Rebekah

I sit crouch on the floor, trying to concentrate, trying to turn back. Then I suddenly have an idea. I've been thinking in terms of what makes me not cat. What makes me human? And I think of family and reading curled up on the window seat and of singing along to music and going to concerts with my nan and laughing with my gran about accidents that happened fifty years before I was born and my body is unfurling, my spine lengthening, my paws changing to hands.

My first thought is that I need to get clothes that change with me. My next thought is 'Thank goodness I closed the door', a very tricky task without opposable thumbs or a lot of strength. Then I reach up and delve through the fur to check and see if my precious necklace is still there. Yes, it is. Wait. Fur?

I pull my hand away to see it's still covered with a layer of soft, reddish-brown fur. I try to stand up to get to the mirror and instantly fall over, overbalancing from the sudden change in my centre of balance. In the end I bottom-shuffling into the bathroom. Right. This is bad. This is very, very bad.

The face that's staring out at me is a curious mix of human and cat. I have green eyes, oval pupils and a faint greenish tinge to my coronas. A pink feline nose with a human brow and mouth distorts my features even more. My dark brown hair, cut into a practical pixie cut is still the same thank goodness, but my ears, one black, the other a reddish-brown are pointed and catlike. And my face is covered in a thin reddish brown fur which extends down my neck, across my chest, down my arms to my hands with fingers shorter than they used to be, with elongated finger nails that when I look at closer slide back into my finger tips. Claws. Then I turn and groan. A long tail, with a black tip, is coiled up behind me. I catch hold of the sink and lever myself upright. Unfortunately, as soon as I let go, I topple over backwards. This is ridiculous. I think harder about being human and as I watch, my features go back to normal. Sighing, I relax and watch in horror as my face returns to the hybrid. I concentrate even harder and I turn back. I hold it and it hurts but I can control it. I can hold it where I want it. This is my body and it's going to obey me.

I manage to get the clothes Kitty and I bought and throw them on quickly, all the time holding onto the thought that I am human, not some sort of hybrid. I'm not. Stumbling slightly, paying more attention to holding my form than to where I'm going, I somehow manage to get downstairs without damaging myself too much. I stagger into the main living area and a number of eyes look up. Kurt grins at me.

"You're back?"

I nod weakly, knowing that any motions or conversations that would require me to lose concentration on my form. I can't do this. I have to be human. I can't just go home, if that is at all possible with fur and a tail. Isaac looks relieved and Kitty leaps over to hug me. I start and I watch as Isaac's eyes go round. I start to topple and I know what I've shown them. I instantly snap back to my human form and run out, tripping as I start to overbalance when my tail comes into play. I saw their faces. I saw their shock and fear and in one case, revulsion. I snap into the form that feels the least, go cat and leap up the stairs. Silver-Paw is sitting quietly.

"Get me out of here. Please."

He doesn't question, just allows me to run after him as he moves silently through the house and out of the door, across the garden and through the gates. I follow him across the road and into the woods. I stop running and pad after him when I suddenly become aware of someone following me. I whip my head around and instantly freeze. Where there should be a red flower, all I can see is a dull grey flower. Wait. Cats can't see red. I'd forgotten. Then a black cat with amber eyes steps out and glares at Silver-Paw.

"Is this the two-legger? You should know better."

I open my mouth but Silver-Paw gives me a look.

"She speaks Cat. She has four-legs and a tail. She can help us."

"How? How can it help us?"

"She can talk to the two-leggers. Stop the men from hurting us."

I blink but remain silent.

"I don't think it can talk."

Silver-Paw nods and I know I can talk now.

"I can talk. And I would not be as incourteous as to call you it even if I was in two-leg form before I got my speech."

She sniffs then suddenly cuffs me around the ears.

"Impertinent kit!"

I brindle and feel my fur sticking up. Silver-Paw instantly steps in.

"Leave us Night-Singer. We are going on our way."

He wheels off and starts to march away. I follow but not before glancing back to see Night-Singer glaring after us, tail swishing from side to side. I follow Silver-Paw but then I sense a disturbance and turn to see someone tall (all humans are tall when I'm like this, tall and clumsy) moving carefully through the bushes, almost as if he was a cat himself.

"Rebekah!"

Silver-Paw sighs.

"Hairy-Dog-Metal-Man is searching for you Two-Tongue. You should go. He feeds us at times. We want him to be happy with us."

I blink.

"Logan? Feeds you?"

Silver-Paw sighs.

"Of course."

Then Logan is crouching in front of me.

"Come on. We need to take you back. Can you change?"

I nod.

"Then will you?"

I shake my head. I'm not repeating the last fiasco.

"What if I give you these?"

He holds up my clothes and puts them on the ground before walking a safe distance away, facing away from me and covering his eyes. I change, in more than one way and shuffle along, clinging to trees to prevent me falling over with the tail. Logan holds out a watch.

"Press the button on the side. After you've put it on."

I strap it onto my wrist and press the button. Instantly my arm changes, becoming normal. I sigh and let go of the branch only to fall backwards again. Logan catches me.

"It's just an illusion. You're not actually like you were before."

And holding me up, he helps me get all the way back to the mansion where the others are standing waiting. As soon as I get in I lean over, catch the banister and start to haul myself up the stairs.

"Rebekah?"

It's Kurt.

"Show us."

I blink then shake my head. How can I? I hate what I am. I'm just an animal now.

"Please?"

I gulp then press the button on the side, allowing the image inducer to turn off.

Isaac

I look in amazement as Rebekah presses the button. Her human image slowly faded and was replaced by a mixture of human and cat. You could feel the astonishment in the air.

'My goodness Rebekah! How did you manage to do that?' I exclaimed.

Rebekah smiled faintly. 'It just sort of happened I guess.'

'You need to rest,' Logan said. Rebekah nodded gratefully allowing herself to be led upstairs. We all stood in silent shock at the bottom of the stairs long after Rebekah had disappeared. Warren broke the silence.

'Well that was interesting.'

'I knew she was special,' the Professor said. We all swivelled around to face him.

'There's more to Rebekah than meets the eye. Give her time to gain control of her powers and she'll surprise you all.'

'I think she's done that already,' Kurt said. Everyone dispersed to get on with the day. I waited till everyone had gone before I teleported. I felt a bit fuzzy when I landed but my training was paying off slightly. I was outside Bekah's room. I knocked gently. There was no answer. I stuck my head through the door. Rebekah was resting quietly. I decided not to disturb her but as I was about to stick my head back out again she called out. I walked through the door and grabbed a chair.

'Are you alright?' I asked.

'I was so freaked out when it started.'

'So were we.'

'Isaac, I need to learn to control this. This is scary. Even more freaky than your powers.'

I looked down at my gloved hands. 'Only a fool wouldn't be scared. We just have to push past our fear and use it to make us stronger. You'd better get some rest.'

Bekah nodded and I teleported out of the room. I landed in the dining room. Professor Xavier sat in his wheelchair by the fireplace. He didn't even turn to look at me as he commented dryly, 'I don't usually have students drop in on me so unexpectedly.'

I didn't even acknowledge him as I started towards the door. I turned the handle and walked out. Nightcrawler was balancing on the stair banisters.

'Hi Kurt. Can I ask you something?'

Kurt ported and landed behind me. 'Sure, What is it?'

'Um, can you teach me how to teleport? I'm starting to get the hang of it but Logan suggested I got a master to teach me. I'm still having a little trouble teleporting somewhere out of my sight and I feel slightly ill every time I land. I can do four, maybe five jumps and then I'm too sick to carry on.'

Kurt looked up at the sky as if seriously contemplating it. Then he grinned.

'Of course I'll help you out. We're fellow x-men. Meet me in the danger room in twenty minutes and I'll show you the ropes.'

Twenty minutes later I was standing in the danger room. It hadn't been turned on so it just looked like one huge white room.

'I use this sequence to practice,' Kurt said to me. He called out a word in german and a training compound materialized around me.

'First we'll work on your stamina. Remember, teleportation isn't your mutation so you'll find it much harder to do than I would.'

I worked hard and by the end I didn't feel like I'd gotten much better.

'It'll come. Just keep practising,' Kurt said. I felt more exhausted then the time I'd trained with Logan or even that time in the woods. I dragged myself up the stairs, taking a breather halfway to admire the setting sun through the stained glass windows. I finally reached my room and threw myself onto the bed gratefully. I fell asleep instantly. I opened my eyes what felt like seconds later. I expected to feel the warm sun on my face and the twitter of birds in my ear but instead I heard the sound of creaking floor boards and the faint whiff of cat and human. Rebekah. I jumped out of bed dashed to the door. Beyond Bekah's smell something else lurked. Something I had never smelled before. Something sinister.

I teleported to the other side of the door because I knew it creaked and listened. I couldn't hear Bekah anymore. I slipped into slow-time and ran downstairs. I stopped in the landing at the bottom of the stairs. Bekah's scent was very strong.

'Rebekah,' I whispered. 'I know you're here.' A shadow dislodged itself from the wall and padded slowly towards me. It stepped into the light and I almost gasped.

'Is that really you Rebekah?' I asked. Rebekah nodded her head sadly. She looked like a giant were-cat. There was hardly any discernible human features about her.

'Did you smell it to?' Rebekah asked me in a gravelly voice. Rebekah's scent of smell was probably better than mine now. I nodded. Another scent drifted by. I span around as Logan and Dr McCoy appeared.

'You'd both be dead by now if I had been an enemy,' Logan said.

'It's like all the people with heightened senses are here,' Hank commented.

'Can you smell it?' I asked.

'Yes. I don't know what it is but let's investigate it just to make sure it's not a threat,' Logan said.

Hank looked at Rebekah.

'The look suits you,' he said. As we walked out on to the grounds I looked up at the night sky and despite the warm breeze I shivered. It was the full moon.