It was the morning after the night when Leo and the others decided they would put Mikey off of the team for a while. They didn't know Mikey already knew what they had said, and Mikey didn't know when they where going to tell him. After he had heard what they had said his stomach had twisted into a knot and it felt as if everything around him crumbled down. They couldn't actually put him off the team right? What about all those promises? Brothers are always there for each other... Right?

Mikey had silently walked back to his room, feeling like his brothers had stabbed him in the back, had ripped out a part of his heart and crushed it before his eyes. He stepped in his room and closed the door leaning against it. Mikey had just stared ahead in disbelief, betrayed and shocked. His eyes had started watering and he sniffed softly, then started to break down into tears.

He felt so broken and empty. Sliding down with his back still to the door he sat down into a sitting position. Resting his head in his knees and folding his arms around himself to try and keep grip on something since everything felt like it was crumbling around him. He couldn't, no didn't want to believe it, but the sad reality kept crashing down on him. He didn't know how long he stayed like that, softly crying, but he eventually passed out from exhaustion and fell asleep still sitting against the door.

~~~*~~~

That morning Mikey awoke with a sore back, but still stood up early to once again go into the kitchen and make breakfast. It wasn't for very long before Leo came out of his room too. He had decided with the others he would tell Mikey alone. It would seem less overwhelming that way, and more personal instead of just closing him off from the group. He took a deep sigh before walking to and entering the kitchen, trying to decide if he should do this as a brother or as a leader.

"Good morning Mikey." Leo greeted Mikey who had just finished cooking breakfast and was shoving it on everyone's separate plate with his back to him. Leo sat down ignoring the worry he had about what Mikey's reaction would be, while Mikey went on trying to ignore the knot in his stomach and choking feeling in his throat.

"Morning bro." Mikey answered to him starting to clean up the counter. Leo sat straight deciding he should probably say this as the leader of the team.

"Mikey, I don't really know how to say this..." He started while Mikey kept storing away everything he used in the kitchen still not facing him. Of course he knew what Leo was gonna say, but he just didn't want to face him right now.

"You've been really distracted lately, and that wouldn't be a problem if it weren't for the fact that you're getting the rest of us in danger by it Mikey. What I'm trying to say is... Until you can learn to concentrate again... We've decided to put you off the team." Leo ended strongly, having decided his words. Mikey stopped what he was doing and just stood still. A silence arose in which Leo waited a bit anxiously for an reaction from his little brother.

Even if he knew it was coming, Mikey still felt it. He was so split up in what he thought he wasn't able to respond yet. Part of him felt lost and empty. Another part felt betrayed and hurt. But mostly there was this voice in his head laughing painfully at his own pathetic feelings.

'Haha... Come on... I already knew this was gonna happen, so why the heck do I still feel like this? Heh, guess I'm really this weak aren't I...'

He pushed all of it down and painfully smiled a little at the thought of himself really not even being able to even handle the expected. Throwing his feelings aside at the moment no matter how hard and wrong it felt he decided he should respond. Raising his head he nodded a little, letting Leo see it sunk in.

"I... I get it dude. If I were you hey, I'd probably do the same thing!" He said shrugging and laughing a little. If Leo hadn't known Mikey for his whole life he definitely would have bought it but he heard how it sounded a bit fake. Before he could say something about it though Mikey suddenly decided to turn around and smile, surprising him.

"Don't worry Leo I understand, really. I'll just have to learn how to focus some more again, right? No hard feelings I get it!" Mikey said smiling at Leo who was still a bit surprised. Somehow, even though his voice didn't sound right before his smile right now seemed real...

"Yeah... Just learn how to focus a bit more and you're back in." Leo said overthinking what had just happened. Mikey placed Leo's plate in front of him and the other's plates on the table too. Leo sighed, deciding he had to ask before he'd be satisfied.

"So Mikey, you're okay with it?" Leo asked looking at his brother whose normal happy expression didn't seem to chance.

'No! No I'm not! Why did you put me out of the team? I don't get it! I don't understand! Why? Why me? Please!' His thoughts painfully rang through his head.

"Sure bro! I'm just gonna go back to my room for a bit before training. See ya!" Mikey said smiling assuring Leo he was alright before walking out of the kitchen to go back his room. Leo didn't hear or see anything false in his brother's expressions so he felt like he knew everything was alright.

Once inside his room Mikey had to seriously try to not break down. He took a couple of deep breaths before laying down on his bed. He reached a hand out to the ceiling watching it grasping at nothing before he dropped it down again.

'What I wouldn't give to be in another world right now...' Then a thought hit him and he closed his eyes. 'There's one place I can go to get away from here.' He inhaled deeply and started his meditation while laying down, feeling everything around him fade away.

For a while, he felt nothing and it was absolutely amazing for him. Then, he felt everything around him chance and he opened his eyes to see himself floating a little above the black and white tiled floor again. One thing he immediately noticed was how it was a bit darker than before, making it so that he couldn't see the floor as far in front of him as he could before.

Mikey looked around in front of him. He hadn't been here for a while, he wondered how the orb of light was doing. He turned around and was surprised at what he saw. The orb that had once been shining warm orange colored light was now halfway covered with the black darkness. It was like it was separated right through the middle. Streams of light and darkness both floating around on their half.

Carefully Mikey approached the orb. He would have said it looked as if the two sides were fighting each other, but that would be wrong. The dark and bright side just flowed as if separately. He had noticed before the darkness had spread a little, but that was it. It wasn't constantly growing just, sitting still and when he was back it had taken over some more.

A little uncertain Mikey placed his hand under the orb again to hold it. Why was it that it didn't fill him with happiness anymore, but with sadness and helplessness that he couldn't do anything about the light disappearing bit by bit. Mikey wouldn't have been able to see, but the moment he would have the darkness a bit closer to himself his eyes would become empty and sad. Mikey sighed sadly.

"I'm sorry... I don't know what I can do to help..." He said feeling powerless. Somehow it hurt him so much to see the orb like this. He frowned sadly trying to not cry again because of how he felt. It was just that being kicked out of the team and not being able to do anything to stop the darkness from overtaking one of the few things that brought him so much happiness, he felt miserable.

Even so, he still had no idea what the orb was and what it did. How was he the only one being able to visit it? Mikey just felt like it was important. Feeling his eyes burn a bit and welling up he let go of the orb and floated backwards a bit. He helplessly stared at it for a bit, before thinking of the only option he had left to try and help the orb before it was too late.

He didn't want the others to know, but maybe if he asked Master Splinter vaguely without giving away too much about it he could at least get some more information about what to do. Mikey wiped his eyes with the back of his hand before frowning a little at the orb, feeling certain about his choice.

And just like that, he was pulled back to the normal world once again.

Please tell me what you think so far, and thank you for checking out my story.

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