Rebekah

Okay, I admit it, barricading myself in my room with a cat wasn't the best idea when you live with people who can teleport, walk through walls or just cut a hole through the wall. A minor lack in communication resulted in all three happening. I wasn't best pleased and hissed at them. The fact I was only about a foot long didn't help because they all just burst out laughing. Look, I wanted to go cat and I didn't realise changing after a bath resulted in the water, which was actually rather lightly spread, ended up soaking me so I fell back in the bath and then was too panicked to get out. Kurt just scoops me up when he's stopped laughing and blasts me with the hairdryer. I just curl up on the bed and feel sorry for myself. Kitty's still giggling on the floor and even Logan has a slight twitch about his mouth.

I shudder and take my more feline form, where the fur is thick enough to hide anything and shrug on a dressing gown before returning to my more human shape. Sure, the cat form's strong, fast and really cool, but the legs aren't designed for bipedal movement as the knees are, not to put too fine a point on it, backwards. Yes, you heard me. Backwards. Which makes walked normally hell. No, I am not kidding. I resort to dropping onto my arms for fast movement, which is fast. As in, things to either side blur slightly. I reckon I'm hitting 10mph, no bother. Oh, and Beast's now asking me about a personal X-Man uniform and I've been watching way too much Sherlock as I want a black wool military coat. You know, the sort that flaps dramatically as you run. Come on, admit it, at one point when watching the first episode, possibly when he leaps over a gap between buildings, you really, really wanted the coat! That or the light brown David Tennant Doctor coat, another of my pet loves. Sherlock coat for winter, Doctor coat for summer? Arrggghh! Data overload!

But seriously, an X-Man costume? Really? One designed to change with my shifting from my two main forms and also slip off easily when I go cat? Am I in heaven? Do you think they'll let me incorporate my favourite gloves?

But seriously, being furry and acrobatic has its uses. In the three weeks since I went on my first X-Man mission, I've been having self-defence lessons with Logan, who is actually an amazing teacher, acrobatics and fencing with Kurt and Beast's been giving me lessons in pretty much everything else except psychic shielding, which Jean is giving me. My mind blocks are effective, if I have 100% concentration. Which I'm not likely to have in a combat situation where the opponents have a telepath. Her words not mine.

And I've gone from walking into my own bed to being able to see a fly buzzing on the wall opposite. Gone from being hit in the head with the ball in rounders to fast becoming the X-Girl's star baseball fielder. Gone from being covered in cuts and splinters from Scouts and experiments to having an uber-cool healing factor. In fact, the only problem is the length of time it takes to dry myself after a shower. Oh, and the moulting.

Yes, moulting. About a week ago, I was having a shower and a load of fine hairs just washed out. I screamed, people came running and Beast explained very kindly that I was just growing my winter coat and there was no need to worry. Yes, but I was having images of turning bald, like those cats. Jean must have picked up my thought as she started laughing her head off and wouldn't tell anyone else why. She then winked at me. I haven't seen a Phoenix moment yet, so most of the time she just seems like a really intuitive normal woman. But Storm's more my sort of person, even if she does baby me a bit. Rogue keeps to herself but she seems really nice when we do talk. Kitty's great though. Almost like some friends from school, although there's one person she could never replace due to the fact we finish each other's sentences and can spend an hour arguing back and forth over one trivial little detail. Prolonged contact between me and her is to be discouraged, as we both have the same crazy ideas. "I wonder what would happen if you superheated nail varnish?" "I've got some I never use!" No, seriously, we have had that conversation.

But at the back of my head is that nagging feeling every second, when I remember Isaac's face as I walked away.

Isaac

I dodged the deadly claws and leapt backwards, panting for breath. Sabretooth didn't let up for a second. I twisted and turned, trying to avoid the incredibly sharp claws. My back hit a wall and the nails tore through my flesh. I fell to the floor, gasping. I wanted to hold my stomach to stop the blood escaping but I couldn't because my hands were tied behind my back.

"Pitiful," Sabretooth spat. "You're never going to be as good as that little brat. Not if Wolverine's training her."

I staggered to my feet, a pool of blood already beginning to form around my feet, staining my trainers.

Magneto sat in his chair, like a king, overseeing the fight. Quicksilver sat next to him with pity in his eyes. As soon as Magneto had awoken he had decided that I was in need of some sparring. I had gotten too accustomed to relying on my powers too much. Annoyingly, I wasn't allowed the use of my hands or my powers.

I ran towards Sabretooth. He wasn't as fast as Logan, but he was definately stronger. He swung a fist at me which I dodged easily. I realized too late that it was just a distraction. The real punch was underneath me, slamming into my groin. I doubled over, gagging for oxygen. A knee to the jaw sent me to the ground. I rolled onto my front and shuffled to my feet. Blood was gushing out of my mouth and down the front of my shirt. My wounds had healed by now, but the pain and blood were still there.

"Do you give up?" Sabretooth asked. I looked at him. The look in his eyes said there would be no mercy until I was broken properly. He just wanted the satisfaction of hearing me to give up. I smiled and shook my head. He growled and rushed towards me. I adopted a defensive stance.

As he threw the first punch at me I realized he was trying the same trick again. As I dodged the first punch, the low blow shot towards my stomach. I quickly brought the back of my head up, smashing my head into Sabretooth's chin. He grunted in pain. As he reeled backwards, I kneed him in the solar plexus. Without the use of my hands, I couldn't elbow him so I lifted my leg as high as it would go and then brought my heel crashing down on his head. Without using my strength I couldn't really do any real damage, but maybe I could keep him occupied for a while.

"Stop!" Magneto called. "That's enough for today. Tomorrow we will begin the real training."

"So what was today?" I asked incredulously. "And why were my hands tied?"

"The first lesson's always the hardest. The next time, your hands won't be tied, your legs will."

"What!"

"We want you to get used to using only one area of your body at once and then try and merge them all together."

It was going to be a long week.