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Chris finished in the bathroom and returned to her bed, collapsing into a sitting position with her hands over her face. She only had so much emotional and mental bandwidth to process all these sudden changes, which were impossible to ignore.
She flopped backward, stretching her arms and legs out as she stared at the ceiling. Her eyes closed tightly as she took a couple of slow, steady breaths. If she didn't move her body, she could potentially focus on something other than how unnatural and alien her body felt.
Minutes passed in near silence, with only the gentle flow of cool air through the vents cutting through the stillness. Her body's new shape was still quite apparent while lying down; from the roundness of her shapely ass to how the fabric of her boxers caressed her sex, it was impossible to avoid reality altogether.
She swallowed and gritted her teeth, forcing herself to think about the supposed boons of receiving this new body while simultaneously attempting to ball up her negativity and lock it behind a closed door. It wasn't as if she had fully resolved all her concerns and reached closure, but wallowing in despair wasn't healthy.
"Ugh…" Chris grunted, momentarily placing her hands over her face before letting them fall to the bed. "Positives…" She muttered.
For one, her back and body pain had vanished. She raised her hands up and slowly rotated her arms in circles. Her limbs appeared so dainty, but she felt no physical discomfort. On top of that, she had supposedly gained a decade of life. She recalled times when she had to bail on plans with her friends due to pain or other health concerns. In theory, she wouldn't need to worry about that anymore.
A tiny pang of giddiness pulsed through the hazy darkness of her mind. It wasn't enough to bury all her concerns, but it was something to hold onto. 'Maybe I can finally go hiking… Or on one of those camping trips,' she mused, placing a hand on her chin. Historically, she had been afraid to accept those invitations since knowing when the pain would cripple her was hard. Also, a night or two away from her memory foam mattress would lead to significant pain and discomfort.
These thoughts weren't enough to completely erase all shreds of doubt within her mind, but they helped. It would still take some time to determine how much freedom her new form provided.
As she mulled over the ramifications of her transformation, a wave of exhaustion hit her like a ton of bricks. She stifled a yawn and rolled onto her side, pulling a blanket around herself.
Lying in this manner caused her legs and breasts to press together. She shifted slightly, letting out a low, frustrated sigh. There was no point in further stressing over her anomalous body; she had a lifetime to come to terms with her supple, feminine attributes.
Another yawn flowed from her lips as she grabbed a nearby pillow and shoved it between her legs. She took another couple of seconds to adjust and finally found a position she could handle for the time being. "Acceptable…" She muttered, wincing slightly at the ever-present, fuzzy warmth between her legs. Before long, she passed out into a deep slumber.
"Row 2, seat B…" A large man muttered, looking at his ticket as he stepped onto his plane with a carry-on bag. Some passengers gave him an odd look, but he was not phased and was used to the staring. 'Can't blame em; don't see someone like me every day,' he slightly smirked, noting the ebony fur coating his arms. His face was covered with fur and his mouth had a muzzle-like quality. After a while, he got used to people asking if he was a werewolf.
He put his bag in the overhead compartment and eyed his window seat. "Oooh, okay," he grinned, noticing a gap under the seat's back. He only took a moment to carefully guide his shaggy, long black tail through the opening as he sat. There was even enough room to freely swish the fluffy appendage.
After getting comfortable, he pulled his phone out and read his texts. 'I hope Chris is okay,' he thought as his black, canine-like ears folded.
Rodrick was so lost in thought he failed to notice someone getting ready to sit next to him.
"Hey, neighbor," a feminine voice chimed.
"Oh-- hi!" Rodrick's ears perked as he turned to see who he'd sit next to for the next few hours.
The woman before him had pale blue skin with accents of sapphire-blue scales on her wrists, neck, and face. "Nice to meet you! I didn't expect to sit next to someone who also needs the extra tail space. I'm Aoi, by the way."
"I'm Rodrick-- and yeah, I didn't expect it either," he softly laughed. He noticed her long, serpentine tail with a caudal fin at the end. Her amethyst eyes and long, wavy sea-green hair gave off an ocean vibe.
Aoi got comfortable, adjusting her long pencil skirt and women's suit top. She then let out a gentle sigh, resting her head back as she pulled out her phone. "Can't catch a break from work emails," she muttered.
"I'm glad I don't have to deal with that," Rodrick replied with a sly smile.
After some initial small talk, the two sat silently as the plane filled and eventually took off. Rodrick stared out the window, his tail wagging as he watched the jet climb higher and pass through the clouds. He was in a good mood, but he also felt anxious. Rodrick dropped everything to get on a plane and return home as quickly as possible when he heard Chris was going through a severe case of transience. It was impossible not to worry.
"No earbuds or headphones?" Aoi asked after a while, cutting through the quiet.
Rodrick blinked, blankly staring at his seatmate. He then began to pat his pockets before eventually grimacing and letting out a low grunt. "I completely forgot to bring them. I guess I was so focused on booking my flight and leaving as soon as possible," he lamented, pouting at his lack of preparedness.
Aoi giggled in response. "I'm guessing you have urgent business? You don't seem to be in a bad mood, so hopefully nothing bad."
"Nothing world ending," Rodrick assured her. He wasn't sure if he should be sharing his best friend's business with others. He found it difficult to keep his eyes away as he looked at the exotic woman sitting next to him. 'I wonder what type of demi she is.'
Aoi stretched and glanced at her phone before putting it back in her purse. "I'm glad to hear it." Her lips curled into a grin when she noticed Rodrick's wandering eye.
"Transience is incredible, right? Do you like my scales?" She asked, holding her wrist up as she admired how her scales shimmered.
"I didn't mean to stare; my apologies," Rodrick replied, scratching his head in mild embarrassment.
"No need," she shook her head. "It only bothers me if jatorri stare, and even then, they'd have to be staring pretty hard."
Rodrick paused. 'Jatorri? Huh?'
Aoi noticed the look of befuddlement on his face. "Jatorri is a phrase that has been going around for roughly the last year. It's finally starting to take off, and I want to do everything I can to spread the word." She stifled a quick yawn before continuing. "Sorry-- insomnia and all that. Jatorri is derived from a Basque word and basically means 'origin'. We use it to describe those who haven't gone through transience."
Rodrick nodded in response. "Okay, that makes sense to me… It beats calling them 'normal people' and whatnot. For obvious reasons." It seemed he was destined to learn some new things today.
"Please try to teach others when you can! Any time you hear jatorri being referred to as normal or anything that implies transient people are inferior or secondary, you have a golden opportunity." Aoi spoke excitedly, her tail animatedly swishing behind her. "I was at a conference on transience the other week, and I saw some of my peers using the phrase. Next time, I will give a presentation that can hopefully reach even more ears."
Rodrick was eager to see Chris as quickly as he could, but it wasn't like he could make the plane move more rapidly. He wasn't one to turn down a chance to socialize, so Aoi's outgoing nature worked in his favor. "Conferences, huh? Are they for your job?" He curiously inquired.
Aoi nodded, folding her hands in her lap. "Yeah, you could say that. I suppose you could consider me a transience researcher and advocate." She briefly paused, appearing deep in thought. "Actually, I heard about a rare transience case; that's one of the reasons I'm flying. It's nothing, though!" she waved before letting out another yawn. "I didn't get enough sleep. Sorry for all the yawning."
"It's fine. I didn't get much sleep either," Rodrick admitted. He wanted to respect Chris's privacy, but he realized he had an excellent opportunity on his hands. If Aoi was a transience expert, maybe she could help. "Do you mind if I ask you a transience-related quest--"
"Please do!" Aoi eagerly chimed, cutting Rodrick off at the end of his sentence. Any semblance of tiredness immediately vanished.
Rodrick let out a slight laugh. "I had a feeling you'd respond that way. Well, basically, I'm going to see a friend who is undergoing a severe case of transience. I want to hang out with him and be supportive or whatever… He means a lot to me," he softly replied.
"Do you know what kind of transience he's going through? How severe are the changes?" She gently asked.
"I have no clue; I didn't push for details," he admitted. "As soon as I learned the situation, I made it my priority to go see him."
"Did you ask him what kind of support he needs? Have you spoken with him over voice or text? Every individual reacts differently to severe changes. Do you have a feel for how he's doing?" Her words were filled with warmth.
Rodrick passed, growing flustered as he shifted his eyes away. His tail hung low as it slowly swayed. 'Oh, oops… Did I mess up?' He lamented, taking a slow breath as he rested his head and stared straight up. "I guess, well-- umm… We had a pretty brief text conversation and haven't talked since then. I basically dropped everything to get my affairs in order and then flew right out here."
Aoi gave Rodrick the stink eye and then snorted, shaking her head in amusement. "You're an incredible friend, aren't you?"
"Well, I'd like to think so," Rodrick weakly laughed, placing a hand on his chin as he thought back over any past deeds that would make him an incredible friend.
"You're also pretty impulsive, huh?" Aoi teased, giving him an innocent look.
“Y-- Yeah… It's a bit of a habit… My bad." He fidgeted in his seat, feeling a pang of guilt. He probably should have communicated better with his dear friend.
"You haven't done anything bad; I get the feeling your friend would understand. You should call him when you arrive and give him a heads up so you're not showing up at his doorstep as a surprise." Aoi saw the deer-in-headlights look on his face. 'That was your plan, huh? Definitely don't do that." Her voice grew just slightly stern.
"I won't. I promise," Rodrick assured Aoi. He would take the next couple of hours to think out a new plan of action.
CHAPTER END
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