Tomorrow Will Be Better (Chapter 1)

Summary: Two young adults, forced into inhuman forms against their will, find companionship with each other, and promise to stick together and find purpose and a home in a rapidly changing world, all while trying to keep their werecat and slime girl forms a secret to the fearful public. A collaboration between Heffy and Tutty The Fruity.

[Story Listing]

---

Mia had a lot of optimism coming out to the Mockingbird Covert. They got word of a major recycling operation out in the middle of the woods. Mia was a touch too young to fully recollect the dire details of The Stirring, of a time where the Geronian Empire and the Ascendancy of the Sun were bearing arms for some terrible conflict... at least until rationality prevailed, and an accord was reached.

So much political jargon was lost on Mia, but the gist they were interested in was whatever became of those stockpiles of wartime vehicles, weapons, gadgets, and what have you. A child of the Empire, there was word of "mechanical graveyards", where entire units of such terrible contraptions were shipped out, dropped somewhere remote, and left to rust.

As it turned out, the Mockingbird Covert hosted a considerable pile of such astounding piles of junk, and Mia had really hyped themself up for an adventure, to really tear into the things and see how they tick. It was unfortunate, then, that Mia was a touch late to the party. Junkers pilfered their carburetors, their brake systems... they didn't know who was much interested in the spare tires, but by the Goddess, they took those too.

Mia was an unwavering optimist, however, and determined that if they were to venture far off into the woods, they'd find some gear in premo condition. The graveyard stretched for what seemed like miles, vehicles scattered with all the care of a discarded fish cake wrapper. There had to be something of use to Mia... if not of financial, then of historical significance.

It was getting pretty late, and the lithe, gangly young scrapper was on the edge of exhaustion... but then they stumbled upon a transport vehicle, partway lodged in the mud, and their energy bubbled right back to the fore.

"Izzat... ohhh tha's a biggun. The Model 450 Armoured Transport..." Mia exclaimed, pulling up the straps of their baggy overalls as they rushed over. Their bright, curious expression shone through splotches of axle grease and oil dappled across their flushed, mahogany cheeks. Mia removed their paper-boy cap, fussing with their auburn hair and wiping some sweat from their brow, before kneeling down to examine their find, bouncing on the soles of their feet.

"...Hrmm... someone already took off the tires." Mia frowned, shuffling over to the hood. The corner of their mouth twisted when they found the latch undone. They already figured what was up when the hood came up.

"Ahhhh, she's a beaut..." Mia stared with a dreamy look in their eyes. Slumping their backpack to the ground, Mia pulled out a hefty looking, "portable" camera, the size of two bricks stacked on top of one another. Mia aimed the lens and, with a kchnk and a FLASH, the camera whirred to life, rapidly printing out a petite, greyscale photo of the transport's interior.

"Just gonna keep this for postuhtree here..." Mia waved the photo before slipping it into their pocket, before turning to he abandoned vehicle. The junker leaned forward to perform their visual inspection...

"Already made off with the carburetor too. Shucks." Mia shrugged. They popped it open and glanced around. "Figures, if yer gonna make off with just the one thing, it might as well be the dang transmission, prolly worth a fortune, take a lot of horsepower to get these sardine cans rolling."

Mia kicked their legs back, leaning into the hood at the front to get a closer look; they rummaged into one of the numerous pockets lining their overalls, pulling out a flashlight. "Buuuuuut I reckon I can cobble together bits and pieces here and make out pretty good! Maybe not the battery, looks a lil rusty. And the coolant tank's punctured. And I think some critter went and moved into the air filter..."

"CAW! CAW!" Mia's mutterings were interrupted by the cries of a raucous raven flapping its wings; feeling a breeze, Mia ducked their head back, planting the soles of their workshoes firmly into the ground. Mia adjusted their cap, blinking in surprise as an enormous raven dove towards the air filter, beak rattling at the air filter, so densely packed with fuzz, sticks and leaves.

"Wingding!" Mia exclaimed, their studious expression quickly lightening up as they let out a breezy laugh. "C'mon, the hood's occupied, get outta there! If it comes down you'll clip your wing or somethin'..."

Wingding rustled his feathers, tugging at the assortment of cables with his talons. He pecked at the wires before looking back at Mia with his beady little eyes; Mia lowered their head, noting where Wingding's interest lay.

"...Ooh, wow, the brake cables are in one piece." Mia realized, swelling with awe. "Hold this for me, wouldya? We're gonna take everything that ain't bolted down... then work a wrench here, and take everything that is! Hah!"

Mia handed the flashlight to Wingding, who grasped it by a small, thin strap at the other end; Mia would procure a small wrench and immediately got to work loosening some of the bolts holding the remnants of the machine together, off to the sides of the big empty space where the main engine once sat. Mia cackled with a giddy smile, wrapping up some of the cables and wires.

"They put gold in them there wires, y'know~" Mia beamed. "Not a whole buncha it, but enough for a side of taters at the canteen. Strip the wiring for copper, and it's a nice payday for a light load. Think I saw an exhaust manifold in there too, all in one piece, that'll be good for the day. Specially if it's still got good catalytic converters..."

Mia pocketed the wires and got to work wrenching everything else bolted down, talking up some of the findings. At worst, scrap could get reused, even if the components weren't worth much; in this line of work, being ever the optimist was a survival tactic.

"...Now that I'm recollectin', I don't think those converters are legal no more..." Mia hemmed and hawwed. "Not on the newer models... eh, I could track down a collector. They'd prolly be privy to a couple spare parts for their smokeys~"

Wingding cawed some more, hopping to the ground with a flutter, pacing around the side of the vehicle; his insistent braying pulled Mia from the hood. They leaned their head to the side...

"...Ooh, eh, the fuel tank? Mmnnn... looks ruptured." Mia sniffed the air, then grimaced. "Definitely ruptured. Can't just slap some tape on that and call it right as rain, bud."

Mia turned to the hood, working their wrench harder as they quietly mumbled to themselves.

"Yessir, whoever was here didn't think much of the resta these doodads, but there's some premo stuff caught in the cracks!" Mia beamed. "Oi, Wingding, flashlight! Don't go wanderin' off!"

Wingding, contrary to appearances, was a pretty clever boy, and hopped back up to give Mia a bit of a shine; over the course of ten minutes, Mia had pilfered the rest of the transport for whatever it was worth. And a lot of goodies remained; Mia took off the lights, rooted around the interior for leather upholstery... and best yet, a whole mess of goodies in a compartment in the floor, housing some fresh parts, a spare change of tire, and some pristine tools!

"Whoo! Struck gold today, bud!" Mia cheered, packing as much as they could into their pockets and their knapsack. It'd be a struggle to haul it all back; the tire alone required two arms to lug around, and Mia rather lacked in the muscular department. But it'd aaaaaall be worth it. Mia even managed to take off the vanity mirrors as well.

"Gotta grab a lil something for myself! A mirror to help freshen up in the morning, eh?" Mia laughed at their own joke, before peering into the small, handheld mirror. Their face was covered in streaks of oil, dirt, and general grime...

"Ooh, eesh, got somethin' on my face here..." Mia pocketed the wrench before reaching for yet another pocket for a plain, plaid cloth; splashing a little water from their canteen, Mia gave their face a rinse until their light brown skintone came through once more. Mia flashed a toothy grin to confirm everything was in order.

"Perfecto!~" Mia beamed, pocketing the mirror. "This stuff's gonna fill my coffers juuuust right! And just in time for fish crisps night..."

Mia whooped, reaching in deep for a surge of adrenaline to make the long trek back to camp. "Awright Wingding, dinner's on me!"

Mia paused to hear an affirmative CAW CAW! Strangely, there was none. Mia remained frozen, quietly expecting an enthusiastic response... only to overhear the flapping of wings picking up. Mia turned their head to see the raven disappearing into the foliage.

"Oh, uh, you... you're not hungry?" Mia chuckled. "A-alright, I uh... guess I'll see you later then, bud! Haha..."

Mia didn't hide their disappointment very well. It was nice having someone to talk to... Mia pulled up their bootstraps and began the long trek back to camp. Well, in a metaphorical sense; their hands were full with the dang spare tire...

---

"Mmm... reckon the best I can do is a hundred marks for the package deal."

The older gentleman running the exchange counter in the middle of the junker camp flipped a pen with one hand, and gripped a clipboard in the other. Mia, crestfallen by the verdict, dropped the tire, letting it bounce to the ground.

"Whaaa?? Just a hundred????" Mia blustered, puffing their cheeks out. "You're killin' me here, Buck! Putting me over a barrel! Heck, you're pushin' me right in is what that is!"

"I reckon it's a pretty good deal I'm cutting you." Buck muttered, flipping the pen without so much as a glance.

"C'mon, let's haggle!" Mia leaned up against the countertop, jostling the small cup of odds and ends they had brought with them. "Hundred and fifty marks! Sound good??"

"...mmmmnah, I'm still good with a hundred." Buck clicked the ballpoint and raised it to the clipboard, ready for Mia's response.

"Th-that's not haggling's s'posed to go, man..." Mia groaned; spotting the rolling tire out of the corner of their eye, Mia reflexively extended their leg to put it to a stop.  "S'posed to meet me in the middle..."

"It's economics, Mia," Buck started. "With the Empire's 503rd Engineer Corp parking all their junk out here, there's no shortage of quality scrap material. Supply's high, so prices are low."

"These wouldn't be the goin' rates in Renford!" Mia barked. "Nuts to this, what if I grabbed all this pristine, quality junk and hightailed to the city? Huh? Pawn it off real good!"

"Ohhhh, that's two days on foot." Buck grinned wryly. "And that tire's heavy-lookin' too. Y'sure you wanna march it all the way over there?"

"...mnnn..." Mia whined, stirring. Buck had called their bluff; Mia had their own reasons for steering clear of the cities, but carrying all this junk over without so much as a pack mule was a tall order.

"Rggh... alright, fine, hundred it is. Bleedin' me dry here..." Mia grumbled obstinately, heaving the tire onto the counter with a grunt. "Really yankin' me around by the tail here..."

"S'what I'm best at." Buck nodded. "Let's gedder dun."

He reached under the counter; Mia made out the mechanical kchunk of a cash register hidden away. Buck leafed through a stack of paper bills, and pressed it firmly into Mia's outstretched hand.

"There ya go. Don't worry, shipping fees are on us~" Buck beamed, very satisfied with how these negotiations panned out. Mia thumbed through the bills to check that everything was there. It sure was; not an insignificant sum of money altogether, but falling quite a bit short of their (perhaps lofty) expectations.

"Stupid, lousy economy... S'least it'll cover bed and a bite to eat." Mia grumbled; through great strain, Mia made out the silver lining. "This ain't over, y'hear!? Tomorrow I'll dig up a whoooole transmission engine, and then you'll be paying me the big bucks!~"

"S'all good, heard it all. Swearin' revenge, breakins, lootin', all good." Looking forward to doing this whole song and dance all over again tomorrow." Buck shrugged noncommittally with a wry grin. Mia let out an easygoing laugh. Maybe they were playing up their adversarial relationship a bit, but it was all in good fun.

"...Oi, Mia, while I have you here..." Buck flagged Mia as they were walking away.

"Eh? Wuzzat?" Mia turned their head.

"Right, sorry, slipped my mind for a second there." Buck scratched his head. "You didn't bring any pets into your lodge, yeah?"

"...A cat...?" Mia muttered, tensing up all of a sudden; the enthusiastic fire in them wavered. Mia scratched the back of their neck. "N-no, I haven't any... wh-why d'ya ask?"

"Well uh, Mike mentioned somethin' to that effect for an unscheduled inspection of the lodging. Nida let him in, she's your roomie right?" Buck lowered his clipboard. "Mike says that there was a lot of cat hair on the bed sheets, and up against the walls. Triggered his allergies something fierce."

"...really..." Mia's expression flattened. They silently connected the dots on their own, but straightened up in turn. "W-well, I can assure you, I didn't bring any furry friends with me. Can barely take care of myself, ne'ermind another living creature!"

Mia conveniently left out the matter of Wingding the raven, but he wasn't on trial exactly. Feathers ain't fur. Buck wasn't stupid and caught onto Mia's change in disposition.

"...Lissen, I don't really care if you're hidin' a cat in your dorm, just make sure to clean up after it is all." Buck tapped the keyboard. "Y'know, so it don't shit up the place or something."

"U-um, right! Right." Mia nodded quickly. "I-I'll be careful with the... pet, thing... t-thanks for the heads up!"

"Right, uh, see ya later, Mia." Buck nodded, turning to his clipboard. Mia backed up a few paces, before breaking into a light jog—just to put a little more distance between them and the exchange counter.

All sorts of folk were attracted to camps such as these. The eponymous junkers, of course, were the most common sort, eager to strip down machines for parts and sell them for a bit of cash. But there were traders abound, handymen, carpenters, caterers... for such a ramshackle inlet off the beaten path, it had certainly attracted all sorts.

Mia was never far from a spirited conversation over a pint of lager. And their hearing was pretty good; they picked up on some fun points of interest, something about a rattling noise in a moped. Still, Mia steered clear of running into strangers, so they trudged on...

"Better not t' get too involved with folk..." Mia muttered under their breath. They quietly thumbed through their wad of cash, quietly pondering how to spend the rest of the waking day. Mia tucked into an alley between two lodges to consider their options.

"Fish would be nice. But eatin' out's mighty expensive..." Mia lamented. "Still got some leftover jerky. Maybe I oughta save all this for a rainy day..."

"Who ya talkin' to, Mia?"

"Uwah!?" Mia let out a shrill yelp—closer to a yowl—as someone poked their head around the corner. Mia must've leapt a foot in the air! Adjusting their disheveled cap, Mia turned to the newcomer.

"What the... ugh, Nida!" Mia frowned. "I thought I toldja to stop sneakin' up on me like that!"

"Nyeeheehee!~ Sorry Mia, couldn't help myself!" Nida sneered, adjusting their glasses with a jovial, somewhat grating laugh. "You were looking like a crazy person, muttering all by your lonesome like that."

Mia rubbed their neck, easing up a bit and putting on a bit of a wry smile themselves. Laughter was contagious, after all. Mia had gotten to know the red-headed Nida around the junker camp, as a consequence of their particular arrangements. Mia... kind of made a point of going out on their own, though. Personal reasons.

"I just wanted to make sure you were still right in the head. You didn't go huffin' those funny exhaust fumes or anything, right?" Nida leaned a little closer... was she checking Mia's pupils?

"Ehh? N-No, nothing like that, it's... I'm just organizin’ my thoughts, is all." Mia explained, backing up one calculated step. "That ain’t weird, is it?"

"Ohhh! No no, that's not weird!" Nida followed Mia's back pace in turn. " ...Okay it's a liiiiiiiiittle weird, but hey, you do you!"

"Thanks for the vote'a confidence there..." Mia grumbled.

"No problem! Girls gotta stick together!" Nida beamed, before looking around. "Gosh, I barely seen any other gals hanging around these camps."

"I, uh, ain't a gal, y'know." Mia made a slight gesture to get Nida's attention.

"Mm? Ohhh right! Sorry! My bad!" Nida smacked her forehead lightly. "Slipped up a bit, I knowww... it's just that, I mean, you're not a guy either, yeah?"

"W-well, yeah, I guess..." Mia rubbed their neck. Content to let it slide, Mia went with the change in topic. "Eeeeyup. Reckon that's why they shacked both'a us together."

"And we barely talk! We should fix that, get a bite to eat or something!" Nida pressed forward, practically looming over Mia; she must've had half a foot on the understated junker. "And what's that you got there, huh? Huh??"

"This? Ah... just a wad of cash. Found some good parts for trade." Mia explained casually, with a little attempt at feigned modesty. " Not a bad haul, all things considered."

"I'll say! Jeez... you gotta let me tag along on one of your trips! Jeez, I can't make heads or tails of any of this technical junk." Nida sighed.

"...Eh? But... but that's what we're s'posed to do. Takin' apart old machines for scrap and parts. S'part of the job." Mia scratched their cheek."

"Yeaaaah, I just heard the money was good, and they'd feed and shelter you..." Nida folded her arms. "How'd you cut it?"

"Well, uh, see here, uh... you kinda need  to appreciate the machines, even a bit." Mia explained, getting a little into their element. "You gotta treat 'em well, like your best gal!"

Mia paused for a beat.

"...Or guy, best guy too." They added, hurriedly.

"Uwaah... I just came out cuz they promised a good payday. But I dunno if I'm any good at this tinkering stuff." Nida groaned. "Maybe I oughta just head back to Agnes..."

Mia grimaced slightly at the mention of Agnes; they caught themselves in time before Nida could catch their response, all wrapped up in her own money troubles. Mia quickly moved to change the subject.

" ...O-Oh, speakin' of payday. The guy running the cash dispens'ry mentioned something about an inspector comin' by?" Mia tilted their head.

"Ohhh yeah! Gosh, he was rude. He got up all in my business about any pets in the room..." Nida harumphed indignantly, maybe playing it up a bit in the process.

"Ohhh boy... he asked you about it, huh?" Mia removed their hat to scratch their head.

"Aw, don't look so worried! I vouched for the both of us, I never saw any cats!~" Nida nodded cheerily.

"Ah... I-I mean, phew!  That's a relief." Mia nodded, and made to slip their had back on... except they froze. Nida was giving them a particular sort of look.

"...Mm..." Nida squinted, tilting their head.

"...eh, Nida? What's up? Is there somethin' on my face?" Mia fumbled for that mirror they pilfered from before.

"You got that weird look on your face, like the babysitter went and caught you with your hand in the cookie jar." Nida's tone was low and serious.

"...U-Uhhh... that's just my, uh, normal face?" Mia forced a laugh.

"We've been roommates for a while now. You can't keep secrets from me." Nida's eyes narrowed.

"We've been roommates for two nights! Izzat 'a while'? I dunno if that counts..." Mia glanced around, looking for a way out of this conversation... despite Nida looming ever closer.

"...You're not hosting a furry little friend in the room, are ya?" Nida whispered conspiratorially.

"Wh-What? No! No, no, perish the thought!" Mia babbled. Nida was acting weird... well, weirder than normal.

"You know how much I love cats, Mia." Nida tilted her head to the side. "You wouldn't hold out on me, would you??"

"There's no cat, Nida!" Mia objected, obstinately. Even Nida was surprised.

"Ohhhh... so it's just really bad dandruff." Nida rubbed her chin, contemplating the theory.

"IT'S NOT- uhhm... I mean..." Mia was about to refute that, but upon further consideration, if it was enough to get this monkey off their back... Mia let out a haggard sigh. "...Yes, that's my terrible secret, Nida. I have terrible dandruff. The worst."

"Ahhh... yeah, that makes a lot of sense." Nida nodded sagely. "Okay, I believe you! But if you were keeping a furry little shnookums from me, I'd have to seriously reconsider our roommate besties situation!~"

"Ahaha... right. Hate to disappoint ya, but... there's nothin’ like that going on, heheh." Mia backed up a step, as if trying to reclaim some of their personal space. Maybe if Mia kept playing along, Nida would get bored and move on...

Gurgle...

Mia's stomach rumbled, betraying the junker at a crucial moment. They had been putting off lunch for a while now, dealing with their eccentric roomie. It seems Nida heard that as well... sounded like an opportunity.

"...mm, o-oh boy, y'know what? I'm famished. H-Hey, Nida, you was gabbin' 'bout gettin’ a bite to eat, right?" Mia beamed. "Let's do lunch!"

"Really? Hell yeah, let's go!" Nida beamed. "I've been craving a staunch egg all day! Didn't make a whole lot today, but I still got some savings..."

"Yeah, I'll... aw jeez, just remembered, there was something I needed to do in the lodge. I'll meet ya by the canteen in a bit! Just gotta sort myself out in the cabin in a jiff, a’ight?" Mia brushed past Nida and back out onto the walkway.

"Sure!! They rotated the menu I think, so I'll go scout the crowds. See ya in a bit, Mia!" Cheerily, Nida hurried off towards the canteen, getting a head start on Mia. The junker waved her off... before letting out a haggard sigh of relief.

"Whew... cripes, Nida's a sweetheart, but she asks a lot o’ questions. Kinda feel bad leaving her in the dark but..." Mia trailed off, grimacing to themself. That pang of loneliness was back, mixed in with a little bit of guilt too. Maybe in better times, Nida and Mia could be besties. Mia did feel bad for keeping Nida at arm's length, even if it was necessary.

"Now I got a bit o’ privacy. Let's get sorted out at the bunk, 'fore we head over..." Mia hoisted their backpack and made for the cabins. The particular cabin that Mia and Nida were bunking in was nicer than it looked on the outside; Mia appreciated the rug laid out over the hardwood floor, and a pretty picture of a lake-side vista hung between the two beds... between the one that was neatly made and the one that wasn't. it was fairly obvious which one was Mia's.

"Better unload some things, don't need to be carrying so much junk all the time." Mia kneeled down to the floor, reaching for a tin box. Undoing the latch, Mia sorted through their things, laying them out along the floor. Mia stripped off their work gloves, revealing a pair of slender, well-worked hands.

"Mm, do I need a change'a clothes while I'm here...?" Mia sniffed their arm, before shrugging noncommittally. "Mneh, s'a junker camp. Nobody's gonna pick up on a lil diesel funk, heh~"

Mia was a bit of a hoarder, and the strange parcels tended to accumulate quickly. Sometimes Mia wished they had more space to store things, but alas, such was the life of a shiftless vagabond.

"Best keep the money close at hand here. Can't let thieves get their grubby lil mitts on my dosh... jerky'll be fine for a snack tomorrow..." Mia muttered, thumbing through their things. "Ooh, this hood ornament's fresh-lookin'! That's a keeper~"

Mia snickered, putting it aside, along with an assortment of other knick-knacks and doodads. Mia preferred going at this little ritual on their lonesome; it brought out their inner child, gearing up for some great adventure, and they didn't want to give off the wrong impression.

Their gloved hand inadvertently slipped into an inner pocket, feeling for something flat and papery... Mia blinked, realizing they were other photos; reflexively reaching into their pocket for the one they took earlier with the old armour transport's hood, Mia withdrew their hand, pulling out a small selection of photos. Mia idly thumbed through them, ready to add another one to the small pile... there was one overlooking a vast forest, another of the San Marina, that impressive passenger cruiser Mia spotted in the harbour.

Mia paused. One photo in particular stirred up some memories. It was back in Agnes, that much was clear by some of the tall buildings in the background. There were two people in the photo: a younger Mia, arm outstretched to hold the camera apart and to snap the shot. And next to Mia was...

"Celes..." Mia murmured quietly, brows furrowed. Their attention focused on a young, black-haired  woman at her side, about Mia's age. Mia remembered Celes well from the frilled, well-padded working dress. Poor girl stuck out like a sore thumb in the seedier part of town... even the sepia dulling of colours didn't hide that beauty. It was good that Mia found her and pointed her in the right direction. And she was an absolute sweetheart. It was obvious Celes wasn't used to photography, her smile was a little tilted, but her earnestness shown through.

It was a nice little keepsake, a hopeful one at that.

It wasn't an old photo. It hadn't been taken that long ago, only just a year. But a lot had happened in a year's time. Despite that, Mia found themself recalling those old memories, clear as day. Mixed feelings stirred within their recollection.

"Reckon she got that stuffy job with BioLabs, then..." Mia sighed. "She never wrote like she said she would... she promised."

Mia frowned, fixating on their smiles. Would Celes lie about a thing like that? Just making polite conversation? Mia didn't wanna believe that at all, Celes just had an... an energy about her.

"...Maybe the mail arrived too late to be any good..." Mia reassured themself, shuffling the photos together into a stack and slipping them into the knapsack. "Mrgh... or maybe some people are just like that..."

Mia remembered the sting of waiting those weeks for so much as a letter that never came. Despite their easy-going nature, Mia couldn't help themself from feeling a little bitter over the whole thing.

"Well... s'in the past." Mia shrugged. "Gotta hack it on your own if you're gonna..."

Skitter skitter...

"...Uh?"

Mia spotted something small and grey moving quickly in the corner of their eye, darting out of sight. Mia grimaced, turning their head just in time to see a skinny tail writhing into a small hole in the wall. Mia cautiously approached to investigate, lowering their body to the floor.

"Izzat..." Mia whispered, bringing their head parallel to the hardwood floor. Before Mia could get too close, there was an errant squeak, and a small mouse poked their head out of the wall.

"Uwah!" Mia yelped, startled. "Hey, buddy, c'mon, get! This isn't free real estate, this is... ooh... oogh..."

Mia lowered their gesticulating hands to hug at their lower body. There was that sensation that Mia had become increasingly familiar with. It felt like nerves and goosebumps washing over their body, a swelling energy starting in their gut and, in small undulations, spread to their extremities. Like a thousand tiny needles prodding at their skin from the inside...

"Ooooogh happening agaaaain..." Mia winced, turning to their things and tossing whatever they could back into their backpack. All the things they'd miss if someone nabbed them, at least. Through a furrowed brow of intense concentration, it was all they could do to force the dam shut. The mouse cowered inside of its hole, squeaking with concern as Mia seemed to constantly shift in abject  discomfort. As Mia finished collecting their things, a free hand lowered to the ground, tensing and scraping the wood with their fingernails. Mia let out an irritated, mewling sound, their body shaking.

Before long, Mia was bolting out the front door, sticking a hard right towards the nearest patch of woods, bounding with their legs with every leap. They cared little for the foliage in the way, seemingly bounding right over them! A great leap considering the weight they were carrying. Mia clutched their hat, glancing behind them to see if anyone had spotted them booking it out of the village, or if they were being tailed. It'd be peak Nida to follow Mia off into the wilderness like this...

Mia let out a sigh of relief that the coast seemed to be clear... unfortunately, a moment of relaxation was all it took for the changes to happen all over again.

Mia grunted as their baggy getup practically fluffed up in a moment, their skin suddenly giving way to tufts of brilliant orange-brown fur engulfing their body. Mia reflexively clutched their hat, feeling their ears pull taut into cat-like facsimilies. Mia's legs, particularly their calves, seemed to warp on their own mid-stride; Mia landed on the soles of their feet, and continued with even greater strides, even longer bounds.

"Rrraawgh..." Mia growled with annoyance, their pants struggling to contain with a rapidly swelling mass that writhed and twisted, trying to escape its cloth confines; Mia tugged at their waist, trying to free a quickly growing striped tail... somewhat futiley at that.

Mia spotted a particularly bushy, tall tree and made a beeline for it, making a leap that would put a world-class athlete to shame, tensing their hands as they braced for impact... as they outstretched their arms, they revealed their hands, pink pawpads dotting their palms and fingers, gnarled claws protruding from every fingertip.

As they dug into bark, Mia wasted no time clambering up in instinctual leaps, practically jumping out the side. It was here that their enormous tail finally wriggled free, whipping behind them with impressive sweeps for balance. Mia zipped into the canopies above, branches rustling.

It was hard seeing through the leaves, but they shot for a thick branch near the top, and plopped down. Mia sighed, clicking their legs as they sat down, massaging their furry face, squinting their amber-yellow eyes; the feline-like irises narrowed on the back of their palm, following the stripes that flowed up their arm, disappearing underneath their baggy clothes.

"Whew..." Mia sighed, glancing to their hand; they reflexively tensed and relaxed their hand, willing the claws to extend and retract rhythmically. It was like stretching a muscle. "Guess I was bein' a little too optimistic 'bout the werecat thing. Be nice to go a day without this getting sprung on me..."

Mia grumbled, looking down to the ground. "Least nobody spotted me. Guess I'm hanging out here 'til it wears off... sorry Nida."

Nida was such a go-getting gal too. Mia wished they could go back to making quick friends with people like that. But Nida didn't seem like the sort to keep a secret like what Mia was keeping. People don't just go turning into wild animals at the flip of a switch...

Mia dug around in their pocket, fishing for the beef jerky they had on hand, when...

"CAW! CAW!"

Mia glanced up, their ears twitching with interest. They quickly turned in the direction of the call...

"Wingding? You again??" Mia scoffed. "C'mon bud, how'd you find me? Was it the crinkling of the wrapper? What are you, a raven or a dang hawk??"

Wingding flapped his ebony wings insistently, tugging at Mia's patch-work elbow. Mia let out a light-hearted laugh, their fluffy tail waving below them.

"Alright alright, jeez, I'll share... mhm, now that I think about it, you act more like a dumb gull." Mia split off a piece of the jerky. "You guys are s'posed to be 'fraid of cats, y'know."

Wingding wasted no time, clicking its beak and going after the sliver of jerky. Mia was careful to prepare a strip small enough for Wingding to swallow without problems. Wingding hollered again, eager for a second.

"Pssh. Birdbrain." Mia swinged their boots, rubbing Wingding's head with a big smile. "Well, if no one else's got me, I know you got me, Wingding. Even if you're just a big mooch..."

"Caw." Wingding bounced up and down on the branch, practically nodding. When it came to waiting out Mia's sudden shifts, it was better to spend that time with a friend, feathery or not.