Current mood:	sore
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Entry tags:	challenge: 10_whores, fandom: teenage_mutant_ninja_turtles, pairing: leomikey, type: fic

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Title: Stepping to the Clouds
Author: Jordan Herbert 
Pairing: Mikey/Leo
Fandom: Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles
Rating: R
Warning: Death fic
Word Count: 850
Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters mentioned in this fic. I just named a few of them and gave them distinct personalities.
Author's Note: I just can't write happy stuff lately. D= Anyways, this was written for 10_whores  prompt six: Head in the Clouds from challenge three.

In the time of war they sent a little package of the belongings of the killed back to the families. Bishop apparently had the same idea because that was all they received. A small box slipped through the sewers that they eventually stumbled upon it. Raph had brought it home before rushing to tear through it like he normally would have upon finding something of interest. He must have known that it was something not meant for his hands to open. He gave it to Splinter to open.

           
The brown wrapping came apart easily and the tape was no match for Splinter’s claws. He sliced the package open and his face dropped instantly. They could see him mentally scolding himself and trying to put on a brave face, but it was impossible. Leonardo’s bandana and three of his pads were inside the box. That was all they had found of him. No belt, no swords, and the other protective pads were lost to the family, as was their oldest.

           
Splinter had silently handed over the open package to his youngest, feeling that it was only right that he kept the belongings. Mikey had gripped the box tightly in his hands and had stared at the contents, not quite understanding what he was seeing. He didn’t understand, not because of stupidity, but because of disbelief. Such a thing couldn’t have happened.

           
Leo had gone along with Bishop, to fight alongside him against an alien invasion yet to hit near Earth. It was meant to bring an alliance between Bishop’s men and their small clan. The battle wasn’t supposed to be large or too dangerous. Leo had told them he would be fine on his own with Bishop, that they were needed more in the city than wherever Bishop’s small war was fought. He had reassured Mikey that he would come home unharmed.

           
For the first week after the news was delivered of Leo’s death, Mikey had rarely left the tomb that was Leo’s room. Since they had no body to mourn over, they could only cry over the things left behind. Mikey placed the box with his deceased lover’s meager personal belongings on Leo’s bedside table and fingered the bandana often.

           
The third week, he had started leaving the room for an hour at a time before going back in for longer periods. He couldn’t stand the way his family acted around him. His father would look at him with saddened eyes, pitying him. Splinter looked older than he ever had before. Leo’s death had aged him greatly.

Raph barely talked to him and Mikey wasn’t surprised. Raph had never been one with words. But every time Mikey sat down he would sit next to him. He was a physical support but it wasn’t what Mikey needed.

Don would catch Mikey and make him something to eat, making sure that he did eat. He offered Mikey the chance to talk but Mikey, oddly enough, didn’t have much to say. He would only finish half of what Don prepared for him and then head back into Leo’s room. Mikey felt like he didn’t need to eat or talk anymore.

He felt like all he needed was Leo. But he was gone.

Mikey had watched television only once since he had started to mourn for his lost love. Ironically enough, the show he had watched had a character on it that had taken the habit of always wearing black. She was a widower. Mikey related to her pain but he wandered away after the program, wondering about the rest of his life.

           
How long was Mikey supposed to mourn? If he made his life a tribute to Leonardo’s, could his loved one live on? And Leo truly was, the loved. The one. Mikey knew there would never be another for him. He had lost his one and only, his special someone, the other half to his whole, and it made him feel hollow. It was as if they both had died that day.

           
That was why he was outside for the first time in weeks.

           
There was fog in the city, a rare occurrence. It was as though the clouds came down to Mikey to help him with his grief; they were trying to bring him heaven and another chance to be with his mate.

           
Mikey smiled sadly as he reached out to try and touch the clouds. His face hurt a little from the simple smile. He was using muscles he hadn’t used in such a long time. He just hadn’t been given a reason to smile recently.

           
He knew what he was doing was selfish and would be potentially dangerous to the rest of his family. But he couldn’t muster up the energy to care. He couldn’t continue dealing with the emptiness that seemed to be his life from then on. He took a deep breath of crisp air and thought of Leo’s smile that was meant only for him during their times alone. Despite his straining muscles, he smiled.

           
Mikey stepped off of the building’s ledge and met the clouds.