Hazel Blackwood looked down at the scrap of paper in her hand, checking the address on it, making sure she was in the right place. The quaint shop in front of her seemed so ordinary and unassuming, it hardly seemed like the sort of place she’d find someone to teach her magic. A witch by blood, she was still new to the ways of potions and spellcraft, and took a bit of gentle nudging by her family to seek out someone to teach her. Stepping closer, she peered at the wooden sign above the door, a witch riding a broomstick over a rose-shaped moon, “I guess this is the right place…”

       Slowly pushing the door aside, she heard the jingle of a bell above her head, announcing her arrival. The inside of the cottage was warm and welcoming, the faint smell of spice on the air, shelf after shelf of strange items stretching out before her. Her eyes danced from item to item as she stepped further into the store, trying to guess the purpose of each spellbook and potion bottle, what the strange brass instruments might be for. The sound of footsteps on the stone floor startled Hazel out of her thoughts, a tall figure stepping out from behind a stack of books.

       “Ah, Hazel, welcome! I’ve been expecting you,” the voice was warm and welcoming, “I’m Evie, and I hope I’ll be helping you with your magic.” Evie was the perfect image of a witch, from her pointed hat to her flowing black dress, both accented in orange, perfectly matching her hair. Hazel couldn’t help feel a little out of place compared to her, dressed as she was in a casual sweater and jeans.

       “H- how did you?” Hazel began, a little perplexed, trying to remember if she recognised Evie from somewhere.

       “Ah, normally it’s a little trick I’ve picked up, but in your case, your familiar sent a letter ahead - it’s not every day we get a message from a dragon. And don’t worry, this outfit is all for show, real witches can wear anything… and yes, that was a trick,” she added with a wink.

       “Zookie did? Oh, um, thank you. I hope I’m not interrupting or anything,” that was one mystery solved, at least, though Hazel was still a little surprised by the personal welcome. What else did Evie know about her?

       “Sorry, I don’t mean to tease, and please don’t worry - this shop exists to help people, however we can. Sometimes, that’s a little more… physical, but in your case, we’d love to help you with your magic. Now, please, this way; I’ve got some items to show you, I’m sure you’ll love…”

       “Um, okay,” Hazel quickly followed along as Evie almost disappeared through the shelves around her, effortlessly navigating her way through the dizzying maze of artefacts around her. Finally, the pair stopped in a circular clearing of sorts in the store, a dizzying array of runes and symbols carved into the floor. Shelves and cabinets encircled them, stacked high with items: wands of different shapes and materials, a few propped up staves, crystal balls (both smooth and faceted), and a multitude of stranger items.

       “Have you ever heard the phrase, ‘the wand chooses the witch’?” Evie asked, turning back to face Hazel, tucking a length of rough-hewn wood, wire twisted around the bark-covered handle.

       “S- something like that, yeah,” Hazel replied, looking back between Evie and the wands on one of the shelves, wondering if one was her own.

       “Well, it’s a lie… mostly. Truth is, witches can make use of all sorts of items as a focus for their spells. Some work a little better for different magic, or different witches, but they’re tools just like anything else. They help us draw on the magic within us, becoming an extension of our body, channelling the energies outwards. Why don’t you pick something to start, see how it feels for you.”

       “How can I choose?” Hazel asked, feeling lost as she glanced from item to item. A wand? An orb? A bracelet?

       “Don’t think too hard, just pick something that seems to call to you.”

       “Oh, okay…” closing her eyes for a moment, Hazel spun herself around, resolving to pick the first thing she noticed. Opening her eyes, she immediately noticed a golden necklace in front of her: a crescent moon of golden segments, interspaced with stones of brilliant blues and reds.

       “Ah, wait, not that o-” Evie called, but it was already too late, Hazel already fastening the necklace around her neck, looking back at Evie with alarm. “Oh, I meant to say, some of the items here are a bit more… magical than others.”

       “What? Is it okay? What’s going to happen?” Already, Hazel could feel a warmth spreading from the necklace, weighing heavily on her chest. A warm tingle started to spread, her skin glowing beneath. Reaching up, she could feel her skin growing softer under her touch, a fine layer of golden fur starting so spread down over her chest. Yelping slightly in surprise, she drew her hand away, only to see it was glowing as well. Her fingers felt strangely numb, starting to swell, becoming wider as her palm grew wider. The same golden fur covered the back of her shrinking fingers, patches of tough skin forming on her fingertips and across her palm, her hand looking more and more like a paw with every passing second.

       “We, er, bought that one from a merchant in Egypt… apparently it belonged to a sphinx, and I guess it still carries some of her energy,” Evie fretted a little, watching as more of Hazel changed, the fur spreading up.

       “So I’m becoming a sphinx?” Hazel found herself flushing red with embarrassment, it was just her luck to pick the one item that would change her body. Her skin tingled as more of the fur spread over her, reaching up one arm and starting to creep down the other.

       “Basically? Yeah…”

       “Oh,” was all Hazel could reply, flexing the fingers on her other hand as it changed to match the first, her nails glinting in the light as they tapered into curved claws. Something else was changing too, the feeling of muscle and bone pushing out from her shoulder blades, her skin stretching out, straining against the fabric of her clothes. Reaching back, her new claws ripped effortlessly through her sweater, only making her blush redder as it slipped over her shoulders, freeing the growing wings from her back.

       She could feel the weight of them as they unfurled, new muscles and nerves growing across them, the pin-prick of each growing feather emerging from her body. Tentatively, she stretched them out, reaching up to the rafters. Drawing them back down, she yelped as the rush of air against them lifted her from the floor, only to crash down on her rear moments later.

       “I’m sorry, I’m sorry…” Hazel cried, trying to pick herself up, wings crashing into the shelves behind her, knocking racks of wands to the floor. Another yelp as a sharp pain pressed into the base of her spine, something else starting to force its way out of her body, a growing tail pushing down against her waistband as it freed herself. Spinning herself onto her side, hearing another crash above her, she watched as the long tail of a lion stretched out behind her, black tuft flicking this way and that.

       “Don’t worry, we can fix this,” Evie called back, in between grabbing armfuls of crystal balls before Hazel’s wings could know them to the ground, "though I wasn't expecting any wings..."

       The fur continued to spread down her legs, her thighs growing larger, straining under her shorts as new muscles bulged into her soft curves. Her feet tensed up under her, bones and joints popping as her legs shifted into a shape more used to walking on all fours. Her feet stretched out, toes growing thick and wide at the end of them, forming the hind paws of a lion, sharp claws scratching against the carved floor.

       The prickling feeling spread up her neck, spreading over her blushing face. Panicking a little, Hazel reached her hands to her face, bracing herself to feel her jaw starting to push out into a feline muzzle. To her relief, her skin remained unchanged, still smooth under the tough pads of her hands. There was a twinge in her jaw, teeth shifting slightly, her tongue stretching out slightly in her mouth. Curious, she flicked her wider tongue inside her mouth, running across the sharp teeth of a lion’s. Gazing into her reflection in a crystal ball Evie had been too late to save, Hazel pulled her mouth wide, staring at the mouth full of sharp teeth, blushing even redder at the sight of them.

       Hazel’s ears started to twitch, shifting upwards on her face and dragging her glasses awkwardly with them. Paws desperately holding the glasses steady on her face, Hazel watched as her ears rose out of her hair, round and furry to match the rest of her body. The glow from the necklace faced, the sphinx’s energies now passed onto Hazel, whether the young witch wanted to or not.

       “Hey, you didn’t tell me we were getting another sphinx,” a voice called from above, Hazel looking up to see a feline face peering down from the rafters.

       “Don’t mind Phoibe,” Evie reassured Hazel, gently placing a hand on one of Hazel’s furred shoulders, “she just gets a little jealous at times.”

       “So-” Hazel started to say, awkwardly pulling herself back upright, getting used to the feeling of her transformed legs - and desperately trying not to knock into the shelves again, “so, what now?” she asked, a paw batting against the necklace, “can you change me back?”

       “Don’t ask me,” came the unhelpful voice of Phoibe, “I’m from Greece…”