The next morning, Maeve and Marcus had woken up at 6:00 AM. Douglas had driven them to school. It was weird, seeing the evil scientist she had known for two years drop her off at the doors of Mission Creek High.

They received their new schedules and locker assignments. They didn't have any classes together besides lunch, a disappointment for Maeve. She had never been good at making friends. She would speak to people she thought were cool, but something she said would always throw them off. Hours later, she'd sit in her room and wonder how she could have acted so weird. Truthfully, she just didn't know how to behave in front of new people.

But Maeve had made it through half the day without Marcus. She hadn't seen Adam, Bree, or Chase yet, but there was still time. Besides, Marcus was probably already friends with them, being the social guy he was.

At noon, Maeve walked through the cafeteria, scanning for Marcus. She eventually made eye contact with him, sitting at a table in the corner with two boys that Maeve could only assume were Adam and Chase. Marcus waved her over.

"Guys, this is my friend Maeve I was telling you about. She's a killer on bass guitar," Marcus explained to the two boys. Maeve sat down next to Marcus, sending him a questioning look. He continued: "Oh, these are my new friends, Chase and Adam. We're starting a band, and I thought you'd be a perfect addition."

Maeve looked at Chase and Adam, studying them carefully. They looked to be her age, both with short brown hair. They looked nice enough. And what better way to lure people into your secret lair than by befriending and forming a band with them?

Chase returned Maeve's gaze. She locked eyes with him, and he swallowed before looking away.

This was gonna be fun.

"Sounds cool!" Maeve said, smiling.

"Guys, we've got a band!" Marcus exclaimed.

Chase and Adam laughed along with them as another boy sat at their table. This one looked to be a year or two younger.

"Hey Leo, guess what? Marcus, Maeve, Adam, and I are forming a band," Chase grinned.

Leo looked confused. "Well, you guys just met. Don't you think it's a little soon?"

"A little soon for what? Taking the deeply committed step of jamming together?" Chase said, looking at Adam. They both scoffed.

"Now if we could just find someplace to practice," Marcus said. "I live in a pretty small place, so..."

"Oh, I know a place. The lab!" Adam exclaimed. Chase choked on his water and Leo coughed.

It was cute how stupid they were.

Chase looked at Adam, horrified. Adam jumped. "Oh! Uh, l-labrador retriever park! Yeah, the dog park!" Marcus and Maeve exchanged glances as Adam continued. "Nice acoustics. Plus, they have dogs!"

"Well, you know guys, we have a pretty big place. We can all just jam there!" Chase suggested, looking between the two of them. Marcus and Maeve nodded.

Check, check, and check.

"Woah, woah woah, hold your horses, cowboy." Leo put down his fork and stood up, dragging Chase and Adam to the side. "Chase, what are you doing? Do you really think it's a good idea to let two total strangers into our very private home?"

Maeve and Marcus exchanged glances. Marcus stood up. "That's okay, guys. We don't have to jam. Not everyone needs a bright spot in their otherwise... horrible life."

"Yeah, we don't wanna be a nuisance," Maeve continued, putting on her best innocent-looking face. Leo was getting in the way of their mission. And no one gets in the way of her father.

She and Marcus had to sell this.

"Oh, look, Leo, you're making them feel bad," Chase said, his gaze soft. "Don't worry, guys. We'll practice at our place later. Come on over."

Hook, line, and sinker.

Thank God Chase was so welcoming. For the supposed smartest man alive, he wasn't very perceptive.

"Great, see you guys after school!" Marcus exclaimed, interrupting Maeve's thoughts. Marcus and Maeve left the cafeteria. In the hall, Marcus turned to her.

"And that's how it's done!" He boasted, smiling.

"Dude, I don't have any classes with either of them! You're gonna have to carry this."

"Oh, I got it. I have them wrapped around my finger. The only thing standing in our way is that kid Leo."

"Seriously, what is his problem? Where did he come from?" Maeve said, almost laughing. She sat down on the bench in the hall.

"He's their brother, I think. Don't worry. Between you and I, he'll be gone in no time. Just meet me back here after school and we'll head to their house."

-

That afternoon, Maeve and Marcus joined Chase, Adam, and Leo in their car to head to their house. It was a mansion, sitting atop a large hill on lush green grass. The inside was even more impressive, a huge living room with full wall-sized windows peering down on all of Mission Creek. Maeve felt intimidated. But why? Was it the huge house? The mission?

"We should have plenty of room to practice here. Why don't you guys sit down while Adam and I set up?" Chase said.

"Sounds great!" Marcus sat down on the couch, and Maeve followed suit. Adam and Chase left the room to retrieve the instruments.

Moments later, everything was set up. Maeve tied her hair up into a ponytail before sitting down to tune the bass guitar.

"Woah, are you tuning that by ear? How long have you been playing?" Chase asked, the slightest smile on his face. Maeve met his gaze.

"A year. But I played piano before that, and I guess it just kinda sticks with you," she said, breaking into a smile. Chase surveyed her.

"Chase, this is what it looks like to have real talent. You should give it a try," Adam said, and Marcus chuckled.

Chase's face fell. "Let's just start practicing," he said.

She stood up next to Chase. The four of them practiced together for a little bit - Maeve on bass, Adam on drums, Marcus and Chase on guitar. They honestly weren't half bad.

"Well, it's only our first day, but you guys sound great!" Marcus smiled. "I think you both have real raw talent."

"Oh, well, if our talent is raw, then we better get cooking!" Adam said, playing a sting on the drums, laughing to himself.

Marcus then turned around to see Leo standing directly behind him.

"Leo, what are you doing?" Chase questioned, smiling.

"Just asking Marcus and Maeve a few questions," Leo said. "Where were you born? What are your birthdays? Who is the president of Venezuela?!" His eyes darted frantically between Marcus and Maeve, who furrowed their brows in confusion.

"I don't know," Maeve answered.

"Aha!" exclaimed Leo, "so they're not from Venezuela."

"Okay, that's it. This practice just became band members only," Chase said, stepping over to Leo.

"Well, then, I guess I'm in the band." Leo glared.

"Leo, you don't even know how to play an instrument!"

"That's where you're wrong."

For the next ten minutes, Leo continued to showcase an embarrassing display of music. He did not know how to play the tambourine, washboard, maracas, accordion, or cello.

"Like I said, you don't even know how to play an instrument," Chase smiled.

"Aw, guys, let's let him in. He can play this!" Maeve said, walking over and handing the cowbell to Leo, who took it suspiciously. Maeve smiled and lifted her hands in mocking surrender, stepping back.

"Thank you," Leo said. "I've never played the cowbell before, but let's see what I got!" He hit the stick against the cowbell. "Wow, I'm a natural!"

After a half hour more of practicing, a middle-aged man stepped into the living room. Upon seeing him, the band stopped playing. Maeve recognized him immediately: Donald Davenport. Douglas' brother. The one who had stolen Adam, Bree, and Chase and fired Douglas.

"Hey! You know, it's not enough to just play notes - you wanna get them in the right order," Donald said.

"OMG, you're Donald Davenport!" Marcus yelled with fake excitement.

Donald laughed. "Guilty as charged."

"The genius billionaire scientific entrepreneur!"

"Don't forget multi-lingual megastar!"

"Oh, gracias!" Marcus laughed.

"De nada."

Nothing could have prepared Maeve for how arrogant Mr. Davenport was.

"Wow, Mr. Davenport! I'd love to hear your theory on plasma gasification," Marcus continued.

"Who wouldn't? Oh, hey, you know, Bree and I were gonna demo the Holo-pet for Career Day. But since you guys have a band, maybe we can demo my Concert-in-a-Can instead! That'll be such a great surprise for her!"

"That is good! That is good!" Marcus exclaimed. "What is it?"

"Uh, it's a can that creates a virtual holographic concert experience. It's something I designed for those of us who would be rock stars if we weren't busy being brilliant inventors."

Maeve rolled her eyes, but Marcus kept going. "Well, you're a rock star to me!"

"I know. Bree is gonna love this!" Mr. Davenport ran off.

"Well, I'm gonna go get Mr. Davenport's gigantic mega-amp because everybody knows louder is better," Adam said, walking to the back of the house.

"Woah, woah, woah, heh..." Chase jogged over to Adam. "That amp is pretty heavy. Don't you think I should help you carry it? Cause, um, you know, you don't have the strength of ten men."

World's worst actors award, right here.

"Yes I do," Adam laughed, then, realizing his mistake, added "...not. I'm frail." And with that, Adam and Chase scurried downstairs, leaving Leo, Marcus, and Maeve in the living room. Marcus placed his guitar on the couch, and Maeve set her bass down.

"Wow, guys. You on guitar and me on cowbell, it's magic," Leo said, placing a hand on Marcus' shoulder. With a raised eyebrow, Marcus flicked his hand away, causing Leo to look at him in confusion.

"Don't get used to it."

"The only reason we let you in the band was so that you would stop interrogating us," Maeve said. She and Marcus glared at Leo, who laughed nervously.

"That's a good one!" He paused. "Oh, wait, you two are serious."

Maeve pushed Leo back a few steps while Marcus picked up his guitar again. Without warning, he smashed his guitar against the ground, breaking it into pieces.

"Hey, what is wrong with you?! Why would you break your own guitar?" Leo exclaimed.

Marcus shoved the guitar into Leo's arms and, at that moment, Adam and Chase returned with the amp. "What is wrong with you? Why would he break my guitar?" Marcus screamed, backing away with Maeve.

"No! He- oh," Leo said, realizing.

"Leo, why would you break his guitar?" Chase asked, shocked.

"No, no, no, no. That's what they want you to think. Marcus broke it and gave it to me! He's the breaker and I'm the breakee!"

"Leo, what are you talking about? Why would he break his own guitar?" Maeve pressed. She furrowed her brow in fake dismay.

"Look, Leo," Chase said. "I would like to believe you, I really would. But you do break things all the time."

"That is not true!"

Adam and Chase looked at him incredulously.

"Yes, it's true, but it's not true this time!" Leo corrected.

Adam sighed. "Leo, this reminds me of a story of a boy named Wolf who cried a lot. And after that, his friends never believed him. And then, his grandmother ate him."

Maeve stifled a laugh as Leo huffed. "Fine. But this goes deeper than a broken guitar. I will prove my innocence and show you that these two are up to no good. I'm gonna go all CSI on this one!"

-

The next day, Maeve and Marcus met Chase and Adam in the school gym for the Career Day fair.

"Wait till they get a load of this. My virtual Concert-in-a-Can is gonna knock their socks off! Now, it will activate itself, so don't forget to stand back. Couple of guys in research and development found that out the hard way," Mr. Davenport explained.

Marcus laughed. "Thanks for loaning me this awesome guitar, Mr. Davenport. It's almost as good as the one Leo so viciously destroyed."

"Well, hey, if I had a nickel for everything of mine that Leo destroyed, I'd still be down about two million and change."

"Yeah, and that's just the stuff you know about," Chase laughed, eyes wide with joy. Mr. Davenport stared at them.

"W-we don't know anything!" Adam said, and he and Chase quickly walked away. Marcus and Maeve followed, getting ready to perform.

That moment, the loudspeakers came on, Mr. Davenport's voice announcing. "And now, for your Career Day entertainment: Concert-in-a-Can! Featuring Adam, Marcus, Maeve, and Chase! Brought to you by Donald Davenport."

The Concert-in-a-Can unfolded, showcasing a huge hologram-concert backdrop. There were flashing lights and a fake crowd - everything necessary for a performance. The students and parents in the gym turned their attention to the stage as the band began to play.

Maeve played her chords next to Chase. He was so focused on his playing, he didn't even seem to notice her. He was biting his lower lip in concentration, his eyes fixed on his guitar. He then looked up at Maeve and, upon seeing her already staring, quickly looked away.

Maeve smiled to herself. He was so nervous, it was almost cute. And there was nothing more fun than manipulating men, especially those as anxious as Chase.

The rest of the performance went well. Even Mr. Davenport and Bree played a little bit.

At the end of the fair, Maeve and Marcus stayed in the gym, helping Chase and Adam clean up.

"Well, well, well," a voice said, interrupting their conversation. It was Leo. "If it isn't my old friends Marcus and Maeve."

"Sorry, Leo, you're too late. We've safely packed away all the guitars. Maybe now you can find something else to break," Marcus did a short laugh. "Cause you broke the guitar."

"Excuse me, I would like everyone's attention right here. I have proof from our home security system."

Maeve's eyes widened. She looked at Marcus, panicked, as Leo pulled up a screen on his phone with a weird emoticon.

"Now watch as I-"

"I have a confession," Marcus exclaimed, interrupting Leo.

"Oh, no, you don't."

"I did it. I broke the guitar."

"That's not fair! I was gonna crack this case wide open!"

"Ha! He got you again!" jeered the emoticon on Leo's screen.

"What's going on here?" Davenport asked, approaching with Bree.

"I broke my guitar and blamed it on Leo," Marcus said. "I owe everyone an apology."

"You broke the guitar?" Chase said, and Marcus nodded sadly. "Why didn't you just say so?"

"Yeah, why didn't you just say so?" Leo echoed, folding his arms in frustration.

"Because I had already cracked the guitar, but if my dad knew that I broke it, I'd be in so much trouble because my family is so poor and I just want everyone to like me cause I'm always the new kid, so I made everyone think that Leo did it because I'm so scared and it's so hard to make friends and I'm just a dumb kid compared to all of you and- and my grandma just died!" Marcus sobbed. Maeve placed a hand on his shoulder.

"Are you crying? Is he crying?" Mr. Davenport said.

"It's okay, Marcus," Bree said.

"Yeah, it's no big deal."

"And we don't think you're dumb," Chase smiled.

"Yeah, and your grandma didn't die," Adam said, earning him angry looks from his family.

"Wait, but, Maeve, why'd you lie too?" Chase asked. She could sense a change in how he was looking at her - almost disappointed. She felt a twinge of guilt.

Snap out of it. This was nothing, so why was she so off her game? She just needed to refocus and regain Chase's trust.

She sighed. "Well, Marcus is my friend, and I know how hard he's struggled before. When I saw him upset, I felt like I needed to, you know, defend him. I'm sorry," Maeve grimaced.

"Don't worry about it. You were just trying to help," Bree smiled at Maeve, who smiled back. She then turned to glance at Chase, who also gave her a smile along with a look of understanding. She breathed a quick sigh of relief.

"Guys, why don't you come out and have dinner with us?" Mr. Davenport said.

"Thanks, Mr. Davenport. I'm really sorry, guys, for any trouble we caused," Maeve looked around.

"Yeah. You guys go ahead, I wanna apologize to Leo," Marcus sniffed.

The rest of them left, leaving Marcus and Maeve with Leo once again.

"Well?" Leo said expectantly.

Marcus and Maeve dropped their apologetic faces.

"You didn't actually think we were gonna apologize, did you?" Maeve laughed.

"They totally believed me. My grandma's not dead! She's in Miami playing shuffleboard," continued Marcus.

"What is wrong with you? Why are you doing this?" Leo asked.

"It's a long story. Let's just say, you're in our way." Maeve stepped close to Leo, staring down at him, before stepping back with Marcus to leave.

Marcus turned back to Leo. "Oh, and one last thing. If you ever try and rat us out again, you're toast. For real."