Here we are, Chapter Seven!

XD Yay, progress!

So I'd like to thank my readers and reviewers. But not the one that turned that banshee loose outside. It keeps screaming in the most irritating manner.

j. liz. 8: Not everyone in this universe summons. That's for a reason, but you won't find it out until later.

Gg180000: "Right?! She's such a douche sometimes!"

Mia-Teresa-Davenport: "Yay! A hug!"

*snaps the card in half* "Poke me now, bitch!"

AllAmericanSlurp: "…I like Tasha….No, you know what? You're always pulling on my tail or trying to get my ear torn again or something! I'm getting the broom. You stay there. I'll be back to beat the crap out of you with the straw end."

"Zara? Aren't you going to stop him?"

Stop what, Tasha? I'm just looking over here, minding my own business.

RissA15: "I feel sorry for Adam. But at least now I know where he gets his 'stupid curiosity' from…."

I was wondering if anyone caught that.

Anyways, let's get on with it. Bree?

"Zara doesn't own Lab Rats or anything you recognize. If you don't recognize it, it's probably hers."

"Oh, Satan, you're a wily one."

Craig Ferguson

"Tempted to type meaningless twaddle all the time on Twitter...with alliteration, no less!"

E.A. Bucchianeri

Douglas

"Leo, concentrate," Bree huffed. "It's not that hard."

"Because you've been doing it for years," Leo whined.

Douglas physically bit his tongue to keep himself from lashing out at both of them. Each time they talked, his head throbbed. It wasn't splitting, but it was enough to annoy the hell out of him. The bright lights of the Lab weren't helping, either.

Donald should have installed a light dimmer. Darkening the room would help a bit.

Why did alcohol have to cause hangovers?

Hell, why did everything have a catch? Couldn't something fun exist without consequences? Life would be better that way.

Douglas turned his eyes - and bad mood - back to the computer screen in front of him. Adam just had to meet Sandra, didn't he? It would be too easy for the kid to just let it go. As Douglas typed a few more things into the computer, Adam leaned in to read it curiously. Good thing that Adam didn't understand the first thing about complicated computer tasks, or he would figure out that Douglas had typed complete nonsense.

See, Douglas had a plan. If he could convince Adam that he was searching for long enough, then the desire to meet Sandra would be forgotten. It would likely take a few weeks, but Adam would find something else to hold his interest eventually.

Leo yelped and fell over from his perch on one foot - Bree had insisted on doing yoga to increase Leo's sense of balance, flexibility and physical strength (but mainly because Leo was sore from yesterday and she wanted to loosen his muscles up) - causing Douglas to wince. Stupid hangover.

"You have to tense all of your muscles to do the warrior three pose right," Bree instructed as Leo picked himself up. "It'll make balancing easier."

"Can't we just go back to those dog poses?" Leo groaned.

Douglas scoffed before he could stop himself. "You can't even do those right."

Leo scowled. "I can do those just fine. Right, Bree?"

Bree hesitated for a second before she cleared her throat. "Anyways, let's run through the warrior poses again."

Leo huffed indignantly at the unspoken insult, but he sank into a half-decent warrior one pose.

Douglas shook his head a bit and looked at the computer again only to find Ysthry curled up on the keyboard, her eyes half-closed. Sighing, Douglas picked her up - she hissed in protest, her acidic spit dripping on the floor - and put her on the ground for the fourth time that morning. Why did keyboards have to be so warm and inviting? "Control your imp, Leo."

"She's not doing anything," Leo responded, smirking.

Douglas picked up a pencil and got ready to throw it at Leo when Adam giggled a bit, messing with his phone. "You can stop, Douglas. I found Sandra."

Yahn nodded from his perch on Adam's shoulder. "This thingy called Facebook is neat!"

Fucking social media! It undermined his entire plan! "What's she saying?" Douglas asked through ground teeth.

Adam shrugged. "She hasn't accepted my friend request yet." He stood up. "Thanks, anyways." Adam patted Douglas' shoulder and trotted away through the tunnel.

"So...what project did Adam need help with?" Bree asked, catching Douglas' attention. She had Leo in the middle of sunrise salutation, a pose that made Douglas think of ancient statues and rituals every time he saw it.

Not that Leo was doing it right. His front heel was behind his knee instead of directly under it.

Douglas sighed. "Who cares, Bree?"

"She's just asking," Leo pointed out.

"And I care," Bree added. "Adam doesn't do projects until the last minute. And he definitely wouldn't put this much effort into it."

Was she always that observant? Douglas frowned at her and pointed at Leo, who was dropping the pose. "Aren't you supposed to be teaching this kid to defend himself?"

Bree put her hands on her hips, rolling her weight back on one heel. Oh, great; here it comes. "I have just as much a right as everybody else to know what's going on around here! If anybody else asked, you would answer them!"

"No, I wouldn't, Your Highness," Douglas responded, rolling his eyes.

Leo frowned. "Your Highness?"

"Because she's being a drama queen," Douglas explained, chuckling a bit. Leo started laughing, too, but a glare from Bree silenced him with a glare that Douglas was all too familiar with. He leaned forward. "Okay, listen: It's not that I'm playing favorites. I just think that some things are better left unknown."

Bree raised an eyebrow. "Because that tactic worked so well for the Soviet Union."

Douglas smiled. "I'm starting to think that this whole family is just a pack of smartasses."

Bree rolled her eyes. "Don't tell me, then. It's not like anyone ever tells me anything, anyways." With that, she turned on her heel and stormed through the tunnel entrance.

"That's not fair, Bree!" Douglas tried, but she was out of sight before he could say anything else. Damn it, he thought. She'd likely be mad for the next week.

Leo sat on the cyber desk, frowning. "Nice parenting."

"Leo, I will hurt you someday," Douglas hissed, glaring at his nephew.

Leo shrugged, ignoring the threat. "What are you going to do when Adam meets his mother? Wait up all night, sitting in a chair with the invisibility cloak so that you can pop out after he gets home?"

There has to be a story behind that invisibility cloak thing, Douglas thought. He'd have to ask later, though. "What's this about Adam's mother?"

"Sandra," Leo elaborated. "I know she's Adam's mother."

Douglas sat in silence for a moment, just staring at Leo. How in the hell did he know that? Finally, Douglas sighed. "Who told you that?"

Leo shrugged again. "Who cares?"

On an impulse, Douglas stood and grabbed the collar of Leo's shirt, pulling him right up to his face. "It fucking matters," he snarled. "Who told you?"

A sudden sharp pain on his ankle made Douglas let go of Leo in surprise. He knew that burning sensation anywhere: Acid had gotten on his skin somehow.

Forgetting everything, he bolted to the Lab's safety shower - shedding every article of clothing from the waist down except for his boxers - and pulled the cord, releasing torrents of water from overhead. The burning was relieved seconds after the water reached his ankle, but he stayed under the downpour. One couldn't be too careful with acid, which meant that he would be staying in the water until it shut off in about ten minutes.

He was having such a great hair day, too.

By the cyber desk across the Lab, Leo was laughing uncontrollably while he picked Ysthry up. "You shouldn't lick people."

Ysthry climbed onto Leo's shoulder and nudged his cheek with her nose. "He was going to hurt you."

Douglas glared at her. "No, I wasn't. Tell your psychotic imp, Leo."

Leo's eyes widened dramatically. "I felt that my safety was at risk!" He smiled and rubbed Ysthry's chin with his finger. "Thank God you were here to protect me!"

Ysthry shifted from one foot to the other repeatedly with contentment.

"Anyways, have fun with your shower," Leo said with a smirk as he started towards the tunnel.

Douglas ground his teeth as he wiped water out of his eyes. "You still haven't told me how you know about Sandra!"

"Your room has a spider problem," Leo answered vaguely over his shoulder before he disappeared.

Douglas ground his teeth. Stupid kid. What the hell was that supposed to mean?

He'd worry about that later. Right then, the fact that Adam had found Sandra was more important. Whatever she wanted with Adam, he was making it easier to get. But what was it, exactly?

Whatever it was, Douglas didn't want to have to pick up the pieces in the aftermath of Adam finding out that his mother was a bitch.

The elevator door slid open, catching his attention as Tasha and Chase stepped out, laughing and holding some black fabric. They froze when they saw him, Tasha going so far as to pull a face.

Hurtful. She was hurtful.

"What?" Douglas snapped. "Can't a man shower in his boxers without being questioned?"

"We'll come back later, then," Chase said slowly, holding his hands up as they backed into the elevator again.

When the door closed, Douglas rolled his eyes. Where was he?

Oh, yeah: The Sandra problem.

He sighed. Keeping them separated hadn't worked. So now what?

Damn you, Facebook!

So, Adam found Sandy without Douglas' help.

And what the hell is Tasha and Hellcat doing?!

Next time, guys. Next time.

So, until then, feel free to review. Or don't. I don't care. :3

And enjoy.

*Bows and exits*