Hello everyone! I had a ton of ideas bouncing around so you get a quick second chapter at the expense of my sleep. I typed this up on my phone mostly, so any spelling mistakes should be fixed some time tomorrow (which will be the 26th of september for future reference).

I reached home right as the clock struck three. I knew my mom wouldn't get off of work today until five, which meant I had two hours to think up an excuse. The bite had put small holes in the leg of my jeans, which was slightly blackened from the pokemon's body heat, but lickily there was no blood, which made my job easier.

I kicked off my shoes, leaving them by the front door. My mom insisted that everyone who visited do this as well, as she didn't have the time to vacuum the dirt from people's shoes on a regular basis, nor the money to hire someone to do it. She had never asked me to, although I would have if she did. I supposed she just didn't want to force more stress on me.

I made my way to my room, moving slowly, lost in thought. I often dreamed of a future where I had succeeded in life, coming home wealthy and triumphant, moving mom out of the falling-apart house and into a grand mansion just for her.

I sat down on my bed. There was an oppressive stillness in the air. I felt a vague sense of wrongness as a sudden exhaustion wracked my mind. I fought it just long enough to wonder what was happening, and then my eyes shut.

The being floated several hundred feet above the town, savoring the thoughts of thousands. It selected two of the minds, a bully and a victim, one in the empty but extravagant mansion and the other in the cluttered but humble dwelling. "Oh what a joy this would be to watch!" It murmured, not that anyone could hear it. A thought crossed the being's mind. Would anyone miss these mortals? The thought was brushed away as quickly as it had arrived. What did it matter? They're only humans after all, for now at least. The being began gathering energy, preparing to begin the main event.

I dreamed of strange, cold places, of giant people the size of houses with massive hands that grabbed at me while I ran for my life.

I awoke, but did not yet open my eyes. The instant I could think, I knew something was utterly wrong. My body hurt all over, and at the same time even the sound of my quiet breath was alien to my mind. I kept my eyes closed, afraid of the unknown, both within and without.

I tried to gather what information I could without looking. I felt as though I might cry. What had happened to me? I didn't seem to have hands, my limbs ending in barely articulated extremities. I definitely had a fifth limb if a different kind, a tail maybe?

I forced myself to look. I held back tears as my suspicions were confirmed. I was most definitely no longer human. I was small, I could tell by the size of the berries in the bush a few feet in front of me. I had four legs, ending in stubby paws, as well as a tail, mostly brown but tipped with white. That, along with the small mane of white around my neck, lead me to one logical, impossible conclusion. I had become an eevee?

I struggled to my feet, the motions unnatural, forced. I guessed I was just lucky that unconscious functions like breathing were functioning normally. Now that I was standing, I took a second to survey my surroundings. I was in a small clearing, the density of the trees surrounding me indicating that this was a very old forest, and that I was a long ways from home. I bit my cheek, and quickly released as pain flared. Not dreaming then. Tears came upon me, as I could no longer hold them back. I flopped over, back onto the ground once more. What had done this to me?

With a pang of despair and renewed fear I thought of my mom. How long has I been gone already? Was she already looking for me, in vain? We had lost so much already, and now each other. I longed for her presence, my one bastion of safety in a turbulent world, but it was not to be.

My next thoughts were calmer, my mind turning to reason for an answer. I had no clue where I was, so I had no way to return home. Even if I could, I could hardly go home like this. I also had no clue what had turned me into an eevee, so I had no clue if or how I could be changed back. This left one option: survive and look for answers.

I gazed up at the sky through the trees. The sun was low in the sky. I had no clue if it was rising or setting, god knows how long I was out for. My body still ached, as though it's muscles had never been used before. Quite possibly they hadn't. I doubted that a clearing was the safest place to be, I had to find somewhere more sheltered.

I stood up for a second time. I had to start somewhere, and soon. I picked a direction at random and began to walk, sparing an anxious glance behind me as I went. The forest was completely pathless, only small disturbances betraying signs of other living things. For some time I worried that I would become turned around and end up back where I began, until I came upon a small pond. I finally had a landmark I could use!

My temporary joy was dampened at the sight of my reflection. I looked no different than any other eevee I had seen, yet I could tell that it was indeed me that I saw. I was torn from my thoughts by a distant cry, somewhere off to my left. I stood still for a second. Could that be a predator? No, I decided. It sounded more shocked than anything. Another moment's thinking, then I set off in the direction of the noise.

I walked for maybe a minute before I saw it. A sheer drop ahead of maybe a hundred feet before me, and a valley full of trees so dense that the ground could not be seen. "Is someone there?", a painfully familiar voice called out. I walked to the edge and looked down. Pressed against the cliff face, feet barely finding purchase in a small outcrop a few feet below the top, was a Growlithe.