"On the Fourth day of Christmas, Mir-aagge gave to me... FOUR Ninja Turtles"... yeah, right! NOT mine, never will be mine. OH, and Feliz Navidad!

Chapter 8:...to TOWN!

Splinter gazed sternly at the two on the floor, who stuttered and stammered and desperately tried to convey to Sensei that their intentions had NEVER been to attack HIM; they were just trying to protect their brothers from Santa! Yes, Sensei had said he was HARMLESS, but he was a HUMAN, and how did Sensei KNOW that he would be harmless- NOT that Sensei was STUPID! NO, they would never think that, it's just that...

Splinter allowed them to continue for a few minutes before he put them out of their misery.

"All of you, please follow me to my room," was all he said, cutting off the continued justification.

Don and Mikey, now fully awake, followed with eyes wide for different reasons. Don could not believe that his brothers had actually attacked Master Splinter with bokken! What the heck was wrong with them? Had they lost their minds? All that talk of protecting him and Mikey from Santa- sure, he knew they'd been scared from the moment Splinter had said that Santa may come, but he still found it amazing that Leo and Raph would go so far as to TOUCH the weapons without permission, must less ATTACK Master Splinter!

Mikey's eyes were wide with disappointment. Not only had he and Don fallen asleep, but his brothers had planned on attacking Santa! That they had attacked Master Splinter was shocking enough, but Mikey could not help feeling that his brothers had pretty much ruined any chance of Santa's showing up! He had noticed that there were no gifts under the tree- had Santa heard the commotion, and taken off? Had he "seen" that Leo and Raph were planning on attacking him? Perhaps HE was the one to nudge Sensei awake, so that he would get up and discover two of his sons sleeping on the couch!

Leo and Raph, bringing up the rear, spared no words of blame on each other. They knew that it had been a fifty/fifty deal, and they were brave enough to face the music.

After a brief stop to pick up pillows, they entered Splinter's room, Leo and Raph holding theirs behind their backs, as if these items of comfort would be useful in protecting their tails from a Christmas spanking.

"Get into my bed, all of you," Splinter ordered, and four turtles, clutching pillows immediately obeyed. There was just enough room for them; Leo on the far end, then Raph, then Don, and Mikey last on the near end next to the night stand where Splinter's candles for reading had been relit when he had first awakened. Father would fit in if they squeezed in tight- but Father just tucked them in, removing his own pillows to the floor for the moment. He lit a few more candles on his dresser, illuminating the room even more, and then turned back to them.

"I am going out to straighten up the dojo and make sure nothing else has been disturbed. Then I will come back in here, and we will all spend the night together. Perhaps if you sleep in my room, then you will not be in danger of kidnapping. No one- NO ONE!- is to leave that bed. I will be back in ten minutes!"

The door closed firmly, and four turtles, huddled in their father's bed, breathed various sighs of relief or disappointment.

"Man! You guys probably scared Santa away!" Mikey accused, torn between anger and sadness. How could his brothers keep working so hard to prevent what should be the happiest day of the year?

"Why did you guys attack Splinter?" Don asked, more calmly, as Mikey continued to fume about the wasted efforts of Don and himself to have a Merry Christmas.

"We didn't attack Splinter," Leo defended. "I mean, we didn't mean to attack Splinter. We thought..."

"We thought Santa was trying to snatch you both!" Raph jumped in. "And if he HAD been tryin' to snatch you, you'd of been glad to see us! Now we're getting blamed for scaring Santa and attacking Splinter..."

Don so wanted to tell the older two that Santa was not real, but Mikey, who had finally become happy again, was now on the verge of tears at the prospect of no Christmas for anyone. He sighed, and worked his brain as hard as he could, trying to salvage this entire situation for all concerned.

"Look- I think you both were very brave to do what you did," he finally said. "It wasn't very bright, but it was very brave."

Leo and Raph, caught by surprise, sort of smiled, and felt that things were not as bad as they knew they were. Donnie understood. Donnie didn't blame them. For some reason, that made a difference. Their brainy brother understood their motives- that really meant something!

Then they heard a small sob escape Mikey. Try as he might, the youngest was losing his battle to be strong. Christmas was ruined. Santa would not come- why should he when his own brothers admitted that they were going to attack him with bokken?

"Why did you have to do it?" he finally cried, trying to hide his face. "What did I do to you? I only wanted Santa to come and bring us presents! Even when I knew I wouldn't get nothing for splitting Raphy's lip, I still wanted you guys to get presents! But NO! Little baby Mikey is stupid to want that! Now Santa isn't gonna come, and I'm glad! I'm glad you two won't get any presents- but now Donnie won't get any, either, and after all he did to help me get Splinter-!"

And he cried into the blanket and could not be comforted by Donnie, no matter what his older brother said or did.

Leo and Raph felt terrible. Once again they'd crushed their little brother- and over what? Just because he wanted this? What had it mattered? Why could they not have listened- no, BELIEVED Splinter when he had told them time and again that nothing bad would happen to them; that they were safe; that NO ONE could take them away from Father?

"Mikey, they was only worried about us," Donnie kept trying to make peace, but Mikey no longer cared. Everything was ruined, and now they couldn't have Christmas.

"I-I j-jjust want-ed to do s-stuff l-l-like other kids," he gulped out. "Hallo-ween was just -like oth-er kids, a-and Christ-mas is just- like other-other kids! D-Don't you get- it? I just want to be like other kiiidssss!"

And his sobs made the bed shake in sympathy with his sorrow.

Three turtles sighed, trying to find the words to comfort him and failing miserably.

"Mikey," Don finally said. "Mikey, the truth is, we aren't like other kids. You know this. And yet- we ARE like other kids. We play, and we watch TV, and we fight, and we read, and we tell jokes- and we play jokes on each other- like..." desperately he thought... "Remember that time when Raph was grounded?"

"Raph is always grounded," Leo pointed out, then "Hey!" as Raph bopped him one for saying it.

"This was a time that Mikey played a joke on Raph when he was grounded," Don smiled.

"He always plays a joke on me when I'm grounded," Raph frowned.

"Yeah- but this time was when he kept bringing you water and milk to drink..."

And Don retold Mikey's story to Raph and Leo in such a way that the other two were soon laughing in spite of the coming punishments. Even Raph had to admit that it had been a good joke, though it had better never happen again.

Mikey tried to quit crying, but though he was calming down, he still had tears leaking from his eyes, and he still felt this overwhelming sadness.

"Mikey, tell them about the present," Don tried desperately. Mikey did not look like he wanted to share this information. After all, Leo and Raph had been against Santa's visit from the start! Why should Mikey tell them something that they would only make fun of?

"What present, Mikey?" Leo asked, trying to make it up to his little brother. But Mikey just could not bring himself to open his mouth.

"You got Splinter a present, Mikey? How did you do that?" Raph also tried, but to no avail. Mikey's mouth remained firmly shut- except for a hiccupy sob every now and again.

"Raph, that note you thought was to Santa," Don said. "It was to Mrs. Sakai. Mike wanted to leave it at the store with some money to buy Splinter a Christmas present- because Santa doesn't bring presents to adults. Mike-"

"It don't matter," Mikey sighed abruptly, and he turned his back on them all- he was sleeping on the end, and he faced away, closing his eyes. He had quit the noisy part of crying, and just wanted to forget this entire thing. "It was stupid of me to ever have wanted a visit from Santa. Raph was right last year- mutant turtles don't get visits from Santa. Raph was right. I see that now."

Raph was right after all. All this bad luck just proved it. He closed his eyes tightly, and willed himself to go to sleep.

Don gave his older brothers a look that was part apology, part accusation. Then he, too, sighed, and would have turned over as well- but Splinter had reentered the room.

Once again, two of the turtles tensed up, wondering if their punishment would take place at once.

Splinter dragged the old rocking chair over to the side of the bed where Leonardo and Raphael were the closest. They were not encouraged by the look on his face. He was wearing that "I am sorry but I must do this terrible thing for your own good" look he wore just before a spanking. Both sons cringed, thinking of their coming pain.

"My sons, I am extremely disappointed in the two of you," he said quietly. "I am not disappointed in your reasons; I am proud that the two of you would fight so hard to protect your brothers. It is what I have been trying to instill in all four of you since shortly after you came to me that fateful day."

His eyes, sad but shining with pride, made them want to hide under the blankets and never ever ever come out again!

"But I am disappointed that, despite my assurances to the two of you, you still believed that something evil could or would happen. It hurts me that my sons believe that I would lie to them about their safety; that I would allow anything evil into this home to harm my sons."

With every word, Leonardo and Raphael slouched lower and lower in the bed. They could not bear to look their father in the eyes, and they felt the tears of guilt sting their own as the words entered their ears and worked their way into their hearts.

"We're sorry, father," Leo nearly sobbed, wanting to get into his lap but knew that he was not to leave the bed without permission.

"We really are! We didn't mean to doubt you! Really we didn't!" Raph was as sincere as Leo, and he, too, made as if to move out of the bed, to seek forgiveness in Father's arms- but he, too, knew that they were to stay put until Splinter said they may move.

Splinter smiled inwardly, and held out his arms- and was hard pressed to keep the rocking chair from tipping over backward as two turtles once again launched themselves at him- only this time in love, not fear.

Donnie watched as Splinter forgave these two for being concerned yet foolish brothers. He watched Raph and Leo as their faces, which had been tense and worry-wrinkled ever since they'd been put to bed in here, smooth out to peaceful, comforted expressions of joy and relief.

He wondered if Splinter had any hugs that would cheer up Mikey as much as Leo and Raph had been cheered up...

Splinter caught him looking at him, and then glanced at Michelangelo's back to them all. He sighed, and gave the two overly-protective brothers another hug, then without words encouraged them to get back into bed.

Once tucked in, he walked around to the other side, and knelt down. Michelangelo's eyes were closed, but Splinter was fairly certain he was not asleep.

"My son," he whispered, a hand gently wiping the stray tear away. "It will be all right. I promise you."

Mikey didn't respond, except to squeeze his eyes tighter, to tighten his grip on the blanket that he'd pulled up over part of his face to cover the shameful fact that he had resorted to sucking his thumb in his grief- he had not sucked his thumb in years, except in very trying circumstances, and when he was certain that no prying eyes belonging to any brother that might tease him about it (Raph) could see.

Splinter simply shook his head, and kissed his "sleeping" son. Then he turned his attention to Donatello.

"You are certainly a good brother as well as an excellent son," was all he said, and he reached across Michelangelo and hugged Donatello. Donnie returned the hug with an extra-hard squeeze.

"You are an excellent Father," he whispered so the others could not here. "And I love you."

Splinter once again tucked them in snugly.

"Aren't you gonna sleep with us?" Leo asked sleepily.

"No, I will make my bed on the floor- in front of the door, so no intruder may disturb us," Splinter smiled, as he got out an old futon mat he kept in the closet for emergencies. It did not take long for him to make himself comfortable. He blew out all but one candle- the largest one that he kept on his dresser, well-protected from accidental fires by being set in a large pan of water, so that if it were to tip, it would be extinguished at once. "Good night, my sons. Merry Christmas."

"Night," three voices echoed; then gradually the only sounds coming from the room were the peaceful breaths of sleeping children.

Splinter lay there a few more minutes, making sure that no one was trying any fake tricks. The only one he knew for sure was awake was Michelangelo. The occasional smothered hiccup gave away the fact that this one was not ready for slumber.

Splinter listened to this for perhaps ten minutes, then:

"My son," he whispered. "Bring your pillow and come here."

Silence- then the sound of a sad turtle scooting out of the bed, careful not to wake any brothers. Patter patter in the dark; then a forlorn son climbed under the large quilt that his father held up in welcome, and Michelangelo, snuggled safe with his father, finally found the peace he needed to fall asleep.

It was dark and cold, but the turtle could see by the clock on the dresser, illuminated by the lone flicker of the candle, that it was about four a.m.

Carefully he got out of the bed, trying not to disturb his sleeping brothers. Quietly he padded across the cold floor to where Sensei was asleep on the mat, evidently holding onto a slightly snoring Michelangelo. There was no way he would be able to sneak past Splinter without being heard, so he didn't try.

"Father? Father! I have to go to the bathroom."

Splinter, hearing this in his light sleep, gave his permission with a whispered "very well", and in relief the young turtle stepped out the door and hurried down the hall.

However, the bathroom was not his first stop- he entered his bedroom and, guided by the night light, made his way to his most secret hiding place. Feeling around quickly in the dark, he found the carefully guarded "door" of his hidden hideyhole, and by touch found exactly what he'd been searching for.

Quickly, for Father would be listening and would come looking if he took too long, he hurried out to where they'd hung the stockings. Mikey's was easy to locate in the faint glow of the living room night light, and he quickly slipped into it something that would hopefully make his little brother happy- though the rest of the family might not be as pleased.

He turned to head to the bathroom- and froze!

His eyes simply could not believe what they saw! In the poor, dim light shining from the outlet, there were- were- PRESENTS! Under the Christmas tree!

PRESENTS!

He- he was- stunned!

A noise from his father's bedroom reminded him that he was to be in the bathroom. With great difficulty he tore himself from this amazing sight, ran into the bathroom, quickly made his lie the truth, flushed, and ran back to the room.

"Sorry," he whispered, as he saw that Splinter's eyes were open, watching him. "Sorry I took so... Father! Guess what I saw!"

Splinter smiled, and put a finger to his mouth.

"I gather something wonderful," he whispered back. "But let us get a few more hours sleep, please."

Nodding vigorously, the wandering turtle carefully got back into bed, snuggling the blankets around himself and his two other brothers. But there was just no way he was going to be able to sleep- there was just no way! PRESENTS! There were PRESENTS under the TREE! How could he possibly sleep? How could he... possibly...

...zzzzzzzzzzz...