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I had always been more of a cat person than a dog person.  Its not that I do
not like dogs, it's just them and me do not always see eye to eye.  Especially
the little dogs, it always seems the smaller a dog the worse its temperament.

I was thinking about this because my girlfriend announced, "I'm thinking of
getting a cat."

It was one of those statements she often pulled out of the air.

"Hmmm," I replied in my usual way I did as I watched the television.

"Do you have any preference?" she asked.

It was one of those trick questions.  She would ask, I would respond and my
answer would be filed under 'surplus information' with so many of my other
opinions.

"Not really," I said, knowing that it would not matter anyway.

She nodded and went back to flipping through her magazine.

The following day I arrived home and discovered she had re-arranged the
furniture in the lounge.  I began sliding things back into position.

"You haven't been casting again?" I asked, pausing to scrape some wax off the
table top.

"It was just a little one," she replied from the kitchen.  "I was seeing what
sort of cat to get."

"You need to cast a spell to get a cat?" I asked.  Sometimes it was hard living
with someone who fancied themselves to be a witch.

"Well, to find one that was most suitable," she said defensively poking her
head from the kitchen.

I blinked in surprise as I popped the patch of wax free, but left a scrape on
the wooden table.  I sighed and left it until later, heading to the bedroom, I
needed to get out of my work clothes.

I hated wearing a tie, it always felt like I was being choked.  I pulled it
off, and then began to fumble with the buttons on my shirt.  They were always a
pain to undo, today even more so.  I managed to get two undone and the rest I
ripped free with a growl of disapproval.  My fingers did not want to work on my
belt either.  It took me almost a minute to get it undone and I wiggled out of
my trousers.  

At least now I was naked.  I shook myself, I hated wearing clothes sometimes.  
I stopped myself.  Now that was a strange thought.

I started to take a step forward, and then gave a groan.  Pain ran up my spine
and I fell forward, managing to put an arm out, I caught a glimpse of my
twisted hand before I hit the bed, bounced once and rolled onto the floor.

"Oh gods..." I managed, breathing in as another wave of pain hit and I
screamed.  "Help me!"

There was no response from the kitchen, not that I cared anyway, I was too
concerned with the awful cracking and popping that seemed to be happening all
over.  I knew it was my bones, I could feel them changing.  My shoulders
shifted as my legs shortened, by feet lengthening.  My breathing was ragged and
I could feel my internal organs shifting as my ribcage swelled.

A spear of pain shot from the base of my spine and something told me it was a
tail.  I tilted my head, watching bones forming from thin air before being
wrapped with a sheath of flesh that extended from my body, exposed muscles
being covered by a thin layer of skin which lightened and darkened into
different colours.

My face started to shift next, my muffled groans deepening as I felt changes
deep within my throat, my lips pushing out as my nose seemed to rotate upwards.  
My ears slid up the sides of my head as my hair seemed to disappear strange by
strand, darker bands spreading over my skin as I let out a rumbling moan.

The awful pain eased, only to be replaced a moment later by a burning
sensation, all over my skin what felt like hundreds, if not thousands, of tiny
ant bites.  I rolled on the floor in an effort to scratch myself, claws
emerging from my fingertips as I felt an ache in my jaw.

Then, just as suddenly as it started, it was gone.

I sat, confused on the floor, almost panting as I braced myself for something
else.  Nothing seemed to happen.  

I tried to pull myself up onto two legs and promptly fell to the floor with a
loud thump.  I tried again; this time stepping up on the edge of the bed, about
to reach back when I found myself wondering why, four legs was more natural for
me.

Something caught my eye and I spun around, noticing the full length mirror.  A
fully grown tiger looked back at me.  I paced back and forth, my white tufted
tail twitching.  I knew it was wrong, but also it was so natural.

There was a noise from the doorway and I spun around, padding silently out the
hall and to the lounge.  I could see the human sitting on the couch, her back
towards me.  She was familiar for some reason.  Effortlessly I leapt forward,
clearing the back of the couch and landing on the floor in front of it before
circling back and flopping down on the cushions.  I pressed my large head into
her lap, demanding scratches and attentions.  She rubbed at the base of my ears
with one hand and under my chin with the other and I purred.

"Mmm... a big kitty," she murmured to herself as she stroked the tiger, making
a mental note next time to check the size requirements on the spell...