feral · trauma recovery · rottmnt · turtle ninja · animalistic · captive · dark au · psychological · survival instincts · broken
The air in the lair felt heavy, suffocating under the weight of a silence that screamed. In the dim light, Leo was barely recognizable—a jagged silhouette of scarred skin and tattered, filth-ridden rags. He was curled into a tight ball beneath a rough blanket, a low, guttural growl vibrating in his chest. His eyes, now mere slits of animalistic suspicion, darted frantically across the room, his lips moving in a silent, frantic stream of incoherent whispers. He had returned from a three-year nightmare in the span of a few heartbeats, and the result was a mind fractured into a thousand pieces. A few feet away, Donnie stood paralyzed. He held a small plate of strawberries, the bright red fruit contrasting sharply with the gloom. His hand trembled, the ceramic clinking softly, as he stared…