Awaiting Termination~ The Truth Is Realized

((Hey, why do you get to be the leader? And don’t even try using that “but I’m a few seconds older” excuse! That doesn’t work when you’re a test tube baby!

Wait, I have a real question now. xD If we’re both replacing Max, and we’re trying to repeat all the actual incidences, who exactly does what? Being the (unofficial ) leader, would you basically get them all? Cus if that’s how you wanna do it, I’m fine with it. You’re more like Max anyway, considering you get Fang and have blonde hair. xD))

-----Fang got out as quickly as he could, and the others followed nearly as fast. He stretched his arms, subconsciously relieved that he finally had some space again. You couldn’t fly away from anything when you were crammed in a tiny vehicle with six other people, even if they were small.

-----A little overwhelmed at how unfamiliar everything was, Stephanie made sure she was standing right next to Amanda. Things were always easier for her when she was near her sister.

-----She drunk in the sight of the house, and suddenly she managed to feel just a tiny bit more at ease. Sure, they didn’t know what the hey was going on, and sure this might even be worse than the lab . . . but her instincts were telling her that this was going to be the best thing that had ever happened to them. Maybe there wouldn’t even be any more needles, and they’d be able to eat and drink all they wanted, and even have free space to run around and fly - and not because they were forced to, but because they wanted to!

-----Then, she had to frown, just a bit. That did seem a little . . . too much. “What’s going to happen to us?” she whispered to Amanda, though it was loud enough that the others - with the exception of Jeb, unless he had stronger ears too - would be able to hear.

-----Gazzy was sucking on his thumb as he crept over to Amanda, grabbing onto her shirt with his free hand. It was his best option - near his little sister, and close to both Amanda and Stephanie. They would keep him safe. Nudge moved closer, too, though it was Stephanie she reached for the hand of, looking up at the older girl with wide eyes. She would’ve been blabbing her head off, except she too wanted to know the answer to the question.

-----Great, they were getting all huggy. Fang resisted the urge to grimace as he, too, came a tiny bit closer. Definitely not as close as Nudge was to Stephanie, or Gazzy to Amanda, but close enough. It was hard to argue with the safety being in a tighter group could offer. And, though he didn’t look very interested, he was curious about what Amanda’s answer would be too . . . but he doubted she would be able to offer a very reassuring one. If she did, hallelujah.

[Um... hmmm, becuase it's my destiny to save the world? xD, do you wanna be leader?]
[We can do some with me and Fang, but we can also do soem with you and Iggy, or whoever you want. I don't want to make Amanda do all the cool stuff. ]

I pulled Gazzy closer against me, slowly stroking his soft blond hair. Angel was still in my arms, and I was comfortying both of them. "What's going to happen to us? Whatever we want to happen. If we want to paint the walls purple with orange polka dots, I'm all for it." I said quietly, rubbing Gazzy's back. "But no blowing up the house, okay?" I knew he'd be upset by that, but hey, you had to have some standards. Maybe low... but still, some.
I knew everyone was really nervous and scared, even though they weren't showing it. To be honest, I was scared as well, but I had to hide it. So, very slowly, with Angel still in my arms and my family surrounding me- Stephanie by my side, Nudge with her, Angel and Gazzy with me, Iggy standing nehind us and Fang a little off to the side, not being the huggiest person ever- I turned the doorknob and stepped into the house.
It was utterly amazing at first sight. There were high ceilings for flying, multiple bedrooms and bathrooms, and a fully stocked kitchen. "Flock?" I said quietly, not believing my eyes. "Maybe we should wait on the purple and orange paint. This place looks perfect to me."
Jeb had followed us in silently, almost like Fang- except not as, you know, Fang-like. He started taking charge but, after a look from me, nodded. "We're going to split into different bedrooms. There are five rooms- most of us are going to have to stick together." As everyone started chattering, I turned to Steph. "Want to share? Or should I room with Angel and you with Nudge? 'Cuz we could do that, and then put Gazzy with Jeb, and then Fang and Iggy can each have their own room... or Fang and Gazzy could room together, Angel could stay with Jeb, and Iggy, you, and I could all have our own rooms, or.... yeah, a lot of possibilities."

((Naw, that's okay. xDD It'll be an interesting change to not be in charge for once - that's what I get at home a lot, so. I just like whining.

Okay, cool! ^^ *rubs chin* Well, how about we just see how it goes? Though, you may have to remind me of certain incidents when we get to them. xDD (I feel like I need to reread the books. )))

-----Gazzy looked up at Amanda and removed his thumb to stick his tongue out at her, scowling. It was a little pathetic, though, since he looked more adorable than threatening or rude.

-----Sighing with relief, Stephanie managed to smile. That didn't sound so bad . . . though, purple with orange dots might be a little much. She'd much rather go for blue with green.

-----When they got inside, she fell utterly speechless, staring at everything with even wider eyes than before. "It is," she agreed with Amanda, staring up at the ceiling especially. So much room . . . and no cages anywhere . . . was this even real? Her eyes helplessly squeezed together a bit - she felt almost like she was about to cry. How could this be happening? It was so . . . amazing . . . the best thing ever. She would've gone over and hugged Jeb right then and there if she had known him for just a little bit longer. -----Fang even seemed impressed with everything.

-----"We're going to split into different bedrooms," Jeb told them then. Stephanie quickly turned towards him, her eyes lighting up. Bedrooms? Whole rooms, to call their own? "There are five rooms - must of us are going to have to stick together."

-----Even knowing that, Steph couldn't help but feel even more grateful to him for all this. She was barely aware of it when Amanda started talking to her . . . just barely. Slowly Stephanie turned to her sister, eyes lighting up. "We can room together, how about?" she suggested quietly. "We should let Jeb have his own room, too . . . he . . . he's done enough. He doesn't need to share." She smiled, and glanced at the man, but didn't say anything more. The others could work out for themselves who they wanted to room with.

-----Nudge squealed, and let go of Stephanie's hand to stand directly in front of Amanda, looking up at her with shining eyes. "Can Angel and I share a room? Please?"

[xD, nice.]
[Alright. But I've already claimed the mac-and-cheese. xD]

"That's final, okay?" I kissed Gazzy's forehead gently. I turned to Nudge, and nodded. "Of course you can, Nudge. But I don't want you complaining about how you can't sleep at night." I began to tease, giggling maniacally and spinning around... and then falling on top of Fang. "We're going to pretend that never happened." I said with a fake smile, pulling us both to our feet and turning to my twin.
"That's fine with me. That leaves three rooms... and I do not trust Iggy and Gazzy in the same room. Fang? You're rooming with Gazzy." I alerted him, pushing my overlong hair out of my eyes.
Once we were all settled, I had to go check and make sure everyone was okay. Angel was asleep in her crib, Jeb had already set up in his office, and Iggy was in his room, waiting for one of us to lead him around so that he could memorize this place. I walked into Fang and Gazzy's room, kissing the top of his head. "Hey, Gaz. Almost ready for bed? You've had a big day." It was almost nine o' clock, which was really late for a four year old. Nudge had to get to sleep too, and then the older ones would. Probably at about twelve, but whatever.

((That’s fine! xD

OOOH GUESS WHAT there’s a nommynommy picture on my wall. *-* Two, actually. One’s this totally adorable guy from Death Note, L, and the other has Fang and Iggy! I can’t decide which is nommier . . . cus of course Fang and Iggy are just amazing like that, but L’s eating cake in that picture, and he’s actually smiling for once too!

NOOOO we have to put Gazzy and Iggy together! Think of the fun they’ll have! *pointless whining again*))

-----”Yay!! Thank you thank you!” Nudge cried, jumping up and down and giggling. She was so excited that she barely noticed Amanda’s little topple with Fang.

-----”Right,” Fang answered, smirking at Amanda. The smirk stayed on his face for a while, until Amanda continued talking - “You’re rooming with Gazzy.” Then the look on his face was halfway to horrified. He didn’t think it was worth protesting, but man . . . if Gazzy ate the wrong thing before the bed, there was no way he’d be getting any sleep. Greeeeeeeat.

-----Gazzy beamed innocently up at Amanda. Lord knows what had happened to encourage that smile. “Of course!” he replied . . . and if Amanda had any sense at all, that’s when she would’ve suspected something. Any normal child would never be so willing to go to bed at that age.

-----Fang was sitting calmly on his bed, watching Amanda and Gazzy. Strangely enough, he was smiling too - though nowhere near as obviously as Gazzy was. His smile was just faint; this was just . . . surprisingly nice. Being here. And Jeb was nice enough to do this for them? Rather unbelievable, but here it was, happening all the same.

-----Humming randomly to herself, Stephanie wandered down the hallway between the rooms. She needed to figure out where everything was in this house. Then she passed by Iggy’s room and had an idea. Let’s go bother Iggy! Smiling deviously, she knocked loudly on his door.

-----Nudge, all smiles, happily peered over the edge of Angel’s crib to watch her sleep. She was almost disappointed that Angel wasn’t awake, because babies were always more fun when their eyes opened . . . but especially for her, being here gave a happiness that overwhelmed anything else she might’ve felt.

[Fang beats all. End of story. xD

NUUUU. Being the leader and the oldest by two minutes, I demand that Iggy and Gazzy shall never share a room. xD]

"Your welcome, sweetie." I ruffled Nudge's hair calmly, a smile evident on my face. "Sorry." I muttered to Fang, meaning every word. "But I really don't trust Iggy and Gazzy together, and Jeb needs his own room. And, obviously, boys and girls can't room together. According to Jeb." I said, a sad smile on my face. "Sorry."

I looked at Gazzy, an unbelieving look on my face. "Either you're freakishly tired or bluffing. Since it's you, I'm going with bluffing. What have you done this time?" I asked, threading my fingers through his knotted hair. I grabbed a comb from somewhere and started going through it, turning to Fang and mouthing, "You're next." I looked at his long, rather unkempt hair, and then looked in the mirror, noticing my long but brushed hair (I actually took these things seriously). Once Gazzy's hair was combed, I turned him around and gripped his shoulders. "Bed?"

"Who is it?" Iggy asked, trying to get to the door and tripping over something- he didn't know what. He fell forward, putting his hands out to catch his fall naturally and his wings out in the back to slow himself. Obviously, he was fine, but he was still very confused. "Come in."

Angel's eyes slowly blinked open, and she giggled, clapping her hands and pulling on Nudge's hair. She clapped again, looking around the room and trying to find Amanda. When she wasn't there, Angel burst into tears, crying, whining, and wanting Amanda.

((*nods and smiles*

But why?! D: They’d have so much fun! Surely you can’t deprive them?!

Oh, Amandy! :3 You just made me lol! “Either you’re freakishly tired or bluffing. Since it’s you, I’m going with bluffing. What have you done this time?” That was hilarious. xD))

-----”Nuuuuthing,” Gazzy replied automatically, giggling with delight. Yes, not telling would definitely be a good idea - and a lot more fun. No matter how much Amanda begged, she would never ever know the truth - he was hiding a whole huuuuge bag of potato chips under his pillow! He was going to eat them all when everyone else was asleep. He’d just been so unable to resist taking them when he saw them sitting in the kitchen! So prominent was Gazzy’s glee that he didn’t even bother to resist when Amanda began brushing his hair. When she finally finished, asking him, “Bed?” he just smiled even wider and nodded rapidly. Soon the potato chips would be his!

-----Fang’s eyes flickered, and he slowly began creeping towards the door, desperately hoping Amanda wouldn’t notice him. He would not brush his hair, and it was ten times worse if she was planning on doing it herself. Talk about embarrassing.

-----Stephanie choked back laughter and threw the door open, letting out a noise something like a snarl and jumping at Iggy. “I’m a lion-person! Rawr!” Even though it was entirely pointless and not that funny, she ended up succumbing to the giggles and collapsed on the ground, unable to stop laughing. That was why it was so hard for her to seriously bother people; everything was such a big joke to her.

-----Nudge’s eyes became so large and worried that, at first glance, it would’ve looked like she was about to burst into tears herself. “Angel! What’s wrong?” she asked, quickly glancing around the room at the same time. Nobody had seen that, right? What if somebody blamed her for making Angel cry?!

[Yes I can. And I did. BEATTHAT.

Thank you. ]

I sighed. "It's our first day- whatever you're planning, don't destroy the house. Besides, I have to tackle Fang and brush his hair." I kissed his forehead. "If you stay up long enough, you can see Fang with pretty hair." I whispered secretly, giving him a quick hug and then sidling out of the room.

I found Fang quickly, and I literally jumped onto his back, forcing him to the floor, and I began to brush his long, tangly hair. It was all snaggly as I yanked him to his feet, gripping his wrist and brushing as fast as I could before he, say, threw me off the balcony. By the time I was done, the hairbrush was all black. "You need to brush your hair more." I informed him, pulling the hairball out and waving it in front of him as I sniffled.

"Uhm... that's great...?" Iggy was very confused, not knowing where she had gone or why her voice was suddenly at his feet. "Steph...?" He asked, very confused and wondering what they hey was going on. He could hear crying in the backround- he thought it was Angel, but how would he know? He couldn't see.

Angel kept crying, yanking Nudge's hair hard as she screamed. "Manda!!" She yelled, crying and screaming and looking around for Amanda. "Manda!" She screamed again, pulling Nudge's hair for the second time. "Want Manda!"

((I won’t stand for it! *sits down*))

-----Gazzy giggled. “Okay!” he angelically replied, crawling into his bed and getting under the covers while trying to appear innocent. He didn’t close his eyes, though - instead he laid there, wide awake, and waiting. The potato chips were waiting, and it wouldn’t be long before he could properly enjoy them.

-----Fang glared at the glob of his hair that Amanda was waving in front of him. “You need to brush your hair less,” he retorted grumpily, staggering back to his feet. It may not have been a very convincing argument, but unfortunately, it was the only one he could think of at the moment.
-----Suddenly he tilted his head, looking confused. “Is that Angel screaming?”

-----Stephanie laughed for a few seconds before bringing herself back under control. She stood up when that happened and, with a huge smile that she knew Iggy wouldn’t see, said, “Hi! Fancy meeting you here!” Then she decided to stop being a goof, and continued, “So have you been around the house yet?! It’s amazing! So much space! I can’t believe it! And we don’t even have to stay in here all the time, we can go outside whenever we want!”

-----Nudge shrieked as Angel pulled her hair. “No! Let go! AMANDA! Helllllllp!” she cried, yanking herself away. “Angel’s crying and she won’t stop!” She ran frantically into the hallway, and tried again. “Amaaaaaaanda!”

I sneezed twice, dropping the hair into his hand. "Why would I brush my hair less? Then it'd be uncomfortable." I said logically, rolling my eyes. It was so obvious- Fang just didn't care. I sighed. Boys. He was so weird! Why would someone not want to have hair that was easy to manage? "Or, of course, I could hack it all off." I shrugged, my head twitching towards the kitchen knives. "Your choice."

"Yeah, sure. It's great." Iggy was not in the best mood- he couldn't do anything! Go outside, fly, walk around- anything! Everything Stephanie was saying applied to everyone else, not him. It was so unfair! Why did he have to be the only blind one? He sighed to himself, just wanting to go to sleep and do something that he could do that no one else could- sleep with his eyes open. It didn't make a difference whether they were open or closed anyway.

"Yeah, it is." I agreed, biting my lip nervously. "Come on, Fang." I grabbed his wrist and dragged him with me to Angel's room, where she was crying. "Shhhh." I murmured quietly, picking up my baby and rubbing her back. "Shhhh, baby. You're fine." Angel's head relaxed on my shoulder, and I could feel the remainder of her tears causing a wet spot on my shirt. "Shhh, sweetie." I murmured again, sitting on the bed and holding her in my arms.

I bit my lip, not wanting to admit how much that comment stung. My intent blue eyes moved from his face to the scissors on the table, and I handed him both the hairbrush and the scissors. "Pick one." I muttered angrily under my breath, pushing my bangs away from my eyes and turning from him to go get the crying Angel.

"I haven't flown." Iggy muttered under his breath, sitting down on a chair that was randomly in the middle of the room. That was what he had tripped over, he realized, as he sank onto the soft plush velvet surface. the edges of the chair felt smooth, and he could just barely feel the grains of wood on the chair. "They never let me."

I stroked her hair gently, sitting down on the bed and leaning against the headboard. Angel's crying form had calmed down slightly so she wasn't yelling, just letting tears drip down her cheeks. "Shhh, sweetie. I'm here." I murmured to her again, letting my hands drift into her soft blond hair. "Nudge? It's fine. You didn't do anything. Just go to sleep, okay?" I said, smiling in her direction- which, thankfully, was not Fang's. Angel was quieting even more now, and she looked up at me with her big blue eyes, so old for such a young face. "I'm here." I whispered to her quietly, kissing the top of her golden locks and lying her in her cradle again.

Now that both Angel and Nudge were down, and Gazzy was at least in bed, if not asleep, I could relax slightly. Iggy, Steph, Fang, and I could stay up as long as we wanted, but I would probably crash last anyway-- either that or crash now, so I had an excuse to ignore Fang. I was weird that way- little things bother me. They just build up and up until my emotions overflow. Fang's snappy comment of 'Whatever you prefer, Mom.' had snapped my last remaining nerve. He and I bugged each other constantly, at the School and here now, but he had gone to far.

"No." He said shortly, standing up and trying to figure out where everything was. "They thought I would hurt myself- and they were probably right." He muttered under his breath, slowly making his way to the bed, where he lied down and stared at the ceiling as if he actually knew what color it was. "What's it like?"

Jeb checked in on everyone, making sure they were asleep and such. And then he motioned for Amanda and Fang to follow him with a finger. When they were all in the living room, he began to speak. "Where's Stephanie?" Amanda blinked once, getting up from the couch and not looking at Fang before walking into Iggy's room.

I smiled at Jeb, getting up and specifically ignoring Fang's gaze. "Ig? We need Steph out here. Why don't you get ready for bed?" For him, it was more a suggestion than an order- Angel, Gazzy, and Nudge were younger, so I could help them and such. With Steph and Iggy, it was really weird to tell them to do the dishes or something. And then, with Fang? I just teased him about it constantly, particually about going to bed, when it got to be time. But another day-- right now, I could think of plots, but they wouldn't go into action yet.

[Fang, being a guy, doesn't know. xD, awesomeness.]

I smiled, leaning against the doorframe. "We don't know- Jeb just said he wanted me, you, and Fang out here." By the face I made ever so slightly at his name, Steph had probably concluded that we weren't on speaking terms. I glanced back at Fang once, quickly, just to see what he was doing. Thankfully, he wasn't looking at me- that would have been awkward. And weird. And would defeat the purpose of me not talking to him.

"Amanda?" Jeb called, walking into the room. "You guys may want to hurry up- tomorrow's gonig to be a very big day." He advised. Amanda nodded her agreement, grabbing Stephanie's hand and dragging her into the living room.

"Okay. Now that we're vaugly settled, I think it's time that all fo you learn how to read." Jeb began. "Basic math, reading, etc. could really help you. How do you feel about me tutoring you, and then you can tutor the younger kids?" He offered, clasping his hands together and leaning back in the leather chair.

I bit my lip. Jeb was probably right... it would come in handy later, plus I really wanted to know how to read and write and stuff. But what if it was boring or something? Well, some things were boring. Most things, actually, would get boring if you did them to much.
Except flying. It was always amazing. Always.

((Lol, glad you enjoyed it. XD I suppose it’s kinda a biased statement, though.))

-----Stephanie tilted her head slightly at Amanda’s tone and expression as she said Fang. Why’s she acting so weird about him all of a sudden? she wondered, but didn’t get a chance to ask, for two reasons. One - Amanda promptly dragged her into the livingroom for their audience with Jeb, and two - Fang was right there. it didn’t exactly feel like a good idea to ask Amanda about this with him standing right there, just in case.

-----After making sure that nobody was nearby to notice, Gazzy went and poked his head into Iggy’s room, smiling hugely. “Guess what I got!” he whispered, holding the bag of chips behind his back as if it would keep Iggy from guessing.

-----The moment the words were out of Jeb’s mouth, Stephanie’s eyes lit up. She could care less about math, but reading . . . forget how useful those skills could be, it’d just be downright amazing to be able to read stuff. However, considering that nobody else had instantly blurted out how much they agreed, Stephanie decided that she would remain silent as well. She cast a glance at Amanda, then Fang, searching their faces for clues as to their own opinions. Fang was . . . well, Fang. No telling what he thought of this. But Amanda looked rather nervous about the idea.
-----The question was, though, did they really have a choice?

-----Fang couldn’t deny it was a good idea . . . though he didn’t necessarily want to start learning things so soon, either way, this situation was by far better than what it had been like at The School. Surely it couldn’t be that bad to make a small sacrifice in exchange for having this freedom?
-----”I think it’s a good idea,” he finally said, and looked over to Amanda and Stephanie for their own reactions.

-----Now that someone was out in the open, Stephanie wasted no time in excitedly declaring, “Me too!” Sure, maybe Amanda was their unofficial sort of leader, and should’ve had the right to speak first . . . but she wasn’t going to be the one to argue with Fang over this. She was grateful that she didn’t have to be the only one in favor, so she could care less.

I could see my twin's confusion at my not-talking-to-Fang-ness, but I widened my eyes to show her that I would tell her later. Fang was near, plus Jeb, and besides, Fang didn't know I was avoiding him. Boys could be so clueless sometimes, it was almost sad.

"What?" Iggy asked, leaning into Gazzy's room. He could hear a kind of crumpling noise, along with a crackling, like chips being broken or something of the sort. "I can't see whatever you're holding."

I nodded before either of them had a chance to speak, and then Fang and Stephanie voiced their agreement. "I think it'll be fun. Writing should be interesting." I grinned, looking at Stephanie with a mischevious look on my face, that she would understand later. Right now, my mind was focused on school and not talking to Fang. Yes, I know I have a strange, twisted mind.

"Well, that's settled. We'll start in a week." Jeb clapped his hands and I stood up, dragging Stephanie to our room. I could hear Gazzy and Iggy in his room, but, since they were them (and boys), I let them have their fun, whatever it was.

I stared up at the dark ceiling, still wondering about Fang. Maybe he had gone to far... but had I overreacted? I was only ten, after all- I didn't know a lot. I knew less than most ten-year-olds, in fact, since I hadn't gone to school (though that was subject to change). "Did you notice?" I asked her, knowing she knew what I meant.

Iggy's sightless eyes glimmered at the prospect. "Come on in, Gaz!" He grinned, finding the young boy's wrist and pulling him gently into the room. "Amanda's already in bed- she'll never even notice." He informed him, just in case he didn't already know.

"I guess we both went a little to far..." I said quietly, twirling a strand of hair around my finger. "We tease each other constantly, but I guess he just pushed me over the edge. I really should apologize." I whispered, lying down on the bed. "Before I sleep- or I won't be able to. I can never get to sleep if there's something I have to do." I realized that I had been ranting on and on, the way I usually do, and immediatly apologized. "Be right back."

I slipped out of the room silently, managing to creep along like a ninja until I got to his room, where I slowly pushed the door open. "Fang?" I said quietly, seeing the smile on his face and knowing automatically that it was about our newfound freedom. "I'm sorry. I over-reacted." I sat next to him on the bed, pulling my legs against my chest and wrapping my arms around them.

-----Gazzy's smile only grew wider, for the four-year-old found delight in the fact that Iggy was going to enjoy this as much as he was. "Okay! You open it! You open it!" he urged, shoving the bag at Iggy for no good reason. Unless you considered the fact that he couldn't yet open bags like this without help a good reason. These days were the worst for kids, when you always needed someone older to help you get food.

-----Stephanie smiled to herself as Amanda left, feeling much relieved. If they weren't going to be fighting . . . well, that was definitely a good thing. Fang and Amanda were so close that anything of the sort would be felt at a painfully high level.

-----Fang turned to Amanda, appearing confused. Which was good, because he was confused. If he'd appeared lovestruck or something else like that, it would've been . . . well, downright scary, most likely. "Sorry? Sorry about what?" he asked. "You didn't do anything."

((Psht. Fang just failed. xD Like, with a big F.))

Iggy grinned, sitting down on his bed when he finally found it. He attempted to open the bag without seeing it, which basically meant that the chips spilled everywhere. "Well, I guess that didn't work out as planned." He said quietly, leaning against his hand and hearing the breaking of a chip. "Amanda's going to find out...." He said nervously, putting his hands in his lap and trying not to touch anything in case a chip had bounced there. "I'm surprised she's not in here already. Oh, that's right... she's with Faaaaang." He chuckled, in a good mood now but still nervous of the prospect of Amanda and Fang coming in. He'd be in such huge trouble with Jeb if something like this happened the first day, and now look- it had. And still Amanda wasn't here- had she not heard? Was she coming to find him secretly? Or what?

Angel was fast asleep in her little crib, but she had no idea what was about to happen. You know how normal people sleepwalk? Well, the flock slept-flew.... even if they didn't know how, like Angel. So she was asleep and in the air, floating around the house randomly and doing nothing but causing trouble, even if she didn't know she was doing it. Her hands were playing with Nudge's hair and completly ruining it, and when her wings and hands decided to move on, her body went with them. Into Amanda and Stephanie's room.

She floated around the room, playing with the sheets on Amanda's bed and wondering where she was. " 'Manda?" She slept-talked, looking confused and about to cry again. "Where 'Manda?" She repeated, moving from that bed to Stephanie's where she found Steph's hair. And began to play with it. Let's just say, by the time she was done, Stephanie would have a long day trying to get it out tomorrow. Angel giggled and sat on Stephanie's lap. " 'Manda?" She asked, looking up at her with closed eyelids.

I stared at him as if I couldn't believe it- because I couldn't believe it. Stephanie had noticed, and she hadn't even done anything! And yet Fang, Mr. Observant, hadn't. I sneezed into my elbow and kept thinking. How had he not noticed? Jeb had, Stephanie had, of course I had... and yet Fang doesn't. Wow. Just wow. Maybe he wasn't as observant as I gave him credit for, or maybe he just didn't know me as much as I thought he did. But really... how could he not have noticed? Everyone had!

As soon as I was about to talk, I heard a crunching sound from Iggy's room. "Crud. What have they done this time?" I muttered, grabbing his wrist and dragging him in there with me. Whatever they did, it would be good to have back-up, and there was no better back-up than Fang. I opened the door and heard a similar crunching sound. "What did you- oh, my gosh." I stepped back from the Potato Chip Festival and tripped over my feet, falling into Fang- big surprise. Whenever I trip, I always seem to bring him into it. Call it whatever you wish, it freaks both of us out. Anyway, I regained my balance and looked at the floor, the ripped bag in Iggy's hands, and their guilty expressions.

"Let me guess. Gazzy had chips, he gave them to Iggy to open, and this happened?" I asked. Iggy nodded sadly. "I'm tired and worn-out from today, so just clean this up and go to bed, okay?" Iggy nodded, landing on his feet- which, in turn, landed on potato chips. "Iggy? Um.... never mind." This would be strange. I wondered how Iggy would manage with his blindness and all, and I wanted to help him so bad, but I knew they had to learn their lesson. So I simply grabbed Fang's wrist again and dragged him back to his room. And yes, I do drag Fang many places with me- force of habit.

"Do you know how hard it is for me to leave them there?" I asked him. "I want to help them. It's instinct. But I know I can't or it won't help them." I sighed quietly, looking into the distance- or, in this case, at Fang's black wall. "Why did life seem to get about ten times more difficult now that we're free?" I asked him, a few tears running down my cheeks. "This is harder than anything I've ever done- even flying a few days ago when I kept fainting." My head dropped to his shoulder nervously and sadly as another tear rolled down my cheek.

Iggy was trying to find a way to clean without knowing where everything was and not stepping on every chip on the ground. "Gaz? Can you get a vacuum or broom or something?" He asked, standing perfectly still so that he wouldn't break any chips or anything. "That way I can help- I did this after all." He still stood stick-still, not wanting to break any more chips. But when he tried to take a step, he tripped over something and fell, falling on his arm and wincing. "Ouch."

My head shot up from Fang's shoulder as I heard a different crack. "Um... Fang? Did you hear that?" I listened carefully again and heard Iggy's quiet wince. "That didn't sound like chips. That sounded more like... bone. Iggy?" I called quietly. "Amanda? Can you come in here?" His faint voice answered. "Coming, Ig." So, of course, I grabbed Fang's wrist and dragged him with me- again.

When I walked in, I could see him on the floor, cradleing his arm. "Iggy! Let me see your arm." I put two fingers on it and ran them down the length of his arm, stopping when he winced. "Fang? Come feel this." I pointed to the spot I thought was where the bone had broken and looked at him with concern. "Does that feel broken to you?"


[IKR? Fail.]

((Oh my gosh. XD I cracked up so many times at that. You should make 1k replies more often, they’re so worth reading!

And I just realized, it actually was pretty weird that Fang wouldn’t notice, especially if I noticed. XD Because I am certainly not very observant. Shame on him! *like I wasn’t playing him*

OOOOOOH I’MMA BEAT YOU. Or, well, your reply. I’mma try!
Perspective 1: 160 vs 150
Perspective 2: 272 vs 181
Perspective 3: 441 vs 442 (ooooh. >.> you win this one.)
Perspective 4: 95 vs 89
Perspective 5: 206 vs 135
Total: 1174

Yay! I made it! Now you try and beat me.))

-----Gazzy gasped as chips flew across the room - not literally, of course, but it couldn’t hurt to make sure that fact was given . . . after all, if people could fly, why not chips? “Oooooh!” For a second he just stared at the food, then smiled and knelt down on the ground. A big smile entered his face, and Gazzy happily scooped up some of the chips so he could stuff them into his mouth. “Yummy! Come have some!” he said with a full mouth, managing to spew even tinier bits of chips around. Apparently he could care less about how much noise they were making, for he even poured some into Iggy’s lap, trying to share. Gazzy giggled, looked around at the mess once more, then sat back down and resumed eating. He felt rather proud of himself for not caring that they were on the floor, actually. Amanda might have called it gross, but he just called it good eating.

-----Nudge may have been given the gift of heavy sleeping, thus not even noticing what a mess Angel put her hair into . . . but Stephanie wasn’t even asleep. She had no chance.
-----As Angel flew into the room, all Stephanie could do was stare like she was a ghost, wondering what on earth was going on. Her surprise and creeped-out-ness were so strong that she didn’t even notice at first when Angel started messing up her hair. It didn’t take long, though, for her to realize what a huge knot was getting put into the long, dark brown strands.
-----”Hey, stop!” she protested, picking up Angel and holding her out at arms’ length, trying to keep the two-year-old out of her hair. “And no, I’m not Amanda!” Though it might have looked like she was being mean, she really wasn’t. Stephanie was just too creeped out by this turn of events to react calmly. “Amanda’s in the other room, Angel, okay? Um, yeah, she’ll be back soon, and let’s get you back to bed . . .” She pulled the toddler closer, since it was kinda hard to support even someone as skinny as her with her arms outstretched. So, with Angel clutched against her chest, Stephanie slowly started heading down the hall, hoping against all else that she could get Angel back into bed without any further incidents . . . incidents being defined as anyone else noticing that Angel was even out of bed.
-----How the heck did she figure out how to do this, anyway?! Stephanie wondered, glancing at Angel again. Was she sleepwalking? Or sleep-flying or whatever? But she doesn’t even know how to fly!

-----Fang stared back at Amanda, confusion lingering in his tired eyes. Perhaps his lack of observance could be blamed on fatigue, then. It had been a long day for all of them; no way could they avoid at least some level of sleepiness. What the heck is she talking about? She’s gotta just be joking with me. Right . . .?
-----Suddenly, it seemed that Fang would get a lucky break. A horde of crunching erupted from one of the other rooms, and Amanda instantly took notice. Even if she was dragging him along with her to see what had happened, he definitely preferred that to this . . . emotional stuff. Ugh, girls were so confusing. He’d bet anything that she was about to blow up on him. It was only this loud noise that had saved him . . . so, when he found out what happened, he wasn’t too affected.
-----Though there was still a hint of a reaction. Entering Iggy’s room to find chips everywhere, Iggy looking sheepish and Gazzy just eagerly pigging out, Fang did indeed react. But rather than being upset like Amanda apparently was, Fang found it kinda funny. Maybe that was just because he wasn’t the one in charge of everyone, and thus neither was he the one who would be taking responsibility, but the sight was hilarious - until he realized that this might make Jeb pretty mad if he were to find out. He could see it now . . . and he wasn’t sure he liked the picture. No, Iggy and Gazzy would just have to make sure it got cleaned up before anyone took notice. Good thing Amanda’s already taken care of that, he observed.
-----Almost before Fang knew it, Amanda had taken him back into his room. “Must you drag me everywhere?” he commented mildly, but there was a slight smile on his face as he pulled his wrist away. That was when Amanda started talking, her voice surprisingly . . . exhausted and small. What had happened to Mrs. Queen I Am The Boss Of You? But the words instantly managed to drive sympathy into Fang’s heart. He definitely wasn’t giving her as much credit as she deserved for what she was doing. Already she made it all seem so easy, taking care of their flock members, but it really was challenging, wasn’t it?
-----Though the motion was hesitant, Fang wrapped his arms around her in a reassuring hug. “It’s not harder, though, really. It’s just different. We’ll get used to it,” he said, mildly surprised that he even found the words to express it. Hopefully it would be enough to make Amanda feel better, because he [i]really didn’t like seeing her so upset.

-----Gazzy calmly ignored Iggy, still too occupied with his feast to feel that he should take notice. Why did they need a broom, anyway? All that’d bring would be pain and suffering. Or at least a lack of chips. And since chips were definitely good, no chips would be bad - very bad.
-----Iggy’s fall did catch his attention, though, if nothing else. Concerned, Gazzy stopped his munching to ask, “. . . Iggy? Are you okay?” in a small voice. Of course he was okay, though, right? Iggy was so big! Nothing could hurt him! Or could it?

-----Fang’s face went from concern to calmness as they returned to Iggy’s room. It wasn’t that he wasn’t worried about Iggy . . . it was hard to explain. Maybe it was just that seeing Amanda as anything less than strong was so surprising that his reactions were at some of their strongest, whereas he didn’t have Iggy on such the same level so didn’t show his worry as well . . . ah well, it didn’t really matter. Reactions were reactions and there would be no changing his.
-----He crouched down beside Iggy, testing the arm with his fingers. Let Iggy flinch if he wanted to - he could handle it, he was a guy. Fang would know. “Kinda,” he said, almost not wanting to admit it. After all, how overwhelming would that be? The day should’ve been at its denouement, not its climax. But he couldn’t exactly fight the laws of the universe. Having said enough, Fang rose to his feet and cast a glance towards Gazzy. The four-year-old was still eating chips, even with the worry on his face . . . but there was no guilt. And even if there had been, he was nowhere near close enough to have tripped Iggy . . . so, good, at least they knew it wasn’t Gazzy’s doing.

[I needed word count. xD And just shoved random stuff in.

Yes. BAD FANG!!! *Squirts with water bottle* You should have noticed better!

I SHALL BEAT YOUUUUUUU. Word count at the end. xD Imma try for 500-per-perspective. O.o]

Iggy just stared at the chips in his lap... well, no, he couldn't do that. So he turned his head downwards to where the chips were on his lap and put a disbelieving look on his face. How could Gazzy think about food at a time like this? What was happening? He was turning into Nudge, that's what was happening. Amanda was going to come in there and scold at them for making noise, or waking Angel, or spilling chips all over, or some other random thing that Iggy couldn't think of but that Amanda or Fang surely would, and all Gazzy could do was shove chips into his mouth. "Gazzy! Stop that! You're making more noise than when they exploded!" He hissed, feeling under the bed with his toes. Was that what he thought it was? Oh, yes, it was. He didn't tell Gazzy yet, though- didn't want to spoil it. It felt a bit warm, and it was definetly dustier than usual from being under the bed, but it was still exactly what they needed with some very salty chips.
But of course Iggy wasn't going to mention it. But when Amanda burst in with Fang, he couldn't help but laugh. "I knew it! I told... you she... was with.... Faaaaaaang." He said between laughs, shaking with the humor. He had made Fang's name longer than usual, teasing Amanda relentlessly. Though Iggy didn't know it, she was now blushing bright pink. "Iggy, you're not exactly in the best position to tease me. Please. I already have a migraine from who-knows-what, Fang and I are trying to have a serious conversation-"
"About what? Your secret love for each other?" Iggy laughed. Usually, Amanda would have laughed as well. But tonight, right now, she wasn't in a good mood. And that meant tomorrow, no one was going to be in a good mood. "Iggy, just... you know what, whatever. I am not in the mood for this, okay? I'm tired and worn-out from today- so just clean this up and go to bed, okay?" Iggy nodded slowly, a 'sorry' expression on his face. "Come on, Fang." Amanda muttered, and Iggy could tell the slight note of annoyance in her voice- and the slight note of pain. I guess she has a really bad headache. He thought as he landed on his feet- which landed on chips. This would be interesting.

Angel looked sad and confused as she looked at Stephanie. Well, not really looked- more like the way Iggy did it, by turning her head towards where the sound was coming from. I mean, she was asleep after all, so her eyes were closed. When Stephanie unexpectedly yelled at her (well, spoke to her harshly, but to Angel it was yelling), she misunderstood and began to cry again. She beat her arms against Steph's chest, right on her heart, as if she was throwing a tempter tantrum in the air. Or as if it was a tempter tantrum and Stephanie's body was the floor. She also began to kick, her feet hitting Stephanie right in the stomach. Hey, she didn't know better! Though she was two, she was pretty strong, and Stephanie was probably getting pummeled. Well, not pummeled... maybe hurt and getting a few bruises the next day, but nothing that would kill her or injure her permanetly. At least not yet.
"I want Amanda!" Angel wailed, still beating on Stephanie. You see, Angel was two, and two year olds were attatched to people, and Angel was attatched to Amanda. So Stephanie wouldn't do- she wanted Amanda, and she wanted Amanda now. Why wasn't she coming? She was supposed to be here by now! Angel wanted her, so why wasn't she here? Since Angel was two, she thought everything was about her- so she didn't understand that Amanda's emotional conversation with Fang might be more important than her. She didn't care about whatever they were discussing and how much Amanda was crying or even about Iggy's broken arm- she wanted Amanda, and everything else could wait until she got what she wanted.

Oh, they would be in so much trouble if I wasn't so stressed, didn't have such a headache, and wasn't in the middle of such an important conversation. Boy, were they lucky. And Iggy was even luckier- everyone in the flock knew that Fang and I had absolutly no romantic connection at all, yet Iggy had the nerve to tease me about it. And that was the thing that always set me off- his constant teasing about me and Fang. But I was in a bad mood, I desperatly needed some sleep, my head was going to explode, and I needed to teach them a lesson. So I just made them clean up their mess and dropped my head into my hands adn rubbed my temples when Fang wasn't watching me with cautious eyes. He was probably wondering when I was going to explode on him, and he was lucky as well- I was going to get mad at him for not noticing, but then Iggy and Gazzy saved him. Well, saved me as well... I really didn't want to have to explain that, and now we never had to go back on that path again. Well, of course, until the next argument. But that's off-topic. Everyone was lucky today- Gazzy, Iggy, Fang. Why couldn't I get lucky and my headache could disappear?
My head was pounding viciously against my skull as I dragged Fang back to his room again. Pound, pound, pound... pain, pain, pain... Ouch. It felt like... like... well, I don't know what it felt like, I was to tired to describe anything. All I knew was that my head hurt like nothing else, and that Fang was right next to me. "Must you drag me everywhere?" He asked with a small smile, pulling his wrist away from my tight vice-like grip. Well, it usually is- I'm just not in the mood today. You know, the whole headache issue. Anyway, I nodded- which was a really, really bad idea, because it made my skull pound more. "Y-Y-Yeah, I have to drag you everywhere." I said unsteadily, feeling dizzy from my nodding. But of course I wasn't going to admit that.
So I just dropped my head to his shoulder the way I so often do and listened to him thinking about my venting. Well, I guess venting's not the right word- more like confusion? Problems? I didn't know, but it helped. "It's harder for me." I admitted quietly. "I have to put Angel to bed every night, bathe Gazzy, dress Nudge, help Iggy memorize the house, make sure the hosue doesn't explode, get myself ready, make sure you don't run away and start a cult, act happy when I'm not, fake that I feel fine, figure out how to teach Iggy how to fly, wake up early, stay up late, check up on everyone, all while I don't feel good at all because it's allergy season and I have a killer migraine and then vent everything to you and feel guilty because I'm making you deal with my problems, and then Angel wakes up or Gazzy and Iggy make chips explode and I have to reprimand them even though I love them so much and can't stand to see them upset, and then something else happens and I don't get any sleep, and then the cycle repeats the next day. And it's only been one day!" I was in full-fledged tears now, my head pounding more than ever, his arms around me the only thing I had to cling to. "And then in the middle of the day, Iggy teases me about us being friends and it irritates me out of my mind, or you go a little to far in your banter and I get upset and over react or... or... I don't know what to do!" I admitted, still crying like there was no tomorrow. "Tell me what to do."

Iggy was lying on the floor. He turned upwards, lifting his head- and hurt arm- away from the carpet. "Do I look okay, Gazzy?" He snapped, probably hurting the four-year-old's feelings.. but hello! He was lying on the ground? Why would he be okay? I mean, really. Gazzy was four, but that was simple logic! Golly gee!*
"Fang... get Jeb." Amanda said as she came into the room. Her eyes were still wet and rimmed with red from crying, but Iggy wouldn't know that. He did, however, recognize the thickness in her voice from tears, and still the slight note of pain, which meant she still had a headache. But that was classic Amanda- she was pretending she wasn't hurt because he was. She had done that all the time at the School- unless she was with Fang, of course. But, in Iggy's book, he and Amanda got a whole other category because they were so bipolar. Or tripolar. Or quadpolar. Or... he couldn't think of the word for five, so he stopped, but you know what he means. They were confusing.

I was hiding my headache as I helped Iggy stand up, rubbing his back gently*. "Fang? Get Jeb." I instructed, my voice sounding thick because of the tears I was fighting back right now. My head was still pounding and my eyes were still watering and my heart was still hurting (you know, my emotional heart, not my real heart- we have enough problems here already, thank you) for someone to vent to, but Iggy was more important right now. But apparently Fang didn't need to get Jeb, because he was already there. "Both Fang and I think this is broken." I said quietly, pointing to the spot on Iggy's arm. "Will you check? We heal faster than normal, so we'd have to set it immediatly." My head had started to pound again and my voice broke. Fang would probably think it was from the crying event earlier (which I was going to continue when I dragged him back to his room), but it was actually from the headache he knew nothing about. Then again, he was pretty observant with physical things about my health, like that, so I didn't know. He failed on the emotional part, though- just epically failed. You think he knows you, and then he doesn't notice when you completly ignore him for half a day. Gosh.
But Fang was not the problem here. The problem at hand was that Iggy's arm might be broken, and we needed to focus on that, not Fang and I. So I took a deep breath to steady myself and focused on the task at hand: Iggy.

[Perspective 1 [Gazzy/Iggy]: 160 vs. 400 BURNED. xD]
[Perspectice 2 [Steph/Angel]: 272 vs. 283. 11 ahead. ]
[Perspective 3 [Fang/Amanda]: 441 vs. 655... total win.]
[Perspective 4 [Gazzy/Iggy]: 95 vs. 182.]
[Perspective 5 [Fang/Amanda]: 206 vs. 267.]
[Total: 1787. PWNed.]




[*I felt totally random and inclined to write that. xD]
[*Duuuude. Since Fang liiiiiiikes me, he should get all jealous that I'm helping Iggy so much. xD Even though we have another category, and even though he's the one I tell everything to. Silly ten year old jealousy. xD]