Disclaimer: They're not mine. Okay, done!

A/N: I know this is very short, but it is simply meant to bridge the ending of my previous story with this new one. Now, I know that this whole "one of the turtles gets turned into a baby" thing has been done before, but my idea is to exmane how this would affect all of Leo's brothers. After all, they're accustomed to him being the caretaker. What happens when the roles are reversed, with no hint of whether or not it can be fixed. Just to give you a heads up: my main focus is probably going to be Raph. He's been able to stick by Leo through pretty much everything. So where is his breaking point? In my mind (and since this is my story ;) this would be it. So, enough from me. Hope you all enjoy!

With a sigh, Leo sank down onto his bed. His very own bed in his very own room in, most important of all, his very own dimension. He and his brothers had just returned from what could be considered one of the darkest places Leo had ever seen; a world where the Darksiders had taken over and destroyed everything. Well, almost everything. Although it had been a very close thing, the alternate version of Leo's family had managed to keep from being completely destroyed. Oh, they had their scars, and they certainly still their issues to work out, but at the very basic level they had come out on top.

After reuniting that family's missing Donatello, Leo and his own brothers had escorted the older turtles to their new home in the world where Leo's youngest set of brothers had originated. Just as the Bridger had promised his brothers back before they made their transition to Leo's world of origin, the other dimension was a peaceful one. The war-hardened and scarred turtles would have the chance to heal and reconnect with each other. Leo had every hope that, in time, they would be able to put their pain behind them.

Now it was time for Leo's own family to move forward in their lives. Which meant, much to his brothers' dismay, it would soon be time to begin those team building exercises Leo had warned them about 4 (was it just 4?) days ago. Of course, that was just four days in this dimension. The truth was he and the others had been gone for several weeks. However, with the odd twists moving between dimensions caused on the way time flowed he and the others had returned four days following Donny and Donatello's disappearance.

Suddenly a noise at his door caught Leo's attention, and he looked up to see a shadowed figure standing in his doorway. A quick touch to the figure's mind revealed that it was Leo's second younger brother watching him.

"Come on in, Raph," Leo said quietly. "I'm not asleep."

"Didn't mean to intrude," the younger turtle said as he moved farther into the room. "I just…"

"I understand," Leo said when it became clear the other turtle wasn't going to finish his thought. And he did; he could feel the confusion, uncertainty, and lingering fear rolling off his younger brother. It would seem their older counterparts were not the only ones adversely affected by the dark world they had inhabited. "Well, you might as well crawl up here and get comfortable," the older turtle told Raph.

"I—" Raph spluttered, but Leo just shook his head.

"Bro, we both know we all have some issues to work out after this latest 'adventure.' Might as well get started now." Then Leo gave him a grin. "Besides, I have every notion the Brats are going to end up in here before morning, so you're better off claiming your space now."

But instead of climbing into bed, Raph just shook his head. "I shouldn't have come," he said with some disgust in his voice. He turned to leave, but Leo's voice stopped him cold.

"Hold your shell right there Mr. Sour. What's with the Raphael-attitude tonight?"

"I…" it was clear he was didn't really want to admit to whatever he was feeling. A second look at Leo's no-nonsense stance, however had him confessing, "It's just that seeing how their Raphael and Leonardo treated each other, at least at first, well, I guess it dug up some old memories. Ghosts I thought were good and buried."

With dawning understanding Leo hauled himself out of bed and moved to put an arm around his younger brother. "Raph, that's all over now. And the only ghost you need to worry about around here would kick your shell if he knew you were moping about a past that is well put behind you."

"But—"

"No 'buts,'" Leo told him firmly. "Stop channeling Raphael and listen to your big brother. We've already worked through those issues. Barring some unforeseen cataclysmic incident, I doubt there is very little that could tear this family apart like that again."

Raph wrapped his arms around Leo and hugged him tight. "I just couldn't do it, Leo. I watched how much my older self was hurting, how much it tore him up to not have his older brother there, and I know I couldn't do it. Maybe I've become too dependent, but I need you here."

"Shhh," Leo soothed, rubbing his brother's shell. "I'm not going anywhere. And neither are you, so there's nothing to worry about; except me kicking your butt for not letting me go to bed. I don't know about you, but I'm exhausted. So can we go to bed now?"

Raph laughed. "Sure, let's get some sleep. After all, we wouldn't want someone of your advanced years to fail to get his rest."

"Yes, well, me and my 'advanced years' will show a thing or two. Tomorrow; after I've gotten some sleep."

And as the two turtles snuggled down into the bed, Raph couldn't help but revel in the comforting sensation of having his big brother at his side. He didn't know what he would do if that ever changed, and he fervently prayed that he'd never have to find out.