'Til the Cows Come Home

by grapehyacinth

Kelly stood in her high school's guidance office, staring at the scholarship board as usual. She had been accepted to a good state college, but she couldn't afford the tuition. Her family could help her through a year or two, but her parents made the very bare minimum to not qualify for financial aid. She wasn't a bad student, but she was no valedictorian either, so she didn't see any academic awards in her future.

She gazed at the offerings on the board – “Major at Artley College in a double reed instrument, and we pay your tuition!” Well, too bad she played the flute... “Girls field hockey scholarships at Lincoln!” Unfortunately, she ran track... The list went on, with no results as usual.

...Until she came to the work-study section.

“Give us Two Years in South America, and We'll Give You Four Years FREE at the college of your choice!”

Hope leaped up inside of her, and she ripped the sheet from the wall. She skipped across the guidance office, tossing it on her counselor's desk. “What is this one?” she demanded.

The woman glanced up with disapproval, snatching it from her hands. “You're not supposed to take these down.” Without another word, she copied the ad and placed it back in Kelly's hand. “It's a humanitarian mission to help poor farmers recover from the earthquake.” She settled back down at her desk. “It decimated the place,” she added, as if the media wasn't already plastered with the news.

“So it's farm work?”

“I guess. Only it's two years of it. After that, you come back and do college.” The counselor looked bored by now. “It's honest work.”

Kelly glanced at the paper. “'Contact Gaura Riley for details',” she read aloud.

“Okay, Gaura Riley, I will.”

Kelly sat in her bedroom, staring at the phone in her hand. She had discussed the opportunity with her parents, and they suggested she find out more about it before diving in. Two years was a long time. If she was accepted, she would be entering college just as everyone else her age was halfway through.

But she was young, and looking for adventure. Why delve right into school when she could do something fun that would also benefit others? Okay, perhaps she was more interested in the money aspect than helping the farmers, but, if she did this, then it was good for everyone all around.

She called the phone number.

“Gaura Riley's office.” The tinny sound of the receptionist's voice suggested she was far off, possibly somewhere exotic. Kelly was growing excited despite her best efforts not to.

“Can I speak with Gaura?”

“Mrs. Riley is with a client right now. Can I help you?”

“I'm interested in doing the scholarship program.”

There was a pause. “Which one?”

There were others? “The one where they give you a full scholarship.”

“Ah, South America. Yes. Well, I can answer any questions you have on that.”

“Um, what do we do?”

“Oh, all kinds of farm work. More than you can imagine! But it's all for the benefit of the farmers. But you have to be over eighteen years old.”

Her birthday had been two weeks ago. Absolutely perfect. “Just turned it this month.”

“Are you interested in joining us?”

“Yes.”

“Great! Great! Come to the introductory meeting.”

“Meeting? You mean I'm accepted just like that?”

“No, no, send us your resume. Your grades and that stuff. And fill out the form on our website. But hurry. The group leaves in a week.”

Feverishly, Kelly went through her papers, gathering everything she could that might get her accepted into the program. She filled out the “Volunteer Form” and requested her transcripts to be sent to the address the woman had given her.

Then she sat back and prayed.

The phone call came not twenty-four hours later.

“Kelly Binder?”

“Yes,” Kelly replied nervously. Her hand shook so violently that she worried she would drop the phone.

“This is Mrs. Riley. We'd love you to join us on a wonderful, giving adventure!”

Giving? Well, losing two years of one's life to get a scholarship could definitely be considered giving.

But she swelled up with pride. She had relieved herself and her family of a great burden, and she decided she would make the most of it. While her friends were slaving away at school, she would make sure she was having fun, farmwork or not.

“Our introductory meeting is on Saturday at 2. It will take place at Red Mill Hall in Rotterdam.”

Rotterdam was over two hours away, but it didn't matter. Nothing would keep her from this scholarship. “I'll be there!”

She reached Red Mill Hall five minutes before two. Her mother was not happy about her making the trip herself as she had only recently gotten her license, but she had managed to find her way without incident.

She walked in the double glass doors into a large lobby where several people sat at a long desk. “Welcome to Red Mill!” chirped a young brunette. “What party are you with?”

So the building was some kind of convention center, Kelly gathered. But what “party” was she actually with? “The farm scholarship people? Uh, Riley, her name was?”

“Oh, Mrs. Riley. Yes, first door on your left.”

The room was full of chairs. If half of them were occupied, it was a lot.

Kelly sat down near a blonde girl who immediately turned to her and exclaimed, “Hi! I'm Holly! Are you doing the farm mission?”

Kelly glanced around. There were about fifteen people in attendance, from the look of it. “I'm Kelly. I figured there'd be people breaking down the doors for this. This is it?”

Holly smiled. “Well, there's still five minutes until they start.”

“I don't think three hundred people are going to pile in here within seconds.” She watched as a woman with jet-black hair and a green dress walked to the lectern at the head of the room, then she turned back to Holly. “No one wants a full scholarship?”

“No one wants to lose two years of their life to do farmwork for it.”

“So why are you?”

“I like farms. I also like full scholarships.”

“And?”

“And,” she dropped her voice, reddening. “I heard rumors about the farm we're heading to.”

“What kind of rumors?”

She giggled. “You'll see. I only hope it's really true.”

Mrs. Riley didn't give much of a speech. She welcomed them and thanked them for their sacrifice to help poor farmers.

“You will do many different types of work on the farm,” she explained in a tired voice, “because, as you can see from the photos,” a series of pictures of complete devastation came up on the computer screen behind her, “these lands were obliterated. You'll be helping the farmers get back on their feet.”

“This is going to be amazing,” Holly exulted, pulling at her long, stringy hair. Kelly figured she was one of those nature-hugging, next-generation hippies who were all about love and giving. The scruffy sixties-inspired dress the girl wore only served to prove Kelly suspicions.

Kelly smiled, thinking about how different she was than Holly. Her path was a clear as day – she'd fly through these two years, do college, and then become an Olympic instructor, getting rich off of all her gold-medal winners.

Mrs. Riley handed out a thick booklet to each student. “Read these carefully and sign at the end,” she instructed.

The boy to the left of Kelly chuckled. “This is like reading a small novel.”

“Read and sign,” Mrs. Riley repeated sternly.

“Yes, sir,” the boy said under his breath. Kelly giggled despite herself, and then cracked open the booklet.

“Welcome to our organization! We are so grateful that you are giving part of yourself to aid the less fortunate...”

Did she really have to read through pages of this crap?

“I understand I will be doing all sorts of labor, some of which may be strenuous and/or trying...”

“PLEASE INTITIAL HERE ____”

“Sure, I'll initial here,” she murmured, pulling a pen from her purse.

“I will do all that is asked of me...”

“PLEASE INTITIAL HERE____”

“Works for me. You send me to college, I do what you need me to do.”

“I do not object to working closely with animals...”

The list went on for pages, and she found herself initialing without knowing what she was agreeing to. Nor did she care.

The boy beside her snorted. “What does this one mean: 'I give myself freely to the cause, and agree to do whatever it takes to help the less fortunate'?”

“Mark, is there a problem?” called Mrs. Riley.

“Not at all,” he murmured. “Just some weird wording in here.”

“It's all an adventure,” the director replied. “You're signing up for adventure.”

“Adventure?” Kelly smirked. “I'm signing my life away for money.”

Holly smiled. “I hope this means what I think it does.”

As Kelly scratched out the last few signatures, Holly made squealing, excited noises. “I hope I have the patience to deal with her for two years,” Kelly whispered to Mark, who nodded.

“I understand that this experience might transform me. I am fine with this...”

Kelly initialed the last statement with a flourish, and snapped the book closed. “This money is mine,” she declared a little louder than she'd meant to.

When all booklets were handed in, Mrs. Riley handed them checklists of what to pack, and each participant was handed a paid-for plane ticket.

“See you at the airport on Saturday. Don't pack too heavy.”

“Don't pack too heavy?” Kelly cried out, flabbergasted. Just what was she signing on for? “We're going to be gone for two years!”

Holly giggled lightly. “Oh, you'll adapt. You'll have no need for some of the stuff that you think you can't live without.”

“What does that even mean?”

But Holly wasn't forthcoming with an answer.

“I hope they have soap in South America,” Mark muttered beside them.

Kelly ended up sitting next to Mark on the plane. When she wasn't sleeping, she was talking about how she was head of the track team, and how she intended to run every morning that they were away. “I worked too hard on this body to let it flab out.”

“With all the farm work you'll be doing, I doubt you'll flab out.” Mark looked down at himself, and Kelly realized she might have embarrassed the slightly-chunky boy.

“Oh, I'm sorry, I didn't mean–”

“Ah, it's okay,” he smacked at his midsection. “I like ice cream too much. Doubt I'll be having much of it here. Although it is a dairy farm...”

His attention wandered across the aisle, where Holly sat gazing at a picture.

“Can you see what she's looking at?” Kelly asked him.

Craning his neck, he quickly covered his mouth, holding back a laugh. “Seriously, I think...yes, it's a picture of a cow!”

“A cow?!”

Holly must have heard their laughter, because she quickly hid the picture away.

“She probably lives on a farm herself,” Kelly snorted under her breath.

As the plane readied to touch down, everyone on the plane gasped in horror at the destruction below them. Whole roads were cracked and overturned, most of the buildings were but piles of rubble. A few scraggly, branchless trees stood sentry over the devastation.

“It feels like the end of the world,” one of the other girls moaned.

“It kind of is,” Kelly sighed. “At least for a while.”

The first day was a big, sweaty, blur. In the humid, hundred-degree weather, everyone carried their bags from the old, beat-up truck that had brought them from the airport. They walked down a path leading to some half-repaired buildings, one of which said “Dairy Farms” in fresh paint on the wall.

“Where are the cows? I want to talk to them!” Holly cried excitedly.

“Talk to them? Why do you want to talk to them?” Kelly asked.

“There are no cows yet,” Mrs. Riley replied in her indifferent way. She lugged a very small carry-on suitcase behind her. “We have to have places for them to live before we can have them here. That's where you come in. Tomorrow we start fixing the barn.” She stopped in front of a large, relatively intact, one-story building. “You'll sleep communally here. Follow me.”

They entered. Much of the building was a large open room with lots of doors off to the sides.

“We sleep here?” Kelly exclaimed. “On the floor?”

Mrs. Riley glanced at her with slight annoyance. “My dear Kelly, these people have had their livelihoods ripped from them, and you expect to have five-star luxury?”

Kelly gulped, dropping her bag to the floor. “Sorry.”

Just then, a happy-looking couple dressed in work clothes burst in. “Welcome! Welcome!” the woman cried without any trace of an accent. She actually reminded Kelly of her next door neighbor, not a poor South American farmer's wife. The husband was her exact opposite, looking almost exotic with his almond skin and greenish eyes.

“We're the Granjeros. We just want to thank you for giving us two years of your life. You won't regret it! Your help means so much to us; it's why the scholarship exists.”

“How do they pay the scholarship if they're so poor?” Kelly said under her voice.

“They really don't dress like they're poor,” Mark replied.

Mr. Granjero's voice cut through their discussion. “Now, if you come through this door, we have a late lunch for you, and then after that, it'll be time for a good old-fashioned barn raising!”

The amount of food laid out was staggering, and again, Kelly wondered how it was financed. But she wasn't complaining. If she was to eat like this for the next few years, she was happy. Although she'd have to keep tabs on her weight. She'd never be able to become an Olympic coach if she was too heavy...

And then the work began. For days, they pored through the splintered ruins, saving what they could, tossing the rest in a pile for firewood. Much of the barn was not salvageable, and, guided by Mr. Granjero, they rebuilt much of it from scratch. Other than Mark and a quiet boy named Larry, the rest of the group consisted of women. More often than not, Kelly found herself doing much of the heavy work – often at Holly's request.

Yes, Holly worked alongside of her like they were the best of friends, and she wasn't bad to talk to, but she was so upbeat, Kelly often found herself growing irritated with her.

“I heard that the cows are on their way!” Holly piped up one evening.

“What happened to the old cows?” asked a short, peppy girl named Lillian. She wasn't quite as annoying as Holly, but she was a close second.

“I guess the earthquake happened to them?” Mark replied.

Holly looked stricken for a moment. Then she simply walked off.

“What was that all about?” Kelly mumbled.

“She's weird,” Lillian answered.

“Kelly, can you carry this bunch of firewood over to my wife?” Mr. Granjero requested as he balanced a splintered pile of boards in his arms.

As usual, Kelly was being taken advantage of for her strength. “Sure,” she replied grudgingly, thoughts of the scholarship egging her on.

Gripping the wood tightly, she trudged through the overgrown grass to the farmhouse, which, in all honestly, looked none the worse for wear. Clearly, it had been repaired before the group had gotten there. On entering, she found Mrs. Riley and Mrs. Granjero seated at a kitchen table, chatting.

Exhausted and annoyed at the sight, Kelly couldn't hold herself back from exclaiming, “Mrs. Riley, why don't you ever help us?”

“I do. I'm helping Mrs. Granjero inside. Plus, I'm not getting the scholarship, so I get to do the light things.” She paused, giving the farmer's wife a grin. “I'll be doing my share soon enough.”

“Yes,” agreed Mrs. Granjero. “And we need to get your room ready.”

Kelly dumped the firewood in front of the fireplace. “She gets her own room?”

“Yes,” was the only reply.

Kelly remained where she stood, blinking in the silence. What was the deal with these people? And then she heard a loud “moo” come from behind them.

“I thought there aren't any cows,” Kelly murmured.

Mrs. Granjero laughed, walking towards a back door. “Oh, that's one of our bulls.”

Weren't bulls just male cows? Kelly thought with confusion.

The woman opened the door, and a large black bull stood there, whipping its tail back and forth.

“Oh, we have to feed you guys. Hang on, we're coming!” The woman raced outside, slamming the door behind her.

Kelly looked to Mrs. Riley for an explanation.

“Oh yes,” she said in her bland tone, “they still have a few bulls that live out back.” She smiled for the first time in a while. “That's Ernie.”

Nearly two weeks had gone by. Everyone was exhausted, but the barn was nearly complete.

“The cows can come home now!” Holly chirped, hammering in one of the last few nails.

“Yay for the cows,” mumbled Kelly.

“No, they need the cows desperately. They probably put all their money into rebuilding,” murmured an older girl named Theresa.

“They don't look like they're that bad off,” Kelly commented. She realized she'd said this more and more frequently, but it was true. And the Granjeros didn't seem the least bit sad over the damage that the earthquake had caused. They were actually rather irritating. Like Holly.

“Mrs. Riley's organization handles the scholarships, so they must help out the farmers, too.”

“I don't care who does what. I just need my scholarship money,” replied Kelly. “Now what stupid thing are we building next?”

But all attention shifted to Mrs. Riley and Mrs. Granjero, who approached, looking grave.

“My friends,” Mrs. Granjero began, “you've been so helpful, and we're so pleased. But now we'll need a different kind of help.”

“Yes,” Mrs. Riley took over, “there's been a little problem. The cows were on their way, but the boat was lost at sea.”

“Oh, no, the poor babies!” cried Holly.

“Well, that doesn't mean they're dead. We just lost contact with the captain of the ship. Nonetheless, there's an indefinite delay.”

“That sounds ridiculous. In this day and age? Lost at sea?” Kelly spat.

“We need cows now.” Mrs. Riley stepped closer. “So we need your help.”

“How do we help? Are we going to beat them out of the bushes?” asked Larry. A general titter erupted from the group.

“No,” said Mrs. Riley without the least bit of mirth. “You're going to be them.”

After a stunned silence, almost everyone broke out into peals of laughter.

“I didn't know you were funny, Mrs. Riley!” cried a girl named Latitia.

“I guess that's easier than building barns,” Mark rejoined.

But Mrs. Riley did not crack a smile. She turned on her heel and left them to their work.

Kelly looked over to Holly. “That woman is crazy–” But she stopped herself, for Holly seemed to be struck dumb.

“Why aren't you laughing, Holly?” Kelly asked, strangely bothered by the girl's reaction.

“Because it's not funny,” Holly replied. She made a joyous little skip and set back to work.

The group sat around a campfire that night, cooking s'mores and laughing.

“We're going to be cows. Good one, Mrs. Riley!” Kelly burst out.

“What do you think she meant by that?” asked Lillian, worry in her eyes.

“Figure of speech?” Mark murmured.

Larry poked his marshmallow into the fire. “I don't know why you guys are taking this so seriously. How are we going to be cows? Is she a magician or something?”

“It's the way she said it, Larry.” Latitia said, crunching on a graham cracker. “She's so damned serious.”

“She's poking fun at you and you don't see it. The cows will be here soon enough.”

“They have some bulls behind the farmhouse, you know,” Kelly pointed out. “I guess they live back there?” she chuckled. “One came to their door. His name is Ernie.”

Holly, who had been silent, took on a dreamy look. “Maybe they'll let me see them now.”

Mrs. Riley and Mrs. Granjero sauntered into the common area the next morning, each armed with a box. “Okay, we're going to split up to do this. First half of the alphabet comes with me, second half, figure after the letter “J”, stay with Mrs. Granjero.”

“What are we doing?” Theresa asked sleepily.

“Half of us aren't even dressed,” protested Latitia.

“That doesn't matter. Come with me,” Mrs. Riley snapped.

Kelly, who should have followed her, merely stood there. “What the hell is this?” she demanded.

“This is it!” Holly cried excitedly. “Come on, don't hold us up, Kelly!” she hastened after Mrs. Riley.

“This is what?”

Mrs. Riley turned. “You're turning into cows,” she uttered, and continued on outside.

The door closed behind them, leaving Mrs. Granjero's group huddled in a back corner, while Kelly and Mark stood gaping at the closed door.

Mark blinked several times. “I think she's serious.”

Kelly grew angry. “Mark, do you hear yourself? People can't turn into cows! What the hell is this crap? Get out of the way. I'm going to give her a piece of my mind!” she pushed past him and wrenched open the door.

And she gasped the sight that met her eyes.

Mrs. Riley stood over Holly, a syringe in hand. Holly, shivering with excitement, lowered her skirt just enough to give access to her rear end.

“What are you doing to her?” Kelly cried. She staggered forward and grabbed the woman's arm.

Mrs. Riley, calm as ever, turned to her, eyes sparkling. But there was no evil in her expression; merely a proud anticipation. “I'm making her happy,” she explained, shaking Kelly loose and turning back to the girl.

“Please, make me into a cow,” Holly begged, hiking her skirt down another inch.

“See how much she wants it? You don't know how wonderful it'll be.” Mrs. Riley paused, gazing thoughtfully at the syringe in her hand. “But I do. And I wish you'd let me get to work so I can be one, too already! Now hold still, Holly!”

Kelly was at a loss for words, and she couldn't understand why the others weren't doing anything. She still didn't believe what Mrs. Riley said for a moment, and she only wondered just what really was in that syringe. “You guys are going to let her inject you with God-knows-what? What if it really did turn you into a cow?”

“It's only two years,” Larry murmured, shuffling his foot.

“We agreed to it,” Lillian agreed. “Remember in the papers we filled out, it said 'This experience might transform you'? I guess this is it.”

“It's going to be wonderful – oo! I felt that!” Kelly shrieked, rubbing at her backside. “Thanks so much, Mrs. Riley!”

Nodding, Mrs. Riley placed down the syringe. “You did want to calf, right, Holly?”

“Yes, please! Ernie's been waiting for me all this time! You'll let me see him when I'm a cow, right?”

“Of course. That's what we were waiting for.”

Now Kelly was horrified.

“Anyone else want to calf?”

No one answered. Kelly's mouth dropped open. “Holly, you...want a bull to...”

“Ernie's my boyfriend, Kelly! He becomes the most beautiful bull you've ever seen!” she pulled out the picture she'd been gazing at on the plane. Ernie admittedly did make an incredible animal, his black, short fur shining in the sunlight.

Kelly's mind shifted to the bull she had seen at the door of the farmhouse. That was a person? “But...you want kids....” she swept her brow, stepping backwards. “No, no, this is not real! What's really in that syringe?”

But as Kelly spoke, Mrs. Riley silently moved on, injecting the others. All too soon, it was Kelly's turn.

“Drop 'em,” Mrs. Riley ordered.

“I...no! I won't! Even if it's real, I don't want to be a cow! I worked too hard perfecting my body to get all fat and...get milked...and, oh, God! I don't want a bull to–”

“You don't have to, although I don't know why you wouldn't. I come back and have my babies every year.”

Kelly froze, staring open-mouthed at the woman. Have babies as a cow? The whole idea disgusted her, terrified her, and made her want to gag. She grabbed at her stomach, and then feigned a coughing fit. “I can't do this now! I'm getting sick! Maybe I'm getting a cold, or worse!”

“Well, transforming's the perfect way to solve that! Changing makes the human germs die off and you'll be healthier than a real cow!”

The coughing ceased abruptly. “I don't...”

“You signed an agreement. You want your four years, you serve us for two. You agreed to be transformed, if need be.”

“I didn't think they meant that kind of transform–”

The syringe plunged through Kelly's skirt and into her backside with more force than necessary, and Kelly let out an angered shriek. “You can't do that to me! You're violating–”

“Shut up and transform, Kelly,” Mrs. Riley said, and, with a dreamy smile, she injected herself. “Oh, God, here it comes,” she moaned.

Rubbing at her sore backside, Kelly felt no different, and began to wonder once more what was coursing through her veins. Perhaps something to strengthen her so she could work more effectively?

“While you wait for your changes, take off as much clothing as you feel comfortable doing. Your enlarging body will rip your little shirts and shorts to shreds!” Mrs. Riley actually giggled, and began stripping off her blouse.

Holly stripped down to her bra and panties without so much as a blush. She moaned contentedly. “Mmm. I knew it would feel amazing.” She began to run her hands up and down her sides, and she then gave a shout. “The fur! Look, everyone! I'm getting white fur all over me!”

Although not quite as excited as Holly, the others began to exclaim over the beginning changes as well, and Holly's exhilaration finally began to catch. Mrs. Riley slunk away to the farmhouse, murmuring something about “Changing with Bill.” Still completely dressed, Kelly remained standing, watching the others gleefully strip their clothing.

“This is real....” she breathed. “It's...really happening...” she grabbed Holly's furry arm. “How did you know about this?”

“Oh, Kelly, just let me transform! I want to feel every change!”

“Tell me!”

“My boyfriend Ernie came here two years ago to check it out. He knew how obsessed I was with transformation, and he promised if it was real, he'd let me know. He wrote out a letter to me before, had Mrs. Riley take a picture of him as a bull, and she sent it. Oh, my GOD! I'm getting a tail!”

“Why didn't you tell us it's real?”

“Look at me... I'm turning into an animal... Just because he sent the letter, still doesn't mean it was real, I mean it could have been a joke... But, look! We're really people becoming animals!”

By now, Kelly's body began to tingle oddly, and she was promptly seized with fear. The others around her were progressing in their changes, and her own arms suddenly began to sprout fur. “No, no...” she murmured. “This is going to hurt if it's...” But it seemed that, if anything, the experience was actually pleasurable, judging from the actions and expressions of the others. “How can this not be painful?”

“Drugs in the serum,” Larry mumbled. “It's got to be drugs...damn, I'm going to be a hell of an animal... Although things are feeling kind of odd,” he glanced at his pants, “down there...”

Mrs. Granjero came out at that moment. “Are you enjoying it, everyone?”

“How can you do this to us?” Kelly yelled. “I'm...oof...” She felt a sharp jolt in her spine, and then a sensation of increasing, growing pressure. She gazed at the back of her shorts to see her new tail stretching the fabric.

“I love when my tail makes its appearance! Enjoy!” the woman cried. “I only wish I could join you, but I always help Mrs. Riley and anyone else who gives birth.”

“Ugh,” Kelly groaned.

“Why does everything feel so...weird down there?” Larry repeated, pointing in the vicinity of his crotch. “Becoming a bull, I'd think it would–”

“No, no, Larry,” Mrs. Granjero laughed. “We don't need bulls. We need milk cows. You're all becoming milk cows!”

For the first time, Mark spoke up, his changing face looking stricken. “We're turning into...females?”

“Well, of course! Bulls are no help, except for being daddies. And we already have Ernie and Bill, who love their job and take it very seriously! Oh, and just so you know, the amount of serum we give you decides how long you'll be an animal. We gave you enough to remain transformed for two years,” Mrs. Granjero called over the din.

“I'm getting so big!”

“Look at my feet!”

“My face is growing!”

Amidst all the shouts and cries, Kelly fell into a world of intense fear. The changes were coming on stronger and stronger, and try as she might, she could not stop them. Her clothes were growing incredibly uncomfortable as they fought against her body's increasing girth. As her body enlarged and reshaped itself, her humanity threatened to crumble.

I can't lose my mind...please, let me still be me...

A stiffness in her fingers prompted her to hold up her hand. For whatever reason, the changes taking place over her digits was suddenly fascinating to her. Her once-sleek fingers seemed chubby and short. They were darkening, and before her very eyes, they seemed to be fusing together. “No! No!” she pleaded, trying to pull them apart, but she was losing the ability to control her individual digits. With a dismayed moan, she watched as the last distinguishing bits of her hand melded together, forming a swiftly-blackening hoof.

“My hands are hooves,” she said to no one in particular.

A jolt in her spine forced her onto all fours. Both her shirt and pants ripped open, quickly followed by her underwear. When her bra snapped, she began to cry.

“Why are you crying?” Holly sang out. By now, she was more cow than person, and her face was so contorted, Kelly was surprised she could still talk.

“I'm becoming four-legged and fat! My body was so perfect, and now it's huge and disgusting!”

Holly giggled, “Yes! We give new meaning to 'fat cow'! I can't wait for my changes to finish!”

“We won't be able to talk,” Lillian moaned.

“But we can moo!” Holly cried jubilantly.

Mark remained slightly removed from them. With a sorrowful expression on his face, he stared down at himself, watching as his body shifted and contorted. Also further along than Kelly, he already possessed the tell-tale black and white fur, but his furry face was still more human than animal. His gaze was fixed on his thickening midsection and the udders that sprouted from it...

“Hey, Mrs. Granjero! Tell Mrs. Riley I do want to calf! If I'm going to be a girl, I want it all!” Larry called out. The last few words came out garbled as his lips were swiftly changing.

“Oh, God, that's disgusting!” Kelly spat, desperately trying to hold back a sob.

“I'll tell her, but it doesn't matter. She's going to be busy calving on her own!”

“This is my worst nightmare.” Kelly groaned as several udders made their appearance.

“I like being fat,” Holly said. “It feels so good...I feel so good...Oh, my GOD! I'm a cowwww.....mmoooooooooo!”

Through her tears, Kelly watched in amazement as Holly, a perfect new cow, bounced around, reveling in her new, large body. After letting out several more joyous moos, she bounded off quite happily. Not soon after, several of the others followed suit.

There are human minds trapped in the heads of those animals, Kelly marveled. And I'm about to join them.

A sorrowful, gentle “moo” came from her left. Kelly turned her enlarging skull to see Mark, now completely bovine. He stood there uncertainly, scraping his new hooves in the dust and shaking his head defeatedly.

“I'm sorry, Mark. I really am.” And then all capacity for speech was lost to her.

How odd it was, walking into the meadow for the first time on her new feet. Kelly hated how big and clumsy her new body felt. She had it in her head to run several miles a day, but, though it might make her more lean, it would have no effect on changing her species.

Lean? Oh, God! She was now essentially a walking hamburger!

Again, tears came to her large eyes as she thought of all the things that could go wrong. If the Granjeros didn't like her, would they ship her off to a meat farm and butcher her? Or, despite her wishes, would they force a bull on her?

A bull...like Ernie?

She watched the others playing and dancing around nearby. They seemed to be enjoying their new forms! Why? Just what were they thinking?

“Girls, if you're done getting used to your new bodies, come on inside. We're going to discuss milking with you!” Mrs. Granjero called from the barn.

With great commotion, the herd thundered over, nearly mowing the smiling woman down. All that was left was Kelly and the cow she knew was Mark. She recognized him by the large black spot on his back, making it appear that he had a saddle.

He was standing still, only his tail swishing slightly. She couldn't imagine just how traumatizing it must be to have one's form and gender changed against one's wishes. She approached, rubbing her head against his side and making noises that, she hoped, sounded sympathetic.

He gazed at her sadly, shaking his head back and forth. She nodded in understanding.

“For whatever reason, after you've been transformed, you need to be milked nearly right away. So I'm going to milk each of you by hand so you see what it feels like. Then we'll try the milking machine. Who's first?”

The cow that pushed itself in front of her could only be Holly. Kelly quickly learned that each cow had a distinct scent which helped her identify them.

Mr, Granjero demonstrated on Holly, explaining each step of the (rather embarrassing) process, and then each animal took its turn.

Kelly stepped up, her anger growing. Someone was going to milk her? She was going to supply milk for some snot-nosed little kid's cereal?

No! She was going to be an Olympic coach! She was going places!

“So I'm putting my hand here–”

Kelly stamped her foot down hard and then lifted it again to push the man away. She'd be damned if she'd let this strange man touch her...down there...

Mr. Granjero pulled away. “Kelly, right?”

She nodded angrily.

“First of all, you're an animal now, not a human female. You have udders.” He yanked at one to make his point, and Kelly sucked in her breath. “You must be milked or it will hurt. A lot.”

Kelly snorted.

“There is a reason people make such good cows. They understand us and they listen to us. Please cooperate. If you're difficult, your scholarship can be revoked.”

She placed down her foot abruptly. She'd gotten this far; nothing was going to keep her from that money!

Gritting her teeth, she allowed the farmer to wipe off her teats with some kind of liquid. “We clean you guys off so no bacteria get into the milk,” he explained. But she didn't care. She felt violated, and it was all she could do not to kick him away as he began to squeeze at her udders.

There was an odd feeling of release at the first spray of milk hit the pail below her. “You make very nice milk, Kelly. Thank you,” Mr. Granjero exulted. “Now let's let you see what the milking machine feels like.”

When the farmer capped the cold metal machine on her udders, she yelped in discomfort. “Oh, you'll get used to it soon. Being a farm animal is really a blast!”

The milk hit the pail, and a tear fell to the ground.

Kelly Binder was a farm animal.

After being milked, Kelly followed the others back into the meadow. The grass looked crisp and tasty under her hooves, and without thinking, she began to devour it.

“I'll just tell you,” Mr. Granjero's voice broke out, “Be prepared. You have a cow's four-chambered stomach now. You'll swallow what you eat pretty quickly, and then it'll come back a second time – that's what chewing your cud's all about. Kind of fun, in a way. I'll chew the same cud for hours at a time... Well, when I'm a cow, that is,” he chuckled, and left them to their grass.

Well, Kelly thought to herself, it's not much of a substitute for gum, but it will have to do.

The days began to pass, and a routine quickly arose. It was a restful, easy existence – Kelly spent much of her time at pasture, munching on grass. Twice a day, she lined up with the group at the barn for milking. At times, particularly when she drank a great deal, she found that she needed to be milked more frequently. As Mr. Granjero had mentioned, the pressure built up inside her until it became painful, and she would go knock on the back door to beg to be milked.

Usually Mrs. Granjero would answer, smiling almost too much, and, side-by-side, they'd go to the barn together.

And the session would always end with, “There, those little udders of yours are all better now, Kelly. Aren't they?”

I've hit a new low, she often thought to herself soon after.

Sometimes Ernie and Bill were allowed to join them, and when Mrs. Granjero asked if anyone else wanted to mother calves, there were several more volunteers, which still horrified Kelly. Mrs. Granjero offered to let the couples go behind the barn for privacy, but none of the volunteers took up her offer. When Bill, the bigger bull, approached the cow that Kelly knew was Latitia, Kelly turned away. She couldn't watch.

Holly, meanwhile, must have been with Ernie immediately after she'd been transformed, because she was clearly with child.

As was Mrs. Riley.

Kelly saw little of Holly and Mrs. Riley, however, because they preferred to be in the company of their “boyfriends”, as Mrs. Granjero called the bulls. Soon there would be others among them that were expecting. Kelly did not envy them in the least – giving birth to a baby that large had to be painful, and there was no way to ask for an epidural. No, it was bad enough she'd been turned into a cow. There was no way she wanted to give birth yet. Especially not in this form!

The days bled into weeks and soon into months. Fall came and went, and the winter was only slightly cooler here in South America. If the Granjeros hadn't keep them abreast of the goings-on in the world by holding occasional meetings, Kelly probably would have completely lost herself in the day-to-day of being a cow.

But these meetings would be quite the sight to behold for an uneducated onlooker. Mrs. Granjero blew a whistle, and, as if spellbound, the herd would file into the main room where they'd once slept as humans. On their own, they lined up side-by-side, some getting down on the floor to rest. But all were quiet, their complete focus on the front of the room where the farmer and his wife spoke.

They often watched the news as well.

As winter gave way to spring, Kelly, although very much aware of her true identity, was more cow than person. She would go for long periods of time without thinking a single thought, and her anger at the farmer and his wife lessened with every passing moment. Being a cow was truly calming her soul.

Holly went into labor early. She grazed beside them, chewing her cud and giving an occasional muffled moan of pain until one of the others retrieved Mr. and Mrs. Granjero.

They both stood over the writhing cow anxiously. “It's too early. You're in pain, Holly?”

Holly nodded up and down, and was led off to the barn. Everyone stood there for what seemed to be hours, listening to her cries of distress. As night set in, Mr. Granjero came out, looking saddened. “Holly miscarried,” he said simply.

Kelly worried about Holly after that. They didn't see her for days, and when she finally joined them, she stood alone, listless and rarely eating. Mr. Granjero found out that she had eaten some pine needles on the edge of the meadow, which apparently led to abortion in cows.

She grew leaner and leaner, and soon she was led away to stay with Ernie.

Mrs. Riley gave birth to a healthy calf, and everyone was happy to welcome it into the herd. She stood proudly, allowing it to nurse, and Kelly felt a strange pang as she viewed the several others who were expecting around her. Not that she wanted to be like them, but she marveled at what her life had become. Admittedly, it was restful and lovely living like this, except for the milking part. There were no cares, no responsibilities, and no one to bother her – again, except for the milkings, of course.

The others gave birth all successfully, and Holly was soon pregnant once more. Kelly spent most of her time in the field side-by-side with Mark. His spirits had risen, and she knew he appreciated her company. She was half-worried that he would choose to give birth, as the more adventurous Larry had. I guess Larry figured he'd do the whole female experience while he had the chance, Kelly thought with a shudder.

But thankfully, Mark hadn't.

And, all too soon, two years were coming to a close. Holly gave birth to a beautiful calf, and she and Ernie paraded around with it in tow. The group began to experience the first twinges of change-back, and the Granjeros herded them back into the communal area. “Let's keep you nice and comfortable as you change,” Mrs. Granjero murmured, tapping at Kelly's back.

“It's an interesting experience,” Mr. Granjero added. “Now that you're calm, watch yourself change. It's fascinating.”

Holly, having transformed first, now was the furthest along. Kelly's eyes remained on the girl as she essentially began to shrink. With every moment, she became more human. For privacy, Mrs. Granjero pulled a sheet from a large pile nearby and threw it over the changing girl, who began to cry.

“What's wrong, Holly?” asked the farmer's wife.

Holly moved her lips, first only making mooing sounds until she had the wherewithal to speak words. “Can't... be person... Need to stay with my baby.”

“You know we'll take good care of your baby.”

Ernie, who had already changed back nearly a day before, stood beside his half-bovine girlfriend. “Holly, they said we can stay with them as long as we want.”

“As cows?”

“If that's what you want.”

“Yes. Yes, please.”

The Granjeros glanced at each other. “Be a person for a bit first, Holly,” said Mr. Granjero. “It's healthier.”

A jolt in Kelly's spine made her yelp, and a sheet was promptly tossed over her. Mark, who was further ahead in his changes, stood beside her protectively as her transformation began in earnest. With some regret, she could feel her tail disappearing. Her large, healthy, strong body, which she had finally grown fond of, began to shrink away, and the thought of going back to a two-legged, lean waif of a human now disgusted her. Plus, the idea of training people for the Olympics now sounded idiotic to her. There were so many better things she could do with her life.

Her beautiful black and white fur was falling out in clumps, and she could feel her face collapsing in on itself. Her large ears were receding, and she already missed her tail.

She gasped as her front legs shortened. When she tried to stand up on two legs, she was so unaccustomed to the stance that she tripped over the sheet and fell to the ground. Mark, now essentially human, threw down his sheet. He caught her with his still-black fingers, and smiled into her face.

“I'm here for you, Kelly,” he merely said.

And with those words, Kelly calmly went through the rest of her changes in his arms.

“Welcome to the debriefing!” Mrs. Riley said, addressing them all.

Kelly, trying to adjust back to her human body, found it hard to sit in her chair. Mark, although just as uncomfortable, sat beside her, looking happier than he'd been in a while.

“So we know you have questions and accusations to make. Here's your chance.” Mrs. Riley folded her arms, and the hands raised.

Mark's was first. “Why did you do this to us?”

Mrs. Riley chuckled. “The Granjeros needed cows.”

“Did they ever find the ones that were lost at sea?” asked Latitia with concern.

“No cows were lost at sea. That was a little white lie to ease you into things, and I apologize for that.

“See, transformed humans are better than animals for so many reasons. Like we said, we can communicate with you, and, we don't know why, but you give far superior milk. This leads to amazing dairy products, which is making the Granjeros rich. And before you criticize them, they're using that money to help the people all over South America to recover from natural disasters such as this.”

Kelly bristled. “So what? You – they – still used us!”

Mrs. Riley didn't even flinch. “We didn't use you. You agreed to work for us for two years, and now we're paying your college tuition. We told you – 'This experience may transform you', and it did.”

Interestingly, not one angry comment was uttered.

“How did they even figure this whole crazy setup out?” asked Larry.

“The Granjeros invented the serum. They're actually scientists. They took turns being cows. They sold their dairy products which became greatly sought after, and the money started piling in. They founded several charities, which Mrs. Granjero had always dreamed of doing, and they contributed their money to so many causes. To keep up the need for the milk, they took on 'volunteers' to be cows, but were soon found out and nearly arrested. So they covered everything up and moved down here. They're doing nothing wrong.”

“What about our babies when we're gone?” said a small voice from the back. Kelly turned to view Holly and Ernie, sitting hand-in-hand.

“You know you can stay as long as you want, Holly. But your babies are no different than regular cows, sadly. We hoped they'd be more intelligent, but there's no difference. They'll live a full, happy life with the Granjeros. Don't worry.

“Now if there are no more questions, I'd like you to pack yourselves up. Your plane leaves tomorrow, and you'll be starting college in the fall, on us. I hope, in the end, this experience has been restful and exhilarating for you.”

Strangely, Kelly realized that her rage of two years prior had completely disintegrated. Her bovine life had been wonderful, and, although she did wish to return to society, she would miss the lazy days munching away in the pasture, Mark at her side. She looked over at him, squirming uncomfortably in his chair, and he placed his hand on hers.

She had a feeling that he would always be at her side.