Mating Season Blues! - OptimisticallyCynical (2024)

Chapter 1

Chapter Text

Mating season Blues!

“Smells like rain.”

Used to the shadow popping in on him by this point, Casey didn’t so much as flinch at the voice that drifted up behind him. A smile worked its way to his face instead, tossing a look over his shoulder to watch as Leo stepped out of the darkness and became bathed in light the closer he drew to where Casey sat.

“At least it’s not snow.” He pitched in, scooting over as if he had to make space for his boyfriend on the long stretch of cement he had claimed. “You know what they say about April showers.”

“What does April’s hygiene scheduling have to do with snow?”

When Leo just tilted his head, his brow furrowing as he sat down, Casey was suddenly reminded that they hadn’t grown up hearing common little rhythms and whatnot that he and most of the people he knew, had known since they could speak.

Bumping their shoulders together he kicked his feet out as he explained himself.

“Not April-April, the month of April dude.” He chuckled. “April showers bring May flowers.”

“Oh.” Leo mumbled with a short nod. “It’s a Spring thing.”

“Yup. Kinda sucks though. I’m gonna miss the outdoor rinks.”

Leo hummed from next to his side in acknowledgement, but Casey still found himself startling when a hand laid over his own. “I can ask Donnie if he can make something up for you in the sewers.” A dry kiss was pressed against his cheek, Casey’s face flushing from the ultra-rare public display of affection even if there wasn’t anyone else around to see it. “I’m sure he’d be able to figure something out for you.”

“Ugh… y-yeah.” Casey squeaked when he felt the light graze of Leo nuzzling against his throat, a snicker breaking through and his head twitching to try and cover his neck at the huffs of air brushing over his skin. “Leo! Dude! That tickles!”

Leo jerked back, even lifting his hand away from overtop of Casey’s for good measure. “Oops. Sorry, I- uh… sorry.”

Not sure what he was apologizing for and secretly missing the warmth that his hand provided, Casey leaned into him, still chuckling as he admired the bright flush over Leo’s cheeks.

“Nothing to apologize for Blue.” He assured, giving Leo a quick bop on the nose just to annoy him. “Casey Jones knows he’s irresistible to cute ninjas.”

Dropping his arm over the other’s shoulders Casey glowed at the soft chuckle he managed to get, taking his chance and nuzzling his nose playfully against Leo’s cheek only making him laugh harder.

“Casey…”

A flutter of movement next to his side drew Casey’s attention, his body leaning away when he saw Leo’s hands… flapping? Twitching? Doing something he’d never seen before but seemingly something he was doing to try and catch Casey’s attention as they twitched close to his face.

The sudden jolt of them being so close to his eyes made him jerk back, avoiding the odd gesture with a snicker. “Babe, what are ya doin’?”

He watched as Leo’s brow furrowed, a look of… something, flittering through his expression as he glanced at his own hands like they had minds of their own. “I… don’t know? Maybe I just have to much excess energy?”

Hm, he supposed that made sense.

“Come on Leo.” Hopping off the ledge and onto the fire escape below, Casey held his hand out, smiling wide as he looked up at the one being backlit beautifully by the moon. “Wanna go enjoy the last of the ice with me?”

The smile that Leo graced him with was warm and soft, Casey’s grin growing when Leo took his hand and hopped down next to him.

“Lead the way, Jonesy.”

Feeling Leo’s hand tighten around his Casey gave a light tug before he let him go and swung himself over the railing. “Make sure ya keep up than Babe.”

With a whoop he pushed himself away from the rail and started his free fall. Kicking his feet out his wheels shot out just in time to soften his landing on the low rooftop across from them. From behind him he could hear Leo rolling to a slid next to him, the sound of his feet sprinting across the ledge stroking his competitive side.

“Hey Leo!” Spinning on his heels to skate backwards and meet his boyfriend’s eyes, Casey winked at him. “First one there gets to pick the next date night activity.”

Laughing at the wide-eyed surprise his deal earned him, Casey spun back and sprinted ahead.

He was sooo dragging Leo to Monster Truck Mania next month. He knew that the skilled fighter had little to no interest in giant trucks destroying each other but that’s only because he hadn’t seen it in person before. Once he was sitting in the stands and feeling the vibrations through the floor from the roar of the engines, he would change his mind and-.

“Whoa!” Casey skidded to a stop, his jaw dropping as a shadow shot by him in a blur.

He had no idea Leo could even move that fast…

“Leo! Wait for me man!”

Picking up his pace to double time Casey attempted- and failed- to catch up with his strangely determined boyfriend.

“Leo!”

Chapter 2

Chapter Text

Casey dragged the towel through his hair as he stepped into his bedroom, his mind already swirling with all the plans he had to see through by the end of the week. The list seemed endless lately and honestly, he was sure how much longer he could continue-,

“Leo?”

The sword wielder jumped, as if he didn’t know that Casey had walked into the room even though he took no precautions to be quiet in his own home. As he spun around on his heels he just as quickly ripped something away from his face to hide it behind his back. “Casey!”

Arching a brow and confused as to why Leo seemed shocked to see him in his own home Casey draped this towel over one shoulder, allowing a playful smirk to settle over his lips.

“I had no idea you were coming over Blue. I woulda cleaned the place up a bit.”

It was endearing to see the splash of colour heat up across Leo’s face, a telltale sign of his nerves and embarrassed even as he tried to work his expression into one of nonchalant indifference.

“Well, I was in the neighborhood and thought I’d stop by.”

“Em hm.” Leaning over to the side slightly Casey arched a brow when Leo shifted to keep his hands out of sight. “And you just thought you’d go through my underwear draw?”

“What!? No! I-!”

“Then what are ya hiding Blue? Something else I should know about? Are you here to steal my jock st-?”

“Sweater!”

Before Casey could finish, he blinked as one of his hoodies was shoved between them. Eyeing the fabric he didn’t need to look at it long to be able to tell that it was the same hood he’d thrown on his bed before heading for the shower. One that he’d been wearing for the better part of a week without a wash.

Bluntly, it stunk.

He had no idea why Leo would be shoving his face in it.

“I, uh, well I just… saw this sitting… out?” Leo lied. Badly. “And it’ssss, got some stains on it that I figured I could wash so… I thought I’d take it with me? To Clean! No other reason of course!”

“Uh huh.” Stepping in closer Casey gave Leo’s shoulder a pat as he passed by him and made his way to his dresser. “If ya wanted one of my hoodies to wear around Blue, I have no problem with it.”

After all, it’s not like the brothers had much to spare in terms of clothing, and for the most part Casey bought all his sweaters and hoods in largers sizes so he could layer more underneath. There would be no reason for him to be worried about Leo stretching them out with his shell. “I think I might even have a nice blue one back here that should match with your maaask, yup! Right here. What do you think of this one B- Leo?”

Turning back around Casey was shocked to see that Leo was gone, and his hoodie along with him.

“Huh.” Taking another glance around just in case he might have missed him, simply standing elsewhere Casey tilted his head as he made a sharp popping sound into the now empty space. “Okaaay. See ya later I guess?”

That was weird, but it was easy enough to shrug off for now. The chill of the air was starting to get to him after all. Besides, he could talk to Leo about it later.

Chapter 3

Chapter Text

“I can’t believe it’s finally here!”

Casey barely even had time to step in the lair before the DVD in his hand was snatched by the bounciest of the brothers, Mikey letting out a whoop as he flipped back towards the center of their home.

“Monsters Ultra Alien Run on Fury Road Four! I can’t believe we finally found it!”

“Just wait till he finds out we also brought five.” April snickered in a stage whisper to Casey from behind her hand, both chuckling like the pair of high schoolers they had grown out of years ago.

“Hey April, sup Case?” Raph greeted them as they made their way further in, two giant bowls of chips in his hands. “You bring the stuff?”

“You know it!” Swinging his bag from his shoulder Casey unzipped it and pulled out a still cooled can, April doing much the same but wiggling a whole bottle of vodka.

“Thank god. I’m gonna need a whole pack to get through tonight.”

“Oh my god! This is the Directors cut! Forty additional minutes of nonstop special effect action!”

“…Make that two packs.”

“April! Perfect!” Donnie’s voice boomed from the kitchen snapping all their attention in his direction to see him waving her over. “Did you get the rum too? There’s this new drink I need it for.”

“I got you Donnie!”

April walked away, leaving them behind to join Donnie in the kitchen to make… whatever it was he was making.

Taking a look around the open space Casey found himself turning back to his best friend, tossing him a can before slipping his bag back on his shoulders. “Where’s Leo at?”

“Fearless?” Raph sucked down half of his drink, wiping at the back of his mouth once he was done before answering. “Dunno. Said there was somethin’ he had to do but I didn’t bother asking what. You know how Leo is.”

“Yeah, adorable.”

Casey’s response made Raph choke on his next sip, but he ignored the dying cough of his friend as he looked around once more for his boyfriend.

“I’m gonna go check on him.”

Leaving the disgusted gag of Raph behind, Casey slipped his hands in his pockets as he made his way to the first spot he figured the other would be.

Stepping into their old training room, he felt his brows furrowing to see that it was empty. Nothing and no one inside other than the few family photos sitting on the mantel. He bowed his head to the master he never got to spend enough time with before backing out of the room entirely.

Well… If Leo wasn’t in the main area, and he wasn’t in the dojo, that only really left one place.

The sound of easy chatter and laughter drifting from the other side pulled at him in a want to join in, but he knew it wouldn’t be as enjoyable if one of his favorite mutants wasn’t out there to laugh with them. Wounder just what it could be that would be keeping their leader so busy Casey found his mind coming up with more and more ludicrous things as he passed by the distinctly marked doors until he was stopped in front of the one he knew second best to Raph’s.

He smiled as he admired the few items Leo had decorated his door with, nothing more than photos of their odd little family and all of the friends and allies they had made over the years alongside a chalkboard with a little piece of chalk dangle from a sting hammered into the frame.

Normally it would be covered in little notes from his brothers or from April and Casey themselves. Quickly scribbled locations with dates and times in case he wondered where someone was and couldn’t get a hold of them, items that would need to be added for their next supply run or even just little notes and jokes that would pop into their minds.

Sometimes, on the rare occasion, there would even be notes from Leo himself if he had stepped out without telling anyone and expected to be out of reach for a few days.

Casey was glad to see no notes like that gracing its dull black surface and lifted his hand to offer a small knock.

“Leo?” There was no answer, so Casey knocked again. “Blue? You in there?”

“Casey?”

Letting out a sigh of relief, Casey opened the door, a witty comment on the tip of his tongue that died the second he pushed the door open. “Oh. You turned into a burrito.”

Leo let out a long sigh, flopping back onto his bed and rolling over to bury his chin into his pillow. “Hey Case.”

Confused but easily charmed by whatever odd little antics he seemed to be experience on a daily bases since they started dating, Casey let the door fall closed behind him with a soft click and made his way over to the bed.

“Think you got enough pillows?” As he spoke, he eyed the seemingly endless mountain of pillows that had been thrown on the bed. Some that Leo was laying on and the rest filling every other available space. “And blankets?”

A whine drifted up from the wrapped up lump in the middle of the bed, Casey watching as Leo’s face disappeared when he pulled the sheets down to cover himself completely.

There was something mumbled to him, but regardless of how hard Casey attempted to listen, he couldn’t make out a word of it. Growing concerned he still kept up a smile as he sat on the edge of the bed, placing a hand over the bundled burrito turtle and gently rubbing his hand back and forth in a hopefully comforting gesture.

“What was that? I couldn’t make it out Babe.”

A low rumbled drifted up from the blankets, but it wasn’t a grumpy growl so Casey didn’t worry about it too much. Eventually the blanket slipped down again, a huffy mutant face greeting Casey as Leo glared at the wall.

“I’m… cold?”

“Is that a question?”

With a long sigh, Leo pushed himself to sit up, Casey blinking in surprise but no less pleased when he automatically twisted himself to press against Casey’s side, his head resting on the human’s shoulder even as he shifted the blankets around his shoulders to bunch under his chin.

“I don’t… feel cold? But I can’t seem to stop shivering, like- internally? It feels like my soul is vibrating and I’ve got this weird urged to just… I don’t know how to describe it…”

“Steal every available blanket and pillow in the house?”

Leo huffed again, burrowing his way closer to Casey.

Growing slightly concerned over the odd behavior being displayed Casey lifted his arm, pressing the back of his hand against Leo’s forehead and earning himself a groggy squint at the disruption to the other’s rest. “You don’t feel warm…” He mumbled, more to himself than the one at his side. Dropping his hand back he tilted his head at the other. “Think you might be coming down with somethin’?”

“Dunno.” Leo’s voice sounded softer now, trailing off into a low vibrational churr as he tucked in closer to Casey’s side. “Feels better now that you’re here.”

“Aw.” Feeling a bloom of warmth overtaking his heart when Leo looked up at him with those big blue eyes of his, Casey reached out and softly cupped his cheek. Planting a featherlight kiss to his forehead worked the churrs up to a low rumble, pulling a small laugh from the human as he nuzzled their noses together. “I’d call ya a sap, but I don’t want to ruin the moment.” Leo huffed at that, knocking him away gently with a bump to the shoulder. “Don’t push yourself though. If you’re not feeling well, we can just chill out in here and let them enjoy movie night.”

To that Leo shook his head, detaching himself fully and allowing the blankets to fall from his shoulders as he got to his feet. Casey watched him carefully, checking for any swaying or stumbling as Leo stretched himself out.

“Nah. The feelings… passed? I guess?” He gave a careless shrug, looking over his shoulder and holding a hand out to Casey who only all too happily took it and got to his own feet. “Come on, let’s go join the others.”

“After you.” Gesturing to the door with a wave of his hand Casey’s smile grew at the playful eye roll he got in turn.

Just when Leo walked past him Casey found his eyes shifting back to the mess on the bed, pausing briefly when he noticed a familiar article bundled up in the blankets Leo had just squirmed his way out of.

So that’s what he’d done with his hoodie. Huh.

Shrugging it off Casey didn’t bother to mention it.

As they made their way out from the bedroom wing and closer to the main area, Casey let out a small sigh as he heard the loud commotion of the others in the distance. Once they hit the end of the hall that opened up into the massive space, he went to remove his hand like always, knowing better than to attempt to force Leo into open displays of affection in front of their friends and family.

But to his surprise when he went to pull back, Leo’s hand tightened around his own, his fingers flexing around Casey’s and locking them in place. When he went to shoot his boyfriend a side eyed look, he saw that Leo wasn’t paying him any mind, his attention on the TV area and watching with a near silent chuckle as April held out a DVD case to a happily squealing Mikey while also balancing Ice Cream Kitty on her hip as Raph and Donnie attempted to get Chompy to toast their S’mores supreme dish for its final touch.

“Uh… Leo-?”

“Hey Leo.” Both of their attention snapped away from their distractions and to the new voice, Casey offering a wave and a smile to the two newcomers strutting in through the entrance. “Sorry we’re late. Shini wanted to stop by Mr. Murakami first.”

“I brought Pizza Gyoza!” Shini cheered, lifting both hands full of plastic bags in the air with a cackle. “No one gets any though unless they agree to give me one piece from each of their trays!”

“What about if I give you an extra piece of my homemade jalapenos and gummy bears supreme pizza?”

“Deal!”

As the two continued with their negotiation, Casey felt a tug on his hand, nearly tripping over his own feet when he found himself being pulled to the couch.

…

Or not to the couch, as they passed right by it without Leo even giving it so much as a second glance. Which was weird. Because they always sat on the couch. Normally Raph would be squished up against Casey’s left so they could talk sh*t and make fun of whatever it was they were watching the whole time and April would be sitting next to Leo’s right, passing the disgusting snacks that only the two of them liked back and forth between them as the movie went on.

Instead, he found himself being pushed into one of the wide arm chairs that sat off to the side of the couch, barely having time to adjust himself comfortably before Leo hopped in beside him.

Although Casey was confused and kept his arms hovering over the arm rests, Leo didn’t seem to have the same sense of hesitation. All too easily he tossed his legs over Casey’s thighs and leaned into his side with his arms crossed, his feet twitching with lazily little sways as if this was something that they did all the time.

Not that Casey was going to complain about how cuddly Leo was being, but as he shared a glance with Raph, he did find himself unable to do anything other than offer his friend the slightest of shrugs at the arched ridge that was being aimed at him. Raph didn’t say anything though, just tossing a look at his brother, nodding to himself about whatever conclusion he came up with and turning back to carry on his conversation with Shini as she passed him his tray.

Okaaay… If Raph had picked up on something was there any chance that he was going to share it with the class?

“Oh. Leo, you’re not sitting on the couch today?”

Seeing how he wasn’t going to get out of the position he was in and willing to roll with it so long as Leo was cool with it, Casey rested his hands on the arm rest, carefully looping one around Leo’s shoulder and firmly dragging his thumb back and forth against the skin of his upper arm. Leo sunk into him further, even as he tilted his head back to watch as April took a seat on the edge of the couch, her arms hanging over the arm of it as she smiled back at him.

“Hm, not today. I’m more comfortable here right now.”

“Okay. I’ll grab you another bowl.” April said, nodding her head to their snacks sitting on the table. “Did you want me to grab you anything Casey?”

“Uh, nah, I’m good Red. Thanks though.”

“Sure thing.”

Watching as April stood and grabbed at Karai on her way past, dragging the young ruler of the underground with her to the kitchen, chatting about a new upgrade she needed for her armor, Casey couldn’t help but wonder if he was the only one who thought this behavior of Leo’s was odd.

If Mikey had been the one to drag him around and cuddle with him no one would have batted an eye. He was just a physical guy and enjoyed being close to his friends. Leo though? While Leo wasn’t adverse to physical contact as a rule, he definitely didn’t partake in it as much as the others did.

But maybe he was just getting more comfortable with Casey? Maybe he would become more cuddly and physical in front of others now that he was used to the new changes to their relationship? That could be it. Maybe…?

Deciding to just roll with it, Casey tightened his hold around Leo’s shoulders and pressed a kiss to the top of Leo’s head. As Leo let out a happy little chirp, Casey could feel his smile growing.

Yeah, he could definitely get used to this.

Chapter 4

Chapter Text

“Hey Casey! I didn’t know you were coming over!” Casey let out an oomph when the sudden weight of Mikey draping over his shoulders almost tilted him to the side and nearly tipped him over. “I just got a new video game, ya wanna play?”

Chuckling at his friend’s enthusiasm, Casey gave a pat to his arm. “Thanks Mike, but I’m actually here to hang out with Leo.”

“Oooh.” Mikey didn’t let him go, instead dropping his chin on Casey’s shoulders and waggling his brow ridge in a way that the young vigilante wasn’t sure how was possible. “So, this is like, a romantic visit and not a social one hm? Cute.”

With a smile Casey gave a roll of his eyes, shoving his hand against the other’s face to add some space between them even if he didn’t get far with how tightly Mikey clung to him.

“I lost a race to him, so he gets to pick what we’re doing tonight.”

“Oof. That sucks.” Mikey winced, Casey giving up on dislodging him and dragging him along instead. “It’s probably gonna be something boring then.”

“No, it’s not.”

“A history exhibit of some kind.”

“Breaking into those buildings is always fun.”

“Or you’re gonna spend the whole night training.”

“Leo’s a blast to spar with.”

“What about if you just spend the night in? Reading.”

To that Casey paused.

Not that staying in and reading all night- if that’s what Leo wanted to do- was a bad thing but… he really hoped that wasn’t going to be what it was.

“Gottcha.” The insistence snickering next to his ear made him huff, stopping in his journey to Leo’s room to poke at his friend.

“Ya know what pizza-for-brains? If that’s what Leo’s got planned, I’d be more than happy to just chill out and read with him.”

“You know he’s on a medical kick right now, right?”

“…”

“It’s just a loooootta words- big words, and only pictures of the insides of human bodies.”

“Well I guess I’m getting my read on aren’t I?”

“Booo.” Mikey puffed up his cheeks, leaving it to tempting a target not to poke at. “You’re no fun to make fun of.”

“I know.” Chuckling at the other’s pout Casey rubbed the top of his head playfully. “It’s my superpower.”

“Oh Ca-.”

Both the boys snapped their heads around at the interrupted call of his name, a smile blooming over his face to see Leo standing at the entrance way to the bedroom hall. Leo looked stunned, standing there with large round eyes as he stared at the two.

Not sure what was up with him Casey shrugged it off, lifting his arm and waving at his boyfriend with a large grin. “Hey Blue! I’m here ta kidnap ya for date night!”

Leo didn’t say anything, but Mikey yanked Casey’s attention back to him with a whine as the leader made his way over to them. “This suuucks. Who am I gonna get to play with me now? Donnie already said he was busy, the girls are out and Raph’s still pissed about that prank I pulled on him like, three days ago. And now you’re out too? Major bummer dude.”

Chuckling at the other’s plight Casey gave another set of pats to his head. “Aw. If ya just wait for me to get back I’ll make sure ta play a round with ya Kay?”

“Really? That would be-!”

Slipping between the two of them Leo’s hand pressed against his brother’s face and shoved him away. Casey blinked as the orange masked turtle tripped over his feet, his space quickly filled in by Leo. The blue banded mutant didn’t turn to him however, even as his arm slipped firmly around Casey’s waist and tugged him in tight to his side tucking his head firmly against Casey’s throat.

“Oof! Hey Leo, it’s great to see ya too Bab-,”

“Ow! Leo! What the-!”

A deep growl rolled through the lair; Mikey’s mouth snapping shut as his head ducked towards the safety of his shell while he shrunk back. Casey also found himself tensing, but he was sure it was for a much different reason than the little turtle attempting to hide himself in his shell.

He’d never heard Leo make a sound like that before. Was it bad that he couldn’t help thinking it was hot? Part of him was sure he should have been scolding his boyfriend for being so rough with his brother, but it was so offhand that he stumbled over what he was sure he should have said and instead found himself sinking back when Leo turned to face him.

The way those eyes burned into him left his mouth feeling dry, the normally clear blue now dark and stormy as it penetrated his soul.

“Uhhh, h-hey LeO-!”

Leo ducked close, and Casey found his words ending on a high-pitched note before dying off when a hot tongue burned along his throat. His whole body tensed, heat burning at his cheeks when the arm around him pulled him closer, his arms pinned to his side and keeping him from squirming when the wet trail worked up the curve of his neck.

Then he could feel teeth pausing, pressure building as the tips of fangs could be felt sinking into his flesh, and-

“L-Leo! Dude! H-hold up!”

Casey refused to believe that he squealed, but he couldn’t think of any other way to describe the noise that spilled past his lips as he flailed in the other’s hold like his dignity depended on it.

Which… it kind of did.

When Leo ripped himself away, Casey couldn’t even find it in himself to coo at the adorable shade of red painting his face, his mind to preoccupied with attempting to adjust his clothes and loosen his shirt collar in an attempt to help cool the rising heat wafting up from his neck and to his cheeks.

sh*t. He was reeeally glad he wore clothes. There would be no way to hide his… um, ‘problem’ if it wasn’t for the large sweater he’d picked to wear today.

Lifting his hand to his neck he rubbed what was left of the saliva away with the back of it, his face growing warmer at the phantom twing that throbbed over where his fingers grazed where the bitemark must have been.

He glanced over at Leo when he saw motion at his side, his brows furrowing to see that he had taken a step forward and reached out for him but had stopped himself before he got far. His eyes were glued to Casey’s neck, large and in horrified awe at what he had done.

“C- Case I- I’m-,”

“It’s okay!” Leo looked appalled by his actions, and Casey hated seeing that look. Reaching out he snatched up one of Leo’s hands before he could pull back, stepping in closer to the mutant as he rubbed his hand over the mark again. “I’m fine Leo. Really. See, there’s not even any b- Ooo- uh… actually, don’t look at that.” Laughing it off Casey quickly wiped his hand against his jeans, hurriedly grabbing a hold of Leo’s shoulders and shaking him only enough to draw his attention back to his face and away from his neck. “Seriously though, I’m fine. Do ya wanna head out now?”

Leo shook his head, his eyes returning to Casey’s neck, Casey flinching at the chill of thick fingers grazing over the heated area of his throat.

“We should get Donnie to look at this before we go.”

“Oof, ya dude.” Mikey made himself known, popping up behind his brother and resting his elbow on his shoulder as he stared at the spot they were talking about. “It’ll need to be disinfected for sure. You should also-,”

It was when Mikey went to poke Casey that Leo snapped. Casey watched as Leo’s face shifted from concern to full blown murder mutant, snarling at his brother and snapping far too close to his face with his teeth. Mikey for his part was quick, leaping away and throwing his hands up while at the same time sticking his tongue out at his bro.

“Jeez. Take it easy Leo. I wasn’t gonna touch your mate dude. Chillaxe.”

“Mate? What are you-,”

“Don’t bite Donnie’s hand off when you ask him.” Mikey interrupted, still a little huffy as he turned his back on the two to head back to his games. “He’ll throw a hissy fit.”

There was still a low rumble vibrating through the air that followed Mikey until he was sitting on the couch and picking up his controller. Only then did Leo turn back to him, concern flooding his features as he frowned at the bite, his eyes carefully not meeting Casey’s gaze.

“Let’s get you to Donnie.” He muttered, keeping a fair distance between them.

Seeing that he wasn’t going to be able to convince Leo he was fine until after he visited Doctor Donnie, Casey sighed and took the lead to his friend’s lab. He didn’t like the sudden and tense atmosphere that had fallen over them as they slowly trudged their way there, but he hated the slump in Leo’s shoulders the most.

Before he could open his mouth to try and break the silence however, Leo beat him to it.

“I can understand if you don’t want to hang out tonight.” Uh… What? When had Casey ever given him that idea? “If you want, you can take Raph instead. I’m sure he’d love to go with you to the Truck Mania event.”

Casey snapped his hand out, his grip becoming vice like as it wrapped around Leo’s wrist and yanked him to an abrupt halt. The sudden action startled the other enough where he forgot that he was trying to avoid Casey and instead met the wide dark eyes with the bright baby blues of his own.

“Casey wh-?”

“You got us tickets to Monster Truck Mania?”

Again, Leo’s eyes darted from his own, shy now that he was being faced with such naked enthusiasm. “Well- I- You like those kinds of things right?”

“Like ‘em? Babe! I loooove that sh*t!”

“Casey, language.”

“C’ere you!”

Not giving Leo a chance to escape Casey enveloped him in a massive hug, pulling Leo in tight and briefly picking him off his feet to swing him back and forth in an overload of giddy joy.

“This is gonna be so Metal!”

Putting the other down, Casey still found himself bouncing on his toes, his hands tapping against Leo’s shoulders as his smile nearly split his face in half. “We should go. Like now.”

“First,” Leo mumbled, tapping at the side of Casey’s throat for emphasis. “We get Donnie to patch up your neck.”

“Ya, ya. Let’s go get that done. And then trucks.”

Leo laughed, allowing Casey to intertwine their fingers as they continued on their way. “And then trucks.”

“Yessss!”

Chapter 5

Chapter Text

Casey sprinted over the rooftops, the item clutched tightly in his hands as he attempted to weave through the shadows like he was a part of them, his eyes never stopping in their endless search for the ones he knew would be coming after him.

Breathing hard he had to bite his tongue to stifle a joyous yell at the sight of the perfect place to slip in and hunker down.

All he had to do was just-

“Gotcha!”

With a shout Casey crashed hard across the roof, the sudden weight at his back leaping off him as he skid a fair few feet, barely giving him enough time to shake the spins from his head before he felt a blade being shoved under his chin and forcing his head up.

“You lose Jones!”

Glaring at one of his best friends at the end of the bladed staff, Casey rocked himself back to his feet, sliding his trusty hockey stick out of his bag as he fell into a well-known stance.

“I don’t lose till you get the flag numbnu*ts.”

Donnie smirked at him, twirling his staff back into a starting position. “You know, I was going to let you off the hook easy, but if you reeeally want a beat down that bad, I suppose I could humor you.”

Snickering at his friend’s misplaced confidence, Casey shifted his weight to the balls of his feet.

“In your dreams Donnie boy.”

They charged at each other simultaneously, Casey with a scream of his favorite catchphrase and Don with a more reserved roar of attempted intimidation. Together their weapons clashed, Casey using the momentum of the hit to throw himself back before he spun around and cut in on his friend’s blindside.

Don was quick however and having anticipated the move he slipped under the wide swing aimed for his head.

Casey barely had time to arch himself back in order to avoid a staff to the face from below. With a sloppy one handed backspring he got himself back to his feet and out of range, both of them taking a pause as they thought out their next moves.

Or at least that’s what they were doing until a shadow dropped out of nowhere and slammed a foot hard enough into the middle of Donnie’s side to send him hurtling off the roof.

“sh*t! Donnie!”

Without thinking about it, Casey went to chase after his friend, only to be stopped by a hand snatching him around the wrist and spinning him in to be pressed against a hard chest.

“Hey! Let me go assh-!” He was all ready to slam his face into the attacker’s nose, until he came up short upon seeing Leo’s smirking face grinning back up at him. “Leo!?”

Flabbergasted, he shoved his boyfriend away, jaw dropped as he stared at him in disbelief. “Did you just throw your brother OFF A ROOF!?”

“Kicked.” Leo corrected, as if that was any better. “And don’t worry, Donnie’s fine. He’s attached to a rope swinging over the edge.”

Glad to hear that the leader hadn’t taken up fratricide in his spare time Casey let out a huff, landing a solid hit on a well muscled shoulder hard enough that it made the other yelp.

“Don’t scare me like that again asshole.” Leo pouted at him as he rubbed the new sore spot on his arm, Casey’s sympathy returning at the show of pain as he stepped forward but not enough to erase the deep crease between his brows. “I thought some psycho just dropped in on us and sent Dee to an early grave. You just ‘bout gave me a heart attack.”

“Come on it wasn’t that-,”

“And isn’t Donnie on your team this round?” Casey continued, completely stepping over whatever excuse he was going to be fed. “Why did you toss your own teammate dude?”

To that Leo didn’t seem to have a response. He just stood there, mouth opening and closing while his brain tried hard to think up whatever it thought would be believable.

Casey gave out a big sigh and an even bigger eye roll, moving past Leo when it became clear he wasn’t going to say anything. “Let’s go grab Donnie.”

“Wait!”

He felt the tug on his wrist before he felt the body slamming into his back, nearly knocking the air out of his lungs. Before he could be pitched forward, there were arms wrapping around his waist, keeping him from stumbling to the floor and a head ducked against his shoulder. He could tell from the hold that there was no way he was getting out of this unless he wanted to use lethal force. Slumping in the hold he was caught in, Casey dropped his head back to rest against Leo’s shoulder, patting lethargically at the arms around him.

“There, there ya big baby. What’s the matter?”

Because something must have been wrong. Leo didn’t normally throw his brothers over the roof for sh*ts and giggles.

But Leo didn’t answer, puffing against Casey’s shoulder in a huff.

“Use your words, Babe.”

A set of sharp teeth nipped at the line of Casey’s jaw, pulling a short hiss of pain from him before he felt himself being tugged back further. He kept any choice words he had to himself when Leo’s chin plopped down on his shoulder. He knew that was a hard position for the guy to pull off when they were standing and picturing him hiked up on his toes pulled a small side smirk to Casey’s lips as he lifted his hand up to pet at his head.

When words were mumbled by his ear, he felt his brows pinching together, vaguely nodding his head as if he had any idea what was being said.

“Oh yeah? That’s… cool?”

Another huff was breathed against his shoulder, Casey left blinking owlishly when Leo knocked his head against his temple pretty firmly.

Like. Ow.

“I wanted to find you first.”

Was that… Was that it? Had Leo simply just been upset at Donnie finding him first? That wasn’t like him. Normally Leo was fine with Casey sparing against his brothers.

“It looked like fun.” Leo sighed, sliding away from Casey and releasing him from his hold. “And you two looked really happy…”

Turning to face his boyfriend Casey reached out and snatched him before he could get to far. Looking at him- really looking at him, it only served to confuse him further when Leo refused to meet his eyes. That wasn’t like him either. Even if he was nervous or afraid, Leo always met the gaze of the one he was talking to.

Pulling him in, Casey cupped his face in his hands, carefully rocking his head back and forth until the mutant finally looked up at him. “Leeeo,” he sing sang his name, pulling a small laugh from the one trapped in his hold. “You’re not jealous of DonTron are ya?”

“…No.”

Casey simply arched a brow.

“…Maybe a little…”

“Blue…” Casey’s voice trailed off with a chuckle, pulling him in closer and pressing a kiss to his forehead. “You don’t have to toss people off the roof to get me to notice ya. You draw my attention just by standing there.”

A churr rolled out of Leo, his eyes going round and wide as he stared at Casey, and he didn’t have to look to know that his tail was probably wagging in little bursts.

“Now help me get Donnie.”

Instantly Leo’s face fell, but he begrudgingly dragged his feet as Casey pulled him to the ledge.

Chapter 6

Chapter Text

Maybe it was due to his years spent living, training and breathing with ninjas, but Casey didn’t even need to hear his door opening to know someone had just slipped into his room.

His body tensed, his breathing pausing for a brief moment as he strained his hearing for the slightest bit of movement. Whoever it was didn’t make a sound, but that didn’t stop their presence from creating its own pressure that seemed to be pushing in on Casey from every angle.

As carefully as he could, he moved his hand silently up to reach for the handle of the bat he always kept by his bed.

Only for his heart to jump into his throat when his hand fell through the air.

Grabbing nothing.

The air stuttered out of his lungs.

Where was it? Did they have it? Were they going to-?

“Jonesy?”

“Fuuuck.”

“Language.”

“With all due respect, suck a dick, Leo.”

Blindly flipping his boyfriend off in the darkness- and ya, he knew he wouldn’t be able to see it, but he didn’t care- Casey let out a huge breath of air as he sunk back against his bed. Dropping the back of his hand against his forehead his other hand over his heart, Casey puffed up his cheeks as he tried to calm his body from the state of panic it had zoomed too.

“Did you want me to go?”

Rolling his eyes at the voice speaking to his from the darkness Casey waved his hand out, lightly smacking into… was that Leo’s thigh? Trailing his fingers upwards until he was at the other’s waist he grabbed at his belt and yanked him forward. Leo let out a grunt, but even in the dark he still managed to avoid falling over Casey. They maneuver on the small bed, Casey wondering how many shifts he’d have to work for Bishop before he could afford to upgrade from a full size to at least a queen size, maybe even a king.

They eventually settled, Leo curling around Casey as well as he could, his chin resting on Casey’s shoulder with a deep churr rolling through him so strongly Casey could feel the vibrations in his chest. The arm around his waist felt like a weighted blanket, sleep pulling at him once more as he settled himself into the hold.

“Night Leo.”

He chuckled when his only response was an even louder rumble.

Chapter 7

Chapter Text

“Whoa! Uh… hey Blue?”

Leo didn’t seem phased by Casey’s shock, happily resting his chin over Casey’s head as his arms draped around his shoulders lazily from behind, the position made easy with the fact that he was sitting on the back of the couch and nestling Case between his thighs.

“Hey. What are you guys playing?”

Mikey didn’t skip a beat at his brother’s sudden appearance, his tongue sticking out of the corner of his mouth with his brows furrowed in concentration as he mashed his fingers over the buttons.

“This new game Donnie built! He says it’s impossible to beat and I’m gonna prove him wrong!”

“Cool.”

Although Leo didn’t sound too interested, Mikey didn’t pick up on it, his concentration far more on his game than anything. Casey on the other hand found his fingers flubbing their combos, his mind torn between what was happening on screen and Leo’s hands as they ran up the side of his head, pushing away his bandana and scraping his nails against his skull in an improved head massage.

The fingers running through his hair won out, and he watched as his character slowed down and eventually died while his eyes slipped nearly closed. Leo seemed pleased by his attention, letting out a series of chirps as he doubled his efforts.

Casey felt like mush, sinking back into Leo’s hold and enjoying the tension bleeding away from his head and in turn the rest of his body.

“How am I just finding out about your magic hands now Blue?”

Leo snickered at the drawl in his voice, working his way from the top of his head to the base of his neck, Casey letting out a groan at the muscles relaxing under Leo’s fingertips.

“I’ve been practicing.” He confessed, Casey letting out a hum as he lazily draped his arms over Leo’s thighs, sitting heavier against him.

“It shows.”

“Thank you.”

Casey let out a long sigh as he sunk back, feeling Leo’s fingers suddenly tapping rhythmically at the sides of his temples. When the hands pulled away, he saw that Leo was just flapping them out by the sides of his head. Figuring he was just stretching his fingers out he ignored the motion and let his eyes slip closed once more. There was a brief pause, Leo probably just finishing up giving his hands a break, and then they were slowly pressed through his hair and against his skull once more.

“Leo! Stop distracting my gaming buddy!” Mikey snapped, Casey letting out a yelp when a foot kicked out and landed a hit on the side of his shin. “Casey! Dude! Get your head back in the game!”

“Too late!” Raph leapt over the couch, landing between Casey and Mikey, scooping up the abandoned controller between Casey’s legs.

From above him, Casey could hear Leo hissing at his brother, but he held Leo’s legs down to keep him from springing himself at the hothead while Raph carried on completely unaware.

“It’s my turn now bonehead.”

“Nooo! You’re gonna make me lose on purpose!”

“You bet your ass I am little brother. Suffer.”

“Raaaph! Nooo!”

With the two now distracted with each other, Casey tilted his head back to stare at the one perched behind him. The second that he did however he was greeted with the sight of a sliced peach being held out to him.

“Oh, uh…”

“You’ve had nothing but pizza and soda pop today.” Leo scolded lightly, waving the fruit in his face. “You need to have at least one healthy thing.”

With a loving roll of his eyes Casey let out a forlorn sigh but obediently opened his mouth to receive the slice. “Thanks mom.”

Leo gave a snort at that, giving Casey a gentle whack to his shoulder for the sass before offering him another piece. They carried on like that for a while, Raph and Mikey’s bickering offering a comforting background noise as Casey consumed slices of peaches, banana and blueberries. Resting his head against Leo’s thigh Casey slowly chewed the last pieces, his eyes trailing down the sides of Leo’s face until they landed on his neck, his brow arching at the article loosely wrapped around it.

“Ya stealin’ my swag now Lee?”

Lifting his hand, he traced his fingers over the edge of the familiar bandana wrapped around the dark green throat before him. Leo caught his fingers, drawing dark eyes up to the smirk over his lips as he bent down to swoop into the vigilante’s space.

“Don’t you think it looks good on me though?”

Smirking back at the boldness radiating from the normally reserved leader Casey tighten his hold on the hand locked with his. “You could make a paper bag look hot, babe.”

“Charming.” Leo snickered, leaning down and nuzzling his beak against the side of Casey’s face, bumping their heads softly together before returning to his nuzzling.

Casey grinned, pressing a kiss to Leo’s hand before settling back, content with watching the two playing without him while Leo wrapped his arms around his shoulders, settling his chin back on top of Casey’s head, surrounding him completely.

This was nice. He could get used to a cuddlier Leo.

Chapter 8

Chapter Text

Casey barely had the energy to shove his door open, his feet dragging across the floor, being too heavy to lift properly with his boots. Dumping the keys to his motorcycle in the dish next to his door he stretched his mouth into a jaw popping yawn.

Did he have enough time to take a shower right now? Or more correctly, did he have the energy to take one?

Staring at the door to his bathroom, Casey debated it for all of three seconds before abandon the idea outright. He could take one in the morning. Right now, his bed was calling louder than his hygiene. Kicking his boots off he dropped his jacket in the hall, not bothering to hold back another yawn as he tugged his shirt over his head.

Bishop owed him big for this. No way was he doing a triple again without a warning.

Tossing his shirt- he could clean it tomorrow- Casey pushed his door open.

-And nearly had a heart attack to see Leo standing right in the doorway.

“Jesus!” Startling back, his hand around the door handle tightened while his other slapped to his chest to keep his heart from bursting from his chest. “Holy hell Leo.” Gasping out a breath he glared at the oblivious chirping mutant.

“Welcome back Jonesy!”

A little thrown off and slightly miffed at the oddly high energy he wasn’t sure he could handle right at this moment, Casey could feel his lips pressing into a tight smile but he still opened his arms for Leo to walk into when he stepped forward. Hugging Leo close to his chest he took a deep breath in, pressing a firm kiss to Leo’s forehead before pulling back.

…Or at least trying to.

“Uh, Leo?”

“I missed you.”

The tension that had been building in Casey’s shoulders melted away at the little confession. With a sigh he shifted his arms, holding the other closer now, putting more of his heart into the action as he rubbed a hand up and down along Leo’s shell.

“I missed you too Blue.”

The vibration of Leo’s churr helped to add to soothing his mood, Casey sinking into the hold bonelessly. Thankfully Leo didn’t have any problem with handling his weight and easily shifted them to have Casey’s arm over his shoulders. “Let’s get you to bed Jonesy.”

“Sounds good.”

It was only once they were closer to the bed that Casey noticed that something about it was… odd. Tilting his head to the side he squinted in confusion at what he was seeing. Not only were all his blankets and pillows piled on top of the mattress, but so were others that he didn’t recognize- at all, not from his place or from Leo’s.

“Hey, Babe did you-?”

“Let’s go to sleep Jonesy,” Leo hummed leading Casey into the plush top of his bed. “You’ve had a long week. You should rest.”

“Well, yeah, but-.”

“Rest, Casey.”

Before he could argue further, he found himself being shoved down, barely having a second to twist himself around as he came face to face with a still smiling Leo. Quicker than he could blink, Leo was burrowed against him, his churr hitching to a higher trill as he pinned Case to the bed by draping himself over him. Just when he opened his mouth to say something Leo bumped his snout against the bottom of Casey’s jaw with enough force it clicked his mouth shut once more. Not that he thought Leo did that on purpose. Random- almost headbutt like- nudges were becoming pretty common lately.

Although he had questions- so many questions- Casey found himself giving up on asking for the night after his first failed attempt, sinking into the surprising comfort of the overload of blankets below him and the heat and weight of his boyfriend above him.

He could ask his questions tomorrow.