Please review! Updated regularly every Saturday. A majority of future chapters will be in third person (due to all the characters' interactions) with few in first person point of views. I've been doing first person point of views for the first chapters and prologue so there's a better look into their inner thinking before the story really hits.
~CWA
CHAPTER TWO: AN AVERAGE MORNING
REVE
A week later
The dark swirls within in my coffee mug blur together as I stare blankly into it. My hand tightens around the mug. It's too early for anyone to be up, even me. But the smell, the taste, and even the appearance of the black coffee in my hands helps considerably. I can see the streets of France within its depths, taste the finest wine on the tip of my tongue. I can feel Ian's presence beside me though he's countries away, back home. I sigh deeply as I feel my physical form blur and glow, on the brink of blinking into my true, misty form. I take a moment to gather myself back up to becoming human. It's not fair to them for me to slip out of existence after constantly telling them how important it is to keep up our human appearances.
My hand grips the mug tighter. Human appearances. We're not human, we never will be. All of this is just a game of pretend that I'm not sure we're even capable of keeping up for the next week, nevertheless for the rest of our lives. The idea that we may fully blend into human society is a pipe dream. Especially since Moriko seems to be the only of us who genuinely wants to be here with so many humans. My teeth grind before I stand up, shaking myself back to the fact that it doesn't matter how much I whine or moan or complain, it's not changing anything. We're here. We have to make a life for ourselves. A life outside of the Facility.
I suppress the shiver that threatens to go down my spine and I can feel the phantom pain of needles piercing my skin. My form is shapeless, resembling a weak pink cloud. Endless screaming, pleading, begging, all of it leaving my mouth in the form of sharp static. Scientists screaming in pain as their ears bled from the intensity of the sound within in their mind. Banging frantically against glass, causing my form to split apart in mist with each thud. A button is frantically pounded by one of the white coats. Needles emerge from the walls, enclosing me. Can't slip through them. Can't focus. Can't -
"Reve?"
I let out a sharp gasp as a hand gently touches my shoulder. On instinct, my body breaks apart into a mist to form a good few feet of distance between me and the touch before it comes back together to form a solid, humanoid form. My breathing stills and when my body is physical again, it's tense. Ready for a fight. The glow leaks through my body in a threatening manner. Have to fight – can't stop – have to protect myself, protect Kato, protect Morik-
"Reve," a familiar voice calms me and I breath seeing it's Moriko standing in front me – not a White Coat.
Moriko looks at me with a sad, understanding expression as she takes a seat at the table. She doesn't ask. She doesn't have to do. I'm a Dream Weaver. I've seen her dreams – her nightmares – as well as Kato's. It's something that haunts us all. A dark, heavy weight that holds us down. But I suppose that is why we've moved here. To lessen that weight and look to a brighter future. I take a deep breath and clean up the mess that was left from a broken coffee mug – turning into a nonphysical form does make it hard to hold onto anything.
"If you ever want to talk about it, you know I'm here," Moriko's voice is a whisper, "You have to listen to me and Kato all the time – sometimes not even by your choice because of the mental link. It's only fair we listen to you too."
"We," I scoff, tossing the remains of the mug into the trash before grabbing a rag.
"-Kato will come along eventually," Moriko winces, "You know how she is. She's just…"
She trails off, not being able to find words to describe what it is she's trying to say. It's always the same excuse, all the time. It rubs my skin, my everything, the wrong way like mental sandpaper. Kato is just… Kato. I gulp thickly. She doesn't know what she's doing, I repeat to myself. She doesn't know control, discipline, obedience. But it's not her fault. It doesn't make me any less frustrated, but I do understand even if she doesn't think that I do. I know that after being stuck in that awful faci- place – made her into such a small being filled with so much pent up anger and frustration and sorrow that lashes out without thinking. A caged animal that's just been freed into the world that has yet to be tamed. Yet to figure out that not everyone who steps close to her is going to hurt her.
Patience is a virtue.
I toss the rag into the sink before grabbing the necessary ingredients for breakfast – by the time I'm done cooking, Kato should be getting up so it'll be fresh for her. Moriko grabs an apple from a fresh fruit basket on the table.
"You know she still thinks I'm the one that keeps cooking breakfast for her," Moriko's voice is muffled from her mouth being full of food.
"It doesn't matter."
KATO
Alarm clocks, I have decided, are the absolutely worst things to have ever been invented. I don't understand why humans are so insistent on ruining a good night's sleep. It abruptly wakes me up from the most solid sleep I've had in years and brings me back to a harsh, cold reality. The noise blares into my sensitive ears and I let out an angry growl as I punch the alarm clock. It breaks at the hit, but it's not exactly a tragic loss. With anger, regret, and a constant growl forming in the back of my throat, I push back the perfectly comfortable warm blankets. The cold air nips at my bare skin, only adding to my bad mood. Moriko insists I wear clothes when I sleep, advice I ignore. I don't see the point in wearing clothes when you sleep. The fact that I shift forms through the night aside, why wear clothes to bed when it's just something to wear at bed? You wake up and change, only to get into those same night clothes before falling asleep. Pointless.
I stretch out with a tired yawn, causing all my joints to pop. I smack my lips, running my tongue over my teeth, my canines are a bit sharp but not inhumanly so in this form. I miss the large, intimidating ones I have in my true form. My nose twitches at the scents of my friends – sisters – noting that they're already awake and likely in the kitchen. My feet drag below me and my body feels heavy. I want nothing more than to simply crawl into bed and go back to sleep. But if I do that, then I'm going to miss my first day (ever) of school. My lips curl at the thought. Reve has made it fairly clear to me over the past week that if I don't go to school, she's going to use her powers to do something horrible to me (a vague threat that doesn't necessarily scare me). Though if not for Moriko, I wouldn't been 'taught' how to behave in public (at least, I wouldn't have listened). Basically a long list of things I can't do – no clawing/scratching, hissing, growling, yowling, purring. No Kato, bad kitty. No Kato, sit still. No Kato this and No Kato that.
My hands curl into fists at my sides by the time I've dragged myself into the bathroom. I spend a good five minutes just staring at my reflection, not even recognizing the girl staring back at me. The most color in my face comes from the dark circles under my eyes. My cheeks are hollow and sharp. My hair has lost most of its fluff and softness, though it is considerably better than it was when we first got to Japan. I huff at the shadow of the girl I used to be and drag my feet to the dreaded shower. I eye it cautiously as if it's going to attack – water is meant for drinking. Cats bathe themselves. But 'properly' bathing is at least more tolerable in human form.
Bah. Dumb humans and their dumb human habits. I mumble various curses under my breath as I shower, ignoring the prissy, so-called organic, 'desert essence' body wash and shampoo that still smells demented and morphed to my nose. Nothing about it smells even remotely like home. My heart clenches at the homesick, longing forming in my chest. To be free in my other form, feeling the sand between my paws as I run through the Tabernas desert, my hejmo*.The hot heat of my amatan dezerto* warming my dark fur – perfect camouflage for the dark, desert night. Feeling the gritty sand between my fangs when I tear into unsuspecting pray that spent the day buried under the ground…. It's home…. But I have not been home in a long time, I think as I drag myself out of the water, my hair clinging to my body, so long that it feels almost like a mirage. A vague, blurred memory.
I couldn't go home if I wanted to. The ones who birthed me, raised me, loved me – my birth family - they will not accept me. They will not welcome me back. They cast me out, forced me out of my pack, my family, just because of one mistake. One mistake that ruined everything – I was alone until Moriko found me and then the Facility. But now? If I go back now, I'll be killed for returning from such a banishment. A fact that I have to face whether I like it or not. I rub at the corners of my eyes and try to shove those thoughts out of my mind.
Rolling and shaking my shoulders, I attempt to dry myself as I would in my other form, before I give up and grab the roughly textured towel hanging up and begrudgingly finish getting ready.
Moriko and Reve, as I suspected, are already up and conversing in the kitchen by the time I manage to drag myself there for breakfast. I don't know how Moriko can look so awake this early in the morning – though, Reve raises a neatly trimmed eyebrow at me in question. I bare my teeth at her, curling my lip with a light growl that causes her to roll her eyes at me. Moriko shakes her head at the behavior, setting a cup of warm coffee (which honestly smells fairly pleasant) on the table.
"Can you go five minutes without growing or snarling," Moriko looks to me with an expression of really? - the type of expression you give your pet after it does something you tell it not to. I hate that that's the first thing to come to mind.
"Sorry, my limit is four minutes," I mumble as I harshly pull a chair from the table and sit down with plans to enjoy breakfast.
A plate is already made for me and it smells appetizing, pleasant to my nose. I'm not quite used to pork – or ham in this case – being cooked, fried no less. Nor am I quite used to eating it with eggs and bacon. But over a course of a week, having everything from normal breakfast to more cultured breakfasts depending on who cooked and what mood they were in when they did (I, however, have been banned from cooking when I managed to set Reve on fire), I've gotten used to this smell of delicious food. It smells just as good every time and tastes even better than the last. Moriko has to be the chef of the day, I'm sure of it. I scarf it down, barely even remembering to use the utensils supplied, and nod my thanks to Moriko with stuffed cheeks.
"School begins in precisely thirty minutes. We have ten more minutes to eat and converse before we leave," Reve speaks up, causing me to huff, "Remember to not do anything out of the ordinary. No inhuman behavior. Smile and laugh at jokes you may not understand and obscene references whose meanings escape you. Act as though you know everything that's going on within the humans' community."
Ten more minutes to eat? Don't make me laugh, Reve. I'm already done. I wipe my mouth with the back of my hand before pushing my plate away. Reve's look of contempt doesn't escape me and I give her a toothy, feral grin in return. She huffs, crossing her arms across her chest as she gives up trying to even socialize with me. Moriko sighs deeply at our interaction before she stands from the table and heads off to the living room. My nose twitches when she returns with a ball of yarn in her hands.
"Maybe if you get out that hunting instinct of yours, you'll be in a better mood for school," Moriko taunts and I make a face at her.
Whatever anger I feel, however, is pushed to the side as she begins to dangle the string. I can feel my eyes go wide as I stare at it. Going back and forth. Back and forth. A pendulum that stirs something within in my chest. My pupils dilate and I begin to stir from my seat, rising to put my feet on the chair as I crouch, my eyes never leaving the yarn. Back and forth. Back and forth. Everything around me blurs. All the noise around me slows. A primal voice rises in my mind. Prey. Prey. Prey. Prey. A wiggle of my body. The yarn goes flying.
"MORIKO," I barely recognize Reve's screeching voice, a majority of all my senses focusing on the ball of string as I catch it between my hands. I curl my body as I land, absently bringing the ball of yarn to my mouth.
It's not the taste of mice or bird or fish. It's not meat. It's yarn. An almost cotton like taste with an even worse texture. My eyes blink and I find myself staring at Reve from an awkward position. My weight is in her lap. I can feel her hands grip my body, almost cradling me like a small child due to my body being curled into a semi-ball. I spit out the ball into my hands. I'm met with pink eyes that swirl with so much anger, I feel it radiating off of her entire body. A flush spreads across my cheeks and her gaze tears away from me to glare at the laughing fae near us.
"Kato, can you gain some self control." Reve's voice is just on the tip of being inhuman. It almost sounds like there's static in her voice, underlying each word she says. Like two voices – one humanoid, one machine – speak at once, "Moriko, don't encourage her."
The anger and instability in her voice makes me feel much smaller than I am. I shift and adjust to make myself appear larger as I get off of her lap. I can feel a few stray strands of the yarn in my teeth.
"I'm, uh," my tongue rolls over my canines and I swallow the apology building in my throat, "- I'll finish getting ready."
*Hejmo (Esperanto) - Home
*Amatan dezerto (Esperanto) – Beloved Desert
