The Magician truly had some tricks of his sleeve that he'd love to show his audience, but given the end results, the tricks wouldn't appear that impressive to them as they'd forget those who had come onto the stage had been anything else. This included a most beloved 'saw in two' trick that would mean little since if they were 'sawn in half' into twins, it would be like the twins were always on the stage. The Magician needed something that would entertain his audience, and fulfill the duty he'd been bound to. He still had his self respect as an entertainer.
Since those transformed were forgotten about having ever been human, none of the audience even noticed all his tricks involved audience participation since from their view it was always the first one that did.
"Alright, my next trick requires a volunteer from the audience." The Magician scanned his audience that had shrunk by two. He spotted a blond hair girl looking around 10, he also noticed that she had crutches. "You there! Yes you! Please come down!"
The girl looked around confused, pointed at herself, and the magician nodded. The girl pushed herself up, and began to make her way down to the stage. The Magician reached out his hand and helped the girl onto the stage.
"Now, please tell the audience your name dear."
"C-Chelly."
"Well, Chelly, can you tell me what you'd like to be when you grow up?"
Chelly felt herself blush under the eyes of the audience. "A school teacher?"
"... Are you lying to me Chelly?" The Magician looked closer.
"Y-yes!" Chelly blurted out.
"Then answer, honestly this time, what do you want to be?"
"... A gymnast."
"That sounds wonderful!"
"... You don't need to pretend to be nice." Chelly said with a frown.
"I'm not pretending. I do think that would great."
Chelly looked down, the Magician gently lifted up her chin. "How'd you like to perform some acrobatic right now Chelly? With my magic? I promise."
"Are you going to say I have to believe for it to work?"
"No. But it'll help the act if you just enjoy yourself, and I promise this WILL help, or you can just sit back down right now if you want, and I can pick someone else."
Chelly sighed. "Alright."
"Happy to hear it! Let's hear it for the fantastic Chelly! And she shall dazzle us with her cat like reflexes!"
Chelly blushed again, and wondered how the Magician planned to pull this off. Maybe with wires? She couldn't really think of what else he could be planning.
"First let's get you dressed for the occasion!" The magician regretted how his audience wouldn't remember this trick after the act was done, but he accepted this as a sad fact of life.
The Magician pulled out of his sleeves a simple silver stick that he then folded out, and connected like a ring, placing it at Celly's feet around her crutches. Then he pulled it up, showing a red curtain that rose above her head, leaving her outline, when he pulled away the prop, Chelly stood as she had before. She still had her crutches, but now she was in a gymnast's yellow leotard with black dots.
Chelly looked down at herself in confusion. "What-how, how did you do that?!"
"Magic. Don't worry, no one is going to judge you here."
Chelly just hoped she got her dress back, she still was confused how she'd gotten into the leotard, she hadn't felt anything touch her.
The Magician then pulled some raised silver bars from off stage.
"So, what now?" Chelly asked.
"What now? Chelly, this is your performance, do whatever you feel like doing, no more than you think you can do, it only lasts as long as you want it to."
Chelly blinked at this, expecting some gimmick or trick, but none came.
Chelly started with a few simple stretched, moving her body the best she could with her limitations. She felt her feet begin to arc. She swung her body back and forth, wanting to give 'her' audience as best a show she could as long she was up here.
Her legs together she must have looked like a goalie on a game of table soccer. She continued to swing back and forth, but knew the audience wouldn't accept that for much longer. With one swift motion, she twirled as best she could with her crutches, and turned around pivoting on one of them. She got an 'ahhh!' from the audience.
Her digitigraded feet touched the floor, little claws digging into the mat that was placed there when she wasn't looking, but she didn't care. She did another spin with her crutches, this time in an arched motion above her, and repeated it twice, earning another 'aww' from the audience. She didn't remember feeling so light.
She didn't notice as spotted fur began to crawl out her legs. She loved the feel of breeze along her fur. She did another 'cart-wheel' with her crutches bringing her back to the center of the stage. She stood on one crutch, raising up herself and the other one. Then her crutches' ends landed squarely on the mat, and she turned herself into a make shift headstand. This gave the audience a good view of her from behind, and a spotted long tail grew from her rear end, growing right through the leotard. And Chelly found herself with an even greater sense of balance.
Music began to play, a song Chelly knew called 'Megalomania' from a video game Chelly couldn't remember the name of right now. Chelly felt like she was a firework.
Without even thinking about it, she did a forward flip, landing on the edge of the stage, and leaning forward over the audience before leaning backwards again, spinning her crutches like they were batons.
The leotard began to become furry, the yellow color and black spots remaining, but connecting with the fur that now fully engulfed her legs. The fur hid anything indecent, with the exception of her belly button. Her feet were now decidedly paws instead, but she maintained her primate like balance and agility all the same rather than those a planes cat.
As the leotard finished transforming into a modest coat of fur, Chelly didn't think, she acted, she did an arching backflip, dropping her crutches, and grabbing the top handle bars behind her.
As she gripped the bars, tiny claws formed on her hands, whose palms quickly gained a level of natural padding, followed a nice 'gloves' of fur. She again balanced on one hand, doing a stretch her feline legs. She felt brighter than the moon!
She did a jump upwards, and gripped the bars with her paws, and spun a few times. She then really wowed HER audience as she then switched to gripped with her tail. Her friends had joked she must have been part monkey. Her audience clapped. Then she really swung upwards, and corkscrewed in the air before landing perfectly on the mat. The audience clapped. But she wasn't done yet.
She did a run on all fours just for dramatic effect, and ran up the side of the stage, before jumping off and doing another flip, catching the handle bars without missing a beat. Her heart was hammering in her ears. Her lungs spewing out the bad air and sucking in the good. All eyes were on her. She felt so alive!
Yes yes yes! As she pumped herself upwards, the 'gloves' spread upwards, as the 'leotard' reached downwards, the two connecting. Her tail was as much a part of the show as the rest of her, and she was sure that it flowed with her rhythm.
The fur traveled up her neck. Her blond hair gained a few dark spots. Her eyes remained the same color, but decidedly becoming feline. All the while Chelly danced in the air, the audience gasping every time she fell only for her to catch herself and throw herself upwards again.
The Magician himself felt his heart hammering, Chelly was every bit as good as she believed herself to be, but even he felt tension as her tricks continued to be more dramatic, her belief in herself keeping up with her drive.
The Magician felt the unconscious signal, and lowered the lights. Revealing that Chelly's fur pattern had been given florescent make up, making her shine under a black light like a dancing constellation. Chelly loved this part, it was the climax of her act.
Under the darkness of the black knight, the Magician saw the fur pattern creep up Chelly's face, and then the flat human face star pattern pushed outward forming a feline one, white fangs shining in the black light. Two triangles shape star patterns appeared above her head.
As reality responded to Chelly's new existence, obeying the rule that if Chelly was a acrobatic cheetah girl, then reality had to naturally follow suit, and a black light star pattern became invisible behind the dimmed stage.
It almost made Chelly sad she didn't have any partners for this, but it did mean that she was center stage and all eyes were on her where they belonged! Chelly resisted the urge to laugh out loud, there would be time for that later with her friends. No need to spoil the show for her beloved audience.
The music reached its peak, and so did Chelly. The fully transformed cheetah girl did one final dramatic leap upwards, her strongest yet. And as she reached the tip of her jump, she struck a pose. The pose perfectly blended her into the star scape behind her with her spot pattern for a few precious moments, but that moment was all she needed.
But the show wasn't quite over yet, Chelly spun downwards, thankfully out of the way of the bars, her belief in herself making her every bit as precise and regal as she saw herself as, and as her heart rose, her belief in herself combined with the Magician's magic was mind blowing. In the darkened stage, she avoided the bars like it was nothing. The Magician admitted to himself for any other performer this would be insane, but not for Chelly, she had excellent night vision after all, she could see the bars easily.
Her last spin downwards ended with her landing perfectly, and the lights instantly switched back to normal. With one swift motion of her paws, she sent her two batons she'd begun her act with spinning upwards, and with reflexes that left the audience in one final gasp, she caught them both without missing a beat. The music ended.
The audience roared with clapping and cheers. Chelly smiled. She didn't once think she was 'wasting' her talents here performing for a group of kids her age. While Rosewood and Penny were her family, and she'd never leave them, she still had every intention of applying to the Olympics later in her life. But for now, she was happy where she was.
"Let's hear a round of applause for Chelly The Incredible Acro-Cat!"
Chelly rolled her eyes a bit, she was going to have to ask to have that title changed sometime. But she couldn't complain about the approval of the audience, or the Magician's own clapping. Tired, but very very satisfied with herself, Chelly took several long bows.
"Thank you Chelly!" The Magician addressed.
"My pleasure!" Chelly smirked. Without giving it a second though, she carried her batons under her armpits, like they were bars themselves, (or something else) and walked off stage, with a distinct spring in her step, her tail swish left and right behind as one final florish. She took a long drink of water waiting for her, Rosewood laying down and Penny taking a rest with Copper in her basket. Chelly liked Penny, but she preferred to be as far away from Copper as possible! Even if the Magician promised the snake had been de-venomed.
For now Chelly just let herself rest, laying her tail in her lap, as the Magician moved her props off stage. Even if she didn't think any could completely top hers, the show was far from over.