The Zoo: The Altered Animal Kingdom

Danielle slowly shape-shifted herself to a security guard, passing through the entrance easily. She looked around, watching from the heart-shaped guard's face. She walked as calmly as she could tho the Girl's Restroom. There she shape-shifted to her normal state.
Danielle sat at a bench, watching the giraffes and other animals do their own thing. Her brown-auburn hair was pulled into a messy side braid, falling over half her heart-shaped face. She looked around, the fear boiling inside her from the previous day.

Jason smiled handing the money over to the counter for a ticket and waved as he was let in, the young man enjoyed the zoo though he couldn't see the animals he liked listening to them and the peaceful quiet of the zoo. The young teen walked down the brick paved path his cane a grey ash wood with a diamond in the shape of a eye tapping lightly on it. It was obviously a Cane used by the blind. The young man wore a blue suit with a matching tie and grey polished dressing shoes and had messy black hair. His face however was covered at the eyes, bridge of the nose, and the entire forehead by a grey bandanna cloth.

He stopped at a bench he sat at everyday and sat down noticing that it was actually occupied by another person for once. "Um hello there. Odd question, Could you tell me what animals were facing? They never make any noise so I'm not sure." He smiled warmly without turning his head for it wouldn't have done any good.

Danielle jumped, her heart racing at his presence so close to her. She gulped, changing her voice to that of a sixteen year old she once knew- Maia Harings. "Um, it's the giraffes. They don't make much noise, mostly just chewing." She muttered the last of the sentence. The sun reflected off her blue dyed ends, and she watched the boy, getting ready to make a run for it.

He nodded. "Giraffes, I always liked them, There really gentle." He tapped his stick and nodded. "I'm Jason and you don't have to run, Your muscles tensed and it made the bench shift and also the position of your body has changed the wind and it carries your shampoo better." He smiled offering a hand. "You don't need to run, I'm blind it's not like I can hurt you." he laughed warmly however he did lie. A single look was all he needed to hurt her forever.

Danielle pretended to relax, but she knew her heart raced. "I'm..." Her imitation of Maia's voice trailed off. She didn't know if she should lie. Or even tell the truth. She sighed, pulling her hair out of the braid and brushing her fingers through it.

Jason nodded his head with a smile. "Some people don't like to tell there names, How about for the time being I call you Emma?" He stopped for a moment and took a deep breath before smiling again. "It was my sisters name so it will be easy to remember and you don't have to tell me yours." He waited to see if she would run or stay.

Danielle thought for a moment, licking her dry rose petal stained lips. Wait, a normal blind- or deaf- person can't sense that advanced! She asked quietly in Maia's voice, "You aren't like most people, are you?" She looked at him, her muscles once again tensing.

Jason smiled pointing at two people walking by. "Neither of them are like another person, are you asking if I am a Mutant?" he had heard of those on the news as a child and his mother had explained that that was what he was. Unlike others he didn't mind telling people for if they attacked he could defend himself if he really had too. Not that he liked what he could do.

Danielle sat on her knees, and turned to look at the people. "Yes," She said in the girl's voice. "A mutant." She looked back at the giraffes. Her head spinning with the fear of being attacked.

Jason nodded not bothering to hide it. "Yes I am a mutant and I am a person, Most people don't see the similarity but it's not anger or fear it's jealousy. They want the power we were blessed...or cursed with because they are greedy and weak and they know it." He smiled at he girl. "Are you a Mutant?" He asked curiously.

Danielle made up her mind to trust him- even though the jealousy and humans being weak made her a bit unease. "Yes. I am." She said in her normal voice. She bit her lip, wondering if she should run yet.

He smiled. "Ah your voice changed interesting." He sat back against the smooth brick wall laying his head against the wall. He chuckled listening to the giraffes chew. "So what can you do? If you don't mind me prying." He looked over at her and waited. "It's ok if you don't want to tell me, some powers are evil in nature no matter how good the person."

"Shape-Shifting." She replied, calming down. " I can change anything about myself- hair, eye color, DNA; you name it." She nodded, sitting correctly once again. "I'm Danielle." She added. "Danielle Lux."

He smiled and nodded. "Jason Black, Can you turn into animals as well?" He asked excitedly. "Oh can you turn into anyone you see, Oh could you become the president or the senator? How about a F.B.I. Agent or a clown?" Jason was shooting off names left and right. "Oh how about Elvis?" He turned smiling at the girl as he waited.

She giggled, smiling. "Not animals, just people. Anyone- anyone I see. I can change my just one small part about myself, or everything. I can even make up an identity of a bunch of previous identities. I don't even have an exact finger print or DNA." Danielle explained. "What's your mutation?" She asked. She ran her fingers through her hair, taking out a few knots and wincing at the tugs. She pulled her hair into two separate pigtails, her hair gleaming auburn in the sun.

Jason smiled as she explained her powers and thought how cool they sounded, To become anyone you ever saw. "Did you ever try becoming a manager at a Ice cream shop and getting free Ice cream?" he chuckled until the question he knew was coming finally came. "My mutation is a curse....it's evil, destructive and it has no mercy for women, children, or men or anything organic. I turn things to stone with a look, A single look at your hair or fingernail or toe and it will spread until your solid stone. As far as I know your still alive but your entire being is stone, I see it all happening, the only time I can see is when my powers work." he sighed looking blindly at the ground. "My first victim was me, my powers turned my own eyes to stone."

Danielle looked at him, raising an eyebrow. "If you don't mind, how did that happen?" She asked softly. She braided each pony tail carefully, restarting each braid at least four times. Her gray-blue eyes knew they should be scared to look at him, but she didn't look away. "It's kinda like Medusa. Except your a guy, and much younger." She chuckled lightly. She twirled the end of a braid around her finger.

Jason smiled. "When your born the first thing your body does is run a diagnostics of your entire being, the first thing is sight and well my power activated when I was born and traveled down the cores and into the eyes and it kinda backfired on me. My eyes turned to solid stone as well as my doctor and three nurses." He chuckled laying his head back as he laughed. "I have been called that but my mom old me a story about a creature who could kill and petrify with a look so i took it as my nickname...Basilisk the god of serpents." he smiled softly. "Oh don't worry as long as this blindfold is on your fine."

She nodded while he explained. Then she nodded at his reassuring. "Oh, I'm sorry." She said. "I discovered my power at school. I was wishing I won some award for Track instead of the girl they acknowledged in class over the speakers.. Then I turned into her. And beautifully, I was marked a mutant, my alcoholic mother disowned me- leaving only a scar to remember her cruelty by- and now here I am. I lost the last mutant who understood me to another mutant who killed him when they kidnapped me."

Jason sat there listening and sighed. "People are cruel that includes mutants as well, I have managed to stay under the grid...sorta." He stood up walking over to the exhibit. "I dislike zoo's but it's peaceful here. They keep these animals locked up....just like the government would if they caught me or you...or any of our brethren." He turned and smiled. "I just want a place that is safe." he turned looking at the girl without seeing. "You know if you became someone like the president and took the presidents place then you could ban all mutant capture and control."

"I have thought of that. But, Id have to do something to the president until I make that decision in his form. And I don't want to kill him! Also, when you back to his place, after Id make him stop the captures, he'd get rid of it and we'd be here again." Danielle muttered. She rubbed the bandage on her palm softly. She hadn't looked at the scar since the day she got it. She wondered f it were still healing- or worse, infected.

Jason sighed and shrugged. "The answer to that is simple...kill him or better yet make him so invisible no one would ever expect it." He stared blindly at the giraffes tapping his fingers. "I could make him go away forever without killing him.

"But either way, humans and mutants would switch places. There wouldn't be a difference." Danielle said. She rubbed her arms, and opened her backpack for a white Hollister sweater. She looked back at Jason. "I wish there was one place to go... A place that would be ok mutants." She whispered almost to herself.

Jason nodded walking back and sat down. "It doesn't seem fair sometimes, I am cursed with this horrible power yet it's all that's keeping me from being locked up like some kind of animal exhibit." he pulled a pack of candy from his pocket. "Want some?" He smiled offering the gummy worm candy.

"Yes, please!" Danielle cried. Her stomach rumbled at the sight- she hadn't eaten in days. She thought, Heh, it's funny- worms, his mutation, Medusa. Medusa turned people to stone just with a glance and she had snakes for hair. She chuckled lightly to herself.