Directive

He was breathtaking.

It's all Raphael could think of as he watched his brother sleep beside him. Slowly inhaling and exhaling, watching the rise and fall of his chest. He couldn't seem to get enough of the rare sight. Of all his brothers, Donnie rarely slept and in the past few months he went missing, he wasn't sure if he slept at all.

He was peaceful when he slept. His features relaxed. The purple colored skin near his eyes almost seeming as if his eyes were half open. Raph knew better though. His brother was sleeping, dreaming peacefully as he watched over him. He wished he could keep this sight to himself. There was a majestic beauty about him when he was like this.

Their hands were laced; subconsciously Donnie had taken his hand. Perhaps a form of comfort left over from when they were tots, Raph didn't care because he was happy to be here. Happy to be so close to him. His eyes roamed to the belly. Once you were close enough you could easily see that he was getting larger. A cruel reminder that those eggs within him may take his life.

Raph shuttered. The thought of losing Donnie was one he didn't was to deal with. He as well as any of them knew that if it came down to a choice, Donnie would choose his young. Yet, would they allow it? His free hand slowly rubbed the plastron above where his belly was. Hoping to feel the little difference in it. It was there, as obvious as anything when you could feel it. A jolt of lightning shot through him, making him smile. They had all long ago forgone the thought of children, of having families of their own. Yet here was Donnie, just as always, surprising them with things they thought they would never possess.

How many nights had he dreamed of being here? Of sharing this very bed with his brother and make him scream his name? Raphie…only Donnie could use that name and live to tell about it. It was his sweet voice that gave it the best sound and gentle tone. Oh how he wished to hear it every moment of everyday. Though now he wished to hear something different. He wanted to be called something far more satisfying. Daddy. He wanted to be a father, just like his brothers. To teach their children the ways of the world just as their father had. The thought hung in his mind, his imagination running wild with the possible combinations of his and Donnie's features that would show in a turtle tot.

Donnie shifted in his sleep, Turing on his side, facing him as he moved to fetal position. The hand holding his tightened. This dragged him from his thoughts; he needed to focus on Donnie now. Tears began to form in his eyes. "No…'m sorry…" Raph cooed softly, pulling him close and hugging him, never letting his hand go. "Didn't mean to…"

"Shhhh, Donnie we know ya didn't." he stroked his cheek with the back of his hand. "Aint your fault." He narrowed his eyes. Just what exactly he was thinking of was uncertain. Needless to say, nothing he could dream about was his fault. Not like he was asking for it or anything. According to Slash, he fought him each and every time. His old pet had admitted he hurt him in order to make him submit.

"Don't…hate me…" Raph held Donnie closer. He rest his head on his brother's, feeling the sorrow radiating off him like fever. He never understood why horrible things happened to good people. If karma was supposed to be a bitch then what had Donnie does so bad to deserve this shit? It should have been him. Of all his brothers he was the one that was the most troublesome. He drank, he cursed, he smoke on occasion, he went looking for fights. Donnie never did any of that.

Whatever it was his brother was dreaming seemed to vanish the moment he held him close. Perhaps even in his sleep he knew it was Raphie that held him. Don often told him how he felt safest in his arms. That no matter what he knew that his big brother Raphie would protect him. He was right too. Raph would die for him and any of their brothers. Yet where was he when Donnie needed him most? Sitting on his ass listening to Leo drag on about this and that. He knew he should have been out there cracking Kraang brains wide open until he found him.

He sighed heavily. Would those babies survive this? Would Donnie survive this? What would happen if those kids didn't make it? He knew his gentle brother wasn't going to take such well, seeing as he was wanting to keep them. It was easy to assume he was growing attached to them all ready, even building them an incubator.

Slash and Donnie were so different. Was it even possible that they could have children? Donnie was pregnant so that meant it was, right? Slash was more animal then mutant, 25% human if he recalled what Splinter read off his file. Donnie said that they were about 50% human…wouldn't that make their kids 75% human? He grunted, that dint seem right at all. Slash is a tortoise; Don is a turtle, were they compatible enough? Like a horse and donkey? A lion and tiger? Even if they couldn't with basic tortoise and turtles was it possible the mutagen altered that when combining with human DNA? What about the fact that Donnie said some of his own DNA was mixed in with Slash because he was the last to touch him when he took him to the room after the explosion? Did that count for anything?

His head began to hurt. There were far too many unanswered questions and he feared so deeply that they would remain as such until it was too late. He could only hope and pray to whatever gods would listen that they survived for his brother's sake.

~LRDM~

"No I'm serious! I totally fell this is the best plan for the new lair!" Mikey pouted as he showed them the crude crayon drawing of his plans. "Donnie is going to be in the center room! If we are all going to share him it is the best place to put him. It will also be where the babies will be cuz we totally know Don wont want them in a whole other room. Then we have Raph to the right and Leo to the left, the room next to Raph is yours Slash and Ill take the room next to Leo! When the babies get older Leo can move down here in this room so that the babies can take his other room next to Donnie's cuz like I said before, Donnie isn't gonna wanna be far from his babies." He moved that one aside and showed the second page. "Down here Leo can be closer to the Dojo and Donnie's new Lab, I call it Lab 2.0!" he smiled brightly at the clever name. "Here and here are guest rooms for Leatherhead, April or Casey to use. There is the garage, here is the dojo with Splinter's room in the little office thing we saw. Bathrooms and showers, kitchen." He pointed to each one and smiled. "When the tots get old enough, they can take the guest bedrooms one for boys and one for girls!"

Leo and Slash looked at each other. It was…well thought out really. Yet it was Leo who spoke up first. "Just…how many babies are you expecting Donnie to have?"

Mikey tilt his head to the side, looking as if the question was a stupid one. "A lot obviously. Donnie said our kind can have from one to thirty eggs, that is alotta babies bro!" he wrinkled his nose. "Lotta diapers too."

The larger mutant scuffed. "He said between one and eight." He corrected.

"Even so! Let's just say he has one to eight once a year for ten years, he could have…" he counted on his fingers and toes. "From ten to eighty kids." He crossed his arms.

"Where the hell are we gonna put that many?!" Leo sighed and shook his head. Even in the new larger lair it wasn't big enough for that many. Not to mention it would be hard to control all of them.

The youngest shrugged. "Don't know bro, not may forte. That would be a Donnie question."

The leader tapped his beak, thinking on it. "I think it best we limit such." He sighed softly. As much as he wanted to be a father, that many children was out of the question.

"How do we do that?" Slashed asked. There was no real way to choose the number of young the female produced. That was something controlled by her body and nature. "Birth control?"

"Something like that. I think it best if we limit his pregnancies. Like…each mating season Donnie will be with one of us. We would have him all that season supposedly when we are all most fertile. Donnie will become pregnant and we will know who the father is. We leave it to Nature to decide how many young are produced from that coupling. After we can use other options, condoms, pills, I'm sure Donnie could figure such out. Each person will have a year for their children to be welcomed to the family. Once their children are born, then that is it, no more."

"So if let's say, Donnie and I have four kids but you and him have eight…" Slash looked to Leo.

"Then you will only ever have four." Leo was firm on this. "It may not be fair but it would limit it to four to twenty-four children instead of eighty."

"And if the children do not survive?" Slash's voice was low, fearful even as if he suspected such of his young that were growing within his beloved.

Leo felt for him. Of all of them Slash was the most unpredictable variable. He wasn't even their species. "Then you are free to try again once the others have theirs." What more could he say? Even so there was relief in the larger mutant's eyes.

Slash plopped on the couch, hanging his head and thinking about his young. He had mixed feelings about Raph being in the room alone with his mate, but he had said that he would back down in favor of allowing him happiness. Donnie carried his young there was no changing that. Even if Raph mated with his beloved terrapin, he could not change the paternity of those eggs.

Heavy footsteps moved from the lab toward them. Metalhead had finished his updates and disconnected himself. Looking from each one of them he gave a few chirps. When none responded, there was a small click before he opened his mouth to speak again. "Directive."

Mikey eyed the robot for a moment before he threw a crayon at it. "Dudes! He can impersonate Donnie!"

The bot shook his small head and pointed to Leo. "Directive: Leonardo Voice Commands. Objective: Gain vocal recognition of Blue Leader." He walked toward Leo, boom mic extending from his shell. "Quote Space Heros theme song."

Leo looked down at the robotic turtle and at the others. "What the heck did Donnie set up?" he tilt his head. What in the world was going on with that thing?

Metalhead clicked again, this time playing a recording. "One of the updates I want to do for him will give him a voice." Donnie could be heard talking to someone. "You will be able to understand him then, even give him complex commands and he will understand." He looked at Leo, clicking again. "Quote Space Heros theme song."

"Dude! He wants to record your voice so he can respond to you! Like that car from the Incredibles two! Man Donnie is soooooooo cool!" Mikey shook his older brother with glee. "Do the Space Heroes theme!"

The elder brother looked at the small bot, sighed and quoted the theme. The bot clicked again, played his voice back and turned to him.

"Voice recognition complete. Please give a command."

"Stand on one leg?" the bot obeyed.

"Voice commands accepted. Test successful." He turned to Mikey. "Directive." He moved toward the giddy turtle. "Directive: Michelangelo Voice Commands. Objective: Gain vocal recognition of Party Dude."

The younger turtle's eyes watered. "He remembered my code name!" times like this he really loved his big brother.

"Quote recipe for pizza milkshakes." The boom mic was raised as the orange banded turtle rambled off the ingredients. It was played back after a click. "Voice recognition complete. Please give a command."

"Bring me a pizza~!" That earned him a glare from his elder brother but it didn't matter. The little bot made his way to the fridge, opened the door, grabbed the pizza box and made his way back to him. "Voice commands accepted. Test successful."

He turned to Slash who eyed him. His eyes flashed red for a brief moment before he turned away. He looked about the room and turned to the other two. "Directive." He stepped forward. "Directive: Raphael Voice Commands. Objective: Gain vocal recognition of Nightwatcher."

"Awww how come Raph got the cooler nickname?!" Mikey pouted, plopping on the floor in disappointment.

"Raph is in Donnie's room but…" The robot turned to head upstairs before Leo could finish. Panicked that the heavy metal would wake his sleeping brother he called out. "Voice command…ughh…stop!" Metalhead obeyed. "Come back." Once more the bot obeyed.

"Directive." He spoke again, still using Donnie's voice. "Directive: Yoshi Voice Commands. Objective: Gain vocal recognition of Rat Daddy."

"Voice command…later?" Leo wasn't fully understanding how this worked. Donnie would have to explain it when he woke up. He rubbed the back of his head and stared at the bot.

"The utterance of voice command is not necessary to give a command." Their brother's voice spoke to them from a recording. They could hear him giggling. "But I'm sure they will think it is."

"Way to go Donnie, make us all stupid." He shook his head. "Metalhead, go in the lab and wait for Donnie to come back."

"Voice command acknowledged." The robot turned and headed back to the lab.

"Man, Donnie is one scary smart turtle. I wouldn't even begin to know how the hell to do that." Mikey commented. "He even knew you'd think to say Voice command." That made him snicker. "He totally knew you dude."

Leo pinched the bridge of his nose. "It is getting too late for this bull." He took a deep breath and slowly exhaled. "I'm going to bed. I suggest you two do the same. Donnie is fine with Raph." He turned to Slash. "You are welcome to sleep on the couch again."

He rolled his eyes. "Thank you for the hospitality." Clearly just an extension of Donatello's wish to keep him there, if only for Raphael's sake.

The youngest yawned and held his arms out for his big brother to carry him. When he got a glare in return he frowned. "Donnie got carried to bed!"

"Donnie is pregnant and also has a broken leg." The eldest crossed his arms over his chest.

"If you want I can break your leg." Slash gave him a smirk. Moving to stand up and make good on it if the other wished.

The small turtle yelped and hopped to his feet. "Do and Donnie will be pissed! I'm his favorite brother!" he ran up the stairs and closed his door.

The tortoise chuckled and turned to lay on the couch.

~LRDM~

It was all there, everything that they had on Donatello. From pictures taken from roof tops to alley ways, even some from his trips to the junkyard. His age, height, estimated weight and list of weapons, vehicles and tools used, made and assumed to be created by him. Shredder wanted to know every detail he could about the turtle. He was often seen with the girl, the April O'Neil. Someone the Kraang wanted though not as badly as this turtle. Why though? Why was he so special that he stood out to him?

Saki narrowed his eyes, pushing papers aside. His list of knowledge far exceeded his brothers. Proficient in medical, electronically, mechanical skills. Speaks at least Japanese, English, Spanish, Portuguese and Mandarin. He looked through the packet of picture of things that were created by him and used by the turtles. From smoke egges to the large subway car they drove on the streets. Each of the items more complex and sophisticated then the last. All made from garbage while his men had access to top quality items and still lost.

He balled his fist. He had thought his greatest threat from the turtles was Leonardo. Why had this one gone without notice? He moved the packet aside and looked at the small disc. He popped it into the computer at his side allowing it to play.

The girl appeared on the screen, the turtles held down the bat like mutant and she sprayed him with some sort of orange liquid. The bat cried out and changed back into a man. "DAD!" she ran and hugged him tightly. "April…how did you?!" she pulled away and looked at him. "Donnie! He found the cure!" the video stopped there for a moment before another video played.

This one showed the turtles, Donatello and Raphael carrying the others. Kraang bots fired at them. Donatello threw down a bunch of those damnable smoke eggs and opened the sewer. Raphael went first, followed by the orange one then the Leonardo. Some words were exchanged as the sewer was closed and Donatello ran off.

He picked up reports of their activities within the last few months. Back when the purple turtle was nowhere to be seen. They were fighting among themselves, sloppy, disorganized, no new weapons reported. It seemed like losing that turtle drove a wedge within them. Interesting, why though?

"Tell me what you know Karai." He looked up at his daughter.

She hissed at him through the glass. "No more then you." She scuffed.

He shot up and walked around the table. "You lie!"

She didn't back down. She didn't fear him anymore. "Why would I tell you anything? It wasssssss you who did thisssss to me!"

"I would have ended them!" He snapped back. "If only you would have complied! I am trying to fix what they had done!"

She narrowed her eyes. "You killed my mother. Took me from my father and lied to me all my life! They are not my enemy! It isssss you! I will not betray my family! I will not betray my brothersssssss!"

He slammed his fist against the glass. "Do not sit there and tell me I mean nothing to you! Do not act like I did not give you the best childhood!" He recalled sitting in the garden with her, watching her feed the koi in the pond. Her small hands reaching toward them. Those same hands that touched his face without fear.

He recalled the festivals, her in her tiny kimono running to the stand with wonder in her eyes. He bought everything she wanted, handing the items off to the men he had accompany them. They stood on the hill and watched fireworks. Her eyes fixated on the sky, wide and so full of wonder.

"You mean nothing to me!" she snapped. Her smiling face, once so innocent now chattered by the reptiled mutant she had become.

He growled and returned to the files on his desk. "The longer it takes me to find him, the worse he will be in for. Mark my words." He glared at her, for only a moment he seen her face falter, her features dropping down in a look of worry and concern. "I will gladly tell him who he could blame for it."

She turned from him. Slithering into the tree that was there and curling into herself. She could do nothing but hope that her father and brothers were okay. That they were smart enough to keep him safe and out of the way.