The witch smiled, as she entered the tent and approached the large boar-woman. Christina was laying on her throne, greedily devouring some food as usual.
"So, witch, have you come to fulfill your end of the bargain?" asked Christina.
"Oh yes, " said the witch, barely able to contain her laughter. "This will end your hunger, I guarantee it."
Christina grunted, and one of guards approached the witch. The witch cupped the goblet she had brought close to her chest, shielding it from the pig-man.
"No, " said the witch. "This magic requires me to perform a sacred rite. One that I intend to keep a secret. I will only perform the ceremony when we are completely alone. Tell your 'court' to leave, your highness."
Christina sighed. She stood up, and pulled a squealing piglet from her teat. She handed to one of the pig-women. After a few grunts, the pig-people left the tent. Christina waddled over to the witch. At ten feet tall, she towered over the small witch. She glared down at her.
"This had better not be some kind of trick. My tribe has been ordered to kill you if this is some kind of poison," said Christina.
"Of course not, of course not, " murmured the witch excitedly.
"Then why don't you have a sip yourself? If it is so harmless, you won't mind drinking a little bit of it yourself," said Christina with a wry smile.
The witch eagerly gulped down a large portion of the potion. She had planned to drink the potion after Christina anyway. The rite demanded it. But it really made no difference who drank first. "See? " said the witch, wiping some of the potion away from her mouth. "It is good. You will see."
The witch handed the goblet to Christina. It looked like a child's toy in her large hoof. Christina eyed the witch warily. "This had better work, too. If it is just a placebo ..... if you are just wasting my time .... well, there will be consequences, " said Christina.
The witch just smiled, and gestured with her hands for Christina to drink. Christina gulped down the potion. It had a hard bitter taste, but she had worse in her slop. She had no problem keeping it down, despite the aftertaste.
"Okay, now what?" said Christina.
"Quickly, give me the goblet, " said the witch, as she held her hands up eagerly.
Christina dropped the goblet down to the witch. She cursed as she almost dropped it. Then she sipped the remaining potion from the vial. She rubbed her finger along the inside of the cup, and licked the remaining liquid off her finger. She eyed the inside of the cup carefully, and satisfied that it was empty, she held it above her head and began to chant.
The room suddenly felt cold, and Christina felt a cool wind blow by her despite the fact that they were inside a tent. Her skin tingled, and she felt a strange warmth spreading from her stomach out across her body. The witch continued to chant, eyes closed. Her chanting began to increase to a feverish pace. Christina braced herself. But the strange atmosphere returned to normal almost as quickly as it began. The witch slowly opened her eyes, and stopped chanting.
"It is done, " said the witch softly.
"That's it? I don't think it worked, " said Christina. She still felt hungry, but she had to admit her appetite did seem to be diminishing.
"Give it time. Spells like this take a while to complete their effects, " said the witch. The witch seemed uncomfortable. She shifted her body in her large bulky black robe repeatedly.
Christina understood what the witch meant. She was still feeling a little strange. Her hunger was gradually diminishing. But she also felt a little weaker. The room seemed to swim a little, and she felt a little dizzy.
"I don't feel so well. I think something is wrong, " said Christina.
"Odd, " said the witch with a smile. "I feel great."
Christina looked at the witch and could see she was right. The wrinkled yellow skin of the hag seemed to be filling out. As she plumped up, her wrinkles were stretched out into smooth pink skin. The witch grunted a little, and lifted her black robe with her hands. The black robe was stretched tight against her swelling belly.
Christina's own belly felt better. She was much less hungry, and it felt less bloated. But she continued to feel dizzy. The room swam, and appeared to be getting much larger. She closed her eyes to keep from getting sick. When she opened them again, she was surprised to see her herself staring eye to eye with the witch.
"What ... what did you do to me?" said Christina weakly. Her voice had lost some of its husky tone, and now sounded higher and weaker.
The witch grunted. Her robe was beginning to rip, and Christina saw pink skin covered by a thin short fine brown fur.
"Still haven't figured it out yet, huh? How a stupid girl like you was ever able to rule as a Queen, I will never know. Although your subjects aren't that bright either. I guess in the land of the blind, the one eyed man is king, " said the witch. She cackled with laughter, snorting uncontrollably. She raised her hand to cover her mouth, and Christina saw with shock that it looked more like a hoof - with three digits ending in a thick black nail.
Christina looked at her own hands, and was shocked to see that they were more human, with five long digits ending in a thin black nail. The skin on her hands was yellow and wrinkled. Christina's eyes went wide.
"Oh, so you finally figured it out, huh? Guess there is no longer a need to hide, " said the witch, as she tore off her robe. Christina saw her bulbous belly slowly swelling on the witch's enlarging frame. She had to look up to see her face now. The witch's nose was now round, and upturned. Large sharp tusks began to creep up out of her lower lip. She felt her own, which had been reduced to small nubs.
"Why?" she asked pitifully.
"Why? Why? " replied the witch angrily. "Why because of you, my disobedient pet. I have no desire to be some kind of boar Queen. But neither did I desire to be beholden to some young fool who stumbled into power. It was impossible to change your body. The magic I used was simply too powerful. But switching your body with mine - well, with the right ingredients that is very easy. I am not looking forward to becoming a Queen for a bunch of pig-monsters. But it is better than being their slave. Better to reign in Hell, than serve in Heaven, I suppose..."
Christina continued to shrink, and she felt very weak. She sat on the ground to conserve her strength. The witch on the other hand seemed to be glowing with energy.
"I don't see what you were complaining so much about, " said the witch, as she continued to pack on weight and height. She stretched and flexed her growing body. "This body is great. So much power, so much strength. Wasted by a fool like you. Although I must admit that hunger is maddening."
Finally, the changes were complete. The witch and Christina had switched bodies. The old woman that was now Christina stared up at the massive anthro-morphic boar woman staring down at her.
"What do I do now?" muttered Christina to herself.
"You? Well, I suggest you run, " said the witch with a smile.
"What?" said Christina with a mixture of confusion and fear.
"I think you better run. You see, I am very hungry, and I think I am in the mood for a little bit of the long pork, " said the witch with a smile.
Christina stood and moved her hands, as she had seen the witch do when transforming other people. Nothing happened, and the witch laughed.
"You think just because you have my body, you have my magic? Fool! A body is not like some bank where you can store your magic like currency. It flows through you, harnessed by years of training and knowledge. See, " said the witch, as she produced a small flame in her hand. "Now, I have it all. My magic and a powerful body. And an army to back me up."
"They will never obey you. They follow their ....." said Christina.
"Follow who? Their Queen? " said the witch, as she plopped down in the cloth throne. "From where I am sitting, only one of us looks like they can fit that role. And I don't think it is you. Oh, you can try to convince them that you are their true Queen, but I really don't think they are bright enough to understand. In truth, I don't think the they really care. As long as one of their kind can lead them - give them food and shelter - they won't challenge anything. I think they might like a change in management. I have quite a few plans for your ..... I mean, my little brood."
Christina stared at the witch in shock. The witch began to greedily devour Christina's pile of food. Christina just stood in stunned silence, trying to plot her next move. The silence was broken by the large boar Queen.
"Oh, you are still here? I thought I told you to run, " said the witch, as she belched and tossed a large bone to the ground. "You see, I think the Queen is tired of that stupid witch hanging around. She doesn't really need her. All she does is come begging for protection. I think its about time our little tribe got rid of her."
Christina jumped up and ran out of the tent. She felt tired and winded after just a few yards, but fear kept her moving.