137Yay! Mah bunneh has come back! Thanks for the nice words.
TMNT be the property of one P. Laird. Any belief that I work for them is just a Mirage.. BWA-HAHAHAHAHA! Sometimes I crack myself up...
Stalking the Green-Eyed Monster
'Kick, down up, step behind, seisan- Punch punch- Down- Up, double strike- Down and strike- Right seisan, block- Punch punch turn- Punch punch-'
That can't be... it just CAN'T be... but it sounds like... but Mike just CAN'T know something... 'Kick, down up, step behind, seisan-'
The rude laughter of Raph cut through Leo's preoccupation like (as Don liked to say) "Michelangelo through a pizza", and he found that everyone had been dismissed, but he had remained frozen to his spot.
Splinter raised an eyebrow at this unusual behavior, but decided to say nothing. He was finding out that ten-year-olds were in some ways more challenging than three-year-olds.
The morning training over, Leo decided it was time to Show some Interest. Following Mike into the living room, he put on his best Big Brother is About to Favor Little Brother with Attention expression and joined his quarry on the couch.
"So, Mike... need any help with your project?" he casually asked, as he generously passed the remote control to Mike while resisting the urge to just as casually take the notebook from him in return.
"Nope. I've pretty much got it figured out," came the cheery reply. He immediately launched into the daily "flip through all the channels looking for a good cartoon" routine that he had so perfected. The notebook, untidy and threatening to spill its contents, lay in his lap, calling to Leonardo.
"Well," Leo said, trying to look indifferent. "How 'bout I straighten up your notebook for you? Some of your papers are falling out. You don't want to lose any. You know Raph, he might throw them away."
"Naw, it's fine Leo," Mike said, absently patting the notebook with one hand. "I haven't lost a paper yet. And 'sides, it'll mess up my system. I know where everything is. Oh look! Spider-Man and His Amazing Friends! I hope it's my favorite- YES! It IS! Firestar! Watch out for Kraven! Don't trust him!"
And Mike, distracted by Kraven's recently captured prehistoric animals escaping from the Natural History Museum thereby causing the Spider-Friends to have to try to recapture them, while Kraven's real purpose is revealed, didn't notice how his super-secret project notebook was slowly sliding off his lap and onto the couch between his actively watching self and the more quietly sitting Leonardo.
A stealthy hand reached out; fingertips barely brushed the faded cloth cover, rather smooth to the touch despite the wear and tear. A thumb carefully slid just under the corner of the cover and began to lift, even as eyes that appeared to be watching Kraven steal the Eye of India (a precious ruby on display at the museum) and then capture Firestar with the intent of combining her powers with the ruby to fuel his Growth Energizer and thereby hatch out his dinosaur eggs into an unstoppable army, were really straining to see from the corners anything that might present itself and give him an idea of what Mike's project was...
"Oops! Sorry, Leo!" Mike, grabbing the notebook before Leo could open it, grinned. "Top Secret, you know. I can't show anyone, not even you."
Leo looked hurt. Mike couldn't show him? Or wouldn't show him?
'Kick, down up, step behind, seisan- Punch punch-'
"But why not?" he asked, making every attempt to let Mike see how hurt he was by this reluctance. "I thought you could tell me anything. Remember a few weeks ago, when you broke that... whatever it was that Don was working on but he didn't know it yet, and you were so upset you couldn't even say anything to Splinter. Yet you told me."
"Well... that's true," Mike admitted. "You are easy to talk to. Sometimes."
"Right," Leo vigorously nodded, generously ignoring the "sometimes". He placed a brotherly hand on his otouto's shoulder. "Even though I told you you should tell Don and Splinter, I helped you fix that... thingie... and I never told on you, 'cause I gave you my word."
Mike nodded in agreement.
"True. You always keep your word. You didn't tell on me," Mike said thoughtfully. Then his eyes narrowed. "You DID, however, make enough noise to get us caught, so I got punished anyway."
"I had to do flips, too."
"I had to clean the dojo for a week and do all of Don's chores AND do flips. Nope. I'm sorry, Leo, but this is just Too Important for you to know about."
And he sat on the notebook while he enjoyed the rest of the show where Spidey and Iceman try to rescue Firestar from Kraven only to be captured themselves, forcing Firestar to do Kraven's bidding in order to save her friends...
Leo briefly considered changing the channel so Mike would miss the rest of the show, but he decided that was too beneath a (future) Leader. He wandered away towards his room. He had some time before his lessons with Master Splinter.
He needed a plan. And a Good (future) Leader knew how to make plans!
Fifteen minutes later found Leonardo sitting at the little desk he'd made for himself from an old wooden crate, checking and rechecking his List for Finding Out What Mike's Top-Secret Project Is.
There really wasn't much on it. In fact, pretty much beyond the title, there was only "ask him", crossed out, followed by "ASK him" with a double underline under the words. That, too, was crossed out.
His eyes strayed to his picture of Jiraiya, a ninja from one of his favorite Japanese folk tales (Jiraiya Goketsu Monogatari), searching for Inspiration.
He had gotten the picture from an old book Splinter had rescued from a burned-out library, trimming the edges where the flames had briefly licked them, and making the frame himself. He was very proud of it, though there were times when Mike would beg his Ani to "cover it up, I'm getting nightmares from it!"
Jiraiya was a ninja who could turn himself into a huge gigantic toad. His archenemy, Orochimaru, had mastered snake magic, and had preyed upon Jiraiya's friends the Toads. In the picture, he was in the process of slaying this huge snake.
"But I'm not looking to slay a huge snake," he said to the picture. "I'm just trying to find out what Mike is up to! Though it would be cool to become a toad... I could find out a lot... on second thought, maybe that wouldn't be good. Mike would try to keep me as a pet, and I don't think I'd like that... thought it would be cool to turn into a gigantic toad..."
And while he imagined himself morphing by magic into a huge gigantic ninja toad, fighting off hundreds of treacherous ninja snakes while the beautiful Princess Tsunade (who had mastered snail magic) looked on with admiration, his eyes strayed to the book "The Art of War".
Splinter had allowed him to keep it, and even though it was still hard to understand, Leo was beginning to learn things from it. Shaking off his daydream, he contemplated the tome before him.
"The first chapter is about planning," he mused. "But this isn't war; this is me trying to find out what Mike is up to."
He thoughtfully tapped his list.
"Nope... this IS war," he said, reaching for the book and opening to the first chapter.
" '1. Sun Tzu said: The art of war is of vital importance
to the State.' Well, not the State, perhaps..."
Leo carefully read the the first chapter, highlighting certain sections that seemed to fit his situation. When he finished and looked at what he'd marked, a smile of satisfaction came to his face and took up residence.
18. All warfare is based on deception.
19. Hence, when able to attack, we must seem unable; when using our forces, we must seem inactive; when we are near, we must make the enemy believe we are far away; when far away, we must make him believe we are near.
Leo began to Plan. Soon his list held many scenarios, a veritable embarrassment of riches from which the young (Future) Leader had much to choose from.
Plan number One: Kitchen Duty
24. Attack him where he is unprepared, appear where you are not expected.
Leo was not one who seemed to enjoy his turn in the kitchen, but today he was eager to offer his father and brother a helpful hand as it were.
"I can't cook, but I could help get stuff," he said convincingly. "And I can wash up after you use each pan, then there won't be as many dishes after dinner."
Splinter cocked a suspicious eyebrow at the innocent face so earnestly peering up at him. His whiskers twitched, but he made no other editorial comments. He put Leonardo to work helping Michelangelo peel potatoes, while he got the ingredients for the potato and leek soup that was going to be dinner on this chilly fall evening.
"So, this sounds like a good soup," Leo commented nonchalantly as he carefully peeled the potato, dealing with the black spots while making sure he didn't leave more potato than peel in the sink.
"It should be!" Mike enthused, peeling two potatoes for every one of Leo's. The trickle of water running from the faucet to help rinse the potatoes splattered happily as the young turtle went about his job. "I found it in a magazine that got mixed in with some stuff for my project."
Leo, eyes stealing peeks to the right of him, saw the Object in Question sitting haphazardly on the small, cluttered countertop. It was only a foot or so away from his right elbow, so close and yet so far.
The smell of bacon filled the small kitchen with that delicious, mouthwatering scent, and Leo realized that Mike was telling him the ingredients and how they were "making due because we don't have all the ingredients, like we don't have leeks but we do have green onions-"
"I thought leeks and green onions were the same," Leo interrupted, carefully moving towards the notebook to make room for the chopping board that he and Mike were now going to chop up the potatoes on. He was so cool and collected that Mike had no hint of an idea about what was going to happen.
"Naw- two different things! I mean, sure, it's kind of like an onion, but more like garlic I think. Anyway, Sensei couldn't find any leeks so we had to improvise. But it'll still be good!"
Leo, chopping the potatoes with his brother, kept alert to the most appropriate moment when he could put his Plan into Action.
One of the lessons Splinter had taught them was to take something without being seen or detected- literally snatching it in plain sight of others. It was a type of stealth lesson, and the boys had become so good at it that Splinter had had to make a rule that no one could practice it except in the dojo. Too many fights kept breaking out.
Donatello, while working on an invention, would suddenly find his tools missing. Raphael would discover that the toy motorcycle he was just using for his Mega-Race Course of Death and had set down for just a minute while he refilled the alligator pit with water and more bloodthirsty alligators (made cleverly from Popsicle sticks) had vanished mysteriously. Michelangelo's precious Mr. Growly had gone missing so many times that the turtle had had to temporarily banish the precious bear to his father's closet, well-protected and completely hidden from mean old meany-head brothers who were just plain mean.
As Mike went on about using vegetable oil 'cause there was no olive oil, and how they would have to thin out the chicken broth with water because they were pretty sure they didn't have enough chicken broth to make three cups, Mike got out the onion and began dicing away. He was completely absorbed in his work and did not notice that his precious Top Secret Project Notebook was about to be pilfered by his "trusted" brother.
Leo had mentally kicked himself for not trying it earlier when they were on the couch, but that was then and this is now. Leo would sneak that book away under his brother's and father's very noses!
Mike was still talking about the soup; perfect.
Leo's hand was almost on the notebook; his mind was on how and where he would secret it until he could sneak it out of the kitchen-
And then his eyes began to sting and tear up something fierce!
"Wheeew, that is one strong onion!" Mike had crowed, and, eager to share with Leo, he had reached over half of a huge onion and stuck it directly under Leo's snout. "Smell that! That's a good onion!"
"Gaaa-!"
The notebook and several other things on the counter clattered to the floor as Leo's questing hand reacted violently to his nose and eyes being attacked by the overpowering fumes of the huge onion his brother was "sharing" with him.
"Oh, sorry, Leo!" Mike smiled, putting the half-onion back on the chopping board and hastily picking up his notebook, which had spilled much of its contents.
"Let me help you," Leo struggled on, eyes still swollen by the fumes, tears streaming down his face no matter how much he tried to blink away the stinging sensation. Ack! It felt as if some of the juice had got in his eyes, they burned so badly!
Yet he blindly tried to help Mike "gather" up his papers, only to find himself putting hands on the other things that had fallen to the floor.
"I got it!" Mike cheerfully assured him, while Splinter took time from the cooking to get his son a cool wash rag.
Leo, blinking mightily against the lingering effects, could not see the notebook anywhere.
He DID see, however, a sort of knowing grin on his otouto's face. But that could have just been the effect of the onion on his vision.
"Go sit on the couch and keep your eyes covered with this for a few minutes," he ordered, and Leo was sent away (in defeat, though he was good about hiding that fact from them).
Plan number one had failed.
But he still had others.