One of the more important things in my life happened some months after I had turned ten. It started out as yet another normal day, and like all the days with something special to them, it came apparent at breakfast.
"Today we'll try something completely different", the old druid said. But that was all he seemed willing to say until we walked out into the woods and stopped in that same glade with the flat rock in the middle.
"Now tell me...", he said and turned to face me. "...have you ever felt like there's something inside you that isn't really you? Like another consciousness that occasionally tries to get out."
At first it seemed to me like he was joking or something, it didn't seem to make any sense that he would ask me something like that after six years. Two seconds later the answer struck me like a lightning bolt. I remembered what had happened on that boat that took me away from Auberdine. But how could the old druid know about that? After all, it had been only a momentary feeling as far as I knew.
"Yeah...once", I answered, hoping to get an explanation.
"I see..."
Then the serious look on his face melted into a smile.
"In that case, there's an excellent chance that you have the potential to assume an animal form."
Again I was stunned. I hadn't expected this.
"You mean...to transform?"
"Yes. But before you can do that, you must search yourself for that other entity. Find it, and release it. When you do, it will feel as though it's trying to take control of you. When it does, don't resist it. Surrender yourself to it and you will transform."
I pondered his instructions for a while. Then I began searching for that something I was supposed to find. It didn't take me five seconds to find it. I gave it a little poke and it woke up. Then, things started to happen.
It was an odd feeling overally. "As if it was trying to take control of my body" was quite an accurate description. I was about to relax and give in to it, when I realized something and hit the brakes. I managed to stop it.
"How do I know what I'll turn into?", I asked from the old druid.
"That...depends on the force you searched for. Some druids have many of them, and some only have one. The only way to know what forms they will take is by testing. Go ahead, I'll be right here in case something goes wrong."
This time it took me even less time to call upon that force inside me. And then I let it out.
It is very hard to describe what transforming feels like. You can literally feel your body deforming and then forming again into something else and yet, at the same time it's almost as though you were watching yourself from outside, not really being a part of the act. And the most amazing thing is, it feels like it takes several dozen seconds, although in reality, it only lasts for a second or two.
When the surge of energy the transformation caused in my body faded away, I took a few quick breaths and tried to get a feel to my new form. The first thing I realized was that I no longer had hands and feet, just four furry paws. And a tail. Second came the senses. I quickly realized that my senses had been greatly enhanced. I could smell and hear a lot more than before, and even my eyesight was improved.
After taking a quick look at myself, I came to the conclusion that I was a black-furred cat-animal of some sort.
"Ah, I see you make a fine panther", I heard the old druid say.
"I'm sure you can entertain yourself for quite a while, but I'll still be expecting you back for lunch, as usual. Use this time to learn about your new form."
I tried to answer him that I approved, but only managed to let out what sounded like a small friendly growl. I hadn't realized that I couldn't speak our language as a cat. He smiled.
"I'll take that as a yes", he said and walked back towards the cottage.
I always thought that walking on four feet must be quite hard compared to doing so with just two, but it turned out I was wrong. Or maybe I had some sort of natural talent for it. In any case, in less than ten minutes, I was dashing through the woods at a speed higher than anything I'd achieved before. My own strength and speed amazed me. By the time I returned to the cottage for lunch, I had honestly began to doubt if my natural humanoid form was any more real than this...for a moment I felt almost as if I was actually a cat by nature, not an elf. I realized I didn't know how to transform back. I had my doubts and guesses about it, but I didn't feel like experimenting with my own body, so I scratched the door until the old druid let me in.
Transforming back proved to be as simple as reversing the process by pushing away the animal aspect and hibernating it inside myself, ready to be called upon later.
That afternoon and evening we skipped our usual schedule and talked about transformations. I learned about a number of different forms that druids are known to have assumed in the past. Some of them were quite unique, such as the story of some druid who had managed to transform into a deer. Eventually we got to talking about the details of the transformation process, as I hadn't quite grasped everything yet.
"So...why do some druids have forms that others don't?"
He re-adjusted himself on his big chair and answered:
"That's actually one of the things that is still under research. What has been found out so far, however, is that each one of us possesses his or her inner totemic powers from birth and some suggest that they could be inherited from our parents, just like any other natural talent or trait. So you might say that every boy or girl who becomes a druid has had his or her possible forms defined before that person even became fully aware of his or her own existence."
It took me a while to think over what he had said and try to understand it all. As I was organizing my thoughts on the matter, gave me a book from the shelf.
"If you're so interested in this, you'll find plenty of information from this book."
I held it in my hands as if it was some kind of holy relic. He saw the look on my face.
"Ah well, I guess you can spend the rest of the evening reading that if you want. But don't forget, we'll start tomorrow morning like any other, so be sure to get enough sleep."
After I had went to my spot outside, instead of taking my usual bath, I was immersed in the book the old druid had given to me. After a while, I couldn't stop myself from doing something I hadn't done before; experimenting with my powers on my own. I transformed into a panther again. Then I went over to the pond and looked at my reflection on the water and saw something I hadn't realized before. I was just a cub. Then again, I was a child, so it seemed to make sense. Before going to sleep, I trotted circles around the backyard, just to enjoy myself.
Indeed, that was one of those days that changed my life.
