[Dream] Week 22, day 1
Little Nutbrown Hare
who was going to bed, held
on tight to Big Nutbrown Hare’s
very long ears.
You see a huge structure in the distance. You recognize it, and instantly become excited. That was the Lap of the Gods! That was where your family was currently staying. Hoping that they were still there, you run full out. The castle is a strange one, its name “Lap of the Gods” is an appropriate one, as it is hundreds of miles up a mountain side, and looks as if it could fall over at any moment. It is a beautiful place that you wouldn’t mind exploring, but sadly the people there expect you to train constantly without end. That doesn’t appeal much to your easygoing personality.
You enter through the intimidating double doors and make your way through an empty Japanese village (The village had always been empty as far as you know, but you wonder if people had once lived here.) You come across the council chamber of the Ninja Tribunal, and listen carefully for any sounds of training or conversation.
He wanted to be sure that
Big Nutbrown Hare was listening.
“Guess how much I love you.” he said
“Oh, I don’t think that I can guess that.”
said Big Nutbrown Hare.
There were none. You take a good look around the chamber, and it occurs to you that you’ve never been in here before without the Ninja Tribunal sitting in those five elegant thrones that sat on the far side of the wall. Your first instinct is to bounce up to those thrones and goof around on them, but you decide that you could do that later, and continue your search for your family. You know that the door to the right leads to the hallway that will take you to the library, and decide that that would be a good place to check. After all, your brother Donny always spends time there when he could.
You walk over to the door and pull it open, and find yourself in a familiar place that sends a jolt of happiness through your heart.
It was your underground home, the very same one that you had lived in for most of your life. Just being here fills you with joy (it is whole and intact) and you walk forward to explore. Suddenly, you are five years old, and your brothers are bouncing around the toy room, playing as loudly as three five year olds could. You instantly join in, grabbing your favorite orange teddy bear (Beary McTeddyface the Great) and pouncing on your big brother Raph. Raph instantly tackles you and the two of you wrestle fiercely while big brother Donny and Leo watch.
”This much” said
Little Nutbrown Hare
stretching out his arms
as wide as they could go.
You stick out your tongue at Raph and he grins at you. “Be careful Mikey, ya don’t want to lose your baby tongue do ya?” You stare at him confused as he backs off so that you could get up. “Baby tongue? There’s no such thing.” You tell him. Raph shakes his head seriously, “Y’know how you lose your baby teeth? Well you lose your baby tongue too so that your adult tongue can grow.” Your hands instantly leap to your mouth in horror. It had been bad enough last week when you lost your first tooth (Your older brothers had lost their first tooth much earlier than you). “Yeah, and if you talk too much, your baby tongue will hurt more then usual if when you lose it.” Raph said in a voice filled with such confidence that you believe him. “I don’t want to lose my baby tongue!” You protest with eyes the size of saucers. “Leo, Donny and me have all lost our baby tongues, you haven’t lost yours yet ‘cause you’re the youngest.”
Donny rolled his eyes. “There’s not thing as baby tongues Mikey, Raph’s making it up.” You look over at him uncertainly. He sighs and disappears for a moment and reappears with a book. “Look Mikey, see?” He opens the book and it shows a picture of a tongue. “There’s nothing here that says that you lose a baby tongue.” Raph decides that he should try to make this last as long as possible, “It don’t say that there isn’t such a thing as a baby tongue either.” He says slyly. You stare between your two brothers, unsure who to believe. Finally Donny throws a book at Raph and chases him away. “Mikey, there’s not possible way that you can lose a baby tongue and grow an adult one, okay? I promise.” You nod slowly. Donny was the smart one, maybe you should believe him.
“My sons, it is time for bed.” Splinter, your father and protector calls out to all of you.
“Read us a story Master Splinter!” Leo asks as the four of you follow your father into your bedroom like little ducklings (You are between Leo and Raph). Leo’s request is instantly backed up by you and your other two brothers as Master Splinter smiles gently and coaxes them all into bed (you are still between Leo and Raph). “Very well, what story do you little ones want me to read?” There are a few suggestions (several by you). “How about this one Master Splinter?” Donny asks as he pulls out one from under his pillow. Master Splinter reaches for it and, after a moment, nods.
After some maneuvering, Splinter managed to wiggle into bed with them, with two turtles on one side (you are now between Raph and Master Splinter) and two turtles on the other, and all of you were able to see that book he had opened.
Big Nutbrown Hare
Had even longer arms.
“But I love you
this much.” He said.
Hmm, that’s a lot,
thought Little
Nutbrown Hare.
I love you as high
as I can reach,” said Little Nutbrown Hare.
You find yourself in the hallway that leads to the library. You know that Donny likes to hang out there so you run down the hallway until you reach the bib library doors. You don’t like the library, it is filled with a bunch of boring books written in different languages. The door opens as you appraoch, and you and you peek inside. It looks as big and boring as ever. “Donny? Donny are you here?” You call out, hoping that your third eldest brother will hear you. After searching the library top to bottom, you conclude that he is not here, and you decide to check the training yard to see if Big Brother Leo is there.
You spot the door that will take you outside. When you open it you find yourself back in your old home, except you are older now.
“I love you as high
as I can reach,” said
Big Nutbrown Hare.
That is very high, thought
Little Nutbrown Hare.
I wish I had arms like that.
“Faster Raphael; With more force Leonard; Michelangelo you must focus; Higher Donatello.” Master Splinter barks at all of you while you do your training. Your limbs are burning, and you are being constantly be distracted with thoughts about the Justice Force special on TV that is suppose to be on in a few minutes. You nearly cheer when Master Splinter makes you do you cool down and sends you all on your way.
You instantly bolt for the TV. Eagerly you begin to root around the couch for the remote. To your horror, you cannot find it, and your TV show was on in a few minutes! You can’t change the TV without the remote. “Does anyone know where the remote is?!” You yell out as you frantically toss aside the battered couch cushions. Raph, who had been beating up a practice dummy stops long enough to give you a look of disdain, “You had last it last you stupid shell-head.” Raph snorts before returning to beating up the dummy. You decide to ignore him and continue to yowl loudly, “But my show is ooooooon!” This time Donny answers from his corner of the home, sounding extremely annoyed. “Mikey, it’s just a TV show, you can probably see it some other time.”
Your practically hop around with frustration. Your stupid brothers were no help at all and they didn’t understand what a life or death situation this was. Leo eventually takes pity on you and wanders over to you while you are digging around the couch some more. “You know Mikey, Donny is right. You can always watch it some other time.” You give your brother a pleading look, “But I really want to watch it now!” You almost burst into tears, “I’ve been waiting all day to watch it! It’s suppose to be the one where Dome Head rescue the princess from the evil sea slug!” Leo looks at you for a moment before nodding at the couch, “Have you looked under the couch yet?” You pout and shake your head. Together the two of you work together to lift the couch up high enough for you to scan underneath it. “Nothing.” You say, disappointed.
Leo thinks for a moment. “Raph said that you had the remote last, do you know where you might have put it?” You think too, trying to remember where you might have left it. You were sure that you had left it on the couch... “I dunno.” You say sadly. Leo smiles at you, “I think I know where it is. Follow me.” Perplexed, you follow your big brother into the bedroom you all share. Leo jumps onto the bed and picks up your pillow and reaches into it. To your sheer delight, he pulls out the remote. That’s when you remember that you had hid it so that no one else would take over the tv before you had a chance to watch your show. “Thanks Leo! You’re the awesomeness big brother ever!” You say, tackling him with a hug before snatching the remote away from him. “How’d you know?” You ask, giving him a confused look. Leo smiles, “It seems like something you would do.” He laughs, “And I know my brothers.”
Then Little
Nutbrown Hare
Had a good idea
He tumbled upside down and
reached up
the tree trunk
with his feet.
“I love you all the way up to my toes!” he said
The training yard was empty, and you feel very disappointed. It was almost a guarantee that Leo would be here. If it was one thing you could count on with your Big Brother, it was that he was very consistent. “Leo? LEO?” You call out to the empty yard. He was not there. No matter what your problems were, Leo never ignored you when you called out to him.
A little upset now, you decide to try find Raph. Your second eldest brother was always brooding somewhere, and the rootops were a good place to start, especially on the southern end of the dojo. You climb onto the rooftops and stop a moment to watch the sun sink behind the massive mountains, sending the valleys before into a sea of shadows. You glance over your shoulder, and you are young once again.
”And I love you
all the way up to
your toes,” said
Big Nutbrown Hare,
swinging him up
over his head.
You sit in the corner of the bedroom that you all shared. Your other brothers were playing in the toy room, and you are so terribly upset that you didn’t want to play with them anymore. Or rather, you never wanted to play with Raph anymore, the big fat meanie. You face the wall and hugged your knees, refusing to give in and go back out to play with him. He would never forgive him ever! Not even if Raph begged him or tried to bribe him. What he had done was unforgivable. The door opened hesitantly, but you ignore it, glaring at the wall instead. “Mikey?” Raph says slowly before turning on the light which revealed you crouching in the corner. “Mikey...” Raph says again as he approaches you and touches your shell. You still refuse to look at him, and you stiffen at his touch.
“Mikey I’m sorry.” Raph says, sounding like he really meant it, but you narrow your eyes and refuse to give in. “Go away.” You say angrily, feeling like you wanted to cry. “I hate you, leave me alone.” The hand flinched away and you bury your face in you arms. Part of you knows that you don’t really hate him, and you want to turn around and tell him that. But he was angry, he didn’t want to forgive Raph. You hear Raph quietly leave, and try to convince yourself that you are happy that he’s gone.
”I love you
as high
as I can hop!”
laughed Little Nutbrown Hare.
bouncing up
and down.
Later, you are still in your room, and you haven’t moved from your spot despite Master Splinter’s coaxing. You are becoming bored with sitting in one spot so long, but you stubbornly didn’t want to leave the room. Your resolve is strengthen when the door opens again, and you instinctively know that it’s Raph.
“Mikey, turn around.” You almost do, but instead you huff loud enough for him to hear. “Mikey, I have a surprise for you. Please turn around.” Instantly, you are very, very curious. Raph had a surprise for him? Not only that, he said please. Abandoning your resolve to sit in that corner forever, you turn around and look up at sheepish looking Raph with both hands behind his back. “What do you want?” You asked him with a pout (which you had meant to be a scowl). Raph hesitated for a moment and pulled something out from behind his back. Your eyes widened as you beheld a now repaired Beary McTeddyface the Great. Earlier Raph got a hold of a pair of scissors, and had cut off Beary McTeddyface the Great’s head, arms, legs, and had cut him in half, revealing the stuffing inside. You had been absolutely devastated at the destruction of your favorite and most loyal toy.
Now the toy is sewn together and patched with red thread and one of your old bandannas. The job was roughly done, bit it was sturdy and would probably hold for a long time. You think that Beary McTeddyface the Great looks cooler then ever, and a smile spreads across your face as you jump to your feet and take the bear, hugging him tightly. “Wow Raph, he’s so cool looking!” You croon, practically forgetting that Raph had ruined him to begin with. “Did you fix him yourself.” Looking relieved, Raph nods, “Yeah, it took me forever and I kept poking myself with the needle.” He holds up his hands to reveal that they had a few bandaids on them. “I’m really sorry Mikey, I promise not to do it again.” Raph said but you wave that aside as you grab Raph’s arm and pull him out towards the toy room, “Wait until Leo and Donny see how cool Beary McTeddyface the Great is! I bet they’ll be jealous.”
But I love you as high as I can hop,”
smiled Big Nutbrown Hare-
and he hopped so high that his ears
touched the branches above.
Raph wasn’t up here. “RAPH!” You yell and your voice echoes all the way down into the valley. No one responds and you sigh with disappointment. You decide to head to your bedroom that you share with your brothers, that is where Master Splinter usually hung out with the Ancient One. You bounce off the rooftop and landed in the deserted courtyard below. You wonder where the other acolytes are, they had to be around here somewhere too.
That’s good
hopping
thought
Little
Nutbrown
Hare.
I wish
I could hop
like that.
You open the door that would take you directly into your room you share with your brothers, you (nine years old) are sitting on the kitchen counter while Master Splinter is carefully inspecting your arm. “OWW it hurts!” You wail in agony as your beloved father gently prodded the slight swelling on your right arm. “It looks like it is broken.” Splinter says, “I told you boys to stay away from the water station, but do you listen?” You sniffle, Master Splinter sounds angry, his tail was lashing. “And look what became of it! One of my sons has been injured. Do you know that it could have been worse? You could have been discovered! When I say that you cannot do something, it is because it is unsafe for you. Do you value what I say at all? I will not see my sons become lab creatures to be examined and experimented on” Splinter continues to seethe. “Master Splinter?” You ask timidly, “Are you gonna ampuate my arm?” Splinter looks at you with surprise, “Amputate? Of course not, it is not that serious.” You continue to look anxious, “But if it was serious, would you amputatate it?” Splinter sighed, “It is not serious Michelangelo, I’m not about to cut anything off of you.” He gives you a look, “Other than your free time, which clearly the four of you have too much of.”
“Ok Father.” You say allowing Splinter to splint your arm. “I am sorry Michelangelo, I did not mean to vent at you. It just scared me how close... if I hadn’t arrived when I did...” You are alarmed by how moist Master’s Splinter’s eyes are. “I’m sorry Master Splinter, I promise not to do it again.” You say, upset that you had made your father so upset. Your arm is done, so you lean over and hug Splinter around the neck with your small arms. After a moment Splinter hugs you back. You love how warm and sturdy your father is, and how being around him makes you feel protected and loved.
”I love you all the way down the lane as far as
the river,” cried Little Nutbrown Hare.
”I love you across the river and over the hills,”
said Big Nutbrown Hare.
“Master Splinter? Father?” You yell into the dark and empty room. There was no answer and for the first time the sadness is so powerful that you sink to the ground. You are a big boy now. You don’t cry when things don’t work your way anymore, and Beary McTeddyface the Great was collecting dust on a shelf all the way back home (you had to stop sleeping with him when your brothers wouldn’t stop teasing you about it when you were fourteen). The thought that maybe you were someplace where your brothers couldn’t find you niggled at the corner of your mind, but you brush it aside and stand back up. If they weren’t here, then they were someplace else. You leave the room, and suddenly you are in an arena with spectators cheering your name.
That’s very far, thought
Little Nutbrown Hare.
He was almost too sleepy
to think anymore.
Then he looked beyond the
thornbushes, out into the big
dark night. Nothing could
be farther than the sky.
You grin wildly and hold up your arms and the crowd goes wildly. You had just won the Battle Nexus Championship, and that officially makes you the greatest warrior in the multiverse. Your heart is pounding and you are dancing around while Raph glares at you from way over in the losers nest. Your heart is pounding and you wave your nunchucks above your head, causing the crowd to cheer all the louder. You realize that you love the sound of them cheering for you, chanting your name. Grinning wildly as the Ultimate Daiymo rewards you with an enormous trophy with your name engraved on it. You look over at your father, and realize that the cheering crowd and the trophy paled in comparison at the intensely proud look on Splinter’s face. Leo and Donny were also smiling and cheering you on too, and Raph looked grumpy as usual. But really, who expected the slacker of the family to win this fighting tournament? (You certainly hadn’t).
”I love you right up to the moon,”
he said, and closed his eyes.
“Oh, that’s far,” said Big Nutbrown Hare.
You move through the hallways with a stubborn determination. You were not done yet. You fling open the door to the kitchen, thinking that maybe they were in there.
That is very, very far.”
Big Nutbrown Hare settled
Little Nutbrown Hare
into his bed of leaves.
You and your family have been defeated, and your end was eminent. You know this as you lay on the cold shuddering floor of The Shredder’s starship. Just moments ago you had all tried to battle The Shredder, and all had been horribly injured as a result. Both of your legs have been broken, and you are sure that at least one of your ribs have been too. You see Raph groaning as he struggled to breath. You had seen the brutal punishment that The Shredder had inflicted on your brother, and you admire faintly that Raph was still moving. Your legs are useless, so you drag yourself over to your brothers and your father. You see that Master Splinter’s fur had been totally fried, the strong smell of burnt fur reached you as you touch your father’s shoulder as he labored to stay alive. The ship shuddered and sparked as missile after missile hit home, and he could hear the pounding of The Shredder as he attempted to get back inside the room to finish them all off. Your heart sinks, there was no way that you or your family would survive this.
“My sons... I am sorry...”
Leo speaks, his hand was over the sword wound he had received earlier, “No sensei... it’s our fault. We couldn’t stop him. We failed. We failed the Utroms, Master Yoshi, we failed you. I failed you.” Raph speaks up too, “So that’s it? Shredder wins?” You do not like being the realist, but you know you have to speak up, “It’s not like we’re in any shape to stop him.”
Leo’s eyes narrow, “Unless...” Everyone looks at him, “You know...” He looks over at the huge power core that the battle had taken place next to,
“That’s a lot of energy-”
“In the wrong hands-”
“It would make a pretty big bang-” You finish, watching the glowing pillar of energy. “We’d never survive.” Donny says in hushed tones.
“But neither would The Shredder.”
Master Splinter tried to persuade them out of their plan, but you speak up. “It’s ok sensei, we know the score.” Although your mind is racing with things you will miss, and the things you will never get to try, you are every bit as determined as your brothers to stop the Shredder from destroying the Universe... even if that meant your lives. As each of your brother’s talk, you feel much calmer. You were going out for a good cause, and you were going out with your brothers at your side (though you would not deny that you would have preferred that no one goes out at all).
Splinter stands up, his eyes glaring at the power core, “Then let us finish this... Together.”
Donny plugs Professor Hunnycutt back into the port, and the robot overloads the power core, causing it to explode. You watch as the blue core tears apart its surroundings and moves swiftly towards you and your family. You hear the exclaims of horror as the door opened just in time for the Shredder to witness the blue energy tear apart his ship.
He leaned over
and kissed him
goodnight.
You are back in the Lap of the Gods and you sigh. Well, clearly your family wasn’t there, maybe you should look somewhere else. You open one final door and walk right into your home, your current home. You see the mess that Raph had left in the corner, the motorcycle parts that lay scattered around a half stripped motorcycle. He saw a long table full of electronic bits that Donatello had been working on (it wasn’t any neater than Raph’s area). Off to the side was the training area, and you could see the various magazines piled up near the wall (also not that tidy). And finally, you see your area by the TV. The piles of comic books and the various remotes placed on the table before the mighty couch of power. You walk over to the couch and plop yourself down. You decide to wait here, and your family will find you. Of course they will, you had no doubts whatsoever.
“Then he lay down close by
and whispered with a smile,
“I love you right up to the moon-
Master Splinter finishes the book, and smiles down at you. Only you and Leo are awake now, you can feel Raph snoring against your shell, and Donny is muttering something about Quadratic Equations (whatever alien language that was) in his sleep. Splinter expertly pulls himself out of the covers without disturbing his two sleeping sons. “Now you two, it is time to go to sleep. We will be training vigorously tomorrow.” You and Leo nod as Splinter leans over and kisses you all goodnight. You watch him turn off the light (you hate it when the light is off. Sleeping alone and in the dark was scary, that’s why you all shared one bed.) and snuggle up to Leo, who makes sure that you have Beary McTeddyface the Great (you hate waking up without him) before he settled down to fall asleep himself. You smile and nuzzle your favorite toy before drifting off into sleep after him.
-and back.””
[Mikey wakes up in the middle of the forest. For a moment he wonders what he's doing there, and then he remembers. He had been out wandering around when he spotted those giant chicken things, and naturally he had wanted to ride one, so he spent most of the afternoon chasing after them. Eventually he ended up in the river and on this bank.
It was amazing that he didn't get eaten.]
Huh
[He says, and glances over at the Hitomi on the ground next to him. To his surprise it seems to be on.]
That's weird.]