[IC] Maximum Ride: The Secret

[NightmareInd]

@The ghost in black
"My chores aren't untill after the party tonight, so I thought: 'Why not rest a little till then?', and that's when I saw you." Shadow said while laying on his back, stretching so the sun could warm him up. He thought about the time before he re-joined the flock. It was a wonderfull life, no restrictions, no people telling you what to do, and meat as fresh as it could be. But it was very lonely, and being in the wild made you wild inside. Even if he could choose, he would still not go back to the wild, as he didn't want to loose the only thing he still had: his human side. A small breeze came and tickled Shadow's nose, making him purr a little. It was a bit deep, as he wasn't a small kitty, but it still sounded a bit cute. He liked that part of him. It was one of the fewer parts of him that didn't make people stay away from him. He closed his eyes, trying to relax some more.

[XxLyraxX]

@MonsieurShade
Estelle paused as she watched Jacque grab the bucket that held the pigs food. She waited until the other had waded through them and deposited the food before she went back to her task. She had tried to feed the pigs once before, however, the bucket was so heavy she could barely lift it and when she finally got it over the side of the fence the pigs crowded around her so much that she had been knocked over and so she was given the easier task of collecting eggs. It was a fairly easy process: she spread the chicken seed around on the ground and while the birds ate she quickly collected the eggs and placed them inside the basket. Soon her bucket was full and the chickens were done feeding. She smiled down at them then looked up upon hearing Jacque's voice. It appeared he was done feeding the pigs. She gazed down at the rooster in question and shook her head. "No, he was the perfect gentleman." She said as she crouched down and gently petted the rooster who preened under her attention. A small smile flitted across Estelle's face as she petted Buck a few more moments before standing back up.

She then walked over to the stables and grabbed a curry brush. She then approached Weiss and climbed over to the fence to the stallion. She gently kissed his nose before she began brushing his mane and tail. Once all the tangles had been brushed out she climbed back over the fence, put the curry brush up and picked up her basket before looking up at Jacque.

[ViolentViolet]

@SilverWolfAngel

Luna had walked inside of the house slowly, her wings held tight against her back while she entered the house, walking quietly toward the kitchen and stepping inside just as Fade was finishing up with the grocery list. “Hey Fade.” She answered her, walking over to the island and sitting on one of the stools with her elbows on the marble counter top, her head resting on one of her palms. She wasn't showing how tired she was, or how worried, or how badly her vision last night had disturbed her, nor would she show how little she wanted any of them alone today. As the girl slid the page over to her she looked at it, taking a moment to figure out what it said and nodded quietly in response to the other girls’ voice. “I can read it, don’t worry.” The leader of the group picked up the pen while the other had been putting away the last of the things she had been counting and started writing out the list again in her clean script. Of the group of them, Luna had the best penmanship, having asked the scientists to teach her calligraphy before they had managed to make their escape shortly after the Flock went missing.

When Fade mentioned hunting she looked up again, setting the pen down on the counter again and looking at the black haired girl, tall and lanky like a boy though she could always tell that she was a girl regardless of her appearance. The leopard in her gave her that little talent for dealing with people, especially those of other species. “If you want to go hunting take Link or Shadow with you.” She said first, watching the girl with her normally very quiet eyes though the cool blue was haunted today, images of the night before stuck in her head as she had never forgotten anything before. “Belle is probably done already anyway. She’s usually very good at that.”

[The ghost in black]

@NightmareInd
"well thats good, I guess you can just relax until then right?" Belle asked before turning over and looking at shadow for a short while. As she stared she heard the low-pitch purring coming from him. Belle laughed a bit, "you're like a big cat sometimes and it's actually pretty cute" she said after she had finished and decided it was time to start her new job. "well I have to go collect stuff from the forest you can come with me If you want." Belle said as she stood up and walked to the edge of the roof and dropped down onto the balcony before walking inside to look for luna. She found her talking to fade and just hung back until they were done conversing.

[MonsieurShade]

Content to know that Buck wouldn't have to be served as a sunday supper, Jacque scooped up his own basket as Estelle went to go brush Weiss. The moment the girl left Buck's gaze, the rooster fluffed up his feathers and slowly began to advance on Jacque while sqwuaking to show him who ruled the roost, an action that was met with a rolling of eyes and a full extension of wings from the Jacque. "Not today you ornery old bastard, i've got work to do." Jacque rumbled before flapping his wings once and towering over the rooster. Being one of the more naturally aggressive members of the flock had it's perks, especially when it came to displays of dominance. After a hiss and another flaring of wings from Jacque Buck reluctantly backed off, though the rooster still continued to prance about as if he where king in front of the hens.

"Show off, any other day you'd be halfway up my leg." Jacque snorted as he noticed Estelle's return, "I bet he's only playing nice because you're here helping today. Just keep him busy and i'll be out in a bit.". Without a word more, Jacque sauntered over to the coop and slipped inside to begin his own collection. As he filled his basket, Jacque's tongue instinctively flickered. Halfway through his collection Jacque had to stop and recollect himself as he felt a bit of drool come down the corner of his mouth. Gila monster DNA did wonders for making one tough, but it played hell on one's instinctive impulses, especially when it came to eggs or anything that looked even remotely like it would make easy meat. Jacque shook his head to clear his mind, then wrapped up the rest of his collection before exiting the coop. "See? No time at all." Jacque said with a slightly glazed over look in his eye.

[l0ck0n]

To be the last one to wake up was not something Senka aimed for, but was always something she had done. While the others were given a task, and set on getting them done this early in the morning she, on the other hand, Threw an XL T-shirt on and slowly opened the door. Poking her head out to see if anyone was around she then squeezed her petite self through the small opening then closed the door. slowly, she began to tip-toe towards the kitchen to grab a quick snack before heading back to the room. Sneaking around was a challenge that she always accepted considering the fact that most of the group members had trained to heighten their senses like hearing, or eye sight. She was the lesser lucky one when it came to the five senses, so sneaking around every morning was always beneficial in one way or another.
While passing by a window she could hear the others either having a conversation, or simply walking around the house that the flock used to live in. Senka knew that at any moment one of the members could walk in and see her sneaking around, so before making it to the kitchen she stopped to make a mental map of where/where not to go.
The door is a direct no go...I could use the couch to hide behind if need be...there is a piece of wood that makes a noise when stepping over it, so remember that...
Thinking things over was always a good idea in her book because it produced more success than failures, but what Senka forgot was that stealth involved finding a hiding spot to think, so therefore the winged female was standing in a spot that was visible to even the animals outside.

[XxLyraxX]

Estelle waited patiently while Jacque collected his own eggs, distracting Buck by petting the rooster. The rooster was preening again under the girl's attentions, leaving plenty of time for Jacque to collect the eggs without the bird trying to defend the roost. Once her partner exited the coup, Estelle grabbed her basket once more. Seeing as the animals had been taken care of and the eggs collected Estelle decided it would be good to return to the house and see if anyone else needed help. She patted Buck in farewell and spread her wings. She walked away to a clear space and her wings began flapping. Soon a hum filled the air and she rose into the air.

She turned towards the direction of the house and began flying off. As she flew, a sound carried on the wind towards her. She paused, eyes looking around. She spotted something in the distance however it was too far away for her to see clearly what it was. She reached up and removed her glasses. Immediately the word was sharper and lit up in colors. She squinted in the sunlight before she made her eyes focus on the dot in the distance. Like a camera coming into focus, Estelle finally saw what it was. A mother eagle was flying over a rocky crevasse, clawing and striking at it. At first Estelle thought she was simply trying to reach prey however her movements seemed to....erratic. Her ears swiveled towards the bird and the eagle's distressed cries reached her ears mixed with a weaker cry.

Sensing something was wrong, Estelle focused to try and see what the eagle was trying to reach. Hidden in the shadow of the crevasse, she could barely make out the form of a baby bird. That must be the mother's child. She spied a nest right above the crevasse and figured the baby had fallen down. She hoped it wasn't hurt. But the mother wasn't able to reach the fledgling and the baby certainly couldn't stay where it was or it wouldn't last very long.

Estelle make a split-second decision. She sped towards the house and set her basket of eggs near the door before turning and racing towards the eagle as fast as her wings could take her. She sped through the air like a bullet and soon reached the mother. When the bird spotted her, she let a screech of warning. Estelle held up her hands in a placating gesture. "It's okay, I just want to help." She said soothingly. With her baby in danger, the eagle wasn't in the mood and struck out at Estelle with lethal talons. Estelle's fast reflexes were the only thing that saved her from a deep wound, darting to the side in the nick of time. However, she had been a second to slow and she let out a gasp as the talons glanced off the top of her shoulder. She didn't have time to focus on the wound at the moment and directed her attention back to the mother eagle.

It took a few more near hits before Estelle managed to calm the eagle down and let her near the crevasse. With her eyes locked on the eagle should she make any sudden moves, Estelle reached into the rock and gently extracted the baby eagle. Estelle make soothing noises as she slowly flew up to the nest and gently placed the eaglet down. She then backed up to let the eagle go to her baby. Estelle smiled as she looked at her shoulder. The wound wasn't too deep, mostly scratches. The girl turned and began flying towards the house, going more slowly than she had been in her rush to get to the baby.

[MonsieurShade]

After herding the hens back into their coop, Jacque slowly took off after Estelle, however by the time he was airborne the girl had already become a rapidly fading dot even to his incredible vision. For a moment Jacque wondered what could possibly get her so worked up, however the answer soon made itself known in the form of the distressed keening of an eagle in the distance. Jacque swiveled his head in the direction of the cries, however he made no move towards the sound. As far as he was concerned, whatever was going on in that direction was just a matter of nature taking its course, meaning he had no right to interfere. It was soon apparent that Estelle did not share this mentality, as she zoomed towards the keening eagle at speeds Jacque could only dream of reaching. "Fuck but that kid is fast..." He muttered as he prepared to follow after his younger sibling to defend her if the eagle became hostile. He hadn't made it but a few meters before Estelle began her flight back to the house at a much more relaxed pace.

Jacque rolled his eyes and took off after her as quickly as he could without dropping or damaging any of the eggs in flight. If there was anything that could better illustrate the difference in flight abilities between Jacque and Estelle, Jacque couldn't think of it. Even at his current speed, Jacque was just barely able to catch up with Estelle even as she remained at a slower pace. "You've got to warn people when you're going to go off like that. You know how dangerous it is for you to...do I smell blood?" Jacque suddenly picked up the pace, the eggs be damned. At his top speed he was still leagues slower that Estelle, however it did the trick to get him ahead of her long enough for him to turn around. "Estelle, did that thing hurt you?" He asked with an underlying tone of venom in his voice. There weren't many instances that Jacque actually used Estelle's actual name, only when he considered a situation serious or when she was in trouble, and right now it was a bit of both that kept him from calling her munchkin. Jacque flapped in placed as he glanced at Estelle's shoulder, then glared balefully in the direction of the eagle, "Oh, it is so fucking DEAD.". Now Jacque was pissed, nothing injured his family and got away with it unscathed. He flew around Estelle and began making his way towards the eagle and her chick, intent on repaying the injury to Estelle's shoulder with some bloodshed of his own.

[l0ck0n]

Even in the house Senka heard the distant screech of a bird that sent shivers down her spine. It was natural for her to be afraid of the sounds since it came from the biggest, and most dangerous bird to even humans. When she took a few steps back to look out of the window she saw Estelle, who looked as if she had just ran a mile in under 2 minutes. In front of her was the strongest male of the group whose blood had drained from his face making him look as if he had died right then and there. On top of that even Senka could see that the males mind and body are attempting to get ready for war without a second thought as to the dangerous outcome he could possibly put the rest of the group into.
"Oh boy..." the avian female whispered under her breath as she sprinted backwards towards her room. Once there, she opened the door, and grabbed one of her light torn jeans that was laying on the ground. It was dirty, but finding something clean to put on was not at the top of her list when there was a dragon outside about to set the whole forest on fire. Without even closing the door Senka stormed out of her room, and hopped towards the door while putting one foot into the jeans leg. Before even reaching the door she had fallen attempting to shove her other foot into the right side of the jeans leg. When she fell the right leg had slipped in so she had pulled up her pants, and once again stood up to run to the door.
Once there, she turned the door knob, and swung it open. "LUNA, GET THE DRAGON!"
Using dragon wasn't the best thing she could have done since it was more of a nickname for Jacque that only existed in her mind, but at the moment she was thinking about it, so it was an accidental slip of the tongue.@ViolentViolet

[SilverWolfAngel]

Fade watched as Luna copied down the list, her writhing neat and tidy, a huge contrast to Fade's own scrawl.

“If you want to go hunting take Link or Shadow with you. Belle is probably done already anyway. She’s usually very good at that.”

Her eyes lighting up, Fade grinned, debating which one to ask, although both might work best. As she was debating, she could hear the faint crying of a bird, although she wasn't entirely sure of the exact spices of bird, it did sound like a big one. It was none of her business, as long as it wasn't attacking the pack.

At least, it was none of her business until Senka came charging through, and out the door, yelling for Luna to get a dragon. Blinking stupidly, Fade wondered what the hell was a dragon as she hurried after Senka, out the door, where she spied, well more like smelled, the problem. She could smell blood, red on Estelle’s arm, making her protective self rise up, glaring round to see what had hurt one of her family.

Jacque was flying off past Estelle, a dangerous feel to him, making Fade glad she was on his side. “What happened? Who did that? Where is he?” Fade growled out, following Jacque’s line of flight to a …… bird. The hair on the back of her neck relaxed ever so slightly, realizing it wasn’t a human predator. “A bird did this?” She demanded, still angry, but slightly less likely to kill something.

For the most part Fade understood the cycle of nature, or whatever other cheesy name you wanted to call it, but it still rankled when it was her family that was being messed with. Snapping open her black wings she took a short run up and flung herself into the air, quickly swooping over to Estelle and waiting for an answer.

[ViolentViolet]

As Luna was writing she bounced her leg on the floor, her heel tapping quickly as her free hand drummed without rhythm on the table and her penmanship got worse as she scribbled on the page. She could feel it, the incessant tingling in her limbs as danger neared or happened and she couldn't help but look about wondering where it would come from. It wasn't coming toward her either, it was sitting in one place but the scent of blood on the wind sent her running long before anyone had said anything. Her blood cooled and sizzled in her veins and the shakes started before she’d made it outside to see Estelle’s shoulder bleeding and the man she’d been with already heading off toward the place where the small girl had been injured. The young woman landed on the ground and crossed her arms under her chest to hide the way she was shaking with the urge to go. The grocery list was crumpled in her hand as she looked up at them, eyes cold and slit pupils.

“Everyone! On the ground!”

Luna called out the order without mercy, anger in her voice and her body language and already she was moving onto the leader-like attitude she often adopted while she really had to take charge but this time it was unlike most of the others. Her vision had set her on edge this morning and she was not in the mood to deal with the tugging and her flock at the same time. She knew pretty well that Jacque wouldn't want to listen to her and she turned her gaze to him specifically, waiting for him to drop back to the ground instead. Luna was tense, her shoulders and muscles taught while her wings held tight against her back in a defensive motion and it was clear that she was already on edge – even more so then any other day they had seen her like this though it was more often after she had come back from a disappearance.

“No one leaves while I’m gone.”

They all knew Luna would be leaving today anyway, though what they didn't know was why apart from the groceries. She could easily have brought someone along with her but she was adamant right then that they would stay and the way she spoke left no room for argument or discussion.

[MonsieurShade]

Jacque sneered as he froze in mid flight at the sound of Luna's voice, his lips tightly pulled back in a snarl that showed every single one of the scissor like teeth in the front of his mouth. He'd heard someone yelling from inside the cabin, though he'd been a bit too far away to make out who it was and what they were saying, however Luna's voice rang out loud and clear from the deck of the cabin. Jacque didn't face Luna or the others for a few seconds, rather he continued to stare ahead at the eagle until he felt Luna's gaze on the back of his head. This and the sudden realization of the fact that he'd probably broken some of his eggs convinced Jacque to turn back and slowly descend in the circular manner he often used. It took a bit of time, but Jacque made his landing, hitting the ground with a solid thud just a few inches to Luna's left.

Jacque's expression softened soon after landing, he still wanted to tear that damned bird apart, however orders were orders. He stretched his wings one last time and tucked them in before looking at the basket to access the damage. Out of the nineteen eggs he'd collected, he could see two had broken and another three where cracked, "Oh goddamn it..." Jacque muttered before closing a bit of the distance between himself and Luna. With the exception of Estelle, all of the group where pretty tall, however Jacque was definitely one of the more massive specimens, towering head, shoulders, and chest over Luna as he stared down at her. He hardened his gaze just a bit as he parted his lips, seeming as though he was about to either argue or defend his actions, what came out instead was: "I know you're getting ready to head out and all that, but we've gotta sit Estelle down and talk to her about wandering off and messing with wild animals when you get back. A few inches up and that bird could have torn open her damn throat." in a flat tone.

It was rare for Jacque to ever willingly taken a proactive role in how the group was to be dealt with, usually he just followed orders, or every once in a blue moon, acted as an enforcer and punished one of the others after clearing this action with Luna to ensure the group wouldn't hold it against her when physical reprimanding was in order. Jacque didn't like it, but it had to be done sometimes. Right now however the concern in his voice and usage of the word "we" rather than "you" or even "I" meant that Jacque considered the matter extreme enough to warrant both of them saying something together.

[XxLyraxX]

When Jacque caught up to her and saw the blood on her shoulder she knew there was going to be trouble in store for her. When he asked if the bird had hurt her she winced at the anger she heard in his voice. When he proceeded to fly around her and head towards the bird with eyes promising pain, Estelle gasped and used her wings to dart around him and hover in front of him, arms extended in a weak attempt to stop him from reaching the bird. Then she heard Senka scream something about a dragon which confused Estelle greatly but she then focused as Fade flew out to join them. Estelle looked back and forth between Fade and Jacque, torn between keeping the oldest Flock member from taking his revenge out on the eagle and her baby and explaining what had happened.

Then Luna's voice rang through the air, ordering everyone to land. Estelle let out a breath she didn't even know she had been holding when Jacque froze before grudgingly landing on the ground. The young girl hovered there for a few moments before she hesitantly flew down to the ground, folding her wings against her back. She listened quietly as Luna stated that no one was to leave while she went to the store. Estelle nodded quietly, shoulders tensing when Jacque spoke up. She flinched at the tone his voice held and bit her lip. She understood she should have warned someone before going off like she did, it was a reckless action but she wasn't going to regret saving the baby bird.

She knew the others would have been content to let nature take its course and leave the birds alone but Estelle wouldn't have been able to forgive herself if she had done nothing and the baby bird had died. There was too much death in the world as it was and if she had the power to save at least one small life then she was going to try her hardest. However, even if she was going to stand by her actions that didn't mean she wasn't guilty that she had made the others worry so much.

She felt tears prick her eyes as her stomach clenched. She bowed her head so the others couldn't see, shoulders hunched and hands gripping the hem of her shirt. She hated that she had caused the others worry and she would take her punishment without a fight. She understood they only wanted her to be safe and that by her being wounded made them mad. She took her glasses out of her pocket and pushed them back onto her face, bangs hiding her eyes as her ears dropped slightly.

[l0ck0n]

While the others were outside taking care of both situations Senka walked back into the house to grab a small bag that was under the sink in the kitchen. She didn't know the extent of Estelle's injuries, but did know that the bag was needed when the smell of blood lingered in the air. "It was a good idea that Fade, and Luna were here." she murmured to herself. If they were outside then the outcome would have been quite different depending on where everyone was. Senka wasn't as fast when flying as the others were as well, so it would have been nearly impossible to catch Jacque from doing something he'd regret, and from the possible outcome that the others would be put into. She herself could admit that over thinking things, and giving things an exaggerated outcome was dangerous in itself, but when these sort of situations came up it was good to be prepared beforehand.

Walking back out Senka noticed Fade, who at the moment, was focused on Estelle, so she decided to walk in their direction. The sun was not strong enough to cause the temperature to change yet, but looking up she could make out a few dark clouds in the distance. It was difficult for them to fly in the rain, so this would either have to be settled quick or taken inside. Another option was to pause the whole situation to be able to finish the chores in time before the storm came, but the chores could be finished at night if no one paid any mind to mud.

"Here," Senka nudged Fade with the bag, "This might help with th-" Senka's hands clamped over her mouth to keep from screaming. Being this close she was able to get a clear view of what had made Jacque angry. Even if the wound was small the blood surrounding it made the wound look massive. It was difficult to calm down enough to be able to think when she had no idea what had happened, but making decisions that were based on adrenaline was not a good idea. "Fade, let's take her inside? She may need to sit down." the avian female whispered towards the other while she overheard what Jacque was telling Luna.

[SilverWolfAngel]

“Everyone! On the ground! No one leaves while I’m gone.”

Luna's voice rang out, grabbing Fade's attention. Glancing down, she saw Luna, mad as hell, glaring up at them. Looking at the other two, Fade watched as first Jacque then Estelle dropped down next to Luna. Fade was not the leader of the pack, so she was happy to follow orders, but right then she really, really wanted to disobey, to not come down, to fly somewhere, rip apart anything that hurt her family, but the wolf in her knew that listening to Luna was the best for the pack, and what was best for the pack would pretty much always win out over her violent, rebellious urges every time.

Growling softly, she sped down, alighting behind and to the side of Estelle, and folding her wings with a rustle.

"Here," she felt something nudge against her side and looked down at the bag Senka was offering, "This might help with th-" Nodding Fade took the bag, and just in time as instead of finishing her sentence Senka had clapped a hand over her mouth.

"Fade, let's take her inside? She may need to sit down." Fade just nodded, gently placing a hand on Estelle’s non-injured shoulder, she bent down and muttered softly; “Come inside, we’ll clean you up, kay?”

Truthfully she was going to drag Estelle inside kicking and screaming if that’s what it took, but she preferred to do this the easy way and get Estelle to come in as her own choice.

[NightmareInd]

Shadow smiled when Belle mentioned him being a big cat. She then mentioned something about getting stuff out of the forest for her chores. "I think I can help you with that." He followed her lead and dropped onto the balcony as well. That was when he picked up the scent: blood. his animal instinct tried to take over, and Shadow allowed it for a second, till he found out what the source of the blood was. This scent... It's a bird... whait, no, it's a cat... Whait, it ain't, it's... human? That was the moment he realised one of them was the injured one. He walked towards Belle, knowing the scent was somewhere outside and trying to avoid it, so his instincts couldn't take over. On his way he saw Luna walking towards the source, probably smelling it as well. He could hear her say that everyone needed to be on the ground, and no one was allowed to leave till she got back. "So... does that mean we can't go into the forest anymore?" Shadow said to Belle, trying to take his mind off the scent.

[ViolentViolet]

Luna sighed as Jacque walked up to her and she already knew what he was going to say though and as he spoke she looked him dead in the eye, still partially hiding the twitchiness that was threatening to overcome her entirely and as he looked down at her silver eyes met his with a sternness that only ever appeared when it needed to. "Jacque." She responded, her voice level and calm as her hands her held together behind her back. She lifted up on the balls of her feet and her elbows cracked loudly as she moved so that she was face to face with the bigger boy. Her wings unfurled enough that they blocked the two from the sun behind her and as she spoke she looked him dead in the eyes with a look that told him that she would punish the enforcer if he disobeyed her right now. "You will watch them. Keep them safe, but do not kill anyone or anything." She all but growled her orders had him, very clear with her words as the silver stared at him with a desperation that she was trying to keep hidden from them, though if this was going to work she needed him to be able to follow that order and keep them safe in the case that she fails. She had to drive away the danger.

"Do not look for me."

And with that the young woman turned away from him and crouched in front of the ten year old girl that had gone flying straight into danger instead of waiting or coming to see Luna first. "And you." She started, still stern but more of a mother than a brutal, threatening tyrant that she had to be with the lizard boy, and she looked at the girl with silver eyes that seemed to soften a shade. "You need to learn not to do that anymore. Mother birds won't take care of a chick that's been touched by someone else." She had to educate the girl, as well as make her see that what she had done had probably caused more harm than good. Gathering from the two and the talon marks she had figured out pretty easily what had actually happened between her and the large, predatory bird that had hurt her in the first place. "You should always come get me when you see something like that. I'll take care of it, alright?" She said to the smaller girl before standing up ad ruffling her hair with a hand, smiling at her to make her feel a little it better. "Now go inside and get looked after okay? We'll talk after."

Luna had seen the other two approaching when she'd spoken and knew that her second in command and Fade would be able to take care of her, though as the wolf girl spoke to Senka, Luna dropped a hand on her shoulder and leaned in closer to whisper in her ear. "Think before you act, never hesitate to follow command." She knew their flaws, the way they would act in certain situations and their strengths and fears. She had seen the flock without her and she knew it would be just fine. "Don't look for a fight, it'll get Estelle killed." And with that the leader turned away from her and walked to the edge of the house where she jumped up onto the porch roof and walked onto the roof of the house to see Belle and Shadow sitting together. They were too close for them to be able to handle leading their flock, but she had to trust they wouldn't let anything get between them and protecting everyone.

The snow leopard came to a stop in front of them and looked at the two, just in time to hear Shadow ask the girl if they could still go to the forest and she sighed, her pale lips parting. "It means, do not leave." She stated clearly, with each word enunciated properly and slowly so that he would understand what she meant by the phrase. She didn't want anyone leaving until she got back; if she didn't come back they wouldn't have a choice but to go. The sun on her skin made her dark spots pop out more than they usually do, the places rings and lines on her skin where the cat would have had fur she only had these discolourations. They were one of the reasons she had been on the kill list, and why she had an expiration date attached to her genetic coding. Unlike everyone else, the lab could have killed her as soon as she was gone but they let her live for a reason. They still needed them to hunt down Max.

"Stay with everyone, keep watch. Don't let anything sneak up on you."

That was all Luna said before turning away from them and jumping off the roof of the house to land in the grass, barefoot and leaving behind the imprints of her feet as she stood in the shade at the back of the house. The fire in her blood had begun to turn to pain but she had to make sure everyone that everyone thought she was just going out to get groceries instead of essentially walk right toward her own demise. She leaned back, the wood against her skin cold and taking off the edge of the pain though when she moved again it was to go into her bedroom through the window and pick up her back pack. It was stuffed with an extra set of clothes, cash money, her wallet, first aid supplies and a couple of knives. Her pager, cell phone and note left on the bed that no one would notice until it became apparent that she wasn't coming back to them. As a last second decision she pulled her laptop from under her bed and slipped it into her bag, none of them knew she'd ever had it since it was government issue that she had kept secret from them. She had keeping secrets but she had to to keep them safe. Setting back out through the window she left the door locked and the window shut as she walked back around the front of the house and waved to those who were still outside.

"I'll be back soon, okay guys? Don't do anything stupid while I'm gone!"

[MonsieurShade]

Jacque nodded silently as listned to Luna's orders. He tensed slightly, however there was no fear on his face, only caution as he recognized the look that was being given to him. Jacque was all too aware of what could happen if he and Luna ever had to come to blows, he was built to be sturdy -at least by bird kid standards- but she could still cause him serious injury or even kill him, just as he could her. This and the fact that he respected and trusted her and her judgement meant that he was content following her orders. Jacque tucked his own wings in as a sign of submission, "You've got it, i'll make sure they stay safe.". As Luna walked away to speak to the others, Jacque stared at her with a perplexed expression. There was something different in the way she'd looked at him this time, as if there was something that was genuinely worrying her that she couldn't talk about.

When it came time for Luna to leave, Jacque silently watched her wave to everyone for a bit before he briskly walked over to her, closing the distance in a few strides. With only a few centimeters between them, Jacque did something that he almost never did: He wrapped both of his arms around Luna's midsection and picked her up, encompassing her in a hug. With her being at face level to himself, Jacque tilted his head and brought his mouth close to her ear, "You be careful out there, i'll make sure to protect everyone here. I bet my life on it.". He held her for a few seconds more before gently putting her back down and turning to the others with a shrug. Given how rarely he actually showed affection outside of a fist bump, a ruffling of the hair, or a slug on the shoulder, Jacque squelched any possible questions regarding the action with his next statement, "Figured I may as well get one hug in since Luna's heading out on freedom day.".

[l0ck0n]

"Jacque..." was all that came out when she had seen what the dragon did. Senka's eyes were wide with shock while her mouth hung open at what had just happened. It was not in the mutants nature to hug someone in the group, or at least she had never seen him hug anyone. Slowly turning to Fade she pointed to Jacque "Did you see that?"
Even though she was shocked about what the dragon had done Luna's words to her stood out from all of the other things in her mind. Because of that Senka looked away for a quick second to be able to gather those thoughts. I am second in command therefore I need to enforce the rules, and keep everything from getting chaotic like Luna has done. Deep down the female held a bit of fright at the fact that Luna had never left her in command for so long. Even if the leader had said nothing Senka could tell that something was going to happen because of the way she had left that message. Whatever the case was she had hope that Luna would come back unscathed. Until then, whether she was scared of the position or not, she was in command, and was to make sure that everyone would not have a single scratch on them while their leader was gone. It didn't take Senka but a few seconds to settle those thoughts, so when she did she opened her eyes just in time to see Luna fly off.
Watching Luna leave sent tears to Senka's eyes, but the female swallowed them away, and raised her hands up to her face "Alright everyone," then clapped a few times to get the others attention "From the looks of it a storm is coming, so we need to go inside before it gets here. Finish up the chores Luna has given you all, and we'll have a small meeting once everyone is done, alright?"

[XxLyraxX]

Estelle kept her gaze focused on the ground, unable to look up and see the disappointment she knew was shining in the others eyes. She knew her split-second decision had been rash and she should have stopped and told Jacque about what was happening but she hadn't and now the others were mad at her. Her stomach clenched at the thought. She didn't like having the other angry at her, it made her feel ill. At least you were the only one that got hurt. It's better for you to be hurt than for others to suffer. A small part of her whispered. As she stood there she felt a hand on her uninjured shoulder. She managed to quickly blink away to tears before she lifted her head. It was Fade and Senka, both of whom were telling her to come inside and sit down. She nodded silently however before she could take a step she felt someone kneel in front of her. She turned her gaze to Luna, listening quietly. After Luna finished Estelle nodded and turned towards the house, spreading her wings. She rose into the air but before she got far she wobbled. She blinked, frowning as the pain in her arm made itself known. She glanced at her shoulder and was shocked at the amount of blood there was. No wonder the others were so mad but it hadn't looked like this when she had seen it before!

The sight of the blood made her feel slightly dizzy and her wings faltered slightly but she managed to catch herself before she fell. She never had been good with the sight of blood. She stubbornly kept heading for the house and when she landed on the porch her legs felt slightly wobbly but she ignored it and headed into the house, snagging her egg basket on the way. She stood on her tip toes to gently place the basket on the counter before heading to the bathroom. The light flicking on made her blink rapidly as her eyes adjusted to the light. She climbed up onto the counter and shrugged her shirt off, now dressed in her tank top she wore under the shirt and her shorts. Her eyes widened as she looked at her shoulder. The tattered remains of her shirt hadn't allowed the child to see the extent of her wound. What she had originally mistaken for just a few scratches was actually deep cuts that ran from the top of her shoulder down her arm a few inches. The wound was still bleeding and she felt her head spin slightly once again at the sight of the blood. She shook her head sharply and climbed down, grabbing a wash rag from the cupboard. She climbed back onto the sink and wet the rag under the faucet before gently beginning to wipe the blood from her shoulder.