Give what a shot? thought Shelly.
<The life of a lion, silly.>
Shelly started to object, but then found herself wondering. What would it be like to live as a lion? Not in a cage somewhere, though. She'd want to be free, to have a pride ofr lionesses... Another strange sensation swept over her, and she felt balance start to shift. Alarmed, she looked in the mirror and saw that her face was becoming more bestial, her body larger.
"No, I don;t want to be a lion!"
<Then why are you changing into one?>
She stared down at her maleness, seeing it pull up to her belly and be swallowed by a golden-furred sheath. She was crouching now, unable to stand straight, and her legs were altering quickly. "But I can't become a lion here! I'll be locked in a cage, or shot!"
<Then you need to be somewhere else.>
Before Shelly could object, she felt a blast of heat from behind and turned to see the walls of the room starting to fade away. Beyond them, where her kitchen should have been, stretched a bright, sun-baked African veldt. She started to back away, only to stumble and fall to all fours. All four paws. A final ripple passed through her body, and her.. his?... next atempt to speak came out as a roar. Oh my God, thought Shelly. I've become a real lion!
The walls in front of him were almost gone now, and he could feel the heat and the breeze sweeping in from the wild terrain. As he stared at the place he realized was going to be his home, someone started pounding on the door that was still in existance behind her.
"Hey! Are you OK? I heard something weird!" The door opened suddenly, and in stumbled...