Mary's sides were in stitches before she even left her block. Huffing, she thought to herself "Maybe I should have paced it a bit more..." Sure, her legs were half-cheetah, but the bulk of her body still showed on them. It occurred to Mary that she'd never seen a fat cheetah on television or magazines, and it was probably due to their wild nature, getting plenty of exercise and never overeating.
Still, she needed to off the pounds, and it was going to take a long time. Over the next few days, Mary began a rigorous exercise routine and a healthy diet. She lost only five pounds, but at least it was something. She also felt great, with the increased circulation and cheetah instincts, Mary's co-workers began to notice her more jovial attitude and she began to develop better relationships with them.
In a few weeks, she had trimmed down a noticeable amount. Her new co-worker friends had encouraged her to take more of the cheetah vial, and now she had a full pelt of yellow with black spots covering her body. Her hands had shortened a bit, but still retained their thumbs, and she had sharp claws on each finger. Her ears were round and furry, her teeth were sharp and her eyes were green with slitted pupils. She very much enjoyed her new form, far more than her cow one. Of course, she wasn't experiencing the same sensations as when she was a cow, but with the obtrusiveness of her udder and the bulky semi-hoofed hands, it was a form she was glad to be rid of.
One day, a couple of months after the vials first appeared, when Mary had slimmed down to a slightly obese form, she was shopping for groceries at the local supermarket. As she wheeled her cart into the parking lot, a familiar scraggly voice called to her.
"Miss? You, in the spots!"
Mary turned, and sure enough, there was the old woman sitting on the same bench she had been at two months ago. She had with her the old trunk full of strange items and smiled. "Got tired of being a cow, I see?"
"You!" the cheetah said, not really annoyed but rather surprised to see her again. "Your things turned me into a fat cow!"
"Fat, yes, but the cow part was all you my dear."
"You could have told me they were going to alter my brain," she gritted her sharp teeth. "Now I've spent the last seven weeks getting rid of this," she indicated her wide hips with round arms. Though she wasn't nearly a supermodel, Mary's curves weren't that bad. Her hips and thighs were thick, but more from the daily runs than from fat, and her belly had a good amount of pudginess, but didn't exactly overflow her waistline.
"I just thought you wanted to be a real cow," the woman said. "But you seem to be in high spirits now."
"That's probably because I've discovered my true form," Mary said. She honestly felt like being a cheetah was the greatest thing to ever happen to her, though she was well aware she once thought the same thing about being a cow.
"And a lovely form it is," the woman agreed. "So let's talk business."