You Came Back To Me

by Purpleandbluelove24

Summary:

When Leo is injured on patrol, Donnie snaps—and the villain responsible sees exactly what happens when you try to take a twin away from his other half.

Notes:

I just love fics where authors portray Donnie as having a feral side. I mean I know all of the turtles do to some agree, but it just makes the most sense with Donnie being a spiny softshell turtle, since they are the most aggressive species of turtles. You threatened Donnie's family and he gets so protective and aggressive and that's why I love him so much. He claims to be a 'bad boy', but really he is just a softie at heart who would do anything to protect the ones that he loves

Anyway, I wanted to explore this side of Donnie. I wanted to answer the question of if you threatened the person that Donnie loves the most, what would happened? Well this potential two-shot will attempt to answer that question

Warnings for blood and wounds

Hope you guys enjoy it!!!

Chapter 1

It was supposed to be a standard patrol.

Quick sweep. No big fights. Back home before Mikey’s pizza bagels cooled.

But the streets didn’t care what it was supposed to be.

The ambush came fast. Too fast.

Leo had been joking—something stupid about his “battle-napping” technique—and then he wasn’t talking at all. Just a choked gasp as a sharp blade cut across his plastron and knocked him off his feet, blue mask tumbling into the dirt as he hit the ground hard.

“LEO!”

All of the brothers' voices blended together as one as they cried for their brother in blue, but Donnie was sure that his voice cracked on impact. He didn’t even remember telling his limbs to move—he was just there, over Leo’s body in seconds, crouched defensively with his tech-bo glaring as brightly as his rage.

Blood. Leo’s blood.

It soaked into the cracks of the pavement and the ends of Donnie’s fingers as he pressed his hands to the wound, trying to stop the bleeding, despite the fact that he was the worst when it came to blood

In that matter, his aversion of blood didn't matter. His twin was bleeding out on the concentre, his eyes were fluttering, and his breath sharp and wrong.

It sent all kinds of alarm bells in Donnie's mind as he tried to get his twin to focus on him. To get him to not fall asleep

“Nononono—don’t do this to me—Leo, look at me—HEY!”

“I’m fine,” Leo whispered, even as his eyes started to slide shut. “It’s just a scratch.”

“That’s a stab wound, you insufferable idiot—” Donnie’s voice broke. His claws trembled where they were pressed against Leo’s side.

Donnie could hear Raph and Mikey's frantic voices next to him as they tried to take in the situation before them, but all of Donnie's focus was on Leo

The villain—the mutant responsible—was laughing.

“Oh, this is the great Hamato team? One of you drops and the rest come running like panicked children. Pathetic.”

Raph growled as he turned wet eyes to the mutant that dared hurt his little brother.

Mikey’s hands tightened as his mystic powers flared up, his nunchucks ready to knock the mutant out

But Donnie wasn’t looking at them.

"Raph. Keep pressure on Leo's wound" Donnie spoke in his usual monotone voice, but Raph and Mikey could hear the dangerous undertone that it held. Raph did as he was told as he glanced between Leo and Donnie

Once Donnie was sure that Raph was taking care of Leo, he stood slowly. His hands were red. His shell was shaking. His breath came too fast, like it wasn’t syncing with the world around him. Like everything had gone too quiet, except for the thunder in his head and the red in his eyes.

“You hurt my twin,” he said, voice too calm, too cold.

The villain opened his mouth to say something else.

He didn’t get the chance.

Donnie lunged.

It wasn’t clean or efficient—it wasn’t anything like his usual precision attacks. It was raw, wild, animal. In that moment, Donnie have given into his feral turtle instincts. He grabbed the mutant by the throat and slammed him into a wall so hard it cracked. His bo staff retracted into his back as his claws came out fully.

Donnie didn’t care who this was. He didn’t care what plan Leo had. He wasn’t thinking at all. All he could see was Leo’s blood and the monster who made it fall.

“You don’t get to touch him. You don’t get to breathe the same air.”

He punched and clawed at the mutant.

Then again.

Then again.

The villain screamed, tried to block—but Donnie wasn’t going to stop. Not until this creature was gone. Not until Leo was safe. Not until he was sure nothing like this would ever happen again.

“DONNIE!”

Raph’s voice boomed, but Donnie didn’t flinch. Didn’t slow. He was snarling, breath coming in short gasps, pupils slitted like a cornered animal.

“HE COULD’VE KILLED HIM!” Donnie roared.

Mikey try to stop Donnie by grabbing his arm. Donnie flung his baby brother off without a second thought. Thankfully, Mikey didn't go far as Raph was right there to catch him. Raph then ordered Mikey to go be with Leo, to which Mikey complied

Raph tried next—grabbing him from behind, trying to pin his arms—and Donnie fought. Fought like he didn’t know who they were. Like the only thing that mattered was the target in front of him.

Then—

“Don… Donnie…”

The voice was weak. Barely audible.

But it cut through Donnie like lightning.

He froze. Chest heaving. Hands trembling. He turned his head slowly.

Leo was awake—barely—Mikey was helping to prop him up, eyes dazed but locked on Donnie.

“You’re scaring them. You're...scaring me” Leo whispered.

It was like a switch flipped.

Donnie’s body sagged. The tension cracked and drained out of him as if his knees couldn’t hold him up anymore. He turned away from the barely-conscious villain and stumbled back to Leo’s side, trusting that Raph would take care of the mutant for him

“Leo—”

“I’m okay,” Leo said again, because he was a liar. “Still have one lung. Probably.”

“Don’t joke.” Donnie was already scanning the wound again, his movements precise now, almost desperate. “Don’t—don’t do that.”

Leo blinked at him, a little more alert. “You okay, Dee?”

That broke him.

Donnie’s hands faltered. His head dropped, forehead pressing against Leo’s shoulder.

“I thought I lost you,” he whispered.

And that was the last thing any of them said for a while.

The mutant was dealt with, left for the Hidden City Police, and they walked back to the lair in silence

.

.

.

The Lair, later.

Leo was patched up and sleeping in Donnie’s bed, because Donnie refused to let him out of arm’s reach. Raph and Mikey sat silently nearby, trading glances over their game controllers but not really playing.

Donnie sat on the floor beside the bed, arms resting on the mattress, watching Leo’s chest rise and fall. His shell was hunched in, eyes glassy. There was still blood under his nails.

“Hey, Dee?” Mikey finally said, softly.

Donnie didn’t answer.

“You scared us, bro.”

“I scared me,” Donnie replied hoarsely.

He still couldn’t believe it. The look in Raph’s eyes. The way Mikey had flinched when Donnie roared and threw him back. He had almost—almost—

If Leo hadn’t said anything…

“I wasn’t thinking,” Donnie whispered. “I just saw red. I wanted that mutant gone. Wiped out. I didn’t even care about the rules or plans or—”

“You were scared,” Raph said. “It happens.”

Donnie looked up at him, eyes shining.

“That wasn’t fear. That was rage. I could’ve killed him.”

“But you didn’t,” Mikey said gently, sliding down beside him and bumping his arm.

“No… because Leo stopped me.”

Donnie looked at Leo again. Still asleep, face finally at peace, one arm now loosely draped toward Donnie like his body knew his twin was there.

“I don’t know who I am without him,” Donnie said, voice breaking.

Raph and Mikey's hearts broke at the vulnerable words. They knew how much closer the twins have gotten since the invasion. Donnie may claim to be a 'bad boy', but truly, he was a softie at heart who had the softest spot for Leo, his twin. Thinking that you almost lost the person you love the most for a second time would be enough for anyone to snap.

Losing Leo was now Donnie's greatest fear

“You won’t have to find out,” Raph said. “We’re gonna make sure of it.”

“Family sticks together,” Mikey added, nudging him again. “Even when we go a little bonkers.”

Donnie let out a soft, shaky laugh.

Then leaned his head on the bed again, intertwining his hand with Leo’s outstretched hand.

He closed his eyes.

And for the first time in hours, he finally let himself breathe.

.

.

.

The lair had gone still.

Mikey’s TV had long since been turned off. Raph’s heavy footsteps no longer echoed down the hall. The only sounds now were the hum of tech and the soft rhythm of Leo’s breathing.

Donnie hadn’t moved from his spot beside the bed.

He couldn’t.

Leo stirred a little, brows scrunching as he blinked awake. The bandages around his plastron tugged as he shifted, and he winced before looking down to find Donnie still there.

Still watching.

Still not okay.

“…Dee?”

Donnie didn’t answer right away. His gaze flicked up to meet Leo’s, then dropped again. He looked tired in a way Leo hadn’t seen since the invasion. Not physically—no, Donnie’s body could be on fire and he’d still run a marathon. This was in his eyes. His voice. His soul.

Leo lifted a hand slowly and brushed his fingers along Donnie's cheek.

“You didn’t have to keep watch this long,” he said, voice soft. “I’m not going anywhere.”

“You did,” Donnie replied, his tone sharper than he meant. “You almost did.”

Leo flinched.

Donnie shut his eyes. “Sorry.”

A beat passed.

Then Donnie exhaled shakily, curling one hand over the mattress as if anchoring himself to the reality that Leo was still here.

“I scared you guys,” he murmured. “I scared Raph. I scared Mikey. I scared you. I scared myself. I’ve never—I didn’t even recognize what I became.”

Leo was quiet. Then he shifted, scooting over in the bed with a grimace of pain. He patted the space beside him.

Donnie hesitated.

“C’mon,” Leo said, gently. “Please.”

That please undid him.

Donnie climbed into the bed, careful not to bump Leo’s injuries. He settled beside him, a little awkward at first, until Leo pulled his arm in and wrapped it around him with the kind of easy affection only a twin could manage.

Donnie melted into it instantly.

“I remember everything,” Donnie whispered against Leo’s shoulder. “The blood. The sound you made. The way you looked at me when you came back.”

Leo said nothing for a moment. Just let the silence carry them.

Then—

“You came back to me, too.”

Donnie froze.

Leo’s hand was resting on his forearm now, grounding him.

“You could’ve gone full-on unhinged supervillain right there,” Leo murmured, “but you didn’t. You stopped. You heard me.”

“I almost didn’t.”

“But you did,” Leo said again, firmer now. “You found me in all that noise.”

Donnie looked up. “I don’t want to ever lose you again, Leo. I—I don’t think I could survive it.”

“You won’t have to.”

And it wasn’t a promise made of fluff or empty hope—it was forged in every bruise, every wound, every hour they’d survived together. Leo’s voice had a strength to it that made Donnie believe him.

“I’ll always find my way back to you, Dee,” Leo said, pressing his forehead to Donnie’s. “That’s what twins do.”

Donnie didn’t cry.

But he did finally let himself rest.

Wrapped in Leo’s warmth, listening to the steady beat of his twin’s heart, Donnie felt something start to heal.

They’d come close to losing each other again.

But not this time.

Not tonight.

Chapter 2: What I Was Really Afraid Of

Summary:

We switch now to Leo's perspective as he wakes up next to Donnie, revealing that he wasn't scared of Donnie, or even of dying. No, he was scared of what would happen if he ever left Donnie, which is probably scarier then anything else

Donnie was asleep.

Finally.

Leo could feel the way his brother’s weight settled beside him, the slight twitch of his hand still curled in the fabric of Leo’s blanket like he was afraid to let go even in his dreams.

And Leo—

Leo didn’t dare move.

Not because of the pain—though, yeah, okay, being stabbed kind of sucked—but because any shift might wake Donnie. And Donnie… Donnie needed this.

They both did.

Leo stared up at the ceiling, eyes adjusting to the dark.

The fight replayed in fragments behind his eyes. The villain’s blade. The way it cut deeper than it should have. The cold bite of fear as his body locked up, refusing to move. The ground slamming into him. Then—

Donnie.

At first, just his voice. Loud. Panicked. Cutting through the static.

Then his face. Hovering over Leo’s, clawed hands pressing down, his eyes wide and wild and terrified.

And after that—

Red.

Leo hadn’t seen everything. His vision had been too hazy, his mind foggy from blood loss. But he heard the screams. The snarls. The crack of fists on bone. The choked sound Raph made trying to pull Donnie off the guy.

Leo had seen Donnie angry before.

But this?

This wasn’t anger.

This was loss.

It was him, Leo, being ripped away.

Leo reached out now, quietly threading their fingers together as Donnie shifted in his sleep. His other hand came to rest up gentle against Donnie's cheek

He could still feel the heat of Donnie’s breakdown. Still hear the way his voice shook when he said, “I thought I lost you.”

Leo had been afraid too.

But not of dying.

Not really.

It was strange, lying there bleeding out, how calm he felt. How the pain seemed distant, like it belonged to someone else. But the fear? The real fear came when he thought of what he was leaving behind.

Not the world. Not the city.

His family

His brothers

Donnie.

His twin. His other half. His sharp-edged genius who never asked for help but felt everything so much deeper than he let on. Donnie, who always carried the world’s weight alone, but didn’t know how to survive without Leo holding one side of it.

“I wasn’t afraid of dying,” Leo whispered, as he stroked Donnie's cheek and squeezed his hand, his voice so softly spoken that it barely made sound.

Donnie stirred faintly beside him at Leo's comforting gestures, but didn’t wake.

“I was afraid of leaving you.”

He swallowed, voice tight now. “Of what it would do to you.”

Leo turned slightly, enough to press his forehead to Donnie’s, just like Donnie had done to him earlier.

“You’re not alone. You never were. You never will be.”

Leo shut his eyes.

“I’m still here, Dee.”

And for now, that was enough.

.

.

.

The lair was quiet in the way only early mornings could be—before Mikey's chatter, before Raph's workouts, before the world asked anything of them.

Soft light filtered in through the cracks in the curtains of Donnie’s lab, casting gold streaks over metal, cables… and the two figures still tucked together on the narrow bed.

Leo blinked awake slowly.

His body ached. His plastron pulled with every breath. But none of it mattered because—

Donnie was still there.

Lying on his side, back facing Leo, one hand loosely curled beneath his cheek. His shell rose and fell in slow, even rhythm.

Leo didn’t move. Just watched.

Until Donnie spoke.

“You talk in your sleep.”

Leo startled a little, eyebrows lifting. “What?”

Donnie rolled onto his back now, still not looking at him. His voice was quiet, but his tone held the weight of someone who had been awake for a while—thinking.

“You said you weren’t afraid of dying,” Donnie murmured. “That you were afraid of leaving me.”

Leo froze.

Oh.

He swallowed. “You… heard that?”

“I was awake.” Donnie’s fingers twitched slightly. “I didn’t mean to be. But then you said that and I just—”

He finally turned his head to face Leo.

“Why didn’t you ever tell me that when I was awake?”

Leo opened his mouth.

Then shut it again.

“Because,” he said finally, “it’s easier to joke around than admit I’m scared. Especially when it comes to you.”

Donnie’s brows furrowed.

“I’m your twin, Leo. You don’t have to pretend with me.”

“I know,” Leo said softly. “I know that now.”

He shifted carefully, wincing slightly, and reached across the small space between them, pressing his palm lightly against Donnie’s wrist.

“I just didn’t want you to worry about me worrying about you.”

“That’s ridiculous,” Donnie said, though there was no bite in it. Just a worn edge of affection. “That’s what we do. Worry. Obsess. Nearly lose our minds when something happens.”

Leo chuckled. “Yeah, I noticed.”

Donnie looked down at their hands. His voice dipped lower.

“When I saw you on the ground, Leo, I didn’t think—I just snapped. There wasn’t anything logical or calculated about it. You weren’t breathing right. You weren’t responding. And it felt like…”

His throat bobbed.

“It felt like the invasion all over again.”

Leo’s breath hitched.

“It wasn’t,” he whispered. “You saved me.”

“No, you stopped me, Leo.” Donnie finally met his gaze again. “You brought me back when I was so far gone I didn’t even know who I was anymore.”

They were silent for a moment, the kind of silence only shared between two people who know. Who’ve seen each other at their worst and stayed.

Donnie shifted closer. Not much. Just enough.

“Promise me something?” he asked.

Leo nodded. “Anything.”

“Next time you think you’re going to die, don’t worry about me.”

Leo blinked, startled.

Donnie smirked faintly. “Tell me. Yell. Scream. Kick me in the plastron. Do anything except leave me in the dark. Let me fight with you, Leo. Not just for you.”

Leo’s expression cracked, and he laughed softly—sad and warm all at once.

“Deal,” he said, voice thick. “But only if you promise not to go full monster-mode again and almost murder someone in front of our baby brother.”

Donnie sighed. “I make no promises. Threaten you again and we’ll see what happens.”

Leo snorted, and just like that—like sunlight cutting through fog—the tension melted.

They laid there a little longer, hands still loosely linked, hearts lighter than they’d been in days.

No more masks.

Just Leo and Donnie.

Twin halves of one whole.

And for the first time since the fight, Leo let himself believe it:

He wasn’t going anywhere.

Neither was Donnie.

Notes:

I really hope you guys like this two-shot. I got a lot more similar stories like this planned for the next couple of weeks so be on the lookout

Until next time, happy reading!!!

Series this work belongs to:

• Part 17 of I love the disaster twins