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Delphi High Chapter 2: Changes

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Jasmine woke the next morning feeling incredibly sick to her stomach. She groaned, rolling about in her bed to find a comfortable position to lie in her soft fluffy comforter. She felt sweaty, exhausted, and chilled all at the same time.

"Damn salad, giving me the stomach flu," she muttered under her breath. When she tried to sit up, her vision began to swim and she grew extremely light headed and nauseous. Bile began to rise in her throat, and she raced to the bathroom. She barely had enough time to open the toilet seat lid in order to empty her stomach.

Her mother, preparing to go to work for the day, heard her inside of the bathroom. "Honey, are you ok?" she asked with concern.

"Does it sound like I'm ok?" Jasmine growled from behind the bathroom door. She then vomited again, coughing and groaning miserably.

"Oh, honey, you sound awful. Go back to bed and get some rest," her mother said worriedly.

"Ok," Jasmine said wearily. She crawled out of the bathroom and flopped back into her pillow-like sheets. Her mother pressed the back of her hand against her forehead to feel her temperature.  Jasmine's mother was a comfortably plump woman with short coffee-colored hair and always looked like she could use a few hours of sleep.  A result of all the long and stressful hours of working in the local children's hospital.  And, like every good nurse, she was skilled at diagnosing and treating ailments.

"You're burning up! I'll go get you some cold medicine, maybe it'll make you feel better," she said.

"Thanks," Jasmine muttered. She didn't understand it. How could she get sick so suddenly? Yesterday she felt just fine. No signs of sickness anywhere. Now she felt as if every muscle in her body was on fire and her stomach was churning restlessly.

Her mother came back with a glass of water and a Tylenol, which she took gladly. Her mother also set down a large ice cream bucket at the foot of her bed so she didn't have to race to the bathroom every time she needed to throw up. Normally this would have disgusted Jasmine, but she was too overcome by nausea and exhaustion to protest and instead once again thanked her mother.

Her father came in.  "Everything ok?"

"Just feeling sick," Jasmine said.  She then remembered her promise to her dad she had made only last night.  "Sorry I can't make you that omelet."

"It's ok, I'll take a rain check," he said with a sad smile.  "When I get back from my trip we'll all cook omelets together, ok?"

Jasmine nodded.

"Speaking of which, you better get going, dear," Jasmine's mother said, addressing her husband.  She fixed his tie. "Your plane leaves in a few hours and you know security is going to be awful."

"Alright."  He kissed his wife on the cheek, and kissed Jasmine's burning forehead.  "See you in a few days, sweetheart.  I love you."

"You too," Jasmine said.  He walked out the door.  Jasmine could faintly hear his car start up and drive away.

"I'm working late at the hospital again.  Are you sure you're going to be ok?" her mother asked.

"Yeah, I'll be ok," Jasmine assured.

"I'll go cook you up some soup before I leave, then," she said, and left Jasmine alone.

Jasmine reached into her bag and pulled out her cell phone.

Sorry girl, I'm sick today, she texted one of her friends, Lizzie.

Uh huh, sure you are Lizzie texted back, almost immediately.

No really I'm sick I just puked, she typed into her phone in frustration.

Omg, did Greg give u aids? Lizzie responded in her usual teasing manner.

Your so immature, Jasmine texted.

I was kidding, Lizzie replied.

Well it wasn't funny

Sorry. U want me to come by later today?

No I don't want u getting sick either, it sucks.
Jasmine said.

Awww, well I'll be sure to come by when you're feeling better :D Lizzie said.

Thank you, ur the best, Jasmine texted her friend, smiling to herself.

Just don't barf on me when I do, lol, Lizzie joked.

Jasmine laughed to herself. Lol, ill try.

See u then


Jasmine smiled and stowed her phone under her pillow. Her mom came in a few minutes later and gave her a steaming bowl of chicken soup which Jasmine took gratefully.

"I'll call you a few hours after I go to check up on you, and see how you're feeling, ok?" her mother said.

"Alright, thanks," she said, sipping her soup slowly.

"Get better soon, that's an order," her mother winked, and closed the doors for her.

Jasmine ate her soup slowly, letting the warm liquid slide down her throat and into her stomach, filing her chest with warmth. Luckily, it also helped ease her upset stomach. Once the bowl was empty, Jasmine rested her head against the pillow and let her exhaustion overcome her.
________________________________________

Greg felt the phone in his pocket vibrate with an incoming call, along with a loud heavy metal ringtone.  He quickly reached for it and flipped it open.

"What's up?" he asked.

"Hey, Greg!  This is Jasmine's friend, Lizzie!" a girlish voice greeted.

"Oh, hi!" Greg said.  He knew her; she was one of Jasmine's closer friends.  And wasn't bad looking at all.  

"I just thought I would call to let you know Jasmine's a little sick today," Lizzie said.
"Oh, god, I hope I didn't make her sick!" he said with a slight note of shock. Lizzie giggled.

"I doubt it, but she'll be fine," Lizzie said, shrugging.

"I should probably stop by and say hi or something," he said.

"I don't think she'll like you dropping by unannounced," Lizzie said. "Do you have her number?  You should give her a call."

"Of course I have her number.  What kind of boyfriend would I be without it?" he said. He quickly plugged her number into his phone and proceeded to call her. Her own cell phone rang three times before she finally picked up.

" 'Lo?" she asked in a very groggy and scratchy voice.

"My god, you are sick," Greg said.

"Greg?" she said in disbelief.

"That would be my name."

"I can't believe you're calling me. I feel so special. What's up?"

"I figured I could spare a few precious minutes to chat with my most favorite girlfriend in the world," he said.

He could hear her laughing weakly on the other end of the line. Damn, she really wasn't feeling good. "Thanks, you're so sweet."

"I'll stop by later and cheer you up, how 'bout that?" he offered.

"Oh, thanks so much, but no. I don't want you to get sick, either. And I feel like crap, I don't think I can even drag myself out of bed to answer the door."

"Aw, then I'll see you tomorrow, is that ok?"

"If I feel better, yeah," she said. "I gotta go, I think I'm going to hurl again."

"Ok, cutie, you get better, no exceptions. I'm taking you out for ice cream tomorrow, whether you like it or not!" Greg said in a mock-serious tone.

"Oh no, I'm getting kidnapped!" Jasmine cried out hoarsely.

"Damn straight. Ok, I'll let you go now, get better."

"Thanks, Greg, you're the best," Jasmine said, and hung up.
________________________________________

Jasmine slept for most of the day, feeling too queasy to do much of anything else. But by evening, her upset stomach and nausea was replaced with burning muscle cramps and a killer headache. Jasmine tossed about restlessly in her bed, and finally got out for the first time since that morning. She paced around the room, which helped dull her aching muscled but did nothing for her headache. Dragging herself downstairs, Jasmine took some more headache medication, hoping it would help. She crawled back into her room and flopped onto her bed, rubbing her legs and arms. Her entire body and her very bones felt like they were on fire. She groaned miserably. At least she wasn't throwing up anymore, although she would have preferred the queasiness over the agonizing muscle cramps.
"Augh, being sick sucks!" she growled to herself. She clenched and unclenched her hands, trying everything in her power to make it all just go away. But every passing second the pain continued to build until it was literally blinding.

She only continued to pace.  She was restless.  Despite the fact that her legs burned like she had just completed a marathon, she couldn't stop walking in never-ending circles.  Every minute the pain in her bones began to build until they threatened to snap.  Jasmine gritted her teeth with her eyes clenched shut.  She had no idea what to do.  She just wanted the pain to end.

The air was hot and thick, and without so much as a thought, Jasmine flung open the nearest window, letting the fresh air wash over her.  For a moment she felt relieved.  But as she gazed outside, an overwhelming urge hit her full-force.

She needed to get outside, and she needed to get outside now.

Jasmine didn't know where this sudden urge came from, but it was too strong to ignore, and too strong to even question.  She simply obeyed.  Throwing open the back door, she ran outside.  It was night, and the chilled air was a godsend to her aching body.  But it wasn't good enough.

She needed to get somewhere with lots of trees and cover.  So she ran.

She didn't know where she was going, or what she was even doing.  She found she didn't even care.  All she knew was that she had to run.  

Jasmine felt herself running faster than she could ever remember going, towards some unknown destination.  It was like some primitive instinct had taken over her body, and now she was nothing more than a passenger.  After what seemed like an hour of non-stop sprinting, Jasmine finally recognized her surroundings. She was in the middle of the forest preserve.  

Finally the urge to run stopped, and Jasmine found herself breathless in the middle of the forest.  What was she doing here?  Why was she even here?  She crumpled to the floor, exhausted.  

But her body had other plans.  The pain had never stopped.  In fact, it only seemed to grow.  Tears began to form in her eyes.  

What was happening to her?

The pain escalated in her hands, and Jasmine clutched them close to her body.  Suddenly, she heard the bones in her hand snap like dried twigs.  Jasmine pulled her hand away, and stared at it.  Something was wrong.  Very wrong.

Her fingers looked thicker, and stubbier.  Almost deformed.  Jasmine shook her head to clear it.  No.  No, she was imagining it.  She was just confused and delusional, is all.  
Her hands cracked again, and Jasmine let out a strangled yelp.  She could feel her hands begin to shift.  She stared down at it, horrified.  Her fingers continued to grow shorter and stubbier.  And . . . was that fur growing on the back of her hands?

She brought them up to her face.  Fine, tawny hairs covered the back of her hand, thick just like real fur.  Something was happening to her!  But that was impossible!  This couldn't be real . . .

Her hand swelled with pain yet again.  Where her fingernails once had been, there were sharp, deadly black talons.  Jasmine screamed.  No!  This couldn't be happening to her!  
Her hand didn't stop there.  It continued to change.   Her thumb shrank, and crawled up the side of her hand, and thick black pads began to form on her palms and fingers.  Soon it wasn't a human hand anymore.  It was a large feline paw.

Jasmine stared at it.  She didn't know what to do, let alone even think.  Her hand wasn't even a hand anymore!  Tears streamed from her eyes, gasps of desperation escaping her lungs. A sudden realization came over her, however impossible it sounded.  Her body was transforming.  

She began to cry harder.  "No, no, no, please stop, please stop!" she begged, cradling her mutated arm.   But her plea fell on deaf ears.  Her arm began to sear with a fiery pain as the transformation continued.  Like the pin-prick sensation of insects crawling over her skin, fur began to grow all along her arm until it was completely covered.   Her other hand was going through the same changes.   Jasmine felt absolutely helpless as her body twisted and morphed.  

Then, the pain spread to her shoulders.  Her shoulders twisted painfully, like some invisible giant had grabbed her arms and started pulling.  She cried out, and her arms snapped forward.  Her very bone structure was changing.  

Through it all, Jasmine could feel the rest of her body begin to change.  Now the changes were happening more rapidly elsewhere.  Her feet ached and began to grow.  Similar pads like the ones that had grown on her hands now grew on the balls of her feet, and her toes were becoming more rounded.  The bones in her legs snapped and cracked, each bend and stretch of her bones causing a horrible stab of pain to shoot across her body.  Claws sprouted from her digits and the fur that covered Jasmine's arms began to spread all over her legs and creeped up her chest.  

"Please stop, please stop," Jasmine whimpered through her tears of pain.  Whatever was happening to her body, she just wanted it to end.  The pain was excruciating.

Her internal organs began to churn sickeningly inside of her and Jasmine thought she was for sure going to vomit.  Her ribs then cracked, reshaping into a more rounded shape.  Jasmine fell to her side, still crying.  Her hips snapped and shifted, and all she could do was scream with the unbearable agony of it all.  Jasmine jerked upright, and tried to force herself to stand.  But every time she tried to stand on her feet, she fell forward.  Her new reshapened arms and hips were no longer designed to support upright movement.  

A sudden stabbing pain in her spine caught her attention. The pain began to build into the base of her spine until it exploded outward into a brand new appendage.  New bones and muscles began to grow.  With horror, Jasmine saw she now had a tail.  A tail!  She had a tail!

No, no, this isn't right!  Jasmine thought desperately.  This has to be a dream!  There's no way!  The sharp pain begged to differ.  She could feel the new muscles and bones in her body.  And she knew the truth.  This wasn't a dream.

The final changes consumed her body.  Her skull seared with the most horrible pain imaginable.  Jasmine felt her jaws being stretched and cracked into a short muzzle.  Her nose became flat and sunk into her elongated jaws.  Her teeth grew long and sharp, like fangs.  Closing her eyes tightly, she roared with pain.   She startled herself; she had actually roared.   Not just a cry of pain, but an actual, animal-like bellow.  More tears fell.

She felt her muscles burn and ache.  Some grew, rippling under her new coat of fur.  Her clothes had been long since shredded to pieces.  The fur coated her entire body, from her newly-shapened snout to her tail, which was now supporting a brown tuft of fur at the end.
Jasmine collapsed.  The pain was finally over, but now she didn't even know what she was anymore.  Her body had just transformed into a monstrous shape.  But it wasn't possible!  Things like this just don't suddenly happen!  People just don't turn into monsters for no reason!

But here she was, laying on the forest floor, in a body not her own.  

How could something like this happen to her?

A faint light caught her attention.  Lifting her head, she saw a glowing .  . . something in the trees not far from where she was.  It was so unnatural.  What was that?

The glowing light approached her.  It was a beautiful blue color, and the apparition looked like some sort of bird.  It even moved like one.  It flapped its smoky wings over to Jasmine and hovered before her.  It cocked its head, and looked at her with its brilliantly glowing eyes.  Jasmine stared at the thing.

The glowing apparition fluttered away, and turned back to her.  It was waiting for something.

Jasmine pushed herself to her feet.  She tried to stand upright but her new body wouldn't let her.  She fell to all fours, and realized with discomfort it felt incredibly natural.  Like she was supposed to walk like this.  The apparition fluttered a little further, and turned back to her.  It wanted her to follow it.

Jasmine placed one paw forward uncertainly.  How was she supposed to walk with four legs?  Maybe it was like crawling . . .

The bird didn't wait.  It kept going.

Jasmine forced her body to move forward.  Something seemed to click in her mind, and now she was jogging.  Her body knew how to move.  Jasmine didn't let herself ponder too long on how her body knew how to walk; she just willed her body to go forward and it did on its own accord.

Jasmine followed the bird through the forests, around trees and across a small creek, until it came to a halt.  In front of them was a small clearing, with a man sitting cross-legged in the middle of it all, with his eyes closed.  A small bowl of incense was in front of him, with the smoke curling lazily upwards from it.  The eagle flew towards the man and circled around him before it stopped and perched on his shoulder.

She instantly recognized the man.  It was the same person who confronted her in the restaurant the other day!  

"You!" Jasmine growled.  She paused.  Wait, she could still talk? She shook her head.  She had just turned into some sort of animal and all she could think about was that she could still speak?!

The man opened his eyes.  "Me," he said with a smile.  "Come closer.  Let me get a good look at you."

Jasmine hesitated, but stepped forward.   "Who are you?" she demanded angrily.

"My name is Jasper Eric Sebastian Hancock," the man said with a polite nod in Jasmine's direction.   "How are you?"

"Oh, I'm fine, I just turned into an animal, how the hell do you think I am doing?!" Jasmine snapped at him.  She felt her emotions begin to build.  She had never been so terrified or confused in her life.  She had just transformed into a monster and she had no idea how or why.  

"If it's any condolence, you are a very handsome lioness," Hancock said.

"A lioness?" Jasmine repeated, stunned.  "Is that what I am now?"  She looked over herself slowly, taking in the details of her body more thoroughly.  Her paws were huge and heavy, and the color of her fur was a tannish-golden color.  Her attention turned to her tail.  The tuft of fur at the end should have been her dead-giveaway.  She looked back at him.   The glowing eagle was still perched on his shoulder.  "You still didn't answer my question.  Who are you, really?"

"Someone like you," he said smoothly.  "I am also a shape-shifter."  The glowing eagle sank into Hancock's body, and his body began to glow with the same light.  His body shrunk, and the light suddenly vanished, revealing an eagle in his place.  Jasmine jumped, and the bird shifted back into a man.   "I have no doubt you have a lot of questions for me, and I promise to answer them the best I can."

Jasmine didn't know where to even begin.  "How—what happened?" she finally stuttered.  

Hancock laughed.  "Ah, good question.  It's part of a very long story.  Why don't you sit down?  This will take a while."

Uneasily, Jasmine adjusted herself, and sat on her hind legs.  She still wasn't used to this strange body nor did she want to get used to this.

"You knew this was going to happen, didn't you?" she suddenly said, somewhat angrily.  "You knew I was going to turn into an animal, right?"

"Yes," Hancock said.  "I have close friends who can see into the future, and they notified me of your turning so I could be there to assist you.  No doubt this is a very difficult and confusing time for you."

"So what happened to me?" Jasmine demanded.

"Patience," Handcock said sternly.  His eyes hardened, and Jasmine grew silent under his gaze.  He then tilted his head up, thinking.  "Now, where should I begin?  Well, first things first.  Mythological animals and beasts aren't just fantasy.  They actually exist."
"Huh?" Jasmine asked.

"Take myself for example," he said.  "I am a totem bald eagle, a mystical being found in much Native American folklore.  I have the ability to sense the thoughts and feelings of those closest to me, and I act as a spirit guide for those in need.  It has been my duty for the past several years to help newly-transformed individuals such as you."
"So you're saying I'm some sort of fantasy beast that shouldn't exist?" Jasmine asked.
Handcock chuckled.  "Quite.  Almost every fantastical creature you can imagine is actually real.  People didn't make up all those stories just for fun, you know."

"But then why don't I see unicorns or dragons running around everywhere?" Jasmine blurted.
"Please stop interrupting me," he said firmly, giving her that cold look again.  Once more, Jasmine felt her jaws clamp shut.

"Sorry," she murmured.

"As I was saying, mystical creatures exist, but of course they are in hiding.  They are disguised as humans to protect themselves.  Long ago, just as the Roman Empire reached its peak, there was a great war between the humans and the mystical creatures, more commonly called non-humans.  The battle dragged on for years, but the non-humans were suffering terrible losses.  They couldn't win.  A powerful sorcerer then came to them with an answer.  To preserve themselves and their children, the sorcerer would cast a spell over all of the non-humans, transforming them into humans.

"At first the non-humans were reluctant.  They were proud and did not like the idea of taking on the form of their enemies.  The sorcerer came up with a compromise.  He would transform them into humans, but they could transform back into their true shapes whenever they pleased.  It took years to create this insanely complex spell-"

"Wait, magic exists, too?" Jasmine said.  Handcock looked at her.  "Erm, sorry, please continue."

"Thank you," he said.  "Where was I?  Ah!  Yes!  After years of formulating the spell, the Char-tael Spell to be exact, the sorcerer cast it over all the non-humans in the Roman Empire.  The non-humans transformed into humans, and they learned how to change back and forth.  The spell was so powerful it was able to pass onto their children, so they too were born human.  The non-humans then used a special secondary magical spell that the sorcerer had concocted, called the Breaking Ritual, so the non-human offspring could transform into their true shapes.  The sorcerer then traveled the globe, along with several devout followers, to spread this disguising spell to non-humans across the world.  And when the Europeans discovered the New World, a number of trusty non-humans were quick to seek out the non-humans and transform them before the humans could destroy them."

"Ok, let me get this straight, this is getting confusing," Jasmine said.  "So years ago, humans and monsters got into a fight so this wizard—"

"Sorcerer," Hancock corrected.

"Whatever.  So this guy turns all these monsters into people.  And that spell was passed on to their kids."

"Very good."

"But to turn back they had to do this other magic spell.  I'm pretty sure I didn't go through whatever ritual you said it was."

"Excellent point!" Hancock said excitedly.  Jasmine cocked her head.  "You see, after several generations, non-humans thought it would be better if their children simply did not know about their ancestry, so they simply did not put them under the Breaking Ritual.  Many, many non-humans forgot about their true nature.  However, the Char-tael Spell, as powerful as it was, began to lose its power.  Over the years, non-humans began turning without undergoing the Breaking Ritual.  Which is what happened to you."
"Oh, great, now this great big magic spell is faulty," Jasmine groaned.  

"In essence," Hancock said with a nod.  "It's very difficult to predict which ones will turn without the spell.  Usually it would require an Oracle or Seer; they are the ones who can see into the future."

"So this thing is passed on through blood.  And wouldn't that mean one of my parents is a lion-creature?" Jasmine said.

"Correct, although it can be very difficult to determine which one of your parents carries the trait," Hancock said.  "Sometimes a member won't turn for generations at a time.  It is very likely your parents do not know they are secretly a non-human.  The non-human trait acts just like any other gene in the human body.  You remember genes from biology, don't you?"

"Vaguely," Jasmine grumbled.  "I took biology freshman year and nearly flunked it."
"Well," Hancock said.  He clapped his hands together and his hands started to glow.  He began to draw in the air, and where he drew, glowing lines hovered before him.  It was like he was drawing on an invisible blackboard.  He then drew a family tree.  "Let's say for the sake of argument your mother is the lion."  He drew two circles, and shaded one in.  He connected the circles together, and drew another circle below it, and shaded only half of it.  "That means you had a fifty-fifty percent chance of being a non-human.  But even if you were human, you still carry that trait with you.  So if you were to marry a human-" He drew another circle and connected the two new circles together, and drew a line and circle below them.  "There is now a twenty-five percent chance your children would be non-humans.  And so on.  But because you are a lion, the gene takes over and smothers your human side, so now it's more like a fully-shaded circle."  He filled in the remaining half of the shaded circle.  "It's mostly common sense.  The non-human trait is slightly more dominant than a human trait, so if you were to ever marry, there is a 50-50 chance your offspring will be lions as well."

"This is getting really confusing," Jasmine muttered.

"It's basic science," Hancock said.  "The fun begins when you take into account that many people have non-human ancestry, only they don't know it.  It can get quite confusing, indeed.  I know a family of satyrs who gave birth to a gryphon.  The husband was furious with his wife for some time, but it was eventually discovered one of their distant ancestors had been a gryphon; the gene just hadn't shown up until then!"

"School doesn't start for another two weeks.  Why are you torturing me?" Jasmine asked.
"Speaking of schools!"  Hancock said, waving the smoky drawings away.  Jasmine jumped at Hancock's sudden outburst.  "For a second I completely forgot why I was here in the first place!"

"So you could explain all this magical nonsense to me?" Jasmine said.  "Yeah, thank you for the clear-up, I got it.  I'm apparently a freak of nature.  Now if you don't mind, I'm going home and pretending this never happened, ok?"

Hancock did not respond for several long minutes.  He only looked at her, his expression growing serious.  "I'm afraid it doesn't work like that," he said in a very quiet and solemn voice.

Jasmine's heart clenched painfully inside of her chest. "What do you mean?" she said sharply.

"Jasmine, you cannot simply turn your back on your true nature. You must realize you are not a human.  You are a lion. This is your true form."

Jasmine could feel herself get angry.  She gritted her sharp teeth together and leaped to all four of her feet. "No, no, you're wrong! I'm not a lion! I'm not a monster!"

"I never said you were a monster," Hancock said gently. "You are the farthest thing from it. You have a consciousness, you have morals, you have a sense of right of wrong, and above all, you have a noble heart. Being a non-human does not make you a monster. You are defined by your actions, not your appearance."

She stared down at her paws.  "I don't want to be like this," she said weakly.  "I just want to be normal."

"And what is normal, exactly?" Hancock questioned.  "Normal is a person conforming to given standards, and such standards are questionable.  Normal is subjective.  To me, and to many others, you are normal."

"You know what I mean," Jasmine said angrily.  "I don't want to be a lion!"

Handcock sighed gently, shaking his head.  "I have had the misfortune of watching a very close friend of mine die because they rejected their nature."

Jasmine stiffened, and could have sworn she felt her heart stop. A chill crept along her spine.

"What?" Jasmine whispered.

"If you reject what you are--who you are, if you refuse to transform, you lose a part of your soul. You become empty and hollow. By not releasing your rightful nature, a part of you begins to wither away and die. It's like a dangerous toxin inside of your body building over time. You must release it, or it begins to infect you, destroying you from the inside.  Just as a person grows sick from not eating well or not exercising, you will become sick if you do not transform."

"How often do I have to transform, then?" Jasmine asked, unable to keep the tremor out of her voice.

"It differs from person to person," Hancock said. "But my suggestion is to transform whenever you can.  You just may grow to like this form.  It is, after all, who you really are."

"Does it hurt every time I change?" Jasmine asked.  The pain of the first time changing had been the worst she had ever experienced, and if she had to face it again . . .

"No, of course not. You will get used to your transformations, and it will become easier and more natural over time. Now, I imagine you want to change back, then."

"Yes please," Jasmine said.  

"Well, you can't transform quite yet," Hancock said.

"Why not?!" she shouted.  He raised an eyebrow.

"What happened to your clothes when you turned?" he asked.

"They were ripped to pieces—oh," Jasmine said with sudden realization.  She felt her cheeks grow hot.  Wait, could lions even blush?

"The transformation is purely physical.  Non-humans discovered that the hard way years ago.  Fortunately, they created charms that would preserve their clothes when they transformed."  Out of one of his pockets, he pulled out a small necklace with a plain, circular silver charm, and draped it around Jasmine's head.  "Wear this with you at all times, so when you transform you have nothing to worry about.  Unfortunately, it's a little late for that, so you will have to wait until you get home before you try turning back."

"And I'm supposed to walk home as a lion?" she asked.  "In case you didn't know, lions aren't native here."

"I will make sure you will not be noticed.  I have several abilities, thanks to my spirit form.  But before we go on our way, I have an offer to make you.  And this is my main reason for contacting you."

Jasmine was silent, and waited for Hancock to go on.

"I came to you because you needed my help," Hancock said, his voice growing low and serious. "I know what it's like to feel alone, rejected, and afraid. I didn't want you to go through the same thing. And now, I can offer you a safe place where you can go, and not be afraid to be what you truly are. I am the headmaster of a special school, Delphi High.  My school is composed entirely of young students just like you. They share your incredible gift, and each and every one of them has been in your situation. And I will have no doubt you will fit right in and make excellent friends. The students are empathetic towards newcomers, because they know what it feels like to be an outcast. Jasmine, I want you to attend my school. At Delphi, you don't have to be afraid. You will be accepted by people your own age. You can live a normal lifestyle, and you can still be yourself without being judged."

Jasmine was silent for a very long time. The offer was tempting, she had to confess.  She hated to admit it to herself, but she was badly shaken after what had happened to her, and she didn't know if she could handle something like this on her own.  She needed somewhere she could go, filled with people who were just like her.  People who would understand her. She didn't have to be alone with this . . . thing. But that meant she would have to leave all her friends behind, not to mention somehow explaining to her parents that she suddenly and inexplicably wanted to transfer to a random high school.

"I'll tell you what, I'll send you a brochure in the mail," Hancock said, noticing her hesitance. "And I'll let you think about it. And when you make your decision, you have my number. Contact me whenever you make your decision."

"I still . . . even after what you told me, I still don't like it," Jasmine whispered.  As her anger faded, she felt something else begin to well up inside of her.  Sadness and fear.  "I just want everything to go back to the way things were."

"Sometimes life throws us challenges we could never see coming," Hancock acknowledged.  "We cannot always control what cards fate deals us.  But it's best to instead focus on the things we can control, instead of the things we cannot.  We cannot choose who or what we are.  But we can choose what we become.  You could not control your transformation into a lion.  But now, you can decide what you will do about this new power of yours."
Jasmine nodded, taking in every word he spoke.  

"Now, let's get you home," Hancock said, rising to his feet.  They walked side by side through the forest, neither of them speaking much.  As the forest thinned and they approached civilization, Hancock placed a hand over Jasmine and whispered something under his breath.  A strange needle-like sensation creeped across Jasmine's skin, and she felt herself shudder.  She glanced down at her paws, and gasped.  She couldn't see them!

"What?" Jasmine exclaimed.  She twisted around, but she couldn't see herself.

"You're under an invisibility spell," Hancock smiled.  "No one can see you.  Mind you, people can still hear you and feel you so don't run into anyone."

Jasmine clamped her mouth shut.  They kept walking, Hancock occasionally humming under his breath.  They made it to her home and crept through the backward without being noticed.  Hancock looked around carefully to make sure no one had spotted them.

"Alright, listen carefully," Hancock said.  "It's very simple to transform back.  All you must do is concentrate on what you look like as a human, and simply will yourself to change back.  It will be painful," he cautioned.  "But do not lose focus.  Understand?"

Jasmine nodded, but then realized she was still invisible.  "Um, yeah."

"Now, I can see from here your back door is still open, so I will undo the invisibility spell in two minutes.  I trust you can make it to your door in plenty of time.  And your mother is still away at work and I suspect you have about an hour or so until she gets back."

Jasmine looked at him.  "How do you know that?"

"I'm somewhat psychic," Hancock said.  

"What?!" Jasmine protested.

"I can only read conscious thoughts, not subconscious ones.  I'm not a true psychic, I can't read your mind for your deepest darkest secrets," Hancock said, offended.  

Cough if you can hear this, Jasmine thought loudly to herself.

"Well if you're practically throwing your thoughts at me, then I can't help it," he said, then added a small cough for good measure.  "Now if you don't mind," he said, gesturing to her house.

"Oh, right," Jasmine said.  She ran back to her house.

"Two minutes," Hancock reminded her.  He then transformed into an eagle, and flew away.

Jasmine rushed inside, squeezing through the door, and kicking it closed behind her.  The house was still dark, and luckily no sign of her mom, which she was immensely thankful for. She didn't want to explain this to either of her parents.  She was having a hard enough time dealing with this herself.  She went into her room and took a steady breath.  Ok, so turning back wasn't too hard.  She just had to think about herself and sort of will herself back to normal.  

How hard could it be, right?

She pictured herself in her mind; long flowing blond hair, pale skin, clear blue eyes, thin and fragile frame. She felt herself begin to change, and cried out in alarm.  Bones snapped, cracked, and reshapened beneath her skin.

"Don't break your concentration!" she said to herself, remembering Hancock's advice. "Stay focused."

It was difficult for her to think of her human form while she could feel her entire body begin to twist and reshape itself. She gritted her teeth tightly, trying with all her might to change. But she stopped mid-transformation after the pain grew intense enough for her concentration to break.

"No, don't stop," she said out loud.  "Come on, you can do this!  You have to do this!"

Jasmine writhed with discomfort as her paws shaped back into small, delicate hands. Her fur disappeared, and so did her tail. She could feel her hair grow to its original length, and finally she was human again. Jasmine sighed with relief, collapsing on the floor out of exhaustion.  

The transformation was absolutely draining.  It was difficult to even sit up, and Jasmine didn't even think she had it in her to get to her feet.  She leaned against her bed, and pulled a pair of pajamas over her body.  

Drained, confused, and completely bewildered, she crawled into her bed and stared blankly up at the ceiling. The clock on her dresser read 10:35 P.M.  In the course of the past hour she had transformed back and forth into a lion and had learned monsters that weren't supposed to exist were real.  She was one of them.

You must realize you are not a human, you never were. You are a lion. This is your true form.

You're not human.

This is your true form.

You are a lion.


Hancock's words echoed in her head. Her entire life had been a lie. She wasn't even a human, just some outcast freak of nature. Tears fell from her eyes. Nothing made sense anymore. She didn't know what to believe, or who she could trust.

You cannot turn your back on your true nature.

Wiping away her tears, she turned her attention back to her ceiling. She knew Hancock was telling the truth . . . she didn't know how, but she knew Hancock could be trusted. And she didn't want to die. She was far too young for that.

But that meant she had to accept the fact that she was an animal underneath her skin. She had to accept the fact that she needed to transform into . . . into her monster form.
Jasmine curled up into a ball on her bed. All of her questions had been answered, but she still felt alone, confused, and scared.

She knew her only choice was to accept Hancock's offer. But it was going to be the hardest thing she's ever done.

One thing was for certain; her friends, and her parents, could never know what she was. She couldn't bear the shame of having people calling her a freak.

Because that's all she was.

Her only choice was to go to Delphi, with freaks just like her, and hope to make it out alive.
From now on, I'll probably only post snippets from the chapters. Enjoy!

Chapter 1: [link]
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DarkSpyro951's avatar
Me: I've been waiting for what feels like ages.

My mom: I see this is an absolute win, because now he knows what it's like to be bored.