Michelangelo groaned as he woke up. He didn’t sleep well at all. The only thing he could think about were his brothers trapped in their new forms, forced to serve the Foot against their will, being used in such a disgusting way. All of them having their muscles stripped from them and dressed in a humiliating fashion as fetish maids. He had no idea how someone could be cruel enough to do such a thing. He thought Shredder had moral boundaries that he wouldn’t cross, but evidently, his low opinion of him was too high. He had no idea how that is even possible.
He hopped out of bed and lumbered his way down to the kitchen. He took a look at the timer on the oven to see that it was currently one in the afternoon. ‘I’ve been asleep that long?’ Michelangelo thought. ‘Sensei never lets me sleep in this late… then again, I’m usually not the only one in the lair.’ With that dark thought in his head, he went to the freezer and got a microwaveable biscuit and tossed it in the microwave to defrost then heat up. He didn’t feel like cooking today. Just wouldn’t feel right without his brothers around.
After eating the biscuit, he wondered into the TV room to try and think about what he could do. It was daytime, so he couldn’t go out unless he wore a disguise. Then again, he didn’t want to disobey direct orders from Splinter, so the option was out in the first place. He could try training, but he didn’t feel like it. So what could he do? Well… he could check up on Splinter, who must be misery over Michelangelo’s brother’s being sexdolls. He should take some time to make sure he was fine.
He went back to the kitchen and started brewing some green tea for him and Splinter. Green tea was always an effective way of perking Splinter up and getting on his good side and Mikey was the only one who could effectively make it, aside from Splinter himself. Therefore, if Splinter was ever upset with him or with anything else, he would always help bring his spirits up with some tea. He made the tea as quickly as it allowed and over to Splinter’s room, a tray with a teapot full of green tea and two empty teacups in hand. He knocked against the wooden part of his slide door and waited for an answer.
“Yes, Michelangelo?” Splinter asked, sounding tired.
“I made tea for us, Sensei. May I come in?” Michelangelo asked respectfully. Splinter was quiet for a few seconds before he heard him come over to unlock it and open it slightly, revealing a dishevel Splinter, with bags under his eyes showing that he hasn’t sleep much, if at all. “Woah, Splinter. You look like you haven’t slept in a while.”
“I’ve been trying to contact them ever since you returned home. I have unfortunately forego sleep in doing so, but I have to do whatever I can to contact them. My attempts have unfortunately failed,” Splinter explained to him.
“Well… sounds like you really need some tea,” he said with a fake smile on his face as he showed off the tray of tea to him. Splinter looked him over before giving a sigh.
“Good to see you can smile even at the worst of times, Michelangelo. It’s hard to do so,” his father praised him as he open the door up completely for him. “Come in, my son. Let us have a drink,” he said as he went back to his spot and sat down, trying to relax by crossing his legs. Mikey came over and took a similar stance and placed the tray between them. He took the teapot and quickly pour some in the teacups for him and his father before placing it back on the tray. Splinter took his and got a good whiff of it. “Smells wonderful, Michelangelo.”
“Thanks, sensei,” Michelangelo thanked him as the two of them both took sips from their cup.
“Tastes good, too,” Splinter complimented. “I feel better already. I have no doubt if you were human, you would get a job at a high-quality restaurant.”
“You can tell that just from tea?”
“No, of course not,” Splinter chuckled before taking another sip and giving a happy sigh. “I know that from all the other times you gave cooked for us. You have an affinity for it that so many people lack. It is a shame that most people will never get the chance to sample your delicious meals, my son.” Michelangelo blushed at Splinter’s praised before scratching the back of his head nervously.
“Thanks sensei. Means a lot coming from you,” Michelangelo said with a small bow.
“I’m just supporting you like any good parent would,” Splinter responded.
“Yeah, you are. Guess I need fill some sort of niche, since my brothers are far better than me at being a ninja,” he murmured.
“That’s not true, Michelangelo,” Splinter argued against him in a stern tone. “You have just as much skill as your brothers. You just lack… motivation compare to them. I know that if you try, you are force to be reckon with.”
“Too bad I don’t try as much as I should, right?” his son pointed out, which earned a sigh from his father.
“I guess that is true,” Splinter agreed. “We can’t afford for you to lost focus at such a critical moment.”
“Ain’t that the truth,” the turtle agreed. “Don’t know how this will turn out.”
“You will succeed. There isn’t a choice in the matter,” his sensei said before finishing off his cup and pouring himself another cup full of tea. “Whether or not the Hamato clan lives on is entirely up to whether we can save you brothers or not. We need to research this as best we can before we move out of the lair again.”
“Yeah… Donnie got a lot of information on them o his computer. I’ll start looking through it today, I guess. I’m not good at this sort of thing, you know,” Michelangelo told him.
“You have plenty of time, my son. Use it wisely. I will not allow you to exit the lair until we have a definitive plan of action,” he said as he placed the teapot on the tray and Michelangelo took it to refill his own teacup.
“I understand, Sensei. Good thing we resupplied two weeks ago. Should be good for at least a month.”
“I doubt it will take that long before you’re ready,” Splinter said, unamused.
“I’m not the most dedicated person,” his son replied cheekily.
“I’m serious, Michelangelo. I refuse to have my other sons… no. Let’s not speak of it,” Splinter said and the orange-masked turtle’s mood was deflated at that. His brothers being sexdolls for the Shredder was something that was going to linger over them and Michelangelo didn’t want them to suffer for that long. He also couldn’t help but find it partially his fault. If he didn’t get injured, he could’ve assisted Raphael and Donatello with searching for Leo and prevent Raphael from being captured. If he was better at fighting, he could’ve saved Donatello before he was shipped out to Shredder. Hell, if he realized sooner the blue doll in the box was Leonardo, they could’ve gotten him home and not sent to Shredder. So many of the problems were because of his own failings.
“Michelangelo, I know that look and do not blame yourself for this. It was impossible for you to realize some of the things that would happen. The unknown is one’s most dangerous enemy and we need to do our best to neutralize it before it becomes a threat,” Splinter immediately tried to comfort him, placing a comforting hand on his leg. “Please, put things into perspective. No one could’ve expected something like this was happening.”
“I know… but that doesn’t mean that some of it isn’t my fault,” the turtle said remorsefully.
“What do you mean?”
“I could’ve saved Donnie, but I didn’t. You know why? Because I wasn’t paying attention!” he yelled out in anger. “The bastard that this gave me a chance to save Donnie and I failed. That’s why Donnie isn’t with me Splinter. Because I failed!” he yelled out, tear streaming down his cheeks. Splinter was in shock at his son’s confession before he tighten his grip pn him.
“Michelangelo, listen to me. I forgive you,” Splinter told him.
“What?!” Michelangelo blubbered. “Why? Don’t you get it? It’s my fault that Donnie is stuck with the Foot. I couldn’t stop him from being transformed, but I could’ve gotten him back home, safe and sound. Instead, he’s… he’s…”
“Michelangelo, you are young, just like your brothers, but also young of heart. It is natural to err when at such an age. I too made many mistakes when I was young. Things that I shouldn’t have done and I suffered for some of them. Someone even died from one mistake, but I preserverd and learned from it. As I have learned from my mistakes, so will you. So please, take these words to heart when I say that you cannot blame yourself for your mistakes. You may only learn from it and that’s it, so that you will ensure that it will never happen again, my son,” Splinter explained to him and Michelangelo bowed his head at that.
‘I don’t deserve this,’ Michelangelo thought as he processed his words. ‘I’m a failure. Donnie’s fate was in my hand and I blew it. But… Splinter is right. I can learn from it. If I do, I could save my brothers.’
“Michelangelo, are you okay?” Splinter questioned.
“I’m,” Michelangelo sniffed as he tried to speak again, “I’m fine. I understand. I’ll learn from this, I promise you. I’ll make sure our brothers aren’t captured forever.”
“Good….” Splinter said as he brought a hand to his face and wiped away the tears. “Now, thank you for the tea Michelangelo. I believe I shall sleep.”
“Alright, Sensei,” he nodded as he placed everything on the tray and got up. “I’ll keep what you said in mind.”
“Thank you, my son. Please, do some meditation. You need some to calm yourself. Find some inner peace,” Splinter assured him.
“Thanks, Sensei,” Michelangelo said as he went to the door. “Have a good sleep.”
“I don’t know if I can, but I shall try. Just remember to stay optimistic, my son. You are the best at keeping a smile on.”
“I sure am,” Michelangelo said as he closed the screen door. “Whether it’s real or fake.”
