literature

100 Themes Challenge - 031 -No Way Out

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Splinter watched his sons through the open doorway to his private quarters. Uncertainty and apprehension whirred around in his brain like a relentless ache.

Six years old. They were only six; only three years since toddler years and little more than half of a decade old. Could he really leave the little fellows alone? After all, he remembered the first time he had been trusted to stay home by himself, he had been no younger than thirteen, a teenager. But four six-year-old boys, alone in their secret home, their secret existence for two, even three hours, while he strayed miles away, uncertain that he would even return for them? Why was he even considering such an absurdity?

Michelangelo zipped past the doorway, his orange blanket tied around his neck and flowing behind him as a cape.

“Woosh!”

That was why. He had always relied on a good two-hour nap time as his golden opportunity to leave their lair and scavenge supplies for their daily needs, but as their years expanded, their naps condensed a little at a time. At this point to where they would stay asleep little more than forty-five minutes. Granted they slept better at night, but little could be accomplished by the hard-pressed father in the hours of the night. Plus, it would do his sons little good to be raised by a nocturnal father; providing for them in the night while they slept, but absent and sleeping the days away.

With a sigh, he slung his bag over his shoulder and emerged from his quarters.

Again, Michelangelo 'wooshed' past him with an also caped Raphael on his heels and was caught in mid-'fly' and hoisted onto his father's hip.

“Oh no!” Mikey squealed. “The Evil Rat-Man's got me!”

His three brothers, capes flowing behind them, rushed to his aid and attempted to climb Splinter's kimono.

“We'll save you, Mikey!” Leo announced.

Splinter chuckled. “Yes, but you all must settle down. 'Evil Rat-Man' has to speak with you.”

All boys, without complaint, sat in a circle around his feet on the floor. He sat Indian style before them and set his youngest in his lap.

“Are we in trouble?” Raphael piped up.

Splinter shook his head. “No, you are not. The time has come when I am willing to obtain supplies for us while you boys are awake.”

Four pairs of eyes widened as the underdeveloped brains behind them tried to comprehend if their father really meant what they thought he meant.

“You mean,” Leo began, “you're gonna leave us home alone without us being asleep or you watching us?”

“We can do whatever we want?” Mikey asked, a glimmer of hope in his baby blue eyes.

“Yes, Leonardo, but no, Michelangelo,” he answered carefully. “I will trust you boys to stay here without sleep or supervision, but that absolutely does not mean that you may do whatever you want.”

Raph huffed. “There's gonna be lots of rules, huh?”

Splinter set Michelangelo beside him.

“You had better believe it,” he said. “First off, Leonardo is in charge.”

Donatello and Raphael looked to their father with utter disbelief.

“Why?!”

“Because, my sons, he is the oldest and most responsible of the four of you,” Splinter explained. “I trust that he will look after all of you.”

“I don't need Leo to look after me,” Raph argued. “I'm not a baby! Mikey and Donnie are the ones who need babysitting!”

Mikey and Donnie shot him resentful glares.

“Shut up, Raph!” Donnie retorted. “I'm not a baby either! I'm the smartest, so I should be in charge!”

“Enough!”

All four eyes snapped back to their father.

“Leonardo is in charge. That is final. You are to listen to him, and if you do not, then you will answer to me, understood?”

The younger two boys nodded, but Raphael just huffed and glared at the floor.

“Is that understood, Raphael?”

Raph sighed. “Hai, Sensei.”

“Good. Now here are the rules; first, no snacking. Just because I am not here, does not mean that the food is a free-for-all. You will wait until I return and I make dinner. Second, no rough-housing. If one of you is to have an accident and be hurt, I will not be here to tend to you. Third, stay out of the water. As always, I do not want you playing in the water without my attendance. Most importantly, do not leave the lair for any reason.”

Mikey raised his hand. “Not even if we gotta come find you?”

Splinter briskly shook his head. “No. There will be no need for you to come find me. I will return shortly, and anything that you may need from me must wait until then.”


Mikey dropped his hand. “Hai, Sensei.”

“We'll be good, Papa. We promise,” Leo reassured.

Splinter looked around to all of their little faces, each presenting a sweet, reassuring smile. That is, with the exception of Raphael who was still brooding over Leonardo being put in charge instead of him. The truth was, though, that Splinter just did not trust his second oldest son. He barely trusted him to listen, let alone be in charge. It was not Raphael alone that he did not trust either. He didn't trust Donatello nor Michelangelo, mainly because neither of them were mature enough. Though he could not deny that Donatello was remarkably intelligent, his smarts did nothing for the fact that he was still one up from the baby of the family.

He smiled warmly. He could not count on them to be in charge, but he could certainly count on at least the youngest two to behave. He leaned over and pecked Mikey on the forehead.

“Of course you will,” he said and then moved on to kiss the other three. Raphael begrudgingly accepted the affection, but even still Splinter could sense him shift away the slightest bit. “I love you all and I will return soon.”

“Love you too, papa!” Mikey chirped.

Splinter slung his satchel over his shoulder and left the lair.

Mikey hopped back to his feet and adjusted his 'cape'.

“Okay, now let's get back to playing superheroes!”

“No, Mikey,” Leo began to untie his 'cape', “Sensei said no rough-housing and I'm pretty sure superheroes counts as rough-housing.”

Raphael crossed his arms in a huff. “Well what do you wanna do, Captain Goody-Good?”

Leo gave him that sickening 'good boy' smile that Raph detested. That same stupid smile that always got him what he wanted and got everyone on his side.

“Why don't we just play a nice board game?”

Mikey's face lit up. “Yeah! We could play Candyland or Chutes and Ladders!”

Raph blew a raspberry. “Bor-ring!”

“Those games are for babies! If we're gonna play a game, why don't we play something more constructive like Trivial Pursuit or Scattegories?” Donnie suggested.

Raph made a gagging sound.

“That's not fair! You know I can't read very good...” Mikey protested.

Donnie shrugged. “So what? We'll work in teams and Leo can help you.”

“Well who says I wanna play that either?” Raph snarled.

Leo stood up. “Guys, enough! I'm in charge, and I say, we're gonna play Candyland.”

Raph and Donnie shot a glare at their oldest brother.

“Uh-uh!”

“No way!”

Leo crossed his arms. “Too bad. I'm in charge and I say we're not playing superheroes because we're not allowed to rough-house and we're not playing Trivial Pursuit or Scattegories because no one else wants to play it. That's two to one to one, so Candyland it is.” He looked to his beaming youngest brother. “Mikey, go get the game.”

“Yay!” Mikey ripped off his cape and let it fall to the ground in a heap as he sprinted out of the room to go find the board game.

Donnie was dejected, but Raphael was fuming. Why did Leo get to be in charge of him? He was just as grown up and responsible as his so-called 'older' brother. Didn't Sensei know that Leo is the most boring person on the planet? He couldn't really expect them to follow all of his rules while he left his lame goody-two-shoes brother in charge. Leo would bore them out of their wits! He wouldn't allow them to do anything fun.

“Well I've got a good game,” he piped up.

“What is it?” Leo asked. “At least most of us have to agree on it.”

“Let's go play hide-and-seek in the sewers!”

Leo huffed. “Raph, we're not allowed to leave the lair. You know-”

“You're it, Leo! Come and find me!”

“Raph, wait!”

Before Leo could even take the notion to run after him, Raph disappeared from the dojo and then from the lair and into the sewers.

Mikey scampered back into the room clutching the game box to his chest.

“I got da game!”

He was nearly knocked back on his shell when Leonardo zipped past him.

“We'll have to play Candyland later, Mikey!” he shouted as he ran for the lair's exit. “I gotta go get Raph! Donnie, you're in charge!”

Donnie gave Mikey a wicked gap-toothed grin.

“Now I'm in charge. First order of business: Trivial Pursuit!”

-------

“Raph! Raphael!” Leo walked through dark tunnel after dark tunnel, hoping for any trace of his red-banded brother. “Raphael, this isn't funny! Come on! You're gonna get us both in trouble!”

Leonardo wondered about that last statement. Would he really get in trouble if he were caught and explained that he was merely searching for his wayward brother? Splinter couldn't actually expect him to just stay in the lair and wait until his father returned while Raph roamed the sewers, risking being caught by humans, getting lost, or getting hurt. How responsible would that be? No, he was put in charge of his brothers so he had to do what his father would do.

One thing he knew Splinter would do is try to sniff out the scent of Raph. He perked his nose in the air and inhaled carefully, paused, and then tried again. Nothing. There was no distinct scent other than the monotonous scent of human waste flowing all around him. He groaned.

“Hamato Mamoru Raphael, where are you?!”

His frustration rose exponentially. Raph was so rotten, and not just when Leo had to watch him, however short those times may have lasted. He didn't listen well to their father either. He remembered two little characters he read about in a Dr. Seuss book, Thing One and Thing Two. Rascally little fellows who were known for doing the exact opposite of what you tell them. That was Raphael if he was a fictional character. Sensei said 'Raphael, clean your room', and he would just go in there and play, managing to make it worse. Sensei said 'Raphael, put your plate in the sink when you're done'; the plate remained on the table. Sensei said 'Raphael, clean off the seat if you miss'; the seat stayed yucky and Leo sat in pee. If only he could tell Raph to do the opposite of what he wanted him to do and Raph would do what he was supposed to.

“Raph, come on dude! Where are you?!”

“Hello?” An unfamiliar voice laced with a thick New York accent echoed in response.

Leo's heart skipped.

“Hello? Is there kid down there? Can you hear me?”

Humans. The biggest reason why he was forbidden from going into the sewers alone and there they were possibly less than a few feet away. They could even be in the next tunnel over.

Splinter's warning flashed through his brain. He imagined those humans discovering him, snatching him up, locking him in a cage and carrying him away, never to see his family again. No way that he could scream for his father to come and save him, for he would only, by some sort of miracle, be able to hear him.

“Listen, buddy, don't move! We'll find ya!”

Leo thawed from his frozen state and sprinted off in the direction from which he came. He ran aimlessly through tunnel, after tunnel, after tunnel, praying under every pant that he would not turn a corner and come face-to-face with the human he'd heard.

When his lungs could take no more, he stopped. He leaned against the wall for support as his lungs tried to keep up with his heartbeat. He hoped with all that he was that those humans wouldn't start searching the tunnels for some lost kid, and they would just give up and assume they had only imagined the sound of his voice.

Once his rapid panting began to slow, he could just make out the sound of sobbing and sniffling. He held his breath a moment so as to better hear his surroundings.

hicc-hicc...sniffle...

Someone nearby was crying. Could it have been Raph? Raph. Oh no, the humans. What if the humans already got him? He had to move toward the crying.

He began to move soundlessly as he had been taught.

-------

Donatello turned the faucet and the water ceased to flow. He turned to Mikey who stood behind him, stripped of his bandana, his arms crossed and his expression in a pout.

“Okay now, Mikey, get in the tub,” he ordered.

“No!”

“Come on, Mikey, I'm in charge now and I say it's time for a bath.”

Mikey didn't budge. “No! You take a bath!”

Donnie sighed. “Don't be like this, Mikey. You love baths.”

Mikey stomped his foot. “I'm not a baby and you're not my papa!” He plopped down to the floor and crossed his legs to signify that he was not moving.

“No, but I am in charge and I gotta make sure you're clean.” He lowered his voice to a modest whisper. “I promise I won't wash your privates.”

Mikey growled. “No!”

Donnie got behind Mikey and wrapped his arms under Mikey's and clamped on his middle as he tried to pull him up.

“NO!” Mikey screamed.

Donnie tried to drag him to the tub, but Mikey squirmed and kicked his feet.

“DONNIE, PUT ME DOWN!”

“No,” Donnie struggled, “i-it's bath...time!”

Mikey's weight finally slipped through Donnie's arms to where Donnie only had a hold of him by his arms. Mikey pulled them free in time, crawled under Donnie's feet, and sprinted out of the bathroom.

Donnie stomped his foot in frustration. “Mikey! No!” He ran after him. “You need to take a bath!”

--------

hiccup...sniffle...

Leo followed the sound of the sobbing all the way to a giant pipe. He could hear his own heartbeat beginning to speed up as he drew near the dark opening. He bent down and cautiously peered inside.

Hicc-hicc...

Leo could just make out the familiar shelled form curled up against the side of the pipe, sobbing into his knees.

“Raph?”

Raph looked up with a start.

“L-leo...?” He hastily tried to wipe away his tears and clear his throat. He gave him a wan smile. “Looks l-like you f-found me.”

Raph didn't have to see him clearly to know that Leonardo was glaring at him.

Leo crawled into the pipe and stopped beside him.

“Yeah, you're lucky I did too,” he scolded. “What were you thinking, Raph? You could have been caught!”

“I didn't wanna play that stupid game,” Raph argued. “Hide-n-seek is way better.”

Leo crossed his arms. “Oh, is that why you were in here crying?”

“I...I wasn't crying! I was, um...” Raph shook his head. “Whatever! Do you know how to get home?”

Leo suddenly looked dejected. “N-no, um, I don't-”

“Here, we are Joe. This is where the old water main is.”

Both boys felt their hearts in their throats. There were humans and they were right outside the pipe.

“Alright, well let's hurry up and saw it out of there. The quicker we get that done, the quicker we can go on lunch.”

Leo instinctively drew closer to Raph and squeezed him.

“Uh-oh...”

--------

Donnie stood beside Mikey's bed tapping his foot. His baby brother had crawled under there in his haste to avoid a bath and Donnie, being the one in charge, was not about to stoop to that level and crawl under there after him.

“Michelangelo, I'm gonna count to three,” he warned.

“No!”

“One...”

“Go away!”

“Two...”

“NO NO NO NO!”

“Three!”

Donnie dropped to the floor and reached under the bed. In spite of Mikey biting at his hands, he managed to get a hold of one of his wrists and drag him against the turtle-printed rug.

“You're gonna take a bath whether you like it or not!”

“NO!”

Once Donnie got Mikey close enough, he used his other hand to pinch his pressure point just under his jawline. Mikey instantly fell subdued against his own will and Donnie was able to drag him the rest of the way out from under the bed.

Donnie kept his hold as he aided him to his feet and drug him off to the bathroom. He didn't let him go until he got him to the edge of the tub and as soon as Mikey was released he tried to make a run for it, but Donnie leaped in front of him and blocked the doorway.

“No, Mikey, stop it! Get in the bathtub right now!”

“No! You're not my papa!”

Donnie sighed. He did not want to resort to bribery, but his little brother was relentless and showed no signs of complying any time soon.

“Alright, Mikey, if I promise to give you a snack, will you take a bath?”

Mikey crossed his arms. “I'm listening...”

---------

The sound of a jackhammer filled the air around Leo and Raph. They huddled their trembling bodies close together.

“W-what do we do now, Leo?”

Leo stared at the top of the pipe hoping for an answer. Anything.

The terrifying raddling of the jackhammer increased tenfold when it made contact with the outside of the pipe. Leo didn't even know how he was able to hear the whimper escape from his brother's throat.

He looked deeper into the pipe. They could climb in deeper, but where would it go?

The end of the jackhammer came through the concrete and the boys all but suppressed their screams. So much for climbing further in. Leo didn't know what that thing was, but it looked like if it hit one of them, it could end them. He turned his gaze to the entrance of the pipe and contemplated, but there was no time to think. It was the only way.

“Raphael,” he commanded, “grab my hand and follow my lead. Whatever you do, don't slow down, and don't look back!”

Raph swallowed hard, and though looking doubtful, he nodded.

“One...two...three!”

On three, Leo jerked Raph to the end of the pipe and they leaped out. Both sets of feet hit the ground running.

“What the hell?!”

Leo hadn't expected the second human to be standing at the end of the pipe, but it didn't matter. He didn't stop and he didn't even bother to glance at him. He squeezed Raph's hand tighter and the two disappeared into the darkness, aimlessly putting distance between them and their worst fear.

---------

Splinter pushed through the turnstiles to find himself in an eerily quiet lair. He glanced around, finding his home to be exactly the way he had left it.

“Boys?” he called. “Where are you?”

He first decided he should check the dojo since that was where he'd last seen them. When he peeked in, though, all he found were four blankets strewn about on the mats.

“Boys?”

As he walked down the hallway, his keen hearing picked up the faint sound of splashing coming from the bathroom.

He rolled his eyes. He should have known that they would try that. He told them not to play in the sewer water, but he had not said anything about playing in the bathtub.

When he entered the bathroom, he was surprised to find only two of his sons.

Donatello was leaning over the edge of the tub and scrubbing down a contented looking Michelangelo who appeared to be eating cookies with one in each hand.

“Donatello, Michelangelo...”

Mikey's eyes lit up upon seeing him. “Papa! You're home!”

Upon closer examination, Splinter noticed the entire package of cookies floating around in the tub and several soggy ones floating around Mikey.

“What is the meaning of this?”

Donnie hadn't expected his father to not be pleased with his actions.

“Well, Leo put me in charge and I though that Mikey needed a bath,” he explained sheepishly.

Splinter crossed his arms. “Leonardo put you in charge? Did he go somewhere?”

“Yeah,” Mikey piped up, “he went to go find Raphie 'cuz Raphie ran away.”

Splinter's heart dropped to his stomach. His boys were out there in the sewers by themselves? Images of his boys being taken, caged, dissected, even killed, flashed through his brain. Such morbid and devastating thoughts would forever haunt him.

He dropped to his knees and pulled the plug from the tub and without grabbing the towel, lifted a soaking wet Michelangelo from the tub.

“How long have they been gone for?” he asked as he hastily pulled the towel off of the toilet lid and wiped Mikey down.

“They've been gone almost as long as you have,” Donnie replied, wondering if he would be in trouble as he knew that they would be.

Splinter shook his head and hoisted Mikey up onto his hip.

“Alright, come with me.”

He led Donatello off through the lair and into his own quarters where he lay Mikey down on the bed and gestured for Donatello to lie beside him. He covered them with the heavy comforter and tucked them in tightly.

“Papa, it's not bedtime,” Mikey protested.

“No, it is not, but listen to me,” his voice was laced with urgency. “You boys, stay here. Do not leave this bed and do not leave this room for anything. Do you understand?”

Donnie nodded. “Hai, Sensei.”

“Okay, Papa...”

“Do your father a favor and just rest for a while,” Splinter practically pleaded.

---------

Leo and Raph felt like they'd run for miles before their little legs forced them to stop running. It wasn't until then that Raph realized that he was still holding his brother's hand, at which point he snatched it away.

“Y-you think...” he panted. “You think w-we lost 'em?”

“I'm n-not...not sure they w-were even chasing us.”

Leo finally looked at his surroundings and to his dismay, none of it looked familiar. They lost the humans, but they also managed to further lose their way.

“Where are we?” Raph asked.

Leo shook his head. “I have no idea, dude.” He thought of their father and wondered if they'd ever be found, if they would ever see him again. “I wonder if Sensei is home yet. Maybe if we hurry, we can try and find our way home before he ever knows we were gone.”

“I am afraid it is too late for that, Leonardo.”

The familiar stern voice was enough to get the two settling hearts to begin to race again. Raph and Leo turned to find their father towering over them, his belt being held in one hand and resting on the other.

“S-sensei, um...” Leo stammered, “y-you found us! Uh, h-hurray!”

Raph grinned sheepishly and clapped his hands.

“Yay for Sensei!”

“Leonardo, why don't you enlighten me on my most important rule?”

“Um, n-no rough-housing?”

Splinter crossed his arms and glared deeper.


“Listen Papa,” Leo began, “I only left because Raph-”

“What was my rule, Leonardo?”

Leo sighed. “Don't leave the lair for any reason.”

Splinter tapped his belt against his palm.

“Then let me direct you back to it,” he growled. “It is just around that corner.”

Leo and Raph looked to the end of the tunnel that Splinter had gestured to. Raph yelped when the leather slapped against the back of his thigh and before Leo could comprehend what had happened, he was struck too and then each of them again.

The boys then took the hint and began pacing their way back to the lair with their hands covering their hind ends.

-----------

“Jimmy, I'm tellin' ya, I saw it!”

Jimmy crossed his arms.

“You're tellin' me that you saw two little human-like reptiles run out of that pipe and disappear into the sewers?”

Joe threw his arms in the air. “That's what I said itn't it? They just ran out of the pipe and ran for their lives!”

Jimmy rubbed the bridge of his nose. “Joe, you gotta quit smokin' that funny stuff.”
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you should do a sequel to this?