Hello peps! How about book 5, eh? (Very slight book 5 spoilers in rest of AN) I thought it kind of got the series back on track after book 4. We once again have a villain that will be present through more than just one book, and we once again have villain grunts attacking the flock en masse. Plus the whole FAX issue. ^_^ I'm happy. Obviously, this fic is set before book five, and is now going to be somewhat AU since anything I do with FAX (there will be some actual FAX in this chapter. Not too fluffy, but defiantly not just hinting at it,) won't be what happened in the books… anyway on to chapter 11! This chapter is rather short, but very important.

Disclaimer: Oh, yeah, I'm not doing these anymore, habit.

Claimer: I totally and completely own Maximum Ride. And while I'm at it, I own the entire world. Bwahahahahaha!!!! Anyways…

(Max POV)

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Dreams can be funny things. For that matter, life can be a funny thing. But usually, I'm able to tell the difference between the two. Now was not one of those times. I was lucid enough to realize that I was drifting in and out of consciousness, but that was about it. I couldn't tell between the swirling dark and light of unconsciousness, and the swirling light and dark of consciousness. I wasn't aware of time, and I wasn't aware of place. My only thought was that I had to wake up. I couldn't remain in this half sleep: my flock needed me.

After what could have been five minutes, five hours, or five days, I became aware that sometimes I could feel a something: a soft, stroking sensation around my head. Later, I started to hear what seemed to be a kind of choked cooing. And eventually, I came to recognize the voice: Fang. As soon as I did, I know I had to talk to him. I didn't know why, but I knew I had to wake up.

As I tried to make my way to the surface, I began to understand some of the words. It was hard to tell, but did it sound like he was… crying?

"Max… max. God. You should see yourself. I… I miss you." He laughed, it was kind of a weak, strangled, sound. "You should see me. Iggy says I look worse than you. I don't know how he knows that…" He sighed. "This flock needs you Max. You can't…" he practically choked.

"Die." He whispered. "You can't . "

I remembered what it was I needed to tell him. I quite literally forced my eyes open, and the world eventually swam into focus.

"Max!" Fang sounded estatic. "You're awake. Thank god."

"Fang," I croaked. "I need you… to promise me something." Suddenly I was enveloped in a huge, bone breaking hug. "Can't… breathe." I gasped. The hug suddenly loosened significantly.

"You're awake." And then, Fang did something that I would never have expected. He buried his face into my shoulder and started to cry, and that made what I had to tell him even harder. Nothing that anyone else would have noticed, but knowing him as I did, I could feel the slight shaking, a sure sign that there were at least some tears in his eyes, even if I couldn't see them from where I was. "Shhh… it's okay. It's fine." I rubbed his back. "It's all going to be fine." I winced, happy Fang couldn't see. I wasn't sure whether or not I was telling the truth. I knew that odds were I was. I truly, truly wished that I had that luxury, but I didn't.

"Fang," I began, and I guess my tone of voice tipped him off, because he suddenly became ridged, and shook his head.

"No."

"Yes Fang, we need to discuss this. If," I gulped, and closed my eyes, "If I die, you will be flock leader. You have to be. They need you." By now, Fang had pulled out of the hug, and was shaking his head vehemently.

"No. Don't say that. You. Will. Be. Fine." Fang said forcefully, then, without hesitation or trepidation, he bend his head forward and kissed me.

I had kissed Fang before, but this kiss was different. Before, it had almost been experimental kisses, to see if we worked, to see if we fit together. Before, his kisses had been a question. This kiss was a decision, an acceptance, and full of pain, fear, and love. I blinked, and kissed him back without thinking. I wrapped my arms around his neck, and his arms encircled my waist. For a moment, I was blissfully happy.

Unfortunately, my head started to swim all too quickly. Fang slowly pulled away, but left his arms around me. Setting his face on my shoulder, he turned towards my ear. "You see why I can't let you go. You see why you can't give up. I won't let you leave me." It was an agonized whisper.

Once again, I squeezed my eyes shut. "Fang. Do you think this is easy for me? Believe me when I say that I'm not giving up. I don't want to leave you. I don't want to leave the flock." I pulled away from him for a moment, and held his chin, looking into his eyes.

"I don't want to die." I said the words very quietly, and as I did, a tear fell from his eye, and traced the path of his cheekbone. Slowly, I lifted my finger, and touched it to the tear. Holding my finger to the light, I studied it. It was a normal tear.

For all of the differences between our lives and those of humans, for all of the biological differences, we were still mainly the same. We felt the same emotions, whether it be fear, love, or sorrow. We still laughed, still hugged, still looked up at the stars and wondered what it all meant. And we still cried. Even Fang, who to most of the world seemed incredibly stoic, emotionless even, felt the same emotions. He just dealt with them differently. But right now, right now he was crying.I didn't want him to be sad, but it was unavoidable. As much as I loved him, I also loved the rest of my flock, and they needed a leader.

"I'm sorry. I just need you to be ready. You and I both know that, no matter what we want, what we hope for, we need to be prepared. And you have to be ready to do what is needed." I briefly kissed him on the lips. "You do that, and I swear, I will do my very best to beat this thing."

He nodded. It was very slight, and almost completely unwilling, but he understood. I smiled. "Thank you."

Suddenly, my exhaustion caught up with me, and I sagged against the bed, allowing my eyes to flutter closed. I heard Fang start to get up, so I scooted over a bit, and mumbled, "No, stay…" It wasn't long before I felt his warm body beside me, and arm around my back. I was, for the first time in a long time, completely comfortable. I once again entered the world of dreams, but this time I was smiling.

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AU: Review!!!! I gave you what most of you wanted. In the next chapter, they will go to the hospital. Review. Go on, press the button now. Here's the plan. The more reviews I get, the faster I update. Really. Now that I'm having to deal with high school, it takes a lot to motivate me. But today, I wrote this chapter instead of doing my homework, so I think I deserve a review. Yeah. Oh, and by the way, if any of you would like to be my beta, PM me or put it in your review.