Ok so, I've finally started my last year in school, with a nice big common room with couches and a toaster. So I'm going to be pretty busy studying and going to 18ths but I'll try to update as frequently as possible!

Enjoy!


Fang's POV

We touched down finally in Arkansas, leaving Disneyworld far behind. It had been an ordeal that Max, Iggy and I would take a while to recover from, but the mental scars of Disneyworld were beginning to heal. Perhaps I was being slightly melodramatic, but I knew one thing for sure. I was NEVER going back there again, not even for the kids.

Having skimmed past Georgia early that morning, we had broken our fast in good old Alabama. The dusty, old, roadside diner never knew what hit it, as we chomped and guzzled our way through four meals each . . . and paid for it. Obviously 'Dine and Dash' was still a popular game round those parts because the owner watched us like a hawk. Ironic really.

By the time we'd finally hauled our asses out of the diner and back into Alabama skies it was eight . . . in the morning. We'd gotten up at a record five o'clock, for our cross state trip. Considering we had to be in Colorado by tomorrow it was no surprise. It had certainly helped that Max had wanted to get out of Disney as fast as humanly (or avain hybridly) possible.

So here we were in Arkansas. We'd had nothing to eat since the fast food joint halfway across Mississippi and I figured it was about time we indulged once again in the incredible pleasure of feeding ourselves. I conveyed all of this to Max in one, carefully thought out sentence.

"Food?"

She nodded and, pulling in our wings, we headed off through the woods in the direction of a Pizza Hut that Nudge had spotted from above.

I watched the flock around me out of the corners of my eyes. Max and Gazzy were having a private chat to my right, strolling side by side seemingly oblivious to the rest of us. I noticed that Max no longer had to bend her head to talk to him and it hit me once again how much the flock had grown in my absence. Nudge and Angel were speeding ahead, racing each other to the food, with Total bouncing at their heels.

I noticed Iggy walking steadily beside me, obviously listening for my footsteps, his hand slightly in front of him to help avoid trees. I felt a wave of pride at his independence.

"So you and Alice then?" I asked him, wondering exactly how much he knew about Alice's 'situation' at home.

He grinned widely, the first sign of a love struck swain. "Yeah, shame she couldn't come with us."

"Yeah." I put my hand lightly on his shoulder to steer him around a rock. "I suppose it wouldn't have been good though . . . in her condition."

Iggy frowned in confusion, his brow furrowed, "You mean how she doesn't have any wings? She's perfectly capable of looking after herself you know, most people don't have wings and they get on fine, we're the weird ones, we're the ones with the 'condition'!"

With that I had my answer. Iggy was completely in the dark, in more ways than one. Alice had told him nothing. I felt a pang deep in my chest and wondered if she ever would, while filing away a reminder to mention his ignorance to Max. Best to make sure she didn't mention it.

"Sorry Ig, didn't mean any offence by it." I said to placate my defensive brother and he shrugged a little in forgiveness.

"Sure, it's just that . . . she's not handicapped you know? I'm the one with the handicap and the freakish wingspan."

"You're right, you're totally a weirdo," I said jokingly. "I don't know anyone else on this earth who eats his burger with cream cheese instead of ketchup!"

We laughed and he relaxed again, but I couldn't help but wonder how long it would be before he needed to be told about the child he'd never meet.

I watched the green and brown woods fade as we walked and saw it become grey pavements and jet black tarmac roads. The metal vehicles in every size, shape and colour zoomed past, unaware or uncaring of our presence. We were nobody, but to me, we were everybody. Funny how your life seems so insignificant when you put it in perspective.

I felt a hand slip into mine and squeeze and I turned my head to smile at Max.

"Two days and we'll be back in a real house." She said softly. "With showers and toilets and real beds. Sleeping out is great, but I think I've gone soft. I'm already missing the creature comforts."

"I know what you mean." I said, thinking of the crick in my neck from sleeping without a pillow. "I feel so . . . old."

"Tell me about it." She rolled her eyes. "One minute we're out fighting crime, saving the world one ITEX at a time, then suddenly boom, we're useless."

"Well, I wouldn't exactly call four years, boom." I sighed. "It sure felt long to me."

"Me too." She leaned against me and I pulled my hand from hers and placed it on her shoulder.

"It feels weird that we're married." She said after a while.

"Yeah." I reached out with my left hand and covered her outstretched hand with mine. We both stared at the gold bands around our fourth fingers. It was then that I realised we'd stopped walking.

"That's because we're here." Angel said from my side. "And it's weird that you're married because you're not really married, just like my name isn't really Angelica. You're just technically married. You never walked down the aisle"

"Oh." Max swallowed and pulled her hand away from mine. "I suppose you're right."

I felt a pang of disappointment at the thought that I wasn't truly married to Max and it was with a heavy heart that I watched her pull away from me and walk into the pizza hut. I sighed.

"What was that about?" I asked Angel sadly, wondering why she had to go and spoil the moment.

She shrugged. "I felt like making someone else sad for a change." And before I could ask what she meant she was gone, disappearing into the restaurant.

I had a bad feeling about what had just gone down but I'd wait to question Angel when we were alone. Taking a brief scan of the area as an added precaution I stepped into the pizza place. Max was ordering up at the front counter and Gazzy and Nudge had saved a table. I assumed Iggy and Angel had gone to the bathroom, it had been a pretty long trip. Making an executive decision completely unbiased by a need to be close to her at all times I made my way towards Max to help her with the immense pile of food she had piled on the three trays in front of her.

"So do you want to sleep in Arkansas tonight or should we make a last burst for Oklahoma before dusk?" I asked from behind her. She jumped and turned her head to glance at me. Letting out air she leaned slightly back into me.

"Thank God it's just you." She said softly.

"Who else would it be?" I asked quietly, worried by her edginess.

"I don't know . . . but I've got this weird feeling . . ." She furrowed her brow and bit her lip. "Like I'm being watched or something."

I stared at her. I'd learned never to ignore our instincts. I did a quick sweep of the restaurant and then met her nervous gaze.

"Should we leave?" I asked under my breath.

She shook her head slightly and leaned up to whisper in my ear.

"I'm not sure if I'm being paranoid but it's not that kind of watching." She leaned heavily against me and I put my hands on her shoulders to steady her.

"Max, don't collapse, not here." I begged. "You've been doing so well this far, there's not long to go. Just try and keep them out for a little longer."

She nodded and pulled back from me. "I am." She murmured, "They're not here, it's . . . it's something else, something more sinister." We stared into each other's eyes and I wished we could just be left in peace. I leaned my forehead against hers and she sighed.

"Hungry?" She asked lightly. I smiled and dropped a kiss on her nose.

"Depends who's offering." I teased and grabbing two trays of pizzas from the counter I made my way to our table. Halfway across the room though, I couldn't resist a glance back at Max who was standing where I'd left her, staring at me. Her mouth had fallen open in shock and her eyes were wide and blinking. I smirked when she caught me looking and blushed.

At the table the gang started to dig into the pizzas the moment they left my hands. As it was I just managed to dig out two for myself and squeeze in beside Iggy. When Max came over she had recovered from her blush but she avoided my gaze and when she sat next to me and my arm brushed hers she jumped. I felt a jolt in the pit of my stomach at her reaction. Was that good or bad? Was she excited but nervous or embarrassed and afraid? For once I couldn't tell, and it scared the living daylights out of me.

We all finished our food quickly and dumping the trays, left for the woods. Max had decided that it was best to stay here for tonight and try for Colorado tomorrow. So we edged our way into the woods until we found a good spot and we started to settle down for the night. After we'd checked out backpacks to see what needed to be replaced, restocked or refilled Max held out her fist and we all stacked. Again I felt Max shiver when our bare skin touched and I worried and puzzled over what it meant.

I took first watch and as the others drifted off to sleep I sat against a tree watching Max stoking the fire. Finally she came and sat next to me leaning her head on my shoulder in what was now a familiar and comfortable position. I relaxed. Everything was fine. We were fine.

"Fang?"

"Hmm?"

"About earlier . . ."

I felt like kicking myself, why had I said it? It had been so incredibly stupid and unnecessary and-.

"It's just that I wanted to . . . I wanted to make sure that you . . ." She stopped and looked away. I had stopped breathing. I was completely lost as to where this was going and I wasn't sure I would like it.

"Fang," She said finally. "Do you need . . . do you want . . ." Suddenly I thought I might know what she was referring to.

"I don't need anything but you." I said softly. "I don't want anything but you. Whatever you decide to give me of yourself, is enough."

"Oh." That soft note of surprise was almost carried away by the slight wind but I heard it and it surprised me.

We sat in silence and I listened to her breathing, the steady in and out that was keeping her alive. I had so little time left before it would stop forever.

"But if I . . ." Max started again after a few minutes. "If I . . . wanted to . . .would you?"

"I'd have to be mad not to." I whispered. She smiled up at me and kissed me lightly on the lips. When she pulled away I stroked my hand through her hair.

"Although," I whispered. "I would suggest we wait until we have a room of our own." I nodded towards the others, asleep only a few feet from us.

"Point taken." She breathed.

"I love you." I said kissing her again.

"Hmmm, I love you more." She smiled back and then buried her face in my chest.

"God you two, get a room." Iggy pronounced teasingly as he came back from collecting firewood.

I looked down at Max, amusement written on my face, to see her shocked and blushing.

"Hey," I whispered down to her. "Don't mind him. He's just jealous his girlfriend isn't here keeping him warm."

She smiled and wrapped her arms around my waist as I pulled her on to my lap and we sat like that for hours, taking turns dozing off and keeping watch.

The ground was hard and I could feel the roots of the tree pushing against my right thigh. It was windy and cold and at one point it began to drizzle. It should have been miserable.

It was bliss.


This took me a while and I'm not entirely happy with it, but when I do put it up eventually I hopefully will be. Hope you're all having an easy time getting back into the routine of school or college or whatever it is you're doing!

ps, Arkansas is pronounced Arkansaw right? But Kansas is pronounced Kansas? What's with that?

Cat