After it gets dark, the cat leaves and you both make your way back to the bush.
"Okay, I'll go first. Just keep a watch out for that cat. If I don't change back, we'll try something else. Here goes nothing," he says, as he begins to pile berries into his tiny mouth.
You scan the surrounding area, your back to the bush. You can hear your friend nosily munching away, but your attention is focused on the task at hand. It is dark, and you are constantly squinting at shadows trying to see if the cat has returned. Suddenly you see it. Just in the distance, slowly and quietly creeping closer.
You reach behind yourself and grab your friend's fur, trying to tug it and warn him. It feels strangely different, shorter and finer.
"C'mon, we have to go. That cat is back. We can try again later, " you say.
You turn around and see that your friend has changed. Now he is much larger than you, easily twice your size. As he continues to eat, he continues to grow. You realize soon he will be larger than the cat. At first you are overjoyed - the berries seem to be reversing the transformation. But as you look closer you see that although your friend is becoming larger, he does not look like he is becoming human. His skin is tough and leathery, and his hands are becoming webbed claws. His tail is long and thin, completely devoid of hair. His snout looks longer and wider, filled with sharp teeth. It looks like he is becoming some kind of lizard.
"Hey, I think you should stop, " you say, as you tug on him again. "The berries aren't working. They are just turning you into something else. Stop!"
He stops eating and glares at you with slit-like reptilian eyes. The juice from the berries makes his mouth look like it is filled with blood. He looks at you maliciously, then licks his lips and resumes eating as many berries as he can shove in his mouth.
You decide to get out of there, for your own safety. You did your part - you tried to warn him and you didn't like the look he just gave you. You run back to the hiding place he showed you earlier.
In your hidden space, you hear the cat howl and screech. Your friend and the cat must be fighting. You really don't know who to root for. Your friend just didn't look as friendly as when you first met, and you aren't sure you want to see him again.
Slowly a figure emerges from the shadows and approaches you. It is your friend, and he now looks like a large komodo dragon. He is too large to enter your hiding spot, so he waits outside.
"Hey, you can come out now. The cat is gone. I took care of it," says your friend. You watch him from the shadows. He seems to be fidgeting nervously, as if in anticipation of something. You remember how he looked at you and licked his lips, and wonder if you might just be better off waiting for him to go away.