When Shadows Rise | I

Ch. 12 | It's time

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Leonardo could feel his mind clear up like clouds evaporating on a sunny day. Deep breath in. Deep breath out. All his worries seemed to melt away as he focused his concentration on his breathing and the silence spinning around the room. He could almost feel his spirit separating itself from its physical form, transitioning into a void of nothingness. Relief rushed through his veins as he managed to achieve stillness.

Typically, he could stay like this for at least twenty-five minutes. Maybe even longer if he could. It just depended on the day and his mood.

"The instructions say to cut horizontally. Not vertically!" Donnie's voice rang from the kitchen.

"What does it matter? We're going to eat it anyway!" Raph, who's voice Leo assumed also came from the kitchen, rebuffed.

"Yeah, but what's the point of following a recipe if you don't follow the instructions?"

"Oh, I'm sorry. I didn't realize there was a correct way to cut pork!"

Leo's ears twitched, but he still kept his eyes glued shut. Deep breaths only.

"GUYS! I can't find the sesame seeds!" Leo heard Mikey holler at the top of his lungs. "They're not in the pantry and you guys said they would be!"

"Because they are!" Raph insisted. The loud sound of cabinet doors opening and slamming shut followed not too soon after. "You guys just keep misplacing shit all the time!"

Leo clenched his fists. Just remember what Sensei said. Try letting the sounds just be in the background and stay aware of the sensations of your breathing.

"And you guys call me weird for keeping my things organized," Donnie scoffed.

"Because it's almost psychotic how you organize your wardrobe," Raph retorted. "Actually, no. What's psychotic is that you put a right sock then a right shoe, and then a left sock and a right shoe."

"So?"

"In a mentally stable person, a person would put on a sock then a sock, then a shoe and a shoe."

"Says the one who sleeps with socks on when the room is more than a hundred degrees. If you ask me, there is something wrong with you."

CRASH! There was a sound equivalent to cans and canisters tumbling all at once before an "ow" was uttered. Then came more shouting and clattering noises.

It looked like Leo was not going to get his thirty minutes of peace today. He shot his eyes open, feeling disappointed that he was not able to block out his brothers constant bickering. He noticed how his father, who sat with his legs crossed across from him, was still meditating.

Man, how does he do it? The master was always more experienced than the student, Leo supposed.

Leo had been doing meditation for as long as he could remember. He had seen his father/Sensei go so far deep into a trance that the longest he had gone without being disturbed was for an hour. He even wondered how was it possible for a person to be disconnected for a great length of time. It was a skill he had yet to master.

As if sensing his son's broken meditation state, his father opened his eyes. "You came out of focus, Leonardo," his father, Yoshi, stated the obvious.