A/N: Yeah, yeah, yeah! I know you're all debating different ways to murder me through the computer, but it's not entirely my fault I haven't updated in months… Well, I know there's no real excuse for the length of time I'm taking, but I've had a lot of homework since school started up again. Trust me; you do NOT want to go to a smart-person school like mine. So, blame my teachers and my farting brain for my lack of updates! Oh, and if you've read the new MR book, Fang, DISREGARD EVERYTHING YOU HAVE READ IF YOU WOULD LIKE TO CONTINUE READING THIS STORY! The beginning and middle were alright and I like that he brought in some of the old books, but the characters were totally different personalities, Dylan was obnoxious, and the end made me break into sobs! If you have seen any of the new episodes of NCIS and would not like to hear me gush about how awesomely Tiva-ish and fantastic they were, skip the next two sentences and go on to read the story. OMG! THAT WAS SOOOOOOOO SWEET HOW ZIVA WAS ALL LIKE "TONY!" WHEN THE BOMB WENT OFF, AND THEN IN THE CAR WITH MCGEE AND HE WAS ALL "YOU WERE UNDER COVER. IT WAS ALL AN ACT. IT WAS AN ACT RIGHT, TONY? TONY?" AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH! Okay, you may now proceed.
"This is my room?" I asked incredulously. When I entered the large room, the first thing I registered was pink. With a capital P. Pink walls, pink bed, pink curtains. Not that I have anything against the color; it's just not very… me.
Seeing my face when we entered the room together, Ziva reassured me, "We will be able to paint and buy accessories for the room later. Right now you will just have to deal with what you have." She paused just as she was leaving the room. "Once you are settled in, come downstairs and meet the rest of the Flock in the kitchen. We have some things to discuss before we go shopping."
"Shopping?" I lifted an eyebrow.
"Yes, Max, shopping. I am not a huge fan of it either, but we must if we are to look like a normal family. I would say there was nothing wrong with your old clothes, but I do not wish to lie." By the time my other eyebrow was up, she was gone down the labyrinth of hallways just in the upstairs of this colossal house.
The second thing I noticed about my new room, as my eyes reflexively scanned it for exits, was the size and emptiness. On the far left from the doorway to the hall, there were four French doors that lead out onto a balcony viewing the back yard. The only respectable pieces of furniture were the king-sized bed covered with fluffy pink comforter and fuzzy floral pillows and its little companion, the white bedside table next to it. On either side of the bed were two twin picture windows with flowing pink curtains. When I took off my boots and crossed the room to dump all the crap I owned onto my new bed, the floor felt icy under my bare feet, and I hastily pulled the shoes back on. That would take some getting used to. After taking one last good look around, I stepped out into the hallway, slamming the heavy wooden door with a loud thud that reverberated off the walls. The floor in this part of the house was wood, and it creaked eerily under my feet with every step I took. I used the artwork placed periodically down the path to navigate my way back to the stairs, where it was much easier to find the kitchen.
When the kitchen's swingy door shut behind me, a chill swept over my whole body. Something was wrong. My eyes trailed suspiciously around the room, where they settled on the Flock and the two agents assigned to us muttering angrily amongst themselves.
"Ahem." Heads whipped around to see me standing there, feeling oh-so awkward. "Am I missing something?"
"Uh, yeah. We were gonna wait till' you came down to talk, but you were being kinda slow, so we went on without you. Sorry, Max," Nudge said, looking a bit ashamed.
"It's alright, Sweetie. What were you guys talking about?" I asked. Seeing that no one was answering, Fang spoke up.
"Our favorite Director of a federal agency decided we should go to school to keep up the cover that we're just your average family of special agents and mutant hybrids." Suddenly, I was drowning in a sea of Fang's sarcasm. I was able to resurface long enough to register what he was telling me.
"One word and I'm going to say it very slowly so you might understand: N…O. No. Nope. Uh-uh. As in, not going to happen! We are not going through this again!" Suddenly, I felt like a normal teenage girl throwing some kind of tantrum for not getting what she wanted. Yeah right. A girl can dream, can't she? No one seemed very surprised by my outburst.
"Max, I know this may be upsetting for you, and it might bring up some bad memories… but maybe it will be good for you and the Flock have some at least somewhat normal experiences. Don't you agree?" Ziva tried and failed to sound peppy. Before I could respond, a certain 12-year-old motor mouth decided to butt in.
"Yeah, Max! We could do some normal people things! Like make real friends and eat cafeteria food, which Ella says is disgusting, and go to dances! OMG! You and Fang could go to prom together! And I could go with-" she cut herself off abruptly, redness sprouting in her mocha cheeks. "The point is I wanna go! And I don't think I'm the only one…" I stole a glance at the rest of the kids. Fang had his poker face on, Iggy was chewing on his lip like it was the tastiest snack in the world, and the two siblings were nodding their heads in creepy unison. Total held up a paw.
"What?" I demanded irritably.
"Why don't we all take a vote?" When he caught my poisonous glare, he continued hastily, "Look, Max, I'm on your side on this. Do you think I want to be left alone all day with the two scary federal agents? Heck, no! But I think it would be fair if we all got a say." Ugh. You know your life is totally messed up when you start taking advice from your little sister's talking dog. Things were just so much easier when I called all the shots. I swallowed my anger, not wanting to scare the kids.
"Fine. We'll take yet another vote. All in favor of this crappy school idea?" Nudge and Angel's hands were up before I had finished the question; Iggy and Gazzy's were more hesitant, a little less sure of themselves and both of Fang's hands stayed tense on either side of him. Be a big girl, Max. Go to school. Once there, you may find some answers and some pieces of the puzzle. Go to school, pick up the pieces, and save the world.
Oh! Voice! I was starting to miss you invading my brain like a worm! Of course, the Voice works on its own agenda, so that was about the end of our lovely conversation. I gnawed viciously on the inside of my cheek as I weighed my options. The Voice hadn't led me astray yet, and I'd have done anything for some answers at that point…
"Fine. We're going to this stupid school, but the same rule applies. First sign of danger, and we're out of there." The following cheers from the Flock did not do anything to improve my mood.
A/N: All I have to say is that I promise to update sooner next time! And there will be special guests!