Raphael watched silently how this turtle child walked slowly by his side, holding on his hakama while letting his fingers play on the scarf around his neck. That piece of fabric had been the only thing what he had taken. Apparently it was dear or otherwise important to the child.
“So… How should I call you?”
Breaking the silence with such question was slightly surprising to the child who, just slightly, lifted his head.
“M-my name’s Leonardo. Or just Leo like my grandpa called me.”
“Leo, huh? Is it okay if I call you that too? Don’t mean any disrespect towards your grandfather by using it.”
“That is fine, master.”
Raphael snorted slightly.
“I told you to stop calling me that. I’m not your master.”
“To me you are. You are bigger and older than I am. You also took me with you.”
“Still. Simply Raphael or Raph would do.”
“Master Raphael.”
“No. Leave that whole master nonsense out of it.”
“Okay.”
They walked in silence again for a while before turtle child spoke again.
“… Why you decided to take me with you in the end, master Raphael?”
A groan came deep from Raphael’s throat as he rubbed the area between his eyes. He didn’t like to be called as master since he wasn’t it. Just because he was older than Leo didn’t make him master. He saw himself equal with the kid.
“Because you insisted.”
“I did at first, but you --”
“I am allowed to change my mind.” Raphael was silent a moment, his expression strictly forward. “Look, I just couldn’t leave you there, okay? It would had haunted me the rest of my life if I would had done that. Thinking of you being alone, scared and starving… I didn’t need that on my conscience on top of everything else.”
“Everything else…?”
“You don’t need or want to know.”
There was silence again, but curious little turtle broke it.
“Why are you traveling alone? Are you ronin?”
“No, I’m not. I’m simply a lonely traveler.”
“Why?”
Raphael’s silence spoke a lot to young turtle who was pretty good at using his head.
“You don’t have a home? Family?”
“I don’t. Lost them all when I was 7.”
“Because of war or samurais?”
“Latter.”
Now Leonardo snorted with anger and disgust on his small face.
“I hate them. They are so evil and nasty humans.” Tightening his hold on Raphael’s hakama Leonardo looked up, giving small and relieved smile to big turtle. “But you are different. You are kind. Just like my grandpa.”
Raphael couldn’t held back his short happy snort as he looked down at the child.
“What makes you think I’m a human?”
Suddenly those small legs stopped, refusing to move as eyes stared towards Raphael, but still into nothingness.
“Y… You are not human? T-then what are you?”
“Throw a guess.” Raphael couldn’t skip this small chance to tease the kid and entertain himself a bit.
Leonardo swallowed once, his hand shaking slightly.
“A-are you yokai?”
“Some most surely would think I am, but I’m not. But if I would be yokai, I would be kappa.”
“Kappa? … Is that a hint?”
Raphael grinned slightly. “Maybe.”
Leonardo was silent a moment, obviously thinking with ‘I’m thinking hard’ expression. Raphael already liked that small face and those cute expressions on it.
“Then are you kame? A turtle?”
“I might be.”
Leonardo stomped his foot on the ground, pulling once hard on Raphael’s hakama.
“Stop that! Give me a straight answer!”
But Raphael only laughed as he started to walk forward, ignoring small child hanging on his leg, demanding him to stop and tell him what he was. However the silence landed upon the two when Raphael stopped to sniff the air.
He smelled water, starting to head towards that direction. Soon he spotted sparkling between the trees, smile spreading on his face. It was small pond and the area felt peaceful. Perfect time for bath.
“Take off your clothes.”
Leonardo listened as Raphael started to remove his own gears, soon following his example. When clothes were placed near by with weapons, Raphael took Leo’s hand, escorting him in the pond with him. Placing Leo sit between his legs, facing one another, Raphael started to rub small body gently. Gosh, so much dirt was coming off.
Leonardo sat still, closing his eyes when big hands gently moved to wash his face. Only now Leonardo felt and realized that Raphael hand 3 fingers on each hand. Same as he. Small hand rose to take a hold on Raphael’s hand, slowly studying it. That hand was so much bigger than his.
Raphael watched silently how that tiny face got more curious look, Leo’s hands studying his fingers before moving up towards the arm. They ran over many scars before being pulled back. Sitting now with sad expression on his face, Leonardo sighed.
“You have so many scars.”
“Don’t worry about them. They don’t bother me so they shouldn’t bother you either.”
“But… You have got hurt so many times.”
“Only because I was young, stupid, ignorant, too full of myself, overconfident and so on. I learned my lesson tho. It had to happen in a hard way, but it worked.”
Leonardo sat quiet as he listened, suddenly standing up. His hands were searching Raphael’s arm which Raphael lifted up, meeting Leo’s hands in the halfway. Green eyes watched as small hands slid closer to his shoulder, playing on the edge of his shell a moment, then reaching towards his neck and up to his cheek and face.
Eyeing small turtle right in front of him Raphael let his eyes study, in turn, this kid better. He, indeed, was rather skinny but it most surely was because Leonardo had ran out of food who knows how long time ago. Otherwise, with him being blind, he seemed fine.
Small hands rose to study the curves of Raphael’s eye ridges and the area near the eyes, causing bigger turtle close his lids. It felt… Weird to have someone touch his face. The only one who had touched him with such care… Had been his mother. Thinking about her lifted a lump in Raphael’s throat which he tried to force down with repeated swallows.
“Are you alright? Is my touches making you feel bad? I can stop.”
“It’s fine.”
“Who are you thinking of?”
“… My mother. She was a human who just took me in her home, raised me as her own child despite others resistance.”
Leonardo nodded, withdrawing his hands as he sat down between massive legs, this time giving his shell to other turtle who, instantly, started to rub it clean.
“I didn’t have a mom and when I asked about her from grandpa, he said he had no any information about her. He told me he found me in a basket which had got stuck in the bed of reeds.”
So this poor kid had been abandoned as a baby… Or hid from the attackers. There was so many choices. Raphael couldn’t help the snarl which completely escaped from him. His snarl was also something which made Leonardo sit quietly the rest of their bathing time.
**
It was long in the evening already, sun setting long time ago and Leonardo kept yawning while trying to stay awake and walk beside big turtle. Raphael had slowed down a lot, now watching how Leonardo’s eyes kept closing, his head dropping down – snapping him awake every time.
It was obvious it was way past his sleeping time. Stopping completely Raphael said nothing as he picked Leonardo in his arms, a child instantly falling asleep, head resting peacefully against Raphael’s covered chest. Walking a bit further Raphael finally spotted a small house standing by itself next to small road. It could be a trap, abandoned or lived in.
Either way he headed forward, hoping there wouldn’t be a need for a weapon since Leonardo in his arms kept both of his hands occupied which meant he couldn’t pull out his wakizashi. When Raphael was more closer he noticed the coldness coming from the house. It was a clear sign it was empty.
Pushing the door open dust and spider webs flied with the gentle air wave, summer night’s dim light flooding in the room. The house, indeed, had been abandoned who knows how long time ago and it seemed whoever had lived in it had left with a rush.
Thankfully there was a small kagizuru, recessed fireplace in the middle of the room’s floor. Raphael placed woods on the sand, lighting them up. It was risky to make a fire, but he wanted to keep Leonardo warm. Watching the child sleep between his legs, curled up against the warmth, made Raphael smile slightly while his heart was also aching. How many children were suffering because of this madness called war? Adults could take care of themselves one way or another, but children…
Petting Leo’s head, when the child whimpered in his sleep, Raphael swore he wouldn’t let anything happen to him.
