The Bargain
The world was foggy when Donnie woke up. It felt quite like waking up from a long nap. He sat up, stretching and hardly registering that the pain in his back was gone. His brothers were stirring on the beds beside them, sitting up one by one and looking around blearily. There was only one other person in the hospital wing other than Madam Pomfrey, Donnie noticed. Harry was lying in the bed opposite Donnie’s, looking rather peaceful despite the scratches on his face. On the table next to Harry was a large pile of candies and sweets. Donnie frowned. What exactly had happened after he’d passed out?
By now, all of his brothers had woken up. They all exchanged relieved smiles, and Mikey laughed.
“Dudes,” he said joyfully, “that was amazing!”
Leo chuckled. “Calm down, Mike,” he said, though he didn’t try to hide the amusement in his eyes. “We don’t want to wake Harry up.”
Madam Pomfrey made her rounds one by one, stopping at Raph first. “You should all be expelled,” she murmured angrily, forcing what Donnie assumed to be a healing tonic down Raph’s throat. Raph coughed, and Donnie laughed until he realized that Madam Pomfrey was forcing them all to take it. “Getting yourselves hurt like this. You’re incredibly lucky, you know.”
Donnie frowned, and not just because of the taste of the greenish-blue liquid he’d just consumed. They’d been lucky, sure, but luck hadn’t been the only thing ensuring their survival—each of them had fought within an inch of their lives.
The doors to the hospital wing opened, pulling Donnie out of his thoughts. Dumbledore walked in, scanning Donnie and his brothers coolly before turning to Madam Pomfrey.
“A moment, if you please, Madam?” he said. Madam Pomfrey sent them all one last glare before hurrying out of the room.
“Professor—”
“I don’t believe we’ve ever properly met,” Dumbledore said, and Leo fell silent under his gaze. “Though I’m sure we all know who the others are.”
Donnie and his brothers exchanged glances, unsure of what to say.
Eventually Leo cleared his throat. “I’m—”
“I know very well who you are, Hamato Leonardo,” Dumbledore said, once again cutting Leo off. He paused for a moment. “Or rather, I thought I did. Now, I’m not so sure.”
All was silent for a tense moment.
“What do you know about the Turducken, as you so eloquently put it?”
They had all been braced for the question, but none really had an answer for it.
Donnie spoke first. “Well, sir, it’s—it’s a mix of three animals,” he said, uncertainly at first. “There’s—well, there’s a worm, a fish, and an eagle.”
“But the Turducken was such a cool name,” Mikey chimed in helpfully. “So we stuck with it. I named it, of course.”
“And how did this come to be?”
“Uh—well, you see—it’s—it’s very difficult to explain,” Donnie stuttered, glancing at Leo.
“It was a freak accident,” his oldest brother supplied.
“So how did it get so big?”
“Look, Professor,” Raph said, and Donnie winced at his harsh tone. Raph must have noticed it too, because he said, “Er—sorry. Professor, we can’t really explain how we know all of this. All you need to know is that we do, and that the Ministry of Magic doesn’t have to worry about any more of the Turduckens because there’s only one.”
“We think,” Donnie said. He turned to his brothers. “I’ve been thinking. What if this isn’t the original Turducken? What if it had a nest somewhere else, somewhere that wasn’t near the geyser? If one of the eggs hatched, and somehow managed to make its way here—”
Donnie suddenly cut himself off, smiling sheepishly.
“But that’s just a theory,” he said to Professor Dumbledore. Dumbledore only smiled, amused.
“When did you do your thinking?” Raph asked suddenly. “You’ve been out for—” His brows furrowed. “How long have we been out, exactly?”
“Three days,” Dumbledore said. All of them started. “It would seem that the fight with the Turducken took more out of you than you’d realized.”
Mikey’s eyes widened. “The fight!” he said. “Dudes, how did Quirrell get past the Turducken if magic didn’t work against it?”
“So you know Professor Quirrell was working for the Dark Lord?” Dumbledore said. “Interesting. And as for your question, young Michelangelo—Quirrell was under the influence of dark, dark forces. He used powerful, terrible magic to get past the creature, and yet—it only harmed the Turducken long enough for him to get through the door. A truly remarkable creature, gone so soon,” Dumbledore said with a shake of his head. “Tragic.”
Leo cringed. “We’re sorry about that, Professor,” he said.
Raph snorted. “I’m not.”
“We were just trying to protect Harry and the others,” Leo said, shooting a glare at Raph. “We thought—well, we thought that maybe someone we used to know was… back,” he said with a slight pause, “and we wanted to make sure that if he was , he couldn’t hurt anybody.”
A heavy silence fell over the room, but it was broken by Mikey’s sudden gasp.
“Are we about to get expelled?” he breathed in horror.
Dumbledore chuckled. “Of course not,” he said, and all four of them sagged in relief. “But a few more things to discuss, if you don’t mind.
“First, the Room of Requirement. I’m aware that you four have made a sanctuary out of it. You are free to use the room however you like, but I do warn you of getting too attached to it—especially if it holds reminders of the past.”
Donnie sucked in a breath. Around him, his brothers all tensed. There were unshed tears in Mikey’s eyes.
“Now, onto the second order of business,” Dumbledore said, as if he was unaware of the effect he had just had on his brothers. “I’ve recently heard from a certain centaur that you four recently had an adventure in the Forbidden Forest, is that correct? And I’m not talking about Donatello’s dabble in the woods in the beginning of this school year,” he added with a smile. Donnie’s eyes widened. “Mr. Firenze tells me that you were attacked by Voldemort in the woods, were you not?”
“We—yes,” Leo said, glancing at his brothers uncertainly. “Well, I don’t think attacked is the right word, more like approached.”
“I don’t know, Leo, he seemed pretty mean to me,” Raph muttered, arms crossed.
“Takes one to know one, huh, Raph?” Mikey joked.
Donnie sighed at his brothers’ antics. “Firenze scared him away before he could do any real harm,” he said to the headmaster.
Dumbledore smiled, amused. “And yet, you four were prepared to fight. Now, I wonder—was that with your wands, or your weapons?”
He shot a pointed look to their bedside tables, and all of them flinched at the sight of their weapons laying on them. It had seemed so second-nature to them that they hadn’t realized that they probably shouldn’t be in such plain sight until it was too late.
“Where did you get those?” Dumbledore asked. “Not from anywhere around here, I’m assuming.”
“Actually,” Mikey said, and Donnie flinched again. They were bound to get expelled now, even despite Dumbledore’s reassurance that they wouldn’t. “We got them first from our father, but when we got here, we sort of… lost them, so when we found the Room of Requirement, it gave us more.”
“I know it sounds crazy, but it’s true,” Leo said.
“The story of our lives,” Raph murmured.
Dumbledore paused for a moment, lost in thought. “I normally don’t allow weapons in this school,” he said, and Donnie had to refrain from scoffing. There is literally a killing curse, he thought. There are a thousand kids in this school. The logic doesn’t check out. But Dumbledore was still talking. “However, I’m willing to make an exception to the rule, provided you four do a few things for me.”
The brothers all exchanged a glance, eyes narrowed.
“Which includes what, exactly?” Leo said after a moment.
“First, you must promise not to let another student see them,” Dumbledore said, “unless in a time of absolute need. And no, this does not include Mr. Potter or Mr. Weasley or Miss Granger,” he said before Mikey could ask the question. “They have already seen them, so as long as they promise to keep quiet about them, they are exempt from this rule.”
“And the second thing?” Donnie said.
Dumbledore paused, looking at Harry, who was still sleeping. “I’m sure you’ve heard about Voldemort and Mr. Potter’s past,” he said after a moment, “whether through conversations or through research.”
“We have.”
The headmaster sighed. “Mr. Potter’s journey is not yet over,” he said. “The boy will have to traverse a long and difficult road before he reaches the end.” He met each of their eyes. “I want you four to ensure he reaches the end of that road.”
A shocked silence filled the room.
“You mean like… protect him?” Raph finally said. “Like, make sure he doesn’t die?”
Dumbledore nodded.
“But… I thought this school was safe,” Leo said. “Shouldn’t he be safe as long as he’s at school?”
“And what about over the summer?” Mikey asked. “We don’t even live near each other!”
“You shouldn’t worry over the summer,” Dumbledore said. “Harry is under a different sort of protection at the Dursleys.”
“I don’t believe that,” Donnie said under his breath.
“And as for the school, well, things have been known to happen here. I do not know what next year has in store, nor the year after that. All I know is that Harry must survive through them. For his own sake—and the world’s.”
Well, that’s not ominous, Donnie thought.
“Don’t you think you should be telling Harry that?” Raph asked, jerking his head at the boy in question, who was still sleeping.
“I suspect he and I will be having a chat soon,” Dumbledore said. “But before I leave you all, I must know if we’re all in agreement.”
Donnie, Raph, and Mikey all looked to Leo.
“Hai, Professor,” he said, bowing his head. “We’ll honor your agreement.”
“Wonderful,” Dumbledore said, standing. “Now, I believe those sleeping tonics Madam Pomfrey gave you earlier should be kicking in right about now. But before I go, you should all be aware that I have placed a charm on each of your weapons—they will help you conceal them from the others.”
It took Donnie a moment to register what the headmaster was saying. Sleeping potion? A charm on their weapons?
But then the edges of his vision blurred, and it all went black.
“Well, look who’s finally awake.”
Donnie sighed. Of course the first thing he had to hear when he woke up was Raph’s snarky comments.
“You know, I did almost die a few days ago,” he said groggily, pushing himself up. Harry was awake, too, and the boy gave a little wave.
“What happened?” he asked.
“We could ask the same to you, you know,” Leo said. “But basically, we fought the Turducken, Donnie almost died because his back was torn open, Mikey and I both got a concussion, and Raph was knocked out by the Turducken’s tail after being burnt with fire. Eventually, I ended up chopping its head off, but by then we were all pretty out of it.”
“All in all, nothing out of the ordinary,” Mikey said.
Harry blinked, looking between them all. His eyes rested on Leo’s katanas.
“And—er, if you don’t mind my asking—”
“The weapons?” Raph said, following the boy’s gaze. “Our father gave them to us.”
Harry’s brows furrowed, and it looked very much like he wanted to ask another question, but much to Donnie’s surprise, he didn’t.
“Well, I figured out who gave the Invisibility Cloak back to me.”
“Dumbledore?” Donnie guessed.
Harry nodded again.
“So what happened after you guys left?” Mikey said after a moment’s pause.
“Oh, right. Er, after the whole… Turducken thing, we all found this really big chess board.”
And so Harry told them about the chess match, the fires and the potions, and finally about Quirrell. All of them flinched when Harry told them about Voldemort living in the back of Quirrell’s head.
“I always knew there was something fishy about him,” Mikey said. “Also—I totally called it.”
Madam Pomfrey came back over to them, and they all fell silent while she straightened the candy on the table next to Harry.
“I want to go to the feast,” Harry said suddenly, looking up at Madam Pomfrey. “I can, can’t I?”
“I wanna go too,” Mikey chimed in.
Madam Pomfrey pursed her lips. “Professor Dumbledore says you all are to be allowed to go,” she said stiffly, as though in her opinion Professor Dumbledore didn’t realize how risky feasts could be. “And you have another visitor.”
She said the last part to Harry, who asked who it was. In response, Hagrid sidled through the door. He took one look at Harry and burst into tears.
“It’s—all—my—ruddy—fault!” he sobbed, his face in his hands. Donnie and his brothers exchanged an awkward glance. “I told the evil git how ter get past Fluffy! I told him! It was the only thing he didn’t know, an’ I told him! Yeh could’ve died! All for a dragon egg! I’ll never drink again! I should be chucked out an’ made ter live as a Muggle!”
“Hagrid!” Harry said, shocked. Looking at the large tears soaking his beard, Donnie had to agree. “Hagrid, he’d have found out somehow, this is Voldemort we’re talking about, he’d have found out even if you hadn’t told him.”
“Yeh could’ve died!” sobbed Hagrid. “An’ don’ say the name!”
“VOLDEMORT!” Harry bellowed. Donnie’s eyes widened, and Hagrid was so shocked, he stopped crying. On the other side of Donnie, Raph smirked proudly. “I’ve met him and I’m calling him by his name. Please cheer up, Hagrid, we saved the Stone, it’s gone, he can’t use it. Have a Chocolate Frog, I’ve got loads…”
“That reminds me,” Hagrid said, wiping his nose on the back of his hand. “I’ve got yeh a present.”
Donnie said, “Hagrid, really, it’s not your fault. Evil people have a way of doing evil things, even if you don’t want them to. Trust me.”
Hagrid chuckled. “Spoken like a true Ravenclaw, that,” he said. He finally got the gift out.
“Here ya go, Harry,” Hagrid said. “Dumbledore gave me the day off yesterday ter fix it. ‘Course, he shoulda sacked me instead—anyway, got yeh this…”
It was a handsome, leather-covered book. Donnie and his brothers watched subtly as Harry opened it and saw what was inside.
“Sent owls off ter all yer parents’ old school friends, askin’ fer photos… knew yeh didn’ have any… d’yeh like it?”
Harry couldn’t speak, but Hagrid understood.
Donnie and his brothers turned their heads away silently.
They all made their way down to the feast that night. They had all been held up by Madam Pomfrey’s fussing about, insisting on giving each of them one last checkup, so the Great Hall was already full. It was decked out in Slytherin colors of green and silver to celebrate Slytherin’s winning the house cup for the seventh year in a row. A huge banner showing the Slytherin serpent covered the wall behind the High Table.
Raph nudged Leo’s shoulder. “Congratulations,” he said teasingly. Leo only rolled his eyes.
When they walked in there was a sudden hush, and then everybody started talking loudly at once. Harry slipped into a seat between Ron and Hermione at the Gryffindor table, and Raph took a seat across from them. They tried to ignore the fact that people were standing up to look at them—mainly Harry, but at their other tables, Raph’s brothers were getting curious glances sent their way, as well. Raph only shook his head at some of the Slytherin table shooting glares at Leo.
Fortunately, Dumbledore arrived moments later. The babble died away.
“Another year gone!” Dumbledore said cheerfully. “And I must trouble you with an old man’s wheezing waffle before we sink our teeth into our delicious feast. What a year it has been! Hopefully your heads are all a little fuller than they were… you have the whole summer ahead to get them nice and empty before next year starts…
“Now, as I understand it, the house cup here needs awarding, and the points stand thus: In fourth place, Gryffindor, with three hundred and twelve points; in third, Hufflepuff, with three hundred and fifty-two; Ravenclaw has four hundred and twenty-six; and Slytherin, four hundred and seventy-two.”
Cheers and stamping broke out at the Slytherin table. Draco Malfoy was banging his goblet on the table. It was a sickening sight.
“Yes, yes, well done, Slytherin,” Dumbledore said. Raph snorted at his semi-dismissive tone. “However, recent events must be taken into action.”
The room went very still. The Slytherins’ smiles faded a little, but Leo’s smile seemed to grow.
“Ahem,” said Dumbledore. “I have a few last-minute points to dish out. Let me see. Yes…
“First—to Mr. Ronald Weasley…”
Ron went purple in the face, looking quite like a radish with bad sunburn.
“…For the best-played game of chess Hogwarts has seen in many years, I award Gryffindor house fifty points.”
Gryffindor cheers nearly raised the bewitched ceiling, and the stars overhead seemed to quiver. Percy’s voice rang out through the crowd as he bragged to the other Prefects, “My brother, you know! My youngest brother! Got past McGonagall’s giant chess set!”
After a moment, silence fell once again.
“Second—to Miss Granger, for the use of cool logic in the face of fire, I award Gryffindor house fifty points.”
Hermione buried her face in her arms; Raph guessed the girl was crying. Gryffindors up and down the table were beside themselves—they were a hundred points up.
“Third—to the Hamato brothers—Leonardo, Raphael, Donatello, and Michelangelo,” Dumbledore said, and the room went quiet once again. Raph straightened in his seat, surprised. “I award each fifty points, for their willingness of sacrifice and bravery.”
Shouts rose up from every table—even some Slytherins were cheering for Leo. Their numbers were few, but there. Raph even thought he recognized Leo’s dormmates patting him on the back. The points didn’t affect the standings, but still the students cheered for the four brothers. Mikey seemed to bask in the attention, Raph brushed it off, Donnie chuckled awkwardly, and Leo seemed to shrink in his robe.
The four brothers were incredibly happy.
“Fourth—to Mr. Harry Potter,” Dumbledore said. The room suddenly went deathly quiet. “For pure nerve and outstanding courage, I award Gryffindor house sixty points.”
The noise was deafening. Those who could add up while yelling themselves hoarse knew that Gryffindor now had five hundred and twenty-two points—exactly the same as Slytherin, with the added fifty points from Leo, Donnie, Raph, and Mikey. Gryffindor had tied it for the house cup—if only Dumbledore had given Harry just one more point.
Dumbledore raised his hand. The room gradually fell silent.
“There are all kinds of courage,” said Dumbledore, smiling. “It takes a great deal of bravery to stand up to our enemies, but a great deal more to stand up to our friends. I therefore award ten points to Mr. Neville Longbottom.”
Someone standing outside the Great Hall might well have thought some sort of explosion had taken place, so loud was the noise that erupted from the Gryffindor table. Raph, Harry, Ron, and Hermione stood up to yell and cheer as Neville, white with shock, disappeared under a pile of people hugging him. Neville had never won so much as a point for Gryffindor before. Raph, who had fallen silent but was grinning widely, nudged a still-cheering Harry and pointed at Malfoy, who couldn’t have looked more stunned and horrified if he’d just had the Body-Binding Curse put on him.
“Which means,” Dumbledore called over the storm of applause, for even Ravenclaw and Hufflepuff were celebrating the downfall of Slytherin, “we need a little change of decoration.”
He clapped his hands. In an instant, the green hangings became scarlet and silver became gold; the huge Slytehrin serpent vanished and a towering Gryffindor lion took its place. Snape was shaking Professor McGonagall’s hand with a horrible, forced smile.
It was the best evening of their lives, one they would never, ever forget.
Raph had almost forgotten that the exam results were still to come, but come they did. Thanks mainly to their study sessions in the library, he and his brothers had all passed with good marks, even Mikey—though of course, Donnie and Hermione had the best grades of the first years. Even Neville scraped through, his good Herbology mark making up for his abysmal Potions one. They had hoped that Goyle, who was almost as stupid as he was mean, might be thrown out, but he passed too. It was a shame, but as Ron said, you couldn’t have everything in life.
And suddenly, their wardrobes were empty, their trunks were packed, and Neville’s toad was found lurking in a corner of the toilets; notes were handed out to all students, warning them not to use magic over the holidays (“I always hope they’ll forget to give us these,” Fred said sadly).
Four brothers met on the seventh floor corridor, looking at a certain door sadly.
“We’ll be back next year, right?” Raph said after a moment. “And we can still train over the summer.”
“We have to work over the summer,” Leo reminded him, and Mikey groaned. “But yes, we can still train over the summer. Don’t worry.”
“Yippee,” Donnie said under his breath. But he was smiling, and his brothers couldn’t help but smile, too. “I’m really glad we came here, guys,” he said, fiddling with the necklace around his neck. Mikey and his brothers all had one—they each held their weapons; it was part of Dumbledore’s charm to help them keep their weapons hidden. “I think… I think we needed this.”
“I think we did, Dee,” Raph said, wrapping an arm around Donnie’s shoulders. “Come on, we don’t want to miss the boats across the Great Lake.”
They all took off down the hallway, but Mikey hung back, looking at the picture in his hand. Hamato Yoshi stared up at him, smiling with his wife and daughter. Mikey smiled slightly, tucking it neatly into the pockets of his robes. Maybe, just maybe, they could finally start to decorate their tiny London apartment.
“Hey, guys, wait up!” he called, taking off after his brothers. He laughed as they stopped at the end of the corridor, and as one, the four brothers made their way through the school and to the lake, where their friends were waiting for them.