A couple hours had passed since Raphael had been left on watch over the smaller turtle. Leonardo and Michelangelo were in the kitchen working on some food for everyone. Though, don's meal was light. His plate had crackers, different slices of cheese, selective fruits and vegetables, and two warm slices of bread covered in butter.
Mikey was the one who created everything, Leo just helped him to prepare it. "Looks wonderful Mikey." The elder spoke with a small smile, pointing to the chicken and potatoes.
"I wish we could give him this, but I fear it would be too heavy for him."
Mikey sighed and nodded his head. "We have no idea what they were feeding him. He's so tiny it couldn't have been anything good whatever it was." They would have to get some vitamins down him somehow since he was desperately in need of them, barely having any strength when he tried to fight with them and his plastron was so soft...
Donnie had stayed curled up in his nest the whole time, not daring to move with Raph in the room. If he's been left here alone he probably would have thought he was being abandoned like they had done to him before. But with Raph in the room it seemed more like he was a prisoner. That was how he saw it anyway and just lay there not even daring to go to sleep
Leonardo nodded and entered the room with Michelangelo, frowning to see Donatello still curled up on the floor. "Has he-"
"He has been like that this whole time. Every time I try to get him back on the bed, he just moves back onto the floor." Raphael spoke sadly, blinking when he seen the plate full of fruit, veggies, and cheeses. "That for him?"
"Yes." Leo spoke quietly, slowly walking towards Donnie as not to scare to him and slowly placed the food down next to him. "You need to eat."
Donnie nodded that he understood, but if anything he pushed away from the food... I was a trick right? The food looked too nice for him to eat. They would taunt him with it and then pull it away and laugh in his face while they ate it... But he was so hungry. The humans hadn't fed him for a couple of days and the food looked really good.
He looked up at Leo with pleading eyes, silently begging him not to be cruel and tease him with food, his stomach grumbling as if to encourage himself to just eat it.
"Leo... Back up a little bit maybe?" Mikey asked once he saw that Donnie wasn't making a move to eat even though he looked starving.
Mikey's heart fell when he was right. As soon as Leo backed away from the plate Donnie snatched it into his nest and shoveled it down his throat, clearly scared that it would be taken from him if he didn't eat it all straight away. "They treated him like animal..."
"Yes." Leonardo spoke sadly as he watched Don eat his food quickly, fearing that it would be the only meal he would get. "Smaller bites Don," the elder spoke gently. "You will get sick if you don't."
Raphael walked over then, his frown deepening when he seen Donatello devouring his meal and slowly beckoned his brothers back a bit. "He mentioned something about a collar as well. Something about his master..."
"I told you, brainwashing." Just then, Leo made a face when Don heaved, he had ate his food too fast and as he predicted, he got sick.
Raphael slowly walked to the smaller turtle and gently lifted him up, helping him clean himself and the area around him.
It was too much. Too heart breaking. All the suffering... It should not have happened, not to Donnie.
Donnie panicked, trying to eat even the food he was bringing back up. He had to eat it because he might not get fed for awhile after this, once they got over the fact he was here they would forget about him.
Donnie squirmed and whimpered as he was lifted again by Raphael, who this time was just moving him away from his own regurgitated food.
Mikey felt sick himself at seeing the treatment that had been done to one of their own, coming over to help gather up the dirty blankets so he could sort them out and feel at least a little useful.
"I took his collar off when we washed him, it's probably still in the bathroom..." Mikey said, addressing his oldest brother since Raph was preoccupied with Donnie
"Leave it." Leonardo whispered, frowning when Donatello was still trying to eat though he was getting sick. "It will only bring more painful memories." Though, this sight alone was enough to be painful.
Raphael removed the plate when Don tried to eat more and had him sit still, removing the food on his plastron. It broke his heart more to see Don like this. But the grumbling told Raphael that he was still hungry.
"Ya need to eat slowly Don. Or ya wont get yet strength back. Take deep breaths." Raph spoke slowly, rubbing the smaller's shell, frowning at how tattered and scarred his shell was.
Donnie whined as the food was taken away from him. He knew they were going to do that! He was still reaching for the food uselessly as he was held back away from it. He was so hungry. Usually he was fine eating but he knew they were going to take it off him because they were hanging around to watch and laugh... Only no one was laughing for once.
The olive turtle was crying but went limp in Raph's arms, letting him do what he wanted with him in hopes he could earn himself some food.
Mikey didn't want to leave but took the blankets to the washing, they could do with a clean anyway since it was the spare room no one slept in and they had not expected to use it anytime soon. He grabbed a bottle of water before he came back and handed it to Raph for Donnie
"Thanks Mike, I know this is... Hard for ya." It was hard for all of them. Once Raphael knew that Donatello was not going to throw up anymore, he slowly gave him back his plate, but stayed close to make sure Don took things slow.
Raph gave Donnie the water bottle and his heart sank when he seen how fast Don drank it, not at all savoring it. They had starved and parched him. It was unbelievable.
Sickening.
"Shredder will pay for what he has done." Raphael vowed with a growl.
Mikey sighed and leaned against Leo for some physical comfort. "I can't believe I forgot about my own brother." He frowned, feeling extremely guilty that he never realised that turtle friend he dreamed about was real
It was a good thing the bottle had a sports lid on it otherwise half of it would have been down his plastron with how desperate he was drinking it. Donnie soon finished the whole bottle and kept it all down amazingly. Years of being forced to swallow the humans disgusting seamen making him be able to swallow with it barely touching his throat on the way down.
He reached out for the food and then stopped and pulled him arms back in to hug himself, not sure if he was allowed food or if it was there to taunt him.
Leonardo frowned and pulled Michelangelo close, wrapping his strong arms around him in a comforting hug.
"It was not your fault." Leo whispered quietly, no longer having the stomach to watch the sight of Donatello looking so worn and broken. The elder turtle placed his head upon Mikey's and just held onto him, secretly needing comfort as well.
Raphael forced a small smile, pressing the plate a little closer to him. "It's okay. Go on, just take it slow."
"He's been suffering and... I forgot he even existed." Mikey was getting emotional as he hugged Leo tighter, needing to know that he wasn't a bad person because of his memory
Donnie was tense and waiting for a punishment or for the food to be taken from him as he grabbed a little, holding perfectly still a moment before eating it slowly like he was told.
Leonardo pulled Mikey tighter just as the smaller had. "We all forgot about him Mikey. We believed him to be dead. But he's here now. All we can do is just be here for him."
Raphael watched him, his soothing strokes on his shell continued as he soothed the smaller. Just being there for him. There was not much else they could do. The next step was up to Donnie to take.
Mikey didn't say it outloud but Donnie seemed like he'd have been better off dead all those years ago as a child. What he'd be in since then wasn't life, it was hell on earth and had broken him into what he was now.
Donnie slowly ate everything that was left on the plate and kept it all down this time, squirming now that he was just being held tightly in the big turtles lap.
An hour or so had passed and the smaller had finished his food in a much slower place. Once they knew that Donatello would not throw up anymore, they made his nest a little more comfortable and placed Donnie down. Surprisingly enough the smaller turtle had instantly fell asleep, obviously with a full belly and for all the activities of the day.
The three other turtles remained within the room. Raphael was restless though. He frowned when he seen Michelangelo curled under Leonardo's arm.
"What should we do, LEO?"
"Let him rest." Leonardo spoke softly, frowning as he looked down at Mikey before looking back at Raph. "We will give him a few days to heal and see how he reacts. Once he is healed enough we will make our next move."
The three were sat on the bed since Donnie seemed insistent that he had to sleep on the floor, the bed was striped bare to make up Donnie's little nest, but the mattress was still comfortable while they talked.
Mikey was cuddled up to Leo still seeking comfort and watching Donnie sadly, wondering how he could forget his own brother who seemed to have been sweet in his dreams.
"Do we have a next move? He's going to be be terrified of us for quite awhile I think considering the treatment he's used to." Mikey pointed out sadly
"Yes, to slowly get his memories back. But that will take some time. We will need to teach him and show him that everything Shredder told him was a lie." Leonardo said softly, rubbing the smaller shell in comfort. "Though it will take some time. We will need to be patient."
Raphael grunted when Leo shot him a look. He wasn't stupid. He knew that Donatello would need time. The large turtle watched him for a moment before looking back up to Leo. "We should probably get him some clothes too. And treat his wounds tomorrow." Raph suggested, having to look away now and again when he seen the bruises and cuts littering Don's body.
How could someone do this to such an innocent being?
"We don't even know what lies he's been told though." Mikey pointed out. Donnie just acted terrified, he might not even believe that they really were his brothers. "I think I've got some clothes for him, though he's a bit smaller than me so they might be a big baggy." Still they would fit better than any of the oldests' clothes.
"I just want to get him to act like a person and not an animal. Eating and taking a bath easily would be a start."
"Exactly." Leonardo agreed. Slow steps. That was what they would need to do.
The three turtles watched over the smaller throughout the night. They dozed off off and on, but would slowly rise if they heard Donatello crying out. Nightmares of that horrible place that turned him from a person and made him feel like an animal.
