Jess sat on a low stool near the counter, still visibly shaken, her cat tail flicking with nervous energy. She turned the “Witch’s Grimoire” pages aimlessly while Macy browsed the spell ingredients, tossing small jars into a basket like they were candy.
Her ears were still twitching uncontrollably, and that tight, warm pressure in her chest—the connection to Macy—was growing stronger. It wasn’t fear exactly… but it was primal. Deep. Instinctual. And it made her skin itch.
She clenched her gloved hands, flexing the small claws that had become a permanent part of her fingers. “This can’t be real,” she whispered to herself.
Then something shifted.
Her heart gave a lurch. Her bones shrank inward—muscles tightening, vision stretching wide and low.
POOF.
In an instant, Jess vanished from the stool—leaving behind only a puff of glittering black fur.
Where Jess once sat now curled a sleek black housecat, wide golden eyes blinking in confusion.
Jess—no, cat-Jess—tried to yelp, but all that came out was a high-pitched “mrrrp?”
Across the store, Macy turned.
She froze. Blinked. Then broke into a gleeful grin. “Oh my goddess, Jess!”
She dropped the basket and rushed over, kneeling beside the feline. “Look at you! You can shift! That’s adorable!”
Jess looked up at her, stunned. Her feline body twitched as she tried to back away—then in a flash, she gave a little internal push—
POOF.
Back again. Jess stood shakily in her humanoid catgirl form, ears back, breathing hard.
“What… was that?” she gasped.
Macy clapped excitedly. “See?! My magic truly is powerful!” she said proudly, grabbing Jess’s hands. “You can willingly shift between your humanoid form and your true form! That’ll be super helpful when we need to blend in—or sneak around!”
Jess stumbled back, wide-eyed. “I didn’t mean to do it. It just… happened!”
Macy tilted her head. “Oh come on, don’t act like that’s not amazing. You’re basically a magical familiar spy-cat.”
Jess groaned, rubbing her temples. “This is insane. I don’t want to be a spy-cat! I want to be a person!”
Macy smirked. “You’re still mostly a person. Just a person with ears, a tail, soft paws, and... okay, never mind, you’re definitely part cat now. But it’s cool!”
Jess folded her arms tightly across her chest, her tail curling around her leg again. “This isn’t normal, Macy.”
Macy leaned in, eyes glinting. “Neither is turning a guy into a toad, but here we are.”
Just then, the toad croaked from its plastic terrarium behind the counter.
Jess sighed. “Fine. But if I start coughing up hairballs, I swear to god—”
“Oh, that might be a side effect,” Macy said cheerfully, flipping the spellbook to the next chapter. “Now, let’s learn how to summon shadow minions!”
Jess groaned again. But her tail was already swaying behind her.