Hey. Since I finished setting up the story in the last two chapters, I figured I'd give you an actual, formal intoduction to the story. Thank you to all of you who have read and the few of you who have reviewed. Just remember to go easy on me. This is my first fanfiction so, it might not be all that good. Anyways, on with the story...


-Chapter Three-

We all stood up to leave, ready to go back to doing nothing. "Wait! Wait! Wait!" Someone called from the doorway and I looked over at the person, seeing my mom's business associate (and best friend) John Abate. "I need to talk to you guys for a minute." he said, wheezing for breath after, what I guessed, was a long sprint up here.

I nodded at him. He had always been my favorite of all my mom's friends. "What's up Johnny?" I asked, knowing he hated when I called him that.

"Well, Maxie," he started, giving me a pointed look. "I just thought I'd let you guys know about the party that the CSM is throwing you." as soon as he said the word 'party' Nudge perked up.

"Party?" she asked, obviously getting excited. "Where? With who? When? Can we all go?" she said, keeping it to the point.

"Yes, Nudge, a party. It's going to be all over the ship but mostly in the ball room, game room, and the observation deck. The party is with everyone on the ship and it is tonight starting at eight. Yes, all of you can come."

"That is so cool!" the Gasman said, slapping Iggy a high-five as they thought about what they could do. "I am so there!"

"What are they going to have at the party?" Angel asked, curiosity brimming in her wide blue eyes. She twisted the hem of her shirt as she rocked back and forth on her heels, waiting for John's answer.

"All kinds of things sweetie." he said, looking down at her. "There will be clowns, games, food, contests, and even a magician who is also a hypnotist." he gave her a smile as her face lit up.

"A magician-hypnotist?" Fang snorted, crossing his arms over his chest. He looked over at John and raised an eyebrow, daring him to explain.

"Yes, Fang. A magician and a hypnotist." John said, rolling his eyes. "They exist you know."

"Psh, sure." Iggy said, unbelievingly. "Just like flying kids, wait-never mind." he said, grinning. The whole room burst into a round of laughter as he looked around, soaking up the attention.

"So he'll be able to, like, pull rabbits out of hats and make things disappear?" Nudge asked as soon as the laughter died down. She was beaming from head to toe.

"That's exactly what that means, Nudge." John said, smiling.

"Can he do that trick where he pulls a ton of bandanas out of his sleeve?" the Gasman asked. He pulled his hat out of his sleeve, pretending that t was much longer than it actually was. When he finished, he bowed and Iggy clapped.

"I don't know. You'll have to ask him tonight." john said, winking at us. I sighed as he walked out of the room.

"Let's go everybody!" I said, ushering the flock out of the room. "To the pool!"

Hm, what to wear, what to wear. Do I go with the formal skirt and blouse, or jeans and a nice shirt, or- wait- when have I ever cared about clothes?

I shook my head at my own rhetorical question as I pulled on my faded jeans and a t-shirt. I glanced over at Nudge, who was standing in front of the mirror in our bathroom, putting some kind of jelly stuff in her hair.

I snuck up next to her and screamed "BOO!" as I grabbed her sides and pulled her up. She screeched (almost making my eardrums burst) and turned around, wiping some of the blue goo across my nose. I went cross-eyed trying to look at it.

"Nudge?" I asked slowly, feeling it ooze down my nose. "What is this stuff?" she smiled proudly and went back to fixing her hair.

"It's just styling gel. Geez Max, relax will ya?" she said as I grabbed a towel, wiping m face clean of the goo. "You ready to go?" she asked, turning to me. I got a better view of her, seeing her wear a light pink sequined tank top and denim shorts. At least she didn't over do it this time.

"Yep." I said, leading her into the main bedroom. She went over to the door, pulling it open for me. I smiled and said "Thank you ma'am."

She grinned and said "You're welcome ma'am." we both laughed as we started to walk down the hallway to meet the rest of the flock. I looked over at Nudge, seeing her smile quietly to herself. Sometimes it felt so good to be their friend instead of their pushy leader.

"Hey Max!" Angel exclaimed from down the hallway, running to hug me. I smiled and picked her up, holding her close. I smiled as I looked at her favorite white and blue flowing off of her small frame. I patted her golden curls and grinned as I set her down. She went over to Nudge and started talking about whatever little girls talk about when they're excited.

I looked over at the rest of the flock, seeing that they didn't care to dress up as much as Angel and Nudge. The Gasman had on a green t-shirt that said 'bombs away' in blue, with wrinkled jeans. Basically his normal apparel. Iggy had gotten a little more dressed up. He had on a black dress shirt, open to reveal a light blue t-shirt and he, obviously, wore jeans. Fang wore his normal attire. Black shirt; black jeans; black shoes. Simple.

We all started to walk down the winding hallways and we finally made it to a sign that said 'CSM Sponsored Party' in bold black letters. I heard Fang mutter 'Gee, I wonder where the party is.' I stifled back a laugh as we walked into the giant ballroom.

My eyes widened to about the size if dinner plates as soon as I walked in. There were streamers and balloons everywhere and the whole room was filled with the people staying on the ship. It was unbelievable.

A dance floor marked the center of the room with a large D.J. stand standing in the center of it. The music was blaring and strobe lights were going off in every direction. Old fashioned video games lined the wall of the room, proving to be popular because, from the looks of it, all of them had people playing on them. There were rides like a carousal and the tilt-a-whorl spread out around the room. The sight was honestly breathtaking.

"Ready to have fun?" My mom called out from in front of us, practically screaming to make herself heard over the music. Nudge, Angel, and the Gasman just nodded, staring around the room, mouths agape. Angel and Nudge ran over to the carousal while the Gasman took Iggy's arm and led him over to the video games.

"How did you set this up?" I asked, calling over the music.

"CSM funding and a little help from Brigid with the decorations." she said, looking around for where Brigid had run off to. She spotted her and pointed. I laughed when I saw her fighting a losing battle against the cotton candy machine. I looked up at Fang and saw him smirking. I grinned and looked back at my mom.

"Have fun you guys." she said, backing up. "You deserve it."

As soon as she walked away, I felt a hand dragging me backwards. I obeyed it and walked out.

"A little loud, don't you think?" Fang asked as we started walking up the streamer wrapped stairs leading to the observation deck.

"Just a tad." I said, holding my fingers up, an inch away from each other. I smiled as he placed his hand on the small of my back and let me go up the top of the stairs first. I reached the edge of the deck and closed my eyes, inhaling deeply. It really was gorgeous out here.

The full moon was shining down, reflecting in the water. I felt the cook breeze float past me, pushing my hair up around my face. I couldn't help but smile.

"Glad you came?" Fang asked from behind me. I nodded and sighed, enjoying the cool night air.

I reopened my eyes and looked out over the sea. I glanced over at Fang's serene face and almost did a double take.

"Fang?" I asked, my hands shaking. "What's that? Behind you?" he slowly turned, his eyes searching every inch if the seemingly empty space.

"What's what, Max?" he asked turning back around. I felt my breath catch in my chest as I looked behind him once more. There it was, strokes of colors, blues and greens, swirling around in definite shapes. I watched as it took form. "Max!" Fang said, waving his hand in front of my face. "What are you looking at?"

"Wait, you didn't see the- never mind." I said, shaking my head. Was I truly going crazy?

"What did you see?" he asked, worry and apprehension masked brilliantly in his expression.

"Nothing." I muttered, looking down. "It was nothing." he looked as if he wanted to argue; to get a real answer out of me. He kept quiet; a smart move on his part.

"Fang! Max!" a small voice called out from the stairs. Angel was standing there, a cone-shaped party hat strapped onto her head. "Come on! The magician-hypnotist guy is going to start!" she turned and ran down the stairs, skipping a step in each stride she took.

The magician... Hm...


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