Hey again! I found this the other day - realized that I had written it a few years ago and thought that I should do something with it! This will be a chapter story - it's finished, but I'm going to do it in segments anyway. Apologies for the slightly amature-ish plot.. like I said - I wrote it a couple years ago.So if it's bad, not my fault. Haha.
Lifeline - Chapter 1
"Max! Maaaax!"
"Maybe we should let her sleep, Gazzy."
"Nah."
I gasped and sat up straight, soaked with freezing water.
"See?" Fang smirked down at me as he tossed aside the now empty cooking pot. The others were standing in a semicircle around me.
"She's awake."
"I am NOW." I grumbled, standing up and shaking some stray droplets off of my nose.
"What time is it anyway?" Fang glanced down at his amazingly still working watch. He grinned at me, shaking his dark hair out of his eyes.
"Eight thirty."
"Eight thirty? Why didn't you wake me up earlier? We could have been attacked by Erasers, or kidnapped, or-"
"Max." Iggy grabbed my shoulders and shook me. "Shut up." I looked around and realized that Gazzy, Angel, and Nudge were all staring at me with their mouths hanging open, Iggy was laughing, his blind eyes staring straight ahead, and Fang…well, Fang was smirking as only Fang can smirk.
I heaved a sigh and closed my mouth. "Right. Well, since you're all up, we could always break camp early and –"
"NO!"
I grinned to myself as the younger kids and Iggy fled shouting to the camp, with Gazzy leading Iggy. Well, more accurately, they ran to the water. South Carolina beaches can do that to you. I turned back to Fang who was leaning leisurely against a tree, his dark eyes following the others. I stretched, wringing out my hair and shivering as I spread my wings out and shook them.
"Thanks for the lovely awakening this morning. A shake would have done fine, you know."
A corner of Fang's mouth twitched like he was going to smile, but he just shrugged.
"More fun."
I glared wryly at him, struggling in vain to wring out my sopping wet blanket.
"Well, if it's alright with you, I'm going to go dry out in the sun."
I stalked past him, my shoes gushing. I sat down in a huff on the beach, realizing that I had missed breakfast.
I smiled to myself as I looked out at the rest of the flock playing in the water. Iggy was standing up, hands out with a confused expression in his sightless eyes. Gazzy, Angel, and Nudge were swimming in circles around him and splashing him.
I glanced up as a shadow blocked out the warm sun. Fang sat down next to me, and handed me a plate.
"Here, I saved some for you."
"My hero." I sighed, digging into the food. I have no idea where Iggy got eggs, but I'm not about to complain.
Angel ran up the sand, and skidded to a stop before us.
"Max, will you come play in the water with us?"
"In a little bit, Angel."
After she had scampered back into the water, I set my plate beside me and lay back in the warm sand with my eyes closed. After a while, I felt Fang watching me and cracked open my eyes.
"What?" He didn't say anything, but his dark eyes flickered just the slightest bit towards my forearm. I glanced down and saw the scar.
A few months before, I had tried to saw the microchip out of my arm using a broken seashell, and had nearly killed myself. I had scared the whole flock, but mostly Fang. I glanced back up, and met his dark brown eyes.
"It's OK, Fang, I'm not doing that again."
Fang stared at me for a moment wordlessly, and I saw the knot of muscle protruding from his jaw. Finally, he relaxed slightly and he lay down beside me with his hands under his head.
"Max! Come on!"
I stood up with a sigh and walked down to the edge of the water.
"OK, Nudge. I suppose I can't get any more wet than I already am!" I laughed, with a pointed look at Fang. He cracked his eyes open lazily and the ghost of a grin flickered across his lips.
I waded in, only to be tackled by Gazzy and Angel. I came up, spluttering, and grabbed one in each arm. I spun them around and ducked back underwater, taking them with me. When I surfaced again, I saw that Iggy had Nudge in a headlock (who was laughing hysterically) and was about to dunk her.
"Hey, Iggy!"
I tackled him, pulling him into the same position that he had moments before been inflicting on Nudge. He protested, spluttering when he got a mouthful of water.
"Don't," I said, punctuating each word with a dunk, "pick – on – poor – defenseless – kids!"
Suddenly, Iggy was pulled away from me, and I was pulled up against a hard chest.
"Same goes for you, Max."
I laughed, getting a mouthful of water as Fang grabbed me around the waist and tossed me into the water.
I came up just in time to see Gazzy, Angel, Nudge, and Iggy tackle Fang, who went underwater with a grunt. He came up, shaking his wet hair out of his eyes, only to be shoved back under by me. This time, when he stood up, he glared at me in the way that clearly says, "You'd better run." I complied, tearing out of the water and down the beach as fast as my legs could carry me, laughing aloud.
Fang was right on my heels, his bare feet pounding on the sand as he ran effortlessly after me. I spread my soaked wings, letting the cool ocean breeze blow them dry. I glanced back and saw that Fang had done the same thing. He was grinning as his damp hair whipped around his face. The wind would catch my wings, lifting me off the ground for a second, then I would run again. A huge shadow enveloped me, and I glanced up to see Fang flying a few feet above me, his dark wings pumping powerfully.
I dropped back a few feet, then pumped my wings hard, joining him in the air. With an unspoken agreement, we turned and headed back to where the flock was waiting for us. Fang flew close beside me, so that our feathers brushed each other. With some dismay, I noticed that there were dark clouds on the horizon, which signaled that a storm might be on its way. I rubbed my temples gently, sighing. I hadn't had a headache in a while, I figured that with the voice gone, they would leave me too.
Fang, of course, noticed the gesture, and brushed my wings with his.
"What's up? Headache?"
I shook my head, forcing my hands back down to my sides.
"Nope."
He looked at me in uncertainty for a moment, then shook his head and looked forward again.
Of course, that had to be when I had a brain attack.
I grabbed my head, and angled my wings toward the sand. I squeezed my eyes tightly shut so that I could retain at least some of my dignity. I hit the ground hard, stumbling a few steps before I fell to my knees. It felt like my brain was being sawed in half. I vaguely heard the sound of skidding feet, and then Fang dropped to his knees beside me. He hastily turned my face toward his, his dark eyes regarding my half-open ones anxiously.
"Max…"
I heard no more, because my eyelids fluttered shut, and I fell to the sand.
Ooh, cliffhanger. Haha. Pretty soon I'll put the next chapter up! I don't even care if people don't like this one - I'm putting it up anyway! Review!