Disclaimer- All characters that aren't in the books belong to me. All the ones that are belong to James Patterson.

Max, Fang, Iggy, and the Flock all brought down Itex. They're now in Arizona with Dr. Martinez and Ella, happy as can be. But when they have to go to school, human life catches up. How they deal with popularity, cliques, jealousy, and your average highschool. Major Iggy/OC and slight Fang/Max.

Max, Fang, Iggy- 16 (10th grade)

Ella- 14 (8th grade)

Nudge- 13 (7th grade)

Gasman- 10 (4th grade)

Angel- 8 (2nd grade)

As a beginning note- They're currently living with Dr. Martinez, Ella, and Jeb in Arizona. Jeb isn't there much throughout the story, he's spreading the word about how dangerous making mutants is and working to enforce new laws about it. This is about a year and a half after they shut down Itex. The FBI kept their identities secret, and anybody who tried to call them out as avain-human hybrids had any memory of the Flock wiped. Okay, you're up to speed. Now read!

Max POV

Our first day of highschool. Oh, the joy and rapture.

I clambered out of bed, carefully stepping around the amount of clothes littering the floor. Ella and I spent all night searching for the perfect outfit. Something she explained was what teenage girls do. I found it strange at first, but was thankful I had enough time for once to pick out the clothes I was wearing in advance.

We weren't going to a fancy-shmancy school like last time when we were with wannabe-mom-Anne. The Flock and mom decided that even though nobody knew about the 'bird-people' (us) here, that we should try and be inconspicuous. I also knew it would hard on her wallet to have around eight children going to a private school.

So I convinced the Flock to agree to public schooling. Not so bad I suppose.

"MAX! Help!" I heard a sweet voice screech loudly. Out of instinct, I ran as quickly as I could down the hall to Angel's room. I opened the door, poised to attack... and then relaxed when I saw her dress was stuck over her head, and she was writhing on the floor in an attempt for freedom.

"Goodness sweetheart. Couldn't you have chosen a dress that wasn't quite a deathtrap?" I chuckled as I pulled her up and yanked it down, smoothing it into place. Fang walked by her open door, fully dressed and ready to go. He was in all black, of course. I mentally rolled my eyes at his 'go away I hate you' aura he was so obviously trying to put out.

As he passed the door he shot me a glance, but kept walking. Then he stopped and slowly, he strolled backwards to the door frame and raised an eyebrow slowly.

"What are you looking at Fang?" My voice was irritated and I looked around at the room, wondering what had him staring. Angel gasped and I looked at her. She was glaring at Fang with an apalled look on her face. "I know what that word means you know," she muttered to him as she pushed past him into the hallway.

He flushed slightly and nodded down towards my body. "That is your attire for the day? Interesting. I must say though, I would expect a little something more conservative for the first day of school." My face went a deep scarlet as I recalled what I was wearing. Nothing but hotpants and a tanktop. What? My air conditioning broke and it was burning hot in there.

I shoved his shoulder and ran to my room quickly, in case he decided to push me back. Walking over to my closet, I grabbed the outfit I had laid out specially for today.

Yanking on my bra and t-shirt, I remembered what Ella said the day before. 'Listen Max. Don't get mixed in with the freaks at school, okay? You'll know who I'm talking about when we get there. You can't miss em'. Sighing loudly, I contemplated what she meant by 'freaks'. By all defintion, we the Flock are freaks. But are these ones... normal freaks? Is that even possible? Gah, I was confusing myself.

I finished dressing and looked at myself in the mirror. I was wearing a black t-shirt with a white angel and a red miniskirt. The outift was decidedly more... revealing than I would have prefered, but Ella said it was 'in'. Whatever that means. Pulling on my white pumps -which hurt like hell- I went downstairs for breakfast.

I looked proudly at my family who were all getting ready for the first real school experience of their lives. We had worked all summer to get caught up and were pretty much there. Our grades wouldn't be perfect, but hey. Hardly anything in our lives ever were.

Iggy was holding up two shirts for Fang to choose for him, Gasman was nervously eating up a storm, Nudge was talking at full speed to Total who was actually listening, Ella was practicing ballet, Angel was trying to decide between pink or green Crocs (ewwww), and Mom was desparately trying to make as much food as possible.

My lovely mother looked at me and smiled when she saw my outfit. "Makeup?" She mouthed the word to me, knowing I couldn't hear even if she yelled. My face blanched and I realized I forgot makeup and hair. I smiled in thanks to her and went to her bathroom.

I threw my hair in a ponytail, not bothering to brush it. It was so tangled, I would break a brush. I swiped on some foundation, black eyeshadow, and red tint lipbalm. I knew I looked like crap today, but it was better than days where my face was caked in dirt and grime. Atleast I was clean.

I walked back downstairs where everyone had calmed down and was eating at the table. I noticed that Fang gave me a strange look, like he was just punched. Ooookay. Whatever.

Iggy POV

I heard Max walk down the stairs in highheels. Huh? She never wore highheels. Specially not ones that big. They sounded like three to four inches. As she paused on the last step, I heard Fang's breath leave him for several long moments and heartrate falter and then rise. Wow. She must look good. Because he was sitting next to me, I felt his hands twitch and muscles tense as she walked by.

Poor guy. Poor, smitten, clueless, absolutely dense guy. They just have to together at some point. I mean, I can hear their breathing patterns change when the other walks in the room. Can you get any more obvious?

I still can't believe Dr. Martinez is making us go to school. I mean... school. Yuck.

Okay, so maybe this inate disgust for school branches from my past experiences with things by the same name. Or... maybe I'm just downright terrified of going to an unfamiliar surrounding with people that will be judging me for everything that I do and worrying about their opinions. If I was good at lying I would say the first one.

I don't have much experience with people, as you can imagine. I mean being a blind mutant with near zero social history doesn't help.

Not to mention, me and Fang have no classes together except Gym. Me and Max only have first period Math with eachother. I'll be all alone. Instead of being known as 'the kid who follows Fang around', I'll be known as 'the kid who is practically crippled with no sight'. I much prefer the following Fang.

I grabbed another piece of bacon and chewed slowly, listening to my family. Fang was still tense, Max was tapping her heels nervously, Ella was singing Britney Spears under her breath, Angel was literally trembling from excitement, Nudge was shoveling food into her mouth nonstop, Total was whimpering in fear of god-knows-what, and Gasman couldn't stop... well, you know.

I wondered briefly were Dr. Martinez was but brushed it off when I heard the bus pull up. I slammed my hands on the table, and I felt everyone look at me. "Bus is here you guys!" I yelled as I rushed to the door, grabbing my backpack on the way.

I could here them all scrambling behind me as Dr. Martinez kissed me quickly on the head as I was about to get out the door. "Be safe Iggy. I love you!" Her voice followed me as I muttered 'Love you too' to her and followed the sound of the engine to the bus. Maybe I would start calling her mom, the way she always said I could...

I listened apprehensively as the bus door slid open and I slowly stepped on. I turned to where I knew the driver was and smiled briefly. "Pardon, can you tell me where an empty seat is?" I asked him/her politely, trying not to come across as rude. He huffed and mumbled about 'finding my own damn seat'. Okay so it's a man. "Sir. I'm blind. A little help."

His mumbling ceased and I knew he had to be flushing in embarassment for making me say it. "Seven rows down and to the right." I walked quickly and sat down, sliding towards the window, trying to be invisible to the seventeen kids I could currently hear breathing around me.

"Oh my god. Check out the kid that just got on. Soooo cute!" I listened to a girl murmer to another girl as Fang stepped into the bus. Sorry girls. He's taken, even if he doesn't know it. I laughed under my breath, reminiscing about all the hints and clues Fang and Max left eachother, and how ridiculous both of them were for never noticing.

Closing my eyes, I heard as the rest of my family made their way onto the bus. Both Gasman and Nudge stopped by my seat, trying to decide whether or not to sit down with me, but I sank lower in my seat. They got the message.

The bus began to pull away and I ignored the sounds and smells as I pulled into myself. I did this often. Cut everything off, ignore everything around me, and when I concentrated really hard on my thoughts it's like I could see them. Like I could see again.

This moment of bliss was only interrupted three times. Once when the bus stopped to pick up two boys, who were obnoxiously loud and clamoring. I heard them strike up some conversation with Gazzy and I smiled for him. Hopefully he would make friends. The kid deserved them, as did everyone else in the flock.

I slid from his reverie when the bus stopped a second time. Slight, strangely patterned footsteps indicated a light swagger and the scent of caramel filled the muggy vehicle. I heard several interactions stop at the arrival of this new girl (I could tell her shoes were heels) and even Fang had a slight skip of breath.

She must be quite a sight to see then. But I wouldn't know.

She sat in the seat across from me and I heard Ella on the seat behind me with Max. She was whispering, so only Max and I could hear. "See her? That's Kacey Kazer. Total freakshow, seriously. I mean, look at the way she dresses. Uck. She hardly talks to anyone outside her crowd and treats everyone like dirt. I hate her."

I rolled my eyes and supposed I was the only one who could detect the jealousy in her voice. I jolted as a light and feminie but darkly intimidating voice rang out. "I hate you as well, Ella Martinez. And I happen to like the way I dress." I smirked and laughed quietly, hoping Ella wouldn't hear and get angry.

Max and Ella said nothing back. I knew that Ella was doing it out of fear, and Max... well, she wouldn't want to get expelled the first day for beating the crap out of some girl she had known for under two minutes. Oh yeah, that would look lovely on her permanent record.

I didn't bother to recede back to my thoughts after that. The twenty-something kids on the bus got more lively after the exchange, and I heard the bus driver muttering about 'almost there...'. Sure enough, not even five minuted later, I heard everyone gasp in mixed emotions. We had pulled up to the school.

We had pulled up to my personal hell.