(Women to Various)

 

Diana Matthews hummed, looking to herself in the mirror. “Today’s another day in paradise.” She said with a smile, winking at her reflection. The brunette sashayed her hips as she turned back towards the door of her dressing room, a familiar anxiety in her chest.

Somehow, no matter how many shows she did, the woman never got over that sensation of stage fright. Even though she was a popular magician, and even though she was actually magical-as opposed to the countless illusionists she’d encountered in her life-Diana always worried if people would like her act.

She opened the door with a flourish, an old habit she used to calm her nerves. Somehow acting in-character when off-stage helped her. Unfortunately, it also made her look ridiculous to any passerby. This normally wasn’t a problem, since people didn’t tend to wander backstage. Today, however, she came face-to-face with a man.

He seemed amused by her actions, and especially entertained by her yelp of shock. “Now now, there’s no need to be on edge.” The man was Asian, though his accent spoke strongly of Brooklyn. His eyes twinkled as he looked to her, giving her a courteous nod.

“Ahm.” Diana began, her cheeks coloring further. “Thanks, but… There shouldn’t be anyone back here. It’s off-limits to guests.”

“I know.” He shrugged. “I’m the hypnotist who’s opening the show for you.”

That was news. The brunette pursed her full lips, a hand on her hips. “I didn’t know that there was anyone opening the show for me tonight. Did the schedule change?”

“You must have forgotten.” He hummed, waving a hand.

“Oh, but I must have forgotten.” Diana giggled childishly, her face coloring again with embarrassment. That twinkle in his eyes only grew, and she found herself sinking into their dark brown depths. “Um… It’s a pleasure to meet you mister…”

“Thompson. Rigel Thompson. But please, call me Rigel. None of this ‘mister’ business, okay?”

Diana slowly nodded, a smile creeping across her face. “Well, pleased o to meet you Rigel. So, how does this all work?”

“Well, you’re going to follow me onto stage, and we’ll work some magic on the crowd.” He flashed her a dazzling smile, and she chuckled.

If only he knew just how much magic she could work… The woman beamed, before something about his words registered with her. “Hold on… Aren’t you opening for me? Why are we going out at the same time?”

“Opening for you? Where would you get that idea?” Rigel laughed. “We’re co-starring in the show, remember? Just like we’ve been doing for the past few months.”

He added the second part a little warily, as though he was worried she’d dispute the fact. It was a silly thing for him to do, and Diana chuckled. “Of course, of course. Sorry, Rige, I don’t know where my head’s at.”

“Eh, it’s only natural. You do tend to be something of a ditz, after all.”

Diana blinked, and realized she’d been staring at her glitter-inlaid gloves again. “Like, what? Sorry, I didn’t catch that.”

“Focus, Di. Remember, follow my lead on stage like usual and we’ll be great, okay?”

She grinned from ear to ear. “Okay!”

The woman walked behind him onto the stage, a skip in her step. Whatever anxiety she’d felt earlier had simply melted away-probably because she’d be doing this show with her old friend. She watched him take the microphone with a grin, listening intently.

“Ladies and gentlemen! Presenting Rigel and Diana, in a one-night magical experience you’ll never forget!” The man beamed, flicking his wrist and arcing a finger skywards. “Let’s have our first volunteer, shall we?”

 

Cindy Kearns blinked in surprise. When did she get on stage? She remembered walking out, but couldn’t remember why… Still, it wasn’t her place to complain. The blonde smiled at the magician duo, shifting restlessly from foot to foot.

“So… What are we going to do now?” The girl giggled. “Am I going to pull something from a hat?”

“I dunno, Rigel’s the one in charge here.” Diana giggled from his side.

“And I happen to be a hypnotist, and not a magician. So we’ll lead with that.” The man looked into Cindy’s eyes, and a dull warmth flowed across her brain. “Let’s start with something simple. Why don’t you do your best impression of a barn animal for us?”

Cindy wanted to ask how that was supposed to help her get hypnotized, but the second she opened her mouth a loud moo slipped from her lips. Her eyes widened, and she brought her hands to her throat. “Moo?” She repeated, confused. “Moo! MOoOO!”

The man tutted, patting her head and pressing on it slightly. “You’ve got the voice work down, but I think we need to do a little more for your acting. After all, cows don’t have hands, do they?”

Cindy whimpered as her hands balled up, and she looked at them helplessly. For some reason she couldn’t unclench them, or even remember having them. She grunted as her body naturally fell onto all fours, and she looked up to the hypnotist and magician helplessly. “MoooOOOO!” She pleaded.

“What’s that? I think you’re still too in character, darling. Let’s work on that a little… After all, a cow shouldn’t be able to think for herself, should she?”

The cute blonde’s jaw fell slack as his words wrapped themselves about her brain, reprogramming her thoughts. She slowly dipped her head towards the stage, miming eating grass. “Moo… Mooo!” A bit of drool dripped from her jaw, and the humans around her all clapped.

Humans… She didn’t think of herself as one of them. She wasn’t a person, she was a cow now… Just a dumb cow…

 

Sylvia was the next onto the stage, a grin of excitement spread across her face. “I wasn’t so excited for this at first, but that was before I found out that there was a hypnotism aspect! I totally love this, and you did so well on that first volunteer! I’m Sylvia, by the way.”

“Oh, hm.” Rigel looked to the mooing blonde. “We forgot to ask that other one’s name, didn’t we?”

“Hey, it happens.” Diana chuckled. “So, is this where I come in? I’ve been working on some tricks.”

“Save the tricks for later, dear.” The man nodded towards Sylvia. “For now, let’s have you field this one. What do you think she’d be cutest as?”

Sylvia couldn’t wait. It had been a while since she’d visited a hypnotism act, and she’d never seen someone go under this quickly. Rigel must have a real talent for it, he’d barely even induced that first girl!

“Maybe a sheep?”

Sylvia’s body dropped to all fours at once, her eyes utterly blank. A faint bleat trembled from her lips as she wriggled in place, looking up to the humans anxiously. She was so cold… Had she just ben sheared? She didn’t know… She wanted to graze more…

Rigel laughed, and said something that Sylvia’s ears couldn’t understand. Then the girl blinked, herself once more.

“… slower than that, dear. Remember, hypnotism is about making small changes, not an all-at-once deal.” His words made sense again to Sylvia, who felt a shiver of apprehension run down her spine.

“Uh… Right!” Diana smiled.

Sylvia jumped to her feet, lifting her hands. “Wait, wait! What was that? I’ve been hypnotized before, but that was something totally different. I’ve never lost myself like that, what did you do?”

Something about the fear in her eyes must have gotten through to Diana, who looked to her partner with a small frown. “What’s she talking about?” The woman asked Rigel.

“Just a part of the act dear.” He winked as he spoke, then turned his head from the crowd. “Strip her of her voice before she alerts any of our audience.”

“What do you,” Sylvia began.

“Oh! Okay! Well… We did sheep already, and you didn’t seem to like that. So let’s see how you’d like herding them! Go on girl, speak!”

“mean brgghrry ruff! Wurroff!” Sylvia’s eyes widened. It was just like before-there was no warning, no tell. One second she could speak English, and the next she could only bark.

“Sit!”

Sylvia’s legs went numb as she dropped obediently onto the stage, her butt wiggling in spite of herself. A desperate whine slipped from her lips as she looked to the two, struggling to think of what to do. “Woff! Gruuf!”

“Good girl! Now… Let’s have you really get in the spirit, shall we? Why don’t you actually think like a dog?”

Sylvia could feel this one coming. It was clumsily worded, which gave herself a few moments to prepare. It started with her base thoughts. She was overcome with an urge to run and play, and to be a good girl. She fought them off using memories of life as a human, knowing that she wasn’t a dog.

Then the memories began to fade. Every one she brought up was lost to her just as it crossed her thoughts. Slowly, she lost everything that made her Sylvia. Her friends, her education, her family… All of it slipped from her ears except her name.

That was something she knew she couldn’t forget. After all, her owners had trained her to remember how Daisy was a good girl!

Daisy barked happily and bounded up to her masters clumsily, her body feeling strange. She was too dumb to understand that she had a human form and not a canine’s, but that didn’t bother her. All she wanted were ear scratches and affection!

 

Heather stormed onto the stage, pointing at Rigel. A spell flickered to life on her fingertips, arcing towards him. Much like Diana, she was a witch too. They’d even gone to school together, and though they weren’t the best of friends, Heather still attended every show the woman put on in her neighborhood.

Naturally, this left her in a rather unique position. She was the only one where who knew Diana wasn’t acting right-and the only one who knew that some darker magic was afoot. There were two schools to magic: physical and mental. The former was practiced by most everyone, while the latter was deeply illegal. And yet…

Heather’s lightning died just inches before hitting him, intercepted by Diana’s outstretched hand. The brunette’s face was a mask of consternation. “Heather! What are you doing?”

The redhead glared back, conjuring another attack. “What am I doing? What are YOU doing? These girls aren’t just being hypnotized, you idiot! Or are you too far gone to realize you’ve been hypnotized yourself?”

Diana blinked in shock, turning to Rigel. “What’s she talking about?”

“All part of the act!” He called out loudly to the crowd, before outstretching a hand to Heather. “Just the braying of a mindless donkey.”

The disadvantage to making magic illegal is that it leaves the law-abiding citizens particularly susceptible to change. Heather realized this now, and also realized that she had no defenses for what was about to hit her.

She tried to steel herself as best she could, desperately trying to make her magic fight against an assault she’d never experienced. To her credit, she held out remarkably well. The woman dropped to all fours, letting out a loud and dopey bray, baring her teeth and drooling-but she was still mentally intact.

Heather’s act of sealing her soul away from her affected brain left her unable to cast any further spells. It was an act of desperation, but it left her more or less intact for any magician to revert. This was, of course, assuming that she could find a magician that would recognize what she’d done.

Heather’s body kicked her legs, much to the amusement of the crowd, and she brayed dumbly, watching the people watch.

“Very good, very good! Now… Let’s have Diana come front and center, shall we? Let’s give our volunteers their proper bodies!”

Heather’s gut sank as she watched Diana skip towards the front stage, her fingers weaving a complex transformation spell. She always good at those, and Heather could only watch as Diana began to change the other victims.

The cute blonde was the first one, and it looked like she didn’t even bat an ear to her body’s reformation. She gained hundreds of pounds of animal bulk in an instant, her clothes coming apart at the seams. Her balled hands coalesced further, becoming hooves.

“MOOOO!” She let out a convincing low as her throat and face stretched out, becoming utterly and completely bovine. There was nothing human left about her save a pair of breasts, which drifted towards her plump hindquarters and tufted tail.

The dog-minded brunette fell next, her tongue stretching and stretching and stretching until it hung well past her darkened lips. A coat of shaggy white fur blossomed from her pores, and the girl shook her form, tousling the hairs and barking cutely. Then her body bulked up, her vocalizations deepening in tone as she shifted closer and closer to a proper sheepdog.

The girl’s body bulked up a little, not as much as the cow’s had. The result was that her clothes stuck fast to her, making her look a little silly, as though her owners had dressed her. Diana fixed this with a play of her fingers, vanishing the dog’s clothing in time for her muzzle to fully come in.

“WOOF!” She barked mindlessly, drooling and shaking her head. Her eras stretched as she did, until they were flopping aimlessly at her cheeks. A long and furred tail extended from her spine, and she wagged it madly.

“And then there was one.” Rigel hummed.

“Saved the best for last, hon.” Diana giggled, only to pause. Heather’s guy sank as a glimmer of recognition sparked in the woman’s eyes, and she turned to her partner. “Hey… This one’s still got something of herself left.”

Heather could have killed her, were she able to. Instead, her body just dopily brayed, no longer under her control. Heather’s body looked to the man, then to the woman, no doubt wondering what they were discussing.

“Well… Isn’t that a shame? Outed by your own friend!” Rigel laughed. “We’ll leave you like that, just so you can really, fully experience this.”

Heather’s body gulped, then groaned as she began to expand. Her belly was the first to grow, her petite frame swelling and bloating. Her skirt snapped at the waist, and her shirt strained against her swelling breasts and her growing nipples.

A long rope of thick drool slipped from her mouth, and she could feel her neck cricking out one vertebrae at a time-at either end. Just as her neck lengthening, a tail sprouted from her backside as well. Her body instinctively shook its head, tousling her growing mane and shaking out her darkening hair.

Desperation clung to her brain, and Heather struggled to plead with the two. “HEE-AUUUW!” She managed, blinking in terror as she realized her body was her own to control once more. Her ears drooped in submission as they lengthened, and she grimaced in time with the growth of her muzzle.

“Now now… Let’s not panic. It was too easy to undo that little barrier of yours, but what’s the fun in fully wiping you?” Rigel hummed. He leaned in towards the donkey’s ears, and whispered to her. “Instead, I want you to know the consequences of trying to kill me. You’ll forget how to read, how to speak, and how to write. You’ll forever be left at a barn, desperately hoping someone recognizes you.”

Heather blinked, stunned to silence. She could feel his words already working their way into her mind, and she desperately cast her eyes to the show’s banner. When she’d come, it had read ‘Diana’s Magical Extravaganza’, but now… She knew the letters were all there, and that they looked the same-but she couldn’t tell what they were.

The donkey turned her head dumbly to the two, instinct driving her to kick her hind legs in frustration. Much to her dismay, Rigel smiled and Diana laughed as though she was enjoying this. Of course she was-the brainwashed brat probably didn’t know any better.

“And now, a parting gift for the crowd…” Rigel hummed, not giving Heather a second look. “Let’s have Diana and I turn the lot of you into lovely little hens!”

 

Karen Luong looked to the man in confusion. What did he mean by that? And… Why did her feel feel strange? She looked down to her legs, gawping in shock as ugly orange talons burst from her socks. Her arms beat at her sides, and she let out a squawk of terror as she realized they were wings. “UGHWAK!” She squawked, looking to the other attendees, seeing that she wasn’t alone in her panic. Then her mind began to slip from her, and she found herself occupied with pecking at her neighbor’s spilled clothing.

Hannah Paulson looked to her date, mortified as the man was reduced to a chicken. She scooped him up in her arms, running for the exit, howling with distress as her wobbling gait was reduced to a slow waddle. Her head shrank around her skull, and she dropped the other hen to the ground, fluttering her wings. “Gock-gock-gock…”

Lauren David sobbed openly. “Please! I don’t want to lay eggs… Oh God, I can feel another one! It’s stretching me so muGWAK! BUH-GWAK! Ugh, no… I’m laying eggs like some kind of dumb animal, somebUGWAK help me! Plugwak! Notcluck a dumgawk! Duhgawk! BuckGWAK!!!”

Sarah Jensen held herself as brown quills forced themselves from her skin. The sensation wasn’t too painful, it was almost like acupuncture. Unfortunately, it also marked her descent into the life of an animal. She clacked her new beak, hating how much of it she could see in her peripheral vision. She ruffled her feathers, disgusted with how avian she was. She rested in her seat, laying the first of many eggs.

 

Diana grinned as the hens ran around the stadium, turning to her partner with a wide grin. “That was, like, so totally fun!”

Rigel nodded to her, inordinately pleased with himself. This had been a risk, but a calculated one. Diana Matthews was a remarkably powerful witch, but that also meant that she was softhearted thanks to the life she’d chosen. Doing magic shows like this was a waste of her talent, and a waste that he was going to rectify.

“So… What do you say we take this show on the road? I’m sure we can surprise some strangers with your talents.” Rigel hummed, grinning as Diana nodded eagerly. She was putty in his hands, just the way he liked it.