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bones, the sharp ears and keen fangs. Open up, and let it come out."
    Something shuddered through Carl's body, making him twitch and writhe as if he were having a seizure. He could feel his bones moving, changing shape and angles. Every one was still there, but none were as they had been. Vicious stabbing, tearing pain wracked him and then his skin began to stretch, cracked and split and changed. He opened his mouth to scream in protest, but the sound that emerged was a yowl, a noise such as he had heard from mating cats, fighting cats, wounded and terrified cats. At first, he did not associate it with himself.
    Zyl's voice came again, low and calm. "You're doing it. You're almost there. I've got you. The pain will ease in another heartbeat or two. Let it go; let it be."
    Carl twisted and sprang off the bed, startled to land neatly on four feet, claws extended to find purchase on the loose throw rug at the foot of his bed. He twitched and wiggled, fitting a new body into a new skin, a sleek, taut skin pelted with soft tan hair interspersed with darker dots, double dots with brown rings and near-black centers.
    He looked into the mirror on the closet door and saw himself as he had never seen before. He wanted to speak, but the sounds of words would not come out. He whined and yowled and screeched. He dashed to the mirror and swiped a paw against the glass. The reflected creature did not back off, but raised a parallel paw to meet his. He whined, frustrated, frightened and yet also exhilarated, admiring the gorgeous creature that incredibly was also him. Human thoughts sat awkwardly in the now cat-brain, but a gradual telepathic exchange began to smooth them. He shook his head, blinking.
    Zyl laughed, a soft purring chuckle. "He's beautiful, isn't he? It's okay; you're okay. Take a few minutes, walk around the room, but stay here, close to me. We'll bring you back in a short while, just as soon as you can wear this body like a suit that belongs to you."
    Carl obeyed. After the first step or two, everything worked smoothly. He jumped up on the bed, circled around and jumped back down. He went back to the mirror and lifted to stand on his hind legs, reaching his forelegs as high as he could. He could not quite touch the top of the doorframe.
    He dropped back to all fours and turned toward Zyl. The words would still not shape, but he could partly touch the other man's mind, even with a mixture of cat and human words and concepts tangling in his own. ::I'm like you, but different.::
    Again Zyl chuckled. He spoke aloud at the same time he sent matching thoughts back to Carl. "Yes, I'm cheetah, and you're ocelot. Sometimes they're called the new world cheetah. Both spotted cats, both speedy hunters and unique creatures. Are you ready to change back?"
    Carl nodded, a gesture that felt odd in his feline form.
    "Shut your eyes again and think about your other self. Just ooze and ease and slip back into that shape. It may hurt a little, but not like the first change. Your body knows that one best still."
    There was a moment of disorientation, a feeling of stretching and twisting and adjustment. Then all at once Carl the man was back, standing naked on the now- scrunched up rug, Zyl's hands reaching to clasp his.
    "I still can't quite believe, but I saw, I felt... It hurt like nothing I ever experienced, but once it was done, it felt right...strange but right." He shook his head. "I was beautiful, just like you, though a little bit different. Even though I never was drawn to the ocelots as much as the cheetahs, it fit. Somehow it fit."
    "You probably knew on some subconscious level and maybe feared triggering a change if you spent too much time in proximity to them. I think over time it would have worked on you. It would have been hard, though, and probably scared you shitless. You might have just gone loco."
    That made sense in a way. Carl thought about it. "You may be right. I remember seeing an ocelot that someone had for a pet when I