Amy held out the vial, and Mary gulped it down. The little girl was nervous, and dropped the vial before Mary could drink it all. Mary tried lapping the solution off the ground.
Damn! I hope I got enough, thought Mary as she felt herself begin to change.
"Sorry about that, Mara, " said Amy, as she bent down and picked up the vial. "Maybe we can get some more ..."
Amy gasped when she turned and saw Mara.
Mary was standing up, leaning hunched against a tree. With a crack her back shifted, and she was able to easily stand on two feet again. Her claws shrank a little, and her talons began to look more like slender fingers. Her waist became flat and thin, while her hips spread wider, returning her hourglass figure. Her breasts ballooned up out of her chest, the nipples still hidden by her feathers. Her beak receded a little, and she found she could once again form words. But the changes abruptly stopped, leaving her an anthro-morphic creature, a hybrid of human and gryphon.
She screeched loudly, causing Amy to jump back.
"No! I was so close," yelled Mary.
Mary looked down and saw Amy whimpering, clutching the box of vials closely to her chest. It looked like she was about to bolt.
"I'm sorry. I didn't mean to drop it. Please don't hurt me, " said Amy weakly.
Mary smiled. "I would never hurt you, child. Remember, I am a good gryphon. And this is as much my fault as yours."
Mary ruffled Amy's head warmly.
"But I do need that vial. I need to complete my transformation, and I can only do that after I refill the vial, " said Mary.
She reached her hand forward, presenting the palm to Amy, waiting for her to drop the vial in it. Mary's hands were still covered by tough yellow skin and her fingernails were long and dark black. But at least she could easily manipulate objects again.
Amy suddenly got a strange look on her face. She clutched the box tightly to her chest. "No," she said sharply.
Mary placed her hands on her hips and scowled. "No? Are you sure about that? You don't want to make me angry?"
Amy smiled. "You can't scare me. I know you are good. You won't hurt a little girl. Besides, you owe me. I brought your vials back, now you need to return the favor, and do something for me."
Mary raised one eyebrow quizzically. "What kind of favor? What do you want?"
Amy smiled. "Well ......."