Let's do the time warp again~

[faceguy]

Who: Leonardo Hamato faceguy and YOU
What: Leo has been aged up... into extra wrinkly adult Leo with added apocalypse vibes
When: Late July/early August
Where: Central City
Content Warnings: Potential for apocalypse talk, body horror, family death, dismemberment

[Master Leonardo, leader of the resistance, wakes up in a place he did not fall asleep - in the softest bed with the silkiest sheets he's felt in, well, ever. And he knows right away that some shenanigans are definitely occurring. This is not his beautiful house time, and this is not his beautiful wife body. He doesn't know everything, but enough foreign memories are there to explain that much.

Somehow he's ended up in the body of his younger self, somewhere that is not his own timeline. Weird, but then, his whole life has been weird from the beginning.

He's feeling pretty calm about it, all things considered. While he may not know exactly what's going on, he knows that this is a place his younger self found safe, and he feels like this situation will resolve itself sooner or later. He'll ask Mikey for theories once he's back, assuming he remembers it.

For now, well... might as well take advantage of a world that isn't on its last leg.]

A: Hot Bean Juice - 33-year-old Leo (Open to anyone with access to Dylan Brock's penthouse)

Does this apartment belong to a movie star or something? Swank-kaaay.

[Leo can't help but stare around in awe as he moves through the penthouse - even pre-apocalypse, he'd never been in a place so nice, outside Big Mama's hotel. Hopefully no one thinks he's an intruder; maybe he should come up with a better cover story than, "Don't worry, I'm just temporarily possessing my teen self's body."

Leo at this age is considerably taller than his younger self, just over six feet. He's broad and muscular, and one arm is missing, though luckily for him his big, bulky robot arm came with him. He carries one sword instead of two, a bright red mask wound tight around the hilt. He's got a good number of scars and a good number of wrinkles, but his smile is easy and relaxed as he moves around.

He heads for the kitchen (once he finds it), and quickly finds exactly what he was hoping for.]

Oh, thank you, Pizza Supreme in the Sky.

[It takes him a moment to figure out the coffee maker, but soon enough he has a mug full of steaming hot coffee, inhaling the scent so hard he nearly snorts it all up his nose.]

I've missed this so much.

[He hopes he remembers this; he wants to lord it over Donnie later.]

B: Bless the Rains Down in Michigan - 33-year-old Leo (OTA)

[Realizing his younger self has been living in Michigan, of all places, had been a bit of a shock, but Leo is nothing if not adaptable. He's figured out how to get around this place quickly enough, utilizing his ninja skills, and has taken some time to explore.

Rain moved in about an hour ago and hasn't let up, and Leo is delighted. No one appreciates how nice it is to just sit and let the rain hit your face until the water dries up and is replaced with acid.

Leo's sitting up on a rooftop currently, his feet dangling over the edge, his face just... turned up toward the sky, letting the rain hit it. His mask and scarf and pants are soaked through, but his eyes are closed and his smile is content.

He's remarkably good at noticing when someone is approaching him, no matter how much or how little noise they're making. He doesn't even look, he just speaks.]

You ever think about how great rain is?

C: And I Feel Fine - 40-year-old Leo (OTA)

C1

[Another slip, another distortion, and an older Leo is here again. From even further into the apocalypse now, his face looks even more haggard, his clothes even more dirty and torn, new scars and new furrows covering his skin and shell. Two masks decorate his sword's hilt now, purple and red intertwined.

He's pretty sure he's dead, or will be soon. His time is over, his world is lost. But he sent Casey back, and he has all the faith in the world that Casey will accomplish the task Leo gave him.

Casey is their hope, after all. And hope is a ninja's greatest weapon.

His family is gone, and it stings, but there's a peace Leo feels, too. He'll be back with them again soon - Dad, Raph, and Donnie, who he's missed for so long, April and Mikey, the fresh and still stinging wounds. But first, seems like his soul is taking another detour.

The lights and crowds of Central City are... a lot for someone who's grown so accustomed to the ruins of civilization, and Leo finds himself getting away from it, eventually stopping in a scraggly, rundown park that it doesn't look like many people like to enter. Not that Leo is too worried about anyone attacking him, and he has enough of his younger self's understanding of the world to know he isn't putting him in any danger by being out in public.

He finds a bench and sits on it, just for awhile, watching the pigeons that hop by, the bugs, the wind in the trees.

Life here isn't perfect, he knows: there's crime, there's death, there's suffering. But there's life too, and isn't that incredible?

He just wishes he could have given his own world that back.

He'll stay seated until someone else comes along - if they look like they want the bench, Leo will move to the side.]

Hey, sorry - didn't mean to take up the whole seat, heh.

C2

[Maybe there's a reason people avoid this park, actually, because while Leo is chilling, he hears a crime in progress - specifically a mugging.

Leo gets up, moving quietly to get closer and take a look. It's a human with a gun, and he's not impressed in the slightest.

Soundlessly, Leo moves behind the mugger... and plucks the gun right out of the guy's hand, clicking the safety and then spinning it around his finger.]

I'll be taking that, thank you!

["Hey!" starts the mugger, but when he turns around and gets a look at Leo... he decides to make a hasty retreat.

Maybe you were the victim, or maybe you're just a bystander - either way, catch Leo smirking at the guy's retreating back.]

Ah, come on - [He glances at the person standing there, winking.] - there's no way this handsome face is that scary.

[[OOC: I'll match you if you'd rather do prose than brackets. Also I don't have room for adult Leo icons so you get teen Leo icons but just imagine the big guy, thanks.

Hit me up if you'd like something more specific!]]

Comments

A

[definecat]

[Clearly some people really aren't all that observant when suddenly in the wrong place or time. It's only that Sleeper recognizes the scent and more of the morning stumbler that makes them decide against a super-secret knockout swat and an interrogation like they might with a real intruder. But as usual, nobody minds the cat.

Which is just the way they like it. Although they hop down from their snoozing spot to rub against the nearest leg of the bipedal turtle in question.]

Did you that a meow is only used for cat-to-human vocalizations? Doesn't seem appropriate here.

[faceguy]

[Leo looks down at the cat(?) that just wound itself around his legs. He’s a little embarrassed to be caught in this dramatic display of coffee rapture, but not surprised there is a talking, multi-eyed cat.

He’s met a lot of yokai by now, after all. Though he isn’t sure that’s exactly what this cat is.]

Maybe we can come up with our own turtle-to-cat language. [He smirks as he raises the mug to his lips. Yes, despite being caught, he’s going to keep drinking.] Ooor we can just keep speaking English.

[He takes a sip, then grimaces.] Phew, that’s strong.

[definecat]

Guaranteed to wake even the dead.

[The coffee is a bit of a joke. But it's strong, and not too bitter. About as good as one could get.]

English is fine with me. There are worse languages out there.

[Having done the cat thing by rubbing up and marking the turtle, they leap easily up to the counter and tuck their tail around their feet and look at him]

You seem different this morning. Still Leo, I hope?

[faceguy]

[That could have been a really funny joke if this Leo were just about seven years older. Too bad. He takes another swig of the coffee, despite its taste.]

Trust me, compared to what I've been drinking, this is top shelf stuff.

[He watches as the cat-thing jumps up on the counter. Since they're sentient he's guessing they're allowed to do that, so he doesn't say anything about it.]

Oh, so you can tell it's me. [He grins. Convenient!] I mean, I guess I'm technically still him. Pretty sure I'm just haunting my teen self's body right now. [Another, unconcerned coffee swig.] Glad I'm not actually a teenager again, though, that'd be a nightmare.

[definecat]

Not interested in recapturing your youth? That's an unusual sentiment.

I'm Sleeper. And I have other senses than just my eyes to rely on. Even alternate universe versions of people tend to have things in common, if you're paying attention.

[They give a feline version of a shrug, dismissing most of it.]

Heard you giving yourself the ten cent tour and figured I should know who was up.

c1

[purplexing]

[He can't lie to himself; the moment he'd caught a glimpse of the taller, older looking Leo, Donnie had made rather admirable use of his ninja skills and just vanished. Only vanish was more like 'ran away.'

He wasn't sure he wanted to deal with that, he wasn't even sure why this was a thing, but then if Accelerator could suddenly have two weeks of memories and experiences inflicted upon him in a span of seconds then--

The thought terrifies him. He'd finally started getting used to the three months and a day that spanned between himself and Leo, but this much... well it seems like too much and Donnie's not ready to face that.

Except he knows he can't stay away for long, and ancient or not, his brother is still his brother.


The park isn't the most glamorous but Donnie manages to track Leo down. His hoodie's pulled over his head, his hands buried deep into its pockets. He's not too surprised that the older turtle realizes he's no longer alone. Maybe he's sensed him. That's...that's still a thing between them, right?

Still, wordlessly, Donnie finally steps out of the shadows and sinks down onto the other end of the bench.]

...no, it's cool, I don't take up much space anyway.

[faceguy]

[Leo hasn’t missed that Donnie was here. He hadn’t missed that he was avoiding him, either.

To this point, Leo hasn’t tried to seek him out - from the quick glimpse he caught, this Donnie is still a teenager, and Leo isn’t going to force interaction on the kid. He’s learned a few things, over the years. Donnie seems well taken care of here, at least physically, so there’s… no need for Leo poking his nose into it.

Yep!

But he noticed when Donnie came to find him. He lets the kid approach in his own time, until he’s finally there, sitting next to him.

Hearing Donnie’s voice, even higher and lighter from youth, nearly makes him break down right there.

He wants to pull this Donnie close and hold him forever, make sure nothing ever hurts him. He wants to sob into the boys collar and give him a million apologies. He wants to tell him that Donatello Hamato takes up so much space, that he commands the attention of human and yokai alike, that they couldn’t have gotten as far as they did without him, that he’s incredible, Donnie, you were incredible-

But that would just scare the kid off. And Leo has learned some things.

So he just shifts slightly on the bench to see him better, giving a light chuckle.]

Guess you don’t, huh, shorty?

[Twenty four years later, his grin hasn’t changed.]

[purplexing]

[Well, that suffices for an icebreaker. Donnie wonders if he should have anticipated it. This is Leo, after all.

Still, something in his chest loosens up, the scowl that jumps across his face in pure reflex wavering a little at the edges. He pulls up his knees, settling his arms around them as he pointedly looks off to the side, trying to be cool, even though his tone comes off more petulant than indifferent.]

I'm catching up!

[faceguy]

[Leo can't help but snicker at that response, because it's just too funny. Donnie reacted to that like... well, like a teenager, and it amuses him at the same time it causes warmth and fondness to well up in his chest.

In Leo's past, in Donnie's future, Donnie ended up just a little taller, and he never let Leo forget that. Leo has to get his jabs in while he still can.]

Heh, you always have had a short fuse.

[He spreads his arms out along the back of the bench, the one that comes down to rest behind Donnie's hunched for the robot arm, making a soft clunk as it connects with the old metal.]

...Sooo... You doing alright?

[How do you even start a conversation like this? Damn.]

[purplexing]

[Inwardly he's relieved that for however many years now apparently stand between them, Leo's still Leo. Terrible puns and all.

Donnie groans, rolling his eyes.]

Guess some things haven't changed.

[He rests his chin across his arms, eyes flicking towards the sound of that heavy metal limb, and he tries to hide a grimace.]

All right as can be, I guess.

[If this Leo was from when he thinks he is, then even being in a foreign city in an alternate world is better than what's happened there.]

...you doing okay here?

[Beat.]

Let me know if you're missing naptime or anything.

A

[robintohood]

[It's only after already knowing Leo and Donnie and getting used to them living at the penthouse that Jason's not as surprised to see an older turtle in the kitchen. He can also smell the coffee that was just brewed]

Have we met before?

[faceguy]

[Leo doesn't have all of his younger self's memories of this place, but he has enough to know when someone is a familiar face and when someone is a stranger. This one rings as familiar, though not as strongly as some other people. He can't really remember specifics, though.]

Not that I remember, but I'm pretty sure you've met the teenage version of me that's apparently been running around.

[He extends his left arm, which is the one that is still his real hand, not a robot.]

Leonardo Hamato, nice to meet ya!

[robintohood]

[Jason politely takes that hand and shakes]

Jason. And yeah. I met teenage you before.

[Which makes this "first" meeting easier to navigate]

I see you got my taste in coffee.

[faceguy]

More like I'll drink any coffee you got.

[He takes a sip and doesn't even care how it tastes, really. Caffeeeeiiiine!]

I'm pretty sure we ran out... two, three years ago? Man, now I don't even remember...

[Time flies when you're trying not to let all of Earth's remaining population die!]

C2

[levelshift]

[Watching the whole mugging is one tiny white-haired kid in hospital scrubs, ducked behind one of the trees. He had been hanging out in the park, trying to think up some new way to hunt down one of the scientists, when the mugging started. Not wanting to cause another military incident, he hid instead of trying to help.

It looks like the danger has passed, though. The victim thanks Leo profusely, though they look a little terrified and are quick to get out of there, and when they do Accelerator decides to try getting a little closer.

He's still a little unsure, but he's doing his best to look like he isn't bothered by the crime that just happened in front of him. Or the gun. Or the fact that Leo is huge and with a big robot arm.]

That was cool.

[faceguy]

[Leo watches as the victim takes off (a bit fast, but he knows he looks a bit intimidating, given the robot arm and the whole reptile thing), and he's about to leave when suddenly there's a child. A child wearing hospital scrubs and wandering around by himself, which in Leo's opinion is probably not good.

At least the kid doesn't seem scared of him, or at least he's acting very brave, so that's a plus.]

Heh, thanks. A silly mugger doesn't scare me.

[He heroically flexes his robot arm, because the kids at base used to like that.]

What'cha doing in the park by yourself?

[levelshift]

[Yeah, the robot arm is cool. You don't see those very often in Academy City, especially ones that look like they could smash through a brick wall with no effort. Accelerator is trying to keep a straight face though, because that's how he copes.]

A total shithead. Kihara-kun, you seen him? He's a scientist with a tattoo on his face.

[faceguy]

[Well that is quite a description for a little kid to bust out.

Leo squats so he’s closer to eye level with the kid.]

Haven’t seen him. Is he who’s supposed to be looking after you?

[Coming from the apocalypse, Leo is pretty used to kids being raised by completely unconnected people, but still, something about the hospital gown and the “scientist” designation and the way the kid describes him as a “shithead” are all points adding up to something worrying.]

Or… are you trying to get away from him?

Bonus Turtle Tot Prompts!

[faceguy]

A:

[After his time spent moonlighting as an older version of himself that will never be, surely Leo is done with the age shenanigans.

Unfortunately, that seems to not be the case; he's out on a walk, sipping on a boba tea and listening to music on headphones, when suddenly he is preschool age, wearing a old blue tank top that says "RAD" and a blue bandanna over the top of his head, with no memory of how he ended up here, out on the busy street and not safe in the lair with his brothers.

Being too young to be outside without Splinter, Leo does exactly what he's supposed to do in the situation: run and hide from the humans, and wait until his dad comes for him.

Or, well, he was going to do that, but the toy store next door caught his eye, and now he's standing with his face smooshed against the glass, looking at all the toys inside.]

WHOAAAA! Look at that RC car!!

[He is paying no attention.]

B:

[Of course, the loose green gremlin child was going to attract the attention of bystanders, who attracted the attention of the police, who are now wondering why such a small child is being allowed to wander freely without some kind of escort. If he's a Starfallen, surely he has a foster family around who he's supposed to be with?

Of course, when the police try to approach him, Leo remembers he's not supposed to let humans catch him and he runs, gunning for the first manhole cover he sees - if he can get below ground, surely he can find his way back to the lair from there, right?

That's the plan, but he can't get the cover up all by himself, and before he can escape the police officers catch up.

"Hey there, little guy. Where's your caretaker?" asks one of the officers, grabbing his arm.

Leo thrashes and pulls, yelling at the top of his lungs.]

STOP! LEMME GO! STRANGER DANGER!

["Hey now, you know you can't just be wandering around like this," the officer starts to lecture.

Now, slider turtles don't have bite strength as strong as an alligator snapper or a spiny softshell, but Leo isn't exactly a slouch in this area, either. Something the officer holding him learns the hard way.

"OW!" He yanks his hand back, shaking it in the air. "That stupid thing bit me!"]

So long, suckers! [Leo is on the move again, though his tiny legs can only go so fast, and the officers are hot on his heels, yelling after him.]

b

[purplexing]

[For a quick trip out for a drink, Leo sure has been gone a while. The weird energy fluctuations going on haven't done much for any bouts of anxiety, but having Leo's tracker just suddenly show up as untrackable is a spike Donnie doesn't need.

He has no idea where to start looking, not wanting to entertain the possibility that Leo might have been snatched up by whatever unstable energies were at work, snapped back home like a rubber-band. And then his police feed goes off, with reports of some small, blue-clothed, green child and his heart leaps into his throat.

It's not long after that Donnie manages to get to the street the police have reported seeing the little menace heading. And then he spies Leo, and for a second he can't help but stop and stare. Seeing the police not far behind is enough to spur him back into motion, and he throws caution to the wind, sprinting across the street.]

Leo!

[faceguy]

[Leo is the fastest of his brothers (no matter what any of them say!), but he's not fast enough yet to outrun adult humans with legs longer than he is tall. They're gaining on him, fast, and he's trying to think of a way to evade them when he hears a sudden shout.

And hey, that's his name!

He looks and is... immediately confused. That's a turtle, a big one, and he's dressed in purple (Donnie's color), but he's so tall! And his voice is deeper! And he's not wearing his glasses!

He's so distracted by this (and the fact that the Donnie imposter just ran into the street without really looking both ways) that he trips and goes sprawling, spinning around on his plastron and getting his shirt dirty in the process.

The officers are catching up, the Donnie imposter is running toward him, and Leo can't get up fast enough to evade either of them.

So he does the only sensible thing, which is to start crying the biggest and loudest crocodile tears you ever did see.]

[purplexing]

[Fast as Leo can be, he's still always such a klutz. Donnie winces as he sees his brother take a tumble, throwing a glare at a driver who honks and slams on the brakes as though they're the ones at fault before hurrying onward. The police still had a head-start in their pursuit, and with Leo down, they're closing in fast.

...and of course Leo is crying. Can this get any worse?

His battle shell's hidden under his hoodie, so using that is out. Donnie resorts to the next best thing, conjuring up a mystic-tech hoverboard with probably more propulsion than necessary. But then he's always been a bit of an adrenaline junkie.

And now he's zooming in, hunkering low on the glowing board as he moves in, in preparation to scoop up one sobbing turtle tyke.]

A

[levelshift]

[Accelerator is heading home from work when he notices the tiny green turtle. It's hard not to notice the kid, being used to turtles and also the fact that Leo is still very green, just less than half the size he usually is.

He isn't totally sure this is Leo, this could be some other turtle entirely or one of his other siblings, but the blue is tipping him off. He stops and stares, then sighs heavily.]

... You've got to be fucking kidding me.

[He's muttering that under his breath before approaching.]

Oi, brat.

[faceguy]

[Leo has a lot of names and none of them are "brat", so at first he doesn't even acknowledge Accelerator.

It's when the human is close enough to feasibly grab him that Leo realizes he is the brat, and so he does the only sensible thing he can think to do in this moment.

He spins and kicks Accelerator with his little baby leg.

This doesn't accomplish much other than causing him to unbalance and fall back on his shell.]

Wah!

[levelshift]

>[He's a damn good thing it's harder to drop his crutch these days. And that he has a crutch, because a kick to his shin, even if it's coming from a very small turtle, is making him stumble backwards a bit and swear.

He does not fall over, though. Thank god for that. Once he regains his balance he glares.]

Shit, I should leave you like that.