Legends ran in my family that one of my ancestors once did something to earn the wrath of a silver Ninetales. They were cursed with the misfortune of having a child turn into a Pokemon once every few generations after they had come-of-age. Of course, I had never really believed in such legends, but couldn't dismiss it completely, either. After all, legends had to come from somewhere, right? So they had to have some basis in reality. Or it could just be a tale made up to keep the children in line so that they don't misbehave until they have 'come-of-age'. But I could never be sure.

When I was younger, I was fully convinced that it was true. So I went around asking my relatives. My grandparents, uncles and even the cousins swore that it was true; despite there not being a record of such a thing happening in the last three generations. I was too afraid to ask my parents; they always seemed too scary and unpredictable, so I had saved them for the last. But my grandma was always supportive:

"Relax sweetie, even if you turn into a Pokemon one day we'll take good care of you! You won't be lonely, dear!" She'd smile and tell me.

"But what if I turn into a Magikarp or something?" I'd ask.

"Then you can reside in the Magikarp tank. We'll buy you the biggest tank and the best PokeBlocks!" She'd laugh and reassure me. I was only ten back then, and life was mostly sunshine and rainbows. But of course, the skies never stay that way. Clouds brew and in my life, the people that most accurately represented the clouds were my own parents. I had never seen them having a normal conversation except when they were in the same room at night making weird noises. I often had to work as the messenger around the house. But they seemed to have very high expectations of me; telling me that one day I'd have to become something great to support the family. But no, I couldn't be a Pokemon trainer, because in their own words, 'it was too dangerous'. Being young and afraid, I went along with everything they wanted. But eventually, it became too overwhelming; around the age of twelve if I recall correctly. It was then I had started wishing that the curse was indeed real and I could become some kind of strong, powerful Pokemon. My parents would love me more then, right? So one day I had asked mom if the curse was really true. What I had gotten was this stone-cold response:

"Then you leave and never show your face around here again. You've brought enough shame to the family already."

That had dug deep, and like scars do, those words stayed. Eventually, I got too busy with school and forgot about the curse altogether; chalking it off as something made up to keep the children in line or give them hope in times of despair. Just some cruel fairy tale made up to toy with the minds of the young ones. I already had enough problems in life to bother with some curse that may or may not be true; my grades were dropping, I was grounded after school hours, I was supposed to study so that I could get into some high profile college after finishing high school, my parents couldn't stand each other and the only thing that they agreed on was that I was the worst person in the world.

Like all things in life, I got accustomed to it; and by some miracle, I managed to graduate high school with above average grades. It didn't look too bleak; with some luck and enough hard work I could hopefully get into a good college. I had already hit sixteen; it was time I became more responsible as a person.

Then one autumn morning, it finally happened.

I slept with my blanket all year round, it gave me a sense of comfort and protection from the outside world. This morning, the blanket felt uncomfortably warm, and my clothes felt itchy. The seasons here in Johto were fairly modest, at least in the city I lived in. I never had the chance to explore the region like a trainer. I tried to dismiss the feeling and go back to sleep, but it was far too uncomfortable. I usually slept until noon to avoid facing my hot-tempered mother in the morning and spent the rest of the time studying and doing basic chores. I had to make up for things somehow. But this morning something felt off. Did I catch a fever? I wondered and rubbed my face, trying to stave off the sleep from my eyes to get a better sense of my surroundings and myself. My hand felt unusually soft. Sluggishly, I opened my eyes, and I was tucked too far inside the blanket. It was a wonder that I hadn't suffocated. Yawning, I readjusted myself and stretched, hoping to start the morning early for once. Then I finally noticed it.

My hands were covered in brown furs.

I almost screamed before covering my mouth. The shape of my mouth felt weird. Smaller and pointed. It felt like the entirety of it was covered in soft fur, too. I took another good look at my hands again, hoping to find out that I was just hallucinating before and the rest were my imagination. But no, a good look at my hands revealed that they were definitely covered in brown furs, and cream-colored tufts surrounded my wrists like some sort of bracelets.

I immediately recognized those pair of hands. They belonged to a Lopunny.

I shook my head and the sides of it felt warm. I ran my hands along my face and there they were, the large, ultra-sensitive ears that served as tell-tale signs. I tried to breathe slowly. This has to be a dream, right? I tried to look at the clock across the bed, on the desk where it resided. I knew that one couldn't process writings properly in a dream. The dials pointed towards 07:23; with the second hand hovering over 16. That was odd. I had mild myopia. I shouldn't be able to discern the second hand this precisely. I had prescription glasses but almost never wore them unless absolutely necessary. Rubbing my hands over my eyes confirmed that I wasn't wearing them, indeed. Do Lopunny have better eyes? Or maybe my new body was free of disorders, assuming that it wasn't a dream or some messed-up imagination.

I covered my eyes again, blocking out the outside world. What was happening? Was the curse real after all? That can't be it. Why now, of all times? I had turned sixteen very recently; I had my entire life -

I had turned sixteen.

Then it hit me. Maybe that was what 'coming-of-age' meant in the legend. You come of age when you become an adult. Sure, actual laws varied across the world, but a sixteen year old human was basically an adult. That'd explain why I had been immune all these years. I sighed, slowly uncovering my eyes. If this was a dream or my imagination, things should be back to normal by now. But no, a glance at my hands and then downwards revealed that I had them all covered in brown furs; and my body was noticeably smaller than before. I remembered that a Lopunny had the average height of 3 feet and 11 inches, according to the PokeDex. The clothes I had worn to sleep last night no longer fit my body, it looked like I was bundled inside them. Slowly, I tried to move around and get out of the blanket properly. This body felt strange, almost like I was learning to walk again. I also felt somewhat lightheaded. Once that settled down, I slowly got out of the bed and stood up. My pajamas dropped down to the floor. They no longer were a fit for my lean waist. Hesitantly, I got rid of the other articles, too. I really hated undressing, it made me feel uncomfortable and unsafe. But I had furs now, so I was not really naked, right? My feet felt surprisingly strong and nimble. With them, I made my way towards the dressing mirror. I almost tripped over with my first few steps, but got used to them soon. Then I admired myself in the mirror. It was a mesmerizing sight.

I had never seen a Lopunny in person before, only in pictures, the television and the PokeDex at the school library. But here I was, looking at myself, a Lopunny, in the mirror. I had to say I looked rather pretty, rather effeminate, as well. I quickly checked my body to make sure that I was still a male and the curse didn't affect my sex. To my relief, I was still a male. It didn't really matter much at that moment, Lopunny had no sexual dimorphism. An unskilled trainer wouldn't be able to tell them apart without a PokeDex or training on this particular subject. Still, I feared that I might get prayed upon by those individuals with 'particular' tastes. I sighed, feeling frustrated. What should I do now? Why did I have to be a Lopunny? Why not something with special talents like a Kadabra or an Ampharos? I heard tales of an Ampharos in charge of the Olivine Lighthouse. They must be talented, right? With those kinds of natural talents I could easily get into a college of medicine or engineering, like my parents had always wanted.

Then something hit me again.

I no longer had to do any of that. I was no longer a human. I no longer had to put up with the strange expectations from my parents. Suddenly, an overwhelming feeling washed over me. Was it a sense of freedom? Fear? Bewilderment? I knew not. But I knew what I had to do next; I had to get away from here. That's what mother had told me long, long ago, right? "Have it your way, mother." I silently whispered and turned away from the mirror, covering my face again, this time for comfort. I had to get away as far as possible from here and never come back.

Once the decision was made, the rest was easy. My new ears were quite sensitive, I could easily pick up faint noises all the way across the house. With ears this size, I shouldn't be surprised. From the faint sound of snoring, I could tell that mom was still asleep and without any other man-made sound, I could be sure that dad had already left for work. Suddenly, I felt thankful for the new body. Still, it'd take some time to get used to this body and the sense of being naked. I couldn't run around out in the wild with oversized human clothes without sticking out like a sore thumb. Besides, Lopunny were fairly rare in Johto. I was sure I would attract a lot of unwanted attention from humans and Pokemon alike. I had to be really careful.

With uncertainty, excitement and fear chipping away at my mind, I attempted to make some decisions. Was there anything in the room that I could use? No, nothing. I looked at the clock again and then various notes posted on the wall. I could read just fine, so I hadn't forgotten my old language or anything. But right now that wasn't going to be very helpful unless I ended up being captured by some trainer. The idea sounded quite uncomfortable. I tried to shake my head in an attempt to snuff the idea out.

In the end, I just decided to leave a final message and leave. But with my new hands-turned-paws, I could barely grasp a pen properly, let alone write anything meaningful without it looking all squiggly. Frustrated, I grabbed the bottle of ink from the desk and smashed it into bits by slamming it. I felt afraid that I would get hurt from glass shards, but the furs seemed to have a protective function, as I felt little to no pain. Black ink was splattered across the desk, and that was my intent. I soaked up both my paws and planted them firmly on the wall the desk was placed against.

There they were - the pawprints of a Lopunny, My final mark on this dreadful household.

I was swiftly alerted to the sound of moving footsteps across the house. I must've woken mom up with all these mischief. Panic surged over me once again. What do I do now? I can't let her see me like this. I can't let her see the mess I made. Instinctively, I rushed towards the traditional-styled wooden windows that opened horizontally and swung my leg at them. Lopunny were supposed to have strong legs.

As I leaped out through the window, I felt a sense of doubt. Was I doing the right thing?

The doubt vanished almost instantaneously as I landed on my feet and onto the soft grass. I was finally free. The fresh morning breeze of Ecruteak City hit me in the face, and it was soothing. Gazing at the sun, I made some quick calculations in my head and began sprinting towards the Burned Tower, hoping to get there without attracting too much attention. It was mostly abandoned; it would make for a temporary new home until I could figure out what to do with my new life.

"Thank you, Ninetales." I muttered in my head as I ran. This was no curse.

This was the most blessed moment of my life.