Kat continues to discover things about her mutation...I promise this will all make sense in a few chapters!! Again, sorry for the boring character development stuff, but I have to put it in there...you know how it is. Read and review!!
Changes...Chapter Three
...And she continued to fly until she reached the forest a few miles away. It was a beautiful place-the kind where you expect to suddenly find faeries flying around you. It was way out in the middle of nowhere-not so far from the suburbs that it was difficult to get to, but far enough away that it made a wonderful escape. Kat had often come here to think, pray, and just be alone. In the past few days, it had become like home for her. She couldn't let out the frustration she felt when she was around people. Now as she landed next to the pond in the midst of the trees, she let go. Tears slid silently down her face as she recalled the horrified look on her friend's face when Kat had come to her rescue...the fear that she could smell as more and more people rushed to the stairwell and saw her standing there.
**What were they so afraid of? **she wondered. **Am I really that frightening to look at now? ** Kat looked down into the water, searching for answers somewhere in her reflection. She knew her appearance hadn't changed since the encounter at school. She was too upset to go back to normal. But she wasn't at all prepared for the creature she saw staring back at her from her reflection in the little pond. She wasn't human at all. In fact, her face looked a lot like a wolf's...
**So I'm a buff, winged werewolf now, am I? As if the muscles and wings weren't weird enough...now this. Good thing I like wolves...** In fact, she was obsessed with them. She was quite a bit like a wolf in personality-fiercely protective of those she cared about, tough, brave when it was required of her. It didn't really bother her to be a werewolf. In fact, she almost liked it. Morphing back into her normal human form, Kat checked her watch and, seeing that school was over, headed towards her best friend's house. **Wait till Marie sees this...**
§§§§§§§
Kat stopped in at home on her way to Marie's, trying to act like it had been a normal school day so her parents wouldn't worry, and praying that the school hadn't called about her absence for her last class. As it turned out, the confusion created by her little fight kept all the teachers quite disorganized, and no one noticed that she was only there for part of the day. After telling her mom that she'd be out for a walk, Kat started off for Marie's house as she dialed her number on her cell phone.
*RING*
"Hey Kat, what's up?"
"Hey Marie. Go outside."
"What?!"
"Just go outside. Onto your deck. You home alone?"
"Yeah...Kat, what's goin' on?"
"You'll see, just get out there!"
"Ok..."
Kat watched as her best friend came out of her house and walked onto her deck. Silently, she swooped down and landed right behind her.
"Hey."
"GAAHHHH! What the...? Kat, where did you come from?!?! How did you get h...What are those things on your back...the ones that look a lot like...wings?"
"You mean you can actually see them?"
"Yes, I can see them! Who couldn't?! They're HUGE!" Marie stood and stared, unable to speak anymore. Kat had to think for a moment before continuing...after all, finding out that your best friend can see your apparently invisible wings is a bit of a shock. Gathering her thoughts, Kat broke the silence. "You said you were home alone?"
"Huh? Oh, uh...yeah, yeah I'm alone."
"Let's go inside. You gotta see this." The confused girls went inside and straight to the closest mirror they could find. Marie was amazed, but still horribly confused. Kat finally managed to make things click. "Well, let's see here. The mirror can't see them, and most people can't, but I can, and so can you. You know me at least as well as I know myself...maybe that has something to do with it." It still didn't make any sense, but it was the best explanation either of them could come up with. Always the best friend a girl could ask for, Marie soon stopped staring at Kat's wings and was able to listen to her story of the fight earlier that day.
"Hang on Kat. You're telling me you took out two big guys at one time without even trying?"
"Yeah...it was so weird! I wasn't even scared. I was just...furious. I couldn't see straight, couldn't think straight...all I knew was that I had to hurt them." Kat went on to describe the other newfound facets of her mutation. When she was finished, Marie was silent.
"Please say something," Kat whispered after a moment.
"I don't know what TO say, Kat. I mean, it's probably not safe for you to go to school anymore-even if people couldn't see your face, they'd be able to figure out who you were by what you were wearing. And everyone's gonna find out about all of this. I don't want to say it, but...you've got to get out of here; find somewhere where you'll be safe. It can't be too hard...I think some schools have been started for mutants. You'll find something..." At this point Marie fell silent again. She was sending away her best friend, her sister, the one who knew her at least as well as she knew herself. It was killing her...and it was killing Kat.
"I know, Marie...but how can I go? What'll I tell my parents? I'm only 15! I can't go out on my own yet! I could run away, but that'd hurt everyone. I could stage something to make it look like I disappeared, but really, that'd be worse than running. So how am I supposed to get outta here? I can't..."
"You've gotta run, Kat. I'll cover for you here. It's not like it'll be permanent-you can come back after things have settled down here." They both knew that it was wishful thinking-nothing could make everyone Kat cared about understand why she'd have to go, and things would never settle down. But Kat knew Marie was right. She had to go. So nodding slowly and fighting back the tears that threatened to come, Kat looked Marie straight in the eye.
"I'll come back. Soon. You'll know when I'm here." Marie nodded and gave Kat a long hug, which was more than willingly returned. When that was over, Kat crouched, then lifted off with a powerful jump and a few beats of her wings, and in moments she was gone, leaving Marie standing alone in her backyard.
"Goodbye, Kat..."
Changes...Chapter Three
...And she continued to fly until she reached the forest a few miles away. It was a beautiful place-the kind where you expect to suddenly find faeries flying around you. It was way out in the middle of nowhere-not so far from the suburbs that it was difficult to get to, but far enough away that it made a wonderful escape. Kat had often come here to think, pray, and just be alone. In the past few days, it had become like home for her. She couldn't let out the frustration she felt when she was around people. Now as she landed next to the pond in the midst of the trees, she let go. Tears slid silently down her face as she recalled the horrified look on her friend's face when Kat had come to her rescue...the fear that she could smell as more and more people rushed to the stairwell and saw her standing there.
**What were they so afraid of? **she wondered. **Am I really that frightening to look at now? ** Kat looked down into the water, searching for answers somewhere in her reflection. She knew her appearance hadn't changed since the encounter at school. She was too upset to go back to normal. But she wasn't at all prepared for the creature she saw staring back at her from her reflection in the little pond. She wasn't human at all. In fact, her face looked a lot like a wolf's...
**So I'm a buff, winged werewolf now, am I? As if the muscles and wings weren't weird enough...now this. Good thing I like wolves...** In fact, she was obsessed with them. She was quite a bit like a wolf in personality-fiercely protective of those she cared about, tough, brave when it was required of her. It didn't really bother her to be a werewolf. In fact, she almost liked it. Morphing back into her normal human form, Kat checked her watch and, seeing that school was over, headed towards her best friend's house. **Wait till Marie sees this...**
§§§§§§§
Kat stopped in at home on her way to Marie's, trying to act like it had been a normal school day so her parents wouldn't worry, and praying that the school hadn't called about her absence for her last class. As it turned out, the confusion created by her little fight kept all the teachers quite disorganized, and no one noticed that she was only there for part of the day. After telling her mom that she'd be out for a walk, Kat started off for Marie's house as she dialed her number on her cell phone.
*RING*
"Hey Kat, what's up?"
"Hey Marie. Go outside."
"What?!"
"Just go outside. Onto your deck. You home alone?"
"Yeah...Kat, what's goin' on?"
"You'll see, just get out there!"
"Ok..."
Kat watched as her best friend came out of her house and walked onto her deck. Silently, she swooped down and landed right behind her.
"Hey."
"GAAHHHH! What the...? Kat, where did you come from?!?! How did you get h...What are those things on your back...the ones that look a lot like...wings?"
"You mean you can actually see them?"
"Yes, I can see them! Who couldn't?! They're HUGE!" Marie stood and stared, unable to speak anymore. Kat had to think for a moment before continuing...after all, finding out that your best friend can see your apparently invisible wings is a bit of a shock. Gathering her thoughts, Kat broke the silence. "You said you were home alone?"
"Huh? Oh, uh...yeah, yeah I'm alone."
"Let's go inside. You gotta see this." The confused girls went inside and straight to the closest mirror they could find. Marie was amazed, but still horribly confused. Kat finally managed to make things click. "Well, let's see here. The mirror can't see them, and most people can't, but I can, and so can you. You know me at least as well as I know myself...maybe that has something to do with it." It still didn't make any sense, but it was the best explanation either of them could come up with. Always the best friend a girl could ask for, Marie soon stopped staring at Kat's wings and was able to listen to her story of the fight earlier that day.
"Hang on Kat. You're telling me you took out two big guys at one time without even trying?"
"Yeah...it was so weird! I wasn't even scared. I was just...furious. I couldn't see straight, couldn't think straight...all I knew was that I had to hurt them." Kat went on to describe the other newfound facets of her mutation. When she was finished, Marie was silent.
"Please say something," Kat whispered after a moment.
"I don't know what TO say, Kat. I mean, it's probably not safe for you to go to school anymore-even if people couldn't see your face, they'd be able to figure out who you were by what you were wearing. And everyone's gonna find out about all of this. I don't want to say it, but...you've got to get out of here; find somewhere where you'll be safe. It can't be too hard...I think some schools have been started for mutants. You'll find something..." At this point Marie fell silent again. She was sending away her best friend, her sister, the one who knew her at least as well as she knew herself. It was killing her...and it was killing Kat.
"I know, Marie...but how can I go? What'll I tell my parents? I'm only 15! I can't go out on my own yet! I could run away, but that'd hurt everyone. I could stage something to make it look like I disappeared, but really, that'd be worse than running. So how am I supposed to get outta here? I can't..."
"You've gotta run, Kat. I'll cover for you here. It's not like it'll be permanent-you can come back after things have settled down here." They both knew that it was wishful thinking-nothing could make everyone Kat cared about understand why she'd have to go, and things would never settle down. But Kat knew Marie was right. She had to go. So nodding slowly and fighting back the tears that threatened to come, Kat looked Marie straight in the eye.
"I'll come back. Soon. You'll know when I'm here." Marie nodded and gave Kat a long hug, which was more than willingly returned. When that was over, Kat crouched, then lifted off with a powerful jump and a few beats of her wings, and in moments she was gone, leaving Marie standing alone in her backyard.
"Goodbye, Kat..."