Lost in the Fight

Epilogue - Back on Top

*Disclaimer: I do not own the rights to the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles franchise.

*Author's Notes: Well, here it is. The epilogue of 'Lost in the Fight.'  I'm going to just jump right into it and save the mushy stuff for last.

Thanks so much for reading. CJ ;)

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Epilogue – Back on Top

The winter had been especially unkind, in more ways than one. The snow had fallen in record amounts, with more threatening to arrive over the next few days. When the snow wasn't descending upon the city in feet rather than inches, the temperatures descended to all-time lows instead. It had been so cold the past couple of weeks, nightly patrol had to be cancelled six times due to the weather.

Today brought a warm front, and along with it, newly fallen snow, just as forecasted.

Donatello stared out at the fluffy, white powder sparkling in the light reflecting off an overhead billboard sign. To him, the mere sight of snow was far more breathtaking than ever before. Looking down at the rooftop he was presently standing on, the purple-masked ninja wiggled all six of his toes. He could feel the cold nipping at his mostly exposed feet, but he didn't mind. In fact, he welcomed the wondrous sensation. Every aspect of this exact moment was just too surreal. He could have stood in this very spot the entire night and straight on through morning, just taking it all in.

Four months.

Four very long, painful months.

Finally, he had been allowed to go topside once again and it almost felt as good as the first time Master Splinter had permitted them to venture up to the surface.

Donnie sucked in a deep breath, relishing the fresh air filling his lungs with a tingly, cooling sensation that had never felt so good.

As the intellectual turtle lapped in the scenery, he heard his brothers' voices behind him.

"Okay, guys. Do we need to go over the plan again?"

Leo . . . always thinking and planning.

"Gee, I don't know, Leo. Are you sure reviewing it seventeen times is enough? Maybe you should repeat it for the eighteenth time. None of us have died of boredom yet."

Raph . . . always mocking and complaining.

"Yeah, bro. Wait . . . which plan are we talking about again?"

Mikey . . . always . . . well . . . Mikey.

"Mikey!" The two oldest turtles groaned.

Excessively precautious by nature, Leo was about to recite the plan yet again when all three of his brothers held up their hands to stop him.

"I think we've got it, Leo." Donnie made a point of speaking up before Raph could, assuming that his hotheaded brother's comments would not be nearly as polite.

The once confident expression on Leonardo's face suddenly turned uneasy when his gaze landed on his second youngest brother. Leo wanted so badly to share Donnie's eagerness for his return to the surface, but the oldest turtle still wasn't certain his genius brother was ready for this. Yes, Leo and Donnie had trained together for weeks to get the latter turtle back into shape. And yes, Donnie had made great strides in his recovery, but the leader in blue knew his brother was not fully healed by any means. Donnie still walked with a pronounced limp and the mobility in his wounded shoulder continued to be somewhat limited, significantly hindering his ability to wield his bo-staff.