Title: Spread My Wings

Rating: (This Chapter) K+

Characters (in this chapter): Shannon, Sayid, Alex, Jack, Rousseau

Warning: Character death warning

Ships: CharlieClaire, ShannonSayid, JackKate or SawyerKate (I haven't decided which yet), HurleyOC, and WaltOC (this story is going to take place over a span of many years, the last two won't be for a while)

Disclaimer: I don't own Lost. If I did, I would be the richest sevvie at my school

Author's Note: Thanks to all my reviewers! That's what keeps me going. I'm afraid I won't be writing much this week though, I have a volleyball and a soccer tournament. Anyway, here are replies.

Lostrocksdonotoppose: James Patterson rocks! Maximum Ride: The Angel Experiment is the best book ever!

SGCFan4ever: Hey, it's not your fault I don't get a lot of reviewers!

Krisinmtka: It was fun coming up with the story about Alex's past…but just wait until you hear my version of her mother's past!

Meagan4dominic: Oh, it'll make Alex's live with the castaways a hell of a lot harder if Sayid dies…especially after chapters 6 and 7…I'm so evil

That night was quite possibly the longest in many of the castaways' lives, even including the fist night the spent on the island. Nearly everyone spent the night in the caves, but few people actually slept. The caves were silent, albeit Shannon's whispers to Sayid and Aaron's occasion crying.

The air in the caves was thick with tension. Sayid's life was hanging by a thread, and everyone knew that. Alex was flexing her claws impatiently, Jack was pacing around the caves, and Shannon was continuously murmuring "I love you" and "Please hang on," to Sayid.

The sun rose, and the sky was filled with glorious reds, pinks, and golds, but it did little to lighten the mood. Sayid was still alive, but just barely. Several hours passed and nothing happened.

Just, his eyelids fluttered open, and a whisper escaped his lips.

"Shannon?"

Shannon screamed.

"Oh my god! Sayid!" Shannon shrieked, "You're awake! Oh, thank god," She began to sob hysterically. People actually began cheering in hearing that he was alive.

Sayid smiled weakly, at a loss for what to say.

"How are you feeling? Are you okay? Do you need anything? Does anything hurt?" Shannon asked him, her sobs subsiding.

"Shannon, I doubt you have slept or eaten since I was injured," Sayid murmured, "Get some sleep, eat something and then come and talk to me,"

"Yeah, Sayid's right," Jack added, relief etched across his face, "This was a traumatic experience for you, you need some rest,"

Shannon nodded, but didn't get up immediately. Her eyes were locked on Sayid's dark ones.

"I love you," She whispered. She bent down and gently kissed his lips.

"I love you too, Shannon," He murmured after they had broken apart, "Now go get some sleep,"

She just smiled at him, before walking off to do as he had asked her.

"So, how are you feeling?" Jack immediately asked Sayid, "Are you in any pain? Do-"

Sayid cut Jack off, "Jack I'm fine. I'm in a little bit of pain, but I'm sure that's to be expected. All I really want is to know what happened,"

Jack nodded, "Well, that's probably for Alex to tell you. She saved you, after all,"

Jack beckoned for Alex to come over to Sayid, and then he left the two alone.

"Thank you for saving me," Sayid said softly.

Alex smiled, "Thank you for waking up,"

"How long was I unconscious," He asked.

"About 15 hours,"

"Do you have any idea what happened? All I remember is shooting the thing…I didn't even get a good look at it…and then something hit my head…and that's the last thing I remember,"

And so Alex proceeded to tell Sayid exactly what had happened, from the moment she flew away with Shannon until he woke up. Sayid's dark eyes got progressively wider and wider with shock as the story went on.

"You were very brave," He murmured, "And so was Shannon. I'll have to tell her that,"

"I wasn't brave," Alex's voice trembled, "I had never been more scared in my life!"

"Alex, Alex, Alex," Sayid said softly, "Bravery is being able to face what you are scared of, not being fearless,"

Alex nodded, apparently at a loss for words.

"I'm sorry we didn't find your mother," Sayid added.

Alex smiled, "Its okay. At least you have a good excuse,"

Sayid laughed softly, "Yes, indeed I do," Then his expression got more serious, "I owe my life to you, Alex,"

Alex looked uncomfortable.

"Other experiment have been killed by it before, Sayid. I could never let that happen without trying to stop it,"

Sayid nodded.

"Alex, I'm guessing you didn't sleep at all last night either-" Sayid began.

"Yeah, yeah, I know what you're gonna say," Alex laughed, "I'll go get some rest,"

"Good girl," Sayid smiled at her, and she left him.

As Alex went and sat on her makeshift bed, she tried to sleep, but sleep simply would not come. All the tension from the night before was still pent up inside her, and she didn't have much of a chance of getting to sleep like that.

She stood up and walked out of the caves. She stood for a moment, breathing in the scents of the jungle, letting it ease the knots of tension her body was tangled into. She pulled off her windbreaker and tied it tightly around her waist. Then she spread her winds and took off. She shot high into the sky, watching the caves below her grow smaller and smaller.

Finally the knots of tension unraveled. Sayid was okay, she was okay, and Shannon was okay. Her efforts had paid off. If only she had found her mother…

There was something that still worried her, though. Alex knew a lot of the castaways didn't trust her. Shannon, for one, definitely didn't. And the stares a lot of the others gave her…it was hard. Back at the lab, she was just one of the experiments. With the castaways, she was different, an outcast. Bird-girl, the crazy French chick's daughter, freak, one of them…her human ears betrayed her cat-like hearing. She heard what they said about her behind cupped hands, and it was a different kind of abuse than what she experienced the first 16 years of her life. She could stand physical abuse, but her heart and mind were still tender and unprepared for the emotional abuse she suffered with the castaways.

Maybe be free wasn't all cracked up to be.

She had been flying too long. Her mouth was dry, and she searched the grounds below for some sort of a stream. She was far away from the camp, and wasn't ready to go back just yet. She spotted a stream running below, and swooped down to land in the tall grass next to it. It was chilly, so she pulled her windbreaker back on. As she bent to drink from the stream, she noticed the water was muddy, but she ignored that, having had to drink and eat worse crap at other points in her life.

She heard a rustling in the bushed behind her, and stood up quickly. She took sniffed the air. She could smell another human, adult, probably female (another one of her unique cat like abilities).

"Show yourself!" She cried, whirling around.

She heard another rustling, from behind her, and she turned. She could see the shadowy figure of a tall woman holding a shotgun standing in the trees.

"Who are you?" Alex asked fearfully.

"I should be asking you the same thing," Alex could hear the woman's French accent. As she stepped out of the shadows, Alex could see her slightly insane look, and her fierce expression of longing.

"Where is my Alex?" She asked harshly.

Alex's yellow eyes grew wide. Was this…her mother? She took a moment to regain her voice, and then spoke.

"I am Alex,"