Hello again everyone. I'm back with another episode of Guardians of Great Lakes! This one features a focus on Ronnie Anne's best friend, Sid Chang.

Honestly, I hope things aren't going to fast with this series. But I had this idea for a while and I really wanted to do it! And who knows... maybe the events that happen here can be used in the future? Well, enough chatter. Let's get started with episode 2!


Episode 2: Here, Siddy Siddy.

[PART 1]

The sun was shining down brightly on the city as Ronnie Anne and Sid walked through the local park. In Ronnie Anne's hand was a brown bag bearing the logo of The Burpin' Burger. The enticing scent of burgers and curly fries started to make their mouths water. "Oh man, I can't wait another second. I have to eat these now!" Sid clamored as she made a ferocious looking motion towards the bag in a playful manner. Ronnie Anne held the bag back with a smile.

"Hey, don't forget my food is in here too." She reminded. "I still can't believe you never ate at the Burpin' Burger before." Sid shrugged.

"I was curious, but never really got the chance. But that changes today." She stated excitedly. The two friends sat down on a park bench and reached into the bag. They each pulled out a burger and unwrapped it to reveal the burgers inside. The tantalizing appearance of the grilled patty, fresh lettuce, tomatoes, and bacon made the girls' eyes grow to the size of dinner plates. Sid couldn't contain herself any longer and began to scarf down the sandwich like an animal. Ronnie Anne followed suit and took a big bite of her burger as well.

As she chewed, Ronnie Anne thought she saw something out of the corner of her eye. Her chewing slowed down as she made note of the mysterious shadow that darted around the trees. Nervous, she swallowed her food and tugged on Sid's shirt to get her attention. "Something's wrong." Ronnie Anne mentioned cautiously. Sid stopped chewing and left the entire park in silence. No sound was made except for the wind and the background noise of the city around them.

Just then, they heard something. "Mrrrroooowwwww." Their blood ran ice cold as they recognized the warning sign.

"Sid, get ready to run." Ronnie Anne instructed as they got off the bench and started to walk away with their food. "Slowly. Don't provoke them." Ronnie Anne reminded as they slowly walked down the trail. From behind the trees, a couple of black cats emerged. They calmly and methodically stalked the girls like wild prey. "A little faster…" The girls increased their pace as more cats showed up. The crowd larger as more cats showed up. Some of them even dropping down from the tree branches above. "Faster…" Ronnie Anne and Sid speed walked passed the sandbox just as three cats burst from underneath with a ferocious hiss. "BOOK IT!" The girls ran as fast as they could as the street cats gave chase. The group merged into a giant wave of destruction as they grew closer to the pair.

They just managed to reach the park gate as a separate team of cats created a line and tripped the girls. They both fell on their stomachs and were immediately left at the mercy of the street cats. Both Ronnie Anne and Sid screamed as they were consumed by a tornado of dark fur and claws. When the malicious felines finally relented and left, the girls were left with cuts and scratches all over them. Their bags of food lay about them as torn scraps and measly crumbs. Ronnie Anne felt her eye twitch as she stared at the remains. "AAGGHHH! I. Hate. Cats! Every time I want to go outside, I have to check behind me every thirty seconds!" Ronnie Anne yelled in rage. "I mean seriously, Sid. Aren't cats just the worst?" Sid dusted herself off and rubbed her shoulder.

"Actually, cats are my favorite animal." She confessed. "I mean, those little jerks are something else. But every other cat I've ever been around was nothing but a sweet little ball of fluff." Sid then had a little flashback to her toddler years where she was cuddling with a young tiger cub her mother brought home when its leg was broken. Sid smiled warmly at the memory. "My first Halloween costume was even a cat." Ronnie Anne rolled her eyes, a little jealous of her friend's good fortune.

"Well I wish I had that kind of experience. Even before I moved here, cats did nothing but give me trouble." Ronnie Anne huffed. "I mean, sure they look cute. Until you get close to them, then it's all claws and biting." She complained. As the friends talked, a bug started to buzz around them. It slipped by Sid and landed on her shoulder.

"But cats are so amazing. Honestly, I kind of wonder what it would like to be one sometimes." Sid admitted. She was so caught up in the conversation that she barely acknowledged the pinch she felt at the base of her neck, simply opting to scratch the spot as the entity responsible flew away.

"Whatever. We may as well head back home now since those cats ate our food." Ronnie Anne groaned while Sid followed her.

"It wasn't a total let down. That was one of the best burgers I ever tasted." Sid reminded in an attempt to cheer her friend up. As they walked back home, the small bug flew off towards an alley with a black van parked in it. It went inside the window of the passenger seat and landed on a dark brown finger. The stranger looked at it and cackled.

"I can't believe it, my new Injector Drone, is a success." The man celebrated. Across from him in the driver's seat was his accomplice. They wore a midnight blue sweater, gray sweat pants, and a black beanie.

"So do we go and take that girl now?" He asked.

"No, we have to wait for the right moment. For now, let's just keep our distance and observe her behavior while the effects kick in." The mysterious stranger cackled. "I can barely contain myself."

Day soon turned to night and all seemed normal in the apartment building. "Good night, Mom. Good night, Dad." Sid called out to her parents as she went to her bed.

"Good night, sweet heart." They responded. With her parents' loving words still echoing in her mind, Sid climbed into her bed and closed her eyes. A few minutes passed as Sid lied down in her bed. Suddenly, she began to break into a cold sweat. Sid tossed and turned in her sleep while groaning in pain. Too deep in her dreams to be aware of what was going on, Sid could do nothing but moan quietly as something bizzare began to occur.

In the apartment below, Ronnie Anne yawned as she walked into her room dressed in her pajamas. "Man, today was crazy." She moaned as she fell into her bed.

"Bwark! Tell me about it…" Ronnie Anne looked over to see Sergio, the family parrot, fly into the room and land on Ronnie Anne's mini fridge. "I had a date with a pretty pigeon and those cats ruined it!" He complained. Ronnie Anne groaned in response.

"They ruined my day too. Why can't animal control do their job?"

"Preach it, toots." Sergio cheered. With a small grin, Ronnie Anne put her head on her pillow and started to drift to sleep. She began to snore as the minutes ticked by and she slept peacefully. Suddenly, Sergio were brought out of their slumber when they heard the sound of tapping on the window. Groggy, the bird looked over towards the window and squinted. His vision was blurry, but he managed to make out a large silhouette with pointy ears. Immediately, Sergio exploded into a panic. 'BWARK! Mayday! Their attacking again!"

The parrot's outburst shocked Ronnie Anne awake instantly. As Sergio flew out of the room, Ronnie Anne looked towards the window and glared at the cat like shadow. 'Those things won't even let me sleep now!?' She thought angrily. Ronnie Anne looked towards the trash can in her room and saw an empty soda can. Grabbing it, she opened the window and raised the can above her head. "Buzz off you furry freaks!" She shouted as she threw the can as hard as she could. It hit its mark perfectly and struck the figure in the head.

"OW! What was that for?" it asked in a familiar voice. Ronnie Anne raised an eyebrow and hesitantly grabbed a flashlight. Turning it on, she was shocked to see what, or rather who, was at the window.

"S-Sid? Is that you?" She asked in disbelief. Sitting on the fire escape was indeed Sid, dressed in blue pajamas. However, she looked incredibly different than usual. Her hair was wilder and springing out in some areas. Her eyes had completely changed in color, with the sclera turning a light green and her iris and pupils turning black and diamond shaped. Whiskers were springing out below her nose on her upper lip, her nose even had a slight pink hue to it. Her ears became a little more triangular and seemed to have shifted their position higher up onto her head. But the most off putting of all was the addition of a long, slender, brown tail protruding from behind Sid. Ronnie Anne was in absolute shock at the sight of her friend. "What happened to you?"

"What does it look like? I've become part cat." Sid explained nonchalantly with a smile as she climbed through the window and into the room. "Look, I even have claws!" Sid raised a hand up and opened it, revealing a set of sharp claws protruding from her fingers. "Pretty cool, right?" Sid asked as she calmly raised her hand to her face and calmly began to lick the back of it with her eyes closed. Ronnie Anne could barely speak at the sight of her friend looking and acting so bizarre.

"Aren't you, I don't know, scared?" She asked. Sid opened one eye and looked at her best friend.

"Why should I be scared? None of this is really happening. It's all just a dream." Sid stated in a relaxed tone.

"A dream?" Ronnie Anne repeated quizzically.

"Of course. Earlier today I was talking to you, well the real you, about cats. Not to mention we were attacked by the alley cats. I even talked about how cool it would be to actually be a cat! By all means, it makes sense for it to have an impact on my dreams." She reasoned calmly. Ronnie Anne blinked in astonishment.

"Uh, Sid? I hate to be the bringer of bad news, but there is a slight hole in your theory." She stated in concern. "See if this were a dream, you would be sleep-"

"SHHH!" Sid silenced her friend as he ears and nose twitched. She sniffed the air and turned back towards the window. She climbed onto the fire escape and looked down towards the ground. Without saying a word, Ronnie Anne walked over towards her friend and joined them on the fire escape. Taking a glance at Sid, it appeared that she was in a sort of trance as she stared at something intensely. Ronnie Anne followed Sid's gaze to the ground and saw what was holding on to her attention.

A rat.

Nervous, Ronnie Anne looked at Sid and saw that she seemed to have a small amount of drool coming out of her mouth. "Sid. Don't even think about it." She sternly warned.

"My mind is telling me 'no.'." Sid squeaked.

"Good. Listen to your mind and just calm down."

"But my body…" Sid started to give a crazed smile. Her sharpened glistening in the moonlight. "My body is telling me 'YES!'!" Sid shouted excitedly. Her eyes widened and she let out a cat like screech as she leaped from the metal platform and pounced towards the rat. The rodent jumped in alarm and took off down the street. Sid started to giggle in an overenergetic manner as she pursued the rat on all fours. Ronnie Anne was left in disbelief over what just happened.

"Is it gone?" Ronnie Anne turned to see Sergio in the doorway. Looking back out the window, Ronnie Anne sighed.

"I have to go and find her before something bad happens." Ronnie Anne grabbed one of her hoodies from off the wall and slipped it on. "Hopefully I don't actually have to turn into Relay for this." Ronnie Anne looked down towards the ground and took a deep breath. In an instant, Ronnie Anne warped down to ground level and began to give search for her run away friend.

As the young tomboy ran down the street, Sergio yawned and closed the window. "Eh, she'll be fine."


Well isn't this interesting? Ronnie Anne's best friend has become half cat, and Sid thinks it's all a dream. Hopefully Ronnie Anne can stop her before things get really bad.

Now, I bet you're wondering why I took such a feline route with Sid when she has displayed a talent for robotics and technology in "The two of clubs". Well, I have two reasons that give my choice some contextual merit.

A.) Her mother has a big career with animals, and Sid herself even gets involved with it often.

B.) Sid's personality... Honestly I just see a lot of cat-like elements to it. Look at the signs: She's playful, energetic, curious, and has a hilarious reputation for being easily distracted. Just like how cats get completely overwhelmed with a predatory urge when they see a laser pointer, and drop everything their doing to catch the dot.

I suppose this is a good spot to leave on for now. See you all later. :)