...Leo?" Donnie asked in a whisper, loud enough for Leo to hear.

"Yes? What is it?" Leo asked gently.

"Will you… Still support me? Now that you know the truth about me?" Donnie asked, his arms tightening around Leo in fear of being rejected.

"Of course!" Leo answered without hesitation. "We are brothers, aren't we? It changes nothing between us." Leo said as he pulled away from the hug and straightened Donnie's posture with his hands on his shoulders, only to smile at him. Donatello weakly returned the smile as he felt a wave of relief wash over him.

"Did you think that I am that easy to get rid of?" Leo asked, smirking as he pinched Donnie's cheek. "Ow! Leo!" Donatello huffed as he swatted away Leo's hand and rubbed his cheek while pouting. "Did you really have to do that?" Donnie added in annoyance as he tried to hide how happy he actually was. A smile started to form at the corners of his mouth as he turned to face Leo. "Thanks for… You know… Helping me get this off of my chest." Donatello said as he gave Leo a small and gentle smile.

"No problem. What am I here for, after all?" Leo replied with a smile of his own.

Now, finally, for the first time in a while, Donatello felt like he wasn't actually falling apart.

Notes:

This is it for this chapter! I hope that you liked it ^^ Support is deeply appreciated :D

Chapter 17: Season 2- Episode 8- What's Next?

Notes:

Hey guys! I hope that you like the story so far! Your support is greatly appreciated :D Enjoy reading!

"Well… What do we do now?" Donatello asked nervously, looking around the lab while slightly twitching in his seat as he tried to hide his uneasiness.

"W-what?" Leo replied in surprise, caught off guard by how quick the question about their future actions came up in the conversation. Leo just found out the truth about Donnie, shortly after Donnie himself. He wasn't even done processing the whole situation in his head. Although he didn't mention it to Donnie given that he was trying to make him feel better, Leo was freaking out. Well, "Freaking out" is an understatement. He's just really good at hiding it. It's a good thing they both sat down before Donnie spilled the beans.

Leo was actually terrified. He now understood what the conversation that Donnie had with Splinter was about. 'Donnie did mention that Master Splinter already knew about it, so that eliminates the possibility that this is all just a lie made by the Shredder in order to mess with them…" Leo thought to himself.

"What are we going to do now that we know the truth?" Donnie asked, rephrasing the same question after noting to himself of the surprise and confusion that are written on Leo's face. He can't blame Leo for his reaction. He, himself, is a bit surprised that he managed to get down to business right away. Finding out the secret about his true self is a very huge deal. However, thinking about their actions going onward is a whole different story.

"The results were originally supposed to be sent to Stockman, after all. It means the Shredder must know about me as well…" Donnie added, with concern lacing his voice.

Leo's eyes widened as his shoulders stiffened. He didn't really think about it, given that he was barely even processing their conversation, and what led to all of this situation in the first place.

"Oh…" Leo simply replied as his shoulders slacked and his gaze shifted to the floor.

"And there's also Karai…" Leo added, sighing from how exhausting this all felt.

"Yeah. And she believes her father is the Shredder as well, and Shredder considers her as his daughter, so she will probably be affected as well." Donnie said, putting his hand on his chin as he tried to think about the circumstances.

"Maybe if we bump into her you can try and convince her that Sensei is her father? Since she's his daughter we are basically siblings, but since you have Shredder's DNA as his "child", she might actually consider you as her brother." Leo said, feeling a little uncomfortable with the fact that he just referred to Donnie as Shredder's child. 'Just because Donnie shares his genes with him doesn't mean he is actually his son. Sensei is his true father.' Leo thought to himself, frowning a little at the fact that Donnie is literally being stuck in a conflict that he doesn't even deserve to be in, in the first place.

"You know, she might think that I am the one who is being deceived, rather than her herself. Also, she might not know about me in the first place." Donnie said,scratching the back of his neck while thinking of the possibilities that an encounter with Karai could bring.

"Yeah… I guess that's true…" Leo said, sighing in disappointment. Karai could really help them with this situation if she was on their side. After all, she literally grew up with the Shredder.

"And there's no doubt that the Shredder is going to do something about all of this, right? There's no way he would find out about me and just ignore my existence." Donnie said as a worried expression formed on his face.

Leo squeezed Donnie's shoulder as he looked directly at him, wearing a serious expression.

"If it's in my power, I'll make sure he won't even look at you. Understand?" Leo asked, trying to make the message clear as he watched Donnie reply with a little nod.

"You don't have to be afraid." Leo added as his expression softened.

Donnie sighed as he straightened in his seat.

"Leo, let's be honest. The Shredder will plan something for sure," Donnie said with a stern, yet worried expression. He bit his lower lip as his gaze shifted to his knees.

"Which is why we will be ready." Leo replied with a soft and reassuring smile as he moved his hands to hold Donnie's.

Donnie moved his gaze to stare at Leo as he tilted his head a little to the side, squeezing Leo's hands lightly. "Are you sure…?" Donnie asked, feeling uncertain.

"Yeah! Don't worry." Leo said as he smirked and leaned backwards in his seat and crossed his arms, in a show of being confident with his reply.

"Alright then… I'll take you up on it." Donnie said, sighing as he put on a little smile.

However, deep down, he wasn't so sure if they could handle whatever the Shredder could throw at them in the future.

Notes:

This is it for this chapter! I hope that you liked it :D

Chapter 18: Season 2- Episode 9- Getting Answers

Notes:

Hey guys! Thank you for keeping up with my series :D I appreciate all of your support and enjoy making it very much ^^ Now, let's begin!

"Well, this is it, then." Donnie says, taking a deep breath and composing himself in his seat.

"This is what?" Leo replies as he tilts his head to the side in confusion.

Donnie sighs as he rubs his face with his hand with a tired expression. "I guess that it's time to ask Splinter about the truth, right? I mean, I'm pretty sure that I have the right to know the full story."

Leo stares at him blankly for a few seconds until an expression of understanding washed over his face. "...Oh!" He replied, surprised with himself that it took him so much time to process anything. Since Donnie had more time to digest the situation, he was having an easier time processing what they should do now that they know the truth. Donnie was always the best with technical thinking. However, Leo was still having a hard time keeping up.

"Yeah… You are right." Leo says as he signs and scratches the back of his neck with a look of uneasiness evident on his face.

"You know… You don't have to join if you don't want to." Donnie says as he notices the uneasiness that Leo is experiencing. "I just feel that I should know about the full picture, you understand?" Donnie says as he softly smiles at Leo to reassure him that whatever he decides is fine with him.

"No! No. I'm your big brother and this team's leader. I should know about it and be there to support you." Leo says as he crosses his hands and a serious expression appears on his face. "Besides, I'm curious as shell." Leo mumbles quietly as he pouts.

Donnie chuckles as he gets up from his seat. "Alright, let's go." Donnie says, smirking as he heads toward the lab's closed entrance.

"N- now?!" Leo scrambles off of his seat into a standing position as his eyes widen in surprise.

"Yeah. Do you regret wanting to join me?" Donnie says, teasing Leo as he unlocks the lab's doors.

"No! I'm coming." Leo says, pouting as he follows Donnie and leaves the lab.

Donnie's breath was suddenly knocked out of him as he found himself being hugged aggressively by his youngest brother right when he left the lab.

"Donnie! Dude! Are you okay?!" Mikey asks in panic as he looks at his face without releasing Donnie from his grip.

"Yeah! It's all good!" Donnie says with surprise in his voice as his eyes widened, caught a little off guard because of Mikey.

Leo left the lab right after Donnie as he gave Mikey a light pat on his shoulder in an attempt to calm him down. Mikey always overreacted, but considering the situation, it was understandable.

"There you are! What was all of that about?!" Raph says as he walks closer to Donatello. He wore his usual scowl, but this time it was pretty obvious that he was worried as well.

"I've been… Having a hard time." Donnie says as he looks away uncomfortably while rubbing his arm in anxiousness.

"Did you at least figure out what is going on?" Raph says as he looks at Leo with a look of doubt on his face.

"Actually, yeah…" Leo says as he looks down to the floor, a nervous expression clouding his features.

"Which is?" Raph replies, trying to press for answers.

"Is something wrong?" Mikey asks, leaning a little out of the hug to look at Donnie and flash him an expression of worry.

"Yeah. Really wrong." Donnie replies as he looks at Leo.

"What?! What is it?" Mikey asks in a slight panic as Raph stares at Donnie with surprise on his face.

"Now, now. It's all good." Leo says with wide eyes as he attempts to calm Raph and Mikey down.

"I mean… You can come with us to question Sensei and find out." Donnie says, shrugging.

"Huh? Why do we need to question Master Splinter?" Raph asks in confusion.

"There's only one way for you to find out." Donnie shrugs as he pulls out of Mikey's hug and walks in the direction of the dojo.

"Fine." Raph says as he rolls his eyes in annoyance but follows Donnie anyways with Leo and Mikey in tow.

Notes:

And this is it for this chapter! Thank you for waiting patiently for updates. I really appreciate your support :D

Chapter 19: Season 2- Chapter 10- Shedding Light

Notes:

Hey guys! This took a lot of time writing so I hope that you'll like it :D Please tell me what you think of the story! FYI: This series will now be published on Wattpad as well! :D

Now, are you ready? ;3

TW: Slight and non-graphical mentions of obsession and toxic relationships.

Donatello stood in front of the dojo's entrance, feeling both nervous and determined. His breathing was a little quicker and heavier than it usually was from the excitement and panic that he was feeling. This is it. He just found out the truth not that long ago, and he's going to try to get answers this early. It felt a little rushed, as if he wasn't really ready. Maybe he was too quick and arrogant to decide to find out more about himself this fast. After all, he learned the truth only two days ago. Perhaps he just wants to get the answers that he desires so much so that he could finally have peace and quiet, and his brain would finally stop bullying him due to unanswered curiosity.

Questions and doubts about what he was about to do filled his head. His shoulders stiffened with anxiety as he debated in his mind whether to enter the room or run away from what was about to come.

He bit the side of his lip as his eyes kept moving in different and random directions while standing in place, due to him being caught up in his thoughts. Mikey and Raph exchanged a confused glance as Leo simply stared at Donnie, waiting for him to make a move.

"Donnie?" Donnie turned his head to glance at Raph, who looked at him with an expression of confusion and concern on his face. "You good?" Raph continued, lifting his eyebrow in a questioning manner.

"Oh, yeah! Yeah." Donatello answered nervously, with an unconvincing tone to his voice. He scratched the back of his neck as he looked at the ceiling with an obviously fake smile on his face. "I just… Didn't think this far…?" Donnie said, phrasing the sentence as a question because of his uncertainness.

Donnie was starting to regret his decision. Maybe he should ignore the results. Live as if he never found out about them. Acting oblivious would make life so much easier for him. 'Being a nerd has its disadvantages. I always feel like I need to find out and learn more about a mystery. If only I hadn't been curious enough to read the results in the first place…' Donnie thought to himself bitterly.

"About talking to sensei?" Mikey chipped in, tilting his head to the side as he frowned in confusion. Donnie shook his head as he realized that he was stuck in his own thoughts for a moment. "Why do you even need to talk to him?" Mikey continued as he scratched his chin while eyeing Donnie, wishing for him to give him an answer to relieve his growing curiosity.

Donnie sighed as his shoulders slackened. "You know… Maybe I don't need to talk to him right now after all. It can wait." Donnie said as he shook his head. His anxiety ended up winning as he turned to walk away, feeling slightly embarrassed about fleeting right before he was about to receive the answers that he had wished so hard for.

Before he could leave, he felt a hand on his shoulder gripping him, stopping him in his tracks.

"I think that it's a great idea to speak to him now." Leo said, giving Donnie a seemingly but not actually innocent smile. "Right?" Leo said, signaling to Donnie that he wasn't going to let him back down. 'Apparently Leo can be very annoying.' Donnie thought to himself in frustration.

Donnie's face turned into an expression of annoyance as he tried to put on a fake smile. "Right… Thanks, Leo…" Donnie said through gritted teeth, attempting to play along, since he was being put on the spot. Leo wouldn't let him walk away so easily.

Raph and Mikey eyed Leo and Donnie in suspicion as Raph's expression held a slight annoyance to it that he wasn't really trying to hide.

Their heads snapped in the direction of the dojo's entrance simultaneously as the door slid open. Splinter stood in the doorway as he looked at them for a few seconds before sighing. "You may enter." Splinter turned around and went back into the dojo. Donatello tensed as the others looked in Splinter's direction in surprise. Obviously, Splinter knew what Donnie wanted to speak to him about.

Leo lightly pushed Donnie's shoulder, giving him a serious expression as he nodded, to deliver Donnie the message that it is time to do what needs to be done. Donnie gulped nervously as he straightened his back to brace himself, and slowly went through the dojo's open doors, and into the room. He didn't really have a choice anymore but to do what he had planned to do in the first place. Leo followed Donnie inside as Raph and Mikey entered right after them.

The brothers moved to sit in front of their father, who was already sitting on the dojo's mat.

Splinter eyed all of his sons, studying their expressions.

"I can tell what Donatello wants to speak to me about. And I can see that you do too, Leonardo." Splinter said, eyeing Leo.

"Oh- Hai, sensei." Leo replied nervously, surprised at how fast his father understood the situation.

"Is there something that we need to know about?" Raph questioned his father and two brothers, as rudely as always. Splinter sighed as he put a hand on his forehead, massaging it in exhaustion.

"There is a lot that I need to tell you, my sons." Splinter said, guilt lacing his voice.

"...I need to know about what is going on... The full story." Donnie said as he looked at his father with an expression of determination on his face, but not succeeding in hiding his anxiousness from appearing in his voice.

Splinter gently nodded as he straightened his back. "Yes, you certainly deserve the truth. You all do."

"About what, sensei? What is going on?" Mikey questioned in curiosity.

"You all already know about the story of my past." Splinter stood up and went in the direction of his family's memorial. He took the picture that showed him, his wife and his daughter in his hands and rubbed it gently as sadness washed over him. "You already know this picture too well." He said, a small smile appearing on his face as he looked over it. The brothers looked upon him with sad expressions, wishing to help him feel better but not wanting to disturb him while speaking about something that is already hard for him to speak about,

Splinter's expression suddenly turned serious as his body slightly tensed. He turned to look at his sons as he held up the picture for them to see. "This is not the only picture that I have in my possession." He said as he put it back where it was. He inserted his hand into his robe, pulling out another picture. "I prepared it, knowing that we are going to have this conversation now." Splinter said as he walked in the direction of his sons slowly, handing Donnie the picture. Donnie gently took it and looked over it, as his brothers hovered over him, in order to see the picture as well.

The four gasped as they saw the unfamiliar, old and colorless picture. In the picture was their father in his youth, before he became a mutant, who had his arm wrapped around Tang Shen, his wife, and in her arms was a baby. However, the child was obviously not Miwa.

Donnie looked over the child in the picture, tracing it with his eyes with a mouth slightly open while knowing full well who it actually was.

"I may be Shen's husband, but I wasn't her first spouse, quite obviously." Splinter said as he took back the picture from Donnie's slightly shaking hands. "And unlike me, who tends to be more traditional, like how I was raised, Shen didn't follow tradition as much as I did, which includes… Doing certain acts… Before marriage." Splinter said nervously, preferring not to ruin Mikey's childhood just yet.

Innocent Mikey scratched the side of his head in confusion as the other three brothers looked at Splinter in surprise.

"Wait… So this kid here isn't yours?" Raph questioned Splinter as he caught on to what the hidden message was.

"Correct." Splinter replied as Mikey looked in surprise, catching on thanks to Raph.

Donnie and Leo eyed each other in terror, knowing where this story will probably go.

"Before me, Shen was actually… With Saki." Splinter admitted bitterly, through gritted teeth.

The brothers flinched in surprise as their eyes widened.

"What?!" The four brothers exclaimed, basically screaming as a result of the shock.

Splinter sighed as he rubbed his beard and continued the story.

"However, during their time together, Shen started to notice that Saki was becoming more… Dangerous. Saki started to drift apart from everyone, being easily consumed by anger and jealousy, and not thinking twice before taking it out on everyone around him, including Shen. Perhaps he was starting to figure out his true origin much earlier than he actually let on." Splinter said with a glum look on his face.

"At some point, Shen decided to leave Saki due to his toxic behavior. She and I were good friends regardless of her relationship with Saki, and she would come to me whenever she needed to talk. We were both in a tough place due to Saki pushing us away, and changing as a person, so we helped each other a lot during that time. We ended up becoming closer than we used to be as a result of supporting each other in a time of need, only to fall in love later on. Shen and I decided to be together when we discovered that both of us felt the same feelings for one another. Shen was very happy that she had me, especially since she was afraid of Saki. He became more unstable by the day and was showing signs of an unhealthy obsession over her, and Shen desired the protection and love that I could offer her." Splinter straightened his back and took in a deep breath, composing himself before continuing.

"At first we planned to keep the part about Shen and I being together a secret, because I had still hoped for Saki to get better, and did not want to ruin our relationship more than it already was. However… Shen started showing." Splinter looked once again at the picture of him and Shen, holding the new-born baby.

"W-wait! So Tang Shen and the Shredder…" Leo said with wide eyes, unable to continue the sentence. Although he knew about the father, he wasn't told that Tang Shen was related to the story as well.

"They had a baby?!" Raph exclaimed in shock.

"D- dude- What?!" Mikey exclaimed as it looked like his eyes were about to pop out of their sockets. Donatello simply stared at the floor as he was trying to process the new information.

"Yes." Splinter answered Raph, confirming the suspicion that the three brothers had.

"It wasn't really noticeable, and Shen managed to hide it for some time, however, we needed a solution, because Shen knew that it would be troublesome for Saki to find out but still wanted to keep the child. However, she feared what might happen if Saki would find out about the child, especially since the child was his. Therefore, we decided to hastily get married, since it would make the situation easier to manage, and we knew that we wanted to marry each other. When Saki found out that we were getting married, he didn't receive the news well. We drifted even farther apart and he tried to get Shen back even more than he did before. His anger towards me had turned into hatred as he kept claiming that I was stealing something that 'originally belonged to him'. Shen and I went to a little house that she had received from her family far away from the Hamato clan's area shortly after the marriage and stayed there until Shen gave birth and it wasn't noticeable on her appearance anymore. Finally, she gave birth to a boy, and she chose to name him Donatello, after the artist that she was fond of." Splinter said, smiling as he looked at Donnie, who showed a bit of surprise. The three other brothers slowly turned their heads to look at Donnie in shock, as Donnie looked down nervously for being in the spotlight.

"Wait… Is Donnie named after this kid?!" Mikey asked, caught off guard as he stared at Donnie while Raph turned his head to look at Splinter,wearing an expression that was just as shocked as Mikey's, and silently asking for answers. Leo glanced at Donnie, as Donnie lifted his head to glance back at him, shrugging his shoulders to deliver the message that he didn't know about the part of Shen naming him as well.

"All in due time, my sons." Splinter said as he went back to telling the story. "We went back to where we lived, asking one of Shen's friends who lived near the house where we stayed to take care of the child while we were gone, and we promised to come back to visit him a lot."

"Wait, wait." Raph interrupted. "Couldn't you just find a more simple solution? Like saying that the child is yours or something? It didn't have to be this complicated." Raph said in confusion. "Well, it might seem overly complicated, but do not forget that Saki and I are not brothers in blood. Although I didn't know that at the time. Saki and I didn't really look alike, and therefore the child might look similar to him rather than to me. Also, it's not hard to do the calculation as to when the 'action needs to be taken' in order to have a child on a specific date. We wanted a reason to travel a lot together given the situation and since Shen wanted my support throughout all of it, and regardless, we just wanted a reason to get married." Splinter said, a fond smile appearing on his features. "Besides, we knew that Saki would not react well to Shen carrying his child, while being in a relationship with me, so we did not want to risk it." Splinter added, his gaze shifting down as he sighed.

"The picture that I handed you was taken because Shen wanted to keep something to remind her of her child. It was her first one, after all." Splinter added, smiling, waving the picture for his sons to see.

"When we returned after a long time to where we lived, it was highly noticeable how unstable Saki had become. He would have outbursts, act more aggressively, and sometimes he would aim to harm me when we dueled for the purpose of practicing ninjutsu. My father and I tried many times to approach him, and talk to him, to see if we could do anything to help him. However, he did not want our help. Shen would tell me how he would try to convince her to get back together, and get her to come with him to New York. He knew that she wanted to go there and that I didn't wish to leave the clan behind. However, around a year after her first child was born, Shen became pregnant again, but this time, by me. However, you already know about Miwa. This time we didn't need to hide her, since she was mine. We went to visit the other child a lot, before and after Miwa was born. We would take her with us a lot as well. Those were my favorite moments. Although the child wasn't mine, I loved him and cared for him as a father would, and all of us, being there… Felt like finally the whole family was together. Aside from that, you already know the story, and about the fire…" Splinter's ears flattened as a sad expression formed on his face. "After the fire… I went to get Donatello, the one who I believed to be my last family member who's alive…" Splinter paused for a few seconds, pushing back some unshed tears as his sons watched him with worried and sad frowns on their faces. He sighed as he finally managed to continue his sentence. "...As fast as I could, and moved with him to New York, for a fresh start. I even bought baby turtles." He said smiling as he looked at his sons. "Three baby turtles."

Donnie didn't dare to look at his brothers. At this point, it was pretty obvious where this story was going. Well, maybe Mikey would still be confused, but still, it was hard for him. He did sense Raph stiffen beside him, however, he still didn't dare to look at him, and see his reaction.

"Three? But there are four of us, sensei." Mikey stated the obvious with a confused voice.

"Exactly." Splinter replied, slightly smirking. "And you are about to find out why." Splinter added, a little humored with Mikey's obliviousness. Splinter quickly composed himself as his expression turned serious again.

"The hatching date of the turtles was specified, and it just happened to be the same day that Donatello was born, which was one of the many reasons as to why I chose to purchase the turtles. Therefore, exactly like the child, they were all around the age of two. The rest from here you know as well, until the point of the mutation. You came in contact with Donatello, and he came in contact with you as well. When you were mutated, Donatello received his turtle DNA from you, while you all received your human DNA from him, making you who you are now. I took care of all of you, and decided the order of your age by the way you were acting and maturing, since I couldn't know for sure. I named all of you by following Shen's lead, and chose to match you to your brother's name by theme, and that is mainly why you are all named after specific artists as well."

Splinter took a deep breath, a bitter expression forming on his face, as he finally told the brothers what the meaning behind the story was. "And the reason that Donatello, your brother, was closed off lately was because… He found out that he is Oroku Saki's child by blood."

Donatello raised his eyes from the floor as he looked at his father, giving him a gentle nod while he was still processing the story in his head.

He straightened his back and took a deep breath to compose himself, as he finally looked at his brothers.

Raph and Mikey's jaws were basically touching the floor as their eyes seemingly doubled in size while their pupils extremely shrunk. They held their breath in utter shock as their eyes traced all over Donnie's body. Their bodies were stiff as they didn't manage to move a single muscle. Mikey tried to move his jaw to say something, only to close it again. Raph didn't even try to say anything, because he didn't really know what to say. Donnie then glanced at Leo. Although Leo partly knew what was about to come, he still looked shocked. However, not as much as Raph and Mikey were. Leo's eyes were wide and his mouth was slightly gaped, but he managed to partly control his reaction, knowing that as much as he was surprised, he didn't want Donnie to feel uncomfortable.

It's not really surprising that they look at Donnie like he grew a second head. He probably would have reacted just like them and he knows it. But he still felt very uncomfortable and nervous.

"DUDE WHAT?!" Mikey finally managed to basically scream, shock lacing his voice as he somehow looked even more intensely at Donnie, who cringed at the sudden scream and the intense staring with wide eyes, but then simply looked away as he chewed his inner cheek in discomfort. It felt to Donnie as if all of the staring would end up drilling holes all over his body.

Raph tried to say something as well, only to fail uttering even a single sound. He just kept opening and closing his mouth like a gaping fish.

Raph and Mikey's breathing had gotten quicker and heavier as they attempted to process what they were being told- to no success.

A frown was displayed on Leo's face, as he still had a lot to process, and he kept repeating details from the story in his mind again and again, attempting to understand it as best as he could. Since Leo was already aware of the twist, the impact wasn't as hard as it was on Raph and Mikey. However, the newfound information was a lot to process. Not only that, but he also didn't have any chance to collect himself from the last blow, when Donnie told him about the results. It was today, after all.

Donnie, with a heavy heart and a saddened expression, shifted his gaze from his brothers to his father, who looked back at him with an expression of relief, for finally being able to uncover one of his biggest secrets. Splinter wasn't trying to hide his emotions, which was a rare occurrence. He had a warm smile on his face, showing Donnie how happy he was for the burden of keeping the secret to finally be taken off his shoulders. However, his eyebrows contorted as a sign of worry. He doesn't want the truth to affect Donnie or his brothers and their brotherhood negatively, but given that there was no other choice, considering their circumstances and the risky situation with the Shredder, the story had to come to light.

Meanwhile, Donnie still had a hard time processing the story. And if he, himself, couldn't, then he doesn't blame his brothers for nearly having a heart attack. And he wouldn't blame them for being uncomfortable after learning about him like that. Donnie wasn't really comfortable knowing about where he came from, as well.

It was a really hard thing to accept.

Really hard.

Splinter didn't miss the mess of emotions that was displayed on Donnie's face. It was expected, but there's no turning back. Since he found out that the Shredder resides in New York as well, and they entered into what feels to be like an endless battle at this point of Splinter's life, he knew that he and his sons will have to cross that bridge someday, together. And that day finally came. 'The Shredder must know of Donatello at this point. The only thing that we can do now is fight back against what he throws at us in the future.' Splinter thought to himself as a frown appeared on his face. He once again glanced at the old photo of his family. The photo of his son. A small smile formed on his face as he remembered his son as a baby. Both as a turtle and a human.

Splinter was always there to support his son. At least, as much as he could. And he was going to support him now as well, because that's what fathers do for their sons, and Splinter wouldn't allow Donatello to forget that.

Notes:

And this is it for this chapter! The next episode will be the end of the second season! But don't worry, the story basically just started :D I really hope that you enjoy this series. Support is highly appreciated and I read all of your comments and I'm really happy that people find enjoyment in my work :D Thank you so much!

Chapter 20: Season 2- Episode 11- Reassuring

Notes:

Hey guys! This episode is the ending for season 2! The next season will be the start of the main events :D Please stay tuned and tell me your opinion about my story! Support is deeply appreciated!

Donnie's hope for acceptance from the members of his family who didn't know about his background became smaller and smaller as time went on. He could feel the intense stares of Raph and Mikey burning holes through his body as he slightly raised his shoulders and hugged himself tightly in an attempt to make himself smaller. The fact that no one said anything only made the situation much more intense and uncomfortable for him. Donnie's frown deepened as he waited for someone to say something. Anything.

Sadly for Donnie, Raph and Mikey struggled too much in order to make a response, and Leo and his father decided that although they noticed the discomfort that Donnie was experiencing, they felt like it wasn't their place to make the next move.

Donnie waited a few more seconds, only to realize that he is the one that needs to break the silence.

He sighed as he straightened himself, trying to ignore the discomfort that he was feeling from being the center of attention.

"Listen… Guys… I didn't know about that story either. I thought that I was the same as you all." Donnie said with deep sorrow as his gaze was drawn to the floor. He wished to be the same. Sadly, he can't really change the fact that he is who he is either.

"I found out about my biological parents when we were out on patrol. When we were checking out that Foot building I found a computer and hacked into it in order to find important information. And apparently, the Shredder was studying our DNA. Luckily he didn't find anything important about you guys… But he managed to find out about me…" Donnie lifted his gaze as he looked at Raph and Mikey, studying their reactions.

They flinched as Donnie's words sunk in. Terror washed over them as they understood what it meant. The Shredder was now in the game as well.

Donnie sighed sadly as he still didn't hear a response from Mikey and Raph. He looked over all of his family as he felt a wave of sadness wash over him. He forced his eyes shut and his lips slightly trembled, attempting to hold back tears as he wrapped his arms around himself even tighter.

"I… Understand if you all don't want me to be around anymore..." Donnie said quietly as his breathing slightly hitched.

A few more seconds passed by in silence. Nothing could be heard but Donnie's ragged breathing.

He felt like the agony of a lack of response could crush him, since it might mean that Donnie was right. They don't want him around anymore, do they?

Donnie gasped loudly in surprise as he felt himself being pulled into a crushing embrace.

He quickly opened his eyes as he processed what was happening.

"..M-Mikey?!" Donnie yelped in surprise.

"Dude! D-Don't even say that!" Mikey yelled in shock.

"Huh?" Donnie said, confused by Mikey's reaction. He quickly looked around as he suddenly could feel the rest of his family move closer, only to one by one follow Mikey's lead and join the hug.

"Guys?! What's going on?!" Donnie asked in utter confusion as he was stuck in the middle of a group hug. He looked around frantically, only to see horror wash over his family's expressions.

"How could you even think that, Donnie…?" Leo asked him quietly as he looked at him with an expression of deep sadness.

Donnie looked at him in shock, trying but not managing to come up with a response.

"...Donnie." Raph mumbled quietly to get his attention.

Donnie looked at Raph, slightly surprised, interested in what he would say.

"Look, I won't lie to you, but I'm really freaked out. However, we are not going to abandon you or something over this…" Raph mumbled out, a little embarrassed by taking the spotlight of being the nice guy. It wasn't usually like him, but he did look over his brothers.

"So stop thinking like that." Raph added quietly, trying not to slap himself from the embarrassment that he had caused himself. He could see his father smile proudly at him as he attempted to act as if he didn't notice it.

Donnie's jaw hung open while his eyes widened in shock as he tried to take everything in.

"Wait… What? How come you all take the news so well?" Donnie asked as he looked at his family.

"We don't. But it's not about us, right?" Mikey said as he shrugged without breaking the embrace.

Donnie blinked in surprise as he stared at Mikey.

"Yeah, I was pretty shocked too when you told me about the Shredder and your relations, but I knew that you were the one going through a hard time so I had to put my feelings aside in order to help you." Leo chimed in.

"Yeah, Brainiac. It will take time to digest it. A lot of time. But, we know that all of this isn't your fault. Besides, we grew up together and we are there for each other. Doesn't that mean that we are brothers regardless of your relations? Also, it's not like we were sure that we were brothers by DNA in the first place." Raph added as Leo and Mikey nodded in agreement.

Splinter's smile widened in pride as he looked over his sons. They were surprisingly mature, and unsurprisingly were there for their brother. It's good that even when their brotherhood is put to test during harsh times, they still stay strong for one another.

"W-wait, so you are all okay with it?" Donnie asked dumbfoundedly as he stared in surprise at his family.

"Nope. But we will be." Raph said as he smirked at Donnie, who smiled awkwardly, but happily, back at him.

"It is kind of cool, too. Being the son of your greatest enemy? Sounds like a cool plot twist!" Mikey enthusiastically added with a huge smile on his face as he stared at Donnie excitedly, being immature as always.

"Reminds me of a certain movie." Raph added as he scratched his chin in thought.

"I think that I know what you mean." Leo added, smirking as Donnie chuckled.

"I am sure that your brothers are having a hard time understanding the situation, and it might take them some time to accept it, like how you still need time to accept it. Don't you?" Splinter asked Donnie, smiling fondly at him to make him feel better as he stopped them from kidding around before they could lose the main point.

"Oh! Yeah, don't worry about it." Donnie said awkwardly, looking away from his father in order to hide his excitement. He didn't expect for the conversation to go so well, and he didn't expect his brothers to actually try this hard in order to be there for him. A wide smile crept onto his lips as he closed his eyes, so that tears wouldn't escape his eyelids. At least this time the tears weren't coming from negative emotions.

"Th-Thanks… For being there for me." Donnie stuttered quietly as he attempted to control his reaction in order to avoid embarrassing himself in front of his family. He smiled warmly as he melted into their embrace.

"Of course we will be there for you. We are your family, aren't we?" Leo asked, smirking, as he looked at Mikey and Raph who were smirking as well in approval.

They all broke off the hug as they finally stood up.

"Yeah! No tin can genetic relations will affect us, bro." Raph said, chuckling as he pinched Donnie's cheek harshly in order to annoy him. "Ow! Why are you guys pinching me lately?!" Donnie asked, clearly very annoyed as he swatted away Raph's hand.

"Bro, you are clearly seen as the youngest now. Get used to it." Mikey said, smirking as Raph and Leo chuckled mischievously.

"No, they just like to annoy me. Will you shut up? I literally have the Shredder on my tail now." Donnie grumbled.

"Yay, more drama, just like I like it." Raph replied cynically. To think about the fact that their biggest enemy is going to be even a bigger threat right after discovering a huge secret and not even having time to digest it isn't a really nice thing to think about.

"Eh, that's a problem for later. My brain hurts enough right now." Mikey says as Donnie nodded in agreement.

"Yeah… that's true. At least you are all here to support me." Donnie said, smiling as he scratched the back of his neck while looking away nervously.

"Of course we are, Donatello. We will always be there for you." Splinter smiled as he put his hand on Donnie's shoulder in order to reassure him.

Donnie embraced his father once again, burying his face in his clothes to show his gratitude, as his father hugged him back right away.

The brothers smiled at them as Splinter beamed.

"Remember, Donatello. We will always be family."

Notes:

Hey guys! This is it for this episode! This is the ending of season 2. Get ready for the next season, this is when the fun starts! Thank you so much for sticking up with me :D I greatly appreciate it. What do you think so far about the story? Do you like it?

Also, I apologize that a lot of chapters were short. I divided the story into a lot of tiny parts so that I could update faster and not forget to add anything important about the story! Anyways, thank you for your support! I always read comments and get updated on the number of followers that the story gets :D I hope that the next season will be to your liking :3 Goodbye!

Chapter 21: Season 3- Episode 1- The Next Day

Notes:

Hey guys! Welcome to the third season of my fanfiction! Thank you so much for reading my story :D I would like to specify, in case any of you have gotten confused while reading the story, that the plot itself is not in a specific point in the timeline of the original show, and therefore some details are slightly different when it comes to the order of the events. Also, this is the season where the main story begins! The aftermath of learning about Donnie's secret identity. Do not forget that you can read this story on Wattpad as well! Now, the story begins!

It was now morning. Only yesterday the story about Donnie was revealed to him and his brothers. Since Donnie closed himself off in his room after the patrol where he found out about the secret and until now, they didn't do any ninjutsu training, due to the whole situation… Being messy. Splinter decided when Donnie told him that he found out about his parents that the best thing to do was take it easy since he understood that his son had learned something shocking about himself. Luckily, although everyone knows the full story about their brother now, their father allowed them to rest for today as well, and digest the news that they received yesterday.

The day started off awkwardly, since the brothers were still processing everything. Donnie could barely focus on anything. He hardly responded when someone referred to him as he simply stared at his laptop's screen, unfocused, as he sat with his family in the living room. His brothers weren't really focused either. They sometimes glanced at Donnie awkwardly, with the news still being on their minds, as Donnie was too distracted to notice their glances. They were mostly quiet as each of them kept themselves busy, doing their own thing, in order to keep their minds occupied. However, they never managed to clear their heads as the conversation from yesterday kept replaying in their heads.

It was easy to notice that yesterday had affected Donnie the most, as he was simply staring at nothing, with a blank expression, without doing anything at all. However, everyone felt like the situation was too heavy for them to bring up, which is why the lair was filled with silence for the first time in a while.

Everyone, aside from Donnie who wasn't really paying attention to anything, felt unnerved by the uneasiness that was in the air. It was as if you could cut the tension in the room with a knife.

At some point, Raph felt too annoyed and unnerved by the awkward silence and decided to break it himself when he realized that no one else was going to do it. He was known to be impatient about things that bothered him, after all. And everything, which was both the uncomfortable atmosphere and the story that he found out about yesterday, was bothering him. However, one of the things that bothered him the most was how off Donnie was acting. Although it was understandable, given that this whole situation is about him, it was still sad to see Donnie in such a big shock. That is why Raph decided to try and converse with the brother who was struggling because of everything that was happening the most.

"Hey Don, what are you doing?" Raph asked as he sat beside Donnie, looking at his computer's screen. Raph frowned as he saw that his suspicions were actually true, and that Donnie wasn't looking at anything in particular. It was kind of obvious by looking at Donnie's face during the day that his head wasn't in the game at all.

"H-Huh?" Donnie directed his gaze at Raph as he took some time to realize that the question was aimed at him.

"Oh, I'm… Just thinking." Donnie replied awkwardly, being surprised by the sudden disturbance that broke the silence.

Mikey and Leo looked at the two of them with interest as they listened in on the conversation while staying in the sidelines.

"About what?" Raph asked curiously as he crossed his hands while staring at Donnie, waiting patiently for his answer.

Donnie took a few seconds as confusion washed over him from the sudden questioning. He knew that deep down, Raph was actually a softie when it came to people that he cared about, but the fact that he was the first one to ask him about what was on his mind was a bit surprising.

"About the… Situation." Donnie replied shortly as he nervously scratched the back of his neck while looking away from Raph.

"Well… What about it?" Raph asked, hoping to get Donnie to open up a little as he slightly leaned in toward him from his sitting position.

After a few seconds of processing his thoughts and thinking about how to put them into words, Donnie replied hesitantly with tiredness being present in his voice.

"It's just kind of crazy and… Scary?" Donnie mumbled quietly, keeping his answer as short as possible as he looked down at his hands. Usually, Donnie was the type of person that keeps his emotions to himself and barely addresses them in front of others. Mostly because he was just shy or because he didn't really know how to address and deal with negative emotions in the first place. However, lately it was basically impossible to hide the way that he was feeling and act as if nothing had ever happened. But, he did feel a lot better given the fact that although he was found out to not be exactly like his brothers, and actually showed his family that he was struggling, they were there to support him.

"Dudes! Finally someone is pointing that out." Mikey replied, agreeing with his older brother while looking at him with wide eyes as stress laced his voice.

Donnie looked back at him, feeling slightly caught off guard. 'I understand why he would think that everything that was happening was crazy… But why does he find it scary too?' Donnie thought to himself, slightly puzzled. 'Shouldn't I be the one who is afraid of the consequences of my origin?'

Noticing the dumbfounded look on Donnie's face, Raph decided to further explain what Mikey was saying, with sadness that slightly managed to appear in his tone as he frowned. "Yeah, we all feel that way, Donnie." Raph sighed as he added, "Although you are probably having a harder time than us."

Donnie's gaze shifted to the floor as he felt tiredness wash over him.

"I guess…" He said awkwardly as he fiddled with his hands.

"You can always talk about it with us, Don." Leo said as he walked over to Donnie and put a hand around his shoulders, giving him a side hug while wearing a comforting smile. Leo felt happy that he could finally contribute to the conversation. He felt a little useless by just staying silent until now. As a leader, he should help his brothers and teammates that are in need of it, after all.

Donnie looked at Leo as he slightly returned the smile for a few seconds. However, his smile fell as uneasiness appeared on his expression. "Yeah, I know… I'm just trying to digest everything, like you were doing." Donnie bit his inner cheek as he clutched his hands together in anxiousness. Talking about emotions was never his thing, so being put in the spotlight made him feel exposed and unnerved.

"Which is totally fine." Leo replied confidently as Raph nodded in agreement. They noticed that Donnie was uncomfortable, but they knew that this conversation was too important to ignore. Donnie needed to understand that whatever he was feeling was normal and that he could turn to his family for help.

"To be honest, dudes? The mood felt super awkward this entire day. Silence isn't for me." Mikey said as he looked much more relaxed now that they were finally talking. He was always energetic and preferred it when the atmosphere wasn't quiet or dull, so it was a huge relief for him now that everyone started socializing again.

"You guys wanna watch something? To distract ourselves from everything." Raph asked, smirking in anticipation of finally having something interesting to do and lifting up the mood.

"Yes! Finally! I'm making popcorn!" Mikey nearly yelled in excitement as he ran in the direction of the kitchen.

"Watching TV sounds good right now." Donnie said, looking at his older siblings as he finally relaxed and smiled happily.

Leo and Raph returned the smile as Leo's eyes suddenly brightened up.

"Oh! I know what we can watch-!" Leo said in excitement until he was cut off by an uninterested Raph.

"No." He said with a bored expression.

"What?! You didn't even hear what I was going to say!" Leo said with an offended tone.

"I have a guess as to what you were going to suggest." Raph said with an uninterested tone as he lifted an unexisting eyebrow.

"It's kind of obvious, Leo." Donnie said, chuckling.

Leo huffed, crossing his arms as he looked away like an angry child.

"Fine, you pick something to watch, Donnie. Since you deserve it." Leo mumbled in dissatisfaction.

"Eh, surprise me." Donnie said, shrugging.

Mikey ran over, holding two bowls full of popcorn. He sat down to be with his brothers as he was smiling in happiness.

"Finally! We are doing something fun!" Mikey exclaimed with joy as the rest of the brothers mimicked his happy expression.

'Maybe this day could be relaxing after all.' Donnie thought to himself, his body relaxed as he smiled in delight.

Besides, they could all use a break every once in a while. Especially now.

Notes:

This is the end of the chapter! I hope that you liked it :D Also, in case you didn't notice, the name of this fanfiction is actually a stupid pun about Donnie's gap that I came up with for the story's title. I swear that I'm not stupid xD Okay maybe I am. Anyways! Please tell me what you think of my story :)

Chapter 22: Season 3- Episode 2- Coming Out For The Millionth Time

Notes:

Hey guys! I hope that you are enjoying the series so far :D I really appreciate your support and the fact that you are reading my story! I enjoy writing it and I hope that you enjoy reading it just as much ^^ And just to clarify, this specific episode is a day after the previous episode. Well then, let's begin!

"So- wait- let me get this straight-!" Casey said as he scrambled into a standing position, his eyes wide as his jaw kept opening and closing from the difficulty of speaking.

"N-not only are y-you human- but the Shredder's s-son?!" Casey stuttered, his face displayed an expression of a huge shock as he stared at Donnie.

April stared at Donnie from her sitting position, her face showing the same shocked expression that Casey was wearing.

"I- wow." April said, her voice barely above a whisper as she momentarily glanced at the floor, only for her eyes to draw to Donnie again.

Donnie had decided to come out to April and Casey about his secret. His brothers seemed unsure, given how quick this decision was made, but Donnie explained that the situation might put all of them, including April and Casey in danger, and therefore they need to know about the last few days' events.

They called Casey and April and showed them to the living room. The brothers and the two human friends sat down and looked at Donnie in concentration as he explained the full story.

It would be a lie to say that Donnie wasn't nervous or scared. He was. Very. However, it was the necessary thing to do, and therefore Donnie forced himself to comply with what needed to be done.

He explained the situation slowly, with a nervous expression, slightly stuttering as he spoke.

"Yeah… I get why you are surprised…" Donnie said quietly as he fiddled with his hands. He faced this situation a lot of times for the last few days, yet he couldn't manage to get used to it.

"We were all shell shocked as well. Believe me." Raph said as he looked at April and Casey from where he was sitting with a look of understanding at their reactions to the news.

Splinter stepped into the living room, immediately understanding what was going on.

"It seems like you know the secret now." Splinter said with a sympathetic tone as he understood entirely why April and Casey were nearly frozen from shock. The truth is not really easy to process, after all.

"And I suppose that we were never meant to find out about this…" April said quietly as she looked at Splinter with slight disappointment when he nodded, confirming her suspicions. To think that Donnie was supposed to live his entire life while being oblivious to the truth... He only found out about his origin by mistake, while he wasn't supposed to ever know about it.

'If anyone knows what it feels like to have your entire life being exposed as basically a lie, then it's me.' April thought to herself sadly as she looked at Donnie with an expression that was full of empathy.

"Wait, but why were you hiding it? Like, I know that the Shredder finding out about this is bad news but… Why did you have to hide it from the guys as well? It's not like you knew that the Shredder was around in the first place." Casey asked Splinter in confusion while his face was still displaying the shock that he couldn't stop feeling.

Everyone looked at Splinter, curiosity appearing on their faces. Splinter sighed, feeling slightly guilty for hiding it all this time, and intending to hide it for, well, forever.

"I did not want to raise my sons as if they were not the same beings. I did not want any of them to be burdened by feeling different from each other. Besides, I couldn't hide my past in the first place, since it's a part of me and they would have found out about it eventually, and I can't simply forget my life although I had started over. And if they knew about my past, then they would know of Oroku Saki. It's very obvious that given what happened between us, it would have made both Donatello and his siblings uncomfortable knowing that they are related to each other." Splinter admitted, his ears flattened in sadness as his gaze fell to the floor. Donatello flinched anxiously as he stared sadly at his father in response. The expressions of his brothers and friends changed into ones of understanding. It's a good point. Growing up knowing about it could have affected them badly or damaged their relationship.

Casey shook his head in order to snap back to reality. He walked over to Donnie, who had his gaze stuck on the floor in nervousness with his shoulders slackened, and put a hand on his shoulder, giving it a firm squeeze as Donnie looked up at Casey in response.

"Don't feel bad about it, dude. It's actually a really cool backstory!" Casey said, smirking playfully as he tried to lighten the mood. Donnie could never understand how Casey always managed to pick himself up from a shock this fast.

"R- really?" Donnie asked as he stuttered in nervousness.

"Of course! It's just like in the movies." Casey said enthusiastically as he released the hold that he had on Donnie's shoulder and crossed his hands in confidence.

"Yeah, he has a point." April added as she smiled. Her expression still held shock to it, but she was slowly recovering like Casey did.

Donnie slightly smiled as Casey and April lightened the mood, making him feel less stressed than he was before.

Leo, Mikey, Raph and Splinter smirked as they watched Casey and April making Donnie feel better. The conversation went better than anyone expected. It's good that Donnie has even more people to support him with this journey now that they know as well.

"Yeah, it's kinda cool but… It's still scary, you know…? The fact that it's about me… And since the Shredder knows as well…" Donnie replied, sighing.

"Of course it's scary! But I'm sure we can handle everything." April said, reassuring Donnie.

"Why is everyone finding this scary, by the way? Like I get that this is shocking and all but… I'll be the only one affected by it, won't I? Why are you all scared as well?" Donnie asked curiously. This is not the first time that he heard someone mention that this situation is scary.

"Isn't it obvious? Because whatever affects you will affect us as well." Leo replied, as if this was obvious.

"Yeah, D. Like, whether it will actually affect us personally or not, we are still worried about you and what might happen to you, you know?" Mikey said as his expression turned slightly sad. Everyone knew that the Shredder would plan something. Not only that whatever he will attempt might hurt the family in the way, but his end goal will most likely be to capture Donnie. Shredder was already really possessive about Karai and Tang Shen, but now that he knows that he has a son of his own that is also the son of Shen, it makes the whole situation much more dangerous.

"Oh… I see." Donnie said in disappointment. Not only was his origin burdening him, but it was burdening his family as well…

No one missed the disappointment in Donnie's voice, and what it was about.

"Listen, Donatello. We cannot change reality and the changes that it brings to us, however, we assure you that we will be there for you whenever you need us." Splinter said, smiling warmly as he put his paw on Donnie's head in order to make him feel better.

Donnie smiled back at Splinter as he felt his whole body relax.

"Thanks, guys…" Donnie said, smiling shyly as he looked at his entire family and friends.

"Of course, bro. Never hesitate to ask for something." Raph said, smirking as he playfully smacked Donnie on the back, making him stumble a little and frown in annoyance at Raph.

"So… Is anyone up to ordering something? I'm getting hungry." Leo asked, feeling that the mood is light enough to bring that up.

"Finally! I'm starving." Mikey said happily as he sighed in relief.

Donnie looked happily at his family and friends as they were deciding on what to order. His secret is getting more and more tolerable as more of his family members find out about it and accept him for it. It doesn't bother Donnie that everyone is still shocked about it. He is, too. But they will get through this.

Donnie glanced at Splinter, who glanced back at him, giving him a reassuring smile, knowing that he needs it. Splinter could read everyone like an open book, so of course he knew that Donnie was still struggling. Donnie might even never accept his true origin, but it doesn't matter. What matters most is that he's not enduring everything alone.

Donnie smiled back at Splinter as he once again managed to temporarily forget that their lives are going to be a huge mess because of this, and because of what the Shredder might pull on them.

Notes:

This is it for this chapter! I hope that you liked it ^^ Support is deeply appreciated!

Chapter 23: Season 3- Episode 3- The Grand Reveal

Notes:

Hey guys! I apologize for being gone for a while. A war started near my area and tensions are high, but here I am! Updates might be slow, but I'll try my best :D Enjoy!

The Shredder sat on his throne as he watched over his underlings. He summoned all of his clan, including his daughter, Karai. They all squirmed nervously while staying in their bowing positions on the floor in front of the throne's stairs. They waited curiously for their master to tell them the reason for summoning them. No one missed the expression on the Shredder's face, that could be seen even with his usual helmet on. He wore a frown that meant that something was serious.

"Father? May I ask why we are here? Did something happen?" Karai asked the question that everyone wanted the answer to, her voice just above a whisper in order to be heard but still silent enough to pay respects to her father and master of the clan.

The rest of the people in the room directed their gaze at her for a moment, before looking back at the floor from their bowing positions, awaiting the Shredder's response with curiosity.

The Shredder stood up from his throne as the frown that he had on his face deepened.

"I have important news to tell you. Stockman knows already, and you should know as well." The Shredder announced as he looked over his clan.

"It's about one of the turtles."

_"...What?" Karai asked in a weak and trembling voice.

The Shredder had revealed the news, and the response was… Well, silence. He explained about how he came to find out about this information and the whole situation. Everyone was too shocked to respond. They all had the same stunned expressions. Their eyes grew in size as their irises dilated, and their mouths opened like a gaping fish. They broke their respectful positions long ago and stared right at their master. The Shredder huffed in annoyance at their reaction. 'I will need to work with them on taming their expression of emotions better.' Shredder thought to himself. He sat back on his throne as he spoke:

"I am not aware if Yoshi had told Donatello or the rest of that pathetic clan about the truth. We will need to find out about that." The Shredder said as anger laced his voice. His hand clenched into a fist, slightly quivering as he attempted to control the way that he presents himself to the clan.

"But- How didn't you know about him? How could you find out about him only a few days ago?!" Karai asked as she got up from her position on the floor and walked in the direction of the throne, standing directly in front of the stairs leading up to it.

"I am unsure of that." The Shredder said simply, trying to be patient with his daughter.

"But-!" Karai attempted to argue until she was cut off.

"Karai. I do not know." The Shredder said as he looked right at his daughter. He stopped himself from scolding her for acting disrespectful. She was shocked, after all. Karai closed her mouth and stopped herself from continuing the argument any further.

"...So… I'm not the only one…" She whispered to herself as she looked at her feet, her eyes wide and mouth slightly agape as she attempted to digest the information.

"Master!" Bradford called out, drawing the Shredder's attention. "Are you saying that one of those turtles… This is absurd!" He raised his voice in order to stress his lack of acceptance of the situation. It is quite hard to believe, after all.

"Yet it was proven." The Shredder replied simply.

"By the bug." Xever added disrespectfully as he shot a glare at Stockman, who was hovering in the corner of the room. Stockman huffed in annoyance as he crossed his arms and turned his head the other way, acting like an upset little child.

"Let's be honest, master. Why would-" Bradford said arrogantly, wanting to dismiss Stockman's findings before he was cut off by a yell.

"ENOUGH!" Tigerclaw bellowed, his yell echoing all around the room.

"You should never show this type of disrespect to your master! Yet you claim to be a part of this clan! If he says that it's true, then it's true." Tigerclaw was known to be traditional and VERY loyal to the clan and the Shredder, so it's not a surprise that he's this angry by their reaction. It would be a lie to say that he wasn't shocked himself, he really was. But he still refuses to act like a child just because he finds the findings of his master as something that is hard to grasp.

The Shredder smirked as he looked at Tigerclaw with pride. Xever and Bradford sent Tigerclaw glares of annoyance and slight jealousy of the Shredder's approval as he crossed his arms, his frown turning into a threatening glare in response. Loyalty like this, good senses and an amazing strength of a warrior is what brought Tigerclaw to be greatly respected by the Shredder. Even at this moment, while everyone was bowing in front of the leader of the clan, Tigerlaw stood beside the throne with his head held high in authority. Well, aside for him, Stockman wasn't bowing either, but honestly, the Shredder considered him more of a worker rather than a part of this clan, which is why he never demanded it of him. Stockman's too scared to betray the clan anyways.

"Now, listen to me." The Shredder declared as his tone became threatening and his glare darkened. "If any of you will harm Donatello in any way, you will find yourselves groveling by my feet and begging for your lives." The Shredder growled as the entire clan found itself being filled with fear. Well, except Tigerclaw, which wasn't a surprise.

"As of now, Donatello is considered a property of the Foot clan. Do not disappoint me and go against my orders." The Shredder warned as he looked at his soldiers, sending them a threatening look, just daring them to betray him. If anyone is in their right minds, they would never go against the Shredder. He always stands true to his promises.

Notes:

And that's it! Thank you for reading :D I hope that you like the story so far. Hopefully I'll be able to update more normally soon, but either way, I'll try my best! See you next time!

Chapter 24: Season 3- Episode 4- The Discussion

Notes:

Hello! Welcome to another episode of my series! I hope that you like it so far. Please tell me where I can improve and I will try my best! Get ready, because the plot is heating up…

Karai and her father, who sat on the throne, were the only ones left in the throne room. Everyone else left to continue with their day- except for Karai, who chose to stay. Her gaze directed at the floor as she contemplated on how to speak her mind.

Since the Shredder revealed the news, Karai's thinking process has been a mess. Throughout all of the discussion, her mind has been going rampant with figuring out how whatever was happening could be possible. Ever. How could she believe it so easily? One of her enemies is actually her brother? It is not an easy thing to accept. How was she supposed to treat him now? What was she supposed to think of him? Well- Karai did not really hate Donatello, or any of them. Maybe at first, but lately she rather enjoyed their fights. But although she did not hate them, it does not mean she liked them much, either. They are enemies, after all, and with the things that Yoshi had done to her mother…

Karai shook her head from one side to another, with a frown plastered on her face, in an attempt to chase away her thoughts. She felt anger bubble up inside of her at the thought of her mother, and she wanted to remain calm.

"Karai?" The Shredder questioned, as he looked at his daughter with a raised eyebrow.

"Do you have something on your mind?" He added, although the answer was quite obvious, since unlike the others, she stayed, with a troubled expression on her face. It is quite obvious why Karai is troubled, the Shredder knows that much. He had a hard time receiving the news as well, after all. Everyone did. The Foot clan is used to hating the Hamatos. They are the enemy, and it is not something that is easy to forget. Now, it was found out that one of the Hamatos is actually one of them, and they cannot harm him. The Shredder was sure that none of his clan members were simply continuing with their daily lives after receiving the shocking news. However, he still had to ask his daughter. He has a job that needs to be fulfilled, and that job is being a father.

Karai looked up at her father for a second, and then returned her gaze to the floor. She scratched her arm nervously as she shifted her weight from one foot to another in her standing position. She opened and closed her mouth a couple of times, thinking on how she could even start.

"Is Donatello… My brother?" She asked her father in a quiet voice, still uncertain if the story even makes sense to her.

"...He is." He answered, still getting used to the fact that Donatello was actually Karai's sibling.

"And your son…" She added, which he answered with an affirmative nod.

"But how? And why is he a mutant like the rest of the turtles? If he is a human, then why is he like this?" Karai asked, her voice raised in volume as she got aggravated from her confusion.

"Well, I do not know about how it happened, but the DNA results suggested that while the other wretched turtles had turtle DNA which was then mixed with human DNA, Donatello had it backwards. His original DNA was human, and then mixed with the genes of a turtle. Probably from one of them. After some research, it was found out that his parents are Tang Shen and I. Just as I have explained to you and the rest of the clan." Shredder said, as simply and patiently as he could so that Karai could easily follow him. It was probably too hard for her to understand the first time he had explained to the whole clan. Shock can cause a person to lose concentration and experience confusion, after all. And Karai was obviously shocked.

"...Oh." She answered as she went over the information in her head.

"I understand that it is very hard to grasp, Karai." Shredder said, understanding her feelings, since it was hard for him as well and he cannot really blame her for it.

"...It is." She replied, sighing from emotional tiredness as she frowned while pinching the bridge of her nose.

"Does Donatello even know about the truth?" Karai asked, after a few seconds of silence. She lifted her eyebrow as she crossed her arms. She highly doubts that he knows. Thinking of their previous interactions, she doesn't think that she noticed something off with him, or the rest of his family when it comes to a reaction regarding the Shredder. It would be easy to see if they knew something.

"I do not know if he knows." Shredder replied with a slight growl as his hand clenched into a fist, annoyed with the possibility that his own son might not even know about his relation to him.

Karai frowned as well, aggravated at the same reason as her father.

"Then, what do we do now?" Karai looked up at her father, awaiting the answer curiously. After learning the truth about Donatello, there is no way that they could simply ignore it.

"Get Donatello back, since he-" The Shredder spoke, until Karai cut him off.

"Of course! They have no right to keep my brother with them." Karai said as rage bubbled up inside of her. She bit her lip as she attempted to keep herself as calm as she could. All of this time, the turtles grew up together, believing themselves to be siblings and enjoying themselves, while she grew up without her actual brother, and her father raised her without his son being around.

'What gives them the right to claim themselves as Donatello's family? Not only did this clan take my mother away from me, but now they took my brother as well, apparently.' Karai thought with rage as she grit her teeth. Her fist clenched at her side as she momentarily saw red. She forced herself to calm down. It's not like losing herself will help her with anything, but it was hard not to.

The Shredder smirked as he saw the fire inside her. He was satisfied that she wanted to get Donatello back as much as he wanted to. 'I have raised her well, indeed.' Shredder thought to himself.

"You are correct, my daughter." He said, satisfied as he nodded in agreement.

"That is why we are going to do something about it." He added, as he started to think of new plans that might help them "reunite" the family.

Notes:

And this is it! What did you think about this episode? I hope that you enjoyed it! Updating the story might take some time so please be patient!

Chapter 25: Season 3- Episode 5- Step By Step

Notes:

Hi guys! Welcome to a new episode! Hopefully you will like it :D Feel free to comment and tell me if you like the series so far! Now, let’s begin!

A few days have passed since the big revelation. The brothers slowly went back to their daily activities that they had paused due to the situation- including training. In general, the lair had an awkward atmosphere since the brothers found out about Donatello's origin. They still went about as usual, but they didn’t bring up the subject much. If they did, they usually danced around it, dropping off hints so that everyone would understand what they were referring to.

Well, at least it was true for three of the brothers. Donatello, himself, found himself acting actually quite nonchalant when it came to bringing up the subject. He wouldn’t straight up say that the Shredder was his father, but he wasn’t as awkward as his brothers, and even his father. When his brothers or father asked about how he could be so calm and not nervous, he would answer with something like: “I’m simply trying to get used to it. It’s a fact that cannot be changed, and avoiding it forever will just be more unpleasant.”
It didn’t mean that he took the information well or mentally accepted it in the first place- if anything, he is having the hardest time with it. However, as a logical person, Donatello chose not to avoid the topic too much given that it’s going to become a huge problem in the near future. Still, he would be very uncomfortable or depressed whenever he thought about it. However, from the outside, he seemed usually nonchalant and calm. Donatello was always good with hiding his emotions. Well, most of the time. He would talk about it whenever it’s necessary, or if he just needs to release some steam in general.

By going back to his daily life and acting as usual, Donatello had hoped that it would make him feel better, and at least feel distracted enough from the fact that there’s going to be a very difficult future ahead of him in terms of his family’s enemies.

“No way!” Raph exclaimed as he crossed his hands with his usual annoyed frown.
“Donnie, you know that it’s a bad idea…” Leo said with a little more empathy than Raph displayed, as he wore a sad expression.

Yesterday, the brothers went back to patrol for the first time since they’ve taken the break over Donatello’s news. Well, specifically Leo, Raph and Mikey. Quite obviously, now that the Shredder is probably aware of his and Donnie’s… relations, the family has decided that they will go back to patrols, and Donatello will stay at home with Splinter until they deem it safe enough for him to leave again. Of course Donatello had objected, but they refused to listen. So today, he tried again. The brothers stood in the living room as Donatello tried to change their minds.

“But- guys! You know that I can’t stay down here forever! When will you decide that it’s safe enough for me to leave?- when the Shredder passes of old age?!” Donatello exclaimed, with annoyance, but slight desperation.
“You know that I need to breathe some fresh air. The last thing that I need right now is to stay stuck here!” Donatello threw his arms back in aggravation as he slightly raised his voice.
“Wouldn’t it be dangerous, dude?” Mikey asked as he frowned worryingly.
“Not just dangerous- it would be entirely stupid!” Raph growled as he glared at Donnie. Raph is known to have a short fuse, but it wasn’t hard to notice that he became more protective of Donnie- especially now that their enemies might target him.
“I don’t know, D…” Mikey said, feeling guilty that he speaks against him. He totally understands Donnie. He needs to go out every once in a while as well, but it’s too dangerous for his big brother as of now.

Donatello frowned, frustrated as he glared at Leo, trying to make him change his mind and help him out.
Leo’s expression saddened, but his eyes signaled that he stays firm with his opinion.

“You know that you cannot do that, Donatello.” Splinter said as he entered the living room calmly.
“Sensei, I need this! I’ll lose my mind at some point if I stay here forever! I just learned of where I really came from. I need a break…” Donatello said as he gave him his “sadorable” eyes, with frustration lacing his words.
Splinter closed his eyes as he sighed and composed himself.
“I apologize, Donatello. We are not doing this out of bad intentions, we simply want to keep you safe.” He said as he gave Donatello an empathetic expression.
Donatello looked at the floor as his expression displayed his sadness. Another failed attempt at trying to get back to patrol, and normalcy.
“Sorry, Donnie.” Leo said as he moved beside Donnie and squeezed his shoulder.
Donatello turned his gaze up again and looked at his family. They all seemed to empathize with him- even Raph seemed to feel slightly guilty of being firm towards him. Donatello sighed as he nodded.
“Fine.” He said.

They all stood in silence for a few awkward seconds, as Donatello’s sadness left an unpleasant atmosphere in the room.
“You don’t hate us. Right?” Mikey asked awkwardly and with slight fear as he changed his weight from one leg to another, swaying as he waited for a response.
“No- no I don’t. I’m simply sad is all.” Donatello said as he scratched the back of his neck awkwardly.
“There’s no need to be sad, Don. We just want to wait until it’s safe enough. Just listen to us for now. Alright?” Raph said, trying to stay firm, yet he still felt guilty.

“Alright. I will. But you better not drag this out for too long.” Donatello said, slightly aggravated as he glared at them with a warning.
“Hey, don’t worry. Alright? We will make sure of that.” Leo said, smiling as he patted Donnie’s shell.
“Good.” Donatello huffed. He still wished that he could leave, but it’s probably unrealistic as of now, and he pretty much knows this already.
However, that means that his brothers leave for patrol without him, and sometimes April and Casey join them as well. If the foot is planning something, then they might be in grave danger. Somehow, more than they were in before.

Truly, Donatello may want to leave because he needs a distraction and some fresh air, but deep down, he knows that it’s because he wants to keep his family and friends safe. To be there with them… Something is going to happen, whether it’s now or later. Donatello doesn’t want to feel worried for his family and friends while he’s all safe and comfortable in the lair. It’s wrong. He should be there to protect them or even surrender in their place if it were to become too dangerous. The Shredder will probably go after him, after all. Wouldn’t he? It’s good if Donatello could offer himself as a price for his family and friends’ safety while they stay safe and sound, but that is only if the situation is too dire. No one would want to be at the mercy of the Shredder. Not Donatello, at least.

Donnie frowned in worry as he understood that all of this mess is simply the beginning of a probably very long and painful story. He has a gut feeling that he should savor whatever time he has left with his family.

Donatello bit his lip in anxiety as he felt fear wash over him. He had a very bad feeling about everything that was occurring lately. Shredder has always tried to harm them, but now, it might be much more extreme.

Donatello shuddered as he forced his thoughts away.
‘I’m probably overreacting. Right?’

Notes:

And this is it! What did you think about this episode? Do you like it? Please let me know! I’m aware that sometimes the episodes do not contain too much of an important progress, but I wish to display the way that the events take place in this story rather than make it all seem too rushed. Anyways, thank you for reading!

Chapter 26: Season 3- Episode 6- A Slow Day

Notes:

Hey guys! Welcome to a new episode! The series will now be posted on Wattpad, Fanfiction.Net and ArchieveOfOurOwn! Now, without further delay, let's begin!

Donnie worked in his lab in an attempt to keep himself busy. It’s not like he had anything else to do… His brothers were on patrol, Splinter was doing his usual things, so the only thing he could do was build and fix things in his lab. Usually, Donnie loved doing this sort of thing. However, not today. He could not stop feeling sadness and frustration due to being benched, and now his brothers are risking themselves without him being able to go out there and aid them.

‘Could they not delay their return to patrols? The Shredder must be planning something. Why could they not stay down a little more, just to be sure? Not that it will help much… If the Shredder is really planning something, then he will act upon it sooner or later. Besides, I assume that one of the reasons for their patrols is to find out if the Shredder is indeed planning something, and if he does, then what.’ Donatello sighed as he tried to refocus on his work, without success.

You might think that Donatello is overreacting. But to be honest? Since Donatello’s story was revealed, all of the family found themselves to be more anxious. Aside from Donatello’s worries, Splinter found himself checking on his sons’ wellbeing much more often, and constantly made sure that they felt alright, and if they needed to talk about something, because he was afraid that they were having a hard time digesting the news of Donnie’s so called father. They were, but they mostly kept it to themselves. And the rest of the brothers found themselves not only hesitant of bringing up the topic of the Shredder and Donnie’s relations, but they became much more protective of Donnie. Restricting him from patrol, constantly checking up on him, spending time with him and making sure that he is not alone for too long, doing things that are too dangerous, and so on. Everyone noticed it, and Mikey, Raph and Leo constantly laughed about it and joked that he is now probably considered the youngest because of how everyone is always worried about him like he is the “baby brother”. Donnie, as usual, constantly explained the obvious and said: “I am not the youngest! Sensei had decided our order from oldest to youngest by our maturity and personality. If anything, I am the oldest! Not that it matters, since we were all born on the same day anyways.”
And he would always get the same response from a smirking Mikey, who enjoyed not feeling like the youngest for once. “Too bad, bro. Being the older brother for once rocks.”

Donatello’s head snapped in the direction of his lab’s doors as he heard the turnstiles of the lair being used, followed by the voices of his brothers.
He sighed as he started putting away the things that he was fiddling with. He isn’t even sure what he was trying to build in the first place. He just went with the flow.

“Donnie!” Mikey called, with a smile on his face, as he entered the lab and ran in Donnie’s direction.
“Were you doing anything new while we were gone?” Leo asked curiously, as he and Raph walked through the entrance of the lab after Mikey.
“Oh! Not really. The usual things… Anything new on patrol?” Donnie asked curiously.
“Nothing. And nothing from the Foot as well. Things seem too quiet for my liking.” Raph grumbled in response as he fiddled with his sais.
“Dude, calm down. Maybe the Foot is just taking a break.” Mikey said carelessly, in his usual oblivious way of thinking.
“I doubt that the Foot takes breaks.” Leo replied cynically, lifting a brow.
“The Foot is probably planning something. Just stay in the lair for a while, guys…” Donnie said, with an anxious frown. “Besides, without me out there, it could be more dangerous due to a lack of manpower!” He exclaimed.
“What manpower?” Raph cynically asked, smirking as Mikey laughed and Leo lightly slapped his shoulder in disapproval.
Donnie rolled his eyes as he phrased his sentence differently.
“Argh. With less people on your team, it will be much harder to operate, especially if the Shredder is going to do something.” Donnie grumbled.
“That is why we are much more careful. Don’t worry, Don.” Leo said as he moved besides Donnie and looked at the random objects that spread all over his table. “Besides, you can now have much more time to work on your inventions! Isn’t it fun?” He asked, smiling as he tried to cheer Donnie up.
“I couldn’t concentrate.” Donnie answered simply, obviously bummed as he kept organizing and putting away the objects that Leo was looking at.
Raph frowned and sighed as he noticed Donnie’s mood. Donnie never hid his displeasure at being benched, and how the rest of the team went back to patrols “too soon”. However, there wasn’t much choice, due to them needing to find out if there is news on the Foot and their business. Especially now.

“Donnie, you know that we have to go back to patrol and you got to stay here for a reason. Right?” Raph asked straight to the point as he crossed his arms and gave him a bored expression.
Mikey and Leo looked at Donnie as well, waiting for a response patiently.
“I… Know.” He replied. “But it doesn’t make it any easier! You guys are putting yourselves in danger because of me, and I can’t even be there and help you.” Donnie looked at the floor as he clutched his hands into fists, his guilt tortuous to himself.
“But weren’t we the ones that decided to do it like that? It’s not like you asked to stay here while we patrol and all.” Mikey said as he sat in Donnie’s chair.
“Exactly.” Raph added as he leaned on Donnie’s table and Leo rubbed Donnie’s shell in an attempt to calm him.
“We are acting like this on purpose. It’s not like you put us in harm's way or something. We are doing this because it is what has to be done. So please stop feeling guilt. You have enough on your mind. We all do.” Leo explained as he tried to relieve some of Donnie’s anxiety. His eyes moved back to the objects on Donnie’s table that he saw earlier and forgot to put away.
“Perhaps… You want ideas for new inventions?” Leo asked, smirking as he grabbed Donnie’s shoulder.
Donnie smiled at Leo’s attempt to cheer him up. He noticed that his brothers have a tendency to change the subject whenever it’s brought up, and that his brothers don’t want him thinking about it. He was slightly annoyed that they wouldn’t take him too seriously and listen to his worries, but he decided to play along as he responded hesitantly.
“I mean… I could use some.”
“Oh! What about guns?!” Mikey asked excitedly as he got up and jumped in his place in happiness.
The brothers dumbfoundedly looked at Mikey as he seemed serious.
“You are not getting a gun. Although, maybe I should get one.” Raph smirked evilly, liking the idea as he looked at Donnie in expectation.
“No one gets a gun.” Leo sighed tiredly as he rubbed his eyes.
“Since when did you guys want guns so badly?” Donnie asked in confusion.
“No one gets a gun, Donnie.” Leo grumbled in annoyance.
“Aww…” Mikey whined sadly.
“Maybe next time.” Raph shrugged.
“Maybe never. Let’s just make a list or something.” Leo decided.
“Sounds good. And write down a lot of things. I am easily bored.” Donnie smirked as he grabbed a note, his worries pushed aside.
‘I guess that I can force them to see my side on a different day.’ Donatello thought to himself in slight frustration. However, he could use a distraction. It’s a good thing that he has his brothers to make him forget his anxiety every once in a while, even if he has a very good reason to worry. Who knows? His reason to worry might be proven true very, very soon.

Notes:

And this is it! Did you enjoy this episode? It was more comedic, if anything xD I hope that you still liked it! Feel free to support my story and share :D

Chapter 27: Season 3- Episode 7- The Mission

Notes:

Hi guys! Welcome to a new episode! I hope that you enjoy the story now that the plot is getting warmer and warmer. Feel free to support my work!

”So, you were called to the throne room as well?” Karai asked as she looked around the hallways.
“I was.” Tigerclaw replied passively, as he walked in her rhythm in the same direction.

Karai was in her room, doing her usual hobbies until TigerClaw opened her door and told her the message that he was to deliver, that her father had summoned her to the throne room.

“Do you know what is going on? Why were we summoned?” She asked with a raised eyebrow. Although, given the latest events that had been going on with Donat- Hm, her brother (she needs to get used to this), she can guess that this meeting is about this topic as well.
“Master Shredder claims that he has a mission for us.” He replied carelessly. Tigerclaw was never one for chitchats.
Karai stayed silent for a few seconds, until she asked what she had suspected since being called.
“Is it about Donatello?” She asked, as she looked at Tigerclaw with intrigue.
Tigerclaw hummed and nodded in response.
“It is indeed about Donatello. About his capture, to be more precise.” He added.
Karai’s eyes doubled in size, flinching in surprise as she stopped in her tracks. She saw that Tigerclaw had continued to walk and shook her head to get rid of her surprise and ran to him.
“Wait! Father has already come with a plan? To take Donatello back?” She asked, caught off guard.
“Indeed. You know Master Shredder to be very efficient about his goals.” Tigerclaw replied.
‘He belongs to our family anyways. It is ridiculous that we have to take him in the first place.’ Karai mumbled in anger quietly.
“Family and blood ties are indeed important, especially in our culture.” TigerClaw said in response, understanding Karai’s frustration.
“Still… we could have been a family if the Hamatos had not butt into our business! Now, how do we convince him to join our clan? To lead it, even?” Karai said in sadness and regret for the life that she could have had. Karai’s anger with the Hamatos only grew. She would be lying if she said that it was not fun to fight them, bully Leo and so on. However… Now that she knows about her brother…
“Donatello will not receive the throne. Master had already decided on it. Usually the throne goes to the eldest or most mature child, but regardless, since he grew up as a Hamato, he doesn’t think that he will fit as the clan’s leader. You will receive the throne instead, and he will serve you as your subordinate.” TigerClaw said as he looked at Karai from the side of his eye.
“Wait- what?! So will I take the throne as planned?” Karai said in surprise, not expecting her father to make a decision about it so early.
“Indeed. Do not worry, you will receive the power of the clan.” TigerClaw said, slightly smirking. He and Karai are not close, but he is still happy for her, understanding the honor of leading his clan.
Karai smiled to herself in relief. ‘Now I will have both a brother and the clan’s throne.’ It is true that it was and still is weird for Karai to find out that one of her enemies is actually her brother, but despite her conflicted feelings, she is still happy. Regardless, since Donnatello really shares her blood and family, she thinks that it is only right that he will come back to his real family, and not stay with their mother’s murderer. And if her father truly has a plan, then she is going to act according to it and bring her brother home.

They both reached the closed doors to the throne room. They stood still in front of the doors as they waited for the permission of the footbots, who stood by the doors with their weapons drawn, to enter.
Suddenly, the bots made a beeping noise, as they both moved and opened the door, signaling for Karai and Tigerclaw to enter.

They entered the throne room with a straight back and their gaze directed at the floor. They both stopped walking, and bowed in the direction of the throne, where the Shredder sat.
“Master Shredder.” “Father.” They both said at the same time, greeting Saki.
“My daughter. Tigerclaw. You have arrived. You may rise.” The Shredder said as they both stopped bowing and directed their gaze at him in silence.
Karai looked around the room, only to see that only the two of them, aside from the Shredder, were there.
“Did you summon only the two of us?” She asked, with confusion appearing on her face.
“Yes. For this mission, I only need the two of you. I think that this is enough in order to capture Donatello.” The Shredder confirmed.
“Master. Do you perhaps want to try and convince Donatello first? Before we rush and take him. It might drive him even further away from you.” Tigerclaw reasoned. He didn’t care if he had to capture Donatello by force and drag him kicking and screaming to the Foot’s HQ himself, throwing him in front of the throne as if he was presenting some kind of a trophy. However, he is aware that if the Shredder would like to get on his son’s good side, then perhaps using force in order for Donatello to stay with the Foot and putting him in a cage and such might be a bad idea.
“Tigerclaw. Both you and I are aware that Donatello will never switch sides. He has been poisoned with Yoshi’s lies for far too long.” The Shredder said as he frowned in anger at his past friend.
“Then, how do you wish to persuade him? After he is in our custody, that is.” Tigerclaw asked, as Karai nodded with curiosity as to what her father was planning to do to Donatello.
“We do not need his permission in order to get him to our side. However, I will manage to make him submit. I have my ways. You shall leave that part to me. In the meantime, I have a plan that might help us not only obtain him, but find the location of the Hamato lair as well.” The Shredder said, smirking as he thought over it.
Tigerclaw and Karai perked up as they looked at him in curiosity and surprise.
“What are your plans, master?” Tigerclaw asked as the Shredder straightened his back and got up from the throne.
His smirk widened as he declared.
“You may find my son and the Hamatos through their human friends, of course.”

Notes:

This is it! Hopefully you enjoyed this episode. Please support my work if you enjoy it!

Chapter 28: Season 3- Episode 8- The Chase

Notes:

Hello! Welcome to a new chapter. I guess that now the main plot is technically starting? Anyways, enjoy!

”It was so cool!” Casey exclaimed happily as he flinged the doors of the cinema open, April and Irma following him to the street. “The explosions and fighting scenes really fit my style.” Casey added with a smirk and a punch to the air in a flare of energy and excitement.

The three of them went together to the cinema to watch a new movie that April had been dying to see. April felt that it would be a smart idea to distract herself and Casey from what has been going on lately. It would be a lie to claim that Donnie’s news of his parents did not affect April and Casey. April, Casey and the guys are like family, so whatever affects the family, affects them as well. Or, in other words, Casey and April were stuck in a state of shock since the truth was revealed, and much like the family, that was one of the only things that was on their minds since hearing about the truth. It was very surprising, after all. Therefore, they went for a day of fun to relieve their mind.

“Eh, I don’t know. The acting was kind of bad, and the story felt too rushed.” Irma added, rolling her eyes at Casey’s excitement.
“I do have to agree with Irma, Case. It was a little silly. But I did like the fighting scenes.” April said with a smile, crossing her arms as the three of them walked together down the street.
“Oh come on! You guys have no taste in movies.” Casey grambled, slouching as he inserted his hands into his pockets in a show of annoyance.
“Ha! You forgot who picked this movie in the first place. The movie that you seemed to enjoy.” April said with a smirk as she squeezed Casey’s shoulder.
Irma once again rolled her eyes at Casey. “Regardless, the personality and the appearance of the characters really bothered me. Not only did it not fit them, but they also really looked alike. I could barely tell who is who.” She complained.
“What do you mean? Just because they are both blonde and somewhat gangster-like?” Casey asked cynically with a raised eyebrow, mocking Irma, as always. They always seemed to do that to each other. It was simply their relationship. A little like how it is between him and Donnie, except that Casey actually liked his friendship with Donnie. Many may assume that he and Donnie hate each other or something, but it’s actually how they like it- having a person to annoy yet still call your friend. Sometimes you need people like that, especially with a personality like Casey’s.
“Not only that!” Irma claimed with annoyance. “They were basically the same character! Have you guys noticed the resemblance between the good and the bad guy too? It bothered me the whole movie! They literally looked like father and son.” Irma added as she casted a frustrated glance at April and Casey.
“… Are you guys okay?” Irma asked as she noticed them both flinch and stop in their tracks. “You look like you’ve seen a ghost.” She raised her eyebrow in confusion.
“Oh! It’s nothing, Irma.” April said as she giggled awkwardly, and Casey faked a small smile. They both looked like they had gotten pale, their gaze averting Irma’s in awkwardness.
‘You just had to remind us about it. Typical Irma.’ Casey thought in frustration as he huffed and pouted.
“Yeah… It’s just that we realized that you have a point. The movie does suck.” Casey said with a slightly strained voice as the three of them continued to walk.
“What is going on? Did I say something wrong?” Irma questioned suspiciously as she crossed her arms.
“No, it’s just that-!” April was about to finish, until she flinched and put her hand on her forehead, while closing her eyes in concentration. “We are being followed.” She said simply, with a serious tone and a worried frown.
“What?” Irma said in surprise and confusion, looking at April dumbfoundedly.
“Whatever it is, let’s just split up and lose them. We don’t want to bring Irma into it as well.” Casey said with a frown, getting serious as April nodded. They both ran in opposite directions and left Irma standing alone.
“…Okay? Thanks for abandoning me, I guess.” Irma said in an annoyed grumble.

______________________________

Casey panted as he hid in an alley nearby. He whipped out his hockey stick as he stood still and looked around him, trying to see if someone had followed him.
“Heh. Did you think that you would actually manage to lose me?” An arrogant voice declared.
Casey looked at the direction of the voice, gasping as his eyes were filled with fear and mouth was left hanging open in shock. He felt his body stiffen at the sight of the mutant, who had a murderous expression on its face.
Tigerclaw smirked as he grabbed his guns.

______________________________

April ran on the rooftops, attempting to lose her follower as she looked out to see if anyone was around her. She stopped running with a startled gasp as a ninja star embedded itself in the floor in front of her. She whipped out her fan and opened it, getting into a fighting stance.
“Long time no see, O’Neil.” Karai said with a smirk as she stood in front of her.
“Karai.” April declared with an angry frown and a threatening tone.
“If you are here to pick a fight, I’ll give you one.” April growled angrily.
“Not exactly. I actually have something that I need to talk with you about.” Karai said with a sigh as she put her hands on her hips.

______________________________

”Are you okay, D?” Mikey asked as he munched on his pizza, noticing Donnie’s change in attitude.
“I… Don’t know. I feel like something is wrong.” Donnie said with a fearful and trembling voice. ‘I had a gut feeling that something was about to happen soon. Am I worrying too much?’
“Eh, don’t worry about it. Maybe you didn’t have enough pizza.” Mikey said as he offered another slice to Donnie.
“That’s not it. I don’t know why but suddenly I feel like something is wrong.” Donnie said in worry, checking the rest of his brothers’ trackers to see if they are nearby.
“Maybe April is using her powers to pull a prank on you? I'd be proud of her if she did.” Mikey said with a smirk as he went to Donnie and saw him checking Leo and Raph’s tracker.
“I doubt that she is. Where is she, anyways? Maybe she really tries to contact me right now? Sometimes she does it by accident…” Donnie asked as he looked at Mikey with concern.
“Hmmmm…” Mikey scratched his chin in thought. “April and Casey went to the movies, I think. But I doubt that something had happened. I mean, yeah. The Shredder just found out about you. And yeah, he is probably planning something big. And yeah, April and Casey, our friends that know where our secret lair is and ways of contacting us just went out to the public where it’s easy to track them down. But I doubt that something bad has happened to them, something so grave that April unknowingly contacts you.” Mikey lectured, rolling his eyes at how obvious his point was.

“…”
“…”

“…Yeah, maybe you should check on them.” Mikey said as he let out an awkward giggle and scratched his head in thought.
“…Yeah.” Donnie said in shock as he stared at Mikey, feeling his feelings of panic only rising. Man, Mikey was bad at calming Donnie’s thoughts.
____________________________________________________________________________ ”I will never tell you!” Casey said as he blocked another one of Tigerclaw’s punches with his hockey stick. He ran behind a random car as Tigerclaw started to shoot at him with his guns.
“This all could be over the moment you tell me where the turtles’ hideout is, human. Just tell me.” He said with a threatening growl, squinting his eye angrily at the car that Casey hid behind.
“Go away, you oversized cat!” Casey mocked from his hiding spot.
“Fine. If you wish to fight, then you will receive a fight.” Tigerclaw said as he advanced towards the car.
As Casey heard him stride towards him, with a yelp and wide eyes that were filled with fear, he quickly whipped out his phone to call for help. Casey usually isn’t afraid, or calls for help, but it seems that tigers can change his mind. Especially the huge ones.
____________________________________________________________________________ ”What?” April asked in shock.
“I said that I believe that Splinter is my father. Leo was right. You guys were right.” Karai said as she looked at the floor in shame, fiddling with her fingers while pouting in sadness.
“You… Actually believe us?” April asked skeptically, while still hoping to hear what she wanted to hear- that Karai sees the truth now.
“Yes, I do. I can’t believe that father- I mean, the Shredder was tricking me all along. I did not want to believe that, but now it has become too obvious to ignore. I apologize for what has been happening between us, O’Neil.” Karai said sincerely, looking at April with desperation as she silently begged her to believe her.
April stared at her, and then a smile slowly spread across her face.
“Don’t worry, Karai. It’s fine.” She reassured her as she inserted her fan back to where it was.
____________________________________________________________________________
“Mikey! Donnie!” Raph called with urgency as he and Leo ran to where Donnie and Mikey were.
“Raph! Did something happen?!” Donnie asked with anxiety as Mikey squeezed his shoulder in an attempt to calm him down.
“Yeah! Casey called. We need to go. He fights with Tigerclaw as we speak. April is probably in trouble as well.” Raph growled in anger as he squeezed his hands into fists.
“WHAT?!” Donnie basically yelled in panic.
“Mikey, let’s go. Donnie, you are staying. This is probably a trap by the Foot, so you better not come.” Leo ordered with a stone cold expression as he and Raph already ran to the exit of the lair.
“But-!” Donnie called in desperation, but was stopped from following them out of the lair by Mikey’s hand on his shoulder.
“D, you know that they are right. Don’t worry, we will be fine.” Mikey said with a reassuring smile as he ran after them, and Donnie was left to wallow in his guilt of being such a pathetic burden.

Notes:

And this is it! Did you enjoy this episode? I hope that you guys enjoy reading this series! Until next time!

Chapter 29: Season 3- Episode 9- The Chase- Part 2

Casey panted as he stood in front of Tigerclaw, his hockey stick clutched in his sweaty and shaking hands.

Casey Jones wasn’t usually a coward, but the lack of his strength and escape routes started to make him scared. Well, that, and the giant tiger that wanted to beat him up.

“Give up, human. Give me your hideout’s location, and I shall consider letting you walk away with all of your limbs attached to your body.” Tigerclaw said with a hungry smirk. Casey frowned, feeling like the tiger would prefer it if he refuses and then he will get to beat him into a pulp.

“I am not afraid of you.” Casey growled, mastering all of the courage that he had left as he squeezed his hockey stick harder.
“Oh? Really? I’m pretty sure that you were just hiding behind that car not long ago.” Tigerclaw said sassily, signaling with his head in the direction of the car that he spoke of. Or at least, what was left of it. Denting the car and breaking the windows when the tiger landed on it just added to Casey’s fear.

Casey took a few steps back in order to gain some distance, only for the mutant to take the same amount of steps forward, not allowing Casey to gain the distance that he had wished for.

Tigerclaw smirked, and then suddenly ran forward, toward Casey.
Casey screeched in surprise and terror as the tiger advanced in his direction. He looked in horror as the tiger stopped two steps away from him and brought his paw up, ready to strike Casey across his face with his claw.

Tigerclaw stopped in his tracks as he suddenly heard an enraged yell. He looked in its direction, only to yelp when he got punched in the face by its source.

“R-Raph!” Casey exclaimed in relief, as a smile stretched across his face.
“How did you even get into this situation, Casey?!” Raph yelled at Casey in anger, running to his side and getting into a fighting stance with his weapons pulled out.
“Hey! Don’t blame me! I didn’t plan it or anything!” Casey said, slouching his shoulders as he pouted in frustration.

Tigerclaw smirked as he saw that Raphael had entered the scene.
“Ah, one of the turtles. Just what I needed.” He said with a confident tone as he rubbed his cheek where Raph had punched him.
“Two!” Mikey corrected, as he landed behind him with his nunchucks pulled out.
“I see. So you came to aid your weakling.” Tigerclaw said with an antagonizing smile and a taunting voice.
“Hey! I’m not weak!” Casey exclaimed in anger as he brought his hockey stick closer to his body.
“Not now, Casey.” Raph said, rolling his eyes and turning to Tigerclaw.
“Hey! Casey is not weak!” He added, growling as he stared daggers at the mutant.
“What? But you just said-” Casey said in confusion until he was cut off by Raph.
“Yeah. Only I am allowed to get angry in a fight.” Raph replied in unseriousness, rolling his eyes.
“Hmm guys? Giant tiger that wants to eat us. Remember?” Mikey said, as Tigerclaw pulled out his guns again.
“Well, then. Let’s continue our battle.” Tigerclaw said with a devious smile.
—---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Leo stood on one of the rooftops, trying to look for April, who he fears might be in danger, like Casey. His eyes settled on one of the rooftops nearby, noticing two figures on it.
His eyes widened as he felt a gasp escape his lips in realization of who those two figures were.

He ran and jumped until he arrived on the rooftop where he saw the figures.
“April!” He exclaimed in worry as he pulled out his katanas.
April ran in Leo’s direction as he pulled out his weapons, waving her arms as she said: “Leo! It’s fine! Don't worry!” in an attempt to calm down his anxiety. She put her hands on his shoulders in order to stop his advance.
Leo’s eyes widened in surprise as his shoulders slightly slacked. “It… Is?” He asked in confusion, as he looked at the second person that was with April.
“I’m not here to hurt you, Leonardo.” Karai said with a tired sigh, as she put her arms up in submission, showing that she did not pull out her weapon.
“Then… What is going on? What about Tigerclaw?” Leo asked in suspicion, not putting down his weapons just yet.
“Tigerclaw?” April asked in confusion, lifting one of her eyebrows as she looked at Karai in need of explanation.
“Yeah… This is why I am here. To tell you of Shredder’s plan.” She confessed, looking at the floor anxiously with guilt lacing her tone.
“W-what?” Leo gasped, caught off guard by Karai’s words.
“The Foot knows of Donatello.” Karai said simply, with a grave expression. April and Leo flinched as they looked at each other, their suspicions being confirmed by Karai’s words.
Karai studied their expressions carefully, understanding the meaning of their reactions. “It seems… That you know about him as well.” She said behind gritted teeth.
Leo once again looked at April. Nodding at each other, they decided that they should give Karai a chance. Try and trust her.
Leo sighed sadly as he nodded at Karai, and April added “We just found out not that long ago.”
Karai nodded in understanding.
‘So they didn’t know at first…’ She thought to herself.
“Tigerclaw was sent after your second friend, while I was supposed to go after April. The plan is to get your hideout’s location out of you.” Karai confessed with a frown as she put her hands on her hips in seriousness.
“Casey??” April asked in worry, as her shoulders tensed.
“Oh… Well, Raph and Mikey went to help Casey, so it’s fine.” Leo said, to quell April’s anxiety.
Karai nodded in response, taking a deep breath as she continued. “I think… That I believe what you told me in the past.” She said, looking at Leo.
“What?” He asked, tilting his head to the side in confusion.
“About Yoshi being my father, Leonardo.” She said, keeping her answers as simple as possible because of her awkwardness.

Silence took over the group as Karai and Leo stared at each other.

“...What??” Leo exclaimed in shock as his jaw basically hit the floor.
“That’s what she told me as well, Leo.” April said as she squeezed his shoulder and looked into his eyes.
“But- Why?? Why now? Out of the blue?” Leo questioned Karai in urgency, trying to get the answers that he needed in order to understand the situation.
“It’s not ‘out of the blue’. I just considered what you told me and I started to understand… That there is something truly rotten in father-” She stopped as she corrected herself. “The Shredder. I have noticed that he always kept to himself, and he always wanted to take everything away from Yoshi. It starts to make sense… All he cares about is revenge. It makes me think… That I might not even be his. He doesn’t care about me enough. Perhaps he took me away from Yoshi just to hurt him.” She said with a broken and quiet voice as her shoulders slouched and she looked at Leo in desperation. “The Shredder is evil, and I want to join you and protect Donatello on the way. So that he wouldn't have to live the life that I have lived, as a foot soldier and the child of the Shredder.” She frowned in sadness as she crossed her arms, looking at April and Leo while expecting an answer.

Leo and April looked at Karai, and then at each other in silence.
“I… Believe her. She seems sincere.” April whispered to Leo, as he looked at Karai again.

His face was emotionless for a few seconds as he was stuck in thought. That is, until he declared:

“That’s… Amazing!” Leo said, as a huge grin spread across his face. He inserted his swords back to where they were as he walked in excitement towards Karai.
“Let’s get to the lair and tell the others! Sensei will be so happy to know that his daughter wants to come back.” He said as he grabbed her hand, making her flinch in surprise, and started to walk with her back to the lair, with April in tow. April sent Karai a reassuring smile, as Karai hesitantly returned it.
“It’s going to be fine. Don’t worry.” Leo said as he smiled at Karai, noticing her hesitation.
“Yeah… Thanks.” She said softly, smiling back at him.
—---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

“Guys!” Raph yelled in panic, running into the lair with Casey on his back as Mikey followed suit.
“Raphael!” Splinter exclaimed in surprise, as Donnie watched with wide eyes and mouth agape at Casey’s battered and unconscious form on Raph’s back.
“What happened?” Splinter asked in worry as he helped Raph lower Casey from his back.
“It’s TigerClaw! We came just on time, but Casey got knocked unconscious when we battled him.” Raph said, with his hands clenched into shaking fists. He gritted his teeth as Donnie walked over slowly.
“Raph… we will help him. Don’t worry.” Donnie said in a quiet tone, squeezing Raph’s shoulder in order to calm him down.
“Yeah! You can chill, bro.” Mikey added as he hugged Raph from behind, causing him to yelp.
Splinter settled Casey in the living room as he spoke. “Raphael, you can calm your mind. I have it handled.” Splinter said with a gentle voice, smiling at Raph and reassuring him.
“…Okay.” Raph said after sighing deeply.
“Donatello, prepare Raphael a cup of tea.” Splinter requested of his son as he completely turned his attention to Casey.
“Sensei, there is no need-!” Raph said, putting his hands up in reassurance.
“No, it’s fine, Raphie. I’ll drink some as well.” Donnie said as he left for the kitchen.

Mikey and Raph froze in place and looked at each other questionaly.
“Bro… He called you ‘Raphie’.” Mikey whispered to Raph.
“Yeah… So basically he is in a bad mood. Right?” Raph whispered back suspiciously as they both walked in the direction of the kitchen.
“Yep.” Mikey summed as they entered the kitchen.
Donnie handed cups of tea to Mikey and Raph, as he held one of his own.
“Okay, Don. Tell me. What’s wrong?” Raph asked, getting to the point as usual.
Donnie flinched as he replied: “Nothing is wrong. I’m fine.” He said, and then sipped from his cup while looking at the floor.
Mikey and Raph looked at each other again, Mikey shrugged as Raph sighed.
“Is it about Casey?” Raph asked as he put his cup down. “I think I am the one that needs to be worried, then. It’s not like you were there in order to feel guilty.” Raph said, rolling his eyes and crossing his arms.
“Unless you are simply worried for him?” Mikey added as he walked and stood beside Donnie, laying his weight on the counter.
“I feel worried… and guilty.” Donnie said, frowning and looking away in embarrassment.
“What? You feel guilty? For what?” Mikey asked in curiosity and confusion.
“Because it really is my fault. It's probably because of me that Tigerclaw went after him, and April is probably in danger as well, and I can’t even leave the lair…” Donnie said as he started breathing heavily.
“What? No… Donnie…” Raph whispered in sadness, as Mikey frowned and looked at the floor with the same sadness that Raph was feeling.
“But D, you know why you can’t leave the lair… And it’s not like you told Tigerclaw to attack Casey! It's not your fault, bro.” Mikey said with his ‘puppy eyes’, only to then put his cup down and jump at Donnie and hug him. Donnie yelped as he put his cup down on the counter so that he wouldn’t spill it by mistake. Raph walked to his side and rubbed his shoulder.
“You heard him, bro. It’s fine. We don’t blame you.” Raph said with a gentle smile.

Donnie looked at the scene with surprise, mainly shocked that Raph was actually gentle. Apparently he had it in him.
“Okay…” Donnie said with a tired sigh.
“Okay?” Raph asked again in suspicion, lifting his brow while making sure that Donnie wasn't lying.
“Okay, okay.” Donnie sighed as he rolled his eyes.
“You promise?” Mikey giggled as Donnie let out a frustrated groan.
“Yes! Get off me.” Donnie growled with annoyance as he tried to push Mikey off him.
“Good luck getting out of this one.” Raph said with a chuckle, as he took his cup of tea and left the kitchen.
“No! Raph, get him off! Don’t leave me!” Donnie exclaimed at the empty kitchen entrance as he tried shaking Mikey off.
“Good luck, bro. I can hug for hours.” Mikey said with a devilish smirk.
“RAPH!!!” Donnie hopelessly called, slowly succumbing to his fate as he was left standing in the kitchen with Mikey basically attached to him.
—---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Donnie and Mikey stayed in the kitchen and kept drinking their tea while talking about random things in general. They both simply wanted to relax, and they really needed it, too. ‘I don’t get many opportunities to forget about reality and relax, lately.’ Donnie thought to himself as he smiled warmly at one of Mikey’s jokes. He grabbed his cup of tea to take another sip, but he stopped right when the cup had touched his lips as he heard yelling from outside of the kitchen. Donnie and Mikey looked at each other with a raised brow in confusion at the commotion. Mikey shrugged at Donnie, signaling that he has no idea what is going on. Donnie sighed as they both rose from their chairs. Donnie took his cup with him as they both left the kitchen and went to the living room.

Before they even entered, they could already hear the enraged yelling of Raph.
“ARE YOU SERIOUS??” Raph basically bellowed.
Donnie and Mikey flinched, as they hesitantly entered.
“Your little brother is literally terrified lately of what the enemy might do. You thought that it would be a good idea to lead the enemy to the lair? When Donnie is struggling and the enemy wants to capture us most?!” Raph growled protectively.
“Raphael…” Splinter said with a straight face, his voice hinting at Raph to stop losing his temper.
“No, Sensei! She is probably here because the Shredder has another evil plan!” He added as he stared daggers at…
Donnie gasped in terror, as he brought his hands to his quivering lips, causing the glass of tea in his hands to fall and break, the tea spilling over the floor. The whole room looked at the direction of the sound when the glass shattered, flinching when they noticed that Donnie and Mikey had entered the area.

Mikey’s eyes widened as his jaw went slack. He slowly and hesitantly looked at Donnie in worry, and then back at the person that Leo and April had brought with them.
“Guys…” April said anxiously, slightly worried about their reactions.
“Now, Donnie, before you freak out…” Leo said cautiously, as he held his hands up and slowly walked towards Donnie with an awkward smile.
Donnie slowly removed his hands from his lips, as he took a deep breath to calm down.
“Leo?” Donnie asked in a gentle voice that held a lot of emotions behind it as he closed his eyes and clenched his hands into fists.
“...Yeah?” Leo replied hesitantly.
“Why... Is Karai…” Donnie started saying quietly, as he then yelled in Leo’s face. “In our secret lair?!”
Leo’s eyes widened as he flinched, stepping back while rubbing his neck awkwardly.
“You would think that a secret lair is supposed to be a secret.” Raph commented with frustration, as Leo stared daggers at him.
—---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
The moment Karai saw Donnie, she couldn’t take her eyes off of him, letting out a gasp in surprise.
‘This is my brother… My actual brother…’ She thought to herself in shock, as she looked at him.
Karai had seen Donnie before, obviously. However, all of this time she saw him as a rival. But this is the first time that she saw him, or faced him, as a brother.
She bit her lower lip as she clenched her fists in hidden rage while the brothers bickered, not noticing her reaction as Splinter tried to calm them down.
‘This is the life that I could have had, with my brother. The life that I have missed…’ She thought to herself bitterly, feeling hatred bubble up in her guts.
She looked at Splinter, who was busy trying to calm Raph down.
‘Because of you.’

Notes:

And this is it! What did you think? What do you think is going to happen in the future of the story? Support is appreciated!

Chapter 30: Season 3- Episode 10- A Much Needed Conversation

Raph and Leo kept bickering, as Master Splinter and Mikey tried to calm them down. April watched from the sidelines, sitting beside Casey, who was still unconscious.

Donatello stood beside his brothers silently as he took in the situation. Here and there he and Karai would accidentally share glances, causing him to look away shyly. She, however, did not avert her gaze. Donnie could swear that he felt like she wanted to tell him something. Little did he know that rather than simply ‘say’ something, she wanted to actively shake him until he sees the truth. Her truth is that he, as the Shredder’s child, needs to go back to be by his father and sister’s side.

Karai had thought that she would feel guilty by tricking Leo to get her to their lair- and to her brother. However, she didn’t feel any guilt or regret. Jealousy had immediately consumed her as she saw the brothers together. Karai had never thought about wanting a sibling. But now that she knows that she has one, she actually desires it.
—---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Donnie hesitantly walked over to April, looked over Casey, and then sat beside her as they whispered to each other.

Seeing the chance that no one will notice her now, Karai put her hand behind her back, whipped out a tracker that she hid from sight, and activated it.
‘Forgive me, Donatello. I am simply doing what must be done.’ Karai had thought to herself with a tense frown that was directed at the floor.
—---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
”What do you mean by ‘fine’?! Tigerclaw had beat Casey up into mush! How can you not see that what you did was stupid?!” Raph exclaimed in frustration, trying desperately to make Leo see his errors.
“Raph… Let’s just talk about it without yelling. Please.” Leo said gently, not willing to get into a fight. He already needs to think about how to get Donnie to get used to Karai, especially given their special connection. He doesn’t need more stress at the moment.

Raph was about to say something, until he closed his mouth in thought.
“...Fine.” Raph sighed tiredly. He usually never backs down from a fight, but even he thinks that it’s not the right time to cause havoc.
“Thanks…” Leo said, sighing tiredly with a small smile.
“Whatever.” Raph replied with a frustrated pout.

Master Splinter and Mikey, who stood by their side the entire time, were more than glad that they didn’t get into a serious fight. Even if it’s simply verbal.

Splinter turned to Karai’s direction, causing her to flinch and stare back at him.
“Miwa. Come with me to the dojo.” He said simply, with a sense of authority but a mix of gentleness as he walked slowly to the dojo’s doors. Karai tried to suppress her hate that was about to appear on her face, knowing that the others could see her. She looked at Leo for a second, as he responded to her silent worries of being alone with Master Splinter with an excited smile.

She sighed tiredly and walked to the dojo.
—---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
She entered and closed the dojo’s doors behind her.
“Miwa.” Splinter called, causing her to look at him.
He walked in her direction holding a picture that she could not yet see.
“My daughter. It is time, since we are reunited, that you will know the story of you and your brother.” Splinter said with a gentle smile, as he handed her the photo.

Karai took the photo from his hands and stared at it.

Karai gasped, dropping the photo to the floor as she covered her mouth with her quivering hands. Her eyes could basically pop out of their sockets at this point. In the photo, it was indeed her mother, but the man and the baby that were with her were obviously not Karai and her father.

“It is time for you to know the truth.” Splinter had declared, with his dedicated gaze aimed at her.

Notes:

And this is it! Thank you for reading! Did you like this episode?

Chapter 31: Season 3- Episode 11- Uncertainty

April and Donnie sat by Casey’s unconscious form, as Mikey, Raph and Leo stood in front of them and discussed the situation at hand.

‘What situation?’ You might ask? Well, to sum up, Leo was dumb enough to bring the enemy to their lair.

“I still think that you are stupid, by the way.” Raph said with a scoff as he crossed his hands with a frown.
“Can you stop it? It’s not a trap.” Leo groaned in mental tiredness as his shoulders slacked.
“I am on Raph’s side.” Donnie declared with a bored and judgeful expression that was aimed at Leo.
“Ha!” Raph snickered as Leo rolled his eyes.
“Come on, Donnie! Out of everyone, you are supposed to side with me! Getting Karai on our side will help us! She can give us information, fight on our side, stuff like that!” Leo exclaimed in desperation as he threw his arms in the air.
“Or bite you in the shell.” Donnie said as he rolled his eyes and Mikey chuckled at his response.
“Donnie… I think that we should give her a chance!” April begged as she looked sadly at Donnie, believing that there is potential in Karai.
“Dudes, maybe we really should give her a chance.” Mikey said as he rubbed his chin in consideration.
“Are you kidding me, Mikey?!” Raph said, aggravated as he groaned.
Donnie sighed as he shook his head tiredly. “Let’s just ask Master Splinter.”
“Great idea!” Leo said smugly, as he smirked at Raph.
“Don’t celebrate too early, Fearless. He might be on my side.” Raph said with a condescending huff. “How’s Casey?” Raph changed the subject, worrying about his friend as he looked over him with a frown.
“Don’t worry. He will be fine. He just needs some rest.” Donnie said with a gentle and reassuring smile, making Raph slightly lighten up and smile back at him. “Alright.”

“So wait… If we really do accept Karai… And she accepts us… Does that make her our little sister?” Mikey asked in confusion as he looked over his brothers, who stared blankly at him in response.
“You know, since Donnie was born before her, and Donnie and us are the same age.” Mikey added as he scratched the side of his head in thought.
“I would hate that.” Raph growled as his face turned into a frown of slight disgust.
“Come on, Raph…” April said desperately, acceptance of Karai being important in her opinion.
“I’m not giving up on my ‘youngest’ privileges.” Mikey huffed in discontent as he crossed his arms and pouted.
“What- Are you serious?” Leo said with a frustrated groan as he dragged his hand over his face.
“You would give up on those ‘privileges’ for a box of pizza.” Raph said with a condescending tone, only to have Mikey excitedly look at him.
“What?! Really? You promise?!” Mikey asked with a burst of energy and a big smile as he hopped in place repeatedly.
“I shouldn’t have said that.” Raph huffed as he pinched Mikey’s cheek in an attempt to make him stop.
“OW!” Mikey yelped as he grabbed Raph's hand. “Not cool!”
“It’s only going to get more and more complicated. Isn’t it?” Donnie asked with a tired sigh.
“Yep.” April replied as she squeezed his shoulder in understanding.

“Raph. If Leo was wrong and Karai will betray us, you are my new leader.” Donnie declared nonchalantly, although everyone could notice that he was slightly aggravated at Leo.
“W-what?!” Leo yelped as Raph chuckled. “Shell yeah!”
“What?? Raph is our new leader?” Mikey asked in surprise, as April laughed.
“No! You should listen more.” Leo said with annoyance in his tone.
“Donnie, I’m taking you up on this statement.” Raph said with a smirk, as Donnie smiled mischievously in response.
“What? No! No one is replacing me.” Leo basically whined, with a childish pout.
“Only time will tell, big brother. You better prove yourself worthy.” Donnie declared, sending Leo a glare that indicated that he was still very much upset over what he had done.
Leo chuckled awkwardly as he rubbed the back of his neck nervously, getting the message of Donnie’s glare.
“I’m sure that it will be fine…” Leo mumbled, although it did not help Donnie’s worries. He was sure that something wasn't right. And Donnie was the smart one. If anyone could understand the basics of having rivals, it’s him.

Notes:

Thank you for reading! Hopefully you’ll stick around for the next episodes! It’s going to be a wild ride!

Chapter 32: Season 3- Episode 12- A New Mess To Clean

Notes:

Hey guys! Just saying that I started writing one shots as well, so feel free to visit and follow my account! The 3rd season will end soon, so be ready for action! Now, let’s begin!

“Alright, let’s go check on them.” Raph suddenly announced to April and his brothers, as he started to walk in the direction of the dojo.

“W-what?! Raph! We can’t interrupt them!” Leo exclaimed in slight panic of what Raph might do as his eyes widened and body tensed.

Raph stopped in his tracks, as he turned around and looked at Donnie.
“What should we do, Donnie? Since this is about you, you call the shots.” Raph said as he crossed his arms and awaited his answer.
Donnie flinched in slight embarrassment at being in the spotlight, and was surprised by Raph actually asking him for his opinion. Raph usually just did whatever he wanted. There’s something that Donnie had noticed lately. Because of what was going on, Raph was calmer and more open minded with Donnie. He would get protective over him and ask him what he wishes to do in certain situations. It was actually normal of Raph to be more attentive to his little brothers in time of need. It’s a quality that Donnie had always appreciated.

Donnie thought to himself for a few seconds, until he had decided.
“Let’s just see if they need anything without disturbing them.” He finally announced, making Raph smirk at Leo, who glared back at him.

“Oh, come on! Why do you always take his side over mine?” Leo pouted with a childish huff as he crossed his arms.
“Maybe because he’s the smart one?” Raph answered with a confident smile, as Leo groaned and Mikey and April chuckled at his insult.
Donnie rolled his eyes as he turned to Leo.
“Since you’ve brought the enemy to the lair at such a delicate time, I would say that it’s a fitting punishment.” He told Leo with a lifted eyebrow, obviously still angry at Leo, who chuckled nervously and looked away.

Raph walked to Donnie and grabbed him by the shoulder with newfound energy. “Good!” He smirked as he started to walk Donnie with him to the dojo. “Now let's go!”
Leo, Mikey and April were quick to follow as they arrived at the dojo’s entrance.

“I can sense you, my sons. You may enter.” They heard Splinter’s voice declare as soon as they arrived at the entrance, not too shocked but still surprised as usual at Splinter’s detecting abilities.

They looked at each other shyly, and hesitantly entered the dojo.
They came face to face with Karai and their Sensei. Karai had stared at Donnie with wide eyes and an open jaw, basically burning holes through his skull.

“Shocked you that much. Huh?” Raph asked cynically with a raised brow and crossed arms.
“I… I don’t…” Karai stuttered for a moment with pleading eyes that held guilt in them. She then looked down to the floor as her expression darkened.

“Brother. I’ve made a mistake.” She mumbled quietly and somberly as she turned her eyes to Donnie.
April and the brothers flinch in surprise and wide eyes when Karai calls Donnie “brother”. Of course, it was odd in general to hear her say that, but what was surprising was how soon she used that term.

Donnie looked at his brothers and April for a moment, then at Splinter, and then back at Karai in nervousness.
“W-what?” He stuttered in confusion and surprise.
“If it’s about fighting for the Shredder then it's fine. You know the truth now.” Leo joined the conversation, assuring Karai with a firm tone.
Karai shook her head at Leo’s statement. “No! That’s not it!” She exclaimed, as her expression started to get filled with panic.
“Miwa?” Splinter asked, uncertain of Karai’s intentions as he looked at her suspiciously.
“You good, Karai?” Mikey asked with a frown, not understanding what was going on, much like everyone else in the room.

“We need to leave.” She declared in alarm, as she looked at the family in regret.
—---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Karai had told them the plan. The real reason why she was in the lair. Needless to say that the family was shocked. Terrified. And quite obviously, Raph was furious.

“I TOLD YOU!” He yelled at Leo, who just realized what kind of mistake he had made. His expression was distant, and mouth ajar.

“Leo…” Donnie whispered in terror. Leo looked at him, seeing how scared Donnie looked, as April rubbed his shell and tried talking him into calming down.

Splinter took a deep breath as he composed himself. “You need to leave. Lead TigerClaw away from the lair. April and I will stay with Donatello and Casey.” He commanded with authority and firm eyes, looking at Donatello as he signaled him that he should not object about staying in the lair right now.
The brothers looked at each other, and then hesitantly at Karai.
Leo sighed, trying to make himself feel less guilty, as he ordered. “Raph. Mikey. Let’s go.”
Raph, Mikey, Leo and Karai left the dojo hurriedly, as they looked back at the members of the family who stayed behind one last time.
“Stay safe.” Donnie told them with a worried frown, as Mikey sent him a goofy smile. “Don’t worry, D!”

Donnie waited a few seconds after they had left, as the room was filled with deafening silence, just to fall on his knees with a distant look.
“Donatello!” “Donnie!” His father and April yelped in surprise and worry.

“It’s my fault. All of this is my fault.” He mumbled in terror, as April and Splinter flinched in response.
“D-Donatello…?” Splinter asked hesitantly, with newfound anxiety clouding his face.
Donatello only grabbed the sides of his head and squeezed his eyes shut with gritted teeth.
He then hugged himself as he started to tremble. “I’m such a disgrace.” He whispered loud enough for the whole room to hear.
April and Splinter flinched as they looked at him in shock.

“Donnie, no.” April said with a firm voice as she fell to her knees and grabbed his shoulders. “Don’t you even dare think such a thing.” She made him open his eyes and look at her with uncertainty. Splinter walked to his side and crouched beside him, as he started to rub his shell in comfort.
“Donatello, you are a blessing. Never think that you are a disgrace.” Splinter said in a gentle voice, as he looked over Donnie’s expression.
“Really?” He whispered, not really believing what his father was trying to tell him.
“Really.” He assured, with a gentle smile, as he patted his head.
“…Okay.” Donnie whispered in response, as he looked down at the floor shyly, yet still uncertain.
“Good. Never think such a thing again.” Splinter smiled and lightly chuckled as he rubbed Donnie’s head, lightening the mood since he could still sense that Donnie did not believe what he was telling him, and was still feeling down. Donnie and April smiled at his chuckle.

Splinter knew that since Donnie had discovered the truth, he needed to feel like a Hamato again. He knew that he felt like an imposter. As if he doesn’t belong. But Splinter will make an effort to make sure that Donnie feels as much as a Hamato as any other brother feels. And that’s because they are family.

Notes:

And this is it for this episode! The end of the season is near! Please stay tuned and support my work!

Chapter 33: Season 3- Episode 13- A New Conflict

Leo, Mikey and Raph ran after Karai as they traveled the sewer tunnels, letting her lead as they tried to manipulate the enemy, who was tracking them.
Karai couldn’t keep the guilty frown from showing on her face, as Raph kept angrily mumbling. Leo and Mikey just kept shooting each other worried glances.

Karai stopped in her tracks as they arrived in a room that was at the end of one of the tunnels, causing the other three turtles to stop as well.
“I think that we are far enough from the lair.” She declared with a concerned voice and a focused frown.
“Oh, really?” Raph asked cynically, as Leo shot him a glare.
Karai sighed sadly as she tried to ignore the guilt that bubbled up in her guts. She entered the room, Raph, Leo and Mikey following her inside.

They all looked around the dark room as they tried to take all that they were seeing in. It was empty, aside from some pipes that were connected from the floor and walls to the ceiling.
“That place is good. It will be easy to manipulate the fight to our benefit. Use the advantage of the room being small and the pipes that can come in Tigerclaw’s way.” Karai ordered with determination, as Leo and Mikey nodded in affirmation.
“Who told you to give us orders?” Raph basically growled, as Karai groaned in frustration. “Can we not do this now? When a giant tiger is after us?”
Raph opened his mouth to tell her ‘Well why do you think that we are in this situation in the first place?’, but closed his mouth when he realized that she was right. This was not the time to start arguing. “…Fine.” He sighed, annoyed from having to hold himself back.

They all flinched as they could hear footsteps approaching the room.
“Hide.” Leo ordered quietly, as they all ran to the shadows of the room.
—----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Meanwhile, Donnie was walking in circles anxiously, as April tended to Casey, sitting beside him, with the aid of Splinter.
“Calm down, my son. The problem is being taken care of.” Splinter told Donnie gently, without looking at him as he was busy tending to Casey.
April frowned worriedly as Donnie stopped in his tracks.

“…How can you be so calm?” Donnie asked in a weak voice.
Splinter lifted his head and glanced back at Donnie.
“It’s all because of me yet you accept me so easily! Why?” Donnie squeaked in guilt, as he frowned in self disappointment. His shoulders stiffened as he looked at his father with expectations. Expectations that he will be mad… Disappointed… Unloving… Deep inside, he kind of wanted his father to act like that towards him. Because if he doesn’t, then it means that Donnie’s mind is bullying itself for nothing. Besides, it will only make sense to him that his father would love him less than his brothers, if he will love him at all. And Donnie likes sense. He waited for his father to start hating him ever since he found out the truth. However, no matter how much he waited for it, it never came.

“I accept you because you are my son. Even if you are related to Saki, I still love you, and I’m still your father.” Splinter said calmly, as Donnie searched his eyes for any negativity.
“But you-!”
“Wha…?”
Donnie was cut off, by none other than…
“Casey!” April yelped as Casey started to move his head groggily, his eyes unfocused.
Donnie ran to Casey’s side and sat beside his father as he looked over at him.
“Casey! Are you okay?” Donnie yelped in worry as he grabbed his shoulder.
“Wha? I, I don’t…” Casey mumbled quietly as he tried to take in the scene around him, moving his head and eyes from side to side in an uncontrolled manner.
“Jones?” Splinter asked worriedly.
“He has a concussion. That’s for sure.” Donnie mumbled with anxiety, as he looked at Casey’s lying form.
Casey blinked at Donnie slowly, as he decided to try and say something.
“Woah. D! Y-your cat just b-beat me up. It w-was s-scary, man.” He mumbled with a goofy and unconcentrated smile.
“My cat?” Donnie lifted his brow in confusion as Splinter and April looked at him with uncertainty.
“You know. Your dad’s cat.” Casey huffed drowsily.

If Casey wasn’t so out of it now, he would notice the way Donnie flinched in terror from his statement. Splinter’s eyes widened in worry as he looked at Donnie, while April glared at Casey.
“Casey!” She exclaimed in slight anger, silently scolding him.
“April- It’s fine.” Donnie said as he held his hand up, sighing. “It’s not his fault. He’s out of it. He basically called TigerClaw a cat.” He rolled his eyes with a huff.
April and Splinter frowned in worry as they silently stared at Donnie as he was talking to Casey, trying to make sure that he’s fine. But obviously, Donnie wasn’t fine. He didn’t need the fact that Shredder is his father to be thrown at his face right now. But he couldn’t blame Casey either, given his situation.

Just as Splinter was about to refer to Donnie again, they heard footsteps hurrying towards the lair. They turned in the direction of the entrance as they readied themselves.

“Something is wrong. They came here too fast.” April said with a frown, sensing trouble on the way.
“Do you think…” Donnie mumbled, his eyes widening as he could feel his heart pound like crazy. “It surely can’t be…”
“The Foot?” Splinter questioned, his shoulders tensing as he understood what they were implying.
“Did they find us?!” Donnie exclaimed in anxiety as he could feel fear clawing at his mind, as if it was eating him from the inside.
Splinter and April stood up, their bodies moving in a tense manner into fighting positions, as Donnie stayed on the floor by Casey, freaked out.

“SENSEI!!”
They could hear Raph yell from a distance.
April and Splinter broke out of their stances, confusion yet relief washing over them, as Donnie’s shoulders slacked with a relaxed sigh.

Their eyes widened yet again, as Leo and Raph hurried into the lair, carrying…
“MICHELANGELO!” Splinter yelled with worry, running to his elder sons, as Leo and Raph carried an unconscious Michelangelo into the lair, looking as if he had been beaten badly.

April’s hands flew to her mouth, covering it in shock with a gasp, as Donnie stayed frozen on the floor, with his mouth gaping like a fish.

“Father…” Leo whispered as he trembled in horror, his gaze distant.
“Leonardo! What is going on?!” Splinter asked in urgency, as he looked over Mikey.
“We tried to fight him, father.” Leo whispered, gritting his teeth in sorrow.
“What?” Splinter gasped in a weak voice.
Then, Splinter looked behind him at Raph, who was walking over to him and put a hand on his shoulder, squeezing it as his expression was full of grief. Then, after a few quiet seconds, he said:
“They took her, Sensei. Karai is gone.”

Notes:

And this is the end of this season! Please stay tuned!

Chapter 34: Season 4- Episode 1- Betrayal

Notes:

Hey guys! Welcome to the new season of Gapped Knowledge! I wish to thank everyone who followed the story this far. If you have any hopes or theories for what is about to happen in the story, feel free to write it in the comments! Now, let’s begin!

‘I can’t believe it. I can’t.’ Karai thought in horror as TigerClaw dragged her forcefully by the arm as he led her towards the throne room. ‘My father betrayed me. And I betrayed them… The turtles… My actual father……. My brother.’ She couldn’t lift her gaze from the floor as they walked, her mind being a mess. She couldn’t stop frowning from guilt. She had just found out the truth… And so did her brother… And now they are in a new mess. She couldn’t stop thinking about what is going to happen to her now. How far will the Shredder go in her punishment? Maybe he wouldn’t mind being extreme since she isn’t his daughter after all? ‘This can’t be right.’ Karai thought to herself as she remembered her conversation with Splinter.

‘Saki took you because he wanted to claim what he believes belongs to him.’
That’s what he told her as an explanation for why the Shredder had deceived her for so long. ‘So it probably means he still considers me as his daughter, regardless of genetics.’ She thought to herself.

Tigerclaw stopped in his tracks, causing Karai to bump her head onto his back. She shook her head, rubbing it in surprise as she saw the reason that Tigerclaw had stopped walking.

They have arrived at the entrance to the throne room.

Karai could feel a shudder going through her body as her shoulders tensed in horror.
She didn’t notice that she stopped breathing for a moment.

She wasn’t sure if she’s scared because of the punishment that is awaiting her, or because she has to confront the Shredder so soon and finally admit that this is her reality. That she was living a lie.

Tigerclaw let go of her arm as he straightened his back, causing her to snap out of her thoughts with a flinch. Then, before she was ready, the footbots from inside the room opened the door for them to enter.

Tigerclaw grabbed her arm harshly again as he walked her to stand before the Shredder, who sat on the throne with a menacing look.

Tigerclaw made her sit on her knees, as if kneeling, on the floor in front of the stairs that led to the throne. Her gaze was stuck on her knees as Tigerclaw spoke.

“Master. I have brought her as ordered.” Tigerclaw declared with a slight bow.
“And she betrayed you?” The Shredder asked as his frown hardened under his mask, glaring at Karai.
“Yes, master. She teamed up with the Hamatos. I did not manage to get the location of the lair.” Tigerclaw slightly growled as Karai kept silently looking at the floor.

The Shredder took a few calming breaths as he contemplated on what to do.
“Leave, Tigerclaw.” He finally ordered.
Tigerclaw bowed silently and left the room, leaving Karai alone with “her father”.
“So. I assume that you’ve found out their perspective of the story?” He asked directly.
She lifted her gaze from the floor to the Shredder in surprise. She did not expect him to be this straightforward.
Her frown hardened as she simply mumbled; “Yes”.
In a slight moment of hope that it was all the Hamatos’ lies, she finally got to her knees and asked.
“Is it true? Am I really Yoshi’s daughter?” She basically pleaded for him to tell her that it’s not true.

“...It is.” He replied with a sigh after a few seconds of silence.
Her eyes widened as she fell to her knees again.

“Then… What’s the point? Of all this? Of getting Donatello? Of everything!” She exclaimed in confusion, as she wanted to cry from the feeling of betrayal, and the heartbreak that she didn’t ever expect to experience.
“The point is setting everything as it should be. I will get Donatello back, and then we can lead the clan together. Live as a… Family.” The Shredder said, feeling the desire of the life that he could have slowly grow inside him. This is the closest thing he will ever get to having a family with Shen.

Karai had just stared at him in shock with her mouth agape.
“Are you… Serious?” She gasped out as she stared at him with wide eyes. “He’s from the Hamato clan! He will never agree!” She exclaimed, trying to get the Shredder to see some sense.
“Which is why I will make sure that he agrees, myself.” He responded with a growl as he clenched his fists. With a flick of his hand, Tigerclaw entered the room again, striding towards Karai and grabbing her by the arm.
“No- Wait!” She cried out as Tigerclaw started to drag her out of the room.
“You can’t do this! ‘Father!’” She yelled, as the door slammed behind her.

Tigerclaw locked her in a cell in the dungeon under “her father’s” orders. She still couldn’t believe it. She grabbed the metal bars, yelling at Tigerclaw in rage and panic as he walked away. But no matter how much she demanded, she was still left in the cell.

Notes:

And this is it! Thank you so much for reading!

Chapter 35: Season 4- Episode 2- Making Plans

Notes:

Hey guys! Before we begin, I wish to tell you that I have uploaded another oneshot! Feel free to read my other works as well. Now, let’s begin!

It’s been two days. Two days since Karai was dragged off by Tiger Claw. No one in the family knows what became of her fate, which was the reason as to why they were all on edge. Even Raph was slightly worried. They already made assumptions that Karai was punished, and that she’s probably in trouble. Leo had repeated again and again since she was taken that they were going to help her, and wait for the right time to do it (although he didn’t really want to wait).

The four brothers sat together in Leo’s room on the floor with a bunch of papers and Donnie’s computer, trying to figure out a plan with worried expressions.
“Leo, it’s been two days. Are you sure that she needs our help anymore?” Raph said, as usual, trying to hide his emotions of anxiety. He didn’t like Karai, but if she indeed was in trouble, then even he had a hard time ignoring it.
Leo took a deep breath, trying to compose himself. “I don’t know, but we should find out anyway. I don’t want her to be in trouble because of us.” He sighed with a guilty frown, only to feel more guilt when he could feel Donnie stop typing his computer’s keyboard with a flinch.
“Sorry, Don. I didn’t mean it like that-“
“It’s fine, Leo. I need to learn how to live with it.” Donnie mumbled sadly.

An uncomfortable silence lingered in the room.

“Well-“ Mikey, as usual, trying to lighten up the situation. “Let’s just help her, guys. She deserves it.” He looked at Raph hopefully, obviously expecting him to object.
“Stop with the puppy eyes- will you?! I said that I’ll help already.” Raph rolled his eyes with fake frustration, trying to hide the fact that Mikey almost got him with the pitiful expression.
“Well, we need to come up with a plan. I mean, breaking into their HQ is going to be dangerous, especially since it’s just the three of us-“ Leo explained to his team, until he was cut off by Donnie closing his computer harshly.
“What??? You’re leaving me here again?!” He yelped in frustration.
His three brothers looked at him awkwardly.
“Donnie. It’s the Shredder’s HQ. Why would we bring you there, right when you’re supposed to stay away from the Shredder?” Raph frowned with frustration, expecting Donnie to see the obvious.
“Raph’s right, Donnie.” Leo sighed sadly as he looked at Donnie with a frown.
“Leo. I’ve been stuck here for such a long time! How would any of you feel in my situation? Not only stuck here, but unable to help you?” Donnie begged them to understand, although he knew the outcome.
“D. We all understand. Believe us. But there’s no choice. Please stay here. For me?” Mikey grabbed his shoulder as he stared into his eyes with a plea written over his face.
Donnie looked over all of them, unsure, as Leo and Raph nodded at him to drive him to accept Mikey’s request.
“Besides, someone needs to stay here and hold off Sensei. We ARE going behind his back, after all.” Leo winked with a smirk.
The other three brothers looked at him in surprise, not expecting it out of the most obedient son.
“Wait- it’s behind his back?” Raph whispered with wide eyes.
“Yep. He wouldn’t allow us to go otherwise.” Leo whispered back with a smirk, as the rest of the brothers could feel a smile stretch on their face.
“Wait- I need to hold him off? You gave me the worst job.” Donnie huffed with a pout.
“Well- you wanted to help, bro.” Mikey shrugged as Donnie mumbled “I take it back”.

“Okay- so listen up guys. Donnie will stay and hold off Sensei in case he gets suspicious as to why we are not home. The three of us will take the vehicle and arrive near the Foot’s HQ. What’s next? Any ideas?” Leo questioned as he scratched his chin in thought.
“Let’s just sneak in from the roof and slowly go down. Bring a bunch of smoke bombs for distraction.” Raph filled in as Leo nodded. “Alright. We need to search every floor and stay together. Donnie, have your T-phone on you at all times in case we have an emergency.” Donnie nodded in confirmation, feeling his stomach churn for a moment in anxiety.
“If someone sees us, take him out before he calls for backup.” Leo ordered with a frown, as the rest nodded at him.
“Do you think Karai is locked up?” Mikey asked in worry.
The other three brothers frowned at the possibility.
“Most likely.” Leo sighed sadly.
“His own daughter…” Raph said in disgust.
“Bro, it’s the Shredder.” Mikey responded as he shrugged his shoulders.
“That’s why I was so depressed in the first place.” Donnie rolled his eyes as he opened his computer and started typing again.
“Yeesh. Understandable, bro.” Mikey rubbed his shell as he shook his head with sympathy. Leo and Raph, still not used to Donnie’s background, flinched slightly in surprise. But since Donnie’s way of handling such things sometimes is to make them feel unimportant, they made themselves ignore his remarks rather than complain on how he talks as if this reality changes who he is.
“Are you sure that it’s a good idea to hide it from Sensei? Mikey had just healed. Casey, too. Maybe you should all take your time and make April and Casey come with you.” Donnie said in thought with a frown.
“Well- Sensei already knows we are planning to go. That's why he told us that it’s too dangerous in the first place. He expects us to do it anyway. He just doesn’t know when and how. Also, we shouldn’t drag April and Casey into this.” Raph said as he took his sais out and twisted them in his hands to occupy himself.
“Sensei confronted us on this just today. There’s no way that he doesn’t know.” Donnie huffed.
“Which is why you’ll hold him off.” Leo said, his smirk returning, as Raph started to smirk as well. “Oh no. A long day is ahead of me.” Donnie sighed in tiredness.
“Okay, we will plan the rest on the way there. Let’s go.” Leo got up in a hurry.
“What?! NOW?!” Donnie yelped in surprise as they all got up from the floor. “Woohoo! Finally!” Mikey smiled with energy, as he followed Leo and Raph out of the door. “And keep it a secret, Donnie!” Leo exclaimed in a whisper on his way out of the room.
“You’ve got to be kidding me.” Donnie murmured in frustration.

“And D!” Mikey exclaimed in a hurry as he ran back into the room.
“Yeah?” He asked in surprise.
“We love you!” He said with a smile as he hugged him quickly and ran out again.
“…” Donnie stood quietly and alone in the room, trying to fight the blush and the smile that threatened to appear on his face.
“Cool.”

Notes:

And this is it! Please stay tuned!

Chapter 36: Season 4- Episode 3- Swirling Thoughts

Donnie sat in the living room with his laptop as he typed, trying to relax from the fact that his brothers literally left for their enemy’s HQ. He couldn’t help but feel stressed out. He could barely concentrate. However, he forced himself to stay in the living room in case Splinter would leave the dojo. Not that he notices whenever he moves around, but being there has assured him.

He kept imagining what his brothers must be going through at this very moment. While he did basically nothing, they were out there risking their lives for Karai. Which was his fault, as well.

Donnie shook his head as he tried to chase away the feelings of guilt. He wished almost everyday since he had found out the truth that he wouldn’t have seen those damned results. That he wouldn’t be like this in the first place. He guessed- No, He knew, that everything would have been easier if he wouldn’t have been born. He made life complicated for everyone around him. A walking curse. A waste of space-

Donnie shook his head again, this time with a groan. He hated feeling like this, but he couldn’t avoid it since he discovered the truth.

He can’t even imagine his life the way it used to be anymore. He can’t believe his own memories anymore. Almost all of his memories are related to his family. But how can that be if instead of feeling a part of this family- He only feels like an intruder now?

Donnie didn’t notice that he had stopped working.

He closed his laptop with a sigh as he closed his eyes for a moment. He tried taking deep breaths to calm himself down.

Didn’t work.

He kept thinking.

He couldn’t stop thinking.

That is Donnie’s disadvantage. He always thinks. Many think that it’s an advantage, and Donnie does, too, but he still hates it.

His thoughts had swayed to Karai.

He wondered how she was doing. What ended up happening to her. What was the result of his own existence.

How can his family expect him to sit by? Stay trapped in the lair, while they fix the consequences of him being… Different?

‘If anything happens to anyone because of me, then I swear on my honor, that when it happens, the one who will put himself in danger and fix things would be me.’ Donnie knew that it was irresponsible of him to promise himself that, but his emotions were too strong. He couldn’t help but feel like he isn’t worth much anymore. He only causes hardships for others, which he must pay and make up for.

He was staring at nothing for 10 minutes straight.

While his brothers were out there fighting.

He checked his phone just to be sure that they didn’t need help.
And of course that they didn’t.
Not from him, anyways.

Donnie never told anyone, but he could slowly feel himself getting worse. As if his negative emotions were slowly taking over him.

He felt worse by each day that was passing by.

He didn’t like it, but he couldn’t stop it either. Especially since he didn’t talk to his family or friends about it, but it wasn’t anything new. Donnie always tended to keep his feelings to himself. He just didn’t expect it to hurt him so much.

 

Donnie clutched his hands into shaking fists. He bit his quivering lip as his face hardened with a scowl.
‘If another bad thing happens ever again because of me, I’m stepping in. I won’t listen to their orders anymore. I’ll take responsibility as I should, even if it might put me in danger. I’m done.’

Notes:

Good luck, Donnie ;)

Chapter 37: Special Episode

Notes:

A special prologue. Enjoy!

“Are you sure about that name?” Yoshi frowned in uncertainty, crossing his arms.
“I am sure.” Tang Shen smiled, looking at her newborn baby with love as she held him close to her while lying in bed.

Yoshi smiled, seeing the scene in front of him warmed his heart, even with their current circumstances.
“Still… ‘Dentarou’ is quite surprising. Since when did you even consider this name?”
“Don’t you remember that artist that I like?” Shen reminded her husband with a raised eyebrow.
“Donatello? Of course. It’s one of your favorites.” Yoshi answered as he sat on the bed, beside her.
“That’s exactly why ‘Dentarou’ fits! Sounds similar to ‘Donatello’, and it has a beautiful meaning. Besides, I’ve heard that many people that carry that name tend to be very smart. Maybe it will make Dentarou intelligent even more than he’s bound to be.” Shen smirked as she fantasized about the great grades that her son might score in class.
“So you are basically naming him ‘Donatello’? I’m still in favor of ‘Akiyoshi’.” Yoshi declared as he scratched his chin in thought. “It has a very good meaning as well, and it has ‘Yoshi’ in the name!” He said with a smirk, as he looked at his sleeping son in his wife’s arms.
“I’m sorry, dear. But ‘Dentarou’ is final. I’m his mother and therefore I shall name him.” Shen huffed in annoyance, as Yoshi chuckled.
“Fine, fine. You win.”
Shen sighed with sadness as she looked at her son. “Dentarou is expecting a hard life ahead of him.”
Yoshi’s smile turned into a frown as he looked at the floor.
“Because of Saki?” He asked, knowing the answer.
“Because of everything, darling.”
“We will let Saki know of him when the right time comes. Just, let’s not tell him that he’s related to him?” Yoshi said awkwardly with a smile, as Shen smiled back at him.
“Obviously. But I’m still worried.” Her smile fell for a moment as she looked away.
“There’s no need! Everything is under control. Besides, Dentarou, with his new name, is bound to be a genius. Isn’t it? Have some faith.” Yoshi kissed his wife’s cheek, making her smile with a slight blush.
“Fine, fine.” She sighed, but then her face turned serious.
“But do me a favor, Yoshi. If you teach him ninjutsu, make sure that his weapon will be the bo staff. At least until he’s ready. I don’t want him to hurt himself by accident.” She demanded of her husband, who raised his hands in surrender. “Don’t worry! I can do that. But what if he demands a ‘cooler weapon’?” He chuckled.
“Just tell him that the Bo staff fits him more, or something. Like a chosen weapon. I won’t allow anything else until he’s ready.” Shen scowled at her husband.
“I shall do as you ask, dear. Don’t worry.” Yoshi chuckled as he looked at his son. “Also,” he added. “Why do you keep dressing him in purple?” He asked with a raised eyebrow.
“I like purple. And it fits him.” Shen huffed in response, talking as if it was obvious.
“Alright, then. I’ll make sure to only get him purple clothes.”
“Are you making fun of me, Yoshi?” Shen scolded her husband, as he flinched and smiled awkwardly.
“You can be very scary when you are angry, dear.” Yoshi chuckled.
“You better not raise our son to be as annoying as you are.” Shen warned, as her frown turned into a smile.
“He will have all of his life to learn how to be more like you, dear. Don’t worry.” Yoshi chuckled as he hugged his wife. “For now, let’s focus on the present. We have all of the time in the world to plan how to raise him.”
Shen smiled as she hugged him back, while holding their sleeping baby.
“Creating a family with you is the best thing that ever happened to me.” Shen smiled in happiness.
“It is the same for me too, my dear.” Yoshi smiled lovingly.
“However, with the current situation, things might get complicated. You better protect us if anything arises.” Shen’s smile fell as a worried frown replaced it.
“Don’t worry, Shen. Nothing will ever happen to you. To us. We shall always be together, and everything will be fine.” Yoshi hugged his wife tighter, looking at their son in worry. “I’ll make sure our son will have the best life that he can have.”

————————————————-
Splinter gasped with wide eyes, getting up from his bed in a hurry.

He still remembered this conversation vividly.

He dreamed about it often.

Splinter sighed as he left his room, going to the kitchen for a glass of water.

He was about to enter the kitchen, until he heard noises. As if someone was messing around in the kitchen.

He entered quietly, his ears standing in surprise as he spotted Donatello, taking apart the refrigerator.

“Donatello?” He questioned in confusion, making Donatello gasp and turn to him swiftly.
“Sensei!” He called out in surprise.
“Hush. Your brothers are asleep. What are you doing up so early?” Splinter questioned with a lifted eyebrow.
“Oh!” Donnie exclaimed in surprise, worried that he might be in trouble. “I woke up early. I wanted to drink some orange juice, but I noticed that the refrigerator wasn’t in the right temperature, so I’m fixing it.” Donnie rambled with an awkward chuckle.
Splinter hid the smile that almost appeared on his face.

“Please do it later, after you’ve rested.” Splinter scolded with a frown, as Donnie slightly bowed.
“Sorry, Sensei. I will.” He mumbled in awkwardness, sad that he was caught before he could finish.
“Just like your mother expected of you.” Splinter sighed as he left the room, forgetting why he was there in the first place.

Donnie stood in the kitchen, his face going blank.
“My what?”
It was statements like this that made Donnie get suspicious. It wasn’t the first time that Splinter said such things.

Donnie questioned Splinter many times, and many times tried to get answers about what his father might hide from him.

It always frustrated him.

He just didn’t expect to regret knowing about what Splinter hid from him all of these years.

Notes:

And this is it! Thank you so much for reading! Stay tuned for new episodes!

Chapter 38: Season 4- Episode 4- The Rescue Mission

Leo, Raph and Mikey always missed Donnie’s presence when they were out on patrols. Not only was it hard for them without Donnie’s knowledge, but they also missed being with him. Their team felt… incomplete.

The fact that Leo’s team’s spirit was down ever since Donnie stopped joining them didn’t go unnoticed by the blue banded leader. He couldn’t blame them, either. His spirits were down as well. However, he still felt bad since there’s nothing that he could do about the current situation.

‘But now I can!’ Leo thought to himself in excitement.
‘Bringing Karai to our side not only will make everyone happier, but it will also give our team an advantage against the Shredder! Maybe Donnie could even be confident enough to go back to the surface! Perhaps I can convince Sensei.’ Leo tried to stop himself from grinning, as he drove the vehicle, to no success. He finally felt useful, and he was grateful for it. Ever since Donnie disclosed their father’s secret to him, he felt… useless. He couldn’t do anything about the situation, and he couldn’t even help Donnie. His little brother being targeted by their worst enemy is like a living nightmare to Leo. However, perhaps things will get better. Especially after they rescue Karai.
—----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Donnie felt very… uncomfortable. The silence of the lair was much more eerie, considering what is currently happening.

He kept twitching in his seat, and sighing. He couldn’t even focus himself on anything. He just kept waiting… watching out, in case Splinter notices that his brothers are not in the lair.

“Donatello.” A presence made itself known in the room.

Speak of the devil.

Donnie flinched as he turned around swiftly, looking at Splinter in surprise.
“Sensei! When did you get here?!” Donnie exclaimed, holding his arms up in surprise.
“I think that you have something to tell me, Donatello.” Splinter said sternly, glaring at his son with a challenging scowl. Nothing could go unnoticed by him, after all.
—----------------------------------------------------------------------------
“Okay. Are you guys ready?” Leo looked at Raph and Mikey, seeing them nod in confirmation as he got his katanas ready.
They were all in the Shell Raiser, near the Foot’s HQ, preparing for their mission.
“If anything happens, call Donnie.” He added with a frown, thinking back and feeling bad about Donnie’s situation.
“Which reminds me,” Mikey pouted, “When can D go back to patrol with us again?” He asked as he frowned in sadness, missing his big brother.
Raph looked at Leo in expectation, hoping that he would have an answer by now.
“...Hopefully soon.” Leo sighed, hoping that it’s true.
“Let’s go, team. You remember the plan.” Leo declared, as they all ran out of the vehicle.

They arrived on a rooftop near the Foot’s HQ as they waited for a clear entrance, not wanting to draw any attention.
“Watch out, guys. They must be ready for us.” Leo warned, as Raph and Mikey’s expressions hardened in seriousness.
“We sneak in from the roof, and slowly go down the levels. We will look over every floor, together. Do not separate or draw any unwanted attention.” Leo instructed, as Raph and Mikey nodded in understanding.
“Let’s go.”
—------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
“For the last time, Donatello. Where are your brothers?” Splinter asked with a stern frown, making Donnie flinch.
“As I’ve said, I don’t know!” Donnie whined, which made Splinter pry further.
“Really? You Don’t know?” He lifted an eyebrow as he asked cynically.
“I don’t.” Donnie mumbled.
“Donatello. If there’s something that you’re bad at, it's lying.” Splinter sighed as he stared at Donnie patiently.
If Donnie was feeling up to being rude, he would have said ‘Well, so are you!’ But he would feel bad about saying such a thing about his father’s secret, so he held his tongue.
“It’s not the usual time for patrol, so that excuse won’t work for you. Do you need any help with coming up with another one?” Splinter questioned, making Donnie look away in embarrassment.
—------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
“Do you always drive around like this?!” Karai yelped as Leo turned the car sharply, trying to dodge a hit from Tiger Claw’s gun.
“Only on missions, princess.” Raph couldn’t help but yelp as he tried to hold onto his seat.
“Sorry, Karai!” Leo called from his seat as he tried to stay concentrated on the road, trying to lose the Foot soldiers that followed after them.
“This is kind of fun, bros! We should do it more often!” Mikey smiled in excitement as Raph barked in response: “No! We shouldn’t!”
—------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Splinter’s frown hardened as he asked; “They didn’t go to get Miwa behind my back. Did they?”
Donnie flinched as he looked away, giving Splinter a clear answer.
“They did?!” Splinter raised his voice in panic, making Donnie flinch again.
“Sensei, they will be fine! They have their phones with them.” Donnie reasoned, trying to calm his father down.
“It does not matter! They are still in danger-!” Splinter was about to scold his son, until he heard the turnstiles of the lair spin.
Donnie and Splinter looked in its direction curiously, only to be surprised by the sight in front of them.
Splinter just stared in shock as his three sons returned with…

“Miwa?” He whispered with wide eyes, as he locked eyes with…
“Splin- Father…” Karai whispered with shock and regret.

Notes:

And that’s it for this episode! Please stay tuned!

Chapter 39: Season 4- Episode 5- Finally Reunited

The room turned quiet as Splinter and Karai stared at each other with wide eyes. Karai’s eyes turned to Donnie for a second, revealing her regret and sorrow. Donnie, who understood what she was feeling clearly, gave her a small smile and a nod to show her that he does not blame her. She smiled with relief, and then ran at Splinter and embraced him with force, making him flinch in surprise.
“I am so sorry, father.” She whispered.
Splinter’s eyes widened, and then slowly, he wrapped his arms around her and hugged her back.
“My daughter.” He whispered, with an enormous smile on his face.
“Thank you, my sons.” Splinter said with an emotional tone which he almost never revealed.
The brothers smiled at him as he looked at them in pride.
“No need to thank us, sensei.” Leo responded with excitement and happiness.
“I indeed need to thank you. This is all because of you.” Splinter said, as he and Karai finally broke their embrace.
Karai walked towards Donnie and gave him a quick side hug. “Sorry, Donatello. I just made you more stressed out than you already are. Didn’t I?” She asked awkwardly.
Donnie shook his head as he was quick to deny. “It’s not your fault, Karai. The most important thing is that you are here with us.”
There wasn’t even one person in the room that wasn’t smiling.

After around twenty minutes of chatting and catching up, the guys finally departed to do their usual things around the lair.
Karai, who finally finished speaking to Master Splinter, looked around the lair to take everything in. The situation was quite shocking, after all.

She noticed the lab’s lights were on, and curiosity took over her as she walked towards it and entered the lab.
“Here to experiment?” Donnie immediately asked her as she stepped in, with a smile on his face.
“Well, not really. I was just curious. You actually have a lab here?” Karai looked around in amazement as she walked towards the desk that Donnie sat behind, fiddling with some unknown substances.
“Yeah. Although it’s mostly just for me. I’m the only science guy here, you see.” Donnie chuckled as Karai smiled in return.
“Nice to know that my brother is a nerd.” She said with a devilish smirk.
“Well, this nerd can kick your butt. So watch it.” Donnie rolled his eyes as Karai laughed. “And the nerd has a rich vocabulary, I see.”

“Also,” She starts. “How have you been doing? Since… You know.” Her face turned into a frown as Donnie flinched.
He put down the beaker that he was holding and looked at the floor with sadness. “I’ve been doing what I can, I guess.” He sighed out.
“Tough time?” Karai asked as she sat on the side of the table.
“Yeah, It’s hard. You know? I mean, you would understand what it’s like to find out you’ve been lied to about a huge thing that concerns you.” Donnie mumbled, as Karai’s face turned into a scowl. “Tell me about it.”
“Actually, the Foot noticed that you don’t leave the lair anymore. Are you too sad to leave?” She asked gently, to which Donnie surprised her with a chuckle.
“What? Are you kidding me? I’m dying to leave!” Donnie smiled at her as he put on his goggles and took the beaker in his hand once again.
“Then, why aren’t you leaving?” Karai asked with wide eyes and mouth agape.
“Well, we assumed that the Shredder would search for me, so my family forces me to stand low for now so that I wouldn’t get captured.” Donnie slightly shuddered at the thought.
Karai flinched in terror as she understood that it’s indeed true. And not only that, but she had been aiding them until now.
“I’m… So sorry.” Karai whispered sadly. Donnie looked at her in surprise.
“Don’t even apologize! You didn’t know.” Karai looked at him in sadness, and then turned to look at the floor.
“Besides, it’s my fault. I just… Wasn’t supposed to exist.” Donnie smiled sadly as he looked away.

Karai quickly whipped her head in his direction as her eyes widened in terror.
“What?!” Karai yelped in shock.
“Karai. My presence endangers everyone around me. I’m just… A burden.” Donnie bit his lip as he tried to stop it from quivering.
“You…” Karai whispered, too shocked to actually form a sentence.
“It’s fine, Karai. I totally understand and accept this.” Donnie put on a fake smile, not managing to hide his sadness.
Karai could swear that she saw his eyes glass over with tears as he stood up and left quickly. “Just try and rest.” He called quietly as he left Karai alone in the lab, standing with wide eyes that stared at the exit of the room with great sadness and terror.

It was all the Shredder’s fault.
He is the reason that Donatello is struggling and has to stay locked in the lair to avoid getting captured.
‘I shall give the Shredder a lesson, myself. I will make sure that he doesn’t harm Donatello or anyone else ever again.’
Karai growled under her breath. She had to leave and take care of him herself.

Notes:

Good luck, Karai! Donnie is sure to appreciate this :D

Chapter 40: Season 4- Episode 6- The Beginning Of A New Mess

Karai waited until everyone went to sleep. She was full of motivation. Not only will she take revenge for herself, but she will do it for her brother and her family as well. Karai slowly advanced towards the exit of the lair, looking around her and hiding in the shadows to make sure that she wouldn’t get caught. She reached the exit and straightened her shoulders. She knew that right now, she was going to fight her so called ‘father’ that raised her all of these years. She was going to fight against her own clan for the sake of her new one. With a deep breath, Karai crossed the exit of the lair.

 

“You shouldn’t leave on your own.”
Karai stopped in her tracks as Leo suddenly jumped down from a high pipe, obviously observing her and knowing what she was about to do.
“You cannot stop me, Leonardo.” Karai declared with a frown.
“I know.” Leo gulped, and then claimed something that he never thought he would say in his entire lifetime. “I simply want to help you, Karai. To take down the Shredder.”

“...What?” Karai’s eyes widened.
“The Shredder is a threat to the both of us. Also, I want to protect Donnie. And deep down, you do, as well. You are siblings, after all.” Leo sighed as he stepped closer to Karai. “Let’s not get the rest of the guys involved. Let’s go by ourselves and create a better future for all of us.” Leo grabbed her shoulder as he looked at her with begging eyes.
“Leo…” Karai whispered.
“Yes?” He asked curiously, only to have his hand slapped away.
He was about to question Karai, only to feel powder hit him in the face.
He coughed harshly and fell on his knees, as Karai dashed out of the lair. “I need to do this by myself, Leo. For myself and my brother!” She called as she kept running.
Leo’s body swayed until he finally gave in to the substance that clearly had a quick effect. He fell on the floor, his eyes red and unfocused as he finally lost consciousness.

—------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Karai landed in the dark throne room, slowly making her way to the silhouette of her father as she drew out her sword quietly. With a scowl, she finally reached the throne, and aimed her sword. She was about to strike the Shredder, until she forced herself to halt with a gasp.

It wasn’t the Shredder on the throne. It was a robot. A Foot bot.
“Karai.” She whipped her head around and faced the person who was behind her.
“Shredder.” She growled as she held her sword up. However, before she could even think of striking him, the bot suddenly came to life and grabbed her from behind, making her gasp in surprise and start struggling.
“It seems that you are here to get revenge on me.” The Shredder lifted an eyebrow as Karai squirmed in the bot’s hold. Then, she finally managed to use the sword in her hand to stab the stomach of the bot, making it fall lifelessly on the floor with a thump.
“Revenge for everyone who deserves one from you.” Karai said sharply, as she ran at him with an expression that could kill.

Karai tried everything. Her sword, kicking and punching, smoke bombs, but nothing made the Shredder even flinch. Then, she finally used the ninja stars, which did… Nothing.
The Shredder grabbed one of the stars that Karai threw at him, only to become furious as he took notice of the Hamato symbol that was drawn on them. Without even looking, he striked Karai, and made her fall onto the floor.
The room lit up, making Karai look around as she noticed many mutants and soldiers of the Foot that were present as well.

The Shredder grabbed her by the arm and threw her at Tiger Claw.
“Take her. She is coming with us.” The Shredder growled as they started walking towards the exit, with a squirming Karai in their custody.

—------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Stockman was fiddling with random substances, trying to create a medicine of some sort behind the Shredder’s back.

“Yes! I can soon turn myself into a human again, and stop being such a nasty mutant.” He buzzed. Obviously, Stockman wasn’t very happy about his current situation when it comes to his humanity. Especially since he had none.

He held up some sort of a glowing blue liquid that was in a jar, as he looked at it in excitement. “With this, I can turn into a human being very soon! I can taste it at this point!” He called out excitedly.

“Stockman!” A voice growled loudly with a banging sound, making Stockman drop the jar that was in his hand and the substance that was inside of it, which made the liquid spill into another jar and mix with whatever was inside of it.
“Oops. That… Is hopefully fine.”
He turned around, only to have the Shredder barge into the room with a bunch of foot soldiers and his mutant henchmen, with Tigerclaw holding Karai.
“Stockman, it is time to start the next phase.” The Shredder declared, as Stockman perked up. “Yes, master…” He buzzed, as he grabbed the jar with the mixed substances and flew up to a huge mutagen canister that was in the middle of the room, spilling it and mixing it with the mutagen inside of it.

“All of you better prepare for this phase of the plan. This is when the Hamato and the Foot clan war officially starts.” The Shredder declared with a smirk, as Karai kept taunting him to try and get his attention, to no success.

Notes:

Oh no. Good luck, Hamatos!

Chapter 41: Season 4 Episode 7- Broken

Leo woke up with a gasp as his eyes snapped open. He looked around, realizing that he’s on the floor with a confused frown.

‘What? What’s going on?’ He thought to himself. Leo had a hard time believing he went to sleep on the floor for fun.

He used his hands to slowly lift himself up from the floor as he got on his feet, swaying with eyes that were slightly red. He looked over himself and at the slightly blurry floor in confusion. He rubbed his itchy eyes with a groan so that he could see more clearly.

Then, with a gasp, everything came back to him. His body went stiff in terror as he understood the situation at hand.
“Karai…” He whispered with wide eyes that were full of panic.

“Guys! Guys!!” He yelled in a hurry, making doors swing open. Leo could hear hurried footsteps as his family ran over to where he was standing.
“Leonardo? What is it?” Splinter asked, startled as he clenched at his walking stick, looking at his red eyes in worry.

Leo grit his teeth as he squeezed his eyes shut in disappointment of himself.

“It’s Karai! She…” Leo looked at Donnie for a second, making him flinch in response with wide eyes.

Leo’s shoulders went slack with a sigh as he continued his sentence.
“She left to get revenge. She said that she’s doing it for herself and Donnie. She’s probably heading over to where Shredder is as we speak.” Leo sighed as he looked at the floor in sadness.
The family gasped, as Donnie stared at Leo with guilt and sorrow, his eyes widening as his irises shrank in fear.
“Are you kidding me?! We just bailed her out!” Raph exclaimed as he huffed in anger.
“That’s a bummer.” Mikey commented with a pout.

Too preoccupied with the situation, no one noticed Donnie’s fearful reaction as Splinter declared. “We shall go and retrieve her. Donatello, wait here.” No one looked at Donnie as they ran to grab their weapons. Donnie wondered to himself why his father felt the need to tell him to stand down if that’s the new norm.

Then, as soon as they came, they left for the Foot’s HQ to stop Karai from doing something very stupid.

Donnie stood with a distant look on his face as he stared at the empty lair’s exit, not moving from his position since he came to check on Leo.

 

He could feel tears prick at his eyes as he fell on his knees, the deafening silence in the lair adding much more to his guilt and sorrow.

 

“Why?” Donnie asked as tears started to stream down his cheeks. He clawed at his face as he yelled.

“WHY MUST IT ALWAYS BE MY FAULT?! JUST LET ME COME AND FIX MY MISTAKES. LET ME HELP!” He yelled at the lair’s exit, practically to no one.

Donnie sobbed as he lowered his head to the floor.
“I can’t. I just can’t do this anymore.” He whispered with a hic as he sobbed.

“My sister… My family… My friends… Because of me…” Donnie wiped his tears as he bit his lower lip.

“I’ll pay the price for existing. I’ll repay all of you for everything you’ve done for me.”

Notes:

The end…?

 

Just kidding.
Please stay tuned for future episodes!

Chapter 42: Season 4 Episode 8- Rescue Mission 2.0

“Did Karai seriously forget about the tracker in our T-Phones?” Raph rolled his eyes at how obvious it should have been for her.
“Well, it made finding her location easier so I’m not complaining, dude. At least Donnie gave her the phone at the right time.” Mikey shrugged as Leo parked the car.

“The Shredder might be with her in the lab, my sons. I will be the one to deal with him. You shall deal with the rest of his soldiers.” Splinter declared with a dark tone, frowning at what was about to come.
“Hai, sensei.” They said in unison as they got up from their seats and picked up their weapons.

—-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Donatello couldn’t think anymore. He couldn’t notice what he was doing as he walked around the lair with a distant and emotionless expression. He collected things that he did not realize he was taking in the first place. He was moving in directions he didn’t notice he was moving until he arrived where he intended to arrive. Perhaps it was emotional exhaustion. It was odd, since Donatello, the turtle with the mind that never stops working, had his mind shut down completely. He was like a living doll.

—-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

The Hamatos sneaked into the lab from above, watching over the room from the shadows.

The lab had a big table, full of Stockman’s chemicals and gadgets, with some random small animals in cages beside it. It was very spacious, and had many big wooden crates dispersed near the walls and corners of the room.

The barely working lightning, the gray floor and walls, together with the high, wide windows that nearly touched the roof, gave the room an eerie atmosphere.

However, the most eerie thing in the room was, in fact, the huge mutagen canister in the middle of it, that gave off a glowing green light, which was the main thing that lit up the room.

The Hamatos’ eyes widened as they could spot Karai tied to some sort of a cage that hung above it.

And Shredder and his henchmen that were walking around the room and conversing, were most likely waiting specifically for their presence.

They flinched as Tigerclaw suddenly pulled out his gun and shot in their direction, making them jump down to the floor and leave their hiding spot, since they were discovered anyway.

Both of the clans stared at each other with hatred, anger, anticipation and much more, making the room go silent for a few uncomfortable seconds.

The Shredder smirked so widely that it could be noticed even with his mask, as he looked at Splinter’s angry gaze, making Splinter’s stance stiffen.
“It seems that you forced my son to stand down once again. Are you afraid that he will run away and go back to his real father?” He taunted with a cynical chuckle, as the rest of the Hamatos, aside from Splinter, who remained calm, growled angrily in response.
“It seems that you are indeed aware of Donatello’s origin. Although, it does not change the reality that we live in.” Splinter replied calmly, as the Shredder frowned in anger.
‘Donatello probably knows the truth.’ He huffed. ‘You better prepare yourself, Yoshi. After I mutate your three monstrous sons and turn them into serpents, I shall use them to extract the location of my son from you, and then destroy you.’ The Shredder thought to himself, as he could feel a smirk pull at his lips once again, as he crossed his arms.
“I finally have the opportunity to get rid of your useless existence, Yoshi. You better fight rather than hide.” He chuckled devilishly.
“Let my daughter go, Saki.” Splinter ignored his comment as his frown deepened.
“You’re welcome to rescue my daughter if you can, dear friend.” The Shredder challenged, as footbots slowly entered the room from the shadows with their weapons out.

 

Splinter charged at the Shredder, and as if on cue, the rest of the Hamatos entered the fight as well.
“Yes! Fight me, rat!” The Shredder smirked as he and Splinter attempted to slash and kick at each other.
The turtles slashed at the robots, taking them down one by one. It was suspiciously easy for them, especially with The Shredder’s mutants avoiding the fight for some reason. Although, they could guess why, since without noticing, the robots directed them right onto folding cages that laid on the floor. With a yelp, Raph and Mikey got trapped inside of them within the moment they stepped on them. Leo, while he used his sword to block one of the bot’s swings of a katana, looked at them with wide eyes and a gasp, understanding too late the dire situation that was at hand. That it was indeed a trap.

The Footbots started to throw ropes at Splinter, trapping him in place as he struggled against them with a frustrated groan.

Leo stepped onto a cage, which nearly trapped him. However, luckily, he managed to block the cage from entirely closing using the tip of his sword. “Ah!” He yelled as he reopened the cage using his body’s strength. He ran in his brothers’ direction with determination and a hurry, panicking from the Shredder trapping Splinter as well.

He broke the cages that his brothers were in, releasing them and letting them join the fight, and ran to the mutagen canister. He cut a rope and grabbed onto it, as it lifted him to the top of the canister. “Hang on, Karai!” He called out, as he landed on Karai’s cage. He took off the duct tape which blocked her mouth from speaking.

“Thanks.” She smiled at him, as he smiled back at her. Leo slowly opened the cage and untied Karai from it. They jumped on the edge of the canister and were about to get down. Or at least, that’s what they had planned.

“Leonardo!” Leo heard his father exclaim.
He whipped his head to the side only to see the Shredder land on the canister’s edge as well.
Leo and Karai yelled out in fear, as The Shredder extracted his fist, and was about to punch Leo and make him fall into the mutagen.

Leo knew that this was it.
He was going to fall into the mutagen and get turned into a mindless mutant. He yelled out, as The Shredder went for the strike.

But it never came.

Leo and Karai gasped loudly in terror.

Karai covered her quivering mouth with her hand as Leo’s hold on her tightened.

The whole room went deadly silent.

 

As Donnie appeared out of nowhere and took Leo’s hit.

 

Donnie could hear his family, and even the Shredder, scream out his name, as he crashed onto the mutagen with a horrified scream, causing a huge splash on the canister’s inner walls.

Notes:

To be continued…

Chapter 43: Season 4- Episode 9- A Blocked Path

Notes:

I hope that you like this series thus far! I never imagined that it would get this far xD I also hope that the story was original and exciting. Do remember: I read all of the comments! Therefore feel free to leave me constructive criticism! Now, without further interruption- Let’s begin!

Splinter could feel his strength leave him as he took in the scene. He fell on his knees, ropes still binding him as his lip quivered.

Donnie was yelling painfully, struggling within the mutagen as his body was forcefully altered.

His muffled screams were the only source of noise in the lab as everyone stared at the see-through canister in horror.

‘I failed, Shen. Our beautiful son…’ Splinter could feel tears go down his cheeks as he tried to look away- which he didn’t manage to.

He could see Karai force Leo to jump down from the canister’s edge, as he was frozen in shock.

Mikey was sobbing harshly, yet still managing to hold onto a frozen Raph, who couldn’t even blink.

Even Saki was shaking due to the realization of what he had done to his son.

Everyone stared at the canister, unable to look away.

At some point, the mutagen became so thick that no one could spot Donnie’s silhouette. That is, except for a long tail that swept through the liquid and disappeared into the thickness of it once again.

Then, suddenly, a form that was covered in mutagen pulled itself over the canister’s edge.

“My son…” The Shredder whispered with wide eyes and a flinch as he looked at the form pulling itself over.

Splinter gathered his strength to resist the ropes, and with the bots’ distraction, they didn’t hold onto them too firmly in the first place.
He ran and jumped onto the elevated platform that was beside the canister, as he caught the form that fell from the canister.

The fall made all of the liquid fall from its body, splattering it around the creature and Splinter.
But Splinter didn’t care.

He turned the creature around to look at its face. To look at his son’s face.
He looked at it as tears pricked his eyes once again, an addition to the tears that already wetted his cheeks.

“My son…” Splinter whispered as he held onto the creature.

It was a long serpent, in the shades of purple and green.

It had a long, sharp tail, and a pointed head, each side of it had a row of extremely sharp teeth.

It had hands that resembled serpents, additionally to the creature already being one.

Its abdomen had some type of a golden armor, which probably took after a turtle’s shell.

But all of it didn’t matter.

Because Donatello was gone.

And all that’s left was a monster.

Not that it’s any different from before.

Splinter held the creature in his hands, embracing it harshly as his sobs echoed around the room.

Each of the brothers, and even Karai, looked at it in sorrow, some of them even fell on their knees, with tearful eyes.

The Shredder simply looked at what used to be his son silently, with wide and terror filled eyes.

 

And then it opened its eyes.

Red glowing eyes, that took after Donatello’s original ones.

With thin irises that held no recognition.

With a loud hiss, the snake twirled its tail around Splinter, as he attempted to crush the rat’s body.

“DONNIE!” The Hamatos, aside from a silent Splinter, yelled out in panic.

But the creature paid no attention, as he opened its long mouth, which revealed its sharp fangs and long tongue.

It was about to devour Splinter.

“My son. Don’t…” Splinter pleaded, which surprisingly, made the serpent stop in its tracks.

With wide eyes, it whispered.

“Father…?” Donnie’s scratchy voice could be heard, echoing around the room although it was whispered.

Splinter smiled such a big smile, he didn’t know he was capable of doing so.

Because his son wasn’t lost after all.

“Yes, my son. It is me.” His tears of sadness turned into tears of happiness.

And then, the recognition disappeared once again from Donnie’s eyes.

With a loud hiss, he untwirled his tail from Splinter, and slid out of the lab in a hurry.

“DONNIE!” The brothers called once again, as they ran after him.

“This…”
Splinter could hear The Shredder address him.
“All of this is your fault!” He roared, as Tigerclaw held him back.
Splinter looked at him with loathing, almost staying to fight him, yet still choosing to turn around and leave to catch up to his son.

“You’ve won, master! The Hamatos have received a blow that they can’t handle!” Tigerclaw reasoned, as the Shredder continued to struggle against him.

Then, he stopped.

“This is not the end, Tigerclaw. Not until I ruin the Hamato clan and get my children back.” He said darkly, as they turned and quickly left the lab with the rest of their clan before the fire could harm them.

—-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

The Hamatos ran after their mutated family member, trying to desperately catch up with him, to no success. They found themselves on one of the rooftops, just in time to see his tail disappear from afar.

“Damn it!” Raph exclaimed, still feeling tears going down his cheeks.

“Donnie…” Leo whispered, as Karai rubbed his shell in comfort with teary eyes.

That night, the whole family sobbed. They all grieved, for what they had lost.

A friend.

A brother.

A son.

—-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

The creature finally found a spot where no one could harm it. Where no one could see it.

It slammed its hands on the floor, groaning in pain as its body transformed.

It felt the agonizing pain of turning into a different form.

A turtle. A mutated one, to be precise.

 

But this wasn’t the end.

 

As it tried to change once again, and found itself growing fingers.

Growing hair.

A nose. A shell-less back.

The human hissed in pain, revealing his sharp, gapped teeth and long, snake-like tongue, adding much more to his red-glowing eyes.

Notes:

And this is it for this season! Please stay tuned for season 5! And feel free to comment since I always read it and enjoy your input :D Thank you for reading the series Gapped Knowledge so far! Enjoy!

Chapter 44: Season 5- Episode 1- Grieving For Him

Notes:

Welcome to the 5th season of the story! Thank you so much for following the story this far! I would like to know what your favorite parts and qualities of the story were out of curiosity :D Anyways, let’s begin!

“April?” Kirby called out as he knocked on his daughter’s door. “Are you in there?”
“Yeah, dad! One sec!” She called out from the other side of the door. Kirby heard her hurried footsteps towards the door as she opened it.
“What’s up?” She asked with a smile, peeking out from the door, as Kirby fidgeted awkwardly.
With a sigh, he replied.
“Splinter called me. He told me that he needed to talk to me, and that you and Casey needed to cheer up his sons. I am not sure as to why…” Kirby said with a hint of worry and a frown.
April looked at him in surprise. “What?” She mumbled. “Did something happen?” She started to get worried. Splinter never asked for such a thing.
“Most likely.” Kirby sighed, already feeling worried, himself. “Let’s go. Call Casey and tell him to come with us as well.”

—------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

“Splinter?” Kirby called out as he, April and Casey entered the lair.

They all flinched in shock as they saw all of the turtles and Karai, together with Splinter in the living room, with tear stained faces. They looked at them, not responding, with depressed expressions.
“Woah!” Casey exclaimed in shock.
“What happened, guys?!” April exclaimed.

And then, she noticed something.

She looked around in confusion as she realized someone was missing.

“Where’s Donnie?” She asked in worry, her tone slightly hesitant.

As soon the name left her lips, the room turned chaotic.
Leo quivered, Raph bit his lips harshly, Mikey started sobbing, and Splinter and Karai flinched with an expression of regret.

Kirby, April and Casey flinched in surprise as they looked at each other in shock. They then turned around to look at the Hamatos again.

“Did something… Happen… to Donatello?” Kirby asked in worry, already aware of what has been going on with him lately.

No one answered him as they tried to hold themselves together.

“Kirby.” Splinter called, them already being on a first name basis adding much to Splinter’s comfort. “Please, come with me to the dojo. I need to speak with you.”

Kirby nodded, as they both left the living room, leaving Casey and April to deal with the situation.

—------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

“He what?” Kirby gasped out with wide eyes, as Splinter looked at the floor in sorrow.

“I apologize for putting this on your shoulders. I simply… Needed my friend to make me feel… Better.” Splinter gasped out as he wiped his tears.

Kirby ran to his side as he grabbed his shoulders and helped him sit down on the dojo’s mats.

“Splinter…” Kirby couldn’t find the words. He hugged him strongly as he could feel his own tears prick at his eyes.

Donatello was his friend’s son, and his daughter’s friend. Of course he would be precious to him as well, especially for everything Donatello has done for him to help him.

“He is not lost, Splinter. I will help in any way I can. We can find him and help him turn back to normal. If he could do this for me, I could do this for him as well.” Kirby whispered in his ear, trying to comfort him.

Splinter smiled a teary smile as he rubbed his eyes. “Thank you, my dear friend.”

—------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Casey hugged April from the side as she sobbed, his own tears clouding his vision.

“We can save him, dudes. We did crazy things before, so we can do this as well.” He called in determination.

The Hamatos frowned with their own determination, as they nodded in agreement.

They were going to save him.

For sure.

Donatello will no longer suffer.

They’ll make sure of it.

Notes:

And this is it for this episode! Please stay tuned for more!

Chapter 45: Season 5- Episode 2- Missing Him

Raph couldn’t stop training. All he did lately was use the punching bag to try and calm down, which didn’t manage to work. It was either that, or lock himself in his room. He felt guilty for not being there for Mikey and Leo, and even Splinter or his friends, but he could feel himself falling apart. He missed Donnie. He couldn’t accept the fact that his little brother…

That Donnie might be gone.

He noticed how Leo was constantly checking up on everyone. Like a true leader, he always cared about his team. Even if Leo felt intense guilt, since Donnie sacrificed himself especially for him.

Mikey ceased being as positive as he was before. He lacked energy, and the smile that he used to constantly wear.

Splinter wouldn’t leave the dojo, since he tried nonstop to contact Donatello through meditation.

Casey and April were coming over here and there, making sure that everyone was taking care of themselves. But aside from that, they, themselves, weren’t in the best shape.

And Karai? Well, she, like Raph, constantly trained. And like Leo and their friends, she always made sure that everyone was taking care of themselves. But it wasn’t a secret that she felt guilt for what had happened to Donnie. And as much as Raph wanted to blame her, he couldn’t. He lacked the energy to, and he knew that it would make things worse.

Raph sighed as he sat on his bed, staring at nothing. He knew that he needed to leave the room. Even if it wasn’t long since Donnie sacrificed himself. Not long at all.

Splinter gave them a break from training and patrols, obviously. He insisted that they needed to gather themselves together if they wanted to look for Donnie.

Raph sighed as he finally got up from his bed, and slowly walked towards the door.

He opened it and looked around, noticing how everything was quiet. He walked slowly to the kitchen, basically dragging himself by force to take each step.

He opened the fridge and grabbed some leftovers, knowing that if he wanted to get ready for finding Donnie, he needed the energy for it.

“Raphael?” He turned around as he heard Karai address him.
“I told you that calling me Raph is fine, princess.” He rolled his eyes as he went to heat up the leftovers.
“Of course, Raph.” Karai smiled as she sat on the chair near the table.
“Are you doing alright?” She asked, her smile being replaced with a worried frown.
“Is that a serious question?” Raph asked cynically as he took out a plate.
“You are right. I apologize.” She sighed, as Raph looked at her.
“You don’t need to apologize. And it’s not your fault, you know.” Raph mumbled as she whipped her head to his direction in surprise.
“You don’t blame me?” She gasped out.
“As much as I want to, I know that I can’t. Not only Donnie would get mad at me if I did, but it’s mainly because of what has been going on lately.” Raph replied with a frown.
“What do you mean?” She asked in curiosity.
“Well, since Donnie found out about the Shredder, he was getting… Worse. You noticed it too. Not only that, but he wasn’t allowed to leave the lair. It probably made him much more determined to do something about us being in danger. He made a decision that he was going to make sooner or later.” Raph sat beside her as he started eating, and she simply stared at him in silence.
“Oh… I did notice. Actually, it’s one of my main reasons for leaving in the first place. To take care of the Shredder and make sure that he could go back to normal again.” Karai mumbled sadly.
Raph stared at her, understanding exactly why she did whatever she did. He probably would have done it as well. Perhaps it’s the reason as to why he can’t get mad at her.
“We shouldn’t act as if Donnie is gone forever. There’s still hope.” Raph flashed a quick smile at her.
She stared at him in surprise, and slowly smiled back at him.
“Yeah… You are right.” She said quietly.
“And when we get him back, we aren’t going to leave his side until he’s better.” Raph chuckled, making Karai giggle as well.
“Obviously.” She sighed with a smile.

“Hey, guys.” Leo greeted as he entered the kitchen.
“Hey, Leo.” Both Raph and Karai responded.
“You seem better. I’m glad.” Leo smiled a sad smile, as Karai flinched with guilt. Raph noticed her flinch with a raised brow as Leo’s back was turned to them, looking through the fridge for something to eat.
“Yeah. We need to get better in order to look for Donnie. Remember?” Raph said nonchalantly as Leo’s shoulders stiffened.
“Yeah…” He responded with a hesitant sigh, closing the fridge and giving up on eating.
“And it’s not your fault either.” Raph added as he finished eating.
Leo flinched once again as he turned to look at him.
“It isn’t?” He asked, like a little child waiting for an approval.
“Yes. We both knew that Donnie would leave the lair sooner or later and put himself in danger. Now that it has happened, we need to find a solution.” Raph bit his inner cheek in frustration with himself, sad that he couldn’t help Donnie in a time of need.
“...True.” Leo responded after a few seconds in a sad tone.
“And we need to help Mikey and Splinter, and also Casey and April, get back to their usual self. We need to stay focused on finding Donnie.” Raph declared.
Leo looked at him in surprise, until a small smirk formed on his lips.
“Say, Raph. You seem to be very calm. It’s unlike you.” He said, making Karai chuckle.
Raph, ignoring the sting, replied. “Yeah, I’ll make a good leader.” He rolled his eyes.
“Not really. But you do have the whole ‘calm right when you need to be’ thing figured out, apparently. Since when are you so collected, little brother?” Leo asked in serious curiosity.
“First of all, I’m not ‘little’. Secondly, I guess that you simply don’t know me enough to figure it out yourself.” Raph huffed.
“It’s still something to be proud of, Raph.” Karai said with a smile as Raph blushed in embarrassment.
“Yeah, yeah.” He mumbled as he looked away, as Leo and Karai gave him knowing smirks.
“It’s going to be fine, Raph. We will get Donnie back and you can bully him all you want.” Leo said, as he and Karai smiled and Raph slightly smirked.

“You promise?” They looked to the side to see a depressed looking Mikey enter the kitchen slowly, looking as if he had cried for days, which was probably true.
Leo hesitantly, looking all over Mikey’s form, replied.
“Yes, little brother. You can calm yourself. He will be back to normal in no time.”
Mikey smiled, something that he didn’t do for days, as he ran to Leo and hugged him.
“Thanks…” He mumbled quietly, as Leo hugged him back.
“Don’t worry, Mikey. It will be fine.” Leo replied with a calm smile.

—------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Splinter couldn’t stop meditating. He swore that he could see flashes. Flashes of Donatello’s mind. He swore that he could sense that Donatello was still in there.

That he wasn’t gone.

Not yet.

He couldn’t give up now. He must find his son and make sure that he’s safe.

—------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

“Are you alright, April? You seem off lately.” Irma hesitantly asked as she and April walked slowly through the school’s halls.

April seemed distant. She didn’t lift her gaze from the floor as she didn’t smile or laugh for days.
“Both you and Casey.” She looked behind her to stare at Casey, who followed them, that looked just as off as April.
“It’s just… Something personal had happened to us.” April replied quietly as Irma knew that she shouldn’t dig in any further.
“I see.” She said hesitantly, still curious, but not about to invade their privacy. Besides, something to upset ‘Casey’ THIS much is probably something very bad and personal.

—------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

“ARGH!” The Shredder yelled as he slammed his hand on the armrest of his throne in anger, the slam echoing all over the room as Bradford flinched.
“We can fix this, master. We still have a chance to capture Donatello and Karai!” Bradford exclaimed in determination.
The Shredder went quiet for a few seconds.
“You are correct, Bradford. It’s not too late.” He declared.
“Of course it isn’t, master.” Bradford bowed his head in respect.

“I shall fix the mess that Hamato Yoshi had caused. I will make sure that such a thing never happens ever again.” The Shredder growled in rage, determined about his new mission.

Notes:

And this is it for this episode! Please stay tuned!

Chapter 46: Gapped Knowledge- A Special Episode

Notes:

Hey, guys! Welcome to a special episode of the series! I hope that you like these, because I do! Anyways, enjoy!

It took an hour for Splinter to tend to Donatello’s arm.

And another two hours to tend to each of the brothers and their wounds.

Raph knew that he only put on an act to show that he had left everything behind him.

An act about how he doesn’t care anymore that Spike was mutated, and did those things to them.

Even if he’s the one that took the mutagen after an angry outburst at Donnie, he still couldn’t help but blame him.

And here he was, lying on his bed after today’s events, unable to sleep.

He groaned angrily as he tried changing positions and finally fall asleep, to no success.

He kept thinking.

‘If only Donnie would have stopped with those stupid experiments.’

‘If only he wouldn’t have driven me into taking the mutagen.’

‘If only…’

Raph sighed as he shook his head, trying to get rid of those useless thoughts.

He knew that he wouldn’t forgive Donnie anytime soon, but he can at least try and hide it. At least until Donnie’s arm healed and he wouldn’t feel guilty anymore.

Then, suddenly, he heard a knock on the door.
“Raph?” A voice called out quietly.
‘Speak of the devil.’ He thought to himself.
“Come in.” He declared, trying not to let his anger show.
The door slowly opened, revealing a nervous Donatello.
“Hi, Raph.” Donnie said with an awkward smile as he entered the room, closing the door behind him.
“Hey.” Raph said, trying to remain cold and distant to make Donnie understand that he’s not invited to enter his room. That he’s not welcomed.
Donnie, as smart as he is, understood Raph’s tone, but he decided to ignore it.
“I need to talk to you, Raph.” Donnie said nervously, as Raph lifted a brow.
“Oh, really?” He replied cynically, as he sat on his bed.
With a flinch, Donnie continued.
“I simply wanted to apologize. For today’s events, that is.” He said quietly, looking at the floor in guilt.
Raph immediately got filled with rage, but he held himself from displaying it.
“Let me sleep, Donnie.” He said coldly.
“I know that you are mad, Raph.” He replied hesitantly.
“Who would have guessed?” Raph growled.
“I’m sorry, Raph. I really didn’t mean for any of this to happen.” Donnie basically begged, only to receive a glare from Raph.
“That’s it, Donnie.” He declared with a glare, deciding to let some of his frustrations out.
“W-what?” Donnie flinched with wide eyes.
“Because of you, Spike is gone. Do you really think I’ll forgive you? Seriously?” Raph said coldly.
“But-!” “I’m not finished.” Donnie quickly closed his mouth.
“Spike mutated and became a violent monster. He even turned on me! His family! Do you know how that must feel for him, Donnie?” Raph tried not to raise his voice and wake everyone up.
Donnie didn’t answer, as he stared down at his injured arm.
“You wouldn’t know what it feels like, to be mutated into a monster. To become so violent and turn on your family.” Raph said in disgust as he stared at Donnie in rage.
“Raph…” Donnie whispered, his voice cracking.
“But one day, you’ll get a taste of your own medicine. Karma will get you and you’ll experience just that.” Raph didn’t even notice what he was saying in this angry rant. He only snapped out of it as he noticed tears going down Donnie’s cheeks.
His eyes widened as Donnie opened the door swiftly and ran out of his room.
Raph straightened his back for a moment, debating whether or not to go after him, but he decided that it would be best not to. He needed to calm down.
“I… Will apologize in the morning.”
And he did, and they managed to patch up their relationship again. But that doesn’t mean that Raph didn’t feel guilt for whatever he said even after he apologized.

—-------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Raph sobbed quietly in his room, shoving his head onto the pillow.
He remembered this conversation vividly, feeling neverending guilt, that only intensified after what happened to Donnie.

Is it because he told him that he will get a taste of his own medicine? That he will experience karma? Is that why such a horrible thing happened and he’s here, crying in his room? Raph almost never cried, and he didn’t expect to cry under those terrible circumstances. He didn’t expect whatever he said in sheer anger to become true.

Raph trembled as he tried to imagine what Donnie must be going through right at this moment.

He wondered what would happen now. Usually, Donnie is the one that finds the solution. But now, Donnie is the one that’s in trouble. So, what are they supposed to do without him? How will they fix it?

Raph got up from the bed, wiping his tears as he opened his room’s door.

It was night, and everyone was asleep.

He walked quietly through the halls until he arrived right where he wanted to be.

He stepped through the lab’s open doors and turned on the lights. He looked around as he walked towards the table.
On the table, there were a bunch of notes. Raph smiled a sad smile as he recognized Donnie’s writing.

“Raph?”
He yelped as he turned around swiftly to look at the lab’s doors, only to see Mikey standing there, staring at him.

“Mikey!” Raph exclaimed in a whisper, feeling embarrassed since he was caught.
“I guess that we are here for the same reason.” Mikey smiled as his eyes seemed red. Raph could easily see that he was crying.
“I know that you cried too, Raph.” Mikey declared as he walked towards him, and Raph blushed.
“I didn’t!” Raph exclaimed quietly in embarrassment.
“You have the right to be sad, Raph. It’s not a shame to feel sorrow over Donnie.” Mikey’s voice slightly cracked as he looked at the same notes Raph looked at.
“I… Know. Donnie deserves at least that.” Raph sighed.
“You know what I don’t like, Raph?” Mikey said as he looked at the floor.
“What?” He replied in confusion.
“I don’t like how we act as if he’s gone forever.” Mikey sighed, as Raph flinched.
“You noticed it too. Didn’t you?” Mikey asked with a sad smile, as Raph looked away.
“Yeah… Sorry.” Raph wasn’t known to be one to apologize, but he could feel the need to. Perhaps, an apology for Donnie, since it sounds as if they have given up on him.
“You don’t need to apologize. You just need to hope.” Mikey looked into Raph’s eyes, causing him to smile.
“Yeah, you are right.” Raph walked towards the door as he called out. “Are you coming? We need to sleep and get stronger for Don.”
Mikey smiled with excitement as he ran after him.
“Yeah!”

Notes:

And that’s it for this episode! Do you like special episodes? Please tell me in the comments! And thank you for following the story this far!

Chapter 47: Season 5- Episode 3- The Invasion

“It’s biting me, it’s biting me!” Mikey screamed as he shook his leg, trying to get Irma’s robotic head off it. “Why is it biting me?!”

Everyone fought the dozen Kraang bots that infiltrated the lair, making the whole place noisy from the sound of gunshots.

Need me to sum up the situation?

April ran away from a bunch of Kraang bots with her friend Irma and took her to the lair for safety. It ended up that Irma was a robot herself and now their location was busted.

“Is this the Kraang invasion Donnie mentioned a while ago?!” Raph called out as he bashed another bot, not even flinching at his brother’s name due to the pressure of the fight.

“I think so!” Leo exclaimed as he slashed a bot’s head off.

“We need to leave the city!” Splinter called out as he kicked away Irma’s headless bot. Leo’s head whipped to face him.
“We can’t leave Donnie behind!” He called out.
“We will have to come back for him later, Leonardo! This is not the time!” Splinter responded as he pushed the robot back a few steps, and ran towards the exit.
“Follow me!” He commanded.

They all entered their vehicle and started driving through the messy city that was infected with Kraang and dimension X creatures.

“But what about-! Donnie…” Karai whispered the last part, as they all looked down at the floor in great sadness.

Casey drove the van, still dodging some Kraang gunshots as it was filled with silence.

“What, are we leaving him to die?! That’s it?!” Raph growled as Splinter sighed.
“We are not leaving him to die, Raph!” Leo exclaimed in anger, terrified at what Raph was implying. “It’s just a tactical retreat.”
“But we are still leaving him!” Raph desperately tried to get them to understand his point so that they would go back for Donnie.
“It’s the only way, Raphael. If we will look for him now, we will put ourselves, and him as well, in danger.” Splinter answered him in sorrow.
Raph was about to argue, until he saw how shiny Splinter’s eyes were. As if he was about to cry. He closed his mouth in silence.

“We will go back for him. Right?” Mikey asked innocently, as April exclaimed in Splinter’s place. “Of course!” She engulfed him in a hug as he squeezed his face onto her shoulder, trying to calm down.

“Where are we going, sensei?” Leo asked after a few seconds of silence.
“We need to find a place where the Kraang won’t look for us.” He answered calmly.
“I have an idea!” April exclaimed, as everyone but Casey, who was driving, looked at her in surprise.

“My family owns a barn. We even have a house big enough for all of us next to it! The Kraang can’t know about it.” She smirked, as Splinter smiled at her.
“Then this is our next destination.” He declared.
“We will stay there until the situation at New York calms down a bit, team. Then, we will return when they won’t expect us. After that, we will look for Donnie. Casey and April, tell your family that you are safe and tell them to leave the city.” Leo declared their future plan as they all nodded.
“We better get Donnie back soon.” Mikey mumbled quietly, as they all looked down at the floor in sadness and silence once again.

Notes:

And this is it! I hope that you enjoyed this episode!

Chapter 48: Season 5- Episode 4- A Simple Deal

Notes:

This chapter takes place before the invasion.

After the incident with the Hamatos, the Shredder took a couple of days off, leaving TigerClaw in charge. All of his henchmen knew that they shouldn’t disturb him while he’s away. He was too… enraged, to take care of the clan and think rationally. However, before he took his temporary leave, he decided to have a meeting with the Kraang, and put their shared plan into action.

The Shredder and the Kraang Subprime sat in front of each other, with the cold, metal table standing between them. They were alone in a big, white room where they held their previous private meetings.

“An invasion?” The Shredder questioned, his tone as cold as always as his mask hid his expression.

“It’s the perfect plan!” The Kraang said in excitement as a devious smirk stretched upon his face. “An invasion will aid both the Kraang and the Foot clan.” He added in satisfaction.

The Shredder lifted his eyebrow in doubt as he crossed his arms. “And how will it aid the both of us?” He asked with narrowed eyes, trying to understand the Kraang’s plan and it’s consequences.

“Think about it.” The Kraang said in confidence. “You already know of our plan to find the location of the turtles’ lair. And as I have said, it’s going smoothly.”
The Shredder straightened his posture as he listened with interest.
“If the Kraang starts an invasion all over New York and barges into their lair. What do you think will happen?” The Kraang smirked as the Shredder’s eyes widened in understanding.
“They will leave the city.” The Shredder answered in newfound energy.

“And leave your ailing son defenseless as he roams the streets alone in a city that will belong to both the Kraang and your clan.” The Kraang added for him as he laid back with a satisfied smile.

The Shredder thought over the plan in his head as his expression hardened in determination.

“When shall you start the invasion?” The Shredder asked in anticipation, getting straight to the point as he leaned forward in his seat.
“In the next few days. We will inform you a day before we start when we know that everything is ready. We don’t have a specific date just yet.” The Kraang said with hidden frustration at the lack of knowledge.
“That shall do.” The Shredder declared, as he narrowed his eyes once again. “I wish to make another deal.” He announced.

The Kraang lifted his brow in curiosity. “What deal do you wish to make?” He questioned as he attempted to read the Shredder’s expression through his mask.
“I wish that the Kraang will help me track down and find my son.” The Shredder could feel his anger rising at the memory of Donatello’s mutation.
“He is not in his right mind. If the Kraang will be all over the city, I wish for them to keep an eye on every indication of where he might be. That includes my daughter who’s with the Hamatos, in case you spot her.” He added.

The Kraang scratched his chin in thought. “That’s doable. What do you wish to give us in return?” The Kraang questioned.
“I will lend you my soldiers during the invasion. They will help you with taking over the streets.” The Shredder declared as the Kraang smirked.

“It seems that we have a deal.” The Kraang said with happiness.
“I will take a few days of rest before you start with the invasion. If you wish to say anything to me, pass it to my subordinates.” The Shredder said as he got up from his seat.
“It was a pleasure doing business with you.” The Kraang said as he smirked in anticipation for their future plan.

Notes:

And this is it! I hope that you enjoyed this chapter! Stay tuned for more!

Chapter 49: Season 5- Episode 5- Daily Routine

Notes:

Hello! I wanted to thank you for reading this story so far! I read all of the comments and appreciate them very much ^^ Do you like the series so far? What do you think is going to happen? Is there something that you wish to see? Feel free to share! Now, let’s begin!

“Breathe in…” He whispered to himself in a hoarse voice as he breathed in.

“...And out.” He said as he released his breath.

He slowly opened his eyes, and looked at his hand.

He smiled as he was pleased to see that it was his usual green, three fingered hand.

Donatello sighed in relief as his shoulders slackened. He sat on the floor with his feet crossed, taking advantage of the silence of an abandoned warehouse that belonged to one of the businesses that were ditched after the invasion started to practice transforming between different bodies. Serpent, turtle, human .

When Donatello first transformed after he had been mutated (once again), he was surprised to not only see his new bodies (that might have made him shriek in panic), but to also find out that he is somewhat sane. Somewhat.

Random, violent outbursts. Sudden takeover of animalistic instincts. Feral and uncontrolled behavior. Donatello experienced all of it many times by now.

But what scares him the most is that it slowly gets worse with time.

Noticing a Kraang takeover of the city only made it worse.

He wanted to check on his family and friends so much. To make sure that they are okay. However, his fear kept him from doing so. Whenever he finally made himself at least go in the direction of his home, he got cold feet and turned back.

However, he managed to come to the lair and overcome his fear only once, only to find out that the lair was empty. Messy. Deserted and broken due to what must have been a battle.

After witnessing the state of his home, he lost consciousness.

He woke up only to find himself in a random alley, hidden behind a few trash cans in the form of a serpent. He understood that he probably became animalistic once again.

Nowadays, Donatello tries to keep his sanity intact by giving himself tasks. Practicing transformation. Looking for his family. Going out and finding food and water to keep himself alive.

He never stayed at one place for too long, out of fear of the Kraang or the Foot clan getting their hands on him.

The thought of the Shredder made him shudder. Memories of his mutation kept him up at night. The thought of his family being in danger brought tears to his eyes. Those things made Donatello quite content with losing his mind. He didn’t want to suffer, after all.

“Breathe in…” He whispered again as he closed his eyes in concentration, taking a deep breath.
“And out…” He released his breath.

He opened his eyes and looked down at his hands. He smiled once again as he saw a five fingered hand come into view. He walked to a forgotten mirror that was in the corner of the warehouse and stared at his reflection, running his fingers down his cheek and through his hair.

Donatello had seen pictures of Tang Shen. That’s why he easily figured that his human form is indeed a mix of her and the Shredder’s genes. His straight (yet messy) black hair that nearly reached his shoulders, his skin tone, the shape of his eyes… Sometimes, his red-glowing eyes and his thin pupils turned normal for a few minutes, letting him see how much his brown eyes represent the Shredder’s. Actually, he could swear that he got most of his looks from the Shredder. However, he would rather not think about it.

He was quite disappointed to see that he lost some of his muscle and weight due to the lack of almost anything edible that was in the area. Although he manages to get by with the amount of food he finds here and there.

He sighed sadly as he transformed into his turtle form once again.
“I never thought that my life would take such a crazy turn.” He whispered in sorrow as he sat on the floor and looked at the wall.
“I want everything to go back to normal. And now this Kraang invasion…”
His thoughts once again wandered to his family and friends.
“I hope that they are alright.” He laid down on the cold floor and attempted to sleep. To forget the mess that he was in.

Notes:

And this is it! What did you think about this episode? I hope that you liked it :D Stay tuned for more!

Chapter 50: Season 5- Episode 6- A Regular Day

Casey opened the door of the barn and looked inside at the half ruined vehicle, ready for another day of repairs. Alone.

He walked slowly, his shoulders slack in an unenergetic manner.

He stood in front of the vehicle as he looked around the empty barn, feeling a presence missing. He sighed as his expression turned from one of exhaustion to one of sadness.

Casey and Donatello might have been acting like they hate each other, but everyone around them knew better. It didn’t go unnoticed that during a so-called argument they would battle a small smirk from appearing on their faces, showcasing their amusement. Everyone knew that it’s their way of having fun. For some reason, the both of them really enjoyed annoying each other.

What everyone noticed for sure was Casey’s sadness, now that Donatello might be gone for good.

They were all depressed, giving the house a heavy atmosphere. There wasn’t one person who didn’t break down at least once, be it in secret or in public. However, they were also supportive of each other. Unexpectedly, even after they lost Donatello- No. From the very start of when Donatello’s origin was found out, they all were there for each other. That’s why Casey could handle the situation better. Why everyone could.

Even though the news of Donatello’s relation to the Shredder was startling to everyone else, Casey was the only one who actually found this revelation cool. Exciting. ‘Just like in the movies’ was one of his first thoughts after he heard about it. Obviously he felt bad for Donatello and his family, however he couldn’t bring himself to think that this was a bad thing. He didn’t want to consider his friend’s genetic relations to some scary ninja leader as something bad, since it was Donatello. It felt wrong for him to judge his friend’s genetics and decide if it’s bad or not that he was born related to a certain enemy of theirs.

That’s the approach that Casey took, anyway.

But now, seeing what happened to Donatello, he couldn’t help but be mad. They lost Donatello just because he was related to the Shredder. And now they are all in a mess.

Casey’s trail of thoughts was cut short when he felt a hand touch his shoulder.

With a startled yelp, he jumped back and turned around with wide eyes to stare at the ‘intruder’.

“I assume that you did not notice me.” Splinter stated the obvious, lifting an eyebrow as he contemplated whether he should force Casey to learn a little about the stealth of a ninja or not.

Casey forced himself to calm down as he answered simply.
“Yeah. Sorry, Splinter.” He said awkwardly as he rubbed the back of his neck in slight embarrassment, his eyes wandering to the floor. “I was just… Thinking.” He added in a whisper, sadness taking over his features once again.

“About Donatello.” Splinter didn’t even ask. He already knew what was on his mind.

Casey flinched at the mention of his name, his eyes widening slightly.

He lifted his gaze to look at Splinter, only to see the pain in his eyes. His ears lowered and his cane clenched with a little more force. Splinter knew that Casey could see right through him, but it didn’t matter to him. He thought that perhaps it would be better to be honest in such a conversation rather than ignore and hide their pain.

“I’m sorry, Splinter-!” Casey was about to apologize, only for Splinter to halt him by raising his hand.
“You have nothing to apologize for. Actually, I would prefer for you to think about him rather than forgetting him.” Splinter gave him a sad smile, causing Casey’s gaze to wander to the floor.
“You are right…” Casey sighed as Splinter stepped closer towards the vehicle.
“Are you here to take your mind off things?” Splinter assumed that Casey was here to repair the car.
Casey looked at the car as well as he nodded. “Yeah... I figured it could help me process everything.” He frowned as he looked away. “I just… Don’t like the fact that we left him behind.” He mumbled quietly.

Splinter’s shoulders tensed as he felt a pang of guilt.
“I know. However, it was the best choice, considering the situation that we were in.” Splinter sighed as he remembered the moment of the invasion. The moment he had to leave everything behind.
“...I know.” Casey admitted simply with a tone of disappointment.
“But that doesn’t mean he’s lost.” Splinter squeezed his shoulder. Casey looked up at him only to see a hopeful smile on his face, causing him to brighten up and smile as well.
“Yeah. You are right.” Casey said, having a small moment of happiness.

Splinter knew that Casey needed to hear these words. He knew that Leo needed to as well, which is why he didn’t stop him from eavesdropping during the conversation from the outside of the barn.

 

—----------------------------------------------------------------------------

 

Leo ran as fast as his feet could take him.

He could feel his tears frantically flow down his face as he heaved.

He finally found a distant spot where no one could disturb him.

He stopped abruptly, falling on his knees and hands.

He sobbed loudly and uncontrollably.

He didn’t want his team to see their own leader cry, but holding back your sadness for so long can be exhausting.

‘But that doesn’t mean he’s lost.’

Leo heard Splinter’s voice say that sentence over and over again in his head.

He just felt so… Guilty.

His brother is in such a mess and there is nothing he can do to help him.

He felt helpless.

Weak.

Like a rotten leader.

Donnie could be going through hell right at this moment, and all he does instead of helping him is cry.

He calmed down after a few minutes, not having any more tears to shed.

He felt so terrible.

He felt even more terrible to be caught crying alone like that.

“I know that you are there, Raph.” He declared in a hoarse voice and an ‘angry’ frown.

Raph slowly left his ‘hiding place’ and walked towards Leo. Leo hated the look of pity on Raph’s face.
“You can make fun of me for crying later, Raph. I’m not in the mood.” Leo said in frustration as he sat on the grass, wiping his tears aggressively.

Leo flinched with a look of surprise when Raph simply sat on the ground beside him.

“I wasn’t going to.” Raph commented simply, causing Leo to blink at him with a dumbfounded expression.
“Oh.” Leo replied as he stared at the ground, fiddling with the grass beside him with his fingers to keep himself from feeling embarrassed.
Raph sighed as he looked at the horizon.
“After everything that we have been through lately, it only makes sense for you to be stressed, especially as our leader.” Raph used the gentle tone that he rarely used with anyone.
Leo flinched in a slight surprise as he looked at Raph.
Raph scoffed at him and rolled his eyes. “Come on. I understand at least that. I know that I try to appear as if I don’t care, but I do.”
“I see.” Leo said awkwardly as he looked down, attempting to escape Raph’s gaze.
“You are not responsible for Donnie’s situation, you know.” Raph said sadly, already knowing about Leo’s hobby of experiencing guilt.
Leo whipped around, ready to refute him.
“Don’t.” Raph stopped him before he could say anything.
“But I’m your leader! I’m supposed to-!”
“Do everything that you have already done by now.” Raph cut him off with a straight face. He sighed tiredly at Leo’s dumbfounded expression.
“Firstly, you couldn’t stop Donnie from being related to the Shredder. Secondly, you already made sure that he will stay home every day. Thirdly, you couldn’t stop Donnie from entering the fight that day. And lastly, you couldn’t find him and bring him with us during the invasion. Basically, you did everything you could have done. Things were out of your control.” Leo’s eyes widened in shock as he stared at Raph.
Raph rolled his eyes, understanding what Leo is thinking right now. “Yeah. I can be nice when I want to be. But it’s not even about being nice. It’s simply the truth.” He huffed.
Leo’s gaze wandered to the ground as he took a deep breath.
“Maybe I should have taken another measure to make sure that Donnie doesn’t leave the lair. Or even better, I could have simply avoided the mission where he found out the truth. Our lives could have been so much easier.” Leo mumbled as he pulled his legs close, hugging them to comfort himself.
“You know nothing of this would’ve worked. Either Donnie would leave anyway, or we would have found out the truth through the Shredder.” Raph said sadly as his expression turned into a frown.
Leo bit his lip, trying to find any other reason to blame himself.
“Stop feeling bad, Leo. It’s not your fault.” Raph sighed.
“...Okay.” Leo mumbled in sadness.

They were silent for a few seconds as they were deep in thought.

“Raph?” Raph turned to look at Leo.
“Yeah?” He answered.
“Can we stay like this for a little more? Sitting here and calming down, I mean.” Leo asked awkwardly, giving Raph a hopeful expression.
“...We can.” Raph nodded as they both embraced the calming silence that was around them.

Notes:

Thank you for reading! Stay tuned for more!

Chapter 51: Gapped Knowledge: A Special Episode- To Be Reborn

Donatello could feel that something was wrong. He just… Didn’t know what.

He opened his eyes slowly, trying to process why he was on the floor as he attempted to lift himself up. However, he was met with the sight of an unrecognized place. It was… A rooftop?

His entire body was aching and he wasn’t sure why, but it sure bothered him to feel it with every movement that he was making.

He groaned, trying to rub his trembling arms.

He wasn’t even sure how he got there in the first place. The last thing that he remembered was when he–!

Donatello could taste bile, clapping his hand on his mouth to stop himself from vomiting as he lurched forward.

He… Fell into the mutagen… And then what?

He could remember bits and pieces, enough to understand that he wasn’t in his own body. His own mind.

His eyes widened in fear and confusion. Why was he… Sane?

He removed his hand from his mouth and tried to get the hair out of his face-

Wait.

Hair?

Slowly, and fearfully, he lowered his hand and hesitantly looked at it, trembling all over as he saw what he feared that he would see.

A human hand.

He lowered his head in a hurry and looked all over his body.

To say that he was terrified will be an understatement.

—------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Finally managing to calm down (after a LONG time), his curious side took over. He walked toward a water puddle and looked at his reflection.

He rubbed his face in fascination, getting used to his new appearance, his eyes wide and mouth agape.

“Wow…” He whispered as he turned his head from side to side, keeping his eyes on the reflection.

He was so glad that this fascination took his mind off the latest events.

“It looks like I do take after the Shredder after all.” He mumbled, remembering one of the old pictures that he found in his father’s room (which he tried to hide from them. Donatello may have sneaked in once or twice when he was away). However, the most interesting thing to him was his… “Added features”.

Red glowing eyes, fangs, a tongue that slightly represents one that belongs to a serpent…

His hoarse voice bothered him the most, if he had to be honest. He could speak normally if he tried really hard, but it was annoying. He’s going to work on that for sure.

‘Who knew that being a naked human in New York would be so freezing.’ He thought to himself with a shudder as he hugged himself to feel some sort of warmth.

He gasped in surprise as his entire body suddenly ached much more than before. He could feel that his entire body was going to-!

‘Oh my gosh.’ He thought to himself in terror, knowing what’s going to happen next.

He gritted his teeth as he clawed at his face, hoping that the power of his wishes will be enough to stop himself from transforming back to that… Monster.

He already knew that he wouldn’t like this side of himself.

He squeezed his eyes shut, and wished that he might be wrong.

And wrong he was.

The shuddering stopped all at once, causing him to flinch.

He waited before opening his eyes, scared to see what he would be.

He slowly, and fearfully, opened them and looked at his hands.

He gasped in surprise and excitement as he looked at his original green hands, smiling in happiness as he released the breath that he was holding.

Is it because I wanted to change back? Because it was cold? He felt his face once again to make sure that he wasn’t imagining it.

He could change between forms! His old body is not lost!

But then there’s the matter of his mental stability.

Fear dawned on Donatello once again as he understood that he might not be able to return home anytime soon.

Notes:

Thank you for reading! I hope that you like this story so far! Stay tuned for more ^^

Chapter 52: Season 5- Episode 7- A Spark Of Hope

Two long weeks have passed since the Hamatos, together with their friends, started living in the farmhouse. Karai had grown used to living beside them. She actually felt like being with them was… Fun. Relaxing. Never did she imagine that being a Hamato would make her feel so happy. She was in a strict and cold environment for all of her life. Now, she was surrounded by warmth and support.

However…

“I just… Don’t know what I am supposed to do.” Karai said in a quiet tone as she looked at the floor, her eyes revealing how sad and lost she felt as she fiddled with her fingers.
“I’m with you, sis. Your whole world was flipped upside down.” Mikey said with sympathy as he looked at her in pity.

Karai was in her new room, sitting on the bed as she did nothing but think over… Everything. Mikey, knowing why she was closed off in her room in the first place, allowed himself to join and sit beside her on the bed, and converse with her about the recent events, since he needed it as well. Mikey and Karai had gotten closer, already feeling at ease with confiding in one another. Well, actually, Karai had gotten close with everyone, and even started to use their nicknames, which she mostly used towards Donnie. However, Mikey and Karai being the youngest, they had quite a special bond.

“I didn’t even have enough time to get to know my brother! I’m… Worried about him.” Karai sighed with frustration as Mikey’s frown hardened.
“We all are, Karai. But I can understand your frustration. You didn’t have enough time with D and it sucks.” The moment of Donnie’s mutation flashed before his eyes, making him shudder.
“Do you think… That we will see him again?” Karai basically whispered as her eyes widened in fear, looking at Mikey with newfound panic.
Mikey flinched as he was quick to answer. “Of course we will! D won’t go down without a fight, and so will we!” Mikey smiled at her in optimism, making Karai brighten up as well with a smile.
“I guess that it’s true.” Karai giggled as Mikey rested his head on her shoulder.

“Say…” Karai said, making Mikey look at her. “Have you checked on April?” She said with a frown, worried by the girl’s state.
Mikey sighed as he laid back.
“Yeah. She took the news about Donnie really badly. Sensei keeps meditating with her to calm her down.”
Karai looked back at the floor, her mind clouded with sadness once again.

—---------------------------------------------------------------------------

Splinter felt really bad.
He still checked on everyone and offered them to open up to him, but he still wasn’t around much.
Most of the day he was in his room.
Meditating.
Trying desperately to locate his son.
He felt worried and restless and couldn’t do anything else but hope that he could reach him, even if it’s just for a moment.

Disappointment after disappointment.
He didn’t succeed even once.
He could feel his bond to his son, but his mind was too chaotic for him to manage to create a steady connection.
He kept failing.

He tried once again, attempting to reach out to his unwell son throughout the mess that clouded his mind.

When his spirit looked around, he had nothing to reach out for. Donatello’s mind was clouded in darkness and emptiness, making it basically impossible for Splinter to create a connection and communicate with his son. He knew that it was another failed attempt. His sadness sinked in as he attempted to leave the bond and go back to the physical world.

Until he saw a light.

Splinter stared at the small orb that illuminated the only source of light in his son’s mind, wide eyes and frozen in shock as he feared that his imagination was getting the best of him.

He slowly reached out towards the orb, and came in contact with it.

He gasped as he was thrown back, pictures and lights flashing before him, too fast to see clearly what was going on.

And then, he was engulfed in darkness. However, this time, he could swear that he could feel his body come in contact with the floor. He could feel the coldness and the texture of the ground. He found it odd, since he wasn’t in the physical world, yet he wasn’t out of the spirit world as well.

And then, the darkness around him disappeared.

He was in a whole new room, lying on the floor.

He attempted to gasp in shock, but he couldn’t. He attempted to move, but he couldn’t.

Until his body moved by itself.

‘Did I lose myself again?’ Splinter gasped as he could hear a thought echoing in his head… In his son’s voice.

His body lifted itself from the floor, two green hands coming into view.

Wait.

Green hands?

Splinter froze as he understood that he saw his son’s original hands rather than the hands of his new form. Not only that, but it seems that he somehow possessed Donat-!

“I swear, those memory gaps drive me insane.” Donatello’s voice groaned, as Splinter felt the sentence leave his own mouth.

He did it.
He was connected.
Splinter, in his excitement, attempted to talk to his son. However, he couldn’t. He couldn’t talk and his thoughts couldn’t be heard either.

‘Where could they have gone? Do they have a new lair?’ The thought echoed in Splinter’s mind once again.

And then he understood.
His son was looking for them.
And they weren’t there for him.
To help him.

“If I keep getting feral like that, I’ll end up getting caught.” The voice said, frustrated.

His son was losing himself.
He couldn’t contact him before because he was in this ‘feral’ state that he mentioned.
And he tried to contact him a lot.
It means that this happens often.

His body started walking on slightly shaking legs towards the exit of the room.

Splinter could swear that he caught a glimpse of his son’s reflection from one of the shaded windows in the room. In his turtle form.

And everything turned black.

He was disconnected once again.

Splinter gasped as his eyes snapped open.
He looked around himself, finding himself in his room, still in his meditation pose with his legs crossed.

He got up from the floor swiftly and ran out of the room.

—---------------------------------------------------------------------------

The others were in the living room, conversing and attempting to take their minds off things and relax.

Their gaze snapped towards Splinter as he hurried into the living room, somehow looking excited and worried at the same time, yet keeping his composure.

“Are you okay, Sensei?” Leo asked with a frown, concerned like everyone else in the room.

Splinter took a deep breath as he walked, posing himself in front of the group.

He was silent for a few seconds, trying to find the right words.

“Master Splinter?” Raph questioned, slightly taken back by the way that Splinter was acting.

“I managed to contact Donatello.” He said simply, his eyes closed as his back straightened.

The room turned quiet.

Splinter, with his eyes closed, could hear Raphael drop his phone on the ground.

“WHAT?!” They basically exclaimed at once.
“That’s- That’s amazing!” Leo said in relief, his eyes glazed over by tears as everyone either smiled in excitement or had their jaws drop in shock.
“Is he okay??” Karai hurried and asked the question that everyone wondered.
Splinter’s ears lowered, making everyone anxious again.
“Depends on your definition of ‘okay’. He’s not captured, but I don’t know his exact state. I’m not aware if he’s injured, but I do know that mentally he’s losing himself. Also, I think… That I managed to see him, and he was in his regular body. I couldn't speak to him, but I saw for a few moments through his eyes.”

The room turned quiet once again.

“Wait- ‘Regular body’? Did he turn back to normal??” Raph questioned in urgency with a surprised expression.
“I think that he can change between forms, but I’m unsure.” Splinter sighed as the group turned quiet, their eyes still wide from the shock.
“Guys, stay positive! It means that we still have a chance to get him back! A big chance!” Mikey, with his usual optimistic personality, commented with a wide smile and newfound excitement.
Everyone straightened in surprise when it dawned on them. He was right!
“Mikey! You're a genius!” April exclaimed in happiness as she hugged him tightly, making everyone else brighten up as they became more and more hopeful. Splinter allowed a smile of his own to form on his face.

Leo swiftly went to stand in front of everyone, beside Splinter, with a smirk plastered on his face.
“Alright, guys! It’s been enough time to make the Kraang and the Foot lower their guard. They will be sure that we are not in the city. It’s time to go back and help Donnie.” Leo declared, determination taking over him.
“Finally, dudes!” Casey said in relief, wearing a big smile.

There wasn’t one person who objected.

And thus, they packed everything up and drove back in the direction of the city.

Notes:

Thank you for reading! Stay tuned for more!

Chapter 53: Season 5- Episode 8- Home

Donatello had always understood that their lives were harsh. Countless enemies and the need to stay hidden in the shadows was already enough problems for all of the Hamatos. However, never did he imagine that his life would turn out even worse. Being related to his enemy, becoming a main target of many, becoming a mutant (again), alien invasion, missing family and friends, and so on. However, although all of those things already sound bad, he knew that there was something even worse that was bound to happen in the near future.

He was losing himself.

He used to be able to have a sense of control over the situation. At least, as much as he could. However, his mental state had only worsened with time. Now he spends the majority of the time as a mindless animal in the body of a monster.

To say that Donatello was terrified would be an understatement.

It wasn’t only about losing himself. It was also about the possibility that if it will go on, he will end up being hurt, and even worse, caught by his enemies.

He wasn’t even sure if his family and friends were safe.

Donatello sat on his knees on the cold floor, clutching at his face as thick tears slid down his cheeks. Violent sobs escaped his mouth as he trembled, tired of everything that has been happening lately.

He never even felt safe. He always felt the need to look around himself every few minutes to make sure that he wasn’t being watched or followed. Even now, as he hid himself inside the closest abandoned building that was around. Although, almost all of the buildings are abandoned now.

It was very upsetting for Donatello to know that he was wasting his few moments of sanity on wailing like that. He felt so weak, but he also felt tired. At the beginning, he had his family and friends to help and support him. But now what? He has nothing and no one. He wasn’t even sure if there was a way back from this. What happens when he completely becomes feral? Will his life as Donatello come to an end? Just like that?

The fact that it was happening slowly made the experience much more agonizing. Donatello sometimes thought that perhaps losing his mind completely would be a blessing at this point. No more thoughts, no more worries… Just trying to survive.

He was so tired of everything.

—---------------------------------------------------------------------------

“Can someone remind me why we let Casey be the driver in a time like this?!” Raph held onto his seat as the car swayed from one side to another, throwing everyone in the vehicle (well, aside for Casey, Karai and Splinter) in every direction violently as Casey attempted to avoid every obstacle that came their way.

Driving while a bunch of Kraangs chase you and shoot at you is quite complicated, you see.

“Come on, dude! I thought that you liked action!” Casey exclaimed with an excited smirk as he clutched at the wheel even harder in enjoyment.
“This isn’t action! It’s torture!” Leo commented as he was thrown onto one of the vehicle’s walls with a loud thud.
Splinter calmly sat on his seat, not affected too much by the situation. “Being a ninja requires balance, my sons.” He lifted an eyebrow as he looked at everyone awkwardly being thrown around, wondering to himself why his sons don’t just use the techniques that he taught them for keeping balance.

“Hey, guys! After we take our things from the lair, I have an idea for a new hideout!” Mikey commented with a wide smile as he looked at everyone with excitement.
“Do we even want to know?” Raph rolled his eyes as Mikey huffed.
“Trust me! It’s so good!” Mikey declared in confidence as he crossed his arms, his smirk stretching even wider.

—---------------------------------------------------------------------------

“I guess that you guys have a specific type.” Karai commented as she lifted an eyebrow, pretty much expecting what their hideout was going to be.
“A pizzeria is the best place to have as a home!” Mikey basically squealed in happiness as he jumped in his place.
“You get used to it at some point.” April whispered to Karai with a small smile, making her giggle in response.

—---------------------------------------------------------------------------

Leo scratched his chin, trying to come up with something. Anything.
“Well, fearless? Got something?” Raph commented with a frown, already getting impatient.
“Not really. Donnie is the one who’s the expert with technology. It will be hard to look for him with nothing to indicate where he is in the first place.” Leo sighed in defeat, his shoulders slacking in disappointment.
“So let’s just look in random places until we find a clue!” Mikey chimed in, getting impatient as well as the frown on his face indicated his worry.
“I guess that I can attempt to contact him, but I’m unsure if my powers will work. His mind will probably be unstable, so it will be much harder to detect him.” April frowned as she crossed her arms and looked at the floor in thought.

“Wait. Sensei, didn’t you say on the way here that Donnie tried looking for us?” Mikey questioned as he looked at his father, indicating that he might have an idea.
“Indeed, my son.” Splinter nodded as he wondered what Mikey could be thinking.
“Why don’t we just check the security footage of some of the stores near the route that we usually take to get to the lair? Maybe that way we can see in what direction he went, and then check the footage of the stores in the direction that he went to see where he went afterwards and just continue until we find him?” Mikey explained his idea as if it was the most obvious idea anyone could come up with.

 

Everyone looked at him with wide eyes in silence, jaws slack in shock.

“Mikey said something smart. That’s impossible.” Raph gasped out in surprise as he stared at him.
“I know. Wait- Hey!” Mikey exclaimed in frustration as he pouted and crossed his arms.
“Alright. We are going with Mikey’s idea.” Leo declared as he sheathed his swords.
“Finally. Let’s do this!” Casey smirked as he and April took a few steps forward, before Leo stopped them by lifting his hand up in refusal.
“Sorry, guys. Ninjas only. It’s too dangerous.” Leo said sternly as the brothers and Karai headed for the exit and left without even hearing their objections.
“What?!” “But you need us!” April and Casey exclaimed in frustration, wanting to help their friend just as much.
Splinter simply sighed, trying to calm his mind and stay positive.

—---------------------------------------------------------------------------

“He better be here this time.” Raph groaned tiredly as the four of them stared at the building before them, already going through countless buildings in one night.
“At least we are in the right direction.” Karai sighed as she thought back at the footage. Seeing Donnie wandering around aimlessly in an unrecognizable form and an unstable mind was hard for all of them. However, they managed to compose themselves for the sake of the mission.

They entered the building, holding their weapons as they looked around cautiously. They walked slowly and looked behind anything that might hide their brother from sight.

“Donnie?” Leo called out as he looked around himself to see if there’s any movement.
“Donnie! Come out!” Raph called out in a tone that indicated that he was worried, fearing that his brother might not be in this building after all.

They all whipped around as the door burst open, the sound echoing throughout the building as they whipped out their weapons.
“Are you kidding me?!” Raph exclaimed in anger as five Kraang went into the building, their guns pointed right at them.
“Kraang was right. The ones known as the turtles and Karai entered this building like Kraang suspected.” One of them said in a robotic voice.

It seems that the Hamatos slipped up. But can you blame them? The Kraang implanted a bunch of security measures around the city to make sure to detect any problem that might occur.

“Maybe we should have been more careful.” Mikey stated the obvious as they held up their weapons.

The five Kraang stepped forward, getting ready to attack.
“The ones known as the turtles and Karai will surrender to the ones known as the Kraang.” One of them demanded in what could be considered a threatening tone.

“You think that we would really-!” Raph was about to have his usual tantrum, until something decided to interrupt him mid sentence.

The Kraang had only a few seconds to turn around to the side before they were met with a seemingly murderous creature sliding, and fast, in their direction.

The Hamatos looked at the scene with wide eyes, nearly dropping their weapons from the shock as they gasped loudly.

“D-Donnie?” Karai gasped out as they were frozen in place, watching as the creature ripped arms and heads from the Kraang bots, not even giving them time to try and shoot at it as it slashed at them without an ounce of mercy.

And finally, with an animalistic shriek from the creature, the last robot fell to the ground as the Kraangs scattered and tried to get away as fast as possible.

Never did the Hamatos, or even Donatello himself, have ever imagined that this is how their reunion would look like.

The Hamatos slowly sheathed their weapons, not taking their eyes off the creature in front of them.

“Donnie?” Leo called out to him gently with a trembling jaw, his voice broken as if he tried to stop himself from falling apart.
The sharp intake of air indicated that Mikey started to silently cry, never taking his eyes off his brother.

The creature simply stared at them, showing no recognition in its eyes.

“Little brother!” Raph exclaimed as he ran in its direction, only to stop at his tracks as the creature held his hands up, revealing the serpents that resembled its arms as it hissed, showing its sharp teeth and warning Raph from getting any closer.
Raph stumbled back as his eyes widened, startled at the sudden warning.

It was clear that it did not recognize them.

“It’s alright, little brother. We came back for you. To help you.” Leo, after composing himself, held his arms up as he stepped forward, trying to calm it down.
However, he was only repaid with an another threatening hiss, causing him to halt in his tracks.

“Come on, D! You must remember us!” Mikey exclaimed in desperation as tears slid down his cheeks, holding his hands together as if he’s begging his brother to remember him.

To their surprise, Mikey’s plea caused the creature to slightly lower its arms, its eyes slightly widening, but it was easy to see that it was still on guard.

Karai decided that she had had enough of standing in the sidelines. She took confident steps toward her brother, who snapped in her direction and hissed with its arms held up in a threatening position once again. Karai stopped in her tracks, her expression stern and determined.
It flinched as Karai suddenly got on her knees and lowered her head to the floor, bowing to it as everyone watched in silence and slight surprise.

“I am to blame for what you are going through, brother. I won’t be surprised if you hold anger towards me, but please. Come back with us.” She pleaded in a regretful tone, not looking up from the floor as the room was filled with silence.

No one moved as they tried to see what would become of the situation.
The brothers’ eyes darted from Karai to their brother, and then back to Karai, worried that the situation might escalate any further.

The creature lowered its arms completely and stared at Karai.

“I am so sorry for the sorrow that I have caused you, brother.” Karai whispered loud enough for everyone to hear, her sadness shown through her tone. The sadness and regret that she held in for a very long time.

 

“You… Have nothing… To apologize for…”

 

Everyone gasped as they stared at the creature, Karai whipped her head in its direction.

The voice was obviously Donatello’s. Although it was hoarse and full of hisses, it was still recognizable.

The creature’s eyes held extreme sadness, and yet happiness and excitement.

“Everything… That I have done… Was my own choice…”

Mikey covered his mouth with shaking hands as he understood what was going on. Raph and Leo tried to stop their tears as Karai started to form her own in her eyes.

“B-Brother…?” She asked with a trembling voice as she looked at it, desperately wanting to believe that she did not imagine it.

The Hamatos gasped once again as the creature started to suddenly…

In front of Karai, on his knees as well, sat Donatello, in his original turtle form, staring at her with his red glowing eyes innocently.

Everyone froze in their place, too afraid to move and find out that it was all a dream.

He lowered his head, slightly trembling as he took in sharp breaths.

He then looked at them again, with tears streaming down his cheeks.

“Where the shell were you?!” He exclaimed with a hiss, opening his mouth enough for them to see his sharp teeth and serpent-like tongue. It was more of a childish whine rather than actual anger.

“Brother!!” Karai exclaimed as she got up and ran to him. She fell on the floor and immediately embraced him. He buried his head in the crook of her neck as he hugged her back.

It only took the brothers a few seconds to force themselves to move as well.
“DONNIE!!” They all exclaimed as they ran and fell on the floor beside them. They immediately joined the hug, embracing Donatello so hard that he was afraid that he would choke. The impact was so strong that it caused Donnie to drop on his back from his sitting position, but they still didn’t let go.

It was odd for Donnie to see Raph, Leo and Karai with tears in their eyes. Their personalities pretty much contradicted every emotion that they displayed in this reunion. He did expect it from Mikey, though.

No one said anything, wishing to stay in this moment forever. However, after what felt like a hug of three seconds, that was actually ten minutes, they understood that they needed to break it up.

They slowly got up from the floor. Leo grabbed Donnie’s arms and helped him stand. He squeezed his shoulder, reassuring himself that his brother was indeed there with him.

“D! I missed you so much!” Donnie yelped as Mikey suddenly hugged him tightly from behind.
“Me too, Mikey. Believe me.” He answered with a smile, still feeling the difficulty to talk, but deciding to put up with it.
Raph walked beside him and put his hand on his shoulder.
“You aren’t injured or something, right?” He asked with a worried tone that he usually conceals.
“No, no. I’m fine.” He chuckled lightly, causing the others to brighten up as well.
He turned around and looked at Karai with saddened eyes.
“I hope… That you… Don’t truly blame… yourself… Karai. I hope that… none of you do.” He said with a sigh and pitying eyes as he looked at everyone, who squirmed awkwardly, indicating that they indeed blamed themselves.
“Everything that happened… To me… Is the result… Of my own choices. If you feel… Guilty about it… I would feel even… Worse.”
“Don’t put the blame on yourself, D. It’s not your fault.” Mikey looked at him with sadness in his eyes, picking up the hidden message that Donnie tried to hide from them.

That he blames himself.

“Then… It’s not… Yours either.” Donnie gave a small smile as he looked at all of them, making them smile as well, extremely happy to see Donnie smile again.

 

“Heh… Mind if we join the party?”
They stiffened with expressions of horror as they heard the condescending voice echo throughout the room.
They immediately jumped backwards and whipped out their weapons as two figures jumped from the level above and landed right beside them. Donnie, who had his arm grabbed, didn’t manage to move in time.
“You better let him go, NOW!” Raph yelled with the energy that he lacked just a moment ago, as the Hamatos’ eyes filled with rage and protectiveness at the fact that Donnie was grabbed and couldn’t get away from their enemy.

“It seems that you made our jobs much easier. Did you really think that the Kraang wouldn’t notify us after seeing you here?” Bradford smirked deviously as Xever laughed at the Hamatos’ reactions.
Donnie’s eyes widened as he tried to free his arm in panic, making the Hamatos’ all the more furious.

“Let him go, dog!” Karai exclaimed in rage as she pointed her sword at him.
“It’s nice to see that he can change forms. Master Shredder would love to hear about it.” Bradford commented, as if he didn’t hear Karai. His comment made Donnie freeze in fear as the Hamatos had somehow gotten even more enraged than before.

“I think that this is the time to end your little reunion, and start another one with master Shredder. Don’t you think?” Xever taunted, enjoying to toy with the Hamatos’ feelings while knowing that they can’t do anything, due to Donatello being at their mercy.

“You. Won’t. Do. A thing.” Leo growled through gritted teeth as he tried to hold himself back from pouncing on them, clutching harshly at his katanas.

“Don’t worry, girl. You are next.” Bradford threatened as he pointed at Karai, making her flinch.

They didn’t get any time to react, before Bradford whipped out a rod and jabbed it at Donnie’s side a second after letting go of his hand, causing him to scream in pain and spasm on the floor as he was being electrocuted.

The Hamatos froze in place as their eyes widened in fear, watching as Donnie suddenly went slack, his body trembling as it changed back to the serpent form.

He laid there, unmoving.

Bradford and Xever smirked once again as Bradford grabbed Donnie’s arm and threw him over his shoulder.

“I guess that this is goodbye.” Xever laughed as the Hamatos snapped out of their frozen state and launched at them with a battle cry.

Xever whipped out a small ball and threw it at the floor, causing it to pop and smoke to appear and spread from inside of it, blocking the Hamatos’ sight.

They searched desperately through the smoke, trying to grab them before they could leave. However, the smoke cleared and their enemies, along with their brother, were nowhere to be found.

Panic clouded their minds, as Mikey started sobbing and Raph roared in rage.

Notes:

And this is it for this episode! Stay tuned for more!

Chapter 54: Season 5- Episode 9- A Turn For The Worse

Notes:

Hey guys! I apologize for the lack of updates. I’ve been very busy lately, but I will try to update as soon as possible. Anyways, enjoy!

Who would have guessed? The situation had just gotten worse. If Donatello was somewhat conscious, he would have felt how he was carried further and further away from his family and friends as if he’s some kind of a rag. It seemed as if destiny had simply decided to throw him into a huge mess without any purpose. It started with being related to the guy who wants them dead, then being chased, then being mutated, an invasion, losing his family, and now? Getting captured. And the thing that terrified Donatello even more than everything that happened by now, is that this time, he’s totally alone.

His family may have come back, yes. But the wedge that was forced between them is too strong at this point.

Donatello isn’t even himself anymore.

What is he, anyway? It’s something that he wondered ever since he found out about his DNA. It’s just that now the answer is even more complicated. If there is one.

During this period of time, the thing that amazed Donatello the most was that Splinter actually still chose to help him and raise him, even after his wife died at the hands of his so called ‘father’.

He still remembered how he came to his father before he went to bed, right after the secret was out to his family. He still remembered this conversation vividly.

“What?” Splinter’s eyes widened in shock as he stared at his troubled son in concern.
“Why didn’t you abandon me? I mean, after what happened to you at the hands of my father- I mean, the Shredder.” Donatello mumbled quietly as he shyly looked at his feet, feeling his father’s stare burn holes through his skull.

Splinter didn’t miss how Donatello called the Shredder his father.

He hated it.

“Donatello.” Donatello flinched as he felt his father’s hand squeezing his shoulder.
“Just because you are related to Saki, doesn’t make him your father.” Donatello could hear uncertainty in his tone. Uncertainty of how to handle such a complicated situation. Donatello was the only one who noticed, actually. That although Splinter appeared as if he was in control, he was just as lost as anyone else. And it freaked Donatello out.
“But what if I was? Or what if I am?” Donatello kept questioning as Splinter felt more and more cornered, at a loss for words.
“What?” Splinter clutched at his walking stick even harder as he attempted to think of anything that might restore Donatello’s security.
“What if I was raised by him after all? Would you still love me?” Donatello’s shoulders trembled as he noticed Splinter flinch.
And then, he sighed and composed himself.
“Donatello. I’m sorry to tell you this, but you are stuck with us. There’s no way out for you when it comes to being our family.” A smile, the biggest that Donatello had ever seen out of his father, appeared on his face.
Donatello’s mouth gapped in shock as he stared at his father in surprise.
“From the moment Shen and I found out about her being pregnant, I’ve seen you as my son. Never did I think otherwise even for a moment. Actually, when my daughter was born, I liked to imagine how you and Miwa would tend to each other while growing up.” He chuckled as he squeezed his son’s shoulder once more, and looked into his eyes.
“Donatello.”
“Y- yes?” Donatello stuttered.
“Call me father more often from now on. Drop the Sensei title entirely if you wish to.”

 

This moment made Donatello feel so much better. But only for a little while, until things started getting worse once again.

Bradford and Xever ran without a break, carrying an unconscious Donatello with them, and finally stopped when they arrived at their destination.
“It seems that there’s only one motorcycle. I guess that I should take it.” Bradford smiled condescendingly as he laid Donatello’s unconscious form on the bike.
“What?! Why should you be the one who gets to drive?!” Xever spat venomously as he glared at Bradford, who smirked smugly.
Bradford huffed as he crossed his arms. “Well, who’s the one who carried the turtle all the way here?” He asked cynically as he rolled his eyes.
“You-!” Xever was about to complain, until they both heard a thud beside them, drawing their attention in the direction of the bike.

They took a step back with a gasp as they noticed a weirdly-dressed human sitting on the bike casually, who smirked at their dumbfounded expressions.

“Well, if you don’t mind me, I need to borrow your bike.” He said with a smug tone, turning it on and speeding off without a warning, leaving a trail of dust behind him.

Bradford and Xever looked with wide eyes in his direction in silence.

“I think that we are in trouble.”
“Yeah.”

 

“That was easy! Too easy!” The human exclaimed in excitement as he attempted not to crash the bike over and over again. It’s not that he’s a bad driver, he simply likes the adrenaline that comes with bad driving.

 

“I’m here!” He called out as he stopped the bike in front of an abandoned building. The entrance’s door burst open right away, as if the person opening it was waiting for his arrival.

“I knew that you could do it, comrade!” The man who came out of the building chuckled as he spoke with a rough accent. He eyed the unconscious creature that was laid on the bike with a grin.
“It was awfully easy, too. Since you talked about that Shredder guy as if he was tough, I expected his henchmen to be a little more careful with their missions.” The person who stole the motorcycle, Zack, said condescendingly as he crossed his arms with his head held high.

The man, Strenko, huffed as he crossed his arms in frustration.
“His henchmen may be stupid, but we can’t underestimate his power.”
Zack didn’t entirely believe what Strenko was telling him, but it doesn’t matter. If his plan works, they could finally leave the town. Safely. He looked at the unconscious creature with a confused frown.

“Why do those people want that thing, anyway?” Zack asked, trying to understand the importance of their bargaining chip.
Strenko smirked as he could already feel the excitement that he had the upper hand when it came to a deal with the Shredder. “This creature has been through mutation. It was a human before. And not only that, he was the Shredder’s son! We will surely be able to leave the town now that we have him.”
Zack looked at the mutant once again, his eyes widened in surprise. His surprise was replaced by happiness in a matter of seconds. They could finally leave this place!

Chapter 55: Season 5- Episode 10- Sold Off

Donatello couldn’t remember when he first became so insecure. His entire life he felt the need to prove himself to those around him. One of the things that made him the happiest is that no matter how much he tried to distance himself, and focus on interests that his family don’t share, they still forced him to get out of his shell and spend time with them. No matter how much he struggled in training and they would sometimes make fun of him, they still always told him ‘it’s fine, Donnie. You’ll get it right when the time comes.’ When he received his weapon, he could see how his brothers avoided making fun of him like they did towards each other. Or, to sum up, he noticed that they were aware of his insecurities. They weren’t always hiding their awareness, as well. He still remembered how Leo came to his lab after their first mission ever. How he bluntly asked him ‘Did you feel alright?’ ‘Is there anything you need help with?’ ‘Did I treat you well as a leader?’

If Donatello had to admit, his family acting like this made him a bit more insecure than he already was.

And it might sound dumb, but…

He was happy.

Their actions might have made him feel weak, but they were still considerate.

They still cared.

At some point, he overcame his insecurities and felt… Accepted. Comfortable.

Even when his brothers made fun of him like any sibling would, or when he faced difficulties, he wasn’t ashamed.

He knew that he didn’t need to feel insecure around his family.

 

It took one small discovery for his entire life to crumble.

 

How could he feel welcomed around his family, if they weren’t even his family?

Obviously he could tell himself ‘blood relations have nothing to do with this’. But is it as easy as it sounds? In the end, it’s another detail that made him different. Especially since it’s related to the person that wants them dead.

Donatello used to hide his feelings from those around him. He felt as if it would make him seem weak, and destroy his reputation as a warrior. Although his family never approved of him doing such things. Hiding his feelings and fading into the background.

“Donnie. You HAVE to talk to me. I need to know about your situation! Not only as your leader, but as your big brother as well!” Leonardo held onto Donatello’s shoulders, his expression desperate and tone full of helplessness as he tried to get his little brother to talk.

“I know that you don’t like staying in the lair. I know that you hate whatever is going on lately, but-!”
“You don’t know ANYTHING, Leo!” Leonardo was startled by Donatello’s sudden outburst, his eyes widening as he took a step back.
“How would YOU know? You are the leader! Our big brother! An actual… Hamato.” Donatello’s sentence ended in a barely audible whisper as his gaze turned downwards.
Leonardo stood in silence and looked at Donatello in shock… And pity.

“Donnie. You are as much of a Hamato as-“
“I am not, Leo.” He cut Leonardo off, making him look at him in patience, waiting for him to continue.
“I’m sick of everyone telling me that. I’m not a Hamato. I never was. I can pretend to be one, but that’s simply me trying to fool myself. Didn’t you notice how different I am? How I instinctively close myself off? I can’t manage to force myself to be a part of our family, even when I want to. I’m just-“
“Insecure.” Leonardo stopped Donatello in the middle of his sentence, causing him to turn his gaze towards him in confusion.
“…What?” Donatello questioned in confusion, trying to understand what Leonardo was talking about.
“It’s not that you are not a Hamato, Donnie. You’re just insecure. Always was, but not necessarily always will be.” Leonardo grabbed Donatello’s arm gently, and gave it a small squeeze.
“You just need to accept who you are, Don. It’s a process everyone has to go through at least once. Even me.” Leonardo smiled in understanding at his little brother, who looked at him with saddened eyes.
“So let’s be insecure together, little brother. Until we manage to overcome our fears.”

++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

Oroku Saki always knew what to do. He always knew what his goals were.

Strengthen his clan.
Get rid of Hamato Yoshi.
Erase the Hamato clan.

However, since he discovered that he had a son, everything changed.

He still felt odd about Donatello.

He still wasn’t used to think of him as his son.

But he would never allow Hamato Yoshi to claim ANY of his children.

Suddenly, his priorities had changed.

It was suddenly the most important thing to get his children back, strengthen his clan, and only then annihilate the Hamato clan together with Hamato Yoshi.

Since the ‘discovery’, his life became much more complicated.

What is he supposed to do? How can he fix the situation? How can he get his son on his side? What does he think of his son, in the first place? They are each other’s greatest enemies, after all. But now? It’s even more complicated than it was before. “What will he do about his daughter?” “How will he find his son?” “How will he even cure his son when it comes to his mutation?”

++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

Saki frowned in suspicion and slight surprise as Bradford delivered a message from a very familiar person.

“And how can I believe that Strenko, out of everyone that received the news of my lost son, was the one that actually managed to capture him?” He questioned with a lifted eyebrow as he stared down at his bowing student.

Bradford tried to calm his racing heart as he feared angering his master. The Shredder was much more upset ever since the whole mess began, and he wouldn’t tolerate any mistakes, even if Bradford himself wasn’t at fault.

“I am unsure as well, master. I couldn’t question him either, since he delivered the message by leaving a note in front of the entrance.” Bradford responded nervously as his gaze remained low.

“And he dares to try and make a deal with me over him?” Saki commented mostly to himself, his hands clenched into fists in withheld anger, his knuckles turning white from the pressure. Not that Bradford could see it since he wore gloves, but he could still guess his master’s reaction. Obviously, he felt disrespected. He hated it.

“Call Xever. The two of you are coming with me.” He huffed, not leaving any room for objection. Bradford could easily guess that this would be a confrontation rather than making a deal.

“Yes, master.”

++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

Donatello bashed his body against the bars of his cage, his mind not quite feral, but still clouded by panic. He was still a serpent and he preferred it this way. He felt like it made him seem more intimidating in the eyes of his captors… whoever they were.

The moment he woke up, he nearly lost it again. Well, for a short time he did. Perhaps for a few hours, even. Can you blame him? Anyone would panic if they woke up only to be locked up by some unknown threat.

Once he managed to regain consciousness, he immediately started planning his escape. At least the calculation of his escape made him feel like his old self again. He actually got the opportunity to use his mind again.

He was sick and tired of hearing those two thugs constantly speak about how they will sell him off to get a ticket out of this damned city. At first, when he heard about the deal that they were trying to make with the Shredder, Donatello freaked out. It made him lose his sanity for a short time once again, until he managed to calm down once more. Well, he forced himself to. Apparently he could do that with enough effort. Donatello had understood that freaking out won’t help him with his escape, so he tried to take calming breaths and think of a plan.

Hearing how the men spoke of him like an object to be sold annoyed Donatello to no end. He actually felt this helplessness ever since this mess had begun, but he forced himself to calm his frustration. It’s the kind of situation where he had to suck it up.

Donatello’s situation couldn’t be worse. Bradford and Xever must have told the Shredder, their entire clan and probably every ally they have about the fact that he can transform between forms. Although, they might not know of his ability to become a human as well. Not only was he captured, but if he indeed manages to escape, they would still hold valuable information about him that might either help them capture him again, or use it to harm his family and friends.

Donatello’s efforts to escape the cage were in vain. He couldn’t do anything. He could try to escape when they transfer him to the Foot, but even that might prove impossible. In an hour, they would take him to the port to meet the Foot for the deal, and most likely the Shredder would be there as well. The more he failed to escape, the more his sanity had slipped from his grasp. His panic was starting to take over his thoughts and logic as the men were already getting ready to leave for the meeting.

He couldn’t help it anymore.

It was too hard to stay in control.

++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

The Hamatos were so lucky that Donatello’s secret cameras that he had installed around the city were still operating. If not for Donatello’s brilliance, they wouldn’t be able to save Donatello himself. They felt quite pathetic that if not for Donatello, he would have been doomed, never to be found. Although that sounds a little extreme.

The team kept patrolling over the city for the few hours Donatello was taken to try and find him. Raphael, being much better at concentrating, was chosen to look over the cameras while Leonardo, Michelangelo and Karai kept travelling.

Raphael had told his father and friends about the news. They were devastated, but still wished to stay with Raphael as he did his assigned task.

They were filled with anger and worry, and slight relief as they spotted Donatello. The negative feelings were due to seeing Donatello being dragged as he thrashed by two unidentified men.

Raphael sped up throughout the sewers as he tried to catch up with his brothers and sister. He had reported to them that Donatello was taken to the port, and they seemed to be waiting for something. Raphael didn’t want to find out too late what they were waiting for. He wanted to arrive, together with his team, before it’s indeed too late.

As he ran, he spotted Karai, Leo and Mikey themselves running and leaping from rooftop to rooftop. He caught up with them and moved with them to stand on one of the high crates in the port, so that they could see if they could spot their lost brother.

Raphael understood that Donatello and the two men hid somewhere in the area, because they couldn’t have gone far in the short time that he wasn’t looking in the cameras in order to arrive in the first place. Also, his father and friends would have surely told him if something had happened, since they were most likely looking over the cameras as well.

Silence engulfed the group as they tensely awaited something to happen. They tried to spot any movement from all directions as they tried not to panic. They didn’t know what Donatello was going through. They haven't since the invasion. Since his second mutation.

Raphael started twitching as he tried to stop himself from jumping down and yelling for his brother. He flinched as he felt a hand on his shoulder. He turned around to see Leonardo looking at him with a reassuring expression, instantly calming him down. Leonardo knew how he dealt with panic. Usually with irrationality.

Raphael sighed as he attempted to calm himself down. He was about to say something, until they heard footsteps on the ground below them.

The team tensed as they saw Xever walk with a cold expression, Bradford following shortly after him. They both seemed to be waiting for something.

++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

Bradford and Xever had waited patiently as they noticed their master’s glare from behind them. He may have hid in the shadows, but they could still tell what he was trying to silently tell them.

The Hamatos were here.

He must have sensed them.

Their attention shifted as they heard one of the large crates creak, its door slowly opening.

The Shredder had a hard time trying to control his anger as he saw Strenko, his old acquaintance, drag his son with a rod that closed around his neck. He knew that it was an obvious show of disrespect, even if he didn’t mean it. Disrespect towards the Shredder himself.

Bradford and Xever had told him about his son’s new ability to change between forms, between serpent and turtle as they specifically said, but he was still surprised to see him in his turtle form, thrashing around as if he’s some type of a feral animal.

He could sense how the Hamatos froze as they witnessed the scene. He wished to feel content by their suffering, but since it was his own son, and among the Hamatos was Karai, he wasn’t happy at all.

His hands clenched into fists at his sides as he watched Strenko, and his partner, walk slowly towards them with devious smirks.

“Shredder. Long time no see!” Strenko commented with a heavy accent, acting as if this situation was simply a reunion between old friends.

He could feel the Hamatos tense as they heard Strenko mention him. They didn’t see him from their position, after all. He stepped out of the shadows, causing them to flinch in surprise.

“Strenko.” The Shredder ‘greeted’ as his eyes squinted and his enraged glare was easily sensed from behind his mask.

The Shredder knew that he was in a complicated situation. His son was held captive by two people that might force him into a fight, and the Hamatos along with his daughter were ready to attack any second now.

The Shredder immediately questioned Strenko. “What kind of an insult is this? Holding my son captive as you try to blackmail me?” He growled out.

Strenko immediately took a step back. “No, no! I won’t do that to an old friend. I simply wish to make a trade.” He tried to hide his nervousness, to no avail. Zack, the guy next to him, flinched as he watched upon the scene. He obviously sensed the Shredder’s strength and the fact that he shouldn’t be angered. The Shredder lifted a brow at the term ‘friend’, but chose to ignore it.

The Shredder narrowed his eyes as he watched upon his son growl in panic and claw at the metal around his neck.

The Hamatos had obviously reached their limit, since he could sense them get ready to reveal themselves.

“We won’t let ANY of you take him!” Leonardo yelled in anger as he and the Hamatos jumped down and pulled out their weapons.

The Shredder and Karai exchanged a glance as she attempted to appear intimidating.

Xever and Bradford immediately ran over to stand by the Shredder and prepare for battle.

And just like that, everything turned into chaos.

Chapter 56: Season 5- Episode 11- Slipping Away

Mikey wasn’t stupid.

He simply had a hard time… Expressing himself. Staying concentrated. Perhaps he was a little hyperactive.

Although he presented himself as childish and sometimes questioned the obvious, he was still sharper than what his brothers gave him credit for.

He noticed how his family and friends always tried to reassure him that everything will be fine while hiding uncertainty in their voices.

He heard the quiet sobs from Raph’s room at night while he tried to look tough and confident throughout the day. The same went for Karai.

He spotted his father and Leo converse about their fears many times and he couldn’t miss the fact that April and Casey started to spend a lot of time together to strengthen each other.

Mikey was mostly worried about his father and oldest brother. When all of them could barely hold themselves together, they are forced to shove their feelings aside and take responsibility.

Although he hated the thought, Mikey was still sometimes relieved by the fact that Donnie wasn’t here to see what had become of them.

Donnie would have wanted to feel like everything would be alright, after all. Seeing his family and friends so unsure of what would become of him would simply make things worse for him. It would break his heart.

And how Mikey was dealing with everything? Well, by clinging on to hope. No matter how unlikely he knew it would be for things to go back to normal, how bad and desperate the situation made him feel, that’s what kept him going.

He didn’t wish to fall apart and give those around him another thing to worry about.

He confided with them about his feelings, but he knew that panicking and losing hope wouldn’t help any of them in any way.

However, he wouldn’t and couldn’t blame the others if they did. He could understand why they would.

The group had become much stronger when it came to their emotional state, since they started to confide in each other. Help each other and come up with plans to help and take some of the responsibility off Leo and their father.

Mikey was always sharp, but the whole experience helped him hone his skill.

Seeing the four of them fight to get their brother again had made him actively notice their distress. Everything was chaotic and everyone was fighting each other, but he still noticed the anxiety in their actions. Their expressions.

Xever and Bradford fought against the two men as he and his brothers fought the Shredder head on. Karai joined the fight between the men and Shredder’s henchmen in order to try and release their brother, who was held by one of those strangers.

Mikey noticed how Leo and Raph attempted to stay focused as they fought their deadliest enemy. It would end badly if they didn't.

And that’s when Mikey’s skills were the team’s best weapon.

He was hyperactive, therefore he could multitask. Who said you can’t panic and fight well at the same time?

Well, almost everyone.

But Mikey was special, after all.

—------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Karai couldn’t remember when was the last time she fought with such desperation.

She saw her brother, helpless and at the mercy of the enemy, and it made her lose control over her emotions. When rage mixed with anxiety, Karai could be unstoppable.

The Shredder was lucky he wasn’t the one who had her brother at the moment.

Her big brother was there for her when she was at her lowest, now it was time for her to repay the favor.

She was extremely lucky the man who held Donnie was distracted by Bradford, as Xever fought the second guy (which was odd looking to her personal taste, and wouldn’t stop talking), because it made them oblivious to the fact that she was coming for them.

Karai entered the fight and kicked the man in the head, causing him to yell out as he was pushed away and forced to let go of the rod that held her brother around his neck.

Without waiting another second, she turned and kicked Bradford in the gut, causing him to clutch at his stomach and leave himself defenseless as she kicked him in the head as well, away from her brother.

They won’t rise anytime soon. Perhaps she hit them too hard on the head. Good.

Without the man to keep him on his feet, Donnie fell on his hands and knees in exhaustion from the ordeal. Karai quickly pulled out her Tanto and used it to cut the metal from around his neck.

In a matter of seconds, she fell on her knees in front of him and moved to embrace him. He stiffened, but immediately relaxed as he whispered.

“K-Karai…?” His sore voice made it sound painful. She pulled back and looked at him with tears in her eyes, smiling as her hands still clutched at his shoulders. “You recognize me.” She whispered back in relief.
“I… wasn’t really conscious for a while.” Donnie admitted, smiling in happiness and hidden sadness as he scratched the back of his neck awkwardly. The situation made him so relieved that a few tears of happiness broke through his emotional barrier that was meant to help him keep himself together.
She moved to wipe his tears as she looked into his eyes in determination.
“We will fix everything, brother. You don’t need to worry anymore.” She said gently as she rested her hand upon his own.

Donatello looked down in response, his expression changing to one of devastation.
Karai flinched as she studied his expression.
“It won’t work, Karai.” He looked at the horizon over the port, watching the small waves as he considered what he was going to do next, gritting his teeth in self loathing for the words that he was going to say next. For the decision he made.
Karai, already familiar with such a saddened look, was quick to object. “It will be fine! Listen-“
But Donatello didn’t bother listening. “Karai.”
Karai immediately closed her mouth, looking at him with wide eyes.
“It’s over. I’m… too dangerous. And… none of you… hold the ability to… create a cure.” His hoarse voice made speaking even harder than it already was.
Karai gasped as she raised her voice in worry. “So you’re simply giving up?!” Her hands clenched into fists as Donatello simply looked away in feelings of sadness and guilt.
“I don’t have… much time… left before-“ He was about to warn her, but then he let out a sudden yelp.
“Donnie?!” She called out in surprise as she moved to hold his shoulders, watching him curl in on himself as he clutched at his head. He squeezed his eyes shut as he groaned.
“I… can’t hold on! Find- find me at the… amusement park…” he gasped out, as he suddenly turned into a serpent once again. Karai was about to try and stop him, but it was too late. He jumped into the sea, disappearing in an instant.

“NO! MY SON!” The Shredder called out in rage, taking a step toward Karai, the three turtles trying to get back on their feet in exhaustion.

“He’s not yours!” Raph roared out, not even flinching as the Shredder turned in his direction.
“He’s mine. His flesh and blood, the reason that he exists is because of me! And so is my DAUGHTER!” He yelled as he ran in the brothers’ direction once again.
However, Mikey pulled out a smoke bomb just in time and threw it on the floor, causing smoke to spread and conceal any sight of them. The moment the smoke disappeared, they were gone. He turned to look at Karai, only to see that she’s gone as well.

“NO!” He yelled out in frustration, his eyes landing on the two men who had caught his son, who were brought to their knees by Xever and Bradford.
“You… The two of you are going to pay for harming BOTH of my children.” He growled as he turned away, causing Zack and Strenko to flinch and tremble in terror.

Chapter 57: Season 5 Episode 12 - Dire Consequences

Donatello dragged himself up from the water and onto the pavement, coughing out water that he accidentally inhaled as he made his escape.

His control over his body and mind is deteriorating.

The fact that he changed bodies back into a turtle while swimming could have cost him his life. Luckily, he was close enough to the shore so he could quickly leave the water and get a breath of fresh air.

He was right to decide that it was time to part ways with his family.

With everything.

He felt like he’s becoming undone.

Fading away as dark thoughts took place within his mind, pushing out his hope and goals that kept him going.

He simply wished to give up, but he couldn’t. He still wished to see if something, even the tiniest thing, might change his life for the better. Although that seemed impossible to him in this situation.

He looked up and let out a sigh of relief. At least he was conscious enough to swim to the park, where he wished to bid his family farewell.

Donatello was done with weeping. With hopelessly wishing for rescue. With missing the warmth of his father’s relieved embrace.

All that he loved, all that he missed, is forever gone.

It exists, but out of his reach. He can’t enjoy the little things that he loved yet took for granted anymore.

Donatello sighed as he roughly shook his head, attempting to get rid of the dark thoughts that plagued his mind.

He needed to think of what he was going to do next. After he parted ways with his family. Did he even have a plan?

He took a deep breath as he felt his eyes water. His heart sped up as he understood that this was the end of… Him.

He never imagined that this is how it would all end. With the dangers he faced with his brothers, he thought that he would be taken out by one of their greatest enemies.

But this? His life ends by losing sanity, slowly and painfully. That end is just too cruel.

His own STUPID EMOTIONS made him make such an irrational decision. Made him fall into the mutagen and become… This thing. He could have solved the situation in a different way. Save himself AND the others using his big brain that he doesn’t get to use much anymore.

Donatello grit his teeth as he squeezed his eyes shut, attempting to stop the tears that he could feel forming. As his cheeks wettened, he growled and slammed his fist onto the floor.

“AH! Damn it!” He yelped as he clutched at his hand with his other hand. Perhaps he shouldn’t punch the floor anymore. It hurts.

He sighed as he rubbed his eyes, wiping away the tears of grief and frustration. He needed to calm down. Strong emotions could trigger the feral behavior that he attempted to fight all this time.

He just needed to wait.

And end things for good.

—----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

The Shredder strode towards Stockman’s lab with barely-contained anger, Strenko and Zach walking right behind him with their arms tied up as Xever and Bradford lead them from behind impatiently.

The two men attempted to hide their fear and anxiety, to no success. The both of them knew that they were in huge trouble. The way Xever and Bradford kept teasing them didn’t help their anxiety at all.

Bradford leaned in to whisper in Strenko’s ear. “I bet that the two of you will become bigger freaks than Xever and I.” He added a devilish chuckle as he noticed him flinch in fear.
Xever laughed as he added his own statements. “Personally, I think they won’t leave the lab in one piece.”

Xever and Bradford immediately ceased talking as the Shredder stopped walking and raised a hand without even looking at them to silence them.

That’s when Zack and Strenko froze. They were in front of the entrance to the lab. This was officially it for them.

The Shredder pushed past the doors, Bradford and Xever pushed the frozen men towards the entrance to force them to follow their master.

Strenko and Zack looked down, realizing they were on a high bridge leading to…

“No!” Strenko called out as the realization washed over the two of them. “Shredder- You cannot! We will not repeat this mistake!”
Zack was quick to join with his own plea. “We will do anything-!”
“Enough.” The Shredder cut the two of them, silencing them as he finally turned around to look at them. “You have attempted to make a deal over my SON! And then fought Bradford and Xever, creating a distraction and causing my son AND daughter to slip away. This is NOT forgivable.” He said in a low and threatening tone.
The Shredder looked at what was at the end of the bridge they were walking on. Strenko and Zack knew that if they would get pushed off the edge of the bridge, they would fall right into a huge mutagen container. “And for that, you would experience the same fate as my son.”

Zack turned to Strenko as he exclaimed in terror. “They plan to turn us into mutants!”
“Shredder.” Stranko attempted to control his emotions and reason with their captor. “We would be of better use to you as humans. Not mutants!”

But the Shredder wasn’t willing to listen. “Stockman! Prepare the mutagen.” He ordered as he eyed the fly from below.
“Yes, master.” He buzzed as he pushed a few buttons on the desk in front of him, causing a strange liquid to get injected into the mutagen.
“Wait!” “No, stop!” Both of the men exclaimed as they stared at the mutagen with wide eyes.
“Strenko. A rhino would fit you perfectly. Consider such a decision to turn you into one as my last favor for you due to our past relationship as acquaintances.“ He eyed Strenko as he took a step back.

Strenko flinched, freezing in his spot as he considered his next words. His next pleas.

That’s when Bradford became impatient and pushed Strenko off the bridge.

Zack yelped as he heard his partner scream, the splash loud enough to make his feet lose their strength. With great effort, he managed to stay standing.

Strenko struggled within the substance, attempting to scream from the pain that consumed him, only to get choked by the mutagen that drowned him as he opened his mouth, accidentally inhaling it.

After what felt like forever for Zack, and Strenko especially, the container opened from below, spilling its contents onto a metal level that caught Stranko’s falling form.

Zack could only stare at his partner, taking in his new form as he attempted to rise from the floor on shaking feet.

Strenko shook his head, attempting to gain his bearings back as he stared at his hands in terror. “This- no… What happened to me?!” He exclaimed with a sore throat as he stumbled on his feet.

As Strenko kept mumbling, still digesting his predicament, the Shredder immediately turned towards Zack as the container started to fill once again, who yelped as he understood what was about to happen to him.

“Zack, Strenko’s acquaintance. You will turn into a hog, an animal Xever had chosen himself.” The Shredder declared with finality.
“Wait! Come on. I will do whatever you want! Just don’t-!” He attempted to reason to no avail. Xever, with a devious laugh, used his mechanical leg to push him off into the mutagen, causing him to scream in fright as he fell down.

Strenko looked up at the container, choking on his breath as he saw his partner go through the same mutilation that he just went through.

Zack felt his skin burn, his bones break and alter, struggling within the substance in a failed attempt to stop this experience from going on any longer.

Strenko stepped back as the mutagen started spilling from the container, avoiding the splash as he searched for his partner with his eyes.

The Shredder, along with his henchmen, simply looked from above as Zack thrashed in panic and Strenko stared in shock.

“What- this!” “We are freaks, freaks!” “My body! What happened to me?!” “This can’t be happening!” The two of them kept yelling in terror, wishing that this would all be a dream. That’s when their attention shifted to the one who caused them this misfortune.

“YOU!” Strenko roared in rage, stomping his foot on the ground.
“You are going to pay, fool!” Zack exclaimed with his own uncontained rage.

The Shredder didn’t mind their rage. He simply frowned at the memories of what happened to his son that this situation made him remember. What he went through and going through as they speak.

It might still be hard for him to think of Donatello as his son. But he WON’T let Hamato Yoshi take away what he was supposed to have.

He will fix this.

And erase that damned clan once and for all.

Notes:

And off we go with the story! Do tell me if you like it!! I hope that you will enjoy the story and leave a follow :D