A/N: sorry this has taken so long. I've been at my high school 12 hours of the day everyday for the past week. Enjoy!
Disclaimer: I do not own TMNT
"Hey guys! I'm home!" Melanie walked into the kitchen and set down the bags of food she was carrying. "Uh, guys?" The lair was empty. She walked down the hall and looked into each of the bedrooms. Still no signs of life. "Guys, this isn't funny. You know I don't like to be scared. You should know better." She walked back to the living room and plopped into the recliner. She closed her eyes and slowed her breathing, listening for the faintest sounds.
"Hi Mel!" An orange mask popped up next to her.
Melanie screamed and jumped out of the recliner. "Michelangelo! I'm gonna kill you!" she grabbed a pillow and ran after the screaming turtle.
"Dat bozo. He went an ruined it! I woulda made her pee her pants. She wasn't even freakin' out yet!" Raph let go of his hold on the beam on the ceiling and landed lightly on his feet.
"Aw Raph, come off it. He got her good. She's getting rusty what with being in college and all." Donnie dropped from his perch and Leo appeared from behind the couch. Mikey came running back and cowered behind Raph. Melanie trotted out of the hallway, pillow still in hand.
"Mike, that wasn't funny. I've had a rough day!" She griped.
"Was too! You shoulda seen your face!" Mikey's brothers laughed at his attempt to recreate Melanie's startled face. She even started giggling and loosened her grip on the pillow, stepping closer. She caught Raph's eye and winked, and his grin grew. Leo watched as her grip tightened and her arm swung back at the same moment Raph stepped out of the way, leaving Mikey an open target. She tackled him and smacked him with the pillow. The rolled across the floor, laughing and screaming. They accidentally tripped Raph and he fell in, tickling the both of them. Don and Leo joined in and soon they were all wrestling on the floor in a heap.
Leo was the first to stand up after they had all fallen to their backs, panting for air. They all went their separate ways. Don to his lab, Raph to his room, and Mikey pulled out the video game controllers. Melanie followed Leo into the kitchen and they began to put the groceries away.
"So how was work Lanie?" Melanie smiled at her oldest brother. He was the only one that ever called her that.
"It was fine. Nothing really exciting happened. I don't work for a while because of finals next week." She answered, putting a few boxes of cereal into the cupboard.
"Is Donnie gonna help you study for them? You should see if you could sneak a second copy of the test. I bet he is dying to know how he would do with a challenge." Leo poured a bag of fruit into a bowl in the middle of the table.
"Yeah. I'm really nervous for my calculus test." She whimpered.
"Don't be. You'll set the curve after Donnie is done with you."
Melanie smiled, remembering countless nights where she and her brainiac brother had stayed up late into the night, sharing a bucket of hot chocolate and a mound of math problems.
"Yeah, I know." She crumpled up the plastic bags and threw them into the bucket under the sink. "So, I want to go on patrol with you guys tonight. Is that okay?" she asked quietly, setting a pot of water on the stove.
"We aren't going tonight. Donnie had a migraine earlier so we decided not to." Melanie's face fell, so Leo couldn't help but add, "We're going tomorrow."
"Can I go? Please, please, please?" she said in a little girl voice hanging onto his arm.
"I dunno," Leo hesitated. She was so cute when she begged. He couldn't resist her puppy dog face. Mikey had taught her well. He turned around and put away some dishes Raph had left on the counter, trying to get the backbone to say no. "You haven't been training with us."
"Leo, please?" She was quiet for a minute and he turned around. He instantly regretted giving in. If it was possible, Leo swore her eyes got bigger. Melanie held back the smile at his expression. "I miss it. A lot." Her bottom lip began to quiver.
Leo sighed. "Oh alright. But only if you stay with me." She began nodding, and Leo emphasized "At all times!"
A mischievous grin crossed her face and his face dropped to his hands. "What am I gonna do with you?" he said, more to himself than her, as he left the room.
Melanie just laughed and hunted for a box of noodles, finally finding them and pouring them into the pot. Mikey would show up any moment to ask her what she was making. As if one cue, he walked through the door and wrapped her in a crushing hug.
"Mikey….Can't…Breathe."
He ignored her and looked into the pot on the stove. "Ooh, whatcha makin'? I'm starved!"
"Mikey!" He loosened his hold slightly and she gulped in a breath of air. "I'm making Alfredo! Now get off!"
Mikey snickered. "But I love my little sister so so much!" He picked her up and swung her back and forth.
"You asked for it." She muttered. She twisted her arm and pried his grip open at the same time her leg twisted behind his knee. She tugged free and knocked him to the ground, pinning his wrists to the floor above his head.
"Who's the better nina now, champion?" she sneered. He just grinned sheepishly.
Don walked into the kitchen, but despite seeing Melanie laying on top of his brother, he walked over to the fridge and pulled out a soda. "Getting' freaky in the kitchen, love birds?"
They bother laughed and she rolled off of him, accepting his hand to help her up. She brushed herself off and Mikey playfully punched Don in the stomach. He didn't even flinch.
"You missed out on some good action, bro. She's one tough cookie!"
"I'm sure." He said tiredly and shuffled back to his lab. Mel frowned and returned to making dinner. Mikey pulled out some vegetables and began chopping lettuce for a salad as she poured creamy white sauce into the bowl of steaming noodles. She smiled when a soft peck on her cheek was followed by arms wrapping around her stomach.
"Mmm. You smell good. I'm so glad you're here. I can't say I miss eating pizza and macaroni and cheese all the time." Raph said more to Mikey than to her.
"Hey, I always cooked. You could have pitched in every once and a while." Mikey snickered.
Raph's forehead rested on her shoulder and she felt him sigh. "Bad day?" she whispered. He slightly nodded. "Me too."
He gave one last squeeze and went to he cupboard, pulling out an assortment of cups and chipped dishes. Mikey and Melanie set the food on the table, and as if on cue, the other three walked in.
"Hello, Sensei." Melanie said, hugging her father.
"Hello, my daughter." They all sat down and stacked their plates. Melanire smiled, taking in the familiar sight. Dinner was full of laughter and debate, and cleaning up had to be her favorite part of the day. Her brothers always did the dishes. When she would try to help, especially after she had made the meal, one of them would hold her hostage while the other three cleaned and joked around with each other. She decided to let them clean for once, and took a quick shower.
After the dishes were clean, they all sat down to watch a movie. Much to everyone's despair, it was Mikey's turn to pick and they ended up watching a cheesy old Western flick. Melanie felt her eyes get heavy halfway through and she leaned on Donnie's shoulder the rest of the movie. After the movie ended, Don thought she was asleep and had Raph carry her to her room. She relaxed into his strong hold, and all too soon found him draping the covers over her body. She was soon fast asleep.
A shadow chased her through a dark tunnel, and she soon found herself at a dead end. A hard hand struck her face and she suddenly couldn't see anything. She heard three distinct thunder claps that shook the ground. Then a faint light appeared, and she ran towards it, struggling to keep her footing on the slippery ground. She suddenly tripped and fell, screaming for help.
She shot up in bed, the scream cutting off and her heart racing from the falling feeling. Her blankets were on the floor and she wrapped her arms around herself, shivering in the dank cold. She wiped a stray tear from her eye, and rolled off her bed. She tip toed out of her room and down the hall. She wouldn't hear the tv, so everyone must have been in bed. She silently walked the few feet to Donnie's room and opened the door. Mikey was curled up next to him, so she shut the door. She couldn't sleep in Raph's hammock with him, and she had never been brave enough to disturb him in his sleep. She had heard stories. So she walked down to Leo's room and softly opened the door. He was turned towards her, but his breathing was slow and even, so he was still asleep. She crept forward and gently crawled in next to him, pulling the covers to her chin. She shivered violently, realizing how cold she was, and Leo suddenly opened his eyes.
"What's wrong?" he whispered. She realized tears were dripping down her face.
"I had a nightmare." She whimpered, embarrassed that it had frightened her.
"Come here." He opened his arms and pulled her close. He was quiet for a moment and started brushing her damp hair with his fingers. "Do you want to talk about it?"
"I was running from a shadow, and he cornered me. He smacked me and I fell down and couldn't see anything. There was a bunch of thunder, and then a soft light. And ran towards it, but the ground was slippery and I fell. I woke up crying." She looked up at Leo but he was staring at the wall, his eyes focused on something that wasn't there.
"What?" she whispered.
He seemed dazed for a minute, then just looked own at her. "I'll tell you in the morning. Just sleep now. You're safe." He started humming and her eyes softly closed, but she fell asleep still curious about what he would tell her.