"Oh, Mr. and Mrs. Parr!"
Helen and Bob turned to see Tadashi waving to them, walking over as he was flanked by a rather interesting looking group-
"Aren't those the kids we saw outside?" Bob asked Helen, who jabbed him in the ribs with her elbow. They were sanding in front of them now, his friends smiling eagerly. Nodding, Tadashi cleared his throat.
"Hiro should be in the lab already," Tadashi said, "why don't you join us?" Bob and Helen looked between Tadashi and his friends. The tall blond girl looked extremely exuberant, whilst her friend- the short Asian girl with purple steaks- was looking rather bored, popping bubblegum in-between her teeth. For some reason, she reminded Bob of Clint Eastwood, with a somewhat cold demeanor.
"So you're Mr. and Mrs. Parr?" piped up the Africa American man who was standing besides the tall lanky boy in the group, "Tadashi told us you might drop by!" Holding out a hand, he began to say, "I'm-"
"That's Wasabi," the lanky kid cut him off, making his friend- Wasabi- groan in agony.
"I spilled wasabi on my shirt one time! One time people!" Wasabi growled, shaking his head as he turned and walked off, hands thrust angrily in his pockets. Helen and Bob nodded until Wasabi turned a corner, leaving the group to stand awkwardly in the hall.
"Anyway…" Helen said after a few seconds of silence, "we'd love to join you! And please, I've told you to call me…."
"Mrs. Parr, you're hair is such a pretty color!" the blond suddenly squealed, "definitely something I'd try to infuse with my project!" Helen raised an eyebrow at her, glancing quickly at Tadashi.
"Thank you….?" Helen tried to answer, but wasn't exactly sure how to respond. Lips pulled into a sunny smile, she waved quickly, bending down to fix the strap of her wedge shoes- which looked to Helen like they were six feet too tall.
"Oh! That reminds me- I should mix the chemicals beforehand!" she rambled, 'you know how formaldehyde gets when left too long, you know!" Bob widened his eyes at her as she skipped down the hall, her long blond hair flying behind her as she went.
"Is she a mortician or something?" Bob asked in amazement, receiving another jab from his wife.
"Nah, she's a chemistry major," the lanky kid spoke up once more, a relaxed grin on his face. A teal beanie was pulled over shaggy ash brown hair, and he wore a red t-shirt with a cartoon character emblazoned on the front over a white thermal. Blue jeans sagged around his skinny legs. and on his feet were a pair of green and orange sneakers.
"Oh!" Helen nodded, "that's nice!"
"Yeah she once blew up her family's tool shed," the kid said with a shrug, "but her experiments are always like that, i guess." Tadashi smirked, rolling his eyes at his friend.
"Okay, we don't really know that she actually blew up her family's toolshed, Fred-"
"But the scorch marks were in her yard when we hung out last summer, man!" Fred exclaimed. Tadashi laughed, clapping Fred on the shoulder as he went on, "That must mean she has some super-secret lab in her house, right?!"
"Okay, Fred," Tadashi said, "whatever you say." Fred began to mumble to himself, pulling out a comic book as he proceeded to follow the girl- immediately hitting a wall in the process.
"I'm okay!" he yelled as he turned the corner, spinning like a drunkard exiting a club.
"Fred's the school mascot," Tadashi explained.
"And what am I? Chopped liver?" the short girl yelled, crossing her arms as she blew a bubble in her pink gum. Tadashi shook his head.
"Mr. and Mrs. Parr, this is my friend Go Go Tomago," Tadashi introduced her. Bob scrunched his nose at the girl standing in front of him: short stature, wearing athletic type clothes. Her short black hair was frayed, and a few pieces were dyed purple in the front. The name as well sounded somewhat familiar….
"Pleasure," Go Go's borderline deadpan bought Bob back to reality as he scrutinized her. "Alright, well, I'm gonna head back to the nerd-lab. Who knows what Honey might have blown up by now?" Tadashi waved her off, Helen and Bob exchanging nervous glances- how was this a good place for a fourteen year old to be in, considering Hiro's age and intellect? Or Violet's, for that matter?!
"Those were my friends I told you about last night, Mr. Parr," Tadashi said, ushering them to follow him, "but if you would still care to join us, I'll be glad to give you a tour of the place, as well as a look at our projects if you like?" Before Helen could say anything, Bob was right behind him.
"So, remind me who's who again?" Bob asked the student.
"Well, you've met Go Go," Tadashi said, gently steering Helen by the shoulders through the hall. Bob chuckled at his wife's flabbergasted look, if that was what it could be called. They went through a series of glass-paned double doors as tadashi continued, "And the blond girl?"
"The one who blew up her family's toolshed?" Helen suggested. Tadashi nodded.
"Right, her," he said, "Her name is Honey Lemon." There was a quick pause before he added quickly, "And we don't know for sure that she actually blew up the toolshed. But I probably wouldn't question her about it because there is the slight chance she might try to burn your alive if you offend her." A tiny squeal escaped Helen's throat.
"Oh good," she said meekly, "you're friends with a pyromaniac."
"And the muscular guy was….?" Tadashi hinted, turning his attention to Bob. It took a minute to process the question, Bob snapping his fingers, mumbling to himself.
"Wyatt? No, that's not it…." Bob mumbled. Helen pursed her lips, rolling her eyes at him.
"Wasabi," she said for him.
"Wasabi!" he echoed excitedly, snapping at Tadashi, then with the crease of his brow, "Wait then who was the kid in the hat?"
"That was Fred," Tadashi laughed, placing his hands on his hips as they came to a stop in front of a row of silver walls, framed with the bland gray painted on the walls. Tadashi gave small waves or nods to people passing by, whether they be students or teachers- heck, even a janitor sent him a smile, Tadashi replying with the tip of his black baseball cap.
"Yo, nerd!" came a muffled yell, making the three of them jump. Bob and Helen suppressed gasps of surprise when the silver slab disappeared to reveal a window pane, showing off people inside with technical equipment. Tadashi's short friend- Go Go Tomago, Helen remembered- was snapping her gum as she held a hand on the window, evidently keeping the silver piece out of her way while she stared at them.
"What is it, Go Go?" Tadashi asked.
"Your little bro is wreaking havoc and Wasabi's about to have a meltdown."
And that was all she said before releasing the silver mechanism, leaving a metal sheet between them and the lab once more. A few seconds later, they heard muffled shouts of distress, followed by rushed yet sincere apologies.
"Crap…" Tadashi muttered, rubbing his temples, blood pounding through his veins.
Leave it to Hiro to mess things up.
"Is everything okay?" Helen asked, she and Bob following Tadashi inside the lab. Bob was still focused on the silver paneling, mesmerized by the mere technology that could have gone into it.
"Hiro!" Tadashi called, cupping his mouth with a hand, Helen and Bob taking in the lab.
Although ti was messy, it seemed to be somewhat organized. Robotics projects were being held in one area, while (thankfully, it seemed) chemistry experiments were being held on the far side of the room. A glass set of test tubes and colorful liquids sat on a table pushed up against the wall. Next to that was a small kitchen like area, with a sink and a small area taped off with yellow cautionary tape.
"Wonder what that's for," Bb said, Helen trying her best to take everything in.
"Hiro!" Tadashi called again, then turning to Go Go, "You said he was n here, where is he?" The girl shrugged, popping her gum. She was working near the chemistry area of the room, a yellow bike hanging from pulleys lodged in the ceiling. Shrugging, she lazily turned a purple and yellow wheel, raising an eyebrow.
"I said he was with Wasabi." was her answer before she pulled the wheel clean off the bike…
…and it came away perfectly. No bolts, no chains broken- nothing happened. Everything was in one piece.
"Whoa," Bob said in amazement, "Hon, did you see that?!" Helen nodded, but couldn't really believe it- what kind of technology did it use, if it required no bolts or chains or screws? Tadash was still calling for Hiro, jumping when Hiro decided to make an appearance, throwing his arms around his brother.
"He's gonna kill me!" he cried, jumping up off the floor until he was attached to his brother like a sloth on a tree, "Tadashi! Help me!" Sending a sheepish glance at Helen and Bob, Tadashi tried to carefully unhook his brother's fingers from his sweater, but to no avail. The teenager only clutched to him tighter, hoisting himself up until he was sitting on Tadashi's shoulders, skinny legs dangling awkwardly around Tadashi's neck.
"Where did he go?!" came a furious cry of rage, and Hiro squealed, pulling on Tadashi's arms.
"Wh-whoa!" Tadashi yelled, narrowly avoiding crashing to the floor as he reeled backwards and sideways, unable to maintain balance as Hiro steed him around like a race car.
A few seconds later, Wasabi came into the lab, safety goggles covering his face. A pair of rubber gloves were on his hands, and his fce ws beet red.
"Tadashi!" he barked, "my work station!" the man suddenly melted into a puddle, his angry sentience gone in a flash. Now he looked like a weeping child, running his hands through his kinky brown hair.
"Hold on a sec-OW!" Tadashi yelped suddenly as Hiro let go, and the momentum sent both brothers flying to the floor. Soft chuckles could be heard from other classmates, and Helen saw Go Go shake her head in disapproval out of the corner of her eye.
"I said I was sorry!" Hir pleaded. Wasabi, although big, looked like he was about to cry, lower lip jutting out in a pout.
"Wasabi…ow," Tadashi rubbed his back as he got up into a sitting position, "you know Go Go goes through your work station almost every day."
"Yes, but-"
"I said I was sorry!" Hiro claimed, giving his brother what Helen thought was the most innocent look she ever saw on anyone's face. There was no way Tadashi- or anyone, for that matter- could have resisted Hiro's big brown eyes.
"Whatever happened, fix it, okay?" Tadashi sighed, "we all have work to do. Make it quick." Sending a smile to his brother, he added under his breath, "Bonehead." As the two were busy making amends, Helen clapped her hands, "So, this looks interesting! What are you guys working on?!" Bob looked over to Hiro and wasabi- he was showing the teenager his project, having completely forgotten about the workstation incident from a few seconds before.
"Tadashi!" Wasabi called, "why don't you have Mr. and Mrs. Parr come over here?" Tadashi gave him a thumbs-up, pushing them towards Wasabi's work station.
"I'll be back in a jiffy, 'kay?" he said, waving to Go Go as he exited the lab.
"Wow!" Bob said, approaching wasabi's project, "this looks interesting!" To Helen, however, it looked boring. Two bars looking like security systems stood apart from one another by a few feet, suspended by two thin platforms she thought resembled a Connect Four game piece.
"Ah, ah, ah!" Wasabi teased, "behind the line, please!" They obliged, watching as Wasabi picked up an apple. tossing it in his hand.
"So, what's this do?" Bob asked.
"Hiro!" Wasabi said, catching Hiro's attention.
"Uh, yeah?" he said, running a hand through his black hair.
"Catch!" Wasabi warned, tossing it over. Helen and Bob watched as Hiro raised his hand to catch it….
…Only to see it break into thin strips, nearly translucent and more than paper-thin, by the looks of it. Hiro plucked one out of thin air, holding it close to his face as he examined it.
"Whoa…." he said, turning it over in his hand. Lifting his head, he asked, "Plasma-induced lasers? But where are the actual lasers?" Wasabi grinned smugly at Helen and Bob's look sod surprise.
"Yup," he agreed, "but be careful- it can slice through bone!"
"Whoa!" Bob exclaimed, the look on his face pure glee, "Helen, imagine that in the hands of, I dunno, maybe Bomb Voyage or someone even worse like-"
"Bob!" Helen hissed, smiling at Hiro and Wasabi's confused looks. tugging on Bob's collar, she lend close, whispering. "You need to be careful about what you say around them, remember?" Bob sighed, agreeing with her silently as he cleared his throat, "Sorry. Do continue."
"Well, the only way you can see the lasers is if I flip this switch here," Wasabi explained, leaning per and pressing a hidden button on the metal. A buzzing sounded as six green stripes appeared, crackling like lightning as they coursed through the bars and back out again.
That, Helen thought, would definitely be dangerous in the hands of a super villain.
"Okay, so what's she working on?" Hiro asked, pointing to Go Go's bike as she fitted it with wheels. Wasabi gestured to her.
"Go Go? Ask her." he said, returning to his work. Before they could take one step, however, Hiro ducked tot h floor, shielding his head with his hands as something flew by, nearly making a mess of wasabi's work station.
"Watch it, kid!" Go Go yelled at Hiro as he got up and lead Helen and Bob over, "These are really expensive materials and if it hits one of you, that's a liability!"
"Oh, and my work station isn't?!" Wasabi said, voice dripping with sarcasm.
"Your tools aren't sentient beings," Go Go shot back, pointing over to a blue recycling bin, "See that bucket? It's where all my failures go. If you're not carefully, your head is gonna go with one of them. And i am not cleaning that up." Bob gulped, tugging the collar of his shirt.
"Nice to met you too," Helen mumbled. Hiro leaned closer to the yellow and purple bike, then back at the bucket. it was overflowing with wheels, some of them not even in the bucket, instead lying off to the side or leaning against it.
"Gravitational suspension? On a bike?" Hiro asked as Go Go pulled off yet another wheel.
"Zero resistance, faster bike," she said, grunting as she tossed it like a frisbee. It landed in the bucket like a horseshoe on a ring. "But not fast enough."
"You enter races or something?" Bob asked, at which Go Go gave him an exasperated look.
"Does it look like I have time for bike races?" she asked haughtily. Averting her eyes, Helen looked around the lab. She could see people fiddling with robots, others pouring over what looked like blueprints. One of them was sitting in a chair by the door, reading a comic book whilst wearing some sort of large green lizard costume.
"Excu-u-u-u-u-se me!"
Honey lemon- Tadashi's tall blond friend- snaked past the trio towards the chemistry equipment, teetering dangerously in her wedge shoes as she rolled a large black ball over to the sink area. The three of them followed, Tadashi clapping Bob on the shoulder to signify his return.
"How's it going so far?" he asked.
"Great!" he said, giving Tadashi a thumbs up. The already wide smile on honey's face grew wider once she saw the older of the Hamada brothers.
"Tadashi!" she exclaimed, leaning backwards so she was pressed flat against the ball, using her feet to balance herself out against the counter of the sink, "You're here!" Tadashi took a spot next to Hiro.
"Whoa…" Hiro marveled at the late black mass as Honey nudged a button on the floor with her toe, rolling it safely into place. "That's a lot of text on carbide!" Helen noticed white earbuds dangling from Honey's ears,s o it was no surprise when she was suddenly yelling at the top of her lungs. They could hear some sort of poppy upbeat song blasting from the speakers.
"I know, right! Four hundred TONS!" she yelled, adding, "You must be Hiro! I'VE HEARD SO MUCH ABOUT YOU!" Bob winced, catching Tadashi smile softly as Honey lead his brother closer to the shiny black mass. Is he fond of her? he thought, shoving his hands idly in his pokers. With the way he was looking at her, it was a possibility, but he pushed the thought away as Honey dragged the group over to the chemistry set sitting on a table off to their left.
"You guys are gonna love this!" she said, picking up a chemical dropper, using her free hand to flick open a switch. "A dash of perchloric acid…" Helen crossed her arms, watching as Honey dipped the dropper into a deep blue substance, squeezing it carefully over a beaker. Tubes and wires were pushing the liquid through loops and turns towards a small bottle sitting at the end of the table.
"A smidgen of cobalt…" she said, tossing the dropper down to pick up a third beaker filled with a somewhat opaque liquid, "…A hint of hydrogen peroxide…"
"Isn't hydrogen peroxide dangerous?" Bob asked Helen out of the side of his mouth as they watched Honey work. Helen shrugged. They had reached the end of the table now, and Honey looked ready to finish.
Until she suddenly whipped out the largest cigarette lighter infused with a bunsen burner Helen thought she'd ever see- and she didn't even smoke!
"Whoa!" Hiro cowered away as Honey's lips pulled into a malicious grin, flipping the instrument on. Blue and orange flame burst from the spout, an her hair flew like a cape behind her as she thrust it at the bottle.
"SUPER HEATED TO FIVE HUNDRED KELVIN!" she said, almost laughing as she narrowed her eyes at the experiment, "And…. TADAAAA!"
With a grand flourish, she capped the small bottle, Helen sighing in relief when she ditched the blowtorch. She shoved it at Helen and Bob, "What do you think? Pretty great huh?" Bob raised an eyebrow at her.
"Perfume?" he guessed. Honey shook her head, her blond hair a curtain shaking in her face.
"Come see! Come see!" she said, beckoning them to follower her to the large black ball once more as she shoved the small bottle full of pink liquid onto a spray bottle, pointing it at the shny mass. Clouds of pink dust were airborne as she pressed the nozzle, and once the clouds died down the black ball was now pink, bright and round as Go Go's bubblegum.
"It's so…. pink," Helen pointed out, for lack of anything better to say. What was she supposed to say? Fred had basically said that the girl could burn down your house if you insulted her!
"But that isn't sen the bed part!" she squealed, jumping on her toes, scooting closer to the mass. Raising a thin index finger, she poised her nail just above the surface of the ball, biting her lip, "Ready?!"
"By all means!" Bob encouraged her, and she gently poked the ball.
Coughing ensued as it exploded in masses of pink dust, getting in everyone's eyes and noses, tickling their throats. A blast of air nearly knocked Helen backwards, her husband catching her before she fell.
"Thanks hon," she said, standing upright. The dust having died down, Helen noticed all of them were covered in pink. She brushed it off herself as best she could, picking pieces of it out of her hair, rubbing it away tom her eyes. Bob wasn't that successful in getting it off himself either. Hiro had pink spots dotting his clothes, but it wasn't anything he couldn't clean up. Honey Lemon herself was covered head to toe, flicking the stuff off her finger tips. Her glasses were completely obscuring her eyes from view.
Tadashi, however, seemed to know exactly where to stand. He was completely clean, fidgeting with the lip of his baseball cap, a smug grin on his face.
"Whoa…." Hiro said, mesmerized at the experiment. Honey lemon's grin spread wider.
"I know, right?!" she cried, whipping off her glasses to clean them, revealing exuberant green eyes, "Chemical-metal embrittlement!"
Helen crossed her arms, watching as Honey left to join the kid sitting in the lizard costume, trying her best to clean herself up. helen saw he ahd now taken off the head of the costume, and Fred was sitting, watching them perform their experiments. A child-like look was in his eye, and he nodded happily at something Honey asked him, punching the air with his fist as he exited the lab with her.
"Fred asked her to make him a fire-breathing lizard," Tadashi explained, nudging bb with his shoulder.
"But that isn't possible…" he said, trailing off, "is it?" Tadashi chuckled, shaking his head.
"No, it's not," he agreed, "it isn't even science. But we thought we'd humor him."
"Does Fred go here too?" Helen asked.
"Like I said earlier, he's the school mascot," Tadashi said, "but he doesn't go here, no."
Helen nodded. They all seemed like a swell bunch of kids. Of course, aside from the eccentricities, it would probably be a great place for Violet to go once she graduated high school. Of course, there was the issue of transportation, but she'd figure it out later.
"We should probably get going, right, Hiro?" Tadashi ruffled his brother's hair, 'you don't want to miss your presentation!" Hiro's face suddenly lit up, and he raced for the door, eager to get his presentation ready before the show, no doubt. Go Go sent Tadashi a salute.
"We'll help him set up," she said, slipping on a pair of roller skates and wheeling after him. Tadashi nodded, shoving his hands in his pockets.
"Shouldn't you go help them too?" Bob asked. The lab was quiet now, everyone except the three of them having left to go home or set up projects for the showcase.
"I actually have work to finish up," Tadashi said, "but I'll be at the showcase, don't worry." Smiling, he nodded politely at Helen, "Have a nice night, Mrs. Parr, Mr. Parr. I'll be sure to find you later at the showcase."
"Wait!" Bob blurted, making Helen jump, "aren't you working on anything too?" Tadashi glanced between the couple, Helen giving him an apologetic smile.
"Y-yes, but…" tadashi stammered.
"I'd love to see it!" Bob said, "please?"
"Bob!" Helen dug her elbow into his arm, "Don't impose!"
"What? I'm just asking!" he whined.
"Alright, alright!" Tadashi said, raising a hand to calm the man down, "but it isn't finished yet."
"So we'll wait until you're done!" Helen chirped.
"Actually, I was going to finish it up now, so if you want to see it now you can," Tadashi said, stealing a quick glance at the clock. It was now six thirty. They had exactly a half-hour before Hiro's showcase. Bob was looking around the room, his excitement growing more obvious as each second passed.
"Follow me," he said, "it's in my office."
He made sure to flick the lights off before closing the door, leaving the robots and various projects to sit in the dark as the trio made their way down the hall.
