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AN: Although this is my first published story, it is most certainly not the first story I've written. I have been reading FanFiction for awhile now and just recently gained interest in the TMNT fandom. So, if the characters are slightly OOC, that is why. Any profanity will be bleeped out in this story. I know a lot of people do not care for the FF season, but I liked it. Basically, this fic is what I would have made the second season be about. I hope you enjoy it and I think everybody knows I do not own the turtles or any other characters from the show in this particular chapter. But, I'll let you get on with the story now.

The Birth Order Effect

"Why exactly does a tech company need a genetics lab anyway?" Donatello asked as he gazed around the fairly small room in wonder.

Cody Jones shrugged. "No idea. Now that Uncle Darius is out of the picture and I'm the official CEO of O'Neil Tech, I was given more detailed blueprints of the building. I saw something labeled 'Biotech Lab,' and I just had to check it out!"

"It sure is something," Donatello continued. Although he was first an engineer, he did have a certain fascination with biomechanics and genetics research. After all, he was the resident medic of the family, if only because he was the only one anywhere near qualified.

The lab appeared to be the stereotypical 'evil scientist lab' that one might see in a late night horror film. In the center of the room were large cylindrical tubes clustered tightly together with panels scattered with more levers and buttons than Donatello could count surrounding the base. The room was actually quite similar to the genetics lab at the Shredder's lair after his and his brothers' first infiltration of the extensive Foot headquarters.

But, that had been over a hundred years in the past. This genetics lab appeared to be more high tech, although not nearly as much so as Donatello might have guessed given the time frame. "You know, I always expected it to be more . . . extravagant, I guess."

Cody laughed lightly. "Unfortunately, genetics experimentation hasn't progressed nearly as fast as other sciences. We have still barely scratched the surface of all of the secrets of DNA. However . . ." he trailed off, leading the way to the far corner of the room were a large computer screen stood, "there is one thing we have been able to accomplish."

Donatello stared up at the screen in bemusement. "Uh, it's a computer." As much as the genius turtle adored his computers, he saw nothing different, let alone unique, about this simple large blue plasma screen that resembled a flat screen TV.

Cody rolled his eyes. "Thank you, Donatello," the turtle glowered playfully at him, and the boy smirked back. "The screen isn't what's important." He reverentially touched the computer panel mounted on the wall beneath the screen. "Behind this panel is a multitude of wiring and equipment that I couldn't even begin to explain. That is what makes this so special."

"Uh huh," Donatello had guessed the main part of the computer was hidden in the walls, but that still didn't answer the question of What the heck the thing actually did?

"I see you are still unconvinced," Cody continued as if the turtle had not even spoken. "This computer here can correctly read someone's DNA, measure the progress of growth or deterioration, depending on the age of the individual, and correctly determine that person's age down to the last millisecond."

"Uh h—" Donatello's thoughts immediately ground to a halt at the boy genius's words. "Wait, WHAT?!"

"Ah, so now you are impressed," Cody grinned impishly. He spends way too much time with Mikey, Donatello thought irritatingly.

As Donatello reached out to touch the screen, a thought occurred to him. Something that he had wanted to know all his life, but had never brought up to anybody. The scientist within him liked to know cold, hard facts. No guesses or assumptions were allowed. And most of Donatello's life he had been forced to make assumptions because science simply wasn't advanced enough to answer his questions.

Until now. "Cody," the turtle began, unsure of how to word his question. "Do you think it would work on—turtles?"

Cody blinked in surprise. "Why?" Then it struck him. "You want to know how old you all are."

Donatello nodded. "We celebrate our birthday, but it isn't the same. We aren't even exactly sure how old we are. It would be nice to know, you know?" Cody nodded wordlessly. "And, I know that we're all the same age and all, at least I'm assuming we are all the same age," he paused to sneak a glance at his human companion, who nodded to encourage him to continue, "but, I guess I've always wondered about our birth order, you know?"

Cody looked surprised. "You mean, you guys don't know?"

"Splinter never saw us hatch," Donatello supplied. "And we certainly don't remember. There just wasn't any way to know. When we were younger, I might have been able to get an idea based on our rate of development, but I was certainly too young at the time and it wasn't as if I had access to the equipment anyway." He sighed. "It's just something that's, always bothered me, I guess."

"Say no more!" Cody interrupted the turtle's trip down memory lane. "All you need is a sample of each of your brother's blood and you can know exactly how old each of you are!"

"Which will in turn mean we know our birth order," Donatello finished, high-threeing Cody. "I can't wait to tell the others!"

TMNT TMNT TMNT TMNT TMNT

"So, let me get this straight, Donnie," Leo interrupted the overly excited genius's long winded explanation. "You're telling us that 2105 has the technology to figure out exactly how old each of us is, when our birthdays are, and our birth order?"

Donatello nodded excitedly. "Yes! The machine can correctly read our DNA to figure out the exact rate of our development and can even measure how old our cells are!"

"Uh, Donnie?" Mikey interrupted this time, raising his hand uncertainly. Donnie nodded at him, too excited to be irritated at the second interruption. "I don't know much about science, but. Aren't cells continually dying and being replaced by new ones?"

Donnie might have been surprised by the ingenuity of the question if he wasn't still so fascinated by O'Neil Tech's resident geneticist's explanation of exactly how the DNA Reader, as it was called, worked. "Although that may be true with most cells, brain cells do not reproduce. Apparently, all it takes is a simple reading of the mitochondrial DNA, which will then result in—"

"What I can't understand," Raph growled from his place leaning against the wall, "is why ya even care about how old we are and stuff. It ain't like it matters in the long run."

"Perhaps you do not care, Raphael," Donnie quipped, an unfamiliar coldness in his voice at his brother's dismissal of something he had wondered his entire life. "But, I do, and, believe it or not, yours is not the only opinion that matters."

All other occupants of the room, Serling, the turtle brothers and their sensei, and Cody, stared at the normally passive turtle in surprise. Donatello was capable of quite scathing insults when he felt like it.

Raph grumbled, clearly miffed at the remark, but a little wary of his brother's temper. Clearly, this was important to Donatello. When he got an idea in his head, there was no getting rid of it.

"Donatello," Splinter interrupted the uneasy silence that followed his son's somewhat uncalled for comeback, "if this is important to you, then you have my full support. But, remember, my son," he continued, holding up a claw and waiting until every one of his sons had their eyes on him before continuing, "your age does not matter. Your position in this family need not change based on this test. You need not change to fit a 'mold'."

A grin split Donnie's face. Although he had heard his sensei's words, he had not heard him. The difference between hearing and listening. As far as he was concerned, the 'birth order mold' as it was often called, mattered a great deal. Not that he thought the eldest turtle should automatically become the leader of their team; Leo was clearly the turtle for that job. But, he did feel that the eldest should have more responsibilities than the others and that the youngest should be coddled, to some extent anyway.

"Don't worry, Father," Donnie bowed to his sensei, his thoughts already returning to what the results of this experiment could mean for their future, or, er, past future. "The experiment is strictly for the sake of knowledge."

"Why do I get the feeling that he's lying?" Mikey mumbled to Raph, who snorted in agreement. Mikey grinned stupidly at Raph, and the larger turtle reached up to gently thwack him on the back of the head. Mikey smirked back and returned his attention to Donny, whom he had always considered his closest brother. "He is way too excited about this."

Their purple clad, genius brother had already disappeared from the doorway, dragging a reluctant Cody behind him. Serling watched after them for a moment before sighing. "I do hope that Donatello knows what he is doing. Young master Cody really should not permit him to use the company's equipment for something so frivolous."

"It's important to Donnie," Leo interjected from his place standing by the large floor-to-ceiling windows that lined the back wall of the main room, his arms folded across his plastron.

"I still don' understand why," Raph muttered, trotting over to join his brother. "This whole thing is stupid. Who cares about who of us is older?"

"So, what you're saying, Raph," Leo began with a smirk, an evil thought occurring to him, "is that it wouldn't bother you at all if you found out you're the youngest?"

Raph reddened slightly, and Mikey stole the opportunity for a much needed jibe. "Awww, Raphie might be our baby brother!"

"Shuddup, Mikey!" Raph grumbled, copying Leo's posture and glaring out the window as if doing so would shut the smallest turtle up.

"Ah, come on, Raphie!" Leo joined in the fun. "Being the baby automatically means you're spoiled! You would love that, wouldn't you?"

"Shuddup, Fearless," Raph mumbled back, but he really wasn't in the mood for a fight. Plus, something in the back of his mind was telling him that they were right. He really was hoping that he wasn't the youngest.

"What, no smart comeback?" Now Leo actually sounded worried. "No yelling? Swearing? Threatening to tear my limbs off? Have you been taking depressants?"

"What? No!" Raph exclaimed indignantly once the significance of his brother's question sunk in. "Don't be stupid! What, I'm not allowed to be CALM?! You know what, FEARLESS, I'm NOT calm! In fact, I'm pissed off! YOU WANNA MAKE SOMETHIN' OF IT?!"

"I rest my case," Leo replied smugly, having accomplished his goal.

"Screw you!" Raph snarled, although he knew he'd already lost. He'd let his anger get the best of him and had taken the bait. Maybe he seriously should consider depressants.

Splinter sighed and rolled his eyes. "Not that I do not enjoy this pointless argument of yours," Leo and Raph turned to give their sensei blank looks, "but I believe I will go tend my garden. Michelangelo, would you accompany me please?"

"Aw, do I HAVE to?" Mikey groaned. "I just reached Level 11 on this AWESOME new videogame and . . ." his voice trailed off after a pointed look from his sensei. "Ah, I mean, I'd love to?"

"Come," the rat insisted, leading his goofball of a son out the door and down the hall to the steeply inclined staircase leading to the roof. Splinter ascended the stairs with ease, using his cane to vault up the steps two at a time. His son, at first, followed suit, minus the cane, but soon began to lag behind.

"Exactly how many steps ARE there?!" He whined, his breaths becoming ragged. "Isn't there an ELEVATOR?"

"Of course," his sensei called back. "But then, you would not have received the valuable lesson that you are growing soft from too much time spent with your head strapped to that helmet."

Whaaat?" Mikey whined his catchphrase, gripping the stair rail so tightly that his knuckles turned a lighter shade of green.

"To be blunt," his sensei continued, rolling his eyes at the obnoxious reply, "you are out of shape."

"I get a good work out—out—of—that—game!" He gasped in relief when Splinter finally twisted the knob to the roof door and pushed it open, turning around to wait for his lagging behind son.

"Thank—goodness!" The ninja gasped as he collapsed at the top of the staircase in a heap, his arms spread out before him. "Now—what?"

"Now," the rat began, not even out of breath, "I will tend to my garden and you will assist me."

"Uhhh!" Mikey groaned. "Can't I just, like, watch you?" With a crack, his sensei's cane thumped the back of his continuously sore skull. "OW!"

"Quiet!" Splinter snapped, waving his cane in indication for his son to stop his senseless intimacy with the roof and join him. "I find gardening quite pleasant. It is almost as relaxing as meditation."

"Yeah, relaxing," Mikey grumbled as he yanked himself to his feet, dragging his leaden feet to the garden and kneeling down heavily. "Now what?" He grumbled, his thoughts already venturing to what he could be doing with his time—

"YAHH!" He squealed in alarm when he was suddenly jumped from behind, something larger and heavier than he was atop his shell and effectively holding him down. "WHAT THE—?"

"Jeez, Mikey," he whipped around and his eyes widened in disbelief at seeing Raph leaning against the doorway leading down to the building within and rolling his eyes. "Ninja are suppose' ta be 'aware of their environment.' Ya give us ninja a bad name."

"Thank you, Leonardo," Splinter interrupted Mikey's retort. "Michelangelo, you were not paying attention."

Mikey groaned when the weight lifted off of him and he rolled over to find Leonardo bowing to his sensei and frowning down at him. "Did you have something on your mind, Michelangelo?" His brother asked.

"No fair!" Mikey whined, folding his arms over his plastron and pushing his lower lip into a pout. "I wasn't ready!"

"Are you ready now?" Leonardo asked with a brow ridge raised in amusement.

Mikey paused to consider the question before scrambling to his feet and facing Leo. He took a minute to regain his balance before grinning triumphantly. "Yup!"

In the next half second that he saw Leo smile and movement in his peripheral vision, he knew he'd been tricked. Before he could move, he was flat on his plastron with an even larger and heavier weight atop his shell. "Ah, COME ON!" He protested. "That's cheating!"

"You said you were ready," Leo chastised with the hint of a smirk at the corner of his mouth. "Clearly, you were not."

"Thank you, Raphael," Splinter had watched the exchange with amusement in his eyes, proud that his two in shape sons were so clever but disappointed that the other was so unaware of his surroundings.

He waited until the smallest turtle was back on his feet, grumbling to himself about stupid brothers and elevators, before beginning The Speech. "Michelangelo, clearly, you have been spending far too much time with your 'videogames' and not enough on your training. You failed to pass a simple awareness test. Therefore, you are forbidden any more videogame-ing," his sons groaned inwardly at that word, glad no one else had been around to hear, "until you are back in shape," Raph chuckled darkly and Leonardo nodded in agreement, "until I decide you have earned them again. Do I make myself clear?"

"Yes, sensei," Mikey grumbled. "So, you only asked me up here to help with your gardening to test me?"

"That is right."

Mikey tapped his chin in thought, thinking of how to word his next question. "So, I don't have to actually help you?"

"No," Splinter said, but cut off Mikey's relieved grin with his next words. "You will tend the garden by yourself. My stories are on." He gave the flabbergasted turtle a wry, wickedly toothy grin before trotting past his other two sons and toward another shack-like structure on the roof that contained the elevator.

Mikey glanced at his brothers out of the corner of his eye, and he grinned evilly to himself. "Hey, guys—?"

"In yer dreams, Mikey," Raph interrupted his well thought-out begging, complete with quivering lips and watery puppy-dog eyes. "Leo owes me a rematch at chess."

"Really, Raph," Leo sighed, rolling his eyes to the heavens. "Of the five hundred and sixteen times we have played, you won once, and that was because Mikey fell into our board and just so happened to move yours and my pieces so that I would be in checkmate, and you whipped out that book on chess I gave you and declared that, that was a legitimate victory."

Raphael snarled, but smiled smugly that the one time he had decided to actually read a book, if only because he was tired of losing, was the one time it had actually helped him. "Are ya scared, Fearless?"

"Yes, Raph," Leo replied dryly, no humor in his voice. "I have beat you five hundred and fifteen times and I am absolutely terrified that you will pull off a miracle and beat me without inopportune luck."

Raphael blinked a few times before asking bluntly. "Is that a 'yes' then?"

Leonardo sighed and rolled his eyes. "If I agree to play you one more time, will you SWEAR to stop ASKING FOR REMATCHES WHEN YOU ARE CLEARLY AN INEPT IGNORAMUS WHEN IT COMES TO ANY FORM OF STRATEGY GAME?"

Raphael blinked so many times at that, that his eyelids appeared to be fluttering. "Uh?" He glanced back at Mikey. "Was I just insulted?"

"Dude," Mikey snapped back from his place digging around in the dirt with Splinter's spade, since he had no idea what exactly gardening entailed. "Do I look like a walking encyclopedia?"

Raph decided that it didn't matter if he didn't understand the insult and returned his attention to his still somewhat put-out brother. "I agree to the terms. Whatever they are."

"In 'Dumb'," Leo growled through his teeth, "this is the last game. Period. No excuses. Nada! ¿Comprende?"

"But what if—?" Raphael was trying to figure out if there were any loopholes in that.

"UNDER ABSOLUTELY NO CIRCUMSTANCES WILL I PLAY ANOTHER GAME WITH YOU. EVEN IF A METEOR STRIKES THE EARTH AND, CONSEQUENTLY, OUR GAME. NOT EVEN IF OUR LIVES DEPEND ON IT," Leonardo spoke in that authoritative voice that always resounded with more volume than might be expected.

Raph blinked. "So, you'll play a game?"

"Oh, for the love of—yes!" Leo grabbed his brother's arm and dragged him toward the stairs.

"But there's an—" Raphael protested, flinging his arm to point at the other structure.

"Do you want me to play or not?" Leo snapped as the two disappeared down the stairs, Raphael reaching back to pull the door closed in surrender.

Mikey glanced up once they were gone and grinned evilly. Looking around to make sure no one was lurking in the shadows, he crawled over to the edge of the roof and pulled out a loose metal panel and reached behind it. He cried out in triumph once his hands closed around the object he sought and he pulled it out, hugging it to himself.

"Helix 2, portable version, here I come!" He sang as he sat back against the roof and glued his eyes to the screen.

AN: I hope you enjoyed this first chapter! I already have the next several chapters written, I just need to edit a few things. They will be uploaded soon, but the more people I feel who enjoyed it, the faster I will update. And, of course, everybody loves reviews!