Return To Me

I just picked up the fifth Maximum Ride book at Walmart on Friday, and it is amazing! The fourth one was a little too focused on global warming, and you didn't really get to hear much else. This new one had a ton of new stuff in it. Plus, Max and Fang are finally working on their relationship. I won't reveal anything else, but you should definitely read it......go, NOW! Lol, just kidding. It is a good book, though, for both guys and girls.

Disclaimer: Still don't own them. Fang and Max would have been together in book one if it was up to me. And Yoshitaka wouldn't have been that cruel to Katsumi early on.

Chapter 5

A sharp knock on the door dragged Yoshitaka out of his comfortably unconscious state. He opened his eyes and blinked sluggishly, looking around the room sleepily. There was another knock on the door, and Yoshitaka groaned as he stood up, and stumbled his way down the hall to answer it. He twisted the shiny metal knob and opened the door, shielding his eyes from the bright sunlight that streamed in. Standing before him was Eiji and his wife, Helena. Eiji held a bucket filled with cleaning supplies, and Helena was carrying a bag of take-out boxes that smelled delicious.

"Good morning, Yo-chan!" Eiji greeted him cheerfully. "Hope you don't mind that Helena came along. I told her about the mess and we agreed that six hands are better than four. Plus, we brought food!"

His mind still fuzzy from sleep, Yoshitaka just nodded, stepping aside to let them in. On the way to the kitchen, Eiji peekd into the living room.

"Did you take Katsumi upstairs?"

Yoshitaka stopped dead in his tracks. "What?"

"He's not on the couch," Eiji said simply. "You didn't move him?"

Yoshitaka pushed past his younger brother, looking around the living room frantically for any sign of his lover. But Eiji was right.

Katsumi was gone.

The older Mimuro's breathing became fast and shallow. Ignoring his brother's question, he barreled up the stairs, checking every room and closet for the other man.

Suddenly, Helena's voice reached his ears. "He's in the kitchen, Mimuro-kun!"

Yoshitaka tripped over his own feet several times as he ran back down the stairs, making as much noise as a herd of horses. He slid on the smooth kitchen tiles as he tried to stop. As he looked around, he saw Eiji and Helena, but couldn't spot Katsumi.

"W-Where-?" he gasped, trying desperately to catch his breath.

Helena covered her mouth and giggled, while Eiji just bit his lip. "Look up!"

Yoshitaka looked up, and...

Stared.

Katsumi was still fast asleep, still curled up under the same blanket, but now, he was perched on top of the kitchen cabinets, a good eight feet from the floor. His arms were folded up under his chin. Yoshitaka blinked a few times, verifying that he was really seeing the strange sight in front of him. He pinched himself on the arm, wincing slightly as it stung his skin. He was definitely awake, and Katsumi was definitely sleeping on top of the cabinets.

"Dunno how he managed to get up there," Eiji said, tapping his chin thoughtfully, "but I guess he's a little more cat-like than we thought."

Yoshitaka shook his head, grabbed a chair from the table, and dragged it over to the counter. "I'm going to get him down before he falls off and-"

Right at that moment, Katsumi's eyes flickered open. He lifted his head up off his arms, feline ears twitching to life. They layed flat against his skull as he yawned, his mouth opening wide to reveal pointed teeth. When his eyes opened again, he looked from Eiji, to Helena, and finally to Yoshitaka. He blinked again, then cocked his head to one side, looking at the other man inquisitively.

Yoshitaka climbed all the way up on the chair and reached out towards his lover. "Katsumi, I want you to come to me, okay? I'm going to help you get down. Just be careful."

A quick flash of light flickered deep within Katsumi's eyes, and his expression changed a little more. With no warning, he launched himself off the cabinets and over Yoshitaka's head. Helena gasped as he plummeted, and-

Landed lightly on all fours, balancing perfectly on the balls of his feet and his fingertips.

There was a collective sigh of relief from everyone in the room.

Yoshitaka slowly climbed down from the chair. "Don't do that!" he exclaimed. "You almost gave me a heart attack!"

He turned around and found Katsumi sitting on the floor, knees drawn up to his chest and arms wrapped around them. The blank look was back in place, though his eyes had a bit of light in them- more than they had the day before, at least. Yoshitaka knelt down beside him, hugging the younger man.

"You scared me, idiot," he mumbled softly, so only Katsumi would hear it. The older man knew he was trembling, and he didn't care.

Eiji cleared his throat. "Why don't we clear off the table first. Helena bought breakfast for everyone." He gestured towards his wife and the bag she still held.

Yoshitaka let out a shuddering breath, before opening his eyes again. "Sure."

He and Eiji moved the mess from the table to the already over-crowded counter, while Helena coaxed Katsumi into a chair. A few minutes and several broken plates later, the table was relatively clear. Helena passed out the food and chopsticks. For a while, Katsumi just stared at the food, tail twitching. He finally reached forward slowly, hesitantly. His hand hovered over the chopsticks, flinching like he expected them to bite him.

Eiji broke the awkward silence. "It's okay, Katsumi. It's safe." He picked up his own chopsticks and took a bite of his food. "Shee?" he mumbled around the mouthful of food.

Katsumi looked at the younger man, eyes narrowing slightly as they searched his face. He looked at the food, back at Eiji, and back at the food again. After a few more seconds, he picked up the chopsticks. He fumbled with them for a few more minutes, huffing softly when he dropped one. Finally, he put both of them back down, picked some of the food up with his fingers, and popped it into his mouth. Chewing slowly, he watched the others' reactions. After what seemed like hours, he swallowed. He was still for a few minutes, like he was waiting for something to happen. Suddenly, he lunged forward and began shoveling the food into his mouth as fast as he could. They all watched with a kind of fascinated horror as the food disappeared in a matter of minutes. Seeing Katsumi this frantic was completely foreign to them. Even before his kidnapping, he had never once acted like this. When Katsumi finished, he looked up again, meeting each person's eyes in turn. His own light brown irises had turned even brighter now that he gotten some nourishment. He looked at Yoshitaka last, and the older man smiled weakly in return.

"Guess you were hungry, huh?"

Katsumi lowered his eyes, shifted, and looked back up. His mouth opened, like he was going to say something, then closed again. He hugged his knees to his chest again, resting his chin on top of them.

Helena broke the silence this time. "We should probably finish eating," she said softly, picking at her own food with almost no enthusiasm.