A/N: Sorry this is so short. People kept saying I should continue Gray Like Ivy, make a sequel, so I did. But it was all because of reviews! Keep reviewing, and I'll be very grateful (which means I'll update faster).
One phone call is all it took for me to send the flock and Total hurtling into a code-red emergency flight to Baltimore. Ivy had called. She had said she was sorry, she wanted to be Ivy again, and she had no more money. Apparently she had made a flock with bird kids from her lab.
She had told me in her tiny, innocent voice that her quarters were running out, and I told her I'd be there. Hang on, Ivy.
I flapped more powerfully, surveying the harbor. Baltimore was darker, the water grayer, in February. It had already been three months since I'd last seen Ivy. The flock was flying around me quietly, sensing my tension. Even Total wasn't whining, which was a plus.
I saw the place where we'd agreed to meet. It was next to the U.S.S. Constellation, the ship we had visited when we were together in Baltimore, last time. I saw a cluster of people down below, but none could be recognizable from so high. The gray sky darkened by clouds was no help either.
I landed softly, and the flock followed, five small noises behind me. I put my hand over my eyes to see better, wondering where they were. Suddenly, a small figure came running. I knew it was Ivy, and she came around and hugged me around the waist, unable to reach any higher.
I hugged back, and she let go and for a moment just smiled. I looked behind her and saw two little kids shuffling over. One was a boy, about Ivy's age. He had a leather bomber jacket on, which was a little big for him but wouldn't have fit me. He had spiky dark brown hair and matching eyes. Behind him stood a girl who could have been slightly younger than him. She had pin-straight, jet-black hair and surprising green eyes. Her hair ended in jagged spikes, and it looked like she had never used a comb. Which, seeing the circumstances, she probably hadn't.
Ivy looked back and saw them. They motioned over.
"So you're Max," the boy, braver, said to me. I nodded. I hoped Ivy hadn't made too big a legend out of me, because really I wasn't that amazing. Ivy looked over at them, then at me.
"This is Avery," she motioned to the dirty, scruffy little girl. She nodded, not saying much.
"And this is Chase," she said, obviously for the little boy. Chase, not knowing exactly what to do, saluted. I almost laughed, seeing how serious everyone in the pint-sized flock was.
"You guys look like you need a bath," I said. They all nodded gratefully. I looked over at Ivy. She was still wearing the outfit I had bought her: striped shirt, sweatpants, and Converses. It was scruffier now, and looked like it had been dragged along all the grime in Baltimore. Actually, it probably had.
"We're getting a hotel," I told the flock. Everyone cheered, especially Nudge. I smiled over at Ivy, who motioned to her troops. We started walking, fighting a strong, salty wind that had begun blowing.