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Leo was seventeen, but often felt older. In the years since that fateful night they met April, life had become a nonstop fight for survival. They’d been swiftly embroiled in their feud with the Foot clan, and made enemies of all manner of city scum. They’d all been forced to grow up quickly, as Purple Dragons and Triceratons didn’t pull their punches in consideration of their age. But tonight, Leo felt every inch a teenager.
The entire family was gathered around the table for dinner. It was, like many nights in their household, a pizza night. Master Splinter had abstained from pizza himself, instead deftly curling strands of spaghetti around his fork. Leo toyed with the crust in his hand as Raph and Mikey tussled over who called dibs first on the last slice. While they scuffled, Donnie slowly but surely slid the slice towards himself.
Leo’s stomach flipped, the meal of greasy cheese and heavy dough sitting unhappily. He’d been working up the nerve to ask a question all meal, and his window of opportunity was about to close. After dinner was over, Splinter would retire to his room to meditate and then sleep. He could delay no longer if he wanted an answer tonight.
“Father,” he blurted. “I was thinking. It’s been quiet recently.”
“Too quiet,” Mikey added unhelpfully. He finally noticed the half-eaten slice in Don’s hand. “Hey! I called dibs!”
“You snooze you lose.”
Leo continued, ignoring their antics. “We haven’t seen much Foot activity on patrols. So I was wondering if, um.” He swallowed, staring down at the crumbs on his plate. “If it would be okay to invite Usagi over.”
Ever since their meeting at the Battle Nexus, he and Usagi had kept in contact. Leo sent the ronin letters through a means of interdimensional mail that Splinter had shown him, involving a chant similar to the one they used to enter the Nexus. Usagi’s scrolls, neatly tied with a length of blue ribbon, appeared without fail before the entrance to the lair. The arrival of the first scroll had given them a fright, one of Donnie’s proximity alarms triggered by the new foreign object close to their front door. They’d rushed to the lair’s entrance in a hurry, braced for a fight, only for Mikey to step on the harmless scroll and yelp like a girl. As the others grumbled about the false alarm, Leo meticulously smoothed out the paper. Donnie had since reworked the sensors to allow Usagi’s portals to blip through without raising alarms, and as a result the scrolls became something of a pleasant surprise for Leonardo when he headed out on morning runs.
Both Leo and Usagi were busy people, and so although their correspondence was steady, it was sparse. They made up for this with long, long letters. For his part, Leo was fascinated by the samurai’s world. Usagi could wander the streets in sunlight, his Japan populated by other humanoid animals. Usagi was equally curious about the modern advancements in technology in Leo’s time, asking him to explain the functionality of everyday objects, from something as complex as a computer to as simple as a toaster. And of course, they wrote at long length to each other about the way of bushido and swordplay. Usagi was a fellow spirit, one he counted himself blessed to have met. He was forever grateful his brothers had dragged him out to follow Splinter to the Nexus. (Though he could’ve done without the whole poisoning thing.)
And then Ultimate Draco had ripped him from his home and sent him hurtling through time and space to Usagi’s side. During their quest to save Lord Noriyuki and their journey to get Leo back home to his family, their relationship had deepened further. They could not deny what pulled them together, could not dismiss it as mere friendship. Before Leo returned home, out of sight of the others, Usagi had sworn to write him soon, and sealed his promise with a kiss to Leo’s beak.
It’d been weeks and Leo was still thinking about that kiss.
He hadn’t yet broached the topic with his family. He didn’t doubt they’d be anything but supportive, albeit there would be no end to the teasing and rabbit-related jokes from Mikey’s corner. It was just…he wasn’t ready yet. So as far as the others knew, they were simply good friends.
And then this morning Leo received another scroll. Usagi confirmed that Lord Noriyuki and Tomoe Ame were now settled safely in Edo, and as a reward for his service he was to be granted two weeks’ leave. And Usagi would like nothing more than to spend that time with him.
Splinter smiled at Leo from the head of the table, with a measure of wryness. Leo blinked at his humored expression, and with a faint panic wondered if his father had seen through him already. Surely not.
“Usagi is a fine warrior and true friend to our family. He is always welcome in our home.”
Mikey sniffed, pretending to wipe a tear from his eye. “Our little Leo, all grown up and making friends.”
“I have friends!” Leo protested. “April and Casey are—”
“April is Donnie’s science buddy,” Mikey interrupted.
“Lab partners,” corrected Don.
“And Casey is Raph’s punching buddy!”
Raph grunted his agreement.
“And what about you?” Leo asked, not wanting to be singled out.
“Klunk is my main man, of course! And everyone we meet just loves me. They can’t help it. It’s all part of my natural charm.” He tossed the tails of his bandana over his shoulder for dramatic effect. Raph rolled his eyes.
“I have friends,” Leo repeated. The others gave him looks of mingled pity and amusement. Even Master Splinter.
“Swords don’t count, Leo,” said Raph.
Before Leo could argue, Mikey reached over and gave him a conciliatory pat on the shoulder.
“Methinks you dotheth protesteth too mucheth.” Mikey flashed a smug look towards Donnie. “Didn’t know I was so well-read, did you?”
Don grimaced. “Your butchery of Shakespeare is certainly…something.”
The guys continued to bicker. Having received Splinter’s blessing, Leo slipped away from the table to write Usagi back.
~*~
If he waited for Usagi at the center of the lair, he’d start wearing a groove in the floor with his pacing, and the guys might clue in that something was up. So instead, Leo awaited his arrival in the kitchen, hands cupped around a steaming mug of tea. He’d asked April to procure him some of the nice stuff ahead of Usagi’s visit, hand-rolled pearls of green tea leaves, perfumed with jasmine. Usually he settled for a store brand box of 50 tea bags, the flavor weak, the leaves inside the bags little more than ground down shavings. This was a rare treat. Leo took a slow sip, savoring the taste. His leg bounced beneath the counter.
Leo looked up as someone came into the kitchen, then slumped. Only Raph.
As if he could read his mind, Raph smirked back at him. He made his way over to the cabinet to retrieve his protein powder.
“You’re about to jitter out of the lair. Mikey switch out your fancy tea for Don’s coffee when you weren’t looking?”
“I’m not jittery.”
“Sure you ain’t. And I’m not a giant turtle either.”
Light spilled into the kitchen from the center of the lair, bright and warm. It was the now-familiar glow of an interdimensional portal opening up. Usagi was here!
Leo nearly bolted from the kitchen, but was checked by Raph’s amused look. Instead he walked at a swift pace, Raph ambling slowly after. The rest of their family also congregated at the center of the lair, drawn in by the telltale light like moths.
The portal offered a brief glimpse of sakura trees swaying in the wind before it closed behind Usagi.
Leo was relieved to find Usagi in a much better state than when they’d last parted. The stress had bled from his frame, now that Lord Hebi had been thwarted and Lord Noriyuki was safe. His hakama and kimono looked freshly laundered, and his white fur was clean and silken, no longer tacky with blood and clumps of mud from days of nonstop battle. He carried a small bag slung over one shoulder.
The rabbit’s dark eyes landed on him, and his serious features brightened in a smile. Leo reflexively beamed back, before schooling his expression into something more reserved. They were meant to be good friends, nothing more. Usagi frowned minutely, cataloging the change, but turned away from him to bow to Splinter.
“I thank you for your hospitality, Splinter-sensei.”
Splinter bowed back. “You are always welcome, Usagi-san.”
Leo slowed to let his brothers approach Usagi first, not wanting to seem too eager. Mikey vaulted over the railing and ran up to Usagi, all but bouncing in place.
“Dude, this is so awesome! We have so much to show you! You’ve never played a gameguy, have you?”
“Game…guy?” Usagi frowned. “I am familiar with shogi.”
“Shogi, shmogi! You need to try some real games—and by that I mean video games!” He started to sing. “I can show you the world, shining, shimmer—hey!”
Raph shoved Mikey back. “No one wants to hear your singing. Especially a guy with giant ears.”
“It’s good to see you again, Usagi-san.” Donnie greeted, beak turned up in a friendly smile.
“Likewise, Donatello-san.”
Leo had been sick when Don and Usagi met, but he remembered flashes from that day. He recalled Don’s gentle hands wiping off his sweating brow, the bristling protectiveness in his tone when Usagi came too close. Then, the pair of them united, fighting together to protect the Damiyo from an assassination attempt. They’d had a rocky start, but it had smoothed over swiftly once they truly understood each other.
Usagi’s gaze found him again, warm but confused, and Leo’s rehearsed, perfectly nonchalant greeting dried up in his throat.
“Leonardo—"
“Tea!” Leo blurted, before Usagi could unwittingly give them away. His outburst drew bemused looks from his brothers and a low chuckle from Master Splinter. “I mean, uh. Would you like some tea? I just brewed a fresh pot.”
Usagi, merciful samurai he was, did not press him in front of everyone. “I would love some.”
As Leo escorted Usagi to the kitchen, Mikey leaned over and loudly whispered in Donnie’s ear. “What’s up with Leo? He’s acting weird. And I mean weirder than his usual brand of Leo weirdness.”
Leo twisted around to fix Mikey with a warning glare. Mikey yipped and ducked behind Raph for cover. Don had a look on his face as his gaze flickered between Leo and Usagi, like a realization was dawning. Aw, shell. Usagi hadn’t been here five minutes and Don’s sharp mind had already puzzled them out. Leo met Don’s gaze, mutely begging him to keep quiet.
“Haven’t a clue,” said Don, giving Leo a subtle nod.
Leo let out a slow breath. Good old Donnie. He’d have to get his brother something nice for keeping his secret, maybe one of those fancy computer chips he was always drooling over.
The kettle was still hot. Leo poured a second cup of tea out for Usagi, which he took with a murmur of thanks.
“This is excellent,” Usagi declared after his first mouthful. He took another sip. “It is as if I never left home.”
Leo made a mental note to get April something special, too.
“So you haven’t told the others about us yet,” Usagi remarked quietly, tone deliberately neutral. Leo searched for any hint Usagi was angry, or even worse, hurt. But the rabbit only seemed confused. Still, guilt squirmed through him.
“I’m sorry. It has nothing to do with you. It’s only, I…” Leo tried to explain himself, but couldn’t find the words. He didn’t fully understand it himself. Whenever he tried to approach his brothers and father to tell them, fear and uncertainty wired his jaw shut. “I just can’t do it yet,” he finished lamely.
“So we’re sneaking around again, only this time without ninja garb,” Usagi joked, to lighten up the mood. “You truly are trying to corrupt me with your ninja ways.”
Leo’s mind blanked out at the implication of him corrupting Usagi. He was saved from having to reply as his family trailed in to join them.
Raph and Mikey didn’t know Usagi that well. They’d met him briefly at the end of the Battle Nexus tournament, and again when Ultimate Drako was defeated. Mikey warmed to him immediately. After the entire group (sans Splinter, who retreated to his room) relocated over to the couch, Mikey was quick to shove his gameguy into Usagi’s paws, and proceeded to backseat game over his shoulder as if they’d been friends for years.
Raph was…well, he was behaving, and that was really all Leo could ask of him. As Mikey and Donnie peppered Usagi with questions about his homeworld, and what he thought of the video game, Raph lingered in the background, aloof, half-listening to the conversation around him while he texted Casey on his shell cell.
Hours later, when they all turned in for the night, it was decided that Usagi would sleep in Leo’s room, as it afforded more privacy and space than sleeping on their couch. (Leo absolutely refused to meet Don’s gaze as the decision was hashed out.)
They were not so brazen as to sleep together—there was always the chance one of Leo’s brothers might wander in unannounced—and so a bedroll was made up for their guest.
Usagi fell asleep almost immediately, weary from the long day of travel. Leo peered at him from his bed, cataloguing the slow rise and fall of his chest, the faint twitch of his nose as he dreamed. It still hadn’t sunk in yet that Usagi was here, with him. His fingers brushed over the side of his beak, where Usagi had kissed him weeks ago.
“Please don’t mess this up,” Leo murmured to himself, before finally settling down to sleep.
~*~
The glowing numbers on his alarm clock read 6:28 a.m. when Leo stirred. It was an hour that Raph would’ve coined “the ass-crack of dawn”, but for Leo, it was sleeping in.
Usagi was curled on his side, facing towards Leo. His cheek was squished where it met the pillow. He’d removed the tie for his top knot, so one ear was draped over his shoulder, the other splayed over the pillow behind his head. In sleep he looked younger, softer, his brow lacking its usual furrow. Leo had to resist the strong urge to card his hand through the rabbit’s soft fur.
Leo moved quietly, his footfalls mere whispers, but Usagi’s ears twitched at even the faint sound. He sat up, rubbing the sand from his eyes.
“I didn’t mean to wake you,” Leo apologized, kneeling beside him.
“It is alright. I feel quite refreshed.” He reached for his band to put up his ears in his usual style.
“Everyone else is still asleep. I can make you breakfast, or…we could spar first?”
Usagi’s eyes lit up at the second option. They got dressed, and made a beeline for the training area.
“I confess I’ve long awaited the moment where we could duel once more, without any interference,” said Usagi, as they began warming up.
Leo stretched out his calves. “I feel the same. Our previous match was undecided. I can’t help but wonder how our fight would’ve ended.”
“Do you think you will win?”
Leo hesitated. “You are the more experienced one.”
“And you, perhaps, underestimate yourself.”
Usagi stretched his arms, arching his back. He let out a soft grunt. He looked up to find Leo watching him. Leo glanced away, blushing, but wasn’t quick enough to avoid seeing the rabbit’s small, knowing smirk.
Once they’d sufficiently stretched out and limbered up, it was time to spar.
Usagi drew Willow Branch, and Leo unsheathed a single katana to match him. In tandem, each moved into their opening stance. Leo watched him, waiting for the slightest twitch of his nose or shift of his foot to indicate the start of Usagi’s attack. Usagi followed his movements just as keenly, the heat of his stare like a heavy mantle over Leo’s shoulders.
The tension stretched on between them, growing denser with each passing second. Leo knew inexplicably that Usagi planned to strike first. He unconsciously compared Leonardo to the kappa of his world, who were weighed down by their cumbersome shells and slow to react. But Leo was determined to surprise him.
Usagi made the slightest shift, placing his weight on his left foot, but Leo shot towards him before he could fully settle. Their blades clashed, steel meeting steel with a heavy clang.
As it was only a friendly spar, they had the luxury to indulge themselves. Leo allowed himself extra flourishes and twists as they dueled, things he would never consider in a true fight, where every moment could be the difference between life and death. (He was, also, perhaps, just maybe, showing off to impress Usagi. Just a little.)
Usagi’s samurai style had a rigidity to it, whilst Leo’s ninjutsu was by nature more flexible and adaptive. Even so, neither had a clear advantage over the other.
Leo was forced to draw his second katana to block an attack from the side. He swiped out with his other blade, and Usagi retreated. He unsheathed his second sword to match Leo.
They charged each other and clashed again, light catching in their katanas and flickering across the walls.
The sword-wielding Foot ninja often treated their blades as little more than tools, using them like sharpened cudgels. They had no respect for their weapons. But Usagi fought as if his swords were extensions of his arms, of himself. It was admirable, the fluidity with which he wielded his daishō. Next to him, Leo felt about as graceful as an elephant. But it didn’t get him down; rather, he felt inspired to chase Usagi, to attempt to rise up to match him.
Leo managed to capture Usagi’s wakizashi between both his katana. He wrested it out of the rabbit’s grip, leaving him with only one sword against Leo’s pair.
“Do not celebrate your victory just yet,” Usagi warned, before he swept Leo’s legs out from under him and knocked him flat on his shell. Before Leo could recover, Usagi pinned him to the floor, his knee pressed firmly against Leo’s plastron. He tipped his katana to Leo’s throat.
“I concede,” Leo said, chest heaving. Usagi was breathing hard too, his fur mussed and damp with sweat.
The spar was finished, but they remained suspended in the moment. Leo was quite content to remain pinned beneath Usagi’s weight. He was thinking again about that kiss, that promise of more to come. Usagi’s dark eyes gleamed with an invitation. Leo leaned closer.
The sudden sound of clapping startled them both. Raph stood at the edge of the training area, observing them.
Usagi sprang off of Leo in a flash, then returned to offer him a hand up, which Leo took. Usagi’s hand was warm and soft in his own. He let it go reluctantly.
“How long have you been standing there?” Leo asked, voice only slightly strangled.
“Long enough to see you get your butt kicked,” Raph said, twirling one of his sai between his fingers. “My turn. Let’s rumble, bunny boy.”
“Of course. Allow me a moment to catch my breath.”
After his initial surprise, Usagi successfully schooled his features into something calm and unflappable. Leo envied his serenity—his own heart felt like it was about to beat out of his chest. Usagi had barely been here a day and their cover was nearly blown. Raphael was typically the second of the four brothers to wake (Donnie was usually the last, but only because he stayed up the latest of them all tinkering away at his endless array of projects) and usually joined Leo to lift weights right as Leo was finishing up his morning katas. He should’ve predicted Raph would wake up and wander over to them eventually, but he’d lost track of time, the world blurring out of focus outside of Usagi. He was mollified by the fact that Usagi, with his superior hearing, also hadn’t noticed his approach.
Thankfully, Raph seemed to have no clue just what he’d been about to interrupt, and was simply eager for the chance to spar with someone new.
Usagi collected his swords and walked to the edge of the mat to face Raph.
“So if I beat the furball now, that effectively means I’ve beaten you too, doesn’t it?”
Leo sighed, feeling faintly embarrassed. Usagi, at least, seemed to be taking all of Raph’s…Raph-ness in stride.
“Don’t give our guest insulting nicknames.”
Raph rolled his eyes. “Whatever. We doing this or what?”
Usagi bowed, then readied his stance. Sai clutched in his fists, Raph sprang towards the samurai with a yell.
Usagi swiftly trounced him, disarming Raph before knocking him flat on his plastron. Usagi smiled innocently down at the stunned turtle.
“Not bad for a furball, hm?”
“I was going easy on ya,” Raph growled. He waved away Usagi’s proffered hand and picked himself back up off the mat. “Let’s go again.”
And with that, their private sparring session morphed into a more standard training session. To Leo’s surprise, Raph took Usagi’s advice without much pushback, listening keenly as the ronin explained just how he’d twisted out of his hold and how to counteract it.
Leo watched as Usagi demonstrated slowly, complimenting Raph when he managed to pull off the counter maneuver on the second try, disarming Usagi successfully with his sai. Raph tried valiantly to hide his glow of happiness at the praise, but Leo knew him too well to be fooled by his bluster. Leo realized a part of him had been nervous about how his brothers and Usagi would interact, particularly Raph. But Usagi was unphased by Raph’s rudeness, and Raph was thawing towards him, fostering a grudging respect for Usagi’s skill. It warmed him to see the pair of them get along.
“What are you smiling like a dope about over there?” Raph pointed at Leo with his sai. “I thought we were training here.”
“Alright, Raph, keep your shell on.”
~*~
It was a perfect night to go topside. The sky was cloudless, promising fair weather. The temperature was not chilly, but pleasantly cool. There was no chatter on police radio about any significant gang activity that they should look into. Leo seized on the chance to take Usagi out, and only told Master Splinter where they were going before they left the lair to avoid any nosy little brothers from tagging along.
He felt faintly embarrassed of his home as he was forced to lead Usagi through the sewer system. He knew it was dark, rank, and unpleasant, a far cry from Usagi’s land of sprawling trees and mountains and clean air. Still, if it bothered him, Usagi didn’t show it, gamely following him, craning his neck to peer down the dark tunnels of the sewer.
Leo propped open a manhole a sliver and peered out at SoHo. At this time of night the Manhattan neighborhood was largely empty, though never fully quiet. The old adage of New York being the city that never sleeps proved true. Every hour of the day and night, New Yorkers bustled to and from work, school, museums, theatres, bars, stores. They waited for a couple walking their dog to turn off the block before leaving the manhole behind to melt into the shadows of an alley. They scaled their way up to a rooftop via a fire escape.
From their vantage point eight stories high, they were able to look out over a decent slice of the city. Towering skyscrapers were illuminated by pinpricks of light. A slow-crawling line of yellow cabs honked at each other like angry geese. The traffic lights and headlights of cars gleamed like jewels in the darkness.
Usagi drank it all in with wide, bright eyes. The shifting light from the neon signs below played over his features, tinting his fur blue, gold, red.
“You described it to me in your letters, and still I find myself breathless. These castles—no, skyscrapers, as you call them—are magnificent. And the people! So many people…”
“Come on. I have so much to show you.”
Leo led Usagi across the rooftops, pointing out famous buildings and statues along the way. Usagi was quite taken with the street sweeper, of all things, pausing their trip around Manhattan to watch the truck’s powerful bristles suck up debris along the curb.
At Times Square a pack of costumed people worked the crowd, worming their way into photos and then hustling tourists for a few dollars. Usagi’s nose wrinkled at the man bobbing about in the Bugs Bunny costume in a way that was frankly adorable.
“It is strange to see so many humans about, and no animals,” Usagi remarked. The rabbit was exposed to different peoples during his visits to the Battle Nexus, but Leo’s world was something else entirely.
“It was equally strange for me to walk about beneath the sun in your world, without needing to disguise myself amongst other people. I love New York, but I admit there are times I wish things could be different for us here.”
“You will always be welcome in my world. I know it is not the same as being accepted in your homeworld—but I want you to know it is a door always open, to you and your family.”
“Thank you.”
It was a tempting thought, to escape to somewhere the Shredder’s claws could not reach, where they would be safe, where they could be free.
But Leo knew in his heart it would never work long term. The limited technology would be a deal breaker for his brothers. Raph would pine for the thrill of driving high-speed motorcycles and cars; Mikey would grow bored without the rapid-fire entertainment of television of video games; Don would likely accelerate the world’s gradual technological growth with his own machines, forcing the world to advance at a speed it wasn’t prepared for. And while Leo could be content without access to modern technology, he could not be truly happy without his brothers by his side.
His brothers…who he was still lying to. Guilt, the old, familiar beast in his chest, rose once more from its slumber inside him. If one of his brothers started seeing someone, he’d want to know about it. It was hypocritical to keep them in the dark.
“Leonardo?” Usagi touched his elbow lightly.
Leo dusted himself off. “Finished with Times Square? The next spot is—”
“Leonardo,” Usagi repeated, brow wrinkling. “What is it?”
“This is all so new to me,” he admitted.
“I’m aware I have the privilege of being your first lover.”
Leo flushed brilliantly. He shoved Usagi.
“God, you can’t just say things like that.”
“What? Lover? Is it not true?”
“It is, it’s just…” Leo composed himself. “I want to tell the guys about us. But I also…really don’t want to tell them.”
“What is it that you fear?”
Leo shrugged. “What if they think differently of me?”
“From what I have seen, I do not believe they’d treat you any differently if they knew. But it is your home, these are your brothers. I will not rush you into anything you feel unprepared for.”
Leo smiled, grateful. He headed towards the edge of the rooftop, switching gears.
“Alright. We have one last stop for the night.”
“Lead on.”
They’d been leaping over rooftops for a few hours now, and both were starting to tire. So far, the date had gone entirely to plan. No brothers trailing after them and needling Usagi with a hundred questions, and no crimes demanding their intervention. All that was left now was the finishing touch. He’d arranged for April to grab him and Usagi some ice cream, as Usagi had never tried it before. They’d share ice cream on the rooftop together. And then, perhaps, beneath the glow of the city lights, Leo would finally return that kiss.
“Wait here,” Leo instructed, as they landed on the rooftop of April’s apartment. “I have a surprise for you.”
Leo hopped onto the fire escape and went down the staircase until he reached April’s window. He rapped on the glass with a rhythmic ‘shave and a haircut’ knock.
To his surprise, when the window was pulled up, a green head wearing an orange bandana poked out.
“Two bits!” Mikey finished cheerily.
“Mikey?” Leo gawked. “What are you doing at April’s?”
“What are you doing at April’s? I thought you were showing Usagi around? Did you lose him?”
“I was—I am—it’s just…”
“Hey, Leo.” April approached the windowsill, expression apologetic. “I was going to call you but didn’t get the chance. Apparently, someone forgot his DVDs the last time he was over and decided to stop by.”
Leo scrubbed a hand over his face. Of course he did. And of course Mikey picked tonight of all nights to come back and grab them. Of course. Turtle luck struck once again.
“Don’t worry about it, April.”
Usagi landed softly beside Leo with his usual grace. “Is everything alright? Is this the surprise?”
“Not exactly,” said Leo.
“It’s good to see you again, Usagi,” April greeted warmly. The pair of them had met, albeit briefly, at the holiday party. “So I understand you’ve never had ice cream?”
“I confess I have not.”
“You were going to get ice cream? Without me?” Mikey wailed.
“Of course not, Mikey. I wouldn’t dream of it,” said Leo, sarcasm thick on his tongue.
Leo and Usagi exchanged a silent, defeated glance. They both understood that their date, whatever they’d planned for otherwise, was now effectively over.
Leo attempted to pay April for the ice cream but she wouldn’t hear of it, waving him off as she grabbed her purse. (Leo still snuck a 10 into the bucket of loose change on her kitchen counter once she left.)
“Check this out, Usagi!” Mikey put in one of the DVDs he’d left behind—some martial arts flick—into the player.
Usagi was quickly enthralled by the novelty of the television. He inspected its boxy frame from every angle.
“How did you describe it, Leonardo? A device that captures a performance and beams it over the world. What a valuable tool to dispense information.”
“I gotta use that line the next time Master Splinter gets on my case about watching TV,” said Mikey. “I’m not rotting my brain, sensei. I am merely using a valuable tool that dispenses information.”
Once Usagi got over his initial fascination with the television, he was quick to critique the film at hand.
“That man’s technique is abominable,” he remarked, as the hero scuffled with a pack of bad guys. “He’s leaving his left side completely exposed.”
“You’re as bad as Don,” Mikey moaned, palming his face. “I can never watch scifi movies with him without getting an hour-long rant about inaccurate space physics. Especially Star Wars.”
Usagi’s ears pricked up, and a second later Leo heard the scrape of a key in the apartment door. April entered, bearing a plastic bag on one arm. Mikey was at her side in a flash to relieve her of his ice cream.
“Yes, chocolate chip cookie dough with rainbow jimmies and gummy bears!”
“Alright, alright, let me get in the door first.”
April fished out Mikey’s to-go bowl from the bag and handed it over. Mikey let out a shriek of triumph, then returned to the couch. He wedged himself in between Usagi and Leo, ostensibly to steal bites of their ice cream once he polished off his own. He’d already made significant headway on his two scoops by the time April handed over Leo’s (mint chocolate chip) and Usagi’s (strawberry). Leo had picked Usagi’s flavor out, starting him with something light and simple. If Usagi tried Mikey’s sugary disaster first, he’d be bouncing off the walls all night.
“Thanks again, April.”
“Yeah, thanks—yow!” Mikey clapped a hand to his head. “Serious brain freeze.”
“That’s what you get for eating it too fast.”
“If they don’t want me to eat it fast they should try making it less delicious.”
April settled on the recliner to dig into her own treat, chocolate with walnuts. Leo’s spoon rested idle in his hand as Usagi took his first tentative bite.
“Do you like it?” Leo asked.
“The texture is so smooth,” Usagi marveled. He ate another spoonful happily.
Once he finished his own bowl, Mikey tried to sneak his spoon towards Leo’s untouched mint chocolate chip. He shifted it out of reach, ignoring his little brother’s pout.
“You can try some of mine, too.” Leo reached over Mikey to offer out his bowl. “It tastes like mint.”
“Thank you.” Usagi scooped a small sample onto his spoon and tasted it. He hummed with pleasure.
“How come he gets a bite and not me?” Mikey complained.
“You can have some of mine, Mikey,” April offered. Mikey launched himself off the couch to take her up on it.
Leo carved out a spoonful of ice cream for himself, scooping over where Usagi’s spoon had just touched. (Did that count as an indirect kiss?)
They continued to watch the movie as they finished off their ice cream. Usagi could not help but be critical of the action scenes, eliciting whines of annoyance from Mikey. Unable to resist riling his brother, Leo chimed in as well with his own nitpicking.
“Would you guys shush? This is the best part!”
They were quiet for maybe a minute as the scene unfolded, and then April, voice full of mirth, pointed out:
“That gun fired eight bullets, pretty unrealistic.”
“I can’t take you guys anywhere,” Mikey lamented.
“This is my apartment,” April pointed out.
Usagi laughed at their antics so hard that tears formed in his eyes. His laughter set off the rest of them.
It wasn’t the ending Leo had planned for their date, but it wasn’t a terrible end to the night either.
~*~
The bed dipped as Usagi joined him on it. Their thighs pressed together.
“You’re sure?” Usagi murmured.
Leo nodded, throat dry. He was nervous, but it was an excited nervous. A good nervous.
“Yeah. Raph and Mikey are at the junkyard—they won’t be back for a while. Even Master Splinter is out at April’s for their book club. And Donnie’s working on something in his lab. He won’t come out for anything less than a world-ending catastrophe. Or dinner.”
“Leaving us alone to entertain ourselves.”
This was the moment Leo had anticipated since Usagi arrived at the lair five days ago, but now that it was finally here, he had no idea what to do next.
Was Usagi expecting him to take the initiative? What should he do first? Take his hand? Hug him? Don’t be stupid, he’s expecting more than a friendly hug. Should he maybe—
Usagi quieted his thoughts as he cupped Leo’s cheek and pulled him in for a kiss. Once his brain turned back on, Leo reciprocated eagerly. As they kissed, Usagi shifted so he was angled closer to him. Leo wrapped his hand around Usagi’s waist and pulled him closer still.
Leo’s inexperience was plain, but just as in swordsmanship, Usagi was a keen teacher. He mimicked what Usagi did to him, emboldened by the encouraging sounds that escaped the rabbit’s mouth.
Eventually Usagi pushed gently at the front of his plastron, and Leo laid back on the bed. Usagi crawled on top of him, dark eyes lidded. He’d lost the tie for his topknot at some point, and his long ears were draped over either shoulder. Leo reached up to stroke one, reveling in the soft, velvety fur. Usagi shuddered, sensitive to the touch. He pressed a kiss to Leo’s palm before pinning his arm back to the bed.
“I’m going to take care of you,” he promised.
“Please,” Leo shivered. His face was flushed hot.
His tail, which he typically kept tucked up in his shell, unfurled between his spread thighs. Usagi kissed his neck as his hand trailed downwards, skimming over his plastron before curling gently around the end of his tail. Leo jolted at the touch.
“Is this okay?” Usagi asked, thumb brushing lightly back and forth.
“Y-Yes. It’s just, very sen-ah-sensitive.”
His heart pounded madly in his chest, every inch of his skin on fire. He’d experimented a little by himself before—he was a teenage boy, after all—but it was so different when the hand touching him belonged to someone else. The sensations were infinitely more electric.
Usagi’s fingers trailed teasingly close to his hole before retreating. His hands squeezed and kneaded Leo’s thighs.
“You have such beautiful legs. When I followed you across the rooftops it was nearly impossible to tear my gaze away from them.”
“Usagi,” Leo groaned. The rabbit was touching him, stroking and squeezing, but it wasn’t enough. He needed more—he needed—
A concussive boom echoed through the lair, rattling the bedframe and the hung scrolls along the wall.
Leo bolted upright, nearly knocking his head against Usagi’s in his haste. The explosive sound was followed by the earsplitting screech of the fire alarm Don had installed. Usagi hissed at the sharp noise, ears flattening against his head.
Arousal doused by panic, Leo quickly leapt out of bed. He strapped his katanas to his shell as Usagi fixed his clothes and retrieved his swords.
It couldn’t be Ultimate Drako again—Lord Simultaneous had already taken care of him. But if it was an underling, someone devoted to him—one of those assassins, maybe—
They ran out to see smoke rolling out from beneath the door to Donatello’s lab.
“Don!” Leo shouted.
He flipped down onto the first floor, not bothering to take the ladder. Usagi was right behind him. He ripped open the door to Don’s lab, and the swell of smoke made him cough and squint.
Eyes watering, he cupped his mouth with his hand. “Donnie!”
“I’m here!” his brother called back, from further inside the lab. Leo ran towards him.
He was relieved to find Donatello unhurt, albeit the tails of his purple bandana were singed. The project he’d been working on was now blackened and doused in foam from the fire extinguisher he held in his hands.
“Just what the shell were you doing in here?” Leo inspected the project closer. It was a laser rifle of some sort, its guts opened up over the table alongside an array of tools and batteries.
Don had the decency to look sheepish. He went over and flipped a switch on the wall. The overhead vents chugged to life, siphoning the smoky air out of the room.
“I was trying to add more power and accidentally overloaded the circuitry. The wires got fried.”
“Why are you messing around with this anyway? We don’t use guns.”
“…It doesn’t hurt to be prepared.”
There was something a shade off in his tone. Leo scrutinized his brother, and noted the tension in his jaw, the way his shoulders curled in defensively. It was how he’d acted right after Ultimate Drako was defeated, once they’d been sent back home by the time lord. Don didn’t say much of where he’d been sent to, but it was plain it had shaken him. Any lingering remnants of frustration Leo held at being interrupted abruptly vanished.
Don started to pick through the burnt-out husk of the weapon to see what could be salvaged. Leo took his arm, pulling him back.
“Come on, Don. You can fiddle with it more later.”
“I’m fine. It was just a small electrical fire,” he dismissed it without irony; for an engineer like Donnie, it truly was insignificant. “You don’t have to mother hen me.”
Leo hesitated. It was easier, when they were all younger, to know the right words to say, that would bring his brothers closer instead of pushing them away.
Usagi cut in. “Actually, Leonardo was about to show me one of those space movies, and we thought you might wish to join us. Star Battle, was it?”
Don’s head whipped towards him.
“Of course. You’ve never seen Star Wars. Leo, he hasn’t seen Star Wars. Did you—”
“No, I didn’t tell him the twist.” Leo smiled. His brother’s face had brightened with enthusiasm, the shadows chased away.
“He’s probably the only person in New York right now that doesn’t know the twist. This’ll be the first full reaction to Empire since the 80s.” Don hesitated. “You’re really sure? I don’t want to intrude—”
“You’re not, Don. Honest.”
“I’ll go set everything up then.” Don darted out of the lab to track down their VHS set of the Star Wars trilogy, leaving the two of them alone again in the lab.
“Thank you,” Leo murmured, grateful. He snuck a quick kiss on the rabbit’s furred cheek. “He would’ve dug his heels in if I kept asking.”
“His mind is troubled.”
“It’s about the world Drako sent him to. I’ve tried to discuss it with him, but he can be very stubborn.”
Usagi smiled wryly. “I do wonder who he learned that from.”
“Hurry up you guys!” Don called from over by the TV.
They joined Donnie on the couch, dislodging a sleepy Klunk in the process. Usagi settled in the middle so he could ask questions as they arose. The first film began with a bombastic swell of sound, the white stars glittering in Usagi’s eyes. Donnie’s gaze constantly flicked between Usagi and the TV screen, gauging his every reaction to even the slightest jokes and moments. And to Usagi, this was leaps and bounds beyond Mikey’s grounded martial arts movie. He asked many questions about the practicality of the ships, the lightsabers, the droids, and Don seized on the chance to nerd out, talking a mile a minute, gesturing wildly.
But in time, Don’s abysmal sleep schedule caught up with him. As Luke and his friends infiltrated the Death Star, he listed onto Usagi’s shoulder and started to drool. The rabbit adjusted Don slightly so he was in a more comfortable position, but he didn’t remove the turtle from his side. Leo tugged the blanket off the back of the couch and draped it over his younger brother.
“I don’t have any siblings of my own,” Usagi said quietly. “But I understand you more every day. I would gladly fight to protect any of them.”
He looked down at Don with the same affection Leo saw reflected in Splinter, in himself.
How had Leo gotten so lucky?
“Tomorrow morning,” Leo said. “Let’s go for a run together.”
Usagi nodded slightly. Don let out a sleepy snuffle and burrowed closer to his rabbit pillow.
~*~
Before anyone else awoke, the two of them left the lair. Leo pinned a note to the fridge, explaining they’d gone out.
The city was still quiet, dawn a soft thing behind the clouds. Once they reached the rooftops, Usagi turned to Leo with mischief in his eyes.
“Shall we settle the eternal contest? Which of us is truly faster, the tortoise or the hare?”
“You’re on,” Leo grinned. He glanced around, then pointed to a gray rooftop in the distance. “First one there wins.”
“May victory go to the swiftest.”
They braced against the lip of the rooftop, and at the count of three the race began. True to form, Usagi hared off, soon a white blur several rooftops ahead. Leo chased after him, twin tails of his bandana flying in the wind as he soared from roof to roof. The gap between them narrowed, and three rooftops from their goal they were head to head.
Usagi’s eyes were drawn down like magnets to Leo’s bare legs, and he recalled Usagi’s groaned praise of his legs, how he loved to watch them move. Leo put on a burst of speed and leapt to the next rooftop, making sure Usagi got a full view of every flexing muscle in his calves and thighs. Usagi slowed, distracted, and Leo clinched the victory for turtlekind.
“Better luck next time, rabbit,” Leo grinned, panting from exertion.
“You cheated,” Usagi protested lightly. “I did not expect such dishonorable treachery.”
“I don’t know what you’re talking about.”
“Of course not. Well, I would be remiss if I did not give you your reward.”
Usagi pressed him against the shadowed wall of the roof bulkhead. They were nearly the same height, but Usagi’s ears gave him a slight edge. He cupped Leo’s face and reeled him in for a kiss. Leo’s arms came up to pull Usagi flush to him, close enough that he felt the rapid patter of his heart through his thin kimono. Unlike Leo, who ran cool, he radiated heat.
There was an edge of desperation to them both; in only a handful of days, Usagi would return to his own dimension. Things were quiet now, but Leo knew they wouldn’t remain calm forever. There was no telling the next time they’d be together like this.
Usagi’s mouth trailed down past his beak, laving kisses along the column of his throat. At an unexpected nip of teeth against his skin, Leo chirruped.
Leo’s hands slid down from Usagi’s waist to cup his ass, full and firm from a life of fighting. Usagi grinded against him, and Leo felt the hot press of his clothed member rubbing against his plastron.
Leo fumbled with the knot on Usagi’s belt, his fingers clumsy with lust. Usagi reached down to help, their hands brushing. Once it was untied, Usagi pushed down the waistband of his hakama enough to ease himself out. It was the only part of him where his white fur thinned to a dusting of fine hairs. His erection was flushed a dark red with desire, ending in a pink tip that Leo privately thought was cute but would never describe it as such to Usagi. It was thicker and shorter than Leo’s own, the head rounded whereas Leo’s was flared.
Leo stroked it experimentally, fingers gliding up and down the velvet heat. Pearls of precum beaded at the tip, until they grew too full and dribbled down his length. Usagi groaned, his teeth grinding together in something like a purr. Leo’s tail untucked, and began to wag.
“Leonardo—” Usagi panted. He kneaded Leo’s thighs before nudging them apart. “I want to see you.”
Leo dropped, earning a hum of appreciation from Usagi. The rabbit rutted against him, pressing his shell even firmer against the wall. He wrapped his hand around both of them. Leo shuddered. Usagi pumped them, pace fast but not quite fast enough, building Leo up to the precipice and keeping him dangling there. The pleasure was dizzying.
“Usagi, please just—” Leo cried out as Usagi squeezed tighter, his strokes growing hasty and sloppy. His head knocked back against the wall. “Usagi!”
Leo spilled over into Usagi’s hand, thoughts replaced with blissful static. His legs trembled, and Usagi braced him so he didn’t slide down the wall.
Usagi was still hard himself, his erection heavy and full between his legs, weeping steadily.
“Let—Let me—” Leo jerked him off, his hand slick with sweat and semen. Usagi’s grip dug into Leo’s sides as he thrust himself into Leo’s hand. His eyes were closed, his mouth parted slightly to show his pink tongue. Leo felt privileged to be the only one who saw Usagi like this, unburdened and vulnerable and his.
Usagi groaned Leo’s name as he came in his hand.
For a moment they clung to each other, breathing hard and trembling, until the haze of climax began to dissipate.
Usagi pressed a kiss to the side of Leo’s beak. “Was that an adequate reward?”
“That was—wow. Yeah.” Leo answered, intelligently.
The sun was stronger now, New York starting to bustle; it was high time they returned underground. They cleaned themselves up as best they could, then scaled down the fire escape to return to the sewers.
It was maybe half an hour’s stroll to the lair from where they entered the sewer. They laced their fingers together, and Leo let himself just have this moment. Only when they reached the front door did he reluctantly untangle their hands.
The others were awake, spread out around the lair. Mikey was finishing off breakfast as he watched TV on the couch. Raph leafed through a magazine nearby. Donnie emerged from his lab as Leo and Usagi came in, smudges on his hands. He pushed up his safety goggles as he looked them over.
Don got an expression on his face, frowning and analytical, one Leo recognized by now as his medic mode. “Did you get into a fight up there? With who?”
Leo raised an eye ridge. “No? We just went for a run, that’s all.”
“Then what are those bruises…” Don’s eyes widened. He clammed up, face darkening with a fierce blush.
Leo’s hand flew up to his neck, remembering how Usagi had kissed and nipped at his skin. “Usagi!” He hissed.
Usagi’s fur bristled in the way it did when he was mortified. “I didn’t intend to—my apologies—”
“Actually yeah Don,” Leo said quickly, face burning. “I didn’t want to worry you so I wasn’t going to bring it up. We stopped a mugging on the way home, but we just got cuts and bruises, nothing serious—”
“Oh give it up,” Raph called from over on the couch, not looking up from his car magazine. “We all know you’ve been swapping spit with the furball.”
Mikey did a spit take, orange juice shooting directly out of his mouth and nose and spraying all over the coffee table. Raph leaned away from him, scowling.
“WHAT!” Mikey yelled.
“You knew?” Leo sputtered. “But I—but we—”
“Everyone knew,” said Raph.
“I didn’t!” Mikey coughed, juice dripping off his chin.
“Correction. Everyone with two brain cells to rub together knew.”
“Hey!”
“Was it supposed to be a secret? You two have been making goo goo eyes at each other all week. It’s been nauseatin’”
Leo flinched, and Don quickly stepped in.
“What Raph is trying to say is that we’re happy for you, Leo. For both of you.”
“But how did you know?” He’d been so careful, walking a tightrope between friendly and too friendly all week.
The tap of Master Splinter’s walking stick echoed as he approached.
“Like a cough, love cannot be hidden,” Splinter said serenely. More frankly, he added: “And my son, you have absolutely no poker face.”
“Father, I…” Leo bowed his head, awaiting Splinter’s judgement. Usagi, sensing his change in demeanor, shifted closer to Leo in a show of support.
“Leonardo. You have chosen wisely. I can think of no one better suited to you.”
Leo blinked once. Twice.
“So you’re okay with this? You’re…all okay with it?”
Donnie nodded, smiling. Mikey bounded over to them.
“Okay with it? This is awesome! It means Usagi will be coming over more often, right? I gotta get him caught up on the latest comics.”
Raph finally set his magazine down and walked up to the group. Leo eyed him warily.
“Yeah, congrats or whatever.” Raph brandished his sai at Usagi. “But if you hurt my brother, I’m making rabbit stew.”
“Raph!” Leo exclaimed, scandalized.
“The proper name for the dish is hasenpfeffer,” said Don, picking up his bo staff almost absentmindedly. “I can send you some recipes.”
Even Mikey got in on the shovel talk, giving a cartoonishly evil chuckle as he rubbed his hands together. “And you can count on sous chef Mike to help.”
“You guys,” Leo despaired.
Splinter chuckled.
Usagi murmured close to Leo’s ear. “You see? Nothing to worry about.”
There really wasn’t, was there? Leo twisted around and kissed Usagi chastely, briefly, but even that was enough to elicit groans from his brothers at the mushy display.
His worries evaporated beneath the warm, instant acceptance from his family. They’d be alright.