HEY JUST STARED at me for a moment, then Iggy’s face contorted into anger. He yanked off his iPod earphones and threw the whole thing across the room. “I can’t take it anymore!”

“Hey!” I said sharply. “Those are expensive!”

“I can’t help it!” he shouted. “I’ve been listening to how the Roman Empire fell, and all I can say is, it didn’t fall nearly fast enough!”

“You’re, like, totally sucking the fun out of the first kind-of vacation we’ve had in ages and ages!” Gazzy whined, his arms crossed.

Even Nudge, my peacemaker, chimed in. “I listened to an hour of French history this morning, and I thought my head was going to explode,” she said. “It’s just, army this, invader that, conquering whatever. We have to learn, and I love learning things, but there has to be a better way. Like at a school!”

I was shocked — Nudge had always been my most loyal supporter.

Well, I wasn’t going to stand for this. I was the flock leader! I was going to restructure our lesson plans, I was going to start issuing demerits or other teachery things, I was going to …

I was going to stop being such a hard nose.

I had an idea, and I like to think it actually came from my own brain and not from the Voice or from Angel. And it’s so sad that I even need to clarify that.

“You know,” I said slowly, “I’m going to be fifteen tomorrow.”

Blank stares. I guess I hadn’t made the smoothest segue in the world.

“What?” Iggy asked.

“I’m going to turn fifteen tomorrow,” I said, warming to the idea. “It’s high time. I can’t remember when I turned fourteen. We’ve got to start writing this stuff down. Anyway, tomorrow I’m going to be fifteen. So we need a party.”

“If you get to be fifteen, then I get to be fifteen!” Iggy sounded indignant.

I looked at Fang. “Wanna be fifteen?”

His smile melted me. “Yeah.”

“I want to be twelve!” Nudge cried.

“I’m nine! I’m nine!” said Gazzy, jumping up and down.

“I’m already seven, but I didn’t have a party,” said Angel.

“Then it’s decided,” I said in my leaderly way. “We’re all turning a year older tomorrow, and we’re going to have a big party.”

My flock cheered and started dancing around the room. I sighed happily.

Sometimes being a good leader is knowing when to … back off.