Free Forever and Always by H. T. Night

would be coming in. I wanted it to be a surprise.
    I got off the plane without an item on me except my wallet. I thought there was a slim chance Helen would pop up again on the flight home, but apparently she was a one hit wonder. I had no idea what that whole situation was all about, and I just chalked it up to another bizarre experience in the life of Josiah Reign.
    I made my way out of the LAX terminal and walked up the street that led into the airport. I wanted to make sure no Tandra would see me as I transitioned. When the coast was clear, I became the eagle and headed towards Yari's townhouse in West Hollywood. As I flew over the Los Angeles skyline, I felt a sense of pride, a sense of accomplishment. I went halfway across the world and came back in one piece. I had been taught by one of the greatest teachers in Mani history. Goshi said I needed to test my abilities in the real world, so here I was in the real world. That probably meant I'll be having more trouble coming my way. I was pretty used to that by now. I didn’t need to worry about that right now. All I wanted was to see my friends, especially Lena.
    I looked down and glided my wings towards Yari's Townhouse. From the sky, her community looked incredibly tiny, but as I got closer it became more apparent how beautiful and enormous the property actually was.
    This would be the first time I was to land on the ground in America, and I thought I'd do it in grand style. I glided down and transitioned into my Mani form seconds before landing, I decided to shift my body in a way that when I landed, I did so with a handstand. As I hit the earth, I backed flipped a couple of times off a handspring, and made a perfect dismount into the parking structure of the community. After gaining control of my body, I brushed myself off walked over to Yari's house.
    I stopped just short of the door and took a giant deep breath. I could hear commotion on the inside and I could tell that everyone was up having a good time.
    Here goes another chapter in my life.
    I opened the door and the TV was on in the living room, however there was no one in there watching it.
    Damn, that was anticlimactic!
    I could hear voices in Yari's master bedroom. They were laughing and it sounded like they were drinking and listening to Pink Floyd’s ‘The Wall’.
    I walked over and stood at the doorway. I looked in and Yari, Lena, Tommy, and Wyatt were all sitting around Yari's room talking and yes, drinking. Yari saw me first and screamed, “Josiah!” she jumped up and hugged me. Her body was warm and it was nice to have positive human contact.
    Tommy got up from a chair and rushed over to me “Buddy! What's up?” He gave me a giant bear hug and lifted me off the ground. He smelled like Drakkar Noir, the punk had been snaking my cologne. I didn't care; I was thrilled to see him. He eventually put me down and said, “Holy Crap, Josiah! You look even better than the last time I saw you. Did they feed you steroids in Romania?”
    “Not quite. I just worked my ass off.” I looked at Tommy and his stomach had a little more meat on it than I remembered. I pinched his stomach, “Looks like someone won't be able to go 175 pounds for a few months.”
    Tommy patted his stomach and said, “I know, I've been eating real well since you left. None of these guys can eat, so I make sure I eat enough for the whole clan.”
    “Clan? Is that what we’re calling this?” I asked, laughing.
    “We could call it, ‘Josiah and his Merry Band of Misfits’ if you like?” Tommy joked.
    “No, clan is good.” I hugged him again and looked across the room at Lena. Her eyes were glued on me, and were as wide and beautiful as I remembered. I stopped, and took her in. She walked over to me, and I grabbed her and held her tight. She smelled amazing, and I knew I was finally home. I exhaled and said, “I missed you.”
    She leaned back, “I missed you, too.” She had tears in her eyes.
    “Are you okay?” I