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Angel showered and dressed slowly, trying to put off seeing the flock for as long as possible. She hoped that the School wouldn't hurt them, because Max had told her that if they did, Angel wasn't to do anything about it. At least not before they started hurting the flock really badly. Then it was time to step in. That would be the end of the charade.
She looked at herself in the mirror. She could see her real skin color for the first time since they'd stayed with Anne. Angel's hair was thin and blond, curling loosely now that it was clean. The dress was light pink, Angel's favorite color, but the edges were hemmed with a frilly white lace that she didn't like. She would never have worn this dress if she'd had a choice. This thought was a relief; Jeb may have known her favorite color, but he didn't know her like Max and the flock did.
Angel opened the door and peered out into the white hallway. It was empty. She stepped cautiously into the white light and shut the door behind her, the click of the handle echoing in the silent hallway. Why were they letting her walk around unaccompanied? It must be another test. She walked quickly back to her room, pretending she had no doubts whatsoever. The soles of her shoes made a clicking sound against the white tile.
Jeb was waiting for her in the room. He stood up when he noticed her approaching. "Angel," he said.
She smiled, hating him. "Jeb."
He led her back down the hallway, past the bathroom, and through a maze of identical hallways. Occasionally, a Whitecoat with a clipboard would be walking in the opposite direction and nod at Jeb as they passed. Finally, they stopped at a door, which was exactly identical to all the others. Jeb pulled out a ring of keys and sorted through them for a minute, searching for the right one. He unlocked the door and walked inside. Angel followed.
The room was empty.
"I thought you were taking me to the flock," said Angel, allowing a hint of surprise to taint her voice.
"The flock is not scheduled to be interacted with for a few more days," Jeb informed her. "They are currently sleeping, so I assumed there would be no purpose in your seeing them."
Of course. Think like a Whitecoat. Who cares about sleeping avian hybrids? Not Angel.
"So," Jeb continued, "We will proceed to the questioning. Would you like to sit down?" He indicated a plastic chair in the center of the room. Angel sat down. Across from her, separated by a small wooden table, Jeb reclined in a more comfortable piece of furniture. Angel's eyes quickly darted around, taking in her surroundings. Like in her room, there was the blinking light of a camera in each corner. The walls were painted white, as Angel had by now grown to expect. They really needed some color in here.
Jeb leaned forward and pressed the button on a recorder, which sat on the wooden table. He settled back in his chair and looked at her, crossing his arms over his chest. He took a deep breath and cleared his throat theatrically. "Angel," he said, nodding.
"Yes?" Angel smiled at him, wishing she could read his mind to anticipate the questions.
"We'd like you to tell us about the flock and your… motivations."
"Of course."
"At the time of your capture, what was the flock's anticipated course of action?"
All these big words. Couldn't he just ask what he wanted to know and get it over with? Angel was starting to feel even more uncomfortable. She met Jeb's cold eyes with an equally distant stare. "We were looking for a home," she said.
Jeb blinked, caught off guard by her answer. "A home?" he asked, not quite believing her.
"Yes," said Angel. She didn't hesitate to tell him the truth. For one, he would just hook her up to a lie detector if he had any doubts, and secondly, Angel didn't really think the flock was going to carry through with this plan. Not now, after the School had intervened.
"I can't imagine Maximum agreeing to do something so… passive," prodded Jeb, still incredulous.
"It wasn't her idea. Fang convinced her. He said we didn't want to play your game anymore."
"But Max disagreed? Initially, at least?"
Angel hesitated him. To answer this truthfully would reveal some of Max's thoughts, opinions she had not voiced out loud. Jeb noticed her stalling and leaned forward, glaring. Angel no longer had a choice but to tell him. He smiled encouragingly, and Angel's stomach twisted.
"She doesn't want to play your game, either," Angel said. "But she can't help it. It's in her nature, to fight you. She can't just leave, she has to win."
Jeb leaned back again, looking satisfied. "Good," he said. "Very good."
Angel's curiosity got the best of her. "Why does it even matter? I thought you were going to terminate the avian project, for their own good?" It hurt her inside to say the last sentence, but it was necessary.
Jeb looked flustered. Angel smirked inwardly, hoping it didn't show on her face. Jeb had a different plan from the others. This was the information she was here to find out, the information she had turned traitor for.
"I believe I am the one doing the questioning here," Jeb spat.
Angel gave him her most wide-eyed, innocent look. "How can I help if I don't understand the situation?"
Jeb's cheek twitched. Angel held her gaze.
"There are a few… professional disagreements between myself and another head scientist, a mister Roland TerBorcht. He would prefer the experiments to be terminated, whereas I believe they could still be helpful, if… If they learn to… Cooperate."
"Thank you," said Angel coolly, although she was nearly bursting on the inside.
Author's Note: We'll be seeing the flock soon. I will also be introducing Ari into the story within the next one or two chapters, I haven't decided yet. In the meantime, please review and let me know what you think! I am much more motivated to write when I get feedback! And since this is last chapter I have pre-written, and I'm going back to school next week, I'm going to need motivation. So review!
Hope everyone enjoyed this chapter! Thanks to these people for their reviews: GoonlaLagoon, aviator301, disneydork, ChocolateMilk2, Adriana, SingedSealedWritten, senoritasophia13, PolkaDotFeathers (x2), stewie-for-govenor (x3), Darth Atkid (x3), and FallingisFun. Special thanks to PolkaDotFeathers and Beefcake the Mightly, who left a very entertaining review. I hope you two are still alive and did not explode from anticipation.