A little more about Randy...and Kat's first night at the institute. I actually updated, guys! Aren't you proud of me? Ok, go read now.
Changes...Chapter 6
As Kat and Randy got to know each other, the question of what their mutations entailed inevitably popped up. Both were more than happy to share.
"This isn't actually my normal form," Randy said happily. "I actually can become fully human...this is just more fun!" Kat laughed.
"So what do you look like when you're not half cat?" In response Randy morphed to his human form. Kat had to concentrate to keep her eyes from popping out of their sockets. She'd thought that he was attractive as a were-cat...in fully human form, he was far beyond that. His hair was the color his fur had been, not too short, but not too long. His green eyes were deep and expressive; his smile huge and genuine. **I think I actually found a decent guy! ** Kat thought to herself as she smiled back.
"I can actually change into any kind of cat you could imagine, or depending on what situation I'm in, I can morph into any combination of them," Randy explained. "So I could be the size of a housecat with the speed of a cheetah and the strength of a lion." He turned to Kat. "You're obviously a were-wolf...is there anything more to your mutation, or is that it?" Kat paused a moment before replying.
"No, there's more. I'm just not sure how MUCH more." Randy gave her a questioning glance. "See, it seems like every time I run into a situation in which my mutation comes in handy, another change pops up."
"Oh? Like what?"
"Like...this!" Kat exclaimed as she lifted off, performed a back flip, and began to circle upwards on her invisible wings. As she circled, she morphed into her were-form and howled as she rose, enjoying the feeling of freedom that came from literally being able to spread her wings. Randy fell back and then stared upwards in amazement. Before he knew what was happening, Kat swooped down and picked him up, then set him gently on a tree branch quite a ways up in the air. He quickly changed into a small feline form and jumped down, landing softly on his feet.
By this time both of them were laughing. Kat landed gracefully, then smiled smugly at her new friend. "Beat that!" she said, chuckling. In response, Randy quickly morphed into a tiger and tackled her. She quickly flipped him off. Changing back into human form, he shook his head and laughed harder, then turned back to Kat.
"So, where are you from?"
"Minnesota," she replied. Randy looked at her, a shocked look on his expressive face.
"Really? So am I...whereabouts in Minnesota?"
"Plymouth..." Kat's voice faded as she looked at the sweatshirt Randy had on. It was her turn to look surprised. "Is that you're school shirt?"
"Yeah...got it at a football game last year. Why?"
"Dude, we went to the same school!" Both teens stared at each other. They knew they'd never seen each other before.
"Hard to know who your classmates are in such a huge school, huh?" Randy said,
chuckling.
"Tell me about it," Kat replied, joining in his laughter. "It's like, 'Hey, I've never seen them before! Quick! Who's got a camera! We'll probably never see them again!'" They continued to laugh about school for the next few minutes, until Randy decided to change the subject.
"So...what about your family? You got any siblings or pets or anything?" Kat was silent for a moment as she remembered her family. After carefully fighting back the tears that threatened to come, she put on a smile and answered.
"I lived with my parents and my little brother, Andy. We had a puppy and a couple of cats..." she trailed off as she remembered their faces and the times they had spent together as a family. She started to tear up again as Randy watched, looking caring and concerned.
"You talk about them in past tense...what happened to them?" Kat composed herself to answer him.
"Nothing that I know of. I left home a few days after my mutation emerged. I left them a note explaining what happened...my brother watched me leave. I cried for days just remembering the look in his eyes when I told him I was going..." she couldn't hold it in anymore. Kat began to cry. She fell to her knees on the ground, sobs shaking her body. Randy knelt next to her, allowing her to lean against him as he held her. In a few moments Kat had started to regain her composure. Sniffling, she looked up at her new friend and smiled through the last of her tears.
"Thank you," she said softly.
"Anytime," he whispered back, returning her smile. They held each other's gaze a moment longer before Kat blushed and looked away. Randy stood and then helped her to her feet. Wiping her eyes, Kat quickly took the focus off herself, glad for a break.
"What about you? What's your family like?"
"They sent me here as soon as they found out about my mutation. They're totally
supportive, they just felt I'd be safer around other mutants." Knowing that Kat needed a change of subject, Randy began to look around in hopes that he would find another conversation topic. Seeing Kat's rings, he took her hands in his to examine them more closely. "Let's see here...this gold heart and key ring...is it your purity ring?" he asked, fingering the one on her left ring finger. Shocked that he recognized what it stood for, Kat nodded.
"My Daddy gave it to me last year."
"Sweet," he replied, smiling. "And I see you've got a Christian fish on your other hand."
"Yeah...my favorite Christian symbol, along with the cross, of course," she said, smiling back. They spent the next few hours discussing their religious beliefs, discovering more and more that they had in common. They were in the middle of a rather deep theological discussion when Kurt BAMFed to where they were sitting.
"Excuse me guys, sorry to interrupt, but the Professor wants to talk to Kat. I can take you up there now if you'd like."
"Do I actually have a choice?" she asked, grinning at the impish blue elf.
"Not really," he said, grinning back. "Randy, I'll come back in a minute and introduce you to more of the other students."
"Alright," the two friends chimed. Kurt grabbed Kat around the waist and teleported her up to Xavier's study, then returned to help Randy out as he'd promised.
Kat now faced the Professor across his desk.
"You wanted to see me?" she asked, trying to keep the butterflies in her stomach from showing in her voice.
"Yes," he answered. "Please, sit down." Kat complied and positioned herself in the comfortable armchair that stood behind her. "I wanted to talk to you about your mutation. You know that you are a werewolf and that you can fly. But there is a great deal that you don't know." Kat shifted her weight uneasily as he continued.
"You could very possibly become a powerful telepath. Your potential mental power in that area is immense. You also seem to have an advanced healing factor, although I'm afraid we won't know just how advanced it is until it's needed."
"That would make sense. Is that all?"
"Not quite. It seems that you are able to block the effect of other mutants' powers on you."
"What exactly do you mean by that?"
"Well, when I first contacted you as you flew, you managed to keep me from seeing much of your mind."
"So you're sayin' I'm a telepathic winged werewolf who can heal quickly and block other mutants' abilities?"
"That sums it up well, yes. I could help you develop your telepathic potential..."
"No thanks, sir," Kat interrupted.
"Why not?" Xavier asked.
"Well, it just doesn't seem fair to the rest of the world if I let myself start pokin' around in their heads. No offense of course. I just know I'd abuse it. So if it's all the same to you, I'd rather not." Xavier smiled at her blunt honesty.
"That's just fine, Kat. It was just a thought." At that moment, Kitty walked (literally) through the door.
"You wanted me, Professor?" she asked.
"Yes, I'd like you to show Kat to your room."
"Okay! Come with me!" she said cheerily as she grabbed Kat's hand and began dragging her out the door (again, literally). Kat laughed and followed as she was told, all but forgetting what the Professor had told her.
**I'll figure it out later,** she thought to herself as she got to her room. **I've got time.**
After Kitty gave her the grand tour of their room and re-introduced her to Rogue, Kat sat on her bed and gazed out the window. After looking at the sky, she turned to her roommates.
"Would you two like to go for a walk with me? It's just so peaceful out there...the weather's just about perfect...and the stars are beautiful tonight." Kitty looked back at her with an apologetic smile.
"I'd love to, Kat, but I've gotta study and get some sleep. Really big test tomorrow."
"Alright, that's fine. What about you, Rogue?"
"Alright," Rogue drawled in reply. "I suppose I could use the fresh air anyway."
"Sounds good," Kat said with a smile. "See ya later, Kitty...good luck with your
studying!"
"Thanks Kat! Have fun out there!" Kat and Rogue walked out of the room, chuckling at Kitty's enthusiasm. As they walked out onto the grounds, Kat broke the silence.
"So...what exactly is your mutation?" Rogue tensed a bit before answering.
"If anyone touches my skin...they get hurt." Knowing she shouldn't have asked, Kat dropped the issue. They continued on in silence until Rogue shivered.
"You cold?" Kat asked as she instinctively reached an arm around Rogue's shoulders. Before either of them knew what was happening, Kat had placed her hand on a bare spot on Rogue's arm, causing her mutation to show itself...but only for a moment. The energy drain stopped as soon as it had begun...and Kat's hand hadn't moved. Confused and more than a little scared, Rogue pulled away as Kat lowered her arm and stood there dumbfounded.
At that moment, Logan walked out and found them.
"You two should be in bed," he said gruffly. "It's after midnight and you have school tomorrow." Happy for an excuse to go, both girls nodded and rushed up to their room. They each got into their own beds as quickly as possible, rolled over, and pretended to fall asleep as though nothing had happened.
As she lay in her bed, Kat replayed what had just happened over and over in her mind until she suddenly remembered her conversation with the Professor earlier.
**Blocking other mutants' powers...is this what he was talking about? I felt her
mutation take effect. She started to drain my energy, and I...I don't know what I did. I just made it stop. What the heck is happening?!** With those thoughts chasing each other around in her head, she fell exhausted into a deep sleep. So deep, in fact, that she didn't notice the muffled sobs coming from Rogue's side of the room.
Changes...Chapter 6
As Kat and Randy got to know each other, the question of what their mutations entailed inevitably popped up. Both were more than happy to share.
"This isn't actually my normal form," Randy said happily. "I actually can become fully human...this is just more fun!" Kat laughed.
"So what do you look like when you're not half cat?" In response Randy morphed to his human form. Kat had to concentrate to keep her eyes from popping out of their sockets. She'd thought that he was attractive as a were-cat...in fully human form, he was far beyond that. His hair was the color his fur had been, not too short, but not too long. His green eyes were deep and expressive; his smile huge and genuine. **I think I actually found a decent guy! ** Kat thought to herself as she smiled back.
"I can actually change into any kind of cat you could imagine, or depending on what situation I'm in, I can morph into any combination of them," Randy explained. "So I could be the size of a housecat with the speed of a cheetah and the strength of a lion." He turned to Kat. "You're obviously a were-wolf...is there anything more to your mutation, or is that it?" Kat paused a moment before replying.
"No, there's more. I'm just not sure how MUCH more." Randy gave her a questioning glance. "See, it seems like every time I run into a situation in which my mutation comes in handy, another change pops up."
"Oh? Like what?"
"Like...this!" Kat exclaimed as she lifted off, performed a back flip, and began to circle upwards on her invisible wings. As she circled, she morphed into her were-form and howled as she rose, enjoying the feeling of freedom that came from literally being able to spread her wings. Randy fell back and then stared upwards in amazement. Before he knew what was happening, Kat swooped down and picked him up, then set him gently on a tree branch quite a ways up in the air. He quickly changed into a small feline form and jumped down, landing softly on his feet.
By this time both of them were laughing. Kat landed gracefully, then smiled smugly at her new friend. "Beat that!" she said, chuckling. In response, Randy quickly morphed into a tiger and tackled her. She quickly flipped him off. Changing back into human form, he shook his head and laughed harder, then turned back to Kat.
"So, where are you from?"
"Minnesota," she replied. Randy looked at her, a shocked look on his expressive face.
"Really? So am I...whereabouts in Minnesota?"
"Plymouth..." Kat's voice faded as she looked at the sweatshirt Randy had on. It was her turn to look surprised. "Is that you're school shirt?"
"Yeah...got it at a football game last year. Why?"
"Dude, we went to the same school!" Both teens stared at each other. They knew they'd never seen each other before.
"Hard to know who your classmates are in such a huge school, huh?" Randy said,
chuckling.
"Tell me about it," Kat replied, joining in his laughter. "It's like, 'Hey, I've never seen them before! Quick! Who's got a camera! We'll probably never see them again!'" They continued to laugh about school for the next few minutes, until Randy decided to change the subject.
"So...what about your family? You got any siblings or pets or anything?" Kat was silent for a moment as she remembered her family. After carefully fighting back the tears that threatened to come, she put on a smile and answered.
"I lived with my parents and my little brother, Andy. We had a puppy and a couple of cats..." she trailed off as she remembered their faces and the times they had spent together as a family. She started to tear up again as Randy watched, looking caring and concerned.
"You talk about them in past tense...what happened to them?" Kat composed herself to answer him.
"Nothing that I know of. I left home a few days after my mutation emerged. I left them a note explaining what happened...my brother watched me leave. I cried for days just remembering the look in his eyes when I told him I was going..." she couldn't hold it in anymore. Kat began to cry. She fell to her knees on the ground, sobs shaking her body. Randy knelt next to her, allowing her to lean against him as he held her. In a few moments Kat had started to regain her composure. Sniffling, she looked up at her new friend and smiled through the last of her tears.
"Thank you," she said softly.
"Anytime," he whispered back, returning her smile. They held each other's gaze a moment longer before Kat blushed and looked away. Randy stood and then helped her to her feet. Wiping her eyes, Kat quickly took the focus off herself, glad for a break.
"What about you? What's your family like?"
"They sent me here as soon as they found out about my mutation. They're totally
supportive, they just felt I'd be safer around other mutants." Knowing that Kat needed a change of subject, Randy began to look around in hopes that he would find another conversation topic. Seeing Kat's rings, he took her hands in his to examine them more closely. "Let's see here...this gold heart and key ring...is it your purity ring?" he asked, fingering the one on her left ring finger. Shocked that he recognized what it stood for, Kat nodded.
"My Daddy gave it to me last year."
"Sweet," he replied, smiling. "And I see you've got a Christian fish on your other hand."
"Yeah...my favorite Christian symbol, along with the cross, of course," she said, smiling back. They spent the next few hours discussing their religious beliefs, discovering more and more that they had in common. They were in the middle of a rather deep theological discussion when Kurt BAMFed to where they were sitting.
"Excuse me guys, sorry to interrupt, but the Professor wants to talk to Kat. I can take you up there now if you'd like."
"Do I actually have a choice?" she asked, grinning at the impish blue elf.
"Not really," he said, grinning back. "Randy, I'll come back in a minute and introduce you to more of the other students."
"Alright," the two friends chimed. Kurt grabbed Kat around the waist and teleported her up to Xavier's study, then returned to help Randy out as he'd promised.
Kat now faced the Professor across his desk.
"You wanted to see me?" she asked, trying to keep the butterflies in her stomach from showing in her voice.
"Yes," he answered. "Please, sit down." Kat complied and positioned herself in the comfortable armchair that stood behind her. "I wanted to talk to you about your mutation. You know that you are a werewolf and that you can fly. But there is a great deal that you don't know." Kat shifted her weight uneasily as he continued.
"You could very possibly become a powerful telepath. Your potential mental power in that area is immense. You also seem to have an advanced healing factor, although I'm afraid we won't know just how advanced it is until it's needed."
"That would make sense. Is that all?"
"Not quite. It seems that you are able to block the effect of other mutants' powers on you."
"What exactly do you mean by that?"
"Well, when I first contacted you as you flew, you managed to keep me from seeing much of your mind."
"So you're sayin' I'm a telepathic winged werewolf who can heal quickly and block other mutants' abilities?"
"That sums it up well, yes. I could help you develop your telepathic potential..."
"No thanks, sir," Kat interrupted.
"Why not?" Xavier asked.
"Well, it just doesn't seem fair to the rest of the world if I let myself start pokin' around in their heads. No offense of course. I just know I'd abuse it. So if it's all the same to you, I'd rather not." Xavier smiled at her blunt honesty.
"That's just fine, Kat. It was just a thought." At that moment, Kitty walked (literally) through the door.
"You wanted me, Professor?" she asked.
"Yes, I'd like you to show Kat to your room."
"Okay! Come with me!" she said cheerily as she grabbed Kat's hand and began dragging her out the door (again, literally). Kat laughed and followed as she was told, all but forgetting what the Professor had told her.
**I'll figure it out later,** she thought to herself as she got to her room. **I've got time.**
After Kitty gave her the grand tour of their room and re-introduced her to Rogue, Kat sat on her bed and gazed out the window. After looking at the sky, she turned to her roommates.
"Would you two like to go for a walk with me? It's just so peaceful out there...the weather's just about perfect...and the stars are beautiful tonight." Kitty looked back at her with an apologetic smile.
"I'd love to, Kat, but I've gotta study and get some sleep. Really big test tomorrow."
"Alright, that's fine. What about you, Rogue?"
"Alright," Rogue drawled in reply. "I suppose I could use the fresh air anyway."
"Sounds good," Kat said with a smile. "See ya later, Kitty...good luck with your
studying!"
"Thanks Kat! Have fun out there!" Kat and Rogue walked out of the room, chuckling at Kitty's enthusiasm. As they walked out onto the grounds, Kat broke the silence.
"So...what exactly is your mutation?" Rogue tensed a bit before answering.
"If anyone touches my skin...they get hurt." Knowing she shouldn't have asked, Kat dropped the issue. They continued on in silence until Rogue shivered.
"You cold?" Kat asked as she instinctively reached an arm around Rogue's shoulders. Before either of them knew what was happening, Kat had placed her hand on a bare spot on Rogue's arm, causing her mutation to show itself...but only for a moment. The energy drain stopped as soon as it had begun...and Kat's hand hadn't moved. Confused and more than a little scared, Rogue pulled away as Kat lowered her arm and stood there dumbfounded.
At that moment, Logan walked out and found them.
"You two should be in bed," he said gruffly. "It's after midnight and you have school tomorrow." Happy for an excuse to go, both girls nodded and rushed up to their room. They each got into their own beds as quickly as possible, rolled over, and pretended to fall asleep as though nothing had happened.
As she lay in her bed, Kat replayed what had just happened over and over in her mind until she suddenly remembered her conversation with the Professor earlier.
**Blocking other mutants' powers...is this what he was talking about? I felt her
mutation take effect. She started to drain my energy, and I...I don't know what I did. I just made it stop. What the heck is happening?!** With those thoughts chasing each other around in her head, she fell exhausted into a deep sleep. So deep, in fact, that she didn't notice the muffled sobs coming from Rogue's side of the room.