Living In Fear

Chapter 10 - Long Needed Comfort

Leo winced slightly when the lab door announced his presence with a loud creak, letting out a frustrated huff when he realized any tries to sneak up on Donnie were now long gone. Deciding that it didn't really matter all that much, he pushed it open the rest of the way and scanned the room, looking for any signs of his lanky brother.

He was oddly disappointed to discover all lights off and the room empty, the brother he'd expected to see hard at work when he was supposed to be in bed nowhere in sight. He let out a soft sigh and pulled the door shut again, turning to make his way back to his bedroom.

He had yet to discover what was going on with Donnie, but saying that his younger brother was an incredibly stubborn turtle would be a huge understatement, and if he wanted something to stay a secret, the only way you'd discover the truth was if he chose to spill the beans. Meanwhile, this same secret seemed to hold an extreme weight that was clearly getting too be too much for him to carry alone. Why he would refuse to open up or give any signs as to what was going on or how they could help was beyond Leo.

Frankly, he was beginning to wonder if this was Donnie's way of paying him back for the rules he'd added to the lair.

Of course, rebelling was something that Raph was more prone to do, but Leo was running out of ideas at this point.

Just as he'd begun turning the handle to his room, a choked cry caused him to release it and jump back in shock. He'd spun around as he recognized the shout to be Donnie's and he moved over to his brother's room, throwing the door open without a second thought. He wasn't sure what he expected to find, as the shout had immediately sent his brotherly instincts into overdrive.

Through the light of the doorway, he could see Donnie lying on his bed, his body almost spasming as it tossed back and forth restlessly. His hands were held out in front of him defensively as he let out another half-scream, causing Leo to have to do a double-take before he was able to remind himself that there wasn't any danger. He moved to the other side of the bed to try and calm his brother when he realized that Donnie's eyes were tightly shut. Leo relaxed slightly when he realized that Donnie was just having a nightmare.

And a bad one by the looks of it...

"Donnie." He spoke up gently, grabbing onto one of his brother's arms. He was shocked when his touch seemed to horrify his dreaming brother, who instantly pulled away and cried out as though in pain, his entire body beginning a fierce trembling.

"Donnie? Donnie, wake up!" Leo shouted, his relief becoming replaced with an alarm at how his brother was reacting. He'd seen his siblings have nightmares before and would admit that sometimes it would be difficult to wake them from it, but they'd never seemed conscious of his presence or had their reactions been quite as distinct. He could only imagine that whatever Donnie was seeing was especially vivid.

Donnie responded to his call with a firm kick in the plastron that knocked his older brother back from him. The thrashing increased as Leo stumbled, his lucid nightmare apparently getting worse by the second. Heart leaping into his throat, Leo dashed back over to his younger brother as he cried out and tried to lay him flat on the bed. He was scared that Donnie might hurt himself in this state but quickly realized that his actions only seemed to terrify his brother more.

The unconscious genius struggled desperately against Leo's grip, his breath coming out in heavy gasps as though each was more difficult than the last, another half-scream exiting his mouth. Deciding that his normally light-sleeping brother wouldn't be waking up any time soon, Leo tightened his grip and commanded. "Donnie! Donnie, it's me, Leo! Wake up!"

When his brother's struggling only increased, Leo had to make a quick decision on his next move. Taking a page out of Space Heroes, he released his brother's wrists and said an unheard apology before giving him a hard slap. Even though it didn't work on Mikey, he was insanely thankful when it did on Donnie, whose eyes shot open as his entire body jerked slightly, his sweat-drenched head falling back onto the pillow as he took a few labored breaths.