Deep within the lush and beautiful countryside of the Johto region, there was a shrine that dated back from a few hundred years ago. There had been many stories about the shrine and it was a large part of the region's rich history. Though many of the rumors were quite… strange. The most curious of them was the rumor that the shrine was not built by humans, but by Pokemon. In fact, the shrine was said to be a place of sanctuary for Pokemon and humans were forbidden from it.

Very few records dating before the 1900s existed of this place, though those that did all had accounts of people going to the shrine’s location and simply vanishing. During the early 1920s, a group of foreign explorers went to explore the location. Unlike the folktales they were told, they found nothing out of the ordinary outside of a shrine that was slowly being reclaimed by nature. Though when asked for details, the explorers had trouble recalling exactly what they saw, a few acting a bit absentminded. Despite the claims the shrine was safe, the rather superstitious residents of Johto have honored the legends and have avoided going there to this day.



Enter Alex, aspiring pokemon trainer on his journey to “catch them all” as they say, he has arrived in Johto and has been staying in Ecruteak City for the past couple of days to rest and prepare for the next leg of his journey across Johto. He stopped by the pokemart and was shopping when he overheard some teenagers speaking of a shrine a good ways away from the city. “Dude you hear about that supposedly cursed shrine that everyone’s scared of?” his compatriot looked at him and nodded. “Yeah, of course, I have been wanting to check it out and maybe get a picture there cause everyone seems pretty spineless to me bro. I mean it’s just some abandoned old shrine. What's so scary about it?” It was then that an elderly woman came up to the two boys and gave them an earful. “You two should really reconsider, that place is not only sacred, but if you were to trample on its ground you’ll without a doubt face divine punishment!” While this scene played out Alex brought his stuff up to the counter to pay for it and quickly got going as he now had a location to check out on his pokemon journey.



“Perhaps there’s a rare pokemon or two at that shrine.” He thought aloud to himself as he walked out of Ecruteak and into the wilderness where his journey would take him to a place that would completely change his life. The trek was a long one as he traversed through trees and bushes all of which made for a fairly rough thicket due to the overgrowth and lack of any particular path being cared for over the years. He stumbled and occasionally got his clothing snagged on stray branches or thorns which took a couple seconds to untangle but eventually he saw the shape of something unlike the vegetation and plant life that seemed to flourish out here, a small humble building that looked like it was being reclaimed by the wilderness around it. “That must be the shrine!” Alex exclaimed as he began approaching the decrepit shrine with a sense of renewed excitement.



Alex had to use some of his Pokemon companions to cut a path directly to the shrine. Strangely, it appeared the overgrowth was a lot thicker around the perimeter of the shrine than anywhere else in the forest. It was like the plants and foliage were trying to protect whatever was inside. Alex didn’t pay too much mind to this, thinking it was just a strange coincidence. There were many objects and buildings in the shrine that Alex had come to expect after visiting several other shrines within Johto. Though he had to admit that the buildings and statues looked quite a bit… off. They had a strangely familiar but also an obviously different design, as if whoever built these shrines were trying to imitate others that came before.

“Strange, I’ve been to other shrines that existed when this one was supposedly built…” Alex thought out loud. “That means it can’t be a strange quirk of the times. This one must have been deliberately built like this.” As he explored the ruins, the foliage became less dense. Sure, there were still plenty of grass and weeds growing from the cracks, but there were signs of someone or maybe even something having taken care of the shrine, and pretty recently at that. It worried Alex a little, he had been to many abandoned places before and he had his run-in with a hobo or two. Thoughts of some homeless bloke living up in the shrine both worried and also sickened him. Sure, he was technically trespassing, but he pledged to himself he wouldn’t break or steal anything. Alex found himself on a self-made mission to find who was living here- assuming he was correct, and perhaps scare them off or something.



As he explored the shrine he was in turn surprised by how large it actually was on the inside, its size from the outside feeling deceptive to how much it actually contained within as he soon found himself treading through hallways and finding numerous rooms all of which appearing to be rather tidy despite the state of the shrine. Whoever or whatever it was in this shrine apparently was willing to go above and beyond simply leaving just the main quarters and a single room clean for its living situation which only served to confuse Alex more. “Hello?” He called out hoping to get a response or maybe listen for a sound afterwards but he got nothing in return.



As his explorations took him deeper into the shrine he came across a particular room which stood out from the rest as it seemed more well-cared for than any of the other rooms as the flooring to the walls all looked like they’d been maintained or even replaced as necessary leaving the room looking as if it hadn’t seen a year of time despite the general feeling that the shrine was decades old. The main decoration in the room was a statue of a ninetails sitting on a pillow with a gem attached to its neck and in front of it was an offering stand. “Is this shrine dedicated to worshiping ninetails?” Alex pondered to himself as he got closer to the statue and examined it. He had heard of shrines being erected to worship certain pokemon, but usually they were considered gods or guardians of vast things like the oceans or skies; this was his first time seeing a far more common pokemon receive such worship in this region.



He reached out and grabbed the statue and held it in his hands turning it over and checking out its craftsmanship entirely, the statue appeared to be in rather good shape if only a little worn from time. He finally decided after a bit that he probably should take the statue with him as his proof that he visited this shrine, and perhaps he could even see about pawning it off for a bit of extra cash to fund his journey across Johto. As he put the statue in his pack and went to leave the room however a voice boomed out sounding rather furious. “Stop right there you foul little thief!” He finally got his answer as to who or what had been taking care of the shrine as what appeared before him was an anthro ninetails wearing a shrine maiden’s outfit.



Alex’s jaw went agape at the unusual sight. He knew that several Pokemon were capable of communicating through telekinesis, but the only Pokemon that could directly mimic a human’s speech was a chatot. Even then, the ninetails was a lot more human than Pokemon, standing on her hind legs and being rather emotive, unusual for a Pokemon.

“Uh…” Alex was dumbfounded, trying to think of what to say, but the situation was so strange for him that he was having trouble processing it.

“You are not from around here, I can tell,” the ninetails sniffed the air. “Hmm, yes, that smell brings back bad memories from when other countries tried to loot Johto and the surrounding regions.” She pulled out a fan and pointed it at Alex as if the fan were a sword. “And you stealing a sacred item proves that you are no different from your ancestors!”

“Wait, hold on!” Alex finally managed to speak up. “I-I didn’t know anyone was living- or rather, protecting this area. I thought I would try to preserve a little bit of history… I’ll give it back!”



The ninetails cocked an eyebrow, though her expression remained furious.

“Liar! I could see it in your eyes, you didn’t want to preserve history, you wanted to sell it!”

“Wait, that’s-”

“If you so care for this shrine, you would not have come here in the first place! Trespassing is one thing, but you have tampered with this sacred ground! For that, you must pay…” A strange aura surrounded the ninetails, it was dark in nature and her eyes went blank. “One thousand years in the service of this shrine!”



Before Alex could say anything else the aura had leapt forth from the ninetails and engulfed him, and in an instant everything felt much hotter as if he was wreathed in flames yet he did not feel any pain. Though he felt himself definitely sweating quite a bit as he could feel his clothes starting to get damp rather quickly due to his body trying to keep cool, it wasn’t long before he discarded his pack and began taking his clothes off in hopes to cool down somehow. In doing so he however revealed just what exactly the aura was doing to him as he could see a thin layer of fur growing over his body, and it was rapidly filling out into a proper coat for him as it climbed up his torso.



While the fur was growing on his body he could feel his hands and feet also changing to match the more animalistic form his body was taking on as his feet became more digitigrade yet still held him up just fine. He could also feel new growths under his feet as paw pads formed giving him some more cushioning under the parts of his feet that had to take on more weight now due to their shape while his toenails turned sharp. His hands however took on a more dainty form becoming womanly with slightly longer fingers and his nails growing outwards into claws proper that could easily tear fabric or flesh if so desired. As the changes in his hands and feet took place he felt a particular heat in his legs, hips, and butt and he let out a somewhat guttural sound of pleasure as he felt his hips snap out and his butt filling out into a particularly large and rounded derriere.



Alex looked down seeing his womanly lower half and felt a sense of dread. “W-What are you doing to me?!” He asked the ninetails in his somewhat panicked state to which the response he received was cold and harsh. “You are receiving your punishment as you deserve.” From there he felt a headache coming on as he heard a few creaks and snaps as his skull seemed to change shape. It wasn't long before he could suddenly see a muzzle in his vision tipped with a wet pure black nose and coated with orange fur. Alex squinted a bit as he felt something growing just above his butt. Indeed, a fluffy tail, matching the fur colors that covered his body sprouted and began to sway like a dog’s tail. He also felt his ears reposition themselves and grow out into large fluffy ones that could hear far better than his previous human ears allowing him to pick up on the quieter sounds of the world outside the shrine.



Alex knew that whatever he was turning into had to be some kind of Pokemon, but he couldn’t quite put his finger on what kind yet. He had largely ignored the rather feminine changes that occurred to his lower half of his body, brushing them off as just a normal physical trait of whatever Pokemon he was becoming. His belief was quickly proven wrong as he felt immense pressure building up in his chest. Alex couldn’t quite describe the feeling, it was as if something was both pulling on his chest while also trying to burst through it at the same time.

“Ah… ah…. Ahwooo!” Alex let out a howl (much to his own surprise) as the growing twin peaks on his chest reached their climax. He panted a bit, trying to process what exactly happened. The tuft of fur on his chest did a good job hiding the breasts he now possessed, but it didn’t take too long for Alex to figure what other change was occurring. “These are… No, you can’t mean I’m-!”

“Hmm? Did you honestly think shrine maidens could be male? Only members of the fairer sex are permitted to serve here,” the ninetails explained.

“Only women? Wait, that means….”



Alex looked down, doing his best to look past his fur and boobs to see if his dick was still there. It was indeed present, but Alex’s relief was short lived as he felt the same pressure starting to build up in his waist.

“No!” He fell to his knees and yelped. He grabbed onto his crotch, trying desperately to protect the remaining bits of masculinity he had left, but it was all in vain. Alex couldn’t help but moan and bark in an erotic fashion as his penis slowly withered into nothing. With a loud and sexy moan, Alex was a man no more, a feminine slit present where her dick once was. “What- wha-...” Alex panted, trying to stand up which took several attempts. “What did you do to me!?”



The ninetails looked at Alex with disdain and said. “I already told you I was giving you your punishment. You are now a shrine maiden in the service of this shrine and you will be taking care of this place as atonement for your crimes against it.” Alex shrank a bit at the ninetails gaze feeling far meeker towards the clearly quite powerful being before her after she had outright transformed her. “H-How long will I be in service?” She asked, fearing the answer. “You will be serving this shrine for the next 1000 years.” The ninetails answered with a calm expression leaving Alex floored. “What 1000 years?!” She was completely aghast at this knowledge. “I’ll be dead long before 1000 years pass!”



This response was met with a scoff from the ninetails as she shakes her head. “Oh no you will be kept well and alive by my curse, you will not even age a day so long as you are under it. However, know that by slacking off you will extend the duration of this curse and you cannot leave this shrine unless explicitly allowed by myself.” This information brought some comfort to Alex knowing that she’d at least not have to wither away and die in some unknown shrine for the rest of her life, but it was small considering she’d be stuck here for a VERY long time. “You are in need of a new name now that you have been changed. Tell me human what was your name?” Alex knew she shouldn’t defy this being further and so answered. “My name is Alex.” The ninetails shook her head. “It’s Amber now, remember it well for that is how I shall be calling for you from here on out.” Amber nodded meekly, accepting that she basically had been renamed against her will and couldn’t afford to complain.



“I shall give you my name once you have earned the right but for now you may refer to me as Miko.” Amber nodded again as she looked at Miko wondering just what she’d be forced to do first to which Miko looked at her and said. “First you will get dressed in the proper attire of a shrine maiden, from there you will begin your service by helping in the upkeep of this shrine as I have been doing for the past millennia.” She then guided Amber to a room where there appeared to be a closetful of pristine outfits likely kept in such condition by Miko to which she was handed one by her and directed behind a folding screen so she may put them on. She struggled a bit having never worn this type of attire before and having to struggle with sharpened claw-like nails in attempts to avoid ripping or tearing the outfit lest she suffer Miko’s wrath but eventually she got it on and well enough that she earned Miko’s approval. Following that she was handed a rag and bucket to gather water and wash up the shrine rooms currently in need of a cleaning and she had to do it under the supervision of Miko who kept a close eye on her to make sure she didn’t mess up a single step of the process.

Five Years Later

“Amber, did you clean up the west hall yet?”

“Of course Miko…” Years had passed since that fateful day and Amber had quickly become accustomed to her new life. Sure, the first year or two were tough, getting adjusted to her new body and having to deal with Miko every day was tiring. But after a long while, she started to get a hang of things, one could say she even started to enjoy herself. Thanks to her help, the shrine had started to return to its former glory. Most weeds and grass in the central area had long been plucked out and many feral Pokemon had begun to revisit the shrine and pray to their gods.

“I must say, you’ve fixed this place up faster than I imagined. You think the entrance could be cleaned up before next Spring?” Miko asked.

“Heh, I think I can get it done before Summer!” Amber said, accepting the challenge ahead of her.

“Hmmm… the last time you said that you ended up burning half of the east hall and we spent months repairing it.”

“Yeah, but doesn’t it now look better than any other part of the shrine?” Amber put on a smile, afraid her master might explode on her again for her past failures.

“Well, it did add another 10 years to your curse.”

“Wait, it did!?”

“Fufufu. Come Amber, would I honestly do that after all the work you’ve done?”

Miko let out a cackling giggle while Amber gave out a nervous laugh.

“Yeah, haha.” The growlithe girl looked around, trying to find an excuse to get away from Miko. “Excuse me, I need to go feed the birds.” She got up and started to walk as fast as she could but not too fast for Miko to notice.

“Amber….”

“Y-yes master?”

“Make sure you feed them seeds and not bread.”

“Oh, of course!”