Chapter Ten : ELLA
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MAX
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I FEEL PERFECTLY NORMAL in the morning. Angel's mind therapy has worked wonders - something I will NEVER admit out loud to anyone. But knowing Angel, she's probably keeping tabs on my thoughts, which makes it hard to think and censor. Especially with last night running through my mind like a broken record.
I had gotten up and tried to fly. I ignored the stinging in my legs, which ultimately, ruined my takeoffs - again and again. Fang heard, confronted me (we had an embarrassingly sappy heart-to-heart talk), and almost kissed. The worst part was that I wanted to. I'm sure that more nights like the last will come - but right now I don't want to think about it.
I was one of the last to actually get up, however. The only other person still sleeping was the little blonde girl - Angel had told me her name was Gina. Names were something I was still working on, but everything else had come back to me - save for the occasional loss of leg function, I was fine.
"Are we leaving yet?" I asked/demanded through my mouth of grapes. "I think we should." Fang had informed me we were going to Dr, Martinez's house. It was easier to call her Martinez rather than Mom.
The little boy - a kid by the name of Midge - scowled at me. "I haven't finished eating yet!" He complained. Then Gazzy came rolling down the hill - covered in dirt and a million kinds of filth. "Gazzy! Stop it - you're getting dirty!" I called after him.
"Oh yeah - because you look and smell like roses, right?" Iggy teased, sarcastically. I went to shove him, but a smile from fang had my face burning - as quick as dry leaves in the Sahara.
"No, but you sure dose smell like roses." I replied sweetly, then changed my tone to grim. "Dead ones."
"Well that's mean." Another blonde boy, cleaner than Gazzy, plops down beside me on the grass. I know him - he was in the cell with me while I was hostage. I just don't know his name. Sammon, Ramen, something with ....
"Arron." He shrugs his small shoulders. Arron! He must've read the confusion on my face. I put on a light scowl. "I would've gotten it, Arron." I say, and lay down.
"We're leaving!" Fang calls, standing, and is moving before I'm halfway off the ground. Gina was rising slowly, after Iggy tripped over her. I listened to their short back-and-forth arguing for a few minutes, then shut them up with my usual "shut-the-fudge-up" glare. And kept walking. My pace was undoubtedly the slowest - it was why we all lumbered about at a snail's pace. I didn't want to move to fast or think too much and hurt myself.
Speaking of, I could feel the sting coming back into my ankles - the same pins and needles feeling everyone gets too often but doesn't know how to control. The pins and needles turned quickly to knives and daggers, and my chest was feeling heavier with each breath. My world fizzed, popped, and then went out in spots of white.
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NUDGE
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"OMIGOD OMIGOD!" I SCREECH when Max falls. I rush over to her, and try to lift her weight. "Max." I whisper, and end up drooping her to the ground. I'm followed by Fang, Angel, and the others. I put my hand to her forehead. "She's burning up!"
Fang wastes no time picking her up and carrying her over to the stream. We all watch stiffly as he completely sinks her into the water. "What are you doing!" I cry. "She could drown, or swallow a fish, or get a dis - " Gazzy nudged me and told me to shut up. I stuck out my tongue defiantly.
"She's fine, Nudge. Just over exhausted." Fang assured me, as he lifted a choking Max to her feet. She wiped at her face, and smacked at comforting hands. "I'm fine!" She echoed Fang's words, hobbling to her feet. Fang went to help her walk, and so I went around our party to the other side of Max, wanting to help.
"Max, I never got to tell you yesterday that I'm so happy you're awake! And you so, totally scared me, but now - "
"Nudge, I'm okay. Chill, please."
Has Max ever said "please" before? Or the word "chill"?
"Are you sure?"
"Positive. Now scram, kid." She starts walking again. That sounds more like Max. I stick close by, just in case.
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"What is this?" I hear Delaney ask from behind as we approach a small, well lit house. "Dr. Martinez's house." I say, and he shakes his head. "That's good to know, but who's Dr. Martinez?"
"Dr. Martinez is a veterinarian, and kind of an expert on mutant kids." Angel answers.
"She's got two kids - Max, and Ella." Iggy adds, a faint smirk on his face.
"And the best cookies." Gazzy's stomach growls. "You'd like them.
"Don't forget that crazy, vicious dog." Total exclaims. I had almost completely forgotten about him - he'd been following Angel for the past few days, and was being exceptionally quiet - trying not to get too upset over our new gang expansion. This time, he was trotting besides Gina, who looked down at him strangely. "Talking dogs are weird."
"Oh, and mutant kids aren't?" Total scoffs, and kicks up some dirt with his back paws, and gets ready for a verbal sparring. It's then that I pick him up and squeeze him, maybe a bit too much.
"Totes, I totally forgot about you, boy!" I picked him up and bopped his nose lightly. "Don't antagonize the little kids." I warned in a whisper, then put him down.
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FANG
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KNOCKING ON DR. MARTINEZ'S door, it is immediately answered by Ella, who gasped in shock at Max, who is standing next to me. I jerk my head at Max, and ask, "Is Dr. Martinez here?"
"Um, no. She got called out on emergency at he office." She opens the door wider. "You can wait for her here, though." She smiles at Iggy as he comes in after me - suddenly excited when a few minutes ago he was tired and crabby. "Hey, El." He says, and I let them have their moment.
Its a moment that lasts a few seconds until she spots Delaney, Minn, and the others, all rugged and dirty. The dog
"Who are these .... people?" She asks, her eyebrows raised, eyes wide, and mouth open just a little. I put my hands in my pockets. "And how did you guys get Max back?" She added, sitting on the cough. Iggy followed her lead. "Hmn. How did we?" His sarcasm was more than tangible.
"First, I wanna hear about who these people are." She looked pointedly at them.
"I'm Delaney." Delaney crossed to kneel in front of her. "May I point out that you have lovely eyes." A flying kick, obviously from Iggy, tapped against Delaney's shin. "Oops." He shrugged in way of explanation. Delaney glared at him, then smiled and stood.
"You smelled like rotting carcass anyway." Max leaned against the couch's arm, and I almost laughed at the completely unexpected dig.settling on a smirk, I waited a few long moments for the wicked cackles from Gazzy, the extremely red faces and gasping laughter from everyone else to subside.
"I'm Midge, and its nice to meet you. I've never been in a place like this before, and it smells like cinnamon. Speaking of - do you have food here? I've been hungry for the past couple of years, and so ... "
"Aw. Sure, sure."
"I'm Gina. Nice to meet you."
"Arron."
"That's Minn and that's Ignus."
"This is Ignus, and I'm Minn." Her voice ends all conversation. Then Ella coughs. "Well, I'm Ella. There's a bathroom just down the hall, and I can show you guys how to use it." Ella stood and took Gina's hand. She was the smallest of them by far. "Oh, and don't think you guys aren't going to shower - there's a second shower upstairs."
We ended up taking turns. When Ella came back, we were all cleaned, and redressed in old clothes from Ella's attic. Then, after that, it took about four more hours to feed everyone and cloth them, as well as tell Ella how we found Max and her friends. I waited for Ella to go crazy and freak out, since her dog had barked for hours straight at us newcomers. Total had fought with the slippers under the couch, and Gina constantly begged to eat.
But she didn't. Ella diplomatically separated us into smaller groups - Minn, Ignus, Gina, Nudge and Angel in her room, Delaney, Iggy, Gazzy, Midge and Arron in the guest room. It was how Ella, Max and I ended up on the couches in her living room.
It was also how Max ended up sleeping next to me.