Scheduled Downtime

by KC

Summary: Leonardo is constantly mentioned as having a habit of candles. So what the heck does that mean?

Note: edited to put back in the quotation marks after stripped them out for some reason. Also, the reviewer pointing ripping these out out could've been less of a donkey about it.

Warnings: t-cest, albeit rather mild stuff at that.

Dedication: For the anti-tcest crew, for without whom this story would not exist.

Darkness.

The drag of a match, sparks and then a small flame cast a tiny glow that barely lit his hands. Gently cupping the match to guard it against the wind, Leonardo touched the flame to the first candle, waiting for the fire to transfer. After a moment the flame burned down to his fingers and he had to shake the match, putting it out, but now he he could use the first candle to light the rest in front of him.

Some of his candles were old, melted so far down that the wax sealed them onto the concrete floor. Others were new, tall and thin tapers that provided a little height so that the glow reached farther. The warmth barely cut the chill, and he gathered his blanket around himself, huddled up on his futon. His breath misted in front of his face.

A small stream of golden light shone under the wooden planks that passed for his door, followed by a heavy knock. Leonardo didn't look up, already knowing who it was.

"Thought I'd find you holed up in here," Raphael said, coming in and closing the door. "You okay?"

"I was meditating," Leonardo lied, frowning when his brother laughed.

"You're a shit liar," Raphael grinned. "You always meditate under a blanket?"

He set the small flashlight down with the candles and joined Leonardo on the futon, tugging the corner of the blanket until Leonardo allowed his sibling to curl up with him. Raphael's added warmth was more of a comfort than the flashlight. When Raphael put his arm around him, Leonardo leaned against his side.

"Don's fixing things?" he asked uselessly.

"Yeah," Raphael said. "Replacing a lot of wiring he said was going bad. Mikey's with him."

Leonardo nodded once. He understood the reasons for it. The electricity had to be shut off for Donatello to fix certain things, especially anything that might be hooked up to any kind of power, but he wished they could've stayed together in the same room or something. Instead Donatello had insisted that they let him work without bothering him, keeping Michelangelo only because their little brother had convinced him that he'd need someone to fetch tools and hold the flashlight on his work.

"Y'know," Raphael said, tilting his head to whisper. "I always get a kick how you react to the dark."

"I'm not afraid of it," Leonardo said.

"I know," Raphael said. "Not like you could be with all the sneaking around you do. But if you're not being all sneaky, then you really do stick close to the light."

Leonardo half shrugged. "It's...same thing you have with being above ground, I think."

Raphael frowned. "It's a hell of a lot better up there. The air's clean. There's room to move around. It's just...better."

Leonardo glanced across at him. "Yeah. It's just better."

For a moment he watched the firelight play across Raphael's face, the golden glow highlighting the red mask, dancing in his dark eyes. He imagined that Raphael trapped light so easily, and he raised his hand to see if the glow lingered on his fingertips. Instead the light seemed to slide off his skin, leaving his hand shadowed.

"Cold?" Raphael asked, mistaking his gesture. "Here..."

Leonardo let him take his hand, holding it in both of his. Raphael's skin was always warmer, and he yawned and closed his eyes, feeling a little more sheltered from the dark. There was a kiss pressed to his forehead, and the blanket was pulled a little higher on his shoulders.

"You get cold so quick," Raphael murmured. "Must be 'cause you're so short."

Grumbling, Leonardo ignored him and tried to let his mind clear. Raphael just couldn't help teasing him, and if their roles were reversed, he probably would have returned the favor. And he kind of liked how Raphael reached up and undid his mask for him, letting it slide from his face, or how he untied his elbow and knee pads. Stretching out a little, Leonardo found himself tilting more and more until Raphael turned for him, holding him so that he could rest against his younger brother.

One of the old candles guttered and went out. Leonardo heard it hiss and turned his head, about to relight it. Raphael beat him to it, first pouring out the melted wax and then using the tallest candle to light it again.

"Better?" Raphael asked.

Leonardo stole one more glance up. The tiny flames lit Raphael's face, making his eyes glitter, and he could see a small circle of light around them. The rest of his room was dark, but now it wasn't so empty.

"Yes," he said, turning and pillowing his head on Raphael's shoulder. "Much better."

end