"Could you stop asking me about wedding things, Dad!?" Annabeth snapped at Tommy as Melody carried out some of their bags to load in the car.

"You didn't tell me about your engagement, so I have to make sure that I am still in the loop about the wedding. You can't hide your wedding from me." Tommy said.

"Oh my god, Dad! For the last time, I'm not going to hide it from you!"

"You guys have been engaged for more than three weeks and you haven't picked a date? That sounds suspicious to me."

"We haven't! Why is that so hard to believe?"

Melody walked as quietly as she could to the side of the car, doing her best not to be noticed. "This whole wedding thing is not as amusing as I thought I would be," she thought to herself. "Uncle Tommy is going nuts." She quietly placed the suitcase as close to the back of the car as possible before sneaking back up to the house where Jane was about to leave the front door with another bag. "I'd give it a second, if I were you." Melody told Jane.

"Why?" Jane asked.

"It's not a conversation you want to interrupt," was all Melody said as she took off her shoes and continued into the house.

Jane turned to look in the direction of the rental car that sat in the driveway, the top of Annabeth and Tommy's heads just visible over the roof of it. There was a brief moment he considered going out and seeing what was going on, but he thought better of it and put the bag down and went back into the house to give his niece and brother-in-law another minute to speak alone.

-Mentalist-

"Looks like next time it'll be our turn to come see you guys." Jane said as he shook Tommy's hand at the security check.

"I can get behind the idea of taking turns." Tommy said. "The less I have to fly, the better."

"You scared of flying?" Jane teased.

"No, the waiting around is a total pain."

Jane laughed. "Okay, well have a safe flight and I hope that you don't have to wait too long."

"Thanks. We'll talk to you guys soon. And we'll keep you in the loop." Tommy sent a look to Annabeth, who was talking to Lisbon and didn't notice.

"Don't be so hard on her." Jane said. "She's just trying to do her best with everything. I'll see you later."

"See you." Tommy nodded and picked up his carryon bag to get in line with Annabeth and Peter.

"Well, that was an awkward last few days." Melody said as she, Lisbon, and Jane headed back to the car.

"It was good news." Lisbon frowned at Melody.

"Okay, but it was still awkward." Melody repeated.

"Hush or we just might make you take the bus to gymnastics." Jane warned her, sensing Lisbon's displeasure with Melody's comment.

Melody was quiet after that, walking with her aunt and uncle to the car so they could take her to gymnastics.

-Mentalist-

"Good morning." Lisbon waved at her team as she walked by the bullpen, Jane and Melody not far behind her.

"Morning." Cho responded in his usual flat tone.

"Hey, boss!" Rigsby greeted through a mouth full of doughnut.

"Good morning." Van Pelt smiled cheerfully.

Lisbon went into her office while Jane and Melody went to join the team in the bullpen. Jane sat in his normal spot on the couch while Melody sat on the opposite end, taking off her shoes to cross her legs on the couch and pulled a book out of her backpack with a bookmark in the pages about a quarter of the way through.

It was quite a slow morning with lots of paperwork, Jane amusing himself by talking with Melody about the book she was reading. He also made a mental note to himself for when he was really bored to look up the author and similar authors to see what else Melody might like – of course he had to encourage her reading! He had read some of the young adult novels that were popular out of curiosity to see what someone Melody's age might read, but wasn't impressed with some of the bigger titles. He did find good in some of the ones Melody chose, though.

It was a little after noon while Melody was making a snack that things got a bit more fun.

"Hello. Is the food in there for just anyone or am I not allowed to have any?"

Melody pulled her attention away from the contents of the CBI fridge to look back at the young boy, about her age, that she presumed had addressed her. "Huh?"

"The fridge." The boy repeated. "Am I allowed to have some food from it?"

"Only if you're offered some by someone that is allowed to eat from it."

"Are you an officer, then? Will you offer me some?" The boy winked.

Melody crinkled her nose. "No, I'm not an officer. No, I will not offer you some. I don't offer food to strangers."

"I'm Jason. And I was going to say you seemed too young and pretty to be an officer." He held out his hand with a big smile.

Melody returned his smile with a flat look, looking down at his hand, back up at him, and then returned her attention to the fridge without another word.

Jason was unsettled and confused by Melody's lack of response to his compliment. "So…are you waiting for someone?"

"Yep."

"Me, too. Who are you waiting for?"

Melody paused for a moment before responding. "My parents."

"Why were your parents brought in?"

Melody closed the fridge door and looked at Jason, concerned. "They weren't. They work here."

Jason just stared at Melody, shocked. "Your parents are cops?"

"Yeah. Who are you waiting for? Why were they brought in?" Melody raised a brow.

"He's innocent. The cops don't know what they're doing."

"Don't they?"

Jason swallowed hard, realising his mistake. "Well it was a bunch of guy cops, so obviously not your parents."

"What if I have two dads?"

Jason was still not at all sure how to talk himself out of this mess.

Melody laughed. "I don't have two dads. I'm messing with you. For future reference, you come on way too strong. It's kind of weird and creepy. If your cousin is actually innocent, I hope they let him go. If he's not…well that's his problem." With that, Melody went back to the bullpen, leaving Jason shuffling out of the kitchen, very embarrassed.

-Mentalist-

Detective Branson paid Jane a visit later that day, after he and Melody had moved to the couch in Lisbon's office and Melody had traded her book for a videogame.

"What can we do for you?" Jane asked, smiling as Branson entered Lisbon's office.

"I was hoping for a favour." Branson closed the door behind him.

"What kind of favour?" Lisbon asked.

Branson sighed heavily. "We've got this con guy we're trying to interrogate, but he's closed up. Hasn't asked for a lawyer – likely because he doesn't think he will get a good one that'll be able to help him – but he's just not talking or giving us anything. And, quite frankly, he has a little cousin that's been hanging around and waiting for him that's been quite a pain in the butt. I was hoping you'd be able to help hurry this interrogation along, Jane."

Jane nodded, considering what he'd been told. "Sure. Sounds like fin, Why not."

"Is the little cousin's name Jason?" Melody asked, all three adults looking at her, confused.

"…Yes." Branson raised a brow. "How did you know that?"

"Yes, Melody." Lisbon leaned forward, raising a brow of her own. "How did you know that?"

"He tried to get me to give him some food out of the fridge earlier." Melody shrugged. "Pretty sleazy dude, if you ask me. Trying to wink at me and stuff. Gross."

"How old is the waiting cousin?" Jane asked.

"He's 16."

"And what's the charge against the older cousin?"

"Fraud and evading arrest."

"Can Melody come help me out?" Jane asked.

Branson looked at Jane, then Melody, and finally at Lisbon.

"You are not getting Melody caught up in that case." Lisbon narrowed her eyes at Jane.

"She won't be caught in it. I'll be with her the whole time. If anyone has a chance at getting the younger cousin to give us anything useful, it's Melody."

"Hey!" Melody frowned.

"You are really going to tell me you don't want to help solve a case?" Jane gave Melody a pointed look.

"I do. He's just such a weirdo."

"Okay." Jane shrugged and stood up. "You don't have to come. I thought you might find some amusement in it. Let's go, Branson. I'll do you a favour."

-Mentalist-

"Larry, oddly enough, is actually telling the truth." Jane said to Branson after closing the door to the interrogation room. "He really doesn't know where the money is."

"Well, someone has to." Branson huffed. It was deposited into an account at Sacramento Union Bank and then withdrawn in cash over time by someone that looks exactly like him. But we also checked any other accounts registered to him and to his little cousin and we can't find any unaccounted for deposits. We even checked out the cousin thinking he might have put on a disguise but he has an alibi for all of the withdrawal times."

"That is quite the conundrum." Jane agreed. "How did you catch him again?"

"He went to see an old target who had already hired a private investigator to look into him. He thought he was going for a regular visit, but we were there to nab him on the way out. We have no idea what happens to the money after it's taken out of the bank in cash. And if what you're saying about him not knowing where the money is, is true, then that means he has an accomplice we have to find. We have been looking into the kid cousin because they're family so that makes sense, but we can't find any real evidence against Jason."

Jane tapped his chin. "Give me a half hour to think and I'll let you know."

Branson sighed heavily. "Okay. We have to release him tomorrow afternoon, though."

"Not a problem." Jane said over his shoulder as he headed out of the observation room, finger tapping his chin in thought.

-Mentalist-

"Jane. Seriously. This isn't necessary and I don't like it at all." Lisbon said irritably, turning to Jane with her arms crossed over her chest in the observation room.

"Nothing bad is going to happen." Jane shoved his hands in his pockets, looking through the two way mirror into the interrogation room. "What are you so worried about? We're here to oversee the whole thing. What other fourteen year old can say that over the summer they helped solve crime?"

"None that have parents with good parenting skills." Lisbon sighed heavily.

"Come now. We're not so bad at it."

"I can't let her do this." Lisbon shook her head. "I just can't. I'm going to tell her she's not allowed." But as Lisbon took a step towards the door to deliver her decision to Melody, Melody opened the door to the interrogation room and stepped in. Too late for Lisbon to stop her now.

Branson walked into the observation room. "I can't believe I'm leaving an interrogation to a fourteen year old." He sighed. "This better at least give me new leads."

"It's bound to. Having Melody in there will really throw him off his game. He's bound to give us something."

Jason looked incredibly surprised to see Melody, but quickly smiled as Melody sat down. "So, I guess I didn't come on too strong after all."

Melody just looked at him flatly, very Cho-like, folding her hands in front of her on the table. "Where's your uncle?"

The smile on Jason's face vanished. "What?"

"Your uncle."

Jason just stared at her, confused.

"Your parents are both dead. Larry's parents are both dead. That's why you guys are together. He took you in after both your parents' died in that plane crash. He was a legal adult. You have no parents to work with or hide behind. Larry's dad had a brother. Not an upstanding citizen, but decent enough. Not too decent that he wouldn't maybe take out a couple bucks from a bank account in a disguise to look like Larry. They're about same build and skin tone."

"Larry wouldn't work with that clown." Jason rolled his eyes. "How do you know all this, anyway?"

"I'm asking the questions. But there is someone he's working with, isn't there? If not 'that clown' then maybe another one?"

"I can't believe I flirted with you. You gotta be a cop that is super short and just looks like a kid. If you agreed to go out with me then you'd be a pedophile."

"Good thing I don't find you at all appealing or attractive, then."

Jason sputtered, insulted.

Lisbon choked on a laugh in the observation room as Jane smirked. Branson couldn't hide the smile.

"There is someone, though. You just admitted there was someone."

"There's no one. Larry never took the money out or arranged for anyone to. He just put the money in."

"No." Melody said. "He makes some sort of profit from it. Who's helping? An aunt maybe?"

Jason swallowed a little harder at the suggestion.

"An aunt, then." Melody was a little surprised to have guessed it so early.

"No. I never said anything!"

"Your voice just pitched."

"N-ooo! Neither of my uncles were married!"

"Uncles? Plural? I thought you only had one and then the other two aunts who both moved out of state and were estranged."

"I meant uncle, one."

"No you didn't."

"I did."

"Looks like you didn't dig deep enough, detective." Jane looked over at Branson. "This uncle is likely not blood, but a close family friend. I would call that a lead. A thin one, but a lead."

Branson rubbed his face with one hand. "I'll be damned, she got us something. You sure she's not just a sister of yours that has a growth defect?" He looked at Lisbon.

"If only I were lucky enough to have had a sister instead of all brothers." Lisbon shook her head and knocked on the glass to signal Melody that she was good to leave.

Melody looked back at the glass and then turned her attention back to Jason, smiling. "Well, nice talking with you. Have a nice night. Seeya!" With that, she exited the interrogation room for Branson to take over.

"That was so cool!" Melody hopped next to Lisbon as they headed back down the hall to Lisbon's office so they could all leave, It had gotten late. "When can I do that again!?"

"Never." Lisbon said. "Unless you become a trained professional in your future."

"So you want me to be a cop?"

"Good god, no!" Lisbon gasped.

"Why not?" Melody pouted. "I could do it. I was really good in that interrogation, wasn't I?"

"That's not the point, Melody. It can get really dangerous."

Melody rolled her eyes. "Mhm."

"Don't roll your eyes at me, Melody."

"Yes, Teresa."

Jane smiled at them both as they all grabbed their things and headed toward the elevator.

Author's Note: Sorry it's been so long, guys! A lot has happened and it's been hard to find inspiration or energy to write here especially with the series over and all. But I'm still here chugging along. Thanks for reading, I hope you liked it, and I hope you leave a review!