Agent Kat

Chapter 43: We're Okay, Right?

It only took hours before the cocoon was crawling up Kat's arms and her legs, her face and torso already covered. Her scalp was white, and all of her curly, dark brown hair had shriveled into her skull, disappearing and giving her already pale body an even creepier look.

"I don't want to be a butterfly!" she said, repeating the same statement she had been saying ever since Leroy's explanation. She sat in a chair in a lounge, staring at the growing cocoon. "I'm happy the way I am..."

The rest of the team was in the room, trying not to be obvious as they watched it creep down her forearm, stretching towards her fingers.

"Kat, I don't think you get a choice," Dian said quietly. "It's almost finished..."

She started to hyperventilate. "Why doesn't it hurt anymore?"

Leroy, who was washing his hands and turned around from the sink to say, "It's because your body is accustomed to it. It's used to how it feels and works. Your body is already changing to accommodate it."

Trying to put a light spin on it, Kat tried to laugh. "Maybe I'll end up being like Spider-man? You know... fwip-fwip." She held her fingers out in the well-known Spider-man sign. 

Nova laughed, hoping to ease everyone's minds. "That'd be awesome."

Kat smiled. Her smile fell as she saw her fingers go white. She screamed as her nails fell off. "I hate this! I look like a monster!"

Adam took her face in his hands. "You do not look like a monster," he said sternly. "Alright? You are fine. You will be fine."

"But you don't know that for sure!"

Kat snorted to herself. She used to be such a strong-willed girl. The kind of girl that kicked "homeless" children out of her home. The kind that would be able to joke and fight about anything. Now, after the stupid Monestone ruined her life, she was a wreck. She was a whiny, pathetic weakling who couldn't get over the fact that she was about to get a new face. 

"You could think of it like a regeneration," Freya supplied. 

Everyone stared at her in confusion. 

"You know, like in Doctor Who, when the Doctor regenerates whenever he's dying," she explained. They blinked, not understanding. She rolled her eyes and shook her head, "Never mind."

Kat looked down at her feet, the cocoon just reaching her ankles. She looked up at all of her friends, her eyes wide. "Guys... I'm scared..."

They all surrounded her, giving her one big, group hug. A few seconds later, "It's done," she breathed. 

Kat could feel her body shutting down, bit by bit, until her eyes were drooping. Her heartbeat slowed dramatically, as did her breathing. Her mouth became dry, and her mind began to work slower, her thoughts not coming as easily as they had. 

Finally, she closed her eyes and prepared for a long, deep, peaceful sleep, no one knowing when her metamorphosis would end.

Adam picked up Kat and said, "I'm going to go put her in her bed. She should be somewhere comfortable while she sleeps. You guys will be okay?"

"Yeah, we're okay," Nova said quietly, watching as they left. She looked back at the rest of the group, all of them seeming on edge. "We're okay, right?"

********

A Week Later

Leroy, Nova, Freya, Brendan, Dian, and Adam all sat in the training room, no one wanting to make the move and speak. 

Finally, after ten minutes of silence, Nova said quietly, "Why did she even grow the weird cocoon-thing? I mean, it was so... sudden. She was fine all that week. Still getting used to being able to change form, sure, but there was nothing to suggest that she would... you know... do this."

Brendan sighed. "I think it may have something to do with the Monestone." He looked up at the rest of the group and shrugged. "All of this is happening because she touched it, right?"

"But why would touching the remains of a rock make her change form?" Freya asked, still absorbing the information that Kat was actually gone... for the meantime, anyway.

Leroy sighed and stood up. "I don't know. No one knows what was in that stone, so no one knows what it can do to people... Heck, it could have turned her into a stick of dynamite, and no one would be able to explain it."

Suddenly, Dian stood up. "I can't do this whole sad thing. We all know that Kat's fine. After all, you checked in on her this morning, right, Freya?"

Freya nodded. "I did."

"So we should all just stop fretting and relax. She'll come out of it when she comes out of it. We can't rush nature."

Leroy snorted. "There was nothing natural about that. It was random, and all of this is as confusing as fart knockers."

Nova raised her eyebrows. "Did you just say fart knockers?"

He blushed. "I don't swear."

Before she could stop herself, Nova felt a giggle spurt out and she slapped her hand over her mouth, containing her giggles. He lightly hit her arm.

"It's not funny," he said, even though he was holding back a smile of his own.

Dian, Adam, and Freya joined in laughing. Soon, Leroy found himself laughing along. He looked around the room and saw six people becoming closer as they all laughed together, no one knowing what they were laughing about anymore. The only thought he had as he laughed was, I wish Kat were here to see this.

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Dear readers,

EEEK! That's the end of Agent Kat. There will be a sequel (you didn't think I'd leave you hanging like AnnabethC, now did you? ;) Just kidding. 

Anyway, Kat and the rest of the gang will return in the sequel, the title of which is to be determined. 

I hope you like this story, I had a lot of fun writing it, and I'm excited to do a second. :D 

In the meantime, check out some of my other stories, or the stories of my friends/followers/people I'm following.

Vote, share, comment... You know the drill.

-flygirl1

P.S. Thanks to KaylenAmela for making the beautiful cover above!