Annalise could have been doing homework. She could have been tidying her room. She could have been doing anything even remotely helpful to herself, her mother, or anyone else but instead, she has spent her evening perusing news stories from the past few years.

She can't help it. She knows who's saved her city over and over again and so she's taken to reminding herself of just how weird this city can be. She's read articles about not one, but two Kraang invasions, instances of kidnapping from giant weed monsters, the infamous Muckman story, and more. Honestly, she can't quite wrap her head around the idea that Michelangelo has been around her this entire time, saving her from threats that she didn't even notice.

She clicks out of a running blog post on alien conspiracies within New York and returns to YouTube, where she's waiting for her latest video to upload. With this video, the date for her Minecraft live-stream game will be set and she'll have one less thing to worry about. She's not worried about possible conflicts with the whole virus thing since there's absolutely no way that Donatello and Sarina will be ready by the time her game time comes.

With everything that has happened lately, YouTube has been the last thing on her mind, and as much as she hates to think it, she wishes it would just go away so that she can breathe and feel even a little bit more relaxed. What a pipe dream. If it would go away, she wouldn't have to worry about that stupid virus reappearing.

She digs out a sketchbook and flips it open to where she's already started writing out descriptions and ideas for the cyberverse outfits. She tried drawing them, but they're super shabby and she hates looking at them for more than a few seconds. She hopes that Raphael is as good of an artist as the others say he is.

"Hey...psst! Annalise!"

She looks up from her desk to see Michelangelo standing outside her window. He waves and smiles at her, making her heart jump as she too grins. She hurries to the window and shoves it open, allowing him to slip inside.

"Sorry, I'm late," he says. "You wouldn't believe the stuff going on in the lair. It's crazy!"

She bobs her head from side to side. "You're trying to save the world. I'd expect nothing less from such noble heroes," she says with a faux sense of regality.

He bows deep. "My lady, your understanding is totally appreciated," he returns, making her laugh. He straightens up. "Ready to go? Work to be done and pizza to eat, y'know?"

Her ice blue eyes light up. "Pizza? Sign me up!"

----------

"You weren't kidding," Annalise murmurs.

Michelangelo nods. "Told you."

The lair is buzzing with energy. Every teenager is busy with something, be it planning or building or sorting. The laboratory doors are wide open, allowing Annalise to see that Sarina and Donatello are working away at their workstations, blowtorches in hand. Leonardo, Raphael, and Destiny are gathered around a small table in the living room, talking amongst themselves.

Annalise's gaze travels to the only people in the room that she hasn't met yet and to her surprise, she recognizes them. One of them is the hockey player who's constantly getting in trouble, some say he's been held back while others say he just looks mature for his age. The other is the girl that Annalise has only ever seen in passing moments, her nose buried in textbooks, earbuds in, drowning out the world.

"April and Casey?" she asks, nudging Michelangelo. He arches an eye-ridge at her as her expression floods with further shock. "You know them? They know you?"

Michelangelo glances over at them as he nods. "Yup, known them since we were fifteen!"

She shakes her head. "They go to my school. I thought they were just...the weirdos." Her cheeks flush. "Oh, that's so mean..."

"Well, come on! I'll introduce you!"

Before she can protest, he grabs her hand and races towards the humans, dragging her along after him. April notices them coming first, faint recognition flickering across her features at the sight of Annalise, and she taps Casey's arm.

"Hey April, hey Casey!" Michelangelo chirps as he reaches them.

April smiles. "Hey!" She meets Annalise's eyes, startling the blonde with the odd sense of knowledge hiding in them. It's like April can see right through her. "Who's your friend?"

"This is Annalise," he says, gesturing to her, and she waves. "Annalise, April. Annalise, Casey. Casey, April, Annalise." His hands bounce around like ping-pong balls between the three of them. "She goes to your school!"

"I thought you looked familiar," April says with another gentle smile.

Casey aims finger guns at her. "Nice to meet you, Blondie," he says with a wink.

When Annalise touches her hair, eyebrows lifting, April sighs and shakes her head. "He gives people nicknames based off the first thing he notices about them," she explains. "Think of it as a compliment."

"Oh..." A breathy laugh. "Okay."

Casey moves closer to Annalise, leaning down as he tilts his head. "A little birdie told me that you're the one doing outfit designs," he says. He grins, revealing his gap-filled smile. "Make sure mine is super boss, okay?"

Annalise blinks. She's only made plans for six outfits: one for each of the four turtles, Destiny, and Sarina. "You're going too?" she asks.

"Heck yeah!" He pumps his fist. "Casey Jones doesn't shy away from virus butt-kicking action!"

"If you guys are done chatting, we could use some help over here!" Leonardo calls.

"Sorry, Leo!" April returns. She smiles at Annalise and Michelangelo, already grabbing Casey's hand and walking away. "Nice meeting you!"

Annalise adjusts her bag on her shoulder, shifting on her feet. Michelangelo has zoned out, staring up at the ceiling while he hums something under his breath. Annalise reaches over and nudges him, making him jump.

"Uh, what exactly should I be doing right now?" she asks. "Designing?"

He nods, looking over his shoulder. "Yeah, I'll get Raph to come on over and help you," he says.

He starts to walk away, making her grab his arm. "Wait, what'll you be doing?" she asks, eyes a little too wide for her liking.

"Whatever needs doing!" He smiles. "That's cool, right? You and Raph, me and whatever!"

She gulps. "Sure."

It's not cool. Panic is already pooling in her chest. She's still getting used to being around Michelangelo one-on-one, but at least she's already comfortable around him. Raphael is a whole other animal and when she imagines talking to him, all she sees is a blank slate.

She shuffles off to the laboratory, casting only a passing glance at the gaggle of mutants in the living room. Raphael stands out in the same way that a black cloud stands out in a blue sky, his sullen expression and pouty exterior giving off rainy day vibes. Even the fact that he's resting his head on a fist instead of a flat palm makes him more intimidating.

What's worse is Annalise likes rainy days. It's the perfect excuse to stay inside with a hot drink, her laptop, and bad fanfiction. She likes watching the rain hit the streets, the sound it makes, and she loves the smell. Raphael is not a nice rain; he's a thunderstorm, the kind that knocks trees onto roofs and ruins days.

She slips into the lab, her presence remaining undetected by the intelligent mutants inside. She drifts to the emptiest table available, sitting down and resting her things on the space she makes between the tools and scraps. Donatello's blowtorch shuts off and he lifts his welding mask, glancing around before noticing Annalise. He jogs over to her with a pleasant smile.

"Good, you're here," he greets. "We've been making major progress. How have the outfit designs gone?"

She blinks a few times and in the midst of her confusion, she ignores his question. "Hasn't it been...like, a day?"

He shrugs. "Yes, but a lot can happen in a day! We've already planned out the mechanics of the transporter and started building. All it took was—"

"Did you pull an all-nighter?!" Annalise gasps, getting to her feet. She examines Donatello's features, searching for signs of exhaustion.

"We do it all the time!" Sarina calls, flipping her mask up as she too sets her tools aside. Her eyes flash as she maneuvers herself around the workstation and heads towards them. "I can go without sleep if I am hooked up to a battery. Donatello passed out at around twelve hours straight." She loops her arm around him as soon as she's close enough and his arm wraps around her waist almost unconsciously. "There are some things that even coffee cannot do."

Annalise's nose wrinkles. "That can't be healthy," she insists. "Sleep is important, especially if you're working with something as delicate as a cyberspace transporter. Please, take care of yourselves."

Their gazes make her feel small, but in the way that a child is small compared to an adult, and she finds it hard to believe that there are only two years between them. Sarina's slender features exude a motherly fondness, while Donatello is less emotional and more calculating. Even so, his mask is crinkled at the edges of his eyes and his tiny smile is appreciative.

Annalise is struck by how mature they look and she can't help but imagine them as parents.

"We will be fine," Sarina assures her.

Donatello's hand tightens against her hip. "We should keep working," he says. "We need to make time for test runs."

Sarina's eyes flash and she looks up at him. "Of course! No time to waste."

They separate seamlessly and dash back to their work, leaving Annalise at her table. She heaves a sigh as she settles back into her chair, bringing her forehead down to the cool surface. She takes a few deep breaths. Her skies are blue and yet, she can see the storm clouds on the horizon.

Something taps her shoulder and she screeches, lurching upwards and making her chair tip backwards. She shuts her eyes, bracing for impact, but two strong arms catch her before she hits the ground. She looks up and meets Raphael's distinctive green eyes.

"First Mikey, now me?" he asks. "How clumsy are you?"

"Very," she mutters as she plants her feet. "Thanks."

He shrugs his muscular shoulders. "Whatever." When she can't find a response, he brings another chair to her side and flops into it. "What's this stuff I'm drawing?"

She opens her sketchbook, pushing it towards him as if handing over delicate documents. "I've got descriptions down, but...the drawing thing is the hard part," she admits. "Also, Casey said he's going, but..."

"I don't think anyone's sure at this point," he says with an eye-roll. He snatches up a pencil. "We'll plan a Casey outfit."

"We...will?"

He glares at her for a split second before returning his attention to the page. "That's what I said."

She swallows. "Okay then." She scoots a little closer. "So, uh, if I describe something to you, will you be able to draw it?"

His pencil stills and his lips purse before he nods. "Mhm."

She smiles. "Great."