Some days, even my strongest drawing-daze can't block out the death-shrieks from Lulu's video game.
Glaring in frustration as my inspiration fled to quieter pastures, I got the urge to use the game's moves on HER instead of another character.
The Lieutenant barging in distracted me from that train of thought, so Lulu better be grateful…
Picking up my pencils and supplies, I scooped them all up in order to search for a silent place to work.
There are some days I wonder why I leave my room…
"Does anyone in this house know the meaning of the word 'discipline'?"
My time in gymnastics and karate made Wolfe's words sting more than I liked, and the urge to return the favor bubbled up my throat.
Grinding my teeth to suppress it, I kept walking, Gary flying to join me.
Ducks are the best pets, especially ones that think they're guard dogs.
Persistent beeping stopped me on the stairs, and Gary's feathers poofed up in annoyance as I tried to figure out the cause.
Deducing that it had to be the security system Wolfe had put up, my blood ran cold.
Oh CRAP…
Dropping my things on the hallway table in my rush, I practically flew back into the living room.
Peter still had his bowl of Cheerios, Helga still had Tyler, and Lulu was still playing her game.
But where was our friendly neighborhood Navy SEAL?
The sound of a body hitting the grass outside kinda tipped me off…
Zoe had come in by then, probably as confused as I had been, but I ignored her in favor of getting the back door open.
The light seeping out through the windows was enough to see Wolfe and Zoe's boyfriend by, and I immediately relaxed.
"Oh my God, what are you doing, you spazz? That's my boyfriend!" Zoe shouted, pushing past me as sirens went up.
"So YOU'RE the one that's been breaking in."
Nice way to get yourself in trouble, Zoe…
"Go back inside."
"NO."
How'd I know she was going to say that?
Rolling my eyes in annoyance, I went back inside as our new neighbors began to complain about the noise.
Game paused, Lulu watched me as I closed the door, probably checking if whatever had happened was worth worrying over.
She seemed to decide that it wasn't, and returned to her mutilating.
Picking up Gary to stop his honking, I carried him back to my sketchbook and pencils, pulling them under my arm.
Maybe I could lock myself in my room and no one would notice…
Have you ever gotten into bed and been unable to go to sleep?
Yeah, that happens to me A LOT.
I'd always had trouble with it, either sleeping for hours on end like a hibernating bear or lying awake for even longer at odd intervals between normal sleep.
It had only gotten worse after dad…left, and I was spending more sleepless nights wide awake than getting any rest.
Passing the time was the easy part, since I had a small TV to watch late-night shows and a desk lamp for me to draw or read by.
The problem was capturing my muse half the time.
She was a slippery little devil, no matter how awesome my drawings were when she inspired me, and I was almost constantly frustrated by her.
Calling it quits around five in the morning, I glared periodically at my sketchbook while watching 'Roseanne', still fidgety with energy I never seem to spend.
Just as 'Full House' began to play its theme music, a whistle cut right through the reasonable silence of the house.
I'll admit it startled me; all noises startled me after a long night of soft television static and silence, so I jumped.
Before I could think to change out of my favorite Riddler question-mark pajama pants and Two-Face t-shirt, my door was opened with a hard shove.
Me and Wolfe stared at each other in surprise for about thirty seconds, my expression probably reading 'yes?', before he said anything.
"What are you doing up before six?"
I only shrugged in reply, half because I really didn't know why and half because I didn't want to try explaining my issue.
He could probably tell, Wolfe didn't seem stupid, but didn't try to wring the information out of me.
"Get down to the kitchen."
Deciding between agreeing and rebelling wasn't hard when the person ordering me around had arms as big around as my waist…
Waiting for him to go down the hall, most likely to get Seth up, I grabbed a Wonder Woman t-shirt and some jeans, though it took some digging in my drawers to find a bra.
Do you think I could fake a cold and miss the lecture bound to happen?
…
Yeah, I didn't think so either…
"Listen up. Your behavior is unacceptable. In order to maintain a state of safety, we need to maintain a state of order."
…
Yeah, good luck with that.
Poking my breakfast with a fork, I half-turned my head to watch Helga mutter something about Tyler becoming a 'big strong miner' by eating his food.
I TOLD mom our nanny was a little loopy…
"Excuse me. EXCUSE ME."
BOY, can he make his voice echo…
"I've only got one rule. Everything is done MY way, no highway option. Do you copy?"
"Do you copy?"
I nearly choked on my bacon, knowing the game Lulu was going to start.
"What? I said, 'do you copy'."
"What? I said, 'do you copy'."
"Do NOT copy me."
"Do NOT copy me."
"Hey, I mean it. Cut it out!"
"Hey, I mean it. Cut it out!"
…
Then Peter farted.
Nice way to break the tension there, bro...
"QUIET."
Even Zoe cut off her complaints at that tone, and I was thoroughly impressed.
"Everybody up. That means you, too."
I abandoned my unappetizing scrambled eggs and toast to sit at the far end of the counter, playing with an apple.
"Tracking devices. Never take 'em off. The panic button is for emergencies ONLY. Touch that, and you'd better be dying or your dead."
I'll be sure to check if my wounds are fatal before pressing it, then…
"I'd rather chew off my arm than wear that." Zoe resisted, looking disgusted.
"Just because my mom is paranoid doesn't mean we have to take orders from you."
"…Let me explain to you how the chain of command works. I tell you what to do, AND YOU DO IT. End of chain."
Short chain…
"I'm not gonna have time to remember all of your names-."
Oh, I feel so special…
"You'll be Red Leader… Red Baby… Red One…Red Three-."
Wolfe paused, looking concerned and confused all at once.
"Where are the others? There were six…"
Just to mess with him, I bit into my apple extra deep, the crunch startling almost everyone in the room.
Slightly uncomfortable with all their eyes suddenly on me, I hid it behind a raised brow as I waved my hand half-heartedly.
"How did you…?"
"They walk like Dracula, with footsteps silent like death."
…
OKAY…
Nice to know what SHE thinks of me…
"Seth's in his room." Zoe informed off-handedly once a tracking device was on my left wrist, weighing down the joint.
Wolfe rushed up the steps, presumably to look for Seth, and called out for him by 'Red Two'.
Hey, why couldn't I be Red Two?
…
When I heard a door being kicked in, I decided Seth could be Red Two…