So sore. At least Pa found me. Hard to stay conscious.
"Rest [my Nori.] I'm taking you somewhere [safe.]"
I can't seem to rest though.
"[Pain.]"
Obviously, Pa understood me.
"I know. We're almost there."
I nod. Hurts. The wind hurts. I wince. Pa wraps my cape around me a little tighter, blocking the wind from my scorched fur. When I'm safe inside my second home, Pa and I are instantly noticed by grandparents. Grandma ends up speaking first.
"How bad is it?" "She can't shift back."
I nod then my eyes close. But I'm instantly plunged into a nightmare.
No! Stay away! Don't burn me Mom! Please! It hurts! Pa, help me!
Clark's P.O.V
She's shaking inside the tub. Nightmare. Her eyes open and she looks at me.
"Can you shift back now?"
She collapses with the effort but I do see a girl in the tub.
"[Nori?]"
She nods. She looks embarrassed, no doubt knowing she has to get out of her uniform.
"I wasn't looking forward to giving you guys an anatomy lesson. My tail's really the only thing that's...different about me."
She seems so nervous. But she eventually takes her uniform off.
"Ta-da."
God. She's burned really bad. She blushes then closes the curtain.
"Class dismissed."
Nori...I use my X-ray vision to check on her. I notice her back and...I clench my fist. There's scars on it. So many scars. Is that why she was embarrassed? Why didn't I see those earlier? I realize instantly that she hid them from me. She somehow managed to hide them from me. Was she afraid to show them to me? I remember her words at the coffee shop.
"Jimmy...That's just scratching the surface."
Nori...I understand now. I'm so sorry that you felt like you had to hide those scars. You weren't sure how I'd take them, being invulnerable. I hear a whimper. But only I hear it.
"Nori, are you O.K?" "Nope."
Ma and Pa leave the room, explaining to me that they think Nori should have some father-daughter time. I nod. They're right. I do need to talk to her in private.
After they leave, Nori, seeming somewhat hesitant, pokes her head out. There's so much pain in her eyes.
"I saw your scars. Nori, why didn't you tell me?" "I wasn't really sure how. I don't like talking about them anyway."
I nod and grab the aloe.
"What's that?" She's never seen it before? "Aloe vera. It's good for burns. You almost done in there?" "Uh huh. I just think it stinks that...Well, I don't think aloe vera's good for tails. Even burned ones."
I smile.
"I'll make it work. Do you want to talk about it?" "You mean my tail?" "Well, we could talk about that and some other things. Is that O.K with you?"
She thinks about it then nods.
"That sounds O.K."
Soon, she carefully gets out of the tub. I see her wince a little bit.
"Looks like I have more explaining to do."