A/N: Okay, so I've been arguing with myself. The birdie on my right shoulder says I need to keep up with this story. The birdie on my left says screw the story, practice Concerto Number Two in G Major, Opus Thirteen, Third Movement (before yesterday, I had no idea that a piece of music could have such a long title, or that it could be so hard. My instructor's keeping me on my toes, even though it's only my second out-of-school lesson). Yesterday, left birdie won. Today, it's going to be the right birdie. So, remember, criticism and reviews are always welcome!

Even though watching Roger and Annette break down tore at my heart and made me want to do the same, I knew that I had to pull myself together. Gazzy might have been gone, but Angel was still alive. She had always been so valuable to the School, so I knew that she had to be.

As long as Angel was alive, that meant that there was someone I had to fight for in this hellhole. I was not going to let her stay here, live a horrible life, and die a horrible death. There was also the possibility that Iggy, Nudge, and Fang were here (a question that anyone I'd asked so far refused to answer), and that meant that I had to fight for them, too. If they had managed to escape, I had to get Angel and get out before they came to us and got captured.

There was also the fact that I had to contemplate how I was going to kill Bane.

So, I had to keep a clear mind.

As I looked around the room, I remembered that I had to get Roger and Annette out, too. They meant nothing to me, but they meant something to Gazzy and Angel, and obviously the two kids meant something to them. I had to help them, due to my gratitude for them taking care of Angel and Gazzy in my absence and my regret for losing someone they'd taken in as their own son.

That reminded me of the issue of the girl.

Who was she, and why was she here?

I looked at her. She looked back. "Would you undo this straitjacket for me, please?" I asked, trying to be as kind as I could.

She gave a shaky nod. As she approached, I thought I saw dried tear lines on her cheeks. I lost sight of her as she walked behind me, and after a long moment of trying to figure out how it was done, she managed to undo the straitjacket. Finally freed of the dreadful thing, I yanked it up over my head and tossed it on the floor. "Thanks," I said, and she nodded again.

Figuring everyone here was already involved, like it or not, I was comfortable enough to reveal and stretch my wings. Immediately, the young woman yelped and jumped back, silver eyes wide. "Thank you," I offered again, trying to smile.

"What's going on here?" she all but screamed in return.

Okay, so maybe you didn't have to know what the situation was in order to be involved in it. "Calm down," I immediately replied. I could tell that she wasn't calm, but she seemed willing to listen. I looked over at Roger and Annette again, who were now staring at my wings, too. "Do you know anything at all about this?" I asked them.

Annette nodded slightly. "When Gazzy and Angel left with that dark-haired young man," she choked out, "Angel showed us her wings. She told us that she, Gazzy, that man, and a few others were only ninety-eight percent human, and the other two percent was bird. You were raised in a lab until someone saved you. Gazzy…" Here, her voice broke, but she continued on bravely, "Gazzy warned us to get out of the area, or the people that were after them might hurt us. We weren't quick enough, though, and men in black suits kidnapped us and threw us in here."

Okay, so they knew just about all there was to it. I returned my gaze to the girl. "Has anyone you're close to recently disappeared or ran off?" I asked her.

"Only my boyfriend," she replied. "Some girl showed up at our friend's dorm room, saying that there was trouble and they had to leave immediately. I thought he was cheating on me with that girl, so I tried to confront them in the hall. Next thing I knew, the girl was dragging Jimmy down the hall, yelling that someone was there. These two men in black suits ran past me, chasing them. I wanted to know what was going on, so as soon as I gathered myself, I ran after them. They grabbed my, stuffed me in the back of a Humvee, and brought me here."

That wasn't how Fang had escaped, and I doubt Gazzy had a girlfriend that old, so that meant that this girl was Iggy's girlfriend.

"What's your name?" I asked her.

"Phoebe," she replied.

"I'm sorry that this had to happen to you guys," I said, and I really was. "I was hoping that no one who the others have gotten acquainted with in the past three years would get involved. I guess I just wasn't quick enough."