Stronger

Epilogue

Leaves rustled somewhere. Music sprang through the wind. The air danced with the melody. Colorful pictures swirled through Mikey's eyes. This was his world. He inhaled and picked up a brush. With his eyes closed, he moved to the music. A stroke up. A stroke down. A dash here. A curve there. A different color. Repeat the color.

Laugher floated by and he paused, drinking it in, before continuing with his artwork. Down. Up. Zig. Zag.

He felt the warm grip of somebody's hand on his shoulders. "Hey Mikey."

He smiled slightly. Cross. Spin. Leap. Twirl.

"What are you painting?"

Mikey finally stopped and opened his light blue eyes. They glowed as he regarded his artwork. "What does it look like?"

Donnie kneeled. His brown eyes curiously regarded it before they settled on him. "Us."

"Do you . . . like it?" he asked, fingering the wooden brush.

Dee chuckled and brought Mikey into a hug. "Of course I do."

Mikey sat there, listening to his brother's heartbeat. It thumped in tune with his.

"How are you feeling?"

He shrugged. "I'm fine. Why?"

"Well, after Brief and all."

Mikey stiffened at the name. "Yeah, I'm okay. It's not like I was the one who got sick from him."

Donnie tightened his grip. "Exactly. You got hurt emotionally, not physically."

"But I'm fine! I have you guys back, I even have duplicates of you. What more could I want?"

With a sky grin, his brother pulled something out from behind his back. "A new Kusari-fundo?"

Mikey gasped and slowly reached out a shaking hand. He curled his palm around the sun base, and Donnie let the handle drop. Bringing it in, he studied it, his eyes getting shinier. "Where did you guys . . ? Thank you." He curled himself into his older brother.

"No problem, little brother." They were quiet for a few minutes, soaking in brotherhood and companionship together.

"Are you hungry?"

Mikey perked up and wiped his eyes. "Sure! Just give me a minute."

Nodding, Donnie let go of him and crossed the room.

Alone again, Mikey stood up and placed his new weapon onto the table. "This one won't break," he promised to himself. "Not again."

Satisfied, he was about to walk out of the room when his brother's voices made him stop.

"Are you sure that Brief will never be a threat anymore?" Donnie asked.

"Yep. All his twins are keeping an eye on him," Leo said.

"I heard that Brief's men were joining the others," The Second muses. "So even if he wants to attack, he has a smaller number of men. And he will never be able to use mockery again, because everybody is wearing bracelets now to differentiate themselves."

"That's good," Michael pipes up. "I never want to see him again!"

Mikey turned to look at the trash bin in his room before he smiled and walked out to be greeted enthusiastically by all seven turtles. Brief would never be a problem again. Mikey had already thrown him out of his life, just like he had thrown away the shadowed picture he had drawn weeks ago.

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Whew! I finally finished!! This took me fifteen days to finish. XD I honestly had no idea that I could do that before! Finish an entire story in fifteen days.