User:Acinonyx2/Discoveries

The stitches hurt. The broken wing hurt more.

After squawking and pecking at Blaze instinctively while he bandaged me up, I was finally set down on Tobias' bed.

"So, what are we going to do about this eagle morph?" Dave asked.

I huffed and panted, staring at the rest of the group. They were all predators and I was vulnerable.

I shook my head. I had to stop thinking that way if I would ever get back to my usual form. I concentrated on getting bigger. So painful.

"Well, I think we still need to figure out more about these other beings. If they have that advanced of technology, who knows what they will do." Tobias shrugged.

That eagle. He seemed so familiar. In the heat of the moment, I didn't have time to think about it, though. I needed to try and change back, as much as it hurt. I slowed my breathing and focused on letting my body become more human.

I felt my thighs grow longer and my ankle shrink as my toes whipped around to face forward. My arms lengthened and the membrane that connected my shoulder and wrist melted away. My broken wing had now become a broken arm. Great.

I was still covered in feathers, though. This would be hard to explain to my mom.

"What I want to know is how Nikki went full raven. I didn't think you had gone through the Change yet." Icestar said, turning toward me.

I shrugged.

"I feather pick,"I half-lied.

"Feather pick?" Tobias said with one eyebrow lifted.

"Well, when my methods don't work as well. My mom's a swan morph and sick of it. She's been having plastic surgery done to look more human, but it just makes her look weird. I've had another raven morph show me some techniques to appear human, mostly breathing stuff and mind over body techniques. I won't pretend to know how they work, I just know it's a temporary fix. I've been using it mostly so my mom doesn't try to put me through the same stuff. It's been breaking down though, so I'm sure one of these days, I'll lose it entirely. Hopefully by then, my mom will have regained her marbles and won't insist I go through the same."

Tobias grinned his bird of prey grin. It sent chills down my spine, but I fought back the fear.

"The breathing technique isn't working so well on these feathers though ... anyone have any pliers?" I asked.

As I was plucking myself, with Tobias' help on my good arm, Blaze, Icestar, and Dave brainstormed on possible solutions for this "eagle-morph" business. Blaze wanted to go after them (and after my encounter, I was even more inclined to agree, once my wing-arm was better), Dave thought it was foolish and still wanted to let the authorities go after them (I guess he was hoping for some morph-friendly officers). Icestar was in the middle, understanding that something had to be done, but that we couldn't be the ones to do it and neither could the police.

A painful half and hour later and I had plucked out enough of the feathers to be able to look human if I wore the right clothing, which I found under Tobias' bed after a brief search. We all left Tobias' house shortly thereafter, no solution reached. Blaze had insisted I have an escort and so his other half followed me home. I wasn't to thrilled with this stranger following me, but if it was a part of Blaze, I suppose it was okay.

"So, are you ashamed of the Change then as well, Nikki?"

"No. I just don't want to look like a monster, like I know my mom will. Swans don't translate into a human form as well. I doubt a raven would either."

"Does your father condone of this?"

I sighed. As long as I had known them, I had still not revealed anything about my family to my friends.

"My dad isn't in the picture. I'm sure he's something like a hummingbird or tom cat morph ... no offense."

"None taken," he chuckled.

"I often wonder if he is why my mom is so ashamed of being a morph. I'm not sure if her parents were as well. I didn't know them too well. Eh, I suppose they were if she is."

Blaze's other half nodded as we reached my door.

"Thanks for walking me here," I smiled.

"Not a problem," he said before dashing away.

I carefully opened my door with my good hand and walked in.

I could hear the TV blaring in the living room. My mom was distracted. I had enough time to sneak up to my room -

"Nikki? Is that you?"

I sighed and turned to look at my mom. She had pin feathers sticking out all over her head and her false lips were pursed into a frown. Her neck was somewhere between too long for a human and way too short for a swan. I could see where the doctor had created fingers on her "hands".

She looked so wrong.

"Nikki! What did you do to your arm?"

I shrugged my good one.

"I had an accident on the way home from Tobias'."

"Well, I'm going to make a call to Doctor Jacobsen to take a look at your arm."

I sighed and trudged up to my room. I made sure to lock my door behind me and flopped onto my bed.

I turned over to look at the Sugar Pine I had potted in the corner of my room. It was dead, of course.

I huffed and walked over to it, angrily.

"So, I water you, feed you, and prune you and you still die?" I growled. "Leave it to me to kill an endangered plant!"

I grabbed one of the sprigs and received a small jolt of electricity. Suddenly the dead needles turned green again as the tree had a minor growth spurt, growing half way up the wall. Bolts of electricity swirled about the tree's branches, forming small orbs at the ends instead of cones.

I bolted for my phone and dialed Blaze.

Ring ...

"Nikki? Can I come in?"

Crap.

Ring ...

Still no answer.

"Nikki, I am your mother, let me into your room!"

Ring ...

I could feel something itchy on my good arm.

Pinfeathers. Oh no.

Ring ...

Click-click -

I turned to the door. The knob turned all the way. My mom figured out how to pick the lock.

"Hello?"

"Oh my God! Nikki!"

I'm sure Blaze could hear the scream over the phone. I turned to my mom who stared at me in horror.

So much for that. I was worse than grounded, I knew it.