Change (Kitsune) Read Online Free Page A

something like he thought it would never happen, and at the time I had no idea what he meant. It was several more minutes before I realized I wasn't human anymore."
    "You were, and still are the same person you've always been, Dear, you just weren't in human form," Bill said firmly, "Remember that. You are always you, no matter what shape your body takes. You were still able to think weren't you?" I nodded. "Then you're still you. End of story."
    I nodded, accepting his reassurance, and continued my story, "He picked up my back pack and told me to follow him back to the car. I have to admit it took me a few minutes but once I got the hang of it, the trip was a lot easier on four legs instead of two. Anyway, we got back to the car, and Brandon got these out of the trunk," I said pulling at the loose black sweats I was wearing, "He told me how to shift back. After I got dressed, he gave me a couple of protein bars, he told me I'm not crazy and I'm something called Kitsune, and that you and he are too, and then he brought me here." I turned to look at Brandon, "Why did you have these in the trunk anyway?" I asked.
    "I always carry an extra set of clothes." He said, shrugging.
    "Oh," I only have clothes in my car for specific reasons, so I didn't know what to say to him.
    "Can you tell me exactly how you managed to shift back to human form?" Bill asked, once again taking control of the conversation.
    "I just listened to Brandon and did what he told me to do. I pictured my human body and concentrated on how badly I wanted to be back in it, and it worked. When I opened my eyes I was normal again."
    Bill turned to Brandon, his eyes narrowed in suspicion, and asked, "And you didn't help her?"
    "No, Sir, that's not something I have the Talent for. I just told her how to do it. I was hoping that she could manage it on her own. If anyone has the force of will to manage their first deliberate shift without help, it would be Nickie," He said, I found his confidence in me startling, but at the same time comforting and reassuring.
    "And what would you have done if she hadn't been able shift back on her own?" Bill questioned.
    "Wait a second," I interrupted, feeling myself start to panic again, "Are you saying I could have been trapped as a wolf? That I could have been unable to shift back?"
    "Kind of, but not really, or more accurately not for long." Bill said gently, "I'll get to that in a minute, but I want this answered first. Just give us a second." He turned back to Brandon and his voice hardened. "Well?"
    "I'd have brought her here to you. I called you while she was trying to shift, I didn't know if she would manage it or not at that point. If she hadn't managed, I would have told her what I could and kept her as calm as I could while I brought her to you. I know that our Harmonia has the talent to call and restrict animal forms, and once I got Nickie to you, you would have been able to see to it that Nickie got the help she needed to shift back to human form."
    "Very well," Bill said, seeming to find the answer acceptable. He turned back to me and his tone softened again, as if he had gone from speaking to an employee to a beloved family member, "As Brandon just said, we have someone who would have been able to help you to return to human form. Being stuck, as you put it, would only have been a temporary inconvenience." I took a deep breath and let it out slowly, trying to relax away some of the tension that had seized my body when I thought I could have been trapped as a wolf. "Now, how are you feeling? Physically, at least, I'm sure your mind is spinning at all the new information."
    "Honestly? I'm starving."
    "That's to be expected. After all, you've shifted, not once but twice, and healed the snakebite too I’m sure, in a very short amount of time. Changing shapes takes a lot of energy, even shifting once will make you hungry, and two energy bars aren’t nearly enough to replace what you’ve burned. I'm willing to bet if I know