MagiStream

'Come on...work.' he thought as sweat dripped down his brow. A pitch black tail twitched irritably behind him. He felt his eyes itch and did not see as his cobalt blue irises slowly faded to baby blue and his pupils became slitted.

The dimly lit area suddenly seemed brighter, the shadows fading and each detail becoming clearer. He had only seen the tree's silhouettes moment's ago and now he could see every grove within its bark. He let out a small growl of frustration.

“Almost there...” he muttered as he closed his eyes in concentration. Focusing on his goal, he felt the strange movement of his muscles and noted that it seemed like he was finally shifting.

When the feeling passed, he opened his eyes and looked down at his body, taking notice of its changes... or lack thereof. He was still human. Or at least he thought he was.

He attempted to run a hand through his hair but was stopped by two things: 1) his hand was blocked by what felt like... cat ears? And 2) his hand and part of his arm had changed into a giant feline paw.

A shrill hawk's cry broke through the silence and he unconsciously slid into a crouching position. The sound of beating wings echoed in the distance and soon a large hawk perched itself atop a branch a few meters away from him. The bird watched him with unblinking amber eyes.

“Unusual color for a hawk's eyes.” he commented to himself. The hawk watched him with interest but he turned his back to it and went back to trying to shift completely.

In the distance, he could hear his mother's voice calling him. “Henri, its dinner time!” she shouted into the open space known as their back yard, no doubt thinking that her son wouldn't dare venture into the dark woods close to their home.

He looked to the clearing he had crossed from his house and into the forest he was currently in. The sun had already set low in the west. He heard his stomach growl and decided he would stop for now and eat.

A fat hare stopped mere meters from him, nibbling idly on a patch of grass, and he could not resist crouching and stalking slowly up to it.

He unknowingly stepped on a twig, causing it to snap beneath his feet. The hare flinched at the sound and ran for safety in another direction. His animal instincts kicked in and he took off after it, not noticing as he seamlessly shifted from boy to beast.

Pitch black paws beat against the ground in a steady rhythm and soon, large jaws swooped up the small creature in a deadly embrace.

The hawk that had been watching him stared in shock at what it was currently seeing. What should have been a boy holding a live hare was now a large panther cub with a bloodied hare caught in its jaws.