APOV

*Tuesday late afternoon*

Her veranda was interesting but I should have expected that. Katherine surprised me all the time- quite a feat for a socially challenged geeky girl who dressed so conservatively. There were jars of plant stuff on a shelf and a box of odd-looking amulets. In another box, she had some pills and powders that looked a lot like drugs. That gave me pause- why would she have those with her. There was a table in the middle with what looked like a complicated chemistry set. After I was done walking around and taking it all in, I sat on a comfy wooden reclining chair and ate.

I had so many questions for her but I didn't know where to begin. She had been scary as hell when she threatened to shave my hair. I didn't want to bring that side of her out again by disturbing her. I had a few hours until Jill's feeding so I settled back and watched her and her aura. I had no idea what she was doing, but she looked so focused with her precise and efficient movements that it was fascinating.

"Adrian, let me know when it's time for your family meeting- I'll drive you back." I wanted to see Jill but I was curious about what she was doing. I was also very curious about her- her alias, her constantly changing eye color, her mysterious meeting at a strip club among other things.

"So eager to be rid of me Little Kat?" She gave me a smile and went back to working.

Besides drinking and art, Katherine had been the best distraction from Rose I'd had so far. I was tired of being in that in between place- I couldn't forget Rose and the dreams I'd had about my life with her but I couldn't go back fully to my partying days when I had been numb enough for meaningless sex with easy girls. Now I craved intimacy, warmth and snuggling in the morning with breakfast in bed and all that other stuff couples did. I wanted it with someone who knew more about me than my dance floor moves, someone whom I could wake up next to and feel loved by. I couldn't help but be bitter towards Rose for making me want things I couldn't have- no one cared enough about me to want to get to know me. If they did then I didn't think I'd be able to trust them again thanks to the shitty way Rose had broken my heart.

But hanging out with Katherine stopped me from those thoughts. I'd been with her since I woke up this morning but I hadn't been bored or lost in thoughts of Rose so far. I never knew what Katherine would do. I had been sure she would kick me out after the pool incident. I'd seen breasts before obviously- but I hadn't been able to stop ogling hers. They'd been nice looking- like a nice handful. If only she ate a bit more, they'd be bigger and nicer. I figured it was safer not saying that to her. What had been surprising was that thin lacy bra she'd been wearing under her conservative shirt- that thing had just been sexy! Ugh- she's human! Stop thinking about her like that! I would have pegged her as someone who wore those bras that covered everything and looked boring as hell. Not that Katherine didn't have good taste but I had just expected her lingerie choices to be as tame as her usual clothing style.

Even more impressive had been her assertiveness when she confronted me- not a side I'd seen before. I had been quite turned on by it. She'd stood so close to me while images from the pool floated across my mind... it had been hard to concentrate. Then she threatened my hair and looked so intense that I couldn't help but shiver- thoughts of Katherine were going to be permanently associated with my hair being shorn off! I didn't know whether to be happy that I was now motivated to stop thinking of her naked or be unhappy that I was starting to wonder if bald was a look I could pull off.

I realized that I'd been lost in thought when I got a text from Jill around four. I opened it to see a picture message- it was of Laurel looking horrified. Her shiny long red locks that she liked to flick over her shoulders now hung limply looking like it was coated in grease- the usual vibrant red color was a now tinted a sickening greenish-yellow and her extensions were falling off in clumps. Her skin looked white and scaly. The effect was like some ghastly sick mermaid. There was also a text: Laurel has been washing her hair furiously with different shampoos and even scalding hot water but nothing seems to work! And she's been trying all kinds of scrubs and cleansers for her skin- again nothing works! :D - Jill

Wow, that was much more impressive than any of the pranks I had ever pulled off! "Come see this, Little Kat!" I held out my phone to her. She smiled when she saw it, "Told you it'd be worth it"

"How long will this last though?" I felt a twinge of sympathy for Laurel but then I remembered how miserable Jill had been because of her and the feeling receded. I wondered what else Katherine could do. If only I'd known her in school we would have played the best pranks!

"Depends on how long she washes her hair- the water will fuel the reaction so maybe two weeks or maybe more. As for her skin- it will wear off in a few days if she stops applying products- especially her moisturizer. The more stuff she uses the worse it will get. But she won't have to wait that long for her problems to go away."

Water and products would make things worse? That was ingenious and evil, so amazingly evil! Wow, I had underestimated her abilities. I wished I could use some of this stuff on Rose. Viscous thought, but pettiness was all I could resort to after my failed attempts to forget her.

"I'm impressed- you are a Genius Mad Scientist! But how will her problems go away before that?" I had horrifying images of all her hair falling off slowly- no hair, no more problems, and her face looking sickly dry for life. Seeing the state Laurel was in, it wasn't unbelievable. Katherine sure could be scary!

"She'll hear about my astounding skill in chemistry in a few days and beg me to help her. I'll leave the decision to help and the antidotes with you though." She smirked, gave me two small vials from a shelf nearby, and added, "Now put on some clothes and get me a soda on the way back or I'll use the remnants of the Laurel potion on your hair."

I scowled playfully, "I already have the antidote, but anything for the Genius Mad Scientist who pulled off an incredible prank."

I changed into my clothes but left my shirt unbuttoned to tease her and went back up with sodas for us. She was hastily placing some things back into her bag, so I assumed she was done with the science. "Find anything interesting? Any sign of drugs or steroids?"

"No, I still have to wait for the reactions to finish and then analyze the results- it'll take some more time." She was checking something on her laptop now. I couldn't see the screen from my seat- but it was upsetting her.

"Do you mind if I hang out here with you longer?"

She looked at me distractedly and nodded. A hint of the terror from the morning flashed through her aura again as she looked at the screen in front of her. I didn't know what it was about but I didn't want to startle her again. This morning had been enough. I sent Jill a text saying I would see her another time and wouldn't be back in time for the feeding. She responded with a ':(' but understood my reasons without me having to tell her- benefits of the bond.

I observed Katherine for a long time before finally asking, "So we can talk now?" I wanted some answers.

"We've been talking for a while now, Adrian." She said distractedly still busy with her laptop as she chewed on her bottom lip. Her aura still flared with fear, anger, and a lot of concern.

"I meant more like we can play 21 questions."

She frowned still lost in whatever was happening on her laptop. "I've never heard of it before- how is it played?" She finally closed her laptop. It wasn't just her aura now her face looked alarmed and upset. I could hear her erratic heartbeat too.

I had just explained the game to her when she suddenly asked me. "Does your friend Keith know about me? Is there any chance you were followed when you came here yesterday?" Strange questions- I didn't even remember telling her I had been here.

"Keith isn't really a friend- I just get a ride from him when he goes to LA. And no, I wasn't followed- my ex was… is a bodyguard of sorts. I picked up a few things from her."

"Rose?"

"Yes." She nodded absently but relaxed after that and came to sit on the recliner near me. She was still thinking things over.

"I need coffee," She mumbled as she took a sip of the soda. She looked exhausted.

"Maybe what you need is some rest instead, Kat."

She smiled wryly, "Too much to do still."

I decided to take a risk. "Like your meeting at the Player's Lounge tonight?" She looked at me sharply with narrowed eyes and I hastily pulled spirit into me thankful for my soberness. "I overheard your conversation in the morning and saw the caller ID."

"Yes, one of the things I need to do today." She admitted reluctantly still frowning at my lack of regard for her privacy. She was being honest- good start.

"Why do you have drugs on your veranda?"

She thought about it for a bit. "I got it when I was at the apartment of someone I know." She was still being honest- though I couldn't imagine Katherine just accepting drugs from someone.

"What will you do with it?" I really wanted to sample some of them- it'd been a while since I tried something stronger than alcohol, marijuana, and E.

"Destroy them- and no you can't convince me to give them to you." She gave me a disapproving frown- clearly having guessed why I'd asked. I guess I had that coming. I could compel her to give them to me but I didn't want to do that.

"What's with all the charms and amulets and handicraft projects- are you like a witch or a shaman."

She grimaced, "Magic is just unnatural and wrong." She shook herself and added, "Not that it's even possible for humans but I just don't think people are meant to have that kind of power. These amulets are part of my work for Ms. T- she wanted reports on how it felt to produce them."

"So how did it feel?" Her professor certainly gave her strange things to do.

"Mostly just tiring because everything had to be done exactly so and I had to say fairly stupid 'incantations' during different stages." She walked over to a box and pulled one out. "Here you can keep this one- it's supposed to produce fire- useful for a smoker such as yourself."

I took it from her- it was a small pouch on a thin leather cord. It looked cool. I could wear this. "Thanks Kat, never been gifted with magic before." We both chuckled- humans using magic who'd ever heard of such a thing!

"So are you going to LA tomorrow?"

"I don't know Keith did call but I haven't decided yet."

"Do you play 21 questions with Keith to pass the time too?"

I grinned, "We aren't really playing that right now. And no, I usually fall asleep the whole drive- I guess it's because of how boring Keith is but I wouldn't play with him even if I were awake." Something shifted in her aura and it was suddenly flooded with concern.

"But what would you do if you weren't asleep?"

"I don't know- probably listen to music on my iPod or sketch. But it's never happened so far- I'm out like a light in minutes every time- you have no idea how boring this guy is!" Her aura was still radiating concern. I had a feeling it was for me but couldn't fathom why. She was lost in thought for a bit so I took the chance to ask another thing I really wanted to know.

"Your eyes- this is your natural color isn't it?"

"Yes." She replied absently.

"Are you really a brunette?"

"No." She admitted reluctantly. I tried to imagine her with different hair colors. It tickled something in my memory but I couldn't place it.

"Is Katherine really your name?"

"Yes." She looked puzzled by the question but her aura said she wasn't lying.

"How are you so crazy intelligent?"

"I don't know, I read a lot." She shrugged and a small blush appeared on her cheeks at the compliment.

"What about all the languages you speak."

"Language is easy once you nail the grammar rules and pick up some vocabulary." I shook my head in amazement, sure wasn't how it felt when I tried to learn Spanish or French.

"How have you traveled so much?"

"My father used to take me on his work trips."

"And what is it that he does?"

"He is a Fixer of sorts- I can't really explain more than that." She said reluctantly.

"Like Ray Donovan?"

"I'm not familiar with that name." She looked confused. I shouldn't have even asked but that's the first thing I thought of when I heard 'Fixer'.

"Its a TV show. This guy Ray makes problems go away for influential people in Hollywood. Hide evidence, negotiate deals, bribe people, cover things up, stuff like that." I explained and showed her a poster of the show.

"Something like that but my father doesn't look that ruggedly handsome in a suit." She sounded admiring- too admiring. I hastily took my phone away. So she was into the scruffy, hunky sort of men. I guess Daniel had a chance with her then. And her dad being a Fixer explained quite a bit about why she was so insistent about her privacy and so scary.

"Are you sure you aren't a member of some secret spy agency?" I was teasing her but all her aliases, disguises, skills would make sense if she was a spy- not to mention it'd be really cool.

"No, but that is a ridiculous question!" She laughed and I grinned. Her aura was fuzzy making me unable to determine if she was lying or not- but that was ridiculous of course she wasn't a spy!

"Why are you being so honest with me right now?" For a guarded person like Kat this wasn't usual.

"I don't know- I'm tired and not thinking straight I guess. Or perhaps I feel guilty and answering some questions feels fair." She bit her lower lip after she said it. I recognized her expression- she'd said more than she meant to.

"Oh, what is that you're guilty about that makes you want to answer my questions?" I asked with a cocked eyebrow really interested now.

She grimaced and thought for a quite a bit before answering. "So the last time you were here- you woke up with a head injury... you... umm... didn't fall- I pushed you." That made me sit up.

"And why would you want to mess with the perfection that is me?" I asked with mock seriousness. That had been painful- but knowing her, I had probably done something to deserve it.

"Well- I didn't know you that well then. You weren't in the right mental state and were standing in my house in your boxers, confusing me for your ex and mumbling about wanting to make green eyed babies- can you blame me for panicking?" She said very reluctantly. Clearly this hadn't been something she wanted to tell me.

I choked on my soda and coughed badly. I'd said what? This was just embarrassing! I thought the memory of that day couldn't get worse- again she had surprised me. I had deserved that push for my stupidity. I hadn't been saying things like that to those Moroi girls in LA, had I? With how wasted I got when in LA, it wouldn't be impossible, I thought wryly but at least the girls I spent time with were often as wasted- unlike sober Kat with her almost perfect memory!

She was looking down not meeting my eyes. What I had mistaken for guilt was apparently suppressed mirth. She was struggling not to laugh and it had turned her cheeks a pretty pink. I must have looked comically incredulous because she burst out laughing the moment she looked back at me. I shrugged sheepishly and laughed as well. What else was there to do?

She'd seen me at my worst twice now and she was still talking to me. I didn't think I'd find a better friend. Just then my phone pinged- it was a text from Jill saying that Clarence's son had arrived towards the end of the feeding and intended to live in Palm Springs for a while. She had even attached a covert picture as if I hadn't seen his pictures around the house or that I wouldn't see him when I went back later.

Katherine looked at the time and frowned. "I have a meeting in 2 hours. I'll need time to prepare for it. Can you go back on your own this time?"

I was still extraordinarily curious about this 'meeting' of hers but I knew I wouldn't get straight answers if I asked. Knowing her it was probably something to help someone. I couldn't imagine her at a strip club otherwise. Her aura showed she was agitated about it. I hoped she wasn't going to do something foolish like this morning on her own.

"Of course, Little Kat." She walked me downstairs, packed up the remaining food for me- there was still quite a bit left and walked me to the door. Her aura was an anxious mess when I left her at the door and walked to the bus stop.

I was sorely tempted to disguise myself with spirit and go to her meeting place tonight- but I couldn't. It would be entertaining for sure- I hadn't been to a strip club in ages and it would let me look out for her. But Jill's text about Lee was still on my mind. I was living in his father's house, it would only be polite of me to go introduce myself and talk to him. I didn't want Lee to feel like I was taking advantage of Clarence after all.

As I waited for the bus, I realized I'd forgotten to ask what she did with all the sketches I'd given her. I hadn't seen any on her walls. I hoped she hadn't thrown them away or tossed them in a dusty corner and forgotten about them. I liked the thought that someone besides Jill appreciated them.