Woo, Hostile 17!

Gonna get farther into the story. Let's do it!

ShyMusic:Leo did, in fact, get himself into a lot of trouble.

Mia Teresa Davenport: "Hahahahaha! #DealWithIt."

So let's read! Perry?

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

"Let no one who loves be called altogether unhappy. Even love unreturned has its rainbow."

J.M. Barrie, The Little Minister

"The single biggest problem in communication is the illusion that it has taken place."

George Bernard Shaw, Leadership Skills for Managers

Chase

You know what's a fun morning?

Let me tell you what's a fun morning.

Being woken up by the sound of someone screaming in terror and someone else's quiet soothing when your hearing was, unfortunately, extremely sensitive.

Whatever problem Kevin was screaming about, I wanted to smack him.

Top that off with the sound of the door being kicked open by what was probably a monster named Perry, and my day was off to a wonderful start.

Oh, then my teeth started hurting.

My mouth had never fully adapted to having fangs, so they sometimes bothered me. And, according to Murphy's Laws, anything that can go wrong will go wrong. So, naturally, today would be one of those painful days.

Fucking icing on this morning's cake, really.

Happy Monday to me!

In the time it took me to get dressed and go downstairs, Perry had raided the cabinets and was helping herself to practically all the cereal we had. I sighed, rubbing my eyes. I just had to be the first one downstairs, didn't I? "'Morning, Perry."

"Is Dougie single yet?" Perry asked around a mouthful of cereal.

Not a pretty picture, mind you.

I rolled my eyes. "Pretty sure they're in it for the long haul."

Perry shrugged. "I give it a month before they file for divorce."

Because she thinks they're married, I reminded myself as I scooped my bag of beef jerky out of the cabinet and started gnawing on a piece to help alleviate the pain in my teeth like a teething child. Not the healthiest thing, I know. But it helped.

Douglas suggested rubbing a small amount of scotch on my gums once - apparently, he did that when we were babies to ease the pain of cutting teeth - and received a swift hit from Tasha and her dreaded weapon: A rolled-up People's magazine. He never suggested it again.

Perry perked up instantly. "You have jerky?"

I pinned my ears and growled. "And I will fight over it this morning."

Oh, good, my voice praised. I wonder what her head will look like on a stick in the yard. What do you think?

I think no, I responded.

Of course, two seconds later, the only jerky I had to my name was the piece I was already chewing on. Perry had snatched the bag away from me in a blur of motion that completely startled me. "How-"

"I clocked in at five seconds across a restaurant when they brought steaks out for the buffet," Perry bragged. "Don't get between me and meat."

I chewed defensively on my little piece, opting to just drop it. That little bit would tide me over for the moment.

Douglas was down next, Kevin trailing behind him. I pinned my ears. "What was with the screaming this morning?"

"Nightmare," Kevin mumbled. "Vivid, disgusting, terrifying nightmare."

Perry snorted. "Need a blankie?"

Douglas glared at her. "What the hell are doing here this early?"

"Leading an army," Perry stated, rolling her eyes. "Duh." Then she grinned. "And I wanted to brighten your morning with my presence, Dougie."

Kevin's face twisted into a jealous scowl.

Douglas rolled his eyes. "For the last time, I'm not interested, Perry."

"Neither were my last two boyfriends," Perry snorted. "Nothing that a few drinks and a roll of duct tape didn't fix."

Douglas backed up a few feet, obviously a bit disturbed.

"No one's going to come this early," Kevin basically growled at Perry. "Armies need sleep, too."

"No sleeping," Perry snapped, waving a bit of jerky at Kevin. "Sleeping is what the enemy is doing right now! So it's the perfect time for us to move!"

"It's five in the damn morning," I huffed. "And I do have to be at school by eight."

"Then get those demon things to get their asses in gear," Perry said casually. "I can get you out of your first period class."

Douglas crossed his arms. "What are you even hoping to do?"

"Assign roles," Perry answered. "You guys are just running around like morons right now. It's why they're winning. Those Hunters are communicating. The demons aren't. I'm going to fix that."

"We can't get them here this morning," I insisted. "It's not like demons carry cellphones."

"You're the worst military organizer in history," Perry muttered.

"Look, I can get the Summoners here," Douglas offered. "It won't be until later, though. Good enough?"

"Fine," Perry acquiesced. "But we need a better system."

"No kidding," Douglas muttered.

"A better system for what?" Mr. Davenport asked, a sleepy Leo stumbling downstairs after him. I heard blankets shuffle upstairs, so I assumed that Tasha was catching a few more hours of sleep.

"Communicating with the demons," Kevin answered, sitting on the couch with a yawn. He looked like he hadn't slept in days. He was certainly having trouble keeping his eyes open.

"Just give them a walkie-talkie," Leo remarked, sitting at the table.

Mr. Davenport frowned thoughtfully. "It would have to have a strong signal to reach demons across town."

"Maybe bounce it off a satellite?" Douglas suggested, his eyes lighting up a bit.

Mr. Davenport's eyes lit up, too. Goody: Brotherly inventing. "And they don't have pockets, so maybe they could wear them."

"We could modify some watches to act like radios!" Douglas declared excitedly.

"What happens when they change forms?" Kevin mumbled from the couch his head tilted back and his eyes closed. "The watch will just slip off."

"Nothing magic couldn't fix," I noted. "Douglas got a watch band to change sizes when I changed forms before."

"Perfect," Mr. Davenport declared, clapping his hands together excitedly. "I'll-"

"We'll," corrected Douglas irritably.

"We'll work on it," Mr. Davenport finished.

"Until then, what do we do?" I asked, perking my ears.

"Until then, you make me some eggs," Perry demanded. "I'll keep

Dougie company while I wait." She grinned at Douglas. "Right, stud muffin?"

"Married," Douglas insisted. "Back me up here, Kev."

Kevin's only response was a quiet snore.

Douglas: Thrown under the bus! You're on your own, buddy!

So, later, we find out what Leo's doing and start organizing the army!

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

And enjoy.

*Bows and exits*