100 Theme Challenge
100. Relaxation

When Don woke up, April was still lying next to him, her bare chest pressed against his plastron and one of her legs draped over his.

A total sense of relaxation had seeped into every pore in Don's body and he sighed in contentment. What had occurred between them the night before was much more satisfying than anything Don's imagination had ever conjured up.

What was even more amazing was how accepting both April and Casey were of Don's idiosyncrasies; how they seemed to understand the way his genius worked. They weren't put off by those periods when his focus was totally directed towards some project.

Of course, they had each other too. Don thought about that, wondering if his night with April would change how he felt about Casey also being with her. He found that it didn't; in fact it gave Don an overall feeling of relief to know that neither of them would be alone when a brainstorm of some sort hit him.

April shifted slightly and then took a deep breath before her eyelids started to flutter. Don looked down at her face, remaining still as she slowly woke up.

"Good morning," April said with a smile as she caught him watching her.

"Good morning to you too," Don replied, searching her eyes. "How are you?"

Rolling onto her back, April stretched, giving Don an enticing view of her naked body. "Mmm, I feel great," she told him. "I don't think I've ever slept better. I wonder what could have happened to account for that?"

The sly look she shot in his direction had Don grinning like a mad man. Chest swelling with pride, Don said, "I'm more than willing to be a sleep aid anytime you need one."

April rolled over again and kissed his mouth. "You're always so helpful," she teased.

Placing his hand on the curve of her hip, Don said, "We could just stay locked in here for the day."

Eyes twinkling, April told him, "As tempting as that offer is, I have a training session with Master Splinter this morning. I can't stay here unless you want him knocking on your door and asking where I am."

"No thanks, that would be mildly embarrassing," Don said. When she slid her foot along the top of his, he added, "Though it might be worth it."

Giggling, April slipped out of his grip and off the bed. As she gathered her clothes and began to put them on, she said, "I'll stop teasing you. Don't you have a little matter of Timothy to deal with?"

Don propped himself up on his elbow and watched her as she gracefully moved around his room. "Yes I do. I'd sure like to resolve that problem; it would be a load off my shoulders."

"It 'will' be a load off your shoulders," April corrected him. "I have confidence in your ability to turn him human again. How about I peek in later and see how things are going? I mean, if you don't think I'll distract you."

"You'll always distract me," Don said with a contented smile, "but that's the kind of distraction that's actually good for me. I might put you to work though."

"Whatever you need, Donnie," April said, bracing her hands on the mattress so she could lean in to kiss him again. "I'll come by here after practice and change your sheets too. Who knows, you might want to entertain a certain young man later. He's shown a lot of patience in waiting for you."

Don blushed. "He's been waiting for you too."

"Casey has been waiting for you a lot longer," April assured him. "Love you Donnie. See you later."

She blew him a kiss and left the room. Don plopped back down and stared up at the ceiling, a warm feeling suffusing his entire body. Sex was wonderful and being in love was amazing.

After a few more minutes of enjoying his feeling of utter tranquility, Don pushed himself out of bed and geared up. He was a little excited at the idea of telling Casey that his night with April had been phenomenal and to thank the boy for arranging things.

The idea that the conversation might lead to Casey suggesting they have a night of their own was at the back of Don's mind as well. Don didn't want to be the one to bring it up because Casey might want to be with April next, despite her assurances to the contrary.

As he passed by the couch, Don noticed that it was empty, the pillow and blanket that Casey had used piled neatly at one end. He heard a noise coming from the kitchen and headed in that direction.

Don was a little disappointed to find that it was only Mikey in the kitchen. His quick glance around wasn't missed by his youngest brother.

"Casey ate breakfast and left over an hour ago, bro'," Mikey said, holding up a spatula with a pancake on it and lifting his eye ridges in question.

Nodding, Don grabbed a clean plate and accepted the pancake. As he sat down, Mikey pushed the syrup towards him and turned back to the stove, pouring some more batter into a pan.

"Going to check on his mom I suppose," Don said around a mouthful of food.

"Yep," Mikey said as he expertly flipped the pancake over. "He wanted me to tell you that he'll be back later and that he hopes you're ready for round two."

"Oh. Okay," Don replied, trying to behave nonchalantly though his heart started to beat a little faster upon hearing the message.

Mikey was suddenly there, leaning across the table and grinning at him. "Speaking of which, how was round one? Did you have an awesome night?"

There was a distinctly smug smile on Mikey's face and no mistaking the fact that he knew Don and April had slept together. Still it was fairly insufferable the way Mikey always seemed to be aware of everything that happened in their family.

"You have to be the nosiest turtle ever," Don said, though he couldn't help it that his lips quivered in amusement.

"It's a good thing I am or none of my brothers would have ever found true love," Mikey said, turning away to attend to the pancake. Returning with a fresh one, he slid it onto Don's plate and said, "You can thank me anytime."

"Thank you, Mikey," Don said, giving his brother a toothy grin.

"I don't know if that was for my help or the pancake," Mikey said, looking at Don suspiciously before breaking into a smile. "I'll pretend it was for both."

Don managed to put away a few more pancakes before taking his leave and heading for the lab. Timothy looked exactly the same but Don hoped that in a few hours, that would change.

He had just extracted the chemical base from the metal box when April joined him. With her assistance, he readied the remainder of the chemicals he needed and then carefully mixed everything together.

"How are you going to do this?" April asked as Don filled a syringe with the newly synthesized reagent.

Stepping over to Timothy, Don slid open the small door at the bottom of his tank. "I'm going to apply this in small doses and wait for the frozen liquid to defrost. I can shoot the reagent in farther with each application until he's no longer frozen. After that the retromutagen I've already applied should be able to work."

"I'll keep my fingers crossed," April said, doing so on both hands.

Very carefully, Don pressed against the plunger and coated a section of frozen liquid with the reagent. As the seconds ticked by with no visible change, he started to chew at his lower lip.

Then he saw the glistening whiteness on that section disappear and it was once more the gelatinous substance that Timothy had mutated into.

"Yes!" Don shouted gleefully, hearing an answering squeal of delight come from April. With the same caution, Don applied another dose of the reagent.

Each dose achieved the intended result and soon Timothy was no longer a frozen mass. Don waved April back and he too moved, putting distance between them and Timothy as the mutated boy's floating eyes began to blink.

"April," Timothy croaked, spotting the girl immediately.

"Don," April whispered, eyes wide.

"Hold on," Don said. "Give it a second."

Timothy took a step towards April and then another. She remained where she was and Timothy reached for her.

His hand paused when it was only partway up and he stopped moving. His entire form suddenly jerked and he fell to his knees. "April?" Timothy asked, as though looking for an explanation from her as to why he couldn't move.

"You'll be all right, Timothy," April said in a soothing voice, trying to keep him calm.

A hoarse cry came from his voice box and then Timothy's legs snapped back into his containment tank and it fell forward. When Timothy tried to push himself up with his arms he got no more than an inch off the ground before they too were sucked back into the tank.

"Quick, we have to get the tank off of him!" Don exclaimed, rushing forward.

April raced over to Timothy and began pulling at the lid, trying to help Don turn it. They managed a quarter turn and then it stuck tight.

"It won't move!" April shouted, growing frantic as Timothy started to change inside the tank.

"Get back, I have to break it!" Don yelled.

Don leaped for his bo staff as April scrambled out of the way. Before Don could reach it though, an orange streak sped past him.

"Booyakasha!" Mikey called out as his nunchucks slammed into the bottom of the tank.

The lid exploded outward, snapping off of the tank and sliding across the lab floor. Don jumped back over to Timothy and grabbed the tank.

"Help me pull it off before he turns solid!" Don urged his brother.

Mikey took hold of the other side and together they yanked the tank upwards and off of Timothy, who landed on the floor with a splat.

In another couple of seconds the gelatin began to elongate and solidify. As the trio watched, the substance formed distinct arms and legs, and then a head. It was an amazing transformation to behold and Don couldn't tear his eyes away.

Suddenly there was no more mutagen man, just Timothy wearing nothing but his birthday suit. April spun around and ran into the infirmary, returning with a sheet which Don quickly wrapped around Timothy.

"You did it Donnie," April said in a hushed and reverent voice.

Timothy groaned and rolled onto his back before opening his eyes. Don and Mikey squatted next to him and he looked at them, his expression blank.

"How do you feel, Timothy?" Don asked gently.

"What happened?" Timothy asked. "Where am I? Who are you?"

"Don't you remember us dude?" Mikey asked.

"Why are you wearing costumes?" Timothy looked from Don to Mikey and then his eyes found April. "Do I know you?"

"I'm April." Reaching down she took his hand. "Do you think you can stand up? You hit your head pretty hard when you fell."

"I fell?" Timothy started to rise and Don grabbed his other arm to help. Once Timothy was on his feet, April released him but Don held on because it was clear that the boy's knees were wobbly. "Why am I wearing a sheet?"

Once more it was April who thought the fastest. "We were at a costume party and you came in a toga. You tripped on it and fell down. We were helping you to this clinic when you lost consciousness and fell again."

"Oh," Timothy said, rubbing his head. "I feel weird."

"Why don't you lie down over here," Don said, directing Timothy into the infirmary and helping him onto the cot. "The um, nurse went to get a doctor."

Timothy was asleep almost immediately upon stretching out and Don went out to join April and Mikey. April was on her cell phone to her dad, explaining what had happened.

"Tell him that Timothy has amnesia," Don said.

April delivered the message and listened for a couple of minutes before telling her father good-bye. "He's coming down in a bit. He said to keep Timothy still until he can assess the situation and then he'll get him home."

"Mikey, your timing was perfect," Don praised his brother. "Thanks, you really saved the day."

"Aw shucks, it was nothing," Mikey said with false modesty. "Just my super awesome ninja skills coming to the rescue."

"We can't leave Timothy alone until Mr. O'Neil arrives," Don said, glancing towards the curtained area. "I'll stay with him."

"I'll stay," Mikey offered. "You missed lunch. I can sit with him and read my new comic book."

He brandished his latest acquisition which displayed a rather lurid monster on the cover.

"Just don't touch anything," Don admonished his brother.

"I won't budge from the chair," Mikey promised, diving through the curtain into the infirmary.

Don and April walked out of the lab together. "Lunch?" he asked.

"I've already had mine," April told him. "I'm scheduled for meditation with Master Splinter. Want to walk me there?"

With a grin, Don took her offered hand and together they made their way to Master Splinter's room, entering when they were told to.

"Donatello, you are out of your lab," Master Splinter observed.

"He cured Timothy!" April exclaimed excitedly, squeezing Don's arm.

"Congratulations my son," Master Splinter said proudly.

Don broke into a wide smile. "Thank you, sensei. Not only is Timothy back to normal, he doesn't remember a thing, not even us. Mr. O'Neil is going to help him get home and with any luck, Timothy won't ever think about being a crime fighter or ninja again."

"That is indeed gratifying," Master Splinter said, "considering he was ill equipped for either of those professions."

They all laughed at that and then April planted a kiss squarely on his lips as Don was exiting the room. Master Splinter wore a pleased expression at seeing the display and Don was on cloud nine the entire time he was eating lunch.

Don had hoped that Casey would come back after midday, but there was no sign of the boy. Restless, Don decided that he'd go to the dojo and get in a little exercise, but as he drew near he heard sounds that told him someone else was already there.

Rather than entering, Don stayed out of sight. He had picked out the voices of both Leo and Raph and was a little surprised to hear Karai's as well. Silently approaching the door, he peeked inside.

Leo stood off to one side, watching as Raph and Karai sparred. Karai moved fast, much faster than before she was mutated and she was extremely flexible. Raph countered her advantage in that area by using his strength to tangle her up when she got too close.

From his vantage point, Leo offered encouragement and advice to both sides, seemingly having taken on a mentor role. Just when Don began to think the pair might be evenly matched, Raph suddenly turned and barreled into Karai, leaving ninja finesse behind in favor of brute force.

Don gasped as Karai fell flat on her back and Raph straddled her, his hand on her throat keeping her pinned down. Just as Don began to think he'd have to rush in and help Leo separate them, Karai started to laugh.

When she tapped out, Raph stood and offered her a hand up. Rising, Karai said, "I did not see that one coming. That was very unconventional; you'll have to teach me that trick."

"You ain't got the build for it," Raph said with a grin, "but I'll show you how to avoid it in the future."

Leo walked up to them and Raph slid an arm across his shoulders as the trio began to talk. Don slipped away before they could notice him, impressed at how tight those three were becoming.

Mr. O'Neil was just arriving when Don came downstairs and he took the man in to see Timothy. Mikey quickly took his leave of them, proclaiming that they were boring and he had stuff to do.

The process of getting Timothy ready to leave took another couple of hours. Mr. O'Neil had brought some clothes in different sizes and by trial and error they found something for Timothy to wear.

Since Timothy was still confused and somewhat dazed, Mr. O'Neil took him out through the lab exit, explaining that the costume party Timothy had attended was in an abandoned rail car in the tunnels. Timothy accepted the lie readily enough and the last Don saw of him, he was talking Mr. O'Neil's ear off.

Having a little time left before dinner, Don spent it cleaning his lab and catching up on his notes. He was starting to think that Casey wasn't going to make it back to the lair and that had him feeling slightly disappointed.

Don headed for the kitchen around dinnertime, determined that for once no one was going to have to come and get him. Mikey's laughter from that direction made him think that Irma was once more a dinner guest, but then he heard another distinctly masculine voice issuing from the kitchen and recognized it as Casey's.

There was more pep in his steps as Don approached the kitchen. Coming to a stop just inside, he watched as Mikey flipped pizza dough into the air, catching it expertly on his fists before flinging it back up again.

Casey observed the demonstration and then grabbed some dough and began tossing it as well. His first try didn't go so well and it landed on his arms, but he didn't give up.

By the time the dough was firmly on a pair of pans, both Mikey and Casey were covered in flour. Casey grinned at Don, lifting his arms and stomping towards the turtle like Frankenstein's monster.

Don playfully backed away, eyes wide in mock terror. "Stay away from me you beast," he called out.

"I am the flour mutant," Casey intoned. "Join me."

"You are the flour nuisance," April said, coming up behind Don. "Go back in the kitchen before you get that mess everywhere."

"Not the dreaded mutant whisperer!" Casey exclaimed, dashing towards the sink to wash the flour off.

Don put his arm around April's waist, kissing her temple before saying, "My hero. What did I do to deserve such a savior?"

"How could I not save the most handsome, talented ninja who wields a mean staff and is the smartest guy in the world?" April countered with a smile.

"Hey, what about me Red?" Casey asked, walking up to them. "I use a mighty big stick too."

"I thought that you mostly just talked about it," April shot back.

"I guess I'm going to have to prove myself then," Casey said, wiggling his eyebrows at the pair.

The sound of Master Splinter greeting Mr. O'Neil reached them and April looked back towards the lair. "Not to me, I've got a date with my dad tonight. We're going to eat at Mr. Murakami's and have a little father daughter quality time. I convinced my dad we'd be safe because no one will see us in the back room."

"You're going out?" Don asked somewhat unnecessarily, starting to feel apprehensive.

April smiled knowingly. "Yes, but don't worry. I'm sure Casey will help you occupy your time."

She darted off before Don could react. Looking back at Casey, Don couldn't help but swallow nervously as he saw the smug look on the boy's face.

"Looks like it's just you and me pal," Casey said in a low voice.

Don felt frozen by Casey's gaze and when a voice sounded behind him he almost jumped out of his skin.

"I smell pizza," Raph said, pushing by Don to enter the kitchen. "You better have made a lot, 'cause I'm hungry."

"No sweat Raph," Mikey replied. "There are two in the oven and two more waiting to go in."

"How can he be such a klutz in my lab and a complete virtuoso in the kitchen?" Don mumbled under his breath as he walked out the door to check in with Mr. O'Neil.

"It's all about passion," Casey answered, even though the question was rhetorical. "Mikey's is food. Do you want to talk about mine?"

Don blushed and was saved from having to answer as Mr. O'Neil waved him over. He could hear Casey chuckling behind him and glanced back in time to see the boy strike up a conversation with Raph.

When the pizzas were ready, Don found he couldn't eat much. April and her father had gone and Irma had turned up bearing a large chocolate cake. There was much good humored talk around the table, but Don's stomach was in knots and every time he looked at Casey it tightened even more.

He hadn't felt so nervous when he and April had finally gotten together. Of course, that had been sprung on him and Don didn't have a lot of time to anticipate anything. Casey's almost constant teasing and innuendos were making Don uptight. After all, the young mutant had known what to do when he'd finally gotten April into bed. He only had the vaguest of ideas when it came to being with Casey.

Everyone was still enjoying their pizza when Don excused himself, saying he needed to check on something. Master Splinter called after him to remind him there was cake but Don wasn't hungry for any.

Rather than going to his lab though, Don escaped to the dojo. He had been sitting still for too long and the pent up energy had to go somewhere other than his stomach.

Don was practicing with his bo when he sensed another presence and spun around, his staff whipping up as his moved. He stopped it inches from Casey's face.

"Are ya' avoiding me now?" Casey asked.

Slowly lowering the staff, Don said, "No. I couldn't sit there any longer, I needed to move."

"To clear your head maybe?" Casey examined Don with a knowing smile. "How was your night with April?"

Don remembered how excited he was early in the day to talk to Casey about it and some of that feeling came back. "It was beyond awesome," Don answered. "It was the best thing ever. I feel like she's really a part of me now."

"She is," Casey said. "She always has been. Even I saw that when we first met. It kinda made me jealous trying to figure out how I was gonna get a chance with ya' with the two of ya' caring about each other so much."

Don shrugged. "She didn't let me see it," he said. "I thought I was creeping her out and that she only had eyes for you."

"She had a crush on me all right," Casey said a trifle smugly, "but she did a fine job of trying to hide it. I think April was confused about liking both of us, so she acted as if she didn't like either of us. Women."

"You're so worldly wise," Don teased. "As if you have all that much experience."

"More than you," Casey retorted with a grin. "One night with April does not make you an expert on the subject."

"What would make me an expert?" Don asked, starting to enjoy their wordplay.

Instead of the banter Don expected, Casey said, "This."

Stepping in close, Casey's hand closed around the back of Don's neck, holding him in place. Don had little time to do more than grunt in surprise before Casey's mouth pressed against his.

Rather than the rough forcefulness that Don expected, Casey's kiss was slow and sensuous. The warmth from the boy's mouth spread down into Don's body, traveling all the way into his toes, which curled into the floor mat.

When Casey released him, Don couldn't do much more than blink and stare, his mouth hanging open.

"I left a message for you to be ready for round two," Casey said, his voice husky. "I hope you are."

"I am now," Don managed to say.

Casey chuckled, his expression all too cocky. "That's good 'cause I got some things to teach ya'. Last night you got to top, tonight it's my turn."

The leg sweep was so fast that Casey had no time to react to the movement. As his back hit the floor, Don's bo pressed into his neck at the pulse point, giving Casey no quarter to move.

"You topping is not a given," Don said in a low tone. "As I recall, when we were in the TCRI building you said I could top if that made me feel more comfortable."

"I've really got to learn to watch what I say around ya'," Casey said. "Ya' don't forget anything."

Don moved his staff aside and Casey got up. "Now what?" Don asked.

"Best two out of three in your room?" Casey suggested, the complacent grin reappearing on his face.

"You're on," Don said, turning quickly and racing toward the stairs.

Don had a fleeting thought that he should have employed ninja stealth in leading Casey to his bedroom, but was happy to note that everyone else was still in the kitchen. When he hesitated to make sure no one was paying them any attention, Casey blew by him.

Snapping out of it, Don dashed after him, losing sight of the boy when he rounded the corner to the bedrooms. Don's door was standing open but as soon as he was inside, Casey pushed it closed and locked it.

"Gotcha," Casey said with a mischievous smirk. He pulled Don's bo staff free and tossed it aside before tackling the turtle.

The pair hit the bed, their mouths already connected. It was then that Don realized how much he wanted this with Casey; how subconsciously he'd been looking forward to it all day.

Casey was already stripping him and as his fingers worked to remove Don's belt, the ninja rolled the boy onto his back. With a hard tug, Don pulled both Casey's undershirt and hooded sweatshirt off together.

Don ran his hands over Casey's bare chest before proceeding downwards to his jeans. Casey was panting as he stared up at Don, his cheeks flushed and hair in a wild disarray. For the second time in his life, Don worked the button on Casey's jeans and then attacked the zipper, drawing an almost identical groan as the last time from the boy.

As Don started to pull his jeans off, Casey said, "Holy crap, hang on." Reaching into his pocket he pulled out a tube of something and tossed it onto a pillow. "We're gonna need that."

Mesmerized by the secrets hidden beneath Casey's pants, Don barely heard him. Once the jeans and underwear joined Casey's shoes on the floor, the boy surged upwards and changed positions with Don.

Straddling the genius, Casey leaned in for a kiss, his hands searching Don's body. His talented fingers coaxed Don into the open and then he gasped in surprise at seeing the turtle in all his glory.

"Damn," Casey murmured, eyes wide.

Don took the opportunity while Casey was still stunned to push him onto his back again. Looming over him, Don grinned. "What were you saying about that tube again?"

"I hope I brought enough," Casey answered.

Several hours later the pair lay side by side. The bed was a disaster, the sheets half off and the pillows on the floor. Casey was breathing deeply, murmuring from time to time and Don had woken at the sound, smiling when he realized that the boy talked in his sleep.

It was hard to imagine how they had gotten to this point when Don remembered his initial reaction to Casey. Now it seemed like the most natural thing in the world to be sleeping with him. Maybe before long Don would be sharing a bed with both Casey and April at the same time.

That idea put a big smile on Donatello's face.

"I love being a turtle," he murmured aloud.

The End