Merlin lead them into the back of the store. It again was surprisingly spacious, and appeared to be part warehouse and part workshop. The wizard had bits of fabric and molding clay scattered across several different desks and work surfaces. There were several dog-eared (spell?) books propped open on specific pages, showing everything from clothing patterns to potion mixtures. The room almost would have given off fairly standard tailor vibes were it not for the strange circular rune etched into center of the concrete floor.
“Alright Mark, you’re up first.” Merlin stood in front of the pledge. He held up a glowing green finger, tapping the satyr on the nose, “You’re wearing a costume. It’s time to take it off.” He said the words slowly, with a bit of a stern tone.
Mark went cross eyed, watching the wizard effortlessly make his hand glow. “That’s what I’ve been trying to tell you. The costume’s real. I can’t-“
Mark reached down to tug on the fur on his leg. For the first time in a few hours, he suddenly felt far more give down there than he was expecting. He looked down, watching as the fur on his legs shimmered and shifted back into the faux fur of the costume pants he had put on several hours ago.
He didn’t need to be told twice. Mark hastily started to strip out of the pants. The hooves were a little more clingy, but they eventually came off as well. He stared in disbelief, watching as his human legs returned to view.
“My legs are back!” He grinned eagerly, but quickly followed it up with an “Eep!” as he danced on the concrete.
“What’s wrong?” Travis stood up straighter.
“The floor’s really cold…!” Mark laughed. He watched Travis clop forward in concern. Wow, the satyr was err, incredibly naked. Wait- So as he!
Mark put his hands between his legs, realizing he no longer felt as comfortable standing around in the nude. “Do you have any clothes I could borrow Merlin?”
Merlin watched as Mark’s scruffy body hair started to recede and vanish. “I’ve got a lost and found.” He nodded, “Take off your horns first.”
“Right!” Mark nervously reached up, giving his horns a firm tug. They came off in one clean pop, and he was once again holding a plastic headband. It wasn’t exactly the same one he had tried on earlier however. This one had some fake goat ears at the bottom of the band.
“I’ll take those.” Merlin held his hands out, taking the pants and horns from Mark. He laughed softly, watching the human instantly cover himself again. “You should be able to find something over there.” He pointed to the corner of the costume storage section. Oh wow, there was an entire rack of unclaimed human-looking clothes over in the corner.
Gabe watched Mark scurry off. He felt his sheath stir at the sight of the naked human. “Alright, me next, me next.” He clopped up to the wizard, “If I stay like this much longer, I think you’re going to end up with horns too.”
Merlin laughed, “I’d like to see you try.” He pointed down at the circular rune on the floor. “Right this way please.”
Travis started clopping a little closer, “That can be arranged you know.”
Merlin held up a hand, “One at a time please,” he pointed a finger at Travis, “and don’t get any ideas.”
The wizard verified that Gabe had stepped up onto his rune, “Now then… they made you the old fashioned way? Yes?”
Gabe nodded, “Yeah, we…” He tried to figure out the best way to put it. Then he discovered he had developed a distinct lack of modesty in the last hour. “We had a really awesome foursome.”
Merlin laughed, “I’m sure you did.” He chuckled, his entire hand started to glow, “But I’ve got some news for you.” He placed it on Gabe’s chest, “You’re wearing a costume. It’s time to take it off.”
Gabe blinked, suddenly feeling flush. “Err, Merlin, we left my exercise gear on the field.” He tugged on his leg’s fir, “I’m not wearing anything.”
The wizard shook his head, “Yes you are.” He gestured to the spell circle Gabe was standing on. “Convince me and the magic you’re wearing a costume Gabe.”
The satyr stared at him. “What? I- Okay?“ He gave the wizard a curious look, “I was practicing soccer.” He thought back to earlier, “Having satyr legs is easier than dealing with cleats and shin guards.” He wasn’t lying, he did feel a bit sportier like this. He patted his horns, thinking back to his little mishap with Mark, “And these things give you some decent head protection. I wear this costume whenever I’m on the field and- Baah!”
The circle started to glow underneath Gabe. He felt a strange tingling around his waist. Looking down, he saw the edge of his fur take on a fake texture. There was just the beginnings of a seam starting to form.
“Go on…” Merlin nodded, keeping his voice even and steady as he fed the soccer player a leading question, “This was your first rental?”
“Baah?” Gabe fingered the seam curiously. Some part of him really was picturing trying to play sports in these now. “Oh, no, I bought these bad boys last semester when I joined an intramural team.”
A bead of sweat started to roll down Merlin’s forehead, “Ah yes- The magic department’s team is always looking for fresh recruits.” The glow of the wizard’s hand got a bit brighter, “Keep it simple and try to wrap up your story. Please. You take this costume off after games?”
“Well sure.” Gabe said confidently. The horns on his head shifted into simple pieces of plastic. “Unless we win. Then it’s after the celebratory fucking.” He smirked.
A vivid memory entered Gabe’s head. It was the final game of the last season and he had made the winning goal with seconds left on the clock. His team was ecstatic. They didn’t even bothering going back to the captain’s house to celebrate. He and the (real) satyrs on the team started making out under the bleachers immediately after everyone cleared out. They even got the team’s centaur goalie to join in. It’s a great group of guys, and no one cares that he has to use a bit of magic to fit in.
“There!” Merlin finally broke his concentration. He reached down with both hands glowing, firmly grabbing onto Gabe’s waist. It only took one swift tug, and suddenly the young man was once again standing on a pair of muscular human legs.
Gabe looked down, stepping out of the new goat pants in bewilderment. “Wow… That worked.” He wiggled his toes as they slid out of the costume and- Gah! The concrete was cold!
“Of course it did.” Merlin chuckled, “Here’s your uniform back by the way.” He handed Gabe the pants. As the soccer player looked them over, Merlin plucked off his fake horns and added them to the pile.
“My… uniform?” Gabe looked the pants over. They felt familiar in his hands.
Merlin nodded, “I nudged you into a reality where you were wearing costume.” He wiped his brow, “No big deal. I should watch you come play some time.”
Gabe didn’t know much about magic, but that looked like it took a considerable amount of effort. He rubbed his head a bit, trying to shake the odd memories of playing soccer with a bunch of mythical creatures. If anything, the images in his mind only were becoming more clear. He liked being a striker for the Mangey Mystics.
Merlin nudged Gabe off his rune, “Alright, why don’t you go see if you can find something to wear?”
The wizard then turned his attention, pointing at Travis and Peter, “You two: Please just say it’s a rental. I want to get something out of this mess tonight.” He said it like a joke, but there was a serious edge to it. “So, which one of you is next?”