When a person is telling you a story, and they start it with the words "You're not going to believe this", they're usually right.

This particular story was doing a nice job of proving the rule, because it was completely unbelievable.

Which wasn't to say that she distrusted Amy's new friend!

(New boyfriend?)

Whatever. She'd always tried to avoid prying into the personal lives of others any more than necessary. It was obvious that there was something going on between the two of them, but Amy would talk to her about it when she was ready, and until then she'd avoid the urge to speculate. The important thing was that the man seemed reliable enough... well, he didn't strike her as being delusional, or a compulsive liar, at least.

But that assessment didn't make the wild tale he was spinning for her any easier to believe.

Frankly, she would have already dismissed the whole thing as some sort of ill-timed practical joke... if not for the fact that Amy was sitting right next to him, listening along and nodding at the appropriate points.

"Wait." Cat held up a hand, cutting off his somewhat-disjointed explanation of interdimensional teleportation physics. Her eyes drifted closed as she massaged her temple with the other. Finally, she exhaled loudly through her nose. Looking up through her lashes, she gave Ryan a dubious glance. "I hope you'll forgive me for saying so, love," she said, "but you've got to admit – this is all a little far-fetched."

"It really is," Amy agreed, "and I didn't buy it at first, either."

"What changed your mind?"

"A giant, bulletproof green monster jumped out of a portal and smashed up my squad car. After seeing that, I was a lot more willing to take Ryan's claims seriously."

"I suppose that would do it." She hesitated, then delicately asked, "You haven't taken any... hmm... illicit substances recently, have you, babe?"

"Cat!" Amy protested, her tone scandalized.

"Sorry, hon, sorry. Not trying to imply anything, but I had to ask."

"Come on, Cat," Syd complained, joining the conversation from her countertop perch. "The two of you have known each other for how long, now? If Amy was any more straight-edged, you'd have to worry about getting cut when you hugged her."

Amy's lips thinned into a flat line.

"...thank you for the vote of confidence, Syd."

"No prob," Syd shot back, pointing a finger-gun at her, then groaned. "Urgh. My freaking head is killing me. How do people survive doing this every weekend?"

"You're dehydrated," Cat informed her, easily falling back into nurse mode. After the distressing night she'd gone through, it was a nice change of pace to be faced with a simple, routine problem that she could solve. "Most likely low blood sugar, too. It's important not to party so hard that you forget to eat, dear. Drink some water, take an aspirin, get yourself a light breakfast if you feel up to it. In a few hours you'll feel right as rain."

"Bleh, I don't even want to think about food right now. Isn't there a pill or a shot or something you can give me to fix me up?"

Laughing, she said, "I wish. It doesn't work like that, I'm afraid."

"Fiiine."

Continuing to grumble, Syd set down her mug of coffee and dragged herself over to the sink for a glass of water, inadvertently giving Cat an eyeful in the process.

"First no shoes, and now no shirt?" she asked with a raised eyebrow. "It's certainly a daring choice. Well, I've always said that your sense of style is... unique."

Following her gaze, Amy turned to stare at her roommate. After a beat she seemed to realize what she was seeing and did a double-take.

"We have company, Sydney!" she squawked. "Put some clothes on!"

"I didn't hear any of the guests complaining about the view," Syd shot back, pushing out her modest chest in Ryan's direction with a smirk. "You don't mind, do you, Ry?"

He quickly looked away, raising his hands to indicate he wanted no part of the brewing argument, and she huffed in frustration.

"Eleanor. Sydney. Townsend. This apartment is not a democracy!" With a thunderous look, Amy pointed in the direction of Syd's bedroom. "Clothes. Now!"

"Okay, okay. Jeez, quit yelling. I get it." She shuffled out of the kitchen, muttering darkly under her breath as she went, "The police have declared this apartment a no-fun zone."

When the door slammed behind her, Cat returned her attention to Ryan and Amy.

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"For now, let's just say that I believe your whole story about an imminent alien invasion," she began. "Even though it sounds a little far-fetched. I still don't understand how I wound up getting involved in it, or what it has to do with the government ransacking my home."

"About a week ago, we had a run-in with some plainclothes agents that I assume were part of the same group," Amy said. "They claimed to be with the NSA, but they had unmarked badges, and they wouldn't even tell me which directorate they were part of. I made inquiries, but nothing came up. Either it's a totally hush-hush classified program, and nobody I talked to had a need to know, or else..."

"Or else they've gone rogue," Ryan supplied for her when she trailed off. "Hard to say which option would be worse."

"Either way, it's clear that they're aware of the Zorvax threat. They tried to grab Syd off the street once already, because she was carrying... a piece of alien technology, something that she... got from Ryan. I don't know how they made the connection, but I'm sure our visit to the clinic was what caused them to go after you, too." She swallowed, staring down at the table. "I'm so, so sorry about this, Cat. Please, believe me when I tell you, the last thing I wanted was to drag you into our mess."

"That I believe, sweetheart," she reassured Amy, reaching over to place a hand atop hers. "But it seems like I'm up to my neck in it now, so... why don't you fix me another drink, and then you can tell me what it is that you want from me."

Ryan and Amy both twitched, then exchanged guilty glances. His poker face, she observed, wasn't much better than hers, and hers was absolutely terrible.

That's kind of cute, actually.

"What do you think, Amy?" Taking her empty glass, Ryan poured her a healthy double shot from the bottle, then set it back down in front of her. "Should we?"

"It's not the way I wanted this to go, but... I suppose she can make her own decisions," she said, pushing herself to her feet with a sigh. "If Cat wants to join the team, I'm not against it. Let me go grab the spare Changer."

***

"Okay," Cat said, looking down at the strange silver-and-blue device that Amy had dropped in the middle of the table. "Correct me if I'm wrong, handsome... you're telling me that this thing can turn me into... some kind of... space wizard?"

"Witch," Amy immediately corrected her. "Girls are witches, boys are wizards."

"I can't believe you're still so obsessed with those books. Witches and wizards are lame," Syd opined. "This is way cooler. It'll turn you into a superhero. No, a magical girl!" She'd come out of her room wearing an enormously-oversized black sweatshirt with sleeves so long that her fingertips barely peeped out and a hem hanging at knee level. Across her chest, the words MY OTHER RIDE IS YOUR MOM were scrawled in glittery, pink cursive letters. "Amy and I are magical girls now, Cat. All you've gotta do is take the Changer, and you get to be one, too! Did he mention that Amy can fly?"

"I can't fly, Syd." Amy said modestly, waving off the absurd claim. "It's more like... I don't know, falling upwards?"

"Same difference." She pointed at herself with both thumbs. "Super Syd. I can turn invisible!"

"Mhm. So, I become a... magical superhero girl... that can fly and turn invisible. And then I'd use those powers to... fight alien invaders alongside the three of you?"

Cat's politely-neutral smile remained firmly in place as she spoke, revealing nothing of her inner thoughts. That was an important skill, one that she'd put real effort into developing over the years. There were so many studies showing that a positive attitude could improve patient outcomes; putting on a cheerful expression before you delivered a diagnosis was as good a place to start as any.

The habit had eventually followed her home from work. In her everyday life, she'd found, it could come in handy as well.

Waking up one day and discovering that you've suddenly gained larger-than-life powers, the sort that come with equally-outsize responsibilities... it was a common fantasy, she knew, but it never held much appeal for her. Sure, she'd known since she was a kid that she wanted to spend her life making people's lives better. That was why she decided to pursue her chosen career, the motivation that had kept her going through nursing school, the reason she spent her days off volunteering at the clinic. Cat loved helping people... but she'd never viewed punching out bank robbers as a viable way to accomplish that goal.

Maybe that was a naive way of viewing things. She wouldn't call herself a pacifist, or anything like that. She'd admit, if pressed, that there were some truly sick individuals out there, who just couldn't be helped, and everyone else needed to be protected from them in order for society to function.

Placing herself between the innocent and those who would do them harm had always been Amy's calling. It was a tough job, mind you, and one that needed doing. Cat had nothing but respect for her choice.

Even so...

Even so, when she pictured a hero, her mental image wasn't some guy in tights running around the city beating up would-be muggers... or alien invaders, for that matter. A hero was a person who put in thankless work, day after day, week after week, to make the world a kinder place. Someone who built things up, rather than tearing things down. Not for wealth, or for fame, or even for the praise of others, but because they thought that it was the right thing to do.

As she mulled over her options, Cat searched her best friend's face. How would Amy take it?

She'll understand, Cat told herself. I'm sure of it. Like Syd said, we've known each other for a long time. It's not that I don't want to help... I'll do everything I can to support her, of course... but... fighting a war –

"That's not quite right," Ryan said, interrupting her before she could begin speaking.

"...what's not quite right?"

"You said that you'd be able to fly and turn invisible, but, uh, you wouldn't. Different types of Changers provide different Abilities. The things that this one would let you do are... not quite as flashy as the ones Syd and Amy have."

"I see," Cat said, her tone making it clear that she didn't.

"Amy has a Gold Changer," Ryan explained. "When she activates it, she becomes a Juggernaut, a powerhouse built for fighting on the front lines. The Amethyst Changer that Syd has turns her into an Assassin, able to sneak around and take out unsuspecting enemies before they can react." He tapped the blue gem at the center of the Changer between them. "This is a Sapphire Changer, though, and it won't do either of those things. It would make you into a Savant."

"And a Savant does what, exactly?"

"Well, not to put too fine a point on it... Savants play more of a support role. I know that sounds kind of lame," he hurried to add, totally misunderstanding the way her expression suddenly changed, "but, uh, they're really important! They've got Abilities that can improve the effectiveness of their teammates, protect them from damage, even heal their injuries –"

Cat leaned forward, her gaze sharpening.

"Alright, handsome, I'm listening. How about you elaborate on that last part?"