The First Shifters

At the Honeybee

I made it to class with a few minutes to spare, but I had to speed walk to make it on time. That jerk, Ryker, took up my time, but I had made it. I took a deep breath to calm my mind, smoothed down my hair, and grabbed my notebook and sketchbook from my bag. As much as I tried to put it from my mind, the entire class I over-analyzed myself. I can’t believe he got under my skin like that. I wasn’t a fan of the way my family acted, but it didn’t warrant his behavior. Did it?

I shook my head, trying to focus on the task at hand. It was a free day in class today, so there was no model of any sort on the pedestal. The task was to draw what we felt, and I was having a hard time with my normal style of art. It seemed edgy, and I wasn’t pleased with the results.

“Hey, are you okay?” Tigger asked me, and she made me jump with a scare.

“Jeezus,” I gasped, my hand over my heart. “Yes girl, I’m okay. You scared me half to death.”

“I’m sorry, I wasn’t trying to scare you,” she laughed, sitting next to me at the table. It was just me here in the four-seater area, as today’s class was optional. Not many people came on the optional days, but this place was like a refuge. It was quiet, and sometimes that’s what I needed.

Tigger was a beautiful white tiger cross. She had jeweled blue eyes, long white curly hair, and the softest fur I’d ever felt. The black stripes were like glistening onyx rivers across the silvery white. Even where the fur ended, and the skin began, the stripes faded to a nice grey color. Tigger was one of my best friends, but she didn’t feel like I did about the societal norms. She wasn’t a total jerk to everyone, but she definitely embraced the role of what was expected of her. Her name just didn’t seem to match her at all.

“So,” she prodded. “What’s on your mind?”

“Nothing really,” I sighed, and told her about my encounter with Ryker. “It just kind of got to me, I guess. I’m not like the rest of my family; I don’t look down on the rest of the world. My mother isn’t even like that, not really.” Tigger put a reassuring hand on my shoulder.

“Some people are just bitter because they think they can’t change their circumstances. I wouldn’t worry too much about him.”

“You’re right, I shouldn’t let him ruin the rest of my day.” I tried so hard to convince myself, but even after it was time to leave class, I couldn’t shake the dark cloud that had brewed for the entire hour. I wore my sister's designs because I liked them genuinely. It was a support of her career, not her behavior. Though, Scarlett wasn’t as bad as my brothers.

A soft ping sounded from my wrist, and I looked down at the little blinking light on my smartwatch. With a click, a holographic screen popped up with a message.

Caliste: I just got done talking with Axel. I’m glad I did it, I feel a lot better.

I smiled.

Inara: I knew you would. I’m glad you guys talked. Walk me home? Just leaving class, I’m halfway across campus.

C: Hell yeah girl, you know I love raiding your closet! Plus, I need to talk to you about what happened.

I: Sweet, meet me at the Honeybee first?

C: Yas girl, I’ll get the coffee this time, my treat.

I: Perfect, because I’ve got a bit of tea for you.

C: Ah! I’m hurrying!

I laughed at her text, flicking away the hologram and adjusting my bag. The Honeybee was one of the best places on the outskirts of campus to go to for coffee and tea. It was hands down the best place to get the sweetest, richest drinks around, other than Daisy’s Dairy Café that served milkshakes and the like. It’s based on the Old World’s hardest workers that were wiped out, along with so many other types of insects. Now that real life honey bees were gone, scientists and engineers came together to make a machine replica to act like the original. They worked in the gardens that produced some of our foods, but real food was expensive to get a hold of sometimes. Humanity had to adapt in the most extreme ways.

As I was nearing the end of the park, I felt like eyes were watching me. The hair on my neck stood up, and shivers went down my spine. I turned to look for the culprit. Maybe I was just imagining things. I swear I saw someone lurking behind one of the trees. I looked in the other direction, my eyes narrowed in suspicion, but I didn’t pick up on anyone strange, just other students packing up for the afternoon and ready to start the weekend. Shaking my head, I rounded the corner that led me officially off campus through the wrought iron gates. It wasn’t barred, but it marked the beginning and end of each side of the school’s territory.

“Hey girl!” I hear Caliste’s voice, and I turned in the direction she was currently running towards me from. She looked like she felt better. I could tell for the last few weeks that this had been weighing on her.

“Hey!” I hugged her for a second, we linked arms, and then we were off towards the Honeybee. The streets were getting busier now that the weekend was starting to get underway. The soft smell of flowers, the aromas of different foods, and the calm dull roar of the public was somewhat soothing.

“So,” I ventured, “It sounds like it went well?”

“It really did,” Caliste purred, “I’m glad I finally did. I told him I was sorry for ignoring him.” She made a sigh that said she was mentally tired. “I just feel bad about this whole situation.”

“I can imagine, I feel bad for you both. What are you guys going to do?” I asked her, side stepping the other strangers on the sidewalk.

“We’re going to be friends. We still have to keep up an appearance that we at least get along. Which won’t be hard, I think it’ll be easy to be friends with Axel.”

“What does the other girl think? Do you know?” I was worried there would be unnecessary drama for Caliste, due to jealousy. We didn’t even know who this other girl was. Caliste didn’t look worried though.

“I actually met her today,” she said, and I about stopped in my tracks.

“Really?” That was kind of weird to me, but maybe that meant things were going to be okay.

“Yeah, I was worried at first that it wouldn’t go well, but she and I actually got along. Not that there was anything to be worried about,” she laughed. “Axel is great, and don’t get me wrong, he really is a handsome guy, I’m just not super interested in him like that. I know my parents want me to do it because of who we are.” I nodded my head, I understood. I knew that the secret Caliste was keeping was what kept her from wanting to be with Axel. She was secretly in love with Tigger’s brother.

“I’m so glad it went well. Do we know the girl Axel is with?” I asked, keeping my voice low. This was the side of town that was considered high end, classy, and it was full of snobs that knew other snobs. This was not information I wanted getting out to the public.

“It’s the little black panther girl from our high school,” Caliste said, her voice also low. “I think her name was Sam or something.” I giggled, Caliste was not good with names. But the mention of our high school brought back a few memories. We were technically considered first-year students in college, but since society has had to start over on a few things, it went by age, rank and species. There were so many groups now that it was hard to keep track of sometimes. But basically, in a nutshell, Axel was a first-year student in college dating a senior from high school.

“I think I remember her,” I said, thinking it over. “If that’s who I think it is, she was a sweet girl.”

“I think they’re perfect for each other honestly,” Caliste said as we entered the Honeybee. “This whole thing is just so frustrating. We’re in a new era, why do we have to do this?” she growled. I laughed at her as we waited in the small line.

“Now you know how I feel about our evolution.” She just glared at me with a smile and playfully flipped me off. We’ve started over from what was considered a tragedy to the world, and we’re still playing matchmaker and interfering with each other’s lives. It didn’t make sense to me.

“I guess I just never thought about it in that way. But here lately, I’ve kind of been questioning a lot. Not even so much about our evolution, but the lack of the mental evolution we should have gone through. It feels so, so… I don’t have the word for it, but it feels ridiculous.” I nodded my head in agreement. It felt like our society as a whole should have been past all the pettiness, but here we were. Arranged marriages to protect a lineage when we’re in a whole new era. Humans were crossed with animal DNA for crying out loud. The world needed to move on and others were just holding it back.

“Next please,” a soft voice called, and we stepped up to the counter. “Well, if it isn’t my two favorite gals,” she said in her sweet southern accent. Miss Daisy was the absolute sweetest woman I’ve ever met, but her daughter (who was taking our order) could have been her carbon copy. A Daisy two-point-oh so to speak. Darlene had beautiful black, luscious hair with soft brown eyes, caramel-colored skin and curves in all the right places. She had two cute button horns on either side of her forehead, and they had flowers wrapped around them that were part of the flower crown atop her head. If it wasn’t apparent from her mother’s name and storefront, Darlene and her family were cross-bred from dairy cows that were used to provide milk to humanity in the before times.

“Darlene!” we both exclaimed and tried to hug her the best we could from across the counter. Darlene had gone to high school with us, she was three years older, but she opted to work part-time at both her mother’s Café and the Honeybee after she graduated.

“Hey darlin’s, how’s y’all day been?” she asked, already starting our drinks. We were in here basically all the time; she knew what we liked.

“Actually, really good,” Caliste answered. “I feel great today!” Her happiness washed over me like a blanket. It really has been a pretty good day, with a small bump in the road.

“I’ve had a decent day,” I told her. Then I proceeded to tell Darlene about the new friends I made, and Ryker’s sour attitude.

“Ryker? Like, Ryker Striker?” Darlene asked.

“Heavens is that really his name?” I asked with shock, wondering who would do that to their child.

“Oh gosh no,” Darlene laughed. “That’s just what we called him when we were school kids. He was really good at sneaking up on bullies and settin’ them straight. His last name is actually Whitlock.”

“I think I heard about him actually,” Caliste mused, sipping on her hot latte. She preferred just the hot milk with a little vanilla flavoring, and a froth of milk on the top. True to her kitty cat nature, I suppose.

“I have not, but he sure seemed to have it out for me,” I huffed. Darlene handed me my own hot latte, but I preferred mine to be extra sweet and caramel-y.

“He’s not the biggest fan of wealthy families,” Darlene told me with an apologetic tone as she wiped down the counter. No one had come in behind us yet, so she took a moment to tidy up and talk with us. “I think he’s had some issues with your brothers growing up.”

“And he thinks I know this?” I was shocked. I wasn’t exactly close with my brothers; they were about five years older than me and thought they ruled the world. Their awful behavior was damn near praised by my father. They’ve never had it out for me, and they’ve come to protect me a few times, but I could never agree with their mentality. It was no wonder this man was so cross with me earlier.

“More than likely, he doesn’t know your relationship with your family honey,” Darlene said. She made a good point. His words made more sense now, but it still wasn’t fair the way he treated me. I huffed and took a drink.

“Should I talk to him? Would it make a difference to set things straight?” I asked, wondering if it was worth the trouble at all at this point.

“If you wanna waste your time,” Caliste mumbled. “He sounded like he wrote you off pretty fast.” Darlene laughed. Caliste was sometimes such a downer.

“That’s up to you honey, if you think it will make a difference. Unfortunately, Negative Nancy over here might be right.” Caliste protested playfully and Darlene gently tossed her towel at her, to have it thrown back. I sipped my drink some more, lost in thought while Caliste and Darlene talked for a bit more.

“Come on Inara,” Caliste said, pulling on my elbow. “Let’s get going.” Darlene waved us off, her café starting to get busy again.

“This Ryker guy seems to have you all fluffed,” Caliste teased, elbowing me playfully. Her silver eyes gleamed, as if she was searching me for a juicy answer.

“I just didn’t think it was fair to act that way towards me,” I huffed. “I’ve literally never met the guy before, and he automatically thinks I’m like my brothers?” I took a big gulp of my latte. “I know my brothers are *ssholes. But no one else has done that to me. Not to my face anyway,” I grumbled the last part. I take another big drink and Caliste laughs. I give her a sideways look. “Why are you laughing at me?”

“Because you’re being so whiny!” She cackles, holding her sides. I rolled my eyes at her. “I’ve never seen you so ruffled by someone before, let alone a dude.”

I pin my ears back in annoyance. “I don’t think this is the same thing,” I retort. She knows I’m not mad at her, but she is getting on my nerves. Caliste is unphased, however.

“Sure thing girlfriend,” she winks.

“You’re lucky you’re cute, b***h,” I growled, giving her a wicked smile. That draws another laugh from her and I can feel her wrap her tail around mine.

“I am the most adorable,” she grins. “You love me.”

We changed the topic from Ryker to school, and then to what our weekend plans are. We’ve decided that walking to my house would be better, given that any other time we are chauffeured around. I’ve protested this so many times, that I can drive myself, that I can do things myself. But my parents are bound and determined that I shouldn’t do those things if I didn’t have to. That I was at least safer this way and gave my mother peace of mind. I think it was my father’s way of keeping tabs on me honestly. It was the one thing that he would absolutely not budge on, so I gave up trying.

“Oh! Caliste, you have to try on the new dress Scarlett designed. It’s absolutely gorgeous, and I think it would look amazing on you.”

“You already have the new dress she designed?!” she asked me, bewildered. I started laughing at the look on her face.

“Girl! You should know by now that I always get the first of everything she makes,” I teased her. “I am her favorite sister after all.”

“Shut the f*ck up,” Caliste snorts. “You are the only sister, and the baby of the bunch.”

“Damn straight,” I say, pretending to act all gangster and this makes Caliste burst out in laughter.

The spotlight on the front of the house comes on as we walk up the walkway, the beams illuminating the pristine yard that held my home. The grass was a blue hue, and looked almost like a dull fuchsia color in the dimming light of the weakened sun. It was well maintained by the hired gardeners and landscapers. We walked past the small courtyard with the fountain, the driveway off to the left of me. The outside of the house was mainly black, and had two stories with a tower that held a huge library. It looked like a modern castle to me. Inside was less ominous, full of white marble and fancy things.

Caliste and I walk up the stairs and into my room, gossiping and goofing off like we always do. With her around, I forget about Ryker and the weird feeling I had earlier. All I’m worried about now is how to get Caliste out of this gorgeous dress and back into her regular clothes so we can meet Trio for dinner. I’m laughing and out of breath, but she looks stunning.

“That silver lace is just breathtaking on you,” I tell her, fixing my hair at my vanity and brushing the fur over my ears before working on my tail. It’s a rosé-colored form-fitting dress with a long V-neck, covered in silver lace. In my opinion, it screamed ‘Caliste’. “It’s perfect. It fits perfectly, looks perfect.” She smiles and does a little twirl. “Why don’t you take it home with you,” I tell her, and nearly fall out of my chair as she squeals.

“Omgsh! Really? Are you sure?” she fires off before I can process the sound she just made. “Won’t your sister be mad? Have you even tried this on yet?” I’m laughing at her now, and stand up to get her to relax.

“Yes Caliste, of course you can take it home. No, she won’t be mad, and yes, I’ve tried it on already. It was literally the first thing I did when she took it out of the bag,” I giggle. “It’s beautiful, but at the end of the day, it’s just not my style.” I was more of a leggings and tee-shirt kind of girl, but when I was attending classes or going out with friends, I made sure to look nice. At the end of the day, though, I usually ended up in a large shirt and shorts.

“You are seriously the bestest friend ever!” She squeals and attacks me for a hug. Caliste suddenly pulls away and tries to act cool, and it makes me laugh.

“Now get dressed! We’re going to be late meeting Trio!” I shout at her, giving her a small push towards my bathroom where she undressed at. I finish my smokey eye look in my vanity mirror, touch up my hair a bit, and lace up my faux combat boots. They perfectly accent my outfit, which is a black tank with an edgy black leather jacket, and dark olive-colored, form-fitting cargo pants. The place we were going to try was in downtown, and sometimes it was better to try and fit in rather than stand out.

Caliste comes back out in her original outfit, which I realize is not going to work. It’s bright, it’s preppy, and screams ‘look at me!’. It was something we definitely didn’t want. We lock eyes, and immediately she says “Yep.” And walks into my closet. After a few minutes, she’s finally ready, wearing my black turtleneck and dark khaki jeans that tuck into a pair of riding boots. Her black curly hair was perfect, and with a snap of her fingers and a sexy pose she was ready to go. “That’s so much better,” she purred.