I don't own the TMNT. They are owned by Nickelodeon. I didn't create them. They were created by Kevin Eastman and Peter Laird. I don't make any money from this fan fiction and I never will. This is for entertainment purposes only.

12 years ago-

Surprisingly, the turtles didn't have a lot of health problems when they were babies. They didn't need to eat that much and could mostly survive on what Splinter found in the sewers. As they got older though and needed more food, Splinter had to start scavenging on the surface a lot more often. But scavenging is not a reliable source of food and more often than not, food was scarce. Sometimes he would be gone for days at a time, risking his life up on the surface. He was doing the best that he could. Often going without, so that his sons would have enough to eat.

But there was a problem though. One that didn't start to show itself until later. The turtles had been looked after well in the pet shop. The brothers were strong and healthy, so it took quite a while for their health to start deteriorating. Even when they had plenty of food, the problem was that it wasn't the right type of food and they weren't getting the right nutrition. Master Splinter didn't know what the cause was at the time but it started to affect their growth, they had no energy and got sick a lot more often. Raphael was effected the worst of the four turtles. It got so bad at one point that he couldn't get up out of his nest of blankets for months.

When his three brothers were eventually allowed out to explore the sewers and sit in the sun rays coming through the sewer grate, watching the humans' feet as they walked by; Raph was stuck lying in a cardboard box, covered in blankets waiting in the dark for them to come home.

That was another puzzle that Master Splinter couldn't solve. Why were his three other sons getting healthier, putting on weight and growing stronger, while little Raphael was only getting worse? He made sure that he was given more food than any of the others, but he was still much smaller than them. His skin stuck to his bones and he was growing weaker as time went by.

Unfortunately things have to get worse before they can get better. And worse they got. Raphael's shell started to become soft and would damage very easily. One day when Splinter came home with food after a particularly long scavenging trip all three of Raphael's brothers ran to the entrance of the lair to hug and greet their father. His dad had been gone for three days, and his brothers had left him alone for nearly the entire day before. Raph had been so lonely and missed his father so much, he just had to go hug him that instant. He couldn't wait for Master Splinter to come to him.

He tried to get up but was barely able to get to his feet before he fell back and landed hard on his carapace where a piece broke off of the lip of his shell. It was the worst pain the young turtle had ever experienced. It was like there was a fire burning through his entire shell. He screamed for his dad. He didn't cry. Crying couldn't convey the amount of pain he was in.

The physical pain was agonising yes, but this wasn't purely about the physical. It was the pain of years of struggling to survive. While his brothers also struggled, at least they got to live. It wasn't fair. He wasn't living; he was just surviving and the pain was too much. He screamed and just kept screaming. He didn't know what else to do. There was nothing else that he could do and unfortunately there was nothing Master splinter could do either.

Not long after that, sores started appearing on Raph's shell. First they were only around the original wound site but then they spread over his carapace and to his plastron as well.

"Eww, Waphie stinks. Baby Waphie had a' accident again," Mikey giggled to himself, amused by what he perceived as incredibly witty jokes.

"I didn't have a' accident," Raph whined defensively, already feeling his eyes start to tear up. It was true that he had, had accidents in the past when there was no one around to help him to the toilet, but he couldn't help that. He didn't do it on purpose and it was always humiliating when he had to tell Leo or Master Splinter what he had done. He could do nothing but lie there feeling useless and utterly disgraced as they took away the dirty blankets and wrapped him up in fresh ones.

"Sure you didn't, Baby Waphie," Mikey kept on teasing.

"I didn't have a' accident and I'm not a baby, I'm older than you," Raph balled up his fists as he tried to yell at his brother, tears of frustration leaking from his eyes.

"You're smaller than me, you still wet the bed and you cry all the time. That makes you a baby," Mikey folded his arms looking down at his smaller, older brother curled up in the cardboard box.

"What's going on in here?" Leo demanded as he walked into their shared bedroom. He was only a toddler but was already the unofficial leader who was put in charge when their father was away.

"Waphie had a' accident," Mikey giggled.

"I didn't," Raph protested, crossing his arms in front of his chest.

"Mikey you shouldn't tease Waph. Now leave." He pointed to the doorway and Mikey slumped out of the room. He never liked being told off.

"You should have called me if you needed to go," Leo said sympathetically to his younger brother.

"But I didn't have a' accident Weo," Raph shook his head while rubbing at his eyes with his fists.

"It's okay Waph, I'll change your bed. There's no need to be embawwassed," Leo comforted as he went to pull the blanket off of his brother but Raph grabbed the blanket and refused to let go.

"I need to change your blankey Waph," Leo said a little firmer and pulled the blanket from his younger brother's grip.

"But I didn't," Raph sobbed uselessly as Leo took his blanket off of him.

"Huh? It's dwy." Leo exclaimed puzzled.

"Told you."

"Then what's that smell?" Leo gave back the blanket then got to work sniffing around the area. He wrinkled his nose in disgust as he got closer to Raph, who shrunk back as far as he could from his brother and pulled his blanket up over his head.

"That smell is coming from you."

Raph shook his head, still hiding under his blanket.

Taking the blanket away, Leo got a whiff of Raph up close. The odour was an assault to his nostrils. He felt like he was going to be sick but tried to hide it for Raph's sake.

"Daddy gave me a bath before he weft. I don't know why I stink?" Raph felt like he had only just stopped crying over Mikey's teasing when the sobs and tears started up all over again.

Leo looked his younger brother over. He knew Raph had to be clean because he'd helped their father give him his bath just the other day. He gasped in shock when he looked at Raphael's back. There was bloody puss smeared over his shell and one of his scutes had fallen off. That was where the awful smell was coming from.

"Donnie come quick, Waph needs help," Leo called out urgently.

Donnie stumbled into the room as fast as his lanky legs and comically large feet could carry him.

"What's wrong?" He knelt down next to Raph, his eyes frantically scanning his brother over until he saw the mess of a shell that Leo was looking at. "Oh."

"What does "oh" mean?" Raph looked between his two brothers. His fear was as obvious as if someone had written it over his face.

"How do you feel Raph?"Donnie put his hand on his brother's forehead frowning when he felt how hot he was.

"My back hurts and it's itchy."

"Anything else?"

"I'm really cold."

"You have a fever. Leo help me get Raph into the bath tub. He needs to cool down and we need to clean his shell."

Donnie and Leo each slung one of Raph's arms over their shoulders then proceeded to lift him out of his box. Raph whimpered when being lifted shifted his sore shell around but he insisted that he was alright. At this point Raph's legs were virtually useless. He had only just learned how to walk on his own before he was bed ridden with illness. So his legs hung limply just above the ground as his brothers carried him between them towards the bathroom.

They sat him down in the tub and started running the lukewarm water.

"Too cold Donnie," Raph complained as he rubbed his shivering arms.

"You have a fever. You only feel cold but you're actually too hot," Donnie explained.

"Can't you add a liddle bit more warm?" Raph reached out for the hot tap but was stopped by his younger brother.

"I'm sorry Raph but I can't make it any hotter than this."

Raph pulled his limbs further into his shell, trying to conserve his body heat as he shivered. Small sniffing sounds could be heard as he tried not to cry in front of his brothers again.

Leo supported his sick brother as Donnie filled up a container of water and slowly started pouring it down Raphael's back. The sniffing turned to whimpers, to cries, until the water ran down into the wound where his scute had lifted off and he could no longer contain the wail that escaped his throat. He thrashed out at his brothers, at the water, at whatever was in his reach. He kicked and screamed at the fire that was burning through his shell, down his spine and spreading to his entire body.

It was at this moment that Master Splinter returned home from his scavenging trip on the surface. Hearing his sick son's cries of agony, he dropped his bag without a second thought and rushed into the bathroom. Michelangelo followed after him but stopped at the door, cautiously peaking into the room.

Kneeling by the bathtub, Splinter took a few calming breaths to compose himself. He did not want his own panic to add to his sons' distress; and he knew that he would need to think with a clear head. He began assessing the situation.

"What is wrong my sons?" He asked. His voice sounding much more calm and in control than he was really feeling on the inside.

"Raph's sick," Leo started howling, grabbing onto his father's leg. He was so relieved that his father had returned. "I don't want to be in charge any more Daddy."

"It is all right my son, I am here now. Please go look after Michelangelo. Your brother and I can take care of Raphael."

Leonardo took a hold of Mikey's hand as they left the bathroom together.

Raph sat in the tub, taking short sharp breaths, trying to ride out the rest of the pain as it started to receded but his breathing soon turned into hyperventilating.

"No Raph, slow down. Take slow deep breaths," Donnie urged.

Raph couldn't respond. He wanted to slow his breathing down but he couldn't. He was scared he would never stop. He frantically grabbed onto his father's hand as he started to become light headed. And then everything went black.

Master Splinter took care of Raphael all that night, but his health only deteriorated further. He did not wake up all night, but his sleep was not peaceful. His skin was hot to touch and the sores on his shell and the smell of rotting flesh they produced only worsened as the night went on.

Splinter left the lair early the next morning. He did not tell his sons where he was going, just that he would be back by night fall, they were not to leave the lair and they had to look after Raphael while he was gone.

Splinter crouched low, hiding in the shadows cast into the alley by the buildings surrounding it. He looked down at the pile of purses and wallets at his feet and then up at the wad of cash he was holding in his paws. He had never stolen anything in his life, not even as a child. He felt guilt to start gnaw at his stomach but pushed that out of his mind and instead thought of his son Raphael, lying unconscious in his cardboard box in the sewers. If he did not receive proper medical care soon, he would surely die.

The vet that Splinter had spoken to on the phone had promised to keep his clinic open late so that he could examine Raphael. Splinter had told the man that this was a very rare species of turtle that he would be treating but had purposely neglected to tell him that the rare turtle was in fact a turtle/human hybrid. Just as he had also not told the vet that he was a giant humanoid rat. He instead told the man that he was born disfigured so he had little interaction with people and preferred to keep himself covered.

It was risky and he did not know if he would be able to pull off the lie. One mistake would expose himself and Raphael. If he was captured, his sons at home would never be able to survive on their own. To save his son, he would have to risk the lives of his other three. But what choice did he have? Raphael was dying.

The sun was setting and Splinter decided it was time to fetch his son to take to the vet. He had been gone for most of the day collecting bags, purses and wallets. He was in the richer area of the city and chose his targets carefully. He needed as much money as he could get, so he tried to take from the richest looking people he could find. Of course looks can be deceiving but he had managed to collect a fair amount of money that way. He hoped that it was enough. He hoped that whatever he did tonight, it would be enough to save his son.

When Splinter returned to the lair that night, his three sons were huddled around the fourth who was sleeping fitfully, covered in sweat and tangled up in his blanket which was wet and stank of urine.

"Do not worry my sons. I will take care of Raphael now," he reassured as he reached into the box and picked up his frail son. He could feel the heat radiating off of the young turtle's skin and knew he must hurry. "I am taking Raphael with me for a while."

"But Daddy he needs a bath. He had a' accident," Leo tried explaining as he tugged on his father's robe.

"Not now Leonardo. I must take Raphael somewhere so that he can get better. Look after your brothers while I am gone. I will be back as soon as I can." With that, he wrapped a scarf around his neck, pulled on a large hooded coat, then tucked a pair of gloves into his pocket and left the lair. The three turtle tots stood at the entrance of the lair and watched as their father disappeared into the sewer tunnels, their brother disappearing with him.

Michelangelo tightly gripped onto his two brothers, burying his head into their plastrons. "What's gonna happen to Waphie, Don?" He asked between sobs.

"I don't know?" He answered still staring into the tunnel his father and brother had disappeared down.

"Is he ever coming back?" Mikey whispered.

"I don't know," Donatello's throat tightened and his voice quivered. He wished he could tell his little brother what was going on but he didn't have a clue either.

"I was so mean to him. I didn't mean to be mean to Waphie. I just didn't want to be the baby anymore. It was only jokes."

Leo put a comforting arm around both of his little brothers. He needed to do something before things got even worse.

"Come on guys let's get something to eat," He suggested while leading his brothers towards the kitchen.

"Eat what? Dad didn't bring any food home," Donnie pointed out while he opened and closed cupboard doors looking for food.

"What was he doing when he was gone all day then?" Mikey asked curiously.

They looked at each other, the same bewildered look mirrored on all of their faces.

Lifting the lid Mikey reached into the bottom of the bin and shouted triumphantly as he managed to scoop up a handful of worms.

"Worms. Eugh," Donnie stuck his tongue out disgusted. Worms were his least favourite food.

"Hold these Don," Mikey plopped the worms into his brother's hands, "Come on Weo lets go algae diving," he took Leonardo's hand and they headed off towards the pool to collect the algae for dinner.

"Great, worms and algae. My two least favourite foods mixed together," Donnie flicked the worms off of his hand and into a bowl. He stood on the step stool and washed his hands in the kitchen sink, shuddering as he watched the worms wriggling around.

By the time they had finished eating their meal of worms and algae it was too dark to play so Leonardo decided it was time they all headed off to bed. The smell of blood, sweat and urine assaulted their noses as soon as they walked into their bedroom. Stepping out of the room again Leo ordered Mikey to stay out in the kitchen as the two older brothers took care of the smell.

Leo picked up the sodden blankets and held them at arms length as he took them out of the lair. Donnie was right behind him, carrying the cardboard box, the bottom of which was reduced to a wet mush.

"You take the box far away and I'll start washing Waph's blankey."

Donnie nodded and walked off to carry out his orders.

They slept on the couch that night while the bedroom aired out. All except Leonardo, who stayed up all night waiting for his father to bring his little brother home.

The sun had only just risen and was starting to filter into their home from the surface when Leo heard the noise of the turnstiles at the lairs entrance.

"Dad's home," he shouted while shaking his brothers awake.

The three boys ran to the entrance of their home enthusiastically hugging their father and not letting go until Splinter requested that they all head into the kitchen because he needed to talk to them. They stepped away looking up at their father who they noticed was carrying a box in each arm but no Raphael. They followed him into the kitchen and each sat in their own chairs, propped up on cushions as Splinter laid the two boxes down on the table. He set the kettle boiling and then sat down to talk with his sons.

"Where's Waphie?" Mikey asked the question they were all desperate to hear the answer to.

"Raphael is here," he pulled the cardboard box that had holes cut in the top closer to him and opened the lid. He lifted out a sleepy eyed Raphael and held him close to his chest, careful to avoid the gauze bandage protecting his damaged shell. The turtle snuggled closer to his father and instantly fell asleep; though a much more peaceful sleep than the night before.

All three brothers cried out in joy at having their brother back with them.

"I am sorry if I have worried you my sons, that was not my intention. Please forgive me."

"Of course we 'give you," Leonardo spoke for his brothers and the others nodded in agreement.

"I am glad that I have been forgiven, but we have even more reason to be glad today. Because last night I was able to find out what was wrong with Raphael and now he is going to get better."

Another chorus of cheers sounded throughout the kitchen. The noise woke Raphael from his slumber and he blearily looked around the kitchen giving a weak smile when he saw his brothers.

"Go back to sleep my son," Splinter soothed, his gentle rocking already lulling him back to sleep.

The three turtles all watched as their father kissed Raphael's head before putting him back in the box.

"Raphael will need a lot of rest, so please remain quiet. There is much I need to tell you also."

Splinter pulled all of the objects out of the other box. Everything was brand new, still in its packaging. The turtles had never owned anything that hadn't been found in a dumpster or the sewers before. This was one of the most fascinating things they had ever seen. Master Splinter opened up a box and pulled out a lamp. Donatello quickly grabbed the manual that fell out with it, ecstatic over the chance of something new to read.

"Turtle basking lamp," Donatello read out loud.

"Can you please read out how to install it Donatello?" Splinter asked his son.

"I can do it myself." He announced after reading over the booklet.

"Alright but please be careful my son," Splinter advised.

It was only a matter of minutes before Donnie announced that he was done setting up the lamp above the couch. When he flicked the switch, it instantly turned on and started emitting a soft glow and warmth.

Master Splinter lay his sleeping son down on the couch underneath the lamp's light.

"What's it for?" Mikey asked looking up at the light mesmerised.

"It emits UVA, UVB light and heat. These affect the growth rate, activity, mood and the immune system as well as the production of vitamin D3 in turtles." Donatello butted in, reading from the booklet before his father could answer.

The look on Mikey's face showed he did not understand a word of what his brother had just said.

"The light will make Waph better," Leo explained in terms that would be easier for Mikey to understand.

"Oh, why didn't you just say that?" he asked the brainy brother.

"The lamp is not only for Raphael, all of you will be able to use it," Master splinter explained.

"Cool," Mikey climbed up onto the couch to find out what was so incredible about this lamp. Pretty soon he was snoring and drooling, snuggled up next to his brother, completely unaware of what was happening around him in the waking world.

"What else did you get for Raph?" Donnie asked, hoping there would be something else he would get to read or assemble.

Splinter pulled out several bottles of vitamins, which Donnie snaffled up quickly, his eyes pouring over the labels.

"Vitamin A, Vitamin D3, Calcium," he was trembling with joy at the sight of the ingredients written in new scientific terms and measured in units even he didn't understand.

"These vitamins are for you all as well, although Raphael will need to take them much more regularly," Splinter explained.

"But they'll definitely make him better? He'll be like us. Right Dad?" Leo asked, needing to hear his father say it again, to make sure that it was true. Not like all those nights where he would dream that Raphael was able to run around the lair with them, swim in the pool, explore the tunnels and sit next to him as they watched the humans through the sewer grate; only to wake up to the most heart wrenching scene in the world. Raphael's snotty, tear stained face looking over at Leo, sleeping with his other two brothers while he was trapped alone in his box, hugging his blankey in his arms for comfort in the middle of the night, as he longed to be able to walk over to their pile and curl up with them.

"Yes my son. He will be well again." Splinter knelt down on the floor and embraced his eldest son. Donatello walked up to his father and put a hand on his shoulder when his eyes started welling up with tears.

"Are you okay Daddy?" Donnie asked concerned. "Raph's gonna be better. Why are you sad?"

"I am not crying because I am sad Donatello. I am crying because I am happy and relieved that all will be well," Splinter explained as he pulled Donatello close to him as well. He held them both close to his heart as he looked over to the couch at his other two sons. Raphael had his arms wrapped around Michelangelo with his face buried into his plastron. The look on his face as he slept was one of peace and contentment. Splinter had not seen his son sleep that soundly in months.