steepwithdead | Folkmore

I'm saying it, because I escalated something into a fist fight. I don't regret the reason for starting it. But it was sure a choice I made.

almost home

Alright.

[Caduceus will be sitting outside in the front garden of the mansion when Leonardo arrives, cross-legged by some late-blooming flowers suffering in the cold, a bucket of water beside him. It's mostly for a joke, though. The bath is literally right there.]

[Leonardo ambles up, looking... not great. He is in fact just covered in drying blood.

The blood has stained his mask and soaked into his pants. Bits of glass are jutting from the fabric of his pants, and a few places in his arm. Weirdly, one portion of his chest plate looks very clean. The rest has dried blood present.

Leo asked for the bucket for a reason. Clearly.]

It looks way worse than it actually is.

Edited 2025-10-17 01:54 (UTC)

[Caduceus quirks a brow at him.]

Is that really what you want to lead with?

[Because it does look quite bad. He stands up, approaching to meet Leo in the middle so he can get a better look at his condition.]

It is the first thing that came to mind. [The man apparently can't formulate a better fib right now.]

So, I went to see Donnie. [He's attempting the truths.] It turned into a fight.

So I see. [Sure looks like a tussle.] Hold still.

[He'd noticed the shards, crouching down to start carefully plucking the glass shards out of his clothing. Before anything else happens, those need to come out, or he'll either injure himself further or leave shards through the whole garden. (Or both.)]

Fighting over the same as usual?

The fights usually don't get this physical. [He blinks, watching Cad pluck glass from his pants. Leo hadn't even realized.] Yelling, a push, maybe. Not this.

[Explaining it is making him rankle a little.]

This was just a little different since my idiot ass brother decided, you know, what would be a great idea? Pointing a gun at my son. As if that solves anything, not just adds to everything fucked up about this situation!

[He's gesturing with his single arm as he talks, working himself up a little. He is a protective father if anything.] Let's just add more fire to a complicated situation, 'leave my lab, or I'll shoot you'!? After he hit Casey already? The hit was an accident, but I'm not letting the gun thing lie.

That is not becoming a new normal in any capacity.

[He realizes belatedly he's getting himself angry again, and just presses his hand against his face.

He takes in one breath, then another.]

I am owed compensation for not strangling him on sight.

[Oh boy. That was... a lot. He makes a mental note to take extra care should Casey decide to come back for another talk any time soon. He's careful to avoid touching the shards while Leo is gesturing wildly; based on experience thus far, he doesn't want the turtle to overreact with guilt should he cut himself in the middle of a sharp (hah) movement.]

Do you believe there's a chance he might have done it?

[Thankfully, Leo has stopped moving around at this point.]

I don't think he would pull the trigger, but, I'm not... I don't want to even indulge this. [He hates that he even has to think about this question.] He needs to apologize to Casey.

I hate to be the one to say this, but it is a question you need a firm answer to. When you're a father, the distance between "my brother made a stupid, empty threat" and "my brother legitimately put my child's life in danger" is vast, and one is much harder to come back from.

[Not impossible, people can change, especially if they're being affected by some other force (like, say, alien influence or a terminal disease). But still. Big difference.]

You're allowed to say it. I'd rather you just be to the point with me. [This whole situation is one of his least favorite situations. Maybe in the top five.]

He wouldn't do it. He's just stupid and scared. Extremely stupid. I just never wanted Casey to feel like he couldn't be safe with us.

[The good news is, Caduceus usually doesn't need permission to speak his mind. He'll take that seemingly blanket permission to heart, though.]

That's fair. Whether you believe it or not affects how you act going forward, as a father. But if Casey has any doubts, it affects your whole family dynamic. Children believe more easily what the adults in their lives tell them.

[It's complicated, when you trust the adult, when you're old enough or experienced enough to recognize lies and nuance, when you're too scared to read between lines. Only Casey can decide.]

If Casey feels unsafe, we'll figure out something together. [It would hurt to have to pick between Donnie and Casey. Leo isn't sure he could emotionally handle it. For now, it is just... playing it by ear.]

I just want my family to be okay again. Things just aren't that simple right now.

Feelings can and do change over time. Whatever is felt in the moment can improve. If he's afraid, work together to find ways to reassure him. [His brows furrow, tugging off a scarf and setting the broken glass shards onto it so they don't get lost in the grass.] You'll very likely need Donatello's support with that, as well.

For right now, I... think we just need time to cool off. Everyone.

[Says the guy who went in for a fist fight first.

He almost suggests he take off his pants, but realizes it could be an actual issue with as much glass as is there.]

I think I fumbled my way into getting the impression across. Hopefully Draxum doesn't want that lab back.

If Draxum comes back we'll cross that bridge. Don't worry about it right now.

[He finishes with the glass, as far as he can tell, and straightens up, looking Leonardo up and down.]

Go take a bath. I'll heal you when the wounds are clean, and we can talk.

[He's not throwing the bucket at you, buddy.]

[are you sure, that bucket seems like the best option-

Leonardo is so, so, so tempted to head inside and just soak in that giant tub but he has to be responsible. He holds up his hand to stall.] Uh, might be worth bringing up now, asides the heavy emotional stuff. This is Donnie's blood. He had vials of it everywhere and- uh, it got on both of us.

I don't think the infection can spread like this, but, it's something alright.

It's alright, I can purge the water. [He's not especially concerned about that, though he will be mindful of clean-up and potential piercing of skin, considering all the glass around.] What kind of infection is it?

Turns out, the Krang infection is back. And Donnie is struggling with it. [Says the guy whose is covered in blood full of that infection.]

[Caduceus pauses.]

The... alien infection. The one that killed him?

Yes. It's not a maybe anymore. His stupid ass has it. [Just throw the bucket at him.]

[Yeah, no. Immediately, Caduceus points towards it.]

Bath. Now.

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1/?

2/?

3/4

4/4 - bringing back this icon...

turn peepaw into sleepaw, get thee to bed man

tuck him in

read him a nice story about dead krang and cool spacemen

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