Mary felt her shoes getting tighter all of a sudden. Her feet felt almost ready to burst out of them.
Alan noticed the frown on her face. "What's wrong, hon?"
"I guess...I guess I'm just not feeling that great today," Mary said, trying to ignore the stinging in her toes. "It's nothing. Just a few things haven't been going...as expected."
"Yeah, I guess I know what you mean," Alan said skeptically. The waiter returned with their water and tea. "Did the stylist not dye it the right color?"
She was only half paying attention at this point. "Yeah! Yeah, I didn't expect the orange to be so...orange." She forced a chuckle. "I'll be right back."
She hobbled on painful feet to the bathroom, where she locked herself in a stall and tried to take off her shoes. They were so tight, she couldn't slip them off. She could see something large inside of them fighting for space inside the cramped leather, then with a pop, the toes burst open. Large claws had torn their way out, and behind them came the tips of freakishly large orange-furred toes.
Mary almost shrieked, but kept control of herself. She knew the vial was affecting her, that she was actually being transformed into a tiger, and that she had to get away from Alan and from work until she could ride out the changes and get herself back to normal.
But right now, Alan was waiting for her back at their table, and she had been able to cover so far. Her toes--or claws--were poking out of her shoes, but it wasn't that noticeable unless someone were to specifically look down at her feet. Maybe she could slip out into the mall and buy a larger pair of shoes. Whatever she did, she had to do it fast.