A/N Okay. So I was away for one week. And I got one review.
So, I decided I don't care about reviews. If no one cares to review, I won't care to update. I'll only update once a week, and that's for my own sake as I do want to complete this story.
So no more threatening for reviews. I don't mean I don't want them--I do. But I just won't beg each chapter. They will come once a week, regardless of how many (or more likely how few) I recieve.

Also, about 29 being emotional...think of it this way: She was unemotional, but that's because she had been taught to and had never really had any. Then when real emotions came, she had to supress them as best she could. Think of the letters (the one in this chap especially) as a sort of outpouring of all that bottled emotions.
Happy reading, anyways.

-Ellie

IGGY POV

The time had come. I could sense the others had finished up their letters, and I couldn't very well be the only one who had not read his.

And that's when it hit me.

I'm blind.

And she wrote a letter.

Was this her idea of a cruel joke? A last, biting reminder of what I had done? Did she expect me to forever wallow, always yearning for whatever that piece of paper held?

Max called over to me from her spot on the wall. I lazily turned my head.

"She asked me to read yours to you…" It was a question. Was I ready to hear whatever was on that page? I don't know if I could bear it.

Who was I kidding? I would never sleep if I didn't know.

"Read it." I said softly. My voice sounded weak and flimsy even to my own ears. But I didn't care.

I heard Max walk over to me, pick up a piece of paper and sit down. She was silent for a second, and then put her arm on my shoulder.

Without meaning to, I began to cry. All of the weight of what had recently transpired finally fell on my shoulders, and I couldn't bear it. I let Max hold me, and cried until I had dried up. (A/N No, this is NOT a Miggy fic. Max is being maternal, or maybe big-sisterly. Just wanted to clear that up.)

She reached out and dried my eyes."Do you still—""Yes." I cut her off. "Please." I said a bit softer.

She cleared her throat, and began.

Dear Iggy,

If my directions were followed, then I assume it is the day I left you and Max is reading this aloud. For all I know, though, it's ten years later and your anger took this long to simmer out. And I understand.

But for lack of knowledge, I will assume you are still 16, and my disappearance is raw.

It is no surprise I wrote your letter as my last one. The others were not easy, of course, but there is no denying yours would be the hardest.

Iggy, for you to understand really why I left, I need to give you the quickest background I can of my youth. Share it with the older kids only, though. The youngest Flock members don't need to hear it. Yet, anyway.

When I was 4 years old, my parents both were killed in a freak accident in a power plant.

They were both employees.

My Uncle took me in. However, he soon found himself pressed for money.

He did what anyone who was given a child that they didn't want, and was presented with an opportunity not only to rid themselves of said child but also provide them with enough money to last them a lifetime.

He sold me to a group of scientists, who claimed they would never harm me, only study me. I was going to contribute to the development of hundreds of vaccines, so why not?

As you've probably guessed, it was no do-gooder group of scientists who had taken me. It was the whitecoats.

The first year 2 years of my training were blurry. They mostly made me run, had me interact with other experiments, tested my IQ, etc.

On my sixth birthday, everything changed.

This was when a period I refer to as the 'Dark Years' began. Though it sounds like some sort of science fiction novel, I assure you it was very real.

In the beginning, I was slowly broken down, mentally and physically. From age 6-12, they mentally broke me down.

Or so they thought.

You see, as soon as I had enough sense to understand that what they were doing was essentially torture, I decided to remain silent.

This was enough to occupy them for some time. Soon, however, they regarded it as a "medical mystery", and continued their original plan.

I will spare you the details, as no one deserves to be subjected to some of the atrocities that I had been punished with.

But when the "mental breakdown" had been successfully completed in their opinion, they broke me down physically.

The mental breaking down, though it took longer, was far easier. I was young, and therefore accepted whatever they told me. The physical breakdown, however, was two years.

It was two years that I have tried to forget, but they continue to haunt me to this day.

They were filled with tank torture, poison, old-fashioned running without food or water until you pass out, fighting Erasers that had been trained, diseases, with holding food, cutting my arms and legs over and over again, reopeing them daily, and all other manners of torture.

But I made it through. Physically, at least. The mental breakdown was more serious and irreversible, I'm afraid.

Or so I believed. You see, when Max came and we broke out together and I met the Flock, much of what I had been taught I learned to be false.

Among those was the notion that all emotions were always bad things.

And this is where you come in, Ig.

My emotion-parched heart suddenly burst into life when I met you, and to be honest it pretty much scared the shit out of me, if you can excuse my language.

But, slowly, I began to trust you. And, true to your word, you began to pull me out of the hole the whitecoats had dug for me through all those years of mental breakdown.

Before you guess at what I'm going to say, let me ease your mind—when you kissed her, that didn't shatter our trust.

Here, Max stopped reading.

"What?" She cried. "Who did you kiss? Is that what happened that made you two fall out? Jesus, Iggy, I thought you had more sense than that!" But one look at my expression shut her up.

"I'm sorry Iggy, please forgive me." Obviously, she realized I had beaten myself up considerably. I said nothing. She sighed, and continued to read.

It shattered what I thought we had.

Once again, it wasn't your fault. My feelings for you were understandably strong, as you were pretty much my savior.

But your feelings back were only that you saw a girl, who liked you, and who was not all that different from you. She had wings, didn't think less of you for being blind, and was strong.

So, Iggy, please, I beg you, don't allow what I've done to you to haunt you.

I blame myself, and only myself. If you blamed yourself that would only make it worse.

Iggy, please for my sake. Continue with your life. Go blow up Itex. Do it for the Flock. Do it for all the deaths you'll be avenging. Do it for all those lives you'll be saving.

And, dare I say it, do it for me. The School has made me into what I am. Blame the School , and me too, but not yourself.

Goodbye Iggy. I love you. I always have, and I always will. But let that not entice you into attempting to find me. If you do, truly, deeply, love me, you'll leave me be.

Trust me.

Here, Max paused. His letter was signed differently. It read:

Kae

When she said the signature out loud, I tensed.

Everything was quiet for a second.

I felt my energy give out. I couldn't even begin to comprehend what the letter had said.

But no need to worry. The letter was forever immortalized in my head. I would mull over things later.

Now, I needed some rest.

Hope you like it….this chapter was mainly to clear up her past as that as remained quite mysterious.

-ellie