Here's another chapter for those who still care. XD

Gorillaz belong to Damon Albarn and Jamie Hewlett

Chapter Seven

"Hit it! Hit it!" Imogene cried after seeing the tennis ball, a wide grin on her face as she watched the other player scramble to swing it back. Maria, Imogene's opponent, barely managed to hit the ball over the net. When she did, though, the brunette quickly hit it back. The two continued to swat the neon green ball back and forth, much to the delight and entertainment of the other girls watching.

Gwen sat on a concrete bench on Imogene's side, pouting, her clenched hands on her cheeks, clearly upset about something. Karen, sitting next to the redhead, looked over at her with a smile, but it quickly faded once she caught sight if her angered expression. Concerned but unable to effectively communicate with her, the curly-haired teen looked back at the game again.

It was not too long after when Evelyn and Rose came outside, catching the attention of the other girls. The two took a seat next to Gwen, who eyed Evelyn with an unreadable look. This went unnoticed by the oldest adopted teen, opening the book she had brought and began reading.

"Where were you, Eve?" Gwen questioned, never taking her eyes off of her. The soft-spoken teen did not react to the youngest girl's inquiry, only casually looking over at her with a warm grin.

"I was learning how to play piano, but I'm done for now. Why do you ask?"

"Just wonderin'…" Gwen mumbled, still pouting as she placed her eyes back to the tennis game. Rosie, surprised to hear this new information, happily carried on where her redheaded friend left off.

"Piano? Who was teaching you?" Evelyn answered her friend's query quite swiftly, her tone showing her glee. Catching this, Gwen huffed in clear frustration, turning away from her two comrades.

"Too bad he's so creepy." She chimed in, spoiling the lighthearted mood almost instantly. Disappointed in the redhead's behavior, Evelyn finally faced her with a stern look on her pale face. She figured that Gwen was in one of her foul moods, as she tended to get most times.

"Gwen, you know better than to say such things," Evelyn warned, her firm voice revealing how cross she was, sharp green eyes staring daggers into Gwen's back. The redhead could almost feel the angry stare, but still managed to keep looking away from her. Not completely satisfied with the younger girl's response but willing to let the matter drop, Evelyn placed her gaze back to the book in her lap. "What would cause you to make such claims, anyway?"

Gwen, stubborn as always, did not answer, and the two left it at that. Rosie, confused with what was going on, decided to try and lighten the mood.

"Hey Gwen, you wanna go walking around? Might make you feel a little better…" Her suggestion did not appear to interest the sulking redhead at first, but as she thought about it further, she slowly looked over at her more robust friend with wanting eyes. Seeing this, Rosie smiled and stood from the bench. "You go on ahead, Gwen. I'll catch up to you."

The frustrated thirteen-year-old held an uncertain expression at the brunette's statement, but hesitantly stood and walked away from them. Once she was out of earshot, Rosie looked down at Evelyn, who still had her eyes on the open page of her book.

"You seem to have a lot on your mind. Gwen doesn't understand, so I'll take her off your hands for a moment."

"Thank you, Rosie. I really appreciate it," Evelyn said softly, placing her eyes onto her with a smile. The slightly younger friend smiled back as she adjusted her glasses, waving goodbye to Karen before making her way over to where Gwen was waiting. She came to a sudden stop, however, thinking she had seen something on the corner of her eye.

Her hazel eyes sailed up to a window on the second floor of the mansion, only seeing a pale violet curtain flapping in the breeze. Rosie narrowed her eyes a bit; she was certain she had seen someone standing there. Eventually, though, she shrugged it off and continued on to her younger friend.

"So Gwen, are you ready?"

"Yeah, are you?" Gwen asked back, still slightly upset about something that Rosie could not figure out. She frowned, wanting to know what was troubling the rambunctious redhead. As the two began walking along, she managed to build up the courage to ask.

"You seem a little annoyed about something, Gwen. Is there anything you want to talk about?" For a moment, Rosie's question went unanswered. It was not that Gwen was ignoring her; it was just that she was trying to come up with the right words to say.

"I don't think I like Murdoc very much."

An astonished look appeared on Rosie's face, but she could not say that she was very surprised. She had always known that Gwen was not fond of many adults, but it was the fact that she did not like the kind man that picked them for adoption was what shocked her. Murdoc had done nothing but care for them since the day they arrived at the mansion, and Rosie now considered him more of a father figure than David is.

"But he's so nice. Why wouldn't you like him?" Silence. Gwen appeared to look in every direction but at Rosie herself, as if trying to cover the real reason for her displeasure. When her brown-haired friend prodded, however, the redhead at last relented.

"Just… how he acts. I don't like it." The older of the two went to comment further, to get more out of her, but was stopped when a sudden clash of thunder tore through the tranquil area they were in. This sound brought all the girls to a halt, their activities delayed at the sign of the upcoming storm.

As the first raindrop fell from the darkening heavens, the teens hurried into the gigantic manor to avoid getting drenched. Most watched as water poured down by the buckets, soaking everything it touches. Thunder and lightning danced in a tango of flashes and rumbles, the occurrence unnerving a few of the teenagers.

"Boy, that came on quick," Imogene remarked, crossing her arms with a perplexed look as she watched the storm from her seat by a window. Karen sat next to her, gazing outside with an expression of amazement and wonder.

"It was fairly cloudy this morning," reminded Rosie from across the way, she too staring outside with an expressionless look in her features. Evelyn, sitting next to her on her right, nodded in agreement. Gwen, who had decided to place herself on the floor in the center of the two couches, laid back with a frustrated sigh.

"I HATE the rain! It's always so boring indoors."

"Typical reaction from such a little kid." The redhead shot up immediately once hearing the voice, turning and glaring over at none other than Paula and her two sidekicks. Their presence sparked an intense standoff, the night before still fresh in the girls' minds. Clearly antagonizing the situation further, Paula continued with a snide grin. "Why don't you go play with your little dolly upstairs?"

"Go die in a hole, beaver-face!" Gwen fired back, now standing fully as she confronted the trio of bullies. The insult earned her a short, sharp glare from the leader of the three, but it quickly vanished as she kept her cool.

"Careful now. We wouldn't want you to have another accident, right? Just like back at the orphanage?"

"Move along, Paula, you an' yer little friends. If yer gonna make a total mule of yerself you might as well jus' leave," Imogene warned with a surprisingly level tone of voice, her dark blue eyes slit as she stared them down. For a moment, no one said a word, the air thick with the tension. Eventually, the dark-haired sixteen-year-old huffed and began walking away.

"Whatever. You lot are boring anyway."

A roar of thunder tore through the relative silence of the foyer, startling those who currently reside in it. The storm had picked up during the girls' squabble, the high winds shifting the direction of the rain and blowing over anything that was light enough and not strapped down. It was all that was needed to stop the teens from carrying on with their argument.

It was not too long after when they saw Murdoc making his way down the stairs into the main hall, his gaze fixed on the girls as he entered. There was a peculiar look in his rugged appearance, his eyes steely and somewhat glazed over. This did not go unnoticed by the adopted teenagers, who cautiously asked him what as wrong. With a short sigh that broke the focused stare, Murdoc answered them.

"I just got a phone call moments ago, and received disheartening news."

"What happened? Is someone hurt?" Evelyn inquired softly, her question spurring the others into silently pleading for him to reply. A short, heartfelt laugh escaped him at their antics, the sound falling flat before it could reverberate through the large room.

"No, no. It was from David. He was supposed to be coming home today, but cannot in this terrible weather." Murdoc's answer may have quelled any worries of someone's wellbeing, but brought on numerous other queries and remarks of displeasure from the girls. He silenced them by bringing his hands up, palms facing them. "He should arrive in… five more days. He apologizes. He really wants to meet you all."

"Why so long? Surely the storm ain't gonna last for five days…" Imogene stated lowly, her arms crossed and a brow raised in perplexity. Murdoc lowered his arms as he looked her way.

"Apparently it will. That's wot the weatherman said." The dark-haired man tucked his arms behind his back, his eyes sailing over each individual girl. His tone was low, his expression serious. "Therefore, I will continue to look after you all for a few more days than planned."

"That's fine with us. You're a great caretaker," Rosie piped up shyly, fidgeting a little as she spoke. Just as she had hoped, several of the other girls readily agreed with her. This appeared to brighten up the family friend's demeanor, his eyes gleaming with a spark of happiness. It was as if he had expected a vastly different response.

"Well thank you, ladies. I'm glad you feel that way."

He looked as if he wanted to say more, but was stopped when the lights suddenly cut off. The only illumination now was provided by the dull glow of daylight outside. An explosion of thunder ripped though the silence once again, the booming noise ejecting screams from the girls.

"Now, now, it's alright everyone," Murdoc said as a means of calming his charges, heading toward a drawer nearby. The teenagers watched him anxiously as the only adult present rummaged through the contents of the storing space, placing their nervous gazes to the storm outside. The only one that did not appear to show any fear was Karen, who could not hear the thunder. "Here we are."

When he returned, several small red candles were bundled in his arms. He handed one to each girl, lighting them up soon after. Once this was done, Murdoc instructed them to carefully head to their rooms. As they made their way toward the elegant flight of stairs, the voice of someone else echoed through the halls.

Looking toward the source of the noise, the girls caught sight of a medium sized man walking into the foyer. He was slightly heavy in build, dressed in casual attire consisting of jeans and a dull gray button-up shirt. His eyes were always wide and beady, looking as if he was constantly frightened of something. It was mostly because of this that the girls tried to avoid the electrician, even though he was quite nice to them.

"Ahh, there you are, Dave. Did you find out wot's going on with the power?" Murdoc asked, his tone friendly and relaxed, a stark contrast to the shorter man's demeanor. The electrician adjusted his hardhat with a shaky hand before answering.

"Oh, lightning's struck it, sir. I'll do wot I can to fix it."

"I see. Carry on." With that said, Murdoc looked back up at the girls watching from the stairs, dismissing Dave. As the nervous man sauntered off, the temporary caretaker spoke up once more. "It'll be a while before the power's back on. Stay in your rooms and be careful of where you step."

The group of teenagers nodded at his instructions, and hurriedly went to their rooms. With no power, the only sounds to keep them company were the raindrops tapping on the windows, and the occasional roaring thunder.