Ignoring the throbbing pain in her head, Kat followed the stout woman down gray, dimly lit hallways. There were other men and women walking down the halls, all in the same uniform: navy blue one-pieces with a gun holster on their side and a logo on their shoulders. Kat didn't recognize the logo, but she was sure she would find out quickly.
"Um, what should I call you, Sydney Naywall?" Kat asked, breaking the silence.
"Ms. Naywall will do for now," the woman said, taking a lanyard Kat hadn't noticed off of her neck and showing the name tag to a scanner beside a metal door. There was a green flash and a beep, and the sound of a door unlocking.
Ms. Naywall opened the door and held it open for Kat. "Go on in and take a seat."
"What... or who... is in there?" Kat asked cautiously.
Ms. Naywall just smiled. "You'll see. Now head on in. The Director will want to speak with you."
The Director? I wonder who that could be...
Kat looked back at the woman, who was still smiling, but looked a little nervous now, and walked into the room. It was a room with no pictures, no paintings, no windows on the walls. It was a room with navy blue carpet with the bird symbol in gray underneath a long oval table.
It was a conference room, with about twelve chairs around the table, all but one of them filled with a person. It was like a council meeting. At one head of the table, was the man that Kat had seen a few days before, at the grocery store.
"You! I remember you!" she said, pointing accusingly at him.
The man stood up, this time dressed in a black leather trench coat. He gave Kat a steely look and said, "My name is Director Fury—"
"You're first name is Director?" Kat snorted.
Director Fury rolled his eyes. "That is what everyone calls me, so it may as well be. Anyways, Kat, please. Take a seat."
Kat said, "How do you know my name, and why should I trust the people who kidnapped me from home?"
"That 'home' was an abandoned apartment that for some strange reason still had electricity and heat. Now, can you please take a seat or we'll make you." Director Fury pointed at the chair and sat back down himself.
Crossing her arms, Kat did as she was told, propping her feet on the table. "Alright. What's this about?"
A small Asian woman leaned forward, a pad and pen ready. "Ms. Kat. We've had you under surveillance for a few months now. We've been... monitoring your activity. We've also had the chance to witness some of your... powers. Can you tell us why you haven't disappeared by now? You have the ability..."
Kat stared at the woman for a second before saying, "Alright. So, not only did you guys kidnap me, but you've been stalking me for months? Is that how you know my name? And you expect me to answer your questions?"
"Please. We just want to help," pleaded a burly man.
Kat whipped her feet off of the table and slammed her hands on the table. "Help," she repeated. "You want to help? Then bring me home!"
Director Fury sighed. "Kat, please calm down. We could turn you over to the feds right now for theivery."
She glared daggers at them all a second longer before giving up and sitting back in the chair, her arms crossed. "Fine. I'll answer your questions. I'm not teleporting out of here because firstly, I want to know what you psychopaths want with me, and secondly, I don't know the area well enough. I don't have photographic memory and I need to be able to envision my destination. Is that detailed enough?" Kat asked scathingly.
"Yes, thank you," the woman replied quickly.
Kat stared at her, digging into her mind. My goodness. This girl is even more unpredictable then they told me! I should keep watch over her... "No one's keeping watch over me!" Kat exploded, forgetting that she was the only one that could hear the woman's thoughts.
The entire council froze. "Um, who said anything about keeping watch over you?" asked a timid looking blonde woman. The Asian woman's face paled and then turned bright red. As much as Kat wanted to single her out, that just wasn't in her nature.
"N... Never mind," Kat said, leaning back and closing her eyes. "Who's next?"
"We've caught footage of you... flying?" said a man. Kat opened her eyes to see an older man, maybe in his forties pointing to a screen decending from the ceiling. In the next few seconds, a video of what looked like a large bird showed up. The camera zoomed in, revealing legs, arms and hair. "How is this physically possible? Was it just a ruse?"
Laughing, Kat stood up. "A ruse? And how would anyone be able to pull that off? No. It's not a ruse." She twitched her wings, hoping that the fabric wasn't too thick. Maybe she would be able to break her wings through.
"Can you show us?" asked another member of the council.
"Do you have any scissors?" Kat retorted.
The men and women looked around in confusion. "Scissors?" asked the Asian woman. "Why would you need those?"
"Well, I can't exactly show you my wings through this onesie you've given me, now can I?" Smirking, Kat searched the room, finding a pair of the blades on a desk in the corner. She walked over to them and grabbed hold of the handles. "Now, who has the steadiest hands?" she asked critically.
No one raised their hands.
"No one? Well then, I suppose I'll just have to do it myself." Kat wasn't actually going to do it, but she wasn't about to tell them that.
"Wait!" called a woman. "I'll do it. We can't risk you getting hurt..."
Triumphant, Kat made her way over to the woman, handed her the scissors and stood, her back facing the coucil. "Alright. Make two big slits from my shoulder blades to the small of my back. Got it?"
"Uh huh..." Kat could hear the entire council holding their breaths as the woman snipped at the tough fabric. Soon, she could feel air on her back, her wings and feathers.
"Wonderful. Now... do you think I have fourteen feet of clearance?" she asked, genuinely curious as to if she had enough room.
"Yes, there's more than enough room," Director Fury said tersely.
Kat smiled. "Then be prepared to be wowed." Whipping her wings out, she heard the gasps of awe and excitement. She would never get tired of hearing those gasps.