One

"Where to, Max?" Nudge asked.

We had been flying for hours and I still had no clue where we were going. I mean, obviously, I knew where we were and which direction we were flying in, all that jazz, but I didn't have an ultimate destination. I was expecting the Voice to pop up with another riddle any second now, but it hadn't, and it didn't look like it would anytime soon. It figures.

I felt someone's intense gaze on me and I looked over in that direction, seeing that it was Fang.

"Um," I said hesitantly, trying to come up with an answer for Nudge. We were all wiped and we needed a place to stay. I knew if I didn't hurry up and decide on a plan soon, Nudge would start to complain that she was hun–

"I'm hungry."

-gry. Too late. I looked back up at Fang, then at the ground, searching for a good place to land. I spotted a motel, and glanced back up. Fang nodded to me as I met his eyes. I looked around, addressing my Flock.

"Okay, everyone," I started, getting their attention. "We're going down." Then I started to descend. It was already dark, so I didn't think anyone would notice six bird-kids landing in a parking garage of a motel, but decided not to chance it, just in case. Instead, I headed toward the edge of the forest located behind it. How convenient. We traipsed across the grass, folding our wings in, and shaking our legs. To anyone else, if they disregarded our wings, we would have looked like idiots the way we shook our legs out, but a bird-kid's gotta do what a bird-kids gotta do. It was pretty hilarious watching Iggy and Fang doing it though.

It was mid-November, and there weren't many people around here. I bet you're wondering where here is, aren't you? Now, come on, do you really think I'm gonna tell you? And give away our position? No way! Not prepared to risk it this time, but I will tell you that it wasn't very exciting. It was a bit dry in some areas and the air was pretty humid for it being November, but whatever.

As we got closer to the motel, The Nudge Channel decided to turn itself on.

"Ooh, a motel! Do you think they have, like, bed and breakfast in the mornings? Or maybe one of those all-you-can-eat-buffets. I've heard of those, and I've always wondered, is it really all you can eat? Do normal people really need to be eating all that they can eat? I mean, is the food supply like, endless, or do they have to like –"

"Nudge," I say, giving her a pointed look. Then looking forward again as we approached, I say, "I doubt it, Nudge. You're probably more likely to expect that from fancy-schmancy hotels, not cheap, un-orderly motels." She looked a little disappointed. I felt a bit bad for making her look at me like that, so I added, "Maybe some other time, Nudge." Then in my head, Yeah, like when we aren't running from wolfish, gun-carrying, goons, but naturally, I didn't say that. Her expression seemed to brighten a bit.

We had reached the door to the check-in/check-out counter thingy area. I grabbed the handle, opening it. I heard a little bell ding from the door opening and looked up at it. The man behind the counter looked up at me with a bored expression, like he'd rather be doing anything but. Personally, I didn't blame him. Why would you want to be working at a rundown motel when you could be an avian-hybrid, created by mad scientist, and have blood-thirsty Erasers constantly after you? All the while, you have a Voice in your head other than your own thoughts, telling you cryptic riddles and that you need to save the world, while at the same time, wondering where your next meal will come from along with five other mouths to feed, not knowing who your parents are or…need I say more?

I think not. Really, though. Come on. If your life was that joyous why would you even want to work at a motel with barely any action? (And by the looks of this place, I think none is more appropriate.) Notice the sarcasm there, people.

Anyhow, we stepped up to the counter and I felt Angel's hand grip mine. I looked behind me. Behind Angel and myself, was Nudge and Gazzy. Behind them was Iggy, with his finger looped around Fang's belt loop, while Fang stood, barely making enough sound to be considered breathing normally. I flipped my head back around to the check-in guy.

"May I help you?" he droned, boredly, clearly saying that he didn't really want to help us, even if our lives depended on it, just by pure body language, and of course the tone of his voice. It said it all.

"I'd like one room, please," I said.

"How many beds?"

"Well," I started observing my Flock around me, calculating in my head what the best sleeping arrangements would be. "What's available?"

"One room with two double-beds, a shower/tub, etcetera. Or one room with one queen-sized bed, yadda, yadda, yadda." He gazed at me with an look on his face that read: Hurry up and don't make this difficult on me. His attitude was really starting to bug me.

"How much is the room with the twin beds?" I asked, trying to keep my irritation down to a certain degree, unlike Mr. Grouchy Pants Employee At This Shack who stood on the other side of the counter in front of me.

"One hundred dollars for one night, one-fifty for two nights and so on."

I looked back at Fang, and nodded to him, then pulled out my Maximum Ride credit card, hoping to God it still worked. If it didn't, I'd either have to find us a nice little cave to hole up in, or possibly the woods right outside the motel about a half a mile or so away. My only other option, have Angel play mind-tricks on the uneventful jerk, which, even though he was being irritating, I didn't want to do.

"We'll take that one," I said, handing him the card. However, he didn't take it from me, just stared at it, then back up to my face, like I was stupid or something.

"We don't take card here," he said, pointing with his thumb to a broken card-swiper-machine-thingy, without even looking at it. On the device was a sheet of white printer paper taped on with scotch-tape that had yellowed. On the paper was lazy, messy handwriting that formed the words "Out of Order." There was another generic sign hanging on the wall above the credit/debit card thing-a-mabobber that said "We Don't Take Card. Only Cash or Check. We're Sorry For the Inconvenience." Well, this was just grand. Now what?

Sleep in a nice, comfy, dirty, spooky-looking woods? Have Angel use her mental powers and sleep indoors, and take nice, warm showers to get clean?

Dirty woods? Semi-clean motel? Sleep outside? Have Angel use influential mind powers? Leave? Stay?

While I was debating what to do, Angel pulled on my shirt gently, as I withdrew the Max card. She looked extremely sleepy, like she would drop dead any second, right here on the rough carpet floor. She signaled with her eyes for me to look behind me, so I did. Gazzy was dozing off on Nudge's shoulder, and Nudge herself, though she stayed awake, looked too wiped to even open her mouth, let alone speak a mile a minute, or walk a half a mile. Then I looked behind, at Iggy and Fang. I ggy was standing, and at first glance, didn't look too tired, until you saw the purplish-bluish-blackish tinted bags under his eyes. Next, I looked at Fang. You never could tell with him. I looked in his eyes and it was as if he read what was going through my head in that I-know-you-too-well-max-to-not-not-know-what-you're-thinking-right-now kind of way, and I felt as if his eyes seemed to tell me that if we tried to reach the woods again, which was the closest haven, by the way, that the Flock wouldn't make it there.

"Just do it," he said softly, to me. I looked down at Angel, and sent her permission through my thoughts. I'm assuming she got my message because she nodded, turning toward the twirp behind the table-top counter, who had this look on his face that said, "Any day now people."

After a few seconds of just standing there, waiting, the guy's head swiveled toward Angel and shock and bewilderment showed on his features. I'm assuming Angel had begun speaking to him through his mind. Then his expression turned to one of confusion and went blank. He turned around, grabbed what I assumed to be the correct room key and handed it to me over the counter.

"208," he said, in a different-sounding voice, almost like a drone.

"Have a nice night, enjoy your stay," I just barely heard Angel whisper, and I began turning around to leave and go look for our room.

"Have a nice night. Please, enjoy your stay with us," he called as we reached the door. Once we were back outside, going around looking for room 208, and well out of his earshot, I chanced a glance at Angel.

"You know, that's a cool ability, Angel, but sometimes it can be downright creepy," I shivered as a chill went down my spine from that thought. I added another one, just for emphasis.

We stopped in front of room 208 and I lifted the key.

"This is it," I say.

I unlocked the door, turning the knob.

"Home sweet motel," Fang added.

Opening the door to find…

Dun, Dun, DUN! This is my first fanfic so please Review.