Race. [TMNT 2012]

023. Believe; Raphael

I watch as Michelangelo grows. He continues to grow, until he is just a little smaller than me. I witness his shell enlarge and his eyes become their familiar wide, sky-blue color. The orange bandana that had been around his neck moves to cover his face. His mouth twists into his usual, happy grin and reveals pearly-whites.

"Hey, dudes and dudettes," he croaks.

Michelangelo is back to normal.

"Mikey!" Overjoyed, I throw my arms around him and squeeze him tightly.

"You're a mutant again!" Elizabetta exclaims as well, rushing forward and joining the hug.

April's eyes glow with shock. She gap. at Donatello. "H-how did... What...?" she stammers in utter puzzlement.

I loosen my grip on Michelangelo, though I keepan arm around his shoulders, and look at Donatello expectantly. I want to know how he figured the liquid out just as much as the next turtle- or human.

"It's simple, really," Donatello shrugs nonchalantly, but his face sparkles with pride. "It's called 'mirror' mutagen, which means it can reflect your DNA and it's possible alterations. For example: if you've been mutated before, it will mutate you back into what you previously were. Same goes if you already were mutated; it just changes you back to your original state."

I roll my eyes. "'It's simple,' he says. 'Simple' my butt," I mutter under my breath, earning a snicker from Michelangelo. It's good to hear his laugh again.

To my surprise, Charlotte seems to follow his every word. "But Raph changed me back with retro-mutagen," she points out. "That didn't work on Mikey."

"You were a mutant," Donatello replies with some exaggerated, scientific hand gestures. "Mikey wasn't a mutant anymore; he was just a normal turtle. The retro-mutagen was invented to retrace the steps of mutation, not re-mutate a subject."

We all just stare blankly at the purple-clad turtle. "Whatever you say, Brainiac," I reply with a shrug. I don't care how it work; I'm  just glad that it does.

Michelangelo throws an arm around Elizabetta's and my shoulders. I only just realize how worn out he looks. His normally-bright blue eyes are a dull gray, and his eyelids are droopy. He leans heavily on me, giving away the fact that he can't hold his own weight.

"It's good to be back, bros," Michelangelo slurs and cuts himself off with a yawn.

Elizabetta giggles. "I think a certain turtle needs some sleep," she jokes.

Michelangelo blinks away the sleep in his eyes and pretends to be wide awake. "Who, me? No way! I'm-" he is interrupted again by another yawn.

Hiding an amused smirk, I lead Michelangelo out of the kitchen. "You're going to bed, shell-brain, whether you like it or not," I tell him.

"But I'm not tired," Michelangelo whines, though he doesn't put up much of a fight. He willingly lets me take him to a bedroom and lay him down. I even tuck him in, but I remind him I'll kill him if he tells our brothers. My soft side does not need to be discovered by the others, under any circumstances.

"G'night, Raph," Michelangelo mumbles, his eyes already shut tightly.

"Goodnight, little brother," I whispers, though he is already snoring softly, completely deaf to the real world.

Tiptoeing out of the room, I shut the door and head back to the kitchen. Donatello and April have disappeared. Charlotte is gone as well; probably to go fight with Casey some more. She really doesn't know when to leave people alone.