Metamorphosis

Disclaimer: I own nothing

A/N:

Chapter 2 (Arrival)

The goodbyes were interesting, though dull. Tori was the most vocal, hugging Trina and repeating a long string of demands. She wanted Trina to write, to look after herself, use sunscreen whenever she could, and to stay in the camp.

Evidently, the girl felt a need to take such an approach because Holly was too busy filing her nails and saying nothing. David at least hugged Trina and told her to be safe, but other than that, he was checking his pager and phone the entire time they were at the airport.

When she arrived at the camp, she received a number of looks that made her feel uncomfortable. She was carrying with her a number of bags and was wearing a long vanilla dress with chiffon sleeves. Her hair was up in a bun-she preferred ponytails but for some strange reason she opted to be different.

At the root of it, she didn't think she would look good in the dress with a ponytail.

The camp itself was in the middle of nowhere. They were surrounded by mountains and woodland, and the campgrounds were within what appeared to be a giant castle on the outside. They were simply large grey walls that held enough rooms to house an army. At first glance, it was intimidating and she wondered how long it would take to get word to her family if she ended up dying out here.

Greeting her at the entrance of the camp was a boy standing close to six feet-just an inch below. She was dwarfed by him, since she was five foot three. He had short hair that looked like a burning fire colored brown as the sand on the California beaches.

His large arms were crossed, tightening the muscles in his chest, and his legs were spread apart. As his right eyebrow rose, she could feel his questioning gaze burning into her. "I'm sorry." He unfolded his arms and walked towards her. His lips were pulled into an attractive smirk that caused her to freeze on the spot.

"No, ignore this attraction Trina, you do not have luck with men."

She cleared her throat and straightened her back, watching as he approached her. "This is a camp for martial artists." She dropped her eyes to the GI he was wearing. It consisted of a black top, black pants, red stripes that ran along the frame of his collar and flaps of the jacket. Around his waist was a belt, black as night. "Not fashionistas.

"I know that." She narrowed her eyes at the man an scowled. "Katrina Vega. I have a brown belt." The man curled a finger over his chin and his eyes moved along her body, but not in a fashion that would imply a man undressing a woman, but rather studiously. "You don't believe me?"

"It isn't that I don't believe you." He pulled his hands behind his back. "It's more I'm wondering why you would come to camp with so much luggage, and of course you're wearing a dress. You're not about to attend any gala, no balls here. Strictly fighters." He exhaled slowly and closed his eyes. "I'm a little worried, actually, that you may break a nail and start complaining about it."

She closed her mouth and pursed her lips, glaring at him as her blood began to churn. "Oh, well, screw you." His smirk returned and she forced her eyes away. "I suppose you missed where I said I was a brown belt."

"What does that say about you?"

"It says I've been involved in martial arts since I was a child."

"Are you still the child, searching and curious; or are you the woman, strong and confident?" She pursed her lips, but remained silent. His question meant something, but she couldn't answer it because she didn't know what to expect from it. "You may be in the advanced stages of your belts, but have you grown into it?"

"What are you saying?"

"Every belt, every stage, represents and says something about the wearer." He tilted his head to the side and his eyes moved to the right. "Brown signifies a seed that is beginning to ripen. A maturing, or harvesting process…change, preparing for red. The student is advanced, their techniques and abilities are starting to mature and of course they begin to understand all the hard work it took to get there."

"Okay." She pointed to his belt and smirked back at him. "What about you, Mr. Smartass?" His eyebrow rose and he turned his gaze back to her. "You're a black belt. What does that signify?"

"Darkness beyond the sun." She pulled her head back and watched his shoulders rise. His eyes closed and he spoke with a certainty that held an authoritative tone. "A black belt looks for newer, more profound knowledge. Martial arts is a craft, an art, a trade that requires great skill-the black belt has mastered this craft."

The man exhaled slowly and his eyelids opened partially. "He teaches, planting new seeds into beginnings and helping them grow…the black belt is as much a nurturer and teacher as they are an authority on the subject. Their students blossom under their leadership-" He pulled his right hand up, balled it and placed it on his chest. "I help them to grow and what they find is growth within, knowledge about themselves and about their craft, and greater enlightenment."

"My next belt is red…what's that?"

"Fire."

"Fire?"

He closed his eyes and shrugged. "One way to put it. It is the heat of the sun, and you are the tree that grows towards it. Reaching to grasp it. Here you will learn to be cautious with both what you know and your physical ability. For you are dangerous, lethal, and your belt warns those that you are dangerous." His eyes opened back and the smirk on his face deepened as his eyes shone with a flicker of that very flame he spoke of. "Fire."

The red belt knew who they were, knew what they were. She started to smile as she visualized herself in this powerful mode. She wasn't there yet, but she could feel the pride from within. She could reach that point.

"Three months to hone my skills. Maybe I can harness a bit of that fire?"

"We'll see." The man leaned his shoulder against the wall and chuckled at her luggage. "But first you may have to get used to the camp itself. I think you'll find it easier to wear your GI and probably loose clothing rather than a long dress."

"I don't see anything wrong with a dress."

"Me either, but can you perform a high kick in it?"

She thought about doing just that, and perhaps kicking this guy in the head. Still, she knew better than to do that in a dress that ran down to her ankles. "I do that, I'm going to fall flat on my ass."

"Yes."

Her smirk increased as she stepped beside him and raised her hand up, holding it inches above his shoulder. "You'd like to see that, wouldn't you?"

"Certainly would be interesting, but I'm not asking you to do anything to embarrass yourself." His eyes fell to her luggage and a sigh left his lips. "Did you bring your GI? I hope you have a few. Furthermore, did you bring any simple clothing? Shirts, pants, anything that you don't mind getting dirty…"

"Of course." Since this camping trip was approximately three to four months, she had a large amount of clothing she had. She was informed that students had their own rooms with one other roommate, so she hoped to make the best of whatever storage space she had. In the brochure, it was said the camp did have a laundry area, so she was able to deal with cleaning her clothes.

She'd purchased eleven GIs before, and had one that her own sensei had given to her once before, so currently she packed all twelve uniforms. Each had their own belt included, of course these belts had to be ordered specially along with the uniform so the wearer could obtain the correct level.

Aside from her uniforms, she brought with her a number of tank tops, short sleeved shirts and thin cut long sleeved shirts. She had knee length shorts, long jeans and simple pants also packed away.

"I might have packed a bit more than I needed to, but I think it'll be alright."

"Yeah, just be careful to remember you're sharing the room with one other person. The closet isn't a large one, but it is a walk-in, so make sure there's enough room to share her clothes as well."

"Sure." She started to enter, but stopped to peer at the walls. There were walkways at the top, like battlements of old time castles. "Any reason why this place looks like a castle?"

"Because…it was built that way?"

She rolled her eyes and scoffed. "Very funny, smartass." He laughed and stepped in beside her. As she looked out at the yard, she realized it wasn't so much a true castle as it was a border that closed off a gigantic yard.

"Much obliged." There were some buildings scattered about, smaller hut like buildings that likely belonged to standard campground areas: The mess hall, the cafeteria, and so forth. "Honestly though, I think the people that run the camp decided to make the walls like apartments…and put walkways so that people can enjoy the outside view. View from the walkways up there-remarkable."

"You've been up there?" They looked to be a mile high, though it could just be her eyes playing a trick on her. "They almost touch the sky."

"True. I'm always up there. Like I said, it's a grand view." He smiled at her and crossed his arms. "Perhaps I'll run into you up there sometime."

"Maybe. I'm not sure about the height part."

The plane ride itself had been nerve-wracking for her. She'd only flown one other time, and that was with her sister. When she was that high up, her heart would start pacing and the world would spin around her-so she truly needed something to distract her from the fears of plummeting into the ground.

"Heights and I don't really get along. Who knows, maybe I'll give them a try sometime."

"It'd be worth it. See you around."

When she finally arrived at her room, it wasn't entirely breathtaking. It was a simple room no bigger than her own bedroom. There were two twin sized beds, each positioned against the sides. She set her items on the bed next to the window and looked outside.

She could see a large body of water framed by a remarkable valley leading into what almost looked like a jungle. It was a stunning sight that took her breath away the moment she saw it. "That's what I'm talking about…"

Trina let out a soft exhale and folded her arms on the open windowsill. Her eyes closed over and she curled her lips up as the wind came in and caressed her cheeks, then swept into the hair which she'd let down on her way there.

After several seconds, she glanced to the right. There was a door leading into the bathroom. "A single bathroom, just great." She groaned and pushed herself from the window. "I fight over the restroom with my sister enough, now I'm going to be fighting over it with some girl I hardly know."

She approached it and glanced to the door on the left of the restroom. This was the walk-in closet, it was about eight feet long, but four feet wide. "I'll make do," she said with a sigh.

Once she unpacked everything and made sure there was enough room for her roommate, whenever the girl would arrive, she decided to head towards the building where all the campers were to meet up.

Before leaving though, she made sure to change into her uniform. She didn't need anyone mistaking her for a 'fashionista'. This GI consisted of a simple purple top and long purple pants. She bore her brown belt with pride.

She was eager to meet the one in charge of the counselors, the man Tori said was Sikowitz's nephew.

What she saw when she entered the building stopped her in her tracks. The wall to her left had photographs of those involved with the camp-from the owners to the head counselor.

Resting above the bust of a lion was the head counselor's picture. He had a name plate, but she didn't need it, for staring back at her were the eyes of the man she'd just met at the door.

Her jaw fell open and her eyes dilated. "That was Jason?" She took a minute to regain her composure, but could not tear her eyes away. She wasn't sure if she should be embarrassed or concerned at this point, because for all she knew, she and the person in charge were off on a bad start. When she turned her head, she saw him walking by. He glanced at her and his mouth slid into a smirk.

"Good to see you made it here. You look different in the uniform."

"How come you didn't tell me you were in charge of everybody, so I could have avoided looking like a fool?"

"I want people talking to me as an equal, not like I'm in charge." He shrugged simply and walked off, leaving her in a momentary stupor.

Well we meet Jason. And those of you reading probably know him from the boy that showed up in the "sleepover at sikowitz" episode. IThere's more to Jason than meets the eye. Looks like here, Trina's going to have to show the martial arts side of herself, her diva starlet self is not going to survive a martial arts camp. Perhaps Jason can bring her out of her shell a little, and she him?