So, um, you are all free to shoot me, or something. I will say things like a death in the family, college applications, work, school, college and computer problems, AKA crashing, several viruses, and then getting a new one and setting it up, have prevented me from writing, but it was also partially due to some good ole-fashioned writer's block, and my own procrastination/laziness.

So here I was, trying to work on four major projects that are due next week, when I was like, "Okay, I've put it off long enough. I'M GOING TO WRITE CHAPTER SIX!" And so here we are. I haven't abandoned you, and as a form of apology, I give you this hopefully epic chapter of hopeful epicness. Feel free to metaphorically stone me for nay reason, or come to my house and demand over my shoulder that I write, next time. And I will try to get Chapter seven done, however I'm in my last two weeks of college term, so you can hopefully expect that it will be after December 16th, as that is when my last exam is.

Again, I apologize, and hope you enjoy! (:

I pulled the cooler into the kitchen, leaning against a wall after dropping it. I wasn't tired but I couldn't breathe. I was laughing too hard, having seen some of Gazzy's more, mischievous, talents.

"No, but really, he's always so serious!" Gazzy exclaimed, "Alex do this, Alex do that." He added, only, it wasn't his voice. It was Yassen's.

I hadn't known about Gazzy's ability to imitate anyone, or anything, perfectly. On our walk to the cabin, Valencia had started talking with me about how Yassen was ordering me around. She was concerned, and I reassured her, in my life, it was, and would probably continue to be, normal. Gazzy chimed in at that time, walking behind me, and, in Yassen's voice, calmly commanded me to turn around slowly.

I nearly freaked. And by freaked, I mean I whipped around ready to punch the living daylights out of Yassen. Only, he hadn't been there. And Gazzy had been grinning widely, even when I punched him in the arm, having had to redirect my attack. He had ended up laughing at my reaction, but almost crying in pain. I'd been aiming to hit Yassen, a full-grown man, not Gazzy. I'd felt a little bad, but I also pointed out to him, that he kind of deserved it. Max had actually agreed with me on that point.

During the rest of the walk, he kept saying things in Yassen's voice. Things that not even Yassen would have said, but it was funny as all hell, especially when Gazzy started skipping and singing 'I'm so pretty, oh so pretty!'. After that point, I'd been laughing too hard to really catch my breath.

The van was gone, so we assumed that Yassen and K-Unit had gone to do groceries. They had left the door unlocked, which was lucky for us, but creepy as all hell for us as well. Unlocked doors to private places seemed to give off creepy vibes to teen spies and bird kids alike. After assuring that house was indeed safe, we dragged our butts inside.

Gazzy kept making imitations, and we all just sat in the living room, laughing. Valencia was sitting on the couch, my file once again in hand, and we just sat in a circle on the floor, with Total in Angel's lap, letting her softly pet him. Gazzy kept doing imitations, which was pretty much our form of entertainment. Moving on to more 'material', Gazzy started imitating K-Unit as well, throwing in a few quips in Max's voice, which seemed to make her angry. Yet, she couldn't stop laughing long enough to actually get mad at the Gasman.

Unfortunately for us, we couldn't see the front door from where we were sitting. So only as I leaned back to lean on the couch, and I looked up, I saw Yassen standing behind Gazzy, in the doorway to the living room. I sobered up fairly quickly, forcing myself to hold back every laugh, as Gazzy started imitating Yassen again.

I grabbed one of the sheets of my file from behind me, crumpled it up, and threw it at Gazzy to get his attention. When he looked at me annoyed, I just pointed to behind him. I desperately held back a grin, trying to calm down while we all stopped laughing. We stared at the assassin, trying to judge his next actions.

Surprisingly, it was Valencia who spoke first. "They were only having fun with each other's talents, Yassen. No need to glare or anything. They're kids, no matter what you say, and they are allowed to have fun." She said rather sternly. I felt her stand up behind me and watched as she grabbed the paper from Gazzy and flattened it out. I couldn't see her expression, but from what I could see from Yassen, he was, a little shocked that she would have the nerve to talk to him like that.

Personally, I was in awe, and almost saw her as my personal savior from the man. She just stood up to him, just like that. Considering her past, and the kids she looked after though, it shouldn't have been surprising. Valencia was certainly the protective mother bear in all this.

It seemed Eagle almost had the same opinion as me. "That's it. I'm dubbing you, in tradition with SAS code names, Mother Bear." He said from behind Yassen. It was just like him, to think of something like that, of course.

Looking around Yassen into the den-ish part of the house, I saw K-Unit standing there, moving grocery bags around. It seemed like they had bought a lot. And I mean a lot. Wolf alone was holding six or seven stuffed bags.

I got up and pushed past Valencia and Yassen to go help. Max, Fang and Iggy followed behind me and Snake directed us to the van. I wasn't ready for what I saw.

Almost the whole far back seat of the van was stacked with groceries. I'd said get a lot, but I wasn't even sure if we'd be here long enough to even use all this. Admittedly though, the Flock did eat a lot, so not much would go to waste. I reached through the back of the van, and grabbed as many bags as I could, six, before shuffling off back into the house. I couldn't wait for the others; there was too much to carry.

I dropped my bags in the kitchen, where Valencia and Yassen had started working to put things away. The atmosphere was tense, and neither of them was talking. On my way back out, I looked at Gazzy and Angel for an explanation. Both of them shrugged, and I headed back out, passing Nudge Fang and Max on my way.

Iggy was in the back of the van, handing bags to Ben, who passed them to Eagle and Snake. Wolf was working from the back, and grabbing his own stuff. I went to where he was, and grabbed more stuff. With Max coming back out for the last two bags, the six of us hauled the last of the groceries inside. Iggy closed the doors of the van, and followed us inside.

Yassen and Valencia were still working in silence, and as we all put down our loads, we watched as they worked to empty the bags, maneuvering around the small-ish kitchen. We would've all helped, but with the groceries and the tension, not to mention the lack of space for more than three people at most in the kitchen space, we all didn't want to risk it.

So we all stood awkwardly watching them work. Angel and Gazzy came and stood with us, Angel grabbing my hand and Max's and standing between us. About five minutes passed, with moments where Valencia would smile at us, and Yassen would glance at us, no emotion, like usual.

"So, um," Gazzy started, causing both Valencia and Yassen to stop and look at him. "When's dinner?" He asked a little sheepishly.

The Flock smiled, and Iggy gave a laugh. "Of course you would be thinking about that, Gaz. The tension is visible to even me, and I'm blind!" He said. Valencia smiled and stepped out of the kitchen past the little half-way bar setup, and ruffled Gazzy's hair, giving him a little hug.

"Just let me put away the rest of the stuff, and then we can get dinner started, okay?" She said. She looked at everyone, smiling. "What is every in the mood for?"

"Pizza!"

"Burgers!"

"Stir fry!"

"Filet Mignon!" Was the reply from Total, sitting on a chair in the corner.

I looked at her seriously. "Cookies. Yassen threw mine out the window on the ride here." I threw him a small glare. Beside me, I heard Max gasp.

She stomped over to him, and actually poked him in the chest, emphasizing each word. "My. Mother. Worked. Hard. To. Make. Those. Cookies! A-pol-o-gize!" With the last word she pointed at her mother while also poking Yassen in the chest. He moved her hand.

"It had to be done. Alex was intentionally making Eagle jealous, and it was giving me a migraine." He explained. Max shook her head.

"No excuse. Say you're sorry. Else you'll regret it." I somehow didn't doubt that she was serious. Max seemed to take cookies as a serious matter. I shrugged at Yassen when he glanced at me, feigning perfect innocence.

"Well, then I apologize. However, if Alex tries to brag, and Eagle complains, then there will be consequences." He replied coolly, leaning against the counter and crossing his arms. He raised an eyebrow at Valencia, who gave a curt nod.

"Apology accepted. And I'll make enough cookies for Eagle to have some too." She said, smiling a little at Eagle, who seemed overly excited.

I looked at Eagle, grinning. "Come on, we should get these groceries put away. We'll have to earn those cookies, else Snake and the Sergeant will have our heads for eating 'junk'." I used air quotes on junk, and then grabbed some bags and started unloading them.

Eagle nodded, and started putting away the cans as I handed to him. Yassen stayed where he was, watching, and Valencia started pulling out several vegetables and ingredients for stir fry.

Gazzy and Iggy hopped up on the bar stools and watched as Valencia got to work, dicing chicken and vegetables, occasionally asking Yassen to grab something for her. It was crowded, but it worked. K-Unit went to the kitchen table to set it up, and Angel, Max, Fang and Nudge went to the living room.

"So, I'm supposing there isn't much kid-friendly stuff to do around here?" I asked Yassen while grabbing yet another bag of groceries and started unpacking it. Crackers, pudding, fruit cups. Snack things for kids. It was good stuff, and I was glad that the 'team' had thought of everything.

"Not really, so I did buy a DVD player and some movies. As well as some board games. I wasn't sure what they were into." He replied."But you don't need to worry about that. You'll be preoccupied enough." I could almost hear the smile in his words. 'You're going to be training so hard; you won't have time for fun.' Was what I could feel he was saying. Valencia picked up on it too, though. She was wiser than he judged her to be, I think.

"You won't be running Alex until she's so exhausted she can't even relax. I won't have it." She said curtly, continuing to brandish a chef's knife while preparing dinner. Gazzy looked worried, and Eagle stood from where he was putting things in the bottom of the fridge.

"I'm getting out of here." Eagle said quickly. "I don't want to learn what happens when someone crosses him." Gazzy nodded, and followed the childish SAS man out to the living room.

Iggy sat up a bit. He seemed interested in what would happen next, and I moved really slowly, keeping my vision strictly on the stuff in front of me. I kind of knew what would normally happen when someone crossed Yassen; he'd kill them. Or, at least, seriously injure them. I glanced quickly at them; Yassen had leaned back on the counter, no emotion. Valencia was sternly cutting up her bell peppers, almost like she was imagining each one to be Yassen.

"I can respect your opinion, Ms. Martinez," Yassen started. "However, Alex's training is none of your concern, therefore, you are not in a position to discuss, with me, that matter."

Valencia whipped around so fast, half of a bell pepper fell to the floor. Total hopped off of Gazzy's abandoned chair, and grabbed it up, sending me a wink in the process. I gave him a small smile, before turning around to put some frozen veggies in the freezer. I glanced under the door, to see Valencia holding the chef's knife to Yassen chest. He still stood the calmly, staring her down.

Iggy came and stood beside me, grabbing my arm to get my attention. I was really tense, and flinched a bit when he did, though.

"What's happening?" He whispered directly in my ear. He was staring at my head, a frown on his face.

"Val's got a knife to Yassen's chest. He's just standing there all 'higher than thou' and staring at her." I whispered very quietly back. I was waiting for what would happen next, standing there like a deer caught in headlights, with Iggy almost pressing me up to the fridge in an almost protective manner, while also wanting to know what was going on.

"Why's everyone so tense in there?" Angel mind-asked. I mentally shook my head, telling her I couldn't explain right now. The freezer door was still open, and starting to make my head cold, but I felt like it was almost a shield in between me, and the two of them.

"Alex does not deserve to be treated like, like, absolute shit by you, of all people! You don't realize how much that hurts her, don't you? She felt like you were the last connection to her parents, and then you died. Can you even imagine how she feels now that it turns out that you're alive? Have you even considered talking to her about it? I don't care what you say, Alex is still a kid, and she needs people to talk to, and open up to! Not some cold-hearted bastard assassin who's going to run her into the ground! Don't even try to say that it doesn't matter! Because it does! She needs someone caring to help her, and you're not caring at all! All you've done since you sat down at the Starbuck's is act like an uptight, uncaring ASSHOLE!" Valencia had slammed the knife down, pointy end into the counter beside Yassen, before yelling at him.

As she was yelling, Iggy pushed me away from the fridge, closed the freezer, and sat me up into the corner of the counter. He kept a hand on my knee, and squeezed my other hand. I was shaking a bit. I was actually scared of Valencia. Mother Bear did not even begin to cover it. I was in shock, and even Yassen had a small, albeit very small, look of surprise on his face. He clearly hadn't expected her to burst like that, but then again, seeing K-Unit and the Flock peak around corners, I don't think any of us did.

A lot of what she said had been true. She had read my file, which I'd forgotten also contained notes from a psychologist from the few times I'd seen one. Plus some of my own sort of 'journal' entries that those same doctors requested I write, if I wasn't going to talk about it.

It was a small kitchen. Small enough that when Angel beckoned Iggy and I through her mind to leave the kitchen and get to them, Iggy shook his head. To leave the kitchen, we would have to walk right past the two of them. And as Yassen straightened to his full height to tower over Valencia, that wasn't going to be possible.

With almost barely contained rage, Yassen stared down at Valencia, taking small steps forward forcing her to back up until she was against a counter. I tried to hop off the counter to push them apart, but Iggy held me there, shaking his head a bit. "They're going to have to sort it out." He whispered.

"Clearly, you are concerned about Alex's well-being. Again, though, her training is not your responsibility. As you have been reading her file, against my wishes, but with her permission, then you understand that there are a lot of people who would love to kill her. The majority of these people will stop at nothing, and so it is in Alex's best interests to be trained to handle these situations. While she does have other matters to also take care of, I was not, as you assumed, planning on just leaving such issues in the dark. It is part of her training from me to work through them." He spoke too calmly, standing over Valencia, who was visibly a little scared, but kept up a brave face. "If you are interested, you may also help, but Alex also has a say in the matter." I was a little shocked at his offer, and so was Valencia.

Valencia relaxed a little. "Fine. But I still feel, that if you are going to be her caretaker, you're going to have to learn to shown some goddamn emotions." She added, holding out her hand as though they were making a deal.

Yassen nodded, and they actually shook on it. The tension dissipated almost immediately, and Iggy allowed me off the counter. I wasn't quite sure how I felt. I was thankful for Valencia almost defending me like she had, but I felt it was awfully idiotic of her as well. I was kind of mad at Yassen, but thankful he a) didn't hurt Valencia, and b) had seemed to come to an agreement with her. Overall, though, I didn't really like being talked about and argued over while I was right there.

I gave Iggy a little hug. "Thanks." I said, still quiet. The others were still watching in fascination as Valencia went and grabbed the knife, before swiftly finishing chopping the vegetables. Yassen glanced at me, and motioned for Iggy and I to leave the kitchen.

"I'll finish this. You two go sit with the others." He still seemed too calm, but I took it as he wanted to continue the discussion without freaking us all out.

I grabbed Iggy's hand, and as I walked past Valencia, she gave a light tap on my shoulder. I smiled at little, before we joined the flock in the living room. I motioned everyone out the back door.

The sun had long set, so we were having a very late dinner. Glancing at my watch, it was almost nine thirty. I stopped once we were all on the back grass, and turned around. "So, do any of you know the constellations?" I asked.

Angel held up her hand. "Like, the big dipper? We know that one."

I nodded. "Yup, that's a constellation. But, I've always loved to stargaze, partially, I'm guessing because my uncle raised me to have such survival skills. So, I'm going to show you some. Everyone sit down, and let's get looking!"

I looked around, before finding a good amount of small pebbles. I laid them out. "So I'll tell you about the constellation, and I lay out the rocks in the shape of it, so Iggy can kind of get what they look like too." I explained.

We sat outside, for about forty minutes, rearranging pebbles as I explained the stories behind them. Finally, Snake called us back in, and we rushed inside, all extremely hungry.

The table had been expanded, and K-Unit had brought in a couple more chairs from god knows where. I took my seat semi-reluctantly beside Yassen, with Valencia across from us. I smiled a bit though when Iggy sat beside me, and shook my shoulder a bit.

K-Unit brought in platefuls of fried vegetables, chicken and rice and tortillas. "I decided to make a little mix, so you can have stir-fry, or quesadillas if you want." Valencia explained.

She looked around a bit, and smiled. "Let's eat!"