i_speak_softly | Thirty-Third Theory [Action/Written]

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Thirty-Third Theory [Action/Written]

[Donatello woke up this morning so relieved to be back in his own body that all he could do was cry into his pillow for five minutes. By the end of this catharsis, part of him felt that he really should look in on his housemates to see what state they were in today, but another part just really didn't want to know how much misery he was still in for. These two parts debated for a while, and concluded that they would do the responsible thing, but only after they had had (a) coffee, and (b) some time away from the house.]

[That decided, Donatello hauled himself out of bed, bundled up, and headed to the coffee shop to spend a few hours staring into space and downing as much caffeine as he could stand.]

[Some time around his third cup, he opens his journal and begins to write.]

Usually I'm in favor of having as much information as possible, but sometimes it really is better not to know. Things will never be the same again.

If only I could forget.

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[He takes the strike with a slight twist of his body, the blow meeting hard carapace instead. As he moves, he brings down a shuto chop aimed above his brother's collar bone. It's a stunning blow, and if it hits, he'll move into a snap kick aimed straight for the middle of Don's plastron.]

[Don rolls with that twist, keeping the distance between them small, catching most of the chop on the rim of his shell. The kick, though, takes him right in the chest, almost lifting him off his feet.

He responds by dropping his weight, getting low to the floor and trying to execute a sweep-kick before Raph recovers his center.]

[The sweep knocks him to the ground, but in one deft roll, he's back on his feet again. He slides into a defensive stance, a predatory grin overtaking his expression, and motions for Don to come at him with everything he's got.]

[Okay then - upwards-leaping elbow jab to the throat it is!]

[Raph crosses his arms and deflects the blow with a grunt, taking a half-step backward to absorb the impact. Then he leaps up, using Don's plastron as a springboard, and rolls himself into a backflip.]

[A front-flip, in that case, launching himself into a flying kick.]

[That backflip left him a unexpectedly lightheaded, and it takes him a few moments to get his bearings. By the time his head clears, Don's kick connects with his plastron and he's knocked back flat on his butt. He stares up at Don, looking surprised.]

Damn.

[Don wins this round.]

[Don kneels down instantly, not taking any satisfaction in the win. Raph shouldn't have gone down that easily.]

Are you okay?

Jeez Don, rub it in. [He pulls himself to his feet.] I'm fine.

[He watches Raph worriedly before slowly getting up himself.]

Well, thanks for the match...

[Raph throws him look.]

I'm havin' an off day. Don't get used to it.

I'm not getting used to anything. That wasn't a fair win.

Whatever. I'm fine.

[He slides into fighting stance again.] C'mon, I'll prove it. Rematch.

[Don's not going to win this one by argument, so he takes up a starting position. He's obviously reluctant, though.]

Hajime!

[Then he leaps at Don with twice the ferocity as before. So he may not be feeling at the top of his game. So what? It only makes him want to try harder to prove how fine he actually might not be.]

[Don falls into a defensive tack, partly because he'd been planning to, partly because trying to counter Raph's fierce blows seems like a bad idea. He'll give ground, letting Raph push him back almost to the wall.]

[He's got him right where he wants him. One last kick for the finishing blow, and it should all be over.]

[Don spins to the side at the last second, and gets ready to catch as subtly as possible. Just in case Raph starts falling over again.]

[Raph does stumble a bit, but catches himself in time to throw another punch.]

[That one catches Don off-guard, but he manages to talk around having the wind knocked out of him.]

Raph, you're - something's wrong.

I'm fine!

[And another punch. He won't be satisfied until somebody wins, and it better be him.]

Raph - [His focus is completely gone. The punch gets him right in the beak, and it hurts.] Raph, stop...

[Okay, Don's hurt now and he's not even paying attention. Raph stops himself and mentally claims his victory, shaking out his fist. He stands there, panting hard until something catches in his throat, making him cough dryly a couple times. But he's fine after a second, clearing his throat.]

Just...havin' an off day, all right? And my throat still hurts from that cold I got durin' the experiment.

[Which was weeks ago, so it obviously can't be the same bug. But Raph doesn't know that.

He frowns at his brother's pained expression.]

You all right? Gotta pay more attention.

You're not having an off day, Raph, you're in recovery. [He rubs his snout with the back of his hand, ignores the last statement, and goes to the corner to pick up his bo.] We both are. We shouldn't even be doing this.

Yeah, fine. [What's he gonna argue? He's not feeling up to much more of this anyways.] But you promised me a bath. Ain't no backin' down on that.

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