You've rarely, if ever, told your own brain to shut up before today. Since you became a rubbery anthropomorphic lion creature you're certain you must have done so about fifty times. As the thoughts of giving in and accepting your new body creep into your head again you go ahead and make it about fifty-one. You're about to cast the spell, but a thought strikes you. Before today you didn't think magic even existed. Rushing into casting a spell now might even more dangerous than letting the suit win.
As much as it worries you, you decide you just can't rush into this. You sit back down going over the spell again. As you begin understanding a bit more you start to realize that the text of the book was probably written before anyone even knew what rubber even was. Casting it as is might have some unforeseen results. Just give up, human. your mind tell you.
"Shut up." you say aloud. It must be getting worried now. This is the first time the suit actually addressed you.
I misspoke the voice says in your head give up, lion. That is what we are now. Saying it aloud would feel so good.
"I am a lion." you say "Hmmm...that did feel a nice." you say casually as you write a few notes on the sidebar of the book. The voice says nothing but you swear you hear a chuffing sound. "But not nearly as good as telling you to shut up. Now that felt so good I think I'll say it again."
It again! the voice says.
"Shut up." you say, rolling your eyes slightly at the lion's joke. The voice starts singing the words "I'm a lion" over and over, probably hoping you'll start singing along and end up losing this battle of wits. You have confidence now, though. You're reading and note-taking is starting to bring understanding about the spell. It's nearly midnight before you take a deep breath (even though you haven't needed to breath...another rubber lion benefit you suppose) and stand up. The arcane gestures and phrases are a little difficult at first. Your cartoonishly large hands and silly face weren't built for this kind of work. Though...you were doing other things just fine. You smirk. The suit is trying to stop you. That was a big mistake. You alter your mindset slightly as you chant the spell and make the gestures. You're clear that there is a separation between you and the suit now. Between human and lion. Much as he wants you to be him, it isn't true. You are the human, he is the suit. You focus that thought in your mind.
The strange feeling starts in your torso somewhere between the gut and the sternum. A feeling you can't quite describe. But the feeling spreads through your torso, over your shoulders, up your neck and down your legs and arms. You feel a familiar tightness. It's the suit. It's pressing tightly around you like it did when you first put it on. You close your eyes and brace yourself for what comes next. You feel another wave of vertigo as you feel your head sinking into itself. Your human face is pulling away from the mask. When you're certain that your entirely changed back you quickly open the pliable flap and pull down the zipper. You push the mask away from your face and quickly scramble out of the suit. You're across the room in less time then it takes to think about it.
"Yes!" you call out laughing. You look over yourself. Two legs, two arms, no tail, no mane, manly parts. You rush to the mirror and look at yourself. You're human. Naked as the day you were born, but human. "Yes yes yes...I'm human again!" you say. Even your voice is back to normal.
"Don't rub it in." you hear a familiar voice behind you. Your celebratory mood turns cold as you see that suit's reflection stand up and shake itself about. You spin around and stare at it. The zipper is still open and the puffy inside of the creature are still visible. It smiles and waves with a friendly smile.
"Hi." it says.
"You're not putting back in!" you say, backing up against the mirror you were just looking into.
"Well I'd be lyin' if I said I wasn't tempted to try. But I thank that's mainly your choice at this point." the lion suit says. It gets a cheesy smile on its face and points his fingers at you and back at itself "Lion...mane...huh?"
"Geeze your jokes are even worse now." you say. You'd facepalm if you weren't so afraid of taking you eyes of him.
"Seriously, though, I won't force the issue. I owe you a lot, after all. Before you and that spell I really was just a magical lion suit. Sure I had wants and desires. But it was...different somehow. But somewhere between being a part of you, being in your head, the conversations and the magic spell." the lion gestures to himself proudly "I'm this. I can move on my own, walk on my own, I even have a name of my own since you insisted on calling yourself Reinhold while walking us around." he says making his paw's fingers to a tiny little walking motion.
"So, I won't force you into me." he says. "I'll just...tempt you. Look how warm I am."
"Yeah, I think we should see other people." you say with a shake of your head "Good-bye, 'Reinhold'. It's been more fun than I'm comfortable with, but I'm going home." you say. With that you turn to leave. Reinhold the Rubber Lion zip himself up and sits down on the chair. He gives you a wave and picks up one of the books you'd been reading.
So ends the challenge of the rubber lion suit. Your next challenge, of course is making it home...at midnight...through a magical park...while naked. You only hope the cops give you some clothes when you inevitably get arrested.