After the fallout from the April fools' prank, things settled down
for a while. Zotha's friends and "followers" still came to
her and Jess now and then for a few things over the weekend, but
largely seemed happy. Anika was still stuck as a curvy fox girl but
seemed to have found some measure of happiness with her roommate.
Thomas was getting used to being a dragon, and was finding several
reasons to be happy about it—especially when Zotha hid her from
view while she gave actual flight a try above the forest. Prama went
to work with Boreas almost as often as she could. The goddess felt as
if she had a little more time to actually take care of some long-term
homework and relax. Maybe it was only the calm before another storm
(literal or not), but it was at least pleasant for now.
Graham came back to work after some brief training and a decently
long lunch break, and stuck around Thursday afternoon, planning to
clock out around the time she reckoned she'd need to leave to be home
ahead of her granddaughter. Not long after she started properly
working, walking the floor, she found a tall, curvy young woman with
feline traits, quite dark hair and fur, regarding the ladies'
underwear section with a perplexed, apprehensive sort of expression.
She made her way up next to her before speaking: "You, havin'
some trouble there?"
"Waah!" She jumped, startled, even though she certainly
should've been able to hear Graham coming or notice her standing
there. "Oh uh..s-sorry," she said, flushing a bit and
looking awkwardly down at the much shorter catgirl.
"Uhhm...kindaa...I don't really know how to, uh, explain it,
but.." She placed her hands together during this, nervously
playing all of the fingers against each other.
"Pardon me if I'm out of turn with this, but..maybe you find
yourself with a surprisin' need for this sort of wear?" Graham
ventured, gesturing to the merchandise the customer had been eyeing.
"Maybe this is a little new to you, too?" she added,
pointing to one of her own ears.
"Uhhm...yeah." Her hesitation seemed partly from processing
the strangeness of the question, and maybe another part from deciding
whether or not she could trust the stranger asking such a
question.
"Well, maybe I can give you a few tips? Name's Graham," she said, offering up a hand to shake.
"Well, maybe I can give you a few tips? Name's Graham," she said, offering up a hand to shake.
"Uh..Shhh..uh, Shana," the much taller catgirl said,
hesitantly taking the hand and shaking it. She was quite strong, but
much too nervous right now to have a firm grip.
"Pleased to meet ya. Now, I work here—for full disclosure—so
it is somewhat in my self-interest to 'help you' buy clothes.
But I've also been through somethin' fairly similar myself
recently."
"R-really?"
"Yep. And I'd be happy to make some recommendations for picking out good attire for your present looks," the white-haired Neko said gently. "We got some things a little better fit for, ah—" (she whispered the word 'tails' under her breath) "—if you're interested in outerwear too."
"R-really?"
"Yep. And I'd be happy to make some recommendations for picking out good attire for your present looks," the white-haired Neko said gently. "We got some things a little better fit for, ah—" (she whispered the word 'tails' under her breath) "—if you're interested in outerwear too."
"Oh. Uh, th-that's great. I have aaaaaaa....fffffriend
with..that kind of thing going on too, who might also need some help
with that...later."
Graham nodded, deciding it was better customer service to not question such a blatant lie. "But for now, let's get you fixed, eh?"
Graham nodded, deciding it was better customer service to not question such a blatant lie. "But for now, let's get you fixed, eh?"
This turned out to be the first of several such encounters in that
short span of afternoon—that is, people who found themselves with
unusual new traits, many of which seemed to have been totally unaware
of magic before...not that she pried them on the matter, but their
unfamiliarity with the idea of people having tails or the like
was easy enough to spot. Among them was a certain young man, 'Shane',
of the same fur and hair color as 'Shana'; Graham just re-introduced
herself to him without further comment, ignoring his terrible acting
at pretending he hadn't seen her before, despite his making an
instant beeline toward her the instant he entered the store.
"Hwaa~aah..."
Sam pulled herself together and sat up in bed, stretching and cutely yawning. She'd been partially awakened before by the sound of her host getting a hasty breakfast and leaving for work, but had stayed perfectly still and fallen back asleep easily enough. Now it was...after nine, and she could hear some noise from a neighboring room she hadn't been in: The faint sound of music, and Damon's voice softly muttering. She decided this was worth investigating, and hurried into that room to see what was going on.
Sam pulled herself together and sat up in bed, stretching and cutely yawning. She'd been partially awakened before by the sound of her host getting a hasty breakfast and leaving for work, but had stayed perfectly still and fallen back asleep easily enough. Now it was...after nine, and she could hear some noise from a neighboring room she hadn't been in: The faint sound of music, and Damon's voice softly muttering. She decided this was worth investigating, and hurried into that room to see what was going on.
"Damon?" It was a laundry room.
"Ah! Uh, morning!" she waved. Damon turned away from staring at the washer to face her. She had on a slightly oversized shirt that hung off of her right shoulder and had some likely claw-made rips across her midsection, a pair of boxers that didn't really fit her all that well, and apparently not much else. Well— there were some headphones which were more 'against her head' than 'on her ears', attached to a phone in her hand.
"Ah! Uh, morning!" she waved. Damon turned away from staring at the washer to face her. She had on a slightly oversized shirt that hung off of her right shoulder and had some likely claw-made rips across her midsection, a pair of boxers that didn't really fit her all that well, and apparently not much else. Well— there were some headphones which were more 'against her head' than 'on her ears', attached to a phone in her hand.
"I really hope I didn't wake you," she said.
"Nah, I woke up naturally. What're you up to in here?"
"Well uuhhmm. I'm, sorta kinda, completely out of the new clothes we bought to fit this..girl body. And, I remembered, I'm usually s'posed to do laundry in the middle of the week 'cause Onida's always at work...buut.."
"You, don't really remember how?"
"M-hm," she nodded sheepishly.
"Nah, I woke up naturally. What're you up to in here?"
"Well uuhhmm. I'm, sorta kinda, completely out of the new clothes we bought to fit this..girl body. And, I remembered, I'm usually s'posed to do laundry in the middle of the week 'cause Onida's always at work...buut.."
"You, don't really remember how?"
"M-hm," she nodded sheepishly.
"That's fine, I'll show you. It's not too difficult,"
Sam said, coming up to the machines to work them.
"By the way..d'you know how to uh, wear headphones with ears like this? I, thought listening to some of the music I put on my phone might remind me of something, but..."
"Ehh, if you can hear it, that's an okay grip. Really, you could probably hear 'em hanging around your neck." She put a load's worth of laundry in the washer and looked around, locating a bottle of detergent. "They make some, aah, designer stuff for animal ears, but every ear is different, so those are rarely all that comfortable," Sam said. "If you really need headphones, the standard werewolf response is to just make your ears human during that time, but..I guess you still don't have that much control yet."
"Yeah..." Damon looked a little sad about this, folding her ears down a bit. This motion brushed them against the headphones, and she had to quickly reach a hand up to adjust them back into place before they slid off. "Uhm, I feel like the..wild animal that woke up in me that night, the full moon..it got turned into a puppy when I became this, but it's no less wild. It's..friendlier than it was now, but still kinda angry..like it could lash out at any time, if I felt really threatened."
"By the way..d'you know how to uh, wear headphones with ears like this? I, thought listening to some of the music I put on my phone might remind me of something, but..."
"Ehh, if you can hear it, that's an okay grip. Really, you could probably hear 'em hanging around your neck." She put a load's worth of laundry in the washer and looked around, locating a bottle of detergent. "They make some, aah, designer stuff for animal ears, but every ear is different, so those are rarely all that comfortable," Sam said. "If you really need headphones, the standard werewolf response is to just make your ears human during that time, but..I guess you still don't have that much control yet."
"Yeah..." Damon looked a little sad about this, folding her ears down a bit. This motion brushed them against the headphones, and she had to quickly reach a hand up to adjust them back into place before they slid off. "Uhm, I feel like the..wild animal that woke up in me that night, the full moon..it got turned into a puppy when I became this, but it's no less wild. It's..friendlier than it was now, but still kinda angry..like it could lash out at any time, if I felt really threatened."
"You have to make peace with it," Sam said, nodding.
"Accept it, and convince it to accept you. I'm, aah..not the
best for advice on this stuff, 'cause I was born with it. Maybe we
can find someone who's made it through a wolfbite online? Anyway—you
pour the soap into the top up to this marking, put it in here...turn
this knob, and push go."
"Waah!" Damon jumped at the noise of the washer starting up. "Oh...it's s'posed to do that, right?"
"Mm-hm," Sam nodded. "Now, aah...have you had breakfast?"
"Nope..I kinda came in here in a panic after I realized I was outta clothes that, uhm, properly fit me," she said, blushing."
"That should be our next order of business, then. Me either." She waved the other werewolf to follow her to the kitchen.
"Anything you can tell me about what your wolf side is feeling?"
she said once they were sitting across from each other at the table.
"It um..definitely feels safe here. 'My territory' or something,
I guess?"
"With your family—your 'pack'."
"With your family—your 'pack'."
Damon nodded. "...Submissive toward Onida. She did some of
raising me, I think, after...s-something happened to our
parents."
"At least for now, you see her as an alpha."
"It uhm, wasn't sure about you at first...but you 'feel like' part of the pack too now, I guess?"
"At least for now, you see her as an alpha."
"It uhm, wasn't sure about you at first...but you 'feel like' part of the pack too now, I guess?"
"We have been under the same roof for a bit, and you
maybe have a few memories of me to say we were familiar
before, right?"
"Yeah...some." She looked away as she answered.
"Yeah...some." She looked away as she answered.
"Hey, there's no need to feel shame for that! It'll come back,"
Sam said.
It wasn't something to discuss with the amnesiac wolf-girl, but Sam's
wolf side was feeling increasingly like she belonged here, too. The
pack's pecking order went Onida, Sam, Damon—less that she had
authority over the "alpha's sibling", and more that she
felt a need to take care of her. As for Onida...even though she was
human, Sam's wolf side was definitely starting to see her as an alpha
too. Being pet by her was...more pleasant than she felt it was proper
to admit aloud, especially when it might make things awkward. It
hadn't...escaped her that Onida was blushing afterward; she probably
wanted to do it again, and Sam had no objection if so. But...due to
her sense of propriety, Damon's sister might never actually ask, no
matter how much she did want it.
"Through for today?" The Mammon manager of the clothes
store caught the Neko on her way to clock out for the day.
"Mmhm. I got a granddaughter to get home to," Graham said.
"Okay, well—here's your first week's pay." Valoz quickly scribbled a number onto a check and then presented her with it, so she paused her walk to accept and examine it.
"Already? Thought I might need to do a full week of work first...is this number right?" Doing the math in her head, this was definitely more than fifteen times the number of hours she'd actually worked so far.
"I added on a little bonus. You, personally, made a lot of sales yesterday."
"I'm not sure I can rightly take credit for those," Graham objected gently. "I get the feelin' something unusual happened to cause all them to need new duds."
"All the same, you did help handle that flood where I alone would've drowned. Plus I've seen you working on the floor, graham cracker~. You've got a natural, mild-mannered sort of charm that makes our customers feel at ease—and they're a lot more willing to spend when they're relaxed. And, until it's proven otherwise, I believe that you're just plain good luck to have around. Either way, I've already handed you your check, so enjoy it!" Val clapped her gently on the back and hurried off toward her office before another word could come out of the catgirl.
"Mmhm. I got a granddaughter to get home to," Graham said.
"Okay, well—here's your first week's pay." Valoz quickly scribbled a number onto a check and then presented her with it, so she paused her walk to accept and examine it.
"Already? Thought I might need to do a full week of work first...is this number right?" Doing the math in her head, this was definitely more than fifteen times the number of hours she'd actually worked so far.
"I added on a little bonus. You, personally, made a lot of sales yesterday."
"I'm not sure I can rightly take credit for those," Graham objected gently. "I get the feelin' something unusual happened to cause all them to need new duds."
"All the same, you did help handle that flood where I alone would've drowned. Plus I've seen you working on the floor, graham cracker~. You've got a natural, mild-mannered sort of charm that makes our customers feel at ease—and they're a lot more willing to spend when they're relaxed. And, until it's proven otherwise, I believe that you're just plain good luck to have around. Either way, I've already handed you your check, so enjoy it!" Val clapped her gently on the back and hurried off toward her office before another word could come out of the catgirl.
She stared at it for a second or two more, then shrugged. "Guess
it's off to the bank, then..."
Anika got up to stretch in the middle of a bunch of homework, and
happened to glance at was Steph was doing. She was almost always a
girl in their dorm room now, maybe to save energy now that Anika
knew..and presently she was leaning over a sketchpad with her pen and
an expression of a bit too much concentration. "Hey," she
leaned over her roommate's shoulder a bit to get a better look,
"what're you up to, huh?"
It looked like a bunch of little stick-figure cartoons of people being pranked in various ways. "Oh, just..brainstorming." Steph sat up a bit, reaching a hand up to brush across Anika's ears and through her hair apparently without even thinking about it. "There's not much hope of topping yesterday's work any time soon, but that's no reason to not look for opportunities."
"Mrr~rrh." Very little of Anika's mind could be bothered to care about this touch; they'd pet each other enough by now that this was pedestrian, and it felt nice too, so—whatever, who cared. "Already looking for the next big thing, huh? You just earned a third tail yesterday, I thought you might just wanna celebrate that for a while."
"Andrew," she turned her head to look up at her. "How d'you think foxes celebrate new tails and more power in the first place?"
"Looking for ways to use them, I guess?"
"Mm-hm! And anyway, I've got you to worry about. You're still a long ways away from earning that fifth tail, after all."
It looked like a bunch of little stick-figure cartoons of people being pranked in various ways. "Oh, just..brainstorming." Steph sat up a bit, reaching a hand up to brush across Anika's ears and through her hair apparently without even thinking about it. "There's not much hope of topping yesterday's work any time soon, but that's no reason to not look for opportunities."
"Mrr~rrh." Very little of Anika's mind could be bothered to care about this touch; they'd pet each other enough by now that this was pedestrian, and it felt nice too, so—whatever, who cared. "Already looking for the next big thing, huh? You just earned a third tail yesterday, I thought you might just wanna celebrate that for a while."
"Andrew," she turned her head to look up at her. "How d'you think foxes celebrate new tails and more power in the first place?"
"Looking for ways to use them, I guess?"
"Mm-hm! And anyway, I've got you to worry about. You're still a long ways away from earning that fifth tail, after all."
"Oh..yeah," she nodded, feeling a faint negative emotion at
the reminder about the curse on her being overshadowed instantly by
gratitude that Steph was still thinking of her first. "Well,
don't uh, overdo it I guess. Feel free to bounce ideas off of me..I
mean, I'm still not really sure I know what I'm doing,
but.."
"Outsider perspectives can be helpful too, sure," Steph said, grinning brightly up at her. "No matter what, I'll make sure it's fun."
"Outsider perspectives can be helpful too, sure," Steph said, grinning brightly up at her. "No matter what, I'll make sure it's fun."
"I forgot all about the laundry! Thank you two so
much, I might've run out of work clothes for tomorrow..."
It was just as Sam thought. Onida wanted, deep down, to praise her and Damon both with some petting; Sam and possibly Damon would've fully understood and appreciated that gesture; but she didn't do it, and it was equally as easy to guess why. Sam quashed the tiny bit of disappointment her wolf side felt about this with a reminder that it would be thanked with food instead, and that shut it up.
It was just as Sam thought. Onida wanted, deep down, to praise her and Damon both with some petting; Sam and possibly Damon would've fully understood and appreciated that gesture; but she didn't do it, and it was equally as easy to guess why. Sam quashed the tiny bit of disappointment her wolf side felt about this with a reminder that it would be thanked with food instead, and that shut it up.
"Are you, planning to stream again tonight?" Onida asked at
supper. Sam shook her head.
"I'm, aah, telling people I'm not feeling well. Today and
tomorrow specifically."
"Some particular reason? You don't seem sick."
"Some particular reason? You don't seem sick."
"I guess, aah..I should tell you what I'm doing. Did you
know...there's a rare but known, hereditary medical condition that
causes people to undergo minor to drastic physical changes over the
course of a few days—even as much as changing sex?"
"Uh..there is?" Damon headtilted, and Onida was visibly
skeptical.
"Well, not really..that I know of. But there is
one, aah, on the books. It's how the people who have to keep the veil
working 'excuse' transformations that don't get undone."
"Oh. Hmn..I almost forgot, those people we went to the other day
said, if Damon was going to remain female, we should say that she was
sick for several days and came to look like that by the end of it..."
Onida nodded slowly. "This is the same thing?"
"Mm-hm," Sam nodded.
"Mm-hm," Sam nodded.
"The thing is, I aah..asked someone to help me look like this
'cause I think it'll help my career a bit. Believe it or not, people
are aah..usually happier to watch a cute girl play games than a guy,
on average. I've..found myself happy with this for other reasons
since then, but that was the original goal."
"So...you're telling people that you're sick to supply an excuse for why you'll be...female the next time you actually stream?"
"Right. I, aah...I don't really enjoy lying like this very much, but this one's necessary. It means a lot less work for the people whose job it is to keep the veil working right," Sam said.
"So...you're telling people that you're sick to supply an excuse for why you'll be...female the next time you actually stream?"
"Right. I, aah...I don't really enjoy lying like this very much, but this one's necessary. It means a lot less work for the people whose job it is to keep the veil working right," Sam said.
Damon went upstairs to play video games after supper—not to stream,
just to play something. Sam took the opportunity to set next to their
alpha—that was, her host. Onida watched TV and played on her phone
for a while, and Sam brought in her laptop to mess around on for the
first half hour or so. She took occasional glances Onida's direction,
letting her tail wag freely each time; it would be difficult to miss
the sound of it lightly whapping against the back of the couch. After
this, she set the laptop over onto an end table, turned the older
woman's way and did the tail-wagging bit one last time.
"Uh, y-you know..if I didn't know any better..."
Sam moved like she was going to get up, then paused and fell back when Onida spoke, tilting her head. "Hmn?"
Sam moved like she was going to get up, then paused and fell back when Onida spoke, tilting her head. "Hmn?"
"Uh, n-nothing," Onida said, shaking her head lightly and
blushing.
"Come on, it's fine. What were you gonna say?"
"...If I didn't know better, I'd say you were acting like..."
"...If I didn't know better, I'd say you were acting like..."
"Yes?"
"Someone's dog lying on the couch..."
"Uh-huh?"
"...Hoping the human was going to pet them.
"Uh-huh?"
"...Hoping the human was going to pet them.
"...Th-there, I said it. Sorry, just err, what came to my mind
first for some reason."
"Well, aah, there's no real reason to be sorry for that."
"Well, aah, there's no real reason to be sorry for that."
"It's not...insulting? Demeaning? Misinterpreting..something.."
Onida trailed off, as she visibly realized that Sam was grinning up
at her and wagging her tail again.
"Heheh..If anything, I'm sorry for teasing you like this.
Lemme just get it out in the open: I'd actually like it if
you'd pet me. Just a little bit?"
"Uh, y-you would?"
"Sure. Instincts can be a weird thing to negotiate with, but aah, I liked the way you did it last night and wanted a li'l more," Sam said.
"Sure. Instincts can be a weird thing to negotiate with, but aah, I liked the way you did it last night and wanted a li'l more," Sam said.
"Well uhm...o-okay."
Onida reached a hand over her head hesitantly, unintentionally drawing out the anticipation and making it even more satisfying when the hand came down to gently rub Sam's ears. "Rr~rrh..rrfh~!" She leaned in, softly barking and yipping, as a second hand joined the first. "Mm~mnh..y-yip!" Sam's face felt warm, and her tail was whipping back and forth wildly...she couldn't remember her fur ever seeming this sensitive before, male or female. She realized after a moment that she was also leaning up and over at the taller woman, but then slowly decided to let it happen...bringing her arms up into a hug.
Onida reached a hand over her head hesitantly, unintentionally drawing out the anticipation and making it even more satisfying when the hand came down to gently rub Sam's ears. "Rr~rrh..rrfh~!" She leaned in, softly barking and yipping, as a second hand joined the first. "Mm~mnh..y-yip!" Sam's face felt warm, and her tail was whipping back and forth wildly...she couldn't remember her fur ever seeming this sensitive before, male or female. She realized after a moment that she was also leaning up and over at the taller woman, but then slowly decided to let it happen...bringing her arms up into a hug.
This was maybe a step too far, too soon: Onida stopped. "Uhm..."
Sam opened her eyes, blinking them innocently a couple of times, and
pulled herself back to sitting up right just next to her
alpha.
"Heheh, sorry. Aah..instincts, got the better of me," she said, feeling a very real, strong blush come on. It wasn't really from embarrassment, but it was maybe better if Onida thought it was. "You're really good at that, though."
"Um..th-thank you?" she said, obviously unsure how to deal with the situation.
"Heheh, sorry. Aah..instincts, got the better of me," she said, feeling a very real, strong blush come on. It wasn't really from embarrassment, but it was maybe better if Onida thought it was. "You're really good at that, though."
"Um..th-thank you?" she said, obviously unsure how to deal with the situation.
"No, thank you," Sam said. She hopped up off of the
couch and got her laptop, deciding it was most prudent to make an
exit for now. "Sorry if I made it weird."
"To be really, really honest..I don't know if it was possible for it to be any weirder than it already was to begin with," Onida said. "So..you certainly didn't do any harm."
"That's, aah, good to know. I'm gonna go play some games for a while." Like she wasn't already...
"To be really, really honest..I don't know if it was possible for it to be any weirder than it already was to begin with," Onida said. "So..you certainly didn't do any harm."
"That's, aah, good to know. I'm gonna go play some games for a while." Like she wasn't already...
"Okay, you have fun, then." Her tone shifted suddenly from
uncertain to casual and comfortable, probably because this was at
least a situation she understood and knew a good response for.
"Thanks~," Sam gave her a bright grin back, and appreciated
the sight of Onida's cheeks still looking quite red. Hopefully..she
wasn't misinterpreting anything, herself.
"Hmmmnh..." Zotha woke up a couple of hours into the
morning on Saturday, in a fairly typical position of lying on top of
Jess with the cute little priestess holding on tight to her. She
wriggled in place for a moment, feeling a vague sense of discomfort
she couldn't at first identify, until it came to her—it was time
for another change. To satisfy this need, she shifted her tail first,
making it thicken and grow fur until it was a soft, fluffy canine
tail, and then grew her ears up and out into some that matched that
tail—black fur and all. A slight shift to her teeth to give her
fangs seemed to come automatically after that.
She took a moment to gently brush the tail across Jess's bare thigh,
making her shiver slightly. "Mmh..m-master?"
"Morning, sleepyhead~," she said, gently stroking some of the smaller girl's hair.
"Morning, sleepyhead~," she said, gently stroking some of the smaller girl's hair.
"Uhm, a-another change?"
"Yep," Zotha grinned. "I guess I'm feeling a little wolfish at the moment." She leaned down, gently nuzzling Jess's cheek for a moment. "Mrrr~rh." The response was predictable but no less enjoyable for it: a soft, adorable squeak.
"Yep," Zotha grinned. "I guess I'm feeling a little wolfish at the moment." She leaned down, gently nuzzling Jess's cheek for a moment. "Mrrr~rh." The response was predictable but no less enjoyable for it: a soft, adorable squeak.
"...Say. If I keep on changing, it might happen that I really
don't look much like a demon at all at some point. Think you'd be
disappointed with that?"
"I uh..no. Not at all," Jess said after a brief
consideration. "It's you, Master, that I'm uh..enamored
with now..probably forever."
"Heheh..good to know." She stroked Jess's hair one more time, then pulled herself up out of bed. "You can go on and take a shower first, 'kay?"
"Okay~!"
"Heheh..good to know." She stroked Jess's hair one more time, then pulled herself up out of bed. "You can go on and take a shower first, 'kay?"
"Okay~!"
While the priestess did that, the goddess got out her phone. There
was something she'd thought of Friday afternoon that needed to be
dealt with, but she just didn't get around to making this call then.
She called Riana.
"Hey. You're still going to the hospital to help people." It wasn't a question, since of course the goddess knew when and from where and for what her own power was being requested.
"Uh, yeah. Something wrong?"
"Well, I'm just a little concerned about it becoming conspicuous. A few people awakened from my magic going through them, and our local hospital is going to start looking unusually competent pretty soon."
"So—what—you want us to stop?" she asked, half-accusation. 'Us' because, in addition to Riana and Kamari, she'd recruited a couple of other followers she knew into the scheme.
"Well, I'm just a little concerned about it becoming conspicuous. A few people awakened from my magic going through them, and our local hospital is going to start looking unusually competent pretty soon."
"So—what—you want us to stop?" she asked, half-accusation. 'Us' because, in addition to Riana and Kamari, she'd recruited a couple of other followers she knew into the scheme.
"No, no—nothing like that," Zotha said. "It would
just be a lot less conspicuous if we spread the love a little. Heal
people the same way in other hospitals, elsewhere. Instead of
driving out to ours, ask me and I'll put up a portal somewhere and
give you invisibility and inaudibility. Then we cane make the medical
miracles a little more widespread."
"..Ah. That's, actually really good thinking," Riana said.
"..Ah. That's, actually really good thinking," Riana said.
"Do you still not trust me at all? After I brought Jess
to her knees within a couple of hours? And how we handled your
boyfriend? And after our last discussion on this particular
use of my power?"
"I'm..just not wired to trust people right away, I guess. You've
made a pretty good first impression this past week, though, I'll
admit."
"Heheh. Okay then. Anyway—make sure everyone else gets the
message for me please."
"No problem."
"No problem."
"Is uh...is memory loss a...known side-effect of the, hereditary
thingy that changes people?"
Sam had made breakfast—or more like brunch—for herself and the other werewolf in the house again. She'd also gone ahead and snooped around the kitchen, pantry, refrigerator and freezer while getting things ready, and made a private grocery list in her phone. "Aah, I dunno. Guess I could check. I was only really looking at the guidelines for what to do to help preserve the veil under my kinda conditions. I wouldn't be surprised if there's a 'related condition' that does something like that, though."
Sam had made breakfast—or more like brunch—for herself and the other werewolf in the house again. She'd also gone ahead and snooped around the kitchen, pantry, refrigerator and freezer while getting things ready, and made a private grocery list in her phone. "Aah, I dunno. Guess I could check. I was only really looking at the guidelines for what to do to help preserve the veil under my kinda conditions. I wouldn't be surprised if there's a 'related condition' that does something like that, though."
"Mmh."
"Why, are you thinking of streaming again soon?"
"Why, are you thinking of streaming again soon?"
"Yeah," she nodded. "I kinda..sorta halfway
remember...like, not actually doing it on any, uhhm, at any
specific time. But I sorta, halfway remember what it felt
like. Hanging out with friends like you, that way..."
"But unless you remember most everything by then, you need some
'mundane' excuse why you've forgotten so much." Damon nodded.
"...Lemme tell you something. People knew that something weird
was going on with you because you inadvertently streamed that one
time. It's why I came here. I've been telling people that
you're alive and okay, but I don't want to say any more to respect
your privacy. 'Cause..I had to say something to some of the
other people who knew you, to keep someone else from doing something
dumb like packing their bags and traveling out to your place to
check," Sam said, "especially someone who wouldn't be able
to see that you're a werewolf."
"That makes sense..."
"If you like, maybe we could do a stream together once I'm 'better' and people are a little used to my new look..? I could introduce you, say a little bit about what happened and how traumatized you were by the illness and amnesia...something like that. Assuming it's something we can claim under the same 'medical condition' umbrella, I think most people will buy it. Anyone not under the veil will know a little of what really happened, of course, but..that's probably inevitable, and shouldn't really cause any problems. What do you think?"
"It sounds like fun!" Damon said, smiling brightly and wagging her tail.
"Great. It'll still be a few days before we can do it, though. In the meantime..I'll play with you some, if you wanna warm up?"
"Yeah!"
"If you like, maybe we could do a stream together once I'm 'better' and people are a little used to my new look..? I could introduce you, say a little bit about what happened and how traumatized you were by the illness and amnesia...something like that. Assuming it's something we can claim under the same 'medical condition' umbrella, I think most people will buy it. Anyone not under the veil will know a little of what really happened, of course, but..that's probably inevitable, and shouldn't really cause any problems. What do you think?"
"It sounds like fun!" Damon said, smiling brightly and wagging her tail.
"Great. It'll still be a few days before we can do it, though. In the meantime..I'll play with you some, if you wanna warm up?"
"Yeah!"
After a couple of hours, Sam left to 'run errands', and used her own
funds to buy the groceries she'd noted down. Actually, she entered
the store in male form to be able to carry more, but turned back into
a girl once the car was back in the driveway. She couldn't help
wagging her tail a little as she put everything away, thinking how
happily surprised her alpha—er, host—would be to find she'd
hunted down some food for them all...
On a brief pause and reflection, she realized that she really seemed
to be feeling her instincts overall a little stronger since being
able to turn into a girl...maybe only while female? She'd
looked this way so much more often since she was able to that it was
sort of hard to tell for sure. Was it the magic that had been used to
change her that had done it, or something about how she naturally was
while female? Something from La Lune, somehow? Or was it just...the
way she'd come to feel about Onida and Damon? It was impossible to
untangle it and tease out any one cause as the main one, or even rule
any of them out, without testing that she didn't really care to do.
Graham's morning walks seemed to get a little farther every day. She
certainly didn't want to overdo it, but her body seemed so healthy
and full of energy that no round trip so far was even enough to wind
her. Today she made it as far as a big shopping center, and she was
about ready to turn around and head back home when the display of one
particular store caught her eyes.
It was a place that dealt entirely in used video games, consoles,
accessories, and so on. They had a display in the window of a console
from the previous generation to advertise a sale: The console itself,
plus three games, all in a bundle for a little over half of her
recent paycheck. She stopped, put her hands in her pockets and stared
at for a moment, mentally combing through her finances, before
shrugging to herself and heading inside. Of course her retirement and
everything else was enough to cover the bills, there was plenty in
savings...so as a result, the extra from the new job was practically
burning a hole in her bank account. It couldn't hurt too much
just to try anyway; a place like this would just buy everything back
or maybe even accept a return if she really didn't want it.
It didn't seem like anybody was really manning the store when she
first came in. That is—her feline ears could pick up movement in
the back, but there was nobody in the small floor space, nor at the
front desk. "Hello?" she called after a moment, and heard
footsteps hurrying up from the back.
A young, slightly overweight man with a nametag that said he was the
owner came out. "Oh..hey! Wow, nobody comes in this
early, sorry! I usually use the opportunity to reorganize the stock."
"But you are open?"
"Yeah, yep! That's what the sign says."
"Yeah, yep! That's what the sign says."
"You're awful trusting of your clientele, then," Graham
said.
"Awh, we got security cams," he said, shrugging.
"Anyway—how can I help you, miss?"
"I was interested in the sale out on the window—" she
said, pointing "—if it's still going, leastwise. I'm thinking
about getting into games a little bit, maybe. My computer's a
dinosaur, so something that can just hook up to a TV and run would be
better for sure."
"Oh, yeah yeah! I'll hook you up."
"Oh, yeah yeah! I'll hook you up."
He beamed, hurrying over to a glass case with some of the consoles
locked inside, starting to happily explain everything about how to
hook the console up and what games he thought would be good for a
newcomer. She didn't get the impression he was in a hurry to make a
sale necessarily, more that he was happy just for the opportunity to
share the hobby with someone new. It did ultimately have the
effect of persuading her to actually make the purchase, however. She
even sprang for a second controller in case Rachel wanted to play
too.
"Phew...another week, another six dollars..." The sound of
the car in the driveway was easy enough for wolf ears to pick up from
anywhere in the house. Damon came up to the front door because of her
mind being not fully in balance, her wolf side taking over when it
could get away with it—but Sam did the same exact thing
despite being fully aware and in control. So, as was quickly becoming
usual, Onida opened the door to find both of them standing here. "Oh!
Hey you two," she said, gently ruffling Damon's hair and—after
a brief hesitation—Sam's also. "You really, don't have
to come all the way to the door, you know. As long as I know you're
here, you could just..stay upstairs or wherever."
"Uh, sorry—just, like, feels like I should somehow?"
Damon said.
"I was passing by anyway," Sam half-lied.
"Well, I guess..you two must be hungry, anyway," she said,
shrugging. After putting some things down, she headed toward the
kitchen. Damon went to the couch at first, but sat up and watched Sam
follow her with an obvious air of curiosity.
It only took her opening one cabinet door, plus a moment's staring
inside, to realize that something was different. She had the funniest
look on her face as she rifled through the refrigerator, freezer, and
a few more places—a confused one with a hint of worry that she'd
somehow forgotten what was there. "Uh..hmn."
"I, bought us a few things earlier," Sam volunteered once
she couldn't stand it anymore. "Figured aah, since I've been
eating your food, it's only fair."
"Oh, sheesh! You could've mentioned that earlier—I was starting to think I was losing my mind."
"Heheh..sorry, I just wanted to see the aah, look on your face," Sam said, blushing and running a hand through her own hair, her ears down and tail wagging.
"And—you didn't have to go and do that!"
"Maybe not, but it felt right to me," she said with a slight shrug.
"Oh, sheesh! You could've mentioned that earlier—I was starting to think I was losing my mind."
"Heheh..sorry, I just wanted to see the aah, look on your face," Sam said, blushing and running a hand through her own hair, her ears down and tail wagging.
"And—you didn't have to go and do that!"
"Maybe not, but it felt right to me," she said with a slight shrug.
"It's not eating into your income too much? I know you
don't make money if you don't stream," she said, putting her
hands on her hips.
"My finances are perfectly fine," Sam insisted, crossing her arms. "I've lived on my own for enough years with no credit card debt to count as a responsible adult!"
"My finances are perfectly fine," Sam insisted, crossing her arms. "I've lived on my own for enough years with no credit card debt to count as a responsible adult!"
"Okay, okay—sorry. I didn't meant to imply otherwise,"
Onida said. "Then: Thank you. I have to make sure that
much is clear. Let me see what I can make for us with all this..."
After supper, and after the three of them had been in the living room
for an hour or so—Damon and Onida on the couch, Sam on a chair—the
younger sister suddenly got up, announcing that she wanted to go for
'a nap', and scurried up the stairs to her room. Sam was starting to
suspect that she had some intuition—mental, instinctive, or
otherwise—about what their visitor was after...and supported it.
She quietly waited a polite length of time before saying anything.
"Onida..."
"Hmn?" She'd caught the older woman staring at her ears again, but wasn't about to mention that.
"I can't, aah, stand to be dishonest with someone for too long. But I also didn't know how to bring this up either, aah, without maybe making things too awkward."
"Uhhm..what do you mean?" Onida had turned her head to stare at a corner where the walls met the ceiling and away from Sam.
"Hmn?" She'd caught the older woman staring at her ears again, but wasn't about to mention that.
"I can't, aah, stand to be dishonest with someone for too long. But I also didn't know how to bring this up either, aah, without maybe making things too awkward."
"Uhhm..what do you mean?" Onida had turned her head to stare at a corner where the walls met the ceiling and away from Sam.
"Guess I can just say it. I like you, and it's much more
than I really think I should like someone I haven't really
known for as much as a week. I aah..I know my wolf
side's..well, when I listen to my instincts they insist that we're in
a pack together and you're the alpha. I ahh...hope that's not too
weird.."
"Uhm.." The older woman blushed furiously throughout this
half-confession. "I-it's..well, I'm not going to pretend it
isn't weird. Or that I, know what it's like to have wolf
instincts. But I..certainly can't hear you being that honest
and lie myself. I...definitely like having you around. You're kind,
and thoughtful, and responsible; you've been helping Damon with all
sorts of things when I couldn't. It's hard for me to not feel
like you belong here already, too.."
"But you..." She turned, almost dramatically, Sam's way, to ask: "You 'like' me?"
"Yeah. That's aah...s-sorry if it's a step too far or something. It's not something I ah, couldn't get past, if you don't...but it's aah..there, all right."
"But you..." She turned, almost dramatically, Sam's way, to ask: "You 'like' me?"
"Yeah. That's aah...s-sorry if it's a step too far or something. It's not something I ah, couldn't get past, if you don't...but it's aah..there, all right."
"Erm. Don't get me wrong, you're very cute." Despite
the assurance she'd just given, it was hard for the werewolf to not
immediately feel a stab of sadness from this lead-in. "It's
just, I..I haven't thought of myself that way, as someone for
someone else tooo...'like'. Not in years. Not since my parents passed
away. I haven't dated anyone, or anything. All of my focus, and
attention, and love has been directed toward my brother. But at the
same time, I.."
Onida sort of tilted her head upwards, seeming to express an
uncertainty as to whether or not Damon was really asleep up there, or
if she could hear every word of this conversation, and then
whispered: "I know, my brother—or sister—or whatever.
She wouldn't, want to hold me back that way. She'd probably be
upset to think that I'd held back any of my own happiness for her
sake. But I haven't done that, either. This home we've built
together—is my happiness. But like I said before, it feels
to me..a little like you belong here too."
"Mmhmn?" Sam's expression had brightened just slightly
toward hopeful again, and she tilted her head a bit at this point.
Her host softly cleared her throat, returning to a normal speaking
volume again: "What I mean to say is, I-I think you're very
cute. I definitely..feel...something, just looking at you, and
it's hard to admit to myself that it's more than a dumb part of my
brain thinking 'look, cute puppy!' But I realized that had to be true
last night, when you..erm.." She cleared her throat again,
cutting her off. "But it'd be unfair to you to not admit that I
just, don't really know what I'm doing in the first place?"
"Ah. W-well...that's better than I was hoping for," Sam
said. "I, aah..I can work with clueless. I mean, I've been a guy
for a pretty long time and still act like one in some ways, can still
be one..aah, so I'm not totally used to a lot of how I feel like
this. So, more than a little would be too much for me, too! I think
I'd be happy enough for now if you'd just pet me a little bit..maybe
let me hug you?" She sort of reached her hands up toward the
other woman without sitting up just yet.
"Er." Onida's eyes sort of darted around all over the place
briefly, her face reddening again. "S-sure. Aah!" She
probably didn't expect the wolf-girl to immediately act on the
offer, pouncing on top of her with a hug. "O-oh..hi there.."
But she didn't push Sam off either, instead gently returning the hug
with one hand while using the other to lightly brush through the
smaller girl's hair a couple of times before moving on to gently
petting her soft, fluffy ears again. Sam softly barked and yipped a
few times, then let out a slow, breathy "Mmm~mmh.." as she
nuzzled Onida's cheek for real this time. With this, her wolf side,
human side, and any other sides she had, were all perfectly happy. It
felt—like she'd been truly accepted into the pack, and more.
They stayed close for a few hours after that, with only occasional
petting. Half an hour into it Damon came down and took up the
still-empty other side of the couch with no comment whatsoever,
looking happy more than anything else. She'd...definitely been
listening in to at least some of it, and seemed just as pleased with
this arrangement as either of them were.
One of the challenges I've caused for myself in identifying this story as taking place sort of simultaneously to Midas Journal is that that story has a lot of time skips built into it, while this one has until now tended to have a ton of different things all happening on the same day, each day. Several of the things I have planned must still wait in-setting for some time in order for them to make sense, so I believe the best way to handle the issue is to gloss over a few days at a time now and then. However, there are some events that I still need to cover here and there.
Another unique thing about Summoning in particular is that it has certain things and people who will receive a lot of focus, and some characters who are just going to mostly fade into the background as things progress unless something happens with the events the story is focused on and which they have a good reason to be involved in. Some may only appear in one part and have brief cameos from then on. I think this is okay; it definitely helps me manage a story with so many characters in an easier way than something like Battle Vixens where it's a narrative necessity to know what each fighter is doing at every single battle, and missing someone causes continuity issues. That's not to say that I have the same problem there, however; in that case I generally have a good reason for them to all receive some focus because they're all involved in fighting those battles.
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