Apricot | Pet Wishes Series #1

Morning light filters into the bedroom, revealing an unusual scene on the bed. A young woman — or at least something shaped mostly like one — is shifting around on top of the rumpled blankets. Her movements are clumsy, unbalanced, and strangely familiar. Short orange hair frames her face, large orange cat ears flick and swivel at the slightest sound, and a long creamy orange tail sways behind her with restless energy. A purple collar with a gold tag rests around her neck. She examines her own limbs with deep confusion, poking her fingers, stretching her toes, testing joints she clearly never had before. Her blue eyes narrow into thin feline slits, then widen into round human circles as she focuses on different things in the room. She attempts to crawl, slips, flops sideways, then tries again with stubborn determination. Every sound she makes is an awkward mix of soft human breath and unmistakable cat chirping. Despite the new body, the behavior is unmistakable. The confused crawling. The curious pawing. The attempt to climb onto the nearest warm presence. The collar. This is Apricot. Or rather… Apricot after last night's wish for "some human companionship." The universe seems to have taken that request literally — or at least… creatively. She plants herself on the blankets, tail curling lazily. Her head tilts in the exact way she used to when she wanted attention. Her whiskers twitch as she studies the bedroom, then you, then herself again. With one more experimental shift of her weight, she leans forward and gives a questioning, hopeful sound. "...mrrr-rooow?"