To Crack a Shell - ROTTMNT

5 - Stages

Raph wasn't sure what happened in the lab, but the way Casey ran off into the tunnels makes him think the shouting between him and Donnie wasn't friendly.

He considers following Casey, but his big brother sense compels him to check on Donnie first. He peeks his head through the lab's doorway. "Don?"

"... 'Again'?" Donnie says under his breath.

Confused, Raph rounds the corner and finds his brother with his eyes wide and hands over his mouth. "Don? You okay?"

Donnie doesn't make eye contact. He just stands there, shoulders tensing with every breath. His eyes flick from point to point.

Raph keeps still. He knows this look. Donnie's trying to sort through something. Maybe it was something Casey said? Focus, Raph. Snap Don out of it before he dissociates.

Raph approaches Donnie and holds his palms up to him. "Don, can you look at me?"

Donnie does the opposite, screwing his eyes shut and crouching down to sit on his heels. Raph kneels on the floor. "Donnie. If you can hear me, I'm gonna hold your head, okay?"

Raph never really understood how these certain gestures helped Donnie, but far be it from him to stop just because he doesn't understand. He gently removes Donnie's goggles, then cups his palms over the sides of Donnie's head.

Donnie opens his eyes and finally looks up at his eldest brother. Raph smiles. Donnie lowers his hands and whispers, "He said 'again'. We all died. All of us. None of us survive. He's seen us die. He's already mourned and we're just reminders of his failures."

Raph's smile drops. "Woah, hey. Where'd you get an idea like that?"

"Jones," Donnie says with an unsettling smile, "He said we die 'again.' We're all dead to him already."

"Okay you're gettin' crazier with every word," says Raph. "When was the last time you slept?" he asks, glancing at the trash can full of empty coffee cups.

"Who cares?"

"I do. And I'm assuming you haven't slept for a while so I'm gonna take you to bed." Raph lets go of his brother's head in favor of scooping up the softshell's entire body into his arms.

Donnie immediately starts resisting. "Wait! I'm not done with–!"

Raph shuts him up with a withering look. Leo used to call it the "mom glare."

The big snapper carries Donnie all the way to his room and plops him right onto the bed. Donnie sits there with his arms and legs crossed, not moving until Raph clicks the button to release his battle shell.

He grabs at the halter. "I don't have time for this. I need to work."

"No." Raph pulls the metal shell out of Donnie's reach. "You need to rest. If you rest now, then you can work better. I'm not debating this, Don," he jabs a finger at the softshell's attempted protest, "You are going to lie there for at least five hours and let yourself rest."

Donnie pouts and signs a rude word, but makes no other motion to protest. Raph decides it's good enough and leaves with the shell tucked under his arm. He takes it back to the lab and leaves it propped against the table.

He then notices the things on the table itself. He doesn't know what half of the tools are, but the in-progress metal bits make him suspicious. Something about their shape reminds him of the bones he would chew on after finishing a roast chicken.

Raph shakes the image out of his mind. He should go check on Casey.

Thankfully it isn't hard to find the young man. Raph had been tracking the scent for a while until the echo of a scream reached his ears. It isn't a scream of pain, thankfully, but it was an awful lot like the scream Donnie did that night in the street.