Changes

by Adam Woods

Part 2

The memories came in pieces. Chris woke up the next morning in his bed with no recollection of returning home. The last thing he remembered was the pain. His backpack sat beside him atop the bed, he reached in to grab his phone. It was six A.M., yet he wasn't tired or groggy at all. When the hell did I get back? He thought, dropping his head back onto his pillow. Chris closed his eyes for a brief moment, trying to recall any memory of last night. Only a brief span of time came to him, an aerial view of Pebblebrook, and his muscular, scaled arms. His eyes shot open. There was no flying last time! He thought, feeling his tail begin to wag under his own weight. The thoughts of his new body and the horrific transformation were shuttered out by the possibility of flying. True freedom, no worrying about Lucie or waiting for his phone to vibrate with answers. Just the sharp kiss of the air and the sights of the town below. There was a soft knock at his door and he instinctively jumped out of bed.

“Chris? You getting ready in there? Make sure you check the time, okay honey?" Mom's soft voice danced through the door. He looked at himself in the mirror again and brushed his arms and his fur back to its former well-groomed state. Back to being the weird hyena at school. 

“Yeah, Mom, I'll be out in a sec." 

Chris opened his door and walked into the bathroom he shared with Kamau. Stepping into the shower, he cranked the heat dial up and leaned against the tiled wall, letting the scalding water run down his back. As his coat absorbed the water and his body became flush with heat, he found himself thinking about Kip, their fur entangled under the sheets and their muzzles nestled together. He remembered the tingling sensation that danced over his skin, and his claws gently tracing the outlines of Kip's tight briefs.

“Chris, c'mon!" Kamau knocked loudly on the door. Letting out a gasp, Chris jolted back to the present and jumped out of the shower, hastily wrapping a towel around his waist and hurrying out of the bathroom.

“Sorry, I got distracted." Chris said with a smirk. He walked out, facing away from his sister and sat down on his bed for a moment. Okay, breathe. Calm down, then eat breakfast.

Chris was greeted by his dad in the kitchen, who was stuffing his face with eggs. “You sleep alright last night, buddy?" He asked as he spread jam onto his toast. 

Chris's heartbeat quickened. “Yeah, I uh, think so. I feel fine. Why?" 

He replied. “I thought I heard you movin' around pretty early, like you fell off the bed or somethin'." Dad chuckled and took another bite of his toast. Chris blushed and filled his mouth with a forkful of eggs to avoid responding. “Anyway, I'm glad you didn't bump your head. Gotta head to work." Dad said, smiling. “Don't let that Lucie get you down, I'm sure you'll find another girlfriend." He patted Chris on the head, moving to put the dishes in the kitchen sink. 

“Thanks, Dad. See ya later." Chris responded, the words weighing on him. Placing his dishes in the dishwasher, Chris felt his phone buzz in his front pocket. He wiped the water off his paws and unlocked his phone. 

It was Kip. 

“Hey Chris. Sorry I've been MIA. I hope you got through last night okay, I wanna talk." 

He stood frozen solid in front of the dishwasher staring at the message.

“Chris, you ready?" Mom said from behind him. He yelped, tossing his phone and catching it. Mom laughed, “You sure you're alright? I heard you talking to Dad." 

Chris shoved his phone back into his pocket and moved to get his backpack. “Yeah, maybe I'm just more tired than I thought." She smiled at him. “We can go now." 

“Kamau, let's go!" She barked, then quietly leaned over to Chris's ear. “You know, I'm here if you wanna talk about it." 

Throwing his backpack over his shoulder, he replied quickly “For sure, Mom." 

On the ride to school he stared at the message, unsure of how to respond. He looked over at Kamau, who was nodding off with her earbuds in. She's not looking. He gulped down a knot of nerves and started typing. “OK, let's talk. When and where?" The message bubble dropped into their text thread as Chris swallowed what felt like a stone in his stomach. Seconds later, three dots emerged at the bottom of the screen, and Chris's heart began racing with anticipation. 

“Before school, meet me inside the front gate." Kip replied. Chris's eyes danced to Kamau and back to his mother, antsy about reuniting with Kip. He began shuffling through his backpack in an attempt to hide his nervous panting, and the stone in his stomach only felt heavier as they pulled up to the front of the school. 

“Alright sweetie, I'll see ya later. Love you bunches." Mom barked, smiling at him and waking up his sister. 

He zipped his backpack up and fumbled with the door handle. “Love you too, see you later." Rushing to close the door without alarming his mom, Chris hopped out of the old family SUV and eagerly trotted toward the front gate. He could already smell Kip's musk through the barrage of canine scents, and through the sweet cologne he wears.

Chris trotted eagerly toward the school entrance. His paws were trembling, ears drooped back, and his tail tucked between his legs. Dozens of students and classmates passed by as he made his way through the crowd toward Kip's scent. What's he gonna say? What am I gonna say? Following his nose, he entered the academy's large iron gate, and there he was, leaning against the brick of the office building near the front gate, bushy red and white tail swaying behind him, big ears perked up, checking his phone. Kip looked up at Chris in the crowd of students, and their eyes locked as Kip's tail curled upward. 

“Hey." Kip spoke, looking down at his feet and back up at Chris. “I'm sorry." 

The knots in his stomach loosened slightly hearing Kip's apology, but not entirely. Kip ghosted him after the first transformation and didn't respond until this morning. “I should have messaged you or something." Kip continued, glancing at the ground. 

“Yeah, well," Chris thought about the arguments he had with Lucie when they broke up, and how he could say things differently. I need to say more. Be honest with him, be honest with myself. He adjusted the straps of his backpack, tightening them closer to his chest, and he spoke slowly. “I was pretty scared, and you were the only one who was gonna understand. You kinda left me hanging. More than once..." His heart thumped under his fur, never having confronted someone like this before. 

“You're right. That was fucked up, and I get that, especially since that whole thing is kinda my fault," Kip said under his breath, taking a step closer to Chris. He reached to place his paw on Chris's paw stuck in a tight grip around the strap of his backpack, and Chris tried to keep his tail from wagging. As their paws met, the fur rose on the back of their necks like static electricity, and the bell rang. Kip grabbed Chris's paw and looked around at the crowd migrating toward the classrooms, then locked eyes with the hyena. “Let's talk more at lunch." Chris's battle with his tail was lost as it swayed freely behind him. Frozen in Kip's gaze, he simply nodded with a grin to match Kip's cute smile, and the fox disappeared into the sea of students. 

Chris stood there for a moment, smiling, tail wagging as he focused on the smell of Kip's musk as it faded into campus. 

“Hey Chris, who was that?" 

The voice shocked Chris out of his trance, that voice, her smell. Lucie. Chris's tail curled up between his legs as he turned to face her. She stood with her hip out, her fur combed neatly into a pouf between her ears, and her bright turquoise backpack hung on her shoulder.

“Just a friend." He replied sheepishly, then walked away as fast as the words left his mouth. She continued talking to someone else as he walked away, and he couldn't make out anything she said, but it was probably about him. Physics starts in ten minutes, I didn't finish my homework, Kip held my paw, Lucie is telling people that I'm gay, and I turned into a dragon last night. A fucking dragon. 

A dragon, he started to remember. Soaring through the night sky over Pebblebrook, the scales on his arms and the fire in his chest, and he wasn't alone. He remembered other reflective figures in the distance, metallic bodies in the clouds around him. Even after hearing Kip's apology, the fire began to fill his chest again. What did Kip do to me? Why me? 

There was no space left in Chris's mind with the growing nebula of confusion, doubt and anger swirling through his psyche. No physics could explain an eighteen year old's love life, or the fact that he transformed into a fucking dragon. As Dr. De LaTransa yapped on and on about last night's homework, Chris found his head full of worries, and his notebook full of nothing. He tried to focus, but there was no escape from the intrusive threads of thought: Lucie, Kip, dragon, flying, keeping secrets. He pushed his paws into his eyes until the bell rang. Dr. De LaTransa continued talking past the bell, and his mind allowed every thought to bounce around as he waited to leave the classroom. Does Kip have an excuse for ghosting me? Will he tell me more about transforming? Does Kip want to kiss me?

Just as Dr. De LaTransa finally shut up, Chris closed his empty notebook, threw it in his backpack, and sped out of the classroom. He sniffed the air and looked around, wondering if either Lucie or Kip were nearby during the passing period, but neither of them graced his senses. Wading through the tides of his peers, he felt the oppressive looks of others, judgmental eyes and gossiping maws. This wasn't an unfamiliar feeling, being the only hyena at the academy. After his first few weeks on campus, the attention faded, but today he felt it all over again. Did she really start talking? Did people see him grab my paw? He walked his usual path to social studies, lost in a web of thoughts, legs on autopilot. After walking into the classroom, Chris sat, pencil in claw, notebook sitting on his desk, staring blankly at the whiteboard as it filled up with notes he wouldn't write down about a chapter he didn't read.

I wish I could fly away from all this. Chris closed his eyes and imagined soaring above Pebblebrook. There was a sound seared into his memory. It wasn't the bark of a wolf, the laugh of a hyena, or even the giggle of a fox. It was a confident roar, primordial and earthly. Chris looked around at a classroom filled with animals just like him, just trying to get through senior year of high school. Almost there.

When the bell chimed, Chris was the first out of the classroom, his backpack barely on his shoulder as he headed for the cafeteria. The air filled with the smells of the students, packs of other canines howling and laughing amongst themselves. Chris was focused on one scent moving on the other side of campus, eager to find Kip and continue their conversation. His ears perked up and his nose twitched at every scent as he passed the cafeteria, following the fox's cologne-covered musk. In the distance, Kip leaned against the wood railing around the large oak tree in the courtyard, the centerpiece of the campus. He looked up and smiled at Chris. The white fur under his muzzle looks so cute when he smiles.

“How were your classes?" Kip asked, the black rims of his ears tantalizing as his multi-shaded tail swayed behind him. 

“Yeah, so about that," Chris laughed. “I wasn't really paying attention."

Kip shifted his weight off of the railing and took a step closer to Chris.

“So, this might be weird, but is it okay if I hug you? I'll tell you everything, I've just kinda been thinking about hugging you all morning." Chris's muzzle opened slightly and his tail swayed back and forth. He looked around and looked back at Kip, who was still smiling. 

“Definitely."

Kip's paws reached under Chris's arms holding him just around his rib cage, their soft furs welcoming one another. Kip spoke quietly, “I'm sorry. For a lot of things. The biggest one being I gave you something you never asked for." 

Chris felt his face heat up as he started panting. Just be cool, Chris. He hugged Kip tighter.

“Thank you." He closed his eyes and felt the warmth of their bodies together, so warm, and the thump of his heart beating steadily in his chest. There was no concern for onlookers, no anxious thoughts, and no Lucie. He just embraced the fox.

“I didn't think it would transfer to you." Kip said, returning the pull of Chris's hug. “It didn't in my recent relationships, so I thought you would be safe." Chris remembered his most recent change, seeing the reflective objects in the sky. His memory sharpened and he recalled flicking his reptilian tongue to taste the air and breathing in deep, picking up scents similar to his own. 

“So, there's more like us?" Chris gently let go of Kip.

“Well, how do you think I got it?" Kip laughed and winked at Chris.

“What color are your, uh, scales?" Chris asked with a smile. Kip chuckled and batted him with his bushy tail. 

“They're orange, like bright orange." Kip laughed. 

“Do you remember everything after it happens?" Chris continued his interrogation. 

“At first I didn't remember anything, and then it came in pieces. I learned how to embrace it over time, and it helped me remember." Chris's ears perked up at the thought of being in control as a dragon. Kip enlightened Chris with the details of his first transformation and the subsequent changes he endured. What if he looks even better covered in scales? Chris's eyes were wide, and his tail wagged hearing the fox speak about the transformations.

Lost in conversation, the hyena and the fox talked through lunch, sitting side-by-side in a sea of lunch tables filled with students. Just as their tails met again under the benches, as they once did in P.E. class, they were interrupted by the bell. 

“Shit!" Chris whined. Kip laughed and reached for his paw again. Unconcerned with the migration of students heading back to their classes, Chris grabbed Kip's paw. 

“I want to keep talking. Can we, uhm, hang out later? " Chris's tail wagged with excitement. 

“I'd love that." Kip's tail curled upward. “I promise I won't run again."

Chris's last few classes weren't as dreadful, mostly because they were messaging each other under their desks about their after-school rendezvous. On the way out of his final class, Chris sent Kip another message as he wandered to the parking lot to wait for his dad.

“When will we transform again?"

 Eyes lost in their text bubbles, his phone buzzed as another text bounced onto the screen.

“I have a feeling it may happen tonight. I have more to tell you." Butterflies began fluttering in Chris's stomach.

What does he mean? He scratched the fur behind his neck. 

Three dots appeared from Kip's end again. “Can you meet me at the park across the street from my house at like 8?" Chris smelled the exhaust from his dad's car and broke the fixation on his phone. He opened the door to the old beige sedan, put his backpack on the floor, and plopped down in the seat. 

“How was school, kiddo?" 

“Pretty good, I think." Chris smiled as they drove out of the lot and headed toward Kamau's school. 

“That's good to hear. I can tell you're feeling a lot better just lookin' at ya." He smiled back at Chris, keeping his eyes on the road. Chris looked back at Kip's last message, brainstorming a way to ask about meeting Kip at the park later. 

“Hey, Dad?" He began. “So, there's a newer transfer student who needs some help with his math homework, and I told him I could help tonight if it was cool with you and Mom." His dad pulled a paw from the wheel and patted Chris's leg. 

“Of course! I mean, I'll double check with Mom, but I think it's a great idea. It sounds like you've got a new friend." 

Chris nodded and quickly typed a reply to Kip. “I'll be there! I told my Dad we'd be studying." He added a smiling hyena emoji.

“Thanks, Dad," Chris said as he sent his text. “He's a really cool guy." 

* **

Chris didn't know what to wear. He began sifting through his worn, wooden dresser and grabbed a basic pair of blue jeans. Simple is better. Chris scanned over the folded uniform shirts and looked at his pile of casual T-shirts. He unfolded a Captain Bulldog graphic tee. Everyone still likes superheroes, right? Tossing the fresh clothes on the bed he unbuttoned and shook out of his school uniform, leaving it in a pile on the floor. Looking at himself in the mirror again, his thin tail began gently swaying behind him. There was no pain.But Kip said it could happen tonight. Chris lifted his backpack and checked for the essentials, as if he was actually going to help Kip study. Kip might actually be the one teaching me a few things. 

“Pups, dinner is on the table!" Dad barked from the kitchen. Chris tucked some last things into his backpack and left his room, the smell of stewed tilapia and greens filling the hallway. 

Kamau was already at the table when he sat down. “Hey, I thought your drawing was really good yesterday." 

“Thanks." She smiled and fidgeted in her seat. Chris didn't want to push her to talk more about it.

“Chris, Dad told me you're gonna go help a new friend tonight!" Mom said as she sat down at the table, smiling as she picked up her fork and knife.

“Yeah. He's kind of new and still adjusting to the academy. He's really nice, and he didn't ask me what it's like being a hyena either." Chris laughed under his breath. 

Mom and Dad laughed, too. “Well, that definitely goes a long way." Dad took a big bite of his greens.

Chris finished his dinner and helped his father collect the family's dishes. 

“So, do you need a ride to your friend's place, Chris?" Dad asked.

“Uhm, no, it's okay. It's not that far of a walk." Chris finished rinsing the dishes in the sink and dried his paws.

“Just make sure you're back before ten!" Mom barked from the table. 

“For sure," Chris replied with a smile, “I'm gonna go get my stuff."

He grabbed his backpack in his room and gave another look at himself in the mirror. I hope this outfit is okay. He looked at his spotted coat and thought about Kip's message. The pain should have started by now if what Kip said is true. His mind started to wander as he walked to the front of the house, thanking his sister for doing his share of cleaning.

“Love you guys, I'll try to be quiet coming back in tonight." Chris threw his backpack on and shut the front door on his way out. 

Chris started walking through his suburban neighborhood toward Kip's house. The sun had nearly set, and the street lights illuminated his path. He pulled out his phone and sent Kip a text. “On my way!" 

Kip replied with just a winking fox emoji. 

He weaved around the corners of track-home sidewalks and community side roads lined with trees. He saw the street sign for Lobo Boulevard. How original. Chris's tail began to wag at a steady pace heading down the street. Kip's neighborhood was full of unfamiliar smells, specifically the scent of much cleaner car exhaust, unlike the old family sedan. Running across the wide road toward the park, he saw Kip waiting in the distance. Kip watched Chris walk toward him and waved, his bushy, white-tipped tail swaying behind him. Chris unslung his backpack as he got closer, “Hey!" He barked with a wide smile. 

“Study buddy!" Kip yipped back with a giggle, opening his arms wide, paws toward Chris. 

Chris put his arms around the fox. He wanted this moment to last forever, no anxious thoughts, no worries about Lucie or who was around, just the comfort of being with Kip. Chris took a deep breath of the fox's cologne.

“Chris, don't look, but one of my neighbors is watching us." Kip chuckled. Chris's tail froze as he released Kip from his arms and looked across the street. A stout beaver was watering their immaculate lawn across the street. Chris looked at Kip, who was still smiling, and then looked back at the neighbor. He smiled uncomfortably and raised a paw to wave at Kip's neighbor. The beaver waved and smiled back at Chris, continuing their watering. Kip and Chris looked at each other and burst into laughter, hushing their giggles as they walked further into the park.

“So," Kip began, “I started to change about a year ago after being with my first girlfriend, a lamb named Becky. It was pretty serious, and she was awesome, always there for me, we liked the same subjects and shows and stuff." Chris nodded and shyly reached for Kip's paw. “She was a lot like you actually." He paused and laughed for a moment. “Anyway, things just didn't work out after a while. I met her parents and, well, let's just say they weren't comfortable with a fox dating their little lamb."

“Yeah, I get that." Chris sighed as he graced the fur of Kip's paw. “Lucie's parents were a bit apprehensive with me around, too."

“Toward the end of our relationship, I started to get these intense pains, then came the changes." Kip took Chris's paw. “She ghosted me, too. After that, I was only in casual relationships before moving here." Kip looked down at his feet. “I guess I was scared." 

Chris held Kip's paw tighter, leading them farther into the open field of the neighborhood park. “I get why you ghosted me and stuff." Chris locked eyes with the fox. “I was scared, too."

Kip smiled gently, looking down at his feet, then back up at Chris. “C'mon, let's get ready." He pulled Chris's paw as they moved into the wide open sports field. 

“I don't feel any pain yet." Chris tilted his head. 

“That's good." Kip stopped walking and took both of the hyena's paws. “It's not supposed to hurt." Chris looked at Kip confused as he continued to explain. “I didn't give it to any of my past partners because it only spreads through true affection. Things just weren't right with anyone else I've been with. But, it was different with you." Kip pulled Chris closer. The hyena leaned in, gently pressing his muzzle to Kip's. Embers sparked between the fox and the hyena, their tails brushing against each other, and their bodies pressed together. So warm.

“Let's go, it's gonna happen soon!" Kip pulled Chris into a jog farther and farther from the road. As they moved through the field, Chris felt the warmth growing inside. It was different than the giddiness or excitement from being close to Kip. It started in the center of his body and traveled into his paws. “Do you feel it?"

“I feel tingly." Chris trotted alongside Kip, panting lightly. 

“Me too." Kip tightened his grip on Chris's paw.

The two of them stopped out of sight under a small gathering of trees. As they sat on the ground against a large log, Chris dropped his paw gently on Kip's pant leg. Kip began tracing Chris's waistline with his bushy tail. Chris giggled nervously, eyeing Kip from muzzle to paw. Kip leaned closer to Chris and reached with both of his paws to the button of Chris's jeans.

“Are you sure this is okay?" Kip paused, inches from Chris's lips.

The warmth inside Chris blossomed into a tingling heat that coursed through his muscles, and he pulled Kip into a kiss. “I'm sure."

Kip carefully maneuvered the silver button through the slit in the denim and unzipped his jeans, Chris watching Kip's paws closely. Eager, Chris wriggled the pants past his hips and kicked them off of his paws, shifting his body over Kip and grabbing the bottom of Kip's T-shirt. He pulled the loose fabric into his paws, lifted his shirt over his head, and then removed his own, tossing them both to the side. Chris ran his hands through Kip's soft red fur, sliding the elastic of his athletic joggers down to his thighs, and Kip felt his briefs tighten. He traced the black spots in Chris's fur, then placed a paw on the back of Chris's neck, pulling him back to his lips. Chris held Kip against his chest, caressing him where his red fur becomes white, heartbeats and panting in unison as their bodies began to transform. 

Chris felt the world fall away. He opened his eyes as they held their lips together, watching Kip's irises change. His coat began to glow a radiant orange, the fox's fur burning back to reveal a tight armor of bright scales. Chris felt his own body begin to shift, his fur replaced by iridescent scales and a smooth underbelly. The hyena and the fox danced in the heat, their bodies entangled, coats set ablaze to uncover their draconic forms. As their new claws traced each other's unique scale patterns, Chris caressed Kip's cream-colored underbelly and pulled him into his arms. The two dragons spread their wings, intertwined their talons, and took to the skies above Pebblebrook as a spiral of green and orange light. 

* * *