mikan mischief !

// 2 //

"Mikey?" Raph pops in from the kitchen, holding two plates of dino nuggets and a cup of apple juice. Mikey knows it's probably watered down, but that doesn't stop him from squirming with excitement, anyway. "Mikey? Come on out!"

Mikey does not "come on out." He stays under the beanbag just where he is, peeking out of a little hole and trying desperately not to giggle so he can scare his brother. Raph walks around in a circle, setting the plates down so he can start lifting up blankets, and Mikey squirms again. This is working out perfectly ! Raph takes one step too close, his foot dusting the edge of the beanbag, and Mikey pounces!

"What the -" Raph screeches, hitting the floor as his brother tackles him. Given how sneaky and stealthy and cool Mikey was, he sure recovers quickly and flips them so Mikey's on the ground. "Oh, is that how you want to play?" he teases, hovering a hand over Mikey's side. "Are you sure you want to pull out Mr. Tickles?"

"No!" Mikey giggles, thrashing to get away from Raph. For as much of a ninja as Mikey is, Raph can lift, like, a whole building by himself, so Mikey isn't going anywhere. "No, please!"

Raph does not relent. "Oh, no, I make lunch for you, and this is how you repay me? It's on!"

It's almost fifteen minutes of rough-housing and tickle-fights until Raph manages to get Mikey to sit still on the couch by wrapping him in an almost octopus-like hug. He has both of his legs splayed over Mikey's lap and one arm over his plastron, holding him down as he reaches for the remote. Mikey, at least, seems too tuckered out to fight against these restraints. Not that just the tickling alone tired him out, though.

They had been hanging out together for hours. Leo and Donnie had gone on some sort of scavenging trip to get materials for one of Donnie's machines, and Mikey thought it would be the perfect time for him to regress without worrying Raph by being alone. It wasn't often that the two of them were alone in the lair together, so he planned to take full advantage of their time together.

And he had! But now he's really super tired and while the dino nuggets look really good, he doesn't think he could keep himself awake long enough to chew. Raph, being the awesome big brother that he is, notices this and keeps tapping Mikey's cheek until he wakes up. "Come on, Mikester. You gotta eat lunch before you take a nap. Think about how nice it'll be to have some food in your tummy, yeah?"

As someone who "hated kids," Raph was surprisingly good with them. Mikey decides he'll save Raph's dignity and not say anything.

After all, this was their first time hanging out together when Mikey was small! Even in littlespace he could tell Raph was still really nervous and a little freaked out when he brought out the baby baby stuff, so he'd been trying to keep himself in an older headspace. It worked out, anyway - wrestling with Raph was way more fun than watching baby shows! But, like, Raph was still super good with kids, and Mikey knew when it came to it Raph would be okay with him regressing smaller. It's why he loved his big bro so much!

So, he dutifully eats his dino nuggets and focuses sleepy eyes on the TV. Team Umizoomi is playing, and even though it's not one of his favorites, he knows he's going to sleep through it anyway, so he saves Raph the headache.

"G'night," he mumbles, shoving his face directly into Raph's chest and getting a small "oof," out of him, "'m goin' to bed now. Love you."

Raph snorts and pats his head. "Goodnight little brother. Love you too." When Mikey's more awake, he'll make sure to pester Raph about that last sentiment.

***

Raph was in a bit of a pickle.

He had a (maybe?) little kid sleeping practically on top of him, a whole living room and kitchen to clean up, and an estimated arrival time of his brothers in three hours. He couldn't get up without waking Mikey up, and it was always a gamble as to whether or not he'd go back to sleep. Waiting until the last minute wasn't an option, either, because what if he couldn't clean it up in time? Or, the very much dreaded third option: his brothers coming home earlier than they said they would.