Thanks for your awesome reviews!! :D I know some of you were saying that Fang was out of character, but he's just ten. People can change over time. -cough-
Disclaimer: I do not own Maximum Ride or any other characters associated with the story.
Children started to file into the dining room from outside. The sound of their endless chatter filled the room. It wasn't like that at home. My family never ate together.
"Come on, get in line or you'll miss all the good stuff!" Fang called. I squished myself behind him.
"Hey, that's not fair! You're cutting my queue!" the person behind me protested. I turned around and stuck out my tongue.
"Life isn't fair," I said and turned back. Slowly, the line inched forward. I took a deep breath, inhaling the wondrous smell and my stomach made another noise.
"You should be nicer or the older kids won't like you," Fang told me as we waited.
"Why should I care whether they like me or not?" I scoffed. Fang looked around inconspicuously before he answered.
"They're bullies," Fang finally whispered.
"I'm going to kick their butts if they mess with my friends," I said and balled up my fist. Fang laughed before his expression turned to one that was serious again.
"Don't. Last time, I heard they beat someone up real bad and she got sent to the hospital," Fang whispered again. "I don't want you to get hurt. So just be nice, please?" I sighed heavily. The very thought of going to the hospital was enough to send shivers down my spine. The strong smell of antiseptic… the needles… I shuddered. It reminded me of the School.
But I couldn't stand bullying. I don't get how people can obtain pleasure by beating others up and making them miserable.
"Max? Maaax?" Fang waved his hand in front of my face impatiently. I snapped back to reality and realized that it was my turn to get the food. I hurriedly grabbed a plate and piled it with as much food as possible. I realized that Fang had as much food as me.
"Are you sure you can finish all of that?" I heard Anne say. I turned around and there she was. She strode over and waited for a response. Fang was standing beside me, quiet. I nodded, my head bobbing up and down.
"I need to eat a lot. Dr. Martinez told me that I had… high… met-meta-metalibolisem rate."
"Metabolism, you mean?" she asked. "I think it was stated in your file… Strange. So what do you think about the place?" By now, everyone had gotten their food and was starting to dig in. Fang was waiting patiently by my side.
"It's great. Can I go eat now?" I asked Anne. Right on cue, my stomach growled. Anne laughed and shooed me away. Fang led me to a table right at the corner that was beside a window. There was an empty seat there. Four other children sat around the table, chatting merrily.
"Hey, Fang's here!" a guy with strawberry blonde hair said. He had extremely pale skin and was looking at Fang.
"How do you do that?" another guy with chestnut hair that kind of fell across his head said.
"Dunno," the strawberry-blonde-haired guy said. A red-haired girl was looking at me as if I was a walking zoo. Beside her, a taller girl was whispering to her. I just stood awkwardly there, not knowing what to do, or say for that matter.
"This is Max," Fang introduced. I held out my hand to shake.
"Iggy," the strawberry-blonde-haired guy smiled and shook my hand firmly.
"Sam," said the other guy and shook my hand.
"Lissa," Red-hair said and wrinkled her nose. She shook my hand quickly and wiped it as if it was full of germs. I decided that I didn't like her right then and there.
"Hey! I'm Tess," said the last girl. She seemed friendly enough. I smiled.
Fang disappeared from my side for a moment. I panicked, not knowing what to do. I've always lacked people skills. He appeared again a moment later, dragging a chair and I sighed with relief. He placed it beside him and beckoned for me to sit. I sat down awkwardly, feeling out of place.
"So, where're you staying?" Tess asked.
"Room Magnolia," I replied, digging in. I felt really hungry.
"Hey! That's my room!" Iggy spoke up. Lissa, who was sitting opposite him, picked a piece of food off her nose in disgust. "We're roommies!"
"Don't talk when your mouth is full!" she said disapprovingly. Iggy just grinned.
"Oh, so you're the craziest guy ever?" I asked. Sam, Fang and Tess burst out laughing.
"Fang, have you been spreading false rumours about me?" Iggy said and pretended to pout. Everyone laughed.
"So what's your story?" Sam asked.
"Car crash," I said.
"You know mine," Fang said.
"Aeroplane crash-landed," Lissa said. "They were on the way back from Hawaii." I snorted. She was like my typical neighbourhood kid. Rich and snotty. But what was she doing here? The others seemed kind of cool.
"Road accident," Iggy said.
"They didn't want me," Sam said in a tone that was matter-of-fact.
"Murdered," Tess said and a tear rolled down her cheek. A moment of silence enveloped us, as we silently exchanged feelings of sympathy and empathy.
"I'm sorry," I muttered.
"Everyone here has a sad tale to tell," Sam said. "Don't be."
"So, has Fang shown you the ropes?" Tess asked, putting on a bright tone as she wiped away a tear, trying to change the topic.
"Sorta," I said. "He told me about dinner and all that. Oh and the bullies and how th – " I was interrupted by Fang's hand that covered my mouth. I struggled but he didn't budge. I shot him a questioning look and he shook his head. Sam looked at me seriously.
"Never talk about them," he told me.
"Don't go against them," Lissa whimpered.
"And never look them in the eye," Iggy said. "Technically, I can't, so that isn't a problem for me."
That comment caused us to relax a little and laugh. Or at least, the others. I didn't understand what he meant. He can't look them in the eye? But putting that aside, I could still feel the tension in the air.
"But why doesn't Anne do something about it?" But before anyone could answer, I heard someone call me.
"Hey, new kid!" a male voice shouted. I turned around. Was he referring to me? I heard Fang say something that sounded vaguely like "shit". I wondered where he learned that word.
"It's them," Lissa whispered, her eyes wide.
"Good luck," Sam told me quietly. "You'll need it."
Tess just looked at me worriedly and Iggy's face was grim. I looked at Fang, wanting to ask him what to do, but his fists were balled up and I could see him gritting his teeth. He was staring straight at the wall.
"Hey you! How many times do I have to shout for you, huh?" The chatter died. I started to walk over to the person. I could feel many eyes on my back and total silence engulfed the room. Even the sound of a pin dropping would be deafeningly loud.
I stood in front of him and looked him in the eye. He looked about fourteen years old, and his face reminded me of a wolf. Four other people who looked around his age were at his table. They all looked equally menacing.
They didn't scare me.
"So, new kid, what's your name?" he asked. I decided on a whim that I would ignore what my friends had told me. He was a bully, and bullies were bad. They made others miserable.
"I'm Max. What's your name? Wolverine?" I asked defiantly. I could hear silent gasps of shock. He chuckled.
"Ari. Ari Batchelder. And I'll take the Wolverine remark as a compliment," Ari said. His goons snickered. "Do you know why I called you here?" he asked.
I cocked my head, pretending to think.
"Hmmm… let me think. To beat me up? To tell me not to mess with you? To make my life miserable? I don't know," I said. More collective gasps could be heard. Ari's eyes narrowed.
"You better not mess with us, kid," he growled.
"Ooooh, I'm so scared. Mommy! Mommy! Oh right, Mommy's dead. Who can save me now?" I mocked. Ari stood up, so that I was looking up at him.
"That's right, who can save you now?" he asked and punched me. I ducked just in time to hear the whooshing sound his hand made as it made contact with thin air and he stumbled. He tried to kick me but I dodged and tripped him. Ari landed face down on the ground and groaned. I placed my leg on his head, applying a little force.
I could see the astounded expressions of Ari's goons. They sat there, obviously shocked that their leader had been taken down by a little girl. Then the whole room erupted into thunderous applause and cheering, except for Ari's goons who were still staring at me in shock. I lifted my foot and ran up to my room, food and hunger forgotten. I was in shock, and my mind was in a horrible state of confusion. I had just beaten an older kid up. I had just beaten someone up.
I was as bad as a bully.
But technically, it was self-defense, wasn't it?
I entered the room and looked out the window. In the light of the setting sun, I could see the broken photo frame of my family in the distance. The swing moved forward and back with the slight breeze. I felt really bad. Then the door slammed open.
"You idiot!" Fang yelled. "What did you do that for?" I looked at him. He was practically fuming, I could tell. "Two hours in and you've made the whole bunch of bullies hate you! You could have gotten hurt!" he shouted. Iggy came rushing in and the door slammed open. I jumped.
"Hey dude, chillax," Iggy said.
"How can I?!" Fang shouted. "They'll probably come back for revenge and hurt Max!" Then it hit me – the reason he was so angry.
He was worried for me.
"I won't let them hurt me," I said slowly. "I had karate and street fighting lessons since I was five." Fang sat on the bed and hid his face with his hands. Iggy sat beside him and put an arm around his shoulders. I stood dumbly in front of them.
"You don't get it, Max," he muttered angrily. "They will do anything. Anything to get back at you."
"Then what should I have done?" I said angrily. "Let him beat me up?"
"I… I don't know," Fang muttered. He laid face-down on his bed. "Sorry," his muffled voice came out after a moment of silence. "Sorry for shouting at you."
"It's okay," I said quietly. "Sorry I made you worry."
"What am I, your next door neighbour?" Iggy said and scowled playfully. His presence reminded me of something that I had been pondering about.
"Just now, when we were talking, you said that you couldn't technically look them in the eye. What did you mean?" I asked. Iggy's face sobered up and Fang sat upright, looking at Iggy, a look of concern on his face.
"I'm blind, Max," Iggy explained slowly. My heart stopped. He was blind? But how could it be? He seemed so perfectly fine, and … my brain shorted out. I was stereotyping, and that was bad. I couldn't think of a response to Iggy's statement.
"Do you want to know how it happened, Max?" he asked. Without waiting for my reply, he continued. "I was in the car with my parents. They were irresponsible, and always forgot to buckle me up. That night, it was raining, and the road was slippery. My dad drove into a tree, and I flew out of my seat. I don't know what I hit, but after that incident, I couldn't see anymore. I couldn't see the wondrous colours of life, just because of an unbuckled seat belt." Iggy's voice was slightly bitter.
"I'm really sorry. I - I can't imagine," I whispered, suddenly feeling like an empty shell. I hugged my knees and placed my head on top as we lapsed into silence again. I closed my eyes and saw the blackness, and tried to imagine being like that for the rest of my life. I couldn't.
Just then, the silence was interrupted by a loud knock on the door. Iggy frowned.
"Come in," I said uncertainly. The door opened and I saw one of Ari's goons. He resembled Frankenstein so much, he could have been his twin. I immediately stood up in front of Fang and Iggy.
"What do you want?" I said.
"You do not mess with Gozen's boss," he uttered monotonously, strode forward with huge steps and picked me up. He threw me over his shoulder and carried me out of the room. I struggled, but he had me in a deadlock grip and my attempts were fruitless. I looked helplessly at Fang and Iggy. Iggy was restraining Fang.
"Max!" Fang shouted, and the door slammed shut.
I was seriously beginning to regret going against Ari.
"Where are you bringing me?" I struggled. I hated this feeling – being weak and powerless. Even though I was only ten, I was used to being in charge of my own life.
"You do not mess with Gozen's boss," he repeated and stomped up the stairs to the third floor.
The third floor looked similar to the second floor, but in place of pictures of flowers, pictures of animals were taped on the doors instead. Frankenstein brought me right to the end of the hallway, with me still kicking, and knocked on the door.
"Enter," a lazy voice drawled. He pushed open the door and as it swung shut, I caught a fleeting glance of a wolf taped to the door. Huh.
Frankenstein dropped me onto the ground and I landed with a loud thud. I immediately scrambled to my feet and examined the room curiously.
It was apparent that the room belonged to Ari. The room was larger than Room Magnolia. To describe it in one word, it was untidy. Pieces of scrap paper, food wrappers and empty drink cans were littered on the floor. There was a television set in the corner, and a single bed facing it. A chair, decorated like a throne, was not far off and the table beside it held all sorts of digital devices such as gameboys. Ari's goons were seated in another corner of the room. Comfortable chairs faced another television.
In summary, this guy lived in luxury.
"You're not afraid?" Ari's curious voice snapped me back to reality. I faced him. He was sitting on the chair with one of his legs crossed over the other. I snorted.
"Why should I be?" my tiny voice rang out.
"Because you're in my room," he said, shooting me a weird look, as if it was common sense to be afraid when I was in his room. I returned the favour by shooting him a look that said "whatever".
"So?" I shot back. Ari leaned back in his chair and chuckled. His goons had shocked looks plastered to their faces again.
"Boss, are you alright?" a small and short girl said. Her hair was what struck me the most. Half of it was red, and the other half was blonde.
"Yes, Brigid," Ari laughed. "I'm perfectly fine."
"Are you sure?" another male voice asked.
"Yes, Omega, now stop fretting will you?" Ari addressed his gang. "You're acting just like a bunch of nannies." The nodded silently, but kept shooting Ari concerned looks.
"You don't laugh often, do you?" I implied. Ari burst into a guffaw of laughter.
"Yes, yes, you are smart for your age," Ari said and grinned wolfishly. "So are you going to ask why you're here?"
"Nope," I said. I figured he was going to tell me sooner or later anyway. Ari scowled. Then his face cleared.
"I want you to join my gang," he started. I remained collected on the outside, but on the inside I was absolutely astounded. I stared at Ari as Frankenstein, Brigid and Omega burst into outraged protests which Ari ignored. "So what do you say, Max?" He flashed his teeth at me.
"Come again?" I asked.
"You are smart, witty, strong and I would like to offer you a place in my gang," Ari repeated. "So is it a yes or a no?"
Just in case you were wondering, Brigid's hair is half blonde and half red because in The Final Warning, Max describes her as "pretty and blonde" but in MAX, her hair apparently changes to red. Maybe she dyed it or something. So I decided to just put her hair as half-blonde and half-red. :D Should Max say yes or no? Reviews are loved. :D