A/N: "Angel" is coming out on Valentine's Day. In honor of it, I'll start my first ever Maximum Ride full-length story. I have it all sketched out, so you have nothing to worry about. Except for the fact that all the sketched out chapters were left at school… Set between "Fang" and "Angel".

Disclaimer: I own nothing. Max's POV.

"Max?" asked Angel from where she stood behind me. "What are you doing?"

I was currently busy cramming a backpack with food that wouldn't spoil if I was gone for days. The backpack was bulky and getting somewhat heavy, but I was fine with that. I had the speed that I would need all in my powers. The wings were a huge advantage when going on a search mission.

"Max?" came Iggy's voice. I could almost feel his sightless stare piercing my skin and it sent shivers up and down my spine. "What's going on?"

I just tried not to let myself really think about all this. My head was focused on the one thing at hand and they weren't going to distract me. They couldn't distract me.

"Max?" Angel asked one more time. She wasn't skimming through my thoughts yet, but I was assuming she would do it soon enough. If I didn't answer her, she was going to read my mind. Then she would tell everyone. And they would try to stop me. And I didn't want them to stop me.

I shoved another small jar of peanut butter in the backpack. It bulged a little bit more. I tried to ignore them. I had to ignore them or they'd stop me.

"Max," breathed the small little girl that I had practically raised as my own daughter. "You don't want to do this."

"Yes, I do," I hissed, shoving a pre-made sandwich into the bag. Then I started to zip it up and haul it over one shoulder and settle it in the middle of my back so that it didn't bother my wings as I flew. "I have to."

"Max…"

"I'm going." I stalked out of the room past Iggy and through the living room where Dylan and Gazzy watched a bomb explode on the television we had settled on a nearly broken coffee table. "You guys won't stop me?"

"Max?" asked Dylan, the fear clearly showing in his pitchy voice. "What's going on?"

I blasted through the front door and stared out into the open air, knowing I had to get out before anyone grabbed me or stopped me. I didn't want to be stopped. No one could stop me. I would fight them before they tried. My wings ripped out of my shirt and spread out in the faint light of the glowing sun that filtered through the misty clouds.

"Max, don't do this," Angel warned again, voice now harder and colder. But she wouldn't control me. I knew she wouldn't. She still had a few shreds of respect for me being the leader of our flock. She wasn't going to annihilate that respect yet. "You don't know what you'll get yourself into."

"You don't know either," I breathed, finding my heart pounding in my chest. "I have to leave, Angel. You don't understand it. It hurts without him."

"Max?" Dylan asked once more, his voice floating through the door that led out to the open world of the forest around us and the sight of the big blue sky. "What's going on?" The panic was literally coming off of him in waves and I could feel it easily.

I closed my eyes and just imagined myself falling through the air to begin my journey. "I'm going to find Fang." My heart lifted just a little bit to even think of getting him back. "I can't live without him."

"Max!" came Dylan's desperate cry just a second before I took my dive.

I fell into the canyon that opened up in front of me, diving into the empty air before soaring off towards the sun. "Dylan's in charge!" I called over one shoulder, the backpack still nestled between my wings. The clouds covered the bright blue sky, hiding it from me. I had to leave. To find Fang. Because I couldn't live without him.

A/N: Next chapter will be up soon. Review please and thank you.

~Sky