He could barely restrain himself from bouncing up and down the lair. He couldn't sit still, and he was only staring at the entrance of the lair with so much joy. Joy I hadn't seem in the last few weeks. His baby blue eyes were practically sparking from anticipation and he was clawing at the couch. Not the same nervous clawing he would do over the last few weeks, but a huge grin was on his face as he continued to stare.

"Mikey, staring like that won't make her arrive any faster" I chuckled softly as I continued to watch my youngest brother. Mikey turned around and flashed me a bright smile, and once again I felt relief wash over me. It was something I had missed so much in the last few weeks, months even. It had been way too long since Mikey had been like this. And I hated myself for thinking it, but maybe the second kidnapping actually did him more good than bad.

"I know, I know. I'm just so excited for her to come" Mikey said with a loud voice and focused on the entrance again. April and Casey would be coming down around 4 o'clock, after Mikey had requested something special for Raph, and of course Mikey was already waiting around 3, bouncing up and down for April to come with the special present.

Mikey was sitting on his knees with his hands on top of the back of the couch, his eyes clued on the entrance. My eyes slowly trailed down Mikey's body. If it wasn't for those scars that were still on Mikey's body, and the few nightmares he still had I would've guessed he was just any normal mutant teenager, who hadn't been tortured or kidnapped at all.

Mikey's shell was turned towards me and I could only see part of his body, most importantly his left side. The two scars that were running over his eyes still scared me, even after weeks of having seen them, and I know Mikey was bothered by them too. The one on his left arm was always staying there, thick and swollen and a mixture of green and pink skin. And every time he would strain it too much, his arm would give out.

It had been 2 whole weeks already since that faithful day. Or rather two days. The day I decided to give Raph that antidote, the same antidote that we got from the Shredder, and the same antidote we didn't know it would work. I still remembered the words that Mikey had screamed, saying he hated me for betraying him like that but eventually I found him outside of the lab, and he apologized to me.

Seeing Mikey and Raph finally unite was probably one of the best moments in my life so far. They've gone through so much together, whatever Shredder had put them through had strengthened their bond immensely. They needed each other, Raph needed Mikey as much as Mikey needed Raph. No matter how hard we tried, we could never know what those two were feeling, or what they had been through.

"April!" Mikey suddenly cried out in excitement and jumped over the couch using his hands and swiftly landed on both feet, running towards the red haired teen who was just entering the lair, carrying a large brown box. "Oh my… can I see, can I see?!" Mikey gasped with excitement and reached for the box. April laughed at Mikey's excitement and even Casey joined the other teen.

"Easy Mikey, let's put him down first" April giggled and held the box out of Mikey's reach, who whined playfully but didn't stop smiling himself. April walked over to the kitchen, or rather Mikey dragged her over to the kitchen. I quickly glanced at Casey before we both walked after the two teens. We quickly entered to kitchen to see the box already on top of the kitchen table and Mikey standing right beside it.

I frowned slightly as I looked at the box. There were holes on top of the box, almost like breathing holes and I couldn't help but to think what was in the box. I knew Mikey had some special present planned for Raph, but he wouldn't even tell me what it was. Apparently only April had the privilege of knowing what was in this special package. But I was pretty curious right now.

I inched a bit closer to the table as April reached for a kitchen knife and carefully cut open the top part of the box. She was careful with cutting the box open, trying not to go deep into the package so she wouldn't hurt or damage what was in it. Mikey let out a low squeal and reached for the package, opening it at the cut April had just made and stared into the box. Immediately a smile made its way on his face.

"What is it?" Casey frowned as he was unable to see what was actually in the box. Mikey grinned and stuck two hands inside the box and slowly lifted it out of the box. I blinked a few times at the sight of the small turtle in Mikey's hands. It wasn't a baby, that was clear, but he was very small. Mikey carefully placed the turtle on the table and lowered himself so he was looking directly at the turtles head.

The little turtle was obviously afraid, which wasn't weird figuring he had just been transported in a dark box all the way down the sewers and into a new environment. We were turtles ourselves so we knew, to a certain extent, what turtles did in these situations. And when we were younger we would often go into our shells when we were younger, just to protect ourselves, and that was exactly what this little guy, or girl, was doing right now.

Slowly the turtle's head started to poke out of the hole and Mikey gasped slightly, almost breaking his jaw by smiling at the young turtle. He, or she, looked around a bit confused with his bright eyes until they landed on Mikey and made a small moaning sound. Mikey immediately seemed to understand what the little turtle wanted and reached for his belt and pulling out some leaves. The same ones that Raph would feed Spike.

And then it clicked. This was Mikey's present for Raph, a new turtle, or rather a new Spike. And I didn't know if I should be feeling sad, or happy about this. It was incredibly sweet of Mikey to buy Raph a new turtle because we all knew how much he was missing Spike. But at the same time Spike's disappearance had been the whole reason of Mikey running away and getting kidnapped for the first time.

It was a month after Spike's mutation that Raph snapped at him. Nobody blamed Raph for snapping at him, and nobody held him responsible for everything Mikey had gone through but it was still something to remember. Spike's mutation was directly linked to Mikey's suffering, all the tortures he had suffered from at the hands of the Shredder, even if Spike, Slash, didn't know about it. And yet, despite all of that, I couldn't help but to smile at the small turtle, it wasn't a new Spike. It was a new pet turtle, a new beginning for all of us.

TMNT

"Well Raph, I have good new and good news" I smiled as I walked up to my immediate older brother. Raph was still in the same position, in the medical bed in the lab. This time whoever his bed was bent so he was sitting up slightly. He was still extremely tired all day but at the times he was fully awake he wanted to be part of the action as much as possible.

He was hooked up to different machinery since he was still fighting off the drug that had been in his system for weeks now, and it would probably take a few more weeks for it to be gone completely. Though he was fighting it and that was a good sign but it would take time for his body to completely get rid of it. He still wasn't up to leaving the lab, and I had to check on him every day to see he was improving and he wasn't having a relapse from the drugs or his wounds.

"And that is?" Raph pushed as he noticed I wasn't going to talk without him asking. The bedridden turtle was getting bored, he wasn't the one who mostly listened to his younger brother once he was sick or injured. He would mostly just ignore every sign until it got too bad, and they had to either strap him down, knock him out or wait until he was even unable to walk. And while this was one of those things that were too bad for him to handle, he was still voluntarily staying in bed.

Even Raph knew he almost died, and even he couldn't deny the fact that he could barely lift his arms just yet. He still had control over them, which was once again a good sign, but he still couldn't move them a lot because it would take too much of his energy at once. He could lift them up to eat for himself, he just couldn't lift up something too heavy, or pick something up from the table next to him. Which often caused him some embarrassing moments with either me, or someone else, for him at least because all of us were prepared to help him.

"Well your stitches are holding well, and I can take them out probably tomorrow or the day after tomorrow" I said with a smile and gestured to the stitches. Raph snorted slightly at the comment. He wouldn't really categorize that as 'good' news, even though he didn't say it out loud, I knew he was thinking it. While I was mostly positive about his wounds on his left arm, the hashtag like wound, he was mostly repulsed by them. It was clear he hated them deeply.

It was the same thing with Mikey and the slashes that nearly destroyed his left eye. Mikey hated them as much as Raph hated his own wounds. It would always be a reminder of what happened in those weeks of his life, and our lives. And every time I brought up those scars he would fall back into his old repulsive character, and he would never even look at them.

"Don't gimme that Raph" I huffed and sat down next to him. "I just thought you'd want to know. Anyways, the drug that is in your system is slowly fading. I'd say a week, or two weeks tops, and it'll be completely gone" I informed him, trying to take his mind off of the scars on his arm. While I knew he had to accept them once in his life, I also knew that if he wasn't ready for it just yet, I shouldn't press him too much.

"Really? And then I can finally get outta here?" He said, laughing softly, which sounded more like a short huff as a small smile appeared on his face. It wasn't a secret he hated being confined to a bed. He always wanted to do something, train, run around, and not only that, he hated being dependent on someone, or something. He hated asking for help, asking for someone to feed him or help him wash, or get cleaned.

"You'll still be a bit weak, but yes you'll be able to get out of here once the drug if fully out of your system" I explained to him and gave him a proud smile. Raph returned the smile, although it wasn't as big as mine was and wanted to say something else but was interrupted by another voice, and I cringed slightly.

"Raph, Raph!" Mikey ranted as he walked into the lab and I frowned as I saw what he was holding, a large box. I assumed it was the present Mikey had planned for Raph but actually seeing it made me even more confused. I had asked him multiple times over the last few days but no matter what, he wouldn't tell me what he was planning for him, not even April wanted to tell, not even small hint.

Mikey walked over to Raph's bed and sat down on the other side of the bed so I was sitting at the opposite side of him. Mikey placed the box on his own lap and took a few breaths. His smile fell slightly until nothing remained and he was starting to claw slightly at the box. Whatever he was giving was making him very nervous, and only that fact already made me want to see it badly. Leo walked up to Mikey and put a comfortable hand on Mikey's shoulder. The freckled turtle nodded towards his older brother before turning towards Raph.

"Uhm Raph… I don't really know where to start.. so I'll just .. uhm.." Mikey started unsure and scratched his neck slightly. "I know we've told you not to blame yourself, and I've told you I wasn't blaming you. But do you remember the reason … why I ran away that night?" My smile faded as quickly as that sentence left Mikey's mouth. And by judging the look on Raph's face, he remembered the night as much as I did. Raph swallowed heavily and nodded, too hurt and too confused to speak.

"I know how much you miss him Raphie.. Spike I mean. And I know you guys are cool again but I can see you still miss him. And now you're awake, and we're both getting a bit better.. I asked April to get this" Mikey continued, and it was clear he was growing a bit uncomfortable. "Though I chose which one I wanted" Mikey quickly added and opened the box on top his lap. He put two hands in the box and pulled out a small turtle.

The turtle excitedly looked around and let out a soft moan as he was placed on top of Raph's chest, that was still covered with a white blanket. Raph grew extremely quiet as he stared at the little turtle in front of him and I inched a bit closer. He wasn't a baby, you could tell by his matured features and by the red striped on the side of his head I could tell it was a red eared slider turtle but what confused me was his size.

Normal red eared sliders grew up to 8 inches, depending on their gender. But this one was visibly smaller than average red eared sliders, only coming close to approximately 6 inches give or take. A little smaller could be possible, but this was significantly smaller than normal.

"H-Hey little guy" Raph stuttered and I cringed slightly, those were the same words he said to Spike the day he got mutated but I smiled when Raph reached for him with a shaky hand and petted his shell softly. "Why is he so small?" Raph asked as he looked at the smaller frame of the turtle beneath him and looked up to his youngest brother.

"April said his previous owner dropped him when he was just a small little turtle, you see this crack?" Mikey said softly and trailed his thick finger along a huge crack on his back, slicing through his whole shell vertically, going from his head and downwards. "He was injured badly and he was brought back to the pet store. The owner couldn't get himself to kill him off but nobody wanted to sell him because he was already damaged" Mikey continued his story with a sad sigh.

"The crack caused severe damage to his spine and it badly affected his growth, including his desire to walk. Children didn't want him because he wasn't a baby anymore, and he mostly just sat still the whole day. Not to mention the crack. But I immediately liked him when April took me to the pet store. With disguise of course, and I almost knew for sure you'd like him too" Raph nodded in acknowledgement and continued with petting the small turtle on his shell.

"Does he have a name already?" Raph suddenly asked as he looked up to Mikey, who suddenly got his smile back again, seeing Raph liked his present but shook his head. Raph frowned slightly, appearing to be in thought before looking up to Mikey again. "I would be stupid to name him after you, wouldn't it?" He snickered and Mikey's cheeks seemed to split in two due to the huge smile on his face. A low chuckle escaped his throat and he shook his head.

"Sorry bro, as much as I know my name is beautiful, that would just be too confusing" He snickered and petted the head of the turtle softly, who seemed to like Mikey as he leaned into his touch slightly. Mikey smiled and looked at his older brother again. "… but thanks.. y'know, for willing to name him after me" He added after a few seconds. Raph snickered and reached out for Mikey, pulling on his right arm to get him onto the bed.

The pull was hardly a pull while there was barely any strength left in Raph's arm but Mikey took the hint and climbed on top of Raph's bed. Being careful for the small, and the yet to be named turtle as he sat down on the bed, right next to Raph's form and reached out for the small turtle, continuing to pat him. A high pitched 'hoot' sound came from the small turtle and he sat down on top of Raph's plastron, obviously okay with both Raph and Mikey.

"What are you thinking about Raph?" I asked with a laugh and crossed my arms. My immediate older brother had a small smile on his face as he trailed his eyes from Mikey to the smaller turtle beneath him. He looked at me briefly and our eyes connected for a split second before he disconnected them again, mindlessly running his finger along the crack on the shell.

"I was thinkin' about his name" Raph muttered and he glanced at Mikey again, obviously unsure about the name itself. "I was thinkin' about Dave. Y'know from Michelangelo's famous statue David." He continued and looked away a bit, and it was obvious he was waiting for Mikey's answer. A smile tugged at my corners and I saw that Leo was having the same reaction as I was having.

Ever since we found out we were named after Italian artists we wanted to know who they were, and what they did. What made us, or them, famous. It caused us a lot of trouble too. Leonardo and Michelangelo were the two most successful artists in the renaissance, leaving me and Raph out. But eventually convinced us that our name didn't matter, in the meaning of what we did with our lives. The fact that Leonardo and Michelangelo were better known didn't mean anything for us.

Point is, we were really interested in learning about the artists we were named after, so we all knew about the history of the artist. The most important statues, paintings and works. What they did, where they lived and those kind of things. And with that also the relation between them, which we often joked about when we were younger too. And it was just so adorable to see Raph suggesting a name that was based on one of Michelangelo's greatest work.

And Mikey seemed to have the same reaction as his grin kept plastered to his face. "I love it Raph, Dave it is" Mikey grinned and patted 'Dave's' head in response. "Hey Dave, welcome to the family little guy" He grinned and Dave let out another 'hoot' sound in response. Which caused us to laugh at the small turtle. A new beginning for all of us.

TMNT

Mikey could never do anything alone again. Nothing too big for that matter. He wasn't able to go topside anymore, he was simply too afraid to go. Even if he knew that Shredder was gone and that there were simply no threats out there for them, apart from the humans, he still couldn't get himself to go out alone. Yet too scared to do so.

He would never be able to face his nightmares alone. And that was the thing that shattered him from the inside out. No matter how much me and Donnie tried, we could never know what Mikey had been through, only Raph could and he had been in a coma. He wasn't ready to talk about it alone, and without Raph there was no one else he could share the experience with. So he kept it buried, and that ate him alive.

We couldn't believe how much Mikey had improved the last two weeks, sure they had been hard and Mikey still had those nightmares to remind him of that period, but with Raph finally being awake he had more courage to talk about what happened, to either Raph or Master Splinter. He spent hours talking about what happened to him the second time of his captured, crying his heart out as he relieved every painful memory.

Me and Don comforted him in any way possible and with every part Mikey dared to tell us, we began to understand more and more what Mikey had gone through. And slowly but surely Mikey returned to his former self. He still was plagued by horrible memories once in a while, and he wasn't ready to be alone just yet, but he was laughing more, playing more and he was even ready to join training with us again.

Raph slowly improved too, just as Mikey he was suffering from his own torture, even if he wouldn't admit it. It took him a while for him to admit, but around a week after he awoke Mikey continued to press Raph to talk about the things that happened to him, and he just snapped. Everything that had been bottled up for so long just came out with words, rage and tears. And it was like a heavy weight being lifted off his chest.

He talked about his failure in protecting Mikey, and the shame that he carried around with having the nightmares and the fright for the Shredder, even if he wasn't a threat anymore. The drug disappeared three weeks after Raph had woken up, just like Donnie had predicted and he was slowly regaining all of his strength. He was still very weak and tired very soon but Donnie had assured that Raph would get better in no time.

Donnie worked a lot to get Raph better, and tend to both Mikey's and Raph's wounds. Mikey's wounds were mere scars but he wanted an excuse to check on Mikey, just to make sure everything was going well. And even though Mikey saw through Donnie's lie, he didn't complain. Raph was another story, he still needed to heal his wounds, especially the one on his left arm. He hated it, resented it but it was something he had to learn to live with, just like Mikey had to live with his own scarred face.

And me, I was trying my best to keep my family together. I had no specific job really. Don was the doctor of the family, and tended to our wounds, Master Splinter mediated and talked with both Raph and Mikey. I had to be the best big brother I could be, and be there for my little brothers. I helped Raph with regaining his muscles, comforted Mikey and helped him with extra training when he needed to. But also help get through this stressful period.

Both Raph and Mikey changed a lot, both in a good and a bad way. The capture and the drugs meant that they both grew tense, loud noises could easily set them off and they had often nightmares which let them scared and confused. But at the same time they improved so much. Raph still had his temper but it was less this time, he grew more passive. Not a bad thing, but it was something getting used to.

Mikey, who had always been the child of the family had obviously grown out of that role. They had always shielded him from everything around him, and they had failed. But it wasn't a bad thing that they did. Of course the torture was horrible and neither of them wanted Mikey to endure something like that, but it also did something good. He learned how precious life actually is and started to take it more serious. He trained more and quickly surpassed his brothers though he was often forced to stop because it made Mikey remember him.

I couldn't say I wasn't jealous that Mikey was surpassing me, but I was also very happy. From the time we started training we all knew Mikey had the most raw talent, he only didn't utilize it. He couldn't focus and would rather play around instead of taking things seriously, something that he used to protect his mind with, instead of facing it. And seeing him finally using all the talent made me smile inwards.

He even asked me to mediate several times. I knew he was meditating with sensei but hearing he wanted to mediate on his own made me smile even more. And I also knew why he did it, it calmed his mind, allowed him to put his past behind, and move on with his life.

They were happy again, don't get me wrong, the scars never disappeared, the nightmares would never fully go away, they just learned to live with it. They were going to heal, but the scars would always be a painful reminder of what happened that faithful time, and the wounds left behind. Painful reminders of the damage done by the Shredder. And apart from the never healing wounds, that would always be painful when moved or touched the wrong way, we were a family once again.

TMNT

Aaand it's over *sniff sniff* Honestly, his was supposed to be a short epilogue, but soon turned into a very long chapter, like way larger than I intended to o.O Though I regret nothing!

But sadly, this story is officially over, after 8 months of writing both 'Like a dying flame' and 'Flames of Vengeance' it's actually over. I just wanted to say thank you to everyone who has read this, and reviewed, favorited etc! So thank you!

THE END