Suddenly, Mary remembered what had happened to the "Human" vial - she had spilled it on the floor by the coffee table! She reached down and grabbed a vial from the floor. Just her luck, it was the "Human" vial. With unsteady claws, she placed the vial in the box and watched it refill. Trembling, she eased the solution to her beak. It was not easy. Her many appendages twirled and twisted, making it difficult to stay steady. But with relief, she was able to pour the entire contents of the vial into her beak.
John continued to bang insistently on the door. Mary could feel herself changing, but very slowly.
What am I going to do? thought Mary. I can't tell him to go away. He will know something is wrong by the sound of my voice. Hell, I probably couldn't even form the words in this beak anyway.
Then she remembered the phone. She could send him a text message! She crawled back to the bathroom and retrieved her phone. The lizard claw and talons that made up her hands were smaller, but it was still difficult to manipulate the phone. As her digits continued to shrink and become more human, she was able to send her message.
"John - The apartment manager is doing some repair work in my unit, so I took Max for a walk in the park. Sorry if my earlier message was garbled. I hope it didn't worry you."
Mary found that she could now walk erect, and walked back to the door. The banging had stopped, and she could hear John typing a reply on his phone.
"Mary - I want to see Max as soon as possible. I will be back from work in a few hours. I expect to see him at my door when I get home. Thanks. "
Mary silently cursed as she heard down John walk down the hallway and out of the apartment complex. Max was now dead, consumed by her alien body that was slowly becoming human again.
A few hours? thought Mary. Where am I going to find another dog in a few hours? It should take me almost an hour just to return to a completely human form.
She looked over at the box of vials, and began to get another idea.