Red Darkness (On Hold)

The First Change

-A Few Months Earlier-

Heat. I feel so hot I can barely breathe. My Mum takes my temperature as I struggle to free myself.

 "38.8. You have a temperature and a high one. You are not to leave this bed all day, do you hear me?"

 I nod, still angry about having my temperature taken in the first place. My Mum sighs.

 "I can't stay home. I'm sorry. I know you're sick, but the hours at the plant are strict. I'll leave you some food and water on the bed stand and get home as soon as the shift ends okay?"

 I sigh,

"Mum, I'm almost 15! I can handle myself for one day!"

 "Alright, I'll see you tonight." She leans over and gives me a kiss, grabs her bag and gently shuts the door behind her.

 A few minutes later I know she's gone, and I get up and stretch. Unfortunetely I really am sick, at least it feels that way. My whole body is on fire and I feel like I might lose my stomach. I decide after a moment of thought to take a bath, that ought to cool me down.

 I settle into the water, feeling better already. But now I'm itchy, I hope it's not the chicken pox. I try my best not to scratch and stare at the ceiling for the better part of an hour. Something shakes me out of that state though, and I notice I've got prunes all over! I laugh, the water definitely made feel better. I dry off and comb out my hair. As I put the comb down I notice something odd. Why are there black hairs in here? My hair is auburn. I shrug it off, there's a perfectly reasonable explanation, I just don't know what it is.

 As I head back to my room, I start to itch again. Curse-ed chicken pox! I pass my mirror and stop dead.

 "WHAT THE HECK!?" I scream, "WHY ARE THERE CAT EARS ON MY HEAD?!?" Suddenly cautious of the neighbors, I walk slowly to the mirror. I put up one hand to feel those cat ears, maybe the mirror is playing tricks on me. But no, they really are there, flesh and blood as best I can tell. As I get ready to freak out again, I notice something else. Now a tail is coming out of my tail bone. I lean weakly against the dresser and whisper,

 "Please tell me this isn't real." I take a deep breath, "It's just a dream, wake up and you'll be normal." I close my eyes and count to ten, then open them again. This cat-girl stares me right in the face. I close my eyes again, hoping for a different outcome. No such luck.

 "Oh. My. Gosh. What am I going to do?" I whimper, fully aware of the neighbor's proximity.

 But that wasn't the end of it. Oh no, my body had other things in mind. I started growing black fur everywhere. Claws came out of my nails and my teeth grew sharp. Wings came from my back. I mean, come on. Wings too?

 When it seems safe to move again, I turn to the side to get a better look at everything. Black is the first thing I see. Black is the color of 'my' fur and wings, 'my' teeth are sharp and shiny, and 'my' eyes are a delightful shade of amber. Shreds of my pajamas hang from my back and litter the floor.

 Experimentally I open and close my mouth. The image in the mirror does too. Crap. That thing really IS me. I wonder what to do next, and then have a positively horrifying thought. If that thing is me, then I'm some sort of big cat. And if I'm some sort of big cat, how am I going to become human again? Never to be human again? Surely there is SOME way to go back. I mean, I had to transform somehow in the first place right??? Then another thought strikes me. Mum is coming back soon. She'll find me like this, think I'm some escaped animal and call the police! I start to panic. NO! I simply CANNOT have the police come here and put me in a cage!... Calm down. Think. How can I turn back into a human? I sit there and ponder that thought for awhile, turning it over in my head. Maybe...maybe I can THINK my way out of this. I still myself, and focus every thought on becoming human again. Other thoughts invade my head, but I push them away. Human. Human. Human. Everything is quite; you could hear a pin drop. Slowly I feel something happening. It feels as though my fur is shrinking! Suddenly every backwards change stops. No! Focus! Silently I sit there, barely breathing.

 After what I judge to be about a half hour, every part of me seems to be normal. No extra long hair, no cat ears, no tail, no wings, no fangs or claws. I look like me, except I'm not wearing any clothes. So what just happened? I sit there and ponder the happenings, then realize quite abruptly I no longer feel quite as sick. Could...could it be that I was sick because of...of...needing to transform? I look up and see the clock on my bedroom wall portray the time 12:34. Is it that late already? Mum will be home a half hour for lunch, I better clean my room up and find some clothes.

As I clean up the shreds of clothing, I can't help but wonder if I could turn back into that cat. It would be so awesome to run around like that, and I wonder if I could fly with those wings. I vow to try to become that cat again after lights out and stay home sick again tomorrow if possible. If I could, maybe I could learn to change myself quickly, that is IF I could change again. 

With a sigh I look down at the floor. It's covered in black hairs like a cat's or dog's only longer, and a few feathers. I go and find the broom, thank goodness we have hardwood floors, if this was carpet I would never get it clean in time. I finish that and go find the soup mum left on the bed stand, because I'm hungry and still not feeling well. I sit there drinking my soup, relishing the fresh potatoes and carrots. They aren't easy to get this time of year, especially with the war going on. As I sit there, drinking my soup and puzzling over what to tell mum about the pajamas, I hear the door open and Mum walk in.

"I'm backkkkkk," she sings as she comes into the living room.

"This soup is really good, where did you mange to find fresh potatoes in early spring?" I ask, extremely curious.

"Oh, that's my little secret. I'm glad to see you're feeling better," she replies as she comes and plants a kiss on my cheek.

"I took a bath and ate this. It must be some sort of miracle cure," I joke.

"Oh you," she huffs, trying to hit me with her coat.

I duck and laugh at the expression on her face.

"I left you some soup, no need to get all possessive!"

Mum washes her hands and sits down on the floor with a spoon and bowl. As she eats we talk about all manner of things, most especially her work. I don't know exactly where she works, but it must be a good job, because we get lots of good food and medicines when we need them. I know it's with the government and some top secret hoo-ha because she's always telling me to not tell people where she works. I've always been mystified by the sometimes late night calls that wake everyone up and the occasional odd package in the mail.

About an hour later she has to leave, and she still hasn't asked about my pajamas. As she's walking out the door she turns and says,

"I think you can go back to school tomorrow, if your fever doesn't flare up again."

"Aw Mum..." I reply in a wheedling tone, "Please let me stay home."

She laughs, "If you feel that good tomorrow, you are definitely going to school."

I sigh as she walks out and shuts the door behind her.