I'm so so so so so so so so so so so so so sorry for not updating this sooner! I was looking at my profile today and realized that I haven't updated this in a whole week, and I'm like "WHAT?! I've been slacking that long?!" And then I started writing this chapter immediately.

My life has been uber hectic. And Evilhunterperson will probably be the only one to understand the next paragraph, but I need to vent.

Okay, so I got a new bow. First of all, the poundage is heavier than my previous bow and my instructor is getting on my case about 'not pulling the kisser far enough', and now the sight is all jacked up because it wasn't going in the right place. I spent all of Wednesday down at my sportsman's club trying to sight it in to absolutely no avail, and now the person who sells me my equipment is trying to force a clicker on me. I CAN'T SHOOT WITH A CLICKER!!! I just can't! I tried once and practically missed every shot because I wasn't used to it. I mean, my new bow costs close to $400 including the accessories and case and everything. I want to have it my way, if you know what I mean. I'm going to stop now, before I say something I regret or before I totally bore you out of your mind with my ranting.

Anyway... 289 reviews. You guys rock! Thank you thank you thank you! If you guys keep reviewing, which I hope you do, I might reach 300 in the next 2 chapters. That would be amazing because I never thought this fic would be so popular.

Before I get any more disracted, let's get on with the story! Chapter 25! Whoo-hoo!

I woke up for the second morning with Fang, only this time I was leaning against him with my whole body instead of just leaning on his shoulder. I could feel his chest rising and falling under me as he breathed, and I just stayed there for a minute, listening to his quiet snoring as he slept. He seemed so peaceful, like nothing was happening. Like nothing was wrong.

Like nothing was wrong. How much I'd give for that to be true, for nothing to be wrong, for everything to be alright. Just like after I'd saved the world. Everything was perfect, everything was going my way in life for the first time. Now, it was back to the usual routine: avoid evil scientists and mutants, try to take down Itex, watch after my family, get all mushy about Fang. You know, average teenage stuff. At least average avian-hybrid teenage stuff.

Seeing as Fang's arms were still around my waist and I didn't want to wake him up, I was content just to sit there, leaning against his chest while he slept away the morning. I looked up at the ceiling, finding every flaw in the paint and when I was done with that I moved to the floor.

"We're making a habit of this, aren't we?" a sleepy voice said. I jumped a little, but not too much because of Fang's arms being around my waist. He yawned widely, jerking his head to get his long bangs out of his face.

"What do you mean?"

"This is the second night in a row you've fallen asleep on me."

Huh, my thoughts exactly. "You don't exactly seem to be complaining," I pointed out.

"Not at all."

"Do you secretly enjoy it?" I asked sarcastically.

He grinned, his teeth white against his olive skin. "Maybe," he said. "Maybe not."

"Very funny," I said, scooting off him so he could get more comfortable. "And very childish."

"I never said I was an adult."

Rolling my eyes to end the discussion, I eased myself off the sofa and stretched, loosening up my tight arm and leg muscles. Everything seemed to hurt this morning; it was probably just because my body had to do some major healing over the last couple of days. Still, I made a mental note to never let myself get this sore again. It was almost as bad as getting doused in gasoline and set on fire. Not that I know what that feels like, though I do have a pretty good idea. One word – experimentation. And I don't really think I need to collaborate on that much.

"We have to talk to Jeb today," I said, going over to the outdated television and seeing if there was a remote for it. Apparently, there wasn't, so I ended up having to flick through the channels manually until I got to MTV.

"What for? Make him wait a week or two."

"In a week or two we'll probably be halfway across the country."

"Exactly. There's no real reason for us to be talking to that creep anyway."

"Fang, he has information that we need," I said, facing him and putting my hands on my hips. "I'm not going to ruin the opportunity to get the info just to make a point and get payback. He's the only person on the inside we know, and after all, Jeb might help us get rid of Seth."

Fang tensed up when I mentioned Seth. I knew he'd do anything to get rid of the dangerous foe, even trust Jeb. Seth was just too dangerous to ignore.

"Fine, you win," he said, standing up and coming over to me. He lightly brushed his fingers down the length of my arm, and my skin seemed to produce sparks where his skin touched mine. "But I want to know something."

"Yeah?"

"If Jeb ends up betraying us again, can I kick him into next week? Just thought I should ask, since he's your dad and all."

I laughed. And here I thought he was getting all romantic. "Mind if I do it with you?" I asked, and he smiled. One of those rare smiles that just lights up my day, not like the playful one he'd given me earlier.

He pecked me softly on the cheek before pulling away and going to the door. "You might as well shut off the TV," he said, motioning out the door with a slow jerk of his head. "We're probably not going to be back in here for a while, and there's no sense letting it run when we're not here."

"Good point," I said, pushing the power button and watching the screen go blank. "No need to waste energy, right?"

"Especially since that's what we were saving the world from," Fang said as I walked by him on my way out the door seconds later. "Energy hoarders."

"Who says I hoard energy? Just 'cause I leave the light on sometimes doesn't mean that I don't care about the environment."

"Sure," he said, drawing out the word. "Keep making yourself feel good while the ozone layer breaks down."

I elbowed him right in the gut and then stuck my tongue out at him like the motherly figure I am.

But I never said I was a mature motherly figure, now did I?

Nudge's POV

Have you ever had hotel food? I mean, this hotel wasn't all that bad, but the food stunk. Eating the sausage and egg breakfast was like eating yellow goo and a gray cigar or something. Gross. I'm surprised that I was even able to down the food. Then again, needing three thousand calories a day usually made you super hungry, so we tended not to complain much about the quality of our food. To us, quantity matters most.

"Someone please distract me before I barf," Gazzy said, taking a bite of hard toast with a sickened expression. Normally, we would've walked away by now, but seeing as we had absolutely no cash and Max had her credit card with her, we had no other means of acquiring food. So, we sucked it up and ate whatever we were given, which happened to be the utterly disgusting complimentary breakfast the hotel called 'high quality'. Yeah right.

"So, Angel, anything interesting going on?" I asked, picking at my bacon. I guess having a mind reader came in handy when you were looking for interesting topics to gossip about. And I'm not afraid to admit that I love gossip.

"The man at the counter has on new socks," Angel said, motioning to a middle-aged man checking into the hotel. "And he's planning a way to rip off the cleaning ladies."

"Well that's rude," I said. "Anything else? What about Max and Fang? Are they up yet?"

"Yeah, they just got up. I think Max is kind of embarrassed."

"Why?"

"Well, she fell asleep on Fang again last night."

"On Fang? Again?" Now there was something interesting. Romantic gossip was the best you could get.

"Well, not literally on him. But yeah, it's the second night in a row she's fell asleep leaning on him."

"That's what you get when you let two hormonal teenagers of the opposite sex share a room together," Iggy said matter-of-factly.

"What's 'sex' mean?"

I threw a glare at Iggy, but the effect was lost because of him being blind. "You don't need to know, Angel," I said. "One meaning of it is the same as gender, like whether you're a boy or a girl."

"Oh. That makes sense."

It was kind of silent for a while. I could tell what Iggy was thinking about just by looking at his face. Ella. He was really, really worried about her. Just as worried about her as Max had been about Fang. It was nice to know that he'd found someone that he loved that much.

But what about me? I was almost thirteen, old enough to have a boyfriend. Would I ever find someone that was special to me?

I really, really hoped so.

Looks like Nudge is getting the first teenage hormones. Poor kid, she'll probably never end up with anyone until this whole 'taking down Itex' thing is over again. You've got to feel bad for her.

Anyway, I apologize again for not getting this up sooner. And I know this chapter wasn't all that great - it was a filler, so PLEASE DON'T FLAME ME for it! Next chapter's going to be important, and questions will be answered. I promise. And, as always, I want reviews. Virtual cupcake to anyone who will REVIEW!