I know, it's been forever since my last update. In lieu of excuses, let's just get on with it.
Chapter LXII: Tools of the Trade
When children think of toys, objects such as balls, stuffed animals and video games usually come to mind, just to name a few. Adults in the other hand, can have a very different view of the term. Whether it be their profession or just a hobby, everyone has those things that they enjoy working with and would do so more often if time permitted. This includes, but is not limited to, power tools, car parts, computers (whole and otherwise) and all manner of sports memorabilia.
For a certain wizard, this consists of (at least in part) various enchanted items created by his own hand. At a rough average of one every month or two, Sean has accumulated quite the collection of items designed to either save him the effort of casting certain spells or for the benefit of those who are unable to perform such feats themselves. Within the confines of his video vault, behind one of the racks, is a hidden room where Sean stores all of the items not in use at the time. During his infiltration, Jimmy had no idea just how close he came to stumbling upon a gold mine.
First on the list, both chronologically and in significance was the Ring of Sustenance. Influenced directly from Dungeons and Dragons, it allowed Sean to survive on two hours of sleep a night and without food or water before it was officially retired on April 27th, 2008. This, along with the teleportation ring designed to bring Keitaro back home after being sent into orbit (Retired 10/7/07. Thankfully, it did not have to be used as often as Sean feared.) and the anti-hangover necklace (Semi-retired due to Kitsune's waning drinking habit.) just to name two, were intended to make its wearers' lives that much easier. Then again, there are certainly those items with slightly less than serious purposes.
--- Saturday, 3/8/2008 2:10 PM
While meditating, one has the potential to be more aware of their surroundings. Some utilize this to better attune themselves with nature, but for Motoko Aoyama, it allowed her to easily sense a certain wizard drawing near. Granted, picking up Sean's energy signal was no difficult task, considering the time they have lived under the same roof, but this time, there seemed to be something... more to it. She found herself intrigued by this, but she would soon learn that an active investigation or her part would not be necessary--mostly due to him knocking on her door.
"Motoko, may I come in?" Sean asked.
"You may," Motoko responded.
Sean then opened the door to find the swordswoman in her usual meditative pose. "I'm sorry, was I disturbing you?"
"Not at all," Motoko said, standing up. "You would no doubt have good reason for being here."
"Yes, well..." Sean began, clearing his throat. "I was just wondering if you would help me test something I just made."
"I would be happy to," Motoko said.
"Good," Sean said. "Come with me."
Motoko followed her landlord into the hallway, on a path she knew lead to the rooftop platform. "Pardon my curiosity," Motoko asked along the way. "But why are you asking me to assist you? Surely there might be somebody more qualified."
"Well, Shinobu, Keitaro and Naru are doing homework right now and, to be blunt, I trust you with this more than Kitsune and Suu put together," Sean answered.
"Why not test it on yourself?" Motoko asked.
"Because if I do, I won't be completely sure if it works properly or not."
"What could he have planned?" Motoko asked herself as they reached their destination.
"Ah, what a wonderful day for a trial run," Sean said, gazing up into the cloudless sky. Getting down to business, he reached into his pocket, pulled something out and handed it to Motoko. "Here, you'll need to wear this."
"Hmm?" Motoko examined the item she was just given. It looked to be a set of brass knuckles, except it only had three finger holes and each ring was set with what appeared to be a ruby, sapphire and emerald respectively. Of course, like Sean himself, appearances can be deceiving. Regardless, this was definitely not a weapon she was accustomed to, but something told her that wasn't its intended use. At first, she showed reluctance to put it on, but eventually complied, knowing Sean would never let harm come to her or anyone else under his care.
"Are you ready?" Sean asked.
"What will this do?" Motoko asked.
"You'll see," Sean said, his grin reminding Motoko of Suu--and that wasn't a good thing.
"What have I gotten myself into?" Motoko thought as Sean wrapped an arm around her waist, causing her to blush a bit. "What is he--" her thought ended in a gasp as she felt her feet lose contact with the ground. Despite herself, she held onto Sean tightly as they climbed about fifteen feet in the air. It wasn't that she was scared of heights or anything; this would have been unnerving for a lot of people.
"You alright?" Sean asked.
"I'll be fine," Motoko said, though she didn't sound as convincing as she would have liked. "It was just unexpected, that's all. Just don't drop me."
"Of course not," Sean said. "This had better work," he thought. "If it doesn't, she'll have my head." Reaching over, he tapped the red gem, which started to glow.
"What is this?" Motoko thought as a strange energy flowed through her. "This is unlike anything I have ever felt in my life." She was so distracted by this, she didn't notice one small detail until it was staring her in the face--literally.
"So, what do you think?"
"Huh?" Motoko snapped back to reality to see Sean in front of her. This meant that he wasn't holding her up--a fact she was quick to grasp. Instinctively, she braced herself for impact, but soon realized that the ground wasn't rushing up to meet her. "I..." she said, beginning to grasp the situation. "I am floating." She looked at the magical item on her hand for a few moments before glaring daggers at Sean. "You could have told me what this thing did beforehand."
"I could have," Sean said, grinning like an idiot. "But where's the fun in that?"
"I honestly think Kitsune's personality is rubbing off on you," Motoko said.
"Not as much as you think," Sean thought. "Now that the first test is done (and successfully, thank God), time for test number two. Whenever you're ready, touch the blue gem."
Motoko crossed her arms. "Not until you tell me what will happen if I do," she said. "I do not need another scare."
"Fair enough," Sean said. "I was done kidding around anyway. To put it simply, the blue one turns you invisible." With a snap of his fingers, a mirror appeared. "Here, you can see the results--you know what I mean."
Motoko pressed the blue button in an instant, before her mind could tell her otherwise. Once again, Motoko felt energy course through her, though this time it seemed somewhat different--don't ask her how. Through a force of will, she drifted forward to get a better look at where her reflection should have been.
"So it does work," Motoko thought. "I have turned invisible, just like he said I would." Despite herself, an evil grin appeared on her face. "That gives me an idea…"
"Alright, that's two for two," Sean said. "Time for the third. Motoko, turn visible again so we can proceed." After returning the mirror to the nothingness from which it came, he looked where Motoko had been, but saw only air. "Uh, Motoko?" He looked around for any sign of the swordswoman, but found none. "C'mon, this isn't funny!"
All of a sudden, he jolted forward, yelling in mild terror. "Motoko, that's enough!" he said, turning around and holding the back of his neck, where something pointy had made its presence felt.
Chuckling could be heard as Motoko phased back in, completely unarmed. In reality, she had only poked him with a fingernail. "You scare me, I scare you; it is only fair," she said. "I can certainly see why you came to me first."
"No kidding," Sean muttered. "There's no telling what Kitsune or Suu would do if they got their hands on that thing."
Motoko took note of Sean's grave tone just then. "I did not expect him to be so worried about this device's misuse," she thought. "Granted, flight and invisibility together can be quite dangerous in the wrong hands, but still... unless..." Curiosity taking over, and not bothering to wait for Sean to prompt her beforehand, she pressed the green button. Much to her surprise, nothing seemed to happen. "Um, Sean?"
"Yeah?" Sean said.
"I think this last button may be malfunctioning," Motoko said.
"Let me take a look," Sean said. Floating over, he reached toward Motoko's hand in order to examine his latest creation. However, contact was never made, as his hand passed right through hers as thought it was never there. "What the…?"
Most anybody else in Motoko's position probably would have felt faint at this point, but she was merely confused. "How did that happen?" she asked.
"I can think of only one reason," Sean said. Experimentally, he tried to touch Motoko again, first her arm, then her midsection, but failed both times. The only thing that was felt was a slight tingling sensation on Motoko's part where his hand passed through. "Yep, that's what I thought," Sean said. "There's nothing wrong with it at all."
"You mean that is what it is supposed to do?" Motoko asked incredulously.
"Yep," Sean said. "It makes it so that you can pass through solid objects--or vice versa."
"Why would you combine such varied effects into one item?" Motoko asked.
"Because I see it as necessary," Sean said. "Years ago, I considered what I would have as a super power--just one of those 'what if' sort of things, you know? Right away, I chose flight, but as I thought about it further, the others became requirements. The invisibility was so that I didn't cause a scene due to someone seeing me fly by. As for... well..." he motioned toward Motoko and her current condition. "It eliminates the risk of running into cars, birds and low-flying planes."
"I suppose that makes sense," Motoko said.
"I like to think so," Sean said. "Alright, I'll let you go back to what you were doing." He started to descend, but was stopped short by Motoko's voice.
"Is that all?"
"Well, everything works like it's supposed to," Sean reasoned. "What else is there to be done?"
"I think we should test the limits of this remarkable device."
Sean raised an eyebrow. "Something tells me you wouldn't have brought this up if you didn't already have something in mind."
Motoko nodded. "I wish to see how fast I can fly."
"That does sound interesting," Sean said. "What the hey, let's do it. We can't be gone for too long though, or else the other will start wondering where we're at." With that, they soared off to the east in what would eventually become a race to California.
---
Everyone who has played Dungeons and Dragons or similar games knows that creating magical items is a very draining and time-consuming endeavor. It is because of this that Sean's collection is not as large as it might have otherwise been. Of course, after a while, he began seeking out ways to get around this obstacle. One day, when working with Suu, it hit him: capacitors. If he is able to imbue something with pure magical energy, he should be able to use it later on to create items or, in video game terms, restore MP.
This was how the Energy Necklace was conceived. Soon after however, another issue would arise concerning the charging process. Originally, it involved Sean merely wearing it and having it slowly drain from his reserves. The downside to this was that it took a ridiculous amount of time and afterwards, it could never hold a charge for more than a day or two. Another energy source needed to be found…
--- Sunday, 5/11/2008 11:58 AM
"Lunch is ready!" Shinobu called out cheerfully from the kitchen. As she delivered the food to the dining room, the others filed in, none of which shared the cook's enthusiasm. This was in part due to the thunderstorm going on outside which had effectively confined everyone indoors for the duration.
"How can you be so happy on a dreary day like this?" Kitsune asked.
"I don't really mind the rain that much," Shinobu said. Just then, there was a clap of thunder, making her flinch a bit. "And I try not to think about that." As she set the last dish on the table, she saw that everyone had arrived. Well, almost everyone. "Where's Sean?"
"Probably still in his room, working on that battery-thing," Kitsune said.
"I'll go get him," Shinobu volunteered. Along the way, her mind recalled some of the details of Sean's latest project--and the problems it has given him as of late. "I hope he doesn't work himself too hard," she thought.
When she reached Sean's room, she found the door wide open. Shinobu saw this as odd and rightly so, as he always kept it closed (if not locked) whenever he was working. "Sean?" Shinobu called out as she poked her head inside only to discover the room devoid of life.
"Where could he have gone?" she wondered. Her logic reasoned that Sean was still in the dorm. After all, who would go into such god-awful weather of their own accord? Even if he did leave, he would certainly have told her about it beforehand.
Not wanting to waste time searching, Shinobu used her magical skills to find Sean. Granted, her senses were not nearly as attuned as Motoko's, but it was sufficient for detecting life signs. Aside from herself, she found a total of six, which accounted for everyone. (A/N: Keep in mind, this predates Mutsumi moving in by a month and a half.) Five of them formed a ring around the dining room table, while the sixth was located near the roof platform.
Without a second thought, Shinobu made her way upstairs. When she neared her destination, she found her boyfriend partway up the steps to the roof, just out of reach of the pounding rain outside. "What are you doing up here?" she asked. "Lunch is ready downstairs."
"Oh, sorry," Sean said, who was caught by surprise. "I guess I got too wrapped up in my thoughts."
As Sean turned around, Shinobu noticed two necklaces dangling from his fingers. "Did you come up with something?" she asked.
"I think so," Sean said. "It came to me as I watched the storm out there. Here's what I have in mind…"
---
"They should have been here by now," Naru said. "I wonder what's keeping them."
"I wish I knew," Motoko said truthfully, despite the fact she was well aware of Shinobu's magical output.
"I'm hungry," Suu whined.
Kitsune's stomach shared Suu's sentiment. "You think they would mind if we started without them?"
"YOU'RE GOING TO WHAT?" Shinobu's scream could easily be heard from anywhere in the dorm.
"Um…" Keitaro said, looking to the ceiling along with everyone else. "Would that be a yes or a no?"
---
Sean had expected that kind of reaction from Shinobu, but he still flinched due to the sheer volume of it. Then again, who could blame her?
Sean's prior experiments have taught him that raw magical energy is just too unstable to be contained for any extended length of time. He surmised that if he combined it with something else, he might be able to achieve his goal. His first thought was to use blood, but that idea got written off in an instant for obvious reasons.
A more reasonable option (if less gruesome) was electricity. If he used himself as a conduit, it was possible that the resulting mixture of energy could be sent into the capacitor and actually stay there. In short, this meant he was going to get struck by lightning--on purpose, no less.
"Are you even sure this is going to work?" Shinobu asked.
"Of course," Sean said. "Would I be going forward with it if I wasn't?" In truth, he had about as much confidence in his plan as Shinobu. After all, he had practically plucked the idea out of thin air an hour before. Of course, he wasn't about to tell her that.
"I don't know," Shinobu said, not as convinced as Sean would have liked. "It just sounds too risky."
"Don't worry about me; I'll be just fine," Sean said, in part trying to persuade himself as well. "Besides, I'm more afraid of what you might do to me if something did go wrong." It seemed like a joke, but for him, the concern was all too real. "You go on ahead. This shouldn't take long."
Before anyone could stop him, himself included, Sean stepped out into the downpour. When he reached the platform, he tossed one of the necklaces to the side. No sense in blowing both of them up, right? "Here goes nothing," he thought as he rose into the angry skies.
Meanwhile, Shinobu found herself unable to turn away, despite Sean's advise. "Please be safe," Shinobu thought over and over again as she watched her beloved ascend to a height of about thirty feet, the bauble clutched in his hands. Even though she could barely make him out him through the veritable wall of water, she knew that seeing the coming events would not be the issue.
Sean knew that just being up in the air did not make a lightning strike a certainty. Sure, water is as good a conductor as anything, but when it encompasses an area miles in radius, the benefit can be greatly diminished. Something had to be added to bring greater focus to nature's wrath; and what better thing to use than metal? If you were to look closely enough, you could see him conjure up little specks of aluminum, tin, copper and other choice metals, all orbiting around him. From there, it was only a matter of time…
---
Despite all cultural courtesy, the other tenants decided to begin eating without their cook and their landlord, using the logic that it would have been more rude to let Shinobu's cooking get cold right in front of them. During this time, Motoko sensed Sean above her, but only barely gave notice to it, as it has been a regular occurrence over the last year.
Lunch went by like any other, though one particular bolt of lightning drew everyone's attention. The strike was too close, too loud and lasted way too long for comfort.
"Wow," Kitsune said. "That was a big one, wasn't it?"
Everyone quickly returned their focus to their meal, but Motoko's mind was still elsewhere, mostly because Sean's energy spiked at that exact moment. "Please," she thought. "I hope you did not do what I think you did."
---
When it hit, the lightning was so bright, Shinobu was forced to look away from fear of being blinded; a fear eclipsed only by the knowledge that Sean was right in the middle of it. When the light went away, her gaze instantly went skyward and was relieved when she saw that her boyfriend was still there, none the worse for wear.
For Sean, this was certainly one of the most unique experiences of his life--and that was saying something. "Whoa," he whispered, trembling as he stared at the now glowing gem in his hands. "It worked…" It took a little while for that to sink in, but when it did, he didn't hold back. "WOO-HOO!" he cheered, descending back to solid ground near where he had placed the second necklace.
"Are you alright?" Shinobu called out.
"Are you kidding?" Sean asked, not bothering to wonder why she didn't head back downstairs. "That was cool! I'm glad I made two of these." After gently setting the charged capacitor down, he grabbed the empty one and jetted back up for another go. While he did this, Shinobu went inside, shaking her head. Despite everything, this wasn't something she wanted to see a second time.
---
Today, there are a total of six such necklaces. Four of them are fully charged, while two have been recently used and currently await the next thunderstorm.
The final products from the stored energy were two collars; the spiked kind usually worn by Goths. Naturally, they appeared perfectly ordinary, but for Sean, they are proof positive that inspiration can come when you least expect it.
After Sean's first leap into the realm of trans-species magic, even after the unpleasant business that resulted, he found himself wanting to pursue it further. Much to everyone's relief, he decided to make himself the one and only subject. However, this did not necessarily mean they enjoyed seeing the occasional strange animal walk the halls.
Eventually, Sean grew bored of the somewhat monotonous experimentation. The time had come to spice things up a bit. Little did he know what would come of it…
--- Wednesday, 5/12/2010 3:12 PM
"We're home," Shinobu called out as she, along with Suu and Motoko returned from another day at school.
"Hey," Kitsune said, acknowledging their arrival from her seat on the couch. "How was school?"
"Fine," Shinobu said. "Is Sean upstairs?"
"Actually, he's out in the hot spring," Kitsune responded. "And there's something he wants to show you."
"He did not turn himself into a dolphin, did he?" Motoko asked, partially in jest.
"Nope," Kitsune said. "No dolphins, no fish, no sea creatures of any sort."
"Thank you for telling me," Shinobu said as she stated toward the changing room.
"No problem, kiddo." As soon as the blue-haired teen was out of earshot, Kitsune found herself stifling laughter.
"What's so funny?" Suu asked.
"Shinobu's in for a surprise when she get out there."
"I thought you said Sean was not experimenting again," Motoko said, slightly confused.
"I only said it didn't involve fins and gills," Kitsune pointed out.
"So, do you know what he has turned himself into this time?" Motoko asked.
"Of course I do."
"Why did you not tell Shinobu?"
"What, and spoil the surprise?"
---
When Shinobu entered the changing room, her first thought was to change into a towel, but then decided to see what her boyfriend was up to and go from there. As she went through the door to the outside, she was taken aback by who--or perhaps more accurately, what--she saw.
If the creature had been seen in silhouette, it would have looked mostly human. Here and now, the tiger-striped fur, the cat ears and the long tail took precedence. At first, Shinobu could only stare at the cat-thing as it laid on its stomach, sunning itself. Even though its face was concealed by its arms, its identity was no great mystery. "Sean?"
The cat's ears perked at the sound of Shinobu's voice. As it turned onto its back, she instantly recognized Alicia's face, among other things--most notably that the fur did little to hide the normally blonde's womanly features. "Hello," Alicia said, draping her arms over her stomach and gazing at Shinobu which, from her perspective, was straight up. "You want to just stand there all day gaping or are you going to come here and give your kitty a hug?"
Shinobu shook her head to clear the cobwebs from her mind. "One would think I'd be used to this by now," she thought. "I really should stop being so surprised by what he does." She made her way towards Alicia who, by this time, had gotten to her feet.
Without a hint of hesitation, the couple embraced one another like they have so many times before, but for Shinobu, it was somewhat different than usual, for obvious reasons. "Wow," she thought, commenting on how soft Alicia's fur was to the touch. "It feels no nice, I… I…"
Alicia was almost immediately aware of Shinobu's hug growing tighter. Granted, it wasn't one of Suu's death squeezes by any means, but it was noticeable nonetheless. "Is something wrong?" she asked.
Shinobu broke off the hug, if only just barely. When her face came into view, Alicia could see that the younger girl was holding back tears--something she has gotten better at over the years. "It's just that…" Shinobu said. "Your… fur reminds me of the stuffed animals I used to find comfort in when I was little. Back then, they were the only things that could."
"Ah," Alicia said. "Well, you could think of this as an upgrade. Not only am I life-sized, but I also hug back."
Shinobu giggled a bit; which was music to Alicia's ears. "You have a point there."
When the couple finally separated, the tigress took a seat at the edge of the hot spring, an action Shinobu repeated after removing her socks, as she did not wish to get them wet. "So," Shinobu said. "What inspired you this time?"
Alicia shrugged her shoulders. "I just needed a change of pace. I guess it was just a matter of time before I started doing hybrids. So far, the only downside to this form is that the fur tends to make clothing very uncomfortable. All things considering, that may be as minor as it gets."
At some point during Alicia's explanation, Shinobu found herself mesmerized by a part of the cat-girl's anatomy that had been significantly altered when the transformation took place. "Those ears…" she thought. "They're so cute." Slowly and discretely, she rose her hand toward Alicia's head.
As soon as contact was made, the feline flinched, a startled meow escaping her lips. "Do you want me to stop?" Shinobu asked. At any other time or place, she probably would have already.
"No way," Alicia said, beginning to purr as Shinobu continued he ministrations. "This was a good idea," she thought. "A really good idea." A few minutes of contentment went by and another idea sparked in Alicia's mind; one she hoped was a brilliant as the last.
Naturally, Shinobu was surprised when she suddenly felt the small of her back grow warm. Looking over, she saw that it was Alicia's turn to be sneaky, but that still left one question unanswered. "What are you doing?"
"You'll see," the tigress said, a sly grin on her face, but the look in her eyes belied the enjoyment she was receiving from Shinobu still scratching her behind the ears.
Shinobu could feel the warmth slowly spread across her entire body. All the while, she had her eyes shut tight, as she did not want to see her skin glow, should that be the case. Soon, all at once, the heat was gone. At first, when she opened her eyes, she thought nothing had happened. This all changed when her gaze fell on her arm, which was covered in deep blue fur. "What did you do to me?" she blurted out.
"The same thing I did to myself," Alicia replied calmly. With a flick of the wrist she produced a mirror and held it out in front of them. "What do you think?"
As Shinobu looked at her reflection, she saw that she had been given feline features similar to Alicia's--and that she didn't look half bad as a cross-breed. "Wow," she finally said. "I look cute like this, don't you think?"
"Of course," Alicia said. "Then again, my answer is pretty biased. After all, I would probably say the same thing if you had severe cases of both bed head and PMS."
"I suppose you're right," Shinobu said. "You're also right about another thing," she added, squirming a bit. "Fur does make clothes a bit uncomfortable."
"What do you suppose we do about it?" Alicia asked.
It would not take long to remove Shinobu's high school uniform and everything underneath, especially considering it was a team effort. As the last article of clothing was tossed to the wayside, Shinobu took in her newly altered features.
Aside from the fur and those oh-so-adorable ears, she had three whiskers on each side of her face and a long tail that, thankfully, connected to the rest of hey body just above where her underwear had been moments before. She was so fascinated by her hybrid form that she almost didn't hear Alicia speak right next to her.
"It's times like this that remind me why I'm such a cat person--no pun intended," Alicia said. "Though it makes shaving your legs seem kind of pointless, doesn't it?"
"Yeah, no kidding," Shinobu giggled, partially due to Alicia's hand trailing up her back, past her neck, coming to a halt at the top of her head. "Ooh," she said, shuddering a bit. "That does feel nice."
"Told you," Alicia said as Shinobu's hand picked up where it had left off. Soon, the two cats were purring in unison. At some point, Alicia entertained the thought of how silly the scene might have looked should someone walk in on them, but only for a brief moment.
At first, they were content to just sit at the edge of the hot spring, scratching each other behind the ears, but an impulse hit Alicia's brain that changed all that. Without warning, the tigress pounced, their lips meeting before Shinobu's back hit the ground.
Of course, Shinobu was stunned by this turn of events, but quickly got swept into the moment. "You planned that didn't you?" she asked after they broke the kiss.
"No, but it makes me wish I had," Alicia said. "But it does give me an idea."
"Does it now?" Shinobu said. Not even waiting for an explanation--not that it was ever really needed--they engaged in another, more tender kiss. Before long, they found themselves going at it like cats in… never mind.
The very next day, the two Cat-Girl Collars were created, a new fetish was born, and Sean's animal transformation experiments officially came to an end.
End of Chapter of Chapter LXII
Perhaps not my best work, but I felt I needed something in between plot points. Whether I actually get the chapter up sometime this... decade... has yet to be seen, so don't get your hopes up. In regards to my other work in progress, I have decided to wait to upload more until (if and when) I complete it. Until next time, please R&R!