Family Meeting [Tag: Hamato Clan]

"That was for your foolishness. What if you didn't come home that night? I know you and Leonardo have your differences, but you should've called for reinforcements. You were not ready to face with the Shredder. If you wish to defeat the Shredder then you need to be willing to work with your brothers and that means compromising." For years he had tried to be reasonable with his hot headed son. For years he had helped trained, meditate, to help him control this darkness in him.

Leonardo and Raphael had their fair share of scuffles. Usually Donatello is the one who tried to play referee, sometimes it is Splinter who has to be the one who tries to talk sense to them both. Splinter could sense the power struggle becoming more and more tense. How long would it be before the two of them snap and one of them gets hurt?

After those words were said, he turned to Donatello. Splinter had been deeply concerned about his technologically minded son,"Donatello, you also came home rather late. Were you aware that Michelangelo came by himself? What if he had gotten hurt or worse, captured by the Foot? It is also not right for you to keep something from me." He peered at his purple clad son,"Tell me, what is on your mind? What kept you?"

As expected, Don knew it would be his turn coming up. But, he still didn't think he did anything wrong. He only made a bad judgment. It could have costed him his life, but Don was still confident that he could have handled it -- with or without Raphael.

"Yes, I was aware of that, Sensei," he began, taking a deep breath and let it out slowly. "I sent him back here since Raph was coming with me." He paused again, this time glancing at Mike with an apologetic expression before turning back to his father.

"There was this female mutant cat. She wanted some food and shelter, and that's what I did. Then, after I found someplace for her to stay, she...she attacked me." He didn't really want to put blame on Love, but there was no way around it. Master Splinter was the best live lie-detector there was. Don couldn't even build anything remotely close to it.

"Raph wasn't far away and he saved me. We talked to the woman. Then we left." He knew he was leaving out some parts, but he already got a lecture from Raph about the woman's eating habits. He really didn't want to hear another one about it. He felt bad enough about it as it was.

Splinter paused for a moment, reflecting on his son's explanation. It is rare that they come across a mutant. Most of the mutants had been shunned like they were and are now in hiding. You think he would be wanting to ally himself with these mutants, but he wasn't so sure if they are on their side. Most mutants become feral and allow their animal instinct to take over. It horrified him that Donatello was left alone with this female. A part of him felt relieved Raphael was there to intervene.

"While I commend you for your trying to help this woman, I would also advice you to be mindful next time. That doesn't excuse the fact that she took advantage of your kindness. There are a lot of women in this world who don't understand us and would try to use us for their own personal gain. Yes, I understand she is a fellow mutant, but we cannot trust them, whether they are mutants or human."

He glanced at Raphael, looking at him for an answer.

Leo stood outside the lair door for a moment then after a few calming breaths, walked in quietly. The lair was quiet but he could hear Master Splinter talking in the distence. He followed the voice and peeked in the door way.

I'm home. He said quietly with his head down. I'm sorry i worried you all.

Raphael fully agreed with his father that they couldn't trust just anyone, even mutants. But of course Donnie had left out some pretty important facts about Love...

"Yeah, you especially can't trust cannibals.." He shot a glance in Donnie's direction, then looked at his father. "She was eatin' people.. and turtles before she was mutated, so the bitch...I mean, girl was already crazy. She can't blame it on instinct." Yeah, he realized that he shouldn't have cursed in front of his father, but sometimes the words just came out. Swearing was as natural as breathing for the Red-clad reptile. "But Donnie here thinks she's just gonna give it up... psychos can't just drop their craziness..."

Before he could continue, Leo finally made his appearance. Just the sight of him sent Raphael's blood pressure through the roof. He wanted to tear into his brother, but he was already in the hot seat and his father was hovering too close for comfort with that damn cane of his...


"...about damn time..."

Splinter whirled around. There, standing at the entrance of the dojo, was his son, Leonardo. He understood why he was home late. He wanted to talk to the boy later, but right now he wanted to finish this conversation with Donatello. Listening to Raphael mentioning "cannibals" made his eyes grow wide in horror. Splinter would've overlooked this issue had she just been another female mutant, but a cannibal? This isn't good. What if she had eaten his son?

"Cannibalism has, and never will be, a part of anyone's instinct. It is a barbaric ritual. It may had been natural for certain parts of the world, but we are not from that world. We come from a civilized world where we are taught right from wrong. To eat another person's flesh meant slaughtering an innocent. There is a reason why this is taboo. Who knows how many countless innocent lives had been lost just to satisfy this mutant woman's hunger?" With an angry shake of his head he continued, "I understand you wish to help her, but I suggest you stay away from this woman. One of these days you are going to wind up on her dinner plate."

Splinter didn't want to admit it, but he is horrified by this discovery. In several cases when one becomes mutated their psychology changes. Most are driven to madness. Each passing day the mutant slowly loses his or her humanity as they allow their primitive instincts to take over. He doesn't have an answer for why this mutant woman had a taste for blood. Was it on instinct? Absolutely not. Could she had been taught? Perhaps. This is an issue he needs to meditate on. It is overwhelming to know that there is a mutant lurking around eating humans and most likely, killing other mutants.

This is something he should meditate on. He didn't want his son taking any action whatsoever. He hoped Donatello takes his advice to heart.

Michelangelo also turned to see Leo. His face lit up, "Leo!" The youngest turtle is thrilled to see that his brother arrived in one piece. He knew Lexi wasn't a bad person. Raphael just needed to lighten up and stop being so paranoid about every single human they come across. Sure, they scream at the sight of them, but they couldn't give up on humans just for that reason. They will accept them soon enough.

Mikey's nose wrinkled in disgust. So the cat woman actually eats humans and turtles? Gross. He was lucky that he didn't keep her as a pet after all. If he had then it would be bye bye Mikey. It would've been bye bye Don. No doubt Raph followed after him and is grateful that he did. He always thought Donnie is the smartest of the lot, how can he had fallen for that ruse? Donnie is supposed to be smarter then that.

Leave it to Raph to make things worse than they already were.  Now Don knew he was in trouble.  "It's not impossible to change someone like that, Sensei.  Yes, it would take a lot of work, but I know I can help her."  He was quite confident in that fact.

"I didn't know she was a cannibal at first.  And, after she attacked me, she could have finished me.  But she didn't.  That's why I know it's not too late to try saving her."  Don knew the rest of his family wouldn't understand.  There was just something about this woman that made him think they could beat the odds.

Then Leo came home.  Now maybe the spotlight would be taken off Don and more focused on the Turtle that really deserved the punishment.  Leo was the biggest offender, by far.  Donnie saw more than just a lecture in Leo's very near future.

"She woulda finished you if I hadn't showed up!" Raphael seethed. Last night Donnie seemed willing to admit that maybe, just maybe it wasn't meant for him to help her. It seemed that fate was even trying to force his hand the other way. And now, it was back to this! Yeah, Raph was getting pissed all over again. Not only by Leo and his poor choices, but Donnie, too.


"..both of you dumbasses are gonna get us killed..."

Don narrowed his eyes at Raph.  "I had things under control, Raph.  You showed up about five-point six seconds after the fact."  Not that he wasn't grateful for his brother's intervention.  And Don wasn't reverting back to his original decision, either.  He was very wary of the woman.  He wanted to help her, even tried to convince himself that he could, but in the end, who was he really fooling?  No one.

But Don still couldn't completely back down to his brother in red.  Sure, Raph had a point, but Don wasn't foolish enough to go through with this on his own.  He wanted to believe in Love's ability to change, but even he had his doubts.  It was an experiment, nothing more.  However, if Don didn't try to help her, then more innocents might be killed.

Sparing her life had been both a blessing and a curse.  Hopefully it wouldn't come back and bite him hard in the tail.  He had given her a second chance, but it was just that...a chance.  Maybe it was a foolish move after all.

Splinter felt grateful that Raphael came to aid Donatello. If it wasn't for him he would've been dinner for this mutant. He gave Raphael a warm, relieved smile. Now he regretted giving him a whack with his cane, but he needed it. His son does have a tendency to be cocky.

"You seem to believe that you can save this woman. Rehabilitation takes a lot of time and most likely, she might have a relapse. So I wouldn't raise your hopes up, Donatello. There is a possibility she could go back to her old eating habits." Donatello seemed very eager to go through with his experiment, but what if it didn't work? What if it failed? What if she attacks him again? "Even if the rehabilitation were a success, I still suggest to avoid this woman. I don't want anything to happen to you, Donatello." He placed both clawed hands on Donatello's shoulders, a look of seriousness on his face.

Don understood why Master Splinter wanted him to stay away from that woman. But, he really couldn't. "Sensei, I know why you want me to stay away from this woman. But, if I don't help her, who will? If I'm not there to set her straight, she'll only kill again." And any of her next victims' blood would be on his hands. He couldn't let that happen.

Splinter sighed. His son's heart is in the right place, buts it quite obvious that his tunnel vision is taking over common sense. "Donatello, although your heart is in the right place, you can't save everyone you encounter. Yes, their lives were lost to this woman, but don't go thinking that the blood is on your hands if you don't help this woman. So please, promise me, that you will not go near her." The voice is stern. He hoped his voice of reason would get through to his stubborn son.

Don nodded, sighing then looking down at the floor. "Alright, Master Splinter. I won't see her anymore." He still would feel responsible for any other blood the woman shed since he spared her life. And without him giving her the support and resources she needed in order to change, it was very likely Don's efforts thus far would backfire on him.

Now it was time to turn to his blue bandanna son. The one whom he appointed as protector of this group. The air in the room turned grim. While Leonardo did gave him an explanation, it still didn't change the fact that he wasn't thinking clearly. Sometimes the wise rodent kept forgetting that they were teenagers, not warriors. The outside world has tempted them one too many times. Of course his oldest would disobey him. Out of all of them, Leonardo yearned to walk with the humans, but no matter how many times he talked to the leader in blue, Leonardo still persists on this quest for fitting in.

Splinter had never understood the whole 'fitting in with the mold' concept. Perhaps it was because he never lived life as an outsider, until he came into contact with that mysterious substance that they affectionately called 'ooze'. He learned how quickly human beings fear those that are different then they are. And this is something that he had warned his sons, again and again.

Back to the present, Splinter turned to Leonardo,"You and I will talk in private." He made a gesture to a makeshift room that he had made for himself. Turning to the other three he added,"Don't go anywhere. I will decide on your punishments as soon as I finish talking with your brother." He nodded at Leonardo.

So the cat woman was eating people. And had attacked Don? Well now he felt bad. The woman didn't look like she could do much harm, but she was a mutant so who knew what her strenth level was. He would talk to Don later about it. Right now it seemed that he was in the hot seat. He looked at his father and nodded.

Leo took a step back from the door and followed Splinter into the other room. He kneeled down and waited for the lecture.

Splinter's room is nothing fancy, but he tried to make it comfortable. Wall scrolls written in kanji are plastered on the walls, a mattress laid out in the middle of the floor, perfect for meditation. Incense burners sat unused. Splinter knelt down on this mattress and cleared his throat. The rodent didn't want to raise his voice at his son, Leonardo, but he had him worried to death. But it still doesn't excuse his irresponsible behavior.

Leonardo, I had raised you in the art of ninjitsu. I appointed you as leader of your group. It is expected that you would set an example for your brothers. Instead, you come home late at night to hang around with...'friends'. I didn't appoint you as leader just so you can play around. Leonardo, how many times do I have to tell you that the world above us is dangerous? The least you could do is explain yourself."

and here it was, the lecture. yes he was leader. yes he had to serve as an example to the others. But maybe he didn't want that responsiblity. Maybe he didn't want to be leader. Yes he was honored that he was chosen and hoped to do his job as leader well. But as they got older, he seemed needed less. And hanging out with some friends didn't seem wrong. Every teen hung out with friends. why should he be any different?

Of course he wouldn't say any of this. No he wasn't allowed to have friends. He wasn't allowed to have crushes on girls. he wasn't allowed to play. He had a family to protect. Those that counted on him, maybe a bit too much. He was growing tired of it all.

I meat a girl named Lexi and her friends. we hung out then a girl name Mikko came around and caused some trouble. so I stood the night to make sure everything was ok.

Lexi? So that is what the young woman is called. The wise rodent is reluctant to trust these new 'friends' of his. Then again, if this Lexi had been using his son then he wouldn't have come home safely. Perhaps...maybe this time, he can have a word with this young woman. Leonardo simply was only trying to help her.

With that in mind Splinter said,"Be that as it may, you abandoned your duties and must be hold accountable for it. However, I would very much would like to talk to this...Lexi." Splinter doesn't know whether or not he should trust Lexi. He wants to speak with her and see what kind of person Lexi is and see if she can give him her word that she would not hurt his son in any way.

It is quite obvious that Leonardo has a crush on this girl. With a huge sigh Splinter continued,"I'm well aware of your desire to walk with the humans above. Not all humans are like Ms. O'Neil and Mr. Jones. I know you are restless and wish to be a normal teenager, but keep in mind that you don't look like everyone else. Love is...it maybe a beautiful thing, but it can lead to great tragedy. Look what happened between me and Tang Shen. So don't raise your hopes up. I don't want to see you end up with a broken heart."

With that out of the way, Splinter contemplated on the punishments each of the boys would receive. Michelangelo would get off since he has done nothing wrong. Donatello's sentence might have to be lighter, but as for Raphael and Leonardo, sadly, those two might have to spend a few moments in 'turtle time out', as his pop culture enthusiastic son would say. It looked like the Haashi for Leonardo and Raphael, possibly even for Donatello, but only for a few minutes.

Splinter dismissed Leonardo. Getting up has proven to be difficult in old age, but his cane managed to helped him to get to his feet. Steadying himself, he walked out of his room and turned to his sons.

"Leonardo, Raphael, Donatello. You three will be sentenced to the Haashi. I'm sorry I have to do this, but Raphael, your actions were foolish. Donatello, you could've gotten hurt or worse. Leonardo, you abandoned your position in favor of fooling around. Leonardo and Raphael, you would spend two hours on the Haashi. Donatello would receive the maximum of one hour. Michelangelo, you are free to go."

He watched his youngest son get up to his feet and practically run out of the dojo. Quite clearly he didn't want to face his brother's wrath.

Well that was harsh. And Leo was tired of being different. He wanted to hang out with his friends, get to know Lexi better. How was he suppose to find any kind of love if he couldn't even spend time with anyone? And now he was being punished? That wasn't fair. He did nothing wrong. Oh no poor brothers couldn't survive one night without him. That's not his problem. He was so sick of having to do what was right.

And what was right anyway? obeying orders for the rest of his life? What kind of life was that. That's what the foot and the dragons did. Followed orders and he was trying to get people away from that life. Yet he couldn't save himself from it. Leo's anger was building up and he didn't like it. He didn't like feeling this way. and it was agsint his own family. was this how Raph felt all the time? No wonder he was always cranky.

He had to stand up and say something. He was the leader right? Then maybe it was time for him to lead.

I don't think I or my brothers deserve that. Leo finally said as he stood up from his spot. Yes Raph shouldn't have gone for Shredder alone but any of us would have probably done the same. And Don was just trying to help a fellow mutant why should he be punished for that. And I have friends. I'm being punished because for one night I wanted to hang out with other people. You said I was the leader. So let me actually lead.

So, he was getting time in the Hashi.... for what?? For trying to protect his family? What kind of bullshit was that?! Yeah, he had gone up against the Shredder. He had also tried to help Donnie, but his brother was apparently so taken with this fucking Cat that he wouldn't listen! Whatever! Fine...maybe it was time to throw in the towel. Let everyone fend for themselves. Stop giving a fuck.


The Red-clad Turtle was about to speak his mind, but Leo beat him to the punch.... Leo? Okay, Raph did NOT see that one coming. Mr. Goody-two-shoes. Mr. Ass-kisser. Damn, the guy sounded like him in that moment. Never did Raphael even consider that Leo never wanted to be placed in this position.... damn. The look of disbelief was still plastered across his usually stone expression, but he finally composed himself. How the hell could he top that? And he was certain the little lash-out would warn another angered lecture from their Father. It seemed that Leo would be spending a little more time in the Hashi than him....

Donatello thought his punishment was fair, so he wouldn't say anything that could possibly make it longer. He hated the Haashi, though. Whether he was in there for just ten minutes or hours, it didn't make a difference to Don. But, he knew he had earned some time in there for his misjudgments.

Don bowed to his father, accepting what was coming to him when Leo spoke up. What came out of his mouth really surprised Don. He thought it was very noble for his brother to defend all their actions, even though some of them were truly foolish. But it left Don speechless that Leo talked that way to their sensei.

Splinter's eyes widened in shock. His ears bristled, the whiskers twitched. Not once had Leonardo ever raised his voice at him. Since they were baby turtles, Leonardo was always the one who was eager to please him, sometimes very much so. He is not going to deny that he can be strict with the rules, but he did so out of love. He wanted to protect them from the darkness of the world. It hurt to see his son act like this.

"Because you could've been killed, or worse! We didn't know where you were. Michelangelo and I were worried sick about you. What if you had been caught and killed by our enemies? Or locked up in some laboratory? Donatello could've been eaten by that mutant cat. We shouldn't be so open and trusting by those who are fellow mutants. Yes, our mutation caused us to become more intelligent, but that is not always the case. Some had turned feral due to their mutation." Splinter spoke through gritted teeth. He continued,"Yes, I appointed you as leader. You were given a responsibility to protect your brothers. I created these rules so I could protect you. Don't you understand that?" There was a harshness to his tone and it too, raised an octave. Splinter didn't like raising his voice, but he could make an exception.

Leonardo....his responsible, dedicated son...had actually disobeyed him. What is going on inside that head of his? He was better then this.

He couldn't believe it. For once, in the young turtle's life, he escaped punishment. As the resident prankster, Mikey always finds himself in trouble, whether it is making a smart aleck remark at the expense of his older brother or torturing him with a fake spider (an insect or two). Sometimes he would enjoy annoying the living heck out of Leonardo and barge into Donatello's lab, pressing buttons that resulted in either hysterical, and sometimes dangerous, consequences. This is what lands him in the Haashi to begin with.

Now it was Leonardo's turn to gain that extra hour. Of course he wasn't going to stick around. The last thing he wanted is to get head locked by Raph. He nearly tripped over Klunk before barricading himself into his room, putting on a turtle sized headphones that Donnie made in replica of the one that came with X-Box 360 and turned on his game.

Maybe some video games would keep his mind out of what is going on in the dojo. The best thing about playing video games online is no one can tell if you are human or not. They can clearly tell he's a male, but little did they know they are talking to an anthromophoric turtle.

Its not just Leonardo in the hot seat. Raph and Don were going to spend certain minutes on the Haashi. Mikey thought Don didn't deserve the Haashi, either, but can understand why. Don could've gotten killed. If Raph hadn't been there Donatello would be turtle sushi by now. Raph, however, definitely deserved it. Fighting alone the Shredder alone, what an idiot. Mikey never dreamed of fighting the Shredder by himself. Leo and Raph might, but the Shredder scared him so badly that the last thing he wanted to do is face him alone.

He just prays this whole thing blows over so he can talk to Don about the cat mutant and Leo about Lexi. He doubt Leo would want to talk to him. Don might, though. He can always count on Don.

Leo closed his eyes and took some calming deep breaths. He then opened his eyes and nodded. I understand you were all worried, and for that I am sorry. I should have called and said where I was i know. Lesson learned. Don only went with the woman because I told him to and he and I will talk about that later. I saw no danger in her and that was my fault. I am honored you think that I am worthy of being leader, but you have to stop punishing us for every little screw up. Don getting bit was punishment enough. Raph well...Raph probably didn't learn much. But still he saw a chance to take out an enemy and took it. I'm sure he was only thinking about the family's safty. And self sacrifice should't be a thing that is punished.

Leo took a moment to catch his breath. He was angry and upset and he was on a roll. He knew he was digging his grave deeper and deeper but he just couldn't stop his mouth. Things needed to be said. They were getting older now and these punishments were for children.

As leader of this small tribe as it is. I say no one is punished. Don, stay away from the cat woman and Raph don't go after shredder alone any more. Although I know that you probably saved a lot of people's lives. I heard what happen in that building before shredder showed up and i would have done the same thing. Leo then faced Splinter once more.

Raph didn't go after shredder. The foot were killing people and Raph stopped them. Shredder showed up after the fact.

So...that's my rulings as leader.