sex: 2/10
violence: 3/10
profanity: 2/10

Categories: Male to Hermaphrodite, Hybrid, PSI

Timeline: 2064

Author's Note: This is a kinda MORFS/Chakat crossover story. It was written to be canon to the MORFS universe, and treats the Chakat universe as fiction.

---

Chapter One: Getting Ready For School

"Hello Moo," I crooned as I cuddled my gray and white tomcat. I had walked out into the back yard to pick him up. He looked lonely out there, doncha know.

Actually, he's my sister's kitty. Nobody told him that, though. Or, rather, he's not listening.

typical cat.

Sometimes you choose the cat, and sometimes the cat chooses you. I think that my sister is a little miffed that her cat loves me better.

I wanted to name him Graycloud because of his gray and white pattern. Suzie, my sister, decided that he should be named Moo because he has the patchy pattern of a holstein cow. The fact that his patches are gray and not black doesn't seem to matter.

Yeah, my little eleven year old sister is weird. I love her anyway.

Moo was starting to give me the strong paw. He can only take so much adoration before wanting to get away.

Typical cat.

Of course, getting the strong paw made me want to hug him even tighter. "Prepare to receive corporal cuddles," I told him. I laid my head on him and gave him snuggles. If he could have rolled his eyes, he would have.

Dad chose that moment to take a picture of us. It turned out to be the last picture of me in my pre-morfs body.

My nose started to itch, so I set Moo down and turned away.

I blew a mighty sneeze that lifted my feet off the ground. Grandpa always said that one should have a sneeze to be proud of.

I walked back into the house to the sound of my sister singing, "Jimmy's getting MORFS, Jimmy's getting MORFS."

"Am not!" I said, sticking my tongue out with great dignity. "It must be that scruffy tomcat of yours making me sneeze."

That's me, Jimmy Miller; a proud sophomore at Jenson High School. At the advanced age of fifteen, I am definitely ripe for a case of MORFS. I didn't feel nearly bad enough for this to be a case of the change, though.

My own cat, Sir Stubford Cuddlepurr, decided that it was his turn to receive some love.

Yes, Sir Stubford Cuddlepurr. You don't think that my sister is the only weird one in the family, do you?

I picked him up and gave him squeezie hugs. "Hi Stubby."

I call him Stubby because he has maybe an inch of tail. He was born that way. Apparently, there is some American Bobtail in his ancestry. I doubt that he is pure bred, but he definitely has the sweet disposition of that breed.

Sweet? Actually, he's positively needy.

"You had better get out to the bus," my mother called from her office.

Yes, I have a stay at home mom who telecommutes. Sometimes I'm happy that she's always here for us, and sometimes I would be happy to not be under her gaze all the time -- not that I want to make trouble or anything like that. Nope, not me.

To be fair, I can't accuse her of being a helicopter mom. Yes, she's around the house. No, she doesn't watch our every move or constantly hound us.

I gave Stubby a few more strokes, gently set him to the ground, and gave him some back scritchies as he walked away.

As I was approaching the bus stop, I saw my BFF Catniss. She claims that she didn't name herself after the main character in that old dystopian novel, but I know better. After all, shi's a lot like the fictional Katniss Everdeen.

I ran up to her and gave her a big glomp. "Mmmmmmmm Chakat hugs are the best!"

"I'm not a chakat."

"Yes you are. You're totally a biped chakat. Just look at that tail. And the..."

"Don't go there, Jimmy."

"Don't go where?" I asked with the best look of innocence I could manage plastered on my face.

She just snorted. I guess the ritual is getting kind of old.

What is a chakat? I'm glad you asked.

You see, way back before MORFS came to be, a guy named Bernard Doove started writing stories in a universe that contained all kinds of anthropomorphic furry type critters. They were genetically engineered originally to be used as super soldiers, slaves, and the like. There were aliens and star ships and all the fun things that we nerdy types love

Of course, the whole slavery thing didn't go over well. A huge war and lots of death later, the morphs were free.

One prophetic thing about the chakat universe is that there were lots of bigots that hated furs. It must be a universal part of human nature. Bigotry, that is. Not hating furs.

Oh, yeah. The chakats? They are taurs.

The furries in that universe are pretty much like our current absolute hybrids. Some of those morphs have four legs and two arms -- kind of like the classic centaur, except that the 'human' part is a furry with a muzzle and a furry hide and all the stuff that goes with it. There are wolftaurs, foxtaurs, equitaurs (like a centaur, but with a horse face,) and the like.

But the best of all is the chakat -- named after their creators, Charles and Katherine Turner. Chakats are awesome -- smart, strong, dexterous, cuddly...

Sorry, got carried away.

Their front paws are like hands with stubby fingers, giving them four hands to work with. They have a long prehensile tail that's capable of lifting quite a bit of weight. They are gregarious and huggy and kind and, did I mention cuddly?

Oh, yes. The author invented new pronouns for them because they are hermaphrodites. Instead of she and her, they use shi ("shay") and hir ("hair.")

So, when my BFF Carl morphed into a dual-sexed absolute cat hybrid with a long prehensile tail, I couldn't resist calling the newly dubbed Catniss a chakat. I also half jokingly use the pronouns from the Chakat universe.

Catniss has the sturdy build of a chakat. Due to her digitigrade stance, shi is six feet tall. Shi has the coloration of a cougar, complete with the black marks on hir muzzle.

And shi has soft, cuddly fur all over hir curvy kitty body.

So... hugging my friend, you say? Isn't that kind of unmanly, you say?

Well, I guess some may think so. My dad taught me that showing affection is not unmanly. Hiding behind the trappings of macho is unmanly.

Besides, who could resist hugging the big cuddly kitty?

I would like to be a bit more than friends with Catniss, but shi's still getting used to hir new form and gender.

Being an empath, shi knows how I feel. Shi hasn't said no, but neither has shi jumped head first into a new relationship. It's too soon for that, and we have plenty of time. Meanwhile, our relationship is pretty much the same as it has always been.

"We'll have to have that Antares Mercenary rematch after school," I said as I slipped out of hir hug. Just in time to avoid blowing snot all over hir, I turned around and gave another mighty sneeze.

"I'm sorry," I said. "I hope I don't get you sick."

"Nonsense. I seem to have inherited a resistance to everything. I haven't been sick since I morfed."

This time, I got that characteristic crackly feeling in my sinuses that I told me that I was actually coming down with something. I just sighed, figuring that I would have to grit my teeth and try to make it through the day.

Once we got seated on the bus, we played some networked games on our trans-cosmic open source portable game consoles. Between games, we talked about the game that we were writing to sell on that platform. People like to tell us that we have about as much of a chance of making it big in the game business as we have of making it in professional baseball or something like that, but we refused to be discouraged. Dad told us that the lowest people are those that try to destroy other people's dreams. Better than that, he sometimes gave us a little help with our programming.

By the time we got to the school, I was feeling better. Or, at least, I thought that I was feeling better.

As soon as I got up, my stomach rebelled. I held my hand over my mouth and ran for the exit. Most people got out of my way hastily -- all except Randy Steward. Randy gets his greatest pleasure from giving people grief -- especially morfs and morfie lovers.

Randy stood between me and the exit, spreading his arms wide and saying, "Where are you going so fast, dickweed?" He held out his hand palm first as I tried to come to a stop.

I almost doubled up in pain as my stomach hit the palm of his hand. My head leaned back as I fell forward and I projectile vomited my breakfast -- right into his face and chest.

Fortunately for me, the bus driver saw it and several students were recording it with their cell phones and eComs. I got taken to the nurse's office and Randy got to talk to the principal. Catniss collected my backpack and carried it to my locker for me.

Of course, the nurse did what she does for anyone who comes in feeling sick. She poked me, put my blood on the strip, and shoved it into the machine.

Ding!

MORFS.

Okay, so my sister was right.

You know the drill. Mom came and got me, took me to our pediatrician, then took me home.

It's a bit cumbersome stripping and putting on pajamas with that MORFS automatic IV thing locked on your arm, but it beats having to choke down those nasty stim pack bars. I don't know if my stomach would have put up with that. I'll take the interveinous stim packs any day.

Mom pushed the go to sleep button and I was out.

Chapter Two: Down For The Count

The next several days went by in a fevered blur. It was particularly bad when my body started stretching out and growing some little stubs of limbs. My dad had to pick me up and carry me to the bathroom, then shower me like I was an invalid or a baby or something.

But that middle set of limbs finally grew out and grew stronger, and my legs got all crooked. "Crooked as a dog's hind leg," as my grandpa used to say.

And they were. Crooked as a dog's hind leg, that is. Or, as I prefer to think of them, crooked as a cat's hind leg. Or a chakat's hind leg.

I'm not clueless. I figured that I was becoming some kind of a taur as soon as I started getting those middle limbs. I've studied the Doctors Martin's on line classes enough to know that our own personalities, desires, and thoughts can have some effect on our eventual change. I also know that most hybrid traits are picked up from our environment -- and I'm constantly cuddling my kitties.

Meanwhile, construction noises were going on in the basement. I had started hearing them soon after discovering that I was turning into a taur.

I won't bore you with the details. My front legs got longer and stronger. I grew fur all over my body, even my face. I got a muzzle on said face. I went through stim packs like they were going out of style. The shower was getting cramped. Fortunately, it was a bathtub-shower, so I still kinda fit. Getting one's tail caught in the sliding door hurts.

Chapter Three: A New Me

Finally, I woke up feeling refreshed and energetic. Dirty and smelly, but refreshed.

As I was heading for the shower, Dad intercepted me. He led me down to the basement and into spacious bathroom with a taur toilet, a huge shower, and a fur dryer. While I had been upstairs morfing, Dad was busy setting me up with my very own taur-sized bedroom and bathroom. I gave him my very first chakat hug. He wrinkled his nose, but smiled anyhow.

You never appreciate a toilet that actually fits and does its job until you have had to crowd yourself into an undersized room. And it was great to be able to actually move around in the shower. The multi nozzle fur dryer made short work of what would otherwise have been a long and onerous daily chore.

Yep, my daddy loves me. Why else would he go to so much trouble making sure that I have a nice place to live?

After drying off, I checked myself over. I knew exactly what to expect if I had, indeed, morfed into a chakat. There was no guarantee that I had, though.

Muzzle.

Check.

Head full of long white hair.

Check.

Luxurious White fur with gray patches from nose to tail.

Check.

Two hands with claws on the tip of each finger.

Check.

Two large furry breasts.

Check.

Two front legs with hand-paws.

Check.

Two digitigrade hind legs.

Check.

One sheathed human-like penis.

Check.

One human-like vulva.

Check.

One long prehensile tail.

Check.

Two separate heartbeats.

Check.

Yes, chakats have a stomach, a heart, and two lungs in each torso. Most of the digestive system is in the lower torso, so there is plenty of room in the slender upper torso for lots of muscle.

Alas, both of my stomachs were empty.

As I carried my famished self upstairs to raid the kitchen, Suzie gleefully informed me that Randy had come down with morfs. She heard it straight from the horse's mouth -- I mean Randy's little sister.

"Susan Quelita Miller! We do NOT laugh at other people's misfortune!"

"He deserves it! He's such an a --"

She cuts herself off just in time, earning no more than a nasty glare from her mother.

"Actually, it remains to be seen if he unfortunate. I'm delighted with my change."

Suzie gives me a weird look. "I never expected a boy to be happy about losing his dick!"

"Su --"

I hastily swallowed the last of my power bar. "I didn't lose anything! See?" I rolled on my back, exposing my underside.

"James Michael Miller! Just what do you think you are doing? Did you just flash your little sister?"

"Moooooom! Taurs aren't supposed to wear stuff on the lower torso. And chakats don't have any body modesty. And everybody deserves to know how I changed."

Mom just sighed and shook her head.

"We don't live on Chakona, dear. Please try to respect us bipeds' quaint sensibilities."

"What else did you gain?" asked my sister.

"Well, I have two hearts, two stomachs, --"

"Two boobies!" she interrupted.

"Speaking of which, don't you think you should cover them up?" asked Mom.

"They are covered up," I said as I stroked the fur.

"James Michael Miller! Quit groping yourself!"

" ... Four lungs, a very fine tail..." I used said tail to tickle Suzie's nose, causing her to giggle. " ... A sheath to keep things hidden. You know, because I can't wear pants? And a complete female reproductive system. And extra legs. And extra hands. And a luxurious fur coat!"

"Just like Moo!" Suzie said. She came over and looked at my hand paws. "How do you use them without falling over?"

"Like this!"

I reared up on my hind feet and used my hand paws to grab Suzie around the waist and throw her up into the air. Luckily, we have a tall ceiling in the great room. I caught her with my regular hands, gave her a quick kiss on the forehead, twisted my upper torso around, and deposited her on my lower back.

She giggled and held tight to my upper torso when I took off toward the sliding glass door. I flung it open and ran into the back yard, heading toward the woods at full speed. She screamed as I leapt up into our favorite climbing tree and scrambled to the top platform in seconds flat.

She climbed off of my back and went around to my front. She jumped, giving me a tackle hug. I wrapped my furry arms around her by reflex. "You're the best big brother ever!"

"Am I a good big sister, too?"

"Yay! I get a big brother and a big sister all at the same time!"

After a little while, we both got bored. She slipped down the tree like a little monkey. I just stared at the branches, trying to figure out how to lower my new quadrupedal body down the tree.

Suzie looked up at me with a smirk on her face. "Wutsa Matter? Kitty stuck up a tree?"

I stuck my tongue out at her and swung down, using my regular hands and my hand paws.

Mom called us in to lunch, which reminded me of how hungry I was. The power bar did little more than take the edge off.

Beef strogenoff! My favorite! I heaped a generous portion on my plate and ate in a reasonably civilized manner. I only earned one or two glares from Mom.

After lunch, Mom and I went to my old room and started cleaning it out. All of my pants went into boxes slated for the clothing swap store. After some experimentation, we decided that all of my regular shirts would go, too. I was just too well endowed to reasonably wear them. We kept my larger t-shirts, but they were really only suitable for casual wear.

Socks? Don't need them anymore, either.

Shoes? Boots? Gone.

Jackets and coats? They don't fit anymore. Besides, I have a built-in fur coat. I might need something once winter really descends upon us. Fortunately, that's a few weeks away.

Once we were done with the clothing, I put the sad little bit that was left into a single drawer. I threw a blanket over my lower back, then balanced my dresser on the blanket. A quick walk down two flights of stairs, and it was in my new bedroom. I wonder if it'll ever be full again.

After that, I made short work of my computer desk and book shelves. A final sweep to catch little things like posters, figurines, models, and stuff like that, and I was moved in.

I sat on my taur pad and relaxed for a bit.

For all that I look like a chakat, I realize that they are fictional creatures. I can't be sure that I match the archetype described in the various stories.

I have all of the external features. I can feel two heartbeats and feel two sets of lungs expand as I breathe. It kind of feels like I have two stomachs, but I can't be sure.

Then, there are the attitudes and culture of the chakat nation. We are gregarious and polyamorous. The concept of jealousy is pretty much unknown to chakats.

I thought about my friend Catniss. What if we developed the kind of relationship that I desired, and then she decided to share herself with someone else?

I closed my eyes and tried to imagine it. I think I would be a little concerned that we would leave me, but the jealousy that I could easily imagine when I was human just wasn't there.

How would I feel in a plural relationship? The thought put a smile on my face.

In the chakat universe, all of the Earth-based furs and a good number of the humans formalize their relationships in a three tiered system.

Companions are just that -- companions. Essentially, friends with benefits.

Den mates generally live together, and often share the raising of children. They provide a stable household for their kids.

Life mates have made a commitment to stay together for life. That doesn't stop them from having other companions, denmates, and lifemates. They say that love should be multiplied, not divided.

I wonder if I have empathy.

I reached out with my mind. Mom was relieved that my case of morfs was over. She was a little concerned; probably about the culture changes.

Suzie Q was petting Moo, and feeling happy about having a big sister.

Dad was also feeling relieved. And he had that warm glow that comes from a job well done. Probably my room.

I felt the underpinning emotion of love with all of them. That made me smile and purr.

I sat and thought some more. I needed to think of a good chakat name.

I was just starting a game of Antares Mercenaries when Mom informed me that it was time for me to go shopping. I wanted to groan about it, but I literally don't have a thing to wear to school. I suppose I could have gone nude, but that would be asking for trouble.

Chapter Four: My Best Friend Forever

Dad was letting Catniss in the front door just as I came up the stairs. She ran towards me full speed and gave me a tackle hug.

Glomp!

I gave as good as I got. "Hi! I'm Chakat Graycloud, daughter of Anita and Darren Miller."

Something inside both of us connected. It was that empathic feedback that chakats are said to need.

"Mmmmmmmm... Chakats give the best hugs," Catniss purred.

If I had any doubts about Catniss's feelings for me before, they were gone now. Shi tilted her head down and gave me a kiss full on the muzzle, complete with tongue wrestling. After a few all too short minutes, she disengaged and looked me in the eyes. "Will you be my companion?" she asked.

"Yes!"

And we kissed some more.

"Break it up!" Mom said, but there was a smile on her face. "Time to get some duds for your furry hide."

"Coming with me?"

"That's part of why I came," Catniss said.

"And the other part?"

"To see if you turned out as well as your mother described."

She followed me out the door, closing it behind us. This made me aware of the fact that my furry new taur body is undoubtedly going to cause me some problems. How am I going to close the door behind myself without awkwardly turning around?

Oh! Prehensile tail! That ought to work.

Mom went ahead and pulled open the sliding door to the van. "Ta-da!" There, in front of me, was a taur seat -- pretty much the way I had imagined in the chakat stories. Dad had been busy again. I love my daddy!

---

sex: 2/10
violence: 3/10
profanity: 2/10

Categories: Male to Hermaphrodite, Hybrid, PSI

Timeline: 2064

Author's Note: This is a kinda MORFS/Chakat crossover story. It was written to be canon to the MORFS universe, and treats the Chakat universe as fiction.

---

Chapter Five: To the Mall!

It's one thing to notice a few stares, and another thing entirely to feel everyone's curiosity, attraction, or all too often, distaste. Catniss must have felt my discomfort. She looked at me sympathetically and said, "Yeah, I know how you feel. You'll get used to it. Sort of."

The shopping went the way you would pretty much expect. We totally skipped the skirts and pants. I tried on a couple of different dresses, but they really didn't look good. They bunched up at the back and fell down to my knees in the front. And they looked silly.

The bras were bras. I argued that I didn't need them since my wonderful new chakat body has special muscles and ligaments to support my admittedly large breasts.

I was never a big fan of large breasts, but my chakat body saddled me with a double-dang pair. Oh well.

But I can't complain. 34DD boobs would have been a problem if I didn't have the chakat musculature, but they really caused no inconvenience at all. Catniss gleefully said, "Join the club!" She grabbed me and danced me around, singing something about the double dang furry boob club.

"Catniss! We're making a scene!"

"And your point is?"

Sigh.

Actually, it was fun. Fortunately, nobody could see how much I was blushing. Furry face, doncha know.

I ended up wearing a halter top out of the store. It was more comfortable than regular shirts because it covers less. Regular tops rub my fur the wrong way when I move around. Halters pretty much stay in place.

I still think that going nude is a whole lot more comfortable. I'll have to think of a way to get away with doing that. This whole nudity taboo thing is such a pain.

Catniss just smirked as I grumbled about it under my breath. Mom said, "A chakat for less than a day, and you have already gone native. I shudder to think what you'll be like in a year."

I maturely stuck my kitty tongue out at both of them.

We Finally went to Wings and Tails, which is where we should have gone in the first place.

They had some panniers just for taurs. Mom found one that fit well, but it was shocking pink.

Oh well. I had never had problems with trying to prove my manliness or anything like that. Dad always told me that worrying about things like that only means that you're insecure in who you are. And anyhow, I'm as much girl as I am boy. And loving every second of it.

It was a bit of a trick to strap it to my lower torso without matting my fur the wrong way. It was comfortable enough once we got everything right.

Mom pulled the tags off and stuffed it full with all of our previous purchases. "You make quite a good pack horse," Catniss teased. I stuck my tongue out at hir.

Actually, I can carry quite a bit with the panniers. They hold about four times what my old school backpack held.

We went to the shoe section and got some digitigrade sandals and boots for my back feet. Then, we had to have some special gloves designed for my hand-paws. One set was like a pair of sandals, and useful to keep my handpaws clean as I walk around. The other pair was like heavy gauntlets.

Catniss was trying on a set of digitigrade boots when Mom received a call. Apparently, there was a cancellation at the clinic. They can fit me in if we can get there in half an hour.

Catniss bought the boots, and Mom paid for our purchases and the special orders.

Chapter Six: The Clinic

We made it to the clinic with a few minutes to spare. Mom went to the front desk, and Catniss and I sat down among the new morfies. Even among freaks, I was looked upon as a freak. I seemed to be the happiest with my new shape, though.

"Wow! Are you a real chakat?"

I turned and saw a really cute golden absolute fox hybrid that looked to be about twelve or thirteen. A precociously endowed twelve or thirteen years old, that is. I could tell that she wanted to hug the kitty, so I gave her her wish. "Hi! I'm Chakat Graycloud, daughter of Anita and Darren Miller." I set her on my back and told her, "And that's what we're here to find out, but I think I'm about as real as you'll find in this world."

Catniss came over, so I introduced them. Sort of. "This is my companion Catniss Stein." I turned to Catniss and said, "Catniss, this is my new friend, umm, uhhh..."

"Vickie! Vickie O'Kelley! My new name is Vickie O'Kelley!"

Catniss wrapped us both in a hug, and whispered to her, "Welcome to the changeling double-dang furry boob club!"

I could tell that she was a bit disappointed that I already had a companion, so I whispered to her, "When have you ever known a chakat to have only one companion? We have to start by being friends, first. Is that OK with you?"

She smiled and nodded vigorously.

It's a lot easier to connect with people when you can tell what they are feeling. I think I'm going to really love this empathy stuff.

"Kittyyyyy!"

I felt a thump. Ever get tackle hugged by a pre-schooler?

Vickie ruffled his hair. "Hi, squirt!"

"I notta squirt, Charlie!"

"Not Charlie no more. It's Vickie now, and you're most definitely a squirt! And a brat!"

I picked him and plopped him on my back in front of his sister. He wrapped his little arms around my torso and snuggled into my fur.

Vickie tickled him, gave him an evil laugh, squeezed him between the two of us and said, "Now you are trapped in a furry trap!"

He giggled and wiggled, but made no attempt to get away.

A woman of perhaps my mom's age came over. "My two aren't bothering you, are they?"

"Not at all. We chakats love making new friends! Seriously, though, you have some great kids. Thanks for letting them keep me company."

Vicky huffed. "I'm not a kid! I'll bet I'm as old as you are."

Her mom said, "She's actually fifteen. She seems to have regressed a few years."

"Did not! I'm as smart as I always was. Smarter, even. I'm just happier now! And littler!" She cupped her furry breasts. "In most places, anyway!"

"She's right," her mom said. "She did all that piled up homework faster than I have ever seen her do it before. And I'll take the happy new Vicky over the sad boy she used to be any day."

"I was never a boy!"

She sighed. "You know what I mean, Vicky. I just wish you had come out to us sooner.'

Vicky jumped off my back and grabbed her mom in a hug. "It's OK now, mom! I'm a BBV now!"

Vicky's mom just sighed and rolled her eyes. Catniss and I snickered up our sleeves. We don't have sleeves, but you know what we mean.

"What's a BBV?" asked the little brother.

"You don't need to know!" said his mom.

"Big boobied vixen!" Vicky said loud enough for the whole room to hear. "People think we're dumb, but we ain't!"

"Big boobied vixen! Big boobied vixen!" said the little brother.

The mom gave out a much put-upon sigh and said, "It's 'big breasted vixen,' Jimmy, and please stop saying it."

Vickie grabbed her brother off of my back, wrapped her arms around him, and swung him around. "Big boobied vixen! Big boobied vixen!"

The mom put her hands on her hips and said, "Victoria Marie O'Kelley!"

"It's Vickie, Mom! That's what I want on my birth certificate addendum!"

I could sense Mom over by the magazine rack doing her best to hold in her laughter. She walked over and gave Vicky's mom a sympathetic look. Solidarity amongst moms, I guess.

"Hi. I'm Anita Miller, the mother of this large quadruped who seems to have acquired a talent for riling up her new friends."

"I'm Wanda O'Kelley, and believe me, my two don't need any help in the riling up department. In fact, Graycloud and Catniss are calming them down, if anything."

The person at the desk rang a bell and said, "Vicky O'Kelley."

"Mom, I want my new friends to come in with me."

"I'm sorry, Vicky. I'm sure that they have their own appointments."

The desk clerk smiled at us. "We can put you all in the large exam room. That is, if nobody objects."

We all nodded. "I'm OK with it, and I'm the only other one getting an exam."

My empathic sensitivity let me know that the desk clerk had an ulterior motive for putting us all together, but it was not to our detriment.

So the whole lot of us, all six of us, were led through the door. Vicky and I took turns standing on the scanner, then we went to the room.

It didn't take long before we heard a knock on the door. A partial rabbit hybrid came into the room and introduced herself as Doctor McGuire. She examined Vicky and me, but actually spent more time looking over the results of our scans.

"You two are fortunate that we got the new scanner. It saves you from some less than pleasant examinations."

"Yeah! No fair!" said Catniss.

"Some days you step in it, and some days you don't," I replied with a smirk.

"Going barefoot most of the time, I would rather not step in it," added Vicky.

"Step in what?" asked Jimmy.

"Nothing," said the mommy.

"Poop!" said Vicky

Wanda gave a long suffering sigh.

"Ewwwwww!" said Jimmy, shaking his foot.

Chuckling, Doctor McGuire said, "If you are all quite through, I would like to see what powers these two might have."

"I thought you had a specialist for that," Mom said.

"Well, since I have the AMORFS2 medical suite of powers, the one with full telepathy, I decided to increase my repertoire and learn how to check. The clinic is happy with that because it makes it easier for them to schedule everyone."

She checked me first and found my empathic talent, both receptive and projective. She warned me to be careful with the projective talent, since it's easy to activate it without realizing it.

Vicky surprised us all. She had managed to become a technopath and a cyberpath.

"Oh, poop! And I always wanted to shoot laser beams out of my eyes!"

"Don't be sad, dear. You did get a brain upgrade. Maybe you can build your own lasers," said her mom.

Vicky jumped up and down. "Yay! I shmot now!"

Doctor McGuire cleared her throat and put a serious look on her face. Once she had our attention, she asked us, "You all know about doctor-patient confidentiality and the exceptions, right?"

At our nods, she added, "The same goes for telepaths. If we pick up something that is a clear and present danger, we are to notify the appropriate authorities."

Not knowing where this was all going, we all nodded.

"One of the patients is in danger due to her parents being pures. If you all agree, we could use your help. You all have to agree to keep things confidential."

We all nodded, and she made a point of individually getting agreement from each of us. Even Jimmy nodded seriously.

"OK, I have to see another patient. I'll come back with the girl that needs your help."

A few minutes later, there was another knock on the door. A partial cat hybrid entered.

"Doctor Kitty Futa!" Catniss said.

"I'm Doctor Katherine Futami," she said, rolling her eyes at Catniss. "I'm the clinical psychologist assigned to assess... " she looked at her tablet, "Chakat Graycloud Miller and Vicky O'Kelley."

Catniss ran and gave me a tackle hug. "This is my companion, Chakat Graycloud!"

Doctor Kat raised an eyebrow, giving me an assessing look. "Formerly James Miller?"

"Yep!," shi said, hugging me tighter.

"In that case, I think I'll talk to miss O'Kelley first. Meanwhile," she said, looking pointedly at Catniss, "I think you have someone to tell miss Miller."

"I already told you that shi's my companion."

Doctor Kat just gave her a look and led Vicky out.

Catniss looked at me, never releasing her hug. "You know that I love you, right?"

I nodded warily.

"We've been friends forever. We did everything together. But, when I morfed, and you started seeing me as physically attractive, I kind of freaked out."

"I know. That's why I was letting you take your time."

She continued, "I know. And I was trying hard to see you as more than a friend. But..." She sighed. "But, despite all of modern humanity's attempts to be otherwise, physical attraction is still a big part of a romantic relationship. Doctor Kat and I must have spent hours discussing it."

I nodded, not sure where this was going. I desperately hoped that she wasn't going to give me the 'let's be friends' speech.

"No! I'm not going to friend zone you! Not now! How could you even think that?"

I just looked at her.

"You see, I kept feeling you getting closer to me, and I kept getting closer to you. It still felt funny, though, because I always saw the lifelong buddy when I looked at you. Not a lover. Just someone I cared about like a brother. More than a brother."

"And now?"

"The first time I saw the new you? Can you even doubt how I felt? It was like the last piece of the puzzle just fell into place. I couldn't have stopped myself from wrapping myself around you if I tried. And I didn't try. It's like my prayers were suddenly answered."

"My prayers, too," I said with a big smile, hugging her even tighter.

"Get a room, you too!" Wanda said. Then she looked embarrassed and put her hands over her mouth. "Oops!"

Mom just snickered. "At least we know where Vicky gets it."

Wanda blushed.

We blushed, too.

"Get a woom! Get a woom!" said the little brother.

Mom snickered.

Wanda just sighed.

I wrapped my tail around him and deposited him between Catniss and me.

"I already have a womb," I said. "Catniss has a womb. In fact, everyone here except for you has a womb."

"But I want a womb, too!"

"Maybe after you morf, Jimmy," I said. "But only if you turn into a girl, because only girls get to have wombs. And you'd have to change your name. I used to be called Jimmy, too, but I had to change my name when I got my girl parts."

"I dunno if I want to be a girl. Maybe I can turn into a boy kitty."

"Maybe," Wanda said. "Or maybe you can be a boy fox. Or a dog."

"Or a mouse! Then I can eat you. nom nom nom." Catniss grabbed him and nibbled on his neck, causing him to giggle.

"Hey! Who's picking on my little brother? That's my job," Vicky said as she came into the room with Doctor Kat.

"You mean you won't share? Would it help if I gave him a big kiss?" Catniss gave him a big smooch, which caused him to wipe his lips.

"Ewwwwww! Yuck!" said the little brother.

Catniss handed him over to his sister. "Here! You pick on him, then."

"Hmmmmm... What to do... What to do... I know!" Vicky held him up and gave him a zerbert on the belly.

"Vicky doesn't seem to have any issues with her change." Doctor Kat turned to me. "OK, your turn."

I followed her to a small treatment room. "Where's the couch? I thought I was supposed to be on a couch when you sift through my brain cells."

"I thought you would rather have a taur pad. Come to think of it, let's move to a room that does have a couch. That ought to work in a pinch."

The couch was definitely more comfortable than sitting on the floor.

"So, what are your thoughts on your change?"

"Don't you mean, 'How does that make me feel?'"

"Smart alek," she replied. "I will infer from your attitude that you are fine with being a chakat. I want to know more, though. For instance, did you have a nice chat with Catniss?"

I smiled. "Everything is great with Catniss. She leveled with me about her early lack of physical attraction, and assured me that she was getting emotionally closer to me at the same time. Of course, the way she tackle-hugged me the first time she saw the new me erased all doubts. I really love that kitty!"

"And she loves you. I can tell. Of course, so can you. Empathy is a great gift."

I just smiled and hugged myself. "My prayers have been answered. I think we're gonna be lifemates soon."

I paused a bit. "I'm kinda surprised to see so many chakat universe fans. I thought Catniss and I were about the only ones around here. Besides our families, anyhow."

"I never heard of chakats until Catniss started talking about them. I started reading the series out of curiosity, and so that I could understand what shi was talking about. I have to admit to getting addicted to that universe. I never thought I would run into a real chakat, though."

I smirked. "You got to meet a BBV, too."

"That one is going to be a handful. It's a good thing she has you and Catniss to kinda keep her grounded and out of trouble. But don't let her personality fool you. She's practically a genius. I feel sorry for any guy that tries to treat her like an airhead and take advantage of her."

"It could be entertaining to watch, though," I said.

She just nodded, then changed the subject. "Doctor McGuire was called away before she could give you her assessment, so I'll pass it on. The short answer is that you are in perfect health, and have some some interesting additions."

"Two stomachs, two hearts, four lungs..." I interrupted.

"Not just two hearts and four lungs. You have two totally independent circulation systems. If you get a cut, you'll bleed from both because the capillaries are intertwined. On the other hand, if you empty one out, the other will remain full of blood and keep you alive until the other heals. Also both hearts use all four lungs to oxygenate your blood."

I nodded. "How about my digestive system and resistance to poison?"

"You have two stomachs, one in your upper torso, and one in your lower torso. The rest of your digestive system is in your lower torso. As far as we can tell from the scan, your digestive system is good at blocking poisons. That's not something that I really want to test right now, though. Also, you have carbon nanotube reinforced bones and high output muscles, just like Catniss."

"Were you able to find any difference between me and a chakat as described in fiction?"

"No, not really. We will be studying your scans more closely, since you received such an unusual and unexpected morf. The University of Sun City may even take notice. Right now, though, we need to finish with the real reason that I am seeing you. With your permission, I need to read you and assess how you are doing psychologically."

"Yeah, sure. Go ahead and sift through my brain cells. I hope I don't frighten you too much."

Doctor Kat smirked. "I doubt I'll see anything I haven't seen before."

I leaned on the couch back and relaxed. I really didn't feel much. It was kind of like whispering, but with all senses.

When she finished up, she smiled. "Sir Stubford Cuddlepurr?" she asked.

I blushed.

"You don't have any dangerous abnormalities, but neither are you boringly normal. That's pretty common for one of such high intelligence. Wear your nerdiness proudly, and give lots of love to your loved ones. That's my official doctor's orders."

She smiled and gave me a hug. "And make sure to love that kitty girl companion of yours. She's very special. As are you."

She made a few notes on her tablet, then looked up at me. "How would you and Catniss like to take a free trip to Sun City? It seems that the Doctors Martin find it interesting that two people morfed into fictional creatures."

I smiled. "It sounds like fun. Tell them that we have a BBV, too. I'm sure that Vicky would love it."

"I'll send them a note. Maybe they'll start reading chakat stories, too."

"If they're interested because we match the archetype, they will need to read some of it. If they contact me, I'll send some suggestions. There actually is a bipedal chakat that was born due to a strange hyperfertility that allowed a chakat to successfully breed with a biped."

"I'm sure that they will be contacting you and your parents, along with the others."

Her tablet dinged.

"Well, time to go back with the others."

Catniss glomped me again when we entered. This will never get old.

I noticed that Catniss's mom was also in the room. At my questioning look, she shrugged and said, "They called and told me that they needed my help with a slight emergency. They assured me that you all were OK, so I'm just waiting."

"It must be that pures kid that morfed," I said. "My impression is that she'll need some help staying safe and sane."

"I wonder if she'll need a place to stay," said Catniss.

"She can have my old room, if it's OK with mom and dad," I said.

"We'll see," said Mom. "If she doesn't cause any danger to the family, we should be able to put her up for a few days. We'll need some way to ensure that the pures don't attack our house to get at her."

"I'll be able to detect anyone approaching with ill intentions, but I can't stay up all the time," I said.

Doctor Kat spoke up. "You won't be alone. The IATE will keep watch. This isn't the first time we had to take care of these messes.

"We?" I asked.

"Ever since the Doctors Martin and their friends found that graveyard full of murdered morfed pures kids, the International Association of Telepaths and Empaths have taken it upon ourselves to protect kids that are at risk. The Martins spearheaded the project, and gathered resources from other parts of the morfs community. You will find that we are quite prepared to deal with the situation. What we need most from you is emotional support and a family-like place to stay. In essence, she needs new friends and, hopefully, a foster family."

I shuddered. I have heard stories of kids that morfed under bad circumstances. I thanked God again for the wonderful family that I was blessed to be born into. I could hardly imagine what it would be like if my family considered me to be a freak, or even worse, wanted to kill me.

Catniss shuddered, too. We squeezed each other tighter, fully understanding each other.

Some of our projective empathy must have leaked, because we found ourselves swallowed into a big group hug. Jimmy crawled up on my lower back and gave me a hug. "It's OK. We all wuvs you!"

Out of the mouths of babes. I couldn't help but smile and hug him back. Even Vicky was serious for the first time I have seen since I met her. She snuggled up to me and gave me a lick kiss.

---

Jimmy Miller, a fan of games and science fiction of all types, morfs into a fictional creature.

sex: 2/10
violence: 3/10
profanity: 2/10

Categories: Male to Hermaphrodite, Hybrid, PSI

Timeline: 2064

Author's Note: This is a kinda MORFS/Chakat crossover story. It was written to be canon to the MORFS universe, and treats the Chakat universe as fiction.

---

Chapter Seven: A Mission Of Mercy

Doctor McGuire chose that time to enter with a very sad and scared absolute raccoon morf. I could tell that Vicky was about to give her her usual enthusiastic greeting. I wrapped my tail around her and whispered to her, "She is really scared. Be gentle."

Vicky nodded and slowly approached the girl. "Can I have a hug? Please?"

The girl nodded.

When Vicky hugged her, she broke down into tears and buried her head in Vicky's shoulder. Vicky held her and stroked her back.

As one, the mothers went to her and comforted her.

"It's OK. Nobody here is going to hurt you. We have a place where you can stay and lots of friends to keep you company."

The two doctors conferred, and I could see Mom send a text, look at the reply, then nod.

Meanwhile, the rest of us introduced ourselves. Catniss and I projected calm and love at her. Slowly, she did calm down.

I took Mom aside and had a whispered conversation with her. Then, I announced, "There will be a sleepover at our house tonight. You are all invited."

"I've never been to a sleepover," the raccoon girl said.

"Neither have I," I admitted. "My mom and little sister have, though. We're going to have so much fun!"

I saw Mom whispering with the two doctors, and the other two mothers. "Doctor Kat, her wife, Vicky's mom, and Katniss's Mom are coming, too. But don't worry, we adults will have our own party and leave you kids alone to have fun."

"What about my little brother?" Vicky asked.

"He's going fishing with his dad and big brother"

"Yay!" said the little brother.

"Does that mean we can't dress him up and paint his nails?" asked Vicky. Little brother stuck his tongue out at her.

Everyone was talking excitedly when there was a knock on the door.

A slender human male and a large male wolf hybrid entered. "We're here to teleport Cindy Steeler's belongings. We need her to give us a good feel for her room, and we need a place to take them.

"You can take them to my old room. If you transport me there first, I can empty my panniers and help bring her belongings over."

So Mark, the teleporter, held hands with me and Arran, the wolf morf. Arran read the feel for my old room and fed it to Mark. In a flash, we were in my room.

I ran down to my new room, emptied my panniers, and came back up. We ported back to the group, picked up Cindy, then ported to her room.

Arran guarded the door while we packed my panniers, Cindy's backpack, and a bunch of canvas duffel bags that Mark had brought. We piled all of Cindy's stuff together. Cindy looked wistfully at the barren remains of the room where she grew up, knowing that she would never see it again.

Mark and Cindy ported to the garage, then came back with her bike.

We all ported to my room. I emptied my panniers and we ported back to the big treatment room.

Mark and Arran said their good byes, then disappeared.

Doctor Kat assured us that the IATE has a kind of gentleman's agreement with the police, and we don't have to worry about any repercussions for gathering Cindy's belongings.

Doctor McGuire called each of the three new morfs into a private session with her. When it was my turn, she informed me that I could likely get myself pregnant, and offered to use her bio elemental powers to give me, in essence, a five year contraceptive treatment. She told me that if I want to have kids before I'm twenty, that I can come back to the clinic to have it reversed. She also informed me that, unlike the fictional chakats, I am genetically human, and can have children with a baseline human.

Not being ready to take care of a bunch of squalling brats, I took her up on her offer.

The rest of our visit was kind of anticlimactic. Vicky, Cindy, and I got our new IDs, birth certificate addenda, and the like. We each received a stack of papers to read.

We all had a late lunch in the cafeteria. Everyone agreed to meet at our house after taking care of their own business.

Chapter Eight: Slumber Party!

Glomp! Susie tackle hugged me as soon as I made it in the front door.

Susie and I helped Cindy move into her room. We had to get a dresser and vanity out of the attic. Alas, the room still looked a little boyish.

Mom managed to find the left over stickers that she had used to decorate Suzie Q's room. They looked good on the light blue walls. The rainbows and unicorns and fairies and clouds and cats and fantasy creatures and plants looked kind of young for Cindy, but she liked them. "Mom and Dad never let me have things like this."

"Why not? Are they just a couple of no-fun-guys?"

"Yeah, but it's more about non standard animals and people. Anything that is not as God made them in the beginning must have been perverted by morfs. They wouldn't even let us watch cartoons. And our internet is filtered the way that libraries used to be, except it is through a service provided by the Church of Genetic Purity. We were promised severe beatings if we try to defeat it."

"Well, you don't have to worry about that now. Is the filter on your tablet and stuff? We can try getting rid of it."

I was looking at it when Vicky and her mom came in. Vicky came over and gave me a hug. "Whatcha doin?"

"I'm trying to get the filter program off of this tablet."

Vicky took it from me, played with it a bit, and gave it back. "That was a nasty little program. It made all of the data go through a proxy server at the Church of Genetic Purity. It filtered out half the internet, and kept track of what she was doing. I ummm modified their filter and wiped out data they were keeping on all the kids. I left them a few little programs, too."

"You trashed their data and put malware on their servers?" I gasped.

She folded her arms and put a smirk on her face. "Yup! I also added a little program that will uninstall the filter from any computer that connects to it. Data wants to be free!"

I couldn't help it. That was way too funny.

Catniss came in and found me rolling on the floor laughing like a loon. She asked what was so funny, so I told her.

The three moms came out, wondering what had their children all riled up.

"Oh, nothing," I said with a big smile of false innocence. "It's just that some unknown technopath might have trashed the servers that the genetic purity church uses to filter the internet and track its members' browsing habits.

"Victoria Marie O- Oh, never mind. Just don't hack the wrong people, and don't get caught."

"I'm not stupid, Mom," she said with her hands on her hips.

"I know, sweetie. But even the smartest people can get careless, and a really clever hacker can find you. No matter how smart you are, there is always someone smarter."

"Not in the Church of Genetic Purity," I snarked.

"You never know," Mom said. "Most wacko organizations are headed by a small elite group that cares little of the organization's ideals, and thinks much of themselves."

"I, uh, might have saved the data about the browsing habits of some of the clergy. Did you know that there's a web site called PervertedHybrids.xxx? And then there's HalfieDogs.xxx. And TeenHalfies.xxx. And TeenDogs.xxx. And..."

"That's enough, young lady!"

"I wonder what Preacher Johnson looks at," Cindy pondered.

Vicky looked at the tablet. "All I mentioned, plus..."

"I said, that's enough!"

"It would be interesting if, whenever someone tries to log in through the server, they get treated a list of what their leaders have been viewing," Catniss mused.

Before her mom could say anything, Vicky got to work. "I had to delay the removal of the filter program from the device. Now, a list will be downloaded, and will pop up every time the user calls up a browser. It's going to be a dickens to remove, too."

Mom just shook her head. "I hope nobody traces this through our internet connection."

"Don't worry, Mrs. M. I covered my tracks."

Cindy was looking at her tablet. "Seriously?" She swiped the tablet a few times. "Mister holier-than-thou is looking at that filth?"

"What filth?" Catniss asked.

"Bestiality between hybrids and actual animals."

"Ewwwwww!" several of us chorused.

"I hope you're not looking at the actual sites," Mom said.

"Not on purpose!" Cindy said.

"I need brain bleach! What is seen cannot be unseen!" Catniss said.

"Perhaps you should put that down," Vicky's mom said.

"Or perhaps," my mom said, "Cindy should look at some of the legitimate morfs information that she was locked out of before."

"Good idea!" Vicky said with enthusiasm. Soon, Cindy and Vicky were lost in their own little world.

Catniss and I picked them up and plopped them onto my lower back. They pretended not to notice. I balanced them with my tail and right arm, took them down to my room, and deposited them onto my extra double king sized taur pad.

Actually, it's a mattress designed for extra large morfs, but I'm using it as a taur pad, so it's a taur pad.

But since they're not taurs, I guess it's just a mattress to them.

Or something like that.

They were busily studying and discussing the fine points of how to survive and thrive as a morf. Catniss had gone through the same material when shi first morfed. Not only did I want to know all I could about how to support my bff, but would use any excuse just to be next to hir. So I studied it as much as shi did.

And shi appreciated the support. It was mostly new territory for hir. Also, I can't help but think that I wouldn't have been so joyous with my own changes if I hadn't already been through it vicariously with Catniss. And maybe I was just a bit envious.

So we decided to leave them to it and fired up my laptop. We decided to do a little work on that game we were developing. Soon, we were in deep hack. I don't know how long we were working on it, but we got a decent amount done. Maybe I got a bit of a brain upgrade like Vicky and Catniss did.

We both jumped when Vicky tapped us on the shoulder. "Whatcha doin?" she sang.

Catniss recovered first. "Well you see, little girl, we're doing something really complicated. We're writing a game for the Trans-Cosmic Open Source Portable Game Console. We're writing it on this laptop, and we're going to cross-compile it to the game console."

"Mind if I give it a whack?"

"Sure, little girl. Go ahead." I handed her the wireless keyboard and mouse.

She gave a few experimental pecks on the keyboard, played with the mouse a bit, sat them down and concentrated. I watched, amazed, as the cursor flew around the edit window, seeming to find every part that we were having trouble with.

She saved her changes, compiled the program, and transferred it to the game console. It ran beautifully.

"I think we found another partner for this project." I looked at Vicky, who had a smug grin on her face. "Hey, little girl, want to help us with the game? We'll share the profits."

"Can I help too?" asked Cindy.

I was a little hesitant, but I didn't want to hurt her feelings. I figured we could always use help in testing, if nothing else. And perhaps she can design some of the characters and monsters and traps and backgrounds and stuff. There is a whole lot more to creating a game than programming.

As a matter of fact, it looks like Catniss and I will be doing more game design and less programming.

We all went to the game room to watch a movie.

Well, we were originally going to watch a movie. We couldn't agree upon one, so instead we watched cartoons. Then we started playing computer games. Them we got the old fashioned board games out. Then we had a pillow fight.

Just kidding about the pillow fight.

In the middle of that, the three moms brought down some snacks. Sort of. It was actually a late dinner.

Susie wanted to get her makeup and fingernail polish, but most of us had furry faces. We did paint our claws with a variety of shades, though.

Soon, we were all tired. I led everyone into my bedroom and let them pile around me. Catniss and I held each other in our arms. Vicky and Cindy curled around us. Susie Q went up into her own bedroom, saying something about sleeping under her own pile of cats.

A couple hours later, I sensed rather than heard the moms peek into my room. "They are just so cute!" one of them whispered. I held Catniss tighter and snuggled down.

Later, we were all awakened by Doctor Kat's mental voice. *Don't be startled. You will hear a couple of gunshots, but there is no danger.*

*That's OK. People are always taking target practice around here. I don't think anyone will even notice it.*

I heard two clear gunshots, a muffled shot, and a cry of pain.

*The police are on their way to pick up those reprobates. I'm sorry about the gunshots, but we had to let them get a couple of shots off so that the police can hold them. After two shots, I blocked the barrel, and the gun blew up in Brother Dingbat's face.*

*Brother Dingbat?* I asked.

I heard a mental snicker from Cindy, but it was tinged with nervousness and fear."

*His real name is Brother Dington. We have been trying to catch him red handed for a long time.*

Cindy sent, *All the kids are scared of him. He teaches Sunday School sometimes, and he tells us about the horrible ways that God punishes the morfies and morfie lovers.*

*He won't be spreading that heresy to any more kids.* Mom sent.

*What about the rest of the attackers?* I sent.

*Knocked out, all ten of them. The police are collecting them as we speak. You can watch the court proceedings on Monday if you like. Meanwhile, get some sleep.*

I'm not sure, but I think that she pushed some 'tired' at all of us. We were soon out.

The next morning, we woke to the delicious smell of bacon, eggs, pancakes, and coffee. We went up to the kitchen and saw the spectacle of three moms sharing one kitchen and mostly staying out of each others way. Doctor Kat and her wife had left with the police.

They made mounds of food. We ate up the mounds of food. Such is the way with powered morfs, especially us taurs.

The moms announced that we were all going to church. Cindy was a bit nervous, but we assured her that our church was in no way against morfs. In fact, there is a special ministry that helps people adjust to their new form.

Catniss and I showered while the rest of them worked out what to wear.

Vicky borrowed a dress that Cindy had almost outgrown before her morf, and that simply didn't fit her now. Cindy checked out the rest of her clothing, and passed a bunch on to Vicky.

After everyone was clean and fresh and dressed in their Sunday best, we all got into two vans and went to church.

The service was, well, a regular church service. Pastor Dave always does a good job with his message.

Catniss and I were already familiar with everything. Vicky was delighted with the morfs support group, and asked her mother if she could switch churches. She remembered some of the morfed kids at her church getting weird looks, and wasn't looking forward to it.

Cindy was positively relieved. She remembered how the morfed kids at her old church were ridiculed from the pulpit. They were never seen again.

We had a leisurely day when we got home. We relaxed, watched videos, played games, and got to know each other.

The two moms went home, but Catniss and Vicky decided to stay the night again and go to school with us.

While we were getting everything together for tomorrow, Suzie Q got a call from her friend. It seems that Randy morfed into a rat. It didn't take him long at all to morf. He started after I did, but finished first.

"I guess he didn't have to change much," Suzie said.

"Susan Quelita Miller!" Mom said. We all tried hard not to smirk.

I yawned. "We chakats need our beauty sleep."

Everyone followed me downstairs, including Mom and Suzie. Mom gave us each a hug. Suzie decided to settle in with us, saying that everyone should sleep in a fur pile at least once.

Chapter Nine: Back To School

Mom rousted us early, figuring that it would take us a long time to shower. I pointed out that my shower is big enough for us all. Mom looked like she was going to protest, so I asked her how it is different from the mass showers at school and the local Y.

Suzie went upstairs, while we fur bearing varmints all used copious amounts of Mane & Tail.

Everybody loved the fur dryers.

When I commented that Dad might want some more customers, Cindy grabbed my camera and took some pictures of the shower and fur dryers -- while in use.

I grabbed the camera so that Cindy could model, too.

Catniss pulled up a copy of one of Dad's Miller Engineering and Construction fliers and quickly edited it on my computer. She had to be very selective of what pictures she used.

The fact that some of the testimonials were from the owner's daughter shouldn't be a problem.

Maneuvering in the bus with my taur body turned out to be a problem. I had to go to the back of the bus and sit in the aisle. Now I know how Rosa Parks must have felt. Sort of. I was surrounded by my friends.

There was a small sad rat morf huddled in the back. Even Vicky couldn't pull him out of his funk.

I knew that he was my old tormentor Randy, but I couldn't help but to feel sorry for him. Such is the way when you're an empath.

We were met by a crowd as we left the bus. Most of them were the people that Randy hung around. I was a bit worried at first, but having my friends around reassured me.

"Hey, Randy! Are you hanging around with the fuzzies now. Don't cats and foxes eat rats?"

"Only if they ask nice," Vicky said.

"I thought you were his friends!" I said to them. I projected keen interest and shame at them. They stared at me fixedly.

"Is that how you treat your friends? You laugh at their misfortune and reject them? If that's the case, you can probably expect the same from your so-called friends. You're not friends. You just hang with each other like a pack of snakes! You pretend to be friends, while being ready to stab each other in the back as soon as you can. I pity all of you."

As the crowd shuffled away, we headed to the office. Randy was headed there too, so we maneuvered him middle of our pack by the time we made it there. He looked nervous, but didn't object.

The secretary smiled at us as we entered. "Welcome, butterflies. Your paperwork is all processed, and you're all approved to pick up where you left off." She picked up a stack of slips and sorted through them.

She handed one to Randy. "It's good to see that they have forgiven you. Stick with them. They're good people."

She handed the next one to Vicky. "Ah, miss O'Kelly. It's good to see you smiling! And making friends, too!"

The next slip went to Cindy. "I can't tell you how relieved I am to see you back! The hard part is done. Stick with your new friends and let the IATE do what they do so well."

The final slip went to me. "Well, miss Miller, it seems that you received quite an interesting change. Congratulations. And congratulations on getting the girl of your dreams."

"By the way, the school purchased some small taur pads, and put one into each of your classrooms."

"And no, I'm not reading your minds," she said as we walked out.

"The farce is strong in that one," Catniss said.

---