The finals were only one week away, and Chris was only starting to study. Tonight was
designated as "Mythic Monsters" study night. This class was her favorite elective, because
she loved reading about the legendary creatures, such as Bigfoot, the Loch Ness Monster,
and especially werecreatures. Chris fantasized about being able to turn into a another
creature, especially cats. She loved cats, in all varieties, from dainty housecats, to stalking
tigers and panthers. There was a zoo near her college, and every chance she got, she'd
bike over and go through the cat house, admiring the cats' thick, powerful muscles, and
their sleek, soft pelts. If only she could become a werecat...
*****
One week after the exams, Chris was relaxing in her dormitory double. Due to a
glitch during applications, she was the only occupant. She was just getting comfortable on
the sofa where there was a repeated banging sound on the door. Grumbling, Chris got up
and opened the door. Her recent boyfriend, Justin, stumbled in, sweaty and gasping for
breath. A minute late, Chris understood why. The hall was packed with yapping, snarling
dogs of all sizes and descriptions. Chris quickly slammed the door shut, before and of the
mongrels could get in. Turning to Justin, she asked, "And just *what* have you been up
to?" Just replied, "Let's just say that I had one *hell* of a night."
*****
The next night, Chris and Justin were relaxing in the dorm commons room. It was
the night before the full moon, and the near-full moon was just as beautiful as the actual
full moon. Gradually, Chris began to notice that her boyfriend had been getting jumpier
and jumpier as the afternoon progressed into evening. "Justin, what's wrong?", asked
Chris. "Nothing", replied Justin. "Let's go up to your dorm room." So, together, hand in
hand, they walked up to her room.
*****
"Seriously, Justin, what's been going on?", inquired Chris. She wasn't angry, but
she was quite curious about what was happening. "Look, Chrissy, it's *nothing*.", was
Justin's agitated reply. "Nothing is wr-"...Justin's explanation was cut short by a strange,
almost bestial moan. "Justin, what's wrong?", Chris cried out, alarmed and confused.
Justin let out a guttural rasp, clutched his stomach, and dropped to the floor, howling in
pain. "Get out!, he growled in a voice that was not his own, but a deep, gravelly call.
Although Chris feared for Justin, she obeyed and went into the adjacent room. She tried
hard to ignore the yelping and howling coming from the next room. A minute or two
later, the noises stopped. Tentatively, Chris stepped out of the spare room. The same
deep voice said to her, "You can come in if you want. Just don't scream." Trembling,
Chris stumbled into her bedroom. What she saw made her gasp in shock. Where Justin
had been, there was now a large, male, humanoid snow leopard. He stood at about 6'3",
with ice-blue eyes. "So, do you still like me?"
*****
Chris gaped at him. How could she not like him, the way he was now? He had
become everything she loved and admired, plus he was already Justin, the guy who made
her laugh, the guy she loved. "Yes, how could I not? I love you now more than ever
before!", replied Chris. But one question still nagged her: why hadn't Justin told her his
secret sooner?
*****
The next night, Justin and Chris were relaxing on the couch. "Justin, I was
wondering," asked Chris, "why didn't you tell me before? About your ability, I mean."
"Simple" was Justin's cool reply. "I figured you'd either be afraid of me or you'd be
jealous of me." "I *am* supremely jealous! You're everything I've always wanted to be!
But I love you anyway, Justin! That's what matters, isn't it?" She said all this very fast.
"Just one more thing, Chrissy?"
"Yeah?"
"Don't tell *anyone*, please?"
"Okay, but only if you do one thing for me."
"And that would be?"
"Well, since you *are* a werecat..."
*****
Chris and Justin had been going at it for over an hour. Justin adamantly refused to
change Chris into a werecat, mainly because he didn't know how. Chris was convinced
that this was a ploy to stop her from achieving her life's wish. But after a while, they
slowed down on the arguing, and the talk calmed down. Chris and Justin were snuggling
on the couch, when Chris announced that she was going to go get a soda. Justin noticed
that she limped slightly as she went to the fridge. When she got back, Justin asked her
what was wrong. "Nothing", replied Chris. "I just scraped my leg walking yesterday."
Grinning, Justin kissed the wound, saying, "My lady faire, dost thee enjoy this much?"
"Very much so, my lord."
"Chrissy, *please* don't call me that."
"Yes, my lord."
"Screw you, Chris."
"Please, my lord."
*****
A month later, the couple was still going strong. The rumor mill had started to fill
with info on their relationship, but they didn't mind. In fact, they kind of enjoyed the
attention. It was the day of the full moon, and Chris was a little jumpy. She attributed
this to the upcoming spring break and Justin's transformation tonight. But when she tried
to calm down, it didn't work. If anything, she got even more jittery. What was making
her so hyper?
*****
The full moon had risen. Justin had just willingly changed, so as to avoid excess
pain. He walked over to Chris to hug her, but instead discovered that she was trembling
violently. Also, as soon as he had gotten near her, she had begun to sweat profusely.
Then suddenly, she stopped shaking and sweating, and all was still.
*****
Chris felt calm, cool, collected. Finally, it was over! She went to run a hand
through her hair- and noticed something different, Her ears had slithered up the side of
her head, had turned pointed, and were covered in snow-white fur. Startled almost out of
her wits, she sat in front of her picture mirror, transfixed, as the soft, silky fur slowly slid
over her arms, then spreading to coat her entire body. She heard Justin mumble, "It must
be from when I kissed her wound...", but did not continue paying attention. Instead, she
watched, fascinated, as her hands slowly covered up with black "gloves" of fuzz, while her
nails lengthened into inch-long, white, razor-sharp claws, which she flexed back into her
hand. All of a sudden, she found it quite uncomfortable to continue sitting down. She
stood up, looked behind her, and found out why: she had a tail. Three feet of swishing,
twitching, ivory-furred tail. Also, she had been forced to kick off her shoes, because her
feet and ankles had reverted to digitigrade. Finally, her canines lengthened, her eyes
became feline slits, and her nose and mouth came out slightly to form a small muzzle. She
stood there for a moment, staring, slack-jawed, at her new self. Then, she slowly started
parading around the room, smiling and admiring herself in the mirror. Justin asked her
mockingly, "Enjoying the fashion show, dear?" "Yes!" was her rather excited reply.
"So, Chrissy, how do you like it?"
""I love it!"
"C'mon, Chris. Let's go over to my place."
"Okay. And Justin..."
"Yeah?"
"I think that this is the start of a purrrrrrfect relationship."
"Chrissy?"
"Yeah?"
"Don't go there."
And with that, they walked away, hand in hand, tails entwined, into the light of a new day,
not bothering to shift back to their human forms.
To the Lair
