Jeb glanced up from the paperwork that was currently strewn across the table. The sound of wings beating had startled him. Max had hers spread behind her, her hands each placed on the chest of one of the older boys. Gazzy was rolling on the floor and Angel, her curls in disarray watched curiously, her head tilted, as the scene played out.
He could already tell what had happened. Gazzy must have used his talent to get the two of them going. Max was stepping into her role as leader more and more often these day's it was almost impossible not to notice. She was the one who broke up fights between Iggy and Fang. Who combed Angles hair in the morning and made sure that everyone got an equal portion of the breakfast. And this was the first time any of them had purposefully spread their wings. Their habit of keeping them close to maximize space must be wearing off he thought as he watched her deal with their fight. Her glare turning to a too innocent Gazzy, who at three was already turning out to be the main troublemaker.
She really was incredible. They all were. He was surprised when she used the wings, a full 11 feet across to put more space between the boys as she chewed them out. Her face fierce; a glint in her eyes that booked no nonsense. It was later that day that he found her sitting on her bed, her knees drawn to her chest a contemplative look on her face. Her hand idly resting on the curve of one of her wings, her fingers stroking the feathers there. Her voice was soft.
"I wonder if we could do it."
I jerked awake. The ringing in my ears refusing to go away and I rolled to the side and slapped the top of my Mickey Mouse alarm clock; and kept rolling right onto the floor. I fell with a rather loud thump, tangled in my comforter and jeans, and spitting my once again too long hair out of my face managed to gain my feet.
Standing still for a moment I waited, no one came bursting in shouting that I'd woken them. I smiled slightly: time to try out my idea. Sneakers in hand I managed to get out of the front door. Pulling them on I inhaled deeply. The air was cold. Well it should be it was almost Halloween, not that we'd do anything on that day. I pulled on my sneakers glad that I had my sweatshirt. I found a tree near the edge of a clearing and scrambled into the branches, time to test my wings. Literally.
It was one of those moments, when nothing else seems to matter. I jumped and as the ground rushed toward my nose at a speed that felt far too fast I managed to snap my wings open. There see I can be poetic…kind of.
And then I was soaring. The feeling really is one like no other. I couldn't help it I yelled barely remembering to flap as the updraft I'd unknowingly caught carried me up over the trees and toward the house. And then there was a tree in front of my nose and you'll pardon me if I don't remember what happened after my forehead and that stupid tree became rather more intimately acquainted than I would've liked.
The next thing that I really remember was someone's hand on my shoulder and a lot of confused babbling. And a pounding headache. Yeah at that point it really was not business as usual for me to have a headache. Shocking I know. It was Fang's features that came into focus first. He was leaning over me a, very worried look on his face.
"She's awake!" he called. That's when I became aware that I was on the beat-up couch in our living room. That the babble was the rest of the flock harrying Jeb to tell them that I was alright. He approached and held out an ice pack. Something that I can remember being in the freezer in great quantities in our younger days. Yeah we're all kinda accident prone.
"How're you feeling," he asked his eyes giving away the smile that he was trying to hide. I glared and covered my eyes with the ice pack ignoring the questions of the flock and the look that Fang was giving me.
Jeb was smiling in full when I finally took away the ice pack. (You can only leave them on your head before you get brain freeze.)
"So," he said his smile leaking into his voice, "how was it?" I couldn't resist a grin at the memory of the cool air rushing into my face and through my feathers. It really was a feeling like no other.
"It was…amazing." yeah there's me actually using the word amazing.
Third change, fixed Angels name. Thanks for the tip.
