The Proxy

"How do you know about my wings?" I asked. And yes, I openly admitted it but hey, it's not like I let the human-avian secret out of the bag. Lex seemed pretty convinced that he knew everything there was to know about me.

"I know everything about you, Maximum."

See what I mean?

"Huh?" I shoved my hands in my pockets to keep them warm. If it weren't for the fact that he looked so much like Fang, I probably would've run away in fear.

"Well, it's not like I can tell you everything." He said with a smirk.

"Then, I'm leaving," I turned around, but then his hand wrapped around my wrist and made me turn around. I yanked my hand away.

"Listen, I know you're mad."

"Oh, do you?" I retorted.

"Yes, I do. But Angel can read minds and you don't exactly ask her to explain how her gifts work. I can't just tell you how my gift works." He crossed his arms and watched me carefully. "Do you trust me Max?"

"No," I answered honestly. He laughed. "I'm not joking."

"But you're intrigued, right?" I nodded my head.

He nodded his head and smiled, "Then come with me."

"Uh," I said slowly, "I'm not so sure."

"We're going to my house, where I live, with my mother." He explained.

"Ha, and Ari was actually was a character in the Wiggles." Lex raised an eyebrow at me as if I was crazy. "You don't know Ari," I explained.

"No, I know who he is, but should you really talk so ill about the dead." I winced because he actually had a point. "You want answers, well, come with me Max. I'm not so good at explaining it like my mom is."

Lex started walking without me and of course, my curiosity got the best of me so I followed a few feet behind. The house that Lex stopped at was small, two floor, white with black shutters on the windows, and heck, it even had the traditional American picket-white fence. I let my fists form in case the worst happened.

We stepped inside. There was a living room with a television and a small woman stepped in. Well, actually she was pretty tall except for the fact that my avian genes or whatever make me tall. Lex too was really tall.

She looked like Fang a bit with her dark, black curls and tan skin. She smiled wide when she saw me, "I was wondering when I'd see you."

Lex looked confused, "You know her mom?"

"Yes sweetie, she's Jeb's daughter. You remember him?" Lex nodded his head slowly as if he understood. "Sit down, please. Why'd you bring her here Lex?"

"To explain my gift, not the wings one—she get's that one." Lex's mother nodded her head and sat down.

"Well, Lex, he knows everything about you. It's probably freaking you out right?" She stated. She was sitting in the chair across from the couch. Lex sat down next to me, but kept a very large space between us thank goodness.

"Yeah," I replied. "I'm freaking out." She laughed.

"You're a lot like your father. We worked together," she explained. "Anyways, the reason Lex knows about you, is he has this gift to learn of anyone's entire past through one touch. So, the minute you shook hands or what not, he learned everything." Well, that's a bit evasive.

"Weird," I said.

"At least you don't have to live with it. No one has secrets from me. It's scary as hell," Lex said with a smile.

"So, is anyone else with you?" She asked hopefully.

I swallowed and looked down, "Just Iggy, Nudge, Gazzy, and Angel—oh, and Total."

"What about…Fang?"

I lifted my head, "How do you know about him?"

"Because," the woman stated slowly, "He's my son."

"What?" Lex demanded.

"It was a hard secret to keep from you honey, but you had a twin brother. Identical. It was part of an experiment." She said, her voice a bit weak.

"What kind?" I asked.

"Well, they wanted one of the experiments to live a life outside the School. I tried to protest for both of my sons but they only gave me Lex. They wanted to see how one bird kid did with survival compared to a bird kid in a flock of them." She swallowed, "It was so hard, but Jeb stopped by and filled me in on Fang."

"How could I not know any of this?" Lex stood up, he was just like Fang when he was angry. I turned to Lex's—and Fang's—mother.

"We have our ways honey," she answered. "Did Fang know of his power?" I raised an eyebrow because I wasn't sure if she was referring to his ability to turn invisible. "Well, he had the opposite of Lex's gift," she explained, "Fang can see the future of those around him."

"From what I saw, she thought Angel was the one who could see the future, not Fang." I stood up and shook my head. Lex was watching me carefully, "Mom, Fang—from what I saw in Max's past—died a few weeks ago."

You found my family.

Shut up, you're not helping.

Sorry.

I heard Lex's mom sob. "What?" But I didn't have the chance to explain. I stared over at Lex, calmly looking at me for a response of some sort. He looked just like Fang when he waited for an answer.

"Listen, I have to go." I headed towards the door. "I can't talk about Fang."

I had the doorknob in my hand when I heard Lex cry out, "You loved him didn't you?"

"I love him." I said sternly. "Goodbye."

I stepped outside and started walking back towards the diner. I knew the flock would be panicking by now. I had been gone too long. I was almost there when a voice cried out.

"Wait! I'm coming with you!"

It was Lex.

The Elusion

"Fang, wake up."

I opened my eyes and in a panic, I sat up. I sat Jeb kneeling beside me and looking very serious. "What?" I asked, my voice cracked because I hadn't used it for so long.

"Listen, I'm helping you escape but you must promise to do exactly as I say." I nodded my head because I wasn't one with many choices at the moment.

I stood up and we began to walk out the door. "Just act calm," Jeb whispered. Embarrassingly enough, I was dressed in a light blue hospital gown. A few men walked by and I bowed my head as Jeb pushed me forward, pretending that I was his prisoner for all I knew.

I was reminded of when we escaped from the School. Jeb brought me outside and I was about ready to lift off when I felt a pinch on my neck. I watched as Jeb pulled a needle out and with a grim face he stared at me. "Sorry, but I said we had to do this my way." I collapsed but felt Jeb catch me. Then I was resting on a metal floor of what was most likely the gray van I had seen when I stepped outside. I fell asleep by no choice of my own.

"Jeb," Max whispered. Back then, I only knew her as the girl in the cage next to mine. It wasn't like we had names—we weren't worthy of them. "What are you doing?" Jeb placed the newest baby with wings in her arms.

"We're getting out." He whispered. I watched as he started to unlatch the other cages.

"Out?" Max asked confused. She stared over at me, watching for an expression from me. She tilted her head at me before turning her attention back to Jeb. "What's about out?"

Jeb looked at me, "You're in charge of him." He pointed to Iggy, who had bandages over his eyes. He had gone through an experiment to see if they could bring his eyesight back. It hadn't worked. I grabbed his hand as Jeb picked up little Gazzy. "All right, act normal, we're going to try and walk out of here.

We started walking and Jeb nodded at all the scientist. "Group experiment," he would mumble so no suspicions would be raised. I still remember walking out and feeling the sun hurt my eyes as I felt the fresh air for the first time. Max had stopped for a moment, but during our walk she had grabbed my hand. I pulled her forward. I was the one who kept her moving and seconds after we got into Jeb's van and began to speed off—the alarms went off but it was too late. We were already gone.

My dream changed and I was just floating in the air and looking down on the roof of a building. I watched as someone ran out and then, to my surprise, Max and the flock followed them. "Hurry, we don't have much time left," that was Iggy calling out. All of the figures them, even the one I didn't recognize, opened up their wings and shot out into air. Shortly after, there was an explosion and they were all safe. But I heard Max scream and suddenly, she was falling to the ground.

"Max!" I sat up. Normally, when I'm in an unfamiliar place, I freak out. But I knew these dark blue walls better than any others. I recognized the black comforter and the dresser against the wall. I was breathing heavily and I was wondering, maybe, if this was past and the moments I had ever experienced where just a dream. Did I honestly never fight Ari and almost die? Did Max and I never kiss? Did Jeb honestly save me?

I stood up slowly. I was back home, back in the E house, back in the place where I had the happiest memories, give or take a few. This was the place where I was always safe. I walked out and looked around. I could feel its emptiness as if it had been empty for months, which it had. I thought the Erasers had burned it down, but we had never figured to actually check.

I headed down to the familiar kitchen and I found a box of cereal in the center with a note attached. My name was scribbled across. I went and opened it.

Fang,

No, you are not in a hallucination anymore. This is reality. You are here, not only for your own protection, but for Max's. I can't have you out and about looking for her, there are too many cameras, traitors, whatever that can spot you and give away my position. I'm here to help. The fridge is fully stocked and, hopefully, if everything goes as you saw, then, Max might be with you soon. Just promise me you won't go out and try to find her. Please.

If you love her, you'll keep her alive and stay here.

Jeb

I dropped the letter and looked around. This had to be a dream. This didn't make sense. How was me being here safer for Max than not being with her. I had to protect her. I walked around slowly and then, found myself in shock as I stared in the mirror that Nudge had put in the hallway for quick make-up checks.

My hair was gone, completely shaven off, and there was a large, bumpy scar that ran along the center as if my scalp had been cut open. The few hairs I had where growing in short stubbles. A scar was tracing along my jaw and then, when I looked down, I saw the bumpy circle over my heart of where a bullet had passed through.

I wasn't in a dream anymore.

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Proxy means the substitute

The Elusion means the escape

So what did you think?

Bye for now,

Flyerac1029