revivalproject | [open] The children yearn for the mines

WHO: Leo and YOU
WHERE: inside the mines, and outside the maze doors
WHAT: pre-event open post
WHEN: after everyone is forced into the mines through the forward team entering the maze
WARNINGS: none atm

A: Before the Wanderkin comes

Leo is a cool guy. A cool guy who knows what he's doing and has things under control. Or that's what he'd like to believe, but even he isn't that good of a liar.

Right now he isn't feeling very cool, and nothing has felt under his control for months. It's not really a surprise that the current situation is following trends. When he'd come back from trying to find them food and water just for Donnie to be missing, he'd about had a heart attack.

Turns out his brother was infected. Turns out he was hurt, and sick, and Leo's so dumb he didn't notice. Donnie said he was okay and Leo didn't look into it any further. And now...

He's going to be okay. But Leo can't help but be on edge.

He's sitting against a wall, legs pulled up against his chest and arms curled around them. It's times like this that he wishes he could go into his shell as easily as Mikey, that he had a box hinge that would cover over and block the rest of the world out. But Leo is not lucky in anything, so he doesn't even have that.

At least he has the leather jacket, protecting him against the chill in this part of the mines. (It's Tony's jacket, actually, but he doesn't know that.) He plans to give it back to Donnie, though, as soon as Donnie is back up and on his feet. He's sick, so he needs it more. Leo can deal.

But for now, he sits tight against the wall and stews in his bad thoughts and tries not to be too much of a tripping hazard. Though, in the dark it's a bit hard to see him...

B: Break Time! (on the way to the Warrens)

Walking for a few hours nonstop is not difficult for Leo, with his young legs and his mutant biology. He's been much more worried about Donnie, who was so recently injured on his leg, so for most of the walk he's been hovering by his brother, ready to support if needed.

Now they're taking a break.

Leo wasn't here for the last time they did this, which means he doesn't know that last time there was a snack offered at this point in the journey. Which is probably for the best, because he's actually... really hungry, right now. Turns out sulking instead of eating for the last thirty or so hours was a bad decision! Put another one on the board for Leon.

He's standing a little off from the main group, one foot kicked up against the mine wall, arms folded over his chest. He looks like a classic scowling teenager, mad at the world, but he really just doesn't want anyone to hear his stomach growling. That's so embarrassing...

C: The Warrens (after the forward team has gone in)

So this is what's down here: a dead end. or maybe a not so dead end, since a group of people have gone through some kind of door that locked behind them (spooky!). Leo isn't too worried about that group, except Cayde. He hopes the cool robot guy is safe in there...

But until something on the surface changes or until those guys find something interesting, it seems the rest of them are stuck here. Wow, so fun and exciting. And if he sounded sarcastic there, that's because he is. How long are they going to have to wait before they get any news?

Man, Leo doesn't even have his phone or his comic books. What a drag.

Leo has settled down with the rest of the group to wait, but he can't help but grumble discontentedly under his breath. When someone looks his way, he shrugs.

"I don't guess anyone brought any cards, huh?"

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Of course they can get through this. They'd be a shame to the Hamato name if they gave up now!

Though, as Leo's tears dry up and he starts to feel calmer, his uneasy stomach follows suit by settling down. Now that it's not twisting itself all up in knots, it shouldn't be a surprise that it growls, loud and angry to get his attention.

He was already embarrassed by the crying and now he's embarrassed by this. He presses even closer to Donnie, like his brother is a hole he can crawl inside of.

Even so, he tries to sound lighthearted when he says, quietly, "Uh, so... do you think we're getting close to wherever we're going now?"

Though it comes out kind of scratchy and sniffly. Eugh boy.

The sound is so unexpected and loud that it clearly startles Donnie enough that he jerks his head up. It takes him a moment to work out what the noise had been, a bit easier given Leo's response. He can't quite stop the brief laugh that bubbles up.

It feels good to be able to laugh again, even if it might be just a tiny bit at his brother's expense.

"Wish I knew..." he sighs, trying to estimate how long they've been at it. His sense of time hasn't improved at all. "It took us a pretty long time getting down to the Warrens, and that was without getting over a fever and with an injury."

Wow, laughing at him in his time of vulnerability! So cruel.

If Donnie can laugh at him, though, then he's probably going to be okay. Leo will take it.

Though he can't help but groan at the answer. Guess he's going to be waiting awhile longer.

"I don't guess we'll get lucky and there'll be a pizza place down there," he mutters. He sure wishes he had some kind of snack- oh, wait!

He pulls back enough to dig around in his pouch, pulling out the candy bar Cayde gave him earlier. He still hasn't eaten it, since he'd planned to give it to Donnie, but everything got so chaotic after that he completely forgot about it.

"Uh..." He holds it between them. "I was gonna give it to you," he says, a little lamely.

He can't help it! That was really loud and at an inopportune moment!

Mention of pizza makes him groan in turn. "Man, pizza would be so good right now..." Donnie hadn't had much of an appetite when he'd been sick, but now that they're talking about food, he can't help but feel a little hungry himself. Feeling Leo let go, he lets his own arms finally loosen, wincing as he tries to sit back a bit. ...okay maybe sitting on his bad leg isn't a good idea.

Donnie blinks at the candy bar, brow softening as he smiles a little. "I think you're the one that needs it."

Leo fully sits back, so Donnie can get situated more comfortably. He's a little worried about if Donnie's going to be able to walk on that leg for the rest of the trip, but he tries not to show it. He doesn't want to stress Donnie out, and he can always piggyback carry him if he has to. They'll make it down to... whatever the Warrens are.

He swivels around to be next to Donnie rather than in front of him, close so their shoulders are pressed together. Then he looks at the candy bar in his hand, like he almost wants to insist... But he does want it...

In the end, he splits the wrapper and takes a bite. A very big bite.

It's harder to hide his reactions as he scoots himself back against the wall, but his leg feels a lot better once he's not half-sitting on it. The floor's still cold but it kind of feels good against his bandaged calf.

Donnie relaxes as Leo settles in beside him, looking on, brow arched expectantly as he waits for a rebuttal, somewhat surprised if not at least a little satisfied when Leo actually does open the candy bar to take a bite. There's no refuting that monstrous sound his stomach had made a moment ago, after all.

Leo settles in next to Donnie, switching the candy bar to his opposite hand so he can wiggle an arm over Donnie’s shoulders. If Donnie shrugs him off he’ll move back. But based on the last ten minutes, he thinks Donnie might be fine with it.

“Maybe we can ask the doc if there’s any painkillers for your leg,” he suggests. He noticed Donnie’s wince.

It beats sitting alone and cold, and after all the admissions they've made, Donnie's not about to shove his brother away. He leans a little more against Leo- to make it easier for him to have his arm where it is, he reasons.

"Maybe. It's not too bad, only really hurts if I touch it or something," Donnie says. It still hurts in general since everything's kind of attached that way, but he figures he just has to deal until they get to where they're going.

“…Well, if it does hurt too bad, you can hitch a ride,” says Leo easily. “I know my shell isn’t as comfy as Raph’s, but it’s open.”

Or maybe their powers will start coming back deeper in the tunnel and Donnie can make his hovershell with his powers. Either works.

The offer makes Donnie smile faintly. "Well I wouldn't necessarily call Raph's shell 'comfy' given it does have spikes, but it is conveniently accommodating for space and handholds. But thanks. If...it does get really bad, I'll let you know."

They're brothers. They can depend on each other. He'd make the same offer if the situation was reversed. Thinking of it that way helps him better with not circling back to feeling like he's a problem.

That's right! It's not causing a problem for Leo. That's just not how it works. They're helping each other, and Leo is glad to be helpful.

"That's all I'm asking," says Leo, finishing off the last of the candy bar. He's still hungry, but he can at least make it wherever they're going now.

He'll hang out here and cuddle until it's time to move. Or Donnie throws him off. Whichever happens first.

So long as Leo doesn't actively call it cuddling, Donnie's not inclined to tell him to move any time soon.

Just a few more minutes, he tells himself as he lets his leg relax. Maybe once they get deep enough away from the surface, the magic in the bandages will kick in and it'll feel better. In the meantime, he hopes he doesn't doze off.

[open] The children yearn for the mines

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