Back with chapter two!

With very little to say other than thank you, readers and reviewers!

Mia-Teresa-Davenport: "See? She'll watch my tail, Zara. :3"

gg180000: I just thought of how I would con people if I were so inclined. And Stephen King draws inspiration from his child's nightmares. :3 As for Kevin, he can be very persuasive. :P

Darkestking: That's the spirit!

Maria: Thanks.

AllAmericanSlurp: Yep.

So let's go! Leo?

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

"Politics is the art of looking for trouble, finding it everywhere, diagnosing it incorrectly and applying the wrong remedies."

Groucho Marx

"Trauma is hell on earth. Trauma resolved is a gift from the gods."

Peter A. Levine

Douglas

Stupid Council.

After Chase freaked out about a small group of judgmental pricks - and conferred with Yahn later that night - both begged and pleaded that Douglas brought it before the Council. When he refused, both went to Leo, who joined the crusade to get Douglas to go. After Leo had Ysthry sting Hall, he had never wanted to go to the Council meetings, the meeting hall, or even to the building that contained it. He probably couldn't get the image of Hall bleeding out in seconds out of his head. So, after two hours of constant reasoning and pestering, Douglas finally agreed to go to one - just one - meeting. He had to endure the taxing questions and greetings, too. It was irritating as hell. Mainly questions about what happened since the last time they had seen him, which had been the last time anyone had seen Hall alive. Some wondered what happened to the little apprentice, Marino's Hero, Leo. Douglas gave very few responses, fewer answers, and didn't even make conversation. Why not show his annoyance with a Council that seemed not to care about him? A Council that showed no friendliness towards Leo, who had killed somebody?

Politics. It was all politics. Leo's comfort zone wasn't anywhere near as important as the title and reputation Douglas had bestowed on him when he attended his first meeting. It was just Leo, the golem slayer. Leo, L'eroe di Marino. Leo, Hall's prodigy. Nothing about Leo, the kid who sometimes woke up screaming at night about death and blood. No care for Leo, the child who forfeited his innocence in an attempt to stop Soad from being summoned and couldn't even draw a circle on his geometry homework anymore without flinching. Sure, he pretended to be fine - pretended quite well - but it wasn't fooling Douglas.

Damned Council. Damned politics.

As he noticed Yahn nodding off on Adam's shoulder - who had wanted to come so he could be around the demons that found him so fascinating and who he was fascinated by - and Oly whispering in Chase's ear before both snickered, Douglas sighed heavily. He wished he could convince Leo to come to these meetings again. He had gotten used to passing notes to his summoning buddy to break up the monotony. He couldn't talk to his kids or his imps. They were in the back of the room. Instead, Douglas now had the joy of listening to Summoner Cordova - Summoner Hall's elected replacement, not that Douglas had voted for him...or anyone else, for that matter - drone on and on about amending the rules that preserved secrecy within the group. After Hall's treachery, Cordova moved to force everyone to reveal each and every detail of research regarding demons, any subject therein, and what it was being used for. Honestly, Douglas thought it was probably a good idea. Several advancements that would take years to make would be accelerated if everyone was sharing research.

Cordova didn't need to speak about it for an hour and a half, though. It was putting Douglas to sleep. Hell, he could see a few others doodling or daydreaming. Most of the apprentices had checked out entirely, their eyes unfocused. Good to know that Hall's ability to drag a ten-minute venture out into a day-long event had lived on in his replacement.

Chase closed his eyes and rolled his weight back on one heel as Adam started petting a...bird...thing...that was standing near him. Oh, goody: Douglas was the only one paying even the slightest attention to what was going on. He didn't even think anything was wrong. It was Chase and Yahn who were panicking about a few random people who seemed to decide that demons were worth glaring at, not Douglas. They were just being paranoid. It was a pain in the ass to deal with, to be honest. But, if it made them relax a bit, then Douglas would play along. Anything to get them to give him a moment's peace. The only problem was that he couldn't get a fucking word in edgewise.

If only Cordova would shut up.

However, Cordova went on for another thirty minutes before he finally shut the hell up. The frustrating part about his closing was that he said that he wouldn't put it up to a vote that meeting. Why the hell would he even talk about it if he wasn't going to allow a decision to be made?

Damned politics.

At the offer for someone to bring other things up, Douglas interrupted an apprentice who had opened his mouth to speak. Wait your turn, whelp, he thought as he spoke. "My imp noticed that there has been a noticeable animosity towards demons and summoners lately. More than usual, at least." The words embarrassed him a bit. Yahn had decided the exact way he should say what the paranoid pair were thinking, and it sounded like tattling to his own ears. Who cared if a summoner and a few demons were killed? Coincidences. It didn't mean that people were actually targeting them.

The Council didn't have to laugh at him, though.

Douglas felt heat rise in his cheeks as summoners and apprentices alike all laughed to some degree, ranging from quiet chuckles to outright hyena cackles. Hell, Cordova himself was laughing. "A demon is so worried about a few people who stare at it that it trusted its master to bring it before the Council? Excellent joke," Cordova praised. "I think we all needed that today."

Douglas clenched his jaw, but played along. "Right. Joke." Because, to the Council, it was a joke to listen to a demon's opinions. They were slaves. Seen, not heard. "You're welcome."

That was the last time he would bring something before the Council with only a demon's word.

The woman beside Douglas patted his shoulder with a grin. "You'd do well not to listen to your imps."

He felt the same way as the Council - nothing was wrong - but they didn't have to rub it in. In fact, Douglas wanted to break the woman's wrist for touching him and giving him a condescending lesson in demonology. He held his tongue, though. He wanted to lash out, but he held his tongue. Damn bastards. But he maintained his composure.

It took a moment for everyone to regain control around him before the meeting went on, someone announcing that an apprentice had successfully summoned an afrit for the first time. It was a pointless announcement, but the apprentice sat taller, a large smile on her face. A nice confidence booster for her, but an irritation for Douglas. Especially when Chase and Yahn gestured for him to try again. Douglas set his jaw and shook his head a bit. No chance in hell would he bring it up again.

"Paranoid? Probably. But just because you're paranoid doesn't mean there isn't an invisible demon about to eat your face."

Jim Butcher, Storm Front (The Dresden Files, #1)

"I bow to no beast."

Keisha Keenleyside, The Demons Fib

Leo

Muffled arguing outside reached Leo, pulling his attention from the book he was reading. On his shoulder, Ysthry tilted her head and looked at the door for a second before losing interest and looking at the book again, reading the book herself. Leo, however, watched as the door flew open and Douglas stormed in, his jaw set. Behind him, Chase was walking through the door himself, Oly held safely in his arms. "Douglas, you didn't even-"

In the kitchen, Douglas glared at Chase. "Damn it, Hellcat, I wasn't about to push it! They don't believe you, either. See? You're just being paranoid! You and Yahn."

Chase pinned his ears, hissing his response. "I know what I saw, damn it!"

Ysthry nudged Leo's cheek, catching his attention. "Turn the page."

Leo rolled his eyes and turned the page, a bit amused that an imp, of all things, was interested in fantasy. Ysthry continued reading, but Leo went back to watching the fight. He had read Redwall before. He knew how it would end. As Adam closed the door and sat on the couch beside Leo with Yahn on his shoulder, Douglas crossed his arms. "You saw a few people staring at you. For christ's sake, it meant nothing! Maybe they thought you were handsome, or saw you on the news."

"No one who thinks positively looks at people like they looked at me," Chase protested, his half-tail lashing. "They were malicious."

"They were strangers," Douglas snapped. "Even then, who cares? They're gone. You'll never see them again."

Chase pinned his ears. "But -"

"Let it go, kid," Douglas hissed before going upstairs, obviously frustrated.

Chase growled and threw his hands up in the air, muttering sarcastically while Oly fell to the floor with a yelp. "Sure, let's not listen to the smartest man in the world. He was just being paranoid."

Oly picked herself up and kicked Chase's shin angrily, an act that barely hurt due to her size but made her feel better all the same. "Don't throw me, asshole! Besides, you two are being paranoid. Nothing's going on." Without waiting for a response, she stalked off, dusting herself Soff a bit.

Beside Leo, Adam cleared his throat. "Hellcat? If it helps, you and Yahn aren't the only demons who are worried."

Chase stared at Adam a second before nodding, a bit of relief crossing his features. "Then we need to go around the Council."

Leo frowned. "Demons can't act without Summoners, though."

Chase only pinned his ears and snorted. "Fucking watch us."

As Chase turned around and limped to the Lab, Leo sighed, thinking, Here goes another underhanded scheme of his. Goody.

So, Hellcat's going around the Council. How fun, right?

Besides, how much trouble can a room of uncontrolled demons be, right?

So until next time, feel free to review. Or don't. Meh.

And enjoy.

*Bows and exits*