Kyle had decided on a plan of action. He slowly opened the door to Ally's room. Ally was lying face-down on her bed, her feet resting where her head should be. She was busy texting her friends, but she saw Kyle entering.
"Get out of my room weirdo. Just leave me alone." responded Ally, not bothering to look up from her cell phone.
"You know Ally, you really shouldn't spend so much time in here. How about we go to the backyard?"
Ally rolled her eyes. "Tch. When did you become such a health nut?"
"I don't know, I think it would be nice to get some fresh air. A Good Girl would love to play outside."
The trigger hit Ally like a sack of bricks. She imagined a dog, staring out a screen door. Couldn't its owners see that it wanted to play? Couldn't they see it wanted to go...
Outside. The image had vanished from her mind, replaced by the desire to get outside. It was the only thing that mattered. Outside. She needed to go outside. Outside, outside. Outside!
Ally leapt from the bed, landing on all fours. She scrambled out of the room, flinging the door open with her body, nearly knocking Kyle over. She sprinted down the hallway, barking happily. Still on her hands and knees, she clambered down the stairs, racing towards the living room. She careened into it, tongue panting wildly. As she was running, her feet were starting to resemble paws, which was making her quadrupedal gait much easier.
Ally crashed into the door to the backyard. She was almost there. She was almost outside. Ally was so happy she could nearly die. She just needed to open the door, and started growling at it. The handle was giving her trouble though, and she couldn't figure out how to use her hands properly. She was pawing at the door, anxious to get out. Her hands were starting to resemble dog paws as well, but she wouldn't let that dissuade her. She was a Good Girl, and she wanted to play outside.
Ally was finally able to swat the handle down, pushed the door open, and ran out into the backyard. She was outside! She was so happy, she gave out a big, triumphant "Woof!" She could smell the freshly cut grass, the earthy smell of a mole hill, even the scent of a barbecue from somewhere in their neighborhood. She let out another happy "Woof, woof!" enjoying the great outdoors. Why had she ever stayed inside? There was so much to sniff, so much to do, so much to play with!
And then her human mind snapped back into focus. What the hell was she doing? She was running around on all fours, barking like a dog! What was wrong with her? And yet, she couldn't feel mad at herself. She had wanted to go outside, so she had gone as fast as she could. Running on all fours was faster than running on two, so she had run like an animal. She had been happy about going outside, and she had wanted to express it, so she had barked her feelings to the world. It was weird, but it felt right. For some reason, she didn't mind the changes to her behavior, although she doubted she would ever do something like this again.
It was probably just stress, Ally decided. She would roll with the punches, and embrace the weird behavior for what it was. It was better that way. She smiled as she saw Kyle enter the backyard.
"Hey bro! Man, it feels so good to be outside. I'm so glad you suggested this. This is so much fun!" she excitedly rattled off.
For some reason, her ear was starting to itch. She started scratching her ear with the back of her hand, not realizing that a light coating of fur was appearing on it, or that it was becoming more pointed. She sat there on the ground, waiting to see what her brother would say.