Irma couldn't help it. She continued to stare at her parents as if there was a bad smell in the room. "Babysit? But the premiere's tonight!"
"So's the Patrolmen's Ball." Anna was usually pretty cool. Irma often wondered how she could have ever chosen to talk to her dad, never mind marry him, but tonight she was reminding Irma that she was still her step mother. And that as step mom she had the power to be a pain in Irma's ass. "Have your brother in bed by 8."
They left, then and Irma turned to glare at her brother, Christopher, who was taking his tricycle around the house at a dangerous speed. He rammed his trike over her foot and she grimaced, pulling out her phone and scrolling through her contacts, "I gotta find some sucker-I mean, sitter to cover for me."
Irma looked up as amongst the noise of smashing she was sure she'd heard.. *Ding-dong!* She barely opened the door before in barged Caleb. And Blunk. She realized they had been running when he started to speak, his breathing heavy and breaking u his sentences. "Hi.. Saw your parents leave.. Just need a place.. To hide.. For a couple hours."
Irma was well aware that the girls weren't meant to be speaking to Caleb. Hay Lin had failed miserably in the plight, her silence broken before that first day was up, but Irma didn't have the luxury of being expected to forget to be mad. Irma had heard the yelling directed at Will through the door, and he had basically beheaded Cornelia; pulling her into the room only to yell at her too. Then when Cornelia had flown past them up the stairs they figured their best bet was retreat as no-one knew what to expect; Cornelia herself had almost cried as she recapped. It had been scary. And Will was yet to give her side - only shaking her head whenever anyone asked. She worried what he might have said, though Cornelia had said Will had held her own. Caleb was not in their good books. But Irma needed a sitter, and before her she saw two suckers. "Come right in.. What happened to you?"
"Nothing much.." Irma watched Caleb peer out of the windows, closing the curtains. She was about to let out an 'Oh really?', but Caleb shot her a grin and continued, "We just have one of Phobos' search parties after us."
"WHAT? I'd better warn the others!" Caleb's smile didn't falter, "No, no, no. I ditched 'em."
Irma glanced at the blur of screaming colour as her brother went speeding by again. She often verbalized feelings of disgust, hate and pure loathing for her brother, but she really was more fond of him as screeching nuisance than she'd like him 'evil dog chow'. "You're sure?"
"Please!" Irma raised an eyebrow; until now she hadn't quite got what Will meant by 'egotistical'. "The Tracker? It's like outwitting a six-year-old." Just then, Chris ran over his foot with the tricycle, leaving Irma grinning as he clutched at his injured foot. It was much funnier when it wasn't her foot, and as far as she was concerned; Caleb deserved it. "OW!"
"Chris, Caleb. Caleb, Chris." Irma gave Caleb an admittedly evil grin, "He's six."
"Six and half!" Chris stopped, giving Blunk a sideways look and sniffing before turning to Caleb. "Your doggy stinks."
Irma snorted at the implication of Blunk being Caleb's pet and shook her head, "Blunk isn't a dog, Chris. He's a-"
Blunk was chewing on the TV remote, accidentally turning it on, then he jumped, shrieking, and hiding behind the couch. "Death ray!"
"-A costumed miniature clown, yeah! Have him in bed by 8, here's the rules, bye-bye!" Irma threw the sheet of rules in Caleb's general direction and slammed the door behind her. She could be mad at him later.