Chapter four: Renewed Instinct
Warm, tingling sunshine danced in through the open window, it speckled along the granite counters and over the tiled floor. The warm glow lit up the kitchen into a lively honey tone and it warmed up the dark wooded cupboards and table. Its sweet fingers of life-coaxing warmth finally dappled down upon the girl's pale face and gleamed in her dark violet hair and black cat ears that twitched slightly in her deep sleep. She lied on the floor on her back where she had landed the night before, a note lay crumpled in her hand and a metal throwing weapon beside her other hand. A long, thick-furred tail of coal black fell over her legs. Her chest moved up and down slowly in her quiet breathing, was she the same girl of yesterday? Or was she now a different person? Or was her yesterday just another part of her today?
The bright glow shone into my face, causing me to open my eyes and flinch from the sunlight that burst into my sight. My vision began to focus as I blinked against the bright light; slowly I pushed myself up into a sitting position. My head spun with dizziness, the memories of the night before ran through my mind, strange feelings and sensing pounded through my body.
"What…what happened?" I murmured softly, my voice was quiet and almost delicate. I put my hand to my head, and shock hit me as my fingers brushed against silky, furred ears in the place of where my normal ears were to be. Quickly I leaped to my feet and ran down the hallway and skidded into my bathroom, I flicked on the light and gazed in the mirror. Black cat ears were on my head, nestled into my dark purple hair and a long, thick-furred black tail swished around my legs. My eyes were more angled and my pupils were slightly slitted, my fangs were also more noticeable.
At first the shock hit and caused me to stand and gape at the mirror, I would normally be freaking out, but I felt oddly calm, as if this was nothing new. After a few moments I stirred and walked out of the bathroom and down the hallway to my bedroom. I walked across the chilled floor and to my dark wooded dresser. I opened several drawers and found my clothes. Then quickly I switched from my track pants and tank top and into a pair of dark-wash jeans, and a black short sleeved shirt with netting sleeves and a silver cross designed on the front. I found my black arm warmers and slipped them on, and then I started on my hair. I picked up my brush and began to run it through my long, thick hair; carefully I weaved around my new cat ears. It felt strange to have cat ears in place of your normal ears, and wearing normal clothing was strange as well considering you now had a tail, but I managed.
I finished brushing my long, thick dark purple hair and then I tied it into a ponytail and began to wrap a long piece of black fabric around it until it was tied at the bottom by a black ribbon, so now it was like a rope. I thought back to the day before, Ray had his hair like this now that I could remember. My thoughts drifted back to the G-Revolutions, the team I had met yesterday, I thought over each of them, and then my thoughts went to last night. "He will be your key…the key to the lock that you have used to keep away from us…" I murmured softly to myself, a close resemblance to what the girl with the mask had said. "What does it mean?" I asked myself as I picked up my backpack and walked to the door then walked down the hallway and down the stairs to the front room and found my black sneakers. I was about to walk out the door when I glanced at the mirror on the wall by the window and caught my reflection. Thoughts of people and their disbelief and laughs hit me and the sight of the black cat ears and fangs. 'What am I going to do?' I thought to myself as I studied my reflection. My watch alarm went off suddenly, making me jump. "Oh no! I'm late for school!" Quickly I found a navy colored toque and I tied a sweater around my waist, covering up my tail. I put the toque on quickly and then ran out the door. I locked it behind me then took off down the walkway and through the gate.
A few minutes later
I breathed hard as I sprinted down the sidewalk, I could hear the school bell blaring out the late warning to all students who weren't in their classes. My heart pounded 'I can make it' I thought as I ran on. A sound of footsteps following after me made me falter and glance back. Cold fear hit me and caused my stomach to knot. There were three people chasing after me, two boys and a girl, the same ones from the café yesterday. The very same ones who had the pleasure of watching me skid into their table and fall. They were all chasing after me with determined, smug looks, they were coming for me.
Quickly I turned to the side and took off down a side road, dodging people and objects as I went. I ran down it until I reached the other side, cars roared down the road in front of me. My steps slowed as I watched the metal monsters eat up the cement before me. A strange panic filled me as I watched the vehicles and heard the terribly magnified sounds of honking and screeching of tires. I could hear the footsteps of the three approaching. I turned to the side and took off again with hopes of being able to get away. My path was soon cut short by a road block and construction, I skid and turned to the left, weaving my way around the workers and large machinery. Finally I got through and ran down another road.
The road was gravelled, not cement, and there were the backdoors of various stores opening out into it. Garbage cans and dumpsters gave off foul smells, almost causing me to gag as I ran. Eventually I felt safe enough to slow my pace and to walk while I caught my breath. I relaxed too soon however, hard hands came down on my shoulders and jerked me back.
My violet eyes widened as I felt myself fall heavily to the ground. Pain jarred through my body as I looked up at three sneering faces. The girl looked down at me and smirked, "Well look who it is, it's the klutz we met yesterday. What are you doing trying to run from us? No one ever gets far when they do that." She laughed as she kicked dirt in my face and watched me flinch.
One of the boys peered down at me, "You know, you're kind of cute; if you give me a kiss then I might be able to convince my buddies to let you go without much trouble." He grinned sickeningly, his teeth were yellow and his appearance was far from friendly. The other boy cuffed him upside the head, "You idiot, she's mine" He smirked jokingly.
The girl crossed her arms and rolled her eyes, and then she turned her mocking gaze back to me, "What's with all of this?" She muttered as she grabbed me by the arm with a surprisingly tight grasp and wrenched me up enough so she could get a hold of my back pack and pull it from my shoulders. She then let go of me and began to dig through it.
I lay on the dusty ground half sitting up, half lying down on my back, my muscles were complaining from the treatment along with my lungs which were asking for air. I stubbornly kept quiet and calmly gazed up at them, fear pulsed in my mind, but I kept it contained. "…Are you finished with me?" I murmured quietly as I watched her, I glanced at the two boys who were still bickering, making me feel sick to my stomach as they looked me up and down. Slowly I got to my feet and self consciously crossed my arms and tried to shrink away.
The first boy looked at me with his disgusting grin and chirped "Hey, nice toque, what'cha hiding? Bad hair?" He reached out before I could step back, grabbed the toque, and jerked it off. His startled look almost made me smile as he stepped back and stared at my black cat ears. "Whoa! Dude! Look at this!" The other boy looked at me and raised his eyebrow, "What are those freaking things?"
The girl looked up from her searching and looked at me; she stared for a moment then began to laugh. "Are you messed or something? You have cat ears!" She stepped forward and grabbed me by the arm roughly again and jerked me towards herself. My sweater slipped and fell to the ground, revealing my long, furred tail. Her eyes widened even more and her laughs grew louder. The boys just continued staring.
The sounds of her shrill laughing stung my ears like thousands of angry hornets, and the stares of her companions made me flinch. My mind screamed out, 'Stop! Please stop laughing at me! I didn't ask for this! Stop it please!' I flinched and backed away from them, I backed away into a garbage can and then crashed back into it, falling among the garbage and retching smell. Anger along with pure embarrassment filled my eyes as I glared up at them. The boys came along and dragged me out again then tossed me roughly against one of the bricked walls. I hit the wall and dropped to my knees again. Anger grew stronger, instinct rose up and I raised my gaze to look at them from behind my bangs.
The girl looked at me and smirked widely, "Aw, kitty is getting angry boys, you better watch out." Her jealousy and spitefulness was showing fully as she watched without pity as the boys sent the other girl flying into garbage pile over and over. Suddenly her smile began to fade as the girl turned and leapt at them with outstretched claws and cold eyes.
I leaped at the two boys and attacked. I felt skin tear under my long, sharp claws. I heard their yells of surprise, pain and anger. I dodged each punch or kick thrown at me, with agility I got behind them and attacked again. A strange feeling came over me; a hot feeling filled my muscles and ran through my veins. I didn't see them as boys harassing me; no I saw them as enemies trying to hurt me. The feeling numbed my mind and just drove me onward.
After almost fifteen minutes of this, the two boys staggered back with torn and bleeding arms and faces. They both leaned against the walls, anger raged through their eyes as they regarded me with coldness. The girl ran over to them and checked their wounds then turned to me.
I breathed hard, blood covered my fingers and the bitter-sweet smell made me want to be sick all over again as it stung my nose, but I held my ground and watched her as she approached me. Alert instinct kept me on my guard and wary as she circled me. A heated almost eager look flickered through her eyes, fighting against my cold, tense gaze. Suddenly she leaped towards me, skill of a martial artist showing in each of her dodging steps. I tensed and waited.
Her attack however was not what I was expecting, she leaped to the right and left then she leaped up and came down at me from up high, only to duck down and attack my legs. My eyes widened as I felt myself thrown into the dirt over her body. I tumbled and rolled through the dust until I hit the wall on the other side. A small cry slipped from my lips as I lay there for a few moments trying to regain my breathing. She came on me again, kicking and punching without letting up. I blocked the blows the best I could, then I managed to roll out from under her and get to my feet, only to be thrown off of them again. Blood trickled from my lip and bruises and muck covered my body as I tussled with her on the ground. Finally I saw an opening; I slammed my feet upwards into her stomach and sent her flying away from me. Wearily I got to my feet again and staggered towards the entrance to the road, I hoped to get away.
Cold hands landed on my arms again and pulled me back and then turned me around. One of the boys held me from behind as the other stood before me. The girl stood beside him with hatred gleaming in her eyes. I looked up at them with a worn out gaze. "Are you done yet?" The boy before me asked as he watched me. I wearily bowed my head and closed my eyes, waiting for the finishing blow. Instead I felt a hand trail along my jawline and cup under my chin, raising my head. I looked up into the boy's eyes, lust and cold mockery showed in his irises. Fear and panic sent my body numb and I almost dropped to the ground if it wasn't for the boy holding me up behind me. "What about that kiss?" He murmured. My ears dropped back at the sickening feeling in my stomach.
I watched as his face came closer to mine, the snickering of the other boy and girl echoed in my ears. With a final burst I slammed back against my captor and broke from his grasp. "No!" I screamed as I turned and took off from the group, my eyes were wide with terror. I heard their feet pounding behind me but I didn't look back. I reached the end, turning to the left again and running down the sidewalk where I had come. I could hear the footsteps gaining on me, they swore and yelled at me, and this time they weren't just going to catch me. My strength was drained, my heart was pounding in my ears and everything hurt and burned, but my unstoppable fear kept me running.
Suddenly in my blurry vision, two young men appeared, one was dressed in white and black Chinese clothes, and the other was dressed in dark blue and had a long, white scarf. I saw them walk around the corner before me, too close for me to stop from my wild sprint.
Kai's POV
Ray and I walked calmly down the road; we were looking around the city to see if there were any changes since the last time we were here. It was a busy morning in the city of Tokyo, and we had been dodging people all morning without any problem. I glanced around calmly with my violet eyes, my perceptive gaze observed everything that went on around me. Ray talked every now and then and I would answer with a few syllables. Suddenly out of nowhere a girl with long dark purple hair which was falling out of her hair wrap came running towards us from around a corner. Her eyes were wide with un-known terror, and her clothes were torn and dirty. Dark red liquid stained her hands and face as she ran towards us. Ray noticed her too and went to step to the side though concern showed in his golden eyes. I too went to step to the side, but it was too late.
She slammed right into me, I felt her hit me head on with her head to my chest. I grunted and took a step back but instinctively put my arms around her to steady her and myself. My eyes widened slightly from the shock of the impact. "Watch yourself" I said with more coldness and harshness then I had meant, but my surprise and composure had given my voice more tenseness then usual.
She quickly shrank away from me after her senses were reawakened, "I'm sorry! I'm so sorry" She said quickly, tears gleamed in her eyes as she quickly backed away and hugged her arms to her body. "I am so sorry" She repeated, and then she glanced back over her shoulder nervously.
I watched her with my calm, emotionless look, though my gaze was taking in her appearance and my mind was at work. 'She's familiar…she's the girl from yesterday…but she has cat ears?' The thought interested me slightly at the sight of the girl that we had seen just yesterday, only now she had cat ears and a tail twitching behind her. "Hm" was what I answered her with. "Forget about it…" I added at Ray's oddly stern glance.
Ray's POV
I had seen the girl collide with Kai and could only imagine the reaction, but he was his normal calm self inspite of it. I regarded her with my keen golden eyes, she was the girl from yesterday, though she looked dirtier and more terrified then she had then. She also had cat ears and a tail, two odd things to see on a young girl. "Are you alright?" I asked as I looked at her.
She nodded slowly and looked at me with wavering violet eyes; she glanced back again and then looked back. "I'm sorry…I have to go" She stammered. "What"- I started to ask, but my words were cut off by a shout and a curse. Three people ran from around the corner and approached us. The girl before us looked back and quickly ran past us. "Come back here!" The larger boy yelled as they came closer. I glanced at Kai, he was watching them with a cold gaze, and I could see that he could tell what the situation was. He looked at me and nodded. I nodded in reply and then looked at them again.
The three slowed slightly as they came towards us, they didn't look pleased as we held our ground and watched them. "Get out of our way you little 'blading pansies!" They roared at us, but we took no heed. They came closer to us, almost able to touch us, and then Kai snapped into action. He went forward and attacked, sending the closest to the ground with a few moves, he moved onto the next one, sending him to the ground as well. The girl looked at him cockily but he didn't let up, he sent her spinning as well, though he seemed to hold up slightly on her. I watched calmly as he took care of them, then I turned to look at the girl behind me as he finished. "Kyoko is it?" I asked. She slowly nodded.
Kiyoko's POV
I watched with faint disbelief as the two young men stood their ground and I watched as Kai easily took out the three of them. Ray turned to me and looked at my pale face, gently he took my hand and led me to a bench, to which I dropped onto. He stood before me and studied me, "What happened?" He asked kindly as he watched me.
Slowly I looked up at him, and then I looked and saw Kai walk up beside Ray. "I….they were….from…yesterday…and they…" I dropped my gaze and shivered. My ears twitched as I cowered before their eyes. "I-I have to go home…." I murmured softly as I got up and turned to walk away, pain over took me as the numbing anxiety and anger began to fade and my injuries began to complain loudly. With a soft cry I dropped to my hands and knees. I shook hard from the fear and hurt.
A presence came over me, and strong arms came around me, scooping me up almost like a little child and picking me up bridal style. "C'mon, lets go" I heard a calm voice say, a Russian accent mixed with a soft Japanese tinge murmured the words. They were answered by a quiet, almost awed Chinese sounding voice. "Yeah, let's go." I couldn't fight anymore, the feeling of the strong arm under my legs and around my back felt as if it burned into my clothing and skin, just as the reddening of my face did. Wearily I closed my eyes and rested my head against the hard chest with my arms against my stomach. I then allowed the comforting dark to once again consume me.
AN: Hello, this chapter is kind of short I think, maybe a little rushed but it is late at night, or early in the morning now. Anyways, thank you for reading and please review and let me know what you think.