DISCLAIMER: I do not own CHERUB, or the brand tokidoki.

NOTE: This story may contain violence and mild bad language. If you will be offended by these things, do not read and certainly don't complain. You have been warned.

I know I haven't updated in a while. Sorry about that, I've been pursuing other, original projects. But I've hit a creative wall so…here you go.

Someone asked me why Ada's last name was still Chang when agents are supposed to change their last names. Kerry had already changed her last name. Plus I would get confused if she had any other name.

Chapter Seven: Sleepover

There was no time to assemble a winning collection of outfits/pyjamas by that night, so Ada shoved a few of her more outrageous, but still kind of conservative, outfits into her purple backpack along with some cute pyjamas adorned with ducks that she thought Kun might appreciate. At the last second she remembered her toiletry bag, and filled up the space which wasn't being taken up by her essentials (toothbrush, soap, etc.) with some of Lillith's makeup.

"Ready?" Meryn asked her as she headed towards the front door.

"Nope."

"You'll do fine."

"I hope so."

Ada slipped out of the front door after bidding Gabrielle and Connor goodbye. She stood just outside the harsh low of the porch light for a moment, breathing deeply, and then headed off. It wasn't a long walk to Kun's house, and despite it being dark and kind of a dodgy area, Ada felt safe. She could look after herself, after all.

The disappointingly ordinary council house which Ada had staked out with Meryn the other day was instantly recognisable as it was the only one with a floodlit garden. Huge, industrial-strength lights had been fitted to the walls just beneath the upstairs windows, pointing down at the dying plants and brown grass. All the curtains had been pulled tightly shut, and the low gate was fitted with a heavy padlock. Ada didn't see the point in this last security measure. The gate was low enough to vault over, which was what she did. Before she could reach the door, it was thrown open by a visibly distressed Kun.

"Ada-chan! You didn't walk over here all by yourself, did you?"

"Um, yes." Ada was confused. Kun seemed angry.

"It's not safe!" Kun trotted out onto the grass in her pyjamas and fluffy slippers. "There's some real nutters live around here. It's dodgy."

"I can look after myself Kun-chan," Ada sighed, nervous and not really in the mood for a lecture.

"Would you still be saying that if you were mugged by some guy who was 6'3 and fourteen stone heavier than you?"

Ada shrugged.

"Right. Exactly. Now come in, come in! We're about to watch Moulin Rouge."

"That's my favourite movie!" Ada gasped, all her nerves now forgotten. She allowed Kun to pull her inside the house. The short hallway was carpeted in an ugly salmon-pink colour, the walls cream. She followed Kun up the staircase and into the first bedroom.

In here Ada could see the full extent of the Ingram's wealth. Kun's bed was a wide, king-size four poster. A large LCD TV was attached the wall, and underneath sat a tangle of cables among which Ada could make out a Wii, a PS3, an Xbox and numerous other consoles she didn't even recognise. An iPhone 3Gs was charging on the bedside table, along with the new iPod Nano and two other phones. At first Ada thought they belonged to Em, Ai, and Caitlin, but when she looked over to where they were lounging on the bed, all three of them were texting on their own phones.

"Uh, Kun-chan, why do you have three phones and an iPod when you already have an iPhone?" Ada just couldn't stop herself from asking.

"Ugh, you're going to regret this," Caitlin joked and the others laughed. Ada didn't get it until Kun launched into her long, long, long explanation.

"The iPhone is for everyday use, regular texting, calling and stuff. The Nano is for travelling – the memory's not as big but it's easy to carry. I take it to school as well. You're less likely to get jumped for a Nano than for an iPhone. That phone is the private line to my dad. I'm not allowed any other calls or texts on it. This one is the emergency phone. It has the longest battery life and it's got this tracing thing that you can trace even when it's off or broken. The chip's so small and it's fire resistant and-,"

Kun said some other stuff but Ada stopped listening. When Kun was finished, she ran downstairs and returned with a huge bowl of popcorn. The girls settled down in various places in Kun's room to watch the movie. Ai and Caitlin sat on the bed, leaning against the tall, cushioned headboard. Kun lounged across a large winged armchair and Ada sat with Em on the sofa. Ada relaxed the moment the haunting opening song sounded through the surround-sound speaker system, and the rainy black and white image of Paris filled the screen. Why had she been worried about this? She would have a good time and then, when everyone was asleep, she would have a look around the house and hopefully plant some bugs.

___________________

When the movie was finished, the girls set sleeping bags out on the carpet and sofa, spent a long time talking about random things, and then, one by one, dropped off to sleep. Ada made her breathing slow and heavy. It was a chore to fight off sleep, despite the nervous clamour in her head, but she waited until she was sure the other four girls were asleep before she moved.

She sat up and looked around, checking one last time that she was the only one awake. She rose silently to her feet and crept towards the door. She had been worried about a creak, but the door swung open quietly.

The hall was dark. Ada stood for a moment, waiting for her eyes to adjust, and then moved ghostlike across the carpet. She knew from previous surveillance and searches that Sophie's study was the very last door. She waited outside, listening, and, judging it to be safe, entered. If there was anyone inside she could claim to have been looking for the bathroom.

The room was, mercifully, empty of people, but full of clutter. Papers littered every available surface. It would take months to sift through all of it. There was a large, old-looking wardrobe in the corner of the room, and was the only piece of furniture that could plausibly be used as a hiding place. Ada darted towards it and opened the door, her heart thudding against her ribcage.

There were more papers inside, but these seemed to be much better organized. Ada was sure she would find something of use in here, if only she had time to look through it all.

Someone moved in the corridor outside and Ada tensed. If anyone came in here she would have a hard time trying to explain what she was doing. Someone knocked on the front door downstairs and she listened as it was opened. Voices. The door closed. Footsteps on the stairs. The hushed voice of a man. The whisper of – Ada's heart almost stopped – Sophie Ingram.

The two, or possibly more, people stopped outside the door.

Ada needed no more excuse. She leapt inside the wardrobe and pulled the door closed quietly just as the door to the study began to sweep across the carpet.

Thank you for reading! Please review, I love to hear what you think.