It was late at night out in the country. Stars sparkled in the dark black-indigo sky, and crickets chirped in harmony. Blades of grass rustled in the cool night breeze. The full moon shone at it's highest peak, the main attraction of the night.

April looked at it all through her bedroom window.

She sighed. She'd met someone she'd thought was her mom, dealt with chores, and blown a horrifying Kraang creature to bits, all in...what, two days? Wow. She was impressed with herself.

April turned away from her window and sat down on her bed, lowering her eyes. How could she have been so foolish? Sure, her mom being frozen in a Kraang ship seemed pretty convincing, but really? She hadn't even thought once about how it could've been a trap. How stupid could she get?

Part of her wanted to believe it wasn't her fault, that she had been too excited to think about it being a trap. But she dismissed the thought quickly. She should've known better. She'd been caught in several traps before, back in the city. Why hadn't she seen this coming?

Footsteps sounded outside the room. Moments later, there was a knock on the door.

"April?" Donnie's voice sounded.

"You in here, Red?" Casey's voice followed.

"Yeah, I'm here," April muttered.

"Can I come in?" asked Casey.

"You mean, can we come in?" Donnie corrected, a ring of irritation in his voice.

"Whatever," said Casey.

April couldn't help but crack the tiniest of smiles at that.

"Sure, you guys," she said. "Come on in."

The door to her bedroom opened slowly, and Donnie and Casey quietly stepped inside. Casey gently closed the door behind them. The two guys walked up to her bed and sat down on either side of her. April could hear both of them breathing steadily as the three of them sat in silence.

"So, you doin' okay, Red?" Casey spoke up finally.

"Well, considering my mom turned out to be a giant two-headed slime creature that nearly killed us all, I guess I'm doing all right," April muttered.

Donnie gently placed a hand on her back.

"It's okay, April," he soothed. "You didn't know. None of us did. Except for Mikey, and usually we know better than to believe him."

April grinned a bit at the Mikey remark.

"Yeah, don't beat yourself up," Casey chimed in. "Even Casey Jones himself had no idea."

This time April giggled a bit.

"Yeah, I guess you're right," she said finally. "It's just that...I missed my mom so much. I thought I'd never see her again. So when I thought I saw her in that Kraang ship, I...I guess I let my longing get the better of me. I should've at least been careful, in case it was a trap."

"It's okay, April," Donnie told her. "Your real mom might still be out there, you know. Leo told you never to lose hope."

April remembered what the blue-clad turtle had told her before they had all went to bed.

"You can't lose hope...trust me on this one."

After today, trusting someone felt like the hardest thing in the world. But April trusted Leo. She trusted Raph, and she trusted Donnie, and Mikey and Casey.

She trusted her family.

And she knew that no matter what, they would be there for her, right by her side.

"Thanks, guys," she said. "I feel much better now."

"No problem, Red," Casey replied, standing up and stretching.

"Yeah, it was my pleasure," Donnie agreed.

"You mean our pleasure," Casey corrected.

"Whatever," said Donatello.

"Wha-? Hey! That's my line!"

"Not anymore!" Donnie stuck his tongue out.

"Hey, wait just a second-"

And right then, April couldn't help it. She burst out laughing. Casey and Donnie turned to look at her. But when they saw her laughing, her smile as wide as mile, they smiled and began to laugh, too.

And within moments, the three of them were laughing together like there was no tomorrow.

"Aww, man," Donnie wiped a tear of laughter from his eye. "I can't breathe!"

"I'll say!" said Casey. "Your face is all red! Green and red!"

Donnie stopped smiling for a moment and gave Casey an unreadable expression. Then he turned back to April and smiled again. April smiled back at him.

"Well, we'd better get to bed," he said.
"Good night, April."

"Good night, Donnie."

"'Night, Red," said Casey.

"Good night, Casey."

With that, the two guys turned and walked out of the room, closing the door behind them. April watched them go, still smiling. She was too tired to change into bed clothes, so she kicked off her boots and snuggled under the covers of her bed.

She sighed. So much had happened today. She'd met someone she thought was her mother, someone she thought she needed, and was fooled. But she had also learned that, mother or no mother, she still had a family that loved and supported her, no matter what happened.

With a grin on her face, April turned out her lights and closed her eyes, letting a deep sleep come over her and sweet dreams enter her mind.