Melanie Fairchild

Melanie Leigh "Mel" Landau (neé Fairchild), born February 19th, 1980, is the sixth child and youngest daughter of Jennifer and Robert Fairchild and heiress to 1/9 of her family's fortune. Growing up in Thorn, Surrey, she became practically inseperable from her friends Adrien, Alan, Geoff, and Gaél, who were frequently bullied by her older brother, Ben, and his friends, causing extreme tension between the siblings. The tension only mounted when, at 14, she began dating Adrien, whom Ben was extremely prejudiced against. Although she enjoys acting and has a fine singing voice, her real love is for dancing, enrolling in the prestigious Royal Ballet School at 16 and enjoying an 18 year career with the Royal Ballet company, before retiring to become a ballet instructor.

She was left coldly startled by the murder of Gael Torres at the hands of her Ben's friends and unable to reconcile her feelings for Adrien versus the latent loyalty she felt to her brother. She broke up with Adrien shortly after Gaél's death, thinking it would help protect Adge from Ben's ire and give her time to clear her head and piece her life back together. The two eventually got back together, marrying in late 2006, and going on to have three children: Alex, Ethan, and Alice.

Physical Description
Melanie is described, like the rest of her family, as being very attractive. She's about 5'6" with a slim, dancer's body. Like most members of her family, her hair is very dark, nearly black, and is naturally very wavy. In her youth, she kept her hair long and often wildly full. In her early twenties, she notably kept it much straighter. She has her father's green, almond-shaped eyes, but otherwise strongly resembles her mother. She's also described as having a Cupid's Bow and high cheekbones.

Etymology
The first name Melanie is derived from the Latin name Melania, which is derived from the Greek Melaina, meaning "black, dark". In religions, Saint Melanie the Younger was a wealthy heiress and philantrophist of the 4th and 5th century who gave away her wealth to the poor.

The name Leigh (lee) is derived from the Old English word leah, meaning "meadow".

The surname Fairchild is of Anglo-Saxon origin, derived from the Old English word fæger (fair or beautiful) and clid (child).

Appearances

 * Somewhere a Clock is Ticking
 * Book 2
 * Paper Tigers
 * Book 4 (as a baby)