A/N: Eclipse belongs to GeekyCookie1.

Enjoy!

"Remember what I said about Max? This is what happened."

"MIKEY! YOU GOT pizza stains all over my collection of Modern Ninja Magazine. They're ruined!" Raphael yelled angrily, storming over to his youngest brother, who was standing by the pinball machine with Henry, Eclipse, Briana, and Leonardo as it was currently Leonardo's turn at the machine.

"Dude, those things are like twenty years old! They're not exactly modern." Michelangelo stated.

"They're vintage! It took me six years to collect them. Six years!"

Michelangelo rolled his eyes and took the magazine from him. "Chillax, bro! I'll clean it for you."

"Uh, Mikey, I don't think that's—" Henry started, but it was too late as Michelangelo started licking the cover of the magazine.

Shaking with anger, Raphael took Spike off his shoulder and pushed him into Henry's hands as he then snatched the magazine from his brother. He quickly rolled it up and smacked Michelangelo in the head with it.

"You mess everything up, Mikey!" Raphael said angrily.

"It's just stuff, Raph," Leonardo said, voicing his opinion. "Meager possessions. What does it matter?"

"What about your precious comic book collection, huh? You always stick up Mikey! Try seeing my point of view for once!" Raphael argued angrily.

"I get it. I just think, like Master Splinter says, 'Material possessions are fleeting—'" Leonardo was cut off by Raphael angrily pushing the pinball machine.

"Alright, enough! I'm tired of you three! You're always messing up and I gotta pay for it! The only ones here who don't mess up are Henry, Clips, and Bri!"

Before anything else could be said, fireworks suddenly shot out from the lab and into the living room, causing everyone's attention. Lights were exploding and popping all over the room as they all jumped and ducked to avoid getting hit, taking cover—Henry ignored the pain that his sensitive ears were in from the loud noises, as he jumped while keeping a protective hold on Spike, who was still in his arms.

Briana looked over and saw Max sitting on the ground, his tail wagging while looking all over the room as if he was trying to figure out what was going on. "Max!" She shouted. "No!"

👑👑👑

"MAX! NO!"

Luckily, Raphael managed to jump and grab Max into his arms, rolling him out of the way in time just as another light fell and exploded right where Max had been. Once the smoke cleared, everyone came out from where they had taken cover while Briana ran over to where her brother was with Max.

"Max!" Briana said, relieved that he hadn't gotten hurt as her brother gave him over to her, letting Briana take Max into her arms, who responded by giving her a quick lick. "Aw, you're okay, boy." She then turned towards her brother. "Thanks, Raphie."

Raphael nodded, and turned towards Henry, who was still holding Spike. "Are you two hurt?"

"No, I'm fine," Henry said, rubbing his ears with one hand while carefully holding Spike in the other. "My ears are just gonna be ringing for hours now, and I think Spike's just freaked out."

They both glanced down to see the small shell in his hand as Raphael reached over and picked it up, holding it in his own hands. A moment later, Spike poked his head out and there wasn't a single scratch on him.

"Aw... hey there, little guy," Raphael said, patting his small shell. "You okay, Spike? You're all good. Ol' Raph won't let anything happen to you."

The sound of coughing was heard and they looked over to see Donatello at the entrance of his lab. "Wow, I did not see that one coming," he said. "Is everyone else okay?"

"Yeah, we—"

"Are you crazy?!" Raphael snapped, cutting Leonardo off as he once again placed Spike back into Henry's hands. "No, we're not okay!"

"What happened here!?" They all froze and turned to see Splinter standing behind them, a look of concern on his face.

Raphael stomped over to him, angrily before anyone could said something. "I'll tell you what happened, Master Splinter! Donnie almost blew us all up. AGAIN! And worse, he almost blew up Spike and Max!"

Donatello stepped forward. "Raph, dude, I'm really sorry. I—"

"Sorry doesn't cut it this time!" Raphael snapped, turning around as he pushed past him and stormed into the lab. He walked back out, holding the canister of mutagen. "Until the mad scientist gets his act together, I'm holding this for safekeeping!"

"No, Raph, be reasonable! That's my last canister of mutagen!" Donatello said.

But Raphael ignored him, continuing to stomp over to his bedroom where he slammed the door shut. "We'll try getting it back." Eclipse told him.

Then, Eclipse, along with Henry and Briana, made their way to the hallway where they reached the door to Raphael's room and knocked.

"I'm not in the mood, Donnie!" He snapped from the inside of his room.

"Raph, relax, it's us." Eclipse told him.

"...come in."

As the three of them stepped inside the bedroom, closing the door behind them, Henry set Spike down on the bed that Raphael had made for him while Briana set Max down on the ground, letting him walk around the room. "I'm tired of them! I swear, they're always goofing off and making a mess and we're the ones that have to clean up after them!" Raphael said angrily.

"Raph, you know he didn't mean too," Henry said.

"Yeah, it was an accident." Eclipse added.

"An accident that could've gotten us blown up!" Raphael reminded with a frown. "It almost blew up Spike and Max!"

"But it didn't," Briana said softly. "Spike and Max are okay, they're safe."

Before another word could be said, a knock came from the door and from the other side, Michelangelo spoke up. "Uh, dude? You still mad?"

"What do you want, Mikey?"

"Master Splinter wants us to help clean up."

"No way!" Raphael said angrily. "Not a chance! Donnie can clean up his own explosion."

"Raph—"

"Hey, if you want to tell Sensei you're not helping, that's all you, dude." Michelangelo cut in.

"Not helping, Mikey." Henry said.

Raphael grumbled as he opened his door, pushing his youngest brother aside. "Fine! I will!"

But what none of them realize was that as they all left the bedroom and the moment that the door was closed, the mutagen canister rolled off the drum and fell onto the floor, the glass shattering as both Spike and Max stared at it, the light from the green ooze illuminating their faces.

"Sensei, this is completely unfair!" Raphael started. "Donnie made this mess, how come I have to help?"

Donatello couldn't help but look guilty at those words since Raphael was really mad at him this time.

"Allow me to make a suggestion, Raphael," Splinter said calmly.

Raphael rolled his eyes and glared up at him. "Suggest what, sensei? I'm sick of suggestions! What could you possibly suggest?"

But the moment he was done speaking, Splinter reached a hand forward and poked a spot below Raphael's shoulder, causing his entire body to stiffened as he groaned and whimpered for a moment before falling backwards and landing on his shell.

"Perhaps you should meditate for a while." Splinter said, still as calm as ever.

👑👑👑

THE MOMENT THAT Raphael was able to stand back up on his feet, he was heading back to his bedroom while ranting to Henry, Eclipse, and Briana once again. "Always me, right? I've got the bad attitude. I'm the bad guy! They just don't get it!" He complained as he kicked his bedroom door opened, as they all stepped inside the room.

Henry went to turn the lights on for him, but frowned slightly when he realized that the lights weren't even working—but the only source of light came from the bright, glowing green light was on his floor while the mutagen was oozing out in a large puddle.

"Oh, boy." Eclipse said.

"Well... Donnie's gonna be pissed." Raphael said.

Henry looked around the room and over to the small bed that Raphael kept next to his for Spike, realizing that it was empty. He looked around the room again, before realizing that he didn't see Max anywhere either, but his nose prickled at the two, new scents that he was picking up.

"Uh, where's Spike and Max?" Henry asked.

Then, they all froze when they heard something from behind them. The four of them whipped around, taking protective stances. For a moment, it was silent but then, low footsteps were heard as two large shadows emerged two giant figures out of nowhere.

"Those lot never understood you..." a deep voice said. "Not like them... not like me..."

The light of the mutagen was enough to illuminate the two figures in front of them. One of them was a giant mutant turtle with a massive shell that was covered in spikes and the other one was a giant mutant dog, the brown fur on his back grew sharper as if it were spikes.

From beside them, both Henry and Eclipse heard Raphael and Briana give out a shaky breath. "It can't be... Spike?" Raphael asked.

"What—Max?" Briana questioned, her eyes wide.

Henry and Eclipse felt their eyes widened in shock, finally realizing just who the two new mutants were in front of them.

"Hey, you four," Spike said, smiling. "Nice to finally speak with you for once."

Max snorted. "I'd said."

"But—how?"

"Isn't it obvious?" Spike nodded at the open canister of mutagen on the floor. "Besides, I feel fantastic now."

"I'd like to think so," Raphael said. "You... you look awesome!"

Spike grinned. But when both Spike and Max tried to stand up straight, their heads hit the ceiling lamp that caused the bulb to get busted.

"Whoa, easy, you two," Briana said as she held out her hands. "You two aren't as small as you used to be. You two should sit down." She gently touched Max's arm and sat him down on the floor. It didn't matter if he was sitting, he was still towering over her as Spike sat down as well—Max grinned at her, and she grinned back.

Raphael paced. "I can't believe this is happening... this is amazing! This is incredible, we—"

"Uh, Raph?" Eclipse asked. "What do we tell the others?"

"Easy," Spike said. "Tell them you got a new partner. One who knows the true meaning of being a warrior."

Raphael stared at him. "A new partner...?"

"You and me," Spike said as he stood and walked over to him, placing his hands on his shoulders. "No joking around. No goofing off like your brothers. We'll be the ultimate ninja team."

Henry stood there as he frowned slightly at Spike's words. It wasn't just his words that made him weary—it was his tone too, there was something about it that he didn't like.

"That would be... awesome!" Raphael exclaimed.

Max faced Briana. "What do you said? We'll stop the kranng and even the Foot Clan together."

Briana stared at him for a while, remaining silent until a small smile grew on her face, believing that he was being genuinely honest with her. He had to be though, right? It was Max, after all.

Briana nodded in agreement. "Yeah, let's do it."

Then, Spike turned towards Henry and Eclipse. "What do you two say? Feel like joining us? We'll crush our opponents! We'll all fight evil together, nonstop!"

Unlike Raphael and Briana, both Henry and Eclipse hesitated.

"Come on, guys!" Raphael said, a wide grin on his face. "This is my chance to show them that I know what I'm talking about! And I want you two to help me!"

But Henry and Eclipse still hesitated, looking between them as they waited for an answer. But before they could give one, there was a loud knock on the door.

"Raph? Hen? Clips? Bri? You guys in there?"

Raphael gasped. "Man! Uh... quiet," he ordered Spike and Max. "Just sit tight." Both Spike and Max remained where they were while watching them go up to the door. "Yeah?"

"We got a mutagen mission, need you guys on deck."

"Right, uh... one sec!" Raphael turned to face Henry and Eclipse. "So?"

Henry and Eclipse looked between Raphael and Spike, then between Briana and Max, before sharing a glance with each other before finally caving in. "Okay, we're in." Eclipse said.

Both Raphael and Briana grinned before Raphael opened the door to find Leonardo standing there, looking impatient. He tried to push the door open, but Raphael stopped him.

"Uh, we'll catch up in a minute," he said. "You guys go on without me."

Leonardo rolled his eyes. "Fine."

Once Leonardo had left, Raphael closed the door and Spike took the chance to speak up. "You don't need them, Raphael. We can find the mutagen on our own."

"Heck yeah! But if we're gonna do this, you two need to gear up." Raphael told both Spike and Max, opening his locker. "Take your pick."

It didn't take long for Spike and Max to finish getting ready, but as Raphael, Henry, Eclipse, and Briana left to get ready on their own, none of them noticed Spike staring at a photo of Raphael with his brothers, Eclipse, Henry, and Briana—each one with wide smiles on their faces, and then, Spike frowned at the photo.

"If Raph's gonna be free, we may need to lose some dead weight." Spike said to himself, scratching out Leonardo, Donatello, and Michelangelo in the photo.

But as Spike walked away, Max turned to the same photo and glared at it, a quiet chuckle leaving his lips. "Sorry, Spike, but Raphael's not the one that needs to be free," Max whispered to himself, scratching out Raphael, Henry, Eclipse in the photo before doing the same thing to Leonardo, Donatello, Michelangelo again, putting an X through them. "Briana is."

👑👑👑

THE MOMENT THAT Raphael, Boy Danger, Captain Violet, Eclipse, Spike, and Max had found the mutagen canister that was laying in the middle of the street, they had no idea that on the other side—Leonardo, Donatello, and Michelangelo had found the canister too. Unfortunately, a pizzaboy on a motorbike had suddenly pulled up on the sidewalk and stopped beside the canister, picking it up.

Both Raphael and Leonardo had gone at the same time to grab the canister but just at the same time that the boy started up his bike and left, Leonardo and Raphael had crashed right into each other and collapsed onto the ground.

"Hey! What are you doing? I had him!"

"You're late, Raph!"

"What are you talking about?"

"Are they really gonna fight again now?" Eclipse asked with a sigh.

"Hang on," Boy Danger said with a sigh. "I'll get them." He leapt down from the building, running over to them. He grabbed them by the back of their masks and started dragging them away, ignoring their protests. The moment he brought them into an alleyway, Boy Danger released their masks and whirled around, giving them a firm look."Have you two lost your minds!? Arguing in the middle of the street!? Are you trying to get someone to see you!?"

"It doesn't matter right now! We have to go after the mutagen!" Leonardo said.

"Well, if you," Raphael retorted with a glare at the blue masked mutant turtle, jabbing a finger into his chest. "—hadn't been in my way, we wouldn't even be arguing!"

"And if you had just come with us, this wouldn't have happened either!"

"Enough!" Boy Danger said firmly, his eyes glowing yellow for a split second before returning back to normal once the two mutant turtles went silent. "All this arguing isn't helping anybody!"

"Fine!" Leonardo glared at Raphael. "I'll go after it myself! I don't need your help."

"Fine!" Raphael yelled right back at him while Boy Danger facepalmed. "You sure you can handle a pizza delivery boy on your own?"

"What did I just said?" Boy Danger muttered under his breath while Leonardo had already left, running after the pizza delivery boy as he leapt onto a building and jumped onto another rooftop.

"Come on," he told Raphael. "Let's go."

With that, both Boy Danger and Raphael leapt onto the rooftop where Eclipse and Captain were waiting for them, but there was no sign of the other two mutants.

"Where's Slash and Max?" Boy Danger asked.

"We don't know," Captain Violet answered. "One minute, they're here. The next, they're gone."

Suddenly, there was two loud thuds from behind them as the four of them whirled around to find Slash standing behind them along with Max. For some reason, Boy Danger didn't seem to like the looks on their faces or how their body posture seemed... different—more tensed.

"What happened to you two?" Raphael asked.

"Yeah, where you guys go?" Captain Violet asked.

But there was no answer as Slash and Max just stared at them, which only made Boy Danger more nervous and uncertain about them. He looked over at Eclipse to find her already looking at him with a wary expression on her face as well—the two of them were able to read the other's expressions: they were thinking the same thing.

"RAPH! CLIPS! DANGER! VIOLET!"

Michelangelo appeared out of nowhere, running up to stand beside Slash—though he didn't notice him (or Max) at first since he looked terrified and was clearly out of breath. "Guys, Donnie disappeared! He was right behind me when—" he stopped and slowly turned his head to look at Slash and Max. "Holy chalupa... more mutants!?"

"Wait, wait, no!" Raphael said quickly, trying to calm him down. "It's Max, and Spike! I mean... Slash now."

"They got into the mutagen and well, here they are." Captain Violet explained.

"Dudes, dudettes... this is too much to progress..." Michelangelo said, gripping his head. "I'm gonna...!" His head literally exploded in front of them while Boy Danger, Captain Violet, Raphael, and Eclipse exchanged looks. Then, Michelangelo shook his head like a wet dog. "I'M FREAKING OUT!" He yelled.

"Raphael," Slash said. "You said it yourself, we don't need these clowns. We gotta hunt that mutagen down, now."

"Are we going or what, Briana?" Max questioned the purple haired girl.

Captain Violet stood there, not saying a single word as she stared at him. She bit the bottom half of her lip slightly, wondering where the sudden change in Max came from. Didn't he already know her answer?

"B-but...!" Michelangelo stammered.

"Screw the mutagen!" Eclipse suddenly yelled, a frown on her face. "It's Donnie! Leo can handle a simple pizza delivery boy on his own, we have to find Donnie."

Relieved that Eclipse were on his side, Michelangelo grabbed onto Raphael's arm as he stared between him and Captain Violet. "What about Donnie? We have to find him!"

Slash rolled his eyes and turned to Boy Danger. "Henry, back me up here."

"Excuse me?" Boy Danger questioned, now staring up at him with narrowed eyes and a hint of anger in his eyes. "Do you really think that I care about a stupid canister of mutagen right now when Donnie could be hurt or, worse? Hell no!" He turned to Raphael and Captain Violet. "Look, I know to you guys that this is Spike and Max, but this is also Donnie we're talking about. I'm with Clips and Mikey on this."

Captain Violet looked at every single person on the rooftop before she finally looked over at Max last. She gave him a small smile and shook her head.

"Sorry, Max, but..." Captain Violet told him. "I gotta go find my brother."

All heads turned to Raphael, who looked nervous. He glanced up at Slash, who stared back with fire in his eyes before he turned to Captain Violet, Boy Danger, and Eclipse, who were waiting for him to said something. Lastly, he turned to Michelangelo, who was close to tears.

"Sorry, Slash," Raphael said finally. "But my family comes first, no matter what."

Michelangelo gasped with delight while Eclipse and Captain Violet looked relieved, and Boy Danger gave him a proud grin.

"How about I make the choice a little easier for you?"

It all happened too fast.

Slash raised his massive fist and brought it down hard onto Michelangelo's back, slamming him so hard that he bounced back up. Slash hit him once, twice, and three more times before finally coming to a halt.

"MIKEY!" Raphael, Boy Danger, and Eclipse yelled while Michelangelo lay on the ground, eyes closed and mouth opened.

Captain Violet felt her eyes widened in horror when she saw him move. "MAX, NO!" This time, Max went to strike again in hopes of finishing him off, but he never got the chance too because Captain Violet threw herself at him, throwing him back several feet.

"SPIKE!" Raphael yelled, also throwing himself at Slash and pushing back several feet.

Boy Danger rushed to Michelangelo as he and Eclipse each grabbed one of his arms, throwing it over their shoulders to pick him up.

"Max, what the heck are you doing!?" Captain Violet questioned, her eyes still wide in shock by what he tried to do.

"I don't want to fight you, Briana," Max said, standing up and slowly made his way towards them. "Just leave me to my work."

"Your work!?" Captain Violet said, taking a step back as she reached for something in her belt. "The mutagen warped your brain, Max! This isn't you!"

Max shook his head. "Actually?" He said. "It is."

Right when Max went to lunge forward for Michelangelo, Captain Violet leapt forward and threw a smoke bomb into his face and tossed a second one into Slash's face. With the two distracted, both her and Raphael helped Boy Danger and Eclipse get Michelangelo away as far as possible.

👑👑👑

LUCKILY, MICHELANGELO PROVED to be okay, even after the smackdown that Slash had given him. Once he had proved to them that he was able to stand and move on his way, none of them wasted no time and began looking for Donatello. "There he is!" Michelangelo said.

They looked to where he was pointing and just across the building was Donatello laying at the edge of the room, as if he was asleep.

"Donnie!"

They bolted across the rooftop, jumping to the next as they made a B-line towards him and knelt around him. Donatello had a few bruises, marks, scratches, and his arm hung limpy at his side—his mask was also gone.

"Donnie?" Eclipse asked, gently tilting his head up.

A couple of minutes went by but Donatello whimpered, slowly opening his eyes. "Guys...?"

"Oh, thank god." Boy Danger said, relieved that he woke up.

"Ugh... what hit me?" Donatello asked, his eyes fluttering open. "It was like Raph, only bigger and meaner. Angrier, but not quite as ugly."

"It was Spike, and Max." Captain Violet admitted.

"They got into the mutagen. I was gonna tell you guys, but—" Raphael started.

"Spike? Max?" Donatello said with an eye roll. "Way to keep that mutagen safe, Raph."

"Okay, we don't have time for sass, do that later." Boy Danger said, wrapping one of his arms around his shoulders. "We gotta find some cover."

As Boy Danger helped Donatello, the others scouted ahead with their weapons out and ready if necessary. Once they crossed to the next roof, Donatello succumbed to his exhaustion and collapsed as Boy Danger caught him and helped him sit down.

"Can't make it," Donatello said. "Too weak, you go on without me, guys."

"No way!" Captain Violet and Michelangelo said in unison.

"Nope, not happening." Eclipse said.

"They're right," Raphael said firmly. "Family first, always and forever—that's our rule."

"Look, I'm gonna tie off your sprained arm, Donnie, okay? It might hurt," Boy Danger said as he was on his knees in front of him before looking over at the others over his shoulder. "He could use something to bite down on."

Raphael quickly took one of his sais. "Here, bite down on this." He shoved the handle into his brother's mouth.

"Eck! It tastes like leather and sweat!" Donatello said, voice muffled.

While Boy Danger got to work on tying off Donatello's sprained arm, Raphael, Eclipse, and Captain Violet were busy keeping a lookout while standing guard. With them all distracted, none of them realized that Michelangelo had wandered off until a familiar scream grabbed their attention.

"Mikey!" Eclipse and Boy Danger yelled.

"No! Stay here!" Captain Violet told them.

"She's right, stay with Donnie! We'll get him! Do not move until we get back, no matter what!" Raphael told them.

Before they could argue, both Raphael and Captain Violet were already gone, leaving the three of them there on the rooftop.

👑👑👑

BOTH CAPTAIN VIOLET and Raphael had been searching for Michelangelo and found him hanging by a rope. The two of them quickly went and got him down, pulling him back onto the rooftop. "Is he...?" Captain Violet asked worriedly.

Raphael gave a small breath of relief after checking his pulse. "He's still breathing."

Captain Violet grew relieved at those words but then, her eyes widened as she whirled around, could've have swore that she heard something. Raphael got up and looked around.

"Max! I know it's you!" Captain Violet yelled.

"Why!? Why are you doing this!?" Raphael yelled.

"The others hold you back, limit your potential. You don't need them, just like you said." Slash said, appearing out of nowhere as he smacked Raphael away.

"Raph!" Captain Violet shouted in concern.

"They're the ones that have been lying to you, remember? Why do you care about what happens to them now if they're the ones that betrayed you?" Max told the girl, smacking her away as well as he appeared out of nowhere.

"No! They're my brothers and my sisters! I never wanted this!" Raphael yelled, slamming his fist into the ground.

"There's no turning back now." Slash told him, going to head for Michelangelo but Max was already there.

"Finally," Max said with a smirk as he reached down and picked Michelangelo up by his shell. "I can get rid of the annoying one. For good."

At those words, Captain Violet didn't know what it was but something inside of her snapped. "No!" She yelled angrily, grabbing his attention as he turned to face her while she pushed herself off of the ground. "I am not going to let you hurt him!"

"I told you, Briana," Max said, still holding onto her brother. "I'm not fighting you."

"Oh, but I want to fight you!" Captain Violet said and for the first time, she was furious. All she was seeing was red and although she was terrified of it, she wasn't about to lose her family because of Max. "You're not Max. You're a crazy, deranged, monster!"

But Max only shook his head with tsk leaving his lips as he dropped Michelangelo onto the rooftop, turning to face her completely.

"We've been partners, Briana, but," Max said with a glare that was filled with anger. "You really are naive."

And just like, as Captain Violet and Max began fighting against each other, so did Raphael and Slash. "Do you really think you can beat me, when I know your every move?" Max taunted. "I've watched you train! I know every move of yours!"

"I can try!" Captain Violet said through gritted teeth as Max raised his massive fist and smacked her down before smacking her across the rooftop.

"You know, I really don't get why you're so focused on protecting them. I mean, didn't you find out that they've been lying to you?" Max reminded, walking towards her.

Captain Violet pushed herself up and onto her knees, as she was slowly starting to get up, breathing heavily. "They... they had a reason. They—"

"I can't believe you're falling for their whole we were protecting you excuse. They never saw what they did to you—I did!" Max said with an eye roll. "You were broken, and they broke you even more."

"Shut up!"

She pushed herself onto her feet and got into a defensive stance, pulling out her katana blade. She went to swing her sword at his, but Max blocked it with his own. Captain Violet gritted as she pushed against his sword, only for Max to kick her away to the edge of the rooftop. In the midst of the fight between Raphael and Slash, Raphael ended up joining Captain Violet by the edge of the rooftop when Slash threw him off of himself and tossed him aside after beating him.

"Get off of them!"

Michelangelo and Donatello jumped onto Slash and Max from behind but since they were already injured, they were already easy targets for Slash and Max to kick them down. Then, Boy Danger and Eclipse jumped in to help out—and in hopes of evening the odds, but it was the same effects with the two giant mutants beating them down.

"You see, guys?"

Slash and Max turned to see Captain Violet and Raphael standing back up onto their feet.

"That's what real family does, they stand by you." Raphael said firmly. "I'd rather be with my brothers and sisters than you any day."

"Was that a compliment?" Michelangelo questioned Donatello, before falling back down on his back.

Although Michelangelo and Donatello weren't able to help out that much due to their injuries, the two still tried to do their best and help out whenever they could but ultimately, the ones who lasted longer in the fight were Raphael, Captain Violet, Boy Danger, and Eclipse. As once again, they were all knocked back down, something felt off as for a split second, Boy Danger had to closed his fists tightly and hissed sharply when he could've swore that it felt something inside of him was trying to burst out, wanting nothing more than to rip Slash and Max apart.

The moment Boy Danger looked up to glare at the two, his eyes started to glow yellow as an animalistic growl left his lips, as heads whirled around to face him.

"Your pack is in trouble," a voice told Boy Danger firmly inside his head. "Get up and fight."

Then, they saw it. Boy Danger's nails suddenly grew sharper as they turned into claws and his teeth grew sharper, his eyes glowing yellow with nothing but fury in them. Despite his entire body aching with pain, Boy Danger forced himself to stand up onto his feet and standing protectively in front of the others. In this one moment, he no longer cared if both Slash and Max had the advantage because of their heights.

He didn't care about that anymore.

Adrenaline was coursing through his veins and the moment that the two giant mutants charged at him, Boy Danger waited and the moment that Slash raised his massive fist, he grabbed it and with a newfound strength that seemed to have come out of nowhere, Boy Danger twisted his arm and kneed him the stomach before slamming his fist into the giant turtle's face, causing him to stumble back. Then, Max lunged at him but Boy Danger leapt into the air, causing the mutant dog to skid to a halt as he landed perfectly on his shoulders. He pushed against his head with his foot and went to push his claws into his face, but Max grabbed his wrist and yanked him down, slamming him hard into the ground.

Max raised his other fist and went to slam it into his face, but Boy Danger rolled out of the way, leapt, and then lifted his leg and kicked Max across the face, sending him back several feet. From behind, Slash grabbed his arms and gripped so, so tightly that his arms might break. With his eyes still glowing yellow, Boy Danger hissed but refused to give up as he dug his claws deep into both of Slash's arms, drawing a little bit of blood from how deep he was pushing his claws into the skin. Then, Slash threw him into a nearby billboard that with enough force, Boy Danger thought that it was gonna fall over as he fell onto the ground.

But he still wasn't giving up.

He didn't know for certain what this was—none of them did, but if Boy Danger had to guess, the wolf inside of him was furious and all it wanted to do was to rip the two giant mutants apart, repeating the same things inside of Boy Danger's head.

Protect your pack.

Get up and fight.

Boy Danger stood up again, but was knocked back down when Slash punched him in the stomach. Anger fueled the wolf inside of him as Slash grabbed him by his throat and lifted him up into the air, the grip on his throat grew tighter. Using every bit of strength, Boy Danger lifted both of his claws and dug them both into Slash's arm again, pushing deep into his skin that blood dripped down his arm, but Slash's grip on his throat only grew tighter and tighter. Boy Danger used every bit of strength that the wolf inside of him gave him to push his claws deeper and deeper into Slash's skin, hoping that Slash wouldn't be able to tolerate the pain at some point and be forced to drop him, but so far, it wasn't working.

He could feel the air leaving his lungs as the grip got tighter. He forced his eyes to stay open but he could barely hear the sound of voices yelling and shouting. The next thing that he knew was that he was dropped to the ground as he fell to the ground while Raphael moved in front of him protectively, before charging at Slash—Captain Violet once again facing off against Max.

👑👑👑

"NO, NO, NO, no. You have to hold your pinky out." The little girl told the blue masked mutant turtle, showing him how to do it with her own cup.

"Uh, I don't really have a pinky." Leonardo said.

"Are there other talking turtles like you?"

"Nope, uh-uh. Just me, Mr Imaginary Turtle."

The moment those words were said, the roof broke as Slash and Raphael fighting—and Captain Violet and Max fighting fell in.

"Raph? Vi?"

"Leo!" Captain Violet said.

"Having tea time?" Raphael questioned, before the four fighting pairs flew out the wall.

The four fighting pairs were back on another rooftop, facing off against the other again. Both Raphael and Captain Violet were knocked down as Max spoke up. "Give it up, it's over for you two."

"A true warrior's spirit, we're the same, you and me." Slash told Raphael.

"We're nothing alike! You're pure evil!" Raphael told him.

"And I'm not giving up till you're done for, Max!" Captain Violet said.

Before either Slash or Max could do something, Leonardo appeared and kicked the two mutants away. He then walked over to Raphael and Captain Violet and helped them up.

"So, what's with the new turtle and new dog?" Leonardo asked.

"Long story—look out!" Captain Violet and Raphael said in unison.

But before he could reaction, Slash had already kicked Leonardo down and sent him flying several feet. The giant mutant turtle smirked. "Been looking forward to do that for a long time."

Max started to make his way over to Leonardo. "I think you're the one that I wanted to get rid of the most."

"Max! That's enough!" Captain Violet yelled.

"It's over!" Raphael added.

"That's right, Raph," Slash told him, facing him. "We're not like the others. They're weak, but we're powerful. Our anger makes us strong."

As Raphael charged at him, Captain Violet did the same as she ducked when Max went to punch her and pressed her finger against his neck, causing Max to stumble back along with Slash. Captain Violet breathed heavily as she caught her breath, looking over at her brother to see that he had grabbed Donatello's and Michelangelo's masks. But when the two turned around, their eyes widened.

"SPIKE!"

"MAX!"

Captain Violet bolted towards the edge, throwing her hand out in hopes of grabbing Max in time. "Max!" She yelled, reaching out but their fingers barely touched just as Max fell off the edge. "NO!"

Frowning, Captain Violet closed her eyes as she stood up. She looked up as she opened her eyes and turned to see Raphael helping Leonardo up. She remained by the edge of the rooftop as the others joined her, glancing down to find no sign of Slash or Max there.

"They're gone," Raphael said. "Well, they're still out there... somewhere."

👑👑👑

ONCE THE SEVEN of them had made it back to the lair, they all got patched up and Donatello's arm was still in a white sling. Leonardo, Donatello, Michelangelo, Henry, and Eclipse were the only ones standing by the pinball machine while Raphael was sitting on the ground, holding Spike's leaf with a frown on his face and Briana was sitting next to him, holding Max's old collar in her hands that had snapped off during his mutation, most likely—it was found in the corner of Raphael's bedroom.

As Briana held onto the collar, every single, good memory she had with Max flashed in her head but instead of making her smile, it only made her frown because she knew that she would never get to make another one with him again.

She wouldn't wake up to find Max sleeping in his bed right next to hers.

No, the Max that she knew... was gone.

The same thing was going through Raphael's head as he held the leaf and stared at it, as a memory flashed before his eyes.

There was a knock on the door and a seven-year-old Raphael frowned when he heard it. "Go away, Leo!" He yelled, not wanting to talk to his older brother right now.

"Raph, it's Henry."

"Oh," he said, a bit calmly. "Come in..."

The door opened and a seven-year-old Henry stepped inside the room, closing the door behind him. The only difference was that he seemed to be holding something behind his back.

"You and Leo got into another fight, huh?"

"He always has to show off to Sensei," Raphael grumbled, crossing his arms over his chest. "Just because he's the favorite and the teacher's pet."

"Sensei doesn't have any favorites, Raph," Henry reassured him. "He loves you guys equally."

"Then how come Leo always has to be the best? It's always him, Henry!" Raphael complained. "I'm tired of it! For once, can he just back off and let someone else be the best?"

"Look, I'm not picking sides here, but Leo isn't trying to be the best either," Henry said. "It might seem like it, but it's not true. You're just as good as Leo is, Raph—we all are. Besides, nobody's perfect, and that includes Leo, okay?"

Raphael remained silent for a while before he slowly nodded, his gaze falling to what was behind his back. "What are you hiding?" He asked curiously.

"Oh, right," Henry said as he carefully brought his hands forward to show a small turtle in his hands. "I found him a few weeks ago when I was heading back home from here. His shell was a little cracked, so I brought him home so I can help him. He's all good now, and I thought about giving him to you."

Raphael froze, looking up at him with slightly wide eyes and clearly surprised. "For... me?"

"Yeah," Henry confirmed with a nod. "I know you only talk to me, Clips, or Bri if you're upset but if you wanted talk to someone else that's not us, here you go."

Still surprised, Raphael carefully took the small turtle that Henry was giving him into his hands. Then, a small and genuine smile came onto his face as he stared at him.

"Thanks, Hen," Raphael said with a smile. "You're the best older brother ever."

Henry raised an eyebrow while giving him a jokingly smirk. "You know, Leo's your older brother."

"Best Oldest brother ever." Raphael corrected with an eye roll yet he still had a small smile on his face.

"Anytime, little brother."

"Raphael, Briana," Splinter said, bringing Raphael back to reality and snapping Briana out from her thoughts. "Do you know what I do when I missed my loved ones from the past?"

"No."

"I focus on the friends I am surrounded by the present."

At those words, Raphael and Briana looked up to see the others by the pinball machine before smiling softly as the two stood up, setting what they were holding aside for now.

"Thanks, Master Splinter." Raphael said, while Briana sent him a smile as the two headed over to where the others are. "Hey, what's a guy gotta do to get in your little competition, huh?"

"Got room for one more?" Briana asked with a small smile.

"Next two games are all yours." Donatello said.

"Sorry about Spike and Max, guys." Leonardo apologized once the two reached them.

"It's okay," Raphael said, putting his arms around his brothers and sisters for a hug while they stood by the pinball machine. "You guys aren't too bad to hang out with either."

And with that, the seven of them all smiled at each other, just simple enjoying the fact that they all had each other.

👑👑👑

LATER THAT NIGHT, once everyone had gone to bed, Briana was the only one in her bedroom that still hadn't fallen asleep. She reached underneath her bed and pulled out a small box, opening it as she reached inside. From there, she carefully and gently pulled out a white-knitted blanket and held it close, ignoring the part where her name was supposedly sewn into it as she really didn't want to look at it at the moment.

As she held her old baby blanket, she couldn't help but hold it up to her face and bury her face within it, wanting nothing more than to forget about what occurred this night between her and Max. But when she pulled her face away from the blanket, she stared down at it as tears glistened in her sapphire blue eyes, wanting to come out but she refused to let them slip while thoughts ran through her head.

She couldn't save Max in time.

She failed him.

Her own parents gave her up.

She failed them.

She squeezed her eyes shut as a single tear roll down her face while she gripped her baby blanket tightly, whispering two words to herself—two words that she's told herself for as long as she could remember.

"I'm sorry."

"So, this is what happened between me and Max. I do wish that things could've been differently or that we ever tried to fix it, but... the Max that I knew was gone and... it was all my fault."