Last Chapter! And no, Fang's not dead (you wouldn't believe how many people yelled at me for that cliffy :P )
Disclaimer: No, just no.

Chapter Nine

I stood there in absolute silence. I felt like I was standing in the eye of a hurricane. Wind, water, and debris raged past me, and I stood still, like one more step and I'd be part of the wreckage whipping around me.

And then, something that still brings goose bumps and rage and fear and relief and almost any other emotion you can think of to me, Fang walked in the door. I swear I could have killed him right then and there, for bringing so much pain and anger and confusion in my life as only he could ever do.

Instead of killing him like I probably should have, I stared, the agents forgotten around me, I stared at Fang. He looked about the same as he did the last time I saw him; shaggy black hair, deep, dark eyes, and olive skin. Only now he sported stubble along his chin, he'd grown a few inches, and put on a couple more pounds of muscle. If it was possible, he was hotter now than before.

For what seemed like eternity, he stared back, until giving me that smile that he saves just for me, the one that literally makes my heart stop, "Hi Max."

"Hey Fang," I whispered in disbelief.

He held up a box of bandages, "I had to run to the store."

"What for?" talking with him was so natural it felt like those two years of separation had never happened.

"Cut my hand on an ax," he showed me his hand wrapped in a dishtowel, "didn't know appendages bled that much."

Maybe it was because I just now realized he was wearing a flannel shirt and hiking boots and had just cut his hand on an ax, or maybe I was in shock, but I started to laugh. And I couldn't stop if I wanted to. Tears streamed down my face in a mix of tears of joy and laughter and in sorrow for the rest of the Flock, who I'd never be reunited with like this. I closed my eyes and wiped some of the tears away.

Strong arms closed around my waist and I instinctually flung my own arms around Fang's neck, burying my face into his chest, "I missed you so much," he whispered into my hair.

After breathing in his scent that I'd gone so long without, I pushed him back a little and slapped him across his face as hard as I possibly could, "Then why the hell did you leave?"

He grinned despite the mark I'd left, "You know why."

At this point, I didn't care why. I'd slapped him, reminding him we had to talk about some things, but Fang was here, right now, and that's all that mattered.

XXXXXXXXXX

Fang squeezed my hand in reassurance as I stood in front of the entire NCIS team—Gibbs, McGee, Ziva, Tony, Ducky, Abby, and Vance.

"I was rusty at fighting Erasers, so I got hurt pretty bad, and that's why you caught me that day in the park. And that's how I got to be here, at NCIS, for the first time, and the rest you know," the truth was the least I owed these people. And this time, I told the whole truth, without skipping over or lying about anything.

Abby was the first to break from the shock of our story, she rushed forward to throw her surprisingly thin strong arms around me, crushing my lungs.

"Oh Max! I'm so sorry I was mean to you! You didn't deserve any of it! I hope you forgive me!" she continued to wring the life from me and beg for my forgiveness at the same time.

"Abby!" she stepped back, startled, at my bark. "I deserved what I got; I was a bitch to you guys at first. I wanted to be as far away from this place as possible, and you guys were the only thing that stood in the way." I took a deep breath, "I don't say this often, but I'm sorry."

I swear Gibbs smiled, no lie.

"Max," Vance's voice cut through the mushy, sobby stuff I hate ever so much, "what are your plans after you leave?"

I shrugged and glanced at Fang, "We aren't really sure yet, but we're good at thinking on the fly," no pun intended.

Vance smiled and stood, the first time I ever saw a single emotion on his face other than annoyance, "On behalf of NCIS, I'd like to offer you a paid internship and free housing—"

"No," I cut in softly.

He seemed flabbergasted, as did everyone else.

"I'm sorry," I said to everyone, "but nothing good comes to those that hang around us." Tony opened his mouth to protest, probably something about how we'd gone over this a million times before, but I didn't let him start. "And besides that, I was thinking I just want to go live somewhere in peace and quiet. I don't think I can deal with any more excitement."

Ziva chuckled, "You say that now, but you are only seventeen. You have barely begun to live."

I smiled, but turned back to Vance, "So no, I'm sorry, but I can't take it. Thank you though."

He seemed to understand my decision, if not necessarily like it, "Let me know if you ever change your mind."

"I will."

"How much longer are you going to stay in D.C.?" Gibbs asked.

Fang answered, "Two days."

"You can stay with me," Ziva offered.

"Fang can come too?" These days, I wasn't letting him out of my sight.

XXXXXXXXXX

We sat on the roof of Ziva's town house, basking in the glow of the sunrise. I was curled into Fang's arms, with his chin resting atop my head.

"How's your hand doing?" I asked sleepily.

"Good, almost healed."

Minutes of silence passed before Fang spoke again, "Do you think they're okay wherever they are now?"

I had told Fang about the Flock shortly after finding him, and of course, with him being Fang, I had no idea how he was taking it. "I hope so, they deserve it, after all they went through."

"Max?"

"Hmm?"

"I'm sorry about Jeb," he drew circles on my arm, causing goose bumps.

I sighed into his chest, "It's not your fault."

"Why do you think he did it?" his soft voice whispered into my ear.

I shrugged, "The note he left didn't make much sense, and I really don't want to dwell on it now."

"Okay," he murmured before catching my lips with his own, maneuvering us so that I sat on his lap.

It had been forever since I'd been kissed, and I rather missed it. The feel of his lips pressed against mine, and his tongue tracing my mouth. I don't know how I survived without that feeling of fire in my belly at Fang's touch. The same touch that made me go weak in the knees and short a marble in the head. I only knew that I would never be able to go that long without it ever again.

Ziva's voice carried through the open window below us that we'd used to come up here. Fang stole one more kiss before pulling me up and jumping through the window. I followed him in and got ready for my last day at NCIS.

XXXXXXXXXX

I stood staring at a green speck on a slide, and then back to the monitor, which contained a larger, magnified version of the microscope slide. "Oh my gosh Abby! It does look like Elvis!"

"I know!" she squealed in delight.

"What looks like Elvis?" Ziva asked, waltzing through the sliding doors.

I pointed at the screen, "This flu bacterium."

"Ah," she said, as if she should have known. Ziva plopped some files on Abby's desk.

"Hey Ziva?"

"Yes Max?"

"Are you guys busy right now?" This was my last day here, and I wanted to do something other than look at germs, as interesting as it was and all.

"No, not since we finished the Petty Officer's case." And by finished, Ziva really meant NCIS planted some evidence to incriminate a minor but destructive local mob boss, someone they really needed off the streets. It was their favor to me, strike all records of my help, and get a baddie behind bars. Everyone won, except for the baddie of course, but he was, after all, bad. And the Petty Officer had no family to bring justice to anyway, it was only him, and his murderers had already been taken care of, in a far less legal way. "Why do you ask?"

"I thought you might want me to teach you a few fighting tricks? And there were a couple things I was hoping you could help me with." Yes, me, Maximum Ride, had just asked for help. But hey, these people had forcibly shoved some humility down my throat this past week, something I probably needed a little of.

Ziva grinned, "I thought you were never going to ask. Come on," she said, even though I was already up and on my way to the stairs.

I ran into Fang, literally, and we went sprawling. Once we regained our footing, I looked at him questioningly, "What did the guys want with you?" He looked flustered, and I had a hunch it wasn't just because he fell down a few steps.

"Nothing," he responded, but I detected a really, really light blush crawl up his cheeks as we came out onto the main floor, which held the workout room.

"Uh huh," I said unconvinced.

"Nothing, honest. You'll find out soon enough."

I ignored him, a little peeved, as we walked into the gym. Mats covered a large section of the floor, with cardio and weight lifting rooms branching out from the main one. Punching bags, some free weights, and ropes hanging from the ceiling decorated the huge space dedicated to fighting. This was my sort of place.

"Max, Fang!" Ziva called from the other side of the room. We made our way over, stopping by Ziva who was already dressed in workout clothes and strapping on gloves. "Do you want to spar first?"

I shrugged, "Sure."

She threw me some gloves after I took off my sweatshirt and handed it to Fang. He silently took it and sat on a bench close to the area we were practicing on.

I wish I could say it was like my life had been newly re-lighted, like I could see again, once I found Fang. But having Fang back, it was like it should have always been like this. Nothing special, just like my life had been empty (cheesy, I know), but now all was right. No fireworks, except when we kissed, just a wholeness that would never dull. A completeness that made me want to smile. I don't know, I'm probably just crazy. I mean, when did I start writing mushy love thoughts anyway?

Ziva rolled her neck and did a few stretches. Me, I just shook out my wings from the back of my tank top, grateful that we were the only ones in the gym. After Ziva deemed herself warmed up, we faced off. It went a lot like last time, minus the evil glares.

I attacked, and Ziva countered. My foot flew by her shoulder as she twisted out of the way while launching her fist towards my face. I ducked and moved to sweep out her feet, but I knew I was too slow and switched my plan of attack, instead springing up and catching her with my foot in her gut. I made sure to pull all my punches so I didn't cause serious damage, but she still doubled over before momentarily righting herself and coming at me.

Ziva's fist clipped my jaw, with me barely dodging it at all. I spun with the punch though, eliminating its effectiveness, and dropped to the ground under her follow up kick. This time I tackled her legs out from under her, bringing her down to the mat. Before she even fully hit the blue mat, she rolled, sending me diving towards empty air. I grunted and leaped back to my feet, jumping away from her roundhouse kick.

As I staggered backwards from the kick, Ziva ran at me, punching her fist into my nose and snapping my head back. I twisted out of the way before another fist attacked my head. I brought my left leg up and snap-kicked her abdomen, sending her reeling. Ziva was good though, and she flexed just as my foot hit her, lessening the effect immensely, even though she'd undoubtedly have a bruise in the morning.

I could feel the blood dripping from my nose down my face and onto the blue mat, but I didn't wipe it away. I was too focused on Ziva. And the second my eyes flickered towards the sound of an opening door, she sprung at me, efficiently kicking my lower stomach and sending me stumbling.

The stumbling though, was just effect, because Ziva backed off then, and I charged, grabbing her arm and twisting, sending her flying over me and backpedalling at the same time, knocking her off balance (it was a move the Flock and I'd developed). Ziva however, quickly regained her footing. With a finalized resolve, I used my own roundhouse kick, slamming it into her shoulder and following with a heel to her chest with the opposite foot. She stumbled backwards, crashing to the ground where I hurriedly sat on her back, keeping her effectively pinned.

I wiped the sweat off my forehead and looked around to find the source of the applause in the air. Over were I'd last seen Fang was Gibbs, Tony, Vance and him. Tony and Vance clapped slowly, and the other two just looked at us. Fang had known I'd win, and his face didn't show much surprise, but in Gibbs closely guarded expression, I could almost see a flicker of shock. I'd learned by now that most people considered Ziva one of the best fighters around, although I'm sure Gibbs could hold his own in a fight.

I jumped off Ziva's back and helped her up. The victory felt bitter-sweet, I knew I could have beaten her before the fight had even really begun, because I'd pulled my strength and I didn't use my wings, but I still felt Ziva had given me a run for my money, one of the best humans I'd ever fought.

"Nice job," I told her sincerely.

She looked a little agitated, not at me, but herself. She was one of those people who expected too much of themselves. "You too Max."

I walked over to the boys, excepting a towel from Tony to wipe the blood off my face.

"Do you think you could teach me how to do that flip you just did?" Tony asked, getting kind of excited.

I looked at Fang, "Do you want to do it? You're better at it."

He nodded and motioned for Tony to follow him. Tony suddenly didn't look so eager. I couldn't really blame him; Fang looked a whole lot more intimidating than I did.

"Where did you learn to fight like that Max?" Vance asked me once Tony and Fang had started their 'lesson'.

I threw the towel over by my sweatshirt. "We picked up some of it from traveling, Jeb taught us a little, a lot of self teaching, and then there was a brief stint with the Navy in Hawaii," I said, watching Tony be thrown through the air and land on his ass with a grunt.

"You trained with the Navy?" Gibbs asked, voice almost devoid of the surprise that shone in his eyes.

I snorted, "Fat lot of good that did. We taught them more than they taught us."

"Why isn't it in any of the records?" Vance questioned suspiciously.

"Because they failed at the job they were given. No one puts failures in records," I explained distractedly. Tony was growling in annoyance at getting beat up by, and I quote, "a seventeen year old punk."

Gibbs and Vance shared a look, "And what exactly was their job?"

"To recruit my Flock. They tried to show us they could provide us safety and protection, but they couldn't, so we left." It was an idiotic idea anyway. No one could protect us now, and there wasn't the whole of Itex on our tails this time.

"So they just erased it from the books?" Gibbs asked incredulously.

I looked at them like they were idiots, "Don't you get it? We were never on the books. They wanted us as secret weapons. The Navy didn't want anyone to know about it."

"The U.S. Navy exploited children?" Ziva asked from behind me. She'd just come back from the bathroom and must have heard the tail end of the conversation.

"Everyone tried to exploit us, Ziva," I was just glad no one ever succeeded.

"But—"

I spun around a little harshly, "I'm sorry, but I really don't want to talk about it." They remained silent, to my relief, and instead we watched Tony and Fang. I laughed at the effortless headlock Fang held Tony in, "Flip him over Tony!" I shouted, trying to be helpful.

Instead of following the instructions without a question, Tony looked up, distracting himself from an already lost cause. Fang easily tossed him to the ground and pinned him with his knees. Tony moaned in defeat.

I only shook my head and turned back to Gibbs, "I don't suppose you'd like to go a round, would you?"

He shook his salt and pepper haired head, "You have your work cut out teaching Tony anyway."

I looked back over my shoulder where Tony was staggering to his feet, "Fang can handle that." Gibbs was definitely the sort of guy who could fight, and I wanted to see what he had in him.

Before Gibbs could answer, Vance cut in, "While you're here, perhaps you could teach a few of us some useful moves."

I shrugged, "Sure, why not?"

"But no more sparring," Vance added, putting a stop to my internal happy dance (I mean, who wouldn't be happy to find out they get to fight someone without actually killing them, like most of my life had gone?), "we can't afford anyone getting hurt."

I nodded dejectedly, and thought about how I was going to do this. Gibbs had to leave with Vance, but McGee and Abby showed up in their places, leaving those two, Ziva and Tony.

Fang, being the more patient of us—shocker, huh?—took McGee and Abby to the mats across the gym. I started by instructing Tony on the proper way to grab Ziva in a hold without fondling her butt. Not to say Tony was bad at fighting (he just had a more brute style to it), but this was going to be a lot of work. And it only made it better that for a split second, I could picture Gazzy in Tony's place, mischievous and eager, and Nudge in Ziva's, sassy and annoyed.

For the first time in weeks, my life felt good.

XXXXXXXXXX

"Look," I said to the uptight lawyer in the grey suit, "Why the hell would I say I saw him if I didn't actually see him?" Vance had told me not to be sarcastic, witty, or sharp-tongued while testifying (so basically, pretend to be a bound and gagged Max), but come on, I'd answered this freaking question five times already.

"Your Honor," the lawyer whined, gesturing to me.

The judge looked down his nose at me, I stared defiantly back. "Miss Ride, you are to cooperate."

I bit back a retort.

"No further questions Your Honor."

The judge sighed, "You may step down Miss Ride."

I ran back to the seats, kicking off my tight low heels as soon as I sat down. Everything about Court was hell; clothes, lawyers, people, shoes, lawyers, police, lawyers and I could go on, I really could.

The jury came back with a verdict within an hour: guilty on count of Murder 1 and attempted murder, not guilty of illegal parking.

You gotta love the justice system.

XXXXXXXXXX

We left NCIS the next day. I knew we'd never see any of them again, and I was okay with that. Sometimes, people are meant to come into your life to teach you something, and then leave. I think I was like that to NCIS and them to me. As awful as it was sometimes, things are just meant to happen.

I don't know what Fang and I will do now; maybe just travel the States together. We still need to work some stuff out, and fill each other in on the majority of what happened in those two years of separation.

I'm sure if we want we could buy a house and settle down; finally get the peace and quiet we've wanted all these years. I was thinking we could go back West.

But Ziva was right; my wings are restless.

I'm already ready for an adventure.

So this is the last chapter, and it makes me really sad to see it go. I want to thank everyone for all the reviews and support you gave to me, I really appreciate it. Unless you're a fanfiction writer too, you can't understand the smile that lights up my face every time I open up my email to find a review in it. So thank you!
Also, I have to say I've been getting kind of dissapointed by the Maximum Ride series lately, and I've yet to pick up Angel. Do you think it was worth it? Should I read it? I'm not sure...
Thank you everyone for your amazingness! (and you should totally continue it by reviewing this last chapter that I will ever post in this fanfic category *sniff, sniff*)

Thanks,
Riley61
P.S. This is the FIRST chapter of this story I haven't had to fix the formating a bijillion times for it to stay. It's like a farewell present for the last chapter :)